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Box Set
| | | 18 Fatal Strikes | |  | | I've gotten reports that this was made in 1981 at 1st and then i got reports that it was made in 1978. This dvd, released in conjuction with the Wu-Tang clan comes complete with introduction by Wu-Tang's RZA, Wu-Tang music video AND, gee wiz, trailers consisting of strippers and people making up bags of marijuana. The quality is better than most of the releases by this company; the picture wasn't as fuzzy and the sound was fair enough. The story is about a Shaolin Monk who runs afoul of the white haired Ching villain, Shaking Eagle, a formidable Kung Fu Master with an electric shock eagle's claw technique. The Monk is a saved from death by two bumbling, good natured friends who live together (one of whom is Tung Wei), and proceeds to teach them his Kung Fu. This film is really a keeper just for the end of the movie, which more than makes up for the boredom of the first half of it.
Around the 48 minute mark there is a point where it looks like they change the reel in the middle of a fight! Be kind, these movies are funny. |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Joesph Cheung | | Cast: | Tung Wei, Shek Tien |
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| | | | 24 S1 | | | | Such a simple idea--yet so fiendishly complex in the execution. 24, as surely everyone knows by now, is a thriller that takes places over 24 hours, midnight to midnight, in 24 one-hour episodes (well, 45-minute episodes if you subtract the commercials). Everything takes place in real time, which means no flashbacks, no flash-forwards, no handy time-dissolves. Every strand of the plot has to be dovetailed and interlocked so things happen just when they should, in the right amount of time. Not that easy.
Creator Robert Cochran and his team of writers and directors have done an impressive job of putting the jigsaw together and keeping the tension ratcheted up high, as federal agent Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) runs around L.A. trying to stall an assassination attempt on an African American presidential candidate and rescue his wife and daughter from the clutches of the Balkan baddies. Twists, turns, revelations, and cliffhangers are tossed at us with satisfying regularity. It's not perfect: we get some hokey plot devices (instant amnesia, anybody?); the final twist makes no sense whatsoever; there are altogether too many huggy family moments; and as for Dennis Hopper's "Serbian" accent....
Even so, this is undeniably mold-breaking TV. Sutherland, rescuing his career from the doldrums in one heroic leap, fully deserves his Golden Globe. Sets and locations are artfully deployed, and Sean Callery's score is a powerful, brooding presence. Like Murder One and The Sopranos, 24 is one of those series that future TV thrillers will be measured against. --Philip Kemp |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Keifer Sutherland, Sarah Clarke, Dennis Haysbert, Elisha Cuthbert, Leslie Hope, Penny Johnson |
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| | | | 24 S2 | | | | Jack Bauer is having another one of his "very bad days" in the second season of the groundbreaking real-time thriller 24. Once again the hours are ticking by with more guaranteed cliffhangers than a convention of mountain climbers. Holed up in a Los Angeles condo and estranged from his daughter, Jack is no longer on the government payroll; unfortunately for him, this small fact doesn't seem to matter to President David Palmer and the NSA, who call him back in to the CTU and give him 24 hours to infiltrate a terrorist organization that is planning to detonate a dirty bomb in the city of angels. All Jack wants is to get his daughter out of the city, unfortunately Kim's new employer, the abusive father of the child she is nannying, has other ideas.
Fans of the original won't be disappointed, as there are more than enough shock moments in the first few hours to hint at the climactic build-up to come, while newcomers can quickly get involved in the lives of Jack and his family. There are some new characters to bolster the veteran cast and, interestingly (although not surprisingly), Jack's character has taken an altogether darker, more psychopathic turn. The danger the characters find themselves in also has a much more global, not to mention topical, impetus, grounded as it is in the war against terrorism. Although the territory is more familiar this time around, this second season is just as much a high-tension, taut, adrenalin-fuelled ride as the first, and one that will have you glued to your TV for the next 24 hours. --Kristen Bowditch
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| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kiefer Sutherland, Sarah Clarke, Dennis Haysbert, Elisha Cuthbert, Leslie Hope, Penny Johnson |
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| | | | 24 S3 | | | | There's not one cougar to be found in 24's dynamic third season, and that's good news for everyone. After Jack Bauer's daughter Kim (Elisha Cuthbert) survived hokey hazards in season 2, she's now a full-time staffer at CTU, the L.A.-based intelligence beehive that's abuzz once again--three years after the events of "Day Two"--when a vengeful terrorist threatens to release a lethal virus that could wipe out much of the country's population. Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) attempts to broker a deal for the virus involving drug kingpin Ramon Salazar (Joaquim de Almeida), whose operation Jack successfully infiltrated at high personal cost: to maintain his cover, he got hooked on heroin. That potentially deadly triangle--drug lords, addiction, and bioterrorism on a massive scale--sets the 24-hour clock ticking in a tight, action-packed plot involving a potential traitor in CTU's midst; the return of TV's greatest villainesses in Nina Meyers (Sarah Clarke) and former First Lady Sherry Palmer (Penny Johnson Jerald); a troubled romance between Kim and Jack's new partner Chase (James Badge Dale); and a scandalized reelection campaign by president David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert), who monitors CTU as they struggle to (literally) save the day.
The intricately woven subplots that are 24's greatest strength are masterfully developed here, and character arcs are equally strong, especially among CTU staffers Tony (Carlos Bernard) and his wife Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth); CTU director Ryan Chappelle (Paul Schulze), who is season 2's tragic bargaining chip; and the annoying but well-intentioned Chloe O'Brian (Mary Lynn Rajskub), who makes pivotal contributions with by-the-book efficiency. It's 24's superior casting that overcomes the series' occasional lapses in credibility, and season 3's twists make marathon viewing a nerve-wracking delight. By the time it's all over, 24 once again leaves you gratefully exhausted. As always, Sutherland anchors the series in the role he was born to play. When Jack takes a private moment to release 24 hours' worth of near-fatal tension and psychological anguish, Sutherland proves that 24's dramatic priorities are as important as its thriller momentum. DVD extras include behind-the-scenes featurettes (about the prison break sequence, climactic F-18 Hornet air-strike, and real-life bio-weaponry) that pay welcome tribute to the series' hard-working crew, who create Emmy-worthy television under pressures as intense as 24 itself. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kiefer Sutherland, Sarah Clarke, Dennis Haysbert, Elisha Cuthbert, Leslie Hope, Penny Johnson |
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| | | | 24 S4 | | | | In this concept drama, each season takes place within one 24 hour period. Jack Bauer is the head of an elite team of CIA agents who uncover an assassination plot targeting Presidential nominee David Palmer. Meanwhile, Jack's strained marriage to his wife, Teri, is pushed to the brink by the sudden disappearance of their troubled teenage daughter. What will the next 24 hours hold? |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kiefer Sutherland, Reiko Aylesworth, Carlos Bernard, William Devane, Alberta Watson, Kim Raver |
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| | | | 24 S5 | | | | Federal Agent Jack Bauer can't afford to always play by the rules. As a member of the L.A. Counter Terrorist Unit, Jack must stop bombs, viruses, assassination attempts, and usually save someone he cares about at the same time. Every season of this series has 24 episodes, each unfolding in real time following a consecutive hour in one very bad day. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kiefer Sutherland, Dennis Haysbert, Carlos Bernard, Elisha Cuthbert, Sandrine Holt, Kim Raver |
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| | | | 24 S6 | | | | Always innovative and utterly addictive, the thrilling sixth season of 24 picks up twenty months after last season’s shocking season finale and features even more unthinkable and shocking plotlines that take place in another heart-stopping 24 hour period. Nominated for his sixth consecutive Best Actor–Drama Series Emmy?Award, Kiefer Sutherland continues to ignite the screen as the rugged hero Jack Bauer, along with gripping performances from the series returning ensemble cast. The seven-disc 24: Season Six DVD set includes all 24 one-hour episodes plus is packed with hours of special features including an exclusive Season Seven preview, over 25 minutes of deleted scenes, numerous cast/crew episode commentaries, more than 20 behind-the-scenes webcast diaries, "Day Six Debrief" mobisodes, several on-the-set featurettes and more. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kiefer Sutherland, Rick Schroder, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Peter MacNicol, Eric Balfour, Jayne Atkinson |
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| | | | 30 Rock S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski, Judah Friedlander, Jack McBrayer |
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| | | | 4400 S1 | | | | The 4400, which began as a five-week miniseries on the USA Network, is built around a deceptively simple, dramatically rich premise. What if all the people, who had ever been abducted by aliens, were suddenly returned to Earth? What would happen? Although they look exactly as they did when they left, they have no knowledge of where they were or why they were taken. Now some even have special powers, like clairvoyance. As with ABC's Lost, which centers on the survivors of a plane crash, The 4400 features a large cast of characters and a host of mysteries to be solved. If the special effects, which are kept to a minimum, can be a little cheesy at times, the concept--and the skillful execution of the concept--easily makes up for it.
Produced by Francis Ford Coppola's American Zoetrope and created by Scott Peters (The Outer Limits), The 4400 is set in Seattle, where the 4400 are returned. The principal characters include Dennis Ryland (Peter Coyote of E.T.), the local supervisor of Homeland Security. He's joined by agents Tom Baldwin (Joel Gretsch of Taken), whose nephew was one of the returnees, and Diana Skouris (Jacqueline McKenzie of Romper Stomper), who takes in one of the youngest returnees.
Guest stars include Michael Moriarty (Law and Order) in "Pilot" and Lee Tergeson (Oz) in "Becoming." Billy Campbell (Once and Again) also appears in several episodes as Jordan Collier, a real-estate magnate and returnee who becomes an advocate for others like himself, many of whom are having problems adjusting to a changed world. Like Lost, one of the biggest success stories of 2004, The 4400 debuted to strong ratings and was renewed for a full season. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Joel Gretsch, Jacqueline McKenzie, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, Laura Allen, Patrick Flueger |
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| | | | 4400 S2 | | | | These are the stories of 4400 abductees after they are returned to Earth. People dealing with traumatic changes, driven by the mystery of what happened and why. Some of them have been affected in mysterious ways, and some will have certain abilities, both good and bad. The pilot has a ball of light sailing towards Earth. But rather than the expected catastrophic event, thousands of returned abductees are left with no memory of their otherworldly experiences. Each has been gone anywhere from a few months to several decades but hasn't aged a day. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Milan Cheylov, Scott Peters | | Cast: | Joel Gretsch, Jacqueline McKenzie, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, Laura Allen, Patrick Flueger, Chad Faust |
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| | | | 4400 S3 | | | | These are the stories of 4400 abductees after they are returned to Earth. People dealing with traumatic changes, driven by the mystery of what happened and why. Some of them have been affected in mysterious ways, and some will have certain abilities, both good and bad. The pilot has a ball of light sailing towards Earth. But rather than the expected catastrophic event, thousands of returned abductees are left with no memory of their otherworldly experiences. Each has been gone anywhere from a few months to several decades but hasn't aged a day.
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Joel Gretsch, Jacqueline McKenzie, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, Patrick Flueger, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Conchita Campbell |
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| | | | 4400 S4 | | | | Over the last century thousands of people have gone missing. Suddenly and inexplicably 4400 missing people are returned all at once exactly as they were on the day they vanished. Unclear what this world-altering event means the government investigates the 4400 to piece together where they've been and why they've been returned. It quickly becomes apparent that their presence will change the human race in ways no one could have foreseen. |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Joel Gretsch, Jacqueline McKenzie, Patrick Flueger, Chad Faust, Conchita Campbell, Billy Campbell |
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| | | | Adventures of Gummi Bears | | | | A sort of Care Bears for the rough and tumble set, the Adventures of the Gummi Bears is an animated Disney adventure series about a group of cute, brave Gummi Bears who are committed to helping the good and fighting the wicked. In "A New Beginning," most humans assume that the Gummi Bears are mythical creatures dreamed up by past generations, but human page Cavin believes in their existence. When Cavin unwittingly stumbles upon the Gummi Bears' home while trying to escape from the ogres who populate the forest, the Gummi Bear medallion he inherited from his Grandfather unlocks the Great Book of Gummi and the secrets of the Gummis' lost magical powers. The Gummi Bears decide to share their magical gummiberry juice with Cavin and together they successfully repel the ogres. Thus begins an enduring friendship in which Cavin, the Gummi Bears, and, in later episodes, Princess Calla, join forces against evils that include ogres, dragons, wizards, and Duke Ighthorn, a loathsome villain who conspires with the ogres and is constantly scheming to seize Dunwyn Castle and become the new King. Much like the seven dwarves from Snow White, each Gummi Bear has a distinct personality: there's the grumpy Gruffi, ever-hungry Tummi, bubbly Sunni, wise Zummi, crotchety Grammi, and youngest Cubbi Bear. Like many families comprised of opposing personalities, the Gummis' home life is tumultuous and often full of bickering, but the group can always be counted upon to work together to defeat whatever enemy threatens them, their friends, or the castle. Themes explored include teamwork, pride, greed, one-upmanship, prejudice, bossiness, and many more. This three-disc compilation includes the Adventures of the Gummi Bears first three seasons (1985-1987)--that's 47 episodes and 640-minutes of high adventure. (Ages 3 to 9) --Tami Horiuchi |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Aeon Flux Animated | | | | Aeon Flux, the sexy secret agent extraordinaire that took MTV by storm is back on DVD! Follow the deftly skilled Aeon on her adventures through a futuristic world brimming with chaos and corruption. Experience every gripping episode of this cutting edge animated series like never before, as each episode has been digitally restored and has been bolstered with a 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound audio track. Every aspect in the creation of The Complete Aeon Flux has been overseen and endorsed by original creator Peter Chung making this the definitive Aeon Flux collection. |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Peter Chung | | Cast: | Denise Poirier, Phillip Brotherton |
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| | | | Alias S1 | | | | Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) is a super (and super sexy) spy, fighting nefarious villains and working for the good guys--or so she thinks. Recruited as a college freshman for espionage work, Sydney found her true calling with SD-6, a secret division of the CIA. When her hunky doctor-boyfriend proposes to her, she decides to let him in on the truth she's not supposed to tell anyone: she's not a grad student with a demanding job for an international bank, but a secret agent who constantly puts her life on the line for the free world. But when SD-6 discovers her security breach, her fiancé is brutally assassinated, and Sydney suddenly finds herself face-to-face with the truth: she's been working for the bad guys. Deciding to become a double agent for the CIA and bring down the evildoers, Sydney gets one more surprise--her estranged father (Victor Garber) is also working for SD-6, and the CIA as well. Welcome to the family, Syd!
Confusing? This is all just in the first episode of Alias, the brainchild of Felicity creator J.J. Abrams that plays like a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and James Bond. With its double-edged tension (how long can Syd play double agent?) and one heck of a MacGuffin (the dreaded Rambaldi device, the mythic creation of a Renaissance genius), the show leads its viewers from episode to episode with visceral, compelling action, not to mention the nascent romance between Syd and her CIA handler, Vaughn (Michael Vartan), and her clashes with her heretofore distant father. Sharp, smart, and always suspenseful, Alias' center was held by the gorgeous Garner, a stellar action heroine and an even better actress who could pull off Sydney's exotic undercover missions and conflicted emotions with equal dexterity. By the end of this first season, which concludes with a breathtaking cliffhanger, you'll be seduced into Alias' world with, happily, no desire to escape. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jennifer Garner, Ron Rifkin, Michael Vartan, Bradley Cooper, Merrin Dungey, Carl Lumbly |
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| | | | Alias S2 | | | | It was a family affair in the second season of J.J. Abrams's wonderfully inventive Alias, as super secret agent Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) came face-to-face with the mother of all super secret agents--her own mother, Irina Derevko (Lena Olin), a former KGB agent presumed dead but alive and more dangerous than ever. After shooting poor Syd, Irina later shows up at the doorstep of the CIA, offering to turn herself in and work for the good guys. But can she be trusted? Alias set up so much duplicity in its second season that it might have been hard to keep track of who was doing what to whom, but thanks to a great ensemble cast, fast-paced writing and direction, and some cannily cast guest stars, Alias rode a stunning emotional roller-coaster and never broke its momentum, even when halfway through the season, the show reinvented itself. With episode 13, "Phase One" (which aired after the Super Bowl to the show's biggest audience), Syd's original nemesis (and employer) SD-6 changes forever, yet the kick-butt agent still finds herself going up against the malevolent leader Sloane (Ron Rifkin) and his ever-changing set of henchmen. Action fans got plenty of fighting, while romantic Alias watchers swooned as Syd and the dashing Vaughn (Michael Vartan) finally consummated their unrequited love.
The critically acclaimed show owed a debt to Buffy the Vampire Slayer for its mix of action, romance, mystery, and moral quandaries, but in this season Alias truly came into its own--with a climax that came as a total shocker and prepped the show for an emotionally volatile third season. Guest stars included the phenomenal Amy Irving as Sloane's wife, Faye Dunaway as a nefarious bigwig, Christian Slater as a kidnapped scientist, and Ethan Hawke as a fellow CIA agent (or rather, two of them), but it was the dysfunctional nuclear family of Syd, Irina, and father Jack (Victor Garber) that gave Alias its heart and its strength, whether the three perfectly cast actors (all Emmy nominated) were just bickering or undertaking deadly hand-to-hand combat. And you thought your family had problems! --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jennifer Garner, Victor Garber, Kevin Weisman, Carl Lumbly, Merrin Dungey, Bradley Cooper |
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| | | | Alias S3 | | | | The third season of Alias found super spy Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) waking up in Hong Kong with a monster hangover and two years in the future with nary a memory. What's worse, her world has been turned upside-down with the evil Sloane (Ron Rifkin) now a world-famous humanitarian and philanthropist, and, even worse, her true love Vaughn (Michael Vartan) married to a seemingly great gal. Nice way to go back to work, eh? After coming up with one heck of a cliffhanger in season 2, Alias proceeded a bit aimlessly through these 22 episodes, and as a result, the parts were truly greater than the whole. With Lena Olin no longer around as Syd's duplicitous mother, and the addition of admirable yet bland Melissa George as Vaughn's wife Lauren, Garner found herself for the first time without a compelling female foil to play off of. By dividing its focus equally between the quest for the enigmatic Rambaldi device, Syd and Vaughn's now-contentious relationship, and the uncovering of Syd's missing years, Alias lost a little of its power without a larger story arc. The loss of regular cast members Merrin Dungey (Francie/Alison) and Bradley Cooper (Will)--both of whom do make great guest appearances--also divest the show of the personal life that kept Sydney human and approachable. Still, Garner is stellar as always, the plot twists come fast and furious, and secret identities are revealed. This season does have a great panorama of guest actors including Ricky Gervais, Justin Theroux, Djimon Hounsou, David Cronenberg, Quentin Tarantino, Vivica A. Fox, and Isabella Rossellini as Syd's long-lost aunt. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jennifer Garner, Victor Garber, Michael Vartan, Greg Grunberg |
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| | | | Alias S4 | | | | True to form, at the beginning of its fourth season J.J. Abrams' Alias proceeded to reinvent itself yet again--and the results looked quite a bit like the first season, but with a decided twist. Super agent Sydney Bristow (Emmy nominee Jennifer Garner) found herself once more working for a covert secret-ops group that was "off the books" and headed up by Arvin Sloane (Ron Rifkin) as she was partnered with... Hey, wait, wasn't Sloane a bad guy before? Well, yes, he was, but having been "rehabilitated" from his evil ways, he's now Sydney's new boss--nevermind the fact that he's trampled all over her life in more ways than one--and head of the CIA's new super-secret division, APO (for Authorized Personnel Only), which also includes all of Sydney's old friends, as well as her dad (Victor Garber) and love interest Vaughn (Michael Vartan). But as Sydney and Vaughn struggle with their budding relationship in the wake of his wife's death, and Syd also comes to realize her father may have had quite a bit to do with her mother's abrupt disappearance, a few monkey wrenches are thrown into the works. There's the emergence of South American agent Nadia (Mia Maestro), who's Syd's half sister--and the daughter of Sloane; the reappearance of Syd's nasty nemesis, Anna Espinosa (Gina Torres); a Sloane doppelganger (Joel Grey); and a mysterious cabal intent on harnessing the power of the legendary Rambaldi device.
Alias was definitely all over the map during its fourth season, and a few off-screen factors managed to take their toll onscreen as well. The end of a real-life relationship between Garner and Vartan gave Sydney and Vaughn's scenes a lack of romantic spark, but at the same time a decided tension, as the two warily circled each other and deepened their relationship; they clicked best in the episode "Welcome to Liberty Village," in which the duo infiltrates a Stepford-like suburb as a picture-perfect couple. And the absence of Lena Olin, as Syd's mother, was definitely felt, as her character became a looming presence despite little screen time. Where Alias succeeded this year was in the dramatic impact individual episodes had: "Nocturne" was a captivating tale of Sydney in the throes of deadly hallucinations; "The Orphan" affectingly fleshed out the enigmatic Nadia's background; "In Dreams" (directed by Garner) probed the subconscious of bad guy Sloane, who wasn't as evil as you might think; and "Mirage" forced Sydney to impersonate her mother in her father's fevered dreams. Don't worry, there was plenty of action--especially in the season's final episodes, which prominently featured a deadly Sonia Braga--and despite its ups and downs, Alias remained one of the most intelligent, compelling dramas on television. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jennifer Garner, Michael Vartan, Greg Grunberg, Merrin Dungey , Bradley Cooper, Gina Torres |
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| | | | Alias S5 | | | | Sydney Bristow is a young, athletic, college graduate who was recruited her freshman year as a secret agent for SD-6, a top-secret branch of the CIA. After a few years -- after Sydney confides her lifestyle to her boyfriend, the evil head of SD-6 -- Arvin Sloan, has him killed. Sydney learns that SD-6 is part of a rogue international agency called the Alliance of 12, out to rule the world. She becomes a double agent, working with the real CIA to bring down SD-6 with the assistance of her handler, Michael Vaughn, and her estranged father Jack Bristow -- also a double agent. Along the way, Sydney fights various rival agents, rival terrorist groups, and traitors all the while keeping her cloak-and-dagger lifestyle a secret from her friends. (Season 1) |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jennifer Garner, Michael Vartan, Ron Rifkin, Greg Grunberg, Balthazar Getty, Rachel Nichols |
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| | | | Ally Mc Beal S1 | | | | When Ally McBeal premiered on the Fox network in 1997, the series was already riding high on critical praise, with its upscale mix of savvy humor and hot-topic legal drama. Created, produced, and written entirely by the amazingly prolific David E. Kelley, the show immediately found an appreciative audience of women drawn to the title character's frank perspectives on dating, sex, and career objectives, and men lured by a cast full of attractive, outspoken women with vibrant personalities and flattering wardrobes. (If you think that's a sexist observation, you haven't tuned in to the show's brilliant balance of male chauvinism, feminist attitude, and hilariously turbulent office politics.)
This two-disc compilation of episodes from the show's first season is aptly titled, because Ally McBeal--a Boston lawyer played by Calista Flockhart--is defined by her seemingly perpetual singlehood, her sexual and emotional yearnings, her professional passions, and--by one of Kelley's creative masterstrokes--her flights of imagination (often visualized via amusing computer-generated effects) that give the series a constant, unpredictable edge of humor and emotional depth.
These well-chosen episodes offer a comprehensive summary of the first season's major developments, including the emotional history shared by Ally and her now-married colleague Billy (Gil Bellows); the notorious "dancing baby" (in "Cro-Magnon") symbolizing the insistent ticking of Ally's biological clock; the amiable quirks of John "the Biscuit" Cage (Peter MacNicol); and the dubious pearls of wisdom known as "Fishisms." Here we witness the sublime chemistry of the ensemble cast, and each member is given ample time in the spotlight. Regular guest star Dyan Cannon is strongly featured in "Silver Bells," prior to the second-season addition of Nelle (Portia DeRossi) and Ling (Lucy Liu). That leaves plenty of room to establish Ally McBeal as the lively focus of the series--confused, opinionated, sexy, neurotic, frustrated, ecstatic, intelligent, emotional... and never, ever boring. --Jeff Shannon
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Calista Flockhart |
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| | | | Amores Cruzados | | | | Anything goes in the game of love! A passionate telenovela with a sexy starring cast and twisted love triangles that will intoxicate you! You never know where the path to true love will take you! Four people discover their hearts' desire in this story of stolen love and steamy subterfuge. Alejandro (Michel Gurfi) is a spoiled hotel heir who enjoys his privileged, carefree life. When his father tries to force him to get a job, Alejandro persuades his friend, Diego (David Zepeda), to assume his identity and go in his place. Before you know it, Diego has played the big spender role so well that he's caught the eye of Elisa, a sexy golddigger (Patricia Vasquez). Meanwhile, pretending he's impoverished, the already-engaged Alejandro stumbles into romance with Maria, Elisa's saucy twin sister (Ana Lucia Dominguez). Sparks fly as the lies pile up!
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| Genre: | Romance | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Patricia Vasquez, David Zepeda, Ana Lucia Dominguez, Michel Gurfi |
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| | | | Angel S1 | | | | He's hunky, he's brooding, he's a do-gooder, and he was Buffy's first boyfriend. Angel, the tortured vampire destined to walk the earth with a soul, got his own series after three seasons on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and did what any new star might do: he moved to L.A. (the City of Angels--get it?) and set up shop. Angel (co-created by Buffy mastermind Joss Whedon) finds the titular vampire (David Boreanaz) as a kind of supernatural private investigator, fighting evil one case at a time and, like his ex-girlfriend, keeping the world from getting destroyed by vengeful demons and such.
A darker, more film noir version of Buffy, Angel lacked the peppy humor that permeated Sunnydale but more than made up for it in its soul-wrenching gravitas, and it elevated Boreanaz to leading-man status, a role he filled out ably and then some. Initially, the stoic vampire was paired with Irish demon Doyle (the late Glenn Quinn) and fellow Sunnydale transplant Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter), but Angel finally found its footing when Doyle was dispatched (giving his powers of precognition to Cordelia) and replaced by Buffy alum Wesley (Alexis Denisof), a fallen watcher who, like his friends, was hoping for a new start in L.A. However, pesky law firm Wolfram and Hart (a front for the demon mafia, as it were) reared its ugly head and discovered Angel's presence, thus setting the stage for a battle of good and evil--and if you're a regular Joss Whedon fan, you know that it's a never-ending war.
This first season features guest appearances by various Buffy characters, including werewolf boy Oz (Seth Green), rogue slayer Faith (Eliza Dushku), deliciously evil vamp Darla (Julie Benz), and Buffy herself (Sarah Michelle Gellar), all of whom helped get the show off and running in style. --Mark Englehart
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Angel S2 | | | | The second season of Angel saw the cult vampire show finally stand on its own from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, assembling all the members of the show's core cast, transferring the action to a fashionably run-down L.A. hotel, and bringing in a few Buffy characters from Angel's history to further establish the moody vampire's own mythology. Moving their Angel Investigations to posher digs, Angel (David Boreanaz), Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter), and Wesley (Alexis Denisof) were soon joined by street fighter (J. August Richards)–-and by street fighter, of course we mean demon street fighter. But just as this group was solidifying, up popped Angel's old love, Darla (the fantastic Julie Benz), freshly arrived in L.A. from a hell dimension… just in time to be turned into a vampire again by her old cohort, Drusilla (Juliet Landau), and lure Angel into abandoning his newly formed team. It was the best and worst of times for Angel in its second year, for while the basis was being set for the show's stellar third and fourth seasons, dramatic tension was diluted by Angel's going solo and the necessary (but plot-debilitating) flashbacks to various points in Angel's history. However, just when it seemed everything was about to fly out the window, Angel's creative team threw its characters for a loop--literally--by transporting them to the demon dimension of Pylea, a medieval-style fantasyland populated by monsters and humans alike. It shouldn't have worked, as hokey as it was... but it did, thanks to crack storytelling, sharp dialogue, and the sheer joy the actors unleashed, especially the gifted and fiendishly funny Carpenter. The second half of the season also saw the addition of two of Angel's best characters: the horned Lorne (Andy Hallett), a green demon with a penchant for karaoke, and Fred (Amy Acker), a physicist trapped in Pylea who helped the gang engineer their escape. With these two in tow, Angel began to soar. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | David Boreanaz, Charisma Carpenter, Alexis Denisof, J. August Richards, Julie Benz, Juliet Landau |
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| | | | Angel S3 | | | | In the third season of Angel, the titular vampire with a soul was forced to stand alone thanks to the (temporary) death of his beloved Buffy and her show's move to a new network, with no crossover between the two allowed. He returns from seeking peace in a demon-haunted monastery to find the L.A. Angel Investigations team fighting supernatural crime in his absence. Fred is still haunted by the nightmare dimension from which they rescued her; Cordelia's visions get ever more painful and debilitating. The schemes of the evil law firm Wolfram and Hart become every more imaginative and dragon lady Lilah Morgan becomes even more of an enemy when lusting after Angel. Unbelievably, Darla, Angel's vampire sire and lover, turns up, pregnant with his child and is tortured by inexplicable motherly feelings as well as a raging thirst for human blood.
For a few episodes things go pretty well--but Angel's enemies, both those he has made in his quest for redemption and those he made when he was unadulterated evil, are still out there. Stephanie Romanov comes into her silky own in this series, making Lilah Morgan all the more seductively evil because she is clear about the choices she has made; the satanic law firm of Wolfram and Hart are this show's most inspired creation. As the season moves to its close, Wesley (Alexis Denisof) has hard choices to make. The devastating climax is compulsive viewing, and this season also contains one of the most impressive single episodes of the entire show: in "Waiting in the Wings," writer, director and creator Joss Whedon comes up with a classic ghost story as Angel and his crew go to the ballet and find a performance that is literally timeless. --Roz Kaveney |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Angel S4 | | | | As the fourth season of Angel starts, everything is still as we left it: Angel has been sunk to the bottom of the sea in an iron box by his inexplicable and vindictive son Connor and Cordelia has been summoned to higher realms to await orders. Gunn and Fred are left in the Hyperion Hotel, unsure about what has happened to their friends, and Lilah is working hard to seduce Wesley to the dark side. In the first few episodes, some of this is resolved but it's almost immediately replaced by far worse crises: prophesies of doom accumulate more rapidly even than usual in this wonderfully gloomy show and a horned rock-like beast rains fire on Los Angeles. This last year is Angel's most tightly dramatic season yet--with a story arc of surprising intensity punctuated by the show's usual wit and sexiness.
Season 4 is presented on DVD in Dolby 2.0 Surround Sound and anamorphic widescreen. It comes with insightful, and often hilarious, commentaries on seven of the 22 episodes as well as featurettes--a series overview, profiles of the characters of Jasmine and the Beast, a farewell to the Hyperion Hotel (the characters' base for three seasons), and a discussion of the apocalypse that Angel has to deal with from episode 7 onwards). --Roz Kaveney |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Angel S5 | | | | Lives were upended--and some co-opted--in the fifth and final season of Angel, as the denizens of Angel Investigations found themselves taking on one of their scariest endeavors ever: corporate life. After making a literal deal with the devil (or something distinctly devil-like), Angel (David Boreanaz) moved his team from their crumbling hotel to the high-rise digs of law-firm-from-hell Wolfram & Hart, his reasoning being they could better fight the forces of evil from the inside, and with more resources to boot. Clever maneuvering or easy rationalization? Not a few members of Angel's team accused him of selling out (as did a number of viewers), but as with most of the show's previous four seasons, Angel somehow took a dubious premise and mined it for gold. And with one core cast member gone (Charisma Carpenter, whose Cordelia was immersed in a deep coma), it seemed as if the show, from within and without, would suddenly fall apart--that is, until Angel's longtime nemesis Spike (James Marsters) showed up, fresh from his sacrificial roasting at the series finale of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Let the vampire games begin!
With Buffy off the air, fans flocked to Angel's last season to get their fix of Joss Whedon's "Buffyverse" in any form they could, and the addition of Spike was a shrewd one, albeit not enough to keep the show from getting canceled. And for the first half of the season, the creative forces behind the show seemed to be toying ruthlessly with the audience. Spike was around, but not entirely corporeal; Angel himself became sullen and withdrawn; and most horrifically, sweetheart scientist Fred (Amy Acker) and former watcher Wesley (Alexis Denisof) underwent traumas that would test even the most devoted viewer. However, just when you'd be about to throw in the towel, things started changing for the better--Spike became a permanent fixture (both in the flesh and on the show), Angel's secret motives were revealed, and the introduction of demon warrior Illyria, who proved to be the show's answer to Buffy's sardonic demon-made-human Anya, was a welcome breath of fresh air. Creatively, Angel also came up with some of its best episodes, including "Smile Time" (where Angel is turned into a puppet – really!) and "You're Welcome" (the show's 100th episode, which marked the bittersweet return of Carpenter's Cordelia). The ending of the series was deliberately ambiguous, and not everyone made it through alive, but in going out kicking, it was a proper sendoff for a show that always fought the good fight. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Aqua Teen V1 | | | | Another cracked animated series from the Cartoon Network's "Adult Swim" programming block, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Volume One's blend of superhero action and skewed humor should provide plenty of nourishment to fans of offbeat animation. The Aqua Teen Hunger Force are a squabbling trio of fast-food items (milkshake, fries, and a ball of hamburger meat) that have joined together to fight a host of monsters, aliens, and mad scientists in their native New Jersey. Fans of traditional cartoons may find the surreal plotlines and low-fi animation unmanageable, but viewers who enjoy other Adult Swim programming like Space Ghost Coast to Coast (series creators Chris Willis and Matt Maiellaro are veterans from that show) will find the Force's adventures side-splitting. The two-disc set, which features 16 episodes from the series' first two seasons, is supplemented by commentary by Willis and Maiellaro on three episodes, including an early version of "Rabbot." Disc 2 has a pair of Easter eggs that feature deleted scenes. --Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Aqua Teen V2 | | | | Food products living in New Jersey go out of their minds crazy as hell. This is the story of Master Shake, Frylock and Meatwad: creatures who live together, unsupervised, somewhere near the Jersey shore. Carl, their next door neighbor, has an above-ground pool and an attitude. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Aqua Teen V3 | | | | First of all, they're not teens. Secondly, there's not water involved. The whole Hunger Force thing? That's probably misleading, too. In short, if you have to ask what "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" is about, it is probably not a show for you. The rest of us will go on thrilling to the adventures of Frylock, Meatwad and Master Shake as they, you know... hang out. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Aqua Teen V4 | | | | Those ferocious fast-food freedom fighters Meatwad, Frylock, and Master Shake return for more outrageous adventures in this double-disc set culled from their third season. Longtime fans of Aqua Teen Hunger Force know that the Teens rarely battle any actual evildoers--their chief nemesis, Dr. Weird, blows himself up before he can hatch any of his schemes--but the fellas still have plenty of trouble to deal with in these episodes, whether it's from an Atari 2600 that can contact the deceased ("Video Ouija"), the hellish creature known as MC Pee Pants, who returns here as an elderly gent in a retirement home ("Little Brittle"), a robot babysitter for Meatwad (voiced by Sarah Silverman in "Robositter"), or the perennially pesky Mooninites, who make two appearances here (in "Remooned" and "The Final Mooning"). But of course, the Teens' worst enemies are themselves, and in the 13 episodes featured on this set, the boys manage to take on crash diets ("Diet"), destroy New Jersey's gas line ("Dusty Gozongas"), summon a monstrous Santa Claus with a magical T-shirt ("T-shirt of the Dead), shrink themselves ("Unremarkable Voyage"), and well, expire ("Video Ouija"). In short, it's typical Aqua Teen Hunger Force lunacy, abetted by several fun celebrity guest voices (Bob Odenkirk and Fred Armisen in "Hypno-Germ," Scott Thompson in "Dusty Gozongas," and Ted Nugent as himself in "Gee Whiz").
As with previous ATHF DVDs, Volume Four comes with a wealth of supplemental features for the series' fans: nine of the 13 episodes feature commentary from the show's creators, which are unfortunately plagued by sound-quality problems. But there's also the complete "Spacecataz," which compiles the brief clips of the Mooninites and Plutonians' ceaseless and ridiculous battles which open each episode into one short feature; a short film titled "Raydon" from the show's producers; "San Diego Must Be Destroyed," an amusing clip featuring the Mooninites which screened at a comic convention; and a featurette on the vocal talent as they record the dialogue for "Spacegate World." A montage of fan art set to the show's music and an intriguing clip for what appears to be the Aqua Teen Hunger Force theatrical feature (titled "Send Us Money for This") round out the offbeat extras. -- Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Aqua teen V5 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | NC-17 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Arrested Development S1 | | | | Winner of the Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy its first year out, Arrested Development is the kind of sitcom that gives you hope for television. A mockumentary-style exploration of the beleaguered Bluth family, it's one of those idiosyncratic shows that doesn't rely on a laugh track or a studio audience; it's shot more like a TV drama, albeit with an omniscient narrator (executive producer Ron Howard) overseeing the proceedings. Holding the Bluths together just barely is son Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), the only normal guy in a family that's chock full of nuts. Hardworking and sensible, Michael's certain he's going to be given control of his family's Enron-style corporation upon the retirement of his father (Jeffrey Tambor). The fact that he's passed over instead for his mother (Jessica Walter) is only a blip when compared to his father's immediate arrest for dubious accounting practices, and the resulting freeze on the family's previously limitless wealth.
Bereft of money, and even less family love, the Bluths have to band together in their moment of need--not easy when everyone's looking out for number 1. In addition to his scabrous parents, Michael has to contend with his lothario older brother (Will Arnett), his basically useless younger brother (Tony Hale), his greedy twin sister (Portia DeRossi), and her sexually ambiguous husband (David Cross). Michael's only comrade in sanity is his son George Michael (Michael Cera), but then again, the teenage boy harbors a secret crush on his cousin (Alia Shawkat). A peerless ensemble led by the brilliant Bateman (who ever knew he could be this good?), all the actors are pitch-perfect in their roles, delivering the dryly funny, sometimes absurdist dialogue with the speed and flair of classic farce. The unusual tone of Arrested Development takes a bit of getting used to--it's far different from anything you'll see on TV, even HBO--but once you buy in to the Bluths' innumerable dysfunctions, you'll be laughing your head off for hours.--Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jason Bateman, Jeffrey Tambor, Jessica Walter, Will Arnett, Tony Hale, Portia DeRossi |
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| | | | Arrested Development S2 | | | | The axe of cancellation dangled perilously over Arrested Development during its second season, but the award-winning comedy fought against fate to deliver a hilarious if scattershot 18 episodes (reduced from the original show order of 22), and stayed alive for the beginning of a third season. Most likely, the creators and actors knew the clock was ticking down, so they didn't hesitate to throw their all into these manic, hilarious episodes, which have only the thinnest of plot arcs but an electrifying energy that makes them hard to resist. Some of the story antics were more of the same: good son Michael (Jason Bateman) tries to keep his company afloat, but is often foiled by older brother Gob (Will Arnett); the precarious marriage of Lindsay (Portia de Rossi) and Tobias (David Cross) undergoes a trial separation; and young George-Michael (Michael Cera) fights his attraction to his cousin Maeby (Alia Shawkat). Other show developments, though, were new and stunningly, uproariously bizarre: Buster (Tony Hale) joins the army, but later finds his hand bitten off by a seal (yes, a real seal), and Oscar (Jeffrey Tambor), the hippie brother of jailed George Sr. (also Tambor), rekindles an affair with sister-in-law Lucille (Jessica Walter), which may have resulted in Buster's conception years ago.
Jokes flew fast and furious, as did guest stars--Ben Stiller, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, Christine Taylor, Thomas Jane, Ed Begley Jr., Ione Skye, and Zach Braff among them--making it hard to keep straight who was doing what and why. No matter, as each of the episodes was in and of itself was a perfect gem of comedy, strung together by sharp writing and fantastic performances. In addition to the regular cast, both Liza Minnelli, reprising her role as "Lucille Two," and Martin Short, as an, um, eccentric family friend, deserve special mention, with the episode both appeared in, "Ready, Aim, Marry Me," a frenetic exercise in slapstick farce. Typical examples of the show's offbeat humor were found in "Afternoon Delight," in which various members of the Bluth family discover the true meaning of the '70s ballad, "Meet the Veals," wherein the Bluths encounter the conservative parents of George Michael's girlfriend, and "Motherboy XXX," surrounding an unsettling mother-son traditional dance. The entire cast cohered perfectly through this season, and their give and take provided a perfect balance among the actors, all of whom were even better than the previous year. However, it's Bateman who should be singled out as the show's anchor, mixing dry sarcasm with impeccable comic timing. Despite plummeting ratings, Arrested Development didn't just keep its head above water, it swam with grace and hilarity. --Mark Englehart
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jason Bateman, David Cross, Will Arnett, Tony Hale, Jessica Walter, Alia Shawkat |
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| | | | Babylon 5 S1 | | | | The epic sci-fi series Babylon 5 was a unique experiment in the history of television. It was effectively a novel for television in five seasons, consisting of 110 episodes with a clear beginning, middle, and end. The first season introduces the main characters, headed this year by Commander Jeffery Sinclair (Michael O'Hare) and Security Chief Michael Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), and familiarizes the audience with the unique environment of a five-mile-long space station in the year 2257.
The first episode, "Midnight on the Firing Line," plays at a breathless pace, introducing Commander Susan Ivanova (Claudia Christian) and establishing the conflict between the Narn and Centauri races as represented by their ambassadors, G'Kar (Andreas Katsulas) and Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik). Then follow several mediocre episodes that initially give the impression that B5 is a Star Trek clone afflicted with "silly alien of the week" syndrome. With "And the Sky Full of Stars," B5 really begins to hit its stride, Sinclair being forced to relive his mysterious experiences during the Earth-Minbari war. Filler shows such as "TKO" are notable only for being controversially violent, while the disappointing "Grail" points to writer-creator J. Michael Straczynski's fascination with Arthurian mythology. "Signs and Portents" introduces the sinister Mr. Morden (Ed Wasser) and offers the chilling first appearance of the Shadows, an ancient alien threat.
B5 hits warp speed with a run of exceptional episodes building to the season finale. The two-part "Voice in the Wilderness" has Mars breaking into open revolt against Earth and the discovery of a "Great Machine" on the dead world Epsilon 3. Referencing 1950s sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet, the story leads to the superb time-travel-based "Babylon Squared." Season finale "Chrysalis" proves more than just the usual television cliffhanger, placing Minbari ambassador Delenn in conflict with her ruling Grey Council and forcing on her a decision that laid the groundwork for Babylon 5's eventually becoming a great love story. --Gary S. Dalkin |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Michael OHare, Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Richard Biggs, Andrea Thompson |
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| | | | Babylon 5 S2 | | | | Delenn's future love interest, Captain John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) arrived on Babylon 5 in the first episode of season 2, "Points of Departure." The show marked the handing over of command of B5 to Sheridan from Commander Jeffery Sinclair, actor Michael O'Hare becoming a victim of studio politicians who wanted a bigger star in the leading role. This excellent installment also revealed more about why the Minbari surrendered to Earth at the Battle of the Line when they were on the verge of victory. "Revelations" explains that Sheridan's wife, Anna, died during an archaeological survey of the world Z'ha'dum, the name being just one of many references to Tolkien's the Lord of the Rings (the bridge at Khazad-Dum). "The Geometry of Shadows" introduced the Technomages, characters who featured more significantly in the ill-fated spinoff series Crusade (1999), while "The Coming of Shadows" proved to be Babylon 5's finest hour to date. The story of political intrigue foreshadowing the fate of two of the major characters beat Apollo 13, Toy Story, 12 Monkeys, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "The Visitor" to win the Hugo award for Best Dramatic Presentation at the 1996 World Science Fiction Convention and proved so powerful that J. Michael Straczynski included it in his Complete Book of Scriptwriting.
"And Now for a Word" took the unusual step of presenting a day-in-the-life of B5 seen through the eyes of a TV news crew, just as the Narn declared war on the Centauri. The inclusion of a PSI-Corps commercial paid homage to Paul Verhoeven's satirical ads in Robocop (1987), while his later Starship Troopers (1997) seemed at times like a spoof of B5's earnest space opera. In "In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum," Sheridan learns that Morden was on the ship on which Anna died; the episode sees the captain pushed to his limits by grief and determination to discover why Morden survived. Three exceptional shows conclude the season. The Narn-Centauri war escalates in "The Long, Twilight Struggle," Sheridan faces a most unusual ordeal in "Comes the Inquisitor," and in "The Fall of Night" all hope of peace is shattered as a nerve-racking assassination attempt reveals a startling secret about Ambassador Kosh. --Gary S. Dalkin |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bruce Boxleitner, Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Andrea Thompson, Bill Mumy |
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| | | | Babylon 5 S3 | | | | "Matters of Honor" launched Babylon 5's third season with the introduction of the White Star, a spacecraft added to enable more of the action to take place away from the station. Also introduced was Marcus Cole (Jason Carter)--in another nod to The Lord of the Rings, a Ranger not so far removed from Tolkien's Strider. In "Voices of Authority" the show finds an epic scale as Ivanova seeks the mysterious "First Ones" for allies against the Shadows, and evidence is discovered pointing to the truth behind President Santiago's assassination. A third of the way through the season "Messages from Earth," "Point of No Return," and "Severed Dreams" prove pivotal, changing the nature of the story in a way previously unimaginable on network TV. Earth slides into dictatorship, the fascistic Nightwatch takes control of off-world security, and Sheridan take decisive action by declaring Babylon 5 independent.
"Interludes and Examinations" presented the death of a major supporting character, while the two-part "War Without End" reached apocalyptic dimensions in a complex tale resolving the destiny of Sinclair and the fate of Babylon 4 (dovetailing elegantly with the events of the first season's "Babylon Squared"), resolving a 1,000-year-old paradox and presenting a vision of a very dark future for Sheridan and Delenn. All this was trumped by the monumental "Z'ha'dum." In the preceding "Shadow Dancing" Anna Sheridan (Melissa Gilbert, Bruce Boxleitner's real-life wife) returned from the dead, no longer entirely human. In the mythologically resonant climax Anna invited Sheridan back to the Shadow homeworld with no hope of survival. Just as in The Lord of the Rings Gandalf fell into the abyss at Khazad-Dum, so Sheridan took a comparable leap into the unknown on an alien world. --Gary S. Dalkin |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bruce Boxleitner, Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Bill Mumy, Jason Carter |
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| | | | Babylon 5 S4 | | | | Season 4 began on a high point with the Centauri Prime in the grip of the insane Emperor Cartagia (Wortham Krimmer) and a run of six shows leading to the climax of the war against the Shadows in "Into the Fire." If this colossal narrative was resolved a little too easily and the ultimate aim of the Shadows turned out to be a tad disappointing, it still proved to be the most powerful slice of space opera to ever grace the small screen. In the aftermath the sheer scale dropped back a little but the pace never slowed as the rest of the season played out in one relentless cycle of conspiracy, betrayal and conflict, Babylon 5 siding with the rebel Mars colony against the totalitarian Earth.
Meanwhile Delenn came increasingly into conflict with her own people and, paralleling her relationship with Sheridan, Garibaldi became involved with his ex-fiancée Lise Hampton (Denise Gentile), while an intense platonic love grew between Ivanova and Marcus Cole. On an unstoppable wave fuelled by roller-coaster plot twists and spectacular action shows from "No Surrender, No Retreat"--when Sheridan avows to overthrow EarthGov--to "Rising Star"--when the aim is realized--Babylon 5 achieved a consistent excellence rare in television. Yet within that run "Intersections in Real Time" stood out as a bold experiment; essentially a two-hand drama taking place entirely within one dimly lit room. Beyond this a major character died and Sheridan and Delenn married before the season finale again broke with expectation. In "The Deconstruction of Falling Stars," a future descendant of humanity one million years hence reviews excerpts from the history of Babylon 5. In one sequence set in 2762, a Brother is devoted to the preserving of history some time after the "Big Burn." A homage to Walter M. Miller's classic A Canticle for Leibowitz, Sheridan and Delenn have themselves become the stuff of legend. --Gary S. Dalkin |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bruce Boxleitner, Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Jeff Conway, Patricia Talman |
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| | | | Babylon 5 S5 | | | | A disappointment after the superb two previous seasons, the final run of Babylon 5 found Claudia Christian departed and Ivanova replaced by Captain Elizabeth Lochley (Tracy Scoggins), who in a soap-opera twist turned out to be Sheridan's first wife. Sheridan was promoted to President of the Interstellar Alliance and the action moved to a group of telepaths seeking sanctuary from the PSI-Corp on B5. Giving a prominent role to Patricia Tallman's Lyta Alexander, a love story for her was woven with the leader of the telepaths, Byron (Robin Atkin Downs). Meanwhile the aftermath of the Shadow War was explored as the origin of human telepaths became clear in "Secrets of the Soul," and the appearance of PSI-Corp's Bester (Walter Koenig) brought the plight of the refugees to a powerful close in "A Tragedy of Telepaths" and "Phoenix Rising."
This was immediately followed by a rare episode not written by J. Michael Straczynski. Much was expected of "Day of the Dead," penned by Neil Gaiman, the British creator of DC's landmark Sandman comic and graphic novel series. Yet despite a change of tone including a guest appearance by Penn & Teller as 23rd-century comedy favorites Rebo & Zooty, the story proved an incongruous side trip into an unexplained twilight zone of fantasy. As usual the season picked up toward the end, with a string of fine political episodes leading to "The Fall of Centauri Prime" and the haunting "Objects at Rest," in which Sheridan and Delenn leave Babylon 5 for new quarters on Minbar.
The final episode, "Sleeping in Light," was directed by J. Michael Straczynski and made an epilogue to the series. Set 20 years later, after all the sound and fury this quiet, elegiac tale is the apotheosis of the love story that proved the balance to the tragedy of the preceding darkness. A personal story resolved against a background of the epic, at once transcendent, deeply human, and profoundly optimistic, "Sleeping in Light" is as moving as any hour in the history of television drama and a thoroughly satisfying conclusion to one of the greatest series ever made. --Gary S. Dalkin |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bruce Boxleitner, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Tracy Scoggins, Richard Biggs, Andreas Katsulas |
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| | | | Band Of Brothers | | | |
| Genre: | action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Batman S1 | | | | The Batman is an action-packed animated series that chronicles the life of Bruce Wayne and his alter-ego Batman who lands him in a variety of precarious situations. The newly anointed Caped Crusader of Gotham City confronts updated versions of familiar foes such as The Joker, The Penguin, Catwoman, Mr. Freeze and The Riddler. In this series, the Dark Knight takes his war on crime to the next level utilizing brand new Bat-gadgets and a 21st Century-styled Batmobile operated by his remote-controlled invention the "Batwave." The Batman currently airs on Cartoon Network and Kids WB. |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Batman S2 | | | | A young Bruce Wayne is in his third year of trying to establish himself as Batman, protector of Gotham City. Living in Gotham, a metropolis where shadows run long and deep, beneath elevated train tracks, this younger Batman will confront each of his familiar foes for the first time.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Batman S5 | | | |
| Genre: | Animation | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | BattleStar Galactica S1 | | | | Battlestar Galactica's Edward James Olmos wasn't kidding when he said "the series is even better than the miniseries." As developed by sci-fi TV veteran Ronald D. Moore, the "reimagined" BG is exactly what it claims to be: a drama for grown-ups in a science-fiction setting. The mature intelligence of the series is its greatest asset, from the tenuous respect between Galactica's militarily principled commander Adama (Olmos) and politically astute, cancer-stricken colonial President Roslin (Mary McDonnell) to the barely suppressed passion between ace Viper pilot "Apollo" (a.k.a. Adama's son Lee, played by Jamie Bamber) and the brashly insubordinate Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff), whose multifaceted character is just one of many first-season highlights. Picking up where the miniseries ended (it's included here, sparing the need for separate purchase), season 1 opens with the riveting, Hugo Award-winning episode "33," in which Galactica and the "ragtag fleet" of colonial survivors begin their quest for the legendary 13th colony planet Earth, while being pursued with clockwork regularity by the Cylons, who've now occupied the colonial planet of Caprica. The fleet's hard-fought survival forms (1) the primary side of the series' three-part structure, shared with (2) the apparent psychosis of Dr. Gaius Baltar (James Callis) whose every thought and move are monitored by various incarnations Number Six (Tricia Helfer), the seemingly omniscient Cylon ultravixen who follows a master plan somehow connected to (3) the Caprican survival ordeal of crash-landed pilots "Helo" (Tahmoh Penikett) and soon-to-be-pregnant "Boomer" (Grace Park), whose simultaneous presence on Galactica is further evidence that 12 multicopied models of Cylons, in human form, are gathering their forces.
With remarkably consistent quality, each of these 13 episodes deepens the dynamics of these fascinating characters and suspenseful situations. While BG relies on finely nuanced performances, solid direction, and satisfying personal and political drama to build its strong emotional foundation, the action/adventure elements are equally impressive, especially in "The Hand of God," a pivotal episode in which the show's dazzling visual effects get a particularly impressive showcase. Original BG series star Richard Hatch appears in two politically charged episodes (he's a better actor now, too), and with the threat of civil war among the fleet, season 1 ends with an exceptional cliffhanger that's totally unexpected while connecting the plot threads of all preceding episodes. To the credit of everyone involved, this is frackin' good television.
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Mary McDonnell, Edward James Olmos, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, Tricia Helfer |
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| | | | Battlestar Galactica S2.0 | | | | After losing the war against the Cylon robots, the Battlestar Galactica crew speed toward the fabled 13th colony, Earth. Galactica Commander Adama (Olmos) and President Laura Roslin (McDonnell) face waning supplies, crushed morale, ... and the credible threat Cylons aboard the ship. |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis |
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| | | | Battlestar Galactica S2.5 | | | |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | R | | Director: | | | Cast: | Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Tricia Helfer, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, Grace Park |
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| | | | Battlestar Galactica S3 | | | |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Battlestar Galactica S4 | | | |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | R | | Director: | | | Cast: | Edward James Olmos,, Mary McDonnell, Tricia Helfer, Katee Sackhoff |
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| | | | Beavis And Butt-head | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Big Love S1 | | | | Big Love, HBO's newest buzzworthy series, recalls Groucho Marx's blithe proposal to two women in Animal Crackers. "Why, that's bigamy," one of the women exclaims. Groucho responds, "Yes, and it's big of me, too." But Bill Henrickson's (Bill Paxton) situation is hardly a laughing matter. Bill is a modern-day polygamist who lives in suburban Salt Lake City with his seven children and three "sister-wives": Barbara (Jeanne Tripplehorn, never better), the more mature anchor of the household; Nicki (Chloe Sevigny), who spitefully refers to her as "Boss Lady"; and recent addition Margene (charming Ginnifer Goodwin), insecure and childlike. A series that puts a human face on polygamy is brimming with prurient possibilities. Big Love's first two episodes are veritable commercials for Viagra, as Bill struggles to keep up with the demands of his spouses, with whom the sleeping arrangements are strictly scheduled. But once this more sensational aspect of "plural marriage" is dealt with, Big Love moves on to focus on the emotional, spiritual and financial pressures that beset Bill and his families. As the dreamlike opening credit sequence (scored to the Beach Boys' ethereal "God Only Knows") illustrates, Bill is a man on thin ice. He is carrying mortgages on three adjoining homes. A home-improvement store entrepreneur, he has just cut the ribbon on his second store and is planning a third. His wives, not immune to jealousies, vie for dominant position. And then there's Roman (Harry Dean Stanton; and any series that puts this venerable character actor and hipster saint in our homes on a weekly basis deserves our big love), the sinister leader of an outlaw fundamentalist compound, who has an escalating disagreement with Bill over the repayment of his loan that helped Bill build his fledgling empire ("There's man's law," he states ominously, "and there's God's law").
There are further complications that make Big Love so compelling. Bill suspects that his raw-nerved mother (Grace Zabriskie) may be poisoning his father (Bruce Dern). Nicki is a shopaholic accruing nearly $60,000 in credit-card debt. Overtures by new neighbors threaten to expose Bill's unorthodox and illicit living arrangements. The polygamy factor puts a subversive spin on traditional matrimonial melodrama. When Nicki plans her son's disastrous birthday party, her list of "immediate family" tops 150. When Roman, who is Nicki's father, arrives, Bill proclaims he is not welcome in his "homes." As with Rome, Big Love may require a little patience. But this fascinating portrayal of a shadowy subculture, the intelligent writing, and the estimable ensemble will soon make you feel like part of the families. --Donald Liebenson |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | R | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ginnifer Goodwin, Harry Dean Stanton, Chloe Sevigny, Amanda Seyfried |
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| | | | Big Love S2 | | | | The critically acclaimed hit series, Big Love, returns for it’s second break-out season. Bill Henrickson works hard and plays by the rules. All he wants in return is a happy, secure, normal life for his family. Is that too much to ask? Maybe so. For a polygamist like Bill, the American Dream comes with strings attached. Season 2 opens with even more drama, as Bill’s mission to learn who tipped off the authorities and exposed first wife, Barb, as a polygamist escalates. Not surprisingly, his search will lead him to the polygamist compound of Juniper Creek where his primary suspect is Roman Grant. Bill contemplates changes in his personal and professional life that promise to impact every member of his family. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bill Paxton, Ginnifer Goodwin, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny, Bruce Dern, Harry Dean Stanton |
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| | | | Bionic Woman | | | | A reimagining of the popular 1970s TV series about a female athlete who is given bionic strength |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | michelle ryan, lucy hale, miguel ferrer, molly price, kevin rankin |
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| | | | Black Donnellys | | | | From the Oscar-winning writers of Crash and the writer of Million Dollar Baby comes a bold and edgy crime-drama seriesThe Black Donnellys. Four very different Irish-American brothers - Kevin Jimmy Tommy and Sean - have sworn to live by the code of "family first." But as they become increasingly involved in the ruthless world of New Yorkorganized crime their loyalties to their friends to their loved ones and especially to each other will be put to the ultimate test. Available on DVD for the first time this explosive 3-disc set includes all 13 episodes including seven episodes that never aired on NBC. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jonathan Tucker, Olivia Wilde, Tom Guiry, Billy Lush, Kirk Acevedo, Keith Nobbs |
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| | | | Blade S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | sticky fingaz, jill wagner, jessica gower, nelson lee, neil jackson |
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| | | | Boondocks S1 | | | | Based on cartoonist Aaron McGruder's politically charged daily comic strip, The Boondocks brings no-holds-barred social commentary and comedy to the Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming, and now, all 15 episodes of the 2005-2006 debut season are available in an uncut and uncensored format in this three-disc set. As with McGruder's strip, the animated version of The Boondocks uses a fish-out-of-water format--10-year-old revolutionary-in-training Huey Freeman (voiced by Regina King), his 8-year-old brother Riley (also King), and their salty Granddad (John Witherspoon) relocate to an upscale suburban neighborhood--to take aim at all manner of cultural issues in both the black and white communities. Targets sighted in these episodes include singer R. Kelly's bedroom shenanigans ("The Trial of R. Kelly"); gangsta rap ("The Story of Gangstalicious," which includes a wicked spoof of the documentary Tupac: Resurrection); Oprah Winfrey (who is almost kidnapped by Riley in "Let's Nab Oprah"); and Martin Luther King, who revives from a coma to be branded a terrorist in "Return of the King," which generated plenty of heat from the Rev. Al Sharpton upon its broadcast. All of the above topics are handled in a decidedly less-than-respectful and occasionally offensive manner, though exactly who will find The Boondocks scandalous and who will find its approach fearless and on the money will depend on the viewer. But there's no arguing that the show is frequently as funny as McGruder's comic. Extras include audio and video commentary by McGruder and the production staff (as well as commentaries by the character Uncle Ruckus, Granddad's thoroughly unhinged friend whose fixation on a White Jesus is tackled in the season closer, "The Passion of Ruckus"), as well as deleted scenes, some unaired Adult Swim promo spots, and a behind-the-scenes featurette that addresses the show's conception and production. --Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Boondocks S2 | | | | The complete uncut, uncompromising and uncensored 2nd season of the top-rated comedy show comes to DVD in this special must-own collector's set. Based on Aaron McGruder's award-winning comic strip, this provocative animated series brings the hilarious exploits of Huey, Riley, Granddad, Uncle Ruckus, Jazmine and the rest of the Boondocks crew to life. Loaded with bonus extras, this collection also features the voice talents of Snoop Dogg, Mo'nique, Aisha Tyler, Mos Def, Busta Rhymes and other exciting guest stars. |
| Genre: | Animation | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Regina King , John Witherspoon, Cedric Yarbrough, Gary Anthony Williams, Jill Talley, Gabby Soleil |
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| | | | Brisco County Jr | | | | The world's favorite western/sci-fi/comedy/action cult hit rides again! Here on 8 discs is the complete series about Brisco (Bruce Campbell), a tough-as-rawhide cowpoke, debonair ladies' man and Harvard-educated smarty-britches who roams from Frisco to Jalisco in pursuit of outlaws who killed his father...and in search of a mysterious orb possessing out-of-this world powers. Hot lead and cool anachronisms await Brisco as he and his sidekicks - including Comet, the intellectual equine who doesn't know he's a horse - fight for justice in the way, way, way-out West. Put your boots in your stirrups, your tongue in your cheek and join the fun. Let's play cowboys and aliens. |
| Genre: | Western | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bruce Campbell, Julius Carry, Christian Clemenson, John Astin, Billy Drago |
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| | | | Broken Saints | | | | Visually stunning, masterfully told, viscerally thrilling: Broken Saints is finally on DVD! This controversial and critically acclaimed graphic-novel saga fuses anime style, comic-book text, cinematic effects and music into a revolution in modern storytelling! Originally created by a small team of independent artists, this hypnotic and surreal fantasy/horror epic is now presented as a 12-hour, 4-Disc set with the celebrated voice talents of William B. Davis (The X-Files), Scott McNeil (X-Men: Evolution) and more, plus an entire universe of mind-blowing special features!
In the quiet corners of the globe, four strangers receive a series of chilling apocalyptic visions. Simultaneously drawn to a dark city in the West, their fates – and the fate of the world – are somehow tied to a global satellite network, a massive conspiracy … and a mysterious orphan girl with a terrifying secret. What will they give to save us all? What will they give to know the truth? |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Booke Burgess | | Cast: | Greg Anderson, Jamie Bell, Ryan Crocker, William B. Davis, Michael Dobson, Janyse Jaud |
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| | | | Brotherhood S1 | | | | Set in an Irish neighbourhood in Providence, the series reflects around two brothers on opposite sides of the law: one a gangster (Jason Isaacs) and the other a politician (Jason Clarke). |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jason Isaacs, Jason Clarke, Annabeth Gish, Fionnula Flanagan, Ethan Embry, Stivi Paskoski |
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| | | | Brothers And Sisters S2 | | | | The second season of Brothers and Sisters saw the terrific top-notch cast hit their stride. The chemistry between Calista Flockhart's Kitty and the Republican senator she works for, played by Rob Lowe, is palpable, and their engagement this season makes for a charming thread entwining the tales of the rest of the Walker family. And what a year they're having. Sarah (Rachel Griffiths) has lost custody of her kids, but is now running Ojai Foods, and trying to navigate through the family issues that accompany the family business. Uncle Saul (Ron Rifkin) might be gay. Iraq vet Justin might be falling off the wagon. Affairs are lurking around every corner, tempting just about every Walker at one time or another. The sun around whom all the Walker planets spin, however, is still Nora (Sally Field), whose good humor and big heart go a long way toward giving the clan the glue it needs. When Justin apologizes for his snappish behavior at the family meeting the previous night addressing his drug use, Nora says, "No one expects you to be warm and fuzzy at your own intervention, dear."
This season, Nora gets some affairs of the heart herself, with a charming guest appearance by Chevy Chase as Nora's college draft-dodging beau, back in the states as a teacher but still exactly on Nora's not-quite-reformed hippie wavelength. But tension awaits in the form of Isaac (Danny Glover), Nora's political opposite, but absolutely her equal mentally and emotionally. It's satisfying to see a woman older than 35 have a real love life, with real sparks--and real consequences. --A.T. Hurley
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Calista Flockhart, Sally Field, Rachel Griffiths, Rob Lowe , Ron Rifkin, Danny Glover |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S1 | | | | Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) looks like your typical perky high-schooler, and like most, she has her secret fears and anxieties. However, while most teens are worrying about their next date, their next zit, or their next term paper, Buffy's angsting over the next vampire she has to slay. See, Buffy, a young woman with superhuman strength, is the "chosen one," and she must help rid the world of evil, namely by staking demons. The exceptional first season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer introduces us to the treacherous world of Sunnydale High School (where Buffy moved after torching her previous high school's gym). The characters there include "watcher" Giles (Anthony Stewart Head) and the original "Scooby Gang" members--friendly geek Xander (Nicholas Brendon), computer whiz Willow (Alyson Hannigan), and snobbish popular girl Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter)--who aid Buffy in her quest. Those used to the darker tone that Buffy took in its later seasons will be surprised by the lighter feeling these first 12 episodes have--it's kind of like Buffy 90210 as the cast grapples with regular teen problems in addition to saving the world from demonic darkness. Fans of the show will enjoy the crisp writing, the phenomenal chemistry of the cast (already well-established within the first few episodes), and the introduction to characters that would stay for many seasons, including moody vampire Angel (David Boreanaz). Through it all, Gellar carries the series with amazing confidence, whether conveying the despair of high school or dispatching various demons--she's one of TV's most distinctive and strongest heroines. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Joss Wheadon | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar, Anthony Stewart Head, Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, Charisma Carpenter, David Boreanaz |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S2 | | | | At the heart of the first years of Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer was the romance between Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar), slayer of all things evil, and hunky Angel (David Boreanaz), the tortured vampire destined to walk the earth with a soul. The second season of Buffy took the Buffy-Angel pas de deux from ecstasy to agony in a now-classic plot arc that catapulted the show from WB teen drama to true TV greatness. You see, if the cursed Angel ever experiences true happiness for a moment, he'll revert to being an evil vampire again. And guess what happens after Buffy and Angel finally declare their love for one another and consummate their relationship...
Buffy found its true momentum during the second season, as geeky Xander (Nicholas Brendon) fell in love with popular girl Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter), Willow (Alyson Hannigan) gave up her crush on Xander in favor of werewolf boy Oz (Seth Green), and watcher Giles (Anthony Stewart Head) began a sweetly tentative relationship with computer teacher (and witch) Jenny Calendar (Robia LaMorte). Mayhem came to Sunnydale, though, in the form of evil vampires Drusilla (Juliet Landau) and Spike (drolly wicked James Marsters), who were more than ready to aid and abet Angel as he turned bad. It all sounds like horror-action mayhem (and there are great fight scenes), but Buffy took on its plotlines with amazing depth, intelligence, and humor. And oh, man, the love story! Buffy and Angel's tragic relationship is one of the most heartbreaking you'll ever find. Buffy's final dilemma finds her having to save the world at Angel's expense, and Gellar (who deserves a passel of Emmys for her work) is phenomenal at telegraphing Buffy's swirling conflicts between love and duty. This is some of the best TV ever made, period. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Joss Whedon | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar, David Boreanaz, Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, Charisma Carpenter, Seth Green |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S3 | | | | The third season of Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer was marked by the arrival in Sunnydale of renegade slayer Faith (Eliza Dushku), a moody loner who seemed to like her demon-staking calling just a little too much. While Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) was always wary of Faith, the two developed a deep friendship and appreciative rapport--that is, until the evil mayor of Sunnydale (Harry Groener) tapped into Faith's dark side and lured her into his plot to take over the world, first as a double agent spying on Buffy, then as out-and-out nemesis. And as the mayor's ascension approached--which happened to fall on Sunnydale High's graduation day--Buffy and Faith's battles got nastier and nastier, as Buffy attempted to wrestle with her dark side (literally and figuratively), save the world and her friends, and keep her lover Angel (David Boreanaz) out of Faith's evil clutches.
Chock-full of exceptional episodes, this third season started out with a bang (the superb season opener "Anne," in which a runaway Buffy finally returns to her Slayer calling) and never let up. Among other highlights, the season introduced former vengeance demon and soon-to-be regular Anya (Emma Caulfield), fleshed out Angel's tortured character (and readied him for his own series), and featured a hilarious doppelganger Willow (Alyson Hannigan), a vampire from a parallel universe, who in Willow's own words was "evil and... skanky... and kinda gay!" (Total foreshadowing there, folks.) The season's pièce de résistance, though, was the two-parter "Graduation Day," wherein Faith tries to kill Angel, and the students of Sunnydale High prepare to do battle with a mutated mayor and his army of demons. Aside from the series' exceptional writing and acting, this compelling year of Buffy was anchored by the consistently excellent Gellar, as well as Dushku's complicated Faith, a girl you truly love to hate. By the time you finish these episodes, Faith will have cast a spell on you that you'll find very hard to shake. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Joss Whedon | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar, Eliza Dushku, Harry Groener, David Boreanaz, Emma Caulfield, Alyson Hannigan |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S4 | | | | Having battled a hellish vampire master, an evil boyfriend, a rogue slayer, a giant man-eating demon-snake thing, and a particularly nasty high school principal, Buffy Summers embarked on one of her biggest challenges in the fourth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: college. With boyfriend Angel out of the picture (and on his own show) and Sunnydale High destroyed, new horizons were to be tackled for Buffy and the rest of the Scooby gang. There were cute guys (Buffy's new boyfriend Riley), cute girls (Willow's new girlfriend Tara--yes, Willow's gay!), frat parties, irritating roommates, harsh professors, and, oh yes, a secret military initiative that was experimenting on the demon population (Riley's part of it).
Buffy truly hit its golden years in the fourth season--just when you thought this show couldn't get any better, Joss Whedon and his creative team pulled out all the stops and took Buffy and co. into rich new territory. By far, the highlight of the season (and the entire series) was the Emmy-nominated "Hush," a nearly dialogue-free episode in which the creepy "Gentlemen" rob Sunnydale of its collective voice, and Buffy and Riley finally come face to face with each other's hidden identities. While Frankenstein-esque monster Adam wasn't the show's best villain (you'll have to wait until next season's Glory for that), he was a worthy adversary for the biotech age, and the military milieu was a nice contrast to Buffy's previous gothic outings. Season 4 also marked the return of blond vampire Spike (who developed a crush on Buffy), the ascension of vengeance demon Anya to full-time cast status, and the brief return of bad slayer Faith (in a fab two-part body-switching episode). Throughout, the entire cast, headed by the unparalleled Sarah Michelle Gellar, worked television magic of the kind rarely seen on the small screen. This is Buffy at its best. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Joss Whedon | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar, Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, Charisma Carpenter, Anthony Head, James Marsters |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S5 | | | | The fifth season of Joss Whedon's hit series started out in excellent form as slayer extraordinaire Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) did battle with the most famous of vampires (that Dracula guy) and then went on to spar with another nemesis, little sister Dawn (Michelle Trachtenberg). Wait--Buffy has a teenage sister? Where has she been the past four years? And why is everyone acting like she's always been around? Turns out that young Dawn is actually "The Key," a form of pure energy that, true to its name, helps open the gates between different dimensions. To protect said key from falling into the wrong hands, a group of monks gave it human form and sent it to the fiercely protective Buffy for safekeeping, creating new memories of Dawn for everyone as if she'd existed... well, always. Why all the super secrecy? There's this very, very, very bad girl named Glory (Clare Kramer) who wants the key very badly, and will do anything to get it. Oh, and by the way, Glory isn't just a run-of-the-mill demon... she's way worse.
Some fans will tell you that Buffy "jumped the shark" with the introduction of Dawn, when in actuality this season was the pinnacle of the show's achievement, as there was superb comedy to be had ("Buffy Vs. Dracula," the double-Xander episode "The Replacement," the introduction of the "Buffybot" in "Intervention") as well as some of television's best drama. The Whedon-scripted and -directed "The Body" remains one of Buffy's best episodes, when the young woman who faces down supernatural death on a daily basis finds herself powerless in the wake of her mother's sudden passing. The first third or so of the season was a bit choppy, but once the evil Glory came into her own, Buffy was a television force to be reckoned with. Kramer was the show's best villain (after the evil Angel, natch), and the supporting cast was never better. But as always, it was the superb Gellar who was the powerful center of the show, sparking opposite lovelorn vampire Spike (James Marsters) and wrestling with moral dilemmas rarely seen on television. With this season, Buffy Summers became, like Tony Soprano, one of television's true greats. --Mark Englehart |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar, Michelle Trachtenberg, Clare Krame, James Marsters |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S6 | | | | The sixth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer followed the logic of plot and character development into some gloomy places. The year begins with Buffy being raised from the dead by the friends who miss her, but who fail to understand that a sacrifice taken back is a sacrifice negated. Dragged out of what she believes to have been heavenly bliss, she finds herself "going through the motions" and entering into a relationship with the evil, besotted vampire Spike just to force her emotions. Willow becomes ever more caught up in the temptations of magic; Xander and Anya move towards marriage without ever discussing their reservations; Giles feels he is standing in the way of Buffy's adult independence; Dawn feels neglected. What none of them need is a menace that is, at this point, simply annoying--three high school contemporaries who have turned their hand to magical and high-tech villainy. Added to this is a hungry ghost, an invisibility ray, an amnesia spell and a song-and-dance demon (who acts as rationale for the incomparable musical episode "Once More, with Feeling").
This is a year in which chickens come home to roost: everything from the villainy of the three geeks to Xander's doubts about marriage come to a head, often--as in the case of the impressive wedding episode--through wildly dark humor. The estrangement of the characters from each other--a well-observed portrait of what happens to college pals in their early 20s--comes to a shocking head with the death of a major character and that death's apocalyptic consequences. The series ends on a consoling note which it has, by that point and in spite of imperfections, entirely earned. --Roz Kaveney |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar |
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| | | | Buffy the Vampire Slayer S7 | | | | The seventh and final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer begins with a mystery: someone is murdering teenage girls all over the world and something is trying hard to drive Spike mad. Buffy is considerably more cheerful in these episodes than we have seen her during the previous year as she trains Dawn and gets a job as student counselor at the newly rebuilt Sunnydale High. Willow is recovering from the magical addiction which almost led her to destroy the world, but all is not yet well with her, or with Anya, who has returned to being a Vengeance demon in "Same Time, Same Place" and "Selfless," and both women are haunted by their decisions.
Haunting of a different kind comes in the excellent "Conversations with Dead People" (one of the show's most terrifying episodes ever), in which a mysterious song is making Spike kill again in spite of his soul and his chip. Giles turns up in "Bring on the Night" and Buffy has to fight one of the deadliest vampires of her career in "Showtime". In "Potential" Dawn faces a fundamental reassessment of her purpose in life.
Buffy was always a show about female empowerment, but it was also a show about how ordinary people can decide to make a difference alongside people who are special. And it was also a show about people making up for past errors and crimes. So, for example, we have the excellent episodes "Storyteller", in which the former geek/supervillain Andrew sorts out his redemption while making a video diary about life with Buffy; and "Lies My Parents Told Me," in which we find out why a particular folk song sends Spike crazy. Redemption abounds as Faith returns to Sunnydale and the friends she once betrayed, and Willow finds herself turning into the man she flayed. Above all, this was always Buffy's show: Sarah Michelle Gellar does extraordinary work here both as Buffy and as her ultimate shadow, the First Evil, who takes her face to mock her. This is a fine ending to one of television's most remarkable shows. --Roz Kaveney |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | Joss Whedon | | Cast: | Sarah Michelle Gellar, Eliza Dushku, Anthony Stewart Head, Alyson Hannigan, Nicholas Brendon, James Marsters |
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| | | | Carnivale S1 | | | | Carnivàle doesn't waste any time making its--wildly ambitious--aims clear. As carnival manager Samson (Michael J. Anderson, Twin Peaks' diminutive backwards-talker) notes in pilot episode "Milfay," directed by Rodrigo García (son of Gabriel García Marquez), "To each generation [is] born a creature of light and a creature of darkness." With that the story begins. The year is 1934, the setting the Oklahoma dustbowl. In short order, Ben Hawkins (In the Bedroom's Nick Stahl) loses his mother and his home. He's poor, he's alone--he needs a job. So he joins Samson's carnival, en route to the West. Hawkins, naturally, is the good guy. Waiting for him in California is the not so good Brother Justin Crowe (Clancy Brown, The Shawshank Redemption), a fire and brimstone preacher with supernatural powers and a fiercely loyal sister (Amy Madigan). Hawkins, as it turns out, has similar powers.... |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Carnivale S2 | | | | The second season of HBO's Depression-era gothic--John Steinbeck by way of Tod Browning--picks up where the first left off. Professor Lodz (Patrick Bauchau) is dead. Ben (Nick Stahl), the show's protagonist, appears to be the culprit. Samson (Michael J. Anderson) helps him dispose of the body. Later he tells the other carnival workers that Lodz "took a powder." Lila (Debra Christofferson) doesn't buy it. Meanwhile, Sophie (Clea DuVall), who lost her mother to fire the previous year, feels unmoored without her guidance. A few states away, Brother Justin (Clancy Brown) harbors ever greater delusions of grandeur--and inappropriate thoughts about his sister, Iris (Amy Madigan). In "Alamagordo, NM," he decides to establish a temple, which he dubs Jonestown, er, Jericho. At the same time, life amongst the carnies, who are heading towards Justin's California, is becoming increasingly tense. Ruthie (Adrienne Barbeau), for instance, is starting to see dead people--like Lodz--and Stumpy (Toby Huss) is no longer able to keep his gambling in check. As with the first season, the action continues to alternate between the carnival and the congregation. What binds the two is a man named Scudder (John Savage), who has connections to Ben and Justin. Although writer/creator Dan Knauf had planned to tie things up between seasons three and six, HBO did not renew Carnivàle a second time. Nonetheless, a surprising number of questions are answered, like the identity of "Management" (voiced by an un-credited Linda Hunt) and whether Ben and Justin will have a final showdown. The answer to the latter question is: Yes, they will--and there’ll be casualties. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Clancy Brown, Nick Stahl, Clea DuVall, Adrienne Barbeau, Amy Madigan, Diane Salinger |
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| | | | Chappelle's Show S2 | | | | Dave Chappelle's shrewd parodies, stinging satires, and boldly imaginative fantasias simply pour from the second season of his Comedy Central show, in every respect as funny as his well-received debut year. The structure is the same: a relaxed Chappelle introduces each sketch to an enthusiastic, studio audience (some of these introductions amount to stand-up routines), and then the madness begins. Among the many highlights from the 13 episodes on this boxed set's three discs is a mock ad for Samuel L. Jackson beer, featuring Chappelle's hilarious impression of Jackson's stern, overbearing persona from Pulp Fiction, and a dozen other features. Chappelle, considering a career in politics, floats a couple of trial campaign commercials, including one that promises to solve America's health care crisis by giving every citizen a fake Canadian I.D. Chappelle also suggests an effective program for teaching sexual abstinence to high school students: Forcing them to watch their principals have sex with the oldest female teachers on staff.
There's a good bit, too, about black soothsayer Negrodamus, whose ability to foresee events is limited to the fortunes of celebrities. Coming under fire (amusingly) are those McDonald's commercials suggesting that burger-flipping employment for African Americans can overhaul inner city communities. But, as with season 1, there are several masterpieces in this collection as well, such as Chappelle's vision of what the Internet would look like if it was a place you could actually, physically visit (with the equivalents of pop-up ads, porn sites, etc.). Equally inspired is a sketch in which a freeloading Chappelle, having impregnated the ultra-rich Oprah Winfrey, indulges his every whim. Best of all is Chappelle's take on what President Bush's administration would look like if the Chief Executive were, in fact, a black man. --Tom Keogh
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Dave Chappelle |
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| | | | Charmed S6 | | | |
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| | | | Charmed S7 | | | |
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| | | | Chris Rock Show S1 & 2 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Clockers Jungle Feature Dbl Feature | | | | Clockers:
Based on the riveting bestseller by Richard Price, this 1995 crime drama was directed by Spike Lee with such authority and authenticity that it has the hyper-real quality of a stylized documentary. Fully capturing the thoroughly researched detail of Price's novel, the film focuses on Strike (newcomer Mekhi Phifer), a young, ambitious "clocker"--or drug dealer--who works the streets of his New York housing project, selling drugs for a local supplier named Rodney (played with ferocious charisma by Delroy Lindo). Just as Strike is struggling to get away from his dead-end life of crime, another dealer is murdered in a fast-food restaurant and local detectives (Harvey Keitel, John Turturro) consider Strike the primary suspect. In cowriting the script with novelist Price, Lee uses this murder mystery to explore the plague of guns and black-on-black crime in America's inner cities, in which drugs and death are familiar routines of daily life. The film doesn't pretend to offer solutions, nor does it dwell on the problem with numbing insistence. Rather, this taut, well-acted film takes the viewer into a world often hidden in plain sight--a world where options seem nonexistent for youth conditioned to have little or no expectation beyond a probable early death. Lee and Price are deadly serious in handling this volatile subject (which incorporates racism, powerless law enforcement, and political indifference), but Clockers is also blessed with humor, insight, and humanity. It's one of Lee's most confidently directed films, signaling a creative maturity that Lee continued to develop throughout the 1990s. --Jeff Shannon
Jungle Fever
Spike Lee's 1991 story about an interracial relationship and its consequences on the lives and communities of the lovers (Wesley Snipes, Annabella Sciorra) is one of his most captivating and focused films. Snipes and Sciorra are very good as individuals trying to reach beyond the limits imposed upon them for reasons of race, tradition, sexism, and such. Lee makes an interesting and subtle case that they are driven to one another out of frustration with social obstacles as well as pure attraction--but is that enough for love to survive? John Turturro is featured in a subplot as an Italian American who grows attracted to a black woman and takes heat from his numbskull buddies. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | R | | Director: | Spike Lee | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Comeback | | | | Ten years ago she was TV's "It" girl. Now It's a different story. For Valerie Cherish, no price is too high to pay for clinging to the television spotlight. Lisa Kudrow stars as Valerie Cherish, a former B-list sitcom star so desperate to revive her career that she agrees to star in a reality television show called The Comeback. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Lisa Kudrow, Malin Akerman, Robert Bagnell, Lance Barber, Robert Michael Morris, Laura Silverman |
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Crooklyn | | | | Crooklyn
Spike Lee's semiautobiographical, 1994 film about the good and bad times for a Brooklyn family in the '70s has passion and nostalgic good feeling, but it is also a mess of random reflections and arbitrary storytelling. The centerpiece of the movie is a little girl (Zelda Harris) who views the ups and downs of her parents' experiences (mom and dad are played by Delroy Lindo and Alfre Woodard), and who navigates the life of her neighborhood. Lee tosses in a lot of '70s detail (watching The Partridge Family) and other diversions (Harris's journey through suburbia), but he has no master sensibility controlling the flow of it all. The film is more wearying than anything, although bright spots include Lindo's fine performance as a talented man suffering from irrelevance. --Tom Keogh
Product Description
Spike Lee is one of the most acclaimed and controversial directors of all time. Now five of his most provocative, thought-provoking films are available in one collection. From the breakout hit dramedy DO THE RIGHT THING to the gritty, urban CLOCKERS, Lee peels away life's layers, exposing the ironies, brutalities, rhythms and prejudices of the naked city in this powerful collector's set. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | R | | Director: | Spike Lee | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Cuando Seas Mia | | | | Paloma is a migrant worker at a coffee plantation but she doesn't plan to stay one forever. In her spare time she reads and dreams about the day her Prince Charming will arrive. Upon the death of Don Lorenzo the well-known coffee magnate his heirs descend on the "Casa Blanca." Among them is Diego Don Lorenzo's grandson who is expected to take over the plantation after he finishes his studies. Diego and Paloma believe they have found true love but first they must surmount all of the obstacles that a surname like Sanchez Zambrano can bring. |
| Genre: | | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Silvia Navarro, Sergio Basanez |
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| | | | Curb Your Enthusiasm | | | |
| Genre: | comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Damages S1 | | | | Hot new legal thriller on FX! Set in New York's world of high stakes litigation, Damages follows the lives of Patty Hewes, the nation's most revered and most reviled litigator, and her bright, ambitious protégée Ellen Parsons as they become embroiled in a class action lawsuit targeting Arthur Frobisher, one of the country's wealthiest CEOs. As Patty battles Frobisher and his attorney, Ellen learns what it takes to win at all costs, and that lives, not just fortunes, are at stake. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | glenn close, rose byrne, ted danson |
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| | | | Dark Angel S1 | | | | One of TV's more interesting tough-girl action shows, Dark Angel is a distinctive blend of the personal, the adventurous, and the politically aware. Cocreators James Cameron and Charles Eglee present a complex scenario of biological super-science and social collapse in which their gene-manipulated heroine and hacker-journalist hero can genuinely make a difference. In this first season they also provide an adversary who is a lot more than just a conventional villain.
Jessica Alba is impressive as Max, bred and trained as a super-soldier but reclaiming her individual humanity; Michael Weatherly is scruffily attractive as Eyes Only, who sits semi-paralyzed in his eyrie above Seattle uncovering crime, corruption, and other skullduggeries and assigning deadly errands to the woman he hopelessly loves. Jon Savage has real authority as Lydeker, a man who has stretched his conscience to the breaking point, but is not personally corrupt. Some of the best episodes--"Prodigy," for example--are ones in which Lydeker and Max are forced into temporary alliance. Early on, the relationship between Max and the other workers at Jam Pony--the courier firm that provides her with a cover identity--is a little forced, but later on the two parts of Max's life are more successfully integrated: "Shorties in Love," for example, is a genuinely touching tale about Diamond, the doomed criminal ex-lover of Max's lesbian roommate. Dark Angel was never a perfect show, but at its occasional best it manages to be simultaneously funny and dramatic. --Roz Kaveney
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jessica Alba |
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| | | | Dark Angel S2 | | | | The second and last season of Dark Angel, the inventive James Cameron show about mutants during a future Depression, has some real strengths as well as one or two bad ideas that partly explain its much-regretted cancellation. Among the strengths are Alex (Jensen Ackles), the thoroughly unreliable mutant charmer whose flirtations with heroine Max (Jessica Alba) complicate her doomed love for Logan (Michael Weatherly), the crippled newshound whom she cannot now even touch--she has been infected with a deadly virus tailored specifically to kill him. The distrust this sows between the doomed couple does not always avoid soap-opera clichés, but often produces fine performances from all three, especially Alba.
On the deficit side, John Savage's memorably ambiguous villain Lydeker from season 1 (who is alternately the mutants' nemesis and their protector) disappears to be replaced by the melodramatically sinister Agent White (Martin Cummins). White appears to be just a shoot-to-kill operative of the state and turns out to be another sort of superhuman, a product of an occultist breeding program going back to the dawn of history. After White's first ruthless killing, Max's reluctance to use deadly force is tested to near-implausible limits. The show ends with a rousing and moving finale, "Freak Nation", in which a theme often neglected in this final year--Max's relationship with her fellow couriers at Jam Pony--reaches a powerful climax. --Roz Kaveney |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jessica Alba, Michael Weatherly, Alimi Ballard, John Savage, Jennifer Blanc |
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| | | | Deadwood S1 | | | | The remarkable first season of Deadwood represents one of those periodic, wholesale reinventions of the Western that is as different from, say, Lonesome Dove as that miniseries is from Howard Hawks's Rio Bravo or the latter is from Anthony Mann's The Naked Spur. In many ways, HBO's Deadwood embraces the Western's unambiguous morality during the cinema's silent era through the 1930s while also blazing trails through a post-NYPD Blue, post-The West Wing television age exalting dense and customized dialogue. On top of that, Deadwood has managed an original look and texture for a familiar genre: gritty, chaotic, and surging with both dark and hopeful energy. Yet the show's creator, erstwhile NYPD Blue head writer David Milch, never ridicules or condescends to his more grasping, futile characters or overstates the virtues of his heroic ones.
Set in an ungoverned stretch of South Dakota soon after the 1876 Custer massacre, Deadwood concerns a lawless, evolving town attracting fortune-seekers, drifters, tyrants, and burned-out adventurers searching for a card game and a place to die. Others, particularly women trapped in prostitution, sundry do-gooders, and hangers-on have nowhere else to go. Into this pool of aspiration and nightmare arrive former Montana lawman Seth Bullock (Timothy Olyphant) and his friend Sol Starr (John Hawkes), determined to open a lucrative hardware business. Over time, their paths cross with a weary but still formidable Wild Bill Hickok (Keith Carradine) and his doting companion, the coarse angel Calamity Jane (Robin Weigert); an aristocratic, drug-addicted widow (Molly Parker) trying to salvage a gold mining claim; and a despondent hooker (Paula Malcomson) who cares, briefly, for an orphaned girl. Casting a giant shadow over all is a blood-soaked king, Gem Saloon owner Al Swearengen (Ian McShane), possibly the best, most complex, and mesmerizing villain seen on TV in years. Over 12 episodes, each of these characters, and many others, will forge alliances and feuds, cope with disasters (such as smallpox), and move--almost invisibly but inexorably--toward some semblance of order and common cause. Making it all worthwhile is Milch's masterful dialogue--often profane, sometimes courtly and civilized, never perfunctory--and the brilliant acting of the aforementioned performers plus Brad Dourif, Leon Rippy, Powers Boothe, and Kim Dickens. --Tom Keogh
Description
Music from the critically acclaimed HBO Original Series Deadwood is available now. Soundtrack features a great collection of American roots music including Lyle Lovett and June Carter Cash with full dialog excerpts of your favorite moments from the series.
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| Genre: | Western | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Walter Hill, Davis Guggenheim | | Cast: | Timothy Olyphant, Ian McShane, Molly Parker, Jim Beaver, Brad Dourif, W. Earl Brown |
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| | | | Deadwood S2 | | | | Deadwood: The Complete Second Season continues the Shakespearean brilliance of the landmark first season, created by NYPD Blue head writer David Milch. Milch either wrote or supervised the writing of each of the 12 episodes in this stunning follow-up, which contains more than a few surprises for anyone who thought they knew the myriad characters in the late 19th century town of Deadwood--a mucky, ungoverned, exceptionally violent development in South Dakota. As with the first season, Deadwood continues to be about many things--survival, loyalty, alliances, duty--but all of them are happening against a titanic battle between several parties to consolidate power and real wealth in the territory. Despite his cutthroat ethics, astonishing profanity, and bursts of cruelty, it's hard not to side in this bid for a piece of America's future with saloon owner Al Swearengen (a magnificent performance by Ian McShane), a visionary monster who is nevertheless more recognizably human than his rivals.
Entering an uneasy partnership with Al is Seth Bullock (Timothy Olyphant). Seth begins the second season by teaching Al a few lessons in chivalry, and their brief but bloody feud commences physical ailments for Al that become increasingly shocking to behold. Yet Al's difficulties have the practical effect of sidelining him for a couple of episodes while the story sets up more complex power struggles. Al takes on Deadwood's other saloon-brothel owner, the unstable Cy Tolliver (Powers Boothe), as well as an off-screen millionaire who is intent on owning all the gold-mining interests by buying out weary prospectors' claims. Meanwhile, Seth's wife and son (actually, his late brother's widow and child) arrive, an unsettling development for Seth's lover, the widow Alma Garret (Molly Parker), who soon reveals herself to be a more complicated person than in the first season. The prostitute Trixie (Paula Malcomson) begins thinking about her future and asserts independence from Al by having sex with Seth's friend, Sol Star (John Hawkes). Best of all, Calamity Jane (Robin Weigert) is back and more endearingly uncivilized than ever. Special features include actor commentaries on select episodes, the best of which finds Olyphant and McShane cracking each other up while watching the season premiere. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Western | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Timothy Olyphant, Ian McShane, Molly Parker, Brad Dourif |
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| | | | Deadwood S3 | | | | The final complete season of HBO's remarkable Deadwood series is full of surprises and devastating experiences as the nascent, dangerous town prepares to join Dakota territory in 1877. As in the previous two seasons, the question of who will control the town's resources, assets, and people drives much of the drama, affecting all manner of relationships and alliances, often between the most unlikely people. The dominant storyline in Deadwood: The Complete Third Season concerns upcoming elections for mayor and sheriff of the mucky, gold-mining town. The real juice, however, is not so much between the individuals running for office as between two power brokers each trying to steer the results toward their own purposes. Saloon owner and Deadwood's puppetmaster, Al Swearengen (Ian McShane sustaining his brilliant peformance in the previous two seasons), works closely with incumbent lawman Seth Bullock (Timothy Olyphant) on retaining the latter's seat. But Bullock himself has difficulty surrendering his penchant for taking unambiguous action and relying on few words, especially when he has to act like a politician and deal with people such as George Hearst (Gerald McRaney, playing the real-life father of William Randolph Hearst). Swearengen's rival, Hearst--a self-made industrialist who gained his fortune through mining--has every intention of overtaking Deadwood, with his eye particularly on the lucrative mine owned by Bullock's former lover, Alma (Molly Parker). (The violence Hearst employs to get to Alma's claim will stun many Deadwood fans.)
Meanwhile, Bullock's old friend, Sol Starr (John Hawkes), runs for mayor against the feckless E.B. Farnum (William Sanderson), and tries to navigate through his difficult relationship with Trixie (Paula Malcomson) as she grows enraged by former lover Swearengen's manipulation of her and everyone else. Calamity Jane (Robin Weigert) is encouraged to become a public speaker, telling of her misadventures with General George Custer, and she commences a lesbian relationship with Joanie (Kim Dickens), the saloon owner who is becoming increasingly despondent and suicidal. Bullock's relationship with his wife, Martha (Anna Gunn) continues to deepen and become more of an influence on him, Wyatt Earp comes for a visit, and a newcomer to town, Jack Langrishe (Brian Cox), an old friend of Swearengen, attempts to open a theatre. As expected, the season finale concludes with the long-awaited election, but HBO's decision to bring Deadwood to an end required creator David Milch to wrap everything up in a pair of two-hour movies. Still, The Complete Third Season is very satisfying on every level, and will always be, along with the rest of the series, a television landmark. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Western | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, Molly Parker, W. Earl Brown, Jeffrey Jones, Kim Dickens |
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| | | | Decalogue | | | | Superlatives abound when describing Krzysztof Kieslowski's The Decalogue, a series of 10 one-hour dramas originally made for Polish TV between 1988 and 1989 and seen throughout the world in film festivals and cinematheque and museum programs. Though each episode is inspired by one of the Ten Commandments of the Bible, these are not Sunday school fables illustrating some simplistic moral lesson--the connections to the individual commandments are not always obvious and are often downright curious--but powerful, profound stories of love and loss, faith and fear. Kieslowski explores ordinary people flailing through inner torments, hard decisions, and shattering revelations, grounding his stories in the faces of their deeply human characters.
Each episode is self-contained, from "Decalogue I" ("I Am the Lord Thy God"), the touching story of a boy who starts asking the hard questions of life from his rationalist father and religious aunt, to "Decalogue X" ("Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbor's Goods"), a comic tale of estranged brothers who bond through a winding ordeal involving their father's priceless stamp collection. There are stories of tragedy and triumph, both expansive and intimate, some profoundly moving and others delicately shaded--but all are warmed by Kieslowski's sympathetic direction and his eye for resonant, fragile imagery. Initially drawn together by location--the series is set in a dreary Warsaw apartment complex--a web of associations forms as characters pass through other stories, sometimes only briefly, and themes reverberate through the series. The Decalogue is ultimately a personal spiritual investigation into the soul of man, a work of quiet attention and deep emotion marked by astounding images and vivid characters. Each volume is also available individually on VHS. --Sean Axmaker |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Krzysztof Kielowski | | Cast: | Miroslaw Baka, Aleksander Bardini, Maja Barelkowska, Adrianna Biedrzynska, Henryk Bista |
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| | | | Desperate Housewives S1 | | | | Audiences were captivated by the women of Wisteria Lane in the first season of Desperate Housewives, the breakout hit from ABC that almost single-handedly lifted the network from its ratings doldrums and brought back the classic TV soap, remixed now with satire, comedy, and mystery. An affectionate yet darkly tinged send-up of suburbia that skirted Twin Peaks territory as much as that of Knots Landing, Desperate Housewives opened with a bang--literally--as perfect-seeming housewife Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong) went through her picture-perfect day before putting a handgun to her temple and pulling the trigger. Mary Alice's sudden suicide leaves her four closest friends, all housewives of a sort, with a surfeit of grief, a re-examination of their own lives, and a mystery to solve. It also proves to be a catalyst for a seamy study of what goes on inside the finely appointed homes of Wisteria Lane--the tales of which Mary Alice narrates from beyond the grave with a sardonic tone dipped in both honey and arsenic.
There's Martha Stewart-perfect Bree (Marcia Cross), who rules her household with an iron fist in a tailor-made garden glove and seems to have it all, until she finds out her husband (Steven Culp) is cheating on her--and had a serious fetish habit to boot. Sultry Gaby (Eva Longoria), the youngest of the set, is a bored trophy wife whose predilection for shopping and clothes are the perfect decoy for her affair with the hunky teenage gardener (Jesse Metcalfe). Former career woman Lynette (Felicity Huffman) is the most stereotypical housewife, raising four (or was it five?) kids and frustrated at using her cutthroat business skills for suburban politics. And daffy Susan (Teri Hatcher), the divorcee looking for love, sees her prospects brighten with the arrival of hunky plumber Mike (James Denton), who has some desperate secrets of his own. And did we mention the neighborhood hussy (Nicollette Sheridan), the snotty busybody (Christine Estabrook), and Mary Alice's increasingly agitated son (Cody Kasch)?
It was a fast and wild mix of plot and characters that gave Desperate Housewives the zing that made it a number one hit, as it never got too bogged down in any dilemma before moving on to the next. And though it was neither as hard-hitting nor salacious as it was trumpeted to be, the show nevertheless breathed fresh, funny air into comedy television, for even though it hewed to the hour-long soap format, the content was far more dark comedy than sudsy drama. There were fun bright spots to be had, but the story behind Mary Alice's death--which included drugs, murder, blackmail, secret identities, and vengeance in equal amounts--hovered over all the characters, tingeing the farce with the specter of danger. The show's other source of strength is in its peerless ensemble cast, headed by four perfect leading ladies, all Emmy-worthy. Hatcher received the (deserved) lion's share of praise (and a Golden Globe), but her co-stars--especially the underrated Longoria--matched her scene for scene. And though the mystery of Mary Alice's death was ultimately solved (no Twin Peaks teasing here), it was just the beginning of the troubles on Wisteria Lane, where no life went unexamined for too long. --Mark Englehart
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, Felecity Huffman, Teri Hatcher, Nicollette Sheridan, Brenda Strong |
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| | | | Desperate Housewives S2 | | | | In its first season, the show reveals the mystery of why Mary Alice took her own life and the quest by a mysterious "plumber" named Mike Delfino (James Denton) to find out the fate of his former lover, drug addict Dierdre. By the end of the season, the show resolves the mystery with the revelation that 15 years ago, when Mary Alice's name was Angela Forrest, she buys the heroin-addicted Dierdre's only son Dana, and then flees with her husband Todd (now Paul) to Fairview (the town Housewives is set in) to keep the child (now named Zach) from being taken away from them. When Dierdre finds them, Mary Alice refuses to give up the child. Upon being accused of being back on drugs, Dierdre hits Paul (Mary Alice's husband) and goes to get her son. Mary Alice, shocked, murders her, checks her arm for signs of drug use (she was not), and has her horrified husband dismember the body, put it in Zach's toy-chest, and bury it where the family is building a new pool in their backyard. All this happens while a 4-year-old Zach is watching them from the staircase. What Mary Alice does not count on is that one of her neighbors, Martha Huber, learns of Mary Alice's secret from her sister, Felicia, (with whom Mary Alice had worked before coming to Fairview). After learning the secret, Martha attempts to blackmail Mary Alice. Rather than face the blackmail, Mary Alice kills herself. Later, when Paul finds this out, he kills Martha after she tells him she does not have any regrets about her blackmailing and its result. Mike (Dierdre's former lover) learns of this information from Paul whom Mike leaves in the desert (rather than killing) after Mike realizes that Zach is his son.
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, Nicollette Sheridan, Jesse Metcalfe |
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| | | | Desperate Housewives S3 | | | | The women of Wisteria Lane are back, and it’s time to air some dirty laundry. In the Emmy Award®-winning show’s sensational third season, the gossip is juicier, the secrets are more scandalous and the revenge is even sweeter. "Desperate Housewives is back," raves The New York Daily News. Experience all 23 tantalizing episodes of Season Three, and get the dish on Susan’s new love, Bree’s unsettling marriage to Orson (Kyle MacLachlan) and a dangerous new presence living down the lane. Everything will come out in the wash in this spectacular six-disc set. Bubbling over with exclusive bonus features, including a behind-the-scenes look at the season finale and even more secrets straight from the show, this is the sudsiest season yet |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Teri Hatcher, Eva Longoria, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Nicollette Sheridan, James Denton |
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| | | | Desperate Housewives S4 | | | | Take a trip to the steamy side of suburbia as the acclaimed hit DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES is hotter hipper and even more exciting in its sizzling fourth season. "It's time for you to move back to Wisteria Lane" proclaims Entertainment Weekly. Temperatures are rising behind the closed doors of TV's favorite guilty pleasure. Primetime's most desired women are back and they're joined by an old friend (Dana Delany) who brings the simmering neighborhood to a boil. Experience all 17 episodes of Season Four in a scintillating 5-disc set. Blazing with exclusive bonus features including a behind-the-scenes look at how an episode moves from the casting room to your TV screen DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES burns even brighter on DVD. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Teri Hatcher, Eva Longoria, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Nicollette Sheridan |
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| | | | Dexter S1 | | | | During the day, Dexter Morgan is a jovial employee in the Miami Metropolitan Police Department's crime lab, but his meticulously crafted life masks his true nature. In reality Dexter is a disciplined and murderous psychopath (a self-admitted "monster"), and he slakes his blood lust at night by carefully killing the serial killers he tracks down during the day. Based on the novels (Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Dearly Devoted Dexter and Dexter in the Dark) by Jeff Lindsay. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz, James Remar, Jennifer Carpenter, Erik King, David Zayas |
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| | | | Dexter S2 | | | | Dark and sinister is the new sexy, thanks to Dexter, which in its second season has proven to be the most successful series Showtime has offered up yet. Remember how much you squirmed in your seat during the season one finale? Believe it or not, the premiere of season two felt like it could have been a season finale--because jaws were on the floor when the credits rolled. For being a supposed sociopath, Dex is pretty broken up about the gruesome events that concluded last season. The one and only person who could possibly understand him is six feet under, and it seems our unlikely hero is losing his homicidal grip. He’s even having a little trouble slicing up a few of his latest victims (from a murderous gang member to a chainsaw-wielding fiend from his past). Enter Lila (Jaime Murray, Hustle), a lady with a sweet British accent and a few dark secrets of her own. She seems to accept Dex for who he really is, and he finds himself feeling relaxed for the first time in his life. In contrast, his relationship with his girlfriend Rita (Julie Benz) has been stretched almost to a breaking point. The problem is, he should be anything but relaxed. Someone picked a poor place to go scuba diving off the Florida coast, and came across an underwater graveyard: Dex’s primo spot for dropping dismembered bodies wrapped in heavy-duty trash bags. Word about the "Bay Harbor Butcher" gets out quick, and the F.B.I. sends the best of the best, Special Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine, Deadwood) to work alongside the police to sniff out Miami’s latest serial killer. This guy is no schlub, and Dex may have met his match. And, yes, Dexter gets to work with Lundy on a daily basis, which provides some wonderfully awkward moments. It certainly doesn’t help that the intuitively paranoid Sergeant Doakes (Erik King, Oz) is hot on Dex’s trail.
Season two of Dexter is all about decisions. Lila or Rita? Old code or new code? Run or fight? Right or wrong? Well, one thing’s for sure: When it comes to writing, casting, acting, and production, the makers of this show made all the right decisions. Michael C. Hall is simply superb as the title character. You’ll never find yourself more willing to genuinely root for a serial killer. It’s bloody liberating. --Jordan Thompson
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz, Jennifer Carpenter, Erik King, C.S. Lee, Lauren Velez |
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| | | | Diamonds are Forever | | | | Sean Connery retired from the 007 franchise after You Only Live Twice but was lured back for one last official appearance as James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever. He's in fine form--cool but ruthless--in a sharp precredits sequence hunting the unkillable Blofeld (a suavely menacing Charles Gray in this incarnation), but the MacGuffin of a story (involving diamond smuggling, a superlaser on a satellite, and Blofeld's latest plot to rule the world ) is full of the groaning tongue-in-cheek gags that Roger Moore would make his signature. Goldfinger director Guy Hamilton keeps the film zipping along gamely from one entertaining set piece to another, including a terrific car chase in a parking lot, a battle with a pair of bikini-clad killer gymnasts named Bambi and Thumper, and a deadly game with a bizarre pair of fey, sardonic killers who dispatch their victims with elaborate invention. Connery retired again after this one but he returned once more, for Nev! er Say Never Again 15 years later. --Sean Axmaker |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | Sean Connery |
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| | | | Die Another Day | | | | The 20th James Bond adventure, Die Another Day succeeds on three important fronts: it avoids comparison to Austin Powers by keeping its cheesy humor in check, allows Halle Berry to be sexy and worthy of a spinoff franchise, and keeps pace with the technical wizardry that modern action films demand. Pierce Brosnan's got style and staying power as James Bond, now bearing little resemblance to Ian Fleming's original British super-spy, but able to hold his own at the box office. He's paired with American agent Jinx (Berry) in chasing a genetically altered North Korean villain (Rick Yune) armed with a satellite capable of destroying just about anything. John Cleese and Judi Dench reprise their recurring roles (as "Q" and "M," respectively); they're accompanied by weapons-laden sports cars, a hokey cameo by Madonna (who sings the techno-pulsed theme song), and enough double-entendres to keep Bond-philes adequately shaken and stirred. With clever nods to 007's cinematic legacy, Die Another Day makes you welcome the familiar end-credits promise: James Bond will return. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Peirce Brosnan |
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| | | | Dirt S1 | | | | Hot-wired into the tabloid zeitgeist, Dirt is good, lurid fun. Courteney Cox, in a bold departure from Monica on Friends, stars as Lucy Spiller, editor of Dirt magazine. Relentless, high-strung Lucy is part Ben Bradlee and part Bonnie Fuller. She's a stickler for journalistic integrity with a basic instinct for the scandalous "get." "There's actual reporting in what we do," she rallies her reporters. "The only defense we have is the truth." Lucy is saddled with a clichéd personal life (abandonment issues, intimacy issues, blah, blah, blah). She is way more fun to watch at work when she's blackmailing celebs to deliver scoops by threatening to reveal their sexual peccadilloes, stun-gunning one-night-stands, or betraying a loved one to score an exclusive, career-wrecking cover story. Her go-to photographer and best friend is Don Konkey (Ian Hart, an uncanny John Lennon in Backbeat and The Hours and Times) a functioning schizophrenic prone to hallucinations, but who will do anything for Lucy, even sever his own finger to gain admittance to a hospital where an unblemished Christian pop star is being mysteriously kept under wraps. Konkey is the voice and heart of Dirt. His introductory episode recaps are a highlight ("No offense, but you should be up on this by now," he states in episode 7). Waiting in the wings on Lucy's staff is Willa (Alex Breckenridge), young, green, and hungry. She becomes a much more provocative presence as she joins the dark side as the season progresses.
Dirt could use sharper writing, but it's savvy enough when it comes to parsing Hollywood-speak. A celebrity's so-called "exhaustion" is translated by Lucy to mean "rehab or a psychotic break." Dirt drops A-list names (Clooney, Britney), but for a series set in Hollywood, it's light on actual celebrities (director David Fincher and a self-deprecating Christopher Knight and Adrienne Curry appear as themselves). Instead, we get unconvincing fictional celebrities such as wash-out actor Holt McLaren (Josh Stewart), who gets his shot at superstardom by making the same kind of pact with Lucy that John Cassavetes made with the coven in Rosemary's Baby. Just one scoop begins a downward spiral for his sitcom-actress girlfriend (Laura Allen) and her best friend, an actress with an ill-timed pregnancy (Shannyn Sossamon). Also getting down and dirty are Rick Fox as a compromised basketball superstar, Wayne Brady as a cultured thug, and, in the season finale, Jennifer Aniston as Lucy's rival (and then some, although their much-hyped onscreen kiss is really much ado about nothing). An FX series, Dirt shovels on the network's envelope-pushing profane language and graphic sex scenes. It should clean up on DVD. --Donald Liebenson |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Courteney Cox, Jeffrey Nordling, Mariette Hartley, Alexandra Breckenridge, Laura Allen, Ian Hart |
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| | | | Dirty Sexy Money S1 | | | | Filled with intriguing story lines and a smoking hot cast, Dirty Sexy Money focuses on a idealistic attorney wrestling with his father's death and the family that may be responsible for it. Peter Krause (Six Feet Under) stars as Nick George, whose father was the legal counsel for the Darling family and good friends with patriarch Tripp (Donald Sutherland) and his wife Letitia (Jill Clayburgh). When Nick is offered to take his father's position with the family, he goes through a gamut of emotions: He never saw his father because his dad was always tending to the Darlings' needs; he had dated troubled Darling daughter Karen when they were younger. He doesn't want to get sucked up into the drama that is their life but, like his father, he is unable to resist both the salary (upwards of $10 million) and the Darlings' tremulous connection to his dad. But that money doesn't come without strings; Nick serves as both counsel and therapist to the family. Occasionally, he is also asked to play the role of errand boy (When favored son and rising politician Patrick (William Baldwin)--who is married--wants to break up with his tranny girlfriend, he asks Nick to do it. And to give her a check to show his affection). To his credit, Nick says, "I'm not going to go into a hotel and give a tranny hooker a check." To which Patrick says, "She's not a hooker!" All 10 episodes of the debut season are included in this boxed set. Executive produced by Greg Berlanti (Dawson's Creek, Brothers & Sisters, Eli Stone), the thoroughly entertaining drama has a group of characters that keep viewers glued to the screen. Karen is a boozy socialite who switches husbands often; Patrick can't stand up to his wife, even after she kinda-sorta shoots him; Tripp and Letitia have a litany of secrets that affects their marriage and their children; Nick finds himself sparring (both verbally and otherwise) with their eldest son, the Rev. Brian Darling. And whether Nick has found a friend or foe in charming multi-millionaire Simon Elder (Blair Underwood) has yet to be determined. Dirty? Yes. Sexy? Absolutely. As for the money, it just may be the root of some of the Darlings' evil. --Jae-Ha Kim |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Peter Krause, Donald Sutherland, Samaire Armstrong, Jill Clayburgh, William Baldwin, Natalie Zea |
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| | | | Do the Right Thing Mo Better Blues | | | | Do the Right Thing
Spike Lee's incendiary look at race relations in America, circa 1989, is so colorful and exuberant for its first three-quarters that you can almost forget the terrible confrontation that the movie inexorably builds toward. Do the Right Thing is a joyful, tumultuous masterpiece--maybe the best film ever made about race in America, revealing racial prejudices and stereotypes in all their guises and demonstrating how a deadly riot can erupt out of a series of small misunderstandings. Set on one block in Bedford-Stuyvesant on the hottest day of the summer, the movie shows the whole spectrum of life in this neighborhood and then leaves it up to us to decide if, in the end, anybody actually does the "right thing." Featuring Danny Aiello as Sal, the pizza parlor owner; Lee himself as Mookie, the lazy pizza-delivery guy; John Turturro and Richard Edson as Sal's sons; Lee's sister Joie as Mookie's sister Jade; Rosie Perez as Mookie's girlfriend Tina; Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee as the block elders, Da Mayor and Mother Sister; Giancarlo Esposito as Mookie's hot-headed friend Buggin' Out; Bill Nunn as the boom-box toting Radio Raheem; and Samuel L. Jackson as deejay Mister Señor Love Daddy. A rich and nuanced film to watch, treasure, and learn from--over and over again. --Jim Emerson
Mo' Better Blues
With Mo' Better Blues, the story of a young trumpeter's rise to jazz-world stardom, Spike Lee set out to counter Clint Eastwood's cliché-ridden biopic of Charlie Parker in Bird. But the final product, a slick, glossy drama (with hip-hop jazz provided by Gangstarr no less), is just as superficial as the numerous Alger-esque stories of music stardom to which movie audiences are accustomed.
Denzel Washington gives a typically charismatic performance as the trumpeter in question, as does Wesley Snipes as his sax-playing rival. And as with most Spike Lee films, there are numerous solid performers in small roles such as Bill Nunn, Latin-music star Rubén Blades, and comedian Robin Harris. One character, however, attracted unwanted attention: John Turturro's role as an unscrupulous music-industry exec. Critics called the Turturro character, who is at once money hungry, swarthy, and perpetually shrouded in darkness, a classic anti-Semitic caricature. But the charge seems almost irrelevant in Spike Lee's cartoonish, overstylized world of impossibly hunky jazzmen, curvaceous hangers-on, and incessant bebop. --Ethan Brown |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | R | | Director: | Spike Lee | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Dr No | | | | Released in 1962, this first James Bond movie remains one of the best, and serves as an entertaining reminder that the Bond series began (in keeping with Ian Fleming's novels) with a surprising lack of gadgetry and big-budget fireworks. Sean Connery was just 32 years old when he won the role of Agent 007. In his first adventure James Bond is called to Jamaica where a colleague and secretary have been mysteriously killed. With an American CIA agent (Jack Lord, pre-Hawaii Five-O), they discover that the nefarious Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman) is scheming to blackmail the U.S. government with a device capable of deflecting and destroying U.S. rockets launched from Cape Canaveral. Of course, Bond takes time off from his exploits to enjoy the company of a few gorgeous women, including the bikini-clad Ursula Andress. She gloriously kicks off the long-standing tradition of Bond women who know how to please their favorite secret agent. A sexist anachronism? Maybe, but this is Bond at his purest, kicking off a series of movies that shows no sign of slowing down. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Terence Young | | Cast: | Sean Connery, Ursula Andress, Joseph Wiseman, Jack Lord, Zena Marshall, Eunice Gayson |
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| | | | Dr. Katz S1 | | | | Stand-up comedian Jonathan Katz voices Professional Therapist Dr. Jonathan Katz. A divorced father, he has custody of his 23-year-old slacker son Ben (H. Jon Benjamin), who dreams of wealth and freedom but is too lazy to find a real job. Dr. Katz's receptionist is the acerbic Laura (Laura Silverman). He spends his free time in the bar "Jacky's 33" with his friends Stan (Stanley LeBow) and Julie (Julianne Shapiro), the bartender. Most of Dr. Katz's patients are voiced by members of the stand-up comic fraternity. This gives them a chance to perform their routines in cartoon form. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | H. John Benjamin, Laura Silverman, Will Lebow , Julianne Shaprio, Jonathan Katz |
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| | | | Dr. Who S1 | | | | The venerable science fiction program Doctor Who returned to British televisions in 2005 after a 15-year absence and delighted the majority of fans and critics with its adherence to the adventure and charm of the original series while making admissions for a new generation of viewers (hipper editing and score, CGI effects). Thirteen episodes were generated, all starring Christopher Eccleston as the ninth Doctor and pop-singer-turned-actress Billie Piper as his companion Rose; acclaimed writer/producer Russell T. Davies (Touching Evil, Queer as Folk) oversaw the show as chief writer and executive producer. The new series proved so popular that the BBC agreed to revive the program for second and third seasons--though without Eccleston, who has since been replaced by David Tennant. This six-disc set comes with all 13 episodes plus the battery of supplemental features now customary to all Doctor Who DVD releases.
Eccleston is very engaging in the title role, bringing a manic curiosity tempered by occasional bouts of gravity (which befit a personality with a long and dramatic a lifespan as the Doctor's) that hew closely to the (arguably) most popular Doctor, Tom Baker. Piper is equally adept as department store clerk Rose--she's afforded more of a back story than most of the Doctor's sidekicks have received in the past, and she more than handles her own alongside Eccleston. Highlights among the 13 episodes include the season opener, "Rose" (which sees the return of an old foe, the Autons, and their controlling force, the Nestene Consciousness); the revamped Daleks in "Dalek" and the two-parter "Bad Wolf" and "The Parting of the Ways"; a trip to Victorian England to aid Charles Dickens in "The Unquiet Dead," and of course, the arrival of the tenth Doctor at the conclusion of the action-packed "Parting of the Ways." The episodes strike the right blend of quirk, excitement, and imagination, thanks largely to the engaging performances and the guidance of Davies, whose admiration for the show and its history is evident throughout.
Supplemental features--and there are many--including commentary on all 13 episodes by members of the cast and crew, including Piper and Davies; numerous making-of featurettes, including a profile of Davies; a video diary by Piper; an interview with Eccleston, and best of all, a glimpse at the 60-minute Christmas special, "The Christmas Invasion," which picks up where the series concludes. Who fans won't be disappointed. --Paul Gaita
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper |
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| | | | Dr. Who S2 | | | | Rose Tyler, a young shop assistant in a London department store, lives a humdrum and profoundly average life - until the night the shop dummies where she works wake up and try to kill her. Her life is saved by a strange man who only calls himself The Doctor, and intrigued by him, she finds herself thrown headlong into a hectic battle to stop an alien presence from invading Earth and annihilating the human race. She comes to learn that her new friend is even stranger than she thought - in fact, the Doctor's an alien adventurer called a 'Time Lord', seemingly the last of his race, who travels through time and space in his TARDIS battling evil where he finds it. And if she travels with him, she'll find herself witnessing the heat-death of the Earth five billion years in the future, meeting Charles Dickens in the past, and encountering lifeforms and invaders stranger than she'd ever thought possible. Only one thing is certain - it'll be the ride of a lifetime... |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | David Tennant, Billie Piper |
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| | | | Dr. Who S3 | | | | Doctor Who fans concerned that the departure of popular companion Rose (Billie Piper) at the end of the second season might spell an end to the venerable UK science fiction series' revival were soon reassured by the program's third series, which is compiled in its entirety in this six-disc set. Not only did Freema Agyeman (as Earth doctor Martha Jones) prove to be more than a worthwhile replacement for Rose, but the quality of the series' 14 episodes maintained--and in many cases surpassed--the blend of wit, excitement and drama brought by head writer Russell T. Jones when he revived the program in 2003. Highlights from the third series include the Christmas special "The Runaway Bride" (starring comedian Catherine Tate as a temporary companion to the Doctor as he mourns the loss of Rose), "Gridlock" (the Face of Boe summons the Doctor and Martha to a future New York City to stop an invasion by his old enemy the Macra), "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood" (a two-part serial in which the Doctor changes his biological form to escape the clutches of an alien brood who seek his immortality), and the three-part "Utopia," "The Sound of Drums" and "The Last of the Time Lords," which not only revives the Doctor's greatest adversary, The Master (played by Derek Jacobi in "Utopia" and John Simm in "Drums" and "Time Lords") but also revives Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) and introduces his new position with the Torchwood team. Supplemental features are included on each of the six discs in the set; chief among them are commentary by Jones, Tennant, Agyeman, producer Phil Collinson, and members of the writing and production team (in various permutations) on each of the 14 episodes. The Doctor Who Confidential series, which aired on BBC Three and offered behind-the-scenes looks at elements from each episode, is included in its 15-minute "cut down" version (as well as an hour-long episode that covered a live performance of music from the show by the National Orchestra of Wales and hosted by Tennant), as are several video diaries shot by Tennant, who proves as engaging behind the camera as he is on the show. A smattering of deleted scenes, outtakes (mostly featuring Tennant reacting good-naturedly to his own blown lines), BBC promos for all 13 episodes (including the amusing "Vote Saxon" spot, which offers Sharon Osbourne and UK pop stars McFly throwing their support behind the Master's disguise as a human MP in the series' final two episodes), and trailers for other BBC series like Jekyll, Torchwood, and MI-5, round out this terrific set. -- Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | David Tennant, Freema Agyeman |
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| | | | Dragon Drive 1 | | | | This DVD starts on of my favorite anime series. It begins an excelent story of self discovery, transformation, and friendship that reminds people how when ordinary people are put into extraordinary situation they can change in ways they never thought possible. This series is one that can be appriciated by most audiences. The characters are easily liked and can be related to most ordinary people in our world. If you get a chance to check this DVD and series out I would highly recommend that you do so. |
| Genre: | | | Rating: | 7+ | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Dragon Drive 2 | | | | I thought this dvd was much better than the first. More action, more explanation of what's going on etc, etc. Chibi finally stays in his transformed state for more than a few seconds even though the fights still don't last very long. Still if each dvd improves on the one before it this will be a worthwhile series to collect.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | 7+ | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Dragon Drive3 | | | | In this DVD the action will start to pick up as our hero begins to understand his purpose.
The story is a gripping tale of good against evil and a hero that begins his fight at a serious disadvantage with his nemesis. The animation is stunning. If you are into good stories and quality animation, I do recommend this DVD to you.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | 7+ | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Drawn Together S2 | | | | DRAWN TOGETHER (eight episodes) - This is the true story of eight characters, picked to live in a house to find out what happens when people stop being real and start getting animated. Presented as if it were a real Primetime reality series, "Drawn Together" answers the question of what happens when eight completely different cartoon characters from various genres and styles live together and have their lives filmed for the entire world to see. "Drawn Together," created and written by Matt Silverstein and Dave Jeser, has received an order for eight episodes and is scheduled to premiere on Comedy Central in October 2004. The eight episode scripted series is an original, fictional narrative unlike anything audiences have seen before. "Drawn Together" captures the comedic and outrageous daily adventures of eight mismatched cartoon characters using the dramatic storytelling conventions of established reality television shows. The housemates include: "Captain Hero," a not so moral do-gooder reminiscent of the Saturday morning TV super heroes of the 70's; "Clara," a 20 year old sweet and naive fairy-tale princess; "Toot," a black and white pudgy heart throb from the 20's; "Foxxy Love," a sexy mystery solving musician; "Spanky Ham," a foul-mouthed internet download pig; "Ling-Ling," an adorable Asian trading card cubby creature; "Wooldoor-Sockbat," a wacky Saturday morning whatchamacallit; and "Xandir," a strong young adventurer, similar to the great video game warriors. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Drawn Together S3 | | | | All the blood, puke and boobs you love are back for the third and final season of Drawn Together. The dirtiest, deadliest, sexiest, and funkiest Drawn Together season ever features MORE animated blood, MORE animated vomit, and MORE animated nipples. Watch as Captain Hero tortures his 12-year-old self, Ling Ling gets put into foster care and Toot finally gets worshipped as the cow she is. It's what happens when cartoon characters stop being real and start being animated. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Peter Avanzino, Dwayne Carey-Hill, Frank Marino, Stephen Sandoval |
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| | | | Dresden Files S1 | | | | Based on Jim Butcher's best-selling novels, "The Dresden Files" chronicles the cases of no ordinary detective. Harry Dresden (Paul Blackthorne) is a wizard, the only one listed in the Chicago phone book. He's got a handle on the crimes that can't be solved by anyone else. Paranormal? No problem. Dresden deals in all matters of supernatural threats. If you need a little hocus pocus or some other worldly advice, Dresden's your man. |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Paul Blackthorne, Valerie Cruz |
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| | | | Eagle Shadow Fist | | | | Action packed WW2 drama set in war torn China under the brutal domination of Japanese forces features a youthful Jackie Chan in a breakthrough early role. The story involves a courageous actor fighting against the dreaded Japanese war machine. Can one man make a difference in the face of overwhelming odds? Yes! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jackie Chan |
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| | | | Eli Stone S1 | | | | Follow Eli Stone (Jonny Miller) on his quirky quest for answers in this exciting and upbeat comedic drama. When Eli awakens to an unending George Michael soundtrack that only he can hear, gets dive-bombed by a WWI biplane on a busy San Francisco street, and faces a fire-breathing dragon outside his office window, there are two possible explanations: delusions caused by a potentially fatal brain aneurysm or the chance that something greater is at work. He might just be a prophet sent to change the world. Victor Garber and Loretta Devine lead an acclaimed supporting cast in this wonderfully wacky new series, ELI STONE: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON. Complete with every Season One episode, exclusive bloopers and behind-the-scenes footage, this 4-disc box set will surprise, inspire and leave you feeling like you gotta have faith. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jonny Lee Miller, Victor Garber, Natasha Henstridge, Loretta Devine, Julie Gonzalo, James Saito |
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| | | | Enter the Invincible Hero | | | | Is this a ripoff of the "Fists of Fury aka The Big Boss"? Maybe. Instead of Bruce Lee you have Dragon Lee 6 years later. He, like Bruce Lee takes on an army of lackeys to get to the traitorous boss who deceives the people played korean superkicker Casanova Wong. It's a regular kicking showdown! Bring some friends over and kick back with Dragon Lee!! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Godfrey Ho | | Cast: | Casanova Wong, Dragon Lee |
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| | | | Entourage S1 | | | | Entourage is everything viewers have come to expect from an HBO series: smart, hilarious, and highly addictive, especially when taken in full-season, DVD form. As implied in the title, the show follows Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier), a rising Hollywood star with bedroom eyes and an over-active libido, along with his three childhood companions-turned-hangers-on. Kevin Dillon plays Johnny Drama, Vincent's less-attractive, B-list actor of a brother (he is Matt Dillon's less-attractive, B-list actor of a brother in real life). Jerry Ferrara plays Turtle, the weasel, and Kevin Connolly appears as Eric, the Everyman hero who hopes to parlay his friendship with Vincent (plus two years of community college) into a career in talent management. Along the way Eric contends with the predictable self-doubt, romantic indecision, etc. The cast is rounded out by Jeremy Piven (Doug Hughley from Singles) as a foul-mouthed agent reminiscent of Jay Mohr's short-lived Peter Dragon character. Finally, it's produced by Marky Mark himself--and you've got to believe that guy knows something about the star-entourage relationship. If possible, watch with a friend so you'll have someone to quote lines back to later. --Leah Weathersby
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Entourage S2 | | | | After three months shooting an indie film in the Big Apple, the boys are back in La-la-land. Eric is officially Vince?s manager, Turtle is running the house, Drama is hoping to enhance his onscreen assets...and Ari is pushing a blockbuster superhero role for his golden-boy client |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Craig Zisk | | Cast: | Kevin Connolly, Adrian Grenier, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, Debi Mazar, Jeremy Piven |
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| | | | Entourage S3.1 | | | | With Vince's star expected to rise even higher in the Hollywood firmament as a result of his starring role in a potential blockbuster titled Aquaman, the boys must find a way to keep stroking their golden goose while making sound decisions for a long-lasting career in a world of fleeting fame. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Adrian Grenier, Jeremy Piven, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, Debi Mazar |
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| | | | Entourage S3.2 | | | | In this sitcom, the suddenly risen film star Vince Chase, a 'jeune premier' of humble origins, learns the ropes of the business and the the high-profile world of the wealthy happy few in and around Hollywood, but not alone: he brings form his native New York his atypical 'entourage (hence the title), not glitterati or professionals but a close circle of friends since childhood, and his professional agent finds they often make his job harder as the Queens boys not only sponge on the star but also have his ear, so Vince is much harder to counsel. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Adrian Grenier, Jeremy Piven, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, Carla Gugino |
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| | | | Extras S1 | | | | Meet Andy Millman, Actor. Never forgets his lines because he never gets any. Andy (Ricky Gervais) is a desperate man. He?s been an actor for five years but thanks to his useless agent (Stephen Merchant), he?s never done any real acting. Instead, he?s a lowly film extra, making his mark in the background while the stars do their work. His partner in arms is the pitiable Maggie, a fellow extra and a hopeless romantic. Andy may be an extra, but he?s a star in his own right. Too bad nobody else agrees. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Stephen Merchant, Ricky Gervais , Ashley Jensen |
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| | | | Family Guy S3 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Fantasy Mission Force | | | | Jackie Chan makes a brief guest appearance in this surreally goofy action comedy, a high-spirited shambles from 1982 that hovers awkwardly somewhere between Monty Python and The Three Stooges. When all else fails, cult director Chu Yen-ping (Island of Fire) resorts to exploding cigars, guys making funny faces, men dressed in women's clothing, even a ghost or two. The nominal star, '70s kung fu veteran Wang Yu (The One-Armed Swordsman), is an Allied agent assembling a troupe of commandos for a mission behind enemy lines during World War II. (Although the landscape is obviously Asian, there are Hogan's Heroes-style Nazis scampering through the jungle.) Every member of this movie's mismatched clown-squad seems to hail from a different planet, including one inexplicable fellow who looks like an Elvis impersonator in a kilt. Most of the exhilarating action is handled by the glorious Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia, from Peking Opera Blues and The Bride with White Hair, who kicks heads and looks smashing in a red-and-black-leather jumpsuit. --David Chute |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | Yin-Ping Chu | | Cast: | Jackie Chan, Brigitte Lin, Yu Wang, Yueh Sun, Tao Da Way |
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| | | | Fire Dragon | | | | From the vast catalog of Jackie Chan classics comes this high kicking action adventure. It pits Chan and a team of special agents against a host of Nazi villains bent on world comination. Perhaps one of Chan's more eccentric films, it's filled to the brim with all of the action and humor you would expect from Hong Kong cinema. |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jackie Chan |
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| | | | Firefly | | | | After you've seen all 14 episodes of Firefly contained in this smartly packaged DVD set, you'll be begging for more. The sad irony is, series creator Joss Whedon's ambitious science-fiction Western (Whedon's third series after Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel) was canceled after only eleven of these 14 produced episodes had aired on FOX, and its demise was woefully premature. Whedon's generic hybrid suffered an inaugural setback when network executives preferred an action-packed one-hour premiere ("The Train Job") over the intended two-hour pilot "Serenity" (oddly enough, the final episode aired), which provides a better introduction to the show's concept and splendid ensemble cast. Obsessive fans may debate the quirky, semi-fallible logic of combining spaceships with direct parallels to frontier America (it's 500 years in the future, and embattled humankind has expanded into the galaxy, where undeveloped "outer rim" planets struggle with the equivalent of Old West accommodations), but Whedon and his gifted co-writers and directors make it work, at least well enough to fashion a credible context from the incongruous culture-clashing of past, present, and future technologies, along with a polyglot language (the result of two dominant superpowers) that combines English with an abundance of Chinese slang.
What makes it work is Whedon's delightfully well-chosen cast and their nine subtly-developed characters (a typically Whedon-esque extended family), each providing a unique perspective on their adventures aboard Serenity, the junky but beloved "Firefly-class" starship they call home. As a veteran of the disadvantaged Independent faction's war against the all-powerful planetary Alliance (think of it as Underdogs vs. Overlords), Serenity captain Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) leads his compact crew on a quest for survival. They're renegades with an amoral agenda, taking any job that pays well, but Firefly's complex tapestry of right and wrong (and peace vs. violence) is richer and deeper than it first appears. By the time we've gathered tantalizing clues about Blue Sun (an insidious mega-corporation with an as-yet mysterious agenda), its ties to the Alliance, and the traumatizing use of Serenity's resident stowaway as a guinea pig in the development of advanced warfare, it's painfully clear that Firefly was heading for exciting revelations that never came to pass. Fortunately, Whedon was developing a Firefly movie as this DVD set was being released in January 2004, so the ultimate fate of Serenity's crew remains to be seen. In the meantime, these 14 episodes (and enjoyable bonus features) offer everything you'd expect from the creator of Buffy: action, drama, humor, hints of romance, suspense, fine acting, film-quality direction, dazzling special effects, and ample proof that Fox made a glaring mistake in canceling the series. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Joss Whedon | | Cast: | Nathan Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, Morena Baccarin, Adam Baldwin, Jewel Staite |
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| | | | Fists of Legend 2 | | | | This flick is weird,but has some great stuff in it.The dude who is the lead is actually Jet Li's double,and the Russian dude is actually Van Damme's double,so it's the closest we'll get to seeing the two superstars doing it. It's directed by Robert Tai,who did all the 5 Venom flicks,so you know his action is tight!The Phantasm ninja are off the hook!And the Venom Centipede is in the flick! Narration starts about the history of the Jingwu school, and Chen Zhen's current occupation: traveling China, teaching Gongfu, helping the nationalists repel the Japanese, etc. Then, the film starts... Cut to some grainy old choppy-socky from back in the day (let me put it this way, Bolo Yeung looks younger than he did in Enter the Dragon). This nameless phantom movie obviously has nothing to do with Fist of Legend, but the dubbing tries to make it work. Then it occasionally CUTS to the NEW footage! The new footage is OK (except for the scene where Chen Zhen fights 3 fat ninja). There is one good fight where he takes on a Russian martial arts challenger (Ala "Chinese Connection"). |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Robert Tai | | Cast: | Jet Le, Todd Senafonte, Bolo Larry Lee, James Nam, Tai Chieh, Lu Feng |
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| | | | Fists Of Steel | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Flash gordon conquers the universe | | | | All three Flash Gordon serials in one box! "Space Soldiers" (1936, 245 min., 13 episodes) - Internationally renowned polo player and Yale graduate Flash Gordon and the lovely Dale Arden are enlisted by Dr. Hans Zarkov on his quest to save Earth from being destroyed by the runaway planet Mongo. "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars (1938, 299 min., 15 episodes) - A mysterious beam of light emanating from Mars is sucking the nitrogen from the Earth's atmosphere, and only Flash Gordon can stop it, battling Queen Azura, the Clay People of Mars, and his mortal enemy Ming the Merciless! "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" (1940, 234 min., 12 episodes) - A rocket is dropping purple dust into the Earth's atmosphere, causing instant death! Can Flash Gordon stop the madman from Mongo while retrieving the antidote to the death dust from the frozen planet of Frigia?
Space Soldiers - Flash is enlisted to save Earth from a runaway planet. "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars" - A light beam from Mars is sucking away Earth's atmosphere! "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" - A rocket is dropping deadly purple dust onto the Earth! 3-disc box set.
Robert F. Hill, Ford Beebe, Ray Taylor, Frederick Stephani
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Flash Gordon space soldiers | | | | All three Flash Gordon serials in one box! "Space Soldiers" (1936, 245 min., 13 episodes) - Internationally renowned polo player and Yale graduate Flash Gordon and the lovely Dale Arden are enlisted by Dr. Hans Zarkov on his quest to save Earth from being destroyed by the runaway planet Mongo. "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars (1938, 299 min., 15 episodes) - A mysterious beam of light emanating from Mars is sucking the nitrogen from the Earth's atmosphere, and only Flash Gordon can stop it, battling Queen Azura, the Clay People of Mars, and his mortal enemy Ming the Merciless! "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" (1940, 234 min., 12 episodes) - A rocket is dropping purple dust into the Earth's atmosphere, causing instant death! Can Flash Gordon stop the madman from Mongo while retrieving the antidote to the death dust from the frozen planet of Frigia?
Space Soldiers - Flash is enlisted to save Earth from a runaway planet. "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars" - A light beam from Mars is sucking away Earth's atmosphere! "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" - A rocket is dropping deadly purple dust onto the Earth! 3-disc box set.
Robert F. Hill, Ford Beebe, Ray Taylor, Frederick Stephani
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Flash Gordon trip to mars | | | | All three Flash Gordon serials in one box! "Space Soldiers" (1936, 245 min., 13 episodes) - Internationally renowned polo player and Yale graduate Flash Gordon and the lovely Dale Arden are enlisted by Dr. Hans Zarkov on his quest to save Earth from being destroyed by the runaway planet Mongo. "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars (1938, 299 min., 15 episodes) - A mysterious beam of light emanating from Mars is sucking the nitrogen from the Earth's atmosphere, and only Flash Gordon can stop it, battling Queen Azura, the Clay People of Mars, and his mortal enemy Ming the Merciless! "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" (1940, 234 min., 12 episodes) - A rocket is dropping purple dust into the Earth's atmosphere, causing instant death! Can Flash Gordon stop the madman from Mongo while retrieving the antidote to the death dust from the frozen planet of Frigia?
Space Soldiers - Flash is enlisted to save Earth from a runaway planet. "Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars" - A light beam from Mars is sucking away Earth's atmosphere! "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" - A rocket is dropping deadly purple dust onto the Earth! 3-disc box set.
Robert F. Hill, Ford Beebe, Ray Taylor, Frederick Stephani
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Flight of the Conchords | | | | Unlike most HBO series, Flight of the Conchords does not want to set the world on fire. It is droll and deadpan to beat the band. If you like Tenacious D, They Might Be Giants, Jonathan Richman, Leningrad Cowboys Go America, and silly Pythonian wordplay, then its off-center charms will definitely strike a resonant chord. The Conchords are comprised of funky, funny folk duo Bret McKenzie and mutton-chopped Jemaine Clement, transplanted New Zealanders trying to make it in New York. Brett, their incompetent manager, Murray (Rhys Darby) notes, has "the right attitude," while Jemaine has "what I like to call, 'the wrong attitude.'" (Murray, who works out of the New Zealand consulate, makes the clueless agent in Extras look like Ari Gold.) Stardom eludes the band. They have one fan, Mel (Kristin Schaal), whose seething husband chaperones her while she stalks them (by season's end, even she will desert them). Financially strapped, they live in squalor and are forced to film a music video with a cell-phone camera. The dense Jemaine is a damper on Brett's love life (he derisively calls Coco, Brett's new girlfriend, "Yoko"). But from their mundane lives springs their inspired music, and it is during each episode's musical numbers that Conchords really takes flight. Sample lyrics: "You're so beautiful / You could be a hostess in the '60s"; and "I'm not crying / It's just been raining / On my face." Another mad highlight is "Bowie to Bowie" in the episode in which Brett is visited by visions of Bowie in his various career incarnations (portrayed by a dead-on Clement). But the dialogue, too, sings with an inspired, surreal lunacy. One exchange between Brett and Murray degenerates into a chicken-egg discussion over a job vs. a gig. HBO has renewed Flight of the Conchords for a second season. Bravo! As a greeting-card executive (The Daily Show's John Hodgman), who wants to license one of their tracks, tells the duo, "I believe in potential. I can see it in you guys." --Donald Liebenson
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | James Bobin | | Cast: | Bret McKenzie, Jemaine Clement, Rhys Darby, Kristen Schaal, Arj Barker |
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| | | | For Your Eyes Only | | | | After a ship sunk off the coast of Albania, the world's superpowers begin a feverish search for its valuable lost cargo: the powerful ATAC system, which will give its bearer unlimited control over Polaris nuclear submarines. As Bond joins the search, he suspects the suave Kristatos (Julian Glover) of seizing the device. The competition between nations grows more deadly by the moment, but Bond finds an ally in the beautiful Melina Havelock (Caroline Bouquet), who blames Kristatos for the death of her parents. The non-stop action includes automobile chases, thrilling underwater battles, and even a breathtaking tour over razor-sharp coral reefs. But all of this is merely a prelude to 007's cliffhanging assault of a magnificent mountaintop fortress. -- Robert Lynch |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | John Glen | | Cast: | Roger Moore, Carole Bouquet, Topol, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Julian Glover, Jill Bennett |
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| | | | Friday Night Lights S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton, Adrianna Palicki, Zach Gilford, Derek Phillips, Blue Deckert |
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| | | | Friday Night Lights S2 | | | |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton, Minka Kelly, Taylor Kitsch, Adrianne Palicki, Zach Gilford |
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| | | | Friday the 13th | | | |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | R | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | From Russia With Love | | | | Directed with consummate skill by Terence Young, the second James Bond spy thriller is considered by many fans to be the best of them all. Certainly Sean Connery was never better as the dashing Agent 007, whose latest mission takes him to Istanbul to retrieve a top-secret Russian decoding machine. His efforts are thwarted when he gets romantically distracted by a sexy Russian double agent (Daniela Bianchi), and is tracked by a lovely assassin (Lotte Lenya) with switchblade shoes, and by a crazed killer (Robert Shaw), who clashes with Bond during the film's dazzling climax aboard the Orient Express. From Russia with Love is classic James Bond, before the gadgets, pyrotechnics, and Roger Moore steered the movies away from the more realistic tone of the books by Ian Fleming. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Terence Young | | Cast: | Sean Connery, Daniela Bianchi, Robert Shaw, Lotte Lenya, Pedro Armendariz, Bernard Lee |
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| | | | Futurama | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy; Sci-Fi | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Futurama S1 | | | | Set in the year 3000, Futurama is the acme of sci-fi animated sitcom from Simpsons creator Matt Groening. While not as universally popular as The Simpsons, Futurama is equally hip and hilarious, thanks to its zippy lateral-thinking contemporary pop cultural references, celebrity appearances (Pamela Anderson and Leonard Nimoy are among a number of guest stars to appear as disembodied heads in jars), and Bender, a distinctly Homer Simpson-esque robot. Part of Futurama's charm is that with decades of sci-fi junk behind us, we've effectively been living with the distant future for years and can now have fun with it. Hence, the series stylishly jumbles motifs ranging from Lost in Space-style kitsch to the grim dystopia of Blade Runner. It also bridges the gap between the impossible dreams of your average science fiction fan and the slobbish reality of their comic reading, TV-watching existence. Groening himself distinguishes his two series thus: "The Simpsons is fictional. Futurama is real."
The opening season (premiered in 1999) sees nerdy pizza delivery boy Fry transferred to the 31st century in a cryogenic mishap. There, he meets the beautiful, one-eyed Leela (voiced by Married with Children's Katey Sagal) and the incorrigible alcoholic robot Bender. The three of them join Fry's great (great, great, etc.) nephew Professor Farnsworth and work in his intergalactic delivery service. Hyper-real yet strangely recognizable situations ensue--Fry discovers he's a billionaire thanks to 1,000 years' accrued interest, Leela must fend off the attentions of Captain Kirk-like Lothario Zapp Brannigan, and Fry accidentally drinks the ruler of a strange planet of liquid beings. --David Stubbs
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gantz S1 | | | | Gantz is a lot of fun, despite being shockingly rude and gruesome in places. One day on his way back home from school, Kei, our anti-hero sees a tramp fall onto the rail tracks in the Underground station. Despite not wanting to get involved he is pressured into helping a former friend of his to rescue the tramp. Unfortunately it does not go well as he and his friend are torn to shreds by a train. However, instead of dying, they find themselves transported to a strange sealed room filled with people and a black round ball named Gantz. It turns out that each person in the room was in the process of dying when they were all transported to this room, including a suicidal girl, gangster, and school teacher. They have been given a second chance to live provided that they follow the orders given by Gantz.
Although it is the thoughts of the main character Kei who we hear it is difficult to call him a "hero" as he is so self-absorbed. His thoughts are filled with apathy at the world around him and the people in it. He does not want to get involved with anything or anybody and only helps others when he is forced to by others, by his own guilt, or if he thinks he has something to gain from the situation. His main motivations always seem to be lust-filled and he is constantly mentally undressing his female companions. However, by equal turns he is a very likable character and has refreshingly honest feelings. He friend on the other hand is our moral compass - he goes out of his way to help others and empathizes with the people around him.
These two contradicting old friends find themselves forced together again when the strange Gantz machine supplies them with weapons and orders them to kill an alien. And just when you thought the series could not get any stranger, we are greeted with a green onion loving (and looking) alien. What follows is a tension ridden series, full of action, bloody scenes with limbs torn apart, and some graphic nude sequences. It is by turns unpredictable, mysterious, emotionally disturbing, and exciting. The series forces you to ask yourself what you would do in their situation and recalls the feeling of Neon Genesis Evangelion in that we are faced with teenagers who are forced into battles and have to risk their lives unwillingly.
The graphics are excellent and are supplied by Gonzo. The music and dubbing are also very good, with a cast that includes Chris Patton (from Full Metal Panic). If you enjoyed Paranoia Agent, Neon Genesis, or just want to see a compulsive character-driven action series that does not include robots, you will enjoy this. Due to the content it is recommended for those over 18 years. This complete box set contains the first 13 episodes in a thin-pack set. |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | R | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gantz S2 | | | | Gantz was the most notorious Anime series of 2005, but it’s the second season where they really upped the ante! With more blood, guts, and alien gore than any other series, the Gantz Season Two thin-pack is guaranteed to fly off your shelves! |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gasarki | | | | Although only recently released in the U.S., Gasaraki is already dividing viewers into enthusiastic admirers and detractors who dismiss it as dull and needlessly complicated. In the not-too-distant future, a conflict modeled on the Gulf War rages in the Middle Eastern nation of Belgistan. The defeat of the American-led U.N. ground forces suggests that dictator Colonel Stilbanov has somehow acquired breakthrough weaponry. Meanwhile the powerful Japanese Gowa family is conducting elaborate experiments that combine a Noh dance performance by the Yushiro, the youngest of the brothers, the development of bipedal battle mecha, and an attempt to contact an extremely powerful force from another dimension. Their efforts are thwarted by Miharu, a young woman who can communicate with both Yushiro and the mysterious power. Miharu is a prisoner of the sinister cabal who control Stilbanov. Gasaraki offers some polished animation and interesting mecha designs. But director Ryusuke Takahashi has the unenviable task of setting a convoluted plot in motion while introducing more than a dozen characters, some of whom have very similar names, while others remain unnamed. The story is initially difficult to follow, and Toru Nazaki's script wastes the viewer's time with pseudotechnical instrument readouts and military jargon. Contains these episodes: 1. "On the Ancient Stage of Stone," 2. "Opening Movement," 3. "Tantric Circle," 4. "Mirage." Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up for violence, largely restricted to machine versus machine, and occasional profanity. --Charles Solomon
Description
ry: For a thousand years, the Gowa family has secretly manipulated the fate of Japan, first through political intrigue and now through the manufacture of a frightening new weapons system. In a world in which giant robots are real, however, the most powerful weapon of all lurks within a human mind. Combining the hard edge of modern military thrillers with the frightening reality of tomorrow's super-science, "Gasaraki's" multi-layered story and unique blend of apocalyptic carnage and surreal mysticism promise that the world of Japanese animation will never be the same!
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | gasarki | | | | As the story unfolds, director Ryusuke Takahashi and writer Toru Nazaki begin to fill in some of the blanks from the first four episodes. The bipedal robot-suits of the Gowa Corporation ("Tactical Armor" or "T.A.'s") fight the similar weapons of the Belgistani dictator, Colonel Stilbanov. During the skirmish, the Gowa team obtains samples of the rival mechanisms' synthetic muscle, which could reveal valuable secret information. Stilbanov's mecha were supplied by the transnational conglomerate Symbol. Having used Belgistan as a testing ground for their weapons experiments, the Symbol leaders assassinate the dictator and rig a coup d'état, ending the war. Their attention shifts to recapturing the muscle samples--by any means necessary. T.A. pilot Yushiro Gowa and Miharu, the female "invitator" held by Symbol, remain inexplicably drawn to each other. During a brief meeting at a church, she once again warns him not to let "the Terror return." Symbol's attempts to kidnap Yushiro prevent her from explaining what the Terror may be. Like the Gundam pilots, Yushiro is so stoic and taciturn he's not very compelling as a character. Gasaraki would be more exciting (and easier to follow) if the viewer knew more about what he's thinking and feeling. Contains these episodes: 5. "The Touching," 6. "The Puppet," 7. "Return." Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up for violence, largely restricted to machine versus machine, and occasional profanity. --Charles Solomon --This text refers to the DVD edition.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gasarki | | | | Gasaraki ranks among the most complicated anime series, which may be why viewers either love or hate it, with little middle ground. Kazukiyo Gowa plots with Mr. Nishida, the fanatic head of a sect dedicated to purifying a Japan he regards as so corrupt that he blinded himself with a samurai sword to keep from seeing it. Yushiro is taken from his army unit, which is then used in dangerous experiments with the mecha TA's. Miharu taps into the Gowa Labs data banks and discovers Yushiro Gowa died eight years ago. Yushiro greets this revelation with an understated, "I'm dead?" When he asks his icy mother who he is, she sends him to Noh master Sorachi. In an ancient storehouse, they find a gargantuan mobile suit, "a Kugai--a gift from Gasaraki which can be operated only by a Kai." Sorachi declares Yushiro and Miharu are linked by the "Monoyose Kai bloodline," and sends them to the mountains south of Kyoto to learn who--and what--they are. Director Ryusuke Takahashi struggles to move all these stories along, but the result is like watching a juggler trying to keep one ball too many in the air. Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up for violence, largely restricted to machine versus machine, and occasional profanity. --Charles Solomon
Description
The battle moves to Japan as the T.A. team members find themselves prisoners in their own country. As opposing forces in the government tear each other to shreds, the Gowas make plans to exploit their new discoveries. But the Symbol strike teams are already in motion. Yushiro's past and future collide as a shocking revelation strips him of both his soul and identity in the third shocking volume of "Gasaraki."
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gene Simmons Family Jewels S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Giant Robo V1 | | | | It is a new dawn for mankind. The Shizuma Drive has brought clean, limitless energy and launched humanity into an age of prosperity. But even in this Eden of technology, there lurk the shadows of envy and greed. Big Fire is a secret brotherhood whose only goal is to direct the world toward chaos. The world is protected by the Experts of Justice, a team of operatives assembled from around the globe to stop the ultimate disaster of The Eternal Night. The key to everything is the bravery of their newest member, a boy named Daisaku Kusama, and the great machine he commands. |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | Toshiyuki Kubooka | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Giant Robo V2 | | | | Daisaku and Giant Robo must overcome Von Volger's most maniacal creation, the Eye of Volger and the explosive Big Balloon! When Daisaku is trapped aboard the burning Greta Garbo, it's up to Gin Rei and Tetsugyu to rescue him. But a deadly adversary is lying in wait for Tetsugyu, and he won't give up until he has his vengeance! |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | Kazuyoshi Katayama Shigeto Makino | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Giant Robo V3 | | | | Isn’t there anyone who can stop the Sphere of Vogler? After their last encounter, the remaining Experts of Justice prepare for one final rush against Genya and the massive anti-Shizuma machine. Meanwhile, infighting among the enemy comes to a head with the appearance of Big Fire himself, along with his three mystic guardians. With the help of Murasame the Immortal and the memories of all those lost along the way, the Experts bet life as they know it on Giant Robo and Daisaku. With the last of their strength, they bring an end to the seven days that no one will ever forget!
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gigantor Part 2 | | | |
| Genre: | Animation | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Gilmore Girls S5 | | | |
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| | | | Goldeneye | | | | The 18th James Bond adventure was a runaway box-office success when released in 1995, thanks to the arrival of Pierce Brosnan as the fifth actor (following the departure of Timothy Dalton) to play the suave, danger-loving Agent 007. This James Bond is a bit more vulnerable and psychologically complex--and just a shade more politically correct--but he's still a formally attired playboy at heart, with a lovely Russian beauty (Izabella Scorupco) as his sexy ally against a cadre of renegade Russians bent on--what else?--global domination. There's also a seductive villainous with the suggestive name of Xenia Onatopp (Famke Janssen), and the great actress Judi Dench makes her first appearance as Bond's superior, M, who wisecracks about 007's "dinosaur" status as a globetrotting sexist. All in all, this action-packed Bond adventure provided a much-needed boost the long-running movie series, revitalizing the 007 franchise for the turn of the millennium. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | Martin Campbell | | Cast: | Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco, Famke Janssen, Joe Don Baker, Judi Dench |
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| | | | Goldfinger | | | | Goldfinger: To own Goldfinger (1964) on DVD is to have at your fingertips the proof that Sean Connery is the definitive James Bond. No one but Connery can believably seduce women so effortlessly, kill with almost as much ease, and then pull another bottle of Dom Perignon '53 out of the fridge. Goldfinger contains many of the most memorable scenes in the Bond series: gorgeous Shirley Eaton (as Jill Masterson) coated in gold paint by evil Auric Goldfinger and deposited in Bond's bed; silent Oddjob, flipping a razor-sharp derby like a Frisbee to sever heads; our hero spread-eagle on a table while a laser beam moves threateningly toward his crotch. Honor Blackman's Pussy Galore is the prototype for the series' rash of man-hating supermodels. And Desmond Llewelyn makes his first appearance as Q, giving Bond what is still his most impressive car, a snazzy little number that fires off smoke screens, punctures the tires of vehicles on the chase, and boasts a handy ejector seat. Go! ldfinger's two climaxes, inside Fort Knox and aboard a private plane, have to be seen to be believed. --Raphael Shargel |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | Sean Connery |
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| | | | Gossip Girls S1 | | | | The privileged prep school teens on Manhattan's Upper East Side first learn that Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively, "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants") is back in town the way they learn all the important news in their lives -- from the blog of the all-knowing albeit ultra-secretive Gossip Girl. No one knows Gossip Girl's identity, but everyone in this exclusive and complicated vicious circle relies on her website and text messages for the latest scoop. Even Serena's closest friend, Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester, "Entourage"), is surprised to find that Serena has suddenly ended her self-imposed exile to boarding school and returned to Manhattan.
Filmed in New York and based on the popular series of young-adult novels by Cecily von Ziegesar, "Gossip Girl" is from Alloy Entertainment in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Paramount Television Inc. with executive producers Josh Schwartz ("The O.C.") & Stephanie Savage ("The O.C."), Bob Levy, Leslie Morgenstein ("Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants") and Felicia Henderson ("The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air"), and co-executive producer K.J. Steinberg ("The Nine"). |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Chace Crawford, Taylor Momsen, Kristen Bell , Timothy White |
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| | | | Greek S1 | | | | Between the mild profanities, underage drinking, and promiscuous sex, Greek is definitely not your older sibling's Saved by the Bell: The College Years (You've come a long way, ABC Family!). This instantly addictive series may not be, as its creators intended, "the definitive fun college show," but it gets high marks for its appealing cast, smart writing, and reasonably clear-eyed portrayal of fraternity and sorority life. Jacob Zachar stars as Rusty Cartwright, an incoming freshman at Cyprus Rhodes University. He is a geeky science major and socially awkward (his first taste of tequila earns him the nickname "Spitter"). But he is eager to join a fraternity and "have a real college experience." The soapsuds froth early. His sister, Casey (Spencer Grammer, Kelsey's daughter) is campus royalty, a junior with a wealthy and well-connected boyfriend, Evan (Jake McDorman). She is also "heir to the throne" of her "best of the best" sorority house. So embarrassed is she by Rusty, she has never told anyone she had a brother. "You have your world, and I have mine," she dismisses him early on. But her world is rocked after Rusty accidentally catches Evan about to cheat on Casey with Rebecca Logan (Dilshad Vadsaria), a senator's daughter and highly prized pledge who Casey has been charged to bring in to the sorority at all costs.
Greek is not just kids behaving badly. What moves this series to the head of the class is that its characters struggle with doing the right thing, and as Casey tells Rusty, "sometimes doing the right thing isn't doing the right thing," adding, "It's shades of grey from here on out." Greek creates compelling moral dilemmas and should spark worthwhile family discussions. Should Rusty tell his sister about Evan and ruin his chance to join Evan's elite fraternity? Should Casey break up with Evan and risk her social standing? Greek is all about acceptance and how friends can become like an extended family. Rusty finds his at a rowdy Animal House-like frat headed by Cappie (Scott Foster), Casey's less reputable former boyfriend. Though Rusty may be lame, he proclaims, "he'd be fun to corrupt and bring to the dark side." How Rusty wrestles with his ideals and reconnects with Casey is at the heart of this auspicious season. Greek does traffic in stereotypes, but most of the characters emerge as fully dimensional, including Evan, less of a jerk and more soulful than one would expect, and Dale (Clark Duke), Rusty's "fundamentalist hick" roommate, who becomes less of an easy punch line as the season progresses. For a show that at one point gives a shout-out to Gilmore Girls, Greek's own pop-culture references (from The Matrix and Monty Python to Grey's Anatomy) are spot-on. Beyond that, the character-based writing is well observed. After a first date, a euphoric Rusty calls it the best night of life, adding, "Even better than the time they announced Pluto wasn't a planet. I hated Pluto." With one year under its belt, you'll want to pledge yourself to Greek. --Donald Liebenson
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jacob Zachar, Spencer Grammer, Scott M. Foster, Tiffany Dupont, Dilshad Vadsaria, Paul James |
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| | | | Greys Anatomy S1 | | | | Both a critical hit and fan favorite, season one burst onto the television landscape with gripping plot lines, a sensational soundtrack, and hot stars, including Ellen Pompeo, Patrick Dempsey, and Sandra Oh. Now you can experience all the drama, romance, and excitement of Grey's Anatomy from the very beginning. Meet Meredith Grey, a brilliant first-year surgical intern at Seattle Grace Hospital. Together with her fellow residents in training, Meredith navigates her way through the daily traumas and social landmines of life inside the hospital and out in the real world. Grey's Anatomy is a smart and witty look at young people struggling to be doctors and doctors struggling to stay human. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | John David Coles | | Cast: | Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl, Justin Chambers, T.R. Knight, Chandra Wilson |
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| | | | Greys Anatomy S2 | | | | A drama centered on the personal and professional lives of five surgical interns and their supervisors. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Patrick Dempsey, Ellen Pompeo, Katherine Heigl, Sandra Oh, Isaiah Washington, Justin Chambers |
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| | | | Greys Anatomy S3 | | | | In the third season of Grey's Anatomy, one medical intern will get married to a superior while another is left standing at the altar. Two interns will lose their parents. And one main character will try to commit suicide--or not fight very hard to save her own life. There will be multiple hook-ups, infidelity, and trust issues. In between the soap opera-style drama that attracts millions of viewers each week, interns Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl), Alex Karev (Justin Chambers), and George O'Malley (T.R. Knight) will also perform some medical miracles. At the end of season 2, Izzie was distraught over the death of her fiancé, Denny. Now she finds that her very rich boyfriend has left her millions of dollars. Instead of putting the money into the bank and allowing it to accrue interest until she decides what she wants to do with it--as sensible Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) suggests--Izzie mopes around the house in an irritating stupor. Actually, irritating is an apt description for several of the main characters. It takes a leap of faith to believe that sexy, spectacular, and rich orthopedic surgeon Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez) would be even vaguely interested in wishy-washy George. Previously, he'd convinced himself that he was in love with Meredith. Now he's pining for his other roommate, Izzie, even though he's already got Callie. And rather than welcoming her into their fold, Izzie and Meredith (and to a lesser extent Cristina) give Callie the mean-girls treatment. They may have rebuffed him at one point, but they don't want Callie to have him, either. There is something very needy about this group of interns who have no one to turn to but each other when a crisis occurs.
Viewers get some insight into "dark and twisty" Meredith's upbringing, as she spends more time with her cold and demanding mother, who is suffering from Alzheimer's, and her milquetoast father, who didn't fight very hard to have contact with her as a child after her mom kicked him out of their house. It's no wonder Meredith ended up emotionally damaged and unwilling to completely open up to Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) ... a.k.a. McDreamy. Though the show's title implies that Meredith is the most important character, it's not true. The ensemble cast, which also includes James Pickens Jr. as Dr. Richard Webber (who had a long and complicated affair with Meredith's mother) and Kate Walsh as Derek's ex-wife Addison, is fantastic. And it's difficult to outshine Oh, who has some of this season's funniest and emotional moments as she navigates a relationship with Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington), who is far more romantic and traditional than she is. Though not as compelling as the show's debut season, this third year still packs a strong emotional punch. --Jae-Ha Kim |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Patrick Dempsey, Ellen Pompeo, Katherine Heigl, Sandra Oh, Isaiah Washington, Justin Chambers |
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| | | | Grindhouse Exp V2 | | | | 20 Freakin Films! More than most dare to experience:
Apocalypse Genre- Stryker' & 'Atlantis Interceptors'
Spy Genre- '077:Mission Bloody Mary' & 'Her Majesty's Top Gun'
Sword and Sandal Genre- 'Carthage in Flames' & 'Corialanis'
War Genre- 'Dirty Two' & 'Sinai Commandos'
Car Chase Genre- 'Renegade' & 'Highway Racer'
Shark Genre- 'Deadly Jaws' & 'Shark Hunter'
Crime Genre- 'Blazing Magnum' & 'Three Men to Kill'
Blaxploitation- 'Mr. Deathman' & 'Slavers'
Super Heroes Genre- 'Phenomenal' & '3 Supermen Against Godfather'
Kung Fu- 'Three Avengers' & 'Master Killers' |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Harsh Realm | | | | The dark and fantastic Harsh Realm, a science fiction series about a war fought by flesh-and-blood humans trapped inside virtual reality, was launched by The X-Files creator Chris Carter in 1999 and died a regrettable, premature death on the Fox channel after three episodes. The remaining six shows found sanctuary on the FX network, and then Harsh Realm slipped into history, its wild story, based on a comic book, far from resolved. Perhaps Harsh Realm's ratings failure had something to do with its broad similarities to the hugely popular The Matrix, released only a few months before, or, for that matter, David Cronenberg's 1999 eXistenZ, in which characters fight for their lives inside a video game. Whatever the reason, enough time has passed to take an objective look at Harsh Realm, and there is a lot to be admired in its high level of imagination, complex plotting, and cutting-edge production values.
Scott Bairstow stars as U.S. Army Lieutenant Tom Hobbes, a decorated hero who risked his life rescuing a buddy, Major Mel Waters (Max Martini), during a peacekeeping mission in the former Yugoslavia. Set to return to civilian life and marry his fiancée, Sophie (Samantha Mathis), Hobbes is summoned by a mysterious superior (Lance Henriksen) and asked to test-run Harsh Realm, a virtual reality war game devised by the Pentagon. Once he begins, however, Hobbes is mentally imprisoned in the dangerous game (his body, along with those of hundreds of other "volunteers," is cared for in a secret military hospital), where he is identified by other, desperate captives as the savior they've been awaiting. D.B. Sweeney is very good as another soldier, Mike Pinocchio, whose sense of mission is re-awakened by Hobbes and who becomes a partner in an endless effort to defeat a madman named Santiago (Terry O'Quinn), who rules Harsh Realm from within. As with The X-Files, the nine episodes in this boxed set are each very striking on their own terms, with post-apocalyptic sets, constant surprises, and that special Chris Carter touch (fans of his Millennium will like Harsh Realm, too) that makes every story look and feel like a collision of a nightmare and a crisis of faith. --Tom Keogh
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| Genre: | Sci-Fi | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Scott Bairstow |
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| | | | Heroes S1 | | | | Arguably the most talked-about television show of the 2006-2007 season, the Emmy-nominated fantasy Heroes gives viewers blends comic book-style adventure with plotting and characters as rich and layered as any graphic novel or drama series. Creator Tim Kring's premise is deceptively simple – ordinary individuals in locations around the globe discover that they have, for lack of a better term, super powers, and wrestle with this reality while facing challenges both global (the destruction of New York City, for one) and personal (indestructible cheerleader Hayden Panetierre has family issues – serious ones, as the true identity of her adoptive father reveals; Milo Ventimiglia's Peter Petrelli, who absorbs other powers, must overcome his own insecurities). Add to this mix a terrific villain – Zachary Quinto's Sylar, who hunts and kills people with extraordinary powers like our heroes – and viewers have a riveting series that exhibits an almost-perfect balance of cliffhanger thrills (the action and special effects are truly impressive for a network program) and genuine drama that sets the show apart from most speculative fiction (save, perhaps, the revived Battlestar Galactica, which it compares too favorably). The seven-disc set of Heroes: Season One offers a wealth of extras for fans, who may be familiar with some of them through the NBC.com website, especially the cast commentaries, which are featured on half of the episodes. Kring is featured on the 73-minute uncut pilot episode, which for some viewers, may be even better than the network version; the main difference is the degree of character development, including an entire storyline for D.L. Hawkins that isn't featured in the broadcast version. Also on deck are some 50 deleted scenes from the episodes, several by-the-books making-of featurettes, including coverage of the special effects and stunt work, and a profile of artist Tim Sale, whose illustrations are used for Isaac Mendez's prophetic artwork. Prospective buyers should note that while all of these supplemental features are included on the HD-DVD version of this set, the special Web-connectivity elements are not available here. -- Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Adult | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Hayden Panettiere, Ali Larter, Milo Ventimiglia, James Kyson Lee, Adrian Pasdar, Greg Grunberg |
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| | | | Heroes S2 | | | | Rejoin the epic and suspenseful phenomenon as Heroes: Season 2 arrives on DVD. Experience all the new and exciting twists of the astonishing series in this 4-disc set that includes every gripping Season 2 episode. Plus, see what could have been with exclusive bonus features that reveal the untold stories that never aired and an alternate ending to the season finale, where the fate of humanity takes an ominous turn when Peter fails to catch the vial containing the deadly virus.
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| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Hayden Panettiere, Kristen Bell, Ali Larter, Milo Ventimiglia, Adrian Pasdar, Masi Oka |
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| | | | Homicide S1 2 | | | | Homicide: Life on the Street was always ahead of its time. As this collection of the first two seasons proves--it still is. Crime dramas that have thrived on cable, like The Sopranos, have benefited from the ground Homicide broke--and inherited many of the talents (like Edie Falco) that made it great. To NBC's credit, particularly then-president and fan Warren Littlefield, it supported the show for seven years, despite several cast changes and lukewarm ratings. Fortunately, critics were enthusiastic from the start and fans were loyal. Awards would roll in, too, culminating in a richly deserved Emmy for Andre Braugher (Frank Pembleton).
Homicide was based on the book by David Simon and created by Paul Attanasio (Quiz Show), Tom Fontana (Oz), and Barry Levinson (Diner). It was filmed in Levinson's beloved Charm City and he directed several episodes, including "Gone for Goode," which introduced the case of Adena Watson (and won another Emmy). It would haunt Tim Bayliss (the underrated Kyle Secor) for the rest of the series. The authentic Maryland locations, unusual cases (many based on real-life incidents), groundbreaking camera work, edgy--often humorous--dialogue, and seemingly improvised acting set Homicide apart from everything on TV. Then there were the directors, like Nick Gomez ("Son of a Gun") and Alan Taylor ("A Dog and Pony Show"), and guest stars, like Gwen Verdon ("A Ghost of a Chance") and Robin Williams ("Bop Gun"). Could this really be network TV? Most times, it didn't feel like it. These 13 episodes present the main characters: Lieutenant Al "Gee" Giardello (Yaphet Kotto), Kay Howard (Melissa Leo), Meldrick Lewis (Clark Johnson), and John Munch (Richard Melzer), whose character would segue to Law & Order: SVU. Ned Beatty, Daniel Baldwin, and Jon Polito also make vivid impressions, but would not remain for the long haul. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Ned Beatty, Yaphet Kotto, Richard Belzer, Andre Braugher, Clark Johnson, Melissa Leo |
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| | | | Homicide S3 | | | | If the first two seasons introduced one of the great television crime dramas, Homicide really came into its own during the third. Instead of the mere 13 episodes scattered between 1993 and 1994, NBC ordered up a full 20 for the 1994-1995 season. The entire terrific cast is back, with the exception of Jon Polito, whose absence is explained in the fourth episode ("Crosetti"). There are other changes, like the addition of Megan Russert (Isabella Hofmann) as shift commander. Aside from the fact that the mostly male staff now has a woman to report to (alongside Yaphet Kotto's Lt. Giardello), it turns out that Russert has a "history" with one of the detectives. Homicide always excelled in its exploration of racial and office politics; now sexual politics would become a bigger issue. Religion also comes to the fore as Pembleton (Andre Braugher) is finally forced to confront the loss of his faith while working on a case ("The White Glove Murders") involving several aid workers (episodes 1-3). Meanwhile, his partner, Bayliss (Kyle Secor), is coming to resemble the naive young rookie of the first two seasons less and less by the second... while getting to enjoy a little more romance than the rest of the squad--especially the hapless Meldrick (Clark Johnson). But all is not sturm and drang. Humor still finds a place in each episode and Munch (Richard Belzer) still gets many of the best lines. In the season premiere ("Nearer My God to Thee"), for instance, he tells Bolander (Ned Beatty), "There is no such thing as gratuitous sex. Gratuitous violence, yes... Sex cannot and will not ever be gratuitous." He could be describing Homicide itself, in which nothing is ever gratuitous, especially the sudden loss of human life, which is never--and should never be--treated lightly. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Isabella Hofmann, Kyle Secor, Clark Johnson, Andre Braugher |
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| | | | Homicide S4 | | | | Tim Bayliss (Kyle Secor) was the rookie during Homicide’s first season. By the fourth, he's an experienced vet with a bad back (a degenerative disc, to be precise). Stan Bolander (Ned Beatty) and Beau Felton (Daniel Baldwin) are gone, leaving Meldrick Lewis (Clark Johnson) and Kay Howard (Melissa Leo) without partners. Someone needs to come along to shake things up. Enter brash detective Mike Kellerman (Reed Diamond) from the arson unit. After impressing Lieutenant Giardello (Yaphet Kotto) with his sly interrogation of a shifty arson suspect in "Fire (Part One)," he’s invited to join Maryland's finest. The loquacious Lewis, on his own since the third-season departure of Steve Crosetti (Jon Polito), has finally found the perfect sparring partner, while Kellerman would add some redheaded sex appeal to the acclaimed drama (hey, it worked for NYPD Blue).
Another new character, naive crime-scene videographer James Brodie (Max Perlich), makes his (somewhat shambolic) entrance in "Autofocus." All the other old favorites are back: Frank Pembleton (Andre Braugher) and wife Mary (Braugher’s real-life spouse Ami Brabson), for instance, are expecting a baby, and the much-married John Munch (Richard Beltzer) is dating the new medical examiner. Interesting developments are in store for the rest of the unit, as well, including a change in location (due to a gas leak) and command (Howard is promoted, but Isabella Hofman's Captain Russert is demoted).
Notable episodes include "A Doll's Eyes," a look at a murder case from the perspective of the victim's family (with Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden); "Heartbeat," inspired by Edgar Allen Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart"; and "Thrill of the Kill," an eerie tale about a spree killer with a split personality. And keep an eye out for those always-surprising cameos, like Jay Leno in "Sniper (Part One)" and Reverend Horton Heat in "Full Moon." --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kyle Secor, Ned Beatty, Melissa Leo, Clark Johnson, Reed Diamond, Max Perlich |
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| | | | Homicide S5 | | | | Big changes were afoot for Baltimore's finest during the fifth season of Homicide. The fourth season ended with a shocker--Frank Pembleton (Andre Braugher) suffering a stroke while interrogating a suspect. In season premiere "Hostage," directed by the late Ted Demme, Pembleton is back on the job, but he's a changed man. His reflexes aren't what they used to be and his pride has taken a beating. Meanwhile, Megan Russert, who had been demoted the previous year, has moved abroad. Never fear, two strong women will join the squad in the form of detective Teri Stivers (Toni Lewis), on loan from narcotics, and medical examiner Julianna Cox (Michelle Forbes, just as formidable as she was on Star Trek: The Next Generation). This is especially good news for Lewis (Clark Johnson) and Kellerman (Reed Diamond). Alas, Lewis is married and Kellerman has just been accused of police corruption.
Standout episodes include "Documentary", directed by Oscar-winner Barbara Kopple, and "Prison Riot," with Charles S. Dutton and Dean Winters, a precursor to Barry Levinson and Tom Fontana's Oz. (Scott Winters, who appears in the last two episodes, would join brother Dean on that show.) But "Bad Medicine," in which drug kingpin Luther Mahoney (Erik Todd Dellums) makes his first appearance, is the most significant. With the introduction of Mahoney, Homicide would begin to deal with the drug war in earnest. Author David Simon would continue to explore the issue in his HBO series The Wire.
Aside from the brilliant acting, writing, and directing, Homicide was known for its savvy song selections, such as Tom Waits's "Cold, Cold Ground" and "Till the Money Runs Out" in "Bad Medicine." In addition, the episode "The Heart of a Saturday Night", directed by Whit Stillman, was titled after--and inspired by--Waits's composition of the same name. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Andre Braugher, Toni Lewis, Michelle Forbes, Clark Johnson, Reed Diamond, Erik Todd Dellums |
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| | | | Homicide S6 | | | | Homicide's sixth season begins with a bang. Three-part premiere "Blood Ties" represents the Peabody Award-winning drama at its best. The ambitious story arc introduces a case that will pit the detectives against a prominent Maryland family--and each other. The Wilson family includes Lt. Giardello's friend, Felix (James Earl Jones), his loyal wife (Lynne Thigpen), and his wayward son (Jeffrey Wright). By the time the case is put to rest, everyone involved will have lost more than they've gained. On the plus side, Pembleton (Andre Braugher) has another baby on the way and Bayliss (Kyle Secor) is about to embark on a relationship--with Dr. Cox (Michelle Forbes).
More changes are on the way. Characters introduced in season 5 will become regulars in season 6: Laura Ballard (Callie Thorne), Stuart Gharty (Peter Gerety), and Paul Falsone (Jon Seda). Culture clashes will commence the moment they step into the squad room. But some things never change and Homicide will continue to boast some of the best acting, writing, and directing on network television. Another standout episode, "The Subway," featuring Vincent D'Onofrio, would even become the focus of a PBS special, Anatomy of a Homicide, which is included with this collection.
The biggest story arc will last the entire season. The squad may have thought that the shooting of Luther Mahoney marked the end of his reign, but they were wrong. Luther had followers, like his steely sister, Georgia Rae (Hazelle Goodman), and her loose-cannon son, Junior (Mekhi Phifer). Kellerman (Reed Diamond) will continue to be dogged by rumors that the shoot wasn't "clean," and the other detectives will start to abandon him, even former flame Cox and ex-partner Lewis (Clark Johnson). The sixth season of Homicide would turn out to be the last for Forbes, Diamond, and Emmy Award-winner Braugher. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Callie Thorne, Peter Gerety, Jon Seda, Mekhi Phifer, Kyle Secor, Michelle Forbes |
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| | | | Homicide S7 | | | | Considered the most realistic cop drama ever aired, Homicide: Life on the Street gives viewers a unique cops'-eye view of one of the most challenging jobs imaginable. Created by Writer/Director Tom Fontana (St. Elsewhere, OZ) and Executive Producer Barry Levinson (The Perfect Storm, Oz) and based on David Simon's (The Wire) book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, HOMICIDE features TV's most powerful ensemble cast, including Richard Belzer (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit), Emmy®-winner Andre Braugher (Thief, Frequency), Yaphet Kotto (Alien), and Ned Beatty (Deliverance) with guest appearances from James Earl Jones, Robin Williams, Steve Buscemi, Peter Gallagher, Chris Rock, Wilford Brimley, and other star actors. HOMICIDE garnered two Emmy® Awards, three Peabody Awards, three Television Critics Awards, two Writers Guild Awards, and was named to TV Guide's "The Greatest Episodes in TV History" and "TV's Greatest Characters" lists. Here, for the first time ever, one of television's crowning achievements is available in its entirety on 35 DVDs and includes all 122 episodes spanning seven critically acclaimed seasons, the three Law & Order crossover episodes, and Homicide: The Movie. DVD Features: Commentary on "Gone For Goode," "Gas Man," "The Hat," "The Documentary," "The Subway," and "Forgive Us Our Trespasses"; Interviews with Barry Levinson, Tom Fontana, Henry Bromell, David Simon, and James Yoshimura; "To Catch A Killer: Homicide Detectives" Episode of A&E’s Signature Series AMERICAN JUSTICE; Superbowl XXVII Commercials for Season One Premiere; HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREET Song Listings; About "The Board"; "Inside Homicide" with David Somin and James Yoshimura; Feature-length Documentary "Anatomy of a Homicide"; VSDA Panel and Live DVD Commentary with Tom Fontana, Barry Levinson, James Yoshimura, and David Simon; Barry Levinson’s Acceptance Speech for the 2004 VSDA Career Achievement Award; Cast Biographies; Interactive Menus; Scene Selection Bonus Disc Contains "Law & Order" Crossover Episodes "Charm City," "Baby It’s You," and "Sideshow, " and the feature-length "Homicide: The Movie" series wrap-up. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | House S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | House S2 | | | |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Huff S1 | | | | Dr. Craig Huffstodt (Hank Azaria, Shattered Glass) has it all--beautiful wife Beth (Paget Brewster, Andy Richter Controls the Universe), cute son Byrd (Anton Yelchin), sleek golden retriever, silver BMW, and tastefully-appointed model home. In the pilot, an inconsolable teenager pulls a gun out of his bag and shoots himself--right in the middle of a therapy session. Suddenly, Huff starts to question everything: the job, the marriage, life. Created by Bob Lowry (Any Day Now) and produced by Scott Winant (thirtysomething) for Showtime, Huff combines drama, comedy, flashbacks, and dream sequences to examine one "rich, guilt-ridden white man's" struggle with the Abyss. Sometimes it's Frasier, sometimes The Sopranos--sometimes American Beauty.
Appearances to the contrary, Huff's well-constructed façade is not without its fissures, and as Byrd ominously quotes in episode eight ("Cold Day in Shanghai"), "If you gaze for long into the Abyss, the Abyss also gazes into you--Nietzsche." Live-in mother Izzy (Emmy winner Blythe Danner) is a judgmental busybody, younger brother Teddy (Andy Comeau, Providence) is a sympathetic schizophrenic, and best buddy Russell (Oliver Platt having the time of his life) is a pill-popping, cocaine-snorting, booze-guzzling lawyer whose moral compass has been missing "ever since my daddy's sperm hit the egg." Then there's psychotic patient Melody (Lara Flynn Boyle, The Practice), smart-talking office manager Paula (Kimberly Russell), and homeless Hungarian musician István (Jack Laufer) who keeps crossing his path. (Does he really even exist?) Other recurring characters include Huff's estranged father, Ben (Robert Forster), and Beth's terminally ill mother, Madeline (Swoosie Kurtz). In its first year, Huff garnered seven Emmy nominations and was renewed for a second season. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Hank Azaria, Paget Brewster, Blythe Danner, Oliver Platt, Kimberly Brooks, Anton Yelchin |
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| | | | Indiana Jones Last Crusade | | | | The third episode in Steven Spielberg's rousing Indiana Jones saga, this film recaptures the best elements of Raiders of the Lost Ark while exploring new territory with wonderfully satisfying results. Indy is back battling the Nazis, who have launched an expedition to uncover the whereabouts of the Holy Grail. And it's not just Indy this time--his father (played with great acerbic wit by Sean Connery, the perfect choice) is also involved in the hunt. Spielberg excels at the kind of extended action sequences that top themselves with virtually every frame; the best one here involves Indy trying to stop a Nazi tank from the outside while his father is being held within. For good measure, Spielberg reveals (among other things) how Indy got his hat, the scar on his chin, and his nickname (in a prologue that features River Phoenix as the young Indiana). --Marshall Fine |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | Steven Spielberg | | Cast: | Harrison Ford, Denholm Elliott, Alison Doody, John Rhys-Davies, Julian Glover, Sean Connery |
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| | | | Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark | | | | Steven Spielberg and George Lucas's 1981 resurrection of the Saturday-matinee adventure genre was deservedly popular, and kicked off a successful trilogy. Set in 1936, this first feature introduces Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones, an archaeologist and adventurer whose quests for rare antiquities frequently find him running from one menace or another. Raiders finds Dr. Jones in the middle of a Nazi plot to use the mysterious powers of the Ark of the Covenant to win the war. Karen Allen plays the love interest with an old-fashioned "man's woman" appeal (she can drink anybody under the table and is free with her fists). The constant, cliffhanger appeal of the movie is great fun--one is always wondering how Indy will get out of one scrape after another--and Ford's career got a big boost with his self-effacing but masculine portrayal of the hero. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Stephen Speilberg | | Cast: | Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott |
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| | | | Indiana Jones Temple of Doom | | | | The Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) adventure after Raiders of the Lost Ark is more violent than its predecessor, but also looser, more imaginative, and finally more satisfying. Still organized like a series of connected cliffhangers, the story (set 10 years before Raiders) involves Indy's attempted rescue of stolen children from a pagan cult. Director Steven Spielberg draws upon sundry cinematic influences, particularly Gunga Din, for an air of classic adventure, though one can also find traces of John Wayne movies in Jones's relationship with a woman (Kate Capshaw) who's come along for the bumpy ride. The film's opening bit, in which the antidote to a poison Jones has swallowed keeps bouncing around a nightclub just out of his reach, is a blast. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Steven Spielberg | | Cast: | Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, Amrish Puri, Roshan Seth, Phillip Stone, Ke Huy Quan |
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| | | | Into the West | | | | An epic TV miniseries of the Old West told from the persepctives of a Native American vamily and a white settler family. |
| Genre: | Western | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Simon Baker, Josh Brolin, Gary Busey, Tonantzin Carmelo, Zahn McClarnon, Will Patton |
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| | | | Inu Yasha D1-16 | | | | Inu Yasha Vol. 02: A Girl's Best Friend
Action - Viz
DIY02
The precious, priceless "Jewel of Four Souls" having been taken by Yura of the Demon-Hair, Kagome and Inu Yasha fight to regain it. Later, a confrontation with the cruel Sesshomaru—Inu Yasha's older brother—reveals to Kagome another, more human side of he |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Its always Sunny in Philadelphia 1 2 | | | | Take the best elements from Seinfeld and Arrested Development and you have It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Combining the social-degenerate-buddy formula (three men, one woman) with the beyond-dysfunctional-family element, Philadelphia creates scenarios that are so hysterical, wrong, appalling, familiar, embarrassing, uncomfortable, and entertaining, the show is addictive like staring at a car wreck when you know you shouldn't, but you just can't look away; it's invigorating like a fresh, loud, wake-up slap on the face. The writing, the quick timing, and the performances are so natural, one wonders if anyone is even acting (but hopes to heaven they are). Danny DeVito joined the cast in the second season, in one of the best roles on TV. DeVito is "Frank," the buddy dad that just wants to be part of the gang, the dad that looks good on paper, but the experience for his kids is more like taking care of a vicious dog that isn't potty-trained. Three of his four talented cohorts (Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, and Rob McElhenney) not only star in the series, but write it as well. Thanks to their new take on old themes and a willingness to stretch the boundaries of appropriateness and exploit the audiences' inner insecurities, originality is back on TV.--Rachel Moss |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson, Glenn Howerton, Heather Donahue, Danny DeVito |
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| | | | Jack of All Trades | | | | American spy/adventurer Jack Stiles is sent by Thomas Jefferson to the tiny South Pacific island of Polau Polau to work with British spy Emilia Rothschild to stop the advances of the French Emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte in his bid for world conquest.
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| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bruce Campbell, Angela Marie Dotchin, Stuart Devenie, Stephen Papps, Celia Nicholson |
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| | | | Jeff Foxworthy show | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Jericho S1 | | | | Jericho is a drama about what happens when a nuclear mushroom cloud suddenly appears on the horizon, plunging the residents of a small, peaceful Kansas town into chaos, leaving them completely isolated and wondering if they're the only Americans left alive. But in this time of crisis, as sensible people become paranoid, personal agendas take over and well-kept secrets threaten to be revealed, some people will find an inner strength they never knew they had and the most unlikely heroes will emerge.
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Skeet Ulrich, Gerald McRaney, Ashley Scott, Lennie James, Brad Beyer, Pamela Reed |
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| | | | Jericho S2 | | | | JERICHO is a drama about what happens when a uclear mushroom cloud suddenly appears on the horizon plunging the residents of a small peaceful Kansas town into chaos leaving them completely isolated and wondering if they're the only Americans left alive. But in this time of crisis as sensible people become paranoid personal agendas take over and well-kept secrets threaten to be revealed some people will find an inner strength they never knew they had and the most unlikely heroes will emerge. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Skeet Ulrich, Ashley Scott, Lennie James, Kenneth Mitchell, Brad Beyer, Pamela Reed |
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| | | | John Adams | | | | John Adams is a sprawling HBO miniseries event that depicts the extraordinary life and times of one of Americas least understood, and most underestimated, founding fathers: the second President of the United States, John Adams. Starring Paul Giamatti (Sideways, Cinderella Man, HBOs American Spendor) in the title role and Laura Linney (You Can Count on Me, Kinsey) as Adams devoted wife Abigail, John Adams chronicles the extraordinary life journey of one of the primary shapers of our independence and government, whose legacy has often been eclipsed by more flamboyant contemporaries like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and Benjamin Franklin.
Set against the backdrop of a nations stormy birth, this sweeping miniseries is a moving love story, a gripping narrative, and a fascinating study of human nature. Above all, at a time when the nation is increasingly polarized politically, this story celebrates the shared values of liberty and freedom upon which this country was built. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Tom Hooper | | Cast: | Paul Giamatti, Laura Linney, David Morse, Rufus Sewell, Tom Wilkinson, Danny Huston |
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| | | | Justice League S1 | | | | Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl ? they have all used their unique powers to fight evil across the galaxy. These 7 super heroes unite to become the Justice League. These 26 adventures feature battles with favorite villains like Lex Luthor, Vandal Savage and sorceress Morgan Le Fey. Acts of justice include saving Aquaman from a coup and clearing Green Lantern's name in a charge of genocide. From the smash hit TV series, these triumphant tales of teamwork will enthrall and inspire! |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Justice League S2 | | | | Forces of evil, chaos, and destruction await. Not even protectors like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, the Flash, Hawkgirl or the Martian Manhunter may have a chance alone. But together as the Justice League, they are a metahuman force (and a hope) to be reckoned with. |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Kidnapped | | | |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jeremy Sisto, Carman Ejogo, Delroy Lindo, Linus Roache, Dana Delany, Timothy Hutton |
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| | | | Kill point | | | | A group of military veterans, who recently returned home from serving in Iraq, band together to pull off a major bank heist. |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Donnie wahlberg, John leguizamo, Tobin bell, geoffrey cantor, jennifer ferrin |
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| | | | King of The Cage | | | |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | King of the Hill S1 | | | | Tell you what: Whether King of the Hill can usurp the throne occupied by The Simpsons as TV's royal animated family is something for the Hank vs. Homer contingents to duke out. But with this fit-for-a-king DVD set, the Hills of Arlen, Texas, can emerge from the shadows of their Springfield brethren. Co-created by Mike Judge (Beavis and Butt-Head, the cult classic Office Space) and Simpsons veteran Greg Daniels, this brilliant series boasts an impeccable voice cast, bull's-eye writing, and the most rollicking theme music on television.
Unlike The Simpsons, which got a running start on The Tracey Ullman Show, the Hills may take a little warming up to. In the pilot episode, Hank Hill (voiced by Judge) is more a quick-to-temper redneck than good ol' boy. But as this inaugural season unfolds, he empathetically struggles to be the voice of reason in an ever-changing world where his substitute teacher wife, Peggy (Kathy Najimy), is forced to teach sex ed (Hank's spit take when the repressed Peg blurts out the word "vagina" is worthy of Danny Thomas), his son Bobby (Pamela Segall) wants to be a prop comic, and his neighbor, Dale (Johnny Hardwick), finds government conspiracies under every grassy knoll. But Hank is that sitcom rarity: A good man and father who is devoted to his job (selling propane and propane accessories) and his family, which includes Peggy's niece, nubile aspiring beautician Luanne (Brittany Murphy). For the uninitiated, disc 2 of this three-disc set may make a more favorable first impression. It contains three of the season's best episodes, among them "Shins of the Father," which pits Peggy against Hank's incorrigibly sexist father (when Peggy tells him that Bobby is a good helper in the kitchen, he responds, "Whatever you say, Hillary"). The set is loaded with features, from deleted scenes to episode commentaries by the series' creators and the characters themselves. Welcome to home video, Hills. We'll get the barbecue started. --Donald Liebenson
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | L Word S1 | | | | Four years after Showtime made gay men the focus of its original series Queer as Folk, it was time for a little turnabout with The L Word (bad title, great show). Centering around a tight-knit group of lesbians in Los Angeles, this drama was far removed from its working-class male counterpart in both style and content. While the men of QAF enjoyed a fabulous if melodramatic life on the middle-class streets of Pittsburgh, the women of The L Word lived it up in sunny California, with gorgeous houses, glamorous careers, and sexy wardrobes. Ironically, though, The L Word adhered more to the everyday drama of ensemble shows like thirtysomething than the soap opera antics of QAF, and the results were surprisingly heartfelt and effective, appropriately stylish but never over the top. There was plenty of room for titillation, but creator Ilene Chaiken fashioned from the start a show centered on characters and not just sex, aiming for the heart rather than... well, other places.
The L Word focused primarily on committed couple Bette (Jennifer Beals) and Tina (Laurel Holloman), a former power-career duo who've decided to have a baby; however, artificial insemination and the changing dynamics of their relationship throw their previously happy existence off-kilter. Within their orbit are spunky journalist Alice (Leisha Hailey), sultry hairdresser Shane (Katherine Moenning), closeted pro tennis player Dana (Erin Daniels), and espresso bar owner Marina (Karina Lombard) who, in the show's most polarizing storyline, bedded the seemingly straight Jenny (Mia Kirschner) and shook up her heterosexual world. Jenny's am-I-straight-or-not? kvetching frustrated both her fiancé (Eric Mabius) and many viewers, who were alternately irritated and intrigued by her inability to decide one way or the other. But Jenny's weakness was part of The L Word's strength: in exploring many sides of many issues, both domestic and political, it never came up with an easy answer for any of them, making the show all that more fascinating--and compulsively watchable. --Mark Englehart
Description
Set in the chic world of Los Angeles, this humor-laced dramatic series explores the lives of a group of lesbians, their friends, family and neighbors, The series take a smart, sexy and fun look at hopes, dreams and lives of these people as they deal with things like career struggles, relationships issues and the pressures of tying to start at family. The show provides a fresh look at everyday life, told with passion, frankness and humor. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | La Fea Mas Bella | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | La Femme Nikita S1 | | | | Longtime La Femme Nikita fans and newcomers alike will enjoy this six-disc boxed set, which compiles the syndicated television series' entire first season, and shows why it garnered a devoted audience throughout its five-season run (1997-2001): it's a fast-paced, action-packed mixture of sex appeal (thanks to the statuesque form of its star, Australian actress Peta Wilson) and intricately plotted espionage thrills. Producers Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran (who later created 24) hewed the series' framework closely to its inspiration--Luc Besson's 1990 theatrical feature of the same name--save for one change. Where the movie Nikita is a drug-addicted thug, Wilson's Nikita is a street-savvy homeless woman. The pilot, "Nikita" (on disc 1), details her introduction to the underground spy network known as Section One: facing a death sentence after a trumped-up murder charge, Nikita is approached by the mysterious Michael (Roy Dupuis), who offers her a new identity as an anti-terrorist operative. The subsequent 21 episodes in the set offer plenty of action and suspense, as well as a compelling character in Nikita, who struggles constantly with the deception and bloodshed that are unavoidable aspects of her assignments. The set concludes with a dramatic season finale, disc 6's "Mercy," which forces Nikita to deal with some hard truths about her future and her feelings for Michael.
If having the complete first season in one set doesn't please series fans, the supplemental features will surely satisfy even the iciest armchair operative. Disc 1 offers commentary by Surnow, Cochran, and director Jon Cassar on "Nikita" as well as commentary by Surnow for deleted scenes from several episodes (also on discs 2, 3, and 6); disc 6 features Surnow's comments on "Mercy," as well as "Section One Declassified: The Making of La Femme Nikita," which features interviews with the cast and creators. --Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Peta Wilson, Roy Dupuis, Alberta Watson, Eugene Robert Glazer |
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| | | | La Femme Nikita S2 | | | | "You're one of us now," Nikita is told. But has she truly abandoned her compassionate nature and become an unquestioning member of the soulless covert organization called Section One? Or has she mastered the group's knack for deceit and cover-up so efficiently that she can beat Section at its own game? The sleek, chic and powerful adventures of the agent codenamed Josephine continue in Season Two of the intrigue-filled five-year series that stars Peta Wilson in the title role. All 22 year-two episodes are here - episodes in which Nikita's life and ultimately the survival of Section itself are on the line. Also included is a special intel portfolio of insider Bonus Features. Stay focused on the mission with this very fatale Femme. |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Peta Wilson, Carlo Rota, Lawrence Bayne, Josh Holliday, Steve Lucescu |
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| | | | La Femme Nikita S3 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | La Femme Nikita S4 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | La Femme Nikita S5 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | La Otra | | | | Classic Spanish Soap Opera. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Benjamin Cann | | Cast: | Jacqueline Andere, Manuel Ojeda, Sergio Sendel, Maty Huitron, Juan Soler |
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| | | | Las Vegas S1 | | | | Slick, stylish, and fast-paced, Las Vegas is a high-tech hybrid of 1970s' Vega$ and 1980s' Hotel. Created by Gary Scott Thompson (The Fast and the Furious), season 1 includes all 23 episodes of the NBC dramedy's. Set in the fictional Montecito Resort and Casino, the show revolves around surveillance expert and ex-Marine Danny McCoy (Josh Duhamel, Win a Date with Tad Hamilton). McCoy reports to the president of operations and ex-CIA operative "Big" Ed Deline (the inimitable James Caan). If Duhamel is the show's charisma, Caan is the gravitas. The attractive cast is rounded out by Vanessa Marcil as casino host Sam Marquez, Nikki Cox as event coordinator Mary Connell, James Lesure as valet Mike Cannon, Marsha Thomason as pit boss Nessa Holt, Cheryl Ladd as Deline's wife Jillian, and model Molly Sims as Deline's daughter Delinda.
From the start, Las Vegas has attracted a diverse array of guest stars, from musicians, like Little Richard ("New Orleans"), to movie stars, like Sean "Samwise" Astin ("You Can't Take It With You"). Even "Mr. Las Vegas" himself, Wayne Newton, puts in an appearance ("Pros and Cons"). Other notable guests include Elliot Gould ("Jokers and Fools"), Jean-Claude Van Damme ("Die Fast, Die Furious"), and Alec Baldwin ("Hellraisers and Heartbreakers"), hot off his Oscar-nominated turn in The Cooler.
First used in heist hit Ocean's 11, Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation" (JXL remix) is the Las Vegas theme song. On the DVD set, however, it's replaced by "Let It Ride" on all episodes except the pilot. Also, the subtitle "Uncut and Uncensored" indicates footage too hot for network TV, but the additions are minor. While a few seconds have been added to the more risqué sex/poolside scenes, any other changes from the original broadcast are difficult to detect. --Kathleen C. Fennessy |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Josh Duhamel, James Caan, Vanessa Marcil, Nikki Cox, James Lesure, Marsha Thomason |
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| | | | Las Vegas S2 | | | | Television s hottest drama, Las Vegas is back with all 24 episodes of the thrilling Second Season, and the stakes are higher than ever! Rejoin the red-hot surveillance team of the Montecito Resort and Casino as they take on more card-counting crooks, uncover secrets from the past, solve murders and teach topless employees how to move all while maintaining security 24-7. It s Sin City action like you ve never seen before with guest stars Sylvester Stallone, Alec Baldwin, Jill Hennessy, Jon Lovitz and more, plus musical performances by Snoop Dog, Clint Black, Duran Duran and Black Eyed Peas in Dolby 5.1 Surround. Bonus features include outrageous bloopers and outtakes too racy for TV and an inside look at the VIP treatment lavished on Las Vegas s highest rollers. The complete Season Two of Las Vegas is now on DVD uncut, uncensored and ready for action! |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Josh Duhamel, James Caan, Vanessa Marcil, Nikki Cox, Molly Sims, Cheryl Ladd |
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| | | | Las Vegas S3 | | | | Equal parts drama, slapstick comedy, and soap opera, this third season of Las Vegas is all fun. Welcome to the Montecito, a casino and hotel that's so desirable that the only thing more attractive than its clientele is its smoking-hot staff. Each episode contains some kind of crime--a victim whose kidney was stolen, a woman pretending to be a deceased man's fiancée, an employee who chops off his own finger and serves it up in a shrimp cocktail. That kind of thing. It's up to Ed (James Caan) and his surveillance experts Danny (Josh Duhamel) and Mike (James Lesure) to make sure everyone plays nice. Also included in every episode is a bit of Love Boat-style shenanigans. Everyone has slept with each other but is too cool to admit to the object of their affection how they really feel. And the season ends with the double cliffhanger of a wedding and, possibly, a funeral for two of the principal characters.
Caan is a joy to watch as he chews up the scenery. Interviewing a prospective new employee, he admonishes the recruit to never again refer to him as "Mr. Ed" if he wants to be seriously considered for the position. In a sly nod to his work in The Godfather films, Ed also says he has no idea who Sonny Corleone is. While Duhamel and Lesure exude charm and charisma, as does Vanessa Marcil as the Montecito's feisty casino hostess, some of the other actors don't fare as well. Supermodel Molly Sims, who portrays Ed's daughter Delinda, is a beauty but her acting is still a little stiff. The same goes for Nikki Cox, who plays good girl Mary, as well as Cheryl Ladd (who's saddled with a thankless role as Ed's somewhat annoying wife). Airing during the 2005-2006 television season, Las Vegas attracted its share of celebrity guest stars, including Dean Cain, Rachael Leigh Cook, and a charming Jerry O'Connell, who reprises his Crossing Jordan character here. But leave it to Lara Flynn Boyle to add some umph to the show. Her final episode is one of the series' most unrealistic ever--but also one of the funniest and most memorable. Let's just say she gives the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz a run for her money. --Jae-Ha Kim |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | James Caan, Josh Duhamel, Nikki Cox, Vanessa Marcil, Molly Sims, James Lesure |
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| | | | Las Vegas S4 | | | |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | James Caan, Nikki Cox, Vanessa Marcil, Molly Sims, Josh Duhamel |
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| | | | Las Vegas S5 | | | | Las Vegas is hotter than ever as new players come to town for a sizzling Season 5 of TV’s sharpest and sexiest drama! As recently installed Montecito Casino owner A.J. Cooper, Primetime Emmy® Award and Golden Globe® winner Tom Selleck ups the stakes for his elite Las Vegas surveillance team in 17 episodes plus two double length episodes filled with smokin’- hot bodies and intense new scandals! Special guest appearances by Cheryl Ladd (Charlie’s Angels), Geoffrey Owens (The Cosby Show), Rachel Boston (American Dreams) in the show TV Guide calls “TV’s sure bet for a fun time.” |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Josh Duhamel, Tom Selleck, Vanessa Marcil, Molly Sims, James Caan, Cheryl Ladd |
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| | | | Licence to Kill | | | | Timothy Dalton's second and last shot at playing James Bond isn't nearly as much fun as his debut, two years earlier, in the 1987 The Living Daylights. This time Bond gets mad after a close friend (David Hedison) from the intelligence sector is assassinated on his wedding day, and 007 goes undercover to link the murder to an international drug cartel. Robert Davi makes an interesting adversary, but as with most of the Bond films in the '70s, '80s, and '90s--and especially since the end of the cold war--one has to wonder why we should still care about these lesser villains and their unimaginative crimes. Still, Dalton did manage in his short time with the character to make 007 his own, which neither Roger Moore did nor Pierce Brosnan did. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | Timothy Dalton |
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| | | | Live and Let Die | | | | Roger Moore was introduced as James Bond in this 1973 action movie featuring secret agent 007. More self-consciously suave and formal than predecessor Sean Connery, he immediately reestablished Bond as an uncomplicated and wooden fellow for the feel-good '70s. This film also marks a deviation from the more character-driven stories of the Connery years, a deliberate shift to plastic action (multiple chases, bravura stunts) that made the franchise more of a comic book or machine. If that's not depressing enough, there's even a good British director on board, Guy Hamilton (Force 10 from Navarone). The story finds Bond taking on an international drug dealer (Yaphet Kotto), and while that may be superficially relevant, it isn't exactly the same as fighting supervillains on the order of Goldfinger. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Guy Hamilton | | Cast: | Roger Moore, Yaphet Kotto, Jane Seymour, Clifton James, Geoffrey Holder, Bernard Lee |
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| | | | Living Daylights | | | | Timothy Dalton made his 007 debut in the lean, mean mode of Sean Connery, doing away with the pun-filled camp of Roger Moore's final outings. He establishes his persona right from the gritty pre-credits sequence, in which he hangs from a speeding truck as it barrels down narrow cobblestone streets, battles an assassin mano a mano, and lands in the arms of a bikinied babe. This James Bond is ruthless, tough, and romantic. The Living Daylights, set during the thaw of the cold war, begins with the defection of Russian KGB General Koskov (Jeroen Krabb) and his revelation of a Soviet plot to eliminate Britain's secret agent force. Assigned to eliminate Koskov's Soviet boss (John Rhys-Davies), Bond uncovers a conspiracy involving Koskov and an American arms dealer (Joe Don Baker). Maryam d'Abo makes a fine Bond girl as Koskov's beautiful cellist girlfriend, a classy innocent who soon loses her naive blush and shows her pluck. Veteran series director John Glen's action scenes have never been better--especially the show-stopping mid-air battle on the net of a speeding cargo plane--and he returns the series to the smart, rough, high-energy adventures that made the Bond reputation. --Sean Axmaker |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | Timothy Dalton |
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| | | | Lost S1 | | | | Along with Desperate Housewives, Lost was one of the two breakout shows in the fall of 2005. Mixing suspense and action with a sci-fi twist, it began with a thrilling pilot episode in which a jetliner traveling from Australia to Los Angeles crashes, leaving 48 survivors on an unidentified island with no sign of civilization or hope of imminent rescue. That may sound like Gilligan's Island meets Survivor, but Lost kept viewers tuning in every Wednesday night--and spending the rest of the week speculating on Web sites--with some irresistible hooks (not to mention the beautiful women). First, there's a huge ensemble cast of no fewer than 14 regular characters, and each episode fills in some of the back story on one of them. There's a doctor; an Iraqi soldier; a has-been rock star; a fugitive from justice; a self-absorbed young woman and her brother; a lottery winner; a father and son; a Korean couple; a pregnant woman; and others. Second, there's a host of unanswered questions: What is the mysterious beast that lurks in the jungle? Why do polar bears and wild boars live there? Why has a woman been transmitting an SOS message in French from somewhere on the island for the last 16 years? Why do impossible wishes seem to come true? Are they really on a physical island, or somewhere else? What is the significance of the recurring set of numbers? And will Kate ever give up her bad-boy fixation and hook up with Jack?
Lost did have some hiccups during the first season. Some plot threads were left dangling for weeks, and the "oh, it didn't really happen" card was played too often. But the strong writing and topnotch cast kept the show a cut above most network TV. The best-known actor at the time of the show's debut was Dominic Monaghan, fresh off his stint as Merry the Hobbit in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films. The rest of the cast is either unknowns or "where I have I seen that face before" supporting players, including Matthew Fox and Evangeline Lilly, who are the closest thing to leads. Other standouts include Naveen Andrews, Terry O'Quinn (who's made a nice career out of conspiracy-themed TV shows), Josh Holloway, Jorge Garcia, Yunjin Kim, Maggie Grace, and Emilie de Ravin, but there's really not a weak link in the cast. Co-created by J.J. Abrams (Alias), Lost left enough unanswered questions after its first season to keep viewers riveted for a second season. --David Horiuchi
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Matthew Fox, Naveen Andrews, Emilie de Ravin , Jorge Garcia , Maggie Grace, Josh Holloway |
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| | | | Lost S2 | | | | A horrific plane crash leaves 48 passengers alive, and stranded on a remote island in the South Pacific. The survivors include doctor Jack, now freed prisoner Kate, one hit wonder rock star Charlie, Iraqi military vet Sayid, and a mysterious man named Locke. For a while their goal is simple survival, but they soon realize that it was far more than mere chance that brought them together, and each of them has a purpose that will help them unlock the island's secrets. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Dominic Monaghan, Michelle Rodriguez, Naveen Andrews, Emilie de Ravin |
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| | | | Lost S3 | | | | Find the answers you’ve been looking for in the explosive third season of the show USA Today calls "the most gorgeous, audacious, expansive series on network TV." As the power of the island to both heal and destroy comes into sharp focus, the lines between good and evil are blurred and loyalties are challenged when the survivors of the crash become tangled within the lives of the Others. Plan your escape, and immerse yourself in all 23 episodes of Season Three. Go deeper than ever before in this seven-disc DVD box set, complete with hours of never-before-seen bonus features, including secrets from the world of the Others, behind-the-scenes featurettes, unprecedented access to the Lost writers room, and so much more. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Jorge Garcia, Dominic Monaghan, Josh Holloway, Terry O'Quinn |
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| | | | Lucky Louie | | | |
| Genre: | comedy | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Man with the Golden Gun | | | | The British superspy with a license to kill takes on his dark underworld double, a classy assassin who kills with golden bullets at $1 million a hit. Roger Moore, in his second outing as James Bond, meets Christopher Lee's Scaramanga, one of the most magnetic villains in the entire series, in this entertaining but rather wan entry in the 007 sweepstakes. Bond's globetrotting search takes him to Hong Kong, Bangkok, and finally China, where Scaramanga turns his island retreat into a twisted theme park for a deadly game of wits between the gunmen, moderated by Scaramanga's diminutive man Friday Nick Nack (Fantasy Island's Herv Villechaize). Moore balances the overplayed humor of the film with a steely performance and Lee's charm and enthusiasm makes Scaramanga a cool, deadly, and thoroughly enchanting adversary. --Sean Axmaker |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | | | Cast: | Roger Moore |
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| | | | Many Fists of Bruce Lee | | | |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Martial Arts Masters | | | |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Mary Tyler Moore S1 | | | | She finally made it after all... to DVD! Created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns, The Mary Tyler Moore Show is the very model of a tailor-made star vehicle. It transformed Moore from Dick Van Dyke's wacky housewife to empowered thirtysomething single woman determined to make it on her own. Moore was the anchor of a peerless ensemble who brought to life characters so indelible that three of them, Ed Asner's Lou Grant, Valerie Harper's Rhoda, and Cloris Leachman's Phyllis, would each get their own series. The 24 episodes that comprise the Emmy-winning first season (1970) hilariously set the stage for what would become one of television's most beloved sitcoms, ranked by TV Guide in 2002 as the 11th greatest of all time (it should have been higher!). The classic pilot episode is a master class of character-based comedy writing, as Mary meets her future "family" at the WJM newsroom, as well as upstairs neighbor Rhoda, with whom she would form perhaps TV's greatest female buddy team.
Among the most memorable episodes are "Support Your Local Mother," which won an Emmy for Outstanding Writing and introduced Nancy Walker as Rhoda's maddening mother, Ida. Another Emmy-winner is "Toulouse-Lautrec Is One of My Favorite Artists," in which Mary dates a height-challenged author. Lending able support in this inaugural season is a stellar guest star roster of comic actors who, like Harper and Asner, apprenticed with Chicago's legendary improvisational Second City troupe: Shelley Berman ("Divorce Isn't Everything"); Bob Dishy ("Second Story Story"); Richard Schaal ("Today I Am a Ma'am," "The Snow Must Go On," in which he plays the ill-fated Chuckles the Clown," and "Howard's Girl"); and Paul Sand ("1040 or Fight"). At this point, the characters are pretty much one-note. Mary is cute and perky, Lou Grant hard-boiled, Rhoda brash, Phyllis flighty, and Ted Knight's vainglorious anchorman Ted Baxter idiotic. But what beautiful music they all would make in seasons to come. --Donald Liebenson
Description
Welcome back to WJM-TV Minneapolis! Over its seven year run, The Mary Tyler Moore Show won twenty-nine Emmy Awards. Now get ready to turn back the dial to 1970 and rejoin the gang from WJM - the lowest-rated (but most hilarious) evening news show in Minneapolis. Relive all the laughter with Mary, Lou, Murray, Ted, Rhoda and Phyllis as the first season of this classic TV show arrives on DVD.
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| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Mary Tyler Moore, Ed Asner, Ted Knight, Valerie Harper |
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| | | | Master wt Cracked Fingers | | | | Young Jackie was intrigued by Kung-Fu since an early age, but his father strictly forbade its practice. One day, he meets an old beggar who offers to teach Jackie how to fight. Jackie grows up to be quite good though he keeps his knowledge a secret until he is forced to fight by an extortion ring that's putting the squeeze on his uncle's restaurant. |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jackie Chan, Siu Tien Yuen, Dean Shek, Kwok Choi Hon, Biao Yuen |
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| | | | Metalocalypse | | | | Dethklok is the biggest, baddest, and most famous heavy metal band in the world. The quintet, consisting of Americans Nathan Explosion (vocals), William Murderface (bass), and Pickles the Drummer, along with Scandinavian guitarists Toki Wartooth and Skwisgaar Skwigelf, have to deal with their fame and other situations in their lives, all the while being monitored by a government organization out to destroy them. |
| Genre: | Animation | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Miami Vice season 1 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Miami Vice season 2 | | | |
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| | | | Miami Vice Season 3 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Miami Vice season 4 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Miami Vice season 5 | | | |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Mind Of Mencia | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Mind of Mencia S1 | | | | Watch twelve merciless episodes from the first season of Comedy Central's new hit show where Carlos takes on everything from white people to black people to brown people to slightly tan people. Be warned, in Mencia's mind, no one's safe from his raging rants and whip-smart instincts. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Kelly D. Hommon | | Cast: | Carlos Mencia, Courtney Andresen, Ankur Bhatt, Ken Jeong, Nick Malis |
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| | | | Moonraker | | | | This was the first James Bond adventure produced after the success of Star Wars, so it jumped on the sci-fi bandwagon by combining the suave appeal of Agent 007 (once again played by Roger Moore) with enough high-tech hardware and special effects to make Luke Skywalker want to join Her Majesty's Secret Service. After the razzle-dazzle of The Spy Who Loved Me, this attempt to latch onto a trend proved to be a case of overkill, even though it brought back the steel-toothed villain Jaws (Richard Kiel) and scored a major hit at the box office. This time Bond is up against a criminal industrialist named Drax (Michel Lonsdale) who wants to control the world from his orbiting space station. In keeping with his well-groomed style, Bond thwarts this maniacal Neo-Hitler's scheme with the help of a beautiful, sleek-figured scientist (played by Lois Chiles with all the vitality of a department-store mannequin). There's a grand-scale climax involving space shuttles and ray guns, but despite the film's popular success, this is one Bond adventure that never quite gets off the launching pad. It's as if the caretakers of the James Bond franchise had forgotten that it's Bond--and not a barrage of gizmos and gadgets (including a land-worthy Venetian gondola)--that fuels the series' success. Despite Moore's passive performance (which Pauline Kael described as "like an office manager who is turning into dead wood but hanging on to collect his pension"), Moonraker had no problem attracting an appreciative audience, and there are even a few renegade Bond-philes who consider it one of their favorites. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Lewis Gilbert | | Cast: | Roger Moore, Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale, Richard Kiel, Corinne Clery, Bernard Lee |
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| | | | My Name is Earl S1 | | | | Karma is a funny thing. Just ask Earl (Jason Lee), who's learning the hard way that when you do something bad, it has a way of coming back and biting you in the ass! Hoping to turn his life around, Earl's got a lengthy list of detestable deeds to make up for. Also starring Jamie Pressly, Ethan Suplee, Eddie Steeples and Nadine Velazquez, My Name Is Earl is wildly offbeat and hilariously irreverent?the #1 new comedy of the season! |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jason Lee, Ethan Suplee, Nadine Velazquez, Jaime Pressly, Eddie Steeples |
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| | | | My Name Is Earl S2 | | | | Doing the right thing isn?t always easy. Just ask Earl Hickey (Lee), a recovering ne?er-do-well with a lifetime?s worth of dirty deeds to make up for. In order to turn his life around, Earl needs a G.E.D., a job, an apartment and a whole lot of good karma. And, if he can keep his ex-wife out of prison, so much the better! Join Earl and his gang of loveable losers as he continues his wildly offbeat transformation from hood to good in the uproarious and outrageous Season Two of ?My Name is Earl?... It?s not always politically correct, but it?s always hilarious! |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jason Lee, Ethan Suplee, Nadine Velazquez, Jaime Pressly, Eddie Steeples, Giovanni Ribisi |
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| | | | Nightmares and Dreamscapes | | | | An eight episode adaptation of Stephen King's short stories, primarily from the Nightmares and Dreamscapes series. "Battleground" follows a quiet hitman becoming a target for violent revenge when he finds a mysterious package on his doorstep; A young woman and her attorney husband getting lost in a notoriously evil London neighborhood named "Crouch End"; "Umney's Last Case" is a 1930's era detective who realizes he's the main character in a novel, and he's being written out; A successful filmmaker films himself in "The End of the Whole Mess", recalling his genius brother's life and the scientific plan he applied to end world violence with unanticipated results; "The Road Virus Heads North" drives into gear as a celebrated writer realizes the demonic figure in the painting he's just acquired, is changing to show that it's onto the same stretch of road he's on; "The Fifth Quarter" has an ex-convict who goes to dastardly means to find treasure that puts his family's life at risk; "Autopsy Room Four" is the occupancy of a man whose about to witness his own autopsy and he's speechless to stop it; A husband and wife on a spontaneous road trip, whose stopover in a town inhabited by late music legends, might not be temporary when they're told "You Know They Got a Hell of a Band". |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | William Hurt, William H Macy, Eion Bailey, Ron Livingston, Claire Forlani, Kim Delany |
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| | | | Ninja Hunter | | | | Alexander Lou (Super Ninja) stars in this Ninja action extravaganza! When the villainous Abbot White hires a group of evil Ninjas to help him destroy the Shaolin Temple, Lou and his righteous Ninjas must face the killers in a sword-slashing, knuckle-bashing duel to the death. Featuring some of the craziest Ninja fights ever filmed, NINJA HUNTER is supercharged action galore! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Wu Kuo Jen | | Cast: | Alexander Lo Rei , Lung Goon Mo , Jack Lung (Goon Ng) , William Yen , Chen Shan , Chung Ling |
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| | | | Ninja in the Deadly Trap | | | |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Phillip Kwok | | Cast: | Lu Feng , Chiang Sheng , Phillip Kwok , Ti Lung , Yasuaki Kurata (Shoji Kurata) , Cho Boon Feng |
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| | | | Ninja in the USA | | | | The spellbinding ALEXANDER LOU (Super Ninja, Ninja Hunter) is back as the ever-popular masked avenger in this action-packed adventure! When a beautiful young bride is kidnapped by an evil drug cartel kingpin, his groom (Lou), who just happens to be a top-notch undercover Ninja, vows to take matters into his own hands--and blades. Featuring the mysterious "Five Elements Ninja", Ninja In The USA is a must-have for ninja and other martial arts lovers! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Dennis Wu | | Cast: | Alexander Lo Rei , George Nicholas , Eugene Thomas (Eugene Trammel) |
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| | | | Ninja Scroll Series | | | | Four-disc set includes all three volumes of Ninja Scroll: The Series and a bonus disc loaded with extra features. The Bonus Disc includes audio commentary from the director and cast, a glimpse into the Mad House Animation Studio, trivia game, DVD-Rom features and more. Based on one of the best-selling anime films in U.S. history (Ninja Scroll, 1994). Production overseen by Yoshiaki Kawajiri (creator of Ninja Scroll and director of Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust).
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | M (Mature 17+) | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Ninja Scroll Series | | | | Four-disc set includes all three volumes of Ninja Scroll: The Series and a bonus disc loaded with extra features. The Bonus Disc includes audio commentary from the director and cast, a glimpse into the Mad House Animation Studio, trivia game, DVD-Rom features and more. Based on one of the best-selling anime films in U.S. history (Ninja Scroll, 1994). Production overseen by Yoshiaki Kawajiri (creator of Ninja Scroll and director of Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust).
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | M (Mature 17+) | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Ninja Scroll Series | | | | Four-disc set includes all three volumes of Ninja Scroll: The Series and a bonus disc loaded with extra features. The Bonus Disc includes audio commentary from the director and cast, a glimpse into the Mad House Animation Studio, trivia game, DVD-Rom features and more. Based on one of the best-selling anime films in U.S. history (Ninja Scroll, 1994). Production overseen by Yoshiaki Kawajiri (creator of Ninja Scroll and director of Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust).
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | M (Mature 17+) | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Ninja Vs Bruce Lee | | | | It's classic Bruce Le action in this nonstop thriller! When the insidious Japanese Ninja is corrupting the police force, only one man can take on the cunning enemy from the land of the rising sun! With powerful clashes of Ninjitsu and Chinese kung fu, Ninja vs. Bruce Lee is kick-butt Brice Le action galore! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Joseph Velasco | | Cast: | Bruce Le , Lo Lieh , Kong Tau , Long Ma Tien, James Nam , Lee Cheung |
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| | | | Ninja vs Ninja | | | | An international cast is featured in this wacky Ninja saga, as an evil drug baron hires a Ninja sect to wipe out a cure for heroin addiction. It is up to a secret police agent who is also an undercover Ninja to fight the bad guys. Featuring ninjas of all races and the legendary "Five Elements" Ninja, Ninja vs. Ninja is a must-see for ninja and kung fu fans! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Hui Hsiao Chiang , Ga Lun (Callan Leong) , Pedro Alberto |
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| | | | Ninja Vs Shaolin Guards | | | | The great ALEXANDER LOU (Super Ninja, Ninja Hunter) stars in this old school kung fu adventure! When President Yuen of the new Chinese Republic demands that the Shaolin Temple give up the precious "Golden Sutra" of Da Mor, the Shaolin monks rejected Yuen's edict. As Yuen enlists the help of Ninjas to destroy all oppositions, it is now up to the elite Shaolin fighter guards to save the Temple and its priceless artifact! Ninja vs. Shaolin Guards is dynamite Shaolin kung fu fighting! |
| Genre: | Martial Arts | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | William Cheung Kei | | Cast: | Alexander Lo Rei , Alan Chui (Chung San) , Chin Fei , Cheung Goon Lung , Eagle Han Ying , Wong Lung |
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| | | | Nip Tuck S1 | | | | The turbulent lives of two handsome and high-priced Miami plastic surgeons may be one of the more unusual premises for a television series, but the FX Channel's Nip/Tuck combines sudsy sex and biting wit with the emotional quandaries involved in body modification in a way that makes for an engrossing--and occasionally gross--hourlong drama. The show benefits greatly from its two leads--Dylan Walsh as the troubled "good" surgeon and Julian McMahon as his predatory (but equally troubled) "bad" partner--as well as Joely Richardson as Walsh's wife and Roma Maffia as the surgeons' nurse. If Nip/Tuck does have a stumbling point, it's in its occasionally glib dialogue (series creator Ryan Murphy was a writer for the verbally flashy high school series Popular), which can clash with an episode's more dramatic and poignant moments. The show also doesn't shy away from showing the more gruesome aspects of plastic surgery, but viewers can often see more stomach-churning images on the top-rated CSI. But the strength of the performances and the originality of the premise make these rough spots manageable for viewers looking for an interesting spin on the usual "doctor show." The five-DVD set offers an extended version of the pilot and all 12 episodes of the first season as well as a trio of documentaries (one on the show itself, another on its special effects, and a third, "Realistic Expectations," on real-life plastic surgeons). A gag reel (amusingly titled "Severed Parts"), a selection of deleted scenes for most episodes, and a music video for the title theme ("A Perfect Lie" by the Engine Room) round out the box. --Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Dylan Walsh, Julian McMahon, John Hensley, Valery Cruz, Joely Richardson |
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| | | | Nip Tuck S2 | | | | It's time for a follow-up appointment at McNamara-Troy, Florida's hottest--and most dysfunctional--plastic surgery center, and the setting for the controversial television drama Nip/Tuck, which gives audiences a peek into the professional and private lives of two driven doctors and their (mostly female) patients. If the first season had its share of shocking visuals and storylines, viewers should probably strap themselves into their easy chairs for the events in season 2. In addition to the usual offbeat medical issues (the team gives a man breasts, reconstructs a woman's sexual organs, restores a host of gruesome mutilations, and comes very close to undoing Joan Rivers's face work), Drs. McNamara (Dylan Walsh) and Troy (Julian McMahon) must deal with a vicious serial killer known as the Carver, a vengeful former patient (Jill Clayburgh), a woman with alleged stigmata, and a life coach (Famke Janssen) who reveals a stunning secret past--all in the course of just 16 episodes. Guest turns by Alec Baldwin, Vanessa Redgrave (the real-life mother to series regular Joely Richardson), and Sarah Paulson (Deadwood) compliment the already high-quality performances by the cast, and the episodes seem to have ditched the glibness of season 1 in favor of a more serious tone, which makes for a more uniformly enjoyable watching experience. As with the season 1 set, The Complete Second Season includes several extras, most notably 45 minutes of deleted scenes, and a featurette titled "Recurring Pain," which explores the relationships between three female characters and Dr. Troy. --Paul Gaita |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Dylan Walsh, Julian McMahon, John Hensley, Roma Maffia, Joely Richardson |
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| | | | Nip Tuck S3 | | | | He -- or is it she? -- slices, they stitch. He maims, they heal. Plastic surgeons Sean McNamara and Christian Troy have vowed to make whole the victims of the elusive, mysterious serial slasher called the Carver. But mending the rifts in their own families and careers will require much more than their famed technical skills. Dylan Walsh and Julian McMahon return for a sensational Season 3 filled with eroticism, suspense and medical challenges ranging from a daring facial transplant to a 650-pound woman whose skin has fused with her sofa. There's a new doctor on staff, too: Dr. Quentin Costa, a tango expert and perhaps an expert at dissecting the practice for his own ends. Plus: Julia launches a new career, troubled Matt falls in with skinheads and the Carver turns out to be.... Sorry, our lips are sealed. Watch and find out. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Dylan Walsh, Julian McMahon, Joely Richardson, John Hensley, Kelly Carlson, Jessalyn Gilsig |
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| | | | Nip Tuck S4 | | | | Sean McNamara and Christian Troy are two plastic surgeons running a partnership in Miami, Florida with different issues to life. Sean is a wishy-washy, weak-kneed, family man who distances himself with work to avoid his dysfunctional home life which includes his needy and spiteful wife Julia, his rebellious teenage son Matt and young daughter Annie. The more slicker Christian is an arrogant, narcissistic, unethical, ladies man who worships wine, women, and the all mighty dollar, and will do just about anything to get what he wants (lie, cheat, steal, blackmail and seduce)and has no qualms about practically anything. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Julian McMahon, Dylan Walsh, Kelly Carlson, Joely Richardson, Sanaa Lathan, Tracy Scoggins |
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| | | | NYPD Blue S1 | | | | Within the first few minutes of the pilot episode, it's clear what made NYPD Blue stand out from the rest of the cop show pack, as the characters express themselves in startlingly colorful language. This, combined with glimpses of nudity, earned NYPD Blue the reputation as R-rated television--but just about every episode demonstrates the propulsive storytelling and superb ensemble acting that put substance behind the flash. The show revolves around two detectives: Tough, moralistic, but passionate John Kelly (David Caruso) and hair-trigger Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz), who wrestles with booze and racist tendencies. Caruso rose to prominence as the star, but his intensity bleeds too easily into preening self-righteousness; it's Franz, with a much more complex role, who really drives the show.
NYPD Blue's writers skillfully navigate both single-episode criminal cases (ranging from tense procedural sequences like Kelly slowly drawing a confession out of a man who killed a cab driver, to lighter cases like a stolen Oscar statuette) and storylines that stretch dizzily across the entire season. These sustained plots are the real meat of the show: Kelly's hardline ethics are humanized by watching him clumsily come to a professional relationship with his ex-wife Laura (Sherry Stringfield) and work through an affair with Officer Janice Licalsi (Amy Brenneman), who is herself entangled with mobsters; while Sipowicz's near-death in the pilot has repercussions that crop up throughout the series, threatening his sobriety and his developing relationship with a lawyer (Sharon Lawrence)--and then there's his tense relationship with African American Lt. Fancy (James McDaniel), which affords some trenchant looks at racism inside and outside the department. The writing, directing, and acting only gets more subtle and complex as the show goes on, making this set a must for any fan. --Bret Fetzer
Description
RIDE ALONG WITH THE BOYS IN BLUE. It was the groundbreaking series that broke all the rules and triggered what may be the biggest mutiny in TV history when some station affiliates across the country refused to carry the show. Some viewers also complained, but the majority loved what was being touted as TV's first R-rated series. Now in its tenth year, NYPD Blue has garnered an amazing 86 Emmy Award(r) nominations and 21 wins. So if you missed all the excitement back then, don't miss it now! Take a ride back to 1993 and join the cops of the 15th Precinct for the first season of NYPD Blue.
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | David Caruso, Dennis Franz, James McDaniel, Sherry Stringfeild, Amy Brenneman, Nicholas Tuturro |
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| | | | NYPD Blue S2 | | | | Originally broadcast in 1994, the second season of NYPD Blue was disrupted by the departure of star David Caruso (Detective John Kelly) after just four episodes, under apparently less than amicable circumstances. He was ably replaced as Detective Sipowicz's partner by Jimmy Smits as the smoother Detective Bobby Simone, and the series managed not to miss a beat.
More streamlined and downbeat than its predecessor, Hill Street Blues (also created by Steven Bochco), NYPD Blue continued second time around to mix near-the-knuckle detective work to foil New York's scummiest with more character- and relationship-based drama. Although it's regrettable that its ethnic minority characters, such as Lieutenant Fancy, are increasingly marginalized here, the series is more comfortable--and even has fun--with regular characters such as the nervy Detective Medavoy and his on-off paramour Donna Abandando. Andy Sipowicz's simmering, tough-nosed recovering alcoholic is increasingly and amusingly put to the test in a number of situations, including: a murder investigation in a gay bar; being sung to at his own wedding by Nic Turturro's Detective Martinez; and a love scene in the shower in which we experience the dubious pleasure of seeing his bare rear.
New female introductions, such as the strong but sympathetic Detective Lesniak, also helped to shake up the series with a much-needed estrogen boost. There's also fun to be had in spotting a number of guest appearances by up-and-coming actors destined to make it in their own right such as Richard Schiff and Bradley Whitford (The West Wing) and Debra Messing (Will & Grace).
The DVD set contains a number of extras, primarily a one-hour documentary in which the cast and crew discuss the series episode by episode, the self-congratulatory mood broken only by some subtle digs at departing star David Caruso (apparently, he walked straight off the set following his final take into a waiting limo without any farewells). There's also a small piece paying tribute to the music of theme-writer Mike Post and an item covering the relationship between Sipowicz and Assistant DA Sylvia Costas, in whose marriage this series culminates. --David Stubbs |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Jimmy Smits, Dennis Franz, James McDaniel, Amy Brenneman, Nicholas Turturro, Sharon Lawrence |
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| | | | NYPD Blue S3 | | | | One of the most acclaimed and beloved dramas in television history, NYPD Blue has finally signed off from network TV. Relive all the passion, brotherhood, joy, and heartbreak of the 15th precinct as NYPD Blue is immortalized on DVD with Season 3. In this season Dennis Franz won his second of 4 Emmys for Best Actor in a Drama for NYPD Blue; Franz character, Det. Andy Sipowicz, experiences the highs of falling in love and the lows of experiencing the loss of his son Andy Jr. to a violent murder. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | NYPD Blue S4 | | | | In the fourth season of this award-winning show, the action at New York City's 15th Precinct is as hectic as ever. While Lieutenant Fancy continues as precinct commander, Detective Andy Sipowicz, although still a bit rough around the edges, has mellowed with the birth of his son. Detective Bobby Simone and Detective Diane Russell take the next step in their relationship, James Martinez becomes the Squad Delegate, and Greg Meadavoy considers becoming a surrogate father. But one thing that hasn't changed is the squad's determination to make sure the bad guys get their day in court and to also attempt to maintain a touch of normalcy in their personal lives even as they investigate cases that often put them directly in the line of fire. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | OC S1 | | | |
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| | | | Octopussy | | | | Roger Moore was nearing the end of his reign as James Bond when he made Octopussy, and he looks a little worn out. But the movie itself infuses some new blood into the old franchise, with a frisky pace and a pair of sturdy villains. Maud Adams--who'd also been in the Bond outing The Man with the Golden Gun--plays the improbably named Octopussy, while old smoothie Louis Jourdan is her crafty partner in crime. There's an island populated only by women, plus a fantastic sequence with a hand-to-hand fight that happens on a plane--and on top of a plane. The film even has an extra emotional punch, since this time out 007 is not only following the orders of Her Majesty's Secret Service, but he is also exacting a personal revenge: a fellow double-0 agent has been killed. Two Bond films were actually released in 1983 within a few months of each other, as Octopussy was followed by Sean Connery's comeback in Never Say Never Again. The success of both pictures proved that there was still plenty of mileage left in the old license to kill, though Moore had one more workout--A View to a Kill--before hanging it up. And that title? The franchise had already used up the titles to Ian Fleming's novels, so Octopussy was taken from a lesser-known Fleming short story. --Robert Horton |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | John Glen | | Cast: | Roger Moore, Maud Adams, Louis Jourdan, Kristina Wayborn, Kabir Bedi, Steven Berkoff |
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| | | | Office A1 | | | | The British sitcom The Office has the most devoted following this side of Monty Python, so an American remake seemed doomed. Amazingly, the remake actually finds its own enjoyable version of the original's uncanny comedy of embarrassment. Office manager Michael Scott (Steve Carell, The Daily Show, The 40 Year-Old Virgin) believes he's the beloved leader of the Scranton, Pennsylvania, branch of a paper products company--but his relentless and painfully forced efforts at comedy creep out everyone around him, including paranoid Dwight (Rainn Wilson, who had a memorable recurring role on Six Feet Under), nervous receptionist Pam (Jenna Fischer, LolliLove), and aimless salesman Jim (John Krasinski, A New Wave), who's smitten with the already engaged Pam. The pilot episode suffers from closely replicating the British pilot, but after that The Office finds its own footing, turning diversity training, an office birthday party, and a basketball game into excruciating yet hypnotically funny rituals of humiliation. Carell, though clearly talented, can't match Ricky Gervais' unique performance as the aggressively needy British manager (it's hard to imagine that anyone could); as a result, the supporting roles become more prominent, and Wilson, Fischer, and Krasinski quickly create a rapport that matches and may even exceed that of their British counterparts. Be sure to watch the deleted scenes; remarkably, they're as good as the material that made it on the air in this six-episode season. --Bret Fetzer |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Steven Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer |
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| | | | Office A2 | | | | It's time to clock in for Season Two of The Office, the hilarious and witty TV-mockumentary starring Steve Carell (The 40-Year-Old Virgin) in his Golden Globe Award-winning role. From sexual politics to performance reviews to email espionage, the employees at Dunder-Mifflin are there to get the job done…or not. Join earnest but clueless boss Michael Scott (Carell), Assistant to the Regional Manager Dwight (Rainn Wilson), receptionist Pam (Jenna Fischer), sales rep Jim (John Krasinski), and the office temp, Ryan (B.J. Novak), as they make the daily grind a lot more laughable. Fully staffed with 22 outrageous episodes and hours of side-splitting bonus features, it’s the must-own collection that caused Time magazine to declare "Never has a lousy job been so much fun." |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, Jenna Fischer, John Krasinski, B.J. Novak, Brian Baumgartner |
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| | | | Office A3 | | | | A remake of the hit 2001 BBC TV series The Office (2001), this is a mockumentary that documents the exploits of a paper supply company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Made up of head chief Michael Scott, a harmlessly deluded and ignorantly insensitive boss who cares about the welfare of his employees while trying to put his own spin on company policy. With an office including the likes of various peers who have their own hangups, The Office (2005) takes a look at the lives of its co-workers: bored but talented salesman Jim, his mildly sociopathic, butt kissing enemy Dwight, mildly righteous receptionist Pam, and indifferent temp Ryan. |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, Jenna Fischer, John Krasinski, B.J. Novak, Brian Baumgartner |
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| | | | Office BBC S1&2 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | On Her Majesty's Secret Service | | | | Australian model George Lazenby took up the mantle of the world's most suave secret agent when Sean Connery retired as James Bond--prematurely, it turned out. Connery returned in Diamonds Are Forever before leaving the role to Roger Moore and Lazenby's subsequent career fizzled, yet this one-hit wonder is responsible for one of the best Bond films of all time.
In On Her Majesty's Secret Service, 007 leaves the Service to privately pursue his SPECTRE nemesis Blofeld (played this time by Telly Savalas), whose latest master plan involves a threat to the world's crops by agricultural sterilization. Bond teams up with suave international crime lord Draco (Gabriele Ferzetti) and falls in love with--and marries--his elegant daughter, Tracy (Diana Rigg). Bond goes monogamous? Not at first; after all he has Blofeld's harem to seduce. Lazenby hasn't the intensity of Connery but he has fun with his quips and even lampoons the Bond image in a playful pre-credits sequence, and Rigg, fresh from playing sexy Emma Peel in The Avengers, matches 007 in every way. Former editor Peter Hunt makes a strong directorial debut, deftly handling the elaborate action sequences--including a car chase turned road rally through the icy snow--with a kinetic finesse and a dash of humor. Though not a hit on its original release, On Her Majesty's Secret Service has become a fan favorite and the closest the series has come to capturing the spirit of Ian Fleming's books. --Sean Axmaker
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| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | PG | | Director: | Peter R. Hunt | | Cast: | George Lazenby, Diana Rigg, Telly Savalas, Gabriele Ferzetti, Bernard Lee, Lois Maxwell |
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| | | | Osbournes S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Over There S1 | | | | In this ground-breaking new series from Steven Bochco (NYPD Blue, Hill Street Blues) "Over There" takes you to the front lines of battle and explores the effects of war on a U.S. Army unit sent to Iraq on their first tour of duty, as well as the equally powerful effects felt at home by their families and loved ones. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | Steven Bochco | | Cast: | Josh Henderson, Erik Palladino, Luke MacFarlane, Keith Robinson (III), Sticky Fingaz |
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| | | | Oz S1 | | | | HBO's violent men-behind-bars drama is an addictive, testosterone-driven soap opera for guys. The eight episodes of the first season set the style for the show: a massive cast of a vivid characters on both sides of the bars, four or five stories unleashed at a breakneck pace and framed by angry, oddball introductions, and a soaring casualty rate. Created by Homicide producer Tom Fontana, this drama quickly earned its rightful reputation as the most brutal show on TV. It's simple chemistry: combine volatile ingredients in a confined space, shut tight, and shake.
The yellow brick road of the Oswald Correctional Facility (affectionately known as "Oz" among the inmates) leads to "Emerald City," an antiseptic cellblock of cement and glass overseen by prison-reform advocate Tim McManus (Terry Kinney). The first episode introduces its two most compelling inmates: meek lawyer Beecher (Lee Terguson), who transforms from a vulnerable lamb to a fearless, drug-addicted wildcat, and Muslim activist Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker), a fiercely non-violent leader whose campaign for reform explodes in a season-climaxing riot. The stunning first-season cast also features Ernie Hudson (the warden), Rita Moreno (a worldly drug-counseling nun), and Edie Falco (who jumped from her role as a single-mother prison guard to mob wife in The Sopranos). It carries no rating, but the drug use, nudity, and brutal violence make this highly inappropriate for young viewers and unsuited to the squeamish. Oz pulls no punches in its portrayal of prison violence and predatory abuse. --Sean Axmaker |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | R | | Director: | Tom Fontana | | Cast: | Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, Harold Perrineau, Eamonn Walker, Kirk Acevedo, Edie Falco |
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| | | | Oz S2 | | | | If the title of HBO's brutal prison drama suggests a fairy tale, be warned that this Oz lies on the other side of the rainbow. This gritty portrait of men behind bars is a testosterone-driven soap opera packed with murder, suicide, sadism, and savage battles for dominance in the concrete jungle.
Season 2 opens in the wake of a prison riot that shut down the experimental cell block known as "Emerald City" among the inmates, but it doesn't take long to build a whole new head of steam after prison reformer Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) reopens the unit. The drug wars pit the Italians against the blacks, the Aryan Brotherhood re-establish their campaign of intimidation, and Alvarez is pushed to desperate measures when he's ousted by the new Latino leader (Luiz Guzmán). Even more volatile than the physical brutality (this season offers up a bloody blinding and a crucifixion) is the soul-crushing psychodrama played out between vicious Aryan leader Schillinger (J.K. Simmons) and Beecher (Lee Tergeson), the meek lawyer transformed into a drug-addicted wild man by prison's predatory world and seduced by cold-blooded killer Chris Keller (Law and Order: SVU's Christopher Meloni).
Some the stories get lost in the thrilling runaway pacing, but at its best Oz's searing stories of men penned in and pushing back goes straight for the jugular and invariably draws blood.
In addition to HBO's four-minute promotional short is an interesting featurette in which the creators and select actors discuss the show. The three-disc set also features cast and crew bios, an episode index, and episodic previews.--Sean Axmaker
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| Genre: | Dogs | | Rating: | R | | Director: | Tom Fontana | | Cast: | Kirk Acevedo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, Christopher Meloni, Rita Moreno |
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| | | | Oz S3 | | | | A volatile men-in-prison soap opera, fueled by testosterone and lubricated by blood, HBO's Oz is addictive viewing. The third season of the most violent show on cable TV, set in a cage of concrete and steel and glass, opens with echoes of violence past. Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo) is in solitary confinement for brutally blinding a guard, one-time drug lord Simon Adebissi (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) mourns for his murdered father, and Tobias Beecher (Lee Tergesen) nurses bones broken by Aryan Brotherhood leader Schillinger (J.K. Simmons) and a heart broken by the betrayal of Keller (Law and Order: SVU's Christopher Meloni). Their stories of vengeance, redemption, and forgiveness anchor this season.
The show races through each episode with a driving pace that only intensifies the ferocity. But for all the show's physical brutality, the most affecting violence is emotional, from the strange and savage love affair between Beecher and Keller to the escalating war of terror between Beecher and Schillinger. On a lighter note, this season marks the debut of both Miss Sally and new prison CO Sean Murphy (Robert Clohessy), whose understated strength is too often overlooked in the face of the show's more explosive personalities. Season 3 ends pitched on a powder keg, with the fuse in the hands of the show's most ferocious, unpredictable character. It's the kind of promise that will have you slavering for season 4.
The three-disc set features all eight episodes along with a season 2 recap, episode recaps and previews, commentary on the episode "Unnatural Disasters" by writer-creator Tom Fontana and episode director Chazz Palmintieri, and 22 minutes of deleted scenes. --Sean Axmaker
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| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | R | | Director: | Tom Fontana | | Cast: | Kirk Acevedo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, Christopher Meloni, Rita Moreno |
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| | | | Oz S4 | | | | The heightened reality of Oz remains consistently engrossing in the fourth season of HBO's volatile prison drama. All 16 episodes were written or cowritten by series creator Tom Fontana, and are bookended by the wisely sardonic observations of paraplegic prisoner Augustus Hill (Harold Perrineau), whose terse, philosophical ruminations about life in "Oz" give the series its literate edge. The 2000-2001 season finds Oz in the wake of racial warfare; tensions remain high among the factions that make the "Em City" cell block a hotbed of seething animosity among the skinhead Aryans led by Shillinger (J.K. Simmons); Muslim splinter groups led by Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker), the fearsome Adebisi (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) and Supreme Allah (Lord Jamar); and the resident Mafia, Latinos, and lowlifes who make up Em City's embroiled population of newcomers, hard-timers, and death-row inmates. Unit Administrator McManus (Terry Kinney) sets up a centrally located penalty cage for anyone who causes outbreaks of violence (which are shockingly frequent and frequently lethal), but loses his job in a mid-season plot development that spins Oz into a maelstrom of internal politics and brutal retaliation.
Through it all, Fontana and his collaborators (including guest director Steve Buscemi) maintain impressive focus on dozens of finely drawn characters. Laced with homosexual tension, jealousies, religious fervor, and threats of betrayal, the season's most compelling conflicts involve impulsive killer Ryan O'Reily (played with cagey menace by Dean Winters) and his brain-damaged half-brother Cyril (Scott William Winters); and the manipulative Keller (Christopher Meloni) and his prison lover Toby Beecher (Lee Tergesen), a lawyer and convicted murderer whose survival seems perpetually uncertain. Tenuous order is barely maintained by warden Glynn (Ernie Hudson) and Catholic counselor "Sister Pete" (Rita Moreno), but the bulk of Oz's fourth season is devoted to chaos, as shifting loyalties keep all prisoners (and all viewers) in a state of anxious anticipation. The criminal histories of many inmates are shown in flashback, and one death-row scenario (involving guest star Kathryn Erbe) reaches its inevitable conclusion. By the time episode 16 ends with a blazing inferno, you'll be wondering about the fate of Rev. Cloutier (Luke Perry) and anxious for the tumultuous events of season 5. (Commentary accompanies two episodes: Fontana and Moreno offer informative anecdotes on "You Bet Your Life," but the Fontana/Winters/Tergesen commentary on "Famous Last Words" is raucously undisciplined and for hardcore Oz fans only.)--Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kirk Acevedo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, Christopher Meloni |
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| | | | Oz S5 | | | | Raw, uncompromising, and brutal, the fifth season of Oz represents a turning point for the series, tying up loose ends and preparing for the closure of season 6. As with all previous seasons of HBO's hard-edged prison series, the outbreaks of violence, racial tensions, emotional bleakness, and full-frontal male nudity ensure that Oz is decidedly not for the weak of heart. Simmering animosity between the Aryans, Muslims, Sicilians, and Latinos continues unabated; these eight episodes include numerous shankings and slashings, a severed arm, strangulation, a stabbing with a crucifix, and the death (among others) of one of the series' most prominent characters. As Schillinger (J.K. Simmons) and his skinheaded Aryans exploit a naive pair of new inmates, tensions mount between the weak-willed Omar (Michael Wright, in a standout performance) and his prone-to-rage Muslim mentor Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker, also excellent); Ryan O'Reily (Dean Winters) continues to protect his volatile brother Cyril (Scott William Winters) and reunites with his mother (Betty Lynn Buckley) who's in Oz doing community service; McManus (Terry Kinney) locks horns with his ex-wife over prison policy; Alvarez (Kirk Acevado) seeks partial redemption by training a guide-dog for the guard he blinded; and Keller (Christopher Meloni) returns to the "Em City" cellblock, to the relief of his bisexual lover Beecher (Lee Tergesen) who attends "interaction" sessions with Sister Pete (Rita Moreno) to encourage tenuous peace among inmates.
With subplots involving guest stars Luke Perry, Peter Criss (from Kiss), Malachy McCourt, and others, the fifth season of Oz is weak at times, but series creator and primary writer Tom Fontana keeps a lot of characters in steady play, covering impressive dramatic territory after the relatively generous allotment of 16 episodes in Season 4. The series is clearly winding down here (the semi-musical episode "Variety" is a curious attempt to broaden the show's creative horizons, and works surprisingly well), and the outbreaks of violence now have a rather predictable and oppressive frequency. Anyone looking for "feel good" entertainment should stay away, but Fontana and the uniformly excellent cast maintain admirable depth of character and incident, including a tragic loss (in "Visitation") that resonates throughout the season. Extras are slim: commentary by Fontana and Dean Winters accompanies episode 8 (aptly titled "Impotence"), and like the fifth season itself, it's recommended primarily for devoted Oz viewers who've enjoyed seasons 1-4. --Jeff Shannon |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Kirk Acevedo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, Christopher Meloni |
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| | | | Oz S6 | | | | On the surface, not much has changed inside the walls of Oswald State Penitentiary. Schillinger has revenge on his mind, Cyril is facing execution, Beecher is hoping for parole, and McManus is finding solace in a meditative maze. But there's toil and trouble brewing in the Oz cauldron, as the Oz players rehearse for their presentation of Macbeth and the climactic final act. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Ernie Hudson, Christopher Meloni, Kirk Acevedo, Terry Kinney, J.K. Simmons, Harold Perrineau |
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| | | | Poltergeist S1 | | | | "The Legacy" is a secret society that began many centuries ago to accumulate knowledge and artifacts to help fight against the evil in the world. This particular Legacy team is set in San Francisco in a castle-like house on Angel Island. Dr. Derek Rayne (Derek de Lint) heads up the team comprised of psychiatrist, Rachel Corrigan (Helen Shaver); priest, Philip C. (Patrick Fitzgerald); ex-Navy SEAL, Nick Boyle (Martin Cummins); and researcher/psychic Alex Moreau (Robbi Chong).
From the producers of The Outer Limits comes this provocative science fiction series about an ancient order dedicated to battling the evil forces that seek a foothold in the modern world. Nominated for science fiction's top honors, the Gemini and Saturn awards, this riveting series is an addictive cult classic full of occult thrills. |
| Genre: | Horror | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Derek de Lint, Helen Shaver, Patrick Fitzgerald, Martin Cummins, Robbi Chong |
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| | | | Powerpuff Girls S1 | | | | The Powerpuff Girls is an award-winning animated action series about three super-powered little girls Bubbles, Blossom and Buttercup with one very big mission: saving the world before bedtime. |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Bubbles, Blossom, Buttercup |
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| | | | Prison Break S1 | | | | Most men would do anything to get out of Fox River Penitentiary, but Michael Scofield will do anything to get in. His brother Lincoln has been sentenced to die for a crime he did not commit, and the only way to save him is from the inside out.
Armed with prison blueprints and an impossibly intricate escape plan, Michael gets himself incarcerated, and the race against time is on. Now, he'll need all of the cunning, daring, and luck he can muster... along with the assistance of some of the prison's most vile and dangerous felons. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Wentworth Miller, Dominic Purcell, Robin Tunney, Peter Stormare |
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| | | | Prison Break S2 | | | | After escaping from prison, Lincoln Burrows & Michael Scofield are on the run with one goal in mind â?" clear Lincolnâ??s name and uncover the hidden $5 million. |
| Genre: | Thriller | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Wentworth Miller, Dominic Purcell, William Fichtner, Robin Tunney, Peter Stormare, Sarah Wayne Callies |
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| | | | Prison Break S3 | | | | Can't these guys get a BREAK? |
| Genre: | Action | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Wentworth Miller, Dominic Purcell, Robert Knepper, Wade Williams, Robert Wisdom, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe |
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| | | | Record of Lodoss War Vol. 1 | | | | Since the first chapters debuted as a direct-to-video release in 1990, this sprawling sword-and-sorcery epic has delighted fantasy fans with its ancient prophecies, lost kingdoms, enchanted swords, dragons, and wizards. The tangled story line borrows heavily from The Lord of the Rings, the Star Wars films, and numerous other fantasy works. Six mismatched characters find themselves thrown together to protect the land of Lodoss from imminent destruction: Parn is the impetuous young warrior with heroic potential who typifies the genre; in place of the usual spunky girl, there's Deedlit, an elf with magical powers. They're joined by Etoh, a young priest and healer; Ghim, a dwarf-warrior with a heavy heart; Slayn, a wizard in training; and the rascally thief Woodchuck. Their allies include the dashing lord of a desert realm, a mercenary and her Berserker companion, and a benevolent, Arthurian king. They're pitted against an array of villains that includes human warriors, an evil sorcerer, dragons, kobolds, zombies, and Karla, the mysterious "Gray Witch" [sic]. An elegant art nouveau sensibility runs through the designs of Lodoss War, especially the extravagant armor of the warriors. But the film lacks a coherent plot, probably the result of producing so much animation in a short time with multiple directors. Characters are forever dropping in and out of the story: the initial villain, the evil emperor Beld, is replaced by his henchman, Ashram, who is superseded by the dark sorcerer, Wagnard. The last three episodes build to a titanic climax that leaves a lot of plot points unresolved. Hard-core fantasy fans will love Lodoss War; but other viewers are likely to tire of its drawn-out and needlessly complicated story. Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up; considerable violence and an extremely complicated plot. --Charles Solomon
Description
Lodoss, the accursed island, has seen wars ravage its kingdoms for thousands of years. Now comes an evil beyond any it has ever faced before, and a party of six are drawn together in battle. Six who barely know each other, but who are destined to become heroes as they encounter enemies and allies beyond their wildest imaginations. Contains all 13 episodes.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Record of Lodoss War Vol. 2 | | | | Since the first chapters debuted as a direct-to-video release in 1990, this sprawling sword-and-sorcery epic has delighted fantasy fans with its ancient prophecies, lost kingdoms, enchanted swords, dragons, and wizards. The tangled story line borrows heavily from The Lord of the Rings, the Star Wars films, and numerous other fantasy works. Six mismatched characters find themselves thrown together to protect the land of Lodoss from imminent destruction: Parn is the impetuous young warrior with heroic potential who typifies the genre; in place of the usual spunky girl, there's Deedlit, an elf with magical powers. They're joined by Etoh, a young priest and healer; Ghim, a dwarf-warrior with a heavy heart; Slayn, a wizard in training; and the rascally thief Woodchuck. Their allies include the dashing lord of a desert realm, a mercenary and her Berserker companion, and a benevolent, Arthurian king. They're pitted against an array of villains that includes human warriors, an evil sorcerer, dragons, kobolds, zombies, and Karla, the mysterious "Gray Witch" [sic]. An elegant art nouveau sensibility runs through the designs of Lodoss War, especially the extravagant armor of the warriors. But the film lacks a coherent plot, probably the result of producing so much animation in a short time with multiple directors. Characters are forever dropping in and out of the story: the initial villain, the evil emperor Beld, is replaced by his henchman, Ashram, who is superseded by the dark sorcerer, Wagnard. The last three episodes build to a titanic climax that leaves a lot of plot points unresolved. Hard-core fantasy fans will love Lodoss War; but other viewers are likely to tire of its drawn-out and needlessly complicated story. Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up; considerable violence and an extremely complicated plot. --Charles Solomon
Description
Lodoss, the accursed island, has seen wars ravage its kingdoms for thousands of years. Now comes an evil beyond any it has ever faced before, and a party of six are drawn together in battle. Six who barely know each other, but who are destined to become heroes as they encounter enemies and allies beyond their wildest imaginations. Contains all 13 episodes.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | PG-13 | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reign | | | | Alexander the Great, born to royalty, is prophesized to first rule and then destory the know world. Taught by the philosopher Aristotle, Alexander negotiates his way around the conspiracy and intrigue as he is pursued by the Assassins of Pythagoras. Driven by his insatiable ambition, Alexander is destined to rule a world inhabited by hordes of warring armies, oracles, sorcers, and shape shifting assailants. |
| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | OT Older Teen 16+ | | Director: | Olivia Venegas | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reign V3 | | | | Having witnessed a powerful oracle, Alexander begins construction of a capitol city that will bear his name. The city of Alexandria marks a new direction in his life, but the nagging question of his true identity remains. To add fuel to the burning fire of doubt, another oracle proclaims that Alexander will one day rule the world, but is destined to die at the hands of the one closest to him.
Description
Having witnessed a powerful oracle, Alexander begins construction of a capitol city that will bear his name. The city of Alexandria marks a new direction in his life, but the nagging question of his true identity remains. To add fuel to the burning fire of doubt, another oracle proclaims that Alexander will one day rule the world, but is destined to die at the hands of the one closest to him.
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | OT Older Teen 16+ | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reign V4 | | | | Alexander's unification of Persia and Macedonia is complete. Impatient to continue his campaign he marches into India despite Aristotle's warning's of a trap awaiting him. The stabilizing Platohedron's collapse is a sign of things to come as the spirits of Alexander's slain enemies rise up to confront their killer."A casual mixture of past, present, and future pervades Reign: The Conqueror." - Charles Solomon, Los Angeles Times March 2003
Description
Alexander's unification of Persia and Macedonia is complete. Impatient to continue his campaign he marches into India despite Aristotle's warning's of a trap awaiting him. The stabilizing Platohedron's collapse is a sign of things to come as the spirits of Alexander's slain enemies rise up to confront their killer."A casual mixture of past, present, and future pervades Reign: The Conqueror." - Charles Solomon, Los Angeles Times March 2003
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | OT Older Teen 16+ | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reno 911 Most Wanted | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reno 911 S1 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reno 911 S2 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Reno 911 S3 | | | | Buckle up for another ride with the officers of Reno Nevada’s Sheriff’s Department in this third season DVD of the hit Comedy Central Series. From a stint in prison to an accidental cat killing to close encounters of the S.A.R.S. kind, you can expect nothing but foolish choices and utter mediocrity from these hapless law enforcers! |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Cedric Yarbrough, Niecy Nash, Ben Garant, Thomas Lennon, Carlos Alazraqui, Wendi McLendon-Covey |
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| | | | Reno 911 S4 | | | | The beat goes on for Reno 911 with a season that is definitely "off the chain" (to quote one of the officers' curious turns of phrase). Season 4 brings us such developments as Det. Wiegel's unexpected and somewhat disturbing pregnancy, the suspicious demise of the Reno County sheriff ("Avenge my death," he croaks as he's being loaded into the ambulance), and the passage of Proposition C, which may (or may not) result in a pay raise for Wahoe County's self-described "(effed)-up family" of "mostly cordial coworkers." While not at all a bust, the fourth season is more scattershot than previous seasons. Some of the recurring signature set pieces (the traffic stops, the school appearances) are getting stale, but for anyone who has suffered through amateurish local TV commercials, the "Police Tek" product spots are devastatingly spot-on (and, as in the case of the infrared-controlled "Rape Shield" undergarments, all kinds of wrong). There is much "mean-spirited mirth" this season, aimed mostly at mother-to-be Wiegel (Kerri Kenney-Silver), who ends the season going into labor while stuck in a ceremonial cake. Questions about the sexual orientation of Cherisa "I am not a lesbian" Kimball (Mary Birdsong) and Jim "You know what I like" Dangle (Thomas Lennon) are asked, and, in one case, answered in the jaw-dropping cliffhanger season finale.
Every episode serves up at least one inspired bit of cop-show craziness. At one point, Kimball tries to arrest a street magician who keeps breaking free of his restraints. In another scene, Dangle patronizingly frees an adorable Little Leaguer brought into the station only to discover the true, horrible nature of his crime. Guest stars this season include Knocked Up's Paul Rudd as Lamaze instructor Guy Jericho (spelled "Gerricault"), Patton Oswalt as the local Renaissance Faire's Boozehammer of Galen, Oscar Nunez (The Office) as the charming and elusive prisoner "Spanish Mike," and Paul "Pee-Wee Herman" Reubens as Rick of Citizen's Patrol. Always good for a laugh is Nick Swardson as citizen and "attention whore" Terry. Packback, as ever, eludes Dangle and company (as witness their brutal smackdown at the hands of some "Hotties" waitresses, but their misery makes them great company. They may be beyond (or beneath) Emmy consideration, but they are surely worthy of a (Police) Academy award. --Donald Liebenson |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Michael Patrick Jann, Brad Abrams, Thomas Lennon (III), Ben Garant , Kerri Kenney-Silver |
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| | | | Reno 911 S5 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Rescue Me S1 | | | | Dennis Leary snarls as naturally as most actors smile. Leary's trademark ferocity and fearlessness drive Rescue Me, a series about a team of firemen struggling with their wives and lovers in post-9/11 New York City. Tommy Gavin (Leary, No Cure for Cancer, The Ref) is the guy everyone confides in, the heart of the firehouse--but he's also an active alcoholic who rages about his wife Janet (Andrea Roth) leaving him, a man guilt-ridden and literally haunted by all the people he blames himself for failing to save. Surrounding him are a crew of vivid characters, played by a little-known but outstanding cast: Handsome lothario Franco Rivera (Daniel Sunjata) discovers he's fathered a daughter with a psychotic ex-girlfriend; Ken Shea (John Scurti) struggles to resolve his post-traumatic stress by writing poetry; Mike Siletti (Mike Lombardi), the newest guy on the team, finds love with a partner the rest of the crew finds unacceptable; Chief Jerry Reilly (Jack McGee) risks his career when he beats a gay firefighter in a bar; and several others, all multi-faceted and sharply written. Rescue Me's first season launches with a full head of steam, tackling divorce, homophobia, and male bonding in a pellmell rush. The core theme of the show, however, is how men react to stress--how anger, bragging, competition, sex, and booze pacify their jagged emotions, pulling the firefighters together and isolating them at the same time. The first eight or so episodes rip along, spiced with high-energy scenes of fires and obscene, scatological banter. The second half of the series grows a little repetitive (beatings and steamy sex lose their vigor after a while) and some storylines stretch credulity, but the characters never lose their engaging complexity. Leary, who co-created the show and co-wrote many of the episodes, barrels through each hour like a force of nature, even as Tommy's increasingly erratic behavior threatens to alienate his family and his team. This bilious fusion of vices and virtues guarantees compelling television. --Bret Fetzer |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Denis Leary, Mike Lombardi, James McCaffrey, Jack McGee, Steven Pasquale |
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| | | | Rescue Me S2 | | | | Rescue Me is a wake up call for every man who (as a kid) dreamed about becoming a fireman and every woman who fantasized about being with one. As flawed and complicated as they are selfless and heroic, the fire fighters in this FX series are a compelling lot. They deal with infidelity, drug addiction, and sexual abuse on a daily basis and make it seem like old hat. But the characters are so well thought out that they almost always make viewers care about what's developing in their lives. This second season surpasses the debut year in terms of story lines and pacing. Series creator Denis Leary (Ice Age, No Cure for Cancer) reprises his role of Tommy Gavin. Separated from his wife and children and also battling a drinking addiction, Tommy is now working as the new guy in a Staten Island firehouse. He isn't a hero so much as he's his own best victim. Luckily, he's still got some loyal friends who're quick to nip his pity-parties short: "You feeling a little angry? You feeling a little hurt? You feeling betrayed? Well, congratulations, you're feeling, and you're feeling because you're sober." With his hangdog features and fast-paced speech pattern, Leary is surprisingly believable in the role. Returning character Chief Reilly (Jack McGee) faces some struggles of his own, as he watches his wife's spiral downward thanks to Alzheimer's. And it's not much easier for Franco (Daniel Sunjata), who is trying to figure out the best ways to care for his daughter while working an unpredictable schedule. While the drama on this show can sometimes be fiery and intense, the series provides enough biting humor to lend it an air of humanity and, at times, even a little warmth. It doesn't leave viewers wanting to be fire fighters, but rather empathizing with them. --Jae-Ha Kim |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Dennis Leary, Mike Lombardi, James McCaffrey, Jack McGee, Steven Pasquale |
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| | | | Rescue Me S3 | | | | In Rescue Me's most controversial season, Tommy Glavin's demons really turn up the heat on the seriously damaged New York firefighter. Glavin (Emmy-nominee Denis Leary in searing performances throughout) is wracked with grief over the tragic death of his son and struggles to deal with his estrangement from his wife, Janet (a superb Andrea Roth). In the season's most hotly debated episode, Tommy forces himself on Janet in, initially, non-consensual sex. Later, she takes up with Tommy's brother, Johnny (Dean Winters). By this time, devoted viewers, in the words of one character, know Tommy's every "grunt, tic and tell." But even his ghosts can only laugh at how low he sinks this season ("Next stop, China," Tommy ruefully replies). To get back at Janet and Johnny, he begins to date Angie (guest star Marisa Tomei), Johnny's ex-wife. He continually succumbs to his "basest levels," as when he has sex with the high school science teacher who is having an affair with his godson, Damian. But Tommy is able to show courageous restraint as in the intense scene in which when he is left alone to confront the prime suspect responsible for another tragic death in the family.
Rescue Me's other flawed characters try to contain their own life crises. Chief Reilly (Jack McGee) is in desperate financial straits when the nursing home caring for his wife, who is suffering from Alzheimer's, raises its fees. Sheila (Callie Thorne) goes to her own shocking desperate measures to pursue Tommy. Tommy's father (venerable character actor Charles Durning) is becoming increasingly difficult to care for. Sean (Steven Pasquale) is secretly involved with Tommy's outrageously unstable sister, Maggie (Tatum O'Neal). Franco (Daniel Sujata) meets a "sugar momma" (Susan Sarandon) with devastating consequences. And "Probie" (Michael Lombardi) wrestles with his sexuality. Played mostly for comic relief is Teddy's (Lenny Clarke) stint in jail for the murder of the drunk driver who killed Tommy's son. This third season divided critics and viewers, but the uniformly excellent ensemble grounds even the most outrageous plot turns in reality. And it's a testament to the incisive writing and intimately observed performances that even when these characters behave most unsympathetically and invite the slings and arrows of "a little thing called karma," we are compelled to continue to take them into our homes and hearts. Or, as Tommy might say to that, "Blah, blah, blah." --Donald Liebenson |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Denis Leary, Michael Lombardi, Paige Turco, Jack McGee, Robert John Burke, Tatum O'Neal |
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| | | | Rescue Me S4 | | | | Tommy Gavin and company face new challenges and old demons as they roll back into action for a fourth season of Denis Leary and Peter Tolan's series.
As the season begins, Tommy is in the fight of his life, defending himself against arson and insurance fraud. He struggles to raise his new baby while facing paternity questions and fighting to keep his family together. Franco seems ready to settle into a steady relationship, but is shaken when he loses custody of his daughter. Alcoholism has taken a toll on Sean and Maggie's marriage, while Lou's newfound love threatens to put him in the hospital. And Chief Reilly fights back from a stroke only to find himself facing a decision that could change the fate of Truck Company 62 forever. |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Denis Leary, Tatum O'Neal, Michael Lombardi, Jack McGee, Rebekah Aramini, Steven Pasquale |
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| | | | Riches S 1 | | | | Wayne and Dahlia Malloy (Izzard and Driver) and their three children are a family of on-the-run travelers who live their lives conning and scamming the unsuspecting, greedy “buffers” of the world. However one day – in a darkly comedic, yet fortuitous twist of fate – an opportunity presents itself, allowing The Malloys to escape from their past by pulling off the con of all cons, join the enemy and become “The Riches.” Little did The Riches know that while life on the road may have been hard, that was nothing compared to life as law abiding citizens in an affluent gated community! |
| Genre: | Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Minnie Driver, Eddie Izzard, Todd Stashwick, Nichole Hiltz, Shannon Marie Woodward, Johanna E. Braddy |
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| | | | Richi Rich Scooby Doo Show V1 | | | |
| Genre: | Dogs | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Robot Chicken S1 | | | | Take the stop-motion animated toy action of Kablam! and the pell-mell-paced gag barrage of, say, Laugh-In and you've got the fast and furiously funny Robot Chicken, the addictive addition to Comedy Central's Adult Swim late-night lineup. Co-created by geek-God Seth Green and filmmaker Matthew Senreich, Robot Chicken episodes run a scant 12 minutes or so, which invites repeat viewings to catch what you missed during the channel-flipping mayhem through TV, movie, and commercial parodies, and non-sequitur blackouts, all acted out by dolls and action figures. To truly appreciate this series, it helps to have a Family Guy grasp on pop-culture trivia, although you need not remember the failed TV series Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place to enjoy "Two Kirks (Admiral James T. and Cameron), a Khan and a Pizza Place." Suffice to say, if you grew up with the Transformers, Voltron, He-Man, and the Care Bears, you'll cackle loudly at Robot Chicken. Each episode is hit and miss, with moments that border on mad genius, such as The Diary of Anne Frank re-imagined as a vehicle for Hilary Duff, or a sketch involving the Tooth Fairy and a little boy whose happiness is short-lived as his parents brutally bicker off camera. It may just live up to its billing as "the darkest sketch in television history."
Other moments to remember: actress Rachael Leigh Cook (voiced by herself) gets carried away during a "This is your brain on heroin" PSA; the shape-shifting superhero adventures of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen; a popsicle-stick adaptation of Debbie Does Dallas; and a Behind the Music devoted to Muppet house band the Electric Mayhem. Robot Chicken's coolness cache extends to its voice cast, including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane, Mark Hamill, and Macauley Culkin. This two-disc set hatches a wealth of archival goodies, including deleted scenes and "animatics," behind-the-scenes footage of animation meetings, and alternate audio takes. Robot Chicken is a fowl ball! --Donald Liebenson |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Seth Green |
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| | | | Robot Chicken S2 | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Runs House | | | |
| Genre: | Comedy; Drama | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Samurai Champloo V1 | | | | Viewers eagerly awaited director Shinichiro Watanabe's first broadcast series since Cowboy Bebop, and this quirky, violent period adventure was worth the wait. In contrast to the jazz-inflected disillusionment of Bebop, Champloo offers an edgy mix of martial arts combat and hip-hop irreverence. A string of coincidences brings together three misfits in Meiji-era Japan: Mugen, a rebellious vagabond; Jin, a taciturn ronin; and Fuu, a nutty waitress. Mugen, whose sardonic posture recalls Spike Spiegel, is a formidable swordsman, but he lacks the polish of a great martial artist. His movements, which incorporate break dance spins and flips, reflect his undisciplined nature. Jin is cool to the point of iciness: When he unsheathes his sword, he becomes a deadly work of art in motion. After helping them escape execution, Fuu demands Jin and Mugen stop fighting until they've helped her find an unnamed samurai "who smells of sun flowers." Predictably, chaos ensues. (Rated 16 and older: violence, profanity, brief nudity, sexual situations, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon
Description
Mugen's a buck wild warrior - violent, thoughtless and womanizing. Jin is a vagrant ronin - mysterious, traditional, well-mannered and very strong as well. These two fiercely independent warriors can't be any more different from one another, yet their paths cross when Fuu, a ditzy waitress, saves them from being executed when they are arrested after a violent swordfight. Fuu convinces the two vagrant young men to help her find a mysterious samurai "who smells of sunflowers." And their journey begins. This is a story about love, friendship and courage . . . . NOT!
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| Genre: | Anime | | Rating: | OT Older Teen 16+ | | Director: | Shinichiro Watanabe | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Scooby Doo Dyno Mutt | | | | To the first new episodes of Scooby Doo since 1973 are added half-hour exploits of animated derring-do concerning The Blue Falcon, a blue-caped and -cowled superhero and his robotic doberman, Dynomutt Dog Wonder, not unlike the heroic ilk of Batman and Robin but with a more comical twist. Millionaire socialite art dealer Radley Crowne (a Bruce Wayne incarnate) and his mechanical mongrel, Dynomutt, enjoy leisure time in their base of operations, Big City, until alerted by The Falcon Flash. They immediately dash for The Falcon Lair (situated in Crowne's penthouse apartment), where they switch to their secret identities, The Blue Falcon and Dog Wonder, respectively, receive the report via TV screen from the secret GHQ of secret agent Focus One, and jump into The Falconcar and speed into the fray against assorted evildoers. |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Scooby Doo S1 2 | | | | Chuck Jones and other great studio animators sneered at the cheap look and lazy craftsmanship of Hanna Barbera's television cartoons in the 1960s, but there's no question HB's original, 35-year-old Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! is enduringly beloved. The Complete First and Second Seasons includes all 25 stories first broadcast from September '69 to October '71, a growth period in which canine hero Scooby's voice (by Don Messick, who also voiced The Jetsons's pup, Astro) was gradually refined from murky garble to Scoob's more familiar, "Rrroowwrr"-inflected, human-like speech. This set also represents the pre-frills Scooby-Doo: no guest appearances by Don Knotts or Batman, no Scrappy-Doo--just adventure and occasional bubblegum pop tunes by Danny Janssen and sundry co-writers (e.g., "Pretty Mary Sunlite" in the episode "Don't Fool with a Phantom").
Watching all the shows back-to-back reveals evolving complexity in the scripts. Over time, Scooby-Doo's creators added multiple bad guys in cahoots with major villains, and developed sub-plots, backstories, and even appealing allies and friends of Mystery, Inc., a traveling band of young debunkers of supernatural phenomena. Riding around in their psychedelic Mystery Van, preppie leader Fred and his friends--haughty Daphne, brainy Velma, quasi-hippie Shaggy, and Shaggy's best pal, Scooby, an excitable Great Dane--chase down and are chased by alleged ghouls who generally turn out to be venal humans running various scams.
Included here is Scooby-Doo's premiere, "What a Night for a Knight," in which the gang looks into the disappearance of a noted archaeologist and end up in a "haunted" museum. The fun "Go Away Ghost Ship" finds our heroes helping a shipping company daunted by the apparent ghost of pirate Red Beard, while the silly classic "A Tiki Scare Is No Fair" concerns a Hawaiian vacation for Mystery, Inc. disrupted by a witch doctor. --Tom Keogh |
| Genre: | Dogs | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | Scooby Doo, Velma, Shaggy, Fred |
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| | | | Scooby Doo S3 | | | | Popular cartoon series featuring Scooby Doo, a dog who joins Velma, Daphne, Freddie, and Shaggy on many quests to solve mysterious. Each mystery is new and unusual and involves the group stopping someone from wreaking certain havoc on the world. |
| Genre: | Childrens | | Rating: | Not Rated | | Director: | | | Cast: | |
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| | | | Scrubs S1 | | | | The sitcom may be flatlining, but as long as there are fresh and original series like Scrubs, the prognosis isn't entirely negative. Created by Bill Lawrence, Scrubs is an interns'-eye view of hospital life and the torturous, tragic, and triumphant route to becoming a doctor. The eminently likeable Zach Braff heads the cast as "newbie" J.D., whose years of medical school haven't quite prepared him for chaotic Sacred Heart Hospital. Family Guy has nothing on the live-action Scrubs when it comes to surreal asides and fantasy sequences (for example, J.D. literally becomes the proverbial deer in the headlights when he cannot answer a medical query), pop culture references, and TV Land casting (John Ritter guest stars as J.D.'s negligent father in "My Old Man," and St. Elsewhere veterans William Daniels, Ed Begley, Jr., Stephen Furst, and Eric Laneuville appear as Legionnaire's-stricken doctors in "My Sacrifical Clam"). With surgical precision, this inaugural season charts J.D.'s growth as a doctor and a human being, and the close-knit bonds he forms with his equally overwhelmed peers and colleagues, including best friend and surgeon Chris Turk (Donald Faison), beautiful, but raw-nerved and by-the-book Elliot Reid (Sarah Chalke), and supportive nurse Carla Espinoza (Judy Reyes'), who affectionately nicknames J.D. "Bambi." But at the heart of the series is J.D.'s relationship with his mentor, Dr. Cox (an Emmy-worthy John C. McGinley), a cross between Obi-Wan Kenobi and a pit bull. Giving Scrubs a further shot of adrenaline are recurring characters Jordan (Christa Miller Lawrence), Dr. Cox's satanic ex-wife, and Neil Flynn as the Janitor, who torments J.D. just as Larry Miller menaced Jerry in the Seinfeld episode "The Doorman."
Scrubs' animated sensibility allows for inexplicable cameos by Jimmie Walker or, at one point, an impromptu West Side Story-esque dance-off to convey the schism between the surgeons and other doctors. But while hilariously funny, Scrubs, too, can break your heart, as in the two-parter "My Occurrence"/"My Hero," with guest star Brendan Fraser as Jordan's spontaneously spirited brother, who is diagnosed with leukemia, and "My Old Lady," in which J.D., Elliot, and Chris experience for the first time losing a patient. Scrubs is one of NBC's few remaining "Must-See" series, but it has not been well-served by the network. Whether you're a "newbie" or devoted viewer, this DVD release is just what the doctor ordered. --Donald Liebenson
Description
Now relive all 24 episodes of the groundbreaking show's highly acclaimed first season. With a host of great bonus features, including never-before-seen dream sequences and a fascinat |
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