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Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special, a review by addicted2dvd

Title: Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special
Year: 2008
Director: Michael Simon
Rating: NR
Length: 85 Min.
Video: Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: N/A

Stars:
Jeff Dunham
Brian Haner

Plot:Extras:
Scene Access
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes

My Thoughts:
I got this one for my marathon last year... so this is my second time watching it. Before last year I didn't even know who Jeff Dunham was. Now this is to become a yearly tradition. This guy is just freaking hilarious! I really liked all his characters... my favorite is a toss-up between Achmed and Peanut. I watched this along with Britt... and let me tell you... I thought Britt was going to laugh so hard that she would pee herself! I wasn't expecting to like a ventriloquist as much as I liked this one. Brittany and I actually had to pause it more then once to catch our breathe from all the laughter and be able to hear what he had to say next. It is just as good on the second viewing as it was on the first. If you never checked this guy out before... I highly recommend it!



(From Addicted2DVD's 25 Days of Christmas Marathon: 2010 on December 5th, 2010)

Dial M for Murder, a review by Dragonfire

Dial M for Murder My Thoughts I think this is the first time that I've seen this entire movie.  I saw part of it on tv before.  I have also seen another version of the story, A Perfect Murder, a few times.  I think the movie is very entertaining and it has an interesting plot.  The way things are presented keeps the movie from being as suspenseful as some of Hitchcock's other movies, but I do think there is still suspense to what is going on.  Tony describes exactly how things are supposed to happen, but he doesn't take into account the fact that things rarely go exactly as planned in any situation.  When things start to go a bit wrong, some suspense is added to what is going on.  The mystery is mostly focused on how Tony will deal with how things worked out and if he will get caught.  The movie takes place almost completely inside Tony and Margot's apartment without a few short shots outside of it.  I honestly really didn't notice that while watching the movie.  This isn't the first Hitchcock movie with a more confined set and it won't be the last.  I don't remember knowing before that the movie was based on a play.  Things do move at a slightly slower pace for much of the movie that may not appeal to some viewers.  That works to build up what is going on and add what suspense there is.  There isn't a lot of action in the movie either, apart from the one important scene.  The movie does have a lot of talking which might bore some people, but I didn't think it was boring.  The talking was needed to introduced certain story elements..like how Tony puts his plan in motion.  The characters are interesting, though there could have been a bit more development for some of them.  Tony is sort of presented in a more sympathetic way at first because of Margot's affair.  Even with that, I really didn't like him.  He came across as smarmy and manipulative to me.  That comes out more and more as the movie progresses.  He is very calculating and things he has everything planned out perfectly.  He isn't happy when things go wrong, though he adapts fairly quick.  Ray Milland does really well with the part.  Margot seems to be trying to make her marriage work though she clearly still has feelings for Mark.  She thinks she has kept things from Tony.  She is clueless about a few things.  Grace Kelly does well with the part.  Mark is a writer and the man that Margot had an affair with.  They haven't seen each other in a year, but it is clear the feelings are still there.  Mark seems nice enough, though he really isn't developed much.  Chief Inspector Hubbard is the police officer investigating everything.  He keeps popping up with additional questions.  He picks up on much more than it seems at first. The two extras on the DVD are interesting and entertaining.  It is brought up how the movie was made in 3D because of how popular that format was at the time.  By the time the movie was ready to be released, it wasn't as popular anymore, so most theaters showed the movie in the normal format.  When I was at Universal Studios in Florida several years ago, they had a show thing about Hitchcock.  Part of it showed the one scene from this movie in 3D.  That shot worked really well..better than most of what I've seen more recently. This movie does move a bit slower than other Hitchcock movies and doesn't have as much suspense overall, but it is still really entertaining and worth watching. I did get a review posted on Epinions. Dial M for Murder

(From Alfred Hitchcock Marathon on June 29th, 2010)

Babylon 5: Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: Lyta and Dr. Franklin have arrived on Mars with a shipload of frozen teeps who were altered by the Shadows. Meanwhile Sheridan is lured to Mars were his father is held captive and Garibaldi learns of the plans that William Edgers has for the teeps.

My opinion: Garibaldi is fucked. He cannot be held responsible for his actions but nobody will believe him. And why? Bester! But seriously: I can understand Bester's motives. He cares a lot about "his" teeps. Although it's hard for me to understand why both Edgers and Bester see the teeps as a different species.


Synopsis: Sheridan is being interrogated.

My opinion: Short synopsis? Yes. But great episode. It's practically a two man show featuring Sheridan and his interrogator. But Bruce Gray plays his role perfectly. I wouldn't want him to interrogate me. ;-)

If a fifth season would have been for sure at this time, this episode would have been the season finale. But since it wasn't for sure, JMS wanted to make sure that his story is properly finished.


Synopsis: Garibaldi can convince Lyta, Franklin and the Mars resistance that he was reprogrammed by the Psi Corps. Then they try to break out Sheridan. Meanwhile Ivanova has to deal with advanced Earth Force destroyers that are anhanced with Shadow technology.

My opinion: The race for Earth is coming to an end. But as Indiana Jones said "That's usually when the ground falls out from underneath your feet". And while they technically had won the battle they had heavy losses. In my opinion it was necessary to see that Sheridan's forces are not entirely unbeatable, that makes it more believable.

Quote of the episode:
Ivanova: "I am Susan Ivanova. Commander. Daughter of Andrei and Sophie Ivanov. I am the right hand of vengeance and the boot that's gonna kick your sorry ass all the way back to Earth, sweetheart. I am death incarnate.  And the last living thing that you are ever going to see. God sent me."


Synopsis: The final attack on Mars and Earth begins. First the Earth destroyer fleet over Mars is taken out with the help of the frozen teeps, then Sheridan takes on Earth directly. Meanwhile, Marcus is making a hard decision.

My opninion: "Prepare for ramming speed." Sheridan is also aware of the third principle of sentient life (see "A Voice in the Wilderness"). He would have sacrificed himself. He did it before on Z'ha'dum and was ready to do it again. Great episode, although it was a bit implausible that nobody on Earth was able to deactivate the defense grid.

(From Babylon 5: Marathon on November 15th, 2007)