A Charlie Brown Christmas (DVD) Review

Charles Schultz cast the gold standard of annual holiday classics with his 1965 creation of A Charlie Brown Christmas. This animated, made-for-TV special features all the familiar Peanuts characters, although I’ve always wondered why the comic strip was titled Peanuts and not Charlie Brown. Lucy, Snoopy, Schroeder, Linus, Sally, Pig-pen, and Woodstock all make appearances. However, the enduring popularity of this holiday classic stems not from its original storyline, but rather its vivid invocation of childhood nostalgia and memorable Christmas music. It seems everyone on earth has heard the song the characters sing in the closing credits, and it’s become a Christmas classic in-and-of itself.

For those who need refreshing, because I don’t know anyone who hasn’t seen it, A Charlie Brown Christmas covers title character Charlie Brown’s search for the true meaning of Christmas. When neighborhood friend Lucy dispenses her usual five-cent advice, she encourages Charlie Brown to take on the job of director in the school Christmas play. But none of the other kids take their new director seriously, and when Charlie Brown passes over several Christmas trees which he believes embody the commercial exploitation of Christmas, and brings back a sagging relic of branch instead, the other kids fire him as director. Meanwhile, Snoopy is involved in decorating his doghouse with colorful flashing lights and other knick-knacks in an effort to win first-prize in a Christmas decorating contest. In the end, the other kids feel they’ve been too hard on Charlie Brown, and fix up his tree into a brilliant display of Christmas beauty. Linus reveals the true meaning of Christmas by retelling a segment from the Gospels that recounts the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, Charlie Brown is disillusioned when his idealistic attempt to decorate his humble Christmas tree ends in absolute failure. As a result, only a Christmas miracle can save Charlie Brown from the depths of holiday disaster…

One of the better parts of this television special is when Charlie Brown goes hunting for a Christmas tree. Some of the trees are aluminum, which you rarely see today, especially those trees with the rotating colored lights underneath. Simply put, A Charlie Brown Christmas is a breath of fresh air – a thoughtful, funny, and highly entertaining show which the entire family can enjoy. It connects parents and children through the shared experience of its annual holiday viewing, and parents don’t have to worry about the foul language and adult content that so often permeates today’s television programs. Overall, A Charlie Brown Christmas is as close to perfect as a Christmas television special can be.

About the Author

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a movie review site where you can find more reviews like this one of A Charlie Brown Christmas (DVD) Review.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Britt_Gillette

Quantum of Solace Movie Review

BOTTOM LINE: "Quantum of Solace" is a missed opportunity to capitalise on Daniel Craig's definitive take on James Bond from Casino Royale, leaving a film that spends a third of its time tieing up loose ends from its predecessor and the rest of the time padding itself out with intense, but ultimately undramatic action sequences.

THE GOOD: When Daniel Craig stepped in to the role of James Bond, he created a very different, but modern and engaging character that was a major departure from all previous incarnations of James Bond. This provided a much needed boost to the franchise, and combined with a strong story and character exploration, Casino Royale proved to be one of the best Bond films ever. With "Quantum of Solace", the grittier, tougher and less-gadgety take on the Bond universe has been thankfully continued, and for the most part, has been ratcheted up in intensity. Daniel Craig is one tough guy in this outing, playing a Bond that is driven even further by rage and revenge, but who also does not have everything go his way or everyone bowing to his whim.

In one of the best action scenes in the film, Bond chases down an informant who has infiltrated MI6 and has a bone-crunching fight which is very reminiscent of the Bourne films, and when he kills the informant, he is chastised by M (Judi Dench) for not following her instructions to bring him back alive for questioning. Director Marc Forster has established some very unique action sequences, but he has also stamped a rather unique visual style that makes this film not only different to its predecessor but also different to any other Bond film. The use of titles, intercutting and the use of sound is welcome, with one great example being an intense shoot-out at an Italian opera between Bond and the bad guys, all intercut with the opera itself.

Daniel Craig is once again great as Bond, delivering a ruthless killer who is hell-bent on revenge. Olga Kurlyenko, who plays Bond girl Camille, manages to be both tough and cute at the same time, playing a complicated character. Mathieu Amalric plays the chief villain Dominic Greene with a quiet, nasty intensity, without any physical characteristic as most Bond villains have (such as the weeping eye of Le Chiffre from Casino Royale). Judi Dench is also excellent once again as Bond's boss M, and the development of their not quite mother/son relationship makes for a fascinating dynamic. This film is leaner and meaner than its predecessor, and for the first time, serves as a direct sequel rather than another adventure which makes for a different Bond experience.

THE BAD: It was always going to be unfair to expect this film to live up to the highwater mark of Casino Royale, but given this film had a $200 million budget and the same writing/producing team, this film should have been much better. What made Daniel Craig's first outing so good was its focus on story and character. You got to see Bond in a new light as he went through some pivotal moments in his early career which make him who he is. None of that is done justice in "Quantum of Solace". Daniel Craig is excellent as Bond, but the script and direction do not give him any room to explore his character further (or at all), leaving us with a 2-dimensional take on the character. If anything, only Craig's presence makes Bond watchable this time around, otherwise he would have disappeared in the flurry of non-stop action sequences.

There are only a few moments where Craig gets to play with the Bond wit we've all come to know and love but those moments disappear quickly. The lack of a strong story is another major problem. At its heart, this film is only tieing up loose ends from Casino Royale. It sets up the elusive criminal organisation called "Quantum", but apart from that, the rest of the film is just action scene after action scene as Bond dispatches all the bad guys. The experience of watching "Quantum of Solace" feels quite hollow by the time the end credits roll, leaving a Bond film which does not deliver on the new potential and energy started by its predecessor.

For the original review, follow this link: http://www.allaboutmovies.net/filmreviewquantumofsolace.htm

Todd Murphy is a staff reviewer at the film/DVD review web site, All About Movies.net - for all the latest reviews on the newest releases. He also contributes reviews and articles for the Digicosm Film Blog: http://www.filmannex.com/Digicosm

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_Murphy

The Dark Knight [2008] - DVD Releases Review

The Dark Knight [2008]

Customer Reviews

			The Dark Knight (2 Discs) [2008] Dvd ~ Christian Bale Price: £11.98 Availability: Available for pre-order
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful: Amazing, 2 Aug 2008 There are many people that would gladly shut down this film saying it's surrounded by unjust hype simply because it's the last role of Heath Ledger. I have to say that a statement such as this couldn't be anymore false. Sure, the hype was bigger due to the untimely death of Ledger. But it was a movie and a role (Joker) that delivered on all levels. Batman Begins introduced us to the troubled man that is Bruce Wayne and told the story of how he becomes The Batman. Batman Begins, although very well put together and the story being told brilliantly; I found that at times it had moments when it would drag. The Dark Knight repairs those problems and gives us a movie of equal length, which manages to hold my attention throughout. My review will be split into three sections. The story, characters and verdict. This is to give you, the reader a fair and open opinion of the movie for which you can place your own opinion. The Story: A year after the chaos caused by Ra's Al Ghul, the Batman has become a symbol in Gotham for all citizens. It's a symbol to show that nobody needs to be afraid when confronted with the criminal underworld of Gotham. This is a problem for Batman as it's created a lot of copy cat vigilantes. Unfortunately, the copy cat's attempts don't go as well as the Batman's attempts do. Batman has inspired even the law to fight against the mob underworld as the new District Attorney in town; Harvey Dent is determined to put the mob behind bars. The fight will be even harder than first thought as a man known only as the Joker, isn't interested in financial gain. He's just interested in creating chaos and he breeds a new class of criminal. The Characters: I'm not going to talk about the Batman character, as simply it's not the most interesting character in this film. Surprisingly. I am, however, going to talk about the "supporting" cast in this movie. The Joker (Heath Ledger): This is easily the most intimidating villain in movie history. Even more so than Hannibal Lecter, portrayed by Anthony Hopkins. The voice, the look and the body language are all done superbly by Ledger. They blend together brilliantly in order to create a very believable psychopath. The back story of the Joker isn't touched in this film, as in the comic universe it's never been confirmed 100% of how the Joker came about. The Joker, in order to achieve his goal of killing the Batman he must employ the help of the mob. He doesn't have the money but he has the skill of intimidation and the callousness to frighten, even the mob into working for him. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart): I have to admit, I've never been a fan of Eckhart as most of his movies preceding Dark Knight have been mediocre at best. He wins my vote in his role as Harvey Dent; the fearless District Attorney who, thanks to the work by Batman is willing to put his life on the line to put the mob behind bars. His transformation from respected DA into the broken "Two-Face" is inspiring and really seals him as a legitimate actor and a legitimate role. Gordon (Gary Oldman): Oldman plays a much bigger role as Gordon in this movie. He's someone who becomes more involved in shaping the Batman character from hero to vigilante. It's a much more likable role this time around and has bigger impact when confronted with the Harvey Dent alter-ego "Two-Face" The Verdict: I honestly love this film. Unlike the first instalment, this never stops. From the opening we're treated to a great bank robbery that gives us the genius and craziness of Joker. This has it's truly heart wrenching moments, but I'm not going to mention them as they give away the plot. I was a little disappointed by the very small and quite frankly, pointless cameo of Scarecrow. Although a beaten shell of a man I would have liked to see him have a darker and more prominent role once again in this picture. Apart from that it's a non-stop genius picture and something that lives up to the hype. The role of Ledger lives up to the bill and is something that could win Heath his first and only Oscar. This makes it more unfortunate that we no longer have Ledger with us to feel the glory created by his Joker.

(Read More)

Product details

• Actors: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal
• Directors: Christopher Nolan
• Format: PAL
• Language English
• Subtitles: Arabic, English, Italian, Hebrew, Icelandic, Greek
• Region: Region 2 ( DVD formats.)
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Classification:
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• DVD Release Date: 8 Dec 2008
• Run Time: 152 minutes

(Review More)