When high-school baseball coach Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) was looking for a way to inspire his perennially losing team to win, he decided to issue a challenge they couldn't refuse. If they made it to the district playoffs, he would try out for a major-league baseball team. Fortunately for Morris, his team fulfilled their part of the bargain, and he went to the tryout in which his fast ball was clocked at 98 mph! It wasn't long before Jim found himself pitching for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays as a 35-year-old rookie. The best part of the story is that it actually happened in 1999.
Unlikely heroes Manfred, Sid, Diego, and Scrat join together to return an infant boy to his father before the coming ice age dooms them all. These brave souls, however, are not human. Manny is a wooly mammoth, Sid is a sloth, Diego is a saber-toothed tiger, and Scrat—one of the funniest creatures ever created—is a tiny saber-toothed squirrel who just wants to protect his precious acorn.
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/403iceage.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Unlikely heroes Manfred, Sid, Diego, and Scrat join together to return an infant boy to his father before the coming ice age dooms them all. These brave souls, however, are not human. Manny is a wooly mammoth, Sid is a sloth, Diego is a saber-toothed tiger, and Scrat—one of the funniest creatures ever created—is a tiny saber-toothed squirrel who just wants to protect his precious acorn.
Video: 5/5
Audio: 5/5
Extras: 3.5/5
Will Smith is getting the high definition treatment these next few weeks. We are seeing a couple releases from Fox and last year's blockbuster from Warner here soon. Good thing his movies are fun. i, Robot was the first big budget film for director Alex Proyas (Dark City) and an above average summer blockbuster for Smith. The creators did a bang up job with the special effects, but at times I thought they were a bit heavy handed with the environments. I'm still glad this one has finally made its way to Blu-ray as it was one of my favorite demonstration titles on the short lived D-Theater format.
Video: 4/5
Audio: 4/5
Extras: 3/5 Atonement was easily one of my favorite movies of 2007 and I was actually surprised it didn't walk away with the Best Picture statue at the Oscar's this year. While this was an extremely strong year for great films and there was some great nominees I felt this film had the strongest overall arc in terms of production, story, acting and direction. It is rare that a film just nails every aspect as well as this one does, making it a must-see in my opinion.
Video: 4.5/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 0/5
When this film was released I noticed a lot of comparisons to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I am not sure why, the films have little to do with each other. Both are VERY colorful and full of imagination, but this film deals more with finding the magic within you. Hoffman does a good job in the lead, but the film is stolen by Natalie Portman. She is reminding me more and more of Audrey Hepburn as she's gotten older and her charm and vulnerability go a long way in this one. It isn't very often that we see a solid live action family film like this.
Video: 4/5
Audio: 4.5/5
Extras: 4/5
Movies based on video games generally don't make for great cinema. There have been a few exceptions, but they are VERY few and far between. I wasn't expecting much going into this one but it didn't turn out too bad. I am not that familiar with the video game series (which may have helped) but I couldn't help but notice the parallels between other games I've played. The scenarios and characters were a bit one dimensional, like most games. The nice thing is, this film has enough plot to keep the action going, which is all one can demand from a popcorn film. The action choreography and stylish cinematography also keep things pretty cool. My only real complaint is the lead actor. While I like Olyphant as an actor, he didn't have the weight for this type of role in my opinion. I guess I've just seen too many films about professional killers that gave the killer a more impending tone.
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/403dan.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Newspaper columnist Dan Burns (Steve Carell) dispenses advice to families in his column, but his own personal life is in shambles. The widowed father of three girls is afraid of letting go and letting his kids grow up. He's so consumed with their lives that he has no time to live his own.