Dune: Prophecy Episode Two Review.

The second episode of Dune: Prophecy begins with a new opening credit sequence very similar to Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon. I kind of prefer the more feature film like opening of the premiere episode, but understand the needs for a television series to establish itself over a long time to presumably come.

There was one scene however that felt out of place where one of the characters is engaged in R-rated love making with bare breasts and full rear end nudity. It was not that the scene was distasteful, but somehow it did not feel right as far as my recollections of the Dune universe. This felt as though it was meant to serve as some kind of adult eye candy, but honestly did nothing to forward the plot or define the characters involved beyond what we know from episode one so I felt it could have been edited out with little effect to the progression of the episode and hope HBO will not fall on scenes like this because viewers tune in for character and story and not for nudity. At least not as far as Dune is concerned. 

I was surprised at the pace the plot involving Desmond Hart (Travis Fimmel) was brought ahead. I thought there would be more denial, but am glad they did not dance around the subject and got to the point fast. There is a scene between Valya Harkonnen (Emily Watson) and Desmond Hart that illustrates how formidable both characters are. There is an effect involving “suspensors” that looked really bad. I mean fake and not up to the high standards one expects from an HBO original series. 

Mark Strong as the Emperor seems rather weak at times. I am not used to seeing that actor playing a character that at times seems almost lost lost in the headlights whereever he’s standing however, I do have hopes that his character will become stronger as the series progresses.

We learn a bit more visually regarding the right that the sisterhood goes through to obtain greater prescience, and it is both a frightening and enlightening sequence that is a highlight of the episode. Overall, I thought this was a good installment with nice pacing for the most part, good effects and fine acting performances. May The Spice Flow.

(C) Copyright 2024 By Mark A. Rivera

All Rights Reserved.

Max And HBO Announce Extended U.S. Licensing Deal With The Criterion Collection Deal Includes Hundreds Of Movies Available To Stream On Max.

Today, Max and HBO announced a multiyear deal extension with The Criterion Collection to continue bringing the award-winning catalog of hundreds of titles to the platform, including films newly available on Max in the U.S.

"We are excited to continue to bring the Criterion Collection’s catalog of top-quality films to our audiences,” said Royce Battleman, Executive Vice President, Content Acquisitions, Warner Bros. Discovery. “Both the existing and new additions to the collection provide Max viewers with the opportunity to experience cinematic excellence as part of our offering.”

Showcasing the Criterion Collection’s acclaimed films alongside a rich collection of titles from Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Classic Movies, A24, Studio Ghibli, and more, further solidifies Max as the top destination for movie night. From hit blockbusters like "Wonka,” “Dune,” “Joker,” and award-winning films like "Barbie," “The Boy and the Heron,” and "Everything Everywhere All at Once," to classics old and new like "Casablanca," "The Wizard of Oz," “West Side Story,” and “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Pretty Woman,” “Independence Day,” and “Raging Bull,” Max has something for every film buff.

Since 1984, the Criterion Collection has been dedicated to publishing important classic and contemporary films from around the world in editions that offer the highest technical quality. No matter the medium, Criterion Collection presents films in state-of-the-art restorations, deepening the viewer’s appreciation of the art of film. Among the hundreds of titles, highlights from the Criterion Collection’s renowned films available on Max include:

Modern Times (1936)
Charlie Chaplin’s last outing as the Little Tramp puts the iconic character to work as a giddily inept factory employee who becomes smitten with a gorgeous gamine (Paulette Goddard). With its barrage of unforgettable gags and sly commentary on class struggle during the Great Depression, the Academy Award nominated film — though made almost a decade into the talkie era and containing moments of sound (even song!) — is a timeless showcase of Chaplin’s untouchable genius as a director of silent comedy.
 
Tokyo Story (1953)
A profoundly stirring evocation of elemental humanity and universal heartbreak, the Academy Award nominated film is the crowning achievement of the unparalleled Yasujiro Ozu. The film, which follows an aging couple’s journey to visit their grown children in bustling postwar Tokyo, surveys the rich and complex world of family life with the director’s customary delicacy and incisive perspective on social mores. Featuring lovely performances from Ozu regulars Chishu Ryu and Setsuko Hara, Tokyo Story plumbs and deepens the director’s recurring theme of generational conflict, creating what is without question one of cinema’s mightiest masterpieces.
 
In the Mood for Love (2000)
Hong Kong, 1962: Chow Mo-Wan (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and Su Li-Zhen (Maggie Cheung Man Yuk) move into neighboring apartments on the same day. Their encounters are formal and polite—until a discovery about their spouses creates an intimate bond between them. At once delicately mannered and visually extravagant, Wong Kar Wai’s film is a masterful evocation of romantic longing and fleeting moments. With its aching soundtrack and exquisitely abstract cinematography by Christopher Doyle and Mark Lee Ping Bing, this film has been a major stylistic influence on the past two decades of cinema, and is a milestone in Wong’s redoubtable career.
 
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Shot outside Pittsburgh on a shoestring budget by a band of filmmakers determined to make their mark, Night of the Living Dead, directed by horror master George A. Romero, is a great story of independent cinema: a midnight hit turned box-office smash that became one of the most influential films of all time. A deceptively simple tale of a group of strangers trapped in a farmhouse who find themselves fending off a horde of recently dead, flesh-eating ghouls, Romero’s claustrophobic vision of a late-1960s America literally tearing itself apart rewrote the rules of the horror genre, combining gruesome gore with acute social commentary and quietly breaking ground by casting a Black actor (Duane Jones) in its lead role. The film was Inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1999.
 
Cléo From 5 to 7 (1962)
Agnès Varda eloquently captures Paris in the sixties with this real-time Academy Award nominated portrait of a singer (Corinne Marchand) set adrift in the city as she awaits test results of a biopsy. A chronicle of the minutes of one woman’s life, the film is a spirited mix of vivid vérité and melodrama, featuring a score by Michel Legrand (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg) and cameos by Jean-Luc Godard and Anna Karina.
 
The list continues with popular titles like L'Avventura, Eraserhead, Academy Award-winning The Last Emperor, A Room with a View, The Great Beauty, La Strada, Fanny and Alexander, 8½, Babette's Feast, Academy Award-nominated Seven Samurai, Cries and Whispers, and more

SMILE 2. The box office hit arrives for purchase on Digital November 19, 2024 from Paramount Home Entertainment.

The malevolent curse from the #1 original horror movie of 2022, SMILE, is taken to shocking new levels in “the scariest movie of the year by a mile” (Dave Morales, FOX-TV), SMILE 2. The box office hit arrives for purchase on Digital November 19, 2024 from Paramount Home Entertainment. 

 

SMILE 2 will also be available on Digital as part of a two-movie collection with the original SMILE and will arrive on 4K Ultra HD, in a 4K Ultra HD SteelBook®, and on DVD on January 21, 2025.

 

Hailed as a “terrifying masterpiece” (Shahbaz Siddiqui, The Movie Podcast), writer/director Parker Finn’sSMILE 2 ratchets up the horror with a “razor-sharp and inventive” (Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting) story that takes viewers on “a wild, terrifying ride” (Joey Paur, Geek Tyrant).  The film is Certified Fresh™ with an 86% Critics Score^* on Rotten Tomatoes® and has been praised as “one of the best horror sequels ever made” (Jonathan Sim, Coming Soon).

 

Fans who purchase the film on Digital^** or 4K Ultra HD will have access to over 40 minutes of heart-pounding bonus content.  Hear from cast and filmmakers as they break down the film's most intense moments; go behind-the-scenes to see how the make-up, prosthetics, and visual effects bring the nightmare to life; check out deleted and extended scenes not seen in theatres, and more!

Bonus content is detailed below:

• Commentary by Director Parker Finn—Take a peek behind the smile with commentary from writer/director Parker Finn as he goes through the gory details of this terrifying sequel.

 

• Ear To Ear—Cast and filmmakers dive deep into the SMILE universe and discuss how they brought the director’s vision to life.

 

• The Rise and Fall of Skye Riley—Naomi Scott brings you into the cursed life of popstar Skye Riley. 

 

• Behind The Music—Take an inside look at the music and choreography from the film.

 

• A New Smile—SMILE veteran Kyle Gallner gives insight into his character’s gory return and filmmakers break down the film's intense first moments.

 

• Smiler: A New Monster—Bigger, bolder, and more insane! Take a behind-the-scenes look at the grotesque monster behind the smile.

 

• Turn That Frown Upside Down—Meet Lewis, a friend of Skye, and get an in-depth look at the gruesome make-up and prosthetics behind his terrifying smile.

 

• Show Me Your Teeth—Explore how the filmmakers captured the uniquely horrifying car crash.

 

• Deleted and Extended Scenes

 

Synopsis

About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control.

 

SMILE 2 is rated R for strong bloody violent content, grisly images, language throughout and drug use. 

 

PARAMOUNT PICTURES Presents A TEMPLE HILL Production In Association with BAD FEELING

A PARKER FINN Film “SMILE 2” NAOMI SCOTT ROSEMARIE DEWITT

MILES GUTIERREZ-RILEY and KYLE GALLNER Music by CRISTOBAL TAPIA DE VEER

Costume Designer ALEXIS FORTE Edited by ELLIOT GREENBERG

Production Designer LESTER COHEN Director of Photography CHARLIE SARROFF

Produced by MARTY BOWEN WYCK GODFREY ISAAC KLAUSNER

PARKER FINN ROBERT SALERNO

Written and Directed by PARKER FINN

 

*As of 11/7/24

**Availability of bonus content varies by digital retailer

 

Dune: Prophecy Premiere Episode Review.

Click on the title above to see the video review.

Everything you ever wondered about the Dune universe is about to come to fruition with the premiere of the HBO/MAX original series, DUNE: PROPHECY. Right from the opening frames we get a glimpse into something long fabled about in the history of the Dune universe. Something that is just as important as the outcome and goals we all who are fans of the DUNE books know for without it nothing would or could be set into place and the images I saw left me wanting so much more. Why couldn’t there be a series about this?

Well as important as it is, the events that happened before we see the early days of the Empire are more important because DUNE: PROPHECY is very much about how we adapt and change to cope with the situations that arise with this new world and the direction by which the future of humanity will evolve.

You will see an early version of “The Sisterhood” as it is simply referred to in the premiere episode and you will bare witness to worlds DUNE readers have wondered about, but never have seen in live action. In some ways it felt as though I was back in 2001 and about to see the first frames of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring in that I always had wanted to see Middle Earth for the first time and now I was finally seeing it with my own eyes.

It is no surprise either especially since the richness of Frank Herbert’s universe has been compared to Tolkien’s Middle Earth in many ways by many different people, including noteworthy science fiction authors like Arthur C. Clarke and David

It is a great time not only to be a Dune fan, but also to be a fan of classic science fiction with the DUNE films released earlier this year and in 2021 and Apple TV+ bringing Isaac Asimov’s FOUNDATION to the small screen too. I think with DUNE: PROPHECY HBO and MAX have helped solidify the theatrical films as the definitive adaptations of Herbert’s masterpiece and I have high hopes for the series, which I will be covering each week during it’s first season run and hopefully many more to come.

The world of DUNE: PROPHECY is both similar and different from our own and what we know from the the feature films so there is plenty of room to grow and develop the intrigue fans have come to expect. Much happens in this premiere episode that leaves questions and yield’s surprises for those who are familiar with the films, but maybe are not versed in the lore. The production values are high and the effects are top shelf too. 

There is still a lot to unpack and develop with regard to the character motivations and the potential plots within plots that are sure to develop so be patient. This noted DUNE: PROPHECY is accessible for casual viewers too and does not require anyone to have read the books or even see the movies to understand and become involved with the story as it unfolds.

DUNE: PROPHECY stars an ensemble cast that includes Emily Watson, Olivia Williams, Travis Fimmel, Jodhi May, Mark Strong, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Edward Davis, Jihae, Tabu, Jessica Barden, and Emma Canning. 

Alison Schapker serves as showrunner and executive producer. Jordan Goldberg, Mark Tobey, John Cameron, Matthew King, Scott Z. Burns, and Jon Spaihts executive produce with New York Times bestselling author Brian Herbert, along with Byron Merritt and Kim Herbert as executive producers for the Frank Herbert estate. Diane Ademu-John co-developed the series and serves as executive producer. Anna Foerster executive produced and directed multiple episodes including the first. New York Times bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson serves as co-producer. The series is co-produced by HBO and Legendary Television with Legendary also producing the film franchise that has released two installments to critical acclaim, the first of which garnered six Academy Awards®. 

DUNE: PROPHECY premieres on HBO on Nov. 17 at 9pm ET/PT and should stream on MAX at about the same time. 

“Victory is celebrated in the light, but is won in the darkness.”

(C) Copyright 2024 By Mark A. Rivera

All Rights Reserved.

2024 Warner Brothers - Discovery Home Entertainment TV on 4K/Blu-ray/DVD Gift Guide.

This is GenreOnlinenet on YouTube and GenreOnline.net’s 2024 Warner Brothers - Discovery Home Entertainment TV on 4K/Blu-ray/DVD Gift Guide. Click on the photo above to view.

(C) Copyright 2024 By Mark A. Rivera

All Rights Reserved.

“WHEN IT COMES TO BEING BAD, HE’S THE WORST”

 

Click on the photo above to view the trailer.

DEAR SANTA

STREAMING ON PARAMOUNT+ AND ON DIGITAL NOVEMBER 25

 

 SYNOPSIS:

When a young boy mails his Christmas wish list to Santa with one crucial spelling error, a devilish Jack Black arrives to wreak havoc on the holidays. From the hilarious minds behind Dumb & Dumber, Christmas is about to go up in flames.

 

PARAMOUNT PICTURES Presents

A FARRELLY BROTHERS / KRAYMATION FILMS Production

A BOBBY FARRELLY Film “DEAR SANTA”

  

Executive Producer

Kevin Barnett, Pete Jones, Gretel Twombly

  

Produced by 

Peter Farrelly, p.g.a., Bobby Farrelly, p.g.a., Jeremy Kramer, p.g.a.

 

Story by 

Ricky Blitt & Peter Farrelly and Dan Ewen

 

Screenplay by 

Ricky Blitt & Peter Farrelly

 

Directed by 

Bobby Farrelly

 

Cast:

Jack Black, Robert Timothy Smith, Keegan-Michael Key, Brianne Howey, Hayes MacArthur, Post Malone, P.J. Byrne, Jaden Carson Baker, Kai Cech

               

DEAR SANTA has been rated PG-13 for some language and suggestive material.

 

#DearSanta

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