DVD Collectors Online

Knives of the Avenger, a review by Jimmy

Title: Knives of the Avenger (1966)

Genre: Action
Director: Mario Bava
Rating: Unrated
Length: 1h25
Video: Widescreen
Audio: Italian and English
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Cameron Mitchell   
Fausto Tozzi
Giacomo Rossi-Stuart
Elissa Pichelli
Luciano Pollentin

Plot:
In their third and final collaboration, 'Cameron Mitchell' stars for 'Mario Bava' as a Viking drifter torn between guilt, vengeance and his love for a peasant woman and her young son. Co-written by Bava (as 'John Hold'), the film delivers robust raping and pillaging yet proffers a uniquely humanistapproach that virtually re-imagines SHANE as a Viking drama. The result transcends its typically chestthumping genre to emerge as one of Bava's most emotionally complex and visually compelling films.

Certainly not my favorite Bava's movie, since this kind of movies aren't really my taste (that explain why it took me so long to start this week). After a couple of "rewind" to catch up what I've missing while falling asleep, it took me more than four hours for ending this viewing. Sure the location is beautifull, the theme song is powerfull and the movie had a couple of good fight (even if the one between Rurik and Arald near the end is a little bit ridiculous) but... This movie is a boring rushed job where everything is repeating as nauseam and to make thing worst than they are already this movie had one of the most annoying kid to ever appear on screen (less than the one in The House by the Cemetery, but not by much).

Painful and boring to watch.

Rating :

(From Mario Bava marathon on July 4th, 2009)

The Blues Brothers, a review by DJ Doena

John Belushi    ...    'Joliet' Jake Blues
Dan Aykroyd   ...    Elwood Blues
James Brown   ...    Reverend Cleophus James
Cab Calloway   ...    Curtis
Ray Charles   ...    Ray
Aretha Franklin   ...    Mrs. Murphy
Steve Cropper   ...    Steve 'The Colonel' Cropper
Donald Dunn   ...    Donald 'Duck' Dunn
Murphy Dunne   ...    Murphy 'Murph' Dunne
Willie Hall   ...    Willie 'Too Big' Hall
Tom Malone   ...    Tom 'Bones' Malone
Lou Marini   ...    'Blue Lou' Marini
Matt Murphy   ...    Matt 'Guitar' Murphy
Alan Rubin   ...    Alan 'Mr. Fabulous' Rubin
Carrie Fisher   ...    Mystery Woman
Henry Gibson   ...    Head Nazi
John Candy   ...    Burton Mercer
Kathleen Freeman   ...    Sister Mary Stigmata (a.k.a. The Penguin)
Steve Lawrence   ...    Maury Sline
Twiggy   ...    Chic Lady
Frank Oz   ...    Corrections Officer
Jeff Morris   ...    Bob
Charles Napier   ...    Tucker McElroy
Steven Williams   ...    Trooper Mount

Synopsis: Jake has just been released from prison when he and his brother Elwood visit Sister Mary who asks them for a favour. She needs 5,000 dollars or the city will close the orphanage where Jake and Elwood had grown up. And now both are on a mission from God: They put the band back together to raise the money. And now starts one of the best music road trips of all time.

My Opinion: Great movie. Great music. Great car crashings. Great guest appearances. Great movie. Everyone who likes good music (that excludes addicted ) should have seen this one. And the story is really funny, too, especially Carrie Fisher's character. Did I mention "great movie"?

Early in the nineties I used to get up real early on saturdays because at 5.50 a TV show called Rawhide used to run where a Mr. Favor was the trail boss and he brought a herd of cattle from A to B and one of his cowboys was Rowdy Yates, played by a certain Clint Eastwood.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GP2mcVwQ2as

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WArD9zfwjMY

(From DJ Doena's movie watchings 2009 on January 8th, 2009)

Pete's Pilots, a review by addicted2dvd

Dexter


Dexter (Pilot)
When blood spatter analyst Dexter Morgan is not out solving murders, he spends his time as a serial killer who eliminates those who do bad things. But his world is shaken when another serial killer commits a series of highly stylized murders in Miami.

My Thoughts:
This is a series that really grabbed me from the pilot episode.  The idea of a serial killer/vigilante working from within the police station is great. It has been a long time since I watched the pilot episode. Not since I bought the set. Which was a blind buy at the time. But I have been watching it every since. Unfortunately I am behind on buying the DVDs as I still only have season 1 in my collection.

My Rating:

(From Pete's Pilots on December 28th, 2009)