Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 28th, 2011
In the world of Marvel comics Captain America was indeed the first Avenger, and as the full title implies we're going quite a way into the past to create this hero. But the first shall be last, and it's certainly true on this long road to the May 2012 release of The Avengers on film. You see, this is the final piece to the puzzle for that great assembly of heroes. We've had two chances to witness both The Hulk and Iron Man and a recent film introduction to Thor. Other characters like Black Widow and Hawk Eye came as guests on the other films. But the introductions are now complete.
Steve Rogers (Evans) is a 98-pound weakling. He's the guy you see in the comics all right. The guy getting sand kicked in his face on those old Charles Atlas ads we used to read on the comic back pages. But he has a heart of solid gold, and he doesn't like bullies. So when Hitler and his boys begin to goosestep over Europe, he tries desperately to enlist. Each time he's shot down and denied his chance to contribute to the cause. That is, until he comes under the eye of Professor Abraham Erskin (Tucci). He has been tasked with reproducing a Nazi experiment to create a supersoldier. He admires Steve's heart and decides to make him the test subject. The experiment works, and Steve receives super strength and agility. But he can't seem to win the respect of Colonel Phillips (Jones). And when Erskin is killed in a Nazi invasion, not even a brave performance to get the bad guy convinces Phillips to give him a chance. He remarks: "I was promised an Army, and all I got is you". But the papers noticed his performance, and soon the country was shouting for Captain America.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 28th, 2011
"That be the cold hand of fate I feel down my nape."
With each of the previous Pirates Of Caribbean films pulling in over a billion dollars in total revenue, it was indeed the cold hand of fate that determined the franchise would not end. Like Captain Jack Sparrow himself, this franchise isn't going to be easy to kill. It's true that the last two films, the third in particular, were rather universally scorned by the critics. But they still pulled in a boatload of money and quite honestly weren't near as bad as all of that. Like the theme park attraction that the franchise was named after, you have to consider these movies as rides. The only intention is to entertain. And by all accounts they've been doing a pretty good job of that for several years now. Even when the rest of the supporting cast bowed out of the franchise, it isn't finished yet, and there's no indication that the voyage is nearing its end any time soon.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 28th, 2011
Italian writer and director Giuseppe Tornatore was born in the small village of Bagheria on the island of Sicily in 1956. The life and culture of his home village has had a tremendous influence on his work. Many of his films have an autobiographical nature to them that he takes no pains to disguise. Earlier we reviewed his love letter to movies with Cinema Paradiso, which also took place in Bagheria. This time we explore five decades of life in that same village, known here by its nickname and the title of the film: Baaria.
The journey begins in the 1920's Peppino ("Giuseppe") Tornatore is a young boy whose services have been sold to a local shepherd to feed the family. He learns the trade but discovers it's not what he wishes to make of his life. When the Communist Party begins to make inroads in his village, Peppino is attracted to the message and soon works his way to becoming an important leader of the party. He falls in love with Mannina (Made), and the two must elope because he has no personal fortune and her parents are against the relationship. It is up to Peppino's father to take the ostracized couple into his own home when her family rejects them both. While there is no real plot here, the film follows the young boy through 50 years of life in the village and beyond, taking in the various historical events that effected Sicily at the time. Fascism and eventual World War take their toll. Peppino has a front-row seat to the land riots that rocked the country. His party loyalties cause serious trouble for the man as he goes up against both the established government and even the Mafia.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 28th, 2011
After reviewing the magical 2002 World Series of the Anaheim Angels, it was only appropriate to review a half century of highlights and lowlights from the team's history. The Angels are not a flashy team, they win with raw talent and a ton of heart. Their success in the 2000's only came after many years where they floundered and did not meet expectations. Let's explore the team the Autry's built. Here are the Los Angeles Angels, now known as the Anaheim Angels.
The Angels name was actually birthed in the late 1950’s when Walter O’Malley purchased the team from the Pacific Coast League. However, it was not until 1960 when it became the focus of a new expansion for the American League. Enter Gene Autry who in 1960 (owner of Golden West Broadcasters and the famous actor) was trying to seek broadcast rights to the team. But soon he would become persuaded by others to actually purchase the franchise. He did and named it the Los Angeles Angels.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2011
"The punishment's gotta fit the crime."
Believe all of the hype and controversy. In the language of the day The Exterminator was one bad mother. And when I say one bad mother, we're not talking Casey Anthony. The Exterminator came at the tail end of the era of grindhouse, exploitation, and revenge films. So, how do you close out a memorable era like that? You do a movie with all three. You put the violence and the grit out there for all to see, and you don't make any apologies about any of it. That's exactly the attitude that writer/director James Glickenhaus plays it, and the result is... well... one bad mother.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2011
"Boldly go where no man has gone before."
Is there anyone out there who hasn't noticed that William Shatner the actor has become William Shatner the character over the years? Give the man some credit for finding ways to reinvent himself. After Star Trek he was the only actor to find himself another regular television character and shakes the typecasting that most actors in the franchise have been victimized by. When TJ Hooker was gone he found a few other shows and ways to take advantage of what could have been fleeting fame. By the time he did Boston Legal he had completely reinvented himself as a somewhat humorous character and wonderful mate for James Spader. But all along there was and always will be more than a little Captain Kirk in the actor. And over time the two began to meld into a being that has been the fodder for jokes for most of the world. Shatner's laughing, too, but not in the way you might think. Shatner's been laughing all the way to the bank.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2011
"I'm Rick Harrison, and this is my pawn shop. I work here with my old man and my son, Big Hoss. Everything in here has a story ... and a price. One thing I've learned after 21 years? You never know what is going to come through that door."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2011
A while back we ran a contest where we gave away several discs that contained some of the most exciting games in baseball history. These games were released individually as full broadcasts on one DVD. Now A&E has decided to put the collection together in one special sweet baseball collection. Just in time for the dramatic end of this year's World Series, you now have a chance to stretch more than that seventh inning. You can keep the baseball season going for as long as you like with these classic games. You get the entire television broadcast and a special audio that contains the home team's radio broadcast. For Phillies fans that means getting to hear the late great Harry Kalas once again.
There's a game in here for everyone. Here's a rundown:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2011
I can't help it. Whenever I see David Boreanaz I can't stop seeing the brooding vampire Angel. It's not really his fault. This character couldn't be farther from the Angel character, but that's what I see. It's also true that Bones, now entering its sixth season, has been around longer than Angel. It's also very likely that he now has fans that aren't even aware of that previous character. It has been quite a few years. I'm usually better at letting go of a character once the show has ended and the actor has moved on. But there it is. Agent Booth ends up doing something silly, and it throws me for a bit of a loop. It's probably a testament to how good an actor Boreanaz actually is, that he's ingrained himself so fully in my brain. And, I haven't watched near as many episodes of Bones, to transfer that identification. But it's Bones that's here now, and based on its current popularity, it's likely to be here for a while longer yet.
Dr. Temperance Brennan, or Bones (Deschanel) is the world's leading bone specialist. She works in Washington, D.C. for the famous Jeffersonian (I assume it's intended to be the Smithsonian). Her talents have proven themselves very helpful in solving crimes where skeletal remains are all that there is to go on from the victim. Her FBI agent/liaison is Seeley Booth (Boreanaz). Together they have an uneasy relationship that grows into a kind of friendship. The problem is that Bones doesn't have a ton of social skills. She relies on Booth to guide their social interactions. More on that later. The lab is run by Dr. Camille Saroyan (Taylor) who has become a bit of a guiding mother to the team. Dr. Hodges (Thyne) is the trace-elements expert and tries very hard to be cool and hip. He's generally the opposite of Bones. He says pretty much what comes into his head and is a bit of a science-fiction geek. Angela (Conlin) is an artist who uses her skills to reconstruct facial details from the skulls. She also works on enhancing images and restructuring evidence. She's a bit of a romantic and has probably slept with every male in the lab. Dr. Sweets (Daley) is a young FBI agent and psychologist. He profiles victims and suspects as well as serves as a counselor to the team. He's a bit over-eager at times, looking up to Booth as a mentor, of sorts. The lab also has a few interns that show up from week to week, likely depending on actor availability.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2011
“Now this might be the room of any small boy, but it happens to belong to a boy named Christopher Robin, and like most small boys, Christopher Robin had toy animals to play with. And together they had many remarkable adventures in an enchanted place called The Hundred Acre Wood. But out of all of his animal friends, Christopher Robin’s very best friend was a bear called Winnie The Pooh.”
“Oh Bother”A.A. Milne was quite an eclectic writer. He wrote murder mysteries that even appeared on Alfred Hitchcock Presents. From that fertile mind would also come a place known as the Hundred Acre Wood. In that select place some of literature’s finest characters had the greatest adventures any boy could imagine. And adventures are certainly no fun on your own. Young Christopher Robin was joined by Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Eeyore, and, of course, Winnie-The-Pooh. Who didn’t fall in love with that silly old bear… Winnie-The-Pooh. OK, so maybe Dahmer or Bundy might have been exceptions. Still, anyone growing up in the last 30-40 years who isn’t a psychopath has had a love affair with Winnie-The-Pooh, all stuffed with fluff.
![Baarìa [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/baara-blu-ray-large.jpg)
