On DVD and BluRay: 'Alice in Wonderland' Rates *1/2 stars

can't say i'm sorry i missed this in a theater...not tim burton's best that's for sure (edward scissorhands) or his worst (charlie and the chocolate factory). it is mediocre at best. the whole thing is stolen by helena bonham carter as the red queen. and trust me i was rooting for her over the gothed up white queen destroyed by another awful and bizarre can't be called acting job by the terrible anne hathaway. she is a disaster on film. can no one find this woman a desk job?

be forewarned: avoid this one.

'The Big Gay Musical' on DVD and Blu Ray *1/2stars

a silly romp that takes on some serious topics in a retelling of 'adam and steve'. the music and lyrics are mostly inane and definitely forgettable. i think it can only appeal to those who enjoy camp. if i want camp i'll revisit 'valley of the dolls' or 'the legend of lylah clare' which are sooooo bad that they are make good camp.

'Precious' Now on DVD and Blu Ray: ***1/2stars

i have to admit i avoided 'precious' when it was released. i just didn't want to deal with incest, child abuse and the poverty depicted. i come from nyc where i saw all this first hand especially when i taught in an inner-city school. well i have now seen it on blu ray and have to say it is great bordering on brilliant. it is gritty and real. it can even seem hopeful. i highly recommend 'precious' now.

it also is yet one more oscar nominated film that could have won the oscar for 'best picture' over the dreadful 'the hurt locker'.

'Doctor Zhivago' on Blu Ray Today: ****stars

'Nine' on DVD and Blu Ray Today: ***stars

'be italian'



'call from the vatican'



'cinema italiano' montage



'cinema italiano' film sequence



'unusual way'



'take it all' video




'folies bergere'



official trailer



'nine' take two for blu ray/dvd release

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my original 'nine' slideshow for the film opening

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bonus: film scenes of 'my husband makes movies' and 'take it all' combined

'The Boys Are Back': ***stars

a sincere little film that does. it's moving, touching and simple. a recently widowed father has to learn to be a mother and father.
clive owen does a more than admirable job in a change of pace role. perfect film for a rainy spring day. rent it.

'The Young Victoria' ***1/2stars

it isn't often i give a film four stars simply because they don't deserve them. 'the young victoria' more than fits the bill as a four star movie. it's a beautiful costume drama, a slice of life portrait of the up and coming young queen and a love story. and what a love story. the historical union of two royals who really loved each other and not just fulfilling a royal obligation.

emily blunt amazes as the the young victoria and is most complimented by rubert friend as the young albert.

how the hell was this not nominated for best picture and best actress? answer: the independent film makers in hollywood and everywhere are nominating the critic's choices. they need the critics to bolster their films. therefore they nominate as many independent films as they can to satisfy those they are dependent on i.e. the critics.

this 'victoria' is a wonderful, beautifully made and scored film. it is now available on dvd and bly ray. you can rent it but i say buy it. you will want to re-watch it again and again.















trailer



'will you marry me?' due to protocol albert cannot ask victoria to marry him. so....



'only you' closing theme by sinead o'connor

'All About Steve' Rates *1/2stars

the "razzies" gave sandra 'worst actress of 2009' for this film. ok it's a pretty lousy film but sandra played the role of someone outside 'normal' perfectly. sandra wasn't flawed the character was flawed that is if being somewhere 'next' to normal is flawed.

did the "razzie" committee happen to see katherine heigl in 'the ugly truth'? did they see 'bride wars' with ann hathaway and worst of all kate hudson? or did they just go with sandra because she said she'd show up and was getting 'oscar' buzz? me thinks the latter.

'The Lovely Bones' on DVD and BluRay: *1/2

not even rachel weisz, mark wahlberg, saoirse ronan or the brilliant stanley tucci were, are, able to save this overdrawn movie. admittedly i was not a fan of the novel but this adaptation is 10 times more boring. skip it!

'The Ghost Writer' Rates **stars

i am a polanski fan. in fact, i believe he directed the best drama of the past decade: 'The Pianist'. his 'rosemary's baby' remains unmatched in the thriller edge of your seat drama. that said 'ghost writer' is a second class citizen in his repertoire. it is seemingly an indictment of cheyney and the u.s.'s influence on tony blair. if any director could have made this effective and a real indictment it could have been roman polanski. he fell short with the subject matter.

truth be told i might have given this a B but for some odd reason he cast kim catrell in an important role. kim is just out of her league here. she is downright awful. her so-called british accent is beyond laughable. ewam mcgregor and olivia williams are convincible while pierce brosnan is wasted in a dull supporting role.

catch it on dvd.

better luck next time roman.

'Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing' on DVD:***stars

1973: alan j. pakula gave us this tragicomedy love story starring maggie smith and timothy bottoms. i love this film of unthinkable lovers traveling thru spain on holiday. how did i miss this september 2009 dvd release. oh well i found it now. pakula was amazing. 'the sterile cuckoo', 'to kill a mockingbird', 'klute', 'love with a proper stranger' and 'starting over' are among the highlights on his resume. he passed on 11/19/1998 and hollywood suffered a great loss.












the dvd cover



the trailer

'Up in the Air': ***1/2stars

i had no desire to see this film when it opened. i had been disappointed by most of george clooney's films. color me wrong! thank the gods for netflix. this is one helluva brilliant film. i now think it was the best film of 2009. and clooney was brilliant and brilliantly supported by the always amazing vera farmiga and the up and coming anna kendrick. director jason reitman has made a classic film.

so now i had to re-look at and readjust my best of the past decade and add this brilliant work. and as an aside it also has the best opening credits i've ever seen on film.