Willow Creek DVD Short Review

4 stars for this engaging and tense found-footage film.

Willow Creek is written and directed by Bobcat Goldthwait (God Bless America, Sleeping Dogs Lie) and quite magnificently only has two main characters, Jim (Bryce Johnson - Sleeping Dogs Lie, God Bless America) and Kellie (Alexie Gilmore - World's Greatest Dad, Labor Day).

This young couple are following in the footsteps of the famous Patterson Gimlin expedition of 1967, as they head out into the wilderness to attempt to secure footage of a Bigfoot.

Despite her skepticism, Kellie has agreed to accompany Jim on his quest to make a documentary about this most elusive of creatures. Together, they strike out along the "Bigfoot Byway" heading for Bluff Creek where Bigfoot was spotted and on to Willow Creek, where they find a small but thriving tourist industry built around the legend of the Sasquatch.

After a series of highly entertaining interviews with the locals and an impromptu song performed by Tom Yamarone, the couple take their tent and head off away from civilization, where they quickly realize that this may not have been the best idea.

Read the rest of the review over at Road Rash Reviews.

August: Osage County Short Review

5 stars of some of the best acting you will ever see.
August: Osage County is written by Tracy Letts (Killer Joe, Bug) and directed by John Wells (The West Wing, Shameless).
The film tells the story of one extremely dysfunctional family, the parents of which still live in the dusty and inhospitable Osage County, Oklahoma. The mother, Violet Weston (Meryl Streep - The Devil Wears Prada, The Hours) is suffering from mouth cancer and is hopelessly addicted to many kinds of pills. The father, Beverley Weston (Sam Shepard - Klondike, Black Hawk Down) drinks far too much and, despite his love for her, is struggling to deal with his wife. Ivy (Julianne Nicholson - Kinsey, Law And Order: Criminal Intent) is the only one of the children to have remained.
When Beverley goes missing, Barbara (Julia Roberts - Notting Hill, Erin Brockovich), his daughter, turns up to help in the search, along with her estranged husband Bill (Ewan McGregor - Trainspotting, Big Fish) and their daughter Jean (Abigail Breslin - Ender's Game, Signs).
But when his body is found with his boat, a possible suicide, the rest of the family turn up to attend the funeral and to support Violet, after a fashion.

Read the rest of the review over at Road Rash Reviews. 

One Piece Collection 6 Short Review

5 stars of hilarious swashbuckling action with the Straw Hats.
Collection 6 begins immediately after the events of the Alabasta Saga (see One Piece Collection 5), with a short selection of one off episodes, each focusing on a different member of the crew, known as the Post-Alabasta Arc. For me the best one of these involves Sanji teaching a young marine apprentice (and fellow believer in the Great All Blue) to make curry, but hey, we all have our favourites.
After a little light relief, we get straight back to it, and into the next Saga in the series, The Sky Island Saga.
First in the next stage of the adventure is the Goat Island Arc, where our heroes make landfall on a seemingly uninhabited island, only to discover Zenny and his herds of piratey goats.
Next, the Straw Hat Pirates catch a rumour of the possible existence of the Rainbow Mist (the subject of the book found by Nico Robin in Alabasta). Never to be accused of missing an opportunity for an adventure, the Going Merry sets sail for Luluka, the island where the mist is said to exist.
While there, they meet up with the enigmatic old man Henzo, who will stop at nothing to get into the Rainbow Mist and hook up with his childhood friends, The Pumpkin Pirates. There is rumoured to be great treasure hidden within, the only drawback being that once you enter Ape's Concert you can never leave.

Read the full review over at Road Rash Reviews.

Boomerang Dual Format Short Review

4 Star Murder, whodunnit at it's best.
From the master of cinematography Elia Kazan, (A Streetcar Named Desire, On The Waterfront, East of Eden) comes a film based very closely on real events that occurred in Bridgeport Connecticut USA in 1924.
The film is now brought to you by Masters of Cinema #89 in full 1080p beauty.
The names may have been changed, but this follows the story of the murder of the well respected and much loved Father George A.  Lambert, (Wyrley Birch, The Last Days of Pompeii) who is brutally shot from behind at close range.

The event is witnessed by 7 people, who all swear that the murderer was tall and wearing a dark coat and a light hat. The culprit is almost caught by the witnesses but manages to escape down a dark alley.
There is a public outcry over why an ungodly act should be brought on such a loved man, but even a man of the cloth can accrue enemies and hold secrets that others don't want them to have.
The job falls to Chief Harold F. "Robbie" Robinson, (Lee J Cobb, 12 Angry Men) who, with no clues at the scene and only the testimonies of the 7 witnesses, starts to pull in any male wearing a dark coat and light fedora hat and the suspects soon start to mount up.
But the man that will have to prosecute the suspect when captured is State's Attorney Henry L Harvey, (Dana Andrews, Laura) who is caught in the middle as the press hound the police over their failure to bring any justice to bear on the case. As the ever dogged hack working for the morning record, Dave Woods (Sam Levene, The Killers) leans on the police as the people who pay his wages vie for political change against the reform government.

Read the full review over at Road Rash Reviews.

I, Frankenstein 3D Release Short Review

4 Stars of Gothic Tales of Gargoyles vs. Demons with Frankenstein's Monster in the middle.

For Stuart Beattie's, (Pirates of the Caribbean, Saga) second film (mainly a writer) he has come up with a twist on the legend that is Frankenstein's monster. Set after the death of Victor Frankenstein, (Aden Young, Killer Elite) in a frozen region of the North, the monster heads back to the scene of his crime (the murder of Victors Wife Elizabeth) and buries Victor in the family plot.

What he doesn't know is that demons know of Frankenstein's work and wish to use the knowledge written in his personal journal, written two years earlier in 1793.
He is attacked by the demons as he starts to fill the grave. He tries to fight them off and manages to kill one of them, resulting in a fireball, when out of the night sky two Gargoyles, Ophir, (Mahesh Jadu, The Three Ages of Sasha) and Keziah, (Caitlin Stasey, Tomorrow, When the War Began) that had been standing position on a nearby building swoop down and destroy the remaining demons.

For the full review please click Road Rash Reviews 

Available to Buy on DVD, Blu-ray and 3D Blu-ray on the 26th May.

High Scool DxD Short DVD Review

4 Stars of Teenage dreams of Boobies and Panties.
If you find toilet humour, nudity and teenage perverts offensive, this series is not for you.
animated from the manga series of the same name, written by Ichie Ishibumi and illustrated by Miyama-Zero and serialised in Dragon Magazine/Fujimi Fantasia Bunko.
Matsuda, Motohama and Issei Hyodo are all teenage perverts, attending the Kuoh Academy, they spend most of their time letching at girls breasts and panties, banking and downloading their memories for later when they are alone in their respective bedrooms. With only dreams of having a girlfriend of their own this is pass time in the main stay of their time at school, finding holes in the girls locker-room, always getting caught and being beaten and branded perverts.
The apple of Issei's eye is the president of the Occult Research Club and she is the best looking girl in school and she seems to have an interest in him from afar.
Whilst walking home Issei stops at his usual thinking spot, on an overpass, going over his lack of prowess with the ladies he is interrupted by a pretty young girl. Yuma Amano says that she has been observing him lately and she would like to be his girlfriend. Issei can't believe his luck that he has a date.
His friends are shocked at this turn around in his luck with the girls and such a pretty one as well. Issei and Yuma go on their date in town looking in shops and ice-cream parlours, whilst waiting some one comes up and gives Issei a "wish" flyer, he puts in  his pocket and forgets about it. By the end of the night they end up by a fountain and all of a sudden Yuma starts a transformation telling Issei that what he has is far to dangerous and he must die.

For the full review please click Road Rash Reviews

Available to Buy on DVD and Blu-ray on the 26th May.

Blue Exorcist The Movie Short DVD Review

5 Star Mystical demon hunting from the son of Satan.
This films tags along with the highly popular manga series and anime series.
What lifts this up is the amazing backdrops and the slick and beautiful animation. As we are thrown into a stand alone movie that anyone can get into, as the back story of the series is explained as part of the films own storyline.
The film sees a father telling his twin sons Rin and Yukio a story about a little boy from a small village that finds a little fun demon that he plays with and soon both are laughing and playing, the rest of the village see this and want to be a part of it and soon the whole village is having a great time. But nothing is getting done, none of the farm work or house work. things start to fall into disrepair but everybody is still enjoying themselves until an exorcist spots what is going on and seals the demon away, but it is to late for the village and it is lost to history.

To stop people forgetting they start to hold a festival to be a reminder of the dangers of the demon.
It's eleven years later and the True Cross Academy is getting ready for the festival and as usual Rin is late for what ever he is supposed to be doing.

For the Full Review please click Road Rash Reviews 

Available to Buy on DVD and Blu-ray on the 26th May.

The Pit and the Pendulum Short Review

4 Star Classic Horror brought up to brilliant colour.
Following the success of The Fall of the House of Usher, Roger Corman, (Death Race), a prolific producer still working today, was given the reins of this loose adaptation of another Edgar Alan Poe story.
The story takes place in 16th Century Spain after the inquisition in a castle by the sea. Francis Barnard, (John Kerr, South Pacific) was in London when found out about the death of his sister Elizabeth Barnard Medina, (Barbara Steele, Piranha), Francis takes it upon himself to travel to the Medina country seat, now run by Nicholas Medina, (Vincent Price, Edward Scissorhands) who lives in the infamous place of torture during the inquisition, run by his Father.

For Full review please please click Road Rash Reviews

Available on Blu-ray and Steelbook Now.

Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic Season 1 Part 2 Short Review

4 Star conclusion to the Labyrinth of Magic.

This concludes the Labyrinth Saga, going from episodes 14 - 25 (for episode 1-13 review, Magi part 1) and once again we are set in the beautiful and dangerous world of the Magi Aladdin and his best friend marked for Kingship Alibaba. We start right where we left part one in the middle of Balbadd with Alibaba confronting the king and demanding that he step down as a Coup d'etat has just taken place.

Alibaba strikes down the king as the Kou Empire princess Kougyuko Ren and her adviser Kuuban Ka enter the room to find out who her husband to be will be. Obviously disappointed in the old king she tells the assembled crowd that they must declare a new king so that the agreement with Kou Empire can be ratified. But that will mean that all citizens will loose their freedom in payment for the debt Balbadd owes to the Banker and the Kou.
mean while Aladdin is still unconscious as is Judar one of the three Magi of this age and things around them are happening as the rukh start gathering around each of them, white for Aladdin and Black for Judar. The tide of destiny will fall from grace and as fate reverses its course we find Cassim in the crowd with the Fog group and finds out that Alibaba vows that know one will be king and that the Republic of Balbadd will rise in its place so everyone will live as equals. But Cassim shouts that the riches of monarchy were borne on the backs of the poor and he will fight for them as the black rukh surround him whilst the Al Thamen agent Ithnan looks on from high above. Cassim shouts out thnat the royals should die an Alibaba has to go up against his childhood friend that is now fuelled by the blackness in his heart. the out come will haunt Alibaba for the rest of the arc.

For the Full Review please Click Road Rash Reviews 

Available to Buy on DVD and Blu-ray Now.

The Invoking DVD Short Review

2 stars for this somewhat uninspiring psychological horror.

The Invoking is written and directed by Jeremy Berg (Trauma) and is yet another pretender to the "teenagers lost in the woods" crown.

This film tells us the story of Sam (Trin Miller - The Mockingbird, The Dead Men), a young girl, raised by foster parents, who suddenly finds herself the inheritor of a house up at Sader Ridge, once owned by her Aunt, a member of her real family.

With her three best friends in tow, she packs up her 4 by 4 and without telling anyone where they are going, off they pop to Sader Ridge. With her is Roman (Josh Truax - 21 And Over), a nerdy type who is obsessed with recording sounds to try and make music with. Also along for the ride are Caitlin (Andi Norris - Just When U Thought) a crazy and over exuberant young student and Mark (Brandon Anthony), who has just split up with his girlfriend and is determined to spoil the trip for everyone else.

When they arrive they are greeted by Eric (D'Angelo Midili - Divination, Punch), a shady character who turns out to be a childhood friend of Sam's, working as a caretaker looking after the property until she decides what to do with it.

Read the rest of the review over at Road Rash Reviews.

47 Ronin DVD Release Review

4 Star Legendary Japanese tale of honour and loyalty

Director Carl Rinsch's first foray into the big time, big screen, sees a reasonable make of the fictional Japanese tale of the real-life 47 Ronin who with no Samurai Master, go on a journey to avenge their master who was tricked into committing seppuku.
Set in feudal 18th Century Japan we see a young boy fleeing from a forest, shaven headed with long scars upon his scalp, he collaspses in a creak and a young male tries to put an end to the demons life. But Lord Asano stops him saying that he is a human boy, they back to the lords house where he is tended buy his daughter. A half breed is not accepted especially when he is distrusted as a demon.
But Kai, (Keanu Reeves, The Matrix) grows up to be a strong young man kept at the fringes of the lords grounds in a hovel. He lives in the beautiful and prosperous land of Ako and their is going to be a tournament over seen by Shogun Tsunayoshi, (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Pearl Harbour) but his safety is in jeopardy as there is a huge beast roaming the land. The Shoguns go on a hunt for the beast with Kai tagging along as he has strange tracking abilities. He tells Oishi, (Hiroyuki Sanada, The Wolverine) that the best idea is to set a trap but this is ignored and he tells Asano the beast is over the hill and they all give chase, Kai catches up with the beast as an un-horsed Yasuno, (Masayoshi Haneda, Emporer) lies on the ground with his sword some feet away, the beast sees them and charges Yasuno cannot move so Kai rushes forward and slays the beast. But he doesn't get the credit, it falls on Yasuno.

For the Full Review please Click Road Rash Reviews

Available to Buy on DVD and Blu-ray Now.

We Are The Freaks DVD Short Review

3 stars of British in your face anarchic teenagers.

We Are The Freaks is written and directed by Justin Edgar (Special People, Large) and is set in the 1990's, around the time of Margaret Thatcher's resignation.

As their future looms large over the horizon, a group of teenagers embark on an evening out that none of them will ever forget.

Jack (Jamie Blackley - The Fifth Estate, Snow White and the Huntsman) is awaiting news of his acceptance into University in order to escape from his boring life. He has the letter in his pocket, but has yet to pluck up the courage to read it, as he feels that if he is unsuccessful, he will be unable to woo Elinor (Amber Anderson - Lotus Eaters, Your Highness) who has caught his attention.

Accompanying him on his night out is his friend Parsons (Mike Bailey - Skins), a nerd with a Margaret Thatcher fixation, who unwittingly finds himself under the dubious protection of Killer Colin (Michael Smiley - The World's End, Kill List) after an ill-advised drug deal.

Read the rest of the review over at Road Rash Reviews.

Theatre Of Blood Blu-ray Short Review

4 stars of classic British horror.

Theatre Of Blood was first released in 1973 and is directed, brilliantly I might add, by Douglas Hickox (Zulu Dawn, Brannigan).

It tells the story of Shakespearean actor Edward Lionheart (Vincent Price - The Fly, House Of Wax) and his lovely and loyal daughter Edwina Lionheart (Diana Rigg - The Avengers, On Her Majesty's Secret Service).

After years of ridicule, followed by one serious humiliation at the hands of the Critics Circle, led by Peregrine Devlin (Ian Hendry - Get Carter, Repulsion), this seasoned actor appears to take his own life as they look on and laugh. However, it soon becomes apparent that rumours of his demise have been greatly exaggerated, as members of the Critics Circle begin to drop like flies in all sorts of imaginative and deeply disturbing ways.

As the film opens, we see the first victim, George Maxwell (Michael Hordern - Where Eagles Dare, Gandhi) as he responds to a call to remove squatters from a building which he owns so that it can be demolished. He is brutally attacked by a crowd of strangely dressed individuals and as he lies dying he recognizes his attacker as Edward Lionheart.

Read all about it over at Road Rash Reviews.

The Delta Force Blu-ray Short Review

5 stars of blistering eighties Chuck Norris action.

The Delta Force is written by James Bruner (An Eye For An Eye, Missing In Action) and co-written and directed by Menahem Golan (Over The Top, Bloodsport), both major players in the field of eighties action films.

Originally released in 1986, this classic Chuck Norris film has been carefully transferred onto Blu-ray using the original film elements by MGM.

The Delta Force is set against a backdrop of US struggles against terrorism in all it's forms, something very much in the forefront of American consciousness at the time. It was made a year after the hijacking of the Achille Lauro near to Egypt and also the hijacking of TWA Flight 847, the main basis for the story of this film.

In the film, the plane in question is the ATW Flight 282, which is hijacked en route from Athens to New York City, by Lebanese terrorists demanding that the plane be diverted and taken to Beirut.

Enlisted to rectify the situation and rescue the hostages are Major Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris - Walker; Texas Ranger, The Hitman) and, in his last screen role, Colonel Nick Alexander (Lee Marvin - The Dirty Dozen, The Big Red One).

Read the rest of the review over at Road Rash Reviews

Ninja: Shadow of a Tear Short Blu-ray Review

4 Stars of Revenge by Ninja

From the master of fight films Isaac Florentine, (Undisputed 2: Last Man Standing)brings us a man on the path of revenge, with more kicks, punches and sword fight per minute than I can recall, the speed of the fight scenes are amazing to watch and leave you breathless by the end of them
.
Revenge is best served by bare feet is my motto for this excellent marshal arts film, seeing the return of Casey Bowman, (Scott Adkins, The Bourne Ultimatum) running his Koga Dojo and demonstrating his Ninjitsu skills with his beautiful wife Namiko, (Mika Hijii, Alien vs Ninja) who is carrying his unborn child.
Happy in love and his life Casey goes shopping for a present for Namiko, he buys her a beautiful "Happiness" pendant, whilst paying for the present he spots two unsavoury types lollygagging outside the shop.
Leaving the shop Casey realises that he is being followed and takes evasive action but due to another person he is spotted and the two assailants confront him and he freely offers them his wallet, but they want the expensive pendant as well, but they cannot have it, so they try to take it by knife point.
This is when we get to see the fast and furious fight scenes with the assailants using triple kicks a tell-tale sign of the Dojo they come from, finally defeated he spots an insignia on the hilt of their knives.

For the Full review please click Road Rash Reviews

Available to Buy on Blu-ray and DVD on the 12th May.

Klondike DVD Short Review

5* Stars of hard fought pure 24 Carat Gold

A Fantastic can't put down 6 part series. Great story, Great Characters and Great acting, from the Executive Producer Ridley Scott, (Alien, Blade Runner, Prometheus).

With an up to date stellar cast this series sees two young graduates who are not happy with their career prospects but want a life of adventure and excitement, but don't know which direction to go until they meet a man in a bar that is buying the ale for the night. This is when they see a gold nugget for the first time and it becomes infectious to the pair of young men, saying that they had heard of a gold rush in the press, they are told if its in the press the gold rush is all over.
So the Klondike it is then.

For the Full Review please Click Road Rash Reviews

Available to Buy on DVD Now

Dragon Ball Season 1 Short Review

4 Star Anime with the Original fun guy Goku
This is the great series that spawned many spin off episodes Dragon Ball Z   and Dragon ball GT also Dragon Ball GT part 2
Season 1 sees the first 28 episodes covering the Emperor Pilaf Saga and the Tournament Saga.
Goku is a young boy that has grown up with his Grandpa Gohan, high in the mountains but now Goku is an orphan after Gohan was stopped upon by a big monster in the night.
He goes off adventuring even though he knows nothing of what is out there, which leads him to have an accident with a motor vehicle driven by the intrepid Bulma, who is on a quest to find the 7 Dragon Balls so that she can call for the dragon and be granted her wish. (a boyfriend). Bulma's radar tells her that one of the dragon balls is very close and finds out that Goku's grandpa had left him the 4 star ball and she allows him to team up with her.

For the full review please click Road Rash Reviews 

Available to Buy Now.

Patema Inverted Kickstarter promo

“Patema Inverted” is one of the freshest sci-­fi anime in years and has been celebrated as “a wonder of detail and ingenuity” 4* (Total Film).

After showing triumphantly in Cinemas the call now goes out, as this is a fantastic opportunity for fans to support an exciting new release through groundbreaking measures, and also receive the definitive edition, as well as the regular and collector's editions, before they hit retail and at exceptionally cheaper prices than anywhere else!
Details on what will feature on the definitive edition and what reward schemes are available can be found here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/alltheanime/patema-inverted-ultimate-edition
#PatemaInverted

Ghost In The Shell Steelbook Release Promo

Worldwide Exclusive Steelbook release!

Ghost In The Shell comes to Limited Edition Blu-ray Steelbook on 29th September!
Manga Entertainment UK are bringing the anime classic, Ghost In The Shell to Blu-ray for the first time in the form of a Limited Edition Blu-ray Steelbook. Following the success of their AKIRA and Ninja Scroll Steelbook releases, this is truly a classic release that anime fans have been longing to add to their collection!

Pre order now at Zavvi.com