diabolikdvd.com.jpg

Dolby Digital 2.0 (French)

Stargate Atlantis – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 6th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

When last we saw our courageous Atlantis crew, they were in dire straights indeed. The series had just completed its first season, and not without at times relying on the mother series, SG-1, for help along the way. Would the show now find its own legs in its critical sophomore year? Would the Sci-Fi Channel continue to support it or take out its legs unrepentantly as they had done with Farscape not many years ago? Oh, and then there was that pesky Wraith problem we were left with in the season 1 ending cliffhanger…
Read More

Are We There Yet? (Re-Release)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 25th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

Synopsis

Family pictures usually miss when viewed by a lonely dvd reviewer who has nothing better to do on a saturday morning. There are no kids to laugh at the bad jokes and slapstick mayhem, there are no wives to go awwwww and marvel at the cute kids. All that one man can hope for is a decent lead who provides thought provoking characterisms and smart laughs. Wait, I’m watching Are We There Yet?, so I have pretty much no chance of that. Are We There Yet? is the stor…
Read More

The Hannibal Lecter Collection

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 24th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

He’s one of the most compelling villains of modern fiction. Disturbing, disgusting and absolutely captivating at the same time, Hannibal Lecter can really get inside your head.

You may not have read the novels by Thomas Harris, or even seen all of the films, but I’m willing to bet you’re familiar with The Silence of the Lambs. One of the greatest thrillers in film history, the film in which Sir Anthony Hopkins became Dr. Lecter is the cornerstone of this three-movie set.
Read More

The Last King of Scotland

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 22nd, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

The Last King of Scotland generated quite a bit of buzz at this yearï¿½s Oscars, most notably the performance by Forest Whitaker. Based upon the book of the same name, which was in turn based upon the Ugandan dictator between 1970 and 1979; Idi Amin. Although the movie involves a completely fictional protagonist it apparently shadows the life of Idi Amin quite well, which offers a nice mix of fiction and reality.

Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy) recently graduated from medical school and decides to lead his expertise to a small countryside hospital in Uganda.
Read More

Eragon

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 21st, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

Eragon is based upon the best selling book, which was written by then nineteen-year-old Christopher Paolini. This film was met with much hype, but initially to me seemed to be another generic Lord of the Rings type rip-off, with the addition of a dragon. Not usually my type of movie, but The Lord of the Rings trilogy did more that just amaze me maybe Eragon has a trick or two up its sleeve.
Read More

Cinema of Death

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 19th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

Cupt Epics here presents five films identified as “underground” (a fluid term at the best of times). Certainly, they are all deliberately transgressive, though not all are equally successful. Two are by Nico B. – the perviously released “Pig” and “Hollywood Babylon.” The former has been reviewed here before, but briefly, its catalogue of murder and S&M horrors, working out a killer’s fantasies, is rather too self-conscious about its own transgression. The latter is a 4-minute tribute to Kenneth Anger, taking in exhibits at the Museum of Death.
Read More

Ghost

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 15th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

At one point or another youï¿½ve either seen Ghost, or have seen some of its memorable scenes parodied. Paramount is now releasing a new special collectorï¿½s edition of the 1990 Academy Award winning picture. Since then, star Patrick Swayze hasnï¿½t really been up to much besides a Ja Rule video and a small role in Donnie Darko. Whether Demi Moore has seen success since this film is debatable, but for a while there in 1990 these two were the talk of the town. At the time I was too young to have any interest in the film, so prior to this review all I knew were the memorable clips Iï¿½d seen. I looked forward to finally viewing the entire film.
Read More

Romeo + Juliet (Music Edition)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 15th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

No matter where you grew up or what books youï¿½ve read, you have undoubtedly come across the workings of William Shakespeare, and especially his Romeo and Juliet. This film takes the dialogue from the original play pretty much word for word but depicts it in a more modern time, with, of course, then-teen heart throbs Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes as our star-crossed lovers.

Instead of swords and castles, there are guns and skyscrapers. The famous opening argument with Benvolio, Tybalt and Mercuteo is a public firefight that kicks off the film.
Read More

Borat – Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 11th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

If youï¿½ve been anywhere on the planet over the past year then thereï¿½s no doubt that youï¿½ve at least heard the name Borat in passing, well Borat – Cultural Learning of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan has finally made its way to DVD. Although Iï¿½ve wanted to see this movie since I saw its preview before Jackass 2, this is the first time Iï¿½ll actually be watching it and I eagerly anticipate it; Iï¿½ve heard lots of things about this controversial mockumentary comedy. Adding to my anticipation of the film is the fact that Seinfeld writer Larry Charles is the director.
Read More

Walking Tall: The Payback

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 27th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

A small town is being terrorized by a gang of thugs who use extortion and violence to buy up all the businesses. The only person who tries to stand up to the gang is the sheriff, but then he meets a violent end. His son (Kevin Sorbo), who, one gathers from vague references, has military training, shucks his apathy, dons his father’s badge, and sets out to clean up the town.

The cover art is hilariously misleading, in that it shows what appears to be Sorbo leading his posse for the titular payback.
Read More

The Prestige

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 26th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

The Prestige surprised me like no other film has since The Usual Suspects. The entire film plays out like a good bit of misdirection, slight of hand and illusion, with some pseudo-science thrown in for good measure.

Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman, X-Men) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale, Batman Begins) are rival magicians, both inspiring to be the best the world has ever seen. They began as partners, working together as assistants to an established magician, but when a trick goes terribly wrong, their relationship is forever changed.
Read More

Flyboys

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 23rd, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

Comments on the supplemental material on this edition have been ported over from Brendan Surpless’ excellent (and recent) review of the Blu-Ray disc, which also can be enjoyed on this site.

Now onto the review…

I was listening to a “mini” commentary track from South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone the other day as they were talking about the overall silliness of a film like The Day After Tomorrow and that basically the film was done by a bunch of “hacks”.
Read More

A Good Year (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 23rd, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

If you’d asked me last year whether I thought Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe should work together again, I would have said “absolutely.” No hesitation. We’re talking about the director and star of Gladiator, after all, and I’d love to see another epic picture from that team.

What I didn’t expect to see was A Good Year, a romantic comedy that wholeheartedly joins the ranks of the “wine is like life” camp. What’s with that, anyway? Maybe it’s time to move on to another beverage, like coffee. You know, coffee and life have a lot in common – plenty of lessons to be learned there.
Read More

Quiet, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 18th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

Synopsis

The filming world seems to be full of un-original ideas. Everything from endless sequels to the same types of films repeated and repeated until one falls into a deep dark slumber. The Quiet staring Elisha Cuthbert(24, Girl Next Door) as Nina Deer & Camilla Belle(When A Stranger Calls) as Dot from the cover and box description appears to be another teenage high school drama about some new girl and sexual tension sans Cruel Intentions. How…
Read More

The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 16th, 2007

Before Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, there was another film full of warriors running through the wilderness, accompanied by a majestic score. That film was The Last of the Mohicans, director Michael Mann’s remake of the 1936 film of the same name, which was a remake of the 1920 silent film. And all of these movies were based on the original novel by James Fennimore Cooper, a popular 18th Century American writer.
Read More

Flicka (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 15th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

Maria Bello gives a wasted performance in the Tim McGraw vehicle Flicka, a by-the-numbers family film that is such a retread of other more competent efforts, one wonders, What is the point? Alison Lohman plays McGraw’s teenage daughter and friend-to-Flicka, a role type that was much better utilized in classics, such as Old Yeller, Where the Red Fern Grows, and Summer of the Monkeys. Lohman is the precocious adolescent, who struggles through boarding school, and her relationship with gruf…
Read More

Working Girl (1988)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 15th, 2007

Certain aspects of Working Girl have not aged well, but the film remains a quality production that showcases Melanie Griffith in her best role, with Harrison Ford and Sigourney Weaver as superb, lightly humorous supporting characters.

Tess McGill (Griffith) is a secretary struggling to rise in the New York business world. After a series of bad experiences with chauvinistic managers, she’s transferred to a new secretary role, this time under a female boss (Weaver).
Read More

The Guardian (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 14th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

In the great tradition of Hollywood rehashes, The Guardian applies a new coat of paint to a tried-and-true formula. In this case, we’re talking about the story of Top Gun with Coast Guard rescue swimmers in place of Air Force fighter pilots. Oh, and maybe throw in a little Officer and a Gentleman for good measure.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one. They’re the elite, the best of the best. Their training program is the most difficult in the world, and it will weed out anyone who can’t cut it in their dangerous profession.
Read More

Covenant, The (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 7th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

The prologue to The Covenant tells us of people with supernatural powers. We’re told of how these powerful warlocks and witches were hunted throughout Europe and escaped to the New England colonies in the New World. The information is provided with the contradictions of pseudogrunge music and pages of ancient texts. It doesn’t take us long to meet young men, descendants from these immigrant families. We discover them flaunting their powers by jumping off a cliff on the way to a teen party.
Read More

The Fifa 2006 World Cup Film – The Grand Finale

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 2nd, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

The World Cup is unquestionably the greatest sporting event in the world. No other event, sporting or otherwise, pulls nations together like the World Cup does. Once every four years, the whole of the world (save for the majority of the United States) takes a month off to focus their eyes on the efforts of a group of young men to put a white ball into a white net. This film is the story of the 1996 edition of the famed tournament.

This film does a great job of capturing the story of the tournament, while not …
Read More

Half Baked (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 30th, 2007

Iï¿½m sure Iï¿½m not the only person wondering why on Earth a studio like Universal, with so many classics in their vault, would release Half Baked so quickly onto HD DVD. One can presumably assume that the only reason they chose to release it at this particular time is to bank on the recent popularity of David Chappelle. The only unfortunate part here is that Chappelleï¿½s performance, while sometimes funny, shows that his talent was best used elsewhere.
Read More

Step Up (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 30th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

This could be my shortest film review ever: watch Step Up for the dancing – the rest is a formulaic bunch of “whatever”.

But since you’re reading, here’s a little more. Like Save The Last Dance, Step Up is a teen dance/romance movie. The story follows Tyler Gage (Channing Tatum), a guy from the wrong side of the tracks, and Nora Clark (Jenna Dewan), a privileged ballet student attending a prestigious school for the arts.
Read More

The Marine

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 29th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

John Cena is The Marine. Though, as matters develop, The Maroon might be a better handle. At any rate, after being discharged for having Disobeyed a Direct Order in Iraq (where, in a scene distinctly reminiscent of the opening of The Naked Gun, our boy shoots up one of those elusive Al-Qaeda training camps that nobody else seems to be able to find). Readjustment to civilian life is difficult, but then, while heading out for a little holiday with his wife (Kelly Carlson), an unfortunate stop at a gas station results in Carlson being abducted by a violent gang of jewel thieves headed up by Robert Patrick (who comes across, as was pointed out to me, like the love child of Martin Sheen and Chandler Bing).
Read More

Extras – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 28th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

The only thing I knew about Extras as of a couple of weeks ago was that Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant were behind the show, the follow-up to their cult hit The Office, which has been adapted into a Steve Carell vehicle to showcase his talent. Seeing very little on The Office and not being familiar with Gervais’ work, I downloaded the first episode of the second season of Extras from iTunes (Season Two recently resumed airing on HBO), and I found it one of the funnier things I’ve seen in recent memory, and not just because it didn’t cost me anything.
Read More

Gridiron Gang (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 25th, 2007

Buy at Amazon.com

The Rock ï¿½ sorry, Dwayne Johnson ï¿½ sure has come a long way from his melodramatic days as a WWE superstar. His first major film role, as the Scorpion King in 2001ï¿½s The Mummy Returns was more about his physical presence than any acting ability. Two years later, he proved he could handle action comedy with The Rundown. Now, with Gridiron Giants, Johnson has added the drama notch to his genre belt.

The film, based on a true story and following a 1993 TV documentary of the same name, tells…
Read More

«< 4 5 6 7 8 >»