Category: Video Reviews

Posted on: June 18, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Sophia Loren Award Collection (Sunflower, Marriage Italian Style, Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow)

With the sheer amount of films that are being re-released onto the Blu-Ray format, I feel that there is a good chance that a number of them will be completely missed. While there is a good reason for this for some films, I content that Lorber’s re-release of a number of films from the Sophia Loren vaults should be viewed. This collection (which includes Sunflower, Marriage Italian Style, and Yesterday,…

Posted on: June 17, 2011 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Shot in the Dark (DVD)

You’d be excused for thinking Shot in the Dark, the new HBO doc from Entourage’s Adrian Grenier, was little more than a predictably sappy tear jerker aimed at the Lifetime crowd. That’s certainly what I was expecting, so I was pleasantly surprised when the film turned out to be a sincere look at Grenier simply searching for answers about the estranged father he grew up without. Out on DVD just…

Posted on: June 16, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Killer Yacht Party (DVD)

Killer Yacht Party is an absolutely absurd flick, but that is not a bad thing. Where a great deal of horror movies end up taking themselves too seriously, Killer Yacht Party is able to intersperse humor with horror in a highseas whodunit. The film starts off innocently, with a party being held on a yacht. As things begin to reach a fever pitch, deaths start occurring. Keeping things varied, the…

Posted on: June 15, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Reader’s Digest – Untold Secrets of the Civil War (DVD)

There have been a tremendous number of different pieces, works, and other films done since the advent of television that looks to provide a decent amount of coverage of America’s Civil War. However, due to time restrictions or ideological leanings of the work’s creator, a great many of these collections have been limited in one sense or another. Questar has created a DVD set that looks to solve a great…

Posted on: June 13, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

The Hustler: 50th Anniversary Edition (Blu-Ray)

There will always be limitation with the source material that an older film is pulled from. However, in transferring 1961’s The Hustler from its original reel, Fox has imbued a sharpness to it that is hard to deny. With the crisp video print and corresponding sharp audio track, I cannot help but imagine that this is what moviegoers saw back in 1961. The film stars Paul Newman as a pool…

Posted on: June 13, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Party Animals (DVD Set)

I am pretty surprised that I missed out on Party Animals when it first aired, on BBC Two in 2007. The show, which featured Matt Smith, Andrew Buchan and Shelley Conn, was only greenlit for the course of one season. However, BFS Entertainment has found it and has given it a new lease on life with this DVD set release. Party Animals showcases the sometimes hard to believe lives of…

Posted on: June 12, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

White Collar Season 2 (DVD Set)

After Monk ended its run, I really did not think that USA was going to have any sort of show to fill the void. After watching the first season of White Collar, I believe that I was wrong – White Collar shows that there are cable shows that (at the very least) can approach the quality of writing and acting of network shows. Lead actor Matt Bomer (Neal Caffrey) still…

Posted on: June 12, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Stargate Universe: Season 2 – The Complete Final Season (DVD Set)

This DVD captures the final season of the Stagate phenomenon, and was the final season broadcasted of Stargate Universe. The show was stuck between a rock and a hard place, though – it broke free of the limitations that previous seasons of Stargate had placed on itself while keeping things fresh. Where there was a shift to a more character-driven (rather than storyline-driven) episodes, the show seemed to contain some…

Posted on: June 11, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Adua & Her Friends (DVD)

Adua & Her Friends (DVD) / 2011 Rarovideo / 129 Minutes / http://www.rarovideo.com I had thought with the advent of the Blu-Ray, that DVD-making companies would gradually die off. However, there are some companies that are putting out some impressive DVD-only content. Rarovideo is one of these companies, and Adua & Her Friends (Adua e le compagne) is an example of one of these films. The film is only one…

Posted on: June 11, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Ghost Sweeper Mikami Collection 4 (DVD)

I love the fact that, after about twenty years of having an intimate connection with Japan and the different anime showing there, that Section 23 can dig up such a great title. Ghost Sweeper Mikami is a show that originally aired from April of 1993 until March of 1994, with 45 episodes (and 1 hour-long film) that aired soon after. The show itself has an interesting premise – the rapid…

Posted on: June 10, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Heroes of Bikini Bottom (DVD)

While I have heard much gnashing of teeth about the irregular schedule that Spongebob Squarepants and other Nickelodeon cartoons have, I feel that this allows the creative team to keep the shows fresh without experiencing burnout as rapidly as other children’s show. Nowhere is this better seen than in Heroes of Bikini Bottom, the Spongebob DVD that is touching down on June 14th. The 88 minute-runtime of this DVD gives…

Posted on: June 9, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes (DVD)

I keep pretty abreast of the different DC comics’ cartoons, but I have not (until this 2-DVD set) really had the chance or the ability to properly get into the different Marvel franchises. If you are in a similar boat as me, there is no reason why you should not search out both volumes of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. This release hits on all cylinders, beginning with the unique…

Posted on: June 9, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Kung Fu Dunk (DVD)

Kung Fu Dunk is one of those otherworldly types of movies that will ultimately turn out to be a great popcorn muncher. In Kung Fu Dunk, Fang Shijie (Jay Chou) is trained at the highest caliber by the best masters of kung fu. After being removed from eir schooling, Fang is required to make something of eirself. To do this, ey takes a spot on a college basketball team. Where…

Posted on: June 7, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Heaven & Hell: Radio City Music Hall – Live! (Blu-Ray)

Heaven & Hell was a supergroup beyond even Black Sabbath’s wildest dreams. Consisting of past and present Sabbath members, their run at the top was only cut short by Ronnie James Dio’s untimely demise. The quality of Heaven & Hell: Radio City Music Hall – Live! Is nothing less than impressive. Where many concert videos seem to be lacking a truly visionary camera direction, this release ensures that every important…

Posted on: June 7, 2011 Posted by: James Comments: 0

Bhutto (DVD)

Bhutto is a properly-paced telling of the life and times of the Bhutto family, in a fashion that is not completely dissimilar to coverings of a political regime like the Bush, Clinton, or even Kennedy family. While this is ultimately a documentary about the titular leader, the story easily rivals fictional accounts – Bhutto’s story is tremendously interesting and hard to believe at points. In order to properly educate viewers,…

Posted on: June 1, 2011 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

True Blood – The Complete Third Season (HBO)

Remember how cool it was when the writers behind True Blood trotted out the shape shifters in season two to compete with the vampires for our attention? With season three they’ve jacked the bar up pretty high by bringing out a whole parade of supernatural creatures. The series picks up with Sookie (Anna Paquin) turning to a werewolf named Alcide (Joe Manganiello) to help her rescue her vampire beau Bill…

Posted on: May 31, 2011 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

The Kids in the Hall – The Complete Series DVD Megaset (DVD Set)

Kids in the Hall fans must be in heaven with this massive release. On 20 DVDs, they have managed to cram in all five seasons of this highly influential Canadian sketch comedy series (that’s nearly 800 sketches).The show has been off the air for more than 15 years, but the skits hold up remarkably well (the same can’t be said for most of the recent SNL sketches that don’t even…

Posted on: May 12, 2011 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! – Season Cinco (DVD)

Let’s get this out of the way up front: if goofy, often absurdist humor is not your thing, stay far away from Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! In fact, it’s probably best you stop reading this review and just move on to more productive things. Ok, now that those born without a sense of humor have moved on, can you believe these guys have found a channel brave…

Posted on: May 7, 2011 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Stan Lee’s Superhumans – Season One (A&E Home Video)

Coming across as a modern day version of That’s Incredible! or Ripley’s Believe It or Not, at least once in every episode of Stan Lee’s Superhumans there’s an “is that real?” moment. Co-hosted by Stan Lee – creator of comic heroes like The Hulk, X-Men and Spiderman – the show centers on real people with real, if odd, physical abilities, like being able to withstand extreme heat or conduct electricity…

Posted on: May 5, 2011 Posted by: Danica Comments: 0

I want MOORE Dolemite!

Dolemite is a blaxploitation film from 1975 starring Cleveland, Ohio born actor Rudy Ray Moore. Dolemite is crime fighting, butt kicking, all around pimp. In the beginning of the movie you see our hero being released from incarceration. He was set up by his greatest competitor Willie Greene played by D’Urville Martin.