DVD Collectors Online

You've Got Mail, a review by Rogmeister

You've Got Mail 
Directed by Nora Ephron
Music by George Fenton
Cast: Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Parker Posey, Jean Stapleton, Dave Chappelle, Steve Zahn, Greg Kinnear, Dabney Coleman

This is basically a remake of the film The Shop Around The Corner in which two people who work together don't realize they are the same people each other is writing anonymous love letters to.  In this updated version, they are exchanging e-mails and don't work together but work at competing book stores.  Meg Ryan is at her cutest and perkiest in this film...I haven't seen her lately but I wonder if she's doing this kind of movie anymore...can a woman in her 40's (which she must surely be by now) still be that cute and perky?  Probably not.  I've always thought that Tom Hanks' character in this movie was actually something of a jerk but he has his good moments as well.  I like much of the supporting cast, especially Jean Stapleton and Greg Kinnear.

My DVD of this is obviously an older release...not only does it have Warner Brothers' ancient cardboard case but when you put the disc in, it doesn't go first to a menu screen but instead immediately starts the movie up.  I remember back when DVDs did that routinely...now you always go to the menu first.  This disc has some decent extras including an audio commentary by Nora Ephron and producer Lauren Shuler Donner, a music-only track, a behind-the-scenes documentary, an HBO special (basically an interview with Ephron) and no less than 12 trailers (2 of this film with the others from other films).  If you like witty romantic comedies, you should get this title.  This film has since had a new special edition re-issue though I'm not sure enough has been added to get me to pick it up.  So I'll just enjoy this copy again...

 

(From DCO third annual November Alphabet Marathon - discussion/review/banter thread on November 30th, 2009)

The Saragossa Manuscript, a review by goodguy

The Saragossa Manuscript (PL 1965) Written by: Tadeusz Kwiatkowski, based on the novel by Jan Potocki Directed by: Wojciech J. Has Starring: Zbigniew Cybulski DVD: R0-UK Mr. Bongo Films (2008) My rating:

Cover Blurb: Enter a dazzling, mysterious world of the supernatural courtesy of The Saragossa Manuscript, a magical text discovered during the Napoleonic Wars by a pair of opposing soldiers. Capt. Alphonse van Worden lives out the book's intricate, devilish storylines as he embarks on a journey across scenic Spain, now populated with ghosts, alluring demons, debauched royalty and mystical priests. Spanning centuries and nations, the manuscript's reach encompasses a wide array of stories both humorous and horrifying, gleeful and grotesque, before the final chilling revelations bring this one of a kind book to a close. Critically applauded and embraced over the years by such admirers as Jerry Garcia, Francis Ford Coppola, and Martin Scorsese, this swirling tapestry has been restored to its original, full length director's cut with all of its labyrinthine riddles intact.

Much less weird than one would expect from a movie that Jerry Garcia named as his favorite. It wasn't Garcia though, who put this on my radar, but rather Neil Jordan in a side comment in his AC for "The Company of Wolves".

Anyway. Based on an early 19th century novel by Polish author Jan Potocki, this is a bit like a cross between Don Quixote and the Decameron.  Stories are nested within stories and the narrative framework is quite nifty, but pretty easy to follow. Shot in B&W cinemascope and with a great score by Krysztof Penderecki, the outer stories taking place in the Spanish Sierra Morena have the most visual impact in a haunted, slightly surreal way. Some of the substories unfortunately degrade somewhat into slapstick and farce, but overall it remains entertaining.


(From goodguy's Watch Log on July 7th, 2010)

Tom's Buffy and Angel Marathon, a review by Tom

19. I Only Have Eyes For You (1998-04-28)
Writer: Joss Whedon (Created By), Marti Noxon (Writer)
Director: James Whitmore Jr.
Cast: Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers), Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris), Alyson Hannigan (Willow Rosenberg), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), David Boreanaz (Angel), Anthony Stewart Head (Giles), Meredith Salinger (Grace Newman), Christopher Gorham (James Stanley), John Hawkes (George), Miriam Flynn (Ms. Frank), Brian Reddy (Police Chief Bob), James Marsters (Spike), Juliet Landau (Drusilla), Armin Shimerman (Principal Snyder), Brian Poth (Fighting Boy), Sarah Bibb (Fighting Girl), James Lurie (Mr. Miller), Ryan Taszreak (Ben), Anna Coman-Hidy (50's Girl #1), Vanessa Bednar (50's Girl #2)

A good episode. I especially like the fact, that Angel and Buffy switch the (gender) role at the re-enactment at the end.

Rating:

(From Tom's Buffy and Angel Marathon on February 15th, 2009)