Don Movie Reviews

Everybody has some miniseries they have to watch every now and then. "The Thornbirds" maybe? Or perhaps it's "The Manions of America". For me and my sister, it's Barbara Taylor Bradford's "A Woman of Substance". Emma Harte (the older version played by "The King and I"'s Deborah Kerr)is a multimillionare and head of her own corporation. Four of her 5 children are greedy little buggers, and Emma becomes aware of a plot they've hatched to render her incompitent and declare themselves the legal heirs of her massive fortune. As Emma contemplates this, she falls asleep in her armchair, and through her dreams, we're transported back in time when young Emma (Jenny Seagrove) is a scullery maid for the Fairley family in their posh mansion. Emma meets Blackie O'Neal (played by the yummy Liam Neeson, who alone is worth watching this)and strikes up a lifelong friendship with him. Blackie is the first person to help Emma see that she, too, can be the head of her own fortune with careful planning and saving. Meanwhile, Emma falls in love with Edwin, the youngest Fairely son, and he loves her as well. When Emma becomes pregnant with Edwin's child, however, he withdraws and offers no support. So, Emma packs her bags and, with Blackie's help, finds a woman to stay with until her baby is born. This is just the first in a series of difficult events that begin to shape the woman Emma is to become. Her hatred for the Fairley family evolves into a lifelong goal to ruin them. She eventually marries a man named Joe and opens her first store (in which she is confronted by Adam Fairley, Edwins bully older brother, who, unsuccessfully, attempts to rape her. It is here that we first hear Emma's designs: "Here this now", she says to Adam, "I mean to ruin you...the whole Fairley family."). When Joe is killed in the war, Emma plunges herself in her stores, now a successful chain, but tends to neglect her children. Through it all, Emma survives- from losing her parents, to watching her brother have his leg amputated after a war injury, to meeting and losing the love of her life, Paul McGill (played by a very tan Barry Bostwick of "Spin City", who is meant to be Australian, but could have used some help w/ that poor on again/off again accent). Through it all, Emma conquers her enemies and her demons, sometimes at the expense of others. But, as she says, the secret of life is "to endure", and she does. It's a bit cheesy, but I fall for it every time. The book is wonderful, too, but VERY LONG. This miniseries is a decent adaptation from novel to screenplay. Also check out the sequel "Hold the Dream".

A very good and entertaining story. Great acting by Jenny Seagrove and Deborah Kerr.

I must however, remain skeptical of how such things could actually place in conservative Victorian Britain, before WWI.

After all, in more liberal U.S., the women's lib movement didn't take place until 1960s and 1970s

The protrayal of Emma Harte in the movie A Woman of Substance, shows the viewer the struggle of a young teenage girl and the trials of growing up, the events of struggling to make a stand as a young business woman and mother and the endurance over the years to the become the pinnacle of greatness. This was an excellent movie. It helped me regain inner strength that my trials and struggles can be conquered. The only thing I wish was brought out more, was the different ages Emma was throughout the movie. It would help the viewer know at what age Emma was at during different segments of her life.

I was 13 when I first laid my eyes on the best film ever made, Boys Next Door. Max Caufield is one of the most underated actors of all time. The role he plays in this movie should have won an oscar. He truely captured the part of a real sociopath, and take it from me, being one, it is not easy to understand the mind of a true sociopath. Being one of Charlie Sheen's less no movies also helps make it great. This movie would have never been accepted in the main steam for it's true to life violence and social misbehavior. Most people will not understand this movie, but those who do, will never forget it! It is the second most watched movie in my life, only to Beastmaster. But hopefully after recently aquiring the DVD it will be first. Don't be suprised if you laugh a few times or even worse relate to Bo and Roy! Please enjoy this film for what it is, an american tail of two every day guys out for a good time who make it happen.

Bo and Roy keenly sense the bigotry and worthlessness of the common man and his passive acceptance of this material society. Their experience from school revealed to them the hypocrocy of an education to prepare them for slavery, the nausious realization that most people worship malls and Chinese manufactured trinkets. Bo and Roy bided their time in high school. They rejected all forms of worthless mainstream social activities and adorned themselves in the mantle of plain t-shirts and worn blue jeans. But their moment finally came. They graduated from high school and they took their message to the general populace. A message of judgement, violence, and retribution. A cleansing of the trash people and a celebration of their new faith and power. The raghead at the service station, beaten by his own pump handle was a collage of brutality and purity that resonated with all believers. The babbling, impotent, old lady callously and casually missiled with a beer bottle to the head merged violence and humor in a tapestry of genuine lust for life. As in all dramatic tragedies, our heroes find their last stand in between the worthless, plastic walls of a shopping mall. The cold, bleak walls of a contrived world where mindless fools pilgrim to worship at the alter of the Gap and eat the manna of Mrs. Fields. Bo became the sacrifice at our plastic alter. He never wavered and his passion resonates long after the closing credits. Your life is incomplete and impoverished without the experience of this grand film.

Hello!

I was searching for all Bands of the Movie"the boys next door"

Greatest Punk Music i can heare in the backgroud from "Great White" i need the title-song of them...

other songs by "code Blue", "Tex & the Horseheads..

Please help me and give me all songname by the movies

thanks...

It is basically about a girl who loves her cat Thomasina, and her father, who is a vet, must put the cat to sleep because she has a terrible disease. The children go around spreading rumors so that the father will go out of business. They spread the message that the father supposedly hates animals and doesn't care about them- he only want to kill them. The children bury the cat, and a woman who lives in the forest who is called a witch finds her and restores her to health. This "witch" is a beautiful, kind woman who takes care of animals. The little girl will not let anyone console her- she basically goes insane and lives in her own little sad world now.

I saw this in the theater when I was very little. My dad teased me later when I told him it made me "get a tear in my eye." It still does.

I watched it today with my 5-year-old neighbor girl. She said she "loved it." I bought the movie for my son when he was a preschooler. (He particularly loved the scenes with Jodie--the little boy--and the beautiful "witch.") My son 12, and his friend, 10, also watched much of the movie today. There are plenty of scenes that made them laugh. Some parts drag a bit (the father and the vicar had several scenes dull to a child, but important in developing the plot).

I was looking for a DVD version because I know that my video has a few scenes slightly edited. The Disney channel version some years back was a little more complete.

I don't think it's so terrible for a child to experience a little human emotion. Yes, the movie has some tear-jerking potential, but it has a happy ending. The 5-year-old didn't shed a tear today. I was just a bit less stoic. I am sentimental about orange tabby cats & have always had at least one . . .

magical reminder of how innocence, empathy and love for living creatures enhances the lives of both children and adults -- how much they have to teach us about ourselves and the world. One of my favorite films!

This film is a gem that has only been seen by those in the festival circuits and frequent customers of the specialty urban shelves of Block Buster and Hollywood Video stores. It stars REDMAN in his acting debut as well as vet action star RON VAN CLIEF and other notables such as BROADWAY STAR BILLY PORTER and R&B DIVA DELUX CERYL PEPSII RILEY just to name a few. Despite it's indie styled camera work, the film flows with ease and oozes with potential in terms of it's incredible soundtrack and underscore. This fine film belongs in your collection.

This was a good movie that speaks the truth about racial difference as it exists in today's society. Redman was good as Trevor and the actor Ali was excellent as the angry black man with a mission. The original music was as soulful as anything we have seen in the last ten years. Good movie.

I can't believe Redman was in this movie and I never heard about it and that Def Jam didn't help blow it up cause it was a real nice movie with good performances from him and Queen Pen who had a small but nice part.

This film is a gem that has only been seen by those in the festival circuits and frequent customers of the specialty urban shelves of Block Buster and Hollywood Video stores. It stars REDMAN in his acting debut as well as vet action star RON VAN CLIEF and other notables such as BROADWAY STAR BILLY PORTER and R&B DIVA DELUX CERYL PEPSII RILEY just to name a few. Despite it's indie styled camera work, the film flows with ease and oozes with potential in terms of it's incredible soundtrack and underscore. This fine film belongs in your collection.

This was a good movie that speaks the truth about racial difference as it exists in today's society. Redman was good as Trevor and the actor Ali was excellent as the angry black man with a mission. The original music was as soulful as anything we have seen in the last ten years. Good movie.

I can't believe Redman was in this movie and I never heard about it and that Def Jam didn't help blow it up cause it was a real nice movie with good performances from him and Queen Pen who had a small but nice part.

I really liked this dvd. It includes the videos Don't Stop Movin, You, Have You Ever, also live performances of Don't Stop Movin and Reach. It also has about 40 minutes of behind the scenes footage. I wish that they could have S Club United on DVD to, because I know it would be great, like this one!! I love S Club!!!

what more can i say they rock there the best pop band ever every sclub lover should buy this dvd cuz ull love it trust me plus if u love sclub ull love the band they made called sclub 8 or should i say s club juniors go buy this dvd ull love it sclub 4-eva

I love S club 7 they are great. I love Jon he is so hot. This movie is for all the s club 7 fans out in the u.s.a that loves them like me. S CLUB 7 PLEASE TOUR IN THE UNITED STATES! They are great dancers and great singers and I think that they are all great musicians.

A Taste of Armaggedon-This thoughtful episode concerns a planet that has sanitized war. The episode explores important themes such as 1) the sacrifice of the individual good for the societal, and 2) the drawbacks of all types of war. The latter issue in particular remains a timely one as science continues to pursue technologies that may (at times unwittingly lead to more efficient and sanitized killing. This is one episode where Kirk offers a convincing and fresh argument against a society's folly. Another plus of the episode is that it admits shades of gray rather than oversimplifying the issues. Add in a plot twist that brings the Enterprise and crew more directly into the action, and you've got a winning show. Strong guest acting, from Opatoshu, Babcock, and Lyons also boost this episode (4.5 stars)

Tidbit: Barbara Babcock would reappear in Plato's Stepchildren during season three.

Space Seed-This classic episode first introduces us to the eugenically bred Khan. Here we have another thoughtful episode that prophesizes an issue ('unnatural' selection) that would feature prominently in the headlines today. It is interesting to see Kirk and company portrayed as 'inferiors' (in a narrow sense of the word) for much of the episode. The scene that ends with Khan threatening Kirk is particularly tense and threatening. Ricardo Monteblan is also effective in his scenes as leader and seducer.

The acting performances and tight script lend an air of subtle believability to this episode that wouldn't always be present on Star Trek. The conflict and drama are well developed. Also interesting is Kirk's ultimate compassion, which of course distinguishes him from the 20th Century leader. Trek, like many great westerns, often found a way to show that compassion and humanity did not have to be synonymous with weakness, passivity, or the absence of charisma. These are important messages for young viewers. Left open here is whether that compassion here will ultimately come back to hurt the Federation. The difficult question is whether one must follow their conscience even when the long term consequences may be detrimental.

Tidbit: This episode features one of Star Trek's most notorious bloopers, in which a dropped phaser visibly distresses several onlookers, particularly DeForest Kelley. (4.5 stars)

This is not really a review but rather a question. I would love to own the entire Star Trek Original Series on DVD but I have a serious problem with buying them two episodes at a time, which I refuse to do. Does anyone know if the origianl series will ever be released by season in a boxed set format similar to the TNG and DS9 sets? #1) If I were to pruchase them in the current two episodes per disc format it would be way too expensive for me to buy them all. #2) Not to mention that it would take too much storage space. I would NOT be reluctant, however, to purchase a boxed set of each season in the...say $$ to $$$ range. By releasing ST:TOS in this format I believe that Paramount could profit from people like me who do not want to waste their time or money purchasing ST:TOS DVDs in the current format. If anyone has any info on the possible future release of ST:TOS boxed sets, please let me know. Thank you.

Greg West

Politics gone wrong is the theme behind these two early Trek winners.

"A Taste of Armageddon" is what Captain Kirk and his landing party get on Ameniar 7, a planet that theoretically has been at war with one of its neighbors for centuries. But Kirk and his party find nothing wrong on the planet - no ruins, no signs of violence, no injuries or bodies. Bureaucrat David Opatoshu sadly informs the landing party that they and their ship were blown up in orbit - and since Kirk and the others are obviously quite well, and a quick call on their communicators confirms that, yes, the Enterprise is, too, the mystery deepens. Opatoshu explains that, in order to avoid the bloodshed of real war, Ameniar and its enemies long ago decided to fight their wars by computers. Those areas listed as casualties are obliged to report their populations to disintegrator booths, for neat disposal. Now, if the Captain and his crew will merely oblige, by walking into the disposal ovens...

A solid script, and a chilling premise. Opatoshu is a squirrelly and cagey bureaucrat, the charming Barbara Babcock a credible tender trap, and Gene Lyons really shines as a humorless by-the-book Starfleet diplomat who nearly gets the Enterprise destroyed by his own lack of common sense.

"Space Seed" was the forerunner story to the second movie in the later film series, "The Wrath of Khan." The Enterprise encounters a centuries-old derelict in space, with the cryptic enough name of "Botany Bay." It contains several dozen cryogenically frozen perfect human specimens, the leader of whom, Khan, is awakened for questioning. Khan turns out to be Khan Noonian Singh, the leader of an uprising of eugenically created Nitzschean supermen that nearly destroyed Earth in an atomic war at the turn of the 21st century. With the aid of the Enterprise's romantic Lieutenant Marla McGivers - who is helplessly smitten with Khan's physique and dominant persona - Khan attempts to take over the Enterprise, and conquer the universe it will give him access to in this new age.

Ricardo Montalban lends his unique charisma to the role of Khan, and Madlyn Rhue sympathetically plays the lieutenant of divided loyalties. One of the more satisfying melodramas of the series, it also contains at least one of Star Trek's famous amusing bloopers, if you pay attention - a crewmember who runs straight back into a gas-filled room he was easily escaping, as if responding to the off-camera director signalling, "No! Go back! Go back!"

Both quite good, "Space Seed" especially.

this is really good it has a great story to it. another good film with yasmine bleeth in is road rage.

This is a great little movie that really should be played more on network television. Everyone in it is great. It was good to see a more "normal" Dean Winters playing a polar opposite character to his "OZ" persona. Yamine Bleeth is exquisitely beautiful as usual but is given much more depth which was nice to see for once. Emily Mae Young is also terrific, cute but not annoying. Great for any age.

This is one of those movies that defiently plucks your heart strings so a few tissues at hand is recommended! We loved watching it and plan to buy the video so we can watch it over and over. The love that you see in it, and the way that love brings it all together is beyond words. Mothers will love how the daddy embraces his lil' Angel and Daddys should be able to relate(and hopefully give my lil' Angels daddy some ideas!) A must see!

This is the last volume in the series. For those of you still looking for episodes not in the numerical series, they may be on "More Treasures of the TZ" or "Tresures of the TZ" which were produced prior to Vol. 1.
While two of the episodes on this DVD are found elsewhere in the series, the other two are not. However, there are a couple of surprises on this disc which make it important to history buffs and die-hard fans. "A World of His Own" is one of my personal favorites. It has the most "unique" ending of any episode, as it should -- it was the final episode of the first season.

Got all 43 DVDs (45 if you include the 2 "Treasures"). They are great and ALL 156 episodes are represented. The last reviewer somehow miscounted and thought two were missing. They are not missing. The "Passersby" is on DVD #6 while "Come Wander With Me" is on #41. Its terrific to finally have this great series on DVD, I just wish they appeared in order of release.

"Where Is Everybody?", written by Rod Serling, was the premier episode of "The Twilight Zone," so it makes perfect sense that it is on the last volume in the DVD series. Earl Holliman plays Mike Ferris, who finds himself wearing an Air Force jumpsuit in a deserted town and no clue who he is or why he is there. While this episode was obviously good enough to get the series on the air, it ends up being a lesser effort given what is to come. Compare it, for example, to the classic "The Eye Of The Beholder," also written by Serling, where we have the story of Janet Tyler, a woman whose hideously deformed face has made her an outcast all of her life. Now she faces her eleventh and final operation in a last chance to look normal. Maxine Stuart plays Janet under the bandages, and Donna Douglas plays her as revealed. This is one of the show's finest episodes and it is nice to see they saved a gem for this late in the DVD series. "A World of His Own" was the final episode of the first season, which was actually written by Richard Matheson despite the fact Serling makes an appearance IN the episode! Keenan Wynn is Gregory West, a writer who has a wonderful dictation machine: whatever he describes, from beautiful women to elephants, materializes. A cute little episode for which Serling's appearance is a fitting punch line. Finally, "A Thing About Machines" is a nice coutnerpart to the previous episode. Writtten by Serling it tells of Barlett Finchley (Richard Haydn), a man who really, really hates machines. What he fails to realize, however, is that they hate him back. However, there is really nothing special to this episode beyond that idea. So when all is said and done this is an above average volume in the DVD series, which probably deserves a 4.5, but gets rounded up because even if two of the episodes are average, one of them is historically important.

This set contains every episode of the classic Dragon Ball series World Tournament saga. This is the series of events that occurs after the Pilaf saga, but before the Red Ribbon saga.

Here's a basic summary of what happens during these episodes: The Dragonballs have turned into regular stones for one year, so the gang must find a way to pass the time. Goku goes back to Master Roshi's island, wanting to find a way to make full use of his super strength. Once he arrives there, another potential student arrives - Krillin. Master Roshi says he can only train one of them, but finally agrees to train both (Goku asked him first, and Krillin gave him a dirty magazine.) A tournament approaches, and the two want to fight in it. Also by now, Roshi has hired Launch as his housekeeper. Whenever she sneezes, she becomes evil, making it tough to get anything done. The two boys begin an extremely difficult training program. Bulma, Oolong, and Yamcha have returned to the city. Yamcha trains for the tournament by fighting strong fighters from around the city, but none are a challenge, so he goes out into the woods to train. Meanwhile, all over the world, people are training. Finally, the tournament arrives. All of the members of the Dragon Ball gang (Goku, Krillin, Yamcha) enter. Master Roshi enters it under a fake name - Jackie Chun. Who will win the tournament? I'm not gonna spoil that.

As for the original Dragon Ball series itself, it's good to watch since it's ultimately the prequel to the Dragon Ball Z series, but the early Dragon Ball episodes may turn off Z fans. While DBZ is an all-out action series, classic DB is an adventure-comedy one. The real action in the first series doesn't start until the Red Ribbon saga, which comes next. Sadly, the DVD is lacking extras, as all FUNimation DVDs do.

Overall, this is an excellent DVD set. If you're a fan of Dragon Ball, you can't go wrong with this.

Wow, after nearly 20 years since its TV debut, we finally get to see the original Dragonball in japanese on DVD! It's a must to watch it in japanese with direct translations (listed as subtitle #2 Japanese) on. For some reason the english dialogue is drastically changed, to the point that it actually changes the storyline. Also, as the english version's humor is directed squarely at children, the original japanese version has a broader age appeal with more clever and subtle dialogue. Of course these uncut versions have a bit of the toilet humor Dragonball is known for, but don't worry, this isn't SOUTH PARK. This is a cartoon with both brains and heart. The only drawback to the japanese soundtrack is no fault of Funimation's. The show was originally recorded and broadcast in MONO. I only wish Funimation could have gotten ahold of the music tracks (opening & ending themes, etc.), which were originally recorded in stereo. This is the only part of the show the mono soundtrack shows its age. Other than that, this is a great release, a no bells & whistles DVD, just pure DB Fun! That's all you need!

This is great for Dragonball fans. When i got this set i sat down and just watched them all straight through. it kept me interested and on the edge of my seat the whole time. it has its comedy mixed with interesting fighting that just keeps you interested. Definitly a good buy!