Ensign, Michael

War Games

Cute but silly, this 1983 cautionary fantasy stars Matthew Broderick as a teenage computer genius who hacks into the Pentagon's defense system and sets World War III into motion. All the fun is in the film's set-up, as Broderick befriends Ally Sheedy and starts the international crisis by pretending while online to be the Soviet Union. After that, it's not hard to predict what's going to happen: government agents swoop in, but the story ends up in the "hands" of machines talking to one another. Thus we're stuck with flashing lights, etc. John Badham (Saturday Night Fever) directs in strict potboiler mode. Kids still like this movie, though. The DVD release has a widescreen presentation, theatrical trailer, Dolby sound, director commentary, optional English, French and Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh

A young computer whizz kid accidentally connects into a top secret super-computer which has complete control over the U.S. nuclear arsenal. It challenges him to a game between America and Russia and he innocently starts the countdown to World War 3. Can he convince the computer he wanted to play a game and not the real thing ? System Requirements:Directed by John Badham; Runtime: 112; Language: English; Color: Color (Metrocolor); Sound Mix: 70mm 6-Track / Dolby Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating:  UPC: 027616705624 Manufacturer No: 907056

Pink Floyd - The Wall 25th Anniversary (Deluxe Edition)

By any rational measure, Alan Parker's cinematic interpretation of Pink Floyd: The Wall is a glorious failure. Glorious because its imagery is hypnotically striking, frequently resonant, and superbly photographed by the gifted cinematographer Peter Biziou. And a failure because the entire exercise is hopelessly dour, loyal to the bleak themes and psychological torment of Roger Waters's great musical opus, and yet utterly devoid of the humor that Waters certainly found in his own material. Any attempt to visualize The Wall would be fraught with artistic danger, and Parker succumbs to his own self-importance, creating a film that's as fascinating as it is flawed.

The film is, for better and worse, the fruit of three artists in conflict--Parker indulging himself, and Waters in league with designer Gerald Scarfe, whose brilliant animated sequences suggest that he should have directed and animated this film in its entirety. Fortunately, this clash of talent and ego does not prevent The Wall from being a mesmerizing film. Boomtown Rats frontman Bob Geldof (in his screen debut) is a fine choice to play Waters's alter ego--an alienated, "comfortably numb" rock star whose psychosis manifests itself as an emotional (and symbolically physical) wall between himself and the cold, cruel world. Weaving Waters's autobiographical details into his own jumbled vision, Parker ultimately fails to combine a narrative thread with experimental structure. It's a rich, bizarre, and often astonishing film that will continue to draw a following, but the real source of genius remains the music of Roger Waters. --Jeff Shannon

No Description Available.
Genre: Music Video: Concerts
Rating: NR
Release Date: 25-JAN-2005
Media Type: DVD

License to Drive (Special Edition)

The brief 1980s mania surrounding "the Coreys" peaked with License to Drive, a modest but surprisingly still enjoyable adventure comedy. Les (Corey Haim, Lucas) has a chance to date his dream girl, Mercedes (Heather Graham, Boogie Nights, in her first significant movie role)--but he's just failed his driving exam. Motivated by a mixture of pride and hormones, he steals his grandfather's Cadillac and heads out on the town with Mercedes for a night that swiftly becomes an escalating series of disasters, made worse by the foolhardy antics of Les' best friend Dean (Corey Feldman, Stand by Me). Despite some egregious '80s fashion disasters (Graham gets the worst of them), License to Drive holds up surprisingly well--it's no work of genius, but it is a solidly made and entertaining teen comedy that's more coherent than most. The depiction of parent-teen relations is fairly honest and particularly well-played by Richard Masur (Risky Business) and Carol Kane (In the Soup) as the parents. The DVD includes a very funny and rambunctious audio commentary track by the screenwriter and director, as well as interviews with the grown-up Coreys. A must-have for fans of '80s nostalgia. --Bret Fetzer

For teenager Les Anderson (Corey Haim),the two most important things in life are getting his driver's license and getting together with the hottest girl in high school (Heather Graham in one of her first film roles). But when Les fails the exam, he 'borrows' the family's prized '73 Cadillac for his big date. An innocent girl. A harmless dirve. What could possibly go wrong? Try a fearless best friend (Corey Feldman) with an insane plan, a high school hottie with too much to drink, angry drag racers, crazed militants, a police roadblock, a crash course in car theft, a very angry father (Richard Masur), a very, very pregnant mother and much more!

Jekyll And Hyde Together Again

The movie that made Robert Louis Stevenson spin in his grave! Mark Blankfield delivers a manic turn as both Jekyll and Hyde in a farce that will appeal to fans of Mel Brooks and the Zucker Brothers. Henry Jekyll is a well-respected scientist who discovers a way to isolate man's animal instinct. The only problem is that his inner animal turns out to be a gold-toothed, hairy-chested party-animal named Mr. Hyde. The classic struggle between good and evil takes a back seat to opportunities for off-the-wall zaniness at every turn. Jekyll and Hyde Together Again keeps the unapologetically non-PC jokes coming one after another in one of Hollywood's classic spoofs.

House

War Games (25th Anniversary Edition)

Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller's Day Off) and Ally Sheedy (The Breakfast Club) star in this compelling drama filled with action suspense and high-tech adventures! Featuring superb performances by Dabney Coleman and Barry Corbin WarGames is "brilliant...funny...and provocative" (New York)a fast-paced cyber-thriller. Computer hacker David Lightman (Broderick) can bypass the most advanced security systems break the most intricate secret codes and mastereven the most difficult computer games. But when he unwittingly taps into the Defense Department's war computer he initiates a confrontation of global proportionsWorld War III! Together with his girlfriend (Sheedy) and a wizardly computer genius (Tony Award (r) winner John Wood) David must race against time to outwit his opponent...and prevent a nuclear Armageddon.System Requirements:Running Time: 114 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/HEROES Rating: PG UPC: 027616098764 Manufacturer No: M109876

Seabiscuit (Widescreen Edition)

Proving that truth is often greater than fiction, the handsome production of Seabiscuit offers a healthy alternative to Hollywood's staple diet of mayhem. With superior production values at his disposal, writer-director Gary Ross (Pleasantville) is a bit too reverent toward Laura Hillenbrand's captivating bestseller, unnecessarily using archival material--and David McCullough's familiar PBS-styled narration--to pay Ken Burns-like tribute to Hillenbrand's acclaimed history of Seabiscuit, the knobby-kneed thoroughbred who "came from behind" in the late 1930s to win the hearts of Depression-weary Americans. That caveat aside, Ross's adaptation retains much of the horse-and-human heroism that Hillenbrand so effectively conveyed; this is a classically styled "legend" movie like The Natural, which was also heightened by a lushly sentimental Randy Newman score. Led by Tobey Maguire as Seabiscuit's hard-luck jockey, the film's first-rate cast is uniformly excellent, including William H. Macy as a wacky trackside announcer who fills this earnest film with a much-needed spirit of fun. --Jeff Shannon

A great American story from Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Gary Ross, Seabiscuit stars Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges and Chris Cooper. Based on the inspiring true story of three men - a jockey, a trainer and a businessman - and the undersized racehorse who took the entire nation on the ride of a lifetime. This breathtaking film achievement is "a must-see moviegoing experience" (Chicago Sun-Times) and "a flat-out great movie!" (Larry King Live, CNN)

Ghostbusters (Widescreen Edition)

Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis wrote the script, but Bill Murray gets all the best lines and moments in this 1984 comedy directed by Ivan Reitman (Meatballs). The three comics, plus Ernie Hudson, play the New York City-based team that provides supernatural pest control, and Sigourney Weaver is the love interest possessed by an ancient demon. Reitman and company are full of original ideas about hobgoblins--who knew they could "slime" people with green plasma goo?--but hovering above the plot is Murray's patented ironic view of all the action. Still a lot of fun, and an obvious model for sci-fi comedies such as Men in Black. --Tom Keogh

A trio of university parasychologists lose their research grant and decide to open their own business "Ghostbusters" and almost at once are summoned to investigate the strange happenings in a Central Park West apartment. What they discover is that all Manhattan is being besieged by other worldly demons.System Requirements:Run Time: 105 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG UPC: 043396141223 Manufacturer No: 14122

Mr. Mom

When Jack Butler (Michael Keaton) loses his job at an auto factory, he expects to quickly find another. But instead, his wife Caroline (Teri Garr) starts working for an ad agency and Jack ends up taking care of the house and kids. He soon runs afoul of shopping etiquette, a voracious vacuum cleaner, and he can't even drop his kids off at school properly. He starts losing his pride and letting himself go. He stops shaving, drinks at all hours, and watches soap operas. And not only does a predatory divorcée (Ann Jillian) have her eye on him, Caroline's new boss (Martin Mull) has more than business on his mind. Will their marriage survive? What makes Mr. Mom work isn't its role-reversal premise, but its clever off-the-main-plot scenes like the obstacle course at the company picnic, where a footrace with swim fins is set to a variation on the theme to Chariots of Fire; a poker game using discount coupons for money; or a traumatic, soap-opera-influenced dream Jack has when he realizes his life is going down the toilet. This is the first starring role for Michael Keaton, who went on to star in Beetlejuice and Batman; he makes the most of both its comic and sentimental side. The script, incidentally, is written by John Hughes, who later went on to write and direct The Breakfast Club and Home Alone. --Bret Fetzer

Funnyman Michael Keaton (Beetlejuice) teams with Tootsie's Teri Garr in this "fresh and funny audience pleaser" (Boxoffice) that's all housework...and no pay!Jack and Caroline Butler (Keaton and Garr) are perfectly happy with their roles in life...until a layoff makes him a househusband and her a working wife! And while she wrangles with charts graphs and an all-too-eager-to-be-wrangled boss he has to contend with their hyper kids a ravenous vacuum cleaner an angry washing machine and an oversexed neighbor (Ann Jillian of TV's It's A Living)! From late nights in the boardroom to lonely nights in the bedroom the biggest challenge for both Jack and Caroline is learning to trust one another with their reversed roles...which they'd better do quickly...before Mr. Mom becomes Mr. Single Mom!System Requirements:Starring: Michael Keaton Teri Garr Martin Mull Ann Jillian Jeffrey Tambor Christopher Lloyd Valri Bromfield Frederick Koehler and Taliesin Jaffe. Directed By: Stan Dragoti. Running Time: 100 Min. Color. This film is presented in "Standard" format. Copyright 2000 MGM Studios.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG UPC: 027616809827 Manufacturer No: 908098

All of Me

This 1984 Carl Reiner comedy is one of the best film showcases of Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin's sundry talents. Tomlin plays a sickly spinster who is given the chance to transfer her soul to the body of another woman, and thus go on living. But the magic man who is supposed to make this happen goofs up and locks her spirit inside a bachelor lawyer (Martin)--or, more accurately, within the right half of the poor fellow's body. Suddenly, the swinging man-about-town is literally at odds with himself, unable to make a self-determining decision without a huge internal struggle. Martin's physical comedy, always remarkable, is absolutely inspired this time around, as he convincingly portrays a man split down the middle between opposing sensibilities. This is also one of the best films by Reiner, a filmmaker whose novel ideas are sometimes more striking than their execution. --Tom Keogh

Martin plays a lawyer who would rather be a jazz musician. Tomlin plays a terminally ill spinster who intends to have her soul transported into the beautiful body of a stable hand's daughter. Her soul takes over the right side of Martin's body.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG
Release Date: 2-FEB-1999
Media Type: DVD