Showing posts with label Collection. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Collection. Show all posts

Monday, July 22, 2013

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Complete Collection Two [Blu-ray]







Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Complete Collection Two [Blu-ray] Overview


In the shadows beneath Central, the Elrics encounter Father, the creator of the Homunculi. His face is familiar - as is the new face of Greed - but his alchemy is unlike anything the brothers have ever seen. As Father's dark plot takes shape, Ed and Al brave the frigid north to meet the top officer of the fortress Briggs: General Olivier Armstrong. With icy nerve and burning intensity, she commands the hardest soldiers in the land. When you witness her leading the warriors of Briggs in battle against the unstoppable, rampaging Sloth, you'll know - the stakes are higher than ever in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Collection 2.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Complete Collection Two [Blu-ray] Specifications


The tone of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood darkens as it continues. In flashback sequences, viewers learn the origins of both Hohenheim and his doppelgänger, the "father" of the Homunculi. Hohenheim was once the slave of an alchemist in Cselkcess, who created the first Homunculus. When the King of Cselkcess's attempt to achieve immortality backfired, Hohenheim became a human Philosopher's Stone and the Homunculus created a body for itself that was a duplicate of his. Decades later, Father plans to activate a transmutation circle that stretches across the entire country of Amestris, killing untold thousands of unsuspecting humans to create a gigantic Philosopher's Stone--and activate the Mannequin Army, a corps of zombies animated by the Stone's power. Director Yasuhiro Irie and his artists pull out all the stops in the appropriately dramatic and moving conclusion. The Elric brothers and their allies--Von Hohenheim, Roy Mustang, Scar, Izumi, the Armstrongs, May Chang, and Ling Yao--strive to thwart the machinations of Father and his remaining minions: Pride, Wrath, Sloth, Envy, and the zombie army. The climactic battles are as wrenching as they are spectacular, with flashy CG effects that rival Hideaki Anno's new Evangelion films. But the emotional impact overshadows the visuals, as each of the main characters must rise to face a dire challenge. Edward and Alphonse discover how much they're willing to sacrifice for each other. Mustang destroys Envy, avenging Colonel Hughes, but Ed and Lieutenant Hawkeye make him realize that his anger threatens to destroy him. The initial Fullmetal Alchemist series, which was completed before manga artist Hiromu Arakawa had envisioned her story's outcome, ended with the setup for the feature The Conqueror of Shambala (2005). Brotherhood, which follows the original manga so closely that much of the dialogue is taken verbatim, reaches a much more satisfying and definitive conclusion. Saying good-bye to two of the most beloved characters in anime history might be the price viewers pay for an appropriate ending to their story--and an example of "equivalent exchange." But the adventures of Edward and Alphonse Elric continue, beginning with the feature Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos (2011). (Rated TV 14: violence, grotesque imagery, brief nudity, tobacco and alcohol use) --Charles Solomon

(34. Ice Queen, 35. The Shape of This Country, 36. Family Portrait, 37. The First Homunculus, 38. Conflict at Baschool, 39. Daydream, 40. Homunculus (The Dwarf in the Flask), 41. The Abyss, 42. Signs of a Counteroffensive, 43. Bite of the Ant, 44. Reviving at Full Throttle, 45. The Promised Day, 46. Looming Shadow, 47. Emissary of Darkness, 48. The Oath in the Tunnel, 49. Filial Affection, 50. Upheaval in Central, 51. The Immortal Legion, 52. Combined Strength, 53. Flame of Vengeance, 54. Beyond the Inferno, 55. The Adults' Way of Life, 56. The Return of the Fuhrer, 57. Eternal Leave, 58. Sacrifices, 59. Lost Light, 60. Eye of Heaven, Gateway of Earth, 61. He Who Would Swallow God, 62. A Fierce Counterattack, 63. The Other Side of the Gateway, 64. Journey's End)



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Thursday, July 4, 2013

Coen Brothers Collection (Blood Simple/Fargo/Miller's Crossing/Raising Arizona) [Blu-ray]







Coen Brothers Collection (Blood Simple/Fargo/Miller's Crossing/Raising Arizona) [Blu-ray] Overview


Brilliant Filmmaking Comes Alive On Blu-ray.

The films of Academy Award® Winners Joel Coen and Ethan Coen are breathtakingly bold, stunningly original and marvelously entertaining. This must-own collection from these visionary filmmakers includes four iconic movies, presented in breathtaking Blu-ray high definition.

Blood Simple Blu-ray
From the celebrated filmmaking team of Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (Fargo, Raising Arizona), comes this visually stunning tale of a double-cross—and murder—in a small town. When the owner of a backwoods bar hires a man to kill his cheating wife and her boyfriend, he opens a door into the criminal world that he’ll never be able to shut. Blood Simple hurtles forward with the speed and intensity of a fired bullet...and delivers as devastating an impact as has ever been felt from a noir film!

Fargo Blu-ray
Nominated for seven Oscars® and winner of two, this darkly amusing thriller combines a first-rate cast, "a dazzling mix of mirth and malice" (Rolling Stone) and a bizarre kidnapping plot that unravels the Midwest like never before. Starring Frances McDormand, William H. Macy and Steve Buscemi, Fargo is a brilliant tour de force from the creators of Raising Arizona and O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Miller's Crossing Blu-ray
Filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen (Raising Arizona, Fargo) create a complex and graphic vision of gangsterism set during Prohibition and featuring a riveting rouges’ gallery of killers and con men.

Leo (Albert Finney), a likeable Irish gangster boss, rules an Eastern city along with Tom (Gabriel Byrne), his trusted lieutenant and counselor. But just as their authority is challenged by an Italian underboss (Jon Polito) and his ruthless henchman (J.E. Freeman), Leo and Tom also fall for the same woman (Marcia Gay Harden). Tom, caught in the jaws of a gangland power struggle, walks a deadly tightrope as he tries to control and manipulate its violent outcome.

Raising Arizona Blu-ray
Nicolas Cage, Holly Hunter and John Goodman lead an all-star cast in Ethan and Joel Coen’s celebrated comedy.

Once he decides to give up crime, a small-time robber (Cage) proposes to a pretty cop (Hunter). But when the newlyweds learn they can’t conceive a baby, they decide to steal one from a couple who seem to have one to spare – since they just had quintuplets! With its outrageous plot, fast-paced action and even some wild pyrotechnics, Raising Arizona will forever have a place in the hearts of lovers – and film lovers – everywhere.

Coen Brothers Collection (Blood Simple/Fargo/Miller's Crossing/Raising Arizona) [Blu-ray] Specifications


Review for Blood Simple
The debut film of director Joel Coen and his brother-producer Ethan Coen, 1983's Blood Simple is grisly comic noir that marries the feverish toughness of pulp thrillers with the ghoulishness of even pulpier horror. (Imagine the novels of Jim Thompson somehow fused with the comic tabloid Weird Tales, and you get the idea.) The story concerns a Texas bar owner (Dan Hedaya) who hires a seedy private detective (M. Emmett Walsh) to follow his cheating wife (Frances McDormand in her first film appearance), and then kill her and her lover (John Getz). The gumshoe turns the tables on his client, and suddenly a bad situation gets much, much worse, with some violent goings-on that are as elemental as they are shocking. (A scene in which a character who has been buried alive suddenly emerges from his own grave instantly becomes an archetypal nightmare.) Shot by Barry Sonnenfeld before he became an A-list director in Hollywood, Blood Simple established the hyperreal look and feel of the Coens' productions (undoubtedly inspired a bit by filmmaker Sam Raimi, whose The Evil Dead had just been coedited by Joel). Sections of the film have proved to be an endurance test for art-house movie fans, particularly an extended climax that involves one shock after another but ends with a laugh at the absurdity of criminal ambition. This is definitely one of the triumphs of the 1980s and the American independent film scene in general. --Tom Keogh

Review for Fargo
Leave it to the wildly inventive Coen brothers (Joel directs, Ethan produces, they both write) to concoct a fiendishly clever kidnap caper that's simultaneously a comedy of errors, a Midwestern satire, a taut suspense thriller, and a violent tale of criminal misfortune. It all begins when a hapless car salesman (played to perfection by William H. Macy) ineptly orchestrates the kidnapping of his own wife. The plan goes horribly awry in the hands of bumbling bad guys Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare (one of them being described by a local girl as "kinda funny lookin'" and "not circumcised"), and the pregnant sheriff of Brainerd, Minnesota, (played exquisitely by Frances McDormand in an Oscar-winning role) is suddenly faced with a case of multiple murders. Her investigation is laced with offbeat observations about life in the rural hinterland of Minnesota and North Dakota, and Fargo embraces its local yokels with affectionate humor. At times shocking and hilarious, Fargo is utterly unique and distinctly American, bearing the unmistakable stamp of its inspired creators. --Jeff Shannon

Review for Miller's Crossing
Arguably the best film by Joel and Ethan Coen, the 1990 Miller's Crossing stars Gabriel Byrne as Tom, a loyal lieutenant of a crime boss named Leo (Albert Finney) who is in a Prohibition-era turf war with his major rival, Johnny Caspar (Jon Polito). A man of principle, Tom nevertheless is romantically involved with Leo's lover (Marcia Gay Harden), whose screwy brother (John Turturro) escapes a hit ordered by Caspar only to become Tom's problem. Making matters worse, Tom has outstanding gambling debts he can't pay, which keeps him in regular touch with a punishing enforcer. With all the energy the Coens put into their films, and all their focused appreciation of genre conventions and rules, and all their efforts to turn their movies into ironic appreciations of archetypes in American fiction, they never got their formula so right as with Miller's Crossing. With its Hammett-like dialogue and Byzantine plot and moral chaos mitigated by one hero's personal code, the film so transcends its self-scrutiny as a retro-crime thriller that it is a deserved classic in its own right. --Tom Keogh

Review for Raising Arizona
Blood Simple made it clear that the cinematically precocious Coen brothers (writer-director Joel and writer-producer Ethan) were gifted filmmakers to watch out for. But it was the outrageously farcical Raising Arizona that announced the Coens' darkly comedic audacity to the world. It wasn't widely seen when released in 1987, but its modest audience was vocally supportive, and this hyperactive comedy has since developed a large and loyal following. It's the story of "Ed" (for Edwina, played by Holly Hunter), a policewoman who falls in love with "Hi" (for H.I. McDonnough, played by Nicolas Cage) while she's taking his mug shots. She's infertile and he's a habitual robber of convenience stores, and their folksy marital bliss depends on settling down with a rug rat. Unable to conceive, they kidnap one of the newsworthy quintuplets born to an unpainted-furniture huckster named Nathan Arizona (Trey Wilson), who quickly hires a Harley-riding mercenary (Randall "Tex" Cobb) to track the baby's whereabouts. What follows is a full-throttle comedy that defies description, fueled by the Coens' lyrical redneck dialogue, the manic camerawork of future director Barry Sonnenfeld, and some of the most inventively comedic chase scenes ever filmed. Some will dismiss the comedy for being recklessly over-the-top; others will love it for its clever mix of slapstick action, surreal fantasy, and homespun family values. One thing's for sure--this is a Coen movie from start to finish, and that makes it undeniably unique. --Jeff Shannon



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Saturday, June 22, 2013

Night at the Museum Collection [Blu-ray]







Night at the Museum Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


Night at the Museum [Blu-ray]

Ben Stiller leads an all-star cast including Robin Williams and Dick Van Dyke in this hilarious blockbuster hit. When good-hearted dreamer Larry Daley (Stiller) is hired as night watchman at the Museum of Natural History, he soon discovers that an ancient curse brings all the exhibits to life after the sun sets. Suddenly, Larry finds himself face-to-face with a frisky T. rex skeleton, tiny armies of Romans and cowboys and a mischievous monkey who taunts him to the breaking point. But with the help of President Teddy Roosevelt (Williams), Larry may just figure out a way to control the chaos and become a hero in his son's eyes. Boasting jaw-dropping special effects and laugh-out-loud moments, Night at the Museum is your ticket to nonstop fun!


Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian [Blu-ray]

History is larger than life—and twice as funny—in this monumental comedy sequel that’s “better than the original” (At the Movies)! Ben Stiller leads an all-star cast (including Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Hank Azaria and Robin Williams) as Larry Daley, a former night watchman at the Museum of Natural History, where the exhibits come to life after dark. But now Larry’s nocturnal friends are being retired to the archives of the Smithsonian Institution, luring him back for a hilarious, all-out battle against museum misfits who plan to take over the Smithsonian...and the world!




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Friday, June 14, 2013

On the Waterfront (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]







On the Waterfront (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Overview


Marlon Brando (The Godfather) gives the performance of his career as the tough prizefighter-turned-longshoreman Terry Malloy in this masterpiece of urban poetry, a raggedly emotional tale of individual failure and institutional corruption. On the Waterfront charts Terry’s deepening moral crisis as he must choose whether to remain loyal to the mob-connected union boss Johnny Friendly (12 Angry Men’s Lee J. Cobb) and Johnny’s right-hand man, Terry’s brother, Charley (In the Heat of the Night’s Rod Steiger), as the authorities close in on them. Driven by the vivid, naturalistic direction of Elia Kazan (Gentlemen’s Agreement) and savory, streetwise dialogue by Budd Schulberg (A Face in the Crowd), On the Waterfront was an instant sensation, winning eight Oscars, including for best picture, director, actor, supporting actress (North by Northwest’s Eva Marie Saint), and screenplay.

On the Waterfront (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Specifications


Marlon Brando's famous "I coulda been a contenda" speech is such a warhorse by now that a lot of people probably feel they've seen this picture already, even if they haven't. And many of those who have seen it may have forgotten how flat-out thrilling it is. For all its great dramatic and cinematic qualities, and its fiery social criticism, Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront is also one of the most gripping melodramas of political corruption and individual heroism ever made in the United States, a five-star gut-grabber. Shot on location around the docks of Hoboken, New Jersey, in the mid-1950s, it tells the fact-based story of a longshoreman (Brando's Terry Malloy) who is blackballed and savagely beaten for informing against the mobsters who have taken over his union and sold it out to the bosses. (Karl Malden has a more conventional stalwart-hero role, as an idealistic priest who nurtures Terry's pangs of conscience.) Lee J. Cobb, who created the role of Willy Loman in Death of Salesman under Kazan's direction on Broadway, makes a formidable foe as a greedy union leader. --David Chute



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Saturday, June 8, 2013

Richard III (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]







Richard III (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Overview


With RICHARD III, director, producer, and star Laurence Olivier (Hamlet) brings Shakespeare's masterpiece of Machiavellian villainy to mesmerizing cinematic life. Olivier is diabolically captivating as Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who, through a set of murderous machinations, steals the crown from his brother Edward. The supporting cast—including Ralph Richardson (Fallen Idol), John Gielgud (Arthur), and Claire Bloom (The Spy Who Came in from the Cold)—is just as impressive. Filmed in VistaVision and Technicolor, RICHARD III is one of the most visually inspired of all big-screen Bard adaptations.

Richard III (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Specifications


The third and final entry in Laurence Olivier's Shakespeare triptych, Richard III (1954) is an audacious portrait of a man determined to prove himself a villain. As the personification of evil impudence, Olivier portrays the Duke of Gloucester with such aplomb that he brings the audience onto his side. This is true even as Richard engineers plots to murder his brother Clarence (John Gielgud), betray his cousin Buckingham (Ralph Richardson), and seduce his niece Lady Anne (Claire Bloom). From the play's famous opening lines ("Now is the winter of our discontent"), Olivier delivers every speech with truly Machiavellian splendor, and his superb staging of the climactic battle rivals his work on Henry V. Regrettably, this would be Olivier's last Shakespeare film, as a planned adaptation of Macbeth was abandoned for financial reasons. Olivier justly received an Oscar® nomination for his performance; and believe it or not, this film was the inspiration for the original Blackadder! --Kevin Mulhall



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Friday, May 17, 2013

The Emperor's New Groove / Kronk's New Groove: Two-Movie Collection (Three Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo)







The Emperor's New Groove / Kronk's New Groove: Two-Movie Collection (Three Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo) Overview


Experience Disney's outrageously funny animated comedies, The Emperor's New Groove and Kronk's New Groove - presented for the first time ever on Blu-ray, with perfect picture and sound. Featuring an all-star cast and the Academy Award-nominated song, "My Funny Friend And Me!" (best music, original song, Sting, 2000), this 2-movie collection is king-size fun for the entire family! When the young and spoiled Emperor Kuzco is transformed into a llama by his sinister advisor Yzma, it takes a thoughtful peasant to restore the kingdom and show Kuzco just how much fun it is to be true to yourself. Then laugh along with Yzma's hilarious henchman Kronk as he cooks up big trouble in the hilarious sequel. These two comedy classics are better than ever on Disney Blu-ray!

The Emperor's New Groove / Kronk's New Groove: Two-Movie Collection (Three Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo) Specifications


Originally developed as an epic called Kingdom of the Sun, The Emperor's New Groove lost scale and most of Sting's song score (some of which can be heard on the soundtrack) on its way to the screen. The end result is the lightest Disney film in many a moon, a joyous romp akin to Aladdin in its quotient of laughs for kids and adults. The original story centers on the spoiled teenage emperor Kuzco (David Spade), who enjoys getting the best of his Aztecan subjects. When he fires Yzma (Eartha Kitt), his evil sorceress, she seeks revenge and turns Kuzco into a llama with the help of her hunk of the month, a lunk named Kronk (Patrick Warburton). Alone in the jungle, the talking llama is befriended by Pacha (John Goodman), who has just been told to vacate his pastoral home by the human Kuzco. What's an ego to do? That's pretty much the story and the characters--simple, direct, fun--a Disney film on a diet. For any fan of the acidic humor of Spade, this is essential viewing. As narrator of his tale, Kuzco uses a sarcastic tone to keep the story jumping with plenty of fun asides (he even "stops" the film at one point to make sure you know the story is about him). Even better is character actor Warburton (Elaine's stuck-up boyfriend on Seinfeld), who steals every scene as the dim-witted, but oh-so-likable Kronk. There's even a delicious Tom Jones number that starts the film off with a bang. --Doug Thomas



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Saturday, April 13, 2013

Lilo & Stitch / Lilo & Stitch: Stitch Has A Glitch Two-Movie Collection (Three Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo)







Lilo & Stitch / Lilo & Stitch: Stitch Has A Glitch Two-Movie Collection (Three Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo) Overview


The movie has a rocking soundtrack fit for a "King." Six of Elvis Presley's biggest hits, sung by the King himself, are included in the film: "Heartbreak Hotel," "Stuck On You," "Blue Hawaii," "Suspicious Minds," "Devil In Disguise," and "Hound Dog."




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Saturday, March 30, 2013

The Collection [Blu-ray]







The Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


When Elena is talked into attending an underground warehouse party with her friends, she finds herself caught in a nightmarish trap where the revelers are mowed, sliced and crushed to death by a macabre series of contraptions operated by a masked psychopath. When the grisly massacre is over, Elena is the only survivor. But before she can escape, she is locked in a trunk and transported to an unknown location. Fortunately for Elena, one man-Arkin -knows exactly where she's headed, having just escaped from there with his life and sanity barely intact. Elena's wealthy father hires a crack team of mercenaries to force Arkin to lead them to the killer's lair. But even these hardened warriors are not prepared for what they encounter: an abandoned hotel-turned-torture-chamber, rigged with deadly traps and filled with mangled corpses. Can Arkin and the team get to Elena before she too becomes part of his gruesome "collection"?

The Collection [Blu-ray] Specifications


Down in the dumps since the Saw franchise ended (maybe), thereby dashing hopes for an ongoing stream of big-screen torture porn? Take heart--The Collection is part two of a presumably continuing series that gets up close and personal with a mysterious psychopath and his ingeniously gruesome death machines. The violence is in the service of a story that makes little sense and exists only to expose human flesh to all the ghastly mangling Saw aficionados have been jonesing for. As a sequel to 2009's The Collector, this unrelenting gore-fest follows the same mute, hulking brute cloaked and hooded in black as he rigs the decrepit sets with all manner of Rube Goldberg-like killing devices. Arkin (Josh Stewart), the lone survivor of The Collector, is tricked into revisiting the monster's milieu when a team of mercenaries set out to rescue a rich girl (Emma Fitzpatrick) trapped in the maniac's trunk and strung up in the meat locker of his human butcher shop. Director Marcus Dunstan (a writer of several Saw entries) starts with an enormous human threshing machine that mows down a club full of dumb kids. In short order Dunstan and his Collector get much more detailed with the flaying and rending of the rest of the cast in a maze-like house of horrors. Spikes, pikes, spears, and knives make quick work of the hunted. We also see all the grisly trophies referenced in the title that are on display at the Collector's home base. The body count is literally uncountable, beginning with the opening mass murder, and becomes more so when the extraction team starts tripping over the multitude of limbs and organs already scattered about the place. They not only add their own bodies to the mix, but contribute to it themselves by dispatching an army of unexplainably zombified people that pop out to attack them as they go deeper into the abandoned hotel where the Collector maintains his workshop. There is some suspense in anticipating how the maimings will play out (they're all lovingly recapped in the credit sequence), but there's not much explanation as to motive. Unlike the Saw set pieces, the killings in The Collection aren't part of a game, they're just a set of complex executions exacted by elaborate motorized booby traps in sequences that seem to follow no rhyme or reason. Perhaps that's not exactly true; there is a poetic precision to the story that will keep gore junkies well satisfied with a rhythm that is as well designed as it is meticulously imagined. Arkin survives through a teaser epilogue that may turn the tables on the Collector in the inevitable next installment. Until then fans of the genre will be delighted with enough sick and twisted grisliness to make The Collection a coveted collectable all its own. --Ted Fry



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Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Badlands (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]







Badlands (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Overview


Badlands announced the arrival of a major talent: Terrence Malick (Days of Heaven). His impressionistic take on the notorious Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate killing spree of the late 1950s uses a serial-killer narrative as a springboard for an oblique teenage romance, lovingly and idiosyncratically enacted by Martin Sheen (Apocalypse Now) and Sissy Spacek (Carrie). The film also introduced many of the elements that would earn Malick his passionate following: the enigmatic approach to narrative and character, the unusual use of voice-over, the juxtaposition of human violence with natural beauty, the poetic investigation of American dreams and nightmares. This debut has spawned countless imitations, but none have equaled its strange sublimity.

Badlands (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Specifications


Still one of American cinema's most powerful, daring filmmaking debuts, Terrence Malick's Badlands is a quirky, visionary psychological and social enigma masquerading as a simple lovers-on-the-lam flick. Inspired by the 1958 murders in the cold, stark badlands of South Dakota by Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate, the film's plot, on the surface, is similar to that of other killing-couple films, like Bonnie and Clyde and Gun Crazy. Martin Sheen, in an understated, sophisticated performance, plays the strange James Dean-like social outcast who falls in love with the naĂŻve Sissy Spacek--and then kills her father when he comes between them. The two flee like animals to the wilderness, until the police arrive and the killing spree begins.

What sets the film apart from others of its genre is Malick's complicated approach. Gorgeous, impenetrable images contrast sharply with Spacek's nostalgically artless narration, serving as ironic counterpoints, blurring concrete meaning, and stressing that nothing this horrific is simple. Malick observes, rather than analyzes, the couple in a manner as detached and apathetic as the couple's shocking actions. No judgment or definitive motivations are offered, though Malick's empathy often leans toward his senseless protagonists, rather than the star-struck society that makes killers famous. Compared with the interchangeable uniform cops who hunt them and the film's other nameless characters stuck in suburban banality, the couple are presented like tarnished, warped and frustrated results of squelched individuality.

Badlands, on one level, views America's suffocating homogeneity and, conversely, its continued obsession with celebrities (individuals considered different but adored) as hypocritical. Ambiguous and bold, the movie hints that society may be as guilty as the killers. --Dave McCoy



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Monday, March 25, 2013

Rosemary's Baby (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]







Rosemary's Baby (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Overview


Terrifying and darkly comic, Rosemary’s Baby marked the Hollywood debut of Roman Polanski (Repulsion). This wildly entertaining nightmare, faithfully adapted from Ira Levin’s best seller, stars a revelatory Mia Farrow (Hannah and Her Sisters) as a young mother-to-be who grows increasingly suspicious that her overfriendly elderly neighbors, played by Sidney Blackmer (High Society) and an Oscar-winning Ruth Gordon (Harold and Maude), and self-involved husband (actor and filmmaker John Cassavetes) are hatching a satanic plot against her and her baby. In the decades of occult cinema Polanski’s ungodly masterpiece has spawned, it’s never been outdone for sheer psychological terror.




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Sunday, March 24, 2013

Brazil (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]







Brazil (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Overview


In the dystopic masterpiece Brazil, Jonathan Pryce (Glengarry Glen Ross) plays a daydreaming everyman who finds himself caught in the soul-crushing gears of a nightmarish bureaucracy. This cautionary tale by Terry Gilliam (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas), one of the great films of the 1980s, now ranks alongside antitotalitarian works by the likes of George Orwell, Aldous Huxley, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr. And in terms of set design, cinematography, music, and effects, Brazil, a nonstop dazzler, stands alone.

Brazil (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] Specifications


If Franz Kafka had been an animator and film director--oh, and a member of Monty Python's Flying Circus--this is the sort of outrageously dystopian satire one could easily imagine him making. However, Brazil was made by Terry Gilliam, who is all of the above except, of course, Franz Kafka. Be that as it may, Gilliam sure captures the paranoid-subversive spirit of Kafka's The Trial (along with his own Python animation) in this bureaucratic nightmare-comedy about a meek governmental clerk named Sam Lowry (Jonathan Pryce) whose life is destroyed by a simple bug. Not a software bug, a real bug (no doubt related to Kafka's famous Metamorphosis insect) that gets smooshed in a printer and causes a typographical error unjustly identifying an innocent citizen, one Mr. Buttle, as suspected terrorist Harry Tuttle (Robert De Niro). When Sam becomes enmeshed in unraveling this bureaucratic glitch, he himself winds up labeled as a miscreant.

The movie presents such an unrelentingly imaginative and savage vision of 20th-century bureaucracy that it almost became a victim of small-minded studio management itself--until Gilliam surreptitiously screened his cut for the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, who named it the best movie of 1985 and virtually embarrassed Universal into releasing it. This DVD version of Brazil is the special director's cut that first appeared in Criterion's comprehensive (and expensive) six-disc laser package in 1996. --Jim Emerson



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Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Die Hard: 25th Anniversary Collection (Die Hard / Die Hard 2: Die Harder / Die Hard with a Vengeance / Live Free or Die Hard / Decoding Die Hard) [Blu-ray]







Die Hard: 25th Anniversary Collection (Die Hard / Die Hard 2: Die Harder / Die Hard with a Vengeance / Live Free or Die Hard / Decoding Die Hard) [Blu-ray] Overview


Celebrate 25 years of Bruce Willis playing John McClane with this 5-Disc Collection featuring the first four Die Hard films and an all-new bonus disc, "Decoding Die Hard." It's the ultimate tribute to the tough-as-nails cop with a wry sense of humor and a knack for explosive action. Wrong place. Wrong time. Right man. Yippee ki yay!

Die Hard: 25th Anniversary Collection (Die Hard / Die Hard 2: Die Harder / Die Hard with a Vengeance / Live Free or Die Hard / Decoding Die Hard) [Blu-ray] Specifications


Die Hard is the movie franchise that made a movie star out of TV star Bruce Willis, and created an entire action-movie genre of its own. In the original 1988 film, Willis plays wisecracking New York cop John McClane, who arrives at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles to meet up with his estranged wife, Holly (Bonny Bedelia), at her office Christmas party. As luck would have it, the company ends up in the middle of a terrorist plot led by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) and his gang of expert killers, and with little help coming from outside, McClane has to pick off his enemies one by one. Thus was born the "Die Hard genre," epitomized by such films as Under Siege ("Die Hard on a ship"), Passenger 57 ("Die Hard on a plane"), Speed ("Die Hard on a bus"), and Cliffhanger ("Die Hard on a mountain"). But few measure up to the explosive brilliance of Die Hard. Director John McTiernan develops the action at a fast and furious pace, culminating in some fantastic set-pieces on the top of the building, in the elevator shaft, and in the building's outer plaza. Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza's script, based on Roderick Thorp's novel Nothing Lasts Forever, is smart, funny, and full of memorable lines (among them "Welcome to the party, pal!" and of course "Yippee ki-ay, motherf*****"), and the cast is perfection, especially Rickman as the cunningly evil villain, and Willis, whose McClane character--bloodied, beaten, bruised, and barely breathing, as he battles both bad guys and bureaucrats--is someone audiences could genuinely cheer for.

Directed by Renny Harlin, the 1990 sequel, Die Hard 2 (unofficially referred to as Die Harder), doesn't match the level of the original, but it's still an exciting thrill ride with some terrific action sequences. One year after the Nakatomi incident, McClane (Willis) is awaiting his wife's (Bedelia) plane to arrive at Dulles Airport when he stumbles onto a plot to paralyze the entire airport, including all the planes trying to land. It's up to McClane to take on the cadre of bad guys despite all the bureaucrats standing in his way, and before the planes run out of fuel and crash to the ground. The cast includes William Sadler as rogue military man Col. Stuart, Dennis Franz as the latest bureaucratic cop to get in McClane's way, Richard Thornburg as the annoying reporter from the original movie, John Amos as a special-forces commander, early-in-their-career John Leguizamo and Robert Patrick as terrorists, and future politician and Law and Order actor Fred Thompson as the head of air traffic control.

The third film in the series, Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995), was again directed by John McTiernan and uses a different concept. The villain (played by Jeremy Irons) claims to have planted bombs all over New York City and gives John McClane (Willis), now alchoholic and separated, a series of clues to try to track them down. Along the way, he's aided by, and eventually teams up with, a Harlem shopkeeper named Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson). The interplay between Willis and Jackson is engaging, but better suited to the Lethal Weapon franchise it was previously considered for, and not till the end does the movie return to the familiar McClane-vs.-villains-showdown format.

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



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Tuesday, February 5, 2013

The Ultimate Matrix Collection [Blu-ray]






The Ultimate Matrix Collection [Blu-ray] Feature


  • Condition: New
  • Format: Blu-ray
  • Color; Dolby; Dual Disc


The Ultimate Matrix Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


Set includes "The Matrix," "The Matrix Reloaded," "The Matrix Revolutions," the documentary "The Matrix Revisited," and "The Animatrix," plus five discs worth of all-new bonus materials. Standard and Widescreen (Enhanced); Soundtracks: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital stereo, Italian Dolby Digital 5.1, Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital stereo; Subtitles: English (SDH), French, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese; audio commentary; "making of" documentaries; photo gallery; storyboards; music video; TV spots; theatrical trailers; more.

The Ultimate Matrix Collection [Blu-ray] Specifications


The Matrix
By following up their debut thriller Bound with the 1999 box-office smash The Matrix, the codirecting Wachowski brothers--Andy and Larry--annihilated any suggestion of a sophomore jinx, crafting one of the most exhilarating sci-fi/action movies of the 1990s. Set in the not too distant future in an insipid, characterless city, we find a young man named Neo (Keanu Reeves). A software techie by day and a computer hacker by night, he sits alone at home by his monitor, waiting for a sign, a signal--from what or whom he doesn't know--until one night, a mysterious woman named Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) seeks him out and introduces him to that faceless character he has been waiting for: Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne). A messiah of sorts, Morpheus presents Neo with the truth about his world by shedding light on the dark secrets that have troubled him for so long: "You've felt it your entire life, that there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it's there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad." Ultimately, Morpheus illustrates to Neo what the Matrix is--a reality beyond reality that controls all of their lives, in a way that Neo can barely comprehend.

Neo thus embarks on an adventure that is both terrifying and enthralling. Pitted against an enemy that transcends human concepts of evil, Morpheus and his team must train Neo to believe that he is the chosen champion of their fight. With mind-boggling, technically innovative special effects and a thought-provoking script that owes a debt of inspiration to the legacy of cyberpunk fiction, this is much more than an out-and-out action yarn; it's a thinking man's journey into the realm of futuristic fantasy, a dreamscape full of eye candy that will satisfy sci-fi, kung fu, action, and adventure fans alike. Although the film is headlined by Reeves and Fishburne--who both turn in fine performances--much of the fun and excitement should be attributed to Moss, who flawlessly mixes vulnerability with immense strength, making other contemporary female heroines look timid by comparison. And if we were going to cast a vote for most dastardly movie villain of 1999, it would have to go to Hugo Weaving, who plays the feckless, semipsychotic Agent Smith with panache and edginess. As the film's box-office profits soared, the Wachowski brothers announced that The Matrix is merely the first chapter in a cinematically dazzling franchise--a chapter that is arguably superior to the other sci-fi smash of 1999 (you know... the one starring Jar Jar Binks). --Jeremy Storey

The Matrix Reloaded
Considering the lofty expectations that preceded it, The Matrix Reloaded triumphs where most sequels fail. It would be impossible to match the fresh audacity that made The Matrix a global phenomenon in 1999, but in continuing the exploits of rebellious Neo (Keanu Reeves), Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) as they struggle to save the human sanctuary of Zion from invading machines, the codirecting Wachowski brothers have their priorities well in order. They offer the obligatory bigger and better highlights (including the impressive "Burly Brawl" and freeway chase sequences) while remaining focused on cleverly plotting the middle of a brain-teasing trilogy that ends with The Matrix Revolutions. The metaphysical underpinnings can be dismissed or scrutinized, and choosing the latter course (this is, after all, an epic about choice and free will) leads to astonishing repercussions that made Reloaded an explosive hit with critics and hardcore fans alike. As the centerpiece of a multimedia franchise, this dynamic sequel ends with a cliffhanger that virtually guarantees a mind-blowing conclusion. --Jeff Shannon

The Matrix Revolutions
Despite the inevitable law of diminishing returns, The Matrix Revolutions is quite satisfying as an adrenalized action epic, marking yet another milestone in the exponential evolution of computer-generated special effects. That may not be enough to satisfy hardcore Matrix fans who turned the Wachowski Brothers' hacker mythology into a quasi-religious pop-cultural phenomenon, but there's no denying that the trilogy goes out with a cosmic bang instead of the whimper that many expected. Picking up precisely where The Matrix Reloaded left off, this 130-minute finale finds Neo (Keanu Reeves) at a virtual junction, defending the besieged human enclave of Zion by confronting the attacking machines on their home turf, while humans combat swarms of tentacled mechanical sentinels as Zion's fate lies in the balance. It all amounts to a blaze of CGI glory, devoid of all but the shallowest emotions, and so full of metaphysical hokum that the trilogy's detractors can gloat with I-told-you-so sarcasm. And yet, Revolutions still succeeds as a slick, exciting hybrid of cinema and video game, operating by its own internal logic with enough forward momentum to make the whole trilogy seem like a thrilling, magnificent dream. -- Jeff Shannon





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Monday, January 28, 2013

The Magnificent Seven Collection [Blu-ray]







The Magnificent Seven Collection [Blu-ray] Overview



The Magnificent Seven Academy Award® Winner*


Yul Brynner stars in the landmark western that launched the film careers of Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and James Coburn. Tired of being ravaged by marauding bandits, a small Mexican village seeks help from seven American gunfighters. Set against Elmer Bernstein’s Oscar® Nominated** score, director John Sturges’ thrilling adventure belongs in any Blu-ray collection.

*1956: Actor, The King and I **1960

Return of the Magnificent Seven


Yul Brynner rides tall in the saddle in this sensational sequel to The Magnificent Seven! Brynner rounds up the most unlikely septet of gunfighters—Warren Oates, Claude Akins and Robert Fuller among them—to search for their compatriot who has been taken hostage by a band of desperados.

Guns of the Magnificent Seven


This fast-moving western stars Oscar® Winner* George Kennedy as the revered—and feared—gunslinger Chris Adams! When a Mexican revolutionary is captured, his associates hire Adams to break him out of prison to restore hope to the people. After recruiting six experts in guns, knives, ropes and explosives, Adams leads his band of mercenaries on an adventure that will pit them against their most formidable enemy yet! *1967: Supporting Actor, Cool Hand Luke

The Magnificent Seven Ride!

This rousing conclusion to the legendary Magnificent Seven series stars Lee Van Cleef as Chris Adams. Now married and working for the law, Adams’ settled life is turned upside-down when his wife is killed. Tracking the gunmen, he finds a plundered border town whose widowed women are under attack by ruthless marauders. Outraged and outnumbered, he resurrects the Seven to take on the killers in this final, emotional battle!

The Magnificent Seven Collection [Blu-ray] Specifications


Akira Kurosawa's rousing Seven Samurai was a natural for an American remake--after all, the codes and conventions of ancient Japan and the Wild West (at least the mythical movie West) are not so very far apart. Thus The Magnificent Seven effortlessly turns samurai into cowboys (the same trick worked more than once: Kurosawa's Yojimbo became Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars). The beleaguered denizens of a Mexican village, weary of attacks by banditos, hire seven gunslingers to repel the invaders once and for all. The gunmen are cool and capable, with most of the actors playing them just on the cusp of '60s stardom: Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn. The man who brings these warriors together is Yul Brynner, the baddest bald man in the West. There's nothing especially stylish about the approach of veteran director John Sturges (The Great Escape), but the storytelling is clear and strong, and the charisma of the young guns fairly flies off the screen. If that isn't enough to awaken the 12-year-old kid inside anyone, the unforgettable Elmer Bernstein music will do it: bum-bum-ba-bum, bum-ba-bum-ba-bum.... Followed by three inferior sequels, Return of the Seven, Guns of the Magnificent Seven, and The Magnificent Seven Ride!--Robert Horton



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Saturday, December 29, 2012

Tarantino XX: 8-Film Collection (Reservoir Dogs / True Romance / Pulp Fiction / Jackie Brown / Kill Bill: Vol. 1 / Kill Bill: Vol. 2 / Death Proof / Inglourious Basterds) [Blu-ray]







Tarantino XX: 8-Film Collection (Reservoir Dogs / True Romance / Pulp Fiction / Jackie Brown / Kill Bill: Vol. 1 / Kill Bill: Vol. 2 / Death Proof / Inglourious Basterds) [Blu-ray] Overview


Tarantino XX contains eight films chosen by Tarantino to illustrate the first 20 years of his career, featuring the films that helped define his early success, including Reservoir Dogs, True Romance, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill Vol. 1, Kill Bill Vol. 2, Death Proof and Inglourious Basterds. To complete the stunning high definition 10-disc set, the Tarantino XX: 8-Film Collection also features two discs with five hours of all-new bonus material, highlighted by a critics' retrospective on Tarantino's groundbreaking catalog of films and "20 Years of Filmmaking" that contains interviews with critics, stars and other masters of cinema.




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Saturday, December 15, 2012

Planet of the Apes: 5 Film Collection [Blu-ray]







Planet of the Apes: 5 Film Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


PLANET OF THE APES
A bewildered astronaut (Charlton Heston) crash-lands on a strange planet ruled by apes who use a primitive race of humans for experimentation and sport.

BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES
A daring rescue mission leads to a subterranean city where mutant humans worship a weapon capable of destroying the entire planet.

ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE APES
Two futuristic simians who have traveled to present-day Earth enjoy celebrity status—until a government plot forces them to run for their lives!

CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
Apes have been domesticated and trained as pets and personal servants — until their continual mistreatment leads to a spectacular revolt.

BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES
In the final Apes chapter, an idyllic society of man and ape is threatened by both a militant gorilla and a tribe of still-intelligent mutant humans.

Planet of the Apes: 5 Film Collection [Blu-ray] Specifications


Many early science fiction films are now, quite inadvertently (and in most cases undeservedly), objects of camp attention: we laugh at the silly makeup, tin-can special effects, and the naive "high-tech" dialogue. Planet of the Apes is no such film. Its intelligent script, frightening costuming, and savagely effective conclusion (which needs no big-budget special effects to augment its impact) remain both potent and relevant. When Colonel George Taylor (the fabulous Charlton Heston) crash lands his spacecraft on what seems to be an unfamiliar planet, he is captured and held prisoner by a dominant race of hyperrational, articulate apes. However, the ape community is riven with internal dissention, centered in no small part on its policy toward humans, who, on this planet, are treated as mindless animals. Befriended and ultimately assisted by the more liberal simians, Taylor escapes--only to find a more terrifying obstacle confronting his return home. Heavy-handed object lessons abound--the ubiquity of generational warfare, the inflexibility of dogma, the cruelty of prejudice--and the didactic fingerprints of Rod Serling are very much in evidence here. But director Franklin Schaffner has a dark, pop-apocalyptic sci-fi vision all his own, and time has not dulled the monumental emotional impact of the film's climactic payoff shot. If you don't know what I'm talking about here, you owe it to yourself to check out this stone classic, and even if you do, see it with fresh eyes; and don't be surprised if you get the chills all over again... and again... and again. --Miles Bethany



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Friday, December 7, 2012

Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (Rocky / Rocky II / Rocky III / Rocky IV / Rocky V / Rocky Balboa) [Blu-ray]






Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (Rocky / Rocky II / Rocky III / Rocky IV / Rocky V / Rocky Balboa) [Blu-ray] Feature


  • Condition: New
  • Format: Blu-ray
  • AC-3; Box set; Color; Dolby; DTS Surround Sound; Dubbed; Extra tracks; Widescreen


Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (Rocky / Rocky II / Rocky III / Rocky IV / Rocky V / Rocky Balboa) [Blu-ray] Overview


Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burgess Meredith, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Mr. T, Dolph Lundgren. All six Rocky films in state-of-the-art blu-ray and a bonus disc loaded with extras delivers an undisputed" knockout! Take a ringside" seat for Rocky (1076/119 min.), Rocky II (1979/119 min.), Rocky III (1982/100 min.), Rocky IV (1985/91 min.), Rocky V (1990/111 min.) and Rocky Balboa (2006/102 min.). 7 Discs. Color/NR.

Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (Rocky / Rocky II / Rocky III / Rocky IV / Rocky V / Rocky Balboa) [Blu-ray] Specifications


Review for Rocky:
The only remaining evidence that Sylvester Stallone might have had a respectable career, this 1976 Oscar winner (for Best Picture, Director, and Editing) is still the quintessential ode to an underdog and one of the best boxing movies ever made. After writing the script about a two-bit boxer who gets a "million-to-one shot" against the world heavyweight champion, Stallone insisted that he star in the title role, and his equally unknown status helped to catapult him (and this rousing film) to overnight success. The story is familiar, but it has been handled with such vitality and emotional honesty that you can't help but leap and cheer for Rocky Balboa, the chump turned champ (despite his valiant defeat in the ring) who stuns the boxing world with the support of his timid girlfriend, Adrian (Talia Shire), and grizzled trainer, Mickey (Burgess Meredith). Oscar nominations went to all the lead actors (including Burt Young as Adrian's hot-tempered brother), but four sequels could never top the universal appeal of this low-budget crowd pleaser. --Jeff Shannon

Review for Rocky II:
Beginning precisely where Rocky left off, the surprisingly effective 1979 sequel takes the saga of Rocky Balboa to its logical next step, as the palooka turned public idol and media darling returns to his "normal" life in Philadelphia with his newlywed bride Adrian (Talia Shire) and some degree of material comfort. He needs to find a job, but boxing champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) is challenging Rocky to a lucrative rematch, and despite his doctor's warning against future boxing, Rocky can't resist. Defying the odds that most sequels can't live up to their originals, Rocky II doesn't pack all the punch that Rocky did, but it takes us further into the lives of its now-familiar and beloved characters, and Stallone (as director and star) gives us another rousing finale in the ring. Do you really need to know who wins? --Jeff Shannon

Review for Rocky III:
Rocky III: The third installment in the Rocky saga is the last one to matter, and in this case only marginally. The now rich and famous Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) triumphantly pummels a succession of boxing challengers until he encounters Clubber Lang (Mr. T), a human wall of brick who wants a piece of Rocky's action. The Rock's loyal trainer Mickey (Burgess Meredith) has taken ill and dies, so Rocky recruits retired opponent Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) to whip him into fighting shape after his embarrassing defeat to Clubber. Time for another rematch, mixed in with some family matters involving Rocky's brother-in-law Paulie (Burt Young), who's feeling neglected amid all the hoopla. Not bad as sequels go, boosted by Mr. T.'s taunting presence and yet another rousing finale. For those with a bad case of '80s nostalgia, the hit theme song "Eye of the Tiger" is sure to bring back memories. --Jeff Shannon

Review for Rocky IV:
It was time for Sylvester Stallone to say "enough, already" to the boxing hero he plays in the popular Rocky film series, but instead Stallone kept the saga going by pushing Rocky into Rambo territory. The 1985 Rocky IV finds the Italian stallion pitted against a seemingly unbeatable Russian monster named Drago (Dolph Lundgren) who lets his wife (Stallone's then-wife, Brigitte Nielsen) do all the talking. With a mighty punch, Drago has sent Rocky's former opponent and trainer Apollo Creed to an early grave, and the boxer responds with the ultimate challenge. Even the Russians are rooting for Rocky, so it's not hard to guess how the film ends. Despite Stallone's claims to the contrary, this installment was followed by Rocky V in 1990. --Jeff Shannon

Review for Rocky Balboa:
The sixth installment of the Rocky series picks up the story of the Italian Stallion 16 years after the morose Rocky V. And sure, at his advanced age, Sylvester Stallone now looks like one of those sides of beef his character used to pound on. No matter. Somehow you buy the premise after all these years, even if it takes forever for Rocky Balboa to stop wallowing in self-pity (Adrian is dead, his old haunts are demolished) and get down to the business of drinking raw eggs and running up staircases. The business at hand is an unlikely exhibition fight with champion Mason Dixon (Antonio Tarver), which the near-sexagenarian Mr. Balboa has no business accepting. Of course, just as sure as the horns of Bill Conti's theme music are even now trumpeting through your head, the ol' Rock might have a punch or two left in him. Stallone wrote and directed, and there isn't much to say except that the movie steps in its pre-determined paces with a canny sense of what has come before (it's practically an homage to all the previous Rocky pictures, complete with fleeting flashbacks). Burt Young is around again, and Geraldine Hughes makes an appealing, rather chaste female companion for Rocky. Stallone's Rocky has gotten suspiciously articulate over the years, but he still knows how to slouch. If Stallone never forgets that, he can probably keep the franchise rolling. --Robert Horton



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Sunday, December 2, 2012

Bond 50: The Complete 22 Film Collection [Blu-ray]






Bond 50: The Complete 22 Film Collection [Blu-ray] Feature


  • Bond 50
  • James Bond DVD
  • Box set
  • DVD box


Bond 50: The Complete 22 Film Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


Collectible box set featuring all 22 James Bond films on Blu-ray disc in one complete offering for the first time.

Collection includes all 22 James Bond feature films from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace and more than 130 hours of bonus features including never-before-seen content from the Bond archives, and more.

One disc of brand new bonus content approximately one hour in length.

9 titles available on Blu-ray for the first time ever: Goldeneye, Octopussy, The Spy Who Loved Me, You Only Live Twice, The Living Daylights, Tomorrow Never Dies, Diamonds are Forever, A View to a Kill and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.

Box set includes an open slot for forthcoming James Bond film.





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Thursday, November 22, 2012

Mel Brooks Collection [Blu-ray]







Mel Brooks Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


Contains the films Blazing Saddles, Spaceballs, Young Frankenstein, High Anxiety, History Of The World Part 1, Robin Hood: Men In Tights, Silent Movie, To Be Or Not To Be and The Twelve Chairs.

Mel Brooks Collection [Blu-ray] Specifications


An affectionate homage more than a spoof of Alfred Hitchcock thrillers, Mel Brooks's hilarious movie is one of the funniest modern comedies around. Brooks plays a psychiatrist with a severe fear of heights who moves to the Bay Area to take over a psychiatric hospital after its former head mysteriously disappears. He must contend with the resident psychiatrist (Harvey Korman) and the twisted resident nurse (Cloris Leachman) as they plot against him, eventually framing him for murder. While on the run, Brooks teams up with the alluring daughter (Madeline Kahn) of the missing doctor to solve the mystery and confront his own fears. Containing some classic sequences and cowritten by Barry Levinson (Rain Man, Wag the Dog), who appears briefly as a too-touchy bellhop in a Psycho-shower-scene takeoff, High Anxiety is a thoroughly enjoyable romp from one of the masters of comedy today. --Robert Lane



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Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Home Alone Collection [Blu-ray]






Home Alone Collection [Blu-ray] Feature


  • Condition: New
  • Format: Blu-ray
  • Widescreen


Home Alone Collection [Blu-ray] Overview


Home Alone:
Eight-year-old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) has become the man of the house, overnight! Accidentally left behind when his family rushes off on a Christmas vacation, Kevin gets busy decorating the house for the holidays. But he's not decking the halls with tinsel and holly. Two bumbling burglars are trying to break in, and Kevin's rigging a bewildering battery of booby traps to welcome them!

Home Alone 2: Lost in New York:
Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) is back! But this time he's in New York City with enough cash and credit cards to turn the Big Apple into his own playground! But Kevin won't be alone for long. The notorious Wet Bandits, Harry and Marv (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), still smarting from their last encounter with Kevin, are bound for New York too, plotting a huge holiday heist. Kevin's ready to welcome them with a battery of booby traps the bumbling bandits will never forget!

Home Alone Collection [Blu-ray] Specifications


Review for Home Alone:
Now and forever a favorite among kids, this 1990 comedy written by John Hughes (The Breakfast Club) and directed by Chris Columbus (Mrs. Doubtfire) ushered Macaulay Culkin onto the screen as a troubled 8-year-old who doesn't comfortably mesh with his large family. He's forced to grow a little after being accidentally left behind when his folks and siblings fly off to Paris. A good-looking boy, Culkin lights up the screen during several funny sequences, the most famous of which finds him screaming for joy when he realizes he's unsupervised in his own house. A bit wooden with dialogue, the then-little star's voice could grate on the nerves (especially in long, wise-child passages of pure bromide), but he unquestionably carries the film. Billie Bird and John Candy show up as two of the interesting strangers Culkin's character meets. Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern are entertainingly cartoonish as thieves, but the ensuing violence once the little hero decides to keep them out of his house is over-the-top. --Tom Keogh

Review for Home Alone 2:
Now and forever a favorite among kids, this 1990 comedy written by John Hughes (The Breakfast Club) and directed by Chris Columbus (Mrs. Doubtfire) ushered Macaulay Culkin onto the screen as a troubled 8-year-old who doesn't comfortably mesh with his large family. He's forced to grow a little after being accidentally left behind when his folks and siblings fly off to Paris. A good-looking boy, Culkin lights up the screen during several funny sequences, the most famous of which finds him screaming for joy when he realizes he's unsupervised in his own house. A bit wooden with dialogue, the then-little star's voice could grate on the nerves (especially in long, wise-child passages of pure bromide), but he unquestionably carries the film. Billie Bird and John Candy show up as two of the interesting strangers Culkin's character meets. Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern are entertainingly cartoonish as thieves, but the ensuing violence once the little hero decides to keep them out of his house is over-the-top. --Tom Keogh



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