Welcome to New Release Tuesday on Killer Film for November 17^th! You can order from Amazon by clicking on the cover art, which will help you with any holiday buying you might be starting.

Star Trek

I didn’t buy into this film prior to seeing it, and then when I did, wow we’re we all blown away. Great storytelling, acting, and fits nicely into the Trekverse without disrupting any time lines you liked from the Original Series. A must see! (Formats: Blu-ray/DVD) Jon says: Buy Donny says: Buy

Bruno

Second by second, the funniest film of the year, even if the story is a carbon copy of Borat. It’s so un-PC and yet, smart about its points, and I laughed so hard, I think I pulled something at the screening. (Formats: Blu-ray/DVD) Jon says: Buy Donny says: Rent

Thirst

Vampires are huge right now, thanks to True Blood and Twilight, but don’t let that sway you away from this new film from Oldboy director, Chan-wook Park. Reviews have been mixed, but I’m stoked regardless, because he is always interesting. (Formats: DVD only) Jon says: Buy Donny says: Rent

My Sister’s Keeper

If you’re in the mood to feel glum and cry, here’s a good offering, from the people behind The Notebook. (Formats: Blu-ray/DVD) Jon says: Rent Donny says: Rent

Limits of Control

This existential spy film from Jim Jarmusch is a bore from start to finish. Guess you gotta be a Jarmusch fan, but Isaach de Bankole is incredibly good. (Formats: DVD only) Jon says: Avoid Donny says: Buy

Humpday

This little indie comedy gained a lot of attention for being funny, as well as being well-acted and written. We missed it, sadly, but heard good things all around. (Formats: DVD only) Jon says: Rent Donny says: Rent

New to TV

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: It’s a Very Sunny Christmas (Formats: Blu-ray/DVD)

New to Blu

Gone with the Wind

Fight Club: 10^th Anniversary Edition

Sex Lies & Videotape

Kevin Smith Box set

Leon: The Professional

Keep it here for reviews of these discs and more, only on Killer Film!

The Film:

Vassup, dis ist der Bruno review! I am constantly amazed that Sasha Baron Cohen is still alive. After his antics in Borat, he should thanked his lucky stars, and now after Bruno, he must have sold his soul for his safety, because his antics here, should have got him killed. Bruno is incredibly outrageous, for all 80-some odd minutes, topping the humor in Borat, and besting the next funniest comedy you laughed hard at this year.

One of the immediate things I noticed is this film’s quick attempt to be shocking and unpredictable. It spares no expense, and more importantly, it is funny. Yes, it’s rude, crude, and all of that jazz, and fans of Borat or Cohen’s work in the HBO series Da Ali G Show know what to expect, and it wastes no time being shocking. Now, shocking humor can wear off, or get old and empty quick, but Cohen fuses it with some grounded observations through his interviews or interactions with people. Bruno is gay (hello!) and Cohen loves to flaunt that in everyone’s face. By everyone’s face I mean like Christian homosexual conversion experts, to terrorists, to Muslims, to swingers, and to what? Ron Paul, conservative Republican and ex-Presidential candidate? Yes, even him, and why not try to make a sex tape with him? Bruno is out of control in a very hysterical way.

Beneath all of the laughs, and trust me you will laugh hard, Bruno’s plot is almost verbatim Borat’s. Almost beat for beat, too, and that might turn a few people off to the humor. It’s the only aspect to this film that feels tired. It’s minor, but it makes the film feel like a formulaic sequel. Bruno’s hit show is canceled after a debacle he had with a top runway show, and fearing that his status is slipping away, he embarks on a mission to America to become uber-famous. An assistant comes along too. Sounding familiar? Cohen might have been on a suicide mission creatively, but in the end Bruno is a balls-out (pun intended) comedy that overcomes it’s story structure copy cat syndrome. The humor is offensive, yet sly, as Cohen’s humor always was. Bruno as a character represents the “big gay menace” we (and meaning not all of you, but America at times as a whole) fear. He throws himself in impossible situations, all for the sake at exposing someone’s bigotry or homophobic feelings. It’s satirical and it’s damn genius to teeter on the tightrope he walks, never going too far to incite a hate crime and never playing it too safe, as just to be broad and generic.

Bruno is for Sasha Baron Cohen’s audience, so if you’re not hip to him by now, you won’t be after this.Bruno is Cohen playing with America as his medium, and for whatever the film lacks in plot originality, it makes up for it with it’s humor. It’s beyond funny, and earns it every step of the way.

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video

The audio on this disc is pretty solid given that a lot of the sound captured in spur of the moment faux documentary style. While it’s nothing to write home about it’s adequate for what it is. The video is crisp during the obviously staged scenes and no-so-crisp in the spur of the moment scenes, but like the audio it totally works for this flick.

Special Features

Enhanced Commentary: While I’m usually not a fan of most commentary tracks, I am quickly becoming a fan of picture-in-picture commentary. Sacha Baron Cohen and director Larry Charles provide interesting insight into how some of the gags used in the flick are created. I actually enjoyed watching the flick with the commentary on as much as I did without it. Totally worth checking out.

Alternative Scenes: A collection of unused sequences that were pretty darn funny. I’m not going to spoil the surprise by listing who is in them, but I will say that they are all worth watching.

Deleted Scenes: Once again I enjoyed this feature. Some of these deleted scenes include moments with Paula Abdul and La Toya Jackson. Funny and uncomfortable moments make these a must watch feature.

Extended Scenes: This is exactly what it sounds like, extended moments from the flick. Some of these are funny, but like most cuts made to movies these deserved to be made. Not as cool as the other features, but still worth checking out.

Interview with Lloyd Robinson: A funny interview with Talent Agent Lloyd Robinson that is totally worth watching My only complaint is that it wasn’t a little longer.

This disc also contains Scenes Bookmarking, BD-Live, and a Digital Copy of the flick. If your a fan of Cohen’s work then this blu-ray is worth both your time and money.

The Film: Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Blu-ray: [rating;4]

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Warner Brothers announced Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince for December 8th, in a three disc set. Also on that date look for Ultimate Editions of the first two Harry Potter films.

Criterion gives us Gimme Shelter on December 1st, with A Christmas Tale as well. Expect delays though on 3 titles in November on Monsoon Wedding, Howard’s End, and Wings of Desire that have had manufacturing issues.

Bruno will say wassup! on November 17th from Universal.

The Ugly Truth comes to us from Sony on November 10th.

December 1st is also giving us the Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian from Fox.

Also, of note are rumors for Alien, the Alien box set of all four films, plus Moulin Rouge from Fox in 2010!

Source: Blu-ray

I’m a huge fan of teen comedies.  Some of my favorite movies are from this genre, movies like The Breakfast Club, Say Anything, The Sure Thing, etc.  So the trailer for I Love You, Beth Cooper got me a little excited.  I figured it would be a standard teen movie and didn’t expect new ground to be broken, but I didn’t expect it to be quite as generic as it is.  There is absolutely no deviation from the teen movie formula, none at all.  

The plot is extremely standard teen fare, uber-nerd Denis Cooverman (Paul Rust) decides that since not a single person at his high school really knows him he’s going to give them a reason to remember him after graduation.  So he professes his love for the school’s head cheerleader, calls out the people he hates, and outs the people that need outing.  This life-affirming speech creates a cannonball of events that bring Denis face to face with the love of his life, Beth Cooper (Hayden Panettiere), and her homicidal boyfriend. 

Why is it that cheerleaders travel in packs?  Do head cheerleaders really have an entourage of hot girls that follow them around?  And do nerds ever really get the girl before they start fortune 500 companies?  I don’t think so.  I’m growing tired of the standard conventions of the teen movie.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy even average teen movies and this one wasn’t unwatchable, but it wasn’t awesome either.  It’s the type of movie that is usually released directly to DVD.  The actosr were solid and it was nice to see Alan Ruck (Cameron on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) in a scene stealing roll as Denis’s dad.  And of course I have to mention that Hayden Panettiere is stupid hot.  She looks great in every scene and is perfect as the title character.  Yet even with all of these solid actors the flick still falls short.  

If your looking for an entertaining comedy I’d recommend checking out Bruno, but if you want to see a generic teen movie that’s not all that funny I Love You, Beth Cooper will suffice.  It’s not quite a killer film but I’m betting it’ll play well on cable.  

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Vassup, dis ist der Bruno review! I am constantly amazed that Sasha Baron Cohen is still alive. After his antics in Borat, he should thanked his lucky stars, and now after Bruno, he must have sold his soul for his safety, because his antics here, should have got him killed. Bruno is incredibly outrageous, for all 80-some odd minutes, topping the humor in Borat, and besting the next funniest comedy you laughed hard at this year.

One of the immediate things I noticed is this film’s quick attempt to be shocking and unpredictable. It spares no expense, and more importantly, it is funny. Yes, it’s rude, crude, and all of that jazz, and fans of Borat or Cohen’s work in the HBO series Da Ali G Show know what to expect, and it wastes no time being shocking. Now, shocking humor can wear off, or get old and empty quick, but Cohen fuses it with some grounded observations through his interviews or interactions with people. Bruno is gay (hello!) and Cohen loves to flaunt that in everyone’s face. By everyone’s face I mean like Christian homosexual conversion experts, to terrorists, to Muslims, to swingers, and to what? Ron Paul, conservative Republican and ex-Presidential candidate? Yes, even him, and why not try to make a sex tape with him? Bruno is out of control in a very hysterical way.

Beneath all of the laughs, and trust me you will laugh hard, Bruno‘s plot is almost verbatim Borat‘s. Almost beat for beat, too, and that might turn a few people off to the humor. It’s the only aspect to this film that feels tired. It’s minor, but it makes the film feel like a formulaic sequel. Bruno’s hit show is canceled after a debacle he had with a top runway show, and fearing that his status is slipping away, he embarks on a mission to America to become uber-famous. An assistant comes along too. Sounding familiar? Cohen might have been on a suicide mission creatively, but in the end Bruno is a balls-out (pun intended) comedy that overcomes it’s story structure copy cat syndrome. The humor is offensive, yet sly, as Cohen’s humor always was. Bruno as a character represents the “big gay menace” we (and meaning not all of you, but America at times as a whole) fear. He throws himself in impossible situations, all for the sake at exposing someone’s bigotry or homophobic feelings. It’s satirical and it’s damn genius to teeter on the tightrope he walks, never going too far to incite a hate crime and never playing it too safe, as just to be broad and generic.

Bruno is for Sasha Baron Cohen‘s audience, so if you’re not hip to him by now, you won’t be after this. Bruno is Cohen playing with America as his medium, and for whatever the film lacks in plot originality, it makes up for it with it’s humor. It’s beyond funny, and earns it every step of the way.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

It’s still fuzzy whether the school is upset due to the nature of what Bruno in fact ‘is’ or because the fact that some sexual innuendo’s are performed in the photo’s.

It appears the LAUSD is against sodomizing.

Would you have preferred if Bruno kept it’s original title?  Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt?

Bruno ‘opens’ in theaters everywhere this July 10th.

Source: Cinemablend

Check out the interview below:

Source: You Tube

(July 1^st)

Public Enemies

Jon: I a big fan of gangster films, especially the WB films from the 1930s and ’40s, with Cagney, Bogart, and Robinson. There’s something about this film that has that old time gangster feeling to it. Two of my favorite current actors are in this; Bale and Depp, and Mann is a decent director. It’s nice to see a drama highlighted for a summer date, as high profiled as this is, and the nature of the HD camera vs film Mann has been doing, should bring up some good discussions. See It

Donny: Who doesn’t want to see Depp and Bale together in a gangster flick?  This might just be the best movie of the summer, so you can bet your ass I’ll be in the theatre watching Michael Mann’s magnum opus rock the silver screen.  See It

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

Jon: I might be a snob, but anything outside of Disney, I just have a hard time liking. The first Ice Age was a decent time, the second I skipped, so the only reason I’d see this, is they brought dinosaurs in it-oddly (since Ice Age came after dinos). The 3-D looks alright, but anyone not expecting this to bank should have their head examined. But how many times can Skat be funny? Or now, that female squirrel?  Skip It

Donny:  You are a snob Jon, but I’m with you when you say this is going to make mad bank at the theatre.  I sorta dug the first one. but truthfully I was never a huge fan of this franchise.  I’m not looking forward to yet another Ice Age flick, although I know my son is going to drag me into the theatre.  So my advice is to do what I wish I could.  Skip It

(July 10^th)

Bruno

Jon: Borat was a smooth stroke of genius, and not because it was funny, but the interesting take of cultural differences Cohen plays out between American’s feelings towards other cultures is highlighted. I predict Bruno will do the same. I’m really excited for this film. See It

Donny: The man is stupid funny.  I can’t wait to see this flick.  See It

Blood: The Last Vampire

Jon: This could go either way. Based on a pretty cool anime film of the same name, this could be a camp-filled B-movie or a chore to sit through. I really can’t tell right now. Early word isn’t good, but vamps are huge right now, so it’ll be interesting to see what audience it aiming for: horror, action, Twilight girls? Hmm, tough call but I’ll say See It

Donny: Long before Britney Spears made every man in America feel guilty for thinking a schoolgirl was hot, anime flicks were putting hot nubile virgins with guns into schoolgirl outfits.  And this flick is a testament to that statement.  A hot young vampire dressed in schoolgirl garb kills vampires.  What’s not to like?  See It.

(July 17^th)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Jon: I will be the happiest man ever when this series gets put to rest. I don’t hate it, in fact, I’ve seen a few, but I cannot get into this franchise at all. Once, I was talking to this girl who wanted to pull a huge Harry Potter marathon one night after I got off of work. I said, right then and there on the phone, I was receiving a violent migraine, so I don’t think it’ll be good to do that. I never talked to her again. That’s my Harry Potter love. Not my thing, but I can understand why people enjoy them. So, for me I’ll Skip It, but for you, See It.

Donny: Don’t bash the Harry Potter sir!  Harry rocks, and because I’m a HUGE fan of the books I do enjoy the movies.  While the flicks themselves will never trump the books I’m looking forward to seeing the latest adaptation of one of my favorite literary characters.  See It

(500) Days of Summer

Jon: Besides loving all things Zooey Deschanel does (anyone listening to She & Him?), this anti-romance if you will, just might be one of the summer’s best for one reason: Joseph Gordon-Levitt. This will be his coming out party, as he has been on the verge of doing so for a few years now. Welcome. In my opinion, the theme of the film, the stars, the feelings I get from the trailer, makes this the one summer film to see. See It.

Donny: I’m happy Jon was able to finally profess his admiration for Joseph Gordon Levitt, and for once I agree with him.  I really want to see this flick.  Zooey is always cute and JGL is always solid in whatever role he takes on.  See It

(July 24^th)

G-Force

Jon: Disney’s long term love affair with talking animals continues. Looks lame, but hey, are we the audience for this? No. If you aren’t burned out of 3-D family films like Up, Ice Age 3, here’s another one. Skip It

Donny: “Poop in his hand, poop in his hand!”  I’m only going to say that my kids will want to check this one out, but I’m gonna recommend that anyone reading this Skip it.

Orphan

Jon: The trailer makes me mad. Why, if you’re adopting a child, pick the freakiest little girl the orphanage has to offer? Unless the trailer isn’t showing the levels of possible depth, this might be as forgettable as horror gets this year. Skip It

Donny: I have no desire to see this flick.  I’m totally over creepy kids, so I’m planning to use my position as editor-in-chief of this website to make Jon see this one so that I don’t have to.  Skip It

Shrink

Jon: Could be a nice off-beat drama for those who are sick of robots, cartoons, and big comedies. Spacey looks good again. See It.

Donny: I’m really looking forward to this flick.  I haven’t seen Spacey look this good since Consenting Adults or Usual Suspects.  See It

(July 31^st)

Funny People

Jon: Apatow’s name has been on almost ever successful comedy in the last few years, but here is his only third film. To tell you the truth, I’m not a big fan of 40 Year Old Virgin or Knocked Up, but what has me excited for this is the apparent balance between comedy and drama the trailer promises. Early word is Oscar nominations. Adam Sandler looks like he’s in fine form, a rare sight. I’m hoping he’s more Punch-Drunk Love than Zohan. Everything is lining up for this to be a special picture. See It

Donny: This is my most anticipated flick of the summer.  I am counting the days until I get to see this picture, so ignore everything Jon said about not liking 40 Year Old Virgin or Knocked Up (who in their right mind doesn’t like those flicks?) and make sure your in the theatre to see this one (stand in line if you have to).  See It

Thirst

Jon: This will be playing in a few select cities on this date, but for those of you in those cities (I’m seeing only NYC actually), See It. Chan-wook Park is a great director, and not just for Oldboy. He’s carved a special international niche for himself, as a director that is crafty, smart, and reliable. His segment in Three…Extremes was about an extra seeking vengeance against a director, but the early scenes we’re on a set of a vampire film, which is what this film is about: vampires. While there might be vampire fatigue coming, I’m very interested in his approach. 

Donny: I’m interested in this flick, but not as much as Jon is.  I’ll let him check it out and recommend that you See it.

Aliens in the Attic

Jon: I rarely outright dismiss a film based on a trailer, but I want my 2 minutes back. Skip It.

Donny: I rarely outright agree with Jon on a film based on its trailer but I also want my 2 minutes back.  Skip It

That’s July, folks. Keep it here for our reviews all month long, and if you have any questions or comments, email us at donny@killerfilm.com and jon@killerfilm.com . Or take it to our new forums, and discuss everything movie-related!

**update** Universal has decided to completely remove the scene from all nationwide and worldwide prints now, and not just the showing at Manns Chinese Theatre.

Source: EW

Source: Cinema Blend

Some of the latest reviews say:

John Hiscock of the Telegraph

“With Borat, Sacha Baron Cohen seemingly pushed the boundaries of cinematic bad taste and outrageous humour to the limit. With Brüno, his gay Austrian fashionista character, he goes further. Much, much, further. Gross and downright offensive at times, this movie is not for the squeamish, but it is impossible not to laugh while at the same time wincing with embarrassment at the lengths to which Cohen goes.”

Steve Ross of the Guardian

“Beneath the idiocy, Baron Cohen is also a politically astute agent who’s devised an ingenious way to confront and expose serious social issues — and indulge his own exhibitionism.”

Gordon Smart of the Sun

“The film follows the camp presenter’s bid for fame in LA after he is sacked from his beloved fashion show on Austrian TV for bringing a Milan catwalk show to a standstill with his all-in-one Velcro outfit. The scene is utterly brilliant and wipes the smiles from the faces of the snooty fashion world.”

Source: Gold Derby

Source: TMZ

In the words of Bruno:  ”Some guys look great in heels — ze singer Pink, for example.”

Source: Zap2It

As soon as Eminem’s security pulled Bruno off, Eminem proceeded to storm out of the award show with entourage in tow. While there is speculation on whether Eminem was in on the stunt ahead of time, it’s highly unlikely he knew he was going to have balls in his face on live TV.

Here is the video clip of the incident…

And here is the money shot!