DVD Collectors Online

They Call Me Trinity, a review by DJ Doena

April, 10th

Synopsis: Trinity comes into a small town where he meets his brother Bambino again. Bambino is the Sheriff there after he accidentally shot the real Sheriff (i.e. he thought the Sheriff was pursuing him, but he wasn't). Trinity takes the role of the Deputy Sheriff and together they help a group of Mormon settlers who have trouble with a man who wants their land for his horses.

My Opinion: Except for the early movies, Bud Spencer & Terrence Hill movies are always harmless fun. They are childhood favourites of mine and have a certain cult status here in Germany. This is mostly due to a very unique dubbing of these movies but I still enjoy them very much and I own pretty much all of them.





(From DJ Doena's movie watchings 2009 on April 10th, 2009)

Grave of the Fireflies, a review by dfmorgan

Title: Grave of the Fireflies
Original Title: Hotaru no Haka
Year: 1988
Director: Isao Takahata
Rating: NR
Length: 90 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.66:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Japanese: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Tsutomu Tatsumi
Ayano Shiraishi
Akemi Yamaguchi
Yoshiko Shinohara

Plot:
In the aftermath of a World War II bombing, two orphaned children struggle to survive in the Japanese countryside. To Seita and his four-year old sister, the helplessness and indifference of their countrymen is even more painful than the enemy raids. Through desperation, hunger and grief, these children's lives are as heartbreakingly fragile as their spirit and love is inspiring. Grave of the Fireflies is a tale of the true tragedy of war and innocence lost, not only of the abandoned young, but of an entire nation.

Extras:
Scene Access
Feature Trailers
Featurettes
Gallery
Production Notes
Multi-angle
Interviews
Storyboard Comparisons
DVD-ROM Content



I finally watched this film through to the end. I still found it moving, especially with the young child Setsuko, but managed to sit and watch all the way. People have said that this film is anti-war, I'm not too sure I agree with that but have to say that it does make you think as it does show a side-effect of war that often isn't shown or covered.

The film is based on a semi-autobiographical novel, as the lead character dies in the opening minutes it can't be a full autobiography. Seita and and his sister Setsuko are left homeless orphans after a firebomb raid on Kobe. They move in with an aunt but relations there become fractious as the aunt sees them as no more than spongers, especially once she has used all their available resources. The two children move out and try to set up a home of their own but even that has its problems. We see the gradual decline of the children until the inevitable happens to Setsuko. Seita continues his decline until we reach the state he is in at the films beginning.

I'm glad that I finally managed to watch this to the end. It is a moving experience made more so maybe because of the age of the leads, a pre or early teen boy and a four or five year old girl, as well as the depiction of the events that cause their life changes from the bombing to their eventual ends.

Nothing less than a 5

Dave

ETA original title

(From dfmorgan's Studio Ghibli Marathon on June 19th, 2010)

Veronica Mars Marathon, a review by addicted2dvd

5. Blast From the Past
Deciding to give Jackie the benefit of the doubt since she's dating Wallace, Veronica tries to help Jackie determine who stole her credit card, leading Veronica to appear on a psychic's community access show to pursue a lead.

My Thoughts:
Now... this episode... this was a fun episode... especially with Veronica and Jackie (Wallace's girlfriend) getting into it to see just who can be the bitch of all bitches. Jackie don't like how he jumps to help Veronica any time she calls. Of course Veronica does try to be the bigger person for Wallace but enough is enough at some point.

6. Rat Saw God
With Aaron Echolls (guest star Harry Hamlin) facing trial for Lilly's murder, the previously accused Abel Koontz appears to enlist Veronica's help in finding his missing daughter Amelia, leading to a confrontation with Kane Software's head of security.

My Thoughts:
Another episode that I did enjoy... though there really wasn't nothing that stood out as special to me. Just a good episode.

7. Nobody Puts Baby In A Corner
Veronica and Duncan discover that the still-comatose Meg had been babysitting an abused child, leading Veronica to take on an unfamiliar role as a babysitter to determine the kid's identity.

My Thoughts:
This episode was really good... I enjoyed it a lot! I remember the first time I saw this episode I figured it out right before they revealed it. I had to kinda laugh because of just how crazy Veronica saw that every family is. Just goes to show you... you see "weird" in every other family... just like every other family see "weird" in yours.

8. Ahoy, Mateys!
Veronica helps Keith determine who is haunting a school bus crash victim's parents, currently embroiled in a suit against the school district for negligence.

My Thoughts:
This episode... even though it is good is not one of my favorites. This episode's mystery is ok... but I don't feel that they did enough to make you care about the characters... I mean with what the episode is about sure... you go in caring about them... but there wasn't nothing to maintain that caring... if that makes sense to you.

(From Veronica Mars Marathon on August 28th, 2007)