Verica, Tom

Murder by Numbers (Widescreen Edition)

While reinventing Leopold and Loeb for a new and troubled millennium, Murder by Numbers probes the disturbing psychology of two teenaged murderers and the cleverness of their crime. Like Hitchcock's Rope and other films inspired by the Leopold and Loeb case of the 1920s, the film intensifies as it explores the repressed (and subtly homosexual) tensions between high-school outcasts Richard (Ryan Gosling) and Justin (Michael Pitt), who randomly kill a woman to enact an amoral philosophy--and to tease a savvy homicide detective (Sandra Bullock) with misleading clues. While clashing with the by-the-book procedure of her partner (Ben Chaplin), Bullock gives one of her best performances in a role that comes with its own set of psychological hurdles. It's comfortable territory for Reversal of Fortune director Barbet Schroeder, who draws fine work from his cast while proving that there's no such thing as a perfect crime. --Jeff Shannon

The body of a young woman is found in a ditch in the woods of the small California coastal town of San Benito. SANDRA BULLOCK ("Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood," "Miss Congeniality"), stars as Cassie Mayweather, the seasoned homicide detective and crime scene specialist assigned to the case along with her new partner San Kennedy (BEN CHAPLIN - "Lost Souls," "The Thin Red Line"). The two dectectives make their way through microscopic hints of evidence, which seem to indicate a random act of violence, but Cassie has a gut feeling that there is more to this murder than meets the eye. Something about this case reminds her of her past exactly at a time when she is asked to appear at a parole hearing on an old police matter. These events force Cassie to revisit the past.

Die Hard 2 - Die Harder

Directed by Renny Harlin, the 1990 sequel, Die Hard 2 (unofficially referred to as Die Harder), doesn't match the level of the original, but it's still an exciting thrill ride with some terrific action sequences. One year after the Nakatomi incident, McClane (Willis) is awaiting his wife's (Bedelia) plane to arrive at Dulles Airport when he stumbles onto a plot to paralyze the entire airport, including all the planes trying to land. It's up to McClane to take on the cadre of bad guys despite all the bureaucrats standing in his way, and before the planes run out of fuel and crash to the ground. The cast includes William Sadler as rogue military man Col. Stuart, Dennis Franz as the latest bureaucratic cop to get in McClane's way, Richard Thornburg as the annoying reporter from the original movie, John Amos as a special-forces commander, early-in-their-career John Leguizamo and Robert Patrick as terrorists, and future politician and Law and Order actor Fred Thompson as the head of air traffic control. --David Horiuchi

Bruce Willis returns as the heroic cop who battles not only terrorists but also an incompetent airport police chief (Dennis Franz) the hard-headed commander (John Amos) of the Army's anti-terrorist squad and a deadly winter snowstorm. The runways are littered with death and destruction and McClane is in a race against time. His wife (Bonnie Bedelia) is trapped on one of the planes circling overhead which is desperately low on fuel. It's all-out war a heart-stopping jet-propelled journey filled with excitement and terror. Fasten your seat belts!System Requirements:Running Time: 131 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: R UPC: 024543440895 Manufacturer No: 2244089

Murder by Numbers (Full Screen Edition)

While reinventing Leopold and Loeb for a new and troubled millennium, Murder by Numbers probes the disturbing psychology of two teenaged murderers and the cleverness of their crime. Like Hitchcock's Rope and other films inspired by the Leopold and Loeb case of the 1920s, the film intensifies as it explores the repressed (and subtly homosexual) tensions between high-school outcasts Richard (Ryan Gosling) and Justin (Michael Pitt), who randomly kill a woman to enact an amoral philosophy--and to tease a savvy homicide detective (Sandra Bullock) with misleading clues. While clashing with the by-the-book procedure of her partner (Ben Chaplin), Bullock gives one of her best performances in a role that comes with its own set of psychological hurdles. It's comfortable territory for Reversal of Fortune director Barbet Schroeder, who draws fine work from his cast while proving that there's no such thing as a perfect crime. --Jeff Shannon

The body of a young woman is found in a ditch in the woods of the small California coastal town of San Benito. SANDRA BULLOCK ("Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood," "Miss Congeniality"), stars as Cassie Mayweather, the seasoned homicide detective and crime scene specialist assigned to the case along with her new partner San Kennedy (BEN CHAPLIN - "Lost Souls," "The Thin Red Line"). The two dectectives make their way through microscopic hints of evidence, which seem to indicate a random act of violence, but Cassie has a gut feeling that there is more to this murder than meets the eye. Something about this case reminds her of her past exactly at a time when she is asked to appear at a parole hearing on an old police matter. These events force Cassie to revisit the past.

Seeds of Deception

Father's Day

Billy Crystal plays the straight man to neurotic Robin Williams when these two very different individuals join forces to find a runaway teenager. Both, you see, have been told they are the boy's father by Nastassja Kinski, with whom each had once been involved. This Disney production is based on the more humorous French farce, Les Compères, by Francis Veber (who cowrote this adaptation). It has its moments as breezy entertainment, but the plot is sloppy enough to seem more like slapstick than sophisticated comedy. The gags are contrived, and it fails to unfold with believability, or grace. More interesting than the writing are the performances, as Crystal brings surprising depth to his cynical lawyer and Williams is exceptionally fine-tuned as a suicidal and dippy writer with a very kind heart. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Get ready for "the mother of all comedy events" (Pat Collins, WWOR-TV/New York) as Robin Williams and Billy Crystal play a flaky writer and an uptight lawer teaming up to track down a runaway teen each thinks might be his son. Year: 1997 Director: Ivan Reitman Starring: Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, Julia Louis-Dreyfus

A Perfect Murder / Murder by Numbers / Murder in the First

Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow and Viggo Mortensen form a love triangle with murder at its heart in A Perfect Murder (Disc 1/Side A), the sleek, keep-you-guessing sizzler inspired by the play Dial M for Murder. A luckless prisoner (Kevin Bacon) and an idealistic rookie attorney (Christian Slater) take on the dehumanizing treatment of inmates in Murder in the First (Disc 1/SideB), the powerhouse true tale of the trial that brought down Alcatraz. And unconventional detective Sandra Bullock swims against the tide of a homicide investigation in the compelling, procedure-laced Murder by Numbers (Disc 2). We've got your numbers here, thriller fans!

Die Hard 2 - Die Harder (Special Edition)

Directed by Renny Harlin, the 1990 sequel, Die Hard 2 (unofficially referred to as Die Harder), doesn't match the level of the original, but it's still an exciting thrill ride with some terrific action sequences. One year after the Nakatomi incident, McClane (Willis) is awaiting his wife's (Bedelia) plane to arrive at Dulles Airport when he stumbles onto a plot to paralyze the entire airport, including all the planes trying to land. It's up to McClane to take on the cadre of bad guys despite all the bureaucrats standing in his way, and before the planes run out of fuel and crash to the ground. The cast includes William Sadler as rogue military man Col. Stuart, Dennis Franz as the latest bureaucratic cop to get in McClane's way, Richard Thornburg as the annoying reporter from the original movie, John Amos as a special-forces commander, early-in-their-career John Leguizamo and Robert Patrick as terrorists, and future politician and Law and Order actor Fred Thompson as the head of air traffic control. --David Horiuchi

Die Hard 2 - Die Harder (Widescreen Edition)

Directed by Renny Harlin, the 1990 sequel, Die Hard 2 (unofficially referred to as Die Harder), doesn't match the level of the original, but it's still an exciting thrill ride with some terrific action sequences. One year after the Nakatomi incident, McClane (Willis) is awaiting his wife's (Bedelia) plane to arrive at Dulles Airport when he stumbles onto a plot to paralyze the entire airport, including all the planes trying to land. It's up to McClane to take on the cadre of bad guys despite all the bureaucrats standing in his way, and before the planes run out of fuel and crash to the ground. The cast includes William Sadler as rogue military man Col. Stuart, Dennis Franz as the latest bureaucratic cop to get in McClane's way, Richard Thornburg as the annoying reporter from the original movie, John Amos as a special-forces commander, early-in-their-career John Leguizamo and Robert Patrick as terrorists, and future politician and Law and Order actor Fred Thompson as the head of air traffic control. --David Horiuchi

Bruce Willis returns as the heroic cop who battles not only terrorists, but also an incompetent airport police chief (Dennis Franz), the hard-headed commander (John Amos) of the Army's anti-terrorist squad and a deadly winter snowstorm. The runways are littered with death and destruction, and McClane is in a race against time. His wife (Bonnie Bedelia) is trapped on one of the planes circling overhead, which is desperately low on fuel. It's all-out war, a heart-stopping, jet-propelled journey filled with excitement and terror. Fasten your seat belts!

Die Hard 2: Die Harder

Director Renny Harlin (Cutthroat Island) took the reins of this 1990 sequel, which places Bruce Willis's New York City cop character in harm's way again with a gaggle of terrorists. This time, Willis awaits his wife's arrival at Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C., when he gets wind of a plot to blow up the facility. Noisy, overbearing, and forgettable, the film has none of the purity of its predecessor's simple story; and it makes a huge miscalculation in allowing a terrible tragedy to occur rather than stretch out the tension. Where Die Hard set new precedents in action movies, Die Hard 2 is just an anything-goes spectacle. --Tom Keogh

800 Leagues Down the Amazon

On an ark the size of a house, they quietly headed down the Amazon. For the others, it was a chance for adventure. For outlaw Joam Garral, it was the only way he could go back to Brazil. And while the muddy Amazon water hides its bloodthirsty denizens, even greater danger lurks for Garral. His secret past gets out and a ruthless bounty hunter is hot on his trail. Now deep in the jungle, there's no turning back and few make it out alive!