Napoleon

Marie Asner
Napoleon
Director Ridley Scott has quite a background in films with battle scenes and heroes who dominate the screen. Favorites of mine are “Gladiator,” “Blackhawk Down,” “Blade Runner,” “Alien,” “Black Rain” and” Someone To Watch Over Me.” The list goes back quite a way. This year. Scott shows the audience a view of the French past with “Napoleon” and Joaquin Phoenix as the Emperor. Phoenix was also one of the stars of “Gladiator.” The script by David Scarpa focuses on Napoleon going up the French military ladder to become Emperor, with his marriage to Josephine (Vanessa Kirby) included, plus the exiles.

Arise

Glass Hammer
Bert Saraco
Arise - Glass Hammer
Expect the unexpected from Glass Hammer’s latest project. Even though I think a review of much of their recent work could start out with that same sentence, the brand’s new musical journey, Arise, might actually be the album to finally shatter the mold. The word ‘brand’ was not a typo since Glass Hammer has now become more of a concept than what we might think of as a conventional rock or prog band, with the prolific Steve Babb now becoming the hub around which all things Glass Hammer swirl and function. Up until now it could be said that Babb and fellow musician Fred Schendel formed the creative nucleus of virtually all Glass Hammer projects, but on Arise Schendel is credited as a contributor rather than co-creator, and that only on one song (“Rift at WASP-12”). The result is a hard rocking prog epic with a science/fantasy theme and spiritual overtones – a technical quest for truth and purpose that in many ways creates a flip-side to Babb’s barbarous and mystical quest in his Skallagrim tale.

The Cycle Undone

The Twenty Committee
Bert Saraco
The Cycle Undone
Some ten years after their fine debut album (A Lifeblood Psalm), The Twenty Committee returns with The Cycle Undone, an impressive and totally immersive musical experience that comes as an unexpected Christmas present for progressive rock fans everywhere. The music manages to sound big and symphonic without sounding pretentious. The playing is impeccable and elegant but manages to keep one foot planted quite viscerally on the ground. The solo vocals are passionate and the back-up and harmonies are intricate and precise without losing the human touch. Lyrically, the songs evoke mystery but inspire at the same time, poetically weaving phrases that imply deeper meanings worth seeking out.

The Beekeeper

Marie Asner
The Beekeeper
Actor Jason Statham (“Meg 2: The Trench”) is an action hero in the group such as Liam Neeson and Bruce Willis. Though, unfortunately, because of health reason, Willis is no longer acting. These men took on the bad guys and disposed of them in various ways, to the delight of audiences who, sometimes, would want to do the same thing. Their action films come out at a regular basis and so we have “The Beekeeper,” that centers on revenge. This time is it something that happens to a friend of Statham’s, whose name in the film is Clay. Director David Ayer (The Tax Collector”) knows how to stage a good fight and away we go. “The Beekeeper” debuted in Europe first and was a hit at the box-office there. Now, it is in the U.S.
Subscribe to