Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 24th, 2002
Synopsis
Three episodes from the first season, plus the pilot with its opening seconds restored as much as possible. The series is a landmark in television comedy, no doubt there, though, for my tastes, the schtick hasn't aged particularly well.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 24th, 2002
Synopsis
A group of friends made a bet at the end of high school to see who would bring the most attractive date to the ten-year reunion. That time has come, and the bet is worth $50,000.00. Time to surf the Internet for that perfect woman. This is, apparently, a comedy. Really. Utterly inept in every department (acting, writing, direction, editing, cinematography), this achieves the not-inconsiderable feat of making Corky Romano looking screamingly funny by comparison.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 24th, 2002
Synopsis
The Littles (Hugh Laurie and Geena Davis) head off to the local orphanage to adopt a child. Their son George (Jonathan Lipnicki) is hoping for a little brother, but what he gets is considerably smaller than he had in mind: talking mouse Stuart (voice of Michael J. Fox). We follow Stuart's misadventures as he adapts to his new family, and they adapt to him. Nathan Lane does the voice of Snowball, the very put-out cat.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 24th, 2002
Synopsis
"Diamond Joe" Esposito recalls Elvis Presley's career, from when Esposito first became aware of him, to their shared military service, to the moment he became part of Presley's entourage. The memories go all the way to Presley's death and beyond. The disc's intro is irritatingly self-promotional, and the reverential tone of the piece smacks of an Entertainment Tonight segment stretched to 130 minutes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 22nd, 2002
”Movin’ on up". The Jeffersons did just that… all the way up to become one of the highest rated and longest running sitcoms in television history. There have been many memorable African-American television characters… but who could forget George and Weezy Jefferson? These characters will live on forever, and this set helps to continue there legacy.
Audio
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 19th, 2002
Synopsis
Jodie Foster, victim of a gang rape, stumbles out of a bar called The Mill. Immediately before she appears, a young man also comes running out, and phones the police. Kelly McGillis is the prosecuting attorney on the case. She arranges a plea bargain with the assailants, which enrages Foster. McGillis then agrees to prosecute the men who stood by, watched, and did nothing. That young man at the beginning of the film will obviously have a crucial role to play.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 18th, 2002
Synopsis
After a prank goes horribly wrong, almost resulting in the death of another student, high school bad boy Landon (Shane West, doing his best impression of Christian Slater channelling Charlie Sheen), is condemned not to jail, or to community service, but to act in the school play. In this new environment, he becomes more and more acutely aware of self-assured preacher's daughter Jamie (Mandy Moore). Opposites attract, hard lessons are learned, and redemption is handed out all round. Call it t...e Anti-Heathers. Also starring in what is essentially a slickly photographed after-school special (with neon-bright Moral Lessons) is Daryl Hannah as Landon's mom, almost unrecognizable as a brunette.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 17th, 2002
Jet Li is the “Contract Killer” (“Sat sau ji wong”) in this direct from Hong Kong 1998 martial arts thriller. Budget? Nope. Plot? Not really. Jet Li? Definitely. This movie is dubbed, and the comedic voices are almost worth the price of admission, especially when they keep switching at various points through the movie. Its really amusing to see Jet Li change from normal to baritone from one scene to another, and its great listening to the “Kwan” character, who’s voice seems to have been done by a young Jason Alexande....
“Contract Killer,” falls right after “Lethal Weapon 4” and before “Romeo Must Die” in Jet Li’s filmography.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 16th, 2002
Synopsis
Peter Falk, patriarch of the Romano crime family, is about to be taken down by the FBI. He needs someone to go undercover in the FBI, and find and destroy the evidence against him. The only available man for the mission is black sheep of the family Corky (Chris Kattan). Corky is an assistant vet, and as incompetent and childish as he is sickeningly sweet. Pretty high concept stuff, in the negative sense of the term, and the result is slapstick so old and worn that Jerry Lewis would take a pa...s on it. Unwatchable.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 15th, 2002
Synopsis
Herbert's novel is very complex, and one attempts a synopsis at one's own risk (this is part of the problem with Lynch's film). At its most basic, it is about power struggles in a galactic empire, power struggles centred on the planet Arrakis, or Dune, home of the spice, the most vital element in the empire. Paul Atreides, newly arrived on Arrakis, turns out to be the long-prophesied messiah. This is an incredibly ambitious project for a telefilm, and though some of the budgetary limitations...are visible (primarily in the obviously cost-conscious spartan look to the set design), the effort deserves kudos for going for the gusto.
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