Movie Update

The Wedding Dance

2009-02-22T20:37:00.001-08:00

The Wedding Dance instructional video is the perfect "learn at home" solution to your first dance as husband and wife. Our professional dance instructors, Paul Overton and Sharon Ashe, lead you through each phase of preparation for your first dance with the care and clarity that is their trademark, making it easy and enjoyable to learn in the comfort of your own living room. In addition to the dances featured (Foxtrot, Waltz, and Swing) we have also included several extra sections: Moving Together, Choosing your song, Beginning and Ending the Dance, and Frequently Asked Questions. These sections are designed to help you get the most out of your practice time, give you a great connection to your partner, and demystify the art of partner dancing. So, when your big day comes, you will be relaxed and confident as you step in to the spotlight.

"Film Advisory Board Award of Excellence Winner!
In making the announcement of the award, Film Advisory Board president, Elayne Blythe called the video, "Great fun for beginners who want to learn all of the dances and be the portrait of grace at their weddings! Families and people of all ages will enjoy the fun and easy instructions of "The Wedding Dance". "

The Wedding Singer

2009-02-22T20:35:00.001-08:00

Don't just think of The Wedding Singer as an Adam Sandler comedy--though it most certainly is that. But also think of it as the tip of the wave of the 1980s nostalgia craze that followed on the heels of the 1970s nostalgia craze. Set in the post-disco, new wave era, the film tells the story of Robbie Hart (Sandler), the king of small-town wedding-band singers, who once dreamt of being a rock star. But his contentment with life shatters when his fiancée stands him up at the altar. After wallowing in self-pity (by musically attacking the next wedding couple he serenades) and swearing off women, he helps a new friend, Julia (Drew Barrymore), get ready for her impending nuptials--only to find himself falling in love with her. If you're a Sandler fan, you'll enjoy him as an actual adult, though a wise-cracking one. And dig all those kooky '80s reference jokes and that greatest-hits-of-early-MTV soundtrack. --Marshall Fine

My Best Friend's Wedding

2009-02-22T20:33:00.001-08:00

One of the best romantic comedies of the 1990s, My Best Friend's Wedding not only gave Julia Roberts a delightful vehicle for her crowd-pleasing comeback, but it further distinguished itself by avoiding the conventional plotting of the genre. Julia plays a prominent Chicago restaurant critic whose best friend (Dermot Mulroney) is a former lover from her college days with whom she'd made a binding pact: if neither of them were married by the age of 28, they'd marry each other. Just when they're about to reach the deadline of their agreement, Mulroney arrives in Chicago to introduce Roberts to his seemingly perfect fiancée (Cameron Diaz) and announce their wedding in just three days. That leaves the shocked Julia with just three short days to sabotage the wedding and marry the man she now realizes she's loved all along. With potential heartbreak waiting in the wings, she'll either get what she wants or pay the price for her selfish behavior, and Ronald Bass's cleverly constructed screenplay keeps us guessing to the very end. Rupert Everett scored rave reviews for his scene-stealing performance as Robert's gay friend who goes along with her scheming (but only so far), and even as she makes her character's needy desperation disarmingly appealing, Roberts wisely allows Diaz to capitalize on her charming time in the spotlight. As the romantic outcome remains uncertain, the viewer is held in a state of giddy suspense, and director P.J. Hogan pulls off some hilarious scenes (like a restaurant full of people singing the Dionne Warwick hit "I Say a Little Prayer") that could easily have fallen flat in the hands of a less talented filmmaker. It's no surprise that this was one of the box-office smashes of 1997. --Jeff Shannon

Juno

2009-02-16T19:49:00.001-08:00

Somewhere between the sharp satire of Election and the rich human comedy of You Can Count On Me lies Juno, a sardonic but ultimately compassionate story of a pregnant teenage girl who wants to give her baby up for adoption. Social misfit Juno (Ellen Page, Hard Candy, X-Men: The Last Stand) protects herself with a caustic wit, but when she gets pregnant by her friend Paulie (Michael Cera, Superbad), Juno finds herself unwilling to terminate the pregnancy. When she chooses a couple who place a classified ad looking to adopt, Juno gets drawn further into their lives than she anticipated. But Juno is much more than its plot; the stylized dialogue (by screenwriter Diablo Cody) seems forced at first, but soon creates a richly textured world, greatly aided by superb performances by Page, Cera, Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman as the prospective parents, and J.K. Simmons (Spider-Man) and Allison Janney as Juno's father and stepmother. Director Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking) deftly keeps the movie from slipping into easy, shallow sarcasm or foundering in sentimentality. The result is smarter and funnier than you might expect from the subject matter, and warmer and more touching than you might expect from the cocky attitude. Page's performance is deceptively simple; she never asks the audience to love her, yet she effortlessly carries a movie in which she's in almost every scene. That's star power. --Bret Fetzer

>> Korean Drama

Once

2009-02-16T19:46:00.000-08:00

Winner of the World Audience Award at Sundance, Once starts out as a small-scale romance, like Before Sunrise, before arriving somewhere unexpected. An Irish busker (Glen Hansard, the Frames and The Commitments) meets a Czech flower seller (Markéta Irglová) while singing on the streets of Dublin. (In the credits, they're listed as Guy and Girl.) She likes what she hears and lets him know. Turns out she's a musician, too. They work on a few songs together and a friendship is forged. She lives with her widowed mother, who doesn't speak English. He lives with his widowed father, who owns a repair shop. Since he broke up with his girlfriend, the guy has been drifting, unable and unwilling to get his life in order. The girl encourages him to pursue a record deal, and the guy emerges from his funk. Then he makes a move on the girl, who rejects his advances. He's confused, but as he comes to find, there's a reason she’s keeping her distance. Though Once is filled with appealing folk-pop by Hansard and Irglová (released on CD as The Swell Season), the movie isn't a traditional musical, but rather a more optimistic Brief Encounter. Filmmaker John Carney, Hansard's former bandmate, captures the real city--in all its affluence and poverty--rather than the picture postcard version. His beautifully shot film serves as a heartfelt ballad about all the underclass Guys and Girls swept aside amidst Ireland's economic miracle. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

>> Korean Drama

No Country for Old Men

2009-02-16T19:44:00.000-08:00

The Coen brothers make their finest thriller since Fargo with a restrained adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel. Not that there aren't moments of intense violence, but No Country for Old Men is their quietest, most existential film yet. In this modern-day Western, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is a Vietnam vet who could use a break. One morning while hunting antelope, he spies several trucks surrounded by dead bodies (both human and canine). In examining the site, he finds a case filled with $2 million. Moss takes it with him, tells his wife (Kelly Macdonald) he's going away for awhile, and hits the road until he can determine his next move. On the way from El Paso to Mexico, he discovers he's being followed by ex-special ops agent Chigurh (an eerily calm Javier Bardem). Chigurh's weapon of choice is a cattle gun, and he uses it on everyone who gets in his way--or loses a coin toss (as far as he's concerned, bad luck is grounds for death). Just as Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), a World War II vet, is on Moss's trail, Chigurh's former colleague, Wells (Woody Harrelson), is on his. For most of the movie, Moss remains one step ahead of his nemesis. Both men are clever and resourceful--except Moss has a conscience, Chigurh does not (he is, as McCarthy puts it, "a prophet of destruction"). At times, the film plays like an old horror movie, with Chigurh as its lumbering Frankenstein monster. Like the taciturn terminator, No Country for Old Men doesn't move quickly, but the tension never dissipates. This minimalist masterwork represents Joel and Ethan Coen and their entire cast, particularly Brolin and Jones, at the peak of their powers. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

>> Korean Drama

Ratatouille

2009-02-16T19:27:00.000-08:00

One key point: if you can get over the natural gag reflex of seeing hundreds of rodents swarming over a restaurant kitchen, you will be free to enjoy the glory of Ratatouille, a delectable Pixar hit. Our hero is Remy, a French rat (voiced by Patton Oswalt) with a cultivated palate, who rises from his humble beginnings to become head chef at a Paris restaurant. How this happens is the stuff of Pixar magic, that ineffable blend of headlong comedy, seamless technology, and wonder (in the latter department, this movie's views of nighttime Paris are on a par with French cinema at its most lyrical). Director Brad Bird (The Incredibles) doesn't quite keep all his spinning plates in the air, but the gags are great and the animation amazingly expressive--Remy's shrugs and nods are nimbler than many flesh-and-blood actors can manage. Refreshingly, the movie's characters aren't celebrity-reliant, with the most recognizable voice coming from Peter O'Toole's snide food critic. (This fellow provides the film's sole sour note--an oddly pointed slap at critics, those craven souls who have done nothing but rave about Pixar's movies over the years.) Brad Bird's style is more quick-hit and less resonant than the approach of Pixar honcho John Lasseter, but it's hard to complain about a movie that cooks up such bountiful pleasure. --Robert Horton

>> Korean Drama

Come Away Home

2009-02-10T20:53:00.000-08:00

Twelve-year-old Annie Lamms parents have decided she should spend the summer with her Grandpa Donald while they enjoy a second honeymoon. Annie is less than enthused, and even more disappointed to discover that Grandpas beautiful house on the beach is a dilapidated wreck filled with a lifetime of junk and clutter. With no friends, no computer and nothing good to eat, Annie is miserable and decides to run-away back to her home in New York City. But fate -- and Grandpa -- intervene and show Annie that there s much more to life than shopping or internet blog sites. She learns the real value of family and friends and learns to see beyond the surface of life. Come Away Home is an enchanting and critically praised adventure that will inspire and entertain audiences of all ages. Featuring an outstanding cast (and a notable subplot with Gregg Russell as a handyman struggling with a troubled past), this film is a genuine delight.

A Stranger's Heart

2009-02-10T20:50:00.000-08:00

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, A Stranger’s Heart is a truly unique, unexpected, and engaging love story. When a woman with a debilitating illness takes an unexpected journey of the heart, her uncanny connection to a little girl enlightens both of them to the wonderful mysteries of life. Where their hearts lead them next is a miracle that changes the meaning of family, of love, and of faith. Now available for the first on DVD, A Stranger’s Heart is a perfect gift for your loved one this Valentine’s Day to celebrate the human spirit, the bonds of friendship, and the remarkable power of love.

On Valentine's Day

2009-02-10T20:45:00.000-08:00

Elizabeth defies her wealthy parents by running off and marrying a young man of humble prospects, and her parents have not spoken to her since - even though the couple lives in a rooming house nearby, they are struggling financially, and she is pregnant. The story of unselfish love between a man and a woman and the abiding love within a family, this American classic explores the enduring themes of human existence.

The Dark Knight

2008-11-21T19:20:00.000-08:00

The follow-up to Batman Begins, The Dark Knight reunites director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale, who reprises the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne in his continuing war on crime. With the help of Lt. Jim Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to destroy organized crime in Gotham for good. The triumvirate proves effective, but soon find themselves prey to a rising criminal mastermind known as The Joker, who thrusts Gotham into anarchy and forces Batman closer to crossing the fine line between hero and vigilante. Heath Ledger stars as archvillain The Joker, and Aaron Eckhart plays Dent. Maggie Gyllenhaal joins the cast as Rachel Dawes. Returning from Batman Begins are Gary Oldman as Gordon, Michael Caine as Alfred and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox.

Hoot (New Line Platinum Series) (2006)

2006-08-07T21:34:00.000-07:00

The natural beauties of Florida find some young champions in Hoot, based on the young adult novel by satirical crime writer Carl Hiaasen. While trying to resist being bullied on the school bus, Roy (Logan Lerman, Jack & Bobby) becomes intrigued by a barefoot boy running frantically along the sidewalk. As he investigates, Roy learns that a nearby construction site is a habitat for a protected species of burrowing owl and that a tough girl at his school named Beatrice (Brie Larson, Sleepover) has some connection with the barefoot boy, who has some connection with vandalism at the construction site. Hoot has been attacked by conservative critics for promoting eco-terrorism--a charge most viewers may find overheated--but the movie's real weakness isn't political but artistic; the clumsy dialogue barely sounds like human speech and the plot takes some hard-to-believe turns. At one point, as part of protecting the burrowing owls and their chicks, a kid releases poisonous cottonmouth snakes onto the construction site; apparently his ecological knowledge doesn't include the feeding habits of these snakes, which eat birds. The colorful scenery and the affable presence of Luke Wilson (Bottle Rocket, Old School) keep the movie alive. Also featuring Tim Blake Nelson (O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Holes) and singer Jimmy Buffett, whose tropical honky-tonk bubbles up all over the soundtrack. --Bret Fetzer

The Simpsons - The Complete Eighth Season (1989)

2006-08-07T21:32:00.000-07:00

Synopsis:

The Simpsons are very politically incorrect family. Homer works with pride in a nuclear power plant run with more regard for profit that safety. His wife is Marge, a kind of supermom. They have three kids: Bart, an underachiever ("and proud of it"), Lisa (who is as serious and responsible as Bart isn't), and Maggie.

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RV (Widescreen Edition) (2006)

2006-08-07T21:29:00.000-07:00

The long tradition of family vacation comedies continues in RV, with Robin Williams doing his best to keep things amusing. He succeeds, for the most part, by downplaying his manic persona and settling comfortably into his role as well-meaning husband and father Bob Munro.

Determined to combine work and pleasure, Bob rents the titular motor home to drive his wife (Cheryl Hines), teenage daughter (Joanna "JoJo" Levesque) and pre-teen son (Josh Hutcherson) on a scenic vacation in the Colorado Rockies while secretly preparing his presentation for a high-stakes corporate merger. Their dysfunctional road trip leads to repeated encounters with the all-too-happy Gornicke family (led by Jeff Daniels and Kristin Chenoweth), who only appear to be stupid rednecks, when in fact they represent the familial togetherness that Bob is striving to regain. As directed by comedy veteran Barry Sonnenfeld (whose image as "Irv" the RV rental king is plastered across the side of the Munro's RV), these warm-and-fuzzy sentiments are strictly by-the-numbers, along with plenty of jokes about raw sewage, scavenging raccoons, and RV's run amuck. There aren't any real highlights, and the outcome is utterly predictable, but RV delivers enough comedy to qualify as an enjoyable diversion.

Those who remember Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in Vincente Minnell's 1954 hit The Long, Long Trailer may find RV similarly entertaining. --Jeff Shannon

Rome - The Complete First Season (2005)

2006-08-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

Family dysfunction. Treachery. Betrayal. Coarse profanity. Brutal violence. Graphic (and sometimes brutal) sex. No, it's not The Sopranos, it's Rome, HBO's madly ambitious series that bloodily splatters the glory of Rome just as savagely as Monty Python and the Holy Grail soiled the good name of Camelot (but with far fewer laughs; very few funny things happen on the way to this forum). Set in 52 B.C. (Before Cable), Rome charts the dramatic shifts in the balance of power between former friends Pompey Magnus (Kenneth Cranham), leader of the Senate, and Julius Caesar (Ciaran Hinds), whose imminent return after eight years to Rome after conquering the Gauls, has the ruling class up in arms.

At the heart of Rome is the odd couple friendship between two soldiers who fortuitously become heroes of the people. Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) is married, honorable, and steadfast. Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson) is an amoral rogue whose philosophy is best summed up, "I kill my enemies, take their gold, and enjoy their women." Among Rome's most compelling subplots is Lucius's strained relationship with his wife, Niobe (Indira Varma), who is surprised to see her husband alive (but not as surprised as he is to find her upon his homecoming with a newborn baby in her arms!) Any viewer befuddlement over Rome's intrigues and machinations, and determining who is hero and who is foe, disappears the minute Golden Globe-nominee Polly Walker appears as Atia, Caesar's formidable niece and a villainess for the ages. In the first hour alone, she offers her already married daughter as a bride to the recently widowed Pompey. One eagerly awaits to see what (or who) she'll do next as much as we anticipate her comeuppance in the final episode.

Rome is a painstakingly mounted production that earned eight well-deserved Emmy nominations in such categories as costumes, set design, and art direction. Michael Apted (Coal Miner's Daughter) was honored with a Director's Guild Award for the first episode, "The Stolen Eagle." But artistic considerations aside, instantly addicted viewers will agree with Atia, who notes at one point, "I adore the secrecy, the intrigue. It's most thrilling." --Donald Liebenson

How Art Made the World (2006)

2006-08-06T22:35:00.000-07:00

Sysnopsis:

Why does our world look like it does? That great modern mystery is spectacularly unraveled in this international landmark series and epic quest across five continents and 100,000 years?via some of the greatest treasures of the ancient world?to the heart of human creativity. Encompassing everything from cave paintings to ceramics and pyramids to palaces, How Art Made the World probes the global trend for unrealistic depictions of the human body; the secret powers of the feature film; how politicians manage to manipulate people so easily; visions of death and the afterlife; and, crucially, why we use imagery at all.

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Inside Man (Widescreen Edition) (2006)

2006-08-06T22:32:00.000-07:00

Sysnopsis:

"Inside Man" is the story of a tough cop, Detective Frazier (Denzel Washington), who matches wits with a clever bank robber, Dalton (Clive Owen). As the dangerous cat-and-mouse game unfolds, a wild card emerges: Madaline (Jodie Foster), a power broker with a hidden agenda, who injects even more instability into an already volatile situation.Spike Lee scored his biggest hit to date with Inside Man, an unconventional thriller with fascinating details in the margins of its convoluted plot. The screenplay (by first-timer Russell Gerwitz) could've used a few more rewrites; it moves at a brisk pace but in hindsight a lot of it doesn't make sense. That makes Inside Man more fun to watch than to think about afterwards (when you discover plot holes big enough to drive a truck through), but it's curiously involving, especially as NYPD Detective Keith Frazier (Denzel Washington) struggles to outsmart a high-stakes bank robber (Clive Owen) who, along with a well-trained crew of accomplices, has seized control of a Wall Street bank, turning what initially looks like a hostage crisis into a personal crusade to expose some mysterious evil secrets. As you might expect from the director of Do the Right Thing, Lee seizes several satisfying opportunities to examine post-9/11 issues of racial prejudice and domestic terrorism, and the mysterious "problem solver" Madeline White (Jodie Foster) is worthy of her own movie, as eerily sinister as she is vaguely defined. With the benefit of his most stellar cast to date (including Christopher Plummer, Willem Dafoe and Chiwetel Ejiofor), Lee's seems more interested in character details than well-crafted suspense, but that doesn't stop Inside Man from being engrossing, subtly amusing, and quirky enough to qualify as a welcomed break from the formulaic thrillers that are Hollywood's bread and butter. --Jeff Shannon

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Arrested Development - Season 3 (2003)

2006-08-06T22:31:00.000-07:00

Sysnopsis:

Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), a widower with a 13-year-old son, named George-Michael (Michael Cera), is forced to keep his large and dysfunctional family together after his father (Jeffery Tambor) is arrested for shifty accounting practices at the family-owned conglomerate and the Bluth family assets are frozen, making each member of the eccentric family panicing. Michael's snobbish mother, Lucille (Jessica Walter), finds herself living alone in a penthouse without the financial means to maintain it, while Michael's two brothers, GOB (Will Arnett) and Buster (Tony Hale), and his sister Lindsay (Portia DeRossi) with her husband Tobias (David Cross) and her daughter Mae (Alia Shawkat) also find themselves having to recreate their lifestyles to fit their new financial status.
Arrested Development--one of the greatest comedies in the history of television--went out in a blaze of glory. The truncated final season packed more biting humor per minute than ever before. In only 13 episodes, dozens of intertwining storylines spun in all directions: In addition to the overarching story about the fractious infighting of the Bluth family and the family's housing development company being investigated for treason in Iraq (a plot arc that comes to a dazzlingly surreal conclusion), the put-upon "good son" Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman, Teen Wolf Too) pursues romance with a lovely British woman (Charlize Theron, Monster) who turns out to be woefully inappropriate; swaggering magician Gob (Will Arnett, Monster-In-Law) flees from his newly-discovered teenage son while still pandering for the affection of his self-absorbed father (Jeffrey Tambor, The Larry Sanders Show); flighty Lindsay (Portia de Rossi, Ally McBeal) and her sexually blurry husband Tobias (David Cross, Mr. Show) both get the hots for the family's new lawyer, Bob Loblaw (Scott Baio, Charles in Charge); and much, much more. It's difficult to describe what makes Arrested Development so brilliant. The ensemble is uniformly superb (Jessica Walter, as the family's boozing, scheming matriarch, is particularly devastating this season) and the surprising guest stars (including Andy Richter, James Lipton, Justine Bateman, and many others) are perfectly cast; the characters' abominable behavior defies conventional television notions of "likability", yet they only grow more endearing the more you watch; the humor embraces wild slapstick and sharp satire, often within a single scene; and the nimble documentary style allows for sly glancing references to jokes and scenes from long-past episodes, rewarding devoted fans. But the key is that, no matter how screwball Arrested Development becomes, the show offers a rich, textured, and wonderfully coherent world in which these characters feel genuine, a world completely unlike the flat, plastic simulacrum offered by the average sitcom. Arrested Development was true to itself to the end. Its followers will cherish it forever. --Bret Fetzer

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Brick (2005)

2006-08-06T22:28:00.000-07:00

Sysnopsis:

Self consciously imitating BThe Big Sleep and The Maltese Falcon this original thriller is indebted to 'Donnie Darko' in its hallucinogenic feel. Brendon (based on Humphrey Bogart) is a loner investigating the death of his ex girlfriend Emily. The police are making no progress, so he enlists The Brain to catch the killer. Uncovering Emily's dubious friends they meet femme fa-tale Nora Zehetner.High school collides with hard-boiled film noir in the twisty, cunning Brick. When he gets a mysterious message from his ex-girlfriend, a high school loner named Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Mysterious Skin) starts to dig into a crisscrossed web of drugs and duplicity, eventually getting entwined in the criminal doings of a teenage crime lord known as the Pin (Lukas Haas), his thuggish henchman Tugger (Noah Fleiss, Joe the King), and a mysterious girl named Laura (Nora Zehetner, Fifty Pills). Brick has not only the seductive, labyrinthine plot of a crime thriller by Dashiell Hammett (The Maltese Falcon) or Raymond Chandler (Farewell, My Lovely) but also a dense high-school version of hard-boiled lingo that's both comic and poetic. The movie unfolds with headlong momentum as Brendan manipulates, fights, and staggers his way through layers of high-school society. Gordon-Levitt is excellent; between this and the equally compelling Mysterious Skin, he's left his 3rd Rock from the Sun days behind. Also featuring Meagan Good (Waist Deep) and Richard Roundtree (Shaft). --Bret Fetzer

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Prison Break - Season One (2005)

2006-08-06T22:24:00.000-07:00

Synopsis:

An engineer (Wentworth Miller) installs himself in a prison he helped design, in order to help his brother (Dominic Purcell), a death-row inmate who insists he did not commit the crime for which he has been sentenced to die and help him escape.Season one of Prison Break is great television. Here's the set-up. Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) is framed and wrongfully convicted for assassinating the Vice President's brother. Lincoln's brother Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller), who just happens to have designed Illinois' Fox River Penitentiary where Lincoln is on death row, hatches an elaborate escape plan. Michael's plan involves getting himself incarcerated in Fox River and smuggling the prison's blueprints by having them hidden in tattoos that cover his entire torso. Once inside, Michael must form alliances with a rogue's gallery of felons with their own sometimes unsavory motives. Meanwhile, on the outside, Lincoln's lawyer and one-time girlfriend Veronica Donovan (Robin Tunney), pursued by Secret Service agents, attempts to unravel the conspiracy that sent her man to the slammer.

Prison Break is anchored by tight, suspenseful writing clearly relished by the largely little-known cast. Standouts include Robert Knepper as the murderer/pedophile T-Bag, who somehow makes such a despicable character likeable. Stacey Keach of Mike Hammer fame plays the warden-with-a-heart-of-gold, who clashes with Captain Brad Bellick (Wade Williams) over whether to rehabilitate the inmates or makes their lives more miserable. Peter Stormare, famous for his skills with a wood chipper in Fargo, turns in a deliciously menacing performance as mob boss John Abruzzi, while Amaury Nolasco's winsome Fernando Sucre shares a cell and secrets with Miller's Scofield. Watching the show one gets a sense that this is the opening salvo of Wentworth Miller's career, which will doubtless include roles as assassins, detectives, super heroes, and perhaps the champion of staring contests. Midway through the season it's explained that Scofield is a genius with an heightened sensitivity to other peoples' suffering, which sums up what makes the show so great--the mind-bendingly intricate plot is a framework for moments when people make others suffer and cope with the burden of their own suffering.

The six-disc set includes 22 addictive episodes, audio commentary on selected episodes, three featurettes, and alternate and deleted scenes. As with most TV shows on DVD, the "previously on Prison Break" intros can get tiresome, but that's what the fast forward button is for. --Ryan Boudinot

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Match Point

2006-04-25T22:05:00.000-07:00

Chris Wilton is a former tennis pro, looking to find work as an instructor. He meets Tom Hewett, a well-off pretty boy. Tom's sister Chloe falls in love with Chris but Chris has his eyes on Tom's fiancée, the luscious Nola. Both Chris and Nola know it's wrong but what could be more right than love? Chris tries to juggle both women but at some point, he must choose between them...

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The Nun's Story

2006-04-25T22:04:00.000-07:00

Gabrielle Van Der Mal gave up everything to become a nun. But her faith and her vows are forever being tested: first in the missionary Congo hospital where she assists the brilliant and handsome Dr. Fortunati and then at the mother house in France when World War II has broken out and the nuns are forbidden by the order to take sides.

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The Passenger

2006-04-25T22:02:00.000-07:00

A reporter arrives at a desert hotel, in a North African country, to report on the guerrilla freedom-fighters there. He meets a man who dies suddenly, and who resembles the reporter so much, that he decides to change identities with the dead man - to escape his personal problems, and more. The life is of a man is made of his ingrained habits, and that will haunt him, as he tries to start a new relationship with a young, strange woman he subsequently meets...

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Shopgirl

2006-04-25T21:58:00.000-07:00

The story follows Mirabelle, a disenchanted salesgirl and aspiring artist who sells gloves and accessories at a department store. She has two men in her life: wealthy divorcee Ray Porter (Steve Martin) and struggling musician Jeremy. Mirabelle falls in love with the glamorous Ray, and her life takes a magical turn, but eventually she realizes that she must empower herself and make a choice between them.

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The Complete Mr. Arkadin (aka Confidential Report) - Criterion Collection

2006-04-25T21:56:00.000-07:00

Guy Stratten gets the order from Mr. Arkadin, to find out everything about his past, because he lost his memory. Stratten accepts, but when he finds out that all the persons he asked about Arkadin are getting killed, tries he to prevent Arkadin from killing him.

Order it here >>> The Complete Mr. Arkadin (aka Confidential Report) - Criterion Collection

Brokeback Mountain (Widescreen Edition)

2006-04-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

A raw, powerful story of two young men, a Wyoming ranch hand and a rodeo cowboy, who meet in the summer of 1963 sheepherding in the harsh, high grasslands of contemporary Wyoming and form an unorthodox yet life-long bond--by turns ecstatic, bitter and conflicted.

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Harry Potter - Years 1-3 Collection

2006-03-17T20:23:00.000-08:00

Synopsis

Young Harry Potter has to lead a hard life: His parents have died in a car crash when he was still a baby, and he is being brought up by his Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. For some reason unbeknownst to the bespectacled ten-year-old, the Dursleys let him live in the small chamber under the stairs, and treat him more like vermin than like a family member. His fat cousin Dudley, the Dursley's real son, keeps bothering Harry all the time. On his eleventh birthday, Harry Potter finally receives a mysterious letter from a certain Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, telling him that he is chosen as one of the future students of that supposedly renowned school. Hagrid, the gigantic man who brought the letter, finally introduces Harry into the real circumstances of his life: His parents were a wizard and a witch, they were killed by the evil wizard Voldemort protecting him. Harry still has a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead from that event. Since he survived the attack as a baby, and also somehow deprived Voldemort from his powers, he has been famous in the wizarding world ever since. The Dursleys, strong disbelievers in that magical crap, never told Harry anything about his true self. So, Harry is strongly surprised, yet absolutely happy to start his training. At Hogwarts, Harry meets his teachers, and becomes friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. The three of them accidentally find out that the potions master, Severus Snape, seems to plot on stealing something that is guarded by a three-headed dog. Since nobody would believe some first years to have found out such important things that even would incriminate a Hogwarts teacher, they take it on themselves to find out what Snape is up to. Their quest for the truth leads across many obstacles, from keeping up the everyday school life, a bewitched Quidditch match (Quidditch is a popular wizard sport), Fluffy, the three-headed monster dog and quite some tasks one has to overcome to get to the guarded object.

Harry Potter DVD:

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Widescreen Edition) (Harry Potter 3)

2006-03-17T20:21:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

It's Harry's 3rd Year at Hogwarts, not only does he have a new "Defense against the Dark-Arts" teacher, but there is also trouble brewing. Convicted murderer Sirius Black has escaped the Wizards Prison, is coming after Harry.

Harry Potter DVD:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Widescreen Edition) (Harry Potter 2)

2006-03-17T20:20:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Harry Potter is in his second year of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He is visited by a house-elf named Dobby and warned not to go back to Hogwarts. Harry ignores his warning, and returns. He is still famous, although still disliked by Snape, Malfoy, and the rest of the Slytherins. But then, strange things start to happen. People are becoming petrified, and no-one knows what is doing it. Harry keeps hearing a voice.. a voice which seems to be coming from within the walls. They are told the story of the Chamber of Secrets. It is said that only Salazar Slytherin's true descendent will be able to open it. Harry, it turns out, is a Parsel-tongue. This means that he is able to speak/understand snakes. Everyone thinks that it's him that has opened the Chamber of Secrets because that is what Slytherin was famous for.

Harry Potter DVD:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Widescreen Special Edition) (Harry Potter 1)

2006-03-17T20:17:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Young Harry Potter has to lead a hard life: His parents have died in a car crash when he was still a baby, and he is being brought up by his Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. For some reason unbeknownst to the bespectacled ten-year-old, the Dursleys let him live in the small chamber under the stairs, and treat him more like vermin than like a family member. His fat cousin Dudley, the Dursley's real son, keeps bothering Harry all the time. On his eleventh birthday, Harry Potter finally receives a mysterious letter from a certain Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, telling him that he is chosen as one of the future students of that supposedly renowned school. Hagrid, the gigantic man who brought the letter, finally introduces Harry into the real circumstances of his life: His parents were a wizard and a witch, they were killed by the evil wizard Voldemort protecting him. Harry still has a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead from that event. Since he survived the attack as a baby, and also somehow deprived Voldemort from his powers, he has been famous in the wizarding world ever since. The Dursleys, strong disbelievers in that magical crap, never told Harry anything about his true self. So, Harry is strongly surprised, yet absolutely happy to start his training. At Hogwarts, Harry meets his teachers, and becomes friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. The three of them accidentally find out that the potions master, Severus Snape, seems to plot on stealing something that is guarded by a three-headed dog. Since nobody would believe some first years to have found out such important things that even would incriminate a Hogwarts teacher, they take it on themselves to find out what Snape is up to. Their quest for the truth leads across many obstacles, from keeping up the everyday school life, a bewitched Quidditch match (Quidditch is a popular wizard sport), Fluffy, the three-headed monster dog and quite some tasks one has to overcome to get to the guarded object.

Harry Potter DVD:

King Kong (Full Screen Edition)

2006-03-17T20:06:00.000-08:00

Set in the 1930s, this is the story of a young and beautiful actress Ann Darrow from the world of vaudeville who finds herself lost in depression-era New York and her luck changes when she meets an over-ambitious filmmaker Carl Denham who brings her on an exploratory expedition to a remote island where she finds compassion and the true meaning of humanity with an ape Kong. The beauty and the beast finally meet their fate back in the city of New York where the filmmaker takes and displays the ape in quest of his fame by commercial exploitation which ultimately leads to catastrophe for everyone including a playwright Jack Driscoll who falls in love with Ann and plays an unlikely hero by trying to save her from Kong and her destiny.

More King Kong DVD:

King Kong (2-Disc Widescreen Special Edition)

2006-03-17T20:05:00.000-08:00

King Kong (Widescreen Edition)

2006-03-17T19:47:00.000-08:00

Adventures of Superman - The Complete Second Season

2006-02-19T19:10:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

"Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound!" Mild-mannered reporter for the Daily Planet is really the greatest superhero of them all who "fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way!"

"The Adventures of Superman - The Complete Second Season" is an essential for fans of the original series, it's star, the unforgettable George Reeves, and anyone who would enjoy seeing a series 'at the top of it's game', when it was a genuine national phenomena!

The back story is truly amazing; the first season, filmed in 1951, had taken two full years to finally reach the entire country (television, at that time, was still in it's infancy, and just beginning to spread throughout the nation, as the FCC issued licenses for new stations, from coast to coast). "The Adventures of Superman", syndicated and sponsored by Kellogg's, was a fresh, exciting series that many of the new stations picked up to help promote themselves, and sell televisions...and the series began an astonishing climb to a level of popularity that no one involved had ever anticipated.

Certainly, none of the cast was prepared for what happened; in the two-year hiatus, Phyllis Coates, the 'Lois Lane' of the first season, assuming the series was finished, took on other acting assignments, and was no longer available when the call went out for the second season to be filmed (her role was filled by the 'Lois Lane' of the 40s movie serials, Noel Neill, 33, who saw the role toned down considerably from the aggressive, feisty newspaperwoman of the first season). Jack Larson, 20, who had felt misgivings about the role of Jimmy Olsen from the beginning (only agreeing to the part when his agent joked that "nobody will ever see it, anyway") discovered himself typecast in the role, and his privacy lost...a situation even more acute for the series' star, George Reeves, now 39. During the series' hiatus, he had gotten a juicy supporting role in the blockbuster, "From Here to Eternity", only to see the role edited down to an unbilled cameo, as the producers feared a film featuring 'Superman' would lose it's impact as a 'serious' film. Reeves would only appear in three feature films during the series' entire run, and one film, afterward, all in supporting roles...with no film work at all, the last three years of his life...which provided 'motive' that his 1959 death was suicide (despite evidence of foul play).

Knowing what the future held for Reeves makes the second season of AOS a bittersweet experience, as he is so wonderful in the role! Still youthfully handsome, he projects even more confidence and ease than he had in the first season, and was far more 'kid friendly', as his fight scenes were toned down (as was all the violence, as Kellogg's responded to parents' concerns). With the national Superman 'craze' in full swing, he took special pains to remind children that "only Superman can fly", and his portrayal of the Man of Steel reflected his increasing sense of responsibility of being a good role model to a generation of children who adored him.

If the series lacked it's earlier grittiness, the second season offered spectacular compensations, especially in "Panic In the Sky", the most famous and popular episode of the entire series. As a huge asteroid plunges toward Earth, Superman launches himself into space, in a last-ditch effort to save the planet. Slamming into the gigantic rock head-on, all he can accomplish is to change it's course, temporarily...while being knocked into a state of amnesia by the encounter! With Earth's destruction imminent, can Superman regain his memory in time...AND find a way to stop it? Despite some primitive FX, the episode is STILL riveting, after a half-century!

This is DEFINITELY a 'Must-Have' collection!

Order it here >>> Adventures of Superman - The Complete Second Season

Saw II

2006-02-19T19:07:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Jigsaw locks 8 or 9 unlucky people in a booby trapped shelter and they must find a way out before they inhale too much of a lethal nerve gas and die. But they must watch out, for the traps that the Jigsaw has set in the shelter lead to death also.
Order it here >>> Saw II (Widescreen Edition)

Bleak House

2006-02-17T19:31:00.000-08:00

A suspenseful tale about the injustices of the 19th-century English legal system

ndrew Davies isn't much of household name in the U.S., but he's the king of the BBC mini-series. His skillfully adapted scripts for Pride & Prejudice (the beloved Colin Firth version) and many, many more are peerless examples of classic novels done right--cunningly edited and shaped to let all the rich emotion and sharp intelligence spill over with zip and vigor. Bleak House is no exception; it's one of the best Dickens adaptations to date. The mini-series form allows Dickens' panoramic view, brimming with eccentric characters and complex turns of plot, to sprawl out without losing an iota of suspense or momentum. Two innocent young orphans (Patrick Kennedy and Carey Mulligan) are the potential heirs to a fortune, but their fates are snarled in a monumental legal battle known as Jarndyce and Jarndyce. But the heart of the story is another orphan, Esther Summerson (Anna Maxwell Martin), whose mysterious parentage proves to be intertwined with the fate of the Jarndyce wards and the aloof Lady Dedlock (Gillian Anderson, The X-Files). Dickens' story twines through an excoriating vision of the legal system to heartbreaking domestic drama to a murder investigation to near-Gothic horror, all broken into utterly delicious half-hour segments (after the hour-long opening episode). Martin is utterly beguiling, homely at one moment and luminous the next; Anderson's grippingly eerie and brittle performance will delight her fans. But to single out anyone seems absurd, because every character--from the vicious lawyer Tulkinghorn (Charles Dance, White Mischief) to the foppish parasite Skimpole (Nathaniel Parker, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries) to the simpering clerk Guppy (Burn Gorman)--is intricately drawn, all hitting a mesmerizing balance between caricature and stark emotional honesty. Bleak House demonstrates that humor, pathos, and social criticism can all be contained in one wonderfully entertaining package. --Bret Fetzer

Order it here >>> Bleak House

Pride & Prejudice

2006-02-17T19:29:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

The story is based on Jane Austen's novel about five sisters - Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty and Lydia Bennet - in Georgian England. Their lives are turned upside down when a wealthy young man (Mr. Bingley) and his best friend (Mr. Darcy) arrive in their neighborhood.

Order it here >>> Pride & Prejudice (Widescreen Edition)

Jarhead

2006-02-15T19:11:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Jarhead (the self-imposed moniker of the Marines) follows "Swoff" (Gyllenhaal), a third-generation enlistee, from a sobering stint in boot camp to active duty, sporting a sniper's rifle and a hundred-pound ruck on his back through Middle East deserts with no cover from intolerable heat or from Iraqi soldiers, always potentially just over the next horizon. Swoff and his fellow Marines sustain themselves with sardonic humanity and wicked comedy on blazing desert fields in a country they don't understand against an enemy they can't see for a cause they don't fully fathom... Foxx portrays Sergeant Sykes, a Marine lifer who heads up Swofford's scout/sniper platoon, while Sarsgaard is Swoff's friend and mentor, Troy, a die-hard member of STA-their elite Marine Unit.

Order it here >>> Jarhead (Widescreen Edition)

Good Night, and Good Luck

2006-02-15T19:09:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

In the early 1950's, the threat of Communism created an air of paranoia in the United States and exploiting those fears was Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin. However, CBS reporter Edward R. Murrow and his producer Fred Friendly decided to take a stand and challenge McCarthy and expose him for the fear monger he was. However, their actions took a great personal toll on both men, but they stood by their convictions and helped to bring down one of the most controversial senators in American history.

Order it here >>> Good Night, and Good Luck (Widescreen Edition)

A History of Violence

2006-02-15T19:07:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Based on the graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke, A History of Violence is the tale of Tom Stall. Tom is a loving family man and well-respected citizen of a small Indiana town. But when two savage criminals show up at his diner, Tom is forced to take action and thwart the robbery attempt. Suddenly heralded as a hero who took the courage to stand up to crime, people look up to Tom as a man of high moral regard. But all that media attention has the likes of mobsters showing up at his doorstep, charging that Tom is someone else they've been looking for. Is it a case of mistaken identity or does Tom have a history that no one knows about? Either way, someone's about to find out if there's a history of violence.

Order it here >>> A History of Violence

Howl's Moving Castle

2006-02-15T19:06:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

A love story between an 18-year-old girl named SofÃ®, cursed by a witch into an old woman's body, and a magician named Hauru. Under the curse, SofÃ® sets out to seek her fortune, which takes her to Hauru's strange moving castle. In the castle, Sophie meets Hauru's fire demon, named KarishifÃ¢. Seeing that she is under a curse, the demon makes a deal with Sophie--if she breaks the contract he is under with Hauru, then KarushifÃ¢ will lift the curse that Sophie is under, and she will return to her 18-year-old shape.

Order it here >>> Howl\'s Moving Castle

Walk the Line

2006-02-15T19:03:00.000-08:00

A solid and entertaining biopic, Walk the Line works less as a movie than an actors' showcase for its stars. Joaquin Phoenix's total immersion into the skin of singer Johnny Cash is startling--watching it, you can't believe this is the same guy who whined about being "vexed" in Gladiator. As he evolves from a farm boy to gospel croonin' plunker to the Man in Black, Phoenix disappears into Cash's deep baritone, his way of slinging the guitar onto his back, and his hunched-up style of strumming. But it's more than just picking up mannerisms: Phoenix also sings as Johnny Cash, and it's quite impressive.

The story of how Johnny Cash became Johnny Cash traces from his childhood under a distant father (Robert Patrick) to his early attempts at a music career, during which he married his girlfriend Vivian (Ginnifer Goodwin). During a tour with the likes of Elvis (Tyler Hilton) and Jerry Lee Lewis (Waylon Malloy Payne), he encounters singer June Carter (Reese Witherspoon), and his love for her--and her rejection of him through the years--spurs him into drugs, drinking, and depression. As with most movies based on real-life singers, as his popularity grows, the women come a-flockin', and the childhood demons surface. Witherspoon, who matches Phoenix drawl for drawl, plays June both as a sassy spitfire whose charm breaks your heart, and as a sympathetic friend who tries to help Cash get over--well, her. The love story is what endures, but the movie comes most alive during its musical numbers, and even if you're not a country fan, it may just get you to run out and buy a Johnny Cash album.--Ellen A. Kim

Order it here >>> Walk the Line

King Kong

2006-02-15T19:01:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Set in the 1930s, this is the story of a young and beautiful actress Ann Darrow from the world of vaudeville who finds herself lost in depression-era New York and her luck changes when she meets an over-ambitious filmmaker Carl Denham who brings her on an exploratory expedition to a remote island where she finds compassion and the true meaning of humanity with an ape Kong. The beauty and the beast finally meet their fate back in the city of New York where the filmmaker takes and displays the ape in quest of his fame by commercial exploitation which ultimately leads to catastrophe for everyone including a playwright Jack Driscoll who falls in love with Ann and plays an unlikely hero by trying to save her from Kong and her destiny.

Order it here >>> King Kong (2-Disc Widescreen Special Edition)

The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

2006-02-15T18:58:00.000-08:00

C.S. Lewis's classic novel The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe makes an ambitious and long-awaited leap to the screen in this modern adaptation. It's a CGI-created world laden with all the special effects and visual wizardry modern filmmaking technology can conjure, which is fine so long as the film stays true to the story that Lewis wrote. And while this film is not a literal translation--it really wants to be so much more than just a kids' movie--for the most part it is faithful enough to the story, and whatever faults it has are happily faults of overreaching, and not of holding back. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe tells the story of the four Pevensie children, Lucy, Peter, Edmund, and Susan, and their adventures in the mystical world of Narnia. Sent to the British countryside for their own safety during the blitz of World War II, they discover an entryway into a mystical world through an old wardrobe. Narnia is inhabited by mythical, anthropomorphic creatures suffering under the hundred-year rule of the cruel White Witch (Tilda Swinton, in a standout role). The arrival of the children gives the creatures of Narnia hope for liberation, and all are dragged into the inevitable conflict between evil (the Witch) and good (Aslan the Lion, the Messiah figure, regally voiced by Liam Neeson).

Director (and co-screenwriter) Andrew Adamson, a veteran of the Shrek franchise, knows his way around a fantasy-based adventure story, and he wisely keeps the story moving when it could easily become bogged down and tiresome. Narnia is, of course, a Christian allegory and the symbology is definitely there (as it should be, otherwise it wouldn't be the story Lewis wrote), but audiences aren’t knocked over the head with it, and in the hands of another director it could easily have become pedantic. The focus is squarely on the children and their adventures. The four young actors are respectable in their roles, especially considering the size of the project put on their shoulders, but it's the young Georgie Henley as the curious Lucy who stands out. This isn't a film that wildly succeeds, and in the long run it won't have the same impact as the Harry Potter franchise, but it is well done, and kids will get swept up in the adventure. Note: Narnia does contain battle scenes that some parents may consider too violent for younger children. --Dan Vancini

Order it here >>> The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Special Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

2006-02-15T18:55:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Harry's fourth summer and the following year at Hogwarts are marked by the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament, in which student representatives from three different wizarding schools compete in a series of increasingly challenging contests. However, Voldemort's Death Eaters are gaining strength and even creating the Dark Mark giving evidence that the Dark Lord is ready to rise again. In the unsuspecting lives of the young wizard and witches at Hogwarts the competitors are selected by the goblet of fire, which this year makes a very surprising announcement: Hogwarts will have two representatives in the tournament, including Harry Potter! Will Harry be able to rise to the challenge for the Tri Wizard Tournament while keeping up with school or will the challenges along with Voldemort's rebirth be too much for the young hero?

Order it here >>> Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Widescreen Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (Harry Potter 4)

DVD List

2006-01-29T21:26:00.000-08:00

Newly Added DVD's (February 2006):

List of DVDs Added on this blog:

Lord of War

2006-01-29T21:24:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

This film charts the rise and fall of Yuri Orlov, from his early days in the early 1980s in Little Odessa, selling guns to mobsters in his local neighbourhood, through to his ascension through the decade of excess and indulgence into the early 90s, where he forms a business partnership with an African warlord and his psychotic son. The film also charts his relationship through the years with his younger brother, his marriage to a famous model, his relentless pursuit by a determined federal agent and his inner demons that sway between his drive for success and the immorality of what he does.

The lethal business of arms dealers provides an electrifying context for the black-as-coal humor of Andrew Niccol's Lord of War. Having proven his ingenuity as the writer of The Truman Show, and writer-director of Gattaca and the under-appreciated Simone, Niccol is clearly striving for Strangelovian relevance here as he chronicles the rise and inevitable fall of Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage), a Ukrainian immigrant to America who makes his fortune selling every kind of ordnance he can get his amoral hands on. With a trophy wife (Bridget Moynahan) who's initially clueless about his hidden career, and a younger brother (Jared Leto) whose drug-addled sense of decency makes him an ill-chosen accomplice, Yuri traffics in death the way other salesman might push vacuum cleaners (he likes to say that alcohol and tobacco are deadlier products than his), but even he can't deny the sheer ruthlessness of the Liberian dictator (a scene-stealing Eamonn Walker) who purchases Orlov's "products" to expand his oppressive regime. Niccol's themes are even bigger than Yuri's arms deals, and he drives them home with a blunt-force lack of subtlety, but Cage gives the film the kind of insanely dark humor it needs to have. To understand this monster named Yuri, we have to see at least a glimpse of his humanity, which Cage provides as only he can. Otherwise, this epic tale of gunrunnng would be as morally unbearable as the black market trade it illuminates. --Jeff Shannon

Order it here >>> Lord of War (2-Disc Special Edition)

Transporter 2

2006-01-29T21:20:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Professional driver Frank Martin is living in Miami, where he is temporarily filling in for a friend as the chauffeur for a government narcotics control policymaker and his family. The young boy in the family is targeted for kidnapping, and Frank immediately becomes involved in protecting the child and exposing the kidnappers.

Transporter 2 knows what its audience wants and--like its title character--it delivers. This is a movie that has not only a fight choreographer but also a car stunt choreographer; a movie in which a female assassin wears nothing but a bra and panties because, presumably, additional clothing would be too cumbersome; a movie in which crashing through a concrete wall in order to leap over a four-lane street will not even rumple the hood of the hero's car; a movie in which a drunken supermodel, after her advances are chastely and gently rebuffed by the hero, says "Thanks for the respect--that's what I needed most"; a movie, in short, for those who liked the first Transporter but found it too subdued and character-driven. Jason Statham (The Italian Job) reprises his role as Frank Martin, a perhaps overly diligent chauffer who will break bones if his duty is impeded. The sheer glee with which Transporter 2 casts aside logic, probability, and the laws of physics is infectious. If the sequence in which Frank flips his car upside-down in order to detach the bomb attached to his undercarriage doesn't reduce you to intoxicated giggles, well...you're watching the wrong movie. Transporter 2 is utterly shameless, unstoppably ridiculous, and completely enjoyable. Also featuring Amber Valetta (Hitch), Jason Flemyng (Snatch), and Matthew Modine. --Bret Fetzer

Order it here >>> Transporter 2

Sexual Intelligence

2006-01-29T21:18:00.000-08:00

n a nutshell, Kim Cattrall's Sexual Intelligence is the audio/ visual companion piece to her bestselling book of the same title. Much like her book, the Sexual Intelligence documentary is a fun look at getting honest, serious and, educated, about why we want what we want sexually, albeit in an abridged and lighthearted forum. Your hostess Kim Cattrall, Sex In The City's "Samantha Jones," takes you far and wide in search of the history and roots of sexual desire. From the fertile hills of England, to the shores of Greece, into cities of Ancient Rome, through the Victorian Age and into bedrooms of the modern world Kim Cattrall and her panel of experts (and a few average spokespeople featured in her book) explore and discuss various aspects of the human sexual experience. One of the more interesting segments is a detailed breakdown of the ancient Greek tale of Eros (Cupid) and Psyche. Though not exactly a Joseph Campbell interpretation of the Greek myth, the analysis of how the Greeks explained the importance of balancing carnal lust (Eros) with the soul (Psyche) in order to achieve pleasure is extremely well done. Though Sexual Intelligence does provide some interesting commentaries and the bells and whistles you expect from the medium, it comes off a little light on the "whats" and "hows" of becoming sexually intelligent. If you plan on expanding your sexual mind, expect to pick up the companion book and start reading. But, if you are looking for fun, smart, escapism look no further. --Rob Bracco

Order it here >>> Sexual Intelligence

Tim Burton's Corpse Bride

2006-01-26T22:06:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

A man, after butchering his lines at his wedding rehearsal, is sent into the woods to practice his vows. He preforms his vows perfectly and places the ring on a twig on the ground. It turns out the twig was really the hand of the Corpse Bride, who now claims she is his legal wife.

Order it her >>> Tim Burton\'s Corpse Bride (Widescreen Edition)

Flightplan

2006-01-26T22:04:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

In this modern retelling of a classic urban legend, a mother finds herself at odds with a unremitting flight crew and her own sanity when her daughter vanishes in the middle of a flight, with only a few clues left behind. She must now challenge the boundaries of her will and her mind in her desperate search.

Order it here >>> Flightplan (Widescreen Edition)

Wedding Crashers - Uncorked

2006-01-26T22:02:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Divorce mediators John Beckwith and Jeremy Grey are business partners and lifelong friends who share one truly unique springtime hobby--crashing weddings! Whatever the ethnicity of the wedding party--Jewish, Italian, Irish, Chinese, Hindu--the charismatic and charming duo always have clever back stories for inquisitive guests and inevitably become the hit of every reception, where they strictly adhere to their proven rules of wedding crashing to meet and pick up women aroused by the very thought of marriage. At the tail end of another successful season of toasting brides and grooms, Jeremy learns that the daughter of Treasury Secretary William Cleary and his wife, Kathleen, is getting married in what is sure to be the Washington D.C. social event of the year. After infiltrating the lavish affair, John and Jeremy quickly set their sights on two bridesmaids, Claire and Gloria Cleary. With the lavish reception in full swing, Jeremy works his game plan to perfection in seducing Gloria, but John's flirtation banter with Claire is unexpectedly impeded by her pompous, Ivy League boyfriend Sack. Having uncharacteristically fallen hard and fast for Claire, John convinces a resistant Jeremy to bend the crashing rules and accept an invitation to an extended weekend party at the Cleary family compound. Once at the palatial waterfront estate, John and Jeremy endure a multitude of comical mishaps at the hands of the dysfunctional members of the Cleary family, but also learn a few unexpected lessons about love and relationships.

Order it here >>> Wedding Crashers - Uncorked (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

Red Eye

2006-01-09T18:16:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

After attending the funeral of her grandmother in Dallas, Lisa Reisert must take the dreaded red eye flight back to Miami to make it to work the next day. Lisa soon meets Jackson Ripner and their attraction grows. But moments after take-off, Jackson reveals to Lisa her father's wallet that he swiped off his desk and his real reason for being on board. Jackson needs Lisa's help to kill the deputy secretary of Homeland Security who's scheduled to stay at the Lux Atlantic Hotel, the hotel Lisa is the manager of. If she refuses to help, Jackson will call his partner on the ground and have her father killed. At 30,000 feet, Lisa has no where to run and no time for rash judgement.

Order it here >>> Red Eye (Widescreen Edition)

The Constant Gardener

2006-01-09T18:11:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Based on the best-selling John le Carré novel and from the Academy Award-nominated director of "City of God." In a remote area of Northern Kenya, activist Tessa Quayle (Rachel Weisz) is found brutally murdered. Tessa's companion, a doctor, appears to have fled the scene, and the evidence points to a crime of passion. Members of the British High Commission in Nairobi assume that Tessa's widower, their mild-mannered and unambitious colleague Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes), will leave the matter to them. They could not be more wrong. Haunted by remorse and jarred by rumors of his late wife's infidelities, Quayle surprises everyone by embarking on a personal odyssey that will take him across three continents. Using his privileged access to diplomatic secrets, he will risk his own life, stopping at nothing to uncover and expose the truth - a conspiracy more far-reaching and deadly than Quayle could ever have imagined.

Order it here >>> The Constant Gardener (Widescreen Edition)

Broken Flowers

2006-01-09T18:10:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

In the new film from acclaimed writer/director Jim Jarmusch, which won the Grand Prix at this year's Cannes International Film Festival, Bill Murray stars as Don Johnston. The resolutely single Don has just been dumped by his latest lover, Sherry (Julie Delpy). Don yet again resigns himself to being alone and left to his own devices. Instead, he is compelled to reflect on his past when he receives by mail a mysterious pink letter. It is from an anonymous former lover and informs him that he has a 19-year-old son who may now be looking for his father. Don is urged to investigate this "mystery" by his closest friend and neighbor, Winston (Jeffrey Wright), an amateur sleuth and family man. Hesitant to travel at all, Don nonetheless embarks on a cross-country trek in search of clues from four former flames (Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange, Sharon Stone, and Tilda Swinton). Unannounced visits to each of these unique women hold new surprises for Don as he haphazardly confronts both his past and, consequently, his present.

Order it here >>> Broken Flowers

Corpse Bride

2006-01-09T17:52:00.000-08:00

Flightplan

2006-01-09T17:43:00.000-08:00

Wedding Crashers - Uncorked

2006-01-09T17:41:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Divorce mediators John Beckwith and Jeremy Grey are business partners and lifelong friends who share one truly unique springtime hobby--crashing weddings! Whatever the ethnicity of the wedding party--Jewish, Italian, Irish, Chinese, Hindu--the charismatic and charming duo always have clever back stories for inquisitive guests and inevitably become the hit of every reception, where they strictly adhere to their proven rules of wedding crashing to meet and pick up women aroused by the very thought of marriage. At the tail end of another successful season of toasting brides and grooms, Jeremy learns that the daughter of Treasury Secretary William Cleary and his wife, Kathleen, is getting married in what is sure to be the Washington D.C. social event of the year. After infiltrating the lavish affair, John and Jeremy quickly set their sights on two bridesmaids, Claire and Gloria Cleary. With the lavish reception in full swing, Jeremy works his game plan to perfection in seducing Gloria, but John's flirtation banter with Claire is unexpectedly impeded by her pompous, Ivy League boyfriend Sack. Having uncharacteristically fallen hard and fast for Claire, John convinces a resistant Jeremy to bend the crashing rules and accept an invitation to an extended weekend party at the Cleary family compound. Once at the palatial waterfront estate, John and Jeremy endure a multitude of comical mishaps at the hands of the dysfunctional members of the Cleary family, but also learn a few unexpected lessons about love and relationships.

Order it here >>> Wedding Crashers - Uncorked (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

Itazuranakisu (Vol.1-8)

2005-12-30T22:53:00.000-08:00

Itazuranakisu is a Mandarin released DVD of the Itazuranakisu TV Series.

Order it here.

Lee Rock

2005-12-30T22:50:00.000-08:00

In the 1960s and 70s, bribery was more than common among the Hong Kong Police Force. Four influential police officers, known as the "Four Chief Chinese Superintendents" whose influences even extended to the triads, accumulated enormous wealth through bribery. Their stories became filmmakers' favorite in the 1990s, and among these titles is the Lee Rock series, an allusion to the Chief Chinese Superintendent Lui Lok. Andy Lau's portrayal of this corrupt but powerful police officer has become one of his classic roles in his acting career, and the film received as many as 8 nominations in the Hong Kong Film Awards! Lee Rock and its sequel are now digitally remastered and English subtitled to offer collectors the best audio-visual quality!

Lee Rock, directed by Lawrence Lau, stars Andy Lau as police officer Lee Rock who climbs to the important position of Chief Chinese Superintendent, the highest position that a Chinese policeman can possibly reach at that time. Still a righteous young man when joining the Police Force, can Lee, in the midst of the prevalence of bribery, uphold his morals and resist corruption? Co-starring two actresses Sharla Cheung and Chingmy Yau, and also veterans Ng Man Tat and Kwan Hoi Shan, it was not a surprise for the film to win the support of many critics and general viewers. In Lee Rock II, Andy is the aged Lee Rock about to retire while his son, played by popular singer Aaron Kwok, joins the newly formed "Independent Commission Against Corruption" in Hong Kong. How will they choose between family and justice? Both films offer the audience great excitement, with dramatic and thrilling ups and downs throughout!

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Dragon Squad

2005-12-30T22:48:00.000-08:00

Dragon Squad is a gun-blazing, thrill-seeking cop thriller busting at the seams with a sexy cast and a stylish visual edge. Taiwanese pop star Vanness Wu, from the boy band F4, stars as Hao, an American Chinese cop who teams up with Shawn Yu's Hong Kong detective Lok, former undercover agent Suet (Eva Huang from Kung Fu Hustle), Chinese super sniper Lu (Xia Yu) and former British operative James (Lawrence Chou) to take down a seriously evil bad guy. However, when he gets rescued by a gang of even less friendly mercenaries, headed up by Colombian Petros (played by American actor Michael Biehn, from Aliens and The Rock) the streets of Hong Kong becoming a shooting gallery as the two sides engage in all-out war.

Co-starring Simon Yam, Sammo Hung and Maggie Q, Dragon Squad dazzles with its combination of knowing style and high octane action, including an incredible twenty minute gun fight where the two sides square off in an alley way. From director Daniel Lee, who previously worked with Vanness on Star Runner, Dragon Squad succeeds as old-fashioned Saturday night fun, the likes of which appears all too rarely in Hong Kong these days.

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Cinderella Man (Widescreen Edition)

2005-12-27T07:37:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

During the Great Depression, a common-man hero, James J. Braddock--a.k.a. the Cinderella Man--was to become one of the most surprising sports legends in history. By the early 1930s, the impoverished ex-prizefighter was seemingly as broken-down, beaten-up and out-of-luck as much of the rest of the American populace who had hit rock bottom. His career appeared to be finished, he was unable to pay the bills, the only thing that mattered to him--his family--was in danger, and he was even forced to go on Public Relief. But deep inside, Jim Braddock never relinquished his determination. Driven by love, honor and an incredible dose of grit, he willed an impossible dream to come true. In a last-chance bid to help his family, Braddock returned to the ring. No one thought he had a shot. However Braddock, fueled by something beyond mere competition, kept winning. Suddenly, the ordinary working man became the mythic athlete. Carrying the hopes and dreams of the disenfranchised on his shoulders, Braddock rocketed through the ranks, until this underdog chose to do the unthinkable: take on the heavyweight champ of the world, the unstoppable Max Baer, renowned for having killed two men in the ring.

Order DVD here >>>> Cinderella Man (Widescreen Edition)

Long Way Round

2005-12-27T07:34:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

This documentary series follows actors Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman on a motorcycle trip around the world. The two friends will travel through such places as Siberia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Alaska, before finally ending the journey in New York. The filming will be done by on board cameras and one ride along cameraman.

AMAZON Review:

Forget Breaking Bonaduce or The Surreal Life. Ewan McGregor has made a celebrity reality series that's entertaining without having to be called a guilty pleasure. Long Way Round is a documentary detailing the 20,000-mile motorcycle trip he took around the world with best friend Charley Boorman over 115 days. Their trip took them from London through locales such as Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Siberia, and Canada, to name a few, before ending in New York. Armed with a cameraman, McGregor and Boorman encounter separation anxiety from their families; a shifty stranger (later revealed to be Mafia) who leads them through winding dark corridors to a posh hotel room; delays at international borders; hosts who offer them Fear Factor-level animal parts for dinner; injuries, equipment breakdowns, and more. The pair also film their own video diaries, in which they voice concerns and frustrations. The result is an emotional, rich breadth of experiences, from the hardship of logistical setbacks paired with the joy of visiting the children of Chernobyl and encountering hospitable locals who insist on escorting them wherever they go. McGregor and Boorman also make witty emcees, cheerfully upbeat even when they wonder aloud if one of their gun-happy hosts is a psycho murderer. The seven-episode series, originally aired on Bravo, concludes with their emotional ride into the Big Apple and some surprises for the pair courtesy of the show's producers. The two-disc DVD includes some can't miss deleted scenes, including McGregor's story about being confused for Jude Law, and a clip of McGregor attempting Jedi mind tricks on commuters who keep stopping in the road to peer at his broken-down bike ("These aren't the bikes you're looking for."). Long Way Round may have been an arduous once-in-a-lifetime experience, but you can't help but hope McGregor and Boorman suit up for another road trip someday. -- Ellen A. Kim.

Order DVD here >>> Long Way Round

Star Wars - Clone Wars, Vol. 2

2005-12-27T07:32:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Immediately after the events of Star Wars-Episode II: Attack of the Clones, the Clone Wars continue. The Separatists launch masses of Battle Droids while the Republic has an entire arsonal of Clone Troopers to blow them away. Obi-Wan Kenobi and his apprentice Anakin Skywalker are also participating in the fights against Count Dooku and his defiant separaists. Jedi Masters Yoda and Mace Windu, take part in the battle as well. While down on Coruscant, Padme Amidala, Chancellor Palpatine, C-3PO and R2-D2 hope nothing but good for our heroes. Will the Republic emerge triumphant? Will Dooku and his separatists be brought to their knees? And will Anakin truly bring balance to the Force, or will he bring absolutely tyranny?

Order DVD here >>>> Star Wars - Clone Wars, Vol. 2

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition)

2005-12-27T07:30:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Charlie Bucket comes from a poor family, and spends most of his time dreaming about the chocolate that he loves but usually can't afford. Things change when Willy Wonka, head of the very popular Wonka Chocolate empire, announces a contest in which five gold tickets have been hidden in chocolate bars and sent throughout the country. The kids who find the tickets will be taken on a tour of Wonka's chocolate factory and get a special glimpse of the wonders within. Charlie miraculously finds a ticket, along with four other children much naughtier than him. The tour of the factory will hold more than a few surprises for this bunch...

Order DVD here >>> Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition)

King Kong vs. Godzilla

2005-12-27T07:27:00.000-08:00

Synopsis: Mr. Tako, the chairman of a pharmaceutical company, learns of roma tomato-sized berries that grow on Farou Island, are a miracle cure, and that the natives worship a god called Kingkong who has allegedly grown to giant size from eating the berries. What better way to promote the product, Tako figures, than to bring the creature back to Japan? So he leads an expedition with Sakurai and Furue to get the berries and the monster. Meanwhile, some American pilots discover the chunk of the glacier Godzilla was sealed in back in 1955. Sakurai's sister's boyfriend Kazuo is busy trying to sell an invisible but superstrong wire, which of course no one wants until Kong escapes...

Order DVD here >>> King Kong vs. Godzilla

King Kong - Peter Jackson's Production Diaries

2005-12-27T07:22:00.000-08:00

The King Kong - Peter Jackson's Production Diaries is an impressive set geared directly toward fans, collectors, and those interested in the film-making process. In all likelihood Peter Jackson and co. are going to release a King Kong set bulging with extras, so why buy the "extras" now? Fair question. However, if you're aching with anticipation for a major glimpse into the 6-month production process of this modern day extravaganza, the King Kong - Peter Jackson's Production Diaries is an absolute "must have." Housed in a sturdy, faux clip board complete with a 52-page production memoir and art prints, this two DVD set opens up a three and a half hour window into what goes on in the making of a major blockbuster film. The bulk of the footage consists of the 54 "production diaries" (which can be sorted and viewed by production date or production location) culled from the "Kong is King" website. These hand held video diaries are candid peeks into the complex, humorous, detailed and involved world of the movie making process. There are a lot of Peter Jackson interviews, but over the six month time frame you eventually hear from every single person involved in the film--actors, the WETA team, animal trainers, assistant camera people, lighting technician, set crews, miniatures, make-up, etc. It is safe to say that not a stone is left unturned in revealing what goes on behind the scenes on a major motion picture set. Extremely careful not to give anything away, the King Kong - Peter Jackson's Production Diaries, though heavy in the production process, is very light on showing the final product. Nothing is revealed to ruin the movie experience. Well, almost nothing. One bonus video diary is "The Making of a Shot - The T-Rex Fight." In this 16 minutes diary you get to witness what goes on in creating the chilling "T-Rex Fight" from conception to special effects construction to the final jaw-dropping product. It is amazing to see two years of work unfold before your very eyes in two and a half minutes. --Rob Bracco

Order it here >>> King Kong - Peter Jackson\'s Production Diaries

King Kong (Collector's Edition)

2005-12-27T07:19:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

An expedition exploring a remote island capture a gigantic ape and bring him back to New York for exhibition. A beautiful actress who accompanies them is menaced when the monster's love for her causes him to break out.

AMAZON Review:

"Now you see it. You're amazed. You can't believe it. Your eyes open wider. It's horrible, but you can't look away. There's no chance for you. No escape. You're helpless, helpless. There's just one chance, if you can scream. Throw your arms across your eyes and scream, scream for your life!" And scream Fay Wray does most famously in this monster classic, one of the greatest adventure films of all time, which even in an era of computer-generated wizardry remains a marvel of stop-motion animation. Robert Armstrong stars as famed adventurer Carl Denham, who is leading a "crazy voyage" to a mysterious, uncharted island to photograph "something monstrous ... neither beast nor man." Also aboard is waif Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) and Bruce Cabot as big lug John Driscoll, the ship's first mate. King Kong's first half-hour is steady going, with engagingly corny dialogue ("Some big, hard-boiled egg gets a look at a pretty face and bang, he cracks up and goes sappy") and ominous portent that sets the stage for the horror to come. Once our heroes reach Skull Island, the movie comes to roaring, chest-thumping, T. rex-slamming, snake-throttling, pterodactyl-tearing, native-stomping life. King Kong was ranked by the American Film Institute as among the 50 best films of the 20th century. Kong making his last stand atop the Empire State Building is one of the movies' most indelible and iconic images. --Donald Liebenson

Order it here >>> King Kong (Collector's Edition)

The Notebook

2005-12-22T23:02:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

The movie focuses on an old man reading a story to an old woman in a nursing home. The story he reads follows two young lovers named Allie Hamilton and Noah Calhoun, who meet one evening at a carnival. But they are separated by Allie's parents who dissaprove of Noah's unwealthy family, and move Allie away. After waiting for Noah to write her for several years, Allie meets and gets engaged to a handsome young soldier named Lon. Allie, then, with her love for Noah still alive, stops by Noah's 200-year-old home that he restored for her, "to see if he's okay". It is evident that they still have feelings for each other, and Allie has to choose between her fiancé and her first love.

AMAZON Review:

When you consider that old-fashioned tearjerkers are an endangered species in Hollywood, a movie like The Notebook can be embraced without apology. Yes, it's syrupy sweet and clogged with clichés, and one can only marvel at the irony of Nick Cassavetes directing a weeper that his late father John--whose own films were devoid of saccharine sentiment--would have sneered at. Still, this touchingly impassioned and great-looking adaptation of the popular Nicholas Sparks novel has much to recommend, including appealing young costars (Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams) and appealing old costars (James Garner and Gena Rowlands, the director's mother) playing the same loving couple in (respectively) early 1940s and present-day North Carolina. He was poor, she was rich, and you can guess the rest; decades later, he's unabashedly devoted, and she's drifting into the memory-loss of senile dementia. How their love endured is the story preserved in the titular notebook that he reads to her in their twilight years. The movie's open to ridicule, but as a delicate tearjerker it works just fine. Message in a Bottle and A Walk to Remember were also based on Sparks novels, suggesting a triple-feature that hopeless romantics will cherish. --Jeff Shannon

Buy it here >>> The Notebook (New Line Platinum Series)

The Phantom of the Opera

2005-12-22T22:58:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

"The Phantom of the Opera" is a magnificent tale that begins when an opera ghost terrorizes the cast and crew of the French Opera House while tutoring a chorus girl. He finally drives the lead soprano crazy so she and her friend leave. The girl is able to sing lead one night but the soprano doesn't want her show stolen so she comes back. The ghost demands they keep giving his protoge lead roles. Meanwhile, His pupil falls in love with the Vicomte de Chagny, but the Phantom is in love with Christine, his student. The Phantom is outraged by their love and kidnaps Christine to be his eternal bride. Will Raoul, the Vicomte, be able to stop this dastardly plan? Watch and find out.

AMAZON Review:

Although it's not as bold as Oscar darling Chicago, The Phantom of the Opera continues the resuscitation of the movie musical with a faithful adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's blockbuster stage musical. Emmy Rossum glows in a breakout role as opera ingénue Christine Daae, and if phantom Gerard Butler isn't Rossum's match vocally, he does convey menace and sensuality in such numbers as "The Music of the Night." The most experienced musical theater veteran in the cast, romantic lead Patrick Wilson, sings sweetly but seems wooden. The biggest name in the cast, Minnie Driver, hams it up as diva Carlotta, and she's the only principal whose voice was dubbed (though she does sing the closing-credit number, "Learn to Be Lonely," which is also the only new song).

Director Joel Schumacher, no stranger to visual spectacle, seems to have found a good match in Lloyd Webber's larger-than-life vision of Gaston LeRoux's Gothic horror-romance. His weakness is cuing too many audience-reaction shots and showing too much of the lurking Phantom, but when he calms down and lets Rossum sings "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" alone in a silent graveyard, it's exquisite.

Buy it here >>> The Phantom of the Opera (2-Disc Special Edition), The Phantom of the Opera (Full Screen Edition), The Phantom of the Opera (Widescreen Edition)

What the Bleep Do We Know

2005-12-22T22:55:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

"WHAT THE #$*! DO WE KNOW?!" is a radical departure from convention. It demands a freedom of view and greatness of thought so far unknown, indeed, not even dreamed of since Copernicus. It's a documentary. It's a story. It's mind-blowing special effects. This film plunges you into a world where quantum uncertainty is demonstrated - where neurological processes, and perceptual shifts are engaged and lived by its protagonist - where everything is alive, and reality is changed by every thought.

AMAZON Review:

The unlikeliest cult hit of 2004 was What the (Bleep) Do We Know?, a lecture on mysticism and science mixed into a sort-of narrative. Marlee Matlin stars in the dramatic thread, about a sourpuss photographer who begins to question her perceptions. Interviews with quantum physics experts and New Age authors are cut into this story, offering a vaguely convincing (and certainly mind-provoking) theory about... well, actually, it sounds a lot like the Power of Positive Thinking, when you get down to it. Talking heads (not identified until film's end) include JZ Knight, who appears in the movie channeling Ramtha, the ancient sage she claims communicates through her (other speakers are also associated with Knight's organization). What she says actually makes pretty good common sense--Ramtha's wiggier notions are not included--and would be easy to accept were it not being credited to a 35,000-year-old mystic from Atlantis. --Robert Horton

Buy it here >>> What the Bleep Do We Know!?

Ice Girl - Korean TV Series

2005-12-22T22:50:00.000-08:00

This new KBS drama series is a love story, but dabbles in science fiction as well. A young woman, Kim So Ryung (played by Kim Hyo Jin) is making the final preparations for her imminent marriage to her sweetheart (Park Jin Woo), when she suddenly suffers a freak heart attack! Desperate to save his daughter's life, the girl's father, Dr. Kim, takes her body and freezes her until he can find a donor to give her the heart transplant necessary to save her life.

25 years later, and a donor is found and So Ryung is revived - in 2005. Unfortunately, when she meets her fiance again, she can not remember him, but takes an immediate liking to his son!

Buy it here >>> Ice Girl

Beautiful Days - Korean TV Series

2005-12-22T22:45:00.000-08:00

Experience Beautiful Days, the classic 2001 Korean drama starring perennially popular leading man Lee Byung Hun (JSA, Everybody Has Secrets)! Lee leads a cast of stars as Min-Chul, a charismatic, but emotionally wounded man who hates his father. He bears ill will towards his half-brother, Sun-Jae (Ryu Si Won), but through their continued involvement with the beautiful, caring Yun Soo (Choi Ji Woo), and the selfish, but strong-willed Se Na (Lee Jung Hyun), the brothers have a chance to grow. Share their personal setbacks, bitter rivalries, sudden emotions, and the minor triumphs and surprising tragedies that are a part of being young and in love. For the four of them, these are easily their most challenging, but also their most Beautiful Days!

Buy it here >>> Beautiful Days

Super Rookie - Korean TV-Series

2005-12-22T22:42:00.000-08:00

A slacker gets his chance in the winning new MBC K-Drama Super Rookie! Eric Mun of pop group Shinwa stars as Kang Ho, an average guy who got a college degree in physical education - but took twice as long to get it because he was too busy fooling around! Kang Ho sends up resumes to many companies, but nobody gives him a shot because he has no experience and no apparent prospects. Even his parents think he's just a freeloader. But one day, Kang Ho decides to apply to the large company as his successful friend Bong Sam (Oh Ji Ho), and thanks to a computer error, he's given a job! But is the company ready for this Super Rookie?

Co-starring Han Ga In and Lee So Yeon, Super Rookie is a hip new drama about growing up while never giving up, and serves as a telling but comic portrait of todya's Korean youth. This 8 DVD set contains all 16 episodes of the series with English subtitles, plus 1 DVD of supplements. As an added bonus, an Original Soundtrack CD is included too!

Buy it here >>> Super Rookie

Law Firm - Korean TV Series

2005-12-22T22:33:00.000-08:00

The SBS drama Law Firm comes to DVD. It stars Song Seung Hun from Ice Rain as a righteous lawyer trying to set up his law firm with his friends. To begin with they join his firm for their own motives and reasons, but in the end his inspiration wins them over and they work together on worthy cases. Also staring So Gi Sup, Beon Yoo Min and Lee jong Won.

Buy it here >>> Law Firm DVD

One Upon The Mattress

2005-12-20T21:34:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

In this hilarious tweaking of the fairy tale, "The Princess and the Pea", Queen Aggravain has ruled that none may marry until her son, Prince Dauntless marries. However, she has managed to sabotage every princess that come along. When Sir Harry and Lady Larken learn that they are going to be parents, wed or not, he goes off to the swamps and brings back Princess Winnifred ("Fred" to her friends). The queen is horrified and immediately begins to scheme, but Winnifred, with some help from Sir Harry, the Minstrel, and the Jester, isn't going to be quite so easy to get rid of.

AMAZON Review:

The playful 2004 television version of Once Upon a Mattress brings everything full circle for Carol Burnett, who played klutzy Princess Winnifred, would-be fiancee of royal mama's boy Prince Dauntless, in the original 1959 Broadway cast production of the musical (as well as 1964 and 1972 television adaptations). In the new show, Burnett now essays the role of Dauntless's control-freak mom, Queen Aggravain, and is very funny in the part. An Oedipal nightmare, Aggravain is in no hurry to let the prince act his adult age, chasing off prospective wives (and queens-in-training) by putting them through unbeatable tests. Along comes Winnifred (Tracey Ullman, who manages the physically demanding role quite nicely), who turns the kingdom on its head with her goofy charm, sets Dauntless's heart aflame, and poses a serious threat to Aggravain's plans. The fun supporting cast in this tuneful take on "The Princess and the Pea" includes Tom Smothers as King Sextimus, the mute monarch who manages to impart wisdom, Zooey Deschanel as pregnant Lady Larken, who helps bring Winnifred to the castle, and Denis O'Hare (21 Grams) as the boyish Dauntless. --Tom Keogh

Buy this product here The playful 2004 television version of Once Upon a Mattress brings everything full circle for Carol Burnett, who played klutzy Princess Winnifred, would-be fiancee of royal mama's boy Prince Dauntless, in the original 1959 Broadway cast production of the musical (as well as 1964 and 1972 television adaptations). In the new show, Burnett now essays the role of Dauntless's control-freak mom, Queen Aggravain, and is very funny in the part. An Oedipal nightmare, Aggravain is in no hurry to let the prince act his adult age, chasing off prospective wives (and queens-in-training) by putting them through unbeatable tests. Along comes Winnifred (Tracey Ullman, who manages the physically demanding role quite nicely), who turns the kingdom on its head with her goofy charm, sets Dauntless's heart aflame, and poses a serious threat to Aggravain's plans. The fun supporting cast in this tuneful take on "The Princess and the Pea" includes Tom Smothers as King Sextimus, the mute monarch who manages to impart wisdom, Zooey Deschanel as pregnant Lady Larken, who helps bring Winnifred to the castle, and Denis O'Hare (21 Grams) as the boyish Dauntless. --Tom Keogh

Buy this product here >>> Once Upon a Mattress

The Great Raid

2005-12-20T21:31:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Set in the Philippines in 1945, THE GREAT RAID tells the true story of the 6th Ranger Battalion, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mucci (Benjamin Bratt) who undertake a daring rescue mission against all odds. Traveling thirty miles behind enemy lines, the 6th Ranger Battalion aims to liberate over 500 American prisoners-of-war from the notorious Cabanatuan Japanese POW camp in the most audacious rescue ever.

AMAZON REVIEW:

Nearly three years after it was filmed, The Great Raid finally appeared as a welcome reminder that good old-fashioned World War II movies never go out of style. While lacking the scale, prestige, and pulse-pounding momentum of Saving Private Ryan, this fact-based war drama benefits from a back-to-basics approach to realism and a rousing rescue climax that more than compensates for the slower passages that precede it. Adapted from the books The Great Raid on Cabanatuan and Ghost Soldiers, it chronicles the five-day mission (in late January 1945) to rescue 511 American prisoners of war held by the Japanese at Cabanatuan POW camp in the Philippines. Under the direction of neo-noir specialist John Dahl (The Last Seduction), the film's three-part structure follows the raid mission led by Lt. Col. Mucci (Benjamin Bratt); the plight of the POWs at Cabanatuan, including malaria-stricken Maj. Gibson (Joseph Fiennes); and civilian resistance in Manila as carried out by real-life hero and Gibson's (fictional) would-be lover Margaret Utinsky (Connie Nielsen), whose effort to aid the POWs is vigilantly monitored by the enemy Japanese. In keeping with war-movie traditions, Dahl handles character and action with no-nonsense intelligence, favoring a slow build over pumped-up adrenalin. By the time the miraculous rescue is executed with critical assistance by Filpino guerillas, The Great Raid has earned its stripes, honoring the brave men who carried out the most successful rescue mission in U.S. military history. --Jeff Shannon

Buy this product here >>> The Great Raid (Widescreen Director\'s Cut), The Great Raid (Full Screen Edition)

The Exorcism of Emily Rose

2005-12-20T21:23:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

A young girl (Jennifer Carpenter) dies under the care of her parish priest (Tom Wilkinson). While attending college, Emily believed she became possessed. After medical care ceases to work, she turned to her faith. In the care of her priest she dies and he goes on trial for her death. He is represented by a career-minded and driven lawyer (Laura Linney) who does not believe in God. Thus is the story of Emily Rose, told by those in the trial and the priest who watched her through her possession.

AMAZON Review:

A surprise hit when it was released in September 2005, The Exorcism of Emily Rose tells a riveting horror story while tackling substantial issues of religious and spiritual belief. It's based on the true story of Anneliese Michel, a German student who believed she was possessed by demons, and whose death during an attempted exorcism in 1976 led to the conviction of two priests on charges of negligent manslaughter. As director and cowriter (with Paul Harris Boardman), filmmaker Scott Derrickson adapts this factual case into a riveting courtroom drama in which questions of faith, and the possibility of demonic possession, take the place of provable facts in the case of Father Moore (superbly played by Tom Wilkinson). A small-town Catholic priest, Moore has been put on trial for the post-exorcism death of Emily Rose (Jennifer Carpenter), a college student who, like her real-life inspiration, believed she was suffering from demonic possession. As an agnostic defense attorney (Laura Linney) argues the father's case against a Methodist prosecutor (Campbell Scott), flashbacks reveal the exorcism ritual and Emily's ultimately fatal ordeal, and Carpenter's performance is so frighteningly effective that it's almost painful to watch. From here, the film remains deliberately ambiguous, leaving viewers to ponder their own belief (or lack of it) in the supernatural. It lacks the extreme shock value of The Exorcist, but by leaving room for doubt and belief in a legal context, The Exorcism of Emily Rose gains depth and resonance in a way that guarantees similar long-term appeal. --Jeff Shannon

Buy this product here >>> The Exorcism of Emily Rose (Special Edition, Unrated)

Toy Story 2 (2-Disc Special Edition)

2005-12-20T05:37:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

In "Toy Story 2," the fun and adventure continues when Andy goes off to summer camp and the toys are left to their own devices. Things shift into high gear when an obsessive toy collector kidnaps Woody who unbeknownst to himself is a highly valued collectable. It's now up to Buzz Lightyear and the gang from Andy's room - Mr. Potato Head, Slinky Dog, Rex and Hamm - to spring into action and save their pal from winding up as a museum piece. There's plenty of excitement and fun as the toys get into one predicament after another in their daring race to get home before Andy does.

AMAZON Review:

John Lasseter and his gang of high-tech creators at Pixar create another entertainment for the ages. Like the few great movie sequels, Toy Story 2 comments on why the first one was so wonderful while finding a fresh angle worthy of a new film. The craze of toy collecting becomes the focus here, as we find out Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) is not only a beloved toy to Andy but also a rare doll from a popular '60s children's show. When a greedy collector takes Woody, Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) launches a rescue mission with Andy's other toys. To say more would be a crime because this is one of the most creative and smile-inducing films since, well, the first Toy Story.

Although the toys look the same as in the 1994 feature, Pixar shows how much technology has advanced: the human characters look more human, backgrounds are superior, and two action sequences that book-end the film are dazzling. And it's a hoot for kids and adults. The film is packed with spoofs, easily accessible in-jokes, and inspired voice casting (with newcomer Joan Cusack especially a delight as Cowgirl Jessie). But as the Pixar canon of films illustrates, the filmmakers are storytellers first. Woody's heart-tugging predicament can easily be translated into the eternal debate of living a good life versus living forever. Toy Story 2 also achieved something in the U.S. two other outstanding 1999 animated features (The Iron Giant, Princess Mononoke) could not: it became a huge box-office hit. --Doug Thomas

Buy this product here >>> Toy Story 2 (2-Disc Special Edition)

The Shield - The Complete Fourth Season

2005-12-20T05:35:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

The story of in inner-city Los Angeles police precinct where some of the cops aren't above breaking the rules or working against their associates to both keep the streets safe and their self-interests intact.

AMAZON Review:

TV's most in-your-face cop drama returns with a gripping, take-no-prisoners fourth season! Life at the Barn may never be the same after the Strike Team is dissolved and Vic and Shane are assigned to regular detective duty. Captain Aceveda is also leaving to begin his new job on City Council. Any hope that Detective Claudette Wyms had of assuming Aceveda's command is dashed when another female, Monica Rawling, is chosen as the new captain. Although Vic often clashed with Aceveda, he quickly realizes that Captain Rawling has her own agenda--one that not only shakes up the gangs on the streets, but causes friction among many of the detectives, as well.

Buy this product here >>> The Shield - The Complete Fourth Season

Must Love Dogs

2005-12-18T05:32:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Sarah Nolan, a recently divorced thirty-something year old, has a family that just can't help getting involved in her personal life, or lack there of. After her sister puts her profile on PerfectMatch.com, this preschool teacher goes on a number of outrageous and hilarious dates. But will she be able to find the one, who must love dogs?

Amazon Review:

The combined charisma of Diane Lane and John Cusack gives a lift to Must Love Dogs, a romantic comedy built on the comic potential of internet dating. Sarah (Lane, Under the Tuscan Sun), a preschool teacher and recent divorcee, has her entire family bugging her to get back in the dating pool. Finally her sister (dependable second banana Elizabeth Perkins, Big) puts an ad for Sarah online; a host of questionable prospects respond, but Sarah meets one guy--a boat builder named Jake (John Cusack, High Fidelity, Say Anything)--who shows promise, though he himself is recently divorced and a little tender. Unfortunately, Sarah also feels sparks with the father (Dermot Mulroney, My Best Friend's Wedding) of one of her students, and when paths cross, trouble follows. Must Love Dogs has some amusing scenes, but the tone and quality is wildly erratic--it's as if the movie was broken into a dozen parts and randomly assigned to different writers and directors, some of whom were making a bad sitcom, some of whom were making a good sitcom, and some of whom were making a movie that blended wry comedy with some deft psychological insight. The great cast (in addition to solid work from those mentioned above, there's also Stockard Channing and Christopher Plummer) keep the story moving, but for every amusing moment there are two that are plastic, forced, or wince-inducing. --Bret Fetzer

Buy this product here >>> Must Love Dogs (Widescreen Edition), Must Love Dogs (Full Screen Edition)

The Brothers Grimm

2005-12-18T05:29:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Folklore collectors and con artists, Jake and Will Grimm, travel from village to village pretending to protect townsfolk from enchanted creatures and performing exorcisms. They are put to the test, however, when they encounter a real magical curse in a haunted forest with real magical beings, requiring genuine courage.

Amazon Review:

Fairy tales come vividly to life in The Brothers Grimm, a long-delayed fantasy/horror comedy that greatly benefits from the ingenuity of director Terry Gilliam. In lesser hands, the ambitious screenplay by prolific horror specialist Ehren Kruger (who wrote the American versions of The Ring and The Ring 2) might have turned into an erratic monster mash like Van Helsing. But Gilliam's maverick sensibility makes the film more closely comparable to Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow and Neil Jordan's The Company of Wolves, with the added benefit of impressive CGI effects and lavish (though cost-efficient) production design, making the most of a challenging $75 million budget. Kruger's clever conceit is to turn "folklore collectors" Wilhem and Jacob Grimm (Matt Damon and Heath Ledger, respectively) into 19th-century con artists who perform bogus exorcisms of "evil enchantments" while traveling from village to village in French-occupied Germany. The two soon find themselves ensnared in a genuinely supernatural crisis involving the curse of the Mirror Queen (Monica Bellucci) and such fantastical marvels as the Big Bad Wolf, the Gingerbread Man, and a host of other truly enchanted (and not altogether friendly) flora and fauna. It's kind of a mess, switching from over-the-top humor (mostly from Peter Stormare as a manic villain) to serious fantasy involving the beautiful Angelika (Lena Headey), who proves to be the Grimm Brothers' most reliable ally. And like many of Gilliam's films, Grimm suffered from production delays (during which Gilliam filmed Tideland), distributor fallout, and several changes in its theatrical release date, but none of these issues prevent the film from being a welcomed addition to Gilliam's remarkable list of credits. --Jeff Shannon

By this product here .>> The Brothers Grimm

Battlestar Galactica - Season 2.0

2005-12-18T05:26:00.000-08:00

Outline:

After losing the war against the Cylon robots, the Battlestar Galactica crew speed toward the fabled 13th colony, Earth. Galactica Commander Adama (Olmos) and President Laura Roslin (McDonnell) face waning supplies, crushed morale, ... and the credible threat Cylons aboard the ship.

AMAZON Review:

The first half of Battlestar Galactica's second season left no doubts about the continuing excellence of the best science fiction TV series of 2005. Beginning with the Colonial Fleet separated, Col. Tigh (Michael Hogan) botching his temporary command, and Capt. Adama (Edward James Olmos) near death after a Cylon assassination attempt, series producer/developer Ronald D. Moore and his gifted writing staff packed more into these 10 episodes than most series manage in a full season. Maintaining its reputation as an adult drama, the series is compellingly anchored by the gravitas of Olmos and Mary McDonnell, whose role as Fleet President Laura Roslin grows more complex as she reveals her diagnosis of breast cancer and defies Adama, playing the "religious card" with her conviction that prophetic visions will lead the embattled fleet toward its legendary home planet Earth. As Adama's son Apollo (Jamie Bamber) wrestles with his role in Roslin's mutinous agenda, paranoia runs high as Cylon copies (or "avatars") of Boomer (Grace Park) complicate matters aboard Galactica and on Kobol, where a lost Raptor crew struggles to survive and Dr. Baltar (James Callis) endures the increasingly haunting and manipulative intrusions into his tormented psyche by Number Six (Tricia Helfer), the seductive Cylon who holds the secret to the Cylon master plan to destroy humankind. Further action takes place on Cylon-occupied Caprica, where Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff) and Helo (Tamoh Penikett) discover a group of human resistance fighters who survived the Cylons' nuclear attack in season 1. As all of these plot threads are expertly interwoven, the high-stakes conflict of BG 2.0 culminates in a suspenseful mid-season cliffhanger that pits Adama against Admiral Cain (played by Star Trek: Next Generation alumnus Michelle Forbes), who turns a happy reunion with Battlestar Pegasus into a massive military showdown. Through all of this, Battlestar Galactica maintains consistently high standards of intelligent drama and well-justified, story-based use of spectacular special effects, while developing rich relationships across a broad spectrum of interesting supporting characters. The series' large and likable cast is well-used throughout (even smaller roles are given adequate dimension), and Moore's "podcast" commentaries provide a smart, thorough analysis of the show's writing process and conceptual evolution. Yes, it's undeniably true that this half-season DVD set is a blatantly commercial ploy to lure more and more viewers into the ongoing season (which resumed in January 2006), but you can hardly blame Universal for capitalizing on a high-quality series. With solid ratings, good scripts, and a devoted cast and crew, Battlestar Galactica showed every indication of thriving toward a third season and beyond. --Jeff Shannon

Buy this product here >>> Battlestar Galactica - Season 2.0

The Classic

2005-12-17T04:31:00.000-08:00

Having presented his view on a rather strange relationship in the 2001 blockbuster "My sassy girl", director Gwak Jae-yong brings you back to an earlier, simpler time for "The classic" love story.

The film tells a tale about a young college student Chi-hye (Sun Ye-jin) who is involved in a love triangle with her friend Su-kyong (Lee Sang-in) and a young modish playwright Sang-min (Jo In-seong). Meanwhile, she uncovers the romance and tangles her mother Chu-hui (also played by Sun) fell into in the late 1960s.

Bouncing back and forth, the film delicately unfolds the two romances of the two generations. Though the time and people differ in the two stories, the "classic" love feelings remain unchanged.

Professional Review:

For most of you, acclaimed director Kwak Jae-yong (My Sassy Girl) is probably the biggest reasons that propels you to watch this film. The Classic, Kwak Jae-yong's latest work right after My Sassy Girl, is actually quite different from its predecessor. Compared to the joyful and highly entertaining My Sassy Girl, The Classic is rather a sophisticated and passionate drama.

This film features the love stories of two generations, with Son Ye-jin playing the role of both the mother and the daughter. Ji-hye (Son Ye-jin) discovers her mother Joo-hee's (Son Ye-jin) love letters by accident. Out of curiosity, she begins to read about Joo-hee's first love with Joon-ha (Jo Sung-woo). At the same time, Ji-hye falls in love with her schoolmate Sang-min (Jo In-sung), and she soon realizes that the situation she is facing is somewhat identical to the triangular love relationship among Joo-hee, Joon-ha and Joon-ha's friend Tae-soo (Lee Ki-woo). Although the story intertwines between the past (Joo-hee) and the present (Ji-hye), the focus of interest seems to be the mother Joo-hee and Joon-ha. Apart from her romance with Sang-min, the most important function of the daughter Ji-hye is to merely act as a storyteller that brings out Joo-hee's story.

Apparently, director Kwak Jae-yong is using a different approach in this film. Unlike the blatant and comical encounters of the characters in My Sassy Girl, the love affairs of the characters are mainly developed from casual daily activities. From the boat rowing date to the firefly catching scene, most of them are depicted in a very simple and direct manner. There is no surprising twist at all, yet the romantic atmosphere keeps the audience engaged. One problem of this kind of melodrama is that the story is easily fallen into cliche (Ji-hye does actually say so when she begins reading her mother's diary), and this is what the latter part of the movie suffers from. The scene after Joon-ha joined the army seems to be a forced tragedy. It is quite distracting as it seems a misfit to the banal events in the first half of the film and it also reminds me of Pearl Harbor. Moreover, the twist at the end (identity revealing) is also not as touching as I would expect. It is probably because the link between the mother and the daughter's respective love affairs is not that strong. Nevertheless, this film is still enjoyable as Kwak Jae-yong is no doubt a master of storytelling. There are many unforgettable scenes that will make you love this film. The cinematography is excellent (as good as the unbeatable Il Mare), as well as the trademark mellow background music, viewers are inevitably soaked in this delicately crafted dieresis.

Son Ye-jin looks gorgeous in this film. Her roles as both the mother and the daughter are persuasive, despite the physical resemblance between the two characters. The mother is more active in pursuing her love while they daughter is a passive and shy little girl. Among the two male leads, Jo Sung-woo performs much better than Jo In-sung. Perhaps it is because of the plot and the character design, Jo Sung-woo's lively portrayal of his character Joon-ha is way more appealing than the wooden face of Jo In-sung. New actor Lee Ki-woo (this guy is really tall!) is also impressive that viewers should keep an eye on.

In general, The Classic is a professionally made romance movie. Every scene is beautifully and carefully constructed. I am quite confident that most Korean drama lover would find it an enjoying piece. However, one advice for those My Sassy Girl's lover is, this is not a sequel of that film and so please don't expect any surprise as you would find in My Sassy Girl.

Cool guy(s) - Jo Sung-woo, Son Ye-jin, Lee Ki-woo

Reviewed by Kantorates -　Cinespot.com (source: YesAsia)

Buy The Classic DVD here >>> The Classic, The Classic DTS and Hongkong Version

Sad Love Story

2005-12-17T04:15:00.000-08:00

Dive into the passionate world of Korea's romantic TV sensation Sad Love Story!

MBC's TV drama Sad Love Story (a.k.a. Forever and Ever and Sad Sonata) broke all records with a top production cost of won 7 billion (around HK$ 52 million), turning it into this year's grandest TV release. Popular Korean stars Kwon Sang-woo (Stairway to Heaven) and Kim Hee-sun (Calla) join forces to offer K-drama fans a wonderful romance. Yeon Jung-hoon replaces Song Seung-hun who has stepped down owing to his obligatory military services. Indeed Song Seung-hun's withdrawal has made Sad Love Story a center of attention from the media during production!

Kwon Sang-woo portrays a talented music composer Joon-young who has been in love with a blind girl Hae-in (Kim Hee-sun). Hae-in works as a lounge singer and later follows her step-father to the States where she meets a rich man Gun-woo (Yeon Jung-hoon). Out of his love for Hae-in, Joon-young also moves to America and becomes a good friend of Gun-woo who is also attracted to Hae-in...

For more information and online purchase, please clik here >>> Sad Love Story

Full House - Director's Cut

2005-12-17T04:12:00.000-08:00

Song Hye-kyo unfolds her charms again!

The captivating romance between a lovely everyday girl and a pampered movie star whose lives intertwine through fate promises to keep you glued to your seat until the end of this wonderful Korean TV treat.

Through a tricky scheme by her so-called friends Ji-eun loses the ownership rights to her beloved Full House, a luxurious mansion that used to belong to her parents when they were still alive. The new owner of the estate, Yeung Jae (Rain), is Asia's most hailed film star, and always behaves as if he was the ruler of the entire world, while while treating others in his habitual straightforward manner. Desperate to get back what rightly belongs to her, Ji-eun uses all her womanly appeal to bring about an advantageous marriage with the over-confident entertainment artist...

Based on the Korean comic strip of the same name, Full House earned an average viewing rate of 31.9%, and its final episode even attracted 40.2% of all viewers! Song Hye-kyo won the hearts of TV lovers through her skilled performances in popular TV series hits including All In, Hotelier, and Autumn in My Heart , while Rain (a.k.a. Bi) is also famous as a pop singer. The all-round star (whose real name is Jung Ji-hoon) possesses a dynamic, mellow voice and is known for his down-to-earth and modest behaviour. Director Pyo Min-su was not able to land a potential TV series hit with his earlier, more artistically-inclined works that include Lie, Foolish, and Solitude, but he created a real winner with this touching romantic tale. Written by Min Hyo-jeong, who was also responsible for the script of Rooftop Room Cat .

This version comes with bonus features including :

# Making of
# Love Story of Song Hye-kyo and Rain
# Shower Power Video
# Interview with the director
# Photo Gallery

For more information and online purchase please click here >>>> Full House Director's Cut

Wedding

2005-12-17T04:10:00.000-08:00

Unlike many K-drama series, Wedding begins with two young lovers tying the knot. However almost from the word go, things do not go smoothly for the newlyweds. Se-na (Jang Nara) is a music graduate from a rich family and works as a manager at a theater. She was introduced to diplomat Seung-woo (Ryu Si Won) and the two decide to marry because they are considered a good match.

As time goes by, however, they clash on virtually every issue because of their different backgrounds and life values. Seung-woo begins falling for his childhood sweetheart, Yun-soo (Myung Se Bin), who is far less reckless than Se-na. But as her husband drifts away from her, Se-na grows more attracted to him and begins to take steps towards reconciling their differences.

For more information and online purchase please click here >>> Wedding

April Snow

2005-12-17T04:03:00.000-08:00

The allure of forbidden love reigns supreme in the long-awaited motion picture, April Snow! Mega-popular actor Bae Yong Joon, star of the smash hit Korean drama Winter Sonata, headlines this highly anticipated romance directed by Heo Jin Ho, the man behind such acclaimed films as One Fine Spring Day and Christmas in August.

Released in Korea and Japan simultaneously, the film centers on In Su (Bae Yong Joon) as he travels to Korea's east coast after discovering that his wife Su Jin (Im Sang Hyo) was critically injured in a car accident. To In Su's surprise, it seems that she was traveling with a man named Kyung Ho (Ryoo Seung Soo, from The President's Barber), and both of them now lie in the operating room as they undergo treatment for their injuries. While waiting for news of his wife's condition, In-Su meets the man's wife, Seo-Young (Son Ye Jin, from A Moment to Remember) and together, the two of them piece together the devastating truth: their spouses were carrying on an affair.

Deeply upset by this shocking revelation, the duo's world spins out of control, as they both come to grips with their feelings of sorrow and betrayal. After several chance encounters, the two become closer. Both stay at the same dingy motel, and soon enough, they forge a deep connection. Will they act on their feelings for each other? And if they do succumb to their passions, will it be out of revenge or out of love? The answers await in Heo Jin Ho's April Snow, the stirring romance that swept Asia by storm!

Special Features:

# Audio Commentary
# Cast & Crew Interviews
# On Location Footage
# Deleted Scenes
# Music Video
# Trailers & TV Spots

Buy it here >>> April Snow

Sympathy For Lady Vengeance

2005-12-17T03:39:00.000-08:00

Acclaimed filmmaker Park Chan Wook returns to the director's chair to helm Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, one of the most highly anticipated Korean films of 2005. The film marks the end of Park's hugely popular "Vengeance Trilogy", a series of films that began with 2002's Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and continued with 2003's internationally successful Old Boy. Unlike most trilogies, this trio of pictures is united not by plot or by characters, but by its thematic content, namely, revenge and its terrible consequences.

Actress Lee Young Ae (Joint Security Area, Jewel in the Palace) takes up the leading role in Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, portraying Geum Ja, a beautiful woman just released from jail after thirteen years of imprisonment. Her crime? The kidnapping and brutal murder of a young child. Through the use of flashbacks, it is revealed that Geum Ja was extremely kind and generous to the other prisoners during her internment, earning a widespread reputation as a veritable saint among the imprisoned women.

However, Geum Ja's polite behavior masks her true intentions, for it seems she is totally innocent of the charges brought against her and is covertly hatching an elaborate plan to seek retribution on the twisted Mr. Baek, an English teacher played by Old Boy's Choi Min Sik who is responsible for her unjust conviction. And as soon as Geum Ja is released from prison, her demeanor changes. Once kind and considerate, she becomes cold and calculating. Enlisting the help of a retired cop (Nam Il Woo) and her daughter Jenny (who was adopted by an Australian couple during the anti-heroine's incarceration), Geum Ja sets in motion her plan for bitter vengeance, but will she succeed? Find out in Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, a film that may just prove why revenge is a dish best served cold!

Special Features:

Disc One:
# Theatrical release of the film
# Audio commentary by director Park Chan Wook
# Audio commentary by Director, Cinematographer and Art Director
# Making of documentary
# Character profiles
# Venice 2005 footage
# Promotional material - Theatrical trailer, teaser, TV spots, posters

Disc Two:
# The "Fade to Black & White" version of the film
# Audio commentary with Korean film critic
# Deleted scenes with optional director's commentary
# The Style Of Lady Vengeance - five part production featurette: Visualization, Production Design, Costume & Make Up, Special Art and CG Effects

Buy it online here >>> Sympathy For Lady Vengeance

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

2005-12-16T04:37:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

A married couple (Pitt and Jolie) are getting bored with their quiet domestic life. What they don't know, however, is that they're both assassins, secretly hopping the world and killing for hire. But their separate lives are about to collide when each finds out their next target is their own spouse.

AMAZON REVIEW:

Released amidst rumors of romance between costars Angelina Jolie and soon-to-be-divorced Brad Pitt, Mr. and Mrs. Smith offers automatic weapons and high explosives as the cure for marital boredom. The premise of this exhausting action-comedy (no relation to the 1941 Alfred Hitchcock comedy starring Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery) is that the unhappily married Smiths (Pitt and Jolie) will improve their relationship once they discover their mutually-hidden identities as world-class assassins, but things get complicated when their secret-agency bosses order them to rub each other out. There's plenty of amusing banter in the otherwise disposable screenplay by Simon Kinberg (xXx: State of the Union, Fantastic Four), and director Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity) gives Pitt and Jolie a slick, glossy superstar showcase that's innocuous but certainly never boring. It could've been better, but as an action-packed summer confection, Mr. and Mrs. Smith kills two hours in high style. --Jeff Shannon

Buy this product here >>> Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Widescreen Edition), Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Full Screen Edition)

King Kong

2005-12-16T04:18:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

An expedition exploring a remote island capture a gigantic ape and bring him back to New York for exhibition. A beautiful actress who accompanies them is menaced when the monster's love for her causes him to break out.

AMAZON REVIEW:

"Now you see it. You're amazed. You can't believe it. Your eyes open wider. It's horrible, but you can't look away. There's no chance for you. No escape. You're helpless, helpless. There's just one chance, if you can scream. Throw your arms across your eyes and scream, scream for your life!" And scream Fay Wray does most famously in this monster classic, one of the greatest adventure films of all time, which even in an era of computer-generated wizardry remains a marvel of stop-motion animation. Robert Armstrong stars as famed adventurer Carl Denham, who is leading a "crazy voyage" to a mysterious, uncharted island to photograph "something monstrous ... neither beast nor man." Also aboard is waif Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) and Bruce Cabot as big lug John Driscoll, the ship's first mate. King Kong's first half-hour is steady going, with engagingly corny dialogue ("Some big, hard-boiled egg gets a look at a pretty face and bang, he cracks up and goes sappy") and ominous portent that sets the stage for the horror to come. Once our heroes reach Skull Island, the movie comes to roaring, chest-thumping, T. rex-slamming, snake-throttling, pterodactyl-tearing, native-stomping life. King Kong was ranked by the American Film Institute as among the 50 best films of the 20th century. Kong making his last stand atop the Empire State Building is one of the movies' most indelible and iconic images. --Donald Liebenson

Buy this product here >>> King Kong (Collector\'s Edition), King Kong (2-Disc Special Edition)

Fantastic Four

2005-12-15T06:32:00.000-08:00

AMAZON Review:

Marvel Comics' first family of superherodom, the Fantastic Four, hits the big screen in a light-hearted and funny adventure. It begins when down-on-his-luck genius Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd, Horatio Hornblower) has to enlist the financial and intellectual help from former schoolmate and rival Victor Von Doom (Julian McMahon, Nip/Tuck) in order to pursue outer-space research into human DNA. Also on the trip are Reed's best friend, Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis, The Shield); his former lover, Sue Storm (Jessica Alba, Dark Angel, Sin City), who's now Doom's employee and love interest; and her hotshot-pilot brother, Johnny Storm (Chris Evans, Cellular). Things don't go as planned, of course, and the quartet becomes blessed--or is it cursed?--with superhuman powers: flexibility, brute strength, invisibility and projecting force fields, and bursting into flame. Meanwhile, Doom himself is undergoing a transformation.

Among the many entries in the comic-book-movie frenzy, Fantastic Four is refreshing because it doesn't take itself too seriously. Characterization isn't too deep, and the action is a bit sparse until the final reel (like most "first" superhero movies, it has to go through the "how did we get these powers and what we will do with them" churn). But it's a good-looking cast, and original comic-book cocreator Stan Lee makes his most significant Marvel-movie cameo yet, in a speaking role as the FF's steadfast postal carrier, Willie Lumpkin. Newcomers to superhero movies might find the idea of a family with flexibility, strength, invisibility, and force fields a retread of The Incredibles, but Pixar's animated film was very much a tribute to the FF and other heroes of the last 40 years. The irony is that while Fantastic Four is an enjoyable B-grade movie, it's the tribute, The Incredibles, that turned out to be a film for the ages. --David Horiuchi

DVD features:

The principal extra on the DVD is a spirited commentary track by Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis, and Ioan Gruffudd. Self-avowed FF fan Chiklis explains why the Thing doesn't have a craggy brow, Alba recalls which things were "cool," and they all talk about looking forward to the sequel. There are three short deleted scenes (including a goofy Wolverine reference), 20 minutes of barely watchable hand-held video footage from the press tour, music videos, and some short featurettes including an appearance by FF creator Stan Lee. --David Horiuchi

For more information and online purchase please click here >>> Fantastic Four (Widescreen Edition), Fantastic Four (Full Screen Edition)

The Island

2005-12-15T06:29:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Lincoln Six-Echo (McGregor) is a resident of a seemingly utopian but contained facility in the mid 21st century. Like all of the inhabitants of this carefully controlled environment, Lincoln hopes to be chosen to go to the "The Island" - reportedly the last uncontaminated spot on the planet. But Lincoln soon discovers that everything about his existence is a lie. He and all of the other inhabitants of the facility are actually human clones. Lincoln makes a daring escape with a beautiful fellow resident named Jordan Two-Delta (Johansson). Relentlessly pursued by the forces of the sinister institute that once housed them, Lincoln and Jordan engage in a race for their lives to literally meet their makers.

For more information and online purchase, please visit this page >>> The Island

Frank Miller's Sin City (Recut, Extended, Unrated)

2005-12-15T06:24:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Sin City is a violent city where the police department is as corrupt as the streets are deadly. In this movie, we follow three stories, the central of which is Marv, a tough-as-nails and nearly impossible to kill street fighter who goes on a rampage of vengeance when a beautiful woman, Goldie (King), he sleeps with for only one night is killed while lying in bed with him.

For more information and online purchase please visit this page >>> Frank Miller\'s Sin City (Recut, Extended, Unrated)

The 40-Year-Old Virgin

2005-12-15T06:19:00.000-08:00

AMAZON REVIEW:

Cult comic actor Steve Carell--long adored for his supporting work on The Daily Show and in movies like Bruce Almighty and Anchorman--leaps into leading man status with The 40 Year-Old Virgin. There's no point describing the plot; it's about how a 40 year-old virgin named Andy (Carell) finally finds true love and gets laid. Along the way, there are very funny scenes involving being coached by his friends, speed dating, being propositioned by his female manager, and getting his chest waxed. Carell finds both humor and humanity in Andy, and the supporting cast includes some standout comic work from Paul Rudd (Clueless, The Shape of Things) and Jane Lynch (Best in Show, A Mighty Wind), as well as an unusually straight performance from Catherine Keener (Lovely & Amazing, Being John Malkovich). And yet... something about the movie misses the mark. It skirts around the topic of male sexual anxiety, mining it for easy jokes, but never really digs into anything that would make the men in the audience actually squirm--and it's a lot less funny as a result. Nonetheless, there are many great bits, and Carell deserves the chance to shine. --Bret Fetzer

For more information and online purchase please visit these pages:

- The 40-Year-Old Virgin (Unrated Widescreen Edition)
- The 40-Year-Old Virgin (Unrated Full Screen Edition)
- The 40-Year-Old Virgin (R-Rated Fullscreen Edition)

The Sound of Music (40th Anniversary Edition)

2005-12-13T03:48:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

Maria had longed to be a nun since she was a young girl, yet when she became old enough discovered that it wasn't at all what she thought. Often in trouble and doing the wrong things, Maria is sent to the house of a retired naval captain, named Captain Von Trapp, to care for his children. Von Trapp was widowed several years before and was left to care for seven 'rowdy' children. The children have run off countless governesses. Maria soon learns that all these children need is a little love to change their attitudes. Maria teaches the children to sing, and through her, music is brought back into the hearts and home of the Von Trapp family. Unknowingly, Maria and Captain Von Trapp are falling helplessly in love, except there are two problems, the Captain is engaged, and Maria is a postulant!

More information and online purchase here >>> The Sound of Music (40th Anniversary Edition)

Serenity

2005-12-13T03:31:00.000-08:00

Synopsis:

The crew of the Serenity is getting desperate. They have lain lower and lower to protect their doctor, Simon Tam (Sean Maher), and his telepathic traumatized little sister, River (Summer Glau), from the alliance, whom he rescued her from a year earlier. This has made getting jobs harder and now they are desperate. When they take River on a robbery during which Reavers (humans who have gone crazy and turned into cannibals) attack, Simon decides that its time to leave the crew of the Serenity for his and River's safety. She then mutters "Miranda" and goes berserk and nearly shoots Capt. Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion), until her brother says the safety word to put her to sleep. Reynolds decides to take them back on board for safety, only now an alliance operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is on their tracks and making Reynolds determined to find out what "Miranda" is and what the Alliance is hiding.

For more information and online purchase please click here >>> Serenity (Widescreen Edition) or Serenity (Full Screen Edition)

March of the Penguins

2005-12-13T03:17:00.000-08:00

AMAZON Review:

March of the Penguins instantly qualifies as a wildlife classic, taking its place among other extraordinary films like Microcosmos and Winged Migration. French filmmaker Luc Jacquet and his devoted crew endured a full year of extreme conditions in Antarctica to capture the life cycle of Emperor penguins on film, and their diligence is evident in every striking frame of this 80-minute documentary. Narrated in soothing tones by Morgan Freeman, the film focuses on a colony of hundreds of Emperors as they return, in a single-file march of 70 miles or more, to their frozen breeding ground, far inland from the oceans where they thrive. At times dramatic, suspenseful, mischievous and just plain funny, the film conveys the intensity of the penguins' breeding cycle, and their treacherous task of protecting eggs and hatchlings in temperatures as low as 128 degrees below zero. There is some brief mating-ritual violence and sad moments of loss, but March of the Penguins remains family-friendly throughout, and kids especially will enjoy the Antarctic blue-ice vistas and the playful, waddling appeal of the penguins, who can be slapstick clumsy or magnificently graceful, depending on the circumstances. A marvel of wildlife cinematography, this unique film offers a front-row seat to these amazing creatures, balancing just enough scientific information with the entertaining visuals. --Jeff Shannon

More information and online purchase, please click here >>> March of the Penguins (Widescreen Edition)

Fantastic Four

2005-12-13T03:10:00.000-08:00

Synopsis: When an experimental space voyage goes awry, four people are changed by cosmic rays. Reed Richards, inventor and leader of the group gains the ability to stretch his body, and takes the name, Mr. Fantastic. His girlfriend, Sue Storm, gains the ability to turn invisible and create force fields, calling herself the Invisible Woman. Her younger brother Johnny Storm gains the ability to control fire, including covering his own body with flame, becoming the Human Torch. Pilot Ben Grimm is turned into a super-strong rock creature calling himself Thing. Together, they use their unique powers to explore the strange aspects of the world, and to foil the evil plans of Doctor Doom.

More information and online purchase here >>> Fantastic Four (Widescreen Edition) or Fantastic Four (Full Screen Edition)

Star Wars, Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

2005-12-13T00:47:00.000-08:00

It has been three long years since the Clone Wars have first begun, and Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) have fought as hard as they possibly could. When the capital planet of Coruscant becomes under attack by the Separatist droid armies and Supreme Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) is kidnapped by the army leader, General Grievous (voiced by Matthew Wood), Anakin personal problems begin to develop, including his anger at the Jedi Council for not giving him the rank of Master, though he is on the council, and his plagued visions of his secret wife, Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman), dying in childbirth. He is determined to do anything to save her, no matter the cost. While Obi-Wan is sent to kill General Grievous on Utapau, Anakin is taken under Palpatine's wing, being subtly seduced by the Dark Side of the Force and convince that the Dark Side is power than can save his wife from death. Soon enough, a new, darker, ominous figure that would eventually be feared by the entire galaxy is formed: Lord Darth Vader. Obi-Wan, discovering Anakin's betrayal, sees no choice but to face his own apprentice in an attempt to bring back the young, loyal Jedi that had been like his own son, brother, and friend.

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