DVD Collectors Online

Finding Nemo, a review by Dragonfire

Finding Nemo My Thoughts I saw this one in the theater when it first came out..though it did take about a month before I managed to see it.  I can't remember why I waited that long now.  Anyway, I loved the movie and I picked up the DVD as soon as it was released. The story works very well and makes for an entertaining movie.  A lot of parents could probably related to the fear of a child being lost or taken.  Marlin was being very over protective, but considering what happened to Pearl and the other eggs, it isn't surprising.  I love Dory.  What could have been an annoying character ends up being really cute and entertaining.  Dory is a part of some of the funniest moments in the movie.  Bruce the shark is pretty funny too.  There is a decent amount of action and a bit of suspense to what is going on, though much of what happens is more predictable.  That doesn't keep the movie from being entertaining. The animation is gorgeous.  I have a feeling this is going to look absolutely amazing once it is released on Blu-ray.  The ocean looks so realistic while also clearly being created with animation.  The fish look mostly realistic, though somethings with the location of eyes and how they move a bit differently are off, but they still look amazing to me.  I did notice more little details watching it this time, like the scales on Marlin.  There are scenes when the fish are other of water that looks so amazing since the fish so clearly look wet.  The characters are interesting and entertaining, though there are more that aren't developed as much.  The movie jumps between Marlin and Dory on their journey and Nemo in the fish thank.  There are several fish in the tank and they all have their own issues.  The voices are wonderful and work perfectly for the characters.  I have the 2 disc DVD for this one and I'll definitely get the Blu-ray once it is finally released.  There is an interesting featurette on the making of the movie that I really enjoyed.  Early test footage is shown, and some of it looks so much like the real footage, that you can't tell the difference.  Andrew Stanton, the director, said he couldn't tell which was which when he was first shown them side by side.  This is an absolutely wonderful movie that definitely deserves to be seen. I did post a review on Epinions back in 2003 after seeing the movie in the theater. Finding Nemo

(From Finding Nemo on June 27th, 2010)

The Final Countdown, a review by Rich

The Final Countdown



The time is now. The place is aboard the U.S.S. Nimitz, America's mightiest nuclear-powered aircraft carrier on maneuvers in the Pacific Ocean. Suddenly, a freak electrical storm engulfs the ship and triggers the impossible: The Nimitz is hurtled back in time to December 6, 1941, mere hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. As the enemy fleet speeds towards Hawaii, the warship's Captain (Kirk Douglas), a Defense Department expert (Martin Sheen), a maverick Air Wing Commander (James Farentino) and a desperate Senator in the Roosevelt administration (Charles Durning) must choose between the unthinkable. Do they allow the Japanese to complete their murderous invasion or launch a massive counter-strike that will forever change the course of history?

Once described as the 'Twilight Zone on steroids' with it's larger budget, I couldn't have put it better myself.
I am much more interested in the concept than the delivery, it is a great what-if scenario and one would of hoped the film matched the potential of the idea. Sadly it was disappointing in many areas, the transition scenes are comicaly bad, I never warmed to many of the cast including Douglas, the ending is telegraphed, it has dated poorly, there are no battle scenes, and very little suspense. I would love to see this rewritten and made with todays technology and financial clout.
The outcome leaves you feeling cheated, and the film overall never met it's potential.
 

(From Riches Random Reviews on May 11th, 2009)

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: The Complete Second Season marathon, a review by Achim

15. Desert Cantos
The Connors investigate the company town connected to the destroyed factory and find something startling. Weaver searches for a survivor of the explosion.

My comments:
The fist half of the show had me bored to tears; too much funeral, too little plot. Around mid-point however the story picks up pace (Cameron finds that the girl John's been talking to is lying, Sarah finds an "evil underground lair"). At the end our party of four realizes that Skynet is way ahead of what they could have possibly imagined, leaving me the viewer quite amazed about that as well. I'll agree with Matthias' review that there is a (relatively) a lot of plot covered and some questions answered, but all that got ultimately in the way of the character development (in an unhealthily unbalanced fashion, I mean).

There is however two lovely bits in there regarding Weaver. The first one when she is having a conversation with Ellison and she gets a little upset because he uncovers her lack of sensibility on the anniversary of "her husband's" death (since it shows her she is is not maintaining a good cover). The even better one is when she interacts with "her daughter", trying to bond and creating an emotional connection. This is something she obviously lacks ability and is therefore an important issue to her. I found the exchange regarding her daughter sitting on her lap a very nice touch!


(because boring us for half of the show)

(From Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: The Complete Second Season marathon on February 21st, 2010)