This is a brilliant boxset, i would definitely recommend it, I think that the characters are so good, and i love how the experiences that they go through, they could happen to any of us. But i also think that they actors/actresses are best suited for the job. The directors did a good job picking them.
I love them, i especially love the new series. SERIES 5
it is really good.
The quotes that Lucas uses within the boxsets are enlightening and they have great depth and meaning behing them. They are so good -
Hope you guys love it as much as i do.
I didn't think this would make me laugh as i appreciate warpped or dark humour but, surprise surprise i giggled most of the way through this very enjoyable mid life crisis romp.
Its not often i can sit and giggle with my mates as well as with my teenage son but, this film certainly done that!
It's a real "Feelgood" film
Im hoping that this film works as well on the small screen as it did on the big, its a film that has something for the kids as well as for the grown-ups. Theres a plot that has are main super hero actually being an anti hero because of his array of problems which are explained throught the film, sub plots along the way which are neat and flow as well as the main characters neurosis.
This is a very new look at the usual hero films which are just following the same old formula, this shows the real human side and has a GREAT twist that i bet you wont see comming .
Super Hero with more twists than a curly whirly
This first season of Angel is enjoyable but uneven. Structured with mostly stand-alone episodes the quality varies from great (Five By Five, Blind Date, To Shanshu in LA) to painful (She), though happily most lean towards the former. The teaser at the start of episode one is perfectly crafted to tell you everything you need to know about the main character and the show - Angel is a good vampire tortured with the memories of his past bad deeds and still fighting the urge to feed on humans. It is a series filled with action, humour, romance and great plots and characters. It is a spin-off from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and although it carries over a few characters and the tone is similar Angel is a more adult, male orientated show - you also don"t have to know the other show to enjoy this one (though it is a richer experience). Later series bring in more of a serial element and arcs are introduced, while Season One does have continuity (episodes are not restarts) the episodes are self-contained and so therefore easier to get into. This also allows for greater variation of style meaning that some episodes are darker or funnier than others - some would fit more into the 'horror' genre, some into the 'detective', others into 'fantasy' though none of the episodes stick just to one thing. In Season One Angel moves from Sunnydale (where Buffy is set) and tries to start a new life as a private detective investigating demon problems. He is joined by the luminous Cordelia and the wisecracking Doyle and together their gang has to deal with vampires, demons, people and police. The final episode of the season starts Angel off on a path that impacts the next four seasons and if you"ve made it that far you'll be addicted. The DVD boxset has a few commentaries (the first episode being the best) and some other minor featurettes, the picture quality is good (though improves in later seasons). This first season of Angel is thoroughly entertaining and emotionally engaging but is let down by a few poor episodes and the lack of a proper arc - still well worth watching though and when you make it to the end you'll be hooked.
What a fantastic DVD! Kids and adults alike will love Pingu and the fun he has with his sister Pinga and his friends! This is a brilliant collection of pure Pingu fun. Fun and laughter all the way...you will be sad when it finishes, but then again you can watch it again and again!
What a fantastic DVD! Kids and adults alike will love Pingu and the fun he has with his sister Pinga and his friends! This is a brilliant collection of pure Pingu fun. Fun and laughter all the way.......
Its not very often that one can label a film 'nice' and have it to come across as a compliment, but nice is perhaps the best way to sum up Steve Buscemi's 'Lonesome Jim'; its nice in the same way that 'Jersey Girl' and 'The Straight Story' are nice. Casey Affleck plays our eponymous hero James Strouse; a struggling writer whose unsuccessful bid to make it in New York comes to a grinding halt, prompting a slow retreat back home to small-town Indiana, and when his brother attempts suicide; James is forced to return to a life he'd thought he'd left behind. 'Lonesome Jim' is similar in direction to 'Hallam Foe' with thematic nods to 'Garden State', 'Junebug' Hal Hartley's 'Ambition' a hint of 'Buffalo 66'(sans dark humour) and even a little 'Thumbsucker' style sulking and introspective angst. Affleck puts in a subtle, believable performance as the depressed twenty-something whose self-esteem is given a boost after hooking up with compassionate nurse Liv Tyler. Ted Demme's 'Beautiful Girls' is still the best film about a guy who returns home, though nothing tops 'Grosse Pointe Blank' when it comes to memorable reunions! A vast improvement on 'Trees Lounge', 'Lonesome Jim' still lacks the insightful wit of 'Factotum' or the natural eccentricity of 'Little Miss Sunshine' and may be over familiar to indie fans, nonetheless, it's a well acted, sometimes touching film with offbeat humour, a positive message and moments of quiet reflection.
For a while, 'Teachers' was the new 'This Life', and not just because Andrew 'Egg' Lincoln was in it. Series 1 is essential viewing for a bit of early noughties nostalgia: with a great soundtrack featuring then fresh bands like the Dandy Warholes, Dums Dums and Toploader, 'Friends' / 'Coupling'-esque relationship dilemmas, slacker musings and edgy, often surreal witticisms. 'Teachers' kept its fans in voluntary detention for four seasons, and though its grades went downhill faster than public support for 'New Labour' there's still a lot to like in these early episodes. I can identify with its portrayal of some, and I stress; some, teachers as booze addled layabouts who, whilst flailing around in the pitch black fathom of despair managed to grab a lifeline and ended up in the profession; now, they wallow in a sea of drink and damn the endless bureaucracy that drives them to it. But if this show were made today, the corpocracy elements would have to be a lot more sinister: as many schools appear to be lost in a miasma of incestuous plutocratic inequity, whereby their 'status' is exalted in meaningless government appraisals, as standards are systematically rubbished by a dumbed down diktat of nonsensical garbage; offloaded into the open minds of a faceless pupil pool like gallons of toxic waste dumped into pure rivers. C'est la vie. Bunk seasons 2-4, for 'Teachers' series 1 is the only set that makes the grade, passing as it does, with flying colours: A for effort.
Shockingly bad, yet unmissable, adaptation of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard's cult novel; Super Thetan John Travolta sticks it to Xenu and those giant teddy bears in a reckless act of religious devotion, not to worry: John shall return, he always does, but 'Battlefield Earth' is, thankfully, one of a kind. Hubbard's competent, if workmanlike, pot boiler chronicles the fledgling human resistance against imperial alien rule in the year 3000 A.D. Johnny Goodboy, played with a discernable air of embarrassment by Barry Pepper, leads a primitive human race to rediscover old talents like hunting, flying a spaceship and platting your own ponytail. I mean, its bad enough that Barry's named after a condiment, but then to take 'Saving Private Ryan's' God fearing sniper and put him up against giant, overacting aliens with Amy Winehouse hair and a penchant for day-glow beverages, is just cruel & unusual. Meanwhile, John Travolta puts in a so-bad-its-good performance of bombastic absurdity as evil Psychlo leader Terl. Why Travolta, usually the epitome of cool, feels the need to ham it up to such an extent is as much of a mystery as his secretive faith, though I did find myself reviewing one scene just to see his take on a villainous laugh: "HA HA HA" (I kid you not), in fact, almost every Psychlo scene is excellent; with Travolta turning in the unintentional comedic performance of the century. His acting style in this movie is like nothing you've ever seen before, its like Bill Shatner on 'The Transformed Man' album meets Stewie Griffin from 'Family Guy', line after overacted line makes for priceless entertainment; and when a Psychlo woman (played by John's wife Kelly Preston) extends her extraordinarily long tongue and promises to make Terl "As happy as a baby Psychlo on a straight diet of Ferbangoes!" you know you've left the land of the sane. Laugh, as an understandably bemused Forrest Whittaker grimaces his way through the picture as Terl's right-hand-Psychlo Kerr, cry as 'Battlefield Earth' unfolds at a mind-numbingly slow pace with no mercy for any viewer foolish enough to think they can last the course. They rarely make films this bad anymore, just occasional blips of mediocrity on the flat-line of an industry in decline, so in a way; 'Battlefield Earth' is probably the last good 'bad movie' ever made. Amazingly bad on so many levels that it traverses its own banality and becomes a must see. Incidentally, the Psychlos are psychiatrists, the great, extinct alien race called "Chinkos" are, well, you've guessed it and Johnny Goodboy represents all that was once decent about white America. Now where's that wide-eyed woman with the clipboard? Break out your E-Meter love, and lets get those Psychlo scum, alternatively, I'll just give you all my money for the rest of my life, your choice.
The 1970s, the decade of flared trousers and dodgy haircuts, have been getting a lot of revisits and 'retropective' lately, with TVs 'Life on Mars' doing more than most to capture some essence of that essentially 'dodgy' era. But not everything from those times was 'naff' and the 1976 John Carpenter release 'Assault on Precinct 13' stands as one of the period's finer moments. Yes, the clothes, cars and hairdos reek of the times, and yes, here was yet another low-to-modest budget offering that could so easily have sat with the rest of the screen fodder fighting to hold onto dwindling cinema audiences. But instead here was something else entirely - a movie ahead of its times in many ways, from the tight, almost claustrophobic focus on a small cast in a small place, to the tense clever soundtrack, and the less than neat conclusion. It is in films like this that you can see the glimmers of the cinema revival 'to come'; when you watch this you are seeing an ancestral line that begins with the westerns of Ford and company - an ancestry that Carpenter himself has acknowledged - and ends in such 'modern' benchmarks as 'Pulp Fiction'. But don't watch it for a 'history of cinema' - just watch and admire its gripping, tension-building urban action that still has the quality to have you 'on the edge of your seat'.
Season Four sees Buffy and her friends leaving High School behind and searching for their identities outside of school. Buffy and Willow go to University, the former finding this harder than the latter. Xander struggles through several low-paid jobs as he tries to keep up with his friends. A now jobless Giles doesn't know what his place in the world is anymore with Buffy now grown up. This may make it seem like season four is rather joyless but it is actually one of the funniest seasons of the series. Also suffering identity issues is Buffy"s new boyfriend, Riley, who doesn't know if he wants to be the loyal soldier or an independent demon hunter. Spike joins the main cast but his identity is immediately challenged by having a chip put in his head, stopping him from hurting people, and forcing him to co-operate with the good guys. The season continues its theme by having many of the little and big bads having identity issues - this can be seen most prominently in one of the best episodes of the season where rogue Slayer Faith returns and steals Buffy's identity, desperately trying to be anyone other than herself. The main baddy of the season is the Frankenstein-like Adam who is made up of parts of other people and demons. The season ends with Buffy being told 'you don't know who you are'. Season four as a whole is less arc based and focuses more on the individual episodes. There is an arc about an evil government conspiracy but this is rather weak and had led people to dislike the season. However it contains some of the funniest scenes of the series and maintains a lightness throughout that can be missing from other seasons. The best episodes are Hush where demons steal the voices of everyone in Sunnydale (which leads to 30 minutes of no talking in the episode), Who Are You where Faith tries to live Buffy's life and Restless where the gang all suffer prophetic dreams in a hint for what is to come for the series. This season ran alongside the first season of Angel and there are two episodes in which the vampire with a soul shows up in Sunnydale again (but if Angel isn't your thing there are no worrying unexplained plot points to worry about from the reverse crossover). For first-time Buffy watchers who are put off by the campness of the first season this would be a good boxset to start with as the episodes are mostly self-contained. The DVD boxset contains two fantastic commentaries by Joss Whedon, particularly the one for the final episode 'Restless' which adds much to the viewing experience. The picture quality is improved upon from the previous season and this is the first season filmed in widescreen.
This is an excellent series with all of the elements that make for great television. There were times in this series I forgot that it wasn't real and the characters just go from strength to strength. This series is great with the acting and storylines being equally impressive. Izzy has a really hard time and Meredith continues to battle with her 'problems'.
The series continues to follow the trials of the interns.
I was about seventeen years old when I first read Tess Of The D'Urbervilles. I sat up until two o'clock in the morning to finish the final chapters because I just couldn't put the book down. Now, over thirty years later, this excellent dramatisation of Hardy's masterpiece had the same effect (I had purposely recorded all four episodes so that I could watch the whole story in one hit). Previous TV serialisations have ranged from very good to downright shoddy but none of them have ever so perfectly captured the emotional desolation wrought on Tess and Angel by the social strictures of their time. A heartachingly sensitive performance by Gemma Arterton and Eddie Redmayne that was made all the more so by the brilliant supporting cast. Another top quality drama from the BBC.
Run of the mill police procedural, which sees streetwise scribe David 'Training Day' Ayer take a step backwards after his debut as auteur with the excellent 'Harsh Times'. 'Street Kings' gives every cop cliché ever committed to film a free pass back into society as tough, tormented, alcoholic LAPD vice squad hotshot Tom Ludlow (a miscast Keanu Reeves) takes eager rookie Chris 'Human Torch' Evans on a mission to get the people who killed his partner. An acceptable enough endeavour in the grand scheme of things, though it just so happens that Ludlow and company are amongst the most corrupt cops (and to quote Mel Gibson's Porter in 'Payback' "...are there any other kind?") on the force. Led by the last king of Scotland himself; Forrest Whittaker, this lot don't know the meaning of the words 'civil liberties' or the meaning of the words 'law' or 'order' and a whole lot of other words to boot. Co-written by James Ellory ('L.A. Confidential'), Kurt Wimmer ('Equilibrium') and newcomer Jamie Moss; 'Street Kings' has a lot going for it in terms of being a slick, well paced, quality production with a good cast and a director who knows his subject, and yet, there's something distinctly been-there, seen-that, bought the Kevlar about it. Honorary American Hugh 'House' Laurie lends solid support as a by-the-book 'IA' man, Jay Mohr makes his long awaited comeback, Ayer regulars Terry Crews & Noel Guliemi make brief appearances whilst Brit actress Naomi Harris turns up in another slight, but significant, role. And yet 'Street Kings' is never as good as it should be, and is more like a late-in-the-day 'Internal Affairs' meets 'The Shield' and 'Dark Blue' with a bit of 'SWAT' style gung-ho tomfoolery thrown in for good measure. Worth watching once, but its no 'Narc'. Rough justice.
It is definately a fact that The Lost Boys was THE teen horror movie of the 80's. It had everything you need for a perfect movie; unforgettable storyline, brilliant soundtrack, perfect characters and great location. It also ended with everyone begging for a sequel. Well we have finally got it... 20 years later. There's a common phrase that everyone is familiar with; "better late than never" and in most cases this applies... For Lost Boys 2 however it should definately have been NEVER. I'm not saying its a bad film, I actually thought it was quite good, but there was always that fact in the back of my mind whilst watching it... "It's just not the Lost Boys" It was a brave attempt to make a sequel to this iconic film and the idea of bringing back some of the original cast was genius. But to be honest I don't want to see Corey Haim as a fat, balding middle-aged guy or the Frog brothers acting as if they are still the 16 year olds from the original. I want to remember them as they were. If this sequel came out 3-4 years after the original then maybe it could have been just as great as the 1st one. The entire cast could of returned (well those that weren't killed off in the first) and Barnard Hughes (Grandpa) could of still been alive to star in a second movie. Overall though this movie isn't as bad as many people have made it out to be, its got some good ideas and has a decent ending. Also, bringing it out in a double pack was the best idea yet because even if you don't enjoy the second film, theres always the original Lost Boys which will always be one of the greatest teen horrors of the 80's.
You wait too long for a sequel and look what happens...
Ever After is a charming retelling of the Cinderella story that allows the heroine to be strong, funny and intensely likeable in a way other interpretations have never managed to do. Here Cinderella is called Danielle (Drew Barrymore) and lives with her stepmother (magnificently played by Anjelica Huston) and two stepsisters (one evil, one not!) in France (the part where everyone speaks English). As with the traditional story Danielle lives as a servant while her stepmother schemes for her eldest daughter to marry Prince Henry (Dougray Scott). Unfortunately for her after a chance meeting the prince becomes enamoured with Danielle. However he believes her to be nobility and due to her feelings for him she does not disabuse him of that assumption, instead taking a false name and sneaking out to meet with him in her stepsisters clothes. Barrymore and Scott spark well off each other and are involved in some lovely and heartbreaking scenes throughout the film. Eventually Danielle"s stepmother finds out who has been distracting the prince and reveals the truth. This is based on a fairy tale so I think you can guess how it turns out in the end but there are some tears along the way. This is a perfect family film with romance, laughs and stunts without being too rude - it will amuse the kids but also entertain the adults, particularly women and it set in beautiful surroundings that are a feast for the eyes. It contains some nice comical moments and some great acting - characters which are not fleshed out in the fairy tale are given back story and personality in this version without removing their traditional roles (the stepmother is still a monster despite a bad childhood being hinted at). The things that perhaps let this story down and lead to some unfavourable ratings in other places (the bizarre inclusion of Leonardo Da Vinci as the fairy godmother for example) are part of it"s charm and don"t stop it from being rewatchable. Danielle is (rightly) the star character of the piece as a strong, resourceful, independent minded version of Cindella - when the end comes she doesn"t need her prince to save her, but he does put a smile on her face.
One of the major themes of Buffy is identity and that can be seen clearly in this third season. The opener has our heroine denying her identity as the Slayer and as Buffy Summers, living in a gloomy flat in LA while her friends in Sunnydale pine for her - but by the end of the episode she realises that she likes being herself and returns to continue the fight rather than give up. Throughout the season she strives to assert herself as a young woman and as the Slayer in preparation for the final episodes of the season appropriately titled "Graduation Day". When Faith, the dark dangerous shadow-self of Buffy, shows up and tempts Buffy to be wild and carefree she must resist - just as she must resist pressure from the school, her mother and the Watchers Council as they all try to push her in different directions of responsibility. On top of that she must also cope with the daily attacks by vampires and demons meant to distract her from the Mayor"s devious endgame. Buffy the series is not without fun though and season three contains some of its funniest episodes. Earshot where Buffy suddenly finds she can hear the thoughts of all her friends, Dopplegangland where evil!Willow shows up and tries to assassinate our Sunnydale favourite and The Zeppo where a dejected Xander must stop a plot to blow up the school without the help of his friends. Buffy must also deal with the return of Angel, the boyfriend she thought she"d sent to hell forever, and the conclusion of their doomed romance. The final episodes see betrayal, epic battles, heartbreak, humour and explosions as Buffy and the gang say goodbye to Sunnydale High School. The DVD boxset itself shows fully the improved picture quality of the third season but as with previous boxsets it does not include many extras with a handful of commentaries and simple overviews.
This is like the other My Little Pony films for this generation- very sweet and not at all scary like the 80s films so is suitable for very young viewers as well as older fans.
The storyline is simple and the music is annoyingly catchy. I won't give away any spoilers but the main themes of Christmas and friendship make it a great film.
My 5 year old daughter would rate this film excellent while I would rate it OK but her age means that I have as much say as her in what she watches so I've rated it "good".
As a parent the cons are predictable, too sweet dialogue and storyline but it is a favourite here which will be watched annually for many years to come.
The ideal vehicle for Brand's brand of off-the-wall musings and often-hilarious observations; 'Ponderland' sees the Essex born funny-man wax lyrical about topics as diverse as 'Crime' to 'Holidays'. Format allows our acanthous anti-hero to take us on an expectedly surreal, roundabout nostalgia trip; encompassing everything from how ZX Spectrum + 2 loading sounds were indeed trying to "f*** you up", going into spasm on those sports swimming games or the inherent incompatibility between judgemental voice activated technology and Northerners: "I think you'd be happier down a mine". 'Technology' is my personal favourite episode as it features 'The House Of The Future' a smug Robert Powell and the classic Dr Majumba sequence. A must for Brand fans.
Legend-in-the-making Frankie Boyle is probably the funniest man in a 'Soon-To-Be-Independat-God-What-A-F***ing-Bloodbaths-That's-Gonna-Be' Scotland & the UK (whatever that is). Like many people, I first saw this fearless practitioner of dangerous comedy on 'Mock The Week' and though regular viewers of that show will have already heard most of the jokes, there's no denying that Boyle is a rare talent: "Telethons are horrible. People sitting in a bathful of beans for starving Africans...send them the f***ing beans! Celebrities appear on these things to get exposure. Great, climb towards that money pot on the backs of dying children you sick, sick f***s!". And of course his customary below-the-belt banter like "NASA: With all their money, could they maybe have a mission where everyone doesn't nearly die? They should have some honesty and call their next mission OPERATION SPACEGRAVE" or "Is Britain becoming more misogynist? Lets ask this bitch over here" And who could forget when he described the paranormal activity occurring in a rarely explored region of our reigning monarch? Not to mention his take on questions that you wouldn't see on an exam: "If everybody in Class A is called Tom, Thomas or Tommy, and every second boy in Class B is called Tim, Timothy or Timmy, what the f*** is going on!?" Comedic genius.
I first came across Sarah Silverman (there's a future Sarah Silverman style joke there somewhere) in underrated cult classic 'The Way Of The Gun'; in which she played a foul mouthed loudmouth who gets her foul loud mouth smacked shut by Ryan Philippe's novice criminal, and have seen her pop up from time to time on open mikes and charity gigs like Amnesty's 'The Secret Policeman's Ball'. Now I distinctly remember this filmed stand-up was released years ago in theatres, so I had to check it out just to make sure it was the same one: it was, not that it makes any difference since Silverman's been doing the exact same routine for almost a decade now, still, she's quite funny. Adopting the persona of a nice, unassuming Jewish girl, Silverman's tired & tested shtick employs some Joan Rivers-esque controversy for controversies sake, matter-of-fact lewdness, racist musings and lowbrow adolescent humour as 'The Big S' sets out to offend as many people as she possibly can in 90 minutes. Sarah's acting abilities help her achieve some on stage presence, and though a lot of the gags are obvious, there are one or two laugh out loud jokes, comedy songs don't work and most of the edited in sketch scenes fail to raise a smile. Stand up comedy has always been a tough gig, and not everyone can work the mike quite like Dara O' Briain, Bill Hicks, Denis Leary, Omid Djalili, Russell Peters, Dylan Moran et all, on the plus side; she's better looking than Frankie Boyle...but only just.
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