Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 31st, 2012
In the same fashion as Batman Begins, Casino Royale the 21st Bond film ït starts over the franchise with a new outlook. Daniel Craig stars as James Bond in this film based on the 1953 novel by Ian Fleming, which hopes to rejuvenate the series by getting rid of some of franchise trademarks as well as the gadgets they supply. Grossing nearly 600 million dollars worldwide, Casino Royale was commercially a great success, but does the new bond fall short of past expectations, or does this reboot on the series provide for good cinema?
James Bond isn't yet an agent of double-0 status, but in order to accomplish this he is sent to Prague to assassinate a rogue agent who has been selling British secrets, as well as his associate. After accomplishing this, the film opening begins in traditional bond fashion with a fresh gun barrel sequence followed by the opening credits. Already the film appears to be a lot darker than past Bond films, and I have yet to hear a corny catch phrase as well.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on December 11th, 2012
I’ll say this about a program that has remained consistent in quality for twenty seasons…it makes for challenging reviews. Talking about each season of Gunsmoke is difficult in that you either write briefly to try to avoid redundancies, but might seem too hasty, or you have to labour over each episode, in which case, you’re only going to have hardcore fans paying attention. Since this website has touched on previous seasons: ( https://upcomingdiscs.com/?s=gunsmoke ) I shall opt for the former option, and hope y’all out there catch that I’m not being hasty…but respect a show that warrants no fresh complaints after 7 years a-runnin’ thus far.
The most obvious change to the show that happened in this Seventh Season is expanding from half and hour to a full hour for each episode. This can be a great challenge for a show that was not originally created in this format. Doubling the length of each episode has allowed for more focus on developing the guest characters. There are no major plots that overlap several episodes so we can see how the hour long format aids this type of show, as well as helping to lay the groundwork for hour-long adventure and/or crime dramas to follow.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on November 29th, 2012
This is the eighth and final season of this slightly offbeat crime drama. Nothing has brought me more joy than seeing that instantly recognizable CBS packaging that is used for older programs being revived onto DVD releases such as Perry Mason or Barnaby Jones. Now Mannix has the opportunity to wow me as I have been before. Will this be a pleasant experience or surprisingly disappointing?
This show is pleasant enough to behold and was certainly surprised by the strange, almost comedic attributes that are injected. To draw this comparison again, I'm not talking about the endearing way that Barnaby Jones always drinks milk in his own series. I'm talking about Mannix getting hired by a politician to while riding a carousal, or surprising a musician at home who is walking on his hands for absolutely no reason whatsoever. Such things do not explain the plot any better nor suit the intensely serious tone these stories always end up taking. There were times where this series was reminding me of Police Squad! (a complete lampooning of shows like Mannix) when it should be demonstrating the seeds being planted for serious crime shows to follow. When a character refers to another as “baby” or says they “dig it” I can understand that as symptoms of taking place in 1974, but this show goes further than that into oddities. Heck, even the opening credits contains a mixture of images that includes gun fights, fights, skiing and Mannix burning his hands on some toast...I just don't understand what tone this show is trying to set.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on November 14th, 2012
There are two films that are on the main disc; an experimental film by Nicholas Ray and a documentary by Susan Ray about the making of said film. They are perfect companions on this release and I feel one is crucial for the other, therefore I'm going to treat neither as simply a “Bonus.”
We Can't Go Home Again
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Michael Durr on October 28th, 2012
Quick, what cartoon was generally considered to be the first primetime cartoon of its kind, running from 1960 to 1966 with over a hundred and sixty episodes? Give up? Well that show would be the Flintstones, a stone age comedy that imitated the Honeymooners with quick wit and wholesome family jokes. Today, we have a review that brings together a couple of primetime specials that aired during the late seventies. Let's explore the first volume of Flintstones Prime Time Specials Volume 1 from the Warner Archive.
The Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone: This special aired on October 30th, 1979. Fred and Wilma dress up as a chicken and rabbit while Barney and Betty dress up as a flower and a bumble bee. They find themselves going to the set of the game show: "Make a Deal or Don't" hosted by the one and only: Monty Marble. The first contestant is Barney who is given $1,000 but is also given the option of taking the curtain. Despite "chicken" taunts by Fred, Barney listens to his wife and takes the money. Fred's egging one of his best friends earns him the right to be the next contestant.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on October 15th, 2012
There have been numerous DVD releases of Spongebob episodes that are linked together by a theme. Holidays are obvious choices and Halloween is an inevitable choice for any series that has multiple seasons under their belt. As expected as it may be, that does not dampen the loony fun that comes along with Sponebob.
Spongebob Squarepants is the children's show that seems geared more for the college-age crowd than toddlers. This is not a revelation in cartoons, but I feel like this particular DVD set emphasizes this fact about Spongebob more than previous DVD releases of this show. The zaniness translates to all ages (just as it has from Tex Avery right through Ren & Stimpy) but this particular assembly of episodes displays some unnerving imagery that younger viewers may not be able to appreciate as much as older ones. Yes, there are subtle jokes spliced in that kid's will not catch (such as Spongebob's best friend Patrick explaining that looking at clouds helps to calm his “inner demons”), which is perfectl harmless, but it might be a bit much for someone just entering grade school to see Spongebob's eyes melt before bursting into a pile of spiders or being infested with the ghosts of snakes. Such imagery, to me, is a testament to how little concern this show for being stricly for youngsters, and how much it wants to be lapped up by that media hungry 14-30 crowd.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on October 3rd, 2012
Dora sets out to teach kids a little English here, and a little Spanish there, as she goes on some Halloween themed adventures; most of which involving costume parades. The formula for each episode (Halloween themed or not) is identical, allowing kids to speak along with the characters, while grating the patience of nearby adults.
The way in which each character takes long pauses while asking questions of the viewers will either seem condescending and/or just flat-out creepy to viewers older than 5. That said, you simply have to be a pre-schooler to enjoy viewing multiple episodes of this show. The encouragement young viewers receive to participate and solve simple problems is all well and good for them. This jaded 20-something on the other hand, is just a little too unnerved to join this manner of edu-tainment.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 20th, 2012
The voice of Etta James — specifically on her rendition of “At Last” — has launched 1,000 wedding receptions. The singer, who passed away earlier this year, also had a long history with the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. Though this Blu-ray includes performances from the 1970s and 1980s, the focus is on her 1993 show, which came the same year James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and followed a late ‘80s comeback from drug and alcohol addiction.
The concert doesn’t waste any time jumping right into the music. Unfortunately, we have to endure two instrumental tracks — and approximately 8 ½ minutes of screen time — before the star of the show takes the stage. (Appropriately, the second of those tracks is “Hold On, I’m Coming.”) At least we get to marvel at the band members' unfortunate early ‘90s fashions — one of the trumpet players looks like Super Mario — as we wait for James to show up.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 18th, 2012
The changes in the 6th season of The Virginian were not intentional, to be sure. They were the direct result of a real-life tragic event. Actor Charles Bickford who was playing John Granger became ill. He was temporarily replaced by John McIntire, who joined the cast as his brother Clay. Clay and his wife Holly, played by McIntire's real-life wife Jeanette Nolan, were looking after the ranch while John was out of town. Bickford continued in the credits, but was not fated to return. His illness lead to his death, and the characters of Clay and Holly remained. McIntire finally replaced Bickford in the opening credits and nothing more was ever said about John Granger. It's a bit of a surprise the death was not addressed and left hanging.
The Virginian set itself apart from the others in two ways. The first was found in the source material. The series was based on a 1902 novel by Owen Winsler, a man who actually lived in the Wyoming badlands during the time the series was set. The source material helps to add a sense of authenticity that might well have been a slight step ahead of the rest. It wasn't as violent as the others, again reflecting a more realistic sense of direction.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on September 10th, 2012
Geared towards pre-schoolers, and their fascination with dinosaurs, this show teaches us about dinosaurs, one at a time, in 10-minute episodes. A group of young dinosaurs, eager to learn, travel on a magical train through time to meet the dinosaur highlighted in their episode.
This particular DVD collection focuses on the biggest of the dinosaurs, the sauropods (long neck behemoths). The lack of variety might hinder whatever education this show is wishing to tender to it's young viewers. Making a dinosaur one neon colour versus another doesn't do enough to distinguish each beast. There are unique mini-adventures attached to each lesson but there is hardly enough narrative or even gags for children to be grabbed by this. If your child happens to be a huge fan of this type of dinosaur...then by all means, feed them this assembly line of incredibly similar beasts.
