Dadd, Richard Movie Reviews

This third season of the animated Spawn is more of the good stuff - its dark, compelling and interesting. The ending has obviously got a 4th season in mind, which is not going to happen as far as I know. I highly recommend all three seasons of Spawn.

Do be aware that the menu for this disc is the worst design ever in the history of ever. On my player (a PS II):
a) it defaults to the commentary, not the normal sound for the film. Fix this by scrolling through to "Languages", but note you have to do this every time you put the disc in the player.
b) the menu starts at "Play movie" and an arrow. Use the arrow to move to the next menu option. You then have to wait for the music to play, stop and then start again. Once its done that you can access that option or scroll through further.

Immense pain, terrible design. BUT its Spawn and its excellent content, so love the disc, hate the menu.

The movie was one of the worst I had seen in my life. I did not have high hope for the animated series but I was very much surprised. The dialogue and, bizzarly enough, the acting are a hundred times as good as the film and the plot and characters are also much more intriguing.

This is the third season of Spawn and it just seems to be getting darker and darker. But the one thing I can be sure of from this is that it's going to have one hell of a send-off when the entire story finally climaxes.

I'd start watching this if I were you. But be prepared. The violence is quite graphic and the overall tone of the stories ranges from kiddie fiddlers to satanic demons. Needless to say, it's not a cartoon for kids. It's an animated series for adults.

The DVD is in full screen format, as originally drawn and is in Dolby 2.0 surround.

I use the term cartoon lightly, because Spawn is anything but a cartoon. It's got some good animation, but it's not kids animation. It is a very dark and twisted tail of both love, death, mentality and politics. And all of this coming from an animated show is brilliant.

The first two seasons basically set up the premise. The first season set the plain and the second season fleshed out all the characters. Now, the third season is where everything starts getting cooler. To start, we have some more words thrown back and fourth between Spawn and the old man who use to be one himself. He has many names, but you can just call him Merlin. Despite the help Merlin offers to the Spawn, Al still refuses to trust Merlin. He lets his anger for not being able to see Wanda consume him, but you already knew that.

There are also some new characters introduced. The newest one is a hunter from heaven named Jade, aka Woo the reporter. She is after the Spawn, but soon show an interest in him. Also, many characters get some more character development here. Like the detective, Twitch, comes too close to the truth about Spawn, his own superiors conspire to kill him which makes Twitches partner want to lash out. There are also "one-shot-characters" that are quite intersting like Al's mother (granny), Al's old friend and a hooker\vampire.

DVD extras here are great. Aside from the featurette and music videos, there is audio commentary by Todd McFarlane. What more could you ask for?

Overall, Spawn 3 is the best season of Spawn yet. If you haven't seen this show, do so now. It is more than what it seems.

Scent of the Woman has a bit of a blandish, mainstream story, but luckily (mainly since it's not the greatest) it sticks to the worth of it's dialog and actors. Brief plot summary goes as this: a prep kid needs money so he takes a job looking after a blind old guy who lives in a cottage with his family. If that was it, this movie wouldn't have even gotten off the ground, but then something interesting happens: the old guy is quite the classic nut-job.

Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, giving Charlie (Chris O'Donnell) a pre-planned Thanksgiving weekend, is played by Al Pacino in the best of his abilities. The "hoo-ha" stuff could get old to some, but if you have a sense of humor with Pacino's mannerisms after a while, it sort of acts like comic relief during the more intense segments.

If you take the Pacino/O'Donnell act of the film (sort of like taking the entire 90 minutes of Tom Hanks on Cast Away island and sea), you almost have a masterwork of acting style over substance, but the film also has some un-needed filler for Charlie back at his campus. Still, Pacino rules (wish he'd try to look somewhat into someone's eyes even if he's blind), and gives a deserved, Oscar garnering performance....

By the way, this DVD is barebones in extras, has fine picture wquality with 2.0 Dolby Digital, yet only has the coutesy to leave Production Notes (as a movie it would be 4, but the DVD gets a 2, so it averages out).

As I was going through the Video collection of my friend yesterday, my eyes caught the title "Scent of a Woman". On seeing this my heart started beating a bit faster making me rush it into the DVD player! Although I watched almost the entire film till about 30 minutes from the end, hoping for "Scent of a Woman" in some unexpected turnaround, when it came to an end finally, it left me with an immense sense of satisfaction of having watched a wonderful film. The subtle thread of human relations going through the film -- amongst the Schoolmates, between the Colonel and his assistant -- oh, it was lovely. Human values scored at the end, and Al Pacino gave a master performance of a monologue while attending the disciplinary proceedings at the boy's school! I would ofcourse watch the film again and again and again!

Although the title of the film gives an altogether different idea about the film, the contents of course does not deceive us.

Pacino is best known for his gangster portrayals or for his portrayals of Satan or politicians (but wait, I guess those are all the same things, aren't they?).

Scent of a Woman is a sensitive portrayal fully worthy of the Best Actor Academy Award garnered by Pacino for his role. One comes to believe that Pacino is truly blind as he stares blankly at his fellow actors. Chris O'Donnell is exceptional as Pacino's much younger pal and "babysitter." A great human drama, Scent of a Woman is a story of redemption that speaks volumes about the challenges, large and small, that all of us face. If we read to know that we are not alone, Scent of a Woman accomplishes equal empathy in a motion picture.

Buy it for the Corvette scene. Absolutely terrific. I recall that the subtitle for the movie Superman was "You will believe a man can fly." Perhaps the subtitle to this one should be "You'll believe and blind man can drive...FAST!" Great movie!

Do you remember "Ghost" with Demi Moore? I have a sneaking suspicion that that was an ultra-Hollywood version of this movie, and yet this 1989 wonder from Spielberg is such magic on film that I bet it'll enter your list of personal favorites on the very first viewing.

The very moving theme revolves around Dreyfuss' character who has a hard time letting go of his significant other, played by the irridiscent Holly Hunter. Above all, what'll linger in your mind is an exquisite bittersweet bond of tenderness and sexual tension between Dreyfuss and Hunter, one that parallels Goodbye Girl. Such maturity and understanding is very rare in your average Hollywood fare. With the immaculate cinematography and background score, at times you can feel what their characters were feeling.

And yet, the movie manages to be pretty funny, not your "American Pie" kind of schtick but an intelligent witty kind of humour. Plus there's a bit of thrilling action too, especially towards the end.

Of love, passion, friendships, letting go -- without giving any further away, this is a delectable family movie that you can (and probably will) see again and again.

Always is a smart movie, with great lines all the way through. John Goodman shines in his role as Pete's best friend. Holly Hunter and Richard Dreyfuss make a great pair - the dance scene is a classic, with Holly in that great white dress, the song Pete requests from the band, and the dirty firefighters wanting to dance with "the dress." The only problem I have with the movie is the last sequence, when Dorinda is flying and loses oil pressure, then crashes into the water. The whole thing is too surreal to reconcile with reality. The movie as a whole, however, is among my favorites of all time.

I know that the critics panned "Always", but I enjoyed this movie quite a bit. Here's a telling sign. Numerous people have Spielberg movie lists published on Amazon(.com); "Always" has a customer rating of 4.5 stars. Of Spielberg's other movies, only two of the Indiana Jones movies have higher ratings.

Frankly, I had forgotten how excellent this film is until seeing it again recently. (It was selected to received the Academy Award for best film, instead of Citizen Kane and the other nominees.) The impact on me of a film at a given time is almost wholly dependent on how accessible I am when seeing it. I first saw How Green Was My Valley as a child and then again several years later. Probably because since then I have become a father and then a grandfather, I am much more appreciative now than I was before of what director John Ford achieves in his portrayal of a Welsh mining town and of a specific family there which struggles so courageously to enable one of its own, not only to escape from the mines but from the limits of a culture (albeit loving and supportive) to fulfill his human potentialities which would otherwise be denied. The film covers a 50-year period as an adult Huw Morgan recalls it (he is played by Roddy McDowell), with the primary focus on his ordeals as the youngest of several children. Donald Crisp received an Academy Award as best actor in a supporting role as Morgan family's patriarch. Many believe this is Ford's best film and I would be hard-pressed to disagree with them. It really has everything. With Philip Dunne's screenplay based on Richard Llewellyn's novel, How Green Was My Valley combines superior acting and cinematography with Alfred Newman's complementary musical score. For me, this film's greatness is found in its graphic portrayal of hardship and despair in a bleak mining town which are offset by a proud family's enduring faith in Huw and their determination to protect and support him. Ford affirms their essential dignity with a respect and admiration he invites us to share.

You cannot give this film less then 5 stars. The story of a young boy growing up in the Welsh mine country touches on everyone. A young Roddy McDowell sees his family go though loss, redemption, hatred and love. If nothing else, the movie shows the strength of th family and in particular the English people.

An outstanding cast almost makes you feel like you are in old Wales. You can almost feel the coal dust on your tongue as you watch the miners traverse the dangerous coal mines. You can feel the suffering and the happiness of the family as they deal with trajedies and triumphs. Watch it-one of the greatest movies of all time!

When I first got this movie, I threw away the insert that said that you can get a free copy of "Sunrise" if you buy 3 Fox classics this year. The picture in the insert looked dopey. Later on, I discovered that "Sunrise" is considered a masterpiece from one of the great directors, F.W. Murnau. So don't throw away that insert. "All About Eve", "Gentlemen's Agreement", "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir", "An Affair to Remember" all qualify for this offer.

"How Green Was My Valley" is not a happy, feel-good movie. It is about many different tragedies that befall a family in Wales. It is poignant, touching, a masterpiece from one of the great directors of all time.

Frankly, I had forgotten how excellent this film is until seeing it again recently. (It was selected to received the Academy Award for best film, instead of Citizen Kane and the other nominees.) The impact on me of a film at a given time is almost wholly dependent on how accessible I am when seeing it. I first saw How Green Was My Valley as a child and then again several years later. Probably because since then I have become a father and then a grandfather, I am much more appreciative now than I was before of what director John Ford achieves in his portrayal of a Welsh mining town and of a specific family there which struggles so courageously to enable one of its own, not only to escape from the mines but from the limits of a culture (albeit loving and supportive) to fulfill his human potentialities which would otherwise be denied. The film covers a 50-year period as an adult Huw Morgan recalls it (he is played by Roddy McDowell), with the primary focus on his ordeals as the youngest of several children. Donald Crisp received an Academy Award as best actor in a supporting role as Morgan family's patriarch. Many believe this is Ford's best film and I would be hard-pressed to disagree with them. It really has everything. With Philip Dunne's screenplay based on Richard Llewellyn's novel, How Green Was My Valley combines superior acting and cinematography with Alfred Newman's complementary musical score. For me, this film's greatness is found in its graphic portrayal of hardship and despair in a bleak mining town which are offset by a proud family's enduring faith in Huw and their determination to protect and support him. Ford affirms their essential dignity with a respect and admiration he invites us to share.

You cannot give this film less then 5 stars. The story of a young boy growing up in the Welsh mine country touches on everyone. A young Roddy McDowell sees his family go though loss, redemption, hatred and love. If nothing else, the movie shows the strength of th family and in particular the English people.

An outstanding cast almost makes you feel like you are in old Wales. You can almost feel the coal dust on your tongue as you watch the miners traverse the dangerous coal mines. You can feel the suffering and the happiness of the family as they deal with trajedies and triumphs. Watch it-one of the greatest movies of all time!

When I first got this movie, I threw away the insert that said that you can get a free copy of "Sunrise" if you buy 3 Fox classics this year. The picture in the insert looked dopey. Later on, I discovered that "Sunrise" is considered a masterpiece from one of the great directors, F.W. Murnau. So don't throw away that insert. "All About Eve", "Gentlemen's Agreement", "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir", "An Affair to Remember" all qualify for this offer.

"How Green Was My Valley" is not a happy, feel-good movie. It is about many different tragedies that befall a family in Wales. It is poignant, touching, a masterpiece from one of the great directors of all time.

"Todd McFarlane's Spawn" appears to be a cartoon remake of the 1985 film "Commando" starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Al, a former Special Forces operative, awakens to find himself a dead, hell-spawned warrior. Al battles evil foes (including some Special Forces operatives) and rescues his former wife's daughter. Take Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Commando", add hellfire and brimstone, and you have "Todd McFarlane's Spawn".

"Todd McFarlane's Spawn" is entertaining (some of the chain tricks *are* used during real life oil drilling), but I prefer Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Commando" (which features Arnold at his peak and young teen Alyssa Milano as Arnold's kidnapped daughter).

This series is so great, so entertaining, but still very unfulfilling and disappointing simply because the series was cut short and they never made a 4th installation. Buy the series, it's well worth it, but after Spawn 3 you will be disappointed that Spawn 4 never came out.

The movie was one of the worst I had seen in my life. I did not have high hope for the animated series but I was very much surprised. The dialogue and, bizzarly enough, the acting are a hundred times as good as the film and the plot and characters are also much more intriguing.

This is the first season of Spawn. And a great way for the uninitiated to get into it. There is no tedious exposition or any of that rubbish. Just a great set-up of characters and cool stories. But since this has stopped airing as of 1999 there has been no fourth season. It's a shame since the one thing I can be sure ofis that the story could have had one hell of a send-off when it finally climaxes.

It's more than likely in syndication somewhere so I'd start watching this if I were you. But be prepared. The violence is quite graphic and the overall tone of the stories ranges from kiddie fiddlers to satanic demons. Needless to say, it's not a cartoon for kids. It's an animated series for adults.

The DVD is in full screen format, as originally drawn and is in Dolby 2.0 surround. All three of the Spawn animated series DVD are flippers with 3 half hour shows on each side of the disc.

This is Stone's hollywood view of what occurred in Vietnam. More guilt trips than truth. As a 2 year in-country vet, I believe it is deplorable that he fails to note that the mission itself was an honorable one and so was the performance of the American soldier. He managed to contribute to the stereotype of the Vietnam soldier as a baby killer and drug addict, which is not the truth.This film does not belong in the same catagory as "The Longest Day".

Although Oliver Stone's critical reflections in Platoon are unique and moving, they are more symbolic renditions of the conflict. The movie seeks to show the various physical and idelogical struggles that moved and shaped the American public during the Vietnam War. The political ideologies; how low-intensity guerilla Cold War conflicts took a toll on public opinion in that protracted conflict; how socio-economic strife such as racism and poverty manifested themselves in the military.

The character played by Charlie Sheen is seens as the all American fall-guy: a boy with a naive view about patriotism who volunteers to duty as opposed to being drafted and so becomes a man. His political beliefs are challenged by two opposing platoon sergeants: Sergeant Elias (Willem Dafoe) and Sergeant Barnes (Tom Berenger). The character played by DeFoe has a liking for Sheen's as he sees the same man in him when he first joined the war. Barnes is the opposite; there doesn't need to be a just purpose for him to serve in a war; there just needs to be a war: he does his job so well he actually enjoys it.

The conflict between Barnes and Elias seems to reflect the deeper social divisions at home. Barnes symbolizes the conservative establishment demonstrating the view that fighting for your country is reason enough to go to war. Elias is the conscience and voice of wisdom in the film; reflecting the changing public views that the Government going to war is, in and of itself, not good enough of a reason to support a war if it doesn't make sense to the people.

By Barnes killing Elias in the end, Stone seeks to show how the war was taken over by war mongers for whom the war was the end in and of itself. Sheen's character comes back as the redeemer whe he finally vindicates Elias and his position on the war.

Overall a touching movie more focused on symbolism and imagery than other films such as Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket"; not as much as "Apocalypse Now" but still more of a poetic vision rather than realistic.

i cant even put it into words my breath was taken away by this masterpeice

This is Stone's hollywood view of what occurred in Vietnam. More guilt trips than truth. As a 2 year in-country vet, I believe it is deplorable that he fails to note that the mission itself was an honorable one and so was the performance of the American soldier. He managed to contribute to the stereotype of the Vietnam soldier as a baby killer and drug addict, which is not the truth.This film does not belong in the same catagory as "The Longest Day".

Although Oliver Stone's critical reflections in Platoon are unique and moving, they are more symbolic renditions of the conflict. The movie seeks to show the various physical and idelogical struggles that moved and shaped the American public during the Vietnam War. The political ideologies; how low-intensity guerilla Cold War conflicts took a toll on public opinion in that protracted conflict; how socio-economic strife such as racism and poverty manifested themselves in the military.

The character played by Charlie Sheen is seens as the all American fall-guy: a boy with a naive view about patriotism who volunteers to duty as opposed to being drafted and so becomes a man. His political beliefs are challenged by two opposing platoon sergeants: Sergeant Elias (Willem Dafoe) and Sergeant Barnes (Tom Berenger). The character played by DeFoe has a liking for Sheen's as he sees the same man in him when he first joined the war. Barnes is the opposite; there doesn't need to be a just purpose for him to serve in a war; there just needs to be a war: he does his job so well he actually enjoys it.

The conflict between Barnes and Elias seems to reflect the deeper social divisions at home. Barnes symbolizes the conservative establishment demonstrating the view that fighting for your country is reason enough to go to war. Elias is the conscience and voice of wisdom in the film; reflecting the changing public views that the Government going to war is, in and of itself, not good enough of a reason to support a war if it doesn't make sense to the people.

By Barnes killing Elias in the end, Stone seeks to show how the war was taken over by war mongers for whom the war was the end in and of itself. Sheen's character comes back as the redeemer whe he finally vindicates Elias and his position on the war.

Overall a touching movie more focused on symbolism and imagery than other films such as Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket"; not as much as "Apocalypse Now" but still more of a poetic vision rather than realistic.

i cant even put it into words my breath was taken away by this masterpeice

Mark dacascos is a good capoerista, but in this movie there is little "real" capoeira. The fights are kindof excessive, because the characters can take several kicks to the head without even bleed or faint. Some good capoeira music and good performance by Mark. Rent it first, it is not so good that you watch again.

Even capoeiristas agree that this movie isn't all that. The first five minutes and the last five minutes are the only ones that contain any real capoeira, and that is mostly just flashy. It's true that the plot and acting are bad, but this is a fun movie to watch if you know anything at all about Capoeira. Make fun of it with your friends. The fun of doing that, at least, is worth 3 stars.

Some reviews I read say this is not that good of capoeira in this video, but I would like them to tell me where they have seen better. I have never seen more or better capoeira in another movie, even the clips i downloaded. This movie is amazing, and ever since I saw it as a young kid I've been in love with it and capoeira

One of the lessons of this production of "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" is that a good story can forgive many things. I mean, the special effects of this 1988 adaptation are pretty much on a bar with "Barney," which is most apparent every time one of the hand drawn animations appears. However, they are done in the style of Pauline Baynes, the original illustrator of this classic tale by C.S. Lewis, which amply evidences that whatever budgetary considerations the hearts, minds and souls of the producers were in the right place. The costumes of the talking animals and the soldiers of Narnia are all pretty good, as are the simple sets (clearly where the money went), but the proof of the pudding here is obviously going to be Aslan. We are talking minimalistic animatronics here, but it all works. Mainly that is because the four children who meet up with the great lion who rules over Narnia clearly believe in him and accept him, which is all the magic that is needed. The result is admittedly not great, but it is very good, and, most importantly, it is in the spirit of the original story.

"The Chronicles of Narnia" have their origin in the Second World War when Hitler's Luftwaffe was subjecting London to the blitz and the city's children were evacuated to the country for safety. Four such children ended up at the Kilns, the Oxford home of C.S. Lewis, where they were entertained by the stories he told to them. In 1950 Lewis published "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe," the first of the seven tales that would made up "The Chronicles of Narnia." The tales hold their own as adventures for children, who get to use magic and fight with swords, but there is also a wonderful amount of depth only available to adults who are wise enough to look at such things.

That was because Lewis was not just an acclaimed author of children's literature; he was also a distinguished Oxbridge literary scholar and critic and a popular writer and broadcaster of Christian apologetics. While clearly Lewis carved out a distinguished career as a novelist, scholar, and theologian with three decidedly different audiences, it is equally obvious that a full appreciation of any of his writings is impossible without recognizing the elements of his other personas. Certainly there are Christians who would be troubled by Lewis's incorporation of talking animals, witches and other fairy folk into his fictional tales, but ultimately the potency of this tales from a theological perspective is his ability to make it all work. Besides, the fact that the children one day become too old to return to Narnia but are expected never to forget the lesson learned there is something like a broad hint as to how this is all supposed to work out.

The story tells of Lucy (Sophie Wilcox), Peter (Richard Dempsey), Susan (Sophie Cook), and Edmund (Jonathan R. Scott), who are sent off to the country home of Professor Kirke (Michael Aldridge) during the war. On a rainy day they explore the old home and Lucy enters a large old wardrobe in the attic to discover it opens into a fantastic world of mythological creatures and talking animals, all under the spell of eternal winter cast by the White Witch (Barbara Kellerman). Lucy is not believed when she returns, for time passes differently in Narnia, but eventually they all end up in the wondrous world. There the White Witch gets Edmond to betray his siblings and their newfound friends in Narnia with promises of Turkish Delight treats. But against here is Aslan, the brave lion king who returns to save his people and the land of Narnia. Not surprising, the story rests on the importance of acts of sacrifice and salvation.

This was the third television version of "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe" and the best of the bunch. The children are believable as such, whether acting horrible towards one another or behaving heroically on behalf of the people are Narnia. It is that believability that the cast brings to the production and the fidelity to the original story that makes this work, especially for children. A new production is slated to be made in 2004 and the improvements in special effects are such that you would have to think that there will be noticeable improvements over the 1988 version. But if it fails to be true to the original story and loses the sense of believability at the heart of this production, any improved special effects will come to naught.

For those unfamiliar with the story, this is an allegory for the story of salvation through Jesus Christ. Even without the spiritual understanding, however, it's a captivating fantasy story, part of a seven-book series written decades ago by British scholar/apologist C.S. Lewis, and this filmed version (originally broadcast on the BBC in England and on PBS in the States) does a beautiful job of capturing the spirit of the story and its characters.

My 5-year-old daughter, thankfully, loves it as much as I do. The story essentially includes four London children in 1940 who are spending their school holiday (summer vacation) in the country, sent by parents who are worried for their lives in wartime in London, when Hitler was intent on bombing that city into oblivion. They discover a hidden door to a magical world of fawns, nymphs, talking animals, giants, a white witch, and a majestic lion called Aslan.

And oh, what a lion! If only the filmmakers had been able to better solve the problem of making a lion's mouth speak English. Therein lies the only problem I have with anything about this film (first in a series of three films about the Narnia Chronicles). The lion costume is spectacular otherwise, but the FX are severely curtailed by a BBC budget. Some of the more magical creatures, when the filmmakers couldn't put an actor into a costume, were simply drawn, creating a jarring effect. Even my 5-year-old asked why the flying horse was a drawing.

If this series could be redone with 21st-century FX and a "Lord Of the Rings" budget, it would be equally spectacular. But we have what we have, and what we have is uplifting, enchanting, memorable, and thoroughly entertaining. Suitably melodramatic at times, with the kind of uneven acting one might expect from children and other disguised little people, it plays like an upscale "Doctor Who" episode with a gospel overtone. And yes, that's a good thing. (In fact, "Doctor Who" actor Tom Baker plays a major role in the third part of this series, "The Silver Chair.")

Excellent video production by people who love and respect C.S. Lewis and his Narnia Chronicles. My son likes this particular story of the series the best (so far) and after reading it, we watched this show. The book was enhanced by it, not diminished. Wonderful sets, actors and dialogue. It may be a bit intense with the White Witch scenes as the actress plays it to the hilt, but either holding hands or the fast forward button soon remedies the few minutes of nasty old witch harmless. The Brits know how to make the ultimate Narnia show. Get the DVD if you can.