BAD BOYS NOW AVAILABLE

BAD BOYS NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE FROM IMDB

Marcus Burnett is a hen-pecked family man. Mike Lowry is a foot-loose and fancy free ladies' man. Both are Miami policemen, and both have 72 hours to reclaim a consignment of drugs stolen from under their station's nose. To complicate matters, in order to get the assistance of the sole witness to a murder, they have to pretend to be each other. Written by James Hastie {jdh1000@cus.cam.ac.uk}

Marcus Burnett is a hen-pecked family man. Mike Lowrey is more of a loose cannon. They are partners on the Miami Police Department, and they are about to take on a highly dangerous case. 100 million dollars in heroin, from the biggest drug bust of their careers, is stolen from police headquarters. Now, they have 72 hours to reclaim the heroin before the Internal Affairs Division gets involved. This puts Mike and Marcus hot on the trail of a French drug kingpin named Fouchet. Mike asks Maxine Logan, a hooker he knows, to keep an eye open for high rollers. Later, she gets a call from a guy who's high on drugs and wants to spend $2000. Maxine asks her best friend Julie Mott to tag along with her to the home of former cop Eddie Dominguez. Julie is not a hooker but the guy's so out of it that they'll be out of there with the money in just minutes. But at Dominguez's house, Fouchet kills Maxine. Julie witnessed the murder, so she contacts the police. But Julie, who doesn't know what Mike looks like, is willing to talk only to Mike. Mike is not around, so Marcus is forced to pretend to be Mike, and when Mike returns, he's forced to pretend to be Marcus. Marcus is a family man who has a wife named Theresa and three kids named James, Megan, and Quincy, while Mike is not, so this is not a very close fit. Mike and Marcus's pursuit of Fouchet kicks into overdrive when Fouchet's henchmen kidnap Julie right out from under their noses. Written by Todd Baldridge

Detectives Mike Lowery and Marcus Brunette have 72 hours to find $100 million worth of heroin before Internal Affairs shuts them down. Lowery becomes more involved after a friend is murdered by the drug dealers. Matters become complicated when Lowery and Brunette have to switch places to convince a witness to the murder to cooperate. Written by Nate Dogg {holtslander@hotmail.com}

HERE IS THE REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE BAD BOYS FROM DVDTALK

The Feature:
At one point in my life, I considered myself a big fan of director Michael Bay. That was before he rolled out over-hyped blockbusters like "Armageddon" and "Pearl Harbor." But watching "Bad Boys" again makes me remember what I liked so much about his earliest movies... his style was fresh.

Mike Lowry (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) are detectives investigating the theft of a hefty amount of heroin stolen from their police station in the middle of the night. Concurrently, one of Lowry's female friends is murdered while attending a "private party." Unfortunately for the bad guys, there's a witness, and her name is Julie (Tea Leoni). For reasons not worth getting into, this leads to Lowry and Burnett switching identities, which in turn, leads to funny misunderstandings.

Now, the plot is VERY cookie-cutter. You've seen this movie before, even if it wasn't called "Bad Boys." But regardless of that fact, this is the type of mindless action movie I enjoy every once in a while (please note that I don't consider this a great, or even a very good movie).

Smith and Lawrence have an undeniable chemistry, and it will be interesting to see if they can once again reproduce it when they team up for the upcoming sequel due out Summer 2003 (eight years after the original). In addition to the on-screen pairing of Lawrence and Smith, this movie also features all the buddy-cop, action movie clichés you can stomach…

High speed car chases…. check
One cop's a family man, the other's a playa…. check
Tons of explosions and gunfire…. check
An evil foreign bad guy with an accent…. check
Mismatched partners always arguing with each other…. check
Jokes about how lame white people are…. check
Unnecessary catchphrases like "You forgot your boarding pass!"…. double check

Video:
Being a Superbit release, Columbia Tri-Star proudly presents "Bad Boys" in Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1. This is almost reference quality here, as I haven't seen a DVD with a vibrant color palette like this in a very long time. The print is free of blemishes (artifacting, grain, dirt, etc), and the picture is very sharp. The transfer present on this Superbit edition is noticeably better than the one on the previous release, in case you're wondering.

Audio:
The audio is presented here in Dolby 5.1 and DTS. The more-than-adequate 5.1 audio track was present on the original release. It utilizes surrounds very nicely… but the real star of the Superbit release is the DTS track. Everything sounds excellent, from character dialogue, gunfire and explosions, to the movie's then-hip soundtrack. In certain scenes (i.e. the race), you will feel the DTS rocking your world.

Menus:
A static DVD menu offers the choices of "Play Movie", "Audio Set Up", "Subtitles", and "Scene Selections."

Extras:
No extras here… If you want supplements, go check out the previous release.

Final Thoughts:
For me, Superbits are ONLY for DVD enthusiasts who have a top-notch DTS sound system, and a killer widescreen television set. If you have both, don't care for extras, and genuinely like "Bad Boys", then you should get this DVD immediately. Otherwise, I'd simply recommend it just for the improved transfer.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE BAD BOYS FROM IMDB.

KUNG FU PANDA NOW AVAILABLE

KUNG FU PANDA NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE KUNG FU PANDA FROM IMDB

It's the story about a lazy, irreverent slacker panda, named Po, who is the biggest fan of Kung Fu around...which doesn't exactly come in handy while working every day in his family's noodle shop. Unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy, Po's dreams become reality when he joins the world of Kung Fu and studies alongside his idols, the legendary Furious Five -- Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey -- under the leadership of their guru, Master Shifu. But before they know it, the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung is headed their way, and it's up to Po to defend everyone from the oncoming threat. Can he turn his dreams of becoming a Kung Fu master into reality? Po puts his heart - and his girth - into the task, and the unlikely hero ultimately finds that his greatest weaknesses turn out to be his greatest strengths. Written by Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}

A CG-animated comedy about a lazy, irreverent slacker panda, Po, who must somehow become a Kung Fu Master in order to save the Valley of Peace from a villainous snow leopard, Tai Lung. Set in the legendary world of ancient China, this is the story of Po, our unlikely hero, who enters the rigid world of Kung Fu and turning it upside down. Po ultimately becomes a Kung Fu hero by learning that if he believes in himself, he can do anything Written by GiorgioC

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE KUNG FU PANDA FROM DVDTALK

It's strange to behold a CG-animated film that leads with a swift pace and can manage to unfurl a laborious morale without grinding the whole production to a halt. "Kung Fu Panda" is a real charmer; a lightweight, generously funny family film that benefits from simplicity and a buffet of Asian cinema influences to pick from.

Giant panda Po (voiced by Jack Black) is stuck in his role as the son of a popular noodle chef. Frustrated, Po dreams of becoming a kung fu master, marveling at the skills of his idols The Furious Five: Crane (David Cross), Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Mantis (Seth Rogan), Viper (Lucy Liu), and their master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman). When a happy accident leaves Po crowned the "Dragon Warrior," an infuriated Shifu vows to never let Po survive the first day of training. However, once word spreads that villainous Tai Lung (Ian McShane) has broken out of prison and vows to destroy everything in his path, Po could very well be the only hero able to defeat Lung and save the land.

"Kung Fu Panda" has an enormous amount of fun with itself. A genial takeoff of kung fu cinema, "Panda" takes great delight twisting known clichés around with a bumbling lead character, whose head-crackin' ambition is only outmatched by his appetite. I found the film to be a wonderful antidote to Pixar's artistic stasis; it's a routine feature, but executed with an engorged heart and a real eagerness to please, not just trying to pluck heartstrings at predetermined stops and reach for the brass ring of timelessness. "Panda" is a cartoon in all the best, most satisfying meanings of the word, and I really couldn't resist its joviality and silly spirit.

That essence is provided in great part by the voice cast, led by a dominating Jack Black. If there's any actor born for animated voice work, it's Black, and he infuses Po with a childlike Baby Huey quality that blends well with the character's physical limitations. Po is a standard-issue dreamer, but Black gives the panda a wide-eyed life, finding the sympathies of the kung fu clown, while also rocketing forward with generous spastic Blackisms when Po slips into combat mode. It's a lovely piece of acting, even if it's a touch familiar. Because of Black, Po is a welcome pudgy lethal weapon. His Achilles heel? Steps.

Also a delight in a smaller role is acting veteran James Hong, here voicing Po's noodle-slinging father. Hong hits the right notes of parental disbelief and concern: a father who wants what's best for his child, as long as that means taking on the family business. It's a performance of squealy high notes that offers the character subtle comedic gems.

Younger audiences will surely respond to Po's continual buffoonish antics, but directors Mark Osborne and John Stevenson pay close attention to the action beats, especially the sensation of speed and gravity-defying martial art gymnastics. We're talking karate-chopping animals here and "Panda" spends plenty of time tracking the limber moves of the Furious Five, and Po's far more destructive learning curve. Overall, "Panda" is a visually sedate picture (at least in the competitive CG-animated rat race), leaving the dynamics of the animation to burst forth when the conflict heats up and the filmmakers can play around with anime, Shaw Brothers, and Wachowski visual touches.

While it doesn't insist too much, the message of Po's personal worth is a kindly touch wedged comfortably between the fall-down-and-go-boom and the fists of furry. It's a tender cap on an extremely entertaining animated feature, hoisting "Kung Fu Panda" above the traditional tiresome matinee diversion into something I'm fairly certain will please parents and tickle kids mercilessly.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE KUNG FU PANDA.

MEET DAVE NOW AVAILABLE

MEET DAVE NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE MEET DAVE FROM IMDB

A crew of miniature aliens operate a spaceship that has a human form. While trying to save their planet, the aliens encounter a new problem, as their ship becomes smitten with an Earth woman (Banks).

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE MEET DAVE FROM DVDTALK

Once the king of comedy, it's been a disheartening journey for Eddie Murphy recently; he's failed to remind audiences what once made him such a hot comedy commodity, only to see his mojo dissipate through a series of bad script choices and forgettable kid film diversions. I wouldn't label "Meet Dave" a reputation-revitalizing turn for the actor, but the picture is admirably competent, delightfully silly, and absent a majority of repulsions typically associated with an Eddie Murphy family film.

Sent to Earth to retrieve a planet-killing device the size of a small rock, a crew of Lilliputian aliens man a human-sized spaceship that goes by the name of Dave (Eddie Murphy). The Dave crew soon meets up with single mom Gina (Elizabeth Banks, working wonders with a thankless role) and her son Josh (Austin Lynd Myers), who has found the rock, only to lose possession of the crucial device to a school bully. Now set free in New York City, the crew (including Eddie Murphy, Gabrielle Union, and Ed Helms) uses Dave to absorb as much human culture as they can, finding attachment to Gina and Josh, and getting wrapped up in Earthbound emotions they are unaccustomed to.

Let's be honest, with Murphy and director Brian Robbins ("Norbit," "Good Burger") attached to "Meet Dave," expectations couldn't fall any lower. Robbins is a studio zombie with little artistic aspiration of his own, while Murphy likes paychecks and trading off his past. Let's just say I wasn't pumped to sit down with "Meet Dave."

Then something funny happened to these men: screenwriters Rob Greenberg ("How I Met Your Mother") and riff virtuoso Bill Corbett (Crow deux on "Mystery Science Theater 3000"). The gentlemen have created an engaging sci-fi adventure for Murphy and Robbins, putting some genuine thought into the scenarios, locales, and punchlines of the picture, giving Robbins and Murphy a screenplay that even they couldn't fully knucklehead up, despite their best efforts.

Perhaps I'm being too hard on Robbins, who actually connects with this strange mixture of "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids," "Star Trek," and "Innerspace." It's the most competent directorial job he's presented to date, creating a durable visual foundation for Murphy to play around on. There's an amazing playground of differing scales to embrace in this script, with Robbins putting in the cartoon work to sell the madness of little aliens vs. the big, bad world. Of course, I wasn't thrilled with predictable detours to potty humor, but "Meet Dave" manages to stay fixated on its intent: to massage the most weirdness out of the title character's alien status.

Maybe to Murphy, "Meet Dave" is nothing innovative, but there's a recognizable funny bone spark about him here that's been lost for some time. Dave offers Murphy an opportunity to try on some clowning, parading around in a blinding "Fantasy Island" suit and making faces for the camera in a sociable, sillyheart manner that's exceptionally endearing. The spaceship Dave is Murphy allowing himself a blast of atypical humiliation, and the actor wears it beautifully. The commander of spaceship Dave permits Murphy to stroke his well-documented Captain Kirk obsessions, and while it's the less showy of the two roles, Murphy achieves a pleasing Starfleet tone as the leader of the tiny pack.

It's not surprising to find that "Meet Dave" loses its way once sentimentality is introduced. Oddly, Robbins doesn't shove the film into tears and morals mode, only lightly coating the film with some uplifting messages and spending minimal time with romancing Dave crew members. Honestly, I would rather see more handholding and "It's a Wonderful Life" inspired sentiment than some of the more loathsome limp-wristed jokes (the Dave weapons specialist finds a love for musical theater and hairstyling) shoved into the material out of sheer desperation.

"Meet Dave" gets back on track with a smorgasbord of thrilling near-misses as the miniature Dave crew hits the streets of New York to save the day, dodging cars, getting stuck in gum, and using grocery store plastic bags to float to safety. I'm sure a more refined filmmaker could've squeezed the premise tighter for sophisticated laughs, but as family-angled sci-fi comedies go, "Meet Dave" is actually quite agreeable. Who knew Murphy still had some fun left in him?

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE MEET DAVE.

ROUNDERS NOW AVAILABLE

ROUNDERS NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE ROUNDERS FROM IMDB

Mike shows up at Teddy KGB's place to parlay his three stacks of "high society" ($30,000) into enough $ to play in the world series of poker. He runs into his old friend Knish. Knish tries to talk him out of playing because he feels they will take his whole bankroll. Mike plays, thinks he has a great hand, bets it all and loses. He is down to the felt, bust. Knish has a rout truck and lets Mike run the route to make money and Mike swears off poker. Mikes old friend "Worm" is getting out of prison and Mike picks him up. Worm pressures Mike into playing poker and they pull out all the old tricks and make decent money. Mike then sets Worm up, on his tab at a poker room. Worm wins but keeps Mike original debt to the poker room and then runs it up just over $7,000. Worm runs into his old collection agent "Grandma" who bought up all Worms old debt when he went away to prison and he takes what Worm has on him. (what happened..did you get distracted trying to finish?)

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE ROUNDERS FROM DVDTALK

The movie

Although I'm not a card player myself, unless you count Magic: The Gathering (which actually has a lot in common with poker when it comes to bluffing and spotting "tells"), I've developed quite a fondness for films about poker players. There's something about the battle of wits and nerve inherent in the game, along with the dramatic pressure of money being on the line, that makes high-stakes poker a very nice engine at the center of the plot. With that in mind, Rounders is a can't-miss movie.

Rounders is a classic poker film, focusing on on a young, talented, and rather cocky player named Mike (Matt Damon) who dreams of building a stake and heading to Las Vegas and the World Series of Poker. In one instant, though, it all goes sour, and Mike is left with nothing. He tries to take up a new life, working himself through law school with regular jobs instead of poker playing, but when his high-school buddy "Worm" (Edward Norton) gets out of jail, Mike finds that he hasn't been able to completely sever his ties to the world of poker playing... and that the stakes just keep getting higher.

It takes more than just some slick card-playing scenes to make a great movie, and that's where Rounders shines. Fundamentally, the film is a character piece: the heart of the film is Mike's conflicted relationship with playing cards, and how he deals with the pressures of winning and losing. His relationship with his girlfriend (Gretchen Mol) is a relatively small part of the film in terms of screen time, but it's actually essential to the story, as we see Mike being forced to come to terms with the choices he must make, and the consequences of those choices.

One of the things that makes Rounders so engrossing is that it keeps everything very real. For one thing, Mike's circumstances as a struggling law student mean that even relatively small amounts of money are significant. While in other films the pot is so rich as to take it out of our frame of reference (if I can't imagine having a million dollars in cash, I can't imagine losing it), here we can appreciate what it means to Mike to lose the rent money, the tuition money; we can feel his pain and understand what it means to his life. On another level, the relationship between Mike and Worm is spot-on and completely believable, which means that the story developments that are based on that relationship also ring true.

On the acting front, Rounders is yet another example of why I'm so impressed with Edward Norton as an actor. Matt Damon does an excellent job, that's for sure, but he's really playing a variant of the same character that we see in most of his other films. Norton, on the other hand, truly vanishes into his character, creating a new person in each role. Worm is utterly believable, with Norton deftly bringing out the dissonant notes in his relationship with Mike as the film proceeds. We see the bond between the two characters, and we also see how Mike has grown while Worm remains bound by his own insecurities and, fundamentally, his over-riding selfishness. While I'm mentioning strong acting performances in Rounders, it's worth noting that the film's secondary actors are a fine bunch as well. John Turturro showcases his amazing versatility as an actor in another excellent performance, and the film's "big names" contribute nicely to the film as well. Martin Landau does a solid turn as Mike's sympathetic law professor, and while I wouldn't have immediately thought of John Malkovich for the role of a Russian gangster, he makes the performance believable and memorable.

In many ways, Rounders is a coming-of-age story, with its protagonist forced to confront the questions of what he really wants from his life, who his friends really are, and what he's willing to do to achieve his goals. The story has a great deal of depth to it: it isn't one that relies on abrupt plot reversals to keep the viewer interested, and it doesn't need them, either... but while it doesn't have any flashy twists to it, neither is it predictable. While I won't spoil the film by giving any details, there are several points during the movie where events go in a different direction than what I'd been expecting. The ending is very well handled and very satisfying, providing a wrap-up that's somewhat unexpected but, at the same time, that feels completely "right" because of the way the story has developed.

The DVD

Video

Rounders appears in a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer that offers a reasonably good, but not outstanding, image. The print looks like it's in good shape, without any print flaws that I could see, and with minimal noise. The problem with the image is that the contrast is consistently too heavy: any dark areas of the image that are very dark are shown as completely black. For instance, the black coat that Matt Damon wears always looks completely flat black, with no detail or shading, even in scenes that are lit reasonably brightly. In a few instances, shadowy areas take on a slightly brownish tint as well. Overall, however, colors look perfectly normal, with nice depth and texture. All in all, Rounders looks respectable (thus earning its three and a half stars for video) even if the contrast is problematic.

Audio

The Dolby 5.1 soundtrack for Rounders handles the mainly dialogue-focused film reasonably well. While there's not much by way of surround effects, the 5.1 mix does have a pleasing depth to it, making it sound better than it likely would have with a 2.0 surround track. I did notice on a few occasions that the dialogue sounded a little bit muffled, though not enough to interfere with understanding it at all. Considering the overall clean feel to the track, it's a respectable soundtrack.

A dubbed French Dolby 2.0 track is also included, along with Spanish subtitles.

Extras

There's a reasonable selection of special features here, some of which have more merit than others. Two commentary tracks are provided for the film: the first is with professional poker players Johnny Chan, Phil Hellmuth, Chris Moneymaker, and Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, and the second is with director John Dahl, writers David Levien and Brian Koppelman, and actor Edward Norton. The poker-player commentary is nice in theory, but in practice it's really a colossal waste of time, as the participants seem uncomfortable with the commentary and don't have much to say. They do venture some thoughts on the actual card-playing scenes, but they're far from earth-shattering. The second commentary is far better, with the group providing a lively and interesting discussion of the making of the film.

"Heads Up Texas Hold 'Em" is an interactive poker tutorial, leading viewers through the basics of the game and leading up to an actual "game." It's actually decently done, and viewers who don't know anything about poker will probably find it fun to play with.

The "Behind-the-Scenes Special" is a general promotional featurette, covering the basics about the ideas behind the film and the making of the film. For a promo-style piece, it's reasonably well done, with relatively few clips from the film puffing it up. There are interviews with the major cast members, though there's nothing really earth-shattering. A second featurette called "Professional Poker" takes a look at the real-life inspiration for the story, and has interviews with top professional poker players discussing how poker is more a game of skill than chance.

Next, we get "Champion Poker Tips," which is composed of very short video clips from Johnny Chan, Chris Ferguson, Phil Hellmuth, and Chris Moneymaker offering insights into how to play poker successfully. Lastly, in a "Sneak Peeks" section we get trailers for Jersey Girl and The Ladykillers.

Final thoughts

This was the second time that I'd seen Rounders, and I liked it even more on the repeat viewing than on the initial one. It's a very nicely done film, telling a fundamentally character-based story that's made all the more effective by solid performances from the principal actors, Matt Damon and Edward Norton. You'll probably appreciate the nuances more if you know something about poker, but no matter what, Rounders is an excellent film that is amply deserving of a space in your collection. Highly recommended.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE ROUNDERS.

YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN NOW AVAILABLE

YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN FROM IMDB

This is the story about a Mossad agent Zohan Dvir, who fakes his death so he can re-emerge in New York City as a hair stylist. He romances his clients by giving them "special services" in the back room. However, he is eventually recognized, and risks losing his newfound life and career. Written by Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN FROM DVDTALK.

A Mossad agent who's impervious to pain and holds a magnetic disco charm about him, Zohan (Adam Sandler) dreams of a day when he can stop thwarting Palestinian attacks and fulfill his dream: to become a hairstylist. Faking his own death at the hands of terrorist Phantom (John Turturro), Zohan boards a plane and heads to New York City, where he finds employment at a salon run by Dalia (Emmanuelle Chriqui). Once given his chance to cut hair, Zohan turns into a sensation, making the community's older women swoon with his gyrations and sexual finishing moves. The newfound attention alerts an old Palestinian enemy (Rob Schnieder), who tries to destroy Zohan with help from his Hezbollah brotherhood.

Yes, it's true: Adam Sandler has made an action comedy using the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a background.

As is expected when playing silly in these political minefields, "Zohan" is not a film to be easily shrugged off as another blissfully dopey Sandler concoction. Sure, it's a farce, playing very broadly at every possible turn, but it's a strangely brave motion picture, daring to poke a stick at an exceedingly volatile situation. Sandler means well enough, coating the film with an obvious "why don't we get along?" message that will baffle the less geopolitically aware, but there's something to admire about a film that dares to step into uncomfortable areas and try to conjure some laughs.

Trouble is, those laughs aren't exactly raining from the sky in "Zohan." Written by Sandler, Robert Smigel, and Judd Apatow, the picture is a sprawling, slippery collection of half-realized ideas. The writers splatter their every last whim across the screen, and it leaves director Dennis Dugan (a Sandler specialist, marking his fourth film with the actor) baffled where to take the story next. At 110 minutes, "Zohan" is much too long to make a lasting comedic impact, and several plot threads are left out to dry from neglect (most notably, the romance between Zohan and Dalia). It can be a tiring film, suffering from Sandler's exhaustive idea inhalation, and the enterprise runs out of steam long before the film concludes.

However, it's a picture worth a recommendation.

Even when "Zohan" loses control, especially in the final half-hour, it remains a feature of undeniable fascination and unusual edge. With "Click" and "Chuck & Larry," Sandler played softball; "Zohan" has Sandler throwing curveballs again, piling on the absurdity with the same zeal he once held in his youth. However mediocre the quality of the jokes are in the picture, it scores some pretty potent laughs when focused on Zohan's amazing sexual prowess with senior citizens or his high-flying action figure poses, displayed as the character pinballs around New York architecture to save the day. There's also sizable laughs squeezed from Zohan's salon theatrics, where the most dangerous man in the world prances joyfully around, thrilled he's finally received his treasured chance to make the world "silky smooth."

I didn't find "Zohan" especially offensive, and the film's intent is so sincere it seems foolish to suggest political irresponsibility in a picture that features rear nudity from Lainie Kazan and Rob Schneider as a Middle-Eastern taxi driver. To help soothe nerves, Sandler has called in a horde of celebrity cameos to soften the blow, and even hired boxing announcer Michael Buffer for one of the film's many villain roles, embellishing the cartoon nature of the picture further.

It's not a sturdy feature film, but there's just enough chutzpah to "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" to keep it amusing and sporadically uproarious. It's a decent comedy construct: a film one unforgiving editorial pass away from greatness.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN.

E3 IGN LOOK AT WWE SMACKDOWN VS RAW 2009

E3 LOOK AT WWE SMACKDOWN VS RAW 2009 FROM IGN

HERE IS THE ARTICLE ON SMACKDOWN VS RAW 2009

Well, last week I wrote my first WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 hands-on report, and I'm already sick of waiting to get my hands on the full game. Sigh. Thankfully, I didn't have to go too long before THQ gave me another hit of the good stuff. This afternoon I got a couple of matches under my belt -- including a fierce Inferno Match between Chris Jericho and John Cena -- but the main event was a falls count anywhere match between Randy Orton and the Undertaker. On the surface, the match looked and played a lot like last year's. True, Orton an 'taker looked more detailed and sharper overall, but the chairs that were around ringside still had the same satisfying steel-to-skull sound and the controls stick with the tried-and-true thumbstick format. However, as the match wore on, the little tweaks began to shine through.

One of the first things I noticed as I had Randy wail on the Undertaker is that the game's now differentiating between finishers and signatures. When my momentum meter was full and the Phenom was down, words popped up under Orton's HUD that said tap the button for his "Signature Move." Not "Finisher." That's new. I hit the button, and Orton stomped all over 'taker's body. Also interesting is the fact that Randy doesn't have an RKO from the standing position -- today I had to drop the Undertaker to the ground and do a stalking RKO. A big shakeup -- in my opinion at least -- is that in addition to the Tombstone Piledriver, the Undertaker now has the gogoplata as a ground finisher. Also new -- at least for him -- was when I had had Orton pull off a chair grapple. With a full momentum meter, Randy poked 'taker in the belly, dropped the chair to the mat, and DDTed the dead man on the chair. Aside from that, we brawled about the Raw arena like you'd expect. I had Randy, who was rocking black tape around his wrists, remove the turnbuckle cover, but it turns out you can now stop this process if you're in the Undertaker's shoes -- you don't have to just sit there and watch your opponent work. Eventually we fought our way to the steel stage beneath the TitanTron, and Undertaker -- who was controlled by a developer -- Tombstone pliedrove the legend killer right there on the grating. I was pwned, but it was a fitting end to the match.

Legend killed.

With my E3 THQ appointment in the books, I'm left to stare at the SVR 09 screens and videos below while dreaming about Road to WrestleMania, online matches, and Tommy Dreamer. I'll have updates from the SmackDown front whenever they become available, folks. Oh, and if you're wondering, the Walls of Jericho looked great.

THE INCREDIBLE HULK NOW AVAILABLE

THE INCREDIBLE HULK NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE THE INCREDIBLE HULK FROM IMDB

Depicting the events after the Gamma Bomb. 'The Incredible Hulk' tells the story of Dr Bruce Banner, who seeks a cure to his unique condition, which causes him to turn into a giant green monster under emotional stress. Whilst on the run from military which seeks his capture, Banner comes close to a cure. But all is lost when a new creature emerges; The Abomination. Written by Graham Kroon

A cure is in reach for the world's most primal force of fury: THE INCREDIBLE HULK. We find scientist Bruce Banner, living in shadows, scouring the planet for an antidote. But the warmongers who dream of abusing his powers won't leave him alone, nor will his need to be with the only woman he has ever loved, Betty Ross. Upon returning to civilization, our brilliant doctor is ruthlessly pursued by The Abomination -- a nightmarish beast of pure adrenaline and aggression whose powers match The Hulk's own. A fight of comic-book proportions ensues as Banner must call upon the hero within to rescue New York City from total destruction. One scientist must make an agonizing final choice -- accept a peaceful life as Bruce Banner or the creature he could permanently become: THE INCREDIBLE HULK. Written by Babak A.

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE THE INCREDIBLE HULK FROM DVDTALK


HULK SMASH! And he does in a big way in "The Incredible Hulk," a Hollywood patch job of sorts; a production aiming to realign the comic book chi lost to Ang Lee's angst-riddled "Hulk" back in 2003. Now, instead of heavy characterization and a glum attitude, "Incredible" reinstates the basics of the big green hero: destruction and solitude.

Hiding out peacefully in South America to keep his Gamma-induced mutation in control, Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) is looking for help to cure his affliction, trying to keep himself out of the hands of General Ross (William Hurt), who wants what's inside Banner to create an army of super-soldiers. Heading back to America, Banner makes contact with longtime love Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), who urgently wants to help the ailing man cure himself. Hot on their tail is Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), a brutal, unforgiving soldier who encourages the General to experiment further with Gamma poisoning by injecting him with a dose.

Now, to keep matters in perspective, I was one of the 15 people who embraced Lee's previous take on the comic book titan. Sure, the film was glacial, contained an atrocious final reel, and refused to crack a smile, but Lee gave the property a mesmerizing screen intensity. The director took risks with Hulk and his heavy-muscled misery. Hulk didn't smash much under Lee's watch, but the lack of brutality offered something infinitely more demonstrative to process in a genre not known for its intellectual persuasion.

"Incredible Hulk" changes all that.

Now with orders to simplify matters, director Louis Leterrier returns Hulk to his car-throwing origins with a non-stop carousel of violence in "Incredible." This picture is popcorn entertainment all the way; Leterrier indulges his extreme visual instincts to fashion a peppier "Hulk" for the crowds who felt alienated by Lee's experimentation. The quest is noble and "Incredible" is stuffed with enough limb-cracking attitude to give the faithful exactly what they want from a Hulk movie.

What I'm having difficulty accepting is the price paid for such a high velocity diversion. "Incredible" is dense with exposition, but it's all stuffed carelessly into the few quiet moments the picture barely makes room for. "Incredible" acts like a sequel to the 2003 film in the matter it plunges forward without much introduction time with Bruce or Betty, and it doesn't allow for much bonding during the action either. "Incredible" feels paired down from a more extensive cut, with little cracks in the plot felt throughout the proceedings. Leterrier is in a hurry to get from one action sequence to the next, and while it's all comfortably numbing, there's not much characterization to get excited about here. "Incredible" comes off more as a wonderful video game than a meaningful exploration of the isolated soul.

Speaking of video games, "Incredible" suffers from an extremely off-putting lack of polish in the special effects department. It's been five years since Lee's film, not to mention the massive budget Leterrier is playing with here, and "Incredible" looks pathetically unfinished. The sweeping Hulk movement is accounted for, but the clarity is missing, with the creature lacking crucial big screen crispness. I found it embarrassing to watch at times, especially since Lee's Hulk was such a dynamite visual exclamation point. I'd hand over all the deafening explosions that litter this film for one single scene of awe. For a film titled "Incredible," the CG Hulk is anything but.

Granted, I'm making "Incredible" sound like a drag, and it really isn't. It's a spirited ride boosted by some nice performances, strong romantic chemistry between Norton and Tyler, and several swell tributes paid to the "Hulk" television series of the 1970s. When Hulk lets loose, there's a horde of building-leveling mayhem to enjoy, and Leterrier is the right man for the job, infusing new momentum to the character and taking his trail of destruction to pleasing extremes.

Hulk faces off against a towering enemy of equal measure for the picture's final showstopper, and, by that time, "Incredible" has sufficiently emptied its bag of tricks. It's a persuasive, fist-pumping summer film that's intent on returning a primal scream to Hulk, and to that end it's a triumphant reboot. Overall, "Incredible Hulk" feels dumbed down and truncated, tossing a wet blanket over the entire film. However, it's hard to remember such cries for dramatic nourishment when Hulk is getting pelted with a swarm of bullets, dodging fireballs, and breaking police cars in half for use as boxing gloves.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE THE INCREDIBLE HULK.

IN THE ARMY NOW, NOW AVAILABLE

IN THE ARMY NOW, NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE IN THE ARMY NOW FROM IMDB

Two misguided youths join the reserves to make some money for their entrepreneurial dreams. No sooner than they finish basic training are they called up to do their part to save the free world. Written by Steve Walker {swalker@ionet.net}

Bones and Jack are two guys with very little going right in their lives. The two decide to join the Army as part of the water purification team and eventually find themselves on the front lines in the conflict between the northern African countries of Chad and Libya. The two men, along with a few companions, have it upon themselves to save the day in combat, something they know little about. Written by David Landers {dml@gwis.com}

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE IN THE ARMY NOW.

2012 DOOMSDAY NOW AVAILABLE

2012 DOOMSDAY NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE 2012 DOOMSDAY FROM IMDB

On December 21, 2012 four strangers on a journey of faith are drawn to an ancient temple in the heart of Mexico. For the Mayans it is the last recorded day. For NASA scientists it is a cataclysmic polar shift. For the rest of us, it is Doomsday. Written by Faith Films


HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE 2012 DOOMSDAY.

JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH NOW AVAILABLE

JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH FROM IMDB

A science professor whose radical theories have completely tarnished his reputation. While backpacking across Iceland with his nephew Sean, the two explorers find a cave that leads them deep down into the bowels of the planet. And so they go on a quest to find out what has happened to the scientist's missing brother, a scientist, his nephew and their mountain guide discovers a fantastic and dangerous lost world in the center of the earth. There they discover a bizarre landscape filled with terrifying creatures. Written by Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH FROM DVDTALK.

"Journey to the Center of the Earth" isn't a straight-jacket adaptation of the Jules Verne classic, but a vague photocopy that eschews daring adventure for cheap, plastic thrills, tarted up with a sickly glaze of 3-D to help prop up the anemic screenplay. It's a gimmick-driven movie and it's shocking how much the final product lacks the source material's intrinsic magic.

Taking care of his distracted nephew Sean (Josh Hutcherson), scientific researcher Trevor (Brendan Fraser) is stunned to discover clues to the whereabouts of his lost brother in a copy of the book "Journey to the Center of the Earth." Taking Sean with him to Iceland for further study, Trevor meets up with Hannah (Anita Briem), a tracker and daughter of a dead scientist who held faith in a land located beneath the planet's crust. Trekking through the mountains to further unravel the mystery, the trio stumbles upon the doorway to the center of the Earth, and once arrived in this dangerous place, they plan immediately for their escape before they become permanent residents.

"Journey" is a passive experience at the movies; a woeful synthetic creation that's powered by sophisticated thrill-ride mechanics and Crayola screenwriting aspirations. Director Eric Brevig is a longtime special-effects master with a host of Oscars and ornamental accolades under his belt, but he's at a loss when it comes down to nurturing even a tuft of human interface. "Journey" relentlessly dishes out the action and offers the bespectacled audience plenty of goopy, grabby 3-D jolts, but it all resembles a run of the mill video game. Brevig can't shake the material loose from its unbridled artificiality.

It's one thing to use CGI to further layer fantasy worlds beyond the reach of the human hand, it's another to bathe a motion picture in computer embellishment to cut corners. "Journey" strikes me as the latter. While the 3-D keeps the overall image muted and muddy, it's perhaps a better alternative to actually accepting Brevig's vision: a smothering, limited buffet of overactive CGI and cold studio environments that provide little to no depth. It's not that the computer work is shoddy, but more that Brevig doesn't grasp how to direct the actors to respond naturally to the astonishing sights they should be seeing. There's a frustrating disconnect between reaction and bejeweled visual in "Journey" that's distracting, and the more the film pumps in cartoonish action set-pieces (flying fish attacking a raft, a T-Rex encounter, a mine cart race), the more phony "Journey" becomes, further accented by the piercingly earnest performances, which grow more and more aggravating with each passing minute.

If Jules Verne could extract the wonder of visiting alien landscapes while remaining on Earth, "Journey" slowly sucks away that awe by twisting everything into lifeless arcade aesthetics. The film does have a few genuinely effective moments, but you have to keep your eyes peeled to find them underneath the ungodly amount of visual malarkey thrown at the screen to keep the impatient invested.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH.

HERE IS AN UPDATE TO THE PS3 DOWNLOAD SERVICE

HERE IS THE ARTICLE FOR THE PS3 MOVIE SERVICE

Sony just announced at E3 that Playstation Network users now have the ability to rent and purchase moves and TV shows. Like, immediately -- the service is getting flipped on tonight. It's not just Sony content, either: Fox, MGM, Lions Gate, Warner, Disney, Paramount, Turner, and something called Funimation are signed up from the get-go. Video will be available in both SD and HD, and TV pricing starts at $1.99. Movie purchases will run $9.99 - $14.99, while rentals will be $2.99 - $5.99. What's more, the content is "portable," meaning that videos downloaded on your PS3 can be watched on multiple PSPs. It doesn't look like movies can be purchased in HD, but downloads are progressive so content starts playing a minute after you hit begin the download.

PSN users will also get a single persistent sign-on across every device that can access the network: PS3, PSP, PC. It's not clear whether those aliases will carry over into games themselves or if friends lists will start working across devices as well, however. The integration is scheduled to happen for this fall, though, so you might want to go and grab your handle of choice relatively soon.

PS3 GETTING DOWNLOAD MOVIE SERVICE TONIGHT

TONIGHT NEW PS3 DOWNLOADING SERVICE FOR MOVIE

HERE IS THE ARTICLE ON THIS GREAT PS3 NEWS

Right on the heels of the Xbox/Netflix alliance comes news that Sony will offer its own console downloads—in high-def.

I4U says that Sony launched the Video Store today, which will include standard- and high-def downloads straight to the PlayStation 3. Users will have the option to buy or rent any of the content available. Once your selection is loaded, you can then watch it or transfer it to the PlayStation Portable (PSP).

Sony says that a few movie studios are already lined up to contribute. One of the names thrown around was Disney. Overall, don’t expect the same selection you’d find on Netflix, but there also isn’t a subscription fee. However, we couldn’t find any info about how much rentals will cost. Stay tuned!

The PlayStation Store first launched late in 2007. It also offers games for rent or purchase, as well as promotional videos and trailers for PS3 and PSP users.

MICROWHORESOFT TRIES TO STEAL ANOTHER GAME AT E3

MICROWHORESOFT TRIES TO STEAL ANOTHER GAME AT E3

HERE IS THE ARTICLE ABOUT FINAL FANTASY XIII GOING MULTIPLATFORM

Square-Enix has announced Final Fantasy XIII for Xbox 360 at Microsoft's E3 press conference.

The announcement debuted in the form of a new trailer which initially looked like a Panzer Dragoon game with dragons flying in a trench. A ship lands in the trailer and flying mechanical soldiers drop out. Included in the trailer were massive airships.

A hint of gamplay was shown and the graphics looked awesome.

E3 MICROSOFT NEWS

HERE IS THE NEWS ABOUT MICROSOFT AT E3

Microsoft had there E3 conference this morning, no doubt they had announcements regarding high definition medium. Heres a summary of what Microsoft had announced regarding their future with regard to the Xbox Live Video Marketplace:

• Netflix availability via the Xbox Live Dashboard
• Universal Studios and NBC have signed onto the Xbox Live Video Service in North America
• MGM and Constantine have announced their signing on for Europe.
• Universal titles such as American Pie, Bourne Supremacy, etc are already on the marketplace
• The Xbox Live Video Marketplace is the worlds largest Video on Demand service (Including Digital Cable, Satellite, etc services).
• You can bring a group of friends with you (via their new dashboard update) and can all watch the movie together. (Like with the Harry Potter HD DVD) the difference being only one person has to have a copy of the movie.

As expected no Blu-ray drive was announced, would Microsoft really want to announce one now since they are the number 1 distributor of video on demand content? A small demo was also given on the Netflix system, but I forgot to capture the video, sorry.

WHITE NOISE NOW AVAILABLE

WHITE NOISE NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE WHITE NOISE FROM IMDB

When the unexpected happens, architect Jonathan Rivers has become a grieving widower, wallowing in deep confusion over the death of his wife. But a paranormal expert approaches Jonathan with the unlikely: the ability to hear his wife from beyond the grave. Through a form of unusual communication known as EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon), Jonathan will finally be able to see his wife. But in doing so, Jonathan has drawn himself into a much more complex situation when his curiosity becomes an obsession. Only that obsession will have him confront those not of this world, and some of them don't approve of Jonathan's interference with their destructive nature. Written by mystic80

The pregnant wife of the architect Jonathan Reeves (Michael Keaton) is missed after a car accident near a cliff, and the police do not know whether she is dead or abducted. Some weeks later, a mysterious man comes to Jonathan and tells him that his wife is dead and had communicated with him through Electronic Voice Phenomena. Sooner Jonathan is informed by the police that her body was found in the sea near a harbor, and the tormented grieving Jonathan decides to try to contact her using uncontrolled E.V.P and jeopardizing his own life. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE WHITE NOISE FROM DVDTALK

The Movie What is E.V.P.? Well, the definition is Electronic Voice Phenomenon, but even that doesn't tell a person much about what it really is. Boiled down to simple terms, E.V.P. is the result of taking a cassette recorder (or some other such recording device) and getting communications from the spirit realm, which are not audible to the ear when the words or sentences are initially spoken, but are only heard after listening to the device that the event was recorded on. Now the voices that are heard are usually distorted somewhat by background noise, or more specifically White Noise. White Noise stars Michael Keaton as Jonathan Winters, a man whose life takes a nosedive one fine day when he realizes that his wife Anna, briefly played by Chandra West, disappears and all signs lead towards her being dead from some freak accident. Soon after Winters' wife is reported missing, he notices a man named Raymond watching his every move, and unlike what was expected this man was not part of a police force looking to take Winters down, but a father who lost his own son years in the past but has been able to communicate with him as well as a host of other people who had died, including Anna. Winters of course refuses to believe that this man can in fact speak with the dead, and time goes by and he starts to begin the process of healing after the loss. Things then start happening to him that creep him out, such as messages left on his answering machine that are white noise with some nearly intelligible audio on it, and radios randomly turning themselves on. Winters then contacts the man seen earlier in the movie about the E.V.P, and then receives a lesson in the ins and outs of dealing with the speaking dead. Not all things are meant to be played with however, and soon Raymond falls prey to someone or something that didn't like him dabbling with the voices of the dead. Winters interest in the subject matter was whet just enough to think that he could speak to his wife once more, and he falls face first into obsession with E.V.P. Not a fantastic movie, White Noise relies far too often on jump scares that are very out of place for a movie such as this. Even during the commentary, the director comments and says "Here's one of the jump scares we did", they didn't enhance my movie experience in this case, it detracted from it. Even with the oddly placed jumps and other items that were meant to shock and keep the viewer interested, I found White Noise to be a fairly boring movie that based on the subject matter could have been much better. The DVD How's it Look: White Noise is has a very nice crisp presentation, and that is a welcome thing for a movie that has a lot of scenes taking place in low light conditions. Because of the low light, the colors are all quite muted and a large number of scenes are lit with the noise on a TV screen or a computer monitor, but it works well for the topic at hand. The movie is presented in an anamorphically enhanced 2.35:1 presentation, and should look quite nice for those who've managed to secure a widescreen television. How's it Sound: Two Dolby Digital 5.1 audio tracks are included on White Noise, one in English and the other in Spanish. The audio is quite clear and does pack the punch when the unnecessary jump scares are used. The surround usage was actually quite sparse, and really only used to indicate direction, and not for ambient sound effects, and that actually was a distraction because I felt like more ambience would have been nice. Extras: The DVD says that included are "Terrifying" deleted scenes, I for one didn't find the terrifying ones, but I did see a collection of scenes that were omitted from the movie, with optional director commentary. A commentary with director Geoffrey Sax and Michael Keaton is included, although they were not in the same room when recording this commentary, they were watching the movie at the same time and spoke to one another throughout the feature. This experiment in conference calling technology was a success! During the commentary Keaton himself even mentions that he essentially phoned in some a scene, and said to the director "I owe you one", which was a surprising display of honesty on his part. Overall however, the commentary was not overly exciting or informative like some have proven to be. Three separate featurettes are included that deal with E.V.P. Hearing is Believing: Actual E.V.P sessions (14 minutes) – follow Tom and Lisa Butler as they visit two locations and try to record E.V.P. and then share their findings with the viewer. Making Contact: E.V.P Experts (8 minutes) – a short featurette which includes a fair number of actual E.V.P.s and discussions with the Butlers as well as other experts in the field. Recording E.V.P at Home (4 minutes) – a short how to segment from the Butlers. Closing: White Noise had the potential to be something good, with a strong cast lead by Keaton, and a topic that could be interesting enough to make a very fun movie; it disappointed this viewer as well as thousands of other viewers, as proven by the box office when it was theatrically released. As a DVD it does contain some relatively interesting extras in the form of the featurettes, but the commentary is not really worth listening to if you're interested in either E.V.P. or the movie itself. Rent it.
HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE WHITE NOISE.

WAR OF THE WORLDS 2 NOW AVAILABLE

WAR OF THE WORLDS 2 NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE WAR OF THE WORLDS 2 FROM IMDB

Two years after the Martian invasion, George Herbert's worst fears are realized: The Aliens have returned. As a second wave of Martian walkers lay waste to what's left of Earth, an alliance of military forces prepares a daring attack on the Red Planet itself. Once again, the future of mankind hangs in the balance. Written by Eric Forsberg

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE WAR OF THE WORLD 2.

RAT RACE NOW AVAILABLE

RAT RACE IS NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE RAT RACE FROM IMDB

Donald P. Sinclair (Cleese) has placed six separate gold coins in different slot machines in his casino. The lucky six who find these coins discover an opportunity of a lifetime. The chance to own $2 million. Locked up in a locker in New Mexico, these six contestants must now race each other, to be the first to the cash. There are no rules in place and everything that could possibly happen, does. Whilst, behind the scenes, Sinclair's associates are placing their bets. Written by Film_Fan

A group of billionaires led by a Las Vegas casino owner (John Cleese) search for things to bet on. They decide to pull a group of six strangers together to race from Vegas to Silver City, New Mexico to retrieve $2 million hidden in a locker. First one there gets all of the money. The first team are two addled brothers (Seth Green and Vince Vieluf, who talks indecipherably because of a newly pierced tongue). When they cannot catch a plane, they plot to destroy an airport control tower in a very funny sequence. Their antics carry them into a hot air balloon chase that catches a cow with a dangling rope and into a monster truck competition. The second team is an estranged mother (Whoopi Goldberg) reunited with her daughter (Lanai Chapman), who is struggling to start a business. They face an insane squirrel-selling woman (Kathy Bates) and steal a rocket car scheduled for a land speed record attempt. A hated NFL referee (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) is stranded in the desert by an irate cabbie (Paul Rodriguez) and hijacks a busload of Lucille Ball look-alikes on the way to a convention. The Jewish family man (Jon Lovitz) on a family vacation joins the race without telling his wife (Kathy Najimy) why they are rushing across the country. When his daughter insists on stopping at a Barbie museum, it is without realization that it is the Klaus Barbie Nazi Museum. The escape from that location involves the theft of Hitler's personal touring car and culminates with Lovitz having his tongue burned and accidentally crashing into a WWII Veteran's convention. A narcoleptic Italian (Rowan Atkinson in his best Mr. Bean-like manner) gets a ride with an ambulance driver (Wayne Knight), who is carting a human heart for a transplant. Through various ineptitude, the heart ends up flying out of the truck's window and the two have to recover it from a playful dog. The final race member (Breckin Meyer) is a straight-laced future lawyer who at first declines to participate in the race, but re-thinks his position after he meets a smart, beautiful woman (Amy Smart) who is flying a helicopter to New Mexico. He quickly finds out that she is unbalanced after she flies over her boy friend's house and starts an attack on the boy friend when she sees him in the pool with an ex-girl friend. An air pursuit results in the crash of the helicopter. Dave Thomas also appears as Cleese's humorless attorney. Written by John Sacksteder {jsackste@bellsouth.net}

Donald Sinclair (John Cleese) owns the biggest, snazziest, flashiest, high rolling-est casino in Las Vegas. And to entertain some of his wealthiest patrons, he's staged the most original high stakes game that Sin City has ever seen! The contestants? Six teams. The jackpot? Two million dollars stuffed in a locker hundreds of miles away. The odds of winning? One in six. The rules? Well there's only one--get there first! What the racers don't know is that the tycoon and his rich buddies are betting on the outcome and are tracking every move the teams make. It's only a matter of time before they figure out who really stands to win the most before switching course to look for a different kind of pay-off. Written by Sujit R. Varma

A betting-obsessed casino mogul and his group of just as bad billionaire associates, sets up a new kind of gamble in a race for $2 million hidden away in a locker. They enlist the aid of eight people who happen to be residing in his casino at once. A clean cut lawyer, a disgraced NFL referee, two inept brothers, a determined mother and daughter, a narcoleptic Italian immigrant, and a desperate father embark on a series of misadventures to obtain the money regardless of what it takes. Written by MonkeyKingMA

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE RAT RACE FROM DVDTALK

The Movie: One of the few bright spots of the late Summer season, "Rat Race" brings back "Airplane" director Jerry Zucker in fine form. It's another one of the usual Zucker efforts - throw everything at the audience and see what sticks - and actually, most of it works well. Sort of a remake of "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", the film starts off bringing all of the main characters in front of millionaire casino owner Donald Sinclair (John Cleese). After joking with them about being selected for being saved from the end of the world, he lets them in on the real deal: there's two million dollars in the locker of a train station in New Mexico; the first one there gets the cash - and, "there are no rules". A few of the players pair off into teams, while others prefer to go their own way: Duane and Blaine Cody (Seth Green and Vince Vieluf), Vera and Merrill (Whoopi Goldberg and Lanei Chapman), Nick and Tracy (Breckin Meyer and Amy Smart), Randy Pear (Jon Lovitz) and his family, Owen Templeton (Cuba Gooding Jr.), Enrico (Rowan Atkinson). The group heads off towards their destination by train, helicopter, bus, feet and balloon. I will admit that it didn't look good; the trailers showed little promise, but the movie actually comes up with some inspired comedic moments, especially revolving around Lovitz and family. One of the film's funniest running jokes focuses not on the racers, but those betting on them. We're shown that billionaires from around the world were brought together to bet on the winner. Along the way, the wealthy and bored individuals find many other things to bet on, including the first one of them to have air sickness. The film doesn't start off particularly well; the tone seems a little off and things aren't moving along very well. About 15 minutes in, I was already looking at my watch, which was not a particularly good sign. Yet, when the race finally begins, the movie really hits an impressive stride. Although not completely consistent, the movie got funnier and funnier as it went along. The performers were not always that amusing, though - Goldberg and Chapman are really hardly given much to do, while Atkinson's bits were not all that funny. Meyer and Smart (who were both in "Road Trip") have good chemistry again here and Cleese, Lovitz and Green are quite entertaining. The only piece of the film that doesn't quite come together is the ending; it's warm-hearted, but goes on too long and provides yet another appearance by rock band Smash Mouth, who's been on the soundtrack for far too many films at this point. Still, "Rat Race" works far better than it should have for the majority of the running time, a fun couple of hours of comedic chaos that generated some solid laughs. The DVD VIDEO: "Rat Race" is presented by Paramount in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The presentation is quite good and would skip over into great if it wasn't for one considerable flaw. Sharpness and detail are strong, though - the picture appeared consistently well-defined and crisp, delivering Thomas Ackerman's widescreen photography quite well.

Everything would be terrific if it wasn't for one flaw - a mild amount of edge enhancement is visible rather frequently, which was dissapointing, considering the picture quality was fine otherwise. Print flaws were nearly absent, as only one or two minor specks were visible. Pixelation was also nowhere to be found. Colors remained bright, strong and nicely saturated throughout, with no smearing or other problems. While not perfect, this is still a very good effort.


SOUND: "Rat Race" is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1. The comedy doesn't exceed expectations when it comes to sound use - the audio really stays almost completely in the front three speakers. A few sequences of more intense action do have some sound effects distributed to the surrounds, but I doubt that many will find these instances that noticable. If anything, the best element of the audio was the appropriately madcap score, which sounded absolutely fantastic and really added to the comedy.

MENUS: Paramount has done a very nice job with the menus, as the main menu shows the characters, using the same animation as the opening credits.

EXTRAS: Andy & Jerry Interview: This is a short interview with director Jerry Zucker and writer Andy Breckman. The two chat about the making of the feature, talking about elements such as working with the actors (and each other), as well as how to make the jokes transition well from script-to-screen. Deleted Scenes: Rightly deleted scenes, actually. There are six included, each with short introductions by Jerry Zucker. One scene with the gamblers playing monopoly for real money got a laugh, but I didn't find the other five very funny. Jerry and Andy Call The Actors: Originally, director Zucker and writer Breckman were going to record a full-length commentary track for the movie itself. Apparently bored with their discussion (which I find unfortunate, given that I thought Zucker's past commentaries were hilarious) and decided to simply record themselves calling the actors instead. This feature is included in the supplemental section - a pair of menus with pictures of the actors pop up, then clicking on a picture plays the audio-only conversation. The conversations (with all the leads) are quite lengthy altogether, so it's curious that these tracks weren't edited together into an audio track that could play along with the film. As for the conversations themselves, I didn't find much to them - there's a lot of small talk to get through to actually get to any interesting stories about the film. Making of "Rat Race": This is a 22-minute "making of" featurette, whose only interesting feature is the occasional gem in the interviews. Other than that, this is stroll down the usual, as the featurette mainly focuses on promoting the story and characters. Gag Reel: This is a 4 minute reel of outtakes - while not the funniest outtakes reel that I've ever seen, there are some extremely funny moments contained within - especially a scene where Lovitz tries to get Gooding, Jr. to say one of his more famous lines. Giggles: A lengthy clip showing two actors from the film suffering from a laughing spell. Also: The trailer. Final Thoughts: "Rat Race" isn't fantastic, but it's occasionally very funny and often works considerably better than it should have, thanks to Zucker and a talented cast. Paramount's DVD offers good audio/video quality and a nice batch of supplements. Recommended.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE RAT RACE.

FEAR HOUSE NOW AVAILABLE

FEAR HOUSE NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE FEAR HOUSE FROM IMDB

Friends and family pursue an estranged writer to an isolated house only to find that, once they've entered, their own fears will kill them if they leave.

HERE IS A REVIEW FOR THE MOVIE FEAR HOUSE FROM DVDTALK

The Movie:

I admire anyone who can create something out of nothing.

Truer words are rarely spoken within a film than in this case. Fear House looks like it was made for next to nothing, yet its script and a creepy performance by its lead - Aleece Jones - help elevate this film into something that at least passes the time entertainingly for fans of fright house ghost flicks.

After an introductory scene - mixed in with the movie's credits - where two horny kids are dispatched within an old house in the middle of nowhere, Fear House begins with successful horror novelist Samantha Ballard (played by the aforementioned Aleece Jones) purchasing said house from an elderly agent. She views it as a great place to write her next book.

Nine months pass by and no one hears from her - or the agent for that matter. Thus, one night, Samantha's hemophiliac brother and her literary agent, along with two women including the real estate agent's daughter, arrive to check up on her. Conveniently, it's the very same night at the very same time that Samantha's estranged husband and his new lover show up to get her to sign divorce papers.

Why they all have to do this in the middle of the night is never explained. I guess it wouldn't be a horror movie otherwise.

In any case, the six characters break into the spooky old house. There, they find Samantha clearly deranged and discover that they cannot leave the house without facing their greatest fears and being killed by them. Apparently, a young girl named Anna Lisa was imprisoned by her abusive father 100 years ago at this very house, and her spirit is still causing mischief along with the spirit of Mondrique, a servant who cared for her and was killed for his troubles. Ah, but are these malevolent specters truly to blame? Time will tell - precisely 86 minutes, the runtime of this movie.

I watched Fear House wanting to like it despite its warts. Some of the acting is really over-the-top atrocious - though the two worst actors play characters who get killed straightaway so it's not a long-running nuisance. It's the lack of a special effects budget that ultimately takes away from the shocks of the film. Towards the film's climax, for example, a nearly laughable beheading scene followed by an equally shoddy looking death-by-giant-fireball really undercut the tension developed by the movie.

The script isn't bad, though, and offers a fairly standard haunted house scenario. Aleece Jones is both creepy and engaging as the prescient, haunted novelist who seems to be in sympathy with the dark forces that surround the house. The obsessive horror hounds out there who simply must see everything made in this genre could certainly do worse than spending an hour and a half with this movie.

The DVD

Video:

Fear House is described on the cover art as "16/9 Letterbox." The image is grainy and lacking in detail. Since most of the movie occurs in a dimly-lit setting, though, I didn't find this to be particularly distracting.

Sound:

Fear House provides two sound options: Dolby Surround 5.1 and Stereo 2.0. The default seems to be the Dolby Surround 5.1 and thus the option I listened to. I wasn't all that impressed with the mix, which didn't seem particularly dynamic. It seemed like a stereo mix, in other words. But, the dialogue was always clear - if a bit bass-heavy - and certainly serviceable.

Neither subtitle nor foreign language options appeared to be available.

Extras:

Life Size Entertainment provides a surprisingly generous helping of extras for this movie. The only quibble I have is with the extras menu - and this is a minor quibble. The extras menu is on a continuous loop with a short effects shot from the film preceding the extras options. This means that the options come and go every 10 seconds or so. It's not a big deal, but it's a little unusual and annoying. The set up menu was on a similarly styled loop, but the options didn't disappear for a considerable length of time on each playback cycle.

In any case, the extras include a trailer and actor rehearsal footage shot in Los Angeles. The trailer is widescreen while the rehearsal footage is full-frame and presented as if it were a series of short outtakes.

There's also an actual Outtakes section that's mostly a hodgepodge of bloopers and on-set clowning around.

The most significant extra, of course, is a commentary track with director Michael R. Morris, and actors Aleece Jones and Matthew Stiller. They're enthusiastic about the production and speak continuously through the film.

Final Thoughts:

Fear House offers a compelling spin on the haunted house genre; unfortunately, its shoestring budget hampers the effectiveness of many of its scares. Life Size Entertainment provides a lot of extras for this movie compared to other films of its ilk, which compels me to go with a Rent It recommendation for the fright flick crowd.

HERE IS THE DIRECT DOWNLOAD FOR THE MOVIE FEAR HOUSE.

STONE & ED NOW AVAILABLE

STONE & ED NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

HERE IS THE SUMMARY FOR THE MOVIE STONE & ED FROM IMDB

It's just another hazy morning for Stone & Ed until they unwittingly discover that they aren't actually brothers so they set out on a quest for the truth-they encounter a beautiful blonde in handcuffs, get tangled up with the largest Mexican drug dealer, and the sloppiest spooks the CIA has ever trained, along with a cast of zany characters all after the same thing...getting Stone & Ed. Written by Anonymous

It's just another hazy day for STONE and his brother ED until they unwittingly discover they may not be brothers after all! With the help of their techno-savvy neighbors JEFF and PHILLIP GUY, "The Guys," Stone and Ed set out on a quest to find Stone's mother, JANE DOE. After the first two Jane Does on their list don't turn out to be the one, the two less than genius brothers make their way to Mexico, and to the last Jane on the list. Along the way, this wacky duo encounters a cast of zany characters and one, out of this world adventure. By the time its all over Stone & Ed will have found their way into the middle of a dangerous game of cat and mouse between Mexico's largest drug lord, SENOR GORDO, and the CIA's most incompetent agents to ever leave Langley; THE MAN IN THE YELLOW HAT and his little partner, CURIOUS JORGE. Between mistaken identities of cases, and cases of mistaken identities, Stone & Ed are in for the trip of their lives. Written by Anonymous

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