Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 3rd, 2010
Season 5 of this most well-meaning of sitcoms finds a major change. With the cast now having aged to the point that not all the girls could reasonably be in high school together, Mrs. Garrett (Charlotte Rae) opens Edna's Edibles, a bakery-slash-coffee-shop, and the opening two-parter establishes the new status quo (essentially doing whatever is necessary to keep the main characters together). Otherwise, things proceed as they always have, with each story combining standard sitcom hijinks with Important Life Lessons and forays into weighty subjects. So, for example, the friendship between Natalie (Mindy Cohn) and Tootie (Kim Fields) hits a rough patch when Natalie's reaction to being asked out by Tootie's cousin is perceived, by Tootie, to be racist.
The series' flaws and strengths are much as they always were. On the one hand, the commitment to deal with serious issues is commendable, and the actual integration of these themes into the structure of the stories is fairly smooth. On the other, the performances are thuddingly broad, and the dialogue (and its attendant jokes) is both chronically and acutely awful. In the final analysis, only viewers who have retained a devotion to the show will really be able to get much out of this.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2010
A&E and History have combined for some of the best educational as well as entertaining programs over the years. Many of those shows have taken close looks at the various civilizations and empires throughout world history. Most of these shows take a look at these civilizations from the inside outward. We're not talking the litany of facts and accomplishments that we've seen on hundreds of documentaries as well as our old high school textbooks. These programs look at the day-to-day life of these cultures and peoples. The accomplishments here are the ones that affected everyday life within these empires. These are the kinds of things we tend to take for granted in our modern lives. Things like sanitation, architecture, and basic metro services didn't just appear out of nowhere. These shows give us a rare look into the evolution of the things that have identified human evolution over the millennia. It's said that we are separated from animals by our ability to shape and change our environment. With this massive 14 disc set, you can explore the ways that we have shaped our planet in our quest for civilization.
The disc includes the following series and episodes:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 21st, 2010
Perry Mason did it for lawyers. Marcus Welby did it for doctors. From 1969 to 1976 and beyond, Robert Young was the face of the television doctor. The actor was so identified with his part that he dealt with fans and their medical questions his entire life following his portrayal of Marcus Welby. In those days there wasn't a medical doctor on the planet, real or fictional, who was more recognizable than Welby. The show pretty much wrote the book on the television medical drama. It doesn't matter if your a fan of House, ER, Grey's Anatomy, or any of a hundred other medical dramas that have come and gone since that time, each of those shows owes more than a little of its existence to Marcus Welby, MD.
In the 1950's Robert Young was that model parent in Father Knows Best. It's likely that audiences first fell in love with his wise and caring style. There was something about both the character and in the man himself that just caused America to trust him. It was no surprise that when the Marcus Welby creators were looking for a doctor that could, above all, exhibit those same qualities that Robert Young would get the call. And it didn't matter that Young considered himself retired from show business for the last 6 years. Marcus Welby was a role he just couldn't turn down. It was another gentle character with wisdom and common sense beyond his years. The Doc was a general practitioner in California. To him his patients were people. He would treat the individual as well as whatever ailment was proving to be the problem. He took the tough cases, often seeing some slight symptom that others would miss. That's because he paid attention to his patients, and they couldn't help but trust him with their lives. More times than not, that trust was rewarded with a full recovery. But, even when Welby couldn't beat a disease or injury, he always added something to the patient’s life. It might be helping them to come to terms with their own mortality. He might heal a family rift. Sometimes he just offered a kind word at just the right time.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 21st, 2010
This is the final seasons, so we are well into the series. Its groundbreaking nature (an unmarried professional woman as a central character) has obviously long since ceased to be a novelty, and the show is, by this point in its existence, what one might call a fixture. This is merely by way of observation, and not a criticism, because the writing remains as strong as ever, and the show has stood up well to the test of time. Not every joke is a winner, of course, and there are plenty of situations whose outcomes are visible a mile off. So name the sitcom for which this isn’t true. But it was the characters more than anything else that won audiences over, and the terrific chemistry of eccentricity and camaraderie is very much in evidence here. Humanity over ratings is typical of the show’s philosophy and spirit.
The Mary Tyler Moore Show is classic TV comedy at its best. This show is legendary, and still ranks amongst the top comedy sitcoms of all time.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2010
A&E has brought together a collection of television episodes from three British series that have featured prominently on the network over the years. The shows each feature one of the greatest detectives in literature. The long-running shows have used the original literary works as the basis for most of the episodes. But long before they were played on television, we knew who they were. The exploits of Sherlock Holmes, Miss Marple, and Hercule Poirot have engaged the minds of mystery lovers for nearly a century now. For the first time, you have the wonderful opportunity to enjoy them at your own leisure, together in one massive collection called Great Detectives.
Here's what you'll find in this impressive set:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on October 15th, 2010
Gunsmoke, in all of its 20 seasons, making it the longest running prime-time drama of all time, has such a strong legacy that it feels odd to review it. Thankfully the challenge is an enjoyable one as the show is at a full head of steam in its fourth season (it was ranked #1 at this time) and each episode is still as engrossing today as it was over 4 decades ago.
James Arness plays Marchall Matt Dillon, and is the law of Dodge City. Both him and the local doctor have rather stony demeanors when it comes to death, and death seems plenty common in 1800s Kansas. More often than not the criminal behind each episodes story is shot dead by the quick draw of Dillon before they could ever see a trial. I suppose that just makes the opening narration all the more suiting as many episodes start with a stock scene of Dillon wandering through a graveyard as Dillon narrates his musings on those that have made one too many mistakes and earned themselves a spot in that yard.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 13th, 2010
"In 1539 The Knight Templars of Malta paid tribute to Charles V of Spain by sending him a Golden Falcon encrusted from beak to claw with rarest jewels --- but pirates seized the galley carrying this priceless token, and the fate of the Maltese Falcon remains a mystery to this day."
What is not a mystery today is the significant role that The Maltese Falcon has played in cinema history. The film itself was a remake. In fact, it was actually Warner's third attempt to film the Dashiell Hammett novel in a single decade. The first version came in 1931 and stared Ricardo Cortez as Sam Spade. That film also featured Dwight Frye as Wilmer Cook. The film was a moderate success but never really delivered on the potential of the source material. Five years later Warner would attempt a comedy version of the story in Satan Met A Lady. It was a total flop. It would only take another five years before the studio took its third crack at the material. In this case, the third time certainly was a charm.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 13th, 2010
By 1948 John Huston had proven his ability as a director with just his first film, The Maltese Falcon. Since then he had returned to Humphrey Bogart in Across The Pacific and again in The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre. Each of these films presented the star in very different surroundings and situations. His Dobbs character here couldn't have been any farther from his Sam Spade character. But in each case Huston relied on his leading man to dominate the screen with his trademark mannerisms and his ability to liven up even the most cliché of dialog. Now Warner is bringing these classic Huston and Bogart collaborations to Blu-ray, and it's about time.
Dobbs (Bogart) and Curtin (Holt) are down-on-their-luck men trying to make a living in Tampico, Mexico during some rough times. Dobbs has taken to street hustling for enough to buy a meal or a shave. The two try working on a work crew but get ripped off by the foreman. It seems as though there is no way for the two men to get ahead. They hear a story from old-timer Howard (Huston) who regales the two with stories of striking it rich prospecting the mountains for gold. He claims to have a nose for finding the stuff in remote areas that no one else would think of looking. All he needs is a stake. When Hobbs hits a small lottery, he combines his money with Curtin’s and the three buy the supplies they need to set off after the mother lode. In what turns out to be the worst luck in the world, the three find a strong deposit and pull out over a hundred thousand bucks worth of gold dust. The success leads to suspicion, particularly for Dobbs who no longer trusts his two partners. They have to defend themselves against bandits and eventually each other in order to get off the mountain with their "goods" as they call the gold, or even their lives.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 13th, 2010
Written by Diane Tillis
Considered by many to be the first televised miniseries, Rich Man, Poor Man became a television ‘event’ in the late 1970s and opened the doorway for other miniseries to follow. A&E and NBC Universal restored and compiled the two-part, thirty-four episode long show on DVD format in this one-of-a-kind collection. It was difficult for me to grasp the importance of this show just by watching it because I wasn’t born until the late 80’s. I decided to surf the internet to gain insight on a true fan’s response to the show and their impression of this collection. It was not hard to discover that the fans of Rich Man, Poor Man have been waiting with bated breath for the show to be released on DVD.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 13th, 2010
Good Eeeeevening, Mistress Noms here with a spooky review to add to the “31 Nights of Terror” countdown we have going here in the dungeon of Upcomingdiscs.com! -digs into her bag of tricks (provided by the head dungeon master of Upcomingdiscs.com)- What do we have here, what do we have here... A Blu-ray copy of The Blair Witch Project!? This is the scariest thing you could come up with? Oyie! Perhaps it is true what they say... Terror can come in many forms... including a really terrible movie! Grab your choice of poison and hop into my hearse (Sure... I have some... candy... around here somewhere...) we are going for a ride! -drives off in a fit of madness, cackling out her window-
I remember when the Blair Witch Project first came out. There was all this fuss about how it was a REAL documentary, all the footage was REAL, and how three film students REALLY went missing. Ha, how naive some people can be! There was even a special on Sci-Fi making it seem all real and mysterious! Oooooo Spooky! Not really, but let's just pretend for a while, shall we? And like anything else, things were leaked onto the interwebs, and people got to talking. The actors showed up on some special on MTV (Possibly it was on that “news” thing they do on there, it was a while ago) and bam, killed a good promotion they had going. Too bad too, I wanted to see it in theaters before they revealed it was indeed just a movie.
![The Maltese Falcon [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-maltese-falcon-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Treasure of the Sierra Madre [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-treasure-of-the-sierra-madre-b-large.jpg)
![The Blair Witch Project [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-blair-witch-project-blu-ray-large.jpg)
