Nim's Island (Widescreen Edition)
by Jennifer Flackett
from 20th Century Fox
Welcome to Nim's Island a tropical paradise where imagination runs wild and adventure rules! Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine) Jodie Foster and Gerard Butler shine in this fun "exhilarating and enchanting family picture" (San Francisco Chronicle) based on Wendy Orr's beloved novel.Nim Rusoe (Breslin) lives on a deserted island with her scientist father Jack (Butler) and her best friends: Selkie a sea lion; Fred a bearded dragon lizard; and Galileo a plucky pelican. But when Jack goes missing at sea and the island is "invaded" Nim reaches out via e-mail to the adventurous author (Foster) of her favorite books and together each discovers what it takes to truly become the hero of your own life story.System Requirements:Running Time: 96 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: CHILDREN/FAMILY Rating: PG UPC: 024543527527 Manufacturer No: 2252752
Adventure doesn't always begin with pirates on the high seas or explorers deep in the desert; sometimes it starts with an idyllic life on a private island in the middle of the South Asiatic Sea. For 11-year old Nim (Abigail Breslin) and her father and microbiologist Jack Russo (Gerard Butler), life is perfect thanks to their love of nature, Jack's mechanical ingenuity, and regular deliveries via supply ship. Loneliness is never an issue for Nim because of her special friendships with Selkie the sea lion, Galileo the pelican, and Freddie the iguana and her education is intensive, if rather unique. Adventure and imagination are ways of life for Nim whether she's heading out to sea to help her father collect plankton specimens, playing soccer on the beach with Selkie, or delving into the latest Alex Rover adventure novel, but everything changes when Jack departs on the boat for a two-night expedition to collect plankton specimens and gets caught in an unexpected storm. Alone on the island, Nim begins to worry about her father's safety as well as her own and, through a chance email, connects with Alex Rover (Jodie Foster) whom she begs to come help find her father. Problem is, author Alexandra Rover is an unbalanced big city shut-in who's afraid to leave her townhouse, not the fearless adventure hero portrayed in her books. Nim, Alexandra, and Jack embark upon the adventures of a lifetime in which each must overcome his or her own fears and perceived powerlessness and limitations in order to grow and help one another. The question is; can each prevail against his or her own insecurities and the fury of nature? Based on the novel Nim's Island by Wendy Orr, Nim's Island is first and foremost a captivating adventure full of suspense and peril which also offers a touching look at the love between a father and daughter. (Ages 7 and older) --Tami Horiuchi
The Mummy [Blu-ray]
by Stephen Sommers
from Universal Studios
If you're expecting bandaged-wrapped corpses and a lurching Boris Karloff-type villain, then you've come to the wrong movie. But if outrageous effects, a hunky hero, and some hearty laughs are what you're looking for, the 1999 version of The Mummy is spectacularly good fun. Yes, the critics called it "hokey," "cheesy," and "pallid." Well, the critics are unjust. Granted, the plot tends to stray, the acting is a bit of a stretch, and the characters occasionally slip into cliché, but who cares? When that action gets going, hold tight--those two hours just fly by.
The premise of the movie isn't that far off from the original. Egyptologist and general mess Evelyn (Rachel Weisz) discovers a map to the lost city of Hamunaptra, and so she hires rogue Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) to lead her there. Once there, Evelyn accidentally unlocks the tomb of Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), a man who had been buried alive a couple of millennia ago with flesh-eating bugs as punishment for sleeping with the pharaoh's girlfriend. The ancient mummy is revived, and he is determined to bring his old love back to life, which of course means much mayhem (including the unleashing of the 10 plagues) and human sacrifice. Despite the rather gory premise, this movie is fairly tame in terms of violence; most of the magic and surprise come from the special effects, which are glorious to watch, although Imhotep, before being fully reconstituted, is, as one explorer puts it, rather "juicy." Keep in mind this film is as much comedy as it is adventure--those looking for a straightforward horror pic will be disappointed. But for those who want good old-fashioned eye-candy kind of fun, The Mummy ranks as one of choicest flicks of 1999. --Jenny Brown
Deep in the Egyptian desert, a handful of people searching for a long-lost treasure have just unearthed a 3,000 year old legacy of terror. Combining the thrills of a rousing adventure with the suspense of Universal's legendary 1932 horror classic, The Mummy, starring Brendan Fraser, is a true nonstop action epic, filled with dazzling visual effects, top-notch talent and superb storytelling.
The Mummy Returns [Blu-ray]
from Universal Studios
Proving that bigger is rarely better, The Mummy Returns serves up so much action and so many computer-generated effects that it quickly grows exhausting. In his zeal to establish a lucrative franchise, writer-director Stephen Sommers dispenses with such trivial matters as character development and plot logic, and charges headlong into an almost random buffet of minimum story and maximum mayhem, beginning with a prologue establishing the ominous fate of the Scorpion King (played by World Wrestling Federation star the Rock, in a cameo teaser for his later starring role in--you guessed it--The Scorpion King). Dormant for 5,000 years, under control of the Egyptian god Anubis, the Scorpion King will rise again in 1933, which is where we find The Mummy's returning heroes Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz, now married and scouring Egyptian ruins with their 8-year-old son, Alex (Freddie Boath). John Hannah (as Weisz's brother) and Oded Fehr (as mystical warrior Ardeth Bay) also return from The Mummy, and trouble begins when Alex dons the Scorpion King's ancient bracelet, coveted by the evil mummy Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), who's been revived by... oh, but does any of this matter? With a plot so disposable that it's impossible to care about anything that happens, The Mummy Returns is best enjoyed as an intermittently amusing and physically impressive monument of Hollywood machinery, with gorgeous sets that scream for a better showcase, and digital trickery that tops its predecessor in ambition, if not in payoff. By the time our heroes encounter a hoard of ravenous pygmy mummies, you'll probably enjoy this movie in spite of itself. --Jeff Shannon
The year's biggest action-adventure is coming home with a vengeance! Brendan Fraser and an all-star cast reunite with Stephen Sommers for explosive, non-stop thrills in "the ultimate rollercoaster movie ride!" (Seattle Post Intelligencer)
An ancient legacy of terror is unleashed when the accursed mummy, Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), is resurrected - along with a force even more powerful: The Scorpion King (The Rock). Now, as the fate of all mankind hangs in the balance, Rick O'Connell (Fraser) and his wife Evie (Rachel Weisz) embark on a daring, desperate race to save their son - and the world - from unspeakable evil. Supercharged with pulse-pounding action and spectacular special effects that'll blow you away, The Mummy Returns is "the best adventure movie of the year!" (MTV Radio)
In Bruges
by Martin McDonagh
from Universal Studios
Colin Farrell and Academy Award-nominee Ralph Fiennes star in this edgy action-packed comedy filled with thrilling chases spectacular shoot-outs and an explosive ending you won't want to miss!Hit men Ray (Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson Harry Potter) have been ordered to cool their heels in the storybook city of Bruges (it's in Belgium) after finishing a big job. But since hit men make the worst tourists they soon find themselves in a life & death struggle of comic proportions against one very angry crime boss (Fiennes)!System Requirements:Running Time: 107 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/ODD COUPLES Rating: R UPC: 025195016322 Manufacturer No: 62102023
The considerable pleasures of In Bruges begin with its title, which suggests a glumly self-important art film but actually fits a rattling-good tale of two Irish gangsters "keepin' a low profile" after a murder gone messily wrong. Bruges, the best-preserved medieval town in Belgium, is where the bearlike veteran Ken (Brendan Gleeson) and newbie triggerman Ray (Colin Farrell) have been ordered by their London boss to hole up for two weeks. As the sly narrative unfolds like a paper flower in water, "in Bruges" also becomes a state of mind, a suspended moment amid centuries-old towers and bridges and canals when even thuggish lives might experience a change in direction. And throughout, the viewer has ample opportunity to consider whose pronunciation of "Bruges" is more endearing, Gleeson's or Farrell's. The movie marks the feature writing-directing debut of playwright Martin McDonagh, whose droll meditation on sudden mortality, Six Shooter, copped the 2005 Oscar for best live-action short. Although McDonagh clearly relishes the musicality of his boyos' brogue and has written them plenty of entertaining dialogue, In Bruges is no stageplay disguised as a film. The script is deceptively casual, allowing for digressions on the newly united and briskly thriving Europe, and annexing passers-by as characters who have a way of circling back into the story with unanticipatable consequences. That includes a film crew--shooting a movie featuring, to Ray's fascination, "a midget" (Jordan Prentice)--and a fetching blond production assistant (Clémence Poésy) whose job description keeps evolving. There's one other key figure: Harry, the Cockney gang boss whose omnipotence remains unquestioned as long as he remains offscreen, back in England, as if floating in an early Harold Pinter play. Harry has reasons inextricably tender and perverse for selecting Bruges as his hirelings' destination, and eventually he emerges from the aether to express them--first as a garrulous telephone voice and then in the volatile form of Ralph Fiennes. By that point the charmed moment of suspension, already shaken by several irruptions of violence, is pretty well doomed. But In Bruges continues to surprise and satisfy right up to the end. --Richard T. Jameson
The Princess Bride (20th Anniversary Edition)
by Rob Reiner
from MGM (Video & DVD)
Screenwriter William Goldman's novel The Princess Bride earned its own loyal audience on the strength of its narrative voice and its gently satirical, hyperbolic spin on swashbuckled adventure that seemed almost purely literary. For all its derring-do and vivid over-the-top characters, the book's joy was dictated as much by the deadpan tone of its narrator and a winking acknowledgement of the clichés being sent up. Miraculously, director Rob Reiner and Goldman himself managed to visualize this romantic fable while keeping that external voice largely intact: using a storytelling framework, avuncular Grandpa (Peter Falk) gradually seduces his skeptical grandson (Fred Savage) into the absurd, irresistible melodrama of the title story.
And what a story: a lowly stable boy, Westley (Cary Elwes), pledges his love to the beautiful Buttercup (Robin Wright), only to be abducted and reportedly killed by pirates while Buttercup is betrothed to the evil Prince Humperdinck. Even as Buttercup herself is kidnapped by a giant, a scheming criminal mastermind, and a master Spanish swordsman, a mysterious masked pirate (could it be Westley?) follows in pursuit. As they sail toward the Cliffs of Insanity...
The wild and woolly arcs of the story, the sudden twists of fate, and, above all, the cartoon-scaled characters all work because of Goldman's very funny script, Reiner's confident direction, and a terrific cast. Elwes and Wright, both sporting their best English accents, juggle romantic fervor and physical slapstick effortlessly, while supporting roles boast Mandy Patinkin (the swordsman Inigo Montoya), Wallace Shawn (the incredulous schemer Vizzini), and Christopher Guest (evil Count Rugen) with brief but funny cameos from Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, and Peter Cook. --Sam Sutherland
Screenwriter William Goldman's novel The Princess Bride earned its own loyal audience on the strength of its narrative voice and its gently satirical, hyperbolic spin on swashbuckled adventure that seemed almost purely literary. For all its derring-do and vivid over-the-top characters, the book's joy was dictated as much by the deadpan tone of its narrator and a winking acknowledgement of the clichés being sent up. Miraculously, director Rob Reiner and Goldman himself managed to visualize this romantic fable while keeping that external voice largely intact: using a storytelling framework, avuncular Grandpa (Peter Falk) gradually seduces his skeptical grandson (Fred Savage) into the absurd, irresistible melodrama of the title story. And what a story: a lowly stable boy, Westley (Cary Elwes), pledges his love to the beautiful Buttercup (Robin Wright), only to be abducted and reportedly killed by pirates while Buttercup is betrothed to the evil Prince Humperdinck. Even as Buttercup herself is kidnapped by a giant, a scheming criminal mastermind, and a master Spanish swordsman, a mysterious masked pirate (could it be Westley?) follows in pursuit. As they sail toward the Cliffs of Insanity... The wild and woolly arcs of the story, the sudden twists of fate, and, above all, the cartoon-scaled characters all work because of Goldman's very funny script, Reiner's confident direction, and a terrific cast. Elwes and Wright, both sporting their best English accents, juggle romantic fervor and physical slapstick effortlessly, while supporting roles boast Mandy Patinkin (the swordsman Inigo Montoya), Wallace Shawn (the incredulous schemer Vizzini), and Christopher Guest (evil Count Rugen) with brief but funny cameos from Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, and Peter Cook. --Sam Sutherland
Beyond The Princess Bride on DVD
![]() Watch Once on DVD | ![]() Check out an old favorite, Willow on DVD | ![]() See the new classic Under the Same Moon on DVD |
Stills from The Princess Bride (Click for larger image)
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Once upon a time a feisty old grandfather told his bedridden grandson a tongue-in-cheek fairy tale... In the mythical kingdom of Florin farm boy Westley rides off one day to make his fortune leaving his true love Buttercup waiting patiently behind. Unfortunately his ship is beset by pirates and Buttercup grieves for many years believing Westley dead. She reluctantly agrees to marry Prince Humperdinck knowing that she will never love him. Humperdinck has his own plans for the marriage however--he intends to have Buttercup kidnapped and murdered in order to set off a border war that will strengthen his power. But she is eventually rescued by a mysterious pirate who turns out to be Westley in disguise. Their reunion does not last long though and the pair must face numerous obstacles before they can live happily ever after.System Requirements:Running Time; 98 mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: PG UPC: 027616092199 Manufacturer No: M109219
Drive-In Cult Classics - 8 Movie Set
by Irvin Berwick
from Navarre Corporation
Pick-Up:
An off-beat story about two young women whose lives are forever changed when they hitchhike a ride in a mobile home.
The Sister-In-Law:
A punchy story about the sexual entanglements of four people and how their moral conflicts lead to heartache and destruction.
The Stepmother:
A high-living architect who - as a result of his violent temper - finds himself enmeshed in two accidental deaths. When he discovers his 2nd wife having an affair with his teenage son...there's almost a third murder!
The Teacher:
She corrupted the youthful morality of an entire school!
An explosively tense story about a beautiful, provocative 28-year-old high school teacher whose seduction of one particular student proves fatal.
Trip with the Teacher:
A chilling experience in terror as a group of female students and their pretty teacher are ambushed, while on a field trip, by two sadistic bikers, forcing the women to learn a lesson in survival.
Best Friends:
Two young couples taste the free and easy life on a cross country motor-home tour until love backfires and tragedy follows.
Cindy and Donna:
Two sisters, growing up in a middle-class home with parents too preoccupied with booze and sex, find that being grown up doesn't mean acting like their folks, as experiments with drugs and sex teach them.
Malibu High:
High school senior Kim is having her share of problems. Her grades are poor, her boyfriend dumped her for a rich girl and her financial situation is disastrous. So she makes an after hours deal with one of her teachers to improve her grade point average. Soon, she is working her way through the faculty room and taking on paying customers.
Pulp Fiction (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
from Miramax Entertainment
With the knockout one-two punch of 1992's Reservoir Dogs and 1994's Pulp Fiction writer-director Quentin Tarantino stunned the filmmaking world, exploding into prominence as a cinematic heavyweight contender. But Pulp Fiction was more than just the follow-up to an impressive first feature, or the winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival, or a script stuffed with the sort of juicy bubblegum dialogue actors just love to chew, or the vehicle that reestablished John Travolta on the A-list, or the relatively low-budget ($8 million) independent showcase for an ultrahip mixture of established marquee names and rising stars from the indie scene (among them Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Ving Rhames, Harvey Keitel, Christopher Walken, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, Julia Sweeney, Kathy Griffin, and Phil Lamar). It was more, even, than an unprecedented $100-million-plus hit for indie distributor Miramax. Pulp Fiction was a sensation. No, it was not the Second Coming (I actually think Reservoir Dogs is a more substantial film; and P.T. Anderson outdid Tarantino in 1997 by making his directorial debut with two even more mature and accomplished pictures, Hard Eight and Boogie Nights). But Pulp Fiction packs so much energy and invention into telling its nonchronologically interwoven short stories (all about temptation, corruption, and redemption amongst modern criminals, large and small) it leaves viewers both exhilarated and exhausted--hearts racing and knuckles white from the ride. (Oh, and the infectious, surf-guitar-based soundtrack is tastier than a Royale with Cheese.) --Jim Emerson
A couple of hit men, a fighter forced to throw a fight, the wife of a mobster, and two would-be robbers all find redemption.
No Track Information Available
Media Type: DVD
Artist: TRAVOLTA/JACKSON/THURMAN
Title: PULP FICTION
Street Release Date: 06/07/2005
Genre: DRAMA
Bedknobs and Broomsticks (30th Anniversary Edition)
by Robert Stevenson
from Walt Disney Video
When a mail-order apprentice witch (Angela Lansbury) is saddled with three sibling refugees from London during World War II, the outlook is grim. But the kids soon discover her secret and sign on for adventure in the name of England. With the aid of a magical bed, they track down her fraudulent headmaster (David Tomlinson) to find the spell that will aid the Allies. Fascinated that she has actually achieved results with his lessons, he joins forces. The quintet does battle with corrupt booksellers, animated-lion royalty, and, eventually, invading Germans. Songs include Lansbury's Oscar-nominated "The Age of Not Believing." This film is often compared to director Robert Stevenson's earlier effort, Mary Poppins, and for good reason. In addition to Tomlinson, the movies share a fondness for magic at the hands of a good woman, light romance with an understanding male, and wide-eyed children. Stevenson also graces both films with interaction between humans and animated animals. Disney is wise to play up that aspect on its box this time around as both the underwater ball and the subsequent island soccer match are the most visually interesting and appealing parts of the film. Adults may find the 1971-vintage mixing of actors and animation a bit creaky, but kids used to a variety of animation quality will find the action a hoot. Ages 4 and up. The movie has been recut several times but was restored to the original length of 139 minutes for its 30th anniversary in 2001. --Kimberly Heinrichs
An Academy Award(R) winner for Best Visual Effects (1971), BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS is a magical blend of live action and animation that makes it one of Disney's most enduring classics. This magical 30th anniversary edition version of the film is now yours to enjoy in digital splendor on this remastered, fully restored DVD! BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS is the enchanting story of an amateur witch who, along with three precocious orphans, flies into one fantastic adventure after another aboard a bewitched bed. The legendary Angela Lansbury is charming as the witch, and the inimitable David Tomlinson (MARY POPPINS) delights as the amusing professor whose help Lansbury and the children enlist in order to find an ancient incantation that will save the country from hostile invaders! This special edition BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS DVD includes many bonus features and is sure to be a film the entire family will want to watch again and again!
Nim's Island (Full Screen Edition)
by Jennifer Flackett
from 20th Century Fox
Adventure doesn't always begin with pirates on the high seas or explorers deep in the desert; sometimes it starts with an idyllic life on a private island in the middle of the South Asiatic Sea. For 11-year old Nim (Abigail Breslin) and her father and microbiologist Jack Russo (Gerard Butler), life is perfect thanks to their love of nature, Jack's mechanical ingenuity, and regular deliveries via supply ship. Loneliness is never an issue for Nim because of her special friendships with Selkie the sea lion, Galileo the pelican, and Freddie the iguana and her education is intensive, if rather unique. Adventure and imagination are ways of life for Nim whether she's heading out to sea to help her father collect plankton specimens, playing soccer on the beach with Selkie, or delving into the latest Alex Rover adventure novel, but everything changes when Jack departs on the boat for a two-night expedition to collect plankton specimens and gets caught in an unexpected storm. Alone on the island, Nim begins to worry about her father's safety as well as her own and, through a chance email, connects with Alex Rover (Jodie Foster) whom she begs to come help find her father. Problem is, author Alexandra Rover is an unbalanced big city shut-in who's afraid to leave her townhouse, not the fearless adventure hero portrayed in her books. Nim, Alexandra, and Jack embark upon the adventures of a lifetime in which each must overcome his or her own fears and perceived powerlessness and limitations in order to grow and help one another. The question is; can each prevail against his or her own insecurities and the fury of nature? Based on the novel Nim's Island by Wendy Orr, Nim's Island is first and foremost a captivating adventure full of suspense and peril which also offers a touching look at the love between a father and daughter. (Ages 7 and older) --Tami Horiuchi
Pirates of the Caribbean - The Curse of the Black Pearl (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
by Hamilton Luske
from Walt Disney Video
You won't need a bottle of rum to enjoy Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, especially if you've experienced the Disneyland theme-park ride that inspired it. There's a galleon's worth of fun in watching Johnny Depp's androgynous performance as Captain Jack Sparrow, a roguish pirate who could pass for the illegitimate spawn of rockers Keith Richards and Chrissie Hynde. Depp gets all the good lines and steals the show, recruiting Orlando Bloom (a blacksmith and expert swordsman) and Keira Knightley (a lovely governor's daughter) on an adventurous quest to recapture the notorious Black Pearl, a ghost ship commandeered by Jack's nemesis Capt. Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), a mutineer desperate to reverse the curse that left him and his (literally) skeleton crew in a state of eternal, undead damnation. Director Gore Verbinski (The Ring) repeats the redundant mayhem that marred his debut film Mouse Hunt, but with the writers of Shrek he's made Pirates into a special-effects thrill-ride that plays like a Halloween party on the open seas. Aye, matey, we've come a long way since Jason and the Argonauts! --Jeff Shannon
From producer Jerry Bruckheimer (PEARL HARBOR) comes PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL, the thrilling high-seas adventure with a mysterious twist. The roguish yet charming Captain Jack Sparrow's (Academy Award(R) Nominee Johnny Depp) idyllic pirate life capsizes after his nemesis, the wily Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), steals his ship, the Black Pearl, and later attacks the town of Port Royal, kidnapping the governor's beautiful daughter Elizabeth (Keira Knightley). In a gallant attempt to rescue her and recapture the Black Pearl, Elizabeth's childhood friend Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) joins forces with Jack. What Will doesn't know is that a cursed treasure has doomed Barbossa and his crew to live forever as the undead. Rich in suspense-filled adventure, sword-clashing action, mystery, humor, unforgettable characters, and never-before-seen special effects, PIRATES is a must-have epic on the grandest scale ever.
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