Armed and Dangerous
by Mark L. Lester
from Sony Pictures
Perhaps Stripes and Caddyshack screenwriter Harold Ramis and Commando director Mark Lester were not an ideal collaborative team. But while this 1986 misfit comedy is something of a misfire, SCTV fans can take heart in watching John Candy and Eugene Levy triumph over weak material as mismatched security guards who stumble upon mob corruption. Candy, in particular, does wonders with a role that in lesser hands would have been a mere "fatty falls down" stereotype. He plays a cynical disgraced cop who takes Levy's cowardly former lawyer under his wing ("Stick with me, I'll keep you out of trouble," he reassures him). Like Ramis's character in Stripes, Levy rises to the occasion under fire, and even gets the girl--Meg Ryan in early ingénue mode, trying out the fetching grins and ingratiating smiles that would make her America's sweetheart three years later in When Harry Met Sally. --Donald Liebenson
Don Henley Live - Inside Job
by Tom Patchett
from Image Entertainment
Don Henley and the Eagles may have sold a jillion albums, written some memorable songs, and established themselves as icons of the cocaine-colored '70s. But if there's one thing they weren't, it's a great live band--unless, of course, your idea of greatness includes rote, note-perfect re-creations of the recorded versions. And so it is with Henley the solo artist, at least if Live: Inside Job is any clue. Oh, it's not that this is a bad show. Au contraire. Henley's got a really good voice, a very good band, and a batch of good songs, including five from Inside Job (his first album of new material since the '80s), several solo hits, and the inevitable Eagle droppings. The guy is unquestionably a serious artist (that's serious as in "humorless"--Henley's stock in trade is sarcastic, cynical tunes like "Dirty Laundry," "New York Minute," and "They're Not Here, They're Not Coming," with their bitter ruminations on how tough it is to be a celebrity and the general decay and hollowness of contemporary culture). As such, he might reasonably claim that it's all about the music--hey, you want costume changes and firing flash pots, go see Cher or Kiss. An admirable stance, maybe, but it doesn't exactly make for a thrilling video experience. What you get is a filmed concert--nothing more, nothing less--with a couple of unexpected moments. Chief among the latter is the romping, Afro-Cuban arrangement of "Hotel California," and the presence of a 12-voice choir (led by Maxine Waters) that lends genuine majesty to "The Heart of the Matter." The choir is appropriate, because with Live: Inside Job, that's who Don Henley's preaching to. --Sam Graham
Grammy Award winner Don Henley helped define the '70s as a member of the fabulously successful rock band The Eagles before launching an impressive solo career. On May 25, 2000, he returned to his Texas roots for a remarkable concert, recorded before an enthusiastic audience at Fair Park Music Hall in Dallas. This rock legend's live performance captures all the passion, satire and originality that fans around the world most treasure in his influential music. Songs: Dirty Laundry, Sunset Grill, Workin' It, Takin' You Home, The Boys of Summer, Lilah, Everything is Different Now, The End of the Innocence, All She Wants to Do is Dance, New York Minute, Talking to the Moon, They're Not Here They're Not Coming, The Heart of the Matter, Desperado, The Long Run, My Thanksgiving, Hotel California.
Femmes Fatales 10 Movie Pack
by Roger Corman
from St. Clair Vision
The Black Marble
by Harold Becker
from Starz / Anchor Bay
Pragmatic Sgt. Natalie Zimmerman is paired with Valnikov, a romantic detective of Russian origin who is going through a midlife crisis. They fall in love while solving the case of the kidnapping of a socialite's pet dog.
The Yum-Yum Girls
by Barry Rosen
from Televista
Starring Judy Landers, Tanya Roberts and Michelle Dawn. When naive and innocent Melody Pearson comes to New York to fulfill her dreams of a modeling career, she learns the nitty-gritty in the meat-market world of advertising.
The Real World You Never Saw - New Orleans
by Nick Havinga
from Sony
This collection of behind-the-scenes capers provides Real World fans even more of their favorite vicarious thrills, watching the residents of the Big Easy's Belfort House flirt, fight, and have fun. Mostly fun. Lots of it. In after-show interviews that seem designed to encourage dirt dishing, Julie, Matt, Kelley, Danny, David, Melissa, and Jamie spend most of their time laughing at themselves--and luckily, the laughter is infectious. Hidden-camera footage and crew bloopers show the cast members at their most hilarious, proving they're not only smart enough to see through the show's manipulation of reality, but smart enough to have fun with it. Just like real life, much of the accidental humor centers around bodily functions and frustrated sex drives, and some viewers might be turned off by the spy-cam montage of nose picking, or the mindlessly drunk Mardi Gras antics of the Belfort crew. But this show is really saved by characters who are just that--characters. Melissa's hysterical impressions of her own parents (who show up in person later) might be worth the price of the video alone. --Grant Balfour
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