Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas [HD]

Like The PBS Show
Like the PBS show, it has the regular characters we have grown to love, with their respective voices. When The Man w/the Yellow Hat wants to help George write out his Christmas list, George presents him his list in the form of a drawing of shapes (circles, squares,triangles...). The Man w/the Yellow Hat labors over the list and can't figure out what George wants for Christmas. The Man w/the Yellow Hat sees how well the Doorman and Hundley work together and how Chef Pisghetti understands Gnocchi. The Man w/the Yellow Hat feels he doesn't really understand George, isn't a good monkey parent, and that maybe George would be better off with someone else. The Man w/the Yellow Hat dreams of the Ghost of Time Gone Sideways. He sees what it would be like if George was with the Doorman, Professor Wiseman, or Chef Pisghetti, instead of him. During the dream The Man w/the Yellow Hat figures out what George's list means and what he wants for Christmas.

During this time, George is...

Year Round Entertainment!
"Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas". 2009 DVD

In December 2009, this DVD was purchased for Sophie, our granddaughter. The animated presentation had pretty scenes of a city in December snow, and a nice trip to the country to get a Christmas tree, and baking Christmas cookies and so many other Christmas traditions, all nicely animated.

But, now it is June 2010, and when we babysit Sophie (22 months old), she always selects the yellow case holding this DVD. So, of course, we have to play the animated movie for her, and our little girl dances to the song, "A Very Monkey Christmas", putting her arms in the air to follow the characters on the screen. She also tries to hum along with the initial Christmas song:

"Are you ready for Christmas Day to come?"
"Sing it with me, or if you're a monkey, `Hum'".

My wife, a retired school teacher, says that George the Monkey uses non-verbal communication, pointing at objects and making monkey...

Great Christmas Entertainment for Little Kids
My son is three and loves this movie. He watched it over and over again. Same great characters as the PBS show, with a little something of the real spirit (though not the true meaning) of Christmas woven in. Recommend for any children who enjoy the PBS Curious George show. They will love it.

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Contraband [HD]

Good for Wahlberg fans
"Contraband" is a 2011 action film starring Mark Wahlberg as a former smuggler reluctantly drawn back into the game for one last score, this time to help his brother-in-law (Caleb Landry Jones) who got in too deep with the bad guys (Giovanni Ribisi).

For the past few years Wahlberg has been cranking out the action films at a pace that truly amazes. He's been nominated twice for an Oscar ("The Fighter" in 2010 and "The Departed" in 2006) and recognized for "Three Kings" (1999), and "Four Brothers" (2005), although my favorite Wahlberg role (and guilty pleasure) "Shooter" (2007) has been ignored on the awards circuit.

If his awards were not sufficient praise, Wahlberg has delivered at the box office. Seven of his films have neared or topped the elusive $100 Million mark, and most of his films have been among the top 10.

And if awards and box office clout aren't enough, Wahlberg has a second career as a producer, a role he served on this film and on Oscar...

Completely underrated movie
Considering the fact that there are not many reviews about this movie yet, I was surprised that there have been no 5 stars yet. Now I am a picky person and have watched my share of movies so very rarely will I give a movie a 5 star unless it grabs me and I am on the edge of my seat. This one grabbed my attention from start to finish. It reminds me a lot of the Italian Job. Just when you think you know what is going on in the movie, it slaps you in the face and takes you in a different direction. The movie kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time and part of liking a movie is how the movie ends. Some movies are great all the way through until the ending. Some end the way it should, while some end in the way it shouldn't. I thought this ending fit well and I was pleased. So my advice to you, is if you like Italian Job you will like this. It's just hard for me to understand why someone would give this movie anything less than a 4 star.

This WAS a good movie
Pooh on all the negative reviews when this is up against Tom Cruise and his predictable Mission Implausable installment. Other than the too-stupid-to-believe incident when Kate Beckinsale meets up with some plastic, this is a good movie. Because it offers characters like Ribisi, Caleb Landry Jones (who was outstanding), Ben Foster (also very good), and David O'Hara in a mix of bad guys that doesn't seem normal, it still works. There are lots of unexpected turns. Ribisi is a different bad guy. Creepier than most, but less violent than most. It's not a typical action film because the writers and director of this film are not American. I loved it.

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The Atomic Kid

Atomic Kid, a reel view
With all due respect, it doesn't appear that the other reviews of this film ever even saw it or they might give more details. Rooney and Strauss come across a mock town constructed to test the effects of an A-Bomb blast. They don't realized that, of course, and Rooney pokes around in one of the fully stocked houses while Struass goes for help. Rooeny gets caught in the blast and becomes the mearly radio-active "Atomic Kid". Most of the movie's humor involves bringing Rooney back to normal and his mooning after his attending nurse, thwarting enemy agents along the way. And there is a terrific "Oh no, not again" scene to finish things off. If you like Mickey Rooney, or just appreciate the comic style of the 50s, you'll get a blast out of the "Atomic Kid". (Sorry, I couldn't resist that).

One of my favorites from the old days
For some reason I have remembered seeing this movie from 1954. Had no idea I could buy it, until now. It sticks in my mind as a very funny movie from that time.Nothing like what we have today of course, but very entertaining at that time. In the olden days it was Jerry Lewis, Mickey Rooney ET. AL. In their time, they really entertained us.

Atomic, Shmomic, Whose Afraid of The Bomb ?
The Atomic Kid is a wonderful, period-piece film.In true, 1950's naive film verite, it has Non-Restricted Atomic Testing Sites,regularly clothed soldiers stationed in trenches, one mile from the blast; and, the piece de resistance, Mickey Rooney as a guy who survives the blast while eating a peanut butter sandwich.It's got Greedy Capitalists, trying to commercialize the brand of peanut butter, Swarmy Communists, trying to discover Mickey Rooney's secret: and, best of all, a stunning Co-Star,Elaine Davis. What's not to like ???

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Cowboys & Aliens (Extended Version) [HD]

Spoiler-Free
You should watch this movie expecting a great check-your-brain-at-the-door flick, and it doesn't disappoint on that count. There are wild west gunfights, love interests, and aliens trying to take over the world -- what more could you ask for?

Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, and Olivia Wilde are residents of an old western town attacked by what a local preacher calls "demons." Those demons -- what we call aliens -- pillage and plunder, terrifying the locals and motivating them to drop old rivalries to defeat the new threat.

The plot is simple, although it has a couple unexpected twists. You won't walk away with your mind blown, but you also will have enjoyed the show. The aliens are designed well, the characters are intriguing, and the plot has just enough mystery to keep you interested. This movie won't likely be winning any Oscars, but it's a fun film.

Spoiler-Free Review
A man awakens in the desert to complete memory loss. The only clue to his past is a picture of a young woman and a metal contraption locked around his forearm. When he arrives in a nearby town of Absolution, trouble isn't far behind. But when strange lights from the sky arrive and begin shooting up the town and abducting its residents, the survivors decide to risk all to hunt the kidnappers and find their loved ones.

Daniel Craig plays the amnesiac who comes to be known as Jake Lonergan. Craig is a stoic, hard man with a soft heart. When his past is revealed it's a bit of a shock, since it seemed to be against his nature. Harrison Ford also stars as Woodrow Dolarhyde, a tough war veteran, now rich and feared by the town and his employees. Sam Rockwell is Doc, a saloon owner who tries to toughen up to save his wife from abduction. And Olivia Wilde is the mysterious and beautiful Ella who seems to know something about Jake. The acting is solid and believable. Each character...

A well-made, generally entertaining film
"Cowboys & Aliens" is a film with a simple plot with a few surprises. It takes place a few years after the Civil War and Harrison Ford is still complaining about the Union generals at Antietam, as well as having to deal with a spoiled, drunken son. Daniel Craig has amnesia and a strange bracelet clamped on his wrist. And Olivia Wilde is a beautiful, gun-toting woman who seems to know what's going on with Craig, as alien spacecraft start blowing up a town and the area's cowboys, and later robbers and Apaches. The film meanders along for quite some time, but heats up in the second half, as humans band together to try to save humanity from extinction.

"Cowboys & Aliens" has some good action sequences and photography, and the aliens are ugly and scary. The main actors all do a good job, as does Keith Carradine as a sheriff and Sam Rockwell as a non-violent saloon owner who learns to shoot a rifle.

All in all, this is a well-made film, which is generally entertaining,...

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IMAX To The Arctic

Amazing, but one or two reservations...
Note: I saw this in the theater on the big IMAX screen, so I didn't get the chance to see the extras on the DVD.

This is a wonderful movie with a message, but I'll warn anyone coming into this: this film is very focused on global warming. It's an important message, but I felt that at times this film didn't entirely know what to focus on: the polar bears or the threat to their environment. As a result we don't really have a good look at either. To the Artic is only 40 minutes in length, so this leaves it with a bit of a handicap.

The movie is gorgeous to watch, so even with the film feeling a bit muddled in its focus you still have tons of gorgeous scenery to watch. The film work is really amazing here, with tons of close ups of adorable polar bear behavior and breathtaking shots of the glistening ice. There are also some shots of how the scenes are shot, both human and remote cameras. I think this was one of the more interesting aspects of the movie because at...

Global Warming infomercial
BEWARE!! This is a politically motivated "Global Warming" propaganda film. I gave it 1 star only for some of the photography. The repeated global warming messages throughout the (short) film get very annoying. People need to do some of their own research on the "Global Warming" issue. A quote from the former Soviet Union President, Mikhail Gorbachev, sums it up pretty well: " "The threat of environmental crisis will be the international disaster key to unlock the New World Order." Similar or related types of statements have been made by President Jacques Chirac of France, the former Canadian Minister of the Environment, Deputy Assistant of State Richard Benedick at the Rio Climate Summit, and Former U.S. Senator Timothy Wirth (D-CO), representing the Clinton Administration as U.S Undersecretary of State for Global Issues, also at the Rio Climate Summit. Look at the climate history of Greenland as an example of NATURAL climate change. It is now completely ice covered. But 600 hundred...

best IMAX family movie
one of the best documentary IMAX movies out there to date! weve been wanting to see this when it came out but because of another imax animal movie with more money it did'nt get the press or the exposure it deserved and so rightly needed to help protect the arctic. it is so stunning and some of the shots they were able to get were amazing! they were able to follow a momma polar bear and her 2 cubs for 7 days which is unheard of and get info and shots nobody had Ever gotten before! it's backed by [...] and it's amazing.rent it,buy it do whatever you can but do see it, it;s really worth it. for all you polar bear lovers out there this is the movie for you,

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Battleship [HD]

Join the Navy, save the world, get the girl and have a chicken burito!
This film has for only purpose to entertain us and in this aspect it is highly succesful. The main hero is very likeable, the leading girl charming, the display of military hardware impressive, the aliens naughty (and ugly and stupid!), the scenario doesn't make much sense, the CGI effects are EXCELLENT, US Navy is the best, US government is incompetent - in one word, everything is as it should be in a movie made to go nicely with your popcorn on a Friday evening. WARNING! Some SPOILERS incoming at six o'clock!

The main hero, Lt. Alex Hopper (Taylor Kitsch) is a troubled young man who after messing up a lot in his early life finally joined the US Navy and by some extraordinary miracle managed to become an officer in charge of weapons on board of USS "John Paul Jones", a very powerful destroyer of "Arleigh Burke" class. He is however poorly noted by his superiors and is generally considered as a disappointment and a failure. The unexpected alien invasion during a naval...

WHO'S NEXT IN CHARGE?
The film starts with a NASA announcement that they are sending signals to a nearby "Goldilocks" planet to see if there is any life. We then switch to a bar scene where Alex (Taylor Kitsch) is "celebrating" his birthday with his naval officer brother Stone (Alexander Skarsg

Jane Eyre [HD]

A Mixed Reaction
That's what I have after watching this dvd twice: a decidedly mixed reaction. Like many other reviewers, I'm a die-hard Jane Eyre fan, having read the book too many times to count and seen at least 6 film adaptations (I think there have been at least 8). This dvd is the 5th I've added to my collection, which my children find absolutely hilarious. But anyway, I wanted to see this one at the theater but it was only in my hometown for about a week, so I ordered it as soon as Amazon had it. I guess I should just lay out my pros and cons and let the chips fall where they may.

Pros: The casting is possibly the best of any version I've seen. Mia Whatchamacallit (sorry, can't remember her name right now) was 21 when the film was shot, making her about the right age to play Jane. All the other versions I've seen cast actresses who were well past their teen years, so it was good to see a more-age-approriate Jane. She also did a nice job with the role, expressing shades of emotion in...

perfect
It was so good, I went to see it twice in one day. Mia Wasikowska, who played Jane Eyre, and Michael Fassbender, Mr. Rochester, were perfect. I believed their love and suffering. I used to think that no one can do better Rochester than Timothy Dalton, but after seeing this adaptation, Fassbender took that spot. In other adaptations Mr. Rochester overshadowed Jane, but in this film Jane and Rochester are equal. I loved that dialogue follows the book pretty closely and it was not too modernized. Judi Dench was great as Mrs. Fairfax, and Jamie Bell was believable as cold St.John Rivers. Of course the scenery and costumes were gorgeous. For a 2 hr film director Cary Fukunaga did wonders. Highly recommended! Now I can't wait for the DVD to come out (hopefully with special features and deleted scenes).
p.s. I forgot to mention that the music score is lovely and fits the mood perfectly.

Very Interesting Version of "Jane Eyre" - Mia Wasikowska is splendid
Even though many have seen at least one or two film adaptations of Bronte's blockbuster gothic romance novel...there is still plenty of good reason to see this version. I think that Mia Wasikowska's acting is pitch-perfect - maybe even the definitive characterization of this fascinating woman. She knows that she has been unlucky, but is intelligently waiting, watching, and analyzing everyone before she makes her next move.

The time and place - England's North country mid -nineteenth century. Jane is unloved by her aunt, and after a fight with her cousin is shipped off - rather brutally - to a boarding school run by a self-important and cruel headmaster. She develops one friendship there - a girl called Helen - but loses Helen to an illness.

The beginning of the altercation between Jane and her male cousin is nerve shattering as he bashes her head into a wall, and she (deservedly) hits him back. Of course - the aunt sees and hears only wants she wants to...

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