DVD

3 Needles

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 19th, 2007

Synopsis

Way back in the ‘80s, I can recall doing a fifth grade science project on a fledgling disease called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. I got a bunch of material from my Dad (who worked at the National Institute of Health) and went ahead and did it. To be honest, I really don’t remember if I did this report before or after the first recognizable name died from it (that being Rock Hudson), but in the quarter century since AIDS cases were first identified, over 25 million people have died and almos…
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True Confessions

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 19th, 2007

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Synopsis

In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, Robert De Niro may have taken on some more famous roles (like The Deer Hunter and Raging Bull), but he wasn’t shy to experiment in roles with directors like Bernardo Bertolucci (1900), to name a few. And in his first film after playing Jake LaMotta, De Niro plays Des, a monsignor who runs into his brother Tom (Robert Duvall, The Apostle), a police homicide detective.

Written by Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne (Up Close and…
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Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 18th, 2007

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Synopsis

My life has been a strange journey. Recently I found myself divorced after a three year marriage. Needless to say I’m probably need a bit of soul searching. Perhaps I need to cleanse my spirit before setting back out into the world from which I came. Now I’ve never been a religiously deep person but I do take myself on as a spiritual one. So to see a surprise title in my queue with the words The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success would bring at least a little …
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Blood & Chocolate

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 18th, 2007

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Blood & Chocolate is based upon the novel of the same name by Annette Curtis Klause, which was written in 1997 and has since been in the talks of screenplay adaptation. Written by Ehren Kruger (Arlington Road, Scream 3, The Ring) and directed by little known German director Katja von Garnier, Blood & Chocolate looks too impress.

It was refreshing to see a werewolf movie with a much different formula then were used to. Instead of the typical blood soaked horror we are presented with a dark an…
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Venus

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 18th, 2007

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Synopsis

Peter O’Toole plays Maurice, an actor now reduced largely to playing corpses (or near corpses) and watching his days fade away in the company of his similarly elderly friends. Enter Jessie (Jodie Whittaker), the grand-niece of one of those cronies. Maurice is taken with her, and the story then takes a decidedly Pygmalion-esque turn as sullen young woman and ageing Lothario learn from each other.

And then there’s the question of sexuality, which divides audiences and critics (though…
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George Lopez – The Complete First and Second Seasons

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 17th, 2007

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We hear it all the time. Some kid had it rough as a child. Single parent home, gangs, poor schools and even poorer neighborhoods. What this usually describes is some three time loser who has just robbed or killed somebody and ends up in a high speed chase with police. Some folks take adversity and turn it into gold. George Lopez is the latter. He’ll be the first one to tell you that the sad stories his character tells of his youth are rooted in cold hard reality. Not only does he bare these painful memories for mil…
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The Rockford Files – Season Four

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 17th, 2007

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James Garner could have been a Hollywood leading man. He had surfaced in a few films and apparently was on every director’s radar at one time or another. Hit or miss, he might have made quite an impact on the film industry. Instead, he will forever be known for the two defining television roles of his career. Maverick completely reinvented the television western. Up until that time the western was a place populated by clear good guys and bad guys. Men like Marshall Dillon and Ben Cartwright were known for their wholesome ways and do unto others attitude, perhaps mixed in with the occasional frontier justice.
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That Thing You Do!

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 16th, 2007

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Following the success of back-to-back hits Forest Gump and Apollo 13, Tom Hanks wanted to shake things up. His project of choice? Writing and directing his first feature film.

The result was That Thing You Do!, a light, enjoyable comedy about a 60’s pop band that makes it big on the strength of one hit song. Barely together a few weeks, The Oneders (pronounced “Wonders”) win a small-town talent contest, which lands them their first gig, playing at a local bar. Before they can adjust to …
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Flipper — Season One

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

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Synopsis

Here we go: all 30 episodes of the first season, wherein we follow the adventures of Flipper, a dolphin owned by youngsters Bud and Sandy. All three are watched over by their father, Chief Ranger Ricks of Coal Key Park. The formula for each episode generally sees either someone who needs rescuing (from drowning, shark attack, that sort of thing) and Flipper must help out, or the boys and the dolphin wind up in trouble after poking their noses somewhere they shouldn’t. It’s all very familiar,…
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Messengers, The (2006)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 15th, 2007

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The Pang brothers, twins Oxide and Danny, are most well-known for co-directing the hit horror film The Eye back in 2002, and its 2004 sequel, The Eye 2. The Messengers marks their first Hollywood studio effort, and despite it being panned by critics, the brothers have already moved on to more.

The story here is simple. A family buys a house in the middle of nowhere, hoping the move will turn around their fortunes and heal their bonds, which are strained after some big, emotionally traum…
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Ghost Rider

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

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Released earlier this year to a successful box office run, Ghost Rider is yet another Marvel character making his way to the big screen. There’s something about these comic movies that have everyone all psyched these days, all of them performing admirably in the theatre and selling just as well upon DVD release. For me, there are only a couple of these Marvel films that I actually think were well done and in good contrast compared to their comic book counterparts. In fact I’m probably the only person on this c…
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Motives 2 – Retribution

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 14th, 2007

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Synopsis

Stereo-typing is a nasty business and unfortunately happens a lot in Hollywood. Certain actors play certain types of characters, certain movies always have the same themes, certain Uwe Boll movies (all) get bad ratings, etc. One of those unfortunate stereo-types is african-american movie making. Quite often you see an urban setting, a rise from the ghetto, or something related to basketball or football. Dominant african-american stereo-typing at what everybody thin…
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Mickey’s Great Clubhouse Hunt

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 14th, 2007

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Synopsis

Meeska Mooska Mickey Mouse! (tell me you just didn’t say that) So what happens to a 31 year old adult who sits through a show alone that is geared towards children who might not even be in grade school yet? Besides binge drinking & wondering why he doesn’t have a date this weekend? Apparently some good wholesome family entertainment. I was actually a little surprised how decent this was after twenty minutes into the program.

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is a fairly…
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Most Extreme Elimination Challenge (MXC) – Season Two

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 13th, 2007

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Synopsis

It’s fairly common to bring ideas from other cultures and bring them into American television shows. We have done it with gameshows (Lingo) and we have done it with movies (Ring). However, sometimes we simply wish to recreate shows in our image. Rarely, we just go ahead and use the same show and edit it to suit our tastes. Enter Most Extreme Elimination or MXC. This show (part of SpikeTV’s late night lineup) is simply the Japanese show; Takeshi’s Castle peace me…
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Overlord

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 10th, 2007

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Synopsis

Produced under the auspices of the Imperial War Museum, Stuart Cooper’s unusual film tells the story of a young private (Brian Stirner) undergoing basic training and experiencing premonitions of his death in the days and weeks leading up to the D-Day invasion. This narrative is intercut with extensive archival war footage.

In the “Mining the Archive” featurette, the remark is made that the film is an excellent showcase for the museum’s collection. This is very true, and is both the…
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Born to Fight — Two-Disc Ultimate Edition

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 9th, 2007

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Synopsis

After the apprehension of a rogue general results in the death of his mentor, officer Dan Chupong accompanies his sister and her team of athletes on a charity visit to a rural village. As luck would have it, the general’s forces attack this very village, threatening to slaughter all the villagers is the general is not released. What these villains fail to mention is that they have a nuclear missile which they plan to fire at Bangkok no matter what happens. Chupong leads the villagers and ath…
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Hunt, The

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

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OK. Everyone knows about The Blair Witch Project by now. We’re all impressed that this little independent film managed to bust out and generate enormous success. Every film student in the world is encouraged that a crude looking film can make history. So, can we all stop trying to imitate it now? The Hunt is nothing more than an obvious copy. In this case it’s a trio of deer hunters who are attempting to make a “how to” video on hunting deer with a bow. The film integrates their grainy footage with that of one of t…
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Stomp the Yard

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2007

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In the past, I have not enjoyed this types of movie. Save the Last Dance, You Got Served, Step Up and even Drumline are all comparable to Stomp the Yard. So it goes without saying that this isn’t one of my more anticipated movies of the year. But I’m throwing all pre-conceived notions out the window, and am hoping that Stomp the Yard will take a turn away from the clichéd norm.

I don’t even know how I would classify this movie – romance, drama, musical? Regardless o…
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Beverly Hills, 90210 – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2007

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Beverly Hills 90210, although I never watched this growing up, I knew a lot of people who did. Often compared as The OC of the 90’s, the show does in fact share a lot of similarities with The OC; two popular primetime soap operas based around the posh lives of rich teens. The main difference between the two shows is the fact this 90210 lasted 9 seasons and 10 years on air, which made for a vast array of storylines and ever developing characters. Some people might not remember the show all …
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Creepshow III

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 7th, 2007

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Synopsis

Five different horror stories play out in this film, though they are all loosely interconnected, in that main characters in one story put in cameos in another, and the same locations are revisited. A sullen teenage girl comes home to her fractious family to see her father struggle with a newfangled remote. It doesn’t change the TV channel, but does zap her through alternate universes. A young man living in a dilapidated building starts taking orders from his possessed radio. A serial killer …
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Night at the Museum

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 6th, 2007

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Synopsis

Holy crap, this movie made a boat load of money for Fox when it came out around Christmas 2006, making $250 million and running second only to the Pirates of the Caribbean sequel for box office money. And to see Ben Stiller finally appear in a film that could be considered a blockbuster success was nice too. And in Night at the Museum, he gets to play Larry, night security guard in the New York Museum of Natural History.

Based on a book by Milan Trenc, the story contains man…
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Off the Black

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 6th, 2007

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Synopsis

Hey lookee here, in this movie called Off the Black, there are two Oscar nominees and one Oscar winner! So with this pedigree of talent, you’d expect to be a gangbusters piece of dramatic storytelling, right? Well, not exactly.

Written and directed by James Ponsoldt (Junebug and Hurricane), Ray (Nick Nolte, Blue Chips is a high school umpire in his spare time, when he normally works at an auto yard. He makes a controversial call in a game and later that night, some pl…
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Catch and Release

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 5th, 2007

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Catch and Release is appropriately dubbed as a chick flick. Written by Susannah Grant, who also makes her directorial debut, is responsible for the screenwriting of some rather dismal movies in the past, including Ever After, Erin Brockovich, and 28 Days. Although I hint at a dislike for romantic comedies, I’ll have you know that in the past I have enjoyed several, and am going into this completely unbiased.

The movie starts off on a sad note, Grey (Jennifer Garner) a grieving a…
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Tomorrow Never Dies (Region 2)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 5th, 2007

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Synopsis

Well in the ever ongoing series of reviews of the James Bond series, this particular installment is the last of the Pierce Brosnan collection (the others are on the site, so go find them). And in Tomorrow Never Dies, I saved it for last because well, I needed some form of drama to keep me going.

This one takes Ian Fleming’s characters and adapts them into a screenplay that was written by Bruce Feirstein (GoldenEye) and directed by Roger Spottiswoode (Under Fire). And …
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Black Emanuele’s Box Volume 1

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 4th, 2007

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When Just Jaeckin’s glossy exercise in softcore, Emmanuelle, earned boffo box office in 1974, imitators piled on, and no imitators anywhere were as shameless as the Italians, who began the Black Emanuelle series (note the missing “m”). Laura Gemser starred, and Joe D’Amato directed many of the entries (though not the first). This set offers three.Both the double-“m” and single-“m” series were characterized by the heroine having sex in exotic locales, and the travelogue aspect is most dominant in Emanuelle in Bangkok (1977).
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