head
COMICS   •   MOVIES   •   MUSIC   •   TELEVISION   •   GAMES   •   BOOKS
DVD Review: In The Flesh
  |  

In The Flesh
DVD | Instant
Directed by Jonny Campbell
Created and written by Dominic Mitchell
Starring Luke Newberry, David Walmsley, Harriet Cains, Emily Bevan, Ricky Tomlinson, Steve Evets
BBC Home Entertainment
Release Date: October 8, 2013

In a sleepy north England village, without warning or explanation, thousands of dead people reanimate into zombie form and begin terrorizing the area, as zombies tend to do. In keeping with the traditionalist approach to the impending apocalypse, the government, as well as non-government sanctioned circles strike back. Zombies are hunted and killed by militants. The Pale Wars, as it came to be known, rage on for a few years until it is discovered that the zombies can actually be treated. Medicated and rehabilitated, these “patients” suffering from PDS (Partially Deceased Syndrome) are now ready to be released back into their lives provided they simply adhere to a routine of medication. Thankfully, all of this is told through a series of flashbacks so as not to bore everyone with the familiar zombie origin story. At the end of the day, In The Flesh is about as much about zombies as Halloween is about pumpkins.

To get right down to it, I am tired of zombies. That is not a contrarian statement; I am just bored with them. I gave up The Walking Dead after the first season and can barely handle the barrage of movies and other knock-offs. The character of the zombie itself is pretty pointless, actually. With little more purpose than either “Look out, there’s a zombie. Run!” or “Look out, there’s a zombie. Shoot!” By adding a layer of interest that can only be achieved by bringing back the dead, you have my attention. At the very least it’s something different. For the most part.

...continue reading »
 
DVD Review: The Secret Of Crickley Hall
  |  

The Secret of Crickley Hall
DVD | Instant Video
Directed by Joe Ahearne
Written by Joe Ahearne, James Herbert
Starring Olivia Cooke, Pixie Davies, Iain De Caestecker, Fern Deacon, Suranne Jones, Maisie Williams, Tom Ellis, Douglas Henshall, Sarah Smart
BBC Home Entertainment
Release Date: October 8, 2013

I remember looking through a friend’s DVDs one time and without prompting, he began defending his collection. The shelves filled with dollar bin titles that few beyond the cast, their families, or genre die hards had even heard of. He stopped short of apologizing for the quality of his collection saying he was always on the lookout for a “diamond in the rough,” a movie he could discover on his own beyond the chatter of consensus to proudly wear as a badge of honor when he struck gold. This of course means that for every discovery there were countless other piles of nameless titles that are never again going to be watched. The Secret of Crickley Hall belongs in his collection.

In present day London, an overly tired mother Eve Caleigh (Suranne Jones) reluctantly stops at a playground on the way home from daycare with her son Cam, with whom she has a special relationship (they can communicate without speaking to one another). After closing her eyes for a moment while he plays she wakes up to an empty playground. The frantic search by parents and police are equally unyielding. Cam is nowhere to be found and she can no longer hear him. Nearly a year later, thinking the change in scenery will be good for his wife and daughters Loren (Maisie Williams) and Cally (Pixie Davies), and to distract Eve from the upcoming anniversary of Cam’s disappearance, Gabe (Tom Ellis) suggests the family relocates to northern England for a few months where he has landed a temporary job contract. So they set off, having rented out the overly large Crickley Hall as their home while they are away from London.

...continue reading »
 
Movie Review: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
  |  

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Directed by Jon Turteltaub
Starring Jay Baruchel, Nicolas Cage, Alfred Molina, Teresa Palmer, Toby Kebbell
Release date: July 14, 2010

I’ll save you the suspense. Despite the fact that I don’t find it a particularly good movie, I liked The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. Don’t mistake that for indecision. I think people’s ability to compartmentalize their taste in movies has a direct impact on their enjoyment of movies as entertainment. Saying a movie is bad isn’t the same as saying you didn’t like it. For as evolved as a lot of our taste in movies have become, there are still those inexplicable few that slip through that we like despite every inclination not to. I grew up watching some terrible movies and liked quite a lot of them. Some I still do. I know they are bad, but there is more that goes into liking a movie than knowing it was well made. Nostalgia, perspective, fandom, all of these things can also shape our experience outside of the quality of the film itself. We just like what we like and sometimes there is just no explanation for having a good time watching a movie. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is that experience for me.

...continue reading »
 
Movie Review: The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
  |  

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
Directed by David Slade
Starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner
Rated PG-13
Release date: June 30, 2010

Hailing The Twilight Saga: Eclipse the best of the series isn’t the ringing endorsement it sounds. Hearing that won’t change the minds of any non-believers and if you are already among the following, you aren’t one that needs converting. It most certainly is, but it’s a pretty relative statement.

I have always taken the stance of non-participation in the popular recreation of Twilight bashing. Attacking the mob mentality of these zealots is a bandwagon that would be easy to jump on, but Lord knows I liked some awful movies when I was younger, so I’ve always given the series a fair shake. They haven’t been great, in fact they have been downright ugly at times, but I can see why so many fans like them. A little.

Eclipse starts off pretty promising. Dark and raining in Seattle, a young man is being chased and hunted by something. This is the first time in this series I got the sense that vampires are dangerous and anything but sparkly and cuddly. It turns out to be Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard), who is still hellbent on exacting revenge on Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) for killing her boyfriend James in the first film. Her plan is to find and kill Bella (Kristen Stewart), presumably so Edward can feel what she felt when her boyfriend died. The young man ends up being a college student from Forks, Riley Biers (Xavier Samuel), who is turned and tricked by Victoria into helping her assemble an army of newborn vampires to help take down Bella and the Cullen vampire clan.

...continue reading »
 
Movie Review: The Karate Kid (2010)
  |  

The Karate Kid (2010)
Directed by Harald Zwart
Starring Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan, Taraji P. Henson
Rated PG
Release date: June 11, 2010

The number one stupid complaint people give in the midst of this sequel/remake craze, besides the fact that they shouldn’t do them, is that too many movies from our childhood are being ruined. I never understood that logic. You like the movies you like, for whatever reason it may be. No matter how bad it is, nothing that comes after it is enough to take away whatever it was that made you like it in the first place. The franchise may be tainted, but the movies within that canon that you loved aren’t impacted. For example, if this Ghostbusters 3 movie ever gets off the ground and sucks, the first one will still be a classic.

I’ve reexamined a lot of my favorite movies from my youth lately and realized that a lot of them really aren’t that good. I liked them at the time and that has carried over to me still liking them, but usually for nostalgic reasons. I am unapologetic about it, but truth be told, they are what they are. That said, comparing a current remake to one we hold dear from back in the day doesn’t usually have a fighting chance for that very reason.

Then there’s the new The Karate Kid.

...continue reading »
« Previous Articles
You may have noticed that we're now AD FREE! Please support Geeks of Doom by using the Amazon Affiliate link above. All of our proceeds from the program go toward maintaining this site.
2023  ·   2022  ·   2021  ·   2020  ·   2019  ·   2018  ·   2017  ·   2016  ·   2015  ·   2014  ·  
2013  ·   2012  ·   2011  ·   2010  ·   2009  ·   2008  ·   2007  ·   2006  ·   2005
Geeks of Doom is proudly powered by WordPress.

Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press

Geeks of Doom is designed and maintained by our geeky webmaster
All original content copyright ©2005-2023 Geeks of Doom
All external content copyright of its respective owner, except where noted

This website is licensed under
a Creative Commons License.
About | Privacy Policy | Contact