Transformers Animated: Season One

Missing 3 episodes from season 1
This boxset will include the remaining 13 episodes out of 16. You must buy the "Transform and Roll Out" dvd if you want the pilot.

Included episodes are:

Episode 4: Home is Where the Spark is
Episode 5: Total Meltdown
Episode 6: Blast From the Past
Episode 7: Thrill of the Hunt
Episode 8: Nanosec
Episode 9: Along Came a Spider
Episode 10: Sound & Fury
Episode 11: Lost & Found
Episode 12: Survival of the Fittest
Episode 13: Headmaster
Episode 14: Nature Calls
Episode 15: Megatron Rising, Part One
Episode 16: Megatron Rising, Part Two

I did not include any synopsis in case you did not get the chance to watch all the episodes and wanted to be surprised.

This is a fantastic series and great for both kids and adult fans. Season 2 just ended, and it just keeps getting more and more exciting.

From what I gather, it will be in full screen, and Dolby Digital Audio with a total...

An enjoyable show for Transformer fans
Overall, this is an enjoyable series, but I do have two complaints.

The first is just a matter of taste. I am not a huge fan of the style of drawing used in this series. Far too many cartoons these days are regressing to this simplictic, childish style of animation. The stories, however, are good enough to help overlook this and the type humor in the show would likely not work as well with more realistic artwork.

My bigger complaint if in the depiction of Optimus Prime himself. There is no sense (at least where I am at, just finishing disk one) that he is in fact the leader of the group. Without Bumblebee calling him "Bossbot", and the history of the whole Transformers franchise, you would think of him as just another member of the group, and not a particularly major one. He is weak, unsure of himself, and is not commanding. As a huge fan of Prime, this was a major let down.

On a postitive note, I very much like the Prowl in this version, and...

Not misslabled, it IS the Complete First Season
People keep complaining that this set is missing the first 3 episodes. This is not true, as "Home is Where the Spark is" IS the first episode. Transform and Roll Out was produced AS A MOVIE, and was only split into episodes for reruns.

This season also has several great episodes, such as Blast from the Past (Introducing the Dinobots), Thrill of the Hunt, and my favorite, Sound and Fury, introducing my favorite character, Soundwave.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Legendary Performances: Marty Robbins

Marty's Army Will Be Delighted
This is a DVD that no Marty Robbins fan should be without. Having said that, any lover of any kind of music can appreciate what a unique and gifted talent Marty was. The beauty of his voice allied to his super songwriting, combined with a charismatic appeal that makes it hard for anyone not to like him even if you are not a fan of Country and Western Music. There are 15 songs here from the mid 50's up to the late 70's taken from various shows which showcase many of his biggest hits that usually have Marty smiling his head off while he delivers the songs even if they are sad ones! The 'extras' include his induction to the Country Music Hall of Fame and a previously unseen interview by Marty which makes him come across as a thoroughly warm human being which he no doubt was. Well, what are you waiting for?! Just order it; you won't regret it.

Marty Robbins
If you enjoy Marty Robbins this is a MUST to own. The quality was great and so worth buying. You will learn things about Marty Robbins the general public didn't know plus hear him sing some of his best songs. I got to see and hear a great country singer that we lost way too soon. I am so glad I bought it.

the whole live performance
Marty Robbins at the Opry Live-for all lovers of real country music
they dont show them like that anymore!!

Click to Editorial Reviews

Jane And The Dragon: A Dragon's Tale

Finally available on DVD!!!
I'm so glad this is finally available on DVD! Hopefully the remaining episodes will be coming out soon as well. This is one of my favorite TV shows - entertaining to both children and adults, and with a good combination of action, humor and thoughtfulness. Good, clean family viewing with a moral to each episode meets knights, dragons & life in a medieval castle.

The premise is that 13 year old Jane has decided to become a knight rather than a lady-in-waiting. No one takes her seriously until a dragon shows up, and Jane is the one who saves the day, becoming best friends with Dragon in the process. Each episode involves either some new knight-in-training challenge, or sometimes just life around the castle. The characters are nicely animated (this is done by WETA, the folks who did the effects for the Lord of the Rings and Narnia movies, so you know it's good!) and their personalities well developed.

I LOVE Jane & the Dragon....and I'm 46 years old!!!
I happened on Jane & the Dragon by accident as I was flipping through channels one day. OMG...one episode and I'm HOOKED! I'm an able-minded 46 year old woman and I just adore this show! The animation is simply magical and the storylines are meaningful for young and old alike. I highly recommend these DVDs! I know I'M going to get them!

A superb DVD ideal as a gift for dragon lovers of all ages
As seen on NBC, Jane and the Dragon: A Dragon's Tale is a children's DVD collection showcasing the first five episodes of a marvelous children's animated series based on author Martin Baynton's best-selling children's books. Brought to life with Weta Workshop's stunning, three-dimensional computer animation - so advanced as to show the fluid movement of Jane's fiery red hair and the natural flow of characters' clothing - Jane and the Dragon: A Dragon's Tale stars a spunky, twelve-year-old heroine who wasn't content simply to grow up to be a lady-in-waiting. She dared to face a fearsome dragon and rescue Prince Cuthbert; her bravery earned her special permission from King Caradoc to begin training as a knight's apprentice. At the beginning of the first episode, Jane is already working hard at her training, and has formed a fast friendship with the witty and easygoing Dragon - but her first test to be worthy of her chosen path as a future knight looms large! Other episodes show the...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles - The Complete First Season [Blu-ray]

Suprisingly solid entertainment
I've got to get one thing out of the way first, for all those who didn't like Terminator 3. The Sarah Connor Chronicles does NOT pretend T3 doesn't exist, it addressed one of major issues in the film in its first 2 episodes. And since this is sci-fi, complete with time travel, there's no reason that history (even future history) can't be re-written.

To the folks who think the action is "great...for a t.v. show," I can only assume they haven't been watching t.v. in the last 10 years or so. There have been several shows that far eclipse what is being done in movies (Buffy, Alias, two more girl-power shows just off the top of my head).

What really surprised me about the show is how faithful it is to the first and second movies. In just this shortened (9 episodes) first season, we've seen the following characters from the films appear: Miles Dyson's widow and son, Dr. Silverman, Enrique and Kyle Reese.

As for the cast, Lena Headly is no Linda Hamilton,...

Slow to start, but a good answer to the movies
It's a rare thing that a TV series based upon a movie's premise ends up being as good as the show's origins: while slow to start, with a dreadful pilot and many sub-par episodes, the first series of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, over-all, became something that arguably lived up to that standard.

The show follows Sarah and John as they try, again, to prevent Judgement Day. The show follows on from the original two movies, generally ignoring the third (thankfully.) Much of the plot surrounds the character of Cameron, a female terminator sent back from the future to protect John. The show, so far at least, has eschewed predictable cliches involving the character, and often takes the viewer by surprise, from displays of dark humor to dragging the viewer through alternate displays of coldness and humanity.

Episodes I particularly recommend include "Dungeons and Dragons" and the jaw-dropping follow-up "The Demon Hand". Performances are variable. Lena Headey...

Buy this blu-ray if you want to live
When the idea for this show was being shopped around, I thought it would not see the light of day.

A movie spin-off, to TV, normally is not going to be any good. Luckily that is not the case here.

This show takes place after T2, and follows John and Sarah as they try and survive and keep a low profile, while avoiding terminators.

One day something happens, they are spotted, and they meet a new terminator, sent back in time by John. This terminator is to protect John, this terminator is played by the beautiful Summer Glau.

This show is explosive and pretty big budget. The special effects look really good, the fight scenes are amazing, and the show has a pretty good cast. The guest stars are really good too.

After you get to episode 4, the show starts getting even better, it settles into more of a series feel. The first 2-3 episodes feel more like a big movie, then it gets into series territory, and it does a good job...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Charlie Chan Collection, Vol. 5 (Charlie Chan At The Wax Museum/Murder Over New York/Dead Men Tell/Charlie Chan In Rio/Charlie Chan In Panama/Murder Cruise/Castle in the Desert)

Last of the Fox Chans are Surprisingly Good
Sidney Toler's Chan was nothing like Warner Oland's characterization. But if the truth be told, it's Toler who comes through in the pages of Earl Derr Biggers novels, not Oland. I know because as an inveterate Oland fan, I tried very hard to see my hero in the six Chan novels but, alas, it was Toler who showed up in my mind's eyes and ears. As for the Toler films, it took Fox awhile to reposition the series to capture Toler's strengths. If Oland's Chan was like a stately mandarin, Toler's was more of a gritty, Sam Spade-like characterization.

By late 1940, Fox had tailored the scripts to suit Toler's personality and replaced the globe-trotting Oland formula ("At the Race Track," "At the Olympics," "On Broadway") with a compact film noir-like mystery format that was closer stylistically to "The Maltese Falcon" than to "Sherlock Holmes." And it worked too. "Wax Museum" and "Dead Men Tell" are especially adroit little films that benefit from the Fox studio's top technicians,...

The Great Charlie Chan Collection Continues
With the release of Volume Five, the great Charlie Chan series from 20th Century Fox is at last complete. For those interested in watching these classic Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan films in their original order of release, "Charlie Chan In Panama" (1940) is a well crafted , tightly scripted visit to the world famous Panama Canal directed by series veteran Norman Foster. Much of the credit for keeping the suspense high in this cautionary tale regarding the welfare of our fleet goes to the superb supporting cast to include the lovely Jean Rogers along with the very reliable Lionel Atwill and Mary Nash. Another all star supporting cast highlights "Charlie Chan's Murder Cruise" (1940) featuring the great character actor Charles Middleton along with Chan series regulars Robert Lowery and Lionel Atwill with Cora Witherspoon and Leo G. Carroll. Considered something of a rewrite of creator Earl Derr Biggers orginal story,"Charlie Chan Carries On," Murder Cruise manages a few surprises of...

Most Inscrutable
You could almost feel the gentle trade winds of Hawaii during the 1920's in the first Charlie Chan novel by Earl Derr Biggers. Romantic and full of atmosphere, Biggers was always a great romance writer who simply incorporated mystery into his books to propel the story forward. His detective was wise and humorous, his take on American life sometimes a riot. Nothing got by Chan, however, and it was his intelligence which always brought justice in the end.

The adaptations to film lost some of the more romantic aspects of the early Chan novels, centering more on Chan as a detective, as to be expected. Enough humor and atmosphere remained, however, to propel Chan into the top tier of film detectives. Warner Oland's Chan was more refined and subtle, Sidney Toler's more outgoing and amused. Both were excellent. This set features Toler in the final "A" Charlie Chan mysteries before it became a "B" series which, while enjoyable at times, did not have the production values or stories...

Click to Editorial Reviews

The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries: The Complete First Season

It's About Time!
This was the last thoroughly decent series made during Warner Animation's storied Silver Age. Its DVD release is long overdue, and hopefully it will eventually include the second, third and fourth complete seasons as well. Not to mention the few episodes comprising the fifth. Everyone on earth deserves this colossal video treat. They will no longer have to attend movies in public.

Cartoon review
Great product. Purchased so I could show my grand kids what real cartoons are all about. Thay loved this DVD. Thank You.

Looney Mysteries on DVD
If you thought that solving cases with a talking dog is strange, try solving them with a dog, a cat, AND a canary ! That's right; it's the the cat and birdy duo in their very own series: "The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries".

Join the lovable Tweety, that "bad ol' puddy tat" Sylvester, their canine companion Hector, and, of course, super-sleuth Granny as they scour the globe solving the most madcap mysteries you've ever seen in the first 13 episodes of the show. Episodes include "A Chip off the Old Castle" (where the famed Blarney Stone goes missing), "Bull Running on Empty" (where the priceless Pamplona Periscope is purloined), "The Maltese Canary" (where Tweety is mistaken for an infamous item), and "B-2 or Not B-2" (where Granny solves a mystery on a cruise ship).

No matter how mysterious the case is, or how wacky the adventure gets, that Sylvester always keeps trying to get poor Tweety. Luckily there's Hector the dog to stop Sylvester and Granny to quell...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Fields of Glory: Penn State

Penn State
I ordered the DVD because my son went to Penn State and I have been there quite a few times for football games. It was a really nice overview of the football experience and I especially enjoyed it because my son was in the DVD a couple of times (he had a great beer pong shot!!) and it will be a great keepsake for him!





Click to Editorial Reviews

The Love Guru

"I Own You!" ~ Bollywood, Bar Fights, Ball Gazing And Stink Mop As Tools To Englightenment
When you sit down to watch a Mike Myers movie realize that you have made the conscious decision to view something totally inane, slapstick and crude. On the other hand, there is another valid line of thought that would argue anyone who would watch a Mike Myers film is incapable of rational, conscious thought. A point well taken I must admit. With that said, if you're still reading this review we know what camp you fall into.

In the '08 film `The Love Guru' Mr. Myers plays Guru Pitka, the second most popular spiritual teacher in the Occidental world, second to Deepak Chopra of course. Guru Pitka finally gets the opportunity to possibly move out of the number two position when he's hired by the owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team (Jessica Alba) to restore the broken marital relationship between their star player and his estranged wife who has moved in with the Los Angeles Kings well endowed goalie (Justin Timberlake). If he's successful he will not only be handed a...

A Karmic Komedy
Forget about Mike Myers for a minute. Let's begin with Ben Kingsley, the Oscar winning actor who actually appears in "The Love Guru"; he plays a cross-eyed spiritual advisor from India, and his name is not a double entendre so much as it's a blatant sexual reference smushed into a single word. The sight of this man is hilarious, and yet I didn't want to laugh because I know that Kingsley has made so many better choices than this film. What possessed him to act in a film this unashamedly juvenile? Did he find the idea of nonstop [...] gags appealing? I might as well be asking myself the same questions, because in all honesty, "The Love Guru" often had me giggling like a six-year-old who heard his first dirty joke. But to call this movie a comedic masterpiece would be an insult to the very concept of comedy.

The plot focuses on Pitka (Myers), an American-born, Indian-raised guru who was taught by Kingsley's character to become an expert in matters of love. How, I'm not...

Miserably, Wretchedly Awful
I remember the negative rumblings when this film was in production. The advance screening reviews did not treat it well, and most reviews once it opened also were not good, some of them downright brutal. Then it was in and out of my local megaplexes in less than a month. Now it's on DVD, right after the end of the summer, not even waiting for the holiday market, not even tying into some kind of wacky Halloween marketing-thing.

Through all of these increasingly negative omens I kept faith, figuring, "Hey, it's Mike Myers, the man who brought us "Sprockets" on Saturday Night Live, the Wayne's World guy, the Austin Powers guy." I like to watch So I Married an Axe Murderer when it's on...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Unstable Fables: Tortoise vs. Hare

Aesop spins
Once upon a time, and a long time ago, a Greek slave named Aesop told his famous fable about a tortoise and a hare who decided to have a race. The moral of the story was "slow and steady wins the race"

Fast forward to 2008, and along comes this straight to DVD movie by Jim "Who's Yo Muppet?" Henson. A part of the "Unstable Fable" series, this sequel to the fable stars the vocal talents of Jay Leno, Danny Glover, Vivica Fox, Drake Bell and Keke Palmer and takes place 15 years after the main event.

Walter Tortoise (Glover), his wife Dotty (Fox) and daughter Crystal (Palmer) now live in fancy digs in the burbs next door to Murray Hare (Leno), his wife and son Butch (Bell). The big race is a constant discussion point, and the feuding critters decide to drag their unwilling offspring into a grudge rematch in the form of an "Amazing Race" type of competition. You can pretty much work out how things are going to end up, but then there's an unexpected twist to shake...

Tortoise vs. Hare........Slow and Steady wins the Race?.....
Tortoise vs. Hare is the second CGI film in the "Unstable Fables" line of films from The Jim Henson Company(yes, the ones responsible for the Muppets). In this retelling of Aesop's Tale, It's years since 'Slow and Steady' Tortoise won the race against the 'Speedy' Hare. With both sides obsessing over what happend, The Hare decides to challenge The Tortoise to a rematch in the upcoming Mount Impossible team race. Thing is, this time their kids are involved because it is a team race. Will the younger generation teach the older generation something about friendship, family and playing fair? Well, like I had to, you'll have to watch the movie and find out. You'll be surpised at the ending.

I'll admit, I was expecting this movie to be pure kid's fare..since it is a fractured fairy tale, after all. Yet, I was quite surprised that this movie appealed as much to me as it would a child. Sure, it may not be quite dead-on in it's amusement like Shrek, Happily N'ever After or Toy Story...

Great Fable. My kids love it.
It's a great movie. My kids love it. It's a fable and teaches you a lesson. The animation is good. Hope this helps.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Hakugei: Legend of the Moby Dick

tina loves anime
First off let me make clear that my review is coming from a 56 year old woman's point of view. I've been watching anime for quite a while now and am looking for any anime that's more mature in nature (and I don't mean extreme violence or explicit sex) just something not too juvenile. I had seen a few episodes on the Anime Network on demand and thought this might be for me. I noticed it seemed to be made by the same people that made Black Jack and I've enjoyed that very much. So I ordered the complete series at a very good price. The first dvd was alright, with some light humor but my main complaint is as the series went on well into the 26 episodes it got cartoonish to the degree that I was fast forwarding it just to get through it. There were some story lines in it that were very good in particular I liked the romance between the two androids. Maybe a younger person would enjoy the mayhem but I found it ridiculous.

A "whale" by any other name...
Director Osamu Dezaki was a disciple of manga giant Osamu Tezuka, and after the death of Tezuka in 1989, got the chance to direct almost a dozen OAVs and a feature film based on Tezuka's renegade surgeon Black Jack. By 2006 Dezaki, still working for Tezuka Productions, had undertaken a non-Tezuka project: a 26-week TV series, "Hakugei", loosely based on Herman Melville's "Moby-Dick".

How loosely? This is a sci-fi update, set centuries in the future, when "whales" were wrecks and castoff spaceships, which yielded enough scrap and sometimes cargo to make salvage a nice living. Hence the whale-hunters: aggressive scrap scavengers. And one of the best-known is Ahab Ishmael Ali. who lost a leg and an eye to an encounter with "Hakugei", a derelict ship that resembles a white whale.

This series, in short, doesn't resemble Melville very much. It is, however, a singular mix of drama and somewhat lowbrow humor. Sometimes characters just start verbally riffing off of...

Pretty good until the end
I like this series. It was fun following these characters/ Lots of twists and turns but the ending was kinda rushed, confusing and didn't wrap up very well. It left me wanting a better ending.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Private Practice: The Complete First Season

LOVE PrP!!!
This show just got better and better with each episode. It came into its own, finding a great balance between comedy and drama. The acting is wonderful, Kate Walsh is SPECTACULAR, she just keeps adding more and more layers to the character we have all come to love as the beautifully complicated Dr. Addison Montgomery. Amy Brenamann is wonderful as the talented and flawed Violet. Tim Daly is great as the sexy complex quack Pete. Taye Diggs is deliciously HOT, funny, somewhat dorky, but still manly Sam, Audra McDonald is great as the ex-wife who is trying to keep it all together but you can see that she is on the brink of breaking down completely, and Paul Adelstein is a maverick of talent. LOVE this show I definitely see nominations for the show and the actors in the near future especially for our AMAZINGLY talented leading lady Kate Walsh.

I am so excited for this series to come out. I miss this AMAZING show. I can't wait till it comes back this fall.

Addison starts a new life in LA.......
Private Practice - a spin-off from the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy - debuted in September 2007, with Addison Forbes Montgomery (the beautiful Kate Walsh) starting a new life in a private practice medical clinic in LA.

Many have tried to compare the show to Greys, which should be avoided as it has an entirely different tone - lighter, funnier & less OTT-angsty than Greys. It also benefits from being set where it is actually filmed & features location filming out-and-about in LA.

Kate Walsh shines as Addison & easily carries the show. She is surrounded by a small core cast of experienced & talented actors - Tim Daly, Audra McDonald, Taye Diggs, Amy Brenneman, Paul Adelstein, Chris Lowell & KaDee Strickland.

After a rocky first episode, the writing improved as the series progressed & the show started to find its own identity & distance from Greys.

It was the highest-rated new drama this year & one of the first freshman shows to be picked...

The best new show of 2007 :-)
I absolutely love this show (I saw almost all of it when I was in America and thankful for that because Australia is last again). It's fantastic and addictive and funny and so enjoyable. If I'm going to be completely honest, the main reasons I began watching this is because of Tim Daley and Taye Diggs. Especially Tim - he's so cute. But I found myself getting really involved with the story lines and the characters and now have a new favourite show.
After the initial episode of seeing the crossover from Greys to Private, we see the first episode called In Which We Meet Addison, a Nice Girl From Somewhere Else (all the episodes are called In Which ...) where she joins the Oceanside Wellness Group where she was offered a job. The clinic is mostly owned by one of her best friends in college. One of the other workers there is Dr Pete Wilder (Tim Daley) who throughout the season, she has a strong strong chemistry with. It makes for very interesting situations. Some of the...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Barney - Movin' and Groovin'

Mommy's favorite Barney episode
***Parent Annoyance Meter Rating: 2*** (1= not annoying whatsoever, I would watch this without my child - 5=If I have to watch this again, someone better bring me a straitjacket)

This is my favorite Barney right now (out of our library of about 8 episodes). It starts with the kids in the park playing clapping games and making rhythms. Next they sing "If You're Happy and You Know It" which involves clapping and stomping, etc. Later the kids decide to have a band and each one picks an instrument. They go into the playhouse to find items that can stand in as their instruments. My heart melted the other day when my two-year-old picked up a fat marker, held it like a flute, and made little flute noises like she was playing it. If you get only one Barney video, GET THIS ONE!

Movin' and Groovin' and Hop Hop Hopping!!!
Our daughter is 16 months old - she received this DVD for her first birthday. For all of us, it was our inaugural Barney experience!

As a first time sometimes naive parent who was very reluctant to introduce anything on the television, I honestly thought it would only make interesting background scenery but how wrong was I! Daniela is extremely interested in the antics of Barney and his friends! For us it's a pleasure to see her entranced by a simple hour of gentle children's songs, dances and visions. It's what I consider good TV - as her own speech and body coordination develop, it's great fun to watch her starting to sing along and learn the dance moves, not to mention great exercise for me when I get involved!

The only down side - you will find yourself on a quiet day at work humming away, something along the lines of "quack, quack, quack, let's do like the duckies do!"

Just OK
My daughter(almost 2) LOVES Barney!! However she barely even pays attention to this video. Its ok but my recommendation would be to purchase a different Barney sing and dance video!!

Click to Editorial Reviews

Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage, Vol. 1

"Time to live forever, baby!"
Finally, a North American release! This is a review of the entire second season of the fantastic action anime series that I consider to be the spiritual successor to "Cowboy Bebop". Overall, I think the bar was raised on this second outing and, though it's not perfect, I'll round it up to 5-star status because it comes so close. The character development is great, the new characters are all memorable and entertaining, even with limited screen time, and the familiar faces are a more than welcome sight. If you enjoyed the first twelve episodes, have no fear; this anime continues to deliver big time. I just wish the seasons were longer.

The first two arcs of this season are the height of the entire series so far for me. Rather than focusing on the long-resolved issues between former salaryman Rock and psychotic she-pirate supreme Levi (Revi if you prefer the Japanese pronunciation) or the nature of their work, the focus is squarely on their hometown of Roanapur. The city, if...

Finally, the 2nd season is coming to dvd
Seeing as Geneon was never going to bring it on dvd since they don't care about the fans. Funimation was more reliable and finally released it to dvd instead. It is worth it and this anime is only for adults. So keep all the sensitive weaklings from watching it. The 1st of three dvds is a great buy.

And for those of you who don't know. A third season is underway.



Click to Editorial Reviews

Chuck: The Complete First Season

The Nerd Herder Who Loved Me
NBC's CHUCK is such a welcome surprise and one of the best and funniest TV shows I've seen in a while, something which normally is an omen for immediate cancellation (but, thankfully, NBC picked it up for the full season). CHUCK achieves that heady mix of humor, action, espionage, and even a dash of romance (or pining, to be more exact). And it'll have you rooting for the nerd hero Chuck Bartowski, the physically hapless but nonetheless invaluable new member of the U.S. secret agent fraternity. Whereas, before, Chuck was someone who for thrills lived life vicariously thru video games and films, he's all of a sudden forced to cope with experiencing the very intense real thing.

Several SPOILERS follow.

The 411 on the premise and plot: A rogue CIA agent, just before being killed, downloads a wealth of top secret government files into the brain of his old college roommate Chuck Bartowski, a seemingly disastrous choice at first blush. Chuck is a social misfit, a...

Action, Comedy, Romance, Intrigue.... I Can Go On If You Want
Chuck Bartowski's (Zachary Levi) life was going no where fast. True, he is head of the Nerd Herd at his local Buy More. But he lives with his sister Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) and her boyfriend Devon (aka Captain Awesome, played by Ryan McPartlin). His best friend is Morgan (Joshua Gomez), a fellow nerd who also works at Buy More.

But things change drastically when Chuck gets an e-mail from former friend Bryce Larkin. The e-mail contains all the files of the intersect, the complete intelligence files of both the CIA and the NSA. And, to make things more exciting, Bryce has destroyed the original files.

All the information gets downloaded into Chuck's brain, making him a highly valuable government secret. So valuable that he has two bodyguards, Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski), a CIA agent who pretends to be Chuck's girlfriend, and John Casey (Adam Baldwin), a NSA who moves in next door to Chuck and takes a job at Buy More.

Whenever Chuck sees...

One of the better new series of the strike-shortened 2007-2008 season
CHUCK did the one thing that any good series needs to do: it managed to get better as it went along. To enjoy it one has to be able to suspend quite a bit of disbelief. One has to imagine it somehow possible for someone to have the entire contents of the CIA computer database downloaded into the brain of a single human being. One further has to imagine that this person would "flash" on seeing people, objects, names, or whatever, recognizing a series of connections that would escape any other person. Finally, you have to accept that this individual would continue to work in their poorly paid job at Buy More while his advisors from the CIA and the NSA would work either alongside him in Buy More or nearby in a wiener fast foot joint. A plausible premise? Of course not! But if you cut it a lot of slack it provides one heck of a fun ride.

Why would one cut it slack? Well, first and foremost because Zachary Levi is delightful in the title role. As Chuck, Levi is able to...

Click to Editorial Reviews

The Legend of the Lone Ranger

HORRIBLE DVD Transfer of a Mediocre Movie from 1981
First of all, indeed -- amazon.com has the reviews section wrong. Most of the other reviews are referring to the old television show, NOT the 1981 movie starring Klinton Spilsbury.

Now that we have that out of the way, there's little else to defend about this movie. Klinton Spilsbury (who looks like a more chiseled version of Rick Springfield), just isn't very good in the part. Admittedly, his voice was dubbed by actor James Keach, and I think this makes his performance even more wooden. It's way too monotone. I would love to hear Klinton's real voice some day.

The movie does have some saving graces. John Barry's score is absolutely terrific (the Waylon Jennings "songs" are quite the opposite though -- any time his one man "Greek chorus" comes from the speakers, it's flat out embarrassing). Jason Robards is quite good (although with limited screen time) as Ulysses S. Grant). Christopher Lloyd is actually pretty good as the bad guy (although I don't know...

Klinton Spilbury Is My Homie!
Who was that masked man? Why, it was Klinton Spilsbury! "Who the hell is Klinton Spilsbury?" you're probably asking. Well, it's a good question, coz no one really knows it seems.
To me, there's something fascinating about the concept of an actor making his film debut as the leading man in a major film, winning a Razzie award for the lousy performance, then never starring in a movie again. To this day, no one really knows where Spilsbury is, what he's doing, or if he's even alive. Rumor has it he was difficult to work with, and Wikipedia states that there is a rumor he was working at Subway for awhile!
Well, he had his 15 minutes(actually more like 98) as the iconic Lone Ranger in the 1981 bomb, The Legend Of The Lone Ranger-a movie considered so bad that it was swept under the rug and pretty much forgotten about. Even people I know who are into westerns are surprised to learn that a Lone Ranger film was made. Is it really as bad as it's reputation? No, of course not...

One of my Guilty Pleasures
I remember watching The Lone Ranger with my Father and when the movie came out, I was excited to relive that feeling. I thought the movie was a good retelling of the origion story and that it gave John Reid/Lone Ranger more of a human feel and that I could relate with him. I know that others didn't like the film, but I can still watch the film and feel like a kid again with it. I almost feel like yelling "High-Yo Silver, Away" everytime I hear the William Tell Overture. It's one of my personal favorites.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Errol Flynn Westerns Collection (Montana / Rocky Mountain / San Antonio / Virginia City)

Flynn's Westerns - A Unique Sub-Genre
There are westerns (with John Wayne, Gary Cooper, directed by John Ford, Howard Hawks, not to mention Roy Rogers and Gene Autry) and then there are Errol Flynn's westerns. I think I saw some of Flynn's westerns on TV before I saw any of the others and was therefore very surprised to find that DODGE CITY, VIRGINIA CITY, THEY DIED WITH THEIR BOOTS ON, etc., were unlike any of the other films in the genre. That said, these films created a unique western sub-genre on their own terms, mainly because Flynn was a unique screen presence and Warners figured out how to tailor stories to his personality.

This four-film collection brings together the less celebrated films. 1940's VIRGINIA CITY is basically a "prequel" to 1939's DODGE CITY with Flynn, Alan Hale, and Guinn "Big Boy" Williams playing virtually the same characters they did in the first film. My guess is that the romantic subplot with Miriam Hopkins (she and Flynn have absolutely NO screen chemistry)would have confused the...

Essentially a volume 3 of the Flynn Signature series
Only "Virginia City" has an A-film feel about it with Michael Curtiz directing and notable Warner costars. The other three are B Westerns in my opinion, but Flynn's presence always made any film much better. His performances in all of these films are very good, he just doesn't always have the best material with which to work, and in some cases he is working with some very bizarre casting. The extra features bring this package up to four stars in my opinion, but I don't understand why WHV just didn't go ahead and add "Silver River" to the set and make it the usual five film classic box set. Someone else has already done an excellent job of summarizing each film. So I'll just mention the extra features for the set, the director in each case, and my personal rating of each film on a five star scale:

Montana (1950) directed by Ray Enright. (3/5)
The weakest of the four films in the set.
Extra Features:
Vintage Newsreel
Warner Night at the Movies 1950 Short...

Fine Showcase of Flynn's Less-Celebrated Westerns...
Despite Errol Flynn's legacy as the screen's greatest swashbuckler, he, in fact, made more war films and westerns than sword-swinging adventures. While a collection of his often-worthwhile war films hasn't been released, yet, "Errol Flynn Westerns Collection (Montana / Rocky Mountain / San Antonio / Virginia City)" does provide an opportunity to enjoy some of Flynn's lesser-known westerns (chosen, I suspect, because two are in color). While Flynn hated making 'oaters', in general (with the exception of "They Died With Their Boots On"), his natural grace, charm, and riding and shooting skills certainly offset his incongruous Australian accent!

"Virginia City" (1940), is, arguably, the only 'A-list' title of the collection, a quasi-sequel to Flynn's hugely successful 1939 Western debut, "Dodge City", again directed by Michael Curtiz, scored by Max Steiner, and featuring Alan Hale and Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams as his sidekicks. This time around, Flynn is an undercover Union...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Yoga for Beginners

Brilliant :-)
I am slowly learning to like yoga. It's still not my absolute favourite workout, but this dvd is helping me even more to enjoy it better. It truly is for beginners and even I found it easy(ish) to do.
Desi is a great instructor and she has a clear, calm way of cuing and the camera work also allows you to see the moves better and practice them yourself and follow along well. There are two workouts, Solar and Lunar, which seem to be a trend now (doing an AM and PM workout). The Solar one is energy boosting and the Lunar routine is more stretchy and slower paced to be relaxing. It is meant to also lengthen your muscles which I feel it is probably doing.
I've done this three times now and I'm constantly getting a little better. I find it great to do on hectic days because it really is relaxing, and each workout is under a half hour so it's not too hard to fit into your day. I like this a lot and would highly recommend it to almost everyone. It is very do-able.

Great dvd for beginners
When I first got this cd, I was 177 lbs and very out of shape. I started doing both Solar and Lunar every day and at first I could not keep up with the video, and would have to stop and start the dvd. But I kept trying and by the end of the first week, I was able to keep up with her (although dolphin pose is still a problem for me).

After using this video and adding 1 mile of jogging per day, I have lost 30 lbs in 4 months, and have never felt stronger. I highly recommend this dvd to people who are just starting out with yoga and want to see results quickly. I will keep using this video because I really like the production quality and Desi's instructions are greeat and her voice is very calming. It's like having yoga and meditation in one dvd.

NOT good for true beginners
Ultimately, I think if you already have a decent understanding of basic yoga, this video would be a good work out... I hope to work up to it. But if you have really never done yoga before and do not know much about it, this video is too fast and does not spend time on basic poses and correct form. I need something slower, that spends time on getting the poses right. Eventually, I think this would be a good every day routine...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Hi-5 Hits

Only songs on this DVD - No stories were included
I have two girls 5 and 2 years old that love watching and dancing to HI-5. Unfortunately, this DVD only has singing in it. We enjoy Hi-5 because of the music AND the stories. I wish the DVD had included a description to let me know it was just singing and dancing. [...].

My kid loves it!
I bought this DVD for my son for christmas and he loves it! When I bought it I thought that it was episodes, but its a compilation of all the songs and dances from several of the episodes, which was really cool cause he likes doing the dances. We are thinking of buying him the entire seasons for his birthday. The Hi-5 crew is awesome for young kids!

High 5
This item is very difficult to find. Luckily for my granddaughter I was able to find it in time for Christmas! Hi-5 is very popular among the toddler set. Songs are catchy and music is lively. Even gets me moving with the beats and my granddaughter just loves it. We repeat it over and over again. May have to purchase another if the first wears out. Great sounds for all!

Click to Editorial Reviews

The Shield: Season Six

The end is near...
The sixth season of FX's The Shield can be considered the penultimate season of the gritty crime drama. Beginning with the aftermath of Lem's (Kenny Johnson) death, Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) swears vengeance, unbeknownst to him that his partner Shane (Walton Goggins) is responsible. In the meantime, Vic faces a forced retirement, more so when younger, possibly brasher detective Kevin Hiatt (Moonlight's Alex O'Loughlin) is brought onto the Strike Team as Vic's successor. With Kavanaugh (Forest Whitaker) still lurking in the shadows and still trying to bring Vic down once and for all, things reach a boiling point as Vic comes closer and closer to learning the truth, and the reprecussions that come and are going to come in the upcoming final season. Other plot developments of this season include Claudette (CCH Pounder) adjusting to an illness, Dutch (Jay Karnes) in developments that you won't see coming, Aceveda (Benito Martinez) once again forming an uneasy alliance with Vic, and...

The Shield doesn't step aside, it steps up
For all its hard-edges and testosterone-fuelled machismo, The Shield never fails to paint its principal characters as touchingly human, even if the moments are few and far between that we get to glimpse these more tender parts, and this is one of the elements of its success at being the most emotionally cathartic, intense, adrenaline-rush on the telly.

The Shield, in my albeit humble opinion, is the single best product ever recorded to celluloid with the intention of playing it back for entertainment purposes: bar nothing. It's the best thing that's ever graced my TV screen, and makes other top-drawer productions look pedestrian and even lame by comparison.

Season six is full-throttle, pedal to the metal in the style we've become accustomed to, but due to events leading up to the start of the season, the protagonists seem to be in the full throes of a ravaging tornado this season, even more than others.

Walt Goggins serves up the convincing...

Great set up for the last season
In Season 6, this fantastic show does a great job setting the viewers up for what will surely be a truly shocking end to a truly great gritty cop drama.

First, the plotlines. Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) is going to be forcibly retired. But before he goes, he is determined to find out who killed fellow Strike Team Member, Lem (Kenneth Johnson). Menawhile Shane (Walton Goggins) is falling into a downward spirl, from which he may never climb out. His guilt over his actions, plus trying to keep his family safe and Vic in the dark, has him acting irrational (joining up with Franka Potente and the Armenian mob) and even suicidal (watch the scene when he locks himself in a room with an armed hostage taker). Meanwhile, Claudette (CCH Pounder) finds herself under fire from her superiors. And when the "big crime of the season" happens (the San Marcos murders, a slughter of 12 Hispanic people in a hotel), the case takes all sorts of twists and turns. Once again, Aceveda and...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Shuffle, Vol. 6 with Ender Box

Amazing and very fun
This story is about a young man named Rin. Rin lives with his friend Kaede. Both of them lost their mothers in an accident, and Kaede takes care of Rin's every need. It looks like they will always be together, until a couple of princesses form other worlds show up and ask him to choose one of them to marry. There is also a classmate named Asa who is gunning for his affections. After things start to settle down a young girl comes from the demon world to live with Kaede and Rin, making everything even more crazy. With all these really great ladies after his attention Rin must choose one, and break the others hearts.

This story is very good. It's a great harem style anime with lots of awesome characters and plot twists. It is also very emotional. The last 6 episodes or so are really heavy. The animation quality and voice acting are also very good in this anime. I enjoyed every minute of it. I hope you do too.

sweet
this is was a good deal, it would have been 5 stars but my package came in damaged i loved the panties!!!

Welcome 2 the Darkside pt.3 THE END.
First I want to say I'm going to miss this series, while by no stretch is this the greatest anime series of all time. It became my favorite anime series this year. Trust me it didn't start that way, but the characters grew on me. As far as the ending goes I found it satisfactory they gave you happy ending which I felt was nice. I still can't believe how dark this series got. I loved the turn but it was so happy go lucky, then boom Rumu got sick it all went down hill. Some of those episodes you can really feel what the characters are going through. I feel the Japanese are brilliant when it comes to make you care about cartoon characters. Now the million dollar question what girl would I choose. It took me a minute to figure which one I was feeling the most. But I have to pick Lisianthus AKA Sia. She was to me the sexiest espicially Kikyo. She was like hot sex on a platter in that phase lol. I have to give a special shout out to Maiyumi I thought she was really cute. Yeah she had a lack...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Care Bears: Care-A-Lot Collection

Care Bear Episodes Selections
These are the 22 care bear episodes included in the dvd set

These are the older Care Bear episodes

1. The Birthday
2. The Old Man and the Lighthouse
3. The Cloud Worm
4. The Last Laugh
5. The Forest Of Misfortune
6. Daydreams
7. Drab City
8. Runaway
9. Soap Box Derby
10. Camp
11. Braces
12. Split Decisions
13. The Magic Shop
14. Magic Mirror
15. The Night the Stars Went Out
16. The Lucky Charm
17. The Show Must Go On
18. Concrete Rain
19. The Girl Who Cried Wolf
20. Dry Spell
21. Mayor For A Day
22. Wedding Bells

A delight for preschoolers
The Care Bears are perennial favorites of preschoolers and their parents. Now there is a 2-disc DVD boxed set that showcases twenty-two Care Bear episodes featuring all of the Care Bears and their friends whose adventures help young viewers with a variety of real life experiences such as accepting a new babysitter, improving at sports, making new friends, dealing with braces, accepting a new baby in the family, and so much more! This full-framed DVD boxed set features Dolby sound, subtitling for both English and Spanish, closed captioning, and has a total running time of 264 minutes. A delight for preschoolers, "The Care Bears: Care-A-Lot Collection" is especially recommended for family, preschool, daycare, and community library DVD collections for children.

great for girls and boys
I found this at a discount store and it reminded me of when I was younger. I didn't know if my kids would actually like it. My kids are 6,4 and 2 and they all (girls and boy) love it. It is a huge collection and runs for a total of 4 hours!! Great dvd's for a long car ride.

Click to Editorial Reviews

The Trans-Siberian Railroad

The Trans Siberian Adventure
This Trans Siberian DVD is a charming account of a couple's trip on the railroad. It provides interesting information about places to stop off and visit on the way through the countries of Russia and Mongolia. We enjoyed the ride and the historical background. It is very much a couple's home movie of their adventure - not a Steven Spielberg!

works for this armchair traveler
Would you like this DVD? Probably not if you are looking for a professionally produced travelogue.

But IF you long to take the Trans-Siberian, as I do, this is useful DVD. There isn't much video out there about this route. Yes it's essentially a home movie - but what a home movie, carefully researched and organized.

With this DVD you get to go along on the most elaborate cross-Russia that the pre-eminently classy MIR Travel has to offer. Starting west of Moscow and going to Vladivostok and beyond into the wilderness to the north-with many add-ons throughout. You get a feel for being on the tour: the sights, hanging out on the train, cramped corners, lots of down time, fellow travelers, varied excursions. For less than $10, I sampled a trip that could cost $100K for a couple on MIR. I wanted to thank the authors for putting it together.

trans siberian railroad
I expected this to be about the trans siberian railroad. It was really a traveloge and had very little to do with the railroad other than as transportation.

Click to Editorial Reviews

A Haunting - Seasons 1-4

Scary and Thought Provoking Show without Gore
I was a fan of A Haunting when it ran on the Discovery channel and I was very sad to see them cancel this show. A Haunting was produced by New Dominion Pictures, who did the FBI Files and the New Detectives series that also ran on Discovery. For those who are not familiar with the show, A Haunting covers real life experiences of encounters with the paranormal. Interviews with people who experienced the paranormal activity are included. Some appear in shadow and the show is augmented by reenactments of their stories. What sets this show apart from others is the high quality production values and interview with both the individuals and the paranormal investigators who assisted them and shed light into their craft. The various methods of scientific study and differing types of hauntings, demons, phantoms and etc. are fascinating. This show is scary, (scarier than many horror movies, it was so well produced) there is no gore, but the atmosphere is extremely creepy. If you watch some of...

Creepy supernatural series based on true events
Discovery Channel's "A Haunting" Seasons 1-4 contains some of the creepiest stories I've ever seen reenacted on screen, all of which are based on actual events. The series is in a docu-drama format, i.e. the reenactments are done using actors, props etc, but these scenes are then interspersed with interviews with those who actually experienced the hauntings, paranormal investigators, etc. This format makes for a compelling series that keeps viewers engaged throughout the various episodes.

The episode list is as follows:
Season 1
Hell House
The Haunting of Summerwind
Echoes from the Grave
Cursed
Darkness Follows
Lake Club Horror
Gateway to Hell
The Diabolical

Season 2
Demon Child
Sallie's House
Ghost Soldier
Where Demons Dwell
House of the Dead
Hungry Ghosts
Dark Forest
A Haunting in Florida

Season 3
Fear House
The Attic
Hidden Terror
The...

EXCELLENT.
This dvd set is awesome,and it does have the scary factor that would put holly wood horror movies to shame,very well made documentries,excellent.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Kill Bill - Volumes 1 & 2 [Blu-ray] (Amazon.com Exclusive)

Great Movie-Box Set is ok
Quentin Tarantino is arguably the best film-maker of his generation. His ability and passion to tell stories through film is second to none. "Kill Bill" bears witness to Tarantino's love of film by referencing a variety of genres such as blacksploitation, marital arts, anime, spaghetti westerns, and superhero movies. Some might find it easy to dismiss him as merely a movie fan who makes movies about other movies. I argue that he's far more creative than that. He draws upon these genres for inspiration and creates stories that are fresh, intelligently written, and compelling to watch. For example, in the third act of volume 2, Bill, played by the late David Carradine, shoots [Uma Thurman's character] with a dart filled with truth serum forcing her to answer his many questions. While waiting for the serum to take effect, Bill monologues about his fascination with comic books and, in particular, superhero mythology. "The point emerges" as Bill compares [Uma Thurman's character's]...

Excellent Movie & Blu-ray discs
An excellent blu-ray transfer for an awesome movie. The picture quality is one of the best video transfers on blu-ray and the audio is equally pleasing. Its a must own in the collection of best blu-ray titles. Not much on the extras side, but the Movie itself is worth it.

Movie: 4.25/5 Picture Quality: 4.25~5/5 Sound Quality: 4.5/5 Extras: 1.75/5
Version: U.S.A / Miramax / Region A, B, C

Kill Bill Vol. 1
MPEG-4 AVC BD-50 / High Profile 4.1
Running time: 1:50:43 (U.S Cut)
Movie size: 31,48 GB
Disc size: 36,01 GB
Average video bit rate: 30.06 Mbps

LPCM Audio English 4608 kbps 5.1 / 48kHz / 16-bit / 4608kbps
Dolby Digital Audio English 640 kbps 5.1 / 48kHz / 640kbps
Dolby Digital Audio French 640 kbps 5.1 / 48kHz / 640kbps

Subtitles: English SDH / Chinese / Japanese / French / Korean / Spanish
Number of chapters: 20

* The Making of KILL BILL Volume 1
* THE "5, 6, 7, 8'S" Musical Performances
* Tarantino Trailers: "Reservoir Dogs," "Pulp Fiction," "Jackie Brown," "Kill Bill: Volume 1" bootleg trailer, Kill Bill" Volume 2 teaser.

*******************************************************************

Kill Bill Vol. 2
MPEG-4 AVC BD-50 / High Profile 4.1
Running time: 2:16:57
Movie size: 38,50...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Chicago 10

Allow me to demonstrate
In September of 1969, Abbie Hoffman and fellow radical activists Jerry Rubin, David Dellinger, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, John Froines, and Lee Weiner were hauled into court along with Black Panther Bobby Seale on a grand jury indictment for allegedly conspiring to incite the massive anti-Vietnam war protests and resulting violent mayhem that transpired in the Chicago environs during the 1968 Democratic Convention. What resulted is arguably the most overtly political "show trial" in American history.

Using a mélange of animation, archival footage and voiceover re-creation by well-known actors, Brett Morgen expands even further on the eye-catching multimedia technique that he and co-director Nanette Burstein used in their 2002 doc The Kid Stays in the Picture.

The bulk of the animated sequences are re-enactments from the trial itself, with dialog lifted directly from courtroom transcripts (and trust me, no rewrites were required because you couldn't make...

San Francisco Chronicle vs Chicago 10
The SF Chronicle movie page editors headlined their review: "Chicago 10 painted as heroes, but they come off as obnoxious." Millions murdered in a crazy war on the other side of the world by that infamous President from Texas (Lyndon "How many boys did you kill today?" Johnson, not today's imposter George W. Bush), thousands and thousands of young draftees thrown into the vortex of slaughter -- and Abbie Hoffman is obnoxious? Read more: [...]

Great Docu-Drama About the 1*9*6*8 DNC March.
The CHICAGO 10 DVD is a gripping movie about the 1968 trial of the "Chicago 8" (later the Chicago 7 when Bobby Seale was separated from the others) who were charged with conspiracy and inciting a riot, among other charges, for the massive demonstrations that took place during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. People, especially young people, from all over the USA convened to protest the Vietnam War when the massive march went awry and cops began attacking the marchers.

Anyway, the movie combines animation and archival footage of the events that took place during that August 1968. The animation is mainly in the courtroom, which is based on the court transcripts. Everything else is shown through footage either from news feeds or amateur video.

I found the movie gripping as the action switches back and forth from the court house trial to the actions happening during the marches etc., culminating in the mess that was captured by news cameras covering the...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Pucca: Spooky Sooga Village

Pucca: Spooky Sooga Village
Pucca: Spooky Sooga Village

Spooky Sooga Village is a magical place snuggled between ancient rituals and modern monkey business, full of ninjas, monks, noodle chefs, magic potions and cursed clothing. Where else could you meet a girl like Pucca--the supercute, superpowered, pint-size kung fu queen.

Pucca, her ninja love Garu and their friends Abyo and Ching are ready for a fun night of Halloween Tricks and Treats. But with jumps and surprises around every corner, our mini martial artists may have to kung fu kick (or kiss) their way out of trouble.

Spooky Sooga Village is a witches' brew of mischief and mayhem for every spook and ghoul!

Contains the following episodes :

1 Them Bones
2 Ghost Of A Kiss
3 The Usual Ching
4 A Force Of Won
5 The Cursed Tie
6 Invisible Trouble
7 High Voltage Ninjas
8 Ninjasaurus
9 Unfortunate Cookies
10 Itsy Bitsy Enemy Within
11 Funny Love...

The perfect choice to round out a child's Halloween party
Pucca: Spooky Sooga Village is an award-winning animated children's DVD celebrating Halloween with a wacky twist. In Sooga Village, something spooky is going on - but the pint-sized, Kung-Fu queen Pucca won't stand for any funny business! A playful, brightly colored adventure of scares and mayhem, packed with exciting episodes such as "Them Bones", "Ghost of a Kiss", "Itsy Bitsy Enemy Within" and many more. Pucca: Spooky Sooga Village is a family-friendly treasury of laughs and surprises, and the perfect choice to round out a child's Halloween party. 77 minutes, color.

Pucca: Spooky Sooga Village
I love this DVD. It has a greatselection of Pucca cartoons for Halloween. My favoirte is when Garu is haunted by a ghost who is Pucca's relative from long ago. It's so cute. And when Abyo tries to help poor Garu.

Click to Editorial Reviews

No Blood No Tears

"Pulp Noir", Women Empowerment and Martial Arts Action...What's There Not to Like??
Everyone knows that there are a number of great Hollywood directors such as Quentin Tarantino and even Martin Scorsese who are very fond of Asian cinema, and they have good reason to be. NO BLOOD NO TEARS (2002) is one of the true testaments to that claim and a welcome tribute to pulp noir films. Whoever said that Asian directors cannot keep up with the big-shots of Hollywood deserves a SPIDER FINGER JAB in the face. This film is proof as to why Korean cinema has been growing, Ryu Seung-Wan's (City of Violence, Arahan) latest U.S. release is so full of style, dynamic chemistry between its characters that meshes a lot of substance. Ryu Seung-Wan has been basking in "commercial fame" with the successes of his other films and finally this film is brought to U.S. shores. Korean movie fans have a reason to rejoice; CJ Entertainment is now operating in the U.S.

Soo-jin (Jeon Do-Yeon) is an aspiring singer with a boyfriend from hell named Puldok (Jeong Jae-yeong, Guns and Talks)...

Prime Korean Neo Noir
Awesome example of Korean neo noir. Two females with guns and a plan. What are the possibilities? Director Ryu steps back from his high-energy macho nihilism for a Elmore Leonard style of oddball and psychotic characters. The older female cab driver looks into the rearview and sighs, "Your glory days all gone." She promptly gets sideswiped by her future partner in crime, played by the great Jeon Do-yeon. Pity the film had to be marketed in the west as the Korean Thelma and Louise. Different as kimchi and cole slaw. Super cool, very modern Asian noir, highly entertaining.



Click to Editorial Reviews

Beauty in a Jar

Very Informative! A Must-See!
You might not think that a documentary about the make-up industry would be interesting, but it really was. The work goes from saying how women in the 1890s would have associated wearing make-up with evening ladies, to women in the 1950s not walking around the house without being made up, to 1970s feminists condemning makeup, to its future in this century. The work is inclusive of Black women, not only post-Civil Rights, but a century ago when Madame C.J. Walker became a millionaire. The work even interviews Lypsinka, a drag artist, touching upon how issues of makeup and femininity may be of importance to biological males too. An essential undercurrent of the work is how female makeup creators really used their products as a stepping stone to bring women into the business arena. This work was a fascinating glimpse at how history, advertising, and gender politics interact with each other. It also speaks about makeup preferences between the generations: I could see grandmothers,...

Documentary Make-Up Autobiography
This DVD left me with an understanding on why and how the Beauty Industry got its start and its lasting impact on women. The narrators Debi Mazar, Kathy Peiss, Helen Gurly Brown, A'lelia Bundles, Iman, Linda Wells, Naomi Wolf, and others moved this autobiography along many avenues such as marketing, distribution, and cultural dynamics.

educational and entertaining
As a beauty school teacher, I love this movie. It isn't a boring documentary, and even my students live it! Sure, some of it is old fashioned like the editor of Vogue, but it actually adds to the comedy value.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School/Scooby-Doo and the Legend of the Vampire

Good movie
Good show I like it and Awesome I wish it lasted longe If it is a good series Good storyline

Our son loves this
Our son loves Scooby-Doo and we got him this for him to watch around Halloween. It's really cute and isn't too scary for the little ones. It was also a great price compared to what I saw in the stores.

Great Value
My kids love scooby doo and this was a great deal. Great movies. Recommended for any scooby doo moms looking for videos.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Hollywood Hotel

Dick Powell is just fine, and Richard Whiting's and Johnny Mercer's 'Hooray for Hollywood" is great
It may be that Hollywood has made a musical with a more energetic, dynamic opening than Hollywood Hotel, but I haven't come across it. Right off the bat there's Benny Goodman and his orchestra, all dressed in white suits, each standing in a convertible, all being driven down a highway led by motorcycle cops to the St. Louis airport, and all playing loud and fast one of Richard Whiting's and Johnny Mercer's greatest songs. They're sending off to Hollywood the orchestra's saxophonist, Ronnie Bowers (Dick Powell), who has just won a ten-week contract in Tinsel Town. Without skipping a beat, Johnnie Davis, a mug-faced trumpet player, starts singing the lyrics, then Frances Langford picks up a chorus or two.

Hooray for Hollywood!
That screwy, ballyhooey Hollywood!
Where any office boy or young mechanic
Can be a panic with just a good-looking pan!
And any barmaid can be a star maid
If she dances with or without a fan!

Hooray for Hollywood...

Very well made farce in neat package
"Hollywood Hotel" was maybe the last of the big budget musicals from Warner Brothers in the thirties. The cycle was running out of steam, particularly when the Hays Code censorship removed the sting in the screenplays and finally when Dick Powell, fed up with playing singing ninnies, left the studio. This one is based on a radio show of the same name, hosted by Hearst gossip columnist, Louella Parsons. The film is a spoof of stardom with Lola Lane playing a temperamental star and Powell trying to get a break. As farce, the film is quite amusing, the highlight being the hilarious performance by Alan Mowbray as a ham leading man. He steals the film. Here are some points to note:

- Rosemary Lane plays the ingenue opposite Powell. Lane has charm to spare and a spirited presence but her trained soprano does not lend itself to the pop tunes. Her singing voice grates.
- the songs from Johnny Mercer are not memorable with 2 exceptions. Both "Hooray for Hollywood" and "Let that...

"That screwy ballyhooey Hollywood!"
Ronnie Bowers (Dick Powell) is a saxophone player in Benny Goodman's band, but Hollywood is calling. He has just been signed to a short term trial contract there, so off he goes to a world of luxury and extravagance. He checks in at the Hollywood Hotel where the famous Mona Marshall (Lola Lane) is staying. He is even selected to escort her to a premiere, but trouble arises when Mona's temperament prevents her from attending. At the last minute, a lookalike named Virginia (Rosemary Lane) steps in and no one is the wiser. Ronnie quickly falls for his date, unaware that she is simply a waitress with a beautiful voice. And is Mona mad when she finds out her doppleganger is running around town!

The story is silly and the music isn't overly memorable, but there is something about this film that is truly enjoyable. The sets are fabulous and so very art deco. The cast abounds with notable faces from gossip columnist Louella Parsons to vaudeville talent Ted Healy to big band icon...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Beyond the Door

Cool Movie!
Yes, this is a knock-off of "The Exorcist", but despite that, it's still a cool movie. It was virtually a staple of drive-in theaters during the latter half of the 1970's as well as the Late Late Show on CBS as another reviewer pointed out.

Juliet Mills (from "Nanny & The Professor" fame) completely abandoned her squeaky-clean image in favor of cursing in a guttural voice & regurgitating blood & green goop. The dubbing is a bit on the cheesy side, especially from the children; the little girl in particular comes up with some pretty hilarious lines. Replying to the little boy when he cries after seeing Juliet Mills hurling an ashtray & destroying the fish tank: "You're blowing my mind, man!! You gotta stop that or you're gonna have a bad trip", sort of like an 8-year old hippie!

"Beyond The Door" was filmed partially in Italy as well as San Francisco & has several different titles: "The Devil Within Her", which appears at the beginning of this version, as well as...

70s Drive-In Classic
Sure, it's a rip off ... But does that mean it's not enjoyable and/or scary ??? ... NO ... Just as 1978's HALLOWEEN borrowed from 1974's BLACK CHRISTMAS, ( no one complained ) BEYOND THE DOOR does take from other possesion films .... But it is mandatory viewing for fans of horror, 70's filmmaking, and low budget afficianatos alike ... Juliette Mills' character is so creepy and disturbing, and the low-budget quality only adds to the impact .... While THE EXORCIST is far superior in a technical perspective, the obscurity and all-out weirdness of BEYOND THE DOOR make it more creepy .... I have to say that the first glimpse we get of Mills' character in full possesion mode is one of the most terrifying and scarring ( in a good way ) scenes Is've had the pleasure to witness .... This baby is well worth tracking down if you're into odd/strange/low budget scares ...

By any definition...
...this is a bad movie. Genuinely bad. Copycat script, awful sound dubbing, cheesy acting, terrible production values; technically, it's an abortion. But despite all this, what stands out, are the visuals; the visual impact of "Beyond The Door" is genuinely terrifying.

To write, produce, and direct a horror movie about demonic possession which is truly original, is nearly impossible. It has been done many, many, many times, by many, many, many people over the years, so it's a given - there will be some thematic material which will overlap with prior work by others, but in this case, some of the scenes depicted in this film from 1974 directly echo "The Exorcist," from 1973: the floating body, the gutteral voice of the possessed, projectile vomiting bile on a person who is trying to help, the rotating head, the list goes on. There was so much mimicry that Warner Brothers, who owned Bill Friedkin's masterpiece, actually took the film makers of "Beyond The Door" to court for...

Click to Editorial Reviews

101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure (Special Edition)

Cute adventure and well executed!
This animated sequel to Disney's 101 Dalmatians (Two-Disc Platinum Edition) is a very cute movie; very much at home on a video release, the animation and vocals are definitely above what you'd expect for a direct to video film. This tale begins where the first movie left off; Cruella de Vil is out on parole while her two flunkies are stuck in the slammer. She hooks up with a beatnik artist, Lars (voiced by Martin Short), who also likes spots. She hires him to create a one-of-a-kind masterpiece just for her. Meanwhile, Anita (voiced by Jodi Benson, best known as Ariel in The Little Mermaid (Two-Disc Platinum Edition)) & Roger are moving to the country. Patch accidentally gets left behind, which is just fine with him, as it allows him to go to London and audition for his TV Hero's show, the Thunderbolt Adventure Hour. When Lars is unable to...

Tickles the Funnybone
This is one of the better Disney sequels.The animation, voices, and music have more thought behind them than previous sequels. The plot is good and and full of humor. ( Martin Short is very funny as Lars the artist as is Barry Bostwick as Thunderbolt.) Patch is feeling lost in a sea of puppies becomes a hero in the end saving his family from Cruella. The story has something for adults as well as kids. If you and your children enjoy the original then this one will be enjoyable as well and worth the money.

Much Better than expected
I expected this movie to be a lame sequel, since I really hadn't heard anything about it. But I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it made me nostalgic about the original which was my favorite movie growing up. I really felt for Patch, who had to deal with being not one of a kind as he liked, but 1 of 101, which is clearly intense competition. He gets himself seperated from the rest of his family and into cahoots with Thunderbird, the "wonder-dog" from his favorite TV show. They both have to find the true hero within and once again save the puppies from the clutches of madwoman Cruella Devil. The original characters all come back, from Pongo and Perdita, Roger and Anita, Cruella and her goons, the feisty nanny and of course the puppies. The new characters blend in perfectly; Lars the artist who paints spots and is quickly discovered by Cruella, and the dogs from the Thunderbird show. The animation was done in a similar fashion as the original, which made it seem more closely linked...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Risky Business (25th Anniversary Edition)

Great movie - Poor DVD
I think most people who buy/rent this DVD have already seen the movie and know what they're getting. There are a lot of good reviews on this movie here at amazon.com but I only saw one that mentioned the quality of the DVD. It is absolutely horrible. The companies who produce these dark, grainy DVDs need to know that the consumers aren't going to accept this type of low-quality transfer. I'd gladly pay a bit more money for a DVD that's viewable. We know how good movies can look on DVD. So why release a disc that looks as poor as this one? As consumers we need to demand better! Just as VHS movies recorded in SLP or EP were unacceptable, so are DVDs that look as bad as this Risky Business disc.

More like a dark comedy, but great nonetheless
"Risky Business" is without a doubt one of the classics from the 80's which I've continued to enjoy many times. This is simply a great movie with convincing acting, superb music, good script and believable characters. While the plot isn't anything too original, the above mentioned qualities make this movie fun to watch. Tom Cruise, having the house to himself while his parents are away, carries out the fantasy of just about every adolescent male by basically turning his home into a party haven with the inevitable consequences that follow. Rebecca De Mornay (it should be illegal to look that good in a pair of tight jeans!) plays a prostitute that becomes Cruise's "partner" in the scheme of things and Joe Pantoliano plays her sleazy pimp and does a great job in his role.

One thing that stands out about "Risky Business" is that while technically a comedy, the tone is often dark in terms of sequence of events and the eerie (yet great) instrumental music...

Blu-Ray review only
FYI - disc comes with a digital copy, but the confirmation/serial code expired in Sept. of 2009.

Otherwise, the movie looks great on BD; clearly much money was saved on the production budget by not buying any bras for Rebecca DeMornay.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Curious George: Sails With The Pirates and Other Curious Capers!

Fun and Educational
This is the fifth DVD we've bought from the Curious George series and it doesn't disappoint.
My son loves all the stories and we don't mind watching them with him over and over again.
Episodes are "Curious George Sinks the Pirates", "Up, Up and Away", "The Magic Garden", "Being Hundley", "Creatures of the Night", "Camping with Hundley", "All-New Hundley" and "Curious George and the Slithery Day".

Reviews are not for PBS DVD!!!
Wait a second! These reviews are for the Curious George movie, which is ENTIRELY different from this DVD, a compilation of about eight shows from PBS kids. The difference? The shows are humorous, entertaining, and delightful! (and also very educational)The movie was NOT. Don't be confused- if you're looking for the movie, this isn't it. This is much better!

More Curious George fun
My two year old likes to watch this one again and again, and the episodes are entertaining enough that I can watch them with here and enjoy them. Watching George solve his problems, particularly through the used of colors and shapes and numbers, proves inspirational when viewed together; and I love to hear her laugh at his antics. Highly recommended for Curious George lovers.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Conway Twitty: Greatest Hits Live

What An Singer
If you ever enjoyed an Conway Twitty concert or if you enjoyed great country music then this is one is for you so seat back and enjoyed the great singer at his best right before he died this is the last concert that he did so this is an must for any Conway Twitty fan.It has all the hits and then some so buy one and enjoy Conway as he was and always will be remember has the greatest voice that country music has ever had.

Rondall Banks

the greatest show on earth
i had the pleasure of being at fifteen of his concerts from 1983 to 1993 most of which were at a place called tombstone junction. but i also saw him in lexington and louisville and owensboro,ky. this show on this dvd was in late 1992 and was not the last concert he ever gave. it is an awesome show. for those of you lucky enough to have ever been to one of his concerts then you know like me how great he was and if you havent then this is the dvd for you.

Waited A Long Time
I was just a little unhappy with the video quality of this but I just had to remember that it was made a long time ago - but the sound is great and picture quality is an 8 out of 10 and it still well worth buying. Conway was a living legend in his own time and a great entertainer to see in person and I did (Twice) and it was worth every penny......

Click to Editorial Reviews

Monarchy: The Royal Family at Work

The Queen At Her Best
Since 1969 The Queen has allowed cameras to film her and her family's private lives for documentaries several times. I've watched all of these and found them fairly interesting, but none really gave me the sense that I was really watching the Windsors "behind the scenes". There was always the feeling that they were posing for the camera and on their best behavior, as indeed they have to be most of the time. But in Monarchy: The Royal Family At Work"I really felt for the first time that I was seeing the Royal Family as they truly are: a rather ordinary group of people required by the circumstance of their birth to be placed on a pedestal, but who don't really take themselves all that seriously. I saw this particularly with The Queen herself. Now that she's in her 80s, and after going through what must have been a pretty rotten time of it for the last twenty five years or so, she seems more relaxed and informal than I've ever seen her. She smiles at the camera, makes little asides...

A film which shows one year of unprecedented access to Queen Elizabeth and her family.
This superb five part series was a true delight for me. I have to admit to a fascination with the British Royal Family. I understand that is not necessarily a popular opinion in Britian or in America but I have always admired Queen Elizabeth for her steadfast sense of purpose and her willingness to continue placing herself in the public light when it isn't any longer necessary to do so. To watch an institution such as the royal family at work was entertaining and instructive and, at times, just plain fun. The film crew was allowed unprecedented access over a one year period to the daily life of this woman who at 81 (at the time of filming) had been on the throne for 55 years.

This BBC series is presented in five parts as follows, with each part being approximately one hour in length.

1. THE STATE VISIT - This episode shows the Queen both in front of and behind the cameras during a State Visit to the United States. Included are the State Dinner in...

A greater understanding...
Let me preface this review with the fact that I have never really understood the level of fascination that some folks have for 'the royal family'. Let me then say that having watched the abridged version of this on ABC earlier in the year (Feb 08 I believe) really took me by surprise, as I found myself totally riveted to the goings on... the pomp of it all... the wondrous ceremony of everything.

The abridged version was entitled "The Royal Family" and ran some 90 minutes with Barbara Walters slipped in as narrator. This DVD version will be released in its full-length original glory as created for the BBC and while I would never have predicted it about myself, I am totally looking forward to seeing it. Original British narration should lend more credence to a program that takes the viewer inside royal life in epic proportion.

If I were king of the forest.....

Click to Editorial Reviews

Connect with Kids: Middle School Survival Kit

Parents Choice
This survival kit has truly assisted me in talking with my children about the peer pressures and issues that face them everyday. As a parent I've had trouble talking to my kids and coming up with the best way to approach them. This dvd has guided me in doing this.

It provides practical advice from child experts, educators, and other parents who have "been there".

TALK AIN'T CHEAP!
I've long been a fan of Connect with Kids, having become aware of their initiatives through institutional access. This program, developed specifically for retail consumption, is simply a superb attempt in the company's ongoing efforts to assist parents and their kids in the development of communication oin subject matters that are sometimes difficult to approach with one another.

Internet Dangers, alchohol abuse, bullying and so on are areas/subjects which kids tend to not want to talk to mommy and daddy about, yet somehow, as good parents, it becomes imperative that mommy, daddy and child develop pipelines of communications so that genuine understanding can be had by all. Moms and dads needs to know what kids face, and how they perceive what they face. Kids need 'steering' through the myriad of mazes that growing up is.

Connect With Kids' Survival Guides (both Middle School as well as High School) provide a forum where kids are talking directly to kids in the...



Click to Editorial Reviews

The Inspector Lynley Mysteries - Series 6

Not Dead Yet
I mentioned when writing about season five that this delicately etched and excellently acted series on PBS's "Mystery" was my favorite. It still is. I truly believe it is the finest show on television. Nathaniel Parker's Inspector Thomas Lynley and Sharon Small's Barbara Havers are eagerly awaited with passion each season by this viewer like nothing else on television.

Based on Elizabeth George's characters, the BBC show has grown and matured into something really special. The mysteries are always well-written and the lead characters have been allowed to let life and what each brings to the table change both themselves and how they view each other. Parker and Small are a fabulous duo who balance each other out.

The dashing Lynley was originally paired with Havers because it was taken for granted he would not be distracted by her in a romantic way. But the two quickly found there was more to each other than their reputations, and proved a great team. They also...

One More Time...
The BBC and Masterpiece Theater's long running Inspector Lynley series has produced its sixth and possibly last installment. Nathaniel Parker returns as aristocratic Inspector Lynley and Sharon Small as working class Detective Sergeant Havers.

This installment contains two episodes. In the first, "Limbo", Inspector Lynley, still grieving from a personal loss (see Set Five) is dragged into a mystery involving the prior disappearence of his godson. Lynley's efforts to help the family deal with new police evidence ends up enmeshing him in the case as a suspect when the missing boy's sister dies on the street in front of Lynley's temporary residence. Lynley must rely on Sergeant Havers to run down the evidence that will keep him out of jail long enough to solve both cases. Havers herself will be in desperate need of assistance by the time the murderer is identified. The second case,"Know Thine Enemy", involves the murder of a young girl and the potential threat to an...

Ending with a whimper rather than with a bang
I would have reviewed every other series of the Inspector Lynley Mysteries by giving them five stars. I think this one is more disappointing for two reasons; the BBC clearly took an abrupt decision to end the series, and the suddenness of that decision can be felt in the unsatisfactory last scene of the final episode [of the two, I much prefer 'Limbo', despite some plot inconsistencies]. The scriptwriting, especially in the final episode, is poor, and I think the story was based largely on a real crime. Lynley's language and behaviour have changed so totally from previous episodes that he reminds me of an ill-bred thug rather than a well-bred aristocrat. I found myself wondering if the scriptwriter had read the books at all.

I still give it four stars because of the quality of the acting of Nathaniel Parker and Sharon Small. Even given a badly-written script they did a superb job as they have done throughout. Their partnership [both in character and as actors] is one of the...

Click to Editorial Reviews