Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 23rd, 2001
Intro
This is a deeply, deeply silly film. But it takes being silly deeply, deeply seriously.
Synopsis
Peter Weller is Buckaroo Banzai: brain surgeon, physicist, rock star, fighter of evil. He and his merry men, the Hong Kong Cavaliers, fight to save the world from destruction caused by a war between the Black Lectroids (good aliens) and the Red Lectroids (bad aliens). The deadpan cast includes good guys Jeff Goldblum and Ellen Barkin, and, on the side of evil, John Lilthgow and Christ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 19th, 2001
Intro
For those who just can’t get enough of the much-loved series on perpetual re-run, now comes the 3-disc set of the first season.
Anyone needing a summary of the premise is clearly not part of the set’s target market. But in case you need a reminder, the setting is a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War, and the series revisits the characters introduced by the movie of the same name. Wacky hijinks interweave with the horrors of war. The show is at its tightest when the dialogue i...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 4th, 2001
Intro
1993 isn’t that long ago, but watching this film makes that year seem much further back than it is, given the subsequent career paths of some of the cast.
Synopsis
Johnny Depp is Gilbert, our hero and narrator. He lives in the US heartland small town of Endora, with a family that includes his mentally impaired brother Leonardo DiCaprio (in a performance that reminds us that yes, he really is a good actor) and his enormous mother (Darlene Cates), who has not been out of the house ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 3rd, 2001
Intro
I Loved Jurassic Park. I was extremely disappointed with Jurassic Park II. Jurassic Park III fell right in the middle. This film is good, but really cannot compare to the greatness of the original. The story is a bit better then the second installment and it is still fun to see Dinosaurs come to life.
Synopsis
Desperate to fund research for his new theory of Velociraptor intelligence, Grant is particularly vulnerable when wealthy adventurer Paul Kirby (William H. Macy) and hi...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 1st, 2001
Intro
This quirky little Christmas film will really put the holidays into perspective for you. The cast of Mixed Nuts contains a who’s who of comedy… Steve Martin, Gary Shandling, Adam Sandler, Rob Reiner, Rita Wilson, Etc. This is not the best Holiday comedy ever made, but it should bake you chuckle.
Synopsis
Funnyman Steve Martin leads an all-star cast in this cracked-up comedy about a suicide hotline where the only people crazier than the clients are the ones answering the ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 30th, 2001
Intro
Bram Stoker’s Dracula is the first Horror/Suspense film to hit the SuperBit Circuit. This film is quite good, and the disc is another great release.
Synopsis
“Sumptuous retelling of the Dracula legend as originally conceived by Stoker in his 1897 novel. Avenging the death of his beloved wife, a 15th-century Romanian warrior lives on through the ages... and sets his sights on Victorian London. Sexual, sinuous, exquisitely realized (using every movie artifice imaginable); o...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 26th, 2001
Intro
The timing on this release is just about perfect: close enough to the theatrical release of The Lord of the Rings for people to be eager for some high fantasy, but far in advance enough that comparisons will be less likely.
Synopsis
The story, by George Lucas, should be familiar to followers of his work. Once again, there is the promised deliverer, this time in the form of a baby girl. A quest ensues to save her, and the leader of this quest is Willow Ufgood (Warwick Davis), a Lu...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 24th, 2001
Intro
Once a franchise is launched, it seems, it is by definition unstoppable, even when, as is the case for this series of films involving a large St. Bernard, the franchise has moved into the direct-to-video realm.
Synopsis
Beethoven, with his slobbery, chaotic ways, is making life impossible for the Newton family. He is thus packed off to obedience school. Meanwhile, we are introduced to Michelangelo, the impeccably behaved St. Bernard owned by the impossibly rich Sedgwicks. The Sed...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 23rd, 2001
Intro
If you are part of the MTV generation, you may find this collection more ancient then entertaining. If you grew up watching this series, it will bring back memories….
Synopsis
It changed the face of television forever. Based on the enormously popular and successful Planet of the Apes movie, the 1974 TV series has become a true cult classic. Now all 14 episodes (including "The Liberator," which never aired during the show's original run) have been compiled and are available to ow...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 19th, 2001
Intro
From seemingly out of nowhere comes this period piece, directed by Bruce (Driving Miss Daisy) Beresford.
Synopsis
This biopic tells the story of Alma Mahler, a fiercely independent woman in turn-of-the-century Austria. She is attracted by art and artists, and is successively wife of composer Gustav Mahler, lover (then wife) of architect Walter Gropius, lover of painter Oksar Kokoschka, and lover of novelist Franz Werfel. Alma’s love life is not a happy one, as each man seems dest...
