Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 28th, 2002
There isn't really a plot, as such. In collaboration with director/photographer/scripter/editor Nico B, co-director/composer/writer Rozz Williams works out his serial killer fantasies through the images of a pig-faced man torturing another. The big influences here are equal parts Eraserhead-era David Lynch, the surrealist films of the late-20s-early-30s (especially Un ChienAndalou) and the contemporary piercing/SM scene. In fact, there are moments where this plays like an artsy infomercial for the latter.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 22nd, 2002
Synopsis
Likely the best version of the tale of a beautiful young woman and the beast who loves hersince Jean Cocteau’s 1945 film, this one has all the strengths of Disney’s best features: top-notchanimation, lively songs, humorous characters but some solidly gothic scares as well.
Audio
Fabulous on all counts. The reproduction is flawless and distortion free. The effects arestrong in both rear speaker presence and left-right separation. The music dominates, h...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 18th, 2002
Synopsis
Drew Barrymore returns to Los Angeles after stabbing her conniving mother to death in ahilariously operatic sequence. But is Barrymore really guilty? Was the crime committed by herdoppelganger? Is she crazy? Possessed? Or is something else afoot? George Newbern plays hernew roommate, a shy, aspiring screenwriter, and he gets tangled up in her mystery. A tangledmystery it is too, and the film gets so carried away that it doesn’t really tie up all the loose ends.The ending, t...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 17th, 2002
Synopsis
Beary Barrington (voice of Haley Joel Osment) runs away from his (human) adoptive familyto seek out Country Bear Hall. When it turns out that the evil Christopher Walken hasdevelopment plans that include the Hall’s demolition, Beary is determined to re-unite theCountry Bears for a benefit concert that will save the Hall.
Audio
The big star of the soundtrack is the music -- arena-style country rock that will either haveyou stomping your feet or slitt...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 6th, 2002
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 4th, 2002
Synopsis
SpongeBob tries to make Gary the snail take a bath. SpongeBob tries out an extreme sport(“riding the hooks”). And so on. More good-natured goofiness, and I have to confess this guy isbeginning to grow on me.
Audio
The 2.0 sound is very crisp and clear, completely distortion-free. The surround effect,however, is minimal. Even the music barely registers.
Video
No disappointment with the picture, however. Many TV shows, for som...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 4th, 2002
Synopsis
I’m not going to summarize an entire season for you. But this is the season where theBuffy/Angel arc reached its conclusion, since the spin-off series was about to begin.
Audio
The sound is limited to a 2.0 mix, but it is a solid mix. As ever with TV shows, the musicheavily dominates, but there is still some sound effect presence, and the result isn’t bad atall.
Video
The last collection was marred with some truly awful grai...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 13th, 2002
Synopsis
Kieran Culkin and Emile Hirsch are best friends in a Catholic junior high. They are goingthrough the usual adolescent throes, but with a few twists. Hirsch’s budding romance with JenaMalone is complicated by a rather dark secret of hers. As well, their pranks, whose target is theirnemesis Sister Assumpta (Jodie Foster), are spectacularly elaborate, not to mention dangerous.Hirsch’s hopes and fears also take the form of a cartoon (produced by Spawn creator ToddMcFarlane). Th...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 11th, 2002
Synopsis
In the full widescreen segments of the film, a portion of an American satellite lands inAustralia and is swallowed by a crocodile. Competing agencies send their agents to recover thedevice. In the segments where the screen shrinks to something resembling the TV screen (thoughstill wider than 1.33:1), Steve and Terri Irwin chase after animals, and Steve speaks continuallyto the camera. The collision course of the title is not just the intersecting courses of the Irwinsand th...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 11th, 2002
Few films have had the impact of the original Exorcist. William Peter Blatty’s original book was a phenomenal hit. The film’s intense imagery and in your face brutality was all the more disturbing coming from a young teenage Linda Blair. What makes this film effective, however, is the subtle touches: The quick flash demonic faces, the eeriest backward language of the demon, and the haunting moans that culminate in one of the truly scariest films ever made. This release restores footage, long legendary, but not seen by a movie audience. I remember seeing pictures of Linda Blair’s “spider crawl” in Famous Monsters of Filmland in the 70’s. To call this film a classic would be stating the obvious.
