Every Mother's Worst Fear (1998) Review

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(More customer reviews)OK, so everyone hates Ted McGinley's character in this movie. But he did a great job with the role. McGinley plays Mitch Carson, a sick, perverted, creepy wierdo who lures teenage girls over the internet from their homes to his hideout where he holds them against their will and actually offers them for sale over the internet. The 16 year old girl in this movie is Martha, a lonely and troubled teen who is the latest to fall victim to Carson. Ted McGinley from first glance in this movie appears as a very normal guy. He dresses nicely, talks to Martha nicely when he picks her up from his buddy Drew, whom Martha was first lured to. "Hi Martha" McGinley sais, "I'm Mitch Carson, I'm just another computer geek who works for an organization which helps kids in trouble get back home and away from guys like Drew." "Can I call my mom?" Martha asks him. "Sure", Carson(McGinley) sais, smiling all innocent to her, "you can use the cell in my truck." Well, the nice guy routine works, into his truck she goes. But the cell phone is dead, and with more and more sweet talking, Martha and Mitch carson are off to his hideout, which Martha is totally unsuspecting of. She thinks Carson is taking her to meet her parents somewhere. The suspense really, really builds about 45 minutes into the movie, and does it ever get cree-eeepy!! It's not a movie for everyone, but if you're in the mood for a creepy, suspenseful thriller this is it!! I think it's also a true story which makes it even more chilling. Martha's mother, played by Cheryl Ladd, you will enjoy watching as well, as she is very attractive and does a great job as playing a mother who is about to have a breakdown if she doesn't find her daughter. Another movie I recommend, although I don't think it's on VHS or DVD is a Lifetime Original movie titled, "Video Voyeur: The Susan Wilson Story", starring Angie Harmon. As you guessed, it comes on Lifetime from time to time.

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The Lost Prince (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)Now that I have finally seen both episodes of The Lost Prince I can say confidently that it is one of the best Masterpiece Theater presentations in many years. As the story of Prince John, the youngest child of King George V and Queen Mary of Great Britain, it is heartbreakingly evocative of the tragedy of one child and of the loss of an entire world.
The first episode opens with Prince John at about the age of three or four. He is epileptic and probably autistic, handicaps which no one knew how to deal with effectively at the time and which were especially difficult to handle for a Royal on public display much of the time. His family is fond of him but emotionally distant, and the only real love John receives is from his nurse Lalla and his next older brother Georgie. Most of the time John is kept out of sight, though occasionally he gets to watch Royal occasions like the visit of the Russian Imperial Family to England (among the most beautiful of the scenes in this film, the Grand Duchesses and the Empress being elegant and charming) and the funeral of his grandfather Edward VII. His parents are so bound up with their royal duties and conscious of their dignity that they can't unbend enough to risk being with Johnnie too often. (With Queen Mary we are given an explanation for her apparent unfeelingness when we are shown glimpses of her own difficult and embarrassing childhood as the daughter of a very large and very undignified Princess.) Johnnie's handicaps make him refreshingly natural and spontaneous, which embarrasses his family when, for example, he repeats some unflattering comments he has overheard the Prime Minister make about the Royals. The first episode ends with the outbreak of World War I and Johnnie's removal to the countryside.
In the second episode Johnnie is safely ensconced at a farm near Sandringham with Lalla and a small retinue of servants. He rarely sees his family, who are busier with royal duties than ever. His main source of news and information is Georgie, who is a miserable cadet at the Royal Naval College. Georgie witnesses Britain's conversion to a war footing and the development of chauvinistic super-patriotic anti-German feelings. These lead to the Royal Family coming under attack for its German origins, and to the dynasty's renaming itself the House of Windsor. We also see the fate of the Romanovs after the fall of the Russian monarchy in 1917. Although the British government at first agreed to accept the Romanovs as exiles, rising anti-monarchical sentiment in Britain so alarmed George V that he prevailed on his government to rescind the invitation. This led to the eventual execution of the Romanovs and lifelong remorse by the King.
During these war years Johnnie lived a quiet life, roaming the countryside and planting gardens. His parents saw him rarely and were as distant as ever. Eventually, Lalla prevailed on the King and Queen to hear Johnnie give a recital. One of the happiest parts of The Lost Prince comes when the King and Queen find themselves listening to and enjoying the company of their youngest son, gradually unbending and smiling as he plays the trumpet and kicks a football. Johnnie lived only a short time after the end of World War I, but the King and Queen carried his memory with them for the rest of their lives. By the way, it may be of interest to know that his brother Georgie, to whom Johnnie gave the courage to pursue his own artistic interests, had difficulties of his own in his twenties and thirties with drug addiction and sundry other problems, finally dying in a plane crash in 1942. This Georgie was not King George VI, the father of the present Queen. George VI's original name was Albert (Bertie) and he appears only as an extra in this film.
The Lost Prince is a beautiful production. Extreme royal aficionados will notice a few missteps (the Romanovs may have been Russian Royals, but they didn't have Russian accents the way this film portrayed them. If anything, Nicholas and Alexandra and their children had British accents!) but these are mere fumbles in the delivery of a beautiful and evocative series.

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LOST PRINCE - DVD Movie

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Signing Time Volume 1: My First Signs DVD (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)I'd like to correct the reviewer who said that the Signing Time videos don't teach the words "please" or "thank-you". I own all three DVDs in the set, and I know those words are taught. Volume 2, "Playtime Signs", teaches both of those words. It even includes a song about them, called, "Magic Words". Currently, the desciption of the Volume 2 DVD on Amazon.com lists the wrong words, so don't trust it. For accurate information about the videos, visit the Signing Time website at www.signingtime.com. You can also see video clips there.
A strong point of the Signing Time videos is the fact that each word is demonstrated by several different people. This is important, because everyone signs a little differently. Other videos, which generally use only one demonstrator, have left me wondering how exact I have to be in imitating the sign in order to have it recognized as the intended sign.
This video is the first one in the series, and was made a year or two before the latter two videos. The producers appear to have learned a lot from making the first video, and the latter two are even better (they've added songs, present words in groups, have better filming, and moved the "Introduction" by Rachel into it's own segment, so you don't have to watch it every time you play the main feature). The latter two videos also include more words - about 30 each, instead of just 18, as in this video.
One thing that has disappointed me about the Signing Time videos is that they leave out a lot of important words that are commonly used with babies & toddlers (which is why I only rate it with 4 stars). I would rather learn "diaper" and "bottle" than "fish" and "bird". Happily, I discovered the "Baby See 'N Sign" videos, which do a great job of filling this gap. I would recommend "Baby See 'N Sign" to all serious baby-signers, in addition to the Signing Time series. The second "Baby See 'N Sign" video was made specifically from words that were requested by parents. The "See 'N Sign" videos aren't as cute as the "Signing Time" videos, but they are well-done, and they still hold my baby's attention. They also cover A LOT more words (60+ on the first video, and 100+ on the second). They're only available on VHS, which was a slight disappointment for me, but they are well worth having. Currently, Amazon.com only sells the first video, but you can order the second one from www.babyseensign.com.
I certainly hope the Signing Time people keep making more videos. It would be great if they would teach simple phrases, like "come here" and "I'll be right back", instead of just single words. I would also like to see more video snippets of children using signs as they play together, or interact with their parents, instead of just seeing children doing a single sign by themself. I also think they should show the object being signed in the same picture with the person who is doing the sign, instead of showing the sign, then the object, then the sign - each in separate clips. (To be fair, there are a few examples of someone doing a sign with the object present - but most of the time, that is not the case - and in some of the cases, they show a cartoon of the object instead of a real object, which I think isn't as effective.)
Overall, the Signing Time videos are well worth having, since the manner of presentation is very engaging, and they do an excellent job of holding a baby's attention.

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It s Signing Time with Alex and Leah! From their magical animated treehouse, Alex (age 3), his cousin Leah (age 4) who is deaf, and host Rachel Coleman (Leah's mom) teach beginning American Sign Language (ASL) signs in a fun and playful way. Volume 1 is a great first step into signing and teaches signs for many first words. Created for ages 1-8 but enjoyed by all! Available only on DVD. Close-Captioned. Approximate run time: 30 Minutes, plus special features. My First Signs includes the following original songs, written by Rachel Coleman: *Signing Time Theme *Show Me a SignSpecial FeaturesSign Review - Behind the Scenes - Original 2002 Version of Theme Song - FAQ: Rachel's Color-Coded Fingers - Preview: Vol. 7 Leah's Farm - Baby Signing Time - Preview: Here I Go - Creators' Audio Commentary On/Off.ASL SignsASL signs taught in this DVD:Eat/Food - Milk - Water - Ball - More - Bird - Cat - Dog - Fish - Car - Airplane - Want - Shoes - Flower - Mom - Dad - Baby - Sleep.And if you pay close attention, you ll also see and learn these additional signs:Hi - Come - Signing - Time - Teach - Sing - Dance - Play - Now - Favorite - Visit - Tree - House - Can - Everyday - Lot - Start - Today - Where - Friends - Meet - Find - Not - Different - All - Much - Share - Love - Day - How - Like - Know - What - Mind - Together - Make - Smile - Think - About - Night - Show - Here - Chicken - Horse - Car.

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