LATEST ADDITIONS

John Tucker Must Die—20th Century Fox
Mike Prince  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 2
Audio: 2
Extras: 3
Ah, the joys of high school: acne, proms, SATs, vengeance. At least that’s what John Tucker Must Die leads me to believe. See, John Tucker is the BMOC, the basketball captain, and a playa with the ladies. Unfortunately, three of John’s ladies (all WB girls, I think) have found out about one another and enlist the help of the new girl, Katie, to enact revenge. Hijinks and female empowerment ensue.
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Reservoir Dogs 15th Anniversary—Lionsgate
Adrienne Maxwell  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 4
Let’s do a little math. If a film comes out in 1992, and its 10th-anniversary Special Edition DVD arrives in 2002, what year should the 15th Anniversary Edition DVD be released? Granted, I was an English major, but even I can count to five—something Lionsgate apparently cannot do. How else do you explain the October 2006 release of this two-disc set? Perhaps the more relevant question is, do we need a 15th-anniversary DVD of Reservoir Dogs?
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Van Morrison Live at Montreux 1980/1974—Eagle Vision
Steve Guttenberg  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 2
Audio: 4
Extras: 0
Over his long career, Van Morrison has recorded close to 40 albums, but his video appearances are rare. That’s why I so fondly remember the Van Morrison: The Concert VHS tape, a stellar show recorded in 1989. But it never came out on DVD. Long-deprived fans will relish Live at Montreux 1980/1974, a two-disc set with both complete shows (selected by the man himself).
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Over the Hedge—DreamWorks
Adrienne Maxwell  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 4
Audio: 3
Extras: 4
Based on a comic strip by Michael Fry and T. Lewis, Over the Hedge follows a group of critters who, after a long winter’s sleep, wake up to find a housing development in their backyard. Enter RJ, a self-serving raccoon who introduces them to the glory of potato chips, cookies, and other human scraps—and dupes the nave foragers into helping him repay a food debt to an ominous black bear. The film serves up likable characters, some laugh-out-loud moments, and a script that cleverly lampoons humans’ tendency to overdo, well, everything—yet it doesn’t quite possess the allure and enduring charm of a Shrek or Finding Nemo.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
V for Vendetta—Warner Brothers (HD DVD)
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 5
Audio: 5
Extras: 4
V for Vendetta is the heartwarming tale of a near future where the government has taken an Orwellian turn for the oppressive extreme. Ironically, this time, John Hurt plays the oppressor instead of the oppressed. His government subdues all, except for the “terrorist” V, who decides he’s mad as hell and isn’t going to take it anymore. Adapted from the graphic novel of the same name, V is decent, but it’s disappointing in that it could have been a lot better.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Mission: Impossible III 2-Disc Collector’s Edition—Paramount (HD DVD)
Gary Frisch  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 5
Audio: 4
Extras: 4
M:i:III is the first film to be released simultaneously on HD DVD, Blu-ray, and standard DVD. Underachieving at the box office, this is nonetheless a lavish and worthy entry in the franchise. Philip Seymour Hoffman steals the show as a vile weapons dealer, but there are plenty of action sequences, stunts, and disguises to support Cruise. So what if it feels like we’ve seen it all before? Director J.J. Abrams adds a few fresh twists, and it’s still good fun the third time around.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Casablanca—Warner Brothers (HD DVD)
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 3
Audio: 3
Extras: 5
Unashamedly, this is my favorite movie of all time. From the dialogue, to the acting, to the story, everything about this movie is awesome. If you never have, you owe it to yourself to see it. The story centers around hardened bar owner Rick, a lost love, and sticking it to some Nazis, which always make for good entertainment. As usual with a superior movie like this one, it’s about all that and more.
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World Trade Center 2-Disc Commemorative Edition—Paramount
Gary Frisch  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 4
The massive reconstruction of Ground Zero for Oliver Stone’s tribute to the heroes of 9/11 is one of the more fascinating DVD extras I’ve seen in a while. The set had to resemble the actual site and be flexible enough to allow for lighting and shooting in tight spaces—all while being safe for the crew to work on and around.
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The Devil Wears Prada—20th Century Fox
Aimee Giron  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 3
Audio: 4
Extras: 3
Anne Hathaway trades in her Brokeback boots for a pair of Pradas in Fox’s release la mode, The Devil Wears Prada. Andy Sachs (Hathaway) maneuvers through the stiletto-infested waters of Runway magazine as the newest assistant to editor-in-chief Miranda Priestly. While Andy maintains she’s only in it for the fringe benefits, she soon discovers she’s just a manipulation away from becoming a dragon lady herself. Hathaway has come a long way from her pretty princess role, but she’s still got a thing or two to learn from the ever-talented Meryl Streep, whose performance as the venerable Priestly screams Oscar, or so the rumor mill says.
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Forbidden Planet Ultimate Collector’s Edition—Warner Brothers
Chris Chiarella  |  Feb 05, 2007
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 4
A 1950s sci-fi classic, Forbidden Planet is a futuristic spin on William Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Fifty years later, it remains a fun and frightening cautionary tale of fathers, daughters, and hubris, replete with flying saucers, ray guns, and other technology far beyond our own.
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