Picture Perfect
by Glenn Gordon Caron
from 20th Century Fox
If you can get past Jennifer Aniston's form-fitting wardrobe in a movie about a woman struggling to advance in her profession, this romantic comedy is a fair match with My Best Friend's Wedding. Both films feature conniving, self-centered heroines who undergo a transformation--Aniston presents a bogus fiancé (Jerry Maguire's Jay Mohr) to impress her advertising agency boss and gradually discovers a mutual attraction with the imposter. Both movies go off in delightfully unpredictable directions. Picture Perfect falls prey to occasional sitcom fluff, but it's a fine showcase for Aniston's comedic and dramatic attributes. Critics were mixed-to-harsh in reviews for this movie, perhaps because it's a bit derivative and poses slight challenge to Aniston, who proved her skill with light comedy as a principal cast member of TV's Friends sitcom. It's clear that Aniston is a fine comedian, and she shows that talent to advantage in Picture Perfect. If you enjoy this movie, you should also check out Aniston's follow-up romantic comedy, The Object of My Affection. --Jeff Shannon
Kate pretends to be involved with a man so she can have an affair with Sam, who prefers affairs with women who are in other relationships.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 13-JAN-2004
Media Type: DVD
Day One
by Joseph Sargent
from ACORN MEDIA
The history of the atomic bomb--its conception, creation, and deployment--gets an impressively complex yet propulsive treatment in this compelling docudrama. Day One balances human drama, scientific history, and political machinations with uncommon skill and considerable smarts. From the moment that General Groves (Brian Dennehy, Presumed Innocent) is appointed to drive the Manhattan Project, the movie has a driving force; Dennehy presents a brusk and demanding man who never questions whether he is right or wrong. In contrast comes J. Robert Oppenheimer (David Strathairn, Good Night, and Good Luck), a fundamentally decent man whose conflicts about the consequences of the atomic bomb eat at him--Strathairn captures Oppenheimer's qualms even as his will to succeed drives him forward. Day One cunningly juxtaposes political meetings with scientific discussions, subtly comparing different paths of thought. The compressed script distills enormous debates without simplifying them and--even more striking--making the discussions feel like actual conversation, with irrational and expedient factors as significant as the weighty ideas. The story builds to considerable tension as the bomb is tested and, with highly debatable justification, used on a civilian population. Day One presents history at a breakneck pace, using human detail to keep the broad sweep of events grounded, without losing sight of that big picture. Rarely have momentous decisions been so well interlaced with human fallibility. Also featuring Tony Shalhoub (Monk), Michael Tucker (L.A. Law), and a powerhouse supporting cast of old-school character actors like Hume Cronyn, Barnard Hughes, and Hal Holbrook. --Bret Fetzer
This Emmy® winning, historically accurate drama tells the complex and moving story of the Manhattan Project. Racing against the Nazi war machine and enduring intense military and political pressure, Allied scientists wrestle with the challenge of creating the ultimate weapon. Leading the superb cast are Michael Tucker (L.A. Law) as Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard, David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck.) as mission chief J. Robert Oppenheimer, Brian Dennehy (Death of a Salesman) as General Leslie Groves, and David Ogden Stiers (MASH) as FDR. Also featuring Hal Holbrook (Mark Twain Tonight!), Hume Cronyn (12 Angry Men), and Tony Shalhoub (Monk).
Before the bomb can be perfected, Hitler's death and Germany's surrender remove one enemy from the equation. But Japan remains. Day One builds quietly to a shattering climax, as the scientists who developed the bomb out of patriotic fervor witness its grisly consequences.
Deadly Friend
by Wes Craven
from Warner Home Video
A terrifying tale about a lonely teenage genius whose overwhelming love for a young girl compels him to use all of his scientific knowledge to keep her with him.
The Scout
by Michael Ritchie
from 20th Century Fox
Like the millions of fans who endured the St. Louis Cardinals' disappointing 1998 baseball season to watch the heroics of Mark McGwire, so will Albert Brooks devotees thrill to their comedy god stepping up to the plate in a rare starring role in a film he did not direct and knocking it, if not quite out of the park, then certainly to deep center field.
Brooks, sporting a paunch and a beat-up straw hat, stars as Al Percolo, a disheveled, down-but-not-out New York Yankees scout. His latest sensation, a high school phenom, blows his Yankee stadium debut after he unceremoniously throws up on the mound. Al is not fired, but instead banished to the backwaters of Mexico, where he discovers his own Babe Ruth and ticket back to the majors: local sensation Steve Nebraska, who has a 100 m.p.h. fastball and a titanic swing. As winningly played by Brendan Fraser, he is also an incredible screwball, part Encino Man and part George of the Jungle
The Yankees are willing to pay the outrageous salary of $55 million (those were the days!) for him. But first he must get a clean bill of mental health. That won't be easy for a guy prone to throw dinnerware at the press. In a scene that recalls Brooks's increasingly desperate lobbying to get casino owner Garry Marshall to return the nest egg his wife squandered in Lost in America, Brooks strikes out in his attempts to get Steve's psychiatrist, Dr. H. Aaron (Dianne Wiest), to rubber-stamp the case. As Al becomes a surrogate father to the troubled youth, Dr. Aaron uncovers dark secrets from his past.
While perhaps not in the same league as Bull Durham, The Scout will be a hit with everyone who loves baseball and Brooks (not to mention Brendan). --Donald Liebenson
In this hilarious fantasy for baseball lovers, Albert Brooks stars as a desperate Yankee scout who'll do anything to sign a new prospect. Banished to Mexico to search for talent, he discovers the greatest young ball player (Brendan Fraser) he's ever seen. But once he gets him back home, he finds his new recruit has a few unexpected problems that just may jeopardize both their jobs.
Last Rites
by Donald P. Bellisario
from MGM (Video & DVD)
Tom Berenger (Platoon) and Daphne Zuniga (The Sure Thing) set the screen ablaze in this controversial tale of a love affair between a priest and a sexy woman. A relentlessly entertaining tale of lust betrayal and revenge with a shocking final twist Last Rites administers equal measures of white-knuckle suspense and white-hot romance. A Mafia hit a vulnerable witness a man of the cloth with a secret past. When Father Michael Pace (Berenger) finds himself drawn to the mistress (Zuniga) of a brutally murdered mobster he risks his life his standing and even his faith to protect her in this riveting thriller that will keep you guessing until the final frame.System Requirements: Running Time 103 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: R UPC: 027616913203 Manufacturer No: 1007183
The Confession
by David Hugh Jones
from Lions Gate
Picture Perfect
by Glenn Gordon Caron
from 20th Century Fox
Adorable as she is ambitious Kate (Jennifer Aniston) is determined to turn her mid-level advertising job into an executive position - and equally determined to tries snare Sam (Kevin Bacon) the agency's ultra-suave Romeo who prefers illicit affairs with attached women. She achieves both goals by pretending getting married to Nick a man she met at a wedding and barely knows. But her carefully constructed fictional life comes face to face with reality when her boss wants to meet Nick sending Kate's personal and professional worlds spinning out of control.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: PG - 13 UPC: 024543001393 Manufacturer No: 2000139
If you can get past Jennifer Aniston's form-fitting wardrobe in a movie about a woman struggling to advance in her profession, this romantic comedy is a fair match with My Best Friend's Wedding. Both films feature conniving, self-centered heroines who undergo a transformation--Aniston presents a bogus fiancé (Jerry Maguire's Jay Mohr) to impress her advertising agency boss and gradually discovers a mutual attraction with the imposter. Both movies go off in delightfully unpredictable directions. Picture Perfect falls prey to occasional sitcom fluff, but it's a fine showcase for Aniston's comedic and dramatic attributes. Critics were mixed-to-harsh in reviews for this movie, perhaps because it's a bit derivative and poses slight challenge to Aniston, who proved her skill with light comedy as a principal cast member of TV's Friends sitcom. It's clear that Aniston is a fine comedian, and she shows that talent to advantage in Picture Perfect. If you enjoy this movie, you should also check out Aniston's follow-up romantic comedy, The Object of My Affection. --Jeff Shannon
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