Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 18th, 2007
Notting Hill is a bit of a spin on a Cinderella type story, only Cinderella is William Thacker (Hugh Grant, About A Boy) the owner of a break even book store. Nothing seems to be going his way until fate would have it that Anna Scott (Julia Roberts, Oceans Eleven) the worlds most respected and loved actress enters his store. William having a hard time coping with his recent divorce can’t believe the glimmer of hope placed before him. The two seem to get along quite nicely, and days later run into each other again. This time William accidentally spills his orange juice all over her, later inviting her to clean up in his house. The two share an intimate moment and the seeds for the relationship have been planted. Days later William comes home to find out his eccentric Welsh roommate Spike (Rhys Ifans, Formula 51) has taken down a broken message, some American girl called a few days ago. Of course William tracks her down and it’s obvious he’s falling for her, but things get really complicated when her American boyfriend shows up. Of course from here the two go through a rough patch, but it doesn’t take a genius to guess how this one ends.I wasn’t exactly knocked off my feet with Notting Hill but it was better than I originally anticipated. There were quite a few comedic moments mainly at the expense of Rhys Ifans, but Hugh Grant had his moments as well. Julia Roberts as usual does her thing and gives the movie a little extra something. Take this movie for what it is, a sappy romantic comedy with a bit of a twist to make it more enjoyable.
Video
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 14th, 2007
One of the handful of films deemed extra special in 2006, Babel had lofty intentions, a lot of hype and plenty of Oscar nominations. And yet, while the film was well directed and very well acted, it falls well short of its reputation. In fact, Babel fails to create a real impact, unless you count the utter depression one experiences while watching it.
Still, the film has lots of fans willing to call it one of the best of 2006. Those folks will be happy to add Babel: 2-disc Collector's Edition to their own collections. That is, unless they already picked up the single-disc version released back in February. Is this double-dip good enough to say, "out with the old, in with the new?" Read on to find out.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on September 12th, 2007
Writer note: Apologies to Brendan who did the fine HD-DVD review for this flic. Some hack had to pick up the slack for the regular DVD and present a slightly alternate view. (and a different interpretation of english grammar)
Ever see Shaun of the Dead? No? Don't worry, not too many people did either. This fine film directed by Edgar Wright was a parody and homeage to the George Romero Dead films. Full of comedy and nods to the genre, it was a very good but mostly forgotten flic. Fast forward to 2007 and Edgar Wright along with Simon Pegg (who would also play the character of Nicholas Angel) decide to write the homeage to action movies: Hot Fuzz.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 10th, 2007
Would you believe me if I told you a nature documentary was responsible for the advent of the summer blockbuster? Common film lore says Steven Spielberg's Jaws was the first of the now familiar summer smashes. Jaws was based Peter Benchley's book of the same name. Benchley was inspired by Blue Water, White Death, a groundbreaking documentary film about divers on a nine-month expedition to seek out, film and swim with a Great White Shark.
That's one reason you should watch Blue Water, White Death. There are easily a hundred more.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 8th, 2007
There are those of us who love Will Ferrell and just about everything he’s done lately, and there are those of you who can’t stand the guy. Read that last sentence carefully and you’ll be able to determine which one I am, but I’m sure you won’t have to read much past this sentence to figure it out anyways. Starting back with A Night at the Roxbury and ranging to Old School and Anchorman, comedically I can’t get enough of these nonsense full movies. Surprisingly I didn’t check this one out in the theatres, but I eagerly welcome the opportunity now.
Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder, School For Scoundrels) are rival world class figure skaters. During the 2002 WinterSport games the two tie for a Gold medal which leads to a scuffle, ultimately banning the two from the sport. Three years go by and the two are working dead end skate related jobs, Chazz is a drunken ice show performer, and Jimmy sells skates at a local sports store. Jimmy then learns from an obsessed fan (Nick Swardson, The Benchwarmers) that through a loophole he is only banned from singles figure skating, not pairs. Of course one thing leads to another and after a hilarious fist fight, Jimmy teams up with Chazz against both their volition. What ensues is some pretty funny stuff as the two try to get ready in time for the WinterSport games in Montreal.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 7th, 2007
I am a huge John Woo fan, especially his earlier classics like Hard Boiled. I’ll admit it’s been several years since I last seen Face/Off, but I don’t have a reason why, as I remember really liking this movie then. At either rate now I have a copy of the movie to call my own, and a special two disc release at that. Let’s just hope that it is what I remember, but as a big fan of Nick Cage I don’t think I’ll be let down.
In order to catch him, he must become him. I couldn’t put it any better myself, Face/Off tells quite the eccentric story of revenge, devotion, and of course crime. Sean Archer (John Travolta, Wild Hogs) is an extremely devoted FBI agent, obsessed with catching terrorist Castor Troy (Nicholas Cage, Ghost Rider). Several years earlier Troy killed Archer’s son, since then it’s been his goal in life to put Troy to justice. He gets the opportunity one day when Troy ends up in a coma after boasting about a massive terrorist attack he has planned on Los Angeles.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on September 6th, 2007
I like Paul Walker; I tend to enjoy his movies. However my experience with Paul Walker starts with JoyRide and ends with Running Scared. (we'll ignore the Fast and the Furious) So I was kinda excited at the chance to review Bobby Z, a straight to video release that also starred the clever Laurence Fishburne. Two fun actors in what looked like to be a fun action movie. The basic premise was that Tim Kearney (Paul Walker's character) is plucked from a prison by Tad Gruzsa (Laurence Fishburne's character) and his assistant because he looks exactly like the infamous Bobby Z, a drug runner who is supposedly dead. So, Kearney takes on the persona of Bobby Z and is used in a trade for a federal agent that was captured. Of course the deal goes horribly wrong and Kearney finds himself in the Mexican desert. Here he has to stay in the Bobby Z persona as he finds out that Bobby Z had a kid among many other plot points. This drives forward to a conclusion with some predictable twists where Kearney does everything he can to stay alive.
The movie runs ninety four minutes , for the first 40-50 minutes of the movie I was really enjoying myself. The plot started off so strong and the actors (particularly Walker & Fishburne) showed off their wares. The action was intense but not overdone. Then something happened in the last half of the movie. It became dull and incredibly clichéd. Every single cliché about either an action movie or a drama that used the idea of somebody impersonating somebody else is used. It's borderline scary how much just seems borrowed. Tough hard-nose prison guy suddenly develops heart of gold; check. The character he's impersonating has a kid; check. There is a girl who is still in love with the original character but remarks how much he's changed; check. I would go on; but in the event you can't guess the ending I'll stop there. There is even a scene near the end that borrows from Bugs Bunny shorts (think duck season, wabbit season). Not to mention the ending seems a little too cookie cutter and proceeds to just say okay everybody lives happily ever after; the end. When given the situation in a more realistic setting there would be some serious questions to be answered here.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on September 6th, 2007
Do you as the viewer ever watch that movie that you feel due to overwhelming popular opinion you should like? Unfortunately, I run into this all too often. Most of the time I'm able to push that aside, and give an honest review. Sometimes it is harder. Private Fears in Public Places directed by Alain Resnais is one of those movies. Set in Paris (with language to match); this puts six lonely characters in search of love during the harsh winter season. However, what they find isn't what they were searching for. Naturally these characters' stories intertwine and we get a whole lot of snow effects which encapsulate the end of each scene (and each part of this review).
The movie starts out with Thierry (played by André Dussollier), a realtor who is showing Nicole (played by Laura Morante) various flats in attempting to find one that will suit her and her fiancée. Her fiancée; Dan (played by Lambert Wilson) drinks his life away at a local hotel bar since he is between jobs. He is served by Lionel (played by Pierre Arditi), a bartender who must consistently get new caretakers to care for his elderly father. Thierry's assistant is Charlotte (played by Sabine Azéma) who also doubles as the nighttime caretaker to Lionel's father. Her story is entertaining as being a devout Christian but with a secret side. Finally, Thierry's sister; Gaëlle (played by Isabelle Carré) spends her nights searching for love by going out on blind dates. (*snow effect*).
The acting is pretty decent throughout the movie especially in nod to the two male lead characters: Dussollier and Wilson. There is no weak areas I can really find but the movie is just several shades of depressing. Sure there is some excitement and things do look up at certain events through the movie but by the end it comes to a crashing halt and you wonder what's the point. They do everything short of having the entire crew getting run over by a bus to give us any hope at this thing we call love. I'm a very strong believer in true love and watching this turned me momentarily into something less than that. I watch movies to escape not to re-live every failed courtship or bad relationship I've ever had. (*snow effect*).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 31st, 2007
Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins, The Silence of the Lambs) is a successful engineer who recently discovers his wife’s infidelity. He becomes aware that she has been sleeping with a police detective, which pushes Ted to the point of shooting his wife. Initially he confesses to the crime, and it looks to be an easy win for rising star district attorney Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling, The Notebook). This is of course until Ted redacts his confession and engages in a battle of wits with Beachum. After enticing the arresting officer and adulterer into attacking him in the courtroom Ted’s case begins to look optimistic. Eventually he is acquitted of his charges and Beachum becomes obsessed with the case knowing that Ted is guilty. He literally puts his career on the line to find out what happened and even tries speaking with Ted’s comatose wife.
Fracture is one of those movies that I really wanted to like, but I couldn’t. The story wasn’t very intriguing and it just seemed to drag on and on with no real closure. As well, for a movie claiming to be suspenseful I can’t even recall one time where I was holding my breath. But despite the film having what I thought was a pretty weak script, the acting all around was quite impressive. In each performance he makes Ryan Gosling gets better and better, I think this Canadian native has quite a bright future ahead. I don’t think I need to mention that Anthony Hopkins played a terrific role as well, and they really paired up nicely. But great acting couldn’t save Fracture which was ultimately to stale. Not to say it was a complete waste of time either, this movie is worth checking out once but I couldn’t recommend it being worth a purchase.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 30th, 2007
1998 marked an interesting time for the career of Robin Williams. The previous year he stared in his Oscar Winning Role via Gus Van Sant’s Good Will Hunting, which was a somewhat rare role for Williams as it showcased his dramatic side. Obviously hoping for similar success, Williams followed that excellent role with another role that, at some points, finds itself just as good as his performance in Hunting.
Chris Nielsen (Robin Williams) has just endured the part of life that any parent fears. Both of his children have been killed in a car accident. His wife Annie (Annabella Sciorra) is extremely distraught by this as is Chris. She falls into a suicidal state seemingly blaming herself for her the passing of her children. Events don’t improve when suddenly Chris is killed in a car crash. Upon his death, Chris wonders around the planet witnessing his funeral. Soon he finds out that his wife is dead, making him think that they might be reunited in heaven as perfect ‘soul-mates’. The only problem in this equation is that Annie has committed suicide, thus sending her to Hell (where all those who commit suicide go). Determined to bring his wife back from eternal torment, we (as the audience) are invited in a visual masterpiece from director Vincent Ward that includes almost 3-Dimensional glances into an Impressionist world of suffering that channels Dante’s Inferno in a splendid, visually stunning manner.
![Notting Hill [HD DVD] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/notting-hill-hd-dvd-large.jpg)
![What Dreams May Come [HD DVD] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/what-dreams-may-come-hd-dvd-large.jpg)
