Elvis On Elvis

Easy dollars for indifferent producers
"18 tracks including the song he wrote for his mom I'll Never Stand In Your Way and Maybelline, both of which are rare recordings and never before seen on DVD"
When a resume starts out with nonsense like this, it should be clear the only purpose of the creators is to make money out of Elvis, without even a hint of trying to do him justice. Elvis has co-written a small number of songs, but "I'll never stand in your way" was absolutely not one of them. This song is written by the duo Heath and Rose, and Elvis recorded
it before rising to fame. After recording the famed single "My happiness", supposedly for his mother's birthday in 1953, Elvis recorded another acetate and it was on this Sun single that "I'll never stand in your way" was immortalized.

The song "Maybelline" indeed is a rarity of sorts, but only in respect of it being released on dvd. This song has never been recorded in a studio by Elvis, and he's only performed it live in the early days of his career,...

Wrong, Wrong, and more Wrong
Fred Rose and Hy Heath wrote "I'll Never Stand In Your Way". It was first recorded by Ernie Lee and then by Joni James in 1953. Elvis recoreded it on January 4, 1954, together with: "It Wouldn't Be The Same Without You" which had been written and recorded in 1950 by Stuart Hamblen.

The flip of "My Happiness" was "That's When Your Heartaches Begin". This was the record which Elvis claimed was for his Mother, NOT: "I'll Never Stand In Your Way".

Love Elvis on Elvis
Being a crazed Elvis fan I have every Elvis movie, documentary, concert DVD, etc... Overall I was happy with this purchase, especially considering the cost. I was most impressed with the Elvis karate and home video footage. Always love to see old performances and good interviews. I give Elvis on Elvis a B+.

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The Tollbooth

Marla Sokoloff should be more famous
This is another cute movie that stars the adorable Marla Sokoloff - it makes no sense to me why this actress isn't more famous.
The movie isn't brilliant, but it's sweet, realistic and funny. It has some great characters in it, good acting and let's Marla shine a little.
I'd recommend this if you're a fan or if you want to see a movie about a Jewish family and their interconnected relationships.

Lackluster and unfinished
I wanted to like this movie and I did like many of the actresses. The plot left a lot to be desired, however. What I liked most was seeing the paintings that Sarabeth created. What I liked least was an ending that left a lot dangling. (spoiler alert) I'm not sure what the director was trying to accomplish with this movie--if she wanted to show Sarabeth's growing independence, the point of that was rather blunted by a too-perfect love interest, with no great answers as to why she was giving him up or why she couldn't have both man & career. In fact, the story of Sarabeth's lesbian sister overshadows Sarabeth's own story & you are left wondering whether the sister's love story works out, whatever happened to the female priest she was interested in, etc. And not sure why the father's sickness was brought up--does he get to see his grandkids or does he die first? Why bring it up if you're not going to finish the story? And what happens to the other sister? Do they find the errant...

Funny, sweet and true to life
This is a wonderful film. A refreshing, bright and approachable tale about how a young woman's life after college. It shows life from Sarabeth's point of view; she's not always right, she's sometimes annoying and she makes mistakes. But she is real.
This is a great story that hasn't been seen before but still feels familiar. A gem! :)

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The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep [Blu-ray]

Much better than the trailers
The legend is only one water horse lives per generation. When the old one is ready to die, they lay an egg from which the new water horse is hatched and must grow up on its own as an orphan.

In this case, a young boy named Angus McMurrow found the egg and helped the waterhorse hatch and grow. That's not a mean feat, considering this is World War II and a cadre of British soldiers are staying in the manor house where Angus' family lives. But if any kid is in need of a friend, it's Angus. You see, his father went off to war--and Angus still believes he's going to come back despite being told to the contrary. Angus finds a surprising ally in Lewis Mowbray (Ben Chaplin), a returning soldier who still believes in the old myths and is in need of a dream as much as Angus is.

Of course, the complication is the British soldiers led by a toff commander who's noble father probably stuck him in Scotland to keep him out of the action. They think that the Germans are...

"Seeing Is Believing"
Crossing a tale between an explanation of the fabled Loch Ness Monster with the backdrop of World War II, `Deep Water Horse' comes across as `Pan's Labyrinth' for children. Full of whimsy and brimming with innocence, the movie is a harbor for the imagination.

Taking place in Scotland where the legend of Loch Ness has allegedly been spotted, an elderly man engages a couple at the local pub where he relates a fabled adventure of the past. Transporting us in the narrative to 1942, Angus MacMorrow examines some "magical shells" around Loch Ness to collect and take home. His father has been absent from The War for about a year now. Angus (perfectly cast as Alex Etel of `Millions' fame) spots one and takes it home to his father's workshop where he tries to pry through its exterior to find dazzling layers beneath. Being called away, it is a short time later that noise in the shop alerts him of some new development. Angus to his astonishment sees a creature waddling on the...

Take ME for a Ride!
I just saw this film with my husband and 10

Bull Durham (20th Anniversary Edition)

Welcome To The "Show"!
If you've never seen "Bull Durham" before, and are tempted to write it off as another sports flick, I beg you to rethink your position. Let me tell you my all-time favorite sports movie: "Hoop Dreams". What about it resonates with me so strongly? It's not a basketball movie --- instead, it is a character drama that just happens to exist within a basketball court. In other words, where the story takes place is irrelevant; what dominates the picture is how the story (or real-life events) affects the characters (documentary subjects).

"Bull Durham" might not belong in the realm of that classic, but skeptics shouldn't dismiss it simply because it involves baseball. Overlookers won't realize that it's a funny exploration of how people discover their own ambition; the dirt diamond & ball are circumstantial.

The story begins when a minor league team is joined by veteran catcher Crash Davis (Kevin Costner). Crash has been given the unenviable task of mentoring an...

BUll Durham remains a thoughtful baseball classic...

I recently saw Bull Durham for the first time, and I must admit, I was touched by something very profound within it, something that is of almost unspeakable power, a certain quality that only a few movies have: the ability to tell you something about yourself, something about all men, something about the world, and something about life, all at once.

Something About Yourself- I played baseball for six or seven years when I was younger, and it still remains my favorite game. I remember collecting cards, discussing the undefinable "potential" some rookies had and others did not, and reading scores of books on the subject. I had a child's lovely obsession with the game. This obsession also drove me to learn a painful lesson, when I was caught shoplifting baseball cards one summer day. Yet even this did not kill the dream. I remain in love with the game to this very day. Bull Durham reminded me of all this and more. It unlocked memories of baseball camp, of the boyhood...

Minor League Baseball Masterpiece
Ron Shelton spent some time in the minor leagues represented in his screenplay for Bull Durham, so he knows about the baseball things represented. But he also clearly has a gifted ear for the tempo of real life, and he knows about hopes and desires and the things that make human beings tick. The setting for this film with the minor league Durham Bulls works, and works perfectly, but the characters, especially among the central love triangle, could just as easily have been traveling salesmen or race drivers or con artists or gangsters.

Susan Sarandon plays Annie Savoy, a slightly older woman who is a Durham Bulls groupie of sorts: once a season she picks out a promising young player and begins an affair with them. During that season the promising young player has the year of his life and gets called up to the big leagues, leaving Annie to look for next year's promising young player.

The Bulls also have a million-dollar prospect of a pitcher with a right arm who the gods reached...

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The Last Detective - Series 4

More than it appears
I stumbled onto The Last Detective as part of my exploration of every Britsh crime show I could find. I almost didn't watch beyond the first episode because I favor heavier fare and this felt rather like a redux of the Murder, She Wrote genre--relatively light in tone, a mystery to solve, a bit of humor and on to next week.

But I was wrong. The series *is* rather light. Mod is a gem, the pranks are funny, and we get a steady influx of episodic suspects that range from sinister to clownish. But beyond the mysteries two aspects of TLD make it special: the regular cast is spot on perfect and the writers had the sense to create arcs that continued throughout the series, giving it more than a one-and-done feel.

It is the characters and their relationships that drive the series through four seasons, and that keep the viewer coming back. Sure, the mysteries are fun and often titillating but it is Davies' plight and his relationships with Mod, Julie, DI Aspinall, WPC...

Yet another great Detective.
Peter Davison is superb, in this highly unusual series.

The supporting cast, too, are all highly enjoyable and convincing. The fact that Davison the hard working, plodding but, in the end brilliant detective, is such a wuss regarding his estranged wife, was brilliant in its conception. It is always good to have heroes who have Achilles heels!

This series is brilliant and extremely well directed. Everyone, who enjoys a good detective yarn and a genuine smile, should see it.

The Last Detective - Series 4
Excellent follow-up to previous 3 series. The actors have come to really "own" the roles. The story lines are excellent with a good mixture of mystery, humor and toughness.

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Original Series, Season 6

TMNT are back
Finally, the last episodes of season 3. These episodes are just as good as the ones on volume 5, if not better. The last 3 episodes of season 3, "The Big" three-part story arch, has to be the best story of the entire run, giving an excellent conclusion to the best season of TMNT. Volume 6 also has the first episode of season 4 and that episode takes place right after The Big Blow out and sets the stage for the european vacation story arch. As great as the three-part-finale is, there are also other great episodes, the most notable episode is Shredderville, which is a rather darker than usual, alternetive reality-based episode. Very enjoyable and a fan favourite. Other great episodes are The Great Boldini, The Missing Map and The Turtle Terminator, which is a very silly but hilarious episode, sort of a guilty pleasure. Many recurring characters return, like The Rat King, Baxter Stockman and General Tragg. The Shredder and Krang are also as brilliant as ever. I recommend Vol. 6 for fans...

Season 3 finally finishes
It may not be the longest running cartoon or children's program, but you have to admit, the original Ninja Turtles show definitely is a rarity in the animation world: not only did it total an impressive 10 seasons, but a respectable 193 episodes as well. Vol. 6 finally wraps up the show's 3rd season (at this point, the series was still in syndication and not on Saturdays), with some fun episodes like Shredderville which features the Turtles stuck in a nightmarish alternate-reality where Shredder rules Manhattan, all mutants are outlawed, and an unstable Technodrome is stuck in the middle of town and threatening to explode at any second; Bye Bye Fly, which brings back Baxter Fly for yet another confrontation with the mutants; and the Turtle Terminator, in which the Turtles fight a killer robot duplicate of Irma(this episode also features Hal Rayle and Greg Berg performing the respective roles of Raphael and Donatello instead of the usual Rob Paulsen and Barry Gordon). Best of all,...

Season 3 Part 4
For reason instead of releasing TMNT Season 3 in one complete set, LionGates released it in four volumes (3-6). Probably because there were 47 episodes that aired during the 1989 season.

The episodes on this single disc volume are:

The Turtle Terminator
The Great Boldini
The Missing Map
The Gang's All Here
The Grybyx
Mr. Ogg Goes to Town
Shredderville
Bye, Bye Fly
The Big Rip-off
The Big Break-In
The Big Blow-Out
Plan 6 From Outer Space

Finally we get the final twelve episodes from season three of one of my favorite cartoons from when I was a kid. It is a must own for TMNT fans.

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Alien Triple Pack (Alien / Aliens / Alien 3)

It DOES have bonus content! This set is JUST right for the casual DVD fan!
I'm not sure what some of the other reviewers were critiquing. Some claimed that this set had no bonus content which is completely false. There is a LOT of bonus material on this set, mainly focused on the first two films (Ridley Scott commentary, isolated score, James Cameron interviews, deleted scenes and tons of photos). This is basically the Alien Lagacy set, which was released in the late 90's, minus the horrible 4th film. That sits just fine with me. The one reason I never purchased that set is because I despise that 4th film. Sure, the third isn't near as good as the first 2, but it at least fits in the mood of an Alien film, unlike Resurrection.
If you are hardcore, there is the much more expansive Alien Quadrilogy on DVD, but believe it or not, it excludes some of the bonus content from this set that I really enjoy, so I never traded for the Quad. Now that an all inclusive Blu-Ray release is coming, I think I may upgrade, but this set has served me very well though all...

Revisiting a Sci-Fi classic X3
I found this product worth it for the price. As other reviewers have noted, it really seems kind of "slapped together" in the fact you really are not getting much for added bonus features as one might expect. What you are getting are the first 3 Alien films, which do include a few tidbits in bonus features, just nothing to in depth.

For most "Alien" fans, I would suggest checking out the other package that includes Alien Resurrection, the fourth disc.

The original film, included here, still holds a lot of power in storytelling and terror. The design of the alien and the alternate mission the crew finds themselves in overshadow the futuristic vessel they are on, what with it's toggle switches and command prompt screens, give it a nearly obsolete yet still nostalgic feel.

Great value for great movies!
I have actually purchased this DVD trilogy twice now - the first time an old friend borrowed it and never gave it back, so I bought it again. This DVD combo is a great deal. The special features are pretty minimal, but as another reviewer said, perfect for the "casual DVD fan." If you like watching a lot of special features, I definitely suggest getting a different version of these movies. I personally wouldn't buy this if I had to pay full price for it new, but it is a great deal used. It was less than $10 including shipping for me - such a great deal - couldn't pass it up.

As far as the movies, I'm not a huge fan of Alien 3, but Alien and Aliens are both sci-fi classics. I think this is a must-own collection. I really didn't like Alien Resurrection that much, which is why I opted for the trilogy instead of the quadrilogy. If you like sci-fi, you must buy this!

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American Dad!, Vol. 3

"Like a morally justified lethal injection"--Stan
American Dad gets wittier with every season it seems. Season 1 was good but didn't produce memorable episodes. Season 2 had two of my favorite episodes ("Lincoln Lover" and "Roger N Me") and season 3 offers another all-time favorite of mine "Vacation Goo." This season also includes highlight shows like "Meter Made," "Dope and Faith," and "Surro-gate." There are not many weak episodes here although "Bush Comes To Dinner" was a little much. Stan's one-liners are what make this show. They are often wittier and funnier than any lines on Family Guy and even South Park. Oh, and Roger is a great character! Lately, I've been enjoying the new American Dad episodes more than Family Guy which shows that, while FG seems to be digressing, AD is setting itself apart with smarter, more consistent writing and less filler.

Disc 1:
"Bush Comes To Dinner"--G.W. has dinner at the Smiths and Roger gives him booze which causes him to fall off the wagon. Meanwhile, Roger tries to track...

Why is this TV show not more popular?!?!
This show is just brilliant. I love Family Guy, but I just think the writing in this is even one step better. Smart and really funny... and the former is probably why it does not do better in the ratings.

God Bless America
America can rest peacefully with overprotective CIA agent Stan Smith on watch in the hilarious animated series "American Dad!". In this collection of humorous episodes, Stan is overwhelmed by all the attention from his family by pretending that they are the last people on Earth. Housewife Francine divorces Stan so he can experience again bachelor life and save their marriage. Daughter Hayley gathers evidence of President Bush's drunken antics to publicly humiliate him. Son Steve uncovers a 150-year-old conspiracy but a secret society will stop at nothing to prevent exposing. Roger the alien becomes a professional bounty hunter and joins Stan on the manhunt for Hayley's boyfriend. "American Dad!" is the hit animated FOX sitcom from the twisted minds behind "Family Guy". These 18 episodes from the second and third seasons feature some cutting-edge humor, memorable characters and guest voice stars like Peter Graves, Elliot Gould, Lisa Edelstein, Patton Oswald, Patrick Stewart and Academy...

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Rock of Love: Season 1

Television show on DVD Don't Bother
This DVD is touted as unrated but is just a rehash of the on air presentation. Curses are bleeped and naughty bits are pixelated. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS.

If you saw it on tv don't bother
It is not unrated. Everything is still bleeped and fuzzed out. Bait and switch bull$#!t.

Loved It!
Wow...For someone who had never seen Season 1 when it originally aired, this DVD was all I could ask for and more! Although I read some complaints about the censoring on the nudity and profanity, I personally felt that it didn't detract from the experience. It's VH1, people, not HBO! The extras were fun too, especially the dirty phone calls (which were NOT censored) and the ridiculous food-fight. Maybe I have such a positive viewpoint because this was my first time watching the season, but I really couldn't find anything negative to say. From the very first episode which coined the infamous phrase "Don't threaten me with a good time" to the shocking reunion, I was completely entertained. I finished this DVD within 3 days, and have since lent it to my sisters to enjoy. This is coming from someone who had NO interest in seeing this show when it originally aired; watching the season from start to finish convinced me otherwise! Now I can't wait for the release of Season 2!!!

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Naturescapes

One of many treasures from Dr. Thompson
I use many of Dr. Jeffrey Thompson's compositions and absolutely love them. This DVD fills in a major gap for me. Since I work at home, I love having the ability to play gentle instrumental music as background to my work. The addition of naturescape video footage makes the experience even more enjoyable and inspiring. This package has (2) wonderful DVDs (one of them featuring gentle rain, so if you live in a hot region, you'll welcome this) and a variety of thoughtful playback options, including the choice to loop playback for continuous enjoyment. Everything I wanted times 2!

Dr. Thompson works with a variety of brainwave patterns. Each has a different effect on human process. His discs are carefully and accurately labeled and guaranteed to be free of backmasking or subliminal programming. (You might want to watch out for this with other artists.) This disc is alpha wave therapy == RELAXATION. Excellent product for winding down to restful sleep at night.

Disappointed
I was disappointed in Naturescapes because the music and videos were too fast for my liking... I thought it would be slow and more relaxing...some of the videos were beautiful, but went too quickly... just my take on it...

An awesome dvd!
This is a beautiful dvd to watch any time but I prefer to have it on while going to sleep. The music is incredible and the scenery is beautiful. Just another awesome piece of Dr. Jeffrey Thompson's work!

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National Geographic: Six Degrees Could Change the World

Spectacular. Professional. Visually Powerful. Life Changing.
This is a spectacular piece of professional work and so compelling as to be inspirational.

I watched this with my wife with no lights, and decided to take no notes. Here are the highlights from my memory.

1) Brilliant, utterly brilliant, history, photography, personalities (such as the Indian guru that has photographed the source of the Ganges for 50 years) and sequencing. I don't want to overdo it, but this may well be the single most important DVD of the century, and so worthy of both buying, showing to groups, and giving as a gift to others.

2) We are well on our way to 2-3 degrees rise, and if we do not begin to act sensibly now, toward six degrees. I absolutely loved the way this film developed, showing the changes one degree at a time. My wife had to point out the computer simulations, the producers and editors of this film are world class--they should share the Nobel with Herman Daly, Lester Brown, Paul Hawkin, and Anthony Lovin, Gore's...

informative but questionable
I think a break down of the ratings speak for themselve a bit.

One person put a 1 because they found it offensive(perhaps they don't like the idea of spending money to find an alternative to dumping their company's waste in the river.)

The other person put a 5 (perhaps they bought everything this propa-documentary said and hate selfish people that are too profit motivated or believe everything the powers that be try to sell them.)

Well I thought it was informative. But I also noticed some things that attempted to manipulated the viewers thoughts and opinions, like showing the nuclear plant's exhaust while talking about carbon dioxide and fossil fuels. That exhaust is water vapor from cooling towers, not smoke plumes.
Same with the catasrophic weather and katrina. Yes it was a catasrophic storm, but a lot of the suffering in N.O. was partly to blame on gross negligence of the powers that be.

I did notice it had high production values...

National security issue.
It's a shame how militarists have so narrowly defined "national security" as an issue to focus us on war-making. But as ample evidence shows, we have security issues that involve building a sustainable economy, renewable energy, sensible transit, green architecture, new urbanism and much else.
I saw "Six Degrees" on the National Geographic Channel, and the author of the book was recently interviewed on C-SPAN's BookTV. As impactful as these media efforts have been, social change is being stalled by reckless voices on radio stations around the country (Limbaugh alone is on over 700 stations) who are misinforming millions of politically engaged people. These same people insist that we spare no expense when it comes to threats from foreign policy blowback, but they refuse to acknowledge the potential catastrophe of double-glazing the planet in carbon dioxide.
"Security" does not have to mean more profits for weapons contractors...

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Walk Hard - The Dewey Cox Story (Two-Disc Special Edition)

A Showcase For Reilly, And Screamingly Funny To Boot!
Ya'd figure that classic zany comedy was dead. Sure, there have been ambitious stuff, but more often than not, a lot of today's "comedy" movies are either blatent "gross-out" fests written for 12-year-olds, or the tired "let's-make-a-satire-of-the-current-favorite-genre" formula. Truthfully, the last great American comedy for me was "There's Something About Mary." Sure, it was a stupid-humor film, but it had genuine laugh-out-loud surprises and, more importantly, heart. Basically, it was a sweet romantic comedy with slapstick thrown in for good measure.

Judd Apatow, whether he's directing or producing, seems to be the guy who'll revive well-done dumb-guy humor. All by himself, judging by the list of hits he's thrown out. "Walk Hard," unfortunately, was the least commercially success ful of them, and for what reason I don't know. He did satire right, focussing on one character through a much-travelled formula, created a believable (and funny) body of work for the...

Walk the Funny Line
(3.5 *'s) Judd Apatow's `Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story' is a familiar project. As the producer of `The Forty Old Virgin, 'Knocked Up,' and 'Superbad,' he takes another irreverent comedy, this time a parody of music biopics of popular music icons. Sometimes savvy, sometimes obvious, the movie is mostly an effective and witty trip through pop music history.

One of the best decisions was to cast John C. Reilly in the title role. Watching the film, I kept thinking Will Ferrell could have been cast as Dewey Cox. As much as I like Ferrell, his overexposure to such familiar loopiness may have made the movie overwrought. With Reilly's fine performance as "Lefty" in 'A Prairie Home Companion,' they made the right choice. There's a certain restraint he brings to the role that's welcome and refreshing.

For those who have seen `Ray,' and, especially `Walk the Line' the referenced parody will be clear, but those who haven't undoubtedly will be in for a fun time, too...

For the dreamers out there who also like to laugh
I have never before been inspired by a satirical, fictional comedy. (Is that half redundant?) But by the end of Walk Hard, I felt fantastic! That was the unexpected curve. The comedy though, is what I was after and I got it by the fistfuls! Sight gags, the absurd, live action caricatures of famous people, plenty of drug humor, etc. There were aspects of Steve Martin being channeled by John C. Reilly. And, I feel you can't really go wrong with John. He's not Academy Award material, he's just a perfect character actor. I enjoyed immensely his will to succeed coupled with his faulty decision-making processes. He was an idiot, but an intensely focused idiot. They basically made fun of every "unknown boy from nowhere makes it big" movie that came before it. And they did it well. The beginning had me wondering if the level of comedy was going to be elemntary school or not. And maybe it was. Who cares? It got funnier to me the longer I watched. And it even had a moral to it.

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The Final Season

Extra innings
The Final Season is definitely worth your time. This true story plays out in America's heartland and represents a huge cross section of rural America.

The Final Season reveals a truth not everyone seems to understand: its not all in the winning its how you play the game. Character, achievement and honest completion actually carry greater value than putting together a winning record.

The Norway baseball team may meet their collective demise but they prove sportsmanship and team achievement ensure their place in history. Join the team and catch the inspiration to play with all you've got!

The Final Season, inspirational baseball
Although I live near Washington D.C. now, I was raised in the Midwest and went to a rural farm community high school in Piasa, Illinois. Perhaps that helped me identify with this movie about Norway, Iowa, but if anyone can't identify with it on some level then they are missing something. I was lucky enough to play on a football team that won three championships. Considering we didn't have half the students of most the schools we played I know only to well the lesson "The Final Season" teaches about sports. If we didn't have students bused in from three small towns and we weren't so far from the large schools we probably would have been absorbed as well. Along with it's valuable lesson about what baseball means to these small towns, it teaches about how crowding students into larger schools doesn't make them smarter or better adjusted students, quite the contrary, and the sooner the public education system learns that the better. This movie has a great story, wonderful cast, and...

For all the right reasons,don't miss The Final Season!!
It's great to add this DVD to my collection. Last October I had the chance to see the movie twice about this true story of an Iowa High School baseball team that won 20 state championships with its legendary coach. The movie covers how Norway High School entered its final year as a school before merging with Madison High School in the early 1990s.The triumph..the bitterness...all the emotion is covered in this 119 minute movie. If you like your baseball stories that are true and realistic, then don't miss the Final Season with Sean Astin and Powers Boothe!
By the way if you look realy closely a very good friend of mine Mike Doocy is one of the sports reporters featured in the movie. He is now the sports director for the FOX affiliate in Dallas! Another real reason to enjoy this movie!

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The True Story of Charlie Wilson (History Channel)

Makes James Bond look like a third grader.
I had never heard of this documentary until I first viewed it on THE HISTORY CHANNEL. Initially I thought it was some "action adventure" fiction type. It did not take long to figure out this was a real event that changed the history of the world: was responsible for kicking the Soviets out of Afghanistan and led to the demise of the Soviet Union.

What is so amazing is that one "on the wild side" U.S. senator and one "shunned/rouge" CIA agent was responsible for all of this. They did not just sit behind some desk either! They were on their own. Of course that is until near the very end when the CIA wanted some of the glory too.

This is a documentary you do not want to miss! The Hollywood version, "Charlie Wilson's War" staring Tom Hanks is; I'm sure a good movie but in no way can portray the real life events of of Charlie Wilson and CIA agent Gust Avrakotos.

The True Story of Charlie Wilson
I am a lawyer and actually knew Charlie Wilson from his first term in Congress--he appointed me an intern in his Washington office in 1974. I used a 4-minute clip from this movie of his explaining how he got into politics (a neighbor poisoned Charlie's dog when he was 13, and he skillfully organized constituents to vote the guy out of office by 16 votes) in a guest lecture I gave to a college government class on local politics. It was a big hit with the students. The movie is much more interesting than the Hollywood film starring Tom Hanks (even though Hanks does a great job) because it shows the real people and events, not actors and graphics.

The real Charlie Wilson in his own words
If you want to meet the real Charlie Wilson and the real exchanges that took place as he forstered the Afgan effort to drive the Russians out of of Afganistan, then you'll want to see the History Channels "True Story". It involves so much detail about how things get done in Washington and in Congress that if your like me you'll watch it over and over. This is no movie made up by Hollywood, but, except for some parts, it puts together documentary scenes with the protagonist himself, Congressman Charlie Wilson, telling story, how he got Congress to fund the weapons and supplies to the Afgans, how he made visits to the right world leaders to help instigate it, and without a lot of publicity.

One scene that the History Channel had that unfortunately did not get onto the DVD is the finale of the Russians, as they were leaving Afghanistan across freedom bridge, requested that Charlie show up in military uniform. Charlie thought the Russians were going to shoot him since he was...

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Nova: Car of the Future

So Much Despair and Hope
Let me mention the worst part of this documentary first: the silliness of brothers Tom and Ray in this program. This program addresses a lot of highly scientific and economic matters that would confuse the average viewer. So they include two DJs on a show called "Car Talk" to lighten the tone. Unfortunately, things are presented as spontaneous which are clearly scripted. Tom and Ray are supposed to be an ideal comic couple like Abbott and Costello or Redman and Method Man, but their presence is just ridiculously extraneous. They present themselves as common men, but they quickly mention that they are MIT alumnae. At one point, one of them has to be bleeped out for cursing. Notice carefully and one of them even makes a fart joke!

Silliness aside, this was a powerful work. We know modern cars are ruining the environment and that petroleum is finite. However, alternatives are often too expensive, dangerous, or unrealistic. They show that Iceland is experimenting with...

Nice
This had lots of interesting information. Seems like it could be redone about every 10 years since cars and technology are constantly changing. This was still enjoyable though.

Great movie.
I love listening to Tom and Ray on car talk on NPR....I finally got to see Tom's MG car and they do a nice job.

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Alien vs. Predator / Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (Unrated Two-Pack)

AVP 2 Pack
Having recently watched AVP Requiem on Bluray I ended up really disappointed with this version. Being a fan of the first film (I'm among the few probably) I highly enjoyed the 2nd one in that it really pays homage to the old Aliens and Predator films, lots of violence, much better creature FX than the first AVP film and just a truer representation of the Aliens and Predators really makes this a fun film to sit through, BUT something happened with the Blu-ray release of this film. First the Unrated edition on Blu-ray is missing footage that the Unrated regular DVD has and 2nd, the movie is insanely dark. Having seen this at the theater when it was released I know for a fact that the movie was NOT this dark, something must have happened in the transfer process but unless this movie is watched in total darkness its almost impossible to see A LOT of the film, even the HD trailer on the SAME DISC is brighter, clearer and easier to see. I emailed FOX about these problems and I got a...

Like the AvP series
I knew what I was getting into when I purchased this set. I saw the original AvP and thought it was not academy award winning great but a good popcorn flick on Saturday night and it did not disappoint. I thought the story had merit as a standalone product sans the Comic Lore. Paul W.S. Anderson did a good job moving the story along and the ending was good.

The second movie AvP Requiem, I also knew what I was getting and generally was not surprised by what I saw. The only thing that did surprise me was how DARK this movie was from a lighting standpoint. I did not remember it being like that when I saw the dvd version. As other reviewers have said, it did diminish the movie enjoyment since it was very hard to see in some scenes what was going on. As much as I like ambiance, the Strause Bros either dropped the ball on this one or the picture transfer was gosh awful. I could deal with the story but the picture totally killed the fun out of this movie.

Both AVP movies on Blu-Ray Disc+digital copy of AVP-R in one great package!!!
I guess I was one of the few people who enjoyed these great Sc-Fi films. These are great films for what they are and this great set from Twentieth Century fox is awesome. It in cludes BOTH Alien Vs Predator and Aliens Vs. Predator-Requiem in a nice collector's box to house them in!!! The transfers are great,but they should be, it's Blu-Ray baby!!!Note,it says Unrated two pack on the box which is most true, but the the original Theatrical/Rated cuts for BOTH films are also included along with the Unrated versions so there are actually 2 versions of each film(Theatrical/Rated and Unrated),very awesome!!! The fisrt film is a little short on extras but the second one is loaded,including a digital copy of AVP-R for your computer/Ipod(Digital Copy for AVP-R is in on it's own disc and has a code that expires on april,14,2009 just to lt you know) And I got this for less than the price of one,just $26.95 brand spanking new on sale right here at Amazon.com!!!,I buy all my Blu Ray's here,much...

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Nova: Becoming Green - Growing Environmental Awareness

An economical and educational collection
Becoming Green: Growing Environmental Awareness is a thinpack DVD set of environmentally themed public television programs. The thinpack consists of the NOVA episode "Car of the Future", in which the public radio "Car Talk" brothers Tom and Ray Magliozzi look at the environmental future of transportation; the NOVA episode "Solar Energy: Saved by the Sun" presenting the testimony of scientists, economists, and ordinary citizens seeking to better harness the untapped potential of the sun amid a world of rising oil prices; the NOVA and Frontline joint effort "Global Warming: What's Up with the Weather?" scrutinizing record high temperatures worldwide along with the increased frequency of drought, deadly flooding and catastrophic hurricanes; and the American Experience episode "Rachel Carson's Silent Spring", a devastating expose of the chemical industry's unregulated use of DDT (unfortunately, this is the one DVD of the set that is not closed captioned). Special features include...

NOVA DVD REVIEW!!!
This was exactly what I expected it to be and interesting too! We will continue to enjoy this product! Ty!



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B.I.K.E.: Be Inclusive Kill Exclusivity

Nice Doc
The film goes inside the world of the Bike Label Bicycle Club. Very cool and insightful.





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A Passage To India (2-Disc Collector's Edition)

WHEN EAST AND WEST COLLIDE...
This is a magnificent and exquisitely wrought film, well nuanced and faithful in its adaptation of E.M. Forster's classic novel of the same name. Director David Lean, who had previously directed such cinematic triumphs as "Bridge on the River Kwai" and "Lawrence of Arabia", outdid himself with this film, which was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and for which Peggy Ashcroft won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, as did Maurice Jarre for Best Score.

Set in 1928 colonial India, it is a story about racism and love. A headstrong and adventurous Englishwoman, Adela Quested (Judy Davis) travels to India to meet her fiance. She is accompanied on her journey by her fiance's elderly mother, Mrs. Moore (Peggy Ashcroft), a lovely and kindly woman who, upon reaching India, is appalled at the treatment of the native Indian populace by her own countrymen. She eventually makes the acquaintance of a very nice Indian man, Dr. Aziz (Victor Banerjee), who is...

A Quiet, Delicate Beauty
When David Lean's "A Passage to India" opened in 1984, some saw it as a showdown between the glory days of literate epic filmmaking and the "feel-good" ethos of the Lucas/Spielberg popcorn juggernauts. Who better than the director of "Lawrence of Arabia," "Doctor Zhivago" and "Bridge on the River Kwai" to show the film school grads how to make a movie? As always, anything burdened by such mythic expectations is bound to fail ("Phantom Menace" anyone?) Sadly, I joined the chorus of detractors lamenting "Passage" as a poor shadow of the "Leanscapes" that catapulted "Lawrence" and "Zhivago" into film history.

Amazing how age softens perspective. A fresh viewing of "Passage," courtesy of Columbia TriStar Home Video's new DVD, reveals an eloquent adaptation of E.M. Forster's complex novel about British colonialism in 1928 India and the cultural and sensual abysses that separate...

well crafted prose postcard
Very interesting examination of English and Indian attitudes about themselves and each other in 1920's India. The English that reside in India may start off as decent folk with the feeling that they are in the business of improving India and some are. Most however merely see the India venture as an employment opportunity and once there merely carry on being English and force their English ways and rules on Indians whom they demean in the process. Lean presents the stereotypical English administrators and their wives as a rather unappealing bunch of snobs who only become more prejudice the longer they stay on. India is seen by them to be a muddle in need of their administrative and civilizing skills. The Indians of course see things quite differently. British snobbery and decorum prevents any social mixing with the Indians they rule so its no surprise they don't understand the people whose country they are in.
Judy Davis and her fiances mother arrive in India and find the...

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Reservation Road

Fireflies and the Effects of Extinguishing a Brief Life
The profound effects of the accidental death of a child on three families is vividly portrayed in this dark film by writer/director Terry George ('Hotel Rwanda', Hart's War', 'In the Name of the Father') as adapted and co-written by John Burnham Schwartz on whose novel the film is based. While it seems we are seeing a glut of films dealing with revenge on the part of injured people who feel the Law isn't fulfilling its duty, when a film such as RESERVATION ROAD comes along the theme feels fresh.

Ethan and Grace Learner (Joaquin Phoenix and Jennifer Connelly) and their children Josh (Sean Curley) and Emma (Elle Fanning) are the 'perfect family', living comfortably in Connecticut, until one night after a picnic where Josh captured fireflies for his sister, the family stops at a roadside station and while Josh releases the fireflies at his mother's request he is hit by a car and killed. The driver of the car is Dwight Arno (Mark Ruffalo) who is trying to return his son...

I'd like to have given this one 3 and 3/4 stars, having read the book...strong but flawed movie
It has been hard to write this review, as I really loved the book and the author did work on the screenplay (which was ultimately trimmed by the director, I believe).

The movie has so many strong points and it deals with one of the most painful losses a parent can endure - and in such a terribly tragic and sudden way, no warning at all.

MAJOR SPOILER ALERT: When the Lerner family is driving home one night, they make a stop at a gas station. That is when their son gets out of the car to let some lightening bugs out of a jar, a car comes along, hits him and kills him - and two families' lives are forever changed. Joaquin Phoenix does a fine job as Ethan, the father of the dead boy. His anger is palpable. Also, if you see the DVD make sure you listen to his description of how hard it was for him to channel that anger. He actually had to talk to victims to get a sense of how they felt after losing a child.

It is hard not to feel sorry for both...

Existential and engrossing thriller!
"Reservation road" is by far one of the most gripping and tense thrillers of the year. The previous similar movie that I keep in mind was the unforgettable classic of Claude Chabrol: "This man must die" .

A fateful night, an unpleasant and disgraced incident will join the lives of two well different families, and so the anger, despair and pain will involve the heart and minds of these uncomfortable parents. In this order of ideas, and after having lost the patience and faith in the judicial system the next step of this troubled father will be to go for legal advise, and so the destiny will gather the prey and hunter face to face.

All the cast was terrific but Jennifer Connelly steals the show . her forceful and demanding performance overpasses the well known limits of the used to become a true reference pattern.

Watch her for instance, at the moment her husband refers her about the incident of the fireflies and observe carefully the dramatic...

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Essential TV Western 150 Episodes

A bonanza from western TV's golden age
ESSENTIAL TV WESTERNS is a most interesting mix of 150 episodes of mostly 1950s and '60s television. Among the 18 series represented are the expected programs, like BONANZA, ROY ROGERS or ANNIE OAKLEY. Of especial interest are the shows that came and went with little fanfare, such as 26 MEN, RANGO, OUTLAWS, COWBOY G-MEN and TATE. Some, like "Outlaws" featured many famous guest stars during their brief run. "Rango" was a comedy starring Tim Conway and Guy Marks (he sang the spoof song, "Loving You Has Made Me Bananas"). "Tate" is a Civil War vet who lost part of his left arm. When he can't find work, Tate becomes a gunslinger. "26 Men" is based on the actual files of the Arizona Rangers. "Cowboy G-Men" stars Jackie Coogan (Uncle Fester in "The Addams Family") as a government agent.

The dozen DVDs in this collection are stored in gloss-coated heavy paper sleeves that are housed in a sturdy easy-access box. Transfer quality, although primarily dependent on source material, is...

Not much new here, but still plenty of bang for the buck
The Essential TV Westerns 150 Episode Pack may not have many surprises - most of these shows have been available for some time - but if you're just starting you're collection, you can't beat the price. The videos are mostly in good shape (the night scenes are pretty murky, but that's a minor caveat IMHO) and you get a nice mix of programs.

The Adventures of Jim Bowie (1956) - this show, starring Scott Forbes, ran two years and was set in 1830s New Orleans before the title character moved to San Antonio - and his date with destiny. As such, it's really more of a "southern" than a "western", but the unusual setting is what sets it apart from other contemporary offerings - that, and the protagonist's primary weapon, his nine-inch long Bowie knife. Episodes included in this set are: Gone to Texas, Jackson's Assassination, Jim Bowie Comes Home, Monsieur Francois, Osceola, Outlaw Kingdom and The Select Females.

The Adventures of Kit Carson (1951) - In this early...

150 Western TV Episodes of Public Domain Goodness
Essential TV Westerns is a collection of 150 episodes from 18 different Western TV shows from the days when Hollywood knew how to make great Westerns on both the big and small screens. I paid $21.99 for my set and considering that you can pay $5 and higher for just 4 episodes of one of these shows, you cannot complain about the price. The reason why you can get so many episodes for such a low price is that all of these shows are in the public domain. The quality of the prints used in this collection vary, but overall you will get a fairly decent picture on your screen.

The really great thing about this collection is that it is not limited to the usual suspects, that is shows such as Annie Oakley, Bonanza, Jim Bowie, Judge Roy Bean and Stories of the Century that are quite easy to find and obtain. The collection also includes such shows as Cowboy G-Men, The Gabby Hayes Show, Pistols & Petticoats, Rango and Tate that are fairly hard to find on DVD.

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The Cosby Show: Season Eight

The Curtain Goes Down On The Huxtables
By 1991 The Cosby Show was not exactly the commercial powerhouse it had been in the mid to late 80's but remained the hottest game in town. As with many a last season this series ties up many loose ends. There are five main plot points the generally extend throughout the seasons,sort of as mini story arcs: Cousin Pam trying to apply to collage and coping with Charmaine going away to collage,Cliff trying to build a private room for Clair now that most of the kids are away,Theo preparing for his upcoming graduation,somewhat of a teenage "love traigle" between Rudy,Kenny and their respective loves interests and new collage student Vanessa's truly bizzare relationship with the older but self sufficiant Dabnis,whom Cliff takes a shining to because of his abilities as a tinker. There are some funny moments this season but for the most part the episodes concentrate on developing and closing the story arcs and thus the characters themselves. Another important part of this season is that this...

Farewell to a memorable piece of television history
The Cosby Show began its eighth and final season on September 19,1991. The opening and closing montages intended for the season 7 run are finally used this season. Again,the cast is moving in rhythm to hip-hop featuring a trumpet and a snare drum. The reason for the delay of this opening's use:a mural seen in the background was not an original created by a group of artists. Bill Cosby finally received permission from the artists to use the facsimile(the group,in fact threatened NBC with a lawsuit if this was done without permission). This montage contained appearances by Lisa Bonet and Joseph C. Phillips which were deleted due to Bonet's termination and Phillips' write-out as a regular after season 7. So we see Erika Alexander in face and name this season(due to the recycling of the season 6 opener last season,only she appeared in name). So the regular cast went from eleven members(in 1990-91) to nine(this season). Gordon Cartrelle served as executive producer this season,succeeding...

R.I.P. Merlin Santana, Loved the Show!
This season was a pretty good season to me, even though I was disappointed that Pam went without a boyfriend and we stopped seeing her on the quirky episodes with Sly, but I got two new couples to look at. Rudy with Stanley (played by the late Merlin Santana) and Kenny with Deidre. Those four were amusing, specifically the ongoing beef between Kenny and Stanley, and my favorite episodes were "Particles in Motion" and "Some Gifts Aren't Deductible." The looks Stanley would give Kenny would crack me up more than the dialogue; Santana was dead-on with his acting.

I was also excited to see Special Ed on "WARNING: A Double-Lit Candle Can Cause a Meltdown" and really interested in Theo as a teacher. I enjoyed the group of kids Theo mentored as well as Cliff's "For Men Only" when talking about the "lost generation." Not too many shows talked about the stereotypes that brothas were getting at that age as deadbeat dads, the job issues, and talent.

Cons: I outgrew the...

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Alien Nation - Ultimate Movie Collection

Here are the details--
Dark Horizon is on its own disc. The other four movies are on 2 flipper discs--one movie per side. All the movies have a Ken Johnson commentary track. The first four movies have "Making of" featurettes that are a bit dry, but have some great nuggets. The first four also have gag reels. All the movies have a wide of array of stills in a photo gallery.

The last movie's disc side includes a 25-minute reunion taped at Johnson's home in January 2007. Everyone's there except for Sean Six/Buck. It's amazing! I got a warm feeling just watching! It opens with candid meet and greets and sitting down to a meal. They gather in a circle next, and really start to talk. The actors talk about being cast, about make-up, about the movies, and about the reaction from various ethnic groups, among other things. There are some great behind-the-scenes shots from the original series that I've never seen anywhere else.

Dark Horizon is fine, but man, were they hitting on all four...

FINALLY! AS IF WE HAVEN'T WAITED LONG ENOUGH!
I feel that this was another great foul-up on 20th Fox' part, right up on the level of the demise of Joss Whedon's "Firefly", especially Fox leaving A N fans hanging for five years for the resolution of the end-of season cliff-hanger. As "Firefly" has justified its' popularity with the release and massive success of "Serenity" (over a month in the Top Ten), Alien Nation proved itself through the production of FIVE (count 'em, 5) made-for-TV movies that followed.
1. "Dark Horizon"- 1994
2. "Body and Soul"-1995
3. "The Enemy Within"- 1996
4. "Millennium"-1996
5. "The Udara Legacy"-1997
With the industry wasting production resources on so much other second- & third-rate crapola as fills the store shelves these days, I'm glad SOMEONE in the front office at FOX has taken notice and put forth a little effort so all the "Alien Nation" fans haven't had to wait as long for the TV movies as we had for the series.
As with "Firefly", FOX is missing out on a sure...

If you buy Alien Nation the TV series, you need this too.
When I bought the Alien Nation TV series, I watched all of it, and then wanted to see these movies. The first one directly finishes the last TV episode. If you buy one, you need to buy the other one as well.

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Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

A Family Implosion
The full title of this film is 'May you be in heaven a half hour before the devil knows you're dead', a rewording of the old Irish toast 'May you have food and raiment, a soft pillow for your head; may you be 40 years in heaven, before the devil knows you're dead.' First time screenwriter Kelly Masterson (with some modifications by director Sidney Lumet) has concocted a melodrama that explores just how fragmented a family can become when external forces drive the members to unthinkable extremes. In this film the viewer is allowed to witness the gradual but nearly complete implosion of a family by a much used but, here, very sensible manipulation of the flashback/flash forward technique of storytelling. By repeatedly offering the differing vantages of each of the characters about the central incidents that drive this rather harrowing tale, we see all the motivations of the players in this case of a robbery gone very wrong.

Andy Hanson (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is a wealthy...

Descent into dysfunction
At the age of 83, director Sidney Lumet proves he still has plenty of juice. And once again, Philip Seymour Hoffman proves he is one of the finest American actors working today. This powerful one-two punch nails this movie into your head; and that's further guaranteed by, a) great acting by the rest of the cast, including Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei and, in a bravura performance, Albert Finney, and b) a shockingly dark portrait of a family so dysfunctional it almost makes the Texas Chainsaw Massacre folks look tame. Well, almost.

Two brothers, played by Hawke and Hoffman, work in the same real estate company, but are hugely different. Hoffman's the bigshot; Hawke's not. Hawke's divorced; Hoffman's married to Tomei and the opening graphic scene shows just how married the two of them are. Hoffman's got problems and so does Hawke, but they're different problems, although both have their root in money.

Money drives this sucker and leads to greed, murder, despair, fear,...

A very chilling and engrossing film!
I had a pretty good idea of the basic plot when I walked into the theatre. Two brothers (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke) plan to hold up a jewelry store in a strip mall...and the store is owned by THEIR PARENTS. I also knew it bounced around in time a little.

What I didn't expect was such an unrelenting look at a whole bunch of magnificently screwed-up people! WOW! I was left almost breathless by the new depths to which these folks could sink. It was a family tragedy, but there sure wasn't anything noble about these characters.

Hawke is the younger brother, and he works for the same company as his brother, but in a fairly lowly position, and he can barely make ends meet. He's way behind on his child support, and his daughter is growing more and more aggravated with him because he can't follow through on his promises to her to do things like fund her field trip to go see THE LION KING on Broadway. He appears to be ever so slighly dim-witted,...

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Lions For Lambs (Widescreen Edition)

It takes time for the punch to be felt...
LIONS FOR LAMBS as a movie has the courage to do just what the message of the film attempts to do: encourage the American public to stop being so apathetic about our position in the global community. The dramatization of three points of view about the Middle East conflicts (it not only takes on the Iraq debacle, but adds the Afghanistan and Iran problems as well) could, in lesser hands than Robert Redford's direction of Matthew Michael Carnahan's script, be a preachy bore. But while the 'action' of the film may not grab the viewer, the afterburn of the message will haunt the thinking person.

Three scenarios interweave (at times a bit bumpy in the editing, and at times a bit distracting): adamantly pro-war Republican Senator Irving (Tom Cruise) is interviewed by veteran 'thinking' journalist Janine Roth (Meryl Streep) and each defends/attacks the current strategy of the war in Iraq (Irving is taking calls about the latest 'expansion' into Afghanistan); Professor Malley...

For those who dare to be challenged
It's unfortunate that many don't demand much of movie-making and even less of themselves. I for one demand a great deal from both.

This movie is complex in the sense that it didn't provide a neatly summarized and easily digestible answer to what is a very complicated question, mortality (i.e., how to get the best value out of ones life).

By interweaving the different plots it conveyed a contrast that couldn't have been accomplished otherwise.

But most importantly, this movie is about choices. Whether your a journalist who realizes you are doing a disservice to your profession by going along to get along, or whether you're a student that finds comfort in being cynical as opposed to buckling down to change things for the better or perhaps if you choose to put your safety in harms way for the greater good, these are all choices that may not fit easily in one's comfort zone. Tough choices indeed, and as such should not be expected to be dealt with...

Think about why and how our leaders make decisions
Yes this movie requires the viewer to pay attention. Yes it will make you think about your past experiences with college, the government and the media. I bought the DVD to give to my two grandsons who are in college and facing the reality of being an adult in today's world. But first I will give it to my sons, who, like me, faithfully served in the military and found our country's leaders and media lacking. This movie brilliantly shows the real world interplay of social and political forces that shape and alter our lives.

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Due South: The Ultimate Collection - Three Complete Seasons

Includes Call of the Wild Parts 1 & 2
FYI - Since the listing doesn't let you know specifically, Season 3 in Due South: The Ultimate Collection INCLUDES Call of the Wild Parts 1 & 2 so you don't need to purchase the separate DVD.
FANTASTIC series! If you like Paul Gross, be sure to check out Slings & Arrows, a mini-series available on DVD!

Fine for Fans on a Budget. Videophiles Should Look to Canada ...
A friend of mine has the "Ultimate" US release featured on this page. I collected the original Canadian sets as they were released. Seen both. I wrote the following as Amazon commentary on the US releases of individual seasons. Still stand by it.

True, the US sets are cheaper than the Canada sets (though if you buy the Canada sets from Amazon.ca, they're LOTS cheaper than buying them as imports from Amazon.com). True, the Canadian sets have difficult packaging (DVD overlay and spindles that require a lot of pressure before you can pop out the disk without risk of damage). True the first two Canadian season sets use the dreaded "flipper" (2-sided) disks. True what we saw in the US as a third season of 22 (missing four episodes, by the way) was produced and broadcast in Canada as two seasons of 13 each -- and the third and fourth DVD sets are released separately too. (Does the US "third season" set have all 26?) And most ironic truth of all: if I'd known that by waiting, I'd...

Great set... if you don't mind VCD quality.
DUE SOUTH: THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION has got to be the worst quality commercial DVD I've ever seen. I was really looking forward to watching this series for the first time. 68 episodes for $30 didn't seem suspicious since I figured it's a little-known show that probably underperformed for the DVD studio in season sets, so they decided to burn off their investment in one affordable mega-set. When I saw the first disc my blood ran ice cold: 6 TV hours on one DVD? Okay, most TV sets won't break a 4-episode per disc limit or risk some serious image compression issues. Fancy sets will do 2 or 3 per disc which in my opinion generates a reference quality picture. I thumbed through the rest of the discs and would have laughed had I not broke the manufacturer's shrinkwrap, thereby making a refund impossible: Some discs in this set contain a whopping 7 episodes!!! I skimmed through some of the episodes on disc 1: Despite the fact that this is an older show (pre-HD), and the image is...

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Red Sox Memories: The Greatest Moments in Boston Red Sox History

Memories for those who can't remember this century!!!!
I was really looking forward to this DVD and with 150 minutes I was expecting some cool footage and history. The first hour is almost entirely rehashing 2007 and 2004 ...before they get into Rookies and then the all time team...which in the last hour bounces around without much chronology and oh yeah...finally presents the great YAZ at the 1:48 mark into the documentary with 5 minutes left? I honestly think BILL LEE got more coverage than YAZ and Ted Williams. The history element is hysterically bad..bumping from the early 1900's to a quick 1946 to 1975 to 86 all in the span of a couple of minutes. I'm very GLAD I found this used for $5.
the DVD "Boston Red Sox 100 years of Baseball History" puts this to SHAME!

REAL RED SOX FANS, DONT WASTE YOUR $$$$$
I waited for this movie to be released and was so upset with it. It is called red sox memories: the greatest moments in boston baseball history, and should be renamed The Greatest Moments of the 2007 season and other players. By the name I expected to see great segments on Yaz, Fisk, Clemens, Evans, Rice, Foxx, Boggs etc, instead you get every bit of the 2007 season and a tiny bit of history. Not enough time was spent on past greats. Also too much time spent on garciaparra. Good buy at $5 or less other than that STAY AWAY. A perfect pink hat movie!

Buy This DVD!
This DVD will certainly remind Bostonians why to be proud of their hometown. It highlights the Sox's recent victory in the World Series (so don't even think about watching this if you are a Rockies fan) and further delves into the team's history of notable moments and significant players. I am not a huge fan of the Red Sox, but having lived in the city of Boston showed me how to feel proud of the sport!

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Naruto Uncut Boxed Set, Volume 7 (Special Edition)

Episodes 79-90
Note: If you're new to Naruto, go get the other boxed sets and watch them first. These are a bit better than the episodes we get on cartoon network because CN cuts a little bit of stuff. I don't find the DVDs to be any more graphic than the televised episodes.

OK, after too many months I've editing this review to correct the episode list. Regardless, they appear to cover the very end of Naruto's fight with Gara and then proceed past Tsunade powning Naruto in the street after they first meet, and up to, but not through, the battle with orochimaru.

Disc 1:
79. Beyond the Limit of Darkness and Light
80 The Third Hokage, Forever...
81 Return of the Morning Mist"
82 Eye to Eye: Sharingan vs Sharingan!

Disc 2:
83 Jiraiya: Naruto's Potential Disaster!
84 Roar, Chidori! Brother vs. Brother!
85 Hate Among the Uchihas: The Last of the Clan!
86 A New Training Begins: I Will Be Strong!
87 Keep on Training:...

NARUTO
I am a big fan of naruto as you can see in my other reviews. I do have all the box sets since the beginning.
They actually have 14 episodes i dunno why they say there is only 12!!!
The last box set i said it was a bit slow... well this one is still a little bit but naruto s humour wins it all.
This box set starts with the end of the big hokage s fight and end up at the beginning of tsunade, orochimaru, jiraiya and naruto s big fight. For those that has been watching naruto on Cartoon Network, its the part where naruto learns how to pop the balloons, rubber balls and more. You will also learn how exactly sasuke got to hate his brother so much and you will understand what happened by him having flashbacks of his past
Here s what s written in the back of the box
"THE DESTRUCTION OF THE VILLAGE HIDDEN IN THE LEAVES HAS BEEN AVERTED, BUT AT GREAT COST. WHILE THE VILLAGE MOURNS, A NEW MENACE ARRIVES IN THE FORM OF ITACHI UCHIHA, SASUKE S MYSTERIOUS ELDER BROTHER AND...

Another Great Box Set For All Naruto Fans
This box set follows-up with the finale of the Leaf village attack and the death of the Third Hokage and after the funeral you'll have Naruto and Jairya searching for Tsunade who has been chosen to become the fifth Hokage.
The box set like the other ones is uncut so you'll see the blood splatter and some other things they cut out of the edited versions you have with the single dvds or what you see on cartoon network. The video is standard format with surround stereo for both English and Japanese audio sadly there aren't much extras mostly advertisement for some of the Naruto games but thats it. The price right now for most of these box sets is pretty amazing
so if you're a Naruto fan I suggest getting these box sets right away..

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The Cosby Show: Season Seven

Welcome Erika!
The Cosby Show's seventh season premiered on September 20,1990 with the cast at its all-time largest. Erika Alexander joins as Clair Huxtable's(Phylicia Rashad) kid cousin Pamela Tucker who moves into the Huxtable household from a Brooklyn tenement. Pamela attends the same high school as the other Huxtable kids(except Rudy) did. Vanessa(Tempest Bledsoe),who went from the sophomore to the senior level during her high school years last season,leaves the Huxtable nest to attend Lincoln University. So 11-year-old Rudy(Keshia Knight Pulliam) is the only Huxtable kid left in the household(who hasn't yet left at all). Pamela occupied Vanessa's bedroom while Vanessa was away. Rudy and Olivia Kendall(Raven Symone) still share a bedroom and so do Olivia's father Martin(Joseph C. Phillips) and his wife,the former Denise Huxtable(Lisa Bonet). Theo(Malcolm Jamal Warner) is out of the Huxtable household again and back in his girlfriend Justine Phillips'(the late Michelle Thomas,recurringly). Martin...

episodes messed up
First off - I like this new format better - where they give the descriptions of the episode before viewing. However, as I was watching the episodes, I've noticed that two of them are messed up. My episode #14 is actually #19 and vice versa. Has anyone else had that problem, or did I just get a bad set? Otherwise - love the season - especially the characters of Lance, Charmaine & Pam. They crack me up.

A Great Cosby Season
Sadly for me anyway,this was The Cosby Show's final swansong for Lisa Bonet,who would be absent from the show by the season yet to come. As one reviewer also stated this season features the largest cast The Cosby Show ever had. This also introduces the character of Cousin Pam and her best friend Charmaine (soon to be a featured character on A Different World)-not only that but the community center where they dwelled became a platform for one of the best episodes of the season;the two part closer in which Theo,newly assigned to the center tries to encourage a young man who he believes is dyslexic as himself. There are many favorite moments to be seen on this season:one of them finds Denise and Martin looking for apartments,one of which is a cramped "crew quarters" with a shower in the living room. Another favorite involves the two characaters again-this time revolving around a "battle of the sexes" in the Huxtable clan surrounding Theo throwing the couple a bachelor party.Even the...

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The 4400 - The Complete Fourth Season

4400 Gets Back on Track and Then Gets Cancelled!!!!
The 4400 had a great premise - the human race has destroyed the world. The future has found a way of going back in time and selecting 4400 people and enhance them with an ability that will help save the world. But it turns out that the 4400 has good abilities and evil abilities. So, the US government sets up a new agency, NTAC to oversee these returnees.

Well that was the original concept but in Season 3, USA decided to give it a darker edge and the show was all over the place. But I am happy say that in the Season 4 that the show started to get back on track. But I am sad to say that there will be no Season 5!

So enjoy the following and final episodes:

The Wrath of Graham - A promicin teenager gets the ability to make everyone like him.

Fear Itself - A person can make your worst fears come true or least make you think that it is true.

Audrey Parker's Come and Gone - A woman acquires the ability to astra project herself. But...

Great show + fantastic season... Of course it's canceled
I discovered this show during its 4th season, and was immediately hooked. I love the storyline, and the way they made the characters real and in-depth. I.e. I love the way not all those with powers do well...some suffer tragic ends.

I was really really happy to have found this show, and was looking forward to s5 but I guess that will never happen.

if you love character driven storylines, you should definitely consider this

I wonder...
I have to wonder if this show was cancelled because of the wild popularity of the show that directly ripped it off, i.e., Heroes. In my opinion, the WAY the 4400 came by their powers and the WHY of the whole thing is a way cooler storyline than Heroes - I like Heroes, but preferred the 4400. really wish it would've been given a chance to come to a REAL conclusion....

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Fortysomething

A true gem for fans of Hugh Laurie
I am a long time fan of Hugh Laurie, and in my endeavors to try and collect everything I can possibly find that he's been in, I stumbled across this 2 DVD set. I am so happy I bought it! It is absolutely brilliant; Hugh's character, Paul, is somewhat of a cross between House and Wooster. I simply adore this show; the first episode in particular is truly hilarious: one of the many high points is when two of Paul's adult sons are fighting over a girl and Paul orders them to go to their rooms. Sex is a major theme throughout the series; one of the running jokes is that Paul can't remember the last time he and his wife have made love while his sons spend most of their time fighting over a pair of sisters. In spite of the sexual elements, I found the show to be refreshingly tasteful, especially compared to the majority of American shows. Further more, its obvious, at least in my opinion, that in spite of their problems, Paul and his wife were still quite devoted to one another. I'm sorry...

Who doesn't love Hugh Laurie?!?
If you love Hugh Laurie in "House" then check him out in this British series he did right before becoming the grumpy old doctor we adore. In "Fortysomething," he plays another grumpy, but a little less old, doctor and a family man facing a midlife crisis. It's hysterical and real and Hugh Laurie doing what he does best.

Comedy for the Soul
In a world of crass comedy-by-numbers in which insensitivity masquerades as "edgy" this series is something quite different. The comedy is low-key and never cruel, and even the minor characters get developed enough along the way to be interesting. While the first episode initially seems as if it's going to be too mechanical, Laurie's character Paul develops quickly enough for us to be touched by the humanity of the guy. And that's what is central to this series: in the middle of all the quotidian upsets and misunderstandings, in a world in which everyone is too busy to connect, Paul struggles always to do the right thing in a confusing world even though he is never encouraged or acknowledged. It would have been very easy to write a series in which the middle-aged man is an object of ridicule; instead, this series cleverly sets up all the standard tropes but turns it around by enabling us to empathize and sympathize with Paul.

One of the core themes is the fact that Paul and...

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Helvetica [Blu-ray]

Love Helvetica, Hate Helvetica...See Helvetica
The historical significance of the typeface as well as the on-going evolution of typography make this a must see for anyone interested in typography and graphic design, but also a fine entertainment for film enthusiasts. Compelling interviews with notable professionals are informative, witty and often hilarious. Visuals run the gamut from elegance to true grit. Kudos to Gary Hustwit and his crew for this living history before it is not longer possible.

My old friend is now a movie star
I'm a working graphic designer.

I'm an art graduate. As a child, I enjoyed to look at fonts for hours - a Letraset catalogue(titled in big Helvetica letters) from the 80s was one of my (most) prized possessions.

When I first heard about this movie I was thrilled. Now that I saw it, I can say it was worth my time. The movie is smart, witty, and a pleasure to behold - an endless stream of layouts. And valuable insights, commentaries and history. Oh yes, the film is also inspirational - it makes you think about good design. It makes you desire good design, whatever that may mean today.

My favourite quote from the movie:
"The life of a designer is a life of fighting--fight against the ugliness, just like a doctor fights against disease. For us visual disease is what we have around and what we try to do is try to cure it somehow, you know, with design." Thanks Mr. Vignelli for putting things into perspective.

Given Helvetica's importance in...

Do you love documentaries?
If so, this is the film for you. I was lucky enough to see it at the annual conference of the Society for Environmental Graphic Design - and loved it! It's accessible not only to designers but also to me - the biology major in the room. Gotta love a detailed history of something that you see every day - but may not notice.

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Over Her Dead Body

Enjoyable
An enjoyable romp. And I must admit, I was enchanted by Lake Bell who is not your average cookie-cutter beauty. Perhaps it is because of her that I give it an extra star, for, as movies go, this is more like a three star movie. Don't get me wrong, it is increasingly rare for newer movies to qualify for three.

Engaging, somewhat cliched romantic comedy
This film has a good premise to generate comedic material - as Kate (Eva Longoria is about to marry her fiance (Paul Rudd) she is crushed to death by a falling ice angel sculpture... and she returns to haunt/harrass the psychic who begins to fall into a romance with him. Add to that the gay? catering business partner of the psychic medium (played by Jason Biggs) and there's a number of pretty funny scenes and plot twists. Although the plot seemed clever, Eva Longoria's character seemed to weaken the film - she seemed rather one-dimensional and stuck on auto-pilot in that role. The remainder of the cast seemed to get into their characters pretty well and the film was well-paced and fun... I personally like supernatural elements in films and this one has that as key to its premise... there's a particularly funny scene where the medium goes to a Catholic priest to ask for help in "getting rid of" the ghost and another scene where the ghost puts on a threatening, demonic pose a la The...

Predictable but fun
The premise is simple. A woman (Eva Longoria) dies on what was to be her wedding day. She returns to earth as a ghost only do discover that her former fiancé is seeing an alleged psychic and, worse, beginning to fall for her. The ghost begins to torment the psychic in order to prevent the incipient romance from blooming.

The rest of the plot should be pretty obvious, and, indeed, there is nothing surprising here. But if the plot is a strictly by-the-numbers affair, the performances are not so much, especially Longoria's, which suggests strongly that she had a great deal of fun with the role. That fun translates onto the screen, and the result is an amusing movie. This might not be great filmmaking, but it is an enjoyable way to pass 90 minutes.

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Sunrise Earth: American Sunrises

A before-breakfast treat
This is a set of 3 DVDs, each with 3 high-quality, relaxing 52 minute videos. Each video is of one general location (but with several different views of that location) starting before sunrise and continuing until the day has gotten started.

The locations are widely varied, such as near the ocean, in Yellowstone national park, the New England countryside, and several coastal areas. City views? Forget it. These videos are all very much out in nature. Not the view out your own windows, or even from the windows of a vacation cabin.

Sometimes the videos include wildlife. Always lots of relaxing natural sounds too. These are great peaceful videos for those of us who rise later in the morning and don't get out away from town often enough. There are occasional small and unnecessary subtitles to help you figure out what is happening. They do not detract from these very nice videos.

finally!
I have been enjoying Sunrise Earth on Animal Planet for several months now. I have been so hoping they would put this on dvd so I could enjoy it without commercials.

Sunrise Earth has no narration and no music...the only sounds you hear are the natural sounds of the environment being filmed. Yellowstone Geysers is my favorite in this set. I often watch Sunrise Earth before bed and first thing in the morning to ease into the day.

AHHH so relaxing--
I bought this as a gift for someone but I have seen this series before on the Discovery Channel. I would get up at 3:30am during the early months with my twins. I had to have some time to wake up and this was usually on when I would get up. I couldn't have anything on that was too loud and the nature sounds just was so soothing. I'd drink coffee--and not miss seeing the sunrises I used to see too much. I saved one star because I think the hi-def version would be 5 stars! Great gift for a nature lover that doesn't have the time to get to nature or maybe for some reason can't get to nature (like during the winter when you're trapped in the house with kids) :-)

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Pat Metheny Group: Imaginary Day Live

Beautifully captures it all...
I knew of Pat Metheny through the 1980s but never listened to him until I bought the 'Imaginary Day' CD in 1998. As a result I luckily saw that tour in 1998 in Richmond, Va. The show was simply...beautiful and vivid. I always wished that a DVD existed of that night...and just stumbled across this one with Dolby Digital and DTS.

This 1998 show at what looks like the Paul Masson winery in California captures that time perfectly. As I sit in front of my home theater I have my 4-week old daughter in my arms and she is mesmermized by the sound...her first musical experience. I'm biased and not going to write a long review except to say this is a 5-star DVD to me...because it appears my little girl is as astonished by Pat and his band as I was 12 years ago. Thanks guys...

*This appears to be re-release of the 2001 out-of-print DVD. Yes the video can be grainy in some darkly lit tunes but given the venue in 1998 it's par for the course. Some reviews on the original DVD...

Unbelievable!
Even if your familiar with Pat Metheny, it's still unbelievable. This an outstanding performance by a group of artists. His opening solo just blew away! I've never seen or heard any thing like it, a 4 neck guitar?? This would be so awesome on Blu-ray in DTS Master Audio, I hope they do it soon! This is Sooooo recomended to any Pat Metheny, Jazz or music fan of many tastes that I can't express enough how much you should own this. It makes all my other 5's look like 3's and 4's.

I wish Amazon had a 3 criteria rating that would make for a quicker, more accurate and fair rating of Cd's, DVD's and Blu-ray's.

1. Performance
2. Quality of Audio
3. Quality of Video (for DVD's and Blu-ray's)

1.*****
2.*****
3.*****

Artists that wish to have there performances recorded and recognized should be held to a standard. Poor Audio or Video, no matter how good the performance, is still a bad product. Those who would still purchase...

Too much with the video effects
Let me start by saying I am a total Pat Metheny Group devotee - I have all of their available live DVD's. The music in this DVD is, as always, awesome but it seems like Steve Rodby was having fun with the video effects and it really gets in the way of the experience. Lots of places where there are four small views running at once, lots of visual effects for no apparent reason. It was very frustrating.

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