MOVIE REVIEWS

THE LAST EXORCISM

When he arrives on the rural Louisiana farm of Louis Sweetzer, the Reverend Cotton Marcus expects to perform just another routine "exorcism" on a disturbed religious fanatic. An earnest fundamentalist, Sweetzer has contacted the charismatic preacher as a last resort, certain his teenage daughter Nell is possessed by a demon who must be exorcized before their terrifying ordeal ends in unimaginable tragedy.

Buckling under the weight of his conscience after years of parting desperate believers with their money, Cotton and his crew plan to film a confessionary documentary of this, his last exorcism. But upon arriving at the already blood drenched family farm, it is soon clear that nothing could have prepared him for the true evil he encounters there. Now, too late to turn back, Reverend Marcus’ own beliefs are shaken to the core when he and his crew must find a way to save Nell – and themselves – before it is too late.

Can somebody please get some Mirapex for the cameraman? What is it with the shaky hand-held technique that seems to smatter the film landscape in action films nowadays? It is annoying and does nothing but piss off the audience and make them ill. Case in point, the lady next to me literally blew chucks on the floor. Think Lionsgate will pay for my dry cleaning? Didn't think so. Enough already. Now, this film isn't going to take a new look at exorcisms, but the film does pack a bit of a punch mid way through. The film doesn't really get traction until the second act, but the scares are definitely there. This film does have some surprised, but it's too much like other films in this tradition. Move over Emily Rose.

The Last Exorcism
Starring: Patrick Fabian & Ashley Bell
Director: Daniel Stamm
Company: Lionsgate
Now Showing: in area theaters
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Grade: C+

DVD REVIEWS

FREE DVD GIVEAWAY

We are doing a Free DVD Giveaway! If you are interested in a chance at winning a free copy of Forbidden World, Galaxy of Terror, America Betrayed, Solitary Man (DVD or Blu-ray), After.Life (DVD or Blu-ray) or City Island (DVD or Blu-ray), it is really easy! All you have to do is send me an email at Filmlords@gmail.com. The subject line of the email should read DVD GIVEAWAY. In the body of the email, be sure to put your name, full mailing address and which DVD or Blu-ray you would like. Winners will be selected by random drawing. Best of luck!

OFF AND RUNNING - First Run

With white Jewish lesbians for parents and two adopted brothers - one mixed-race and one Korean - Brooklyn teen Avery, a local track star in high school, grew up in a unique and loving household. But Avery's curiosity about her African-American roots compels her to contact her birth mother, thrusting her into a complicated exploration of race and identity that threatens to distance her from her family. But when Avery decides to pick up the pieces of her life and make sense of her identity, the results are inspiring. OFF AND RUNNING follows Avery to the brink of adulthood, exploring the strength of family bonds and the lengths people must go to become themselves.

LAUGHOLOGY - Disinformation

This infectious documentary explores the power of laughter. It's a matter of particular importance for director Albert Nerenberg (also a neuroscientist), who became intrigued by the subject after a devastating personal tragedy. Parsing the addictive and curative qualities of laughter, Laughology wouldn't be complete without an appearance by Doug Collins -- "the man with the most contagious laugh in the world."

FOUR SEASONS LODGE - First Run

From the darkness of Hitler's Europe to the lush mountains of New York's Catskills, Four Seasons Lodge follows a community of Holocaust survivors who come together each summer at their beloved bungalow colony to dance, cook, fight and flirt - and celebrate their survival. Directed by New York Times journalist Andrew Jacobs, with cinematography by the legendary Albert Maysles, Four Seasons Lodge is an inspiring and surprisingly funny documentary that captures what may be the final season for a remarkable tribe of survivors who have found that dancing, laughter and late-night revelry may be the best revenge on Hitler.

THRILLER: Complete Series - Image

The 14-disc Thriller: The Complete Series offers all 67 episodes of the series, each remastered and uncut for the first time since their original broadcast. Some 50 hours of supplemental features have also been included; chief among these are 24 hours of commentary tracks by Thriller participants like directors Arthur Hiller and Ted Post and actors Richard Anderson and Beverly Washburn, as well as genre experts like Tim Lucas, David Schow, Gary Gerani, and Lucy Chase Williams. Episode promos and isolated score tracks by composers Jerry Goldsmith and Morton Stevens all help to underscore why no less an authority than Stephen King declared Thriller to be the best series of its type to ever air on television.

THE HEART OF THE PELOTON - First Run

This new DVD box set includes three unforgettable films about the sport of professional bike racing. From Tour de France racing action to going behind the scenes with America's premiere ProTour team to a revealing look at the current world champion. This set includes Hell on Wheels, Blood Sweat and Gears and the enigmatic Yell for Cadel, which focuses on the Australian cyclist, Cadel Evans. The Heart of the Peloton is guaranteed to please the hard-core enthusiast and the newcomers to the sport as well.

ADVENTURES AT SCHOOL - Scholastic

Narrated by Thora Birch, Zach Braff and Calista Flockhart, this DVD set from Scholastic contains 14 incredible stories that focus on school time. From the best-selling stories The Teacher From the Black Lagoon and Miss Nelson Has a Field Day to newer family favorites Crazy Hair Day and How Do Dinosaurs Go to School?, kids and parents delight watching their favorite books spring to life on DVD. Another incredible product from Scholastic perfect for school kids of all ages!

NUMBERS: Season Six

Numbers is a drama about an FBI agent who recruits his mathematical-genius brother to help the Bureau solve a wide range of challenging crimes in Los Angeles. The two brothers take on the most confounding criminal cases from a very distinctive perspective. Inspired by actual events, the series depicts how the confluence of police work and mathematics provides unexpected revelations and answers to the most perplexing criminal questions. A dedicated FBI agent, Don Eppes (Rob Morrow), couldn't be more different from his younger brother, Charlie Eppes (David Krumholtz), a brilliant mathematician who, since he was little, yearned to impress his big brother. Physicist friend Dr. Larry Fleinhardt (Peter MacNicol) constantly challenges Charlie to employ a broader point of view to his work with the FBI, and Amita Ramanjuan (Navi Rawat), Charlie's former grad student, frequently helps him see cases in a new light Despite their disparate approaches to life, Don and Charlie are able to combine their areas of expertise and solve some killer cases.

FIVE LITTLE MONKEYS JUMPING ON THE BED - Scholastic

This delightful rhyme is accompanied by Manny Hernandez translating it into American Sign Language. Eileen Christelow's original illustrations are shown, and Ryland Hale provides the voice narration. The story has captions for early readers; the captions can be turned off for non-readers and those who just want to watch. Turning the sound off and the captions on provides a nice ASL lesson. The limited animation brings life to the five little monkeys and their mama, and Hernandez's signing is spirited and cheerful.

HAWAII FIVE-O: Season Nine - Paramount

Filmed entirely on location in Hawaii, the show followed Jack Lord as he played Steve McGarrett, head of an elite state police unit investigating "organized crime, murder, assassination attempts, foreign agents, felonies of every type." James MacArthur played his second-in-command Danny ("Danno") Williams, with local actors playing members of the Five-O team. Arguably the last decent season of the show, it is still a must own for any fan of television programming.

TIME BANDITS - Image

Like the Princess Bride, Time Bandits is an honest homage to its genre, while at the same time being very aware of itself. This film is loaded with imagination, magic, special effects, and great character vignettes. And it's also a great history lesson. Despite the fact that it's a Gilliam/Palin collaboration, it's not Monty Python (with the possible exception of the Robin Hood bit - worth the price of the film alone), but once you get past the expectation that it will be side-splittingly funny, you can easily get carried away with this tale.

BLEACH: The Arrancar 30 - VIZ Media

Substitute Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki is determined to learn how to control his inner Hollow and visits Shinji Hirako at the Visoreds' hideout to find a way. But as much as Ichigo wishes to suppress his inner Hollow, Shinji wants to force him to release it. Ichigo must enter his inner world, where he's greeted by a more powerful version of himself wielding a white Zangetsu, which may be his most formidable opponent yet!

90210: Season Two - Paramount

Season 2 of 90210 wastes little time with ordinary moments. It ramps up the dramas for this new generation of West Beverly Hills High BFFs, frenemies, tormentors, and their tormented. In the latter category is Annie (Shenae Grimes), the principal's daughter, who is on the wrong side of Meanest Girl Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) after Annie called the police to break up her party at the end of season 1. Here's a tip: You don't want to make Naomi mad, especially if there happens to be an illicit naked pic of you that she can sext to the world. But Annie doesn't have a monopoly on trouble. Between substance abuse, marital discord, gambling addiction, breakups, hookups, sexual harassment, blackmail, and that oldie but goodie, abstinence versus sex, this will be, in Naomi's words, "a real crazy year" for every character. This reboot of the era-defining Beverly Hills 90210 found its footing this season thanks to a more gelled ensemble, sharper writing and juicier plot developments.

ONCE AN EAGLE - Timeless Media

Once An Eagle is the epic story of America in the 20th Century, told through the lives of two career soldiers, spanning the tumultuous years from WWI to the Vietnam Era. Based on the best-selling novel by Anton Myrer, Once An Eagle is one of the most acclaimed mini-series of all time, alongside "Winds of War" and "War and Remembrance." Sam Elliott takes on the role of Sam Damon, a courageous and compassionate man who finds his caling leading his men in war and in peacetime. Cliff Potts, on the other hand, plays Courtney Massengale, a ruthless achiever who will let nothing stand in his way to the top. The eve of America's entry into WWI finds the men friends, but as events unfold, the vast difference in their personalities leads to a face-off in a life and death struggle of good versus evil.

NCIS: Season Seven - Paramount

NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service) is more than just an action drama. With liberal doses of humor, it's a show that focuses on the sometimes complex and always amusing dynamics of a team of special agents forced to work together in high-stress situations. From murder and espionage to terrorism and stolen submarines, these special agents travel the globe to investigate all crimes with Navy or Marine Corps ties.

BATTLE LEAGUE HORUMO - VIZ Media

Battle League Horumo is just a brilliant little film. Based on the popular fantasy novel of the same name, the film combines the bizarre, outrageous antics and high energy that I love in Japanese comedy with authentic folklore and solid acting with an all-star cast. Anyone who has spent some time in Japan has encountered some strange festival in the summer, with people in period costumes performing some millennium-old dance-ritual in order to gain the blessings of the kami spirits. "Battle League Horumo" asks the question, "What if those gods were real, but you just couldn't see them?"

NARUTO SHIPPUDEN 10 - VIZ Media

In the midst of their spying mission, Team Kakashi is suddenly confronted with the Leaf Village's sworn enemy, Orochimaru. Naruto challenges him, and during their battle, his anger brings forth the power of the Nine-Tailed Fox. Naruto will never give up his determination to find Sasuke and bring him home, but in his rage he risks losing all awareness of himself and hurting those he cares for the most.

DORIAN GRAY - NEM

Dorian Gray as adapted form Oscar Wilde's famous novel 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' and directed by Oliver Parker is about as fine a transfer of a period novel to the screen as has been made of late. The settings, costumes, and acting are all outstanding and with Parker's 'enhancing' some of the debauchery in the transformed life of this famous character updated to allow for more sensuality and brutality than prior cinematic versions, the tale really becomes dramatic.

UNFORGETTABLE: The Korean War - PBS

Korean War veterans recount their memories of America in the late 1940s and early 1950s, when young men from all over the country were being shipped off to defend South Korea against the advancing Red Army in the north. Unforgettable: The Korean War recalls the un-won war that never ended ... no one even wanted to call it a war: it was the Korean conflict or a police action. Finally, it was called the Forgotten War. No matter the name, the Korean War killed tens of thousands of U.S.

INSTANT EXPERT: Ben Franklin - A&E

Was there ever a more enigmatic American than Ben Franklin? He negotiated an alliance with France, helped write the Declaration of Independence and was the first to tame lightning. The DVD takes a fresh and informative look at the man behind the myth, a writer, scientist, politician, and ruthless competitor who never made a penny from his achievements and was more comfortable speaking in front of the British Parliament than with his own family. Extremely education and creative, this program is perfect for the entire family!

9TH COMPANY - Well Go USA

Based on real-life events, 9th Company recounts a year in the shared lives of a group of young soldiers drafted to serve in Afghanistan during the final year of the Soviet conflict. It is a poignant story of the unit s dedication to each other during their valiant defense of Height 3234...a futile battle that ravaged their forgotten company, who fought on, unaware that the war had ended. Reminiscent of Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket and The Big Red One, 9th Company is credited as being the first real post-Soviet era war film.

ANGELINA BALLERINA: Love to Dance - Lionsgate

Put on your dancing shoes and get ready to take center stage with Angelina Ballerina! On Angelina’s first day at Camembert Academy she discovers new forms of music and dance, like jazz, tap, and hip-hop. Together with her friends, Angelina realizes that becoming a prima ballerina requires collaboration and compromise – but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun! Get ready to step, leap and groove as you discover your own love of dance in these fun-filled episodes!

FATHER KNOWS BEST: Season Five - Shout Factory

Americas #1 dad returns for another season of family adventures! Robert Young is Jim Anderson, patriarch extraordinaire to his loving but sometimes misguided family. With Bud (Billy Gray) taking up the practice of mind-reading, Kathy (Lauren Chapin) rebelling at summer camp, Betty (Elinor Donahue) discovering that Mother Margaret (Jane Wyatt) has been placed in her English class as a student: it is certain that the father who knows best is going to have his hands full! By the fourth season, Father Knows Best was a prime-time fixture for NBC, although the program would soon return to the CBS lineup for its last two seasons. This is a terrific series, not only for its entertainment value, but also for its moral and social value. The casting was excellent, and I agree with other reviews, Billy Gray was great for the part of Bud. I have not seen another character like him on any program. He was unique.

G.I. JOE: The Movie - Shout Factory

The Original G.I. Joe Movie As You Have Never Seen It Before In Stunning High-Definition! In the hands of G.I. Joe, the Broadcast Energy Transmitter is a device capable of fulfilling all of the energy needs of Earth. However, in the hands of Cobra and the newly revealed Cobra-La, led by the ancient and otherworldly Golobulus (Burgess Meredith), the B.E.T. could spell the end of human civilization. With Duke critically wounded on the battlefield, it is up to Lieutenant Falcon (Don Johnson) and a new class of G.I. Joe recruits, trained by none other than Sgt. Slaughter, to prevent Golobulus from infecting the entire globe with deadly mutating spores!

SUBURBIA - Shout Factory

Penelope Spheeris used real kids as opposed to seasoned actors. As a result, the movie has a genuine punk rock vibe, although the acting is nothing to write home about. Listening to the director's commentary, one learns the ins and outs of how and why certain aspects of the film occur. She took a lot of events taking place at that time and incorporated them into the script, such as the wild dogs in the beginning of the movie. One thing that I am kinda bummed out about is how she seems to be a bit embarrassed by the movie. She almost makes excuses at times. Yes, the scene in which the two men shoot the wild dogs is a bit hard to stomach and we all know that that type of scene would never make it into a movie today. But that is one of the aspects that I love about Suburbia. It's a low budget, honest, straight out of the 80's movie.

BROTHERS AND SISTERS: Season Four - ABC

Welcome the Walkers back into your home with the emotional fourth season of the warm and witty drama that explores the triumphs and tragedies of the American family. Featuring one of the most celebrated casts on television, including Sally Field, Calista Flockhart and Rob Lowe. No matter how much life changes, family stays the same. As new challenges arise for the Walkers, they learn to rely on one another more than ever before. Kitty’s personal revelation devastates the entire family, Nora begins a relationship with a younger man and Justin and Rebecca’s Malibu wedding doesn’t quite go as planned. Relive all the drama and every touching moment of Season Four, complete with never-before-seen bonus features available only on DVD!

ADDICTED TO HER LOVE - E1 Entertainment

At a graduation party, Jonah Brand catches the eye of the popular and beautiful Sara Weller. When her hard-partying circle of friends learns Johan works at a pharmacy they welcome him into their group and lure him down a dark path of lies, deceit and larceny.

HATCHET - Anchor Bay

Adam Green's Hatchet is a goofy, gory gas that pays tribute to the slasher boom of the 1980s by placing more hapless teens in the path of an indestructible maniac. Said killer is Victor Crowley (Kane Hodder, Jason in many of the later Friday the 13th entries), a deformed Louisiana swamp dweller who returns from an apparent fiery death to lay waste to a mixed bag of tourists and Mardi Gras revelers who've wandered into his turf on a "haunted swamp" tour. Hatchet doesn't exactly surpass the movies it's spoofing; Green's characters are dopey ciphers, and Crowley's indiscriminate killing spree negates his sympathetic origins.

GO DIEGO GO: Ultimate Rescue League - Nickelodeon

Join the Animal Rescue League! Help Diego and his friends earn their World Rescue Patches! Travel underwater and up tall mountains to save more animals. The DVD includes 3 action-packed Diego journeys that your kids will enjoy!

ICARLY: ISpace Out - Nickelodeon

It’s a blast of iCarly episodes that are out of this world! Carly and the crew venture to a training facility to test their space survival abilities. Can they hack being locked in a space pod for 36 hours? Sam decides to reveal a shocking secret, Gibby wants to fight Freddie and guess who tries to find Bigfoot. Join the iCarly crew for more insanity!

IT'S THE GREAT PUMPKIN CHARLIE BROWN - Warner

Charlie Brown gets rocks in his trick-or-treat bag, Linus awaits a visitation from the Great Pumpkin in his terribly sincere pumpkin patch (while the adoring little Sally sits tight with him), Snoopy falls asleep, Lucy harasses Schroeder, and Pig-Pen kicks up a dust storm even beneath his costume in this classic television broadcast. Funny stuff, but also graced with Charles Schultz's more poignant and gently satiric themes from the 1960s on the influence of faith, failure, and hope in our lives.

BUGS BUNNY'S HOWL-OWEEN SPECIAL - Warner

Starting in 1976 WB found money to be made by cutting up their theatrical cartoons, adding some new bridging material, and creating "new" half-hour TV specials. This is their 5th special (19 were made from 1976 to 1989). The wascally wabbit encounters dimwitted witches and vacant vampires in this merry romp.

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: Series One - Warner

It's Elena's first day back at Mystic Falls High School since the tragic death of her parents. Along with her Aunt Jenna, Elena tries her best to look after her troubled younger brother, Jeremy, and salvage what family they have left. The first day is already shaping up to be a struggle for Elena until she meets the mysterious new kid at school, Stefan. Elena is touched that he can relate to what she's going through. What Elena doesn't know is that Stefan is a vampire, constantly resisting the urge to taste her blood. As their undeniable connection grows deeper, Stefan's dangerous older brother, Damon, shows up to wreak havoc on the town of Mystic Falls - and claim Elena for himself. The Vampire Diaries is based on the bestselling book series from Alloy Entertainment.

THE SIMPSONS: Season 13 - Fox

Talk about lucky! Season 13 of The Simpsons arrives on Blu-ray and DVD with 22 hilarious episodes and tons of fun-filled extras, including audio commentaries, animation showcases, and featurettes. So grab a donut and pull up a couch to see Lisa becoming a Buddhist, Bart living in a plastic bubble, Homer doing community service (which lands him in the electric chair), and the Simpsons offending the entire nation of Brazil, plus your favorite couch gags and a slew of celebrity guest voices.

RIVER PHOENIX: Final 24 - MVD

After a tough day on set, Hollywood golden boy River Phoenix hits L.A's fashionable nightclub The Viper Room. He's looking forward to getting on stage and jamming with his friends. This is a moment he's been waiting for. When the plan changes, a disappointed Phoenix ingests a lethal cocktail of drugs, staggers outside and collapses on the sidewalk. Paramedics are unable to revive him and he dies shortly after. Be there as we recreate Phoenix's last day to tell the tragic tale of a young man whose short life was dominated by the constant pressure to perform.

ANCHORMAN: Legend of Ron Burgundy - Paramount

Will Farrell followed up his star-making vehicle Elf, which matched his fine-tuned comic obliviousness to a sweet sincerity, with a more arrogant variation on the same character: Ron Burgundy, a macho, narcissistic news anchor from the 1970s. Along with his news posse--roving reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), sports guy Champ Kind (David Koechner), and dim-bulb weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell)--Burgundy rules the roost in San Diego, fawned upon by groupies and supported by a weary producer (Fred Willard) who tolerates Burgundy's ego because of good ratings. But when Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) arrives with ambitions to become an anchor herself, she threatens the male-dominated newsroom.

THE MIDDLE: Season One - Warner

Patricia Heaton stars as Frankie Heck in this warm and witty single-camera comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations. Frankie Heck is a superhero. Well, no, not an actual superhero - but sometimes it seems to Frankie as though getting her kids out the door for school every morning is a superheroic act. Middle aged, middle class and living in the middle of the country, this harried wife and working mother of three uses her wry wit and sense of humor to try to get her family through each day intact.

HARRY BROWN - Sony

With its themes of rampant urban decay and crime, mistreatment of the elderly, and vigilantism, Harry Brown will inevitably be compared to earlier movies from Death Wish to Gran Torino. The comparisons are apt, but with the able assistance of Michael Caine in the title role, director Daniel Barber and screenwriter Gary Young's tale stands on its own, grimly but compellingly. Caine's Harry Brown, a retiree and former marine, lives alone in a flat in a decrepit London council estate, spending his time visiting his comatose wife in the hospital, playing chess at the local pub with his only friend (David Bradley), and gazing out at the quotidian violence and drug dealing carried out with virtual impunity by the insolent young thugs and lowlifes on the estate grounds. It's a lonely existence that only gets sadder when his wife dies and his pal is murdered; and when the police inform him that nailing those responsible will be next to impossible, Harry turns dirty.

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