Disc Type

Back around the time I was born, and Tom Cruise had an ounce of sanity, a little movie called Top Gun swept across the globe raking in over $350,000,000 worldwide, as well as sparking an interest in the US Navy and everything Tomcat, Skyhawk, and MiG related. Ever since its original release Top Gun has kept a hold on its audience, being played almost weekly, and now it makes its way into the world of high definition with its release on HD DVD.

Ron Howard’s move from sitcom star to director began with playing the lead in this Roger Corman-produced car chase flick, after which he would move to behind the camera to direct Grand Theft Auto. Here he plays the son of the local sheriff. In an effort to impress the girl of his dreams (Christopher Norris, and yes, that’s a woman’s name), he steals a stock car, and he and his friends then lead the authorities on a merry chase. As is typical of Corman productions, this works hard at delivering, on a stringent budget, exactly what its audience wants.

OK, brace yourself when I tell you that Hallowed Ground was a straight to video release. I know, you're stunned, right? You can't even get up. I was as shocked as you. But I've got to hand it to the filmmakers, they've got a decent idea by putting a somewhat scary image on their cover and keeping a brother intrigued, so to speak.

In my mind, Robert Wuhl has never really understood when to quit. The guy was the star of Arli$$, which was an anomaly on the HBO cable channel. Whereas all the other shows on the channel were ending too soon and were too well received, this show went on and on and on, and no one seemed to really like it. So when I saw he was doing a couple of one-off shows set at universities, I thought this was just another way to grab onto popularity.

I love CSI and have been an avid fan from day one. I think it brought a fresh look to the procedural crime dramas that have long ago become just a little stale and predictable. The problem is that the series has gone the Dick Wolf route of branching out so that the final product might be a little diluted. Unlike the Law & Order franchise, each version of CSI has attempted to take on a unique look and style to reflect the location without giving up those elements which are the tradition of the series. CSI: Miami is by far the inferior of these three shows. In trying to create a slick glitzy Miami feel, the show has gone the way of style over substance.

Every now and then a writer gets stuck for what to write. As a reviewer it happens that I can watch a film or series, take pages of detailed notes and read everything I can get my hands on about the subject, but still when I sit down to my computer it’s just me and that flashy cursor, aptly named, for every writer has felt the curse as that incessant blinking blob continues to remind us we’ve got nothing. In the industry we have a highly technical term for this condition. We call it writer’s block. 

I admit I don't have the strongest faith. Sure I believe in God, but it pretty much ends at that like any other agnostic. So when I get a movie that is based on the idea of the Ten Plagues; let's say I'm not that familiar with the subject matter. I know there are locusts attacking and toads dropping involved along with the whole river of blood thing but outside of that I'm a little thin. However, not to say I wasn't interested. In fact I'm always intrigued by stories in the bible when they are used as methods of literature and peaks into the historical past.

What happens when the reviewer who did Dante's Cove decides to tackle its vampiresque cousin, The Lair? (Besides scheduling more sessions with his psychiatrist) You get somebody who starts understanding what makes up the Here! network. We're homies, we break bread together. Just don't expect me to wear my pants that low nor participate in your late night parties. I got an image to uphold. Season one of the Lair provides something that no other show on the Here! network has proved to this point. A show where there is actual dialog and something more than a cheap excuse to show lots and lots of male on male action. Welcome to the Fang Bang.

Very few of us know A Clockwork Orange as the 1962 novel by Anthony Burgess, instead we know it as the 1971 Stanley Kubrick film adaptation. Not only did Kubrick direct this cult classic, he also wrote the adapted screenplay and produced it. There’s no doubt that Kubrick put a lot into this movie, and by now we all know the results. A Clockwork Orange is a perfect example of Kubrick’s career, highly controversial. After the cult hit 2001: A Space Odyssey, it was crucial for Kubrick to keep the audience on the edge of their seats, and what better way to do that than adapt A Clockwork Orange. There are those who would call this movie trash, and of course there are those who absolutely love it, then of course there’s everyone in between. Well A Clockwork Orange isn’t new news to me, it’s release on HD DVD already looks to impress.

The Invisible appears to have been marketed a couple of different ways when it was released in early 2007, but the most used phrase for the film appears to be “Supernatural Thriller”, which might address it to some degree if it was, you know, thrilling.

Christine Roum (Bodyguard II) co-wrote the screenplay, which David Goyer directed. Goyer has been a longtime writer, providing words to such films as Dark City, Blade and Batman Begins. And for all the good work he’s put in as a writer, you’d think he would have learned some things when it comes to directing, but ultimately, he’s just another guy who was talented in one area and needs some work in his new one.