Monthly Archives: May 2012
May 22nd New Releases
“The Grey” is a solid survival movie starring Liam Neeson. He plays a man hired by an oil company to protect pipeline workers from attacks by predatory animals. After a plane crash leaves him and six others stranded in the Alaskan wilderness, he attempts to lead them to safety while a pack of wolves pick off the men one at a time. It’s a fairly bleak movie, which turned off some of the critics. But I quite liked it for the way it stripped down the “man vs nature” theme to its bare essence.
This Means War is a pretty average action-comedy, not unlike recent movies like “Knight and Day” and “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”. The banter between the main characters was entertaining enough, but a bit predictable. It’s a formulaic movie, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Anyone who is a fan of this genre will find lots to enjoy here.
Woman in Black is a gloomy, things-that-go-bump-in-the-night gothic thriller starring Harry Potter, I mean Daniel Radcliffe, who is using this movie to break his past connection to the mega-franchise. It’s a kind of ghost story, with a fairly authentic rural setting in the UK. Suspicious townspeople and plenty of fog add to the tension. People who don’t normally go in for horror movies would probably like this anyway, as it’s more story and character driven than your average slasher.
Red Tails had mixed results. The story, about the Tuskeegee airmen who became the first black fighter pilot squadron during WWII, could have been fleshed out a bit more, rather than glossed over with sub-plots like a silly love story involving one of the pilots and an Italian girl named Sofia (we never really learn much more about her). The action sequences are top notch, but unfortunately wander a bit too far into the Michael Bay school of blowing-stuff-up. I’m sorry, but any scene where a P-51 fighter blows up a destroyer with nothing more than .50 cal guns is absurd. They need to pull back the reins a bit more when it comes to this stuff. Your average 12 year old might enjoy it, but most moviegoers are going to roll their eyes. Still, the film is a decent enough watch if you can overlook some of this.
We’re Moving To A New Location!
After 9 years in our current location, Back Lot Video will be moving and setting up shop at a fantastic downtown location. As of July 1st (approximately), we’ll be open at 28 York Street, right next door to the Rags of Time book store. Lorie and I are excited to make this move, as it puts us in a more central location that will be able to serve the town and university campus better. We will be doing a lot of the prep work for this move ahead of time, so that we won’t need to be closed for more than a few days in July.
As always, we’ll continue to offer our diverse selection of titles. In fact, we’re in the process of completing a massive inventory at our store, selling off many titles that no longer rent well for us. This will enable us to put together a budget to expand our offerings over the summer and fall. Look for many new and interesting movies, TV series’, and games coming soon.
Despite all the talk in the media about the “death of the video store”, we have been greatly encouraged by the support and encouragement of our local and campus clientele. You have expressed to us many times how much you appreciate us being able to serve this great little community. Words can’t begin to convey how much that means to us. This move to the downtown puts us in a better position to continue operating for years to come.
Stay tuned for updates on the progress we are making getting thousands of movies ready to move!
Chris
Black Ops 2 Now Preordering!!
Release Date: November 13th, 2012
Preorder Price: $59.99
Don’t miss out on one of this year’s most anticipated titles. Black Ops 2 is going to have the biggest zombie mode yet, and promises to be one of 2012’s best shooters.
May 8th New Releases
The Vow looked like one of those movies guys go to grudgingly on Valentine’s Day, pretending to like in hopes of getting a kiss at the end of the date. And yes, there are plenty of romance cliches to be found. However, I actually found myself enjoying it more than I thought I would. I credit Channing Tatum for this. He’s one of the better male leads of his generation, and the charm and self-deprecating humor he brings to the screen (along with hunky good looks, my wife informs me) always elevate his films above the bar.
Underworld Awakening is one of the weaker entries in this franchise. Kate Beckinsale is the only returning cast member from previous films (even Scott Speedman is AWOL). There’s really no way to review movies like this. They’re like comic book movies: fans will lap them up (even as they pick them apart), and most everyone else will be modestly entertained for a few hours, then promptly forget the movie ever existed. Lots of scenes of Kate fighting in spandex suits, a surprising amount of violence and gore, and CG effects that do nothing but remind you of how silly the whole premise is.
Back Lot Video 