DVD Collectors Online

Zack and Miri Make a Porno , a review by Dragonfire

Zack and Miri Make a Porno



Get ready for the wild comedy that goes where no movie has dared go before! Seth Rogen (Pineapple Express) and Elizabeth Banks (Role Models) star as two cash-strapped roommates who try to get out of debt by making an adult film. Once the cameras start rolling, things quickly get complicated...and hilarious! Writer/Director Kevin Smith is at his funniest, backed by a motley cast, including Craig Robinson ("The Office"), Jason Mewes (Clerks films), Justin Long (Live Free or Die Hard), and Brandon Routh (Superman Returns). Critics promise, "If you liked The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Superbad, you'll love Zack and Miri" (Shawn Edwards, Fox-TV).

My Thoughts

This is another one that won't appeal to some people because of the subject.  This isn't an actual porn movie..it is just a movie about some people who decide to make a porn.  There aren't a lot of sex scenes, though one of them is a bit more explicit.  It makes sense for that sort of scene, along with nudity, to be in the movie given what the plot is.  One other sex scene that is more important ends up without any nudity, which does seem slightly odd given that the characters are supposed to be making a porn movie to make money.  I don't know a lot about porn, but nudity seems to be a bit selling point.  Anyway, the sexual content isn't really that extreme and there is less nudity and fewer sex scenes than I expected considering what is going on.

There are a lot of funny moments throughout the movie.  Some of the humor is sexual in nature and other stuff is more crude or even gross.  The humor works well for the most part, though a few things were probably intended to be funny that weren't.  There is one really, really gross moment at one point that I could have done without seeing, though it is sort of funny in a very twisted way.  A lot of the humor is silly, which might disappoint some people.

The plot is fairly simple and straight forward.  A lot of people have money problems, especially lately in this country, so I think it makes sense that Zack and Miri would be willing to go to extreme measures in an attempt to pay their bills.  Time is taken to set up the problem and show how bad it is once their water and electric are turned off.  Miri does need to be convinced, but it isn't long before they start planning to make their movie.  Just about everything that happens is predictable, though there are a few minor surprises.  Even though the plot isn't that complicated, it is still interesting and entertaining.

The characters are nice enough, though they do have some issues.  Seth Rogen is fine as Zack, though the character does seem to be a lot like other characters he's played.  Miri is nice and likable and she does seem to be a bit more responsible than Zack.  Elizabeth Banks does well with the part. Stacy, Lester, Bubbles, and Barry are people hired to act in the movie and they all add something to it.  There isn't a lot of development for them, but they are interesting characters.

The two disc DVD has all sorts of extras.  There are at least an hour of deleted scenes - I lost track when watching them.  Some are slightly different versions of the ones in the movie.  Some of them didn't add a lot to the movie, so I can see why they were cut.  I do think the parts having Zack fight with the car door are really funny though.  The featurette on the making of the movie is really well done and interesting.  It is one of the more detailed making of featurettes that I've seen.  The webisodes are also entertaining and worth watching.  The extras are really interesting and entertaining and worth watching.

I really enjoyed this one overall.  Yes it is raunchy and crude at times, but it works as an entertaining movie.  I liked this one more than Knocked Up.  I'm getting a bit tired of Apatow's movies.  While they are some similarities in this one, something about it makes it better overall I think.



I did get a review posted on Epinions if anyone wants to take a look.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno

(From Dragonfire88's Alphabet Marathon on August 1st, 2010)

Hercules and the Circle of Fire, a review by addicted2dvd

Title: Hercules and the Circle of Fire
Year: 1994
Director:
Rating: NR
Length: 91 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles: N/A

Stars:
Kevin Sorbo
Anthony Quinn
Tawny Kitaen
Kevin Atkinson
Stephanie Barrett

Plot:
All over the world, the fires are dying. The planet will become an icy wilderness. Mankind is threatened with extinction. At the heart of this fiendish plot lies Hera, Queen of the Gods and Hercules' implacable enemy, who has taken the eternal torch before it is extinguished. Many dangers lay in wait: an invincible giant, a treacherous wood sprite and the wrath and jealousy of his father: Zeus, king of the gods. But Hercules must not fail; if the Eternal Torch dies, all life dies with it.

Extras:
N/A

My Thoughts:
When I thought back to these TV movies I thought I remembered only really liking the first couple (Hercules and the Amazon Women & Hercules and the Lost Kingdom) but I was remembering that wrong... as I really did enjoy this one as well.... much more then I remembered. In this movie he meets Deianeira who we later find out becomes his wife.



(From Weekend Movie Marathon: Multi-Themes on January 15th, 2010)

The One Where It All Began: The Pilot Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

What's the show about?
The Doctor is an alien, the last of the Time Lords and he travels with his TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimensions In Space) to any point in time and to any planet he wants. The Doctor often travels with a Companion, most of the time a human woman. Wherever he goes, there's a mystery to be solved and sometimes the entire universe is at stake, in this dimension or another.

"Rose"
When Rose tries to close the shop she's working in she's attacked by the window dummies. At first she thinks it's a student prank until she gets rescued by a man who calls himself only The Doctor and the entire building explodes. This entire evening was so weird that she tells nobody what really happened until she gets attacked by a dummy arm again and is again rescued by him. A Nestene Consciousness tries to take over the world and only The Doctor can prevent it.

My Opinion
If one likes weird science-fiction stories (such as I) with way-out ideas thrown in for good measure then one should definitively give it a try. I've seen a few episodes of the old Doctor Who but not enough to make a valid comparison. But I really like the new series on its own, especially since they are not afraid to re-use old enemies without re-designing them. The Daleks look like from a 50s movie but that makes it so charming. Too bad that UK seasons are always so short.

(From The One Where It All Began: The Pilot Marathon on September 8th, 2009)