Posts from — February 2008

Ethan Coen

Thoughts/Words/Reviews:

The Coen brothers make their finest thriller since Fargo with a restrained adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel. Not that there aren’t moments of intense violence, but No Country for Old Men is their quietest, most existential film yet. In this modern-day Western, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is a Vietnam vet who could use a break. One morning while hunting antelope, he spies several trucks surrounded by dead bodies (both human and canine). In examining the site, he finds a case filled with $2 million. Moss takes it with him, tells his wife (Kelly Macdonald) he’s going away for awhile, and hits the road until he can determine his next move. On the way from El Paso to Mexico, he discovers he’s being followed by ex-special ops agent Chigurh (an eerily calm Javier Bardem). Chigurh’s weapon of choice is a cattle gun, and he uses it on everyone who gets in his way–or loses a coin toss (as far as he’s concerned, bad luck is grounds for death). Just as Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), a World War II vet, is on Moss’s trail, Chigurh’s former colleague, Wells (Woody Harrelson), is on his. For most of the movie, Moss remains one step ahead of his nemesis. Both men are clever and resourceful–except Moss has a conscious, Chigurh does not (he is, as McCarthy puts it, “a prophet of destruction”). At times, the film plays like an old horror movie, with Chigurh as its lumbering Frankenstein monster. Like the taciturn terminator, No Country for Old Men doesn’t move quickly, but the tension never dissipates. This minimalist masterwork represents Joel and Ethan Coen and their entire cast, particularly Brolin and Jones, at the peak of their powers. –Kathleen C. Fennessy

View More about No Country for Old Men [Blu-ray]

Sam Raimi

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Columbia Pictures Spider-Man 1-3 (Blu-ray)
“Spider-Man” - Averageteenager Peter Parker is transformed into an extraordinary super hero after he is accidentally bitten by a radioactive spider. When his beloved uncleis savagely murdered during a robbery, young Peter vows to use his powers to avenge his death. Deeming himself “Spider-Man ,” he sets about ridding the streets of crime, bringing him into conflict with malevolent super-villain “Green Goblin.” “Spider-Man 2″ - the latest installment in the blockbuster “Spider-Man” series, based on the classic Marvel Comics hero, Tobey Maguire returns as the mild-mannered Peter Parker, who is juggling the delicatebalance of his dual life as college student and asuperhuman crime fighter. Peter’s life becomes even more complicated when he confronts a new nemesis, the brilliant Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) whohas been reincarnated as the maniacal and multi-tentacled “Doc Ock.” When Doc Ock kidnaps MJ (Kirsten Dunst), “Spider-Man” must swing back into action as the adventure reaches new heights of unprecedented excitement. “Spider-Man 3″ - Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) finally has the girl of his dreams, Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), and New York City is in the throes of Spider-mania! But when a strange alien symbiote turns Spider-Man’s suit black,his darkest demons come to light changing Spider-Man inside as well as out. Spider-Man is in for the fight of his life against a lethal mix of villains - the deadly Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), Venom (Topher Grace), and the New Goblin (James Franco) - as well as the enemy within himself.

View More about Spider-Man - The High Definition Trilogy (Spider-Man / Spider-Man 2 / Spider-Man 3) [Blu-ray]

It’s official. Toshiba is pulling the plug on HD-DVD! Long live Blu-ray!

Thoughts/Words/Reviews:

An unprecedented 5 year run! More than 700 sold out shows! 3 million spectators! Everything about the record -breaking show that changed the history of entertainment scene in Las Vegas!
This 2 set Blu-ray Disc includes Celine Dion’s show in the colosseum at Caesars Palace and three exclusive documentaries: Travel to Las Vegas with the fans- join Celine at home, in her car, in her dressing room and even backstage - find out all the secrets of “A New Day”
More Than 5 hours of Never Before Seen Footage

Blu-ray Disc Trackslisting:
1.A New Day Has Come
2.The Power Of Love
3.It’s All Coming Back To Me Now
4.Because You Loved Me
5.To Love You More
6.I’m Alive
7.I Drove All Night
8.Seduces Me
9.If I Could
10.Pour Que Tu M’aimes Encore
11.I Surrender
12.Ammore Annascunnuto
13.All The Way
14.I’ve Got The World On A String
15.I Wish
16.Love Can Move Mountains
17.River Deep, Mountain High
18.My Heart Will Go On

Disc 1
The Concert (93 minutes)
Because You Loved Me - A Tribute to The Fans (41 minutes)

Disc 2
A New Day: All Access (120 minutes)
A New Day: The Secrets (53 minutes)

Video/Audio:
Mastered in High Definition
PCM (uncompressed) Stereo (48kHz/24bit)
Dolby TrueHD 5.1 Surround Sound (96 kHz/24bit)
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound (448kbps)

View More about Celine Dion: Live in Las Vegas - A New Day [Blu-ray]

Ridley Scott

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Warner Brothers Blade Runner (Blu-ray) (Collector’s Edition)
Visually spectacular, intensely action-packed and powerfully prophetic since its debut, “Blade Runner” returns in Ridley Scott’s definitive Final Cut, including extended scenes and never-before-seen special effects. In a signature role as 21st-centurydetective Rick Deckard, (Harrison Ford) brings his masculine-yet-vulnerable presence to this stylish noir thriller. In a future of high-tech possibility soured by urban and social decay, Deckard hunts for fugitive, murderous replicants - and is drawn to a mystery woman whose secrets may undermine his soul.

View More about Blade Runner (Five-Disc Complete Collector’s Edition) [Blu-ray]

Arthur Penn

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One of the landmark films of the 1960s, Bonnie and Clyde changed the course of American cinema. Setting a milestone for screen violence that paved the way for Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch, this exercise in mythologized biography should not be labeled as a bloodbath; as critic Pauline Kael wrote in her rave review, “it’s the absence of sadism that throws the audience off balance.” The film is more of a poetic ode to the Great Depression, starring the dream team of Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway as the titular antiheroes, who barrel across the South and Midwest robbing banks with Clyde’s brother Buck (Gene Hackman), Buck’s frantic wife Blanche (Estelle Parsons), and their faithful accomplice C.W. Moss (the inimitable Michael J. Pollard). Bonnie and Clyde is an unforgettable classic that has lost none of its power since the 1967 release. –Jeff Shannon

View More about Bonnie and Clyde [Blu-ray]

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cafeblu-ray.com says: The Kubrick classic in stunning Bluray!

When Stanley Kubrick recruited Arthur C. Clarke to collaborate on “the proverbial intelligent science fiction film,” it’s a safe bet neither the maverick auteur nor the great science fiction writer knew they would virtually redefine the parameters of the cinema experience. A daring experiment in unconventional narrative inspired by Clarke’s short story “The Sentinel,” 2001 is a visual tone poem (barely 40 minutes of dialogue in a 139-minute film) that charts a phenomenal history of human evolution. From the dawn-of-man discovery of crude but deadly tools in the film’s opening sequence to the journey of the spaceship Discovery and metaphysical birth of the “star child” at film’s end, Kubrick’s vision is meticulous and precise. In keeping with the director’s underlying theme of dehumanization by technology, the notorious, seemingly omniscient computer HAL 9000 has more warmth and personality than the human astronauts it supposedly is serving. (The director also leaves the meaning of the black, rectangular alien monoliths open for discussion.) This theme, in part, is what makes 2001 a film like no other, though dated now that its postmillennial space exploration has proven optimistic compared to reality. Still, the film is timelessly provocative in its pioneering exploration of inner- and outer-space consciousness. With spectacular, painstakingly authentic special effects that have stood the test of time, Kubrick’s film is nothing less than a cinematic milestone–puzzling, provocative, and perfect. –Jeff Shannon

View More about 2001 - A Space Odyssey [Blu-ray]

Len Wiseman

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cafeblu-ray.com says: awesome

ScreenGems Underworld (Blu-ray)
In the “Underworld,” Vampires are a secret clan of modern aristocratic sophisticates whose mortal enemies are the Lycans (werewolves), a shrewd gang of street thugs who prowl the city’s underbelly. Noone knows the origin of their bitter blood feud, but the balance of power between them turns even bloodier when a beautiful young Vampire warrior and a newly-turned Lycan witha mysterious past fall in love. Kate Beckinsale and Scott Speedman star in this modern-day, action-packed tale of ruthless intrigue and forbidden passion - all set against the dazzling backdrop of a timeless, Gothic metropolis.

View More about Underworld (Unrated) [Blu-ray]

Richard Donner

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Warner Brothers Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (Blu-ray)
The Version You Have Never Seen!
Unwittingly released from “Phantom Zone” imprisonment, three super-powered Planet Krypton criminals (Terence Stamp, Sarah Douglas and Jack O’Halloran) plan to enslaveEarth - just when “Superman” (Christopher Reeve) decides to show a more romantic side to Lois Lane (Margot Kidder). Gene Hackman (as Lex Luthor) alsoreturns from the first film and with a top supporting cast, witty Richard Lester direction and visuals that astound and delight. “Superman II” saves the day any day you watch it.

View More about Superman II - The Richard Donner Cut [Blu-ray]