DVD Collectors Online

Big Top Pee-wee, a review by addicted2dvd

Title: Big Top Pee-wee
Year: 1988
Director: Randal Kleiser
Rating: PG
Length: 86 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, English: Dolby Digital Surround, French: Dolby Digital Mono
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Paul Reubens [Pee-wee Herman]
Penelope Ann Miller
Kris Kristofferson
Valeria Golino
Wayne White

Plot:Extras:
Scene Access
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:
Let me start off by saying that I never cared much for Pee-wee Herman. I have never found him to be anything but annoying. I wouldn't have ever had this in my collection but a good friend of mine had this in a big box full of DVDs she gave me when she was cleaning out her collection.... back in October 2007. And it has been sitting in my unwatched shelf every since. Since Achim listed it in the movies he would like to see me review I figured I may as well finally get it off this shelf.

So obviously I went into this one not expecting much entertainment at all. But OMG... 10min into this one I didn't think I would be able to make it through this one. By half way through I couldn't take any more of it. Of course I am not surprised at all... because I always had this impression of Pee-wee Herman... but I found this movie to be no more then silly, childish and completely ridiculous. I do realize that is the entire point... but it is just not for me. I just could not see past all that to find any type of entertainment value. I will have to see if Brittany wants to give it a chance. If she wants it... she can have it.



(From Weekend Movie Marathon: Unwatched DVDs on January 9th, 2010)

Robinson Crusoe On Mars, a review by Rogmeister

Robinson Crusoe On Mars
Genre: Science Fiction
Year: 1964
Length: 110 Min.
Stars: Paul Mantee, Victor Lundin, Adam West and Barney, The Wooley Monkey
Music: Van Cleave
Director: Byron Haskin

Extras:
- Commentary by screenwriter Ed Mechior, stars Paul Mantee and Victor Lundin, production designer Al Nozaki, and special effects designer Robert Skotak (1996; including excerpts from an interview with director Byron Haskin conducted in 1979)
- "Destination: Mars" documentary discussing the film's scientific accuracy and what we knew (and know now) of Mars
- Music Video of "Robinson Crusoe on Mars" sung by co-star Victor Lundin who recorded this song for a science fiction convention appearance
-Theatrical Trailer
-"Under the Surface" (Production materials and promotional artwork)
- Script Excerpts (printable from computers using PDF format)

Plot: Special-effects wunderkind and genre master Byron Haskin (The War of the Worlds, The Outer Limits) won a place in the hearts of fantasy-film lovers everywhere with this gorgeously designed journey into the unknown. When his spaceship crash-lands on the barren wastelands of Mars, U.S. astronaut Commander "Kit" Draper (Paul Mantee) must fight for survival, with a pet monkey seemingly his only companion. But is he alone? Shot in vast Techniscope and blazing Technicolor, Robinson Crusoe on Mars is an imaginative and beloved techni-marvel of classic science fiction.

My Thoughts--This is definitely one of my favorite science fiction films of the 1960s...perhaps my favorite science fiction film of all of that decade.  It deals with an astronaut's survival while marooned on the planet Mars and how he reacts to loneliness, then the sudden appearance of an escaped slaves and internplanetary spaceships who are after him and also use blasters from their spaceships to blast away at the planet's surfaces.  The film is not overly futuristic but shows what we might have been capable of just a little bit into the future.  It's a well-told story with fine photography and direction. 

This DVD is in widescreen format using an aspect ratio of 2.35:1.  The DVD is from The Criterion Collection so it has a decent set of extras including an audio commentary with various members of the crew and its two key actors.  This was recorded back in 1996 for, I believe, the laserdisc release of the film and it also includes some excerpts from a separate audio interview conducted in 1979 with the film's director, Byron Haskin.  I would give the film and the DVD presentation two thumbs up...if I weren't afraid Roger Ebert might sue me!

 

(From Roger's Random Reviews on August 4th, 2009)

Pete's Pilots, a review by addicted2dvd

Dungeons and Dragons: The Animated Series
An enchanted roller coaster delivers six youths into the magical realm of Dungeons and Dragons. There, each of them gains magical talents and abilities, all the better to survive their time in the Realm. The bow-shooting ranger, the acrobat, the thief, the cavalier, the boy wizard, and the barbarian are soon joined by a baby unicorn and tutored by the mysterious and inscrutable Dungeon Master. Opposing them is the evil Sorcerer Venger, as well as various ogres, demons, bounty hunters, dragons, lizard men, skeleton warriors and more, all intent on keeping the kids from getting back home!

The Night of No Tomorrow
The group finds Merlin, looking for a magic spell to get home Presto casts a spell only to release a horde of dragons attacking the nearby village.

My Thoughts:
This is a cartoon I used to watch back when I was a teen. I bought the DVD set for pure nostalgic reasons alone. When I saw the set so cheap I just couldn't help myself. The show is not as good as I remember it.. but it is entertaining enough and gives enough nostalgic value that it is worth the $9.86 I paid for the set. I never realized it when I was a kid... but it is now so obvious that the actor supplying the voice for Eric is none other then Donny Most (Ralph Mouth on Happy Days).

My Rating:

(From Pete's Pilots on December 29th, 2009)