Inner Sanctum Mysteries Complete Movie Collection (Calling Dr. Death / Weird Woman / The Frozen Ghost / Pillow of Death / Dead Man's Eyes / Strange Confession)

• Condition: New
• Format: DVD
• Color; Dolby; DVD; Full Screen; Subtitled; NTSC

Dr. Sullivan Travis, a successful Dallas gynecologist, finds his life disrupted by the women in his life; his wife suffers a nervous breakdown, his eldest daughter plans to marry despite being a lesbian, his youngest daughter is a conspiracy freak, his se
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: R
Release Date: 21-OCT-2003
Media Type: DVDLoose-limbed and casual even for a Robert Altman movie, Dr. T & the Women has a sly, offhanded wit that makes up for its ramshackle structure. Richard Gere's eponymous gynecologist seems the model of success: his office is packed daily with the cream of Dallas's society matrons clamoring for an appointment, his home life is blessed with loving wife Farrah Fawcett and daughters Tara Reid and Kate Hudson, and when he needs a break! from the estrogen congestion there are always weekends to be spent with his trio of hunting buddies. But on a trip to the mall to shop for Hudson's upcoming nuptials, Fawcett strips naked and leaps about in a waterfall. Her subsequent incarceration in a mental hospital (she's diagnosed with the fictional "Hestia complex," suffering from receiving too much affection) along with the ongoing preparations for the wedding barely make a dent in Gere's charming, compassionate demeanor. Then his golf course hires a new female pro who's everything the other women in his life are not--independent, self-confident, Helen Hunt--and Dr. T finds himself with yet another woman to love. Though the minor characters are mostly nasty little caricatures, the film is not the bitter misogynistic rant its detractors claim it is; the problems in Dr. T's life are placed squarely on his own inability to see that women don't need his genteel protection, and Gere perfectly captures this sweet yet cond! escending blind spot. --Bruce ReidIn director Robert Al! tman's s tar-studded new ensemble comedy, Richard Gere is a frantically overworked, socially in-demand gynecologist whose life is coming apart at the seams. His wife (Farrah Fawcett) has regressed into a childlike state, while one daughter (Tara Reid) is raising suspicions about the relationship between his soon-to-be-married other daughter (Kate Hudson) and her maid of honor (Liv Tyler). Meanwhile, just as his champagne-loving sister-in-law (Laura Dern) arrives with three nieces in tow, the doctor falls for the sexy new golf pro (Helen Hunt). As complications mount, the good doctor's life rapidly approaches the force of a Texas tornado!Loose-limbed and casual even for a Robert Altman movie, Dr. T & the Women has a sly, offhanded wit that makes up for its ramshackle structure. Richard Gere's eponymous gynecologist seems the model of success: his office is packed daily with the cream of Dallas's society matrons clamoring for an appointment, his home life is blessed with loving! wife Farrah Fawcett and daughters Tara Reid and Kate Hudson, and when he needs a break from the estrogen congestion there are always weekends to be spent with his trio of hunting buddies. But on a trip to the mall to shop for Hudson's upcoming nuptials, Fawcett strips naked and leaps about in a waterfall. Her subsequent incarceration in a mental hospital (she's diagnosed with the fictional "Hestia complex," suffering from receiving too much affection) along with the ongoing preparations for the wedding barely make a dent in Gere's charming, compassionate demeanor. Then his golf course hires a new female pro who's everything the other women in his life are not--independent, self-confident, Helen Hunt--and Dr. T finds himself with yet another woman to love. Though the minor characters are mostly nasty little caricatures, the film is not the bitter misogynistic rant its detractors claim it is; the problems in Dr. T's life are placed squarely on his own inability to see that w! omen don't need his genteel protection, and Gere perfectly cap! tures th is sweet yet condescending blind spot. --Bruce ReidMaverick director Robert Altman handpicked country star Lyle Lovett to score his latest film, and with the help of pianist Matt Rollings and bassist Victor Krauss, Lovett has accomplished the feat with his usual level of professionalism and personal touch. Lovett has always been one of Nashville's outsiders, soulful and smooth yet intelligent and menacing, just as likely to emote from a gospel shout or blues holler as from the expected Nashville twang. "You've Been So Good Up to Now" and "She's Already Made Up Her Mind" are reprised from Lovett's acclaimed Joshua Judges Ruth album, and the tracks are indicative of Lovett's subtle touch, as both unpeel their emotional turmoil slowly. The new instrumental numbers range from the haunting theme and the New Orleans goodtime of "Opening Credits," to the old-time honky-tonk of "Golf Cart Love" (which begs for a Lovett vocal) and somber piano ballad "Lady of the Lake."! Mostly, though, it's lots of barrelhouse piano and fiddle-fussing around from a simpler time. The one new vocal number, "Ain't It Somethin'," is a dirge about how we silly humans can make the most mundane things seem so significant. --Rob O'Connor Get ready for unlimited thrills and chills as all six of Universal's classic Inner Sanctum Mysteries come to DVD for the first time ever. You'll have a hauntingly good time with horror icon Lon Chaney, Jr., as he gives timeless performances in these spooky feature-length films: Calling Dr. Death, Weird Woman, Dead Man's Eyes, The Frozen Ghost, Strange Confession and Pillow of Death. Based on the popular radio shows of the 1940's, this collectible set is a must-own for every classic mystery and horror fan. Death, dementia, dark arts...it's just another day in the forbidding and fascinating world of the Inner Sanctum! Calling Dr. Death (1943): A distraught doctor is tormented by voices in his head that are urging him to! end his unhappy marriage - forever. Weird Woman (1944): Sorc! ery and superstition take a walk down the aisle when a professor marries a woman raised in the jungle by voodoo witchcraft practitioners and then dismisses her ominous warnings. Dead Man's Eyes (1944): When an artist loses his sight in a freak accident, his future father-in-law promises to bequeath his own eyes upon his death - which ends up being much, much sooner than anyone could foresee. The Frozen Ghost (1945): Things are certainly not what they seem when a hypnotist takes refuge in the spectacular mansion of a female friend who made her money from a creepy wax museum. Strange Confession (1945): A brilliant chemist with the key to the cure for influenza is force to take drastic measures when his greedy boss prematurely releases the unfinished drug to the public. Pillow of Death (1945): A psychopathic killer is on the loose, so the eccentric and wealthy Kincaid family calls in a psychic investigator to put an end to the mysterious murders haunting their household."This is th! e Inner Sanctum...." And this is the world of B-movies, where Hollywood studios churned out entertaining little numbers to fill out an evening back in the Golden Age. Universal's Inner Sanctum series, released in 1943-45, was inspired by the successful radio show of the same title. They're gathered on Inner Sanctum Mysteries: The Complete Movie Collection, a fun grouping of a minor cinematic achievement.

All six films star the phlegmatic Lon Chaney Jr., and most begin with a floating head in the crystal ball, welcoming us to the inner sanctum, "A strange, fantastic world, controlled by a mass of living, pulsating flesh... the mind." The vaguely supernatural promise of this grabby opening is rarely fulfilled by the movies, which tend to be acceptable murder mysteries with--despite the wacky titles--very little horror content. Chaney plays a man of some distinction (a professor in Weird Woman, famous mentalist in The Frozen Ghost, physician in ! Calling Dr. Death) who runs afoul of women (among them ! Evelyn A nkers and Patricia Morison) and murder. At some point in each movie he has some elaborate voice-over agony, making clear the connection to the radio series' interior monologue. The one-hour-and-change productions are handsome, considering their budget restrictions, and Universal's prints are well-preserved; the literacy of the writing is surprisingly high--although decent writing can't put much zip into the proceedings.

Weird Woman is probably the best of the bunch, an adaptation of Fritz Leiber's novel Conjure Wife (later filmed as Burn, Witch, Burn!). Chaney is an expert on superstition who marries a voodoo-obsessed woman, whose spells might be responsible for his rapid professional rise. The influence of Cat People is as strong as the source novel. Calling Dr. Death, the first in the series, is duller, with a hypnotism-minded Chaney bedeviled by a wanton wife who conveniently dies under mysterious circumstances. Dead Man's Eyes and the amazingly-titled Pillow of Death are more fun, the former a variation on the old eye-transplant story and the latter a whodunit with lawyer Chaney accused of his wife's murder (the supernatural touch this time: séances).

Strange Confession has Chaney as an honest chemist battling an evil pharmaceutical tycoon (J. Carrol Naish), and The Frozen Ghost combines two horror staples, the unstable mentalist and the wax museum. It's just crazy enough to be entertaining, even if there's no ghost (and hardly any freezing). All in all, the DVD set is a good look at Universal's second-tier output of the era. And then there's Chaney, whose jowly steadfastness can become weirdly fascinating if you watch a few of these close together. Universal put him hard to work after the success of 1941's The Wolf Man, and alongside his monster-movie excursions and his singular triumph in Of Mice and Men, the Inner Sanctum pictures represent C! haney's best moment as a leading man. Despite his limitations,! he'll a lways have his spot in the Universal galaxy. --Robert Horton

Bait Shop

• Quality Used DVD Guarantee!!
• Original Cover Art!!
• Easy Return Policy - Visit Movie Planet Online to Learn More!

No Description Available.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 8-JAN-2008
Media Type: DVDDelta Farce takes its cue from John Kerry's ill-advised 2006 joke to university students that they should get a good education lest they wind up in Iraq. Case in point, Larry (Larry the Cable Guy), Bill (Bill Engvall, Larry's Blue Collar Comedy costar), and Everett (D.J. Qualls, geek first class from RoadTrip), who take respite from their failed relationships, jobs, and lives in their once-a-month stint as "weekend warriors" in the Army Reserve. Delta Farce's one great inspiration was to literally drop these clueless sad sacks into Mexico instead of Fallujah. After much confusion, they become the! not-so-magnificent three, helping besieged villagers fend off a gang of bandits led by the dread Carlos Santana (insert your own guitarist jokes). Delta Farce belongs to a mostly proud tradition of morale-building military misfit comedies, but it ranks closer to Ernest in the Army or Pauly Shore's In the Army Now than to Buck Privates or Stripes. Delta Farce, dedicated to "the real men and women" who are serving our country, has no political agenda. It is content to engage in name-calling ("carpet-flyers" and "turds" are two we can print here), broad slapstick, decidedly un-PC ethnic stereotypes and epithets ("retarded" is used as a punchline on several occasions), and the occasional gross-out gag (the always reliable urine-in-a-canteen bit). The usually menacing Danny Trejo (Con Air) steals the film outright (which in this case is petty theft) as the karaoke-singing Carlos. But for Larry the Cable guy fans, and those who mi! ss the sophisticated good ol' boy humor of Smokey and the B! andit (whose theme song is to this movie what Wagner's "Flight of the Valkyries" was to Apocalypse Now), Delta Farce may just "git r done." --Donald LiebensonDown on his luck after losing his job and his girlfriend on the same day, Larry decides to join his neighbor, Bill (Bill Engvall), and his combat-happy buddy, Everett (DJ Qualls), for a relaxing weekend of drinking and target practice. But when the three hapless guys are mistaken for Army Reservists by the hard-nosed Sergeant Kilgore (Keith David), they're loaded onto an army plane headed for Fallujah, Iraq - and mistakenly ejected in a Humvee somewhere over Mexico. Convinced they're actually in the Middle East, the clueless wannabe soldiers save a rural village from a siege of bandits and become local heroes. But when Carlos Santana (Danny Trejo), a ruthless, karaoke-loving warlord, strikes back, Larry, Bill and Everett have to lay down their beers and take up their arms - and prove they just might be ! real soldiers after all...Delta Farce takes its cue from John Kerry's ill-advised 2006 joke to university students that they should get a good education lest they wind up in Iraq. Case in point, Larry (Larry the Cable Guy), Bill (Bill Engvall, Larry's Blue Collar Comedy costar), and Everett (D.J. Qualls, geek first class from RoadTrip), who take respite from their failed relationships, jobs, and lives in their once-a-month stint as "weekend warriors" in the Army Reserve. Delta Farce's one great inspiration was to literally drop these clueless sad sacks into Mexico instead of Fallujah. After much confusion, they become the not-so-magnificent three, helping besieged villagers fend off a gang of bandits led by the dread Carlos Santana (insert your own guitarist jokes). Delta Farce belongs to a mostly proud tradition of morale-building military misfit comedies, but it ranks closer to Ernest in the Army or Pauly Shore's In the Army No! w than to Buck Privates or Stripes. Delta! Farce, dedicated to "the real men and women" who are serving our country, has no political agenda. It is content to engage in name-calling ("carpet-flyers" and "turds" are two we can print here), broad slapstick, decidedly un-PC ethnic stereotypes and epithets ("retarded" is used as a punchline on several occasions), and the occasional gross-out gag (the always reliable urine-in-a-canteen bit). The usually menacing Danny Trejo (Con Air) steals the film outright (which in this case is petty theft) as the karaoke-singing Carlos. But for Larry the Cable guy fans, and those who miss the sophisticated good ol' boy humor of Smokey and the Bandit (whose theme song is to this movie what Wagner's "Flight of the Valkyries" was to Apocalypse Now), Delta Farce may just "git r done." --Donald LiebensonDown on his luck after losing his job and his girlfriend on the same day, Larry decides to join his neighbor, Bill (Bill Engvall), and his combat-happy buddy! , Everett (DJ Qualls), for a relaxing weekend of drinking and target practice. But when the three hapless guys are mistaken for Army Reservists by the hard-nosed Sergeant Kilgore (Keith David), they're loaded onto an army plane headed for Fallujah, Iraq - and mistakenly ejected in a Humvee somewhere over Mexico. Convinced they're actually in the Middle East, the clueless wannabe soldiers save a rural village from a siege of bandits and become local heroes. But when Carlos Santana (Danny Trejo), a ruthless, karaoke-loving warlord, strikes back, Larry, Bill and Everett have to lay down their beers and take up their arms - and prove they just might be real soldiers after all...Delta Farce takes its cue from John Kerry's ill-advised 2006 joke to university students that they should get a good education lest they wind up in Iraq. Case in point, Larry (Larry the Cable Guy), Bill (Bill Engvall, Larry's Blue Collar Comedy costar), and Everett (D.J. Qualls, geek first ! class from RoadTrip), who take respite from their failed relat! ionships , jobs, and lives in their once-a-month stint as "weekend warriors" in the Army Reserve. Delta Farce's one great inspiration was to literally drop these clueless sad sacks into Mexico instead of Fallujah. After much confusion, they become the not-so-magnificent three, helping besieged villagers fend off a gang of bandits led by the dread Carlos Santana (insert your own guitarist jokes). Delta Farce belongs to a mostly proud tradition of morale-building military misfit comedies, but it ranks closer to Ernest in the Army or Pauly Shore's In the Army Now than to Buck Privates or Stripes. Delta Farce, dedicated to "the real men and women" who are serving our country, has no political agenda. It is content to engage in name-calling ("carpet-flyers" and "turds" are two we can print here), broad slapstick, decidedly un-PC ethnic stereotypes and epithets ("retarded" is used as a punchline on several occasions), and the occasional gros! s-out gag (the always reliable urine-in-a-canteen bit). The usually menacing Danny Trejo (Con Air) steals the film outright (which in this case is petty theft) as the karaoke-singing Carlos. But for Larry the Cable guy fans, and those who miss the sophisticated good ol' boy humor of Smokey and the Bandit (whose theme song is to this movie what Wagner's "Flight of the Valkyries" was to Apocalypse Now), Delta Farce may just "git r done." --Donald LiebensonStudio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 11/16/2010Larry the Cable Guy returns for another comic misadventure as a small town sheriff who unwittingly gets involved in a high profile FBI case. Larry single-handedly "rescues" a sophisticated woman from the men who are actually protecting her. The hilariously mismatched duo must grapple with angry FBI agents, quack doctors and Chicago high society in his funniest, most unpredictable adventure yet.It's official; Larry the Cable Guy is the ne! w Ernest, and critics be damned. You want smart and sophistica! ted? Buy The Noel Coward Collection. Larry's a populist from the "I'd rather keep my fans happy" school, and his loyal following will be ecstatic with this film's broad slapstick, what one initially offended character calls "feeble, juvenile, and bigoted" humor, and gross-out bodily function gags (nude body-cavity search, anyone?). Larry portrays a small-town deputy with dreams of becoming an FBI special agent. "I know a criminal when I see one, a rat when I smell one, and a bad moon when it rises," he drawls. When he spies a woman (Ivana Milicevic) in the company of sinister-looking, Men in Black types, he rescues the "damsel in dee-stress." However, she is a government-protected witness en route to Chicago to testify in a sensational trial of Enron proportions. "Are you insane?" she asks him. "No," he replies, "I'm Larry." The film gets plenty of mileage out of their odd coupleness. Her cell-phone ringtone is classical music; his is the theme from Green Acres.! She eats salads; he gorges himself on sausage. She's a liberal (who gets off an "impeach Bush" joke) and he bleeds U.S. Red (at one point, the action pauses for a small-town "Support Our Troops" parade).

Witless Protection also benefits from some oddball casting. Yaphet Kotto costars as FBI Agent Alonzo Mosely (the name of his character in the classic Midnight Run). Peter Stormare, the silent, creepy kidnapper in Fargo, portrays a corrupt businessman with an unaccountable British accent. In a baffling cameo, Joe Mantegna seems to be channeling Strother Martin, while Jenny McCarthy serves up some sass as Larry's waitress girlfriend, nuff said, and a game Eric Roberts is a goon who butts heads with Larry in an epic fight scene. Some jokes are stale (Larry dredges up Regis Philbin's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire catch-phrase), while others are current enough to reference Michael Vick and Angelina Jolie. It is a sign of artistic growth that Larry! does not utter his own signature catch-phrase, so we won't ei! ther. Witless Protection was released theatrically during Oscar weekend, when Hollywood celebrates supreme achievement in film. This is what is known in the business as counter-programming. --Donald LiebensonLarry The Cable Guy plays a big city health inspector who's happy with his usual beat of greasy spoon diners. His easygoing life is turned upside down when he's saddled with a straight arrow rookie partner. When his unorthodox methods cost him his job, Larry has to go undercover to bring the conspirators to justice and "Git-R-Done!"The redneck rube from the Blue Collar Comedy Tour franchise plays a character much like himself in this feature, which balances Larry the Cable Guy's occasional excesses in toilet humor with strong comic performances from the supporting cast. Larry plays a dedicated health inspector who gets in over his head when the city mayor (Joe Pantoliano) personally appoints him to investigate a rash of food poisonings at five-star restau! rants. Larry's ignorance of anything cultural that doesn't involve his truck or MoonPies proves a handicap, but his knowledge of vermin and disarmingly unabashed way of interviewing witnesses and suspects slowly gets him where he needs to go. For the most part, the movie gives the comedian plenty of room to indulge his gross-out shtick. But it helps to have some other talent on board, notably Tom Wilson as Larry's exasperated boss, Iris Bahr as a dreary new partner Larry thinks is a man, David Koechner as a halfwit friend, Joanna Cassidy as a restaurant owner, and Megyn Price as Larry's shy but headstrong girlfriend. --Tom KeoghStudio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 09/02/2008 Run time: 85 minutes Rating: PgBait Shop stars the eternally affable yet exasperated comedian Bill Engvall as Bill Dugan, owner of a homey but smalltime bait shop. Bill's job and self-respect are threatened when arrogant fishing celebrity Hot Rod Johnson (Billy Ray Cyrus, better k! nown as Miley's dad) opens a massive fishing superstore right ! next doo r. Only by challenging Hot Rod in a bass fishing tournament can Bill set things right! Bait Shop is a bundle of clumsy cliches made somewhat tolerable by a likable cast (including outlaw country music singer Billy Joe Shaver as Bill's mentor) and an enthusiastic performance by Cyrus, who clearly enjoys being the bad guy for once. High points include Bill having a bar fight while dressed in a fish costume and Bill wrestling an obviously rubber bass into his boat. There are many declarations about how fishing used to be more pure and how friendship is the most important thing in life. Extras include a standard-issue making-of documentary, some beautiful shots of the local landscape (which, inexplicably, never got used in the movie itself), some understandably deleted scenes and some scenes of the cast goofing around. All in all, not much effort was put into making either the movie or the DVD. --Bret Fetzer

Edward Scissorhands [DVD] Full Screen 10th Anniversary Edition

• Full Screen Anniversary Edition (2005)
• Audio Commentary by Tim Burton & Danny Elfman
• Featurette & Concept Art
• Languages: English, Spanish & French. Subtitles: English & Spanish
• Original Theatrical Trailer & TV Spots

Once upon a time in a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands. Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind Avon lady took him home to live with her family. And so began Edward's fantastical adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.Edward Scissorhands achieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavor of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp! ), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of his last roles) who died before he could give the poor creature a pair of human hands. Edward lives alone in a ruined Gothic castle that just happens to be perched above a pastel-colored suburb inhabited by breadwinning husbands and frustrated housewives straight out of the 1950s. One day, Peg (Dianne Wiest), the local Avon lady, comes calling. Finding Edward alone, she kindly invites him to come home with her, where she hopes to help him with his pasty complexion and those nasty nicks he's given himself with his razor-sharp fingers. Soon Edward's skill with topiary sculpture and hair design make him popular in the neighborhood--but the mood turns just as swiftly against the outsider when he starts to feel his own desires, particularly for Peg's daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Most of director Tim Burton's movies (such as Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Batman) are visual spectacles with elements of fanta! sy, but Edward Scissorhands is more tender and personal! than th e others. Edward's wild black hair is much like Burton's, suggesting that the character represents the director's own feelings of estrangement and co-option. Johnny Depp, making his first successful leap from TV to film, captures Edward's childlike vulnerability even while his physical posture evokes horror icons like the vampire in Nosferatu and the sleepwalker in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Classic horror films, at their heart, feel a deep sympathy for the monsters they portray; simply and affectingly, Edward Scissorhands lays that heart bare. --Bret FetzerOnce upon a time in a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands. Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind Avon lady took him home to live with her family. And so began Edward's fanta! stical adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.Edward Scissorhands achieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavor of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of his last roles) who died before he could give the poor creature a pair of human hands. Edward lives alone in a ruined Gothic castle that just happens to be perched above a pastel-colored suburb inhabited by breadwinning husbands and frustrated housewives straight out of the 1950s. One day, Peg (Dianne Wiest), the local Avon lady, comes calling. Finding Edward alone, she kindly invites him to come home with her, where she hopes to help him with his pasty complexion and those nasty nicks he's given himself with his razor-sharp fingers. Soon Edward's skill with topiary sculpture and hair design make him popular in the neighborhood--but the mood turns just as swiftly! against the outsider when he starts to feel his own desires, ! particul arly for Peg's daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Most of director Tim Burton's movies (such as Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Batman) are visual spectacles with elements of fantasy, but Edward Scissorhands is more tender and personal than the others. Edward's wild black hair is much like Burton's, suggesting that the character represents the director's own feelings of estrangement and co-option. Johnny Depp, making his first successful leap from TV to film, captures Edward's childlike vulnerability even while his physical posture evokes horror icons like the vampire in Nosferatu and the sleepwalker in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Classic horror films, at their heart, feel a deep sympathy for the monsters they portray; simply and affectingly, Edward Scissorhands lays that heart bare. --Bret FetzerOnce upon a time in a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistib! le charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands. Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind Avon lady took him home to live with her family. And so began Edward's fantastical adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.Edward Scissorhands achieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavor of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of his last roles) who died before he could give the poor creature a pair of human hands. Edward lives alone in a ruined Gothic castle that just happens to be perched above a pastel-colored suburb inhabited by breadwinning husbands and frustrated housewives straight out of the 1950s. One day, Peg (Dianne Wiest), the local Avon lady, comes calling. Finding Edward alone, she kindly invites him to come home with her,! where she hopes to help him with his pasty complexion and tho! se nasty nicks he's given himself with his razor-sharp fingers. Soon Edward's skill with topiary sculpture and hair design make him popular in the neighborhood--but the mood turns just as swiftly against the outsider when he starts to feel his own desires, particularly for Peg's daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Most of director Tim Burton's movies (such as Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Batman) are visual spectacles with elements of fantasy, but Edward Scissorhands is more tender and personal than the others. Edward's wild black hair is much like Burton's, suggesting that the character represents the director's own feelings of estrangement and co-option. Johnny Depp, making his first successful leap from TV to film, captures Edward's childlike vulnerability even while his physical posture evokes horror icons like the vampire in Nosferatu and the sleepwalker in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Classic horror films, at their heart, feel a deep sympathy for t! he monsters they portray; simply and affectingly, Edward Scissorhands lays that heart bare. --Bret FetzerOnce upon a time in a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands. Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind Avon lady took him home to live with her family. And so began Edward's fantastical adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.Edward Scissorhands achieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavor of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of his last roles) who died before he could give the poor creature a pair of human hands. Edward lives alone in a ruined Gothic castle that just happens to be p! erched above a pastel-colored suburb inhabited by breadwinning! husband s and frustrated housewives straight out of the 1950s. One day, Peg (Dianne Wiest), the local Avon lady, comes calling. Finding Edward alone, she kindly invites him to come home with her, where she hopes to help him with his pasty complexion and those nasty nicks he's given himself with his razor-sharp fingers. Soon Edward's skill with topiary sculpture and hair design make him popular in the neighborhood--but the mood turns just as swiftly against the outsider when he starts to feel his own desires, particularly for Peg's daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Most of director Tim Burton's movies (such as Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Batman) are visual spectacles with elements of fantasy, but Edward Scissorhands is more tender and personal than the others. Edward's wild black hair is much like Burton's, suggesting that the character represents the director's own feelings of estrangement and co-option. Johnny Depp, making his first successful leap from TV to fil! m, captures Edward's childlike vulnerability even while his physical posture evokes horror icons like the vampire in Nosferatu and the sleepwalker in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Classic horror films, at their heart, feel a deep sympathy for the monsters they portray; simply and affectingly, Edward Scissorhands lays that heart bare. --Bret FetzerOnce upon a time in a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands. Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind Avon lady took him home to live with her family. And so began Edward's fantastical adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.Edward Scissorhands achieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavor of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follo! ws a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by ! an inven tor (Vincent Price, in one of his last roles) who died before he could give the poor creature a pair of human hands. Edward lives alone in a ruined Gothic castle that just happens to be perched above a pastel-colored suburb inhabited by breadwinning husbands and frustrated housewives straight out of the 1950s. One day, Peg (Dianne Wiest), the local Avon lady, comes calling. Finding Edward alone, she kindly invites him to come home with her, where she hopes to help him with his pasty complexion and those nasty nicks he's given himself with his razor-sharp fingers. Soon Edward's skill with topiary sculpture and hair design make him popular in the neighborhood--but the mood turns just as swiftly against the outsider when he starts to feel his own desires, particularly for Peg's daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Most of director Tim Burton's movies (such as Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Batman) are visual spectacles with elements of fantasy, but Edward Scissorhands is more tender and personal than the others. Edward's wild black hair is much like Burton's, suggesting that the character represents the director's own feelings of estrangement and co-option. Johnny Depp, making his first successful leap from TV to film, captures Edward's childlike vulnerability even while his physical posture evokes horror icons like the vampire in Nosferatu and the sleepwalker in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Classic horror films, at their heart, feel a deep sympathy for the monsters they portray; simply and affectingly, Edward Scissorhands lays that heart bare. --Bret FetzerEdward Scissorhands (Full Screen Anniversary Edition), 2005 release by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

Up (Four-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + BD Live) [Blu-ray]

• From the revolutionary minds of Pixar Animation Studios and the acclaimed director of MONSTERS, INC. comes a hilariously uplifting adventure where the sky is no longer the limit. Carl Fredricksen, a retired balloon salesman, is part rascal, part dreamer who is ready for his last chance at high-flying excitement. Tying thousands of balloons to his house, Carl sets off to the lost world of his child

Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios take moviegoers up, up and away on one of the funniest adventures of all time with their latest comedy-fantasy. Up follows the uplifting tale of 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who finally fulfills his lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away to the wilds of South America. But he discovers all too late that his biggest nightmare has stowed away on the trip an overly opti! mistic 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell. Their journey to a lost world, where they encounter some strange, exotic and surprising characters, is filled with hilarity, emotion and wildly imaginative adventure.


At a time when too many animated films consist of anthropomorphized animals cracking sitcom one-liners and flatulence jokes, the warmth, originality, humor, and unflagging imagination of Up feel as welcome as rain in a desert. Carl Fredericksen (voice by Ed Asner) ranks among the most unlikely heroes in recent animation history. A 78- year-old curmudgeon, he enjoyed his modest life as a balloon seller because he shared it with his adventurous wife Ellie (Ellie Docter). But she died, leaving him with memories and the awareness that they never made their dream journey to Paradise Falls in South America. When well-meaning officials consign Carl to Shady Oaks Retirement Home, he rigs thousands of helium balloons to his house and floats ! to South America. The journey's scarcely begun when he discove! rs a sto waway: Russell (Jordan Nagai), a chubby, maladroit Wilderness Explorer Scout who's out to earn his Elderly Assistance Badge. In the tropical jungle, Carl and Russell find more than they bargained for: Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer), a crazed explorer whose newsreels once inspired Carl and Ellie; Kevin, an exotic bird with a weakness for chocolate; and Dug (Bob Peterson), an endearingly dim golden retriever fitted with a voice box. More importantly, the travelers discover they need each other: Russell needs a (grand)father figure; Carl needs someone to enliven his life without Ellie. Together, they learn that sharing ice-cream cones and counting the passing cars can be more meaningful than feats of daring-do and distant horizons. Pete Docter (Monsters, Inc. ) and Bob Peterson direct the film with consummate skill and taste, allowing the poignant moments to unfold without dialogue to Michael Giacchnio's vibrant score. Building on their work in The Incredibles! and Ratatouille, the Pixar crew offers nuanced animation of the stylized characters. Even by Pixar's elevated standards, Up is an exceptional film that will appeal of audiences of all ages. Rated PG for some peril and action. --Charles Solomon

Stills from Up (Click for larger image)

DOGMA INCLUDES BONUS DIGITAL COPY

• DVD
• comedy
• thrilling
• fantasy
• angels

When two banished angels find a loophole that will allow them back into heaven at the cost of humankind an unsuspecting mortal woman two prophets and the thirteenth apostle are the only ones who can stop them. Special features: subtitles in english spanish and french talent files and murch more. Studio: Ingram Entertainment Release Date: 07/26/2005 Starring: Ben Affleck Matt Damon Run time: 130 minutes Rating: R Director: Kevin SmithKevin Smith is a conundrum of a filmmaker: he's a writer with brilliant, clever ideas who can't set up a simple shot to save his life. It was fine back when Smith was making low-budget films like Clerks and Chasing Amy, both of which had an amiable, grungy feel to them, but now that he's a rising director who's attracting top talent and tackling bigger themes, it might behoove ! him to polish his filmmaking. That's the main problem with Dogma--it's an ambitious, funny, aggressively intelligent film about modern-day religion, but while Smith's writing has matured significantly (anyone who thinks he's not topnotch should take a look at Chasing Amy), his direction hasn't. It's too bad, because Dogma is ripe for near-classic status in its theological satire, which is hardly as blasphemous as the protests that greeted the movie would lead you to believe.

Two banished angels (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) have discovered a loophole that would allow them back into heaven; problem is, they'd destroy civilization in the process by proving God fallible. It's up to Bethany (Linda Fiorentino), a lapsed Catholic who works in an abortion clinic, to save the day, with some help from two so-called prophets (Smith and Jason Mewes, as their perennial characters Jay and Silent Bob), the heretofore unknown 13th apostle (Chris Rock), and a sexy,! heavenly muse (the sublime Salma Hayek, who almost single-han! dedly st eals the film). In some ways Dogma is a shaggy dog of a road movie--which hits a comic peak when Affleck and Fiorentino banter drunkenly on a train to New Jersey, not realizing they're mortal enemies--and segues into a comedy-action flick as the vengeful angels (who have a taste for blood) try to make their way into heaven. Smith's cast is exceptional--with Fiorentino lending a sardonic gravity to the proceedings, and Jason Lee smirking evilly as the horned devil Azrael--and the film shuffles good-naturedly to its climax (featuring Alanis Morissette as a beatifically silent God), but it just looks so unrelentingly... subpar. Credit Smith with being a daring writer but a less-than-stellar director. --Mark EnglehartWHEN TWO BANISHED ANGELS FIND A LOOPHOLE THAT WILL ALLOW THEM BACK INTO HEAVEN AT THE COST OF HUMANKIND, AN UNSUSPECTINGMORTAL WOMAN, TWO PROPHETS AND THE THIRTEENTH APOSTLE ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN STOP THEM. SPECIAL FEATURES: SUBTITLES IN EN! GLISH, SPANISH AND FRENCH, TALENT FILES AND MURCH MORE.Kevin Smith is a conundrum of a filmmaker: he's a writer with brilliant, clever ideas who can't set up a simple shot to save his life. It was fine back when Smith was making low-budget films like Clerks and Chasing Amy, both of which had an amiable, grungy feel to them, but now that he's a rising director who's attracting top talent and tackling bigger themes, it might behoove him to polish his filmmaking. That's the main problem with Dogma--it's an ambitious, funny, aggressively intelligent film about modern-day religion, but while Smith's writing has matured significantly (anyone who thinks he's not topnotch should take a look at Chasing Amy), his direction hasn't. It's too bad, because Dogma is ripe for near-classic status in its theological satire, which is hardly as blasphemous as the protests that greeted the movie would lead you to believe.

Two banished angels (Ben Affleck ! and Matt Damon) have discovered a loophole that would allow th! em back into heaven; problem is, they'd destroy civilization in the process by proving God fallible. It's up to Bethany (Linda Fiorentino), a lapsed Catholic who works in an abortion clinic, to save the day, with some help from two so-called prophets (Smith and Jason Mewes, as their perennial characters Jay and Silent Bob), the heretofore unknown 13th apostle (Chris Rock), and a sexy, heavenly muse (the sublime Salma Hayek, who almost single-handedly steals the film). In some ways Dogma is a shaggy dog of a road movie--which hits a comic peak when Affleck and Fiorentino banter drunkenly on a train to New Jersey, not realizing they're mortal enemies--and segues into a comedy-action flick as the vengeful angels (who have a taste for blood) try to make their way into heaven. Smith's cast is exceptional--with Fiorentino lending a sardonic gravity to the proceedings, and Jason Lee smirking evilly as the horned devil Azrael--and the film shuffles good-naturedly to its climax (featu! ring Alanis Morissette as a beatifically silent God), but it just looks so unrelentingly... subpar. Credit Smith with being a daring writer but a less-than-stellar director. --Mark EnglehartOne of the most talked-about movies of the year is also one of the funniest! In this hilarious comic fantasy from writer/director Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy) two banished angels (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) find a loophole that would get them back into Heaven. The only snag? They'll be destroying existence in the process. In an effort to stop them, The overworked Voice of God (Alan Rickman)taps cynical mortal Bethany (Linda Fiorentino) to save the world by preventing the angels from reaching their unholy destination: New Jersey! Throw in two unlikely prophets named Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith), the quick-witted yet little-known thirteenth apostle (Chris Rock) and a sexy, former muse with a case of writer's block (Selma Hayek) and you! 've got an hysterical and thrilling race against time packed w! ith an a ll-star cast.Kevin Smith is a conundrum of a filmmaker: he's a writer with brilliant, clever ideas who can't set up a simple shot to save his life. It was fine back when Smith was making low-budget films like Clerks and Chasing Amy, both of which had an amiable, grungy feel to them, but now that he's a rising director who's attracting top talent and tackling bigger themes, it might behoove him to polish his filmmaking. That's the main problem with Dogma--it's an ambitious, funny, aggressively intelligent film about modern-day religion, but while Smith's writing has matured significantly (anyone who thinks he's not topnotch should take a look at Chasing Amy), his direction hasn't. It's too bad, because Dogma is ripe for near-classic status in its theological satire, which is hardly as blasphemous as the protests that greeted the movie would lead you to believe.

Two banished angels (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) have discovered a loophole ! that would allow them back into heaven; problem is, they'd destroy civilization in the process by proving God fallible. It's up to Bethany (Linda Fiorentino), a lapsed Catholic who works in an abortion clinic, to save the day, with some help from two so-called prophets (Smith and Jason Mewes, as their perennial characters Jay and Silent Bob), the heretofore unknown 13th apostle (Chris Rock), and a sexy, heavenly muse (the sublime Salma Hayek, who almost single-handedly steals the film). In some ways Dogma is a shaggy dog of a road movie--which hits a comic peak when Affleck and Fiorentino banter drunkenly on a train to New Jersey, not realizing they're mortal enemies--and segues into a comedy-action flick as the vengeful angels (who have a taste for blood) try to make their way into heaven. Smith's cast is exceptional--with Fiorentino lending a sardonic gravity to the proceedings, and Jason Lee smirking evilly as the horned devil Azrael--and the film shuffles good-na! turedly to its climax (featuring Alanis Morissette as a beatif! ically s ilent God), but it just looks so unrelentingly... subpar. Credit Smith with being a daring writer but a less-than-stellar director. --Mark EnglehartPacked with stars including Ben Affleck (GOOD WILL HUNTING), Chris Rock (NURSE BETTY), Shannon Elizabeth (AMERICAN PIE), Jason Lee (ALMOST FAMOUS), and more, this wildly irreverent comedy is actor/director Kevin Smith's hilarious finale to the adventures of Jay and Silent Bob that began in CLERKS and ran through MALLRATS, CHASING AMY, and DOGMA! When best buddies Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) discover that a major motion picture is being based on their likenesses, they head for Hollywood to claim the big movie money they deserve. But when the dopey duo learn that they've been cut out of the cash, they set out to sabotage the flick at all costs! Featuring a host of celebrity cameos set to a hot hit soundtrack, Jay and Silent Bob's raucous cross country road trip is a crash course in the rules of the road ! with a nonstop assortment of outrageous characters that will have you laughing out loud!With sidesplitting dialogue and rampant profanity, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back reunites Kevin Smith's dynamic duo in supreme lowbrow style. It's the fifth comedy in Smith's celebrated New Jersey "trilogy." Here Quick-Stop potheads Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) wreak vengeance on Hollywood, where Miramax is making a "Bluntman & Chronic" feature inspired by J. and S.B., but without their permission. En route from Jersey to La La Land, Jay and his "hetero life mate" encounter sexy jewel thieves (including the delightful Shannon Elizabeth), a precocious orangutan, a dimwit wildlife marshal (Will Ferrell), and a nonstop parade of in-jokes, harmless (yet controversial) gay jokes, and splendid celebrity cameos. While gently biting the Miramax hand that feeds him, and paying affectionate homage to the Star Wars saga, Smith sheds all inhibitions to give Jay and Sile! nt Bob a stellar sendoff that's nasty, sassy, and undeniab! ly hilar ious. --Jeff ShannonImaginative theology and a bigger-than-usual budget make Kevin Smith's (CHASING AMY, CLERKS) fourth film a kind of post-Catholic fantasy that only a comic-book enthusiast of his caliber could dream up. It concerns banished angels, Loki (Matt Damon) and Bartleby (Ben Affleck) who, after a few millennia in Wisconsin, discover a loophole in Catholic doctrine that would allow them back into heaven--but prove the fallibility of God and destroy the universe. As they make their way to New Jersey to receive a plenary indulgence, God dispatches a seraphim (Alan Rickman) to recruit lapsed-Catholic Bethany (Linda Fiorentino) to stop the angels. She finds help in muses, prophets (Jay and Silent Bob), and the forgotten 13th apostle, Rufus (Chris Rock). Before long, all hell breaks loose (literally), and God (Alanis Morrisette) has to put in an appearance of her own. Smith's controversial (and very funny) film is powered by his trademark dialogue, ripe with obse! rvations on pop culture, religion, and bodily functions Included bonus digital copy for your PC & PSP must be redeemed by 06/17/09

Closing the Ring

• From Academy Award-winning director Richard Attenborough (Gandhi) comes this sweeping romance starring Shirley MacLaine (Terms of Endearment), Christopher Plummer (A Beautiful Mind), Mischa Barton (TV's The O.C.), and Neve Campbell (The Company). Moving seemlessly through time, this lush epic follows a beautiful 1940's Michigan girl (Barton) secretly married to a WWII pilot who crashes in the hill

From Academy Award-winning director Richard Attenborough (Gandhi) comes this sweeping romance starring Shirley MacLaine (Terms of Endearment), Christopher Plummer (A Beautiful Mind), Mischa Barton (TV's The O.C.), and Neve Campbell (The Company). Moving seemlessly through time, this lush epic follows a beautiful 1940's Michigan girl (Barton) secretly married to a WWII pilot who crashes in the hills near Belfast, Ireland. 50 years later his wedding ring resurfaces -- along with the smoldering secrets! that have kept the widow (MacLaine), her estranged daughter (Campbell) and devoted friend (Plummer) each from finding true love.A love story spanning more than five decades, Closing the Ring may appeal to fans of The Notebook. Academy Award-winning director Richard Attenborough (Ghandi) utilizes shifting time frames to tell the story of Ethel Ann and WWII fighter pilot Teddy. The two fall madly in love and secretly marry in a sweet ceremony that is destined for tragedy. When Teddy's plane is shot down in Belfast, he is discovered by an Irish boy who makes a promise to the dying soldier--he will return the wedding band to Teddy's young widow in the United States. Flash forward to the 1990s: An elderly Ethel Ann (Shirley MacLaine) is at her husband Chuck's funeral. He was never the love of her life and Ethel Ann had always lived her life full of "what ifs." Her grieving daughter Marie (Neve Campbell) notices the void, but can't comprehend why her mother ! has never been happy. When Teddy's wedding band is finally ret! urned to Ethel Ann--50 years after his death--the memento opens up a floodgate of emotions, and Ethel Ann is able to get some closure on a part of her life that she has tried so hard to both forget and remember. As a family friend points out to Marie, "Everybody needs to cry, and your mother never did." At times slow and uneven, Closing the Ring rings true in the modern-day vignettes. MacLaine is exquisite in her role, as is Christopher Plummer as a longtime friend. But when the scenes flash back to the 1940s, the younger actors don't share the same on-screen chemistry or charisma. Mischa Barton is beautiful as the young Ethel Ann, but her moments with Stephen Amell (as Teddy) are a little forced. Campbell brings intelligence and gravity to her role, but is underused in the film. Viewers can't help wonder how different the tone of the movie may have been had she been cast as the younger Ethel Ann. --Jae-Ha Kim

Dawn of the Dead (Widescreen Unrated Director's Cut)

• The Lost Tape - 15 minutes of terrifing footage
• Special Report - Zombie Invasion
• 12+ minutes of deleted scenes
• Commentary with director Zack Snyder and producer Eric Newman

Packed with more blood, more gore, and more bone-chilling, jaw-dropping thrills, Dawn of the Dead Unrated Director's Cut is the version too terrifying to be shown in theaters! Starring Mekhi Phifer, Ving Rhames and Sarah Polley in an edgy, electrifying thrill-ride.

When a mysterious virus turns people into mindless, flesh-eating zombies, a handful of survivors wage a desperate, last-stand battle to stay alive…and human.Are you ready to get down with the sickness? Movie logic dictates that you shouldn't remake a classic, but Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead defies that logic and comes up a winner. You could argue that George A. Romero's 1978 original was sacred ground for hor! ror buffs, but it was a low-budget classic, and Snyder's action-packed upgrade benefits from the same manic pacing that energized Romero's continuing zombie saga. Romero's indictment of mega-mall commercialism is lost (it's arguably outmoded anyway), so Snyder and screenwriter James Gunn compensate with the same setting--in this case, a Milwaukee shopping mall under siege by cannibalistic zombies in the wake of a devastating viral outbreak--a well-chosen cast (led by Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer), some outrageously morbid humor, and a no-frills plot that keeps tension high and blood splattering by the bucketful. Horror buffs will catch plenty of tributes to Romero's film (including cameos by three of its cast members, including gore-makeup wizard Tom Savini), and shocking images are abundant enough to qualify this Dawn as an excellent zombie-flick double-feature with 28 Days Later, its de facto British counterpart. --Jeff S! hannon