Don Movie Reviews

This set contains Episodes 7, 8, and 9 (although there is some debate about the "true" order of the episdoes). The first two episodes are excellent but frustrating: in both, Number 6 has an opportunity to escape but (of course) is defeated in the end. In the third episode of this series, however, Number 6 scores a small victory against his captors, but despite this, I found the episode to be more slow-moving and not enjoyable as the others. Overall, however, this is a good addition to The Prisoner collection.

Back in 1967, an allegorical television show emerged that has yet to be topped by any other English television series. The show: The Prisoner. Starring Patrick McGoohan, he plays the role of No. 6, a former secret service agent who resigned for unknown reasons and then finds himself knocked unconscious and trapped in a seemingly peaceful place called "the Village." Each episode features a new No. 2 (with a few exceptions), who watches his every move and strives to find out why he resigned. The only superior is the unseen No. 1, the supposed ruler of the Village. The only other characters that reoccur are The Supervisor (also called Controller), played by Peter Stanwick, and The Butler, played by Angelo Muscat.

In "The Schizoid Man," Number 6's behavorial patterns are altered and he's convinced that he's Number 12 impersonating as Number 6. An interesting story that tests Number 6's individuality is among the best in the series. My favorite part: Number 2 tells him the "password" is Gemini. When he's confronted by street thugs and they ask for the password, he defiantly tells them "Jiminy."

In "Many Happy Returns," the Village is seemingly deserted. He escapes, only to find that his superiors don't trust his motives. Still, a surprising plot twist makes his escape seem irrelevant... ah well, watch it and see for yourself.

In "It's Your Funeral," Number 6 learns of a plot to assassinate a former Number 2. He doesn't believe it, thinking they're at him again as to why he resigned. Is it a trap, or the work of "jammers"? This one's pretty complex when it comes to the murder plot, but it unravels nicely in the end.

The DVDs include an interview with Bernie Williams, the series' production manager and line producer. It's pretty insightful, as he stated that Patrick McGoohan had total control of the show (just because the show got weirder as it went along DOES NOT mean he had little control to begin with...) and it's comforting to know that most people involved with the show didn't even know what it was all about (Bernie said that it was "all in Patrick's head.").

Here is where I agreed with A&E's episode placement. You can tell the Village administration growing desperate overtime and since the two aforementioned episodes are back to back episodes, it would only seem logical. Also, we're halfway through the series and the original airdate had "Many Happy Returns" BEFORE "Checkmate," which in the episode, Number 2 says "the early recruit." EARLY EPISODE, peoples.

When Number 6 escaped from the Village, the world that we know that exists outside of the Village seemed not all that different... which goes to show you that the Village could be ANYWHERE, even the place that you live in. Perhaps this was to instill the idea into Number 6's head that he might be better off in the Village? Nevertheless, his individuality remained intact and still yearned to be free.

Many people have compared Number 6 to John Drake (Secret Agent Man). Sure, they're both played by Patrick McGoohan and act similar, but are they the same? I don't believe so. As I have stated in my review for Set 1, I believe McGoohan meant for us to "fill Number 6's shoes." In other words, we too are prisoners in society, caught in a social order that we can't break from.

I give every episode a 5 star rating, but I HIGHLY recommend you get the megaset instead of the individual volumes. This show is one that must be seen to believe.

I am a great fan of Patrick McGoohan and particularly of this seiries. This seiries is not for the faint of heart - what happens when a top secret agent decides to retire? Does he just move to the English equivalent of Florida and grow roses? Would his employer even allow him to do such a thing? And of course, WHY did he resign?

These issues are explored in this seiries and it's a paranoid surrealistic view of the answers. The shows are well written and self contained and Patrick McGoohan shines as the man who yells "I am not a number! I am a free man!"

I recommend this dvd highly, as well as the other dvds in this seiries.

A Piece of the Action-This gangster episode, and Tribbles, were the two Trek comedies that really worked. While I wouldn't exactly call the humor here subtle, it is intertwined in a fairly traditional action plot. We are able to enjoy Kirk and Spock's thuggishness for its own sake while simultaneously staying focused on the plot, for the simple reason that their behavior is called for by the story, rather than being a gimmick. The idea of a highly impressionable alien race who's cultural evolution could depend so thoroughly on a random event (the leaving behind of the book) is an interesting one as well. This episode is also helped by strong guest acting, most notably from Tayback. (4.5 stars)

By Any Other Name-An average episode, this one sees the enterprise crew reduced to salt (Styrofoam?) crystals for future use by the colonization-bent Kelvans. As others have pointed out, this is an interesting episode in that it has two tones. The events of the first half are frightening (although not as eerily stylized as 3rd season shows), as Kirk seems powerless to prevent the Kelvans' cold blooded homicide and control of the Enterprise. The ominous sense that anything goes is augmented by the surprising turn of having a female crew member killed. The tone changes dramatically in the second half of the show though, as the remaining crew exploit the Kelvans' newfound emotions, with entertaining results. These scenes are not just entertaining, but also insightful; it reminds the viewer that much of our own (only semi-successful) acculturation is devoted to reigning in our emotions.

But one wonders whether the blend of the dark and the comic seen here was for the best; it still worked here to some extent, but the episode's schism is somewhat jarring, and we're not quite as able to go along with the blend as we were in say Friday's Child, or A Private Little War. Why? Because a growing lack of introspection was beginning to border on cynicism. Did this gradual moral drift taint the show? Certainly the shows were becoming more calloused, a process that would accelerate in season 3. Season 3 certainly had other problems, but I believe some of the roots of future problems can be found, ironically enough, even in some of the strong episodes from season 2.

But back to By Any Other Name. Other pluses include Kirk's willingness to forgive even a defeated and cruel foe. And don't forget the lovely Kelinda. (3 stars)

REVIEWED ITEM: Star Trek Original Series DVD Volume 25: A Piece of the Action / By Any Other Name

A PIECE OF THE ACTION PRELIMINARY BRIEFS:

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into The Ground: The consequences of cultural contamination

Historical Milestone: Kirk 'introduces' a few skells to the fictional card game 'Fizzbin'

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember ('Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: none

REVIEW/COMMENTARY:
This is one of the series' most cheesy and fun-filled hours. It's rather apparent that Shatner had the time of his life playing the part of a stereotypical 20s/30s movie mobster. The combination of his legendary acting and the colorful mobster lingo make for some of the most amusing bits of Star Trek hamminess out there! Not to be outdone, Nimoy does an admirable job of playing the straight man to Jimmers' mafioso shenanigans! Makes ya wanna get on the blower and tell alla' yer trekkie buds all about it! Or maybe drive on over to their house in your flivver, and let 'em in on the deal personally! That sound jake to ya, kid?

Notable guest star: the late Vic Tayback, best known on the sit-com 'Alice' as the crusty diner owner/cook Mel, keeps the fun flowin' as Jojo Krako, the chief rival of main heavy Bela Oxmyx. I could almost see one of his molls turning to him and uttering, "kiss mah grits"!

BY ANY OTHER NAME PRELIMINARY BRIEFS:

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into The Ground: The advantages and pitfalls of being human; human frailties and learning to control and deal with them

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember ('Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: One dead

REVIEW/COMMENTARY:
Ah, the ol' shrink-the-crew-down-into-weird-geometric-blocks episode... pure old-school Trek silliness! Throw in Mr. Scott gettin' hooched-up with one of the Enterprise crew's captors, and Jimmers seducing the alien babe-of-the-week (SURPRISE!) in order to regain control of his vessel from his captors, and you've got... well, nothin' you haven't seen before in previous old-school Trek eppies, really. Still, I find it entertaining in its own funny way, and by golly that's all that matters!

'Late

Star Trek seems to be one of the few science fiction television shows that cover a range of different genres such as westerns and gangsters and A PIECE OF THE ACTION is one example of that.
The USS Enterprise responds to a signal that was sent over a hundred years ago because it was sent by radio.
Kirk, Spock and McCoy beam down to a planet where the inhabitants are dressed from the 1920s fashions.
There are three crime gangs and they are constantly at war. In fact, no sooner do the trio beam down than they are in the middle of a hit, from one of the bosses, Krako.Kirk breaks the rule of non interference and appoints one as the boss and Krako as his lieutenant and tells that he doesn't want any trouble from the rest of them. He says there'll be a ship sent every year to collect their cut. McCoy is unhappy because he thinks he left his communicator on the Iotians planet. Kirk says,"Maybe in a few years the Iotians will have a piece of our action."

I'm huge fan of the Get Smart TV show, I became a fan of this show when a local station started showing reruns and I thought it was one of the funniest classic TV comedies I had ever watched and I was disappointed when that station changed formats and stopped showing Get Smart so I was happy when Nick at Nite and TV Land began showing the episodes but diappointed when they stopped showing them too. I saw this reunion TV movie and though not as funny as the show I liked it and thought it was the best reunion TV movie I have ever seen and it didn't suck like most of the other reunion movies for classic TV shows which were dreadful! I like that this movie is on DVD but I think that the TV show should also be on DVD in complete season boxsets with some great extra features including commentary by Don Adams, Barbara Feldon, Bernie Koppell, Dick Gautier etc.

This should be the standard for which all made for TV reunion movies should follow! "Get Smart, Again" aired on ABC in the early 90's to very high ratings with good reason, It's good! Would you believe, Great! Yes, Great!
CONTROL is back in business to fight the evil forces of KAOS!
The old gang is back Agent 86 (Don Adams), Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon), Hymie (Dick Gautier) to stop the sinister Sigfried (Bernie Kopell) Besides most of the original cast returning many of the series original creative team has returned. Leonard B. Stern, Mark Curtiss & Rod Ash wrote the script and Gary Nelson directed. The movie preserves all of the flavor of the comedy of the Get Smart series yet makes it contempoary enough for today's audiences something the makers of the dreadful 1980 feature film "The Nude Bomb" also starring Don Adams did not do!
The reason my rating is not 5 stars is because of the DVD itself!
The picture quality is very poor. The color is washed out, there is no sharpness or brightness every scene looks as if it were filmed through gauze! The DVD package says "Digitally Mastered" but mastered from what, a VHS tape? Don't let the poor quality of the DVD discourage you. The excellent quality of the movie, the script and all the performances are worth the price! A must have for all "Get Smart" fans! Until we get the complete orginal series on DVD or even a better print of "Get Smart, Again" this will have to do!

i'm 23 and my 3 favorite tv series' of all time are, the honeymooners, the twilight zone, and get smart. i own the entire twilight zone on dvd, and i just ordered the entire honeymooners, now get smart episodes need to be released to make me a happy man who will never leave the house! nothing beats classic tv!

I gave this film four stars, kind of as an homage. Joe Montenga and Don Ameche were both pretty good, they made me chuckle; a star apiece.
The other two stars, just on general principle, have to go to the writer.
Shel Silverstein wrote this!

David Mamet has always been a fimmaker whose most unique asset is his control of the english language... (Or maybe more accurately, 'Mamet's English Language') Well, this film looks like a Mamet film, especially with favorite performers like Ricky Jay, Joe Mantegna and William H Macy (in a blonde punk hairstyle...). But, it is less of a language film than a touching and slight odd-couple comedy. This matching a mob enforcer with a sicilian shoemaker in Lake Tahoe. Don Ameche is a totally charm in the film, each moment displaying the innocence of a shoemaker. That innocence is misinterpreted as cold-hearted mafiosa control. The film is a wonderful distraction but lacks the brain of other Mamet films like HOUSE OF GAMES and OLEANNA. The DVD has a nice widescreen transfer and an original mono audio track. Remneber, Things Change.

....his acting here is supple and subtle. He makes you believe that he could be some kind of mob boss every one respects. Who poses as a simple shoe repair person. And don't you just love the way they treat him in the casino? I wish that was me.

I agree with many of the reviews here. This is a great performance. I am a huge fan of Domingo, Freni, Bumbry, and Ghiaurov. However I think that this role was a step to big for Freni. Her performance is good, but the voice does not quite encompass the roles, and while I love her to death I would have preferred to see other ladies at the Met at the time of this recording performing the role; Millo, Tomowa-Sintow, or Studer, Millo being my first choice (although she wasnt on the main stage much during this time).

Another downfall of this DVD is the dark dark dark production. I know its not a happy story, but why is everyone wearing black, and why are the sets all back! Its to dreary!

I think that this production is the one to own righ now. I will also buy the Alagna/Mattila version when it becomes available on DVD, because their acting is so incredible.

I'm sure that sometime in the future we'll have another more appropriate version to come out. Until then this one does feature some great singing.

This DVD of Don Carlo is not only one of the best Verdi telecasts from the Met, it is the best opera DVD available up to now (September, 2003). Placido Domingo is perfect in this heroic part and Mirella Freni will show you -- LIVE! -- what a great soprano at the age of 48 can do with an 11 minute aria at the finale, with perfect breathing, soft and clear pianisimos and sudden powerful high notes without the screeches heard from some myths of the past...
Baritone Louis Quilico is one of the greatest of the century with 25 straight seasons at the Met. Nicolai Ghuiarov is so at home as King Felipe that he should actually live at the Escorial Palace in Spain. And Bumbry, with her primeavel high Cs is very exciting. You can play this DVD over and over and learn something new about grand opera every single time.
Bravisimi!!!

Everyone who had the opportunity to be in the Metropolitan Opera at the time of this performance was a very lucky person! Here we have a wonderful performance and excellent singers!

Placido Domingo is considered by many the best Don Carlo both on record and on stage! He is ideal for the role, his rich and exciting voice totally appropriate for the role. His acting ability is also great and his portrayal is sentimental and lyric, presenting us with a very tormented and deeply in love Infante.

Mirella Freni as Elisabetta is quite good. many have said that she is not as good as Montserrat Caballe and I must agree. Caballe was perfect in the role as she recorded it with Giulini in 1971 (and everyone who hasn't heard her must absolutely listen to that recording). Nonetheless, Freni is very good and with her absolutely stable voice carries out the role with conviction.
Nicolai Ghiaurov was the best Filippo ever and seing this performance will make you understand why! His dark voice suited the role perfectly and his acting abilities are beyond doubt! A great bravo!!!
Quilico sings well in the entirety of the performance but he wouldn't be my first-choice Rodrigo. Cappuccilli or Milnes would be better (I prefer the first one).
Bumbry gives us a fiery and absolutely jealous Eboli with both her solo pieces executed accurately!
Finally, Furlanetto (unrecognisable as the Grand Inquisitor) is absolutely convincing ad just perfect for the role.
Levine gives us the full 5-act version of the opera (including the prologue, something very rare!) and conducts with passion and appropriate tempi most of the time.

You must see this DVD!! It is an exciting experience. I also recommend the DVD with the French version of the opera with Alagna, Mattila, Hampson, van Dam and Meyer under Pappano. It is equally exciting and the singers are more persuasive and make a wonderful impression!

I can watch this movies over and over and over again and just "Listen To The Music" or really get into the movie and find the humor/satire. I can't wait until HBO/Cannon Video realizes "The Shape Of Things To Come" and releases this movie on DVD! Talk about a buying frenzy!!

Wild In the Streets: I remember I wasn't allowed to watch this movie when it came out, it made Parents and Politicians, Very Nervous! But, it also showed the, Very Fine Acting Talent, of Christopher Jones. He has become a ,Very Fine Artist, also. I have bought some of his Prints and can now enjoy his talent on my wall as well as watch his movies! Patty

I recently acquired this movie, and was taken back in time. I actually remembered all the songs on the movie, and thoroughly enjoyed the performances. Chris Jones was compared to James Dean in his time, and left Hollywood too soon. He did a few more movies, Ryan's Daughter, and Three in the Attic,among them. The movie takes you back to the sixties, and brings them back to life with a moving, funny, and scary plot of America's drug influenced youth taking over the country,It's a bizarre film, but one of my favorites, it really makes you think.

Okay, you have Baryshnikov tossing off incredible solos, that's always worth it. But sometimes he seems a bit cutsey,hammy and glib onstage. Cynthia Harvey, a good but not great dancer, is okay in the "white" classical act, but just doesn't cut in the first act or the pas de deux. She has no attack, flair or character to her dancing, and it falls flat. Look at a dancer like Maya Plisetskaya perform the same material, and this looks like an amateur production. I do give cudos to Chery Yeager's Amour, which she dances with a great deal of charm. Santo Loquasto's sets and costumes lack the earthiness and moodiness that the ballet needs. As a result, his color ballet makes it look like a bon bon. Harvey's costumes make her get lost in the crowds. Furthermore, the orchestrations in this version sometimes sound like John Phillip Souza and give the production a cheezy sound. This production isn't bad, it just doesn't understand the core of Petipa and Gorsky's choreography. I totally disagree that Don Quixote is second rate ballet... the choreography is superb, but it has to be done with flair and flawlessly.

This is my favorite ballet tape, and I look forward to having it on DVD. I don't even know where to start in my praise, so I'll begin with the smaller parts. Susan Jaffe and Cheryl Yeager as the dream Mercedes and Amor absolutely shine. It is no wonder Jaffe has become a superstar. Johan Renvall is adorable in the small part of the innkeeper's son and has a few incredible leaps. Frank Smith has become an excellent character dancer as the innkeeper, who is Kitri's father. It was good to see Robert LaFosse in a small role as well, as he had subsequently left American Ballet Theatre for the New York City Ballet. Unfortunately I do not remember the names of the soloists who dance Kitri's friends, but they are also quite lively. On a sad note, the late Peter Fonseca, who died too young, sparkles in the corps and in the gypsy camp scene. He would have been a major international star if he had lived, and I was fortunate to have seen him, Jaffe, Yeager, and Julie Kent with the Maryland Youth Ballet when they were in their teens. Patrick Bissell, also, is a very attractive Espada. He, too, died too young and is much missed.

In my opinion, Cynthia Harvey was a wonderful Kitri. Not only was her dancing outstanding, but her personality shone through the role of the kittenish innkeeper's daughter who was determined to win the man she loved, even though he was merely a poor barber, and also to keep the upper hand in their marriage. Baryshnikov exudes charm and demonstrates that he was, at that time, the world's greatest dancer.

However, for me the highlight of the ballet was Victor Barbee as the rejected suitor Gamache. There is no better actor in all of ballet and, although he wasn't the strongest dancer in the corps, he carries the role with panache and aplomb. He receives the last curtain call, and rightly so.

Although Minkus is not the greatest ballet composer, the score is easy to listen to. The costumes and settings are colorful and enjoyable. There are some unanswered questions, including where Kitri changed her clothes between act 1, when she runs off with Basil, and act 2, when they arrive at the gypsy camp, as she took nothing with her! And doesn't she notice that there is no blood on the knife Basil pretends to stab himself with? But they can be easily overlooked.

This is a really enjoyable ballet. I strongly advise buying it!

This is my absolute favorite version of this ballet. It is delightfully funny, beautifully costumed, and well cheorgraphed. Baryshnikov, Cynthia Harvey, Patrick Bissell, who could ask for anything more. I am completely sucked in by the beauty of such talented dancers.

Bread and Circuses-The Roman episode was the first in a slew of parallel earth episodes, and was one of the better ones. The episode features a lot of action and a number of exterior shots. There is also much violence, and some of it is fairly chilling. While there is some editiorializing on 1) our society's bloodlust this is in my opinion negated by the Pro-Christian bias (I don't have anything against Christianity-I just prefer religion to be dealt with more subjectively on Trek).

For better or worse, the show was becoming less introspective. An argument could be made that some of these episodes should have been reigned in a bit. But Star Trek was riding high at this point on a string of strong stories and fun episodes; few could have guessed that the quality would start to deteriorate in just a few episodes.

Tidbit: This episode and Elaan of Troyius were the two that took the longest to get from production to the TV screen. In Elaan of Troyius I always assumed the delay was due to the spacecraft special effects. What was the explanation here? (3 stars)

Journey to Babel-In another classic Trek, we meet Spock's parents, and the Enterprise turns into a veritable 'who's who' of alien dignitaries. Like so many second season shows, this episode is fast paced and dramatic. There are actually several plot lines going at once. Not only do the subtleties of Spock's relationship with his parents play well here, the show is augmented by the fact that so much else happens (murder, Kirk and Sarek's physical troubles, a spy aboard the ship, a Klingon vessel, etc.) A lot to juggle, but the writer and director managed it well, even bringing everything together at the end. True, it's absurd that Kirk and company would know so little about Spock's family, but the bombshell does make for a dramatic close to the teaser. (4.5 stars)

REVIEWED ITEM: Star Trek® Original Series DVD Volume 22: Bread and Circuses © / Journey to Babel ©

BREAD AND CIRCUSES © PRELIMINARY BRIEFS:

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember ('Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: None

REVIEW/COMMENTARY: Before I go into the review proper, it has come to my attention that the guys at Paramount™ put these original series DVDs out to the market without respect to neither the episodes' canonical-chronological order nor their date-of-broadcast order. This particular volume is a case in point: The first show, Bread and Circuses ©, was originally broadcast on March 14, 1968 (Stardate 4040.7), while the following show, Journey to Babel, was shown on November 17, 1967 (Stardate 3842.3). At first, I was kinda taken aback by this haphazard arrangement of eppies; after all, they could've at least TRIED to release classic 'Trek in some logical fashion, right? But after envisioning the throes of agony that the more anal-retentive/OCD-suffering UberTrekkies would suffer due to this strange quasi-random release of episodes, I actually found myself rejoicing at Paramount™'s brazenness. Anything that gives the uberfans major hissy fits is just fine and dandy in my book!

A rather intriguing 'what-if' type story where the elimination and/or delayed reaction of a an apparently vital historical element (in this case, "son worship" or Christianity) could have a major impact on the course of human history (in this case, the Roman Empire still exists in the 20th century). Throw in a few less-than-skillful-looking gladiatorial death matches and a turncoat starship captain (similar to the rogue C.O. in The Omega Glory ©), and you've got... um... hey, remember that scene in Airplane!™ where Peter Graves asks that kid, "Joey, do you like movies about gladiators?" I'm reminded of that scene every time I catch this particular episode! And my name isn't Joey, either! Strange, no?

JOURNEY TO BABEL © PRELIMINARY BRIEFS:

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into The Ground: The importance of family; learning to overcome differences; family duties versus career duties

Historical Milestone: First appearance of Spock's parents

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember ('Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: None

REVIEW/COMMENTARY: Out of all the crewmen that serve aboard the Enterprise™, who'da ever thought Spock™ would have to deal with family strife? Well, it's true, kiddies- apparently pops isn't quite an approving parent where his son's career choice is concerned. But with the help of a whodunit murder mystery, a bit of espionage intrigue, and Sarek's life-threatening condition that only Spock can help treat, father and son manage to patch things up a little in the end. Which delights mater no end of course. Throw in a ridiculously silly fight sequence between Jimmers and an ersatz Andorian, and you've got a nice dollop of cheesiness to make the whole Spock-family-soap-opera that much tastier!

'Late

Volume 22 of the Star Trek DVD collection contains two episodes from season two's high point. By high point I mean that half way through the second season a sudden burst of classic excellent episodes were being produced including the likes of TROUBLE WITH TRIBBLES, A PIECE OF THE ACTION and JOURNEY TO BABEL etc; The beginning of the second season was good but just didn't seem to compare to the first until half way through when these episodes were made.

The first episode here is BREAD AND CIRCUSES. The Enterprise crew finds the wreckage of a fellow starship the U.S.S. Beagle and decide to investigate the planet below it. When they arrive on the planet they meet up with a band of sun worshippers and later are captured and taken to a city that looks like Earth's ancient Rome. It turns out that The Roman Empire rules the planet into somewhat modern times where Gladiator games are brodcasted on tv like WWF wrestling. Kirk finds out that Capt. Merik (who was the Beagle's Capt) betrayed his crew and became first citizen of the Empire and is now a close friend to Proconsul Cladius Marcus (played by Logan Ramsey). Marcus demands Kirk to beam down his crew to fight in the arena but Kirk refuses and tries to convince Merik that fighting is wrong in the arena. When Spock and McCoy are forced to fight all hell breaks loose and in the end Merik sees the error of his ways and allows Kirk to escape but unfortunetly Merik is killed by Marcus. This is a very well written episode but the end is somewhat weak. Kirk, Spock and McCoy merely escape. They do not really seem to save all the planet's innocent slaves or anything even Cladius Marcus gets away with all his evil deeds. It's a good episode but has an uneven ending.

The other episode here is the real winner JOURNEY TO BABEL. The episode that features the debut of Spock's father (played by Mark Lenard who also played the Romulan commander in BALANCE OF TERROR). The episode is somewhat of a murder mystery when the Ambassador Gav is killed on the way to the planet Babel. All fingers point to Spock's father until it is revealed of his heart condition. An operation is needed in order to save his life but Spock feels he must Captin the ship after Kirk was almost murdered by a "Andorian" who actually murdered Gav. This episode is another great classic from the second season and should be a favourite among many. Mark Lenard is great as Sarek. He should have appeared on the show far more often.

Overall I highly recommend this DVD because of JOURNEY TO BABEL but BREAD AND CIRCUSES is worth a look too. But Sarek sells this one as he should. After all he is on the DVD cover. Highly recommended!

Exellent film, inspired and eye opening to those who have never seen how far the lack of understanding will take you or how much of a life can be spent doing harm to those you do not even know.
I'm sure you will enjoy this film and the message it delivers. Well done.

Gary Sinise steals the show in George Wallace, the TNT documentary made about the three-time governor of Alabama and four-time presidential candidate. I honestly think Angelina Jolie, not Mare Winningham, should of gotten the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the movie. Winningham is a fine actress and portrayed her character well, but I thought she was rather drab. When Jolie takes over as the second Mrs. Wallace, she delivers her role with much more conviction and flare. Of course though, Sinise is the best actor in the cast and is most deserving of the award he got for Best Actor. Sinise's best role in my opinion, as you can likely guess from my review title, is his role in Truman, followed in a close second by his Lieutenant Dan portrayal in Forrest Gump, but this movie was a just as close third. I read one review of this movie which said the reviewer would have liked to see more about Wallace's 1968 campaign for President. I personally would have liked to see more about his '64 and '76 presidential bids because they have more historical signficance, being that his '64 run took place during the most controversial time in his career, the Civil Rights Movement, and it was his first presidential campaign. And I would have liked to see more of his 1976 run because he did best as a candidate. And, as history itself and the movie both dictate, people seem to forget that when Wallace became a segregationist, he was very much reluctantly drawn into it by the Ku Klux Klan, rather than he was always one as most everyone who knows of him thinks. I think this point to his character should have been better addressed. Besides these small flaws, the movie was great overall. I also found something in common between this movie and Forrest Gump. In both, Sinise plays characters who are marred by physical trauma, and both characters have some very negative things to say about their conditions. As I said earlier, this movie is great overall and well worth watching especially if you are a history/political buff. Get it!!!

The fighting little judge from Alabama was known as the most liberal judge in Alabama and probably in the South. But one gubernational defeat makes him turn to racism in order to capture the governorship.

Gary Sinise turns in an incredible performance as the governor, he has become one of my favorite actors ever since his equally brilliant performance in "Truman".

I like the way that this movie doesn't judge Wallace as good or bad, it leaves that to the viewer. In one scene you can see Wallace commenting on the beating of Civil Rights activists at the Edmund Pettus Bridge saying "This is a victory for US! We turned them back" and you actually think that Sinise as Wallace believes what he's saying.

The movie presents some historical footage here and there, you can see president Lyndon Johnson and Martin Luther King's famous "how long?" speech.

It does have a number of flaws though, I'd have liked to see more about election 1968, the way Nixon tried to prevent Wallace from becoming governor in 1970 by sponsoring Wallace's opponent, the infamous General Curtis Lemay pressconference. And the fictional character Archie isn't quite pulled off by the director, it strikes me as an anomaly in the movie.

Also it shows Wallace meeting Cornelia, his future second wife at governor Folsom's inaugural in 1955, this would have made Cornelia about 23 years old in 1972 when in fact she was 31. The reason for that is that George and Lurleen met Cornelia at Folsom's FIRST inaugural in 1947 and not 1955

The most moving scene is where Wallace is wheeled into the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church (Dr. King's former church) where he, in front of a stunned black congegation apologizes for his role in black suffering. The authenticity of this scene I found questionable until I read about it in Stephan Lesher's book "George Wallace American populist".

But in the end George Wallace the movie is a masterpiece capturing the sentiments of the 50's, 60's and 70's. The late governor's children are said to have been content with the portrayal.

I really looked forward to this DVD. I love the band and discovered that Neal Morse really doesn't cut it live. His singing and keyboard playing are quite sloppy throughout the entire performance. They do perform some great material including Healing Colors of Sound, but the live version pales in comparison to the studio version. Get this only if you are a hardcore fan.

This is a great DVD from a truly great band. The music/video quality is outstanding and the audio mix is just right. Certainly worth every penny with the inclusion of the "making of V" and the additional audio disc (which is great too!). Highly recommend this DVD to all fans of progressive music and in particular to those looking to see "The Light".

Long grow the Beard!

Being a fan of old school symphonic prog, there are not too many post 70's prog rock I care to listen to, becuase it seemed that most current prog bands thought that the music was essentially songs that contained syncopated beats and stacatto structure and melodies. Then I came upon this group. I found this effort to be very impressive and refreshing in that there is that touch of symphonic flavoring (mellotron and classical phrasing) along with neo prog instrumentation. Imagine Flower Kings fusing with Gentle Giant and you have a musical idea of what this excellent band of musicians can do. Definitely first class!