Blu-ray Movie Reviews

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Sherlock Holmes
David Vaughn  |  Apr 14, 2010
With the aid of his trusted ally Dr. John Watson (Jude Law), Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) is unequaled in his pursuit of criminals. After a string of ritualistic murders, the pair arrives just in time to save the latest victim and uncover the killer: Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong). He is sentenced to death but warns Holmes that death has no power over him, and he will rise again. It turns out he wasn't lying.

I'm not sure Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would approve of the modernized Sherlock Holmes, but it turns out he's one hell of an action hero. The DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack features some great demo-worthy scenes, although the dialog is not entirely intelligible in a couple of scenes. The VC-1 encode is just as impressive, with exquisite detail, inky blacks, and well-resolved shadows.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Apollo 13 (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Apr 11, 2010  |  First Published: Apr 12, 2010

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/apollo13bd.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>After landing on the moon in 1969 and fulfilling John F. Kennedy's pledge, Americans began to lose interest in the space program. In fact, many TV stations stopped covering the missions but that changed on April 13, 1970 when Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks) radioed back to control with the historic phrase: "Houston, we have a problem." What should have been a seemingly routine mission to the moon became a race against time to save three American astronauts.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Thomas Crown Affair—MGM (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 3.5
Picture/Sound: 3.75/4.25
Extras: 2
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans—First Look (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 2.5
Picture/Sound: 4.5/4
Extras: 2.5
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Collateral—Paramount Pictures (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 4
Picture/Sound: 4/4.5
Extras: 3.5
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Dreamscape—Image Entertainment (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 3
Picture/Sound: 2/2.5
Extras: 1.5
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Jade—Lionsgate (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 1.5
Picture/Sound: 3.5/3.5
Extras: .5
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Lovely Bones—Paramount Pictures (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 3.5
Picture/Sound: 4/4.5
Extras: 3.5
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
A Nightmare on Elm Street—New Line (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 3.5
Picture/Sound: 3.5/3
Extras: 4
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Poseidon—Warner Bros. (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Apr 12, 2010
Movie: 2.5
Picture/Sound: 4/4.5
Extras: 3
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Battlestar Galactica - Season Two (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Apr 05, 2010

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/bsg2.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>The battle for survival continues in the second, and arguably best season of <i>Battlestar Galactica</i>. It begings with Galactica separated from the rest of the fleet and Colonel Tigh must fill in for Commander Adama. On Caprica, Kara and Helo must join a band of resistance fighters waiting for an eventual rescue from the fleet while political tensions rise when Baltar faces Roslin in the Presidential election, but will backroom dealings pick a winner?

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Apr 05, 2010

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/lotrbd.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>In case you've been in a coma for the past 10 years, Peter Jackson adapted the popular J.R.R. Tolkien novel with amazing results. Arguably, it's one of the greatest movie accomplishments of all time with 15 Academy Awards, over $1 billion in US box-office receipts, and nearly $3 billion worldwide.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (Blu-ray Disc)
David Vaughn  |  Mar 31, 2010

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/squeakquel.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>When Dave (Jason Lee) has an unfortunate accident, the chipmunks end up in the care of his dimwitted nephew Toby (Zachary Levy) and have to face the rigors of high school without any parental guidance. It's there that the three hit singers meet the Chippettes&#151;Brittany, Eleanor, and Janette&#151;whom they must challenge in order to represent their school in a district wide battle of the bands to save the schools music program.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Poseidon (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Mar 31, 2010

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/poseidon.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>The cruise ship Poseidon is on its way from London to New York on New Year's Eve when it's suddenly struck by a rogue wave turning it upside down in the water. The Captain (Andre Braugher) tells everyone in the main ballroom to be calm and patient, but a band of survivors led by Dylan (Josh Lucas) and Robert (Kurt Russell) have their own plan of escape.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Blind Side
David Vaughn  |  Mar 29, 2010
Teenager Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) is living on his own when he is spotted on the street by the Tuohy family. Learning that the young man is one of her daughter's classmates, Leigh Ann (Sandra Bullock) invites him to stay at their home for the night. What starts out as a gesture of kindness turns into something more as Michael becomes part of the family despite the differences in their backgrounds.

In the 2009 NFL draft, Michael Oher's rags-to-riches story reached new heights when he was drafted in the first round by the Baltimore Ravens. I love inspirational sports stories, and this is one of the best I've seen in years. The performances are outstanding, especially by Sandra Bullock, who won her first Oscar for the role, and by young Jae Head, who provides a lot of comic relief in an otherwise dramatic subtext.

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