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Carnivale – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 22nd, 2005

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To put it succinctly, HBO has done it again. The network simply has no fear. It prides itself on bringing groundbreaking programming to the masses, laughing in the face of such cookie-cutter faire as American Idol and Two And A Half Men. First there was Sex and the City, then the behemoth that is The Soprano’s, and now we have Carnivale.

I love TV shows that feel they don’t have to explain themselves, and this series is certainly that. Think “David Lynch vs. the Jim Rose C…
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Monster

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 22nd, 2005

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Synopsis

Charlize Theron doesn’t play Aileen Wuornos, she incarnates her. At the end of hertether, highway prostitute Aileen meets 18-year-old Selby (Christina Ricci) when she accidentlywalks into a lesbian bar. They click, and suddenly, Aileen has a reason to live. She tries to turnher life around, but with the implacability of Greek tragedy, her attempts end in failure and shereturns to turning tricks. One date goes turns ghastly, and she kills the brutal john in self-defense…
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Showgirls

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 14th, 2005

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First off, let me say that if you have only seen Showgirls on VH-1, then you haven’t had the full experience. It’s bad on network television, but the sheer scope of how truly awful it is can only be experienced in the full, uncut version. Laughing at an idiot is one thing. Laughing at a naked idiot is something else entirely. It’s amazing how un-sexy this film really is. Showgirls is funny in the same way that it was funny to make fun of the fat kid riding in the front of the bus in Junior High. …
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Everybody Loves Raymond – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 13th, 2005

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Sometimes, titles can be misleading. In fact, in our modern high-octane marketing culture, that’s often times their function. For instance, despite the rumors, everybody does not love Raymond. Furthermore, I do not love Raymond. I find the show bland and predictable, and the acting is consistently sub-par. However, just because it’s not my kind of thing, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s bad. A Room With a View was nominated for Best Picture, but I found it so detestable that I couldn’t even make …
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De-Lovely

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 11th, 2005

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De-Lovely is a musical bio-pic based on the life of Cole Porter. Now, Porter was an American genius, responsible for writing such song classics as “Love for Sale” and “Anything Goes”. Porter’s personal life was also legendary. He had a wife, but also had affairs with men. Porter also suffered a horse riding accident in the late 1930’s that debilitated him for the rest of his life (to his death in 1964). Sounds like the great makings of a movie, right? Well….

Kevin Kline plays Cole Porter, and h…
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Beverly Hillbillies, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 23rd, 2004

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”Come and listen to a story about a man named Jed…”. Yes we all know that familiar strain. Now…The Beverly Hillbillies is the movie adaptation of the popular television show. I was never a fan of the original show, but I can see its charm. And I’m not a fan of the movie, which doesn’t have much charm. Penelope Spheeris directs, and the deft comic touch seen in Wayne’s World is not evident here. There are only so many “fish out of water” jokes one can take in 90 minutes. When there are four writers…
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Epoch: Evolution

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 22nd, 2004

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Synopsis

Ten years after the events of Epoch 2000 (didn’t see it? then be prepared to beconfused), scientist David Keith and his son (apparently the result of an immaculate conceptionthanks to alien intervention) are on the run from the Genesis Coalition (a well-funded group ofnutcases devoted to expunging all things alien from the world). Alien rock formations, called“toruses” (they look like frozen tornadoes) rise from the ground, and good guys and bad guysdescend on them to discov…
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AVP: Alien vs. Predator

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 21st, 2004

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Synopsis

Set in the near future, well before the Alien films but after the Predatorfranchise, AVP has a group of scientists and security experts in the pay of the LanceHenriksen (Weyland, of the Weyland-Utani Corporation that plays such an important role in theAlien films) arrive in Antarctica. Here they find a pyramid buried deep in the ice, whichturns out to be a Predator training site. A trio of these creatures arrives for training, but thehumans have …
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Dragon Storm

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 21st, 2004

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Synopsis

Meteors plunge to Earth in the 12th Century, unleashing a horde of dragons from outer space(!). They destroy the castle of nasty king John Rhys-Davies. He and a few followers take refugein the castle of a good and wise king, plotting to overthrow him when opportunity arises.Meanwhile, a lone-wolf hunter is conscripted into hunting down the dragons, with the help ofa disparate band (including a martial arts expert — don’t ask).

This is another pic that follows the standard …
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Napoleon Dynamite

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 17th, 2004

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Synopsis

We’ve all known (or been — be honest, now) Napoleon Dynamite at some point in highschool. He’s too tall for his own good, lives in a fantasy world of his own, and is a socialcatastrophe. At home, his thirty-something brother Kip is just as odd, and when their hard-partying grandmother winds up in the hospital, Uncle Rico (permanently reliving his supposedglory days of 1982) comes to look after things, and generally makes everything worse. ButNapoleon is also coming out of …
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Garden State

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 11th, 2004

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Synopsis

Zach Braff (who also wrote and directed) stars as Andrew Largeman, a young man so heavilymedicated since his childhood that he finds it completely impossible to experience any kind ofemotion. This is true even at his mother’s funeral, for which he returns from LA to New Jersey.There he reconnects with his old friends (chief among them being Peter Sarsgaard), all of whomare living odd, if aimless lives, and encounters Sam (Natalie Portman), whose emotions-on-the-sleeve appro…
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Spider-Man 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 10th, 2004

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Spider-Man 2 is a superior film to the first. While it is rare for sequels to live up to expectations, there are rare moments in film history when the sequel may even surpass the first film’s quality. The Godfather Part II and Bride of Frankenstein are two well known examples. But for Every T2 there are usually 20 Jaws 3-D’s. Doc Ock was the perfect choice as the story’s villain; Alfred Molina was a wonderful selection to bring this fan favorite to life on the big screen. Peter Parker’s life is more multi-dimensional…
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Popeye’s Voyage: The Quest for Pappy

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 7th, 2004

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Synopsis

Popeye has a nightmare in which his “no-good Pappy” is in mortal danger. Convinced thatthis is actually the case, he scuppers land-locked plans for Christmas with Olive Oyl in order tosearch for Pappy. Off the whole gang goes on the search: Olive, Swee’ pea, Bluto (as firstmate???) and Whimpy.

I’ll give this points for trying, and the animated does have a fluidity lacking in theaccompanying cartoons (about which more below). But Popeye looks odd in three dimensions,…
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King of the Ants

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 4th, 2004

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Synopsis

Chris L. McKenna plays Sean, who seems, at first, to be a typical slacker, working nothingjobs. He is hired by Daniel Baldwin (doing a very fine dissolute turn) first to watch atroublesome city hall accountant (whose wife — Kari Wuhrer — McKenna falls for), then to killhim. McKenna agrees with surprisingly little reluctance. He has a falling out with Baldwin andhis associates (including a brutal George Wendt), and they beat him to within an inch of the life,the idea being to indu…
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I, Robot

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 23rd, 2004

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Synopsis

In a rather sparsely populated Chicago in 2035, Detective Spooner (Will Smith) is called into investigate the death of US Robotics’ top scientist (Jame Cromwell). Spooner has deep-seatedprejudices against robots, and is eager to believe that a robot is the murderer. Evidence suggeststhat he is right, but then the signs build that the problem is much bigger: a general robot rebellionmight be in the works.

Director Alex Proyas, after The Crow, gave us Dark C…
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Elf

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 18th, 2004

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One Christmas Eve, an infant crawls into Santa’s sack while the big man is visiting an orphanage, and isn’t discovered until Santa (Ed Asner) is back at the North Pole. Adopted by the Papa Elf (Bob Newhart), the baby grows into Buddy (Will Ferrell). Though Buddy does his best, he is enormously clumsy by elf standards. He decided to head off to New York City to meet his birth father (James Caan), the Scrooge-like editor of a children’s book publisher. Buddy descends on the big city
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Around the World in 80 Days (2004)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 17th, 2004

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The original Around the World in 80 Days is known for its spirit of adventure, wild cameos, and also one of the weaker movies to win an Academy Award for Best Picture. Disney’s remake of Around the World still has that sense of adventure, has a few funny cameos, and is in no danger of winning Best Picture.

Based on the Jules Verne book, Around the World in 80 Days stars British actor Steve Coogan as the infamous inventor Phileas Fogg. His famous balloon is supposed to go around the wo…
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Resident Evil

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 10th, 2004

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Synopsis

An act of sabotage releases a deadly virus (it kills you and turns you into a flesh-eatingzombie) inside the Hive, the underground R&D headquarters of the Umbrella Corporation.Descending into the Hive to find out what went wrong is a team of security operatives,accompanied by Mila Jovovich, who is a apparently another security operative, but is currentlysuffering from amnesia. It isn’t very long before the team is attacked by hordes of zombies, andtheir numbers dwindle alar…
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Sense and Sensibility (Classic DVD and Book Collection)

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 5th, 2004

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Synopsis

Jane Austen’s tale concerns the Dashwood sisters. Elinor (Emma Thompson) is sensible tothe point of excessive caution in matters of the heart. Marianne (Kate Winslett) is the opposite,so passionate that she might follow her heart into trouble. Their lives (and those of their littlesister and their mother) are made difficult by their loss of fortune. They are at the mercy ofselfish in-laws, though the brother of the gorgon-in-chief is the extremely likeable Hugh Grant(with w…
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Little Women (Classic DVD and Book Collection)

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 5th, 2004

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Synopsis

For the audience this film is aimed at, a synopsis should be superfluous. At any rate, this isthe tale of March family, consiting of mother Marmee (Susan Sarandon) and her four daughters:protagonist Jo (Winona Ryder), proper Meg (Trini Alvarado), delicate Beth (Claire Danes) andyoungest Amy (first Kirsten Dunst, cute as a button, then Samantha Mathis). We begin during theCivil War, with the father absent, and the family dealing with the privations of that time, andthen move…
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C.S.I. Crime Scene Investigation – The Complete Fourth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 28th, 2004

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CSI hasn’t changed much in its first four years. Expect more of the same here. The unique photography and f/x material is pretty much as solid as it was in the first episode. I’m not sure I like the “scruffy” Grissom look, but the show is as good as it’s ever been. As in each of the previous season, Gil Grissom leads a team of Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) on the night shift in Las Vegas.

Audio

This Dolby Digital 5.1 sound once again reinvents TV sound. Highs and lows both exhibit dynam…
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Untouchables, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 23rd, 2004

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The time: Prohibition. The smell of bootleg gin and the sound of bullets lingers in the urban air. It’s Chicago. It’s Good vs. Evil. Elliott Ness vs. Al Capone. Kevin Costner vs. Robert DeNiro. Brian De Palma directs this wonderful period piece. The film drips with as much stylish atmosphere as outlawed booze. I’m not sure if the credit belongs to David Mamet’s imaginative script or De Palma’s direction. Both were at the top of their game with this film. Sean Connery must certainly bear mention as the no nonsense me…
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Van Helsing

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 21st, 2004

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Synopsis

Gabriel (?!) Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman), 19th-Century James Bond/Batman action guy forthe Vatican, is dispatched to Transylvania, where Dracula is up to no good. Dracula wants to usethe Frankenstein Monster’s life force to bring to life his thousands of vampire offspring, littlebat-gremlin thingies that so far only live for a few moments before expiring. Should Draculasucceed, the world will be overwhelmed with vampires. Jackman is aided by Kate Beckinsale (ina wildly anach…
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Wire — The Complete First Season, The

Posted in 1.33:1 Fullscreen, Box Set, Disc Reviews, Dolby Digital 2.0 (English), Dolby Digital 2.0 (French), Dolby Digital 2.0 (Spanish), Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), DVD, HBO, Television by David Annandale on October 13th, 2004

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Synopsis

The setting is Baltimore, and the characters are on both sides of a battle between the cops anda drug-dealing ring. The narrative is that of one long mini-series, with the story spread over all 13episodes, rather than having self-contained units. The principles include Dominic West as thecop determined to bust the ring (though his reasons for wishing to do so are rather self-interested), and the prime target is Larry Gillard, Jr., a mid-level dealer who, after getting off a…
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Star Wars Trilogy

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 8th, 2004

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How else am I to begin the review for the most anticipated films ever to be released on the DVD medium?

“A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…”

Who among you doesn’t notice your pulse quickening and your breathing become more slightly more rapid when you see those infamous words appear on the screen? Anyone who has seen my basement will attest that my pulse and respiration don’t just quicken but enter into full anticipation mode (needless to say that a large percentage of my earnin…
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