DVD Collectors Online

The Simpsons Movie, a review by Tom

Title: The Simpsons Movie
Year: 2007
Director: David Silverman
Rating: FSK-6
Length: 83 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.40
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1 , German: Dolby Digital 5.1 , German: DTS 5.1 , Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo , Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles: Commentary, English, German, Turkish

Stars:
Dan Castellaneta
Julie Kavner
Nancy Cartwright
Yeardley Smith
Hank Azaria

Plot:Extras:
Booklet
Commentary
Deleted Scenes
Scene Access
Trailers
vier Simpsons-Kurzfilme

A successful translation of the series to the big screen. Though it gets a little boring halfway through the movie. In the beginning they played a little with the fact, that this is now a movie, but later on it succumbs to being a regular Simpsons episode.

Rating:

(From Two-Weeks Movie Marathon: Unwatched Movies on August 23rd, 2008)

Strangler of the Swamp, a review by Danae Cassandra

Strangler of the Swamp
Year of Release: 1945
Directed By: Frank Wisbar
Starring: Rosemary La Planche, Robert Barratt, Blake Edwards, Charles Middleton, Effie Parnell
Genre: Horror

Overview:
A ferryman who was wrongly hanged for murder is now a ghost, and he's more than a little perturbed. He wants revenge, and he's inflicting strange, violent deaths on the townsfolk responsible for this execution.

The ghost (Charles Middleton, best-known for playing Ming the Merciless in the Flash Gordon series) is all the scarier for his simplicity: a grim shape that gradually manifests itself, blending into the shadows and the night. Blake Edwards, in a rare acting appearance before he became a famous director, is Christian Sanders, Jr., next on the ghost's list of victims, and Rosemary La Planche is his lover who's willing to sacrifice herself to save his life. Robert Barrat is the community leader who fights the villagers' superstitions.

Steeped in gothic atmosphere, STRANGLER OF THE SWAMP recreated director Frank Wisbar's extremely stylish classic fantasy film, Fährmann Maria, made in Germany before Wisbar came to Hollywood and directed such movies as the Devil Bat's Daughter. Wisbar's inventive use of lighting, camera and sets makes STRANGLER a stand-out.

My Thoughts:
This has great atmosphere for a 40's B-movie. There aren't many sets, and you can tell they didn't have much budget, but add a fog machine and the sort of swampy scenery you might put up for a community theatre production, and it somehow creates a wonderfully creepy feel to this film.

While some of the dialog isn't great, and the acting is servicable at best, I really liked the character of Maria and the way they visualized the ghost. The ghost is dark and murky, never fully seen, which really works for the story and makes the ghost seem more threatening. Maria, meanwhile, is a remarkably strong character for the time period. The lurid cover has little to do with the actual film. She is the actual hero of the film, the one who confronts the ghost and defeats him. The cover should really replace her with Blake Edwards character being threatened instead. Well worth watching for those who enjoy low-budget films of this era.

Watched For: Hoop-tober 3.0, Horror/Halloween Challenge 2016

Bechdel Test: Fail
Mako Mori Test: Fail

Overall: 3/5

Horror/Halloween Challenge Films: 28/52

(From Horror/Halloween 2016 Challenge on October 16th, 2016)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Season One: Volume One (1983/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia (United States) Length: 710 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles:

---

Plot:
Excitement and adventure await those who enter the mystical land of Eternia! Join He-Man and the Masters of the Universe as they battle against Skeletor and his crew of dastardly villains in the greatest adventure ever told!

These first 33 episodes are only the beginning of the most phenomenal stories ever created in animation! Relive the excitement as you enjoy the adventure of the universe's greatest warriors. The power has returned!


He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
1.01 Diamond Ray of Disappearance
Writer: Robby London (Writer)
Director: Lou Zukor
Cast: John Erwin (Prince Adam / He-Man (voice)), John Erwin (Beast Man / Ram Man (voice)), Alan Oppenheimer (Cringer / Battle Cat / Mer-Man (voice)), Alan Oppenheimer (Skeletor (voice)), Linda Gary (The Sorceress (voice)), Linda Gary (Evil-Lyn / Teela / Queen Marlena (voice)), Erik Gunden (King Randor / Orko / Trap Jaw (voice)), Erik Gunden (Tri-Klops / Stratos (voice))

It has been now about 25 years since I became a fan of He-Man. I still enjoy this series and the characters even after all this time. For me this is not a series better left as a nostalgic memory. It still holds up.
And I just love the theme music. I never get tired of it.



Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on July 5th, 2011)