Screenhead

So Lions Gate has brought up a bit of that old retro horror with the rerelease of The Gate, now out on DVD. And as always, the question we’re out to tackle today is, is it worth your rental dollar?

The plot is a little convoluted, and basically requires you to suspend disbelief like no tomorrow.  But after an old tree is pulled out of a suburban family’s backyard, it’s left a whole lot of trouble in its wake.  Like a load of fairly valuable geodes.  And a reeking pit in the backyard that just happens to be full of demons.  TINY demons.

And now it’s left to the kids of the suburban family to take on the horde of tiny demons that have burst forth from the hole in the backyard.

See, this may sound just plain old loopy to horror buffs of the modern era, but this kind of thing happened ALL THE TIME in eighties horror flicks, especially ones that carried that malign PG-13 rating, the rating usually reserved for half-baked slasher flicks today.

And frankly, it IS loopy.  How do we discover what’s going on under the surface?  Simple–the characters learn about it from the album cover of a heavy metal band from “Europe”, and more than likely, from Finland.  Because as we all know now, thanks to Metalocalypse and the various Lordi incursions, Finland and metal go together like peanut butter and jelly.

The farther in you get in this thing, the steadily more insane the whole thing gets.  In fact, it’s like that loopy uncle of yours that lives in the attic and won’t stop screaming about how the government’s putting mind control suicide chips in the flouride in the water–it’s absolutely insane, and yet at the same time, it’s also entertaining in a creepy sort of way.

If you’re up for a history lesson, then The Gate will provide it.  If you just want a creepy and fun little movie with some occasional scares, then The Gate will provide that too.

The Screenhead Ten Scale can’t help but give due props to this piece of the past, and thus issues a seven out of ten for being fun, even if absolutely looney.

Jack Brown Geniusis a hilariously entertaining movie that is fun to watch. Deep within the chambers of an old monastery lives Elmer (Stuart Devenie), a monk who dreams of discovering a way to fly in hopes of meeting his beloved creator.  But when the wing system he builds fails, he falls to his death and – having been judged a suicide – is doomed to an eternity in purgatory.

A thousand years later, Elmer’s spirit enters the mind of Jack Brown (Timothy Balme), a modern-day inventor with problems of his own.  Seems his boss is trying to pilfer his formula for a new source of power.  But the monk, determined to be released from his otherworldly prison, forces Jack to rebuild the winged machine and achieve Elmer’s dream of flight, rendering him free. Assisted by his friends Dennis (Martin Csokas) and Eileen (Nicola Murphy) – who is secretly in love with Jack – can Jack triumph where Elmer failed and carry both souls to new heights of success?

Never before seen in North America, Jack Brown Genius was co-written and executive produced by Academy Award-winner Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Ringstrilogy) through his studio WingNut Films, Ltd.  A sci-fi/fantasy gem, it’s available on DVD distributedby Lionsgate Entertainment.

You’ll want this movie in your library because it’s a unique breed that breathes laughter and spontaneous fun.  I can’t wait to see it again.

If you would like to win one of the four copies of Jack Brown Genius, post your name and we will pick the winners Tuesday, November 24, 2009.

Ken Robinson gets to add American Violet to his DVD library, congratulations!

Based on a true story, American Violet is a look at the harsh reality of injustice.

American Violet has been described as “AMAZING! The first must-see film for African-Americans in 2009,” by BET.com and Jeffrey Lyons of NBC Reel Talk has said “A powerful, compelling true story of a woman of courage.” The movie is now available on DVD and Blu-ray.

Inspired by a true story, American Violetfollows the struggle of a young African-American mother to clear her name after being wrongly arrested for dealing drugs in an impoverished Texas town. An honest woman with no hard evidence to justify the accusation, she is forced to risk everything in order fight unfair prosecution. The film stars touted newcomer Nicole Beharie, Academy Award nominee Alfre Woodard, Will Patton, Academy Award nominee Michael O’Keefe, Tim Blake Nelson, Emmy Award winner Charles S. Dutton and Xzibit.

It is truly a compelling story that must be watched about survival and the persistence to never give up for your god-given right to be free.  

“EXCELLENT performances by Beharie, Woodard, Nelson and Patton”- The Washington Post 

“POWERFUL performance by newcomer Nicole Behaire” – B+, Entertainment Weekly 

“IDEAL MOVIE for an ideal time” -San Francisco Chronicle

My daughter and her four friends watched Aliens in the Attic DVD screener today as a Halloween treat. With popcorn and Halloween candy they loved it all. Even the bloopers were awesome.

The movie takes place during summer vacation, but the Pearson family kids are stuck at a boring lake house with their nerdy parents. That is until feisty, little, green aliens crash-land on the roof, with plans to conquer the house AND Earth! Using only their wits, courage and video game-playing skills, the youngsters must band together to defeat the aliens and save the world — but the toughest part might be keeping the whole thing a secret from their parents!

The scene most talked about was when the adults were being controlled by the kids via remote controls. The kids had the two adults fighting each other with the kids flipping them, getting the parents to do anything they wanted them to do.

The cast includes Doris Roberts (“Everybody Loves Raymond”), Andy Richter (“The Conan O’Brien Show”), Kevin Nealon (“Weeds”), Tim Meadows (Mean Girls) and Gillian Vigman (The Hangover), as well as rising young star Ashley Tisdale (High School Musical).

After my daughter’s friends left, she asked if she could watch the movie, again, and did with just as much enjoyment.

If you would like to win a copy of Aliens in the Attic, post your name now and Screenhead will pick the winner Wednesday, November 18, 2009.

Playing for a Change: Peace Through Music is an award winning documentary that brings music to the heart of the world.

With its stirring call for reconciliation and cross-cultural unification, the global music collaboration/multi-media project, Playing For Change has struck a deep and powerful chord world-wide. “Playing For Change is an exploration into the human spirit,” stated founder and film co-director/producer Mark Johnson. “It demonstrates the power of music to unite us as a human race.” “The project brings an insight into humanity,“ adds co-director Jonathan Walls. “It’s my wish that audiences around the world absorb this musical essence and become inspired to participate and celebrate its manifestation.”

I’ve enjoyed the CD/DVD and now the documentary brings the whole message together as a complete thought, bring peace to the world.

You can win Playing for Change: Peace Through Music DVD by posting your name now and we will pick the winner Saturday,  November 21, 2009.

The winners are Jack Borg, Laura Deluca, Geraldine!

From the Wayans Brothers, the guys behind Scary Movie, comes the hilarious comedy Dance Flick.  Own the unrated version on DVD, with even more outrageous footage not shown in theaters. Dance Flick unrated version on DVD now.  The movie is from Paramount Home Entertainment.   

The Wayans brothers set out to parody movies like Step Up and Save the Last Dance.  

Screenhead has TEN Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen to give away.

The American science fiction action film released on June 19, 2009 in the United Kingdom and June 24, 2009 in North America, and will release on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 20, 2009.

It is the sequel to 2007’s Transformers and the second film in the live action Transformers series. Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg return respectively as director and executive producer, while Shia LaBeouf reprises the role of Sam Witwicky, the human caught in the war between Autobots and Decepticons.

The film introduces many more robots and the scope has been expanded to numerous countries, most notably France, Jordan and Egypt. The plot revolves around Sam, who has been having visions of Cybertronian symbols, getting hunted by the evil Decepticons under the orders of their long-trapped leader, The Fallen. The Fallen seeks to get revenge on Earth by finding and activating a machine that would provide the Decepticons with an energon source, destroying all life on the planet in the process.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – Own the #1 movie of the year on DVD & Blu-ray TODAY!

Post your name and Screenhead will pick the winners Thursday, November 13, 2009.

American Violet has been described as “AMAZING! The first must-see film for African-Americans in 2009,” by BET.com and Jeffrey Lyons of NBC Reel Talk has said “A powerful, compelling true story of a woman of courage.” The movie is now available on DVD and Blu-ray.

Inspired by a true story, American Violetfollows the struggle of a young African-American mother to clear her name after being wrongly arrested for dealing drugs in an impoverished Texas town. An honest woman with no hard evidence to justify the accusation, she is forced to risk everything in order fight unfair prosecution. The filmstars touted newcomer Nicole Beharie, Academy Award nominee Alfre Woodard, Will Patton, Academy Award nominee Michael O’Keefe, Tim Blake Nelson, Emmy Award winner Charles S. Dutton and Xzibit.

It is truly a compelling story that must be watched about survival and the persistence to never give up for your god-given right to be free.  

“EXCELLENT performances by Beharie, Woodard, Nelson and Patton”- The Washington Post 

“POWERFUL performance by newcomer Nicole Behaire” – B+, Entertainment Weekly 

“IDEAL MOVIE for an ideal time” -San Francisco Chronicle 

Screenhead has a copy of American Violet DVD as a giveaway.  Please post your name and we will pick the winner Monday, November 2, 2009.