Tag: Crime

Crane Wilbur’s “The Bat” and Clinging to the Classics

The written essay is a perfect companion because it focuses on The Bat as it’s changed throughout its various adaptations from story to play. 

The Bat
Available to order on Amazon USA

The Film Detective

During the Silent Film era, Crane Wilbur was well known for his wide variety of works, namely The Perils of Pauline. But for horror enthusiasts, he’ll always be remembered for House of Wax. Before this film was ever made, he worked with Vincent Prince on The Bat, a crime-thriller.

The mini-documentary included in this release is a love letter to the auteur, and his relationship with this actor. After viewing the featurette that explains his influence on scary cinema, I think I’ll have to start looking at those films rarely spoken of today. Ballyhoo Motion Pictures presented a very convincing argument in why we must respect this filmmaker’s other works.

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Joe Koy’s Easter Sunday in October. It’s Not Strange At All.

This character study about the inner workings of this Polynesian family in the movie Easter Sunday isn’t too deep. It’s at least entertaining.

15164
Available to purchase on Amazon

Joe Valencia (stage name Jo Koy) is a comedic talent worth noting because he cites two comedy legends—Robin Williams and Steve Martin—as huge influences. Both made successful transitions to the big screen, and to be on par in Easter Sunday will take a lot more work.

He can do it. This movie sees him getting top billing, and its success must go beyond being a family sitcom about a Filipino household coming together for their Asian style holiday. The theatrical release in August and home video issue in Oct is unusual, but I welcomed this change of pace. The bonus material is nothing to rave about, and the best takeaway is that it was filmed during the pandemic. As for what it took to bring two of my favourite entertainers to this production, I was hooked.

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The Bad Guys are Wild and Crazy!

The Bad Guys Movie PosterSomeone wants to bust out DreamWorks Animation‘s The Bad Guys from jail. This animated film continues one of this studio’s goals of adapting wildly successful children’s novels to film, and Aaron Blabey‘s original work is well worth investigating after seeing this cinematic adaptation. They may explain the finer points of why these rowdy masters of crime have turned good. There’s fifteen books to show why!

Not even Michael Jackson can sing the praises of a wolf in sheep’s clothing, maybe. That‘s due to Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell) seeing the light. This film might as well be a behavioural study of more than just one criminal. This leading character comes from the Canis genus. As most dog owners know, when their beloved pet wags their tail, they’re very appreciative of the attention they’re getting. When Mr. Wolf finds his own tail acting on its own rather than crooked, we get a wonderful look at why doing good deeds matter. No matter how hard he tries to disguise his gang’s actions as being bad, there’s a measure of good intent nestled in all their actions.

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Is Anyone Excited for the New Rescue Rangers?

The new Rescue Rangers trailer doesn’t add to what’s currently known about the film.

Chip 'N Dale: Rescue Rangers Official New Trailer Released by Disney+Coming to Disney Plus

The new Rescue Rangers trailer doesn’t add to what’s currently known about the film, and not everyone is open to seeing this fond property from their youths modernised. Some works stand the test of time and others don’t need the 21st century upgrade. The duo have gone their separate ways, and it’s tough to say if they’re better off for it. Chip (now voiced by John Mulaney) seems to be set in the past, and Dale (Andy Samberg), however new that he is (that is, he’s rendered in 3D), the fact he’s doing conventions to make ends meet suggests that not even he can move forward to doing new projects. 

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Donnie Yen is Raging Fire

Raging FireBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Available to purchase on Amazon USA

The difference between the cop-type characters Donnie Yen has played over the years lays with how gentle he is or just how much Raging Fire he has. This film made a proper debut in the summer of 2021 and it didn’t take long for it to make it over to North America. The home video release has a bonus which looks at the making of this exciting film!

Although we’re getting a direct to home video release, I’d go see this film on the big screen. Before the pandemic, the last film I saw of Yen’s was Enter the Fat Dragon, and it was worth every effort to visit the only cinema (in Vancouver) that screened it. This film takes advantage of that big screen presentation in the climax when we see him deal with his protege Ngo (Nicholas Tse), who turned bad, in true Batman-like fashion. Can he brutally hurt his nemesis or let him live to face justice?

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