DVD Reviews: Escape to Witch Mountain and Return from Witch Mountain
Escape to Witch Mountain
Years ago, I met Bob Young, a retired TV writer who needed a computer tutor. Once a week I scheduled an hour and a half to go to his home above La Costa, California, but we usually took much longer than that. When we were finished going over what he wanted to learn that week, we’d speak French as best we could remember, look at old home movies, or he’d tell me about his experiences writing for television. I eventually looked him up online and found what he had left out. While he had written for quite a few television shows, he neglected to include that he had written one feature film, one that I and all the kids of my generation had seen multiple times growing up. The next time I saw him, I showed him his entry on IMDB and he was surprised to see how many shows they listed as scripted by him. I mentioned how impressed I was that he had written a film from my youth. I wish I remembered more details. I tried to contact him for an interview to go along with this review, but when I called his number, the young woman who answered claimed that this was her number and she’d had it for twenty years. Emails just bounced, but that’s not surprising since I know his old ISP went out of business. I just hope he’s okay. He is about to be 85 this year after all.
DVD Review: The Midnight Meat Train Unrated Director’s Cut
Before you were born, or the birth of any other human thing, that’s how long, or longer. And now you found us, as only a few before you have. The intimate circle that keeps the secret, we protect and nurture them and order is thereby preserved. It must be done, to keep the worlds separate. You’ll understand soon enough. Now serve, as we all do, without question.
DVD Review: Andy Richter Controls the Universe
Once upon a time on network prime time TV, sitcoms ruled the entire prime-time landscape. Families use to look forward to sitting down after dinner and watching the hilarious adventures of their favorite TV family and possibly learn a couple life lessons along the way. As time has gone by, these series became too formulaic and the public’s interest in them started to wane. Now sitcoms on TV are very scarce and most don’t even make it past their first seasons. In order to try and break up the normal formula of how a sitcom is, we started to find shows that took on gimmicks such as That 70s Show, Scrubs and Greg the Bunny.
DVD Review: The Haunting of Molly Hartley
Your mother has gone crazy and tried to kill you, you’re starting a new prep school and everyone knows about your mom. What could be worse? If you’re Molly Hartley, turning 18.
DVD Review: Dead Like Me: Life After Death
Remember the reapers? The Dirty Harry meter maid Roxy (Jasmine Guy – A Different World), actress Daisy (Laura Harris – The Faculty), English slacker Mason(Callum Blue – The Tudors), and newest to the grim reaper ranks, toilet seat girl (remember she was killed by a space station toilet seat), Georgia, “George” Lass (Ellen Muth – Dolores Clairborne), with Rube (Mandy Patinkin – Alien Nation) as the leader of this group.
DVD Review: Marley & Me
Based on John Grogan’s best selling novel of the same name Marley & Me, is an autobiographical look into the dog eat answering machine world of dog ownership now available on DVD!
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DVD Review: Marley & Me
Story
This quippet of a story is an autobiography of a real life columnist in South Florida. It begins on his wedding night with his wife and follows trough the trials and tribulations of a growing family. The first addition to this family is a ‘clearance’ puppy they name Marley. The story that follows is a sequence of anecdotes about their life together. It is an honest look at a typical quirky family that has no idea what they are doing or what they want to be when they grow up. They are also the typical new dog owner, biting off way more than they can chew in the case of Marley the Labrador.
Highlights
DVD Review: The Silver Chalice
The late, great Paul Newman thought that the performance he gave in his first feature film was so bad that he purchased ads in a trade paper apologizing to those who went to see it. That movie was The Silver Chalice, an epic historical drama set in the first century AD about early Christians who hire a young Greek silver worker to make a silver chalice to conceal the holy grail, and now you too can experience the film as a part of the Paul Newman Film Series.
DVD Review: Rachel, Rachel
While his acting debut in The Silver Chalice wasn’t particularly well received, Paul Newman’s first motion picture as a director, Rachel, Rachel, went so far as to be nominated for several Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay (From the novel A Jest of God by Margaret Laurence), and Best Actress.
DVD and Blu-ray Review: Wonder Woman
When someone mentions DC Comics there are three heroes that immediately come to mind: Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. While Batman and Superman have had many TV animated appearances Wonder Woman has never gone solo, appearing only in Justice League and JLU. But now, DC Comics proudly presents its newest Direct to DVD/ Blu-ray release of Wonder Woman! This is the 4th release under the DC Universe Direct to DVD series and is produced by Bruce Timm, best known for his work on the Batman, Superman and Justice League Animated Series.
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DVD Reviews: Spectacular Spider-Man Vol. 2 and 3
With The Spectacular Spider-Man returning to the airwaves on March 23rd, Sony and Marvel are releasing the next TWO Volumes of the hit animated series on DVD on March 17th!
Continuing the story of young Peter Parker’s early career as our web-slinging hero, Volumes Two and Three introduce some major villains into Peter’s world and will change his life forever!
DVD Review: The Secret Policeman’s Balls
Lets pretend you’re an international organization who‘s interested in human rights. Let’s pretend you’re responsible for the release of hundreds of prisoners in foreign countries and arrange for better conditions for thousands more since 1961. And let’s pretend that in 1976 you’re nearly broke. What to do, what to do? Well, if you‘re Amnesty International you put together an annual concert series, with the help of Monty Python member John Cleese, and eventually call them The Secret Policeman’s Balls.
DVD Review: How to Lose Friends and Alienate People
How to Lose Friends and Alienate People is the story of a small time British gossip monger who crashes the right party and inadvertently finds himself in the big time, working for one of the hottest celebrity tracking magazines in New York City. Unfortunately, he’s kind of a horrible jerk. Hilarity ensues.
DVD Review: Dorothy Mills
Remember when watching a foreign film meant sub-titles, out-of-synch dubbing, and plots that make little to no sense at all? The artsy films out of Europe seem to be fewer and further between, because I‘ve seen some really good films in the last few months and the quirky Dorothy Mills is no different.