Home Theaters

Looking around yesterday, and the day before, I was stunned to see the lack of releases of new DVDs. I wondered at first if it had anything to do with the writer’s strike, but however the decision falls on royalties, I don’t think it could affect the release dates. It is just counterintuitive to think that the releases would stall before Christmas season. (There I said it, it may be politically incorrect to refer to Christmas, but everyone does, even my atheist and Jewish friends - so how bad can it be?)

I’m still looking for a definitive list of BOX SETS, as I’m sure many of you are thinking about giving one of those for a gift this season - or - buying one for usage during the lulls after Thanksgiving dinner!

Nothing better than watching a good movie after Thanksgiving dinner! (It keeps the awkward catching up over the last year conversation to a minimum!)

Perhaps this bird should have commented on the new HD television programming.

 

But now to the releases -

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Absolute Wilson (2007)

[Documentary}

Director: Katharina Otto
Documentary about the life and work of experimental-theater maverick Robert Wilson. Includes interviews with such musicians as Philip Glass, Tom Waits, Jessye Norman, David Byrne, and others.

Not Rated

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Alien Siege (2005)

  Subwoofer alert! Special effects extravaganza.

Starring: Brad Johnson, Carl Weathers
Director: Robert Stadd
An underground movement battles an alien race that plans to destroy our planet unless the governments of the world supplies them with eight million humans whose blood they desperately need in order to survive.

Not Rated

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Blood Car (2007)

Drek Alert!

Starring: Anna Chlumsky, Katie Rowlett
Director: Alex Orr
A kindergarten teacher invents a car that runs on human blood in order to combat high gas prices.

Not Rated  (probably couldn't get anyone to sit through this)

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Christopher Reeve: Hope in Motion (2007)

[Documentary}

Director: Matthew Reeve
On May 27th 1995, actor Christopher Reeve was paralyzed from the neck down in a riding accident. This intimate portrait focuses on his remarkable recovery of movement and his constant fight to fully regain his mobility.

Not Rated

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The Cosby Show: Season Five (3-DVD Set) (1988)
The Cosby Show: Season Six (3-DVD Set) (1989)

Starring: Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashad
Directors: Jay Sandrich, Neema Barnette
Sitcom classic that centered around an affluent, close-knit African-American family from New York City.

Not Rated (of course it's family friendly)

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Danny Roane: First Time Director (2006)

  Laughter Alert!

Starring: Andy Dick, Jack Black
Director: Andy Dick
A washed-up television star tries to stage a comeback by sobering up and directing his own feature film.

Rating: R - for drug content, crude and sexual humor and some language.

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Deck the Halls (2006)

Starring: Danny DeVito, Matthew Broderick
Director: John Whitesell
A Christmas war breaks out between neighbors when one decides to decorate his house with enough lights to make his home visible from outer space.

Rating: PG - for some crude and suggestive humor, and for language.

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Dora the Explorer: Puppy Power! (2007)

for the teething biscuit crowd only! Animated.

Starring: Kathleen Herles, Harrison Chad
Four new adventures with Dora and Boots!

Not Rated

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Flight of the Conchords: The Complete First Season (2-DVD Set) (2007)

Starring: Jemaine Clement, Bret McKenzie
Directors: Taika Cohen, Troy Miller
A New Zealand folk duo tries to make it big in New York City.

Not Rated

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The Forgotten Coast (2007)

[Documentary]

The Forgotten Coast (2007)
Starring: Travis Potter, Micah Byrne
Director: Justin Le Pera
A filmcrew follows a group of surfers whose sole mission in life is to surf the unknown. Searching across the globe for untapped waves, they take an extreme physical and mental journey to the islands of Indonesia, where the world’s most pure and dangerous waves can be found

Rating: PG-13 - for brief strong language.

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Four Sheets to the Wind (2007)

Starring: Cody Lightning, Christian Kane
Director: Sterlin Harjo
A young Native American’s previously uneventful life changes after his father’s untimely suicide. He flees the security of his life on the reservation to visit his sister in the city, and thus begins his unusual journey towards a more fulfilling existence.

Rating: R - for language and some sexuality.

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Heavens Fall (2005)

Starring: Timothy Hutton, David Strathairn
Director: Terry Green
A New York attorney travels to Alabama to defend nine African American men in a re-trial after they were wrongfully accused and convicted of the rape of two white women during the spring of 1931. Based on true events.

Rating: PG-13 - for mature thematic elements including some dialogue.

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Hula Girls (2006)

Starring: Etsushi Toyokawa, Yu Aoi
Director: Sang-il Lee
Fact-based tale of young women forming a hula troupe in a small and economically depressed mining town in mid-1960s Japan.

Not Rated
Country of Origin: Japan
Language: Japanese

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The Jolly Boys Last Stand (2000)

pre-Borat Borat

Starring: Sacha Baron-Cohen, Andy Serkis
Director: Christopher Payne
When Friends Vinnie and Spider decide to leave behind the party scene for their girlfriends, their group of dimwitted, beer guzzling friends known as “The Jolly Boys” begin to panic. At the annoucement that one of them is engaged, the `Boys` decide to make a film chronicling their lives together as a wedding gift for the groom.

Not Rated

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I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (Full Frame) (2007)
I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (Widescreen) (2007)

Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James
Director: Dennis Dugan
Two Brooklyn firefighters pretend to be gay so that they can receive domestic partner benefits.

Rating: R - for some crude sexual humor and nudity.

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Live Once, Die Twice (2006)

no pic available

Starring: Kellie Martin, Bruce Gray
Director: Stefan Pleszczynski
Nicole Lawker unexpectedly loses her husband to a freak boating mishap. But when the FBI investigates, there’s speculation that it may not have been an accident after all—or that there were even casualties.

MPAA Rating: Not Rated

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Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon (2005)

good but short - only 40 minutes    This is why you want that HDTV and sound system.

[Documentary]

Starring: Tom Hanks, Gary Hershberger
Director: Mark Cowen
Tom Hanks-narrated IMAX feature transports the viewer to a lunar surface where they can walk alongside the 12 extraordinary astronauts who have explored the Moon in the past.

Not Rated

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Manticore (2005)

Starring: Robert Beltran, Jeff Fahey
Director: Tripp Reed
U.S. troops in Iraq find themselves fighting an ancient monster that has been unleashed by villainous opponents to keep the land under their control.

Rating: Not Rated

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Manufacturing Dissent: Uncovering Michael Moore (2007)

[Documentary]

Directors: Rick Caine, Debbie Melnyk
Manufacturing Dissent questions Michael Moore’s tactics and approach to political film-making from the viewpoint of two liberal Canadian filmmakers.

Rating: R - for some language.

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Martin: The Complete Third Season (4-DVD Set) (1994)

funny stuff from back when

Starring: Martin Lawrence, Nigel Miguel
Director: Gerren Keith
Sitcom revolves around a brash radio personality who always speaks his mind.

Not Rated

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Out of Balance (2007)

[Documentary]

Director: Tom Jackson
Out of Balance details the science and consequences of global warming and points the finger at ExxonMobil for using its immense power to block efforts to wean us from our addiction to oil.

Not Rated

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Ratatouille (2007)

Starring: Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm
Director: Brad Bird
A rodent with a fondness for good food moves to Paris in order to pursue his dream of becoming a great chef.

Rating: G    (This seems to be the best animated movie this year)

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Rock Haven (2007)

Starring: Sean Hoagland, Owen Alabado
Director: David Lewis
An 18-year-old devout Christian struggles to navigate the divide between his religious beliefs and his growing attraction towards his handsome neighbor.

Not Rated

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Run Granny Run (2007)

[Documentary]

Director: Marlo Poras
Award-winning documentary chronicles Doris “Granny D” Haddock’s 1994 run for the U.S. Senate at age 94.

Not Rated

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Seinfeld: Season 9 (4-DVD Set) (1997)

Starring: Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander
Director: Andy Ackerman
Synopsis: Award-winning, extremely popular sitcom centers around a New York stand-up comedian and his group of eccentric friends.

Not Rated

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Sicko (2007)

[Documentary]

Director: Michael Moore
Michael Moore is back with a comedy about the state of the health care system the U.S.

Rating: PG-13 - for brief strong language.

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The Slaughter (2006)

Starring: Eva Derrek, Zak Kilberg
Director: Jay Lee
When six college students take a job cleaning up an abandoned house, their plans are to work hard by day and party hard by night. However, their nonstop funfest becomes a race for survival when they discover an ancient tomb and inadvertently awake Cthulha, a vengeful and bloodthirsty female demon.

Rating: R - for strong horror violence and gore, sexuality, nudity, language and some drug use.

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Time (2006)

Starring: Jung-woo Ha, Ji-Yeon Park
Director: Ki-duk Kim
Synopsis: To save her relationship, a woman puts herself through extensive plastic surgery.

Not Rated
Country of Origin: Japan, South Korea
Language: Korean

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Also coming are new lists of the HD and Blu-ray titles available, and any reviews on the transfer quality.

Have a good week, check the other notices during the week. New stuff is appearing all the time - more reviews of HTIB systems soon.

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