Grindhouse Presents, Death Proof - Extended and Unrated (Two-Disc Special Edition)

Description

A deranged stuntman stalks his victims from the safety of his killer car, but when he picks on the wrong group of badass babes, all bets are off in an adrenaline-pumping, high speed, white-knuckle automotive duel of epic proportions, where anything can happen.

Customer Reviews:

week.......2007-09-14

greedy pigs. how on earth can they justify releasing terror planet and deathproof seperatly. the whole hype behind this film was the fact that it was a double feature. i guess QT or RR dont have enough money as it is. week dude, completley week. They obviously dont respect fans of their work.

Total Waste of TIME !!! 100% DUM & STUPID MOVIE!.......2007-09-14

I can't wait to write a review about this movie! I watched "Death Proof" yesterday and I couldn't keep watching for longer than 20 minutes; I had to shut it up. Man! I've watched many bad movies before, but not like this one. So stupid dialogue pacing, idiotic characters, camera angle, editing, cinematography, acting, story telling, directing, everything is the worst I've ever seen.

I didn't expect this kind of movie from Quentin Tarantino.

Well written dialogue, but misses it's mark........2007-09-13

This is for the extended edition. I saw the double feature. Wasn't a huge fan of both films. I thought I'd give the extended cuts a second chance though. On with the review:

It is what it is. Death Proof simply misses it's mark. Tarantino is trying to spin the slasher genre on it's ear with his unique, unrealistic dialogue. (nobody talks as smooth, cool, and drops so many film references like the way Tarantino writes) Atleast with Pulp Fiction, it was pretty new at the time. But Death Proof is just to self aware. As if it knows it's going on, and on with it's uninteresting dialogue. As if Tarantino wants to bore us to death so he can try and surprise us with his car crash.

Dialogue should help move the story along. Death Proof doesn't really have much of a story to begin with though. So all were left with is character development, then a car chase. The problem with Death Proof's dialogue is that it adds nothing to the overall film. I know Tarantino is trying to build up the characters so we feel for them. But if anybody has ever seen a slasher film since 1979, they'll know what to expect. When the killer is stalking his prey, you know he's gonna strike anytime soon. I don't need to sit through 30 minutes of dialogue about girls, relationships, cellphone texting, and males wanting to get laid (think Sex and the City. Except that show was interesting because that 'talk' moved the stories along) The whole time though, we already know the fate of these girls.

Anyways... After more then a hour of talk, with a decent car crash about 35 minutes in the middle. We get to the car chase. It's great that they didn't use CGI. But it's nothing to brag about. "The stunts are real" is something I read a lot while reading some of the forums. Before 1995, not a single car chase was CGI. There's just simply nothing new. I am serious when I say The Dukes Of Hazzard TV show did car chases just as good as this. Their driving on an open road, with barely any cars. All their doing is bumping into each other, and going fast. It was cool when Zoe Bell was on the hood of the car. But Indiana Jones did that in Raiders in 1981. Plus, he went underneath the car, then got dragged by it. No CGI their folks!

The main reason I gave this two stars is because of Kurt Russell. Ever since I first saw Escape From New York, he's been the coolest of cool. As usual, he made Death Proof better then it should have been. If it wasn't for Kurt, Death Proof simply would have been a mess. With the exception of the enjoyable, and cute Zoe Bell. Most of the cast ranges from average, to awful. The actress'/actors just don't sound natural.

Most horror films have very little character development. I believe Death Proof shows us why. The characters in these slasher films are uninteresting. Maybe were supposed to be in the shoes of Stuntman Mike. Stalking and listening to every little detail of our prey. Next time find more interesting prey.

A (post) Feminist Film? Maybe........2007-09-12

Yes, you should have seen GRINDHOUSE in the theatre! It was an awesome cinematic experience and the faux trailers were so good! As far as DEATH PROOF goes, I personally think it's the best of the two films (Planet Terror/Death Proof). I applaud QT for presenting his heroins in a (somewhat) positive light. In true "girlfriends" fashion, we see how a group of women interact and react with each other, with other women, and finally, with a preditor. These women kick major a$$ but in a real way. For once, we see women not allow fear to paralyze them but rather, encourage them to fight for their lives. Awesome film. Feminist approved.

lame lame lame.......2007-09-12

nope not talking about grindhouse, it was one of my favorite films of the year..great entertainment..no im talking about the fact that they have ruined this film in the dvd release by essentially cutting the movie in half releasing it as two separate films killing what the movie was suppsed to be anyway, a great homage to grindhouse double features. any no trailers either in between and probably none of the other hilarious between film stuff. oh yeah, and "restored footage"? why? the frickin movie was perfect as it was. tack that stuff on the end if you have too. until the grindhouse i saw in the theater is released on dvd i wont be watching it.

Average customer rating:

Excellent Snapshot of the Royal Family
Queen
"Duty first, self second"
Very enjoyable
Yawn...

The Queen
Starring: Helen Mirren , Michael Sheen , James Cromwell , Sylvia Syms , and Alex Jennings
Director: Stephen Frears
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005JPAO
Release Date: 2007-04-24

Amazon.com

Helen Mirren reigns supreme in The Queen, a witty and ingenious look at a moment that rocked the house of Windsor: the week that followed the sudden death of Princess Diana in 1997. Diana's death came at just the same time that Prime Minister Tony Blair (played by the bright Michael Sheen) was settling into his new government--and trying to figure out the delicate relationship between 10 Downing Street and Queen Elizabeth II (Mirren). A large portion of the British population was trying to figure out the Windsors that week, as Elizabeth remained stiff-upper-lip and largely mum about the death of the beloved princess. In Peter Morgan's skillful script, we watch as Blair grows increasingly impatient with the Royals, who are sequestered in their Scottish estate while the public demands some show of grief. Prince Philip (James Cromwell, in good form) clumsily decides to take Diana's sons hunting, while a sympathetically-treated Prince Charles (Alex Jennings) displays some frustration with his mother's eerie calm.

None of this conveys how funny the film is, or how deftly it flows from one scene to the next. Director Stephen Frears (Dirty Pretty Things) deserves great credit for that, and for the performances, and for the movie's marvelous sense of well-roundedness; you could see this movie and groan at the cluelessness of the Royals and their outmoded existence, or you might just sympathize with showing reserve in a world that values gross public displays of emotion. But either way, you'll marvel at Mirren, who makes the Queen far more alert and human than one might ever have imagined. --Robert Horton

Beyond The Queen

The British are Coming! Kings & Queens on DVD
Helen Mirren Essential DVDs
The Queen: Music From the Motion Picture by Alexandre Desplat

Stills from The Queen (click for larger image)

Description

Winner of the Academy Award® for Best Actress, Dame Helen Mirren gives a spellbinding performance in THE QUEEN, the provocative story behind one of the most public tragedies of our time — the sudden death of Princess Diana. In the wake of Diana's death, the very private and tradition-bound Queen Elizabeth II (Mirren) finds herself in conflict with the new Prime Minister, the slickly modern and image-conscious Tony Blair. THE QUEEN, also starring Academy Award® Nominee James Cromwell (Best Supporting Actor, BABE, 1995), takes you inside the private chambers of the Royal Family and the British government for a captivating look at a vulnerable human being in her darkest hour, as a nation grieving for its People's Princess waits to see what its leaders will do. Suspenseful, heartfelt and riveting, it's a fascinating story you won't soon forget.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Snapshot of the Royal Family.......2007-09-12

There is no doubt that Dame Helen Mirren deserves the Oscar Best Actress award. Her "portrayal" of Queen Elizabeth II gives viewers moments of illusion that she were the queen. But all we can really see is a snapshot of the royal family, because no one can possibly know their private thoughts and conversation behind closed doors. It may be interesting to contrast the royal family's reactions to the public pressure and scandals by looking at the past. Edward & Mrs. Simpson, a 5-star topnotch TV mini-series may provide that opportunity, and Actor Edward Fox's King Edward is as compelling as Helen Mirren's Queen Elizabeth.

Queen.......2007-09-12

A bit slow in spots, but excellent acting, sensitive presention of a controversial subject, respectful presentation of all historica people involved.

"Duty first, self second".......2007-09-03

Helen Mirren won an Academy Award for her performance as Elizabeth II in "The Queen," which depicts the British monarch's reaction to the death of Princess Diana in the summer of 1997. Prime Minister Tony Blair (played brilliantly by Michael Sheen) had just recently been elected at the time of Diana's death, and he was still in the process of determining the best way to forge a successful working relationship with the queen. This film deals with Windsor's fall from grace the week after Diana's death, when the queen refused to follow the prime minister's advice on how to best handle the situation to meet the needs of the grieving British public.

At first the queen refuses to take Blair's advice about making any kind of public statement, preferring to remain silent in hopes that the former Princess of Wales would be laid to rest quickly and quietly, without any fanfare. However, the public's frustration grows and Elizabeth faces opposition from the government as well as from her son Charles (Alex Jennings). Soon it becomes clear that the royal family's inaction may wind up being their ultimate demise, and the queen is forced to come to terms with her own emotions and make one of what was surely many difficult choices during her reign.

I think this film is brilliant. The cast is absolute perfection, and it's very clear why Mirren received an Oscar for her portrayal as a queen struggling to come to terms with her own personal beliefs and the realization that she doesn't always understand the needs of her people. I also appreciated the way the film handled the treatment of Diana herself. Although the plot of the movie revolves around Diana's death, it's handled gracefully and with dignity. Instead of casting an actress to play the princess, the film relied on a steady peppering of news clips showing the real Diana herself, which was thoughtful and effective.

On one hand, "The Queen" depicts a monarchy that is cold and completely out of touch with modern day society. However, although I didn't always agree with Elizabeth's choices, it was easy to sympathize with her position and understand where she was coming from when she made certain decisions. Regardless of her personal feelings toward the late princess, the queen's belief that quiet dignity should be maintained before caving in to public spectacle is a very good point.

I highly recommend this movie to everyone, if for no other reason than that Mirren portrays Elizabeth II with more humanity than most people might believe is possible. This is truly an excellent film.

Very enjoyable.......2007-08-20

The joy of this great piece of cinema is watching the violent collision of two parallel worlds coexisting in the present-day UK, the world of upper-class Victorian privilege and devotion to duty inhabited by the UK Royal Family, complete with its huntin', shootin', fishin', and the everyday world of all the rest of us. This is brilliantly captured in this film, especially with the flashes between the mannered, genteel Royal household and the chaotic, refreshingly normal Blair household.

The scenes in which collision first occurs are priceless; the slightly gauche young Tony Blair, fresh from a landslide General Election victory, confronts his Sovereign whose first Prime Minister was Winston Churchill, the anti-Royalist Cherie Blair sways in an incredibly precarious curtsey and then the Blairs back out of The Presence in the most awkward manner, because nobody turns his or her back on HM ("And it's "Ma'am", as in "ham", not "Marm" as in "farm", as a uniformed flunkey reminds them).

The greater collision was triggered by the death of Diana, and the sudden realisation by the Royals that something more than regal aloofness and stiff upper lips were necessary. Having apparently grown up with an assumption of the right to rule as their due and that the public would soon see things their way, the Windsors were suddenly confronted by the fact that the public saw Diana differently and what it thought of her - and them - mattered very much. In the end, you are left with the impression that Elizabeth Windsor, with the urging of Tony Blair, had learned something - but could perhaps usefully learn a bit more.

This is naturally a work of fiction - the Queen basically adheres very well to the formula of Walter Bagehot, the great 19th century editor of "The Economist", that not too much light should be allowed in for fear of destroying the magic, and so never gives interviews and rarely allows personal glimpses. We therefore have no idea as to what was said and thought. However, I found it all works extremely well. All the actors are excellent, especially Helen Mirren, thoroughly meriting her Oscar and proving that there really is nothing like a Dame. She manages marvellously the complex part of Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Sovereign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc., etc, etc., with its mixture of absolute devotion to duty, traditional values, conservatism, basic shyness and elitism. James Cromwell does a good job of Prince Philip, whose idea of helping Diana's sons cope with her death is to take them out to shoot things, Sylvia Sims makes a delightful Queen Mother and Charles is given a sympathetic portrayal, although it's a pity that they didn't get someone who looks more like him (but then, who would want to?).

All in all, a very good film which leaves one (this one anyway) wondering why the ordinary British people accept with relatively little complaint this bunch of toffs with virtually nothing in common with them (same number of heads, arms, ears, etc., but that's all) as their rulers. But then, the US public has recently twice voted into its Presidency the US equivalent of royalty, who has nothing in common with them and whose sole interest is lining the pockets of other rich guys. At least the Brits have (genuine) class. Perhaps they really have the right idea.

Yawn..........2007-08-14

As with my Sin City movie review, I know that I am going to get crushed by my one star rating, especially with all the awards and press this movie has gotten, but here goes, my opposition review.

Basically, the whole flow of this movie feels like a bad TV soap opera drama, where pretty much nothing happens except people talking on their phone in their studies. The whole sweep of the film is very, very clunky. A lot of the sets feel very, very staged and cheap. Seriously, there are a lot of British television shows that are a lot smoother, and less slow in pace.

As far as plot, you take an historical event that was extremely tabloid to begin with, and then try to fit it into the pace and style of a quiet British drama, and apparently the clash of cultures is supposed to make it look interesting. It fails to clash in this regard, it looks like two separate movies.

As far as acting is concerned, Helen Mirren has done a better and more dynamic job in other films. Yeah, this is not designed to be a dynamic role anyways, the Queen of England. My opinion is this - it really doesn't take a lot of effort to display stoicism and lack of emotion across an entire movie. The rest of the cast is really iffy as well- even James Cromwell. And what's up with Tony Blair's lips? Too much makeup?

The sad thing is that I am the type of reviewer that generally likes this sort of film - I tend to steer away from heavy action and adventure and prefer drama. I also would like to say that I don't really have a strong opinion on the British constitutional monarchy either, though this movie's plot is so lacking it never really gets to the deeper issues.

Go watch a nice British mystery drama instead.

Robinson Crusoe on Mars - Criterion Collection

Average customer rating:

Deaf and hard of hearing people once again frozen out of classic cinema
courage in hopeless circumstances
Science in science fiction
Wonderful film for all ages
Classic Science Fiction

Robinson Crusoe on Mars - Criterion Collection
Starring: Paul Mantee , Victor Lundin , Adam West , and Mona (XV)
Director: Byron Haskin
Manufacturer: Criterion Collection
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Sci-Fi | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

Science Fiction | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

All | Criterion Collection | Stores | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000SFJ4K4
Release Date: 2007-09-18

Description

Special-effects wunderkind and genre master Byron Haskin (The War of the Worlds, The Outer Limits) won a place in the hearts of fantasy-film lovers everywhere with this gorgeously designed journey into the unknown. When his spaceship crash-lands on the barren wastelands of Mars, U.S. astronaut Commander "Kit" Draper (Paul Mantee) must fight for survival, with a pet monkey seemingly his only companion. But is he alone? Shot in vast Techniscope and blazing Technicolor, Robinson Crusoe on Mars is an imaginative and beloved techni-marvel of classic science fiction.

Customer Reviews:

Deaf and hard of hearing people once again frozen out of classic cinema.......2007-09-12

What, no closed captions or English subtitles? For forty bucks, you'd think Paramount/Criterion could afford to make this accessible to the millions of us with hearing impairment.

I saw this film in the theater upon its original release, but it pretty much went by me because of my deafness. I had looked forward to seeing it again, but I'm disappointed to find that even 43 years later, I'm still not going to be able to understand the dialogue (or monologue).

I'd like to give it 4-5 stars based on others' reviews, but as long as Paramount doesn't give a damn about people like me, it's going to have to get a low rating.

courage in hopeless circumstances.......2007-08-23

An astronaut searches for food and water after an orbital mission to Mars crashes on the surface of the planet. Obviously low budget 60s sci-fi rises above the B-grade norm with sympathetic main performance, good pace and signs of intellect in plot.

Science in science fiction.......2007-08-12

Robinson Crusoe put the science in science fiction. There are no "noisey" ships or explosions in a vacuum. Our hero uses telecourses and video before compact portable video cameras were invented. He uses true American ingenuity to design a clock, find oxygen, and remain safe until he is taken back home. This film is truly different than science fantasies like E.T. or Star Wars. The score is magnificent and thrilling. And, best of all, it shows what all kids in the sixties knew--the conquest of space could easily be done with World War II surplus equipment.

Wonderful film for all ages.......2007-08-10

Count me in with the rest of the gang waiting rabidly for this release. I saw this film several times as a child and was totally engrossed in the idea of a trip to Mars and the adventure it could bring. That adventure is grandly represented by this wonderful film, which allowing for a few flaws in the plot, does at least attempt to present the story with some scientific merit and plausible ideas.

The cinematography is excellent! The stark, desolate landscape is both thrilling and chilling in it's magnificent but achingly isolated beauty. The lead actor, Paul Mantee, does a fine job of conveying the loneliness and edge of insanity mindset that comes from being in a situation of despair and solitude.

And best of all, you can watch this one with your kids, grandkids, spouse or preacher, for that matter. Good clean wholesome fun for all ages.

Highly recommended!

Classic Science Fiction.......2007-08-03

This is a Classic Science Fiction at its best. I dont know if today 's movie viewer that have limited patience and demand high end special effects will be able to enjoy this one, but anyone who loves Classic Science Fiction movies from the 50's - 60's will greatly enjoy this Gem
of a movie that remains entertaining decades after it was made.
A must have.

Average customer rating:

This DVD is flwed
Glad it's Mad
It's a funny funny funny funny movie
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad... It's a Must... !
Love the laughs, but I agree the format needs improvement

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Starring: Spencer Tracy , Milton Berle , Sid Caesar , Buddy Hackett , and Ethel Merman
Director: Stanley Kramer
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Farce | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Comedies | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B0000CBY1C
Release Date: 2003-10-07

Amazon.com

Stanley Kramer's sprawling 1963 comedy about a search for buried treasure by at least a dozen people--all played by well-known entertainers of their day--is the kind of mass comedy that Hollywood hasn't made in many years. (Another example from around the same time is Blake Edwards's The Great Race.) After a number of strangers (including Milton Berle, Jonathan Winters, Sid Caesar, Phil Silvers, and others) witness a dying stranger (Jimmy Durante) identify the location of hidden money, a conflict-ridden hunt begins, watched over carefully by a suspicious cop (Spencer Tracy). The ensuing two and a half hours of mayhem has its ups and downs--some bits and performers are certainly funnier than others. But Kramer, who is better known for socially conscious, serious cinema (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?), is in a mood for broad comic characterization, and some of his jokes are so intentionally obvious (Durante literally kicks a bucket when he dies), they'd have a place in Airplane! Watch for lots of cameo appearances, including Jerry Lewis (who had called Kramer and asked him why he hadn't been invited to participate). --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

This DVD is flwed.......2007-09-01

Like many of you, this is one of my favorite movies of all times. I bought the DVD a couple of years ago, and although it wasn't a 'perfect' copy, it was suitable for my needs. Missing was the overture, color timing, and a number a 'jittering scenes' probably due to the conversion to DVD process. The extra 'behind the scenes' feature is well worth the price of the DVD, however, if you are looking for perfection- you will not find it here. Last week, 8/25/07, Turner Classic Movies Cable Channel did present the "PERFECT" COPY. Why this copy didn't make it to the DVD, I would like to know. This had the overture, intermission & exit music- along with all of the extra scenes that had been chopped out of the movie years ago. Colors in the opening credits were vibrant and changes as when presented in the theater- and is in Wide Screen. And although this was shown on the Cinerama Screens, it was not filmed in Cinerama- but in Ultra-Panavision (which is a different film technology altogether). I 'DVR"ed this copy and plan to transfer it to a DVD soon. If you love this movies as an event, as much as I, make sure you DVR this movie the next time it's on Turner Classic Movies. This is the 2nd time I've seen it so they probably run it again. Please check out this link for more info- and scrool down to VERSIONS:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_a_Mad,_Mad,_Mad,_Mad_World#Versions

Glad it's Mad.......2007-08-10

If it isn't already, this is certainly destined to be a cult film.

Some of my favorite scenes:

Jerry Lewis running over Spencer Tracy's hat. Lewis' facial expressions are a delight.

Phil Silvers waving bye-bye in the rear view mirror to Jonathan Winters
after ditching him in the desert.

Jonathan Winters wrecking the service station.

A heavily hung-over Jim Backus on the pool table as Mickey Rooney and Buddy Hackett try to revive him.

And of course, beatniks Dick Shawn and the dead-pan Barrie Chase shakin'
it up to the Shirelles' kooky lyrics:

"Got a baby who can give me 31 flavors,
and we like tutti-frutti best,
I call him Ice Cream Joe,
he is the most delicious boy I know,
everytime his tasty lips are kissing mine,
he gives me 31 flavors,
and we like tutti-frutti best,
I just love him so,
he's my confectionary Ice Cream Joe,
everytime I kiss him I feel mighty fine,
I love his 31 flavors,
and we like tutti-frutti best,
pineapple fruit - coconut and banana, some of the fruit,
chocolate too, and tell him right that when we kiss,
he give me 31 flavors,
and we like tutti-frutty best..."

A truly Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad scene. Gotta love it!

It's a funny funny funny funny movie.......2007-08-09

Think of a huge ensemble of the major comics of the day, throw in Spencer Tracy (in his last - a comical - role), situations that defy the imagination and you've got a great comedy. Never a dull moment and you get to see where some of the greats of the genre came from.

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad... It's a Must... !.......2007-08-04

Although there are a few excellent Comedies made in the fifties and sixties, "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" is unbeatable, unforgettable and a remarkable movie production identifying the many traditional American life and family values besides those not so respectable ones. Behavior, Ambition, Consciousness, Cheat & Trick... they are all there. A very funny story made in a very intelligent way. Does it sound too serious? Couldn't be so easy and amusing, yet fast going with something new and unexpected at every second scene!
Undoubtless my favorite movie ever!

Love the laughs, but I agree the format needs improvement.......2007-08-01

I agree with everyone here, this is one of the funniest movies ever made. I'm with the other guy who said there was originally 192 minutes in the 1963 premiere - and the aspect ratio was 2.76:1. I have never seen a video release that was ever done correctly, with this running length and aspect ratio. MGM, let's do a full-on correct release finally of this great classic, with every frame restored and packed with special features. Maybe even a featurette on Cinerama and the overall history of widescreen movies would be a good addition on Disc 2. Hey fellow fans, how do we get a letter-writing campaign started at MGM? It worked for Superman II!

Average customer rating:

When times were fun.
One of the BEST movies of ALL TIMES
Longing for the good 'ol days
Happy Highways
American Graffiti

American Graffiti (Collector's Edition)
Starring: Richard Dreyfuss , Ron Howard , Paul Le Mat , Charles Martin Smith , and Cindy Williams
Director: George Lucas
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Teen | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: 078322737X
Release Date: 1998-09-16

Amazon.com essential video

Here's how critic Roger Ebert described the unique and lasting value of George Lucas's 1973 box-office hit, American Graffiti: "[It's] not only a great movie but a brilliant work of historical fiction; no sociological treatise could duplicate the movie's success in remembering exactly how it was to be alive at that cultural instant." The time to which Ebert and the film refers is the summer of 1962, and American Graffiti captures the look, feel, and sound of that era by chronicling one memorable night in the lives of several young Californians on the cusp of adulthood. (In essence, Lucas was making a semiautobiographical tribute to his own days as a hot-rod cruiser, and the film's phenomenal success paved the way for Star Wars.) The action is propelled by the music of Wolfman Jack's rock & roll radio show--a soundtrack of pop hits that would become as popular as the film itself. As Lucas develops several character subplots, American Graffiti becomes a flawless time capsule of meticulously re-created memory, as authentic as a documentary and vividly realized through innovative use of cinematography and sound. The once-in-a-lifetime ensemble cast members inhabit their roles so fully that they don't seem like actors at all, comprising a who's who of performers--some of whom went on to stellar careers--including Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford, Cindy Williams, Mackenzie Phillips, Charles Martin Smith, Candy Clark, and Paul Le Mat. A true American classic, the film ranks No. 77 on the American Film Institute's list of all-time greatest American movies. --Jeff Shannon

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

When times were fun........2007-08-18

I was 8 years old when rock n roll first came on the scene and when young people ask me what it was like when I was a teenager, I tell them to watch the movie American Graffiti. It nails it right on the head. The street rods, cruisers, custom cars, the music, all bring back good memories. Sock hops, car races, going steady, all part of an era in time that will never be duplicated again. All of these things were captured in a fun but very capable and accurate way by the director, producers and and actors. Richard Dreyfuss, Cindy Williams, Ron Howard and the rest were great. What a cast of characters and what a time in history. I loved it and have watched this movie more times than I can count. I highly recommend it to anyone that grew up in that era and to the young who want to see how the "older" generation had fun and enjoyed life. It didn't take much to entertain me or my friends when i was a teen. Give me a car, a girl friend, friends and a few hundred cruises around the circuit on a Friday and Saturday night and there you have it. American Graffiti.

One of the BEST movies of ALL TIMES.......2007-08-08

One, great cast. Two, great music. Three, great story. A must for any movie buff. This is one I watch from time to time and enjoy it every time I watch it

Longing for the good 'ol days.......2007-08-07

I grew up in Northern California and graduated from Fremont High School in the not so small town of Oakland in 1965 (and later from California Polytechnic University in San luis Obispo in 1975, after a short stint in the service). I remember the Mel's drive-in in downtown Oakland, and I remember the 'cruising' on San Leandro Blvd on Friday and Saturday nights (although I couldn't afford to get a car until 1968--a 1961 Volvo PV 544 sedan--(Wow, I wish I had that car back!). I have to say that this movie is truly one of the best nostalgia stirring movies I have ever seen. It tugs at your heart and reminds us babyboomers that there really was a simpler, more carefree time and we lived it! When gas was 23 cents a gallon (or less when the gas wars were on), you loved Casper's Hotdogs, and education costs were almost nothing if you attended Merritt Junior College. When you rode on the back of your friend's Vespa motorbike to San Jose, just because you had never been there, and when you took off in your car on a whim to visit Big Basin to see the redwoods. Talk about a movie that causes you to reminisce!

Happy Highways.......2007-07-09

Into my heart on air that kills
From you far country blows:
What are those blue remembered hills,
What spires, what farms are those?

That is the land of lost content,
I see it shining plain,
The happy highways where I went
And cannot come again.

This verse, from A.E. Housman's "A Shropshire Lad", summarizes everything that I feel for American Graffiti. The movie opened when I was 13 years old. It was my first "R" rated movie and the sold out theater erupted with laughter over and over. Now I'm 47 and I find it almost too sad to watch. Where did my childhood friends go? What lives have they led? The sweet promise of youth: a happy highway where I went and cannot come again.

American Graffiti .......2007-06-27

I didn't care for this movie too much. It might be ok for teenagers but I doubt today's teenager would relate, it may seem kind of nerdy to them.

Average customer rating:

What? Blah Blah Blah. What? Blah Blah Blah.
Forgettable and Far Too Self-Important
A brilliant movie
Worst from Iñarritu
Six degrees

Babel
Starring: Brad Pitt , Cate Blanchett , Mohamed Akhzam , Peter Wight , and Harriet Walter
Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Manufacturer: Paramount
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000MCH5P4
Release Date: 2007-02-20

Amazon.com

Brilliantly conceived, superbly directed, and beautifully acted, Babel is inarguably one of the best films of 2006. Director Alejandro González Iñárritu and his co-writer, Guillermo Arriaga (the two also collaborated on Amores Perros and 21 Grams) weave together the disparate strands of their story into a finely hewn fabric by focusing on what appear to be several equally incongruent characters: an American (Brad Pitt) touring Morocco with his wife (Cate Blanchett) become the focus of an international incident also involving a hardscrabble Moroccan farmer (Mustapha Rachidi) struggling to keep his two young sons in line and his family together. A San Diego nanny (Adriana Barraza), her employers absent, makes the disastrous decision to take their kids with her to a wedding in Mexico. And a deaf-mute Japanese teen (the extraordinary Rinko Kikuchi) deals with a relationship with her father (Koji Yakusho) and the world in general that's been upended by the death of her mother. It is perhaps not surprising, or particularly original, that a gun is the device that ties these people together. Yet Babel isn't merely about violence and its tragic consequences. It's about communication, and especially the lack of it--both intercultural, raising issues like terrorism and immigration, and intracultural, as basic as husbands talking to their wives and parents understanding their children. Iñárritu's command of his medium, sound and visual alike, is extraordinary; the camera work is by turns kinetic and restrained, the music always well matched to the scenes, the editing deft but not confusing, and the film (which clocks in at a lengthy 143 minutes) is filled with indelible moments. Many of those moments are also pretty stark and grim, and no will claim that all of this leads to a "happy" ending, but there is a sense of reconciliation, perhaps even resolution. "If You Want to be Understood... Listen," goes the tagline. And if you want a movie that will leave you thinking, Babel is it. --Sam Graham

Beyond Babel

Other Interweaving Storylines on DVD
Other DVDs by Director Alejandro González Iñárritu
Why We Love Cate Blanchett

Stills from Babel (click for larger image)

Product Description

In Babel, a tragic incident involving an American couple in Morocco sparks a chain of events for four families in different countries throughout the world. In the struggle to overcome isolation, fear, and displacement, each character discovers that it is family that ultimately provides solace.

In the remote sands of the Moroccan desert, a rifle shot rings out-- detonating a chain of events that will link an American tourist couple's frantic struggle to survive, two Moroccan boys involved in an accidental crime, a nanny illegally crossing into Mexico with two American children, and a Japanese teen rebel whose father is sought by the police in Tokyo. Separated by clashing cultures and sprawling distances, each of these four disparate groups of people are nevertheless hurtling towards a shared destiny of isolation and grief. In the course of just a few days, they will each face the dizzying sensation of becoming profoundly lost - lost in the desert, lost to the world, lost to themselves - as they are pushed to the farthest edges of confusion and fear as well as to the very depths of connection and love.

In this mesmerizing, emotional film that was shot in three continents and four languages - and traverses both the deeply personal and the explosively political -- acclaimed director Alejandro González Iñárritu (21 Grams, Amores Perros) explores with shattering realism the nature of the barriers that seem to separate humankind. In doing so, he evokes the ancient concept of Babel and questions its modern day implications: the mistaken identities, misunderstandings and missed chances for communication that-- though often unseen-- drive our contemporary lives. Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Gael García Bernal, Kôji Yakusho, Adriana Barraza and Rinko Kikuchi lead an international ensemble of actors and non-professional actors from Morocco, Tijuana and Tokyo, who enrich Babel's take on cultural diversity and enhance its powerful examination of the links and frontiers between and within us.

Customer Reviews:

What? Blah Blah Blah. What? Blah Blah Blah. .......2007-09-09

The tower for which this movie was named embodied hubris and grandiosity which culminated in chaos and inability to communicate. Quel coincidence! The good news about Babel is that Brad Pitt is finally starting to look like an adult, and even more surprisingly, a male adult. The bad news is, this voracious turkey vulture of a film consumes 2 hours and 23 minutes of your life that would have been better spent hammering nails into your hand.

Admires of oh-so-trendy crosscut scripting, folks who enjoyed Crash, Short Cuts, and Magnolia, should know better than to fall for this. Those three, though poor, all had worthy moments. Memento and Mulholland Drive used the technique very successfully. But director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu - who is also guilty of writing the screenplay - seems to believe that as long as characters are unified by something - anything - a coherent and meaningful story will emerge. For example, if they all breathe air, or scratch when they itch, or if they have all consumed food in the past month. Indeed, what we have are four incidents - one could never call them stories - connected by a thread so thin no self-respecting spider would cast it. Since there is no meaningful connection, we are left with the events themselves.

As is often the case today - lack of story and purpose is glossed over with splashy cinematography. While the score is at times good enough to hold your interest, there is no character anywhere in this movie who is remotely credible or intriguing. No one interacts in any meaningful way, no relationships develop. Our young Japanese friend is the closest we come, at least we care about her, but to observe this is merely say that - in the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king.

Of course when we see the name Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu we should know we're in for pompous, ponderous art house musk ox oil. He is, after all, the auteur of 21 Grams, which paraded its string of intersecting lives and aha "coincidences" before us ad nauseum - instead of plot or character. One can almost imagine the conversations at Starbucks where men in tweed jackets with leather patches, stroking goatees prattle on and on about the symbolism of communication contained in this film - the deaf girl, the telephone calls to foreign operators, a nervous world where a careless goatherd can spark suspicions of international terrorism. This, of course, is what Mr. Inarritu wants. But he's lost sight of Film School 101 - tell a story, make it a good one, give me characters I can care about, and make sure something happens. Babel never achieves the heights it hoped to reach, and takes a very long time failing.

Forgettable and Far Too Self-Important.......2007-09-08

The sweeping shots of mountains are at first awe-inspiring, then soon start to resemble something from a National Geographic special.

There's a lot of "The Ugly American" message in the story (as if there aren't any poor people in America), and the message is delivered in a very heavy-handed, bludgeoning way.

Brad Pitt phones this one in. There's nothing really memorable here; there's no humor to lighten the heavy plot.

"The Constant Gardener" is a much better film. Rent that instead.

A brilliant movie.......2007-09-05

This is definitely not a Hollywoodian movie. How about seeing it as a story about karma, negative karma, action and reaction. If you think of it (provided you have seen this movie), you will realize that the Japanese portion of the story is actually central to all the events, which originate in the Japanese executive. Karma continues to play its devastating role throughout the movie, across all the countries and cultures portrayed.

Having lived for over 10 years in Morocco, I can say that the Moroccan actors did a fabulous job, that the settings were extremely well chosen and looked authentic (I didn't live in the southern Moroccan mountains where this movie was partly shot, so I can't witness to the 100% authenticity of setting).

As for the actors, one of the best roles for Brad Pitt, which he performed perfectly. All of the actors did a superb job. Coming to this movie without any notion of its plot or setting (sorry I was so ignorant!), I was swept off my feet. Highly recommended.

Worst from Iñarritu.......2007-09-04

Boring, senseless, bad paced, predictable. Can't find a positive aspect for this movie, not even the photography or soundtrack was worth the admission fee. One star alone for the cast, yet acting is nothing memorable either.

Six degrees.......2007-09-04

Babel is a `six degrees of separation' film in which a single, small event in Morocco touches lives not only in Morocco but as far away as Japan, Mexico and America. The traumatic stories unfolding at each location are otherwise unrelated to each other and are depicted in the very different styles of film-makers in those locations. The result is like seeing three different, interleaved foreign movies based on the same theme--that horrendous events anywhere have the effect of stripping back the layers of falseness and irrelevance we build into our lives, leaving us with what is true and real. I loved the multi-national backgrounds and thought the acting and direction were superb. However, it's not a film for those looking for an uncomplicated story told in a familiar idiom. It's demanding on several levels--a sophisticated, contemporary movie.

Average customer rating:

Move along, folks, nothing to see here
Uncrash!
Crash Course
Boring, stupid, unrealistic
Hello, my name is Jeff and I'm a racist!

Crash (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Karina Arroyave , Dato Bakhtadze , Sandra Bullock , Don Cheadle , and Art Chudabala
Director: Paul Haggis
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000A3XY5A
Release Date: 2005-09-06

Amazon.com

Movie studios, by and large, avoid controversial subjects like race the way you might avoid a hive of angry bees. So it's remarkable that Crash even got made; that it's a rich, intelligent, and moving exploration of the interlocking lives of a dozen Los Angeles residents--black, white, latino, Asian, and Persian--is downright amazing. A politically nervous district attorney (Brendan Fraser) and his high-strung wife (Sandra Bullock, biting into a welcome change of pace from Miss Congeniality) get car-jacked by an oddly sociological pair of young black men (Larenz Tate and Chris "Ludacris" Bridges); a rich black T.V. director (Terrence Howard) and his wife (Thandie Newton) get pulled over by a white racist cop (Matt Dillon) and his reluctant partner (Ryan Phillipe); a detective (Don Cheadle) and his Latina partner and lover (Jennifer Esposito) investigate a white cop who shot a black cop--these are only three of the interlocking stories that reach up and down class lines. Writer/director Paul Haggis (who wrote the screenplay for Million Dollar Baby) spins every character in unpredictable directions, refusing to let anyone sink into a stereotype. The cast--ranging from the famous names above to lesser-known but just as capable actors like Michael Pena (Buffalo Soldiers) and Loretta Devine (Woman Thou Art Loosed)--meets the strong script head-on, delivering galvanizing performances in short vignettes, brief glimpses that build with gut-wrenching force. This sort of multi-character mosaic is hard to pull off; Crash rivals such classics as Nashville and Short Cuts. A knockout. --Bret Fetzer

Stills from Crash (click for larger image)

Description

They all live in Los Angeles. And in the next 36 hours, they will collide.

Customer Reviews:

Move along, folks, nothing to see here.......2007-09-05

Overrated, underwhelming, hackneyed, workmanlike, insipid dialogue, Cheadle is weak along with most of the cast. What's all the hubbub, bub? Just because Hollywood makes a movie about racial issues doesn't make it good. You'd think the opposite would be true, and you'd be right.
Pass.

Uncrash!.......2007-08-31

The human element, the touch of our lives everyday. The director of Crash did a superb job to bring all of the pain, love, race animosity, ignorance toward indifference and the human attachment and approval what all of us so much desire all into one unforgettable movie.

Crash Course.......2007-08-30

I remember being at an Oscars party here in San Francisco the year this movie won the Academy Award, and the shout of dismay that went through the room when "we" were cheated out of an Oscar for Brokeback Mountain. One fellow explained to me that the Oscars were voted on by a bunch of wealthy white people in Beverly Hills who were scared out of their minds by the prospect of being carjacked by blacks with guns. And that's why CRASH won, out of a superstitious dread reckoning. Then why didn't BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES win, fool--asked I--instead it's been universally reviled as one of the worst movies of all time.

They had plenty of answers to that one, but on the whole I was satisfied with the explanation fed me. But finally I got to see CRASH on DVD and I was pleasantly shocked to find myself enjoying every moment! OK, so it was pretty preposterous, and OK, maybe white people like William Fichtner don't unleash their racial prejudices on black men like Don Cheadle every day of their working lives. I found CRASH an interesting meta-movie, not so much about race as about the whole idea of "interlock" especially as it has become the common language to movies today.

Seems like every other picture you see is all about, picking up the loose ends from act one and resolving them in some unexpected way--and that's all they're about. If a girl gets up in the morning, and the camera shows her choosing between a red dress and a white dress at her closet, and she picks the red dress, by the end of the movie there will be a scene that is supposed to make you cry out, "She should have picked the white dress!" Indeed no image in cinema is photographed without a planned payoff, and that's why US movies are so by the book, even the cleverly juggled ones like PULP FICTION, and now CRASH. When the Persian liquor store owners ask their beautiful, professional daughter what time she has to go to work, and she replies, "Not until ten," there isn't a movie goer alive who doesn't know that-- much later on in the movie--her occupation will be a crucial reveal in the movie. When Don Cheadle's bleary-eyed, Ethel Waters of a mother moans about "Don Cheadle, when are you going to bring home your little brother?" we just know there's going to be more about the brother, and smart moviegoers are taking bets on which character is was going to turn out to be. At first I was sure it was Sandra Bullock, perhaps passing for white to pose as the "wife" of slick DA Brendan Fraser, constantly snappish maybe to conceal the fact that "she" was really a light-skinned black man. I still think that would have been a better ending than the one we got.

But nevertheless did I like this, or Cronenberg's CRASH better, I say this. Both pictures may play equally to the racial fears of white North Americans, but at least this one didn't have James Spader, who must have been busy when they were casting for Brendan Fraser's part, which I consider a break for everyone involved.

Boring, stupid, unrealistic.......2007-08-23

Everything about this film screamed 'Please nominate me for an Oscar'. And I wasn't buying it. Everything in this movie bothered me. I never liked the 'connecting' type of movies because they almost never work, and this is no exception. It bored me and I was scoffing half the time. It really is absurd that this movie got som much recognition to begin with.

Hello, my name is Jeff and I'm a racist!.......2007-08-22

Crash could be the most absurd movie about how "real" people talk and act about racism. First off let me explain to anyone who has not seen this movie that there are some good actors in this film with good performances... for such a lousy script, many times they made something out of complete non scenes. So it has that going for it, and that's where it stops. the plot is completely ridiculous, that people would run into one another at just the right time in a city the size of LA...come on. Ok, I'll suspend disbelief and let that one go, then there is the script, ouch! The dialog was so heavy handed it was like it was written by someone who once read a book about racism and never really encountered real people of different races and how they reacted to them in real social situations. There were moments in this film where i audibly cried out, "are you kidding me?" No one talks like this or about this stuff in this manner, it just doesn't happen. Real people don't act like this, fake Hollywood snobs might but not working America.. This movie was trying to be profound and say something about racism in America and all it said to me was the writer needs to get off his laptop and experience real people and not just the coked out, privileged, white, Hollywood elite he's been rubbing elbows with. This was like a 2 hour PSA. I believe, a decade from now, no one will be looking back at this as a great Oscar winner, it will go as unmentioned as Marisa Tome's Oscar for my cousin Vinnie. I found this film to not only be poorly written and directed but found it quite insulting to me. Racism is never talked about like this, it's swept under the rug, or joked about or talked about it a serious way when "those people" aren't around. I'm not an expert on race relations and not a perfect soul who doesn't have my own little biases and prejudices about other races. I'm sure we all do, but i don't walk around with my White or Black friends talking about this stuff in this manner, ok, maybe once in a blue moon you'll have a few drinks and get down to brass tacks (I love cliches) and talk some serious race talk with a close friend but those talks are few and far between, in this movie every conversation everyone ever has is about race and is articulated like it was a written speech for a political debate! This movie was made by guilty white people for guilty white people. Ok, ok... I get it, I'm a racist and i don't even know it.

Average customer rating:

If you liked End of Suburbia, you'll like this
Sad but true...
A real awakening
A good introduction to the subject...
One of the most important films of the decade.

A Crude Awakening - The Oil Crash
Director: Basil Gelpke , and Ray McCormack
Manufacturer: DOCURAMA
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Science & Technology | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

ASIN: B000PY52IG
Release Date: 2007-07-31

Amazon.com

While the previous eco-doc Who Killed the Electric Car? spent some time on the world's oil crisis, A Crude Awakening (formerly OilCrash) builds an entire film around the subject. Swiss journalist Basil Gelpke and Irish filmmaker Ray McCormack have constructed their narrative in a conventional manner, alternating between talking heads, archival footage, and modern-day material, but the addition of several pieces by Phillip Glass is an artful touch (and evokes his work on 1988's The Thin Blue Line). Throughout, a diverse array of experts from the U.S., Azerbaijan, Venezuela, and other countries explain how the 20th century became addicted to "the blood of the dinosaurs," and why contemporary society needs to change course. As attorney/activist Matthew David Savinar puts it, "Oil is our God." As Stanford professor Terry Lynn Karl adds, "More and more oil is going to come from less and less stable places...places that actually challenge the taking of oil in the first place." One of the more chilling revelations concerns the discrepancy between the reserves oil-producing nations claim they possess and the actual amount. These padded estimates allow them to drill with impunity, leading to an abundance of wealth in the short term and cataclysmic consequences once they've depleted their supply of this non-renewable resource. A Crude Awakening isn't exactly a day-brightener, but Gelpke and McCormack are comprehensive and impartial in their inquiry, which makes for an informative examination of a vitally important subject. Extras include extended interviews with four participants and bonus chapter Petrostates. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

An unforgettable and shocking wake-up call, A CRUDE AWAKENING offers the rock-solid argument that the era of cheap oil is in the past. Relentless and clear-eyed, this intensively-researched film drills deep into the uncomfortable realities of a world that is both addicted to fossil fuels and blissfully unaware of the looming "peak oil" crisis. Drawing on an international cast of maverick energy experts and thinkers, directors Basil Gelpke and Ray McCormack debunk the conventional wisdom that oil production will continue to climb, and instead stare bleakly at a planet facing economic meltdown and conflict over its most valuable resource. Featuring a haunting score by Phillip Glass and a fascinating array of rare archival footage, the film explores oil's rocky relationship with human progress in locales ranging from ancient Baku, Azerbaijan to dusty oilpatch town McCamey, Texas.

Amidst a dark and disturbing vision of our future, A CRUDE AWAKENING hints at a humbler way of life built around sustainability and alternative energy, providing a visually stunning, boldly prophetic testament which provokes not just thought but action.

Customer Reviews:

If you liked End of Suburbia, you'll like this.......2007-09-01

These Peak Oil documentaries aren't for everyone. Peak Oil means that half the world's conventional oil has been used and only half is left. The fight for the remaining oil will be fierce and that oil will become very expensive.

The concept that our present way of life may be seriously in jeapardy is too much for many to grasp or accept. Crude Awakening is very well done as is End of Suburbia. The message of both documentaries is essentially the same -- the cheap oil is gone and nothing is going to replace it that will allow our present level or life style to go on. There will be a lot less driving around in the future, for instance. End of Suburbia focuses on North America, US and Canada, Crude Awakenings, a german production I believe, focuses on the whole industrial world. Both DVDs start with how we got into this mess back when oil was first discovered.

The US uses nearly 21 million barrels of oil per day. That volume is equal to the flow of water over the Niagara Falls in 19 minutes. Or that's one square mile, four feet deep. If that square mile were corn, it would produce only 8000 barrels of ethanol in a year. Presently the world uses one cubic mile of crude oil per year. The Sears Tower is only 1/4 mile tall. Estimates are there are only 30-some cubic miles of conventional oil left. Nothing will replace oil in terms of low cost, concentrated, abundant energy. When it's gone's it's gone.

And if the world doesn't get it's act together, serious economic collapse is highly possible -- that is the message of Crude Awakenings and End of Suburbia.

Both Crude Awakenings and End of Suburbia are worthy. For me, there's enough differences in each one that I didn't regret purchasing both. However, if your budget is limited, you only need one of the two. Watch it. Show it to your friends.

Sad but true..........2007-08-31

This was certainly a sad assessment of the current energy debacle. Hopefully, this documentary ignites the hearts and minds of more creative individuals to join the cause of ensuring a sustainable future. There isn't many negative things I can say about this video. I thought it seemed very factual and seemed pretty unbiased, unlike a lot of media revolving around the same subject matter. There were some disturbing things I was unaware of (like countries claiming to have much larger reserves to ensure they keep a large enough production quota), as well as A LOT of things I think most people are already aware of. The movie had a nice pace, and didn't seem boring at all. It didn't get too technically involved either, anyone can watch it. Also, Philip Glass's musical score that accompanies the movie was very moving. It's certainly worth renting, maybe even purchasing.

A real awakening.......2007-08-31

Compelling information that should be widely distributed. Whether it happens now, in 10 years or 30 years, we can't wait to plan for the end of oil. That, combined with the damage we are doing to our world is screaming at us to wake up.

A good introduction to the subject..........2007-08-16

I have read numerous books on the subject, so nothing in the movie was really new to me. That being said, to someone who is unfamiliar with the subject, this movie will serve as an excellent introduction.

One mistake that many make when thinking of the subject is to concentrate merely on finding a replacement for oil so that life as usual can continue. The movie mentions (in passing, really) that it was the petroleum-fueled green revolution that lead to unprecedented increases in the total human population on the planet. But consider what happens when cheap oil is no longer available? How much food will we be able to grow? Will we be able to feed the 6-billion-plus people that currently live on the planet? People have given it serious study - many have concluded that the maximum sustainable human population is between 1.5 to 2 billion people. Bartlett mentions this in passing towards the end of the film, but the full significance of this point could easily be missed if you aren't paying full attention.

There are other cases besides oil where we are using resources in a non-sustainable way. We are over-fishing the oceans. We are over-extracting water from underground aquifers in order to grow the food that we currently have. And in response to high fuel prices, some advocate growing even more corn and turning it into fuel for our SUVs.

There is a final point at the end of this however, and these questions weren't really addressed in the film. If you dig a little bit into the subject, they come up rather quickly however. Our economic systems depend upon and for that matter require growth to be healthy. But as we wind down oil usage, it seems inevitable that the world economy must contract - especially if the human population must also contract at the same time. But a contracting economy is one that we would consider to be deeply in a depression. So perhaps another question is whether there is a more suitable economic model that doesn't require constant growth (both in population, and also in the size of the economy). No current or past economic model meets these requirements, and while there has been some academic thought given to the subject, at this point nobody really knows what such an economy would really look like.

It would be a huge mistake to treat this issue as a left-vs-right type of issue however. Most of the world has become conditioned to a world where resources are always available for whatever we want to do. Or that when one resource does run short, we can trivially substitute something else in order to continue on with life as usual. None of us - neither left or right - have ever had to face anything of this magnitude.

One of the most important films of the decade........2007-08-12

This outstanding documentary has won many awards, and has been called "possibly the most important film of the decade." Although, there are several other documentaries of the past few years that should be required viewing.
As a film, "A Crude Awakening" is brilliantly crafted. The cinematography and the music are moving. While the message of the film is of utmost importance. For years, environmentalists have been advocating for a more sustainable energy system. In this film, they have their concerns and goals validated by Republican representatives like Roscoe Bartlett, several energy industry investors, and the former head of the CIA - James Woolsey. While "Earth First" and the CIA may seem like strange bedfellows, there appears to be a shared interest in avoiding an amplified global catastrophe that is pulling them in similar directions. I say "amplified" because in many ways, there is already a catastrophe related to oil going on - the megadeath in Iraq, the propping up of dictators, the oil production waste sites in Nigeria and Ecuador, and much else.
As disconcerting as this film is, there are hopeful developments. Documentaries like The Power Of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil and the recently released film "The 11th Hour" point towards the ways in which global society can transition from the oil economy. Journals like Plenty Magazine and Sustainable Industries Journal also help people to avoid being neutralized by despair, and also provide entrepreneurs and investors all sorts of leads as to where money can be made in the "next industrial revolution." Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution
But, this transition will face a lot of opposition by extremely wealthy entrenched interests that have designed society to addict the world to their products. Internal Combustion: How Corporations and Governments Addicted the World to Oil and Derailed the Alternatives
and Asphalt Nation: How the Automobile Took Over America and How We Can Take It Back
These are perilous times; but if people discover their power as consumers, investors, citizen advocates, conversationalists, socially responsible entrepreneurs, organic farmers/gardeners and so forth, we can make our way towards a world that would be not only sustainable, but a lot more fun. This film is an excellent tool to begin that process.

Average customer rating:

The must-see drama of the year!
Incredible
"Your comments are interesting and tough to answer.",per Sigourney Weaver!
A Gem
DONT MISS THIS ONE

Snow Cake
Starring: Selina Cadell , Kim Cattrall , Jayne Eastwood , David Fox , and Alan Rickman
Director: Marc Evans
Manufacturer: Ifc
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000R7HY00
Release Date: 2007-09-11

Amazon.com

Alan Rickman and Sigourney Weaver form the quintessential indie-film odd couple in this intimately observed drama that makes a memorable detour from the usual high-concept, special effects-laden studio fare. Rickman is in his element as Alex, a morose, laconic ex-con just released from prison. A tragic twist of fate brings him to a Canadian small town and the doorstep of Linda, a functional autistic woman with a decidedly anti-social personality. Weaver is a wonder in a fiercely committed, vanity-free performance. "I don't like normal people," Linda states, and neither does Snow Cake, the heart of which is clearly with the outcasts and misfits, including Vivienne (Emily Hampshire), Linda's vivacious, hitchhiking daughter, who bums a ride with Alex because he looks lonely ("Lonely people have the best stories," she observes) and Linda's neighbor, Maggie (Carrie-Ann Moss), a nurturing type who is very quick to take damaged soul Alex into her bed. This is a palpably heartfelt project (screenwriter Angela Pell has an autistic daughter) that--the unfortunate title notwithstanding--mostly manages to avoid the cloying or manipulative. The smiling faces pictured on the DVD cover suggest an upbeat romantic comedy, but Snow Cake is a slice of something much more filling. --Donald Liebenson

Description

Sigourney Weaver, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Alan Rickman star in this film about what happens in the aftermath of a young woman's death. Recently released from prison, Alex (Rickman) offers a ride to a hitchhiker, only to have her killed instantly when their car endures a brutal accident. Alex then approaches the girl's mother, and the events that unfold change his life and other around him dramatically.

Customer Reviews:

The must-see drama of the year!.......2007-09-13

This movie was fascinating and full of little surprises that made me laugh and cry alternately. One of the unique aspects of Snow Cake is that the cast is made up of sci-fi/action heavyweights! Sigourney Weaver is all too used to dousing slimy aliens with flamethrowers; Alan Rickman generally chews scenery as the sorcerer Severus Snape; and Carrie-Anne Moss will go down in history as the leather-clad, cool-shades-donning femme fatale of the Matrix trilogy. Yet here we get to see an overwhelmingly tender and subtle side to these actors, who are all absolutely brilliant in a small drama as well as their usual big box office outings. I urge anyone who has an interest in the human condition to watch this movie.

Incredible.......2007-09-08

I absolutely loved this movie. I fell in love with the characters immediately. The plot was amazing. I also work with Autistic children and loved the way the movie was so accurate with the behaviors of people with autism. Heart touching movie everyone should see!

"Your comments are interesting and tough to answer.",per Sigourney Weaver! .......2007-09-06

My name is Andre Jonathan, and I had the pleasure to see the premiere screening with the Cast,Director, and Writer of this movie at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. In addition, I was chosen from a few to comment, and ask a question to Sigourney Weaver personally during the Q&A. Moreover, my comment and question,along with my presentation I guess,to my surprise, was the only one to get applause and laughter from the audiance;in which Ms. Weaver's response was "that's a tough and interesting question to answer",and then she began elaborating for at least three(3)minuets to my question/comment). I don't quite remember what I said per se, but it had something to do with her advertent and/or inadvertent comedic skills I thought she displayed in a serious character role as an autistic woman! By the way, I thought the movie was touching, moving, serious, semi-provocative, and at times ackwardly funny! Furthermore, the overall CAST was COMPLIMENTRY & GREAT!!

Thanks,
Andre Jonathan
ajonathan1@yahoo.com

A Gem.......2007-06-24

I saw this movie on PPV and had been waiting for it a long time. I initially wanted to see it because of Alan Rickman (Alec). He was wonderful as usual, but his real genius in this film was to sit back and let Sigourney Weaver (Linda) play off of him. Not that Rickman didn't have his moments, but Weaver was really outstanding. In one scene, Alec is sobbing uncontrollably and Linda looks at him quizzically and asks if there is something wrong with the tea. That's just one little gem of a scene.

Don't look for romantic fireworks or a dramatic ending in this movie. It's just the story of three people with their own secrets brought together by a tragic event. I found myself drawn into their lives, as they were drawn into each other's lives.

Once you see this movie, you will understand why I say it was "dalzious."

DONT MISS THIS ONE.......2007-06-18

A long overdue reminder that it all starts with the script, quirky interesting.Nothing like this film will be coming out of Hollywood.Alan Rickman and Sigourney Weaver are both Amazing in there perform