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Scrubs – The Complete Fifth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 6th, 2007

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Right off the top, I have to admit I’m a big Scrubs fan. Obviously, this portion of the review will be influenced by that bias, but at least I’m up front about it. Now, this DVD set brings us the ingenious sitcom’s fifth season, which aired in 2006. I didn’t catch any of these 24 episodes on TV, so this release was my first time.

Season five, like all of the previous seasons, picks up at the start of a new year at Sacred Heart. This time around, J.D. (Zach Braff, The Last Kiss) and Elliot (Sar…
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Fantastic 4

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 4th, 2007

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With the release of Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer just around the corner, it’s no surprise to see the studio rolling out a double-dip of the first film. Fantastic 4 – Extended Edition revisits the film with an extra 20 minutes of footage, and a second disc full of special features. But is it a worthy acquisition for your collection?

First, a bit about the film for the uninitiated. This is the Fantastic Four’s origin story, including how they came to have their super powers, and who Dr…
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Butcher Boy, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 1st, 2007

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The Butcher Boy, originally released in 1997 and based upon the 1992 book of the same name, has found its way to DVD. The film has been the recipient of numerous awards, with critics hailing it as a dark comedy unlike any other. To be completely honest, I had never heard of this picture before today, but I’ve always enjoyed these little Great Britain pictures, so here’s hoping it’s as good as some say.

Francie Brady (Eamonn Owens, Breakfast on Pluto) appears to be your typical schoolboy, spend…
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Half Past Dead 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 1st, 2007

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Half Past Dead 2 is, obviously, the sequel to 2002’s lukewarm action picture, Half Past Dead. The main difference in this sequel is the lack of Steven Seagal so automatically that should make this a better picture, but not necessarily a good one. The film stars two unlikely actors – a rapper and a wrestler – The Dogg Pound’s own Kurupt and WWE’s Goldberg. Not exactly promising, but I’ve been surprised before.

Twitch (Kurupt, Dark Blue), an inmate at the New Alcatraz penitentiary, has ju…
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Chocolate War, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 31st, 2007

Synopsis

I’m one of the few who hasn’t experienced the magic of Robert Cormier’s novel “The Chocolate War”, and I was surprised to hear that it was the most banned book for a time (and still might be). When the film came out, not only did I not hear about it, but in 1988 I was in the middle of high school, and I (along with many other people) sure as hell could have used this film back then, not to say that all the John Hughes films weren’t a welcome breath of air into my life.

For those unfamilia…
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Bunny Whipped

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

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I think it’s safe to say that most or all of you have never heard of this movie, neither had I. Instead of my typical synopsis and critique I will spare most of you the trouble, this movie is pretty weak, and if that isn’t enough for you, then continue reading too find out why.

Bunny Whipped is ultimately a romantic comedy with the look of a low budget TV movie from the early 90’s. There is no solid storyline and the editing consists of a bunch of randomly placed scenes that seem too follow some sort …
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Griffin & Phoenix

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2007

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Synopsis

It always feels good when you go into a film with very little expectations. Such as the case with Griffin and Phoenix, other than Dermot Mulroney (My Best Friend’s Wedding), who is apparently in every fricken movie that involves the words “romantic” or “comedy”. While Griffin and Phoenix is a mite bit romantic and its story is hardly new, its execution makes things a bit more pleasant.

Written by John Hill, who originally wrote a 1976 TV movie of the same name, and di…
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Hannibal Rising

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2007

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Hannibal “the cannibal” Lecter is widely recognized as one of the most compelling villains in modern fiction. This film, Hannibal Rising, based on the Thomas Harris book of the same name, presents the origin of the cannibalistic psychopath.

Quick context for this review: I’ve seen all of the Lecter films, and read none of the books. I liked Silence of the Lambs best, followed closely by Manhunter and more distantly by Hannibal and Red Dragon, the 2002 Manhunter remake.
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Officer and a Gentleman, An

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

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Prior to Top Gun with Tom Cruise and long before The Guardian with Ashton Kutcher, An Officer and a Gentleman was the film about a hot-headed hotshot military trainee headed for glory or self-destruction.

Starring a youthful Richard Gere (Chicago), An Officer and a Gentleman follows the journey of Zack Mayo, a young man looking to find his place in the world, and to prove he can defy his chaotic, depraved upbringing. His avenue of choice is to become a navy jet pilo…
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Good German, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 27th, 2007

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Synopsis

Steven Soderbergh has done a successful job of leveraging his reputation through the years in order to experiment with various directorial techniques and styles. With mainstream successes like Erin Brockovich and Traffic, he’s managed to keep in the spirit of anindependent film, producing stellar, less visible works like Bubble and a remake of Tarkovsky’s Solaris. Many of his works over the last few years have been with George Clooney, who starred in Solaris and < ...
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Music and Lyrics

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

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This just in: Hugh Grant stars in yet another formulaic romantic comedy. Having polished his shtick in such films as Nine Months, Notting Hill and Two Weeks Notice, I’m betting Grant barely had to pay attention on the set of Music and Lyrics.

Rom-com fans will find Grant’s turn with lovable Drew Barrymore (Fever Pitch) more than palatable, I’m sure. Heck, I enjoyed Music and Lyrics, in the way one appreciates the occasional handful of those tiny marshmallows in a mu…
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40-Year-Old Virgin, The (Double Your Pleasure Edition)

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

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Portions of this review have been “borrowed” from Brendan Surpless’ recent review of the HD-DVD version of the disc, which can also be found on the site.

Synopsis

Since Steve Carell broke into the comedic world with the film Anchorman, audiences have seemingly labeled him the new comedic genius with some comparing him to Jim Carrey. While I don’t completely agree with such a comment, Carell can definitely carry a film by himself, which is evident here with The 40-Year Old Virgin.

NCIS – The Complete Third Season

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

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OK, it’s difficult to talk about Season Three of NCIS without talking about what happened in Season Two of the show, so I’d suggest anyone reading this who hasn’t seen it to skip ahead to the next paragraph. OK, done. Season Two of NCIS brought in a cast change that virtually nobody saw coming, let alone the cast member who indicated they wanted to leave anyway. Agent Todd (Sasha Alexander, Mission Impossible: III) had been shot and killed by a terrorist, and her comrades made concerted attempt to avenge her death at the beginning of Season Three.
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Tsunami – The Aftermath

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

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Synopsis

I really wasn’t entirely sure how to digest watching a film about a natural disaster where a quarter million people have died or are presumed missing/lost. Nevertheless, Tsunami: The Aftermath is a compelling portrait of the events surrounding the 2004 event that resulted in the deaths of thousands of people.

Written by Abi Morgan (Brick Lane) and directed by Bharat Nalluri (The Crow: Salvation), the film was shown on HBO as a two part miniseries and focused on severa…
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Kyle XY – The Complete First Season – Declassified

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 23rd, 2007

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Kyle XY is a quirky series that began about a year ago on the ABC Family Channel. Owned by Walt Disney, you can imagine the kinds of programs one can find there. It’s pretty much a safe haven for kids and their parents to be able to watch things together. That’s why I was a little bit surprised when I watched Kyle XY for the first time on these DVD’s. Certainly the show is pretty much family friendly, but not to the squeaky clean Disney image I’ve come to expect. There are a couple teenage make-out scenes in the pi…
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Aegis Wing (Xbox Live Arcade)

Posted in Game Reviews by Michael Durr on May 21st, 2007

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Opening

I guess I’m a sucker for old school shooters. When I was a little chap, it was about the vertical shooters like Galaga and Centipede. As I grew older, I found myself starting to lean towards the horizontal shooters as well including R-Type. However, I did not find myself playing a shooter from start to finish until I came upon a game for the Turbo Duo (Turbo Graphix 16 w/super cd attachment). Actually it was the pack-in for the system. That game was Gates of Thund…
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Dark Corners

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 21st, 2007

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Thora Birch (remember when she was the lead and Scarlett Johansson was her support?) Is a young woman with a loving husband. She is struggling to deal with anxiety as she undergoes fertility treatments, and is having vivid nightmares in which she is living in a run-down apartment, working in a grotesque mortuary, is beset by strange visions, and is being stalked by a murderer. Or is it the other way around, as this young woman keeps dreaming she is the young married. And that murderer stalks both worlds. What’s going…
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The 4400 – Season Three

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 21st, 2007

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Synopsis

The 4400 Season Two left us on quite the cliffhanger. The returnees had been taken off the promicen inhibitor, thus enabling their abilities to return to normal strength. Ryland (played by Peter Coyote) was exposed as the one behind the cover up and went straight to trial. Isabelle (played by Megalyn Echikunwoke); infant daughter of Richard & Lily Tyler(played by Mahershalalhashbaz Ali and Laura Allen respectively), had grown up quite quickly as she was found in Shawn Farrell’s (played by Patrick Flueger) office.
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Constellation

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 20th, 2007

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Synopsis

Interracial relationships in movies tend to be hit or miss. If treated fairly, it can make the movie an uplifting picture, one that will make people stand up and cheer for a satisfying ending. Misused, and it just becomes an ugly context for the movie to hide around. Constellation starts out with the love story between Carmel Boxer (played by Gabrielle Union), an african-american lady and her white boyfriend & solider Bear (young version played by …
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Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, The

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

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Synopsis

My life has been a strange journey. Recently I found myself divorced after a three year marriage. Needless to say I’m probably need a bit of soul searching. Perhaps I need to cleanse my spirit before setting back out into the world from which I came. Now I’ve never been a religiously deep person but I do take myself on as a spiritual one. So to see a surprise title in my queue with the words The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success would bring at least a little …
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Blood & Chocolate

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 18th, 2007

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Blood & Chocolate is based upon the novel of the same name by Annette Curtis Klause, which was written in 1997 and has since been in the talks of screenplay adaptation. Written by Ehren Kruger (Arlington Road, Scream 3, The Ring) and directed by little known German director Katja von Garnier, Blood & Chocolate looks too impress.

It was refreshing to see a werewolf movie with a much different formula then were used to. Instead of the typical blood soaked horror we are presented with a dark an…
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Venus

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 18th, 2007

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Synopsis

Peter O’Toole plays Maurice, an actor now reduced largely to playing corpses (or near corpses) and watching his days fade away in the company of his similarly elderly friends. Enter Jessie (Jodie Whittaker), the grand-niece of one of those cronies. Maurice is taken with her, and the story then takes a decidedly Pygmalion-esque turn as sullen young woman and ageing Lothario learn from each other.

And then there’s the question of sexuality, which divides audiences and critics (though…
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Messengers, The (2006)

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

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The Pang brothers, twins Oxide and Danny, are most well-known for co-directing the hit horror film The Eye back in 2002, and its 2004 sequel, The Eye 2. The Messengers marks their first Hollywood studio effort, and despite it being panned by critics, the brothers have already moved on to more.

The story here is simple. A family buys a house in the middle of nowhere, hoping the move will turn around their fortunes and heal their bonds, which are strained after some big, emotionally traum…
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Motives 2 – Retribution

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 14th, 2007

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Synopsis

Stereo-typing is a nasty business and unfortunately happens a lot in Hollywood. Certain actors play certain types of characters, certain movies always have the same themes, certain Uwe Boll movies (all) get bad ratings, etc. One of those unfortunate stereo-types is african-american movie making. Quite often you see an urban setting, a rise from the ghetto, or something related to basketball or football. Dominant african-american stereo-typing at what everybody thin…
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Mickey’s Great Clubhouse Hunt

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 14th, 2007

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Synopsis

Meeska Mooska Mickey Mouse! (tell me you just didn’t say that) So what happens to a 31 year old adult who sits through a show alone that is geared towards children who might not even be in grade school yet? Besides binge drinking & wondering why he doesn’t have a date this weekend? Apparently some good wholesome family entertainment. I was actually a little surprised how decent this was after twenty minutes into the program.

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is a fairly…
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