Frasier - The Complete Second Season
from Paramount
Frasier picked up its second season with another round of comedy as intelligent as its pompous title character. Fortunately, the sniping between Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) and his father, Marty (John Mahoney), that took up a lot of the first season is mostly past, and the crack ensemble was ready to roll in a number of memorable episodes. Frasier tries to set up Daphne (Jane Leeves) with the new station manager in "The Matchmaker," Frasier, Niles (David Hyde Pierce), and Marty go fishing in "Breaking the Ice," Frasier and Niles jump into politics in "The Candidate," the team of Frasier and Roz (Peri Gilpin) breaks up ("Roz in the Doghouse"), and Frasier and Niles open a restaurant in "The Innkeepers." It was Pierce's Niles who emerged as a star in the second season, lusting after Daphne, learning about parenthood in "Flour Child," and challenging a Bavarian fencer for the hand of his ever-absent wife, Maris, in the comic tour de force "An Affair to Forget." Pierce picked up a well-deserved first Emmy, and the show repeated its first-season Emmys for comedy series and lead actor. Frasier's dates included Jobeth Williams (whom he takes on a disastrous getaway to Bora Bora), Shannon Tweed, and Tea Leoni, and other guest stars were Nathan Lane and, from his original show, Cheers, Bebe Neuwirth and Ted Danson. --David Horiuchi
Danielle Steel's: Full Circle
by Bethany Rooney
from Starz / Anchor Bay
Tana Roberts is haunted by a memory that keeps love at a distance and resolves to not end up like her mother - locked in a dead end affair with a married man. But when she becomes attracted to a fellow attorney Drew Lands, she puts all good sense aside. Can the one person who truly cares for her help her to find hope for future happiness?
Switching Goals
by David Steinberg
from Warner Home Video
Originally an ABC telefilm, Switching Goals comes to video. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen play super-identical twins who are actually total opposites. OK, it's not the freshest concept in the universe, but the teen divas (who also exec produce--as they did in their Passport to Paris) are an undeniable favorite with little girls all-over. Here, they're Sam, the athletic one, and Emma, the fashion-conscious one. Their indulgent dad (Eric Lutes) coaches a soccer team and their workaholic mother (Kathryn Greenwood) is a psychologist. Look for a switch, the truth to be revealed, and all to end well. This video may prove to be just the perfect gift for any young girl between 4 and 10. Not only will they get to gaze up on the familiar, comforting countenances of the Olsens, but given how many young 'uns play soccer, there's even more to relate to. --N.F. Mendoza
Mary-Kate and Ashley star as soccer-playing sisters who scheme to trade teams by secretly trading places. But as the plan unfolds, there's chaos on and off the field. With clever schemes, hilarious mix-ups and non-stop action all part of the game, Mary-Kate and Ashley are in for some fancy footwork in their all-new feature-length movie!
The 12 Dogs of Christmas
by Kieth Merrill
from Universal Studios
Upon being sent to live with her aunt in the small town of Doverville, 12-year-old Emma O'Conner finds herself in the middle of a `dog-fight' with the Mayor and town dogcatcher. In order to strike down their `no-dogs' law, Emma must bring together a group of schoolmates, grown-ups and adorable dogs of all shapes and sizes in a spectacular holiday pageant. The 12 Dogs of Christmas is a fun, heartwarming story featuring a diverse canine cast of over 101 pooches, perfect for all those who love dogs, kids and Christmas.
Fatal Blade
Law And Order Will Never Be The Same....East meets West as the Japanese Yakuza battle drug lords and the LAPD in the streets of Los Angeles...Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: SPORTS/GAMES/MIXED MARTIAL ARTS Rating: R UPC: 692865510024 Manufacturer No: T-5100
Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane
from Lions Gate
Sid (Joe Carnahan) and Bob (Dan Leis) are a couple of fast-talking but nonetheless incompetent car salesmen who are in debt up to their necks and have just been served a notice evicting them from their lot. Salvation arrives in the form of a burgundy Pontiac Le Mans convertible; all they have to do is watch it for two days and they'll get paid $250,000. But once they have the car on their hands, the whole thing starts to smell like a setup, and they get second thoughts. Blood, Guts, Bullets & Octane owes a sizable debt to Quentin Tarantino (Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction) and David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross, House of Games), which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Made on the cheap--the visual quality varies and half the crew is also in the cast, including writer-director-editor Carnahan)--Blood, Guts, Bullets & Octane cuts back and forth in time with energy, shifting between crooks blowing each other away and methodical FBI agents tracking them down. Scenes are framed by titles like "White Trash Trigger" and "Coldblooded Hotheads." In the end it amounts to little more than a lurid shaggy dog story, but fans of gunplay and pop-culture quips will have a good time along the way. --Bret Fetzer
+++





