Special Category

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 2nd, 2005

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Synopsis

Over a thousand years in the future, human civilization has largely collapsed. Most of theplanet is consumed by the Sea of Decay, a forest of toxic spores and giant insects. Only a fewhuman outposts remain. The most idyllic of these is the Valley of the Wind, where the peoplehave learned not to be locked in combat with nature. Nausicaa, the princess of the valley, isparticularly in tune with the insects. The peace in the valley is shattered when it is dragged intothe bitter…
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Hogan’s Heroes – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 2nd, 2005

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Synopsis

Do you really need an introduction? If you’re reading this review, you know the series, don’tyou? You know this is the story of Stalag 13, where the unfortunate Colonel Klink and the idioticSergeant Schultz are the straight men to the madcap antics of Colonel Hogan (Bob Crane) andhis men. Hogan and company are prisoners in name only, constantly ferrying out other POWsand otherwise creating chaos for the German war machine.

As a war sitcom (the premise is, of course,…
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Philadelphia Story, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 27th, 2005

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Synopsis

Reluctant scandal-mag reporter James Stewart and photographer Ruth Hussey are sent toinfiltrate and report on the upcoming marriage of New England aristocrat Katharine Hepburn.They are brought into the house by Hepburn’s first husband, Cary Grant. Sparks, friendly andnot, fly in all directions, and Hepburn’s relationships with the men in her life becomeincreasingly complex. She is also taught to have, as her father puts it, “an understandingheart.”

There’s an echo…
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Bringing Up Baby

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 26th, 2005

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Synopsis

Cary Grant is a straightlaced paleontologist about to be married to a woman even morestraightlaced than he. His life flies into pieces when he runs into the flighty socialite KatharineHepburn. Falling instantly in love, Hepburn does all she can to keep Grant nearby, no matter theconsequences, and she embroils him in the task of bringing a leopard named Baby to heraunt’s country estate.

What follows is every conceivable (and even some inconceivable) sort of misunders…
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Dukes of Hazzard – The Complete Second Season

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

In the midst of Hollywood rehashing old TV shows from the 70s and 80s, they’ve been working on a big screen version of The Dukes of Hazzard. I will repeat that because I think that it bears repeating. Somebody in Hollywood greenlit a movie with Stifler and Johnny Knoxville as Bo and Luke Duke, and Jessica Simpson as their cousin Daisy, as they taunt and evade Boss Hogg played by, wait for it….Burt Reynolds. Someone should be brought up on charges for this, because that sound you’re hearing is Hollywood scrapin…
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Greatest American Hero – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 25th, 2005

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Every now and again a show comes along that on the surface probably isn’t that great. Still, something about it endears itself to you, and you might never completely understand it yourself. The Greatest American Hero is one of those shows. Created by the same man who created James Rockford, Stephen Cannell, The Greatest American Hero was a welcome change to the run of hero shows that preceded it. Robert Culp is pure genius as “by the book” FBI agent Bill Maxwell. Connie Sellecca delivers a little more than scenery or…
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Charmed – The Complete First Season

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

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There’s gotta be some reason why Charmed has stuck around for as long as it has. What started as a show created by Aaron Spelling, starring Shannon Doherty (Beverly Hills 90210) and goddess to internet pervs everywhere in Alyssa Milano (Embrace of the Vampire) has been a staple in the WB lineup for its 7th season now. Even though the show did have to change out Doherty several seasons ago, replacing her with Rose McGowan, the adventures of the Halliwell sisters are still going strong.

T…
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Ultimate Matrix Collection

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

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The Matrix (1999) was a landmark film in the Sci-Fi genre. While it’s box office intake was dwarfed by Episode 1, it was The Matrix that had people talking. Andy and Larry Wachowski’s story of a post-apocalyptic world where humans serve as biological generators of energy for the machines that rule the planet, challenged people’s perceptions of what reality was.

In addition to the well crafted story, The Matrix was well known for the creation of one of the most copied special eff…
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Angel – The Complete Fifth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 20th, 2005

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In the world of television spinoffs it is rare that the newer material will live up to that which spawned it. All In The Family holds the record for number of spinoffs and coincidentally produced the most memorable. Frasier was an instant hit after Cheers. But how many of you remember After-MASH or Beverly Hills Buntz?

Angel, to anyone living under a rock, dates back to the pilot episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. I recently took another look at that maiden appearance. Who says vampires don’t age? This i…
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Donnie Darko

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 20th, 2005

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Synopsis

Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a resentful teen under therapy, and supposed to be takingmedication for his borderline schizophrenia. When a giant demonic bunny (Jimmy Stewart neverhad to deal with the like in Harvey) takes him out of the house just before a plane enginesmashes into his bedroom, life becomes even more strange. Reality becomes rubbery, and thefact that Donnie survived has more and more significant effects on the world around him.

David Lynch…
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Gangsters Collection, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 19th, 2005

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Synopsis

This excellent survey of the Warner gangster films covers the peak of that genre’s popularity,and the earliest films in the set established two of the actors most closely associated with thegenre. First up is 1930’s Little Caesar, with Edward G. Robinson in the title role. Hot-tempered, violence prone Ccaesar Enrico (“Rico”) Bandello is tired of knocking over gasstations, and has his eye on the big time. The story follows his violent rise and fall and, as is trueof s…
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Brady Bunch – The Complete First Season, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 17th, 2005

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Synopsis

So here we go with Season One, presumably before Florence Henderson and Barry Williamswere carrying on behind the scenes (one hopes). Here is the pilot episode (wherein the LovelyLady and the Man Named Brady tie the knot). The first season also has such episodes as theone where the parents switch roles in looking after the kids, the one where Peter’s pride in beinga hero drives everyone else nuts, and the one where the kids try to convince prospective buyersthat their home …
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Short Cuts

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

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The barometer for those interested in Robert Altman’s Short Cuts is usually whether or not they liked Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia. Hell, it’s the question I posed to my fiancée when we were trying to figure out what to watch over the Thanksgiving holiday. The comparisons are pretty conventional; both are large ensemble films with intertwined plotlines set in California, both have a 3 hour runtime. Both even have Julianne Moore in predominant roles.

Based on short stories by Raymond Carver…
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Step Into Liquid

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 16th, 2005

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Many seem to rule surfing out of hand as some sort of pastime for burnouts, potheads, or life’s free spirits. But Bruce Brown helped shine a light onto the sport with his release of 1966’s The Endless Summer, a landmark release that still is highly revered by people to this day for the revolutionary photography and its ability to capture the awesome feats of nature. And where some studios put out near-annual sequels, Brown waited 28 years to get his done, appropriately titled The Endless Summer II, repr…
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Bettie Page Collection, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 15th, 2005

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Synopsis

Cult Epics has done a real service by assembling this boxed set. While I would hesitate torecommend each disc on its own, as a collection, this is a valuable historical document, andBettie Page fans should be in heaven.

Bettie Page Bondage Queen is probably the strongest collection, assembling some 25bondage shorts by Irving Klaw (complete with voice-over introduction). Klaw contributes somemore shorts (of Bettie dancing) to Bettie Page Pin Up Queen, b…
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Kung Fu – The Complete Second Season

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

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Kwai Chang Caine is back for another season of mayhem and mistaken-accusations on the second season of Kung Fu. How is it that trouble never ceases to track this guy down? It seems that every episode begins with Caine walking along, minding his own business, and the next thing you know, he is accused of murder. It would be ridiculous, if it wasn’t so fun to watch!

The themes of these episodes have evolved from the basics covered in season one. In the first season, racism was a dominant theme of the s…
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Arrested Development – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 13th, 2005

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I may have been late to the rapidly growing bandwagon of admirers of the TV comedy Arrested Development, though it was kinda cool to see David Cross (Mr. Show) get onto a network show that would have appeared to been lucky to stay around for a whole season, in a sitcom where the main character was played by Jason Bateman. I mean, Jason Bateman! A guy who was known as Justine’s brother who bounced around from sitcom to sitcom and was virtually off the radar, playing bit parts in other harmless comedies. …
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Chariots of Fire

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 8th, 2005

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Synopsis

In the years leading up to the 1924 Paris Olympics, Ben Cross is Harold Abrahams, who useshis speed as a runner to fight back against the quiet but persistent anti-Semitism of Britishsociety. Ian Charleson is Eric Liddell, the profoundly religious Scot who runs for God. Wefollow their lives and training, along with those of Abrahams’ college friends, up to theOlympics, with a few smallish tribulations along the way.

And that’s about it, really. There are plenty of s…
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Fifth Element

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

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Admittedly when I first saw The Fifth Element, I wasn’t too impressed by it, though Chris Tucker (Friday) did provide some good comedic moments, and it was nice to see Ian Holm (Lord of the Rings) return to major films also. I mainly thought that Bruce Willis had gone a bit silly with this one with dyed blonde head hair, in yet another action movie.

Malcolm X

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 7th, 2005

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Synopsis

Denzel Washington plays Malcolm X, the black leader white folks DIDN’T feel comfortableabout. Beginning in the 1940s, when Malcolm is a zoot-suited cool cat with best friend Shorty(Spike Lee), the film then flashes back to just before his birth, and proceeds in properly epicfashion to trace the life of the charismatic, and extremely controversial, leader.

Questions can, and have, been asked about some aspects of the film. Time Out, for instance,raises the issue of t…
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Soap – The Complete Third Season

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

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Soap is a curious soap opera parody from the late 1970?s. It has a quality ensemble cast, Richard Mulligan, Robert Guilliaume, Katherine Helmond, and much younger Billy Crystal (to name a few). Soap was a bit groundbreaking for its time, as it tackled some hot button issues (homosexuality being one). But the show is committed to its ridiculousness; alien abductions, demon possession, and prison breaks confirm Soap?s bizarre and wacky charm.

Audio

The Dolby Digital 2….
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Taxi – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 2nd, 2005

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There is cause for joy for TV sitcom fans. Taxi‘s second season is now on DVD. It’s an important season to own, since the show develops more memorable characters like Reverend Jim and Simka (played by the great Christopher Lloyd and Carol Kane). But series regulars, like Alex, Latka, Louis, Nardo, Tony, and Bobby Wheeler, all show more depth here. Taxi really came into its own in the second year, and its multiple Emmy awards were justified. All 24 episodes are here. Farcical but human, Taxi…
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Predator 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 30th, 2005

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Predator vs. Alien was not as successful at the box office as was hoped. It seems that this 2-disc edition of Predator 2 might be intended to build interest for the troubled fusion of the two popular space creatures.

This film has had its share of detractors since its release in 1990. I, for one, find it to be as good as, if not better than, the original film. Watching the two governors Arnold and Jesse take on the Predator in the Columbian jungles was certainly a hoot. Let’s be honest…
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Star Trek Voyager – The Complete Seventh Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 30th, 2005

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In Season Seven, Voyager returns home and like Deep Space Nine and The Next Generation, the third Star Trek spin-off wraps up. The final episode “Endgame” is not as dramatic as the finales for the other shows. I guess it becomes anticlimactic when you have known for 7 years how this was going to end. The f/x are some of the best in Trek TV history, however. This is truly a visually stunning episode. The season is about on par with Season 6. Stories continue to grow stale. Even the Seven of Nine s…
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I Love Lucy – The Complete Third Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 26th, 2005

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Synopsis

Season Three of the much-loved series, and the ad copy can describe what’s here better thanI could. I quote: “Laugh out loud as Lucy and Ethel rip each other’s dresses to shreds during theirtelevised duet of Cole Porter’s ‘Friendship.’ Watch the fireworks when Lucy has to go 24 hourswithout telling a fib. Follow Lucy as her quest to recover a contest-winning dollar bill lands herin a giant starch vat.” And so on. This is the series that pretty much set the standards for sitco…
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