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Harry's DVD Picks & Peeks - 1st wk of Sept: Stunt Rock, Fallen Heroes, Frazetta, Classics & much more!!!
Hey folks, Harry here with my latest DVD column. Sorry that I’m late and sorrier still for missing last week’s altogether. I spent a few days in London and that put a damper on last week’s column, and then as I sat down to write this week’s… I spilt a big bottle of water on the keyboard of my Mac – after drying it I found that about 7 keys would no longer work. Including the first and last letter of my name, rendering me known as “arr”. I had to pick up a separate keyboard today to be able to type everything properly. I’ll probably be getting a new computer shortly – ARGH. After this week’s releases I have the best and the most fun of last week’s releases here for you to enjoy. As usual the images and title click over to Amazon where you can learn more and possibly purchase them. By doing that – a small portion of the purchase price goes to help keep this column going (and contribute to that new laptop.) ARGH! Thanks and I hope you enjoy this catch-up column…
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009
HEROES – SEASON 3
While I greatly prefer this season to the second season, it still isn’t quite on par with that magical first season. I thought it had a chance at that for a while. But the last 3 episodes of the season just didn’t wrap the season up how I wanted it to. In fact, I think that’s the problem – they try to build story arcs that are contained within a season – and I think that’s a mistake. I think expanding it beyond a single season to where a complete story takes 3 seasons to tell… that I’d prefer. There’s some real fun here, but damn did I get pissed at the dismissal of Robert Forster. And I really didn’t like how things played out in that last episode. That said, I’m still on board for more. It rocks more than it sucks.
GLADIATOR (Blu Ray)
Certainly better than an upres of my DVD, but this disc should have been better. Don’t bother watching the Theatrical Cut – it is an old master and it kinda sucks. The Expanded Edition looks much better on this disc, but even that isn’t nearly as good as I know it can be. That said… It isn’t a travesty. In fact to untrained eyes you wouldn’t really notice. But if you do notice the softness and unneeded sloppy clarity… it’ll drive you nuts if you try to watch the Theatrical. That said, I literally just got finished with the Expanded Edition and golly gee splatterfest awesome! I forgot how awesome this movie is. There’s a great deal of extras and that isn’t an exaggeration.
BRAVEHEART (Blu Ray)
To understand what is wrong with the GLADIATOR transfer, you need look no further than the transfer here of BRAVEHEART which is simply as great as it gets. This Blu-Ray was lovingly assembled and put together. The visual quality is perfection. Now – since we have both movies here together… let’s ponder the question. Who would win in a fight. Russell Crowe’s GLADIATOR or Mel Gibson’s WILLIAM WALLACE. I have to say, I think Crowe would wipe the floor with Wallace – but Willy could beserker his way through to an impossible victory. What do you think? Willy or Crowe?
STATE OF PLAY
Not a bad film. In fact, I thought it was quite good – but it has the impossible job of trying to live up to the far more fascinating and brilliant BBC mini-series production which is just a much more complete story! It’s brilliant. This… This is really good. That said, I’m ready for Crowe to start whupping some serious ass soon!
SIN NOMBRE
This film is brilliant. It is a chase film, a thriller and a story of immigration, albeit illegal immigration. The film is the debut work of a filmmaker that urges further attention as he knocks his initial tale out of the park. Fukunaga directs a great film. You deserve to check this film out and if you love film, you’ll do so quickly.
Disney Nature: EARTH
I love BluRay Nature docs. I personally prefer the BBC ones, simply because they’re less fluffy. Don’t get me wrong, this film is hypnotic. You can’t take your eyes off of the screen – and the night time footage of the lions bringing down an elephant… well it is some of the most stunning footage I’ve seen captured in the wild. And James Earl Jones’ narration fills me with joy. Definitely worth picking up, but you’ll watch your BBC BluRays more than this.
MASH (Blu Ray)
FUCKING YES! Amongst the very best films of Robert Altman – and not at all what the TV show became. And I liked that TV show, but the film is its own animal. Its own beast. It is a great film. Stunning – and that 70s photography looks so good here. Donald Sutherland and Elliott Gould are looking so good. You should pick this up!
SUGAR
My initial impression upon holding this Blu Ray was… “Eh, a touchy feely baseball flick” and I didn’t rush to put it in. I’m not a gigantic Baseball geek, though cinematically – I do love a good Baseball story. Because in film, the sport is humanized. It means something for those characters to win, but I’ve never cared enough about a particular baseball team to get myself invested in the story of an existing baseball team. Movies sate that experience for me. And this story of AZUCAR… Sugar… is a story that really captivated me. This isn’t a touchy feely family film. It is R-rated. That was the first sign that something was not as it seemed. Give this a chance.
TCM Greatest Classic Films Collection: Murder Mysteries ( THE MALTESE FALCON / THE BIG SLEEP / DIAL M FOR MURDER / THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE )
TCM is putting out a series of sets to basically introduce young burgeoning cinephiles with the best of genre filmmaking. Here for $20 you get 4 of the greatest murder mysteries ever made. They are bare-boned, but they’re solid looking releases, very watchable prints, but the films are so much better than you’re expecting… if you’ve never seen them. The first two are brilliant Bogart works, DIAL M originally was in 3D, Hitchcock’s sole work in the realm of the third dimension. I’d really love to see this film get a deluxe 3D release with a restored print. The last film is the brilliant John Garfield and Lana Turner classic, that was remade with Nicholson and Jessica Lange. But the original is where it’s at… save for that amazing kitchen fuck with Lange and Jack – jesus that’s a hot scene!
FIRE AND ICE (Blu Ray)
How great is this transfer? It is so good, that you can see the specs of dust between the cels and the background that were originally photographed as the cels were photographed. I’ve never seen a great film print of this film. Having found the film on cable, then on VHS and then on DVD. However, this Blu Ray made me so damn happy. Literally I was blown away by the image quality. Watching Teegra in this quality was practically pornographic. Btw – is there a hotter cartoon fuck than Frazetta’s Teegra? I think not. Sure Olive Oyl is more flexible and Betty Boop knows all the best tricks, but Teegra’s lines draw one thing from any man that watches her on screen… and that’s desire. FIRE AND ICE isn’t the sort of film that Bakshi was known for. It isn’t a brilliant satire of society hidden in the realm of adult animation… this is simply a wonderful straight fantasy animation. The rotoscoping is wonderfully done here. One of the most amazing things is that sometimes Frazetta would actually direct some of the action and movement himself, although Bakshi was clearly the director, he worked with Frazetta throughout this film and there’s a love in this film by the artists that you can see throughout. They cared about Frazetta’s character designs and they endeavored to bring them to life like they never have before… or since for that matter. THIS is the release of the week. The only thing that kinda blows here is with the lack of extras. There's a really dupey 15 minute behind the scenes, but there's convention burnt dvds with better extras... but there's nothing that compares to the image quality on this release of the feature itself and that's the main thing I want!
TCM Greatest Classic Films Collection: Science Fiction ( 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY / SOYLENT GREEN / FORBIDDEN PLANET / THE TIME MACHINE )
Ok – Just like the murder mysteries, this is a 4 film education in science fiction for $20 from TCM. What you have here are two of the great old fashioned science fiction films ever made. 1st, there’s FORBIDDEN PLANET starring a pre-spoofy Leslie Nielson and introducing the world to Robby the Robot. This Scope, stunningly beautiful film captures a magic of a period of science fiction that we’re unlikely to ever see as wonderful as it is here. Then there’s George Pal’s TIME MACHINE, a perfect film. Rod Taylor, Yvette Mimeaux… that friggin beautiful machine. Then you have the science fiction film that grew the genre up beyond what it had ever been before with Kubrick’s 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY. And the last title is SOYLENT GREEN. If you’ve never seen the film, do not read the talkback below, cuz you can bet your money that some wise ass is going to throw a spoiler up in the subject line. This is one of the classic Charlton Heston films.
TCM Greatest Classic Films Collection:Horror ( HOUSE OF WAX 1953 / THE HAUNTING 1963/ FREAKS / DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE 1941 )
For me, this set is marred by the inclusion of the Spencer Tracy DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE, mainly because I’ve just never been a fan of it. It is filled with great casting, but I greatly prefer the Fredric March version. That said, you get a great 2D version of the 3D classic HOUSE OF WAX starring Vincent Price. That said, 3D or 2D, this film is great no matter what. But the greatest two films in this set are Robert Wise’s brilliant HAUNTING, which is infinitely superior to the Spielberg meddled with de Bont film. Now the film that will blow your mind if you have no idea about it is FREAKS. There has never been a film like FREAKS – it is a horror film for more reasons than perhaps any horror film has ever earned that moniker. The exploitation of these remarkable performers at the surface might seem inconceivable, but this film showed audiences something they’d never seen before. Half men, a man with no arms and legs rolling a cigarette. And that’s just the beginning. This film must be experienced. You must learn the chant.
THE EVIL THAT MEN DO
Possibly the bleakest of all of Bronson’s films, but I love it. But then, I love all of Bronson’s flicks. I love just looking at those amazing eyes of his. They make you sweat. And there is an absolute purpose in the eyes of Bronson, a determination and a power that you can never underestimate. This is not one of the best Bronson’s, but it gets the job done. Just don’t expect a huggy experience. Heh.
And then, from the week prior – the highlights I want to share with you:
ADVENTURELAND
One of my very favorite films of the year. I mean that. ADVENTURELAND isn’t some crude sex comedy, but it is funny and it is about sexually active people. It is just better than that. This is about that fragile point in a person’s life where they have to come to a realization that they’re not going to be about the dreams you had in High School – that you can’t live at home forever, that you must evolve beyond the plan. And in a very different way, this is that story about the last time you lived at home and that moment that you left knowing it was never going to be the same. Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Bill Hader, Ryan Reynolds and especially Martin Starr all deliver fantastic performances as Greg Mottola shows us he is even better than SUPERBAD. That film was funnier, but this film is better. Love this movie!
THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO (Criterion Collection)
I love this film. It isn’t about Disco really. It is, in that Disco is the setting, the scene, the atmosphere and the world. More so in many ways than even SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER. There, it was about the grand standing of DISCO, here it’s about the passive enjoyment of Disco – that it was the thing that a group of friends did, that they enjoyed together. And it is about that point where Disco ceased to be THE COOLEST THING EVER, and the phrase, DISCO SUCKS, came to be. And it is how that affected this group of friends. To a degree I associate with this in the same way that I feel about the original Alamo Drafthouse. There was a scene there, one that was my group of friends and we went multiple times a week. And it’s what we talked about and planned for and then… We started changing, friends moved away and the scene slowly started to change. People you saw in the audience began working there and it all just changed a bit. I still love the Drafthouse and now, it’s a different crowd that I see there and I’m friends with some of them, but the energy of it all changed a bit. THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO reminded me of the time in my life where every Tuesday me and a group of friends all hit the same bar together. That lasted for 4 years. And then… it was gone. The group was gone. For this group, it was this club and this music and this scene. I love that Criterion is championing this film. It is really worth it!
CHILDREN OF THE CORN (Blu Ray)
The book is sooooo much better, but then… I don’t know, the film is its own very special thing. The thing is, this movie never scared me. It kinda freaked me out though. That little man-child creature thing – that lil fucker scares the bejeesus out of me. There’s just something wrong with him. The transfer is actually really lovely, and that’s important when you’re walking through rows of cornstalks. Sincerely. The film kinda works better when you’re watching it alone, but even then – you’re liable to laugh more than you’ll jump.
Eclipse Series 17: NIKKATSU NOIR – Criterion Collection ( I AM WAITING / RUSTY KNIFE / TAKE AIM AT THE POLICE VAN / CRUEL GUN STORY / A COLT IS MY PASSPORT )
A few years back I discovered, whilst doing this column, the work of Seijun Suzuki and my introduction to a specified form of Japanese filmmaking called Nikkatsu began. These are films that hit you like a knife in the gut. They’ll knock you around, call you their whore and leaving bleeding at home asking for more. I’m serious. These are what the Japanese did when they saw film noir. What they did after digesting that genre was bloodier, more risqué and a lot more brutal than the typical work. They do incredibly bold and theatrical work with lighting, colors, shadows and sets. And the clothes and the world of Japan in the era they’re shooting. This isn’t the Japanese film that Film Professors teach, this is the stuff people saw in their versions of Grindhouses. This is Nikkatsu Film and after watching this set, you’ll be hooked. That I promise you.
SCREWBALLS
Roger Corman’s classic produced Sex Comedy. This has pretty much everything you could want with a sexploitation film from this particular era. Now many might thumb their noses at this, but you have to understand the era that it came out. To kids in High School, the concept of porn was an ALIEN notion. Where would you get it? How would you get it? But hard R raunchy sex comedies with lots of titties and a few glorious glimpses at bush?!? NIRVANA – and it wasn’t even a band yet. Add to all of the the boobtastic wonder of Raven DeLaCroix… filled the dreams of an awful lot of guys. Oddly, there’s a good deal of extras on this disc, because… it’s important film work!
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: THE ANIMATED SERIES
This is the barebones addition of the complete Animated series. Months back they released a 5 disc loaded set that is fucking amazing! This – well let me put it this way, you get all 27 episodes of the great, fucking great TV animated series for just $14. The other set sells for nearly $40. So you have to ask yourself, would you rather have all those amazing extras, or the extra $26 and the whole series? For the cost conscious D&D fan, this is a smart purchase.
STUNT ROCK
A BUTT-NUMB-A-THON LEGEND! There’s a magic about STUNT ROCK – moreso the theatrical trailer for STUNT ROCK that could very easily be the greatest film trailer of ALL TIME! The film, insane though it may be, can not possibly live up to the awe and wonder of the trailer, which is on here. Now, you have to understand – this is a film about two things… FUCKING INSANE STUNTS by one of the guys responsible for the mayhem you know from the Mad Max films… and the genius of SORCERY. I can’t possibly explain Sorcery, you just have to experience it. For BNATTERS this isn’t a great film, so much as it is a sacred bond, a sensation of awe and delight. STUNT ROCK is not a very good film, but sometimes a movie doesn’t have to be, to be great!
Exploitation Cinema: TEENAGE GRAFFITI & TEENAGE MOTHER
Perhaps the greatest programming that I ever did was playing this film at what I consider the best BUTT-NUMB-A-THON that I’ve programmed thus far. TEENAGE MOTHER played between HAUTE TENSION and UNDEAD – two films before Mel Gibson showed up with PASSION OF THE CHRIST and this film left more scars than Jesus suffered in that film. I highly recommend watching TEENAGE MOTHER with a large group of friends. Get drunk, high – whatever it is you do, schedule this as the film you put on at 3 or 4 in the morning and watch what it does. There’s a chance you’ll all be screaming and freaking the fuck out. It’s kinda special. I haven’t seen TEENAGE GRAFFITI, but I doubt it can touch the sublime brilliance of the horror of TEENAGE MOTHER.
Ok – that’s it for this week. Again, I’m sorry about not getting this out on time, but as you can see above – it’s been a tough bit of timing and luck. Next week, we’ll be looking at FRINGE, CRANK 2, REQUIEM FOR A DREAM (Blu), BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS, THE NEW WORLD Extended Cut (Blu), THAT HAMILTON WOMAN Criterion, SILVERADO (Blu), HOMICIDE Criterion, UNIVERSAL HORROR: Classic Movie Archive, THE POSTMAN (Blu), FRIDAY (Blu), CREEPSHOW (Blu), Beany & Cecil, QUICK AND THE DEAD (Blu), FREDDY VS JASON (Blu), THE HUMAN CONDITION – Criterion, MENACE II SOCIETY (Blu), DEAD CALM (Blu), SPHERE (Blu), MAD MONSTER PARTY, SUMMERTREE, OVER THE TOP (Blu) and that’s about all. Til next Tuesday!
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GAME-CHANGERs
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is a great fucking artist. Anyone who likes his shit, hit up his museum in Pennsylvannia. Well worth the trip.
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I forget how potent that movie is sometimes. Yes it came out during the whole Braveheart craze, but damn if it didn't deserve it. I predict if that film came out nowadays, it wouldn't have even been nominated.
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Any movie with a bad guy called General Bethlehem deserves another watch.
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Might finally be time to pick up a player. Horner's greatest score ever too.
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And this comes from someone who really likes it! :D
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Surely not? Thats like playing Scientology recruitment videos...i suppose though you could argue it would fit well into a Fantasy theme.
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a kind of algae
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Have you seen Passion of the Christ? Whatever your belief system, judge the movie on it's merits. I am an atheist, but it's still a good film.
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No thanks, I'll stick with fairy stories that haven't led to wars and personal misery and guilt...
its drivel and Gibson is a lunatic..i saw enough to know exactly what is going on. Shock christians into faith using horror shtick. Thankyou. -
For such a huge title I couldn't believe the shoddy transfer job they did. It really isn't worth the purchase right now. Am hoping, like the fifth element, they'll do a re-release soon. Hold on to your cash, folks.
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Whit Stillman? And Chris Eigeman?
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C'mon,get with it dude!
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Harry doesn't post that often, better get your cash ready.
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Donate the money to "Waterproof Keyboard Association" or "Keyboardless Site Owners Foundation".
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That's all very good an' all but has anyone ever typed 'Agent Orange' into google image search?
Try doing that and tell me there's a god. -
Best Buy had $10 off if you bought Braveheart and Gladiator together PLUS $10 mail-in rebates for both movies. So technically I get horrible Gladiator blu-ray for $3.
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After reading the plot summary off the back of the DVD in a store the other day, I'd have a fuck of a time believing the script *couldn't* have been written in half the time it would take to watch the film.
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Wallace could fight when he had to, but he was really more of a leader and motivator of men. Maximus was not only a great leader, but a complete and total one-on-one badass too. That's my take, anyway. Gladiator's the better film in my book, too. Never cared for the self-hagiography of Gibson. Aside from the anti-Semitism, the guy has always clearly loved himself a little too much - he would've played Jesus if he thought he could've gotten away with it.
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I've been complaining that this column has become nothing but a Blu-Ray advertisement, but this week reminds me of the columns of old. Still a lot of Blu-ray retreds, but enough hidden gems to please someone like me. And, no Hanna-fuckin-Montana.
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Judging Passion of the Christ solely on its merits as a film (which is ridiculous, considering the story and the context the film was made in, but anyway), it's garbage. There's no character development, no real plot of any kind, half the characters aren't even named, there were joke scenes that were just confusing (Jesus invented the dinner table. Who knew?) and a truly terrible bad guy. Then you've got bland direction and absolutely shocking cinematography that tried to ape Caravaggio but only succeeded in making everything look flat and brown (the opposite of what Caravaggio achieved). As an atheist I've got my own problems with the way Gibson portrayed the story of the crucifixion, but apart from that it's just a really, really bad movie.
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is better than March of the Penguins
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Wasn't that just the footage that the BBC shot for Planet Earth? Either way, Planet Earth shit's on every other documentary about nature ever made. The Great Whites breaching still takes my breath away. Can't wait to get it in HD.
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Even the hottie French Princess Isabella couldn't make William Wallace forget his dead wife MURRON. And when WW cut the Magistrates (Lovejoys's landlord) throat for killing MURRON the rebellion became personal. As they chanted: ALBA GU BRA! ALBA GU BRA! ALBA GU BRA!
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a terrible overrated film. It really did nothing for me and i consider Omega man a much better 70's Heston film. Heston's best Sci fi performance will always be Planet of the Apes, and his best overall performance was in Ben-HurAlso anyone that picks up Gladiator on bluray at full price is a chump. This is a major title in the saphrire series that Paramount launched and just going to any Bluray website shows you how mad people are about the transfer. Paramount is either going to issue a remaster at somepoint or most likley an entirely new Bluray next year for the films 10th anniversary, be smart and save your money, but by all means everyone with half a brain in their head should be picking up Braveheart
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SCOTLAND FOREVER!!!
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I never understood why such a badass would go along with being a ring fighter. At least in CONAN he needed to get some skills. Also GLADIATOR owes a lot to BEN HUR substituting CHARIOT RACING with ARMED BOUTS. Lastly, Russell Crowe seems like such a jerk in real life.
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Nikkatsu is the name of the film company, not a style of filmmaking.
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throw a phone at me any day.
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What fucking show did you watch? That first season sucked balls. Season 3 has been the best. I can't wait to see how they reboot the show this time around. 4th times a charm!
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It might depend on which culture's weapons are being used. Each was trained with a different kind of blade, one heavier than the other which makes for a different approach to fighting. Why the fuck am I talking about this?
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Sep 02, 2009 8:50:55 AM CDT
I think it's really suspicious how I hear every week...
by derlanghaarige
...Blu-Ray users complain about bad transfers and stuff like that. See? You can have that on DVD too. BUT MUCH CHEAPER!
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I would pay money to see a fight between RusellCrowe and Christian Bale. After Crowe professionally smashes the phone off the wall Bale can ask him if he's happy now because its fucking ruined
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Isn't that just a short version of Planet Earth, that BBC doc you were raving about.
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Like we're supposed to believe that it wasn't a Big Gulp or a 2-Liter bottle of soda that you were chugging at the time washing down your Yodels and Ring Dings.
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Sadly. I wish it was the other way around.
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GLADIATOR has to be the only 'extended edition' that I like less than the original. It only adds talky scenes and rather slows down the whole movie.
FIRE AND ICE sounds cool though, not a movie I've ever seen or really heard about before... sometimes find it a bit hard to believe Harry, do any tb'ers recommend it? -
Saw this at Fantastic Fest a couple of years ago, and was blown away. I'm looking forward to checking out the other Nikkatsu films.
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Was pretty shitty. I don't get the love. Superbad was more realistic. First off, Twilight girl was playing the vampire in this and Micheal Cera two was playing the girl. Also Twilight girls acting is just her running her hands through her hair. I knew that it wasn't going to be a laugh a minute movie, but a laugh at least every 20 minutes would have been nice. Bill Haders complete role was shown in the trailers. All in all it was OK. It was very Hughes minus the funny. And I would have bought it a lot more if they were straight out of high school kids or kids coming back from their first year of college. I didn't buy that they were college graduates (some of them). Should have been a right out of high school movie.
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Makes no fucking sense.
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Sep 02, 2009 9:14:16 AM CDT
Only new scenes in Gladiator have a new transfer not the enitre
by jettl93
The extended cut of Gladiator is played through branching, which means if you watch the extended cut the bluray plays the theatrical cut but adds in any new scenes for the extended cut. only the added scenes will have the nicer looking transfer since the scenes that are common to both theatrical and extended cuts will still be the crappy Transfer that every one is complaining about (in fact the sudden cut to a new scene with a nice transfer will only highlight how bad the rest of the film looks)your review above Harry makes it sound like the entire Extended cut has the better transfer when in fact it's just the extended scenes... You might wanna change that so people aren't confused into thinking it's just the theatrical cut that looks terrible
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Jeez Harry, you speak as if some people don't know what those films are. Anyone who hasn't seen or at least heard of those films is not a movie buff and probably wouldn't be on this site anyway. Oh, and gimme a break...EVERYONE knows the secret of Soylent Green, no spoilers there.
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Sep 02, 2009 9:15:30 AM CDT
Last Days of Disco - Part 3 of a great series of films...
by lanemyersclassic
Part 1 - Metropolitan, Part 2 - Barcelona. Whit Stillman has a good feel for talky, intelligent films, where plot is secondary to character development. Highly recommended!!
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or do I?
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Which made me giggle throughout the movie
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The book, Night Shift, a collection of stories, does exist. In that collection the short story, Children of the Corn resides, as well as the scary as fuck story The Bogeyman.
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Oh, well.
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WTF? Supernatural has fuckin' filled the niche that The X-Files held back in the early 90's. Wake up and watch a good tv show. Fuck Heroes.
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...the most beautiful woman EVER in a movie. Great film, too.
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Buy the series instead! Why would you want the quarter-length (if that) version?
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- considering he left the end off. Were you going to say the FF doco's not on here Harry?
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Fucking that movie was awesome! Can't believe Cameron released it on DVD before it hits theaters.
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Sep 02, 2009 9:52:23 AM CDT
"GLADIATOR has to be the only 'extended edition' that I like les
by big jim
For me, the worst one is TOMBSTONE. Sure it makes the ending a bit less out-of-left-field, and you do get more insight into Earp's relationship with his wife. However (another way to say "that said", Harry), what you gain in character development you lose in pacing. Cutting those scenes in the original was definitely the right call.
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Maybe it was lost in translation but that was what I was saying. The 7(?) part doc series shot by the BBC is far better. It contains the Great White breaching scenes are are still as epic as the first time I saw it. Also, the dancing birds of paradise is funnier then most comedies!
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No. No it does not. And the first season of Heroes blew nuts as well asisde from MAYBE 2 or 3 episodes. And talk about one of the worst finales of all time. What the fuck was "magical" about it?
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with the best furniture, ever, to grace the silver screen. If you don't like Soylent Green than you trust your government a little too much.
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Thanks for the mention of the Frank Frazetta Museum in Pennsylvania. How did I not even know such a place existed? Because of your mention, it is now on my radar. And I do plan to visit.
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How did I not know such a place exists? --Yeah, Frank Frazetta is a great artist. That is one trip that I very much look forward to.
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Come on, we depend on you for that. Help a fellow perv out!
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Is coming to my mailbox today. I'll give a full review, because Harry's didn't make sense. The two Ben's called it the movie of the year. Or one of them did anyway.
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But, apparently his wife just died and their web site is down temporarily. Wonder if the museum is closed too.
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And do our own DVD reviews, because these suck.
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Last month, he included BATTLESTAR GALACTICA in his dvd "picks" but gave no indication as to whether or not he'd actually seen it. He completely neglected 24's most recent season, which was fantastic. And now, no mention of SUPERNATURAL 4. It's unclear whether he follows LOST, soon to enter its final phenomenal season.....And yet, HEROES: SEASON 3 gets a pass!?HEROES is probably the most tragically mishandled series on television. It definitely started off as a fun ride with that first amazing season. But the show has completely derailed since then and has only become increasingly painful to watch.Harry, if you are really praising HEROES and not bothering to review these other great shows, you are truly out of touch.
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Penis!
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for Harry that is. Usually, it's just one sentence per DVD.
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I bought it on a recommendation when the remastered DVD came out (Looks and sounds great, BTW) but the film is pretty hollow. Don’t get me wrong, it was ok, but unless you grew up watching this it is no great shakes. Worth a rental, for sure.
And it is amazing how this “living Frazetta painting” actually hammers home how silly it is for characters to run around in loincloths and purple string bikinis. That said, you have to admire the care that went into crafting the main girl's bubble butt. Nice.
Apparently the Blu video is a great step up and the audio is stunning (per Blu-Ray.com).
NEKROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!! -
That said, I guess he could say, "That Said" a lot more if he really wanted to. That said, Harry says, "That Said" almost as much as Hercules says, "Penultimate."
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That's really ashame. She was very nice and accomodating. Hell of a businesswoman, too. RIP.
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Coming out in Blu? I've had the normal special edition with the cards for like 5 years now.
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Fuck me this is a triple dip. There was an edition that came out after the one I own.
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It used to be this single place in downtown Austin that was so cool and seemed like a simple small indie underground geek haven, but now (it's still much appreciated), it's more "scenester" and multiplied (multiplexed?) and so BIG/organized. I remember asking Harry Knowles a question at the screening of "Zombie" back in the day, and he was sitting in a gang of friends, and looked a little taken aback that some outsider walked up to ask if he knew if some other italian horror movie (The Beyond?) was coming out on DVD...
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she really did pass away. *sigh* Ain't death a bitch?
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lol that really takes me back to my childhood, man.
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What's your fav painting by the man?
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With boobs.
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No black bars,...though the IMAX shots on THE DARK KNIGHT blu-ray will be cut, as the theatrical version. --Awesome television!!! (Look it up via images at Google.com)
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OVER THE TOP ON BLU RAY!!!I just came.
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she just doesn't seem to be doing videos anymore; now that she's got her magazine deal and clothing line, I guess she doesn't need to.
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so it's kind of ridiculous that he picks and chooses his TV DVD's. Why not omit them altogether and leave 'em for Herc?
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ScriptGirl that is. I for one hoped Harry just stopped posting her videos too.
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fuckin' scumbeg.
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the hate for scriptgirl. Was it the whole vagina thing that threw some of you off?
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Seriously, his SAG card should be revoked. I cannot stand that idiot. He makes Tom Green look like a young Brando.
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weekly and everyone was complaining? Am I in the fucking Matrix? Christ, one asshole actually got banned for "No tits out for attention girl." Talk about a closet case.
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goes to show that website really has no class whatsoever.
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That could have been the theme for the Obama campaign.
Oh and despite a couple funny parts "Adentureland" was terrible. Boring young adults smoke a lot of weed, make out and vomit. Hooray. -
movies aren't funny anymore.
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Gotta love the female form. Cat Girl, Egyptian Queen, and Moon are among my favorites. Dark Kingdom, Death Dealer, and The Silver Warrior are my favorites, too.
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Nah, the thing that that bugged me abut ScriptGirl was that here was someone doing something on YouTube, FOR YouTube, and Harry tried to sell it to us as something she did exclusively for AICN, for us geeks, when none of that was true. Her videos were fine for YT, I had no problem with that, but the idea of her doing it for us and being a part of AICN left a bad taste in my mouth.
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Parmaount really fucked up the Gladiator Blu-Ray, which is a bummer becauase a high profile flick like that from Ridley Scott, you'd think they'd pull out all the stops like they did on Blade Runner. Harry you should fix your review because the extended SCENES are the only parts of the disc with a decent transfer.
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But I thank you anyway for introducing me to Fire and Ice, which I'd never heard of.
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jesus fucking christ man its always something new.
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tastes like chicken...tastes like chicken!Seriously, what card carrying geek does not know the answer to that one. I remember the Heston that Phil Hartman used to do on SNL with the "futuristic" jumpsuit and little neck-kerchief. Love that look.
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And to THINK...it WAS a sure buy.
Looks like Mel Gibson wins this round, as BRAVEHEART got a stunning transfer!
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. . . Bakshi's best. Could have been Wizards, which alwasy felt like a sweet rough draft of Bakshi's best.
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No more than those fancy 'color' films. Don't get me started about 'talkies'.
Fire and Ice is EXCELLENT. I have an old burned copy; I'll buy it anew. Frazetta was our finest fantasy artist. -
70's-style paranoid thriller State Of Play over last weeks 60's-style cute caper Duplicity. Is it just me, or as Julia Roberts ages, does her facial features seem bigger, until she looks like a chariacture of herself?Nice call on the Crowe as Eddie Vedder resemblance. Although would it of hurt the movie if it was rated R? Just to hear Helen Mirren call Crowe "a motherfucking wanker" would be sweet.
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Braveheart is one of the most over rated films ever. FREEEEEDDDDOMMMMM! Oh fuck off Mel!
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For someone who writes as much as you do Harry, I would expect your writing would get better. I know you're never going to win a Pulitzer, but your grammar is still god awful. "Spilt"? It's spilled - I'm sorry, that just makes you sound retarded and makes it harder to take you seriously. I've brought this up many times before, but do you know any other transitional phrase besides, "That being said"? Try "however" or "on the other hand" there's two free ones for you. Harry, you're to the point where I know three high school English teachers that use your column as a how not to write example. I think you could be a solid writer if you put half of your love for movies into your writing, until then, I think you're better off having seven keys not work for you.
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.. gets my highest recommendation. In my books it's one of the top five coolest animated features of the 80s (beside Heavy Metal, Transformers The Movie, Starchaser The Legend of Orin).
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Yes please!
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If Maximus had his short lil' gladiator sword and Wallace had his broadsword, my money would be on Wallace. If Maximus can dodge the first blow he would win by stepping inside with a butcher strike. Either way the fight would last all of five seconds. However it wouldn't really matter because Darkwolf from Fire and Ice would split the winner's skull in half. Darkwolf is the most bad-ass character ever.
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will this play on a non-blu-ray player?
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You don't even have to DO anything to know whether or not you spelled something incorrectly. It highlights the word as soon as you type it. In EVERY app - it's system-wide! I guess you can turn off the default setting, but why would you want to? I'm sure it's the same in Windows land...
Having said that (;P), nothing can help the man's grammar. Short of going back to school. I don't mean high school either.
I was actually just looking at some of those "demotivational" posters. There was a cool one about correct spelling or something saying that sometimes it's important. With a photo/ad for burgers that used "anus beef". Haw. Although they could have been being very clever using a play on rump steak rather than Angus beef. Nah...
I really should get off the damn net and go to bed. -
Autodidact, done. FIRE AND ICE is now on my rental list.
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is like busting on him for his weight. Pointless. Nothing is going to change. That said, I do like it when Harry says, "That said."
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Eye dont sea what all the fuzz is aboat. That said, His grammer is some sort of mixture between Adam Sandler and Yoda
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William Wallace was seven foot tall and shot fire balls from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his arse.
Maxi-minime was handy with a blade but too soft with the flying telephone, failing spectaclarly to decapitate his target, the evil British-awards-show-producer-dud-poetry-hating villian and instead, simply costing himself the Oscar. Not enough, Spaniard! There can only be one! The Highlander!
By the way, Harry...
GEEK FAIL!
You totally forgot to mention who did the background art for Fire and Ice in addition to Frank Frazetta and Ralph Bakashi...
...only legenday illustrator James Gurney, creator of Dinotopia, the most technically accomplished graphic novel in the world.
Can't believe you missed that one man. Hang up your Batcape.
Otherwise awesome listage. -
Sep 02, 2009 2:24:21 PM CDT
Slamming harry for spelling and grammar is....
by talkbacker with no name
so 1990's, girlfriend. You guys must be new.
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Does have a NICE little scene with Jennifer Inch (uncredited) where her chest is examined in a Health Class. Very Healthy indeed.
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Do I really need Soylent Green on DVD?
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Unfortunately Disney didn't have the rights to all of the music used in the series so substitutions are made on the DVDs. The only way to get this series unedited on DVD is to go for the region 2 box set (2004).
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I think this sentence in the ADVENTURELAND review was probably the worst:"This is about that fragile point in a person's life where they have to come to a realization that they're not going to be about the dreams you had in High School - that you can't live at home forever, that you must evolve beyond the plan."He changes the subject from he to they to you, all in one go. It's incomprehensible.
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"Are you not entertained?!" Oh, and Harry oversold Adventureland. I just found it really dull and full of itself.
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Fucking Targets big push this week was Terry Fadar live in Vegas.
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The part when Bill Hader scares off the one guy with the baseball bat, all in one shot, is pretty awesome. In fact, the majority of awesome in that movie is pretty much self-contained to Hader's stuff. The majority of the film is the main character sighing over the twilight girl, and that ain't much of a movie. And the twilight girl is really not that great, she has her moments but she kind of just does the same ticked-off angsty chick for everything she does. So it's an overrated flick, but not a terrible one.
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Sep 02, 2009 2:47:36 PM CDT
It's not that Julia Roberts' face has gotten bigger...
by nasty in the pasty
...it's that her hair has gotten smaller. She looks incredibly PLAIN with straight hair, but incrdibly GORGEOUS with big, curly hair. Remember Pretty Woman-era Julia? The last GIANT HAIR Julia movie was probably Erin Brockovich (not co-incidentally her last major star vehicle hit). It's the same thing with Mariah Carey. Early-90's era Mariah had that AWESOME CURLY HAIR, but now it's usually straight and blah, even though physically she's hardly seemed to age at all in the last 20 years.
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Big hair will compliment a big 'ol face like a frame to a picture.
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Has one of those stupid cardboard covers on the plastic DVD case? I hope they got them from all the trees they planted!
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...but need to check out if it includes Painting with Fire. For those of you that haven't seen it, it's a documentary on Frazetta that'll have you drooling. Hope it's on bluray
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Her acting consits of her running her hands through her hair. Fun drinking game, drink everytime she runs her hands through her hair in any movie she's in (save for Jumper just cause she's hardly in it).
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It was soo damn boring. God, the guy hands on the side of a boat for three hours.
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I have never watched so much of such an insipid show. Anyone remember the one where Parkman tried to read Hiro's mind, but he couldn't because he was "thinking in Japanese".....?
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Well, a talkbacker, which is close.
Netflixing Fire & Ice. -
When I read your post concerning Harry's use of a/they/you, I cried. I had tears coming out. It is so true, and it hurts. You, my friend, have made me laugh more in the last few minutes than I did in the past week. While not AS bad, the very fact Harry typed the following is disturbing, "But then, I love all of Bronson’s flicks. I love just looking at those amazing eyes of his. They make you sweat." Harry, if I were you, I would put posters of Bronson up all over my house and sweat the pounds away.
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It's not that good. And I am a Frazetta fan. The TBer that said it was "hollow" hit the nail on the head. It's very stylish and pretty, and the giant lizard scene is pretty awesome, but aside from it being pretty close to Frazetta's style all the way through, it's not very exciting. On the other hand, Teegra's hot.
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"spilt." it's a word you asshole.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/spilt
Just a quick note about writing, grammar, and being an asshole. It's his website, he can write however the fuck he wants. Can you go read something else? Yes, abso-fucking-lutely........ For those of you interested in language, the "fucking" in Abso-fucking-lutely is quite common, and known as expletive infixation. Now, when it comes to pointing out things about the way people talk or write, you can be an asshole prescriptivist, if you want, but language changes and people don't, so in my estimation it's a big waste of your time serving only to cement the legend of your own douchebaggery. -
Nice ID
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We should all know by now its not the style of Harry's writing, but the words he uses, that can be easily plucked to accompany a studio's crapfest of choice. "Excellent!""It's A Lotta Fun!""The Best Time I Had This Summer!!"
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I don't care how much blood, brains and various internal organs get spilled in whatever 're-imagined, re-invented' horror-remake-of-the-week...if you want to get yourself properly scared witless, you NEED to check out the original version of "The Haunting". Not just for the scares, but savor the time when films were being made by craftsmen who knew how to tell a story, not ADD-afflicted imbeciles working their AVID editing bays like brain-dead video gamers.
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Really? Where was he blown to? How did this movie cause the massive blow that caused Harry to be carried away? I'd normally assume this was a figure of speech, but Harry bothered to put in the word "literally" which meant that it actually happened and wasn't figurative language. STOP USING WORDS LIKE THEY MEAN SOMETHING OTHER THAN WHAT THEY ACTUALLY MEAN!
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For those who may have missed the documentary about the legendary Frank Frazetta - His late wife (God bless) had to lock him out of his own museum, because he'd sneak into it at night and alter the paintings. He was never satisfied that his works were complete because he often rushed them for deadlines. Sorry to hear the news; she was a beauty. Also, The Haunting (original) is terrifying. Adventureland is better the second time around, but the end is torture. Some films just have a perfect middle section and this is one of them. Stewart will make a good Joan Jett. That much is clear.
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"That said, sometimes a movie can suck ass and yet still be the best movie of all time."
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been in the public consciousness forever now? I want to say I knew what it was long before I knew it was a movie. The answer to the question "Whats Soylent Green?" is "It's people," not "A movie with the Planet of the Apes guy set in a dystopic future." Huh, PotA, another movie with a twist that has been incorporated into the public consciousness. I would say more poeple know the twists on both films than have ever even seen them.
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It's not like he's ever BEEN any good, really, at it. Harold is just Harold spewing out his gushy reviews etc and that's how it is and always will be. Slagging him for spelling mistakes or shite grammar is like dumping on Keith Richards for doing coke. Ummmmm
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Sadly, Painting With Fire is NOT included on the Blu-Ray of Fire and Ice. Bad news, considering it's the main reason to buy the dvd. Fire And Ice itself is -- as someone mentioned above -- is hollow, at best, with a seriously clichéd and half-assed storyline. Some nice rotoscoped animation that does a fair job of approaching the energy of Frazetta's paintings, but I wouldn't call anything Bakshi's done as an animator "craftsmanship". I am truly saddened to hear about Mrs. Frazetta. The documentary suggests a very strong relationship between husband and wife, and I'm sure it must be taking a serious toll on Frank and family. Mr. Frazetta doesn't know it, but he was one of my greatest art teachers growing up. My sincerest and most heartfelt condolences go out to he and his loved ones.
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Wow, they've been together forever, awful to hear about her death. 17th July.
I hope he is ok. She was a beauty, his pictures of her were something special. -
Sep 02, 2009 6:34:09 PM CDT
Harry: you need to learn what "seamless branching" is
by lavatory love machine
blu rays that include different version of one movie on the same disc don't have two complete copies, all the common scenes to both cuts are burned on the disc only once and the additional scenes are added "on the spot" by the player and then it cuts back to the theatrical cut without no one noticing it, so it makes no sense to say that the Gladiator theatrical cut is an older transfer when it makes for about 90% of the extended cut, the common scenes to both cuts are identical, it's the same transfer......it's interesting to note that this is the reason why LOTR will have separate theatrical and extended blu ray editions, the extended editions not only include additional scenes but they have alternative takes and angles on about half of the common scenes, which makes seamless branching redundant because there would be very little space saved anyway
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. . . about the Nikkatsu noir. "State of Play" was preposterous, though- the kind of movie Hollywood makes wayyy too often.
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We first meet Maximus during the climactic battle of the Roman Legions against the brutal Germanic Tribes- A bloody, decades long conflict of which he is already a veteran. He crushed the most formidable warriors that the much hardier Teutonic race had to offer at that time; winning many bloody contests. All of this is a prelude to the specific man killing skills he displays as a Gladiator. Contrast this with William Wallace- Who started off a peasent farmer, goaded into war by a repressive system of foreign govenment, he basically had to fight with sticks and stones and unwieldy iron broadswords.
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Sep 02, 2009 7:06:21 PM CDT
In a duel, Maximus would make Wallace cry "Mercy."
by cheyne_stoking_dms
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Sep 02, 2009 7:29:20 PM CDT
Highlander would be the ultimate destructooor of wallace and max
by takingscorpioscalls
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Yeah, everybody knows he can't write for shit. That said ;), he's doing this because he loves the movies and wants to share them with people who might have missed out otherwise - a pretty cool objective in my book. If it bugs you, quit reading. Jeez.
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The series went down the pooper when Trapper John left, and then the commander who aways wore his fishing cap to be replaced by some cranky grampa. Plus Alan Alda was kind of wack trying to be all goofy and then the next second have his wise sage-like noble advice to give, lame! Donald Sutherland fo life fooz.
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The best horror movie ever filmed. Hands down.
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Gotta disagree. The first few seasons of M.A.S.H. had typical sitcom-type plots (albeit with much more clever writing), and Frank Burns was possibly the most irritating character to ever grace the small screen (with the possible exception of Fran Drescher's the Nanny). Once they got the new cast, they got much more adventurous, thought-provoking and affecting. The Christmas orphans episode with Winchester is one of my favorite episodes of any TV show ever. They couldn't have pulled that off in the climate of the first few seasons. Aside from a few holier-than-thou Alda-directed episodes, the show was like fine wine - it got better as it aged. JMO.
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Gimme a break. The movie is a dated Snoozefest.
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Sep 02, 2009 8:01:38 PM CDT
The series got preachier but u know what screw it
by takingscorpioscalls
I like the movie AND the series pre-cast changes. yea that's right biatches i'm not drawing any faggy lines.
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I always liked this movie. You might be better off getting the existing Sony release though.
Man, that Screwballs artwork takes me back some years :) -
This week if you buy them both at Best Buy you get 10$ off. Comes up to 34$ for both of them. ALSO both have a form that comes with them. If you own them on DVD you can send it in and they will send you a 10$ refund on each.
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it's the only thing goo meister can do. That and he gets publicity from Hollywood suits who actually think his opinion is worth a damn. Could you see Harry working in construction? I think not. Personally, I wouldn't mind it if Harry's spies cut him off. It would brake the curse and we'd all be set free.
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The Blu-Ray transfer of Fire and Ice is so well done that you can see the specks of dust between the cells? What the hell!? That sounds like a considerably worse picture than I would get otherwise. Why would I want to see specks of dust screwing up the movie? Are those specks of dust an integral part of the experience the filmmaker intended?
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... in the theater?! Shame on a Geek who was of age and didn't see FIRE AND ICE in the theater! Obviously I did.
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Sep 02, 2009 9:20:35 PM CDT
Barrock, that's awesome... if you give a shit about them
by takingscorpioscalls
I have enough stupid shit i've bought and havent rewatched, like that shit sandwich fight club.
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You have no taste. Just wanted to tell you that. MASH is a classic and the best movie Altman ever made. And you have no taste. To sum up...
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Shouldn't you atleast rent it first? That way you don't waste money? Dumbass.
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point to me that , where in the smoking shit did i say that?
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until you purchased it. If you had, you wouldn't have bought a "shit sandwich."
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I bought it a couple years ago.
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http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2009/07/17/rip-ellie-frazetta/
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could he secretly be a lolcat?
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The fuckin' booms in that movie are some of the scariest sound fx in a movie, ever. Talk about moviemaking right there, hell it's one of the few movies based on a book that actually accentuates the reading of the source material. Great stuff and definitely one of the best Horror movies ever made.
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and when I was little, before I saw that movie, I used to love spiral staircases. Now everytime I see one I just think to myself "Yep, that right there could work real well as a makeshift gallows".
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I just gave you a kick ass title for an adventure story Harry, make it so...
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Braveheart is also my favorite movie - I believe there are many various lessons to be learned in the movie to those who care to look at the deeper stories being told. Honor, trust, devotion, FREEDOM, ect... Things I personally believe define what makes a man. In todays world of entitlements, backstabbing, and socialization these things don't mean too much anymore sadly.
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wanna double team Lili Taylor and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
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You can tell why those scenes were cut. And it comes with an awkward intro by Scott where he explains that this is NOT his vision of the film (sorta like what they did to Alien)
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Sep 03, 2009 2:15:05 AM CDT
"Honor, trust, devotion, FREEDOM, ect... Things I personally bel
by takingscorpioscalls
PuhLEEZE. Yeah, a queefing man. Everyone knows what makes a man is paranoia, conspiring, liquidations and OPPRESSION.
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2001 in a "valu-pak" with Soylent Green, Time Machine, and Forbidden Planet?!?! What?!? Next they'll be selling a coloring book with pages of unicorns and fairies, and then a page with the Persistence of Memory on it. God Damn... First Amazon can't give the glorious Blu Ray away, now this fucking insult. ... and when will people realize that 2001 is a Sci Fi movie like Moby Dick is an adventure story. Where the fuck do these people ooze out of?!?
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The film was boring and pointless. A big problem I had with the film was that it was supposed to be set in the eighties ,but no one looked like they were in the eighties. The clothes, the hair , not even the dialogue the characters spoke. It takes more that having a few eighties songs playing in the background.
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Sep 03, 2009 7:03:03 AM CDT
The Haunting made me want to invent a time machine
by i_am_not_the_droid_you_are_looking_for
So I could go back two hours and decide against watching that steaming pile of horseshit. And that BOOM! sound you heard was Jan de Bont's career self-destructung.
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Sep 03, 2009 7:11:45 AM CDT
Adventureland was average at best
by i_am_not_the_droid_you_are_looking_for
Nothing about it can justify the amount of self-flagellation that goes on in these TB's.
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Good movie, but fucking great mini-series.
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it looked shitty, you say it is shitty. It will forever be shitty. And I just took a shit. It was pretty shitty.
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The Haunting (1963) directed by Robert Wise made me afraid of spiral staircases and showcased the importance of good sound design in Horror. The remake with Owen Wilson getting his head lopped off in the fireplace, not so much.
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I should also clarify that I didn't actually look at the 4-pack dvd's before I commented on The Haunting. My assumption has led me to idiocy.
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Yeah, I don't think anyone in their right mind is confusing Jan De Bont's The Haunting with the notion of being a classic, although Twister is the best movie about tornadoes I've ever seen...
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I know most of the people on here are true, dyed in the wool, bad to the bone cinephiles, but really, you're gonna knock a bargain like these collections?
Think of the kiddies that haven't seen all of these great movies yet. Kids that are reliant on their parents (or their ability to do lawn work) to get some cash to purchase movies. These four classic movies in one things are a great fuckin' find for those kids that are just starting out on their road to cinematic discovery. I'm talking kids that realized there's more to film than Michael Bay 'spolsions and Shrek movies.
While these TCM sets are not as cool to me as MGM's Midnite Movie series (those things were and still are fuckin' awesome) they are a great tool for getting the most classic movie for your buck.
I know I own most of the movies being released in these TCM Greates Classic Film Collections (they are pretty sure of themselves, now aren't they) but for people that have never seen these films they are immense values to increasing one's cinematic knowledge. -
we knew you were talking about the 1960's version. Who'd be afraid of the 1999 version?
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must be some people's pathetic way of saying "Look at me, I'm a true film geek." I eat the value pack shit up every chance I get.
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would be 2001, Silent Running, THX 1138, and Planet Of The Apes. All classics from that late '60s early '70s era.
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http://tinyurl.com/kuoxf2
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since Harry indefensibly overlooked this release this week. Somehow, I managed to miss this excellent film until now and after seeing it I wonder how that could have been. Monster is probably the best serial killer movie I've ever seen. It is certainly the most realistic and human portrait of a real-life serial killer ever put on film. And much of that is do to the brilliant and truly oscar-worthy performance by Charlize Theron. She plays Aileen Wuornos, true life prostitute turned killer with so many levels to the character that this may be one of the greatest single performances in the last 10 years. And this is no easy task. This could have easily turned into B Movie over the top melodramatic acting of monstrous proportions. And this I also credit to the director Patty Jenkins who also wrote the screenplay and treats the material with such respect for realism while at the same time creating a work of art cinematically that transcends what would have been a Lifetime tv movie of the week in the hands of most other directors. What I found so refreshing was how the story was primarily a love story between two very troubled and unlikely lovers and that is how the film begins. Aileen meets ugly (as opposed to meets cute) with a young girl who is beginning to question her sexuality in a lesbian bar. Christina Ricci plays Selby, Aileen's naive lover, and also turns in a pitch perfect performance. But, their burgeoning love which is genuinely affecting (you really wish things could work out for these two lost souls) soon takes a horrible turn into cruel reality when Aileen who is trying to make enough money to take out her new girlfriend is tied up, brutally beaten and raped by one of her johns. Luckily for her she manages to free herself and shoot and kill the scumbag with his own gun. Unluckily for the rest of Florida's would-be rapist johns this is the turning point for Alieen that changes her into a cold-blooded killer. The two women runaway together and Aileen really tries to change her life, quit prostitution and get a real job so she can support her girlfriend. But, of course, the best laid plans of mice and women... Needless to say, things don't work out and Aileen is forced to go back to hooking for money. Only it is more palatable for her now to kill the men instead of performing tricks for them. Anyone who knows the story is aware that it doesn't end well for Aileen. Her life and her story is truly heartbreaking and while the film remarkably humanizes Wuornos it never glorifies her heinous actions or turns her into a heroine. In fact, one of the amazing things about Monster is how it takes material ripe for a cliched exploitation treatment and instead creates such a realistic and human glimpse into the life of someone most people could never relate to. If you haven't seen the film I highly recommend that you do. If you have, and you own a Blu-Ray player I suggest watching it again. I know I plan to revisit it eventually, but not for a while for it was a truly heart-wrenching experience for me.
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He's in our interwebs, eating our cheezburgerz!!
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but Painting with Fire was the main reason I bought the Fire & Ice DVD last time it was released. I sure don't think F & I is great enough to buy it on its own. That said (ha!), who knows if that's what Harry was going to talk about if he'd finished the fucking review? Has this been confirmed? I don't actually trust Amazon's breakdowns, as they always mix up the Blu-ray info with the regular DVD stuff. From memory though the doco was shot on SD video right? I know the damn thing was around here somewhere...
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Just checked out blu-ray,com. Lackluster review on there too. A deal breaker for me.
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CAN'T. FUCKING. WAIT. Now how about that 6 hour cut of The Thin Red Line?
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Thanks man. Gotta check out Monster too. Do they have a Mad Party in the end? Does Karloff do a voice? ;)
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Was just her without makeup.
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Is no one else questioning Disney putting the stupid fucking cardboard cover on the Earth DVD? First off aren't those going away. Secondly at least ManBearPig made a "green" dvd case for the Oscar winning slide show.
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I definitely wanked it to the love scene between her and Christina Ricci.
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in Fire & Ice. They were partially done by "painter of light" Thomas Kinkade. If you look at his recent cheeseball landscapes, you'll notice the same surreal, iridescent color palette he used in F&I.
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All hail Harry, God Emperor of Hyperbole.
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Glad to see a little love for FORBIDDEN PLANET though. That and 2001, two of my favorites. SILENT RUNNING is on my must buy list.
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Wallace fought his battles with a claymore and led from the front in all of them and survived every field of combat until he was betrayed and captured. Neither Maximus, nor any of the English commanders fought from the front. Wallace was a giant who killed hundreds of men in combat. He did not wait for infantry and artillery to soften up and kill technologically-underdeveloped, outnumbered, oppressed, Germanic barbarian armies before riding in at the last moment on a horse, attacking the barbarians from behind to take all the glory like the gutless, diving, Imperialistic, fascist Spaniard he is.
Maximus is an imaginary character written to fit the hype by Hollywood writers, Wallace was real and his giant sword still stands in the Wallace Monument in Stirling, Scotland. -
Fact.
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when i was younger i had a paperback of his work. the book had some sketches and such in it along with some of his paintings. i learn a lot from just trying to copy his pencil and ink work. made me realize i sucked. he truly is a master.
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not that i'm saying i'm an artist but i made a pathetic attempt at being a graphic design major in college and that iridescent stuff is rather standard stuff you learn when they teach you color theory. that cocksucker kinkade can't even touch bob ross much less be mentioned in the same talkback as frank frazetta.ok, sorry. i'm okay now...
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Fuck you too? Seriously.
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his technical observations on bluray in the past have been so utterly wrong...saying picture looks great when bluray.com says otherwise...now clearly he just reads their review and pretends HE knows something. now all of a sudden he actually can recognize edge enhancement and digital filters on a transfer...as if.
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its made from THE SAME FOOTAGE as well as outtakes. your reviews are such a joke.
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The debate is over. Wallace wins.
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Nope, there's nothing wrong with it. Saying that he's always been shit and won't change so don't bother is a moronic (non-) argument. You're making a case for not making a case? Uh...
Look. This column more than any other cleanly illustrates the point. Professional doesn't necessarily mean you're really good at something (good God that's a truism). It means you get paid. That's the original meaning. And if you get paid, you're expected to be at least fucking proficient. When it comes down to it, Harry gets paid to write this column. I'm sure he thinks of himself as a journo and film critic. He needs to at least measure up in the basics. And I think everyone here ragging on him has a more than defensible point. There's NO point to be made in excusing it though. The old "it's just the internet" excuse has no meaning anymore (when was the last time anyone wrote a non-electronic letter anyway?), and especially not when it's what you do for a living.
I know I'm putting words in his mouth, but I'm sure even Big Red wouldn't want to look back on his 'career' and admit he was a writer who couldn't fucking write. I've been coming here since the very start, and even though I understand where Harry comes from with the whole joy and experience of movies slant, after a decade or so you'd think he'd feel ever so slightly obligated to learn basic sentence structure. I'm not ragging on conversational writing ( I started a sentence with 'and' up there myself), not ragging on typos, just the building blocks. Fair enough?
Oh and c'mon people, those value packs are great. You can't say they've got intentional filler, which is usually the case. -
bloody tell me right now where she buys her makeup then! That's some impressive stuff. My wife would like some.
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I believe others were referring to professionalism - the complaint being that the writing on this site is often lazily amateurish, though it's run by "professionals". I think the low quality of the content and the lack of professionalism not only represents the writers but also characterizes the audience. In other words, if people stopped visiting the site because of bad grammar, misspellings, uninformed opinions, faulty information, poor writing, laziness... then the "professionals" would make an effort to change things. However, most people (myself included) come here for scoops and simple information that can generally be garnered from even the poorest of writing. So, as long as things are going well "professionally" improvement and change will only occur at a personal level.
Oh, and by the way - it's okay to start a sentence with and. That's just something bad English teachers tell you rather than taking the time to teach you how to do it correctly. -
then He'd fucking decapitate him, of course.
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fast paced and scary as hell, I would rank it up there among the best Stephen King "pure horror" short stories, I haven't seen the movie though, but it looks pretty cheesy
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you can start a sentence with and. also, i think harrold goes for the stream of consciousness writing, a la, jack kerouac. there is nothing wrong with that. f. scott fitzgerald even had his odd writing quarks. the revised versions of his work have included those quarks because it's unique to fitzgerald and no one would begin to criticize his grammatical mistakes. that being said, criticizing harrold for his grammar, i feel has become a part of the ol' aicn lore, which i enjoy very much. and i'm not just saying that because i'm drunk. i'm just saying it because i'm not stoned.
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Maximus and Wallace fight themselves to a standstill - and then Mohawk Indian Mani (from Brotherhood of the Wolf) steams in and beats the shit out of the Aussie Spaniard & the Aussie/American Scotsman (though how the Native American knows martial arts remains a mystery)
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but aren't those double sided discs? Based on other ds discs (like the lamo Outer Limits series) I have only one thing to say about double sided discs: EPIC FAIL!!! I'll pick up 2001, etc as singles thank you (except for Soylent, don't mind watching it, i'm just not all fired up to add it to my collection. The rben scedule of pickups in the month ahead: TZ series (the last one, 2004) and Ray Bradbury Theater (since both are dirt cheap on Amazon), and then from October onward-one B5 a month untill i gets em all and then on to Farscape. Then maybe i'll take a break and just buy those $5.00 cheapie movies at wal-mart and 4 for 20 used at blockbuster. oh, and i was able to actually rent all 5 discs of TrueBlood at BB this week. (too po for HBO) and they were pretty good. Looking forward to renting season 2 whenever it's done. I prefer Sf but TB was acceptable. and hey HBO, how about supplying blockbuster with more then one copy each next time. jeez louise!
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click on this link. you gotta see this models pose. nice. but astro boy models are gay. And did anyone from atlanta see shat n nimoy at dragon*con yesterday? shat: one appearance. nimoy one on just about everyone of dragon con's three days. i didn't go but nimoy continues to be a class act. i was more tempted to go because of the writers (kevin j anderson, timothy zahn.)
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This movie is soooo not what it seems. Is an in depth character study masterfully directed.
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