JFK - A New World Order - Standard Edition

JFK - A NEW WORLD ORDER
PROS.... A good amount of unseen photos and usually unseen segments of famous speeches (*unseen meaning "I" haven't seen them in any previous docs I have seen and I have seen quite a few, but not all). Good overview of the administration.
CONS....too few interviewee's (only 3 in whole series) and those that are did have a remote connection to firsthand knowledge of the events... not the most dynamic or engaging doc on this subject... not too fussy about the narrator....very little pre-presidential coverage...reuses same stills/footage throughout series. Not crazy about the actual title of the series itself.
If you have seen many previous Kennedy docs then this might be a disappointment. If you have little knowledge of the Kennedy administration then it is informative. If you are going to have only one or very few Kennedy docs in your possession, there are better ones out there to pick from.
*The bonus disc is worth the price of purchase: it contains:
- a vintage...

Wrong Info on Amazon Website
I thoroughly enjoyed the 8 segments (27 minutes each for a total of 215 minutes) of JFK's private and political life. However, the info on the Amazon website stated that the length of this dvd was 583 minutes, which, I discovered later, turned out to be incorrect, as it contained only 215 minutes, meaning that 368 minutes were missing! I contacted Amazon & explained this & was able to return my dvd & was not charged for it.(Thank you, Amazon!) I will reorder the combination dvd/blue ray which DOES include the missing minutes. The extra info that totals up to 583 minutes is described ONLY on the dvd/blue ray site. When I ordered the dvd version, none of this info was there, which led me to assume that the 8 segments themselves would total 583 minutes. This info needs very much to be corrected! For anyone interested in seeing all 583 minutes, order the dvd/blue ray combination. The dvd does not have even half the minutes of the blue ray version. I'm so disappointed that dvds are now...

Not The Best
With all the attention being paid to the 50th anniversary of JFK's passing, many products will be on the market. This Blu-ray did have an interesting supplementary section, including a Secret Service re-creation film and scenes of the funeral. The main body of the Blu-ray was very disappointing - utilizing very poor period video and lacklustre commentary. A very poor effort.

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Dance Academy: Season 1, Volume 2

Great second season!
Dance Academy gives you a somewhat romanticized look into the lives and struggles of students at a prestigious ballet school in Sydney. In the second season, the stakes are higher because of a big international competition that is the ballet equivalent to the Olympics. The characters grow and change and there are some surprises towards the end that you didn't see coming! I watched the entire first two seasons over a week on Amazon Instant Video. Just couldn't stop!

Back Into The Fray: The Second 13 Episodes Of Season One For This Australian Teen Drama
The popular Australian teen import "Dance Academy" has been discovered and embraced by North American audiences after its run on TeenNICK and its availability on Netflix. Its first two seasons are getting an official DVD release, however, for those that want to add it to their permanent DVD collection. I always have to question the marketing thought process behind the decision to split television seasons into different products. I understand, perhaps, if the season airs over two distinct time periods and you want to rush the first batch of episodes to market. But in this case, these are all ready to go. And instead of Season One and Season Two sets with all 26 episodes present, we're getting each Season in Two Volumes of 13 episodes. Truthfully, it doesn't make it any less expensive to the consumer. Are there a bunch of viewers that are going to say "I loved the first half of Season Two, but who wants the second half?" Doubtful and especially so when they are released on the same day...

Excellent show - great dancing, plot, acting - suitable for whole family
This show is great quality - set in Australia. The ballet dancing is real and good. The plots are interesting and dramatic without being too soapy. The characters change over two seasons and it's fun to follow those stories. I was most surprised by how much I like it as an adult and how current it seems without being too edgy. It's a pretty clean show from what I recall. So glad to see good ballet technique from good actors.

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Funny Money

Not so funny
I am a fan of Chevy Chase and he is good in this movie. Miller is good too. All the acting is good. The problem with the movie is plot. It is his birthday, he finds the money, his wife gets "discovered" as an artist, and the wife is having a surprised birthday party for him. So many small things to wrong in the movie to keep the certain characters in the plot, it makes the whole thing uncomfortable. It is like a "Fawlty Towers" episode on steroids without the laughs. There a few chuckles in the movie, but it just doesn't justify the frenetic pacing. Penelope does the best she can with a strange role. She plays a depressed drunk for most of the movie. Chevy hits his part just right, but he isn't given much to work with. Even before I read that it was a movie made from a play, I knew it was a movie made from a play. It had a claustrophobic feel. Most of the action takes place within the house.

The movie frustrated me more than made me laugh. It just was not funny.

Two great actor, one bad film
This movie was developed from a stage play and shows it. Unlike most movies adapted from plays (think Harvey here) the director kept most of the action in a limited confine, the brownstone in New York.

I made it through the first 45 minutes or so then left it to play while I went and cleaned the kitchen. Nothing I heard of the remaining movie made me come in to watch anything happening on the screen. It became just background noise.

Chevy Chase and Penelope Ann Miller seemed to be trying their best to rescue this dog, but even good actors can't work with poor material! Bypass this and choose something else to see either of these stars.

Chevy Chase really does put the funny in Funny Money!
I was lucky enough to see this film shown before the public at the Sarasota Film Festival. I'm glad I got to see it with Chevy Chase in the audience. It was worth it. This movie is very funny! It is great to see Chevy Chase back on the screen. The film is well done for a low budget and full of animated characters that will have you laughing hysterically!

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The Miracle of the Bells [Blu-ray]

Why Isn't This Movie on DVD?
I watched The Miracle of the Bells for the first time this past December 2004 and I liked it. It is a sad movie but there are some very hartwarming moments in this that make it highly enjoyable! It is about a young woman on the verge of becoming a big movie star who dies and the man who loved her brings her back to be buried in her hometown. The movie stars Alida Valli as the actress and Fred MacMurray as her friend and they were both very good and the movie also stars Frank Sinatra as a young Catholic priest and I have read reviews saying that they just couldn't buy him playing a priest, I guess because of his bad boy Rat Pack image but I thought he was very good and I was able to forget about his later Rat Pack image and I just enjoyed his acting in this movie. Though this movie is thought of by many as a Christmas movie I feel that it can be watched anytime of the year, I mean just because it's set in winter and there is a miracle doesn't mean that you can only watch it during the...

The Miracle of the Bells
Undoubtedly one the finest performances by Fred MacMurry and Frank Sinatra, not to mention the superior supporting cast, Lee J. Cobb for starters. But because Sinatra isn't singing the "experts"; Maltin, Siskel, Ebert and Shalate overlook his REAL acting abiltiy. Sinatra is as pure a thespian as Olivier in this role as a priest (not even a church hymn from Frank's lips is hummed). Maltin's above review includes "ludicrous" plot-I'm sure the movie GHOST is on Leonard's his TOP 100 list. Trust no critic: see the this inspirational movie at once.

like molasses, a little slow but very sweet
Based on Russell Janey's novel, the Ben Hecht/Quentin Reynolds script for this film is sometimes sappy and often uneven, but it's also a nice sentimental story, told in flashback, by William Dunnigan (played in a somber manner by Fred McMurray), a press agent who was never a very happy guy, and is burying the woman he loved (but was never able to tell her so).
The real reason to watch this film is to see Alida Valli play Joan of Arc, in a "film within a film" segment. She is luminous and incredibly beautiful, and would have made a terrific Joan. Coincidentally, the lavish "Joan of Arc" production starring Ingrid Bergman was released the same year as this film.

Another reason to view "The Miracle of the Bells" is to see Frank Sinatra, skinny as a rail, in the unlikely part of a soft spoken priest; this was five years before his success in "From Here to Eternity", and he is surprisingly good, but far from great. He sings "Ever...

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Darker Than Black: Complete Season 2 Box Set (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Darker than black season 2
Watch the OVA before you watch this or you will be lost! This is a great addition to season 1.

Loved The First One, but...
this one didn't seem as good. It felt like there were fewer action scenes and more focus on character development. That may seem odd, because, who doesn't want character development? I sure like my characters fully rounded. What I mean by this is that the balance between action and character development that was present in the first series was off in this one.

It is also important to keep in mind that before you watch this second series, please note that this comes with the OVAs as well. These, in my opinion, must be watched first before the actual season is watched. They are kind of like a prequel that gives a frame of reference for the second season. Be warned, though, the OVAs are MUCH different from the first and even the second series as it is nearly all character development (with a love story..I think..maybe?).

Once I understood everything, this was a great second season. Again, much different from the first season, but not necessarily in a bad way. Just...

Darker than Darker than Black
The first season of Darker than Black (DTB) was a great noir, drama, comedy, super powered, sci-fi show. Can the second season top the first season? The first season's episodes were almost always two-parters, and then they would move on to another storyline. When you think that that episode didn't contribute to the overall plot, you would be proven wrong later on in the show. The second season is a story based series, rather than episodic. All the episodes are connected like most modern non-comedy anime.

This collection is distributed by Funimation, just like the first season, so all reoccurring characters have the same voices. Note that the 13 episodes are listed first on the DVDs, and then the 4 OVA episodes. I originally watched the set in that order, and was very confused because many plot points are explained in the OVAs. The OVA episodes take place before the second season episodes, so be sure to watch them first. The third DVD in the set has all the OVAs, then you...

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Gambler From Natchez, The

Dale Robertson and duels in post Civil War New Orleans
The Gambler From Natchez, Is Dale Robertson in his usual debonair style. Set in post Civil War New Orleans, Captain Vance Colby returns to see famous father Chip Colby, a notorious gambler. But on his trip home, he encounters an attempt on his life. After his arrival in New Orleans, he finds his father has died, killed in a duel, under dubious circumstances and from there the plot thickens. A great western but with flare. You'll enjoy it, I did and do.

Good film, Lousy video quality
Please see my review for Red Skies of Montana, just substitute the name of that film for this one, everything else applies, good film with what appears to be an old analog transfer, perhaps enhanced a little, and you guessed it from FOX Archives.

Entertaining adventure on the Mississippi river
A soldier (Dale Robertson) returning home to New Orleans after a four year stint in the Texas Army finds his father has been killed. He makes a promise to revenge himself on the three men (Kevin McCarthy, Douglas Dick, John Wengraf) who conspired to murder his father and cover it up. Why the film has Natchez in the title when the film's protagonist is from New Orleans is strange but that's neither here nor there. Directed by Henry Levin (WHERE THE BOYS ARE)), this diverting adventure with a touch of swashbuckle is quite entertaining. It never aspires to be more than a modest low budget time waster and it's better made than many an "A" picture. The film manages to have an authentic Mississippi river feel although it was made in Hollywood in large part to Leland Fuller's art direction. Lionel Newman did the underscore though his main title seems to have been "borrowed" from Sol Kaplan's theme to KANGAROO which came out two years earlier. With Debra Paget as a riverboat beauty, Lisa...

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Daimajin

A terrific fantasy film I loved as a kid.
A medieval Japanese village suffers a violent coup d'etats during a ceremony to placate the warrior god Majin, whose spirit is encased in a 20-foot stone statue that threatens to come to life and pummel the town to dust. The ceremony works all too well: the peasants endure ten years of forced labor and brutal taxation at the hands of an evil Warlord before the deity awakens from his slumber to destroy the tyrant and his army.

This movie rocks! (Pun fully intended.) The story moves at a brisk pace, as any good adventure should, and creates a fair amount of suspense along the way, despite the all but inevitable conclusion. The cinematography and set design are superb, effectively contrasting the beauty and mystery of the countryside with the back-breaking drudgery of the local labor camp. The special effects are also impressive, from the haunting opening shot of a giant eye superimposed on a gloomy mountainside to Majin's destruction of the villains and their...

The colossus of Japan.
Mixing elements of the jedai(samurai)film with elements of the kaiju(monster)film, Daimajin is a rousing adventure that is sure to appeal to fans of both types of films. Set in medievel Japan, the film follows the story of a boy and his sister, who are pursued by the man who had their father murdered and then took over his kingdom. Watching all of this is the giant statue of Majin, a powerful spirit that can be invoked to right wrongs and punish evil-doers. The story moves along well, aided by good performances by all of the actors, though it is perhaps a bit slow at first. Once Daimajin("dai" meaning giant, "majin" meaning spirit) revives, all hell breaks loose on the evil Lord and his men. The spfx are spectacular(immensely aided by the widescreen presentation). Functioning like a pounding funeral drum is Akira Ifukube's magnificent score, one of his best non-Godzilla works. This is a great film that is thankfully no longer obscure.

Samurai Meets Kaiju
If you enjoy the Samurai genre, this is an average film. If you enjoy Japanese monster films, this is an above average film. However, if you like bothe genres, this is an excellent movie. Great acting and special effects, as well as an appropriate and awesome score. Highly Reccommended!

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Exhale: Core Fusion Barre Basics for Beginners

Notes from a beginner
UPDATE Aug 2013: This workout gave me love handles! Not kidding. But it's a good thing ... here's why...

The tightening of the muscles up and around the top of my hip bone is so intense with this workout that where I previously had a nice (apparently) smooth round shape, the underlying muscles got so toned that the remaining fat around my midsection suddenly appeared like love-handles. Amazing results. And I expect the fat-burning that's occurring because of the additional lean muscle tissue will take care of the mid-drift fat in just a few more weeks/months. Good-bye love handles ... hello sexy! :)

I've been using this workout a few times a week for about 3 months now. I LOVE it! I've found that for me it's better if I still select to play the tutorials that come in between each of the 10-minute segments. I don't need the tutorials anymore. Instead I use the extra time to intensify my stretching. That has really helped my overall flexibility, wellbeing and lean...

Amazing results!
I got this dvd after attending barre classes at exhale soho, nyc. The exercises are great for getting to the lean dancers body. I wanted to get healthy and tone but didn't want to "muscle up" . Ive tried hitting the gyms year after year but never got rid of " lumpy knees" and inner thigh until I tried this . The barre method helps you use your own weight to do these exercises and the beginners cd is great for that. The calories burn even after the hour routine. I tried comparing the calories in the exhale barre (1300) vs a slimming series (850) with a resting burn of 860 cal vs 534 cal . my posture has improved and my knees and inner thighs are toned and butt well lifted! highly recommend the series.

Don't let 'basics' fool you!
Don't let the title of this CD, barre 'basics', fool you. These workout are short (10 minutes each) but very intense. I work out regularly and found all 7 of these workouts a challenge. I do one 10 minute workout a day and have gotten great results. I recommend this CD to everyone but caution those not familiar with core exercises; as noted before, these are intense. You will be glad they are only 10 minutes.

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The Mulberry Tree

Simply Wonderful
Great movie! I had the pleasure of seeing this film at a local film festival. The story is very well executed with depth that is not often seen anymore. The acting is superb with Joe Morton and Louis Crugnali giving absolute, award winning performances. You won't be disappointed.

Outstanding movie
Highly recommended. A heart breaking story about a young man struggling with his past and where his future should lead. The complex relationship between family members and the losses they each suffer will leave you pondering the movie for some time after.



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Mr. Sardonicus & Brotherhood of Satan - BD Double Feature [Blu-ray]

Mr. Sardonicus& Brotherhood of Satan Blu-Ray
I am a huge fan of William Castle.He was an A producer of B films. He comes through again in Mr. Sardonicus. It is a solid film with some good performances, most notably from Oscar Homolka. He is excellant as the servant. Brootherhood of Satan I felt was disjointed,and slow. Not a great film. For a Blu-Ray no extras for either film.TMr. Sardonicus & Brotherhood of Satan - BD Double Feature [Blu-ray]hey should have had isolated scores,and comentary's. Scene selection, these movies were really bare bones.

Even better than when at the drive-in!
These are two great low budget horror films that are unique, tell a great story, and are entertaining from start to finish. The remastering is superb and the detail is amazing. Mr. Sardonicus (1961) was one of William Castle's most original films, and you'll not want to take your eyes off the screen. Strother Martin's performance in The Botherhood of Satan as a coven leader is unforgettable. The nostalgia factor is huge especially if you can remember evenings at the drive-in theater in the 1960s.

great blue ray
If you think that an old movie isn't worth making into a blue ray think again Dr.Sardonicus in black and white looks so crystal clear its amazing it looks better than when it was released.this movie is on the order of a hammer film,a little far fetched but it sucks you in anyhow the acting is top notch with some graet stars.

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Dance Academy: Season 1, Volume 1

A TV show for all ages
I've streamed the first two seasons of this show, originally attracted by the ballet setting and quickly becoming completely addicted. I'm a grandmother watching a show developed for teens, but am enthralled by the acting, dancing and character development. The dancing and choreography are first rate (particularly in season 2) and deserve special mention. I'm eagerly awaiting the third season, which has been completed and will air on Australian tv in June 2013.

Into The Fire: The First 13 Episodes Of The Popular Australian Import
The popular Australian teen import "Dance Academy" has been discovered and embraced by North American audiences after its run on TeenNICK and its availability on Netflix. Its first two seasons are getting an official DVD release, however, for those that want to add it to their permanent DVD collection. I always have to question the marketing thought process behind the decision to split television seasons into different products. I understand, perhaps, if the season airs over two distinct time periods and you want to rush the first batch of episodes to market. But in this case, these are all ready to go. And instead of Season One and Season Two sets with all 26 episodes present, we're getting each Season in Two Volumes of 13 episodes. Truthfully, it doesn't make it any less expensive to the consumer. Are there a bunch of viewers that are going to say "I loved the first half of Season Two, but who wants the second half?" Doubtful and especially so when they are released on the same day...

Great Series!
My daughter and I have watched this series on TV and it is a great show! The dancing is superb and fits into the storyline. The actors are great and the writing wonderful! This is a great series for teens. Get it.

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The Marx Brothers Silver Screen Collection

Classic Marx Brothers not classy presentation
The Marx Brothers hit their peak with "Duck Soup". Sure, "A Night at the Opera" and "A Day at the Races" were both bigger box office hits and, while both those latter films have their moments they just can't quite compete with the inspired anarchy of "Duck Soup". Let's start with the positives first. It doesn't look like most of the films have any footage missing as near as I can tell. Sure, some of the editing still looks ragged but most of their early films (and films from that era for that matter) have that "look". The first three movies are a bit static looking (since the first two were based on their stage plays that's not a surprise--they look like photographed stage plays). With "Monkey Business" and "Horse Feathers" The Marx Brothers began to develop a style that was a bit more cinematic. All five films are essential for fans.

Now the bad news. Universal has been slapping together boxed sets lately of older films and TV series with little to no extras and without...

No Restoration, Weak Extras, but ***** Movies!
If you already own the previous DVD or Laserdisc releases of these great classic movies, you may want to think twice about investing more money for only 15 minutes total of "Today Show" interviews with Harpo, Groucho, and Harpo's son promoting their books. There is some fun here, but you want to kick the Today Show Director when they interrupt Groucho's story, after only 5 minutes, because they have other things to get to. Groucho really looks stunned and put out that he was stopped.

There are also 3 trailers (Cocoanuts & Monkey Business have none) strangely tagged at the end to promote the MCA 1980's Home Video Tape release.

I guess Universal forgot that they own the rights to the Marx Brothers half-hour 1950's TV special "THE INCREDIBLE JEWEL ROBBERY". This would have been a great addition to the box set! I have never seen this except for the old Castle Films home movie clip.

Restoration? Well, Universal never used that word in their description,...

Stars are for the movies, with no help from Universal
In summary, I will echo what's been said already about this collection. The films are worth having, because after 70+ years of existence, this is apparently the best Universal will do with the classic Marx Brothers performances of their day.

Now I will heap on some gripes of my own. First, there's just over six hours of material spread over six DVDs. You do the math--they're obviously NOT TRYING VERY HARD here. They could have easily fit this all on 3 discs, or fewer. It's not like there's a COMMENTARY TRACK or even a RESTORED PRINT that would make each film worthy of its own disc. Universal did the BARE MINIMUM knowing that real fans would buy these crappy prints anyway, and will pay again if they release restored and augmented versions later. (The Warner Collection beats this one hands down, but with different titles. Hell, even Universal's treatment of ABBOTT & COSTELLO was done better.)

The "exclusive book" is fluff; it has credits and pictures but...

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The Big Comfy Couch - Season 5 Episode 12 - You're A Gem

Season 5
So do great for children of all ages! Even my 9 year old loves it! The characters really grow on you, I was so sad when they stopped making this but so happy it is on Amazon Prime for all to see! It is a classic and will surely stand the test of time!





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The Unbelievable Truth [Blu-ray]

My favorite Hartley Film
If you like Trust and Simple Men then you'll love this film. Personally I love all of Hartley's works, but to me these three films just go so well together. They're all earlier works and in these films you witness an incredibley inspired director do more with a low budget film than most high paid directors could ever dream of doing. I'd also like to say that if you've never seen a Hal Hartley film then this is probably the best point to start out at.

RIP Adrienne Shelly
I was saddened to hear of the tragic and senseless passing of the beautiful actress Adrienne Shelly. Nobody can watch Hal Hartley's "The Unbelievable Truth" and not be struck by how talented and engaging Shelly comes across onscreen. At the time of the film's release it seemed as if she was a star in the making. However, she seemed more content to stick with modest indie films and sporadic appearances in acclaimed TV shows rather than become a fixture in vapid Hollywood product that would have increased her exposure. Eventually she moved behind the lens for what was shaping up to be a very interesting directorial career. Sadly, we will no longer be able to witness her growth as an artist, but as a small consolation we still have films like "The Unbelievable Truth" and "Trust" to remind us of her once luminous presence.

...at last, a Hal Hartley feature film on DVD!
When I heard about a year ago that Hal Hartley's "The Unbelievable Truth" is going to be out on DVD in 2001, I feared some low quality production - but this release should prove worthy for this masterpiece. The picture will be 1.85:1 anamorphic and hopefully the image quality is going to be excellent considering Anchor Bay's good reputation... Having been the directorial feature film debut for acclaimed director Hal Hartley, the film does not long for any big extras to be on the disc - an audio commentary would have been illusory - but we do get an interview with Hal, and the theatrical trailer of course. This is definitely a disc to get for all Hal Hartley fans, and the only thing that could make me even happier would be more DVD releases of his movies: Trust, Simple Men, Amateur, Flirt, his short films, etc... I'm desperately waiting!!

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Three Faces West [Blu-ray]

Underrated Classic - Beautiful Transfer
The Duke at his best in the beautiful HD transfer of the modern western love story. The cast includes the great Charles Coburn - directed by Bernard Verhous who a year later directed Wayne in LADY FROM LOUISIANA. One Amazon review claims that the running time for this film is 57 minutes, which is incorrect - the actual running time is 79 minutes.

Shameful
All these BR releases from Olive Films have been way over priced for simple 57 minute films. They must be using a quick remastering program since they are shoving these out at an alarming rate. Almost 25 BR releases in less than a year, with nearly all of them are less then 60 minute films and costing $20 - $25 each. This film might be a bit longer but that's just uncalled for. They could have made money at half the cost.



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Sara Ivanhoe's Taste: 10 Short Yoga Sequences

Ten very short yoga routines to mix-and-match (but no programmable option)
NOTE: I received a free copy of this DVD to review for the web site Metapsychology Online Review; you can read a more detailed version of my review on that site.

TASTE provides a series of short yoga routines--each about five minutes in length--which can be used as stand-alone practices or combined together for longer yoga sessions. Ivanhoe practices alone in a small indoor room, and she instructs via voiceover. Sometimes her mat is set up parallel to the camera, sometimes perpendicular to it. In addition to a yoga mat, a chair is required for the "Work" routine (Ivanhoe uses a stool). I have described each segment below.

WAKE (5 minutes). This routine, intended for the a.m., builds from sun breaths and forward bends to half sun salutations, which are then repeated for several minutes.

SHED (5 minutes). This practice, which has the theme of letting go, starts with some cat/cow stretches then focuses on a series of cleansing breaths, first in low...

Love it. Just what I needed
Not too long, not too short. Just right like the 3 little bears! I have heard about Sara but this is the first DVD I have tried. I'm a fan now. Will be buying more of her stuff. She has a real nice calm but motivating attitude. Nice DVD.

Wonderful Yoga DVD
Sara Ivanhoe is a great yoga instructor. I have most of her dvds and use them regularly to supplement my home practice between visits to my yoga classes. Sara is easy to follow, and her dvds are a nice blend of strength, flexibility, and relaxation.

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UFC 156: Aldo vs. Edgar

UFC 156...
This was the first official pay-per-view for the UFC of 2013. Given the rocky year that the UFC went through in 2012 they set up a big pay-per-view to start off the year with. Interestingly, given the biggest fight of the night was a title shot but two of the other big fights also had title implications. So, a very important night in planning the months' coming events.

Joseph Benavidez and Ian McCall are both fresh off the tournament to crown the first Flyweight Champion in UFC history. If you've been following, you should know that Demetrious Johnson won that tournament and then successfully defended said title last month. So, both fighters were looking to use a victory in order to get a title shot at a man they had both fought in the past year. Both fighters are wrestlers with decent striking but the main difference lies in Benavidez's power, a factor which most people thought would have played a part in his title losing effort against Johnson. Now, given the 125...

no behind the scenes again
disc 1 main feature:
featherweight championship belt

Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar

Rashad Evans vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

Alistair Overeem vs. Antonio Silva

Jon Fitch vs. Demian Maia

Joseph Benavidez vs. Ian McCall

disc 2 preliminary card and bonus material:

Gleison Tibau vs. Evan Dunham

Tyron Woodley vs. Jay Hieron

Bobby Green vs. Jacob Volkmann

Isaac Vallie-Flagg vs. Yves Edwards

Chico Camus vs. Dustin Kimura

Francisco Rivera vs. Edwin Figueroa

bonus material:
countdown to ufc 156
weigh-ins

I was hoping for behind the scenes for this ufc event, because ufc 155 did't have it. but the fights were good anyways there was 1 out of 5 fights one was a finish (main card) and 4 out of 6 were finishes (preliminary card) so in total there were 5 out of 11 fights were finishes. I've seen worse. and the last three...

Good Card
The Overeem vs Bigfoot fight stole the show in one of the greatest ultimate comebacks of all time. The Lil Nog vs Evans was a close technical battle which I enjoyed. The Aldo vs Edgar fight wasn't as close as I would've liked to see. Overall, from top to bottom including the prelims this was a good card to watch.

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Brave New World [Blu-ray]

Updated is O.K. but lost some of the sting
Update classics as Shakespeare and you distort the feel along with the message. It was written for a period and the more you deviate the more you lose the point let alone the ambiance. Update "Brave New World" and you threaten to do the same. However the use of today's technology and making the primitives just unruly people (shades of Logan's Run) did not actually distract that much and may even have been the original intention.
The movie uses well know actors that fit the characters (Peter Gallagher as Bernard Marx and Leonard Nimoy as Mustapha Mond). The scenery is and sci-fi technology is well done and believable.

With all of this there is a great letdown when the story line is not followed and the sting and impact is missing from the book as the story was changed into just a contemporary social commentary. The book by Aldous Huxley is based on the day's example of genetic engineering or a least a little alcohol to create people that were happy in their station. The...

Underrated gem
A made for TV film that boasts wonderful acting and a script that both visualizes and honors the thought provoking work (of great depth), which provides the title.

Leaving the plot description for others - a thought:
It is evident that the team responsible for this film treated the content very seriously, this is a work of love.

This film had somehow found itself buried under years of lesser films, and seen by too few - but it is a gem.

A recommended choice for viewing - and a buy if ever it appears on DVD.

needs to be on dvd
I agree that this was a very nice adaptation of Brave New World. Nimoy is fabulous, perfectly cast, if not quite true to the book, and the story of John the Savage and the depiction of the culture was spot-on. It is VERY useful for classroom work on the book.

Highly recommended and wondering why it isn't available on DVD?

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Jubal (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]

One of Glenn Ford's Best Westerns
Jubal is the kind of adult western that was rare even in the heyday of Western production in Hollywood. A great cast, strong writing, and beautiful scenery makes it that much more enjoyable.

Jubal is a luckless drifter, played by Ford who is rescued from exposure and starvation by wealthy rancher Ernest Borgnine. Borgnine soons put Jubal to work as a ranch hand. Borgnine has a very young and beautiful wife, played by Valerie French. She takes a strong liking to Jubal, which not only complicates his relationship with Borgnine, but further strains his dealings with a jealous fellow ranch hand Pinky, played by Rod Steiger. Things go downhill from there.

Add Felicia Farr playing her normal stalwart Western beauty and Charles Bronson as a friend of Jubal's, and you have the making of a great film. It's way past time that this was on DVD.

Excellent mid-50s Adult Western with Glenn Ford
THE STORY: An injured drifter, Glenn Ford as Jubal Troop, is rescued by ranch-owner Earnest Borgnine, who ultimately promotes him to foreman of his ranch. This stirs up the envy of ranch-hand Rod Steiger ("Pinky") and the desire of Borgnine's young sexpot/discontent wife Valerie French. The latter leads to even more hostility on Steiger's part because he used to enjoy the adulterous attentions of French until Ford came along.

Add to this mix a group of trespassing Mennonites (or perhaps Quakers) who have in their company Felicia Farr, a godly woman that attracts Ford's romantic interests, and Charles Bronson, another drifter who befriends Ford.

WHAT WORKS: For the first hour and ten minutes or so "Jubal" is captivating cinema of the highest order. Borgnine is simpleminded & naive but likable and full of mirth. Valerie French is fully clothed at all times, yet somehow oozes sexuality with every simple glance or word (proving that sexiness involves way more than...

A Showcase
In the mid-1950's writer-director Delmer Daves made a series of superior westerns for Columbia studios. Too bad these films have not gotten their critical due from movie historians or critics. Perhaps it's because they lack the thematic continuity of a Buddy Boetticher or a John Ford to tie them together. Still each entry presents its own distinct virtues and all are greatly entertaining. If the compact, and tautly told "3:10 to Yuma" is the best of the lot, the scenic and sprawling "Jubal" runs a close second. This mid-series film features Glenn Ford's easy-going charm, a rowdy Earnest Borgnine, a luscious Valerie French, and the panoramic backdrop of Jackson Hole Wyoming. And in an odd piece of casting, which Daves seems fond of, method actor extrordinaire Rod Steiger appears as a treacherous ranch hand named of all things, Pinky! Following the dueling styles of Ford vs. Steiger is at least as interesting as the otherwise well-staged outbursts of gunplay.

Judging from other...

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Movies 4 You: Western Classics (The Lone Gun, Ride Out For Revenge, Gunsight Ridge & Gun Belt)

Great set of Westerns!
Here is my review in which I received my copy a day early, thank you Amazon! Again, Shout Factory! has produced another great set of Westerns and this set includes four 50s Westerns. All movies are in Full screen format. There isn't any special features and the disk is only one-sided. I wish Shout would've at least added some movie information like run time for each movie and color either on the back or on the inside.

Here is the list of the movies on this set:
-The Lone Gun (1954/color/74mins)
George Montgomery, Dorothy Malone, Frank Faylen, Neville Brand; Directed by Ray Nazarro
-Ride out For Revenge (1958/b&w/77mins)
Rory Calhoun, Gloria Grahame, Lloyd Bridges, Joanne Gilbert; Directed by Bernard Girard
-Gunsight Ridge (1957/b&w/85mins)
Joel McCrea, Mark Stevens, Joan Weldon, Slim Pickens; Directed by Francis D. Lyon
-Gun Belt (1953/color/78mins)
George Montgomery, Tab Hunter, Helen Westcott, John Dehner, Jack Elam; Directed by Ray...

priced right
I bought this for "Gunfight Ridge" with Joel McCrae and was'nt disappointed.Its an excellent 90 minute b&w movie with a great cast and great transfer.The movies "Gunbelt"&"The Lone Gun" are both good movies with average transfer,and terrible colorization.I'm not sure why they tried to colorize them? And the 4th movie "Ride Out For Revenge" is a b&w film with great transfer but stiff acting and slow story, with the exception of the nephew who does a great job of stealing all the scenes he's in.If the price is right, buy it.....support your favorite artists.

Hurraay for westerns from the fifties!
Oh, western fans, four westerns in a row to such a fine price. Two of them are in black and white and the picture quality is super. Two are in color and they are also very fine prints though now and then a bit unsharp. These kind of westerns which dominated the fifties and were the kind they showed in sunday matinee theaters in Denmark, Europe when I was a kid are not big budget John Ford films. Neither are they b-westerns like those starring Bob Steele, Buck Jones, Tom Tyler and many, many more ( I think b-westerns are the most charming of westerns ). No, they are something in between, some call them middle budget westerns and they certainly can be great too. "Ride out for Revenge" with Rory Calhoun is a bit weak because it tackles with the serious historical problem of moving the Cheyennes from their home country to Oklahoma and that is too much for the genre. But enjoy Lloyd Bridges as a drinking cowardly officer. The other three films are super. Enjoy Joel McCrea's usual...

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The Tiger And The Monk

Amazing spiritual story
Whether you agree or not with the tourist interaction at this Monastery / Wild Life Sanctuary, the documentarian captures and presents an incredible ongoing tale well worth the journey for the home viewer. There's a couple of rough scenes, still photos of slaughter Tigers - so that part really isn't good for the kids. But spiritually speaking, the synchronicity that perpetuates the Monastery's mission will leave you with hope and may even inspire you to donate.

Interesting yet troubling
These monks have become guardians of tigers and other animals late in the life of the temple. While awe inpsireing and interesting there is also a dark side. The fact that tigers in SE Asia are endangered is horrid. Secondly, it is only a matter of time before someone is killed or injured by the wild animals on the grounds of the temple.



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The Bletchley Circle: Cracking a Killer's Code [Blu-ray]

Almost too thrilling, and wonderful period details
I was especially interested in The Bletchley Circle because my mother was a code breaker for the US counterpart. Unlike the British protagonists, who for security reasons are required to tell everyone (even their husbands) that they did only "clerical work" during the war, my mother was allowed to state her occupation, although without many details. She did convey to me the intellectual challenges, the excitement, the camaraderie, and the feeling of making a valuable contribution that pervaded the large room where the code breakers worked long hours, just as in this movie. Like the protagonist Susan, my mother was extremely good at anagrams, crosswords, and other puzzles, but complained that the vast majority of those published were not hard enough. She also loved to read murder mysteries.

However, my mother returned to her academic career, whereas Susan has dutifully become a housewife. By 1952, Susan loves her husband and her two small children, she does her best, but...

Intelligent thriller
With a superb ensemble cast and exceptionally fine design, this is a series worth savouring. The problems for women emerging into grey, dreary, suburban 1950s England after performing life-and-death intelligence work during the war is all too believable. As the murders mount up and clues are pieced together like code-breaking by this group of brilliant but quirky women, the refusal of senior police to believe them or take them seriously becomes hair-raising. Recommended for those who like unusual, well acted suspense.

good british thriller
Centers around a group of women who shared wartime experiences decoding German military messages at Bletchley Park during WWII. Ten years later, back in the mainstream as 'ordinary' housewives and women, and having to deny their past due to the Official Secrets Act, a series of murders brings them back together.

They are fascinated by the patterns they are trained to spot in the killer's habits. They are, of course, poo-poo'd by their husbands and police, so they go it on their own -- with certain degrees of danger and difficulty.

A cracking good tale, with a top-notch cast that enjoys each other's company. The best sort of British TV, without any of the maudlin and saccharine side of Masterpiece Theater (not to mention their constant asking for money, even on a bought-and-paid-for DVD).

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Watershed [HD]

An AMAZING Show With AWESOME Writers And Stars!
My husband and I NEVER miss "Castle". It is the ONLY show we both enjoy equally. And this fifth season opener was incredibly satisfying, not just in its own merits but also in how it advances the characters forward.

For four years we watched as the charming and bright but immature Rick Castle fell deeply and truly in love for the very first time in his life. And we also watched a dynamic and attractive but seriously wounded Kate Beckett slowly begin to painstakingly crawl out of her shell and learn to trust.

That the writers have done this with humor and wit, and adventure and mystery, and adorable fun and genuine tenderness - not to mention with more than a little bit of human wisdom - has been the most enjoyable and heartwarming journey that either of us can ever remember with ANY two fictional characters.

And "After The Storm" is a perfect set piece in a perfect story line in the perfectly imperfect world that has enchanted us in this beloved...

Castle: Season 5
Since season 4 ended I have been wondering how the writers would bring all the players back into the fold. They have done so in a most rewarding way. As for the three eposides that have aired, I am in doubt the Captain knows of the new feelings between C & B but from previous episodes I get the notion that R & E have figured it out. I am looking forward to see how the writers work in the Captain learning the secret - which is no longer a true secret - and how the 'twist' will unfold. Monday is a great night.

have a bucket list, to be able to afford to purchase all seasons videos
I was never into watching series TV. Always have on stock market stations and all sports. Then 1 day about 6 weeks ago I caught an episode of Castle. Absolutely fell in love with the characters ( esp. Fillion,of course ) LOL
The writers of thiese storylines are excellent.The comedy lines inserted at all the right places are written with much thought.
I never had a bucket list, but at age 75, I have now. To see Fillion in person.. Hell, I'd be happy to be able to afford to purchase the videos of each season. Got a copy of season 4 and wore it out already.
I for one will be extremely disappointed in they don't renew Castle for season 6.

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3:10 to Yuma (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]

From a time when men had to prove they were men.
'3:10 To Yuma' is a stark monochrome Western that has been praised for its suspense and high moral tone. Van Heflin, in a darker variant on his role in 'Shane', plays a character who picks up where most Westerns leave off. The genre is usually concerned with taming wild loners or men with pasts. rewarding them with the joys of civilisation. Heflin has seen what civilisation really means. He lives on a drought-dry farm with a wife and two children he often fails to feed. The grind of fruitless labour has worn them all down, and Heflin's identity as a man, having been once the greatest shot in these parts, is now undermined by humiliation in front of his family by outlaws stealing his cattle and horses, or forced to beg money from indifferent acquaintances. His wife can't understand that his inability to 'be' a 'man' is the result of the civilisation she represents.

What's a poor honest farmer to do when he sees murderers and thieves throwing money around, drinking their fill,...

A Great Forgotten Western
When speaking of the great Westerns such as SHANE, THE SEARCHERS and HIGH NOON, 3:10 TO YUMA should definitely be mentioned. All of these films came out in the 50's, but 3:10 has somehow been forgotten.

Van Heflin plays a farmer suffering from a drought. He is a quiet, seemingly passive man who becomes a reluctant hero. Heflin agrees to hold criminal Glenn Ford in a hotel room for $200 just long enough for the train to Yuma to leave at 3:10. Ford's gang, however, learns about the situation and plans to take action. The characters and performances by Ford and Heflin make the film work. Heflin is outwardly reluctant to take this job, but his strength lies within. The struggle within him is evident: Here's a family man who can save his farm or do what he knows is right. Ford, the criminal, is alluring, almost charming. He's a con artist and a cold-blooded killer, but you can't help liking him just a little. Sure, he's a criminal, but not your typical stereotyped...

Magnificent Letdown
Firstly the four stars are for this wonderful film and the performances of it's cast.
On the flipside I am extremely disappointed at what purports to be a "special edition" I can't for the life of me see what the addition of a trailer and a teaser trailer for the remake makes this so "special". Where are the commentaries, documentaries or featurettes? C'mon guys this is what DVD is all about. Vanilla release are a shameful waste of a brilliant versatile format.It's a disgrace. This is false advertising at its worst and shame on Sony for trying to squeeze a few last bucks out of this version before the remake hits the shelves. Those behind this "special edition" should themselves be put on the 3.10 to Yuma.
If you don't own the movie already then you may wish to buy because I would'nt hold out much hope for an Ultimate edition (they might add a photo gallery!)If you're looking for something extra here well there is always that controversial new cover art!

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Fraggle Rock: 30th Anniversary Collection

Grandson loves
My 3 year old grandson and his father are definitely having a bonding moment watching this. I remember watching this with my son the first time around.

Adorable
Loved the show growing up and thought the box set was full of collectors items! Love the Red Fraggle stuffie and adore the comic inside. It has artists that worked on the recent graphic novel series from Archaia, so it was extra cool. I'm going to bring it to comic con and get it signed!

best show ever
it came on hbo back in the 1980,s watched it all the time
best show next to punky brewster and macgyver and knight rider todays special the a team star trek tng

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Ghostbusters (Mastered in 4K) (Single-Disc Blu-ray + Ultra Violet Digital Copy)

Is it worth the Blu-ray version of it?
And the answer is absolutely YES!

I won't get caught in the main synopsis of the movie, I'm guessing you know the story and the actors. If not you should be asking your self where have you been the last twenty years or so...now lets get into it!

Video Quality on this release is in full 1080p using the MPEG-4 codec on a BD-50 (50 gigabyte dual-layered Blu-ray Disc). This is a great catalog release. It is so refreshing to see a studio not attempt tweaking the original image with digital noise reduction and edge enhancement. This is a faithful to the source transfer. Clarity and resolution is where this transfer shines, all the little signs, switches, knobs and so forth are all clearly defined displaying an excellent depth of field. Colors are nicely saturated and accurate displaying good natural hues.

As for the Bonus Materials: these are presented in Standard Definition 480i and High Definition 1080i with Dolby Digital 2.0 sound.

* BD-Live -...

Good DVD and a better story.
I received the DVD a few days earlier than expected, and in an unexpected way.

There was a knock on the door, it was maybe 2 in the morning. I don't really remember. I slowly got out of bed and peeked through the doorhole to see who it could possibly be.

It was Bill effing Murray. Dressed up as a ghostbuster. When I opened the door, he clicked a remote to turn on a stereo boombox he had with him. Ghostbusters theme blaring, he starts dancing. 70's disco style.

After "WHO YOU GONNA CALL," he held the DVD case up to my face and paused the song. I was silent, he lowered the case and put it in my face again.

"Ghostbusters?" I asked.

He started the music again, put the dvd down on my doormat, took the boombox and danced away.

I opened up the DVD case when I got back inside, and on the INSIDE of the SHRINK WRAPPED DVD CASE, I kid you not there was a note that read

"No one will ever believe you. No one buys DVDs...

mastered in 4k - is it worth it?
I already have the 25th anniversary blu-ray edition of this movie, but I was wondering if the 4k would really upgrade the video quality which is not that great on the earlier edition, and this newer edition (at $14.99) was cheap enough to experiment with. I do not have any of the very expensive 4k equipment but the 4k is advertised that it will improve a regular blu-ray. Side by side with the earlier blu-ray version, I would say that there is a noticeable upgrade in the foreground of the scene and some shots come out very clear. It is enough of an improvement that I am keeping this one, but don't get rid of your earlier editions because this one does not have any features. The 25th anniversary blu has all the original dvd features plus some forgetable new features such as info on the Ghostbusters video game. So I am keeping them both. Amazon has the unfortunate habit of using all 555 reviews which go back to the dvd version which I find very confusing when I am trying to decide if an...

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File Box

Stop before entering (the keyboard strike that is)
I had two good scares watching this move; the first being my wife nudging me awake and the second in realizing that my credit card was actually billed. This was yet another in the throng of shaky camera cinematography "horror" light films. It was a grouping of unlikeable young people in a film that I am still trying to comprehend why it was attempted. It certainly had potential but never moved past the cliche arguing and heavy petting we see in all of these young people away from home flicks. In good conscience it cannot be recommended; now please, let me get back to sleep.

An honest review
I bought File Box and as I do with all movies I watched it with an open mind. Now I do think it had a good story, the camera work was justified to the style of the movie and was well directed. There was some believable scenes most involving the character of Chris (Played by Timothy Fielding) but have to say the rest of the acting was poor. I believe File Box is a film definitely targeting people in the age bracket of 16 - 30 as they would relate to the characters, characters relationships and the antics in which the group get up to. Overall File Box doesn't advertise to being a high budget film , what it is, is a low budget film from an up and coming film maker .

indie film
I watched this expecting the usual high budget studio `paranormal home video' film, however you get the feeling although this has not got a huge budget, it seems on par with those studio films. I thought it was a really good independent film, this is what the market needs other than being flooded with high budget studio films that make out they are independent and real. In this film there are scenes you actually think are real, things captured on camera, seem can not be faked! I do believe in the paranormal and to watch a film that seems honest and not a `studio make-up' ghostie film is refreshing. I do recommend to watch it.

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American Dream

A haunting film...
This movie is so dramatically powerful, it's hard to believe it's real life. It's the devastating story of what happens to a small town when it's only industry turns against it. The characters are larger-than-life and the movie sticks with you long after it's over. The viewer is taken on an emotional roller coaster ride from the hopeful beginnings of the strike to the crushing end. Having family in Austin, MN (where the film takes place), I can say that this movie hits the nail on the head all too well. See this film. It's a truly moving experience.

An excellent film about the evolution and effect a strike
This documentary traces the development of labor unrest at a company that is planning to make substantial reductions in employees' pay. The story is told primarily from the employees' viewpoint, and includes elements of corporate campaigning, local versus international union politics, internal politics, the strike, and loss of employees' jobs. The human perspective is fully developed including emotional peaks and valleys, the strife within families, the decay of relationships between workers, and the the affect on the community.

The documentary is extremely well filmed and very moving.

Powerful document... but be warned...
Though it doesnt achieve the dramatic heights of "Harlan County, USA" this film is nonetheless a moving and disturbing document of workers and unions in battle with management, organized labor, and themselves. I have to believe that the person below who cheered the "crushing victory" of management over people who want "to earn more for doing less" was joking. This is a film about meat packers, a thoroughly disgusting job if there ever was one, who try to organize against the Hormel company, which is trying to slash their wages by $2 (It seems to me like management wants to pay the workers less for doing more). Unlike Harlan County, USA, though, the conflict of this film is mostly within the ranks of labor. The battle between international and local unions and between different strategies is what ultimately undermines the the worker's chances for success. A cheery film this is not, but an important one that anyone who cares about our...

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Second Life

Essential for Karajan fans
I have probably watched every Karajan documentary that's been released on VHS and DVD over the last 25 years ("Karajan in Salzburg", "Karajan, or Beauty as I see it", "Karajan: Maestro for the Screen", etc.) This is one of the best, due almost entirely to the loads of rare footage I'd never seen before. The focus is on Karajan as a recording artist in the last 20 years of his career. So there are the requisite interviews with Anne-Sophie Mutter, Brigitte Fassbaender, and others. No terribly fresh or arresting points are made, but the rehearsal sequences and snippets from live performances and the footage of Karajan in the recording control room are truly invaluable. You get to see a side of him that is all too rarely displayed in the more glamorized and carefully staged stock footage. The snippets of him coaching Thomas Stewart as the Wanderer in Siegfried, or yukking it up in the control room with Michael Glotz and the sound engineers, or those from the live performance of...

Karajan the perfectionist behind the scenes
I have seen a number of documentaries on Karajan....but this one held my interest the most. It shows him fully engaged in an impossible quest to attain his artistic vision in the recording studio. He was a complex and demanding taskmaster, not especially sensitive in the area of interpersonal relations (Aspergers?), a deficit which he admits and ultimately a tragic figure despite his many achievements. The interview with Karajan filmed not long before his death comes as quite a shock, his aged drained appearance quite different than a few years earlier and his rather dismissive opinion of his recorded legacy with his Berlin orchestra not really something I expected. When I saw Karajan conduct Heldenleben on one of his last North American tours, he was barely able to make it to the podium where he sat as he conducted. On the final chord he expanded his arms straight out to the side and the Berlin Philharmonic produced a sound that I had never heard before in the concert hall. It...

Another portrait of The Great Conductor of the 20th Century
Excellent discussions about Karajan's recording habits by his producers and recording/sound engineers. Interview tibits complete the picture of this extraordinary musician and his recorded legacy.

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Rolling

Entertaining and fun!
"Rolling" is a modern and fun twist on the "Breakfast Club". It puts its own spin on teenage problems and doesn't shy away from the harsh realities of today's world.

Five stars!
Rolling is entertaining, dramatic, and sometimes hilarious. The plot has interesting twists and turns, engaging to the very end. Camera work is excellent. Five stars!

cinematic excellence!
the cast, the plot, the directing - all amazing. I don't want to spoil it by getting into details but "Rolling" will definitely have your attention from beginning to end. captivating, fun, and modern. a 5 star film.

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Sincerely Yours

The Real Thing
Instead of looking at made for t.v. biographical movies about Liberace, why not see the real thing. I go back so far that I remember watching his B&W t.v show in the 50s and I saw him once in concert in the early years before he became so flamboyant. I'm glad to say that they toned down the whiney voice for this movie and he seems to be speaking in the lower registers which, as I remember from the concert, was his original voice. This movie was made early in his career and he looks handsome. He didn't do a bad job of acting. Actually very little acting was required of him as at least 2/3s of the movie is him playing the piano. This is a remake of an old movie called The Man Who Played God. It's a good story, a bit sappy but then most of the movies in those days, especially those starring entertainers were pretty sappy. But, it's well done and even touching in several places. It was a perfect vehicle for him. I'd actually rather watch this movie than DVDs of any of his concerts...

THE ONE AND ONLY
SINCERELY YOURS WAS LIBERACE ONLY STARRING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE THAT I'M AWARE OF,HE PLAYS,SUPRISE A POPULAR PIANIST WHO HAS EVERYTHING HE COULD WANT BUT GOES DEAF AND LEARNS TO READ LIPS AND ON IT GOES,HE IS NOT THE BEST ACTOR BUT HIS PIANO PLAYING IS GREAT AND THE MOVIE IS OK,THE MOVIE WAS BASED ON ANOTHER MOVIE FROM THE 30'S,THE MAN WHO PLAYED GOD,SO JUST FOR THE NOVELTY OF IT KICK BACK AND ENJOY.

Love it!!!
Great movie! I love seeing Liberace in anything...and this movie is no exception. He was a class act. I miss him.

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Leonie [HD]

really enjoyed this movie
Leonie - The true story of Leonie Gilmour, set in the 1900's. Leonie is a educated American woman who agrees to become editor, and in time - lover, to the Japanese poet Yone Noguchi - I have to wonder how famous he would have been without her interjections. She bears his child (Isamu) and follows him to Japan only to find he already has a wife and sets her up as his mistress. She leaves him securing jobs teaching English. Once on her own she again gives birth and never reveals who the birth father is.
It's also interesting because the film has a Japanese director, it's filmed in Japan and yet it seems truly to mock Japanese sexism. Yone is definitley the villian, sexist, violent and selfish, I believe she fell in love with him because of his creativity and his constant pursuit of her.
Very good movie.

A work of art
This is a profoundly beautiful true story. A proud and independant woman is first weakened by the love she has for an abusive man, but the love for her child redeems her and gives her back the strength and the pride to reasume her life .The film is poetry and the main character engages your heart and admiration.

Interesting story of a single mother in the early 1900s.
I liked this take on the life of the artist through the story of the mother of the artist. Very well done scenes of Japan and straight-forward story of the mother's life as her son and daughter grow up. I liked seeing Noguchi's outdoor installments at the end of the movie.

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Blue's Clues - Bluestock

entertainment
I have a special girl who is now 33. She sits and watches these and signs and laughs whit them. Great stuff for the little guys. She is about 3 to 4 mentally.She has even learned some things from them. Grand kids love them also.

Good mix of Blues Clues and Music for your little one
This is your typical Blues Clues DVD and it of course keeps my little one entertained. I was leary to buy as another review said there were commericals that I couldn't fast forward and with a toddler that would never work. However, you CAN skip the commercials and go to the scene menu-the same as all the other kid videos. Is this my favorite collection of episodes-no but my kid likes them so I give it 5 stars.

Two year old loves this show
My two year old loves music and Blue's clues. She watches this movie often and sings every song and performs the hand movements.

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Combat!: The Complete Second Season

How can you not like this show?
Brings back great memories of watching this as a kid. Loved the characters and the drama. The characters drive this series. We all know the war was hard on men. This series gave us an appreciation of what that generation went through.

Love the series
Combat - second season
Great tv show. Vic Morrow star very good and the show has a lot of real time war action.

combat 2nd season
like last review love this series so buying each season as they are released great war series so looking forward to the release of the series

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This is Not a Film

"Film" or not, an extraordinary document
A rare work that can be dated exactly to the day it was filmed - March 16, 2011, five days after the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the coverage of which Panahi watches at one point, and also the date of the Iranian holiday "Chaharshanbe Suri" or "Fireworks Wednesday", the beginning of the celebration of the Iranian New Year which coincides with the start of Spring. So this is a home movie of a day in the life of it's (co)director, right? Not quite. Panahi was under house arrest, essentially for "subversion", and awaiting appeal of his sentence to 6 years in prison and 20 years of no filmmaking or writing or leaving the country - essentially the end of his career (the appeal was not granted). He spends the day on the phone with various people, surfing the Internet (and complaining about how nearly everything is blocked), and trying to stay hopeful about his furture. At a couple of points he acts out and discusses parts of what would have been his next film, and it turns out...

"It's Important That the Camera Stays On!" - Review of DVD
This extraordinary film has a backstory that's almost as interesting as the film (excuse me, this is NOT a film, really it isn't - because it was short using a digital camera and an iPhone - but there are other reasons). As pointed out in my fellow Amazon reviewer, Paul Allaer, the Iranian filmmaker - Jafar Panahi - was banned from making any films and this documentary was smuggled out of Iran to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. (What Allaer failed to mention is that the flash drive containing the documentary was hidden in a BIRTHDAY CAKE!).
I'll leave you to read Allaer's review but clarify a few points. 1) there are two other people who appear in the "not a film" besides Panahi: his fellow documentarian Mojtapa Miratahmasb who mans the digital camera at one point and the custodian (who Allaer refers to, incorrectly, as a Jafar's friend - he is actually the brother of the normal custodian who is filling in, and apparently Panahi has never met.) and 2) though we hear...

4.5 stars... ordinary film is extraordinary on so many levels
I happened to catch this movie in a theatre in Washington, DC some 4-5 months ago. I had heard about the amazing circumstances surrounding this documentary (more on that later), and couldn't wait to see this for myself.

"This Is Not a Film" (2011 release from Iran; 75 min.) is nothing more, nothing less than Iranian dirctor Jafar Panahi filming life in his apartment on a digital camcorder. Indeed, as Panahi explains to us, he is under house arrest (for reasons not fully explained) and barred from film-making by the Iranian authorities. Panahi has a script written for a new film and with the help of a friend, he decides to read the script to us and live out the script as best as possible in his apartment. Alas, that is not practical (a frustrated Panahi exclaims at one point "If we could tell the film, why make the film?"). In the last part of the film another of Panahi's friends comes to the apartment and the two men simply discuss their daily struggles, and then take out...

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Pokémon Black & White 4

Iris the Dragon master
im glad that they made more sets of this series and i cant wait until they start on rival destinies! And i hope it will not take long.

Its Tournament Time!
Ash and his friends finally reach Nimbasa City where they learn of a Don Tournament! Many of their rivals enter as well! Who will be the victor? Also Ash and friends find a Meowth Injured! Only to discover that its the same Meowth of Team Rocket! Meowth has decided to join Ash and his friends, but what is he hiding? Things really get crazy when Ingo and Emmet show up only to learn that some Pokemon have been stolen from the Pokemon Center! With the aide from Ingo and Emmet, will Ash be able to get the Pokemon back? Find out in this amazing 12 episode 2 disc set that concludes the Season of Black and White!

Fourth 12 Episode Set of Pokemon B/W
This is the fourth 12 episode set of Pokemon Black and White. They are:

37: A Fishing Connoisseur in a Fishy Competition!
38: Movie Time! Zorua in The Legend of the Pokémon Knight!
39: Reunion Battles in Nimbasa!
40: Cilan Versus Trip, Ash Versus Georgia!
41: The Club Battle Hearts of Fury: Emolga Versus Sawk!
42: The Club Battle Finale: A Heroes Outcome!
43: Meowth's Scrafty Tactics!
44: Purrloin: Sweet or Sneaky?
45: Beheeyem, Duosion, and the Dream Thief!
46: The Beartic Mountain Feud!
47: Crisis from the Underground Up!
48: Battle for the Underground!

This set contains many episodes with awesome battle scenes, especially the tournament in Nimbasa Town (not Nimbasa City). It also has a larger Team Rocket plot (Meowth joins Ash and friends for a while) build up and unfold, finally ending in the Subway in Nimbasa City with the Subway Masters included as well. However, there are no new gym badges...

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Universal Soldier: The Return & Second in Command - BD Double Feature [Blu-ray]

no special feat on universal soldier
that's my only negative point , no special feat on univ. sol. movie so you cant get rid of the other blu ray.





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True Story of Jesse James, The

Not very compelling
Although this version of the Jesse James story is more factual than most, it's at the expense of entertainment. Robert Wagner simply does not have the charisma that the character needs for us to believe that so many men, older than he was, were willing to follow him. Nor are any of the characters particularly well drawn, which doesn't give the actors much to do. The story is told in flashback form, starting with Northfield, but this does not seem to be to the film's advantage. The first 10 or more minutes are spent with the Northfield posse trying to track and find the gang, and because there are no characters to be invested in, it's rather dull. Later, when the flashbacks catch up to the present, we see some of the same material again. Interestingly, the screenplay credit says it's based on Nunnally Johnson's screenplay for the 1939 version with Tyrone Power. That version took a lot of liberties with the history, but is far more entertaining.

Technically, the DVD...

True Story of Jesse James
In the movie "The true Story of Jesse James, the plot is certainly following the traditions of Jesse and Frank being Robin Hoods, when in effect they may have just been Hoods Robbin for Frank and Jesse and no one else. Still it is a good movie for the time and tells much of the story about the ill fated attempt to rob the bank at Northfield Minnesota. They should have never gone into that area in the first place as it took them totally out of their land of sympathizers and into the jowls of Northern veterans and citizens, Be that as it may, I have for years tried to find out who the blind balladeer who sings at the last. The choreagraphy of that final scene with the balladeer and his aid is very story telling and a fitting end to this episode. I wish i could find this song by him in its entirety. You cannot take anything from this movie but good thoughts about all the direction and acting that went ito it. Definitely a classic and worth the money.

review summary
Pretty enlightening view of "The rest of the story". A repeat of the same ruthless banker situation which we are in today. Nothing sacred but Money.

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Energy Healing: Kundalini Angels & Reiki & Super

Excellent resource
This is a great presentation aimed at the enlightened individual. I've watched a few of these videos and taken classes and this is definitely world class instruction.





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Frankie Go Boom

A must have!
I'm a Charlie Hunnam fan. This is funny! I love funny and everything Charlie. It's funny but there are also interesting aspects of life here. Poor Frankie is the only sane one. I'm always amazed at how different Charlie can look and be in his different roles. Amazing. I wanted to see it in the theater; I did see it online and I'm happy to own it also.

DIRECTED BY BRUCE
I am confused about the hype and raves for this film. It is a wanna-be quirky independent film using trite jokes and unreal situations in a world that doesn't require a release form. We are told that Bruce has spent his life torturing and filming his brother Frankie from the film blurb. We get to see one quick episode, hear about a second one, that really had nothing to do with Bruce and the movie is about a third one that again, Bruce (Chris O'Dowd) just happens to film.

The whole set up and building of characters was done in a very poor fashion. The get together of Frankie(Charlie Hunnam) and Lassie (Lizzy Caplan) was slightly humorous, but there was no good follow up. Bruce was extremely unlikeable. Frankie only slightly less so. The characters overall are meh, even the over the top Ron Pearlman..."call me Phyllis now" tried so hard to be funny, that it wasn't.

This is a sex comedy that lacks the crudeness of successful sex comedies, and lacks the cleverness...

Funny video
FGB is a good first comedic effort for Charle Hunnam. I've read CH had reservations about playing a lead role in a comedy film, but playing the straight character, he was great. it was fun to see him not play a bad ass as he has been cast recently. Ron Perlman is a riot as a transsexual . While I did not find the movie hysterically funny, it is definitely worth watching again.

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British Columbia-Vancouver and Beyond

Best way to see nature's wonders
I am just amazed with documentary and it is so nice to see the inside information about the parks from the people who work there, travel and people who live around. I still have lot of episode to finish..

great video
perfect video for national parks introductions in HD quality. Free to watch if you have amazon prime membership. Don't miss it if you are a NP lover.

Educational and Beautiful
I was fortunate enough to visit all of these national parks as a child and teenager. Once my children are grown, I will be sure to take them as well, but this series is a good HD substitute. The views are stunning with vibrant colors and sweeping vistas. After watching the series, it makes me impatient waiting for when I get to go back.

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Fangoria Presents: Germ Z

Adjust expectations and you'll like it
I found little about this film to be original, but it was entertaining. In fact, there were several moments when i thought it did a really good job of portraying how average people would react when zombies marched into their front yard. That includes a lot of confusion, disbelief and running from room to room...until there are no more rooms to hide in. I also liked how survivors would often hear screams and gun fire in the woods, but never actually see what was going on. Wish the ending had been a little less down beat, though. I liked the deputy.

THE OTHER BAD NEWS
This is "Andromeda Strain" plus zombies. There are a limited number of characters in this film that involves a small mountain community. I managed to like one of the characters, the deputy with a sense of humor. The rest of the characters lacked depth and dialouge. The film moves slow for the first half and I was fairly bored up until that last 20 minutes. The plot while simple was haphazard. There is plenty of blood splatter.

Not Fangoria's best film, a disappointment.

Parental Guide: F-bomb. Near sex. No nudity.

B movie that's terrific (if you like zombie movies)
This isn't really a zombie movie but a movie about people infected with an extraterrestrial germ. Of course it makes them insanely violent and cannibalistic, but it's not like Romero movies with reanimated dead.
Like I said in the title it's a 'B" movie with about a half million $ budget so don't expect The Avengers quality, but it's the best "B" zombie movie I've seen in a long time. The acting is decent throughout. The unbelievable plot is made to be believable. The heroes are the imperfect heroes we tend to love, but heroic nevertheless. And most of all it's just flat out good for a cheap movie.
I hate writing movie reviews because there are so many of you that are a whole lot better at it but I felt compelled to comment on this one. It's not on Amazon. It's not on Netflix. I had to watch it on Free HULU and watch all those commercials about things you wouldn't buy if someone was holding a gun to your head. But it was great! (for a "B" movie).
Come on Amazon. Put...

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Surrender

Surrender
I was greatly dissatified with the lighting all through this DVD. The entire video was too dark- almost like over exposed film. They used strobe lighting which alternated light & dark & distorted the colors detracting from the overall beauty of the production. One of the reasons that I buy these DVDs is because of the production itself-the banners, brightly colored outfits, & the dancers. In this case, I should have opted for the CD. I did ;however, enjoy behind the scenes interviews with the choir members & Pastor Wilson's prayer before the concert. I also enjoyed interviews with the audience as they stood in line before the concert. I like to see the audience enjoying these concerts & their interaction with the members of the group.
I would not purchase this DVD. Pastor Wilson did say that they did strive to have a worshipful experience & that he wanted this to be a different recording. I prefer listening to this particular production rather than watching it.

Great Experience
I have not purchased the DVD yet but will do so soon. I watched part of it and love it. I have all the CDs and DVDs Shekinah Glory Ministry has made so far and they have not let me down yet. It is a worship experience and is not meant to be view as a regular(secular) music video. They are worshipping God the Almighty in music and dance. So with that saying it is definitely not MEANT for EVERYONE to view.



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Glory (Mastered in 4K) (Single-Disc Blu-ray + Ultra Violet Digital Copy)

Glory Hallelujah!....and High Praise to the DVD As Well..
This review refers to the Columbia Tristar 1/98 release of the DVD edition of "Glory"....

There are many glowing reviews of "Glory" to be found here. I feel the same way about this wonderful film, and after touching on the story I would like to talk about this DVD release(see above) which is an outstanding quality and excellent value.

"Glory" is an exceptional film. A true story of the Civil War that is both touching and inspirational. It depicts the story of the first black unit from the North to be trained and actually go into battle. Led by their very empathetic but very young Colonel(played brillantly by Matthew Broderick), the 54th Regiment endures many hardships felt not only by being soldiers of this devastating war but as African Americans as well.Their spirit, pride and tears along the way, is projected in this film by these wonderful actors in a way that will make you feel all the anguish and pride that they felt.

The cast includes Morgan...

A fitting tribute to Colonel R. G. Shaw and his brave men
I first saw this film right after its release on video nearly 16 years ago, and I can say in all honesty that it changed my life. Having grown up with an interest in Civil War history, this film made me realise just how little I actually knew of the period beyond what most people learn in school about this era of American History. So as the credits rolled, I wrote down the names of the books quoted, sought them out at the library, and it wasn't long before I began to realise that this would beg some further research. Taking the bibliography of one of the sources for this film, "One Gallant Rush" by Peter Burchard, I did my utmost to find and read as many of his sources as I could possibly get my hands on.

The result of this research has been that now I wish that the film had been truer to the actual story of what really happened. There are some obviously glaring historical inaccuracies in the film, but if you don't know the actual story as intimately as I do, it does...

GLORY ... Hallelujah!
Here's one of those rare movies that succeeds as both a sweeping, visually sumptuous historical epic AND an intimate, character-driven personal drama. This fact-based account of the first black regiment to fight for the Union in the Civil War is filled with scenes of grand pageantry: the bloody battle at Antietam Creek; the first assembly of the 54th Regiment; the proud parade of the finally-trained and uniformed soldiers; the climactic attack on Fort Wagner. And yet despite these heart-pounding, majestic sequences, the film at no time loses its focus on the individual characters whose stories provide an emotional connection to the action. The performances of the once-in-a-lifetime cast are uniformly superb: Matthew Broderick, Morgan Freeman, and Andre Braugher are all at the top of their game, and Denzel Washington (who deservedly won the Supporting Actor Oscar) is amazing, especially in the scene in which he undergoes a bitterly harsh punishment. The dozens of emotions that...

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