Our Blu-ray/DVD Release Date List has been updated!

Our BD/DVD release dates are all updated through the end of January, to better serve your home video buying needs!

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The Digital Dread Report for November 27th

We've been so Blu-ray crazy lately that we're nearly out of money for this weeks releases, but we can still afford a few...

First and foremost, the must own movie of the week is Lawless. It's a great gangster flicks that came and went in theaters way too quick. We're grabbing this one for sure.

The Day was decent, as was The Rites of Spring, and they're both definitely worth a rental at least.

That's it though. There's not much else that we're interested in buying this week; Men in Black 3 sucked, The Apparition was awful, and we've vowed to own no movie starring Corey Feldman that was released after 1996's Bordello of Blood, because have you seen what he's starred in since then?

It's slim pickings this week for sure, but do not despair; next week we get The Dark Knight Rises on BD, so all will be well. We promise.

Review: The Silence (2012)

(aka Das letzte Schweigen)
Release Date: Available on BD/DVD (Europe) now.
Country: Germany.
Written by: Baran bo Odar and Jan Coster Wagner.
Directed by: Baran bo Odar.  
Starring: Ulrich Thomsen, Katrin Sass, Wotan Wilke Mohring and Sebastian Blomberg.

There's something infinitely intriguing to us about movies involving serial killers and kids. No, we don't hate kids, and there's nothing entertaining about watching them die in creepy or violent ways on film, but these movies always get to us none the less.

It's most likely because most people have kids in their lives whom they love (or at least like), and the idea of them disappearing or worse is a haunting one to entertain.

Horror movies are supposed to get into our heads and make us feel helpless and fill us with dread. Is there anything more dreadful than the thought of a child being raped and murdered?

In the Summer of 1986, sweet little Pia is riding her bike along some deserted-ass German country road, when she is raped and murdered in a corn field by a creeper, while his creeper friend watches. They throw her bike in the cornfield (?!?), dump the body in a nearby lake, and then they part on bad terms, thus dissolving their creepy friendship.

Peddle, bitch, peddle for your life get some help!

23 years later, sweet little Sinikka rides off on her bike, and never returns home. Her bike is found in the same cornfield where Pia was done in by the creeper duo. There's no body this time tough to say whether the girl is dead or alive, and so the hunt is on to find he before it's too late! Unless it already is, then, the hunting is pretty much in vain. Still, the hunt is on!

Young girls really have to learn to ride away from strangers.

The police in this town apparently suck, because after 23 years they have nothing on the original case, and here they are with the same predator doing the exact same thing to another girl. Is Sinnika alive or have they merely to find her discarded body? Will the Cops get their shit together and figure out how to use DNA and fingerprint evidence properly? Far be it from me to ruin things for you, but suffice it to say that European films seldom end on happy notes.

The clown knows. Somehow, he always has.

The Silence is a sleek, quiet little movie that delivers on a subtle level. This isn't a typical whodunit type of flick, rather it shows the effects of tragic events on the victims families, the cops who investigate them, end even the pedophile perpetrators themselves. There wasn't much here that made us jump out of our seats in fright, but there's plenty of dread and tension that kept us unsettled and off balance. It's really more of a creepy drama, than any sort of police procedural. whatever way you look at it though, it was an effective movie.

The movie looks beautiful as well, showcasing the gorgeous German countryside through the eerie lens of the movies events, which just adds to the creepiness of it all. It's all tightly paced and suspenseful, and kept us interested until it was over. Just the idea of predators at large living among us is enough to give us the willies.

Aah, memories.

Weren't the one guy's prints on the bike? How could they not at least suspect that there were two killers all along, with DNA evidence from one, and fingerprints on the bike from someone else? I'm just saying, it could have at least been a theory or something...

WTF, man...

The pedophile aspect of this movie was just unsettling; flashbacks of two grown men watching kiddie porn together, sharing a young girl together, watching kids play together, talking to kids in their neighborhood like they're all friendly and innocent... it really makes you wonder who you live next door to.

Dudes like this are out there, so hide your kids.

There's really next to nothing gory in this movie, aside from whatever level of gore a corpse brings to a film.

Creepy.

Young girls should never go for bike rides, especially along deserted roads near cornfields.

Creepy Dad Alert!

If you like movies that mess with your emotions and disturb you in subtle, yet effective ways, then The Silence is definitely one for you. It's light on gore and action, but has atmosphere and suspense to spare. It's available on BD/DVD pretty much everywhere but America, so if you're able to rent or buy it, then definitely check it out.

B

Since there aren't really any Hotties in this movie, we offer you some pics of Diane Kruger to fill that void, because she's both German and hot. You're welcome.

The Theatrical Trauma of November 23rd

Amidst the rabid throng of bargain-happy American shoppers, the Theater may just be the safest place for us this Black Friday weekend. Actually, home is probably the safest place, but we can't see brand new movies on the silver screen at home, so...

Aside from the Limited Release of Saint Dracula 3D (WTH is that?!?) , horror fans are forced to seek the creative solace of other genres for their Theatrical movie fixes this week.

Rise of the Guardians looks like some cool family fun, and it doesn't look like it would be insulting for adults to sit through. We'll most likely catcht his one.

Filmed less than a mile away from our home in scenic Mt. Clemens, Michigan, Red Dawn is a remake we're not sure about. We'll see it because it's going to be fun to see our neighborhood on the big screen, but aside from that, we're not really all that excited about this one.

Life of Pi... it's a Fantasy flick, so we figured why not include it on this weeks list. It's been getting killer reviews, and although it's more of an Artistic Drama if anything, it may be worth a look.

Finally, in Limited Release we have Hitchcock; The brilliant Sir Anthony Hopkins playing one of the Horror Genre's founding fathers can not be a bad thing. We'll definitely see this if we get time.

Our Theatrical Release Date List has also been updated for December all the way through January! There's even a little sneak peek at the months following, so check it out.

Dear Black Friday Shoppers...

Review: Red Lights (2012)

(aka Elizabeth Olsen is Yummy)
Release Date: On Blu-ray/DVD now.
Country: USA/Spain
Written & Directed by: Rodrigo Cortes.
Starring: Robert De Niro, Cillian Murphy, Sigourney Weaver and Elizabeth Olsen. 

We never caught this one in Theaters, then again, not many people did. It was one of those Limited Release deals that come and go in a flash, like a sex-addicted Postman. Plumber. Whoever the guys are in the Porn movies that come and go. I don't know.

We love Cillian Murphy around these parts, and Lizzie Olsen is one of our favorite Hotties, so naturally, we were intrigued by the idea of them both starring in the same supernatural thriller. Odd that those two piqued our interest more so than their higher-profile costars, De Niro and Weaver. Maybe we're just ageists.

Margaret and Tom are paranormal investigators that run around debunking fraudulent claims and people, especially those of the psychic variety. Robert De Niro is Simon Silver; a world-renowned psychic that has just come out of retirement. Also, he's blind... or is he? Elizabeth Olsen is window dressing. Pretty, sexy, window dressing, but dressing none the less.

That is about all she does in this movie.

Simon Silver's re-emergence sends Margaret into a tizzy, as he's something of a personal nemesis to her. When Tom insists that they investigate him and expose him for the fraud that they believe him to be, Margaret won't allow it. Silver apparently psychically killed the last guy who tried to defame him, and she wants to live!

She doesn't.

It's not long before Tom sets out on his own to debunk Silver, despite his mentors warnings. What follows next is a Mano y Mano showdown of non-epic proportions between the two, involving plenty of cat-and-mouse shadow play. We're not even sure what in the hell that last sentence means, but it feels wholly appropriate. Quiet mystery ensues.

"Would you like to see my mask? I use it in my experiments."

Red Lights is a well made film that is richly dark and subdued, and pulls you right into the story with its effective atmosphere. The story doesn't quite reach its full potential, only coming close to delivering on it towards the very end, but it's an entertaining journey none the less. It's also a thinker more than it is a shocker, so keep that in mind.

The cast is top-notch, and they do a great job with the mostly average material. Cillian Murphy is always fun to watch, even if he only has one or two modes in his acting repertoire, they are fantastic ones.

The twist ending is an interesting one, although it's not hard to figure it out along the way if you're paying attention. Is Simon Silver a fraud? You'll definitely know by the end. Thank you, Rodrigo Cortes, for not giving us the all too popular "leave it up to the audience to decide" bullshit ending that plagues so may genre movies these days. It was nice to see a resolution for a change.

Ever the consummate method actor, De Niro actually blinded himself to prepare for this role.

Why did Elizabeth Olsen have such a small and insignificant part in this movie? Sure, maybe it's what the script dictated, but as good as she is, couldn't they have fleshed her character out a bit more or actually given her something to do? She may as well be listed as "concerned love interest" in the credits, because that's about all she is in this one. What a waste.

"I know, right!"

There's a little bit of blood and violence in this one, but it's not prominent at all. This movie is not about the visceral.

This ass-kicking is about the extent of it.

No, and what a shame. Lizzy Olsen has been nakie in movies before, and there's no reason that they couldn't have added a scene or five of gratuitous sex and nudity here, just to spice things up a bit. Prudes.

Yes, yes, you can read. Tell me all about it while you disrobe.

Red Lights was a pretty good movie; it's well made, has a great cast, and the story is interesting enough, it's just a shame that it took until the end to pick up the pace and give us something exciting to chew on. That's not to say that Red Lights is boring, but it does shuffle along at a slow pace for most of its running time. Still, if you like slightly above-average thrillers, then this one should please you just fine.

C+

Elizabeth Olsen is just too cute for us not to fawn over, and we can't wait to see her in Spike Lee's remake of the gritty South Korean classic, Oldboy. She'll be naked in that creepy-ass movie.