Someone is Watching Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this movie thought it was excellent Give it 10 Stars.It has a little bit of everything in it. Like the title Someone Is watching you.Scary!!


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Above Suspicion (1995) Review

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(More customer reviews)This movie was Christopher Reeves last movie before his freak accident that left him paralyzed. The acting is what makes this movie great, but you must get by your emotions during the brother's affair with Reeves' wife. Definitely not for children.

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Unborn 2 (1994) Review

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(More customer reviews)One thing you can say about Roger Corman: he's consistent. "Consistent" meaning his films always turn a profit (supposedly). "Consistent" also means that a viewer sitting down to a watch a Corman flick will consistently find the film in question larded with enough cheese to clog an elephant's arteries. You will see cheesy acting, cheesy special effects, and cheesy plots. Depending on the type of genre, you'll also find plenty of gory mayhem, beautiful babes, and nudity from the aforementioned beautiful babes. That's Roger Corman in a nutshell. Oh wait, I almost forgot; he's also the biggest ripoff artist in Hollywood history. Any film that has hit the big time in the last forty years invariably sees Roger Corman making a similar flick in an effort to cash in on the more successful offering. For example, when "Jaws" hit the jackpot back in the 1970s, Corman followed up with several pictures capitalizing on monsters run amok. When the car movie craze swept America in the late 1970s, Roger quickly jumped aboard by releasing films focusing on cars. "Star Wars" saw our man releasing several science fiction films strongly resembling, well, "Star Wars". That's Corman for you. Love him or leave him.
"The Unborn II," an inferior sequel to the intriguing 1991 film "The Unborn," begins with a slam-dunk scene one won't see in many American films. A woman, Linda Holt (Robin Curtis), approaches a playground overflowing with happy tykes. She coolly surveys the scene, walks up to one of the youngsters, and proceeds to pump him full of bullets. The movie could have ended right there and I probably would have given it five stars. You just don't see scenes like this in horror movies these days. It's too politically incorrect. Let's move on. Main character Catherine Moore (Michele Greene) moves into a nice neighborhood with her baby boy Joey. The film immediately treats us to scenes of domestic tranquility punctuated with encounters between Catherine and her nosy neighbors Artie and Marge Philips (Darryl Henriques and Carol Ita White). These two give a whole new meaning to the word "intrusive" as they pepper our protagonist with all sorts of annoying questions. They also want to see the baby, predictably enough, but Catherine won't reveal her offspring. Why? If you've seen the first film, you already know the answer to that question. Quit bothering me and just read the darn review! Sheesh!
Anyway, a few other characters arrive on the scene. We see another one of Catherine's neighbors, the overly friendly John Edson (Scott Valentine desperately looking for a career after "Family Ties"), and the two strike up one of those friendships we the viewer recognize as having the potential for romantic interaction. The movie also introduces us to the blazingly hot Sally Anne (Brittney Powell), daughter of the aforementioned Philips and the future babysitter of the enigmatic Joey. What else? Oh, remember that dame wreaking bloody havoc at the playground in the opening scenes of the movie? We learn she's out tracking down the monstrous babies from the first film. Her mission apparently involves engaging in open gun battles with the cops in the middle of hospital maternity wards. Fun. Her goals also involve tracking down one Joey Moore. In the meantime, Catherine has other problems. Like explaining to Sally Anne why she keeps Joey locked up in his bedroom. She also must hide what happens to a couple of meddling social workers when the two nosy nellies run straight into the jaws of an angry Joey. And Joey? By the time we see him, fully revealed to the camera, we're laughing too hard to take any of this seriously.
Does a movie like "The Unborn" really need a sequel? Already a belated ripoff of Larry Cohen's "It's Alive" series, Corman obviously saw dollar signs in resurrecting the baby run amok genre. The first installment worked well. Brooke Adams did a good job, and we also got to see Kathy Griffin's character murdered with a hammer. Sadly, "The Unborn II" doesn't achieve these Olympian heights. For one thing, the film just looks cheap. It has that sparse look one sees in most of Corman's 1990s and early 2000s efforts, a look that's one step above camcorder filmmaking but far short of the rich tapestry of colors and textures filmmakers achieve with properly developed celluloid. The performances and dialogue also leave a lot to be desired. In other words, both elements tank badly. They really need to quit writing scripts on toilet paper over there at Corman headquarters. Lastly, the special effects look appallingly awful. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry when the film unveiled Joey for the first time. The kid has a noggin that looks like a globe covered with flesh colored newspaper. It's that bad, folks. Just appalling. He looks like something I would've created in grade school--while tripping acid.
Supplements. You're kidding, right? Expect a full frame picture transfer, a trailer for this film, and a few previews for other House of Corman extravaganzas. Expect much less in the audio and picture quality department. Like I said earlier, the movie looks cheap. So why should you watch "The Unborn II"? Well, if you saw the first one and really liked it, you should definitely check out this inferior sequel just to see how far an idea can fall in the hands of Roger Corman. You can also watch the film with a few friends and do your own MST3K treatment. That's always fun, and quite easy to do with this movie. Finally, you should watch this flick just to see the opening scenes on the playground. It's nasty stuff executed in a way that will make you flinch. Too bad the film couldn't live up to the high expectations it set for itself at the beginning. I'll give "The Unborn II" three stars because of that scene, Sally Anne, and the hilarious hijinks that kept me laughing throughout.

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All the Winters That Have Been (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)All The Winters That Have Been is a compelling story , based on the novel written by Evan Maxwell. It is divided in two parts, each containing a strong message. In the first part, agent Dane Corvin (Richard Chamberlain) is posing as a businessman interested in buying fish illegally caught by members of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community. A law passed to limit fishing and protect fish resources in the area makes it impossible for this community to continue living from their traditional salmon and shellfish fisheries if they do not resort to poaching . Although it is true that the Swinomish violate the law on fishing, this law does not take into account the fact that they have always made a living out of fishing and cannot survive without. Dane Corvin, who falls in love with the half Swinomish and half Irish Hannah ( Karen Allen), understands the plight of the Swinomish but fails to postpone the operation. The arrest of Hannah's brother puts an end to Dane's and Hannah's relationship leaving both characters deeply hurt.
The second part starts when 20 years later Dane Corvin comes back to the area to visit his dying uncle (Hal Holbrook) whose last wish is to bring Dane and Hannah together again. Dane who has been hurting and missing Hannah for 20 years has taken refuge in his loneliness that keeps him most of the time in Alaska for preservation campaigns in favor of bears and wolves. Hannah who has become an important artist and whose art contributes to the development and well-being of the Swinomish community, has moved on with her life and her secret. Hannah unconsciously has forgiven Dane but circumstances prevent her from verbalizing her forgiveness. She has to meet Dane again in order to listen to her heart, accept her love for him and tell him her secret. It is now Dane's turn to find in his heart and soul how to reconcile all the elements of his shattered life and so make forgiveness and love the main messages of the second part of the movie.
The great director, Lamont Johnson, ( who directed Richard Chamberlain in several episodes of Dr Kildare in the early 60s and in Wallenberg in 1985) succeeds in making a movie with a quick sequence of scenes that follow each other very smoothly but allows at the same time the actors to make great performances and fully take advantage of the dialog that sounds in some instances like a theater play...Richard Chamberlain, Karen Allen and Hal Holbrook are magnificent, sober intensity is the key word for their acting in a movie that allies hard facts of life with tenderness, romance, love and forgiveness. Beautiful locations in British Columbia, excellent lighting and spectacular photography - you really feel the cutting touch of the crisp air blowing from the bright blue sea and you smell the fresh fragrance of the dark green spruces - are an added reason why I like to watch and re-watch this movie. The sunset light that embraces with its magic aura Dane standing on the porch briefly reminds a scene of Marcel Camus renowned Orfeo Negro of 1959.


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Item Name: All the Winters That Have Been; Studio:Direct Source Label

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David's Mother (1994) Review

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(More customer reviews)My friend has a severely disabled son. Upon seeing David's Mother, she remarked, "This is my life!" She urged me to see the film. Now I am highly recommending it to anyone who has experience with or interest in autism or disabled children. Any parent or educator would benefit richly from this film as well.
David's Mother is about a single mother named Sally (Kirstie Alley) who takes care of her teenage autistic son, David (Michael Goorjan). Her husband has left her and her daughter is estranged because they felt Sally has cheated them by leaving them to fend for themselves emotionally and physically because she lives for her son. Sally's sister (Stockard Channing) has pulled Sally's teeth to go on a date with John (Sam Waterson). Despite Sally's best efforts to be as unpleasant as possible, John likes her. A determined social worker (Philicia Rashad) is warning David's mother that she can not try to fool the system any longer. Her son must be enrolled in a program for developmentally disabled children.
Kirstie Alley gives an amazing and heartfelt performance of a mother who believe she is the only one who can take care of David and understand him. Alley won an Emmy for her portrayal.
The acting is tremendous all around. I could not stop watching this film - I was completely mesmerized.

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The Girl Next Door (1999) Review

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(More customer reviews)This movie is predictable right from the start and really stupid in places. The plot is simple enough, middle aged man with pregnant wife becomes infatuated with neighbors' 18 year old daughter. The man has a very brief affair with the girl after which she turns up dead and the man is now a prime suspect. What is stupid about the whole mess is the fact that nobody seems to be suspicious of the girl's boyfriend, someone who had been stalking her before the affair, everyone is more suspicious about the girl's new mysterious lover. To make the entire mess even more unbelievable, the girl took a video of the single night of passion that she had with her neighbour and he now has to get his hands on it.
The movie is also listed as an "Erotic Thriller". Well, there is very little erotic about the movie at all, in fact there are only two semi-sexy scenes in the movie. The first features the girl taking a skinny dip in the pool and the second is the girl and man having sex for the first and only time. Both times the scene is shot in darkness and you cannot see anything worthwhile to suggest any real nudity or eroticism.
The DVD is also very bare bones. There is very little extra on it. My advice, avoid this movie at all cost and instead consider one (or all) of the Poison Ivy movies.

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The Christmas Box (1995) Review

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(More customer reviews)I am a big fan of Richard Paul Evans, and the news that his classic "Christmas Box" had been made into a movie was enough to send me scurrying. As they do with his books, video snobs will dismiss this movie for its spiritual and emotional message, but I say pooey to them. This is one of the best movies I've ever seen.
The ever-loved Richard Thomas ("Good night, John boy!") plays Richard Evans, a young man with a wife and preschool daughter who is overworking himself, because "I want you [wife Keri] and Jenna to have EVERYTHING!" As a result, he is always late and always preoccupied with his ski-supply store and impending expansion.
Tired of being the apartment manager, Keri convinces him to answer an ad, placed by an old woman with an enormous house. The old lady, Mary Anne Parkin, gives them a trial period in her home (Keri does some cooking and cleaning, and Richard does a bit of yardwork) and soon befriends Jenna and Keri. Richard, however, finds her weird, cryptic, and rigid. He's also having strange dreams abou an angel beckoning to him. But as Christmas approaches, changes for the family and for Mary will alter their lives forever, with the secrets of Mary's past and the underlying question, "What was the first gift of Christmas?"
Every scene of this movie is excellent scripted and filmed; scenes ring extremely true, such as the scene where Mary finds Richard drinking straight from a pitcher of orange juice--their expressions are priceless. Richard Thomas perfectly fits the overachiever yuppie who shies away from certain questions and concepts--perhaps because he's afraid of them. Annette O'Toole is equally great as his wife, who is sick of their personal lives playing second-fiddle to business; Kelsey Mulrooney is remarkably good as Jenna, occasionally experiencing flat moments (such as times when Jenna's ashamed) but overall above-average for child actors. Maureen O'Hara is pure gold, playing Mary to perfection; you can see the shell melt away during crucial moments, her eyes shining with warmth.
The camerawork is excellent: the apartment looks cramped and overcrowded, compared to the airy spaciousness of Mary's house. Which, BTW, is gorgeous--I'd love to know where they shot it, because the house is truly beautiful, old and ornate, but with just the right amount of lived-in atmosphere.
I don't watch this movie just at Christmastime--it's far too good to be restricted. If you're in the mood for a beautiful movie, this is truly for you.
(My only questions: When will they put this out on DVD, and when will they also put out the sequel?! I'm waiting for a copy of "Timepiece" people!)

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Lost in the Wild Review

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(More customer reviews)This is an early 1990s TV movie (hence, it's full screen). It hits all the usual emotional buttons.
As four student nurses fly to a clinic in the Mexican jungle, along with some doctors, one of their three planes crashes. The other two planes land. Then the nurses and remaining doctors must find the group that went down, treat them, and arrange to fly them out to an advanced American hospital.
This film is full of cliches and stereotypes. Poor but noble peasants who are honest and generous with their meager belongings rally to help the doctors who helped them. Corrupt Mexican soldiers and government officials are callously indifferent to the doctors' plight. Evil drug lords lurk menacingly in the jungle, posing a potential threat to the doctors. Banditos rob the downed plane. Mexican-American student nurse Jennifer Lopez visits a local Catholic church, lighting a candle, to the warmly smiling approval of the poor villagers.
One patient "dies." Two doctors declare him dead. But a gutsy, spunky student nurse refuses to accept that, and she manages to revive the patient, proving herself smarter than the doctors! (Give me a break!)
This is a predictable film, and hard to believe it's all true. It's supposedly based on a true story, but I suspect they embellished heavily.
Still, it has many good actresses. Lindsay Wagner is the star; she plays an older student nurse who went back to college after divorcing her doctor-husband. She worries that others think she's too old. Farrah Forke is another nurse. Some may remember her as "Alex" from the WINGS sitcom. And it's always nice to see Jennifer Lopez. She has a small cliched role as another nurse, one who ruminates about her Mexican roots (her poor peasant father had immigrated from Mexico, and she's the first of her family to go into medicine).
Contrary to the DVD cover, Jennifer Lopez's part is small. Although this is an ensemble film, Lindsay Wagner is the lead star; Lopez is a minor supporting player.
An enjoyable TV movie, if you like the actresses and don't mind the cliches.

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Prince Charming (2003) Review

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(More customer reviews)CHRISTINA APPLEGATE IS WONDERFUL IN THIS CAPTIVATING AND REFRESHING NEW TAKE ON A MAGICAL FAIRY TALE. I WATCHED THIS ON TNT THIS FIRST NIGHT IT AIRED, THINKING IT WOULD BE A MINDLESS MOVIE TO SLEEP THROUGH. WRONG!WRONG!WRONG! THE PRINCE IS A RAKE BUT EVENTUALLY HE LEARNS THAT LOVE IS WHAT LASTS. HE LEARNS THIS THROUGH CENTURY'S AS A FROG, HIS SQUIRE PLAYED BY TALENTED MARTIN SHORT, AND HIS HEART'S DESIRE, CHRISTINA APPLEGATE. IF YOU LIKE MODERNIZED FAIRY TALES, YOU WILL LOVE THIS MOVIE. ALSO, CHECK OUT JACK AND THE BEANSTOCK - THE TRUE STORY AND SNOW WHITE PRODUCED BY HALLMARK ENTERTAINMENT. THEY ARE AWESOME AS WELL.

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Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves (Walt Disney Pictures Presents) (1997) Review

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(More customer reviews)Remember the funny movie "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids," and the almost as funny "Honey, I Blew Up the Kid?" Well, this movie is much like those. Except in this movie there is a different wife. Oh; and there are kids missing. And now Wayne Szalinski's (Rick Moranis) brother Gordon (Stuart Pankin) has appeared. Perhaps this movie is not so much like those after all.
We quickly learn that a few things have changed for Wayne since last we visited him. The FDA has forbidden Wayne to use his shrinking machine on people. Wayne is in the process of sending his shrinking machine to the Smithsonian. Wayne and Gordon's wives are heading off to a vacation, leaving Wayne in Gordon in charge of the house.
All initially seems sort of well, except that Wayne wants to shrink a Tiki man that his wife wants to him to throw away. Predictably, something goes wrong and Wayne and Gordon are accidentally shrunk. Shortly thereafter the wives, realizing they forgot to leave medicine behind, return. Soon the wives are accidentally shrunk, and we are once again on a path for a few yucks and a few groans.
This movie is reasonably decent. Much of it seems somewhat of a retread. There are the usual moments of fear as the foursome run from a cockroach and help a daddy longlegs spider, more moments of fun in a ride on a toy car, a dip in the dip, a ride in a soap bubble, and more.
This direct-to-video movie has less imagination than the first two movies. The atmosphere of this 75 minute "full-length" feature is that of a made-for-tv movie. I did enjoy the movie, but I wish I had looked for it in a bargain bin somewhere rather than paying full price.
If you really liked the first two movies, you will likely enjoy this movie. If you cared little for the first two movies, you should avoid this one. Even if you think you might like it, the movie still feels like something made for the Disney channel. Good luck!


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Alice in Wonderland (1999) Review

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(More customer reviews)In 1999, NBC broadcast a new version of Alice in Wonderland, created by the same folks who produced Gulliver's Travels, Merlin, and Noah's Ark. This star-studded version had Tina Majorino (from Waterworld) as a winsome Alice, and other stars like Whoopi Goldberg as the Cheshire Cat, Miranda Richardson (Crying Game) as a rather high-pitched, shrill Queen of Hearts, and Martin Short as a very amusing Mad Hatter. There are plenty of other stars, of course, but these are the ones you will notice the most.This particular production is a loose adaptation, really. It incorporates portions of both Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. And it adds a new twist - Alice runs after the White Rabbit not out of curiosity from boredom but rather to escape from having to sing a song in front of many strangers at her parents' party. Her adventures in Wonderland as thus partially about how she summons the courage to overcome this stage-fright, and when she does, she returns to the real world. In the meantime, we see the usual interesting episodes in Wonderland - the Mad Tea Cup party, the croquet match, Twiddledee and Twiddledum, the trial of tarts, the Duchess and her baby pig and cheshire cat, etc. There are even a few songs scattered here and there in the film - the songs, for the most part, are nothing special but they do not distract much from the movie (some folks may also remember a 4-hour TV miniseries on the Alice books, filled with songs, from the 1980s; this was also star-studded and probably more faithful to the books but the songs were annoying).
The best thing about this new Alice film are the special effects. They are amazing and create a most bizarre, surreal, and colorful version of Wonderland. This makes the film great fun to look at. Also, Tina Majorino does a great job as Alice, and we really grow to really like her and sympathize for her as the film progresses. Martin Short, as I mentioned, is pretty funny, too. This is definitely a film the whole family can enjoy, and there is nothing offensive in the film at all. If you liked this film when you first saw it on TV, purchase it! I did! Currently, it sells for less than 10 dollars on some internet sites! Quite a bargain.
Finally, just a few words on the DVD itself. The colors are superb and the picture quality is clear and outstanding. Sound quality is quite good - it won't give the subwoofers any workout, but nonetheless, it sounds very good for a TV broadcast. Extras on the disc include the usual suspects - film production notes, cast notes, trailer, close captioning (instead of subtitles). There is also a small section showing the original illustrations of the Alice books, and lastly, a small section about the inspiration for the Alice books (quite informative for those who do not know about the real-life inspiration for Alice).
So, all in all, the DVD is worth the purchase and makes for many fun re-watching sessions for the kids. A good family recommendation!

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Shattered Dreams (1990) Review

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(More customer reviews)I read the book, found it interesting and then wanted to see the movie.
They did a good job telling the true life story of Charlotte Fedders and her life as a young woman growing up in Towson, Maryland and the limitations on women in the 50's, 60's and 70's before equal rights for women.

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Shadowlands (1994) Review

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(More customer reviews)"I seem to play men who are sort of imprisoned in themselves," Anthony Hopkins comments in an interview included on this movie's DVD. And although this adequately characterizes a mere fraction of his work, roles like that of butler Stevens in Merchant/Ivory's adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's "Remains of the Day," Henry Wilcox in E.M. Forster's "Howards End" (also by Merchant/Ivory) and even Thomas Harris's Hannibal Lecter, illustrate Hopkins's minimalist approach to acting, which makes him so uniquely qualified to play emotionally restrained men, locked up behind the walls erected by convention, trauma or madness. Thus, while bearing little physical resemblance to the real C.S. Lewis, atheist-turned-Christian scholar and bestselling author of the famous "Narnia Chronicles," Hopkins was a natural choice for the role in this movie about Lewis and his wife-to-be, American poet Joy Gresham (Debra Winger).
Albeit subtitled "based on a true story," "Shadowlands" doesn't purport to recount the couple's relationship in its full complexity - that would take much more than a 2 hours, 15 minutes-long film, if it were accomplishable at all. On equally strong intellectual footing, Joy Gresham and "Jack" Lewis were bound to each other not only by a joint interest in literature and because Joy challenged all assumed bases of Lewis's scholarly life, but also by their personal geneses as convert Christians (he coming from atheism, she from Judaism, at least partly influenced by Lewis's writings). Obviously for reasons of dramatic streamlining, director Richard Attenborough and screenwriter William Nicholson - who adapted his play for the big screen after having already scripted the 1985 BBC production featuring Joss Acklund and Claire Bloom - chose to cut down on several facts and persons, such Joy Gresham's second son David (who is not mentioned at all), Lewis's 1954 move from Oxford's Magdalen College to similarly-named Magdalene College at Cambridge (likewise not included), the alcoholism of Lewis's brother Warren ("Warnie") (which is substantially downplayed, as is the abusiveness of Joy's first husband Bill Gresham) and Lewis's complicated friendship with J.R.R. Tolkien (who surprisingly is not at all among the featured Oxford scholars). Similarly, at least according to some accounts Lewis was not quite the bachelor he is shown to be here, possibly having shared more than tenancy of The Kilns (where he and Warren still lived when he met Joy) with Janie King Moore, 25 years his senior and mother of his college roommate Edward "Paddy" Moore, who died in WWI. With regard to Lewis's and Joy Gresham's relationship itself, the movie espouses the view of some biographers that the couple's April 1956 wedding was merely a marriage of convenience designed to allow Joy to stay in England - and that Lewis only fell in love with her after she had been diagnosed with cancer (although she had evidently been taken with him for a considerably longer time) - but here, too, much remains disputed: inevitably so, as this goes to the very heart of their romance; a romance, moreover, growing in an environment not exactly encouraging to the baring of one's soul to outsiders.
Be that all as it may, however, "Shadowlands" is an emotionally and visually stimulating, tremendously powerful production, centering on the recognition that there are only two ways to deal with love: either to shut it out, thus avoiding pain as much as you're foregoing bliss, or to embrace it, thus also allowing for the sorrow it may bring. As a boy, Lewis chose the former: Unable to cope with his mother's death and reconcile it with the idea of a benevolent God, he chose atheism over religion and, later, a scholar's protected, emotionally unchallenging existence over matrimony; this remaining his choice even after having accepted Christianity, now explaining human suffering as "God's megaphone for shouting at a callous world." Yet, all that was called into question when he met Joy who, with her outspoken nature, progressive views, ex-communist background and New York Jewish upbringing was the most unlikely match conceivable for him; and soon made herself unpopular with his Oxford colleagues, e.g. by pointedly rebuking Christopher Riley's (John Wood's) remark that men have intellect where women have souls (which incidentally could well have come from Lewis himself, who had once explained his refusal to marry by noting that then "all the topics of conversation would be used up in a fortnight"). Yet, what had started with a courtesy meeting over tea with a self-professed admirer soon blossomed into a stimulating intellectual exchange and, based thereon, friendship - although Lewis still clung to the idea that there was nothing more to their relationship. Indeed, just *because* Joy was a woman with whom he could have the intellectual exchange he had heretofore only known with men, he could accept her as a friend while keeping her at an emotional distance ... or so he thought. Only the realization that he would soon be losing her forever (at least, according to this movie's interpretation) cut through his armor. Still, although he believed he had now understood that happiness and pain are inextricably linked in love, his faith was again profoundly shaken by her death, giving birth to of his most personal works, "A Grief Observed."
Magnificently framed by its Oxford University background and featuring a tremendous cast, from the two leads to Edward Hardwicke (Warren Lewis), Joseph Mazzello (Douglas Gresham) and top-tier actors even in minor roles (to name but a few, Julian Fellowes, Michael Denison, Peter Howell, Julian Firth and Peter Firth), "Shadowlands" received Oscar nominations for Debra Winger and William Nicholson's screenplay (Anthony Hopkins was only nominated for "The Remains of the Day"), but in a year that also saw strong competition from "Philadelphia," "Age of Innocence," "Short Cuts" etc., ultimately lost out to "Schindler's List" and "The Piano" (Holly Hunter). Nevertheless, this is a powerful testimony to the love between two truly unusual individuals; one of Oxford-s pre-eminent scholars and the woman who was to him, as he wrote in her epitaph, "the whole world ... reflected in a single mind."
Also recommended:
Through the Shadowlands: The Love Story of C. S. Lewis and Joy Davidman
C. S. Lewis Signature Classics: Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, A Grief Observed, The Problem of Pain, Miracles, and The Great Divorce (Boxed Set)
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Inklings
The Company They Keep: C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien as Writers in Community
84 Charing Cross Road
The Remains of the Day (Special Edition)
Howards End - The Merchant Ivory Collection
Terms of Endearment

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This emotionally moving romantic drama was adapted by William Nicholson from his own acclaimed play, based upon the real-life romance (during the 1950s) between the British writer C.S. Lewis and a divorced American poet named Joy Gresham. Best known for writing "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe", Lewis (Anthony Hopkins) is living comfortably as a respected Oxford don, his academic lifestyle a kind of shell protecting him from the emotional risk of love. Joy Gresham (Debra Winger) arrives at Oxford as an avid admirer of Lewis's writing, and the safety of his collegiate routine is quickly disrupted when Lewis realizes that he's fallen deeply and unexpectedly in love. Their courtship is uniquely engaging; he's shy and uncertain, she's outspoken and bold. But when Joy is diagnosed with cancer, Lewis's Christian faith is put to the test--he cannot fathom why their happiness together would be so drastically challenged. Together, they find a way to accept and honor the time they have shared together, and under the sensitive direction of Richard Attenborough, "Shadowlands" arrives at a conclusion that is both heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time. Hopkins and Winger are equally superb in this absorbing story of personal and spiritual transformation--a story previously filmed for British television in 1985, with Joss Ackland and Claire Bloom. "--Jeff Shannon"

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The Big Lebowski (1998) Review

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(More customer reviews)The Big Lebowski is on my top ten list of all time best films. I've seen A LOT of films by the way. I don't need to explain to anyone why this movie is so brilliant, and why it continues to be a cultural phenomenon. I mention these things first because I don't want people to feel like I'm giving the film one star. If I could I would give the movie 100 stars. What I'm giving such a poor review for is my distaste for movie studios pumping out special editon dvd's every few years because they know a film has a huge following. This new "bowling ball" edition of Lebowski is further proof that Universal has nothing but contempt for the fans of Big Lebowski. They wrap it up in a nice big package and make it look slick, but that's as far as the creativity goes into supplying anything new in terms of extras. Does anyone remember the terrible repackage they gave it a few years ago with a towel and coasters? No actual extras existed, but they still put it out as a revamped "deluxe edition". Well, don't expect much more here.
The only new extras to this edition are four very brief featurettes. They feature new interviews with all of the major players (with the exception of the Coen brothers, of course), but they mostly just sit around and say stuff like, "It's a great film! It's hilarious! Coen Brothers are geniuses!". Err, yeah, we know all of that. It also has a featurette that centers around the Lebowski Fest which is vaguely interesting for a few minutes until it turns into the same old "Lebowski is great!" territory. The featurettes are a snooze fest to say the least.
What really annoyed me with this DVD, though, is that they included the SAME "Making of Big Lebowski" documentary that has been on every release of this film! Not only that, it looks as if it was recorded from an old VHS tape and plastered onto a full screen format. It looks horrible, and what's more, we've all seen it before! How many times is Universal going to pump out the same damn extras to the same audience?? It's an insult to be charged more and more money for the same mediocre extras that were never that good to begin with. Luckily I was able to rent this and didn't actually buy it! "The Big Lebowski" will NEVER have proper extras until the people who created it (the Coen Brothers) are involved. We want a commentary, a full length documentary with in-depth interviews, and deleted scenes (and plenty of them!).
DON'T BUY THIS EDITION. It's junk! Simply keep the edition you already have (the very first edition) safely knowing that you are not missing anything with any other edition!

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Universal Big Lebowski (HD-DVD)The hilariously twisted comedy-thriller stars Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and Julianne Moore. Join the "Dude" and his bowling buddies on their journey that blends unforgettable characters, kidnapping, a case of mistaken identity and White Russians. Enter the visually unique and entertaining world from the creative minds of the Coen brothers and remember: the Dude abides.

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Saving Private Ryan (Sapphire Series) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)"Saving Private Ryan" is, by all accounts, an American masterpiece and one of the premier World War II films. Its release on Blu-Ray has been highly anticipated and, for the most part, it doesn't disappoint. First of all, the transfer is every bit as astonishingly sharp as expected. I am by no means a videophile, but there didn't appear to be a single moment of artificial enhancement of the film. The print is appropriately accompanied by a slight sheen of grain whilst still retaining a high level of detail. As far as I'm concerned this is an easy five star transfer. The film runs 2:49:28 and features audio and subtitles in English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. Prior to the menu loading are two easily skippped trailers for the "Minority Report" Blu-Ray and the long overdue home video release of "The African Queen".
There are no features on the first disc, not even a commentary track (Spielberg is well known for his dislike of commentary tracks). The special features are included on the second disc and all are presented in standard definition with the exception of the two film trailers. This is disappointing but not surprising, as it's something of an industry trend. There were no new features produced for this release, which is especially surprising considering the wealth of new high definition features that were produced for the "Minority Report" Blu-Ray. The positive side is that it pulls the features from all previous DVD editions. So even if it is all in standard definition, at least the consumer is presented with the complete special features collection. Most of the titles are rather self-explanatory, but here's a complete rundown of the features:
1) "Introduction" (2:35) - Director Steven Spielberg discusses what attracted him to this project. This would've made more sense if it was included on the first disc with the film, as most will only put the second disc in after watching the film, thus making this more of an epilogue!
2) "Looking Into the Past" (4:40) - This functions as a sort of extension of the introduction, as Spielberg discusses the influences that ultimately led him to creating this film.
3) "Miller and His Platoon" (8:23) - This feature discusses the different personalities of the principle characters with particular focus on Tom Hank's character. Spielberg and Hanks also speak candidly about their interest in World War II in general. There's some interesting on-set footage included as well.
4) "Boot Camp" (7:37) - This features the great Captain Dale Dye discussing how he helped train the actors for their roles, as well as the unique boot camp the actors participated in during production.
5) "Making Saving Private Ryan" (22:05) - A strong making-of feature which highlights Spielberg's directing style relative to the film with some outstanding behind the scenes footage. This is far better than the typical promotional fluff studios place on video releases with a "making of" label attached.

6) "Re-Creating Omaha Beach" (17:58) - An interesting feature discussing how the crew mounted the most impressive battle scene of the film.

7) "Music and Sound" (15:59) - Composer John Williams discusses how he went about scoring the film.

8) "Parting Thoughts" (3:43) - A nice bookend feature that contains bits of interview footage with Hanks and Spielberg.

9) "Into the Breach: Saving Private Ryan" (25:01) - A standard behind-the-scenes feature covering production of the film. This feels like a promotional piece that was bumpered between films on television during its theatrical run. This feature was ported over from the original DVD release of the film and is in rather poor quality (even for standard definiton). I'm definitely glad they included this, but the "Making Saving Private Ryan" feature is far superior.

10) "Shooting War" (1:28:05) - Tom Hanks (in full beard, as this was filmed while "Cast Away" was under production) hosts this feature focusing on the men who filmed and photographed World War II. This is perhaps the strongest feature here, bolstered by plenty of amazing war footage and anecdotes from veterans.

11) Theatrical Trailer in High Definition (2:16)

12) Re-Release Trailer in High Definition (2:05)
To be fair, all the features truly do look quite excellent with the notable exception of the "Into the Breach" feature. I've been spoiled on the clarity of Blu-Ray, however, so it's still something of a disappointment. Aside from that, this is by far the best release of the film yet. The print is fantastic, it's a huge upgrade over the DVD, and the features are expansive and plentiful. Highly recommended!
UPDATE 05/11/10: Apparently this Blu-Ray has been recalled because of an audio sync problem that occurs after Chapter 15 (about two hours into the film). I was aware of the claims on its release date, but even after watching my copy twice I never encountered any issues. Still, for the company to take this sort of action proves the problem is indeed legitimate, so hopefully Paramount's response will be swift and painless for those who have already purchased this product.
FOLLOW-UP 05/26/10: The Blu-Ray issue has been resolved, Amazon only offers the corrected copies for sale and all other retailers should have them on the shelves now. If buying locally, the easiest way to tell the difference is to check the backside of the Blu-Ray for a yellow UPC sticker. Also, whereas the original defective discs were grey, the new corrected copies are blue discs.

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Steven Spielberg directed this powerful, realistic re-creation of WWII's D-day invasion and the immediate aftermath. The story opens with a prologue in which a veteran brings his family to the American cemetery at Normandy, and a flashback then joins Capt. John Miller (Tom Hanks) and GIs in a landing craft making the June 6, 1944, approach to Omaha Beach to face devastating German artillery fire. This mass slaughter of American soldiers is depicted in a compelling, unforgettable 24-minute sequence. Miller's men slowly move forward to finally take a concrete pillbox. On the beach littered with bodies is one with the name "Ryan" stenciled on his backpack. Army Chief of Staff Gen. George C. Marshall (Harve Presnell), learning that three Ryan brothers from the same family have all been killed in a single week, requests that the surviving brother, Pvt. James Ryan (Matt Damon), be located and brought back to the United States. Capt. Miller gets the assignment, and he chooses a translator, Cpl. Upham (Jeremy Davis), skilled in language but not in combat, to join his squad of right-hand man Sgt. Horvath (Tom Sizemore), plus privates Mellish (Adam Goldberg), Medic Wade (Giovanni Ribisi), cynical Reiben (Edward Burns) from Brooklyn, Italian-American Caparzo (Vin Diesel), and religious Southerner Jackson (Barry Pepper), an ace sharpshooter who calls on the Lord while taking aim. Having previously experienced action in Italy and North Africa, the close-knit squad sets out through areas still thick with Nazis. After they lose one man in a skirmish at a bombed village, some in the group begin to question the logic of losing more lives to save a single soldier. The film's historical consultant is Stephen E. Ambrose, and the incident is based on a true occurance in Ambrose's 1994 bestseller D-Day: June 6, 1944.

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