Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry: Season 4 (2002) Review

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(More customer reviews)As a spoken word poet and literature professor, I love Def Poetry Jam as a source of inspiration and a touchstone for the state of spoken word poetry. An ecclectic mix of different styles, season 4 is another great collection of incredible poets and poems. These are taped live in a Broadway theatre with a live audience, so it's as close to the real thing as you can get on dvd. These episodes do well to balance male and female voices as well as representatives from many different races, ethnicities and points of view. Forget about the celebrity appearances- it's the poets youmay never have heard of that will blow your mind. My personal favorites appear early, including Black Ice and a husband/wife duo telling the raw truth about raising kids on low incomes. My community college students, whom I cannot wake up to discuss Dickinson or even Hughes, were wide-eyed and all ears while I showed selections from these discs. This season includes more episodes than any of the previous three as well.

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Def Poetry is one of the country's fastest rising performing-art forms, and recognizing the power of urban poetry on modern culture, rap impressario Russell Simmons teamed up with HBO to create Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry. Season four of the improvisational, uninhibited late-night series features the spoken words of the biggest and most stellar talent lineup like KANYE WEST (6 time Grammy Award-winner), TRACY MORGAN (30 Rock) and MIKE EPPS (Host of Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam). Each episode is hosted by the highly regarded hip hop artist and actor Mos Def (hit album Black on Both Sides).

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Pucca - Ninjas Love Noodles (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)This show is adorable and hilarious to boot. I love the physical comedy - still so effective in such a simple style of animation. There are a lot of funny little touches, usually related to the characters; Santa Claus lives in the ninja village, there's one kid who's always showing off like Bruce Lee and ripping his shirt off. I have a pretty well cultivated sense of humor (or so I'd like to think) and this show made me laugh consistently. It's really cute and I'd recommend it to anyone who's a fan of animated shorts, be they children or not.

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Pucca is an animated series by the South Korean company Vooz Character Systems. It first originated as a series of online flash episodes, as Pucca Funny Love. Pucca is the young daughter of Chinese noodle house owners and she is hopelessly in love with the ninja Garu. He tries desperately to avoid Pucca's advances and usually does not return her affection. This results in many comical situations as Pucca goes to great lengths just to steal a kiss from Garu. Expect to see lots of funny love antics involving everything from noodles to deadly ninjas

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Masters of Horror - Don Coscarelli - Incident on and off a Mountain Road (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)Although it was the first episode of MASTERS OF HORROR to air on Showtime when the series debuted in October 2005, director Don Coscarelli's "Incident On and Off a Mountain Road" is the fourth series segment to be released on DVD. And it is also one of the best of the series thus far (series one has ended, but the show is expected to continue for at least one more season). Longtime genre fans will recognize the name Coscarelli, of course, as he is the writer/director of the classic horror flick PHANTASM (1979) and its sequels, director and co-writer of the sword-and-sorcery fantasy THE BEASTMASTER (1982), and the writer/director of the more contemporary horror-comedy cult favorite BUBBA HO-TEP (2002).
An adaptation of the short story by genre author Joe R. Lansdale--who also wrote the story on which BUBBA HO-TEP was based--"Incident On and Off a Mountain Road" is an interesting, fresh take on the girl-chased-through-the-woods slasher-type flick, one with a very wry twist at the end. It stars cute actress Bree Turner (some genre fans my recognize her from 2005's JEKYLL + HYDE) as Ellen, a young woman who has an auto accident late one night while driving through the rural mountains of Oregon. After crawling from the wreckage and trying to assess the damage, Ellen quickly finds herself pursued by a hulking mountain-dwelling madman (John De Santis, familiar to horror fans from his role as Lurch in the short-lived late-1990s TV series THE NEW ADDAMS FAMILY). But Ellen is no ordinary damsel in distress. Through occasional flashbacks, it is revealed that her ex-husband was an obsessive survivalist and that he forced her to participate in his training sessions. And as a result, Ellen has a few tricks up her sleeve that just may help her outwit her brutish pursuer and survive the night.
As is, Lansdale's original story rises way above the cliche of its slasher roots, but the script by Coscarelli and his co-writer, Stephen Romano, ratchet it up even higher by adding some elements only hinted at by Lansdale. This enables Coscarelli, as director, to create a 60-minute visual ride that is dense with layers of thrills, suspense, and shocks that lesser directors would have trouble fitting into a two-hour flick. Of course, he is helped by the outstanding acting abilities of Turner, whose talent allows her to convincingly vacillate between vulnerability and strength, as well as the intense performance from Ethan Embry (who plays Ellen's ex-husband in flashback sequences) and the skills and menacing presence of De Santis. Even Coscarelli's old friend Angus Scrimm--who became a genre icon playing the Tall Man in the classic PHANTASM series--makes a delightfully quirky appearance.
The DVD edition of "Incident On and Off a Mountain Road" offers a pristine digital transfer of the filmic series episode in anamorphic widescreen at its original aspect ratio of 1.77:1. And as is almost always the case with discs from the cool folks at Anchor Bay, the DVD is chockful with bonus features. This one has TWO commentaries--one featuring writer/director Coscarelli and co-writer Romano (moderated by Anchor Bay's Perry Martin); the other with Coscarelli and author Joe R. Lansdale--an interview with Coscarelli; a documentary on Coscarelli's genre career; a special-effects featurette (hidden in an "Easter egg"); and lots more! It's well worth amazon.com's reasonable price of admission.
All in all, "Incident On and Off a Mountain Road" is a top-notch entry in Mick Garris' MASTERS OF HORROR series, and it leaves no doubt as to why Don Coscarelli was one of the first directors chosen to participate. But even apart from the series and despite its short runtime of 60 minutes, the episode itself easily stands alone as a masterpiece of horror film, and it is sure to become a genre classic. So even those rare horror fans not impressed by the overall TV series should seriously consider adding this flick to their collections.

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The Oscar Wilde Collection (The Importance of Being Earnest / The Picture of Dorian Gray / An Ideal Husband / Lady Windermere's Fan) (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this set because it contains two performances by the much beloved late Jeremy Brett. Though I'm happy to say that all four plays, and the fascinating biography on Oscar Wilde are exceptionally well done! The other reviewer summerized the four productions excellently, so I just wanted to add my two cents.
The two Brett plays-The Picture of Dorian Grey, and The Ideal Husband, showcase Mr. Bretts superb acting ability. He's wonderfully dark and morose in Dorian, but equally light, witty and charming in Ideal. This set should be in the Library of any Brett aficionado.
The other two productions-The Importance of Being Ernest and Lady Windermere's fan, are in many ways even surperior to the other two productions. Joan Plowright is exceptional in Ernest and proves why she's a Grand Dame of British threatre. The BBC should be applauded for putting these productions on TV as it enables the everyday person, like myself, to see quality theatrical productions when most would not have the means or ability to do so in person. I hope the BBC brings more plays like these to TV for modern viewers.
All in all, I highly recommend this inexpensive, quality set to any period piece fan. 5 stars!

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Masters of Horror: Season One Box Set (2002) Review

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(More customer reviews)4.5 Stars for the show:
I personally liked a lot of Showtime's Masters of Horror series. What a great idea a bunch of influential directors in the horror genre doing one hour films. Some were great and some not so great but every Sunday while the seasons played you'd have the opportunity to see something new in horror.
These discs were originally released individually and someone could've easily payed twice as much as this set is worth, for those people, the people who probably followed the show the closest, were it's biggest supporters contributing ratings, and contributed money for their monthly Showtime subscriptions it sucks this wasn't released at first.
For the people that liked the show but never picked any up this is a great deal.
From a marketing and business side i guess this was smart to get more money out of people.
Episode Guide Season 1
Haeckel's Tale - "Haeckel's Tale" is about a man who takes shelter in a cabin in the woods of New England, and once inside is told not to leave---no matter what sounds he hears on the outside. Based on a Clive Barker short story and directed by John McNaughton. Steve Bacic.
Pick Me Up - "Pick Me Up" pits a serial killer (Michael Moriarty) who targets hitchhikers against a serial-killer hitchhiker, with a young woman caught in the middle. Directed by Larry Cohen ("It's Alive").
Sick Girl - "Sick Girl" is a comedy thriller about an insect scientist (Angela Bettis) and the fly in the ointment that threatens her lesbian love affair. Erin Brown. Directed by Lucky McKee and written by Sean Hood.
Fair Haired Child - In "Fair Haired Child," an odd couple kidnap a teenage outcast (Lindsay Pulsipher) and lock her in a basement with their 13-year-old son, who harbors a dark secret. Lori Petty. Directed by William Malone and written by Matt Greenberg.
Cigarette Burns - "Cigarette Burns" is the story of a young man (Norman Reedus) searching for a print of a rare film that purportedly, upon viewing, sent its audience into a crazed and violent frenzy. Directed by John Carpenter ("Halloween"). Udo Kier, Gary Hetherington.
Deer Woman - A cynical cop (Brian Benben) suspects that a fabled Native American creature called "Deer Woman" may actually be real. Cinthia Moura, Anthony Griffith. Directed by John Landis, who co-wrote the script with his son Max.
Homecoming - In "Homecoming," directed by Joe Dante ("Gremlins"), the nation discovers that the latest presidential election was intentionally tainted---by zombies. Jon Tenney, Robert Picardo. Sam Hamm wrote the screenplay, based on Dale Bailey's short story "Death & Suffrage."
Chocolate - In "Chocolate," a divorced man (Henry Thomas) experiences life through the senses of a mysterious woman with whom he falls in love. Written and directed by Mick Garris ("The Stand").
Jenifer - A modern-day Lolita named "Jenifer" turns out to be bad news for the police officer (Steven Weber) who saves her life and brings her to live in his home. Carrie Anne Fleming, Brenda James. Directed by Dario Argento ("Suspiria") from a script by Weber, who adapted the classic Bruce Jones comic book.
Dance of the Dead - "Dance of the Dead" is set in a post-apocalyptic world in which a young woman (Jessica Lowndes) visits an entertainment venue where reanimated corpses perform for the survivors of a nuclear holocaust. Directed by Tobe Hooper, written by Richard Christian Matheson, who adapted the short story by his father, Richard Matheson.
Dreams in the Witch-House - "Dreams in the Witch-House" is an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's short story about a college student (Ezra Godden) who rents a New England flat, where he has nightmares that involve a witch, a rodent and the devil himself. Directed by Stuart Gordon ("Re-Animator"), who co-wrote the script with Dennis Paoli.
Incident on and off a Mountain Road - Featured: "Incident on and off a Mountain Road," about a deformed serial killer terrorizing a resourceful young woman (Bree Turner), who proves to be quite the survivalist. Angus Scrimm, Ethan Embry. Directed by Don Coscarelli, who co-wrote the screenplay with Stephen Romano.
Imprint - Directed by Takashi Miike (Audition) The version that did not play on Showtime because of it's subject matter, I'll let you discover that one yourself.
Box Set Features
Masters of Horror Director's Dinner at L.A.'s famed Magic Castle Restaurant - a round-table discussion of horror by the Masters themselves!
Series creator Mick Garris interviews horror and Hollywood's elite
Deleted Scenes


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