Fortune Quest: Journey to Mount Terrason Vol. 1 (DVD) @ discount dvd online store
Fortune Quest: Journey to Mount Terrason Vol. 1 (DVD)
Mixing sorcery, swordplay, stealth, and elven wizardry, the four heroes of FORTUNE QUEST, Pastel, Clay, Rumy, and Trapp, are a team of adventurers to be reckoned with. When a magic crystal whose power is tied to dragonkind falls into their hands, the four begin a journey to Mount Terrason in search of a mystery. Contains episodes 1-5.NR"
Disappearing Acts (DVD)
Gina Prince-Bythewood`s DISAPPEARING ACTS, based on the novel by Terry McMillan, is a mature look at relationships in the late 1990s. Franklin gets day work in construction, with hopes of someday owning his own business. Zora teaches music and voice but dreams of becoming a successful singer-songwriter. When these two lonely, intelligent people meet, fireworks are not far off. But once the two become involved, secrets are uncovered, and their relationship begins to unravel. Zora suffers from epilepsy and soon becomes pregnant, and Franklin just happens to be married with two kids, and he never graduated high school.
Sanaa Lathan (who starred with Omar Epps in Prince-Bythewood`s LOVE AND BASKETBALL) and Wesley Snipes (in one of his few romantic leads since Spike Lee`s JUNGLE FEVER) are excellent in their roles as lovers struggling to just get by in their Brooklyn neighborhood. Michael Imperioli (THE SOPRANOS), Clark Johnson (HOMICIDE), and John Amos (ROOTS) are good in minor parts. The fine soundtrack enhances the atmosphere as these two lost souls battle to bring warmth and love into their sparse worlds.NR"
Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood
ACTORS: Wesley Snipes, Sanaa Lathan, John Amos, CCH Pounder, Michael Imperioli
Between Heaven and Hell (DVD) Widescreen BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL opens with Sam Gifford (Robert Wagner) in action on an island in the Pacific. Despite the time period (1945), director Richard Fleischers movie is not merely a straightforward Pacific war story, and ...
BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL opens with Sam Gifford (Robert Wagner) in action on an island in the Pacific. Despite the time period (1945), director Richard Fleischers movie is not merely a straightforward Pacific war story, and Gifford is not just a simple hero. Fleischer flashes back to Giffords life as a rich plantation owner, where he is contemptuous of his sharecroppers--whether they are white or black--and ignores his wife Jennys (Terry Moore) pleas to treat them better.
In battle, Gifford gets the shakes and is sent, despite his combat nerves, into the interior. His new commander, Waco (Broderick Crawford), is more than a little crazy and almost as dangerous as the enemy. Gifford, along with others under Wacos command, feels much safer deep in enemy territory, away from their paranoid leader. Gradually Gifford relies more and more on Willie (Buddy Ebsen, in a fine performance), who easily could have been one of his sharecroppers. Willie is the kind of stoic grunt who is the bedrock of this mans army. Slowly, Gifford learns wars lesson: that when you`re a foot soldier, all men are equal. As always with Fleischer, the battle scenes are never less than magnificent, making this an essential war film.
NR"
Director: Richard Fleischer
ACTORS: Robert Wagner, Terry Moore, Broderick Crawford, Buddy Ebsen, Robert Keith
Girlfight (DVD)
In GIRLFIGHT, Diana Guzman (Michelle Rodriguez) is a tough high school girl with a violent streak. Between problems at school, a father who belittles her, and a lonely social life, she searches for some way to find respect, love, and challenge. Diana finds all those things in the boxing ring at a gritty Brooklyn gym, where she begins training against her father`s will and eventually earns the gym`s championship for female boxers.
Rodriguez`s performance is what carries the film, as she makes the character of Diana Guzman real in every sense. Guzman is an awkward teenage girl whose only advantage is that she`s angry. As she channels this anger into determination, she doesn`t become a flawless heroine--when she gets punched in the face, it hurts--but the way she grows internally is visible, and that is the truly beautiful thing about this film. Director Karyn Kusama should also be commended for the film`s subtle communication of difficult family issues and its objectivity in telling this slightly feminist tale. The inspiring soundtrack features a terrific title song by Theodore Shapiro as well as hits by artists such as Queen Latifah. A story of willpower, strength, and endurance, GIRLFIGHT wins on all fronts.R"
Director: Karyn Kusama
ACTORS: Michelle Rodriguez, Jamie Tirelli, Paul Calderon, Santiago Douglas
Tape (DVD)
Richard Linklater, known for directing films that take place over a one-day period (SLACKER, DAZED AND CONFUSED, BEFORE SUNRISE), magnifies that concept even further with TAPE. Adapted from the Stephen Belber play, TAPE takes place in a Lansing, Michigan hotel room, where two old friends reunite ten years after graduation. Vince (Ethan Hawke), a lackadaisical fire fighter who pays the rent by selling pot, and John (Robert Sean Leonard), a self-assured filmmaker whose debut feature is set to screen at the Lansing Film Festival, greet each other with smiles and hugs. But as their conversation becomes more personal, Vince brings up an old grudge from the past, which confounds John. Vince is convinced that on the night before graduation, John date-raped his ex-girlfriend, Amy (Uma Thurman), and he won`t rest until John tells him what really happened. Eventually, John admits the truth, evoking a shocking response from Vince. John must finally confront the demons from his past. When Amy arrives at the hotel room and joins the old friends, she detonates the explosive situation, accusing both Vince and John of being selfish, heartless cowards, which they actually are. Shot on digital video all in one location, TAPE is a character study that features strong performances by all three leads.R"
Director: Richard Linklater
ACTORS: Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, Robert Sean Leonard
