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South Park – The Complete Ninth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 8th, 2007

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Season 9 was about the most exciting year South Park had. Living in Florida, I was likely more tired of the Terry Schiavo situation than most, but watching Best Friends Forever was one of the best parodies the team has come up with. What was most impressive is that it was on the air while the actual event was still ongoing. One of the benefits of doing a show like South Park. When the boys aimed their guns at Scientology they ruffled more than a few feathers. It was rumored that Tom Cruise had led a fight to attempt to stop the hilarious Trapped In The Closet episode from airing.
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Babel (HD DVD)

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

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As I right this review, the date is February 24th, 2007 one day before the Annual Academy Award Ceremony, which is a show that this film is nominated in the Best Picture category for. Numerous other reviewers, whether they’re critical or simply just internet journalists like myself, have labeled this one as this year’s Crash. A statement like that made me worry going into this one because simply put Crash isn’t Best Picture material nor is it even close to Best Picture material. While I haven’t seen every other Best Picture nominee, I wouldn’t completely mind if the Academy did award Babel with the Oscar.
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Babel

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 14th, 2007

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Some films can be intensely personal. Written and directed by one individual, the stories are fairly long in runtime and epic in terms of hopes and dreams, with characters that intertwine either coincidentally or a little bit more directly. They always seem to have a big name marquee star or two in them and always end on a message of hope or optimism.

Take the case of Babel. Written by Guillermo Arriaga and directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, who were the creative team behind the Amores Perros and 21 Grams films comes perhaps their grandest idea yet.
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Flags of our Fathers

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 30th, 2007

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Synopsis

Of all the recent multi-film director stories that have been told in recent years, not too many have been as, well, historical, as Clint Eastwood’s two part telling of the battle at the Japanese island of Iwo Jima. The battle over a key stretch of property in World War II cost thousands of lives, but never seemed to get a proper cinematic treatment as many of the European theater battles have. Regardless, in Letters From Iwo Jima and Flags of our Fathers, Eastwood has given the world …
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Oh! What a Lovely War

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 21st, 2007

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For all the talk about a film being “just as relevant now as when it was released”, Oh! What a Lovely War seems to fit that bill more than a lot of movies I’ve seen recently. From a screenplay by Len Deighton and directed by a first-time director (but longtime actor) in Richard Attenborough (Jurassic Park), the film may be a daunting endeavor for some to see, probably because it’s a film that’s two and a half hours long and contains a lot of songs.

It also contains a lot of dialogue, and both the songs and dialogue were from the period.
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SpongeBob SquarePants – Season 4, Volume 2

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

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The zaniness continues in Bikini Bottom, and the series shows no sign of losing its appeal or its lunatic creativity. Wonderful little example: “Whale of a Birthday” is about Mr. Krabbs’ daughter’s sixteenth birthday. The highlight: a performance by “Boys Who Cry” singing “It’s All About You.” Perfect. There are twenty episodes here to keep your funny and whimsy bones tickled. (What, you don’t think you have a whimsy bone? Of course you do.)

1900

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 13th, 2007

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Bernardo Bertolucci is no stranger to controversy. His Last Tango In Paris caused quite a bit of noise when it was released. Novecento, as 1900 is known in its original Italian, has been a subject of controversy for decades. Since its 1976 original Italian release, American studios have been cautious about releasing the film in the states, at least as it was originally intended. First there is the running time. The film clocks in at over 5 hours. Theaters in the US face fierce competition for movie goers’ dollars.
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Jackass – Number Two

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 9th, 2007

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Four years after Jackass: The Movie took the popular MTV franchise to the big screen, Johnny Knoxville and his gang returned to theatres with Jackass – Number Two. The sequel is bigger, bolder and much more disgusting. But is it better?

In my humble opinion, the sequel equates to more of the same. If you loved the original, you’ll eat this up. If you hated it – and we both know those are the only two options – you can happily make indignant remarks to any friends or family in the “love it” camp.
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World Trade Center

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 30th, 2006

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Comments on the supplemental material on this edition have been ported over from Ryan Erb’s excellent (and recent) review of the HD DVD, which also can be enjoyed on this site.Â Now onto this review…

Remember when it was announced that far-left conspiracy theorist (and resident Castro admirer) Oliver Stone would be making a film about the September 11 attacks? Of course you do. In fact, the collective pucker of the nation tightened in horror and trepidation when the notion was first thrown around, and later grew in suspicion as the film’s realization became closer and closer.
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World Trade Center (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 22nd, 2006

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Everyone in the world knows about the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. With films hitting the big screen in 2006, I guess the studios thought time enough had gone by to start making movies on the tragedy. World Trade Center is based on the attacks on the World Trade Center, as obvious by its name, but makes mention of the other attacks of the day. I canï¿½t comment on the realism of the movie pertaining to the individuals depicted in the film (John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno) but they were involved with the production of the film, and since film is based on their accounts of the day I could imagine itï¿½s very realistic. There are a few factual inaccuracies regarding some of the events of the day, but nothing major.
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Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist – Season Two

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 20th, 2006

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Dr. Katz is Frasier on LSD. This cartoon is based on stand-up Jonathan Katz and is psychobabble routine. Most of each episode centers on Dr. Katz and usually a couple of sessions with patients played by fellow stand-ups or other celebrities. While there is some humor here, none of it jumps out as rip-roaring funny. Then there’s the infamous “Squigglevision”. To me this makes the darn thing near impossible to watch. The gyrating animation gives me a headache. To review this set, I couldn’t watch more than one episode per sitting.
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NCIS – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 8th, 2006

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Synopsis

Hooray for Donald Bellisario and his decision to create prime time television shows with various branches of the armed forces! But in this case, NCIS takes advantage of the craze of all the CSI related shows that have sprouted up over the last several years. But with various jump cuts and clips of music that are interspersed with it, it’s still hard to make the distinction.

And to make things even more confusing, the show features a grouchy leader who utters the occasional g…
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Beverly Hills, 90210 – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 1st, 2006

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Ah, good old 1990 ï¿½ such an important year in our history. The Soviet Union was in a state of social and political upheaval, David Robinson had just taken the professional basketball world by storm, and I was hatching plans for my first double-digits birthday.

Oh yeah, and Beverly Hills, 90210 hit the airwaves for its inaugural season. Obviously, at the time I was a bit young to have been interested in this teen soap opera, so watching this first season DVD set has not be full of reminiscence for me.
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JAG – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 25th, 2006

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Synopsis

The concept of JAG is pretty simple, I mean, it’s A Few Good Men on the small screen, using sets and footage from other recent armed forces films and hopefully enough pretty people that viewers will enjoy it. However, that wasn’t the case initially, but JAG is one of those shows that helps prove how sometimes you’ve got to give enough time for people to catch onto it before it takes hold.

From week to week in Season One, the creators kept trying to find a female offic…
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C.S.I. Crime Scene Investigation – The Complete Sixth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 17th, 2006

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The more things change, the more they stay the same. Season 5 of CSI saw really the first shake-up of any kind on this CBS anchor series. While there weren’t any serious cast changes, the team was split up. It’s apparent that idea didn’t work out very well. Modest ratings decline and vocal dissatisfaction from the internet fans and even many of the cast members were heard loud and clear. Now Season 6 brings the team back together again. It doesn’t take long for the old team chemistry to remix, and CSI returns to th…
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Save the Last Dance 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 15th, 2006

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I never saw the original film, so I won’t be able to offer any insight on how this film might compare or continue the story set down by Save The Last Dance. What I can say for certain is that this direct to video release isn’t worth the 86 minutes it takes to watch it. The film begins with the first film’s Sarah (now Miko). In a video much like one provided for a dating service, she’s telling us how she feels about various things. These are her highlights and already I don’t care. She is apparently headed to Jullia…
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Jackass: The Movie

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 11th, 2006

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(Portions of this review have been pulled from the original one-disc version of Jackass, which can also be found in the reviews portion of the site)Synopsis

One could make an attempt at witty prose by comparing Jackass to the works of Kubrick, Cassavettes, Scorsese, or what have you. But look, it’s a bunch of guys, some of whom have reputations in other circles, such as skateboarder Bam Margera and acclaimed director Spike Jonze, doing stunts that you may not have thought, dared or …
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Reds (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 10th, 2006

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Warren Beatty attempts directing for the second time in Reds, a film based on the life of John Reed during the Russian Revolution. I didn’t know what to expect from this film, as I had never heard of it prior to its release on HD DVD. I have never seen a movie based on this subject matter, so the movie covered all new grounds for me. Upon investigation I discovered the movie was nominated for twelve Academy Awards and won three, including Best Director for Warren Beatty. Boasting an impressive cast including W…
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Windy City Heat

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 5th, 2006

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Synopsis

Windy City Heat is the longest practical joke that I’ve seen in recent memory. Basically as I understand it, the premise is that Perry Caravello, who is supposed to be a friend to The Man Show’s Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel, is lured to a studio to play a tough cop or detective of some sorts. MTV VJ Carson Daly has just been rejected when Perry gets to the studio office, and he auditions for Bobcat Goldthwait and Dane Cook, and he magically gets the part, and puts up with a lot to ma…
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MacGyver – The Complete Final Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 1st, 2006

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Another long running series finally comes to an end … almost. The 7th and Final Season of MacGyver does not include the tele-films that really closed out the series. Unfortunately this is an abbreviated season with about half as many episodes. This is also another one of those running out of gas years that many quality shows end up doing before the series is mercifully put to rest. One never tires of seeing Richard Dean Anderson come up with his home brewed innovations, but by now it is clear that Anderson has tire…
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Four Brothers (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 30th, 2006

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With impressive urban dramas under his belt, John Singleton sets out to create another classic. Boyz n The Hood is always associated with this genre, in terms of quality it remains a classic drama. Four Brothers doesn’t attempt a serious get out of the hood type movie, but rather an action film with serious themes and tones. Well that’s not to say that there isn’t a laugh or two in here, because there sure is.

It’s a cold November night in Detroit; Evelyn Mercer enters a convenience store to …
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Black Rain

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 30th, 2006

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Synopsis

Michael Douglas is a familiar figures: The Hard-Bitten Cop Who Plays By His Own Rules. He is currently under investigation by Internal Affairs. When he and partner Andy Garcia witness a Yakuza killing and nab the killer, they are tasked with escorting him back to Japan. They have barely landed when they lose him, and are pared up with straight-arrow Osaka cop Ken Takakura in the search to track the villain down again. Douglas and Takakura, as expected, engage in considerable culture clashing.
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Mission: Impossible III (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 28th, 2006

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With all that’s been going on with Tom Cruise as of late, I found myself doubting the integrity of this picture. I was fearful that the happenings of Cruise’s personal life would somehow bring down this movie; the previous two films did set the bar pretty high. So how did the third installment add up, did it fall short of expectations, or did it deliver beyond what I expected?

MI:III doesn’t hesitate a minute to bring us suspense, the picture begins with Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman) having Et…
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Ghost Whisperer – The Complete First Season

Posted in 1.78:1 Widescreen, Box Set, Disc Reviews, Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), DVD, Paramount, Television by Archive Authors on October 28th, 2006

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”My name is Melinda Gordon. I just got married, just moved to a small town, just opened up an antique shop. I might be just like you…except from the time that I was a little girl I knew that I could talk to the dead. ‘Earthbound spirits’, my Grandmother called them. The ones who’ve not crossed over because they have unfinished business with the living, and they come to me for help. To tell you my story, I have to tell you theirs.”

So goes the opening for each episode of this first season of Ghost Whisperer, a series that blends drama, horror and comedy to carry its audience to an emotional place.
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Mission: Impossible III

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 25th, 2006

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It’s been a decade since Brian De Palma’s Mission: Impossible hit theatres to box office success, established a new blockbuster franchise and added ‘action hero’ to Tom Cruise’s résumé. In 2000, John Woo’s highly stylized follow-up raised the franchise to new box office heights. This year, the long-awaited third installment arrived amidst controversy about Tom Cruise’s crazy off-screen antics.

M:i:III’s U.S. box office take suffered from the public backlash to its headliner’s whacky rants and questionable actions.
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