Entertaining Movie Reviews

Gene Tierney gives a performance so smooth that you can't believe it. She makes Rex Harrison's performance work, she is balance, determined in a very quiet way she dominates. The commentaries on the score, and the performances are excellent, except for Kenneth Geist, who is thankfully been edited short. Geist who thinks this is a man's picture is critical of Tierney who carries this picture. What a bore this would have been without her. He even suggest that the lovely Claudette Colbert was wanted and needed for the role. Just as we are so lucky that she was unable to do Mankiewicz's ALL ABOUT EVE, we are so lucky to have the subtle Tierney here. She is excellent--I was lucky to see Colbert with Harrison in a romantic comedy in the last year of his life at the National Theater in DC, they were wonderful together, she had to feed him lines to keep it going, but turning this into what the fabulous Claudette did well, suggestive comedy, would not have made this wonderful picture the gem it is. This film is moody and different, and thank God Mankiewicz, a true wonder, and Geist, a man who praises the great George Sanders in one of his most forgettable performances, and knocks Gene who carries this film didn't get their way. No one notes that Tierney was a lover of Jack Kennedy, even though they note that her husband, Oleg Cassini, designed the famous Jackie hats and clothing for Jack's funeral. If you look at Gene you see a resemblance to Jackie in carriage, manner and speech. This is a great film, buy it. By the way there are three other commentary's that are on the money--in fact the best I've heard. The package is impressive.

Mrs. Lucy Muir (Gene Tierney) wants to live on her own now, one year after her husband's death. She has a little girl too, played by Natalie Wood. She's been living with her husband's family and they object to her leaving and with the girl. But she had the girl before she lived with them. She decides to go live by the seaside, with the income from her husband's gold shares, and buy Gull Cottage. She finds the house charming, but the agent says it is the wrong house to live in. They discover together the house is indeed haunted. The original owner was Captain Gregg who died four years earlier. She buys the cottage anyway. All moved in, strange things happen. The ghost watches her while she slepts. Eventually, she requests the "cowardly ghost" to speak up. And so he does. he makes his presence known as Captain Gregg (Rex Harrison). That's just the beginning of the film. A tv series "The Ghost And Mrs. Muir" (1968-1970) appeared starring Hope Lange and Edward Mulhare with Charles Nelson Reilly. DVD contains, audio commentaries, theatrical trailer, still gallery and 44-minute biography Rex Harrison: The Man Who Would Be King.

This is quite possibly my very favorite movie. Wonderfully written, acted and set, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir will be a favorite for the whole family.

I had an interesting experience with this film. I was cajoled into holding a movie night at my home for a church youth group. I agreed on the condition that I would get to choose the movie. The moans and groans were audible when I announced that the evening fare would be The Ghost and Mrs. Muir starring Rex Harrison and Gene Tierny.

After just ten minutes into the film the snide remarks ceased and you could have heard a pin drop so intent were the young guests upon the movie. And, no, they were not asleep. After the film ended I asked them how they liked it. One sixteen-year-old young man, an avid movie buff in his own right, said that he loved the film. I asked whether he liked it as well as Titanic, then very popular at the theaters. To my absolute surprise he said that he thought that the Ghost and Mrs. Muir was as good as Titanic.

You will never think of Rex Harrison in the same way again. Harrison's Captain Daniel Gregg is, as his character says in the film, "a man's man." His chemistry with Gene Tierny, as Mrs. Lucy Muir, is absolutely charming. A young Natalie Woods and George Sanders (you'll will remember him as the voice of the tiger in Disney's original Jungle Book) round out the cast.

If you haven't seen this film, in the words of Captain Gregg "Oh, what you've missed."

Man from Snowy River, like most cowboy movies, is best seen on a huge-screen movie theater, but, if you donÕt have that, get the DVD and it can even pass the tiny-screen test of a laptop. It is a beautiful Australian movie that runs with the brumbies through each story line of a young manÕs and womanÕs rite of passage, the stale feud between brothers, petty coworker battles, a mine showing color and horses running and snorting everywhere. So saddle up with some popcorn and ride this movie into its vistas of green, mountains, fog and snow to a nice musical score. You will need the mountain horse that Spur gives you and a really cool dog to cross Snowy River. Hold on when you see how a real riders rides down the mountain.

Wonderful film! Beautifully shot and very lyrical in it's pacing. One of my favorites.

The Man from Snowy River is one of the ten best movies ever made. Sure it has great cinematography, fantastic scenery and a GREAT cast but this motion picture is true literature. It's based on a poem by A.B.Patterson (perhaps Mr Patterson, a character in the movie). The story is about a young woman who's father plans to sell her to the highest bidder. The hero's initials are J.C. (look familiar) who comes DOWN to the low country (Earth) to free the young woman (the church) from Old Regret which is "The sins of the fathers being visited upon the generations". He chases down the horses which symbolize merciless FATE. He doesn't swing the heroine up into the saddle at the end but goes to prepare her mansion, promising to return. This is one of the best examples of biblical allegory ever. The Snow in Snowy River refers to something Isaiah promised. Another great thing about this movie is that Jim Craig is considered a hero not because he can kill but because he can WORK. DO NOT miss this movie.

THIS SHOW ISBY FAR THE BEST SHOW I HAVE EVER SEEN. IGOT THE FIRST SEASON AND WATCHED THE WHOLE THING NONSTOP AND WANTED MORE. THE ACTING IS SUPERB, THE STORY LINE IS SOMETHING THAT YOU MIGHTACTUALLY CARE ABOUT, AND THE CHARACTORS ARE VEY IN DEPTH. I WOULD RECCOMEND THIS TO ANYONE WHO LIKES TRUE ENTERTAINMENT

"The Shield" is great television, period. There will be those who complain that it only pushes certain buttons of a visceral kind. And it does that. However, the performances in this show set it apart from anything else on television. The cast is top notch. The setting is like nothing else on TV today. It is as pivotal for television cop dramas as were "Hill Street Blues" and "NYPD Blue."

Detective Vic Mackay and his Strike Team tend to cross the line in pursuit of "justice." They leave their calling card where they strike to let the criminals know who runs the streets of Farmington. Their methods, while effective, tend to skirt what the Supreme Court has ruled as being legal for law enforcement. And, they aren't above padding their "retirement fund" along the way.

Their Captain is a man whose ambition runs beyond his run down precinct. Mackay's methods have a tendency to cause him problems. They work together when it's needed, but are more likely to be butting heads.

The first season of this show is great. The commentary tracks are worth a listen to get the cast and crew perspective on this cutting edge series.

Watch closely and you'll be able to see for yourself the scene in which Michael Chiklis walks away with a richly deserved Emmy Award.

The show's main focus is on Detective Vic Mackey ( Michael Chiklis) who leads a team of three other detectives with the best arrest records in the department. While the team does get fantastic results, they are the dirtiest cops in L.A.. Captain David Acevada ( Benito Martinez) is brought into the department to help clean it up and to make sure things run smoothly so that a strong media image is maintained. Acevada soon learns however, that he is going to have his hands full when it comes to Vic and the strike team because they go by their own personal agenda. This of course soon pushes Aciveda towards going after the Strike Team personally...

"The Shield" in my opinion is one of the best shown on TV right now. The FX Network raised the quality of their programming up a notch when they released The Shield onto the air. The thing that I like most about the show, is how realistic it is. It actually feels like you are witnessing what goes on in the real world. The show often showcases acts of violence, nudity, and tons of profanity. That is why the show works. The quality of the show is put above the actual opinion of the viewers. The Shield is also the first cop show that I have seen that actually ties the episodes together. A lot of cop shows are based on what happens from case to case. But with The Shield, you actually have to see every episode to understand what's going on. Michael Chiklis offers one of the best performances I have ever seen with his portrayal of Vic Mackey. The character often toys with your emotions because you will find yourself hating the guy and supporting the guy all at the same time. The rest of the cast is top notch as well, despite being filled with relatively unknown actors.

If you are fan of police related TV shows, The Shield is the one show that you should definately watch. The disturbing cases, excellent acting, and overall realistic feel will have you hooked after the very first episode. The DVD extras are a sweet bonus because of all the behind the scenes footage that is shown. Overall, this is an excellent buy that should not be passed up.

Season 3 of Buffy is the best season of all. Why? Eliza Dushku (Faith) that's why. She is so hot. I think that it is too bad that she was never added to the opening credits. I guess that she was a recurring character and not on a contract even though she was on for most if not all of season 3. This is the season that they later altered the theme song and kept this one until the show ended. James Marsters (Spike) is hot and in case you didn't know this hunk is 41!

Ok, this series deserves a complete episode-by-episode rating

Anne - 7/10 Good start but not brilliant. Buffy is living away from home trying to get over Angel, and she falls into a hell dimension.

Dead Man's Party - 7/10 Good handling of the uncomfortable feelings between the Scoobies, but why zombies?!

Faith, Hope and Trick - 8/10 The New Slayer, Faith, arrives, but she unintentionally brings with her some new baddies...

Beauty and the Beasts - 9/10 The return of Angel. Major Buffy angst.

Homecoming - 10/10 Cordelia's selfishness leads Buffy to challenge her for Homecoming Queen, Willow and Xander kiss, and Mr Trick holds a Slayerfest '98 competition. A really brilliant episode, full of great Cordelia and Buffy bitchiness and the ending is really funny!!

Band Candy - 10/10 Another brilliant episode. The adults of Sunnydale eat bewitched candy that reverts them to a youthful state of mind... and Giles and Joyce do something they will regret... and Ethan Rayne is in this one too!!

Revelations - 9/10 Faith's new watcher arrives but isn't all she seems to be...

Lover's Walk - 10/10 THE angst episode of the series. Oz and Cordelia see Willow and Xander kissing, Spike comes back after Drusilla has broken up with him... this episode really plays on your emotions, especially when they trick you by showing you a funeral scene near the end (people who have seen this episode will know what I mean!)

The Wish - 10/10 Another great episode, set in an alternate universe where Willow and Xander are vampires. The best part is the slow-motion fight-scene at the end, where we see our Scoobies fighting and killing each other *sniff*.

Amends - 8/10 Good episode although it didn't appeal to me instantly like most of the others did. The gang tries to find out why Angel is back in town and meet the First Evil (who crops up again as the Big Bad in Season 7). Jenny Calneder appears in this one.

Gingerbread - 9/10 Two children are found dead, the town goes on a witchhunt and blame Buffy and Willow for their deaths, and attempt to burn tbem at the stake. It is hilarious how Buffy kills the baddy in the end... and oooh, evil Joyce!!

Helpless - 9/10 Buffy's powers are taken away by Giles without her knowledge so that she can take a Council test pitting her against a vampire with only normal human strength. BUT the vampire escapes from his containment...

The Zeppo - 10/10 A Xander-centric episode, which although a big battle happens, we don't actually see much of it because we are following Xander being an unsung hero trying to stop the school from being blown up. And sleeping with Faith.

Bad Girls - 8/10 Pretty nothingy for most of the episode, following Buffy's downwards spiral to be like Faith, but a brilliant plot point when Faith kills a human...

Consequences - 7/10 Continues the angst over whether Faith will tell the police that she killed the man...

Doppelgangland - 10/10 Continues The Wish. Willow-vampire has been sent to this dimension, and there are some of the funniest Buffy scenes ever when Angel tells Buffy and Xander that (he thinks) Willow is dead and they already know about the Willow-vampire, and when Willow confronts her vampire self.

Enemies - 9/10 Faith's bad side is exposed when she and the Mayor - the Big Bad of season 3, and the best Buffy villain ever, he is just such a jovial yet evil chap - take away Angel's soul with magic. Only their trick is in turn tricked by Buffy.

Earshot - 8/10 Buffy gains the power to hear people's thoughts, which is quite a weak individual plot line, but there are some very funny moments - Giles walking into the tree at the end, for instance.

Choices - 7/10 Buffy wants to take the fight to the Mayor, but when Willow is captured, it doesn't seem like such a good idea. Ooh, and Oz is violent.

The Prom - 7/10 Another weak stand-alone episode where werewolves are trained to attack the Senior Prom. Nice that all the characters are dancing with their love interests, even Buffy. A feel-good episode before the seaon finale.

Graduation Day Parts 1 and 2 - 10/10 The best season finale of the lot, tying in first place with Season 2 finale where Buffy killed Angel. Faith shoots Angel with a poisoned arrow,l Buffy stabs Faith because the only cure for Angel is the blood of a Slayer, but Faith manages to get away, so Buffy sacrifices herself and only just survives, Faith is in a coma and Oz and Willow sleep together for the first time. In the second part the whole school attacks the Mayor as he ascends on Graduation Day, Cordelia stakes a vamp for the first time, we see Jonathon attacking vampires with great gusto, Harmony is bitten... And Buffy blows up the Mayor... and the school. The ending is simple and very poignant, with the cover of their yearbook saying, "The future is ours".

An amazing series. Faith is a very complex character, and the Mayor is a brilliant villain, like a kindly uncle, but you can see the evilness in him, but almost a nice kind of evilness. He is a truly amazing character. This is the last series where they are at high school, and after this series Buffy seems to loose something, a certain centered quality, since the Scoobies paths split out so much after this, as peoples' lives do when they enter university. This, and series 2, should be owned by everyone. All hail Joss Whedon.

The third season started out very dramatic with "Anne" and then quickly became lighter as it went on. No this season wasn't as good as the second season was but it was still an improvemnt and it closed many chapters that were opened in the second season.

This season brought in Faith a character that is a favorite of many of the fans of the show. It saw Angel leaving along with Cordy. It got a new, awesome, opening with a fuller sounding theme. And it hearaded the coming of Dawn and it saw what would be one of Buffy's final nemisis, The First, from the episode "Amends."

This season closed the chapter of the relationship of Buffy and Angel (there are appendixes to that chapter though in later seasons). It also graduated Buffy and the gang from high school. This season was fantastic but not as good as the next one.

I do think there is a lot of merit in this film, above all the insightful insertion of two hours of background between the moment Anne Baxter gets up, and then receives her theatrical award. I don't think I will ever be able to fully trust in anything I hear a star say upon receiving an award in the future. The theme of aging ungracefully and the "kill or be killed" requirements of the entertainment world are also provocative and unsettling.

That said, the poor ending scene was campy and cheapened the entire film with a very 50ish taint. And despite the fact that Bette Davis was able to deliver her eloquent lines with wit and precision, I still couldn't help but get the feeling that the players in this drama were not quite up to the level of sophistication required to really tell this tale like a classic. Gary Merrill is basically a TV actor, he was not up to the task. And the brilliant George Sanders, while good, appears to be mouthing it primarily for the paycheck. (compare with his performance in Hitchcock's 1940 best picture-winning Rebecca). The only thing memorable about Marilyn Monroe's brief appearance is her youth and Sanders' fateful remarks to her.

All in all, this is a good old movie, and worth watching. Sadly, it falls short of being a great 5-star film.

"All About Eve" tells the story of a group of people whose life is the theater: Margo Channing (Bette Davis) an aging diva, Bill Sampson (Gary Merrill), Margo's favorite director, Lloyd Richards (Hugh Harlowe) a writer, and Karen Richards (Celeste Holm), Lloyd's wife and Margo's best friend. Joining this group of people are Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), an actress wannabe with great ambition and intelligence, and Addison De Witt (George Sanders), an aggressive theater critic.

"All About Eve" keeps the status of classic mainly for two reasons: an excellent screenplay and magnificent and unforgettable performances. The movie is entertaining from beginning to end, each scene presents great dialogues, the characters have huge depth, and if someone asks for more, Marilyn Monroe appears in a small role.

"All About Eve" is recommendable for those who enjoy good stories and classic films.

I can't add anything to the raves already posted but did want to say that Pedro Almodovar's film "All About My Mother" pays tribute to "All About Eve" as well as "A Streetcar Named Desire." The relationship between the aging actress, her younger protege,and the grieving mother plays nicely off the trio of women in "All About Eve." So for a new spin on an old but timeless classic, check out "All About My Mother," an intriguing film in its own right.

The theme from "Laura" is one of the most haunting ever written, by David Raksin, relatively unknown, but forever memorialized through this melody. Gene Tierney is at her peak of beauty, and she really is breathtaking in the most literal sense of the word. When I grew up this was always one of my favorite movies, and then when I re-discovered this movie as an adult, I was always mesmerized by her and by the entire cast, the score and the story, all prime examples of how great film noir can be when it's done with this amount of style and class.

SIDENOTE:
***I was not aware until recently of her tragic encounter with a female Marine at a Hollywood Canteen, during WW2. Apparently this Marine was hospitalized for German Measles, and she sneaked out of the hospital to meet her favorite movie star. She had her picture taken with GT, who was pregnant at the time, and also KISSED her, which resulted in her baby daughter being born with severe mental retardation. When Daria (the daughter) was four years old she was insititutionalized. GT met the woman one year later and found out how she had contracted German Measles, but did not mention the tragic consequences of the woman's actions for reasons unknown.***

What sets this particular movie apart from the rest of the genre, is it's cast and it's tasteful telling of the story, which includes the creme de la creme of New York society, played to the hilt by the cast. One of my chief joys in watching this movie, is the scene of Clifton Webb (as the acerbic critic, Waldo Lydecker) sitting in his enormous black bathtub(!) typing furiously, and relishing the power he has by virtue of his position as a critic. He takes savage pleasure in denigrating anyone who displeases him, either by their lack of talent or because of his own personal dislike.
There is not one moment of slack; all is interesting, relevant and suspenseful; you will NOT be able to figure it out until the end. On DVD, especially, this movie guarantees suspense and a fascinating glimpse into what the "Golden Age of Hollywood" was capable of...Excellent performances also by Vincent Price as the ne'er do well playboy, man about town, and Judith Anderson, a far cry from her portrayal of the redoubtable Mrs. Danvers in "Rebecca." If you have never seen this, get it; you will not be sorry, and if you have seen it, you should get it for the quality of the DVD...

I am thrilled to see that this outstanding film is due for DVD release. It is befuddling why it has taken this long--and why other truly great classic films (viz., Gaslight, Out of the Past, The Letter, Asphalt Jungle, High Sierra, Force of Evil, Dark Passage,The Sea Wolf, Magnificent Ambersons, Ace in the Hole) are still awaiting DVD issue. So much merdre gets released each week--it is truly astonishing that a film such as Laura has to take a number and wait. Well, that gripe aside--this is a taut thriller that is psychologically deep, witty, romantic,sexy, and suspenseful. How much more could one ask of a movie--that it solve the budget crisis? For an earlier reviewer who thought it ... that the Clifton Webb character leads the detective along, this device is part of the personality of Lydecker ("Lie", get it?), who is so narcissistic that he has to confess his perfection in both love and murder in order to appease his vanity, to be admired, to be known for the genius he believes himself to be--even be it for crime and a date with Ol' Sparky. He is constantly proving his superiority by insulting McPherson and Shelby and showing them up in Laura's eyes--so he thinks. He is a master manipulator, perfectionist, and control freak--even if it means implicating himself! So this bit of character development is completely in keeping with Lydecker's temperament and is what drives the story. Gene Tierney is incredibly gorgeous in this part, and Dana Andres is both muscular and tender--when he needs to be. Clifton Webb astonishes, with some of the best, most crackling dialogue ever composed---and just tons of snobbery!!! I'll score and watch this DVD the day it comes out!

It is my opinion that classic B/W movies win anyday over anything that is around today. Give me a Friday night, a bag of popcorn or ice cream, and an old movie...and you've got one happy camper!!

The first time I saw Laura was on AMC. I taped it. This movie had me hooked!! I never expected what happened midway to have happened!! This was a great "who dun it?" movie. No one is left unsuspected!!

I loved this movie so much, I even made myself an audio cassette tape to listen to!!! And you know what, even w/o the visual, it still holds the same suspense!!!

I just discovery this movie and came to tell the world about this wonderful movie that my whole family jut enjoyed. To my surprise this would the 764th review of this movie, so i guess a few people have discovered it already.

Beautifully photographed and acted, the script takes a old story and presents it in a manner that lets the story live anew.

The 4 stars is because I save my 5 star grades for something extra, extra special, unique and brilliant such as The Lion King and the Princess Bride.

I absolutely LOVE this movie. I have honestly watched it at least 10 times. It's one of the sweetest stories ever made, a great adaption of the Cinderella story.

Danielle de Barbourac, after the death of her father, grows up as a servant girl under her stepmother and two stepsisters (one of which is not so bad). She is a girl with a strong will and a stronger throwing arm, as she flings apples at the runaway prince as he speeds away on her family's horse. He is thrown off the animal by her strikes...Danielle realizes its the prince, and so the story truly begins.

Prince Henry dreads having an arranged marriage to the Princess of Spain and has ran away many times. He is in many respects, still a young boy. After this episode, the King informs him that he will have until the masked ball to choose his own wife, or else the arrangement with Spain holds.

Henry sees Danielle again as she dresses up like a courtier to save one of the servants that her stepmother has sold into slavery. She looks familiar, but Henry can't recall. He is intrigued by this spitfire of a girl and Danielle leaves him with the name Countess Nicole de Lancre.

The romance evolves through several forbidden "dates" with Leonardo da Vinci as the "fairy godfather". Meanwhile, Baroness de Ghent (the stepmother) and Marguerite (evil stepsister) has had their eyes on the Prince ever since they received news that he will be able to choose his own bride.

I will not ruin the climax of the movie as it is the best part of the film. But needless to say, they lived happily ever after. It's a wonderfully enchanting film and Drew Barrymore couldn't be more perfect for the role. This movie also has many great quotes full of wit, humor, and love. It will touch your heart and I couldn't recommend this film more. It's a must-see and a must-buy!

The score by George Fenton is also powerful, touching, and magical. I recommend the soundtrack for all lovers of the movie as well as classical music.

This is a wonderful version of the Cinderella story. Drew Barrymore plays the role of Danielle (Cinderella), Dougray Scott plays the Prince Henry, and Angelica Huston plays the wicked stepmother Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent. The cast couldn't have been better! Especially Angelica who adds more "evil" to her character with the lifts of her eyebrows (trust me, it makes all the difference :] )

Instead of the original mice, her fellow servants are her friends, and Leonardo de Vinci is her "fairy godmother".

Her gown was gorgeous and the location was awesome. The accents were a bit bumpy, but everything else was great!

The fable was told differently in this movie and Andy Tennant did a good job directing the film. It's an awesome movie! Watch it and see for yourself!

Oh Gawd! Not another explosion movie!

Well, in fact, that's right. It's _not_ just another explosion movie. It's not a generic execution of a formula. It's not all special effects. It's actually worth seeing.

Why you ask? Well, it's got hook. It's got a villain that is expertly crafted by the screen writers, and absolutely perfectly portrayed by Alan Rickman. This character, Hans Gruber, is despicable, complex, and deliciously hate-worthy. It's his job to drive this film. If you don't hate him, the only thing left is... well, explosions. But you do hate him, and that fact makes all the difference.

Rickman is so good at playing Gruber that, while the character is secretly hijacking a skyscraper, the actor is publicly hijacking the entire movie. I own this DVD, and I gotta tell ya, every time I see him get it in the end, I stand up and cheer. It's that kind of film. (Oh. You haven't seen it, and I just ruined it for you by telling you the villain gets it? Yeah right. Sorry 'bout that.:-)

If Rickman is the guy I love to hate, Willis is the guy I hate to love. Lots of violence. Lots of explosions in most of what he does, but check out _Twelve Monkeys_ or _Fifth Element_. They work, and so does he. Willis's character in _Die Hard_, John McClane, has depth. Marital conflict. Head trips. The audience cares about him too. He's not just a slip filling the hero role. Willis has a way of delivering, and allowing others around him to shine.

Bottom line: This is to action films as Hank Williams is to Country music: it engages people who normally dislike the genre. Even if you aren't the action film type, _Die Hard_ is worth a try.

At first I thought this was a porn judging from the title but then I watched how Bruce dominated those eurotrash hoodlums and saved the day. No one wants to believe Bruce cause he's a lone cop stuck in the Arco towers while some bad guys plot to take off with some money from the secret vault. Ofcourse they don't get away with it!

The Bruce Willis character is obviously someone who will lay his life on the line when push comes to shove. I wish our current president had taken a page from the John McLane handbook instead of going AWOL from the National Guard (of all the places that you can go AWOL from that has to be the lamest). What if instead taking out the terrorists, McLane had decided to let them escape and then formed a task force to 'go after' them using taxpayer money? What if he had never found the head honcho terrorist but instead decided that there were other terrorists who weren't as tough or cunning to fight and had a lot of natural resources which coincidentally McLane's family business was capable of making use of?

All of these Democrats served in the military: Al Gore, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, Wes Clark, Gray Davis, David Bonior (one of the Baghdad Boys), and Max Cleland served in Vietnam. Ted Kennedy, Walter Mondale and Chuck Rangel served in Korea. Jimmy Carter ('No president of the United States in the twentieth century served more time in the military than Carter' - John Eisenhower), John Glenn and George McGovern served in WW II.

All of these Republicans dodged the draft: George W Bush, Dick 'I had other priorities during Vietnam' Cheney, Tom 'the minorities took all the good positions in the army so I had to be a Bugman during 'Nam (by the way I'm Not French)' DeLay, Rudy Giuliani, Dennis Hastert, Trent Lott, Bill Frist, John Ashcroft, Jeb Bush, Karl Rove, Newt Gingrich, Ronal Reagan, Saxby Chambliss, George Will, Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, Bill Bennett, Michael Savage, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Ralph Reed and Ted Nugent.

What political outfit do you think John McLane would have voted for?

A very impressive movie with great characterizations and wonderful performances. Highly recommended.

The DVD:
Picture and sound are perfect. The menu is nicely done, with animated stills from the movie. The comments by Mike Massey and the display of shots from the film are somewhat interesting but you can't really call it an explanation of the shots. Various camera perspectives or slow motion would have been more helpful. The trailers are interesting, the picture gallery is very very short. The featurette gives some insights, but doesn't go very deep.

Now the main criticism, the (as it says on the box) "Various audio commentaries": You can't do audio commentaries worse. An interviewer asks one of the commentators a question, eg What was your impression of Robert Rossen? or How was it working with ...? After the question has been answered by that person, the next one is asked the same question. This becomes boring pretty fast, especially because some of the answers are not worth to listen to. Stefan Gierasch, Richard Schickel and Jeff Young give only short statements, making you wonder why they're there anyway. Carol Rossen tells some interesting stories, but you get the impression she has a very subjective point of view that doesn't tell everything. Ulu Grosbard delivers a lot of informations. Paul Newman is the biggest disappointment, because he is rarely asked and all in all says about 10 sentences. This is beaten by Dede Allen, the editor, who most of the time ignores the questions and starts to tell all kinds of stories about herself and her experiences in the movie and editing business. This is definitely the best and most interesting part of the commentary, if you're interested in insider stories about movie making and editing. The bad thing about the commentary is that it never relates to the movie which is running in the background. The commentators don't commentate because they don't see the film. They're simply answering questions, which definitely is not the purpose of such a commentary. You have to ask yourself if complete interviews with the persons would not have been better (since they're obviously done as interviews and are also part of comments in the featurette).

In the end you get to know some facts about the movie, basically nothing about Robert Rossen and a lot about Dede Allen. This could have been really better.

By the time Paul Newman played Fast Eddie Felson in THE HUSTLER, he had already established himself as Hollywood's most enduring icon of the anti-establishment rebel. It was almost a given that director Robert Rossen would tap him for the lead role based on the novel by Walter Tevis. For any male who has spent much of a misspent life in a pool hall, the look and feel of the felt table ambiance rings true. In addition to a crackling good story of a young man wishing to unseat the local champ, there is a running subtext of how some people recognize their limitations and can pay a heavy price to overcome them.

Newman invests his Felson persona with alternating crescendos of charm, punk-alley rage, and grittiness. Felson and his partner Charley (Myron McCormick) hustle pool players for chump change. A few hundred here, a few bucks there, and Charley is satisfied. But not Eddie. Although no one on screen has told him, "You're good, real good, but not so good as The Fat Man," Felson makes it clear that his ego requires that he himself must be the best. It is this drive for a supremacy that Steve McQueen would later follow in THE CINCINATTI KID that introduces the theme that to be the best requires more than raw talent at pool. Fast Eddie has the talent, but in his drive to be the top, he sends out mixed signals that he has the discipline too. Minnesota Fats, the long-reigning champion, has plenty of both. Jackie Gleason as Fats is exactly right as the champion who knows that even for such a winner as himself, he still understands the power politics of who pushes the buttons to stage manage each bout for felt table supremacy. The power behind Fats' throne is Bert Gordon, a gambling entrepeneur who rigs each contest so that for him it is not gambling at all. George Scott as Gordon knows every player who can help or hurt him. Regardless of the outcome of any match, he will always take his cut. Many of the finest scenes of THE HUSTLER have nothing to do with pool, although nearly all of them occur in the dimly lit grunge of seedy pool halls. These scenes examine an inverted father-son clash of egos with Gordon as the vicious sadist father who seeks to browbeat his wayward son and Fats as the sympathetic yet lethal opponent who both understands the demons that drives Felson and exudes emotional support at crucial moments. And then there is Sarah Packard, an alcoholic student/writer who sees in Felson the deeply buried winner that she is sure is there. Piper Laurie as Sarah is perhaps the most complex of the trio who impact on Felson. She nurtures him through his and her own crises, all the while knowing that for him to be the winner he can be, she must pay the price that will validate in his own ideas the belief that he is not the loser that Bert Gordon often accuses him of being.

THE HUSTLER is probably one of the best two or three films of the sixties in that it explores what it is like to reach for that which may be beyond one's grasp. The interplay between those who seek to erode Felson's confidence and those who seek to enhance it suggest that the ability to adapt to changing psychological environments is the key for success. The price as he learns, is that others may have to pay that price for him. THE HUSTLER emphasizes this point better than any other film of that decade--or any for that matter.

This was an absolutely great movie. Newman was definitely at his best as "Fast Eddie" Felson. This is the role that would eventually win him the Oscar in 1986 for the Color of Money. The performances by Jackie Gleason as Minnesota Fats, George C. Scott as Bert Gordon and Piper Laurie as Sarah were all Oscar worthy. Definitely worth buying.

Although Futurama really hits its stride in season 2, this collection of 1st season episodes is still filled with dense verbal and visual humor and it's fun seeing how the characters began their development. Matt Groening's "Life In Hell" attitude permeates each episode as it should and the result is the usual hilarious and cynical view of human behavior. The extra features, which include deleted scenes, are great for any fan as even the scenes that were cut from the finished shows are funny.

Fry is accidental cryagenic frozen and ends up in the year 3000. After that just toss the logic out the window. A one-eyed alien, a hard-drinking robot, a great-great-great-forever nephew and a brave new world to explore! The first 13 episodes, each with full-length audio commentary which is as funny as the episodes themselves. PLUS delected scenes, a behind-the-scenes featurette and lots of other extras. While the series is making fun of sci-fi, it is also sometimes very serious, dealing with issues of romance, sin and racism against robots. OK, OK, the series doesn't take much of anything seriously. There are suicide booths, Robot Washes, anchovies, a Robot Hell, New New York City, living heads, liquid aliens, addictive soft drinks and invasions of Earth.

Nothing to say other than: The BEST SHOW EVER!

Eat me: The Simpsons