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Cagney & Lacey – The True Beginning (Season One)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on June 3rd, 2007

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Synopsis

Groundbreaking is often a word that is simply used too much. People tend to sling it around whenever they find a movie or tv show that is just simply different. However, this is not the case with the groundbreaking show: Cagney & Lacey. It was to show two women in leading roles as police officers solving crimes and getting the bad guys. The show in its first season alone would explore such controversial women’s issues as date rape and burnout (which a lot of women du…
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Dante’s Cove – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on June 2nd, 2007

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I must really love this job. That’s the only explanation as to why I keep reviewing for this site. Then I get across my desk a copy of Dante’s Cove – The Complete Second Season. (I guessed I missed the first one). On the cover they show three quite buff men (in the background two women, hey that’s Tracy Scoggins), all with pants being a little too low. Uh-oh. *flips to the back*; oh geez is that two men kissing, *sigh*, it is. From the here! network for openly gays and lesbians comes the guilty pleasure show; Dante’s Cove, a soap opera that let’s just say really pushes the envelope.
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Moral Orel, Volume One – The Unholy Edition

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

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Moral Orel airs on Adult Swim, and like a lot of programs on Swim, each episode is about 12 minutes long. After watching only a few episodes, I just knew this show must face a lot of criticism. A lot of the subject matters are pretty touchy – from the eleven year old Orel smoking crack to him impregnating the neighborhoods mothers. Although pretty much all races and denominations take a shot throughout this show, the blunt of all jokes are taken by Protestants. Without getting into a whole religious tirade, I’…
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Frasier – The Complete Ninth Season

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

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Kelsey Grammer reprises his role as Dr. Frasier Crane in the ninth season of Frasier. Spanning eleven seasons, winning 39 Emmy Awards, and being one of the most critically acclaimed shows of its time, these are just a few of the achievements Frasier amounted during its eleven year run. So there’s no denying that Frasier has quite a following and for any of us who have watched can admit that it has its moments, and its more ‘sophisticated’ humor can be quite funny at times.

For those of y…
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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.

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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Martin – The Complete Second Season

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

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Synopsis

When I was reviewing Season One of Martin, I was actually on a business trip in New Jersey, fondly recalling the early ‘90s and the huge popularity of the show that bore comedian Martin Lawrence’s name. Since that time, I’m no longer going to New Jersey on business, I’m working better hours, and a movie with Lawrence called Wild Hogs came out. It grossed over $150 million, and starred him, John Travolta and Tim Allen as aging adults who do the Easy Rider road trip. The only thi…
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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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Circle of Iron

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 22nd, 2007

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Synopsis

Cord (Jeff Cooper) is a martial arts expert in a mythical land who competes for the right to go on a quest to confront a legendary master (Christopher Lee) who protects a mystical book. Cord cheats and is disqualified, but heads out on the quest all the same. Along the way he encounters various threats (all played by David Carradine) and a supernaturally talented blind man (also Carradine), not to mention oddities such as Eli Wallach sitting in a barrel of oil as part of long-term project to…
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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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What I Like About You – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 19th, 2007

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Synopsis

I’d like to think of Amanda Bynes (She’s the Man) for being part of a smaller second wave of teen female performers. Nobody’s really sure of who she is, but she appears to stay out of trouble and certainly not emulate the Lohans and Spears of the world. She had an already established name among the Nickelodeon demographic, but soon moved to grown up television, joining television veteran Jennie Garth (Beverly Hills, 90210) in What I Like About You.

In the show, Bynes …
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That Thing You Do!

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 16th, 2007

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Following the success of back-to-back hits Forest Gump and Apollo 13, Tom Hanks wanted to shake things up. His project of choice? Writing and directing his first feature film.

The result was That Thing You Do!, a light, enjoyable comedy about a 60’s pop band that makes it big on the strength of one hit song. Barely together a few weeks, The Oneders (pronounced “Wonders”) win a small-town talent contest, which lands them their first gig, playing at a local bar. Before they can adjust to …
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Flipper — Season One

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 15th, 2007

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Synopsis

Here we go: all 30 episodes of the first season, wherein we follow the adventures of Flipper, a dolphin owned by youngsters Bud and Sandy. All three are watched over by their father, Chief Ranger Ricks of Coal Key Park. The formula for each episode generally sees either someone who needs rescuing (from drowning, shark attack, that sort of thing) and Flipper must help out, or the boys and the dolphin wind up in trouble after poking their noses somewhere they shouldn’t. It’s all very familiar,…
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Born to Fight — Two-Disc Ultimate Edition

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 9th, 2007

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Synopsis

After the apprehension of a rogue general results in the death of his mentor, officer Dan Chupong accompanies his sister and her team of athletes on a charity visit to a rural village. As luck would have it, the general’s forces attack this very village, threatening to slaughter all the villagers is the general is not released. What these villains fail to mention is that they have a nuclear missile which they plan to fire at Bangkok no matter what happens. Chupong leads the villagers and ath…
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Beverly Hills, 90210 – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2007

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Beverly Hills 90210, although I never watched this growing up, I knew a lot of people who did. Often compared as The OC of the 90’s, the show does in fact share a lot of similarities with The OC; two popular primetime soap operas based around the posh lives of rich teens. The main difference between the two shows is the fact this 90210 lasted 9 seasons and 10 years on air, which made for a vast array of storylines and ever developing characters. Some people might not remember the show all …
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Tomorrow Never Dies (Region 2)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 5th, 2007

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Synopsis

Well in the ever ongoing series of reviews of the James Bond series, this particular installment is the last of the Pierce Brosnan collection (the others are on the site, so go find them). And in Tomorrow Never Dies, I saved it for last because well, I needed some form of drama to keep me going.

This one takes Ian Fleming’s characters and adapts them into a screenplay that was written by Bruce Feirstein (GoldenEye) and directed by Roger Spottiswoode (Under Fire). And …
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Black Emanuele’s Box Volume 1

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 4th, 2007

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When Just Jaeckin’s glossy exercise in softcore, Emmanuelle, earned boffo box office in 1974, imitators piled on, and no imitators anywhere were as shameless as the Italians, who began the Black Emanuelle series (note the missing “m”). Laura Gemser starred, and Joe D’Amato directed many of the entries (though not the first). This set offers three.Both the double-“m” and single-“m” series were characterized by the heroine having sex in exotic locales, and the travelogue aspect is most dominant in Emanuelle in Bangkok (1977).
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Drew Carey Show – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 3rd, 2007

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The Drew Carey Show originally aired its pilot episode in 1995, focusing on a simple group of friends living their simplistic lives. Known for its everyman characters and situations, the show enjoyed a 9-year run on ABC, getting yanked from the schedule in 2004. Drew Carey and Bruce Helford, who both continued to write for the show in the following seasons, created the show with the premise of Drew Carey’s life if he hadn’t become a comedian and pursued a different career. I wasn’t even aware that this show wa…
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Venture Bros – Season Two

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 29th, 2007

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Synopsis

*Booming Voice*, “When we last left the Venture Bros season 1, the incredible arch-villain Monarch had been imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit and the Venture Bros were suffering from the loss of their boys Hank and Dean, Meanwhile…” *Monarch voice*, “Where the heck are my cue cards, can’t an arch-villain get some normal cue cards for once and how come there is nothing about the sweet Dr. Girlfriend anywhere in here, I mean who really cares about the f****ng V…
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Loonatics Unleashed – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 28th, 2007

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Synopsis

When I heard about Loonatics Unleashed the cartoon show, I like many heard it from the web critics. “We can’t stand it”, “It’s ruining the image of the Looney Tunes”, or just simply “It sucks” were their cries. However, what I also found interesting in my research is that these comments mostly came before the show even aired. So, the web critics sport superhero abilities I see. They should be villains on this show. Anyhow, needless to say I was a little worried when I saw it at t…
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On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (Region 2)

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

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Synopsis

Well, time may not have been too kind to George Lazenby since he assumed the tailored suits of James Bond for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, but considering how well Daniel Craig did in Casino Royale, and the basic storyline is the same for both films, why do people still want to bash Lazenby now? Is it because he wasn’t a carbon copy of his predecessor, Sean Connery? Who knows?

As for the film itself, Lazenby was as unknown as one could get for the job, as this was only h…
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Dreamgirls – Showstopper Edition

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 24th, 2007

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Ahead of the pack with eight nominations, Dreamgirls had a lot of buzz leading up to this year’s Academy Awards. In the midst of it all, there was talk of a surprise standout performance by American Idol alumnus Jennifer Hudson in her first film role, and even more surprisingly, Pluto Nash – I mean, Eddie Murphy was up for best supporting actor.

With that many nominations, Dreamgirls, in yet another surprise, was not up for the coveted best picture Oscar. And after the dust settled, the film had been honored with just two of the golden statues, for Jennifer Hudson as best supporting actress and best achievement in sound mixing. No best picture nod and so few wins seemed to say, ‘yeah, your movie had a lot of good parts, some even great, but they didn’t add up to something more.’

Addams Family, The (Volume 2)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 22nd, 2007

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Synopsis

The first thing that surprised me when I did some minor research on The Addams Family was that as a show, it was barely on for a cup of coffee, lasting two seasons. Maybe because it was on around the same time as The Munsters shortened its shelf life. However three decades later, the film (and its sequel) helped propel it into fan appreciation.

At least as part of the preservation effort, the shows themselves are starting to appear on DVD shelves, and Volume 2 is the latest …
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Planet Earth – The Complete Series

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

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Planet Earth – The Complete Series presents the original U.K. broadcast version with narration by David Attenborough, not the version airing on Discovery narrated by Sigourney Weaver.

Have you ever sat back and wondered about the sheer size and shape of our world, its diversity of habitats or the incredible variety of life we share it with? It’s hard to get your head around it all, especially when most of us are living out our existences in one tiny slice of the place, with the only the odd vacation …
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Season Four

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 16th, 2007

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Synopsis

When the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series came out on DVD, they decided to go the 12 episodes on one disk Volume approach. Sure it was only $10, but when you are looking at near 200 episodes and realized that it would 16+ volumes to make it complete, it was a bit overwhelming. Add that to the fact they were only releasing a new volume every 4-6 months, you were looking at well over 5 years to get all of the episodes. Plus some major shelf space. Thank …
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