Black Dog Newsletter October 31 – Nov 6 “Spooktacular Halloween Edition!”

22448250_1422546791127843_618286604960901586_n

Ah, Halloween, our favourite time of the year. Time for falling leaves, crisp cool air, crazy costumes and scary movies! Oh ya, and trick r treating. Have fun out there tonight, kids. Drop by the Commercial store today with your costume for a treat if it pleases you! If you need suggestions for horror films for tonight, click this SCARY BUTTON!

New Releases!

MV5BYzhhNzhlZmEtODgwYi00YzdiLTgxNWQtYjJiZjEyZjdiNWI1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzQxODI3NTA@._V1_UY268_CR2,0,182,268_AL_

Broken Sword Hero – Cool-looking Thai action extravaganza. Check out the trailer here for some sweet martial arts kicking and punching and then some more kicking! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvtvZZctQzI

MV5BMTEzNDk1MzM4MDleQTJeQWpwZ15BbWU4MDM2NTI4ODEy._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

A Dark Song – Cool-looking scary number about a woman hires a weird occultist in an attempt to contact her dead son. Things, of course, don’t go as planned. Heard very good words about this one.

MV5BMTcyNDgyODEzOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTI4MTA2MjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Kidnap – Trashy but fun, B-Movie stars Oscar-winner, Halle Berry, as a mom who’s son has been kidnapped and she will stop at nothing, NOTHING, to get him back.

MV5BYTI5NmI0N2UtOWQyOC00MDg2LWI5YWUtNWEwZTgyM2VlYThmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTk1MDM0OTc@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Promise – Tragic (think Armenian genocide) historical tale that has Oscar Issac as an Armenian med student who falls in love with Christian Bale’s (I wish I could end the sentence there) girlfriend in the dying days of the Ottoman Empire.

MV5BZWJiNGQ1YzgtOGVjZS00MGRjLTgwZDMtNWFiNmQ2ZWI1ZWNkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjM4NTM5NDY@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Unlocked – Spy espionage thriller type affair with a strong cast – Noomi Rapace, Toni Collette, Orlando Bloom, Michael Douglas and Malkovich – about a biological attack on olde London towne.

Coming Soon!

Cars 3
Westworld S 1
Limehouse Golem
Inconvenient Sequel
Your Name
Ingrid Goes West
The Crown S1

That’s it for this week, folks. Have a fun, safe Halloween! Watch something scary tonight!

Copyright © 2017 Black Dog Video, All rights reserved.

Black Dog Video Newsletter Oct. 24 – 30 “Shocktoberfest Edition!”

22554838_1700966003256112_8741377218386586318_n

Just wanted to give a nice shout-out to everyone who came by on Saturday to celebrate International Independent Video Store Day with us. We felt all warm and gooey inside, like a cinnamon bun, to see so much love and support from so many of you wonderful people. Makes us think that we’re doing an OK job! Kudos.

And of course it’s almost Halloween! Our favourite time of the year. There’s some Halloween shenanigans transpiring on Cambie Street this Saturday and on Commercial Drive on the 31st. We’ll be handing out candy to all the kids and there are other planned festivities to enjoy. More info can be found at the bottom of this missive.

New Releases!

MV5BNTgxNjA5MDkzNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTUyNzA5NDE@._V1_UY268_CR3,0,182,268_AL_

Aferim! – Another gem from the new wave of Romanian cinema! This fine flick centres on a cop in early 19th century Romania who’s hired by a nobleman to track down an escaped Gypsy slave who had an affair with his wife. Something tells me it doesn’t end up well for the Gypsy slave. But maybe it does! I dunno! I haven’t seen it! Yet!

MV5BY2EzYjQ3YmQtN2YyYi00YjUyLWI0MTctYTRkNmNjYmRiOTI1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjU3NTI0Mg@@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The B-Side – The great Errol Morris is back with this nice documentary about the life and times of photographer, Elsa Dorfman.

MV5BYzkxYmFlNjQtMGY2Ni00ZDZmLTk4NzktMTc2Mzg0OTY5MjUyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTIyODMzMzA@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Chuck – Fine bio-pic that has Liev Schrieber playing heavyweight boxing fella, Chuck Wepner. Also stars Elizabeth Moss and Naomi Watts, so it has that going for it.

MV5BMTU3MjUwMzQ3MF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMjcwNjkxMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Dark Tower – Muddled adaptation of Steve King’s Dark Tower series. Like, how do you distill a bunch of novels into one hour and a half movie? Even if you have the lovely and talented Idris Elba and Matt McConaughey in it?

MV5BYzQyZDBjYWMtM2IxZC00ZGFjLWFjYzItOTljNjFiMjc4OGQ5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTkyMjQwNw@@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Glory – Not to be undone by Romania’s fine cinematic output, neighbouring Bulgaria steps up to the plate and hits a home run with this tale of a railway worker who finds millions of dollars on the tracks and decides to hand it into the cops. That, it seems, was his first mistake.

MV5BMTkzNzA5MzQxNV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjcyMjUyMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Lady Macbeth – Sexy and violent tale of a woman forced into a grim marriage with a cold dead fish twice her age. She revolts by having a passionate affair with a younger dude. Things, it seems, don’t work out well for some. Heard great things about this little ditty.

download

The Leftovers Season 3 – The 3rd and last season of this excellent show. What happened to all those people that disappeared?

MV5BNTVkYzBiNzMtOGE2MS00YzM0LWI2MzUtOGY2N2M2OTBmYzk0L2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjIxMzMyMQ@@._V1_UY268_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Lure – Hasn’t the genre of “Polish flesh-eating mermaid musicals” been done to death already? Sheesh.

MV5BMzc5ODcyNTYtMDAwNy00MDhjLWFmOWUtNGVhMDRlYjE1YzNjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me – Lovely Criterion re-release of this much maligned (it’s actually pretty cool) David Lynch prequel to the fine TV show known as Twin Peaks. Nice timing as the new TV series hits the home video in early December!

MV5BNDNmYTQzMDEtMmY0MS00OTNjLTk4MjItMDZhMzkzOGI3MzA0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjk5NDA3OTk@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

War for the Planet of the Apes – The last movie in the recent trilogy of talking ape movies. Find out how the world became over-run with smart, talking primates! Pretty good movie but my only complaint is that there’s too much apes talking about boring things and not enough Woody Harrelson as the bad guy. And I felt bad for those horses who had to carry around gorillas and orangutans on their backs. Poor horses. Still worth a gander.

MV5BMTg4MDg5MjA2OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMjkyOTg1MzI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Wilde Wedding – Great cast – Glenn Close, Malkovich, Captain Picard, and Minne Driver attempt to breathe life into this tale of a retired film star about to get married for the fourth time. Why bother?

MV5BMTc2NDM5MDI2NV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwOTc5NzQzMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Wizard of Lies – Bob DeNiro plays that scumbag sleaze-ball Bernie Madoff and the ponzi scheme he created that ripped off his clients to the tune of billions of dollars. Also stars Michelle Pfeiffer and has Barry Levinson behind the wheel.

Coming Soon!

Annabelle: Creation
Cars 3
Your Name
Ingrid Goes West
Limehouse Golem
Poldark S3
The Crown S1
Westworld Season 1

In honour of this sweet scary month, may I present to you a hauntingly fine list of what we feel are the best horror movies ever made?
https://blackdogvideo.ca/2016/10/black-dogs-favourite-horror-films-of-all-time/

Here’s some more deets on what’s going down in the various hoods for Halloween. Hope to see you out and about!

22728963_1700966639922715_904525585305060550_n21740364_1554140881274688_2235401702746824037_n

Talk next week!

Black Dog Video

Copyright © 2017 Black Dog Video, All rights reserved.

Black Dog Video Newsletter October 17-23 “Celebration Day Edition!”

22396848_10210127077079460_1101549354_o

This Saturday, the 21st of October, 2017, drop into your favourite Black Dog Video to help us celebrate the 7th Annual International Independent Video Store Day! That’s right, its a real thing, much like Christmas and Cthulhu! If you love video stores, and I know that you do, show us your love and we’ll show you ours! Over at Cambie there will be a draw for a fancy new Blu Ray player while at the Commercial location there will be a draw for a mystery bag full of wonderful and mysterious wonders! At both locations enjoy some swell deals – rent or buy any 2 DVDs or Blu Rays and get a 3rd for free! All catalogue horror films (being Halloween month and all) will be 2 for 1 rentals! Looking for some swell gifts for yourself or a loved one? All merchandise with be 10% off! There might even be balloons! It’s an important day for us and I hope that you’ll drop by and share the joy.

New Releases!

MV5BY2ViNGI1ZGUtYmUyNS00ZWU0LWExOTQtMDMwZjQ2ZWJhNmRhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjYxMDUzODc@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

American Gods Season 1 – The great Ian McShane is Mr. Wednesday, a mysterious figure who recruits a guy named Shadow Moon to help him in the upcoming battle between the old Gods and some fresh New Gods. Also stars Crispin Glover as Mr. World. Based on the cool writings of Neil Gaimen.

MV5BMDk5MGM3OWQtNzQxOC00MWNmLTllMTctNGExMTI5M2M5YTg3L2ltYWdlL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjQ3NzUxOTM@._V1_UY268_CR7,0,182,268_AL_

A Bag of Marbles – Heart-wrenching tale of two young Jewish brothers fleeing the Nazis in occupied France. As one person commented on the IMDB, “It made me cry into tears”.

MV5BMTkzMzM3OTM2Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMDM0NDU3MjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Emoji Movie – Yes, it’s the animated thing in which Sir Patrick Stewart plays a talking piece of poop. Pretty much all you need to know.

MV5BMjA5MTAwMzM3OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNTk4NjYyMTI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Rock Dog – Luke Wilson, Eddie Izzard and JK Simmons are talking animals in this animated fare about a dog who wants to become a musician. Think of Poochie from the Simpsons but with more sass.

MV5BNjA0YTRiMDMtYTdjMi00YjgyLTkwMTQtMWVjOTMyYTE5YWQ3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjMxNTAxNDk@._V1_UY268_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Survivalist – Intense, harsh sci-fi flick finds a survivalist guy living on his own in the woods after some major starvation-type holocaust who is beset upon by a couple of hungry women. Much suspense and tension, I presume, ensue.

MV5BZTBjYzY5ZDctZDlkYi00ODlkLThkMDctZjAzOWQxYzJiZDgzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyODAxMzczMjg@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Vietnam War – Huge (like, 10-disk huge!) immersive excellent documentary from the great Ken Burns looks at the history of Vietnam, the war and it’s aftermath.

Coming Soon!

The Lure
War for the Planet of the Apes
Lady MacBeth
The Leftovers Season 3
Wilde Wedding
Annabelle: Creation
An Inconvenient Sequel

If you need help choosing what to watch click here!

Also returning with some lovely reviews is the lovely Axel Matfin. Today’s review, Highlander, can be found here.

And don’t forget to pop into Bomber Brewing on Monday evenings for some cheap beer and great movies. This coming Monday, enjoy Evil Dead 2 with a tasty pint.

Stay golden, Vancouver. See you Saturday.

Black Dog Video

Copyright © 2017 Black Dog Video, All rights reserved.

Black Dog Newsletter October 10 – 16 “Hey, Thanks a Lot Edition!”

l_2f21ee00-910d-11e1-8c9d-6d1268e00002

Yes, you.

Yes, it’s that time of year again where we’re all supposed to give thanks for the good fortune that we have in our lives. But in reality, we should be thankful all year long for everything we hold dear to us. Outside of the obvious – family, health, friends, cats – I just wanted to say that I’m thankful as…read more.

New Releases!

MV5BNDU3M2EwZWEtMGQxZS00NmFjLTlhMDItMDU5NGU1MGUyZmVmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjU2NTMxOTg@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Beatriz at Dinner – The lovely and talented Salma Hayek’s car breaks down and is then invited to have dinner with some wealthy obnoxious folks led by the lovely and talented John Lithgow. Many uncomfortable and amusing moments, I presume, ensue.

MV5BMjMwNTEzODUwMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjE5NjA5MjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Girl’s Trip – At turns hilarious and dramatic, Queen Latifah, Regina Hall and Jada Pinkett Smith are on a Girl’s Trip to the Big Easy (New Orleans) for some good time partying and things.

MV5BMjA0NTQzMDY3NV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMDQ2Mzg0MTI@._V1_UY268_CR1,0,182,268_AL_

Maudie – The always amazing Sally Hawkins plays Maud Adams, arthritic artist painter person from out east (Nova Scotia). Ethan Hawke plays her beau, Everett, in this fine bio-pic.

MV5BN2JhYTViMGUtMTU0Ni00MzU5LWE0ZmYtNDk2YTdmOTI5MTFjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTIyODMzMzA@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Personal Shopper – Odd, but intriguing, sounding flick finds Kristen Stewart (K-Stew of course) working as a personal shopper (see title) to a famous person while also trying to contact her recently deceased twin brother (she’s a medium as well). Heard raves about this one.

MV5BYWI2ZTc4NWMtOGUwOS00NjZkLTg0MzMtOGVlZmZhYzU2MTZjL2ltYWdlL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTYzMTY1MjQ@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music – Excellent and amazing in-depth account of recorded music throughout the ages. If you like music, especially the recorded kind, do yourself a favour and get this in your eye and ear holes, stat!

MV5BNTk4ODQ1MzgzNl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTMyMzM4MTI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Spiderman: Homecoming – The best (at least I think) Spiderman movie yet finds a brand new Spiderman (Tom Holland) going to school, fighting crime, keeping his identity a secret, hanging out with Iron Man and fighting Michael Keaton, who can fly. Much fun to be had here.

Coming Soon!

American Gods Season 1
Annabelle Creation
An Inconvienent Sequel
Chuck
The Dark Tower
Emoji Movie
Kidnap
Lady MacBeth
War for the Planet of the Apes
Wizard of Lies

Here’s some staff recommendations for your pleasure.

And please don’t forget – mark it on your calendars, your forehead, your children’s foreheads – October the 21st is the 7th Annual International Independent Video Store Day! We’ll have plenty of deals, raffles for cool things, maybe some music. It’ll be fun fun fun!

22396848_10210127077079460_1101549354_o

We’ve joined forces with our pals at Bomber Brewing to present Movie Mondays at the brewery. Free popcorn, cheap beers, great movies. This upcoming Monday drop by for a viewing of Friday the 13th! Come watch Kevin Bacon get it real good! Showtime is at 8pm.

That’s it for this week, folks! Stay dry, stay warm, stay hydrated and remember, keep watching!
Copyright © 2017 Black Dog Video, All rights reserved.

Just wanted to say thanks!

l_2f21ee00-910d-11e1-8c9d-6d1268e00002

Yes, it’s that time of year again where we’re all supposed to give thanks for the good fortune that we have in our lives. But in reality, we should be thankful all year long for everything we hold dear to us. Outside of the obvious – family, health, friends, cats – I just wanted to say that I’m thankful as hell to still be able to be doing what I do. It’s not easy running these stores in this day and age of Netflix, downloading, pay-per view and all the other sources to get your cheap, if not free (!) entertainment. Stress, anxiety and fear compete with the joy and fun that I have, pretty much on a daily basis. I’m still amazed that there enough good folks out there who see the value in what we do and see that what you get for free or cheap online and what you can get at a well curated video shop, are miles apart. When asked how or why we are still open – apart from me being a stubborn old man – I always say the same thing: online selection is very limited and the quality can be quite dubious (there will always be some who don’t care if they steal a copy of Wonder Woman and it’s all tinted orange and has Turkish subtitles) but when you come into my shop and browse the over 15,000 titles, grab a box, read about the film, talk to a knowledgeable professional, get recommendations, chat about the films – these qualities are intangible and make your viewing experience that much more rewarding. You can’t get any of this great stuff online.
As my friend, Isor, who runs the fantastic shop Eyesore Cinema in Toronto and is the founder of Video Store Day says: “Then there is the sense of community… of like minded individuals sharing a common interest, sharing knowledge and joy. Sure, the internet is full of blogs, tumblrs, forums and such, but for some… nothing is as rich, fulfilling and nuanced as actual, real time, face to face, human interaction. We often forget that we are part of a living organism, or just overtly choose to live in a bubble of our own solipsistic, cloistered reality. The great shame of the internet age is that even with so much access to interaction it seems like we are more alone and lonely than ever before.”
So if you think, as we do, that what we provide and what we do is important, even just on the level of having these films available, please drop on in and rent something wonderful! Who knows what will happen when were gone? Will it be just monolithic corporate entities telling us what we can and can’t watch, enjoy and cherish? I do fear for our future.
But enough yakking. I just wanted to say thanks to all who continue to support us. We love, truly love, doing what we do and we can’t do it without all of you lovely and amazing people! You understand the value of knowledge, experience and of supporting your community. I hope that we are doing a good job and that you still want us to be part of your world. And I hope to be sitting right here next year writing another thank you note to you all. You rock!

Black Dog Newsletter October 3-9 “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year Edition!”

12187870_894510283931499_4874455795491815983_n

Yes, it’s the most wonderful time of the year again – leaves are changing colours, chestnuts are banging off the roofs of cars and it’s not only Halloween month, but in a couple of weeks it will also be the 7th annual Independent Video Store Day! Come in and celebrate all that is good and wonderful about video stores. Details to follow.

There’s a ton of excellent releases this week so my apologies in advance for the length of this missive.

New Releases!

MV5BMTU3MzYzNDEzN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODM5NTY0MTI@._V1_UY268_CR2,0,182,268_AL_

13 Minutes – Drama about a dude who tried to kill Hitler back in the day (spoiler alert – he failed). Directed by the fella that made Downfall.

220px-American_Horror_Story_Season_6

American Horror Story: Roanoke – Ghostly goings-ons are afoot in season 6 of this uneven series.

MV5BMjM3MjQ1MzkxNl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODk1ODgyMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Baby Driver – Edgar Wright’s cool, music-filled action film stars the wonderfully named Ansel Elgort as a getaway driver named Baby. Stars lots of other people as well. Looks like buckets of fun.

MV5BMTg5NjY3NDYxMl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMjI5ODgyMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

The Beguiled – Solid cast – Kidman, Dunst, Fanning and Farrell – work for director Sophia Coppola to tell the story of a wounded Civil War soldier who finds his way to an all girl’s school. Reminds me of that scene in the Holy Grail…”Oh and spank me, and me and…”

download

Better Call Saul Season 3 – I love this show.

MV5BMjQ3MjI4OTU1Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTgwODcyMjI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Book of Henry – Hilariously bad movie that finds a genius kid using his wits to murder his abusive neighbour. Or something like that. My friend raved about it – “It is one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen and I cannot recommend it enough.” Can’t wait.

MV5BNjE2YjVhN2YtZGNjNi00ZWFlLWFjMTAtOTBiODU4MTYxMmI5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzYxNDc5MA@@._V1_UY268_CR1,0,182,268_AL_

Bon Cop Bad Cop 2 – More fun times with a couple of Canadian cops (one French, one English) who have to work together to solve a crime. Oh, Canada.

MV5BNTEzYjJlMjMtMGRhMS00MWYwLTgxNjMtNjI1NGQ2OWM5MzlmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTM3MDMyMDQ@._V1_UY268_CR87,0,182,268_AL_

Churchills – Documentary about a couple of fellas named Churchill. One you may be familiar with, one, not so much.

MV5BYmQ3MGFmNjgtODUzNS00ODg5LTgwZDEtNjZhNWNlMGI0OGNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDUyMjMxMzU@._V1_UY268_CR5,0,182,268_AL_

Cult of Chucky – More killer doll madness. It’s what we need right now.

MV5BMzcyNTc1ODQzMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNTgzMzY4MTI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

A Ghost Story – Low key existential drama (note – it’s not a horror film) about Casey Affleck who dies and then returns to see what life is like without him while wearing only the kind of ghost costume you might have had as a kid.

download-1

House of Cards Season 5 – More White House shenanigans.

MV5BMTYyMTcxNzc5M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwOTg2ODE2MTI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man Wear No Shoes – They’re still making these?

download-2

Portlandia Season 7 – More Portland shenanigans.

MV5BY2JkMDNmY2ItN2VlMS00ZTQ3LTg2ZTctOTJlNWE3NzBlMTMwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyODM3MjA1NA@@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

Slack Bay – Odd French whimsical mystery finds a couple of detectives investigating the disappearance of some tourists in the titular town.

MV5BMTU5NzM5NDA2N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNzAyMDA5NzE@._V1_UY268_CR0,0,182,268_AL_

We Are X – Cool doc about the famed Japanese rock band X Japan.

Coming Soon!

Lady MacBeth
American Gods Season 1
An Inconvenient Sequel
Beatriz at Dinner
Chuck
Girl’s Trip
Maudie
Personal Shopper
Rock Dog
Spiderman: Homecoming

Whew! That was a lot of things. But here’s some more! In honour of Halloween month, I’m re-posting last year’s “31 Days of Halloween Movies” that we put together to get you in the mood. Check this out for some scary offerings!

Alright, Vancouver, enjoy these fine fall days and hope to see you out at the stores soon!

Copyright © 2017 Black Dog Video, All rights reserved.