Zmed, Adrian

We Go Together 2-Pack (Grease / Grease 2)

Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 04/24/2007 Run time: 225 minutes Rating: Pg

Grease
Riding the strange '50s nostalgia wave that swept through America during the late 1970s (caused by TV shows like Happy Days and films like American Graffiti), Grease became not only the word in 1978, but also a box-office smash and a cultural phenomenon. Twenty years later, this entertaining film adaptation of the Broadway musical received another successful theatrical release, which included visual remastering and a shiny new Dolby soundtrack. In this 2002 DVD release, Grease lovers can also now see it in the correct 2:35 to 1 Panavision aspect ratio, and see retrospective interviews with cast members and director Randal Kleiser. All these stylistic touches are essential to the film's success. Without the vibrant colors, unforgettably campy and catchy tunes (like "Greased Lightning," "Summer Nights," and "You're the One That I Want"), and fabulously choreographed, widescreen musical numbers, the film would have to rely on a silly, cliché-filled plot that we've seen hundreds of times. As it is, the episodic story about the romantic dilemmas experienced by a group of graduating high school seniors remains fresh, fun, and incredibly imaginative.

The young, animated cast also deserves a lot of credit, bringing chemistry and energy to otherwise bland material. John Travolta, straight from his success in Saturday Night Fever, knows his sexual star power and struts, swaggers, sings, and dances appropriately, while Olivia Newton-John's portrayal of virgin innocence is the only decent acting she's ever done. And then there's Stockard Channing, spouting sexual double-entendres as Rizzo, the bitchy, raunchy leader of the Pink Ladies, who steals the film from both of its stars. Ignore the sequel at all costs. --Dave McCoy

Grease 2
Too often, sequels to popular films simply rehash the original film; call it the carbon-copy syndrome. Grease 2 suffers from no such malady, having almost nothing to do with the original film. Sure, it focuses on teens at Rydell High, the imaginary school from the first film, which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. But other than a few of the teachers, all of the characters are new and so are the songs--and more's the pity. By the time Grease hit the big screen, it already had had almost a decade as a theatrical musical, more than enough time to hone its mock-rock & roll score. But this sequel, which stars among others a then-unknown Michelle Pfeiffer, Maxwell Caulfield, and Lorna Luft (Judy Garland's daughter), has music that's neither fish nor fowl, neither rock nor Broadway. Meanwhile, the plot is a reversal of the first film, in which a cool guy fell for a square girl. In this one, the square is newcomer Caulfield, who catches the eye of tough girl Pfeiffer and her Pink Lady gang. The appearance of such pseudo-stars of the '50s, like Tab Hunter, is supposed to lend a nostalgic kick, but let's just say that Grease 2 slides almost instantly into obscurity. --Marshall Fine

Grease 2

Its 1961 two years after the original grease gang graduated from rydell high and theres a new crop of seniors. Stephanie the leader of the pink ladies feels shes outgrown johnny the head t-bird and shes looking for a new love - whos even cooler & whose bike is even hotter. Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 01/17/2006 Starring: Maxwell Caufield Adrian Zmed Run time: 114 minutes Rating: Pg Director: Patricia Birch

Too often, sequels to popular films simply rehash the original film; call it the carbon-copy syndrome. Grease 2 suffers from no such malady, having almost nothing to do with the original film. Sure, it focuses on teens at Rydell High, the imaginary school from the first film, which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. But other than a few of the teachers, all of the characters are new and so are the songs--and more's the pity. By the time Grease hit the big screen, it already had had almost a decade as a theatrical musical, more than enough time to hone its mock-rock & roll score. But this sequel, which stars among others a then-unknown Michelle Pfeiffer, Maxwell Caulfield, and Lorna Luft (Judy Garland's daughter), has music that's neither fish nor fowl, neither rock nor Broadway. Meanwhile, the plot is a reversal of the first film, in which a cool guy fell for a square girl. In this one, the square is newcomer Caulfield, who catches the eye of tough girl Pfeiffer and her Pink Lady gang. The appearance of such pseudo-stars of the '50s, like Tab Hunter, is supposed to lend a nostalgic kick, but let's just say that Grease 2 slides almost instantly into obscurity. --Marshall Fine

Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner (Uncensored)

Hosted by jason alexander fellow roasters include ben stiller andy dick sandra bullock jimmy kimmel and many more. Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 01/22/2008 Run time: 80 minutes Rating: Nr

First things first: Where's Leonard Nimoy? When Comedy Central's raucously ribald Roast of William Shatner was originally broadcast on August 20, 2006, it began with Nimoy--Shatner's beloved Star Trek costar--leaving a phone-message to Shatner, apologizing for his absence (hey, the man has class) and begging Shatner to explain why he would subject himself to the indignity of a roasting on Comedy Central. "Is it the food?" Nimoy inquired, noting the Shat-man's expanding waistline over the years, and the roasting was excellently underway. Well, guess what? Due to copyright and other legal restrictions (and possibly to Nimoy's desire to distance himself from a shamelessly filthy broadcast), Nimoy's appearance and several musical cues have been edited from this otherwise expanded DVD release, which compensates by serving up a few perfunctory bonus features along with every foul-mouthed insult in their uncensored glory. Shatner himself makes a grand equestrian entrance, riding a white stallion into the auditorium before flopping his fat ass into Star Trek's original Captain's chair (on loan from Seattle's Science Fiction Museum) and settling in for an 80-minute onslaught of verbal abuse by Comedy Central's stable of vicious comedians. It's pee-your-pants hilarious or painfully obscene, depending on your tolerance for crudeness and profanity. (As anyone who saw the previous Roast of Pamela Anderson can tell you, Comedy Central's roasting policy is unabashedly adult-oriented and strictly no-holds-barred.)

Of course, Shatner's not the only target of playful derision. After an introduction by host Jason Alexander (who, like guest comedian Kevin Pollak, built a career out of impersonating Shatner), nobody emerges unscathed, and some of the insults--particularly those aimed at Farrah Fawcett (whose inclusion here is barely justified)--are more cruel than entertaining. But everyone's a good sport, especially Star Trek's Mr. Sulu, George Takei, who'd recently gone public with his homosexuality, prompting nearly every roaster on the panel to make crude (and mostly unfunny) gay sex jokes at Takei's good-natured expense. (He later delivers a barb at Shatner that Star Trek historians will recognize as at least partially serious.) Like fellow roasters Fawcett and Shatner's Boston Legal costar Betty White, Trek veteran Nichelle Nichols endures a few insults about getting older, and in a highlight of the show, Clint Howard (in a video clip) reprises his role as the friendly alien "Balok" (from the classic Trek episode "The Corbomite Maneuver"), toasting Shatner with a beer-bonged shot of "Tranya." As Andy Dick proceeds to lick several of his fellow roasters (and, in the audience, Carrie Fisher--who licks back), Greg Giraldo, Patton Oswalt, Jeffrey Ross, and other Comedy Central regulars lay waste to Shatner's checkered career, including priceless film clips from Shatner's infamous post-Trek career as a "poetic interpreter" of hits like "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Rocket Man." It's all in good fun, and judging from audience reaction (including numerous cutaways to Star Trek: Voyager's sexy Jeri Ryan), everyone had a good time when they weren't slack-jawed with shock from the R-rated barrage of banter. This stuff ain't for prudes, and if you don't know what to expect, you're probably better off watching reruns of T.J. Hooker. --Jeff Shannon

Bachelor Party

Bachelor Party may not be the first trashy sex comedy, but it is perhaps the definitive trashy sex comedy. The movie makes its first breast joke before the opening credits have even finished. A cheerful school bus driver (Tom Hanks) has somehow gotten engaged to a lovely young heiress, much to the chagrin of her family and vengeful ex-boyfriend. The bus driver's roustabout friends decide to throw him a bachelor party--and you can pretty much guess the rest: scantily clad hookers, rampant drug use, bad 1980s new-wave music, really bad 1980s fashions, full frontal nudity (curiously, due to a scene in a Chippendales strip club, there's almost as much male flesh on display as female), bestiality, racial stereotypes, blackmail, attempted suicide, all played for unrepentant cheap laughs. Throughout, Tom Hanks floats along with a carefree (if slightly sheepish) grin, projecting such an air of impish innocence that it's hard to be offended by any of it. And it all ends in a wedding, just like a Shakespearean comedy. Also featuring the blinding white teeth and big hair of Tawny Kitaen (playing the good girl Hanks marries), buxom scream queen Monique Gabrielle, and Adrian Zmed, whose career has not fared as well as Hanks's. --Bret Fetzer

This outrageously funny look at one man's final moments of bachelorhood stars TOM HANKS as Rick, reluctant recipient of a bachelor bash given by a group of friends who view partying as their full-time religion. Rick's worried fiancée, Debbie (TAWNY KITAEN), dresses up in disguise and crashes the party to spy on her future husband. To complicate the night further, Debbies father hires her ex-boyfriend to win back his daughter. It turns out to be an evening the soon-to-be bride and groom will never forget.

Larry the Cable Guy's Christmas Spectacular

Studio: Wea-des Moines Video Release Date: 12/11/2007 Run time: 61 minutes Rating: Nr

Final Terror

A group of friends and their girlfriends head out for what is expected to be a vacation of hiking camping and a good time but when a backwoods mama finds them on her turf it becomes anything but a vacation.System Requirements:Running Time - 82 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR Rating: R UPC: 692865199434 Manufacturer No: T-1994

Shira: The Vampire Samurai

Shira is a half-human half-vampire woman warrior skilled in the deadly ways of the Samurai. She has been prophesized to breed a future nation of day walking vampires and Kristof a fiendish vampire will stop at nothing to capture her. Shira and her band of fellow vampire hunters must defeat Kristof and his army of blood-suckers to prevent him from starting a new race destined to conquer the human world.System Requirements:Running Time: 86 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR/VAMPIRES Rating: UNRATED UPC: 824355522129 Manufacturer No: MAV-5221

Sex Sells (Widescreen Unrated Edition)

In the raunchy tradition of films such as ORGAZMO comes SEX SELLS. This mockumentary covers all the action on a porn set as Murphy's Law threatens to ruin all the hard work of the cast and crew. Priscilla Barnes (THREE'S COMPANY) stars in this sex comedy about a director's last blast as he creates the filthy film that will be his legacy. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: UNRATED UPC: 025195005883 Manufacturer No: 68100705

Grease 2

Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 08/05/2008 Run time: 114 minutes Rating: Pg

Too often, sequels to popular films simply rehash the original film; call it the carbon-copy syndrome. Grease 2 suffers from no such malady, having almost nothing to do with the original film. Sure, it focuses on teens at Rydell High, the imaginary school from the first film, which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. But other than a few of the teachers, all of the characters are new and so are the songs--and more's the pity. By the time Grease hit the big screen, it already had had almost a decade as a theatrical musical, more than enough time to hone its mock-rock & roll score. But this sequel, which stars among others a then-unknown Michelle Pfeiffer, Maxwell Caulfield, and Lorna Luft (Judy Garland's daughter), has music that's neither fish nor fowl, neither rock nor Broadway. Meanwhile, the plot is a reversal of the first film, in which a cool guy fell for a square girl. In this one, the square is newcomer Caulfield, who catches the eye of tough girl Pfeiffer and her Pink Lady gang. The appearance of such pseudo-stars of the '50s, like Tab Hunter, is supposed to lend a nostalgic kick, but let's just say that Grease 2 slides almost instantly into obscurity. --Marshall Fine

Storm Chasers-Revenge of the Twister

Jamie Marshall (Kelly McGillis) is a "storm chaser" who, having lost her husband in a crash after his plane was struck by lightning, recklessly throws herself into her work. Sent by her boss to Colorado to investigate the cause of a devastating tornado, she meets Will Stanton (Wolf Larson), Field Coordinator for FEMA. One night, while working closely together examining the wreckage of the recent storm, Jamie and Will experience a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon - a ball of lightning falling from the sky connecting with the ground all around them. As Will tries to shield Jamie from the lightning, the two embrace and find themselves in a passionate kiss. The next day Jamie and Will return to the location. What they discover is a facility where waste from scientific experimentation is affecting the atmosphere causing the tornadoes. Armed with the new information and seven new tornadoes on the horizon, Jamie and Will prepare the already tornado ravaged town for another possible disaster! Kelly McGillis, Wolf Larson