DVD Collectors Online

Dave, a review by DJ Doena

January, 13th


Director: Ivan Reitman

Kevin Kline    ...    Dave Kovic / Bill Mitchell
Sigourney Weaver   ...    Ellen Mitchell
Frank Langella   ...    Bob Alexander
Kevin Dunn   ...    Alan Reed
Ving Rhames   ...    Duane Stevenson
Ben Kingsley   ...    Vice-President Nance
Charles Grodin   ...    Murray Blum

Synopsis: Dave Kovic is a simple man who works in an agency that gives people jobs. But he also looks exactly like the President of the United States. One day the Secret Service hires him for a public appearance because the real President Bill Mitchell has "more important" things to do. But when Mitchell falls into a coma due to a stroke the chief advisor Bob Alexander engages Dave to play the President for real.

My Opinion: This is a great fun flick about American politics with all its aspects (like the budget, running campaigns and so on) and Dave pretending to be the President and getting used to the job. I liked all the characters in their roles, from the First Lady to the bodyguard and of course the villain of the piece - Bob Alexander (Skeletor in Masters of the Universe) but the scenes between Dave and Ellen I like the most because then it shows how different a man Dave is from Bill.

(From DJ Doena's movie watchings 2010 on January 25th, 2010)

United 93, a review by KinkyCyborg

Title:United 93
Year: 2006
Director: Paul Greengrass
Rating: R
Length: 111 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital: 5.1, French: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Audio Descriptive: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Stars:
United 93 - CrewJ. J. Johnson [JJ Johnson]
Gary Commock
Polly Adams
Opal Alladin

Plot:
It's an event that shook the world. Honest, unflinching and profoundly moving, United 93 tells the unforgettable story of the heroic passengers and crew members who prevented the terrorists from carrying out their plans for the fourth hijacked plane on September 11, 2001. As on-ground military and civilian teams scrambled to make sense of the unfolding events, forty people who sat down as strangers found the courage to stand up as one.

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Featurettes
Production Notes


Managed to get in another movie before I head off to bed and it was gripping.

The events of 9/11 will never be forgotten and everyone remembers where and what they were doing when they first heard of the planes hitting the World Trade Center. Myself, I was at work when my supervisor told me a plane had hit the Empire State Building... early details were mostly inaccurate and given the amount of chaos that was depicted in this film between the various air traffic controllers, the FAA, NORAD, news agencies and the military I'm not surprised. Nobody was prepared for this... who could conceive it possible? All I know is that day I felt a profound sense of shock, despair and fear, and at the same time a tremendous amount of gratitude that I was living in Canada. I still remember the headline on the Toronto Sun Extra that evening... it read 'BASTARDS!' I couldn't have agreed more.

What actually took place on United 93 before it went down has been left to pure speculation by not only director Paul Greengrass but also to the entire world. Conspiracy theorists have proclaimed that it was shot down by the air force, but given the amount of accounts of phone calls from loved ones who were on the plane in the moments before it crashed in Pennsylvania, I'd like to believe that the passengers and crew did decide to fight back and not let the terrorists complete their mission.

The final 30 seconds of the movie during the clash for control in the cockpit and the plane's death spiral to the ground... right up to it's impact were among the best and worst moments in my years of watching movies. I was holding my breath, heart racing, gripping the arms of my chair and gritting my teeth. When it ended and the screen faded to black a huge wave of emotion swept over me, not unlike the day I came home from work on September 11th, 2001, hugged my wife and 6 year old son... and wept.

I'm not a religious person... but God bless all those poor souls who lost their lives that day.

KC

Rating:

(From KinkyCyborg's Random Reviews 2010 on August 15th, 2010)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

God, the Devil and Bob: The Complete Series (2000/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia Carsey-Werner Distribution, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (United States) Director: Jeff DeGrandis, Dan Fausett Writing: Length: 282 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround, Commentary: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Subtitles: English, Spanish

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Stars:
Alan Cumming as The Devil (voice)
James Garner as God (voice)
French Stewart as Bob Allman (voice)
Laurie Metcalf as Donna Allman (voice)
Kath Soucie as Andy Allman (voice)

Plot:
GOD IS IN ONE OF THOSE MOODS AGAIN...

...one of those "I think I'll cause another Great Flood to wipe mankind from the face of the Earth" kind of moods. He's always expected more from humanity and he's getting a little annoyed. Luckily God isn't quite ready to start all over again, so he decides that if one individual can prove the world is worth saving, he will spare it. And being a sporting kind of diety, God lets the Devil pick the man upon whose shoulders the fate of the world will rest.

Unfortunately, the Devil picks Bob Alman, a beer-drinking, porn-watching, "what's-in-it-for-me?" kind of guy who really doesn't want to be responsible for anyone or anything. Start praying...and start laughing.

Featuring the voices of Alan Cumming, French Stewart, Laurie Metcalf and James Garner.

God, the Devil and Bob
1.01 In the Beginning

A nice little comedy. This series was cancelled after four episodes, mainly because of pressure from religious groups.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on June 26th, 2011)