Streaming The Mormons Online

January 22nd, 2010 by helena1506387
Streaming The Mormons Online. Streaming The Mormons Online.

Movie Title: The Mormons
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The Mormons is available for streaming or downloading.

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Whether you are a believer in the Mormon faith, a skeptic, or are generally unfamiliar with this Christian denomination, you should be able to appreciate this in-depth documentary about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

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This documentary, produced by PBS Frontline & American Experience, does not try to promote the faith for purposes of expanding its membership, but it takes an unbiased path to explain the Mormon religion from a historical perspective.

The lengthy documentary cover many issues regarding very relevant aspects of Mormon history and modern Mormon culture. Many opinions from knowledgeable historians are offered to help dispel the myths & misunderstandings about the faith. There are many positive aspects about the church that are introduced to those unfamiliar with Mormonism. Several topics discussed may not sit well with some modern members and believers, but they need to keep in mind that the pursuit of truth is not about denying or hiding from factual history, but about telling the whole story whether or not it is a source of pride or a source of embarrassment.

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“The Mormons” deserves to be watched with an open mind, in the spirit for which it was produced. It is an important and very relevant part of our American history, whether you are a believer or not.

Despite the protests of some on either extreme (ultra-orthodox or anti-mormon) “The Mormons” was a balanced treatment of the LDS religion, history and dcotrine. Pro-Mormons might think it focused too much on uncomfortable history– Anti-Mormons will think it didn’t focus on those items enough. The fact that neither is fully satisfied speaks to how well the director covered the material.

It must be remembered that this is not a LDS proselyting picture produced by the Brethren. It is a secular documentary. It’s goal isn’t to convert but rather to inform. And so polygamy, polyandry, Mountain Meadows, and fundamentalism are as much a part of the story as the Haun’s Mill, the First Vision and the importance of eternal families.

In fact, many members of the LDS church have only a cursory understanding of their own history. Because I believe that it’s impossible to fully believe in something you don’t fully understand I would recommend this film to all members.

Those interviewed run the range. LDS General Authorities to LDS academics to non-Mormon scholars to former Mormons. The director purposely avoids identifying the Mormon-slant of each person so that the viewer will consider their comments without bias. This has lead both pro and anti- mormons to wrongly claim that the numbers of interviews are skewed against their point of view– when actually the numbers are pretty even.

A quote by Hugh B. Brown, counselor in the First Presidency, in closing:

“Thoughts and expressions compete in the marketplace of thought, and in that competition truth emerges triumphant. Only error fears freedom of expression.”

“The Mormons” tells more of the story.

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Watch WWE: Hell in a Cell 2009 Online

January 22nd, 2010 by helena1506387
Watch WWE: Hell in a Cell 2009 Online. Watch WWE: Hell in a Cell 2009 Online.

Movie Title: WWE: Hell in a Cell 2009
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WWE: Hell in a Cell 2009 is available for streaming or downloading.

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Hell in a Cell World Heavyweight Championship Match: CM Punk (Champion) vs. The Undertaker

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A brutal match that will probably be overlooked since it’s the opener. Undertaker threw Punk against the steel multiple times, even hitting a big boot on the apron that sent Punk flying into the steel. A similar thing like this happened when Punk went for a bulldog off the apron. Punk crawled under the ring to escape from the clutches of Undertaker and then dropkicked the steel steps into Undertaker’s knees. Punk tried to use a steel chair on Undertaker to keep him down, but this attempt failed. Undertaker then went for the Chokeslam, but Punk countered. Undertaker then countered Punk’s Go To Sleep attempt into a Tombstone Piledriver attempt, but Punk countered. Punk then hit some basic offense and went for his knee strike/bulldog, but Undertaker countered into the Last Ride. Amazingly, Punk kicked out. Punk brawled Underatker into a corner and ran at him with the steel chair, but Undertaker kicked it into his face. Undertaker then hit the Chokeslam followed by the Tombstone Piledriver to win the match and become the new World Heavyweight Champion. Winner: The Undertaker. Match Rating: 5/5

Intercontinental Championship Match: John Morrison (Champion) vs. Dolph Ziggler

Nice, fast-paced action, but I expected more from these two. It was back-and-forth, but they stalled too long at the beginning. Ziggler hit a series of high impact moves to start with, but Morrison continually kicked out. Towards the end of the match, Morrison hit Ziggler with a sweet enziguri followed by the Starship Pain to get the victory and retain his Intercontinental Championship. Winner: John Morrison. Match Rating: 4/5

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Divas Championship Match: Mickie James (Champion) vs. Alicia Fox

Sort of sloppy at first, but this match really took me by surprise. James’s attempts to go to the top rope were thwarted multiple times by Fox, but James finally hit the flying Lou Thesz Press that she does. This started a small brawl, but James dodged the Scissors Kick and hit fox with a DEVASTATING DDT to get the pin and retain her title. Winner: Mickie James. Match Rating: 4/5

Unified WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Chris Jericho and The Big Show (Champions) vs. Batista and Rey Mysterio

Awesome match. Mysterio and Jericho put on a clinic in the ring, with Mysterio hit a ton of high-impact moves and high-flying moves on Jericho, including a springboard moonsault, but Jericho managed to dodge the 619 multiple times. Mysterio tried to take on Big Show by himself, but Big Show tossed him around like a ragdoll. Jericho and Batista went at it for a while, but Batista managed to dodge the Lionsault. Batista was then hit with a big leg drop from Big Show, but Mysterio broke up the pin with a springboard splash maneuver. Batista and Mysterio hit some tag team moves as well, but despite two 619s, Mysterio couldn’t put Big Show away, who finally hit Mysterio with a Chokeslam to retain the titles. Winners: Chris Jericho and The Big Show. Match Rating: 5/5

Last Chance Hell in a Cell WWE Championship Match: John Cena (Champion) vs. Randy Orton

Awesome match that was extremely surprising. The match started with them brawling on the outside, and both men used the cell to hurt one another. As the match continued, both men countered one another’s finishers, and they each tried to use the steel steps against each other, but their attempts failed. Orton hit his signature offense, as did John Cena, who also hit the Five-Knuckle Shuffle, followed by the Attitude Adjustment! Amazingly, Randy Orton kicked out. Cena then locked in the STF, but Orton crawled out of the ring to break the hold. Orton then kicked Cena into the referee, which knocked the referee out, but Cena then locked in the STF again, and Orton tapped. Cena thought the match was over, so he let go of the hold. Orton then hit the RKO out of nowhere, but Cena KICKED OUT! A frustrated Orton tied cena in the ropes and choked him out. Orton then hit the Concussion Punt to win the match and become the new WWE Champion. Winner: Randy Orton. Match Rating: 5/5

Drew McIntyre vs. R-Truth

Stupid match. R-Truth tried hard to make it interesting by hitting some nice dropkicks and other high impact and high-flying moves, but McIntyre made the crowd dead. All he did was use some submission holds on R-Truth, but R-Truth hit the Scissors Kick on McIntyre, who kicked out. McIntyre went for the Double-Arm DDT, but R-Truth rolled him up for a weak two. R-Truth went for another Scissors Kick, but McIntyre dodged it and hit the Double-Arm DDT to win. Why didn’t ECW have a match? Why did this crap have to be on the card at all? Winner: Drew McIntyre. Match Rating: 2/5

Triple Threat United States Championship Match: Kofi Kingston (Champion) vs. Jack Swagger vs. The Miz

This match was too sloppy to reach its full potential, but it was still pretty good, except for the ending. At first, everyone was just all over the place. Swagger ate a Boom Drop and a vicious Trouble in Paradise from Kofi, the latter of which occured when Miz ducked out of the way at the last second. Miz then hit the Skull Crushing Finale, but Swagger put Kofi’s foot on the bottom rope at the last second. Swagger dominated Miz and then hit the Gutwrench Powerbomb, but Kofi then hit another Trouble in Paradise on Swagger, finally pinning Miz for the win and to retain his title. I’m sorry, but Kofi has had the belt for way too long. Winner: Kofi Kingston. Match Rating: 4/5

Hell in a Cell Match: D-Generation X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) vs. Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase)

Very brutal. The match started with Legacy ambushing DX while they made their entrance, which made a brawl ensue. Rhodes ate a double suplex onto one of the announce tables, as well as a back body drop over the fan barricade and smacking into the Cell! DiBiase suplexed Triple H from the crowd to ringside, and then the brawl continued. Rhodes slammed Michaels’s leg in the cell door and then used the chain meant to lock the door to knock Michaels out. Rhodes and DiBiase isolated Triple H on the stage. They hit a double DDT on Triple H on top of the stage, and then DiBiase applied the Million Dollar Dream momentarily to allow Cody to get into the position to hit Triple H with the Cross Rhodes on the stage! Rhodes and DiBiase then were locked in the Cell with Michaels, who tried to fight back, but failed rather miserably. DiBiase and Rhodes hit tag team moves on Michaels, though Michaels occasionally had a spur of offense that was made up of his signature stuff. DiBiase and Rhodes then used the Cell to attack Michaels while Triple H watched helplessly from the outside of the Cell. Triple H tried to break the chain on the Cell using a steel chair but failed, so he disappeared to the backstage area. In the ring, Michaels pulled a steel chair from under the ring and chucked it into Cody Rhodes’s face! Rhodes and DiBiase then continued on the offensive, with Rhodes holding the chair right on Michaels’s head while DiBiase hit a vicious Randy Orton-style dropkick right into Michaels’s head! Triple H came back with bolt cutters and cut the chain off the cell door. He saved Michaels from the assault from Rhodes and DiBiase, who had resorted to applying the Figure Four Leglock around the steel ring post as well as the Million Dollar Dream combination that defeated him at Breaking Point. DiBiase was thrown into Rhodes, who was on the apron, and Rhodes was sent flying into the Cell! As the match continued, Triple H and Michaels dominated, with Triple H pushing the referee down to keep the door open. Triple H hit DiBiase with a Pedigree on the outside and then rolled him out of the ring, then he instructed the referee to lock the door! This put DiBiase in Triple H’s earlier position as Triple H set up the steel chair around Cody’s throat. Michaels hit a Flying Elbow Drop on the chair to crush Rhodes’s throat! Then, simultaneously, Michaels hit the Sweet Chin Music while Triple H smashed his sledgehammer into Rhodes’s face to win the epic match! Winners: D-Generation X. Match Rating: 5/5

OVERALL EVENT

In all actuality, this was a great event. There didn’t seem to be much backstage shenanigans like we’re used to, just a couple of interviews here and there, but the actual wrestling was very nice. However, despite this being a very solid pay-per-view that is definitely worth checking out, it will ruin Hell in a Cell for you. It’s not that the Hell in a Cell matches on the card are bad, it’s just that they are not nearly as brutal as they used to be, with the exception being the main event. It’s sort of an overkill of Hell in a Cell, taking away from the mystique that used to surround the structure. With that being said, it’s still worth your time, just not as violent as you would expect.

Overall, i was pleased with this solid ppv, dispite no blood. The hiac matches didn’t dissapoint and suprised me with their odd postions in the card. One suprising highlight of the event was jerishow vs. rey/batista, which was a better match than i expected it to be. Thanks for reading!

Hell In A Cell Match for the World Heavyweight Championship

CM Punk vs. Undertaker

I was very suprised with this being the opener! This match had way better action and booking than their encounter at breaking point. Taker began the match with some nice offense, throwing punk into the cage. Punk then turns things around and throws taker into the steel steps. Punk was in control for the next few minutes, getting in alot of offense. Later in the match, taker is on the outside and punk dives through the ropes and the deadman goes hits the cage. They go back in the ring, trading punches and headbuts, taker goes for a chokeslam, but punk kicks him in the back of the head. Punk brung in a chair and nailed taker with it, only to get a 2. Punk went for another chair shot, but got a boot in the face. In the end, undertaker chokeslams punk and then connects with a tombstone to win the world title! The match was kept short, only about 11-12 mins since taker is somewhat hurt. Overall this was a good opener and the crowd was really into it. Match Rating:3.5/5

Intercontinental Championship

John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler

Lots of good action in this one, but was outshined by the cell matches. Good offense by both ziggler and morrison throughout the match and some really creative moves. A good edition of mat wrestling aswell. Morrison failed to hit the starship pain throughout the match, but finnaly hit it in the end to beat ziggler and retain the ic belt. Match Rating:4/5

Divas Championship

Mickie James vs. Alicia Fox

This was a very sloppy matchup. Fox wasn’t ready for a title shot on ppv and mickie just couldn’t carry her to a good match. Mickie james reatains with a ddt. Match Rating:2/5

WWE Unified Tag Team Championship

Chris Jericho and Big Show vs. Rey Mysterio and Batista

This was a very impressive match, which took me by suprise. Rey and Y2J started the match off with some nice offense. Jericho tagged in show and big show dominated mysterio for a while, until mysterio tags in batista. Batista cleans house, but out of nowhere, jericho stops him with a codebreaker! Y2J and big show work on batista back and forth. Mysterio eventually tags in and gets a nice ddt on show and another cool moment with batista spearing both jericho and show on the outside. When it looked like mysterio and batista had the win, show countered rey’s follow up from the 619 into a knockout punch. Overall, a very solid tag match and the best showing by far from the jerishow tag team. Match Rating:4/5

Hell In A Cell Match for the WWE Championship

John Cena vs. Randy Orton

So far this is their best encounter this year, surpasing summerslam and breaking point. Lots of brutality in this one. Cena had a mixed reaction with the nj crowd mostly sidding with orton. Lots of back and forth action with cena hitting the attitude ajustment early, only to get a 2. Orton executed some nice spots with the steel chair, with cena making a comeback and locking in the stf, but orton got out and rolled to the outside. Later, orton got a rko on cena, but at this point the ref was knocked out. A clever ending with orton trapping cena in the ropes and chokeing him, so the ref pulled cena out and orton connected with a punt for the win. The crowd was anti-cena here and even after the match when cena walked out, he got somewhat booed. Overall, this was a very good encounter. Match Rating:4.5/5

Drew McIntyre vs. R-Truth

I saw this match coming. Nothing special, just a filler with drew getting his first ppv win against r-truth. Noticable boring chants from the crowd throughout. Match Rating:2/5

Backstage, there was some tension between dibease, rhodes and orton, which is proboly leading up to the dibease face turn, later in the year.

Triple Threat Match for the U.S. Championship

Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. The Miz

Average match. Throughout the match the miz and swagger double teamed kingston. Miz makes the first turn, giving a clothesline to swagger. In the end, swagger hit the gutwrench on the miz and then kofi got a trouble in paradise kick on swagger to get the win. Kofi once agian, gets a suprising retain. Match Rating:3.25/5

Hell In A Cell Tag Team Match

D-Generation X vs. The Legacy

I was suprised this was the main event, instead of the two world title cell matches. Overall, with the action, this defiently had the main event feel. Legacy attacks dx on their entrance. Dx turns things around by giving a suplex to rhodes on the announce table. Lots of back and forth action after that as rhodes and hbk fought by the cell and hhh and dibease foughout on the ramp. Later, rhodes gave a crossrodes to triple h on the ramp. Dibease and rhodes put michaels in the cell, locking the door, leaving the game behind. Legacy brutalized michaels, but hbk ocassionaly came back, only to get beat down. Triple h tried to break the door down many times, but couldn’t. Dibease connected with a million dollar dream on hbk on a steel chair. Triple h finnaly got in, unlocking the chain with bolt cutters. Triple h went right for legacy pounding them down, while a ref came out with another chain. The game used it as a weapon on dibease and then gave him a pedigree and threw him on the outside. The cage was locked again, with dx now using the handicap advantage on rhodes. A very brutal ending, with triple h hitting rhodes with the sledgehammer and michaels giving rhodes a sweet chin music at the same time. Dx got the win after that. A good main event. Match Rating:4.25/5

WWE pulled this ppv off, giving three solid hell in a cell matches.

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Watch The Moon and Sixpence Online

January 22nd, 2010 by helena1506387
Watch The Moon and Sixpence Online. Watch The Moon and Sixpence Online.

Movie Title: The Moon and Sixpence
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The Moon and Sixpence is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download The Moon and Sixpence

VCI Entertainment and United Artists present “THE MOON AND SIXPENCE” (1942) (89 mins/B&W/Color) (Dolby digitally remastered) — Starring George Sanders, Herbert Marshall, Doris Dudley and Steven Geray — Directed by Albert Lewin and released in October 27, 1942, our story line and film, While the beginning of this film is a bit slow, soon we are treated to a simple but effective treatment of this extraordinary story … as the Gauguin-like painter Charles Strickland, played by George Sanders actually does a bit more than play his ‘typical cad’, but relishes his character’s poking fun at a hypocritical society, and shows real passion in describing to the Maugham-like figure exactly WHY he leaves his ordinary London existence — We absolutely believe him when he insists “I HAVE TO PAINT”. Wisely, the director doesn’t let us see any of Strickland’s canvases, and we are only limited by our own imaginations as to how powerful they must be — The story alone is worth viewing, a person abandoning their family in order to follow one’s dream, is compelling enough … Sander’s performance as well as Herbert Marshall as Somerset Maughm are both first rate — No one could have done a finer job at playing the tortured cad then Sanders — Herbert Marshall once again plays Maugham, as he did in “The Razor’s Edge” (1946) — Sanders has a field day playing an absolute cad, who cares for no one but himself as he deserts wife, family and career to paint … a slightly fictionalized biography of Paul Gauguin — Great score by Dimitri Tiomkin as usual … Remember when Mr. Sanders won an Oscar for playing another cad, the rascal theater critic in “All About Eve” (1950) — One of my favorite lines in that movie is when he replies to a very beautiful young starlet(Marilyn Monroe) who he has accompanied to a dinner party saying “You have a point. An idiotic one, but a point none the less” — That was the true character of Mr. George Sanders.

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Under Albert Lewin (Director / Screenwriter), David L. Loew (Producer), W. Somerset Maugham (Short Story Author), John F. Seitz (Cinematographer), Dimitri Tiomkin (Composer (Music Score), Richard Van Enger (Editor), Gordon Wiles (Production Designer), F. Paul Sylos (Art Director), Paul F. Sylos (Art Director), Stanley Kramer (Associate Producer), Farrell Redd (Sound/Sound Designer), Ern Westmore (Makeup) - - - - the cast includes George Sanders (Charles Strickland), Herbert Marshall (Geoffrey Wolfe), Doris Dudley (Blanche Stroeve), Steven Geray (Dirk Stroeve), Eric Blore (Capt. Nichols), Florence Bates (Tiara Johnson), Irene Tedrow (Mrs. MacAndrew), Heather Thatcher (Rose Waterford), Elena Verdugo (Ata), Albert Basserman (Doctor Coutras), Molly Lamont (Mrs. Strickland),Robert Greig (Maitland, Butler), Kenneth Hunter (Col. MacAndrew) … featuring top performances from the ’40s and ’50s with outstanding drama and screenplays, along with a wonderful cast and supporting actors to bring it all together … another winner from the vaults of almost forgotten gems

SPECIAL FEATURES BIOS:

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1. George Sanders

Date of Birth: 3 July 1906 - St. Petersburg, Russia

Date of Death: 25 April 1972 - Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain

Special footnote, actor George Sanders made his British film debut in 1934 and after a series of British films made his American debut in 1936 with a role in Lloyd’s of London — His British accent and sensibilities, combined with his suave, snobbish and somewhat menacing air were utilised in American films during the next decade — He played memorable supporting roles in prestige productions such as “Rebecca” (1940), in which he goaded the sinister Judith Anderson as Mrs Danvers, in her persecution of Joan Fontaine and he played leading roles in lesser pictures such as “Rage in Heaven” (1941) — During this time he was also the lead in both “The Falcon” and “The Saint” film series. He played Lord Henry Wotton in a film version of “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (1945) — Sanders co-starred with Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison in the classic “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” (1947) — He gave his most widely recognised performance and achieved his greatest success as the acid-tongued, manipulative, cold-blooded theatre critic Addison DeWitt in “All About Eve” (1950), winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role … (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

2. Herbert Marshall

Date of Birth: 23 May 1890 - London, England, UK

Date of Death: 22 January 1966 - Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California

3. Albert Lewin (Director)

Date of Birth: 29 July 1916 - Unknown

Date of Death: 23 April 1996 - Los Angeles, California

BONUS:

1. Photo Gallery

TRAILERS:

2. And Then There Were None

3. The Southerner

4. Cyrano de Bergerac

5. Hannibal

6. Robinson Crusoe

FEATURES & SPECIFICATIONS:

7. Contains two versions: The original theatrical verison with tinted and full color scenes as well as the black & white version.

Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of “Trail Talk”), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc), Bob Nareau (author of “The Real Bob Steele”) and Trevor Scott (Down Under Com) as they have rekindled my interest once again for Film Noir, B-Westerns and Serials — looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the ’20s, ’30s & ’40s and B-Westerns … order your copy now from Amazon where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with deadly adventure — if you enjoyed this title, why not check out VCI Entertainment where they are experts in releasing B-Westerns and Serials — all my heroes have been cowboys!

Total Time: 178 min on DVD ~ VCI Home Video #8482 ~ (5/29/2007)

As a movie, THE MOON AND SIXPENCE is an interesting job. To soothe the Hays office, it legalised by marriage one of Gauguin’s affairs, but in general, it sticks to the Maugham novel, using the great Herbert Marshall as a narrator to speak Maugham’s words. George Sanders is remarkably convincing as the painter who scorns all human relations in his demonic desire to paint. He actually seems to justify Maugham’s description: “The emotions common to most of us simply did not exist in him, and it was as absurd to blame him for not feeling them as for blaming the tiger because he is fierce…he was at once too great and too small for love. Outstanding among famous artists whose lives and loves have fascinated the world is the Frenchman Paul Gauguin. In 1919, a rising young author named W. Somerset Maugham wrote a novel suggested by the curious career of Gauguin; it has since become a minor classic work of fiction. In his book, Maugham never admitted that he wrote generally about Gauguin. But everyone knew he did. In 1941, when United Artists began filming the novel, they received a stern letter from the painter’s eldest son, Emile Gauguin, who then lived in Philadelphia. Emile threatened to sue if any Gauguin art was used in the movie, as this would conclusively identify Maugham’s disreputable hero with his father. To avoid suit, the movies created fakes.

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Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave Movie Streaming

January 21st, 2010 by helena1506387
Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave Movie Streaming. Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave Movie Streaming.

Movie Title: Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave
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Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave

I have seen all four shorts (A Grand Day Out, The Wrong Trousers, A Close Shave, A Matter of Loaf and Death) as well as the full length movie “The Curse of the Were-Rabbit”, and out of all of these gems this film is by far my favorite. The pace of the movie is just right, I love the developing romance between Wallace & Wendolene and the movie is chock full of delightful nonstop family friendly humor. Of all the films I also found this one to have the most in terms of exposing non-Brits to aspects of British culture.

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Just about the ONLY drawback to this film is that it was meant to be seen in anamorphic widescreen, but Lionsgate seems to have a consistently bad habit of producing almost all of it’s DVD’s in “pan-&-scan” full-screen only, making a loss of over 33% of the intended picture ratio. I believe Lionsgate’s business strategy is to only produce full-screen W&G films to DVD, but to then offer proper widescreen versions on BLUE-RAY disc only.

That aside, of all the W&G films I recommend this one the most and it should be an instant classic for many years of family viewing!

A Close Shave is a wonderful movie. A definite classic that both children and adults can really enjoy. Definitely add this one to your Wallace & Gromit collection - it’s a must have!

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Heavenly Creatures Movie Streaming

January 21st, 2010 by helena1506387
Heavenly Creatures Movie Streaming. Heavenly Creatures Movie Streaming.

Movie Title: Heavenly Creatures
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Heavenly Creatures is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download Heavenly Creatures

‘Heavenly Creatures’ is the true story of two school girls in Christchurch, New Zealand who murder one of their mothers when the two families plan to separate them.

Juliet Hulme and Pauline Rieper (later revealed in the trial to be Pauline Parker, as her parents never married) quickly become best friends when Juliet’s family moves to Christchurch in 1952. Pauline’s family is working class; Juliet is a high-class girl. They’re both lonely and creative. Their friendship becomes more obsessive and surreal every day, as they mix reality and fantasy: They create a kingdom called Borovnia, where bloodspill is common and Mario Lanza and Orson Welles make appearances. It is to this world they retreat when they wish to forget the upsets and pains of real life. Juliet and Pauline’s parents soon enough become the enemies of the girls, when they plan to separate the girls. Juliet and Pauline will do anything to stay together, Pauline cooks up the idea of getting her own mother out of the way, and you can guess where it goes from there (I won’t give away any more of the plot).

The acting in this film is first-rate and marvelous. Kate Winslet, as always, is elegant and gorgeous. Melanie Lynskey is wonderful as Pauline; her body language and mannerisms add much to the story. In the space of only one and a half hours, you feel as if you know Juliet and Pauline as well as they know each other.

(It should be noted that Juliet is now an author, working under the name of Anne Perry. Pauline is now running a children’s riding school in England and goes by the name of Hilary Nathan. There are many informative sites on the internet about both the film and the real life events. If you are interested in seeing them, drop me an email at emme_kiss@yahoo.com and I’ll gladly send you the URLs.)

For those who wondered how the director of “Bad Taste” and “Brain Dead” got to direct “The Lord of the Rings,” this 1994 film from director Peter Jackson supplies the answer. In 1954 two teenage girls brutally murdered one of the their mothers in what must be the most sensational murder in New Zealand history. “Heavenly Creatures” tells the strange story of these two girls and their unique relationship. If you think this is just a reality based splatter flick, then you are going to be much more than surprised and impressed by what Jackson has accomplished.

Pauline Rieper (Melanie Lynskey) is a simple and rather dull young girl who is totally dazzled when Juliet Hulme (Kate Winslet) enters her life. Juliet is impressed as well, because Pauline has a scar on her leg from an operation. Juliet declares that: “All the best people have had chest and bone disease! It’s all frightfully romantic!” Eventually both the romance and the frightfullness of it all reaches a tragic conclusion. In their all consuming friendship Juliet and Pauline create a “Fourth World,” better than heaven (because it has no Christians), inhabited by the clay figures they have fashioned to represents their friends and where the music of Mario Lanza, the greatest tenor on earth, is always in the air.

Jackson brings this fantasy world alive, which allows him to explore the pivotal theme of juxtaposition throughout the film. This comes into play most notably at the beginning and ending of “Heavenly Clouds.” Jackson begins with a 1950s newsreel about Christchurch, New Zealand, which is interrupted by the appearance of the two screaming and bloodied girls, thereby symbolizing the way this sensational case shocked the nation. Even more effective is the film’s conclusion, where the murder is inter-cut with what the girls think will happen if they do not find this way of saving themselves.

With any film based on historical events there are omissions, alterations, substitutions, and the like, and “Heavenly Creatures” is no different. On the plus side of the ledger Jackson attempted an almost morbid verisimilitude. Almost all of the locations used for filming were the real locations where events occurred, including the tea shop where Honora Parker ate her last meal, which was torn down a few days after the shooting ended. However, the cast and crew found the actual murder scene uncomfortable and moved further down the path. All of the journal voice-overs come directly from Pauline’s diary, as are the characters in the girls’ make-believe world. However, since the two filled up fifteen notebooks and hundreds of letters devoted to their fantasies, the movie actually underplays these elements.

However, having familiarized myself somewhat with the actual “facts” of the case, and the recollections of the woman one of the girls grew up to be, the key point of dispute is the motive. But if Jackson is guilty of becoming fixated on the idea that these two young girl committed a murder because they could not bear to be separated and have their fantasy world unravel, then he can be hardly faulted for finding that a fascinating interpretation of the evidence (the girls never testified or were examined in court, but Pauline’s diary was seen as providing all the answers). More importantly, Jackson does not seem guilty of taking liberties, merely with offering a valid interpretation of the evidence. For example, the murder sequence greatly reduces the number of blows, but the effect is still horrific, so it seems trivial to complain about any inaccuracy.

From an artistic standpoint his interpretation is more than justified, especially at the end. In addition to the information we receive between the final scene and the closing credits that tells what happened to Pauline and Juliet, Marzio Lanza sings “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” which is as perfect a choice of a song to play at the end of a film as you will ever hear, forcefully underscoring the film’s thesis. Jackson says this is “a murder story about love, a murder story with no villains,” and it is hard to argue with this idea after watching his film.

“Heavenly Creatures” received an Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen for Jackson and Frances Walsh. The film won every award for which it was nominated in the New Zealand Film and TV Awards, including Best Actress for Lynskey and Best Foreign Performer for Winslet (both of whom were perfectly suited for those roles), and earned film festival awards in Venice and Toronto. This is a striking and unforgettable film, both creative and thoughtful. Those who are drawn to it because it was directed by Peter Jackson might be shocked by the subject matter, but they will not be disappointed with the results.

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Watch The Billy Wilder DVD Collection Online

January 21st, 2010 by helena1506387
Watch The Billy Wilder DVD Collection Online. Watch The Billy Wilder DVD Collection Online.

Movie Title: The Billy Wilder DVD Collection
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The Billy Wilder DVD Collection is available for streaming or downloading.

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For Billy Wilder fans, this is a must. Get this box set now before it is discontinued now that Sony distributes MGM’s library.

Sunset Boulevard, Some Like it Hot, Stalag 17, Double Indemnity. No, they’re not here. But The Apartment and Avanti are. And even a few so-so ones here are worth your time. Plus, look at that cute Mr Magoo-like graphic of Billy Wilder on the box’s cover. Complete opposite of the tough, hard-working little genius the guy was.

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Watch Deadlier Than the Male Online

January 19th, 2010 by helena1506387
Watch Deadlier Than the Male Online. Watch Deadlier Than the Male Online.

Movie Title: Deadlier Than the Male
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Deadlier Than the Male is available for streaming or downloading.

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If you like James Bond, get this movie.

Yes, this is the best of all the Bond knock-offs produced in the mid-to-late Sixties, and there were a lot of them! Unlike spoofs like Modesty Blaise and Casino Royale, Deadlier Than the Male is actually a good movie in its own right. The production values are higher than most other sub-Bond spy films of the period (although nowhere near as high as those of Mr. Bond himself), the acting is good, the action is good, and the script is witty. Elke Sommer (at her absolute hottest!) steals the show as a voluptious assassin, but Richard Johnson makes a darn good hero, too. His character’s relationship with his nephew is quite well-done, and a scene where the nephew brings a lady back to his uncle’s apartment is a comedic hightlight (somewhat reminiscent of The Pink Panther). The murders are all very creative (think Avengers) and rather violent for the time period. The setpieces are great, especially the climax where hero Bulldog Drummond faces the villain (an amazing Nigel Green) on a giant chessboard filled with oversize pieces. If you like Sixties James Bond movies, or the Pink Panther movies, or TV shows like The Avengers, you’ll like Deadlier Than the Male. (The Walker Brothers theme song is amazing, too, on par with many of the great Bond themes!) All in all, a great Bond-style action-comedy. Deadlier Than the Male is to Thunderball as XXX is to Die Another Day (only both those sixties movies are better to their 2002 counterparts). Bond in everything but name. (And budget.)

I’m so glad this movie is finally on DVD! As far as I know, it had never been officially released even on VHS before, so all I’d seen previously was a poor-quality bootleg. The dvd offers no features, and the print is a bit scratchy at times, but the widescreen transfer looks nice and it’s infinitely superior to the bootlegs! I’d like to see the sequel, Some Girls Do, released as well, though it’s nowhere near as good as this one.

“Deadlier Than the Male” certainly copies the James Bond movie formula–and star Richard Johnson, reputedly once considered for the role, looks like a cross between Sean Connery and Martin Landau. Ultimately, the film lacks enough stylish excitement to be a true Bond contender, though its jazzy score and myriad locations are on par with many 1960s adventures. It may even remind some viewers a bit visually of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1955 film, “To Catch a Thief.” Johnson plays Hugh “Bulldog” Drummond, a well-tailored investigator who drives an expensive car, lives in a swinging but upscale London flat, and beds every woman he’s interested in. If that sounds like Bond, the resemblance is understandable; Ian Fleming was likely inspired by the fictional Bulldog Drummond mysteries that preceded the Bond books. His quarry here is a two-woman assassination squad (luscious Elke Sommer and kooky Sylva Koscina) that is brutally knocking off contenders for a multi-million-dollar oil deal. Who is really behind the shady goings-on probably won’t surprise you, but some of the kinky violence might, even if much here is tame by contemporary standards and already familiar to “The Avengers” fans. “Deadlier Than the Male” works best when it lets the assassins be cold-blooded and Johnson relax and be naturally smooth (as he was in “The Haunting” and numerous other films); it breaks down with its frequently desert-dry, sometimes racist humor and often lethargic, oddly-edited action sequences. Though a climax on a human-sized chessboard is visually impressive, trying to make complete sense of how and why the characters react to it might challenge you. Perhaps the biggest flaw, though, is that despite being suave and handsome, Johnson fails to bring sparks to the romantic scenes; as a female friend told me, “Now I see why he didn’t get Bond.”

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Watch Jurassic Fight Club: Season One Movie Online

January 19th, 2010 by helena1506387
Watch Jurassic Fight Club: Season One Movie Online. Watch Jurassic Fight Club: Season One Movie Online.

Movie Title: Jurassic Fight Club: Season One
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Jurassic Fight Club: Season One is available for streaming or downloading.

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I can’t wait for this to come out on DVD! Right now, during the arid summer season, this is one of the best shows on TV. The build-up is fascinating, the experts (I love “Dinosaur George”) are eloquent and knowledgeable. The “fight” scenes are exciting to watch but, to me, the background info is what makes them exciting. It’s isn’t just conjecture, but studying the fossils, the behavior of living animals, etc. Then they put everything they learned on the scene in the finale. I’m on the edge of my seat by the time the end fight is played out.

One person gave “JFC” a single star, complaining about the accuracy of some of the material in the series. His qualification for doing so, he said, is his passion for dinosaurs, which I do not doubt. I would not presume to match knowledge with even a ten or 12-year-old dinosaur enthusiast…people who love dinosaurs tend to know a lot about them. It’s like the one “fantasy” we can indulge, because it’s seen as factual fantasy. If you’re into World of Warcraft or Middle Earth or comic books, it can be looked down on as nerdy and useless, whereas knowing the name of every Triassic predator…well, you’re still a nerd, but the knowledge itself seems less useless, because it’s about the real world. Or, a recreation of the real world, more accurately.

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And that was our one-starring critic’s complaint, that the recreators of this series played fast and loose with these ultimate cold cases (even using the language of crime scene investigation sometimes, to very mixed effect). There is no doubt that the producers and animators have taken some spectacular guesses and have extrapolated far beyond what the often meager evidence would allow. But this is NOT the O.J. Simpson trial. It is, largely, a thin sciency-sounding excuse to put on some fantastic battle scenes. Very few young boys (and many girls) will be immune to the excitement of watching two monsters clash. It’s Godzilla versus Mothra, except these fanatically enthusiastic paleontologists adding ringside color are legitimizing the whole thing with fossils and CAT scans and references to living animals.

And that’s the series’ undeniable strength. The enthusiasm, even passion, for learning that it could engender in some kids formerly only interested in completely imaginary monsters. Not that there’s anything wrong with imaginary monsters–I happen to like several. But to harness that imagination in the service of educated speculation in pursuit of more facts about our planet’s fascinating history seems an even more noble pursuit. This series has the capacity to ignite a passion for learning about dinosaurs.

Buy,Download, Or Stream Jurassic Fight Club: Season One! Click Here

My more substantive criticism of the “JFC” (I can’t write that without thinking of Jersey Fried Chicken) shows is that the battle scenes are too slight to merit their build-up. Working with usually sparse and fragmentary evidence and making gigantic hypothetical leaps takes up about 75 percent of the show, with the actual battle taking up only a quarter or so. The easy fix here would be to make it a half-hour show, which would put the science speculation in proper balance with the battle scenes.

I also think the paleontologists could provide a lot more warning about the nature of the guesses they are making without damaging their enthusiasm or the excitement of the show. There’s nothing wrong with saying, “We don’t have enough information to know, but we think something a little like this might have happened.” If anything, that might inspire a generation of budding paleontologists to work on creating techniques that would enable us to speculate with more and more plausibility.

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Three Colors Trilogy Movie Streaming

January 19th, 2010 by helena1506387
Three Colors Trilogy Movie Streaming. Three Colors Trilogy Movie Streaming.

Movie Title: Three Colors Trilogy
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Three Colors Trilogy is available for streaming or downloading.

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The late great Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski cleverly “adapted” the three French ideals — liberty, equality, fraternity — into three thought-provoking modern-day dramas about people who cope with personal losses and tragedies. In BLUE, the first of the trilogy, a widow tries to set herself free (and gain liberty) from her emotional baggages. The second film, WHITE, is about a jilted man’s outrageous plot to get even (thus, equality) with his ex-wife. The last film, RED, which is also Kieslowski’s final film before he died in 1996, is about a lonely old man who is embittered by the memories of his youth and finds accidental companionship (fraternity) with a young model. All three films are understated in their tone, economical in their dialogs, elliptical in their editing and plotting (there are some mind-boggling flashbacks and flash forwards in WHITE), and haunting in their atmosphere.

The references to the three French ideals are actually quite tenuous, and in fact more and more so as the trilogy progresses. BLUE is the only one that deals with the ideal of “freedom” (albeit emotional freedom) in a concrete way, inviting us to ponder its meanings and its attainability. WHITE treats the concept of “equality” in a rather subversive and satiric way, and it clearly wants us to rethink its meanings rather than accepting it at face value. And RED has to do with “fraternity” only circumstantially, and has more to do with the issue of destiny, and how our past is linked to our present. The three films are set not just in France, but also in Poland and Switzerland, and WHITE has primarily Polish dialogs. Hence, a sort of universality is intended.

The three films are also linked in various ways. All three films involve an unfaithful lover who dies, in one way or another. All three films involve a chance encounter between the distressed protagonist and a sympathetic observer — the widow and the mistress in BLUE, Karol and Mikolaj in WHITE, the retired judge and the model in RED. Both BLUE and WHITE are about people who move to new surroundings to escape from his or her troubled pasts. And RED, ironically, is about someone who never leaves his home in order to wallow in his self-pity.

Kieslowski had done this sort of thing before. In 1988, he “adapted” the Ten Commandments into ten one-hour, modern-day dramas, collectively titled DECALOGUE, that make us rethink the meanings of the commandments. In the segment for “Thou Shalt Not Steal,” for instance, we witness the kidnapping (the theft) of a child from her adopted parents by her natural mother, who thinks she has a right to her custody. Thus, it turns clear-cut moral ideals into real-world dramas that have no clear-cut solutions or judgments.

Miramax released long-awaited Region-1 DVDs for the Three Colors trilogy, and they all have superb video transfers and rewarding extra material. Kieslowski expert Annette Insdorf provides excellent running commentaries for all three films. She analyzes the visual, aural, and editorial techniques, the thematic significance, as well as how the final films deviate from their original screenplays. She points out that Kieslowski films often deal with abstract concepts, such as fate, death, and grief, in very concrete ways. She makes an observant remark about the apparent twist of fate in the opening of BLUE: if the hitchhiker were picked up by the family, the ensuing tragedy might not occur. She points out that the dream-like wedding scene in WHITE, which many assume is a flashback, could also be a flash forward (a very interesting, and plausible, notion). She offers her interpretations to the many symbolisms in the films, such as the frequent fades to black in BLUE, the recurring shot of a stooped old person at a garbage bin, the significance of the concerto music in BLUE, the tango theme in WHITE, and the bolero score in RED. She also explains the intentionally cryptic endings of WHITE and RED.

Each disc comes with several featurettes that comprise about 100 minutes of interviews and commentaries by the cast and crew, Insdorf, film critic Geoff Andrew, and film director Agnieszka Holland. The BLUE and WHITE discs also contain some early short films by Kieslowski: CONCERT OF WISHES, THE TROLLEY, THE FACE, THE OFFICE. All three discs contain a fascinating segment called “Kieslowski’s Cinema Lesson,” in which the director explains his intentions in one particular scene. The WHITE and RED discs contain behind-the-scenes footage of Kieslowski giving directions on the set. For Kieslowski fans, perhaps the most poignant clip in these supplements is that of Kieslowski announcing his retirement at the ‘94 Cannes festival, included on the RED disc.

The Three Colors Trilogy comprises 3 superb films (Bleu/Blanc/Rouge) by the late, great director Krzysztof Kieslowski. The films use the symbolism expressed by the colors of the French flag for their themes (liberty, equality, fraternity). The Three Colors is Kieslowski’s crowning achievement, and Rouge, his final film, is probably his masterpiece. That’s saying something, because some of his previous films (Decalogue, The Double Life of Veronique) are among the greatest films of the last 20 years! I saw Bleu (with Juliette Binoche) a long time ago and was very impressed. It’s a sad but beautful movie, about a composer’s widow and how she copes with life after his death. Blanc (with Julie Delpy) is about life for a man after he is unceremoniously dumped by his wife; it’s the lightest and most comedic of the three films. Rouge (with Irene Jacob) is my favorite and explores the melancholy (and platonic) relationship that develops between a young lady and an older man. Jacob is quite simply a goddess, and if you can tear your eyes away from her long enough to pay attention to the movie, you’ll find this is a thematically rich film with solid, subtle performances (Kieslowski was nominated for a Best Director Oscar for Rouge in 1995). I am lucky enough to own a DVD of Rouge which has a ton of extras (making of, deleted scenes, soundtrack samples, trailers, film-making lesson by the director, Cannes festival interviews, extended interviews with editor, director, and *sigh* Irene Jacob). I believe the upcoming Miramax DVDs retain these features (with subtitles), which are in French. More Americans should experience these films. They are so well-made and lovingly crafted that they put to shame all the multi-million dollar, shallow, explosion-fests routinely shovelled out by Hollywood nowadays. Next to Stanley Kubrick and Akira Kurosawa, Krzysztof Kieslowski’s death in the 1990s is one of the most tragic for cinema. Younger filmmakers should hope one day to approach even an iota of the MANY brilliant masterpieces created of these film masters. Watch The Three Colors Trilogy! This is film-making at its finest and totally a 5 STAR recommendation!

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Watch Shadows Movie Online

January 17th, 2010 by helena1506387
Watch Shadows Movie Online. Watch Shadows Movie Online.

Movie Title: Shadows
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Shadows is available for streaming or downloading.

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This is a great movie. Like it was made yeserday. Punk, beat in sensibility. About young people struggling on the fringes.

Also the review that follows mine is right. A guy named Ray Carney just wrote an amazing book about the movie that has incredible behind the scenes details that no one ever knew before. Cassavetes revealed them to Carney before he died in a Rosebud conversation. Check out the book titled Shadows and another titled Cassavetes on Cassavetes along with the film. It’s available here if you type in Cassavetes’ name under books. Also Carney has a web site that you should check out with lots of other Cassavetes material.

I love this movie! And the books about it.

This intense, hysterical, loud, sweet and sour film was NOT an IMPROVISATION despite the end title! Neither were Cassavetes other films, in the classic sense of IMPROV. Improv was sparringly used in the writing of the scripts, but Cassavetes was a WRITER who knew what he was doing more than people give him credit for. This is a major crime against one of the greatest artists of the last 100 years (wha? no, seriously). To get the real scoop, and an exhaustive, loving take on this important first film by an American original, check out the BFI Film Series edition on SHADOWS, which just came out. It breaks it down and builds it back up, in a way you won’t believe.

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