5 comments about The Sicilian.

1. There are many reasons for watching--and ways to enjoy--a movie. In "The Sicilian," these do not include strong performances by actors and/or a well-crafted film.
   
   The movie was filmed entirely on location and that is its greatest asset. If you are considering travel to Sicily or simply enjoy beautiful scenery and sets, viewing "The Sicilian" in lieu of a travelogue may be enough to overcome the rest of the movie's limitations.



2. My dad bought this movie cause it had to do with Sicily and Christopher Lambert starred in it. I saw a glimpse of the movieand I wasn't too impressed by what I saw, which was not much,but don't be too discouraged...its probably a good movie!!:)
   Just not my cup of espresso.



3. Salvatore Giuliano has been poorly served by the two films made about him, albeit in very different ways. Francesco Rosi's Salvatore Giuliano sidelines the legendary Sicilian bandit completely and distorts much of the events around him to support a political agenda despite posing as a semi-documentary dramatisation. Despite a few good scenes, it almost seems as if the contradictions in Giuliano's story dictate it should best be told by an outsider with no political axe to grind.
   
   On the surface, that theory is soundly kicked in the groin, beaten to a pulp and left for dead in a ditch by The Sicilian, along with Desperate Hours the only Michael Cimino film that really IS as bad as critics said Heaven's Gate was. This film is so far from the truth that only the addition of flying saucers and death rays could make it any more outlandish. This Giuliano is a Christ-like martyr and hero of the people caught smuggling grain to the starving (in reality he was selling on the black market), buying land for the peasants (Giuliano had no interest in land reform), marries the sister of a communist (Giuliano didn't even have a girlfriend), hijacking troop trains, crucifying priests and even trying to stop the massacre at Portella della Ginestre (shamefully blamed in the film on Terranova, who was one of the few of Giuliano's band who it's definitely known did NOT fire a single shot on that day). No sign of the American occupation, no mention of the Separatist movement, no sense of how Giuliano operated: just Hollywood hokum, and badly executed hokum at that.
   
   Of course, a film can be a total fantasy and still be enjoyable, as anyone who's ever seen a Jesse James or Robin Hood movie knows. Unfortunately, The Sicilian also has the disadvantage of being an astonishing piece of crap for most of its running time. It's full of atrocities, from Joss Ackland's comedy Mafia don (his dance with Barbara Sukowa is one of cinema's great this-isn't-working-but-just-grit-your-teeth-and-try-to-get-through-it-as-quickly-as-possible acting moments), an embarrassing acappella bebop mountain wedding (dig those crazy jitterbugging bandits, man), clunking dialog ("They'll never trust you again." "Yes. Sad, isn't it?") and situations, a terrible grinning performance from Christophe Lambert and a has-to-be-seen-to-be-disbelieved final shot of Salvatore rearing up on a horse against the setting sun at his own funeral. The uncut version actually is worse than the edited version released in the US, giving more screentime to Barbara Sukowa's atrocious `American' aristocrat ("Ja, ay em verr Amerikahn"), who even gets to rape the hero during a robbery at her villa, and amplifying the inept Messianic parallels to a comic degree. There are hints at ambition, with a couple of scenes that threaten to work and the odd good line that one suspects comes from Gore Vidal's rewrite, but it's just another Hollywood mafia movie, with Ackland's Don protecting and ultimately betraying Giuliano, the son he never had. This was, after all, originally a semi-sequel to The Godfather (in Mario Puzo's novel Michael Corleone tries to arrange Giuliano's escape) until the producers found out Paramount owned the screen rights to Corleone characters and had to write them out. Unfortunately, they threw out the baby with the bathwater.
   
   For those who want the film in its original 2.35:1 ratio rather than Artisan's fullframe panned-and-scanned version, the European PAL DVD is the uncut version in a good 2.35:1 widescreen transfer that showcases the fine photography. Extras are limited to a trailer and stills gallery.



4. The Sicilian is inspired from a novel of Mario Puzo, of Godfather
   fame, of course, and filmed by Michael Cimino. From its 1987 release
   date, the entire picture was way ahead of its time. This is the case
   from the many timeless aspects depicted, such as rural Sicily and
   the era following the Second World War. Much kudos to the visual
   quality which is excellent, the acting which is very good and the
   plot which is very good, mainly for being credible.
   
   The DVD is the Director's cut, clocking at 146 minutes, which may
   seem long, but actually isn't, because of the quality and
   entertainment.
   
   The soundtrack is superb (piano, orchestral, big band, etc.) which
   enhances the various moods in a highly talented manner.
   
   The difficulty of this picture are perhaps several. First and
   foremost, it's doubtful the actors (and the spectators too)
   actually understand what is going on in the film, in terms of
   coherence, sequence of events, from the way the actors deliver their
   lines in the first hour. Several leading actors and actresses are
   also blatantly French, struggling a bit with pronunciation
   (Lambert, Boschi, mainly.) Some dialog is delivered with difficulty,
   at times cartoonish in simplicity but this gets better after the 1st
   hour.
   
   Secondly, for those having seen the commercial cut, 30 mins are
   missing from the footage, so the previous aspect was more severe.
   Third, Lambert and Tururro seem to struggle at times in the first
   third of the picture, appearing as an odd couple of sorts,
   reminescent of Mathau and Lemmon, which is distracting. Fourth,
   Lambert should never have worn a trenchcoat in the last third of
   the picture. Also, an actor should never be hyper-clean shaven,
   combed hair, with clean and ironed white shirt and pants just coming
   from a shower, when presented to the audience as a guerilla, living
   in the mountains with 50 bandits, and sleeping in caves.
   Fortunately, this only occurred 1 time in the movie, but there is no
   doubt that Lambert brought a big non-Italian, urban - city feel to
   the role. Lastly, there are no subtitles on the DVD.
   
   Lambert, who plays a Sicilian Robin Hood called Giuliano, is an
   enigma of sorts as an actor, as he has his high points and luke-warm
   moments, but overall, despite many who will underestimate his acting
   greatly, actually he brings a personal touch to the action,
   appealing to the youth segment, that is often necessary for profit
   reasons. Joss Ackland, playing the president of a Sicilian province
   as Masino, is excellent in his demeanor, rapport built with the
   audience, and credibile in the scenes. Turturro seems to get a lot
   better over the course of the movie, as he is better able to portray
   himself as a local ethnic, blending with the supporting actors,
   playing down his presence perfectly.
   
   Clearly, Puzo wanted to guarantee an American flavor to this
   picture, so an American jeep is shown, references to the American GI
   presence in Italy brought up. In a non-sequitur, there is nudity
   with Barbara Sukowa, from a bubble bath scene, and another
   non-sequitur, when Lambert robs Sukowa along with other rich guests
   at the dinner table, and beds her shortly after, eagerly, willingly.
   A special performance, is by Giulia Boschi, playing Lambert's
   sensitive girlfriend.
   
   The essence of the picture, is that following WWII, a region in
   Sicily is impassioned with Communism, as the peasants do not partake
   of the vast food, wealth generated by the lands, commerce and
   industry of the region. Masino, seeing this, secretly hires a
   delusional local, believing himself to be a Robin Hood, promising to
   reverse the injustice, by confiscating land and giving it to the
   poor. Of course, Masino's Hegelian goal of scaring the population
   (through Lambert's bandit conduct) so they will run back to him and
   vote for him, is coupled with a strategy of physically eliminating
   Marxist voters at a peaceful march.
   
   The visual beauty of the picture is vast, as all the critical time
   pieces are shown of the era (music, automobiles, clothes worn,
   demeanor of the population) as well as the medieval, European
   architecture of a small village and country side, such as vineyards,
   large estates.
   
   Homicidal behavior is carried out, at times, in an unconvincing,
   manner, such as those of the local father, barber, etc. Some humor
   doesn't work, such as the line about the dream of locals in opening
   a pizzaria in New Jersey.
   
   As with his other novels, Puzo has the courage of showing ceremonies
   of marriages, funerals, public processions, as well as joyful
   moments at dancehalls and dinners among rich crowds to balance out
   the sorrow of other moments. He also underlines the 3 powers, 1 of
   which a citizen must adhere to: church, state or mob. After taking
   out 4 big landowners, the story makes clear that Robin Hood conduct
   is not only misguided, but irrational and isolating, as the poor do
   not want land to toil on, but money.
   
   Creating a movie from a book, is a huge challenge, like an orchestra
   reading sheet music and playing a composer's musical intent. As
   such, the movie's inspiration seems a bit blurred, but nevertheless
   very professional, timeless, and satisfying.



5. No joke, this is two hours of amateurish stuff, which cannot really be called cinema without upsetting someone up there.
   I just went back to see some of the scenes of this movie again because they are so ridiculous I wanted to have another go!
   
   So, let's start in the right order (warning, contains some spoilers, but you're not really going to watch this movie, are you?):
   
   - The fact that the movie was entirely in English should have given it away, very funny to hear would-be sicilians talking to each other in English.
   
   - Past that, we encounter the limping professor. An attempt to add a sinister touch to an otherwise meaningless character. Very amateurish.
   
   - Then came signs and inscriptions throughout the movie, all in English (things like Sicilian Region, Minister of Law and Justice). Made up stuff not corresponding to reality.
   
   - Then the absurd way in which most of the actors talk, in English but very slowly, which makes their acting ridiculous. I guess another attempt to make the movie sound more 'Sicilian'...
   
   - Then the plot, disjointed and difficult to follow. Considering that the script writers had three stories to copy from (the original Salvatore Giuliano movie, the book itself and the true story of Salvatore Giuliano) one would have expected more.
   
   - Then comes the funny stuff, some of the scenes are just absurd! My favourite is the dancing of the Duchess with the Don, particularly the last bit, when she dances around him rolling her arms!
   And the 'rape', when right in the middle of a robbery, Giuliano ends up in the room with the Duchess and whilst they are there she rapes him! Couldn't avoid feeling sorry for Giuliano's mates in the other room waiting with the goods just robbed!
   Also, to add to the overall madness, Giuliano's girlfriend addresses him by surname, rather than by his first name Salvatore (see the scene when the barber gets shot).
   
   - Finally, some of the dialogs, which I took the trouble of transcribing for your enjoyment.
   Scene 1 - Giuliano decides to kidnap the Prince and take him to the mountains. He sends his mate to get him:
   KIDNAPPER: Your excellency, Salvatore Giuliano respectfully requests your company for a visit to his mountains.
   PRINCE: May I take my umbrella?
   KIDNAPPER: Of course excellency, but when we go outside don't try and run.
   PRINCE: I don't run, not since school, I have asthma.
   KIDNAPPER (referring to music being played by the Prince): It's very beautiful.
   PRINCE: Yeees [with really funny accent]. Scarlatti. He was born near here. He had asthma too, I think.
   I don't suppose it's raining?
   KIDNAPPER: No excellency.
   
   Later in the mountains, here is an extract from the dialogue, it's the Prince speaking:
   "You don't hate me, you hate not being me. But if you were born me you would have never been you, so you could take my money, my life, but you could never be me."
   
   - To top it all up, the movie ends with the silhouette of Giuliano, on his horse, with an unrealistically blown up sun setting in the background. (maybe some science fiction effect thrown in for good measure?, or perhaps another attempt to make the movie more 'Sicilian' by showing how big the sun is in Sicily?)
   Jokes apart, it's not the size of the sun that tops it all up, it's the fact that Giuliano died a few scenes earlier and from the horse on top of the hill he is watching his own funeral...
   
   Warning: although it's not exactly boring (just poor), it goes over the two hours mark.
   
   Watch it for a laugh, or for pure escapism...

5 comments about Real Life.

1. This has got to be Albert Brooks near his best. A real funny movie. Make sure to get the DVD version of this with the extra interview with brooks (circa 2001)
   and don't forget to watch the trailer for this movie also on the DVD. It is hysterically funny and as good as any scene of the movie.



2. This may be the funniest movie I've ever seen. I have watched it countless times and I never get tired of it. You have to watch this more than once to catch everything. Albert is SO obnoxious and SO egotistical to the point of utter madness. One of the funniest scenes is when Dr. Cleary abandons the project. You've got to see it to believe it. There are so many unforgettable funny lines in this film, too. "I'm not a scientist, I'm a comedian, I can afford the luxury of honesty." SEE THIS MOVIE------STUDY IT------WORSHIP IT



3. Albert Brooks is one of this culture's most revealing litmus tests. Some people don't find him the least bit funny. The fault was once believed to lie in Brooks's "understated, subtle-to-the-point-of-non-existent" humor. New findings, however, point to a flaw in the brain of the viewer. Specifically, the congenital underdevelopment of a region in the Occipital cortex known as "Schmegegy's Area", long thought responsibe for sense of humor. While it's not a serious brain disorder, the name of the syndrome is "Serious Brain Disorder". Real Life isn't the funniest movie of all time. That honor belongs to Modern Romance. Real Life is the second funniest movie of all time. The "Airport" line is my favorite. Buy at your own risk. If you don't love it, you've self-diagnosed yourself as having a most unfunny brain.



4. Albert Brooks may be the most creative comedian of this and the last century (his real name is ALBERT EINSTEIN after all; and you can look it up)
   
   This first film is hilarious; obnoxious; and all together FUNNY! Brooks rarely if ever plays sympathetic characters in his movies; all the while skewering people who are the same in "real life". This is the ultimate put-on movie; may have influenced in some way the later films of Christopher Guest. Some of my favorite bits are Albert's "back burner" confrontation with the black consultant, His appearance at the front door in clown makeup (listen for his in-character "hello?" before Grodin opens the door-for some reason it always makes me LOL), most of the preparation experiments for what amounted to a month or so of filming (instead of the hoped for year)before it collapsed are hilarious as well. Brooks may have made better films but this is still the most original of them all.



5. Anyone who is into that whole 'Simpson's' style of humor should really enjoy this. A movie way ahead of it's time, it features Albert Brooks as a semi-psychotic filmmaker who is making a movie about Charles Grodin and his family. There are so many comedic bits that work here; The tension between Albert and the Black journalist Dr Cleery is hilarious; The scene with the show horse works quite nicely, as does Brooks sudden singing at the start of the film. For those who appreciate Brook's unique sense of humor, I can't imagine you would find fault. And for a movie that was made in the late 70's, it's still funnier than stuff that came out last week. Harry Shearer contributed to the script, stars, and offers his voice to the radio playing in Charles Grodin's car. Grodin is in top form here, too. Constantly depressed('She set the table...He set the mood...'), Grodin makes a perfect counterpart to Brooks and his hair-brained mania. Also, it should be noted that the narrative, provided by Brooks throughout, is a constant source of comedic 'gold'. This film is smart, different, and, and the title of this review indicated, hilarious.

5 comments about The Talented Mr. Ripley.

1. It would take pages to adequately describe this highly imaginative, provocative film.Suffice to say what this reviewer sees is an excellent piece of work by Law and Damon. augmented by a good supporting cast.Damon certainly gets more than he bargained for in trying to bring the fun loving, bi- sexual Law back to New York to see his reputable father. Damon becomes homosexuallly engaged with Law, a man who's already lost a drowned, pregnant mistress and is now engaged to Paltrow. All of Damon's tricks-imitations, false flattery, blatant lying- go for naught as Law reveals that Damon is little more than a bore,a hanger onner with no depth.A fight breaks out and Damon kills Law, and later Law's friend from Princeton, who's able to see right through Damon. A third murder is barely averted by chance and the police are closing in when Law's father arrives from New York with full evidence of his son's past guilt and odd behavior, thus setting Damon free with some of Law's inheritance.Free to live a life of guilt,loneliness, and suspicion of Paltrow, Law's former fiance'. It's a movie well worth seeing, even though one finds it a bit confusing at times.



2. Wow! Matt Damon was awesome and of course Jude Law & Gwyneth were made to play these characters. The entire movie was wonderful start to finish. The scenery was magnificient! I will watch this movie over and over again. You never know what to expect on this thrill ride! Really enjoyable.



3. One of my favorite movies. Matt Damon's performance is perfect, Jude Law is wonderful and Gwyneth Paltrow is luminescent. It is mysterious, haunting, and thought provoking. The acting is intense and masterful and you cannot help but be drawn into the story. The complex layers of the characters are slowly revealed and wonderfully portrayed.



4. Just in case you reach the end of THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY and wonder why you've become not just sympathetic but end up rooting for an amoral murderer: this story does an excellent job of leading you down the path to murder.
   
   You begin by gaining sympathy for Matt Damon as Tom Ripley, an eager and personable enough guy who has a life of sad, grinding poverty. Through a bit of timing and chutzpah, he finds himself enlisted to go to Europe and persuade a rich kid to come home. The lazy world of the idle rich is a new lifestyle that Mr. Ripley doesn't want to let go of.
   
   It helps us that we discover the people whom Ripley "victimizes" are crass, selfish people with dirty little secrets of their own. Ripley may be a complete fraud in his charade as one of the rich kids partying around Europe--but at least he's doing more with his life than the people he encounters!
   
   This is a wonderfully photographed, deeply textured film without the "thriller" conventions. It doesn't move fast but does turn up the interest as Ripley goes further and further with is schemes. The performances are all top-notch and the locations are stunning. I just went to Venice for the first time last fall and I was still struck at how beautiful it looks in this film.
   
   This story doesn't have the emotional pay-off that THE ENGLISH PATIENT did but everything else that made that movie great is here: the style, the pacing, the attention to details, the way the story unfolds.



5. He's a poor young man surrounded by the idle rich. Tom Ripley, played by Matt Damon, happens into the wealthy Mr. and Mrs. Greenleaf at a hotel party. Ripley is an all-around waiter and men's room attendant, who has donned a Princeton University Blazer to play piano for the guests. He is asked by Greenleaf if he knows his son, Dickie, who also attended Princeton, Class of 1958. You can almost see the wheels turning in Ripley's head as he answers yes! Thus begins the diabolical career of Mr. Ripley who is hired on the spot to track down Dickie and persuade him to return to New York. His payment is $1,000.
   Filmed in beautiful San Remo, Venice and the south of Italy, Ripley's arrival, his mimicry of voices and language, and his newly acquired appreciation of jazz wins over Dickie, played by Jude Law and his fiance, Marge, played by Gweneth Paltrow. The game is on for Ripley who morphs into any role required, whether it be gay, jazz lover, or companion or the "brother" Dickie never had. Whichever role he plays, he manages to be convincing and conniving. Compelling performances by Law, Damon, Paltrow, and especially Phillip Seymour Hoffman who sees through Ripley's act right from the beginning.
   You'll want to see this movie more than once just to find out what makes Tom Ripley tick. Five shining stars for acting, plot and scenery!

2 comments about Twilight's Last Gleaming.

1. This is an odd film. Loosely -- and I do mean LOOSELY -- based on Walter Wager's novel VIPER THREE, Burt Lancaster plays an embittered ex-officer who, along with several others, seizes a misille flight, demanding the military admit the real reason for the Vietnam war. Note worthy only because of a brief appearence of William Smith as a really crazed nut.



2. I haven't seen this movie since it came out over 30 years ago, but not from lack of trying. There are either legal issues preventing it's re-release or else, as this film itself wants to convince, the powers that be do not want anyone to see it.
   
   Robert Aldrich had already made his great moral parable about the insanity of the Vietnam War with Ulzana's Raid (1972) and now, five years later, he was to team up with Burt Lancaster once again for a full frontal assault. The Lancaster-Aldrich team is right up there with the great actor-director teams of American cinema: Deniro-Scorsese, Lemon-Wilder, Dietrich-Von Sternberg, Scott-Boetticher. This time they add Richard Widmark as Lancaster's nemesis and then get some of the best character actors of the era to contribute some of their finest performances - Roscoe Lee Browne, Joseph Cotten, Melvyn Douglas, Richard Jaeckel, Paul Winfield, a very young Burt Young, and especially noteworthy Charles Durning in what might be his best role as that of the very human President Stevens.
   
   The story is totally improbable, the momentum unstoppable and the action breathtaking with the finest use of split screen ever seen in a Hollywoood movie (a technique Aldrich employed to good effect in The Longest Yard a few years earlier.)
   
   I won't say this a a great movie, or even a good movie. I will say this is an important movie to see, made by America's greatest anarchist action filmmaker, and should not be missed, even though it's not possible to find. Call your congressman.

5 comments about All Or Nothing (2002).

1. It is hard to think of another more consistently powerful film director than England's Mike Leigh and "All or Nothing" is yet another example of his exemplary work.
   
   Many here have used the word "depressing" to describe this movie and, if you don't look very far from the surface, that is understandable. Look a little deeper and you see redemption at play in the lives of these characters whose lives seem stuck in permanent reverse.
   
   "All or Nothing" features some mainstays of Mike Leigh films in its cast, including Timothy Spall ("Secrets and Lies," "Life is Sweet") Lesley Manville ("Secrets and Lies," "High Hopes") and Ruth Sheen ("High Hopes") and each are superb here.



2. Like many films from Leigh, you probably don't want to watch if you're feeling down. It's not a light film or an uplifting one. But, I thought it was very well done and acted and believable. Is it an accurage reflection of working-class life in the UK? I don't know. But, it's worth watching as a well-done film.



3. Many of have complained about the sheer, utter, inescapable bleakness of ALL OF NOTHING's working-class world, but there is no denying the emotional force of the pitch-perfect performances here. I wish American films took the time to stop, look, and listen, patiently observing real life as it carefully unfolds. I defy anyone not to cry at the film's climax, as the culminative effect is devastating. I don't know of any other director who is so good at drawing rich, detailed, nuanced performances from all of his actors - this time including Leigh regulars RUTH SHEEN, TIMOTHY SPALL, etc. This is truly "ensemble" acting at its best! Another Mike Leigh winner - not as good as SECRETS & LIES or LIFE IS SWEET, but certainly among his best.



4. how is "poor people, weak people, unsmart people, unhappy people, unsane people, violent people, fat people, ugly people" like a cliche? if people want 'a smile' there are plenty of (cliched) films out there about rich, talented, beautiful, perfect, boring people to keep you occupied. complaining about directors like mike leigh making films that are too depressing (and they're not, actually, if you pay attention instead of wondering when the fast cars and low-cut dresses are going to come in) is missing the point by so far i wonder how people who do it ended up at the film in the first place. did you get lost on the way to disneyland?



5. Everything about this movie is depressing of the lowest order. The background is set in a housing project of three main families. Timothy Spall's character is a taxi driver whilst his partner is a counter lady for Safeway. Both of them have a dejected daughter who works as a cleaner in a retirement home whose work colleague is a lonely & sad old man who suggests to go out with her, a lazy & obese son who only cares to eat, watch TV & fighting with other children whole day long. Timothy is an disillusioned taxi driver who himself is less than motivated to work long hours. One of their neighbours happen to be Timothy's character's colleague whose wife is an alcoholic & a horny daughter. Another neighbour happens to be a cheery mother whose angry daughter has to come to terms with pregnancy. A tragedy would befallen one of them and aid would come from the least expected source. All of caricatures here are too busy minding their day to day life that they lack the perspective of cherishing what truly matters in their lives. An honest, gritty and well-made movie with superb casting. Commendable watching.

5 comments about Yoga Journal's Prenatal Yoga.

1. I love this prenatal yoga dvd. As someone who has practiced yoga for 6 years I was looking for a dvd that would be challenging in terms of the poses but not a major "vinyasa" cardio workout. I use this dvd in the morning before I go to work to stretch, relax and get rid of my morning sickness. This dvd has 3 sections which make it easy to break up if you don't have the full 50 minutes. It had some new poses I wasn't familiar with that made it fun and exciting. It also focuses on many poses that can help you through labor and delivery. You need a chair, strap, blanket and block (especially when you get into the 2nd and 3rd trimesters) but if you don't have these items you probably have something laying around the house that would work just as well. This video is good for beginners, intermediate or advanced but don't order if you're looking for a faced-paced cardio workout.



2. I really liked this lady, and felt like I would like her in person too. She was very kind and didn't seem unrealistically perfect, or act annoyingly spiritual or mystical about everything. The outfits were not very flattering, but overall this was a good yoga workout. I'm not a super big fan of yoga, but this was way better than the other yoga DVD I tried (yoga for your pregnany with kristen eykel). Still Denise Austin's fit and firm pregnancy is my all around favorite.



3. I had high hopes when I bought this DVD, but it is lacking one essential thing -- time! I feel like I am being rushed through each exercise, which to me is not the purpose of yoga. I guess I am supposed to memorize each move and then go back and do them on my own??? Still looking for the perfect prenatal DVD!



4. I brought this DVD based on the MANY recommendations and was very disappointed. It is slow, boring and unchallenging. The instructor is sooooo annoying and talks in an over-the-top soft "earth mother" voice.
   
   Instead try the Sarah Hollidays prenatal series, Perfect Pregnancy Workout Vol 2. Yoga or Christine Andersons prenatal yoga DVD.



5. We liked the DVD and we really liked that it only took a few days to get to us. Great seller.Great price and this seller is recommended.

5 comments about Richard Scarry's Best ABC Video Ever!.

1. My 2 yr old really enjoys this movie. It is a classic! She also enjoys the Mother Goose as well.



2. My 33 month old loves it - it's junk, the production quality is weak, and the "story" is lame but my kid loves it. I think it was a great value given how many times he's watched it.



3. We own 4 of the Richard Scarry "Best _____ Video[s] Ever" and they are all wonderful! Not only do my two small children (3 and 1) absolutely love them, but I feel very good about showing them. The animation is very slow-moving and simple--entertaining without being completely graphic-crazy-in-your-face like all the newer computer-animated cartoons. These movies are extremely gentle, calm and low-key and they are great at teaching the kids songs, nursery rhymes, letters and numbers. And also wonderful, they are only 20-25 minutes long, so there's no temptation to put the kids in front of the television for the length of an entire movie....and no protests at stopping a DVD midway through. I HIGHLY recommend these movies if you're looking for something your kids will love and something that steers away from the flashy, fast-moving animated movies.



4. I recently purchased the following videos: Best ABC Video, Best Counting Video, Best Learning Songs, Best Silly Stories & Songs, Best Busy People. These videos are all about 15-20 years old (release date) and I had my reservations as to whether my 3 year old would like them, as he is very stuck on his LeapFrog letter and words videos (which I also love). When I first viewed all of these, I realized that they are made with very simple animation, similar to when I was young. These videos are extremely charming and sweet. My son instantly loved them and has asked to view them repeatedly. It was nice to have a video with the actual alphabet song, as the LeapFrog letter factory does not have it. The counting video is also helpful in that it counts to 20 rather than 10 as other videos do. He enjoys the silly stories and laughs at all the videos. It is nice to know that kids can still enjoy classics such as these. I am very pleased with them. I also paid less than $1 or $2 for each of them (plus shipping). A bargain!



5. This video is very simple in production and very well done. Very simple in message with a fun storyline that will create conversation with you and the kids. Our one year old son watches this video throughout, everytime we play it.
   
   This video is a must have for my childs library.

1 comments about Everyone Says I Love You.

1. Love this movie... hard to find on DVD... although this was made for a foreign market, worked great in my US DVD player!

5 comments about Woodstock - 3 Days of Peace & Music (The Director's Cut).

1. This is the seminal rock film of all time. I remember reading about the concert in "Rolling Stone", wondering about going, it sounds pretty good. But I was still in high school on the west coast, and the surf was up that summer. Then, when it hit the television news, the whole thing took up a life of its own...spontaneous combustion! Then the three-record set came out, the movie came out, the poster came out, the magazine coverage, and the books. With the passing of time, it's great the director's cut has been released, revealing more of what happened at the original Woodstock. Drop some brown acid, and take a wild ride!



2. I am only 26 years old and i don't know what it was but woodstock caught my interest. I know that i would never expierence something like that so i thought if i watch this movie i might get a better idea how it was back then. I really enjoyed this movie and for the 4 hours of the movie i felt like i was there(with my surround sound). I did get a great feel what it was all about.



3. I have enjoyed watching this movie several times I had just missed going to the festival so this is almost as good. Just not as much mud or excitement I think I would have been very tired after three days of peace and music not to mention all the dope you could have taken. But I enjoyed the movie and anyone that likes the sixty's would enjoy it and some of the young people might learn some stuff.



4. I'm a nostalgic semi-old rocker who would have love to be there during that era. So that movie is kind of a must for me, since I have a quite extensive collection of rock concert videos. Like everyone, I saw that movie in somekind of form, on TV or during nostalgia trips at Much Music (Canada's MTV). This version of Woodstock -the movie differs from the one we all saw in a few ways: First, and I quite can't explaine why, It does not follow the chronological order of the festival. Exemple: Richie Haven's performance, which opened the festival, is in the middle of the second DVD. Same for Country Joe McDonald... Also, it is hard to know exactly what happened. Did it rain once? Twice? But, apart from those historical questions, there is also a few benefits: The audio is far better than the cheesy and thin sound that we all remember from the original movie. Everything sound clear and true, with some kind of treatment that give almost the impression of "being there"...some kind of reverb and stereo spatialization. Ther is also bonus performance; 2 form Jefferson's Airplane, one from Country Joe McDonald and the Fish, and one from Jimi Hendrix that include a great unaccompanied guitar jam...
   Anather point: I'm not crazy about the double-faced DVD. Mine arrived loose in its box, and was quite scratched. Still works though. Last: One can't watch those scenes about hippies and the "peance and love" generation and it's confrontation with the "straight" word without a smile and somekind of amazement...
   
   Pierre



5. Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music was far from the straightforward Discovery Channel-type documentary that I imagined. There was none of the typical narrative, offsite interviews of resource persons, or anything post-event.
   
   This film was made at the very heart of the festival, making the 3 or so hours of footage feel indeed like 3 days, as it spanned across all sub-plots of the event. There were closeup shots of the musical performances down to the foot-tapping, the literally dirty fingers tuning the guitars, and hands wildly beating on the bongo drums. There were casual interviews with the young organizers at work, the bewildered (some annoyed) locals, the toilet cleaner who took great pride in making the portalets "pleasanter" for the kids, and all kinds of hippies, some even offering the film crew smokage.
   
   The film likewise captures the ironies - hundreds of thousands of stoned young people and not one violent incident, a financial disaster becoming a landmark event of the century, a film that nobody else wanted to do that saved a flailing film company, and a sense of unity in the backdrop of social unrest. And for these, it became so much more than the ultimate concert film. The rawness of it all combined with excellent editing gave the audience the surreal experience of what it would have been like to participate in those 3 days of peace, love and rock and roll. And it makes you wonder, as I did - had I lived in America in the late 60s, would I have gone to Woodstock?

5 comments about Faust.

1. This was one of the worst movies I have seen in a long time. It felt like an 80's flick with some BAD animation. For one thing the intro is tremedously long. This movie sucked and you should not waste your money



2. i love movies and have more than 700 titles in my personal collection. i say this not so you'll know how cool i am, but so that when i say this is in my top 5 of all time, you'll know it means something. i still get something new every time. svankmajer isn't well known in the states, but has influenced filmmakers from darren aronofsky to tim burton. i think this is likely his magnum opus. many short filmmakers seem to have difficulty substantiating feature length films, but not old Jan. the film is laden with bizarre motifs and repeated imagery and symbolism galore and in its surreal blend of puppetry, live-action, and stop-motion, your conscious, analytical mind begins to shut down until you understand perfectly how someone could trip over cardboard water and drown. that's when svankmajer has you and he can show you anything. it's about as close as you'll ever find to a waking dream, straight from his warped subconscious to yours. i hope for your sake you watch it at least once before you die.



3. A flyer passed out by some innocuous stranger on the street containing a roadmap to a location circled in red, an egg unexpectedly found hidden in the middle of a loaf of bread followed by sudden darkness and a fowl wind when cracked open. Are these events sure signs of the calling of the "Infernal One", or nothing more than random occurrences adding a little unexpected disruption in an otherwise dull, mundane afternoon?
   
   So begins Faust's journey into darkness, his encounter with Mephistopheles and his deal with the Devil. I guess this is the painful lesson mankind is doomed to learn over and over again, is it better to blindly embrace the Church and all its inherent ambiquity, or seek to understand the mysteries of the universe by whatever means at our disposal? One thing is certain, "Knowledge gained is far from bliss."
   
   `Faust; released in `95 is a immensely original and highly inventive re-telling of the demonic tale that has long captured the European consciousness. Svankmajer's incorporation of puppetry and clay model animation works well overall, especially the puppet sequences in the theatre during the evocation sequence, but eventually becomes a little redundant and tiring towards the end. Definitely for a select audience, especially appealing for the magickcally inclined.



4. I believe that a dubbed soundtrack in such a high level movie resembles something like a slap in the face of the viewer. What happenned to the original soundtrack with the beautiful czech language melody?
   
   I hope next release won't underestimate our capabilities and sense of aesthetics...
   
   The movie really deserves five stars. The three ones were given thanks to the awful and unwilling distributor's work.



5. I purchased this title on a bit of a whim, and after viewing it for the first time I put it on my shelf thinking I would never watch it again. Faust sat on my shelf for about a year. After a year of new experiences and enlightnments I was again ready for faust after a long ensightful nite with my mushy friends. I was up at 6am and wanted to watch a flick and bam there was faust looking me in the face, how could i deny it. During this second viewing I got it and Faust has become my go to movie. This movie is so deep and can be interpereted in a multitude of ways depending on what type of mood you are in while viewing. I find that this movie gets better the more times you watch it, so keep this in mind when purchasing. Again for the record I watched it the first time and did not like it, one year later it is my favorite movie, aint life strangly beautiful. Long live Dr. Faust