The Blu Spot

The Film: Once again we return to Shout! Studios' incredible Hong Kong Cinema Classics series with another offering from the great John Woo, the filmmaker behind such action classics as "Hard Boiled" and "The Killer." This time we're taking a look at an entry in his filmography that's perhaps not as well-known as his more popular works entitled "Bullet in the Head," a curious blend of drama, crime, action, and romance that he made not long after the latter of the aforemention

The Film: Writer/director Derek Cianfrance may not be a filmmaker with a household name, but chances are that you've seen, or have at least heard of, his most well-known projects, which includes "Blue Valentine," "A Place Beyond the Pines," and the HBO miniseries "I Know This Much is True." Looking at his filmography, the material he works with typically skews towards drama, which makes it understandable as to why he would eventually want to try something a little lighter. Th

The Film: When it comes to writing comedy, it's one of those talents that you either have or you don't. There are those that can actually come up with well-formed, clever jokes that get plenty of laughs, while others will settle for aiming much lower, populating their project with lazy, uninspired humor that clearly shows that the writer just doesn't have a knack for it (with the recent attempted reboot of "The Naked Gun" being a prime example). This brings us to Jim O'Hanlon

The Film: When Tobe Hooper's "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" was released back in 1974, it became something of a phenomenon with audiences that made it quite a big hit at the box office. Made for under $140,000, the film's visceral, violent nature brought horror lovers out in droves to experience its macabre tale of a group of friends who cross paths with a family of cannibals. The critics may not have cared much for it at the time, but it has since gone on to be regarded as on

The Film: Writer/director David Ayer has had a curious roller coaster of a career, hitting a decent peak early on with the compelling cop drama "Training Day," but also delivering a number of sub-par films like his dreadful "Suicide Squad," his bland war flick "Fury," and most recently, a pair of standard Jason Statham shoot/beat-'em-ups with "The Beekeeper" & "A Working Man." However, when you dig a little deeper into his filmography, you notice another little cop drama call

The Film: Two-time Academy Award winning director Michael Curtiz will forever be known primarily for his work on "Casablanca," a beloved film that has gone down in history as one of the very greatest movies of all time. However, his immense talent as a director didn't stop there, for his filmography also includes such great works as "Angels with Dirty Faces," "Yankee Doodle Dandy," and "Mildred Pierce," the first two of which earned him two additional Oscar nominations. That

The Film: 20 years ago, an odd little film was released that was sold entirely based on its intriguing title alone. "Snakes on a Plane" is one of those projects that never tried to hide exactly what it was and how absurd it was going to be, leading to quite a lot of hype surrounding it right up to its theatrical release. Unsurprisingly, it was not received very well by critics, but what was a little surprising was that the major buzz circling the film didn't translate into bo

The Film: In 2024, director Jon M. Chu delivered the first half of what turned out to be a marvelous adaptation of the smash Broadway hit "Wicked," one that earned massive critical acclaim, ten Oscar nominations (including Best Picture), and raked in a stunning $758 million at the box office. Great musicals seem to be more and more rare at the theater nowadays, so getting one that hit all of the right notes was certainly a pleasant & delightful surprise. Now Chu & co. are bac

The Film: Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson is certainly no stranger to massive critical acclaim, with each of his features having garnered a fair share of positive reviews. Have they always been deserved? Well, it's more than fair to say that some of his films are a little overrated, including "Inherent Vice," "Punch-Drunk Love," and "Licorice Pizza," but this hasn't stopped him from amassing a rather impressive 11 Oscar nominations over the course of his incredible caree

The Film: After the 2013 "Evil Dead" reboot failed to impress both critics & audiences alike with its pointless, gratuitous bloodbath, it was decided that it was time to put the idea of another film on the back burner for a little while, and instead attempt the series' first television iteration (with original star Bruce Campbell in the lead, no less). "Ash vs. Evil Dead" was well-received, but after three all-too-brief seasons, it was cancelled due to low viewership (basical