The Final Countdown (1980) – Don Taylor

A couple of years before Top Gun put us in the pilot seat of the F-14 Tomcat, The Final Countdown had the full cooperation of the U.S. Navy and delivered some stunning aerial photography in this classic time travel film. Boasting performances by Martin Sheen, Kirk Douglas, James Farentino, Katharine Ross and Charles Durning, I…

Batman (1967) – The Joker’s Last Laugh, and The Joker’s Epitaph

The Joker (Cesar Romero) is back, and he’s ready to cause more problems for Batman (Adam West) and Robin (Burt Ward) in this two-part episode. The first one, The Joker’s Last Laugh, first aired on 15 February, 1967 and was written by Lorenzo Semple Jr. from a story by Peter Rabe. It seems the wealthy…

Batman (1967) – Batman’s Anniversary, and A Riddling Controversy

The Riddler is back, but with Frank Gorshin still in contract negotiations, they recast him… with John Astin. And as much as I love Astin and his style, his look and his delivery, he simply can’t compare to Gorshin’s manic delivery. I’m all for Astin making a guest appearance in the series, but maybe they…

Timecop (1994) – Peter Hyams

Director Peter Hyams pairs up with Jean-Claude Van Damme in this big-screen adaptation of the Dark Horse comic. Co-starring Ron Silver, Mia Sara, Gloria Reuben and one of my favourite character actors, Bruce McGill, this is probably the Van Damme film I enjoy the most. Max Walker (Van Damme) is a street cop who’s just…

Deep Blue Sea (1999) – Renny Harlin

This one is for my friend Lindsay, who insists this is a better shark movie than Jaws, and yet it can’t help but make a number of references to it, not the least of which is a familiar-looking licence plate. Director Renny Harlin does, for the most part, deliver a fairly solid thriller though even…

Hill Street Blues (1986) – Two Easy Pieces, and Say It as It Plays

Belker (Bruce Weitz) is working undercover and things go unexpectedly on the night he and Robin (Lisa Sutton) are supposed to get married. Two Easy Pieces was written by Jacob Epstein, Dick Wolf, and Robert Ward from a story by Jeffrey Lewis, Walon Green, and David Milch. It was first broadcast on 9 January, 1986….

1923 – Season 1 Blu-Ray Review

Taylor Sheridan has built a bit of an entertainment juggernaut with his Yellowstone series. It already had one limited series spinoff with 1883, and now Paramount Canada delivers the second one, 1923, on physical media, making it available on both DVD and Blu-Ray. 1923 continues exploring the story of the Dutton family as they run…

Hard Target (1993) – John Woo

John Woo movies are great to watch, though some are tougher to get through than others. His first North American effort, Hard Target, with Sam Raimi at his side to help if needed, could have been something really special if the film had a lead who could act. Jean-Claude Van Damme stars in the film,…