Zito, Chuck

Heaven's Prisoners

When he emerged from film school in the mid-1980s, director Phil Joanou was touted as the next Steven Spielberg, perhaps because Spielberg took him on as a protégé briefly. Since then, it's been "Phil who?" thanks to a series of mediocre thrillers like this one. Based on one of a series of novels by James Lee Burke about a troubled ex-cop named Dave Robicheaux, this film sat on the shelf for a couple of years before finally being released in 1995. Alec Baldwin plays Robicheaux, a recovering alcoholic who has put life on the New Orleans police department behind him--until a plane crashes in the lake next to his house. He rescues a young Central American girl from the wreck and adopts her--and winds up involved in a gumbo of drug running and dirty dealing involving an old pal named Bubba. Tip-off that this movie should have gone straight to video: Bubba is played by Eric Roberts. Redeeming feature (at least for men, who are all dogs, as everyone knows): a Teri Hatcher nude scene. --Marshall Fine

A Vietnam vet/ex-detective leaves New Orleans with his wife for a quieter life in Louisiana's bayou. However a plane crash on the Gulf gets him involved in the world of murder and deception.Running Time: 106 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA UPC: 794043672521

This Thing of Ours

This mob picture comes with a high pedigree: Director co-writer and star Danny Provenzano (VAMPIRE VIXENS FROM VENUS) is a bit of a mobster in real life; he's pleaded guilty to racketeering and his great uncle is the prime suspect in the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa. In his directorial debut Provenzano brings gritty authority to his tale of mobsters using computers for the ultimate heist. Looking to "earn his nut" with the organization Nick (Provenzano) and two buddies orchestrate a complex way of skimming money off of the top of global online bank transfers via the Internet. Unfortunately they need to raise $50000 to get it off the ground and so they turn to the old-school mafia guys for the cash in the process dragging them "kicking and screaming into the 21st century." Naturally once the billions start piling up betrayal greed and a lot of blood and gunfire follow. The film benefits from a nicely mixed cast of fresh-picked off-the-mean-streets newcomers and familiar mob movie faces like James Caan (GODFATHER) Vincent Pastore (SOPRANOS) Frank Vincent (GOODFELLAS) and comedian Pat Cooper (ANALYZE THIS). The tough-talk dialogue is diverting with nice use of Tarantino-esque pop culture references. Provenzano infuses the film with a perfectly seedy ambience.System Requirements:Running Time 100 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 824355516425 Manufacturer No: MAV-5164

Carlito's Way - Rise to Power (Widescreen)

The success of Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way ensures that the straight-to-DVD release of Carlito's Way: Rise to Power will attract an eager audience among fans of urban gangland melodramas. A stellar cast provides adequate compensation as this tame, relatively bloodless prequel trots out every cliché in the book, qualifying as the 21st-century equivalent of a Warner Bros. gangster programmer from the 1930s. The well-chosen cast of new and familiar faces is caught up in a standard plot of territorial tension in Harlem between the blacks led by Hollywood Nicky (Sean Combs, adding a touch of blingy humor), the old-school Mafia led by Artie Sr. (Burt Young), and the caught-in-the-middle Puerto Ricans who are gaining control as Carlito (Jay Hernandez, in the role Al Pacino originated) and his cross-cultural gang rises to power after his recent release from prison with cellmates and partners-in-crime Earl (Mario Van Peebles) and Rocco (Michael Kelly). They're a tight trio in a climate of mistrust and deception, and Earl's hot-headed brother (Mtume Grant) sets off a series of events that force Carlito to invent a clever alliance that raises the body count while ensuring his long-term status as a dude-you-don't-mess-with. It's fun, for what it's worth (and fans of De Palma's film will enjoy connecting events from one film to the other), but there's not a shred of originality in script or direction by Michael Scott Bregman, whose father Martin produced Carlito's Way. Still, there's something to be said for a gang picture that never promises more than it can deliver. On those terms, and with enough violence and strip-joint nudity to satisfy its generic prerequisites, Rise to Power is definitely worth a look. --Jeff Shannon

From the producer of Scarface and Carlito's Way comes the action thriller Carlito's Way: Rise to Power. Jay Hernandez (Friday Night Lights), Mario Van Peebles (Ali), Luis Guzman (Carlito's Way) and Sean Combs (Monster's Ball) star in the gripping tale of the early years of gangster legend Carlito Brigante. Seduced by the power of the brutal New York underworld, he enters a deadly circle of greed and retribution. Assisted by his two brothers in crime, Carlito is on the fast track to becoming Spanish Harlem's ultimate kingpin. He quickly learns, however, that the only way to survive at the top is through loyalty to his friends and respect for the rules of the street.

Carlito's Way - Rise to Power (Fullscreen)

The success of Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way ensures that the straight-to-DVD release of Carlito's Way: Rise to Power will attract an eager audience among fans of urban gangland melodramas. A stellar cast provides adequate compensation as this tame, relatively bloodless prequel trots out every cliché in the book, qualifying as the 21st-century equivalent of a Warner Bros. gangster programmer from the 1930s. The well-chosen cast of new and familiar faces is caught up in a standard plot of territorial tension in Harlem between the blacks led by Hollywood Nicky (Sean Combs, adding a touch of blingy humor), the old-school Mafia led by Artie Sr. (Burt Young), and the caught-in-the-middle Puerto Ricans who are gaining control as Carlito (Jay Hernandez, in the role Al Pacino originated) and his cross-cultural gang rises to power after his recent release from prison with cellmates and partners-in-crime Earl (Mario Van Peebles) and Rocco (Michael Kelly). They're a tight trio in a climate of mistrust and deception, and Earl's hot-headed brother (Mtume Grant) sets off a series of events that force Carlito to invent a clever alliance that raises the body count while ensuring his long-term status as a dude-you-don't-mess-with. It's fun, for what it's worth (and fans of De Palma's film will enjoy connecting events from one film to the other), but there's not a shred of originality in script or direction by Michael Scott Bregman, whose father Martin produced Carlito's Way. Still, there's something to be said for a gang picture that never promises more than it can deliver. On those terms, and with enough violence and strip-joint nudity to satisfy its generic prerequisites, Rise to Power is definitely worth a look. --Jeff Shannon

Table One

When a group of guys make a deal with a mobster to start up a restaurant-nightclub, a central table in the club becomes the focus of their lives. Table One has a little mob drama and some satire on nightclub management, but primarily it's a series of conversational riffs on the male ego: How men jockey with each other for status, how men try to impress women, and how men delude themselves about failure. The plot is minimal, so the movie rests on the bits--some of the which are funny (a mob guy trying to convince another to expand his food choices) while others grow tiresome (endless scenes of one of the partners making pathetic efforts to hit on women). Table One has a strong ensemble cast, including Luis Guzman, Stephen Baldwin, Michael Rooker, and Burt Young, who give the masculine banter a relaxed bounce. --Bret Fetzer

They were looking for a little sex in the city; instead they found the best seat in the house! Four friends fed up with the singles scene open a restaurant and get more then they bargained for. Pull up a chair and get ready to laugh out loud for Table One!Running Time: 84 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY UPC: 794043623028

Brooklyn Bound

East New York street kid Sean has dealt drugs for as long as he can remember. It's the only way to pay his mother's medical bills and keep his brother off the streets...but with his buddy's debt on his head and his mom growing sicker by the day, Sean's small operation can't hold up to the pressure

Me and Will

Remedy

Red Line

A young car thief (Chad McQueen) is caught stealing a car and blackmailed by a crime boss (Jan-Michael Vincent) into being the specialist for a high-roller repo operation. He soon finds himself teamed up with a Courtney Cox look-alike (Roxana Zal) and being pressured by two crime syndicates, with a certain very special Corvette in question. His answer is to play both sides of the fence and pit the two groups against each other while trying to survive himself. There's not much to recommend the performances or direction of this movie, with a distinctly made-for-cable style and Michael Madsen as a made man (again!) in a "gimme my check" performance. However, there are plenty of car chases, surprisingly slick camera techniques, and loads of action, plus Julie Strain in all 6'1" of her silicone-enhanced glory. Plus, isn't there a sour-grapes kind of thrill in seeing a $40,000 Porsche coupe reduced to scrap metal? Hey, with a cast that includes McQueen, Vincent, Corey Feldman, and Dom DeLuise, what did you expect, The French Connection? For those who can appreciate the charms of a distinctly B movie action picture, there's plenty to like here. Note Vincent's mangled features; he was in a car wreck days before filming, and when his sleeve rides up an inch or two, it's easy to see the hospital ID band on his wrist! That's dedication! --Jerry Renshaw

Three men turn a race of greed into a fast-paced game of power, control and speed. When Jim (Chad McQueen) loses his race car sponsorship, he turns to petty crime to pay his debts. Blackmailed into heisting an impounded Corvette with a valuable hidden stash, Jim finds himself caught between two men who want what's hidden in the car. Jim soon realizes the only way out is to pit the two gangsters against each other and let the winner take all.

Heaven's Prisoners / Blink (Two-Pack)