DVD Recent Picks
September 2009
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True blood. The complete first season.
Adapted from Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse novels, True Blood thrills because of its equal blend in each episode of erotica, humor, tragedy, mystery, and fantasy. Set in a rural, swampy Louisiana parrish, the show centers around Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) and her clan, sweet grandmother Adele (Lois Smith) and air-headed brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten). Illicit love is spawned early on, when Sookie saves vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) from having his blood stolen in the parking lot of Merlotte's diner, owned by Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell) who completes what will form a complex love triangle. As tensions between Sookie's suitors loosen or tighten, many side plots, such as her African American best friend Tara's (Rutina Wesley) struggle with an alcoholic, Bible-thumping mother and her brother's dangerous crush on drug addicted hippie, Amy Burley (Lizzy Caplan), keep one wondering who will succeed in this podunk place. The main tension throughout, however, is a race war waged between vampires and humans. As murders of 'fang bangers' occur (human girls who let vampires bite them) and dumb policeman Andy Bellefleur (Chris Bauer) fails to find clues, one sees the metaphorical implications of vampirism and feels deeper resonance with what can be a downright trashy show. What makes True Blood smarter than pure soap opera is the parallels it draws between its monster mash and actual, familiar societal problems. Sookie and her friends watch the news, where Evangelicals bash vampires and prohibit mixed marriage, and everyone is addicted to V, a.k.a vampire blood, that effects like psychedelic heroin. (Amazon.com)
Flight of the Conchords. The complete second season.
Following on from the quite exceptional debut season, Flight Of The Conchords' sophomore run thankfully manages to recapture the comedy genius that put the show on the map in the first place. And, bluntly, it's often painfully funny. If you're new to the show, it basically follows two folk singers from New Zealand, who are trying to make it big in New York City. Naturally, in Flight Of The Conchords, things don't quite go to plan, and it becomes clear that America might not be ready for the pair's musical creations. Powered by Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement in the lead roles, but backed by a particularly good supporting cast (including the wonderful Rhys Darby as their part-time manager), Flight Of The Conchords' second season throws up some real classics. We get Bret starting up a gang, Jemaine's realisation that he's slept with someone from Australia, and, of course, the visit of the New Zealand Prime Minister. There are ten episodes in total, and while not every one of them hits the heights of the series at its peak, this is still a comedy goldmine. Easily one of the freshest and most original comedy shows currently running, Flight Of The Conchords really is something of a treat, and if anything, season two exceeds the standards set by its forerunner. Roll on season three. Please. (Amazon.co.uk)
Linda Linda Linda.
Directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita, LINDA LINDA LINDA depicts the musical and personal dramas of an all-girl high school rock band and has played to critical acclaim at more than 40 major international film festivals. The film notably offers a soundtrack by ex-Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha and a cameo by punk rock legends The Ramones. LINDA LINDA LINDA was originally released in 2005 and follows an all-girl high school rock band after an untimely break-up. Only three days before their high school festival, guitarist Kei (Yu Kashii), drummer Kyoto (Aki Maeda of Battle Royale), and bassist Nozumi (Shiori Sekine) must recruit a new lead vocalist for their band. They choose an unlikely Korean exchange student Son (Doona Bae of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance), even though her comprehension of Japanese is a bit rough! It's a race against time as the group struggles to learn three tunes for the festival's rock concert -- including a classic '80s punk-pop song by the famous Japanese group The Blue Hearts called "Linda Linda." (Amazon.co.uk)
Supernatural. The complete second season.
Its blend of Route 66 and The X-Files provided some of the more chilling TV moments in recent history, but its core story--two brothers, Sam and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki) battle the forces of evil to avenge their late mother--has been compelling enough to warrant a second season, which is compiled in its entirety on this six-disc set. Season Two maintains the show's "Monster of the Week" approach while adding compelling layers to the main characters and their history; in "What Is And What Should Never Be," a djinn offers the boys a glimpse of how their lives might've played out had their mother not succumbed to demonic forces, while the two-part "All Hell Breaks Loose" brings the season to a close with not only a rift between Sam and Dean, but the gates of Hell swinging open to unleash monstrous spirits. And if that's not enough of a creepshow for you, the boys also encounter a cannibal clown ("Everybody Loves a Clown"), seductive demons ("Crossroad Blues"), a town gripped by mass psychosis ("Croatoan"), as well as a barrage of ghosts, vampires and werewolves. (Amazon.com)
Until proven innocent : the David Dougherty story.
In this compelling and moving feature-length TV ONE drama, this striking story of the fight to free Dougherty is retold. What would happen if you were wrongly accused of raping a young girl? What would you do to fight for your freedom? Until Proven Innocent is the true story of the crusade to free David Dougherty - the man wrongly imprisoned for the rape and abduction of an 11-year-old girl. In 1993, David Dougherty was sentenced to seven years and nine months for the 1992 rape and abduction of an 11-year-old girl. When the guilty verdict was read, Dougherty was dragged from the courtroom screaming at his jury of 12 men and women that they had got it wrong. (Real Groovy)
Duplicity.
Julia Roberts and Clive Owen surprise and delight on multiple levels in Duplicity, a caper film that keeps the audience guessing if the tone is cheeky, seriously, or both in exactly the same scene. Owen smolders as the relaxed, craggy sexual beast he's become--effortlessly--and Roberts is surprisingly mature and tic-less. And their chemistry threatens to explode out of the beaker. On one level, Duplicity is a sparring romance, bringing to mind the no-holds-barred zingers between Cary Grant and Roz Russell in His Girl Friday. But the film has layers of action and suspense, as well as a neat spin on the spy business. Instead of hunting for, or protecting, confidential state nuclear secrets, as each character once did when they first met, now they are beholden to captains of industry and Madison Avenue--seeking secrets not of national security, but of formulas to the next great... moisturizer. Director Tony Gilroy, who wrote all the Bourne films and wrote and directed Michael Clayton is clearly carving out a snappy path for himself as a master of sleek, suspenseful, energetic films that nonetheless appeal to a mass audience. A special shoutout to the opening scene of a mano a mano fistfight on a tarmac between Armani-clad CEOs (one played by an especially memorable Paul Giamatti). Perfect grownup entertainment. (Amazon.com)
Video greatest hits : HIStory ; HIStory on film.
Video greatest hits, HIStory: "10 of the most groundbreaking music videos of all time! Michael Jackson's short films. : Video greatest hits, HIStory (89 min.) (1995). Bad (the 18 minute version of the short film) -- Billie Jean -- Black or White (the controversial 'Panther' version of this short film in its entirety) -- Rock with you -- Thriller -- Remember the time -- The way you make me feel (long version). : HIStory of film, volume II (106 min.) (1997). Scream (vocal duet with Michael Jackson & Janet Jackson) -- Earth song -- You are not alone -- They don't care about us -- Stranger in Moscow -- Beat it -- Smooth criminal -- Childhood (theme from 'Free Willy 2') -- Blood on the dancefloor (refugee camp mix).
Project runway. Season 1.
Talented and hungry fashion designers are once again given the opportunity of a lifetime - to break into the notoriously exclusive fashion business.Hosted by supermodel Heidi Klum, this International and Primetime Emmy® nominated series sees fifteen candidates compete against each other in a bid to have their line shown in front of the global fashion community. With each challenge, a designer is eliminated, ultimately leaving one to claim their rightful place in fashion's spotlight. (Real Groovy)
DJ Spooky's Rebirth of a nation.
First released in 1915, D.W. Griffith's BIRTH OF A NATION ignited worldwide controversy with its graphic depictions of racism and white supremacy in the post-Civil War south.Nearly 100 years later, Paul D. Miller - also known as conceptual artist/musician/writer DJ Spooky - ceates a daring 'remix' of Griffith's epic to expose the film's true meaning and relate it to the socio-political conflicts of America today. (Real Groovy)
Boston legal. Season five
Celebrate the fifth and final season of this quirky, gripping comedy from David E. Kelley and enjoy the spectacular 100th episode series finale! In its remarkable fifth and final season, Boston Legal continues to tackle some of today's most inflammator - and sometimes irreverent - social and moral issues, from teen pregnancy and the death penalty to sex surrogates and mad cow disease. The outrageous and brilliant attorneys of Crane, Poole and Schmidt take on caseloads and private lives filled with malpractice, murder, love, and lust. There's a dude ranch, a surprise engagement, and, of course, the spectacular series finale. (Real Groovy)
Underbelly : a tale of two cities
A generation before the Melbourne Gangland Wars, an even bigger crime wave rocked Australia. Hard drugs hit Australia like a tsunami. Drug money flooded the underworld. With the new money came a new breed of hard men and beautiful women. This is their story...Underbelly: A Tale Of Two Cities - The Mr Asia Story takes us back to Australia, 1976. Two names stood above all others, blazing across the underworld and changing the face of organised crime in Australia forever - 'Aussie' Bob Trimbole (Roy Billing) and Terry Clark (Matthew Newton). Aided by a network of corrupt NSW police officers and judges, their 'organisation' operates under the radar, and they quite literally get away with murder. (Real Groovy)
The women
This remake of George Cukor's famed girl-trouble ensemble film features Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Jada Pinkett Smith, Eva Mendes, Debra Messing, Cloris Leachman, Bette Midler, Carrie Fisher, Joanna Gleason, and Candice Bergen--whew!--making it a film that fans of these terrifically talented women can savor. The remake may not have the cat-itude or camp factor of the original, but so what? The cast's chemistry really shines; friendship is thicker than water, it turns out--even stronger than the ties that bind women to their men. Ryan is the good-girl Mary Haines, whose husband, she and her friends learn, is cheating on her with the stunning femme fatale Crystal (Mendes, in the Joan Crawford role)--"a spritzer" at the perfume counter. Quelle horreur! The other women rally around the hapless Mary, staging interventions, offering snappy advice, and plotting battles on behalf of their friend. But it turns out that Ryan's Mary isn't quite as fragile as she seems. Gimlets and girl talk--lots of both--go a long way toward getting our heroine through her crisis, and onto a new stage in her life that surprises her husband and more than one of her pals. And the laughs by the appearances of Midler and Bergen, especially, are worth watching the whole film for. (Amazon.com)
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