Rating: ««« out of 4

Running Time: 108 min.

While horror flicks and thriller pics from Blumhouse Productions often follow  supernatural tales along the lines of Insidious, Ouija and The Gallows, it appears that every now and then, the company does attempt some variations on their low-budget genre formula. The Gift certainly falls into this category. There aren’t any vengeful apparitions or undead axe murderers chopping teenagers to pieces. Instead, this is a mood piece, focusing entirely on its characters and attempting to create a general sense of unease.

Co-star Joel Edgerton also serves as writer and director of this effort, and it’s clear that as a performer, he’s far...

Rating: ««« 1/2 out of 4

Running Time: 85 minutes

Shaun the Sheep made his first appearance in the Walla ce & Gromit short A Close Shave, but in the years since the young buck has become the star of a very popular children’s “claymation” series. By now, tykes may be more familiar with the animal than the characters who introduced him. The 10 minute segment format of the television show might make one wonder whether the sheep can carry a feature. While it is certainly aimed at a younger audience, Shaun the Sheep Movie should entrance all members of the family - it makes for a pretty darn warm and woolly big screen debut.

The story is simple enough. Bored by the repetition of...

It’s time for another column featuring the highlights among new Blu-ray and DVD releases. Looks like it’s a very busy week with plenty to choose from. As always, be sure to click on any links to read detailed reviews. So, if you can’t make it out to the movies this week, be sure and give one of these titles a try!

Big New Releases!

Any Day - A boxer gets into an argument at a party and beats a man to death in this brooding drama. After being released from prison, he attempts to rebuild his life and meets a potential partner. However, even greater struggles arise for the lead after another personal crisis. The press didn’t care for this effort. They suggested that it...

««« out of five stars

The Hollywood Hills echo the sound of regurgitation. A collective yack heard round the world as they recycle every plot idea they can buy the rights to.

I have screamed, moaned and complained about this for years but there is no end in sight. I suppose my Klout score holds little to no leverage with the powers that greenlight. So I’ve resigned to the fact that do-overs are going to happen but we don’t have to like them. Unless, of course, they are entertaining.

Fortunately the new version of Vacation delivers plenty of self-aware laughs, embracing the fact that this is a retread the same way that the hilarious 21 Jump Street did. I blame the cast for this...