Blu-ray Movie Reviews

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/com.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Alfonso Cuaron's vision of the future is bleak and depressing, but damn it looks and sounds awesome on Blu-ray. Don't expect a cornucopia of color, which is virtually nonexistent in 2027 with perpetual overcast skies and gloomy lighting, and there certainly isn't any stimulus money being spent on infrastructure&#151;the world needs some fresh paint! The disc excels in detail&#151;both foregrounds and backgrounds are always razor-sharp. The audio features top-notch frequency response, dynamic range, and imaging.

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/enemyatgates.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT><i>The year is 1942, and the Nazis are cutting a deadly swath through Russia. Under the leadership of Khrushchev, the citizens of Stalingrad are mounting a brave resistance, spurred by the exploits of their local hero, Vassili Zaitsev (Jude Law). An expert sniper, Zaitsev's deeds have become legendary thanks to propaganda produced by his best friend, a political officer named Danilov (Joseph Fiennes). To stop Zaitsev, the Germans dispatch their best sniper, Major Konig (Ed Harris), to Stalingrad. When Zaitsev and Danilov both fall in love with a beautiful soldier, Danilov deserts his friend, leaving him to face his German counterpart alone. As the city burns, Zaitsev and Konig begin a cunning game of cat and mouse, waging a private war for courage, honor, and country.</i>

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/big.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>After being denied admittance onto an amusement-park ride because he's not tall enough, 12-year-old Josh Baskin (David Moscow) places a quarter into a Zoltar machine and wishes he was big. When he awakes the next morning, his wish is granted and he's transformed into the body of a 30 year old (Tom Hanks). New to the adult world, he gets a job, earns his first paycheck, and gets the girl (Elizabeth Perkins) despite&#151;or perhaps because of&#151;his childlike mindset.

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/defiance.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Brothers Tuvia (Daniel Craig) and Zus (Live Schreiber) Bielski are farmers turned warriors when the Germans invade Poland in 1939. Along with their two younger brothers, Asael (Jamie Bell) and Aron (George MacKay), they flee into the Belarusian forest to survive and eventually fight back against the Nazis along with a group of Jewish refugees they vow to protect.