X2: X-Men United [Blu-ray]

Top shelf superhero movie
The defining characteristic of "X2: X-Men United" is the approval bestowed upon it by fans of the origin comic books; whereas the original "X-Men" movie was seen as truncated and flat in parts, the sequel delivers the goods fans craved: a full half-hour more action, and a dazzling opening sequence that features a mutant attack on the U.S. President. The mutant is a newcomer: Nightcrawler (Alan Cumming) a German circus runaway with blue skin that can bounce and teleport at alarming speeds. Director Bryan Singer watched his first "X-Men" effort start with a slow burn of introducing the setup and character; "X2" had the "geeks" bouncing out of their seats.

What follows is a superhero movie on par with "Spider-Man" and the best parts of the "Superman" and "Batman" series. "X2" is a too busy and farfetched, but it keeps twisting, and it features a great villain in Col. Styker (Brian Cox) a military scientist bent on erasing the mutants from the Earth. In theme and approach, "X2" is...

***** BIGGER & BETTER *****
The X-Men are back, with 2003's first blockbuster X2 directed by Bryan Singer. What's more it is bigger (some $50million), better, darker, longer, more action-packed and generally more exciting, with a substantial increase in the sexual tension.

In this highly enjoyable sequel, the warring parties from the first instalment are forced into a partnership of necessity to battle against an army scientist, Colonel William Stryker (Brian Cox), who is determined to wipe all mutant life. To this end, in an excellent opening sequence, he coerces a teleporting mutant by the name of Nightcrawler into an attempt on the President's life with the purpose of turning both the public and the oval office against mutant kind.

All the favourite X-people from the first instalment including Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), Magneto (Sir Ian McKellen), Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Storm (Halle Berry), Rogue (Anna Paquin), Mystique (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos), Cyclops (James Marsden) and Famke Janssen (as Dr...

So Good It's Uncanny...
Hey, pardon my pun, but it's so refreshing to see a comic book movie that doesn't feel like solely a comic book movie that could never happen even in a parallel dimension that looked like a comic book. I mean, yes, Daredevil and Batman and all the rest were fun and all, but they never had the "look" that made you say, "by God, they've done it, I'm looking at life anew!" Well, with X-2, they've done it, my friends...

The first X-Men film was a necessary sacrificial lamb. With so many characters, good and bad, and each character having all their own ongoing multiple storylines and backgrounds and yadda yadda yadda, the first flick chopped all the excess fat and brought the comic book to life in a very realistic and engrossing world...However, it did have its flaws as well as a flat climax that felt like merely a prologue for future X-Films rather than a memorable first entry (though still better than most comic book tripe nevertheless).

X-2 one-ups all of that, though...Everyone...

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Dallas: The Complete Eleventh Season

Review of 'Dallas' Season 11 [MINOR SPOILERS]
'Dallas' Season 11 brings forth a lot of what defined the series' success; J.R.'s battle this season is to reclaim the now fallen Ewing Oil empire; Sue Ellen continues to find her way and make sense of her relationship with J.R.; Clayton and Miss Ellie have their own relationship issues to work out. For me though, the eleventh season was just average. It lacked the drama and emotional intensity of the 'dream' season but it was definitely less awkward that season 10 which attempted to make-up for the dream season. Still, the eleventh season felt a bit sedate and tame compared to season's past. Even with 30 episodes, this season felt rather anti-climatic.

Part of my issue with this season is that it definitely felt as if the producers were either running out of ideas or trying to shift the focus from the core group of characters we've come to know and care about to a slew of new characters. Some of them, such as Sue Ellen's new interest Nicholas Pearce, were interesting and...

The year that the "seniors" got a chance to shine!
Warning: SPOILERS AHEAD!

Of course, the star of the show was Larry Hagman as the devious J.R. Ewing. He was always given the best lines and the most memorable confrontations. However, season eleven, with the departure of a fan favorite, seemed to allow some of the older cast members, regular and recurrent, an opportunity to share some of Hagman's "spotlight".

Barbara Bel Geddes and her on-camera husband Howard Keel really came to the forefront with a storyline about a presumed "affair" between Clayton and a much-younger woman, portrayed by English actress Annabel Schofield . The plot allowed Bel Geddes to really show her acting mettle, especially in the episode entitled "Farlow's Follies" wherein Miss Ellie falls into Sue Ellen (played as always by the flawless Linda Gray) territory by resorting to the bottle to "drown her sorrows".

Not only does the season showcase Bel Geddes and Keel, it also lets recurring player Alice Hirson have a memorable...

Surprisingly satisfying season
I just finished watching this season and have to say I was impressed - easily the best of the later seasons and it makes up for the atrocity that was the "dream" season and its unsatisfying follow-up season. What makes this year fun is solid plotting and unpredictability - that's what keeps you watching all the way through to the satisfying climax.

It's worth noting that April really comes into her own this season, and the "new cast of the season" - Jack Scalia as a hot headed investment banker with a secret, Leigh Taylor Young as the conniving Kimberly Cryder and Andrew Stevens as a cheeky hustler - are much more successful than the supporting cast members were introduced in previous seasons, such as the lacklustre Jack and Jamie Ewing. Plus we get Sue Ellen in a meaty story that does not involve drinking, JR at his conniving best, a surprisingly promiscuous Bobby getting over Pam, and quite a nice story for Ray and Jenna.

One thing I did find jolting was the...

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Notorious (Single-Disc Edition)

Great Music Biopic For the Hip Hop Genre
Saw this when it was in theaters, and was pleasantly surprised it did not disappoint. What put this film over the top was the excellent casting; the characters of Biggie, Faith Evans, Lil Kim, and even Tupac and Voletta Wallace (played by Angela Bassett) made this a believable account of what happened between these intersecting lives that left such a mark on musical history, and ultimately, a tragedy. You really felt for young Christopher as he grew up in the 80's admiring the rising hip hop stars of the day, and perfecting his rhyming skills on the street, while trying to avoid the perils of drugs and crime. What I liked most about this film was the humanity they brought to his character, making him seem like more of a real person than a musical icon. He wasn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but he was trying to be a good person, no matter what obstacles life threw in his way. Ultimately this is a tale of a flawed individual, as we all are, who was lucky enough to...

Well-cast, beautiful cinematography, very slick editing and simply an amazing release on Blu-ray!
The death of Christopher "Notorious B.I.G." Wallace in 1997 was a big shock to hip hop fans around the world.

The events preceding his death was well-known, well-documented in the media in regards to the major riff with the East Coast vs. West Coast hip hop feud.

Considered as one of the greatest hip hop artists ever, "Notorious" is a biopic that documents the life of Christopher "Notorious B.I.G." Wallace and grossing over $43 million worldwide.

The film was directed by George Tillman, Jr. ("Soul Food" and "Men of Honor") and a screenplay co-written by Reggie Rock Bythewood and Cheo Hodari Coker (the author of "Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of the Notorious B.I.G.") which showcases and celebrates the rapper's life.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

The NOTORIOUS Unrated Director's Cut Collector's Edition Blu-ray Disc is presented in widescreen format (2.55:1 ration) with English 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio and Spanish 5.1 Audio with...

A disappointing portrayal of an amazing talent.
When this movie first came out, I was so excited to see a biography of such a talented artist. Boy, was I disappointed.
The movie was quite obviously engineered and manipulated by Puffy and Bad Boy Records. Throughout the film, Puffy was portrayed as a virtual saint--always "saving the day" with his words of wisdom and innocence. He was never shown doing drugs (despite nearly everyone else smoking blunts throughout the whole movie), participating in the sex-filled music scene, or doing anything that would shed even a hint of a shadow upon him. It was quite sickening how saintly he is portrayed, especially when we all know better.

Tupac's portrayal was also hard to believe. His character made odd appearances throughout the film, always appearing as a paranoid, hyper-acting, shallow punk. As a huge Tupac fan, I was quite offended by the way he is portrayed.

The east/west feud was knocked down to a simple misunderstanding fueled by Tupac's baseless...

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Corner 023---Rob Bell

Bono, Gandhi and Penn and Teller
"Why is it that often when we get what we want, we still feel empty? We work so hard to succeed, but our lives just end up becoming more about us. Can success turn on us?" ~ Rob Bell

Good Questions. Corner is a brief study on the passages in the bible that make preparations for the orphan and the widow. It's funny that this has come up, because in the same day I watched an episode of Penn and Teller's cable show where they denounce the morality of the bible citing Exodus 21.7

People use this passage as a means to say, "see God doesn't care if you sell your children into slavery." God is pro-slaves. But the passage in question isn't directed to the parent who sells the daughter into slavery, the passage is directed to the person who accepts the daughter as a slave. The command is a command from Hebrews to Hebrews. These are not Hebrew slaves serving another country or a dominate oppressor. This is, "if you can't pay your bills and you are forced to hire out your...





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The Arrival [Blu-ray]

SCI-FI AS IT SHOULD BE...
"The Arrival" was underrated when it was first released, and, as with all good, underrated movies, it has since become a cult favorite. Clever and imaginative, a lot was done on a limited budget to make it into a top notch sci-fi thriller. It has an intelligent and well reasoned story, and the special effects are imaginative.

Charlie Sheen, clean and sober, plays radio astronomer, Zane Zaminski, who picks up radio signals that are not earthly. When he takes a copy of the tape of these signals, which he believes to be indicative of intelligent, alien life, to his boss, chillingly played by Ron Silver, he is summarily fired from his job. Suddenly, all is not right with the world.

Smelling something real fishy, Zane sets up a home satellite and tries to zero in on the signal. He gets lucky, or unlucky, depending upon how one looks at it, and he picks up the same signal he previously had picked up. It crosses a signal given off by a Mexican radio station, which motivates him to go to...

The most underrated sci-fi/thriller of the 90's
The Arrival is a little known science fiction thriller thatarrived in the early summer of 1996 a year that is much more wellknown for a little film called Independence Day. Both movies are about alien invasions, but are different in execution and style. As to where Independence Day is an action film about visuals and explosions, The Arrival focuses on paranoia, plausibility, and drawing the audience in with an intriguing and credible plot.

Zane Ziminski (Charlie Sheen) and his partner Calvin (Richard Schiff) are radio astronomers who have picked up a signal from outer space, just around a star called Wolf 336, which is 14.6 light years away from Earth. Arrival is writer David Twohy's directorial debut (his other work is Pitch Black, another great sci-fi thriller) and he does a very good job. He makes the plot quite intelligent and keeps the pace moving quickly with a riveting finale. The underlying paranoia is one of the aspects that fuels this movie along. X-Files fans should...

One of my favorite sci-fi thrillers.
Released around the same time as the moronic Independence Day, it's too bad The Arrival was killed at the box office. It's truly the vastly superior film, with an intelligent plot, strong performances, adroit direction, and a lightning pace. Independence Day needed souped-up action scenes to keep the audience awake, but writer/director David Twohy holds the audience's attention with an engaging story, filled with little surprises that unfold brilliantly. I actually saw this movie before Twohy become hot property with the equally great Pitch Black, so I can tell this man is going to be one of the most sought after writer/directors in Hollywood.

The performances are stellar, with Charlie Sheen superb as the paranoid protagonist. Many felt he was miscast for some strange reason. I felt he fit the role perfectly. Teri Polo is good as the girlfriend who may be more than she seems. She's not in the movie nearly as much as Sheen, but she makes an impression with her beauty and solid...

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Driven to Kill

"Everybody Wanna Be A Tough Guy, But Nobody Wanna Pay The Price"
Forget that Kill Switch and Against the Dark ever happened - it's just not worth remembering those two catastrophes when you can group together the overall string of recent victories for Steven Seagal's DTV career that are Urban Justice, Pistol Whipped, and now "Driven to Kill". Wait, don't get your hopes too high: it's not quite as good as either of the two, but is nonetheless one of the best things that Seagal's done in the last half-decade.

The story: Ruslan Drachev (Seagal) is a former member of the Russian mob and current novelist whose daughter Lanie (Laura Mennell, Watchmen) is set to marry the son of his arch...

Another pretty solid B-action mvoie after many disappointments
Seagal plays Ruslan, a former Russian gangster who's now a successful crime novelist. He goes to attend his daughter's wedding and finds out her fianc

Top Gear 10: The Complete Season 10

A slightly less-than-excellent release of an excellent show.
The product description and the other reviews give a good breakdown of why you should like Top Gear- a trio of insane presenters who'd be as at home in a sitcom as they are behind the wheel of the supercars they love.

I'll stick with the DVD itself, which is nice to have but has a few flaws.

The first flaw is that the contents aren't perfectly uncut. Most of the "news" segments that featured in eight of the ten episodes of Season 10 are missing- only two are included. Some of the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car segments are also missing- specifically, rugby star Lawrence Dallagio, Absolutely Fabulous star Jennifer Saunders, and comedian Keith Allen. The back of the box says, in tiny print, "For clearance reasons certain edits have been made." Presumably, to save license payments to certain carmakers and celebrities, they dropped less memorable and more Brit-centric material. However, so far as I can tell these are the only cuts; there is ample material remaining...

Horrible DVD set of the world's best TV show
I'm not even going to bother extolling Top Gear's virtues. It's the best show on the air. Go watch it. However...

This DVD set is terrible.

First thing to notice is that the packaging is cheap, flimsy, and extremely minimal. The retention clips in mine were already broken in two places. Two of the DVDs overlap, like shingles, and scratches are inevitable. There is no insert, other than a BBC survey about the discs, which you might want to keep and use, though I suspect no one actually reads those things.

Second thing to notice is the quality of the video. It's oversharpened, probably to try to cover up the blurriness. The blurriness is probably because the widescreen video appears merely to have been zoomed up from the central portion of the letterboxed BBC America/Canada airings. You end up with blurry, sharpened, aliased mud. It's almost painful to see on anything other than a 23" tube TV.

Third thing to notice is that,...

5 star show 2.5 dvd release
I have waited for the day when TG would be released on dvd and I am slightly let down by series 10 dvd release. First off all the episodes are EDITED on this 3 dvd release which does include the Botswana special. I have not fully viewed each episode but on the 1st episode supercar challenge (looking for the best driving road in Europe) the music had been changed and I can only assume its the same through out the series. As I have stated this series is broken down into 3 discs which is as follows

Disc 1: run time 204 minutes

Ep 1 51:27

Ep 2 50:25

Ep 3 50:32

Ep 4 (Botswana special) 51:28

Disc 2: run time 150 minutes

Ep 5 50:08

Ep 6 49:08

Ep 7 50:35

Disc 3: 152 minutes

Ep 8 50:34

Ep 9 51:06

Ep 50:04

you would have thought they would have left the language unbleeped for dvd they didn't I guess they thought I'd be offended by such...

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Happy Feet

Great movie that looks amazing in HD!
First of all, this is simply a great movie. The narrative is brought to life with humor, action, important life lessons, and conservational commentary. The voice actors all give 5-star performances and the animation is incredible.

But, this being the Blu-ray disc, I'm going to focus on the picture and sound.

The animation by itself is simply breath-taking; easily one of, if not the best looking CGI feature to date. But in HD, it's brought to life even further. Every feather on the penguins is apparent, every flake of snow falling through the air and I'd almost go so far as to say every molecule of water! This is the best looking animated feature you can get on Blu-ray now. It's definitely the show-off piece when people ask "How much better does HD look?". The leopard seal was particularly mind-blowing to me.

Another hook is the sound. While I wouldn't say this is the best sounding movie on Blu-ray, it definitely puts sound to good use and ranks pretty...

An objective look at a polar-izing movie.
South polar-izing in this case, but it's hard to miss the fact that some people really love this movie and some really...well...don't.

I just saw this movie twice over the past three days, and here's my take on it, with the upsides and the downsides.

The upsides were:

The animation technology! Some of the animation, especially the backgrounds, was drop dead gorgeous. I don't even have HD, and I was mesmerized by how beautifully done some parts of this movie were.

The misfit becomes a hero. It hit sort of close to home for my wife and I because we have a special needs child and have often felt like Memphis and Norma Jean. What went wrong? We sigh a lot and wonder what will become of him. I quietly hope he will develop some great talent some day. We'll see.

An environmental message that wasn't too heavy handed. The humans are not presented as evil, just as being who didn't know what they were doing. Once they discovered the...

Happy Feet.. Made me happy
I loved the movie, it had me swaying to the music and singing right from the beginning. I loved the characters.. I chose to get it in full screen version due to I'm not a big fan of the wide screen version.. I loved the movie from beginning to end.. I watched it along with my parents and they're a tough bunch when it comes to movies, But my mother loved it especially, I think she must have laughed and kept a smile through the whole movie.. My fathter, whose an even tougher critic to watch movies with enjoyed it also.. I even him him laughing a few times and saw him smile, so all and all, it was worth the buy.. Thanks amazon!

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Sesame Street: Elmo and the Bookaneers

A Little Dry....
I thought this would be a great DVD with pirates and singing, but it's a lot of on screen reading and my 3 year old gets bored. Tina Fey is entertaining, but kids don't see her as anyone different from the rest of the adults on the movie. The clay pirate short is cute, but for the first 15 minutes, the movie is mostly talking which doesn't capture my child's interest. The giant squid is a cartoon and is only on for a minute or so. I would think this would be better for 5 year olds.

Just okay
My son loves Elmo in Grouchland so I thought that this would be a great second option for him but it just isn't as good as Grouchland. Grouchland has a continuous story to it and this has mini stories (like Elmo loves you). This is more like Sesame Street instead of a movie. My son likes the Sesame Street characters so he will pay attention to it but it is just okay.

Another Great Sesame Street Video
I love this episode as does my two year old son. He thinks the pirate songs are fun and this is another well made Sesame Street Video of the episode that ran on PBS. If you are looking for an all ELMO storyline- this is not it. Just a really good episode of Sesame Street that was put on DVD. We love it at our house and sing along with all the songs!

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Top Gear: The Complete Season 10 & Clarkson: Heaven & Hell

Top Gear is one of the best shows ever, the DVD is not as good as the show
I love Top Gear, I watched almsot all of the episodes from the first season in in 2002.

Top Gear Season 10 is very good, but the DVD isn't as good, the original airing of season 10 is better than this DVD.

The problems are:

1. News segments are non existent or missing, there is maybe only one episode with the Top Gear news.

2. The music, Top Gear season 10 had great music in the original UK airing, on the DVD all the music is replaced by a bad music probably because of copyright issues with the original music, no matter the reason, this reduces the enjoyment of the episodes.

3. Region 1 DVD, why would you make it a region 1 DVD? Should have made the DVD region free.

4. No extras as far as I can tell, there's only the show, no behind the scenes, no special commentary, nothing, it's just the show.

Imagine Jeremy Clarkson reviewing this DVD, he would point out it's flaws with no shame.

Overall Top...

Three British gents+fast cars+Top Gear Challenges=hilarity
I discovered this show on BBCA about a year ago, and can't get enough. The interplay between the three hosts, the wacky challenges (ie: sailing cars across the British Channel), the awesome cars, it all adds up into my favorite show on television today. That said, it is unfortunate that the producers of the DVD decided to cut out some material from the show; for what reason I cannot fathom. Still, this is the only show I've ever seen that has made me laugh so hard I cried. Plus, this season includes the Botswana episode, which was a fantastic bit of television and cinematography. The Clarkson: Heaven/Hell is OK, but not great. If you're not already a fan, I'd suggest just buying the Season 10 alone, until you're sure you like the humor.

Gear heads rejoice
One the best British imports ever. Even if your not a gear head the the three hosts are very funny. I know a few people who know nothing about cars but love this show because of chemistry of the hosts. And to you gear heads a chance to see some the worlds greatest super cars in action.

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X-Men [Blu-ray]

What the Batman franchise should have been.
X-Men, the first REAL attempt at bringing a Marvel Comic to life on the silver screen, succeeds on several levels. First, it is well written, leaving just enough cheese and in-jokes for fans of the comics--but it doesn't ignore the newbie, either. Each important plot point is explained, and we are saved from watching the "origin" of every character.

Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, Patrick Stewart as Professor X, and Ian McKellan as Magneto really steal the show. They've embodied their characters, and work well together. The message of discrimination is never played heavy-handed, but it comes across. All in all, a solid performance.

Michael Kamen's music is wonderful and fitting. Just the right amount of adrenaline and somberness. (I recommend you by the CD as well as the DVD!)

In short, X-Men is a rewarding superhero flick. People with children however, should be warned that there is an amount of violence, but it is not gory. All in all, and excellent movie.

Better than it should have been.
Comic books are notoriously difficult to translate to feature-film format. Goodness knows, there have been missteps in the past. But director Brian Singer does about as good a job as can be reasonably expected. First off, we need to thank the makers of Mission Impossible 2 for running over-schedule, thus tying up actor Dougray Scott and consequently allowing actor Hugh Jackman to play Wolverine. Jackman is the standout in this movie. His wonderfully understated performance as the "reluctant hero" is arguably the centerpiece of this film.

What distinguishes this film from other lesser film adaptions is an intelligent script, or at least intelligent for the genre. Character development isn't sacrificed to make room for more standard mindless special effects and action setpieces, like in some movies ("Batman and Robin", anyone?).

The in-jokes are funny, and the characters' history and motivations are treated with a fan's level of respect.

If the...

X-CEPTIONAL ENTERTAINMENT!
At last, with comic book adaptations, Hollywood is starting to get it right. The first, but hopefully not the last, movie to feature Marvel's merry mutants benefits immensely from a superb cast, an enthusiastic director, and an intelligent, thoughtful approach that makes this more than just another "superhero" flick. In the near future, more and more people are revealing themselves as "mutants" - genetically altered people with superhuman powers. As the US government considers passing Senator Kelly's (Bruce Davison) Mutant Registration Act, two extremely powerful mutants ponder their species' fate. Telepathic Professor X (Patrick Stewart in the role he was born for) believes in teaching mutants to develop their powers for the good of mankind, whereas his old friend Magneto (Ian McKellan) wants simply to wipe the human threat out. Caught in the middle of all this are Rogue (Anna Paquin), a young mutant with energy-sapping powers, and Wolverine (a superb Hugh...

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FBI Files Season 2

Great series!
The FBI Files, which aired on the Discovery Channel, profiles cases from the POV of the FBI agents and local police who investigated them. It features interesting interviews, actual lab-work, dramatic action, and fascinating details of investigative procedure.
Cases covered in this season 2 set include: a number of serial killers (Robert Hansen, Christopher Wilder, Joseph Christopher to name a few), the Miami shootout, the Dixie Mafia, and more.

Full Episodes Listing
Hard evidence. Hard Science. Real Justice. Whether it handles bullets or bombs, fingerprints or fibers, the FBI's crime lab - the largest facility in the world - takes on tough cases, grappling with fraud, drug trafficking, kidnapping and murder, extortion and terrorism. The FBI Files is a show describing actual FBI cases, with dramatic reenactments and interviews with agents and forensic scientists who worked in the investigations. If you enjoy watching shows like Forensic Files, Dateline NBC, 48 Hours Mysteries or Unsolved Mysteries then you'll enjoy watching this show.

Season 2 features 18 investigations, most of them are very interesting. Each episode is 45 minutes long.

DISC 1
- A Model Killer: The 1984 search for serial killer Christopher Wilder (aka "The Beauty Queen Killer").
- Hired Gun: The 1993 murder-for-hire investigation of former Motown Records music producer Lawrence Horn.
- Cat and Mouse: The 1985 search for South Carolina serial...

The FBI Files: Season 2
The FBI Files: Season 2 was superb! The storylines are great, the reenactments are excellent and the use of color was outstanding.

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Squidbillies, Vol. 2

quality entertainment
Hands down the best show featuring land dwelling cephalopods ever made. One thing the show has going for it is a total disregard for continuity. It's fun seeing characters mutilated or killed repeatedly. Also, it is a show about hillbilly squids. They live in Northern Georgia and are protected by the Endangered Species Act so they're free to raise hell. In addition to the squids other regular characters include a Sheriff and an evil capitalist named Dan Halen that looks like a....I don't know. He has no knees and looks like half a ball sac. He talks like Orson Welles and is immortal and then there is Krystal. And well, come to think of it, you got a bunch of great characters including the Reverend (another bizarre creation) and the Devil and Jesus too --both as you've never seen them before. Anyway, I've seen hillbilly shows and hillbillies in person and the same with squids and putting the two together to make one creature makes perfect sense. The animation is superb. Crude and...

Twisted genius
As soon as I finished watching my first season set, I just had to buy this. This show is insane on so many levels. The first time I watched this I had been channel surfing, and when I saw this show it was about halfway through and I was like, 'what the [...] is this?' but when I caught another episode, it was love for me. The insane humor and antics of Early Cuyler and his clan, and the weird hodgepodge of characters in this series make it a solid cartoon to watch. The people who are responsible for this show are geniuses. Freaking geniuses.

i don't need no box full of cat crap to tell me that...this is amazin'!
got this here for my gentleman friends' bert day. tis a fine piece o' entertainment. the squids are a peculiar hick bunch, don't know who got the idea to make a show based on squids but it worked. it's amazin'. i'm hooked. As Dan Halen would promote: buy, buy, buy!!!! (I only wish it came with them free "zippy wings"!!)

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Christian Blake

Not bad at all.
The movie is a great watch if you enjoy good cinematography and chemistry amoungst the actors. The plot is intresting enough and has a few good twist.Though it is a suspense or intelectual thriller i found alot of it to be hillarious at times.

Although its no Peter Jackson or Steven Spielberg it does show amazing talent.

Black Life UK-Style
Heavy attracted to a classmate Steve, Christian had been placed in a modern UK madhouse after killing a Steve's girlfriend in a school toilet.

In a couple of years, a female journalist's visit triggered a tragedian line of psycho-murders to fulfil Blake's desire to commit suicide before Steve's eyes.

I would not be interested in this British film if I knew a plot in advance, also performance is really nice.



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X-Men Trilogy (X-Men / X2: X-Men United / X-Men: The Last Stand) [Blu-ray]

A Blessed Blu-ray Treatment
I got to hand it to Fox, they really mastered this blu-ray trilogy. I was unimpressed by the lack of the Spider-man trilogy's special features. I think anything being re-released onto blu-ray should have something new besides video and sound quality. This box set is almost overloaded with features that kept me watching for hours and hours.

I found some of the features to repeat themselves, but for the most part they were worthwhile. My absolute favorite was the one-hour special on the history of X-men comics found on the X3 special features disc. I felt that alone gave me the ultimate satisfaction for purchasing this set. I had the previous dvd copies, and this was a huge step in the right direction. Thank you Fox!

Your blu-ray quality is about what you would expect for the series. The first movie was in 2000 so I was most interested in that transfer. X-men had the most apparent positive transfer. The other films have your standard blu-ray quality. I...

The X-Men Trilogy
This is a great DVD set for anyone who are fans of the films. These are three great films with memorable charecters, fantastic special effects and action sequences as well as some very witty humor. They are also a great social commentary on todays society.

here is what this set contains

DISC 1- X-Men

-2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen presentation

-Deleted Scenes

-Charlie Rose Interview

-Mutant Watch featurette

-Hugh Jackman Screen Test

-Storyboards

-Art Gallery

-Animatics

-Trailer

DISC 2- X2: X-Men United

-2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen presentation

-Commentary by Director and Cinematographer

-Commentary by Producers and Writers

DISC 3- X-Men: The Last Stand

-2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen presentation

-Commentary by Director and Writers

-Commentary by Producers

-Deleted...

Blu-Ray Review
Well, you know how good the movies are, so the big question is 'is the transfer worth the added expense of buying blu-ray?'. The answer is yes.
The transfers are crisp and clear and wonderful in their visual detail. The sound is revelatory. The packaged price saves you money. That should be all you need to know.

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Fist of the North Star: The Movie

This is the best release of this film in the US
Fist of the North Star has been released multiple times on VHS and DVD in the US. It even has two different dubs (one by Streamline Pictures with Carl Macek of Robotech fame, and one by Manga Entertainment).

In this release:
* The film is digitally restored. It actually looks a little better than the original release.
* The movie still goes into monochromatic mode during the most violent scenes - just like in all previous US releases.
* The original US dub (Streamline) is used. The original Japanese audio is also included.
* There are also two sets of subtitles, one for the US dub dialog and one that is a faithful translation of the Japanese dialog. Before reading the Japanese subtitles, I never realized how many liberties Streamline took with the script. It's almost like watching a different movie!
* The Japanese theatrical ending is used, which is the same ending all previous US releases had. (There is a Japanese home-video ending where Ken and...

Blood splattering, eye popping (literally) chaos!
This is one of my favorite anime of all time. It is simply an over-the-top gorefest. I love the fact that it pulls no punch and simply gets the plot out of the way in the first few minutes..

I can sum this movie up as:

Good Guys: "Man builds really big bombs and is stupid and annihilates the whole planet. This was a bad thing, let's not do this in real life. Oh look, a flower survived. Now we have hope."

Bad Guys: "Hope?! We can't have hope! We love slaughtering everything in sight for no apparent reason. Die flower die!"

Good Guys: "That's it! You die now!"

(Insert 70 minutes of insane fighting).

As silly as that sounds, this movie is GREAT. Turn off your brain and enjoy it..

Don't Care For Reviews. Care For Your Own TASTE
Well well well. First I would like to stress that these reviews are made in the opinions of the ones who have seen the film. Everyone has a different taste to movies. Well for me, The Fist Of The North Star is like the greatest, most wickest, amazing, animation I have ever seen. I really enjoyed the movie, laughed and cried too. The plot is amazing , the animation is so cool and the violence in this is even more intense than DRAGONBALL ! Others might say that is a stupid movie but I honestly enjoyed watching it and most of my friend enjoyed it too. There are scenes that are comical and tragedical at the same time and you don't know whether to laugh or cry. The scene that touched me most is the scene with Ken protecting the girl! . AMazing STORY. You really have to see it to choose.

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Taggart - Hit Man Set

Taggart volume 7 - still no subtitles
This is volume 7 of the original series.
The proper sequence to view these sets is:
1) KILLER set
2) DEATH CALL set
3) COLD BLOOD set
4) ROOT OF EVIL set
5) EVIL EYE set
6) VIOLENT DELIGHTS set
7) THE HIT MAN set
8) RING OF DECEIT set
9) DEATH WITHOUT DISHONOUR set
10) HELLFIRE set
11) PRAYER FOR THE DEAD set (the last Jim Taggart episode)

Hold Your Horses!
Although I was born in the USA, as were my parents, I had the good fortune to have grown up in a neighborhood comprised of immigrants from England, Ireland and Scotland. It is not easy to understand the variations in Scotch "English" unless you hear it spoken and listen very carefully. Once you get beyond "Listening", you can begin to recognize how well written the Taggart series is. Over time individuals develop characters. You begin to enjoy the humor and wit which makes this such a popular show in Scotland. This series, like the others demonstrate the ongoing shuffle of the main characters as they receive promotions and take on different responsibilities. There are plenty of murders in this series. One wonders if there are any people left in that country. Poor old Taggart. He is never happy. But he does enjoy his work and making sly witty comments to his crew. To those who would like to have English sub-titles I say listen carefully. Don't have distractions when you are watching.I...

Waited a Long Time, But Worth the Wait
The owners of this series had fans wait what 3 or 4 years since release of the last sets in this series? Well better late than never. I love this series and I was not disappointed.

I don't like the fact that there is no closed captioning, can't these people get with the times? Even with the lack of CC I doubt that hard core fans will be deterred. I can't wait for the next 3 sets in June. I hope we don't have to wait another 3 to 4 years for release of future sets in the series.

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Fireman Sam: Hero Next Door

A great way to get children thinking about fire safety - best followed by a parent-child discussion
Fireman Sam: Hero Next Door is a full-screen children's DVD continuing the hit adventures of Fireman Sam and his firefighting crew. Together they learn that safety comes first when dealing with fire, which is one of the most dangerous things there is! The five colorful, computer-animated episodes are "A Real Live Wire", "Twist of Fate", "The Case of the Licorice Shoelaces", "Carnival of Junk", and "Joker Soaker", with a bonus "Roary the Racing Car" episode "Roary Sees Red". A wonderful addition to public library children's DVD shelves, and also an excellent gift for young children. Fireman Sam: Hero Next Door is a great way to get children thinking about fire safety - best followed by a parent-child discussion about do's and don'ts when dealing with fire, and what to do in the case that a fire breaks out in one's home. 45 minutes, English and French languages, closed-captioned.

my toddler loves it!
We bought it before we took a long trip. Our toddler loves it. However, it is not what you see on PBC Sprout channel. The characters look different. Some of them do not exist in the TV version. There are some new characters in this DVD. It took several minutes for our toddler to figure it what we were watching! After that we did not have any problem.

In this DVD twins James and Sarah do not have any parents. Elvis does not sing. There is no Radar dog.

In this DVD there is Dusty dog. There is Bella, an italian lady, who owns an italian cafe. Bella has a cat named Rosa.

I just wished that they kept characters look the same and didn't change them in all seasons.

If you have time then check other seasons on youtube and you will understand what I am talking about.

Adorable Show!
I wish that this show was more popular in the U.S. My little boys love it!

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Chance Pop Session: Complete Collection

Half of the show is Montage
The story itself is pretty good. It has a good plot and characters, and the show could have been great. The problem is 'literally' half of every episode is comprised of musical montages. There are up to 3 montages in an episode (when there's only 1, that 1 is very long).

I know what you're thinking, "The show is about music" "They have to have montages to diplay the character's improving their musing and performing on stage". Well... yes. But, there are only 3 songs in the series, and 1 of those is only used for 1 montage, so the other 20-something montages use the same 2 songs, over and over and over.

Scenes of the show are repeated in the same way as the music. There is (again) 'LITERALLY' a flash back to a scene that was shown 1 MINUTE EARLIER. Most of the montage scenes are used several times through out the series. So the montages later in the show are the same music with the same images as the ones in previous episodes.

If they had not...

First Thing's first...THIS IS NOT HENTAI
The reason for the title of my review is this, the cover art kind of makes it look like one of those fanservice/hentai'ish anime when it is completely not. If anything, it is the complete opposite.

I first saw this title in Best Buy but avoided it because of what the cover art seemed to suggest. About 2 years later (after I completely forgot about this title) I saw this anime on a legal stream site (Crunchyroll) and was very impressed and inspired by it. Looking for it on Amazon, that was when I realized that the title I watched online and the title I left untouched 2 years prior were the same. All I could think was, "wow, I totally missed out then!" I just want to be sure that other people don't miss out on such a wonderful and subtle title due to misperceptions caused by the cover art style.

For people looking for anime that they can safely share with friends and older family...or simply just want to enjoy without worry about (or annoyance of) the overt...

Good story but this is a bad version
This is a great anime series--excellent character development for both the main and secondary characters. Surprising plot developments. Not for young kids. The story is five stars, but the May 2009 complete collection is a disappointment though. We had first watched the series years ago, borrowed from the library. We enjoyed it very much and when I saw it here I decided to acquire it. While the animation is all the same, for some reason the subtitles for the song lyrics are not translated into English on this version. We always watch films in their original language, with subtitles, and the one from the library provided English subtitles for the lyrics--this one has subtitles, in Romanjii (our letters spelling Japanese words); entirely unhelpful and frustrating. As I write, the site says that there are only a few copies left, with more on the way. Hopefully they will fix the translations.

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Modern Marvels: Grand Coulee

great resource
I use this DVD in a Pacific Northwest History class to help demonstrate the growth and the importance of the region. The video fits in the time I have for the class and it keeps the kids attention. It is a little dated but the overall information is priceless.





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