Tag Archives: Adventure

Dolittle on Home Video, and It Isn’t Eddie Murphy!

7 Apr

Amazon.com: Dolittle [Blu-ray]: Robert Downey Jr., Antonio ...Release Date:
April 7, 2020

Disney’s reimagined Dolittle arrives on home video today, and it could do with some editing to bring down its lengthy run time. I admit to falling in love with the former version starring Eddie Murphy. It was lively, funny and entertaining. His on screen charm made those films a delightful watch.

This newest version with Robert Downey Jr. has a feel of him trying to be a different kind of Sherlock. It’s more adventure than playful. After playing Tony Stark, I’m sure this actor wanted a role other than this egotistical billionaire. That’s the last thing he wants, and I still feel his best performance is as Chaplin. He nailed the pathos of Charlie easily, and tries to do something different for this latest role.

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When the Folklore Doesn’t Hit Home in Netflix’s Spectros

5 Apr

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Anyone who loves the supernatural flavour which comes out of traditional Japan should tune into Spectros right away! The series blends paranormal with breakfast club mentality from three teens–Pardal (Danilo Mesquita), Carla (Mariana Sena) and Mila (Cláudia Okuno)–coming together to deal with the supernatural coalescing in their neighbourhood of Liberdade in São Paulo, Brazil.

Ultimately, this series is the type of cheesy pulp action style fun expected when showrunner Douglas Petrie was a key figure in the production of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

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What Will It Take for Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey to Recoup?

4 Mar

Image result for harley quinn birds of prey posterBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Harley Quinn is a tough nut to crack. When she more or less helped form the Birds of Prey, the question of who is the protagonist and antagonist almost needs to be asked. To save viewers from the confusion, the longer movie title of (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) took too long so say in one breath. And it took far too long for me to finally decide to see this film. I was lucky to see it before it completely disappeared from theatres.

Margot Robbie loves playing the psychiatrist turned psycho killer. That much is certain. If she doesn’t run far enough away from her former shackles–The Talking Heads notwithstanding–she’ll never truly be free.

I remember the television show from decades ago and it generally worked. The movie counts on fans not remembering that iteration and redoes how Harley pretty much helped form the Birds. Unfortunately, this film sadly doesn’t come out as very memorable. It’s more of a setup for later escapades.

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A Day at the Races with Sonic the Hedgehog

25 Feb

Image result for sonic hedgehog poster movieBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

As Sonic the Hedgehog stays ahead in dominating the box office, this movie has everything video game aficionados of the Sega game expects to see. There are fun moments of him jumping around, dodging drones, and saving his friends all while searching for mystic rings that can help him teleport to new worlds. This real world setting may well hint at the next game–should look like if developers want to create Sonic Maximum 3D Overdrive.

The blue speedster is a kid who wants real friendships. When he’s a unique creature others want to exploit, to know who are his allies and enemies requires him to stay ahead of the game. The plot focuses on how to build trust, and that’s terrific. It’s a film meant for kids to enjoy and also take home to cuddle. On Earth, Sonic eventually comes to believe small-town sheriff Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) and his veterinarian wife, Maddie (Tika Sumpter) can help him.

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