Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 14th, 2012
Living here in Texas, I have to be blunt and admit I do not spend much time outdoors. This is mostly due to the fact that it seems to be summer for almost ten months out of the year and somehow I just don’t dig 90 and 100+ degree temperatures. When I can afford it, I would love to go somewhere with respectable temperatures and be able to walk around in decent weather. Perhaps the Beautiful Planet set is for me, where I get to see beautiful high definition video of some of the planet’s most wonderful places.
Beautiful Planet: England & the Low Countries:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 14th, 2012
Living here in Texas, I have to be blunt and admit I do not spend much time outdoors. This is mostly due to the fact that it seems to be summer for almost ten months out of the year and somehow I just don’t dig 90 and 100+ degree temperatures. When I can afford it, I would love to go somewhere with respectable temperatures and be able to walk around in decent weather. Perhaps the Beautiful Planet set is for me, where I get to see beautiful high definition video of some of the planet’s most wonderful places.
Beautiful Planet: England & the Low Countries:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 6th, 2012
Earth From Above is a French nature documentary series dubbed into English for its American and British Blu-ray release. The host, Yann Arthus-Bertrand, garnered international attention with his renowned photography. He’s best known for his best selling coffee table book, Earth From Above, chronicling his world travels with stunning photos from a bird’s eye view. He then branched into filmmaking, using his unique aerial photographer’s eye to draw attention to world’s conservation and preservation needs. This resulted in an Earth From Above full length feature and eventually this running French series of the same name.
As a staunch environmental activist, Arthus-Bertrand formed a partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and now travels the globe documenting extreme ecological changes, most of which not attributed to the now controversial subject of "climate change" and/or "global warming." This Blu-ray release covers two discs and four programs in the series including So the Great Rivers May Live, Of Forests and Man, 6 Billion People to Feed and Do Wild Animals Still Exist? Each segment is broken into two parts and was aired as two separate episodes in the series.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 2nd, 2012
"It's one thing to see a great white shark on television or from the safe confines of a boat. It's another experience entirely to see the animals in their natural element. There simply is not a single creature on Earth that we're more afraid of."
Man’s always had a rather natural, and healthy, fear of sharks, but it was perhaps the 1975 film Jaws that brought all of those primordial fears bubbling to the surface of our pop culture. Since then sharks have taken an almost mythic position in our culture. They invade our fears, but more importantly they fascinate the heck out of us. Young or old, it doesn’t matter. Sharks are the new dinosaurs, and they aren’t going anywhere any time soon. Come face to face with some of the most dangerous creatures on the planet, with a level of clarity and detail that was once reserved only for those who shared their waters.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on July 31st, 2012
"More than two out of three U.S. adults are overweight or obese. During the past 30 years, adult obesity rates have doubled."
After watching this documentary — developed with the Institute of Medicine, in association with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as the National Institutes of Health, and in partnership with Kaiser Permanente and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation — I feel like I should be typing this review while walking on a treadmill instead of planted on my couch like a lazy lump.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 12th, 2012
"I'm Brad Meltzer. I've spent my life collecting stories. The best include signs, symbols, and coded messages that are hidden in plain sight. Some have become the basis for my novels. But I've only scratched the surface of what's out there, and now History has given me the resources to investigate the rest. This is Decoded."
What if I told you there was an author out there who was known for writing novels that include historical conspiracies, secret societies and buried treasures, and that this author has found a way to parlay his moderate writing success into a television series for History?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on May 24th, 2012
“His name is Samson. He’s big with his cat, with mama and with his stick. Black Samson… he’s mean and clean and rules the scene.”
In the 70s and 80s, filthy little theaters littered New York’s 42nd Street, sandwiched between adult bookstores, porn theaters, and peepshows. These dens of celluloid sin hosted an endless loop of “B” movies affectionately known as grindhouse films. They ran exploitation films, drive-in double features, and European softcore of every subgenre, ranging from Blaxploitation to Sexploitation, from Euro-crime to Sci-Fi and Horror. Some theaters projected these movies 24 hours a day, seven days a week! 42nd Street Forever collects nearly ninety (approximately three hours and forty-five minutes) of sensational vintage trailers from these grindhouse classics.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 16th, 2012
"In the beginning there was darkness. And then bang, giving birth to an endless expanding existence of time, space, and matter. Every day new discoveries are unlocking the mysterious, the mind-blowing, the deadly secrets of a place we call The Universe."
The History series has lasted for six seasons to date. The show uses modern space photography, computer-generated images, and demonstrations along with respected scientists to explore the various aspects of our universe. While more time is spent in our own back yard exploring our solar system, the series does take us to the outer reaches of space, going back about 13 billion years. That's as far as we're able to see. The show is narrated by Erik Thompson. Of course, there is plenty of narration by the scientists.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 18th, 2012
Egypt has always been known as paradise on earth to its people and the many visitors it gets each year. The land is often described as a strong, fertile land with an emphasis on history and rich tradition. Personally, I find myself in a general state of knowledge about the country but wished to know more. My curiosities peaked when I received a copy of “Planet Egypt” on DVD at my doorstep thanks to the History Channel. Let us see what rich history is held inside.
Disc One
Birth of an Empire:
Egypt has always had war and peace. Their technology was always ahead of its time and their legacy has stood the test of time. In 3000 BC, also known as Dynasty 0, a tablet is made to depict the adventures of what would be Egypt’s first pharaoh, Narmer. The tablet would become known as Narmer’s Palette. Supposedly, Narmer ruled the south and had asked the tribes of north to abide by his rule. According to legend, they opposed but eventually Narmer used force to usurp the area from the tribes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 17th, 2012
As a nation, the United States is pretty evenly divided on most of the larger issues of the day. Nowhere is that more evident than the opinions on capital punishment. If you took a poll today, you'd likely still find a slim majority of Americans continue to support the death penalty. Unless, of course, you were to take that poll in Texas. The Lone Star State has pretty much led the way in dealing out death sentences since the practice was resumed in the 1970's. For a time in the 80's and 90's Florida was giving Texas a run for their money, but today there isn't a state that comes close. In both states Old Sparky has been retired in deference to lethal injection.
In 2001 Michael Perry and Jason Burkett wanted a red Camaro belonging to Sandra Stotler. They killed her and took the car. They also took her body to an isolated lake and proceeded to dump her in an area often used to illegally dump garbage as if she were nothing more than the trash that littered the area already. They went back to the house but found they could not get into the gated community without the code. So they waited for Sandra's son Adam and his friend Jeremy Richardson to return. They lured the two boys out to the lake where they also brutally murdered the young boys. They got themselves a car to joyride in while three innocent victims lost their lives violently. The pair bragged about their heinous deeds, and when the police came to arrest them they engaged in a firestorm shootout. They even ran one officer over with the stolen car. If ever there was an argument for the death penalty, Michael Perry and Jason Burkett were it.
