Reviews Written By: A1HX00DL0SZM1Gprovided by Amazon.com |
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 | The Fugitive | |
 | "An abysmal transfer of an excellent movie" | 2009-10-07 |
| The movie itself is a 5-star movie but I can only give this release three stars because of the simply horrid transfer afforded it. Until Amazon comes up with a different rating system that allows us to grade the technical quality of the product (transfer etc) and the product itself (the movie) I have to give it a lower score than the movie deserves.
The movie features Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, a man falsely accused of the murder of his wife. Escaping from captivity a manhunt is launched for Kimble, led by U.S. Marshall Samuel Gerard (played in an Oscar winning performamce by Tommy Lee Jones). The ensuing action details Kimble's attempts to clear his name, all the while trying to evade his pursuers. Director Andrew Davis crafts a taught and exciting movie and delivers what is one of the best movies of the 1990s. But for all the movie does right Warner have seen fit to deliver it to Blu-ray in a transfer that is at times painful to watch with a soft and undefined image that contains large amounts of grain and is overall dull with a lack of detail. The Blu-ray fares somewhat better in the audio department however with a very active, if average by todays standards, track. Where Warner does deserve high marks is inclusion of all of the special features from the Special Edition DVD including a feature-length commentary track with Davis and Tommy Lee Jones that contains a lot of good information despite some long pauses. There os also a smattering of featurettes. Overall a disappointing presentation of an exceptional movie. Here is hoping that Warner revisits this title soon | ||
 | The Fugitive | |
| "An abysmal transfer of an excellent movie" | 2009-10-07 |
| The movie itself is a 5-star movie but I can only give this release three stars because of the simply horrid transfer afforded it. Until Amazon comes up with a different rating system that allows us to grade the technical quality of the product (transfer etc) and the product itself (the movie) I have to give it a lower score than the movie deserves.
The movie features Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, a man falsely accused of the murder of his wife. Escaping from captivity a manhunt is launched for Kimble, led by U.S. Marshall Samuel Gerard (played in an Oscar winning performamce by Tommy Lee Jones). The ensuing action details Kimble's attempts to clear his name, all the while trying to evade his pursuers. Director Andrew Davis crafts a taught and exciting movie and delivers what is one of the best movies of the 1990s. But for all the movie does right Warner have seen fit to deliver it to Blu-ray in a transfer that is at times painful to watch with a soft and undefined image that contains large amounts of grain and is overall dull with a lack of detail. The Blu-ray fares somewhat better in the audio department however with a very active, if average by todays standards, track. Where Warner does deserve high marks is inclusion of all of the special features from the Special Edition DVD including a feature-length commentary track with Davis and Tommy Lee Jones that contains a lot of good information despite some long pauses. There os also a smattering of featurettes. Overall a disappointing presentation of an exceptional movie. Here is hoping that Warner revisits this title soon | ||
 | The Fugitive (Special Edition) | |
| "An abysmal transfer of an excellent movie" | 2009-10-07 |
| The movie itself is a 5-star movie but I can only give this release three stars because of the simply horrid transfer afforded it. Until Amazon comes up with a different rating system that allows us to grade the technical quality of the product (transfer etc) and the product itself (the movie) I have to give it a lower score than the movie deserves.
The movie features Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, a man falsely accused of the murder of his wife. Escaping from captivity a manhunt is launched for Kimble, led by U.S. Marshall Samuel Gerard (played in an Oscar winning performamce by Tommy Lee Jones). The ensuing action details Kimble's attempts to clear his name, all the while trying to evade his pursuers. Director Andrew Davis crafts a taught and exciting movie and delivers what is one of the best movies of the 1990s. But for all the movie does right Warner have seen fit to deliver it to Blu-ray in a transfer that is at times painful to watch with a soft and undefined image that contains large amounts of grain and is overall dull with a lack of detail. The Blu-ray fares somewhat better in the audio department however with a very active, if average by todays standards, track. Where Warner does deserve high marks is inclusion of all of the special features from the Special Edition DVD including a feature-length commentary track with Davis and Tommy Lee Jones that contains a lot of good information despite some long pauses. There os also a smattering of featurettes. Overall a disappointing presentation of an exceptional movie. Here is hoping that Warner revisits this title soon | ||
![The Fugitive [HD DVD]](product_images/4923000/4923182_thumb.jpg) | The Fugitive [HD DVD] | |
| "An abysmal transfer of an excellent movie" | 2009-10-07 |
| The movie itself is a 5-star movie but I can only give this release three stars because of the simply horrid transfer afforded it. Until Amazon comes up with a different rating system that allows us to grade the technical quality of the product (transfer etc) and the product itself (the movie) I have to give it a lower score than the movie deserves.
The movie features Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, a man falsely accused of the murder of his wife. Escaping from captivity a manhunt is launched for Kimble, led by U.S. Marshall Samuel Gerard (played in an Oscar winning performamce by Tommy Lee Jones). The ensuing action details Kimble's attempts to clear his name, all the while trying to evade his pursuers. Director Andrew Davis crafts a taught and exciting movie and delivers what is one of the best movies of the 1990s. But for all the movie does right Warner have seen fit to deliver it to Blu-ray in a transfer that is at times painful to watch with a soft and undefined image that contains large amounts of grain and is overall dull with a lack of detail. The Blu-ray fares somewhat better in the audio department however with a very active, if average by todays standards, track. Where Warner does deserve high marks is inclusion of all of the special features from the Special Edition DVD including a feature-length commentary track with Davis and Tommy Lee Jones that contains a lot of good information despite some long pauses. There os also a smattering of featurettes. Overall a disappointing presentation of an exceptional movie. Here is hoping that Warner revisits this title soon | ||
 | The Wild Geese 2 | |
 | "Not as bad as some would have you believe - DVD please" | 2008-09-02 |
| Written by the same author and oiginally intended to star Richard Burton, this 1985 follow-up to the classoc 1978 original was(somewhat) unfairly mauled by critics upon its release. It shared the same fate of another favorite of mine (Force 10 From Navarone) in utilizing a well-known and beloved movie title with a very different plot line. Although I enjoy the original that starred Burton alongside Roger Moore and Richard Harris, I prefer the Cold War intrigue of this movie to the African backdrop of the 1978 film. I also think Edward Fox was a welcome substitution for Burton (who apparently died before filming began), channeling some of the Jackal character from his excellent performance in the earlier "Day of the Jackal", the only gripe I have regarding his character is that he is underused. In fact most of the movie is carried by the always watchable Scott Glenn and possibly my favorite of all 1980s actresses in the shapely form of Barbara Carrera. Glenn's character is hired by an American television network to spring Rudolf Hess (played by Laurence Olivier) from Spandau Prison in Berlin. Hess had been in Allied captivity since crash landing in Scotland in the early days of World War II and the network seems intent on discovering what secrets should be so dangerous to keep the man incarcerated alone and guarded by a rotation of French, Russian, British and American troops. The action is a little less intense and more subdued than the original, some fights and a little gunplay, but this is more than compensated for by a rather intriguing plot. I wouold love to see this movie be released on DVD soon. Considering someof the trash that is available already on DVD it's criminal that this movie is not yet available on those shuny silver discs. | ||
 | Samsung SC-D372 MiniDV Camcorder with 34x Optical Zoom | |
| "Great for what I needed it do do" | 2008-06-27 |
| I am not an expert at using a camcorder by any stretch of the imagination so I approached this product's mass of settings and controls with somewhat wary an approach. A family vacation up to New York and Canada earlier this year gave me the opportunity to put it through its paces and it passed with flying colors. I also was able to hook it up to my DVD recorder with a firewire cable (not included) and transfer it easily onto regular DVD. One thing that surprised me (given the reviews here concerning lighting) is that my camcorder works great in poor lighting. Watching it with my travel companions as I transferred the home video to DVD they remarked that the shots at an aquarium were brighter than they had been to the naked eye and brought out more detail. One troubling detail about the camera is that it needs to be hooked up to recharge the battery (which itself lasts about an hour). However I bought a TechFuel Premium Advanced Desktop Battery Charger as well as more powerful batteries by TechFuel (both given as accessories on the Amazon product page) and they work great. | ||
 | Samsung DVD-VR357 DVD/VCR Combined Recorder | |
| "The only DVD recorder you will ever need" | 2008-04-20 |
| For people who would like to record from those TV stations that normally will not allow a recording (you know the ones - HBO, Starz, Cinemax etc) this is the DVD recorder for you. Whether it is live or from my DVR this recorder will burn programs from those stations that other recorders will not without a problem. I had a Philips DVD Recorder for about 24 hours until I found that it would not record from Cinemax or Starz. So, I returned it and went with this one and have not looked back. So far I have made a number of recordings and it's still going strong. The playback works fine, espacilly using the HDMI cables to my HDTV. The XP quality of the programs it very close to the original High definition broadcast and SP is nothing to sniff at either. | ||
 | Memorex 100PK DVD-R 16X 4.7GB SPINDLE ( 32025641 ) | |
| "Works great with my recorder" | 2007-12-20 |
| I have burned over 300 of these brand of blank DVDs which should speak volumes. Sure there are a few duds in the pack, but I am more willing to acknowledge that as a hardware issue than a software one. I am perfectly happy with the quality of the discs and when I record HD programming from my DirecTV HD DVR I get discs with content that is extremely close (read barely notice the difference) to HD themselves.
Recommended. | ||
 | Casino Royale | |
 | "Classic spy novel introduces the world to a cultural icon" | 2007-10-13 |
| When British journalist Ian Fleming handed the manuscript for this novel to friends they implored him to write a second one, reasoning that if "Casino Royale" failed he would never want to produce another one. They need not have worried, as the James Bond books became one of the most enduringly popular series of novels in modern history and now, over 50 years later, much of "Casino Royale" still grips it's readers with a taut, yet breezy style. Having first read the novel in my youth I decided to revisit the Fleming series after the phenomenal success of the movie "Casino Royale." Over the years I had listened to a large portion of James Bond fans who consider this to be the best of Flemings Bond novels. But, I quickly realized upon rereading this novel that the pages did not turn quite as willingly or excitedly as they do for some of the other novels such as "Moonraker," "From Russia With Love" or "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." I think that Fleming had yet to settle into his rhythm and perfect his characteristic "Fleming sweep." Though a very enjoyable read I felt it too episodic with the climax of the novel seemingly mid-way through the book. Taking his inspiration from a real World War II incident in Portugal in which Fleming had attempted to defeat a Nazi at cards this freshman effort by Fleming pits his fictional creation against SMERSH's banker Le Chiffre. Much like Fleming had attempted a decade earlier(he lost the game against the German), British intelligence sends the best card player in the service to the fictional French casino in an effort to bankrupt the operations of the Russian intelligence service. This novels climax to me is the card game for there is no greater novelist who can enliven the action at the card tables like Fleming. And fittlingly the baccarat game in "Casino Royale" is riveting, holding the reader's attention throughout. It is not surprising therefore that I had forgotten the second half of the book in which Bond is tortured and ultimately falls in love with Vesper Lynd, as the most interesting and entertaining section of the book had already passed. That's not to say that you should not read this novel, you should. It's a fun read and a good introduction to the world of 007. just don't be surprised if you find your attention tends to wander during the second half. Well recommended. | ||
 | 11 Harrowhouse | |
| "Come on Fox, please give us a DVD of this entertaining caper movie" | 2006-06-16 |
| I have long been a fan of this entertaining 1970s caper movie and so, even though I am a DVD devotee, I had no qualms about picking up a VHS copy. Though, a region-free DVD player comes in handy for movies like THE FOURTH PROTOCOL, HIGH ROAD TO CHINA, WHEN EIGHT BELLS TOLL and SILVER BEARS, I have yet to find a region where this movie is released. However I do have a qualm. It appears that the quirky dry humor laden internal commentary by the lead Charles Grodin is missing from this VHS tape. This is an essential part of what makes this movie so engaging because although this movie is not filmed strictly as a comedy (except for the last 20 minutes or so), Grodins commentary kept the atmosphere light and carefree even in the moments of high-tension. This movie also benefits from a truly amazing high-caliber cast. Featured alongside Grodin is Candice Bergen (later to find fame as Murphy Brown), James Mason, Trevor Howard and Sir John Gielgud. Given this cast and the clever humor and plot it really is astounding that this movie has yet to find a DVD release. The movie centers around small-time diamond trader Howard R. Chesser who suddenly finds himself negotiating a million-pound deal (a lot more in 1974 than it sounds today). Treated with contempt by the Diamond Exchange located at 11 Harrowhouse (which carefully controls the flow of diamonds and stockpiles tons of them in order to maintain their value), Chesser jumps at the chance to snub his nose at the Exchange and particularly its snobbish Director Meecham (played by Gielgud). Financing the deal is the multi-millionaire Clyde Massey (played by Trevor Howard), who wants a large diamond to be named "The Massey." However, things do not go according to plan and when Chesser is robbed of the diamond on his return from getting it cut he finds himself blackmailed by Massey into engineering the theft of all four tons of diamonds stockpiled at the Exchange. With the help of his free-spirited girlfriend Maren (Bergen), the gravely ill employee at the Exchange named Watts (played by Mason) and a giant vacuum hose the three manage to literally suck up all the diamonds through the wiring system. It's an ingenious plot and I liked the line of commentary from Grodin. As he sits on the roof hearing the stones going through the hose he ponders what the hourly rate might be for work like this. Yet, all is not as it seems. And the fact that there is still a half-hour of movie left after the theft is completed should tell you that a bigger and more rousing climax is approaching, and does it ever with gun-toting men on horseback and cars chasing Chesser and Maren through the English countryside. All in all this is a thoroughly entertaining movie and much better than some other titles that have already seen a DVD release. Come on Fox, give us this movie in our favorite format. | ||
 | Conan the Destroyer | |
| "An action adventure movie whose faults (of which there are many) are now charming in their cheesiness" | 2006-06-07 |
| Filming movies back-to-back is nothing new, the obvious savings and advantages on sharing production costs, crew and even marketing meant that the second and third BACK TO THE FUTURE films were filmed simultaneously in the late 1980s. Even today the two sequels to PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN are being filmed hand-in-hand and there are reports that the second Daniel Craig 007 movie will enter into production shortly after the crew have wrapped CASINO ROYALE. So, it should be no surprise then that the second Conan movie was part of a similar back-to-back deal in the early- to mid-1980s. But what is surprising is that the movie that partnered with the rollicking adventure movie was a quirky science fiction blockbuster from David Lynch named DUNE. That's right, as that big-budget turkey was roasting under the Mexican sun, a pre-Terminator Arnold Schwarzenegger was working on a much more entertaining movie with a colorful cast of characters. Based (rather loosely) on the series of novels by Robert E. Howard, this 1984 feature was a sequel to the much darker and more sinister 1982 movie CONAN THE BARBARIAN and saw Schwarzenegger reprise his role as the monumentally strong thief and adventurer. The director of this entry, the veteran Richard Fleischer actually owed his hire for this movie to another movie he had made almost 30 years earlier, 1958's THE VIKINGS. Producer Raffaella De Laurentiis had commented that since they had tried to copy that movies style and look for the 1982 picture, why not hire that movie's director for this production - and so Fleischer was hired. Once hired Fleischer set about shaping the movie to his liking. One of the most publicized, decisions he made was telling an incredulous Schwarzenegger that he needed to buff up a bit more. Fleischer said that at the time of the release of CONAN THE BARBARIAN he had been disappointed that Arnold's incredible physique had been covered up for most of the movie, Fleischer also consciously set about making this a lighter entry to the series. The Conan here has a number of genuinely comedic moments, from punching a camel, a horse and attempting to teach a beautiful princess how to wield his sword, Schwarzenegger shows early promise in a genre that would not fully be realized until movies such as TWINS and KINDERGARTEN COP. Joining Schwarzenegger this time is Sarah Douglas (of SUPERMAN II fame) as the evil Queen Taramis who enlists Conan's help in retrieving a crystal and in turn a magical jeweled horn. Former basketball star Wilt Chamberlain is on board also as the towering Bombaata, who is charged with keeping the princess Jehnna, who is destined to bring back the mystical object (played by the impossibly beautiful Olivia D'Abo) a virgin so that she can be sacrificed. Along the way Conan's ragtag group meet up with Zula, played by Grace Jones. The scene that introduced Jones' character sees her wielding a stick against a group of tormentors and reportedly she landed a few strikes sending a couple of stuntmen in the hospital. It was in fact her role here that brought her to the attention of the James Bond producers that in turn led to her starring in Roger Moore's swan song as 007 in 1985's A VIEW TO A KILL. Far from a great acting display her character still provides a number of memorable moments and is one of the movie's highlights. The special effects are very dated by today's standards and Pat Roach (veteran of NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN and the Indiana Jones movies) makeup as the wizard Toth-Amon guarding the crystal really is appallingly fake-looking. But the movie is a good popcorn flick that is both fun and fast-paced enough that you can easily forgive these lapses. Interestingly in the audio commentary that accompanied CONAN THE BARBARIAN Schwarzenegger commented that he would be interested in making a third Conan movie. Sadly this has not been forthcoming and now that he looks intent on pursuing political goals it appears less and less likely. A shame. This movie is nowhere near as good as its predecessor, but it's still recommended for those rainy Saturday afternoons. | ||
 | Conan the Destroyer | |
| "An action adventure movie whose faults (of which there are many) are now charming in their cheesiness" | 2006-06-07 |
| Filming movies back-to-back is nothing new, the obvious savings and advantages on sharing production costs, crew and even marketing meant that the second and third BACK TO THE FUTURE films were filmed simultaneously in the late 1980s. Even today the two sequels to PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN are being filmed hand-in-hand and there are reports that the second Daniel Craig 007 movie will enter into production shortly after the crew have wrapped CASINO ROYALE. So, it should be no surprise then that the second Conan movie was part of a similar back-to-back deal in the early- to mid-1980s. But what is surprising is that the movie that partnered with the rollicking adventure movie was a quirky science fiction blockbuster from David Lynch named DUNE. That's right, as that big-budget turkey was roasting under the Mexican sun, a pre-Terminator Arnold Schwarzenegger was working on a much more entertaining movie with a colorful cast of characters. Based (rather loosely) on the series of novels by Robert E. Howard, this 1984 feature was a sequel to the much darker and more sinister 1982 movie CONAN THE BARBARIAN and saw Schwarzenegger reprise his role as the monumentally strong thief and adventurer. The director of this entry, the veteran Richard Fleischer actually owed his hire for this movie to another movie he had made almost 30 years earlier, 1958's THE VIKINGS. Producer Raffaella De Laurentiis had commented that since they had tried to copy that movies style and look for the 1982 picture, why not hire that movie's director for this production - and so Fleischer was hired. Once hired Fleischer set about shaping the movie to his liking. One of the most publicized, decisions he made was telling an incredulous Schwarzenegger that he needed to buff up a bit more. Fleischer said that at the time of the release of CONAN THE BARBARIAN he had been disappointed that Arnold's incredible physique had been covered up for most of the movie, Fleischer also consciously set about making this a lighter entry to the series. The Conan here has a number of genuinely comedic moments, from punching a camel, a horse and attempting to teach a beautiful princess how to wield his sword, Schwarzenegger shows early promise in a genre that would not fully be realized until movies such as TWINS and KINDERGARTEN COP. Joining Schwarzenegger this time is Sarah Douglas (of SUPERMAN II fame) as the evil Queen Taramis who enlists Conan's help in retrieving a crystal and in turn a magical jeweled horn. Former basketball star Wilt Chamberlain is on board also as the towering Bombaata, who is charged with keeping the princess Jehnna, who is destined to bring back the mystical object (played by the impossibly beautiful Olivia D'Abo) a virgin so that she can be sacrificed. Along the way Conan's ragtag group meet up with Zula, played by Grace Jones. The scene that introduced Jones' character sees her wielding a stick against a group of tormentors and reportedly she landed a few strikes sending a couple of stuntmen in the hospital. It was in fact her role here that brought her to the attention of the James Bond producers that in turn led to her starring in Roger Moore's swan song as 007 in 1985's A VIEW TO A KILL. Far from a great acting display her character still provides a number of memorable moments and is one of the movie's highlights. The special effects are very dated by today's standards and Pat Roach (veteran of NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN and the Indiana Jones movies) makeup as the wizard Toth-Amon guarding the crystal really is appallingly fake-looking. But the movie is a good popcorn flick that is both fun and fast-paced enough that you can easily forgive these lapses. Interestingly in the audio commentary that accompanied CONAN THE BARBARIAN Schwarzenegger commented that he would be interested in making a third Conan movie. Sadly this has not been forthcoming and now that he looks intent on pursuing political goals it appears less and less likely. A shame. This movie is nowhere near as good as its predecessor, but it's still recommended for those rainy Saturday afternoons. | ||
 | New York Minute (Widescreen Edition) | |
| "I could not help myself from enjoying this movie - a total surprise" | 2006-05-21 |
| Something must have appealed to me about NEW YORK MINUTE for me to add it to my TiVo list. As someone who managed to miss all of the previous efforts by the twins it wasn't an attempt to capture any nostaligic feeling. It wasn't also based on anything related to the story - teens get mixed up in series of mishaps in big city has been done many times before, such as Elizabeth Shue's ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING. You know what I think it was, most possibly a clip of two totally hot looking blonde actresses (let's face it they are) and the chemistry and comic timing they seem to have together. No, high-class art NEW YORK MINUTE is not. It's not the funniest movie out either. But what is lacks in what some perceive as it flaws it makes up for with good natured fun. Yes, this is a fun movie. It's fun to see the two go from one misadventure to another initially with a mutual contempt that becomes a realization on the importance of family and family ties. The movie features Jane Ryan (Ashley Olsen), a straight-A uptight Long island high school student who organizes her entire life around her day planner. She's driven and ambitious and determined to win a scholarship to go study at Oxford in England. She has her speech/pitch ready to be delivered in New York and seems as preapred as anyone could be. But fate has a cruel twist in store for her. Enter her sister Roxy (played by Mary-Kate Olsen), she's about as different from Jane as possible. Roxy is with a rock-band and acts with spontaneity that Jane would find scary. She also has made a habit of playing truant, something that has brought her to the attantion of Nassau Co. truancy officer Max Lomax (played by comic genius Eugene Levy.) Roxy is tasked with getting her sister to the train station, but she has her own plans for the big city, determined to deliver some demo tapes to record producers on hand for the videotaping of a new rock video. So, the two head for the big city with the bumbling Lomax in hot pursuit. Through some crazy machinations they become entangled up with some music and video pirates (including the hilarious Andy Richter as a goon who thinks he is Chinese) and the son of a U.S. Senator (and her dog) and are soon running through the streets of New York City in little more than bath towels. I've read a lot of reviewers on her dissing the acting of Ashley and Mary-Kate. Well, it's true that they are not going to be winning any Oscars for their roles here, but they deliver their performances with an infectious enthusiasm that had be lapping up every minute of the movie. I enjoyed it, I simply could not help myself. This movie comes recommended, and I really didn't think it would be. I surprised myself by enjoying every zany moment of it. And those girls are too cute! | ||
 | New York Minute (Full Screen Edition) | |
| "I could not help myself from enjoying this movie - a total surprise" | 2006-05-21 |
| Something must have appealed to me about NEW YORK MINUTE for me to add it to my TiVo list. As someone who managed to miss all of the previous efforts by the twins it wasn't an attempt to capture any nostaligic feeling. It wasn't also based on anything related to the story - teens get mixed up in series of mishaps in big city has been done many times before, such as Elizabeth Shue's ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING. You know what I think it was, most possibly a clip of two totally hot looking blonde actresses (let's face it they are) and the chemistry and comic timing they seem to have together.
No, high-class art NEW YORK MINUTE is not. It's not the funniest movie out either. But what is lacks in what some perceive as it flaws it makes up for with good natured fun. Yes, this is a fun movie. It's fun to see the two go from one misadventure to another initially with a mutual contempt that becomes a realization on the importance of family and family ties. The movie features Jane Ryan (Ashley Olsen), a straight-A uptight Long island high school student who organizes her entire life around her day planner. She's driven and ambitious and determined to win a scholarship to go study at Oxford in England. She has her speech/pitch ready to be delivered in New York and seems as preapred as anyone could be. But fate has a cruel twist in store for her. Enter her sister Roxy (played by Mary-Kate Olsen), she's about as different from Jane as possible. Roxy is with a rock-band and acts with spontaneity that Jane would find scary. She also has made a habit of playing truant, something that has brought her to the attantion of Nassau Co. truancy officer Max Lomax (played by comic genius Eugene Levy.) Roxy is tasked with getting her sister to the train station, but she has her own plans for the big city, determined to deliver some demo tapes to record producers on hand for the videotaping of a new rock video. So, the two head for the big city with the bumbling Lomax in hot pursuit. Through some crazy machinations they become entangled up with some music and video pirates (including the hilarious Andy Richter as a goon who thinks he is Chinese) and the son of a U.S. Senator (and her dog) and are soon running through the streets of New York City in little more than bath towels. I've read a lot of reviewers on her dissing the acting of Ashley and Mary-Kate. Well, it's true that they are not going to be winning any Oscars for their roles here, but they deliver their performances with an infectious enthusiasm that had be lapping up every minute of the movie. I enjoyed it, I simply could not help myself. This movie comes recommended, and I really didn't think it would be. I surprised myself by enjoying every zany moment of it. And those girls are too cute! | ||
 | New York Minute / When In Rome (2-Pack) | |
| "I could not help myself from enjoying this movie - a total surprise" | 2006-05-21 |
| Something must have appealed to me about NEW YORK MINUTE for me to add it to my TiVo list. As someone who managed to miss all of the previous efforts by the twins it wasn't an attempt to capture any nostaligic feeling. It wasn't also based on anything related to the story - teens get mixed up in series of mishaps in big city has been done many times before, such as Elizabeth Shue's ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING. You know what I think it was, most possibly a clip of two totally hot looking blonde actresses (let's face it they are) and the chemistry and comic timing they seem to have together. No, high-class art NEW YORK MINUTE is not. It's not the funniest movie out either. But what is lacks in what some perceive as it flaws it makes up for with good natured fun. Yes, this is a fun movie. It's fun to see the two go from one misadventure to another initially with a mutual contempt that becomes a realization on the importance of family and family ties. The movie features Jane Ryan (Ashley Olsen), a straight-A uptight Long island high school student who organizes her entire life around her day planner. She's driven and ambitious and determined to win a scholarship to go study at Oxford in England. She has her speech/pitch ready to be delivered in New York and seems as preapred as anyone could be. But fate has a cruel twist in store for her. Enter her sister Roxy (played by Mary-Kate Olsen), she's about as different from Jane as possible. Roxy is with a rock-band and acts with spontaneity that Jane would find scary. She also has made a habit of playing truant, something that has brought her to the attantion of Nassau Co. truancy officer Max Lomax (played by comic genius Eugene Levy.) Roxy is tasked with getting her sister to the train station, but she has her own plans for the big city, determined to deliver some demo tapes to record producers on hand for the videotaping of a new rock video. So, the two head for the big city with the bumbling Lomax in hot pursuit. Through some crazy machinations they become entangled up with some music and video pirates (including the hilarious Andy Richter as a goon who thinks he is Chinese) and the son of a U.S. Senator (and her dog) and are soon running through the streets of New York City in little more than bath towels. I've read a lot of reviewers on her dissing the acting of Ashley and Mary-Kate. Well, it's true that they are not going to be winning any Oscars for their roles here, but they deliver their performances with an infectious enthusiasm that had be lapping up every minute of the movie. I enjoyed it, I simply could not help myself. This movie comes recommended, and I really didn't think it would be. I surprised myself by enjoying every zany moment of it. And those girls are too cute! | ||
 | The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe | |
| "Emmy-winning adaptation of a childhood favorite" | 2006-05-19 |
| Winning a 1979 Emmy award for "Outstanding Animated Program" (executive producer David D. Connell and producer Steven Cuitlahuac Melendez) and being nominated for a second in Outstanding Individual Achievement - Animation Program" (writers Bill Melendez and Connell), this animated version of the C.S. Lewis book holds a special place in my heart - it was the adaptation that introduced me to Narnia. Directed by Bill Melendez (the man who gave us the Charlie Brown and Peanuts movies) this cartoon is beautiful in its simplicity. Of course to am eight-year old the Christian imagery was not apparent, but what I do remember through the clouds of nostalgia is being entranced by the magic and the adventure. Made for television it was one of those movies tha tbecame a perennial favorite for British television during the movie-heavy Christmas period and was one that I eagerly awaited (this was after all the days before the mass ownership of VCR's.) So, it was with a mixture of excitement and nervous anticipation that I picked up my copy - and I was not disappointed. Of course for big-screen spectacle nothing can really match the 2005 Disney blockbuster of the same name (which has become Disney's most successful live-action movie ever with grosses over $740 million and has a second movie PRINCE CASPIAN prepping for a summer 2008 release,) but for simple storytelling and involving characters this animated movie is successful in what it sets out to do. Featuring clever narration by the leads, dead-on expression by the characters and lines taken from the Lewis book this movie succeeds in making a faithful, good adaptation in 95 minutes. This version also features two of the most recognizable voices from British television of this era in Leslie Phillips as Mr. Timnus and Leo McKern as the professor, amongst a cast of largely unknowns. The animation can appear inconsistent at times but the drawing style is both unique and enchanting. This is a far better work than the BBC production, which featured terrible production design and acting and perhaps the most fake-looking Aslan possible. The story is well-known but for those who are unfamiliar with the novel or the adaptations the story revolves around four children who are sent to live with a professor. There they find a passage to a mysterious land known as Narnia through the back of a giant wardrobe. Narnia is a world in a state of perpetual winter due to the rule of the evil White Witch. But, the childrens arrival has been foretold and a determined group of magical creatures, led by the noble lion Aslan believe they are the ones predicted to deliver Narnia from the witch's iron grip. This is a "kid-safe" production that parents need not worry about showing to their children, the action scenes are done just right and the dark moments are not taken too seriously, and yet there is enough intellect in the exposition to satisfy adults. The music by Michael J. Lewis is also a highlight which is full of light and fits the scenes perfectly. There are two versions of this movie available on DVD. In an unusual move the cheaper of the two is actually better. Whereas the more expensive version clocking in at just under $25 has only some trailers, the cheaper one (for about $14 or less) has information on Lewis and the Narnia books). Certainly the cover and menu's may be better on the more expensive one, but other than that the cheaper version is the easier one to recommend. | ||
 | Lethal Weapon 2 | |
| "Gibson and Glover reunite for fun cop movie" | 2006-05-12 |
| The summer of 1989 was loaded with blockbusters, yet there was only one movie that I really wanted to see more than any other. In a season that saw such blockbusters as a new Indiana Jones movie, the latest Star Trek picture and Timothy Dalton's second outing as 007, the movie that held the most excitement for me was LETHAL WEAPON 2. Not because of Mel Gibson or Danny Glover or a particular love of the original, but because the love interest came in the very lovely shape of the lead singer of one of my favorite 1980s bands (Eighth Wonder) Patsy Kensit. Truth be told though, there's not much to Kensit's role here, she is there simply as window dressing in the part of a secretary at the South African consulate. The movie as a whole though is a great, fun ride and is easily my favorite of the franchise. The plot of the movie involves drug smuggling that is being conducted by officials at the South African consulate. Back in the 1980s South Africa was largely an international pariah because of its policy of apartheid. This made it easy to target them as the villains and their position as diplomats provides them with the protective vbeil of diplomatic immunity. As lead villain Arjen Rudd (played wonderfully by British actor Joss Ackland) comments when confronting the Los Angeles police officers "you could not even give me a parking ticket." Starting with a chase through the night streets of Los Angeles, the movie races from one action sequence to another rarely pausing for breath in what is a classic cop buddy movie. Both Gibson and Glover make a great team and the interplay between them provides for some really subtle humor. Which brings us to Joe Pesci, whose humor is about as subtle as a sledgehammer in the role of witness Leo Getz - "Whatever you want Leo Getz - get it!?" Pesci is at times annoying and at other times loveable, but he is always funny. Obviously he was also a hit with the audience too as he would return in the third and fourth movie of the series. As a bonus for Kensit fans like myself - in the scene where Leo is cleaning Riggs house you can hear Eighth Wonder's biggest hit "I'm not Scared" playing in the background. It's a shame they did not have Kensit's character survive until the end as they had originally planned, but I understand that her death leads Riggs to take the dramatic action that he does. This is my favorite cop movie (alongside "Beverly Hills Cop" and an entertaining way to spend 114 minutes or 118 minutes if you go with the directors cut. Scenes included in the directors cut includes Leo using numbers to remember a suspects address and Murtaugh getting some bad news from an auto-repair man after Riggs drives his new station wagon up against a guardrail. Pretty standard stuff that I felt did not add anything particularly. The directors cut also comes with a making of featurette, cast and crew bios and a theatrical trailer. Here's hoping that one day soon Warner will put out an ultimate edition. Director Richard Donner has already done a great commentary track on the original Suoerman movie and a commentary track here would be welcome also. Recommended. | ||
 | Lethal Weapon 2 - DTS | |
| "Gibson and Glover reunite for fun cop movie" | 2006-05-12 |
| The summer of 1989 was loaded with blockbusters, yet there was only one movie that I really wanted to see more than any other. In a season that saw such blockbusters as a new Indiana Jones movie, the latest Star Trek picture and Timothy Dalton's second outing as 007, the movie that held the most excitement for me was LETHAL WEAPON 2. Not because of Mel Gibson or Danny Glover or a particular love of the original, but because the love interest came in the very lovely shape of the lead singer of one of my favorite 1980s bands (Eighth Wonder) Patsy Kensit. Truth be told though, there's not much to Kensit's role here, she is there simply as window dressing in the part of a secretary at the South African consulate. The movie as a whole though is a great, fun ride and is easily my favorite of the franchise. The plot of the movie involves drug smuggling that is being conducted by officials at the South African consulate. Back in the 1980s South Africa was largely an international pariah because of its policy of apartheid. This made it easy to target them as the villains and their position as diplomats provides them with the protective vbeil of diplomatic immunity. As lead villain Arjen Rudd (played wonderfully by British actor Joss Ackland) comments when confronting the Los Angeles police officers "you could not even give me a parking ticket." Starting with a chase through the night streets of Los Angeles, the movie races from one action sequence to another rarely pausing for breath in what is a classic cop buddy movie. Both Gibson and Glover make a great team and the interplay between them provides for some really subtle humor. Which brings us to Joe Pesci, whose humor is about as subtle as a sledgehammer in the role of witness Leo Getz - "Whatever you want Leo Getz - get it!?" Pesci is at times annoying and at other times loveable, but he is always funny. Obviously he was also a hit with the audience too as he would return in the third and fourth movie of the series. As a bonus for Kensit fans like myself - in the scene where Leo is cleaning Riggs house you can hear Eighth Wonder's biggest hit "I'm not Scared" playing in the background. It's a shame they did not have Kensit's character survive until the end as they had originally planned, but I understand that her death leads Riggs to take the dramatic action that he does. This is my favorite cop movie (alongside "Beverly Hills Cop" and an entertaining way to spend 114 minutes or 118 minutes if you go with the directors cut. Scenes included in the directors cut includes Leo using numbers to remember a suspects address and Murtaugh getting some bad news from an auto-repair man after Riggs drives his new station wagon up against a guardrail. Pretty standard stuff that I felt did not add anything particularly. The directors cut also comes with a making of featurette, cast and crew bios and a theatrical trailer. Here's hoping that one day soon Warner will put out an ultimate edition. Director Richard Donner has already done a great commentary track on the original Suoerman movie and a commentary track here would be welcome also. Recommended. | ||
 | Lethal Weapon 2 | |
| "Gibson and Glover reunite for fun cop movie" | 2006-05-12 |
| The summer of 1989 was loaded with blockbusters, yet there was only one movie that I really wanted to see more than any other. In a season that saw such blockbusters as a new Indiana Jones movie, the latest Star Trek picture and Timothy Dalton's second outing as 007, the movie that held the most excitement for me was LETHAL WEAPON 2. Not because of Mel Gibson or Danny Glover or a particular love of the original, but because the love interest came in the very lovely shape of the lead singer of one of my favorite 1980s bands (Eighth Wonder) Patsy Kensit. Truth be told though, there's not much to Kensit's role here, she is there simply as window dressing in the part of a secretary at the South African consulate. The movie as a whole though is a great, fun ride and is easily my favorite of the franchise. The plot of the movie involves drug smuggling that is being conducted by officials at the South African consulate. Back in the 1980s South Africa was largely an international pariah because of its policy of apartheid. This made it easy to target them as the villains and their position as diplomats provides them with the protective vbeil of diplomatic immunity. As lead villain Arjen Rudd (played wonderfully by British actor Joss Ackland) comments when confronting the Los Angeles police officers "you could not even give me a parking ticket." Starting with a chase through the night streets of Los Angeles, the movie races from one action sequence to another rarely pausing for breath in what is a classic cop buddy movie. Both Gibson and Glover make a great team and the interplay between them provides for some really subtle humor. Which brings us to Joe Pesci, whose humor is about as subtle as a sledgehammer in the role of witness Leo Getz - "Whatever you want Leo Getz - get it!?" Pesci is at times annoying and at other times loveable, but he is always funny. Obviously he was also a hit with the audience too as he would return in the third and fourth movie of the series. As a bonus for Kensit fans like myself - in the scene where Leo is cleaning Riggs house you can hear Eighth Wonder's biggest hit "I'm not Scared" playing in the background. It's a shame they did not have Kensit's character survive until the end as they had originally planned, but I understand that her death leads Riggs to take the dramatic action that he does. This is my favorite cop movie (alongside "Beverly Hills Cop" and an entertaining way to spend 114 minutes or 118 minutes if you go with the directors cut. Scenes included in the directors cut includes Leo using numbers to remember a suspects address and Murtaugh getting some bad news from an auto-repair man after Riggs drives his new station wagon up against a guardrail. Pretty standard stuff that I felt did not add anything particularly. The directors cut also comes with a making of featurette, cast and crew bios and a theatrical trailer. Here's hoping that one day soon Warner will put out an ultimate edition. Director Richard Donner has already done a great commentary track on the original Suoerman movie and a commentary track here would be welcome also. Recommended. | ||
 | Lethal Weapon 2 | |
| "Gibson and Glover reunite for fun cop movie" | 2006-05-12 |
| The summer of 1989 was loaded with blockbusters, yet there was only one movie that I really wanted to see more than any other. In a season that saw such blockbusters as a new Indiana Jones movie, the latest Star Trek picture and Timothy Dalton's second outing as 007, the movie that held the most excitement for me was LETHAL WEAPON 2. Not because of Mel Gibson or Danny Glover or a particular love of the original, but because the love interest came in the very lovely shape of the lead singer of one of my favorite 1980s bands (Eighth Wonder) Patsy Kensit. Truth be told though, there's not much to Kensit's role here, she is there simply as window dressing in the part of a secretary at the South African consulate. The movie as a whole though is a great, fun ride and is easily my favorite of the franchise. The plot of the movie involves drug smuggling that is being conducted by officials at the South African consulate. Back in the 1980s South Africa was largely an international pariah because of its policy of apartheid. This made it easy to target them as the villains and their position as diplomats provides them with the protective vbeil of diplomatic immunity. As lead villain Arjen Rudd (played wonderfully by British actor Joss Ackland) comments when confronting the Los Angeles police officers "you could not even give me a parking ticket." Starting with a chase through the night streets of Los Angeles, the movie races from one action sequence to another rarely pausing for breath in what is a classic cop buddy movie. Both Gibson and Glover make a great team and the interplay between them provides for some really subtle humor. Which brings us to Joe Pesci, whose humor is about as subtle as a sledgehammer in the role of witness Leo Getz - "Whatever you want Leo Getz - get it!?" Pesci is at times annoying and at other times loveable, but he is always funny. Obviously he was also a hit with the audience too as he would return in the third and fourth movie of the series. As a bonus for Kensit fans like myself - in the scene where Leo is cleaning Riggs house you can hear Eighth Wonder's biggest hit "I'm not Scared" playing in the background. It's a shame they did not have Kensit's character survive until the end as they had originally planned, but I understand that her death leads Riggs to take the dramatic action that he does. This is my favorite cop movie (alongside "Beverly Hills Cop" and an entertaining way to spend 114 minutes or 118 minutes if you go with the directors cut. Scenes included in the directors cut includes Leo using numbers to remember a suspects address and Murtaugh getting some bad news from an auto-repair man after Riggs drives his new station wagon up against a guardrail. Pretty standard stuff that I felt did not add anything particularly. The directors cut also comes with a making of featurette, cast and crew bios and a theatrical trailer. Here's hoping that one day soon Warner will put out an ultimate edition. Director Richard Donner has already done a great commentary track on the original Suoerman movie and a commentary track here would be welcome also. Recommended. | ||
 | The McKenzie Break | |
| "Battle of wits in classic POW drama - recommended" | 2006-05-10 |
| Right from the start you know that THE McKENZIE BREAK will not be like any other POW movie. We see British troops guarding the camp for German POW's. And in the opening minutes the tension is firmly established with the British attempting to shackle 25 officers of the Reich in retaliation for a similar action by Germany - an effort the Germans refuse to cooperate with. It's a clever device and sets the tone perfectly for what director Lamont Johnson sought to do in not glamorizing war "as a game." Variety described the movie as "a taut, classically crafted World War II POW escape drama," but in fact the movie, which is based on a book by Sidney Shelley, is unlike every other POW movie I can think of in one key respect. From earlier films such as THE COLDITZ STORY through to THE GREAT ESCAPE right up to HART'S WAR, POW drama's have centered on a likeable group of Allied prisoners attempting to escape. Here the audience sympathies are reversed. The German prisoners are not particularly likeable, even going out of their way to kill one of their own, and in the closing minutes as the net closes around the fleeing escapees the audience hopes that the Allies will catch them in time. It has shades of the drama THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY, except in that movie the German is a likeable character and the audience sympathies do swing back and forward between him and his pursuers. This movie is more focused on the battle of wits between Capt. Jack Connor (the always likeable Brian Keith in a role far removed from perhaps his most famous role in the original THE PARENT TRAP) and Kapitan Schleutter (Helmut Griem.) After the camp commander (Ian Hendry) has been unable to contain the prisoners, the no-nonsense and brash Connor is brought in and becomes a race against time to prevent the mass escape of prisoners, who have a date with a U-boat off the Scottish coast. Indeed this movie is as much about the battle between these two men as it is about the drama of escaping POW's. The climax may feature a torpedo boat and Allied plane facing off against a U-boat. But, it is the dramatic climax between Connor and Schleutter that brings the movie to a close. So, perhaps it's not surprising that Variety also praised the movie as "intelligent" with "strong three dimensiona; portrayals." Nor should it be surprising that I find this as riveting and as exciting as any of the other POW movies that are featured in my DVD collection. The DVD release includes a "collectible booklet" which is more akin to a flyer, being as it is just a page and a half of text. The full-frame trailer that accompanies the DVD is also of appalling quality with niches and scratches all over the dirty print that has washed out colors and an audio track that does not seem to fit with the visuals. I recommend this movie for the discerning World War II movie fan. | ||
 | The McKenzie Break | |
| "Battle of wits in classic POW drama - recommended" | 2006-05-10 |
| Right from the start you know that THE McKENZIE BREAK will not be like any other POW movie. We see British troops guarding the camp for German POW's. And in the opening minutes the tension is firmly established with the British attempting to shackle 25 officers of the Reich in retaliation for a similar action by Germany - an effort the Germans refuse to cooperate with. It's a clever device and sets the tone perfectly for what director Lamont Johnson sought to do in not glamorizing war "as a game." Variety described the movie as "a taut, classically crafted World War II POW escape drama," but in fact the movie, which is based on a book by Sidney Shelley, is unlike every other POW movie I can think of in one key respect. From earlier films such as THE COLDITZ STORY through to THE GREAT ESCAPE right up to HART'S WAR, POW drama's have centered on a likeable group of Allied prisoners attempting to escape. Here the audience sympathies are reversed. The German prisoners are not particularly likeable, even going out of their way to kill one of their own, and in the closing minutes as the net closes around the fleeing escapees the audience hopes that the Allies will catch them in time. It has shades of the drama THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY, except in that movie the German is a likeable character and the audience sympathies do swing back and forward between him and his pursuers. This movie is more focused on the battle of wits between Capt. Jack Connor (the always likeable Brian Keith in a role far removed from perhaps his most famous role in the original THE PARENT TRAP) and Kapitan Schleutter (Helmut Griem.) After the camp commander (Ian Hendry) has been unable to contain the prisoners, the no-nonsense and brash Connor is brought in and becomes a race against time to prevent the mass escape of prisoners, who have a date with a U-boat off the Scottish coast. Indeed this movie is as much about the battle between these two men as it is about the drama of escaping POW's. The climax may feature a torpedo boat and Allied plane facing off against a U-boat. But, it is the dramatic climax between Connor and Schleutter that brings the movie to a close. So, perhaps it's not surprising that Variety also praised the movie as "intelligent" with "strong three dimensiona; portrayals." Nor should it be surprising that I find this as riveting and as exciting as any of the other POW movies that are featured in my DVD collection. The DVD release includes a "collectible booklet" which is more akin to a flyer, being as it is just a page and a half of text. The full-frame trailer that accompanies the DVD is also of appalling quality with niches and scratches all over the dirty print that has washed out colors and an audio track that does not seem to fit with the visuals. I recommend this movie for the discerning World War II movie fan. | ||
 | Taffin | |
| "Brosnan gets role he can really work with - and it works on so many levels" | 2006-05-04 |
| It is a well known fact that I am not a great admirer of Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. Although he looked handsome enough to be James Bond he never looked tough enough. Much has been made of the fact that although the newest 007 Daniel Craig does not look handsome enough to play the secret agent (some going as far as to call him "ugly") he does look tough enough to play the part. In fact I would say that Brosnan looked tougher in the thriller FOURTH PROTOCOL in the part of the Soviet agent (see my review on that product page) and in this movie (made around the same time as the Forsyth thriller) he managed to convey a certain dangerous quality. In this movie, set in his native Ireland, Brosnan plays a debt collector (Mark Taffin) who when not working is happy to spend his time reading books on philosophy and theory. The movie starts by showing us Taffin collecting on some debts. These opening sequences establish his tough credentials as we see him beat up three men in a restaurant (and in the process demolish the establishments dining room) and go head to head with a barman and getting his way (with the help of a wine glass.) Yes, this guy is a toughie, but not one without a softer side displayed when he gives advice to a group of local youths on how to get even with a crooked car dealer who sold them a `lemon.' Although disapproving of his methods the villagers approach him about saving a local sports field threatened by an access road and then stopping the construction of a chemical plant that was to have been served by the access road. In doing so Taffin must confront a shady Mr. Big-style business figure, his henchmen and an assorted group of corrupt politicians in the pocket of the magnate. This is a very entertaining movie that reminded me of the Mike Figgis movie STORMY MONDAY in its depiction of provincial gang violence. But whereas that movie involved the attempt to foil an American developer (played by Tommy Lee Jones) from intimidating Sting's nightclub character in the English city of Newcastle, this movie is much more rural in its focus and is all the better for it. The characters are well drawn and the cast chosen takes full advantage turning in believable performances. Brosnan's character avoids falling into the trap of being an unsympathetic character. The danger is there since he uses less than honorable tactics involving everything from blackmail to downright violence, but we know that he is fighting on the side of what is right and just so we can forgive him. He is also well drawn as a character and in addition to witnessing his troubles with girlfriend Charlotte, we also see him at home with his mother and brother. Its in these dramatic scenes that Brosnan really shows us why he is such an acclaimed actor. I have a new respect for him after seeing him in this movie. On an interesting side note Brosnan is joined here by Alison Doody as Charlotte, who played the part of a Bond girl in the 007 movie A VIEW TO A KILL. Of course he would go on to play the lead in the series, but here the simply stunningly beautiful Doody shows acting promise that she was not permitted in her minor role as an assassin in the 007 picture. No doubt her performance here played a part in her getting the lead female role in the third Indiana Jones movie the following year. | ||
 | Taffin | |
| "Brosnan gets role he can really work with - and it works on so many levels" | 2006-05-04 |
| It is a well known fact that I am not a great admirer of Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. Although he looked handsome enough to be James Bond he never looked tough enough. Much has been made of the fact that although the newest 007 Daniel Craig does not look handsome enough to play the secret agent (some going as far as to call him "ugly") he does look tough enough to play the part. In fact I would say that Brosnan looked tougher in the thriller FOURTH PROTOCOL in the part of the Soviet agent (see my review on that product page) and in this movie (made around the same time as the Forsyth thriller) he managed to convey a certain dangerous quality. In this movie, set in his native Ireland, Brosnan plays a debt collector (Mark Taffin) who when not working is happy to spend his time reading books on philosophy and theory. The movie starts by showing us Taffin collecting on some debts. These opening sequences establish his tough credentials as we see him beat up three men in a restaurant (and in the process demolish the establishments dining room) and go head to head with a barman and getting his way (with the help of a wine glass.) Yes, this guy is a toughie, but not one without a softer side displayed when he gives advice to a group of local youths on how to get even with a crooked car dealer who sold them a `lemon.' Although disapproving of his methods the villagers approach him about saving a local sports field threatened by an access road and then stopping the construction of a chemical plant that was to have been served by the access road. In doing so Taffin must confront a shady Mr. Big-style business figure, his henchmen and an assorted group of corrupt politicians in the pocket of the magnate. This is a very entertaining movie that reminded me of the Mike Figgis movie STORMY MONDAY in its depiction of provincial gang violence. But whereas that movie involved the attempt to foil an American developer (played by Tommy Lee Jones) from intimidating Sting's nightclub character in the English city of Newcastle, this movie is much more rural in its focus and is all the better for it. The characters are well drawn and the cast chosen takes full advantage turning in believable performances. Brosnan's character avoids falling into the trap of being an unsympathetic character. The danger is there since he uses less than honorable tactics involving everything from blackmail to downright violence, but we know that he is fighting on the side of what is right and just so we can forgive him. He is also well drawn as a character and in addition to witnessing his troubles with girlfriend Charlotte, we also see him at home with his mother and brother. Its in these dramatic scenes that Brosnan really shows us why he is such an acclaimed actor. I have a new respect for him after seeing him in this movie. On an interesting side note Brosnan is joined here by Alison Doody as Charlotte, who played the part of a Bond girl in the 007 movie A VIEW TO A KILL. Of course he would go on to play the lead in the series, but here the simply stunningly beautiful Doody shows acting promise that she was not permitted in her minor role as an assassin in the 007 picture. No doubt her performance here played a part in her getting the lead female role in the third Indiana Jones movie the following year. | ||
 | Taffin | |
| "Brosnan gets role he can really work with - and it works on so many levels" | 2006-05-04 |
| It is a well known fact that I am not a great admirer of Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. Although he looked handsome enough to be James Bond he never looked tough enough. Much has been made of the fact that although the newest 007 Daniel Craig does not look handsome enough to play the secret agent (some going as far as to call him "ugly") he does look tough enough to play the part. In fact I would say that Brosnan looked tougher in the thriller FOURTH PROTOCOL in the part of the Soviet agent (see my review on that product page) and in this movie (made around the same time as the Forsyth thriller) he managed to convey a certain dangerous quality. In this movie, set in his native Ireland, Brosnan plays a debt collector (Mark Taffin) who when not working is happy to spend his time reading books on philosophy and theory. The movie starts by showing us Taffin collecting on some debts. These opening sequences establish his tough credentials as we see him beat up three men in a restaurant (and in the process demolish the establishments dining room) and go head to head with a barman and getting his way (with the help of a wine glass.) Yes, this guy is a toughie, but not one without a softer side displayed when he gives advice to a group of local youths on how to get even with a crooked car dealer who sold them a `lemon.' Although disapproving of his methods the villagers approach him about saving a local sports field threatened by an access road and then stopping the construction of a chemical plant that was to have been served by the access road. In doing so Taffin must confront a shady Mr. Big-style business figure, his henchmen and an assorted group of corrupt politicians in the pocket of the magnate. This is a very entertaining movie that reminded me of the Mike Figgis movie STORMY MONDAY in its depiction of provincial gang violence. But whereas that movie involved the attempt to foil an American developer (played by Tommy Lee Jones) from intimidating Sting's nightclub character in the English city of Newcastle, this movie is much more rural in its focus and is all the better for it. The characters are well drawn and the cast chosen takes full advantage turning in believable performances. Brosnan's character avoids falling into the trap of being an unsympathetic character. The danger is there since he uses less than honorable tactics involving everything from blackmail to downright violence, but we know that he is fighting on the side of what is right and just so we can forgive him. He is also well drawn as a character and in addition to witnessing his troubles with girlfriend Charlotte, we also see him at home with his mother and brother. Its in these dramatic scenes that Brosnan really shows us why he is such an acclaimed actor. I have a new respect for him after seeing him in this movie. On an interesting side note Brosnan is joined here by Alison Doody as Charlotte, who played the part of a Bond girl in the 007 movie A VIEW TO A KILL. Of course he would go on to play the lead in the series, but here the simply stunningly beautiful Doody shows acting promise that she was not permitted in her minor role as an assassin in the 007 picture. No doubt her performance here played a part in her getting the lead female role in the third Indiana Jones movie the following year. | ||
 | At the Earth's Core | |
| "A fun movie from the '70s with McClure battling more silly monsters" | 2006-04-28 |
| In the late 1970s Doug McClure made a career out of movies like this. Starting with THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT in 1975 he managed to come out with one such movie a year until WARLORDS OF ATLANTIS in 1978 (curiously titled on the Amazon catalog as WARLORDS OF THE DEEP). And this effort is the second in the "series" (the sequel to LAND, THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT was a 1977 release). Essentially they follow much the same formula, in essence a group of people from a past era discover an unexplored realm, mingle with an undiscovered people and battle some of the cheesiest monsters ever committed to celluloid. In this effort McClure plays David Innes, an American who agrees to back a Victorian scientist (played wonderfully by horror veteran Peter Cushing) in his experiment to bore into the side of a mountain in Wales. Sounds simple enough, except they misjudge the power of their contraption (the Iron Mole) and end up at the center of the Earth among a group of people enslaved by giant birds. The mere physics aside this is a pure popcorn B-movie, but it is a lot of fun too. I'm a sucker for center of the earth movies, whether that be the classic James Mason version of JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH to the 2003 thriller THE CORE. So, perhaps it should be no small surprise that I have a fondness for this movie. Of course there's also the power of nostalgia. I never saw this movie in the theater (though I did catch WARLORDS OF ATLANTIS there), but I saw it when it arrived on television. I must have been about 10 years old. In other words - I was too young to care about the physics that tell us that the center of the earth is pure molten, swirling lava. And too young to care that the giant birds were clearly just people in giant costumes, but not too young to notice that Caroline Munro was incredibly attractive. It's not surprising that the next year she would be appearing as a femme fatale in the James Bond movie THE SPY WHO LOVED ME. Yes, Munro is a real attraction for this movie, but I also enjoyed the performances of Cushing and McClure in what is 90 minutes of 1970s camp. Overall it's worth a spin and the DVD includes the original theatrical trailer. | ||
| Escape to Athena | |
| "DVD available in Region 2 of fun 1970s action movie" | 2006-04-27 |
| Region-free DVD player owners might be interested to learn that a DVD of this fun 1970s actioner is available in Europe. In this entertaining World War II action movie, two actors, who previously played the character James Bond, Roger Moore and David Niven (who spoofed the part up in the unfunny CASINO ROYALE) team up with previous Bond villain Telly Savalas (Blofeld in the excellent ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE) in an effort to destroy a Nazi missile silo in the Aagean Sea. Niven and Savalas both seem comfortable in their roles as a British prisoner of war and a Greek resistance fighter respectively, only Moore seems uncomfortable in his role as a German officer and indeed his German accent seems a little forced at times. But never mind the real attraction to this movie is the action and the comedic touches, with Elliott Gould (as a captured Allied entertainer providing a large portion of the latter). We have Moore tackling German frogmen, Gould racing through the streets on a motorcycle and an assault on a Nazi fortress among other action scenes. It's an entertaining movie, in much the same vein as other Roger Moore movies of the 1970s and early 1980s (GOLD, SHOUT AT THE DEVIL and NORTH SEA HIJACK) and though Niven attacked another Aagean based Nazi fortress over a decade earlier in the superior THE GUNS OF NAVARONE, this is the perfect antidote for a slow Saturday afternoon. The Region 2 DVD includes a rather interesting special feature that will hopefully be repeated when this is released stateside. In an archival documentary from 1979 the stars of the movie are interviewed not by professional movie critics, but by something much less forgiving - their children. | ||
 | Can't Hardly Wait | |
| "Teen movie that appeals to more than just teens - a favorite of mine" | 2006-04-26 |
| Some have dismissed this movie as one that delivers teen appeal, but little for anyone else. This is an assessment I disagree with. I first saw this movie when I was 27 and now in my 30s I still enjoy it. Sure, it may be a "guilty pleasure" but it's an entertaining one that delivers a delightful concoction of comedy, drama and romance combined with a good score. In fact this movie manages to deliver some timeless themes, all packaged into 100 minutes of teen excess. It's not hard to understand why someone would have a crush on Jennifer Love Hewitt, even before she started being a regular on the phenomenally popular television show PARTY OF FIVE she had legions of fans. By time this coming-of-age movie was released in 1998, she not only had tremendous face recognition from the small screen, but also on the big screen, having just starred as the lead in the teen shocker I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. Of course there's also the fact that she was one of the most attractive of all the teen actresses at that time. So, perhaps she was the perfect actress to play the part of the one girl in school that every man wants to be with, and the particular attention of a schoolboy crush in CAN'T HARDLY WAIT. Although she does not share as much screen time as lead Ethan Embry, her presence is felt nearly every scene in the movie. So, what's the movie about? It's the end of school and there's a party in town to celebrate - and everyone's going to be there. Destined to leave for a workshop with his idol Kurt Vonnegut the next day, Preston Meyers (Embry) sees this as the last chance to let his dream girl Amanda Beckett (Hewitt) know how he feels. Rumors abound around the school that her jock boyfriend has broken up with her and he sees this as a chance to finally deliver a love letter he has been working on since he first saw her years earlier. But fate works in mysterious ways. A young Seth Green (he had yet to achieve fame on BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER) sees this party as an opportunity for quite another reason - namely to get laid and he and he has a whole bag of stuff with him to ensure that everything goes smoothly - which of course it doesn't. Geek William Lichter (Charlie Korsmo) sees the party as an opportunity to wreak revenge on a class bully that has been torturing him for years and in fact it is Korsmo's character and Green's character that offer most of the comedic interludes. While Embry is waxing poetic about his four year obsession with Hewitt, Green is getting locked in a bathroom with a girl and Korsmo is learning a new side to the bully. Yes, there are several subplots going on in this movie, but the humor is infectious and the characters are both well rounded and engaging. A word of warning though, for some reason I found myself listening to the commentary before watching the ending of the movie, and in fact the ending is spoiled early on in the commentary. Which brings us neatly on to the scene specific commentary. It's light and fun and delivers a number of interesting anecdotes. An easy recommendation for anyone's DVD collection. | ||
 | Can't Hardly Wait | |
| "Teen movie that appeals to more than just teens - a favorite of mine" | 2006-04-26 |
| Some have dismissed this movie as one that delivers teen appeal, but little for anyone else. This is an assessment I disagree with. I first saw this movie when I was 27 and now in my 30s I still enjoy it. Sure, it may be a "guilty pleasure" but it's an entertaining one that delivers a delightful concoction of comedy, drama and romance combined with a good score. In fact this movie manages to deliver some timeless themes, all packaged into 100 minutes of teen excess. It's not hard to understand why someone would have a crush on Jennifer Love Hewitt, even before she started being a regular on the phenomenally popular television show PARTY OF FIVE she had legions of fans. By time this coming-of-age movie was released in 1998, she not only had tremendous face recognition from the small screen, but also on the big screen, having just starred as the lead in the teen shocker I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. Of course there's also the fact that she was one of the most attractive of all the teen actresses at that time. So, perhaps she was the perfect actress to play the part of the one girl in school that every man wants to be with, and the particular attention of a schoolboy crush in CAN'T HARDLY WAIT. Although she does not share as much screen time as lead Ethan Embry, her presence is felt nearly every scene in the movie. So, what's the movie about? It's the end of school and there's a party in town to celebrate - and everyone's going to be there. Destined to leave for a workshop with his idol Kurt Vonnegut the next day, Preston Meyers (Embry) sees this as the last chance to let his dream girl Amanda Beckett (Hewitt) know how he feels. Rumors abound around the school that her jock boyfriend has broken up with her and he sees this as a chance to finally deliver a love letter he has been working on since he first saw her years earlier. But fate works in mysterious ways. A young Seth Green (he had yet to achieve fame on BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER) sees this party as an opportunity for quite another reason - namely to get laid and he and he has a whole bag of stuff with him to ensure that everything goes smoothly - which of course it doesn't. Geek William Lichter (Charlie Korsmo) sees the party as an opportunity to wreak revenge on a class bully that has been torturing him for years and in fact it is Korsmo's character and Green's character that offer most of the comedic interludes. While Embry is waxing poetic about his four year obsession with Hewitt, Green is getting locked in a bathroom with a girl and Korsmo is learning a new side to the bully. Yes, there are several subplots going on in this movie, but the humor is infectious and the characters are both well rounded and engaging. A word of warning though, for some reason I found myself listening to the commentary before watching the ending of the movie, and in fact the ending is spoiled early on in the commentary. Which brings us neatly on to the scene specific commentary. It's light and fun and delivers a number of interesting anecdotes. An easy recommendation for anyone's DVD collection. | ||
 | Zeppelin | |
| "Fun movie needs DVD release, but there is a VCD out there" | 2006-04-22 |
| This is a fun WWI movie from the 1970s that I enjoyed while growing up and while there is no DVD yet available there is a VCD out there that regularly appears on auction sites that will allow you to enjoy it on your DVD player. Whereas movies centering around WWII are numerous, the same is not true about the "Great War." This movie therefore offers a fascinating (and exciting) glimpse at a conflict in which aerial warfare was still in its infancy. It should hardly be surprising that I like this movie, its an espionage drama revolving around an airship and one of my favorite of the James Bond movies is A VIEW TO A KILL which was an espionage drama with a climactic battle around an airship. But most of all the movie is also directed by Belgian-born director Etienne Perier who also directed my all-time favorite spy movie "When Eight Bells Toll," based around the Alistair MacLean novel of the same name (check out my review of that movie here on Amazon.) Starring in this movie as the unlikely hero Geoffrey von Richter-Douglas is Michael York. His character is a British soldier with German roots who is sent by British intelligence to get information on a new German super-weapon the LZ36, and ends up aboard one bound for an attack on a Scottish castle and the destruction of the Magna Carta. Co-starring alongside York is the incredibly beautiful Elke Sommer who plays Frau Dr. Ericka Altschul, the wife of the airship's designer who is less than convinced by Richter-Douglas' defection to the German side. Hoping to gather the information needed Richter-Douglas talks his way on board the zeppelin for it's "trial run" only to learn that instead of it being a "trial run" it is actually a secret attack on the aforementioned castle. The Germans believe that the destruction of the "British constitution" will have a demoralizing effect on the British people. It's up to Richter-Douglas to thwart the plan from within. While The story does not fully develop the theme of divided loyalty completely the Richter-Douglas character is an interesting one and the viewer is made to wonder where his ultimate loyalties will eventually lie. Ultimately the movie starts a little slow and picks up in the second act as the zeppelin sets off for the raid, the battle at the castle and the final escape across the channel. It's entertaining hokum and the battle as English biplanes attempt to bring the blimp down in the closing minutes is exciting, but don't expect it to be the most accurate of movies. Examples of problems include the fact that it wasn't until the 1920s that The technique of mooring an airship to a tower was developed. The film is set in 1915 but it features the SE5a fighter plane which didn't enter service until two years later and. the British also didn't have the machinery for firing a machine gun through a spinning propeller until 1916. Still, even given these technical problems the movie is one of those perfectly designed for those rainy Saturday afternoons when all you want to do is curl up on the coach with a hot chocolate while watching an entertaining movie. | ||
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