Friday, April 30, 2010

Luck By Chance (Dvd) (2009)(Bollywood Movie / Indian Cinema / Hindi Film)

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Luck By Chance (Dvd) (2009)(Bollywood Movie / Indian Cinema / Hindi Film) Customer Review


This is a movie about one aspiring actors path through to the Bollywood bigtime. It is a very sharp and honest account of the Bollywood film industry (and probably all other film industries too). It is beautiful cinematography and should be appealing to both arthouse fans and those who like lighter Bollywood movies. There are a few Bollywood song and dance sequences but all in the context of scenes being filmed for movies. One of these has Hrithik Roshan strutting his stuff.
I did know Hrithik had an extended cameo (which he does very well). What I didn't know was how many other actors walk through this movie (and often have a few lines to say)as themselves including Shahrukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Kareena Kapoor, Abhashek Bachchan, Rani Mukherjee, Vivek Oberoi, John Abraham and others. So it becomes a bit spot the famous actors, producers and directors. It is just done so well.
Farhan in the lead plays in an understated way but is very good. Konkona Sensharma as an actress friend also trying to make it, is also very good. They have strong support from innumerable well known Bollywood actors and actresses.
The only real complaint was hard to read subtitles. Another reviewer mentioned white titles that got lost in a busy background. Our subtitles were unusually small so we had to pull our chairs close to the set to read them. I hope this isn't a sign of the times. If the movie hadn't been so good we could well have abandoned it early because of the subtitles.
Now this movie didn't do that well in the multiplexes of India butelsewhere on the Net it can rate mostly 7.5 to 9.5 out of 10. Some of the theories about the Indian reaction were that it was too real and that Hrithik fans expected to see more of him than a cameo after his dance sequence was used to promote it. Anyway for me it's a keeper and one to rewatch.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Thursday, April 29, 2010

The Nanny Express

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The Nanny Express Customer Review


The movie opens with a series of unfortunate events experienced by the 20+ nannies who have tried to cope with the 2 children of David Chandler. Meanwhile, Kate is coping with a father with heart disease, being laid off from her job, working on getting her teaching degree and tutoring kids from low-income families at her church. The driver of the bus on her regular route (and soon-to-be her best friend's boyfriend) connects her with a job because his sister runs a business providing housekeepers and nannies. That is how the Chandlers meet Kate.

She has the same pranks pulled on her that 9-year-old Ben and 15-year-old Emily played on all of their other victims, but she needs the job, so she sticks with it. She also sees in Emily the shadows of her own past and hopes that she will be able to help her. Ben begins to thaw toward her, but Emily remains cold and disdainful. This is the hardest part of this movie for me. The father seems completely clueless as to how to teach his daughter to show respect to others. She continually treats the nanny in demeaning ways and the father witnesses it and does little or nothing, other than apologize to Kate for her behavior. It is as if the death of her mother three years ago excuses her from accountability for her actions.

David Chandler is so grateful that Kate has stayed that when he finds himself attracted to her he hesitates to show it
for fear that things might not work out between them and then he will have lost the only nanny that stayed more than a day. Kate is attracted to him, but isn't sure of his feelings at first.

Emily is aware of what is happening between her father and Kate and she does her best to sabatoge the relationship. It appears that she is successful.

**Spoiler Alert**
A turn of events in Kate's life causes her to quit her nanny job, but she returns to the Chandler home (I don't think I mentioned that Kate describes their home to her father as being bigger than the whole apartment complex in which they live) to give Emily a present on her 16th birthday. Emily is anything but grateful and doesn't bother opening it.

In Kate's mind her association with the Chandler family is over and she is trying to move on with her life, but then Emily finally opens her gift and the surprising content causes a change of heart. She confesses her meddling to her father and the family sets out to get Kate back.

I always struggle with bratty kids in movies--luckily these do change. Kate is such a sweet, patient person and maybe a little "too-good-to-be-true," but she is sustained by her faith and that is a positive message that we could use more of these days. If you can overlook Emily's attitude problem and the fact that she gets a brand new luxury car for her 16th birthday, it is a fun chick-flick.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Constantine (Widescreen Edition)

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Based on the DC Comics/Vertigo Hellblazer graphic novels and written by Kevin Brodbin and Frank Cappello, Constantine tells the story of John Constantine (Keanu Reeves), a man who has literally been to hell and back. When he teams up with skeptical policewoman Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz) to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister, their investigation takes them through the world of demons and angels that exists just beneath the landscape of contemporary Los Angeles. Caught in a catastrophic series of otherworldly events, the two become inextricably involved and seek to find their own peace at whatever cost.

DVD Features:
Additional Scenes:18 minutes of additional scenes
Alternate endings



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  • Based on the DC Comics/Vertigo Hellblazer graphic novels and written by Kevin Brodbin and Frank Cappello, Constantine tells the story of John Constantine (Keanu Reeves), a man who has literally been to hell and back. When he teams up with skeptical policewoman Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz) to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister, their investigation takes them through the world of demons



In the grand scheme of theological thrillers, Constantine aspires for the greatness of The Exorcist but ranks more closely with The Order. Based on the popular Hellblazer comic book series, and directed with nary a shred of intelligence by music video veteran Francis Lawrence, it's basically The Matrix with swarming demons instead of swarming machines. Keanu Reeves slightly modifies his Matrix persona as John Constantine, who roams the dark-spots of Los Angeles looking for good-evil, angel-devil half-breeds to ensure that "the balance" between God and Satan is properly maintained. An ancient artifact and the detective twin of a woman who committed evil-induced suicide (Rachel Weisz) factor into the plot, which is taken so seriously that you'll want to stand up and cheer when Tilda Swinton swoops down as the cross-dressing angel Gabriel and turns this silliness into the camp-fest it really is. The digital effects are way cool (dig those hellspawn with the tops of their heads lopped off!), so if you don't mind a juvenile lesson in pseudo-Catholic salvation, Constantine is just the movie for you! --Jeff Shannon


Constantine (Widescreen Edition) Customer Review


About the movie there are plenty reviews and comments here, no point me re-hashing. If your into the supernatural, occult or religeous dogma then you will get into the content. I liked it. The Blu Ray transfer was excellent plus. The extras was plenty including an alternate ending that didnt quite amount to much anyway. I paid .99 and was worth its dollars.

If you found my words helpful to you in making your decision please vote on it. Thanks and pleasant viewing.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Capitalism: A Love Story

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In presenting a “fireball of a movie that might change your life” (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone), Moore “skewers both major political parties” (Claudia Puig, USA Today) for selling out the millions of people devastated by loss of homes and jobs to the interests of fat cat capitalists. Moore has “dug up some astonishing dirt” (Brian D. Johnson, Macleans), stories told in the faces of the foreclosed and evicted, in the food stamps received by hungry airline pilots, and in the courage of fired factory workers who refuse to go quietly. But more than a cry of despair, Moore’s film raises the possibility of hope. Capitalism: A Love Story is “The most American of films since the populist cinema of Frank Capra (It’s a Wonderful Life)” (Dan Siegel, Huffington Post ), “a movie that manages shrewdly, even brilliantly, to capitalize on the populist anger that has been sweeping the nation” (Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal ). Capitalism: A Love Story is loaded with over 90 minutes of hilarious extended and deleted scenes, as well as exciting and informative featurettes profiling Americans and American businesses!

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  • ISBN13: 0013132136592
  • Condition: NEW
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.



Michael Moore's didactic documentary style is actually a source of inspiration in Capitalism: A Love Story. This film, which explores the history of incongruence between American capitalism and democracy, is evidently a culmination of Moore's lifetime of research into this topic: he begins the movie by admitting his longstanding interest, rooted in childhood experiences in Flint, Michigan. As a result, the film displays an expertise that is less irritating than in Moore's earlier works, in which various loopholes can be found in one-sided presentations (see Bowling for Columbine). Here Moore employs his trademark tactics to make a satirical documentary that functions as a film-based, grassroots political strategy meant to provoke revolt. Consisting of patched-together clips from various eras and media outlets, the film weaves a narrative that underscores Moore's argument that while America is a success because of its democracy, it has been denigrated by capitalism, which he calls "a system of taking and giving, mostly taking." Capitalism: A Love Story is a patriotic call to arms that seeks to ignite rage in the viewer who is tired of political stupidity resulting in poverty and hardship among a dwindling middle class. It begins by tracing the growing gap between the rich and poor, from the Depression through the 1950s "free enterprise" boom. Using clips of FDR and Jimmy Carter warning against greed and inequality, Moore shows how gradually Americans came to accept Reaganomics, corporate corruption, then Bush-era swindling over time. This history serves as context for his explanation of the housing crisis, the collapse of banks, and Bush's covert, last-ditch efforts to pass sketchy bills on the cusp of Obama's election. Moore asks several lawyers, senators, and bankers, "What the **** happened?" and each offers intelligent assessments of situations that many American viewers still struggle to comprehend. Unfortunately, there are corny Moore moments throughout the film, such as when he takes an armored truck to various banking headquarters and harasses security guards to let him in to reclaim money stolen from the American public. Clips of Bush dancing juxtaposed with shots of people crying because they've lost their homes are melodramatic and only weaken Moore's arguments. Like Robin Hood, Moore seeks justice, but his greatest strength is as a translator between those speaking a complex political language and his viewers. Capitalism: A Love Story, while it does have a condescending tone throughout, does much to relay a complicated history that we all need to know for the sake of our own empowerment. --Trinie Dalton

Stills from Capitalism: A Love Story (Click for larger image)












Capitalism: A Love Story Customer Review


There are so mny reviews of this movie it makes no sense to add to them. But I was so moved by this the urge to add my thoughts was undeniable.

When I first became interested in America and its history I thought very little of the country. Then my attitude changed and I became a flag waver. No I would like to wave the flag, but my view is clouded by what I've seen wrong with the country and the ignorance, stupidity and hyporacy of the elected officials and the voters who put them where they can do the most harm. My fear is we will get the result we vote for. Why should I care? My time on this earth is growing very short, but there are people who are important to me and I don't want them to suffer because of the idiots who seem to have all the energy and wealth needed to rule our government.

I believe in the inevitability of revolution. No group of people will support a government which neglects their human needs forever. What I fear is who will lead and begin this revolution. It looks very much like it will be the extreme right wing who demand the return to the good days of the past when America was great and the dhining city on the hill offering a beacon to the rest of the world. Sounds great if you know nothing of the "good old days of moral values and the benefits of capitalism." Does communism work? No. For the same reason that Christianity does not work. It is against human nature. No one is willing to support the common good if it will cost him. This is the same reason capitalism doesn't work. It is a religion that recognizes and uses the basic flaws in human nature that keep us from being as human as we shouid be. A newspaper columnist once said, "The trouble with the beautiful people is they are neither." This is the problem with the cpoitalist: he is neither beautiful nor human.

I normally don't look at tthis type of show because it depresses me to realize there are many problems that I can do nothing about. There are many error of judgement that I cannot ecducate about. When the radical right "leaders" advocate secession I say "let them go." Then I remember another movie where a two bit dictator declares war on the U. S. so he can get foreign aid from us. Son't let Texas have any foreign aid. They don't deserve it and wouldn't know how to use it.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Monday, April 26, 2010

The Kite Runner

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Amir is a young Afghani from a well-to-do Kabul family; his best friend Hassan is the son of a family servant. Together the two boys form a bond of friendship that breaks tragically on one fateful day, when Amir fails to save his friend from brutal neighborhood bullies. Amir and Hassan become separated, and as first the Soviets and then the Taliban seize control of Afghanistan, Amir and his father escape to the United States to pursue a new life. Years later, Amir – now an accomplished author living in San Francisco – is called back to Kabul to right the wrongs he and his father committed years ago.

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Like the bestselling book upon which it's based, The Kite Runner will haunt the viewer long after the film is over. A tale of childhood betrayal, innocence and harsh reality, and dreamy memory, The Kite Runner faces good and evil--and the path between them, though often blurry and sorrowfully relative. Director Marc Forster (Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland) presents a painterly vision of Afghanistan before the Soviet tanks, before the Taliban--lush, verdant, fertile--in its landscape and in its people and their history and hopes. The story follows two young boys' friendship, tested beyond endurance, and the haunting of their adult selves by what happened in their youth--and what horrors befall their country in the meantime. The performances of the two boys--Zekeria Ebrahimi (Amir) and Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada (Hassan)--are the film's strongest, unforced and gently evocative. The penance paid by their adult selves is foreshadowed, but never predictable--and the metaphor of innocence lost, a common theme in Forster's work, keeps the film, like the title kites, truly aloft.--A.T. Hurley


The Kite Runner Customer Review


I rate this DVD as one of the very best. It is very well produced and true to life. I would highly recommend this DVD to anyone who enjoys drama, suspense and just having fun with family anf friends. This DVD has it all. Enjoy !!




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Sunday, April 25, 2010

It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (remastered deluxe edition)

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  • ISBN13: 0085391200635
  • Condition: NEW
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.



The thirteenth installment in the evergreen Charlie Brown animated series, this is a delightful romp through the rites of spring. The running gag that holds this string of episodic misadventures together is Peppermint Patty's futile attempts at explaining how to make Easter eggs to Marcy. Highlights of this rather surreal Peanuts outing include Snoopy's dancing with little bunny rabbits inside a kaleidoscope, Sally heading to the mall to purchase a pair of platform shoes (this video was made in 1974), and Woodstock's lavishly equipped bachelor-pad birdhouse. As with the best of the Peanuts cartoons, this will entertain children and adults alike, and is one of the last of the series to feature a music score by Vince Guaraldi. --Kristian St. Clair


It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (remastered deluxe edition) Customer Review


It's a Charlie Brown Festival with - for me - Snoopy as the star of this - Easter is coming and the gang is trying to get ready for it in their own ways. Charlie Brown is upset by the site of Christmas pre-sales at the local department store although Linus is telling everyone about the Easter Beagle who rises up on Easter morning to give eggs to all the children - and no one believes him! Sally wants a new pair of shoes while Peppermint Patty is trying to teach Marcy how to color eggs and Snoopy keeps wanting to do a good deed for his pal Woodstock.

Also included is the feature is "It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown." Charlie Brown has a surprise - his baseball team decides to spruce up the baseball field will all kinds of new plants with surprising with crazy situations. For me not that funny - except again for the Snoopy scenes. He steals the show.

They are definately colorful and somewhat simple - the story should keep the kids hopping - but the adults may be a little board for both features - except of course - you guyessed it - when Snoopy is on!

I think its a great combo - but definately has a family feel about it.
Good for the whole family! 4-21-09




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Live Free or Die Hard [Blu-ray]

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"The best of the best is back and better than ever" (WNYW-TV) in the latest installment of the pulse-pounding, thrill-a-minute Die Hard action films. New York City detective John McClane (Bruce Willis) delivers old-school justice to a new breed of terrorists when a massive computer attack on the U.S. infrastructure threatens to shut down the entire country over Independence Day weekend.

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Twelve years after Die Hard with a Vengeance, the third and previous film in the Die Hard franchise, Live Free or Die Hard finds John McClane (Bruce Willis) a few years older, not any happier, and just as kick-ass as ever. Right after he has a fight with his college-age daughter (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a call comes in to pick up a hacker (Justin Long, a.k.a. the "Apple guy") who might help the FBI learn something about a brief security blip in their systems. Now any Die Hard fan knows that this is when the assassins with foreign accents and high-powered weaponry show up, telling McClane that once again he's stumbled into an assignment that's anything but routine. Once that wreckage has cleared, it is revealed that the hacker is only one of many hackers who are being targeted for extermination after they helped set up a "fire sale," a three-pronged cyberattack designed to bring down the entire country by crippling its transportation, finances, and utilities. That plan is now being put into action by a mysterious team (Timothy Olyphant, Deadwood, and Maggie Q, Mission: Impossible 3) that seems to be operating under the government's noses.

Live Free or Die Hard uses some of the cat-and-mouse elements of Die Hard with a Vengeance along with some of the pick-'em-off-one-by-one elements of the now-classic original movie. And it's the most consistently enjoyable installment of the franchise since the original, with eye-popping stunts (directed by Len Wiseman of the Underworld franchise), good humor, and Willis's ability to toss off a quip while barely alive. There was some controversy over the film's PG-13 rating--there might be less blood than usual, and McClane's famous tag line is somewhat obscured--but there's still has plenty of action and a high body count. Yippee-ki-ay! --David Horiuchi

Beyond Live Free or Die Hard


Live Free or Die Hard on DVD

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Stills from Live Free or Die Hard (click for larger image)

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Live Free or Die Hard [Blu-ray] Customer Review


The thing I love about the Die Hard films is their complete lack of pretentiousness. They are big, dumb, stupid action films, but they know perfectly well that they're big, dumb, stupid action films and don't pretend to be anything else. No heavy-handed moralising or social commentary, no token attempts to be "deep", no multi-layered political plot filled with challenging twists. McClane is the Good Guy, his opponents are Bad Guys, Good Guy fights Bad Guys, Good Guy wins. Sure, it's cliched and predictable, but so what? It's great fun. And in the post-9/11 world, where every Hollywood action/thriller is full of "Are we really the bad guys?" navel gazing, the black-and-white morality of 'Live Free Or Die Hard' is actualy quite refreshing.

The plot is perhaps the one token attempt to be modern, involving cyber-hackers shutting down essentail infrastructure systems across the East Coast, bringing the US to a stand-still. But from here, you know exactly how this works. While the FBI and other experts just stand around frowning and looking worried, McClane dispatches the army of baddies almost single handedly, all the while coming up with a smart wisecrack to nail every moment. It is an older and more world-weary McClane in this installment, which of course just allows more room for jokes about his age, hair, fitness, and lack of technological nous.

This movie is unashamedly stupid. Turn off everything even remotely resembling a brain cell before watching this, and please don't bother trying to understand how McClane can survive 100 metre falls, car pile-ups, massive explosions, and hundreds of bullets. And as for why the baddies fire everything from a machine-gun to a missile at McClane without causing a scratch, while McClane can let off two bullets from a pistol and hit them between the eyes.....you know better than to ask that, don't you?

By now, Bruce Willis can play McClane in his sleep, and there are some surprisingly strong supporting roles. Justin Tong nails it as the nervy hacker Farrell, and I also loved Mary Elizabeth Winstead as McClane's daughter Lucy (who shares the same no-nonsense attributes as her father). Cliff Curtis gives Bowman unexpected intelligence and depth as the capable-but-hamstrung FBI head Bowman, and I wish there'd been more of Maggie Q as the very cool Mai, since Timothy Olyphant wasn't that menacing as the main villain.

You know exacly what you're going to get from a Die Hard movie, and the fourth installment delivers everything you want in spades. Brainless popcorn stupidity was never so much fun.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Friday, April 23, 2010

Teacher's Pet

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In TEACHER’S PET, film legend Clark Gable stars as Jim Gannon, a school-of-hard-knocks newspaperman who despises journalism schools... until he sees who's doing the teaching. Attracted to lovely professor Erica Stone (Day), he masquerades as a novice in her class. Soon he's her prize pupil, all the while trying to make her his own prize.

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Clark Gable's bluff masculinity is a big part of the story and appeal of Teacher's Pet, to such a degree that his age (near 60) doesn't seem like such a problem as he romances perky Doris Day. Gable is an old-school newspaperman who scoffs at the idea of journalism being taught in night school; hard knocks and shoe leather are his preferred textbooks. Naturally, Doris teaches journalism in night school. Gable masquerades as an inexperienced student in order to prove her wrong, which brings forth some fairly labored complications, presented in pedestrian style by director George Seaton. The film is too long for its own good, but as an illustration of movie-star value, it's a convincer--Gable and Day are completely, effortlessly within their established personas. Gig Young adds pep as a brainy psychologist (whose expertise extends to hangover recipes--he and Gable have a good morning-after scene). Doris sings the incorrigibly catchy title song over the opening credits, but stick around for Mamie Van Doren's nightclub rendition of "The Girl Who Invented Rock 'n Roll," a real eye-roller. --Robert Horton


Teacher's Pet Customer Review


Directed by George Seaton (Miracle on 34th Street), this coyly titled 1958 romantic comedy has more on its mind than mistaken identities and the May-December relationship at its core. Running a bit too long at 120 minutes, it's actually an intriguing look at the shifting journalism ethos of the late 1950's when hardcore, Front Page-style newspapermen were begrudgingly making way for reporters with college degrees. It should come as no surprise that Clark Gable represents the former as Jim Gannon, the no-nonsense editor of the fictitious New York Evening Chronicle, at odds with journalism teacher Erica Kane played with sophisticated élan by Doris Day, who was just embarking on her most fruitful period as an actress with her near-classic pairings with Rock Hudson soon to follow.

Written by Fay and Michael Kanin, the plot has the self-made Gannon bristling at the thought of lecturing at Kane's night school journalism class. When his boss forces him, Gannon reconsiders when he sees that Kane is a pretty blonde but is soon forced to take on the identity of wallpaper salesman Jim Gallagher when she humiliates him by reading out loud to her class the nasty letter he wrote her. The ruse continues as Gannon decides to prove that journalism classes are a sham and that nothing replaces the first-hand experience of working in a newsroom. Things get complicated when he becomes her star pupil and sees his competition for Kane's affections, the dapper Dr. Hugo Pine, a self-effacing overachiever who happens to be a much-published psychologist, an expert mambo dancer, a polyglot, and a smooth bongo player. You can pretty much figure out the rest.

As Gannon/Gallagher, the 57-year-old Gable was near the end of his career, and he looks tired and paunchy here. Fortunately, he provides enough of his recognizable swagger and snap to get away with the hard-boiled aspects of the role. At this point in her career, Day had already moved securely away from the lightweight musical comedies that were her forte and into leading lady parts with surprising aplomb. Underneath the manicured schoolteacher veneer, she brings a wholesome yet mature sexiness to Kane that makes the age gap between her and Gable less of an issue than one would expect. Playing his standard role of third wheel, Gig Young does an agile turn as the too-good-to-be-true Dr. Pine. Nick Adams (who would attempt to seduce Day the following year as a carefree college boy in Pillow Talk) has a small part as Barney, the copy boy desperate to become a reporter, while Marilyn Monroe-wannabe Mamie Van Doren has a memorable bit as Gannon's showgirl squeeze. That is indeed a young Marion Ross (later Mrs. Cunningham of Happy Days) as Kane's secretary Katy. There are no extras with the 2005 DVD.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Thursday, April 22, 2010

...And Justice For All

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A young lawyer begins to wonder where the justice has gone in the legal system when he is pressured to defend a judge who is guilty of raping and battering a young girl.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: R
Release Date: 23-MAR-2004
Media Type: DVD

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  • ISBN13: 9780767859523
  • Condition: NEW
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.



Al Pacino plays a Maryland lawyer who takes on a judicial system rife with dealmaking in this awkward blend of satire and sentimentality. Topical director Norman Jewison can't seem to help Pacino get comfortable with the mismatched material, which pushes the film into outrageousness at some turns and mawkishness at others. The script by Barry Levinson and Valerie Curtin is more an accumulation of random ideas and moments than a congruent story. However, it's interesting to see the large cast of good actors, most of whom hadn't become well known yet. (Christine Lahti made her film debut here.) Pacino gets to work for a second time (following The Godfather II) with acting mentor Lee Strasberg. --Tom Keogh


...And Justice For All Customer Review


Please note: This review is ONLY for the 2008 re-release. If you are reading this and it is under the 2001 release, this review is not for that edition and amazon.com has grouped it together.


It's amazing watching Al Pacino chew the scenery. Norman Jewison's dramatic satire of the judicial system "...And Justice For All" has plenty for Pacino to chew on along with his co-stars Jeffrey Tambor, Jack Warden, Lee Strasberg, Craig T. Nelson and Christine Lahti (in one of her first major screen roles). Pacino manages to get every morsel of nutrition out of a scene. The meaty script allows Pacino's co-stars to equal him scene for scene which is perfect for a dramatic satire of this sort.

Opening with images of an empty court house with children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, "And Justice for All" represents a satire as broad and powerful as "Network" in eviscerating the justice system as that other film did TV. Pacino plays attorney Arthur Kirkland the type of attorney who becomes very involved in his client's cases going to bat for them in a big way or in this case providing a knock out punch worthy of a boxing match. For example when we first meet him he's in lock up on a contempt charge for hitting a corrupt judge (John Forsythe) when he didn't agree with his decision. As luck would have it (or karma depending on your point of view), the very same judge has been charged with the rape of a young girl. He turns to Kirkland because he realizes that the attorney is passionate about his cases and that their adversarial relationship will prevent any later charges of a cover up. Kirkland has to overcome his distaste for the judge and manage a trial that could make or break what's left of his legal career.

A marked improvement over the first edition from 2001 which had plenty of analog imperfections and didn't look much better than a top notch high quality VHS transfer, the colors are more accurate and the film has much better detail and sharpness. Keep in mind that this is a film made in 1979 so you are going to see grain (it was shot on a grainy film stock to begin with)and it's not going to pop like a film from 2008 but that's also part of the charm of this classic. It looks exactly how it should.

Audio hasn't been remixed for 5.1 and is still in the original mono. It is a slight improvement over the original audio with slightly better clarity and dialogue coming through clearly but it still sounds flat without much depth.

Be aware that part of this digital clean up and remaster may have been prepared for the Blu-ray that will eventually hit the street. If you have a Blu-ray player you may want to wait to see if it does, indeed, street some time in the immediate future.

The extras for this edition are a marked improvement over the 2001 release, we get the original commentary by Norman Jewison ported over for this edition. It's a fun and involving commentary and it's clear that Jewison is enjoying watching the film as much as we are.

We also get a pair of extremely good interviews with director Jewison and co-writer Barry Levinson discussing the making of the film. Jewison is always a joy to listen to and he relates a story about Lahti first being cast. Jewison liked her and was hesitant about putting in the film because she's taller than Pacino (quite a bit actually) and he didn't know how Pacino would feel about it. He saw her performance and thought she was brilliant so he insisted that she be in the film.

We also get a preview for Pacino's new film "88 Minutes", the original theatrical trailer and deleted scenes. As an additional promotional move Sony has included the acclaimed pilot for the excellent legal drama "Damages". As to how "Damages" looks you'll have to read my review of that TV show.

Finally we get previews for "Close Encounters: The Special Edition" which features all three versions of the film as well as a huge assortment of extras (you'll have to read my review of that set to get an insight into what is included, etc.) and "Taxi Driver: Special Collector's Edition". The latter preview is presented in a modern, annoyingly edited format with an annoying dance score that has absolutely nothing to do with the film itself. I suppose they are trying to suck in the younger crowd who have never seen one of De Niro's finest and most disturbing performances (and that's saying quite a bit). Finally we get a preview for the contemporary underrated thriller "We Own the Night".

A marked improvement over the 2001 release of "...And Justice For All", this edition looks better and comes loaded. I can highly recommend this digitally remastered classic.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

My Friends Tigger & Pooh - Super Sleuth Christmas Movie

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My Friends Tigger & Pooh - Super Sleuth Christmas Movie Sale


'Tis the season for a timeless tale of Christmas cheer! So grab your hat, put on your mittens, and join Tigger, Pooh, Darby and all your favorite friends from the 100-Acre Wood for this very merry movie filled with holiday magic and wonderful surprises.

Christmas comes tomorrow, and Pooh and his pals can hardly wait! But they might wind up waiting much longer than just one day when Santa s magic toy sack goes missing along with a little lost reindeer. Now it s up to the problem-solving "Super Sleuths" to work together and follow the clues to reach the North Pole in time to help Santa deliver his presents. Along the way, they ll meet new friends, make new discoveries and share in the true spirit of Christmas.

Overflowing with unforgettable songs and your favorite beloved characters, My Friends Tigger & Pooh: Super Sleuth Christmas Movie is fun the whole family will treasure.

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Description

  • ISBN13: 0786936727043
  • Condition: NEW
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.



This 44-minute musical Christmas movie finds Pooh, Tigger, Darby, and the rest of everyone's favorite characters from the Hundred Acre Wood enjoying a busy Christmas Eve filled with Christmas preparations and dreams about what they hope to receive from Santa. When Roo and Lumpy discover a fancy red bag in the snow and then stumble upon a young reindeer named Holly caught in a thicket, they find out that the bag they've found is Santa's magical toy sack and that without it, Santa may have to cancel Christmas. When Holly is unable to remember which direction leads home, Roo and Lumpy sound the super sleuth siren and the whole gang sets off for the North Pole to return Santa's bag. Using their knowledge of the North Star to guide them, the hopeful group makes their way toward the North Pole, but finds the road difficult and full of danger. Can the group make it to Santa in time to save Christmas by working together? Will their individual Christmas wishes ever come true? Bonus features include two episodes about friendship and teamwork ("Symphony for Rabbit" and "Tigger Goes Snowflakey") and the "Hundred Acre Wood Downhill Game" in which players pretend to ski down a hill and then interactively match presents with their intended recipients. (Ages 2 and older) --Tami Horiuchi


My Friends Tigger & Pooh - Super Sleuth Christmas Movie Customer Review


My 2 year old daughter absolutely loves this movie and I enjoy watching it with her. Lumpy and Roo befriend a little reindeer named Holly and help her find her way back to the North Pole and save Christmas. The story is fun, the animation is good and it has a wonderful musical score. I really wish this was available as a soundtrack because my daughter wants to listen to the few Tigger and Pooh songs that we have over and over, and where some kids music is annoying ,I really enjoy listening to this with her.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Roadside Romeo (Dvd) (hindi animation, bollywood movie / Indian Cinema / Hindi Film)

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Roadside Romeo (Dvd) (hindi animation, bollywood movie / Indian Cinema / Hindi Film) Sale




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Roadside Romeo (Dvd) (hindi animation, bollywood movie / Indian Cinema / Hindi Film) Customer Review


Roadside Romeo (Dvd)
A movie for children, or for those who, like me, do enjoy animations.
The history is quite innocent and romantic, it's also fun. One thing about the indian movies is their innocence, lost now in these days when all movies are full of sarcasm and second meanings. The shine of the eyes, the romantic songs, and even the innocent kind of humour, well, certainly 100% safe (clean) for children. For me it's good enough in order for having it in my collection. The soundtrack, although with latin and spanic rythms, has an indian touch in the orchestration that I find amazing.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Monday, April 19, 2010

Up in the Air

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Up in the Air Sale


With a job that has him traveling around the country firing people ryan bingham leads an empty life out of a suitcase until his company does the unexpected ground him. Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 03/09/2010 Starring: George Clooney Run time: 109 minutes Rating: R Director: Jason Reitman

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Description

  • ISBN13: 0097363503149
  • Condition: NEW
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.



Up in the Air transforms some painful subjects into smart, sly comedy--with just enough of the pain underneath to give it some weight. Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) spends most of his days traveling around the country and firing people; he's hired by bosses who don't have the nerve to do their layoffs themselves. His life of constant flight suits him--he wants no attachments. But two things suddenly threaten his vacuum-sealed world: his company decides to do layoffs via video conference so they don't have to pay for travel, and Bingham meets a woman named Alex (Vera Farmiga, The Departed), who seems to be the female version of him… and of course, he starts to fall in love. Writer-director Jason Reitman is building a career from funny but thoughtful movies about compromised people--a pregnant teen in Juno, a cigarette-company executive in Thank You for Smoking. George Clooney has a gift for playing smart men who aren't quite as smart as they think they are (Michael Clayton, Out of Sight). The combination is perfect: Bingham is charming and sympathetic but clearly missing something, and Up in the Air captures that absence with clarity and compassion. The outstanding supporting cast includes Anna Kendrick (Rocket Science), Jason Bateman (Arrested Development), Danny McBride (Pineapple Express), Melanie Lynskey (Away We Go), and others, each small part pitched exactly right. --Bret Fetzer




Up in the Air Customer Review


The sophisticated comedy of manners, which saw its heyday in cinema with the films of Ernst Lubitsch and Howard Hawks, went out of style so long ago that it sometimes seems like a lost art. As one who appreciates this particular kind of comedy, I was very pleasantly surprised to see that Up in the Air is, in many respects, a comedy of manners in the Howard Hawks vein.

Sure-footed and seasoned professional George Clooney engages in love-duel with his intellectual equal, Hawksian woman Vera Farmiga, while tutoring the equally competent but less experienced Anna Kendrick. It's all done in rapid-fire banter of the type that was Hawks' comedic trademark. It makes me wonder if director Jason Reitman was thinking of Hawks when he made this film.

Of course, this film is about unemployment and the Great Recession, so the comedy has to be tinged with a shot of realism, and the story does take a few detours to highlight the superficiality of the main character's lifestyle, but for me Up in the Air was a welcome reminder that Hollywood still appreciates urbane humor. If you do too, then I think you'll like Up in the Air.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Zen Japanese Movie Drama DVD with English sub NTSC all region

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Zen Japanese Movie Drama DVD with English sub NTSC all region Sale


starring a Kabuki actor Kantaro Nakamura. The film tells the story of a Zen Buddhist teacher Dogen Zenji who was a leading religious figure 750 years ago, during the Kamakura period. After losing his mother, he decides to perform the ascetic training in China to become a Buddhist teacher. One summer morning, enlightened Dogen returns to Japan and devotes himself as an evangelist of the new Buddhism. But the new form was unacceptable and a community begins taking steps to suppress. . .

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Description

  • 1 dvd
  • Audio: Japanese
  • Subtitles: English / chinese






Zen Japanese Movie Drama DVD with English sub NTSC all region Customer Review





★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Chris Tucker Collection: 4 Film Favorites

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Chris Tucker Collection: 4 Film Favorites Sale


4 FILM FAVORITES-CHRIS TUCKER COLLECTION (DVD/2 DI

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Description

  • RUSH HOUR, RUSH HOUR 2, RUSH HOUR 3, and MONEY TALKS Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: NR Age: 794043135156 UPC: 794043135156 Manufacturer No: 1000103562






Chris Tucker Collection: 4 Film Favorites Customer Review


I enjoyed this product very much. The quality of the picture was excellent. It was like I purchased this product from a video store brand new. The packaging was in excellent condition. My experience with amazon.com will continue as a great one.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★

Friday, April 16, 2010

A Good Year (Widescreen Edition)

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A Good Year (Widescreen Edition) Sale


Max Skinner (Russell Crowe) is a highly successful investment expert with no time for life outside work. When his estranged uncle dies, Max inherits the vineyard in France where he grew up as a child, and his first intention is to sell the vineyard as qui

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A feel-good movie that highlights the beauty of France as much as it does its stars, A Good Year provides a languid, gorgeous viewing experience. Director Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe--who first worked together on the Academy Award-winning Gladiator--are reunited in this romantic film, which is based on Peter Mayle's book A Year in Provence. Crowe plays Max, a workaholic London bonds trader who doesn't know the meaning of vacation. When his uncle dies, leaving him a picturesque estate in the south of France, Max views it as an opportunity to cash in the vinery and pocket the profits. The film is reminiscent of Diane Lane's Under the Tuscan Sun in the way the scenery plays as much of a role in the film as its characters. The lush village and streaming sunlight portray Provence as an idyllic, magical place. Even Max falls under its spell. While not a particularly likeable character, especially in the early part of the film, Max also isn't a bad guy. When he gets the chance to live life at a less manic pace than which he is used to, he finds that a good year isn't dependant on a financial windfall. Though Scott tries to drum up some suspense in the film (Is the beautiful visitor really Max's illegitimate cousin? Will Max fall in love with the feisty local woman he trades quips with?) nothing that happens comes as much of a surprise. Still, while the film doesn't fully utilize Crowe's range of skills, the actor is charming in his role and A Good Year provides a fine time in the cinemas. --Jae-Ha Kim

Extras from A Good Year



Russell Crowe and Co-Stars on Filming in Provence

A Good Year Virtual Vinyard

Beyond A Good Year



A Year in Provence

More from Director Ridley Scott



More from Russell Crowe

Stills from A Good Year










A Good Year (Widescreen Edition) Customer Review


Top 5 reasons that this movie is a keeper:

(1) Visually stunning
This is the first movie that the modern London looked "unattractive", unlike the Matchpoint by Woddy Allen. Provence, France, by contrast, featured a chateau with beautiful vines and sunset glow on beautiful trees. Dinners around the pool featuring live band and silent movie. Water mouthing hoem cooked dinner at the tenant's house.

(2) Marion Cotillard as Fanny Chenal
Young, beautiful, hot and intelligent with a great wardrobe. She acted so natural and confidently. The film lighted up when she appeared on the screen.

(3) Great bonding between Uncle Henry (Albert Finney) and young Max (Freddie Highmore)
Chess, tennis, cricket, how to win and lose, all you need to know about red wine

(4) A script with surprising twists
I like the way that the clues (Uncle Henry's will, the job at London, the expensive wine maker of the Lost Corner, the words whispered into young Max's ears) which were unfolded in the last 10 minutes

(5) Interesting supporting characters
The secretary(Archie Panjabi, Bend it like Beckham), the tenant Duflot(Didier Bourdon) and the Secretary (Tome Hollander, Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice)

At the end, it is Marion Cotillard which is the decisive factor why Max (Russel Crowe) could go back to France. She would have played Elizabeth so well in the modern version of Pride and Prejudice.




★★★ Read More Reviews ★★★