DVD Collectors Online

The Fog (remake), a review by Rich

Title: The Fog

Movie Count:5 
TV Ep. Count:4 

Runtime:103
Certificate:NR
Year:2005
Genres:Horror

Plot:From producer John Carpenter comes the all-new retelling of his terror classic, THE FOG. Tom Welling (TV's "Smallville"), Maggie Grace (TV's "Lost") and Selma Blair (Hellboy) star in this sense-shattering tale of demonic retribution, directed by Rupert Wainwright (Stigmata) with screenplay by Cooper Layne.
Trapped within an eerie mist, the residents of Antonio Bay have become the unwitting victims of a horrifying vengeance. One hundred years ago, a ship carrying lepers was purposely lured onto the rocky coastline and sunk, drowning all aboard. Now they're back, long-dead mariners who've waited a century for their revenge. Seeking out the decedents of those responsible for their deaths, they lurk enshrouded within a supernatural fog of terror. Beware, any and all who stand in their way.

My Review:
Disjointed and disappointing, this pointless horror remake was poorly executed and suffered with too little suspense, drama, tension or chills. Masses amounts of CGI special effects could not hold this film up, and the wooden unenthusiastic acting and one dimensional characters began to bore me.
It was 2/3 into the film before it got going, and when it did there was a major feeling of pointlessness. The ending was odd and non-sensical, but it was a relief to get there!
I will probably view the original this month, which I havent seen since VHS days, it was better than this remake by some margin, although I don't remember it as a classic.



(From Rich's October Horror Fest on October 4th, 2009)

The Cranes are Flying, a review by Antares

The Cranes are Flying (1957) 4.5/5 - Who would have thought such an emotionally deep film could be made in Cold War Communist Russia in 1957. I was completely blown away not only by the amazing cinematography in this film, but by the intensely emotional performance of Tatyana Samojlova. She runs the gamut from wide eyed youthful exuberance to anguish, despair and sorrow over the course of this film, and she's a complete revelation. The story itself, does dip into overt melodrama a few times, but it never overwhelms the viewer to the point of becoming a borscht soap opera. It also has the trappings of Soviet propaganda throughout, but once again, never really overdoes it. Getting back to the wonderful cinematography of Sergei Urusevsky, I found myself many times during this film, repeating scenes, trying to figure out how he was able to get the shot so perfectly. All the reviews I have read tend to talk about the bus and tank scene with Veronica or the stairwell scene when Veronica returns home after the bombing. Both are truly amazing scenes of ingenious design, but for me, the best moment in this film, is when Boris has been shot and he looks up at the trees and they start to spin, and superimposed upon those trees is an earlier scene when he climbs the spiral staircase to catch Veronica before she enters her apartment. The sight of the trees and Boris on the stairs, revolving in perfect unison was just too beautiful to behold. It's been a long time since I've watched a film that was this good and completely had me enthralled. I'm shamed to say that I purchased this on DVD five years ago, and it sat on my unwatched pile. I'm now glad I decided to partake in this Retro marathon, because I'm exorcising a few of my DVD demons.

(From Antares' Short Summations on March 30th, 2012)

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

Synopsis: Caused by the explosion of the sun and the activated Hyperdrive SG-1s Ha'tak has been catapulted into another galaxy. But Apophis is also there with his huge motherhip. But as soon as they have arrived another ship is apporaching that attacks Apophis's ship. It is the Replicators.

My Opinion: Nothing against a good deus ex machina now and then, but this time they've overdone it. First they land in a remote galaxy, then the Replicators arrive, then Teal'c has been brainwashed somehow and in the end the Replicators kindly bring SG-1 back home. Honestly! At least Apophis has breathed his last breath.

Synopsis: Teal'c is still brainwashed. According to Bra'tac, the only way to get him out of this, is to remove the larva and bring him to the brink of death.

My Opinion: Even though the events that led to this were rubbish, this was a very good compensation. It showed us how Teal'c became the man he is and how Bra'tac tought him all this. A great character drawing.

Synopsis: SG-1 discovers a device that could be a powerful weapon. But then Sam faints and has to be brought back to the SGC. When she is put on leave and comes home, she is awaited by a non-corporeal being. It declares that it comes from the planet Sam has just been to.

My Opinion: The most important information in this episode was the fact, that Teal'c has watched Star Wars nine times while Jack has never watched it. That aside this episode was a goof examply why in Star Trek a Prime Directive exists: Because it is not predictable, what happens if one interfers with the developement of a culture. But the extinction of that entire planet was also over the top, they simply could have taken the Stargate away.
The appearance of John de Lancie (Q in Star Trek: The Next Generation) was also nice, especially because it won't be the last.

Synopsis: Sam, Teal'c and Daniel return to the SGC under heavy fire while Jack and Lieutenant Tyler are grounded. But the real problem is: In the SGC no one knows this "Lieutenant Tyler". Only SG-1 can remember this man.

My Opinion: I liked this episode, too. Another fact has cought my eye here: Stargate SG-1 has found a good balance regarding the number of alien races. The universe isn't as crowded with non-humans as the Star Trek universe. But it is also not as empty as the Battlestar Galactica universe. While most of the aliens are still humanoid they aren't simply knobbly-nose-aliens but really alien-aliens.

(From "Stargate SG-1" Marathon on March 30th, 2008)