DVD Collectors Online

The Lady Vanishes, a review by Achim

Title: The Lady Vanishes
Year: 1938
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Rating: NR
Length: 95 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital Mono, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles:

Stars:
Margaret Lockwood
Michael Redgrave
Paul Lukas
Dame May Whitty
Cecil Parker

Plot:
In this best-loved of Hitchcock's British-made thrillers, a young woman on a train meets a charming old lady (Dame May Whitty), who promptly disappears. The other passengers deny ever having seen her, leading the young woman to suspect a conspiracy. When she begins investigating, she is drawn into a complex web of mystery and high adventure.

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Featurettes
Production Notes


This must have been the first Hitchcock film I ever saw. It used to play on German TV often I possibly saw it each and every time. It has, however, been at least 20 years since I saw it last.

It is a great little film. It has lots of Hitchcock's typical ingredients: MacGuffin, suspense, witty dialogue and plays out with a rather high pace that the 90min pass by very quickly. The first 30min we are slowly and ingeniously (because of the way the focus is passed on from one to the other) introduced to all main characters. This bit plays mostly like a comedy with light hearted humor and only a hint (well, a murder) that this is not a comedy at all. The second 30min are the mysery section, where "The Lady Vanishes" (I don't think I need a spoiler tag here ) and the conspiracy plays out. The last third is the suspense section, where we finally gain more knowledge than the characters in the film and Hitchcock has us worried about how it will end!

I was rather surprised how well put together this film was. Considering its age the "special effects" (some matte painting mixed with miniature work) looked quite convincing and appropriate. The dialogue, I keep finding in all the Hitchcock films I rediscover (I used to watch these as a teenager and in a dubbed version!) is quite sharp and the sarcasm(?) is great fun for modern audiences and feels fresh. I especially enjoyed the bits with the two English gentlemen. The only cringe worthy moment was when some piece of evidence "flew by" rather conveniently...

Hitchcock does appear, but near the end of the film, so I missed him.



(From Alfred Hitchcock Marathon on May 8th, 2009)

The Mummy: The Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, a review by Dragonfire

Brendan Fraser and Jet Li star in the action-packed adventureThe Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor! When a 2,000-year-old curse is broken, a ruthless dragon emperor (Li) comes back to life with a diabolical plan to enslave the world. Mankind's only hope against him and his legions of undead warriors lies with the courageous O'Connell family, who chase him from the dangerous catacombs of China, to the icy Himalayas and beyond. Featuring intense battle sequences, breathtaking visual effects and extraordinary creatures, it's a thrilling journey that Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times calls "the best of the series!"

My Thoughts

This is an entertaining addition to the series, though it isn't as good as the first two.  Maria Bello is fine as Evie, but the character just isn't the same and the dynamic between Rick and Evie is changed as a result.  I didn't mind that their son was back, but I think it would have been better if he was younger..maybe a teenager.  As it is, he looks too old to be Rick and Evie's son.  I also didn't like how the relationship in the family had changed since the second movie.  The movie does have a fun adventure overall and there is some humor again.  Jonathon - who I loved in the first two movies - didn't seem to do as much, which was disappointing to me.  It was interesting that the movie dealt with a different sort of mummy coming back to life.  That did offer some new things for the movie, though it is still mostly predictable.  The movie is entertaining and worth watching, but I do think it could have been better.

 

I did get a review posted on Epinions after seeing the movie in the theater.

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

(From Dragonfire: What I've Been Watching on May 27th, 2009)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: While on a holiday trip with his wife, O'Brien is being abducted by the Cardassians. Back on Cardassia he is charged with aiding the Maquis and delivering photon torpedos to them. In the cardassian justice system the verdict is always the same: guilty. The tribunal is just to show why he's guilty.

My Opinion: I liked that episode. Despite the seriousness it was funny to see how O'Brien's "defense attorney" became more and more despaired. Why would his client be so unreasonable? Why doesn't O'Brien simply confess and thus proves the effectiveness of the cardassian justice system? And the face he made when he realized that his client was free to go...

Synopsis: Sisko invites his son to do a science project in the GQ who in turn invites Nog. And Quark is accompanying them as well. But they are caught by the Jem'Hadar, warriors of the Dominion. A message is brought to DS9, declaring their capture and the destruction of several ships as well as the destruction of the bajoran colony in the GQ.

My Opinion: And so it begins. The Dominion in shape of the Vorta and the Jem'Hadar has entered entered the chess board. And although they've only stated that they do not want any more AQ ships in their territory they've also made it clear that they've gathered intel about the races of the AQ. Now the show gets really interesting.

The Season - My Opinion: This season was half'n'half. There were a number of very interesting and great episodes mixed with rather uninteresting ones. I especially liked the character-driven episodes like Armageddon Game, Blood Oath and Crossover. And now let us see the Defiant!

(From Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon on October 12th, 2008)