This is a very funny film, i would recommended it. Hilarious.
The wonderful thing is that this doesn't turn into the typical two men fighting over the woman (thank you) instead it's two very different men and their views and opinions on life.
I have to admit that whenI first saw this I really didn't like it, it was just another awful American sitcom, but the more I see of it, the more I find myself really enjoying it.
Leonard is sweet in a naive sort of way, he doesn't quite get what's going on and he doesn't know how to react, Penny is the typical ditzy blonde with moments of complete clarity, and Sheldon, what can yoy say about Sheldon, neurotic in the extreme, but very funny to watch. We also have their friends Howard and Raj, also geeks, although Howard thinks that he's a womaniser.
Personally I have a real fondness for Raj, who barely speaks in Penny's presence for the first series because she makes him nervous.
It's good because it's original, because they haven't gone down the usual predictable route, and because the performances are good across the board, there isn't anyone who gives a bad performace. Basically, it's a feel good, entertaining programme that'll make you giggle.
Leonard and Sheldon are physicists, in the true geeky sense of the word, whose lives are shaken up when the beautiful Penny moves into the flat across from them and starts introducing them to life in the real world.
This DVD Box-set contains all Seven Seasons of Family Guy and 8 episodes of Season 8, (The Other 13 being released with Volume 9 DVD.) From 'Death Has A Shadow' to 'Dog Gone' 134 Episodes of Family Guy goodness is crammed into this lovely box-set. A Amazing program for Audiences and critics alike we're lucky there's a family guy!
Family Guy is an American animated series created by Seth MacFarlane. The series is set around the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie and their pet dog Brian. The show is set in the fictional city of Quahog, Rhode Island.
Believe it or not, but there was a time when Cliff Richard was cool, and nowhere is that absurd assertion better proven than in Peter Yates's 'Summer Holiday'. Cliff and company board a London Bus and set off on their holiday which, as the song goes, ought to last for a week or two: The Batchelor Boy sings and smiles his way from London to Athens via Paris and avails any given opportunity to break into song. 'Summer Holiday' is an upbeat, gentle, early 60s' romp filmed in glorious Technicolor: A simple film for simpler times; Yates, who'd go onto direct tough thrillers like 'Bullit' (1968) and Cold War TV series 'Danger Man', perfectly captures the carefree mood of the era and works in harmony with bright & breezy visuals from cinematographer John Wilcox (DP on films like 'Carve Her Name with Pride' and 'A Touch of Larceny'). An enjoyable, iconic musical that stands the test of time: Good clean fun.
Solitary Man written by Brian Koppelman is a thoughtful film in which Ben Kalmen (Michael Douglas) - once the owner of a hugely profitable car dealership empire in New York City - is now verging on bankruptcy. He's trying to get back into business but because he was involved in a scam, no one is willing to let him get back into the game. Ben has another problem, he's 60 years old but he still wants to act like he's 20. He's a real ladies man. He's in a relationship with Jordan Karschof (Mary-Louise Parker) but he ends up having sex with her daughter, Allyson (Imogen Poots). Ben's daughter (Jenna Fischer) is also having trouble trusting Ben and soon the only people he can turn to are his ex-wife (Susan Sarandon), an old friend from college named Jimmy (Danny DeVito) and a young guy named Daniel (Jesse Eisenberg) that goes to college with Allyson.
Solitary Man tracks Ben's downward spiral. The inappropriate behaviour with Allyson, and pretty much every other woman he meets, his lack of effort with his family and friends. He's a mess. It's riveting viewing.
This film's top notch cast draws in the viewer. Sarandon and DeVito are as dependable as ever. They never turn in a bad performance, but it is also good to see younger talent such as Eisenberg and Poots performing strongly as well as excellent support from Fischer and Parker.
Solitary Man is well directed by the team of Brian Koppelman and David Levien. Two directors is not a common occurrence. You might expect that things would normally go wrong with a directing team. Directors are normally solitary themselves but here it works well, the cast even mention in the interviews that it was beneficial to have two directors.
This is one of Douglas' best films in some years, and one of his best performances, not to say that his others haven't been good. I loved him in several films such as Falling Down, The Game and The Wonder Boys. Douglas has always been a real filmstar. He portrays the character of Ben with believability and ease (no doubt some of this coming from personal experience with women). And as he has recently been diagnosed with throat cancer and reports say that his acting could soon come to an end it is certainly good to see him putting in some good performances of late.
In a time where remakes are almost more prolific than original ideas, the reimagining of 'V' was hardly welcomed with open arms. Originally appearing on screens over 25 years ago in 1983, 'V' became a cult classic and one of the pioneers of 'event television.' As such, it made sense to capitalise on a well-known science fiction franchise. The critical and commercial success of J.J. Abrams' modernisation of 'Star Trek' in 2009 proved that a great idea, widely loved by many over a number of years, can be developed while remaining true to the source material. Remaking a television series or movie is always a difficult move to make. Some remake shot-for-shot and end up being a pointless exercise (see 1998's 'Psycho') while others stray too far and end up as a shadow of their former selves (I'm still trying to forget 2004's 'Thunderbirds'!). On paper, using an already established brand may seem like a sure-fire hit, but as many have found out before, it's never quite that simple.
Arguably the new series of 'V' owes its existence to the success of 'Battlestar Galactica,' another show reimagined for a modern audience. Ronald D. Moore developed a show that brought the same characters into a modern style with a few twists added in. The names may have been the same, and the ideas similar, but no doubt it was a show of its own. It alienated some old viewers, but gained many more. The key was simply to be a good show, with a strong and believable script, and a unique visual style. Over time, it came out of the shadows formed by the 1978 Glen A. Larson series, and became its own entity. It proved that it is possible to be creative and unique even if you are borrowing from an existing idea, and paved the way for others to learn how to use a 'reimagining' in an innovative way, rather than in a sloppy and lazy fashion.
One of the main stumbling blocks for bringing 'V' up-to-date was the message that the storyline represented. The allegorical references to Nazis and the Master Race in relation to the 'Visitors' in 'V' have been known for years, and even though it took place many years after the war, 1983 was a far different time to 2009. The tone and conflict should be something that hits home no matter when it's shown, but the underlying subtext would not necessarily translate after so much time had passed. To that effect, people have speculated the recent series has taken on the form of representing such events as Obama's presidency and the heightened fear of terrorism post-9/11. This certainly isn't a show that would have succeeded in 2001. There is always a danger of over-analysing a media piece though, and so whether in 1983 or 2009, a story about visitors from space will always be fascinating to a lot of people. Not as a deep thoughtful piece, but as sheer entertainment.
It's the storylines that carry the episodes - granted, there's some impressive visuals that look spectacular in HD but this is by no means a shallow series carried by special effects. Whether you are familiar with the original or not, you can jump straight in. That's the beauty of a reimagining - for some, it may feel like an old friend returning, yet a whole new audience is welcomed too. The core of the show is driven by a simple idea of a collective of spaceships appearing all around the world, controlled by supposed peace-bringing aliens. As expected, nothing is quite how it seems, and in a succint 12 episode season we watch everything unravel at a slow burning pace. You're put in the middle of the action, trying to work out what the truth truly is, and unlike other shows you feel you will eventually get answers.
I can't speak highly enough of the cast, made up of true veterans of genre television, and some of the best new young talent coming through the ranks. Elizabeth Mitchell (straight off her heartbreaking performance as Juliet in the sorely missed 'Lost') plays Erica, an FBI agent at the forefront of exploring the true motives of the 'Visitors.' She is joined by Joel Gretsch ('The 4400') as a priest just as suspicious of the new arrivals, and Scott Wolf ('Party Of Five' and 'The Nine') taking on the role of a news anchor caught between his own humanity and exploration of the unknown.
The 'Visitors' are lead by their Queen Anna (Morena Baccarin - 'Firefly' and 'Stargate SG-1'), with her daughter Lisa (Laura Vandervoort - Kara in 'Smallville'), and supported by many characters - both those clearly alien and others who work undercover as humans to infiltrate Earth including Doctor Pearlman (Lexa Doig - 'Andromeda' and 'Stargate SG-1'). The dialogue is powerful, with an uneasy yet intriguing dynamic between the 'Visitors' and the human race. Without spoiling the show too much, there are many shifts and unexpected twists and turns, and you truly have to have your wits about you to know who is on which side by the end of the season.
Having been renewed for a second season (starting soon after this release), viewers can enjoy the first season knowing there'll be a definite continuation. With episodes directed by familiar sci-fi faces such as Jonathan Frakes (Riker in Star Trek: The Next Generation) and Robert Duncan McNeill (Star Trek: Voyager), 'V' has a breakout first set of episodes which truly benefits from the talent in front and behind the camera. I can highly recommend this to fans old and new, and would certainly suggest picking up the Blu-ray if possible for maximum visual pleasure.
An old favourite brought up to date with surprisingly good results.
The more the barriers between John and Savannah build up, becoming seemingly unmovable, the more you want to see them get back together - that's what keeps Dear John engaging until the credits roll. A touching romantic, i'd reccomend it to anyone
Now that Ben Affleck's second film as Director (The Town) has been released to critical acclaim, it's worth taking another look at his first one. Gone Baby Gone was obviously no fluke. It's also worth considering because of the recent success of Martin Scorcese's Shutter Island, as both are based on novels by Dennis Lehane, surely now a celebrity author.
It is easy to be attracted to the Film Noir thriller style of Lehane's work, but the payoff is worth so much more as his stories explore depths of character fairly unusual in the genre. In Gone Baby Gone, it is particularly sharp and Ben Affleck and his brilliant cast, headed by younger brother Casey, handle the shift in tone from hard-nosed detective thriller to moral drama with ease. There are a couple of necessary contrivances, but this is no simple hunt the bad guy plot and gives us relevant social commentary too. There are consequences to an excruciating dilemma that will leave you thinking long after the film has finished.
It starts straightforward enough; a young girl is missing, suspected kidnapped and the local community is united around the family, but the girl's mother is completely unhelpful and soon it's revealed she's a drug runner, mixed up with some very dangerous characters. Patrick (Casey Affleck) and Angie (Michelle Monaghan) take on the case as they have slightly better prospects interviewing the locals because they're locals too, so they start digging through Boston's underbelly.
The film has a top drawer cast, including effective and powerful performances from Ed Harris and Morgan Freeman, and so it's all the more impressive that baby-face Casey more than holds his own with the heavyweights, just like his character does against Boston's criminal class. He's tough, direct, but calm and focused, while hiding deep emotional turmoil. A fantastic performance, possibly his best and that's a big statement considering his work in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.
And finally as Casey's partner, the gorgeous Michelle Monaghan gets a role she deserves! She's excellent in a very important role; the film could live or die on that performance, especially in the final act and she handles it brilliantly. You'll watch Casey, but you'll remember Michelle.
This is a film that lives and breathes the Affleck brothers' home town and Boston is as much a character as anyone else, in the same way that San Francisco was such a huge part of Dirty Harry. In fact, Gone Baby Gone was released around the same time as David Fincher's Zodiac and even that superb film falters in comparison because Fincher failed to capture San Francisco in the same way. Blu-Ray seemed to highlight a stagey aspect of Zodiac, but gives Gone Baby Gone another level of substance as the bright locations lend the film a sense of time, place and honesty. Even more so than Scorcese's The Departed. People tend to skew toward the big blockbusters for Blu-Ray material when in fact it should be sharply photographed real settings like this. John Toll's cinematography is unusually bright for a story such as this, but it works wonders.
So I've compared Ben Affleck the Director to names like Fincher and Scorcese and that will still cause a frown for a lot of people, I'm sure! But he deserves the praise and the rewards, especially now The Town is doing so well. Gone Baby Gone is a relevant and rich piece of work, which may suffer from a confused middle act, but ultimately delivers its enduring message with assured confidence. Hell of a debut.
Matchstick Men is almost a decade old but in terms of performances, direction and script it's a tough one to beat. It was on TV a few weeks ago which surprised me as I believe it's not a film you're likely to see on TV very often but that's a great shame as this film really deserves a wider audience.
Roy and Frank are known by many different names - some call them grifters, others call them flimflam men or even matchstick men. They prefer to be known as con artistés. Roy (Nicolas Cage) is the true master of deception. He has the gift of language - he's loquacious, chatty and he's the kind of guy that everyone likes; you could call him gregarious. Frank (Sam Rockwell) is Roy's protégé. Frank also has a variety of skills such as deceptiveness and a genuine power of persuasion. They are about to pull off a big job, but when Roy's daughter turns up unexpectedly, everything changes.
Ridley Scott's direction is as smooth as silk, while musical performances from the likes of Bobby Darin and Frank Sinatra make up a wonderful soundtrack.
Cage - always the consummate actor - versatile, unique, an intoxicating performer, is the definition of confidence as he produces another deeply satisfying and compelling, Oscar-worthy performance. Despite being overlooked by the Academy his observation of and portrayal of a person suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder is astonishingly real and organic and every bit as good as his portrayal of Ben Sanderson - his charming but pitiful drunk from Leaving Las Vegas.
Sam Rockwell also impresses - smooth, smart, calculating - he's the perfect choice for the role and shows here why he was the best choice for the leading role in last year's Sci-Fi mind-bender Moon.
Alison Lohman as Roy's daughter Angela is also genuinely faultless. A decade ago Lohman was one of the leading young actresses to watch - more recently she seems to have disappeared from the Hollywood spotlight, yet if all her performances had been as good as this along with her performance in the film White Oleander she would still have been at the very top of the A-List now with the likes of Ellen Page.
In the scenes featuring Cage and Loham celluloid burns, these two together set the screen alight. The film walks a fine line but never dips into sentimentality. It's ultimately a beautifully told story about how true love can change everything and have a profound effect even on people who thought that they were lost.
Matchstick Men is a modern classic.
Massively underrated, this admittedly low budget film captures the nature of 'Cyberpunk' better than just about any other and even Gruner lifts his game to give more than his normal shallow 'action hero' performance. The finale looks poor as the ideas are a) copied and b) go beyond the avilable budget, but the atmosphere and tone is what counts and for most of the film it totally works even with the obvious lack of fiscal input.
In the future it pays to be more than human... and it pays to give this one a try!
Underrated cyberpunk
The Prince of Persia, a film of Sword-and-Sorcery, has something for every age. Directed by Mike Newell, staring Jake Gyllenhaal, Ben Kingsley, Gemma Arterton, Alfred Molina and many more.
It's fantasy and action appeal to everyone and it contains humour for both the young and the old. The special affects used in this film enchant you as you follow the action in every scene and you can tell that every detail, no matter how minute, matters. This film envolves the audience and keeps you guessing till the very end as you believe the world in front of you and find yourself on the edge of your seat waiting to see what happens next.
Prince of Persia is the story of Dastan, an orphan who is adopted by the King of Persia. When the new prince goes to battle with his two brothers against the sacred city Alamut he meets the princess Tamina and discovers the magic of her dagger and the sands of time which it contains. Dastan finds out the true reason for the attack on the sacred city and fights against time to save his family, clear his name of the murder of his father and unearth the true nature of his uncle.
'I need a CBC Chem 7 intubate and bag em', isn't a line you want to throw around in a hospital, especially if you're not a doctor but somehow feel you've got the know how from all the years of watching 'ER'. Best relive Michael Crichton's frantic medical drama from the safety of your own home: Not as rough around the edges as 'Casualty' nor as glossy as 'Chicago Hope', 'ER' was, in the mid to late 90s, essential viewing. And though it hobbled through some weak seasons, there's no denying the high water mark 1995-99 when George Clooney, Juliana Margulies, Sherry Stringfield, Eriq La Salle, Noah Wyle and Anthony Edwards were on call. Medical marvel.
This is a great movie. It has a great combination of humour and action with a great cast. The pick of which has to be Chloe Moretz who plays Mindy. She handles the mix of comedy and fyling through the air firing guns brilliantly. The story is a good one too, with many twists and turns along the way. The blu ray bonus features are great also. There's a director's commentary as well as a 114 minute making of documentary, which is a very interesting look behind the scenes. In addition, there's other featurettes too. Overall, it's highly recommended.
Four couples who are also college friends gather for their yearly retreat in the mountains and all hell breaks loose, as secrets are revealed. After this weekend each couple struggle and wonder about the strength of their marriage and of course "Why Did I Get Married" This film has it all drama, romance and comedy and can be watched by both men and women as contents within the film can be enjoyed by both sexes. Tyler Perry has mastered the art of story telling for black audiences and shows not all black movies have to be about sex and violence. This Film has a strong cast of actors Janet Jackson (singer), Jill Scott (The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency) and Tyler Perry
Sherlock Holmes is a fast paced, action packed movie, that has some excellent special effects and plenty of twists to keep you entertained throughout.
Robert Downey Jr plays the lead well and has a great variety of dry wit as well as crime solving action. Jude Law is his sidekick Watson and does a good job of playing the Dr who, evidently picks up the pieces left behind from Holmes' destructive manner in solving crimes.
The effects are fantastic and I particularly like the way a scene is played out and then returned to revealing the full story of how it came to be. The heroin is not the most convincing of characters but entertaining none the less. It is left open for a sequel but I don't think it would be anywhere on par if one is released.
A good watch overall.
Excellent tour much of cost of lot of money to produce the only let down for me personally was the take that song everything changes is in my top 3 fave take that songs and I would have liked to to sing the song how it was record not the version that they did on the tour/dvd because it spoiled it for me.
Russell Crowe is to movies what John McEnroe was to tennis in the 1970s. In an era where everyone plays it boring-safe, says what the PR machine demands they say, does what their managers tell them to do and never, at any time, lets on to the fact that they're human. Russell Crowe has managed to turn being normal into a marketable commodity. Granted, he occasionally oversteps the mark, but there's no bigger movie star in our time and the way things are going, I doubt there will be for some time to come.
Ridley Scott's 'Robin Hood' (the fifth Scott-Crowe collaboration) was met with a hailstorm of middling reviews and a lukewarm reception at the box office. For like Scott's underrated 'Kingdom Of Heaven' (2005), 'Robin Hood' will appeal to fans of historical fiction and De- Mille-esque melodrama. Russell Crowe is Robin Longstride; disillusioned Crusades veteran and expert archer in the now defunct army of King Richard 'The Lionheart' (Danny Huston). Robin returns to an England in turmoil; where political intrigue and decades of imperial misadventures have crushed the peasantry underfoot: A royal conspiracy threatens to facilitate an invasion by France whilst kings, sheriffs and all manner of schemers continue to tax & pummel the masses into dust.
Robin Hood is an often intense, jocoserious, long haul of a picture that courageously grounds the legend in reality: Well acted and expertly shot with an keen eye for detail; Scott's epic actually owes a debt to my favourite Robin Hood adaptation; Richard Lester's 'Robin & Marion' (1976) with Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn. For the emphasis on character and story, though requiring a bit of patience from the audience, is a daring directorial decision which ought to be commended.
Everyone brings their best to the screen: Russell Crowe, despite an accent that traverses the length and breath of England, is excellent as Nottingham's favourite son. John Huston does well as Richard, though it would've made for good trivia had Scott recast Iain Glen (who played Richard in 'Kingdom Of Heaven') in the role. Oscar Issac, looking like a medieval Craig David, is hilariously OTT as the cavalier cad King John whilst the brilliant, ever-reliable Cate Blanchett (a last minute replacement for Sienna Miller--who was deemed too young for the role) effortlessly takes on the mantle of Lady Marian. And though I quite liked her portrayal of the erstwhile maid, attempts to modernise the character only half work, and her participation in the somewhat preposterous 'War orphans of Sherwood' subplot makes little sense. Now since Blanchett's played so many similar roles throughout her career, there is an element of default casting at work here, and it would've made for a nice change to see unlikely, often overlooked, candidates like Sienna Guillory or Natasha Wightman given a chance. In fact, since the hype was always going to be centred on this being 'Gladiator In Tights', I'm surprised Scott didn't ask Connie Neilson back.
Minor editing issues aside, and overlooking the distinct lack of authentic brutality in the battle scenes ('Gladiator' was much more violent) 'Robin Hood' is still a great film. An intricate narrative structure and political machinations may not be everyone's cup of tea, but this is to the Hood cannon what 'Master And Commander' was to the Napoleonic War genre: An original, well paced and exciting epic which hits the mark.
A very thoughtful character driven study of war, of the people drawn to it and its effect on young people in their formative years. The story evolves whilst following a mixed group of Southern Bushwackers as they hid out a winter after having spent their summer engaging the Northern Jayhawkers, in this guerrilla conflict. We find out little about their motives for joining the war, more about its effect on them as the drama unwinds. Historically this piece is far more accurate than many others, with epic confrontations, yet it is the character development that is the key and this slowly, almost organically comes to dominate the film. Helped by excellent performances from the group led by Tobey Maguire, Jewel and especially Jeffrey Wright (who plays the Southern Blackman who achieves self emancipation) this film has plenty to offer with preaching and offering obvious signposting when confronting issues of race and terrorism of the time. Highly recommended.
Set in Missouri and Kansas during the American Civil War this Ang Lee film follows a group of young bushwackers involved in a guerrilla war with their counterparts fighting for the north.
Okay, I'm a big fan of Toto. But even if you weren't a fan, this is amazing live performance. Video quality is maybe the best one of I've seen in music blu-rays. Audio is of course stunning (HD 5.1), and Toto's performance is appealing. I believe that everyone would enjoy this one. Great product for nice price.
Must-have music BD
What a fantastic film from start to finish it has you in its grasp . story line is brilliant and the special effcts are superb , a must see film for all the family to enjoy
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