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.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on October 26th, 2011
“People once believed that when someone dies, a crow carries their soul to the land of the dead. But sometimes, something so bad happens that a terrible sadness is carried with it and the soul can't rest. Then sometimes, just sometimes, the crow can bring that soul back to put the wrong things right.”
OK, let me get this out of the way. The Crow was a vehicle for Brandon Lee, son of martial arts legend and movie star Bruce Lee. The elder Lee trained Brandon in martial arts from the day he could take his first steps. When Brandon was only eight years old, his father tragically died just before finishing production on Enter the Dragon, a movie which would go on to become an international blockbuster making Bruce Lee the greatest icon of martial arts cinema. Brandon followed in his father’s footsteps studying martial arts and drama.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2011
"Contestants are experienced marksmen operating on a closed course. Do not attempt this at home."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2011
"We are pioneers and trailblazers. We fight for freedom. We transform our dreams into the truth. Our struggles will become a nation."
I was really looking forward to this release. From the moment I was made aware that it was going to be arriving here for review, I made a mental note to put it at the top of my viewing list. Fact is, I'm a history junkie, particularly American history. I taught the subject in AP and honors classes along with American Government and Law for over seven years. The History Channel is also one of my favorite places on the dial. There are many thought-provoking and informative shows to be found there to help you explore almost every aspect of history. I truly expected this to be one of those milestone releases. Unfortunately, it isn't.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 25th, 2011
Even though I love the game, I have not watched too much baseball in the last few years. This goes double for games not involving the Philadelphia Phillies. I still keep up with it, still analyze the standings and box scores but for some reason I do not watch as many games as I wish too. The odd thing is when I get sets like the one I'm reviewing today, I am 100% excited. Perhaps it is because I have nothing vested in it. The games are already played, the result is already known, I can simply appreciate the game that way it is supposed to be. The magical game of baseball.
2002 was the first time in baseball history that two wildcard teams made the World Series. The Anaheim Angels had finished 99-63 (Oakland and New York won 103 games a piece that year) while the San Francisco Giants went 95-66 (The Braves were the standout in the NL winning 101 games). However, when the Angels took out the Yankees and the Giants took out the Braves in the first round of the playoffs, baseball fans knew that they were in for something special come the Series. After the League Championship series with the Angels and Giants both crushing their opponents (Twins and Cardinals), it was time to play the big one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on October 24th, 2011
“l know, it must seem like an eternity, but your eternity is only just beginning. Do you really want to spend it trapped here?”
The woman (Mira Sorvino) arrives at a cabin on a remote island in Oregon. At the cabin waits the ghost (Shane West) standing and staring at the woman as she goes about her daily tasks. She can’t see him, but he subtly makes his presence known. When her boyfriend (Justin Kirk) makes a surprise visit to the island, both the ghost and the woman are put out by his presence. Soon the woman begins behaving irrationally and showing the signs of spiritual oppression and possession. Is this because of the ghost or is there a darker presence in the cabin?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on October 24th, 2011
“I'm not a doctor. I haven't been to medical school; I haven't even been to high school.”
A beautiful and moving film based on John Irving’s best-selling American classic The Cider House Rules deals with sensitive and controversial subject matters wrapped inside a captivating coming-of-age story. John Irving had second thoughts about trimming his huge novel into a two-hour film and only agreed to adapt the screenplay after the studio agreed to allow his son, Colin Irving, to be in the movie (He plays Major Winslow in a small role as a notifying officer delivering bad news).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on October 24th, 2011
“For what it’s worth, I read your first book. I'm not Jewish, but I liked it.”
In the spirit of disclosure, the first time I tried watching Bored to Death, I gave up early in the first season. The title described the experience of this viewer. Jason Schwartzman has never really clicked with me. His schtick always seemed a little too precious and self-aware for my tastes. Pressure from friends who insisted the show got better in the second half of the season got me back. I did find myself falling into sync with the stoner-noir rhythm of the series and laughing out loud at writer/creator/inspiration Jonathan Ames’ absurdist humor by the final third of the first season.