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

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema III: Abandoned (1949) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 04 August 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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Because, sometimes, even babies need the support of the police! Pushing a hard-hitting social commentary, Abandoned - with a colorful set of character names - takes aim at selling unwanted babies as the City of Angels becomes ground zero for black ...

She Dies Tomorrow - Movie Review

Details: Published: 03 August 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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She Dies Tomorrow opens with a close-up of an eyeball. It is, in fact, our lead character’s eyes, and they are full of tears and lights as something incredibly atmospheric and hypnotic takes hold of her vision. This extreme closeup is only the beginning of this incredibly disturbing thriller ...

Breakheart Pass (1975) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 31 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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Sometimes a classic film - or one we now consider a classic of its genre - underwhelms in its original run. This is the curious case of Breakheart Pass, a film that continues - every five years or so - to garner more interest in it as it reaches new audiences thanks to Charles Bronson’s ...

Monstrous - Movie Review

Details: Published: 30 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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The Adirondack Mountains are probably best known for their expansive forests and their treacherously high peaks. There are also many wild rivers and streams perfect for traveling upon found around their bases. Deep and darkly beautiful, this area of wildlife is still relatively primal and untamed ...

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema II: The Female Animal (1958)

Details: Published: 29 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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It is said that when a woman fights for a man, she is like an ANIMAL! Vanessa Windsor (Hedy Lamarr), a spoiled Hollywood star, and her daughter, Penny (Jane Powell), fall head over heels in love with the same man, Chris Farley (George Nader), and they aren’t even aware of the other’s interest in him! Tabloid...

Palm Springs - Movie Review

Details: Published: 31 July 2020; Written by Frank Wilkins

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Hulu and Neon had no way of anticipating the future relevance of the film the pair snatched up at Sundance back in January. Considered quite a risk to shell out $22 million plus for a time-loop romantic comedy anticipated to be a long shot theatrical bet at best and a risky streaming hit ...

See Sharks Attack From the Sky in New Trailer for SKY SHARKS

Details: Published: 29 July 2020; Written by Frank Wilkins

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Remember this one? The long-gestating germ-of-an-idea called Sky Sharks first pinged our radars back in 2016 with a lot of buzz and a short teaser trailer which was soon followed by a series of posters released through the following years. ...

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema, Volume II: The Price of Fear (1956) - Blu-ray Review

Details: Published: 28 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 ...

Invasion Earth - Movie Review

Details: Published: 27 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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Bloody Hell! We’re not but three minutes into Invasion Earth and the lasers are already firing as two scientists flee for their lives after discovering that honest to goodness aliens are, as they mistakenly think, three months away from entering Earth’s orbit. Nope! The suckers are already here ...

Limbo - Movie Review

Details: Published: 26 July 2020; Written by Loron Hays

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Concerning the Afterlife, that’s what comes to mind immediately upon hearing the title of Writer/Director Mark Young’s Limbo. The old bluegrass song, Old Devil, which plays across the title sequence is your next clue as to what this dark comedy is about as a murderer wakes up to find himself ...