DVD

Road House 2

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

Synopsis

Will Patton is the owner of the Black Pelican, a road house where he will tolerate no nonsense, and particularly no drug dealing. This doesn’t please local slimeball Jake Busey, and when Patton refuses to sell, Busey (through dirty fighting, of course) beats Patton to within an inch of his life. Patton’s nephew is Johnathon Schaech, undercover DEA agent, and he arrives in the boondocks to take over the bar and set things straight.

B-movie checklist: opening fight scene (check), cop…
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Beyond the Wall of Sleep

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 27th, 2006

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Synopsis

In 1908, an inbred hillbilly (played by, who else, Newhart’s William Sanderson) had decapitated a family member, and is brought to a spooky asylum. A maniacal intern realizes that the face-like deformity on the man’s back is actually intelligent, and his obsession with cracking the mystery unleashes all sorts of horrors.

On the commentary track, the filmmakers joke the seizure-inducing editing style. They aren’t kidding. The film jumps back and forth between B&W and colour a…
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Commander in Chief – Inaugural Edition Part 1

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 27th, 2006

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Synopsis

Geena Davis is the Vice-President who was chosen as running mate by the Republican President because she would balance out the ticket (she’s an Independent) and help him with the female voters. When he is felled by a stroke, the possibility that she might become President fills the powers that be with dread, and her resignation is demanded so that the hard-right Speaker of the House (Donald Sutherland) can step in instead. Davis refuses, and the series follows her struggles as the first woma…
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Black Hawk Down

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 27th, 2006

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Not being a big fan of Black Hawk Down, I can’t really tell you how many releases of the feature this makes from Sony. I know it’s a title, which has seen at least two prior offerings. There is nothing new here to recommend the extended cut over the previous three-disc monster edition; however, it may be the way to go if you’ve yet to add this Ridley Scott war film to your collection. I’ll be the first to admit that Scott does some of his finest work as director in this gritty combat picture; but his style is …
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Carnivale – The Complete Second Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 26th, 2006

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The truth may never come out as to why HBO cancelled Carnivale after the show’s second season. They claim that it was a combination of decreased ratings and rising production costs equaling $2 million an episode. What doesn’t make sense, however, is that the network also admits that they received as many as 50,000 emails in a single weekend following the cancellation announcement. The facts also show that they followed up this show that was “too expensive to be profitable” with Rome, a show that has been widely recognized as the most expensive television series ever produced.

Madea’s Family Reunion

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

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Synopsis

Tyler Perry once again dons multiple costumes to incarnate several characters, most prominently Madea, the no-nonsense but mischievous matriarch of a very fractious family. She is ordered by the court to take in a runaway as a foster child, and that project of reclamation joins that of helping out her nieces. They have a mother from hell. One sister is struggling to learn how to love again, while the other is being forced into marriage with the hideously abusive Blair Underwood.

I …
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The Incredible Hulk – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 25th, 2006

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Stan Lee and Jack Kirby have created some of the most iconic superheroes of our time. Marvel Comics brought us such great names like Spiderman, X-Men, Iron Man, and of course, The Incredible Hulk. Now, television has had a jaded history with comic superheroes as series material. A bad Spiderman and Captain America set of episodes are good examples. The Incredible Hulk is one of the exceptions. Why? Mostly because the series was less about super heroics and more about human drama. The Fugitive style set-up gives the writers the entire country to play with.
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Will Rogers Collection Volume 1, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 24th, 2006

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Synopsis

Will Rogers was once the biggest star in Hollywood. Think of any other big name from the late 20’s and early 30’s, and he outpaced them all. Today, he is little more than a name, and there are plenty of film guides out there that don’t even list his films. Quite the sobering lesson on the evanescent nature of fame. The films in this collection were all made in 1935, the last year of Rogers’ life, before he was killed in a plane crash. These comedies have definitely dated, but Rogers’ charm i…
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Amazing Stories – The Complete First Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 24th, 2006

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Synopsis

In 1985, Steven Spielberg backed this TV anthology series. It took its name from the very first SF magazine (which was briefly revived to coincide with the TV show), but have very little in common with that mag. It was almost purely fantasy-oriented, and its real model was the likes of The Twilight Zone (which itself was revived for TV the same year). Spielberg himself directed the pilot, and plenty of other big names singed on as well. So Harvey Keitel stars in an episode directed by…
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Sybil

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 23rd, 2006

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Sybil is one of those movies that has turned into something of a running joke. It certainly didn’t start out that way, though. Probably no other made-for-TV movie is as famous as this one, based on a true story about a woman that had an astonishing 13 distinctly different personalities. Looking back on the film now, there are some definite cheesy moments. However, the vast majority of the film is really quite compelling, especially when the viewer reminds themselves that this is a true story.

Sa…
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Grilled

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

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On Jerry Seinfeld’s first comedy CD after his run on Seinfeld ended, he does a joke where he talks about why he hasn’t done a movie yet. He talks about what a huge commitment it is to do a movie, and how he fears that when it is all over, he will be on the screen looking out at the audience saying, “this sucks, doesn’t it? I didn’t know. I really meant well.”

This movie is that punchline. Catching Ray Romano after his show’s run and Kevin James just before the end of his sitcom, the two pair up as a co…
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Bridezillas: Season 2

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

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The women on this show are easily the most selfish, self-centered, hateful, wretched wenches that I have ever seen. The fact that they would voluntarily put themselves on this show proves it. Who would ever watch this show (whose sole purpose is to show how horrible a person can be) and think to themselves, “I would really like to be on that show. I want the whole world to see me acting that way.”

Even so, here they are. The second season (!) of this show features eight episodes and eight brides-to-be at thei…
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Louis L’Amour’s The Sacketts

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 19th, 2006

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Louis L’Amour has been synonymous with the modern Western novel for decades. His stylized depictions of the Old West are always populated with colorful characters. Foremost of these characters would have to be The Sackett Brothers. Two of L’Amour’s Sackett adventures contributed to this 1979 mini-series. “The Daybreakers” and “Sackett” combine to form this 3 hour presentation.

Fresh off the enormous success of such Western shows as Bonanza and Gunsmoke, his mini-series has all the earmarks of that traditional television western.
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Jim Henson’s The Storyteller: The Definitive Collection

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 18th, 2006

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New from Sony Home Entertainment comes the complete series of Jim Henson’s The Storyteller starring Mr. Elephant Man himself, John Hurt, and a slew of eye-popping creations from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. The series focuses on classic folk tales, fables, and legends, including “Fearnot,” “The Heartless Giant,” “The Three Ravens,” and six other wonderful family-friendly tales on one disc. Also provided as part of the set is an additional disc entitled Greek Myths, which provides even more Henson-esque entertainment with the following four tales:
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Valley of the Dolls

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 16th, 2006

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Valley of the Dolls is a musical that way way ahead of its time. Based on the novel by Jacqueline Susann, the film tells the story of three aspiring actresses and their attempts at becoming stars. Sure, this is an age old tale, but it had not been told as bluntly an honestly until now. The film starts Barbara Parkins, Patty Duke and Sharon Tate as the actresses in question. Audiences must have been shocked upon going to the theater, as they were much more used to rags to riches musicals such as A Star is Bo…
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Sarah Silverman – Jesus is Magic

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 16th, 2006

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I really enjoy stand-up DVDs, but they’re pretty formulaic. The show starts, there is usually a short un-funny skit, and then the stand-up portion starts. The comic does his show, the credits roll, and that’s it.

This is really something unique and innovative, however. This film is something of a musical comedy, skit, music video stand-up film. It’s a lot to squeeze into a 72-minute film, but is is done surprisingly well. The transitions work out well, and it really shakes up the standard notions of what a co…
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Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, The

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 15th, 2006

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Tommy Lee Jones makes his directorial debut with The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, a new take on the western genre. Set in modern times, this is a unique revenge picture with a more positive message than most. Jones also stars as Pete Perkins, an old cowboy, who embodies all the classic western ideals. Estrada (Julio Cesar Cedillo) is his Spanish-speaking friend and ranch hand, who falls victim to an unfortunate shooting at the barrel of trigger-happy border patrolman Mike Norton (Barry Pepper). After a…
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Aquamarine

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 15th, 2006

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Lately, I’ve been wondering out loud about what will happen to these over-produced teen pop stars who are thrown all this media exposure by their parents (to the point of exploitation). When are we going to start seeing some Playboy or Maxim photo shoots? When are we going to see someone on Cinemax After Dark, or even Night Calls? I mean, it’s obvious at this point that Ashley Simpson can’t sing, and she’s starting to look more and more like her sister in an attempt to become her, without the appeal. And since there’s a rumor floating around that she turned down a multimillion dollar Playboy photo shoot (after the proverbial “great deal of thought”), it seems to be the next logical step.
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On a Clear Day

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 15th, 2006

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Frank (Peter Mullan, Braveheart) has been designing and building ships in a British shipyard for 36 years. Suddenly and very cruelly, Frank is let go without any pension or prospects, and is left wondering what to do. An attempt at job searching finds him virtually at the feet of his sister-in-law, so he is basically left to walk around this nameless London suburb stunned and unsure of what to do with himself.
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Rough Riders

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 13th, 2006

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Teddy Roosevelt once delivered a speech with a bullet lodged in his chest from an assassination attempt. It was that kind of bravado that made him one of America’s most colorful Presidents. I’m into Presidential history, having taught it for many years. I also live in Tampa, so have an increasingly avid interest in this particular American figure. Tampa was the staging and training grounds for the Rough Riders before they embarked for Cuba. It was also from a cigar warehouse in Tampa that Roosevelt’s orders were sent hidden in a cigar.
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20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1997)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 12th, 2006

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I guess because of some anniversary related to the initial version on Disney, someone decided to do a remake of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and not only lengthen it, but turn it into a miniseries. Built over a couple of parts, the piece, adapted by Brian Nelson (Hardy Candy) and directed by Rod Hardy (December Boys) stars some familiar names and faces, but is it really worth it?
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Star Trek Fan Collective – Q

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 11th, 2006

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When Star Trek: The Next Generation began, we were introduced to a new crew and a new Enterprise. What I remember most about that first episode, however, was the new villain of sorts: Q. John De Lancie has created one of Star Trek’s most memorable and endearing characters. Some claim the Q character was really introduced in the Original Series episode Squire of Gothos. William Campbell plays the all powerful gamester Trelane who turns out to be a child of omnipotent parents who was merely playing with Kirk and his crew.
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The Keys of the Kingdom

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 11th, 2006

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Gregory Peck plays Francis Chisholm. After losing his parents as a young boy, and then his sweetheart (to moral turpitude, it seems), Francis enters the priesthood. His unorthodox ways make him a failure initially, but kindly bishop and mentor Edmund Gwenn sees potential in the man, and sends him off to China to be a missionary. There too, things get off to a rocky start, but a turnaround happens when he saves the son of a local mandarin. His struggles are far from over, but through it all, he remains a triumphantly decent man.
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Beyond the Valley of the Dolls

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

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A lot has been said about Roger Ebert and Russ Meyer. Ebert has been called the most famous film critic this side of Pauline Kael (he certainly is the most informative one since I’ve started becoming a wee critic myself), and Meyer certainly found a niche audience directing and producing films with large-breasted women. So when Fox got the two of them together and had them come up with a script that would be a pseudo-followup to The Valley of the Dolls, one would be interested to see what became of it.
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Some Like It Hot

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

Synopsis

Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon are two down-on-their-luck jazz musicians in Prohibition-era Chicago. They witness a gangland massacre, and in order to hide from the hoodlums, dress up in drag and join an all-female jazz band that is off to play an extended gig in Florida. The vocalist of the band is none other than Marilyn Monroe, and though it is Lemmon who first casts designs for her, it is Curtis who engages in the wooing. Lemmon, meanwhile, has his hands full when billionaire Joe E. Brown f…
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