Nature: The River of No Return

Narration is by real people sharing a stunning experience.
I watched the film on Nature and am now ordering the dvd. I just wanted to say that, for me, the narration by the couple both added to my understanding and appreciation of the wilderness area, and the wolves and other inhabitants there; and also was a very moving and brave personal recounting of their struggles on this journey. A film that may leave you with much to think about.

Excellent blu-ray and documentary.
True high definition in a 16:9 ratio. On-screen promos, websites and station ID's customarily shown during broadcast were thoughtfully excised for the video release. This, coupled with our newlywed hosts' sometimes humorous candidness (particularly their rendition of "This Land is Your Land" on harmonica) makes their journey seem as though it is ours as well. So if you're looking for extreme nature (eg. the highest mountains or tallest waterfalls) you won't find it here, but you will get a true sense of the wilderness through some dazzling photography and the occasional mild touch of ethereal scoring, and a surround sound mix that is just enough to evoke a sense of fresh air without drawing attention to itself. There's also a most unexpected miracle that takes place between a hunter and its prey, silhouetted against the evening sky on a mountaintop.

Excellent Documentary
Watched on PBS in April 2012; worthy piece by two nature lovers who shared their unusual experience in the wilderness with the rest of us... Great job on a small budget and with very small film crew!

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Johnny Firecloud / Bummer! (Special Edition)

Gallery of half-familiar faces
You don't hear much about this Something Weird "Angry 70s" double feature. It's a queer duck among the company's releases, the main point of reference being that David F. Friedman produced these films in the early 1970s. They were a response to the new "hardcore" pornography that was making Friedman's "soft" porn obsolete. He spent more money, rounded up some decent actors and put out these Corman-New World-type features. Violence is the order of the day, sex is secondary, some nudity required and there's a seasoning of social comment.

JOHNNY FIRECLOUD is regarded as the "better" of the two films, but both are entertainingly awful, in my opinion. J.F. is an American Indian (played by Latin American actor Victor Mohica). A relative of his (father? grandpa? I don't remember) is driven to drink by the local bigots who rule their Southwestern town; he's mocked and emasculated, and when he attempts to regain his self-respect he's finally murdered. Then a lady...

Johnny FireCloud Rocks!
Johnny FireCloud is pretty awesome! Very clean copy, great picture & sound, vibrant color! I love these type of movies and had stumbled onto this one by accident. Thank you SWV! Johnny gets his revenge when the whiteman pushes too far! If you like this movie check out Billy Jack, War Party, Thunder Warrior and Navajo Joe.

Pretty Decent SWV Release
This is a fairly decent "Something Weird Video" release, though I would not rate it as one of their finest compilations. "Johnny Firecloud" stands out as one of the better 70s low budget revenge flicks, while "Bummer" has its moments, but leaves lots of room for improvement. The extras on this DVD include some good movie trailers, and an alluring B&W striptease.

"Johnny Firecloud" is clearly the prize of this DVD. A lower budget spinoff of "Billy Jack," this stars Victor Mojica. This movie may be choppier than Tom Laughlin's B-Movie series, but Mojica is WAY COOLER than Laughlin could ever conceive. This is one of those Native-American-Done-Wrong flicks, taking place in a small town packed full of racists who make the mistake of humiliating, then killing, Johnny's grandfather. They go on to rape and kill one of Johnny's close friends (played by Sacheen Littlefeather), thus setting Johnny Firecloud into full-throttle vengeance mode.

A very interesting twist in...

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Major League Baseball Triple Header

Great price but...
The collection is pretty good. But for me the only one that really value is the Prime 9. Exciting downcount for the best moments of baseball. 9 different countdowns with best hitting seasons, best pitching seasons, the -never-be-broken- records among others. The All century team is good but not superb video, the best 30 players in the 20th century and all of those players with 1 or 2 minutes of them history. But the really bust is the bloopers one. Chat, chat, chat, its like behind the scenes of baseball. how the players have fun, or something like that but the really good bloopers like fielders crash, or the colorful managers are out of the video. In one point the video is so boring.





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We Need to Talk About Kevin

4.5 stars... Chilling and devastating
Going into "We Need to Talk About Kevin" (110 min.), I knew very generally what the theme of the movie was (Kevin is a troubled kid and he is going to do something horrible) but purposefully I did not know any of the plot details as I wanted to movie to surprise me. Boy, did the movie surprise me!

The first 20-25 min. of the movie are absolutely transfixing, as there is hardly any conversation, and there are miltiple story lines going on at the same time. The picture that eventually emerges is one where Eva (Kevin's mom) is dealing with the traumas of whatever Kevin has done (we don't know until much later in the movie what that is), and also, in flashbacks, reflecting on how Kevin grew up (and why he turned out the way he did, and of course where there was anything she could've done better or differently). The acting in the movie is mostly outstanding, with Tilda Swinton as Eva, but the 3 actors who portray Kevin are equally effective, none more so in my opition than...

'Wherein does evil lie?'
In an interview with Lionel Shriver' about her highly successful 2005 novel she commented on the difficulty of the project: `It was admittedly draining. And throughout, I was anxious that because I had never had a child myself, I didn't know what I was talking about and readers who were parents would catch me out.' As adapted for the screen by director Lynne Ramsay and Rory Kinnear this story becomes a terrifyingly realistic exploration of the subject of inherent evil and the manner in which we deal with it. The film is particularly timely as we read almost daily of youngsters killing classmates in schools across the country. But first the story:

Eva Khatchadourian (Tilda Swinton) is trying to piece together her life following the "incident". Once a successful travel writer, she is forced to take whatever job comes her way, which of late is as a clerk in a travel agency. She lives a solitary life as people who know about her situation openly shun her, even to the point of...

See it for Tilda Swinton's haunting performance
What is it that we always hear? Not just from friends, but especially in movies and TV shows about parenting. It's that there's "no guidebook" to being a parent. You just have to do your best and learn as you go. That assumes a level of parental instinct exists on even the most basic level, but what if there isn't? What if you hate your child? What if your child hates you and everything else just as much?

In We Need to Talk About Kevin, that emotional deficit leads to nightmarish consequences, the kind that would leave any rational parent breaking out in a drenching cold sweat. When we first meet Eva(Tilda Swinton), she seems adrift in this world. For unknown reasons she's hated and ridiculed by the people she meets on the street. In the heavily used flashbacks we see her during a happier time, spirited and in lust's grip with Franklin(John C. Reilly), the new man in her life. A particularly blissful evening leads to an unexpected pregnancy, marriage, and a fresh start in...

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Lancelot Link: Secret Chimp (Authorized Edition)

At Last! The Complete Series!
Just in case the other reviews are unclear: reviewers who mention an incomplete, two-disk set with barely-acceptable video and audio transfer are talking about an unofficial release from 2006. The current edition was released in 2012: it contains every episode, three DVDs, a superior transfer from the original ABC archive masters, is officially sanctioned by one of the show's producers, and includes several bonus features. So don't be put off -- if you're ordering the three-disc set, you're okay.

I adored this show as a child, and my fondness for it hasn't diminished one bit. Essentially, it's "Get Smart" with chimpanzees as the cast, which makes it the most bizarre spy-spoof ever. All the sets and props were constructed at 3/4 scale, and costumes were all custom made, so you have this constant nagging sense of disbelief that any sane television producer would spend the time and money (it was the most expensive children's TV program of its time) to do all this in the...

The OFFICIAL Lancelot Link Coming in May
I wanted to write an early review for the NEW Lancelot Link Secret Chimp 17 episode Complete Series set coming in May 2012. There are so many bad reviews here for the unofficial release, that I had to post something. I own the unofficial release and it has gone from $20 to $200, which I think needs to come down now that the official release will be out soon. I found a product preview ad from Film Chest Inc. on Youtube and I have to say that it looks amazing. All of the complete 17 episodes have been restored from the original ABC masters and they look incredible. The set will include the documentary film "I created Lancelot Link", which came out in 1998, which I purchased, on VHS. It never found it's way to DVD and now it's going to be included in this set. The video in the preview looks so clear that it seems as if it were made yesterday. The DVD also contains a visit to see the Lancelot link, alive and well, at the Wildlife Way Station. I can't wait until it arrives in May...

Classic!
It's about time this classic series recieved a proper release! I was just a kid when Lancelot Link Secret Chimp origially aired, and never missed an episode! I loved it then and never forgot this show! It's as funny now as it was then.
I preordered this set as soon as i saw it announced and couldn't wait to see it again. All episodes are present along with a great bonus disc. I started watching the shows as soon as i recieved it, and just finshed watching the entire set! Hats off for a great job, and for an intesting bonus disc!
HIGHLY RECOMMEND! GREAT SHOW!!! Television will never be the same!

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Coriolanus

Excellent film
This is a tight, well-crafted script by John Logan. Cutting Shakespeare can be difficult and he did an excellent job, along with Ralph Fiennes of getting us the information we need to follow the story while still keeping us interested.

Fiennes is very, very good in this. His intensity blazes throughout, as a soldier's soldier and a man with little to connect him to the people outside of his comfort zone--aka the battlefield.

Vanessa Redgrave is, as always, compelling as Volumnia. She will definitely be up for some awards for this performance.

Just to comment on the first post made--

This movie is nothing at all like Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet. Luhrmann's film was Shakespeare on acid [i very much liked that film as well]. This is something completely different. Simply labeling it 'a grown up R&J' does a disservice to Coriolanus. Just because it's modernized doesn't make it similar, at all.

It is Shakespeare, so for the first few...

His pride, his fall
Shakespere's late military drama "Coriolanus" is rarely staged. Perhaps the most famous modern production was at Stratford-upon-Avon: during the run Olivier injured himself in his spectacular death scene and had to be replaced the next performance by a young Albert Finney, leaping into stardom. To my knowledge the new movie version is the first time the tragedy has been filmed, and a very impressive début it is. Ralph Fiennes, who seems to have made a career playing aloof patronising men (Eugene Onegin, et al), is making his own directorial début, guiding himself in a strong performance as the fatally disdainful patrician. He has placed the 5th Century BCE story in our own 21st Century with almost depressing relevance: the military invasion, the political back-stabbings, the bloody assassination are all alarmingly suitable. Most of the violence is presented in the opening sequence, as the Romans storm Carioli and Caius Marcius single-handedly defeats the citadel, earning...

Corruption, Oppression And Warfare: This Shakespearean Interpretation Seems Incredibly Modern And Relevant
NOTE: The dialogue in this film is NOT in contemporary English, but taken from actual Shakespearean text. DO NOT PURCHASE THE FILM UNLESS YOU KNOW THIS!

A lot of people have attempted modern, updated or anachronistic interpretations of Shakespeare's great works. While some have been fantastic, just as many have fallen short of their potential. It's really about finding the right contemporary setting in which to locate the piece. For my money, 1995's "Richard III" (headlined and scripted by Ian McKellen and set in war torn England during the second World War) is one of my all time favorites. Truthfully, I've read my share of Shakespeare but "Coriolanus" is not one of the plays I was familiar with--here it is adapted by three time Oscar nominated screenwriter John Logan. I think this probably serves Ralph Fiennes' interpretation quite well, it is not as overworked as other Shakespeare offerings. Fiennes takes the directorial reins and stars in "Coriolanus" and the result...

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Miles From Home

Amazing Real life story
A must see.. The ensemble cast is wonderful and the acting is superb. Ty Hodges really captures the real life story of kids on the streets of LA and has put it into TRUE ART!! I was riveted and I recommend it to everyone..specially kids who think they would be better out on the street and will soon find out that it is not the place to live their lives..

Powerful gritty tale about the battle for a young man`s soul.
This movie has a powerful message for the youth. Boring and confusing is what some said. Well i am not surprise the state of the youth is not number one on some people mind. Trust me some of the greatest stories have been told on a low budget truth be told hollywood wouldn`t have backed this anyway.

a MUST SEE
If you have a teenager at home they must see this. This movie will make them really think about life.

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