DVD Collectors Online

The Muppet Christmas Carol, a review by Dragonfire

Charles Dickens' classic holiday story sparkles with humor and whimsy in the hands of the always hilarious Muppets! Michael Caine stars as penny-pinching Ebenezer Scrooged in a performance that's anything but "bah humbug!" Alone on Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by ghosts who transport him to his past, present and future - and it's not a pretty sight! But along the way he comes upon poor, kind, humble Bob Cratchit (Kermit the Frog) and his family, including Tiny Tim who teaches Scrooge the true meaning of Christmas. Complete with original music and dazzling special effects, this heartfelt holiday movie is exceptional entertainment your family will enjoy for every Christmas to come.

My Thoughts

This is really one of the best versions of A Christmas Carol that I've ever seen.  The Muppet characters worked really well in the parts and Michael Caine was a great Scrooge.  Several songs were added - which is normal for a Muppet project - and they all worked really well.  They moved the story forward and weren't just there to have the Muppets sing.  There was a decent amount of humor, usually provided by the Muppet characters, but the movie kept the more serious moments from the original story as well.  This was the first major project for the Muppets after the death of Jim Henson and I think it was done very well.  Kermit's voice was different, but it was close to how Henson had performed the character.

 

(From 25 Days of Christmas on December 22nd, 2008)

The Cat Returns, a review by dfmorgan

Title: The Cat Returns
Original Title: Neko no ongaeshi
Year: 2002
Director: Hiroyuki Morita
Rating: G
Length: 75 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, French: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Japanese: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Chizuru Ikewaki
Yoshihiko Hakamada
Tetsu Watanabe
Yosuke Saito
Mari Hamada

Plot:Extras:
Scene Access
Feature Trailers
Bonus Trailers
Featurettes
Closed Captioned
Complete Storyboards



This is another gorgeous film from Studio Ghibli.

Haru, a high school teenager, saves a cat from being run-over. This cat is the son of the Cat King who decides that Haru should be showered with gifts and will be wed to the Prince. Haru hears a voice that advises her to go the the Cat Bureau to get help. At the Cat Bureau Haru enlists the help of The Baron, from Whisper of the Heart, and his friends to solve the problem of her proposed marriage.

Although not a direct sequel to Whisper of the Heart it is a close relation. Studio Ghibli received a commission to produce an animation based on cats for a theme park. Hayao Miyazaki heard about this commission and thought that The Baron and Muta, from Whisper of the Heart, would be ideal for this. He asked the creator of the original manga for Whisper of the Heart, Aoi Hiiragi, to write a manga for this. Aoi Hiiragi did this and it was published as The Baron: The Cat Returns. However the commission fell through and Hayao Miyazaki then decided that this should be turned into a full feature and that one of the new and upcoming directors should handle it.

Yet another 5

(From dfmorgan's Studio Ghibli Marathon on August 10th, 2010)

"Battlestar Galactica" Marathon (1978-2009), a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: During the last attack Starbuck's Viper was heavily damaged and she had to eject in the atmosphere of a small moon. But she also shot down the Raider that shot her down and it crashed on a near-by site. The problem is that she has no means of communication, Galactica does not know where to look for her and she's running out of oxygen in 46 hours. Luckily for her, Adama is not willing to leave her behind.

My Opinion:Synopsis: It is not yet publicly known that Cylons can look like Humans and another Number Five (looks like the reporter Aaron Doral) walks into Galactica and kills himself in a suicide bombing after he was cornered. Adama orders an investigation on how Doral got his hands on explosives and a detonator and the Master-at-Arms discovers that Chief Tyrol is lying about his wherabouts during the time of the bombing which makes him a suspect of treason.

My Opinion: Now the secret is out. This episode reminded me of Star Trek TNG's The Drumhead which also featured a witch hunt but here it wasn't fully believable. Yes she may be the Master-at-Arms and Adama gave her command authorization but she went over the line too quickly for someone who isn't used to boss Commanders around.

Synopsis: Another Number Six copy with the name Shelly Godfrey comes aboard Galactica and claims that she has evidence that connects Dr. Baltar to the failure of the colonial defences and that in fact he planted a bomb in the defence computer system. Baltar finds this outrageous (he didn't plant a bomb after all, he just unknowingly slept with the enemy) but he can't tell anybody that Shelly is a Cylon (Why would he know that?).

My Opinion: Baltar and Head-Six, what a lovely pair. It was such a great scene when Baltar was in CIC and was introduced to Shelly and he searched for her, totally ignoring the woman standing in front of him - assuming that this was his imaginary Six. I like Head-Six scenes in general because she gets him in awkward situations where he has to simultaneously* talk to her and the other (real) person in the room. And once again he managed to wind himself out of a tight spot. Even if he isn't a real villain like the classic Baltar, he's my favourite villain on the show.

* I wonder if I will ever write that word correctly, spellchecker has to correct me every time...

(From "Battlestar Galactica" Marathon (1978-2009) on September 2nd, 2009)