VOD Archives | Otaku No Culture

Kevin Nash Don’t Want to Be “Lockdown”

This low-fi indie thriller Lockdown nails the lowdown on what can happen when fear gets the better of people.

Uncork’d Entertainment
Available Feb 1st, 2021 on YouTube

Not to be confused with the similarly titled Lock Down coming to HBO Max, there’s another work that deals with the pandemic. Lockdown (formerly COVID-19: Invasion) stars WWE Hall of Famer Kevin Nash (John Wick, The Punisher). This man of few words is out on the hunt!

This low-fi indie thriller nails the lowdown on what can happen when fear gets the better of people. The story written by Micah Lyons shows what if the world could not get a handle on the virus that’s decimating millions. Everyone has been segregated into groups and it’s by their choice to remain sick or not. In this tale, Rex (Nash) and his men plan on killing a bunch of squatters at a high school in the belief that will slow down the spread of covid. But another individual doesn’t want to see his little sister die.

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Terror and Sci-Fi Persist in Portal Runner

Kairos Productions and Terror Films

VOD Release Date:
Dec 10, 2021

Not to be confused with the videogame of the same name, Portal Runner is an intriguing tale of sci-fi terror hell bent on making Christmas for Nolan’s family miserable. This boy (Sloane Morgan Siegel) is sometimes home alone and sometimes not. He can make use of mirrors (charged by a strange quantum device) to hop into a parallel universe. Each is slightly different from the other, and it’s not great when what’s unique in each are exploited.

The holiday theme about families coming together is gently explored in this modestly budgeted film. We see that everything is not always perfect between the 15-year old and his parents.

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Polina, A Magical Journey in Review

This film is interesting enough to captivate, but to hold it needs more than a few expositions to reveal why this young girl is special

Available on VOD
Google Play, VUDU, YouTube Movies

Olias Barco’s A Magical Journey (originally titled Polina tayemnyzia kinostudiyi) is a blend of several familiar young adventures. It sometimes borders on Alice in Wonderland territory such that Polina (Polina Pechenenko), an 11-year-old orphan, ventures from one fairy tale world to another. In this story’s case, it’s jumping from one film world to another to avoid being caught by the wicked witch’s minions.

Taking a slight cue from the first Harry Potter movie, she’s holed up in tiny room in her aunt’s home, a wannabe Cruella, and only has her imagination to keep her sane. She plays with little figures and one day finds mementos from her past. All she has is a torn-up photo of her biological family and a pass to the movie studio her parents once owned. This relative hates the idea she’ll take ownership one day and plans to kill her. Fortunately, she escapes and enters the wondrous world of filmmaking.

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A Demigod or A Demogorgon? Who’s Knocking in Mile Doleac’s Latest?

Oct 15, 2021
Seattle-Tacoma at Varsity 3 and select theatres nation-wide (USA)
Coming to VOD

The Black Forest in Germany cannot be any deadlier in Miles Doleac’s Demigod. There are a lot of simple constructs to like, and even a terror that’s appropriately nuanced at the start before needing to make a full on screen appearance. This actor and sometimes director have a few films made under his wings. Although similar to Hallowed Ground, what’s changed is that the protagonist meets up with an inhuman rather than Native Americans protecting their sacred land.

Robin (Rachel Nichols) and Leo (Yohance Myles) are headed to her grandfather’s cabin to take care of a few things since he’s passed away. Unaware of this woodland’s history, they don’t realize that there could be trouble. After a tense encounter with a hunter (Doleac) and his daughters, they’re suddenly dealing with witches. They summoned the beast some years ago. It’s easy to see he’s mightier than Hercules, and those red piercing eyes…

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How to Catch Peter Rabbit 2

Ed Sum
(the Vintage Tempest)

For more information, please visit the official website.

Coming to PVOD in Canada
Rent it at home July 2!

Not everyone will have seen Peter Rabbit 2. This film may have hopped, skipped or jumped past certain theatres and purists (those who know the source material by Beatrix Potter) are more likely to pass this film series up than try to watch. I enjoy this modern update as it introduces him to a new generation where he’s not quite as rascally as Bugs Bunny and nor is he a Winnie the Pooh.

Thomas McGregor (Domhnall Gleeson) is more or less considered this bunny’s (voiced by James Corden) handler. This film picks up from where the last left off. He married Bea (Rose Byrne) and she proves Pete is “marketable.” Her children’s books about the rabbit are popular enough to get the attention of a huge publisher. She’s being courted to sell the rights so that the bigwigs can send the bunny to places akin to how a certain beagle has become huge for Apple TV. This other series no longer has the same quality as Charles Schultz‘s works.

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Who Minds the Master in Cerebrum?

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Available On Digital HD and
On Demand on May 4, 2021

The idea of transferring the memories to a machine or even to another host in a movie (or television) series is nothing new. The reasons to do so are many, and when the motivation is just, perhaps we may even have a curse for Alzheimer’s! If only the science was real. The movie Cerebrum by the talented Arvi Ragu is a very low-fi approach to examine the ramifications in a modern day setting.

The story is about Tom Davis (Christian James) attempting to reconnect with his estranged father, Kirk (excellently played by James Russo). Any technobabble is left to a minimum and I wished there was more since I’m all for various interpretations in how to preserve the soul (or one’s memories) after death.

This man’s mother died because of the aforementioned condition, and pops just didn’t know how to raise his son on his own. He’s a scientist. Due to the loss of his loved one, he’s tinkered around and may have found the means to save anyone’s memories to a machine. The technology isn’t perfect, and that’s where the son comes in. He comes home since he’s out of work, and volunteers to be a guinea pig. While he’s under the knife, so to speak, he awakens to find dad dead and another victim to which he has to prove his innocence!

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