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Nov 22nd - 28th Downloads
& DVDs
 

  • Eight Days a Week: the Touring Years:

    Ron Howard assembled some never-before-seen footage of the Fab Four and directed this documentary that focuses on the Beatles’ years on the road, leading up to their final live performance on a cold day on the roof of the Abby Road studios.  It’s not about the music – much of the time you really can’t hear the music because of te screaming girls in the audience, something that drove Lennon and McCartney particularly in their desire to get off the road and work in the studio.  There is the time-honoured footage from the Cavern Club in Liverpool, and we see the drummer before Ringo, Pete Best looking like he belongs.  Hardcore Beatle lovers will find enough here to warrant spending the money to buy the DVD or Blu-Ray, and those only distantly acquainted with the band will learn a lot about how they came to be “what they was,” to lift a line from the movie “Help.”  Rated PG.

     

     

  • The Mechanic: Resurrection:

    Jason Statham is back in the role of Arthur Bishop, a hired assassin the trademark of whom is that his hits always look like accidents, not murders.  Bishop has retired from the business and is living the good life as this story opens, a sequel to the 2011 movie that was itself a remake of the 1972 version that starred Charles Bronson as Bishop. When the love of Bishop’s life (Jessica Alba) is kidnapped, the new story is set in motion, with an international arms dealer (Sam Hazeldine) calling the tune.  He wants his top competitors taken out.  There are three of them, and each must dies, and there must be no ties – it has to look accidental.  Only then will Bishop get his lady back.  There are some great action scenes here, the stunt work is fabulous, and a lot of stuff blows up.  Tommy Lee Jones also stars. Rated 14A.

  • War Dogs:

    This is the mostly-true story of a pair of young – like under 21 years old – Americans who become among the biggest arms dealers in the Western world.  David Packouz (Miles Teller from Whiplash) and Efraim Devaroli (Jonah Hill with all of his weight back on) learn that there is a process for acquiring weapons and selling them to the Afghan army with the help of the US military, and they become involved in a $300 million deal.  Starting small, working a little-known loophole that allows small businesses to bid on such contracts, they are soon in over their heads. According the backstory, the most difficult-to-believe parts of this film are the ones that are the most based-on-fact.  It’s a very interesting ride! Rated 14A.

  • I Saw the Light (2015):

     Tom Hiddleston was a controversial choice to play the late-great Hank Williams, the America country recording artist and songwriter who died in 1953 at the age of 29.  Williams was born and raised in Alabama, while Hiddleston (he is Loki in Marvel's Avengers movies) is a Brit who seems to share none of what it was that made Williams such a beloved country star.  Despite his amazing talent, Hank Williams was a heavy drinker who alienated himself from family, friends, his band members, and was eventually banned from performing at the Grand Ole Opry because of his unreliability.  His body of work, for one so young stands tall today.  He died in his sleep in the backseat of a car bound for his next gig.  Rated 14A.
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013):

 Based on the best-selling YA series of books by Rick Riordan, we find Jackson (Logan Lerman), who is a demigod, son of a mortal woman and the God of the Sea, Poseidon, enlisting his friends in a hunt for the Golden Fleece, the only magical item that can save the life of their friend Thalia, a daughter of Zeus, who was poisoned and is dying.  To recover the sacred object, they must venture into the Sea of Monsters, a place from which no one returns.  Author Riordan's books are based in part on existing Greek mythology, and in part on the characters and situations that he himself invents.  In a combination of magic and mysticism, his teenage heroes and villains have created a new reality in mythology.  Edmonton's Nathan Fillion (Castle) and Stanley Tucci also star.  Rated 14A.