Goes for the nuts first
Think of Mallory Kane (played by MMA Fighter, Gina Carano) as Jason Bourne with a functioning memory and some sweet heels. Carano comes alive in this action-thriller by acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh. As hired heavy for a private black bag ops firm working for the United States Government, Kane is betrayed by the very people [...]
All in, for the win
Computer workstations are typically regarded as PC powerhouses for the professional. Boasting top tier internals and reliability, they’re only limiting factors tend to be size or an inability to upgrade components. That’s now a problem of the past. Designed and fast tracked in secret, literally in a lab within a lab, the HP Z1 Workstation [...]
An animated classic resurfaces
After being out of print for what seems like an eternity, The Beatles’ 1968 animated hit, Yellow Submarine has finally been digitally restored for DVD and Blu-ray. Getting the Blue Meanies all primped up and ready for their 1080p debut apparently was no easy feat. In fact, each frame of the film was restored by [...]
Look who's back on top
Our insincere condolences to Hunger Games fans everywhere. This week we’re celebrating the release of the 70th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray of Casablanca ($45). Thanks to the Michael Bays and James Camerons of today, movies have certainly come a long way since 1942 in terms of production value. Yet this timeless classic continues to shape generations [...]
Suspicion goes HD
While most assumed Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was bound for success the moment it went into production, thanks to a combination of elite UK actors and one of the best spy-thrillers ever put to paper as a basis for a script, we were still skeptical. Call us George Smiley’s, but director Tomas Alfredson, after all, [...]
Audio on another level
Audio manufacturers started using the term “high fidelity” in the 1950s as a marketing technique to help grow consumer interest in home stereos. Thanks to the new buzz word and a concerted industry push, the consumer home audio world soon entered “The Golden Age of Hi-Fi” in the 1960s. It was during this boom when [...]
Grips with both hands on the wheel
Drive confidently swerves around pigeonholes. Pink scripted credits, seemingly plucked from an 80s billboard, burn over opening shots of the LA skyline, right before plunging into a tense getaway that would make Michael Mann grin from ear to ear. The protagonist — whose proper name is never revealed throughout the entire flick — barely speaks [...]
The whole Bondchilada
MGM has announced the mother of all boxed sets in celebration of 50 years of James Bond wooing women, breaking gadgets, and thwarting global disaster on the silver screen. Never before have all 22 films been available in high definition Blu-ray and compiled into one epic collectors item that’s truly a must have for any [...]
Boxed-Up Box Office
Newbies in the display game rarely succeed given the variety of entrenched brands already doing well in the space. BryteWerks hopes to become an exception with their soon to be released Model One Cube, which takes a slightly more literal approach to the concept of a home theater in a box. Inside the sleek black [...]
The wrong kind of touchy-feely
Contagion is a germophobe’s worst nightmare. Director Steven Soderbergh and his usual team tackle a well-worn niche, ploughed by titles like Outbreak, to create a pandemic horror story that will leave most viewers running to stockpile Purell and hesitant to enter airports. Much of its success comes from a grounded depiction of how the world’s [...]
Back in time with no DeLorean in sight
Midnight in Paris features plenty of Woody Allen trademarks, while avoiding many of the quirks that have irritated us about his work in the past. “Pair-eee” has rarely looked so good in a film and leaves viewers pining to hop a plane to de Gaulle as soon as the credits roll. The cast boasts a [...]
A foreign masterpiece in 1080p
When it comes to Brazilian cinema, it doesn’t get any bigger than City of God. After its release in 2002, the outstanding film based on true events quickly stormed the international film community, grabbing four academy award nominations in the process thanks to its raw depiction of life in the slums of the notorious Rio [...]
Home sweet home theater
As rabid movie, music fans and gamers, we’re always on the hunt for gear that can push our home entertainment experience to 11 (much to our better half’s chagrin). This roundup includes some of our favorite home theater products out today that we’d love to host in our living room. Continues after the jump.
What's Cookin'
GEAR PATROL SPONSORED POST After covering the HP Touch Smart’s talents as a bedroom media center, we next put the capable machine to the test in the center of our home, a.k.a. the kitchen. We know –- having a computer there sounds strange, but as we discovered, having a touch-enabled digital communication center that the [...]
Date-approved, yet still enjoyable
Despite what the posters say, Our Idiot Brother is less of a roll-on-the-floor-comedy, and more of a feel-good-indie. That doesn’t mean you won’t laugh out loud while watching though (the parole officer conversations and an attempted threesome are particularly rich moments). Loaded with generation X stars including Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Rashida Jones [...]
