Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 27th, 2010
I'm reminded of my innocent childhood days when Mr. Rogers would come on my black & white television to change his shoes and put on a sweater. I have to say that I always found the guy a little creepy. He would sing to us in a soft hypnotic voice: "It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood, a wonderful day in the neighborhood. Could you be mine. Would you be my neighbor." Mr. Rogers had quite a fanciful neighborhood indeed. The place was mostly populated with puppets and strange creatures of all sizes. And while today he'd look and sound like a pedophile, Mr. Rogers welcomed everyone to his neighborhood. So, I can't help thinking how he'd feel about "The Girl".
"The Girl" is played by America Olivo, and while her name may sound like a country and a margarine substitute, she's actually pretty wickedly phenomenal in the new direct to video horror film Neighbor.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 27th, 2010
"This is Hell, and I'm going to give you the guided tour."
There have been a lot of great prison and prison break films over the years. Who can forget Dustin Hoffman in Papillon or Clint Eastwood in Escape From Alcatraz? Of course, more recently we had The Shawshank Redemption. Lock Up won't ever taste the rare air of those classic films. In fact, it's not really a prison break film at all. There is an attempted break, but it's not quite the focus of the film. I almost felt like I was watching the sequel to a break film. That's because Lock Up deals with the aftermath of a prison break and shows us the consequences on both the escapee and the warden who was responsible for preventing said break. And that's where I think this movie creates its own niche in the popular genre. It's a unique film that might have left its most exciting moments in a past that we never got a chance to see.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 26th, 2010
In 2007, nineteen years after a similar uprising was crushed by Burma’s military junta, frustrated citizens once again took to the streets. Led by troops of monks in peaceful demonstrations, they made their voices heard by the generals, demanding freedom and democracy. The reaction was swift and violent. Men with riot gear and guns descended on the demonstrators and after many clouds of tear gas, numerous beatings, and even some shootings, the government quickly broke the spirit of its people again.
These incidents, and the actions that led to them, were chronicled by a courageous group of video journalists called Democratic Voice of Burma. These men and women captured hours of footage, risking imprisonment and worse, and got that footage out to the world over the internet and through trusted couriers. The images they captured allowed the people of the world and, even more importantly, the people of Burma (to whom the footage was also broadcast), to see the truth behind the lies of the Burmese government.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 26th, 2010
USA Network has certainly found a little niche for themselves, milking their "characters wanted" run of television shows. It all started with Monk and has progressed through several successful reincarnations of the quirky character-driven shows. In some cases the quirky nature of the characters gets pretty out of control, and while I liked Monk a ton, his OCD was significantly over the top at times. This tends to draw too much attention and minimize whatever might be happening in the episode itself. That's not the case with White Collar. This series has a ton of potential to be the next big breakaway hit for the cable network. There's just enough style to the main character to make him incredibly interesting, but not so much that the exceptional stories don't get your full attention. I don't get to watch that many television shows these days. I'm too busy keeping you guys from making bad DVD or Blu-ray choices. It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it. I'm not complaining, really. It just stands to reason that I will miss the occasionally solid new show to hit the airwaves. Such is the case for me and White Collar. Fortunately for both of us, I get the chance to catch up when the shows inevitably reach the home theater market. Fortunate for me because I do eventually get to see them. Fortunate for you because I can let you know when there's something you might have missed that you need to see. This is one of those times.
Neal Caffrey (Bomer) is an elite thief and con artist. He's an expert forger and is doing four years after finally getting caught by FBI agent Peter Burke (DeKay). With just three months remaining on his 4-year stint, Neal breaks out of prison. Now, what would make a guy escape when he's almost finished doing his time? The answer, of course, is a woman. In this case it's Kate (Daddario) who broke up with Neal on her last prison visit. But, Neal is convinced there is more to the story, so he takes a powder from prison, only to be caught again by Peter. Now Neal is facing another four years behind bars. Fortunately, however, Peter is trying to catch one of his most elusive criminals. He calls him The Dutchman because he's like a ghost. Neal offers his arch-rival a deal. Peter releases him into his own custody, and Neal will help him track down the Dutchman. If the case goes well, the deal can be made permanent for the rest of Neal's prison time. So, ala 48 Hours, the duo track down the crook. Neal ends up talking his way into a multi-million-dollar mansion suite for his new digs. While he helps Peter, he is secretly trying to track down Kate, who is mixed up with a mysterious stranger. Neal only knows him by a pinky ring he's seen in a photograph. The stranger wants something he believes Neal stole and has stashed away somewhere. Neal's investigation hits several snags, not the least of which is an ankle bracelet that only allows him to traverse a 2-mile radius of his home when he's not with Peter. To help out with some of the legwork, he has Mozzie (Garson), an old friend and fellow con artist.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 26th, 2010
There was a time when racial stereotypes on television and in the movies could be very funny. Shows like All In The Family and Sanford And Son brought an entire generation to their knees with laughter. Today audiences are a little more timid when it comes to that kind of humor. This is the kind of movie you end up looking both ways before you think about letting out even the slightest giggle to make sure no one is watching, or worse, training their cell phone camera on you. I don't know about you, but I don't want to feel like my reactions to my entertainment are under a microscope. Our Family Wedding will make you feel exactly that way. It's a combination of the Sydney Poitier and Spencer Tracy classic Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (which happened to also feature Louise Jefferson herself, Isabel Sanford) and the original Peter Falk and Alan Arkin The In-Laws. Both of those films are superior to Our Family Wedding in every way imaginable.
Marcus (Gross) and Lucia (Ferrera) are a young couple who presumably met in college. In spite of their cultural difference (he's black, she's Mexican) they have decided to get married and move to Laos as volunteers. They are coming back home to L.A. to tell their parents of the impending nuptials. Before they can even make the announcement, the two fathers inadvertently meet. Lucia's father Miguel (Mencia) runs a towing company and he ends up towing the car of Boyd, Marcus's father. Of course, at that moment they are unaware that they will meet under entirely different circumstances, namely the dinner engagement announcement of their children. It doesn't take long for the clashes to begin. The families are separated by race and economic circumstances. Boyd is a divorcee who raised his son on his own, while Lucia was raised by a large extended family. The film quickly settles into all of the wedding-comedy clichés. There are the father clashes, the arguments over wedding plans, the police station scene, the dysfunctional family dynamic and, of course, the "let's call the whole thing off" moment. Finally, there is the expected disruption at the ceremony itself, in this case mostly caused by a goat on Viagra. Don't ask.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 26th, 2010
"Would you give up 20 years to prove a stranger's innocence?"
That's the question that is asked and answered, at least for one person, in the docudrama The Wronged Man. The film is a made-for-television movie that appeared originally, and still does from time to time, on Lifetime.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 26th, 2010
The Cartoon Network Hall of Fame seems to be expanding. Some of you might remember my review of Johnny Bravo Season One which was one of the first titles under this distinction. Courage the Cowardly Dog seems to be the most recent entry in this series and we can only hope that it is as good as ole JB, the king of people who sound like Elvis and excessive machoism.
Courage is a very special dog. He was abandoned as a puppy after his parents were sent into outer space. He was later found by Muriel Bagge, an elderly woman and taken into her home in Nowhere, Kansas. Courage’s personality is totally unlike his namesake. He is unfortunately a coward in every sense of the word. However, this lack of “courage” is what probably keeps him alive.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 26th, 2010
As the name suggests, this is a collection of ten movies on LGBT themes. In chronological order, here's what we have:
The Children's Hour (1961): Shirley MacLaine and Audrey Hepburn are the headmistresses of a girl's school, and their lives are turned upside down when one ghastly little child accuses them of being romantically involved. It is clear, though, the MacLaine would very much like to be. This was director William Wyler's second stab at adapting Lilllian Hellman's play, and this time was able actually to deal with the play's central issue, rather than disguise it as he had to
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on July 23rd, 2010
Our friends over at A&E Home Entertainment have given us 6 different DVD's to give away to our readers. Check out the list and you should find something that interests you. They are all from the History Instant Expert Series. They are both informative and educational.
Click Continue to see the choices and learn how to win.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on July 23rd, 2010
Several years ago comedian Doug Benson made a joke about wanting to parody the film Super Size Me, after watching it while high, by smoking pot continuously for 30 days. A filmmaker heard that joke and decided to make it a reality. Upon making the film, there was an added catch to Benson's plan of 30 days being “Super High,” as he would have to be stone sober for the 30 days leading up to it.

![Lock Up [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/lock-up-blu-ray-medium.jpg)

![White Collar: The Complete First Season [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/white-collar-the-complete-first-se-medium.jpg)
![Our Family Wedding [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/our-family-wedding-blu-ray-medium.jpg)




