Dolby Digital 5.1 (English)

Wizard of Oz, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 10th, 2005

Synopsis

Frustrated by vicissitudes of Depression-era life, Dorothy wishes she were somewhere else. She gets her wish in ways she couldn’t have imagined, as a tornado drops her into the magical world of Oz. Accompanied by the brain-free Scarecrows, heartless Tin Man and cowardly Lion, she sets out on a quest to return home. In order to be granted that wish by the all-powerful Wizard, she must first defeat the Wicked Witch of the West.

And so I conclude what must surely be the most superfluo…
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Mask of Zorro, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 9th, 2005

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The Mask of Zorro was the Pirates of the Caribbean of its day. A classic swashbuckling story packed with action and romance, yet still presented in a family-friendly style that hearkened back to the days of the old Saturday afternoon matinée. Indiana Jones was conceived in this style, as was Disney’s National Treasure, in a way. There is a ton of room in the marketplace for PG and PG-13 rated films like this, as it provides something that the whole family can not only attend at the theater, but t…
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Stargate SG-1 – The Complete Eighth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 8th, 2005

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The first episode of Season 8 is appropriately titled “New Order”. Changes are inevitable as this superior series goes where no American sci-fi show has gone before, a tenth season. Richard Dean Anderson has been slowly removing himself from the everyday appearances since Season 7. Here he is made base commander, and while his responsibilities have increased, his screen time has certainly tumbled. By year 9 Anderson is nothing more than a memory and occasional guest star. Still… the huge changes haven’t come yet, and season 8 is your last chance to visit this core team on a regular basis.
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Undead

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 8th, 2005

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Synopsis

A series of meteor strikes hits a small town in Australia, turning its citizens into ravening zombies. A handful of survivors gather in the home of a survivalist who has previously encountered zombie fish and been abducted by aliens. The fight to survive begins.

There is a bit more to the plot than the above would suggest, but it mostly kicks in during the last act, so I shall not breathe a word of it here. The tone is very tongue-in-cheek, and many of the characters are caricature…
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Star Trek: Nemesis

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 3rd, 2005

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The extras are the only significant difference between the Collector’s Edition and the near barebones first release of this film. Therefore, some pieces of this review will be taken from the standard release review.

If ever there was a film that was badly misunderstood it is Star Trek: Nemesis. The most common complaint I’ve heard is it was too much like an episode. Excuse me, but isn’t it supposed to be? Nemesis has everything a good Star Trek film should have. The character chemistry, space battle, a morality tale, and terrific f/x.
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House of Voices

Posted in 2.35:1 Widescreen, Disc Reviews, Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), DVD, Horror, Universal by Archive Authors on November 2nd, 2005

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Synopsis

The orphanage school of Saint Ange in the French Alps is forced to close in the wake of the death of one of its students. The only people left behind are the cook, a disturbed young woman who has been there since she was a child, and the newly arrived Virginie Ledoyen, who has been hired to clean the place, but is on the run from her own past, trying to conceal an already quite advanced pregnancy. Ledoyen hasn’t been there long when she becomes aware of other presences in the school – “the s…
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Lilo & Stitch 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 27th, 2005

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Synopsis

Wow, take a look at the vocal talent that lends a hand to this straight-to-video sequel! As Lilo, you’ve got that child actress next to be exploited by her parents in Dakota Fanning (War of the Worlds). Lilo’s custodian is Nani (Tia Carrere, Wayne’s World). Stitch’s alien friends are voiced by David Ogden Stiers (M*A*S*H*) and Kevin McDonald (The Kids in the Hall). Jason Scott Lee (Dragon) plays Nani’s love interest David.

Maybe I’m surprised that a cast…
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12 Monkeys

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 27th, 2005

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Synopsis

In between the other new stuff that’s come out (and the older stuff I’ve picked up), I wanted to try and whittle down the archives, so huzzah for small victories.

In a film inspired by the 1962 French short film, “La Jetee,” Cole (Bruce Willis), lives in an underground society. He gets volunteered to go back in time and return to the surface of the Earth, after a deadly virus has essentially wiped out the population. He goes back to find out the history of the source, and possibly attempt…
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Gus Van Sant’s Last Days

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 25th, 2005

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Synopsis

In his mansion and forested estate, a rock star (played by Michael Pitt and named Blake, but obviously supposed to be Kurt Cobain) wanders about in a terminal drug stupor. Hangers on, business associates, Mormons and salesmen besiege him, but his flees human contact, withdrawing completely into himself.

The movie plays out as if directed by its subject: quiet, mumbling, meandering. As with Gus Van Sant’s last two films – Gerry and Elephant – the tone is minimalist and…
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Saving Face

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 24th, 2005

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I was dreading watching this DVD. Hmmm…indy film, Sundance film, a woman “coming out” to her family film. This had all the hallmarks of arty and annoying. Thankfully, Saving Face is not like that at all. Michelle Krusiac plays “Wil”, a surgeon, who falls hard for Vivian (Lynn Chen), a ballet dancer. Complications arise because Vivian is the daughter of Wil’s boss. Yes, there are some screwball comedy elements. But it’s all tastefully done. Joan Chen (what has she done since Twin Peaks) does a n…
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Battle of Britain

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 24th, 2005

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The Battle of Britain was a famous turning point in the World War Two theatre. The movie, Battle of Britain, was brought to your home theatre a few years ago. This single disc edition, with very few features, seemingly cried out for more. Now we have it in Battle of Britain: Collectors Edition, 2 discs of military goodness.

The film itself has spectacle. The planes used for this film helped create an air force equal to a medium sized country. No CGI here. The director is Guy Hamilton (b…
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Bewitched

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 21st, 2005

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When comic book movies started becoming popular in the 90’s with Batman, The Punisher, Dick Tracy and the like, directors weren’t really sure how to handle the subject. The most popular methods involved making the film look like a comic, to help to tie the narratives together. Unfortunately, audiences soon discovered that the result of this mash-up of styles was a heavy-handed, overblown color explosion that just looked hokey (Batman Forever, anyone?) Finally, in recent years, it has been …
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House of Wax

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 20th, 2005

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Synopsis

A group of young folk on their way to the “biggest college football game of the year” (you would do an overnight trip for THAT?) take an unfortunate detour. In groups of two, they are lured into a town run by two madmen, where the only other inhabitants are the was-coated effigies of their victims. What follows is the expected gory slaughter, and some of the deaths are gruesomely imaginative. There is, however, no terror. What does it say when practically the most likeable character in a fil…
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Land of the Dead

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 19th, 2005

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Synopsis and Comments

Apparently “Land of the Dead” was created for an audience that the producers of the movie (and writer Romero) consider to be no more intelligent than the zombies that populate Romero’s world. We shuffle into the theatre, clutching out-sized drinks like totems from the outside world, moaning piteously that they cost us five bucks to get. Unnnghhhhhh. Mooooovie. RRRrrrrgghhh.

Well, if you managed to avoid it when it infected theatres, save your coin and dodge this DVD. I…
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Amityville Horror (2005), The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 16th, 2005

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Synopsis

One year after Ronald De Feo slaughtered his family, the Lutzes move into the creepy house. George (Ryan Reynolds) soon feels cold and starts acting cranky, and before you know it is looking like he might dish out some violence of his own. Meanwhile the youngest child is developing a troubling relationship with the ghost of a little girl. A frantic Kathy (Melissa George) is desperate to find out what is wrong with the house before it all ends in blood and tears.

Well done, boys. Yo…
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High Tension

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 15th, 2005

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Synopsis

Two friends – Marie and Alexia– head out to the country home of the latter’s parents. In the middle of the night, a killer breaks in, slaughters the family, and makes Alexia his prisoner. Marie is locked in a battle to save her friend and not become a victim herself.

Of such simple storylines are horror classics made. Leave it to the French, who, after all, invented the horror movie, to pump such gloriously bloody life back into the cinema of atrocity. After an early bit of extrem…
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Warriors, The

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

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Synopsis

At a gathering of all the gangs of New York City, the messianic leader proposing a unification of all the organizations is gunned down, and the Warriors are unjustly accused. They must make their way from the Bronx to Coney Island with every gang in the city out for their blood.

Set in a vaguely defined near future, this is a cracker of an action flick, one that has lost none of its pace and excitement over the years. The different gangs are all wonderfully realized and bizarre, an…
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Hellraiser: Hellworld

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

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Synopsis

Two years after one of their number has committed suicide, a group of friends are still very much into playing Hellworld, an internet game based on the Hellraiser mythology. They score invitations to the big Hellworld party, where they meet host Lance Henriksen, and then they start being killed off one by one.

This is yet another script that originally had nothing to do with the Hellraiser series, and the connection is even more tangential than ever. Pinhead’s involvement is minima…
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My Neighbors the Yamadas

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 8th, 2005

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Synopsis

Not being too familiar of the work done by Japanese animators or anyone associated with Studio Ghibli, it was hard to know what to expect when I started watching My Neighbors the Yamadas, but as it turns out, it’s a fairly successful cartoon series from Japan. Created by Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies), the cartoon focuses on a family of four and a grandmother in their day to day lives and experiences.

The film brings the Japanese vocal talent to the table, but appare…
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Witness

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 8th, 2005

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Let’s face it; Harrison Ford is not a particularly great actor. He is not capable of playing diversity in his roles, and he has never faded into a character. When you go to see a Harrison Ford movie, the result is always something like “Harrison Ford as the President of the United States”, or “Harrison Ford is wrongly accused of a crime he didn’t commit.” Never once have I seen one of his films and came away saying “it is about this professor that goes on a quest to find the holy grail. Harrison Ford played the profe…
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Eternal

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 7th, 2005

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Synopsis

The wife of a policeman shows up at the mansion of one Elizabeth Caine (or is she Erzsebet Bathory) for a lesbian tryst, but has her neck punctured by her host. Ray, the cop, investigates his wife’s disappearance, and very quickly suspects Bathory, but has difficulty assembling proof. To make matters worse, bodies of young women start piling up, and the evidence points more and more damningly toward Ray. He is in a race to prove his innocence and stop Bathory before she kills again.

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Las Vegas – Season Two (Uncut & Uncensored )

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 5th, 2005

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Nothing much changes in the second season of Las Vegas. Of course, Danny comes home from his secret and apparently tragic tour of duty. Mike is a full fledged member of the security team. Otherwise it’s business as usual for the workers at the Montecito. The show works well as an ensemble piece, but the relationship between Danny and Big Ed is more fully developed here and is beginning to dominate the series. James Caan continues to impress with work most of his peers would consider beneath him. The flashy fast paced camera work continues to offer a dizzying ride through the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas.
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Star Trek Enterprise – The Complete Third Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 4th, 2005

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For the first time in Star Trek history it was decided to dedicate an entire season to tell a single story. Following a recent trend started by hits like Alias and 24, Enterprise boldly went where many had gone before. The problem with this grand idea is that character development and Trek lore were all given a back seat. Rick Berman felt the need for Trek to become more epic. Unfortunately what Enterprise really needed to do was return to its character and socially driven roots. The show did finally start in that direction, but not before losing a legion of fans.
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Winter Solstice

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 3rd, 2005

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Winter Solstice is one of those quiet, somber independent films. While not as flashy as The Upside of Anger (and thatâ€™s not a flashy film), Josh Sternfeldâ€™s feature is a meditative look at a broken family trying to rebuild its life. Donâ€™t expect any major plot twists or a flashy directing style. Solstice takes its time and builds towards something called hope.

A family tragedy as taken its toll on a Jersey family. Anthony LaPaglia plays Jim Winters, a landscape gardener. H…
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Urban Legends: Bloody Mary

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 3rd, 2005

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Synopsis

In 1969, a group of jocks drug their dates at the homecoming dance in order to abduct them. One of them, Mary, stays sober, and is accidentally killed by her date. Thirty years later, history repeats itself when three young women are the victims of a similar revenge prank on the part of the jocks. One of the victims (Kate Mara) accidentally summons the vengeful ghost (by reciting “Bloody Mary”) and the culprits all start dying in various gruesome ways. It seems, however, that they all have s…
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