Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 13th, 2006
Certainly a surprise upon its initial release, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo exceeded so many box office expectations a sequel was inevitable. From what I've heard, European Gigolo represents everything wrong with movies today; however, I did not let that abysmal word-of-mouth prevent me from giving the first installment a chance. Unfortunately, after viewing the original, I can't see how the sequel could be any worse.
This film has its share of supporters, and I can't really come down on anyone ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 13th, 2006
This was David Spade’s first HBO special from 1998. Following in the footsteps of giants like George Carlin and Rodney Dangerfield, he somewhat misses the mark here. For some reason Spade displays a serious lack of energy. The real hook for this show was his return to the Tempe Improv where he got his start in his home town. This is still your basic stand-up comedy concert. On Spade’s hit list are such topics as: Dating, Hotels, Parents, and Fast Food Workers. It’s not until about the last 12 minutes that some real...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 13th, 2006
Hawaii 5-0 was one of CBS’s most successful shows of the 1970’s. A great deal of money had been spent creating facilities to take advantage of the Island’s unique setting. When the show had finally run its course, executives with the network were not keen to give up the production resources, so they simply created a new show to fill the same time slot and utilize the Hawaiian settings. Instead of a cop, this new show would center around Thomas Magnum (Selleck). Magnum was a former Naval Intelligence operative from ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 13th, 2006
The Academy Awards are starting to build a case against their own validity. In 2005, they nominated a simply amazing film called Downfall in the Best Foreign Film category, but eventually gave the award to The Sea Inside. While Sea is a fine film, it was clear that the Academy got nervous about the ramifications of giving an award to a film about the last days of Adolph Hitler, and took the easy way out.
In 2006, they again got nervous and avoided ultimate controversy by giving their Best...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 12th, 2006
Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments hits store shelves in a new three-disc special edition, just in time for the release of the new made-for-TV mini-series. While the film classic is no stranger to DVD, it has yet to be released with this kind of gusto. At over three-and-a-half hours long, the film is simply too much for one disc to hold. The first disc contains the first 140 minutes, while disc two finishes up with the last 80. Plus, as a bonus, we get the original 136-minute silent version (also a DeMill...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 12th, 2006
Synopsis
Three friends are driving across Australia. In a particularly desolate national park, their car mysteriously dies, and they accept help from a passing bushman. Big mistake. The bushman (John Jarrat) is a psycho of the first order.
That’s a brief synopsis, and it could have been even briefer. When it comes to storyline, things don’t get much more basic than this film. Sure, there’s all sorts of character development in the early goings, but that turns out to be a mean-spirited (and ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 12th, 2006
The Greatest Game Ever Played?
When I saw that title on the DVD case my immediate thought was: “How did Disney find out about my 1981 Marathon game of RISK where I took out Mark “Trip Sixes” Shreader in 9 hours of battle? Of course, I soon decided they meant professional sports. This film would be about the Minnesota Viking playoff whoopin’ of the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Turns out that wasn’t it. Point of fact, not one game of the 1980 World Series victory of the Phillies made the cut. Sudde...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 12th, 2006
Time travel has always been a favorite staple in the Star Trek franchise. Since the days of Kirk and Spock, through the Temporal Cold War of Enterprise Federation, officers and their ships have traversed both past and future. It’s no surprise that the two most popular Trek films: The Voyage Home and First Contact happen to be time travel tales. In this collection, Trek fans have voted for their favorite temporal excursions from the first four versions of the show. Unfortunately some fine Enterprise entries are not ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 12th, 2006
Wonder Showzen is either the most brilliant post modern art piece that I have ever seen, or it's the work of a group of complete head cases. No matter what side of the fence you fall on, this show is undeniably offensive, creative, hilarious, disgusting... did I mention offensive? When I first heard that this show was a kids show parody for adults, I built up this image in my head of something between Pee Wee's Playhouse and South Park. I really couldn't have been more wrong. In fact, the show is...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 11th, 2006
Synopsis
Jack Nicholson is a journalist in Africa, fed up with his job and his life. When an acquaintance in an adjoining hotel room dies, Nicholson, struck by the other man’s physical resemblance to himself, switches identities, allowing everyone to believe that he is the one dead. But his new self doesn’t turn out quite to be the escape he had hoped for, as the man he has now become turns out to be an arms dealer.
Though that kind of a set-up is pure thriller, in the hands of Michelangelo...
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