A Room with a View (Two-Disc Special Edition)

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The prestigious filmmaking trio of producer Ismail Merchant, director James Ivory, and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala had made other critically acclaimed films before A Room with a View was released in 1985, but it was this popular film that made them art-house superstars. Splendidly adapted from the novel by E.M. Forster, it's a comedy of the heart, a passionate romance and a study of repression within the British class system of manners and mores. It's that system of rigid behavior that prevents young Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) from accepting the loving advances of a free-spirited suitor (Julian Sands), who fears that she will follow through with her engagement to a priggish intellectual (Daniel Day-Lewis) whose capacity for passion is virtually nonexistent. During and after a trip to Italy with her protective companion (Maggie Smith), Lucy gradually gets in touch with her true emotions. The fun of watching A Room with a View comes from seeing how Lucy's thoughts and feelings finally arrive at the same romantic conclusion. Through an abundance of humor both subtle and overt, this crowd-pleasing "art movie" rose to an unexpected level of popular appeal. The Merchant-Ivory team received eight Academy Award nominations for their efforts, and won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, Art Direction, and Costume Design. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Nominated for eight Oscars in 1986, including Best Picture, and winner of three (Costumes, Art Direction and Adapted Screenplay), A Room with a View is the film that defined Merchant-Ivory as the masters of the romantic period piece. A brilliant adaptation of E.M. Forster?s novel, A Room with a View tells the story of the coming of age of Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham-Carter). Longing to burst free from the repression of British upper class manners and mores, she must wrestle with her inner romantic longings to choose between the passionate George (Julian Sands) and the priggish but socially suitable Cecil (Daniel Day-Lewis). Boasting a brilliant supporting cast, A Room with a View is one of the most romantic of romantic comedies ever filmed.

Customer Reviews:

I wanted to like it.........2007-09-04

I really did. I bought it with high hopes of liking it, yet i did not. I kept looking at the clock on my dvd wanting it to end. It started very slow for me and did not pick up at all. And i love period piece movies and have seen alot. This one did not do anything for me, except bore me.

Phenominal movie.......2007-08-03

I originally watched this movie around 10 years ago and it is one of my all time favorites. The actors do an incredible job of pulling you into the story and feeling the emotions their characters are experiencing. I recently read the book and decided that I must own the movie, and it was as good as I remembered! The movie is as good as the book- if not better!!!

A Room With a View.......2007-07-06

One of the finest examples of the longstanding Merchant/Ivory alliance, "Room With a View" is a superbly executed romance set in 1907 and adapted from the book by E.M. Forster. Nominated for eight Academy Awards, the film boasts dazzling sets and costumes, along with note-perfect early turns by Merchant-Ivory regular Carter and an uncharacteristically priggish Daniel Day-Lewis. Don't miss this smart and sumptuous cinematic treat.

Passion, uncorseted , in this E. M. Forster story.......2007-07-06

Take two stuffy,repressed English ladies, pour them into gorgeous Florence of the late 1800's, throw in a few fiery encounters with the native Italians (amorous and/or violent), and watch for the ensuing combustion. Helena Bonham Carter loosens her hair and her heartstrings. Maggie Smith, my favorite character who is the chaperone, also learns a thing or two. The real stars arcing over this production, however, are "bella" Florence itself and the singing of Kiri Te Kanawe in the background, as she delivers her thrilling aria, "O Mio Babbino Caro."

One of My Favorites.......2007-06-06

Now I'm a girl that loves a period piece movie but this is one of my all time favorites. All the roles are great campy caricatures (my favorite is the pompous Cecil), beautiful Florence is the setting and it has humor, romance and adventure.

Gangs of New York (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

Average customer rating:

New York History Full of Blood, Sex and Tears
Gangs of Sound Stage 6
Pure Entertainment
very happy
Yawn!

Gangs of New York (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Starring: Roger Ashton-Griffiths , Jim Broadbent , Peter-Hugo Daly , Daniel Day-Lewis , and Leonardo DiCaprio
Manufacturer: Miramax Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00005JKN9
Release Date: 2003-07-01

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Gangs of New York may achieve greatness with the passage of time. Mixed reviews were inevitable for a production this grand (and this troubled behind the scenes), but it's as distinguished as any of director Martin Scorsese's more celebrated New York stories. From its astonishing 1846 prologue to the city's infernal draft riots of 1863, the film aspires to erase the decorum of textbooks and chronicle 19th-century New York as a cauldron of street warfare. The hostility is embodied in a tale of primal vengeance between Irish American son Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his father's ruthless killer and "Nativist" gang leader Bill "the Butcher" Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis, brutally inspired), so named for his lethal talent with knives. Vallon's vengeance is only marginally compelling; DiCaprio is arguably miscast, and Cameron Diaz (as Vallon's pickpocket lover) is adrift in a film with little use for women. Despite these weaknesses, Scorsese's mastery blossoms in his expert melding of personal and political trajectories; this is American history written in blood, unflinching, authentic, and utterly spectacular. --Jeff Shannon

Description

This motion picture event from acclaimed director Martin Scorsese earned 10 Academy Award(R) nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor, along with 5 Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Song! Leonardo DiCaprio (TITANIC), Cameron Diaz (CHARLIE'S ANGELS), and Daniel Day-Lewis (THE BOXER) star in this epic tale of vengeance and survival! As waves of immigrants swell the population of New York, lawlessness and corruption thrive in lower Manhattan's Five Points section. After years of incarceration, young Irish immigrant Amsterdam Vallon (DiCaprio) returns seeking revenge against the rival gang leader (Day-Lewis) who killed his father. But Amsterdam's personal vendetta becomes part of the gang warfare that erupts as he and his fellow Irishmen fight to carve a place for themselves in their newly adopted homeland!

Customer Reviews:

New York History Full of Blood, Sex and Tears.......2007-09-03

"It's a movie of grand, reckless ambition. It's history written in lightning, as Woodrow Wilson said of "The Birth of a Nation," but also history written in blood, sex and tears, by a filmmaker of extraordinary gifts and temperament. And if it isn't the career-capping masterpiece many have hoped for, it's still a knockout of a picture, full of treasures of acting, production and cinematography. This is a film burning with creative passion, overreaching, magnificently wild. If there's a major flaw in "Gangs of New York," in fact, it's that the movie, even at close to three hours, is too short." Kenneth Turan

'Gangs of New York' is filled with violence, brutality and hatred and fire set on the Lower East Side of Manhattan- 'Five Points'. It is filled with the fire and tribulation of impoverished immigrants most of them from Ireland. The 'Natives' want the city for themselves and thus a many year war is set in motion. It is finally settled in New York's 1863 Civil War draft riots. It is said that Scorsese read the story 30 years ago and had in his mind the film. It took this long for all of the morass of problems and issues to be settled.

A rebel son of Ireland, Leonard DiCaprio has set his eyes on vengeance of the death of his father by the native" Bill Cutting, Daniel Day-Lewis. A more malevolent foe one could not find. I found myself with upset stomach, shading my eyes from the gore and mess. I found however, that I could not stop looking, the drama of the story and the magnificence of the acting kept drawing me in. I could believe I was there in New York, at that time in the period of the coming draft set upon by President Lincoln. The rage of the poor immigrants that their sons would be sent to certain death while the rich sons would never see a day of war. (Now, after the many Wars since that time, does this still hold true?) But it is within the characters, their stories, their loves and emotions that we find the true Gangs of New York. They are still there, in New York, you can find them in the melting pot.

"Whatever its minor flaws, "Gangs" is a magnificent throwback to an almost vanished era of epic film making by great filmmakers in thrall to their own passions, rather than to the studio bookkeepers. An epic of society's underside, a dangerous romance, a poem to Manhattan and a majestic opera of bloodshed and crime, "Gangs of New York" may not be the complete masterwork we wanted, but it's definitely the work of a master."
Kenneth Turan

This is a movie for the ages and those with a strong stomach.
Highly recommended. prisrob 09-03-07

Mean Streets (original cover issue)

The Departed (Combo HD DVD and Standard DVD) [HD DVD]

The Last of the Mohicans (Director's Expanded Edition)

Gangs of Sound Stage 6 .......2007-06-25

I agree with those reviewers who've seen through this movie. Under the period costumes and the periodic bursts of graphic violence, "Gangs of New York" is a set-bound bore. Bad dialogue, worse accents, and a cliched, spaghetti-Western plot. But, Gogol, if you're going to diss "Once Upon a TIme in America," as innovative a gangster movie as "The Godfather," at least blame the guy who did make it -- Sergio Leone -- not a guy who didn't -- Scorsese.

Pure Entertainment.......2007-06-07

I was surprised by how enjoyable this movie is. It's just fun and if you're looking for a history lesson from a Hollywood movie, then you obviously know nothing about the American entertainment industry. Read a book. I held off watching this for a long time because I'm not terribly fond of Day-Lewis or DiCaprio. Also, I was wary of watching Cameron Diaz try to act. Finally, the movie bombed at the box office to a chorus of boos and some scathing reviews. Admittedly, this isn't Scorsese's best. The movie is too long, the script is a mess as it sags in spots and jumps around in others and DiCaprio is dubiously cast but he performs well enough. Diaz can't act but she is easy on the eyes. The dialogue lacks the resonance of better epics. In the end, Gangs is just a typical period piece revenge story with the emphasis on costumes, mayhem, and cheerfully swaggering overacted performances. Sort of Braveheart and Gladiator go to NYC in the mid 1800's.

very happy.......2007-05-07

I was very happy to get the Cd that I sent for..........Again it came very fast,I enjoy it very much.......... thank you for giving us Cd's that we can order very fast. I just love Leonardo Dicaprio

Yawn!.......2007-04-23

Has nobody seen through Scorseses weak plots yet? He makes one exellent gangster film (Goodfellas which after all was based on a book) then repeats the same formula for almost every other film. So we have the Italian mafia in Goodfellas, the Jewish mafia in Once upon a time, back to the Italians but change location for Casino and now we have the Irish and 'native' mafia. So what next for Scorsese when he runs out of ethnic groups for his mafia films?

This film lacks everything. Loosely based on historical facts its slow, dull and only made vaguely interesting by the odd input of horrific violence (just as all of his gangster films are, the start of Goodfellas, the baseball bat scene in Casino etc)

Sorry but this film lacks everything.

Saving Private Ryan (Widescreen Two-Disc Special Edition)

Average customer rating:

A good but not great, WWII film...
VISCERAL IN-YOUR-FACE WAR EPIC THAT YOU WON'T FORGET!!
I think 5stars says it all!!
Unbelievable
A fantastic movie that left me drained

Saving Private Ryan (Widescreen Two-Disc Special Edition)
Starring: Tom Hanks , Tom Sizemore , Edward Burns , Barry Pepper , and Adam Goldberg
Director: Steven Spielberg
Manufacturer: Dreamworks Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0001NBLVI
Release Date: 2004-05-25

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When Steven Spielberg was an adolescent, his first home movie was a backyard war film. When he toured Europe with Duel in his 20s, he saw old men crumble in front of headstones at Omaha Beach. That image became the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan, his film of a mission following the D-day invasion that many have called the most realistic--and maybe the best--war film ever. With 1998 production standards, Spielberg has been able to create a stunning, unparalleled view of war as hell. We are at Omaha Beach as troops are slaughtered by Germans yet overcome the almost insurmountable odds.

A stalwart Tom Hanks plays Captain Miller, a soldier's soldier, who takes a small band of troops behind enemy lines to retrieve a private whose three brothers have recently been killed in action. It's a public relations move for the Army, but it has historical precedent dating back to the Civil War. Some critics of the film have labeled the central characters stereotypes. If that is so, this movie gives stereotypes a good name: Tom Sizemore as the deft sergeant, Edward Burns as the hotheaded Private Reiben, Barry Pepper as the religious sniper, Adam Goldberg as the lone Jew, Vin Diesel as the oversize Private Caparzo, Giovanni Ribisi as the soulful medic, and Jeremy Davies, who as a meek corporal gives the film its most memorable performance.

The movie is as heavy and realistic as Spielberg's Oscar-winning Schindler's List, but it's more kinetic. Spielberg and his ace technicians (the film won five Oscars: editing (Michael Kahn), cinematography (Janusz Kaminski), sound, sound effects, and directing) deliver battle sequences that wash over the eyes and hit the gut. The violence is extreme but never gratuitous. The final battle, a dizzying display of gusto, empathy, and chaos, leads to a profound repose. Saving Private Ryan touches us deeper than Schindler because it succinctly links the past with how we should feel today. It's the film Spielberg was destined to make. --Doug Thomas

Customer Reviews:

A good but not great, WWII film..........2007-09-06

Though I liked this movie overall, though there are some outstanding shots, sequences, and effects, and though I would probably recommend it to friends and acquaintances as one of the better cinema treatments about World War II, my expectations were too disappointed to engage in high praise of this work. I had many serious "problems" with SPR from the very opening overtly false patriotic flag scene to the very end.

The opening scene of Ryan as an old man visiting the Normandy cemetery was fine except for one very annoying factor, John Williams, lush, overly-sentimental BS musical pretensions, which we've heard 100 times already, and in almost every scene in which this score swelled, I felt it was inappropriate. I would've much rather have heard no music whatsoever throughout the film, or at least a very subtle form of and use of. I don't really like being manipulated like this. And various scenes do this. A lush musical war, no thanks.

The most striking example of the film's almost soulless failure to do justice to its apparent agenda and real blood and guts reality (to show how utterly abominable real war is), brings me to yet another complaint. The films' cinema verite, shaky documentary camera style. NYPD Blue on amphetamines...

A little of this "style" can go a long way. Drenching entire scenes lasting several minutes, was totally ineffective and pretentious to me. Some of the wobbly camera in the opening sequence, was very potent, like the troops running towards the beach. This gave the viewer a real sense of being there, of being in a frantic state of confusion, attempting to move forward into a frightening and imposing blur of horror and motion. However, a bit later, when Hanks and his men are using a mirror at the end of a rifle to try to find out where a particular German machine gun is firing from, why shake the camera? When the medics are trying to fix up wounded men on the beach, why shake the camera? If one were there watching these things, they would simply not be seeing it from this perspective. Again, this whole technique was so overused to me.

What's so disappointing about SPR is that it just could've been done so much better, in so many areas. Long, boring, unimaginative sequences are followed by Hollywood hokum. The truly outstanding radar attack sequence, stood out. The characters were given a REAL identity to me during this portion. But for all the talk (hype?) of blood and gore and entrails in SPR's beginning, to me, the only really powerful depictions of real war in the film, was specifically in the segment when one of the GI's chests was pumping gushes of bright red blood, in addition to some opening shots.

Why wasn't there so much more of this however? Why not show utterly horrible pain and suffering and death? That which is real war? That which is happening even as I write this, which I hope Spielberg or one of his other cronies may deal with in the near future, about Iraq. Holding my breath, but not too long.

The entire Axis prisoner scene, was good. There was a real tension here, and I easily felt myself not watching a movie anymore, but feeling as if I had some sort of personal stake in what I was watching. In SPR, Spielberg's more delicate and subtly discriminating add-ons, were clearly the best moments of the film. All the blood and violence and special effects of the opening and closing sections (the closing sections having nearly as much power as the opening ones), never came close for me, in displaying the real horror of war, than this one little middle section, which culminated in two men on the same side, almost killing each other because a "bad guy" POW was being released.

There were and are WAY TOO MANY shots for me of Americans mowing down whole groups of German soldiers, like as if this was a standard scene out of WWII (it wasn't). It IS a standard, stereotypical scene out of WWII MOVIES however. I had hoped for much more however, in SPR. Otherwise, in Spielberg's fantasy WWII world, whole German squads can easily be mowed down by a single GI, and tanks and other weapons can be disabled with nothing more than some good old GI Joe bravery. For all the effects, for all the blood and guts that ARE shown, SPR continually refuses to step over certain lines. It wants to be two things at once, which is its ultimate undoing, to show the "reality" of war, but to do it in an entertaining Hollywood story suited for mass consumption.

I have to say this film, like digestible war-movie filler candy before and after, satisfies for awhile, but there are no great ideas here, no true moral or political or philosophical "center" or soul. And there is nothing groundbreaking here except for a few FX enhanced "war scenes." There are much better WWI&II films, of all stripes. I'd suggest "Enemy at the Gates," or "Paths of Glory,' or even the low budget "A Midnight Clear." For starters.

This is a fairly good war film, but not a "great" war film. DVD extras aside. What the film clearly does wrong, cannot in the final analysis, overcome the few things it does really great and right. Entertaining? Yes. Transcendent? But only if one is easily prone to hype, political, or cinematic, or falsely (IMO) "patriotic" propaganda. This viewer is none of the above, and in the end, to me is just another Steven Spielberg misfire, which garnered and continues to receive critical/popular praise truly undeserved, compared to so many other much more worthy WWII films. As well as documentaries. I wish the whole script had been rewritten/filmed, concentrating on D-Day alone, and never diverted into a corny, schmaltzy retread of almost any other good or bad WWII flick since, or afterwards.

VISCERAL IN-YOUR-FACE WAR EPIC THAT YOU WON'T FORGET!!.......2007-09-05

'SAVING PRIVATE RYAN' STRUCK ME AS: HARD-HITTING - GRAPHIC & EMOTIONAL WITHOUT OVERT SENTIMENTALISM OR SIMPLY THE 'CITIZEN KANE' OF WAR FILMS,

VERY SIMPLY STATED:

This is the most visceral, in-your-face war epic I have ever experienced. But "Saving Private Ryan" is much more than that, as it gives us a well-developed story line and characters we come to care about during the natural unfolding of the story.

WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT?:

After landing on Normandy through the most visceral and graphically-realistic re-creation ever put to film, this ensemble of American soldiers and the film itself slow down to catch their breath and hand us a great story, having now prepared us for it. The heroic "everyman" types that comprise this small band are fleshed out as they go through their mission to find Private Ryan. It's a sort of follow-the-yellow-brick-road-to-Hell kind of mission that is just about impossible for them to reconcile. What is so important about Private Ryan? See the film and you will find out.

BOTTOM LINE:

Action, drama, and morality are all mixed together in the cauldron of wholesale killing that was the second World War. The "right thing" to do is very difficult to decipher, both by these soldiers and by us viewers, but in no film is the topic more in-your-face realistic and emotionally-supercharged.

After seeing the Normandy sequences in this film, such similar epic recreations as in "The Longest Day" seem not just tame, but also emotionally-removed and from a safe distance. "Saving Private Ryan" is one of the best and most captivating films of any genre that I have ever experienced.

----- CAST

Tom Hanks - Capt. John Miller
Edward Burns - Private Richard Reiben
Tom Sizemore - Sgt. Horvath
Jeremy Davies - Cpl. Upham
Vin Diesel - Pvt. Caparzo
Adam Goldberg - Pvt. Mellish
Barry Pepper - Pvt. Jackson
Giovanni Ribisi - T/4 Medic Wade
Matt Damon - Pvt. James Ryan
Dennis Farina - Lt. Col. Anderson
Ted Danson - Capt. Hamill
Harve Presnell - Gen. George Marshall

----- PRODUCTION CREW:

Steven Spielberg - Director / Producer
Ian Bryce - Producer
Mark Gordon - Producer
Gary Levinsohn - Producer
Robert Rodat - Screenwriter
Janusz Kaminski - Cinematographer
John Williams - Composer (Music Score)

ABOUT THE DVD:

Great Transfer of both audio and video. Compared to the VHS edition, it is like viewing a different and better film due to the transfer, NOT any change in the content, which is identical.

"Director's Message" is well put and needs to be said, but I can only say I wish there was more, a lot more.

Behind-The-Scenes Featurette: A segment titled "Into The Breach" was excellent, but frankly this film needs more than a 24-minute short and you can get more on the 2-Disk DVD 60th Anniversary edition.

I think 5stars says it all!!.......2007-08-24

Without doubt this movie ranks in my top 5 of all time favourites! In fact I have just recently played the Medal of Honour PC game which begins in the same way as this movie does. Except for the harsh reality of the movie!!! The most astonishing start to any movie I have ever seen (Ghost Ship comes close), this movie is just incredible. Buy it, Watch it & then watch it again...... I may have to purchase a second!!!!

Unbelievable.......2007-08-23

Great War, WWII movie. you have to see it. Great graphics, realism and plot. MUST SEE!!!

A fantastic movie that left me drained.......2007-08-15

From the opening scenes to coming full circle in the closing scenes, Saving Private Ryan is a movie and emotionally draining film that leaves you analyzing your own life to determine if you have led a life worth the sacrifices the men and women of our armed forces have made.

Speilberg has created another masterpiece. Just when I thought he could not create a movie more vital than Schindler's List, he comes up with Saving Private Ryan. I cannot say enough about this film. If bloody realism is not something you can stomach then move past the initial Normandy invasion scenes. If you can stomach it though, I encourage watching the scenes because they set the tone for the characters.

This is one of a few films every household should own.

Average customer rating:

Good Movie
In a class of its own!
Unbeatable!
For Real Comic Book Fans
review

Unbreakable (Two-Disc Vista Series)
Starring: Firdous Bamji , Michaelia Carroll , Bostin Christopher , Spencer Treat Clark , and Johanna Day
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00003CXQA
Release Date: 2001-06-26

Amazon.com essential video

When Unbreakable was released, Bruce Willis confirmed that the film was the first in a proposed trilogy. Viewed in that context, this is a tantalizing and audaciously low-key thriller, with a plot that twists in several intriguing and unexpected directions. Standing alone, however, this somber, deliberately paced film requires patient leaps of faith--not altogether surprising, since this is writer-director M. Night Shyamalan's daring follow-up to The Sixth Sense. While just as assured as that earlier, phenomenal hit, Unbreakable is the work of a filmmaker whose skill exceeds his maturity, its confident style serving a story that borders on juvenile. However, Shyamalan's basic premise--that comic books are the primary conduit of modern mythology--is handled with substantial relevance.

Willis plays a Philadelphia security guard whose marriage is on the verge of failing when he becomes the sole, unscathed survivor of a devastating train wreck. When prompted by a mysterious, brittle-boned connoisseur of comic books (Samuel L. Jackson), he realizes that he's been free of illness and injury his entire life, lending credence to Jackson's theory that superheroes--and villains--exist in reality, and that Willis himself possesses extraordinary powers. Shyamalan presents these revelations with matter-of-fact gravity, and he draws performances (including those of Robin Wright Penn and Spencer Treat Clark, as Willis's wife and son) that are uniformly superb. The film's climactic revelation may strike some as ultimately silly and trivial, but if you're on Shyamalan's wavelength, the entire film will assume a greater degree of success and achievement. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson star in a mind-shattering, suspense-filled thriller that stays with you long after the end of this riveting supernatural film. After David Dunn (Willis) emerges from a horrific train crash as the sole survivor -- and without a single scratch on him -- he meets a mysterious sranger (Jackson). An unsettling stranger who believes comic book heroes walk the earth. A haunting stranger, whose obsession with David will change David's life forever.

Customer Reviews:

Good Movie.......2007-09-12

I just love M Night Shyamalan's movies. They keep you spellbound and that is exactly what "Unbreakable" does. I would recommend this movie to everyone who likes to sit on the edge of their seat.

In a class of its own!.......2007-07-15

How does one classify this movie? Some might call it a drama, as the slow pacing, muted emotions, lack of comedy, and modern, urban setting all fit the descriptions of many modern dramas. Some might call it a fantasy; a reluctant superhero discovered by his arch-enemy who knows no bounds. The former has strength beyond his knowledge, while the latter uses cunning to overcome his physical limitations. Others might call it a suspense movie, as it has all the hallmarks of a classic suspense; good guys and bad guys are only sorted out at the end, and the audience discovers things as the protagonist does. Maybe it is a combination of all three genres, another achievement from the M. Knight Shamalayan.

However one might classify this movie, it is an incredible piece of story-telling. Its as if Shamalayan wrote a traditional fairy tale, set it in a modern American city, and then reversed all the normal rules of fairy tales. First of, the premise of superhero ignorant of his own destiny is a common starting point; think of Harry Potter, X-Men, and Frodo Baggins in Lord of the Rings. But the heroes in these stories are all young, at the beginning of their lives. Bruce Willis's character here, David, is old, past middle age most likely, and looking back on his glory years. Second, heroes needs to be revealed unintentionally, through accident or fate. David is discovered by both accident and fate. Accident put him on a train, but fate assured him to survive. Third, each hero needs a weakness. Superman had kryptonite, Batman had his past and Spiderman has his loved ones. But water, who would ever imagine water to be the one weakness of David? Last, all heroes need an antagonist, that villian they must stop. But here, it is the villian who seeks out the hero, helps him find his power, and finally, guarantees the hero's victory by sealing his own doom.

Overall, this was a great movie. For the budget it was made one, with the cast it starred, it delivers a great story with heart and soul. Its setting is modern, yet the storyline is more mythical than anything else. The conceptual background of comicbooks contrasts nicely with the plot itself. I highly recommend this movie.

Unbeatable!.......2007-06-12

Although Shyamalan's "Sixth Sense" perhaps had more chills and more of a classic twist-ending - I personally think "Unbreakable" is his best film. I'm not sure if you would call it's ending a "twist," but it made me gasp when it suddenly brought a whole landscape of emotion into focus with an amazing depth of field.

Furthermore, this movie has one of the most interesting characters I've ever seen on screen. Samuel L. Jackson plays a precise and learned art dealer with a special affinity for original classic comic book drawings. His genetic affliction limits the physical activity he can engage in, but his imagination has always been free to entertain strange possibilities. This truly is an original portrayal that could never typecast Jackson. His role is not as romantic lead, not as supporting character actor, not as doctor, lawyer, merchant... It's what he is that in the end creates the shock of brilliant resolution.

This is a movie whose intricacies will haunt you long after the fact. And even if you never had any interest in comic books, you will probably walk away from `Unbreakable" with a new respect for what Joseph Campbell might call their "power of myth."

One word about the availability of this film - I see a lot of the single-disc versions of it are available only in "Region 2" DVD format. You would need a "Multi-Region" or "Universal" DVD player to play these versions. As I understand it, all DVD players are manufactured with the capability of playing all DVDs. However, the players are then set by distributors to play in only one region, most often the US/Canada Region 1 - in order to block overseas bootlegging versions and other illicit overseas offerings.
There are on-line sites presumably listing decoding sequences that will allow you to "unlock" your specific DVD player so it will play all regions. However most people I've talked with have found these decoding sequences don't work. This can be frustrating because it seems an increasing number of English or foreign movies and comedy series are being offered only in non-Region 1 formats lately.
So if you want to buy one of the single-disc Region 2 versions of "Unbreakable" listed on this website, you might need to consider buying a "Multi-Region" DVD player on-line, or else you might want to go to an ethnic neighborhood (such as an East Indian community) in a large city to find a Multi-Region player.

For Real Comic Book Fans.......2007-06-05

Unbreakable is about the mythology behind comic book superheroes and the purposes that each of us have in life. The film opens with the birth of a baby boy with all four of his limbs broken. He is Elijah Price, who is played by Samuel L. Jackson, and he has type I OI or brittle bone disease. As his life goes on, he gets the nickname of "Mr. Glass" as up the point of present time in Unbreakable, Elijah had broken bones in his body 57 times. Elijah is motivated early on to socialize in some capacity by his mother and his primary interest becomes comic books. As he gets older he soon begins to question what the reason is for his own existence and comes to the conclusion that if people like him exist with his weakness, then surely there must be someone on the other end of the spectrum with massive strengths. Elijah believes there is nothing scarier than to live life without knowing your purpose and he makes the assertion that there are in fact real-life superheroes.

Bruce Willis plays David Dunn, a security officer, who, unlike Elijah, is trying to find his own purpose in life. He gave up his football career for his wife but now his marriage is falling apart. David survives a train wreck that kills 131 people, and he is the only survivor. He was completely unharmed. Elijah believes David to be a real superhero and gradually confronts David with his theory. David's son Joseph believes Elijah and assists David in finding out more about his potential powers. Just to add, I'm of the opinion that it is an absolute pleasure to watch Willis and Jackson act in pretty much anything.

As with any M. Night Shyamalan film, giving too much away is hugely detrimental to the experience and please know that this film is entirely worth going into with no more information then I have already provided. What Shyamalan has done here in retrospect, while considering the recent onslaught of big-budget comic book movies, is create a completely unconventional yet convincing adaptation of comic book heroes' origins. At the same time Unbreakable celebrates the mythology behind these fictional characters. It takes a profound imagination to come up with a screenplay that gives this concept the treatment that Shyamalan has. It is the kind of concept that might have taken almost a lifetime of brainstorming.

A friend of mine once said that the Sixth Sense was a gigantic and nearly perfect movie for absolutely everyone, while as a comic book fan Unbreakable was tailored made perfectly for him. Though I'm half the comic book fan he is, I concur with that assessment enough to confidently invoke it hear. If you truly love comic books, Unbreakable is your film. If you are not a lover of comic books, then try to walk into this film expecting little action and you shouldn't be disappointed.

It can be argued that Shyamalan has lost his way in recent years, although he does retain his technical prowess even now. Nevertheless, Unbreakable is still a joy to watch and is a shining example of Shyamalan during his most inspired and generative phase.

review.......2007-06-01

I'll admit: I've only seen a couple of Shyamalan's other movies, but I didn't like them. I'll admit: I like comic books.

I'll try to keep objective to this movie [as opposed to ranting about Shyamalan's other movies].

The first time I saw Unbreakable, the overall movie generally seemed slow and anticlimactic. However, after a few years I had the urge to see it again, and the second time through was much more enjoyable. The movie starts right off into the main plotpoint: the protagonist is on a train, it crashes, and somehow he walks out of a hospital bed unharmed. The use of color-themes throughout the movie are very alike to comic books. And as the story progresses, this becomes very obvious. As the movie starts, most of the colors are undersaturated and almost dull. But when the story picks up, different colors just jump out. This is a great style of bringing the viewer's attention to something (something comic books uses often).

The overall tone of the characters is set to show: these aren't supposed to be in your face action-packed characters from movies like X-Men or Batman or the like. These characters are supposed to feel like everyday characters. They're not supposed to shine above anyone else. They're supposed to be experiencing everyday life stuff: marital problems, a father trying to bond with his son. The only difference is that something extraordinary has been suddenly discovered by someone who is ordinary: the main character is an everyday man who finds out he can't be harmed. I'll be honest: the movie isn't highly-dramatic. But it's probably a realistic way of showing how an everyday guy is trying to come to terms with something not-so-everyday.

I found the individual characters very well-developed in the respect that they are meant to represent everyday people with an unusual situation thrust upon them. It's not as if real-life-dad and real-life-mom are going to react to this situation by saying, "Hey, maybe you should make a costume out of bright spandex or colorful leather and fight crime with a lot of publicity!" The hero is a husband and father trying to deal with a troubled marriage and a son affected by that troubled marriage. His wife is a wife and mother, trying to keep moving through her life despite the hard marriage. The son is a kid; what do kids do? Over-react. He tries all he can to make sure his parents are happy while at the same time trying to prove his dad is a superhero. It might come off as annoying, but I'm sure anyone can agree kids who over-react are annoying.

If you have the attention span of a five-year-old, where everything has to be fast-paced, in-your-face, bad-guys-flying-in-from-everywhere action, you probably won't enjoy this movie. It's not glitz or explosions or fancy-costumes.

But rating on an objective level: the cinematography is interesting. It tries to keep from being generic Here's the guy talking, Switch to other guy talking, Switch back to other guy talking. The way the contrast and colors are depicted is thoughtful and not overly generic like so many movies. Someones you have to admit it's a nice to not be stuck with generic camera angles and generic color/contrast presentation. The acting is highly skilled. The only actor I would have a problem with would be the kid, but that can slide considering he's still young and not as experienced as his older counterparts. The plot, while it is definitely quiet and has a not-lightning-speed pace, is still something the viewer can get into (again, assuming they don't have the attention span of a five year old). A little bit of high-paced action might have been okay to bring it a wider audience, but to do so would downplay the "normality" of the characters' lives.

Average customer rating:

Purple Rain Forever
Purple Rain In DVD
A musical Masterpiece.
More performances,,...Less documentary.
It's all about the music, man

Purple Rain (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Starring: Prince , Apollonia Kotero , Morris Day , Olga Karlatos , and Clarence Williams III
Director: Albert Magnoli
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ASIN: B0002CTSUY
Release Date: 2004-08-24

Amazon.com

The late Albert Magnoli directed this ragged but effective 1984 drama (with lots of musical interludes) starring (the artist formerly known as) Prince as a Minneapolis musician whose ego is his biggest obstacle to fame and love. In the backdrop is a strong story about the character's violent family life and a father made monstrous by broken dreams. Prince's film debut as an actor is not bad at all, and he is surrounded by a few people (Apollonia Kotero, Morris Day, and members of his own band) for whom he has served as a mentor in real life. The music is loud and good: "When Doves Cry," "Purple Rain," "Let's Go Crazy"--you remember the soundtrack. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Purple Rain Forever.......2007-08-24

Tyrone dumping the girl in the trash can was classic. . ."purify yourself in Lake Minnatonka" . . .This was just as tastelessly awesome then as it is today. 20 has not diminished the catchy hooks of "Nicky", "When Doves Cry", and "Electric blue". Prince was definately ahead of time with this film. Unlike most "musicals", the story revloves around the soundtrack, yet the characters are singing, synchronized finger snapping and the set did not look too much like a set. Despite the comical, yet poor acting, the storyline is cool enough to want to watch over and over. Great date movie.

Purple Rain In DVD.......2007-05-19

Saw the movie in theater when released, like having it in the player to listen to the music, watch again, view some songs. Parts of this movie music still send chills down my spine. Our Sharp LCD tv will zoom the letterbox to fill the screen, works good. Not sure about the subtitles of dialog, they get cut off then, couldn't find a way to turn them off, the player seems set right. No special stuff for extras. I like some Prince, this is one worth having. Have the VHS, DVD better than tape!

I enjoy having this, esp. to use as music video while I get tv time before what my wife wants to see comes on. Can stop, find my place again later or next night.

A musical Masterpiece........2007-04-19

Purple Rain is one of the iconic Black films of the 1980s. Forget about plot, story and acting, this unique movie is like Prince himself: It's is all about the music.

Prince is the Kid, a struggling Black Minneapolis rock musician. He's not thinking about getting big just trying to get by. He struggles to keep his band playing a local nightclub where he hasn't been packing them in lately. His band wants to break up and he's got stiff competition in rival band The Time and its charismatic bandleader Morris Day who is trying to persuade the club owner towards featuring his acts exclusively. In the quest to stay in the club, keep his band together and fight for the affections of Apollonia Kotero, the Kid suffers for his art. In between the inspired and original music videos we see his pain in every frame of this film.

In his personal life, the Kid is desperate not to turn into his father, an alcoholic musician who mercilessly beats his Mother. He doesn't want to repeat the violent behavior of his Father, but his frustrations about the direction of his career seem to be getting the better of him in his relationship with Apollonia. I don't want to give away any more, but in the end he overcomes his struggles, ends the cycle of violence, and gets the girl. The movie ends with the performance of "Purple Rain". Seeing this concert footage of this song alone is worth the purchase price of the DVD.

Purple Rain is a unique movie experience. Part autobiography, part rock video part documentary it comes together into a beautifully crafted film. Director Alberto Magnoli's camera takes the viewer into the world of Rock music in Minneapolis. Production values are sparse, but that works to Magnoli's advantage. It allows him to capture the grittiness of the mid 80's beautifully. Filming out of those homes, alleys, and city streets takes us back to that time before Prince became a worldwide superstar. And yes, people did wear clothes and hairstyles like that back then.

The music-without it, there wouldn't be a movie. I heard many of these songs way back when I was a kid in 1984 and all of them still stay with me. Princes' music is a one-of a kind experience. There's so much heart, passion and emotion in every song, in every beat of music. Watching this movie again twenty-three years later I now understand the pain behind his creative process. As a writer and artist myself I've come to appreciate this movie even more. Anyone who wants to be a musician, rapper, writer, or "artist" should have a copy of this movie and the soundtrack on hand.

There isn't much acting here, since everyone is just playing themselves, but the heart and passion of this production shows onscreen. Prince is Rock solid as the Kid. Appolonia Kotero is charming and engaging. The late Clarence Williams III is incredible to watch as the abusive father. Williams adds great depth to the character; It's the best performance of his career. Olga Karlatos is solid as the Kid's Mom. Morris Day steals a lot of scenes as Princes' rival.

Purple Rain is a Top Ten Five star essential Shawn James video. You have to have this movie in your collection!

More performances,,...Less documentary........2007-04-01

The 2 disc DVD was pretty good. Really could have done without the movie...and provided more of Prince's performances. Overall, enjoyed watching it though.:-) Got bored with the interviews and the documentary part of the movie.

It's all about the music, man.......2007-01-23

Yes, this is an iconic film...but it's strickly because of the music. Bad acting galore and a high school script at best. But the stars had aligned just perfectly for Prince in his first acting gig because this movie had transcended everything that was going on at the time. Even to this day you can't help but move with the music. It will still be a classic twenty more years from now. Jam on, Prince. Jam on. Highly recommended.

Around the World in 80 Days (Two-Disc Special Edition)

Average customer rating:

Odd old clunker
Poor Quality for the price
In the grand tradition of Hollywood
Too Much Padding and Not Enough Substance
A spectacle in every sense of the world!

Around the World in 80 Days (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Starring: David Niven , Cantinflas , and Robert Newton
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0001US8F8
Release Date: 2004-05-18

Amazon.com

This Mike Todd production was a star-studded, multi-million dollar extravaganza when first released in 1956. It remains enjoyable family fare, but time has somewhat dulled its shine. Still, it compares favorably to the overly long, TV mini-series starring Pierce Brosnan and Eric Idle.

Elegant David Niven plays the neurotically punctual Phileas Fogg, a British gent who is spurned on by a wager to prove he can travel around the world in 80 days. He is accompanied by his valet, played with persnickety humor by Cantinflas.

Nominated for several Academy Awards, this was written by John Farrow (Mia's dad) and S.J. Perelman, based on Jules Verne's 1873 classic. The fun part is the razzle-dazzle. Todd knew what he was doing with all those exotic locales and over 40 cameo appearances, including Charles Boyer, Ronald Colman, Marlene Dietrich, José Greco, Peter Lorre, Buster Keaton, Frank Sinatra, and Red Skelton. A very young Shirley MacLaine was painted and dyed to play a lively Indian Princess. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Description

Phileas Fogg bet his fellow club members that he can circle the globe in eighty days. That may not be impressive today, but in 1872, it was nearly impossible. Accompanied by his valet, Passepartout, and the wandering Princess Aouda, Fogg crosses Europe, India, Japan, the Pacific and the United States.

Customer Reviews:

Odd old clunker.......2007-04-12

I bought this film to watch with my 4 year old....odd clunker of a film that really stars the butler. A cavalcade of stars and good old fashioned fun. You can really see the film making in this film...and not in a good way. But some sequences are really fun for a four year old. He loved the train across America sequence and the steamboat across the Atlantic. I think at the time David Niven was okay for the role but I don't find him terribly appealing and this is my biggest problem with the film. Shirley MacLain (I love her in most everything) but what were they thinkin', a princess from India! I know this film won an Oscar for Best Pic in 1956....It is what it is....But now I want to read the book by Jules Verne. Funny story. We were waiting for my husband to watch the film and turned on our TV (Frankfurt, Germany) and lo and behold the 80's mini series version of Around the World was on starring Pierce Brosnan and Peter Ustinov. My son seemed to like this version better and so did I. It was more engaging, more human like and 6 hours long which is probably what the story needs and Mr. Brosnan brought a different feel to the role of Phinneas than Mr. Niven. He seemed more human, perhaps!

Poor Quality for the price.......2007-03-01

Although the film is still very enjoyable, I was very dismayed at the quite poor quality of the video image. It is very annoying to pay a premium price for a dvd and then discover that the imaging is very poorly done. I do not understand why they had to cut this dvd without good clarity. The dvd simply comes off as "fuzzy"---this is very disappointing!

In the grand tradition of Hollywood.......2007-01-28

Around the World in 80 Days is a movie in the grand tradition of Hollywood. The transfer to DVD is excellent as are the supplemental materials included in the set.

Too Much Padding and Not Enough Substance.......2007-01-25

When you go to the movies today, what movies you go see may force you to ask yourself "Where's the beef?" Today there are movies with wonderful special effects, grand stars, and no heart. Movies that are visual feasts that wow you, but leave you feeling empty on the inside. While people may consider this a recent trend with all the advances in technology, the truth is these sort of movies have been around for years, and the 1956 Best Picture winner "Around The World In 80 Days" is living proof of this. The story for "Around The World In 80 Days" takes up a whole twenty minutes of the movie. Several gentlemen hear of a bank being robbed by a thief who has fled the country, which leads to a discussion on whether or not he could successfully get away from the law. Phileas Fogg says that technology has advanced so much that if the thief were resourceful enough he could circle the world in exactly 80 days. The other gentlemen laugh and say it can't be done, so Fogg bets them 20,000 pounds that he personally could travel around the world in 80 days.

The gentlemen accept his bet, and with his assistant Passepartout sets out to circle the globe using whatever means necessary . A subplot involving a police man chasing Fogg due to a suspicion that he might have stolen some money, as well as a subplot where Fogg and Passepartout save an Indian princess (played by a young Shirley MacLaine in makeup) take place during this movie, but they are all second nature to what the movie is really about: Exotic locations and wondrous sights to see. Now, before we get into the meat (or lack therefor) of the movie, it should be noted that "Around The World In 80 Days" was not made with the intention of being good. Oh I'm sure producer Michael Todd (who gets his name above the title over the director) was pleased that people thought it was good, but the intention was not to make something that would be digested slowly. Michael Todd was tired of movies that were all talk and no action, and he wanted people to feel like a participant in the movie.

Therefore he created a new camera called Todd-AO, which would later be known as 70mm Cinescope. "Around The World In 80 Days" was not the first widescreen film (that was "The Robe") but made the biggest impression on the world. Ingeniously, the movie's opening (with a prolog by Edward R. Murrow) begins in the standard 35mm full screen mode, which was the shape of a TV screen. After a lengthy history of science and travel, the screen widens up to reveal the 70mm Todd-AO format. If you saw this movie in the theaters in 1956, this is where the curtain would pull open to cover the whole wall of the theater, therefor making the movie as immersive as possible. But making the picture bigger was only the beginning. Now Todd was going to make it so that audiences would be taken where they never went before. In a hot air balloon ride. To Spain to watch a bull fight. On a train where savage Indians are raiding the train, which results in a epic gun fight with the main characters fighting for their lives.

Everything that could thrill audiences were thrown into this movie, as well as a bunch of cameo appearances from famous stars such as Buster Keaton, Frank Sinatra, and Trevor Howard. In fact, this is the first movie where the term "cameo appearance" was coined in the first place. There are more then twenty cameo appearances in "Around The World In 80 Days," though most of the people don't say anything, and where there just to get a reaction from the audience (Example: A salon player looks up from his piano long enough for us to see it's Frank Sinatra and then puts his head back down). Considering this film pioneered so many techniques we take for granted now, I can't say I completely hate this film. That said, "Around The World In 80 Days" is the dullest Best Picture winner you are most likely ever going to see. Not bad, dull. For all the techniques this film created, it is a shame the story itself is not more interesting.

I don't know whether or not this is the fault of the source material, the film makers, or both. Certainly science has evolved so much in the past few years, that the idea you would need 80 days to circle the globe is absurd, you could travel it in less then a few days (and that's if you're being lazy). Even at the time of this films release it was easy to travel the world in half the time of this film, so the novelty of the story is long gone. So yes, the source material doesn't provide much suspense or imagination anymore, but worse was the film makers insistence of being too much in love with their own techniques. So intent are the film makers to make the audiences feel like they are viewing the world, the movie stalls several times in the movie, becoming tedious along the way. I mentioned that the storyline takes up about twenty minutes of the time in this movie, but the movie itself is more then three hours long. So what is it you are actually watching for those three hours?

Well, everything but story. The prolog with Edward R. Murrow is a good example of how much time the film wastes. Aside from the introduction to the Todd-AO format, this introduction has a documentary feel that has nothing to do with the movie. Then there's the fact that when you consider that Fogg and Passepartout are in a race it's very odd that they spend so much time lounging around. They go to Spain and spend almost a half hour fighting a bull. A balloon flight takes fifteen minutes. Indians chase the train for twenty. Shots of the sky and sea easily amount to more then an hours worth of film. And it just goes on and on, with these characters saying absolutely nothing of interest. During a boat scene there is about ten minutes of crew members throwing wood into the steam engine to make a boat go faster. It helps that Fogg has enough money to buy boats, trains, and whatever else he needs to win the race. I'm not exactly sure how much 20,000 pounds was worth back in 1956, but it seems like the cost of the race far outweighs the reward for winning it.

This movie won five Academy Awards. It's saying something that film did not win Best Director or was even nominated for any acting awards. This is a technical film through and through. The problem with technical films winning Oscars for Best Picture is that the excitement of them wear down pretty fast. While movies like "Ben-Hur," "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," and "Amadeus" were all very technical movies, they also had the story and characters to back up the movie when the visuals became outdated. "Around The World In 80 Days" is easily one of the worst Best Picture winners. It's not terrible, but it's painfully dull, it's so long it's maddening, and you don't ever really feel like your joining a race considering how many side trips are taken that wastes time. If there's a Best Picture winner you have to chose to not see, "Around The World In 80 Days" should be high on the list of considerations.

Rating: ** Stars

A spectacle in every sense of the world!.......2006-12-18

Mike Todd's version of Jules Verne tale offers a refined English comedy, giant-screen travel landscapes, dazzling brilliant color, famous actors in small roles... as Phileas Fogg and his comical valet made the tour of the world beginning in England, going to Europe, the Middle East, India, and Asia...

It begins in (1872) Victorian London as the wealthy, supremely confident Phileas Fogg sets out a wager that he can traverse the globe in precisely eighty days... The other club members at the Reform Club think Fogg is a fool, and challenge his claim and wager £20,000 that he is wrong...

The snags begin almost immediately, as the true gentleman misses a train and has to travel by balloon... The wild journey takes Fogg and his new servant into a series of incredible adventures in every land they pass through...

David Niven plays the true impassive Englishman Phileas Fogg... A polished man of the world, who makes no superfluous gestures, and is never seen to be moved or agitated... A puzzling personage, who believes in progress, science, and intellectual deduction... An eccentric quiet gentleman who talks very little and lives by a precise schedule of tea, whist games, fish and chips... He lives alone in a big house, and a single domestic sufficed to serve him...

Mexican screen legend Cantinflas known as the comic genius of the Spanish-speaking world, plays Passepartout, the most faithful of domestics...

Passepartout is a multi-skilled honest Frenchman with a pleasant oval face, slender and slight, soft-mannered and serviceable...

Robert Newton plays Mr. Fix, the mysterious detective who had been dispatched from England in search of the bank robber... He is a slight-built personage, with a nervous, intelligent face, and bright eyes peering out from under eyebrows which he is incessantly twitching...

Shirley MacLaine plays the charming young Indian princess, Aouda, who was married against her will at age seven... She speaks English with great purity...

One of the main interests of the film is the various cameos played by stars of the time who give minute but exquisite characterizations:

- Finlay Currie, Mr. Fogg's usual partner at whist...

- Robert Morley, one of the directors of the Bank of England...

- John Gielgud, the dismissed servant who relates that his master wears two watches, and every available surface in his house is covered with so many clocks...

- Trevor Howard, the club's member who rejects the news that the English gentleman has robbed the Bank of England...

- Charles Boyer, the educated travel agent who proposes to the couple to travel with a hot-air balloon...

- Martine Carol, the offended lady who slaps the new butler just for saying: 'Mademoiselle!'

- Fernandel, the French coachman who was not so content with the tip...

- Gilbert Roland, the Arab who offers his ship to Marseilles just on one condition...

- Cesar Romero, the henchman who sadistically insists Passepartout must fight a bull even if he doesn't know how...

- Ronald Colman, the Railway Official who announces (No more railway!) all passengers know that they must provide means of transportation for themselves from Kholby to Allahabad...

- Cedric Hardwicke, the officer who finds happily a means of conveyance : to cross the deep jungle on an elephant!

- Charles Coburn, the Steamship Company clerk who makes the observation that the 'Carnatic' had sailed the evening before...and he doesn't expect any vessel to Yokohama one week from now...

- Peter Lorre, the smiling Japanese steward who informs Passepartout that being broke without money in Yokohama... is catastrophic!

- Glynis Johns, the sporting lady who bets with her companion on Fogg's outcome...

- George Raft, the suspicious mob who chases everyone who stands near his glamorous woman...

- Marlene Dietrich, the Barbary Coast saloon hostess who looks for a way to be free...

- Frank Sinatra, the honky-tonk pianist...

- Red Skelton, the drunken with great appetite...

- John Carradine, the insolent colonel hit by an arrow...

- Buster Keaton, the American train conductor who announces some delay...

- Andy Devine, the first mate who refuses 'Henrietta' to be burn...

- Victor McLaglen, the helmsman who is ordered ('Full steam!') to feed all the fires until the coal is exhausted...

- John Mills, the sleepy carriage driver at the delicate moment...

The other scenes that were actually outrageous and delightful are:

Passepartout scooping some snow off an alp to chill a bottle of champagne; his funny and graceful way of bullfighting; his burlesque dance with a troupe of Spanish dancers; his venture to ride an ostrich through a back-lot Hong Kong; his anxiety when he is captured by savage Sioux; his courage when he is almost burned to death with an Indian widow; his fault when he clears the 'human' pyramid; his ignorance when he breaks Hindus religious beliefs and his absurdity when he constantly tries to hit on anything in skirts...

With terrific music, this Academy Award winner for Best Picture of 1956 is nice for the family to watch...

The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Two-Disc Special Edition)

Average customer rating:

Now That "Take Off Your Clothes" Isn't So Shocking Anymore, It Seems A More Solid Film
Lacking
Is This A Movie?
Difficult Task, but Still a Great Movie
The Unbearable Lightness of Being

The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis , Juliette Binoche , Lena Olin , Derek de Lint , and Erland Josephson
Director: Philip Kaufman
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000CBG5PG
Release Date: 2006-02-07

Amazon.com essential video

Daniel Day-Lewis stars as Tomas, the happily irresponsible Czech lover of Milan Kundera's novel, which is set in Prague just before and during the Soviet invasion in 1968. Lena Olin and Juliette Binoche are the two vastly different women who occupy his attention and to some extent represent different sides of his values and personality. In any case, the character's decision to flee Russian tanks with one of them--and then return--has profound consequences on his life. Directed by Philip Kaufman, this rich, erotic, fascinating character study with allegorical overtones is a touchstone for many filmgoers. Several key sequences--such as Olin wearing a bowler hat and writhing most attractively--linger in the memory, while Kaufman's assured sense of the story inspires superb performances all around. --Tom Keogh

Description

Let others in 1968 Prague fret over liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Prague surgeon and avowed womanizer Tomas is focused on the happiness of pursuit. He's determined to live with a lightness of being unfettered by things like commitment and Communism. A young doctor's quest for sex and his stumbling into love are part of the rich storyline of this lyrical film from the landmark Milan Kundera novel, produced by Saul Zaentz (The English Patient, Amadeus) and directed by Philip Kaufman (The Right Stuff, Henry & June). Daniel Day-Lewis, Juliette Binoche and Lena Olin indelibly form the romantic triangle at the center of Tomas' world. It's a shifting world of hope spoiled and renewed, of lives blighted by oppression and reinvigorated by deep, maturing love.

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary:Commentary by Philip Kaufman, Jean-Claude Carriere, Walter Murch and Lena Olin
Audio Commentary:Commentary by Philip Kaufman, Jean-Claude Carriere, Walter Murch and Lena Olin
Documentaries:Emotional History: The Making of Unbearable Lightness of Being
Theatrical Trailer

Customer Reviews:

Now That "Take Off Your Clothes" Isn't So Shocking Anymore, It Seems A More Solid Film.......2007-09-10

First a word about this version of the film:

I didn't find that the extras in this two-disc offering added up to much more than a marketing ploy, but everyone will have a different opinion there. Fans will rave about this release, detractors will still say it does no justice to a superior novel, and most, like me, will fall somewhere in between. What did amaze me was how much better this movie looked on DVD than on the old VHS full-screen copy I have. In widescreen there's much more to see, and the scenery is a big part of this film, particularly during the tense moments between Tereza and the Soviet soldiers when life and death hung in the balance over possession of a camera.

As for the actual movie:

For those who don't know, this is the motion picture version of Czech writer Milan Kundera's novel about a libertine doctor, his wife, mistress, and their lives in Prague before, during, and after the Soviet crackdown of 1968. This is film that has its fair share of sex and nudity but it is one that never quite becomes as erotic as it is supposed to be or wishes it was. The Unbearable Lightness of Being is noteworthy because of fine performances by Daniel Day Lewis, Lena Olin, and Juliette Binoche, but to me and others who came of age after the Cold War, it seems a period piece rather than the revelation it probably was a generation back. It's no masterpiece, but it is a good film.

Lacking.......2007-08-27

The movie was fine to watch but it was so different from the book. I told my father all about the book so he decided to rent the movie from the library and watch it with me. Big mistake. In the film the sex scenes came off as standard sex scenes. In the book there is a strong focus on the involved parties thoughts and motivations. Void of philosophy and psychology.

Is This A Movie? .......2007-08-22

I didn't too sure about this. It was on special movie channel so I gave it a listen. All that happened were people in not many clothes (was the movie at the Beach??) looking sad most times. Also there was a hat. While I watched all I kept thinking was about other things like drinking water that were more exciting. I notice near the ending that the man in the movie was the angry man from the gangrene movie - I almost lost him because he was so different! In the other movie he was mean; here he was just bored or looked like he was looking at something very far aways. He didn't talk much but was a doctor so I guess he is smart. There is a car crash in the snow near the end, but I don't think that was a learning part. The movie is like watching the home films from vacations when you are at boring cousin house, or shows on the public channels. Drink water for more fun - or watch with pillows!!! One sleepy star this time! (wait: there are pretty girls in here, so be careful watching!)

Difficult Task, but Still a Great Movie.......2007-08-03

I've always felt it is a mistake to compare a film adaptation to its literary counterpart. The Unbearable Lightness of Being, as a novel, is hugely significant and wonderful. As a film, it is not necessarily true to the book and that is solely because as a film it is not capable of being true to the book. I would compare making a movie out of Milan Kundera's novel to making a video game out of the Godfather or Pulp Fiction. If that was done we run into issues like forgetting to include the priorities of game play, or simply cashing in on the success of the film. With the Unbearable Lightness of Being, there are inevitably going to be lovers of the book waiting to attack the film, and that has happened. Of course it prioritizes itself efficiently as a cinematic experience, while at the same time it makes for about as good an adaptation of the novel as you can possibly get. It wasn't a filmable story to begin with and even Kundera came forward and said that, but he also consulted the writers of the screenplay. So comparisons between the film and novel are in my opinion pointless but also inescapable. I've already made them myself.

I'm not going to summarize the whole film for you as that would probably be too long-winded and could potentially spoil the story. I'll introduce the characters, place them in a setting and then say go...and then you can add this to your shopping cart, proceed to check out, and then a few days later press play. The film takes place in Prague in 1968 just after Alexander Dubcek lead the Prague Spring advancement. Soon after that the characters suffer through further reform following the eventual invasion of the Soviets and the Warsaw Pact. The film opens with two characters who are lighthearted and carefree lovers. Tomas is a surgeon and womanizer who lives life as though sex and love are two very different things. Sabina is an artist who, in the eyes of Tomas, embodies sex. Tomas soon meets the more heavyhearted Thereza, a waitress and aspiring photographer, who embodies innocence. They are opposites but soon Thereza will also embody love in the eyes of Tomas.

The characters in The Unbearable Lightness of Being evolve wonderfully in a significant and chaotic backdrop, but they never steer from their passions. It is layered as not only a romance, but also as a story about rebellion, and as an erotic dance; but ultimately it is an existential story. A few of these points are strengths only realized if the book is read first. Not that I'd definitely recommend doing that if you haven't already, as the book does stand higher in it's own medium than the film does and you may be setting yourself up for disappointment. Some of the deeper messages are unquestionably somewhat muted in the film.

Again though, judged solely as a cinematic narrative, Director Phillip Kauffman makes The Unbearable Lightness of Being a beautiful movie and delves deeply enough into these characters and their world that he manages to capture some of Kundera's vision, while adding his own motion picture flare. I'm conflicted as to whether this movie should be celebrated as a triumph in terms of Kundera's novel, but I'm not conflicted in the least as to whether or not this is a great movie all by itself.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being.......2007-07-10

Based on Milan Kundera's heady novel, Kaufman's steamy, intelligent film about a playboy doctor who wishes to live without the burden of commitments--to people or ideologies--was the kind of arthouse film that Americans flocked to in droves. It's not hard to see why: A distinguished cast, including the phenomenal Day-Lewis and Binoche, titillating scenes of passionate lovemaking featuring Olin au naturel, and the tense, historic setting certainly helped. Aside from its "Last Tango"-style prurience, "Being" is an intelligent rumination on eros and existence.

The High and the Mighty (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

Average customer rating:

Great John Wayne Movie
John Wayne's greatest movie!!
One of Duke's classics in a sparkling edition!
A CLASSIC FOR ALL TIME
wellman & wayne fly high

The High and the Mighty (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Starring: John Wayne , Claire Trevor , Laraine Day , Robert Stack , and Jan Sterling
Director: William A. Wellman
Manufacturer: Paramount
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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