Blu-ray Movie Reviews

This show isn't for those easily offended by foul language or violence, both of which are quite prevalent. In fact, my wife left the room 15 minutes into the first episode because the "F-word" was said over 20 times—literally. She complained the writing was lazy but in fact it was completely intentional according to creator David Milch. He wanted to recreate the rough and tumble atmosphere of the real town and by my wife's reaction; he succeeded a little too well.

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/deception.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Ewan McGregor stars as Jonathan McQuarry, a workaholic accountant who discovers there's more to life when a charismatic lawyer (Hugh Jackman) introduces him to "The List"—a decadent, sexual playground for New York's power elite. Jonathan gets more than he bargained for when he meets "S" (Michelle Williams) and falls for her, breaking all the rules of the sex club in the process.

A seemingly random death initially appears to be unrelated to a devastating New Orleans ferry bombing that kills over 500 people. While the body is discovered in the same area as the explosion, and the cause of death is consistent with the tragedy, it turns up hours before the disaster. As Federal agent Doug Carlin investigates both the random death and the bombing, however, he suspects a connection. He soon has the opportunity to use a state-of-the art surveillance system that can seemingly look in on the most private and inaccessible activities, hoping that it will help him prove a link between the two events.

This is the first in a series of thrillers dubbed "The Night Chronicles" produced by M. Night Shyamalen based upon his stories. Overall, this is a middling affair that feels more like a TV episode than a feature film and I didn't find the story scary or very thrilling. Then again, I've said the same thing about most of Shyamalen's films since The Sixth Sense.

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/dirty.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>While vacationing in the summer of 1963 with her family, 17-year-old Baby (Jennifer Grey) is drawn to the staff quarters by stirring music and meets rebellious Jonny (Patrick Swayze), the hotel dance instructor, who is as experienced as Baby is na&#239;ve. Oh the possibilities.