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The Addams Family, a review by addicted2dvd

The Addams Family (1991/United States) IMDb |Wikipedia |Trailer | Paramount Home Video Director: Barry Sonnenfeld Writing: Charles Addams (Original Characters By), Caroline Thompson (Writer), Larry Wilson (Writer) Length: 100 min. Rating: PG-13 Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround, English: Dolby Digital: 5.1 Subtitles: English

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Stars:
Anjelica Huston as Morticia Addams
Raul Julia as Gomez Addams
Christopher Lloyd as Uncle Fester Addams
Dan Hedaya as Tully Alford
Elizabeth Wilson as Abigail Craven
Judith Malina as Granny

Plot:
Looking for something CREEPY... SPOOKY... KOOKY... and altogether OOKY?

Come join The Addams Family for the most hilarious scarefest of this season or any other! When long-lost Uncle Fester (Christopher Lloyd) reappears after twenty-five years in the Bermuda Triangle, Gomez (Raul Julia) and Morticia (Anjelica Huston) plan a celebration to wake the dead.

But Wednesday (Christina Ricci) barely has time to warm up her electric chair before Thing points out Fester's uncommonly "normal" behavior. Could this Fester be a fake, part of an evil scheme to raid the Addams fortune?

Based on Charles Addams' beloved cartoons and following the success of the hit TV series, The Addams Family is a visual funhouse, packed with plenty of treats, tricks and turns by director Barry Sonnenfeld.

Extras:

• Scene Access
• Feature Trailers
• Closed Captioned

Decided to watch this one today because I felt like something lighthearted and silly... plus I haven't seen it in years, as I just got the disc yesterday. And this film definitely fits the bill as silly fun. A lot of films based on old TV Series tends to just disappoint. But I think this one did a good job. It does a decent job at staying true to the series. And just plain fun to watch. While the cast all seemed to do a pretty good job... for me the stand-outs were Christopher Lloyd as Fester and Christina Ricci as Wednesday. Anyway... think it is worth checking out if you liked the series.



(From Addicted2DVD's Month Long Horror/Halloween Marathon on October 10th, 2013)

Grave of the Fireflies, a review by dfmorgan

Title: Grave of the Fireflies
Original Title: Hotaru no Haka
Year: 1988
Director: Isao Takahata
Rating: NR
Length: 90 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.66:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Japanese: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Tsutomu Tatsumi
Ayano Shiraishi
Akemi Yamaguchi
Yoshiko Shinohara

Plot:
In the aftermath of a World War II bombing, two orphaned children struggle to survive in the Japanese countryside. To Seita and his four-year old sister, the helplessness and indifference of their countrymen is even more painful than the enemy raids. Through desperation, hunger and grief, these children's lives are as heartbreakingly fragile as their spirit and love is inspiring. Grave of the Fireflies is a tale of the true tragedy of war and innocence lost, not only of the abandoned young, but of an entire nation.

Extras:
Scene Access
Feature Trailers
Featurettes
Gallery
Production Notes
Multi-angle
Interviews
Storyboard Comparisons
DVD-ROM Content



I finally watched this film through to the end. I still found it moving, especially with the young child Setsuko, but managed to sit and watch all the way. People have said that this film is anti-war, I'm not too sure I agree with that but have to say that it does make you think as it does show a side-effect of war that often isn't shown or covered.

The film is based on a semi-autobiographical novel, as the lead character dies in the opening minutes it can't be a full autobiography. Seita and and his sister Setsuko are left homeless orphans after a firebomb raid on Kobe. They move in with an aunt but relations there become fractious as the aunt sees them as no more than spongers, especially once she has used all their available resources. The two children move out and try to set up a home of their own but even that has its problems. We see the gradual decline of the children until the inevitable happens to Setsuko. Seita continues his decline until we reach the state he is in at the films beginning.

I'm glad that I finally managed to watch this to the end. It is a moving experience made more so maybe because of the age of the leads, a pre or early teen boy and a four or five year old girl, as well as the depiction of the events that cause their life changes from the bombing to their eventual ends.

Nothing less than a 5

Dave

ETA original title

(From dfmorgan's Studio Ghibli Marathon on June 19th, 2010)

Angel Marathon, a review by addicted2dvd

13. Why We Fight
Original Air Date: 2/11/2004
A World War II sailor - who Angel turned into a vampire in order to save the crew of a German submarine - returns to make Angel pay for all his years of pain.

Guest Stars:
Eyal Podell
Lindsey Ginter
Scott Klace
Roy Werner

My Thoughts:
I enjoyed this one. It is of course another flashback episode. Has an interesting storyline.... though the action is limited.

My Rating:

(From Angel Marathon on March 24th, 2010)