Mantle - The Definitive Story of Mickey Mantle (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)An absolute treasure for fans and historians; for the fans who might expect alot of the same clips and stills and are thrilled to see something "new"; for the historians who can enjoy the high quality of the previously seen and (believed to be) first time viewing of the content.
It's always great to watch a non-overdubbed kinescope and here we have one from '52 with the Voice of The Yankees calling a MM base hit. (I could watch these undoctored clips for days on end...HBO, what do you think?...).
Besides the rare clips we have a chance to enjoy rarely seen Mantle relatives, and famous co-workers such as Bill "Moose" Skowron, Joe Pepitone, and Phil Linz, who are not as visible as some other teammates in similiar packages, in well-produced interview segments.
I was particularly touched by a 1968 (his final year) press conference including a young fan; and what was possibly his very last public statement in 1995.
The viewer/fan might find this documentary remarkably "frank", in comparison with other works which glorify the Mick without mention of his long, sad personal decline, although some of the stills of the dissipated Mantle are somewhat disturbing. I think this necessary, though mildly depressing theme could have actually been balanced with some *on-field* shortcomings - I refer to the 1959 to 1960 fall from grace when he was roundly booed - his batting average dropping 61, then 80 points in two years; an insightful segment could have been wrought in regard to the infamous "bonehead" of August, '60 when Mickey, thinking it was two outs, not one, did not run hard to first base, and caused Roger Maris to get into a double-play break up resulting in an injury which left him with 39 homers and Mantle 40. My idea is that Mick wanted Roger to break Ruth's record the next year because of this situation. There is no mention of the Mantle late '60 to '64 "Comeback".
Another lesser-discussed chapter (not explored here) is his serious shoulder injury in the '57 Series, which permanently affected his uppercut from the left side.
Yes, and it looks like the author also missed a chance to expound on that "lost" season. Not talkin' about '53 or '63, which left a huge gap statistically. It was that 1966 season, that summer, ten years after, when the Mick, coming up to age 35, had a June-July explosion of power, which really has remained unrivaled to this day. Hitting monsterous home-runs in bunches, it only stopped when another miserable injury sidelined him. The round-trippers slowed, but enough energy was sustained for him to end the season at .288 (the previous season was .255). To me, this a very important element of the Legend. Although, I gotta believe, that Mick didn't realy notice. The Yankees finished 10th that year.
I've been a Mantle fan since the '50s and have read many books, essays, and articles on this legend, and I can say that this DVD, despite a few missing pieces which could really have put it in orbit, belongs on the same shelf as *any* exceptional treatment.

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The almost mythic career of Yankee slugger Mickey Mantle is the subject of this acclaimed HBO Sports documentary special. Over 18 seasons with the Bronx Bombers, despite constant nagging injuries, Mantle managed to hit 536 home runs, twice hitting more than 50 in a season. He finished ten seasons with a batting average of .300 or more and suited up for seven World Series. To this day, ?The Mick? remains the greatest switch-hitter in baseball history; however, behind his country charm and good looks there was his wayward lifestyle that harmed his marriage, his relationship with his four sons and ultimately his health.

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Phantom (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Kit Walker has come of age but before he can take up the challenge of becoming the 21st Phantom, his adoptive parents have to bite the dust.... The PHANTOM saga continues in this almost 3 hour two-part television mini-series movie with Ryan Carnes playing the legend. Compared to the long history of dozens of Tarzan films, it has always seemed a Hollywood anomly that the Phantom had to date only rated ONE serial, ONE feature film and an animated TV series. Finally we are treated to another visualisation of the GHOST WHO WALKS legend, but a somewhat disappointing one at that. A pity that lessons of the past still seem to not have been learned. Pause for a moment to consider another film legend - The Lone Ranger who has appeared in a couple of serials, a long running TV series and several movie adventures. The original TV episodes with Clayton Moore are fondly remembered and his two cinema adventures remain very popular with fans especially the first Lone Ranger film which was almost non-stop action with our hero besting the bad guys but only after Tonto was almost strung up and the Lone Ranger had recovered from being shot. I mention this because many years later Hollywood tried to revive the legend with an updated Lone Ranger film that was a third of the way through it before our hero appeared in his traditional blue outfit accompanied by the unforgettable strains of the William Tell Overture allowing fans to finally stamp their feet with approval. But at the end of the day, fans berated the producers for a boring film with far too much delay before our hero appeared. Fast forward to the current Phantom adventure. Guess what - our hero does not appear in full uniform and chasing the bad guys until part 2 - YES - THAT'S NOT TILL AN HOUR AND A HALF INTO THIS PRODUCTION !!! (Yawn, yawn, yawn.) The Billy Zane Phantom film was originally panned for its comic strip production values but is now very fondly remembered for being a fun and faithful rendition of the comic strip hero we have come to admire. The new PHANTOM fails to generate any of the excitement captured in that film. The new story is quite boring and when the bad guys open fire, none of them think to take aim at the Phantom's lower face which is the one body part not protected by his new kevlar body suit. Overall, the best that can be said is that it's great to see the Phantom on the screen again but this half hearted resurrection will do nothing to enhance the legend and the expected luke warm response to this product is unlikely to encourage film producers to invest in a more worthy film adaptation. To give this an A rating, the A will have to be defined as AVERAGE. And as for the new uniform, we watch movies to be entertained. I for one, would much rather see an entertaining movie set in the 30's to 50's with the Phantom suited up in the traditional Billy Zane style costume than this new and almost unrecognisable version of a present day hero in a sad and confused drug fuelled modern setting. Yes, the new Phantom goes through all the motions but is he entertaining?

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Chris Moore (Ryan Carnes) is an urban daredevil who gets his kicks from racing across rooftops. When a secret organization approaches him with proof that he is actually the son of a legendary international crime fighter called The Phantom, he is thrust into a world he never knew existed- a world of exotic islands, secret lairs and a heritage that borders on royalty. Re-imagined and re-loaded, the classic superhero is upgraded for the 21st century with a new, state-of-the-art costume and a newly formed rivalry against some of the most techno-savvy villains to ever terrorize the world! It's explosive action and nonstop adventure from start to finish as The Phantom comes to life.

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Law & Order: Special Victims Unit - Year 11 (2009-2010 Season) (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)This has been, for more than a decade now, my favorite show on television. The stories are powerful and they stick with you. Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni are the heart of this show. I honestly don't think the show would do as well without them. I would, however, like to see more of Munch and Fin. They seem to have sort of dropped into the background and are only in a few scenes of each episode. I remember earlier seasons when there would be an episode or two (or more) when they were the central characters.
The addition of Christine Lahti for the first few episodes was great. I wasn't sure if I was going to like her, but I was pleasantly surprised. I'm glad she didn't stick around for the entire season though. It was great to see Stephanie March back for several episodes. I wish she was back for good, but the way in which she was written out this time (unlike last time when she was put into the witness protection program) was very well done. Overall, this is definitely one of my favorite seasons of the show.
Also, even though the price is (or was...not sure if the current price is what it originally was) a little high, at least the season was released fairly quickly after the season aired on TV. I remember when the show first went on DVD, it wasn't until the 5th season was aired. And even then season 1 wasn't released first. So I'm just glad that NBC/Universal is releasing the seasons like nearly every other show.

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LAW & ORDER:SPECIAL VICTIMS UN SSN 11 - DVD Movie

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Hercules (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)Be forewarned, I'm a big fan of 'Hercules, The Legendary Journeys' and 'Xena, Warrior Queen' so anything new on this mythical hero automatically starts off with the expectation of being a - 5 Stars - production.
This Hallmark Entertainment made-for-television production presents a much darker and somber tale of the "Son of Zeus" than what the fans of Kevin Sorbo have grown familiar with. Hated by his Mother Alcmene (Elizabeth Perkins), High Priestess to Hera and twin brother Iphicles they both unsuccessfully plot to kill Hercules (Paul Telfer). They even enlist the aide of his new wife Megara and his three young sons. When their plan fails and results in the deaths of the three children Hercules is blamed and is banished from the Kingdom. In an attempt to redeem himself he agrees to be tested by his betrayers and undertakes a series of all but impossible tasks, or "Labors." That is, almost impossible for anyone but Hercules!
Hallmark has certainly not given us the definitive version of the God/man but it is a good one. It has better than average special effects, a competent storyline and a strong cast of character: Timothy Dalton, Elizabeth Perkins, Sean Astin, the lovely LeeLee Sobeiski and Paul Telfer as Hercules.
*Special message from my seventeen year old daughter for all the young girls out there:
"Check out Paul Telfer, HOTTTTTT......!"

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HERCULES - DVD Movie

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