REVIEW: Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey [2013]

“I’m living a fairy tale right now” It was Journey‘s album Trial by Fire from 1996 that opened my eyes to their insane library of hits upon entering high school. Here was their first new music since the year after my birth in 1983—”When You Love a Woman” was constantly on the radio, my father had the CD playing at home, and I began delving into the back catalog surprised to realize how many tunes I loved growing up were in fact the creation of Steve Perry and his group…

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REVIEW: Rock of Ages [2012]

“Actually, I told him the gig was last night. So he’s a day late.” Listening to Night Ranger‘s “Sister Christian” sung by a bus full of strangers a la Almost Famous was a pretty good way to start Rock of Ages, the big screen adaptation of the Tony Award nominated musical. Julianne Hough‘s ‘Sherrie’ Christian’s blandly starry-eyed wonder was acceptable; Hollywood circa 1987 took shape via hookers, muggers, and over-zealous cops; and the hyper-real Broadway sensibilities came out as extras broke into song and dance while a sweaty, sex-infused rock…

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REVIEW: The Losers [2010]

“Go Petunias” The world has been inundated with comic book adaptations this past decade, so new entries need to have something special to set them apart from the rest. Vertigo’s The Losers had a premise that made it appealing for a feature film treatment—a group of five ex-military covert-ops soldiers turned fugitives after being framed for a botched job in Bolivia, killing twenty-five innocent children, attempt to reenter America and clear their names. Sounds a lot like “The A-Team” to me, but I wasn’t going to let that get me…

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