DVD Collectors Online

Zatoichi Challenged, a review by Antares

Zatoichi Challenged (1967) 72/100 - I'm coming down the home stretch in the Daiei produced films in this series, and I'm getting a sense that they're running out of steam. From the earliest moments in this film, I knew it was being directed by Kenji Misumi, who has turned out to be my favorite director in this marathon. But he too, seems to be on auto pilot for this one, as the story, while character driven, is pretty much a re-hashing of Fight, Zatoichi, Fight from a few years earlier. Instead of Ichi caring for an infant, it's a young boy this time and while Misumi's direction and cinematography are top notch as usual, the story lacks any real punch to make it memorable. You can feel the screenwriters stretching a bit to make a slightly different plot twist for this one. When all is said and done, the ending was quite satisfying, with Ichi coming close to being killed, with his quasi-bushido integrity saving his skin.

Teal = Masterpiece
Dark Green = Classic or someday will be
Lime Green = A good, entertaining film
Orange = Average
Red = Cinemuck
Brown = The color of crap, which this film is

(From Antares' Short Summations on July 15th, 2014)

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam, a review by addicted2dvd

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam (2010/United States) Warner Home Video Director: Joaquim Dos Santos Writing: Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam: Michael Jelenic (Writer), Jerry Siegel (Original Characters By), Joe Shuster (Original Characters By), C. C. Beck (Original Characters By), Bill Parker (Original Characters By) The Spectre: Steve Niles (Writer) Green Arrow: Greg Weisman (Writer) Jonah Hex: Joe R. Lansdale (Screenwriter), Justin Gray (Story By), Jimmy Palmiotti (Story By), Phil Noto (Story By) Length: 63 min. Rating: Rated PG-13 : Violence and Some Sexual Content Video: Widescreen Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1 Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

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Stars:
Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam
Zach Callison as Billy Batson
James Garner as Shazam
Josh Keaton as Punk
Danica McKellar as Sally
George Newbern as Superman/Clark Kent

The Spectre
Gary Cole as Jim Corrigan/The Spectre
Alyssa Milano as Aimee Brenner
Jeff Bennett as Foster Brenner/Peter McCoy/Flemming
Rob Paulsen as Drew Flynn/Lt. Brice/Deandre
Jon Polito as Police Captain

Green Arrow
Neil McDonough as Green Arrow/Oliver Queen
Malcolm McDowell as Merlyn the Magnificent
Steve Blum as Count Vertigo
Grey DeLisle as Black Canary
John Di Maggio as Merc #1
Ariel Winter as Princess Perdita

Jonah Hex
Thomas Jane as Jonah Hex
Linda Hamilton as Madame Lorraine
Jason Marsden as Young Man and Bartender
Michael Rooker as Red Doc
Michelle Trachtenberg as Bar Girl

Plot:Extras:

• Bonus Trailers
• 4 Bonus Cartoons

This is a collection of four superhero animated shorts... the Superman/Shazam! one being the headliner of the set. Out of these four shorts I only seen one before. That being The Spectre which was on the DVD release for Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. I do also have Jonah Hex on the release for Batman: Under the Red Hood... but I haven't watched that DVD yet. And promised I would save it for this weekend because Brittany don't want me to watch that one without her. While the other three has been on other animated movie releases... they are extended versions on this release.

Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam
As I said... this short is the headliner of the set. Running about 24 minutes. It was good to see Captain Marvel in something again... as he has been a childhood favorite of mine from the '70s TV series that was coupled with The Secrets of Isis. Unfortunately there is little choices for this character on DVD. I do also have the old movie serial... and a single episode DVD of the series from the '70s I mentioned.... which you can't even buy it was a bonus disc in another TV Show set... I forget which but probably The Secrets of Isis: The Complete Series. This short gives us another origin story for Captain Marvel. And it has the youngest Billy Batson I ever seen. But I enjoyed it all the same. This short alone was worth the price I paid for the DVD (Approx. $6).

The Spectre
This short clocks in at 13 minutes. Before seeing this short I was completely unfamiliar with The Spectre. But I enjoyed the character quite a bit. I also was pleasantly surprised that this short has 2 big names in it with Gary Cole and Alyssa Milano. I especially enjoyed the final kill of the short. Definitely worth watching... but I liked the first short a little better. Unlike the first one... this short is more story based then action based. Not that it is lacking in action, but the first was almost all action.

Green Arrow
Green Arrow runs for 12 minutes. Maybe it is because I am much more familiar with the character... but I enjoyed this one almost as much as I did Superman/Shazam! It is also almost all pure action much like the first.

Jonah Hex
The running time for this one is 13 minutes. For this one we of course go to the old west. This is the first time I saw anything with Jonah Hex... and I enjoyed it very much. I really liked the style of the character. And must admit this short makes me curios about the live action movie that is out. This short has a couple more familiar names in Linda Hamilton and Michelle Trachtenberg.

I really enjoyed this disc as a whole. My favorite short on the disc remains Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam. My least favorite being The Spectre... though that one is still enjoyable as well. I thought it was a good touch to add episodes from animated series where the stars on the shorts were guests on the episodes. For Jonah Hex we got the episode Showdown from Batman: The Animated Series/ For The Spectre we got The Chill of the Night from Batman: The Brave and the Bold. For Green Arrow we got Initiation from Justice League Unlimited and for Shazam! we got Clash also from Justice League Unlimited. The only other extra on the disc is a trailer for the show Batman: The Brave and the Bold. I would say if you are a fan of the animated superhero releases you would enjoy this collection of shorts as well. I would recommend it.



(From What Movies I Been Watching on January 6th, 2012)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

Doctor Who: Series One (2005/United Kingdom) IMDb | Wikipedia 2 entertain Video, BBC Worldwide (United Kingdom) Length: 571 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Audio Descriptive: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: English

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Plot:
A box set containing all 13 stories from the 2005 series of 'Doctor Who'. Christopher Eccleston's Doctor is wise and funny, cheeky and brave. An alien and a loner (it's difficult keeping up with friends when your day job involves flitting through time and space), his detached logic gives him a vital edge when the world's in danger. But when it comes to human relationships, he can be found wanting. That's why he needs new assistant Rose.

Rose (Billie Piper) is a shop-girl from the present day. From the moment they meet, the Doctor and Rose are soulmates. They understand and complement each other. As they travel together through time, encountering new adversaries, the Doctor shows her things beyond imagination. She starts out as an innocent, unfettered by worldly concerns. But she ends up an adventurer who, by the end of the series, can never go home again...

Doctor Who
Series 1.01 Rose
Writer: Russell T Davies (Writer), Robert Holmes (Original Characters By)
Director: Keith Boak
Cast: Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who), Billie Piper (Rose Tyler), Camille Coduri (Jackie Tyler), Noel Clarke (Mickey Smith), Mark Benton (Clive), Elli Garnett (Caroline), Adam McCoy (Clive's Son), , Alan Ruscoe (Autons), Paul Kasey (Autons), David Sant (Autons), Elizabeth Fost (Autons), Helen Otway (Autons), , Nicholas Briggs (Nestene Voice)

This is the first time that I ever watched a Doctor Who episode. Of course I heard a lot about it and I was always curious, but I just never came around to buying it. Especially because I hate to start a series where I know from the beginning there is no chance to ever watch all episodes, as some of the classic episodes are lost.

I really liked this first episode and I hope I like the rest just as much.

[tom]stars_30_7.png[/tom]



(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on November 22nd, 2013)