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Freedom Writers, a review by Tom

Title: Freedom Writers
Year: 2006
Director: Richard LaGravenese
Rating: 12
Length: 118 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital Surround
Subtitles: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish

Stars:
Hilary Swank
Patrick Dempsey
Scott Glenn
Imelda Staunton
April Lee Hernandez

Plot:
Two-time Oscar-winner Hilary Swank stars in this gripping story of inner-city kids raised on drive-by shootings and hard-core attitude - and the teacher who gives them the one thing they need most: a voice of their own. Dropped into the free-fire zone of a school torn by violence and racial tension, teacher Erin Gruwell battles an uncaring system in a fight to make the classroom matter in her students' lives. Now, telling their own stories, and hearing the stories of others, a group of supposedly "unteachable" teens will discover the power of tolerance, reclaim their shattered lives and change their world. With electrifying performances from its all-star cast, including Golden Globe Award winner Patrick Dempsey (Grey's Anatomy) and recording star Mario, Freedom Writers is based on the acclaimed best-seller, The Freedom Writers Diary.

Extras:
Commentary
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes
Photo Gallery
Scene Access

Gokusen perfected this theme, though that one is a comedy whereas this movie is a drama.

Rating:

(From Tom's Random Reviews on June 18th, 2009)

The Black Swan, a review by Rogmeister

The Black Swan  (1942)  Technicolor   85 minutes
Directed by Henry King
Cast: Tyrone Power, Maureen O'Hara, Laird Cregar, Thomas Mitchell, George Sanders, Anthony Quinn, George Zucco
Music composed by Alfred Newman
Oscar-winner for Color Cinematography
Oscar-nominated for Special Effects and for Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture

DVD Extras
Commentary by film historian Rudy Behlmer and actress Maureen O'Hara
Restoration Comparison
Theatrical Trailer

It's time to buckle that swash!  Join Tyrone Power and his cronies (including every whiskey drinker's favorite seaman, Captain Morgan) as they join him in Jamaica after being pardoned by the king of England...until another seaman (played by George Sanders in a bright red wig and beard) continues his evil ways attacking the king's ships and stealing their bootie.  It's a rollicking high adventure shot in beautiful Technicolor.  It also has an interesting audio commentary featuring actress Maureen O'Hara who revealed that in her first color film, she got "klieg eyes" due to overpowering lights and vowed to never shoot another color film again until cinematographer Leon Shamroy surprised her with the low level lights he would use.  This is certainly an incredible-looking picture with vibrant colors and terrific battle sequences both at sea and in castles on the mainland.  If you enjoy a good pirate adventure, this is one you need to see.

(From DCO third annual November Alphabet Marathon - discussion/review/banter thread on November 5th, 2009)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

La Linea (2008/Italy) IMDb | Wikipedia (Austria) Length: 297 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: Italian: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles:

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La Linea
1.01 La Linea 1

As a kid I always loved it when I caught one of the short episodes on TV. The first episode is nothing special though.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on June 5th, 2012)