This is a list of my video collection. It contains a total of 153 entries including tv series, direct-to-video releases, and movies. TV series are grouped by season so the total number of media is a little higher. The search on this page will let you search titles, genres (hint: I’m using anime as a genre - if that’s what you’re looking for), directors, casts, synopses, and my personal comments. Comments and ratings are my opinions, and mine alone. The title for each entry is also a link to IMDb or in some cases Amazon.com if the former didn’t have an available entry. Reported minimum age ratings are based on, but not always equivalent to the ratings listed on the packaging. The reported rating, however, will never recommend a lower minimum age than that listed on the packaging. Films that were packaged without a minimum age rating have been assigned one. I think that about covers it.
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| Date: | 1968 |
| Director: | Stanley Kubrick |
| Cast: | Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood |
| Length: | 148 min |
| Minimum age: | All Ages |
| Genre: | Science Fiction, Adventure |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround 5.1), French (Dobly Surround 5.1) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
A team of American scientists discover a mysterious object on the moon. The object apears to be artificial in nature and, what’s more, it seems it was deliberately buried…a few million years ago. When the object sends a radio signal towards Jupiter a team of Astronauts is sent to investigate. What mysteries await the humans and their electronic companion, the HAL-9000 supercomputer? What role did the object, or it’s creators, play in our past? And what does it hold for our future?
See also: “2010: The Year We Make Contact”
Comments
It’s almost forty years old, but it’s still the best [hard] science fiction film ever made. Sure it takes awhile to “get it”, but it’s so worth it*. Unfortunately it’s very slow, and, yes, boring. Basically I won’t be watching this one often, but I will almost certainly come back to it eventually, and that’s fine. It’s sweeping in scope and ALMOST inspirational; it is rather disapointing that Aurthur C. Clarke apparently forgot, or chose to ignore the themes he began with 2001 when he wrote the followups. That being said, the movie makes more sense after reading the book. If you watch and listen carefully, we can actually catch the moment HAL snaps, and WHY. It’s unlikely that most of us can catch it without knowing WHY ahead of time though. If you haven’t seen it, you owe it at least enough viewings to figure it out. Though you may want to space out said viewings…with about a year or two in between.
* My being somewhat pleased with myself for finally understanding what the heck’s going on (I didn’t get it until my Freshman year in college) cannot be discounted as one reason why I reserve such high praise for this film, but I think it’s still worth the recomendation.
| Date: | 1984 |
| Director: | Peter Hyams |
| Cast: | Roy Scheider, John Lithgow |
| Length: | 116 |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Science Fiction |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround 5.1), French (Dobly Surround Stereo) |
| Subtitles: |
Synopsis
9 years ago Discovery and here crew were lost. Now, a joint Soviet-US mission is on it’s way to Jupiter to discover what happenned. Why did HAL kill everyone? What is the large monolith hanging between IO and Jupiter? What did Discovery’s sole remaining crew member David Bowman find out there? And what did he mean by, “My God…It’s full of stars.”.
See also: “2001: A Space Odyssy”
Comments
2010 is definately much easier to follow than 2001, but that doesn’t mean that it’s anywhere as good. 2001 went for realism in its portrale of space travel; yes it really is that tedious. Any attempt at a sequal should be expected to do the same; 2010 fails miserably in this respect.
My largest critisisms, however, are not technical in nature. I realize I was like 2 yeara old when this movie came out, and that is was the height of the Cold War, but (after reading the book) I feel that some of the political commentary was unwarrented and that the “scienteists” were getting just a little too self-righteous. There is some unknown crisis in Latin America, and it is perhaps that it is unknown that I am most troubled. If the world is on the verge of WWIII I think we could be told WHY. Naturally the point here is that it’s supposed to be nothing more than pointless bickering between rival nations, but I’m left to wonder: if it’s so pointless, why not say what it was about and let the audience decide for themselves? Probably because most of us wouldn’t think it’s so pointless and then we might not buy into the director’s retoric. In 2010 the novel there was of course the usual tensions between the US and USSR that you would expect in a Cold War era novel, but no major crisis (on Earth) had any bearing on the story. Still worth watching if you are interested in the Odessy series (like I was before Aurthur C. Clark finally decided where he was going with it…and I read 3001).
| Date: | 1998 |
| Director: | Fujishima Kousuke, Kodansha, Pony Canyon, OLM (Kodansha, Pony Canyon) |
| Cast: | Akemi Okamura, Aya Hisakawa |
| Length: | 8 min per episode |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Comedy, TV Series, Anime |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Stereo), Japanese (Stereo) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
TV Series
Box Set (4 discs)
How they all got here is another story (See Oh! My Goddess! OVA or the Ah! My Goddess TV series), but Belldandy and her two sisters Urd and Skuld live on Earth with a Japanese college student. Sometime when he leaves the house, the three sisters decide to make themselves small. This series details the adventures of the three miniturized goddesses and their rat friend Gan.
See also: “Oh! My Goddess!” (OVA), “Ah! My Goddess (TV Series)”, and “Ah! My Goddess The Movie”
Comments
Easily one of my best DVD investments, hands down. The format of this set makes it easy to just sit down and watch a little. Also, they are very funny. Some of the stuff might not make too much sense if you aren’t familiar with the series though. I can’t think of any specific content that would really justify 13+ in this case (MAYBE episode 37), but due to the fact that it’s not theologically sound I would not want to expose young children to it. Other than that my only complaint would be that there’s no Peorth. Now…I need to get me some Tom and Jerry (for some reason I this show reminds me of it).
| Date: | 2000 |
| Director: | Hiroaki Gôda |
| Cast: | Bridget Hoffman, Kikuko Inoue, Masami Kikuchi, Tony Oliver, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, Yumi Tôma |
| Length: | 106 min |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Anime, Comedy, Fantasy |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), English (Dobly Surround), Japanese (5.1 Dobly Digital), Japanese (Dobly Surround) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
When Belldandy was a young goddess in training she had a mentor named Celestine, but then one day he left. Belldandy cannot remember why Celestine left, but now he’s returned and he erased Belldany’s memory of her time on Earth with Keichi. How far will Belldany go to remember her beloved Keichi, and how does this factor into Celestine’s plans.
See also: “Oh! My Goddess!” (OVA), “Ah! My Goddess (TV Series)”, and “Adventures of the Mini Goddesses”
Comments
If there’s anything really wrong with this story it’s that Belldandy is ALMOST too sweet (though the dialog doesn’t sound quite so corny when listenning to the Japansese soundtrack and reading subtitles). This was actually my first exposure to the Ah! My Goddess series, and the movie is easily watchable with no prior knowlege of the series, but many of the minor characters make more sense if you are familiar with the series. The movie does, however, is less comedic in nature than most of the series.
My only real critisism: Peorth didn’t get enough screen time.
| Date: | 2005 |
| Director: | Hiroaki Goda |
| Cast: | Masami Kikuchi, Kikuko Inoue, Yumi Touma, Aya Hisakawa |
| Length: | 25 min per Episode |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Anime, Comedy, Romance |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Digital 2.0), Japanese (Dobly Digital 2.0) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
TV Series
Status: 6 of 6 discs
College student Keichi Morrisato is a nice guy who always seemes to finish last. He’s also a little short, and a rather unlucky in love. However, his plight has not gone unnoticed; his destiny is about to change forever. The goddess Belldandy is sent to grant him a single wish. His wish: that a goddess like her stay with him, forever.
See also: “Adventures of the Mini-Goddesses”, “Oh! My Goddess!” (OVA), and “Ah! My Goddess The Movie”
Comments
Forget the Oh My Goddess! OVA series, this series starts right from the beginning. It follows the manga a little more closely and takes/has more time to introduce major and minor characters. It does, however, differ significantly enough from the manga to keep it fresh.
Alright fine, no use denying it. This (Ah!/Oh My Goddess*) is my favorite anime/manga (there I said it). We won’t go into any of the deep psycological troubles some people would probably lay on me for this. The point is, there series is cute, it’s funny, and it’s charming. Belldandy is just plain awesome. Still, I wish Peorth were in the TV series (She’s in season 2 though, w00t).
| Date: | 2004 |
| Director: | Shinji Aramaki |
| Cast: | Ai Kobayashi, Jûrôta Kosugi, Yuki Matsuoka, Asumi Miwa, Akimoto Tsubasa, Jack Aubree |
| Length: | 103 min |
| Minimum age: | 17 |
| Genre: | Sci-fi, Action, Anime |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), Japanese (5.1 Dobly Digital) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
The Earth has been devastated by war. Most of humanity that remains resides in the Utopian city of Olympus where they coexhist with the Bioroids, cybornetically enhanced clones. Bioroids make up 500f the cities population and are intended to act as a stabalizing force on the humans and their emotions. Not everyone is happy with this arrangement, however, and when a terrorist group destroys the Bioroid medcenter the only hope for Olympus is to recover the “Appleseed”. It alone contains the information required to give the Bioroids the ability to reproduce.
Comments
I’m not really sure I care for the cell-shaded computer animation. Granted by the end of the film I didn’t notice as much, but I think I would have preferred that the characters at least had been hand-drawn. The machines and buildings look fine, but people seem to come out looking blocky, and their movements a little too mechanical.
That’s it for my technical comments; on to the story. As with most science fiction that tries to be more than “blow things up in space” I’m going to need more than one viewing to catch everything that it’s trying to say. Unfortunately, as with most science fiction that tries to be more than “blow things up in space” I’m not really looking forward to watching it again soon. This is usually because what I do catch the first time around tells me that once I finally “get it” I’ll realize just how much I don’t like and generally disagree with “it”. Also, this one happens to be a bit violent in places for my taste. Having only watched the film once I won’t go much into “it” for now, but it’s fairly clear that “Appleseed” is supposed to be a reference to Eden, but also seems to be just a bit off on the nature of original sin. Like I said, need multiple viewings.
| Date: | 2000 |
| Director: | Dave Willis (III), Matt Maiellaro |
| Cast: | Dave Willis (III), Carey Means |
| Length: | 187 |
| Minimum age: | 14 |
| Genre: | Animation, Comedy, TV Series |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround 2.0) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish |
Synopsis
Frylock, Master Shake, and Meatwad are detectives living in New Jersey. The three food items, with the help of their neighbor Carl (and his pool), solve bizarre mysteries in this collection of 15-minute shorts.
See also: “Aqua Teen Hunger Force - Volume Two”
Comments
Delightfully obsurd, this was one of the first original series to show up on Cartoon Network’s Adult swim, and it’s still the best (excepting maybe the first season of Sealab 2021). “Revenge of the Mooninites” is probably the best episode of the series and it’s on the second disc. All the powers of Seventies’ Super Group Foreigner…
| Date: | 2000 |
| Director: | Matt Maiellaro |
| Cast: | Dave Willis, Carey Means, Dana Snyder, C. Martin Croker |
| Length: | 156 |
| Minimum age: | 14 |
| Genre: | Animation, Comedy, TV Series |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround 5.1) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
The Aqua Teens don’t really solve mysteries anymore, but thier lives haven’t gotten any less interesting.
See also: “Aqua Teen Hunger Force - Volume One”
Comments
I actually thought the series was going downhill in season 2; I actually bought this because I though later episodes were on it. That being said, I have changed my mind: Season 2 is still pretty funny…still need to get 3 and 4 though.
| Date: | 1993 |
| Director: | Sam Raimi |
| Cast: | Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert, Ian Abercrombie, Richard Grove, Timothy Patrick Quill |
| Length: | 81 min |
| Minimum age: | 17 |
| Genre: | Action, Horror, Comedy |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround), French (Dobly Surround) |
| Subtitles: | English, Spanish |
Synopsis
Ash had a real life once, but that was before the Evil Dead movies. In the this, third movie in the Evil Dead series, Ash is sent back to twelth century England where he must retrieve the Necronomicon so that it doesn’t fall into the hands of the Deadites. It is also the only means by which he can go home. Unfortunately for Ash he will have to battle an evil version of himself and an army of the dead to get it.
Comments
Strictly speaking, I don’t like horror movies, at all. So, when this came on SciFi in the Summer of ‘04 I almost flipped the channel…but it looked so fake, surely this was a joke. It was, and I watch the whole thing. There’s nothing scary here. Hail to the King Baby.
| Date: | 2002 |
| Director: | Nishikiori Hiroshi |
| Cast: | Yu Asakawa, Christine M. Auten, Greg Ayres, Jessica Boone, Bubba Callahan, Luci Christian |
| Length: | 24 min per episode |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Anime, Comedy |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | French (5.1 Surround), Japanese (Stereo) |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
TV Series
Status: 6 of 6 discs
Azumanga Daioh centers around several high school girls and a couple of their teachers. There’s the kid genius, the athlete, the daydreamer, the enthustic one, and a teacher that never really left high school. Maybe two of them are normal, but probably not for long.
Comments
This show is nuts; that’s a good thing. It’s very funny and a delight to watch. There doesn’t seem to be much of a plot, but sometimes that’s the way it should be. You’ll laugh and you’ll cry; the latter mostly because you were laughing so hard.
| Date: | 1989 |
| Director: | Tim Burton |
| Cast: | Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl, Pat Hingle, Billy Dee Williams |
| Length: | 126 min |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Action, Superhero, Crime |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround 5.1), French (Dobly Surround Stereo) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish |
Synopsis
As a child Bruce Wayne witnessed the murder of his parents. That single event shaped the rest of his life in ways no one could possibly imagine. Now, using his family’s fortune, his cunning, his skill, and his determination he will bring justice back to the streets of Gotham. For he is Batman.
Comments
One of the best superhore films out there (but thank God Tim Burton didn’t get to make the new Superman movie). The Batmobile in this film is yet to be surpassed in coolness and the casting was pretty good. Michael Keaton makes a darn good Batman (Kilmer can hold up, but Clooney…yuck), and Jack Nicholson as the Joker was a stroke of genious.
| Date: | 2005 |
| Director: | Christopher Nolan |
| Cast: | Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman, Cillian Murphy |
| Length: | 141 min |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Action, Crime, Superhero |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), French (5.1 Dobly Digital) |
| Subtitles: | English, Spanish, French |
Synopsis
Bruce Wayne has searched the globe looking for a way to fight injustice. But what can one man do to save the corrupt city of Gotham? To fight injustice Bruce Wayne must become something more than just a man. He must become a symbol, something that will strike terror into the heart of those who would prey on the innocent. He must become Batman.
Comments
Batman is my favorite super hero (even if - nay because he doesn’t have any super powers). Batman doesn’t whine that he has to be a hero (*cough* Spider Man’s whiny *cough*) and it’s not like he’s a virtually indestructable alien from another planet, he’s Batman because he chose to become Batman. Yes, he has a nearly inexhaustable family fortune to back him up, but he puts it to better use than most billionaires. Batman Begins is easily the best Batman film to date, though I haven’t decided if I actually enjoy if more than Batman yet. I will say, however, that Christian Bale does make a better Batman than Michael Keaton.
| Date: | 1978 |
| Director: | |
| Cast: | Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict, Herb Jefferson Jr., Maren Jensen, Tony Swartz |
| Length: | 60 min (24 episodes) |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Science Fiction, Action, Box Sets |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital) |
| Subtitles: |
Synopsis
On the eve of an historic peace treaty, the 12 Colonies of man are betrayed by one of their own. Now the sole remaining Battlestar leads a rag-tag group of survivors towards the mythical 13th Colony, Earth.
Comments
It’s got Lorne Green, it’s got a story, and it’s got Heart, and it’s got characters that actually care about each other. The new series is clearly missing 3 of these 4 things (maybe a little more story though), and lets face it…they made it great. Sure it’s cheasy, yes the same shots of the Galactica and Vipers keep flying by, yes the Cylons are kinda weak, but who the smeg cares? They need more shows like this, and Starbuck is awesome…now if only he and Lando could somehow join forces…they’d be unstoppable!
| Date: | 1991 |
| Director: | Peter Hewitt |
| Cast: | Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, William Sadler, Joss Ackland, Pam Grier, George Carlin |
| Length: | 93 min |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Surround), French (Mono), Spanish (Mono), Portugese (Mono) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish, Portugese |
Synopsis
Wylde Stallions still isn’t the super band that forms the basis of life as we know it in the future, and if one evil dude from the future has anything to say about it, it never will. Two evil android replicas are sent back in time and kill Bill and Ted and ruin Wylde Stallions. Now, if the Great Ones want to win the battle of the bands they’ll have to cheat death, escape from Hell, and find a way to destroy the bad metal…thems.
See also: “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”
Comments
A bit goofier than Excellent Adventure, and I don’t really like it as much, but it’s still Excellent.
| Date: | 1989 |
| Director: | Stephen Herek |
| Cast: | Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin, Terry Camilleri, Dan Shor, Tony Steedman |
| Length: | 90 min |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Adventure, Comedy, Science Fiction |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Surround) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish |
Synopsis
All Bill and Ted want to do is start their band. Unfortunately if they don’t get an A on their history report they’re going to fail most agreiviously, and Ted will be sent away to an Alaskan military school. Fortunately for them an excellent dude from the future gives them a hand…err time machine.
See also: “Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey”
Comments
Truely a Most Excellent film. And hey…Keanu Reeves DOES have emotion (woah). It would seem that (despite the sequel) the great ones have yet to bring peace and harmony to the world, but that’s ok (JC will pull through).
| Date: | 1979 |
| Director: | Gary Nelson |
| Cast: | Maximilian Schell, Anthony Perkins, Robert Forster, Joseph Bottoms, Yvette Mimieux, Ernest Borgnine |
| Length: | 98 min |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Science Fiction, Drama, Adventure |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), French, Spanish |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
The USS Palemino was on a search for extraterrestrial life; what they found was the largest black hole anyone had ever seen. At the edge of that black hole stands the Cygnus, another human research craft that disappeared 20 years ago, and is somehow defying the black hole. Captain Reinhardt is the only human left aboard the Cygnus and he is on the brink of greatness. He is going to take the Cygnus THROUGH the Black Whole, and the crew of the Palemino may end up going along for the ride.
Comments
It really is an AWEFUL movie, but since when has that ever stopped me from liking a film? The plot is cliche, the characters wooden, and the ending makes even less sense than the ending to 2001 ever did (before I caught on). On the other hand, V.I.N.C.E.N.T. is awesome and the Cygnus (big space ship) is visually quite impressive. The Black Hole, while we all know it wouldn’t look like that, is pretty cool too. The musical score doesn’t disappoint either. At the end of the day this movie is at least entertaining. However, it DOES deserve some MST3K treatment.
DISCLAIMER: The actors in this film are professionals. DO NOT try the stuff you see in the film at home. People can’t really breathe in space.
| Date: | 1982 |
| Director: | Ridley Scott |
| Cast: | Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos, M. Emmet Walsh, Daryl Hannah |
| Length: | 117 min |
| Minimum age: | 17 |
| Genre: | Science Fiction, Action, Drama |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround Stereo) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish |
Synopsis
In the 21st century it is the job of the Blade Runners to hunt down an destroy renegade replicants, humanoid robots. Rick Deckard is a Blade Runner on the trail of four such replicants. As he carries out his duties, Deckard will have to ask a lot of questions. The most difficult: how does he know he, himself is not a replicant?
Comments
Blade Runner is one of those dark, 80s sci-fi movies. I might have more to say about it if I really understood everything in the movie. I’ve never seen the theatrical cut, so I’m not sure if that would help make things a little clearer (there’s narration I hear) than they are in the director’s cut. I suppose I’ll just need to watch it again sometime.
| Date: | 1980 |
| Director: | John Landis |
| Cast: | John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, James Brown, Cab Calloway, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin |
| Length: | 148 min (extended version) |
| Minimum age: | 17 |
| Genre: | Action, Comedy, Music |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), English (Dobly Digital 2.0), French (Dobly Digital 2.0), Spanish (Dobly Digital 2.0) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish |
Synopsis
Jake and Elwood are on a mission from God: Put their band back together and raise $5,000 to save the orphanage they grew up in. Along the way they’ll face angry bar owners, rival bands, Illinois Nazi’s, and nearly all the police in the state. But with God and masters of soul like Ray Charles, James Brown, Cab Calloway, and Aretha Franklin on their side how can they fail?
** Contains both the theatrical and extended versions.
Comments
The Blues Brothers are awesome. With the car…in the mall…and…stuff. Every time I think of driving dangerously, I think of driving an old cop car through a mall. Truly this is on of the great comedy movies. The music is also good. I think a liked the music in Blues Brothers 2000 a little better though. It’s a pitty 2000 wasn’t as good a movie.
| Date: | 1995 |
| Director: | Michael Moore |
| Cast: | John Candy, Alan Alda, Rhea Perlman, Kevin Pollak, Rip Torn, Kevin J. O’Connor |
| Length: | 91 min |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Comedy, War |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Stereo), Spanish (Stereo) |
| Subtitles: | French, Spanish |
Synopsis
What do you do when the polls are against you and you’re the first American president in recent history that didn’t have the Soviets to blame for everything? Why start a cold war with Canada of course! Unfortunately when a Niagra Falls sherif and company decide to take matters into their own hands things could get a little hot…
Comments
Unneccessary digs at the Republican party asside (not suprised now that I see who directed) it’s a pretty funny movie. Maybe a little heavy on the social commentary sometimes…I mean a Cold War with Canada…what more do you need for a comedy?
| Date: | 1942 |
| Director: | Michael Curtiz |
| Cast: | Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman |
| Length: | 145 |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | Romance, Drama, War |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Mono), French (Mono) |
| Subtitles: |
Synopsis
Casablanca is the last stop in Nazi territory before Lisban, and from there it’s on to America. If you can get an exit visa. Things won’t be so easy for Czech resistance leader Victor Laszlo. The one man who can help him is an American who won’t stick his neck out for nobody, Rick Blaine. Rick may be especially reluctant to help given the history between himself and Victor’s wife Ilsa.
Comments
My synopses doesn’t do the film justince, but I don’t know that I can. “Casablanca” is fondly remembered by many as one of (if not THE) best movies of all time, and for good reason. I can’t even begin to say WHY, but it is just an all around great film. And one of the most quoted, too. I don’t know of anyone who has watched Casablanca, and not loved it.
| Date: | 1967 |
| Director: | Val Guest |
| Cast: | Peter Sellers, Ursula Andress, David Niven, Orson Welles, Joanna Pettet, Daliah Lavi |
| Length: | 131 min |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Comedy, Action, Adventure |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English, English |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish, Portugese |
Synopsis
In order to counter the threat posed by a secret organization the origional James Bond must come out of retirement to lead MI5. Upon his return all agents are hensorth known as James Bond 007, including the girls. With that many 007s SMERSH doesn’t stand a chance.
Comments
Starts off pretty good, but about halfway through it seems to loose all semblence of a plot. On the other hand it really is quite funny once you get the the castle (trying not to include any spoiler, just watch and see). The finale is a bit over the top, but it’s all good, and possibly the funniest bit in the movie.
| Date: | 1986 |
| Director: | Hayao Miyazaki |
| Cast: | Mayumi Tanaka, James Van Der Beek, Anna Paquin, Keiko Yokozawa, Kotoe Hatsui, Cloris Leachman |
| Length: | 124 min |
| Minimum age: | All Ages |
| Genre: | Anime, Fantasy, Adventure |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), Japanese, French |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
The heir to the throne of a lost civilization is being pursued by the military and a band of air pirates. When she literaly falls into the hands of a young miner the two must discover the secret of her pendant and avoid capture.
Comments
Not as visually dazling as “Sprited Away” and quite as engaging this is nevertheless a great work of animation (even if the English dub made Mark Hamill a villain). Fortuately I can safely recommend this film for most any audiance (something I can’t due because of the heavy Eastern religious influence for “Spirited Away”). Good stuff.
| Date: | 1998 |
| Director: | Alex Proyas |
| Cast: | Rufus Sewell, Kiefer Sutherland, Jennifer Connelly, William Hurt |
| Length: | 96 min |
| Minimum age: | 17 |
| Genre: | Sci-fi, Noir, Drama |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Dobly Surround 5.1), French (Dobly Surround 5.1) |
| Subtitles: | English, French |
Synopsis
John Murdoch wakes up in a hotel room and he can’t remember how he got there or who he is. John soon discovers a dead woman in his romm and is immediately on the run, not only from the Police, but also from the Strangers. The Strangers have the abillity to “Tune”, that is change physical reality by thought alone. As he wanders through Dark City John must answer some difficult questions: why is it always night, who is he, who are the strangers, and what do they want .
Comments
#1 on my list of movies that are “Better than the Matrix”. I say that because it shares some important themes with The Matrix which, being so well known and overrated, serves as a good benchmark for people who haven’t seen Dark City. The movie is rated ‘R’ for a reason so bear this in mind, but if that doesn’t bother you too much it’s worth the time. It really is beter than the Matrix.
| Date: | 1982 |
| Director: | Jim Henson and Frank Oz |
| Cast: | |
| Length: | 93 min |
| Minimum age: | Parental Guidance |
| Genre: | |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), English (Dobly Surround 2.0), Spanish |
| Subtitles: | English, Spanish |
Synopsis
1000 years ago the Crystal was cracked, and two new races appeared in the World: the gentle Mystics and the harsh Skeksis. Now the time of prophecy is at hand and a Gelfling must restore the crystal. The Skeksis seeking to prevent this sought to exterminate them, but Jen escaped and was raised by the Mystics. It is up to him to make the crystal whole and restore the balance.
Comments
I’ll be honest, I enjoyed Labyrinth quite a bit more. Regaurding the muppetry, I didn’t care much for the main characters; I thought they ran into the same problem that CG can run into when it tries to do humans. Their faces looked too much, but not quite real. Something a little less life-like would have been better I think, but other than that it was great. Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy the story all that much, the whole good/evil dualism thing never really cuts it.
| Date: | 1993 |
| Director: | Marco Brambilla |
| Cast: | Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes, Sandra Bullock, Nigel Hawthorne, Benjamin Bratt, Bob Gunton |
| Length: | 115 min |
| Minimum age: | 17 |
| Genre: | Action, Science Fiction, Comedy |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Surround), Spanish (Mono) |
| Subtitles: | English, French, Spanish |
Synopsis
It is the year 2032. Everything that is good for you is banned, and only one restaurant remains following the Franchise Wars. All is peaceful in the city of San-Angeles. Inexplicably the dangerous criminal Simon Phoenix escapes from cryo-prison. The San-Angeles Police Department is unable to deal with a criminal so willing to commit multiple Murder-Death-Kills. Their only hope is Sgt. John Spartan, the cop who captured Phoenix back in the early 21st Century. Spartan is also serving a sentence in cryo-prison for the actions necessary to apprehend Phoenix.
Comments
I’ll be honest, as of this writing, I’ve only seen Demolition Man as edited to run on TV. I may need to ammend my comments once I get around to watching the DVD.
Demolition Man takes an example of political correctness to the extreme and has good time with it. Sure it’s a Sci-Fi action show, but in that respect it’s fairly unremarkable. The reason to watch this show is becuase it’s funny to watch Sylvester Stalone react to the world of 2032 San-Angeles; I’m sure we could relate to many of his reactions. The way the people act in 2032 in and of itself can also be quite humorous. I suppose Wesley Snipes also makes a some-what humorous villain at times, but trust me his character is pretty messed up so I don’t laugh at him too much. Taken seriously it isn’t a very good movie, but it’s a lauch isn’t it?Have a joy-joy day 
.
| Date: | 1969 |
| Director: | Ishirô Honda |
| Cast: | Akira Kubo, Jun Tazaki, Yukiko Kobayashi, Yoshio Tsuchiya, Kyôko Ai, Andrew Hughes |
| Length: | 90 |
| Minimum age: | All Ages |
| Genre: | Science Fiction, Giant Monsters |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (Stereo) |
| Subtitles: |
Synopsis
Earth’s monsters break free from their confinement on Monster Island and all Hell breaks loose. Fortunately some friendly aliens have put them back. Unfortunately, it was just a little too fortunate…
See also: All movies with Godzilla in the title (except “Godzilla”) and “Rodan”
Comments
The movie that saved the franchise from cancellation back in the day…how? I’m sorry, but this one just didn’t hold my interest like most of the Godzilla movies. Still, it’s far from the worst of the Godzilla movies.
| Date: | 1990 |
| Director: | Daisuke Nishio |
| Cast: | Peter Kelamis, Masako Nozawa, Saffron Henderson, Terry Klassen, Scott McNeil, Don Brown |
| Length: | 58 min (cut version) |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Adventure, Science Fiction, Anime |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English, Japanese |
| Subtitles: | English |
Synopsis
The evil Dr. Wheelo has awakenned and plans to rule the world, but first he’s going to need a new body, a strong body. To this end he kidnaps Master Roshi. Little does he know that Master Roshi has been surpassed during Dr. Wheelo’s slumber. Now it’s up to Goku to rescue Master Roshi and foild Dr. Wheelo’s diabolical plan.
Comments
Not the high point of DBZ movies (shutup), but I got it cheap at KMart. Might be worth a watch if you were ever a fan of the series, but that’s about it. When this movie came out it probably wasn’t bad, but I think DBZ just ran too long.
| Date: | 2000 |
| Director: | John Harrison |
| Cast: | William Hurt, Alec Newman, Saskia Reeves, James Watson, Jan Vlasák, P.H. Moriarty |
| Length: | 292 min (3 parts) / USA:265 min |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Science Fiction, Drama, Fantasy |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English |
| Subtitles: |
Synopsis
House Atreides has been asigned governorship of the planet Arrakis. The only sourse of the Spice Mellange, a substance vital for space travel and interstellar travle. But there is treachery afoot. Will the Duke’s son Paul be able to rise to the challenge and face his destiny?
Comments
It’s long, and that gives it time to be more true to the book (not that it really is) than the 1984 film adaptation, but I’m not sure that’s a good thing. Books move slowly for the most part; that’s fine. Unfortunately moving slowly in film is almost alway BAD and this film ends up being rather dull. Maybe this was on purpose, the movie is almost as dry as Arrakis. Too bad it lacks the spice.
| Date: | 1984 |
| Director: | David Lynch |
| Cast: | Francesca Annis, Leonardo Cimino, Brad Dourif, José Ferrer, Linda Hunt, Freddie Jones |
| Length: | 190 min (special edition) |
| Minimum age: | 13 |
| Genre: | Action, Adventure, Science Fiction |
| Media: | DVD |
| Audio: | English (5.1 Dobly Digital), French (Dobly Surround) |
| Subtitles: | English, Spanish |
Synopsis
The year is 10191 and House Atreides has just become the new ruler of the planet Arrakis. A desolate dry planet Arrakis (also known as Dune) is the only source of the Spice. He who controls the Spice, controls the Universe and the vile House Harkonnen and even the Emperor himself will stop at nothing to bring down House Atreides, but young Paul Atreides may be more than just the son of a Duke.
Comments
It take some liberties with the book…okay, A LOT of liberties, but the basic story is still intact. After the SciFi channel miniseries I’m convince that the novel might not make a very good movie if adapted word for word. This movie moves quickly; reading the book helps to pick out things that are passed by very quickly