http://www.cinemablend.com/ DVD en-us Copyright 1997-2005 Joshua Tyler Sun, 22 Nov 2009 22:02:31 -0700 CinemaBlend.com josh@cinemablend.com 60 John Hughes movies worked largely because they felt honest. II Love You, Beth CooperI doesnt feel honest. This is a movie where the title character faces off with an angry and violent boyfriend while wielding only a plastic lightsaber -- and still seems surprised at the ass-beating that follows. This is a movie where Denis best friend is named Richard Munsch think about it, itll come to you. The characters act in ways that are convenient, but never convincing. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:37:58 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/I-Love-You-Beth-Cooper-4320.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4320 I wonder if there will ever be a time when kids only recognize Dickens IA Christmas CarolI as plagiarism of all of their favorite forms of media. Its a vastly overused morality tale whose original story actually stands that much higher when placed against almost any one of hundreds of retreads and re-imaginings. Well, I dont know about IsubI-version, but the guys from IIts Always Sunny...I certainly add IperI-version, and loads of it. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:24:36 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/It-s-Always-Sunny-in-Philadelphia-A-Very-Sunny-Christmas-4319.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4319 What can I say about ISay Anythingi that hasnt been trod over a thousand times, sliced and diced to bits, ideas that still mean as much to a viewer as mush to IOliver Twisti. Cameron Crowe is brilliant here in his directorial debut, and Randy Stone cobbled together a cast that is perfectly suited to each characters roles and even propelled the careers of some. Oh yeah, and there is a scene where John Cusack holds a boombox in the air, propelling a love so deep and angsty any given audience will yearn alongside him. If you havent seen it, rent it. Now. Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:51:56 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Say-Anything-20th-Anniversary-Edition-4316.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4316 The thing I never really thought about before, but noticed while watching the new Anniversary Edition DVD of 1954 musical IWhite ChristmasI, is that if the title song wasnt included, youd have a movie that has almost nothing to do with Christmas. Take out Bing Crosby crooning the song at the beginning and a group rendition at the end and you could have an above-average Hollywood musical, rather than a perennial Christmas favorite. Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:27:01 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/White-Christmas-Anniversary-Edition-4314.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4314 After 10 incredibly successful movies, some people have grown weary of praising Pixars genius. I couldnt disagree more. For every iHoodwinkedi or iBarnyardi that sends a movie-goers heart into defibrillation, we need something like iUpi to send a refreshing jolt, and to help us remember how phenomenal animated storytelling can be. Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:04:41 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Up-Blu-ray-4312.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4312 This cut is 215 minutes long. Thats over three and a half hours, for those keeping track. Thats as much uninterrupted sleep as I usually get on a daily basis. So it feels kind of strange thinking that this is the version that should stand as definitive. I usually think subsequent cuts of films are done avariciously or for pride alone, and have no doubt that this one is wading in similar waters, seeing as how to be the guy filming the IWatchmenI comics after other, better directors have decided against, well...a lot of ambition can squeeze out a lesser amount of ingenuity, theres no denying that. Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:35:12 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Watchmen-The-Ultimate-Cut-4310.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4310 By the halfway point iBack to EarthI turns into an unmerciful parody of IBlade Runneri. From a chase sequence through a surprisingly well-conceived futuristic Chinatown alleyway to a chilly interrogation of an Asian prop master who just does noses, its astonishing how well the show apes the iconic look of that film. We dont get any shots of Lister releasing a dove into the sky, but we do get a hilarious set piece involving Rimmers crotch at the mercy of Lister and a universe-altering typewriter, and thats a trade worth making if you ask me. Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:25:08 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Red-Dwarf-Back-to-Earth-4309.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4309 A surprising amount of iZorroi is what wed consider modern television. Theres some actual drama, large story arcs that stretch out over multiple episodes, sexual innuendoes, and a huge amount of action and violence. Yep, on a pretty regular basis, people get whipped, stabbed, shot in the back -- heck, one guy gets iimpaledi halfway through the first season! On a Disney show aimed at kids! One produced under the watchful eye of Walt himself! Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:41:01 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Zorro-The-Complete-First-And-Second-Seasons-4308.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4308 The buddy comedy genre is often a male love story of sorts, and this one is no different. Through one broadly funny ordeal after another we watch as these very different men become friends. What distinguishes this from others in the genre is the undercurrent of melancholy between the laughs. There is a loneliness in Del that is hard to pin down at first, a desperation for human contact. It is this feeling of emptiness set against the social and familial mood of the holidays that keeps the film from being just a comedy. Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:56:16 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Planes-Trains-and-Automobiles-Those-Aren-t-Pillows-Edition-4304.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4304 Since its release in 2001, IMonsters, Inc.I has sat near the top of the Pixar pecking order, up there with IThe IncrediblesI and IToy StoryI. A viewing eight years later on Blu-ray does nothing to change that assessment. This isnt just a great animated movie, a great Pixar movie, a great family movie; its a great movie, period. Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:59:50 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Monsters-Inc-Blu-ray-4303.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4303 The movie never plays against type, even when Travolta screams, Im crrrraaaazy, motherfucker! again and again into his phone. A crazier person would be the guy who wasted all that fake tattoo ink on Travoltas fat neck. With honed dialogue, it could have been a really exciting mumble-core flick, and less mainstream cast and crew could have raised the material from its glossy Hollywood swamp. This would have been a great 40s era Hitchcock effort. Tough luck, though. Even a skewed take on the unoriginal plotline would have added a second layer to this shallow story. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:46:27 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/The-Taking-of-Pelham-1-2-3-4302.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4302 Tom Hanks, naturally, carries the entire film as Forrest Gump, a dim-witted everyman who moves through the history of the 1950s to the 1980s, becoming famous and prosperous despite his lack of brains or determination. Like the famous feather that floats through the opening scene, Forrest moves on the wind and lives a pretty interesting life. I cant make much more of the theme of the movie than that, but thats enough. Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:16:51 -0700 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Forrest-Gump-Box-of-Chocolates-Edition-4300.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4300 In a sea of interchangeable police procedurals and hospital dramas, IThe Uniti was something truly unique, even down to its stirring and unforgettable original theme song, a variant on the Marine Corp running song Fired Up...Feels Good. It never became the break-out hit it deserved to be, but thanks to DVD, the show has been preserved in an excellent set thats a cant-miss purchase for both the fan and the curious. Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:55:11 -0600 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/The-Unit-The-Complete-Giftset-4281.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4281 Its definitely the writing and varying plateaus of verbal trickery used, even without the novel historical hook, that make IBlack AdderI stand out. Especially for the first series, because I know nothing of the era and am uninterested by class structures and royalty. Ill claim ignorance there, no problem. But the fact is, there werent many relatable things to talk about back then, so creativity had to be up to snuff to capture the attention of anyone not looking beyond the lush locations and realistic costumes and laugh track to realize how funny it is. There are so many animalsausageanatomyvegetable metaphors that I often spent more time marveling than laughing aloud. Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:23:05 -0600 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Black-Adder-Remastered-The-Ultimate-Edition-4277.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4277 Now that Tink is up poop creek without a paddle, she does what makes the most sense: tells the truth and deals with the consequences. No, that would be good on the moral side but boring on the kid-entertaining-and-selling-merchandise side. Instead, she goes searching for a magic mirror that grants wishes! This takes her outside of Neverland, where she runs into all sorts of cwazy mischief! She meets a new plush toy...err, firefly...named Blaze and is also helped by her friend Terence, who partially caused the original moonstone disaster. Thus teaching us all about friendship and whatnot. Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:47:38 -0600 http://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Tinker-Bell-and-the-Lost-Treasure-Blu-ray-4275.html http://www.cinemablend.com/review.php?id=4275