The Librarian - Quest for the Spear (2004) Review

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(More customer reviews)Noah Wyle is charming as Flynn, a professional student turned reluctant hero when he finds himself named The Librarian, and is charged with guarding a number of priceless artifacts he previously thought were only the stuff of myth. Flynn's race to recover the stolen section of the Spear of Destiny and prevent the Brotherhood of the Serpent from finding the remaining sections is Indiana-Jones-esque action and adventure at its light-hearted best.
Jane Curtin and Bob Newhart display their usual dry wit, with Newhart's scene with the bad guys near the end of the movie alone worth watching the movie for. Olympia Dukakis plays Flynn's mother, who wishes her boy would just find a good woman and settle down.
This is entertaining fare, a nice mix of action, adventure, brain teases and yes, a bit of romance. It isn't a big-budget Raiders of the Lost Ark production, but for a made-for-TV movie it does a fine job, and holds up on repeat viewing.

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To be a librarian, you must master the Dewey Decimal System, ace internet research and, if you're new librarian Flynn Carsen (Noah Wyle), save the world! Wyle (ER) heads a sterling cast in a fun, fantastical, special effects-laden adventure that soars around the world from the Metropolitan Library to the Amazon jungle to the Himalayas. Geeky Carsen lands a job as the Librarian, keeper of such top-secret Met treasures as Excalibur and Pandora's Box. Then the Serpent Brotherhood, seeking world domination, steals one of three parts of the magical Spear of Destiny from the library. Only Flynn, aided by a gorgeous bodyguard, has the knowhow to thwart their plan. But does he know how to be a hero? He will - even if he has to gouge, kick, punch, brave Mayan death traps and plunge off icy precipices every inch of the way!DVD Features:Additional Scenes:15 minutes of unaired bonus footage and special effectsEaster Eggs:Hidden interviews with castFeaturette:Behind-the-scenes featurette including never-before-aired interviews with cast and crew Special effects featurette narrated by director Peter Winther Introduction:Introduction by Noah WylePhoto gallery

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The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)- An outraged Flynn Carsen (on having his tuxedo shirt ripped during a sword duel): "This is rented!"
- His urbane (yet evil) opponent: "Of course it is."
It's always a guilty pleasure catching up with the Librarian, whose job is to guard history's secret relics and treasures, some of these magical in nature and all stowed away in the hidden chambers of the Metropolitan Library of New York. Flynn Carsen is sort of like a modern-day Indiana Jones, except that he's awkward and plenty nerdy. But Flynn does keep his wits about him, and, after years of holding down the Librarian gig, he now boasts experience and smidgens of confidence. This current Librarian may fumble about some, but it's always fun seeing how he'll get out of whatever scrape.
The more things change... The movie opens with Flynn at a posh event applying the finishing touches to his tuxedo. He then navigates down a stairway, sips champagne, and then does a spit take with the champagne. Which goes to show that, even after all this time, Flynn Carsen is still refreshingly hapless. But, after this latest escapade, which climaxes in a sword fight, Flynn Carsen is officially burnt out (his girlfriend dumping him has something to do with it). Back at the library, by virtue of sheer grousing, he gets himself some time off and ends up flying to New Orleans, all gigged out in bow tie and panama hat. So, as they say in the Big Easy, laissez les bon temps roullez.
Or not. The holiday rapidly turns into a desperate relic hunt, with Flynn taking on ex-KGB agents, voodoo magic, and the undead. Along the way, he partners up with a mysterious chanteuse to rescue a kidnapped scientist. The relic in question is the rumored Judas Chalice, of which origin dates back to Judas Iscariot and his 30 pieces of silver. The chalice reeks of malice but holds the brew that is true - that is, if you're a vampire in need of resurrecting. And, since those ex-KGB agents have unearthed the coffin of Vlad Dracul, you can see where this is going.
What I like best about TNT's Librarian series is that it's not at all pretentious. It wallows in its unabashed cheesiness and farce, even as it hunkers down with a pretty good adventure story. THE LIBRARIAN: CURSE OF THE JUDAS CHALICE is the third in the series, and it doesn't disappoint its fans. Hokey fun, mythical artifacts, indecipherable manuscripts, supernatural villains, and a likable, nebbish, talky hero (even the bad guys complain of his always talking in paragraphs). By now, Noah Wyle's got his part down cold. The neat thing about his character is that he can do something heroic but, then, subsequently have the rug pulled out from under him. And, when this happens, he's so damn good-natured about it.
Flynn has had a hard time keeping his lady loves. First Nicole (Sonya Walger), then Emily Davenport (Gabrielle Anwar). This time out, Wyle's romantic interest is exotic Stana Katic, who plays bluesy singer Simone Renoir with femme fatale nuances. Maybe she's a keeper. Or not. Meanwhile, Jane Curtin and Bob Newhart (at his stammering best) are again solidly on board as the museum directors.
I never thought I'd ever say this, but I had a better time with THE LIBRARIAN: CURSE OF THE JUDAS CHALICE than with that last Indiana Jones flick. This movie, like its predecessors (The Librarian - Quest for the Spear & The Librarian - Return to King Solomon's Mines) are tongue-in-cheek throwbacks to those high adventure pictures churned out back in the 1930s, '40s and '50s. I don't think I'm reaching that much when I say that even the score here is rousing enough that it actually reminded me of those Errol Flynn swashbucklers. But, of course, Flynn Carsen is no Errol Flynn. Errol doesn't know the Dewey Decimal System.

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Noah Wyle (TV's ER) is back as Flynn Carson, along with Bob Newhart (Elf) and Jane Curtin (Coneheads), in the most thrilling adventure in The Librarian series yet! On a deadly mission to recover the historic Judas Chalice, Flynn is saved by - and falls in love with - Simone, a dazzling French woman who harbors a terrifying secret. But when double-crossed by a respected professor (Bruce Davison - X-Men, X2) and ambushed by a ruthless gang, Flynn realizes Simone's secret, his true mission and a shocking discovery are all lying within a decaying New Orleans crypt?a crypt that may be holding Prince Vlad Dracul, whom the world has feared for centuries.

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ER: The Complete Seventh Season (2000) Review

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(More customer reviews)Season seven of NBC's long-running medical drama ER was an impressive collection of episodes that featured the introduction of one of the best guest star performances in the history of the show.
While she is not a regular cast member, Sally Field stole the show in season seven, guest starring as Maggie, nurse Abby Lockhart's (Maura Tierney) bipolar mother. Field earned an Emmy for her incredible turn as Maggie, a woman desparately trying to reconnect with her daughter and turn her life around, all the while dealing with a disease that can turn her into a totally different person. Most of Abby's story lines in this season revolved around her mother, and through that, viewers got a chance to learn just where Abby came from and how tough things were for her as a youngster. Abby is the only character in this season that is returning for the 14th season as a regular cast member, so it is nice to see just where the character got her start.
Abby began the year as a med student, but her ex-husband's failure to pay a bill puts her back in nurse scrubs for the season, however, as the year draws to a close she is thinking about heading back to med school again. Viewers also get a chance to see Abby's budding relationship with Dr. Luka Kovac (Goran Visnjic), a relationship that has resulted in them having a baby and getting married in season 13. In this season, the relationship is still in its new stage and viewers got a chance to see just what Luka went through in Croatia, losing his wife and children in a bombing. It is through his relationship with a dying bishop (guest star James Cromwell) that Luka finally learns to deal with his past and move on with his life.
At the end of season six, Dr. John Carter (Noah Wyle) was heading to rehab after becoming addicted to pain pills. Season seven finds him out of rehab and looking for his job back. With conditions, he is accepted back to County General and for the most part, is able to blend back in with his fellow doctors. A close call with some pain medication sends him back to square one in his return to work, however. His close friendship with Abby, herself a recovering alcoholic, helps him through the tough times and we get to see the great side of Dr. Carter when he travels with Abby to bring a messed up Maggie back from a hotel room where she was holed up in Oklahoma.
Dr. Peter Benton (Eriq LaSalle) continues his relationship with pediatrician Cleo Finch (Michael Michele) and also has to deal with the fact that he loses his job in the surgery department after a tiff with Dr. Robert Romano (Paul McCrane). Forced to accept a position with no benefits and no stature, Benton is incredibly disappointed, but stays in Chicago to be near his son Reese, who splits time with he and his ex, Carla (guest star Lisa Nicole Carson). Eventually, Benton is hired as the director of diversity at the hospital in what would be he and Cleo's final full season at County General. Both doctors departed near the end of season eight.
Jing-Mei Chen (Ming Na) opens the season finding out that she is pregnant. She hides her pregnancy well for a while, keeping her parents in the dark until it is almost time to deliver. She agrees to give the baby up for adoption after realizing that the time was not right for her and the fact that her parents couldn't handle the fact that the baby's father was black. The pregnancy was Chen's main story line, though she does apply for chief resident at the end of the season, a position Carter also wants, but can't have because of the conditions placed on him after his rehab stint.
Dr. Dave Mallucci (Erik Palladino) has very few large story lines in the season, serving mainly as a character in other people's story lines. It is obvious in this season that the writers were dealing with a lot of main characters, which gave them almost too many stories to tell in each episode and Dr. Dave was one of the people that seemed to fall by the wayside.
Dr. Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes), the head of the ER, confronts her own sexuality, as she enters a relationship with Dr. Kim Legaspi (guest star Elizabeth Mitchell, Juliet from Lost). She hides their relationship well, but when Dr. Legaspi's career is on the line, Weaver steps up and comes out of the closet to her boss, Dr. Romano. This story line was one of the big stories during the season, one that opened Dr. Weaver up to many relationships, including the one that led to her departure from the show in the middle of the 13th season.
But, the biggest story of the year was that of Dr. Mark Greene (Anthony Edwards). The longtime ER doc finds out that he has a tumor in his brain the same day he finds out that his girlfriend Dr. Elizabeth Corday (Alex Kingston) is pregnant. The two set out on a course to find a way to treat the tumor and the removal is successful, but Greene has a hard time returning to work, still dealing with the effects of the surgery and the tumor. The two doctors get married (after a slight delay) and welcome Ella to the world and in the final episode, Greene fears for the life of his wife and baby when a distraught father goes on a killing spree after Greene places his son in a foster home. This tumor marked the beginning of the end for Dr. Greene, as its return in season eight eventually led to the good doctor's death in the penultimate episode, one of the toughest moments in ER history.
This set features a number of deleted scenes and a great gag reel that shows just how much things can get screwed up on the set of a tense show like ER.
While there could've been more extras, this has been the norm the last few seasons and the episodes themselves make for great television, with or without the extras. If for no other reason, by this set to watch "The Visit," the episode that introduces viewers to Sally Field's Maggie, truly one of the best episodes of the show's 14-year run.

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A busload of fume-sickened school kids...a gunman whose shooting spree claimed 19 victims...a guy in an opossum outfit who bit a man dressed as a kangaroo. They and so many others all converge at ER. The gurneys keep rolling in a superlative Season 7 that includes Abby's reunion with her mother, a turbulent woman who suffers from bipolar disorder. Also making the rounds in the 22 episodes: Carter returns from detox, Abby goes back to square one in med training, Benton struggles to emerge from Romano's doghouse, Kovac confronts a mugger, Weaver reveals her sexual orientation and Chen refuses to reveal the father of her child. Meanwhile, Greene and Corday marry...and live under the shadow of Greene's health crisis. Excitement, drama, suspense - the doctors are on call. DVD Features:Deleted ScenesGag Reel

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ER: The Complete Eleventh Season (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Finally, Warner Bros. seems to have sped up their release of ER seasons on DVD!
Season 11 includes Ray Liotta's emmy winning tour de force in "Time of Death", a real time episode following the final 43 minutes of his character's life. Alex Kingston, Ming Na and Noah Wyle exit County General. Other guest stars include Red Buttons, Danny Glover, Cynthia Nixon, Francis Fisher and Sharif Atkins.
Season 11 of ER includes some of the series' most memorable patient storylines. New doc Ray Barnett (Shane West) juggles medicine and music,
Sam and Luka continue their turbulent relationship, and Corday is punished for performing an illegal operation. There is much to like about season 11, so why only four stars?
While season 11 is very good, certain episodes leave something to be desired. Having Sharif Atkins return as Dr. Gallant was a good idea, but
actually having an episode take place in Iraq made the show wander too far from County General. I liked the Gallant-Neela-Iraq storyline, but
if I wanted to watched Baghdad ER, I would. Also, Carter unfortunately ends up with Kem. Some people like her, others don't. I think she's O.K., but nothing more. And the so-called cliffhanger with Sam's son at the end of the season didn't have me on the edge of my seat, and only led to a dull season 12 premiere.
Now that I got all that outta the way, I can say that the rest of the stories, performances and medical cases are top notch ER. I'm looking forward to July 14th!


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An aquarium worker with a live shark latched onto him…a blind woman and her guide companion (a miniature horse!)…a college boy with an arrow in his gut (his fraternity brothers were aiming for the apple on his head). Gunshot victims. Homeless children. Cardiac cases. So many patients, so little time. Year 11 of the fast-paced series brings challenges and changes to the ER. Corday and Chen weigh work and family. Abby finds that being a good doctor is as tough as being a good nurse. Ray Barnett – doctor by day, rock star by night – arrives. Carter decides to leave. He\'s been there from the start, a student turned leader who picked up where Greene left off. He set the tone, provided the example. His impact will endure.

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ER: The Complete Ninth Season (2001) Review

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(More customer reviews)Spoilers: While the television show ER lost some of its finest cast members in the preceding years, including founders Anthony Edwards, George Clooney, Julianna Margulies and the great Eriq LaSalle, it also gained some high calibre acting talent in the process.
Noah Wyle takes charge following the death of Mark Greene (in season eight), while Laura Innes's Kerry Weaver (a great characterization) continues with her usual ambitious plans, facing health and moral dilemmas on the way. Maura Tierney ably continues her role as Abby Lockhart, with Goran Visnjic maintaining his rebel ways. Newcomer Mekhi Phifer receives a top billing credit for his part as Gregory Pratt and although he has his moments, Sharif Atkins takes the upper hand with his portrayal of the likable Michael Gallant. Alex Kingston, a staple of the series has little to do this season while Sherry Stringfield returns as Susan Lewis, displaying some fine moments including a nice friendship with a terminal cancer patient. Ming-Na returns as Jing-Mei Chen, turning up the heat with her relationship with Pratt.
Season nine however, is highlighted by the brilliance of the underrated Paul McCrane. McCrane's Robert Romano faces a hard road to recovery after a devastating accident in the season opening. Though previously considered the shows 'villain', McCrane's character (who previously had few redeeming features other than his brilliance as a surgeon) is fleshed out more during season nine. With a more deeply felt characterization, McCrane gets the opportunity to display some brilliant acting talent, with a mix of the poignant and a touch of his trademark satiric wit. His friendship with Alex Kingston steps up a notch, with the two sharing a great mutual respect after years of relative hostility. It is a touching friendship.
Frances Sternhagen's Millicent Carter (John Carter's grandmother) is also worthy of a mention. First appearing in 1997, Sternhagen contributed to some great episodes and her pairing with Wyle left some great moments in the series history. This season is also graced with the presence of some great character actors including Bruce Weitz and Don Cheadle as a doctor in training with Parkinson's disease. On the whole, season nine is filled with solid work from all cast members and is a vast improvement over season seven and eight.

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ER:COMPLETE NINTH SEASON - DVD Movie

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