Sunday, November 27, 2011

Blue Tooth Virgin

  • BLUE TOOTH VIRGIN, THE (DVD MOVIE)
When David, a magazine editor, gives his best friend’s latest screenplay a negative review, he hilariously learns that sometimes the truth isn’t always the best policy. Starring Bryce Johnson, Amber Benson, Karen Black and Roma MaffiaA writer asks a writer friend for his honest, truthful, no-holds-barred opinion on a newly-completely screenplay. This can only end badly. The Bluetooth Virgin is the concentrated tale of this dire situation, rolled out in a series of discrete scenes that (appropriately enough for a movie about writing) highlight the word above all else. Sam (Austin Peck) is the author looking for feedback, and David (Bryce Johnson) is his pal, a magazine editor; the script in question has the frankly terrible title of The Bluetooth Virgin. One high point comes early, on the golf course, as David's initial encouraging reactions to the piece ! gradually give way to admitting that, well, the script had a lot of problems. Primarily a batch of two-person dialogues, the movie also gets boosts from Lauren Stamile and a formidable Karen Black. Writer-director Russell Brown arranges the movie around the Mamet-esque exchanges of his characters, who are generally not really wanting the thing they say they're wanting. This sort of assertively "written" dialogue can be exciting to listen to, especially in an age that values a lax naturalism in movie dialogue, and Brown has a fine ear for self-delusion. The danger in such an approach, and Brown doesn't elude it, is that such a movie can feel like a self-contained system, without room for breath or uncertainty. But it's an undeniably clever system. --Robert Horton

First Snow in the Woods: A Photographic Fantasy

  • ISBN13: 9780977010868
  • Condition: New
  • Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Guy Pearce (Memento, L.A. Confidential), Piper Perabo (Coyote Ugly) and JK Simmons (Thank You For Smoking, Spiderman 1-3) star in this intriguing thriller about a man whose life spins out of control after psychic tells him his days are numbered. After his car breaks down in a desolate town, a slick salesman, Jimmy Starks (Pearce), visits a fortune teller (Simmons) to kill some time. But the psychic’s ominous reading sends Jimmy’s life into a tailspin when he learns that his life will soon end, but he is safe at least, until the first snow of the season. Now, with his ultimate fate looming nearer, Jimmy becomes obsessed with revisiting his past in hopes of changing! his destiny before it’s too late. With a thriller as low-key as First Snow, dynamic acting is a must. Fortunately, Guy Pearce (Memento) owns the screen as slick salesman Jimmy Starks. In his first film, Oscar-nominated writer Mark Fergus (Children of Men) forgoes visual effects in favor of an increasingly complex narrative. As in many Stephen King novels, the story centers on the collision between a man of reason and a man of faith--in the supernatural, that is. The foreshadowing begins when Starks visits fortune teller Vacaro (J.K. Simmons, Spider-Man). Starks assumes he's a fellow hustler. Then his every prediction comes true. On a return trip, Vacaro tells him he'll be dead by first snow, but can't say how or when. Should Starks put his affairs in order, enjoy his time with girlfriend Deirdre (Piper Perabo), or just do nothing? Then again, snow seems unlikely for Albuquerque. Over the next few days, several possible culprits come to light, ! like Andy (Rick Gonzalez), an assistant Starks fired, and Vinc! e (Shea Wigham), a partner he sold down the river. Convinced one of them is going to seek revenge, Starks becomes so paranoid he opens the door to disaster. Fergus excels in keeping the tension at a low boil, but he undersells the climax. Still, it's a nice change from all the mysteries that build in intensity before collapsing in a heap of improbabilities. First Snow is rooted in the real world from the first frame to the last. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

The first snow has fallen.
The mice children go sledding
with Grandma and Grandpa.
But at the top of the hill,
who will go first?
Bitty, the smallest mouse,
is scared.
When she tries,

WHEEEEEE,

she finds that sledding is the best!

Caldecott Medalist Emily Arnold McCully captured the chills and thrills of a first sled ride when first snow was published in 1985. She has added words and created new pictures for this handsome larger edition, a compani! on to picnic.

KNOCKED OUT OF THE SKY BY A PASSING PLANE, SEAN HAS MISSED HISBIG FLIGHT SOUTH. BUT WINTER IS SCHEDULED TO ARRIVE ON TIME, SO THE LITTLE DUCK WILL HAVE TO PREPARE. LUCKILY, SEAN MEETS VOLEY,A GOODHEARTED FRIEND WHO TAKES SEAN UNDER HIS WING, TEACHING HIMHOW TO GATHER FOOD AND WARMTH AND STEER CLEAR OF THE CRAFTY FOX.The winter adventures of an errant young Irish duck who loses track of his family on their annual southbound flight make for a charming tale voiced in accents from the British Isles with appealing animation reminiscent of the Little Bear series. If our hero Sean were human, he would probably be diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder. But he's fowl, so his mother (Carol Kane) makes her own diagnosis: he's "a duck running amok." So it's no surprise when he strays from the family formation and gets knocked back to earth to face winter alone. He is ably tutored by a good-natured, riverdancing vole (Tim Curry) who imparts some handy survi! val wisdom before he hibernates. The last 10 minutes of this 2! 7-minute story are crammed with a series of short-lived perils involving a storm, a fox, and Sean's inability to find his parents as the ducks return in the spring. It all ends well, but very young and/or sensitive children may have a few anxious moments along the way. --Kimberly Heinrichs

Down with Love (Widescreen Edition)

  • 2003 - Down With Love - DVD Video
  • Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Tony Randall
  • Widescreen Edition - Rated PG-13
  • New - With Bonus Features -
  • Collectible
Renee Zellweger (Chicago) and Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge) are the toast of the town in the most stylish romantic comedy of the year! From the producers of American Beauty and the director of Bring It On comes a teasing, tantalizing battle of the sexes that is "pure enchantment" (Daily News). When best-selling feminist author Barbara Novak (Zellweger) becomes the target of dashing playboy Catcher Block (McGregor), these sparring, would-be lovers generate enough sparks to fly you to the moon and back. In other words, the ultimate catch has just met his match!The bright, glossy world of Doris Day and Rock Hudson sex comedies gets a self-aware brush-up in Down with Love. Pillow-lipped Renée Zellweger (Ch! icago) plays Barbara Novak, the author of a bestselling book called Down with Love that advises women to focus on their careers and have sex à la carte--just like a man would. Determined to prove that Novak is just as vulnerable to love as any woman, dashingly chauvinist magazine writer Catcher Block (ever-charming Ewan McGregor, Moulin Rouge) pretends to be a courtly astronaut who wouldn't dream of putting his hand on a woman's knee. This piffle of a story seems like nothing more than an excuse for ironic double-entendres and dazzling production design, until a sneaky plot twist suddenly raises the stakes for the movie's end. As he always does, the brilliant David Hyde Pierce (Frasier) scores the most comic points as Block's fussy editor. --Bret Fetzer

Filth and Wisdom

Donnie Brasco (Special Edition)

  • TESTED
DVDBased on a memoir by former undercover cop Joe Pistone (whose daring and unprecedented infiltration of the New York Mob scene earned him a place in the federal witness protection program), Donnie Brasco is like a de-romanticized, de-mythologized version of The Godfather. It offers an uncommonly detailed, privileged glimpse inside the world of organized crime from the perspective of the little guys at the bottom of Mafia hierarchy rather than from the kingpins at the top. Donnie Brasco is not only one of the great modern-day gangster movies to put in the company of The Godfather films and GoodFellas, but it is also one of the great undercover police movies--arguably surpassing Serpico and Prince of the City in richness of character, detail, and moral complexity. Donnie (Johnny Depp, a splendid actor) is practically adopted by Lefty Rug! giero (Al Pacino), a gregarious, low-level "made" man who grows to love his young protégé like a son. (Pacino really sinks into this guy's skin and polyester slacks, and creates his freshest, most fully realized character since his 1970s heyday.) As Donnie acclimates himself to Lefty's world, he distances himself from his wife (a terrific Anne Heche) and family for their own protection. Almost imperceptibly his sense of identity slips away from him. Questioning his own confused loyalties, unable to trust anybody else because he himself is an imposter, Donnie loses his way in a murky and treacherous no-man's land. The film is directed by Mike Newell, who also headed up Four Weddings and a Funeral and the gritty, true crime melodrama Dance with a Stranger. --Jim Emerson

Fighter

  • FIGHTER (DVD MOVIE)
Academy Award® Nominees Mark Wahlberg (The Departed), Christian Bale (The Dark Knight) and Amy Adams (Doubt) star in this “remarkable†” film. Based on a true story, two brothers, against all the odds, come together to train for a historic title bout that has the power to reunite their fractured family and give their hard-luck town what it's been waiting for: pride. Micky Ward (Wahlberg) is a struggling boxer long overshadowed by his older brother and trainer, Dicky (Bale), a local legend battling his own demons. Their explosive relationship threatens to take them both down - but the bond of blood may be their only chance for redemption. Joe Morgenstern, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL It would be a mistake to confuse The Fighter with the story of Mark Wahlberg, though the similarities are striking. Completely convincing as a boxer, Wahlberg plays welterweight Micky W! ard, who grew up in working-class Massachusetts. Like the actor-producer, he had eight siblings, one more famous than the rest. Ward's half-brother, Dicky Eklund (a gaunt, crazy-eyed Christian Bale), turned to boxing first, just as Mark's brother, Donnie, preceded him as a performer (first by singing, then by acting). The similarities end there: Dicky, once known as "The Pride of Lowell," traded his promising pugilistic career for a crack pipe (Sugar Ray Leonard cameos as his best-known opponent). As David O. Russell's film begins, the smothering Alice (Frozen River's Melissa Leo) manages Micky's career, while the unpredictable Dicky attempts to train him. Despite his talent in the ring, though, Micky can't catch a break until he meets Charlene (Amy Adams), a spitfire of a bartender who encourages him to stand up for himself. When Dicky ends up in prison, and Micky takes on a more experienced manager, his fortunes start to improve, but it isn't in his nature to aband! on the people who raised him, so he attempts to unite the vari! ous fact ions in his life before his shot at the world championship slips away. Though Russell paints Micky's mother, brother, and sisters with a broad brush, Wahlberg anchors the scenario with his patient, level-headed performance. Rescue Me's Jack McGee also deserves notice as his diplomatic dad, George. --Kathleen C. FennessyAcademy Award® Nominees Mark Wahlberg (The Departed), Christian Bale (The Dark Knight) and Amy Adams (Doubt) star in this “remarkable” film*. Based on a true story, two brothers, against all the odds, come together to train for a historic title bout that has the power to reunite their fractured family and give their hard-luck town what it's been waiting for: pride. Micky Ward (Wahlberg) is a struggling boxer long overshadowed by his older brother and trainer, Dicky (Bale), a local legend battling his own demons. Their explosive relationship threatens to take them both down - but the bond of blood may be their only chance for redemption. *Joe! Morgenstern, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL It would be a mistake to confuse The Fighter with the story of Mark Wahlberg, though the similarities are striking. Completely convincing as a boxer, Wahlberg plays welterweight Micky Ward, who grew up in working-class Massachusetts. Like the actor-producer, he had eight siblings, one more famous than the rest. Ward's half-brother, Dicky Eklund (a gaunt, crazy-eyed Christian Bale), turned to boxing first, just as Mark's brother, Donnie, preceded him as a performer (first by singing, then by acting). The similarities end there: Dicky, once known as "The Pride of Lowell," traded his promising pugilistic career for a crack pipe (Sugar Ray Leonard cameos as his best-known opponent). As David O. Russell's film begins, the smothering Alice (Frozen River's Melissa Leo) manages Micky's career, while the unpredictable Dicky attempts to train him. Despite his talent in the ring, though, Micky can't catch a break until he meets Charl! ene (Amy Adams), a spitfire of a bartender who encourages him ! to stand up for himself. When Dicky ends up in prison, and Micky takes on a more experienced manager, his fortunes start to improve, but it isn't in his nature to abandon the people who raised him, so he attempts to unite the various factions in his life before his shot at the world championship slips away. Though Russell paints Micky's mother, brother, and sisters with a broad brush, Wahlberg anchors the scenario with his patient, level-headed performance. Rescue Me's Jack McGee also deserves notice as his diplomatic dad, George. --Kathleen C. FennessyThe female karate kid.

Newcomer Semra Turan delivers a star-making performance as Aicha, a Copenhagen high school senior who dreams of becoming a champion mixed martial arts fighter. But when her conservative Turkish parents demand she go to medical school, Aicha instead begins secretly training at the local academy of Sifu (Xian Gao of CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON fame). In a brutal sport where men make the rul! es, can a strong-willed woman battle her way to respect? And in a world where cultures clash as hard as any combat, will she survive long enough to decide what s worth fighting for? Cyron Melville and Sadi Tekelioglu co-star in this explosive drama featuring stunning choreography by Xian Gao that goes far beyond the usual martial arts movie.

Aliens of the Deep

  • Take a once-in-a-lifetime journey with Academy Award(R)-winning director James Cameron (Best Director, TITANIC, 1997) in ALIENS OF THE DEEP, and make contact with another world. This incredible underwater adventure gives you extraordinary glimpses of unbelievable creatures that live in an alien world in the deepest depths of the sea. Could these alien life forms be clues to life in outer space? It
Take a once-in-a-lifetime journey with Academy Award(R)-winning director James Cameron (Best Director, TITANIC, 1997) in ALIENS OF THE DEEP, and make contact with another world. This incredible underwater adventure gives you extraordinary glimpses of unbelievable creatures that live in an alien world in the deepest depths of the sea. Could these alien life forms be clues to life in outer space? It's an exciting exploration you'll not soon forget.~~(c)Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc. and Walden M! edia, LLC ~~James Cameron takes another foray into the depths with a new deep-sea documentary. Following the shipwreck of Ghosts of the Abyss, Cameron focuses his abundant energies on where life is not powered by sunlight. These implications are taken a bit further, thanks to some dandy effects, on how life may develop in the ice-covered waters of Jupiter's moons. Some of the newly seen creatures are truly amazing: a fish with feet, shrimp that can swim between boiling hot steam and icy currents. Plus there's a cute creature that looks like something from an animator's portfolio: an albino octopus with fins. Like Ghosts, this film is significantly different on DVD. Both were presented in IMAX 3-D but are only 2-D on DVD; however, also included are extended versions, doubling the original's 45-minute run time. The added footage gets you more in-depth coverage of the crew and the missions. Cameron is also an expert host, showing his enthusiasm for the project ("! I love this stuff!") while letting his younger scientist co-st! ars lead the way. (Ages 6 and older) --Doug Thomas

Blade Trinity (Unrated Version)

  • The final battle begins and the trinity comes to an end! Blade is back and his enemies have grown in number since they resurrected their king, Dracula. Together with a new group of vampire hunters, called the Nightstalkers, led by Whistler's strong but beautiful daughter Abigail and the wise-cracking Hannibal, they must finally defeat the vampires or face inevitable extinction.Running Time: 123 mi
The final battle begins and the trinity comes to an end! Blade is back and his enemies have grown in number since they resurrected their king, Dracula. Together with a new group of vampire hunters, called the Nightstalkers, led by Whistler's strong but beautiful daughter Abigail and the wise-cracking Hannibal, they must finally defeat the vampires or face inevitable extinction.Even skeptical fans of the Blade franchise will enjoy sinking their teeth into Blade: Trinity. The law of dimi! nishing returns is in full effect here, and the franchise is wearing out its welcome, but let's face it: any movie that features Jessica Biel as an ass-kicking vampire slayer and Parker Posey--yes, Parker Posey!--as a vamping vampire villainess can't be all bad, right? Those lovely ladies bring equal measures of relief and grief to Blade, the half-human, half-vampire once again played, with tongue more firmly in stone-cold cheek, by Wesley Snipes. With series writer David S. Goyer in the director's chair, the film is calculated for mainstream appeal, trading suspenseful horror for campy humor and choppy, nonsensical action. The franchise still offers some intriguing ideas, however, including Drake (Dominic Purcell), the original vampire, whose blood contains the secret that could destroy all blood-suckers in a plot that incorporates a sinister "blood farm" where humans are held--and drained--in suspended animation. And Biel's wise-cracking sidekick (Ryan Reynolds) in her ca! dre of "Nightstalkers" provides comic relief in a series that'! s grown increasingly dour. All of which makes Blade: Trinity a love-it-or-hate-it sequel... supposedly the last in a trilogy, but the ending suggests otherwise. --Jeff Shannon

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia