Road Games (Ws)

Starring:Stacy Keach, Jamie Lee Curtis, Marion Edward, Grant Page, Thaddeus Smith, Alan Hopgood, John Murphy, Bill Stacey, Robert Thompson, Colin Vancao, Ed Turley, Abbe Holmes, Carole-Ann Aylett, Rochelle Harris, Stacy Keach Sr., Steve Millichamp, Tony Bishop (II), Angelica La Bozzetta, Paul Harris (XIII)
Director: Richard Franklin
Studio: Anchor Bay
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

Duel
Less is more - let's have more like this please Steven!
Ultimate proof that Spielberg was born to make movies
Duel -Suspense drama
road rage

Duel (Collector's Edition)
Starring: Dennis Weaver , Eddie Firestone , Gene Dynarski , Tim Herbert , and Charles Seel
Director: Steven Spielberg
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Thrillers | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

DTS | Fully Loaded DVDs | Features | DVD | Video

( D ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Dirty Mary Crazy Larry (Supercharger Edition)
The Sugarland Express
Bullitt
Jaws (30th Anniversary Edition)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

ASIN: B000063UR5
Release Date: 2004-08-17

Amazon.com essential video

This is the TV movie that put Steven Spielberg on the map, shortly before he made The Sugarland Express. Working from a script by Richard Matheson, the film stars Dennis Weaver as a mild-mannered traveling salesman who unintentionally angers the driver of a semi truck. Suddenly, the truck is not only riding his tail but trying to run him off the road. No matter what he does (pulling over, stopping at a diner, calling the cops), he can't get rid of it. Spielberg makes the wise decision of never showing the driver, even as he cranks the voltage on the film's suspense elements. As a result, the truck itself takes on an air of satanic menace--even a personality of sorts--as it seems to hunt its human prey. Spielberg made a lot out of a little, suggesting just how skilled a storyteller he would become. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

Duel.......2007-07-03

Spielberg's first full length film was for television, but never mind-it's still a grabber. Absent his later big Hollywood budgets, the director's special knack for building tension is still evident, resulting in a spare, ingenious thriller. Weaver is excellent as the rattled David. For God's sake, Dave- stay off the road!

Less is more - let's have more like this please Steven!.......2007-06-22

So here's an irony: Thirty-five years on, the movie audience which Spielberg's later work helped to capture - multiplex consumers of overblown CGI, gross-out, slapstick, and ever-greater explosions - may not "get" this one at all (e.g. see some of its other reviewers here). For anybody else - and this is most certainly not "art-house" either, don't be put off - here's an astounding, must-see thriller. OK, so it's a wannabe western, or Hitchcock (or Beowulf, or Alien, or High Noon) on wheels: None of that detracts from its great premise, which is delivered utterly without frills.

So many reasons to see this:

Spielberg is SO good at doing minimal (seriously, Steve, about time to get back to some of that?): Pared-down music, only natural-sound detail; no human baddie, just a perfectly cast truck as the anthropomorphised "killer". Even the shattering finale is captured on ordinary live film, albeit in one of the most awe-inspiring shots ever taken.

Great raw material: OK, so of course the script dates just a bit, with what dialogue there is sounding TV-ish and a wee bit cheesy to the modern ear; and kids now seeing this film might snigger at the personal styling details and plot's obvious reliance on predating mobile phones; but hey... We're right there for Mann (Dennis Weaver) from the very start, as it's vital that we have to be, because his story is so discreetly and elegantly constructed.

And as a piece of performance: Not just by Weaver, who's entirely credible as the put-upon everyman reluctantly forced to find his inner warrior. The film works because it sustains a gut-wrenching kinetic energy that few others ever reach (woeful comparison with, for example, the new Pirates III, which for all its frantic rushing about, quite fails to draw its audience into the action). DUEL is all the more impressive because the whole movie is shot "for real" - perhaps partly because the frantic pace of its actual production (see below) seems to rub off onto the screen. That it works at all is largely because it's propelled by uncannily perfect pacing of the long road sequences, which (as Spielberg acknowledges) only happens when you perfectly combine the ingredients: obsessive planning of sequences; unobtrusively brilliant stunt driving; then-new moving camera techniques (including a contribution from Bullitt's road unit); and laser-sharp editing. That's not to overlook the out-of-car scenes, which have a gloriously welcome fingernails-down-the-blackboard inner screech of Hitchcockian suspense - best of all in the diner scene ("which one is him?"), complete with some hilariously dark 'red herring' moments; the snake farm; and the old couple who (with pitch-perfect Buchan / Hitchock irony) mistake Mann for an attacker.

Visuals: It's clear from the first frame that, as Fats Waller put it, "the gods are in the house". Details are pin-sharp, not just as to focal clarity, but in their layering up the metaphorical landscape of the story, with every single shot both perfectly framed and constantly informing character and/or building pace; and that's a lot of shots, often complex and kinetic ones. And all set in a serenely beautiful landscape, mocking the petty anxieties and feuds of the men and machines scuttling across it. All the more surprising therefore to find in the bonus material that DUEL was made in less than a month: just 13 days' shooting, including the 3 days of (ultimately unused) "spare plate" shots insisted on by the studio.

This DVD edition is deeply satisfying both for the transfer quality of the movie itself and for a joyous Spielberg interview. Refreshingly modest and candid, the director reveals his debt to a quick-witted PA, to his production team and actors, and how great achievement springs from being young and hungry. It's amusing by-the-by to see Spielberg look back on this period of coming to terms with the public impact of his own virtuosity, coming to realise how a seemingly minor movie shot in 13 days can outgrow its origins to signal his big breakthrough. (Among all the fascinating stuff about how to get a 50-mph lorry to go at 100 mph, he also, touchingly, points out a couple of minor rookie mistakes you might not otherwise have noticed.) Musing on the cultural impact that his astonishing debut piece had, stumbling upon a global audience, he notes that what started as simply a domestic "TV ratings Titanic" became, internationally, a bigger but quite different phenomenon: "Here I was making a roadkill tribute to High Noon and Hitchcock, then the Europeans were reading in all this esoteric abstract symbolism about class warfare in America". It also, so he says, earned him the instant and lasting respect of Fellini (cue archive photo to prove this!).

Hey look, this film is basically an hour of a geeky guy in a little red car being chased up and down the mountain by one helluva scary truck. You can find much more if you want to look for it - Dostoevsky stuff about man and machines, or the 20th century post-feminist crisis of male identity, or the jurisprudential question of whether we need to be able to attribute a motive to evildoing, etc - but, for me, what nails the simple greatness of this piece is that WE ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS in the end. On that level alone, it won't disappoint.

Ultimate proof that Spielberg was born to make movies.......2007-06-10

Spielberg's DUEL is one of the best Hitchcock movies that Hitchcock did not actually make. And the best thing about it is that Spielberg doesn't overindulge in that massive pile-up of Hitchcock references that Brian DePalma employs - often to the point of parody. A great movie, affordably priced on DVD, and a wonderful warm-up for JAWS. Just when you thought it was safe to drive on the highway. . .

Duel -Suspense drama.......2007-05-15

I was 14 yrs old in 1971, when this movie showed on TV. And when I brought my 1st DVD player I search Amazon to see if they had the "Duel" (the 1st movie Director Steven Spielberg created. Amazon had this movie-I couldnt believe!! Its a movie about road rage! which weird in itself-since thats what is happening now! in 2007(yr). its about a 18 big rig wheeler truck thats, for some really strange reason, trys to kill this man that driving along the california interstate (to see a business client) 200 miles away from his home. Its suspense-bcause you never see whose trying the 18 big rig wheeler truck!!!

road rage.......2007-05-13

Very pleased with the movie and the timely manner in which we received it Thank you

Average customer rating:

Pick Up This Hitcher
Action Packed
Rutger Hauer can do it all
Gripping...yet really, really long
Jennifer Jason Leigh Taffy-Pull...

The Hitcher
Starring: C. Thomas Howell , Rutger Hauer , Jennifer Jason Leigh , Jeffrey DeMunn , and John M. Jackson
Director: Robert Harmon
Manufacturer: Hbo Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

Slasher Flicks | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Horror | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Television | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

Mystery & Suspense | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

All Deals | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( H ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Hitcher 2 - I've Been Waiting
Wanted Dead or Alive
The Hitcher (Widescreen Edition)
Duel (Collector's Edition)
The Changeling

ASIN: 0783114893
Release Date: 1999-06-08

Amazon.com

Steven Spielberg's first feature film, 1971's Duel, is set on a desert highway. It stars Dennis Weaver as a driver being pursued by a menacing truck, which is following him with all the vengeance of the ancient furies. In this spiritual update from 1984, C. Thomas Howell plays a guy taking a drive-away car from Chicago to San Diego. On a whim, in the rain, and against his better judgment, he picks up a hitchhiker (Rutger Hauer). The hitcher quickly admits to being a murdering psychopath, and once Howell finally gets him out of his car, he is pursued with all the vengeance of the ancient furies. We're never sure if the hitcher is a figment of his imagination, making Howell a schizophrenic killer, or if he's real and Howell is the random victim of a wandering madman, which is how his potential new girlfriend (Jennifer Jason Leigh) thinks of him. Either way, The Hitcher is great fun, kinda scary, and teetering on the brink of "must see." --Andy Spletzer

Customer Reviews:

Pick Up This Hitcher.......2007-06-18

If you're going to pick up a Hitcher, be sure that it's this original from 1986.

In 1981, Rutger Hauer made his American film debut as diabolical terrorist "Wulfgar" in Nighthawks Nighthawks . 5 years later he appeared in the original The Hitcher in the role of John Ryder, one of the most ruthless serial psycho killers ever to be born on the big screen.

The 1986 version had a very 80s feel to it then, and re-watching it this past weekend, I can say that it is indeed very 80s. But it's very well done. There are some over-the-top stunts that would have killed any ordinary serial killer. But that was part of the mystique of John Ryder. Was he human? Was he a monster? Was he the Devil?

The Hitcher's director in 1986 was Robert Harmon, who pretty much tuned to TV after The Hitcher, which is probably a good thing because the "TV camp" definitely came through in a lot of his original version of The Hitcher, but overall it was exciting and unforgettable.

Fast Forward 21 years and music video Director Dave Meyers re-does 1986's The Hitcher with an all new cast and a few minor story changes The Hitcher (Widescreen Edition) . Yes...I said "re-does" as opposed to "re-makes". A re-make is when a director takes an old film, sometimes even a classic, and makes it better. A re-do is when a director takes a film and adds nothing to the original (and in most cases makes it worse). The 2007 version of The Hitcher is a re-do.

While the 2007 version definitely does take the 80s feel out of the original, it also takes a lot out of the fiendish, classic villain that was created by Rutger Hauer. Sean Bean is in the role of John Ryder in the 2007 version. Yes, Bean has played his share of villains, so he had no problem as a bad guy in The Hitcher 2007, but it was like taking Robert Englund out of Freddy Krueger...it just wasn't the same.

Look, I'm not a big preservationist that thinks remaking good original movies should be taboo. I just think that a re-make should indeed be that...a re-make...not a re-do.

So regardless of what your Mom has told you....You can indeed pick up a Hitcher; just make sure that it's the original.

Action Packed.......2007-06-08

this is a very good movie, i wonder what the remake's like. i thought this was an intenes movie, you never know what would happen next. this is a must see.

Rutger Hauer can do it all.......2007-06-02

This movie is a tell-tale sign of Rutger Hauer's acting abilities. At this time he was making a killing in the movie, he was giving us a mysterious character which we know nothing about. Even so, the viewer is scared of him. This movie made people quit picking up Hitchhikers, because this could really happen. It even spawned a TV series named after it and a ton of other Hitcher style movies. If you haven't seen it, watch it before you see the remake, this one blows the new one out of the water.

Gripping...yet really, really long.......2007-06-01

Hitcher takes a great story and turns it into an unbelievable, frustrating mess. Murphy's Law is definitely the premise of this movie. It becomes so frustrating watching everything go wrong. The problem with the movie is one that is just so unbelievable. I have this problem with a lot of movies but this one just takes it so far that it totally ruins it for me. The killer manages to be everywhere with little explanation of how he got there. Not only that, but he seems to be able to move and kill silently without anyone noticing until an opportune moment when he suddenly appears. The only good thing about this movie is Rutger Hauer who plays his part perfectly. And it is occasionally suspenseful when you're not too busy laughing at it.

Jennifer Jason Leigh Taffy-Pull..........2007-05-21

Jim Halsey (C. Thomas Howell) is a normal guy, just trying to stay awake behind the wheel of his car (well, it's not really his, but he's delivering it from Chicago to San Diego). After a near-death experience w/ an oncoming semi, he decides to pick up a hitch-hiker named John Ryder (the incredible Rutger Hauer). Ryder soon reveals himself to be a psychopathic serial-killer, intent on adding Jim to his long list of victims. Jim manages to escape Ryder's clutches, only to trigger an insane game of cat and mouse, psycho-style! Halsey must try and survive Ryder's vengeance, while eluding the police. With the help of a girl named Nash (SWF's Jennifer Jason Leigh), Halsey stumbles into one horror after another! The movie's multiple climaxes had me chewing my nails 'til my fingers bled! Hauer's John Ryder is pure evil, even scarier than his sociopathic replicant character in BLADERUNNER! A classic villain! Highly recommended...

Average customer rating:

The Cad and the Stud
solid modern noir
Much better than I expected
Dennis Hopper is underappreciated
Erotic movie! Great acting. Good score.

The Hot Spot
Starring: Don Johnson , Virginia Madsen , Jennifer Connelly , Charles Martin Smith , and William Sadler
Director: Dennis Hopper
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Suspense | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Neo-Noir | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Mystery & Suspense | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( H ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Mulholland Falls
Waking the Dead
Uncovered
Inventing the Abbotts
Of Love & Shadows

ASIN: 0792845803
Release Date: 2000-06-13

Amazon.com

The Hot Spot is best known to lecherous film buffs for Jennifer Connelly's topless scene, but this sultry southern noir deserves more than prurient interest. It's arguably Dennis Hopper's best directorial effort (OK, so that's not saying much), and Charles Williams's source novel Hell Hath No Fury finds Hopper in a comfortable B-movie milieu, riffing on Double Indemnity with an overripe tale of sex, greed, and blackmail in an unnamed Texan town. Fresh from the final season of Miami Vice, Don Johnson stars as a shifty drifter, conning his way into a salesman job on a used-car lot, where the boss's insatiable wife (Virginia Madsen) offers him sexual favors and a lovely secretary's (Connelly) innocence is threatened by a percolating scandal. Nobody's really innocent, of course, and Hopper spices this languid web of secrets with enough trashy misbehavior to qualify The Hot Spot as a bona fide guilty pleasure. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Don Johnson ("Nash Bridges"), Virginia Madsen (The Haunting) and Jennifer Connelly (Dark City) heat up the screen in this torrid erotic thriller from the acclaimed director of Easy Rider. Exploding in a series of suspenseful twists and passionate encounters, this "ingenious" (Los Angeles Daily News) film will keep you guessing until its final, shocking climax! Harry Madox (Johnson) is a handsome drifter who is not above larceny to make ends meet. After staging a daring daylight robbery at a local bank, he receives an alibi from an unexpected ally: Dolly Harshaw (Madsen), a sexy and mysterious local woman who has her own plans for him. But when Harry falls for another beautiful woman (Connelly), he incurs Dolly's wrath and finds himself caught in a maze of jealousy, betrayal and murder from which escape is impossible and danger is the ultimate aphrodisiac.

Customer Reviews:

The Cad and the Stud.......2007-05-26

Once you get past the incredibly sultry Virginia Madsen and the lovely Jennifer Connelly, take a gander at the Cad and the Stud. No, I dont mean Johnson & Johnson, I'm referring to the legendarily photogenic '59 Pink Cadillac and the rarely seen '59 Studebaker (Silver Hawk). These rides are as dramatically different from the vanilla on the used car lot as their ultra sexy drivers are from the Texas townspeople. (As for Jeniffer, she likes to walk; and the snivelling blackmailer drives something out of Mad Max---but let's not go there!) I think the Cadillac is an obvious choice for Madsen. The Studebaker is an interesting choice for Johnson. The Silver Hawk (or its older brother, the Golden Hawk) is a strange mix of automotive design---an unlikely collection of dissonant pieces that somehow come together to create a unique, fascinating, and bold work of art. The automotive equivalent of, say, Stravinsky's "Rites of Spring." It strikes me as a very masculine car, and it definitely has "Drive me, Don Johnson!" written all over its muscular grille. There is a lot to see and appreciate in this movie. Obviously, Dennis Hopper made a very conscious decision to hire some wheels for a few key roles. But he must have been stumped when it came to Connelly. What car would have been a good match for her? Not an easy ride...

solid modern noir.......2006-11-10

This film didn't get much box office when it was released. Hopper blamed some of that on Don Johnson not hyping the film on the marketing circuit a'la talk shows, etc...

In any case, it was a solid plot/acting/direction job. Connelly is totally believable as the innocent yet sensual small town girl. Was that really Virginia Madsen? Ever since Sideways, I just look at her in a totally different way from her appearance in The Hot Spot.

Basically, just a nice little film.

Much better than I expected.......2006-08-08

This updated film Noir style thriller set in a hot dusty small town in Texas is helped by steamy performances by Don Johnson and Virginia Madsen. Well directed by Dennis Hopper, the film at just over 2 hours manages to hold your attention throughout. Fascinating to watch really bad people doing really bad things to each other.
Jennifer Connelly (very young) showed tremendous promise in this.
The big surprise is Johnson who is actually terrific as the stranger in town that sets all the action in motion.

Dennis Hopper is underappreciated.......2006-07-05

It seems that every time Dennis Hopper is on the Tonight Show, he gets asked about his relationship with his friend James Dean, back in the 1950s. The irony is that Dean died young after 3 films, and Hopper went on to have a long, distinguished career, which was in many ways more interesting and accomplished than anything Dean ever did. Amongst the accomplishments for Hopper is his directing, in this case THE HOT SPOT. This movie is outstanding--it creates to a "t" the wicked ambience of film noir, and features fine performances from Johnson, Madsen, and Connelly. And a sound track featuring John Lee Hooker, Miles Davis, and Taj Mahal!! My God, Hopper has impeccable taste!

Erotic movie! Great acting. Good score........2006-01-21

Don Johnson is so good-looking in this movie - but I think he smokes in almost every scene, which takes away from his attractiveness. Virginia Madsen was absolutely wonderful and played the part to perfection and was very erotic! Good movie, but a lot of sex! I loved the score - it was great.

Average customer rating:

Good acting, direction, script... and yet incredibly annoying...
Absolutely horrible in all aspects
A Good Thriller
A threat from within
Hit the road

Arlington Road
Starring: Jeff Bridges , Tim Robbins , Joan Cusack , Hope Davis , and Robert Gossett
Director: Mark Pellington
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Suspense | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Mystery | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Drama | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

Mystery & Suspense | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Blown Away
Primal Fear
The Game
A Simple Plan
The Score

ASIN: 0767836286
Release Date: 1999-10-26

Amazon.com

It's easy to understand why Arlington Road sat on the studio shelf for nearly a year. No, the film isn't awful; rather, it's an extremely edgy and ultimately bleak thriller that offers no clear-cut heroes or villains. In other words, Hollywood had no idea how to sell it. Director Mark Pellington's underrated directorial debut, Going All the Way, suffered the same fate, essentially because the filmmaker's presentation of suburban America often shifts dramatically within the same film. Characters are usually miserable and bordering on meltdown, no situation is straightforward, and things usually end badly. Arlington Road begins as an astute study of suburban paranoia. Michael Faraday (a face-pinched Jeff Bridges, who spends most of the film on the brink of tears) is a college professor who teaches American history courses on terrorism. He's been a conspiracy freak since his wife, an FBI agent, was killed during a botched raid that feels like a thinly fictionalized reference to the Waco tragedy. After saving the life of his next-door neighbor's child, he initially befriends the family (Tim Robbins and Joan Cusack), but soon believes the husband is a terrorist. The first half of the film mocks Faraday: he has no real evidence and is not the most stable of protagonists. Despite the fact that it was government paranoia that got his wife killed, Faraday repeats the same type of behavior. Pellington shifts gears in the second half, however, and for awhile, it seems that the film has simultaneously sunk into a cheap, high-octane brand of Hollywood entertainment and undermined its own point. Arlington Road, though, possesses a stunning ending that's a real gut punch, one that may leave you needing a second viewing to catch all of its smartly executed setup. --Dave McCoy

Customer Reviews:

Good acting, direction, script... and yet incredibly annoying..........2007-06-09

This is one of those movies in which everything seems to be in place... and yet it still just falls flat.

The acting is good, Bridges giving the strongest performance, though it's always a pleasure to see Joan Cusack in ANYTHING. The script is good, the direction is good... but the movie as a whole left me empty and a little irritated.

It's unclear what this film would like to do, aside from entertain. Should we walk out feeling that terrorists are much more complex than they seem? Should we walk out feeling unsafe and suspecting everyone? There are scenes in this movie where Jeff Bridges is teaching a class in terrorism, and he talks about how illusory our feeling of safety is... and that's fine, but I wanted one of the students to ask "So what do you want us to do? Be afraid? Worry? Never leave the house? What?" In that way the movie seems to want to just stir up a lot of fear without giving it any direction or offering any possible solution. Of course there ISN'T a solution, but I feel that this movie stirs up a lot of fear and paranoia just to draw the audience into some excitement, and then makes the audience feel bad for being excited by such a thing. I felt manipulated and annoyed after it ended.

I also think this entire subject is a little too sensitive to be trying to milk entertainment dollars out of. If you want to make a serious drama, go ahead, but don't try to both draw us in with the promise of "spooky terrorist thrills" and then want to have a serious look at the issue. I was also a little bit uncomfortable with the sheer number of children-in-extreme-peril scenes. Again, if you want to treat this subject seriously, go ahead, but don't invite us to be "thrilled" by it.

I will say that the cinematography [by Bobby Bukowski] in this film was amazing. It makes SUCH a difference simply to have some visually interesting compositions up on the screen for once, instead of having movies that have all the compositional thought of snapshots. It just gives you something to LOOK at. My favorite scenes were the one with the RED phones against the grey sky, and the fence with the grey roofs above it. Amazing! Kudos to you, guys! This was literally my favorite part of the movie.

As for the "surprise" ending-- Woo Hoo, Big Deal.

I have come to like this movie less and less since I saw it [and that was pre-9/11]. This is one I would say you could skip completely, not even wait for the video. Just skip it. It leaves you with nothing but a bad taste in your mouth.

Absolutely horrible in all aspects.......2007-04-16

Horrible. Absolutely horrible in characters, story and atmospherics.

Jeff Bridges' character is so inconsistent and contradictory that he is not only unbelievable, but grating. The story fails in every way possible. The bad guy's plan depends upon being able predict (not just manipulate) actions of multiple characters, but to intricately synchronize them, even when they have only indirect access. Even worse, their plan depends upon Bridges' character making critical inferences on a tight schedule. But the cardinal sin is that script has the bad guys attempt to subvert a key element of their own plan.

Pacing and other atmospherics can overcome substantial flaws in the script, but in this movie, they are so amateurish that they emphasize and exacerbate those problems.

A Good Thriller.......2007-03-09

I avoid calling this a good "political" thriller, as I think the movie director might like to bill it, because the political motivations invoked to set the villains in motion here are almost ludicrous. This movie was made before 9/11 - so the film's "terrorists" are presented as a "vast right-wing conspiracy."

However even this simple-minded conception of the threat of terrorism is muddied by Jeff Bridges' fervid ranting. Bridges plays a college professor teaching classes in government, civil liberties, and terrorism. However he seems to be almost unhinged and perhaps suspiciously complicit in terrorist acts himself as he spirals off into confused diatribes against - first lone right-wing bombers like the Unibomber - then pervasive right-wing conspiracies - then the U.S. government itself, and specifically the F.B.I. Bridges blames all these entities for his wife's death, and his lectures apparently consist of little more than projected pictures of severed limbs and bleeding bodies left in the wake of such terrorist attacks. Furthermore, he incites his students to similar suspicion and hatred. I doubt that a professor who conducted his classes in such a way would hold his job very long.

So in order to enjoy this movie, it might be best to disregard all its muddled political assumptions. Just take it as a contest between some scary villains and some good guys. Then you can sit back and appreciate the very real suspense that this movie builds.

"Arlington Road" has one of the eeriest opening sequences I've seen in any movie. And then most memorable of all - is a scene involving Joan Cusack. We usually associate Cellular Joan with mildly comic turns. But one of the scenes featuring her in this movie delivers what is perhaps the ultimate jolting fright. It will probably literally make you jump out of your seat.

A threat from within.......2007-02-11

This raises eyebrows on the real possibility of domestic terrorism. Unfortunately, this is a legitimate fear, especially now. That's what makes this movie so nerve-jangling.
Jeff Bridges plays Michael Faraday, a college professor who teaches a course on terrorism. Tim Robbins plays his mysterious neighbor that raises some suspicion.
This movie does have some minor flaws. Although Jeff and Tim are fine actors, this wasn't their best performances. Plus, the story seems a little choppy, but the ending will make you disregard any of this. Your heart will be racing at the climax, without a doubt.

Hit the road.......2007-01-28

Great film, acting is brilliant, plot is excellent (although rather similar to ruby ridge/OKC), twists in the story line.

Arlington Road has the virtue of being a film that you've probably never heard of and know even less about, both of which work in it's favour. Without giving the plot away too much, Jeff Bridges plays Michael Faraday, a University lecturer with an obsession with terrorism after the death of his wife in field of duty with the F.B.I. When his new neighbour, played by the increasingly sinister Tim Robbins moves in, Farady is quick to assume that there is more to his new best friend that meets the eye. Is it paranoia or is there a genuine reason for concern? Whatever you expect from Arlington Road, it will deliver. A well structured and clever film that always leave you second guessing, the lack of features is more than made up for with intense sound that really makes use of the rear speakers in surround sound systems.

Just simply an excellent film. One of the best i have ever seen. Tim Robbins is a brilliant actor.

Average customer rating:

Oldie but goody
EXCELLENT AUSTRALIAN SUSPENSE FILM!
For Once, A GOOD Australian Movie!!!(That's A Nice Change!!!
Nice little masterpiece
One more Jamie Lee Curtis horror flick makes it to DVD!

Road Games (Ws)
Starring: Stacy Keach , Jamie Lee Curtis , Marion Edward , Grant Page , and Thaddeus Smith
Director: Richard Franklin
Manufacturer: Starz / Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Suspense | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Mystery | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Action & Adventure | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Art House & International | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Great Smokey Roadblock
Breaker, Breaker
Coast to Coast
Steel Cowboy
Convoy

ASIN: B0000844JR
Release Date: 2003-06-10

Customer Reviews:

Oldie but goody.......2007-02-25

Keach plays Quid, a truck driver delivering pork to Perth, Australia. He beats the boredom of the road by looking at other cars and the people inside them and guessing their line of work, etc. He gets too accurate with his game when a serial killer picking up hitchhikers and leaving them in pieces crosses Quid's path. Keach's character is witty and has more personality than most portrayals of truck drivers. A young Jamie Lee Curtis teams up with Quid and together they try to find out if their guessing game about the strange man in the green van is fact or fiction. When Pamela (Jamie Lee Curtis) gets too close to the killer she nearly becomes a victim herself. Great dialogue, humor and numerous quirky characters.

Chrissy K. McVay - Author

EXCELLENT AUSTRALIAN SUSPENSE FILM!.......2006-10-02

"Road Games" is an excellent Australian thriller which was released in 1981. The film stars (Stacy Keach) as Pat Quid, an american truck driver working in Australia. He is driving to a meatpacking facility to drop off his load of slaughtered hogs. Along the way, he notices a van that appears to be suspicious to him. The driver of the van apparently picked up a hitch-hiker, and Pat suspects the driver of being a suspected serial killer. He likes to play games with himself when he is on the road. Trying to guess what people are doing. This helps him to relieve some of the boredom of the long stretches of highway from one place to another.

Furthermore, there have been a number of murders and disappearances along the highway in recent months, and being behind the wheel for long hours at a time in the desolate stretch of Australia causes him to be a little more paranoid about what he sees on the road. One of the hitchhikers he picks up is portrayed by a young (Jamie Lee Curtis). As Pat begins to stalk this driver of the van, he himself becomes a suspect by the police. The film is very, very good. There is no gore or blood. The films strength lay in the fact that it allows the viewer to guess along with Pat as to what is really going on. Is the driver of the van the infamous serial killer? Or is it just a case of too many miles on the road? This is a very good, and much overlooked film. Way better than many noted ones of its genre. Highly recommended.

For Once, A GOOD Australian Movie!!!(That's A Nice Change!!!.......2005-06-20

In this movie we see Stacey Keach playing a truck driver on his way to Adelaide via the Nullabor Plain. The word "Nullabor" is an abbreviation of the Latin "Nulla Arbor" which means "no trees" which from what I have heard is a pretty good description of this place. Stacey picks up hitchiker Pamela , played by Jamie Lee Curtis and then they are on the hunt for a Serial Killer who likes to slice and dice his victims. In this movie Stacey Keach gets the award for Best Dressed Truck Driver Of The Year because most truckers in Austraia wear shorts and a singlet as their working atire. He is also commended for not taking any "West Coast Turnaround" amphetamines to keep him awake on the road!!!

Nice little masterpiece.......2005-05-09

This is one of those movies that gets sorely overlooked because it doesn't pander to the slasher & gore genre ,in true classic horror movie fashion it let's your own imagination do most of the work.You get drawn into the characters because they never seem pretentious or one dimensional ,this is also very much in the Hitchcok vein, so if you are looking for something a little different w/thought instead of gore this is the ticket.

One more Jamie Lee Curtis horror flick makes it to DVD!.......2005-04-16

oOkay, this isn't so much horror as super suspense. Jamie Lee doesn't even appear in the first half of the movie. Stacy Keach spends the time driving across country trying to get away from some unseen psycho in a truck. But after he picks up Jamie Lee, you really feel like you've entered a classic Jamie Lee slasher flick!

This movie is a must for Slasher/Scream Queen fanatics.

Average customer rating:

Arlington Road [Blu-ray]
Starring: Jeff Bridges , Tim Robbins , Joan Cusack , and Hope Davis
Director: Mark Pellington
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: Blu-ray

General | Blu-ray | Formats | DVD | Video

Mystery & Suspense | Blu-ray | Formats | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Patriot (Extended Cut) [Blu-ray]
The Lookout [Blu-ray]
Mel Gibson's Apocalypto [Blu-ray]
Final Fantasy - The Spirits Within [Blu-ray]
Wild Hogs [Blu-ray]

ASIN: B000QXDFQW
Release Date: 2007-08-07

Product Description

A gripping contemporary thriller about the terrible truths that can hide behind everyday appearances, Arlington Road is an intense, edge-of-your-seat journey that reveals just how little we know about the world around us. Widowed when his FBI agent wife is killed by a right-wing group, college professor Michael Faraday (Jeff Bridges) becomes obsessed with the culture of these groups, especially when his new neighbors, the all-American Oliver and Cheryl Lang (Tim Robbins, Joan Cusack), start acting suspiciously. With each twist, the mystery deepens and the question looms: is Faraday just consumed by fear and driven by paranoia, or has a lethal conspiracy been born on Arlington Road?

Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffin - The Untold Story (UMD Mini For PSP)

Average customer rating:

Does this really need a review?
The good, the bad and the hilarious
Yawn.
Family Guy: The Movie Review
Too funny...Stewie is my favorite

Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffin - The Untold Story (UMD Mini For PSP)
Starring: Drew Barrymore , and Ron Livingston
Director: Pete Michels , and Peter Shin
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: UMD for PSP

General | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

Domestic Comedies | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Universal Media Discs | Stores | DVD | Video

Comedy | Universal Media Discs | Stores | DVD | Video

All Games | Sony PSP | Categories | Computer & Video Games
Similar Items:

Family Guy, Vol. 3 (Season 4, Part 1)
Family Guy, Vol. 1 (Seasons 1 & 2)
The Simpsons - The Complete Sixth Season
Family Guy, Vol. 2 (Season 3)
Family Guy, Vol. 4 (Season 4 Part 2)

Accessories:

Sony PSP PlayGear Amp
Sony PSP Comfort Grips Black
Sony PSP Psyclone Nodus Sound System
Sony PSP Travel Case

Product Features:

In this exclusive 83 minute DVD premiere, featuring brand new, never before seen content, Stewie, the maniacal baby genius, is distracted from his plans for world domination when he sees a man who looks just like him on television. Convinced that this man must be his real father (after all, how could he possibly share genetic material with the dimwitted Peter?), Stewie sets off on a cross-country

ASIN: B000A1779G
Release Date: 2005-09-27

Amazon.com

For Family Guy fans, there are no freakin' sweeter words than "Never Before Seen." A triumphant homecoming for the Griffins, Stewie Griffin is not so much a movie as it is a not-yet-aired three-episode story arc enhanced with a home-video-exclusive "red carpet premiere" prologue and an epilogue (capped, of course, with a fart joke). Family Guy's resurrection is a television miracle, and its creators have rewarded the faithful by picking up right where they left off, offending any and all sensibilities (recasting Jesus as comic magician Art Metrano), dissing the celebrity disenfranchised (Ellen Cleghorne references, anyone?), and generally taking potshots at anyone on their enemies list (Stewie breaks the neck of a reporter for Entertainment Weekly, the magazine that once called Family Guy "the Awful Show They Just Keep Putting on the Air"). The Untold Story! is a star vehicle for Family Guy 's breakout character, in which the mega maniacal and matricidal infant has a Grinch-like change of heart after a near-death experience (and a disturbing encounter with Steve Allen in Hell) and, more life-altering, discovers a football-pated man who could be his father (the truth is more shocking!). As go the gags, so goes Family Guy, and there are enough good ones here to compensate for the many misfires. The Miller-esque (as in Dennis) penchant for channeling arcane pop culture can grow tiresome. But for those who do remember the words to the Who's the Boss theme song, know (or still care) who Steve Bartman is, and are always up for "a sexy party," this will be the greatest story ever untold. --Donald Liebenson

Stills from Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffin - The Untold Story (click for larger image)

Description

In this exclusive 88 minute DVD premiere, featuring brand new, never before seen content, Stewie, the maniacal baby genius, is distracted from his plans for world domination when he sees a man who looks just like him on television. Convinced that this man must be his real father (after all, how could he possibly share genetic material with the dimwitted Peter?), Stewie sets off on a cross-country road trip to find him. But his incredible journey leads him to discoveries far more vile and shocking that anything found in his diaper.

Customer Reviews:

Does this really need a review?.......2007-05-10

A great feature presentation of arguably the best comedy animation series ever made.

The good, the bad and the hilarious .......2007-05-04

"Stewie Griffin - The Untold Story" is a big, colorful and tasty collection of everything we love about Family Guy (and I mean, certainly, open-mindness... and fart jokes). Don't miss nearly 90 minutes of insane Family Guy laughs, all combined in this work of genius. Join Stewie in his time-travel to the future, watch Cris grow even more fatter and Meg become a guy, and Stew himself - a 30 year old virgin.

Yawn........2007-05-02

Honestly, I only bought this because I heard that a David Bowie character appeared in it. When I actually watched it, I was saddened to see that it was just a few Family Guy episodes (rather boring ones, to tell the truth) that I had already seen strung together. I wouldn't say it's worth 20 bucks, but if you feel the need to watch this and you're a big Family Guy fan, go ahead, if you must...

Family Guy: The Movie Review .......2007-03-13

I saw separate pecies of this movie on TV and I must say that I am somewhat impressed. There are laughs and misses on this movie. I enjoyed most of the movie except the flashbacks and other off topic sequences. Some of them are funny at first and then get annoying. I wish I would have watched the movie on its DVD because I bet there were things on it that TV wouldn't show. So I guess if people are going to see this movie on TV I would read this review, but if you're going to rent it or buy it, I would rather read another one.
-Ben Russell

Too funny...Stewie is my favorite .......2007-03-09

Forgot about the Simpsons...Family guy is so funny and this dvd will crack you up. I caught myself saying "oh wow did they really say that?"...through out the entire thing. Definately recommend this one.

Average customer rating:

Are We There Yet? Starring Miles the Goose
My 4 year old loved it!
AMAZING!
Road Trip Lifesaver

Are We There Yet?
Starring: Are We There Yet
Manufacturer: Banyan Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Children's Music | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

RandMcNally Kids' Road Atlas (Backseat Books)
Best Travel Activity Book Ever (Backseat Books)
Crocodile Dentist
Are We There Yet (Backseat Books)
Are We There Yet?

ASIN: B0009KCWPW
Release Date: 2005-11-14

Product Description

NEW from Banyan Entertainment! (Producers of Trading Spaces, Wedding Story, Baby Story, and Birth Day.) Tired of your kids asking "are we there yet?" on every road trip? The brand new "Are We There Yet?" DVD is the first of its kind. Designed for the children's travel market, "Are We There Yet" promises hours of fun at home and in the car. Join Miles the Goose as he leads children on a journey of exploration and fun. Packed with games, songs, educational segments and fun facts "Are We There Yet?" entertains as it educates. If you're a family on the move, this is a must-own DVD. So grab your gear and get ready to hit the road! DVD includes: CLASSIC TRAVEL GAMES that will entertain the kids for hours; CAR TUNE SING-A-LONGS with Rebecca Frezza and the Big Truck Band; EDUCATIONAL TRAVEL SEGMENTS featuring the Question Kids; WINNER Dr. Toy BEST VACATION Children's Products 2005; WINNER 2005 National Telly Awards, Kids Programming; WINNER 2005 National Telly Awards, Travel/Tourism

Customer Reviews:

Are We There Yet? Starring Miles the Goose.......2005-07-11

Very cute, very entertaining. It kept the interest of our kids ages 3, 6, 10 and 12.

My 4 year old loved it!.......2005-06-03

We both enjoyed the DVD a great deal. The songs stuck in our heads and we both found ourselves humming them throughout the day. This DVD would be a great asset to parents with portable DVD players. It will serve as a FUN reminder for children who may get bored on the trip for things that can be done to help pass the "Miles". We loved the little quizzes and had fun
competing for the answers. I would recommend this DVD to parents with little adventure seekers.

AMAZING!.......2005-06-03

I found this DVD not only educational, without my children knowing it but interesting, as well. If you asked their opinion they say it was FUNNY! My youngest two children are still asking to watch it again and again and are now quoting from ARE WE THERE YET? Well done! This is a keeper for our movie gallery for my children to choose from.

Kathy Schneider
Kids: 4, 7, and 17

Road Trip Lifesaver.......2005-05-07

Kids have just as much fun playing these old classic travel games with Miles and his friends as we all did when we were young. And even parents may catch themselves humming or singing along to Rebecca Frezza's catchy car tunes. (I know I did!) The chapter DVD format makes it really easy for kids to play their favorite parts over and over again. Great to pop into the minivan DVD player for both short and long car trips!

Average customer rating:

Underrated and overlooked
A Real Sleeper

Nature of the Beast
Starring: John Toles-Bey , Lance Henriksen , Brion James , Sasha Jenson , and Frank Novak
Director: Victor Salva
Manufacturer: New Line Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( N ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Delta Heat
Alone in the Dark
Maniac Cop III: Badge of Silence
Stone Cold
Happy Birthday to Me

ASIN: B0009S4IFQ
Release Date: 2005-08-30

Description

A man picks up a hitchhiker who may or may not be a serial-killing thief.

Customer Reviews:

Underrated and overlooked.......2005-08-21

Virtually unnoticed when released in the 90's, Nature of the Beast is surprisingly taut and suspenseful. Directed by pre-Jeepers Creepers director Victor Salva, Lance Henriksen and Eric Roberts provide solid performances in this tale of a salesman (Henriksen) who picks up a mysterious hitcher (Roberts) during a time when a serial killer is racking up a body count. From this point on, Nature of the Beast becomes a taut character study, and you'll never see the film's twist ending coming. Overlooked to this day as a suspense gem, Nature of the Beast finally makes it's way to DVD thanks to New Line, and it includes an insightful commentary by Salva. Definitely worth checking out if you're looking for a better than average shocker.

A Real Sleeper.......2005-06-29

I recall renting this a few years back just because of the two leads (Eric Roberts and Lance Henriksen) being teamed, as each are fine character actors, and the premise of a good, old-fashioned mystery/thriller.
As it turned out, this is a taunt little chiller with a great premise and even better ending. I won't give anything away, but the ending is truly worth the price of admission. Roberts and Henriksen are at the top of their game, and Director Victor Silva (pre JEEPERS CREEPERS) sets just the right tone.
I'm only hoping they come up with a few worthwhile extras to boot. A commentary by Silva would be a great bonus.
Top notch suspense.

Average customer rating:

The Best Beer Documentary
American Beer
American Beer
Finally

American Beer
Starring: Paul Kermizian , Jon Miller , Jeremy Goldberg , Robert Purvis , and Richard Sterling
Director: Paul Kermizian
Manufacturer: Narnack Records
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Brewing a Better Beer
Beer School: Bottling Success at the Brooklyn Brewery
Brewing Up a Business: Adventures in Entrepreneurship from the Founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food
American Beer

ASIN: B0009OL7U4
Release Date: 2005-07-12

Description

This documentary follows five guys from New York during their 40-day, 38-brewery tour, interviewing the indurtry's leaders while tasting the country's best brew. That's 40 stright days of getting incredibly drunk, gaining loads of "beer weight" and consistently suffering from monstrous hangovers...

Customer Reviews:

The Best Beer Documentary.......2006-12-27

As a longtime craft brewer, this is the best movie/documentary that I have seen so far. The number of brewery's toured, interviews made and good beer consumed is a fantasy for those of us who brew our own. I will be buying additional copies to share with friends in the business.

American Beer.......2005-09-30

This is the DVD that all the beer geeks have been talking about! It is a bit home movieish, but it is great!

American Beer.......2005-08-26

Besure to buy the Special Edition !!! - try their web site. www sixhundred dot com
It has an additional 1 1/2 hours of extras - a must see
I did not buy the Special Edition, and NOW I have two copies of the movie !
Great Movie - Watched it 4 times in a week !

Finally.......2005-05-17

Finally, this is the REAL American Beer. The documentary on American craft brewing, not that other movie.

DVD:

DVD

Great Balls of Fire! (REGION 1) (NTSC)

DVD: The Scorpion King/Brotherhood of the Wolf

Meister der Verwandlung