DVD Collectors Online

Flags of Our Fathers, a review by KinkyCyborg

Title:Flags of Our Fathers
Year: 2006
Director: Clint Eastwood
Rating: R
Length: 132 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, English: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround, French: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Ryan Phillippe
Jesse Bradford
Adam Beach
John Benjamin Hickey
John Slattery

Plot:Extras:
Closed Captioned


Companion piece to Letters From Iwo Jima from Clint Eastwood.

This movie was ok, but had some warts and had it been released independently it would have received better reviews from the critics, but as it was it and LFIJ released at the same time and so were inevitably compared to one another. Letters From Iwo Jima was far superior to Flags Of Our Fathers on all levels.

There was no continuity to Flags... jumping all over the place from war time, to current day to post war. I was hoping to see and quite frankly was expecting to see some sustained battle sequences and while they were good they were too short lived. LFIJ focused on the epic battle for Suribachi Mountain and all it's horrors as seen through the eyes of the Japanese soldiers and it was masterful where FOOF focused on the famous picture of the flag raising and the deceit surrounding it as the image was used to play on the emotions of the American citizens to cough up billions of dollars in War Bonds. All I can say is that if it was Eastwood's attempt with these two films to glorify the honor and bravery of the Japanese and bash the integrity of the American military heads and U.S. government he succeeded. 

Another disappointment with this movie was the performance of Adam Beach, whom I've liked in every other role I've seen him in but in this one I thought he was terrible. His turn as the drunken Native American soldier Ira Hayes was woefully overplayed and rather embarrassing. I think the guilt and shame his character felt could have been conveyed without looking so pathetic.

One of the things I did like was spotting the common footage between the two films. You could almost follow the time line of the battle from both sides.

Again, the movie was ok and enlightened some on the background of an iconic photograph of WWII, but I think this is one of Clint's poorest efforts to date and that surprises me, especially in contrast to Letters From Iwo Jima which was outstanding. The critics definitely got it right in regards to these two films.

KC

Rating:

(From KinkyCyborg's Random Reviews 2010 on September 19th, 2010)

Inception, a review by Silence_of_Lambs

Summary:
Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a skilled thief, the absolute best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state. Cobb's rare ability has made him a coveted player in this treacherous new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossible-inception. Instead of the perfect heist, Cobb and his team of specialists have to pull off the reverse: their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one. If they succeed, it could be the perfect crime. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move. An enemy that only Cobb could have seen coming.

My Thoughts:
What a hype, what a nothing of a movie.
This could have been really great, people maneuvering through the subconsciousness and there encountering the strangest dangers ever.
Instead Nolan directed a "Mission: Impossible in Dreamland" with a complete lack of "Dreamland". Instead of using fantasy supported by CGI he completely reduced to CGI. The whole concept for this film screams: "Place your ideas here!", possibly someone even did this, but obviously Nolan forgot to use those.
Sad, after the Batman movies I expected much more.
Even the main cast is remaining totally flat, DiCaprio is playing the same role as in "Blood Diamond" even though he has proven in "The Departed" and "Shutter Island" that he's absolutely capable of presenting us the haunted, hunted and lost individual. Maybe he should stick with Scott and Scorsese, because they obviously get the best from him. Nolan didn't, maybe because he didn't demand it. Strange how the director that made Heath Ledger immortal can be satisfied with the extremely average performance of DiCaprio in this movie.

Movies trying to capture the realms of fantasy should be left to Tarsem Singh or Gilliam, hell, even Burton would have made a better movie out of this concept. Nolan obviously was overstrained here.

My Rating: (out of possible 5)

(From Michael's random reviews on December 8th, 2010)

The Office: Season One, a review by addicted2dvd

The Office: Season One (2005/United States) Steve Carell (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, The Daily Show) stars in The Office, a fresh and funny mockumentary-style glimpse into the daily interactions of the eccentric workers at the Dunder Mifflin paper supply company. Based on the smash-hit British series of the same name and adapted for American Television by Greg Daniels (King of the Hill, The Simpsons), this fast-paced comedy parodies contemporary American water-cooler culture. Earnest but clueless regional manager Michael Scott (Carell) believes himself to be an exceptional boss and mentor, but actually receives more eye-rolls than respect from his oddball staff. Entertainment Weekly calls The Office "smart and trenchant", and all six hilarious season one episodes are available here on DVD for the first time. The awkward silences in The Office will have you laughing out loud! Episodes: 1. Pilot 2. Diversity Day 3. Health Care 4. The Alliance 5. Basketball 6. Hot Girl

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Stars:
Steve Carell as Michael Scott
Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute
John Krasinski as Jim Halpert
Jenna Fischer as Pam Beesly
B. J. Novak [B.J. Novak] as Ryan Howard
Melora Hardin as Jan
David Denman as Roy

Extras:

• Audio Commentary
• Bonus Trailers
• Deleted Scenes
• Episode Synopsis

This is the first time I ever seen an episode of The Office. What is my first impression of the series. Not bad... but it really didn't impress me all that much. I found it to be a little on the stupid side. But there was some laughs in it for me as well. Of course, I realize that what with it having only 6 episodes in the first season... it really didn't have the chance to hit it's stride yet. And I did hear it got better in the second season. My favorite character in the series so far would have to be the receptionist... Pam. The nice girl with a jerk of a boyfriend. Anyway... like I said... the show really didn't impress me too much going by this first season. I would say it is somewhere between an average and good series.




(From Addicted2dvd's Random TV Series Watched on August 31st, 2011)