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Displaying records 51 through 60 of 4000 |
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Price: $29.98
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Sale: $12.99
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Brand: Paramount
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Manufacturer: Dreamworks Video
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Number of Items: 1
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Description: It's not really a knock to say that nothing in Tropic Thunder is funnier than its first five minutes, so sly that--especially for people watching in theaters--you don't realize right away they are the opening minutes of the movie. This outrageous comedy begins with a series of fake previews, each introducing one of the main characters in the film-proper (not that there's anything proper about this film) and each bearing the familiar logo of a different motion picture studio: Universal, DreamWorks SKG, et al. Such playing fast and loose with corporate talismans verges on sacrilege, but it's an index of how much le tout Tinseltown endorses the movie as a demented valentine to itself. The premise is that the cast of a would-be "Son of Rambo" movie shooting in some Southeast Asian jungle get into a real shooting war with drug-smuggling montagnards. Don't ask--though the movie does have an answer--why such highly paid, usually ultra-pampered personnel as superhero Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller), Mozart of fart comedy Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black), hip-hop artist Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson), and five-time Oscar-winner Kirk Lazarus from Aus-try-leeah (Robert Downey Jr.) should be running through the jungle unattended and very vulnerable. It matters only that the real-life cast has a high time kidding their own profession and flexing their comedic muscles. Bonus points go to Stiller for co-writing the script (with Justin Theroux) and directing, and to Downey, brilliant as a white actor surgically turned black actor for his role and utterly committed to staying in character no matter what ("I don't drop character till I done the DVD commentary"). Be warned: The movie, too, is committed--to being an equal-opportunity offender. Its political incorrectness extends not only to Lazarus's black-like-me posturing but also Speedman's recent, Sean Penn–style Oscar bid playing a cognitively challenged farmboy--or, in Lazarus's deathless phrase, "going the full retard." Others in the cast include Steve Coogan as a director out of his depth, Nick Nolte as the Viet-vet novelist whose book inspired the film-within-the-film, Matthew McConaughey as Speedman's sun-blissed agent back home, and Tom Cruise--bald, fat-suited, and profane--as an epically repulsive studio head. Two hours running time is a mite excessive, but otherwise, what's not to like? --Richard T. Jameson
Stills from Tropic Thunder (Click for larger image)
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Price: $44.98
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Sale: $29.99
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Brand: Warner Brothers
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Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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Number of Items: 3
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Description: Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 09/23/2008 Run time: 150 minutes Rating: Nr
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Price: $19.98
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Sale: $9.98
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Brand: BARBIE & THE DIAMOND CASTLE (DVD MOVIE)
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Manufacturer: Universal Studios
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Number of Items: 1
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Description: A musical story about the power of friendship and believing in oneself, Barbie and the Diamond Castle opens with Barbie and her friend Teresa singing, playing guitar, and relating a story about friendship to Stacy who's just had a disagreement with her best friend Courtney. In the story, friends Alexa and Liana loose everything but each other in a terrible storm. A chance meeting with an old woman brings them a new friend Melody, who shares their love of music, but is locked inside an enchanted mirror. It turns out that Melody is an apprentice muse who holds the secret key to the diamond castle and embodies the last chance to defeat the selfish muse Lydia and preserve music for the entire world. Alexa and Liana help Melody journey to the diamond castle, overcoming enormous obstacles conjured by Lydia and her serpent Slider as well as rising above a disagreement between themselves. This CGI animated program is colorful and bright, if not particularly realistic, and the pop music is appealing, but oddly out of sink with the renaissance style costuming. While the Barbie versions of classic stories like Barbie of Swan Lake or Barbie Prince and the Pauper generally offer better storylines, young Barbie fans will nonetheless enjoy this quest to save music while getting a sense of the importance of friendship and believing in oneself. (Ages 3 to 9) --Tami Horiuchi
Beyond Barbie and the Diamond Castle on DVD 
More Barbie on DVD | 
Barbie and the Diamond Castle in Spanish | 
The Barbie Store | Stills from Barbie and the Diamond Castle (click for larger image)
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![Batman Begins [Blu-ray] under Genres in The Dvd and video tapes Store](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51nZYyCAoIL.jpg) |
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Price: $28.99
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Sale: $15.46
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Brand: Warner Brothers
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Manufacturer: Warner Bros.
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Number of Items: 1
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Description: Batman Begins discards the previous four films in the series and recasts the Caped Crusader as a fearsome avenging angel. That's good news, because the series, which had gotten off to a rousing start under Tim Burton, had gradually dissolved into self-parody by 1997's Batman & Robin. As the title implies, Batman Begins tells the story anew, when Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) flees Western civilization following the murder of his parents. He is taken in by a mysterious instructor named Ducard (Liam Neeson in another mentor role) and urged to become a ninja in the League of Shadows, but he instead returns to his native Gotham City resolved to end the mob rule that is strangling it. But are there forces even more sinister at hand? Co-written by the team of David S. Goyer (a veteran comic book writer) and director Christopher Nolan (Memento), Batman Begins is a welcome return to the grim and gritty version of the Dark Knight, owing a great debt to the graphic novels that preceded it. It doesn't have the razzle dazzle, or the mass appeal, of Spider-Man 2 (though the Batmobile is cool), and retelling the origin means it starts slowly, like most "first" superhero movies. But it's certainly the best Bat-film since Burton's original, and one of the best superhero movies of its time. Bale cuts a good figure as Batman, intense and dangerous but with some of the lightheartedness Michael Keaton brought to the character. Michael Caine provides much of the film's humor as the family butler, Alfred, and as the love interest, Katie Holmes (Dawson's Creek) is surprisingly believable in her first adult role. Also featuring Gary Oldman as the young police officer Jim Gordon, Morgan Freeman as a Q-like gadgets expert, and Cillian Murphy as the vile Jonathan Crane. --David Horiuchi Batman at Amazon.com 
All Batman DVDs | 
Batman Begins 101: A Comic Book Primer | 
Where Have I Seen Christian Bale? | 
All Batman Comics and Graphic Novels | 
Batman Toys | 
Batman Begins Soundtrack | Stills from Batman Begins (click for larger images)
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![Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull [Blu-ray] under Genres in The Dvd and video tapes Store](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51qtKmtIPgL.jpg) |
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Price: $39.99
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Sale: $17.96
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Brand: INDIANA JONES & KINGDOM OF CRYSTAL SKULL (BLU
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Manufacturer: Paramount
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Number of Items: 2
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Description: Nearly 20 years after riding his last Crusade, Harrison Ford makes a welcome return as archaeologist/relic hunter Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, an action-packed fourth installment that's, in a nutshell, less memorable than the first three but great nostalgia for fans of the series. Producer George Lucas and screenwriter David Koepp (War of the Worlds) set the film during the cold war, as the Soviets--replacing Nazis as Indy's villains of choice and led by a sword-wielding Cate Blanchett with black bob and sunglasses--are in pursuit of a crystal skull, which has mystical powers related to a city of gold. After escaping from them in a spectacular opening action sequence, Indy is coerced to head to Peru at the behest of a young greaser (Shia LaBeouf) whose friend--and Indy's colleague--Professor Oxley (John Hurt) has been captured for his knowledge of the skull's whereabouts. Whatever secrets the skull holds are tertiary; its reveal is the weakest part of the movie, as the CGI effects that inevitably accompany it feel jarring next to the boulder-rolling world of Indy audiences knew and loved. There's plenty of comedy, delightful stunts--ants play a deadly role here--and the return of Raiders love interest Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood, once shrill but now softened, giving her ex-love bemused glances and eye-rolls as he huffs his way to save the day. Which brings us to Ford: bullwhip still in hand, he's a little creakier, a lot grayer, but still twice the action hero of anyone in film today. With all the anticipation and hype leading up to the film's release, perhaps no reunion is sweeter than that of Ford with the role that fits him as snugly as that fedora hat. --Ellen A. Kim
Stills from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Click for larger image)
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Price: $55.98
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Sale: $35.99
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Brand: Paramount
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Manufacturer: Showtime Ent.
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Number of Items: 4
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Description: Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 10/28/2008
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![Band of Brothers [Blu-ray] under Genres in The Dvd and video tapes Store](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/513wu4U9bwL.jpg) |
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Price: $99.98
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Sale: $54.99
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Manufacturer: HBO
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Number of Items: 6
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Description: An impressively rigorous, unsentimental, and harrowing look at combat during World War II, Band of Brothers follows a company of airborne infantry--Easy Company--from boot camp through the end of the war. The brutality of training takes the audience by increments to the even greater brutality of the war; Easy Company took part in some of the most difficult battles, including the D-Day invasion of Normandy, the failed invasion of Holland, and the Battle of the Bulge, as well as the liberation of a concentration camp and the capture of Hitler's Eagle's Nest. But what makes these episodes work is not their historical sweep but their emphasis on riveting details (such as the rattle of a plane as the paratroopers wait to leap, or a flower in the buttonhole of a German soldier) and procedures (from military tactics to the workings of bureaucratic hierarchies). The scope of this miniseries (10 episodes, plus an actual documentary filled with interviews with surviving veterans) allows not only a thoroughness impossible in a two-hour movie, but also captures the wide range of responses to the stress and trauma of war--fear, cynicism, cruelty, compassion, and all-encompassing confusion. The result is a realism that makes both simplistic judgments and jingoistic enthusiasm impossible; the things these soldiers had to do are both terrible and understandable, and the psychological price they paid is made clear. The writing, directing, and acting are superb throughout. The cast is largely unknown, emphasizing the team of actors as a whole unit, much like the regiment; Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston play the central roles of two officers with grit and intelligence. Band of Brothers turns a vast historical event into a series of potent personal experiences; it's a deeply engrossing and affecting accomplishment. --Bret Fetzer
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Price: $59.99
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Sale: $24.50
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Brand: Buena Vista Home Video
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Manufacturer: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
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Number of Items: 5
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Description: Season four of the hit ABC medical drama was on shaky ground right from the season premiere, which left Cristina (Sandra Oh) at the altar by Burke (Isaiah Washington, fired after the press-frenzied third season); Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) and Derek (Patrick Dempsey) downgraded to no-relationship-just-sex status; and George (T.R. Knight) pondering divorce from Callie (Sara Ramirez) to pursue love with his best friend, Izzie (Katherine Heigl). That last pairing made for one of the worst decisions in the series thus far; George and Izzie always worked so well as friends without the will-they-won't-they element, but suddenly throwing them into bed and watching them fumble their way to coupledom (an attempt that mercifully doesn't last) was painful to watch, in particular because Heigl, who had won an Emmy for the previous season, was reduced to a lot of whining and fretting. Meanwhile, Meredith's family issues come to a head when her half-sister Lexie (Chyler Leigh) begins her internship at Seattle Grace and instantly tries too hard to bond. And as she once again drives away Derek with her trust issues, Meredith finally gets smart and enters therapy (one of the redeeming elements of the season, with Amy Madigan as the hard-nosed counselor) to "get healed." The writers' strike became a welcome blessing for the show, which had seriously derailed before its hiatus; during the strike, creator Shonda Rimes has said she reexamined the direction of the show, making for an ultimately satisfying second half of the season. Standout episodes include "Forever Young," in which a high school bus crash leaves the staff pontificating their own adolescent cliques; "Lay Your Hands on Me," with a standout performance by Chandra Wilson as Bailey, whose crumbling marriage comes front and center when her toddler gets in an accident; and the season finale "Freedom," in which Meredith and Derek save two brain-tumor patients in love (Jurnee Smollett and Marshall Allman), leading to their own (lasting?) reunion, Bailey heads up an effort to rescue a guy who lay in concrete to impress a girl; and Callie finds herself attracted to the new cardiac surgeon, Erica Hahn (Brooke Smith). Bonus features include "New Docs on the Block," a look at the latest members of the cast; a set tour with Dempsey and Eric "McSteamy" Dane; bonus and extended scenes; and outtakes. --Ellen A. Kim
Stills from Grey’s Anatomy: The Complete Fourth Season (Click for larger image)
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![Transformers (Two-Disc Special Edition + BD Live) [Blu-ray] under Genres in The Dvd and video tapes Store](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51TjJVEpAqL.jpg) |
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Price: $39.99
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Sale: $18.00
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Brand: Paramount
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Number of Items: 2
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Description: "I bought a car. Turned out to be an alien robot. Who knew?" deadpans Sam Witwicky, hero and human heart of Michael Bay's rollicking robot-smackdown fest, Transformers. Witwicky (the sweetly nerdy Shia LaBeouf, channeling a young John Cusack) is the perfect counterpoint to the nearly nonstop exhilarating action. The plot is simple: an alien civil war (the Autobots vs. the evil Decepticons) has spilled onto Earth, and young Sam is caught in the fray by his newly purchased souped-up Camaro. Which has a mind--and identity, as a noble-warrior robot named Bumblebee--of its own. The effects, especially the mind-blowing transformations of the robots into their earthly forms and back again, are stellar. Fans of the earlier film and TV series will be thrilled at this cutting-edge incarnation, but this version should please all fans of high-adrenaline action. Director Bay gleefully salts the movie with homages to pop-culture touchstones like Raiders of the Lost Ark, King Kong, and the early technothriller WarGames. The actors, though clearly all supporting those kickass robots, are uniformly on-target, including the dashing Josh Duhamel as a U.S. Army sergeant fighting an enemy he never anticipated; Jon Voight, as a tough yet sympathetic Secretary of Defense in over his head; and John Turturro, whose special agent manages to be confidently unctuous, even stripped to his undies. But the film belongs to Bumblebee, Optimus Prime, and the dastardly Megatron--and the wicked stunts they collide in all over the globe. Long live Transformers! --A.T. Hurley
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Price: $39.98
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Sale: $19.50
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Brand: Paramount
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Manufacturer: Showtime / Paramount
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Number of Items: 4
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Description: Dark and sinister is the new sexy, thanks to Dexter, which in its second season has proven to be the most successful series Showtime has offered up yet. Remember how much you squirmed in your seat during the season one finale? Believe it or not, the premiere of season two felt like it could have been a season finale--because jaws were on the floor when the credits rolled. For being a supposed sociopath, Dex is pretty broken up about the gruesome events that concluded last season. The one and only person who could possibly understand him is six feet under, and it seems our unlikely hero is losing his homicidal grip. He’s even having a little trouble slicing up a few of his latest victims (from a murderous gang member to a chainsaw-wielding fiend from his past). Enter Lila (Jaime Murray, Hustle), a lady with a sweet British accent and a few dark secrets of her own. She seems to accept Dex for who he really is, and he finds himself feeling relaxed for the first time in his life. In contrast, his relationship with his girlfriend Rita (Julie Benz) has been stretched almost to a breaking point. The problem is, he should be anything but relaxed. Someone picked a poor place to go scuba diving off the Florida coast, and came across an underwater graveyard: Dex’s primo spot for dropping dismembered bodies wrapped in heavy-duty trash bags. Word about the "Bay Harbor Butcher" gets out quick, and the F.B.I. sends the best of the best, Special Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine, Deadwood) to work alongside the police to sniff out Miami’s latest serial killer. This guy is no schlub, and Dex may have met his match. And, yes, Dexter gets to work with Lundy on a daily basis, which provides some wonderfully awkward moments. It certainly doesn’t help that the intuitively paranoid Sergeant Doakes (Erik King, Oz) is hot on Dex’s trail. Season two of Dexter is all about decisions. Lila or Rita? Old code or new code? Run or fight? Right or wrong? Well, one thing’s for sure: When it comes to writing, casting, acting, and production, the makers of this show made all the right decisions. Michael C. Hall is simply superb as the title character. You’ll never find yourself more willing to genuinely root for a serial killer. It’s bloody liberating. --Jordan Thompson
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Displaying records 51 through 60 of 4000
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