Marvel Comics broke new ground with an African-American superhero named Blade. The movie adaptation tweaked action-movie formulas by mixing martial arts and not quite accurate vampire legend. Appropriately, the New Line Platinum Series DVD adaptation of Blade also contains some surprises. The disc has all the trailers, bios, and commentary DVD viewers have come to expect. More unusual inclusions: a 20-minute documentary on blood and vampire folklore, an isolated movie score with commentary from the composer (great for music freaks), and Blade's screenwriter philosophizing about "dark comics." The many features devoted to comics and vampires keep the extra features from turning into a love-in for the movie, though pure cinema fans will enjoy the printable screenplay, deleted scenes, and a look at an alternate ending. Viewers who also like to read and listen will be pleased, because this is a talky disc packed with information, interviews, and trivia. It all looks and sounds good (letterboxed, 5.1 Surround Sound or Stereo, original 2.35:1 aspect ratio) and is enhanced for widescreen TVs. The back of the box exclaims, "It's More Than Just the Movie." It certainly is.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
This movie brings everything I ever wanted in an action movie, a black hero and vampires. Wesley Snipes plays the lead role and does a great job. Like most movies, the hero is only as good as the villian and Stephen Dorff is just brilliant as the villian Deacon Frost.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
A disappointment that Michael Keaton wasn't back as the Batman, but with Val Kilmer as the Batman, it wasn't that bad. The set design was more comical than the first two, but I guess they changed it because of Jim Carey. Mr. Carey was brilliant as the Riddler and with the twirling kane he had, he showed that he could taking a little bit serious in roles. Now Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Faced, he stole this movie from everyone else.
What's great about it: Jim Carey and Tommy Lee Jones as villians
What's not so great: Not having Michael Keaton as Batman
While not quite a special edition, the re-release of The Fugitive makes up for what the original disc lacked. As with the first DVD, this disc has excellent picture and sound. The image, which is as good if not better than the previous release, uses a strong anamorphic transfer in the original theatrical aspect ration of 1.85:1. The detail is sharp and colors are consistent. In addition, blacks are deep and solid. The sound is equally impressive. The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is filled with effects that take advantage of the entire sound spectrum. A surround track in French, and subtitles in English and French, are also included. The original release of this title did not even have a trailer so it is exciting to see a little extra work go into this release. The highlight is a commentary track from director Andrew Davis and actor Tommy Lee Jones. Actually, Jones is rarely heard on this track, but Davis makes up for his absence with plenty of anecdotal information on making the film. Some of the things he talks about come as a real surprise. The rest of the supplemental information is not nearly as interesting, but still welcome. A 20-minute featurette called "On the Run With the Fugitive" combines film clips with interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, but lacks depth. The other featurette is a seven-minute piece called "Derailed: Anatomy of a Train Wreck"; while fascinating, it is too short. The least interesting extra on this disc is an introduction from Davis and Harrison Ford, which is nothing more than a very brief set of interviews. Biographies and filmographies of the main players as well as the theatrical trailer are also included. While superior to the first disc Warner released, it really could use more to make it feel complete.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
This movie is great with two brilliant actors, Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones that explosed all over the screen. By far the best screen of the movie might be the scene when Mr. Jones lets everyone who is running things and to check every house you could think of...out house, in house...
Bill Duke's gangster film Hoodlum comes to DVD with a pair of transfers. The widescreen transfer preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and is preferable in every way to the standard full-frame image. A closed-captioned English soundtrack is rendered in Dolby Digital 5.1, and a French soundtrack has been recorded in Dolby Digital Surround. English, French, and Spanish subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include the original theatrical trailer, production notes, and trivia. This is a solid release from MGM/UA with an appealing list price.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
This is a great movie to tell some of the story of Bumpy Johnson. Laurence Fishburne is just smooth, and brilliant as the lead character, and with Andy Garcia playing Lucky Luciano, you will pleased with the outcome
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
I liked this movie because of the visual style and the high fashion style. The smooth look of this movie is brilliant. The acting is okay, but the main star of the movie is the fashion.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
Lionel C. Martin's romantic/sex comedy How to Be a Player comes to DVD with a pair of transfers. The widescreen transfer preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and is preferable in every way to the standard full-frame image. The English soundtrack is rendered in Dolby Digital 5.0. French subtitles are accessible, and the soundtrack is closed-captioned. Supplemental materials include the theatrical trailer, as well as biographies and filmographies of the cast. This is a fine release from Polygram that will certainly satisfy fans of the film.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
The 2003 summer action blockbuster Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle comes to DVD in an unrated widescreen special edition from Columbia TriStar. The Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround soundtrack is in English with optional subtitles in English, French, and Korean. There are an insane amount of extra features on this disc. For starters, there's an audio commentary track with screenwriters John August, Cormac Wibberley, and Marianne Wibberley. Director McG provides Telestrator commentary, where he writes on the screen à la Monday Night Football. Yet another track is dubbed the "Angel-Vision Trivia Track," featuring pop-up links. There are a total of eight featurettes. Exclusive to the unrated version, "Turning Angels Into Pussycat Dolls" is a profile of choreographer Robin Antin's so-named dance troupe. "Rolling With the Punches" explores the training and choreography of the many fight scenes. "Learn Why There's No Such Thing as a Short Shot, Only an Overworked Producer" is about making the opening montage. "XXX-Treme Angels" focuses on the Moto-Cross segment. The other featurettes are more self-explanatory. "The Cars of Charlie's Angels" is about the cars,"Costuming an Angel" is about the costumes, and "Designing Angels" is about the production design. In the music area, there's a jukebox that offers a short music clip of the soundtrack songs with commentary by McG and music supervisor John Houlihan. There's also a music video for "Feel Good Time" featuring Pink and William Orbit. More extra features include a guide to celebrity cameos and DVD-ROM links to exclusive online stuff, like the video game and the animated shorts. This disc seems to provide more than anyone could possibly want to know about such a film.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
The underrated sports comedy Mr. 3000 arrives on DVD with a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. English soundtracks are rendered in both Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1. French and Spanish subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include a fine but less than scintillating commentary track by director Charles Stone III, deleted scenes with optional commentary by the director, outtakes, a making-of featurette, and the full version of three scenes that appear in a truncated form in the final film. This is a fine release from Touchstone that will hopefully help earn the film a larger audience.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
Probably not his best film, but Bernie Mac still brings the laughs in this sports comedy. If you are a fan of Bernie Mac, than this movie is one to get