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Disc Audio

Doctor Who – The Three Doctors

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 19th, 2004

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Most American Doctor Who fans are most familiar with the Tom Baker Who. There is no question he added a flair to the role. In this 10th Anniversary special episode we get to see the first 3 Doctors in action. John Pertwee was the current Who. He teams up mostly with 2nd Doctor Patrick Troughton. The first Doctor was played by William Hartnell and was limited to view screen images as he was quite aged and ill. The idea would occur again with the 5 Doctors to celebrate 20 years of Doctor Who. The story is a bit contriv…
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Panic Room

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 19th, 2004

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Not that there was anything wrong with the picture and sound of the previous Superbit release. But now Panic Room returns in a package that truly contains every imaginable extra, and then some.

Synopsis

The set-up is elegant and simple. Jodie Foster and daughter Kristen Stewart move into their new home in New York. The previous owner built an impregnable panic room in the upper floor. During Foster and Stewart’s first night, three criminals (Forest Whitaker, Dwight Yoakam and Jared L…
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Looney Tunes – Back in Action

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

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Back in the day, the Looney Tunes were irreverent, violent, and created with an adult audience in mind (much like South Park is today). Somewhere along the line, however, values changed, and they became standard kids faire. Now, that’s not to say that there wasn’t still plenty in there for adults to enjoy as well, but they just didn’t carry with them the same humorous social commentaries that were prevalent in the days of old.

Well, the Tunes are back! The appropriately-titled Looney Tunes – Back …
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Baby Einstein – Baby MacDonald

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

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Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat… this is a title intended for viewing by small children. Very small children. As a result, all of my usual judging criteria (picture quality, sound quality, character development) are pretty much unimportant. The target audience for this title has trouble forming words, so I am willing to bet that the more subtle nuances of the narrative will be lost on them. Nevertheless, I will continue on as best as I can.

If you are still reading this, you are most likely a…
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Ripley’s Game

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

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Synopsis

John Malkovich plays Tom Ripley in this incarnation. He is living a life of luxury in Italy,house in a palatial villa with his harpsichordist wife. Two events disrupt his comfortableexistence: the unwelcome re-emergence of former colleague-in-crime Ray Winstone, and a aninsult at a part from leukemia-ridden picture framer Dougray Scott. Winstone wants a criminalrival eliminated, and Ripley, vengeance on his mind, decides that the innocent Scott is just theperson to be manip…
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Vampire Effect

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 16th, 2004

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Synopsis

Vampire slayer Reeve takes on a new partner in a young woman named Gypsy. As Reevetrains Gypsy in the art of killing the undead (of which there seems to be a constant plague),Reeve’s sister Helen is starting up a new relationship with Kazef, who just happens to be theFifth Prince of Vampires. Kazef is a nice enough sort, however, limiting himself to bottled blood,and genuinely in love with Helen. Unfortunately, the Duke, a European vampire, is killing offthe other royal families, g…
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Circuit 2, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 16th, 2004

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If you were one of the few of people who were waiting with bated breath for a sequel to the low-budget laugher, The Circuit, well thank your lucky stars because the day has finally come. If you sense sarcasm, you are right, because The Circuit 2 is even more of a stink-fest than the original, which is a feat in and of its self.

When we last left Dirk Longstreet (Olivier Gruner), he was recovering from infiltrating an underground fighting circuit to save his brother who had become wrapped up i…
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Frightening, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 16th, 2004

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The Frightening, as the DVD cover says, is “a new class of horror”. This play on words foreshadows the premise of the movie. There’s a “new kid” at Hallows End High School. His name is Corey (Matt Twining), and he’s having a few problems “adjusting”. Corey has a “past”. But that’s not the “real” problem of this school. Okay…I’ll stop using quotation marks. The major problem at Hallows End High School, nicknamed “Halloween High” (sorry…I couldn’t stop), is that the corpses are piling up. Someone…or som…
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Little Red

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 16th, 2004

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Film

Ah, Baltimore. The Inner Harbor, Camden Yards, Preakness, corrupt government officials, devastating crime rate, as well as a nasty STD epidemic to boot. You gotta love my hometown. But what Baltimore has in negative traits, it makes up for it with creativity. If you have caught HBO’s The Corner or The Wire, you see that Baltimore’s issues can make for captivating television. While Little Red isn’t on the level of these excellent shows, it does have a certain level of amateur charm …
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Circuit, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 16th, 2004

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Film

Remember the B-Movie kick-fests of the late 1980’s and early 1990’s? You know… the ones where plot and acting come in a distant second to the well staged fight scenes? The Circuit tries to harken back to the genre of that time, but ultimately falls flat on its face like a punch drunk boxer.

Dirk Longstreet (Olivier Gruner) is the former champion of an illegal underground fighting circuit. He has tried to put those days behind him by becoming an athletics instructor at a college…
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Sword of the Valiant: The Legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 16th, 2004

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Synopsis

King Arthur (Trevor Howard) is disgusted with the decadent state of his court. During abanquet, as the once great knights are berated by their king, a mysterious Green Knight (SeanConnery) storms in. He challenges anyone to chop of his head, as long as he gets the secondblow. No one takes up the gauntlet but Gawain (Miles O’Keeffe), a young squire. Knighted forhis bravery, Gawain decapitates the Green Knight, who then promptly screws his own head backon. He doesn’t kill Gaw…
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Grapes of Wrath, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 15th, 2004

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Synopsis

Henry Fonda is Tom Joad, returning home after serving four years in prison for killing aman. He arrives to find the farms of Oklahoma devastated by drought, and all the familiesdispossessed of their land. He and his family become part of the great migration from the DustBowl to the Eden of California. There they face exploitation, persecution and misery, andFonda’s rage at the injustice grows.

John Steinbeck’s enormous novel found a stunning screen incarnation in th…
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Sand

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 13th, 2004

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Synopsis

Michael Vartan plays Tyler Briggs, a man who separates from his redneck family in order to leave the past behind him and start a new life for himself. Following the passing of his mother, his father tries to re-establish contact with him and tracks him to his new home, a secluded beach town where he spent time as a child. Accompanying his father are his law breaking brothers who continue their lawless ways after Tyler decides not to return to their ways. They assault his girlfriend and bruta…
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Cyborg 009 – Uncut & Unedited

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 13th, 2004

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Cyborg 009 (pronounced zero zero nine, not double oh nine) is a show about a group of people who are half-human and half-robot – a.k.a. cyborgs. Abducted and experimented on against their will, these cyborgs are revolting against the person who made them, the evil Black Ghost.

This show has the look of an old fashion anime program. Based on a manga strip that started in 1969, the character designs are from that era, with exaggerated facial features (most evidently big noses), sleek lines and big feet. B…
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Comic Book – The Movie

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 13th, 2004

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Following in the tradition of This Is Spinal Tap, Mark Hamill’s Comic Book: The Movie is a “mockumentary” that delves into the lives of those obsessed by comics and those that try to make money off of these people i.e. heartless Hollywood types who want to cash into the comic book craze by bastardizing a classic comic book hero into a major Hollywood blockbuster. Hosted by longtime comic geek Donald Swann (Hamill), this new ‘documentary’ shows the evolution of legendary character Commander Courage. Orig…
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Dracula’s Curse

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 12th, 2004

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Synopsis

Jonathan Harker, his fiancee Mina and their friends are partying it up in Budapest when anone Vlad Tepes makes them an offer they can’t refuse. Lured by the dollar signs, Harker hieshimself off to Rumania to the castle of Count Tepes. The Count, of course, is exactly who youthink he is, and soon he and an Italian version of Dr. Van Helsing are locked in a familiarbattle.

In its broad lines, the film is actually quite faithful to Stoker’s novel. The characters’nati…
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Playboys, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 12th, 2004

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Synopsis

Robin Wright is Tara. Not only is she the most beautiful woman in her small village, she isalso a single mother, which means some tough sledding in the Ireland of 1957. She is turned onand persecuted by the community, even as the men lust after her. Constable Albert Finney isparticularly obsessed with winning her, and he doesn’t take it well at all when she falls for AidanQuinn, who arrives with an itinerant band of actors.

There are plenty of serious topics being d…
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Tully

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 12th, 2004

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Film

While walking in a junkyard, a character says, “This place has a lot of treasures.” That statement could also be used to describe one of the many powerful scenes that are treasures in this film. Not that this film is anything close to a junkyard. Nominated for a few Independent Spirit Awards in major categories, Tully is a moving film that uses several wonderfully understated performances to tell its story about a troubled family.

On a Nebraska farm, patriarch Tully Coates, Sr. (Bob B…
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School of Rock

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 11th, 2004

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Jack Black has mainly played smaller bit parts in movies and the problem has always been that whenever he is on screen he steals the show. He has had a starring role in one film (Shallow Hal) but as you will quickly learn from this film they kept him on a pretty short leash. This guy is on overdrive whenever there is a camera anywhere within a hundred feet.

Jack Black is Dewey Finn the down on his luck wannabe rock god. His roommate’s new girlfriend threatens to kick Dewey out if he doesn’t come up with som…
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Miner’s Massacre

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 11th, 2004

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A miner from the Gold Rush days of ’49 comes back to life to terrorize a group of youngsters. Sound familiar? Yeah… vaguely sounds like that Scooby Doo episode with the Miner 49er. Alas… I’m not talking about Rooby Roo himself. The movie is Miner’s Massacre. And I would advise eating a whole pouch of Scooby snacks before watching this abomination.

Indeed, the movie is about an old miner that comes back to life to haunt whoever takes his “gold”. Of course, there is a gaggle of young kids re…
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On Edge

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

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Synopsis

Mimicking the format of Spellbound, On Edge introduces us to a group offigure skating hopefuls. The principles are Veda, an ice queen driven by her imperious bitch-on-wheels mother; Wendy, overweight but very talented and desperate for attention; and J.C., thecynical, self-taught trailer trash. These three triumph in the local competition, and move on tothe regionals, shooting for the coveted Golden Horn.

The figure skating scene is so ripe for parody,…
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Big Bounce, The

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

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Synopsis

Ryan O’Neal, in a spectacular bit of miscasting, is a drifter with an explosive temper. He isback from Vietnam, moving from job to job. After getting himself fired from a cucumberplantation, he is taken on as a handyman at a motel. He is fascinated by the plantation owner’s“secretary” (Leigh Taylor-Young), and she is just a bad, bad girl. Her quest for kicks lead togreater and greater risk and danger, and O’Neal, smitten, follows along, getting in over hishead.

Th…
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Beyond Borders

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

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Synopsis

In 1984, Angelina Jolie has just married into English society when a charity ball she isattending is crashed by Clive Owen, who rails against phony, self-serving gestures towardsforeign aid. Stung, Jolie travels to Ethiopia to work with Owen at a refugee camp during thefamine. She finds her calling. The film then jumps forward, and we see Jolie periodically leavingEngland and her failing marriage to travel to a hot spot (Cambodia, Chechnya). Each time, herrelationship with …
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Rapid Exchange

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 9th, 2004

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Synopsis

After a museum heist goes awry, Lorenzo Lamas works off his debt to Lance Henriksen bysigning on as part of a team for an even bigger job: stealing $250 million from a 747 in mid-flight. We follow the team of expert thieves prepare for heist, and then the big event goes down.But Lamas doesn’t trust everybody he’s working with, and he is right not to.

Remember the heist that kick-starts the action in Cliffhanger? That’s pretty muchwhat you have here, only now that job…
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Dark Waters

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 9th, 2004

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Synopsis

An ocean floor lab is attacked by intelligent sharks. Subsequently, sleazy oceanographer con-artist Lorenzo Lamas and partner-in-crime Simmone Jade MacKinnon (she of the extremelyshaky American accent) are forcefully recruited by the man Lamas blames for the death of hisfather. They are forced to take Lamas’ private sub down to the lab. Everything goes wrong, andin the wake of another shark attack, the survivors are picked up by a US sub commanded by alunatic. The sub is the headqu…
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