| Digital Issue |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MOVIE REVIEWS DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS
Schmucks isn't hard to understand but for many, it will be hard to take. Don't expect chemistry 101 or Shakespearean lingo, cause you sure aren't going to find it. As long as the theatergoers aren't looking for something they can learn from, or quote, they will be in good shape. Nobody plays a better straight man that Rudd, while the current King of Comedy is Carell - and he is without peer. The chemistry between the two is wonderful and their timing is impeccable. For the first time in awhile, we have a Hollywood film that will really leave you in stitches. Go in with an open mind and come out with sore ribs from all the laughing you are sure to do. Dinner for Schmucks DVD REVIEWS We are doing a Free DVD Giveaway! If you are interested in a chance at winning a free copy of 9 Songs, Ex-Drummer, Import/Export, Barney: Songs from the Pack, Thomas & Friends: Creaky Cranky, Shaun the Sheep: One Giant Leap for Lambkind, or Avatar The Last Airbender Books 1, 2, or 3 and Volumes 1 & 2 or 3 & 4, it is really easy! All you have to do is send me an email at Filmlords@gmail.com. The subject line of the email should read DVD GIVEAWAY. In the body of the email, be sure to put your name, full mailing address and which DVD or Blu-ray you would like. Winners will be selected by random drawing. Best of luck! Nine modern obese Brits agree to a Diet Reality show which includes an experiment of weight loss through the use of three old British diets. There is also a competition between three teams of three. Diets vary for each team: Edwardian diet team; Victorian diet team; and Roaring 20s calorie-controlled diet team. Who will win? Which diet is best? If any. The show covers 6 episodes, a total of 24 days at the beautiful Victorian country house turned into diet center. I'd love to visit the estate, but not for the diet plan. The show was obviously created for entertainment, but it also provides a documentary of three old diets that many or may not work for today's lifestyles. It is an experiment in the validity of the diets as well as the tenacity & willpower of the diet needy participants. French Cinema from the 1930's was often peppered with the multi talented Sacha Guitry. His innovative style of transferring his works from the stage to the big screen wasn't widely accepted by the masses until after the finished products wowed the crowds who witnessed his productions. Only after folks were given a taste of his genius, was he dubbed one of the film medium's first 'complete auteurs.' These four films were selected specifically by Criterion to provide American audiences with an exquisite sample of Guitry's creative style. This set includes Guitry's masterpiece, The Story of a Cheat, which tells the story of a gambler and a petty thief. The story was of a prime influence on Orson Welles and Francois Truffaut. The second film focuses on three pearls end up missing from the royal crown of England in The Pearls of the Crown. Of significance with this selection is the script, which was Guitry's first work written specifically for the screen. Desire is the third film in the series. Guitry himself portrays a cavalier valet involved in an awkward flirtation with his boss. The final installment in the set is a four way love affair between a magazine editor, a girlfriend, a reporter and an American movie star. A romantic rectangle if ever there was one. Another brilliant installment in the Criterion collection. An award-winning documentary, Tapped explores the dark side of the bottled water industry. Human beings need clean drinking water to live. It is legal in some states for gigantic bottled water companies to suck public tap water sources dry (even when shortages force residents to ration water) then repackage and resell it at a gigantic markup - with infinitely less regulatory oversight than there is for tap water (and bottled water sold in the same state as it is pumped is virtually unregulated) - but is it ethical? Is the plastic used to create the water bottles truly safe for humans to put in their mouths? Perhaps worst of all is America's catastrophic overall failure to recycle plastic water bottles, resulting in an avalanche of non-biodegradable waste being pitched into landfills, or even straight into the ocean, where plastic bottles form a large part of a floating ocean garbage mound hundreds of square miles large. This is truly an eye-opening program that will make you think twice about bottled water. Arguably the greatest film maker in the history of the medium, Akira Kurosawa is a true master of his art form. However before the big screen was graced with the larger than life icons of Yojimbo, Seven Samurai and Rashomon, he essentially made his start as an independent in the Japanese film industry with these four exceptionally popular works all during the Second World War. The films rarely ever see the light of movie theater and are unbelievably captivating. What is the most interesting is watching the genesis of Kurosawa's trademark style as you progress through each of the films. The set begins with Sanshiro Sugata, which focuses on a rivalry between juno and jujitsu with this martial arts action tale. The Most Beautiful is the story of a female volunteer workers at an optics plant during the war. The film provides a look into the Japanese women of the era and the true culture of the postwar realism. The third installment is a sequel - Sanshiro Sugata, Part Two. The star, Sanshiro, finds himself the target of a revenge mission by the brothers of the original film's villain. The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail is the fourth film and is based on the Lord Yoshitsune and his samurai cross into enemy territory disguised as monks. This set isn't just for the Kurosawa fans, but all true connoisseurs of cinema. The cinematic equivalent of a half case of Red Bull chased with donuts, Kick-Ass is a giddy, violent experience--and not your average superhero movie. Based on the comic book by Mark Millar and John Romita Jr., it offers a set of heroes who are decidedly without superpowers: Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) decides he'll be just like a comic-book character, and puts on a ridiculous green suit to fight crime as the mysterious Kick-Ass. Luckily, somebody else had the same idea and comes along to rescue the incompetent crusader: Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and his daughter Hit Girl (Chloe Moretz), who also happen to be running around town wearing masks and vanquishing evil. With informative narration by Israeli American violinist Itzhak Perlman and ethnic music, Visions of Israel presents the natural and historical wonders of this sacred landscape in this stunning aerial tour of the ancient land. Sacred sites and natural wonders are seen in all their visual glory. Make an aerial pilgrimage to Israel, the world’s only Jewish state and Holy Land to three major religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Stunning high-definition footage showcases Israel in all its diverse glory, flying over sites where Jewish rebels gave their lives; where Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans built outposts of their empires; and where Jesus Christ lived and died. Witness the magnificence of the country’s many holy sites, including the Western Wall, the Temple Mount, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, alongside exotic seaside resorts and the austere beauty of the Judean desert. Geena Davis stars as Gloria Conway, the sharp-tongued mom in this darkly comic story of a family strangely cursed with a streak of bad luck. But as life takes unexpected detours, Gloria manages to tear apart her pain to find the humor in even the toughest things that happen to her. When her teenage son Billy uncharacteristically lets off some steam in a series of scandalous pranks, the tragic results are something no one could have predicted. But with the love of his family and some unexpected help, Billy sees the magic behind lifes oddest accidents. Henson's Place, the original documentary about Jim Henson, the creative visionary that brought us the enchantment of “The Muppet Show,” The Dark Crystal and more! From honing his skills as a puppeteer in college to creating some of the world’s most beloved characters in the last 30 years, see the imaginative genius like never before. Enjoy interviews with Henson, his wife Jane, long-time puppeteer partner Frank Oz and others, as they share memories of the legendary “Muppet Show,” “Sesame Street,” and “Fraggle Rock,” with a behind-the-scenes look inside the revolutionary Henson Workshop. Experience Henson’s desires to not only create new worlds, but also to celebrate the child inside all of us! Take a hard-nosed, strong-willed, undercover cop outraged by crime and the loopholes in the United States justice system, and team him up with a sexy, no-nonsense policewoman whose unorthodox tactics sometimes rival his own, and you get Hunter! This special collection includes all 152 episodes of this 3-time Emmy nominated series on 28 DVDs, and features such guest stars as: George Clooney, Eric Estrada, Jesse Ventura, Dennis Franz, Brian Dennehy, Ed O'Neill, Bruce Davison, Garrett Morris, Jerry Orbach, Lauren Lane, Isaac Hayes and hundreds more! Fred Dryer stars as LAPD detective, Rick Hunter, who ruled Saturday nights for 7 highly successful seasons on NBC with a quick gun, an iron fist, a hair-trigger temper and a law all his own. The stunning Stepfanie Kramer brought an edgy attitude as Hunter's partner, Sgt. Dee Dee "The Brass Cupcake" McCall during the series first six seasons. Throughout all their action-packed exploits, this dynamic duo remained united by a common goal: upholding law and order! Decked out in her dining room curtain cape and glow-in-the-dark fangs, our ten year old investigator is on the case. With the help of her sidekick Fang, the vampire cat, she tracks down the bizarre solutions to the baffling mysteries plaguing her town. She may not be a real vampire, but she s as close as they come: a little girl with a big imagination. She invents the world around her as she goes along. And those around her can t help but be drawn in. Where there s mystery, there s Mona! The Breakfast Club is an iconic portrait of 1980's American high school life. When Saturday detention started they were simply the Jock the Princess the Brain the Criminal and the Basket Case but by that afternoon they had become closer than any of them could have imagined. Featuring an all-star 1980's cast including Emilio Estevez Anthony Michael Hall Judd Nelson Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy this warm-hearted coming-of-age comedy helped define an entire generation! The film stars Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, John Kapelos, and Paul Gleason. The film was directed by John Hughes. Happy Birthday Dora!! It’s the final episode in the Magic Storybook trilogy. Dora and Boots need to get home from Wizzle World! Join Dora and Boots on an epic quest to get past a mean witch and find the Wishing Wizzle so they can wish themselves back home in time for Dora’s big birthday party! The simple story is about James (Paul Terry), a young boy who is orphaned at a young age when his parents are eaten by a dark rhino! He is forced to live with his evil aunts, Spiker and Sponge (Joanna Lumley and Miriam Margolyes). They beat him, starve him, and use him to do all of the work on the deserted island that they live on. Just as he reaches the pit of despair, having nothing to hope for, he is given a great gift by a mysterious stranger. A magical peach begins to grow, and with a group of new friends that James makes, he is able to face his fears and go after the dream he and his parents shared together: to visit New York City and The Empire State Building. Definitely a family-friendly movie, although there are some dark parts, especially with the orphaning of James and the evil treatment he receives from his Aunts.
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Contact Filmlords@gmail.com if
you would like to express your opinions/views regarding the
column. Write a SIGNED letter to
the editor with valid day time
phone number--name can be withheld by
request. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
An extraordinarily stupid man possesses the ability to ruin the life of anyone who spends more than a few minutes in his company. That simple line pretty much says everything you need to know, but were afraid to ask about Dinner for Schmucks. Schmucks stars the incredible comic pairing of Steve Carell and Paul Rudd which easily harks to the Abbott and Costello days of yore. One might even say that what we have is a more modern day pairing of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis - a comic and a straight man that are, simply put, the best in the business. Rudd portrays Tim, a young businessman who is invited by his boss to a dinner. Those invited represent the contestants of contest who compete to see who can bring along the biggest idiot to the party. The winner of the mentally challenged division wins a trophy, while the guest who brought the winning fool gets the respect of the boss (Bruce Greenwood). 
