LATEST ADDITIONS

Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Freedom Vol. 4—Bandai Visual (HD DVD)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 12, 2008
Video: 4/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 3/5
Bandai Visual delivers the next episode in the Freedom series. For those not familiar with this series it was created as a marketing series for "Cup-O-Noodles" though it really has no tie in to the product except some of the characters eating it in the show. Each segment is thirty minutes long and each segment has been released on HD DVD individually, making this is a bit of a steep investment considering the length of each release. This fourth episode finds our main characters on Earth's soil and on the way to Florida to meet the girl in the pictures. This episode wasn't quite as engaging as the ones before it, but it's an essential part of the story. The animation was also a bit disappointing in comparison to the previous episodes with most of the longer shots not coming off quite as detailed, but this was obviously an artistic choice of the creators. I'm still looking forward to seeing where it all goes and I have word that the rest of the series will be released on HD DVD despite its recent demise.
Continue Reading »
Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Initial D—Tai Seng Entertainment (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 12, 2008
Video: 3.5/5
Audio: 3/5
Extras: 3/5
Awhile back I was caught by surprise with the last installment in the Fast and the Furious franchise, Tokyo Drift. I thought the second film was the end of the line for great entertainment but the third installment ended up being quite good. Well you can tell they borrowed a lot from this film. Initial D is a live action imagining of the Manga by the same name and brought to the big screen by the creators of the popular Infernal Affairs series. The film centers on some street racers and the ever popular "drifting" so prevalent in street racing culture today. Two racers stumble upon a local Tofu delivery guy who just happens to be the master of a local downhill track and bring him into their world. The film is a bit corny at times, mainly do to the rather crude dubbing and comic-like acting, but it was also a lot of fun and the racing sequences are very well done. Anyone looking for a racing fix should definitely give this one a look.
Continue Reading »
Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Death At A Funeral—MGM/Concorde (HD DVD Import)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 12, 2008
Video: 4/5
Audio: 3/5
Extras: 3.5/5
This is one of those films that completely took me by surprise. I remember seeing one trailer for it in theaters and not thinking much of it but when I saw it available for import on HD DVD, I took the plunge. It had a good cast and I generally enjoy British comedies so I thought why not. Turns out this one is great. The comedy in this had my wife and me laughing nearly the entire film with some scenes bringing us to near tears. The whole film centers around a funeral and everything that can happen will. The cast is great here and every character brings something more to the already hilarious happenings. If you love a great comedy, this is not to be missed.
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Get Your House Party In Sync with Audioengine's AW1
SV Staff  |  Mar 12, 2008
Every audiophile music geek dreams of taking a giant hard drive full of high bit-rate music and streaming it to every room in the house. But making it a reality is expensive and complicated. Short of shelling out $1,000 or more for systems like...
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
SXSW: The Night Before
SV Staff  |  Mar 12, 2008
We said our hellos (on the night before): That would be writer Billy Altman, photographer Ebet Roberts, and I (your humble Entertainment Editor, Ken Richardson) saying our annual hellos on Tuesday night - the night before the South by Southwest...
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
You Tube, TiVo?
SV Staff  |  Mar 12, 2008
In the ongoing battle to lure consumers away from their PCs, TiVo has become the latest consumer electronics company to announce plans to bring Internet-based video content into the living room. TiVo will join Apple TV as the other hardware box...
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
GE Promises Cheap, Versatile OLEDS
SV Staff  |  Mar 12, 2008
For some, OLED displays seem like just another future-tech promise that, like jet packs, flying cars, and domestic robots, has never been fulfilled. Sure, Sony put out one OLED TV this year - the $2,500 11-inch XEL-1 - but who can afford it? Now...
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Olympics Broadcast the Size of an Olympic Pool
SV Staff  |  Mar 12, 2008
Those lucky Brits. During the 2012 London Olympics, they'll receive BBC broadcasts in "Super Hi-Vision," on big screens across the country. Japan's public broadcaster NHK and Britain's BBC are collaborating on Super Hi-Vision, a format...
Continue Reading »
Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Rookie
 |  Mar 12, 2008

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.

Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Panasonic Colors Your World
Mark Fleischmann  |  Mar 12, 2008
Panasonic showed off two distinct approaches to flat-panel color reproduction yesterday at a New York press event. This was just one facet of a sweeping presentation that covered new LCD as well as plasma lines, all rebranded with the name Viera, much of which will reach the market in a "critical mass" slated for April.
Continue Reading »

Pages

X