Reel Reviews - Movie Reviews, blu-ray/DVD reviews

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema, Volume II: Thunder On The Hill (1951) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 23 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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In which the nuns get it done! Thanks to the crackling cinematography of William H. Daniels (Six Bridges to Cross, Harvey, Winchester ‘73) and the performance of Claudette Colbert as Sister Mary who is haunted by the past, Thunder On The Hill roars off the screen with a fury that is relatively unmatched ...

First Cow - Movie Review

Details: Published: 24 July 2020; Written by Frank Wilkins

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Capitalism may have first planted its roots in the wealth centers of the American northeast in the founding days of the country, but the greedy tentacles of supplying the new world’s demand soon enough reached far beyond to such places as the Oregon territories. That's the setting and the narrative drive ...

The Last Five Days - Movie Review

Details: Published: 23 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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The new comedy starring Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson called The Hustle is an almost identical remake of the 1988 classic comedy Dirty Rotten Scoundrels which starred Michael Caine and Steve Martin - itself a remake of Marlon Brando’s Bedtime Story. I say “almost” because ...

Black Rainbow (1991) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 22 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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The mystery! The murder! Corruption inside America’s Bible Belt! That’s the territory of Black Rainbow as writer/director Mike Hodges blends genres, creating a movie that takes on chemical plants and spiritual links to the After Life ...

The Flesh and the Fiends (1960) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 21 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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Make no mistake about it, The Flesh and the Fiends is a righteous horror film, drooping left eye and all, as experimental vivisections rule the day. Lost men! Lost souls! With no apologies issued to the dead, The Flesh and the Fiends begins in a spooktacular fashion as a body is torn free from ...

All Hail The Popcorn King: A Joe R. Lansdale Documentary - Movie Review

Details: Published: 21 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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“Hallowed be thy name, oh Lord, and shotgun do your stuff!” In which the most well-known unknown author steps into the limelight! For ANYONE interested in genre writing, Texas history, and Joe R. Lansdale, All Hail the Popcorn King is the documentary for you ...

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema, Volume IV: Six Bridges To Cross (1955) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 20 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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Because not everyone can be saved. Inspired by the Great Brink's Robbery of 1950, Six Bridges To Cross makes its targets known early: trigger-happy cops and unrepentant criminals. Civil unrest. That’s what happens when a police officer (George Nader) shoots a kid during a robbery ...

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema, Volume IV: An Act of Murder (1948) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 20 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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An Act of Murder, in which a very uncompromising and stubborn judge learns a tough, tough lesson about guilt and morals, is perhaps one of the most forward-thinking film noir offerings in that it comes from the point of view of a man who defends a very strict and outdated view of law and ...

Haunted Honeymoon (1986) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 19 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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...in which the Golden Age of Radio meets the Chiller Comedies of the 1940s. No wonder Haunted Honeymoon was a box office bomb, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be ignored. The film, with over-the-top characters and spooky atmospheres, is damn funny ...

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema, Volume IV: Calcutta (1946) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 17 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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“Two gin slings . . . with ice.” With that famous line, Alan Ladd (Shane) as American pilot, Neale Gordon, begins to fall for Virginia Moore (Gail Russell, The Uninvited). He doesn’t want to, but he can’t help himself. Hell, one look at her engaging beauty and I would, too. Holy cow is she a looker ...