DVD Collectors Online

The Butterfly Effect, a review by Tom

Title: The Butterfly Effect
Year: 2004
Director: Eric Bress, J. Mackye Gruber
Rating: 14A
Length: 120 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, English: DTS ES 5.1 (Matrixed 6.1), French: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround, Commentary: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Ashton Kutcher
Melora Walters
Amy Smart
Elden Henson
William Lee Scott

Plot:
A young man struggling to get over disturbing memories from his childhood discovers that he is able to travel back in time and alter events in his past. However, every change he makes transforms his life and that of those around him, often to unexpected and disastrous consequences.

Awards:

Saturn	2004	Nominated	Best Science Fiction Film
Teen Choice Awards	2004	Nominated	Choice Movie - Thriller

Extras:
Closed Captioned
Commentary
Deleted Scenes
DVD-ROM Content
Featurettes
Photo Gallery
Production Notes
Scene Access
Theatrical Cut and Director's Cut with alternate ending.

I haven't watched this one for years. It was not as good as I remembered it being, but I still enjoyed it. I watched the "The Director's Cut" because this is the only true version
The weak point in this movie is Ashton Kutcher. He can't act. He drags the pacing down.
I almost didn't recognize him with all the makeup, but Ethan Suplee (Randy from My Name is Earl) played Evan's fat roommate in college.

Rating:

(From Tom's Time-Travel Movie Reviews on May 15th, 2010)

Ikiru, a review by Hal

Title: Ikiru: The Criterion Collection
Year: 1952
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Rating: NR
Length: 143 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: Japanese: Dolby Digital: Mono, Commentary: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Takashi Shimura
Shinichi Himori
Haruo Tanaka
Minoru Chiaki
Miki Odagiri

Plot:Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Featurettes
Production Notes

A powerful and moving look at a man who discovers he has stomach cancer and suddenly realizes that the past 30 years of his life have had no meaning; that he has simply existed from day-to-day without actually enjoying life or doing anything meaningful to or for anyone.  He spends the last 5 months of his life bucking city hall (literally), in order to accomplish one small selfless act so that he can pass on with some measure of peace.  Much of what we learn of this man is through the eyes of others as he moves through the various stages of dealing with the imminence of his own demise.    Definitely, a movie that was ahead of its time. 
Rating:


(From Ikiru on July 11th, 2010)

My PILOT Marathon, a review by Rich

BONES - SEASON ONE - PILOT



In the series premiere, Dr. Temperance Brennan (or "Bones" as she is often referred to as), a forensic anthropologist, is met with the task of uncovering the identity of a set of bones which have been deliberately hidden in a lake. However, after identifying the bones, imprisoning the murderer turns out to be a politically sticky business. Bones gets help from FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth, who convinces his boss to let Bones be his partner, since she's an expert in her field.

I viewed this with high expectations having read a lot about the author. Sadly this is definetely not one of the best pilots I've ever seen, I didn't expect to see the main lead punching half the cast and being so 'angry'. I have been informed though this does not continue into the series. The episode was predictable and less dramatic than I anticipated, albeit the ending was good.
Acting was slightly stiff and David Boreanaz's quips didn't work for me, on initial assessment I would classify him/his character as a weakness.
However, despite the overall disappointment, and bearing in mind it was only the pilot episode, I will give the series a chance and watch a few more episodes in the future.
 






(From My PILOT Marathon on May 16th, 2008)