The Lost Tomb of Jesus (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)I consider myself quite open-minded when it comes to these type of religious historical documentaries. In fact, I am usually thrilled at the idea that someone discovered archaeological evidence of a religious person. Thus, it's strange for this documentary to really turn me off.
I'm mainly annoyed by the narration and structure of the documentary. I think if it wasn't for that, I might have liked it more. Two things bothered me in particular: one was the way the documentary presented its arguments and the other was the omnipresence of the director, Simcha Jacobovici.
The documentary does a very misleading thing. Whenever it encounters a potential piece of evidence that doesn't fit into their argument, they find a way of suggesting that it could potentially fit, and then thereafter refer to it as if they've proven their point. For example, they bring up the problem of "Mariamne" - who could she be? Her mention in the Acts of Philip in reference to Mary Magdalene was cited as evidence that this could mean the real Mary Magdalene (never for once questioning the historical validity of the Acts of Philip). Then they show you a dramatic reconstruction of Mary Magdalene as the wife of Jesus, and from that point on, the documentary acts as if they've proven without a doubt that Mariamne is Mary Magdalene. They continue doing that with all the pieces of evidence that don't quite fit, without nothing that these evidence are all linked, so if even one of them is false, then the rest of their case falls apart.
Consider this line of thinking: You want to find out who stole your bicycle. You see a footprint that belongs to a shoe that maybe Billy wore, and maybe he was in your neighborhood even though he lives an hour away, and maybe his bicycle broke down which is why he needed yours, and maybe he liked your bicycle among all the others in the neighborhood. Well, if any one of these "maybe's" are false, your case falls apart.
I know they try to do the statistical argument, but what does 1 in 60,000 mean? It sounds like a huge possibility but they never to bother elaborating on that.
The other thing, and perhaps the most annoying thing, about the documentary is Simcha Jacobovici, who comes across as biased as Michael Moore (whom, incidentally, I actually like). His bias is so obvious that it puts into question the entire construction of the project, including how the film was edited, who and what did they leave out, and so on.
As I said, I would really like to believe the arguments in this documentary, and some of it is quite convincing, but the flawed line of thinking and the bias of the director makes it very suspect. There was some good production values, but other than that, it was a poorly conceived project on a potentially fascinating find.

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The feature-length widescreen Director’s Cut of the Discovery Channel special – executive produced by James Cameron. In 1980, a bulldozer accidentally uncovered a first-century tomb in Jerusalem. Of the ten ossuaries (stone coffins) found inside, six bore inscriptions: Jesus son of Joseph, Maria, Mariamene (the name by which Mary Magdalene was known), Joseph, Matthew, and Judah son of Jesus. Dismissed by archaeologists as coincidence, the ossuaries were warehoused and forgotten. Twenty-five years later, filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and his team took a fresh look at this astounding cluster of New Testament names. Granted unparalleled access, they went in search of the ossuaries…and the lost tomb. What they found may well be the most controversial archaeological discovery of all time.Features 80 minutes of exclusive bonus materials including: Interviews with executive producer James Cameron and director Simcha JacoboviciExpert Interviews: The Discovery 1980, Judeo Christians, The Early Christian Cluster of Evidence, The Sign of the Cross, The Chevron Symbol, MariamneThe Recreations: Behind the ScenesThe Lost Tomb of Jesus Epilogue featuring James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici Photo GalleryTrailer

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Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)'Wal Mart, The High Cost Of Low Price' is filled with first hand testimonials and some hard-fact figures that will help in validating your hatred of this greedy giant, and visually exposes those in other countries who are ruthlessly used as slaves to produce the cheap products you purchase when you patronize this monolith.
These "jobs" provided to the labor forces of India, China, Bangladesh, and Mexico are not 'good wage' jobs even for third world standards. The people are overworked, underpaid, and forced to work in sub-human conditions. These human beings make 13 to 17 cents and hour, and work 10 to 18 hour days without breaks, all so you can have that $1.49 blouse.
Exposed in this film are the squalid, rent controlled apartments in China, provided by the company, that put to shame the most rancid ghetto house in your hometown. And if the employee chooses not to live in these rat-infested housing developments, the rent is still deducted from their wages. Wal-Mart has managed to lower the work standards set for these hard-pressed, low wage, third-world countries that other companies are going to follow, sucking down the standards of working all across the world.
The manager of the Mexico factories went on a tour to make sure that working conditions were humane. He was fired when he reported that the conditions were intolerably inhumane. In his own words, he didn't think retaliation would be brought against him for doing his job.
If you think it was a good thing that America abolished slavery, then think again before you go into a Wal-Mart. Just because the US is no longer "importing" slaves, doesn't make it right to continue to use slavery in other countries to produce high profits for personal gain. Wal-Mart's practices are no different than bringing slaves over from Africa to pick our cotton, it's still a cheap way for the rich to get richer at the expense of human blood and sweat.
Intermittently inserted in the film is a speech made by Lee Scott to the high-end employees and stockholders of Wal-Mart, which sounds very much like an Amway pep-talk. Lee Scott's earnings for 2005 were $27,207,799.00. The average Wal-Mart hourly employee's was $13,861.00.
Interesting facts: After 9/11, the Walton's built themselves an underground bunker in case of another terrorist attack, costing millions of dollars that should have went into paying back the Government for having to subsidize their employee's un-affordable medical benefits.
The Walton family gave less than 1% of their wealth to charity. Bill Gates, not even a nice man himself, gave 58%.
The "Critical Need" fund, set up to assist Wal-Mart employees in emergencies, received five million dollars from Wal-Mart employees (making $13,861.00 annually) and only $6,000.00 from the Walton family, who made, collectively, 102 billion.
Wal-Mart actually had a commercial campaign about "buying American" while all their products come from sweatshops overseas.
Wal-Mart has refused to address crime statistics that show an upswing of violent crime in their large, remote, under-lit and un-protected parking lots, putting their customers in danger and taxing the local law enforcement. The State of California alone paid out 80 Million dollars in medical benefits to poverty-level Wal-Mart employees because the 102 Billion Dollar Walton family does not want to give their "associates" fair medical benefits.
There are many ways to hate Wal-Mart and its ilk, and many books out on the subject, but I recommend watching this DVD so you can actually see the slave workers and conditions overseas that these selfish billionaires exploit without passing down their profit to the "small people" who helped build their empire. The presentation could have used a little more snappiness, and the DVD starts out very slow, but keep watching and you will eventually see the monster peeking out from behind your curtain.
Stop shopping at Wal-Mart. Just stop. You don't need their cheap goods that fall apart two days after you bring them home, and it feels good to know that you make a difference by not supporting slavery. Enjoy!


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Everyone has seen Wal-Mart's lavish television commercials, but have you ever wondered why Wal-Mart spends so much money trying to convince you it cares about your family, your community, and even its own employees? What is it hiding?WAL-MART: The High Cost of Low Price takes you behind the glitz and into the real lives of workers and their families, business owners and their communities, in an extraordinary journey that will challenge the way you think, feel... and shop.

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Dark Blue: Season 1 (4 Disc) (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Jerry Bruckheimer doesn't seem to run out of good ideas when it comes to cop shows...CSI trilogy, Cold Case, Without a Trace. And now comes Dark Blue, a special task force in the LAPD composed of specially-trained police officers whose job are to go undercover, infiltrate criminal organizations and bring them to justice. The team is composed of 4 police officers with unique personalities headed by Lt. Carter Shaw (Dylan McDermott), a grizzled, battle-scarred LAPD officer who is tasked with heading the task force and coming up with plans to bring down hardened criminals; Dean Bendis (Logan Marshall-Green), a no-nonsense guy who "absorbs" his role being an undercover cop and sometimes has a hard-time detaching himself from the roles his job demands; Ty Curtis (Omari Hardwick), the only married member of the team who tries to balance the demanding expectations from his job and his personal life and Jaimie Allen (Nicki Aycox) who was recruited by Lt. Carter to the team based on her past and struggles with demons of her own. The team put their lives on the line to infiltrate criminal organizations using deception, mundane and unconventional methods to get the job done. The plot is filled with a lot of action and drama that incorporates violence and human compassion at the same time. Its been a while since I have seen a cop show with this kind of story line. The members struggle with personal anxieties of their own but gets the job done at the end of the day. I Highly recommend this show for its unique plot and story line, deviating from the traditional cop shows we've seen in a very long time!

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LAPD Lt. Carter Shaw (Dylan McDermott) and his special undercover task force understand that to collar criminals, one must first get on their level. They also know that going undercover may require cutting ties with those who mean the most. Adrift, isolated and frequently faced with situations that strain the line between right and wrong, these officers know that all that matters is loyalty to each other and to the task at hand: bringing down the bad guys.From Jerry Bruckheimer Television (the CSI Trilogy, Without a Trace, Cold Case) comes another edgy and atmospheric series about dedicated law enforcers operating in the shadows and leading double lives. Omari Hardwick, Logan Marshall-Green and Nicki Aycox also star. This 4-Disc, 10-Episode Season One Collection of their edge-of-your-seat investigations will take you to the edge of darkness - and beyond.
This product is manufactured on demand using DVD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.

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Tales of the Unexpected, Set 3 (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)Accomplishing the "twenty spine chilling tales", an Australian-produced five-DVD set presents, according to producers, a cream de la cream of the Dahl's stories-tragic, deceptive, ambiguous events depicted by a strongly hilarious way.
It is good for watching in-between something more educative and mind-broadening.

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From the master storyteller who brought the kids such surreal goodies as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, here’s a twisted treat for the grown-ups. Roald Dahl’s playfully macabre adult stories launched this legendary British television series, which continues with stories of the same creepy ilk. Mixing dark humor with horror and fantasy, the tales are tasty tidbits of the macabre, each building up to a startling final twist. A little bit Hitchcock, a little bit Twilight Zone, and wickedly entertaining. Episode casts feature top-drawer talent, including John Mills, Leslie Caron, Derek Jacobi, Susan Penhaligon, Shiela Gish, Phoebe Nicholls, Ian Holm, and Cherie Lunghi.

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