Happy Birthday Clint Eastwood. The legendary actor, director and producer turns 93 today. Born May 31, 1930 in San Francisco, California, the acclaimed filmmaker has had a remarkable career winning four Academy Awards and having been nominated a total of eleven times. Movies he has directed have earned a total of 41 Oscar nominations.

Eastwood’s big break came in 1958 when he was cast as Rowdy Yates on the CBS television Western series “Rawhide”. In 1963 he landed the lead role in “A Fistful of Dollars”, a landmark Spaghetti Western directed by Sergio Leone. Eastwood and Leone would collaborate for two more films, “For a Few Dollars More” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”. The trilogy made Eastwood a bonafide movie star and his career would skyrocket from there.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s Eastwood would both star and direct several Westerns, action comedies, dramas, war movies and psychological thrillers. And he continued to give us memorable characters from Harry Callahan to Josey Wales to Preacher. He didn’t slow down in the 1990s and the 2000s, delivering strong nuanced performances in movies like “Unforgiven”, “Million Dollar Baby” and “Gran Torino”. In the 2010s he kept working behind the camera, directing “J. Edgar”, “American Sniper”, “Sully”, and “Richard Jewell” among others. And this year he’s directing his 41st and final feature film, “Juror No. 2”.

That only skims the surface on what has been one of the greatest careers in cinema history.

Well Go USA Entertainment has announced the upcoming release of “The Tank”, a crafty horror thriller/ creature feature from director, writer, and producer Scott Walker. The film stars Luciane Buchanan and Matt Whelan as a couple who move to the country with their young daughter after inheriting a cottage along some Oregon coastal property. They make a discovery that allows Walker to show his clear love for the horror genre. You can read my full review of the film HERE .

The new Blu-ray and DVD editions of “The Tank” will release on June 27th, 2023. See below for a full synopsis and breakdown of the bonus features.

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS:

Year: 2023

Rating: R (Some violence/bloody images and brief language)

Runtime: 100 Minutes

Director: Scott Walker

Screenwriter: Scott Walker

After unexpectedly inheriting a mysteriously abandoned coastal property, Ben packs up his family and travels to explore the place, bewildered about why his mother had never mentioned its existence. However, her reason for secrecy soon becomes clear when the family accidentally frees the ancient, long-dormant creature that had terrorized the entire region for generations—including Ben’s own parents.

“THE TANK” stars Luciane Buchanan (“The Night Agent,” “The New Legends of Monkey“, “Filthy Rich“), Matthew Whelan (“Narcos“, “American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story”), Zara Nausbaum (“The Other Side of Heaven 2: Fire of Faith“) and newcomer Regina Hegemann as the creature.

Bonus content includes the behind-the-scenes featurettes “A Look into The Tank” and “Making the Creature.”

Walt Disney Studios has released a collection of new character posters for their highly anticipated “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”. The film recently premiered at the Cannes Film Festival where it was met with mixed reviews from critics. But franchise fans remain excited for the long awaited return of everyone’s favorite treasure-hunting, tomb-raiding, Nazi-evading, archeologist.

Harrison Ford returns to one of his most iconic roles for one last adventure. Created by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman and brought to life by Ford, Indiana Jones is a character beloved by fans across the globe. This fifth and final installment of the franchise is directed by James Mangold and sees Indy meeting some old friends and facing several new enemies. He’s joined but a fun cast that includes Mads Mikkelsen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Antonio Banderas, John Rhys-Davies, Toby Jones, Shaunette Renee Wilson, Thomas Kretschmann, Boyd Holbrook, and more.

These all-new character posters look great and feature many of the characters. But any devoted Indy fan has to ask…Where’s Sallah????

The more I see of “Barbie” the more unsure I am about it. Based on the popular fashion dolls by Mattel, “Barbie” certainly seems to capture the goofy and playful spirit you might expect from such an undertaking. But with every new look we get I still find myself wondering if it’s going to be a bit too much. Like a sensory overload of bright pastels and overt silliness. The “main trailer” dropped today and it only cemented my feelings.

But as I’ve said before, in Greta I trust. Greta Gerwig is indeed directing from a script she co-wrote with Noah Baumbach. That alone is enough to get me onboard. The film’s star, Margot Robbie certainly looks, sounds, and acts the part of Barbie. The jury is still out of Ryan Gosling as Ken. Regardless there’s enough in the trailer to entice me to see it. Now here’s to hoping it delivers. We won’t have to wait long to find out.

“Barbie” hits theaters July 21st. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

Well Go USA Entertainment has announced the release of “Sakra”, the wuxia action film directed by, produced by, and starring international fan favorite Donnie Yen. Based on Louis Cha’s classic novel “Demi-Gods and Semi-Gods”, the film sees Yen teaming up with co-stars Chen Yiqi, Cya Liu, Kara Wai, Wu Yue, Eddie Cheung, and Grace Wong. Fans of Yen and/or wuxia will love this action-packed, visually stunning, big-budget feature.

The new Blu-ray and DVD editions of “Sakra” hits shelves on June 13th, 2023. See below for a full synopsis and breakdown of the bonus features.

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS:

Year: 2023

Rating: R

Runtime: 131 Minutes

Directed by: Donnie Yen

Screenplay by: Sheng Lingzhi, Zhu Wei, He Ben, Chen Li, Shen Lejing, Xu Yifan

When a respected martial artist is accused of murder, he goes on the run in search of answers about his own mysterious origin story and the unknown enemies working to destroy him.

Action icon Donnie Yen returns to the director’s chair for the first time in nearly two decades, while also playing the lead role, in the martial arts wuxia adventure “SAKRA“, which debuts on Blu-ray^™ and DVD June 13 from Well Go USA Entertainment. The film is available on digital now. Based on the classic wuxia novel “Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils” by Louis Cha (known worldwide by his pen name Jin Yong), “SAKRA” stars Donnie Yen as Qiao Feng, respected leader of a roving band of martial artists called the Beggars’ Sect. After he is wrongfully accused of murder and subsequently exiled, Qiao Feng goes on the run in search of answers about his own mysterious origin story—and the unknown enemies working to destroy him from the shadows. With action direction by Kenji Tanigaki (Raging Fire, Enter the Fat Dragon, Snake Eyes), “SAKRA” also stars Yuqi Chen, Eddie Cheung, and Yase Liu.

Bonus content includes a “Making-of” featurette.

Cohen Media Group has announced the home video release of renowned filmmaker François Ozon’s affecting adult drama “Everything Went Fine”. Based on a memoir by the late Emmanuèle Bernheim that chronicled her own experience with her father’s death, the film tells a richly human story while taking on some heavy subject matter with warmth and sensitivity. It’s driven by a brilliant lead performance from Sophie Marceau – one of the year’s best. Read my full review of the film HERE.

The Blu-ray and DVD editions of “Everything Went Fine” are NOW AVAILABLE. See below for a full synopsis of this must-own feature film.

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS:

Year: 2023

Rating: NR

Runtime: 112 minutes

Language: French with English subtitles

Directed and Written By François Ozon
Starring: Sophie Marceau, André Dussollier, Géraldine Pailhas, Charlotte Rampling, Éric Caravaca 
Produced by: Éric et Nicolas Altmayer
Cinematographer: Hichame Alaouie
Set Design: Emmanuelle Duplay
Edited By Laure Gardette

From François Ozon (“8 Women”, “Swimming Pool”) comes a powerful family drama in which a daughter is forced to reconcile with her father and their shared past after he contacts her with a devastating final wish. When André (André Dussollier) suffers a debilitating stroke and calls on his daughter Emmanuèle (Sophie Marceau) to help him die with dignity, she finds herself faced with a painful decision.

Based on Emmanuèle Bernheim’s memoir and an Official Selection of the Cannes Film Festival, Everything Went Fine’s matter-of-factness elicits moments of humor that renders an otherwise weighty topic accessible. Steering clear of the moral arguments such issues often raise, the film instead focuses on the reckoning Emmanuéle has with her stubborn and unrelenting father and how to help him, with Ozon tackling a difficult subject with exceptional intelligence and sensitivity. Featuring stunning central performances by Marceau and Dussollier as well as a scene-stealing cameo by Charlotte Rampling as André’s ex-wife.