Library

Languages: English, French, Japanese, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish, Japanese

Sound: AC-3

Summary: For "Halo Legends", various anime directors made eight short films that explore the universe of the popular video game franchise, just as the shorts in "Animatrix" expanded on the "Matrix" features. Although "Halo" ranks among the top first-person shooter games, the AI narrator of Hideki Futamura's two-part introductory episode complains about humanity's violent tendencies: "Like a virus, war is always with you." "The Duel," which pits two Covenant warriors in a samurai-like battle over honor, has a watercolor look that recalls "Gankutsuou: Count of Monte Cristo". Unfortunately, the effect is applied too evenly, and the characters get lost in the backgrounds. Daisuke Nishio's "Odd Man Out" injects a welcome note of comedy, as warrior Spartan 337 copes with three difficult children and their pet tyrannosaur. Other Spartans in single fighters attack the flagship of the Covenant fleet in "The Package," by Shinji Aramaki. The elaborately choreographed space battle is obviously modeled on the attack on the Death Star in "Star Wars", but the sequence packs more visual punch than the other films in the anthology. Dr. Catherine Halsey ends this segment with the line, "Something tells me this is just the beginning," so additional films may be in the works. "Halo Legends" was clearly intended to expand the audience for the already-popular franchise, but the shorts aren't strong enough as films to win many viewers who aren't currently members of the "Halo Nation." The disc comes loaded with extras, including a standard making-of mini-documentary about each segment. Although the cover bears the warning "Parents strongly cautioned: Violent Content Throughout," the action in "Halo Legends" is surprisingly tame. (Rated PG-13: violence, violence against women) "--Charles Solomon"

Languages: English

Summary: "The Hamiltons" is a horror movie with potential, of that there is no doubt. After all, the seemingly similar "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" remake showed that such a premise as a murderous family capturing and killing strangers can work in the modern day. So did the more recent "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning". All that being said, the end result in this straight-to-DVD horror isn't anywhere near as good as it could have been. Laboured with abysmal acting, uninteresting plotting, half-baked character motivations and poor scripting, "The Hamiltons" is a poor horror movie that, much like the recent "Sublime", attempts to be something of worth simply by being a little odd. Obviously, that just doesn't cut it.

The Hamilton family are an odd lot. There are the incest committing twins after all, their creepy posessive brother who lures strangers to the house and kills them, and there's the camera-obsessed teenager also. The family have been constantly moving since their parents both died, occupying six houses within a two-year timespan. Why do they move, you ask? Either because they're, as our teenage narrator would have you believe, running away from their problems or because they're constantly killing strangers to 'keep food on the table'. That is except for said teenager, who apparently doesn't enjoy his siblings' sadistic tendencies but meanwhile seems unwilling to do anything to stop it. Naturally, "The Hamiltons" focuses upon one specific kidnapping committed by the family, this time of two unfortunate girls.

The acting talent aren't anything to brag about, with blank facial expressions and stilted line deliveries all around. Not a single performer escapes unscathed. As uncomfortable teenager Francis, the only member of the family seemingly against what's happening, Cory Knauf is a bland, uninteresting protagonist that the audience consequently cares nothing about. As head of the household David, Samuel Child is perhaps the worst actor involved. Not once does his facial expression change throughout, rendering his character the most bland of the whole bunch. As freaky twins Wendell and Darlene, Joseph McKelheer and Mackenzie Firgens are only slightly better, over-acting their bizarre characters to the point of annoyance. Playing the Hamiltons' latest victims, Rebekah Hoyle and Brittany Daniel aren't likeable enough to give a damn about.

Straight-to-DVD horror movies are not difficult to find and by no means is "The Hamiltons" among the poorer efforts in the genre.Still, the movie is pretty bad. Resorting to cheap jump scares sooner rather than later, believing bizareness to create palpable tension, failing to construct characters that are anywher near believable and directed uninterestingly by the Butcher Brothers, these are but a few of "The Hamiltons" multiple flaws. Watching this movie, in fact, is the cinematic equivalent of bashing your head against a brick wall, the whole thing is completely vacant, wholly stupid rubbish,

Occasionally "The Hamiltons" is enjoyable enough to watch, with the opening scenes constructed well, fare more tense than anything that is to follow. Unfortunately, though, the movie totally collapses from that point onwards. Blood disappears and then reappears on the lead victim towards the end, with a lack of blood uncanny for someone who wasn't long since being drained of blood by the family of the title. No, "The Hamiltons" isn't as categorically flawed as the recent "Rest Stop", but a whole emphasis upon vampires ultimately makes this movie all the more silly, however dumb the rest of it is. Best to avoid this one, another straight-to-DVD horror is never far ahead.

Languages: English, French, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: "Hancock" turns the standard superhero movie inside-out: The title character (Will Smith) can fly, has superstrength, and is invulnerable, but he's also a sloppy, alcoholic jerk who causes millions of dollars in property damage whenever he bothers to fight crime. When he saves the life of a public-relations agent named Ray (Jason Bateman, "Arrested Development"), Ray decides to improve Hancock's image--starting by having Hancock surrender himself to the authorities and go to prison for his lawless behavior. The idea is that once he's in prison, the crime rate will go up, and people will start to realize Hancock might be of value after all. This is only the first act of "Hancock"--from there, the movie takes several clever turns that shouldn't be revealed. "Hancock" isn't a great movie (among other things, director Peter Berg overuses close-ups with a hand-held camera to a degree that may cause motion sickness), but it is an extremely entertaining one. The script, which holds together far better than most superhero movies, has a propulsive plot, good dialogue, some compassion for its characters, and even an actual idea or two. The spectacular action at least gestures towards obeying the laws of physics, which actually makes the special effects more vivid. The three leads (Smith, Bateman, and Charlize Theron as Ray's wife, Mary) deftly balance the movie's mixture of comedy, action, and drama. All in all, a smart subversive twist on a genre that all too often takes itself all too seriously. --"Bret Fetzer"

Stills from "Hancock" (click for larger image)

Summary: "Hanna" has the plot of a Hollywood action blockbuster but the style of a European art movie--and this unholy hybrid is fascinating to watch. Hanna (Saoirse Ronan, "The Lovely Bones") has been raised by her father (Eric Bana, "Munich"), an ex-covert agent, for one purpose: to murder the American agent, Marissa Wiegler (Cate Blanchett), who murdered Hanna's mother. Hanna thinks she succeeds and escapes, but she's actually being followed by Wiegler, who will go to any lengths to exterminate the girl. "Hanna" could have been little more than a tween reboot of "La Femme Nikita", but in the hands of director Joe Wright ("Atonement", "Pride & Prejudice") the movie spends as much time on Hanna's budding relationship with a girl on holiday in Morocco as it does on Hanna's capacity to kill. Even the action scenes have atypical rhythms (and one violent sequence occurs in a long, sustained shot that will make film geeks squeal with glee). "Hanna" is visually sumptuous, emotionally delicate, and completely unlike any other action flick you'll see. The ending goes flat as disappointingly banal plot mechanics take hold, but up until then, "Hanna" combines genuine thrills, unexpected complexity of character, and an unusual electronica soundtrack into an enthralling film. "--Bret Fetzer"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish, French

Sound: AC-3

Summary: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I" is a brooding, slower-paced film than its predecessors, the result of being just one half of the final story (the last book in the series was split into two movies, released in theaters eight months apart). Because the penultimate film is all buildup before the final showdown between the teen wizard and the evil Voldemort (which does not occur until "The Deathly Hallows, Part II"), "Part I" is a road-trip movie, a heist film, a lot of exposition, and more weight on its three young leads, who up until now were sufficiently supported by a revolving door of British thesps throughout the series. Now that all the action takes place outside Hogwarts--no more Potions classes, Gryffindor scarves, or Quidditch matches--Daniel Radcliffe (Harry), Emma Watson (Hermione), and Rupert Grint (Ron) shoulder the film almost entirely on their own. After a near-fatal ambush by Voldemort's Death Eaters, the three embark on a quest to find and destroy the remaining five horcruxes (objects that store pieces of Voldemort's soul). Fortunately, as the story gets more grave--and parents should be warned, there are some scenes too frightening or adult for young children--so does the intensity. David Yates, who directed the Harry Potter films "Order of the Phoenix" and "The Half-Blood Prince", drags the second half a little, but right along with some of the slower moments are some touching surprises (Harry leading Hermione in a dance, the return of Dobby in a totally non-annoying way). "Deathly Hallows, Part I" will be the most confusing for those not familiar with the Potter lore, particularly in the shorthand way characters and terminology weave in and out. For the rest of us, though, watching these characters over the last decade and saying farewell to a few faces makes it all bittersweet that the end is near (indeed, an early scene in which Hermione casts a spell that makes her Muggle parents forget her existence, in case she doesn't return, is particularly emotional). Despite its challenges, "Deathly Hallows, Part I" succeeds in what it's most meant to do: whet your appetite for the grand conclusion to the Harry Potter series. --"Ellen A. Kim"

Summary: "The Deathly Hallows: Part 2" is the film all Harry Potter fans have waited 10 years to see, and the good news is that it's worth the hype--visually stunning, action packed, faithful to the book, and mature not just in its themes and emotion but in the acting by its cast, some of whom had spent half their lives making Harry Potter movies. Part 2 cuts right to the chase: Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) has stolen the Elder Wand, one of the three objects required to give someone power over death (a.k.a. the Deathly Hallows), with the intent to hunt and kill Harry. Meanwhile, Harry's quest to destroy the rest of the Horcruxes (each containing a bit of Voldemort's soul) leads him first to a thrilling (and hilarious--love that Polyjuice Potion!) trip to Gringotts Bank, then back to Hogwarts, where a spectacular battle pitting the young students and professors (a showcase of the British thesps who have stolen every scene of the series: Maggie Smith's McGonagall, Jim Broadbent's Slughorn, David Thewlis's Lupin) against a dark army of Dementors, ogres, and Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter, with far less crazy eyes to make this round). As predicted all throughout the saga, Harry also has his final showdown with Voldemort--neither can live while the other survives--though the physics of that predicament might need a set of crib notes to explain. But while each installment has become progressively grimmer, this finale is the most balanced between light and dark (the dark is "quite" dark--several familiar characters die, with one significant death particularly grisly); the humor is sprinkled in at the most welcome times, thanks to the deft adaptation by Steve Kloves (who scribed all but one of the films from J.K. Rowling's books) and direction by four-time Potter director David Yates. The climactic kiss between Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), capping off a decade of romantic tension, is perfectly tuned to their idiosyncratic relationship, and Daniel Radcliffe has, over the last decade, certainly proven he was the right kid for the job all along. As Prof. Snape, the most perfect of casting choices in the best-cast franchise of all time, Alan Rickman breaks your heart. Only the epilogue (and the lack of chemistry between Harry and love Ginny Weasley, barely present here) stand a little shaky, but no matter: the most lucrative franchise in movie history to date has just reached its conclusion, and it's done so without losing its soul. --"Ellen A. Kim"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1

Summary: The sixth installment of the "Harry Potter" series begins right where "The Order of the Phoenix" left off. The wizarding world is rocked by the news that "He Who Must Not Be Named" has truly returned, and the audience finally knows that Harry is "the Chosen One"--the only wizard who can defeat Lord Voldemort in the end. Dark forces loom around every corner, and now regularly attempt to penetrate the protected walls of Hogwarts School. This is no longer the fun and fascinating world of magic from the first few books—it's dark, dangerous, and scary.
Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) suspects Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) to be a new Death Eater recruit on a special mission for the Dark Lord. In the meantime, Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) seems to have finally removed the shroud of secrecy from Harry about the dark path that lies ahead, and instead provides private lessons to get him prepared. It's in these intriguing scenes that the dark past of Tom Riddle (a.k.a. Voldemort) is finally revealed. The actors cast as the different young versions of Riddle (Hero Fiennes-Tiffin and Frank Dillane) do an eerily fantastic job of portraying the villain as a child. While the previous movies' many new characters could be slightly overwhelming, only one new key character is introduced this time: Professor Horace Slughorn (with a spot-on performance by Jim Broadbent). Within his mind he holds a key secret in the battle to defeat the Dark Lord, and Harry is tasked by Dumbledore to uncover a memory about Voldemort's darkest weapon--the Horcrux. Despite the long list of distractions, Harry, Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) still try to focus on being teenagers, and audiences will enjoy the budding awkward romances. All of the actors have developed nicely, giving their most convincing performances to date.
More dramatic and significant things go down in this movie than any of its predecessors, and the stakes are higher than ever. The creators have been tasked with a practically impossible challenge, as fans of the beloved J.K. Rowling book series desperately want the movies to capture the magic of the books as closely as possible. Alas, the point at which one accepts that these two mediums are very different is the point at which one can truly enjoy these brilliant adaptations. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" is no exception: it may be the best film yet. For those who have not read the book, nail-biting entertainment is guaranteed. For those who have, the movie does it justice. The key dramatic scenes, including the cave and the shocking twist in the final chapter, are executed very well. It does a perfect job of setting up the two-part grand finale that is to follow. "--Jordan Thompson"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: HARRY POTTER: THE FIRST SIX YEARS

HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE - The magical adventure begins when Harry Potter is invited to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS - Cars fly, trees attack and a mysterious house-elf warns Harry that he is in great danger as he returns for his second year at Hogwarts.

HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN - Harry must confront soul-sucking Dementors, outsmart a werewolf and learn the truth about the escaped prisoner of Azkaban – Sirius Black.

HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE - Harry must overcome a deadly dragon, fierce water demons and an enchanted maze only to find himself in the cruel grasp of He Who Must Not Be Named.

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX - When few believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, Harry must secretly train his friends for the wizarding war that lies ahead.

HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE - As Lord Voldemort tightens his grip on both Muggle and wizarding worlds, Harry and Dumbledore work to find the key to unlock Voldemort’s defenses.
(c) 2009 Warner Bros Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved. Harry Potter Publishing Rights (c) J.K.R

Comments: Box set, Special Edition

Summary: Heat was a film i wasnx27;t sure about at first mainly because of the length but when i watched it you lose track of time and before you know it the film is over.
This has to be the best cops and robbers film i have ever seen and one of the best films ever.
All the actors and actresses put in powerful performances and i pick out Al Pacino and Robert Di Niro as my favourites but even Val Kilmer was great infact everybody was great.
I wonx27;t give any of the story away but just a quick summary:very clever crooks vs a very clever police lieutenant something has to give!.

Comments: Box set

Summary: In the ongoing deluge of comic-book adaptations, "Hellboy" ranks well above average. Having turned down an offer to helm "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" in favor of bringing "Hellboy"'s origin story to the big screen, the gifted Mexican director Guillermo del Toro compensates for the excesses of "Blade II" with a moodily effective, consistently entertaining action-packed fantasy, beginning in 1944 when the mad monk Rasputin--in cahoots with occult-buff Hitler and his Nazi thugs--opens a transdimensional portal through which a baby demon emerges, capable of destroying the world with his powers. Instead, the aptly named Hellboy is raised by the benevolent Prof. Bloom, founder of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, whose allied forces enlist the adult Hellboy (Ron Perlman, perfectly cast) to battle evil at every turn. While nursing a melancholy love for the comely firestarter Liz (Selma Blair), Hellboy files his demonic horns ("to fit in," says Bloom) and wreaks havoc on the bad guys. The action is occasionally routine (the movie suffers when compared to the similar "X-Men" blockbusters), but del Toro and Perlman have honored Mike Mignola's original Dark Horse comics with a lavish and loyal interpretation, retaining the amusing and sympathetic quirks of character that made the comic-book Hellboy a pop-culture original. He's red as a lobster, puffs stogies like Groucho Marx, and fights the good fight with a kind but troubled heart. What's not to like? "--Jeff Shannon"

Languages: English

Summary:

Summary: Director Zhang Yimou brings the sumptuous visual style of his previous films ("Raise the Red Lantern", "Shanghai Triad") to the high-kicking kung fu genre. A nameless warrior (Jet Li, "Romeo Must Die", "Once Upon a Time in China") arrives at an emperor's palace with three weapons, each belonging to a famous assassin who had sworn to kill the emperor. As the nameless man spins out his story--and the emperor presents his own interpretation of what might really have happened--each episode is drenched in red, blue, white or another dominant color. "Hero" combines sweeping cinematography and superb performances from the cream of the Hong Kong cinema (Maggie Cheung, "Irma Vep", "Comrades: Almost a Love Story"; Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, "In the Mood for Love", "Hard Boiled"; and Zhang Ziyi, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"). The result is stunning, a dazzling action movie with an emotional richness that deepens with every step. "--Bret Fetzer"

Summary: I had high expectations for Hex. I was greatly disappointed. Donx27;t get me wrong, Hex has its plus points too - beautiful sets, one fantastic and original character, and a plotline that could potentially have been very interesting if explored and developed correctly. However, there are so many negative points that these positives are overshadowed.
Probably the main problem is the writing and characterisation. Cassie, who the show centres on, is a very weak character. With little personality, not much to say and hardly any willpower, itx27;s obvious that she could not carry the show herself. She has no passion, no drive, and is only interesting when she is possessed. Azazeal is also a weak character. He should have been dark but sexy and alluring, with an irresistable arrogance and dangerous quality. Instead he is an unattractive, middle-aged, skinny man without any sex appeal.
Fortunately for Hex, there is a saving grace in the amazing character of Thelma, the lesbian ghost, who is played by Jemima Rooper in a quite stunning performance. Jemima gives an incredibly open, honest, touching and sassy portrayal of Thelma and is, to be honest, the only reason to watch the show.
In addition to the mostly-abysmal characterisation, there is also the matter of the plot. It could be great - there is enough history, legend, and religious background to establish a complex and interesting set-up. However, the information is revealed in such a confusing and disjointed manner that you imagine there must be a time when it will all come together and make sense, but...that time never comes. I am sure much of it will be explained in the second season but unfortunately the atmsophere is one of frustration rather than anticipation - I have so many bizarre snippets of information that I no longer care how, if at all, they fit together.
The plot also fails during the pivotal relationship of the show, between Cassie and Azazeal. The fact that much of their relationship develops whilst Cassie is possessed (by what, it is never exactly revealed - a maggot perhaps? The blood of Azazeal? who knows) means that in a sense, their relationship does not exist, and we have little access to what Cassie really feels. It also seems like a cop out - we cannot judge Cassie and she cannot be responsible for her choices because she was possessed. Itx27;s not a relationship, itx27;s just Azazealx27;s fantasy.
Finally, there is the problem of it feeling in many parts like an episode of Hollyoaks or at worst, Grange Hill. The nightclub scenes, spin the bottles scenes, it all adds up to a slightly trashy, schoolkids-pretending-to-be-adults feel. Itx27;s not my thing, though if you like programmes like that, you may enjoy it.
Anyway, I bought Hex having heard that it was as good as or better than Buffy. Itx27;s not, although thatx27;s just my opinion. Buffy is filled with strong, funny, likeable characters, and has fast moving, well thought out plots. Hex has its own strengths, but the series will have to improve dramatically to get many people watching season 2. The fact that it was billed as a British Buffy, which should have guaranteed it a massive core audience, and yet it still managed to slip mostly under the radar, should give you enough warning.
To summarise - worth checking out if youx27;re a fan of Jemima Rooper or cool, quirky lesbian characters. Otherwise, probably best to stick to the American shows - Buffy, Angel, Roswell, Charmed etc etc!
P.S. Boxset wise, the DVD set is slim and attractive, and the picture and sound are crystal clear, so no worries there.

Comments: Box set

Summary: If you liked Series 1, then you will love Series 2. Characters have changed and developed. Jemima Rooper's character has become much more complex, and Laura Pyper is fab. The storyline is steamy in all sorts of devlish, witchy, lesbian, good vs. evil ways, and a real pot boiler. The look of the characters is spot on (sorry Ella Episode 8, but otherwise stunning), the design of the sets and characters is professional and authentic feeling, and the classic good versus bad storyline, with temptation thrown in at every opportunity, keeps the whole series simmering nicely.
Someone at Sky (who commissioned the series i think) has the right idea, the right look for the characters, and a great storyline. However it ends ( i won't tell you) there must be plenty of room to develop this further and take these young actors forwards to an even more substantial Hex series.
Please Sky let's have more of Cassie, Ella and Thelma

Summary: This 1986 fantasy/action thriller has since spawned two sequels, a TV series, numerous comic-book spin-offs, and a loyal (if somewhat oddly obsessive) following of fans. Directed by music-video veteran Russell Mulcahy (which explains the dizzying camera work and soundtrack contributions from Queen), the original theatrical release made a hash of an intriguing story about an "Immortal" from 16th-century Scotland (Christopher Lambert) who time-leaps to modern-day America with his arch-enemy (Clancy Brown) in hot pursuit. It becomes a battle to the death (yes, Immortals can die) and Lambert seeks survival training from an Immortal mentor played by Sean Connery. "Highlander" is dazzling, energetic and altogether confusing. --"Jeff Shannon"

Summary: Boasting an upgrade in production values, "The Hills Have Eyes" should please new-generation horror fans without offending devotees of Wes Craven's original version from 1977. There's still something to be said for the gritty shock value of Craven's low-budget original, made at a time when horror had been relegated to the pop-cultural ghetto, mostly below the radar of major Hollywood studios. With the box-office resurgence of horror in the new millennium--and the genre's lucrative popularity among the all-important teen demographic--it's only fitting that French director Alexandre Aja should follow up his international hit "High Tension" with a similarly brutal American debut to boost his Hollywood street-cred. Working with cowriter Gregory Levasseur, Aja remains surprisingly faithful to Craven's original, beginning with a bickering family that crashes their truck and trailer in the remote desert of New Mexico (actually filmed in Morocco), where they are subsequently terrorized, brutalized, and murdered by a freakish family of psychopaths, mutated by the lingering radiation from 331 nuclear bomb tests that were carried out during the 1950s and '60s. After several killings are carried out in memorably grisly fashion, it's left to the survivors to outsmart their disfigured tormentors, who are blessed with horrendous make-up (especially Robert Joy as freak leader "Lizard") but never quite as unsettling as the original film's horror icon, Michael Berryman. In Aja's hands, this newfangled "Hills" is all about savagery and de-evolution, reducing its characters to a state of pure, retaliatory terror. It's hardly satisfying in terms of storytelling (since there's hardly any story to tell), but as an exercise in sheer malevolence, it's undeniably effective.-- "Jeff Shannon"

Languages: English

Summary: The Hills have eyes 2 is another example of a poorly thought out sequel which is so far removed from the original (2006 version) in terms of quality. Whilst the 2006 version was a genuinely entertaining slice of horror, this second part comes no-where near.

The story centres on a group of trainee national guards who are sent to find a group of people who are installing a new monitoring system in the exact same spot where the mutants from the first film live. Obviously things don't go smoothly and as soon as they arrive numerous deaths follow.

The film suffers from a number of problems. Firstly the story is virtually non-existent and there is nothing that shows any progression from the first film. The characters are so poorly written and completely inept that when they start dying there is no feeling of shock or sympathy. In fact the total opposite happens and you end up being grateful for them being bumped off to get relief from the terrible acting and appalling dialogue. There is never any sustained tension and the only bits that make you jump are so clichéd that they are laughable. The deaths are not particularly inventive and therefore never feel particularly shocking.

When I saw that this was written by Wes Craven I had high hopes of a gory and terrifying sequel. Sadly Mr Craven has had a serious off day here and written something which is boring, never shocking and totally pointless. No doubt there will be an "origin" story developed (a novel has already been published relating to just that) over the next couple of years. If that happens let's hope it has more in common with last year's film and doesn't resemble this extremely disappointing sequel.

Summary: On the surface, David Cronenberg may seem an unlikely candidate to direct "A History of Violence", but dig deeper and you'll see that he's the right man for the job. As an intellectual seeker of meaning and an avowed believer in Darwinian survival of the fittest, Cronenberg knows that the story of mild-mannered small-town diner proprietor Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) is in fact a multilayered examination of inbred human behavior, beginning when Tom's skillful killing of two would-be robbers draws unwanted attention to his idyllic family life in rural Indiana. He's got a loving wife (Maria Bello) and young daughter (Heidi Hayes) who are about to learn things about Tom they hadn't suspected, and a teenage son (Ashton Holmes) who has inherited his father's most prominent survival trait, manifesting itself in ways he never expected. By the time Tom has come into contact with a scarred villain (Ed Harris) and connections that lead him to a half-crazy kingpin (William ! Hurt, in a spectacular cameo), Cronenberg has plumbed the dark depths of human nature so skillfully that "A History of Violence" stands well above the graphic novel that inspired it (indeed, Cronenberg was unaware of the source material behind Josh Olson's chilling adaptation). With hard-hitting violence that's as sudden as it is graphically authentic, this is "A History of Violence" that's worthy of serious study and widespread acclaim. "--Jeff Shannon"

Summary: Will Smith's easygoing charm makes "Hitch" the kind of pleasant, uplifting romantic comedy that you could recommend to almost anyone--especially if there's romance in the air. As suave Manhattan dating consultant Alex "Hitch" Hitchens, Smith plays up the smoother, sophisticated side of his established screen persona as he mentors a pudgy accountant (Kevin James) on the lessons of love. The joke, of course, is that Hitch's own love life is a mess, and as he coaches James toward romance with a rich, powerful, and seemingly inaccessible beauty named Allegra (Amber Valetta), he's trying too hard to impress a savvy gossip columnist (Eva Mendes) with whom he's fallen in love. Through mistaken identities and mismatched couples, director Andy Tennant brings the same light touch that made Drew Barrymore's "Ever After" so effortlessly engaging. As romantic comedies go, "Hitch" doesn't offer any big surprises, but as a date movie it gets the job done with amiable ease and style. "--Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com"

Languages: English

Summary: 20 years is a long time in the lifeline of movie plot-arc necessities. It's also a pretty big generational stretch in the lives of audience demographics, which may be part of the reason the producers of this remake of the 1986 cult horror classic felt the need to update the original spare "mano-a-mano" backbone into a girl-and-"mano-a-mano". The "Twilight Zone"-ish setup is still a pretty neat idea: regular guy on a lonely highway picks up a hitchhiker who turns out to be a psychopathic killer with some very unsettling supernatural might. Fans of the original could hardly hope for a demon villain with such creepy charisma as Rutger Hauer. But Sean Bean makes a respectable replacement, with his understated stare and stewing rage that brings a new brand of hair-raising devilry to the role of hitcher John Ryder. The lone "good guy" originated by a boyish C. Thomas Howell has been upgraded to a lovesick couple.
In a twisty touch, Jim (Zachary Knighton) and Grace (Sophia Bush, of "One Tree Hill" fame) trade gender roles, with Jim turning wimpy and feminine and Grace becoming a shotgun-toting testoster-ette. The body count's a little higher and the gore factor increased by the power of 20 (years), but some of the original film's set pieces remain much the same-- body-snapping case in point being an 18-wheeler being put to use as a old-fashioned torture rack. While the original might have placed a bit more emphasis on the philosophical and existential elements of evil passing from soul to soul, it wasn't exactly an intellectual thrill ride. Likewise, 2007's "The Hitcher" is no art film, and it can't be faulted for choosing fright and might for audiences that are always looking for bigger and more elaborate splats for their horror entertainment buck. And if you stick out your thumb for this one, expect plenty of splat." --Ted Fry"

Comments: Box set

Summary: Don't panic! After twenty years stuck in development (a mere blink compared to how long it takes to find the answer to life, the universe, and everything), "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" has finally been turned into a movie. Following the radio play, TV series, commemorative towel, and books, this latest installment in the sci-fi-comedy franchise is based on the screenplay and detailed notes by Douglas Adams. For those unfamiliar with the story, everyman Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) wakes up one morning to discover that his house is set to be demolished to make room for a bypass. Little does he know the entire planet Earth is also set to be destroyed for an interplanetary bypass by the Vogons, a hideous and bureaucratic race of aliens realized in the film by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. Whisked off the planet by his best friend, alien-in-disguise Ford Prefect (Mos Def), Dent embarks on a goofy jaunt across the galaxy accompanied by his trusty Hitchhiker's Guide, which looks like a really fancy PDA. The guide itself provides some of the funniest bits of the movie, little animated shorts that explain the ludicrous life forms and extraterrestrial phenomena our heroes encounter. Along the way Arthur meets the two-headed party animal/president of the galaxy Zaphod Beeblebrox (Sam Rockwell) and develops an unrequited crush on fellow earthling Trillian (Zooey Deschanel). The creatures and sets are inspired and answer to the sci-fi fan's primal need to see lots and lots of cool stuff. Where the story stumbles is in the telling--as books, the Hitchhiker's Guide was foremost about goofy and brilliant ideas that raised questions about our place in the universe while getting a laugh. The movie has enough trouble figuring out how to get the characters from one fantastical location to the next that Adams's funniest concepts often feel left in the dust. While the reverence the filmmakers felt toward Adams's legacy is apparent, one wonders what we could have expected had the creator of this science fiction universe lived to see it with his own eyes. "--Ryan Boudinot, Amazon.com"

Languages: English, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, French, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary:

Languages: English

Summary: This dramatization of the book hogfather by Terry Pratchett is extremely well made and fun. Like most of the general public in the UK we have had to wait for the dvd of hogfather to be released. This is mainly due to the greediness both of the american studio 20th century fox demanding a wheelbarrow load of cash for the program. And also sky were desperately trying to get their nits on something to justify their ridiculous tv service fee for a load of crap most of the time.
Anyway despite the 6 month wait the program hogfather is one of the best fantasy things to be put into practice since the lord of the rings. It focuses on all things mythical such as the tooth fairy, the hogfather a.k.a father christmas and death or the grim reaper. The main heroine in this tale is death's granddaughter who is 3/4 human. The tale moves onto 4 so called auditors who want the hogfather assassinated. It is then the job of death and his granddaughter to save the hogfather in order for the sun to rise the next day.
The tale ends with the task completed and the end of the problem.
The most amazing thing of this program is the design of discworld being a flat planet in space on top of 4 elephants on top of a giant turtle.

So buy it, it's well worth the money.

Summary: ...you'd be better off tracking down the original series from new zealand (outrageous fortune) on which this is based.



"honest" is played more for laughs than the original and suffers from one dimensional characterisation, as a result it ends up less funny and less emotionally engaging. In this it conforms to a trend set by Shed productions (footballers wives, waterloo road, etc) for shallow tabloid-TV drama. Sadly, such unchallenging material appears to be hugely popular.



Amanda Redman is alright in the lead role, but is an inexplicable object of desire for sean pertwee's police officer who, somewhat bizarrely, seems responsible for everything from noise pollution to armed robbery on his "patch". Danny Webb is pointlessy ever-present as the incarcerated Mack. Where "outrageous fortune" takes dramatic power from the largely absent family patriarch, "honest" uses his machiavellian scheming to contrive many of the plot's twists and turns.



The original was screened on Living TV in this country and it is a shock to me that someone at ITV had the "brainwave" of remaking rather than buying in.

Languages: English

Sound: Dolby

Summary: A light-hearted animated film set in the woods at the bottom of some mountains. People and creatures with varying levels of intelligence (the bear and the little squirrel thing are my favourites) supply the laughs and of course progress the story at a good pace.

I think this film is suitable for the majority of people. I can't understand why it hasn't been distributed more widely.

Summary: A major British hit, a lorryload of laughs and some sparkling action? We'll have some of that. It's fair to say that "Hot Fuzz" proves that Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright's brilliant "Shaun Of The Dead" was no one-off, serving up a superbly crafted British homage to the Hollywood action movie.
Deliberately set in the midst of a sleepy, quaint English village of Sandford, Pegg's Nicholas Angel is sent there because, bluntly, he's too good at his job, and he's making his city colleagues look bad. The proverbial fish out of water, Angel soon discovers that not everything in Sandford is quite as it seems, and joins forces with Nick Frost's lumbering Danny Butterman to find out what's what.
"Hot Fuzz" then proceeds to have a rollicking good time in both tipping its hat to the genre films that are clearly its loving inspiration, and coming up with a few tricks of its own. It does comedy better than action, with plenty of genuine laugh-out-loud moments, but it's no slouch either when the tempo needs raising. One of the many strong cards it plays is its terrific cast, which includes former 007 Timothy Dalton, Bill Nighy, Bill Bailey, Paddy Considine, Edward Woodward and Jim Broadbent.
"Hot Fuzz", ultimately, just falls short of "Shaun Of The Dead", but more than does enough to warrant many, many repeat viewings. It's terrific fun, and in the true hit action movie style, all-but-demands some form of sequel. That said, with Pegg and Wright now with two excellent, and suitably different, genres ticked off, it'll be interesting to see what they do next. A period drama, perhaps…? --"Simon Brew"

Comments: Box set

Summary: "House of Flying Daggers" brings you a wonderful tale you can delight in, and the opportunity to watch a movie where the use of color is so impressive that it is almost surreal, poetry in motion. Notwithstanding that, I think that you probably won't like this film unless you are prepared to suspend your disbelief at least for 119 minutes, the duration of this movie. Personally, I did exactly that, and I don't regret it at all :)

The story is set in 859 AD, when a corrupt dynasty held power in China. There is an organization called "House of Flying Daggers" that is trying to change things, but the government won't allow that. Two officers, Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and Leo (Andy Lau) are ordered to stop the rebels, and so they devise a plan to infiltrate the "House of Flying Daggers". They capture Mei (Zhang Ziyi), the blind daughter of the previous leader of the revolt, who had been posing as a courtesan. Jin rescues Mei from the jail, and tries to convince her that he would like to join the rebels, when in truth his objective is to destroy the "House of Flying Daggers". But even if everything started as a plan, will Jin be able to remember Leo's advice, "Don't fall in love for real"?.

I want to point out that I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. The story was great, with enough twists to keep you entertained, and plenty of outstanding fighting scenes. Chinese director Zhang Yimou made such a great use of the elements at his disposition (great actors + inspiration + music + choreography + use of colors) that many sequences seem directly out of a dream, and the spectator feels as if he were bearing witness to a real story that happened a long time ago. In a word, the results are impressive... Watch "House of Flying Daggers", and decide whether you share my opinion :)

Belen Alcat

Summary: "House on Haunted Hill" is one of the new breed of waste-no-time thrill machines, like "Deep Blue Sea", and a particularly effective example at that. The plot is pure contrivance: For a party stunt, a wealthy amusement-park manufacturer (Geoffrey Rush) offers five people a million dollars if they spend the night in a former insane asylum where the patients murdered the sadistic staff. But it turns out the five people who arrive aren't the five he invited--did his wife (Famke Janssen), who hates him, make the switch? From there events unfold with a smart combination of human and supernatural machinations; spooky jolts are dispensed at regular, but not entirely predictable, intervals. The visual effects owe a considerable debt to "Jacob's Ladder", a much more ambitious movie; "House on Haunted Hill" just wants to get under your skin, and succeeds more than you'd expect. Rush is his entertainingly hammy self; Janssen, Taye Diggs, Ali Larter and Bridgette Wilson are attractive and reasonably straight-faced about it all; and Chris Kattan is genuinely funny as the house's neurotic owner. Some elements of the plot seem to have been lost in the editing process, but it hardly matters. More bothersome is that the scares go flat when computer effects take over at the end--the digital images just aren't as creepy as the more suggestive stuff that came before. But that's just the very end; most of the movie has a lot of momentum. Watch until the end of the credits for a final bit of eeriness. --"Bret Fetzer, Amazon.com"

Comments: Box set

Summary: Amazingly, Ang Lee's "Hulk" makes a fair fist of pleasing everybody. The latest in a run of Marvel Comic-to-film transfers, it acknowledges the history of a character who dates back to 1962 while recreating him in contemporary terms. Though this, Hulk's origin still draws on the 1960s iconography of bomb tests and desert bases, this new take mixes gene-tampering with gamma radiation and never forgets that poor Bruce Banner (Eric Bana) has been psychologically primed by a mad father (Nick Nolte) and a disappointed girlfriend (Jennifer Connelly) to transform from repressed wimp to big green powerhouse even before the mad science kicks in.
The long first act is enlivened by comic book-style split-screen effects and multiple foreshadowings--Lee keeps finding excuses to light Bana's face green--but is also absorbing personal drama from the man who gave you "The Ice Storm" before flexing his action muscles on "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon". When Banner begins his Jekyll-and-Hyde seizures, the ILM CGI boys step in and use Bana as a template for the most fully-realised digital characterisation yet seen in the movies. Comics fans will thrill as a credibly bulky, superswift, super-green behemoth tangles with mutated killer dogs (including a very vicious poodle) in a night time forest, bursts out of confinement in an underground secret base, takes on America's military might while bouncing around a "Road Runner and Coyote"-like South Western desert and then invades San Francisco for some major "Hulk... smash" action. Artful and entertaining, engaging and explosive, this is among the most satisfying superhero movies.
On the DVD: "Hulk" two-disc set doesn't quite hulk-out as well comparative Marvel movie releases for the "X-Men" films, "Spider-Man" and "Daredevil". Disc 2 assembles a pile of those infotainment documentaries prepared to drum up pre-publicity but which feel a bit redundant once the movie is out, especially since there's so much repetition between the featurettes. It's all very well, and some of the technical stuff is fascinating, but this particular film could do with a more in-depth thematic approach: there's a lot about how the CGI Hulk was realised but little on the development of the story, the performances or the general tone, though Ang Lee's slightly sparse commentary makes interesting stabs in that direction. The biggest revelation in the background material is that Lee, known for his delicacy of touch, himself wore the motion capture suit and smashed up plywood tanks as a guide for the CGI animators. --"Kim Newman"

Languages: English, Spanish

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: The making of honest action movies has become so rare that Kathryn Bigelow's magnificent "The Hurt Locker" was shown mostly in art cinemas rather than multiplexes. That's fine; the picture is a work of art. But it also delivers more kinetic excitement, more breath-bating suspense, more putting-you-right-there in the danger zone than all the brain-dead, visually incoherent wrecking derbies hogging mall screens. Partly it's a matter of subject. The movie focuses on an Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, the guys whose more or less daily job is to disarm the homemade bombs that have accounted for most U.S. casualties in Iraq. But even more, the film's extraordinary tension derives from the precision and intelligence of Bigelow's direction. She gets every sweaty detail and tactical nuance in the close-up confrontation of man and bomb, while keeping us alert to the volatile wraparound reality of an ineluctably foreign environment--hot streets and blank-walled buildings full of onlookers, some merely curious and some hostile, perhaps thumbing a cellphone that could become a trigger. This is exemplary moviemaking. You don't need CGI, just a human eye, and the imagination to realize that, say, the sight of dust and scale popped off a derelict car by an explosion half a block away delivers more shock value than a pixelated fireball.
The setting may be Iraq in 2004, but it could just as well be Thermopylae; "The Hurt Locker" is no "Iraq War movie." Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Boal--who did time as a journalist embed with an EOD unit--align themselves with neither supporters nor opponents of the U.S. involvement. There's no politics here. War is just the job the characters in the movie do. One in particular, the supremely resourceful staff sergeant played by Jeremy Renner, is addicted to the almost nonstop adrenaline rush and the opportunity to express his esoteric, life-on-the-edge genius. The hurt locker of the title is a box he keeps under his bunk, filled with bomb parts and other signatory memorabilia of "things that could have killed me." That none of it has killed him so far is no real consolation. In this movie, you never know who's going to go and when; even high-profile talent (we won't name names here) is no guarantee. But one thing can be guaranteed, and that is that almost every sequence in the movie becomes a riveting, often fiercely enigmatic set piece. This is Kathryn Bigelow's best film since 1987's "Near Dark". It could also be the best film of 2009. "--Richard T. Jameson"