Remember the Titans [Blu-ray]

Remember the Titans [Blu-ray] Review

Remember the Titans [Blu-ray] Overview

REMEMBER THE TITANS - Blu-Ray Movie

Remember the Titans [Blu-ray] Specifications

With only one major star (Denzel Washington), an appealing cast of fresh unknowns, and a winning emphasis of substance over self-indulgent style, Boaz Yakin's Remember the Titans is, like Rudy before it, a football movie that will be fondly remembered by anyone who sees it.

Set in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1971, the fact-based story begins with the integration of black and white students at T. C. Williams High School. This effort to improve race relations is most keenly felt on the school's football team, the Titans, and bigoted tempers flare when a black head coach (Washington) is appointed and his victorious predecessor (Will Patton) reluctantly stays on as his assistant. It's affirmative action at its most potentially volatile, complicated by the mandate that the coach will be fired if he loses a single game in the Titans' 13-game season. The players represent a hotbed of racial tension, but as the team struggles toward unity and gridiron glory, Remember the Titans builds on several subplots and character dynamics to become an inspirational drama of Rocky-like proportions.

Yakin--whose debut, Fresh, was one of the best independent films of the 1990s--understands the value of connecting small scenes to form a rich climactic payoff. Likewise, Washington provides a solid dramatic foundation (his coach is obsessively harsh, but for all the right reasons) while giving his younger co-stars ample time in the spotlight. The result is a film that achieves what it celebrates: an enriching sense of unity that's unquestionably genuine. (Ages 9 and older) --Jeff Shannon

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 25, 2011 19:25:04

Dallas: The Complete Sixth Season

Dallas: The Complete Sixth Season Review

Dallas: The Complete Sixth Season Feature

• The saga of the wealthy Ewing family continues in its sixth season - full of sibling wars, adultery, reconciliation and power struggles. Season 6 starts with ice: J.R. gets the cold shoulder when the family votes him out as president of Ewing Oil. And it ends with fire: Southfork ablaze, with four Ewings trapped by roaring flames. In between, J.R. and Bobby bare-knuckle it out in their biggest fig

Dallas: The Complete Sixth Season Overview

The saga of the wealthy Ewing family continues in its sixth season - full of sibling wars, adultery, reconciliation and power struggles. Season 6 starts with ice: J.R. gets the cold shoulder when the family votes him out as president of Ewing Oil. And it ends with fire: Southfork ablaze, with four Ewings trapped by roaring flames. In between, J.R. and Bobby bare-knuckle it out in their biggest fight yet over Ewing Oil, thanks to their father's will. It seems Jock just couldn't decide who should inherit, so he split the company in half and gave his boys one year to see who could make the biggest bucks ? and win the whole shebang. Plus Bobby and Pam split up, J.R. and Sue Ellen remarry and J.R. sees Cuba's jail system from the wrong side of the bars. Add a Texas whirlwind of lying, cheating and bed hopping and, as J.R. might say, "Darlin', this here is Dallas!"

Dallas: The Complete Sixth Season Specifications

Dallas: The Complete Sixth Season begins with a bang: Miss Ellie (Barbara Bel Geddes), Bobby (Patrick Ewing) and Lucy (Charlene Tilton) vote to remove J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) as president of Ewing oil. Big stuff, but J.R. soon lands a job running competitor Harwood Oil. Meanwhile, in this classic primetime soap, J.R. and brother Bobby find themselves on opposite ends of a titanic clash set in motion by patriarch Jock Ewing’s will once the latter is declared legally dead. And now that he is officially deceased, Jock's widow, Miss Ellie, becomes interested in a social life again. This results in some discomfort for J.R., who wants his mom to be mom, despite having almost blackmailed her in the first place to release the will. Ludicrous as it all might sound, Dallas is always nothing less than absorbing, and the changes and surprises that come with the territory--the ever-shifting alliances, the come-from-behind victories, the constant scheming to tear down family and friends--are fascinating.

In Dallas: The Compete Fifth Season, J.R. won back his estranged wife, Sue Ellen (Linda Gray). Yet she seems to be having second thoughts about life as a Ewing, prompting J.R. to take another crack at convincing her to stay with him--while doing his bidding in unscrupulous business maneuvers, of course. Sue Ellen and sister-in-law Pamela (Victoria Principal) become unexpectedly close, and even more unexpected is Pamela's request to husband Bobby that he drop the fraternal competition with J.R. to run Ewing Oil for good. Abortions, tensions, and a chance for longtime, obsessive enemy of the Ewings Cliff Barnes (Ken Kercheval), so recently comatose, to get even with his nemesis are all on the menu. As usual, watching Dallas is like witnessing a car crash and being too mesmerized to leave. --Tom Keogh

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 25, 2011 04:55:05

Citizen X

Citizen X Review

Citizen X Overview

Based on the true story of the hunt for the most savage and elusive serial killer on record. It started with eight bodies found murdered, raped and mutilated. A brilliant Soviet forensics expert (Stephen Rae) is put in charge of the case by his colonel (Donald Sutherland). But the investigation is buried under government red tape until a psychiatrist (Max von Sydow) is called in to create a psychological profile of the murder. With fifty-two victims to his name, the killer they call Citizen X finally takes shape before their eyes. But can they trap him before he kills again?

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 23, 2011 04:40:04

Crossing Over

Crossing Over Review

Crossing Over Feature

• CROSSING OVER (DVD MOVIE)

Crossing Over Overview

Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones films) is on a quest for justice as an immigrations agent investigating the case of a missing illegal. In a cross-fire of crime and bureaucracy, fraud and murder, he must race against time to try to save a family from becoming collateral damage in the fight for the American dream. Critics rave, “Harrison Ford is terrific. An engrossing, thoroughly entertaining movie with great performances from a first-rate ensemble cast” (Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com). Co-starring Ashley Judd (Twisted), Ray Liotta (Smokin’ Aces), Jim Sturgess (21), and Cliff Curtis (10,000 BC); Crossing Over will keep you riveted until the final mystery unfolds.

Stills from Crossing Over (Click for larger image)

Crossing Over Specifications

The director of The Cooler tries a bigger canvas: Crossing Over is Wayne Kramer's take on nothing less than the vast subject of illegal immigration, coming at the topic from a dozen or so directions. Hefting the most star power is Harrison Ford, scurrying about as an L.A. Immigration and Customs officer whose conscience is sore from having trundled so many illegals back over the border--now he's worried about the child of a particularly vulnerable woman (Alice Braga). Cliff Curtis plays Ford's partner, an Iranian-American whose family is not as assimilated as his casual manner might suggest. There's a bit of pulp swagger in other sections of the picture, as Kramer tries to channel his inner Sam Fuller: for instance, an Immigration official (Ray Liotta at his piggiest) coerces an Australian actress (Alice Eve) into a sex-for-green-card affair, and an adolescent Arab-American girl (Summer Bishil, from Towelhead) gives a cheeky speech at school that puts her family under suspicion as possible terrorists. Other strands of this scenario aren't as urgent, as Ashley Judd dreams of adopting the African child she's tending, and Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe), as a British non-believer, tries to convince Immigration authorities of his commitment to working at a Jewish school. The movie's single best scene has him "auditioning" to convince a rabbi of his commitment to Judaism, a funny moment that also carries an echo of the history of Jewish exodus. The movie has a tendency to bash from one thing to the next, too neatly connecting its Crash-like plotlines, like a really spirited first draft of a better movie. --Robert Horton

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 22, 2011 21:55:04

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (Those Aren't Pillows Edition)

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (Those Aren't Pillows Edition) Review

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (Those Aren't Pillows Edition) Feature

• IT COMES WITH A SPECIAL 3 DIMENSIONAL CASE. THAT ARE VERY EXPENSIVE TO PRODUCE. A MUST SEE.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (Those Aren't Pillows Edition) Overview

Neal Page is an advertising executive who just wants to fly home to Chicago to spend Thanksgiving with his family. But all Neal Page gets is misery. Misery named Del Griffith - a loud mouthed, but nevertheless loveable, salesman who leads Neal on a cross-country, wild goose chase that keeps Neal from tasting his turkey. Steve Martin (Neal) and John Candy (Del) are absolutely wonderful as two guys with a knack for making the worst of a bad situation. If it's painful, funny, or just plain crazy, it happens to Neal and Del in Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Every traveler's nightmare in a comedy-come-true!

Bonus Features:
* Getting There is Half the Fun: The Story of Planes Trains and Automobiles
* Other: John Hughes for Adults
* Other: A Tribute to John Candy
* Additional Scenes: Deleted Scene - "Airplane Food"

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (Those Aren't Pillows Edition) Specifications

Given the presence of both Steve Martin and John Candy, one would expect this John Hughes comedy to be much, much funnier than it is. Certainly it's not for lack of effort on the part of its stars. Martin is an uptight businessman trying to get home from New York for the holidays. But one thing after another gets in his way--most of it having to do with Candy, a boorish but well-meaning boob who takes a liking to him. Together they travel all over the map; no matter how hard Martin tries to shake him, he can't. But Hughes's writing is never as sharp as it should be and this film winds up being only intermittently humorous. --Marshall Fine

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 21, 2011 16:30:08

Full House: The Complete Fourth Season

Full House: The Complete Fourth Season Review

Full House: The Complete Fourth Season Feature

• A wedding to remember, a surprise addition to the Tanner family, a hole-in-the-wall dilemma, Joey goes to Hollywood and more! Join the Tanners once again for another hilarious season of Full House. Watch as the girls graduate to the next grade level, Stephanie has to wear glasses for the first time and neighbor Steve Urkel drops by for a visit, Jesse and Rebecca gets married after some hilarious m

Full House: The Complete Fourth Season Overview

A wedding to remember, a surprise addition to the Tanner family, a hole-in-the-wall dilemma, Joey goes to Hollywood and more! Join the Tanners once again for another hilarious season of Full House. Watch as the girls graduate to the next grade level, Stephanie has to wear glasses for the first time and neighbor Steve Urkel drops by for a visit, Jesse and Rebecca gets married after some hilarious mishaps.

Full House: The Complete Fourth Season Specifications

Just call him "Jesse the Greek." In the fourth season premiere of Full House, Katsopolis receives a visit from his European relatives, including Michelle's look-a-like cousin, marking one of the few times in the show’s eight-season history that the Olsen twins will share the screen. "Greek Week" ends with Jesse (John Stamos) and Becky (Lori Loughlin) getting engaged--a "big fat wedding" will transpire before the year is through. Interestingly, life will imitate art in 1998 when Stamos weds a real-life Rebecca (model/actress Rebecca Romijn). Other developments include a new production company, Double J Creative Services, for Joey (Dave Coulier) and Jesse ("The I.Q. Man")--with Danny as their silent partner--and Becky and Jesse finally tie the knot ("The Wedding" two-parter). Standout episodes include "Secret Admirer," in which everyone (who is able to read) thinks a fake love letter is intended for them, and "One Last Kiss," in which Jesse covers the Knack's "My Sharona" at his high school reunion. He may have abandoned the mullet to the 1980s, but the 1990s edition proves he can still get his rock on. (The same cannot be said about Danny's misguided attempts at coolness.)

Fourth season guests include Wayne Newton ("Viva Las Joey"), Jaleel "Urkel" White ("Stephanie Gets Framed"), and those eternal beach bunnies, Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello ("Joey Goes Hollywood"). Also continuing to receive guest star billing is Andrea Barber (nosey neighbor Kimmy), even though she appears in most of the 25 episodes. The year ends with two graduations, D.J. (Candace Cameron) from junior high and Michelle (Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen) from pre-school ("The Graduates"). Most importantly, there’s a Katsopolis birth announcement ("Rock the Cradle"). As Michelle would say, "Whoah, baby!" --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 19, 2011 00:45:04

Manhattan

Manhattan Review

Manhattan Overview

Nominated for two Academy AwardsÂ(r)* in 1979 and considered "one of Allen's most enduring accomplishments" (Boxoffice), Manhattan is a wry, touching and finely rendered portrait of modern relationships against the backdrop of urban alienation. Sumptuously photographed in black and white (Allen's first film in that format) and accompanied by a magnificent Gershwin score, Woody Allen's aesthetic triumph is a "prismatic portrait of a time and a place that may be studied decades hence" (Time). 42-year-old Manhattan native Isaac Davis (Allen) has a job he hates, a seventeen-year-old girlfriend, Tracy (Mariel Hemingway), he doesn't love and a lesbian ex-wife, Jill (Meryl Streep), who's writing a tell-all book about their marriage and whom he'd like to strangle. But when he meets his best friend's sexy intellectual mistress, Mary (Diane Keaton), Isaac falls head over heels in lust! Leaving Tracy, bedding Mary and quitting his job are just the beginning of Isaac's quest for romance and fulfillment in a city where sex is as intimate as a handshakeandthe gateway to true love is a revolving door. *Supporting Actress (Hemingway); Original Screenplay

Manhattan Specifications

Manhattan, Woody Allen's follow-up to Oscar-winning Annie Hall, is a film of many distinctions: its glorious all-Gershwin score, its breathtakingly elegant black-and-white, widescreen cinematography by Gordon Willis (best-known for shooting the Godfather movies); its deeply shaded performances; its witty screenplay that marked a new level in Allen's artistic maturity; and its catalog of Things that Make Life Worth Living. But Manhattan is also distinguished in the realm of home video as the first motion picture to be released only in a widescreen version. You wouldn't want to see it any other way. Allen's "Rhapsody in Gray" concerns, as his own character puts it, "people in Manhattan who are constantly creating these real, unnecessary, neurotic problems for themselves, because it keeps them from dealing with more unsolvable, terrifying problems about the universe." It's a romantic comedy about infidelity and betrayal, the rules of love and friendship, young girls (a radiant and sweet Mariel Hemingway) and older men (Allen), innocence, and sophistication. (a favorite phrase is used to describe a piece of sculpture at the Guggenheim: "It has a marvelous kind of negative capability.") The movie's themes can be summed up in two key lines: "I can't believe you met somebody you like better than me," and "It's very important to have some kind of personal integrity." OK, so they may not sound like such sparkling snatches of brilliant dialogue, but Manhattan puts those ideas across with such emotion that you feel an ache in your heart. --Jim Emerson

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 17, 2011 11:05:04

Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, Part One (Limited Edition)

Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, Part One (Limited Edition) Review

Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, Part One (Limited Edition) Feature

• PHANTOM - REQUIEM FOR THE PHANTOM - PT 1 (DVD)

Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, Part One (Limited Edition) Overview

A young man with no memories fights to salvage his humanity when he's forced into a life of murder by a dangerous crime syndicate called Inferno. The organization gives him a new name, Zwei, and molds him into a perfect killing machine, a meticulous instrument of death created to obey his masters' every deadly command.
Zwei s not the only puppet controlled by Inferno; Ein is a girl as beautiful as she is brutal, as lethal as she is lost. While mafia violence escalates around them, the two assassins grow closer, and Zwei begins the struggle to reclaim his past and save Ein from a blood-soaked future.

Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom, Part One (Limited Edition) Specifications

Reiji Azuma, the teenage hero of the dark, game-based adventure Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom (2009), awakens in a half-ruined building in the California desert, stripped of his memories. A mysterious girl named Ein has been assigned to teach him how to kill, using pistols, machine guns, and knives. Reiji learns fast: in six months he becomes the assassin Zwei, killing people for the criminal cabal Inferno. When the theatrical Scythe Master leads a revolt within Inferno, Zwei becomes The Phantom, the mob's top hit man. Reiji takes up with Cal, a blonde orphan who's eager to become a killer in her own right. Requiem for the Phantom is comprised of three story arcs, all of which suffer from underdeveloped characters, inconsistencies of time, too much on-the-nose dialogue, and absurd plots. Even after he regains his memories, Reiji's not very interesting; Ein's murderous blandness makes Key the Metal Idol seem downright vivacious. Cal somehow goes from wide-eyed moppet to murderous vixen in the two years that elapse between episodes 19 and 20. Despite the body count, which must run well into three figures, Phantom moves at a glacial pace. Director Koichi Mashimo tries to disguise the lack of inertia with odd camera angles, but he's defeated by the endless succession of static, talky scenes. Shooting mobsters may be evil, but boring them to death seems needlessly cruel. The set comes with two discs of extras, including 12 "Picture Dramas," weird spoofs involving still artwork and hand puppets of the characters. (Unrated; suitable for ages 17 and older: violence, violence against women, grotesque imagery, profanity, ethnic stereotypes, nudity, drug dealing, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon

(1. Awakening, 2. Training, 3. Practice, 4. Assassination, 5. Moment, 6. Conflagration, 7. The Past, 8. Emergency, 9. Name, 10. Finale, 11. Succession, 12. Ghost, 13. Camouflage, 14. Surveillance, 15. Reunion, 16. Confession, 17. The Truth, 18. Confrontation, 19. Promise, 20. Homeland, 21. Rage, 22. Fury, 23. Decision, 24. Faceoff, 25. Showdown, 26. Eren)

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 15, 2011 08:00:28

Emperor of the North

Emperor of the North Review

Emperor of the North Overview

A legendary depression-era hobo and his young accomplice battle a sadistic railroad worker in a determined bid to hitch a ride.

Emperor of the North Specifications

Emperor of the North, a vivid Depression-era drama, opens with a friendly, down-home song that doesn't prepare the audience for what follows: The brutal killing of a train-hopping bum at the hands of a cruel conductor named Shack (Ernest Borgnine, Marty, The Poseidon Adventure). A hobo called A-No. 1 (Lee Marvin, Cat Ballou, The Big Heat) rises to the challenge of catching a ride on Shack's train--but his heels are dogged by a tenderfoot (Keith Carradine, Deadwood, Nashville), whose inexperience may get them both killed. Director Robert Aldrich (The Dirty Dozen, Kiss Me Deadly) has a sure feel for male behavior driven by pride, boredom, and desperation. The swagger gets a little overblown at times, but more often Emperor of the North has a gritty realism, peppered with flashes of sardonic humor and surprising compassion. Aldrich has a gift for a loose yet always watchable story, filled with engaging bit parts and offbeat incidents that flesh out the world and make the main storyline all the more compelling. Marvin and Borgnine--craggy-faced character actors deluxe--are in excellent form, but Carradine steals the movie with his bitter, callow arrogance. (Originally titled Emperor of the North Pole, a bit of hobo lingo.) --Bret Fetzer

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 14, 2011 02:10:04

Everwood: The Complete Third Season

Everwood: The Complete Third Season Review

Everwood: The Complete Third Season Feature

• EVERWOOD: COMPLETE 3RD SEASON (DVD MOVIE)

Everwood: The Complete Third Season Overview

This season, love is in the clear mountain air of Everwood. Back from a troubled summer at Juilliard, Ephram commits himself to his music and to Amy. Andy is drawn to a patient’s wife--and into an ethical dilemma. Dr. Jake Hartman moves to town and starts eating a lot of pancakes, as long as Nina’s serving ’em up. And mousey Hannah Rogers flips over Bright. But don’t expect love to conquer all, especially when the secret Andy kept from Ephram last season comes spilling out. Suddenly, trust is destroyed, lives are turned upside down and the bonds of love--romantic and father-son--are stretched to the breaking point. Andy wanted Everwood to be his family’s home. Now it may be just another place they used to live.

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 12, 2011 23:20:08

Nights in Rodanthe

Nights in Rodanthe Review

Nights in Rodanthe Feature

• The stars of Unfaithful rekindle their screen chemistry in this rich tale of hearts awakenings based on a bestseller by Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook, Message in a Bottle). Richard Gere is Paul, a surgeon who long ago unwittingly traded career for family. Diane Lane is Adrienne, a devoted mother trying to move on after her husbands infidelity and struggling with his desire to return to their marri

Nights in Rodanthe Overview

The stars of Unfaithful rekindle their screen chemistry in this rich tale of hearts awakenings based on a bestseller by Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook, Message in a Bottle). Richard Gere is Paul, a surgeon who long ago unwittingly traded career for family. Diane Lane is Adrienne, a devoted mother trying to move on after her husbands infidelity and struggling with his desire to return to their marriage. At a remote inn on the Outer Banks, Paul and Adrienne expect to do some serious soul-searching. But an approaching storm forces each to turn to the other for strength, setting the stage for a life-resonating romance.

Nights in Rodanthe Specifications

The sparks between Richard Gere and Diane Lane--so memorable in Unfaithful--smolder again in the sweepingly romantic Nights in Rodanthe. Based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks, the film is unapologetically sentimental, and enjoyable completely on its own terms--a small gem of an escape, complete with storm-tossed coastline. Lane plays Adrienne, a wronged wife whose husband (Christopher Meloni) was a heel, but begs for another chance. She goes to clear her head at a remote North Carolina inn, where the sole occupant is Paul, a doctor, played by Gere, who is battling his own demons. If the writing is on the wall about what will become of our two leading actors, it's to Lane's and Gere's deep credit that they make their tentative connection, wariness, and growing feelings human and quite believable. Love is messy, and grownup love, even more so. As they get to know each other, Adrienne shows Paul a small wooden box that holds her keepsakes: "I made it to keep special things safe." Paul turns to her, looking her squarely but gently in the eye, and says, "What keeps you safe?" At that moment, every woman watching the film is in the palm of his hand. The film squarely addresses the reality that people over age 25 do, in fact, yearn for, and find, love. If only more studios would realize the deep, appreciative audience for films like this. --A.T. Hurley

Stills from Nights in Rodanthe (Click for larger image)

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 12, 2011 08:30:05

The Naked Jungle

The Naked Jungle Review

The Naked Jungle Overview

In THE NAKED JUNGLE, Charlton Heston plays the powerful, brooding owner of a plantation in the wild and treacherous South American jungle, while Eleanor Parker plays his charming American mail order bride. He is wary of this beautiful and talented woman, and wonders why she would leave America for the rigors of jungle life. But with the advance of relentless killer ants making their way across the jungle, the two find their relationship changing as they fight to save the jungle.

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 12, 2011 02:35:04

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [Blu-ray]

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [Blu-ray] Review

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [Blu-ray] Feature

• Condition: New
• Format: Blu-ray
• Color; Dolby; Subtitled; Widescreen

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [Blu-ray] Overview

CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON - Blu-Ray Movie

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [Blu-ray] Specifications

Hong Kong wuxia films, or martial arts fantasies, traditionally squeeze poor acting, slapstick humor, and silly story lines between elaborate fight scenes in which characters can literally fly. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon has no shortage of breathtaking battles, but it also has the dramatic soul of a Greek tragedy and the sweep of an epic romance. This is the work of director Ang Lee, who fell in love with movies while watching wuxia films as a youngster and made Crouching Tiger as a tribute to the form. To elevate the genre above its B-movie roots and broaden its appeal, Lee did two important things. First, he assembled an all-star lineup of talent, joining the famous Asian actors Chow Yun-fat and Michelle Yeoh with the striking, charismatic newcomer Zhang Ziyi. Behind the scenes, Lee called upon cinematographer Peter Pau (The Killer, The Bride with White Hair) and legendary fight choreographer Yuen Wo-ping, best known outside Asia for his work on The Matrix. Second, in adapting the story from a Chinese pulp-fiction novel written by Wang Du Lu, Lee focused not on the pursuit of a legendary sword known as "The Green Destiny," but instead on the struggles of his female leads against social obligation. In his hands, the requisite fight scenes become another means of expressing the individual spirits of his characters and their conflicts with society and each other.

The filming required an immense effort from all involved. Chow and Yeoh had to learn to speak Mandarin, which Lee insisted on using instead of Cantonese to achieve a more classic, lyrical feel. The astonishing battles between Jen (Zhang) and Yu Shu Lien (Yeoh) on the rooftops and Jen and Li Mu Bai (Chow) atop the branches of bamboo trees required weeks of excruciating wire and harness work (which in turn required meticulous "digital wire removal"). But the result is a seamless blend of action, romance, and social commentary in a populist film that, like its young star Zhang, soars with balletic grace and dignity. --Eugene Wei

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 11, 2011 12:10:04

The Polar Express (Widescreen Edition)

The Polar Express (Widescreen Edition) Review

The Polar Express (Widescreen Edition) Feature

• When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.Running Time: 100 min. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: CHILDREN Rating: G Age: 012569740648 UPC: 012569740648 Manufacturer No: 74064

The Polar Express (Widescreen Edition) Overview

When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

The Polar Express (Widescreen Edition) Specifications

Destined to become a holiday perennial, The Polar Express also heralded a brave new world of all-digital filmmaking. Critics and audiences were divided between those who hailed it as an instant classic that captures the visual splendor and evocative innocence of Chris Van Allsburg's popular children's book, and those who felt that the innovative use of "performance capture"--to accurately translate live performances into all-digital characters--was an eerie and not-quite-lifelike distraction from the story's epic-scale North Pole adventure. In any case it's a benign, kind-hearted celebration of the yuletide spirit, especially for kids who have almost grown out of their need to believe in Santa Claus. Tom Hanks is the nominal "star" who performs five different computer-generated characters, but it's the visuals that steal this show, as director Robert Zemeckis indulges his tireless pursuit of technological innovation. No matter how you respond to the many wonders on display, it's clear that The Polar Express represents a significant milestone in the digital revolution of cinema. If it also fills you with the joy of Christmas (in spite of its Nuremberg-like rally of frantic elves), so much the better. --Jeff Shannon

The World of The Polar Express

The book by Chris Van Allsburg

The Soundtrack

The Magic Journey (Polar Express the Movie) (book)

Stills from Polar Express (click for larger image)

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 10, 2011 07:40:04

Miami Vice (Unrated Director's Edition) [Blu-ray]

Miami Vice (Unrated Director's Edition) [Blu-ray] Review

Miami Vice (Unrated Director's Edition) [Blu-ray] Overview

Jamie Foxx and Colin Farrell go deep undercover in the explosive, action-packed Miami Vice Unrated Director's Edition! When detectives Ricardo Tubbs (Foxx) and Sonny Crockett (Farrell) are asked to investigate the brutal murders of two federal agents, they find themselves pulled into the lethal world of drug traffickers. From the acclaimed director of Heat and Collateral comes an exclusive motion picture experience you won't want to miss!

Miami Vice (Unrated Director's Edition) [Blu-ray] Specifications

Bearing absolutely no resemblance to the 1980s TV series that helped to propel Michael Mann into big-time filmmaking, Miami Vice is the kind of serious, and seriously stylish, crime drama that Mann does better than anyone else. As written by Mann himself, this undercover sting thriller doesn't reach the peak intensity of Mann's 1995 classic Heat, and it lacks the tight, nail-biting suspense of Collateral, but that doesn't mean it doesn't occasionally pack a wallop. As Miami detectives Sonny Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs (respectively), Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx don't have to do much but mumble their plot-thickening dialogue and look ultra-cool in the casual cop attire, and their partnership is rather lifeless on screen (perhaps owing to the fact that this was a troubled production, with an actual shooting that occurred during filming, and Foxx's refusal to risk his life on dangerous locations in South America). But once Mann shifts into high gear with a plot to foil a powerful drug kingpin (Luis Tosar) and his ruthless middle-man (John Ortiz), Vice pays off with the kind of smart, realistic action that Mann's fans have come to expect. With Chinese superstar Gong Li as Crockett's love interest on the wrong side of the law, Miami Vice covers territory that's a little too familiar, and one suspects Mann's screenplay might've been punched up with a polish or two. Still, this is an above-average crime thriller that demands and rewards close attention, with a climactic shoot-out that's pure Mann, worthy of the brooding drama that precedes it. --Jeff Shannon

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 07, 2011 02:35:04

Apocalypto [Blu-ray]

Apocalypto [Blu-ray] Review

Apocalypto [Blu-ray] Feature

• From Mel Gibson, director of the Academy Award(R)-winning BRAVEHEART (Best Director, Best Picture, 1995), comes APOCALYPTO, the thrilling historical epic that will shock and awe you as never before on Blu-ray Disc. Dubbed "totally mesmerizing" by "Dark Horizons," this adrenaline-drenched action-adventure reaches new levels of intensity in this extraordinary format. In the twilight of the mysteriou

Apocalypto [Blu-ray] Overview

From Mel Gibson, director of The Passion Of The Christ and the Academy Award® winning Braveheart (Best Director, Best Picture, 1995) comes the thrilling historical epic Apocalypto. This intense, nonstop action-adventure transports you to an ancient South American civilization, for an experience unlike anything you’ve ever known. In the twilight of the mysterious Mayan culture, young Jaguar Paw is captured and taken to the great Mayan city where he faces a harrowing end. Driven by the power of his love for his wife and son, he makes an adrenaline-soaked, heart-racing escape to rescue them and ultimately save his way of life. Filled with unrelenting action and stunning cinematography, Apocalypto is an enthralling and unforgettable film experience.

Apocalypto [Blu-ray] Specifications

Forget any off-screen impressions you may have of Mel Gibson, and experience Apocalypto as the mad, bloody runaway train that it is. The story is set in the pre-Columbian Maya population: one village is brutally overrun, its residents either slaughtered or abducted, by a ruling tribe that needs slaves and human sacrifices. We focus on the capable warrior Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood), although Gibson skillfully sketches a whole population of characters--many of whom don't survive the early reels. Most of the film is set in the dense jungle, but the middle section, in a grand Mayan city, is a dazzling triumph of design, costuming, and sheer decadent terror. The movie itself is a triumph of brutality, as Gibson lets loose his well-established fascination with bodily mortification in a litany of assaults including impalement, evisceration, snakebite, and bee stings. It's a dark, disgusted vision, but Gibson doesn't forget to apply some very canny moviemaking instincts to the violence--including the creation of a tremendous pair of villains (strikingly played by Raoul Trujillo and Rodolfo Palacias). The film is in a Maya dialect, subtitled in English, and shot on digital video (which occasionally betrays itself in some blurry quick pans). Amidst all the mayhem, nothing in the film is more devastating than a final wordless exchange of looks between captured villager Blunted (Jonathan Brewer) and his wife's mother (Maria Isabel Diaz), a superb change in tone from their early relationship. Yes, this is an obsessive, crazed movie, but Gibson knows what he's doing. --Robert Horton

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 03, 2011 18:40:04

The Prisoner: The Complete Series

The Prisoner: The Complete Series Review

The Prisoner: The Complete Series Feature

• Patrick McGoohan'sic 17-episode British TV series, The Prisoner, has been mesmerizing American viewers since its CBS debut in the summer of 1968. Now, just in time for its 40th anniversary A&E presents this definitive collector's edition of the cultic series. Fully restored and digitally remastered, THE PRISONER is presented in the fan-preferred episode order, offering a chronological interpre

The Prisoner: The Complete Series Overview

Since its CBS debut in the summer of 1968, the masterful British TV series THE PRISONER has captivated American audiences. Now A&E presents a definitive collector's edition of the cult classic which is considered one of the most innovative TV series ever filmed.

After resigning from a top-secret position, a man (McGoohan) is abducted and spirited from his London home to a mysterious place known only as 'The Village.' Village Residents, known only by numbers, are held captive because each possesses valuable knowledge. The Prisoner, now known as Number Six, battles to protect his mind -- and his humanity -- while struggling to discover the identity of Number One and escape captivity.

The Prisoner: The Complete Series Specifications

If a top-level spy decided he didn't want to be a spy anymore, could he just walk into HQ and hand in his resignation? With all that classified knowledge in his head, would he be allowed to become a civilian again, free to go about his life? The answer, according to the stylish, brilliantly conceived 1960s British TV series The Prisoner, is a resounding no. In fact, instead of receiving a gold watch for his years of faithful service, our hero (played by Patrick McGoohan) is followed home to his London flat and knocked unconscious. When he awakens, he finds himself in a picturesque village where everyone is known by a number. Where is it? Why was he brought here? And, most important, how does he leave?

As we learn in Episode 1, Number 6 can't leave. The Village's "citizens" might dress colorfully and stroll around its manicured gardens while a band plays bouncy Strauss marches, but the place is actually a prison. Surveillance is near total, and if all else fails, there's always the large, mysterious white ball that subdues potential escapees by temporarily smothering them. Who runs the Village? An ever-changing Number 2, who wants to know why Number 6 resigned. If he'd only cooperate, he's told, life can be made very pleasant. "I've resigned," he fumes. "I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own." So sets the stage for the ultimate battle of wills: Number 6's struggle to retain his privacy, sanity, and individuality against the array of psychological and physical methods the Village uses to break him.

So does he ever escape? And does he ever find out who Number 1 is? "Questions are a burden to others," the Village saying goes. "Answers, a prison for oneself." Within this complete 17-episode set, all is revealed. Or is it? --Steve Landau

Also on the discs
The 2009 Collector's Edition has the same video content as the 2006 40th Anniversary Edition, but does not include the booklet or paper map. The principal other difference is that the 10 discs are packaged in five Thinpaks instead of 10. For an improved video transfer and new supplemental features, try the 2009 Blu-ray release. --David Horiuchi

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Feb 01, 2011 08:15:04