DVD Collectors Online

A Perfect Murder, a review by Dragonfire

A Perfect Murder Wall Street titan Steven Taylor seems like a devoted husband. He isn't. Beautiful Emily Bradford Taylor seems like a faithful wife. She isn't. And when Steven hires Emily's lover to kill her, it seems like A Perfect Murder. It isn't. In fact, little is what seems in this sleek thriller. Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow and Viggo Mortensen star in A Perfect Murder, inspired by the play Dial M for Murder, filmed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1954. Fans of that classic will be in for a lot of surprises. So will Steven. At each unexpected twist in his "perfect" plot, he improvises brilliantly. But can he always stay one step ahead of the next jolt? My Thoughts After watching Dial M for Murder, I decided to watch this one again.  I first saw this one several years ago, long before I saw any of Dial M for Murder.  The plot is very much like that the of earlier movie, which makes sense since they are both based on the same play.  Some of what happens is predictable, but there are some changes to what is going on that add some surprises to the movie.  The story has been updated a bit and it isn't confined to the apartment where Steven and Emily live, though the most important part still happens there.  The plan is mostly the same, with a few little tweaks.  I do think there is a good amount of suspense to the movie and think it works well as an entertaining thriller.  There is a bit more violence to what happens in this version of the story. There are more details about the relationship between Emily and David shared and they are still having their affair when Steven puts his plan in motion.  The sex scenes are rather mild, basically just showing them rolling around in bed together while managing not to show much skin.  It is very clear from the first time that Emily and Steven are together that their marriage is strained.  Gwyneth Paltrow and Michael Douglas don't make the most believable married couple..something just seems off about that.  The relationship between Gwyneth and Viggo's character is more believable.    The DVD has an alternate ending that is slightly different.  I think I like the one used in the movie better.  The other extra just has information that has to be read about the decision to make a new version of the story. Overall, I really enjoy this movie and think it is worth seeing.  I think it works as a different version of Dial M for Murder well. I did post a review on Epinions back in 2004. A Perfect Murder

(From A Perfect Murder on June 29th, 2010)

Tropic Thunder, a review by Dragonfire

Go deeper into Tropic Thunder with this extended version of the hit film, packed with more action, more comedy, and more madness than ever before.

When three of Hollywood's biggest stars head into the jungles of Vietnam to shoot a war movie, they have no idea how real things can get. Starring Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder is the most unexpected and controversial movie of the year.

My Thoughts

First of all, I will say this is not a movie for everyone and some things will upset a lot of people.  I thought it was very funny, but it was a twisted sort of humor that some people just don't like.  That being said, I loved it.  But I do tend to like movies that are a bit twisted at times.  Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and especially Robert Downey Jr. were great in their parts.  Downey Jr. somehow managed to make his character work instead of just being a giant mess.  He was playing this sort of pretentious Australian actor who had won a bunch of Oscars who would always go to great lengths to get into his character.  Since there was a movie being made within the movie, the main cast, especially Stiller and Downey Jr. were really playing two different characters and they all managed to make that work and seem believable.  There were some good action scenes throughout the movie, including several impressive explosions.  The violence did get a bit graphic at times, but it was done in such an over the top fake way that was it wasn't really gross and was more funny.  Of course that might just be because I'm twisted..    There were a few other minor characters that were really funny too.

I did listen to one of the commentaries on the DVD and it was really entertaining.  I listened to the one with Black, Stiller, and Downey Jr. and it was very funny at times.  I think it is well worth listening to for anyone who liked the movie.  At one point in the movie, Downey Jr.'s character Kirk was staying in character even though things were going straight to hell.  Kirk then said that he didn't break character until he did the DVD commentary.  On the Commentary, Downey Jr. was talking like that character from the movie for almost the entire time.  Very late in the movie when Kirk finally started to act like himself, then Downey Jr. talked like Kirk - with the Australian accent - for a while before finally using his own voice at the very end.  It was so funny and tied into that joke in the movie perfectly.  Downey Jr. was amazing in the part - or parts I guess you could say - and this did help to show just how talented he is. 

The other extras on the DVD were really good too.  I have the 2 disc Director's Cut version that did add a few extra minutes here and there throughout the movie.  There were a few deleted or extended scenes.  The best extra was probably the one that was meant to be a making of documentary on the movie within the movie.  It was so funny and showed how the director  Damien - played by Steve Coogan - was loosing control over the movie and really started to flip out.  It also showed more of the extremes Kirk was going to to play his character. 

 





(From My November Alphabet Marathon on November 23rd, 2008)

Birthday Marathon, a review by addicted2dvd

Smallville: Season 4
Spell
As Clark and Lois arrange a surprise 18th birthday party for Chloe, Lana receives a mysterious book that belonged to her French ancestor Isabel, who was burned as a witch in the 1600's. Through the book, Isabelle possesses Lana's body and she resurrects two other witches in the bodies of Chloe and Lois. The trio set about tracking down the Kryptonian Stones, spelling trouble for Jason, Lex and Clark.

My Thoughts:
Definitely not the best episode out there... but I enjoyed it. Of course the girls looked great in this one. But I never did care too much for the Isobel storyline in Smallville.



(From Birthday Marathon on May 25th, 2009)