DVD

Average customer rating:

The Royals Side of the Death of Diana Saga
Great film, good performances, but not fully true to history
good flick--wonder if it's true
Great movie
The Queen for a Queen

The Queen
Starring: Helen Mirren , Michael Sheen , James Cromwell , Sylvia Syms , and Alex Jennings
Director: Stephen Frears
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( Q ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Last King of Scotland (Widescreen Edition)
Notes on a Scandal
Dreamgirls (Two-Disc Showstopper Edition)
The Good Shepherd (Widescreen Edition)
Night at the Museum (Widescreen Edition)

ASIN: B00005JPAO
Release Date: 2007-04-24

Amazon.com

Helen Mirren reigns supreme in The Queen, a witty and ingenious look at a moment that rocked the house of Windsor: the week that followed the sudden death of Princess Diana in 1997. Diana's death came at just the same time that Prime Minister Tony Blair (played by the bright Michael Sheen) was settling into his new government--and trying to figure out the delicate relationship between 10 Downing Street and Queen Elizabeth II (Mirren). A large portion of the British population was trying to figure out the Windsors that week, as Elizabeth remained stiff-upper-lip and largely mum about the death of the beloved princess. In Peter Morgan's skillful script, we watch as Blair grows increasingly impatient with the Royals, who are sequestered in their Scottish estate while the public demands some show of grief. Prince Philip (James Cromwell, in good form) clumsily decides to take Diana's sons hunting, while a sympathetically-treated Prince Charles (Alex Jennings) displays some frustration with his mother's eerie calm.

None of this conveys how funny the film is, or how deftly it flows from one scene to the next. Director Stephen Frears (Dirty Pretty Things) deserves great credit for that, and for the performances, and for the movie's marvelous sense of well-roundedness; you could see this movie and groan at the cluelessness of the Royals and their outmoded existence, or you might just sympathize with showing reserve in a world that values gross public displays of emotion. But either way, you'll marvel at Mirren, who makes the Queen far more alert and human than one might ever have imagined. --Robert Horton

Beyond The Queen

The British are Coming! Kings & Queens on DVD
Helen Mirren Essential DVDs
The Queen: Music From the Motion Picture by Alexandre Desplat

Stills from The Queen (click for larger image)

Description

Winner of the Academy Award® for Best Actress, Dame Helen Mirren gives a spellbinding performance in THE QUEEN, the provocative story behind one of the most public tragedies of our time — the sudden death of Princess Diana. In the wake of Diana's death, the very private and tradition-bound Queen Elizabeth II (Mirren) finds herself in conflict with the new Prime Minister, the slickly modern and image-conscious Tony Blair. THE QUEEN, also starring Academy Award® Nominee James Cromwell (Best Supporting Actor, BABE, 1995), takes you inside the private chambers of the Royal Family and the British government for a captivating look at a vulnerable human being in her darkest hour, as a nation grieving for its People's Princess waits to see what its leaders will do. Suspenseful, heartfelt and riveting, it's a fascinating story you won't soon forget.

Customer Reviews:

The Royals Side of the Death of Diana Saga.......2007-07-03

I think the movie is fair and reasonably balanced. with the exception of Helen Mirren and James Cromwell the rest of the film is horribly mi-cast. I remember in 1997 during " that week " wondering how the British people could turn on the Queen given Diana's antics from 1993-1997. My heart really went out for her when she had to come back to Buckingham Palace and read the silly notes left on flowers by people. After all her years of service from the age of 15 fixing British army trucks during the blitz during WWII to the hard resconstruction years after the war, devoting herself 24 hrs a day to the British people , what was going through her mind as she faced those crowds that day and had to hear their applause for making her come down from Balmoral I can only guess. I think what Tony Blair says about Diana & the Queen in this film was awesome, How could The Queen lead the world in mourning of a woman who threw everything she offered to her back in her face and in recent years has spent 24/7 trying to destroy all those things she holds dear ?. I think Christopher Hitchens documentary "Princess Diana: The Mourning After", hit the nail on the head. One thing I did not like about this movie was the way the Queen Mother was portrayed. Every Royal book written about her portrays her as 100% opposite the way this movie showed her. The producers of The Queen need to read some WWII history.

Great film, good performances, but not fully true to history.......2007-06-29

Love Helen Mirren, (and loved her as a younger Elizabeth I in the HBO 2-part series as well, look for it!)and all the cast is excellent as well. But after reading Tina Brown's Chronicles of Diana and YES I know its' a rehash of what we all "know" of those years and that particular soap opera, but the last chapters of the book after Diana's death, are fascinating in that they are the same time period shown in "the Queen". According to people who were there, servants, officials and the like, the emotional sense of how the family reacted toward the young princes, William and Harry, has none of the coldness and emotional "lets just get on with life" attitude implied in the film and in the review, top, which says "Prince Phillip clumsily tried to help by taking the boys hunting." (paraphrased). Well, these boys had spent their summer vacations riding and hunting at Balmoral all their lives, and this is what they thoroughly enjoyed. It wasn't something their stuffy old grandfather forced them to do. The book describes the entire Royal family rallying around the boys---Princess Anne, Charles' sister, brought her 20 yr old son and 16 yr old daughter, to help entertain their cousins, and she herself made a project of taking the very emotionally fragile Harry under her wing, and taking him riding and hiking out in the Balmoral hills alone. Charles pulled out family albums and spent time going over the past good times the family had had. Prince Phillip their grandfather, in particular, was very protective, showed "gruff tenderness" and did make sure they hunted,rode and kept active, as opposed to brooding and staying glued to the maudlin TV coverage. Actually, for the benefit of the boys, the Queen ordered all TVs and radios removed in the castle. The outdoors life is one the family is used to and enjoys. Those who criticised the Royals for having the boys there in Balmoral instead of exposing them to the hysterical crowds in London...well, I don't know which would give them more nightmares in years to come but I can guess. Also, other little tidbits in the book of that week were once when Prince Phillip came on the intercom when the decisions about the State funeral were being made and broke in, shouting, "those boys have just lost their mother...they are not a commodity..." Brown, the author quotes her source as saying "you could hear the voice of a real grandfather." Later, it was Prince Phillip, not Charles who talked the princes into walking in the moving spectacle of the royal men behind the cortege. He told the sobbing William, "If I walk, will you walk with me?" And during the long walk to the Cathedral, spoke quietly to the two boys of the famous sights they were passing, speaking softly the whole way there. All these vignettes, which would have made all the Royal more human, were left out of the film, good as it was, there was an agenda, that doesn't have to be spelled out. The Queen could admire a royal appearing stag, later shown beheaded...but her love and her husband's love for the grandsons was never shown, nor was the love of the whole family for the boys or for each other, despite all Diana had done to blacken the reputation of that family in the press. Not that they're perfect, just human.

good flick--wonder if it's true.......2007-06-29

Helen Mirren walks like the queen, talks like the queen, and ultimately quacks like her as well. Good performances.

Great movie.......2007-06-27

I liked this movie. It gave great insight into the inner workings of the palace at that time.

The Queen for a Queen.......2007-06-27

I bought this DVD for my mother as a birthday gift. My mother and the Queen are approximately the same age, and my mother identifies with Elizabeth because of the time span they shared. My mother thinks the movie is great and recommends it highly.

Cult Camp Classics 1 - Sci-Fi Thrillers (Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman 1958 / Giant Behemoth / Queen of Outer Space)

Average customer rating:

Extremely Fun Boxset
Outstanding treatment of 3 sci-fi camp classics
Good to see these films again
These are not real movies.....
What a bargain!

Cult Camp Classics 1 - Sci-Fi Thrillers (Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman 1958 / Giant Behemoth / Queen of Outer Space)
Starring: Allison Hayes , William Hudson , Yvette Vickers , Roy Gordon , and George Douglas
Director: Nathan Juran , Eugène Lourié , and Douglas Hickox
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Sci-Fi | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

Sci-Fi & Fantasy | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Cult Camp Classics 4 - Historical Epics (The Colossus of Rhodes / Land of the Pharaohs / The Prodigal)
Cult Camp Classics 2 - Women in Peril (The Big Cube / Caged / Trog)
Cult Camp Classics 3 - Terrorized Travelers (Hot Rods to Hell / Skyjacked / Zero Hour!)
Frankenstein Conquers the World / Frankenstein Vs. Baragon
The Classic Sci-fi Ultimate Collection (Tarantula / The Mole People / The Incredible Shrinking Man / The Monolith Monsters / Monster on the Campus)

ASIN: B000OHZJGO
Release Date: 2007-06-26

Amazon.com

Featuring three enjoyably "awful" movies from 1958-59, Cult Camp Classics, Vol. 1: Sci-Fi Thrillers turns nuclear radiation into cause for celebration, especially if you enjoy movies with extra cheese. With the Cold War in full swing and society's worries blamed on the threat of nuclear annihilation, sci-fi buffs (like future filmmakers Steven Spielberg, Joe Dante, and John Landis) could see a new monster movie almost every week. Many of them came from Allied Artists, the low-budget B-movie production company (formerly Monogram) that rose from the ghetto of "poverty row" distribution to produce countless exploitation thrillers between 1946 and 1979. The '50s saw the rise of nuclear monster thrillers, and Allied popularized the trend with its own menagerie of giant, irradiated creatures. The key to Allied's success was its crowd-pleasing combination of exploitable ingredients, and what better way to combine sci-fi, sex, and horror than to unleash a towering babe with an attitude problem? That's exactly what Allied did with Attack of the 50-Foot Woman, a now-classic campfest in which a spurned wife (Allison Hayes) is irradiated by a glowing alien space-ball, grows to a height of (you guessed it), and exacts revenge upon her cheating husband (William Hudson). A year before she bared her shapely backside as Playboy's Playmate of the Month for July 1959, Yvette Vickers costars as Hudson's scheming mistress, giving the film an extra boost of sex appeal. With bargain-priced effects including a giant floppy-fingered hand, hilarious process shots, and cheesy models destroyed by the world's biggest bitch (for whom it is still possible to feel some sympathetic compassion), the movie's not as good as its celebrated poster (which now adorns movie-geek T-shirts around the world), but it's still a lot of fun.

The Giant Behemoth was director Eugene Lourie's obvious attempt to capitalize on his 1953 hit The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, starring a gigantic paleosaurus rising from the Atlantic with a bad case of atomic radiation. London is the monster's eventual stomping ground, but the lumbering lizard is camera-shy for nearly an hour; you can imagine Beaver Cleaver and his pals groaning through seemingly endless scenes of talky exposition, anxiously awaiting the climactic stop-motion creature effects supervised by the legendary Willis (King Kong) O'Brien. Scoring much higher on the camp-o-meter, and far more entertaining, is the cult classic Queen of Outer Space, which borrows props and costumes from Forbidden Planet, Flight to Mars and World Without End for its outrageously kitschy plot about manly astronauts who crash-land on Venus and discover an underground society of mini-skirted space-babes. Unfortunately the disfigured Venusian queen (Laurie Mitchell) is a man-hater supreme, so the spectacularly costumed Zsa Zsa Gabor (as a Venusian scientist, no less) leads a revolution against her. With a screenplay by Twilight Zone veteran Charles Beaumont and a story credited (almost incredibly) to legendary playwright/screenwriter Ben Hecht (who surely never suspected his idea would eventually yield this movie), Queen of Outer Space is exactly what you'd expect it to be: So bad it's good, and more than worthy of inclusion in this irresistibly priced triple-feature set. --Jeff Shannon

On the DVDs
Three feature-length commentaries accompany the sci-fi thrillers in Cult Camp Classics, Vol. 1. Two of the commentaries are hosted by Tom Weaver, a noted authority on sci-fi and horror films whose historical acumen is more casual than academic: While sharing the commentary on Queen of Outer Space with the film's titular star Laurie Mitchell (who became a mainstay at fan conventions at Weaver's invitation), Weaver fails to explain how the production came to use props and costumes from the classic Forbidden Planet, and that's a glaring oversight. He compensates as an amiable interviewer with the equally good-natured Mitchell, and it's a treat to hear them enthusiastically reading unfilmed scenes from the film's original screenplay. For the commentary on Attack of the 50-Foot Woman, Weaver is joined by the film's comely costar Yvette Vickers (another regular at sci-fi conventions), and their combined anecdotes provide an adequate oral history of this camp-classic production. Star Wars veterans and special-effects masters Dennis Muren and Phil Tippett provide the loose-and-lazy commentary on The Giant Behemoth, which consists mostly of Muren making sarcastic jokes about the film's glacial pacing. It's hardly the authoritative commentary that some fans might've hoped for, but Muren and Tippett are well-versed in special-effects history (Muren even owns the original stop-motion Behemoth creature model), and they share an infectious enthusiasm for the films that inspired them to excel in their profession. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Extremely Fun Boxset.......2007-06-30

If you like 50's sci-fi, this set is a must have. Nice widescreen, anamorphic prints of all 3 films--50 Foot Woman and Giant Behemoth are b& w, Queen of Outer Space is in glorious Cinemascope color!

The Giant Behemoth is another solid 50's stop-motion effect giant monster movie, in the vein of Beast from 20,0000 Fathoms, The Black Scorpion and others. Very enjoyable.

Attack of the 50 Foot Woman is actually not as campily bad as it's usually hyped. The special effects are occasionally lackluster and do add a comedy element, but the acting, dialogue, cinematography and score are all decent. Pretty standard, fun 50's sci-fi.

Queen of Outer Space--now this is the camp classic! From this movie, I learned that the only women who don't welcome overt sexual harassment from leering, agressive men are the ones who are too hideously disfigured to be the object of said advances! Imagine Forbidden Planet, with all the cool special effects and engaging plot themes removed and replaced with lots of scantily-clad alien beauties and 50's era "battle of the sexes" dialogue--on the planet Venus, of course! Botchino! Botchino!

All in all, a very fun set for fans of 50's sci-fi.

Outstanding treatment of 3 sci-fi camp classics.......2007-06-27

This three-pack is an interesting collection of B features that are typical of what was churned out pretty regularly by some of the lesser studios that were capitalizing on the sci-fi films that were popular during the 1950's. These B pictures often came out campy, and these three are a best-of-breed collection that make for great fun. Like Dr. Johnny Fever whose DJ career took a plunge after he said the word "booger" on the air until he eventually landed at low-rent WKRP, you have to wonder how some of the talent involved in these productions wound up in this position. You've got bad directors gone worse, special effects artists going the way of Ed Wood, and girls gone wild - all the makings of some great cheesy fun. What is so great about this pack is that Warner Home Video cleaned up the video and audio on these films quite nicely, and even put commentary tracks on these films. Not even James Cagney merited a commentary track in his Signature Collection! The films and their features are as follows:

Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958)
A great case of camp and sci-fi meeting a love triangle. Poor little rich girl Nancy Archer has been drinking heavily since she found out her husband has been cheating on her, and it has recently caused her to do a stretch in an asylum - there was no such thing as substance abuse clinics back then. When Nancy drives off angrily into the desert one night she has an encounter with a very big alien who infects her with his largesse. Now we have a very big girl with one bad attitude on our hands intent on taking the nearby town apart to find her husband. I used to see this one on the UHF channels late at night back in the early 70's when I was babysitting. Great fun.
DVD Special Features:
Commentary by Yvette Vickers and film historian Tom Weaver
Subtitles: English & French (feature film only)

The Giant Behemoth (1958)
Here's another movie where metabolism has been altered, this time by science and radioactive fallout. This was one of the later giant creature movies of the 1950's, and it hasn't been as fondly remembered as its forerunner "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms", but it is still great fun. This time a giant brachiosaurus, greatly enlarged due to improperly dumped radioactive material, emerges from the sea and is intent on destroying London. The poverty row budget shows in this one in spite of the presence of some skilled technicians that had worked on King Kong and The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. Wires are often clearly visible, as is footage of one car being destroyed by the giant beast being used repeatedly in the movie as though they are different events.
DVD Special Features:
Commentary by veteran special effects creators Dennis Muren and Phil Tippett (The Academy Award winning visual effects and dinosaur supervisors of "Jurassic Park" provide insight into this ground-breaking stop-motion monster.)
Theatrical trailer
Subtitles: English & French (Feature Film Only)

Queen of Outer Space (1958)
This campy outer space movie has a captain and his crew landing on a planet where men are not allowed. However, not all of the residents of the planet are happy about this edict. Thus it comes down to the man-hating queen versus the planet's leading scientist (Zsa Zsa Gabor). To add to the suspense, like Marvin Martian, Queen Yllana wants to blow up the earth. Everyone in this film seems to know they are starring in a campy production and they are just having fun with it. This movie actually borrowed its sets, costumes, and special effects from "Flight To Mars", "Forbidden Planet", and "World Without End", and has a screenplay by the renowned Ben Hecht of all people.
DVD Special Features:
Commentary by Laurie Mitchell and film historian Tom Weaver
Theatrical Trailer
Subtitles: English & French (feature film only)

Good to see these films again.......2007-06-26

Prints for these films look fine, and it's good to see such modest movies cleaned up and given the DVD treatment, though some purists will question the minor letterboxing on "50 ft. Woman" and "Behemoth". Yvette Vickers commentary on "50 ft. Woman" is a treat. She remembers the film well and speaks fondly of it and of her time spent making the movie. Be aware though: the advertisements say the trailer for "Woman" is on the DVD, but for some reason it isn't. Strange: probably an oversight. "Behemoth" looks sharp and clear, but Dennis Muren and Phil Tippet's commentary does a great disservice. They clearly don't respect the film at all, and spend much of their time insulting it, even mocking it, before wrapping up with "well, I guess now we know why they never made a sequel to this movie." Wish they'd had some affection for the film, or had at least familiarized themselves with it before offering such caustic feedback. By the ninth or tenth time they say, "Ray Harryhausen would have done this SO MUCH better" the novelty wears thin, and one wonders what Harryhausen himself might have said about the movie. "Queen of Outer Space" has the novelty of color, and the surprising pedigree of a Ben Hecht screen story. Kudos to Warner Bros. for putting these films out, and yes, the "Behemoth" disc has the often cut ferryboat scene, for those who are interested. Too bad about the shoddy "Behemoth" commentary, but fans should enjoy thoroughly these long-awaited B movies.

These are not real movies............2007-06-23

real Movies have great casting and scripts to work with. None of these B-movies have any of that. They are not even scary. They are just so badly made and it;s no wonder that few if any of these actors ever found work again.

What a bargain!.......2007-06-08

If you enjoy 1950s campy B movies, then I don't see you going wrong here with this first set. For details just search each of the movie titles and you see each movie alone runs almost as much as this set and you will see from the reviews they are all kind of legends as far as the genre goes. They actually are some of the best of that period of B movies. I know I like all three of these in this set. I can say I compare the "50 ft Woman" to the "War of the Colossal Beast" and "The Giant Behemoth" to "Beast from 20,000 Fathoms". The last one with Zsa Zsa Gabor on the planet of women is not to be missed if nothing more than to see how far we had plunged into skimpily clad women with bad lines in B class SciFi moviedom. Hmmm does B stand for bad? Well even if it does these movies are entertaining for most fans of science fiction.

The first two movies in the set are black and white movies but they look like they have been gone over and cleaned up. "Queen of Outer Space" is in color and very clear and sharp. I got my set a few days ago so my wife and I watched the first two in the set a couple nights ago and the third last night. All the DVDs are sharp and clear. Each had a commentary available by someone in the movie. "Does anyone know if the costumes, sets, and music for "Queen of Outer Space" was done by people that later worked on "Star Trek"? The mens uniforms and radios definitely looked like they came from the "Forbidden Planet" wardrobe. I'm definitely glad I got this set.

Average customer rating:

Why mess with perfection?
Sub-par Plot and Production Reduce a Great Story Into So-so Movie
Esther
A better attempt than most...
FLOWERS, STARS AND ROMANCE - BUT VERY LITTLE TRUTH

One Night With the King
Starring: Tiffany Dupont , Luke Goss , John Noble , Omar Sharif , and John Rhys-Davies
Director: Michael O. Sajbel
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Religion | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( O ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Facing the Giants (Widescreen)
The Nativity Story
Love's Abiding Joy
The Pursuit of Happyness (Widescreen Edition)
The Guardian

ASIN: B000JJSJO6
Release Date: 2007-01-30

Amazon.com

The moving biblical tale of Esther--a humble Jewish girl who saved her people from annihilation and won the heart of the handsome Persian king Xerxes--is the subject of One Night with the King, a lush ode to one of the Old Testament's most inspiring women. Esther, played with spark and confidence by Tiffany Dupont, could perhaps be said to be the first career woman to "have it all"--while also serving her people, and God. The film, shot on location in India, has the feel of the great epics of the '60s--a sensation underscored by the appearance, in small but pivotal roles, of both Omar Sharif and Peter O'Toole. (Even Raiders of the Lost Ark's John Rhys-Davies--"Bad dates!"--echoes earlier desert adventures.) But the film belongs to the willful Esther, who navigates among war, bloodlust, persecution, and terror with the strength of knowing she's serving the Lord, and her people. If the film has a few anachronisms--including the young Esther's suitor, who has blonde streaks and a surfer-dude delivery ("The market was rilly busy today")--its heart and its focus never waver. Fans of biblical tales and well-made drama for the entire family shouldn't miss it. --A.T. Hurley

Description

One Night with the King is a sweeping epic about Hadassah, the young Jewish girl who becomes the Biblical Esther, Queen of Persia.

Despite her position, Hadassah's life is in danger, as the state has decreed that all Jews will be put to death. Defying warnings to remain silent, however, Hadassah struggles to save her people, evens as she seeks to win the heart of the king, in this exciting and inspiring story about destiny.

Customer Reviews:

Why mess with perfection?.......2007-06-27

I more or less enjoyed the film, previewing it once myself and then presenting it as part of a Movie Night at my church. Tiffany Dupont was charming.

But why were there changes made to the story to make it more Hollywoodized? If there was ever a perfect story to present just as it was in the original, this would have to have been one of them!

I found the political intrigue of the movie to be confusing, and frankly, part of the reason for that is that you can't always understand what the actors are saying. The reason they contrived for the queen to dishonor the king's command to appear seemed artificial and unbelievable, at least to me--a 21st-century antiwar message stuffed uncomfortably into a warrior society. And the final confrontation between the king and the queen and the antagonist was nothing like the scripture text.

But altogether I recommend it. It was wholesome family entertainment that harkened back to the Scriptures; what's not to recommend? Even more, though--read the original. A better story than the screenplay, with the added benefit of being true!

Sub-par Plot and Production Reduce a Great Story Into So-so Movie.......2007-06-25

"One Night With the King" is a movie that looks like it wanted to be more than it turned out to be. Based on the story of a woman obeying God for the benefit of her people, the Jews, despite the promise of great peril, "One Night With the King" misses the mark.

Her story is well-known to any student of ancient literature, CCD or Sunday school. It is up there with Jonah, Noah, Adam and Eve, and the death and resurrection of Jesus. Even agnostics and atheists who are versed in the classics can provide the plot. With this, there are expectations: bring a major story to film and treat it properly.

With lines that come across stiff and stuffy, characters become cartoons, and do not live as real people. How can we believe actors speaking in a mock Shakespearean dialect? I couldn't.

Esther was flirtatious, flighty and yet bold from the first moment. Her character reminded me of Princess Jasmine in Disney's "Aladdin." This is not the unassuming future leader we read about, but a different Esther. When the grand decision must be made, she does not struggle in mortal angst as did the biblical version.

The plot itself didn't merit a long movie. A shorter piece, maybe 90 minutes, would have sufficed.

I felt like I was watching "The Robe," in all its effort to send a message, gets lost in a mediocre script.

Esther is a great story in its original form that has incredible big screen potential. Too many liberties were taken, and the production quality was sub-par. It was not a horrible movie, but I won't give it a pass just because I'm a Christian wanting to see biblical stories in film.

Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com

Esther.......2007-06-22

I don't feel like the changes they made in the story are a personal attack on Christianity, Judaism, or God. Hollywood always changes stories. The Hollywood versions of any of the Mark Twain books remove all humor before they pass it on to us. If it is a personal attack on God then it is a personal attack on Mark Twain too. It is up to us to read the book for the things they couldn't fit in the movie.

Someone suggested that it plays too romantic trying to reach girls for its audience. Hello! I've never known a man to say that Esther is his favorite book in the Bible. Every woman I know who reads the Bible claims it as one of, if not, their favorite book.

I enjoyed the movie even if it didn't follow the Bible exactly. It was infinitely better than what is passing for romantic movies these days. They didn't have to have some sleazy side-kick doing and saying gross things to try to make the main character look good. I for one appreciated having a movie that I could trust not to be smarmy before I ever entered the theater. I intend to buy it.

If any Christian movie makers are reading this, by all means tackle Ruth. I would definitely go see it and buy it.
If you decide to tackle David, please I beg of you find a way to capture his relationship with God pre-Bathsheba.
The story of David and Abigail could be really romantic I Samuel 25 then in I Samuel 30 when the Amalekites had stolen Abigail and the other wives and possessions of him and all his men and how he handled it because of his extraordinary relationship with God. There is a lot of potential there.

A better attempt than most..........2007-06-03

Overall, I enjoyed this movie, it was a better attempt than most to stay close to the Biblical account of Esther. I think it's understandable that some dialogue & even characters would be added to flesh out the story to make a movie, but I only gave it 4 stars because the film makers did make at least one major mistake in this area. The special pendant which she treasures (not a part of the Bible account) was received as a birthday present from her parents. If they had done their research, they would have found that the Jews did not celebrate birthdays at this time in history; they considered it to be a custom practiced by the pagan nations surrounding them. That was the most glaring mistake I noticed. The movie had some interesting explanations for how Esther caught the king's eye in the first place, & later, for why she hadn't been called to him in a while, why she would be so hesitant to approach him, details that aren't given in the Bible account. Overall, I enjoyed the movie & would recommend it.

FLOWERS, STARS AND ROMANCE - BUT VERY LITTLE TRUTH.......2007-06-02

One Night With The King is a pretty film, and a romantic film, but it is not a Christian film. The production design team has gone overboard trying to make the film appeal to girls. I can't remember the last time I saw so many flowers on screen, unless it was Doctor Zhivago. And the writer, basing his script on the novel by Mark Andrew Olsen, has gone overboard to make the story as romantic as possible, also appealing to girls. It is a romantic extravaganza.

But the story of Esther, as it comes from the Bible, is not a romance. It is a political thriller, if anything. On the one hand, we have Xerxes, the young king of Persia, who needs a new wife because the previous one was disrespectful and disobedient. On the other, we have Haman, an ambitious man who, because Mordecai won't give him the respect he thinks he deserves, is driven by jealousy to destroy Mordecai and his people. And then there is Esther, the young woman caught in the middle, who comes into the king's court, "for such a time as this." As circumstances turn out, only she can save Mordecai and her people from Haman, and she does so by using her position as the king's new bride.

While there is opportunity to glamorize court life and make marriage to the king something to daydream about, the main plot is one of genocide, equal to the Holocaust. To play that down in order to give the girls a little romance betrays the heart of the story. I don't believe Esther was the silly teenager portrayed by Tiffany Dupont. Nor do I think Xerxes was the star-struck romantic portrayed by Luke Goss. And Tommy 'Tiny' Lister, who plays Hegai, the Royal Eunuch, is just plain terrible. Why in the world would they have cast someone with a speech impediment in such an important role? Most of what he says is totally garbled.

The simple, straightforward story as it comes to us from the Bible has been so altered and convoluted that it is almost unrecognizable as the story of Esther. Characters' motivations have been changed, there are key characters, like Prince Admantha, that don't even exist in the original, and the plot has been changed to a different story entirely. Most of the characters end up in the same place as the Bible story, but how they get there is totally different.

What is really unforgivable is the fact that, rather than letting God be the hero of the story, the filmmakers introduce a magical pendant that produces stars of David on the wall. According to the new plot, the magic pendant is actually responsible for changing Xerxes mind, not God, because when he gives the reason to Esther, he says, "I saw the stars." God is not even involved in delivering His people. Even though God's name is not mentioned in the book of Esther, we all know who delivers the Jews in the end. It's not a magic pendant. That's a different religion.

Why would Fox Faith change a story that has become one of the most beloved in both Jewish and Christian tradition? Why would they base it on a novel instead of the Bible account, which is so clear? Why would they spend so much money on sets and costumes, and then ignore script, directing and acting. And why would they introduce a magic pendant into the story? This film is a real mystery.

Conclusion? Fox Faith has laid a big, expensive egg, and one on which they probably won't get their money back. To date, it's made less than $14 M domestically. Any more like this, and they can close down their new "Christian" division. Maybe they should get some real Christian filmmakers in there to show them what a Christian film is, plus some decent directors, writers and actors. Anything but what they're using now.

Waitsel Smith

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (Extra Frills Edition)

Average customer rating:

A must see
must see
Hugo Weaving is adorable!
A bus they name Priscilla
"I Love The Nightlife. . . I want to boogie"

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (Extra Frills Edition)
Starring: Alan Dargin , Bill Hunter , Ken Radley , Terence Stamp , and Hugo Weaving
Director: Stephan Elliot
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Gay & Lesbian | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything Julie Newmar
The Birdcage
Muriel's Wedding
The Adventures Of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Torch Song Trilogy

ASIN: B000OPOAKC
Release Date: 2007-06-05

Amazon.com essential video

A surprise hit in America, this 1994 Australian comedy is anchored by Terence Stamp as a transsexual who, in the company of two drag queens, travels to a remote desert location to put on a lip- synch performance--to the amazement of the locals. Getting there on a pink bus named Priscilla, the trio stop and play for people all over the Outback, getting the same homophobic, bewildered responses. The weak link in the film is dialogue that seems to have been pulled from "Queer Movie Banter for Dummies," all bitchy and cliché-ridden but fortunately salvaged by strong acting. The most fun comes whenever the three are performing; fans of Abba will be particularly pleased. The DVD release has optional full-screen and widescreen presentations, cast and crew bios, optional French and Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh

Description

They came. They conquered. They looked fabulous. This wonderfully inventive, visually stunning and incomparably funny Australian import about three drag performers braving the vast, rugged outback won the 1994 Academy Award(r) for Costume Design. Veteran actor Terence Stamp (Star Wars: The Phantom Menace), Hugo Weaving (The Matrix), Guy Pearce (L.A. Confidential) all give hilarious ? and heartfelt ? performances in a three-fishes-outta-water story that's "one of the wildest movies ever made" (Rex Reed, New York Observer)! With a contract to perform a drag show way out in the Australian desert, Tick (Weaving), Adam (Pearce) and Ralph (Stamp) each has his own reason for wanting to leave the safety of Sydney. Christening their battered pink tour bus "Priscilla," this wickedly funny and high-drama trio head for the Outback...and into crazy adventures in even crazier outfits. You go, girls!

Customer Reviews:

A must see.......2007-06-27

This is a great movie and a must see. This is much better then what was on TV. Better color and like the extra parts not shown on TV.

must see.......2007-05-24

The original To Wong Foo, really worth a spin. Terrance Stamp and cast are good for a laugh.Drags a bit in spots (pardon the pun), but worth it just to see the costumes, better yet the Aussie wit.

Hugo Weaving is adorable!.......2007-04-16

This is a great movie if you're into this sort of thing. I'm a fan of Rocky Horror and Hedwig and the Angry Inch so I like to add this to the list. Although all three are very different they each have great music. I love the character interaction. Everyone seems to be so comfortable. Great movie!

A bus they name Priscilla.......2007-04-04

There was a real trend in the mid nineties with films like "The Birdcage," "Too Wong Foo," "Its my Party," and "Love! Valor! Compassion!" exploding onto the screen as America began to feel more at ease with its gay brothers and sisters. And as we watched these movies, a whole `Gay Comic Genre' was really born. Also we can't forget about the popularity of gay stand up at that same time.

"Priscilla" did indeed avail itself of this trend, and every gay humor trick in the book. It also managed to slip us some really amazing visual, comic and compassionate moments. Except for rabid, card-carrying homophobes, this Australian road-movie-with-a-difference is a charmer. The three are: aging transsexual Bernadette (Terence Stamp), youngish occasional bisexual Tick or Mitzi (Hugo Weaving) and gay-all-the way Adam or Felicia (Guy Pearce), the youngest.

The trio's specialty is to appear on-stage dressed in the most outrageous, garish, feathery female outfits, undulate and sort of dance while lip-synching to 1970s disco songs, from ABBA to whatever comes close to Z. They do their lavish karaoke excellently, and the musical selections are a constant treat. Bernadette is the wisest and quietest of the three, and most serious --she hardly ever cracks a smile. Mitzi is a bit mercurial, sometimes solemn, and sometimes buoyant. Felicia, the wildest of the bunch, is full of animal spirits, a prankster who gets often on the others' nerves. But still, there is essential harmony among those divergent types.

Remarkably, their characters, with all the flamboyance, misadventures, mean hearted blokes, and desert creatures (not to mention some very musical Aborigine) kept them admirably cool, show quiet tenacity and retain their sense of humor, so that no matter what the circumstances, there is never panic or hysteria. In a peculiar way, this steadiness blends in well with the beautiful, barren landscapes which often take on a surreal look. This is an entertaining and touching movie. Recommended to anyone with a great sense of humor!

"I Love The Nightlife. . . I want to boogie".......2007-04-02

Considering the scarcity of honest to goodness real looks at the drag queen world from the movie camera angle, this movie is a flower above the rest. All three involved on the long open road trek aboard the "S.S. Priscilla" are totally involving and do not allow a moment for the audience to ho-hum. Like Bernadette comments, "Yes. . a bloody good performer 7 days a week."
My only critical observance is that, being I have been to some real live authentic drag shows myself, I have observed mostly professional like performances with the best of them. And considering that this troop of gals is on high par with the elite Le Girls, I sometimes wonder why they allow their final antics after each performance sink into a yearning for audience approval of where they just performed. Most real professional performing drag queens do not sink into a quest of approval, or wanting to be loved, especially after they just brought the house down to the knees of the dance idolizing fans before them. Usually the performances that triggered enthusiastic crowds brought high applause rather than discerning jestures, odd looks, and a raving audience isolated in the dark corners of the theater. These are not the real drag shows that I have seen, that belted swell songs and left audiences gasping for more.
Other than that, this movie is far better than the rest in drag show material, behind the scenes, and around the tour bus that ventures where no drag queens have dared gone before.

Average customer rating:

Excellent Investment
That's Entertainment!
A great bargain
Beatles Anthology
A Must Have for Any Beatles Fan

The Beatles Anthology
Starring: John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison , Ringo Starr , and Neil Aspinall
Director: Kevin Godley , Bob Smeaton , and Geoff Wonfor
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Pop | Styles | Music

Folk Rock | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Psychedelic Rock | Classic Rock | Styles | Music

British Invasion | Classic Rock | Styles | Music

Album-Oriented Rock (AOR) | Classic Rock | Styles | Music

General | Music Video & Concerts | Genres | DVD | Video

DTS | Music Video & Concerts | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

DTS | Fully Loaded DVDs | Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Documentary | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Music Video & Concerts | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Deals Over $10 | DVD Blowouts | Stores | DVD | Video

All Blowouts | DVD Blowouts | Stores | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

A Hard Day's Night
Imagine (Deluxe Edition)
The Beatles Anthology
Anthology 2
A Concert for George

ASIN: B00008GKEG
Release Date: 2003-04-01

Amazon.com

Initially broadcast as a TV miniseries to go with the series of three Anthology double-CD albums, this set of eight documentary tapes has the heft and scope of one of Ken Burns's expansive projects. Still, unless you are either a historian or a truly committed fan, you'll find yourself with way more material--particularly about the Beatles' early lives as lads in Liverpool--than you'll want to watch. The documentary material is copious, including early performance films and tapes, at the point before they found their true voices. The actual Beatlemania years--beginning in 1963 and concluding in 1970--feature extensive performance films, as well as home movies and archival material. The best parts, of course, are the interviews with the Beatles themselves, who produced the entire thing. Along with reworking two previously unreleased John Lennon tracks as "new Beatles songs," the Anthology includes some unseen Lennon interview tapes so that his acerbic voice can be heard as well. This stands as a comprehensive document of that heady period, the second coming of rock & roll, as the Beatles took what Elvis had started and expanded upon it exponentially. The tapes give a solid sense of the historical context and the way these four musicians changed the world around them in the 1960s. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Investment.......2007-06-27

I love, love the Beatles, and this DVD set is awesome. I bought it as a gift for my sister, but I watch it too.

That's Entertainment!.......2007-05-22

People, please. What could be more entertaining than hours upon hours of the Beatles telling their story? I have watched this many times, and never tire of it. If you are a fan, you are missing out if you don't see this. And the bonus material is great too - Paul George and Ringo jamming and reminscing - wow!

A great bargain.......2007-05-16

This Beatles Anthology DVD set is a great bargain because when it originally came out in the mid 90's on VHS tapes it was about $120 more. I still have a catalog from then to prove it. I was very impressed with the sound quality. The best sound quality I've ever heard Beatles music presented in. Makes me wish my old Beatles CDs sounded that good. On alot of my other DVD's I have to crank the volume way up to get any decent audio. The only thing I didn't like is that during some of the songs like "Revolution" & "Hey Jude" there is talking. I'm interested in what they have to say but not during the songs. And it doesn't seem to have a feature where you can just play the music videos. But I guess it's supposed to be a documentary & not a collection of music videos. Also I seem to recall some minor scenes when I saw it on TV in 1995 that weren't on the DVD, like the reunited Beatles in the 90's admiring one of the member's fancy car.

Beatles Anthology.......2007-05-16

This was a great price for a great product. I have really enjoyed watching all the episodes and learning more about the Beatles. The interviews with each of the members help give a personal perspective to the events surrounding the Beatles' amazing popularity. A great buy!

A Must Have for Any Beatles Fan.......2007-04-23

Anthology is the history of the Beatles as told by the Beatles. It is the story of the Beatles from when they were young boys in Liverpool to when they recorded their last album, and everything in between. It is not only told through their words and interviews, but by their music, their movies and live performances, including their first concert at Shea Stadium and their appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show, just to name a few. Anthology also comes with a bonus disc of extras which includes the making of Anthology and the recording of the two latest Beatles singles, "Free as a Bird" and "Real Love". Anthology is 10 hours of pure joy for anyone who likes the Beatles. Just sit back, watch, listen and enjoy!

Average customer rating:

A wonderful Import~ Stop Bitching!
Things aren't always what they seem
Please release this DVD in Region 1
African Queen
The African Queen

The African Queen [IMPORT]
Starring: Theodore Bikel , Humphrey Bogart , Walter Gotell , Katharine Hepburn , and Richard Marner
Director: John Huston
Manufacturer: Castaway Nw UK
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Romantic Adventure | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (Two-Disc Special Edition)
The Maltese Falcon (Three-Disc Collector's Edition)
Casablanca
The Queen
The Bridge on the River Kwai

ASIN: B000GJ2882
Release Date: 2006-10-31

Customer Reviews:

A wonderful Import~ Stop Bitching!.......2007-06-23

Yes, there is not a US edition of The African Queen. So be happy with what we have got in this Asian import. The picture and sound are just fine. The DVD played perfectly in my player, and turing off the subtitles were as easy as reading the instructions on the menu.

So until we get the 2 disc special editon here in the US, order this import edition. It's a must and well worth the money.

Things aren't always what they seem.......2007-06-22

Be somewhat forgiving in criticizing movie releases. It is my understanding that the copyrights for "The African Queen" is privately held which may be why it has never been released on DVD in the USA,i.e., the copyright owner has not released their rights for reproduction. Just recently "Marie Antoinette" with Norma Shearer was put to DVD and that movie, although not on par with "The African Queen" is one of my favorites. Again, the copyright may have been privately held which precluded earlier adaptation to DVD.

Also, I agree with the reviewer regarding "Widescreen". The old movies will not come out in widescreen because that is not how they were filmed.

Please release this DVD in Region 1.......2007-06-22

I just wanted to add in my support of having this DVD released in the US. There is so much crap out there on DVD - why are the classics being held back? I would buy this in a second if it were given a proper release.

African Queen.......2007-06-12

DVD was good til the last 5 minutes or so, then it started to skip. I reversed for a few minutes and restarted and this time it went all the way to the end without a problem. I will watch it again and if the problem occurs again, I will send it back for a replacement or refund.

The African Queen.......2007-06-11

Received the wrong CD Rom/DVD. Was sent The Jacksons instead of what I ordered....The African Queen.

Have not heard back from the merchant and it has been 3 weeks. Very disappointed. Will not purchase any other DVD's.

Judi Feldman

Ice Age - The Meltdown (Widescreen Edition)

Average customer rating:

My son just loves it and have been watching again and again
good comedy
amm6
Funny and entertaining!
Amazing Blu-ray DVD and Really entertaining animation for the whole family!

Ice Age - The Meltdown (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Queen Latifah , Denis Leary , John Leguizamo , Jay Leno , and Will Arnett
Director: Carlos Saldanha
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Animation | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

Fantasy | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

Feature Films | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( I ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Cars (Widescreen Edition)
Over the Hedge (Widescreen Edition)
Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
X-Men - The Last Stand (Widescreen Edition)
Superman Returns (Two-Disc Special Edition)

ASIN: B000GUJZ00
Release Date: 2006-11-21

Amazon.com

The love life of a woolly mammoth--handled with G-rated delicacy--drives this sequel to the first computer-animated romp in the age of prehistoric mammals. While the first Ice Age took a delightful premise and suffocated it with a formulaic plot--in which a mammoth named Manfred (voiced by Ray Romano, Everyone Loves Raymond), a sloth named Sid (John Leguizamo, Moulin Rouge!), and a sabre-tooth tiger named Diego (Denis Leary, Rescue Me) helped an abandoned human infant return to its tribe (basically, Three Mammals and a Baby)--the sequel takes the now-familiar setting, gives it a shapeless, episodic storyline, and yet somehow becomes pretty darn entertaining. Faced with the threat of a flood from melting ice, our heroic trio are on the run to escape from their blossoming valley. On the way, they meet a female mammoth (Queen Latifah, Bringing Down the House) who thinks she's an opossum and get menaced by some freshly defrosted carnivo! rous fish. Add into the mix a herd of lava-worshipping mini-sloths, some Busby Berkeley-style vultures, and more ingenious slapstick featuring the acorn-crazed Scrat, and Ice Age: The Meltdown will amuse even jaded adults. -- Bret Fetzer

Beyond Ice Age: The Meltdown

Ice Age - Super Cool Edition
Ice Age & Ice Age 2: The Meltdown - (DVD 2-Pack)
Funtastic Adventures Collection Box Set (Ice Age / Robots / Fern Gully / Once Upon a Rainforest)

Stills from Ice Age: The Meltdown (click for larger image)

Description

Your favorite sub-zero heroes are back for another incredible adventure in the super-cool animated comedy Ice Age the Meltdown! The action heats up?and so does the temperature?for Manny, Sid, Diego and Scrat. Trying to escape the valley to avoid a flood of trouble, the comical creatures embark on a hilarious journey across the thawing landscape and meet Ellie, a female woolly mammoth who melts Manny's heart. With its dazzling animation, unforgettable characters and an all-new Scrat short, Ice Age: The Meltdown is laugh-out-loud fun for the whole family!

Customer Reviews:

My son just loves it and have been watching again and again.......2007-06-27

Not only my son loves to watch this DVD, My wife and I enjoyed watching too. This one is definitely much better than the previous one of the series. The story line is very well composed and can tightly grasp the viewers. It's not only a fun movie for kids but also for adults.

I think this one is one of the classics.

good comedy.......2007-06-17

Hmmm..... I thought Ray Romano was the star of the movie? After all, he's the one who played the voice for the main character, a giant self-conscious mammoth. For some reason, amazon doesn't list his name as one of the stars.

Hard to believe, but I didn't know what a mammoth was before watching this movie. At least, I didn't know they were huge elephant-like creatures.

The animation in the film is probably the main highlight, and the thing most likely to grab your attention. Why? Because there's nothing else like it. It's almost life-like. In fact, the atmosphere is nearly identical to the empty and quiet sound you'd hear if you were to step outside and walk through a giant icy land. Every time the squirrel tries to retrieve his nut, you're treated to an eerie silence, with no music playing- just sound effects. Very unsettling sound.

Anyway, despite that, this is mostly a childrens movie. Adults might find it funny for a few of the lines from all the movie stars that give their voices for the animal characters. It's funny and exciting, and that's what a good animation film is supposed to do to be a success.

amm6.......2007-06-08

I bought this for my great grandson for his birthday. I'm sure he and his brothers enjoyed it.

Funny and entertaining!.......2007-06-04

A nice entertaining family movie! The squirrel is even funnier than before. Would buy again. Watched over and over.

Amazing Blu-ray DVD and Really entertaining animation for the whole family! .......2007-05-21

I have to tell you that I have watched the standard dvd version and I thought it was great. I then bought the "Blu-ray" Version and it is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! Excellent picture quality. But, (don't you hate it when there's a "but") I wasn't able to hear the audio on my Sony 5.1 Dolby Digital Receiver because it was presented in DTS instead, The French and the Spanish Audios were both both presented in 5.1 Dolby Digital but the English only in DTS and NO 5.1 Dolby. But why? that was a little disappointing. So I was finally able to find a way to go to the DVD player manu ( I own the newest Samsung BD-P1200 BD player) and switch the audio to PCM instead of Bitsream. Otherwise, the disc menu did not have an option for English unless you have a DTS receiver.

SUMMARY:

Pros:
1) Funny and entertaining Movie.
2) Excellent Picture quality.
3) One of the very best Blu-ray DVD.

Cons:
1) Price-why pay about $28 for ONE movie, when most competing HD DVD's sells for $19.95 and for $27 you get a Combo DVD that plays on Both HD DVD and standard and still offer and DELIVER more advanced Audio and Video encoding.
2) No English Dolby Digital Audio Support.

Average customer rating:

Shallow and Frivolous
Chicago IS jazz hot!
Loved it -- Fantastic Music and Great Cinematography
Great Musical!
Bob Fosse lives on!

Chicago (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Christine Baranski , Colm Feore , Richard Gere , Catherine Zeta-Jones , and Queen Latifah
Director: Rob Marshall
Manufacturer: Miramax Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Musicals & Performing Arts | Genres | DVD | Video

DTS | Fully Loaded DVDs | Features | DVD | Video

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Moulin Rouge! (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Cabaret
Chicago
All That Jazz - Music Edition
The Phantom of the Opera (Two-Disc Special Edition)

ASIN: B00005JLSE
Release Date: 2003-08-19

Amazon.com

Bob Fosse's sexy cynicism still shines in Chicago, a faithful movie adaptation of the choreographer-director's 1975 Broadway musical. Of course the story, all about merry murderesses and tabloid fame, is set in the Roaring '20s, but Chicago reeks of '70s disenchantment--this isn't just Fosse's material, it's his attitude, too. That's probably why the movie's breathless observations on fleeting fame and fickle public taste already seem dated. However, Renée Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones are beautifully matched as Jazz Age vixens, and Richard Gere gleefully sheds his customary cool to belt out a showstopper. (Yes, they all do their own singing and dancing.) Whatever qualms musical purists may have about director Rob Marshall's cut-cut-cut style, the film's sheer exuberance is intoxicating. Given the scarcity of big-screen musicals in the last 25 years, that's a cause for singing, dancing, cheering. And all that jazz. --Robert Horton

Description

Winner of six Academy Awards(R) (2003) including Best Picture, and starring Academy Award nominee (Best Actress, CHICAGO) and Golden Globe winner (Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy, CHICAGO) Renée Zellweger (BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY), Academy Award winner (Best Supporting Actress, CHICAGO) Catherine Zeta-Jones (TRAFFIC), Academy Award nominee (Best Supporting Actress, CHICAGO) Queen Latifah (BRINGING DOWN THE HOUSE), Golden Globe winner (Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy, CHICAGO) Richard Gere (UNFAITHFUL), and Academy Award nominee (Best Supporting Actor, CHICAGO) John C. Reilly (GANGS OF NEW YORK) -- CHICAGO is a dazzling spectacle cheered by audiences and critics alike! At a time when crimes of passion result in celebrity headlines, nightclub sensation Velma Kelly (Zeta-Jones) and spotlight-seeking Roxie Hart (Zellweger) both find themselves sharing space on Chicago's famed Murderess Row! They also share Billy Flynn (Gere), the town's slickest lawyer with a talent for turning notorious defendants into local legends. But in Chicago, there's only room for one legend! Also starring Lucy Liu (CHARLIE'S ANGELS).

Customer Reviews:

Shallow and Frivolous .......2007-06-28

After many years of wanting to see this film, I finally got a chance to view it. I like musicals and loved Moulin Rouge, so I thought I'd give this one a try. However, after viewing, I was a bit puzzled at all the fuss and acclaim this movie received and continues to receive.

Chicago, while visually stunning and artistically impressive (in that the actors did their own singing), is a shallow, cynical, superficial, and unsympathetic story. Most movies rely upon story and plot for their strength; not so Chicago, whose only redeeming quality is the song and dance they put on.

The main problem with the story is that there are virtually no sympathetic main characters. To take that a step further, the main characters are all frauds, and the story's message is shallow. The two somewhat redeeming characters, Roxie's husband and the woman who is hanged, are both pretty much invisible and discarded in the film. Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly are both in jail for murder, and both have hopes and dreams of making it, being a big star, and having people adore them, so they call upon a slimebag attorney, Billy Flynn, to help them out. Roxie and Velma take turns lying and deceiving each other so they can get the fame in Chicago. Roxie openly admits she cheated on her husband, is oblivious to the fact that he's spent his life savings to get her a lawyer, and uses every trick in the book (including pretending that she has an illegitimate child) to ensure that she is the center of the newspaper headlines. Velma is a conceited fame-hungry snob who bribes the prison ward and only sucks up to Roxie when she realizing she is losing the fame war. From here we have a battle over popularity, as the two think of shenanigans to steal the headlines from each other. Who will win out? Who cares.

The message basically projected in this film is that its legitimate to whatever it takes to get ahead in this world--lie, cheat, steal, commit adultery--and, in fact, it might make you a star!

Are we are suppose to root for two back-stabbing, deceitful, murderesses who walk over people just to get their claim to fame all because they can sing and dance? Or how about a double-crossing, pompous, lying, money-hungry lawyer looking for the next damsel charged with murder? No thanks. I say throw them all in jail.

Watching this film, I found it mystifying how so many people and critics could love this movie so much. Granted the story's plot has probably changed from the musical version on stage, but the movie version falls quite short of its glowing reviews. Moreover, how could this film have received six Oscars in 2002? I liken the Oscar committee of 2002 to the gullible Chicago citizens in the film, falling over and swooning at something that puts on a little song and dance. Maybe Chicago was the Academy Award's apology for Moulin Rouge not getting any Oscars the previous year.

If you want to see a musical that is vastly superior, has heart, style and substance, and better acting, see Moulin Rouge.

Chicago IS jazz hot!.......2007-06-08

One of the best musicals of all time. Rapid paced, great story line, great actors, fantastic scenery... I can't say enough about everything this musical has going for it!!! A definite for your collection.

Loved it -- Fantastic Music and Great Cinematography.......2007-05-17

This is one of my very favorite movie musicals. The songs are so great and so much fun!

My favorite part about this movie though, is the way in which it constantly cuts back and forth between simultaneous shots of what the characters are doing in the "movie" version and what they are doing in the "stage" version of the story. It is this symmetrical blending of the two arts that really appeals to me, and the cinematography is very well done.

Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renee Zellweger, Richard Gere, John C. Reilly, and Queen Latifah all put on award-winning performances. I was especially impressed with Gere's and Reilly's performances. (Lucy Liu's small part was nice simply because she is so gorgeous, LOL, but she really is only a brief side character.)

This is the best and most enjoyable stage-musical-to-movie adaptation that I have yet seen, and I highly recommend it. Is it the best movie-musical ever? Probably not, I'd have to vote for The Sound Of Music, but even so, I find myself watching Chicago more often than TSOM. And Moulin Rouge is even funnier than Chicago, but I still love Chicago's songs the best.

Great Musical!.......2007-04-10

This is the musical for people who hate musicals! My kids and I all belt out the words when the songs come--each song is so unique and original. This really is an incredible film--the acting is perfect--I love the casting. Catherine Zeta Jones is so powerful, as is Renee Z. Ruchard Gere is at his best, as well, which was a cool surprise!

Bob Fosse lives on!.......2007-04-02

The dance and music and lyrics of Bob Fosse is still going strong, and it is evident through the big-screen adaptation of "Chicago". Director Rob Marshall stays faithful to Fosse's Broadway intentions, though he does change many things with the way the songs are performed (all songs are sung in reverie settings). Renee Zellweger and Richard Gere are very good when going along with their solos ("They Both Reached for the Gun" is fun and funny), but John C. Reilly, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Queen Latifah steal the show with their dazzling vocals ("Mister Cellophane", "When You're Good to Mama" and "I Can't Do It Alone" are well worth the oscar wins).

This movie is a splendid achievement, and if you don't even like musicals, then you'll probably be surprised at how much you're going to love this film.

Average customer rating:

As a film and British royal buff
I enjoyed this movie.
Elizabeth.
Visually Stunning "what-if" version of Historic Royal
A great buy

Elizabeth
Starring: Fanny Ardant , Richard Attenborough , Cate Blanchett , Kathy Burke , and Eric Cantona
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Suspense | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Mystery | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( E ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Shakespeare in Love (Miramax Collector's Series)
Elizabeth I
The Lion in Winter
Dangerous Beauty
Lady Jane

ASIN: B00007AJF9
Release Date: 2002-11-05

Amazon.com essential video

One of the big Elizabethan-era films of 1998, Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth serves up a brimming goblet of religious tension, political conspiracy, sex, violence, and war. England in 1554 is in financial and religious turmoil as the ailing Queen "Bloody" Mary attempts to restore Catholicism as the national faith. She has no heir, and her greatest fear--that her Protestant half-sister Elizabeth will assume the throne after her death--is realized. Still, the late Queen Mary has her loyalists. The newly crowned Elizabeth finds herself knee-deep in dethroning schemes while also dodging assassination attempts. Her advisers (including Sir William Cecil, superbly played by Richard Attenborough) beg her to marry any one of her would-be suitors to stabilize England's empire. No matter that she already has a lover. The passionate Robert Dudley (Joseph Fiennes) is married, however, and shows he cannot stand up to the growing strength of the Queen. With the help of her aide Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush), Elizabeth strikes against her enemies before they get to her first. But her rise ultimately entails rejecting love and marriage to redefine herself as the indisputable Virgin Queen.

Cate Blanchett's Oscar-nominated performance as the naive and vibrant princess who becomes the stubborn and knowing queen is both severe and sympathetic. Her ethereal, pale beauty is equal parts fire and ice, her delivery of such lines as "There will be only one mistress here and no master!" expressed with command rather than hysterics. As striking as Blanchett's performance is the film's lavish and dramatic production design. The cold, dark sets paired with the lush costuming show the golden age of England's monarchy emerging from the Middle Ages. Rich velvet brushes over the dank stones while power is achieved at any price, and with such attention to physical detail, Elizabeth fully immerses you into its compelling chronicle of pioneering feminism and revisionist history. --Shannon Gee

Customer Reviews:

As a film and British royal buff.......2007-06-16

The movie gets 4 stars for entertainment value. It, however, is a historical piece, and as one that would be so widely viewed, they should have used less 'artistic license' for what was already a fascinating period. The aesthetic qualities of the film are excellent, no doubt, but often foray into some Vegas-style midieval fantasy. Kate Blanchett is a decent Elizabeth, but can not even come close to Glenda Jackson's spellbinding portrayal. Geoffrey Rush as Walshingham is good, but exaggerated. The rest of the cast is so laughably inaccurate, especially the Duc d'Anjou, Dudley and Cecil.

Best way to watch this movie...clear your mind of any notion that the characters portrayed were in any way real historical figures!

I enjoyed this movie........2007-05-27

I enjoyed this movie for many reasons. I loved the story and plot. I was amazed at the costumes and scenery. The actors and actresses were surperb. This movie got me into reading a little bit about the Tudors and why she was called a [...]. Before I started to read about the Tudors, this movie confused me a little bit. When I read a little bit about the time, I understood this movie a lot better. I know that Dudley did not betray Elizabeth and was loyal to her until his death. Elizabeth knew that Dudley was married before Cecil told her. There are many historical inaccuracies in this movie and that started to bother me when I read a little bit of history.

Elizabeth........2007-05-13

Great movie, I could watch this movie many many times. Too bad I gave it away. Could you send me another one?

Visually Stunning "what-if" version of Historic Royal.......2007-05-12

I was almost as much enamored by the stunning visual feel, cinematography and lighting-effects of this film, as the performance by Miss Blanchette. This film ranges in tone: from silly to grave timbres, certainly covering the catharsis of emotion, as well as creating believable characters (with a glaring exception or two: you be the judge) ...this film would round out the many colors in a collector's set of biographical royalty movies. I'm not sure I'd watch it five times a week, but I'd make sure it didn't gather too much dust in my collection.

A great buy.......2007-04-13

This is one of my favorite movies. It is amazing to watch the character visibly grow up from a young frightened girl to the powerful queen whose riegn is called the "Golden Age". The music and costumes are both amazing, the dialogue is witty and the use of historical quotes brings a sense of authenticity to the film. If women such as Elizabeth I, Catherine the Great, or Cleopatra interest you this film will definately be for you.

The First World War - The Complete Series

Average customer rating:

Fully satisfied.
First world war The Complete series
The Best War Documentary Ever Made
A Good introduction to the nervous breakdown of Europe
Not as impressed as some reviewers were ...