David Vaughn

Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Field of Dreams (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Jun 04, 2009

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/fod.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Iowa corn farmer Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) questions his own sanity when he hears a voice whispering, "If you build it, he will come." Eventually, a vision of a baseball field appears in the distance, planting the seed of a most unusual idea. With the help of his supportive wife Annie (Amy Madigan), Ray tears up a portion of his crop and constructs a baseball diamond, leading to the appearance of Shoeless Joe Jackson (Ray Liotta) and seven other White Sox players from the disgraced 1919 team. Play ball!

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Defiance
David Vaughn  |  Jun 02, 2009  |  Published: Jun 03, 2009

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/defiance.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>The World War II true story of the Belski brothers' fight against the German army features an amazing 1080p AVC encode. It contains superior detail in both close-ups and long shots as well as rich color saturation, especially the greenery of the Belarusian forest. Audio-wise, the disc has its moments, but there are only a few scenes that are demo-worthy, one of which I highlight below.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Defiance (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Jun 01, 2009

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/defiance.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Brothers Tuvia (Daniel Craig) and Zus (Live Schreiber) Bielski are farmers turned warriors when the Germans invade Poland in 1939. Along with their two younger brothers, Asael (Jamie Bell) and Aron (George MacKay), they flee into the Belarusian forest to survive and eventually fight back against the Nazis along with a group of Jewish refugees they vow to protect.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Revolutionary Road (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Jun 01, 2009

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/revroad.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Based on the bestseller by Richard Yates about married life in the 1950s, April (Kate Winslet) and Frank Wheeler (Leonardo DiCaprio) have what appears to be the perfect life&#151;a happy marriage, two kids, and a beautiful home in Connecticut. But behind the scenes, it's a different story. Frank loathes his job, and April's dream of becoming an actress is all but dead. Looking to improve their circumstances, April hatches a plan to leave the suburban life behind and move to Paris to discover new beginnings. But when unforeseen events derail her plan, what measures will she take to get things back on track?

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Big (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Jun 01, 2009

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/big.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>After being denied admittance onto an amusement-park ride because he's not tall enough, 12-year-old Josh Baskin (David Moscow) places a quarter into a Zoltar machine and wishes he was big. When he awakes the next morning, his wish is granted and he's transformed into the body of a 30 year old (Tom Hanks). New to the adult world, he gets a job, earns his first paycheck, and gets the girl (Elizabeth Perkins) despite&#151;or perhaps because of&#151;his childlike mindset.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Falling Down—Warner Bros. (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  May 31, 2009
Video: 4/5
Audio: 3/5
Extras: 4/5
Freeways are clogged. Terror stalks our cities. At shops and restaurants, the customer is seldom right. Pressures of big-city life can anger anyone. But Bill Foster is more than angry. He's out to get even. Foster abandons his gridlocked car, license plate D-FENS, on the hottest day of the year and walks straight into an urban nightmare both absurdly funny and shatteringly violent. Michael Douglas is Foster, an ordinary guy at war with the frustrations of daily life. Robert Duvall is the savvy cop obsessed with stopping Fosters citywide rampage. This spellbinding thriller is their story, asking "Are we falling apart?".
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Star Trek: Original Motion Picture Collection—Paramount Pictures (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering,  |  May 31, 2009
Video: 4/5
Audio: 4.25/5
Extras: 4/5
Prepare to boldly go where no man has gone before with the "Star Trek: Original Motion Picture Collection", an action-packed box set featuring the six films in their original theatrical versions starring the U.S.S. Enterprise's legendary crew.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Taken—20th Century Fox (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  May 31, 2009
Video: 4.5/5
Audio: 4.5/5
Extras: 4/5
When his estranged daughter is kidnapped in Paris, a former spy sets out to find her at any cost. Relying on his special skills, he tracks down the ruthless gang that abducted her and launches a one-man war to bring them to justice and rescue his daughter.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Valkyrie—MGM (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  May 31, 2009
Video: 4.5/5
Audio: 4.5/5
Extras: 4.25/5
Based on the incredible true story of Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg and his ingenious assassination plot targeting Adolph Hitler, this engrossing thriller reenacts the daring operation to eliminate one of the most evil tyrants the world has ever known.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Seabiscuit
David Vaughn  |  May 29, 2009

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/seabiscuit.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>The little horse that could debuts on Blu-ray with a fantastic VC-1 encode and an encompassing DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack. It was difficult to pick only three scenes to highlight here, since virtually the entire film is filled with worthy scenes. For example, any of the racing sequences will give you the illusion of riding a horse in the middle of a high-stakes race with the animals' labored breathing and pounding hooves. The same can be said of the video and its impeccable attention to detail. Each of the three scenes below will give you a general idea of why this disc deserves the title of "Ultimate Demo."

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