Dr. No (50th Anniversary Repackage) (2012)

A landmark film in many respects, "Dr. No" (1962) introduced Ian Fleming's 007 to cinema audiences. Despite the author's initial objections, Sean Connery defined the character of James Bond with his remarkably self-assured performance. Ursula Andress' iconic beauty and Joseph Wiseman's restrained villainy were equally memorable. Thanks to the contributions of director Terence Young, set designer Ken Adam, editor Peter Hunt and composer John Barry, the 007 style was immediately established in this Jamaican adventure. Producers Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli should be applauded for getting the most out of their limited budget. "Dr. No" succeeds as an unpretentious spy thriller minus the gadgetry and gimmicks in later Bond outings. The film's impact on popular culture cannot be underestimated.

My comments apply only to the newly released Blu Ray version.

I will not review the film it's self since everyone has no doubt seen it at least once.

I have waited 2 years for the Bond films to be released in a HD format, and the waite was worth it.

The picture quality of this old film is simply awesome. The color saturation, the "depth" and contrast are very film-like.

I felt like I was discovering the film for the very first time.

Watching it on my 60'' display, it looked like I was seeing a brand new, fresh from the lab, film print in my own living room.

And it gets better, I am told (but havent viewed my copy yet) that Thunderball looks even better.

If you are a Connery James Bond fan, and own Blu Ray, this is a no-brainer.

Highest possible recommendation, and Amazon has it for a good price.

Buy Dr. No (50th Anniversary Repackage) (2012) Now

Outside of Bond fandom very few people know that Sean Connery was actually the second actor to play the character of James Bond. In the 1950s there had been a television production based around Ian Fleming's first spy novel "Casino Royale" in which American actor Barry Nelson had played 007 as a US spy with Clarence Leiter as his British counterpart. Fast forward to the early 1960s and work is once again getting underway to bring the fictional spy to the screen. Cast in the lead role is what one UA executive referred to as a "lorry driver" and with a small budget (a measly $1 million) there seems to be little hope for the fledgling franchise. Yet when Doctor No (the final choice for the first of the series) hits screens it changes the film industry, sending reverberations the likes of which are still being felt today. Staying largely faithful to the Fleming book of the same name (something that was not to last) the rather modest movie set screens afire, helped enormously by the performances of Sean Connery and Swiss beauty Ursula Andress. In fact for many, Andress is the quintessential Bond girl, establishing one of cinema's most iconic images as she emerges from the sea in a white bikini). Right away the trademark violence is evident as three assassins murder a British operative and his pretty secretary in Jamaica. The break in communication has the British nervous and they send for their top agent. Switch to a smoky casino in London. And we see the back of a man, his hands moving his cards about the table and then taking a cigarette out of its case. Lighting it he is fully revealed and the trademark line "Bond, James Bond" is heard on cinema screens for the very first time. Arriving in Jamaica Bond learns that the missing operative was investigating the mysterious character of Doctor No who operates from a private island named Crab Key. Determined to learn the truth he arranges to sneak onto the island with his colleague Quarrel to discover the truth behind the disappearance. Taken on its own Doctor No is a nice, taut, suspenseful movie with some wonderful performances from its leads. New York actor Joseph Wiseman is particularly chilling as the title character with his metal hands (some disfigurement or quirk has since become a necessity for Bond villains). Taken as the initial outing in a franchise the movie is a low-key effort that ably sets the stage for the films that were to follow. Today this movie rarely tops people's lists as a favorite in the series, but that is largely because in the ensuing years the Bond series came to mean spectacle and special effects, often at the expense of good storytelling. Initially released on DVD in the cardboard snapper cases with only Bond trivia to complement it, in 2000 MGM did the movie justice by reissuing it as a special edition with improved video and audio and a nice collection of extra's. For the time the Bond special editions were considered the "cream of the crop" as far as DVD releases were concerned. Here we have an audio commentary which is comprised of spliced together interviews from earlier many behind the camera had since passed on including director Terence Young. An easy movie and DVD to recommend.

Read Best Reviews of Dr. No (50th Anniversary Repackage) (2012) Here

This review refers to the MGM Special Edition DVD od "Dr. No"....

How dissapointed was I, when I saw this transfer of this great classic by MGM to Dvd?..REALLY dissapointed. If you already own the VHS..hold on to it for a while longer, even if you see it come on TV you will probably get a better picture and sound quality then you do with this package. I'm not saying it is not a viewable film, just that when you get a DVD, especially one from a production studio like MGM, you expect better. The film itself seems to be in pretty good shape. Even the colors are good. But the picture seemed grainy and the sound was the worst.

With all the great action and music in this film it should have been at least in stereo, 5.1 would be even better. The dialouge was less than good. I had to keep back tracking to hear what I missed and had to keep turning the volume up and down. I've seen alot better on transfers of films much older than even this one is. And there's more...now this may be just my copy, but there was alot of pausing and skipping thoughout the film. I have recently purchased a new DVD player that is pretty state of the art, and any DVD that ever skipped on my old player does not skip now..except this one....Please MGM...try again with this one.

Okay, okay, so now that I got that off my chest... I Love "Dr. No!" The first(of 20) in the 007 series(based on the novels by Ian Fleming), made in 1962 is exciting , full of action and lots of fun. Sean Connery in his first of 7 Bond movies sets the bar for all the ones to follow. And I must also mention that Ursula Andress likewise sets the bar for the "Bondgirl".

We meet James for the first time, where else..at a gambling table, looking dapper as ever in his tux, where he immediatly catches the eye of a beautiful woman who cannot resist him. Although he must leave immediatly on his first assignment, he does have a few minutes to spare for the lady. Then off to beautiful Jamaica, where the movie is filmed and the action begins.

James begins investigating, the murder of the agents stationed there and all roads lead to the manical Dr No(Joseph Wiseman), who has secluded himself on a small island and is killing anyone who gets too close. Dr. No is messing with the U.S. Space Program and must be stopped before he can strike.

Once James does get himself onto the Island, he first meets 'Honey Ryder"(Andress), who is a vision as she makes her entrance emerging from the water like some beautiful mermaid. Together they fight off the army of Dr. No's guards,and thwart the impending disater.

You'll meet "M"(Beranrd Lee) and "Miss MoneyPenny"(Lois Maxwell) for the first time in this one. "Q" and all his gadgetry have not made into the story yet. There are the great cars and car chase scenes. You'll get that "Bond" feeling immediatly as the theme begins. And don't forget to look for Jack "Book-em Danno" Lord.

A great start to a great series.The DVD does come with some great extras. I especially enjoyed the featurette about Sean Connery fitting into the mold of the first 007, which was made at the time of the filming of Dr. No.(see tech info for complete list of bonus material.) If your a huge fan and cannot wait for a better DVD to come along then go ahead and have that first vodka martini with James and here's hoping for a new restoration. Enjoy....Laurie

Want Dr. No (50th Anniversary Repackage) (2012) Discount?

Outside of Bond fandom very few people know that Sean Connery was actually the second actor to play the character of James Bond. In the 1950s there had been a television production based around Ian Fleming's first spy novel "Casino Royale" in which American actor Barry Nelson had played 007 as a US spy with Clarence Leiter as his British counterpart.

Fast forward to the early 1960s and work is once again getting underway to bring the fictional spy to the screen. Cast in the lead role is what one UA executive referred to as a "lorry driver" and with a small budget (a measly $1 million) there seems to be little hope for the fledgling franchise. Yet when Doctor No (the final choice for the first of the series) hits screens it changes the film industry, sending reverberations the likes of which are still being felt today.

Staying largely faithful to the Fleming book of the same name (something that was not to last) the rather modest movie set screens afire, helped enormously by the performances of Sean Connery and Swiss beauty Ursula Andress. In fact for many, Andress is the quintessential Bond girl, establishing one of cinema's most iconic images as she emerges from the sea in a white bikini).

Right away the trademark violence is evident as three assassins murder a British operative and his pretty secretary in Jamaica. The break in communication has the British nervous and they send for their top agent.

Switch to a smoky casino in London. And we see the back of a man, his hands moving his cards about the table and then taking a cigarette out of its case. Lighting it he is fully revealed and the trademark line "Bond, James Bond" is heard on cinema screens for the very first time.

Arriving in Jamaica Bond learns that the missing operative was investigating the mysterious character of Doctor No who operates from a private island named Crab Key. Determined to learn the truth he arranges to sneak onto the island with his colleague Quarrel to discover the truth behind the disappearance.

Taken on its own Doctor No is a nice, taut, suspenseful movie with some wonderful performances from its leads. New York actor Joseph Wiseman is particularly chilling as the title character with his metal hands (some disfigurement or quirk has since become a necessity for Bond villains). Taken as the initial outing in a franchise the movie is a low-key effort that ably sets the stage for the films that were to follow. Today this movie rarely tops people's lists as a favorite in the series, but that is largely because in the ensuing years the Bond series came to mean spectacle and special effects, often at the expense of good storytelling.

Initially released on DVD in the cardboard snapper cases with only Bond trivia to complement it, in 2000 MGM did the movie justice by reissuing it as a special edition with improved video and audio and a nice collection of extra's. For the time the Bond special editions were considered the "cream of the crop" as far as DVD releases were concerned.

Here we have an audio commentary which is comprised of spliced together interviews from earlier many behind the camera had since passed on including director Terence Young. Added to that is a documentary on the making of the movie including on-camera interviews, some archival and some new and a documentary on the aforementioned director. Rounding out the set us the usual collection of promotional material.

An easy movie and DVD to recommend.

On a sidenote work is currently underway by Lowry Digital to restore this movie, if audio and video is of primary importance to you then you might want to wait until that is released in 2006.

That Cold Day in the Park (1969)

Desperate for companionship, a lonely spinster invites a young homeless boy up to her apartment and then goes to drastic measures to make him stay. Following her Oscar-winning turn in Mike Nichols' ground-breaking drama "Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?", this is the gifted Sandy Dennis' finest hour on screen. As the demented heroine, Dennis makes you feel your way into her character's dark and ultimately disturbing world. It's a blissful, strikingly effective performance, and watching it one might wonder why Dennis didn't win a second Oscar. The film is also well-directed by a supremely talented fellow by the name of Robert Altman whom you may know as the creator of such hit films as "MASH" and "NASHVILLE". Unfortunately, "THAT COLD DAY IN THE PARK" bit the dust at the box-office. Like so many of Altman's films(3 Women, in particular), the movie requires a great deal of patience to fully understand its meanings, but those who sit it out will find it to be a rich, rewarding film.

In this old film by Robert Altman, we discover how solitude for a young woman is a plague on her way to happiness and satisfaction. She comes to the point where she cannot even ask anyone for the contact she desires. She lives in a completely artificial and closed world. One day she brings into her world a stranger she finds in a park and she desires him but she treats him like a canaribird in a cage : she feeds him, she bathes him, she dresses him, she provides him with all comfort, she even provides him with a woman, but he cannot escape, he is a prisoner. It is only within that frame and after a long evolution that she finally finds the courage to ask for what she wants, and yet with no promise that the cage will be reopened. In other words, after a long life with her mother after the death of her father and among people who are from her mother's world, she is totally handicapped in society and unable to navigate properly among desires and obstacles. She can only take and possess. The other is no longer a human being but a toy, a doll in a way. A very sad picture of the loneliness of the solitary young lady in the upper middle-class....

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Sandy Dennis is at her best in this film set in Vancouver in 1969. She plays a lonely woman and takes in a guy who pretends to be a mute. The most powerful aspect is what's going on in her mind..her break with reality when she realizes her vision of their relationship is an illusion. This mute guy is one evil dude. It's easy to empathize with Sandy's character. Another unique experiment in '60s revolutionary film: smashing many societal barriers.

Read Best Reviews of That Cold Day in the Park (1969) Here

This early Robert Altman film is a small (if deeply unsettling) little jewel, distinguished by a superb performance by Sandy Dennis. As a sheltered, naïve, but creepily neurotic woman without a clue as to how the world of human relationships actually functions, she quietly dominates the screen. And she's well-matched by the young Michael Burns, far more cunning & manipulative than his initially mute charade suggests -but he's in over his head, horribly so, as he discovers much too late in the game.

And what is the game?

Sandy Dennis' Frances is a spinster, emotionally swaddled & smothered, yearning for human love & human contact, but utterly lost in the real world outside her apartment. When she encounters Michael Burns (simply The Boy) in the park, she takes him home, which is fine with him. It's only as the story continues that he & we begin to understand just how troubled & dangerous Frances really is ...

In some ways like "The Collector," only with the roles reversed, this film differs in that its leads aren't really that sympathetic. Altman tends to shoot them through windows & panes of glass, distancing them, creating a detached & voyeuristic atmosphere. Add to that the washed-out lighting that exposes every bit of grime & decay, and the result is both clinically & uncomfortably intimate.

The fact that it was made when movies were pushing against the last vestiges of censorship gives it a peculiar intensity. Nowadays everything can be said & shown; back then, it was genuinely daring to even try. So even though what we see is comparatively tame beside the explicitness of modern films, it possesses a genuine & powerful perversity that most modern films can't approach.

It's not for casual viewing, and not something you'd want to watch too often. But it'll stay with you, whether you want it to or not. I'm delighted to see it's finally available on DVD, as it's the first of Robert Altman's many films to fully bear his imprint, and deserves greater exposure. Darkly recommended!

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This film still runs through my mind two days after seeing it. The whole film made me so uncomfortable that I couldn't breathe normally while watching it. And I loved every minute of it.

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Blu-ray Triple Feature: Cyborg (1989) / Death Warrant (1990) / Double Impact (1991) - Jean-Claude V

Since I like all kinds of movies, I thought I would pick this up, on the cheap, since cable television used to show these all the time. I was a little disappointed by the DVD print that came my way with these three films, as they are somewhat blurry on all three of the films. I don't think I would by a multi-package of films again, due to the blur factor.

Unless you've lived under a rock for the last 20 years, you already know what you are going to get with Jean-Claude, which is not such a bad thing. Cyborg I would probably only watch once, Double Impact & Death Warrant many, many, more times.

Van Dammagisty, indeed.

I love TGG Direct sets. I have the Leviathan, Burnt Offerings and Lifeforce horror triple feature from this same company. I grew up on Van Damme movies and when I saw this I had to get it. These are three really great Van Damme movies and Double Impact is usually considered his best film. All films are 1:85.1 anamorphic widescreen. The picture on all of these is great quality. The movies themselves are great. I love all three of these. I haven't seen any of these in over 15 years so it was a great refresher seeing them again. Collecting all of Van Dammes best movies on DVD is real affordable these days and this is a great place to start. Lots of action and well worth the price.

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jean-claude van damme is the best, and with this collection you'll know what i mean. with movies like these you'll love to buy more of his movies and u might even turn out a van damme fan....like me. jean-claude van damme is the best and always will be. Don't miss out on your chance to have your own JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMME COLLECTION

Read Best Reviews of Blu-ray Triple Feature: Cyborg (1989) / Death Warrant (1990) / Double Impact (1991) - Jean-Claude V Here

While the plot, like most action movies, suffers a bit, this movie is still a lot of fun to watch. You get not only Jean Claude's martial arts prowess on display, there are others. The most prominent being Cory Everson who is so sexy as a bad girl it hurts. In fact one of the weaknesses of this movie is the fact that she is not on screen more often. Check out her search of Jean Claude's girlfriend. it's a real turn on.

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The Artist (+ UltraViolet Digital Copy) (2011)

I respond to hype involving movies in a variety of different ways. If I get all excited about a film months before its release, I often find myself being disappointed with the film's final product. I saw a trailer for "The Artist" months back, and didn't think much of it, because I didn't know much about it. I had seen reviews and award acclaim for Michel Hazanavicius's "The Artist", and wanted to give it a shot. On account of the limited theatrical release that the film got, I found myself venturing toward the bad part of town the night before it happened to win the Golden Globe for best picture, and oh, was it worth it.

"The Artist" is everything you could possibly want it to be. The story isn't anything revolutionary or surprising, but it really doesn't have to be. In case you have somehow not heard of this film yet, it is a silent film that is set in 1927, at the height of the silent movie era. It follows George Valentin, an actor who has had a great deal of success in silent film. The film follows the years where the film industry is moving into "talkies", where he finds his success is dwindling. He falls hard for Peppy Miller, an actress who is just breaking into the business. This story lasts over the span of maybe ten years.

While up until now, Hollywood has widely forgotten about the silent film era, the style of the film feels kind of experimental to a moviegoer of my generation. The film is a beautiful love letter to this period of film which we all have forgotten about. It makes me think that actors, writers, directors...everybody had to work a lot harder in that generation. It's hard to write a universally appealing story with no dialogue.

Style is a big deal, camera angles, and lighting are critical. I'm glad this one was released after I took my first Film Studies course at college, because there's a good chance a film like this would have slipped through my fingers otherwise. I learned about the silent film era, and found that there were twice as many flops as there were hits, in those days. This film could not have worked in those days, since it is clearly about the silent film era. However, I appreciate the little hidden history lesson that this film offered.

In a film with no dialogue, actors have to have very expressive faces, they have to be able to emote, which is also something that a wide amount of today's actors and actresses have forgotten how to do. Jean Dujardin's George Valentin is wonderful. His infectious smile is a big reason why the film works. It's the same deal with Berenice Bejo. The two actors have phenomenal chemistry, and that's enough to carry this, even if it were a bad film.

Like I said, this film's storyline is nothing new. It's the classic story of the Hollywood big cheese who helps the beautiful young starlet in her rise to fame. The film works because it's a story that can be shown in any country, in any language, and it would still be relevant. It's universal in a way that I didn't expect. The film doesn't use the titles that silent films are known for too much. There are titles, but they are used sparingly, only when they need it. That was a very good thing. For a film that's so strictly about filmmaking technique, being shot in glorious black and white, with a 4x3 aspect ratio, it's quite affecting. I give most of the credit to the actors, the extraordinary musical score by Ludovic Bource, and the direction. This was clearly a labor of love, and it pays off in a big way.

Grade: A

It is a masterful movie-maker who can take a simple story (much less a silent one) and captivate an audience. That "The Artist" is so straight-forward is itself a tribute to the old adage that any story can capture the imagination, it just must be true to the soul. The genius here is that you are totally drawn into this world in near totality by the expressions on the actors' faces. It belies the fact that the silent film is indeed a lost art and we are fortunate to have it re-introduced to the main-stream in such a glorious fashion.

But first things first, this is *not* a stodgy, stick-in-the mud film. "The Artist" is at times laugh-out-loud, and then is equally engrossing as an emotional hay-maker. If you are expecting a dull yawn-fest, go see the latest CGI-laden summer film. But if in the the best sense you want to be captivated by a film, see "The Artist".

Without any giveaways, the story here involves an aging film star who is being left behind by the rise of the sound-age of film. Right behind him is a rising starlet who is excelling in the sound age. It is their story to tell: his from the perspective of the slide down and hers from the climb up. There is great supporting work as well, including a delightful little doggy who is essentially the side-kick to our hero. But it is lead actor Jean Dujardin who rightly "steals" the picture with his breath-taking emotional range.

Also a delight are the little scenes we as an audience identify with as true-isms: the bits of film magic that stick with you long after you leave the theater. The rising starlet using our hero's jacket in a pantomime, reflecting her awe and love of him, is the perfect example. But what tops it all in my mind are those moments where "The Artist" blends old-fashioned movie staples into itself and makes you want to cheer, though you know it's been done a thousand times before. An example being the aforementioned doggy as hero at one point. It is this homage to old films that makes you smile the director is so skillful at it, he creates his own legitimate, unique and praise-worthy old-Hollywood world without it feeling stale in the least. In fact, it is as refreshing to watch as anything else you will see this year or any other.

"The Artist" is the best of what movies should be: good storytelling that makes it look easy.

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In an era where we rely heavily on CGI and 3D to wow us, this movie takes us back to a time when acting was truly an art, men were gentlemen, women were proper, and moviegoing was a theatrical and magical experience. Gone are the days when we can get into our Sunday best and spend an evening at the theater for a movie and a live show. Nowadays, anyone can catch a flick at 10am 7 days a week wearing their jammies, and often being the sole soul in the theater.

Spoiler: this is a silent movie. Sorry if I've lost your attention already. But hear me out. True, this is one of your "been there, done that married boy meets single girl, married boy falls in love with single girl, married boy can't have single girl, single girl moves on, and there is still a happy ending" story. But it's not the story that makes this movie it's the way the story is told that makes this movie revolutionary and epic. Jean's and Bérénice's pure, raw emotion, in addition to a stellar soundtrack, tell the entire story without the need for schnazzy graphics or complex plot. Dialogue is only displayed on screen maybe less that twenty times. The rest of the story is told entirely through kinesics, which is relayed via stellar acting.

I don't usually go see a movie in the theaters twice. I will see it once, and if it's good enough to see again will wait until it comes out on Blu Ray. But this movie...I even convinced by buddy, who had zero interest in seeing the movie and hadn't even heard of it, to go see it, and he loved it.

The score is also worth picking up. Yes, it's 100% instrumental. But 50% of the meaning of the movie is through this score! Even if you've not seen the movie, it's written so well that you can feel the emotion just by sitting back and closing your eyes while listening to it.

I can only hope that we begin to see more silent movies like this.

Read Best Reviews of The Artist (+ UltraViolet Digital Copy) (2011) Here

There are many who would have been stunned when they heard that a silent movie won for best picture in 2012 at the Oscars. Okay I admit I was one of those people. But after having had the chance to see the film it made me think that perhaps Hollywood granted the award for two reasons: one, because it is a great film and two, because it is a love note to the Golden Age of Hollywood.

The film is about the career of silent screen idol George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), a swashbuckling/dancing/sly grinned matinee idol if there ever was one. When the film starts George is at the top of his game and the biggest box office draw around. Along with his pet pouch he's the talk of the town and a hit with everyone.

One day while signing autographs he literally bumps into a young woman named Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo). At first surprised he passes it off with a laugh and the two go on their way. Except that now the press is all abuzz wondering who this mystery woman is, something that Mrs. Valentin (Penelope Ann Miller) isn't pleased with.

As the film progresses the paths of George and Peppy cross once more when they meet on the set of his next film where she's an extra. They playfully dance back and forth much to the displeasure of the head of the studio (John Goodman). When he attempts to toss her off the lot, George steps in and defends her. This is much to her good fortune as the roles she receives increase and her popularity grows as well.

The same can't be said of George. When Goodman shows him the latest thing to hit Hollywood, sound, George laughs it off and gloats that he's never needed sound to reach and audience. When the studio switches to sound only, George is tossed aside as old. He promises to show them how great silent films are by starring in, directing, writing and producing his next film. Opening the same day as the new Peppy Miller film, it draws a few people against the lines waiting to see her film.

Down and out and nearly penniless after the stock market crash, George's wife leaves him. Only his trusted chauffer Clifton (James Cromwell) stays by his side until George finally fires him due to no money with which to pay him. George sells off everything he has and finds little to keep him going.

At the same time the fortunes of Peppy Miller are skyrocketing. Little known to George so are her emotions for him. It will only be a matter of time before these star crossed lovers finally meet once more.

It seems like such a simple story, perhaps a bit of A STAR IS BORN, tossed in as well. But this is no remake and yes, the story is quite simple. But that doesn't make it the least bit boring. Instead it's a tremendous piece of storytelling that makes the viewer use their eyes to get the story. The music enhances the action on the screen just as it was in the silent era. The composition of what we are viewing is something we could take for granted or perhaps we have the chance to see how visually stimulating it can be, even in black and white.

The film ends with a dance number straight out of the old Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers playbook. Unfortunately there will be far too many viewers who won't even know who Astaire and Rogers were which is kind of sad because there are so many great movies that just aren't the thing these days. Younger viewers ignore films that are black and white. They have no desire to watch a film that is "silent" (even though the score to this movie is fantastic). It's much easier to watch a movie with tons of explosions or sparkling vampires than it is to invest oneself in a love story like this one.

That's a big loss for this generation. They don't know about the high flying adventures of Captain Blood or the deeply romantic loss felt by Rick in a town named Casablanca. They'll never know the charm of Nick and Nora Charles as they solve crimes or the horror displayed by an actor named Karloff. This movie might change that though. Perhaps after watching and enjoying this film the younger generation might be interested enough to seek out those classics. One can only hope. And if not, at least they'll be entertained by this film. It deserved the attention it received.

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Wow! The acting in this movie was amazing. Even though few words were spoken throughout the movie, I felt as though I watched and listened to an entire dialogue. The unspoken and unheard became loud and clear. The actors facial expressions and body motions moved with their lips and created a script that anybody could understand and enjoy.

This movie should be catalogued with the best classics.

What I liked most about the movie:

It was cerebral.

Every actor and every scene combined with great music to bring this movie to life (living color and sound).

It didn't need sophomorish bathroom humor to be funny.

It didn't need sex to be passionate and romantic.

It had many very memorable moments like the old time greats Here's lookin' at you kid.

It didn't need words or sounds to hear and experience the action, love, tragedy and inspiration.

And, the dog was just as much of a character as any of the human actors in the movie. The dog should be named Oscar.

I watched this alone, and like a good book I couldn't stop watching even though I was tired and needed to go to bed.

I plan on watching it again, and I am going to insist that my girlfriend watch it with me I know she'll love it.

If they made silent movies like this back in the beginning, it could have delayed the need for talkies.

From one armchair critic to another watch it (you'll be glad you did).

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Mutiny on the Bounty (2011)

When the news broke that MGM had the audacity to remake the hallowed 1935 classic "Mutiny on the Bounty" starring Clark Gable and Charles Laughton, the critics were aghast. As the news leaked out about trouble in production, they whipped themselves into a self-righteous frenzy. Brando was a lightening rod for criticism because he was renowned as arrogant hothead. Compared with Gable, who was universally loved and adored, Brando was a boor. It was almost sacrilegious to put Brando in any part Gable had played. When the film opened, it never had a chance. It was ripped to shreds. Brando was ridiculed as a lower class character actor who couldn't step up to the part, and derided for his dreadful attempt at an English accent. The film was a box office loser and critics smugly declared they told us so.

The film was beset by problems throughout production. The full-scale replica of the Bounty arrived on location two months after the film was scheduled to begin shooting. There were three deaths among the film's personnel and the film ran well over budget. The biggest problems were the result of Brando's constant temper tantrums as he tried to rewrite the entire film from the set. At least six writers came and went. After countless confrontations, director Carol Reed gave up and quit to be replaced by Lewis Milestone ("All Quiet on the Western Front'). Milestone was an utterly intractable director that Brando couldn't bully. The result was a battle between the immovable object and the irresistible force, with daily emotional pyrotechnics that further delayed the film. Although Milestone usually prevailed in the fracases, this film turned out to be his last in a 37-year career.

Over the years, the critics have continued to pillory the film, but the public generally receives it more favorably as time passes. Though I often disagree with the masses, in this case I concur. Having seen both the 1935 and 1962 versions, I prefer the latter. Gable is clearly more charming and dashing in the role, but Brando gives the more complete performance. Gable's Christian seems far less ruffled by the events that transpire on the Bounty, whereas Brando accomplishes a believable transition from the cavalier rogue to an honorable hero who endures self-torment over the treasonous act. Though Brando's English accent is oft ridiculed, I have heard far worse. Part of the problem probably stemmed from the fact that the accent he attempted to imitate was very upper crust and he delivered it with a certain sneering tone that made it seem like he was mocking the English. Just hearing that accent from the same lips that gave us, "I coulda been a contenda" was a kind of ironic comedy unto itself.

Between the Bligh portrayed by Charles Laughton and that depicted by Trevor Howard in the remake, Howard wins hands down for pure detestability. Most of the production values, such as music, set design and costumes were superior in the remake. Moreover, the remake was more historically accurate than the original.

The film features a youthful Richard Harris in the role of Mills, who gives an excellent performance of the petulant sailor. Also noteworthy is the lovely Tarita, a native Tahitian who plays Christian's love interest Maimiti, and does a scorching belly dance. This was Tarita's only film, but to anyone who has seen the film, she will not be soon forgotten.

This is an excellent film. It was nominated for seven Oscars including Best Picture, but it was shut out, trampled by "Lawrence of Arabia". It is highly entertaining with wonderful costumes, props and sets, fabulous locations and photography, and some terrific performances. Though many will disagree, I rated it a 10/10. If one can step back from the controversy that swirled around this film when it debuted, it is an easy film to enjoy.

Ok. First things first. Let us not forget that this film is based on the trilogy of books by Charles Nordorff and James Norman Hall. These books are fictional accounts based on actual events, and portray William Bligh as a sadistic, brutal tyrant instead of the accomplished seaman he truly was. After all he was one of the best foul-weather commanders of his day and a navigator of such quality that the charts he drew were still used by the British navy right up until the second world war.

I have read among other reviewers of Bligh's "trademark discipline and lashings". This is just not true. Bligh himself was determined that he would not lose a single member of the ship's crew on his expedition, and in fact, only flogged one man on the outward voyage (an act which he bitterly regretted!).

He was a passionate man, that had risen through the ranks and he was determined to succeed on the mission appointed to him. His only downfall was that he lacked imagination, he was a pedantic man that did everything by the book, this made him inflexible to situations. There was no more a caring individual that attempted to round Cape Horn for 30 days, do you think that a crew that had suffered extreme punishment from the start of their journey would then suffer such grueling conditions for so long and not choose this point to mutiny? It is testiment to Bligh's ability to command tha his men carried on working for him until he decided theirs was a lost cause.

From the time the Bounty landed at Tahiti, Bligh let his men down. He allowed them to carry on for the next 5 months doing whatever they chose, while he isolated himself in scientific studies. If Bligh had mustered his crew regularly and spent time sailing the Pacific whilst his gardeners prepared their cargo, discipline would have been maintained. Ultimately, when the ship Weighed anchor and departed Matavai Bay, complacency and sloth had taken root among the crew. This then would understandably lead to bitterness and resentment for the return to naval discipline.

I have read also, that the mutiny, when it happened, happened very (too) quickly and suddenly in the film. Well, this IS exactly what happened, Christian had decided to escape the ship and his abuser alone and on a makeshift raft. It was only after speaking to Edward Young that he found that there would be others amongst the crew who would be willing to help him seize the ship and return to Tahiti. Thus events were put into place that happened very quickly indeed, events that Christian would bitterly regret for the rest of his life.

This film also suggests that Bligh and Christian were unaquainted before the fateful voyage, this again is not true as they had sailed together on three previous occasions. Richard Hough, in his excellent book, Capt. Bilgh and Mr. Christian, suggests that their relationship could have had undertones of a homosexual nature. This could be quite possible, as it was not uncommon for sailors who were living in such close quarters for long periods of time to look to each other for relief, although the Articles of War forbade it, and anyone found guilty of this "crime" faced the death penalty! It is certainly true that Bligh showed the young Master's Mate a good deal of favouritism, promoting him to Acting Lieutenant after landing at Tenerife. It is also well documented that Bligh frequently invited Christian to his cabin. In fact Bigh had sent an invitation to him on the night before the mutiny, which Christian had declined. It is possible that Bligh had become resentful of Christian's relationship with Isobella (Christian's name for Miamiti, after his aunt), and took his jealousy out on him by humiliating Christian in front of the crew. This would go some way to explain Christian's reapeted cries of "I AM IN HELL!".

It should be noted that Bligh was recognised as a national hero on his retrun to England and absolved of all blame for the loss of his ship. It wasn't until he left again on another voyage that the Courts Martial for the remain mutineers, who had now been bought home,took place and that public opinion started to turn against him, and he began to be portrayed as the tyrant shown in this film. But, it should be remembered that at the time of his death, Bligh ahd reached the rank of Vice Admiral of The Blue, no mean feat for such an "abusive" man!

Brando's Foppish, Arrogant aristocratic picture of Christian is off target. Christian's family were not aristocratic. They were a well-to-do family from Cumberland, but not so high up the social ladder as shown here.

Enjoy this film, I did. But enjoy it for what it is, a fictional tale of adventure on the high seas. Brando is on top form, camping it up in his role (obviously out of the control of the director!), the photography is beautiful as are the locations. The script is engaging and amusing, and the rest of the cast terrific. Trevor Howard's Bligh is a little too one dimensional, but then that is exactly what this picture is trying to show.

I give this film four stars just for the sheer enjotment I got from it. The missing fifth star is for the truth. I won't draw comparisons with the earlier Laughton/Gable film, or the later Hopkins/Gibson film, as they are each enjoyable films in their own right and are definately worth viewing. Although the latter goes a little more for the truth.

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Perhaps that review title's too harsh. I loved the '62 version primarily because of how the extremes of production expense shoved it forward as an all-time great. To understand its power one has to see its standing in relation to the two other versions. The 1935 film has a pre-Errol Flynn swashbuckler ambience that tries to coexist with an overall moodier feel brought on by dour, flat direction. The 1984 movie tries too hard to establish historical correctness while superimposing Mel Gibson's prettiness over the sour conditions underlying the vessel and the voyage. At any rate, these elements take out much of the fun of these versions and, in the latter case, it's even arguable that its weighty atmosphere defuses the thrill of the mutiny altogether. Nothing spectacular in these.

Lewis Milestone directed an infinitely more entertaining affair on the 1962 version. Marlon Brando's attempt at Englishness is thoroughly derisable but we forgive him for it because there's much comic relief to be had in that as well as in the way he spars with Trevor Howard. The crew are alotted more respect by the camera in this film and that freedom yields more entertaining results than the sordid festering they endure to be found in the most recent version.

No. This is a three hour adventure that is fun for all the family. At times funny (echoes of Gilbert and Sullivan drift into my head every once in a while when I watch Brando strutting about on the poop deck), at times poignant, this is maybe the biggest of the giants Metro Goldwyn Mayer committed to celluloid. It's important to keep in mind that studios were still having their honeymoon with Eastman colour 40 years ago and it isn't surprising at all that the tale of the Bounty was selected for a reworking on this grandiose scale. Full of images and sounds that do nothing but please the soul, 'Mutiny on the Bounty' is a masterpiece with no bad actors aboard (Richard Harris is at his best here as the chief fomentor of rebellion 'downstairs'). When viewed from any angle, it's still a dazzling chandelier of a movie. They don't make them like this anymore not because they won't it's simply because the style involved here is out of the reach of any filmmaker or producer alive today. Probably a year or more in the making, the Sixties Bounty film is irrefutably the definitive one and the effects of watching it once are guarranteed to incite many subsequent viewings, not merely to drink up the haunting beauty of the location camera work. This is an essential component of any family's movie collection that must be bought as soon as possible.

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I just can't speak highly enough about this wonderful version of Mutiny On The Bounty. Critics be scorned. What's amazing is the crud leveled at this film and how it's endured all these years diminishing any credit due it. Brando ruined it, was troublesome, difficult to work with, cost MGM lots of $$$; Bunk! I saw this movie for the first time when it came out in '62 and it knocked me off my feet; I was ten yrs old. I appreciate it so much more today as an adult. It's a darn fine movie, take my word for it. The photography is STUNNING, period costumes great, the pagentry and colors of Tahiti take your breath away. They built a replica of the Bounty from the keel up, a feat truly remarkable. The music by Bronislau Kaper is superb and can measure up to that of Lawrence of Arabia, El Cid, King of Kings and Doctor Zhivago any day. The Love Theme is both haunting & Beautiful. The pace of the film flows very well and never once does it drag. Brando & Howard play well off each other. Richard Harris as Mills gives a fine performance along with the other character actors playing the crew. The interplay between Bligh & Christian builds just the right amount of tension. You can feel Fletcher Christian's contempt for Bligh growing more with every scene. The foppish, self centered intellectual suddenly thinking of things greater than himself, being drawn in to see the injustice & cruelty leveled at the crew. Maybe for the first time in his life Christian now knows the difference between right & wrong. He's forced to see that rule books & regulations do not make a captain. Especially one who seems to have nothing but disdain for his crew, beating them like dogs, starving them, stripping away their dignity. Bligh is a man without honor wanting desperately & only to further his own career in the British Navy, no matter who he has to crush or kill to get there. To sail around the Horn in the middle of Winter just to shave a couple of months off the voyage, risking both ship & crew. Depriving men of water in order to water plants. We the viewer are pushed to the edge along with Christian. Brando allows us to witness the smoldering powder keg within him. Then the film grants us relief as we sail & land into Paradise. Humor is put in at just the right places. When Bligh tells Christian to make love to the kings daughter in order not to offend him & Christian makes him squirm doing so, it's hysterical. I'm not sure there was a need for any great acting between Brando & Tarita, who plays the kings daughter, the sparks fly well enough on their own. The Island, the beaches, the sunsets over the ocean are truly magnificent. The native women are sensual innocence & breathtaking. You can plainly see why the crew would never want to leave this Island Paradise. The mutiny is very powerful. Christian is driven to commit this act by continued actions against the crew from Bligh & goaded by Mills; the powder keg explodes. The final scenes with Brando are beautifally acted and I have to say that I am so pleased that the original prologue & epilogue are included here because they are the perfect bookends to the movie. They set and end it wonderfully. Why they were ever taken out to begin with is beyond me. I can only say in closing that this two disc collection is great. The special features include some history, the construction of the Bounty and it's restoration over 30 years later. I would've liked some behind the scenes interviews with cast & crew but that's only a minor swipe. The original overture, intermission & entr' acte are here to make this feel like an old fashioned movie going experience that we don't see anymore. If you have a large flat screen tv & a home entertainment system, be prepared to get knocked off YOUR feet. Amazon is offering you one heck of a package here & at a great price. Don't pass it up!

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Even if this is a very good movie, even if Marlon Brando's Fletcher Christian and Trevor Howard's William Bligh are convincing and very well played, sadly, this movie has almost nothing in commun with the true story.

First thing, Bligh didn't decide to try the Cape Horn route midway thrue the Atlantic crossing, it was planned from the start.

Secondly, Bligh knew Fletcher Christian before the Bounty voyage, in fact, he had sailed with him before and even wished him on board. William Bligh treated his men as well as any Captain in the 1790's maybe even better, having learned from the Great James Cook himself.

The actual mutiny sequence has nothing, but absolutly nothing remotely to do with how it happened. Fletcher Christian, along with 3 other sailors, stormed Bligh sleeping quaters early in the morning and tied his hands behind his back. It was NEVER in reaction to Bligh refusing to give water to a dying sailor. The worst part in my opinion is last 15 minutes of the movie. Completely delirious stuff.

So, if you want to see a good movie, great, you can watch "Mutiny on the Bounty", but be aware that it has nothing to do with the true story. For that, may I recommend Caroline Alexander book "The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty".

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To Die For (1995)

If you would like to see a really great performance by Nicole Kidman, pick up a copy of "To Die For" at your local video store. Directed by Gus Van Sant, screenplay by Buck Henry from the book by Joyce Maynard (both Henry and Maynard have bit parts in the film), "To Die For" is a wicked little gem of a film.

Kidman won the Golden Globe award for Best Actress for her performance, and frankly I thought she should have gotten the Academy Award (unless I remember incorrectly, I don't think she was even nominated for an Academy Award for it). But she is absolutely brilliant in it: chilling, funny, scary, sexy, and horrifically evil.

Kidman portrays Suzanne Stone-Maretto: a devious, calculating, self-centered woman who manipulates Larry Maretto (a very sympathetic performance by Matt Dillon) into marrying her, quickly tires of him when he tries to stand in her way of her greatest ambition in life, which is to be the next Diane Sawyer, and soon convinces her teenage lover to kill him for her. Sound familiar? "To Die For" was loosely based on the real-life story of Pamela Smart, who seduced her 15-year old lover into murdering her husband.

Joaquin Phoenix is Jimmy Emmett, the hapless student who becomes Suzanne's lover; Lydia Mertz is Alison Follard, a young girl who idolizes her; and Casey Affleck is Russel Hines, another student who gets caught up in the scheme. Illeana Douglas is great as Larry's acidic, loving sister Janice, who also gets one of the best lines in the film, and at the very beginning, no less; and Dan Hedaya is Larry's father, Joe Maretto. Dan Hedaya is a master of the "Believe me, you don't want to see me mad" performance, with obvious menace just under a calm surface. The casting is great, and the performances are all right on target.

Look for uncredited cameos by George Segal as a conference speaker, and David Cronenberg as...you'll just have to go see it.

Nothing like a little dark humor and feminine fangs to make a mash of the culture driven by 15-minutes-of-fame. In this case, a riveting Nicole Kidman as a perky, self-obsessed suburban nutcase who has big dreams of finding fame and fortune, even at the expense of her husband.

Directed by Gus Van Sant in his usual cobbled-together manner (hoary, quasi-documentary devices to propel the screenplay, regular flashbacks, direct-to-the-camera diction, etc..) based on Buck Henry's trippy adaptation of a novel by the same name. The result is a pleasantly watchable movie that moves quickly and keeps you guessing the limits to which our protagonist would limp to achieve her ambitious goals.

I felt that the premise, beyond its chirpy surface, is quite thought-provoking. If our perky weather reporter were to be successful in her quest then we could believe that total dedication to a quest is admirable and ultimately rewarded -regardless of the means employed. Can we condone murder though? Perhaps we are offered a tongue-in-cheek hyperbole that extremes are necessary if we are to escape our station in life.

This movie apart from amusing you will surely leave you with something to savor, not just off its theme but from the brilliant supporting performances of Casey Affleck, Matt Dillon and especially Joaquin Phoenix.

Recommended rental.

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To Die For is an excellent, detailed portrait of a female narcissist. This movie is no comedy. If you ever have the great misfortune of tangling with one of these psychopaths, trust me, you WONT be laughing.

Nicole Kidman plays Suzanne Stone, the girl who grows up as the center of her family's never-ending attention, the Golden Child Who Can Do No Wrong. As life goes on, Suzanne hones her manipulation skills, and marries Larry (played by Matt Dillon), who reflects back to Suzanne the image of herself that she wants to believe and see. Perfect!

That is, until Larry demands that the marriage include him. In bed one morning soon after being wed, Larry wants to make love with Suzanne. She icily shoves his hand away saying "get your hands off me." She has to get ready for work, to "fix my face" for the world. It's performance time, and Suzanne is always on. Larry just doesn't get it. Their life is about HER, not them. When Larry broaches the topics of having children and her helping him out in the family restaurant business, Suzanne decides he has to go. This girl has global aspirations. She won't be marginalized with motherhood and a family business!

When Suzanne lands a job at a community TV station, she turns a small job fetching coffee and running errands into her role as the weather girl reporting from "The Weather Center." She soon executes one of her many grandiose schemes: making a documentary about high school teenagers in their natural habitat. Enter Joaquin Phoenix's character Jimmy Emmet, an introspective but deeply lost teenager who falls hard for Suzanne. She soon sexually manipulates Jimmy into doing her bidding, with promises of eternal love and "then we can always be together." Her blinding charisma engulfs Jimmy and friends Russel and Lydia, and of course she heartlessly kicks them all to the curb the instant she achieves her goal.

If you know anything about narcissism, you'll see all the high points in To Die For: grandiosity, complete disregard for the feelings of others, ice-cold manipulation, and lightning-fast betrayal once the narcissist has achieved her goal. You're seeing how a psychopath operates. If only the narcissists of the world found the same fate as Suzanne Stone. I strongly recommend To Die For.

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If you like your humor smart, wicked, ironic, and served on a silver platter, this one's for you. Buck Henry wrote the screenplay, which should say plenty about the level of intelligence and sly wit at work here. Nicole Kidman gives the performance of a career as a woman who looks, acts, and dresses like a Barbie doll come to life. She has completely bought into the myth that, frankly, we all believe to one extent or another. That is, being on tv is a good thing and validates a person, makes that person more real than real. Her obsession to be a tv celebrity is like a narcotic for her.

Suzanne Stone lives in a fantasy land, imagining that her role as the weather lady on a local cable access tv station will somehow be a springboard for Babwa Wawa type notoriety. Watching her voracious, yet somehow sadly innocent, ambition is both funny and horrifying. Kidman plays it perfectly, never winking at the camera. The story, though based on actual events, is little more than a vehicle for many wonderful performances. Her husband, played with real comic skill by Matt Dillon, has to go, he's just in the way. The stoner, semi-goth high school students she enlists for the hit, including Joaquin Phoenix, are charmed and subservient, amazed that a celebrity would pay attention to them. (As we would be if Oprah asked us to wax her car, which we probably would, because we also believe that being on tv is a good and important thing.)

Other inspired performances include George Segal in a splendidly cynical cameo, succinctly summarizing tv business reality. Dan Hedaya, who must get his 5:00 shadow somewhere around 9:47 a.m., is just right as the guy who settles the score. But the real sleeper is Illeana Douglas, narrator and Ms. Stone's sister-in-law. She smells a rat long before anyone else, and her wise-acre sarcastic delivery is terrific, especially as she gracefully skates over the evidence. That's cold!

Van Sant is a very interesting director. Drugstore Cowboy was as fascinating as it was disturbing. Elephant offered an amazing look at Columbine through the other end of the lens. Finding Forrester, a tad trite and commercial, did have heart. Good Will Hunting, yikes, what did we do to deserve the twin monsters it loosed upon the landscape? Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, one of the best books ever becomes one of worst movies ever. My Own Private Idaho. This movie, featuring an unnerving performance by the late River Phoenix, was chilling, haunting, beautiful, and absolutely brilliant. Van Sant is certainly capable of greatness, and Kidman is also. In To Die For they are both at their absolute best.

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Nicole Kidman plays the perfect psychopath in TO DIE FOR. The psychopath is the one area of psychology that no one has a cure for. Psychopaths lack moral impulse. They not only don't have the vaguest idea of what right and wrong mean, but they also don't understand why other people can get all exercised about violations of right and wrong. Kidman in the movie doesn't murder because it's calculated and she can get away with it; she doesn't even think that far ahead. And that's what makes acting a role like this so blamed difficult. Kidman pulls it off in what I regard as one of the two greatest bravura female acting performances in the past quarter century. (The other is Kate Nelligan in the 1981 movie, EYE OF THE NEEDLE.) If only the screenplay were up to Kidman's level, it would shake five stars out of me. There's a little too much fussing about with the teenagers, and some scenes last too long. A good editing job could have trimmed ten or fifteen minutes out of this movie and made it one of Hollywood's all=time best. But, given what we have, if you watch it only for Kidman's incredible, incredible performance, you'll get a lot more than your money's worth.

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Cujo (1983)

I have waited a looooooong time to see this film get the special treatment it deserved. For years, the only way I had to view this classic horror treat was on an old DVD release with cropped edges, horrible picture, and NO special features at all.....not to mention the ugliest DVD artwork ever for a Stephen King release.

Lionsgate has now given us Cujo as it has never been seen on home video. I was blown away by how clear the picture is, and how vibrant the colors are. The old transfer just seemed washed out and faded. I watched this on my PS3, which upscales it to hi-def, and I never dreamed this film could ever look this good. I'm also glad that there was no effort to try to create a surround sound track for this film, since most of it takes place inside a car. You have the choice of watching it in the original mono, or a 2 channel stereo mix. While this is not a film I would choose to show off my surround system, it is very effective for what is happening on screen. Not only do we get treated to a remastered copy of the film, but Cujo also has some really good special features. The 3-part documentary runs about 45 min. total, and is very informative about the way the film was made. Both Dee Wallace and Danny Pintauro take part in the documentary. The director, Lewis Teague, also provides a good commentary track. I only have two minor complaints: 1st, there is no trailer for Cujo and 2nd, with it being the 25th anniversary edition, I would rather have seen the artwork from the original movie poster as the cover. I'm not complaining too much about the artwork since it is a huge improvement over the previous version, I just think the poster with the white picket fence and the word "Cujo" in blood was a great poster.

Bottom line: If you own the original DVD version of Cujo, put it in the doghouse. You will be glad you upgraded to this fantastic version of what I think is one of the best adaptations of Stephen King's work on film.

2013 Blu ray UPDATE:

I just got my new copy of Cujo in the mail, and thought I would add this to my previous DVD review.

Of course, the one thing you want to know; is this worthy of a double dip?? Well, that depends on how much you like this movie. I'll break it down into a list of pros and cons, then you can make your own decision.

PROS

* FINALLY, we get cover art from the original movie poster. This packaging is AWESOME!!! Original artwork is also reflected on the disc itself.

* New commentary from director Lewis Teague. This is a really entertaining track.

* Sound seems to be remastered.

* When I saw the video of the 25th anniv. of Cujo, I thought it couldn't get better. I have to admit that I was wrong. This is the best Cujo has ever looked!!! The HD transfer has obviously been remastered

since the 25th anniv. edition. The picture looks gorgeous!!!!

* On-screen menu also uses original poster artwork.

CONS

* No other extras included other than commentary

* Price is a little high for a bare bones movie.

BOTTOM LINE: In the case of the new 30th anniv. edition of this film, it really comes down to how much you're willing to pay for a new commentary track and some awesome artwork. If you do decide to double dip on this one, I would definitely save the previous 25th anniv. edition. That way you have the complete extra features.

Actually a fairly good Stephen King translation, I remember being genuinely frightened a few times when this played theatrically. But my fondest memory of the movie was its poster: a beautiful sun-bleached drawing of a very east-coast summer house, surrounded by a picket fence splattered with blood in the form of Cujo's name. Warner home video used this artwork when intially releasing the video over a decade ago, and now? This picture of a clownish lip-sticked overly-reddened St. Bernard and his teeth is clearly not even a shot from the movie! I have always questioned/doubted the wisdom of revisionist cover-art for video releases, but this one takes the cake as the most artless piece of junk I've ever seen.

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If I had read the book first I would have probably known what I was in for when I sat down to watch this movie. I have a deeply rooted fear of confined spaces and possibly an even bigger fear of being eaten. So basically, this movie scared me to no end! Now I have to admit much of the story (and acting) moved along fairly slowly, until the mother and son were stuck in the middle of nowhere, in a station wagon, with a large, rabid Saint Bernard attempting to get inside! It was this portion of the movie that got my skin crawling! When Cujo starts attacking the car and you just get this feeling that nobody is getting out of there alive, that's good Horror entertainment! Strangely enough I never felt that Cujo should die or that he was a "monster". I just kept thinking that all of us are victims of circumstance, and not one of us has control over the events in our lives. That concept alone is terrifying! The acting of the mother and son were perfect and I'd really like to know how they got the dog who played Cujo to act so mean! To me, a claustraphobe, this was one nightmare of a movie. If I had been younger I would have probably developed a serious fear of dogs to boot. But dogs are great, as long as you make sure they've had their shots! You don't want your dog going Cujo on you, now do you! One of the scariest movies I've ever seen!

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To all you folks that are complaining about a Saint Bernard being the wrong choice for this role, and that it was "too cute" to be scary, um that was the point. Sheesh. How could so many people miss that? It's the fact that a big, loveable dog has suddenly become a threat that makes this film so spooky. Man's best friend has suddenly become a monster. Had they used a Doberman or Rottweiller, everyone would have been like "Well, yeah, they're killers. No suprise it turned on them." Most good horror works on the premise of the benign becoming the terrifying. This movie is the epitome of that. Also, a Doberman or Rottweiller wouldn't have been that threatening. Doberman's especially are small enough to send rolling with a well-placed kick. They needed a large dog that would be able to dent a car door with it's massive skull, and take three hits with a baseball bat. Get a clue folks.

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When you think of successful early "adapted from a Stephen King novel" films, a few come to mind. From the greatest:Carrie, The Shining, Pet Sematary to the not-so-bad:Salem's Lot, Children of the Corn, Christine. But nessled right in the middle should be Cujo. For my generation, after this film was released anytime you saw a large strange dog in the near distance, your mind raced with the thoughts of this film.

While still pretty effective, this film about a mother and son trapped inside their broken down Ford Pinto while a rabies-infected Saint Bernard terrorizes them from the outside in, still has plenty of scares even 25 years later. While not as classic as other Horror films of it's time, it did forever become the grandaddy of all maniac dog movies. So on that level alone, it comes from me to any Horror fan very suggested.

However, it does have a few faults. Even though it was shot and released in 1983, this movie looks and feels like it was actually done in say 1976, down to it's starring car and ABC-Movie Of The Week musical score. Another is the 30 minutes of set-up at it's beginning showing the trials and downfalls of suburban marriage and family life at the time. Not that those 30 minutes hurt the movie, it actually sets up the characters for concern quite nicely, but to new fans of the movie they might wonder what drama film got accidently put in this Horror DVD's case.

But once Cujo gets things a foamin' about 40 minutes in, all Hell breaks loose and let the intense claustrophobia begin. As for extras, there's a nice 50 minute documentary called "Dog Days:The Making Of Cujo" from 2007 that has crew and actors telling about how things were done quite informatively. Seeing a now 30 year old Danny Pintauro talking about his role when he was just six is nice to see a former child actor who can still remember the work much less live to tell about it. Also a directors commentary & an anamorphic picture with a high bit-rate, this is a worthy addition to any classic Horror collection. Despite purists who say that it changed certain aspects for the film not originally in the King novel (all of which were approved by King), this is one film that will make most say "The movie was better than the book".

(RedSabbath Rating:8.0/10)

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Letters to God (2009)

The movie has a wonderful message and more than being sad it was uplifting.

While the movie does tug at your heart strings. Letters to God is a good movie. We want Tyler to get better. We want his family and friends to be strong. We want everyone who is touched by his story to find the Lord.

The acting is good. The storyline moves and you find yourself really caring about these people. I love the scenes of Tyler and his friend Samantha. Tyler and his brother. Brady the mailman who eventually is saved by Tyler's Letters to God are all very moving.

Not overly religious? Don't worry.

While it is obviously a religious movie, I don't believe messages are crammed down your throat as in some religious themed movies. The movie is a feel good movie with a beautiful message of friendship, strength, inspiration, prayer, second chances and dignified endings.

This is an incredible movie. It lit a fire within meI now want to know Jesus better. Unfortunately, it is in only a few theaters. I drove from Woodland Hills Ca, to Simi valley to see it and it was well worth the trip. When it comes out on Video I will buy it for my friends and family.

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This is probably the best movie I've seen in a long, long time! I was thrilled to see a movie that totally smashed the modern non-religious mentality. Thank God that this story has been told! I hope and pray to see more like it.

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this is a movie that inspires everyone you will cry laugh and learn to pray and believe in god the boy playing the part is excellent and as my sister said as we were leaving the theaterhe has a beautiful smile

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I can't say enough about this movie. The deep faith in God and the simplicity of how he prays. I walked out of the movie with a fire inside that I have not felt for a long time. My friend and I promoted the movie to our school principle and also put it in the church bulletin as a must so for the whole family. Please go out of your way to see this film, you won't regret it.

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Shaft (2012)

'Shaft' , the classic detective film from 1971, is just as good as 'The French Connection' or 'Bullitt' but with a style all it's own. A good story, convincing action and a gritty realistic look plus Issac Hayes and his driving score and you really have a time machine slice of the early 70's. I really hate this film being called the first "Blackploitation" film. Whether or not the main character is played by a black man, 'Shaft' is a cool and hip urban detective thriller with loads of action, a bit of humor, plot twists and even romance here and there. (ok, how about just some casual sex but hey, I'm talkin' about Shaft!) This is a really cool movie and has stood the test of time!

With that said, this review is going to focus on the picture and sound quality and if this Blu Ray is a solid upgrade from your DVD or VHS copy.

Shaft is presented on a BD-25 in full 1080p with a good solid transfer. Strong primary colors abound and while there is an abundance of film grain, for the most part it is just not obtrusive. There are 2 or 3 short scenes where the film elements have badly degraded and they are easy to spot. For an example, look at the master shot where Shaft is ready to leave after drinking his espresso. Another is in Bumpy's office when his wall hangings seem to come alive with dancing mosquito noise. But all in all, this is a good solid transfer. A bit of edge enhancement exists but it helps support the overall rendering in this case. DNR is just not an issue with 'Shaft' on Blu. You get all the grain, the good and the bad. Compared to the Blu Ray of '48 Hours' this is demo material, so don't think it is really bad. It isn't.

The motion is smooth and artifact free and while grain sometimes darkens the contrast levels just a bit too much, overall 'Shaft' looks really fantastic on Blu Ray, especially given the fact it was a low budget production. I was really happy watching it and felt I was watching a film and not some digital piece of garbage. A good solid 3 and 3/4 stars out of 5 and sometimes it strays into a solid 4 and beyond.

So how is the audio? What you get here is a Mono DTS HD Master Audio soundtrack. Before you get up in arms over the soundtrack being in Mono, the original audio elements used to create this films soundtrack were not available and as such the mixed elements from the original Mono track had to be used. They have been cleaned up and are presented in Lossless Audio and they sound as good or better than they ever did in the theater where 'Shaft' had always been presented in nothing but Mono. Because things are so clear sounding, you can pretty much spot every time the dialogue had to be looped (dubbed later due to problems with the original production sound) but they don't stand out too badly. The music has plenty of dynamics and while stereo would have been SO MUCH better, this rendering is just fine. A few lines here and there seemed a bit buried in the mix, but this IS the original mix and you can rest assured you are hearing things much better than people did back in '71.

You get a few cool extras with 'Shaft" as well but they are unfortunately all in SD. You get a full length 1973 Shaft TV episode and a short documentary called'Soul In Cinema' plus trailers for all 4 'Shaft' films.

'Shaft" comes to Blu Ray in a very respectable package, with a better than average transfer for a catalog title and solid sound as well. This is not demo material, but it presents this film as good or better than it ever looked at the movies, unless you saw a brand new print on the first run. Now if they would get busy and release the other 3 that would be quite the collection.

Recommended for fans of 'Shaft' and fans of older films in general!

This is a great blu-ray release from WB.

The original flipper dvd also had a vintage featurette, that is also on this BD, but there is a an extra that really makes this release special, the inclusion of a rare 1973 Shaft TV movie called "The Killing" it's in rough shape, but it's awseome that Warner Bros included it as an extra, so in a sense you get two films for the price of one!

The PQ and AQ on the feature film is good for this 70's classic.

Forget the Samuel L Jackson remake, THIS IS THE REAL SHAFT, as portrayed by underrated Richard Roundtree.

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This has been one of my favorite movies since it first came out. I've admired Gordon Parks eye for detail since his days as a still photographer and he and his cinemagrapher Urs Furrer made this a gorgeous film to look at. The one thing that always bothered me about this film was the muddy, murky sound. That is no longer a problem. The sound is now crystal clear. So if you're a fan of this 70's hit, Isaac Hayes soundtrack and all, get it!

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Man, I bought the original Shaft, dual-sided DVD back around 1999 or 2000 and kept it all the way until today it even survived a house fire! Since then, I must have watched it at least 500 times, that's how much I love this film. Since Blu-Ray came out (I bought in a year later), I always imagined this film on BD and how it would look. I EXPECTED surround sound given the classic soundtrack as well as superb picture, even though the film grain I knew would be a problem.

I have gone through different DVD and Blu-Ray players up until now. I have had HD upconverting players and various BD players that upconvert to varying degrees. I now have a Sony BDP-S1000ES which as far as I am concerned, is as good as it get's without having Farrari money! So I have seen Shaft on different Players and I know this film and every detail like I know myself. Of course I could not wiat to see if this was an improvement or not. "Professional" reviews gave the picture quality 4.5 stars out of five, which looked strange since their screen shots looked murky. I still had to have it regardless.

The Good: It is on BD so this is a plus, but of course the heavy grain follows it as well. I expect the grain since much of the film's scenes are dark. When scenes are filmed in darker areas you get more grain, when in lighter areas there is less grain and much more detail. The colors did not really get a BD boost and they still look similar to the DVD, but with a little bit more pop but not much! I can say that I can now make out the finer detail in the clothing (but not like other BD's) and I can now appreciate the suits as fine wears. You know 70's gear is always laughable, but Bumpy's suit and coat looked really fine in the scene where he asked Shaft to find his daughter while in Shaft's office. I could make out that he had a green hat, tan outer coat of which I can now see vertical lines, fine tailoring and nice buttons. It changed my perception of some 70's clothing.

The sound was clearer of course, but still kind of muddy, but you can hear each sound clearer than before. The music sounds way better than the DVD, but it would have been nice to get at least stereo like I had written Warner Brothers for years asking for! I am still hoping for at least stereo for the Superfly BD!

The Bad: It had no surround sound or at least stereo! I expect that these days, this is not a 1930's film and it had an Academy Award winning soundtrack! This is not acceptable, but I do not expect them to d anything about it. They could have also put this in a box set with all three films as I expected them to do.

They could have at least designed a new cover or used elements of the original theater poster art of promos those were hot! I know that the idea is to not make and old film look old for this day and age or get lost on the shelf with too much detail, but after having stared at the DVD cover for the last 12 years, it would have been nice to seen something different! The actual disc art is not here at all! The disc is just a black disc with the word Shaft on it! Talk about cheap! I guess that is how they are doing these BD's these days. It is the studio's fault for cheapening them up and now people expect $10 BD's!

Final: Is this a major jump from DVD to BD? Not really except for the last third of the film where it is filmed in a better lit area like the hotel where Marcy was being held. There, you can see finer details that you expect on a BD disc. Again, the dark scenes will have too much grain no matter what so that cannot be helped. It is likely that this will be as good as it can possibly get unless that take the best print of the film and do a restoration of some sort, but when 4K becomes common, I will not make the upgrade if this is offered.

I love technology, so I had to have this film on BD. If you are one of those who just turns things on, likes that it is clear and does not care how it works, then this is for you. If you were looking for a BD upgrade of the DVD similar to a Scarface, Dog Day Afternoon or The Green Mile, then this may not be for you as you do not see such a jump throughout the film, but it is a step up. If you have the DVD and you are not the upgrading type and you have an upconverting DVD or BD player (that does it well), then you can keep your disc, unless you really want to get rid of that dual-sided disc like I wanted to! If you do not have the DVD, then of course get the BD and forget about the DVD! If you love Shaft (and Shaft's: Big Score!) like I do, then you will get this regardless.

Lastly, they included one of the TV films on this disc, which they could have made clearer. It is not as bad quality as some make it sound, but it is not even DVD quality. They could have at least made it DVD quality along with making the trailers true HD and all bonus materials on ALL BD's that were not shot on film HD. It is supposed to be HD, so that is all that I expect to see. Since this is on a single layer, 25GB disc, it goes to show that all they did was put the DVD transfer onto BD as opposed to going all out and doing a new file for BD. You can tell they did this because of the size of the disc and because of the same cover art which they used for the menu! Also, maybe they did it because of the amount of film grain and figured it would not matter to most, but 50GB is the standard. When they talking about 100GB discs being the future (I have not see on yet, of the Deep Color!), there was really no exucse for not giving us a 50GB disc.

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Product is great. Video transfer is superb. Sorta wished tho it was available to purchase in stores as opposed to burn on demand. "The black private dick that's a sex machine to all the chicks' deserves better, but the chance to have vintage stuff like this is a blessing so I can't complain.

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Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer (Three-Disc Edition Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy) (2011)

I loved this movie and so did my children. The movie was clean I did not have to worry about any nudity, profanity,it was funny, we cant wait for it to come out in dvd.If you can use your imagination and go with the flow,not be criticle,loosen up, and you too will have fun watching it.I took my son (10) and he wants to see it again, so even though it is a girl flick boys will like it too. I took my daughter (7 1/2) another time and she laughed the whole movie. I guess to each his own.What prompted me to write this is the negitative reviews I read and thinking this is a great movie what are they saying. Any way we loved the movie.

Last Saturday, my son graduated from elementary schoolYEAH!. We had an exciting day which included not only the graduation ceremony, but also attending an advance screening of the new kids movie "Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer". This movie is based on the Judy Moody book series by author Megan McDonald.

In the movie, school has just ended and Judy Moody (Jordana Beatty) is determined not to have a boring time this summer like in years past which included trips for her and her younger brother to visit grandma's house. Judy is a force unto herself in that she dresses in crazy colors, wears pajamas to school and never combs her flaming red hair. Now I don't know how many folks out there remember the 1990's TV show "Blossom" staring Mayim Bialik, but Judy Moody could definitely be the new age version of Blossom crazy clothes, mood rings and all.

Judy decides that this summer, she and her friends will have a race to see who can have the best summer ever by doing a series of daring challenges that earn "thrill points". Whoever gets to 100 points first wins the title of having the best summer ever.

When Judy's grandma has an accident, Judy's parents leave her and her brother for the whole summer with their crazy gorilla artist Aunt Opal (Heather Graham) who is a grown up version of Judy. But what Judy does not count on is that all her friends are going away for the summer to exciting places like circus camp and swimming with the whales, that her little brother Stink (Parris Mostelleris) is spending the summer looking for Big Foot in the woods by their neighborhood, that her Aunt Opal has no idea how to drive a car, and that her best friend Frank (Preston Bailey) has an inability to do anything exciting without throwing up. Their adventures make for a summer that the movie audience will definitely not forget.

I have to say that I really enjoyed this movie. It was a total overload of silliness from beginning to end. If you think this is a prissy girly movie, you would be very mistaken. My 11 year son was laughing his head off since this movie contains lots of dumb jokes involving gas passing and animal dung. Even actor Jaleel White (think Urkel) is in the film as Judy's crazy teacher Mr. Todd. This movie is all about kids using their imaginations to have a good time and that made for a totally NOT bummer film.

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This movie was about what I expected. Full of hyper kids trying to have a fun summer. Jordana Beatty was a pretty good choice for Judy. When Judy Moody's friends go away for the summer, she tries her best to have fun with her aunt Opal, and brother Stink. They try to get 'thrill points' by hunting for Bigfoot, riding a rollercoaster, and watching horror movies. If you like silly kids movies, you might like JUDY MOODY AND THE NOT BUMMER SUMMER!!!

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I figured this would be another 90-minute nightmare but found it surprisingly tolerable. If directed towards adults it would not receive 5 stars, but as the father of a 4 and 5-yr-old, I can honestly say I've seen this twenty times over the past month. My young son and daughter absolutely adore this movie and would watch it morning, noon, and night if we allowed it. Remarkably enough, I can tolerate it too.

As a parent, I am in continual search of wholesome entertainment for my children. We don't have cable TV and are very strict as to what we let our children view. I feel I'm more lenient than my wife in this regard, but I want to warn would-be buyers in my situation that there is some material you might find objectionable. A child pukes into another's face, a piece of animal poop is accidentally squished into sandwiches and nearly eaten, and the word "crap" is used a couple of time (although one of the children points out that "crap is a swear"). Personally I had no problem with these portrayals but to each their own.

Overall this is a charmingly colorful family film that won't entirely rot your young ones' minds. I found it harmless and entertaining. And hey, if the kids love it, it can't be all bad.

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Wahoo! It's the last day of school, and summer vacation looms enticingly on the horizon. Judy Moody has big plans for the best summer ever. So, it seems, does everyone else. Her teacher, Mr. Todd, teases his class by announcing he will be doing something special during vacation. He promises a prize for anyone who can find him and gives them a clue: "COLD."

Judy gathers her friends in the T.P. Club tent to declare that they will have the most "NOT bummer summer ever." She has prepared a chart that she claims will be sure to ward off any issues with boredom. It's filled with dares for club members Rocky, Frank, Amy and (of course) Judy. For each dare accomplished, the dare-conqueror will get 10 thrill points, and bonus points are available for really crazy feats. Judy tells the group that if they reach 100 points, they've had the best summer possible.

That's when Judy gets a double whammy of bad news. Rocky won't be around to work on his thrill points because he's headed off to circus camp. Amy won't be at home either, as she and her mother are traveling to Borneo. Although Frank will still be around, Judy is starting to get a bad feeling about summer. Even Stink has an exciting project for the upcoming vacation: he plans to catch Bigfoot. Somehow, her brother's excitement only makes her feel worse.

The following week finds Judy saying goodbye to Rocky and Amy. She warns Rocky that he's sure to shovel tons of stinky elephant poop at circus camp, but she can't dim his enthusiasm. Amy doesn't even let Judy call Borneo "Bored-e-o." After all, Amy's mother is going to write an article on a lost tribe living in the rainforest. Judy has to admit that sounds like the opposite of boring.

The days ahead are just as dull as Judy predicted they would be. While Frank gets to go to an exciting day camp, Judy has nothing much to do. Then she has a glimmer of hope. Mom says she has something to tell her. They won't be visiting Grandma Lou during vacation after all. Instead, her parents plan to fly out to California to help Gramps and Nana move to a retirement community. The bad news is that they're leaving the kids behind. Judy gasps in horror as she realizes that she and Stink will be staying home with Aunt Opal. Opal is Dad's sister, and Judy hasn't seen her since she was a baby. Judy's verdict: "This is the way-worst, double-drat, down-in-the-dumps summer EVER!" She immediately nicknames her unknown aunt "Aunt Awful."

Aunt Opal's visit is off to quite a start when dinner catches on fire just as she arrives. Judy tries to help with her squirt gun, but only manages to hit Aunt Opal between the eyes. That's when Judy notices that her aunt is not at all as she imagined. Opal has long red hair, bright blue boots, and cool bracelets --and she gives Judy a special bracelet, along with the best mood ring Judy has ever seen. And that is just the beginning, as Judy gears up for a summer filled with her aunt (who is likely to strike readers as an adult Judy Moody), Bigfoot trivia, the intriguing mystery about Mr. Todd, a messy ride on the Scream Monster, a dark-of-night stakeout, a dare race, secret art, and much more.

Judy Moody is now a movie star! This book, based on the screenplay for the movie Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer, remains true to the Judy Moody spirit. Judy discovers that, even when a summer doesn't go the way she planned, it can still be filled with plenty of adventure and fun.

--Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon

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