BRIAN ORNDORF

Author: BO

  • Film Review – Penny Lane is Dead

    “Penny Lane is Dead” is an Australian production, and a particularly vicious one. Making her feature-length debut as a writer/director is Mia-kate Russell, and she’s in an aggressive mood, paying tribute to the harshness of exploitation cinema from the 1970s with the picture, recalling days of drive-in cinema horrors where characters went feral and violence was potent. Russell isn’t completely committed to bleakness with the offering, but she gets close enough, asking viewers to sit through a revenge story that’s big on awful characters doing horrible things. “Penny Lane is Dead” is pitiless work, and not an endeavor that’s easily digested, but for genre fans who enjoy harder edges to their presentations of pain, Russell is certainly interested in delivering a hostile effort that doesn’t allow for much hope. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – The Deb

    Actress Rebel Wilson makes her directorial debut with “The Deb,” in charge of guiding a 2022 Australian musical to the screen. A thespian of debatable appeal, Wilson takes more responsibility this time around, overseeing the exaggerated energy of the material, which is a riff on “Mean Girls,” which also enjoyed a musical adaptation. The Aussie setting is appealing, helping to bring a different atmosphere to the endeavor, but the writing is as routine as it gets, with Hannah Reilly adapting her own book, challenged to transform characters built for the stage into cinematic personalities. “The Deb” is enthusiastically performed at times, but Wilson has difficulty managing surges of obnoxiousness and predictability. The music video construction of musical numbers is also a dispiriting, limiting the natural joy of performance the production is counting on to help reach viewers. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • 4K UHD Review – Outbreak

    If you were a film fan in the mid-1990s, you were probably aware of a seemingly sudden Hollywood rush to create a virus-based thriller. There were two competing projects, and 1995’s “Outbreak” managed to piece itself together faster than “The Hot Zone,” able to kill off the competition (which would eventually be made as a television miniseries in 2019) as Warner Brothers slammed their project through the production process, determined to be first an only endeavor exploring the ravages of illness and the fight from medical and military professionals to save lives. Big money was spent to secure such positioning, and such creative speed shows in the finished picture, with screenwriters Laurence Dworet and Robert Roy Pool delivering an exaggerated take on disease-based horror, twisting real-world threats into thriller position, and awkwardly so at times. Director Wolfgang Petersen (coming off his excellent 1993 Clint Eastwood picture, “In the Line of Fire”) isn’t tasked with creating hospital corners with the project, asked to generate a swiftly paced understanding of threats. The helmer understands the assignment, delivering screen energy for “Outbreak” as it sprints around troubles and complications for the characters. It’s a very silly film, but it’s also grandly entertaining for its first 90 minutes, watching Petersen keep things on the move as catastrophe comes for all. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – Badge 373

    The grand success of 1971’s “The French Connection” took many by surprise. The thriller was pulled out of simple genre expectations by director William Friedkin, who delivered a powerful and occasionally lively study of an obsessive cop and his rough way of doing business. The feature wasn’t just an enormous hit, but also a respected one, collecting several Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Producer/director Howard W. Koch and screenwriter Pete Hamill were soon sent into action to replicate the commercial and critical triumph of “The French Connection,” tasked with bringing another tale of NYC cop Eddie Egan and his war against crime to the big screen. 1973’s “Badge 373” isn’t officially connected to its 1971 inspiration, but the picture doesn’t want viewers to know that, moving ahead with a study of a driven lawman hunting for a top criminal around a volatile urban location. Instead of Gene Hackman, there’s Robert Duvall. And instead of nail-biting suspense and concentrated detective atmosphere, there’s pure sluggishness from Koch, who can’t find excitement or intensity with the overall slackness of “Badge 373.” Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – Grafted

    Co-writer/director Shasha Rainbow makes her helming debut with “Grafted.” The film comes armed with all kinds of ghoulish imagery tied to the concept of stolen identity through the exchange of flesh, and it comes after “The Substance” managed to impress critics and do some box office business with its arrangement of body horror. Similarities are noted but not hurtful, as Rainbow tends to find her own personality in the picture, which delivers a gruesome understanding of one Chinese woman’s way with skin grafting science and all the blood that needs to be spilled to find biological success. “Grafted” is graphic and gross, also sharply made by Rainbow, who follows her dark heart in the movie, organizing a mess of evildoing and revenge, looking to deliver a case of the icks with viewers in the mood for something squishy and sick. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – Humane

    One has to wonder what the holidays are like in the Cronenberg household. Iconic director David Cronenberg has generated a family business with his offspring, as son Brandon has helmed three pictures (including 2023’s “Infinity Pool”), and now daughter Caitlin makes her feature-length directorial debut with “Humane,” building on her celebrated photography career. Keeping up with her father and brother, Caitlin offers her own slice of doom with the endeavor, which follows the events of a special family gathering during the ecological collapse of Earth, studying relationships and hostilities while facing an impossible time of decision and accusation. “Humane” is a dark comedy, a funny one at times, and Cronenberg shows skill with performances and tone, going to some rather bleak places cooked up by screenwriter Michael Sparaga. It’s a bizarre film, but one that holds attention with its sinister sense of humor and authentic sense of sibling resentment, which launches a most askew thriller. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – Insidious: Out of the Further

    Financially, the “Insidious” franchise rebounded with 2023’s “Insidious: The Red Door,” which became the highest grossing entry in a series that began all the way back in 2011. Something about connecting the sequel to the original pushed people into theaters, but creatively, the chapter was a limp study of horror, out to be more of a family drama with little suspense to save it. The Lambert Family saga appears to have come to an end, positioning “Insidious: Out of the Further” as a new direction for demon troublemaking, and there’s a different director as well, with Jacob Chase (“Come Play”) taking control of the premise, also claiming a screenplay credit. And he does an admirable job finding terror again, working with a lively story of “further” combat while managing several effective sequences of fright. “Out of the Further” is the best “Insidious” since the first picture, with Chase showing imagination and a love of creepiness as he fights to keep the brand name going. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – Spa Weekend

    Writer/directors Jon Lucas and Scott Moore scored a big hit with 2016’s “Bad Moms,” enjoying audience interest in crude R-rated comedies at the time, charming the masses with exaggerated shenanigans. The duo returned with 2017’s “A Bad Moms Christmas,” and less people were interested in strained silliness. After bombing with 2019’s “Jexi,” Lucas and Moore are back on familiar ground with the very “Bad Moms”-esque “Spa Weekend,” which once again puts the helmers in command of wackiness aimed at a specific audience demographic. There should be fun in a tale of four women trying to understand inner peace and go a little crazy during a birthday weekend trip to a beach resort, but Moore and Lucas bungle the effort, relying on stale humor and painful antics meant to pass as outrageousness in this dreary endeavor. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – Mutiny

    In 2023, director Jean-Francois Richet scored an unexpected box office success with “Plane,” starring Gerard Butler and Micke Colter. The picture offered excitement and a pleasing directness with its mid-budget thrills, helping it to stand out in a subgenre that’s filled with plodding duds. While a sequel was attempted, it didn’t come together, with Richet turning his attention to “Mutiny,” which hopes to carry the same atmosphere as “Plane,” once again following a resourceful character as he tries to save lives during a tense situation involving persistent villains. Instead of Butler, there’s Jason Statham, who rarely says no to a script and doesn’t have interest in varying his characterization, once again going growly and steely with this “Die Hard”-on-a-ship offering, which is reasonably gripping with action elements, but sorely lacking personality. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – It Ends

    Writer/director Alex Ullom makes his filmmaking debut with “It Ends,” and he tries to create something mysterious and thought-provoking on a very tiny budget. It’s a story about four characters dealing with the insanity of purgatory while driving along a rural road to nowhere, and the writing rarely lets the gang out of their car during the run time. There’s pain and punishment in the material, and while Ullom teases a horror-esque approach to the story, he ultimately pulls away from frights to generate a type of mystery and character study concerning young people trying to make sense of their past, present, and future. “It Ends” will be catnip to some due its interpretive ways, but the puzzle isn’t always compelling. Ullom doesn’t construct a swell of suspense to really support the viewing experience, but he scores with ideas and various points of pressure on the foursome as they battle against the melting of their minds. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – Hearts of Darkness: The Making of The Final Friday

    When “Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday” opened in 1993, not a lot of people cared. The picture, while made for very little money, didn’t light up the box office, and fans of the “Friday the 13th” series generally rejected an attempt to take Jason out of the franchise. The purpose of “Hearts of Darkness: The Making of ‘The Final Friday’” is to restore the endeavor’s reputation, with producer Adam Marcus aiding in the construction of a documentary that celebrates how creative Adam Marcus is. Director Michael Felsher embarks on a mission to detail the construction of the 1993 release, leading with Marcus’s immersion in the world of film production at such a young age, tasked with pulling the “Friday the 13th” brand out of a financial tailspin. He offered something at least slightly different from the norm, and 33 years later, Marcus is ready to finally take a victory lap for all his labor. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – Scarlet Warning 666

    Palmer Rockey had a dream. He wanted to be a filmmaker, attempting to make his own movies on his own terms, pulling together a schedule and inspiration whenever he could arrange it. 1974’s “Scarlet Warning 666” (a.k.a. “It Happened One Weekend,” “Love is Deep Inside”) represents at least part of Rockey’s vision, and he accepts most technical credits on the endeavor, along with a starring role for an offering he also wrote and directed. One could easily list the effort as a vanity project, as every frame is basically dedicated to reinforcing Rockey’s physical appearance and witty writing, but “Scarlet Warning 666” is more than that. It’s a presentation of genuine panic, with the mastermind attempting to forge a story out of a personal collection of footage shot over many years and many attempts. Rockey flails with the endeavor, but he’s not giving up on his one wish to make a cinematic adventure, presenting a study of storytelling madness that will either test the patience of even the most adventurous cult film explorer or make them dizzy with delight. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – V/H/S/Halloween

    The “V/H/S/” franchise feels unstoppable at this point, with “V/H/S/Halloween” the fifth consecutive installment since 2021, and the eighth feature overall. That’s a lot of short films created by enthusiastic writers and directors, but now the franchise takes on Halloween frights for the first time, moving far away from the cosmic terror of 2024’s “V/H/S/Beyond.” There are six chapters in the new offering, and most seek to squeeze as much flavor as possible out of the spooky season, supplying tales of trick or treating gone wrong, while the rest look to get a little more hostile with their frights. As with all of these movies, the segments vary in quality, but “V/H/S/Halloween” has a real issue with tonal consistency, creating a rough viewing experience as the picture goes for silliness at times, also interested in detailing absolute viciousness, including the torture of children. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Blu-ray Review – Hallow Road

    Babak Anvari, the director of “Under the Shadow,” “Wounds,” and “I Came By,” goes minimalist for his latest, “Hallow Road,” which is scripted by William Gillies. The picture mostly takes place during a single panicked car ride, tracking growing concern from the parents of a young woman who’s involved in an accident on a long stretch of forest road. It’s a race to reach the scene, but Gillies has something more in mind for the endeavor, which develops into a study of marital ties, guardianship, and trauma as the miles tick by for the main characters. “Hallow Road” is not a major production, running just 74 minutes (before end credits), and it could very well work more interestingly on the stage. However, tension remains in the feature, as Anvari keeps his actors nicely agitated and Gillies provides an acceptable mystery to solve as the long drive develops new emotional challenges. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – The Wrong Girls

    Dylan Meyer made a nice impression with her co-writing credit on 2021’s “Moxie,” creating a fulfilling book adaptation that also celebrated the ways of feminism and adolescent spirit with care. Meyer now upgrades to a directorial career, making her debut with “The Wrong Girls,” which tries to become a Cheech & Chong comedy for a new generation. The helmer (who also scripts) attempts to make a very silly picture, filling the effort with wacky encounters and a sustained use of marijuana to help lubricate goofballery. There’s a lot of bigness in the offering, but almost nothing translates into actual laughs, and even the film’s finest moments merely extract a faint smile. “The Wrong Girls” should be a riot, but Meyer has the wrong Cheech & Chong in Kristen Stewart and Alia Shawkat, who fail to conjure chemistry and deliver silliness as they fumble through this extremely tired endeavor. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – The End of Oak Street

    After scoring a minor hit with the 2015 horror film, “It Follows,” writer/director David Robert Mitchell attempted to land a funkier follow-up with 2018’s “Under the Silver Lake,” which failed to attract much box office attention or critical love, evolving into a cult title for some. The pictures were smaller in scale and budget, and now Mitchell hopes to play in the Hollywood big leagues with “The End of Oak Street,” launching a blockbuster offering that features plenty of visual effects and heated moments of endurance. It’s a big summer movie from co-producer J.J. Abrams, but Mitchell isn’t interested in taking it easy on viewers. The helmer gives “The End of Oak Street” an inviting level of danger to go with its Spielbergian ways, and he’s mindful of emotional needs as the characters face personal problems while trying to remain one step ahead of a dinosaur invasion. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – Don’t Say Good Luck

    We’re now in the era of Sandler expansion, with Adam Sandler’s daughters embarking on their own acting careers after the success of 2023’s “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah,” which delivered some of the best reviews production company Happy Madison has ever enjoyed. Sadie Sandler went off to make her own crude college comedy in “Roommates,” which turned away from the sincerity of “Bat Mitzvah,” determined to be a rougher ride of R-rated humor. Sunny Sandler is going the softer route with “Don’t Say Good Luck,” taking the lead role in a study of high school musical theater and crushing family issues, with the whole thing meant to extract tears from viewers. Heartbreak is big in the movie, and co-writer/director Julia Hart (“I’m Your Woman”) mostly earns the emotional response, moving carefully with this tender study of the arts and complicated relationships. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – Nimrods

    When Metallica made a movie, they elected to create a city riot to accentuate the thunderous ways of their music. When Foo Fighters had their chance to create a film, the group decided to act in their very own horror picture, bringing their screwball sense of humor to genre entertainment. Now Green Day is giving cinematic representation a chance, and while they certainly have the financial means to generate an epic of some shape, the band elects to stay true to their origins and deal with the feistiness of the adolescent experience. “Nimrods” remains with teenage interests, putting writer/director Lee Kirk to work generating a road trip scenario for a three young men trying to change their frustrating lives through music. The helmer doesn’t have anything profound to share about boyhood urges, but “Nimrods” is entertaining enough, getting far on restless energy while Green Day and other artists keep the soundtrack shaking along with hits. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – The Rivals of Amziah King

    Writer/director Andrew Patterson impressed some with his 2020 debut, “The Vast of Night.” It was an unusual viewing experience, and apparently not a fluke for the helmer, who returns with “The Rivals of Amziah King,” which is also an extremely odd movie. For his latest, Patterson examines the rough and tumble ways of the honey business, assessing the fight for market dominance as crime and punishment enters what’s initially believed to be a peaceful industry. Patterson has a mood he wants for the feature, and that involves numerous musical performances, adding a distinctly folksy twang to the production between hits of criminal activity and revenge plotting. “The Rivals of Amziah King” is a very idiosyncratic endeavor, and Patterson asks a lot of his audience with a 130-minute-long run time, but he maintains a strange flavor to his filmmaking, and acting can’t be beat, helping to realize cultural touches and atypical emotions spinning around this offering. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

  • Film Review – PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie

    “PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie” is the third big screen endeavor for the animated franchise, with the other two pictures (released in 2021 and 2023) managing to slightly impress with scale and interest in generating an action-packed good time for younger viewers and their multiplex guardians. The recipe mostly remains the same for the new film, keeping up with the main characters and their sworn duty to rescue those in need. “The Dino Movie” makes a knowing creative choice to add big creatures to the mix, looking to tempt kids with this combination of brightly colored adventure sequences and dinosaur activity, including plenty of cuteness. As with the other installments, there’s no significant effort to generate a meaningful viewing experience, but it does deliver enough screen activity to pass, along with adding a few new characters to keep things reasonably interesting. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com