DVD Collectors Online

Bottle Shock, a review by Rich

Bottle Shock



In 1976, a small American winery bested the exalted French wines of the time and sent the wine industry into a tizzy--putting California wines on the map for good. Based on a true story, "Bottle Shock" chronicles the events leading up to the famous "Judgment of Paris" tastings, told through the lives of father and son, Jim and Bo Barrett. A former real estate attorney, Jim has sacrificed everything to realize his dream of creating the perfect hand-crafted chardonnay. His business, however, is struggling, and he's not only trying to overcome differences with his slacker son, but is also fighting off the creditors. Meanwhile in Paris, unwitting British wine shop owner Steven Spurrier hopes to revive his own failing business by sponsoring a competition which will pit the traditional French powerhouse against the California upstarts. Little did Steven and Jim realize that they were both on course to change the history of wine forever.

Enjoyable tale based on a true story, this was a pleasant yarn with a 'feel-good' after-view factor.
The storyline meanders on a comfortable path, the acting is solid from all the cast besides a disappointing Bill Pullman, who looks like he would rather be somewhere else. I wasn't aware of the history of Californian wine, and how it became so well renowned in Europe, but the movie clearly explains the history from the 70's in a very entertaining way.
This is not an 'amazing' or 'groundbreaking' film, it is however a goold old fashioned story-telling that educates and entertains all in one.
 

(From Riches Random Reviews on February 17th, 2009)

An American Haunting, a review by addicted2dvd

An American Haunting
Based on the true story of The Bell Witch of Tennessee, 'An American Haunting' is the story of a spirit who brutally attacked the Bell family causing the death of one of its members. Years later, we are taken back to the most horrific of nights to find out the truth of the spirit's nature and origin...the night it was born.

My Thoughts:
Second time I watched this movie... first time on DVD. The last time I watched it was several months back on On-Demand. I enjoyed it so much then that I knew I wanted to add it to my collection. This month I found it at Walmart for only $7.50... so I just had to grab it. I enjoyed it just as much this time around. As usual... Donald Sutherland did an outstanding job. As did everyone else... but I have been more and more impressed as I watch more of Donald Sutherland's work. I am becoming a fan of his. There is a nice selection of extras on this disc... but I didn't check them out this time around... decided to save them for the next viewing. Unfortunately there was no Theatrical Trailer on this disc. (a pet peeve of mine) as I like to get in the mood of a movie by watching the trailer first.

(From Weekend Movie Marathon: 3/8 - 3/9 on March 8th, 2008)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

The Bill Cosby Show: Season One (1969/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia (United States) Length: 660 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles:

---

Plot:
Chet Kincaid is a gym teacher at Richard Allen Holmes High School in Los Angeles, an all-around good guy and an inspiration to his friends, family and students.

Bill Cosby's first situational comedy places an emphasis on intelligent character studies and real-life situations that are naturally infused with the comedian's trademark sense of humor. The first season's adventures include Chet squiring a date in a borrowed garbage truck and losing a one-on-one basketball game to a student he considered too short to make the team.

The Bill Cosby Show: Season One features a newly recorded interview with Bill Cosby and all 26 fully restored episodes from the 1969-70 season, including music by Quincy Jones and guest appearances by Henry Fonda, Cicely Tyson, Elsa Lanchester, Wally Cox and many others.

The Bill Cosby Show
1.01 The Fatal Phone Call
Writer: Ed. Weinberger (Created By), Michael Zagor (Created By), William H. Cosby, Jr. (Created By), Dave Evans (Writer)
Director: Harvey Hart
Cast: Bill Cosby (Chet Kincaid), Victor Tayback (Calvin), John Hawker (Mack), Victor Millan (1st Detective), Craig Chudy (1st Policeman), Jay Powell (2nd Policeman)

Not bad going by this episode, but a little too slow for my taste. Not really much happens. I have the first season now five years in my collection and only have managed to watch the first two episodes so far.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on March 29th, 2011)