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Download I Love Lucy – The Complete Second Season Online

shaylee4568301 — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:41:29 +0000

Download I Love Lucy – The Complete Second Season Online.

Movie Title: I Love Lucy – The Complete Second Season
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I Love Lucy – The Complete Second Season is available for streaming or downloading.

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Over 50 years ago during the early years of broadcast television, the very inspired talents of Lucille Ball (1911-1989) and her then husband Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) were showcased on their hilarious television show “I Love Lucy”. TV execs had initially rejected the plausibility of the show because of Desi and because they intended to tape the shows. However, thanks to the tireless efforts of Lucille Ball and Desi’s obvious talents, the show first aired in 1951 and quickly became one of the most successful TV shows during all six of its regular seasons. As Lucy and Ricky Ricardo on “I Love Lucy”, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were joined by William Frawley (1877-1966) and Viviane Vance (1909-1979) as their best-friends/apartment landlords of Fred and Ethel Mertz.

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The second season of “I Love Lucy” that aired between 1952 and 1953 has 32 memorable episodes:

1. “Job Switching”: Lucy & Ethel get jobs at a chocolate factory, while Ricky & Fred try their hands at being “house-husbands” and cook up a large mess; a famous & very popular all-time favorite episode.

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2. “The Saxophone”: Lucy’s talent (or lack thereof) of playing the saxophone is showcased when she wants to join Ricky on a band tour.

3. “The Anniversary Present”: Lucy thinks Ricky is having an affair when he’s really just trying to buy her a set of pearls.

4. “The Handcuffs”: Lucy & Ricky get handcuffed in what they thought were fake handcuffs.

5. “The Operetta”: Lucy writes an operetta for her woman’s club to perform to raise money. Unfortunately, Lucy hasn’t been very good managing the club’s finances.

6. “Vacation from Marriage”: Lucy & Ethel take a vacation from Ricky & Fred.

7. “The Courtroom”: Ricky & Lucy purchase a new TV for Fred & Ethel’s anniversary, but things go awry when the TV appears to need to be adjusted.

8. “Redecorating”: Lucy thinks that she’s won new furniture and decides to give their apartment a wallpaper makeover.

9. “Ricky Loses His Voice”: Lucy takes advantage of Ricky’s laryngitis to write a new show for Ricky’s club.

10. “Lucy is Enciente”: Lucy tries to find the right way to tell Ricky that she’s pregnant.

11. “Pregnant Women are Unpredictable”: Ricky tries to help Lucy in the house so that she can stay in bed.

12. “Lucy’s Show Biz Swan Song”: Lucy ’says farewell’ to show business during a “gay-90’s” review.

13. “Lucy Hires an English Tutor”: Wanting their child to learn proper English, Lucy hires a tutor with the promise that Ricky will let him perform.

14. “Ricky Has Labor Pains”: Ricky feels neglected.

15. “Lucy Becomes a Sculptress”: Lucy takes up sculpting to provide an artistic environment for their coming child.

16. “Lucy Goes to the Hospital”: Ricky, Fred & Ethel practice to make sure they get Lucy to the hospital calmly and efficiently, and Ricky also has a voodoo show to do.

17. “Sales Resistance”: A salesman talks Lucy into buying a vacuum cleaner and Ricky is not very pleased. Lucy tries to resell it to “Mrs. Simpson” (Verna Felton, 1890-1966).

18. “The Inferiority Complex”: Lucy develops an inferiority complex, so Ricky hires a psychiatrist for help.

19. “The Club Election”: Lucy bribes a fellow club-member to be nominated for a coveted club position and ends up running against Ethel.

20. “The Black Eye”: Ricky accidentally gives Lucy a black eye, but Fred & Ethel don’t believe the real story.

21. “Lucy Changes Her Mind”: Lucy has trouble making up her mind, including when dining out.

22. “No Children Allowed”: A frequent “I Love Lucy” recurring character is introduced: Mrs. Trumble (Elizabeth Patterson, 1875-1966).

23. “Lucy Hires a Maid”: Having difficulty taking care of the home & baby, Ricky tells Lucy to hire a maid, but who is really in charge: Lucy or the maid (”Mrs. Porter”, played by Verna Felton again)?

24. “The Indian Show”: Lucy wants to be in Ricky’s Native American show.

25. “Lucy’s Last Birthday”: Lucy gets upset when she doesn’t want anything special for her birthday and gets exactly that.

26. “The Ricardos Change Apartments”: Ricky & Lucy move into a larger apartment to have a separate nursery.

27. “Lucy the Matchmaker”: Lucy wants to help a friend find a mate, but Ricky doesn’t want her to get involved.

28. “Lucy Wants New Furniture”: Lucy gets a new sofa & coffee table without Ricky’s permission, so she tries to economize to pay for it.

29. “The Camping Trip”: Lucy goes camping with Ricky with Ethel’s help.

30. “Ricky’s Life Story”: An article in “Life” magazine about Ricky makes Lucy want to resurrect her own show business career desires.

31. “Ricky & Fred Are TV Fans”: Ricky & Fred are engrossed with a boxing match on TV and nothing that Lucy & Ethel do can change it; not even nearly getting arrested.

32. “Never Do Business With Friends”: Ricky gets Lucy a new washing machine. so Fred & Ethel purchase their old one, but it doesn’t work as well as expected. (One of my favorite all-time episodes.)

Paramount Home Video did a superb packaging job of putting all 32 second season episodes on 5 DVD’s, thus shrinking the overall packaging size and reducing the price from the first season set. Overall, I rate the “I Love Lucy: The Complete Second Season” DVD box set with 5 out of 5 stars!

The fourth season of “I Love Lucy” that aired between 1954 and 1955 has 30 memorable episodes:

1. “The Business Manager”: Ricky’s hired business manager (Charles Lane) for Lucy’s household budget only allows her $5/month to spend.

2. “Mertz and Kurtz”: When Fred poses as a real-estate tycoon to impress an old vaudeville partner (Charles Winninger, 1884-1969), Lucy helps by posing as the Mertz’ maid.

3. “Lucy Cries Wolf”: Lucy’s multiple phony attempts to see if Ricky will rush home to save her finally backfires.

4. “The Matchmaker”: In spite of Ricky’s objections, Lucy tries to get two singles to propose to one another.

5. “Mr. and Mrs. TV Show”: Ricky’s reluctance to do a live morning TV show with Lucy from their apartment backfires for Lucy when she tries to get back at him by sabotaging what she believes is only a dress rehearsal.

6. “Ricky’s Movie Offer”: When a talent scout comes to audition Ricky at the Ricardo’s apartment, Lucy isn’t about to give up her big chance.

7. “Ricky’s Screen Test”: Lucy wants more than a bit part in Ricky’s audition for “Don Juan”.

8. “Lucy’s Mother-in-Law”: Lucy tries to impress Ricky’s mother on visit from Cuba by having a Spanish-speaking translator on an earphone.

9. “Ethel’s Birthday”: Fred asks Lucy to pick out Ethel’s birthday gift, Ethel’s reaction angers Lucy with hilarious results at a play.

10. “Ricky’s Contract”: Overly anxious to hear back from Hollywood, Fred leaves a phony message that Ricky got the part, but Ethel can’t get there fast enough to prevent Lucy from telling Ricky the “good” news.

11. “Getting Ready”: When the gang decides to drive to Hollywood, Fred purchases an old used car.

12. “Lucy Learns to Drive”: When Ricky gets a new convertible, Lucy insists that she learn to drive; but when Lucy wants to teach Ethel, uh oh!

13. “California, Here We Come”: Confusion ensues when Lucy’s mother (Kathryn Card, 1892-1964) decides to join the car trip to California, but a better decision is made as Lucy, Ricky, Fred & Ethel head west!

14. “First Stop”: With everyone tired of riding in the car, Lucy pulls over to a run-down restaurant/hotel.

15. “Tennessee Bound”: When Ricky is arrested for driving too fast, it’s up to good ol’ Cousin Tennessee Ernie Ford (himself, 1919-1991) to save the day.

16. “Ethel’s Home Town”: When the gang stops in Albuquerque to visit Ethel’s family, Ricky, Lucy & Fred aren’t happy when the whole city thinks that Ethel is the star.

17. “L.A. at Last”: Lucy, Fred & Ethel eat the famous Brown Derby where Lucy makes a mess of William Holden (himself, 1918-1981) in a nearby booth.

18. “Don Juan and the Starlets”: Lucy wants a divorce when it appears that Ricky stayed out all night with five starlets.

19. “Lucy Gets in Pictures”: Lucy finally gets her big chance to appear in a film thanks to Ricky, but the headdress is too much to handle.

20. “The Fashion Show”: Lucy finds a way to get a free original Don Loper (himself, 1906-1972) dress; but she quickly learns that sunburns and wool don’t mix.

21. “The Hedda Hopper Story”: Lucy tries to further Ricky’s career by trying to impress the rumored hotel guest Hedda Harper (herself, 1885-1966).

22. “Don Juan is Shelved”: When Ricky’s movie is shelved, Lucy tries too hard to make Ricky popular and get him another role.

23. “Bull Fight Dance”: When Ricky lets Lucy appear with him on a TV show, she’s not too happy about being a bull.

24. “Hollywood Anniversary”: Ricky frantically attempts to find out his forgotten anniversary date and plans a huge surprise nightclub party for Lucy, who is miserable thinking that he’s forgotten it.

25. “The Star Upstairs”: Desperately wanting to see Cornel Wilde (himself, 1915-1989) whose hotel room is directly above the Ricardos, Lucy will do anything to see him and ends up trying to climb back down using bedsheets.

26. “In Palm Springs”: With Lucy, Ricky, Fred & Ethel bored with other, Lucy & Ethel travel to Palm Springs and meet Rock Hudson (himself, 1925-1985).

27. “The Dancing Star”: To impress the visiting Carolyn Appleby (Doris Singleton), Lucy convinces Van Johnson (himself) to let her dance with him.

28. “Harpo Marx”: Again to impress the visiting Carolyn Appleby, Lucy pretends to be Harpo Marx, but the real Harpo (himself, 1888-1964) shows up!

29. “Ricky Needs an Agent”: When Lucy poses as Ricky’s agent, she accidentally has his movie contract cancelled.

30. “The Tour”: Lucy & Ethel leave their Hollywood tour bus so that Lucy can pick a grapefruit from Richard Widmark’s (himself) garden.

Paramount Home Video’s superb job of packaging all 31 episodes of the third season of “I Love Lucy” onto 5 DVD’s is a good indication as to how they will similarly package the fourth season. Overall, for superb packaging and a great price, I rate the “I Love Lucy: The Complete Fourth Season” DVD box set with an anticipatory 5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend it!

Stream Barney Miller: The Complete Second Season Online

shaylee4568301 — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:31:09 +0000

Stream Barney Miller: The Complete Second Season Online.

Movie Title: Barney Miller: The Complete Second Season
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Barney Miller: The Complete Second Season is available for streaming or downloading.

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This is about 4 years overdue. I look forward to picking it up, and I hope the next installment doesn’t have to wait another 4 years.

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The cast is just beginning to settle into their roles, though they are still adding detectives here an there, trying things out.

Season 3 is the golden season. The really hit a groove that year. I am looking forward to seeing some of these episodes though.

Detrich makes his first appearence this season in the episode Fish, about halfway through this season. But it’s only one episode. Steve Landsberg also makes an appearence in the first episode of season 2 as Father Paul. His first full season is season 3 when he gets trained by Fish, and is constantly having to move from desk to desk.

BARNEY MILLER: THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON is a great addition to anyone’s DVD collection.

The show ran from 1975 to 1982, but, other than clothing and references to current events of the day, I found myself forgetting that this second season was originally broadcast more than thirty years ago. The jokes are fast and furious and Hal Linden (Barney Miller) and the rest of the cast are wonderful. The episodes run the gambit of scenarios. Everything from retirement to on-the-job romance to gay bashing are dealt with intelligently and humorously. I’m almost certain you’ll find yourself watching these episodes again and again. These are hard times and it’s important to make time for laughter. Life is too short.

Stream Hotel for Dogs Online

shaylee4568301 — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 09:34:39 +0000

Stream Hotel for Dogs Online.

Movie Title: Hotel for Dogs
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Hotel for Dogs is available for streaming or downloading.

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So my brother and sister and their spouses are taking an “emergency mental health day” over to the casino boats and I’m pulling Uncle duty for a couple hours. We decide to go to the movies and I try to convince them to go see My Bloody Valentine 3D.

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“We don’t wanna see it.” they said, “It scares us.”

“Why, I asked,” because you’re all a bunch of babies?”

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“We’re not babies! We’re this many”, they said, holding up 3 fingers.

“Exactly. You’re not babies. You’re post-toddlers.”

“Uncle Hammoooooock! We wanna see Hotel for Dogs”.

Well I thought, maybe it would be for the best to see Hotel for Dogs. If I take them to see it then maybe years from now when I’m a toothless old loon confined to a government nursing home the kids will remember this movie fondly and come around to visit me and shoo the flies off my face and maybe keep the attendents from stealing my teeth and underpants.

Besides, i could teach them how to mix Milk Duds with popcorn and the flask of “Uncle Medicine” I carry would smooth over any bumps, especially if I mixed it with a nice fizzy Tab. Okay, kids, Hotel for Dogs it is!

Well sir, I was flabbergasted. This movie was much better than it looked in trailers and commercials. In the trailers, it looked like your average , dopey, mediocre kid movie. But it’s better than that. The fine folks who made this film seemed to have put some actual thought and effort into entertaining our kids.

Basically, you got these two kids, bother and sister, who have been in and out of various foster homes since their parents died. They are a handful, a couple of smart little con-artists. But they are motivated by the desire to stay together and remain as much of a family as possible, and this desire extends to their dog, Friday, whom they keep hidden from a string of foster parents who won’t take kids with dogs. Most of their schemes involve ways to feed or shelter Friday, but when that becomes too daunting a task they decide to bunk him in an abandoned hotel. One thing leads to another and eventually they are taking care of not only Friday, but a whole pack of dogs. The stray children have created a family for themselves with other strays. Of course there is a serious threat to their happiness, which(do I need to say spoiler alert) is alleviated in the end and eveyone lives happily ever after. That covers the plot.

There’s a lot to like about this film. The acting is good. Lisa Kudrow and Kevin Dillon are especially funny as Lois and Carl Scudder, the stars of the Carl Scudder Experience, a low-rent rock lounge act that couldn’t cut the mustard playing for a back-alley craps game much less at a venue in Vegas. They’re more petty and selfish than evil, although Kudrow looks kind of like a white trash Cruella DeVil. Emma Roberts and Jake T. Austin do a good job as the kids. They’re smart but not that wise-beyond -their -years smart you see in some movies. They look and act like actual kids.

I should also mention the dogs. I’m generally not a fan of animals that “act” unless they’re terrorizing the human population of a small town or island somewhere, but these dogs are often funny, even by adult standards. I think the trick is that the dog scenes are not overdone. They don’t wear out their welcome for the grown-up crowd. Kids will love it. The mutts have their own little characteristics and traits but the crowd favorite was Cooper, a big english bull dog who eats anything and everything, from license plates to ladies shoes.

The movie was written by Jeff Lowell,Robert Schooley ,& Mark McCorkle. Schooley and McCorkle created the Kim Possible series and helped write Sky High. They are developing a reputation for making quality family pictures that are fun, smart and imaginitive.

The plot is simple but it’s also well done. It’s silly in ways that kids will enjoy but it’s never insulting, pandering or overly sentimental. And really, does a kid’s movie need an intricate, detailed plot. Sure any adult who’s lives in a country with free electricity is going to know how this thing turns out, but this movie really wasn’t written for adults. It has humor in it that will keep an adults attention, but it’s meant for th kids. A big part of the fun of seieng a movie like this with the kids is watching them watch the movie. Most of this stuff is new to them. They don’t know for sure if the Hotel is doomed when the dog catchers find out about it. They don’t know if the brother and sister are going to remain a family. And they are completely surprised and tickled when the dogs perform cute and funny little stunts that dogs have performed for years. You can get a kick out of watching the suspense, surprise and joy play across their faces as the movie progresses. It’s one of those nice little films you can share with your family.

HOTEL FOR DOGS is About A Couple of Children That Open A Hotel For Dogs After Finding 2 Dogs That Were Already There. But Problems Happen When The Dog Cathers Wander Were All The Stray Dogs Went (The Kids Took Them). The Cathers Are On Loose and Will Do Anything To Get The Strays Back.

HOTEL FOR DOGS is An Absolutly Funny, Dramatic, and Thrilling Family Film. Jake T. Austin (From Disney’s WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE) is One Great Young Actor in This Film, and Brings Some Funny Inventons That The Carecter He Plays Builds. Emma Roberts (From Nick’s UNFABOLUS) is The Best When it Comes Playing The Sister Who Falls Head-Over-Healls For A Teen Who Works at A Pet Shop.

The Dogs Themselves Are Great! The Stunts By The Dogs Are Great!

HOTEL FOR DOGS is A Must-See For The Family and Recommended For Kids 5 & Older.

I Also Recommend You see

Air Bud, The Adventures of Milo and Otis, and The All Dogs Go to Heaven Series

Overall Rating-5/5

Stream Champagne for Caesar Online

shaylee4568301 — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:00:13 +0000

Stream Champagne for Caesar Online.

Movie Title: Champagne for Caesar
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Champagne for Caesar is available for streaming or downloading.

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“Champagne for Caesar” was a film I saw in my early days of film going. I’ve always remembered it as a smart and funny film, especially notable for Celeste Holmes sophisticated turn as Ronald Coleman’s charming nemesis and Vincent Price’s off-the-wall performance as the eccentric manufacturor of “Milady Soap, The Soap That Sanctifies.”

I looked forward to this DVD but must report that technically it falls too far short to recommend. About a quarter of the way into it, the sound turns extremely harsh and is almost unlistenable. Later still, intrusive scratches and smudges– that surely could have been eliminated–suddenly intrude, spoiling the moment.

“Champagne for Caesar” remains a charming romp but not in this presentation.

I won’t go into the story line as others before me have covered that. Let me instead deal with the quality of this DVD. It stinks! Mainly because of the sound. At points it sounds like the actors are talking under water. At first I thought I had a bad disc, so I returned it for replacement, but got the same problem. So I wrote to the company that put this out on DVD and this was their response: Thank you for your inquiry. We are sorry to hear that you are disappointed with your latest Image Entertainment purchase. Unfortunately the problem that you are describing concerning the soundtrack of this film is the result of damaged film stock. Image Entertainment made three attempts to find the best available master for this film and the finished product was made using the best remaining film stock available.

Bottom line is, buy this ONLY if you can’t do without this film. Otherwise there are lots of other wonderful films on better DVDs.

Download The Beiderbecke Affair Online

shaylee4568301 — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 04:26:54 +0000

Download The Beiderbecke Affair Online.

Movie Title: The Beiderbecke Affair
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“The Beiderbecke Affair,” a box set of a light-hearted British television mystery series, was made by Yorkshire Television for Britain’s Independent Television stations (ITV). The six-episode series was broadcast on PBS in this country in the 1990’s, along with its sequels, Beiderbecke Tapes, and The Beiderbecke Connection. It was created by the award-winning Alan Plater, one of Britain’s more prolific, entertaining writers, and centers on a pair of wisecracking schoolteachers caught up in some amateur sleuthing.

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The series is set, and filmed in the city of Leeds, in Yorkshire, a place we don’t hardly ever see over here. (Though, warning to the wise, we don’t hardly ever hear Yorkshire accents over here, either, and that’s what the cast is using. And there are no subtitles). Anyway, Trevor Chaplin, our protagonist, is also actually a transplanted Geordie, from further North, up Newcastle, Hadrian’s Wall way, (upon which friends and acquaintances comment), with his own accent. As played by James Bolam (”New Tricks,” “The End of the Affair”), he’s a jazz-loving, kind of befuddled, but witty everyman woodworking teacher. And apparently he hasn’t reflected upon the fact that beautiful, well-dressed platinum blonds seldom go selling door to door, until he buys a bunch of Beiderbecke records – that’s vinyl records, and there are also no cell phones, only phone boxes – from one. The Beiderbecke records fail to turn up (Beiderbecke was an early American jazz great of the 1920’s), and Trevor goes looking into things with his girlfriend and fellow teacher, who’s running on the green line for town council, Jill Swinburne (Barbara Flynn, Mrs. Cracker, from the long-running mystery series Cracker: The Complete Collection).

The mystery’s kind of light-weight, not exactly watertight, and moves along in a leisurely British fashion, but it will get round to gray-market goods hidden in a church basement, secret meetings on level 4 of a multi-story car park, and corruption at the highest local levels. The banter’s consistently witty, and so is the sound track, inspired by Beiderbecke’s work, by the award-winning musician Frank Ricotti. Co-stars include Dominic Jephcott (”The Scarlet Pimpernel.”) There’s also a substantial number of those sturdy British supporting players: Colin Blakely, Dudley Sutton, Terence Rigby, and James Grout, among others.

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The award-winning writer Alan Plater’s credits include Last of Blonde Bombshells,and A Very British Coup.

The episodes in this series are:

1. “What I don’t understand is this…?” Where are the records?

2. “Can anybody join in?” A newly-minted, university graduate cop (Jephcott), has his suspicions.

3. “We call it the white economy.” The plot thickens.

4. “Um…I know what you’re thinking.” And gets thicker still, as Helen McAllister, a wealthy, well-connected former girlfriend of Trevor’s, suddenly shows up.

5. “That was a very funny evening.” Helen and Jill go out to dinner together and put away a lot of champagne. They toss a coin for Trevor, and Helen wins…

6. “We are on the brink of a new era. If only….”City council elections, and dirty tricks.

It’s all offbeat fun, and might just remind you of those charming Nick and Nora mysteries of the 1940s, but things do get a bit whimsical and/or farcical at times. Those who have a taste for such entertainments — like me–will appreciate it best.

Two unwed room-together teachers, both devilishly full of verbal tarts and retorts, get involved in what appears to be a black-market scheme being housed in a church basement. At that point it reverts to a LOT of quirkiness and bizarreness. You have your gangsters vs police, politicians and civic/business leaders, a blond mystery bombshell, school personnel, a driver with dark glasses, clan zealots, an old man with a dog not to mention Big Al and Little Norm.

If it can go wrong, it does. It it can get confused, it does. The plot is so interwoven between the good guys and the bad bunglers that it is possible even the director forgot who was who. Through it all, Trevor (James Bolam) and Jill (Barbara Flynn) never fail to continually pass cracks at each other. But is it all because of LOVE? Enter Trevor’s old flame, Helen, who for her own reasons wants Trevor back…so…the two ladies, who actually like each other, flip a coin.

Ah but there is more to the McAllister clan than meets the eye. Will bungling super cop Det. Sgt. Hobson get to the bottom of it all? In the meantime, Trevor helps Jill run a campaign as a conservative candidate. If you’re now as lost as the cast, fear not, at least you will discover a bit about Bix Beiderbecke.

It is pure dry British comedy throughout. It is somewhat similar to Monty Python by the stupidity or foolishness of some of the characters. It could also be considered a British answer to “Get Smart” without the action and gadgets. No shoe phones in “The Beiderbeck Affair”, but there is an electric toothbrush that gets Trevor arrested…again. Hobson arrests every character in the series at some point…it seems.

Fix yourself a spot o’ tea, a tray of biscuits (cookies), and expect droll entertainment. Save a cup for the slow-motion run of lovers near the end. If you relate to the subtle British humor, it’s bully, or crackin’, or Yorkshire friendly. Four tea drinking pinkie’s up.

Download The Godfather – The Coppola Restoration Giftset DVD Online

shaylee4568301 — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 15:13:47 +0000

Download The Godfather – The Coppola Restoration Giftset DVD Online.

Movie Title: The Godfather – The Coppola Restoration Giftset DVD
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The Godfather – The Coppola Restoration Giftset DVD is available for streaming or downloading.

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The new transfers for The Godfather Parts I and II are stunning. It really is like seeing them for the first time. All of the murky, faded colors have been restored to their original glory while still retaining the warmth of the film stock. Gordon Willis’ then-controversial cinematography can finally be seen they way it was intended on these new discs. If you have the original box set, it is worth it to double dip if only for the restoration job on these two films.

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Carried over from the original set are all of Francis Ford Coppola’s commentary tracks for the three films. On The Godfather one, he appropriately enough, starts off by talking about the film’s famous opening scene and how it was supposed to start with the wedding but a friend suggested he do something else. Coppola talks about how he organized the elaborate wedding sequence and shot it only 2-3 days! He talks about the pressure he was under by the studio and in read danger of being fired because they didn’t like what he was doing. This is pretty solid track that we’ve come to expect from the veteran filmmaker.

Coppola’s contributes another excellent commentary for The Godfather Part II. Initially, he had no interest in doing a sequel and dealing with studio bureaucracy. He suggested Martin Scorsese for the job. The studio balked at this idea and accepted all of Coppola’s terms. The veteran filmmaker talks at length about the development of the Corleone family from Part I. Coppola is engaging and very articulate, delivering a top notch track that is well worth a listen for any fan of this movie.

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Finally, there is Coppola’s commentary for The Godfather Part III. One of the heated debates the filmmaker had with the studio was over Pacino’s hair. He wanted Michael to look older and like a man in crisis, while the studio didn’t want to mess with Pacino’s distinctive looks. Coppola defends his casting of Sofia and feels that she delivered a “real” performance because she wasn’t an actor. He also addresses the scathing criticism she received as in fact an attack on him. This is a solid track with good observations and analysis by Coppola — better than the film itself.

The rest of the supplemental material is spread out of two discs. Thankfully for those who did not buy the first box set all of the extras from it have been carried over with a whole other disc of brand new material.

The fourth disc features all the brand new material and starts off with “Godfather World,” which takes a look at how The Godfather films influenced popular culture, including parodies on The Simpsons and South Park, and how it informed the characters on The Sopranos. All kinds of celebrities, from William Friedkin and Alec Baldwin to author Sarah Vowell who sing its praises with clips of shows and films that reference it.

“The Masterpiece That Almost Wasn’t” tells the story of how Hollywood had changed at the end of the 1960s with the demise of the studio moguls and the rise of the film brats, the first generation of film students who became filmmakers. One of them, Coppola, ended up being picked to direct The Godfather. This is an excellent look at how the director almost didn’t get the gig and why.

“…When the Shooting Stopped” examines the post-production phase of the first film. Coppola battled with the studio over the length of it. Executives initially did not like Nino Rota’s score for the film and samples of some of his original and revised cues are played.

“Emulsional Rescue: Revealing The Godfather” takes a look at the newly restored transfers for Part I and II and how they preserve Gordon Willis’ gorgeous cinematography. This featurette takes us through the restoration process, showing before and after examples.

“The Godfather on the Red Carpet” is a forgettable featurette shot during the premiere of Cloverfield with various minor celebrities gush about the films.

“Four Short Films on The Godfather” features celebs citing which one they prefer, Part I or II. Another one has Richard Belzer, and the man who adapted the films for the stage, quote their favourite lines, which turns out to be quite funny. The third one sees Coppola talk about his love of cannoli and how made it into the film. Finally, Coppola answers the question about what happened to Clemenza in Part II and why he died.

The fifth disc starts off with “A Look Inside,” a feature-length documentary about The Godfather trilogy done when Part III was being made. As a result, a lot of the major players were interviewed. We see Coppola at work on this film with on-set footage of the director working with Pacino. We also see Coppola working on the script with author Mario Puzo. The doc then goes back to the first film with Coppola’s battle with the studio over casting Brando, Pacino, et al. with fascinating vintage screen tests and rehearsal footage. This is an excellent extra that goes into great detail.

“On Location” revisits key locations in the lower east side of New York where they shot parts of all three films and how they transformed them into various historical periods.

“Francis Coppola’s Notebook” examines how he adapted Puzo’s book into the first film. Coppola shows us his notebook that he used as his master document that he would constantly refer to. This featurette provides fascinating insight into the man’s creative process.

“Music of The Godfather” features an audio excerpt of a conversation Coppola had with composer Nino Rota about the music for the film. Also included is footage of composer Carmine Coppola (Francis’ father) working on Part III. Francis talks about working with his father.

“Coppola and Puzo on Screenwriting” features the author talking about the origins of his novel while Coppola discusses adapting it with Puzo into the films.

“Gordon Willis on Cinematography” features the man talking his approach to the look of the film and the choices he made and why.

“Storyboards – Godfather Part II and Part III” allows you to see sketches for the look of both films and see how Coppola planned to shoot them.

“The Godfather: Behind the Scenes 1971″ is a vintage promotional featurette done at the time of the production of the first film. This is a fantastic snapshot of the times.

“The Filmmakers” are text biographies of key crew members.

Also included are 30 additional scenes from the four eras, spanning the entire trilogy. Much of this footage was inserted into the first two films when they were shown on television.

“The Family” gives you a handy organization chart for the Corleone family. You can see who everyone is and how they are related.

Finally, there are “Galleries” with trailers for all three films, stills, a collection of portraits of enemies of the Corleone family, and footage of the Academy Awards wins for the first two Godfather films.

This Review is based on The Standard DVD format Restoration, not The Blu-ray Version.

I’m on the fence about this New Restoration Box Set(The Restored GODFATHER III is a cleaner version), but I’m leaning towards an all-out PAN of this New Restoration. Unfortunately, I listened to some of the reviewers here and purchased this Set. (A couple of you owe me a few bucks.) It doesn’t look like any of the reviewers here did a side-by-side comparison test of The New Restoration and The Original Versions of these films on DVD. I did mine on a 50″ Panasonic plasma.

Yes, the New prints have fewer scratches, dirt, and grain than The Original Set, (which is not as bad as some reviewers suggest). But, the COLOR ENHANCEMENT of The New Restoration Set is OVERLY saturated in many parts. Especially, in the Red Scale. Yellows and orange flesh tones are extremely pronounced, overly brilliant, and unnatural looking in this Set. And it still contains scratches, dirt, and grain. Not as much as The Original Set, but it’s still there. A lot of the grain in certain frames has been removed, while other frames remain untouched and appear to be just as grainy as The Original Version. A very uneven transfer in my opinion.

In the opening shot of THE GODFATHER, the Undertaker is so overly saturated with yellow that as the camera pulls back to reveal Don Corleone’s desk, it renders The Undertaker almost out of focus. Trust me, this shot looks far better in The Original Set. Compare the shot in THE GODFATHER of Luca Brasi in his apartment, donning his bulletproof vest, in preparation for his meeting with Sollozzo. The colors in The Original Version look natural, while The Restoration renders Luca’s apartment in a blazing wash of bright sunshine yellow. These frames are entirely over-saturated with color. I assure you, certain frames of this Restoration DO NOT look anything like the Original film stock print. The warm and natural looking sepia tone of The Original film has been blasted away with digital color in many frames, almost making them look unreal.

THE GODFATHER II has been compressed onto one disc, while The Original Version was compressed onto 2 discs.

(By the way, I could care less about The TV Saga Version. It’s not the way these films were shot, and it’s not the way they were intended to be seen.)

Some frames of The New Restoration look very grainy, some look incredible, while other frames make these films appear as if Ted Turner Colorized them. At times, I wasn’t sure if I was watching THE GODFATHER, or SPEED RACER.

Is this version worth a Double Dip? I’m still on the fence about that. But, I think I prefer The Original Box Set over this half-baked attempt at improving this Classic with an over-saturation of color.

I get the feeling that The Blu-ray Version must look really odd. Blu-ray is great technology for newer films. Older films tend to suffer from over-saturation with this technology. The public is so enamoured with Blu-ray, they don’t realize some of the classic older films don’t resemble their original celluloid color exposures anymore. And that’s a shame. It’s going to take some more time before remastering technicians understand the remastering treatment that some of these classic older films deserve. Sometimes less is more.

If you must have The Restoration, turn the brightness and color way down on your TV.

I’m calling this THE GODFATHER: THE COPPOLA VIDEO GAME GIFTSET.

Act accordingly.

UPDATE:

There is no question that this Standard DVD Remastered Version is overly saturated with color. Here is a pretty SIMPLE ADJUSTMENT SOLUTION that seems to work quite well, reproduces truer color, and makes these Remastered films much more enjoyable. At least it did on my 50″ Panasonic Viera plasma. (I also use this for The Anniversary Remaster of SCARFACE which is also overly saturated with color.) Stay away from the VIVID and CINEMA Picture Settings. Use the STANDARD Picture Setting which will give you the following numbers: Picture 50, Brightness 50, Color 50, Tint 0, and Sharpness 75. Simply tune the COLOR setting down from 50 to 35. I found that changes to the other settings were not necessary. This should take care of the overly saturated playback color issue. I do not know whether this adjustment will work as well with an LCD, Projection, Tube TV, or Blu-Ray Disc.

Download Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series Online

shaylee4568301 — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:59:36 +0000

Download Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series Online.

Movie Title: Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series
Average customer review:

Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series

First the good news:

Buy,Download, Or Stream Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series! Click Here

“Eerie Indiana” has aged very well since its debut a decade ago on NBC. It is long overdue for a DVD release, but with mega-hits like Friends, Frasier and Seinfeld getting the lion’s share of attention when they come to DVD, it’s easy to see how this gem of a show got left off the studio’s to-do list.

Now that it has finally been released on DVD it’s time for fans of the show to celebrate. You get all 18 episodes PLUS a 19th episode — the one called “Broken Record” –which never aired!!

Buy,Download, Or Stream Eerie, Indiana – The Complete Series! Click Here

Now the bad news:

The box set is a decidely low budget affair. The packaging, what there is of it, is bland and flimsy. The DVD cases are slimline and there is no booklet to speak of. Episode titles and descriptions are found on the back of each individually shrink wrapped case. It is a hassle to have to tear open all five discs after having wrestled with the box itself — they went way overboard on the plastic wrap here. But that’s the least of the problems…

THE VIDEO TRANSFER IS NOT DIGITALLY REMASTERED! The video source appears to be from a good one-inch master tape. It is a little grainy in spots, but overall very good. But it should have been remastered.

The sound however is not that great. It’s listenable, but some of Marshall Teller’s narration is obscured by loud music in the muddy sound mix. I also noticed that some of the scene fades don’t fade out completely before the next scene starts, and that’s just sloppy mastering on BMG’s part.

There are no subtitles, and sadly, no audio commentary track featuring the creators or star(s) or anyone connected with the show that could have shed some light on what we were watching.

But my nitpicking shouldn’t stop you from purchasing this great show. It is doubtful we will ever see it again in any form unless there is a clamor by fans to purchase it now. Maybe BMG didn’t think hardcore Eerie fans would want all the bells and whistles the more popular shows are getting when they finally come out on DVD. Of course, they were wrong. We want it all. We love this show.

Support this show by buying this DVD set. You will be THRILLED to see them all again.

I rate it 4 out of 5 stars because of the missing bonus material which would have been easy to include, and the less than A+ transfer.

I remember watching this show as a kid and really digging it. After watching the DVD set, it does bring back good memerories. It’s basically Twilight Zone for kids and portrays some G rated scares and creepyness as a family moves into perhapes the weirdest town in the contry. I was amazed to see Joe Dante (Gremlins, The Howling, Explorers) directing the pilot episode. I enjoy most of his films and its no wonder I liked it as a kid. I was also surprised to see this series released on DVD as it was really a failure on its initial release. I assumed the series would never get its just home video release so I am happy to see that everyone that enjoyed it growing up can now own it.

Stream Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Box Set, Vol. 2 Online

shaylee4568301 — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:33:50 +0000

Stream Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Box Set, Vol. 2 Online.

Movie Title: Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Box Set, Vol. 2
Average customer review:

Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Box Set, Vol. 2 is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Box Set, Vol. 2

Program content is fine, but as of today, it states that Japanese is a language option for this DVD set. However, the only language available on this set is English.

Buy,Download, Or Stream Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Box Set, Vol. 2! Click Here

Disappointed that the original Japanese has been removed and that the product description was incorrect.

Stream DragonBall: General Blue Saga, Vol. 4 Online

shaylee4568301 — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:18:03 +0000

Stream DragonBall: General Blue Saga, Vol. 4 Online.

Movie Title: DragonBall: General Blue Saga, Vol. 4
Average customer review:

DragonBall: General Blue Saga, Vol. 4 is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download DragonBall: General Blue Saga, Vol. 4

This set of 12 uncut Dragon Ball episodes really does aim to please. The General Blue Saga is one of the best sagas in Dragon Ball and there is a reason for this. It has incredibly fun to watch episodes detailing Goku, Bulma, and Krillin’s adventures. They go into a pirates cave from long ago, search for treasure, and fight General Blue. There is even three episodes at the end of the saga which really stand out because they are when Goku comes to Penguin Village, Arale’s town. Arale is a girl (robot really) from Akira’s first successful manga, Dr. Slump. For people who have read the manga, this is a real treat.

Not to mention that getting 12 episodes for just over $30 dollars is an incredible deal. Don’t pass up the oppurtunity to get this truly spectacular DVD set. The General Blue Saga is not one to be missed.

In case you hadn’t noticed, Funimation is releasing the second part of Dragon Ball last on DVD. First came the DVD’s with Emperor Pilaf, the Tournament Saga, and the Red Ribbon Army, which made up the first (about) 1/3 of the series. Then came all those King Piccolo/Piccolo Jr. DVD’s, which made up the last 1/3 of the series. Now comes the middle child of the Dragon Ball troika, starting with General Blue.
At the time the General Blue saga was originally being released, Funimation was still doing it on video. Round about the first Tien Shinhan tape, Funimation figured that DVD was the way to go and phased Dragon Ball VHS’s off the market. For some reason, most of the General Blue episodes weren’t released very widely on video, so most people (like me) didn’t see them.
Which is a shame, because the General Blue episodes were some of the most fun of the series. An old pirate fortress full of traps and a killer robot. A squad of Red Ribbon soldiers who live to regret taking Master Roshi and Launch hostage. And Penguin Village, the whimsical setting of Akira Toriyama’s first manga/anime series “Dr. Slump.” As a coup de grace, “Dr. Slump’s” central character, Arale, gets to headbutt nasty General Blue out of Goku’s life forever.
Well, that’s it for General Blue. Stay tuned for the Commander Red, Fortune Teller Baba, and Tien Shinhan Sagas.

Download L.A. Story Online

shaylee4568301 — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 08:49:40 +0000

Download L.A. Story Online.

Movie Title: L.A. Story
Average customer review:

L.A. Story is available for streaming or downloading.

Click Here to Stream or Download L.A. Story

It’s always a delight to follow a movie comic who really knows what he’s doing, because eventually you hit the jackpot. With Woody Allen, it was HANNAH AND HER SISTERS; with co-exec-producer/writer/star Steve Martin, it’s L.A. STORY. Rarely does any movie, much less a comedy, keep me bolted upright in my seat in anticipation of what might happen next. But from its schizoid opening ballet to its sweetly happy ending, even when I wasn’t laughing, I was enchanted.

Martin plays Harris K. Telemacher, a Los Angeles TV weatherman who’s unsatisfied with his superficial lifestyle. He woos and beds some women whom most men would probably be thrilled to have (Marilu Henner, “Sex and the City’s” Sarah Jessica Parker), but he is unsatisfied until he meets a British journalist (Martin’s then-wife Victoria Tennant) whose very unpretentiousness is enough to knock him off his feet.

This is obviously Steve Martin’s attempt to be another Woody Allen–there’s the Annie Hall-like quirky romance, the use of jazz great Django Reinhardt on the soundtrack (he also uses Enya, which was my introduction to this beautiful vocalist), and he romanticizes L.A. the way Allen does The Big Apple. Funny thing is, it all works. Even if you’re as anti-L.A. as Manhattanite Allen is, it’s an L.A. crafted in Steve Martin’s mind, anyway–and what an original landscape it is.

It even goes Allen one step better. One scene Allen filmed and then deleted from ANNIE HALL featured the rolling news marquee in Times Square telling him to return to Annie in L.A. I have no idea whether Martin ever heard about this or not, but in L.A. STORY, he gets romantic advice from a highway traffic sign. The concept sounds hopeless (as Allen obviously decided it was), but Telemacher is so disbelieving about the concept that its comedy comes across. After all, everything else offbeat happens in L.A.; why not this?

There are few comedies that meld so perfectly. One is tempted to credit its lush visuals and on-the-button pacing to director Mick Jackson, except that Jackson has done little before or since that is this striking (THE BODYGUARD was a big hit, but I can’t say it stands out in my mind). It’s obviously Martin’s comic vision all the way, and it’s pure delight.

Martin’s physicality and wit are on grand display here. And though Victoria Tennant, like Jackson, has done little else in her career that’s this good, Martin certainly makes us see just what he saw in her. When they finally come together, it feels deserved and not at all forced.

In an era where gastric wheezing and room-temperature mentalities substitute for wit, it’s refreshing to see a comedy that actually creates its own special world. For me, L.A. STORY ranks right up there with Preston Sturges’s screwball comedies–a one-of-a-kind take on the world’s craziness and the love that helps us endure it.

L.A. STORY is rated PG-13 for sexual situations and strong language.

Steve Martin is a genius! I have watched this movie over a dozen times and it still charms me to this day and never becomes out-dated. A must see for anyone who appreciates how ridiculous life can be.