Spring DVD Review Round-Up

Ah, Spring. If all those blooming plants have you sneezing, wheezing and running for the safety of your home, then why not spend some time in the pollen-free world of some fun films? We have the low-down on several new releases; everything from that hilarious, equal opportunity insulter Borat to the break-out-the-tissue love angst of the classic Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze flick Ghost. In between we present the big fantasy dragonrider film Eragon, some fun TV series out now on DVD, some great comedies and the drama and action of Blood Diamond's Leo DiCaprio and hot Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale. Who said we should wake up and smell the roses if we can park our fannys and avoid Spring Fever? Take a Spring break and check it out...

From The Weinstein Company Home Entertainment

Lovewrecked

This popular ABC Family movie starring Amanda Bynes and Chris Carmack finds Jenny (Amanda) working for the summer at a posh Caribbean resort. She serves snacks and drinks on a boat where her popstar idol Jason (Chris Carmack of "The O.C.") is holding court and, when they go overboard in a storm, the two are stranded on a deserted island... that Jenny discovers is just another side of the resort island. Does she cuddle up with her dream man or does she tell him that safety is just a beach stroll away? And will her rival for his affections turn his head? What about Ryan (Jonathan Bennett, Mean Girls) the guy from home who loves her?

This movie was shot in The Dominican Republic and the colors of the tropics are great. Sand and sea are beautiful. You get a little sound division on concert pieces and underwater stuff... Perfectly okay.

Special Features: Hey, not much. Amanda didn't do a commentary for her fans. You just get three deleted scenes; not much here. There is a theatrical trailer although the movie never opened in theaters.

Wrapping Up: Amanda is a really good comic actress and her work is fine here but the film is more the TV movie caliber so we see why it wasn't put out in theaters. However, this is a cute, harmless entertainment and Amanda fans will enjoy. The cute guys don't hurt either. Rent it for a girls' night in.

From Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Casino Royale: 2-disc Widescreen Edition

Yummy Daniel Craig plays James Bond in his first adventure as an 007 agent. Bond is sent after Le Chiffre, a banker for terrorists. If he wants to stop this jerk and squelch a terrorist network, Bond has to beat the guy in a super high stakes poker game at Casino Royale. The gal providing and guarding the money Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) is one hot mama and Bond falls for her bigtime. The duo faces several near-death experiences and Bond is launched on his 007 career having learned some costly lessons on love and the spy world.

This DVD looks and sounds amazing. Picture is super clear and clean and the music and sound, especially in the many action sequences, is really well-balanced and will just make your neighbors complain when you crank it up! It rocks.

Special Features: This two disc release has some really fun features. No commentary track and that's annoying. Wouldn't it have been fun to hear Daniel tell us what his experiences were like? But the featurettes are swell: "Becoming Bond" is the story of how Daniel got picked as the new Bond and has some fun, behind-the-scenes looks at production including a crazy, publicity stunt in which Daniel has to arrive at an event in a super fast speedboat and worries about falling off. "James Bond: For Real" is a featurette on the cool stunts in the film including sinking a building. All these have comments from all the actors in the film.

I really enjoyed an old featurette that came from AMC TV called "Bond Girls are Forever". It is a bunch of interviews with actresses playing Bond girls throughout the ages, since the 1960's and it explores how women have become stronger in the films over the years. A new interview with Eva Green updates the show. A lot of fun! You also get the music video of Chris Cornell's theme song "You Know My Name" but this sounds and looks pretty cool with the animated credits at the beginning of the film too.

Wrapping Up: Daniel Craig has been credited with breathing new life into the stale Bond film franchise. Whether he becomes your fave Bond or not, this film stands alone as a kick-butt spy action thriller. Go buy it or at least rent it. It's one of the best Bonds ever and this DVD presents it very well.

Zoom: Academy for Superheroes

Tim Allen plays Zoom, a superhero who went into early retirement when his brother hero turned on their team. Now, years later, he is brought back to train a new generation of heroes; mostly outcasts, in order to conquer a new world threat. Dylan (Michael Cassidy) is the bad boy rebel and has the ability to turn invisible. Summer (Kate Mara who is now co-starring in Shooter) is a telekinetic teen who can see the future and everyone thinks she's weird. Tucker (Spencer Breslin) is a chubby kid who can expand his body to huge size at will. Then there is Cindy (Ryan Newman) who is a little girl with super strength. Will this team of misfits ever fit in? And, oh yeah, will they save the world? The movie both looks and sounds great. Both music and dialogue are easy to hear throughout.

Special Features: "Academy for Superheroes Guide for Kids" is sort of a recruiting poster or a "how-to" collection of shorts "Avoid Junk Food", "Exercise Daily", "Good Sportsmanship", and "Unnecessary Danger". They are kind of cute but more for your little bro or sis than you. "Bringing Superheroes to Life: The Making of Zoom" is the usual press kit style doc with behind-the-scenes interviews with cast and crew. Tim Allen, Courtney Cox, Chevy Chase and others chat about working with each other etc. Nothing that different here. You also get a bunch of trailers for other films Open Season, Are We Done Yet?, Daddy Day Camp, Are We There Yet?, Surf's Up, Zathura, Monster House, and RV. Wrapping Up: This movie is based upon the comic book "Zoom's Academy" and it has its moments. Most of the really funny stuff is Tim Allen who reminds me here of his really great sarcastic performance in the wonderful Galaxy Quest. The story of the kids is pretty cliche but you might relate to some of their problems. The DVD is certainly worth a rent.

From Warner Brothers Home Entertainment

Blood Diamond

[WARNING: This is a very violent film. Make your choices accordingly] This movie focuses on Africa's blood diamond trade, in which diamonds are mined and then sold to finance war efforts by evil warlords. It's Sierra Leone, 1999 during a civil war and thousands have already died. Millions are homeless. Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou), a local fisherman, husband and father, has been separated from his family and enslaved to work as a digger in the diamond fields where he finds a huge and rare pink diamond. He buries it and escapes to look for his family. Meanwhile, Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a burned out diamond smuggler and mercenary from Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) who hears about the diamond and promises Solomon to help him find his family in exchange for it. Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly) is a New York journalist who is determined to write the truth about the war and the diamonds. These three folks meet and mix in unusual and dramatic ways as they all strive for their objectives.

The widescreen picture gives you deep colors with no grit. Looks great. Sound is balanced and dialogue and sound effects come through fine.

Special Features: Disc 1 gives you a feature-length Audio Commentary by director Edward Zwick, who talks about pre-production, cast experiences, locations, the story etc. It's really interesting and a kind of moving history lesson on both the making of the film and the conflict of the warlords.

Disc 2 has "Blood on the Stone" a documentary directed and narrated by journalist Sorious Samura. This is where we get a total explanation of the African diamond conflicts with location footage and well as interviews with real former soldiers, miners and others. This is pretty shocking and lets you know more about the horror that the film is portraying. Really well done.

If you like Leo, you'll like "Becoming Archer" which focuses on his performance as Danny Archer as we hear from his fellow cast members and crew and see him tackle the role. "Journalists on the Front Line" has Jennifer Connelly talking about women journalists caught in war. Really interesting. You also have "Inside the Siege of Freetown" which takes apart the action-packed battle in the film in storyboards, planning and comments by the stunt and effects guys.

There is a good Music Video for Nas' track "Shine On 'Em", which is about the conflict diamond problem.

Wrapping Up: Leo and Djimon both got acting Oscar nominations and you can see why. Their performances are excellent. The film tries to be all things.. cautionary tale, romance, actioner, etc. and it gets lost in the mix sometimes but overall, it's a very absorbing if very violent look at a horrible situation and the people caught up in it. If you are a big Leo or Djimon fan you might want to buy. Otherwise, rent.

From Paramount Home Entertainment

Sabrina The Teenage Witch: The First Season

Fans have been asking for this series on DVD for years so here it is! Sabrina is a 16-year-old girl who has just gotten her powers. Part mortal, part witch, she is raised by her witchy but cute aunts Hilda and Zelda who are to guide her in using her budding powers. Her pet/pal is Salem, a sarcastic former warlock turned into a black cat who talks. Sabrina interacts with her boyfriend Harvey, BFF Jennifer, a cheerleader nemesis and a crabby teacher as well as a ton of cool guest characters.

As for how the DVD looks and sounds; some of the effects are pretty cheesy but they look as good here as on network TV back in the late 1990's. The picture is fine. Nothing fancy on the audio but you can hear all the dialogue. There is a note on the packaging that some of the music has been changed for this DVD but I didn't notice it being different or certainly not bad.

Special Features: None really. You do get a list of each episode and a tiny synopsis on the inside of the cover. This is helpful, especially if you remember a fave episode and want to go to it. It would have been cool to have a blooper reel and some audio commentaries from especially Melissa Joan Hart who played Sabrina. But, at least all 24 episodes are here.

Wrapping Up: This fluffy but fun series was a big fave for a lot of young girls. The stories were girl-empowering and it was all in good fun. Certainly buy if you were a fan!

Ghost: Special Collector's Edition

This hallmark romantic film starred Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze as a very in love young couple whose lives are shattered when he is suddenly killed by a robber on the street. Finding that he is caught between this world and the next, "Patrick" learns to use his ghostly abilities and enlists the aid of a supposedly fake psychic played wonderfully by Whoopie Goldberg who won an Oscar for her performance. Learning that his death was a murder and not just a mugging, Patrick sets out to protect Demi and see that his killer is brought to justice before going on to a happy afterlife.

This movie was first out in 1990 and this transfer to DVD is really first rate. It looks like it could have been made last week. The sound, especially the famous music, is dramatic and the dialogue and sound effects all come through great.

Special Features: The "special collector's edition" has a lot of extras. You have "Ghost Stories: The Making of a Classic" and it's full of interviews with cast and crew and really fun and informative. Director Jerry Zucker and writer Bruce Joel Rubin do a commentary track with a lot of fun insider tales. We learn that when writer Rubin learned that the director of the funny Airplane movies was going to direct his romantic baby, he almost cried. Patrick wasn't the first choice for the role. They thought about Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise. Really interesting stuff.

There are two featurettes that are new since the movie was released on DVD in the past. "Inside the Paranormal" shows a bunch of mediums talking about what the afterlife might be like and how psychic powers work. Kind of hokey but fun. More fun is "Alchemy of a Love Scene" which takes apart all the elements that made Ghost's famous love scene over a pottery wheel and set to the music of "Unchained Melody" so iconic and memorable. You learn that a real, more detailed love-making scene had been planned but the two actors were so hot and effective in this scene that it was scrapped.

You also get an interesting featurette made for the American Film Institute's "100 Years ... 100 Passions" and it lists some of the greatest romances in film history. Will your fave classic be there? Check it out. There is also a photo gallery and some previews on the disc.

Wrapping Up: Demi Moore makes you cry in this movie... probably because she can cry at the drop of a hat and does so often. Whoopie Goldberg is a laugh riot and Tony Goldwyn is a great sneaky ex-friend. Patrick Swayze is hunky looking but is the weakest actor of the bunch. Doesn't matter.. the movie still makes me cry and it's a great little thriller as well with some fun comedy thrown in. You must rent if you haven't seen it and if you love it as a classic like I do, buy this excellent DVD.

South Park: The Complete Ninth Season

Those flat little cartoon kids with the big heads still rule! The ninth season contains the hilarious but controversial episode "Trapped in the Closet" in which Tom Cruise and Scientology are roasted. For those of you living in a box in Antarctica, "South Park" is a little Colorado town peopled by grade schoolers Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny and their friends, parents and enemies. To say these kids are surrounded by weird happenings and strange people would be a true understatement.

On the look of the DVD, hey it's a flat cartoon but the colors come out very vivid and don't bleed. Lookin' cute. Sounds are all balanced with clean dialogue.

Special Features: You get the usual mini-commentary tracks from series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. These are short but pretty funny as the guys give us their take on each episode, where the ideas came from and well, just what bugs these guys.

Wrapping Up: You either love this show or don't. If you do, you've got to have this season. Episodes take on every subject from the lack of government response to Katrina to alcoholism, religion, sexual preferences... you name it! It's one of the best, most creative, most irreverent and wildest seasons ever!

From 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

Eragon: Two Disc Special Edition

This fantasy epic based upon the series of popular novels written by a teen, follows farmboy Eragon (newcomer Ed Speleers) who lives in the country of Alagaesia, where former dragon rider turned evil ruler Galbatorix is making life miserable for all. Galbatorix is after The Varden, made up of nice folks and what's left of the former dragon riders who want to bring peace back to the land. When Eragon is given a dragon egg and it imprints on him, he's the new dragon rider of prophecy, meant to challenge the ruler with his faithful dragon Saphira by his side. Eragon is aided by grizzled older dragon rider Brom (Jeremy Irons) and cute elf princess Arya and hindered by Galbatorix's right had magician/shade Durza (Robert Carlyle).

This DVD looked beautiful in the daylight scenes but I found the night scenes, where many of the magic and battles take place, to be too dark for me to tell what was going on half the time. I have a new, flatscreen LCD set with great brightness, etc. so that's not the problem. It was just too dark... a lot. I didn't have a problem with the CGI dragon as some people have. I liked her. Sound is balanced in battle scenes and quiet, dialogue scenes. The soaring music comes through fine.

Special Features: You have an audio commentary from director Stefen Fangmeier who is obviously thrilled to be directing his first big film. He talks about condensing a big novel into a smaller movie, character design, casting, tough filming in Eastern Europe, etc. Actually pretty interesting.

On Disc 2 are a load of extras. You choose from various "lands" in Alagaesia and each one houses a bunch of features:

Carvahall - Inside the Inheritance Trilogy: The Magic of Eragon: Young Author Christopher Paolini talks about writing his trilogy of novels, starting when he was only 15. He says he always thought of them as movies and he gives hints at where the story goes from this movie. Interesting background.

Daret - The Inhabitants of Alagaesia: this one gives you Director Fangmeier talking about each of the characters, weird tribesmen etc. You get some behind-the-scenes, on set stuff with Ed Speleers seeming overwhelmed by his first big role. Very candid admissions that you won't see him make once he's a seasoned actor.

The Spine - Vision of Eragon: We see Fangmeier's storyboards for the movie as he tells us about them. Cool art and all the planning for the film. Pretty fascinating.

Gil'ead - Extended and Deleted Sequences: This is a collection of shortened scenes or scenes left out altogether like the character of the butcher's daughter; big in the book, but totally cut from the movie.

Teirm - A Pronunciation Guide, Storyboard Gallery: You get a list of how to pronounce all the lands and character names and see more art gallery pieces, although we've seen some before.

Hadarac Desert - Saphira's Animation Guide with Director Commentary: All about designing dragon Saphira, all the changes and various styles to make her cute and not scary.. through the computer renderings. Interesting, especially if you are into dragons or CGI work.

Uru Baen - An Interview with author Christopher Paolini regarding Eldest: You get the young author again "selling" his second book in the trilogy "Eldest". Since that book is already out (in 2005) it's kind of weird to include this but he does give some hints as to the ending of the whole series.

Beor Mountains - Trailers and Video Game Ads: Just the usual stuff here.

Farthen Dur - The Secrets of Alagaesia - A Look at the Special Effects: The effects wizards walk us through some of the more difficult sequences like an opening dragon war and closing battle sequences. Interesting, especially to effects fans.

Wrapping Up: The story is formula. The young writer admits he wrote his books because he'd read every S.F. and fantasy book in the library and wanted more so nothing new here. Despite all that, I enjoyed Jeremy Irons as the older rider, liked the look of the dragon and even enjoyed young and very cute Ed Speleers as Eragon. Is this as good as Lord of the Rings? Heck no, but, if you enjoy the sword and sorcery genre, it's fun to watch and certainly worth a rent.

Revenge of the Nerds: Panty Raid Edition

Ah, the classics! All that recent frat humor you've seen on screen owes tribute to this film and the classic Animal House. Way back in 1984, this was very risque. Lewis (Robert Carradine) and Gilbert (Anthony Edwards, "ER") are two nerds off to college as freshmen. Lewis thinks he'll be a stud and Gilbert is just scared but they have hope. This gets shattered by Alpha Beta, the jock fraternity on campus whose members start torturing the guys... just because they can. They burn down their frat house and otherwise make the guys miserable. The nerds bond with other outcasts and form a frat that fights back. It's the nerds versus the jocks and cheerleaders and it's a wild ride.

The look is pretty solid for an older film. Colors are bright, only a little problem of video noise in some dark scenes but really good. Dialogue is clean, sound effects and music come through fine.

Special Features: Pretty good stuff! You actually get the original actors chatting on the commentary track; Robert Carradine, Timothy Busfield and Curtis Armstrong with director Jeff Kanew. The actors have some great memories from shooting. This is fun info.. The director was recorded separately so his comments don't really interact but the actors alone are worth a listen.

"I'm a Nerd, and I'm Pretty Proud of It,"- a featurette taking a look at making the movie and how it is a landmark film of its type. Carradine, Tim Busfield, Armstrong, Kanew, Larry B. Scott, Andrew Cassesse, Julia Montgomery and Ted McGinley are all in sit down talks. The three lead guys are really funny. Good info on making the movie and how it might not have been marketed correctly.

"Deleted Scenes": - six deleted scenes are included and some are interesting, especially one on a subplot involving Stan and some more now politically-incorrect stuff that might not make it today.

"TV pilot "Revenge of the Nerds." - Curiously awful! This was a failed TV pilot that watered down the feisty movie for TV and it's pretty bad but funny to watch!

You also get trailers for each of the first two "Nerds" movies.

Wrapping Up: If you've ever felt like a nerd or an outcast, this film is sweet revenge. It's still really funny today. The extras on this DVD are fun and make it a classic well worth a rent if not a buy for your collection. If you've never seen this... you must check it out.

Borat

Comedic actor Sacha Baron Cohen took his TV character in "Da Ali G Show" to the big screen with great success. In the movie, Borat (Cohen), a television reporter from Kazakhstan, has been sent to New York by his country, with his fat producer Azamat (Ken Davitian) to learn about America and bring the news home. Borat gets sidetracked when he falls for "Baywatch" star Pam Anderson and is determined to track her down and marry her. Going across country, he comes in contact with everything from crude frat boys to a rodeo audience to southern society, religious nuts etc. all to whom he is a horrible, offensive foreigner. He shows them up for what they are with true, gross-out glee.

This movie is supposed to look like a documentary in progress. The transfer to DVD is good. Any dirt or other flaws are intentional. You only get surround sound with the music but no distortion and the broken English comes through clearly.

Special Features: Not many for such a successful film. No commentary track which would probably have been hilarious and we could use some background on why certain subjects, people and locales were used etc. but.. nothing. You do get some deleted scenes called "Censored Footages." Four scenes were cut out of the movie and four were shot but never made it. Okay, these are funny! Borat is pulled over by cops across America. Borat goes to a Civil War recreation. It's 24 minutes of good stuff.

"Propaganda," is the Global Propaganda Tour. This is a bunch of promotion appearances made at film festivals by Cohen. He's on the Conan O'Brien show, Jay Leno and Martha Stewart and there's a scene from "Saturday Night Live". If you are a Sacha fan, this is great. There is even a fake Kazakh (Kazakhstani??) commercial.

Wrapping Up: I wasn't that fond of this film but I know others were crazy about it. Several subjects in the movie tried to sue Cohen for his silly expose of their true selves. There are some truly classic comic moments in the movie and the character of Borat is just too weirdly unique to ignore. I'd definitely rent this film if you are a fan. The extras are sparse but worth a look. Maybe wait for a buy until a disc with more extras comes out in future.

***

Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.