Gamer [HD]

Light Entertainment
Gerard Butler with dirty muscles and a machine gun, need I say more? Seriously though, I think people are overthinking the premise of what is largely total fiction. If you take it for what it is which is 90 minutes of light entertainment where there is eye candy and things get blown up, alot, it is not a bad movie! I have never understood people who look too deeply into what is essentially an action movie..... What more do you want from it?

Hrm... who would appreciate a movie entitled "GAMER"...?
I could give a synopsis of the film but there are plenty so far. So I'll fill in where the other reviews seem to lack.

Gamer is filmed in basically 3 different settings: SLAYERS game world (think call of duty style first person shooter, very dark), SOCIETY game world (The Sims/Second Life type world, very colorful), and reality (which is nowhere near as dark or bright as the gamer world, no suprise).

In my own opinion, I think this was a gamer's game. Why? Because, first and formost, this is like the future wave of gaming, true 3 dimensional gaming (don't believe me, go look at Project Natal by Microsoft or the type of gaming Xbox envisions in the future-- THE ISLAND quite blatantly shows xbox's projections)
Yes, you had the "gratuitous violence" of SLAYERS that you would expect if it was real humans participating in the game, because that's what it is. You have the perversity in SOCIETY that is rampant in SIMS and SECOND LIFE if they could get away with it...

Take That Nerds!
The true test of any work of satire is how many people it upsets at a fundamental level. In that regard, "Gamer" is glorious! I can't remember the last time I saw a sci-fi movie that seemed like such an accurate prediction of our future, warts and all. The "game" worlds displayed -- Society and Slayers -- are ridiculously over the top while still feeling very possible. In the future, we will not only be enslaved by a digital totalitarianism, we'll gleefully slap on the chains ourselves.

What really makes this film work is that the writer/director team of Neveldine/Taylor clearly did their homework. Anyone familiar with online first-person shooters will recognize everything from camera angles to teabagging in the Slayers world. Similarly, even a passing familiarity with Second Life (a hive of perversion that they actually toned down for the film) makes the grotesque free for all of Society that much more plausible. This is where the satircal edge of the film comes in -- and...

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Red vs. Blue: Volume 9 [HD]

A New Chapter That Serves As A Prequel And A Sequel: More Action, More Comedy And A Different Visual Approach
With the anniversary release of HALO: Combat Evolved for XBOX 360, the synergistic powers-that-be have also elected to use the same date to drop the DVD release of "Red vs Blue: Season 9." It's a big day in the HALO universe! When the Recollection trilogy (seasons 6-8) of "Red vs Blue" came to a conclusion with Revelation (season 8), there was a bit of a character cliffhanger. While Season 9 deals specifically with the loose ends of the prior chapter, the structure of the whole piece is considerably different than what we've seen before! It takes a moment to grasp and appreciate this new direction as it isn't instantly clear what's going on (if you have not followed the Red vs Blue saga, I would not necessarily recommend this as the starting point). But once you become accustomed to the style and narrative choices of this season, I think you'll appreciate its complexities. The story unravels on two timelines (one rendered in machinima, one in CGI)--one tells a prequel set before Blood...

Still amazing
After 9 seasons these guys still kill me...I was pleased with this season although it took a few minutes to figure out what was going on in the story but I finally got it. I love Caboose.

Action, Adventure & that beloved RvB humor
Season 9 did not disappoint. The cutting humor for which Rooster Teeth and RvB are known for is resident plus a very action packed story and dynamic soundtrack. Good stuff.

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Breathe, Stretch & Relax

Relaxed and more limber
I initially purchased the 1-week Instant Video rental and have since purchased the full version. The instruction is clear, the moves are simple enough for beginners, but there are also more advanced variations. There are quite a few stretches in this video, (stretches from head to toe!) and because of that I thought the video was a bit more fast paced the first time I did it. Now that I'm used to the sequence, the pace feels good to me.

I always feel very relaxed and just a little more flexible every time I complete the stretches. Since I started doing these stretches, my neck and shoulders have loosened up and my hips are not as tight as they used to be. I've been doing these stretches when I get home from work and it helps me to shake off the stress of the day.

Great full body stretch!
I was looking for a good stretching type program to start after my current cardio/strength training routine. My cardio/strength training is pretty intense and I wanted something that would allow me to get all my muscle groups. I was frustrated that so many of the available videos are 1.5 hours...I don't have time for that after already working out for 1.5 hours. This being only 20 minutes is AWESOME! It is a great and quick stretch after your workout.

It should not take the place of a regular yoga program, but does fit in well for daily use. I look forward to increasing my flexibility through the use of this!

Very Helpful
I liked the explanations before each exercise. The scenery was great - relaxing. Unfortunately I had a health issue that made it difficult to do on the floor. Hopefully when it gets straightened out (hip & back) I'll be able to use this again.

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Fast Food Nation [HD]

fine exposé---even if the company in the film is fictional
Fast Food Nation is an excellent film about the very real and highly disturbing flaws that exist in a meat packing plant that provides the beef for Mickey's, a fictional fast food chain that doesn't exactly have its act together. Not only do we see how American lives are affected by this mess, we also see how desperate and sometimes frustrated, angry young people and illegal immigrants are drawn into this situation. The movie moves along at a good pace and the acting is terrific. The casting is excellent and this is one movie I must highly recommend even with a few hard to swallow (pardon the pun) scenes at the end of the "kill floor" at the meat processing plant.

When the action begins, we meet Don Anderson (Greg Kinnear) who is a high level executive at a fast food chain company. One day Don's boss informs him that some students at a university have found that there is waste matter in the meat. Don's boss orders him to the Colorado packing plant to investigate and try to...

Loved the message...but needed something more...
The movie follows three groups of people who are all affected by the fast food industry in some way: teenagers working at "Mickey's, illegal immigrants crossing into the United States and working at a meatpacking plant, and a man who works for the Mickey's company, in advertising. Though their paths only cross briefly if at all, the premise seems interesting. It shows the way the workers are treated, how someone can lose an arm or a leg in one of the machines, the "kill floor" and the graphic nature of cattle being slaughtered. Though it appears sanitary, there is a lot of "talk" from those that are connected to the place. Don Anderson ventures out to find the true story when his boss tells him that there was "fecal matter" discovered in the Mickey's meat. (Yet he still continues to eat it.)

All of this presented to you in an entertaining way makes the audience think. Yet there is something missing. Maybe it would have been better as a documentary. I think the reason that...

Brutal, Probing, Embarrassingly Honest Examination of the Fast Food Industry
FAST FOOD NATION got such minimal response in the theater run that it seemed to go straight to DVD. The PR for the film was such that it appeared to be 'hilariously funny' (according to the DVD box cover) and as such might just provide a bit of humor after a tumultuous day of work. WRONG! This little film adapted by Richard Linklater from Eric Schlosser's frightening book is agonizingly biting and insightful: if you elect to watch it, be prepared for some ugly facts that may just produce insomnia.

Don Henderson (Greg Kinnear) is a marketing strategist for 'Mickey's', a fast food chain that is highly successful in selling millions of 'The Big One' (the comparisons to the McDonald's Big Mac are not subtle!) and discovers that the meat patties have been found to grow E. coli in the lab! On an expedition to explore the validity of this problem he travels to Cody, Colorado to visit the plant that produces the meat patties for the entire national chain. And so the plethora of...

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Jayce & The Wheeled Warriors: Volume 1

The Best 80s Toon You've NEVER Heard Of...
"Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors" was one of my favorite 80s animated series. It's right up there with "ThunderCats" -- that good! But "Jayce" was rather overlooked compared to the likes of "ThunderCats", "He-Man", "She-Ra", "Voltron" and many other good animated series of that decadent decade.
"Jayce" has very good storytelling for starters: the basic premise is about a scientist named Audric (Jayce's father) who nearly succeded with ending starvation and hunger in vast star systems with the creation of genetically-engineered vegetation. Out of the blue, a cosmic explosion occurs and causes Audric's creations to wildly mutate into creatures with evil brains (called Monster Minds). Audric had to flee his laboratory with one half of a magical relic called "The Root" (Jayce somehow has the other half) that, when fused, would revert the evil creations and their machinations back to harmless vegetation. Jayce, with the help of an old and wise wizard named Gillian, an empathic girl...

A Classic!
Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors Volume 1 is another DVD that I won in a recent giveaway. I didn't recognize the name or the cover art. It wasn't until I played the first episode that I finally, more like vaguely, remembered the show, as I was a four-year-old when it aired on television. Actually, I don't recall much about the show, but I do the toys, which were released by Mattel before the show was created. Mattel needed a way to explain the strange looking silver vehicles and the even stranger looking organic/machine vehicles, thus Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors was created. Talented writes such as Larry DiTillio, Barbara Hambly and J. Michael Straczynski, creator of Babylon 5, wrote most the episodes.

Here is the series main plot: Audric, a botanist, was experimenting with biotechnology, and developed a crop that could grow in any environment. A burst of radiation from a solar flare mutated one of his crops, transforming it an evil creature called Saw Boss. The other...

Great throwback cartoon
I am very satisfied with this purchased. The show is exactly how I remember it and the overall quality of the product Mill Creek has put out beats all of my expectations. In addition, the price is stellar for what you get. Although the packaging is somewhat unorthodox, I actually like it better than a standard multi-disc case.

1). Quality - Very good compared to cobbled together version I purchased from EBAY years ago, but not remastered.

I was a huge fan of Jayce as a child and the DVD version does not disappoint. Please note that this is the original cartoon as aired on TV NOT a remastered version. This is stated in the product description, so I was not surprised, instead I was pleased with how good it looks. The image and sound quality is good and true to my memory of the show. In fact, I would say that current TV technology ability to render deeper and richer colors actual enhances the experience even though the material is unmodified from the original. The...

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Bhopali

Union Carbide - Mass Murderers of Bhopal
5-23-13

This is an excellent follow up documentary of the Bhopal gas disaster that took place in 1984. The producer's of the documentary are showing how the second and third generation Bhopal victims and their families-if any are alive-are struggling with the tragic aftermath of a plethora of health issues, financial problems, and inability to receive much needed medical care and medicines. But the most disturbing facts the movie's producers show us are twofold; the survivors living in Bhopal do not have access to clean water; they have no other option than to use the methyl isocyanate contaminated water that must be pumped daily from the communities water sources. To add insult to injury the environmental pollution and contamination from the explosion of the tank holding the MIC has never been cleaned up by Union Carbide/Dow Chemical Corporation! The murderous factory located in Bhopal is the site of the worst industrial disaster in history and thousands of innocent lives...





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Track 29 [HD]

Good film - poor quality DVD.
This meeting of writer Dennis Potter and filmmaker Nicolas Roeg is, as others have noted, nearly indescribable, surreal, outrageous, sometimes confusing but never boring. I don't think it gives anything away to say that Gary Oldman's character is a hallucination conjured by Theresa Russell's character (this is made clear in a bar scene fairly early in the film), which for me accounts for much of his bizarre and over-the-top acting - he's not supposed to be a real character so why should he act like one? She has imagined him and everything he does so he can do whatever she wants - he is an extension of her. There are some ways in which this film reminds me of Robert Altman's excellent and overlooked "Images" in that both films chart the emotional disintegration of the heroine and you are never sure in either film whether what you're seeing is real or not. If you enjoy Roeg films like "Bad Timing" and "Insignificance" you may like "Track 29" as well. If nothing else the film would...

A Starnge little ditty from The Roeg & Russell era.
This is a 1987 film about a bored alcoholic and metally

disturbed houswife from South Carolina named Linda(Theresa

Russell). She is trapped in a marriage to Henry(Christopher

Lloyed) who would rather play with his toy train hobby then make

love to her. Meanwhile Linda is haunted by flashbacks of her

teenage rape that produced a son and is disturbed by her regrets

of giving up her son for adoption. Ironically a man named Martin

(Gary Oldman)mysteriuolsy comes into her life & claims to be her

long lost son. However linda and her friend Arlanda(Collen Camp)

are the only one who can see Martin ???? The film is unlikable,

yet oddly facinating.The film also has a good casts, including

Sandra Bernhard. The ending of the movie has remained with me

for years. This movie is not for mainstream buffs, as it is

strange, campy and frustrating all rolled...

The train's off track, but Oldman's worth the ride...
Most people who watch this go away mumbling "where was the plot" it was there, buried, but there. I love this film. Then again, I'm a huge Oldman fan. This was one of his earlier performances and you can see the actor that was to come. His portrayal of Martin, an alcoholic's fantasy version of her long-lost son, is magnificent. He shifts from man to boy, lover to child brilliantly. I wish I could praise his co-stars as highly. Theresa Russell's stiff performance as the bored alcoholic housewife left me cold and, for my money, Christopher Lloyd and Sandra Bernhard could have been left out completely. The only reason to watch the film is Gary Oldman, but his performance makes it worth watching again and again...just keep the ffwd button close.

"MOMMY!"

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Attack of the Vegan Zombies

A fun B film with an interesting twist on zombies
When a married couple's farm produces ANOTHER year's worth of bad crop for producing the wine they make and live by the wife, Dionne goes to her mother who is a witch. While she has turned her back on the ancient craft that flows naturally through her family she has her mother help her cast a spell to help save the next year's crop so they don't have to either move or lose their vinyard. Wine? Witches? Where are the undead?

Well instead of the usual science and classic voodoo we are used to on where the zombies come from we have them created from witchcraft gone wild. (I'm pretty sure that was also the name of a bad porno.) Basically the ritual used required human blood and the husbands was volunteered without his knowledge. The problem was Joe was drinking that night and the alcohol in his blood may have caused a problem, though the crop did seem to come in quite well. With the successful crop the couple "hire" one of their friends who is a teacher to hire a few of his...

LAND HAS GOOD SPELLS AND BAD SPELLS
This is a local low budget production that was done very well. Joe (Jim Townsend) and Dionne (Christine Egan) are having problems with their grape/wine crop. Dionne and her mother (H. Lynn Smith) cast a spell on the land to make the grapes grow. Unfortunately the potion was tainted and the grapes become aggressive leading to zombies who crave alcohol tainted blood. People are hired to harvest the grapes which leads to problems.

The zombie action doesn't take place until 55 minutes into the film. The zombie make-up and effects were clearly a lower tier. Christine Egan did an excellent job acting in her lone film credit. Humor was added by way of two stereotypical nerds who happened to be Trekkies. This is a fun film and not for hardcore zombie purists.

Parental Guide: F-bomb, brief nudity (Kerry Kearns, Natalia Jablokov) girl/girl.



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Outcast [HD]

Not the Most Original - But Surprisingly Good
Outcast was definitely better than I had expected it to be. The film tells the story of a woman and her son hiding out in a Scotland slum from would-be killers that have tracked them from Ireland. Things become complicated further when the son becomes the love interest of a beautiful young neighbor, and the witchcraft-practicing mother has to protect her son from what she considers a number of threats.

The film was shot well, with good cinematography and color correction. The film was shot on location in Edinburgh, and the visuals are kept dreary to stay in sync with the theme of the movie. The film is light on gore, but there's enough to satisfy most horror fans. The audience isn't given much of the film's "monster" throughout most of the movie, which seems to help make this a film just as much about the characters as offering up scares.

One of the best aspects of the film, though, is the cast. I became a fan of Scottish actress Kate Dickie after watching...

Worth watching but not great...
This movie is entertaining, a little slow but grabs your interest. It's worth watching but it could have been so much better. The story has a good base topic, witchcraft but it starts to lack dramatic encounters as the movie goes on. The ending is however not lacking in excitement and brings the movie to an exciting close.

another creepy great movie
a must see for horror fans....creepy, dark, strange, gritty, & unique.....i felt it was made well....characters good.........kept my interest....totally not what i was expecting...loved it !!!!

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5 Star Day [Blu-ray]

Probably more of a four star day...but still very good
Though it's not exactly going to blow anyone's mind-"Five Star Day" is still a very thought provoking and smartly made movie. It starts with an interesting premise about astrology and whether or not there is some significance to the astrological circumstances a person is born under or whether it's all just one big crock. In the film, the protagonist (played by Cam Gigandet) essentially takes it upon himself to track down two women and one man born in the same hospital he was who also share his same birth date to see whether or not their collective recent birthday experiences mirror his own. What got me the most about "Five Star Day" was that it seemed to tread new ground and that alone is a commendable quality. It also has its share of likable and surprising characters, most of which I found myself growing easily sympathetic toward. A really good movie should leave you thinking about it long after it's finished. What did it mean? What do I take away from it? That's exactly what this...

An enjoyable and orginal light movie
Warning, firstly, I do a lot of research at work, and often I find myself like this character having data that supports views that I do not like. So I identified with the main character also because I found him to be a nice guy. Maybe that is partly why I liked the movie so much. This may not be the same with you.

Overall, I thought the story was both good and original. The movie starts off that the hero's horoscope predicts he will have a great day, a 5 star day. The day turns out to be a disaster. Needing a subject for his course, he decides his subject will be to prove that astrology is nonsense. So off his adventures start as he goes and interview's people who have the same star sign as he does. It is a light story, but it does have its moments. I did like his speech that we make our own future.

The characters were good, interesting and believable.

The acting, I thought was very good. I liked everyones' performance.

The filming was good...

It makes you wonder
The movie did start a little slow but than started to make sense. It made you wonder about people born at the same date, time and place what there life is like.

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Honey 2 [HD]

An Amazing Dance Movie
Honey 2 offers serious, serious hip-hop dancing. Despite of what everyone else says, I totally dig it. To me it is one of the best dance movies out there. Here are some reasons why:

1) The dancing and choreography are awesome. Check out the first solo by Kat, the main actor, for example. It is mind-blowing.
2) The second most important reason why I dig this movie is that the message it sends is deeper, better, and more realistic than in other dance movies. It's about dealing with problems by being constructive rather than destructive. (In many other dance movies, the message is pathetic.) In this category it beats all previous dance movies I've seen.
3) The movie is packed with dance scenes; I would say, it has more cumulative dance time than any other movie.
4) The actors are so cute and can actually dance. No doubles as in one of the most famous dance movies, whose name shall remain unmentioned here.
5) I just really like it, especially Kat and...

:)
This movie is the best i have seen kat graham in. the vampire diaries are good but this movie is good too. its funny and the dancing is great.

Good dance sequences, poor story
Honey 2 has many good dance sequences but falls short in every other department. As a movie, its too long and rather boring.

I took dance throughout high school, so I enjoy watching movies about it. But Honey 2 doesn't have a very interesting story, and the acting isn't good. The main character needed to be nicer, but instead she was very, I don't know...bitchy.

Other dance movies are much better, such as Footloose, Shall We Dance, Black Swan, etc..

Which proves you CAN have a movie with both good dancing and a good story.

Honey 2 just doesn't cut it. Movie: 1/5 stars.

The blu-ray has good video and audio, typical for a normal blu-ray release. Video and Audio gets 4/5 stars.

Overall: 2/5 stars. Watch it for the dance sequences but don't expect anything else. Fans of the film will enjoy the blu-ray release.

Rating: PG-13. Typical stuff here, some language and suggestive content, partying, and a few verbal...

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Grindhouse: Zombiethon

RETRO ZOMBIE MADNESS!
If you're not expecting state of the art special effects and don't disdain the melodramatic styles of older movies you'll probably enjoy this wild zombie montage featuring some of the most entertaining scenes from some of the worst zombie films ever made. Most of the clips are from movies of the late 60s - early 80s and their quality varies wildly (however I disagree with the other reviewer about the image quality being 'unwatchable').
The segments that bridge some of the scenes were filmed just for this video and they tend to be very cheesy with zombies chasing women around. Still they are fun to watch and show that the creators weren't taking things too seriously (unlike a certain reviewer). There's a bit of blood and good gore on display but most of the scenes are not very gory, however the atmosphere in many of them is nice and creepy.
Viewers are also treated to extended scenes of full nudity, especially in the extensive scenes where beautiful women swim around in...

Plumbing New Depths
Well. It's not a movie and it's not a documentary. It's a string of clips from numerous zombie flicks interspersed with newly shot footage where various people end up in a movie theater with a bunch of zombies watching movies about.....zombies.

This is some pretty awful stuff. The zombie genre of film is no different than any other genre in that most of the movies are going to stink. Here they seem to have found the stinkers and decided to show us the suckiest scenes from them. Seems the producer was more interested in finding scenes featuring women with little or no clothing on which is how I came up with the two star rating. But the scenes they chose suggested the movies they were from were just as awful in their own right. And they couldn't even be bothered to find decent prints of the films they used. Some of these segments bordered on unwatchable. Had it not been for the women I would have turned this off half way through. Something else odd was that it seemed as...



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Return To Blood Fart Lake

bleh
You think i could learn after my first Bloodfart Lake. I think the first was even better.... Yet again we get the pathetic commercialism by now 2 of the actors promoting their crap during dialogue the chick on the cover i guess is some softcore porn star trying to promote herself, so go buy her other videos today.... and of course more promotion for selling T-shirts again. I thought that Meredith Host would make this one better, but i didn't really like her role this time around; being all whiny and annoying. Nudity? No i don't recall any this time like in the first so even the soft porn chick keeps her clothes on, but she'll tell you about her stardom. It has it's mo9ments but not enough to save it.

Oh Bloodfart Lake
I loved LBP first one, Terror at Bloodfart Lake, and this one is not bad either. This flick is a welcome addition to my collection of B-rate horror movies.

it wasnt what i thought
the acting was so poor i couldnt get in to the movie it was not funny nor was it a horror movie

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I Ain't Scared of You: A Tribute to Bernie Mac

Very nicely done...
This is a very nice tribute to one of the all-time comic greats. Bernie Mac was very unique with his comedy and he made everyone laugh. The tributes given by Chris Rock, DL Hughley, etc... were very on point and gave you insight into why everyone loved him and still misses him.

One Of The Best
This is a some-what history of The Mac-man. I enjoyed it from beginning to end. For all those not familiar with Bernie Mac's work, you will get an overall overview of the man, comedian, father, and husband he championed to be. Gone too soon.

Great tribute to a great guy!
Biased as I knew Bernie but critical in watching his story told. So glad you mentioned the Regal theater. Spoke to his family and friends. hey spoke 100% real of his personality. No more I could say. We have a huge void in comedy and classic, good, down home, real, Chicago-style (the greats do some from here--Redd Foxx, Richard Pryor's roots, Robin Harris, Cloris Leachment,the Bulushi brothers) comedic natural-ness. Very much missed. Very much.

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Wings [HD]

A Must-Buy !
Though it's certainly not the 'best' silent film ever made, WINGS, a World War I "war in the air" movie, is my personal favorite silent film. I have waited a VERY long time for the release of this wonderful new beautifully-tinted restoration - you can order it here: Wings [Blu-ray]. It is the best version ever released to the public and, most likely, the best version which will EVER be released to the public! (A DVD version, containing the same new restoration, is also being offered and it can be ordered here: Wings.) Until now, NO ONE (except someone old enough to have seen it in 1927-1929) has been able to view this film in essentially the manner intended by its creators.

I believe that anyone and everyone who has purchased any home video discs for their personal enjoyment should buy this one too - and as soon as possible. This...

Special Features: Blu-ray vs. DVD
For you buyers mulling over which version (Blu-ray vs. DVD) to purchase, note the difference in the "Special Features" content offered on each release.

The Blu-ray version includes three (3) special features: the making-of documentary "Wings: Grandeur in the Sky," as well as "Dogfight," a featurette covering early aeronautics, and "Restoring the Power and Beauty of Wings," which details the film's restoration process.

The DVD version includes only one (1) special feature, the aforementioned "Wings: Grandeur in the Sky" (the "making of" documentary).

And The First Best Picture Oscar...
...goes to WINGS! That was back in 1927. It remains one of the great anti-war films even though the war is World War I. It also marks the apex of the careers of its three stars: Clara Bow, Charles "Buddy" Rogers, and Richard Arlen. Buddy Rogers would later marry Mary Pickford and concentrate on Big Band music while Clara Bow made only a few sound films before retiring in 1933 at the age of 28. Richard Arlen stayed in movies a bit longer but is best remembered today as the hero of 1932's THE ISLAND OF LOST SOULS with Charles Laughton. The director William Wellman would go on to quite a distinguished career making such films as THE PUBLIC ENEMY with James Cagney, the 1937 A STAR IS BORN and 1943's THE OX-BOW INCIDENT. He made his last film, LAFAYETTE ESCADRILLE, in 1958.

Wellman had actually flown planes during the Great War and so he wanted to make sure that this film captured what it was like to fly and to engage in combat up in the skies. One of the film's great strengths...

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Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century - Complete Series

Glitch in "The Scales of Justice" Episode
I bought this as a blind buy and I must say I am really enjoying the show. The storylines are well-crafted and the animation is great. However, there appears to be a glitch on Disc #1 in the episode entitled "The Scales of Justice": at time interval 3:29 the disc freezes (and it's not a normal layer transition freeze) and then jumps immediately right into the middle of another scene with Holmes and crew fighting mythical creatures. The timer on my DVD doesn't skip ahead and the total episode runs at 16:06 minutes rather than the normal 22 minutes, so obviously about 6 minutes of footage is missing. I think it is an error how the disc was manufactured and I will be contacting Mill Creek Entertainment about the issue. Anyone else experiencing this problem?

Darby

UPDATE 11/11/12:
Mill Creek recently send me a pressed replacement Disc #1 and the episode plays just fine now, so it appears that they have fixed glitch. If you find that you have purchased a...

Extremely entertaining and amazing price.
I remember this show from when I was an early teen. I was always a fan of the character of Sherlock Holmes but could never get into Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's books at that age. Then this cartoon came along. Being a scifi geek I gravitated towards it. It continues where the books ended with Holmes and Moriarty dying together over a waterfall but instead Holmes managed to save himself. He continued his career in secret until he died at a ripe old age. His remains, which were perserved in honey, are reanimated in the future when it turns out 22nd century criminals have cloned Moriarty. Inspector Lestrad is replaced by his great great great granddaughter and lovable Dr. Watson is replaced by an android with his complete works and journals downloaded in it's harddrive. The three then track Moriarty and solve various cases modeled after each original Holmes story... Hounds of Baskervilles, The Red Headed League, etc. with a futuristic twist. Great for kids who love scifi and want to try a...

No Place Like Holmes...
As a long term Holmsian I sometimes (well, usually) find myself in the minority when discussing this series with fellow fans, most of whom dismiss it as pure non-canonical rubish. I, however, quite enjoy it, and have ever since I first discovered it back in 2000 or so. To be honest, the stories stay far truer to charactor than most interpretations of Holmes, far more so than Basil R., for example. And it's the perfect way to introduce children to the great detective.
Each tale is based on one of A. Conan Doyle's original masterpieces (some, I must say, more than others) and names and referances from the classics abound. If you have any love for Sherlock mysteries, go ahead and pick up a copy. You can claim it's for the kids if you must, but you'll find yourself popping it in when they're not around.

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Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? - The Complete Series

Good for Nostalgia
I just got my copy in the mail today after a short delay of the release. I watched this series as child when it was still airing on FOX in the mid 90's and the show is still just as good as I remembered it. The show is very kid friendly and has a bit of an educational theme. Now let's get to the specs of this DVD.

Approx Runtime: 14hrs and 20 min
Aspect Ratio: 4:3/1:33:1
All 40 episodes on 4 DVD's

The image quality is a bit of a disappointment since they crammed 10 episodes per DVD as well as some bonus features. That said, when I play this on my computer, my DVD fan will run very high because so much space was used on the DVD's. In my opinion, it would've been a lot better if they released this on Blu-Ray. As we all know, Blu-Ray DVD's can hold a lot more space than regular DVD's. Personally, I gladly would have forked over $50 for the complete set (as long as it's in airdate order and uncut) on Blu-Ray either that or they should have put them on more...

Carmen Will Steal Your Heart....Again
If you happen to be a child of the 1990's, you probably watched "Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?" on Fox Saturday Mornings or Fox/ABC Family.

A fun fact is this show came into creation from the Children's Television Act that wanted more educational programming for kids. The entire series run is included on these four discs and to be fair, almost all of them are in pretty good condition. (Only true issue is with the audio for "By A Whisker" but is minor at best)

The show stars ACME detectives Zach and Ivy as they tail Carmen Sandiego across the world attempting to catch her. There are plenty of twists and turns along the way including Carmen teaming up with them to foil criminals not as classy as herself.

Plenty of talented voice actors adorn this series including Scott Menville as Zac, Rodger Bumpass as "The Chief", Jennifer Hale as Ivy, and the timeless Rita Moreno as Carmen Sandiego. It is one of those series that stands the test of time and while...

Great for kids that love history and geography.
My kids love this series. My kids are 9,7, and 5 and they all find something that sparks their intrest.

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Bubble Puppy's Fin-tastic Fairy Tale [HD]

Everybody Loves Bubble Guppies
My daugher loves the cartoon, so what else do I need to say. Watching this content on the iPad has been great since we discovered the Amazon app.

Highly recommended
My 3yr old son loves Bubble Guppies. I think the show is so adorable and very educational. I just wish they would put more episodes on DVD.

Bubble guppies
The show is amazing and funny. My little girl sits through every episode without moving. I think going with amazon prime might be cheaper though.

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Swinging With The Finkels

It Isn't Raunchy
I saw the title of this movie and was kind of thinking I didn't want to watch even though I love Martin Freeman and like Mandy Moore though she does manage to star in duds from time to time. I didn't want to watch yet another raunchy take on a romantic comedy, but I figured neither one of these two actors would get involved in a raunchy movie unless it had something redeeming about it.

I was delighted to see, as the movie progressed, that their is really nothing particularly suggestive or sexual in the film that isn't shown in the trailer. This may disappoint some, but I liked the movie as it was.

It is an exploration of this marriage that has went stale and how the couple tries to revive it through desperate means. It ends up being more serious than funny though it does have its funny moments.

My only nitpick is Mandy Moore. I like her in movies when she isn't supposed to be in love. I don't really buy her as a romantic actress...I actually think she...

Living Vicariously!
The Finkels are in a rut. They've been married 9 years and can't seem to find the desire or passion to please one another anymore. Somewhat conservative Ellie comes up with the idea of swinging, to see if the grass is greener on the other side, so Alvin goes along with it. What happens after are hilarious insights on the low points of marriage that are funny only because they're true. The side characters are equally as entertaining, mimicking someone we either know or have known. Many thoughts are thoughts we've all expressed at one point, some issues are serious, others are mundane. Either way, living vicariously through the Finkels should make you think of your own relationship. The ending was predictable but it was okay because the movie itself was hilarious, quirky, insightful and definitely off the beaten path. I was so surprised by Mandy Moore! I've never really liked much of her work, but thought she played this character wonderfully, she was completely endearing in her role,...

Too bad to finish watching
Quite honestly, I rented this movie purely out of my love for Martin Freeman. It was so stupid and dreadful that I gave up after fifteen minutes. In those fifteen minutes pretty much every stupid cliche of committed heterosexual relationships was invoked and taken for granted. If you're a Freeman fan, try Wild Target with Bill Nighy and Rupert Grint or Nativity! if you haven't seen them yet.

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Los Inadaptados

Great movie
I got it sooner that I thought thanks this movie is awesome and very funny. I wish I known about the movie sooner.





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Mama I Want To Sing

Dont waste the time
Please dont waste your time watching this movie. It was horrible. First thing first, Lyn Whitfield was amazing, even though she appeared to lip sync her sermons. Patti can sing her face off ...PERIOD!!. Ciara on the other hand. Ciara, Ciara Ciara, where do i even start. Lets start with the fact that she cant act at all. Couple that witht the fact that she spoke and sang like a 12 year old the entire movie, yes even after she "made it". They could have chosen any number of truly talented singers to play this roll. Paris Bennett, who sang one of the track "I will" for example. The story line was all over the place, with no consistancy or follow through. The viewer is left to guess what happened to get them to where they were. Overall it had the potential, to be great and casting someone other than Ciara as the lead would have been a step in the right direction. Just my opinion

Mama!!!! Don't Make Her Sing!!
I was excited to watch this movie.. Since Ciara's record sales has been declining with each release... I thought maybe acting would do the trick... Ummm No!!

I won't be too hard on her because this is her first starring role in a straight to dvd movie..

The Script - WEAK!!
The Acting - WEAK!! (Exceptions: Patti LaBelle - Lynn Whitfield - Marvin Winans)

In my opinion I don't think this was a great role for Ciara. This role should have been played by someone with a soulful voice. Everytime Ciara opened her mouth to sing, it sounded like someone was scrapping their nails against a chalkboard. I'm a fan of Ciara's music, especially the songs she released off her first cd.. but this movie gets an one star movie.

My advice: Wait until this movie airs on BET... If this movie was called... Mama.. I want to DANCE!!! - Ciara would shine!!! but since it's not.. You know the rest...

There Was Much Said In This Movie To Give The Audience Something To Think About
I like the way the filmmaker did the opening; the sepia tone (warm brown tone) surely got my attention. It kind of had a feel of a classic movie - even though it wasn't in black and white - and I love to watch classic movies. I also enjoyed listening to Reverend Winter (Marvin Winans)singing right from the start.

Amara (Ciara): She's young Doris (Mariah Roberson) when the movie begins and she's using her beautiful singing voice for the Lord. Seven years later, she's singing in the club and then she gets a manager and rises to pop stardom. She remembered the words her father spoke to her when he was alive, but she took them out of context, the way some Christians misinterpret Scripture. But whatever choices she made when she stopped singing for Jesus, it was obvious she didn't stop caring about Him. Still, the question she asked her mother at the dining room table, she should have asked herself.

Doris' brother, Luke (Kevin Phillips): A gifted photographer and my...

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Tiny Furniture [HD]

Embracing The Post-Collegiate Malaise: A Tiny And Personal Indie Comedy For The Right Audience
When Lena Dunham's "Tiny Furniture" debuted in 2010, it became somewhat of a critical darling with near unanimous praise from mainstream outlets. Heck, Dunham even won an Independent Spirit Award for its screenplay. While the film is an interesting, if somewhat slight, indie--it probably plays to a more niche market than the critics would have you suspect. Dunham's work (she is its writer, director, and star) and characters ably showcase a combination of post-collegiate ennui and over-educated (and pseudo-intellectual) entitlement. Set in a fashionable New York City young, artistic and urban environment--the film's sardonic tone and cultural critique was sometimes reminiscent (to me) of the works of Whit Stillman (Metropolitan) but with an edgier and more modernized vibe. But the quirky story, which can be quite funny, also achieves a quiet poignancy when you least expect it. I suspect that, in many ways, "Tiny Furniture" will be fairly divisive when discovered by a wider audience...

An amusing movie about ANNOYING people.
I FULLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I HAVE NOT SEEN THE CRITERION BLU RAY. THIS IS A REVIEW OF THE MOVIE ITSELF. I PUT IT OUT HERE, BECAUSE I THINK SO FEW PEOPLE HAVE HEARD OF IT OR KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT. TO THOSE WHO THINK WRITING A REVIEW FOR A PRODUCT THAT ISN'T OUT YET IS "BAD"...I APOLOGIZE.

Aura has just finished college in Ohio. Her major is Film Theory. Her boyfriend of 3 years has broken up with her, however. With no job prospects and no love life, she returns to the NYC home of her mother and her gifted younger sister Nadine. She spends a lot of time moping and she half-heartedly restarts a friendship with the far perkier, but clearly spoiled and selfish Charlotte. She takes a low paying job as a day hostess. She half-heartedly dates a Youtube star she meets at a party and she half-heartedly flirts with a good-looking but attached chef at her restaurant.

Aura is utterly aimless...and it is her aimlessness that is the focus of director/writer/star Lena...

Avant-garde caricature of post-collegiate soul-searching
If you've enjoyed GIRLS, you will also enjoy this film. I respect what this movie is trying to do, but I cannot endorse it.

This movie is trying to explore the angst and sadness that comes from leaving college and entering the real world. A protected undergraduate world full of academic concerns and intellectual friendships transitioning to an awful job, moving back in with one's family, a realization that the real world is not ivory towers and existential debates. It's a common plight in modern times, and surely many can relate.

I have to say, though, this movie impossible to watch. The characters are "real" in the sense that they are deeply pathetic and depressed. The dialogue is sharp and biting and blatantly (disgustingly) poetic. Mostly the dialogue is awkward, but moreover is incredibly disrespectful and antagonist. The characters are so thoroughly misdirected and unpleasant, it's not worth describing them as "real". Rather, they are caricatures of angst,...

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Wainy Days [HD]

Great show, but the video quality is spotty
If you're a fan of any of David Wain's work, you'll like Wainy Days, plain and simple. It's hilarious. However, if you're checking this Amazon page out, you probably already have seen the show, as it's available for free online. And if you haven't seen the show, just go watch it. It's really free. The whole thing. So go watch it.

I'm glad I bought the DVD, because the extras are a lot of fun, and it's a good way to support the project. However, my only gripe is that the video quality is pretty much the same as you get online. So the later episodes that look good online look good here, and the earlier episodes that look like bad online still look bad here. I was hoping said episodes would've been remastered, but unfortunately they haven't. Maybe this is just the highest quality source available, and the raw footage is unavailable, who knows.

Funny!
When I first heard of the show Wainy Days and found out that guest stars like Paul Rudd, Lake Bell and Jason Sudeikis, I knew that I had to see it. I was looking forward to sitting in front of my television for all four seasons. I laughed so hard that my sides hurt for days! I can't believe I hadn't seen this show before. The never-before-seen content made the viewing experience even better. It was nice to see some extra footage that cracked me up.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this DVD for review purposes. All opinions expressed are 100% my own.

On Par with Stella
As a huge fan of Stella (the shorts, the show, and the live shows), I couldn't wait for Wainy Days to hit shelves. This DVD is one of my favorite in my collection. Long live David Wain!!!

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Elevate

More Hoop Dreams: A Journey From West Africa To America In Pursuit Of A Better Life
When it comes to sports related documentaries, the gold standard has got to be 1994's incredibly powerful "Hoop Dreams." Following two inner city Chicago kids for five years, the film saw the duo as they worked toward their goal of making it as professional basketball players. Sometimes harrowing, sometimes heartfelt--the film pushed past the subject of sport to be an important document about life in general. Following a similar template is Anne Buford's "Elevate." This earnest documentary features four ball players in Senegal who are fighting for a chance to get scholarships within the United States. Over the course of four years, we will see each as they venture into the American Prep School system in the hopes of qualifying for college sponsorship and NCAA competition. They have varying degrees of success, but the film is ultimately a testament to following your dreams (however impossible) and perseverance.

The movie introduces us to Amadou Gallo Fall, the founder of...

Giving back
Talk about touched, moved and inspired. Amadou Fall is giving back and changing the trajectory of many lives in Senegal by teaching these young men how to be men and using a tool to get an education.

Africa to US basketball
I watched the movie and memorized by the talent recruited from Africa to American Universities. America is great because it attracts the greatest minds and talent in the world. Talent is what we want. There seems to be a wide range of other venues that could attract talent, bring it.

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Chuggington: Brewster's Little Helper

Another consistent and well-done entry in the Chuggington series
Since my 6-year-old can't get enough Chuggington, I've become quite well acquainted with all the 10-minute shorts about the Trainees and the other Chuggers that populate the sunny, colorful town of Chuggington. The best description of this DVD is: It's exactly in keeping with the past DVDs. Which is great, as far as I'm concerned, because these shorts are cheerful, sometimes witty (even to adults), and mercifully short. And, importantly, they teach good values without ever being preachy or heavy-handed. My son gets quite involved in them, to the point where he won't watch certain episodes sometimes because they are a bit emotional for him. There's certainly nothing scary, but often the Trainees have to suffer the consequences of their own poor decisions, and he takes that a bit to heart. (That's a good thing, in my opinion -- besides, everything always turns out well and ends with a laugh before the 10 minutes is up).

Very highly recommended to children who like colorful...

Traintastic DVD!
My boys love Chuggington because of course they are talking trains, little do they know but there are great lessons to be learned. The characters in Chuggington need to learn to work together to accomplish tasks, accept responsibility, problem solve and have fun with friends. This DVD is a great addition to any child's DVD collection, especially train fans! With six episodes too it is a great value! We love the DVD too because we always seem to miss the show on television.

DVD of little Chuggington
My daughter received this order in a timely manner, my grandson loves-loves-loves the little Chuggington train. I've already bought the other dvd's for him. This was a great choice folks!!!

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Archive of World War Two - Victory at Sea - Parts 1 to 4

Great Series.
The ultimate story of World war II. Leonard Graves is a fantastic announcer. This should be required viewing in American History classes,

Blatant Display of the Hypocracy of Amazon review auditor
Recounts Imperialist American aggression and the role it played in the destruction of two small countries trying to make a better life for their people by attempting to conquer the world and subject "inferior" races to extermination and slavery...

It figures! this just shows the Anti-American bias of some dimwit POS Amazon Thought Police review auditor!

I originally wrote a glowing review of how the Documentary showed an unprepared America against the AXIS of Evil and exemplified the unspeakable Japanese brutality toward everyone else and that review the Amazon Thought Police blew off and totally rejected... BUT just mention America & aggression and the POS ATP auditor is all over allowing that!
I would love to spit some beach-nut in that boys eye and say a few earnest words to exemplify my displeasure at his warped PC view of the world (POS puke is probably some 20 something that never heard of WWII) and apply an exceedingly generous attitude...

Where's the rest?
Missed this.First and only time I saw Victory at Sea was when they first aired.Wished you had 9 to 12 as well as all the rest.

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Tales from the Golden Age

These Romanian Tales Reveal a (Thankfully) Forgotten World
As a correspondent for U.S. newspapers, I arrived in Romania when the Communist-era system of lies and secrecy had completely collapsed. The chaos was unimaginable. My plane landed so soon after the 1989 revolution that no customs agents were left at the airport. The first government offices I visited were empty. Grocery store shelves were bare. I found many who dared to talk honestly for the first time in their lives.

So, I lapped up every minute of the 141-minute Tales of the Golden Age by Christian Mungiu and his Romanian filmmaking friends. (Mungiu wrote the scripts, then invited other young filmmakers to shoot the sequences.) Now in its complete form, the film is a series of comedic episodes about life under the half-crazed dictator Nicolai Ceausescu.

The Legend of the Official Visit, the opening vignette in the film, is the most amusing and fully realized of all these tales--and the scene depicted on the new DVD cover. Set in a remote rural village, the...

From the Silly to the Poignant
These six vignettes written by Cristian Mungiu of the famed "4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days" and directed by himself and four others begins in a rather silly vein with "The Legend of the Official Visit", but gradually moves to the more lengthy and oddly believable "The Legend of the Air Sellers" and then the extremely poignant and well-acted "The Legend of the Chicken Driver". This last segment makes all the others work in a profound way, pondering the sadness of materialism over human value and love, the conflict of political obedience over a natural love of material comfort, and to make it full circle, the reality of selfishness and fear over true camaraderie and compassion. The script of "The Chicken Driver" is sheer genius, exploiting the concept of natural "profit" and chickens. (I won' spoil the story.) This metaphorical richness weaves a brilliant story thanks in part to the subtle acting of Vlad Ivanov, star of "4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days" and the excellent "Police Adjective"...

A Great way to understand what life was like in the Eastern Bloc
This film is really 6 short stories about some "urban myths" from communist Romania. The film focuses on what life was like for different people in different situations, during the Ceaucescu era.

Each film gives a snapshot with a kind of moral to what life was like. I have worked and lived in post communist Poland, Czechoslovakia, East Germany during the early 1990's and Russia 2009 onwards. I have also visited virtually every other country of the Eastern Bloc including Romania. As such I gained a unique insight into the reality of what life was like behind the Iron Curtain before it disappeared. My first lesson to this surreal world was what I saw in the border town of Cheb Czechoslovakia in 1990. It was as if we had stepped back in time to the 1930's. Buildings falling apart, few goods in the shops, no advertising boards and blocks of flats that were grey and falling to pieces. Nobody looked happy and everyone looked so depressed. We were accosted all the time to barter...

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Labios Rojos

labios rojos
I enjoyed this movie. It had some funny parts. Both Silvia Navarro (huge fan of hers) and Jorge Salinas are great actors and they did a good job.I just wished that the movie was a bit longer and showed a little more of the woman's perspective on the subject.





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All Things Fall Apart [HD]

A surprisingly good football movie written by and starring 50 Cent. Very much worth watching. I liked it. I say B+
"It's just a challenge, just another challenge that's all" Deon (50 cent) is a college football superstar. He is set to win the Heisman Trophy, play in the national championship football game and be one of the top picks in the NFL draft. Weeks before his big game he is rushed to the doctors and is diagnosed with a tumor. His days of football are over, and he is left to try and start a new life. Going in I was very worried...a movie written by and starring 50 cent...oh God...here we go. I was very very surprised at how good it was. I'm not saying this can compete with "Remember The Titans" or "Express", but I really enjoyed this movie. I have never been impressed by 50 Cent's acting, but he was actually really good in this. I may have been distracted by the physical change that he went through. Going from a ripped football player to a 160 pound cancer patient is actually pretty impressive and for someone to go to that length for a movie shows how important this was to him. Overall, a...

Better than I thought it would be
Glad someone was finally realistic that sometimes there is no happy ending. You have to make the most of this life right here right now.

50 CENT DOING BETTER
50 Cent plays Deon, a college football star running back headed for the NFL and life on Easy Street. He has everything, fame, parties, girls etc. His kid brother, Sean rejects 50 cents lifestyle. He is the more studious type I gathered from the stereotypical glasses that he wears. Mom is Deon's main cheerleader, and dad, who has been there, wants Deon to be a more aggressive ball hog and less of a team player in order to attract the pro scouts. Even at home, Sean (Cedric Sanders) plays second fiddle to the football star. Deon can have any girl he wants, including the girl dating his brother.

However...Thing Fall Apart. Deon has the big "C" growing in his chest. Ray Liotta plays the doctor. While the family is in a waiting room, Ray comes in with an x-ray and shows the family the giant tumor in Deon's chest. Radiation and chemo. Dad, concerned about Deon's draft pick, wants to keep a lid on this in order to deceive the NFL. Mom is not crazy about the idea.

As...

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Carve Her Name With Pride

Virginia McKenna in the performance of her career
Virginia McKenna ("A Town Like Alice", "Born Free") gives the performance of her career in CARVE HER NAME WITH PRIDE, a spellbinding and dramatic true-life account of one woman's heroic actions during the darkest days of World War II.

Young English widow Violette Szabo (McKenna) enlists to train as a British spy and in her efforts to organise a resistance network in occupied France, is taken prisoner by the Nazis. Szabo's story of courage and conviction is beautifully portrayed in this heartbreaking movie. With Paul Scofield, Jack Warner, Denise Grey, Sydney Tafler, Billie Whitelaw, Anne Leon and Nicole Stephane.

Opportunity to become extraordinary
A recent vacation on Jersey, observing their history of 5 years of German occupation in the 1940s and their monuments to independence, prompted me to purchase this movie. It reminded me that difficult times grant us opportunity to become extraordinary. It is a story of courage, of wanting life and love and sacrifice to mean something. Yes the film was made a long time ago before snappy technology. The story is the story and worth seeing.

wrong casting
The casting information for Carve Her Name With Pride is totally wrong. Michael Caine was never in this film. The lead goes to Virginia McKenna and she is brilliant in this. I will be waiting to add this to my collection along with A Town Like Alice, another great J. Arthur Rank production.

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Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (English Subtitled) [HD]

Brazil's Highest Grossing Film Is A Morality Play That Works As An Unrelenting Crime Saga
On my short list of must-see film titles for 2011, Jose Padilha's "Elite Squad: The Enemy Within" was certainly at the top of the roster. I first became aware of Padilha with the 2002 documentary feature "Bus 174," an unforgettable true life story of a bus hijacking that played out very publicly in the Brazilian media. It was a harrowing picture that had as much to say about contemporary journalism, rampant crime, local corruption, political maneuvering, and the state of the police as it did about the actual event it portrayed. I think that it is fair to say that some of these same themes have remained a constant in all of the writer/director's future film endeavors as well. That said, I do want to point out that "Elite Squad: The Enemy Within" is actually a sequel to the 2007 project entitled (you guessed it) "Elite Squad." While the two films are certainly better served as companion pieces, this does have a self contained story that can be enjoyed on its own merits. If you choose to...

Intelligent, and gritty.....excellent film!
Only my second review on here IIrc, but this film was worthy I thought of a 5 star review. I took the chance on this rental based on the previous reviewer's high marks, and great overall review, and this film certainly was worth the time and money.

Very intelligent plot, lots of gritty action scenes, and awesome realistic gun play.

This film feels incredibly authentic for a fictional movie.

Delightfully brutal
I wasn't even aware there was an original Elite Squad until after I had heard about and had access to Elite Squad: The Enemy Within. The Enemy Within has been receiving rave reviews from pretty much everyone who has seen it. This is the type of movie that sucker punches you in the gut and you never see it coming, but all you can do is smile because that rush is unlike anything else you've ever experienced. Elite Squad: The Enemy Within makes full use of the term, "thriller" before turning it upside down and inside out and doing it all over again in a two hour time period.

Some rather interesting camera work is utilized throughout the film. You take notice of it in the very first scene as the camera catches every crack and break in a pane of glass as a car is riddled with bullets. Slow motion is also used in a refreshing kind of way mostly because slow motion has looked the same way since 2006 when Leonidas kicked the messenger into the pit in 300. While this was probably...

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The Debt

4.5 stars... the original is better than the Hollywood remake
"The Debt" (original 2007 release from Israel; 100 min.) brings the story of 3 Mossad agents in the mid-60s hunting down (fictitious) Nazi criminal Dieter Vogel a/k/a the "Surgeon of Birkenau" who is now living in Berlin and working as a doctor in private practice. In fact they manage to abduct and capture Vogel. However before they are able to transport/smuggle Vogel out of Berlin into Israel, Vogel manages to escape. The 3 Mossag agents now are faced with a terrible embarrasment for both themselves and Israel. They decide to cover up what has happened, simply saying that Vogel was killed in a struggle. The agents then return to Israel in triumph. That is where the movie really takes off, examining the legacy/debt of living with such a lie. Then one day 30 years later, there is a rumor that a man claiming to be Surgeon of Birkenau is alive and well in Ukraine. I will not spoil the rest of the plot, you'll just have to see it for yourself.

Maybe you saw the 2011 Hollywood...

An Israeli Thriller Of Responsibility And Recriminations--Seen The Remake? Don't Miss The Original
With a high profile American remake hitting theaters (starring Helen Mirren, Sam Worthington, Tom Wilkinson, and Jessica Chastain among others), I hope that the riveting 2007 Israeli picture that is its source material will get much more attention. This complicated adult thriller works on a myriad of levels and absolutely knocked me out when I first saw it. A complex narrative featuring alternate timelines highlights a tale of responsibility and recriminations across decades and international borders. Serious political thrillers can oftentimes be antiseptic or too aloof, but this hard-edged story covers a lot of ground while still remaining an intensely personal experience. At its heart, it is about individuals with a strong sense of duty battling with the morality and ethics of the position that they are put into. Emotionally and intellectually challenging, this is a film of unrelenting tension that had me enthralled throughout its running time.

Starting in 2007, the film...

I opted for the 2007 version
A friend recommended the U.S version (with Helen Mirren, 2011), but I love foreign films and liked the idea that this was the original version. Even though there were only 2 reviews, both highly recommended the film. I saw this via Amazon Instant Video. It does keep you on the edge till the very end. I haven't seen the later version so can't provide a comparison, but the acting here in the Israeli version was excellent and the story told very well. The one "spy" or female agent showed warmth and a very human side, unlike what you might expect. I'd highly recommend it.

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Last of the Mohicans (1920) (Silent)

The Best of the Mohicans
Last of the Mohicans is a very fine silent adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper's Classic novel. The film distils a long novel into its fairly short running time, but remains faithful to the essence of Cooper's story. The main change is that the role of Hawkeye is relegated to one of secondary importance. The emphasis of the film is on the romance between Uncas and Cora Munro and the scheming of the evil Magua to have Cora for himself.

The performances in the film are naturalistic and full of feeling. Wallace Beery as Magua makes a fine villain, while Barbara Bedford is a stunning Cora, brave, beautiful and feisty. But what makes this film work so well is the use of location, the glorious scenery and the thrilling action. Some of this action is surprisingly violent, especially an attack by drunken Hurons on a group of refugees. This attack includes a shocking scene of an infant torn from her mother's arms and thrown skyward to its death. Although the Hurons are shown in a poor...

A Remarkable Achievement.
Having recently revisited this title as part of the available films of Maurice Tourneur on commercial DVD (the others are ALIAS JIMMY VALENTINE, THE BLUE BIRD, A GIRL'S FOLLY, LORNA DOONE, VICTORY, and THE WISHING RING), I am again reminded of what a remarkable director he was and what a remarkable achievement this film is. Of all the existing versions this one is by far and away the most faithful to the James Fennimore Cooper original (the Daniel Day-Lewis version strays the farthest).

The film was beautifully photographed on mostly natural locations (Yosemite Valley) and features fine understated performances from all the principal players especially Barbara Bedford as Cora (Boris Karloff is briefly seen as an Indian who throws a baby up in the air). The film is co-credited to Tourneur and Clarence Brown (Garbo's favorite director and maker of THE YEARLING). Tourneur was injured during the filming and Brown shot most of it. In a magnanimous gesture Tourneur wanted Brown...

Last of the Mohicans (Silent Version)
The movie is an excellent depiction of James Fenimore Cooper's nove. The filming is beautifully done and for the most part true to Cooper's story line. Overall the movie follows the original book's plot better than any of the subsequent movie efforts including the 1990's version with Daniel Day Lewis as Hawkeye. The only other filmed version more true to the book is the 1970's Masterpiece Theater production. The filming of the massacre at Fort William Henry is a film masterpiece considering that it was produced in 1920. The realism is frightening in its rendition. Overall this is an excellent movie.

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Marriage Chronicles

Good date night movie
The production is the only thing holding this movie back. The acting is great and the story is wonderful. Nice pick for the price.

GOOD MOVIE, ENTERTAINING & MEN CAN LEARN
I saw this movie on cable, BET, and I was very surprised. Thought I might not like it but I did.

It was funny, had good teaching lesson for couples and should have opened mens eyes to what women
want, need and like. Men are always into themselves and being served by a woman, and not about
what a woman needs to keep their marriage or relationship going on the good track.

When you keep a woman happy and feeling good about the two of you, she gives you loads of love,
and loving situations that will keep a man happy. It works both ways, but the woman is often
the first to feel neglected and empty because men are always into themselves.

Into the games on TV, sports, the boys, work, playing BB, etc. They love to do guy things and
forget to include their partner into their lives. But you must learn to do both and balance
both. A woman is always trying to keep it all going and, it is impossible without the help and love...

Substance
This movie has alot of substance and truth to it. Other than the end of movie becoming a little crazy it was a great pick. I definitey recommend it.

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Celebrity Sex Tape

Blah!
It was messy, Not much of a good story line. They could have done a better job. Acting of some of the actors was lame.

Pretty warped
This movie about 5 nerds who create a sex tape of a drugged out female celebrity
and then post it to the internet was pretty twisted. Kinda like a guilty pleasure
as it did have some entertaining parts but the storyline was way over the top.
I wasn't happy about the stereotypical depictions of women or men for that matter. Unless
you like humor of the lowest common denominator, avoid it. If you like sex humor
mixed with some twisted values and warped excuse for morality, try it, you might, I repeat
might like it.

nope
to much preview hype. The movie was as lame as the title. Rent it first if at all possible. Maybe it was just me.

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Mozart's Sister

Sublime
This film took me completely by surprise. As a period piece, it satisfies to the greatest possible detail in visual and cultural accuracy, pulling us right into the lives and times so vividly that we can breathe it... or struggle to breathe as we so keenly feel the struggles. But to label this simply as a period piece would be a great injustice.

Superbly written and directed, this deep and lavish story of the lives within a family and the society it moved in, and especially that of a young woman so blessed with talent and yet thrust into such stifling conformity that manages to destroy the minds of some and the lives of others.

Every role -- every single role -- was impeccably performed by these amazing actors. But shining above them all was Marie Féret whose intensity of withheld emotions felt all the more powerful by her subtlety and restraint. I want to see her again and again.

I can't remember another film that gripped me so completely that...

Such an amazing film!
I absolutely love classical music and Mozart ranks among the top on my favorite list. To have a movie made in regards to the story people do not generally know or care about, that of Mozart's sister, is such a thrill. I was enthralled by the beauty of this movie and I hope that subtitles do not throw anyone off the fact that this movie, in regards to the screenwriting and filming, is very beautiful. As a disclaimer, I do speak French marginally well and thus the subtitles did not bother me. Give this movie a chance and see for yourself whether I speak truthfully or not. :)

Another perspective...
This movie was recommended to us by a friend. It tells a story of Mozart's sister. Who knew he had a sister! It was well told, presented well for the period giving a perspective of what was/wasn't expected from women... not to mention, the music was wonderful!!! Both my husband and I enjoyed it... and have passed the DVD on to friends to circulate.

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Dinner With Fred

Excellent Film
What a beautiful film. This is the type of film that is missing in today's postmodern film world. It's such an engaging story with wonderful characters. The filmmaker, Ben Proudfoot is amazing and he produced something special with 'Dinner with Fred.'





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Archive of World War Two - Victory at Sea - Parts 5 to 8

Great show
I remember watching the show on TV back in the 50's, I also downloaded parts 9-16. I hope the offer the final parts, 17-24

To The Rescue, America Marches
Major award winning series about some of the greatest battles of World War II. Great battle scenes on land and sea. These programs reveal what sailors' lives were like aboard ships, and also outline the importance of the SeaBees during wartime. A Seabee is a member of the United States Navy Construction Battalion (CB). The word "Seabee" comes from initials "CB". The Seabees have a history of building bases, bulldozing and paving thousands of miles of roadway and airstrips, and accomplishing a myriad of other construction projects in a wide variety of military theaters during World War II.

Mussolini's army tried to take Greece. In 1939 the Italians under Mussolini issue an ultimatum to the Greeks demanding they allow the Italian Army to cross into and occupy Greece. It is modern Greece's finest moment and the Greek response inspired the world.

Greek EvzoneIt is the beginning of the Second World War and the Axis powers seem unstoppable as one country after another...

The best of documentaries.
These episodes of Victory at Sea are quite comprehensive and contain much excellent contemporary film footage of events in WWll.

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The Atomic Cafe

Teach Your Children Well
This review is directed primarily to the under 30's who are still trying to figure out the boomer generation. As one savvy reviewer here surmised, this film goes a long way into explaining the psychological behavior of boomers who actually were instructed by well-meaning nuns (in my case)or other elementary and high school teachers to practice ducking beneath their desks in the event of a nuclear strike. As the wit, Dave Barry, points out, the stucture of wood and minimal steel was no doubt designed as a carefully-constructed safeguard against nuclear annihilation by the brain trust that was guiding the civil defense system of the era. Other such gross anomalies are addressed in this film.

In this case, the idea of looking back provides some comic relief, but I for one, can tell you, that when the sirens were going off every other day back in 1962-63, we didn't regard it as all that funny. Read the Amazon reviewer's take above, then invest some money in purchasing this film. It is...

Movie - 5 Stars - DVD - 3 Stars - Average - 4 Stars
Before Peter Kuran and his special effects magic on old atomic films, there was "The Atomic Café." It's a psuedo-documentary (it's all pieces of old Civil Defense, nuclear testing, and government films cobbled together, with some newsreel footage to boot) by Jayne Loader and Kevin Rafferty (George W. Bush's cousin, who later added his talents to a little production called "Roger and Me.") The humor is dark (and funny) only in retrospect, as "The Atomic Café" explores some of the most insidious and stupid moments of the cold war.

It starts with the Manhattan Project and the effects of the Bomb on Japan, and segues right into the Rosenberg's trial and the insanity of McCarthyism. Next, you have the famous "duck and cover" films along with lesser-known civil defense stuff, including fallout shelter plans and so forth. There is little narration, and what you hear, comes from the Rosenberg's testimony, army technicians explaining how radiation can be avoided (yeah,...

America Adapts to a Nuclear World -- on film...
The Atomic Cafe is a cult classic Cold War documentary, focusing on the development and deployment of nuclear weapons from the perspective of the U.S. in 1982. Some of the footage of nuclear detonations is breath-taking, especially when placed into the perspective of the time.

The Atomic Cafe does a masterful job of weaving together news reports, government information films, public service announcements and dramas from World War II right up through the Cold War of 1982. It's interesting to watch the sometimes frightening, sometimes naive and sometimes even humorous moments that illustrate the American culture adapting to a world in which it had the ultimate destructive power (the atomic bomb), then lost the edge over the menacing Soviet Union, then developed an even more powerful weapon (the hydrogren bomb) and then saw the Soviets catch up yet again.

Some of the moments in the documentary are just classic, thanks to great footage but even more, awesome editing. For instance, one...

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The Pear

it is weird
Yes it pretty much sums up the synopsis, weird and kooky, the production levels are pretty amateur, but the concept and performances are great!





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Thomas L. Friedman Reporting: Searching For the Roots of 9/11

An Exercise in Confirmation Bias
Reminiscent of the simplistic analysis pervasive in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, Mr. Friedman is not reporting, but rather seeking to support his obvious preconceived hypothesis. Namely, the theory that the attack was a function of Arabic feelings of inferiority and jealousy of American institutions. Two stars for the revealing look into the 2003 zeitgeist -- the root of arrogance that lead us into our failed wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Super interesting
This video teaches very well through interviews how foreign countries perceive the US. The reporter in the film did an excellent job in obtaining feedback from individuals with distinct cultures.

I'm not convinced.
Film brings out many motives of the alleged 9/11 plotters, but really falls short as to providing proof they had the means to complete attacks on 9/11. Keep searching Mr. Friedman. I'm not convinced. Includes good interviews with the Arab/Muslim peoples and their different points of view about America and 9/11.

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Death In Small Doses - 1957

What a gem!
What a joy to see my fav, Chuck Connors (The Rifleman), portraying an amphetamine junkie. Given the time period in which this film was made, I thought the film did a good job mimicking the behavioral and psychological effects of high dose amphetamine use in an interesting campy sort of way, akin to the effects of marijuana in Reefer Madness. Also nice to see Peter Graves (Mission Impossible as the lead detective that is going to bust the amphetamine ring. If you like movies of this era as much as I do, I think you are going to enjoy this film. Never a dull moment and it has an interesting surprise ending.

Peter Graves to the rescue
Death in Small Doses was an early attempt at exposing the problem of illegal amphetamines in the trucking industry. Actor Peter Graves portrays an undercover law enforcement officer who takes on the thugs who are delivering and distributing addictive drugs to truckers. Chuck Connors plays one of the truckers affected adversely by taking the illegal substances. Peter is young, healthy, and viral and does a great job in this black and white feature film. If you are a fan, you need to add this one to your collection.

Another must-see for the Peter Graves Fangirl
This movie was a nice surprise. (spoilers) ****** A fairly realistic depiction of the drug world as it is even now: upstanding businessman and suburban housewife who break bad and deal drugs. There was lots of action and some great fights. Who knew that big lug Chuck Connors could jitterbug?! The best part is Peter Graves, of course. Young and beautiful and sexy with the women. It was a very physical part for him and he looked gorgeous doing it. *swoon*

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Thomas L. Friedman Reporting: Straddling the Fence

A fascinating look into an impossible conflict
When Thomas Friedman went to the West Bank to see The Fence that physically separates the Palestinians from Israelis he wasn't sure of what he might find. This story, from one of the best journalists in the world, captures some of the inside reasons for the conflict and somehow offers at least a glimmer of hope for peace in the middle east. It's a riveting look into a world we don't really know much about.

Dated
This is a good documentary, but time has not been kind to the opinions expressed nor the dire predictions for the future. While the fears of Palestinians may have been well justified, the barrier has proven its value as a security measure by reducing terrorism in Israel proper originating from the West Bank to almost zero. The Palestinian claims that the barrier would destroy chances for a two state solution seem to have been more wishful thinking than reality. Most Palestinians have never accepted a two state solution. The barrier has not brought Israelis and Palestinians any closer to a solution, and it has surely made Israelis more complacent to the problems of individual Palestinians. It would be interesting to hear if Tom Friedman has changed his opinions in the intervening years.

Great Reporting
Thomas L. Friedman is the man for this job. His vast experience perfectly suits him for this special. It's an incredibly intense, controversial, and complicated topic and is explored perfectly by Friedman. Very insightful and informative. Must see.

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