DVD Collectors Online

From Dusk Till Dawn, a review by Jon

From Dusk Till Dawn
4 out of 5



I love this movie. One of my favourite horrors. And after the last few days of the elegant brilliance of Val lewton, I felt I needed to cut loose with some balls-out action vampire killing!

I wish I could have seen it without knowing what it actually was, because the shock of the switch from thriller to horror would have been great fun. It's great that Rodriguez put full effort into that first half to give us well rounded characters, because a problem with a lot of horror films is the thin characters. What's also lacking is a sense of humour, but last section is full of laughs, especially Tom Savini trying to hide his new teeth! Or the vamp that disintegrates on a pool table and his eyes roll into the pockets!

Speaking of which, the gore never gets boring. So many gags, you could watch this several times and still see something new and disgusting. The script is fantastic, full of quotable lines, some of which I've been able to get into everyday conversation... like "I might be a bastard, but I'm not a f***ing bastard!" or the speech about pussy. Actually, I wish I'd not tried that last one. I'm still not welcome in Asda...

It's alright having a good script, but you need a good cast to deliver it and this lot are perfect. Even Tarantino, working to his, erm, strengths. Juliette Lewis I thought would be wrong, but she strikes a good tone between schoolgirl and temptress to Richie's nightmare. Harvey Kietel is as dependable as ever and Clooney is obviously having a riot. Well, I say "obviously", but the outtakes show him frequently pissed off and without his usual humour, so maybe it just proves what a good actor he actually is. And it does no harm to have room for cult favourites like the afore mentioned Tom Savini and Fred Williamson.

Everything oozes confidences in this movie. All the scenes have that little extra they didn't actually need, but looks cool anyway. It will possibly always stand as Rodriguez' best film because it's the most perfect fit for his seat of the pants directing style and there aren't many stories that can stand such a change in tone and still work fully committed to both styles.

"And I don't want to hear anything about "I don't believe in vampires" because I don't believe in vampires, but I believe in my own two eyes, and what I saw is fucking vampires!"

(From October Marathon: Horror! on October 8th, 2008)

3:10 to Yuma, a review by Rogmeister

3:10 to Yuma (1957)
Cast: Glenn Ford, Van Heflin, Felicia Farr, Leora Dana, Henry Jones, Robert Emhardt
Title song performed by Frankie Laine
Music by George Duning
Directed by Delmer Daves

Even people who are not big western movie fans are familiar with the titles of many of the greatest westerns of all time...films like The Searchers, The Magnificent Seven, Shane and High Noon. I imagine many of them are not familiar, however, with 3:10 To Yuma. They should...it doesn't need to take a back seat to any of those movies.

As the movie begins, a stagecoach is being held up and a farmer (Van Heflin), looking for some cattle that have strayed, comes face to face with the gang and it's cool leader (Glenn Ford). They don't harm the farmer but take the horses he and his sons were riding. The farmer walks back to his ranch, gets a couple of horses and then goes back to help those still with the stagecoach. Returning to town, the farmer finds that the gang leader is in the saloon, his men having left town. The farmer talks to the outlaw and others get the drop on him. Discussing things, they feel they have to get the outlaw to the 3:10 train to Yuma and the farmer agrees to guard him once they reach the next town where that train will be as he can use the $200 the stage line owner offers him as he needs the money to bring in much-needed water for his livestock. Up until the time the train comes, the outlaw is cool as a cucumber and begins to psyche the farmer out. By the time the train comes, the farmer is all alone and must get his man to the train while surviving against a half-dozen gunmen.

This is a really great film. It's incredibly intense and has some fantastic black & white photography. It's based on a short story by Elmore Leonard and is definitely a true classic. Look it up the next time it shows up on your favorite classic movie channel. Oh yes, they did do a remake a few years ago with Russell Crowe and Christian Bale.  That was a good movie, too...but I still prefer the original.

I bought this DVD several years ago...and it has no real extras.  It doesn't even have the original trailer...but it does have trailers for 2 other westerns, Silverado and Mackenna's Gold.

(From Roger's Ongoing Westerns Marathon on July 15th, 2009)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: A new movement is growing on Bajor. They call themselves "The Circle" and they want "Bajor to the Bajorans", i.e. all out-worlders should leave the bajoran system. Meanwhile Kira learns that Li Nalas - a hero of the resistance - is still alive and he's being held prisoner on a cardassian planet. She and O'Brien disguise themselves as traders and try to rescue him.

My Opinion: I remembered this three-part season opener to be somewhat uninteresting but I really enjoyed it this time. It's "funny" to see how something that happened almost only by accident can develop into a legend and how the protagonist becomes a hero. Although they are nothing alike the story of Li Nalas becoming a hero reminded me of the Firefly episode Jaynestown.

Synopsis: Li Nalas has become the new liasion officer aboard DS9 and Kira has been recalled to Bajor. But there fights have broken out. The Circle has acquired a lot of weapons and is now openly moving against the provisional government. What they don't know: The weapons were delivered by the Cardassians (although not directly) who are hoping that The Circle drives the Federation away and thus opening the system for another cardassian invasion.

My Opinion: That was an interesting turn of events with Frank Langella (Skeletor in Masters of the Universe) once again in the role of the bad guy. But I like him in these roles. Interesting thing - especially in comparison to later seasons and later shows - is that you only had to hear the distant rumbling of war to believe that there is one, without seeing it. I don't condemn special effects scenes, I really like them, but if a movie or series relies to heavy on them the actual storytelling moves into the background or is forgotten at all. That's the reason the Star Wars Episodes I - III didn't work for me.

Synopsis: All non-bajoran civilians have been evacuated with the help of the runabouts Ganges, Orinoco and Rio Grande. But Sisko and his Starfleet crew remains in the hope that he can delay the surrender of the station until Kira presents the evidence of the cardassian involvement in the Chamber of Ministers.

My Opinion: A good conclusion but I hated to see Vedek Winn squirm herself out again. As I said I like good bad characters. I'Ve always liked Gul Dukat or (later) Weyoun, but I never liked Winn (Louise Fletcher; Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest). But at least life is going back to normal on the station - for now.

Synopsis: During a plasma storm the station is running only with a skeleton crew when a nearby ship declares an emergency and has to be pulled in. But the mayday was a fake, the ship's crew takes control over DS9. Why? To get the Dax symbiont and transplant it into the group's leader who feels that he deserves to be blended with a Trill symbiont. But that will kill Jadzia and Sisko won't let that happen.

My Opinion:I didn't pay attention to the credits but when I saw Verad (Dax) I instantly knew I knew him. But it took me a while to figure it out. I assumed that - since he had not much of a mask - he usually wears one. But then it came to me. The beard and the long hair was missing: John Glover a.k.a. Lionel Luthor from Smallville.
I liked this episode because here we saw how a person can change when he/she is blending with a symbiont. This is one of the rare before/after moments since we've never known Jadzia without Dax.

(From Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon on September 27th, 2008)