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Sealab 2021 - Season 2
Animated.Comedy Warner Home Video NR
The second season of "Sealab 2021", the Cartoon Network's certifiably bizarre reworking of Hanna-Barbera's earnest 1972 animated series "Sealab 2020", surfaces in a two-disc set that includes an unaired episode and supplemental features that place a strong emphasis on "mental." For series devotees, season 2 is a must-have, thanks to its lineup of memorable episodes, including "Stimutacs," which fans voted as the series' best episode; the behind-the-scenes chaos of "Swimming in Oblivion"; "Hail, Squishface," which tosses jabs at "Star Trek"'s "Trouble with Tribbles" episode; and the aptly named "Bizarro," which pits the Sealab crew against their evil doubles.
As with most Adult Swim programming from Cartoon Network, viewers will either "get" "Sealab 2021", or find its kitchen-sink loopiness indigestible, but one has to admire the producers' ability to spin this recycled footage into the most outlandish plots with such regularity. Said producers (co-creators Adam Reed and Matt Thompson) are present on some freewheeling commentary tracks for all 13 episodes in the set, though viewers hoping for some insight into the show might find the chatter mostly dispensable; however, the inclusion of a rough cut of "Ronnie," the series' only unaired episode, more than makes up for the commentaries, as do hilarious interviews with the cast (which includes Erik Estrada and Brett Butler), and a tour of the production company, both of which are dominated by girls in bikinis (who also give a read-through of the script for "Der Dieb"). The sole sober note on the set is struck by an affectionate tribute to voice-over legend Harry Goz, who provided the voice for the addled Captain Murphy before passing away in 2003. It's rare for a DVD's supplemental extra to match the same tone as the main feature, but the season 2 set manages to stay nearly 100% Bizarro from start to finish. "--Paul Gaita"

Secondhand Lions
Comedy New Line Home Video PG
If you can get past its thick layer of syrup and molasses, "Secondhand Lions" reveals itself as a thoroughly decent family film that anyone can enjoy. It gets a little sappy sometimes, but there's something to be said for a movie in which Michael Caine and Robert Duvall play eccentric old brothers who take the easy approach to fishing: instead of a peaceful rod and reel, they use 12-gauge shotguns. When 14-year-old Walter (Haley Joel Osment, teetering on puberty) spends an eventful summer with his great-uncles on their vast Texas farmland (he's been dumped there by his delinquent mom, played by Kyra Sedgwick), he soon discovers they've lived lives full of adventure, excitement, passion, and mystery. Either that or they're old-time bank robbers with a long criminal record, and writer-director Tim McCanlies (who invested similar warmth into "The Iron Giant") does a nice job of concealing the truth until the very end. Full of enriching lessons and homespun humor, "Secondhand Lions" has more substance than most family films. If you enjoyed "Holes", you'll probably enjoy this movie, too. "--Jeff Shannon"

Secret Window
Horror Sony Pictures PG-13
Johnny Depp gets high off another acting challenge in this tricky adaptation of a Stephen King yarn. Although the mood is too sinister to allow for the mischief of his "Pirates of the Caribbean" turn, Depp still manages to embroider his role here with plenty of quirky business. He plays a writer, depressed and nearly divorced, who's stuck in an isolated cabin (shades of "The Shining") when a stranger (John Turturro) arrives, accusing him of plagiarism. Writer-director David Koepp ("Stir of Echoes") does his best to make the rickety material compelling--he gets the maximum out of the cabin set, for instance--but the problems inherent in the King story eventually win out. The climactic scenes are particularly unpleasant, especially in contrast to the cleverness of Depp's performance. A Philip Glass score adds class, but this one ultimately feels like a disappointment. "--Robert Horton"

Serenity
Action.Adventure Universal Studios Home Entertainment PG-13
"Serenity" offers perfect proof that "Firefly" deserved a better fate than premature TV cancellation. Joss Whedon's acclaimed sci-fi Western hybrid series was ideally suited (in Browncoats, of course) for a big-screen conversion, and this action-packed adventure allows Whedon to fill in the "Firefly" backstory, especially the history and mystery of the spaceship Serenity's volatile and traumatized stowaway, River Tam (Summer Glau). Her lethal skills as a programmed "weapon" makes her a coveted prize for the power-hungry planetary Alliance, represented here by an Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who'll stop at nothing to retrieve River from Serenity's protective crew. We still get all the quip-filled dialogue and ass-kicking action that we've come to expect from the creator of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", but Whedon goes a talented step further here, blessing his established ensemble cast with a more fully-developed dynamic of endearing relationships. "Serenity"'s cast is led with well-balanced depth and humor by Nathan Fillion as Captain Mal Reynolds, whose maverick spirit is matched by his devotion to crewmates Wash (Alan Tudyk), Zoe (Gina Torres), fun-loving fighter Jayne (Adam Baldwin), engineer Kaylee (Jewel Staite), doctor Simon (Sean Maher), and Mal's former flame Inara (Morena Baccarin), who plays a pivotal role in Whedon's briskly-paced plot. As many critics agreed, "Serenity" offered all the fun and breezy excitement that was missing from George Lucas's latter-day "Star Wars" epics, and Whedon leaves an opening for a continuing franchise that never feels cheap or commstic. With the mega-corporate mysteries of Blue Sun yet to be explored, it's a safe bet we haven't seen the last of the good ship Serenity. "--Jeff Shannon"

Serial Experiments Lain - Boxed Set
Anime.Drama.Psycological Geneon Entertainment
Disturbing, perplexing, sometimes infuriating, Ryutaro Nakamura's "serial experiments lain" covers some of the same themes as "The X-Files" and the films of David Lynch. When introverted 13-year-old Lain receives an e-mail from a dead classmate, she gains access to "the Wired," a virtual world that promises unlimited power to those who can exploit it. Gradually the borders between the real and the virtual blur, and Lain's own identity begins to fade and fragment. Her parents tell her that she is not really their child, her online self grows in power and independence, and shadowy organizations pursue her in both worlds. Finally she begins to realize that she is either reality's only hope, or its worst enemy.
Nakamura keeps the pace of "serial experiments lain" deliberately slow, imbuing the early episodes with a sense of mounting dread that pays off as the plot develops. The anime technique of panning across static images creates a meditative stillness that works perfectly, and the repetition of certain key images gives them a dreamlike significance. Viewers will either love or hate the complex plot, which seems intent on incorporating every possible paranoid conspiracy, from sinister nanotechnology to alien plots. However--unlike many other anime--it somehow hangs together, and frankly "not" understanding everything is part of the pleasure of this kind of story. Fans of action-heavy anime and people who like every loose end tied up should steer clear, but those who surrender themselves to the slowly unfolding mysteries of the plot will be amply rewarded. "--Simon Leake"

Shanghai Noon
Comedy.Action Walt Disney Video PG-13
Story? What story? All a movie like "Shanghai Noon" needs is the amazing stunt set pieces featuring kung fu superstar Jackie Chan and the drolly caffeinated ramblings of Owen Wilson (and to be sure, that's all it gets). It's a buddy comedy about Roy O'Bannon (Wilson), a minor, borderline incompetent desperado, and Chon Wang (Chan)--Roy thinks he hears (and scoffs at) the name "John Wayne"--a member of the Chinese Imperial Guard searching for a kidnapped princess (Lucy Liu). They become reluctant partners in the Old West (Roy, who considers Chon his sidekick, is hurt to discover that the bounty on Wang's head is more than his own), brawling, drinking, bathing, and bonding and in general having mildly amusing adventures together, while eluding a posse and other random enemies.
There's not a lot of focus to the plot or much motivation for characters to turn up where and when they do--just what was achieved by the much-discussed trek to Carson City, anyway? But Chan's inventively staged battle sequences (particularly an early one in which he uses flexible, resilient trees to best some Crow Indians) are predictable highlights. You'll wish there were more to some of them, but as with his many of other films, you'll want them on video to watch in slow-motion to see how he pulls them off. And in a potentially star- making role, Wilson's loquacious, hyper-self-conscious meanderings--he's funny even when his lines aren't--make him seem less like a character than a very amusing deconstruction of one. Chan and Wilson are entertaining together, even though they're both off in their own little worlds. Think of it as "Butch Cassidy and the Shanghai Kid", and you won't be too far off. "--David Kronke"

Shrek
Animated.Movie Dreamworks Skg PG
The basic plot involves a green ogre (Shrek) who agrees to rescue the beautiful princess Fiona and deliver her to Lord Farquaad inorder to save his home as well as those of familiar fairy tale characters which include Robin Hood, the Big Bad Wolf and the Three Little Pigs, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and Three Blind Mice. The rescue is complicated by the fact that Princess Fiona is protected by a female dragon. Unlike Finding Nemo whose creators take a traditional approach when developing the plot, this film is "hip" (at times anachronistic) largely because of dialogue entrusted to Murphy's Donkey and the generous use of popular tunes. At one point, also, Fiona displays martial arts skills worthy of Bruce Lee. But like Finding Nemo, this film offers great entertainment value to those in all age groups. Co-directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson, adapted from a story by William Steig, Shrek's quality of animation is outstanding, earning for it an Academy Award as best animation feature. Sometimes the humor is off the proverbial wall. Sometimes the plot seems unnecessarily complicated (e.g. the brief appearance by Monsieur Hood), if not frantic. Children probably enjoy the mayhem more than do their elders who probably appreciate the witty repartee more than they do. That is quite an admirable achievement. I also appreciate the wealth of special features which accompany this DVD version.

Shrek 2
Animated.Movie Dreamworks PG
Shrek 2 is the follow-up to the almighty 'Shrek', a 2002 offering from Warner Bros., and re-teams the vocal talents of Mike Myers as the titular Ogre, along with Cameron Diaz (his lovely bride Princess Fiona), and Eddie Murphy (Donkey). When Fiona's parents, the King and Queen of Far Far Away, meet Shrek, her Father, disgusted with an Ogre for a son-in-law, is blackmailed by the Fairy Godmother (Absolutely Fabulous' Jennifer Saunders) into having him 'taken care of', so her son Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) may have her instead. Enter Puss-In-Boots (Antonio Banderas) who, failing in his task to dispatch our Heroes, joins them instead, and they uncover a dastardly plot full of magical intrigue and mayhem.The first thing one notices about Shrek 2 (besides the absolutely flawless, magnificent animation, that is) is the slightly darker, more adult theme of the first half of the movie. Here we are dealing with more grown-up themes like love and familial rejection, and unfortunately the comedy value of the movie suffers for it. It's down to Donkey and a couple of nice visual in-jokes (the Kingdom of Far Far Away, the transgendered Ugly Stepsister, the Drive-Thru restaurant) to keep us amused. Sadly, in the wake of the first movie where Shrek himself dealt out a fair share of the jokes, this doesn't work as well as it could have and forced smiles seem to be the order of the day while we wait for something funnier.It does come - 'Shrek 2' does not disappoint with the hilarious second half of the movie - and the comic talents of Jennifer Saunders and Antonio Banderas are wisely put to very good use, making for a sequel that is, at least in part, as good as the original. The final ballroom scene and parallel battle sequence with Mongo The Giant Gingerbread Man is worth the price of admission alone and the movie does come into its own with more visual and verbal jokes than it's possible to take in.The animation is superb - it's really getting to the stage where we won't be able to distinguish between CGI and human actors for much longer - check out the human form of Shrek and Princess Fiona's facial expressions for proof of this - and the visual sumptuousness of the movie is an absolute delight. That said, for a slow beginning and some rather advanced themes (especially for smaller kids), 'Shrek 2' just doesn;t push as many Happy Buttons as the excellent Original. It's good, but it could have been so, so much better.Maybe for rental, instead.

Silent Hill
Horror Sony Pictures R
A lot of movies can be described as "dripping with atmosphere," but in the case of "Silent Hill" it's literally true. Faithfully adapted from the Konami video games by French director Christophe Gans and "Pulp Fiction" cowriter Roger Avary (both self-confessed video game addicts), this dark and grisly horror-fest is nothing if not a triumph of cinematography and production design, consisting of a minimal and mostly incoherent plot propped up by a mysterious maze of sets that literally seep, drip, and ooze with the atmospheric evil of past misdeeds. Welcome to the abandoned and perpetually foggy ghost town of Silent Hill, where grey ash falls like snow, a devastating coal-mine fire still burns in a hellish underground, and demons of various shapes and sizes make your worst nightmares seem like a walk in the park. It's here that distressed mother Rose (played by "Pitch Black" heroine Radha Mitchell) has taken her daughter Sharon (Jodelle Ferland) in hopes of discovering the source of Sharon's sleepwalking nightmares. What they find instead is a burned-out legacy of unspeakable evil, as Silent Hill's dark secrets are revealed. As opposing denizens of Silent Hill's meta-morphing underworld, Canadian actresses Alice Krige and Deborah Kara Unger seem to be the only ones who recognize this morbid mess as campy comedy; Gans (who established his visual flair with "The Brotherhood of the Wolf") and Avary take it far too seriously, and the entire movie is utterly devoid of any emotional hooks or plot logic that would make us care about anything that happens. In crafting a loyal big-screen rendition of "Silent Hill" and its Playstation sequels, they've forgotten that movies play by a different and more demanding set of rules. As a result, they've made an impressive-looking but ultimately hollow horror film that only "Silent Hill" game-players can truly appreciate. "--Jeff Shannon"

The Simpsons - The Complete First Season
Television Twentieth Century Fox NR
America's first family of dysfunction, the Simpsons, appear in all their depraved glory in this wonderful DVD compilation of their show's premiere season. Fans accustomed to the slick appearance of the later episodes will be delighted by the rougher nature of these earlier episodes, when the characters weren't as well defined (Homer isn't quite as dumb as he is in later seasons) and the animation was still evolving. This only adds to the charm of these 13 episodes, which begin with "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire," the December 1989 Christmas special in which a down-and-out Simpson family adopt Santa's Little Helper. Throughout the season, familiar faces are introduced, as we catch first glimpses of Smithers, Mr. Burns, the Flanderses, and Patty and Selma. Highlights of the season include "The Crepes of Wrath," in which Bart is sent to France as an exchange student ("Don't mess up France the way you messed up your room"); "Bart the Genius," in which Bart ends up in a school for the gifted; and "Krusty Gets Busted," in which Bart's lifelong animosity with Sideshow Bob begins. --Jenny Brown

Sin City
Action Dimension Unrated
Brutal and breathtaking, "Sin City" is Robert Rodriguez's stunningly realized vision of Frank Miller's pulpy comic books. In the first of three separate but loosely related stories, Marv (Mickey Rourke in heavy makeup) tries to track down the killers of a woman who ended up dead in his bed. In the second story, Dwight's (Clive Owen) attempt to defend a woman from a brutal abuser goes horribly wrong, and threatens to destroy the uneasy truce among the police, the mob, and the women of Old Town. Finally, an aging cop on his last day on the job (Bruce Willis) rescues a young girl from a kidnapper, but is himself thrown in jail. Years later, he has a chance to save her again.

Read our interview with Frank Miller. Based on three of Miller's immensely popular and immensely gritty books ("The Hard Goodbye", "The Big Fat Kill", and "That Yellow Bastard"), "Sin City" is unquestionably the most faithful comic-book-based movie ever made. Each shot looks like a panel from its source material, and director Rodriguez (who refers to it as a "translation" rather than an adaptation) resigned from the Directors Guild so that Miller could share a directing credit. Like the books, it's almost entirely in stark black and white with some occasional bursts of color (a woman's red lips, a villain's yellow face). The backgrounds are entirely digitally generated, yet not self-consciously so, and perfectly capture Miller's gritty cityscape. And though most of Miller's copious nudity is absent, the violence is unrelentingly present. That may be the biggest obstacle to viewers who aren't already fans of the books and who may have been turned off by "Kill Bill" (whose director, Quentin Tarantino, helmed one scene of "Sin City"). In addition, it's a bleak, desperate world in which the heroes are killers, corruption rules, and the women are almost all prostitutes or strippers. But Miller's stories are riveting, and the huge cast--which also includes Jessica Alba, Jaime King, Brittany Murphy, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro, Elijah Wood, Nick Stahl, Michael Clarke Duncan, Devin Aoki, Carla Gugino, and Josh Hartnett--is just about perfect. (Only Bruce Willis and Michael Madsen, while very well-suited to their roles, seem hard to separate from their established screen personas.) In what Rodriguez hopes is the first of a series, "Sin City" is a spectacular achievement. "--David Horiuchi"
More "Sin City" at Amazon.com
The Graphic Novels and Books
Films by Robert Rodriguez
From Graphic Novel to Big Screen
The Soundtrack
Films by guest director Quentin Tarantino
Crime on DVD

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
Comedy Warner Home Video PG
Who would expect a gimmick like a pair of magical pants to be the hook for such a smart, charming, and emotionally rich teen movie? Four close friends discover a pair of pants that fit them all perfectly, even though they're physically very different. Since all four are going in different directions for the summer, they pledge to each wear the pants for a week and then mail them to the next girl. In Greece, Lena (Alexis Bledel, "Gilmore Girls") lands in the middle of a "Romeo & Juliet" family-feud romance; Carmen (America Ferrera, "Real Women Have Curves") discovers that her estranged father is about to marry a blonde Southern belle; Bridget (newcomer Blake Lively) flirts with love at a Mexican soccer camp; and Tibby (Amber Tamblyn, "Joan of Arcadia") stays home and gets a boring retail job to pay for her documentary film--but finds herself with an unwanted young assistant (Jenna Boyd, "The Missing"). These four stories manage to cover an amazing amount of ground (touching on race, body issues, divorce, mortality, and more) without resorting to stereotypes or easy resolutions. The engaging characters are brought to vivid life by these four talented actresses, who grab this excellent script and run with it. One of the best movies about teenage life in a long, long time. "--Bret Fetzer"

The Slayers
Anime.Action Cpm/Software Sculptors NR
Welcome to a world where magic reigns and monsters lurk behind every corner. Into this land of deadly dragons and menacing magicians comes our heroine, Lina Inverse, a cute, fireball-throwing sorceress who steals from the wicked and gives to herself! Along with Gourry, a handsome but dumb-as-a-rock swordsman, Lina challenges the forces of not-so-goodness as she seeks truth, justice, fame and gold! Well, mostly fame and gold...

Remastered Audio

The Slayers - Movie 1 - Perfect [The Motion Picture]
Anime.Action A.D. Vision PG-13
This very silly feature centers on sorceress Lina Inverse and her greatest and closest rival, Nahga the Serpent, who use their magical powers to zap anyone who annoys them. Two discount tickets take the heroines to the mist-shrouded Island of Mipross, where they take on a mysterious jellyfish cult, a sinister hypnotist, and a pickpocket.
Lina's dreams lead her into the conflict between the ancient sage, Rowdy, and the demon Joyrock, who has one of the most grating laughs in recent "anime". The battle escalates into a weird war that unsuccessfully blends slapstick comedy with grisly images that recall "Night of the Living Dead". The plot grows even more convoluted when Lina travels back in time to battle Joyrock before he destroyed an elfin village and absorbed their power. The outcome of their struggle changes the future and the present.
Her hot temper and inordinate love of food mark Lina as a typical "anime" outrageous girl, although she serves as the butt of a lot of jokes about her height and "amazingly small breasts." The rather dim, overly endowed Nahga runs around in minuscule leather outfits borrowed from Boris Vallejo paintings. It's all extremely silly--and certainly not PC. (Ages 13 and older for violence, occasional profanity, and sexual humor) "--Charles Solomon"

The Slayers - Movie 2 - Return
Anime.Action A.D. Vision
Finally, more Slayers to add to my wonderful collection. God bless ADV films. That said, I enjoyed this movie for the several laugh out loud moments that you can always count on with any Slayers release. The story is full of really cool characters (including a female warrior monk, a colossus, a samurai warrior, and what appears to be a Mexican wrestler, to name a few) who each get too little time to shine. The bulk of this otherwise fast-paced film is a too-long chase scene in which too little happens for a short film with such a cool cast. The tertiary heroine (Lina and Naga being the primary and secondary) is a novice swordswoman who just wants to protect her village from an evil group bent on world domination. Sure this "group" consists of only two people, but you should always aim high, right? I was bothered (like everyone else) by the cutsey/squeaky quality of Lina's english voice. It's not bad, but it just isn't comparable to Lisa Ortiz' legendary performances in the TV series. I'm not a subtitle snob, but this time I enjoyed the Japanese version more than the english. I guess the only other real complaint about this adventure is that I left wanting more. Really, that's a pretty big compliment. If you liked "Book of Spells" and "Slayers the Motion Picture", you'll like this one as much.



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