31 in 31: Bride of Frankenstein

Posted on October 3, 2011 by Denise

31 horror movies. One for each day in October. How hard can it be….

Story:  Man creates monster.  Monster is, well, a monster, so friends are hard to come by.  So, man is forced to make a mate, or he’ll never see his own lady love again.

Scares:  Since the ending scene of this movie has been shown just about everywhere, you’d think there wouldn’t be a scare to be had in this ol’ gal.  You’d be wrong.  The atmosphere is full of fog and shadows, and Karl — this movie’s Igor-like bitch boy, a murderer forced to help out Dr. Pretorius — has his own way of obtaining body parts.  This movie is more mysterious and creepy than all-out scary nowadays though, and I had to chuckle at Frankenstein’s Monster puffing on a stogie with a stupid-large grin on his face.  “Gooood!”  Um, I’ll take your word for it.

Splat factor: Vague flashes of body parts, all shot in black-and-white.  This movie is about atmosphere, not bleeding.

Closing scene “shocker”?: No, thank goodness!  Back when this was made, movies didn’t have to resort to stupid stunts like that to hold an audience’s attention.

Remake, Sequel or OG (Original Ghoul)?: Though this is a sequel to 1931’s Frankenstein, this classic is also an OG in it’s own right.

Trick or Treat?: This is the real deal; the full sized Snickers you hide from your parents so you can have it all to yourself.  For a movie filmed in 1935, Bride of Frankenstein holds up surprisingly well.  From the opening scene where Lord Byron and the Shelleys gather to hear Mary Shelley continue her story — “That’s not the end…” — to the amazing Strickfaden machines that spark and crackle at the laboratory, it’s a fun thrill ride that doesn’t lose any of the magic just because you know how it’s gonna end.  (And a tip of the hat to Elsa Lanchester for her portrayal of Mary Shelley at the beginning of the movie, a role all but forgotten with her riveting performance as The Bride later in the film.)  Just about every horror monster cliché started with the 1930’s Universal Studios monsters, and a lot of ’em are right here: “It’s ALIVE!”, the weird little German-like town, pitchfork and torch-wielding townsfolk…even the strangely dressed maid Minnie is someone you’ll see later.  Or don’t you recognize Frau Blücher (Neiiiiiigh!) from Young Frankenstein?  The way Frankensten’s Monster and his maker survives after the first film is believable too, another item today’s slasher pics seem to leave by the wayside.

Bride of Frankenstein isn’t just a great horror film, the lighting, cinematography and set design is breathtaking too.  Beware: after seeing this film you may find that the current crop of modern-day horror films pale in comparison.

 

Score: out of 5 pumpkins.

Posted in 31 in 31, DVD Reviews, Movie Reviews | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

31 in 31: Sorority Row

Posted on October 2, 2011 by Denise

31 horror movies.  One for each day in October.  How hard can it be….

Story: I know what you did on Halloween at Camp Crystal La…oh you know the story.  Girls gone wild.  Girls inadvertently kill fellow pledge in a dumbass move.  Or DID they?  Well, on graduation day somebody knows what happened, and isn’t exactly down with it.  (Dum da DUMMMMM!)

Scares: A few shockers, but of the sudden appearance kind rather than the highly superior real chills kind.  They do try to deliver though, so this movie gets an extra point for effort.  Plus, I’ll never look at a tire iron in quite the same way.  The next time I get a flat tire, I’m screwed.

Splat factor:  A trickle.  This feels like a movie that tried for a PG-13 rating, failed, then decided to amp the nekkid factor instead of the FX.  Hey, boobies are cheaper than special effects artists!  But as someone who has a pair she can look at anytime, I’d rather they had amped the gore a notch or two.  There are a few cool kills though, including one where you can see the blade go in under the chin, then see it in the mouth, then see it removed.  Applause goes to FX coordinator Steve Riley & his band of awesomeness for that one.

Closing Scene “Shocker”: A’yup.  And it’s a yawner.

Remake, Sequel or OG?: It’s a remake of 1983’s The House on Sorority Row.

Trick or Treat?: Call this one a handful of M&M’s at the bottom of your bag.  It’s a great treat, but the execution is lacking.  The prologue is so inexplicably stupid that I found myself rooting for their deaths almost immediately.  I understand payback, but nobody in her right mind would’ve let that prank go that far.  So after tainting the redshirts bodybags sorority sisters, we’re supposed to care if they die?  Not so much.  The heroine of the bunch is so blindingly Good amidst the rest of the obnoxious dreck she calls sisters that it’s obvious who’ll survive.  The fact that these college educated girls are dumb as rocks (I”ll wade through shoulder-deep foam to shut off the jacuzzi!  I know there’s a killer gunning for us, but what the heck?) shouldn’t be a shock in a slasher pic, but they’re so brain dead and bitchy that I was rooting for Darwinism to take a firm hand posthaste. Still, I’m kinda liking Sorority Row. Scream rules apply: you drink, you die.  You do drugs, you die.  You’re a jerk, you die.  You know the drill.  Carrie Fisher plays the sorority house mother, and she’s fantastic. And any IMDb credits list that has “Bra-Clad Sister” numbero uno automatically gets a thumbs up from me for sheer coolness.

This is a great 80’s flashback of a film, with it’s cast of moronic characters getting their comeuppance old-school style, just don’t expect more than you would any other film and you’ll have a good time.

Score: out of 5 pumpkins.

Posted in 31 in 31, DVD Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

31 in 31: Elvira: Mistress of the Dark

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Denise

31 horror movies.  One for each day in October.  How hard can it be….

Story: A gal with a fantastic set of cantaloupes (and hey, her boobs ain’t bad either, bada-bing!) gets tired of doing the same-ol’ thing, hosting Z-grade horror movies on the local cable access channel.  What she really wants is…Vegas.  But she needs money, so when a long-lost Great Aunt dies, leaving Elvira everything.  When Elvira sees that “everything” means a run-down house, a poodle with an attitude and a cookbook, she’s less than thrilled.  But Great Uncle Vincent will pay Elvira 50 smackers for the cookbook…oh, you know that’s not Betty Crocker, right?  Seems Elvira comes from a long line of witches (big shock there).  But Elvira’s new town likes witches just about as much as the town in Footloose likes dancing.

Scares: This is Elvira, not that creepy girl in The Ring.  (Though they both have dark hair.  Coincidence?  I think not.)  I’d be shocked if a toddler got spooked.  Yeah, it’s rated PG-13, but that’s for the sexual innuendo that comes along anytime Elvira and her magic stay-on dress make an appearance.  Her jokes — and the ogling done by the neighborhood XY chromosomes — wouldn’t bat an eyelash nowadays.  Oh, there is one small monster, but to quote Charles Dickens, there’s more gravy than grave.

Splat factor: The small monster does get done in, though it’s yucky, not bloody.  Otherwise, there’s isn’t as much as a hangnail to be had here.

Trick or Treat?: No gore.  No scares.  What the hell am I doing watching this?  Because it’s a hoot!  Director James Signorelli obviously channels his time at Saturday Night Live here; the jokes are quick & dirty, perfect for our gal.  C’mon, this is friggin’ Elvira, for chrissakes.  She’s a scream, and it’s a great, fun way to start of “Shocktober” (yeah, there’ll be tons of stupid Halloween and October puns here folks.  Sorry.)  It’s great to see the gal I looked up to in the 80’s strut her stuff, though even now Cassandra Peterson is still one hot tamale of terror.  I can only hope I look as good…next year as she does at 60.  Anyway, it’s always nice to have a few kid-friendly movies just in case the tykes didn’t pass out after the 10 packets of Lik-M-Aid they scarfed down after a full night of shaking down the neighbors for candy.  The kids will love Elvira’s wild antics and cool pooch, while the adults will drool, elbow each other and remember when.

Score: 2 out of 5 pumpkins. Surprisingly apt for Elvira.

Posted in 31 in 31, DVD Reviews | Leave a comment

From Atomic Popcorn: Movie Review — What’s Your Number?

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Denise

Ally Darling is a slut.  At least that’s what all the women’s magazines tell her, and everyone knows those magazines are nothing but truth in pulp paper form.  So Ally goes on a mission to track down her ex-bf’s, in the hopes that one of ‘em will serve as her One True Love…so she won’t have to amp up her number and become Superslut.  I say hey, if you’re gonna be a superhero, what better way.  And what better way to spend a few hours in the multiplex right now than with this fun little confection of a movie?  Baltimore-born Anna Faris does a great job of gettin’ low for the laughs, Captain America’s Chris Evans shows that he’s more than just a stud in latex, and the laughs and love are easy.  If you think your list of chick-flick movies is longer than the average list, don’t be afraid to add this one on.  No-one will judge you for that.  At least nobody worth knowing.

Based on Karen Bosnak’s novel “20 Times a Lady”, What’s Your Number points out the disparity between the sexes when it comes to sex.  Guys bang anything that moves and that makes ‘em a stud, women run out of fingers to count with when counting conquests and they’re not marriage material.  So after her younger sister’s engagement party, Ally decides that it’s no more sex, no more conquests, no more random hooking up.  Naturally, she boinks her boss that night (a hilariously creepy Joel McHale, in a role more Talk Soup than Community).  But her lothario neighbor Colin gets roped into helping her with the promise of Ally’s help with ditching the one-night-stands he constantly brings home.  Ally’s cute, Colin’s sexy, they’re both funny…and you can figure out the rest.  Thank goodness What’s Your Number has a refreshingly light touch with the romance, focusing on laughs and the awkwardness of tracking past lovers instead of the deep meaningful connection the leads share.  The chemistry between Faris and Evans is off the charts anyway, so gilding that lily would have had the movie ending up a clunker…..

READ THE ENTIRE REVIEW: at Atomic Popcorn!

Posted in Atomic Popcorn, Movie Reviews | Tagged | Leave a comment

Halloween Horrors: 31 in 31

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Denise

I’ve always thought watching a horror movie a day through the month of October would be a great way to spend a month.  Have I ever done it?

No.

Until now.  Thanks to the Stephen King forums for a bit of inspiration, I’ve decided to watch and review 31 horror films, one for every day in October.  Unlike the much better folks over on the forums though, I’m not doing any rules.  Rules?  We don’t need no stinkin’ rules!  I’d just ignore ’em anyway, so why bother?

Maybe a few ground rules, so folks know what to expect:

* Horror comes in all forms, from the hideously icky to the hilarious.  I’ll be all over the map.

* Sequels are cool.  Remakes are cool.  If they suck?  Oh lawds yes, I’ll tell you.

* Veering off the beaten track (read: the best & brightest of this awesomeness of a genre) will be something to strive for, but “comfort horror” may win out.

* If it’s a movie I love, or have seen before, I must watch it again.  No drawing on what I remember.  I’m already regretting typing this ground rule, to be honest.

* Just because I went all sparkly with the so-obviously-homemade banner, doesn’t mean I’ll be reviewing Twilight.  But don’t count it out, who knows when I’ll need a little sparkle motion?  (And if you have never read these recaps, seriously?  SERIOUSLY?  Do so.  Now would be good.  They are what I want to be when I grow up. Which means what I’ll be never.)

Wanna join in on the fun?  Gimme some suggestions, and/or tell me what you’re watching.  (Prepares Bluto voice) Who’s with me?  Yaaaaaah!

Posted in 31 in 31, DVD Reviews | Leave a comment

In Queue Review: Night of the Demons (2010)

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Denise

Sometimes hitting the multiplex just isn’t in the cards. That’s when cable, the web and streaming step in to provide an instant movie fix. But how to separate the wheat from the chaff? I’m happy to help; every week I’ll pick a flick and see if it’s worth your time. This week it’s the schlockfest remake of 1988’s “Night of the Demons”.

The Story: Angela needs some cold hard cash.  So she plans a blowout Halloween party in a creepy-ass house that has seen murder, mayhem and general mysterious stuff in it’s past.  Hey, demons have been waiting for a moment like this to break through to our world.  Think they’re gonna let this opportunity slide?  Did you read the title of this movie?

The Good: The soundtrack is killer.  Seriously, I want to add all of these songs to my Spotify account for my Halloween 2011 mix.  Remarkably good FX for a low budget splatterfest.  Maddie’s last-minute attempt at saving the day is so kick-ass I want to shout it from the rooftops, but I’ll let those willingn to put up with the averageness of this movie find out for themselves.  Shannon Elizabeth seems to relish the role of Angela, and has her tongue firmly in cheek as she cranks it to 11.  Monica Keena (Entourage) is also game for the role of not-so-virginal heroine Maddie.  All the ladies are slut-tacular, costume-wise (hey, it’s Halloween after all; getting slutty is the law).  So if you like your horror wearing corsets and skin-tight tank tops, this is the place.

The Bad: Fat Edward Furlong.  There, I said it.  Yes, everyone is beautiful no matter what they look like (except for assholes, who seem to ooze jerkdom from their pores like moldy maple syrup).  But Ed doesn’t look simply big-boned, he looks tired from an all-too-recent bender.  And that’s depressing no matter what.  Ed as Monica Keena’s love interest just doesn’t make sense, and with the complete lack of chemistry between the two that relationship lands with a clunk.

Things get crazy in a bad way sometimes, as if they had so many great ideas for deamon-ness that they threw it all in just so they wouldn’t waste it.  It ends up a mashed up mess that’s difficult to really enjoy.  With so many flailing tentacles, bloody ripped off faces and the like, it’s tough to get all that in one shot, and so much of it passes by too quickly to really absorb and enjoy.  All the daylight shots in this film look overexposed, so I guess they funneled the money they had into FX rather than cinematography.

Oh, and a plot point that nagged at me: if there was a survivor the last go-round, why didn’t they do to her what they tried to do to the handful of survivors near the end?  Then again, these demons seem awfully lazy for horrible spirits determined to turn the Earth into a living hell.  Tip from me to you, undead masses; don’t wait ’til the last 30 minutes of the night to bust out your moves.  Strike while you have hours to go.  You’re welcome.  Remember me when you take over the world.

The Everything Else: The art decoration in the house makes me wanna amp up for this year, though I suspect in my city rowhouse of doom it’d just look like a vacant, which isn’t scary, it’s just sad.  Oh, and there seems to be a bit of confusion on when this gem was first released; IMDb has it listed as 2010, and Netflix/Wiki has it as 2009.  So yes, I went with IMDb on this one.

Here’s the breakdown:
Would I watch it again?:  For Halloween.  After all the good stuff has already been watched and everyone’s half asleep/drunk.
Should you see it?: If you’re a Shannon Elizabeth fan, or don’t mind campy-bad horror, yes.  If you’re looking for a good scary film, look elsewhere.
Netflix average rating: 2 Stars
My rating: 3 Stars

Posted in DVD Reviews, In Queue Review | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

From Atomic Popcorn: Monday Rewind — Post-Emmy’s Edition!

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Denise

Hey there entertainment fans!  Since I’m tapping this out just before the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards show (and am I watching the pre-game show to see the dresses?  Doees Tim Gunn make it work?) this will be super-quick.  But don’t worry, there’s still plenty of cool stuff that you may have missed last week….

* You wish the folks that YOU like would win an Emmy?  Me too!  And we’re not alone; EW has coome up with the EWwy’s, a salute to the people and shows folks wish would get a what-what from the Emmy voters.

* Joan Rivers dead?  Oh hell no.  But Betty White, Joan sees you baby…. Sleep with one eye open, she’s on to you.

* An absolutely fantastic article from The Guardian about Cameron Crowe’s look at Pearl Jam, Pearl Jam Twenty, and his huge amount of Pearl Jam tsotchke.  Nice!

* Yeah, so the Muppets have now spoofed The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.   Hilarious, as always.  But you know what’s really cool?  This poster of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, with Daniel Craig half-hidden by Rooney Mara.  Beautifully done!

* I have no problem admitting that American Horror Story is intriguing me, and I can’t wait to see it (though a few early peeks have been say it’s so-so, my hope springs eternal).  If you’re right there with me, check out a sneak peek of the American Horror Story house and some of it’s secrets.

* Trailer?  You bet — I’ve been looking forward to taking a peek at We BoughtA Zoo.  So here it is!

 

ORIGINAL POST

Posted in Atomic Popcorn, Entertainment News | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

From Atomic Popcorn: Movie Review — I Don’t Know How She Does It

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Denise

Sarah Jessica Parker proves that her cute, loveable city gal vibe can take her places beyond Carrie Bradshaw in I Don’t Know How She Does It.  But Sex and the Cityfans will find much in common with Ms. Parker’s latest celluloid romp; luckily a spoonful of her warmth and vivacity makes the Superwoman clichés go down smooth.

Kate Reddy is just like her name; ready to take on everything the world throws at her.  Bake sale at the last minute?  No problem — fake-bake a storebought one with a little powdered sugar and some careful “wrecking”.  Birthday party planning the week of the big meeting?  There goes sleep!  Kate wouldn’t be able to hold it together without her husband Richard (Greg Kinnear), assistant Momo (Olivia Munn) and nanny/surf betty Paula (Jessica Szohr).  Boston is a fast-paced world, however, and when Kate and Richard’s careers take off at the exact same time, something’s gotta give.  For Kate, the weak link is time spent at home, since her big break has her travelling to NYC several times a week to spend time with her client Jack Abelhammer (Pierce Brosnan).  Would that every working woman had to choose between Pierce Brosnan and Greg Kinnear. Though if singing was a requirement…sorry Pierce.  I’ve seen Mama Mia.

The story moves along thanks to asides from the female characters, each of whom has her own different take on Kate’s life.  Besides Kate, Paula and Momo, there’s Kate’s bestie Allison (Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks, looking fresh faced, friendly and most definitely anti-Joan) and “Momster” Wendy Best (Busy Philipps from Cougar Town), a stay-at-home gal who seems to do everything perfectly, while poor Kate walks around with pancake batter on her Armani.  As things come to a head in Kate’s life, she has to learn to prioritize — the bane of all working women’s existence — and how to live with the decisions she makes, in work and at home.

Olivia Munn (Iron Man, Perfect Couples) gets to dust off her deadpan comedy chops she used so well on Attack of the Show as Momo Hahn, Kate’s “robot” of an junior assistant/Gal Friday.  Momo shows us what Kate may have been like if she was single and sans-kids.  Which is to say a working machine that checks sexual conquests off her to-do list like she does her boardroom meetings.  Munn’s ability to telegraph an entire conversation with the audience with one spark of disgust from Momo’s  judgemental eyes is the perfect counterpoint to Kate’s earth mother gone corporate.  Which is to say that they’re opposite ends of a crazy-extreme spectrum.  Kate tries to do it all, and she’s so friggin’ earnest in her need to be the perfect mom that just so happens to love her job.  Momo is straight out of Wall Street — with one toe in American Psycho  — she’s a gal that forgets holidays and thinks nothing of working all day and night, every day and night.  Meanwhile, Busy Philipps gets the snobby “Mom-er Than Thou” vibe down pat as Wendy, never realizing that all the time she spends at the gym/pilates/yoga class leaves her more distant from her kids than Kate has ever been.

Sound clichéd?  Of course it is.  I Don’t Know How She Does It doesn’t claim to take a new approach to the chick film, it’s here to entertain and maybe impart a Very Important Lesson to people who aren’t XX chromosomed with kids.  Kate is head over heels in love with her man, and he’s a doll that rolls up his sleeves and does his part around the house.  Jack is a guy that knows he’s spent too much time working but so far has liked it that way.  Allison is a total sweetie that is always there for Kate, even though Allison is a high-powered attorney (or at least we assume she is; her asides are in a law office where she works.)  Hot nanny Paula is a lovable flake that is always there when the chips are down.  In fact,outside of Momo and the Momsters, the entire cast is so lovable you’re forced to root for a happy ending.  Well, except for Kelsey Grammer, who plays Kate’s boss Clark.  But that’s less about his brief but competent performance and more about how I think he’s a douchenozzle after The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

The storyline moves along at such a clip viewers are whisked away on Kate’s madcap race to blend family and work, but you’re laughing all the way.  Sara Jessica Parker didn’t have to look outside her own home for inspiration on how to play Kate; she’s said that in her home she’s an “air-traffic controller” when it comes to her kids schedules.  Parker’s real-life and her love of this material make Kate a gal you really wan to root for.  More than that, viewers see through her eyes how desperate she is to hold on to everything she has.  Kate-The-Mom is nothing without her job, and Kate-The-Corprate Gal is nothing without her kids.  On the surface it’s trite, but this film shows the cracks and patches everyone who decides to do it all must live with in order to find “balance”.  Plus, we get to see Pierce Brosnan bowl, and that is awesome.

The highest compliment I can give this movie is that I forgot about my snackies.  No, I didn’t decide not to munch, or think that all that candy was a bad idea.  I had completely forgotten about everything else in the theater except for this movie.  Any film that can pull me into it’s world so completely and totally that nothing else exists gets a big thumbs up from me.  And a big thank you; I really didn’t need all that candy anyway.

LINK TO ORIGINAL POST

Posted in Atomic Popcorn, Movie Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Netflix Co-Founder apologizes for being a dick. Majority of Netflix’ers don’t buy it.

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Denise

Photo: SpinSucks

I love Netflix.  Not only to I like to turn to it in order to write articles, I turn to it when I want to watch something other than the usual dreck on tv.  But Netflix is changing, and not for the better, according to many of it’s customers.  Their decision to split the company in two entirely separate entities  — a DVD company called Qwikster and it’s streaming service Netflix — has caused  customers already fed up with a 60% price hike to re-evaluate how much they need this service.  And with Hulu, Amazon, Redbox and many more services out there, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings decided to try to save the brand and apologize.  Kinda.

Here’s his post, which was shortened when it was sent out to customers this morning, but here in it’s entirety:

***

I messed up. I owe everyone an explanation.

It is clear from the feedback over the past two months that many members felt we lacked respect and humility in the way we announced the separation of DVD and streaming, and the price changes. That was certainly not our intent, and I offer my sincere apology. I’ll try to explain how this happened.

For the past five years, my greatest fear at Netflix has been that we wouldn’t make the leap from success in DVDs to success in streaming. Most companies that are great at something – like AOL dialup or Borders bookstores – do not become great at new things people want (streaming for us) because they are afraid to hurt their initial business. Eventually these companies realize their error of not focusing enough on the new thing, and then the company fights desperately and hopelessly to recover. Companies rarely die from moving too fast, and they frequently die from moving too slowly.

When Netflix is evolving rapidly, however, I need to be extra-communicative. This is the key thing I got wrong.

In hindsight, I slid into arrogance based upon past success. We have done very well for a long time by steadily improving our service, without doing much CEO communication. Inside Netflix I say, “Actions speak louder than words,” and we should just keep improving our service.

But now I see that given the huge changes we have been recently making, I should have personally given a full justification to our members of why we are separating DVD and streaming, and charging for both. It wouldn’t have changed the price increase, but it would have been the right thing to do.

So here is what we are doing and why:

Many members love our DVD service, as I do, because nearly every movie ever made is published on DVD, plus lots of TV series. We want to advertise the breadth of our incredible DVD offering so that as many people as possible know it still exists, and it is a great option for those who want the huge and comprehensive selection on DVD. DVD by mail may not last forever, but we want it to last as long as possible.

I also love our streaming service because it is integrated into my TV, and I can watch anytime I want. The benefits of our streaming service are really quite different from the benefits of DVD by mail. We feel we need to focus on rapid improvement as streaming technology and the market evolve, without having to maintain compatibility with our DVD by mail service.

So we realized that streaming and DVD by mail are becoming two quite different businesses, with very different cost structures, different benefits that need to be marketed differently, and we need to let each grow and operate independently. It’s hard for me to write this after over 10 years of mailing DVDs with pride, but we think it is necessary and best: In a few weeks, we will rename our DVD by mail service to “Qwikster”.  We chose the name Qwikster because it refers to quick delivery. We will keep the name “Netflix” for streaming.

Qwikster will be the same website and DVD service that everyone is used to. It is just a new name, and DVD members will go to qwikster.com to access their DVD queues and choose movies. One improvement we will make at launch is to add a video games upgrade option, similar to our upgrade option for Blu-ray, for those who want to rent Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 games. Members have been asking for video games for many years, and now that DVD by mail has its own team, we are finally getting it done. Other improvements will follow. Another advantage of separate websites is simplicity for our members. Each website will be focused on just one thing (DVDs or streaming) and will be even easier to use. A negative of the renaming and separation is that the Qwikster.com and Netflix.com websites will not be integrated. So if you subscribe to both services, and if you need to change your credit card or email address, you would need to do it in two places. Similarly, if you rate or review a movie on Qwikster, it doesn’t show up on Netflix, and vice-versa.

There are no pricing changes (we’re done with that!). Members who subscribe to both services will have two entries on their credit card statements, one for Qwikster and one for Netflix. The total will be the same as the current charges.

Andy Rendich, who has been working on our DVD service for 12 years, and leading it for the last 4 years, will be the CEO of Qwikster. Andy and I made a short welcome video. (You’ll probably say we should avoid going into movie making after watching it.) We will let you know in a few weeks when the Qwikster.com website is up and ready. It is merely a renamed version of the Netflix DVD website, but with the addition of video games. You won’t have to do anything special if you subscribe to our DVD by mail service.

For me the Netflix red envelope has always been a source of joy. The new envelope is still that distinctive red, but now it will have a Qwikster logo. I know that logo will grow on me over time, but still, it is hard. I imagine it will be the same for many of you. We’ll also return to marketing our DVD by mail service, with its amazing selection, now with the Qwikster brand.

Some members will likely feel that we shouldn’t split the businesses, and that we shouldn’t rename our DVD by mail service. Our view is with this split of the businesses, we will be better at streaming, and we will be better at DVD by mail. It is possible we are moving too fast – it is hard to say. But going forward, Qwikster will continue to run the best DVD by mail service ever, throughout the United States. Netflix will offer the best streaming service for TV shows and movies, hopefully on a global basis. The additional streaming content we have coming in the next few months is substantial, and we are always working to improve our service further.

I want to acknowledge and thank our many members that stuck with us, and to apologize again to those members, both current and former, who felt we treated them thoughtlessly.

Both the Qwikster and Netflix teams will work hard to regain your trust. We know it will not be overnight. Actions speak louder than words. But words help people to understand actions.

Respectfully yours,
-Reed Hastings, Co-Founder and CEO, Netflix

p.s. I have a slightly longer explanation along with a video posted on our blog, where you can also post comments.
***
Do businesses have a right to raise prices?  Absolutely; they’re out to make a profit after all.  Are they above board when they restructure?  No question whatsoever; sometimes you have to shift things around in order to do what’s best for your customers and your shareholders.  But this “apology” has the stink of bottoming-out stock prices to it.  Plus, there seems to be no real interest in keeping current customers in both plans.  Here’s the info, here’s what we’re doing, and now that you know it you can suck it if you don’t like it.  Oh, and please dont’ dump our stock, kthxbye.

Sadly though, with his “let’s help you idiots get what we’re doing here” tone, he comes off sounding even more arrogant in this message.  Plus, he’s incorrect when he says that there will be no more fee increases; if you’d like to rent games along with DVD’s, that is.  On his blog, he answers a customer’s question about adding games to Netflix/Qwikster’s service by saying there will be an additional fee if you want to rent games along with DVD’s (although as of right as I’m tapping this out there is a possibility that he has decided not to charge any additional fees, but there’s nothing definite yet.)

What was once the top of the DVD rental foodchain has turned into a company that is scrambling to hold on to it’s piece of the pie.  A piece it had firmly in hand until it started messing around with fees and reorganizations.  I can only think that this latest change is to make their DVD side easier to sell off, since Hastings has said that streaming is his pride and joy.

And let’s see how that pride and joy keeps going once their contract with STARZ ends in February.  With Netfix’s streaming content becoming less and less available even now, the sound coming through your home theater system as you scroll through their offerings may be the sound of tumbleweeds.

Posted in Entertainment News | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

From Atomic Popcorn: In Queue Review — Arthur (2011)

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Denise

Sometimes hitting the multiplex just isn’t in the cards. That’s when cable, the web and streaming step in to provide an instant movie fix. But how to separate the wheat from the chaff? I’m happy to help; every week I’ll pick a flick and see if it’s worth your time. This week it’s the 2011 remake of “Arthur”.

The Story: Okay, so there’s this crazy-rich wealthy dude who hasn’t grown up even though he’s in his 30’s. He’s got a hella drinking problem that causes his family no end of concern. Solution? Marry the guy off to a straightlaced gal, and tell him if he doesn’t go for it he’s cut off. But then he meets the fantastic girl…and it sure ain’t the one mummy picked.  Sound familiar? Of course it is; this is the remake of the super-popular 1981 romantic comedy/drunk-dudes-are-loveable film of the same name. Swap English dude Dudley Moore with English dude Russell Brand…and you have a surprisingly well-done movie that keeps the drunken lout just as loveable as when we first met him all those years ago, but moves him into the 21st Century.

The Good: This isn’t the role Russell Brand was meant to play — that’d be Aldous Snow from Get Him to the Greek and Forgetting Sarah Marshall — but damn if he doesn’t make a fine drunken rich bum. He’s got the childlike quality of Moore’s drunken rich bum, but a bit more charisma and a certain je ne sai slacker that’s perfect for today’s modern lazy-ass 30-something. Helen Mirren doesn’t slide into Sir John Gielgud’s shoes as much as she re-defines the character of Arthur’s nanny/chaperone/conscience and completely owns it. Jason Winer’s ability to take all-out-crazy scenes and make them play like just another day is obviously a skill he honed on Modern Family, and one that can’t be overemphasized. This film could have easily slipped into needless slapstick, but even at it’s craziest the situations ring true. Bonus points for the touching shout-out to Steve Gordon, the director of the original Arthur, who died of a heart attack at age 44. This Arthur’s father shares a similar fate.

The Bad: As much as I wanted to love Jennifer Gardner’s whackjob golddigger Susan, it just doesn’t play true. But Gardner gets mucho bonus points for going for it with gusto, and for so obviously enjoying herself in the role. (You haven’t lived ‘til you’ve seen her meow like a kitty.) I couldn’t help but agree with Susan on one topic; how in the world could a man that is poised to take the reins of a multi-national business not have even the slightest idea of how to handle himself in the business world? It plays for laughs, sure, but when Arthur tries to work and fails ever so miserably, it’s pushed a little too far. Speaking of miserable, the remake of “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” feels insipid and dull now. It just doesn’t fit the goofy, manic pace of this film. Luckily it only plays at the end credits.

The Everything Else: This go-round tones down the drinking a bit; instead of Arthur staggering around and passing out in churches, we have him throwing rowdy parties where he picks up all sorts of women (and according to Hobson, all sorts of diseases if he doesn’t hurry up and wash his winky). To keep things a bit more realistic, our modern-day Arthur does dabble with recreational drugs, but not onscreen. But all the scenes of his opulent wealth, and the ways in which he uses it, have a lovely, childlike grandeur about them, and that keeps our new Arthur and his lady love fresh, fun and fabulous in this new century.

Here’s the breakdown:
Would I watch it again?: Why not? It’s cute, it’s funny and it could turn into a drink-along-with-Arthur game with a handful of friends.
Should you see it?: If you think remaking the original is outright blasphemy, probably not. But if you’re open to a new drunk in town, this film is a good time even if you don’t have a magnetized bed.
Netflix average rating: 3 ½ Stars
My rating: 4 Stars

Originally Posted September 14, 2011.  Click for original article.

Posted in In Queue Review | Tagged , , | Leave a comment