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Hot stars Mekhi Phifer (8 MILE, SHAFT, TV's ER) and Wood Harris (REMEMBER THE TITANS) team up in an edgy, hard-hitting film with a slammin' soundtrack! Stuck in a nowhere job, Ace (Harris) is a restless teenager who envies the expensive cars, flashy clothes, and high-rolling lifestyle of his drug-dealing friends. Then when he sees his chance, Ace makes the move that suddenly changes his life! Drawn by the seductive lure of easy money in the illicit Harlem underground, he uses his skills to quickly take control of the streets and seize all the power than comes with it! Also starring rap star Cam'ron (WOO) and Chi McBride (GONE IN 60 SECONDS, TV's BOSTON PUBLIC) -- you don't want to miss this gripping look at chasing the American dream ... from the wrong side of the tracks!

Customer Reviews:

Classic MOVIE!!!!.......2007-07-27

Highly recommended. All actors do an amazing job, even Camron! Easily one of the best hood movies out!

What can I say about this movie!.......2007-05-11

This is one of the best kingpen movies I've ever seen! All the actors do a great job in this one, even Cam managed not to mess this one up. All I can say is, forget Scarface, this is the new movie all the up and comers will be looking at!

Cam's Shining Moment = Another Rocafella Films Classic...................2007-05-09

Wood Harris and Mekhi Phieffer are great in this movie as 1980's New York drug kingpins. The surprise of the whole movie is Camron's convincing role as the villain of the movie.

Gangsta Painted with Love.......2007-03-26

In a mood that deemphasizes the sex and violence in favor of the moral cost of the drug trade, this film has the easygoing persona of a soap opera with a bite that hits you afterwards.

Not your typical hood movie-- through Az's eyes.......2007-03-04

The movie is definately above your average straight to video or Menace II Society clone. What is working for this film is a combination of many vital elements that combine to make quite a tasty slice of urban life. The film has plot,character development and outstanding acting. The stand out preformance in the movie is Mekhi Phifer playing one of the three Harlem drug dealers with such freshness. Cam'ron's role as Rico is quite good considering he is a rapper and not a trained actor. Then again, I guess the role Cam'ron played is not a strech consdering the type of lyrics presents in his music.

The plot of the movie is based around the life of three famous drug dealers in Harlem named Az,Alpo,and Richard Porter. In the movie their names are fictionalized into Ace[Az],Mitch[Richard Porter],and Rico[Alpo]. I will not bore with anyfurther details because I am sure the following has probably been overemphasized enough in other reviews. Understand,though, the movie was told primarly through the eyes of Az and not through Alpo. Alpo even complained that this movie presented him as a follower instead of a leader in the drug game.

Solid movie that defies the notion that urban drams are all cut from the same cloth.

Average customer rating:

Agatha Christie
"What are you supposed to be, a birthday cake?"
"A bit of a bore. . . but you don't kill someone for that!"
Agatha Christie's he Mirror Cracked
"Murder, She Droned"

The Mirror Crack'd
Starring: Angela Lansbury , Geraldine Chaplin , Tony Curtis , Edward Fox , and Rock Hudson
Director: Guy Hamilton
Manufacturer: Starz / Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000059LGG
Release Date: 2001-02-27

Amazon.com

Angela Lansbury does the honors as Agatha Christie's determined sleuth, Miss Marple, in this adaptation of Christie's novel. A washed-up movie star (Elizabeth Taylor) is attempting to make a comeback but is driven to distraction by a mysterious event from her past. Also problematic for Taylor's struggling actress is a series of murders occurring with clockwork regularity in the quiet, 1950s English village where a film is being produced--killings that are all somehow connected to her. Despite the British backdrop, most of the suspects, including Rock Hudson, Kim Novak, and Tony Curtis, are American in this 1980 feature directed by Guy Hamilton (Evil Under the Sun). (At least Miss Marple's nephew, the redoubtable Inspector Craddock, is played by Edward Fox.) The bad news: this is a curiously flat, monotonous film, with a mystery hook that, sad to say, is among Christie's more familiar and predictable. Hamilton doesn't demand much of his largely ornamental cast, and they don't volunteer much to fill the void. Still, fans of Miss Marple and Christie, especially those with a burning hunger to see every film or television program based on the books, will want to check it out. This DVD edition is presented in the film's original widescreen format, and it includes television spots that were part of the film's marketing at the time of its theatrical release. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Agatha Christie.......2007-08-24

I have several versions of The Mirror Cracked. But this is my favorite. I love Angela Lansbury and of course, this version has Liz Taylor too. Very good. One of my favorite plots from her.

"What are you supposed to be, a birthday cake?".......2007-06-12

There are about five glorious minutes in this 1980 adaptation of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple whodunnit when Elizabeth Taylor and Kim Novak--all in purple and pink (respectively)--face off against one another as rival aging movie queens at a St. Mary's Mead function and try to outdo one another with great catty zingers. This must have been the only possible reason why these two came out of retirement to do this film (that and the chance to wear some great Tudor costumes as Mary, Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I in the film-within-a-film they're making), because otherwise there's not much point to this movie, which falls somewhat dully. Rock Hudson and Tony Curtis also appear in duller roles as a director and producer, and they don't get much spark going; even Taylor seems sort of benumbed through the whole thing except for her great scene whooping it up with Novak. Only Novak herself really seems to be having a good time. Angela Lansbury works hard as Miss Marple (it has even been suggested this performance cinched her job for many years as Jessica Fletcher in MURDER SHE WROTE), but she acts far too grandly for the part, and seems hampered by the aging make-up they used. While the period costumes fare a bit better (Taylor has a purple and white sprigged turban that must be seen to be believed), the sets are as terrible as the make-up: everything seems done by Laura Ashley and looks not in the least like 1950s Britain.

There's a great howler of a flashback at the end of the film where Taylor's character is doing a 1940's USO show and the director mericlessly cuts between closeups of her plump face and then of her body double's slim figure shown from the back that's about as technically sophisticated as THE PATTY DUKE SHOW. Other than that sequence and the catfight, there's not much else worth seeing.

"A bit of a bore. . . but you don't kill someone for that!".......2007-02-16

Well, I actually liked this version of Agatha Christie's murder mystery, because it swayed from the pretentious. It was like wanting to see a great "cop" movie and got stuck watching "Police Academy." Honestly, there is no way this movie could be taken seriously, it was a joyfest for the aging movie stars to give it one last rumble.
A young celebrity fan gets caught up as the victim, by the murderer who discovers a hidden secret from them, that destroyed their life. However, the victim is meant to appear as a mistaken murder, with the murderer posing as the actual intended victim. Not a bad plot in reality, but lost in muddled star cameos. I hate to say it, but I entirely looked at this movie as a comedy, and glad I did. It worked better that way, than real mystery drama.

Agatha Christie's he Mirror Cracked.......2007-01-12

This story is not one of Christie's best in my opinion, where Miss Marple becomes involved in the glamourous world of films. All star cast but not an all star script. Lansbury is fine as Miss Marple, but rather different from Joan Higdon who has made the character her own. A must for Christie fans, but not one of the best.

"Murder, She Droned".......2006-07-18

For anybody that is expecting production values similar to those of the best TV mysteries of the nineties and later (like the Marple series with Geraldine McEwan or David Suchet's Poirot) this production will be a big disappointment. Angela Lansbury makes a really awful Marple and the addition of various "big name" stars like Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson ruin the mood even further since the director is apparently forced to linger and linger on meaningless scenes that give the "stars" extra screen time.

The sets look like somebody decided to save money by putting in the minimum effort to make them look like they came from 1953. You could barely tell the difference between the interiors from this film and what you would expect to see on Magnum P.I.

Although this is probably one of the less exciting Miss Marple stories the terrible production values, awful casting, and absurd cliches ruin whatever chances this had of being watchable.

Agatha Christie Mysteries (Death on the Nile / Evil Under the Sun / The Mirror Crack'd)

Average customer rating:

Timeless classics
Agatha Christie
Great movies
As good as excellent and better than brilliant.
Nice set, worth the price

Agatha Christie Mysteries (Death on the Nile / Evil Under the Sun / The Mirror Crack'd)
Starring: Peter Ustinov , Jane Birkin , Lois Chiles , Bette Davis , and Mia Farrow
Director: John Guillermin , and Guy Hamilton
Manufacturer: Starz / Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00008DDWU
Release Date: 2003-04-29

Amazon.com

Death on the Nile
Following Albert Finney's quirky and compelling performance as Agatha Christie's Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, in 1974's Murder on the Orient Express, Peter Ustinov capably took over the role in this 1978 adaptation of Christie's river-bound whodunit. While on a pleasure cruise along the Nile with a taciturn companion (David Niven), Poirot slips into action following the murder of a much-despised heiress (Lois Chiles). There's no shortage of suspects... until, that is, they also start dying off, obfuscating the investigation by suggesting that several killers may be at work. With a disciplined screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, the film is solid enough and is graced immeasurably by a glittery cast including Bette Davis, Maggie Smith, Mia Farrow, Olivia Hussey, Jack Warden, and Angela Lansbury. Directed with customary efficiency by John Guillermin (King Kong, The Towering Inferno). --Tom Keogh

Evil Under the Sun
Mostly for Poirot completists and admirers of then-trendy, all-star ensemble casts from the 1970s and early '80s, Evil Under the Sun finds Peter Ustinov in his second outing as Agatha Christie's famous Belgian detective (three years after 1978's Death on the Nile). As the title promises, the action this time takes place on an Adriatic island (though Christie fans will surely balk at the switch from the novel's setting on the English coast), where a famous stage star (Diana Rigg) is murdered, and the list of likely suspects is unusually high. The parade of legendary performers--Roddy McDowall, James Mason, Sylvia Miles, Maggie Smith, Jane Birkin--plus Ustinov's energetic performance keep things hopping. But Anthony Shaffer's lazy screenplay and director Guy Hamilton's superficial approach nudge everything (action, characters, tone) toward campy, near-parody, with bitchy sniping, tacky costumes, and an obligatory soundtrack of Cole Porter tunes. It's only in the last lap that the film transcends such obviousness and finds its way back to the glories of detective fiction. --Tom Keogh

The Mirror Crack'd
Angela Lansbury does the honors as Agatha Christie's determined sleuth, Miss Marple, in this adaptation of Christie's novel. A washed-up movie star (Elizabeth Taylor) is attempting to make a comeback but is driven to distraction by a mysterious event from her past. Also problematic for Taylor's struggling actress is a series of murders occurring with clockwork regularity in the quiet, 1950s English village where a film is being produced--killings that are all somehow connected to her. Despite the British backdrop, most of the suspects, including Rock Hudson, Kim Novak, and Tony Curtis, are American in this 1980 feature directed by Guy Hamilton (Evil Under the Sun). (At least Miss Marple's nephew, the redoubtable Inspector Craddock, is played by Edward Fox.) The bad news: this is a curiously flat, monotonous film, with a mystery hook that, sad to say, is among Christie's more familiar and predictable. Hamilton doesn't demand much of his largely ornamental cast, and they don't volunteer much to fill the void. Still, fans of Miss Marple and Christie, especially those with a burning hunger to see every film or television program based on the books, will want to check it out. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Timeless classics.......2007-05-13

I was so delighted to find these wonderful Agatha Christie mysteries out on DVD finally I've seen them all a few times but the stories are still intriguing. It's also a delight to see many of the old stars in their glory days and some of today's stars in their beginning roles. I love a movie that can be watched over and over again and not lose its freshness. These movies definitely fit that category.

Agatha Christie.......2007-05-07

Being a big fan of Agatha Christie and Peter Ustinov, i was not disappointed in the movie versions. Well worth the price to see them.

Great movies.......2007-05-07

I have looked at every place that rents movies for these titles. I love Death on teh Nile and Evil Under the Sun. But, I could never find them. Now I can watch them as much as I want. I have to laugh at the how Death on the Nile, changes the geography of Egypt. To think that you could be in Luxor in the morning and Abu Simbel before sunset can only be movie magic. But, I loved it anyway.

As good as excellent and better than brilliant........2006-05-05

This only concerns "Death on the Nile".
This blockbusting film adapted from Agatha Christie's novel is the very archetype and acme of her detective stories, at least those using the services of the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot from Brussels. She builds up a closed set of people who are all concerned by the murder that is committed in a closed environment. They all have some personal interest to commit this crime, hence a motive, and none of them have an alibi, at least a real alibi. They can all have done it and Poirot is going to use his Belgian brain to sort out the facts and bring out the truth, as a reconstruction that is intended to trap or trick the culprit. And it works. That's how the mystery is resolved. One shady corner can be found though: the cobra in Poirot's bathroom will remain unexplained. It must have been overlooked at some moment in the making of the film because Agatha Christie would never do such a mistake.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University of Paris Dauphine & University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne

Nice set, worth the price.......2004-04-24

I really loved all the Agatha Christie movies from the late 70's and early 80's. Death on the Nile and Evil Under the Sun are top notch. Both DVDs are worth the price alone for this set. Each DVD comes with extras, which is sort of amazing considering the age of these movies. In Death and Evil, they have brief interviews with most cast members about how they view their character, the hallmarks of each character, and whether they actually like the character. These are on-set interviews. There is a mini documentary about how the steamer from Death was found, and how it was recreated in the studio and how they dealt with moonlight scenes and the river look. It was great. There was a whole discussion about how the island was selected for Evil. There are a few interviews with Peter Ustinov as well. No deleted scenes or alternative endings, but great extras otherwise. Each comes with a theatrical trailer as well.

Death on the Nile is one I can watch over and over. It boast a great cast, a great script, and good action. It is very funny also. Evil Under the Sun is almost as good, it is funnier but there's not as much action, only one corpse. Both have lovely scenery and are truly good mysteries. I love Ustinov as the Belgian sleuth.

The Mirror Crack'd is the relative dud in this series. It was made around the same time as the others by the same people, so I see why it's included here, and it was also an all-star cast, but the story is rather dull and plodding. Little action, some decent humor, but it's not something you'd care to watch more than once or twice. It is more interesting to watch just to see a middle aged Elizabeth Taylor act with a slightly pre-AIDS Rock Hudson with a still young-looking Kim Novak. Neither Taylor nor Hudson gives a particularly memorable performance in this one, it does seem that at times Taylor and Hudson appear to be reading lines and showing no emotion or interest in their performances. They are that dull in this. A nice turn for Novak however, she plays the brazen hussie to the hilt and has some really funny lines, particularly with Taylor. But the story itself holds little interest and becomes tedious many times during the movie. Many have criticized Landsbury as Miss Marple. I thought she was fine, but doesn't have the zing of Ustinov.

Amazon.com

Based on the riveting bestseller by Richard Price, this 1995 crime drama was directed by Spike Lee with such authority and authenticity that it has the hyper-real quality of a stylized documentary. Fully capturing the thoroughly researched detail of Price's novel, the film focuses on Strike (newcomer Mekhi Phifer), a young, ambitious "clocker"--or drug dealer--who works the streets of his New York housing project, selling drugs for a local supplier named Rodney (played with ferocious charisma by Delroy Lindo). Just as Strike is struggling to get away from his dead-end life of crime, another dealer is murdered in a fast-food restaurant and local detectives (Harvey Keitel, John Turturro) consider Strike the primary suspect. In cowriting the script with novelist Price, Lee uses this murder mystery to explore the plague of guns and black-on-black crime in America's inner cities, in which drugs and death are familiar routines of daily life. The film doesn't pretend to offer solutions, nor does it dwell on the problem with numbing insistence. Rather, this taut, well-acted film takes the viewer into a world often hidden in plain sight--a world where options seem nonexistent for youth conditioned to have little or no expectation beyond a probable early death. Lee and Price are deadly serious in handling this volatile subject (which incorporates racism, powerless law enforcement, and political indifference), but Clockers is also blessed with humor, insight, and humanity. It's one of Lee's most confidently directed films, signaling a creative maturity that Lee continued to develop throughout the 1990s. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

fine, taut drama with social commentary.......2007-08-25

Clockers gave Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee the chance to collaborate on a project that became a brilliant motion picture. Clockers examines the gritty, brutal life on the streets that sometimes offers the only hope for millions of underprivileged African-American men and their families. Clockers paints an honest portrait of many black people in the New York City housing projects as they struggle to survive; some get involved in drugs and drug dealing with others desperately strive to avoid a life of crime and hold out real hope for a brighter future. Clockers accomplishes this with superlative acting, a wonderful script and excellent direction.

The action begins in a Brooklyn, New York housing project where many young black men are routinely drawn into the drug scene with its crime and money made from dealing drugs. Ronald 'Strike' Dunham (Mekhi Phifer) is a "clocker;" this means that he is there on the benches of the projects to deal crack 24 hours a day. His boss, Rodney Little (Delroy Lindo), becomes disgusted with Darryl Adams (Steve White) interfering with his "territory." Rodney tells Strike to kill Darryl so that Rodney has more control and power over the territory--not to mention much more money from his clockers who he has dealing crack for him. Although we don't actually see the crime, the film makes it clear that Strike does what Rodney told him to do. Victor, Strike's older brother, turns himself into the police and tries to take the blame for the crime. Trouble is, however, Detective Rocco Klein doesn't buy Victor's somewhat bungled story for a minute. Fellow Detective Larry Mazilli (John Turturro) reluctantly goes along with Rocco as Rocco persists at finding the real murderer.

Without giving out spoilers, the plot obviously snowballs into a cat and mouse game between Rocco Klein and Spike. Spike refuses to admit any knowledge of the crime; but when his boss Rodney lands in jail things become very hot for Spike. Spike is then caught in between police detectives he** bent on finding the real murderer and ruthless drug dealer Rodney.

Clockers keeps your attention with remarkable shots of the projects, excellent background music that rarely interferes with your ability to hear what's being spoken, and convincing acting that portrays the projects and the problem of drug crime exactly they way they exist in real life. Indeed, the film opens with actual photos of persons who were gunned down in drug wars along with murals on walls hoping that the departed rest in peace. Moreover, Clockers is not for children; nor is this film for the squeamish. There's a good deal of violence and blood; but the realism raises Clockers up to a five star high level of motion picture.

The DVD, after all this marvelous acting, disappoints with few extra features. You get brief biographies of the four or five major actors in the film; and you can choose subtitles if you wish. There's a theatrical trailer but that's about it.

At the end of the day, Clockers remains an excellent motion picture with great acting, a taut script and plot and a good pace that never leaves you bored or disinterested. I highly recommend this movie for people who want to see what life is really like in some housing projects where real opportunities for African-American men and other residents are very limited. Clockers also provides us with excellent social commentary about the remarkably harsh and brutal world of drug dealing.

A keep you guessing crime drama!.......2007-07-30

This is a very powerful and intriguing movie. Harvey Keitel does an excellent job playing the very meticulous Detective Klein and John Turturo is equally great as his partner. Together they both try to solve a case about the murder of a former drug dealer turned fast food restaurant manager. All indications suggest the killer is a young man named Strike (Mekhi Phifer). But his older brother Victor (Isaiah Washington) says he killed the man in self defense. But the evasiveness of Strike prompts Klein not to buy it. Not only does Strike have to deal with Klein, he also has to deal with drug kingpin Rodney Little (Delroy Lindo) and a corrections officer named Andre (Keith David). The pursuit of solving the case is suspensful, the characters are well developed, and the performances are excellent all around. Spike Lee is one of the best directors at directing character driven crime dramas. A must see for all Spike Lee fans!

Awesome movie..........2006-07-14

Clockers is one the best movies I've seen covering life on the streets of Northeast America. Movies like Boyz N the Hood and Menace II Society cover the streets of LA but people who kno the streets of the northeast (NYC, Trenton, Philly) do not relate to palm trees and spacious project homes. In the Northeast, people are tightly packed into high-rise projects or row homes. They co-exist with different ethnic groups, all struggling to make it out. Spike Lee does a great job collaborating with author Richard Price in coming up with a superb script. Growing up in an urban environment, I was instantly attracted to the film by its pure street dialogue. Mekhi Phifer makes the street dialogue seem as authentic as it can get.

Average Spike Lee drama.......2006-04-09

Wow.. to start with I had to turn on English subtitles to watch this movie in English. Even then it was hard to puzzle out what was said in this film half the time. I'm not a big fan of Spike Lee films - they're too stereotypical and portray people in a negative light.
'Clockers' could have been a gripping detective story while also exposing the drugs and violence which black youths find it so hard to escape from. But that isn't enough for Lee who stuffs his film with so many half-developed ideas that it becomes tiresome to watch.
Lee seems at one point to be commenting on the influence of violent music videos and video games, but when he fails to develop this line of reasoning, it's clear these sidetracks are only a means to fill the film with his intrusive visual fireworks. Many scenes serve no dramatic purpose and the bloated film is a good deal longer than it needs to be.
The is just like the old gangster movies of yore, the endings just seem too unbelievable to what was shown before. And just like that you get a mediocre movie.

AMAZIING!!!.......2005-12-06

This movie is absolutely incredible,(espeecially for a "spike Lee joint"!). WATCH THIS MOVIE!!! If you like commercial hollywood cinema you probably won't like this film, but this is truly quality filmaking. The movie just flows. The best thing about the movie is the acting! Absolutely incredible! MEKHI PHIFER's performance is the best I have ever seen (along with Derek Luke in Antwone Fisher)- Performance of a lifetime, his facial expressions are priceless! If you don't end up liking this movie then you don't appreciate good acting. The cinematography is also beautiful. The film is not overly moralistic, nor preachy or patronising like most of Spike Lee's work tends to be. THIS IS A WORK OF ART!

Average customer rating:

GREAT GANSTA MOVIE!
Blue hill Avenue
Another pretty good urban drama.
A low-budget, black GOODFELLAS. Unoriginal, but entertaining.
Straight Gangsta

Bluehill Avenue
Starring: W.B. Alexander , Dana Bair , Angelle Brooks , Percy Daggs III , and Andrew Divoff
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0000JBUHI
Release Date: 2003-12-23

Product Description

Growing up in the rough Roxbury neighborhood in Boston, four childhood friends find their dreams come true too easily, and too quickly, through dealing drugs... but the repercussions are deadly.

Features:

Full Screen Version
Deleted Scenes with Commentary
Audio Commentary with Craig Ross, Jr., Director; William L. Johnson (E-Bone); Aaron D. Spears (Money)
Behind-the-Scenes/Final Shot Comparisons
The "Blue Hill" Interview
Scene Index
Interactive Motion Menus

System Requirements:

Run Time: 120 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Customer Reviews:

GREAT GANSTA MOVIE!.......2007-08-16

I WOULD RECOMMENED ANY ONE WHO IS A FAN OF BLACK GANGSTA MOVIES TO BUY OR WATCH THIS. ITS A GREAT MOVIE THAT SHOWS HOW 4 BOYZ STARTED THEIR STREET HUSTLE WHEN THE WERE YOUNG AND CONTINUED UNTIL THEY WERE OLDER AND IT WAS TIME TO TAKE OVER THE STREET. GREAT MOVIE!

Blue hill Avenue.......2007-07-15

Excellent movie. Being a resident of Rhode Island and spending much time in Boston, I certainly related to this movie. Outstanding performance expecially bt Alan Payne.

Another pretty good urban drama........2007-07-03

Allen Payne did a pretty good job playing a hit man slash drug dealer in this urban drama 21st century classic. Even though he'll mostly be remembered for his roles in such films as "New Jack City and Jason's Lyric", he still showed a little bit of more range as an actor in this film. I was pretty pleased with this movie and i personally think it is worth having in one's archives.

A low-budget, black GOODFELLAS. Unoriginal, but entertaining........2007-03-09

Director Craig Ross seems inspired by Martin Scorsese. As in GOODFELLAS and CASINO, Ross's BLUEHILL AVENUE charts the rise and fall of gansters. Ross also uses similar filmic techniques. He introduces many peripheral characters, panning over them as they work in their growing drug trade; a voice-over explains in detail each person's role in the crime operation. And it's a long film, epic length at 127 minutes.

BLUEHILL AVENUE is low budget, and it shows. The art direction and special effects aren't as "big" as in CASINO. Yet despite its smallness, BLUEHILL AVENUE isn't shabby. The acting is first rate. The writing is sharp. The cinematography is moody and textured. This is no direct-to-video cheapie with bad acting and flat lighting.

The film lost me in some places, mostly where it seemed torn between a gritty realism and hyper-stylized violence. For instance, much of the film opts for the gritty realism of a Scorsese film. But then there's a shootout, and BLUEHILL AVENUE forgets its realism, opting instead for a hyper-stylized battle where the outnumbered "good guys" are ambushed and outgunned, yet still manage to kill all the baddies, without suffering even a flesh wound.

That sort of fantasy shootout may work for Shaft or James Bond, but it undermines the realism that BLUEHILL AVENUE had set up.

This is a guy's film. Despite her prominent billing, Angelle Brooks's role is minor. Mostly she worries about her hubby, and nags him to quick the gang.

BLUEHILL AVENUE is not a great film, and certainly not original. At times its sharp dialog verges on the cliche. Yet it's a well made film, polished and entertaining.

Straight Gangsta.......2006-10-04

This movie was off the hook. It's like a gangsta story and a coming of age story combined. The first time I saw it I caught it in the middle, but it still caught my attention. It the story of 4 friends and their rise to power as crack kingpins in the Boston neighborhood of Roxbury. Along the way they face family crisis, crooked police and rivial gangs. The ending wasn't picture perfect, but it still was good. You just got see it for yourself to find out.

Average customer rating:

Must buy for a Hanna Barbera fan!
New Voices Added To Flintstones Pilot
This is a very nice sample of Hanna Barbera cartoons
More, Please!
Thank you Bill and Joe

Cartoon Crack-Ups
Director: William Hanna , and Joseph Barbera
Manufacturer: Turner Home Ent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Animation | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00005BJO4
Release Date: 2001-07-03

Amazon.com

Baby boomers will find a guilty, nostalgic pleasure in this collection of early work from the Hanna-Barbera Studio. The episode of The Flintstones dates from very early in the show's run: Fred's appearance changes from scene to scene, he doesn't yell "Yabba-dabba-doo," Barney's hair is blond, Mel Blanc hadn't really found the character's voice yet, and Dino is silent. At the time of their debut, these cartoons were dismissed as cheap imitations of theatrical shorts, but many of them look positively lavish compared to the stuff Hanna-Barbera cranked out during the '70s and '80s. Hand-inked lines define Huck, Yogi, Fred, Wilma, and the other early characters. The action proceeds at a much slower rate than recent MTV-influenced animation, allowing the viewer time to admire the "Futurelux" backgrounds in The Jetsons and the textured, UPA-influenced look of Huckleberry Hound and Yogi Bear. The real star of these cartoons is the extraordinarily versatile Daws Butler, who provided the voices of Huck, Yogi, Dixie, Mr. Jinks, and Elroy. --Charles Solomon

Description

Renamed Cartoon Crackups. The only place you can find 7 great Hanna-Barbera cartoons together in the same new video. Includes Scooby-Doo, The Jetsons, The Flintstones, Yogi Bear, and more!

Customer Reviews:

Must buy for a Hanna Barbera fan!.......2006-06-30

this dvd is just wonderful. it contains one episode of each, the flinstones, the jetsons, top cat, scooby doo, huckleberry hound and yogi bear. this dvd will take you back to the wonderful memories of childhood.

New Voices Added To Flintstones Pilot.......2005-05-05

This is a review of this product: Cartoon Crack-Ups DVD. Amazon may display this review on the page of another version of this product, for which this review may not apply. After reading this review, please click on the link so that you can be assured that the product this review applies to is the same one you thought it was for.
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I bought this DVD primarily for the Flintstones pilot (the nice selection of episodes was just a bonus). Imagine how disappointed I was when I went to watch it and saw the following text on the screen: "New voices were added to this pilot for use on the DVD." I'd really like to know why. From what I've read, this pilot was released on Laserdisc with the original voices - Daws Butler as Fred and Barney, June Foray as Betty, and Jean Vander Pyl as Wilma (the only hold-over from that early test). Does the version on the Flintstones Season 1 box set also contain new voices? I wonder.

This is a very nice sample of Hanna Barbera cartoons.......2005-03-20

I glad I bought this dvd. I haven't bitten the bullet yet and purchased "The Flinstones" or "The Jetsons" season one. This allows me to view some of the older Hanna Barbera cartoons from the 60's and 70's. I hope they come out with another sampler featuring their other cartoons. I also enjoyed "The Flagstones" clip that showed the early vision of "The Flinstones". I have watched this dvd a couple of times. Basically, this DVD is for people who don't want to shell out the money for a "The Flintstones", "The Jetsons" or other Hanna Barbera box set. I'd also rather have a box set that features "The Best of The Flinstones" or "The Best of The Jetsons".

More, Please!.......2004-05-19

I agree that this is indeed a very nice starter package. A follow-up DVD should definitely include the characters mentioned by other reviewers, but don't forget to also include Wally Gator, another great Daws Butler vocal creation. Oh, fuddle-dee-doo!

Thank you Bill and Joe.......2004-04-28

Why only three stars? Not because I'm one of those "experts" who consider H-B "hardly great animation." When I got this DVD, it was the only Hanna-Barbera you could get. While I was excited to see Huck, Yogi, Top Cat and the gang in the line-up, like anyone I have my favorite episodes, and none of them made the cut. This DVD just whets your appetite for the main course and makes you want to see a lot more HB cartoons, which luckily are starting to come out on DVD. If I got the Boomerang channel, I'd probably be watching it all the time. I'm very excited about The Jetsons being out on DVD, and I hope The Ruff and Reddy Show makes it back soon --with the dreaded MuniMula Men ("aluminum" spelled backwards. Is that witty or what?) "Two Stupid Dogs,""Powerpuff Girls,""Dexter's Lab"-- all pay fond tribute to the groundbreaking HB style in these early cartoons. Welcome Back Hanna-Barbera.

Average customer rating:

truthful and memorable
BT
So horrible it's funny
So bad I can't stop watching.

Crack House
Starring: Jim Brown , Anthony Geary , Richard Roundtree , Cheryl Kay , and Angel Tompkins
Director: Michael Fischa
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Crime | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Crime & Criminals | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B0006TPDQ6
Release Date: 2005-03-22

Description

Jim Brown (Original Gangstas), Anthony Geary ("General Hospital") and Richard Roundtree (Shaft) star in this gripping and gritty film that rips the lid off the savage world of LA's gangs to tell the touching, explosive story of two teenage lovers whose dream turns into a nightmare. Rick and Melissa have goals beyond their brutal neighborhood, but when his cousin is killedin a gang fight and Rick is jailed for retaliating, Melissa is left to fend for herself among the beasts who rule the streets. Automatic assault rifles blaze between rival gangs as she becomes a virtual prisoner of a drug king (Brown) and descends into the hell of crack addiction. There's only one way for Rick to get out of jail and save her but for Melissa, he will undertake the ultimate risk!

Customer Reviews:

truthful and memorable.......2005-11-03

when i first saw this movie i didn't know what to think of it.
i didn't know it was about crack, i didn't even know what crack
was. i was in junior high when i first saw this movie so i was
a little nieve about some things but when i saw this movie i understood what people were talking about when they said that drugs were bad. i think this movie should be showen in schools
at lease junior high and high school because there are kids who
are doing drugs and they should see this movie so they could know that crack and any other drug isn't cool.
i had a friend in junior high who said she tried crack and i think if she had seen this movie she wouldn't have done it. when
i see this movie i often think about her and wonder if she is still doing it. i am glad that some one was brave enough to make
a movie like this because people need to see what crack is all about and then maybe they wouldn't do it or if they are already
doing it then they will go get help to get off of it. who ever
doesn't like this movie is crazy because it's true, this stuff is really happening to teenagers and adults out there and people
need to see what it is doing to people. i know people would say
that it's not a good thing to be showing this movie in schools because of the nudity and bad language but i think if they showed this in junior high and high school's no teenager will ever try crack.

BT.......2002-12-17

I saw this movie and it was horrible, but the spell of the plot kept you watching no matter how much you wanted to turn. they have picked a perfect title for this movie because one glimpse of this flick, you are hooked. The movie, itself is only two stars,but the way they keep you in the movie gives it a five.

So horrible it's funny.......2002-03-25

I saw this movie late at night at a friend's house. Imagine every single stereotype about drugs you've ever heard wrapped up into a low-budget flick. This is that movie. It's so bad it's hillarious. The lingo is great, too. This movie has great kitsch value, and would be a great thing to watch while you're sitting around with your friends, smoking a blunt or drinking. It's definitely entertaining, but only because it's so bad.

So bad I can't stop watching........2000-07-14

Have you ever seen a movie so sorry that you actually get a kick out of watching it over and over? Well that's what you get with this one. There was no real plot and many of the sequences were so stupid they were almost unreal. How can the police buy drugs from a crack house, letting them know what's going on, yet they can't bust in until the exchange is made with the supplier? Ahhhh Hollywood. Dialogue? Forget it. Take away the F word and half the script is gone. Feminists would have a field day with the misogyny in this film, with scenes like Annie being raped, Melissa being pushed into a scalding shower naked and when BT takes advantage of a drug dazed Melissa. In spite of it I find myself watching it again and again for kicks, like video junk food.

ABC News Nightline The Badlands: North Philadelphia

Average customer rating:

a classic

ABC News Nightline The Badlands: North Philadelphia

Manufacturer: ABC News
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Crime & Conspiracy | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

amazon.com

My colleagues and I have seen a lot of what drugs can do to a neighborhood and to the people who live there. We have never seen anything quite as bad as the section of north Philadelphia. Almost everything about this part of town is cheap, sleazy, decaying and sad. It is an overripe cliche, down to the name the residents have given their neighborhood: the Badlands. It is the worst of what happens when the drug trade takes over a house, and then a street, and then a block. It's as invasive as crabgrass, as destructive as cancer." - Ted Koppel But how does it get started, and what happens to people in the neighborhood who want to keep the disease from spreading to their block? In this Nightline special, people are sometimes breathtakingly candid about what's happening to them and their families. One of the heroin addicts, a man who goes by the street name of 'Tombstone,' suggested that what's missing these days is a sense of shame."

Customer Reviews:

a classic.......2007-08-25

I remember first seeing this multi-part special in my early twenties and being struck by how deep Koppel and co. went with the story. Reporters, cops, addicts, dealers, and parents were all interviewed right there on the sidewalks in what was certainly as harrowing a neighborhood as you could find in the entire country at the time. No punches were pulled, and the frankness of Koppel's questioning, the candidness of the subjects, and the terrific location shooting of the Percy Street neighborhood's destroyed row houses and factories made for an extremely haunting network news program.

Average customer rating:

Brilliantly uncomfortable.

Dumpster Baby
Starring: Angela Benjamin , Akasha Sjolin , Jeffrey Charlton , Thomas Alan Beckett , and Robert Owen (IV)
Director: Randy Hill , and James Bickert
Manufacturer: Troma
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

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

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ASIN: B000CSUNNY
Release Date: 2006-03-07

Description

A drug addict gives birth to a premature crack baby and abandons it in a dumpster. Helpless and left for dead, the dumpster baby begins a surreal journey as it encounters a wide array of bizarre characters, including an adulterous surgeon, a vicious street pimp, a mentally handicapped garbage man and a crack-addled hooker with a heart of gold. A modern grindhouse classic in the tradition of "Street Trash" and "Saw".

Customer Reviews:

Brilliantly uncomfortable........2006-09-05

Brilliantly uncomfortable.

An unwanted baby that is disposed of by placing it in a dumpster is a superb metaphor for the kind of world most kids are born into these days. As we follow the baby through various circumstances as it goes from hand to hand, we see more and more of this dumpster of a world we live in.
This film is dark, depressing and uses a palette that beautifully illustrates it's story and message. It is made on a low budget, but Dumpster Baby is one of those movies that show that not only no unlimited amount of money is needed to make a great film, but that the lack of it actually adds to the gritty atmosphere it wants to capture (a message maestro Mario Bava already understood perfectly, often handing films in under budget, because not all of the cash was needed to make a fine product). No CGI-effects could ever recreate this kind of realism. I have read about the bad sound the film is supposed to have. OK, admitted, it is not quite 5-channel ultra-dolby mix that we get here, but as with the murky atmosophere that the cameras captured so magnificently, the sometimes hard to follow mumblings the people speak to each other add a fitting non-communicational loneliness to the lives of those we follow.
Highly original, extremely hard-hitting and rather uncomfortable. In other words: a poetic masterpiece, a must-see and a must-have.

Average customer rating:

Black Saturday
Starring: Swanier , and Anders
Manufacturer: Maverick
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Crime | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Endz

ASIN: B0008ENIPW
Release Date: 2005-06-21

DVD:

DVD

DVD