transformers blu ray

Summary: The interstellar war between Autobots and Decepticons shifts onto overdrive following the discovery of Sentinel Prime in this sequel from Michael Bay. Only a handful of officials... More

Summary: The interstellar war between Autobots and Decepticons shifts onto overdrive following the discovery of Sentinel Prime in this sequel from Michael Bay. Only a handful of officials in the government and military realize that the 1969 moon mission was the result of an event that threatened the entire human race. General information: Director: Michael Bay; Actors: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington- Whiteley, Tyrese Gibson, Josh Duhamel. Released in 2011; Yes; Genre: action; 2 discs; Rated 12; Screen size 1.85:1; Run time 157 minutes; Languages: English; Region 2; Format: Blu-Ray; EAN/MPN/UPC/ISBN: 2000230193211. Less

Jean Claude Van Damme is back and out for redemption in the all new action extravaganza Six Bullets. Packed with high octane action and intense fire fights. Six Bullets sees a group of... More

Jean Claude Van Damme is back and out for redemption in the all new action extravaganza Six Bullets. Packed with high octane action and intense fire fights. Six Bullets sees a group of vicious human traffickers on the wrong end of the 'Muscles From Brussels' trademark roundhouse kick. When a world famous cage fighters daughter is kidnapped by a group of human traffickers he hires a mysterious ex-mercenary (Van Damme) to help get her back. Less

Alfred Hitchcock fans may experience déjà vu upon exposure to this voyeuristic thriller. That's because director DJ Caruso (The Salton Sea) and co-writer Carl Ellsworth (Red Eye) use Rear... More

Alfred Hitchcock fans may experience déjà vu upon exposure to this voyeuristic thriller. That's because director DJ Caruso (The Salton Sea) and co-writer Carl Ellsworth (Red Eye) use Rear Window as a jumping-off point before cherry-picking from more recent scare fare, like The Blair Witch Project. In the prologue, 17-year-old Kale (Shia LaBeouf, Transformers) loses his beloved father to a car crash. A year passes, and he's still on edge. When a teacher makes a careless remark about his dad, Kale punches him out, and is sentenced to house arrest. After his mom (Carrie-Anne Moss, Memento) takes away his Xbox and iTunes privileges, the suburban slacker spies on his neighbours to pass the time. In the process, he develops a crush on Ashley (Sarah Roemer, The Grudge 2), the hot girl next door, and becomes convinced that another, the soft-spoken Mr. Turner (David Morse, The Green Mile), is a serial killer. With the help of the flirtatious Ashley, practical joke-playing pal Ronnie (Aaron Yoo), and an array of high-tech gadgets, like cell-phone cameras and digital camcorders, Kale sets out to solve a major case without leaving his yard (a feat that would prove more challenging for a less affluent sleuth). In the end, it's pretty familiar stuff, but there are plenty of scares once Turner realises he's being watched, and rising star LaBeouf makes for an engaging leading man--despite his character’s propensity for slugging Spanish instructors. --Kathleen C. Fennessy Less

In Life as We Know It, Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel discover that their closest friends have appointed them guardians of their child in the unlikely event of their joint death--an... More

In Life as We Know It, Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel discover that their closest friends have appointed them guardians of their child in the unlikely event of their joint death--an unlikely event that has just happened. Make no mistake: There's no reason this movie should have been any good. The premise is the worst kind of formulaic Hollywood claptrap; the pleasant but cautious Heigl (Knocked Up) is playing yet another uptight fussbudget; since a promising movie debut in the underrated Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, Duhamel has largely coasted on his looks in tripe like the Transformers movies--yet Life as We Know It is surprisingly likable. After the movie gets through the basic exposition--and navigates some radical shifts in tone with unexpected deftness--the script somehow manages to make its clichés into something resembling real human situations. The colorful supporting characters are all entertainingly written and well played by a solid cast. And both Heigl and Duhamel give understated, engaging performances that manage to make the inevitable conclusion seem almost not inevitable. Director Greg Berlanti (The Broken Hearts Club) deserves kudos for skillfully balancing humor and pathos and turning this unpromising material into a sincere and enjoyable movie. --Bret Fetzer Less

Alan Ball’s True Blood series works well for television, as it has enough sensationalism to tantalise and enough story girth to make the viewer care about the characters. That one can... More

Alan Ball’s True Blood series works well for television, as it has enough sensationalism to tantalise and enough story girth to make the viewer care about the characters. That one can finally invest emotion into monsters, including an undead Civil War victim, a transformer who can shapeshift into various animals, and a female mind reader, speaks volumes about America’s willingness to accept fantasy. Of course, television has always produced good fantasy shows (I Dream of Jeannie), but True Blood’s Southern Goth brand of fun horror is more macabre and more perverse, not to mention gorier, than most shows of its kind to date. Adapted from Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse novels, True Blood thrills because of its equal blend in each episode of erotica, humour, tragedy, mystery, and fantasy. Set in a rural, swampy Louisiana parish, the show centers around Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) and her clan, sweet grandmother Adele (Lois Smith) and air-headed brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten). Illicit love is spawned early on, when Sookie saves vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) from having his blood stolen in the parking lot of Merlotte’s diner, owned by Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell) who completes what will form a complex love triangle. As tensions between Sookie’s suitors loosen or tighten, many side plots, such as her African American best friend Tara’s (Rutina Wesley) struggle with an alcoholic, Bible-thumping mother and her brother’s dangerous crush on drug-addicted hippie Amy Burley (Lizzy Caplan), keep one wondering who will succeed in this podunk place. The main tension throughout, however, is a race war waged between vampires and humans. As murders of “fang bangers” occur (human girls who let vampires bite them) and dumb policeman Andy Bellefleur (Chris Bauer) fails to find clues, one sees the metaphorical implications of vampirism and feels deeper resonance with what can be a downright trashy show. Gossip galore, especially about what kinds of babies interbreeding will produce, is rampant. One of the funniest characters is Tara’s flamboyant cousin, Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis), who deals drugs, works as a fry cook, and services the local white politicians, while making sure he’s always up in everyone’s business. What makes True Blood smarter than pure soap opera is the parallels it draws between its monster mash and actual, familiar social problems. Sookie and her friends watch the news where Evangelicals bash vampires and prohibit mixed marriage and everyone is addicted to V, a.k.a vampire blood, that effects like psychedelic heroin. Even its gore reflects a mix of serious and silly, as vampires explode into red, sticky goop. Though it may not be attempting to qualify for the best vampire footage ever shot, True Blood is as addictive as that substance the town’s youth obsesses over, which is a metaphor in itself. --Trinie Dalton Less

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his... More

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his career, stars two charismatic young actors (Shia LaBeouf, Transformers, and Carey Mulligan, An Education) and some wily old hands (Susan Sarandon, Frank Langella, and Eli Wallach)--so why is the movie such a dud? For one thing, director Oliver Stone doesn't bother to genuinely explore what caused the stock-market crash of 2008; instead, the movie's plot revolves around melodramatic backroom machinations and financial revenge, none of which has any real emotional heft. For another, Stone is possibly the most obvious director of all time. When the characters are talking about financial bubbles, the movie has shots of children in the park blowing bubbles; when the market crashes, the movie cuts to cascading dominoes--Stone beats every metaphor into submission, and if the audience feels bludgeoned at the same time, well, that's just too bad. Add to that portentous dialogue like He's a monkey dancing on a razorblade, incoherent references to sub-prime mortgages and other financial technobabble, and a woefully mismatched soundtrack by David Byrne and Brian Eno, and the result is muddled, sluggish, and confusing. It's too bad; Douglas is as charmingly reptilian as ever. Also featuring a pointless cameo by Charlie Sheen, star of the original Wall Street. --Bret Fetzer, Amazon.com Less

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his... More

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his career, stars two charismatic young actors (Shia LaBeouf, Transformers, and Carey Mulligan, An Education) and some wily old hands (Susan Sarandon, Frank Langella, and Eli Wallach)--so why is the movie such a dud? For one thing, director Oliver Stone doesn't bother to genuinely explore what caused the stock-market crash of 2008; instead, the movie's plot revolves around melodramatic backroom machinations and financial revenge, none of which has any real emotional heft. For another, Stone is possibly the most obvious director of all time. When the characters are talking about financial bubbles, the movie has shots of children in the park blowing bubbles; when the market crashes, the movie cuts to cascading dominoes--Stone beats every metaphor into submission, and if the audience feels bludgeoned at the same time, well, that's just too bad. Add to that portentous dialogue like He's a monkey dancing on a razorblade, incoherent references to sub-prime mortgages and other financial technobabble, and a woefully mismatched soundtrack by David Byrne and Brian Eno, and the result is muddled, sluggish, and confusing. It's too bad; Douglas is as charmingly reptilian as ever. Also featuring a pointless cameo by Charlie Sheen, star of the original Wall Street. --Bret Fetzer, Amazon.com Less

Surf's Up Surf's Up is a computer- animated sports mockumentary about penguin surfing contests, which makes it stand out from the crowd of penguin movies. The story unfolds as it would on... More

Surf's Up Surf's Up is a computer- animated sports mockumentary about penguin surfing contests, which makes it stand out from the crowd of penguin movies. The story unfolds as it would on any sports-channel on TV, with interviews (with penguins) overlapping footage of (penguin) surfing action, gradually unveiling the tale of Cody Maverick (voiced by Shia LaBeouf, Transformers), a young penguin from Antarctica with dreams of winning a surfing competition--a competition named after his idol, the missing Big Z (Jeff Bridges, The Big Lebowski). But when he joins the competition, Cody finds his zeal for winning may not be enough to defeat the cruel reigning champ, Tank Evans (Diedrich Bader, Grim & Evil). The story of Surf's Up is typical stuff: Youngster learns to value friendship over material success. But the documentary style gives the movie a different rhythm from the usual feature-length cartoon; it stutters and skips around, dithers on side topics, and backtracks to catch up with supporting characters. Some viewers may be annoyed, but others--perhaps the more media-savvy--will find it a refreshing change of pace. (Kids who don't watch much sports, however, may just find it confusing.) Surf's Up also features the voices of James Woods (Hercules), Zooey Deschanel (Elf), and Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite). --Bret Fetzer Monster House The spooky shadows and eerie creaking of a rickety old house are brought to life via lush CGI in Monster House. A young boy named DJ has suspicions about the house across the street and the cranky old man (voiced by Steve Buscemi, Fargo) who lives there. When the old man has a heart attack and is carried away by an ambulance, DJ thinks the danger is over. Unfortunately, as he, his friend Chowder, and a candy-selling prep-school girl named Jenny discover, the house itself has plans--plans that include eating all the kids who'll be trick-or-treating that Halloween night. Monster House begins with some deliciously creepy scenes that will send chills down children's spines (and may be too intense for younger viewers); animated movies rarely make such effective use of what isn't being shown. The animation is vivid and detailed (though CGI still has a ways to go in capturing the full range of human facial expressions). But like most horror movies, the anticipation of horror is much more exciting than the horror itself; as the secrets of Monster House are revealed, the movie's thrills unravel. The noisy explosions at the end aren't half as much fun as the slow twitches of a few blades of grass in the movie's elegant beginning. --Bret Fetzer Open Season Open Season - Growing up can be a confusing journey fraught with difficult choices. Boog (Martin Lawrence) is a domesticated grizzly bear who leads a perfectly happy life inside of Park Ranger Beth's (Debra Messing) garage, but a chance meeting with an overly energetic mule deer named Elliot (Ashton Kutcher) quickly changes everything and lands Boog high in the forest a few days before the opening of hunting season. Devoid of even the most basic survival skills, Boog and Elliot stumble through the woods and find themselves at the mercy of every forest animal from skunks to chipmunks as well as an evil hunter named Shaw (Gary Sinise). After unintentionally inciting and endangering an entire forest full of clever animals, Boog and Elliot come to the realization that only by banding together do the forest animals stand a chance of outsmarting the hunters and ensuring their own survival. Open Season is the first animated film from Sony Pictures Animation, and takes its inspiration from cartoonist Steve Moore (In the Bleachers) and features animals with human-like intelligence, a vibrant colour palate, and skilled animation that makes everything from the wind blowing Boo's fur to the animals' wild trip down the falls simply breathtaking. While it doesn't quite live up to Over the Hedge, Open Season is an entertaining production that explores the difficult process Less

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his... More

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his career, stars two charismatic young actors (Shia LaBeouf, Transformers, and Carey Mulligan, An Education) and some wily old hands (Susan Sarandon, Frank Langella, and Eli Wallach)--so why is the movie such a dud? For one thing, director Oliver Stone doesn't bother to genuinely explore what caused the stock-market crash of 2008; instead, the movie's plot revolves around melodramatic backroom machinations and financial revenge, none of which has any real emotional heft. For another, Stone is possibly the most obvious director of all time. When the characters are talking about financial bubbles, the movie has shots of children in the park blowing bubbles; when the market crashes, the movie cuts to cascading dominoes--Stone beats every metaphor into submission, and if the audience feels bludgeoned at the same time, well, that's just too bad. Add to that portentous dialogue like He's a monkey dancing on a razorblade, incoherent references to sub-prime mortgages and other financial technobabble, and a woefully mismatched soundtrack by David Byrne and Brian Eno, and the result is muddled, sluggish, and confusing. It's too bad; Douglas is as charmingly reptilian as ever. Also featuring a pointless cameo by Charlie Sheen, star of the original Wall Street. --Bret Fetzer, Amazon.com Less

Blue George is a high quality HDSDI video capture device which encodes video (to H.264/AVC) and audio (to AAC or PCM) compatible with commercial Blu-ray players. The purpose of the Blue... More

Blue George is a high quality HDSDI video capture device which encodes video (to H.264/AVC) and audio (to AAC or PCM) compatible with commercial Blu-ray players. The purpose of the Blue George device is to allow broadcasters and media professionals to capture directly from HDSDI sources and burn to optical disc in near-real-time. Blue George is a suitable device for many situations where speed and convenience of Blu-ray disc production outweigh the advantages of authoring the discs as part of the traditional NLE workflow. For example, compliance recording can be served by a simple disc archiving mechanism. Capture & Chunk - Blue George is built on an Intel 2nd-generation quad-core iCore5 platform and uses a Black Magic SDI Capture card to capture video and store it on the device's internal storage. Transcode - Recorded clips are transcoded faster than real-time using Intel Quick Sync video architecture and wrapped in Blu-ray compliant MPEG transport stream. As each chunk is transcoded, it is indexed according to the to the Blu-ray disc specifications and the files can be written to either Blu-ray discs or DVD. Transcoding can also be set to MP4 with AAC Audio, so that logging can be made to discs in a format more normally used by computers and on-line services, which may be more compatible with user requirements. Burn - Discs can be available just minutes after the recording has been completed by burning each chunk as a separate session to the disc. If time is not a consideration, Blue George includes a high compatibility mode that prepares the disc as recording is ongoing, but writes the entire disc as a single session after the Stop command has been issued. This is slightly slower, but allows for discs to be played on the widest range of commercial set top boxes. Less

DVDs Xbox 360 Games Nintendo DS Games PS3 Games PSP Games DVDs Xbox 360 Games CDs Nintendo DS Games PS3 Games Games PC Blu-ray PSP Games Nintendo DS Hardware Wii Hardware PS3 Hardware Xbox... More

DVDs Xbox 360 Games Nintendo DS Games PS3 Games PSP Games DVDs Xbox 360 Games CDs Nintendo DS Games PS3 Games Games PC Blu-ray PSP Games Nintendo DS Hardware Wii Hardware PS3 Hardware Xbox 360 Accessories Xbox 360 Hardware Nintendo DS Accessories PSP Acce Less

In Life as We Know It, Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel discover that their closest friends have appointed them guardians of their child in the unlikely event of their joint death--an... More

In Life as We Know It, Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel discover that their closest friends have appointed them guardians of their child in the unlikely event of their joint death--an unlikely event that has just happened. Make no mistake: There's no reason this movie should have been any good. The premise is the worst kind of formulaic Hollywood claptrap; the pleasant but cautious Heigl (Knocked Up) is playing yet another uptight fussbudget; since a promising movie debut in the underrated Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, Duhamel has largely coasted on his looks in tripe like the Transformers movies--yet Life as We Know It is surprisingly likable. After the movie gets through the basic exposition--and navigates some radical shifts in tone with unexpected deftness--the script somehow manages to make its clichés into something resembling real human situations. The colorful supporting characters are all entertainingly written and well played by a solid cast. And both Heigl and Duhamel give understated, engaging performances that manage to make the inevitable conclusion seem almost not inevitable. Director Greg Berlanti (The Broken Hearts Club) deserves kudos for skillfully balancing humor and pathos and turning this unpromising material into a sincere and enjoyable movie. --Bret Fetzer Less

  In The Grey, Liam Neeson leads an unruly group of oil-rig roughnecks when their plane crashes into the remote Alaskan wilderness. Battling mortal injuries and merciless weather, the... More

  In The Grey, Liam Neeson leads an unruly group of oil-rig roughnecks when their plane crashes into the remote Alaskan wilderness. Battling mortal injuries and merciless weather, the survivors have only a few days to escape the icy elements and a vicious pack of rogue wolves on the hunt before their time runs out.   Actors Liam Neeson, Dallas Roberts, Frank Grillo, Dermot Mulroney, Nonso Anozie, Joe Anderson, Ben Bray, James Badge Dale, Anne Openshaw, Peter Girges, Jonathan Bitonti, James Bitonti, Ella Kosor, Jacob Blair & Lani Gelera Director Joe Carnahan Certificate 15 years and over Year 2012 Languages English Duration 2 hours (approx) Less

The Artist is a love letter and homage to classic black-and-white silent films. The film is enormously likable and is anchored by a charming performance from Jean Dujardin, as silent movie... More

The Artist is a love letter and homage to classic black-and-white silent films. The film is enormously likable and is anchored by a charming performance from Jean Dujardin, as silent movie star George Valentin. In late-1920s Hollywood, as Valentin wonders if the arrival of talking pictures will cause him to fade into oblivion, he makes an intense connection with Peppy Miller, a young dancer set for a big break. As one career declines, another flourishes, and by channeling elements of A Star Is Born and Singing in the Rain, The Artist tells the engaging story with humour, melodrama, romance, and--most importantly-- silence. As wonderful as the performances by Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo (Miller) are, the real star of The Artist is cinematographer Guillaume Schiffman. Visually, the film is stunning. Crisp and beautifully contrasted, each frame is so wonderfully constructed that this sweet and unique little movie is transformed from entertaining fluff to a profound cinematic achievement. --Kira Canny Less

It’s little secret that Blu-rays of Pixar films are among the finest demo material you can lay your hands on for a half-decent home cinema set-up. But perhaps Up is the most impressive of... More

It’s little secret that Blu-rays of Pixar films are among the finest demo material you can lay your hands on for a half-decent home cinema set-up. But perhaps Up is the most impressive of all. The film itself is outstanding, and only the second to snare a Best Picture nomination at the Academy Awards. Telling the story of 78-year old Carl Fredericksen as he embarks, along with boy scout Russell, on a journey he promised his late wife he’d always take, it’s a stunning piece of work. Most memorable is one of the most moving sequences ever committed to animation, which hits you in the film’s first ten minutes, but there’s still plenty to keep you enthralled after that. One of the most striking features of Up is just how visually arresting it is. The visuals crackle with exceptional levels of detail here, with a broad palette of colours shining through on the stunning 1080p video transfer. This really is reference- quality work, and just from a home cinema demonstration point of view, Up is a flat-out must buy. But it’s more than that. It’s also one of the most ambitious, at-times original and boldest films to come out of Hollywood in recent times. When most other animation studios are content to stuff their films with cute animals and star names, Pixar continues to take risks, and while Up isn’t a perfect ride, it’s not too far off. A wonderful film, brilliantly transferred to Blu-ray. --Simon Brew Less

United Kingdom released, Blu-Ray/Region B DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), English ( Dolby DTS-HD Master Audio ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (1.85:1), SPECIAL FEATURES:... More

United Kingdom released, Blu-Ray/Region B DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), English ( Dolby DTS-HD Master Audio ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (1.85:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Behind the scenes, Cast/Crew Interview(s), Interactive Menu, Making Of, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: From visionary director Joe Dante comes a suspense thriller that explores the fears and secrets buried deep in the human mind. Life couldnt possibly get worse, or so thought 17 year old Dane and his 10 year old brother Lucas, when their single mother Susan uproots them from New York City to the sleepy little town of Bensonville. For Dane the only exciting thing about their new town is the beautiful girl next door, Julie. With Susan spending more and more time at work, Dane and Lucas are left unattended to explore the depths of their eerie new residence. With Dane paying more attention to Julie, he has far less time and patience for his little brother. But then everything changes when they find a sinister bottomless hole under a locked trap door in the basement. As the brothers experiment with the hole they realize that the cold pit goes on forever. They drop a nail and never hear it hit bottom. They lower a flashlight and a video camera and they get consumed by the darkness. Hoping for some answers about the houses past, Dane and Lucas bring Julie in on their new discovery. When the hole is exposed, evil is unleashed. With strange shadows lurking around every corner and past nightmares coming to life, the trio will have to come face to face their darkest fears to put an end to THE HOLE. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Venice Film Festival, ...The Hole (2009) (Blu-Ray) Less

The powerful presence of Russell Crowe and the skillful writing and directing of Paul Haggis (Crash) give The Next Three Days an emotional heft to match its taut suspense. Schoolteacher... More

The powerful presence of Russell Crowe and the skillful writing and directing of Paul Haggis (Crash) give The Next Three Days an emotional heft to match its taut suspense. Schoolteacher John Brennan (Crowe) is stunned when his wife Laura (Elizabeth Banks, W.) is sentenced to life imprisonment for murder. As he watches her emotional decline behind bars, he becomes determined to break her out of prison--and The Next Three Days tracks his meticulous efforts, including wrong turns that threaten to capsize everything. The movie is most compelling in how it follows Brennan's wrenching emotional changes. He's not some cold, focused secret agent--he's torn between his painful devotion to his wife and the frightening possibility of what could go wrong, including the possible cost to their son. The outstanding supporting cast includes Liam Neeson, Brian Dennehy, and rapper RZA, but the vast majority of the movie rests on Crowe's shoulders and he carries it like an athlete. There's something deeply physical about Crowe's performances-- his emotions seem to fill his entire body, even as his expressions are incredibly subtle. It's a gripping performance by a remarkable actor, anchoring a well-conceived and engaging thriller. --Bret Fetzer Less

Like a pumpkin that transforms into a carriage, some very shrewd casting (and the charisma of Julia Roberts, in particular) morphed this story of a Hollywood whore into a Disneyfied... More

Like a pumpkin that transforms into a carriage, some very shrewd casting (and the charisma of Julia Roberts, in particular) morphed this story of a Hollywood whore into a Disneyfied Cinderella story--and a mainstream megahit. This is the movie that made Roberts a star, her charms helping tremendously to carry viewers over the rough spots in the script (which was originally to be a cynical tale about prostitution called 3000--after the amount of money Richard Gere's character pays the prostitute to stay with him for the week). Gere is the silver-haired Wall Street knight who sweeps streetwalker Roberts into a fantasy world of room service at the Regent Beverly Wiltshire Hotel and fashion boutique shopping on Rodeo Drive. The supporting cast is also appealing, including Laura San Giacomo as Roberts's hooker pal, Hector Elizondo as the hotel manager, Jason Alexander, Ralph Bellamy and Hank Azaria. --Jim Emerson, Amazon.com On the DVD: With a beautiful bubble effect offering a touch of fantasy to the special features menu, the viewer might expect a disc packed with lavish offerings. Unfortunately the extras are a little more spartan than the menu would have us believe, consisting of a theatrical trailer and a cringe-worthy pop video of Wild Women Do, complete with a bouncing camera and arty black-and-white shots. The worst of these features comes in the form of the production trailer, a useless addition which attempts to briefly summarise the film's underlying themes with inter-cut comments from the actors and directors on the original trailer (already featured in its pure form on the disc) and which offers little additional information of any merit. The disc does, however, come into its own when Gary Marshall takes the helm for the director's commentary: he has an entertaining and amusing narrative style, which is upbeat and direct like his film, and his comments really bring to life the fairy-tale narrative. Add to this a widescreen 1.85:1 presentation, which will make you feel as if Richard Gere has just swept you off your feet. --Nikki Disney Less

The weirdness of actor Nicolas Cage and the weirdness of science-fiction author Philip K. Dick seem like a natural fit. The premise, taken from a short story by Dick, is a good one: A... More

The weirdness of actor Nicolas Cage and the weirdness of science-fiction author Philip K. Dick seem like a natural fit. The premise, taken from a short story by Dick, is a good one: A mediocre Las Vegas magician named Chris Johnson (Cage) can see into the future--but only about two minutes at the most. Just enough to pull off his act and to make some money at the gambling tables, so long as he's discreet. Unfortunately, he hasn't been discreet enough; a government agent (Julianne Moore) has sussed out his precognitive talent and wants to use him to track down terrorists. But all Johnson cares about is a beautiful young woman (Jessica Biel, The Illusionist) that he can see in his future--much further in his future than he's ever seen before. Next has flashes that point to a much, much better movie than it turned out to be. A sequence in which Johnson, clairvoyantly explores all the different permutations of how he might approach his mystery woman is both funny and thought- provoking, and when Johnson avoids pursuers by knowing just the right moment to turn a corner or duck his head, it's smart and suspenseful. Unfortunately, the terrorist part of the plot is utterly perfunctory and precognition is reduced to an action movie gimmick. Somewhere in there is the kernel of a romantic comedy about precognition that's just waiting to be made. Cage gives a solid if unsurprising performance, Moore is basically earning a paycheck, but Biel is unexpectedly good (and her part is considerably better-written than your usual romantic interest); her performance suggests a better future than anyone might have predicted. --Bret Fetzer Less

One of the finest British comedies of the decade, In The Loop takes the genius of the small screen hit The Thick Of It, and fleshes it out into a blisteringly funny feature-length movie. ... More

One of the finest British comedies of the decade, In The Loop takes the genius of the small screen hit The Thick Of It, and fleshes it out into a blisteringly funny feature-length movie. Written and directed by Armando Ianucci, the film basically follows a plan between the American President and the British Prime Minister to begin a war, and spin it to their advantage. Naturally, not everyone is so keen on the plan, and the problems arise when Simon Foster, the Minister for International Development, declares that a war isn’t foreseeable, a statement that soon gets seized upon. Then In The Loop deploys its not-so-secret weapon, as enter stage left comes the tour-de-force that is spin doctor Malcolm Tucker. The character of Tucker will be familiar to fans of The Thick Of It, and here, he’s the absolute high point of a film packed with great moments. Foul-mouthed, vitriolic and a majestic comedy creation, much has been written in the past about Tucker’s similarities with Alastair Campbell. The parallels are startling, but it’s in Peter Capaldi’s outstanding portrayal of him that Tucker becomes the force of nature he is here. Bolstered by an intelligent and incisive script, In The Loop is both an outstanding comedy and a first-rate satire, that only loses its momentum slightly in its final act. Yet by that stage, it’s more than justified both your expense and your time, and it’s virtually guaranteed to stay resident on many people’s rewatch pile too. One of the finest films of 2009. --Jon Foster Less

Although the superhero comic book has been a duopoly since the early 1960s, only DC's flagship characters, Superman and Batman (who originated in the late 1930s) have established themselves... More

Although the superhero comic book has been a duopoly since the early 1960s, only DC's flagship characters, Superman and Batman (who originated in the late 1930s) have established themselves as big-screen franchises. Until now--this is the first runaway hit film version of the alternative superhero X-Men universe created for Marvel Comics by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and others. It's a rare comic-book movie that doesn't fall over its cape introducing all the characters, and this is the exception. X-Men drops us into a world that is closer to our own than Batman's Gotham City, but it's still home to super-powered goodies and baddies. Opening in high seriousness with paranormal activity in a WW2 concentration camp and a senatorial inquiry into the growing mutant problem, Bryan Singer's film sets up a complex background with economy and establishes vivid, strange characters well before we get to the fun. There's Halle Berry flying and summoning snowstorms, James Marsden zapping people with his optic beams, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos shape-shifting her blue naked form, and Ray Park lashing out with his Toad-tongue. The big conflict is between Patrick Stewart's Professor X and Ian McKellen's Magneto, super-powerful mutants who disagree about their relationship with ordinary humans, but the characters we're meant to identify with are Hugh Jackman's Wolverine (who has retractable claws and amnesia), and Anna Paquin's Rogue (who sucks the life and superpowers out of anyone she touches). The plot has to do with a big gizmo that will wreak havoc at a gathering of world leaders, but the film is more interested in setting up a tangle of bizarre relationships between even more bizarre people, with solid pros such as Stewart and McKellen relishing their sly dialogue and the newcomers strutting their stuff in cool leather outfits. There are in-jokes enough to keep comics' fans engaged, but it feels more like a science fiction movie than a superhero picture. --Kim Newman Less

Martin Scorsese leaps into the madness of the Rolling Stones’ organization in Shine a Light, barely controlling (in a most entertaining way) a documentary that culminates in the Stones’... More

Martin Scorsese leaps into the madness of the Rolling Stones’ organization in Shine a Light, barely controlling (in a most entertaining way) a documentary that culminates in the Stones’ best concert on film. The movie’s highly entertaining, pre-performance prologue finds a frazzled Scorsese trying to get a clue about the band’s plans for a very special New York City date in 2006, a benefit hosted by Bill and Hillary Clinton. While Mick Jagger quibbles over concepts for the stage’s set and peruses lists of possible songs to include in the show, Scorsese tries to figure out how to shoot something for which he has few production details. Everything falls into place eventually, and after an extraordinary meet-and-greet scene in which Jagger, Keith Richards, Ron Wood, and Charlie Watts catch up with the Clintons and sweetly introduce themselves to Hillary’s mom, the Stones launch into a set that leans less heavily than usual on their greatest hits canon. Longtime fans are sure to appreciate the wealth of generally- untapped material from Let It Bleed (You Got the Silver, Live With Me), Exile On Main Street (All Down the Line, Loving Cup), and Some Girls (Faraway Eyes, Just My Imagination). Jack White, Christina Aguilera and Buddy Guy are on hand for memorable collaborations, but the Stones all alone are truly on fire in the relatively intimate setting of a small theater. Among the highlights is a sexy and even thrilling call-and-response between Jagger and ace backup singer Lisa Fischer on She Was Hot, Richards’ gracious and expansive solo on Connection, and Jagger’s witty take on Some Girls (which manages to skip over the controversial verse about black girls). Throughout the show, Scorsese and an army of camera operators cover the action from every conceivable angle, which results not so much in another hyperkinetic concert film but rather in the kind of graceful, flattering portrayal of a great band that the director mastered with The Last Waltz. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com Less

Musicians have long proven to be a well of inspiration for film makers, and so it proves again with director Anton Corbjn’s telling of the story of Ian Curtis and Joy Division, Control. ... More

Musicians have long proven to be a well of inspiration for film makers, and so it proves again with director Anton Corbjn’s telling of the story of Ian Curtis and Joy Division, Control. Based on the book of the same name, the first of Control's many successes is to make prior knowledge of the subject matter unnecessary. And while music is an important part of the film, the movie ultimately focuses in on the relationship between Curtis and his wife, Deborah. It’s a moving and emotional rollercoaster, and one realised with exceptional skill and grace by Sam Riley and the ever-astonishing Samantha Morton in the lead acting roles. The former is someone very much to watch, the latter is surely long overdue an Oscar. Credit too must go to director Corbjn, though, who builds up Control with diligence and discipline. He shapes a musical biopic that distinguishes itself from its numerous contemporaries, and while it perhaps doesn’t spend enough time with the Joy Division side of the story, it’s a film that’s otherwise hard to fault. Control, ultimately, not only managed to sidestep many of the contrivances of the genre, but it also offers a raw, electric and emotional experience, and proved to be one of 2007’s finest films. Don’t miss it. --Jon Foster Less

United Kingdom released, Blu-Ray/Region B DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), English ( Dolby DTS-HD Master Audio ), French ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), French ( Dolby Linear PCM ),... More

United Kingdom released, Blu-Ray/Region B DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), English ( Dolby DTS-HD Master Audio ), French ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), French ( Dolby Linear PCM ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Interactive Menu, Making Of, Scene Access, Trailer(s), Uncut, SYNOPSIS: Enzo and Jacques have known each other for a long time. Their friendship started in their childhood days in the Mediterranean. They were not real friends in these days, but there was something they both loved and used to do the whole day long: diving. One day Jacques' father, who was a diver too, died in the Mediterranean sea. After that incident Enzo and Jacques lost contact. After several years, Enzo and Jacques had grown up, Johanna, a young clerk in a security office, has to go to Peru. There she meets Jacques who works for a group of scientists. He dives for some minutes into ice-cold water and the scientists monitor his physical state that is more like a dolphin's than a human's. Johanna can not believe what she sees and gets very interested in Jacques but she's unable to get acquainted with him. Some weeks later, back in her office, she notices a championship for divers that is supposed to take place in Taormina, Italy. In order to see Jacques again she makes up a story so the firm sends her to Italy for business purposes. In Taormina there is also Enzo, the reigning diving world champion. He knows that only Jacques can challenge and probably beat him. This time Johanna and Jacques get closer, but Jacques, being more a dolphin than a man, can not really commit and his rivalry with Enzo pushes both men into dangerous territory... ...The Big Blue (1988) ( Le grand bleu ) (Blu-Ray) Less