DVD Collectors Online

April Fool's Day (Remake), a review by addicted2dvd

Title: April Fool's Day
Movie Count:  10
TV Ep. Count:  3
Other Count:  2
Time Started:  11:45am

Plot:My Thoughts:
This is the 2008 remake of the 1986 cult classic. After getting this remake very cheap ($3.00 @ Big Lots) I heard that this movie is pretty much universally hated. So needless to say I went into this one with very low expectations. Even with that... I was not very impressed with this movie. This movie don't even start to get interesting until about half way through the movie... and then it is far from great. Well even though this is no more then an average movie (maybe even less then average) I can't get upset about it since it was only $3... a basic price of a rental.



(From Month Long Horror/Halloween Marathon: 2009 on October 4th, 2009)

X-Men: First Class, a review by Dragonfire

I wasn't sure exactly what to expect with X-Men: First Class, but I did want to see the movie. 

The movie is sort of a prequel to the other X-Men movies, though the continuity is messed up.  I've read a few things that says the movie is a reboot and start of a new series that will ignore the previous movies.  Even if that is the case, this movie isn't following things established in the comic books either.  I'm far from an expert on them, but I do know enough to know that stuff has been changed.  Sometimes it is just something little here and there, but other times it is a bigger change. 

Erik receives the most attention, and I do like the way his story develops.  His origin story is really one of the the best origin stories.  He's got a reason to be angry and he is already heading down the path that makes him fully the Magneto of the previous movies..and Charles's enemy.  The two of them are shown meeting and working together, though I don't think their friendship is developed enough.  In the previous movies, Charles and Erik have a complicated relationship, frequently being on opposite sides of an issue, but the friendship still shows through.  Things just move too fast in this movie to set up that depth of a complex relationship between the two.  It is like the writers or the studio or someone decided that certain things had to happen by the end of the movie - including Charles and Erik going their separate ways - while also dealing with other things.  Things are just too rushed to properly deal with the friendship, and that is disappointing.


Several characters are introduced, with many of them just sort of being there without getting much attention or much to do.  Beast is the only character in the movie who was actually one of the first members of the X-Men in the comics..the other first members are missing from the movie, replaced with a mix of other characters.  I know Havoc and Banshee end up with the X-Men, but not when the team was first forming.  Mystique was never a member of the X-Men..that is the change that is bothering me the most.  I'm sure that was done to add her to the movie since fans - especially men - liked her in the previous movies.  When she is in her natural blue state, she does have basically the same look...blue covered with some kind of scales and no clothes. 

Sebastian Shaw is a villain in the comic books as well.  He's also part of the Hellfire Club along with Emma Frost.  The Hellfire Club in the movie seems to just be a club in Vegas instead of what it was in the comics.  Sebastian is a bit different from how he was in the comics.  He has a few flunkies around that have cool powers, but, as far as I know, they weren't connected with Shaw or the Hellfire club in the comics.  A few other mutant characters pop up that seem a bit out of place with how they are used in the movie.  It is like someone decides to pick characters based on how cool they thought the powers would be..never mind if they actually fit in the setting and the groups they are stuck in. 

The action scenes are entertaining and done well, along with the special effects.  Beast spends most of the movie looking more normal before finally showing his blue, furry form.  In that form, he looks a little off to me..like he should he a little bigger.  The shade of blue seems slightly off too.  The cast do well with their parts and no one is annoying.

I liked the movie overall and think it is worth seeing.  I just find some of the ...character and story choices odd.  I think it would have been better if there had been more of an attempt to tie in with the previous movies.



I did get a review posted on Epinions.

X-Men: First Class

(From X-Men: First Class on June 10th, 2011)

"Stargate SG-1" Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: An asteroid closes in on Earth from a strange direction and it will hit Earth. SG-1 tries to repair a crashed Tel'tak (cargo ship) and then to land on the asteroid and to blow it up with the help of a Naqahdah-enhanced nuclear bomb.

My Opinion: Great moment, when Jack comments "I've seen that movie!" in the beginning, obviously referring to Armageddon. They nonetheless found a good, typical Stargate solution to the problem.

Synopsis: On a planet that isn't ruled by a Goa'uld is a base of Jaffa. Some of their "gods" have been killed, some Jaffa simply deserted. Their leader is K'tano, former First Prime of Imhotep, who killed his "god". But the ways of the Jaffa and the Tau'ri are different and Jack cannot recommend an alliance as long as K'tano is in charge.

My Opinion: This episode shows, how convincing charismatic leaders can be. It also shows that they haven't necessarily the best for their followers in mind. I also liked the Matrix-like fight sequence.

Synopsis: On a planet whose population has been wiped out, SG-1 finds a disabled android in the forum of a young woman. After she's been reactivated they find out that she doesn't know about her artificiality and her state of mind is that of a child. But then she builds a present and toy for Daniel that is terribly familiar to SG-1.

My Opinion: Another episode where Jack and Daniel crash into each other about the way they should handle a very dangerous situation. But I honestly didn't know whith whom I should've agreed.

Synopsis: A planet that is supposed to have a protection mechanism is attacked by the Goa'uld. Obviously the inofficial NID commando broke it when they visited the planet 2 years ago. Now they have to accompany SG-1 to fix it.

My Opinion: What I didn't like about this episode was that they were killed in the end. That was to forseeable. And the fact that the Colonel sacrificed himself to save Jack didn't match with the facts we learned about him in this very episode.

(From "Stargate SG-1" Marathon on April 6th, 2008)