The Desert Fox

Starring:James Mason, Cedric Hardwicke, Jessica Tandy, Luther Adler, Everett Sloane, Leo G. Carroll, George Macready, Richard Boone, Eduard Franz, Desmond Young, George Nader, Freeman Lusk, George S. Patton, Mary Carroll, Carleton Young, Ivan Triesault, Paul Kruger, Guy Kingsford, Philip Ahlm, Lawrence Cregar
Director: Henry Hathaway
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

Boasting an upgrade in production values, The Hills Have Eyes should please new-generation horror fans without offending devotees of Wes Craven's original version from 1977. There's still something to be said for the gritty shock value of Craven's low-budget original, made at a time when horror had been relegated to the pop-cultural ghetto, mostly below the radar of major Hollywood studios. With the box-office resurgence of horror in the new millennium--and the genre's lucrative popularity among the all-important teen demographic--it's only fitting that French director Alexandre Aja should follow up his international hit High Tension with a similarly brutal American debut to boost his Hollywood street-cred. Working with cowriter Gregory Levasseur, Aja remains surprisingly faithful to Craven's original, beginning with a bickering family that crashes their truck and trailer in the remote desert of New Mexico (actually filmed in Morocco), where they are subsequently terrorized, brutalized, and murdered by a freakish family of psychopaths, mutated by the lingering radiation from 331 nuclear bomb tests that were carried out during the 1950s and '60s. After several killings are carried out in memorably grisly fashion, it's left to the survivors to outsmart their disfigured tormentors, who are blessed with horrendous make-up (especially Robert Joy as freak leader "Lizard") but never quite as unsettling as the original film's horror icon, Michael Berryman. In Aja's hands, this newfangled Hills is all about savagery and de-evolution, reducing its characters to a state of pure, retaliatory terror. It's hardly satisfying in terms of storytelling (since there's hardly any story to tell), but as an exercise in sheer malevolence, it's undeniably effective.--Jeff Shannon

Description

Based on the original film by fright master Wes Craven, The Hills Have Eyes is the story of a family road trip that goes terrifyingly awry when the travelers become stranded in a government atomic zone. Miles from nowhere, the Carter family soon realizes the seemingly uninhabited wasteland is actually the breeding ground of a blood-thirsty mutant family...and they are the prey.

Customer Reviews:

Better than I thought it would be! .......2007-06-12

I haven't seen the original in years, but I remembered liking it. I was kind of skeptical about the remake of this movie but was pleasantly surprised. I thought it was a great remake. I liked the fact that it was gory, but not way overboard, such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Great ending! Overall, I loved this movie!

KNB = 5 Stars, Film = 3.5 Stars.......2007-06-09

I'll bypass telling you what you already know, that it's a remake and what the plot is. The film just finished, I'm now 10 minutes into the "making of" documentary, and I must say as a fan of the genre this picture is pretty awesome. I'm a BIG fan of KNB (The EFX Group) and they have outdone themselves on this one. This film is littered with remarkable effects, very gory and very realistic. The head shot, in the outhouse...WOW! The gore alone get's 5 stars in my stupid little opinion book of ratings. As always, when I watch horror films I tend to overlook the plot holes, etc and focus more on the gore, the scares, this film has loads of gore and a few scares as well.

It's selling on Amazon cheap, seriously consider picking it up!

VERY good remake.......2007-06-06

Given the task of remaking Craven's original The Hills Have Eyes, they had to cast someone great as the director. They chose Alexandre Aja, and what they came up with was one of the scariest movies of 2006, perhaps THE scariest. My review will be in two parts: the movie itself and the DVD special features.

The Carter family is off on a road trip through the desert. After stopping to get gas, the station attendant tells them of a pathway through the desert that will take them to the main highway and would cut a few hours off their time. The Carters accept, not knowing that the route they would travel would take them through an area that had undergone heavy nuclear testing by the US Army years earlier- or that a family of settlers had survived the testing, but with less than desirable results: they are all now bloodthirsty mutants. So the Carters move on- till a spikechain set in the road blows out all four of their tires. They settle in while Big Bob goes to get help. When night falls, the "eyes" open up- and that's where the fun begins.

This being the Unrated Director's Cut, alot of material made it in that wasn't in the original R-rated theater version: the fight between Doug (Aaron Stafford) and Pluto was extended and some of the other fight scenes were added; one scene that was taken out, however, was the scene of Pluto siphoning gas from the family Jeep. The DVD itself contains a behind the scenes look at the making of the movie called "Surviving the Hills", a music video for The Finalist's "Leave the Broken Hearts", and a few other extras like director and actor commentaries.

The Ring? The Grudge? Nah. Most "scary" movies can't touch The Hills Have Eyes with a 50-foot pole. Thanks, Aja, for making probably the scariest movie I have ever seen.

WORST REMAKE EVER!.......2007-06-04

This movie is no where near as good as the original. SAVE YOUR MONEY...... PERIOD!

garbage.......2007-05-22

Not a horror movie fan, but all was fine for me until the POINTLESS rape scene. Disturbing enough to me that i'm still thinking about it a few days later.

I don't even necessarily object to a rape scene being put in a film - but this disgusted me in that it was put in purely for those who get some sort of delight through watching a woman's suffering. I really, really womder about people who enjoy this kind of stuff.

Average customer rating:

And Now For Something Completely Different
A Beautiful Movie
A Great Movie
Crash and Burn
Not For Everyone, but Powerful

Paris, Texas
Starring: Harry Dean Stanton , Sam Berry , Bernhard Wicki , Dean Stockwell , and Aurore Clément
Director: Wim Wenders
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0002XL35G
Release Date: 2004-12-14

Amazon.com

Something like a perfect artistic union is achieved in the major components of Paris, Texas: the twang of Ry Cooder's guitar, the lonely light of Robbie Muller's camera, the craggy landscape of Harry Dean Stanton's face. In his greatest role, longtime character actor Stanton plays a man brought back to his old life after wandering in the desert (or somewhere) for four years. He has a 7-year-old son to get to know, and his wife has gone missing. The material is much in the wanderlust spirit of director Wim Wenders, working from a script by Sam Shepard and L.M. Kit Carson. If the long climactic conversation between Stanton and Nastassja Kinski renders the movie uneven and slightly inscrutable, it's hard to think of a more fitting ending--and besides, the achingly empty American spaces stick longer in the memory than the dialogue. Winner of the top prize at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. --Robert Horton

Description

After four years' absence, a social dropout reappears in l.a. to claim his abandoned son and then heads for texas to reunite the boy with his mother.

Customer Reviews:

And Now For Something Completely Different.......2007-06-11

Before you rush out and buy the "Paris, Texas" (1084) DVD based on the many glowing reviews and comments, you may want a bit of a reality check. The film is 145 minutes long, that's almost two and a half hours. And not much happens during this time. The pacing is about on the level of "The Straight Story" (1999), which was only 112 minutes; so if that film had you climbing the walks you should probably steer clear of this one.

On the other hand "Paris, Texas" is a technical masterpiece with great photography, excellent directing, and solid performances from the entire cast (although that cast is small). And it's a lyrically told story about loss, loneliness, and eccentricity; a look America and American values from an outside perspective (in this case European). I'm not sure that the film's message(s) is gotten across (unless you listen to the commentary feature on the DVD and maybe not even then) but it is certainly more coherent than when Michelangelo Antonioni tried to do the same thing in the early 1970's.

The film opens with a wanderer walking alone in the desert. You eventually learn that this is not Howard Hughes but Travis Henderson (Harry Dean Stanton), that he has been missing the past four years, has semi-amnesia (a lot is made of this but the condition is never adequately explained), has a seven year-old son name Hunter (Hunter Carson), and a wife named Jane (Nastassia Kinski). Kinski fans will be somewhat disappointed as she does not even appear until the last third of the film (except briefly in some grainy home movies).

The film could actually be classified as a "buddy picture-road movie" or two buddy picture- road movies. The first third features Travis and his brother's (Dean Stockwell) journey from Texas to LA, the final third Travis and his son's journey back to Texas. The weakest part is the middle third which serves little purpose other than providing some background details and linking the two journey segments.

Because "Paris, Texas" is not your standard pre-sold commercial product, most of its suspense comes from the viewers themselves, who have little idea just where the film is headed. So if you watch a lot of films and are jaded because everything is so predictable, this movie viewing experience should be a nice change of pace.

Because you haven't met these characters in other films, it takes a lot of storytelling to flesh them out, which is probably the biggest reason for the film's extended running length. Sam Shepard's script is not so much elliptical as it is evasive, somehow the characters tell us their most basic beliefs and deepest fears without really revealing anything about themselves (insert "Two Lane Blacktop" here).

German New Wave director Wenders gets an astonishingly unaffected performance from young Hunter Carson, as convincing as any you are likely to find. Carson never did much after this amazing debut.

The most intriguing sequences take place between Stanton and Kinski. The actors are never face-to-face as their characters speak to each other from opposite sides of one-way mirror. Travis has found Jane working in a seedy shop where lonely men pay to talk to women on the telephone.?

The DP fills the screen with images of people dwarfed by vast, distant, and impersonal land/ cityscapes. The most effective and original is a sequence of Travis walking along a bridge over a LA interstate with the audio supplied by an unseen (until the end) and rambling derelict addressing the bumper to bumper traffic rushing by below.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

A Beautiful Movie.......2007-03-30

Paris, Texas is a real place. Supposedly, the main character, Travis, claims his old father once said he was conceived in Paris, Texas, some tiny dusty ghost of a town blistering in the dry heat of the Mojave somewhere in the center of Texas. Hardly the Paris we'd all first assume.

We find Travis lost, depressed, mute and alone in the center of the hot summer Texan drylands.

Like an egg cooking, we are slowly introduced into this shy and sad character's life. A doctor finds him with only a single clue, a business card in his pocket. The name of the person on the card happens to be his brother (Dean Stanton) in Los Angeles.

From here, the story develops when Travis'es brother's character is developed. We see how his brother took care of his son and then we are introduced into his brother's household where we meet his son Sullivan who vaguely remembers his biological father, Travis and refers to his uncle and aunt as "mom and dad."

The movie slowly unpeels Travis'es life like a gentle emotional nostalgic striptease, until nearly 1 hour and 50 minutes into the film, we finally discover who Travis's lover and who Sullivan's true biological mother is.

It's a slowly developing movie that is patient and true to the nature of our protaganist who has gone 4 years without talking and who has changed as a result of the path in life he's taken.

Wim Wenders, director of "Wings of Desire" has his signature cinematographic touches and as always, patiently introduces us to new characters in an intriguing manner.

The late introduction of Natasha Kinski's character was beautifully done as we develop a picture of her and finally are introduced to her mystically in a red car riding through through tributary freeways of Houston, Texas. So much development is made of her character, that, when we are finally introduced to her, in a seedy joint with "pay to talk to chicks booths", she portrays the very goddess like appeal and attraction that Travis'es character has for her. The sordid location served little significance.

Her acting is convincing and angelically portrayed, and beautifully written.

Visually, the movie is ethereal. The night colors of Los Angeles are remarkable. The landscapes invinceable. There is also an intriguing interpretation of America from a German Director. Sometimes the character mannerisms, behaviors and dialogues are too European and unAmericanly directed. But all and all, I love this movie as I appreciate most Wim Wenders movies.

My favorite scene was easily the scene with Sullivan and Travis chasing mom on the freeways of Houston. It was an exciting, romantic artistic creation.

The scene of the man screaming above the noisey, apathetic Los Angeles traffic was gripping too.

Travis aria to Kinski beyond the dark barrier of a peepshow booth in the third person was oscar award winning.

A Great Movie.......2007-02-03

What a great movie. One of the best movies I've seen in years. I recommend it to anyone who likes early 80's era of a basic storyline about love & justification.

Crash and Burn.......2007-01-30

Harry Dean Stanton and Dean Stockwell are two of my favorite actors. And this movie starts out wonderfully, with a heavily mysterious atmosphere which compels the viewer to keep viewing. Unfortunately, it's a trap: There is no revelatory explanation coming for the mystery, ever, and the once mysterious and compelling protagonist degenerates into a self-absorbed and irresponsible shiftless nincompoop in arrested adolescent development with no redeemable qualities whatsoever. Trouble is, this movie seems to glorify him...ugh! And then, the disparity of age between the male protagonist (Stanton) and his ex-girlfriend character (Kinski) was very very close to laughable. Never would happen in the real world, unless Stanton's character was loaded with money, which he wasn't.
I have seldom seen a movie soar so high for the first hour, then crash and burn so drastically for the next hour...and a half.

Not For Everyone, but Powerful .......2007-01-13

This is a very long movie with virtually no physical "action." It is words and feelings and feelings not spoken that should be and all permutations of the above. The understated performances from all lend themselves to the broad expanse of space Wenders creates here. The actors give full, highly complex performances, but within the context of the Texas desert and the American southwest, the humans are dwarfed by the world around them.

This movie will not appeal to everyone. It is talky and the language borders on the poetic quite often. The ending is both satisfying and not satisfying and leaves many questions. I, for one, can't help but think the child ends up back with Travis' brother Walt and his wife. However, that could be argued. Trust me, it has been.

Anyhow, this is a fascinating character study in which the scenery and the music become active characters in the film. Dean Stockwell controls the first 45 minutes or so and then deftly hands it over to Harry Dean Stanton who then hands it over to Nastassja Kinski. In the middle of all this is the keeper of the baton, Hunter Carson. It is an amazing piece of work for them all.

Average customer rating:

Cute babes in furry bikinys
One Million Years B.C. the complete version please!
RUN AWAY (from this version)
Raquel Welsh 1 Million A.D.
Don't listen to people who complain about the DVD. just buy it. it's good

One Million Years B.C.
Starring: Raquel Welch , John Richardson , Percy Herbert , Robert Brown , and Martine Beswick
Director: Don Chaffey
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Barbarella: Queen of the Galaxy
Quest for Fire
The Valley of Gwangi
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Clan of the Cave Bear

ASIN: B00018D3ZA
Release Date: 2004-03-09

Amazon.com

Raquel Welch in a two-piece fur bikini. That and the title is pretty much all anyone needs to know. If that indeed isn't enough, there are the dinosaurs of technician-artist Ray Harryhausen (along with some superimposed iguanas), and a prologue that tells you all you want to know about this "brutal world." Want more? There are volcanoes, barehanded wrestling with warthogs, and rival, subhuman, cannibalistic tribes--Lord, the list goes on and on! The portrait of humankind isn't the most flattering: we're petty, greedy, we grunt a lot, and we don't play well with others. Welch portrays a cavewoman from the tribe of the Blondes trying to make a life for herself with an outcast from the tribe of the Brunettes, which doesn't sit well with anybody. --Keith Simanton

Description

In this vivid view of prehistoric life, a man from the mean-spirited Rock People (John Richardson) is banished from his home. He soon finds himself among the kind, gentle Shell People and falls in love with one of their loving tribeswomen (Raquel Welch). The twosome decide to face the world together, cut off from all tribal support, alone in a deadly world of hideous beast and earthshattering volcanic eruptions. The film's pioneering special effects have made it a true science-fiction classic.

Customer Reviews:

Cute babes in furry bikinys.......2007-06-11

This is the one that made Raquel Welch a star, no dialog hokey mosters and furry 2 part swimsutes. This was/is/will be a drive in classic. So have a few beers and just let this work of art flow over you. If you are a fan of Raquel this is a must have or if you and your mates and haveing a party in your dorm room this is the movie for you.

One Million Years B.C. the complete version please!.......2007-06-04

When "One Million Years B.C." was released on dvd I couldn't wait to get a copy! Just think, a Ray Harryhuusen and Raquel Welch interview, commentaries, isolated score, making of documentary, boy was I dreaming! Not only did it not have any of those features, which I could sadly accept, the print they used was the CUT VERSION!!! Why the studio would cut any Harryhausen footage in the first place was ridiculous! The picture quality on the dvd is sharp and colorful but it's a shame because it could have been great. I recently purchsed Fox's special editions of "Fantastic Voyage" and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea", they are super! I just hope Fox reissues "One Million Years B.C. with the same bells and whistles and with the COMPLETE version!

RUN AWAY (from this version).......2007-05-19

I completely concur with cameron-vale's and shonner's reviews : this version is : 1/ edited and 2/ mutilated at top and bottom of screen to make it look widescreen. Among the edited pieces (I can tell because I have both DVDs, though I do plan to get rid of this one...) : Tumak's erring through the desert ; the feast/dance/ceremony at the tribe's cave ; the fight between two apemen and impaling of the loser's skull ; and quite a lot of isolated shots either shortened or deleted. Worse (if at all possible) : top and bottom of screen missing entirely, which is made all the worse yet by the bonus about the restoration process, that compares an admittedly badly scratched but full screen 1993 film version with the truncated 1996 laserdisc version used for this DVD (as regards the 2002 "restored film version" and "restored video version", I can see absolutely no difference between the two). And to make things complete and irrevocable, there is a bad technical problem : on my player and projector at least, I keep getting blurred lines every couple of frames (every time someone moves, actually...). What is "better" about this version, then ? Well, maybe the fact that you get a couple more languages and a lot of subtitles for the 3 or 4 only sentences of the film (at the very beginning) - including the "English for hearing impaired" that is actually quite fun : "HISSES", "ROAR", that kind of thing all the time ! Or the short demonstration of the restoration process (including its shortcomings, then...). This stops mighty short of being worth the buy. So sorry for the extra bucks, folks, but if you do plan to buy this film (if, like me, you are a Ray Harryhausen fan, for instance, and want to own every picture he ever made - which is now possible at relatively low cost -), go by all means for the British version on amazon.co.uk while it lasts, I promise it's worth every extra penny.

Raquel Welsh 1 Million A.D........2007-03-19

Before Tanya Roberts wore loin cloth in "Sheena" 1984 there was Raquel Welsh and the only thing worth remembering in this picture is Raquel Welsh. There is nothing else. You will not learn any sociological aspects on primitive man like you would from watching "Quest For Fire" 1981 nor will you enjoy the special effects because they suck. "Jason and the Argonauts" 1963 had better effects. Raquel Welsh is the only reason to watch this film. If you are not interested in watching Raquel Welsh than you can watch that other caveman movie starting Ringo Star and Barbara Bach.

Don't listen to people who complain about the DVD. just buy it. it's good.......2007-02-13

Although european vversion is longer, but it's a very good release at cost of 5 dollars. It's a dual-layer DVD with good quality, 2 trailers and 10 exciting previws. movie itself is awsome. It's not a B movie. It's one of the best science/fiction classics I've ever seen!

Average customer rating:

PCU
Oh yeah
A great movie
Don't be that guy
Excellent

PCU
Starring: Jeremy Piven , Chris Young , Megan Ward , Jon Favreau , and Alex Désert
Director: Hart Bochner
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00009WVSJ
Release Date: 2003-09-02

Amazon.com

Almost 10 years before playing a by-the-books college dean in Old School, Jeremy Piven was King Slob of an underground fraternity in this frequently amusing cult comedy. Piven is Droz, who introduces nervous freshman Chris Young to his eclectic frat-mates (which include Jon Favreau) while steering clear of vicious prepster David Spade and malevolent school head Jessica Walter. Piven's off-the-cuff humor and the capable cast help anchor the film's gleefully anarchic tone, which is refreshingly free of the cheap scatological gags that usually sink collegiate comedies. The result is a breezy, likable comedy that should please fans of cinematic campus capers. 20th Century Fox's surprisingly extra-laden DVD includes fullscreen and widescreen versions of the film, as well as commentaries by a typically wry Piven and director Hart Bochner; a short behind-the-scenes featurette; a video for Mudhoney's cover of Elvis Costello's "Pump It Up," which is featured on the soundtrack, and the original theatrical trailer. --Paul Gaita

Description

Welcome to Port Chester University, where the Politically Correct go head-to-head with the Party Animals in the rowdiest college comedy since "Animal House." With all the new social rules on political correctness, the only fun place left on campus is The

Customer Reviews:

PCU.......2007-03-09

I thought this product was awsome, and I recieved this product way before the delivery date. Recommend buying from seller again.

Oh yeah.......2006-08-19

PCU is a great college comedy. It is a classic, Jeremy Piven is a chicago boy and he is also one of the funniest people currently on tv (Entourage). If you have never seen this movie, it is an absolute must!

A great movie.......2006-07-25

I'm so glad this movie came out on DVD. No matter how many times we watch it it's always funny.

Don't be that guy.......2005-12-28

Perhaps not so much on the larger scale, but to my friends and I, this is a classic college flick. The characters are unique, yet essentially based on people we all knew in college. The storyline, as previously reviewed, is not earth-moving, but I doubt it was intended to be. It's simply a movie that moves from one hilarious scene to the next, with plenty of great lines to quote.

Great movie!

Excellent.......2005-09-06

College movie just don't get any better then this. If you are a fan on "Animal House," David Spade, Jeremy Piven, or John Favreau then this is a movie you need to see.

Average customer rating:

General WWII history interest
James Mason in thie Role--Who Could Do Better?
Desert Fox
Small scale, barely adequate biography of the famous General
"In case you didn't hear me, I'm a soldier, not a politician"

The Desert Fox
Starring: James Mason , Cedric Hardwicke , Jessica Tandy , Luther Adler , and Everett Sloane
Director: Henry Hathaway
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00008AOTO
Release Date: 2003-05-20

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What a difference a few years can make. The Desert Fox, released six years after the end of World War II, is a solemnly respectful tribute to Erwin Rommel, Germany's most celebrated military genius. James Mason's portrayal of this gallant warrior became a highlight of his career iconography. The film itself is oddly disjointed: a precredit commando raid to liquidate Rommel is followed by a flashback to the field-marshal's lightning successes commanding the Afrika Korps—-a compressed account via documentary footage and copious narration (spoken by Michael Rennie, who also dubs Desmond Young, the Rommel biographer and onetime British POW appearing briefly as himself). The dramatic core is Rommel's growing disenchantment with Hitler (Luther Adler), his involvement in the plot to assassinate der Führer, and his subsequent martyrdom. Mason's Rommel returned two years later for a flamboyant, mostly German-speaking cameo in The Desert Rats, a prequel focusing on the battle for Tobruk. --Richard T. Jameson

Description

James Mason delivers a strong performance in this fascinating portrait of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. In the early 1940's, Rommel's juggernaut Afrika Korps dominated North Africa. But as the tide turned and he came to the painful realization that his Fuhrer, to whom he hd sworn allegiance, was destroying Germany, his ingrained sense of duty pushed him into a conspiracy against Hitler. Co-starring Jessica Tandy as Rommel's wife and Cedric Hardwicke as another anti-Hitler conspirator, The Desert Fox is an intimate look at one of the most respected military tacticians of modern times.

Customer Reviews:

General WWII history interest.......2007-06-11

This is an old black and white movie conceived generally around the person of German Field Marshall Erwin Romell. While it won't get anyone not interested in the particular subject area very excited based on the plot, it does give a rough glimpse of the historical involvement of Romell in WWII.

James Mason in thie Role--Who Could Do Better?.......2007-03-13

Erwin Rommel was a soldier's soldier, despite what one thinks about the ideology of the Third Reich--which he, apparently, did not until much too late in the game (e.g., he remained ignorant of the true purpose of the KZs, Konzentrationslagers or Concentration Camps until very late in the war).

As Field Marshall Rommel, much propaganda value came from his initial African exploits which led to a lavish State funeral long after the top brass considered him a traitor following the July 20, 1944 assassination attempt. And, of course, he missed the prediction of the Normandy Invation, which would have been a lasting legacy and perhaps an outcome-changing realization. However, the Reich's Atlantic Wall was simply spread too thin, and by the time he was assigned to assess its strenghts and weaknesses, it was far too late in the game.

Nonetheless, James Mason was an ideal pick around 1950 to play Rommel, so shortly after the war, and in context, it is eerily documentary-like.

The life of his son Mannfred, who became mayor of a major West German city, would be of equal interest....

Recommended.

Desert Fox.......2007-03-12

Personal life of Rommel rather than war strategy
Interesting but not exciting.

Small scale, barely adequate biography of the famous General.......2007-03-05

The Desert Fox is a piecemeal biography of the famed WWII German General Erwin Rommel.

Understandably, so soon after the end of WWII, it focuses more on the his questioning of the leadership of Hitler than on this battlefield exploits.

Unfortunately the Desert Fox cannot hide its miniscule budget, with lots of stock footage and talk, talk, talk...it provides no sense of grandeur or sweep whatsoever. If you are looking for some big battle scenes you will be sorely disappointed.

The best thing about this film is James Mason but even he struggles to give Rommel three dimensions - hampered by a lightweight script that is barely adequate.

The only interesting aspect of this film is that is provides a very sympathetic portrayal of a "good" German soldier only 6 years after the end of the second world war.

If you want to see a good film about a famous general watch Patton.

"In case you didn't hear me, I'm a soldier, not a politician".......2007-01-11

Fox War Classics presents the great film biographical film of Erwin Rommel, the Desert Fox. This film takes us through the final period of the great German generals life. Rommel was one of the most decorated German solders of WWI and perhaps the most outstanding field marshal of the entire Third Reich during WWII. His intellect in regards to warfare, tactical responses, offensives, and strategic planning made him one of the most memorable Generals the world has ever seen.

The 1951 classic starring James Mason looks superb in film and sound quality. The black and white format doesn't lose any power, as some of the scenes that show the timeline of the war through various battles are actual footage.

THE DESERT FOX: The movie is structured with some narration here and there which in informative to viewers in regards to places, battles, and many happenings surrounding Rommel during his (roughly) last year of life. The film is extremely informative and moving as we learn about one of the most popular figures from WWII whose story never got to be told. It digs into the dark days when his undermanned army was starting to face inevitable losses that ultimately were the beginning of the end for his troops, and his hope to find a reason to keep going despite no further support. You'll learn a lot about what was going on with Hitler as well as get a glimpse of the dangerous arrogance from Hitler that Rommel faced up to more than anyone. Hitler is played by Luther Adler and is done so with great conviction, if anything he seems to bring out how short of a temper Hitler could have, only furthering his often times foolish decisions that defied the logic, patience and realistic viewpoint that Rommel so effectively used.

It also goes behind the stoic, trench coat clad general to give a glimpse of his family life. In the film, Jessica Tandy plays his wife and adds more humanity to the screen.

Rommel ultimately did something that made him more famous than being simply a superb wartime soldier and later general for Germany; He applied logic and realism to a frustrating situation that was running out of good outcomes, and went toe to toe with the most feared leader in the world. If anyone perhaps tried to save Germany from Hitler that had a fighting chance, it was Rommel. The film is vintage of the WWII period as well as a glimpse to what Rommel faced during his final months, and I highly recommend it.

"Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning."
"Sweat saves blood, blood saves lives, and brains save both."
"This business with the Jews has got to stop."

--Erwin Rommel

Average customer rating:

A GLIMPSE INTO DESERT WARFARE WITH BURTON & MASON AS OUR TOUR GUIDES
Ode to the defenders of Tobruk
The Desert Rats
An Epic Struggle in the Desert
The Rats of Tobruk!

The Desert Rats
Starring: Richard Burton , Robert Newton , Robert Douglas , Torin Thatcher , and Chips Rafferty
Director: Robert Wise
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
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The Desert Fox
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ASIN: B000063US0
Release Date: 2002-05-21

Amazon.com

In his second Hollywood role (between Oscar-nominated turns in My Cousin Rachel and The Robe), Richard Burton stars as a Scottish commando put in charge of a battalion of the 9th Australian Division defending Tobruk. The Aussies don't like him, and with a year of grim North African duty already under his belt, he's not too crazy about his new responsibilities either. The outfit is charged with staving off the battering assaults of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel for two months, to give the British Army time to regroup in Cairo and prepare for a counterattack. In the end, the "desert rats" play hell with the Desert Fox for 242 days, during which they and their commander develop some mutual respect.

This is a solid, workmanlike World War II picture that, having been made in 1953 rather than 1943, can acknowledge a degree of eccentric humanity and soldierly professionalism in the enemy. Featured guest star James Mason reprises his Rommel from The Desert Fox (1951)--playing all his scenes in German except for a scene of ironical repartee with Burton. Another distinguished Brit, Robert Newton, gets costar billing as a boozy, self-confessed coward who used to be Burton's schoolmaster once upon a time. However, a goodly number of Australians--including Chips Rafferty and Charles "Bud" Tingwell (still going strong nearly 50 years later in Paul Cox's wonderful Innocence)--rate at least as much screen time. Robert Wise directed, with a trimness that reminds us he started out as an editor, and the pungent black-and-white cinematography is by Lucien Ballard. --Richard T. Jameson

Description

Richard Burton stars in this exciting story of the stubborn, courageous men who held Rommel at bay in North Africa despite hopelessly outnumbered. The year is 1941, and Rommel has the British in full retreat. All that stands between him and the Suez Canal is the fortress of Tobruk, manned by a small army of Australian troops who are ordered to hold this vital position at any cost. Many of the men are green recruits, and it falls to Capt. MacRoberts (Burton) to whip them into shape. A bold tactician who realizes they will soon be overwhelmed if they do not take the offensive, MacRoberts leads countless daredevil raids that keep the superior enemy off-balance and earn his men the famous nickname they "won with blood and bore with pride." Directed by Robert Wise and co-starring James Mason in a reprise performance as Field Marshall Rommel (whom he first played in "The Desert Fox"), this stirring blend of action and history pays tribute to the heroic men known in the annals of war as The Desert Rats.

Customer Reviews:

A GLIMPSE INTO DESERT WARFARE WITH BURTON & MASON AS OUR TOUR GUIDES.......2006-06-06

IN A NUTSHELL: A GLIMPSE INTO DESERT WARFARE

Former editor, turned up-and-coming director, Robert Wise, essentially turns an otherwise fairly standard world war 2 yarn into a classic war film. Tight editing, decent special effects, a good screenplay plus compelling action scenes led by Burton, alongside an able British and Aussie sounding cast, lift "The Desert Rats" to cinematic respectability.

"The Desert Rats" delivers in the action department with a frontal Panzer attack in the opening minutes of the film and tries to keep up the pace for 88 minutes.

WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT

Richard Burton [Lt. Colonel MacRoberts] is a hard-nose officer in the British Eighth Army. He's entrenched at Tobruk and battling Rommel's Africa Corp. Hastily placed in charge of a newly arrived, green Australian unit, MacRoberts keeps tight discipline and asks the impossible of his men. Nevertheless, the results for McRoberts are surprisingly good as he and his men play their roles in continuing the defensive efforts at Tobruk for more than 8 months against Rommel. In good story telling form, we see the action more than hear about it, and it is all rather believably depicted.

Probably for the audiences benefit, MacRoberts is temporarily captured by the Germans in a night raid, where, while having a wound field dressed, he meets and defiantly dares Rommel [James Mason], "if you can crush Tobruk - then crush it!"

Afterwards, amidst a nice action scene where the German truck carrying the allied prisoners is strafed by Spitfires, MacRoberts escapes and returns too easily to the allied side, across enemy lines.

--- *THE PLAYERS* ---

Richard Burton - Capt. MacRoberts
Robert Newton - Bartlett
Robert Douglas - General
James Mason - Rommel
Torin Thatcher - Barney
Chips Rafferty - Smith
Charles "Bud" Tingwell - Lt. Carstairs

The film is narrated throughout by what I believe is the voice of Michael Rennie, who played "Klaatu" in the "Day the Earth Stood Still" and was a "voice" in the preceding "The Desert Fox", 1951.

---* THE PRODUCTION CREDITS *---

Robert Wise - Director [WEST SIDE STORY, SOUND OF MUSIC, THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL & EDITOR OF "CITIZEN KANE"]
Robert L. Jacks - Producer
Richard Murphy - Screenwriter [Nominated for ACADEMY AWARD - BEST SCREENPLAY]
Lucien Ballard - Cinematographer
Leigh Harline - Composer (Music Score)
Alfred Newman - Composer (Music Score)
Barbara McLean - Editor
Addison Hehr - Art Director
Lyle Wheeler - Art Director
Ray Kellogg - Special Effects [between 1950-1955 did effects for about 50 feature films, ended with Tora!Tora!Tora!, 1970]

BOTTOM LINE: "THE DESERT RATS" - SIMPLY A TIGHT WELL DONE WAR DRAMA

This simple film holds up well [now 54 years] on the foundation of an excellent screen play. Burton, Mason and Wise really team-up well to keep this film really tight and mostly filled with relevant and exciting action for 88 minutes.

Ode to the defenders of Tobruk.......2005-12-18

Richard Burton playing English captain Tammy MacRoberts is solid in the well done WW2 flick "The Desert Rats". Burton is assigned to mold a group of green Australian recruits shipped into the besieged garrison of Tobruk during the 1941 offensive push of Fieldmarshal Rommel through North Africa. The stern Burton is tough yet efficient but certainly not loved by the fun loving Aussies, who balk at his regimented ways.

Rommel played by the talented James Mason, who despite his Britsh roots utters most of his lines in authentic sounding German. His German accent when speaking English holds up very well. Rommel is compelled to conquer Tobruk in his plan to conquer Egypt and control the Suez Canal. The troops deployed there however using underground shelters built into the flat desert landscape doggedly withstand the nerve wracking and continual artillery shelling.

They hold out for eight months styming Rommel's attempt to overrun their defenses. Although "The Desert Rats" was released eight years after the war in 1953, the film serves as a tribute to the brave men that served there.

The Desert Rats.......2005-10-24

Outstanding film. Another great one is the Desert Fox. A must see. To bad the film makers didn't use real german tiger tanks. For those of us who know the difference between a tiger, panther or sherman will be disappointed. Besides the tank issue a great film.

An Epic Struggle in the Desert.......2005-08-26

Richard Burton and James Mason star in this film about a group of highly outnumbered men who put a stop to Rommel's advance in North Africa.

Burton stars as Colonel MacRoberts, an Englishman who is assigned to the Australian garrison who's job it is to hold the town of Tobruk. If Tobruk were to fall into the hands of the Germans, Rommel would have a clear path to the Suez Canal, and ultimate control of all of North Africa. Mason stars as Field Marshall Erwin Rommel. His vaunted Africa Korps have been wreaking havoc against the British and now the Brits are in full retreat. Their last holdout is Tobruk.

Facing overwhelming odds, the defenders of Tobruk, led by MacRoberts, have resorted to a series of hit-and-run raids ot frustrate the Germans while the rest of the British army regroups near Cairo. Promised relief by the British forces, the besieged at Tobruk manage to hold out for nearly nine months against constant shelling and tank attacks. Finally, at the point of nearly pulling out, the Australian garrison is finally relieved by the British.

Generally, I thought this was a slightly above average film. James Mason's character of Rommel is hardly included in the movie at all; Burton's character of MacRoberts is the centerpiece of the film. As for the battle scenes, they are somewhat subpar as opposed to other movies I've seen. The action just isn't that great, and the actual combat lacks in authenticity and intensity. Still, I did enjoy this movie. Not knowing much about this specific theatre of combat, I did learn some things that I didn't know before. Also, I thought Richard Burton did a credible job in his role as MacRoberts. I think Mason's portrayal of Rommel was handled poorly, and I wish he could have been in more parts of the movie. I think people will enjoy this movie. It describes a lesser-known theatre of the war, and showcases how a small group of determined soldiers held out against a much larger enemy force.

The Rats of Tobruk!.......2005-04-03

The Desert Rats is an awsome film and should be watched by any War movie buff. Richard Burton is great as the tough MacRoberts and James Mason again plays Rommel to perfection. Even better there is a scene where Burton lectures Rommel on the importance on the defense of Tobruk. I was actually surprised at the quality of the battle scenes, the sound, the picture quality, and all the co-statrs were even convincing. The only annoying part of the movie is the feelings between the Aussies and MacRoberts but oh well its not that bad. This movie blew me away and I hope it does the same for you.

Average customer rating:

The Flight of the Phoenix
This one flies!
An outstanding classic!
Classic Movie of survival
Not to be Confused with the Remake

The Flight of the Phoenix
Starring: James Stewart , Richard Attenborough , Peter Finch , Hardy Krüger , and Ernest Borgnine
Director: Robert Aldrich
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
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Flight of the Phoenix (Widescreen Edition)
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ASIN: B00008MTVZ
Release Date: 2003-05-20

Amazon.com

Robert Aldrich's tense, 1965 drama about a plane crash in the Sahara is a unique psychological study of men in desperate circumstances. In this somewhat revisionist view of classic heroism, every character within the mixed lot is stretched to his limit, and individual efforts to brave the elements and hostile nomads are duly punished. What is left is collective will and ingenuity. One could call this an allegory for transcending Cold War madness, perhaps, but Aldrich (Kiss Me Deadly) makes this such a gritty, immediate experience that you can feel the desert sand in your teeth. Superb performances by James Stewart, Richard Attenborough, Hardy Krüger, Peter Finch, and the rest. --Tom Keogh

Description

James Stewart stars as the captain of a plane that has crashed in the desert and must be fixed on the double before all crew members die.

Customer Reviews:

The Flight of the Phoenix.......2007-06-27

A gripping survival film headed by a superlative cast, Aldrich's gritty "Phoenix" pits Stewart's irascible, old-school aviator against Krüger's smug, ultra-rational scientist, a tense war of wills that anchors Lukas Heller's intelligent storyline. Addressing issues of cowardice and bravery, as well as the antagonisms that divide civilization from the rule of anarchy, Aldrich gets a lot of mileage out of the scorching setting. Attenborough, Finch, Borgnine, and Dan Duryea add a colorful mix of madness and insight to the crew's efforts in fine support roles. For a manly take on desperation and its discontents, "Phoenix" is one hell of a good ride.

This one flies!.......2007-05-20

Offering the last really gritty role for Stewart before he settled into his `loveable gramps' era, 1965's The Flight of the Phoenix may run some 36 minutes longer than the disappointingly tame 2004 remake, but it feels half as long thanks to an engrossing script and a take-no-prisoners attitude from director Robert Aldrich that's a million miles away from the feelgood approach the studio took second time round. Rather than pulling together, as it becomes increasingly clear that the survivors of a plane crash in the North African desert are not going to be rescued, Aldrich sets his flawed protagonists at each others throats in a hostile environment that is driving them mad, with even his nominal hero increasingly turning his guilt at crashing off-course into anger at his passengers. The result is a compelling adventure drama with the gloves off.

Stuck in a place where even nepotism can't save you - the director's son William Aldrich and son-in-law Peter Bravos don't even make it past the credits sequence - Stewart's old-school pilot who has remembered everything and learned nothing soon finds himself at odds with Hardy Kruger's aircraft designer who comes up with the idea of building a new plane out of the parts of the old one. One making virtue out of stupidity while the other makes it a science, their clash of egos becomes far more important to each man than their possible survival. That it works is largely down to the contrast between Stewart's bitterness and Hardy Kruger's superb performance as the utterly ruthless, almost Nazi-like designer who calculates who will live and who will die and who unfortunately is all the more grating a personality for always being right. As Stewart points out, he's not concerned with getting out or saving lives, merely with proving his design will fly. And even if you already know it, the big revelation about his character in the last act is still one hell of a sucker punch.

Although the two men gradually occupy center-stage, there's an impressive supporting cast, with fine performances from Richard Attenborough's co-pilot, Peter Finch's by the book British Army officer and Christian Marquand's doctor, as well as solid turns from Ian Bannen, Ronald Fraser, Ernest Borgnine and George Kennedy (getting in some practice for all those Airport movies), although Dan Duryea, reunited with his old Anthony Mann Western sparring partner Stewart, gets the short end of the stick as the timid accountant who names the plane (though the two men did engage on a series of escalating practical jokes on the set). Amusingly Aldrich goes where Ken Hyman and Sidney Lumet refused in The Hill and adds a hallucination of an Arab dancing girl and a memorable love theme (Senza Fine, reused by Billy Wilder in Avanti) to help sell his testosterone-heavy tale as a love story in the trailers! A terrific movie, the only downside is that stunt pilot Paul Mantz died filming the film's finale.

Boasting a good 1.85:1 widescreen transfer, the only extra is the original trailer (as well as its Spanish and Portuguese versions).

An outstanding classic!.......2007-05-09

This film, like many others made in the 60's, has enduring appeal, and doesn't seem old-fashioned the way many 50's movies do. The ensemble cast is superb, led by James Stewart, who starts out as his usual "aw, shucks" character, but gets deeper and darker as the story unfolds. My favorite is Peter Finch as a stiff-upper-lip, proper British military officer paired with a dirtball sergeant.

Stewart is the pilot of an older plane that goes down in a storm in the Sahara. The survivors must eventually decide to just wait for help, or go along with a much more audacious plan to rebuild the plane. High drama, excellent casting, and a great story with a top-notch screenplay combine to create an action/adventure movie that far outlives its era.

Classic Movie of survival.......2007-05-09

I haven't had luck opening the case as the labels are glued sooo tight that I had to destroy the casing to get to the DVD. I seen this years ago and wanted a personal copy to watch, unfortunately Hollywood @!## have to wrap the DVD box soo tight that it takes a chainsaw to open the dvd case.
Plan on having some kid open the case for you.
It is a movie of survival, teamwork and faith.

Not to be Confused with the Remake.......2007-02-04

Unfortunately the remake has the same title which may cause some to forgo this marvelous original. If they watch the remake first, I doubt that they would have an interest in this great movie. What a great cast, great story, great everything. See it if you haven't.

Average customer rating:

It's all Kiefer Sutherland!
Great film noir in the desert - with many twists !
Desert Saints
Excellent
sutherland and walters are great

Desert Saints
Starring: Brent Roam , Shawn Woods , Christopher Bersh , Kiefer Sutherland , and Rachel Ticotin
Director: Richard Greenberg (IV)
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
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Eye of the Killer
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ASIN: B00009WVSU
Release Date: 2003-09-02

Amazon.com

There's lots of desert in this made-for-cable caper, but not many saints. Banks (Keifer Sutherland) is a hit man for hire and Bennie (Magnolia's Melora Walters) is the abused wife he takes on as an accomplice. She just wants a ride out of town. If it means driving the getaway car while Banks makes his next hit--so be it. As the duo drives from Arizona to Mexico for his next assignment, Banks turns out to be more sensitive than he at first appears, while the seemingly ditsy Bennie turns out to be smarter. Jamey Sheridan (Law & Order: Criminal Intent) plays the FBI agent who's hot on their trail. Desert Saints, which was coproduced by Meg Ryan and premiered on Cinemax, is a taut thriller with a twist at the end. What it lacks in humor and excitement, it makes up for with solid performances and an abundance of lost highway atmosphere. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Customer Reviews:

It's all Kiefer Sutherland!.......2006-08-09

Desert Saints brings to the screen the story of a hit man who teams up with a young woman in order to drive down to Mexico and assassinate a Mexican politician who is waging war on the drug cartels. All the while the FBI is after them. It's going to be a bumpy, and yet interesting ride indeed...
The major setback is in relation to the supporting cast who are not that great!
Kiefer Sutherland does a great job on his own in trying to keep this film afloat, and his performance is AMAZING!
In a nutshell, it's probably not a movie you would want to add to your collection, but it will surely provide for an evening's entertainment.

Great film noir in the desert - with many twists !.......2006-02-28

Even though Kiefer Sutherland turns in yet another standard Kiefer Sutherland performance (although somewhat less annoying than in 24), the inventive and surprising script combined with the superior way Melora Walters shapes her pivotal role make for an extremely entertaining and nailbiting, grossly underrated movie, which should by all standards have had a theatrical release. Melora Walters is the centrepiece of the movie, and she carries it off sublimely, switching her performance on demand from irritating to extremely competent and forceful. A definite must-see for the film noir fan !

Desert Saints.......2004-07-26

I really liked this movie and watched it in the first place cos i'm a fan of kiefer sutherland. I liked the way Banks got his own back in the end as well. I didn't give it a 5 star rating because i couldn't help finding Bennie quite annoying at times.

Excellent.......2004-03-04

This is a superb movie in regards to portraying a contract killer. It's almost just like a -How-To- manual from Rex Feral's controversial book Hit Man with the way the story goes. I'm pretty sure the writer and director who made this movie were strongly influenced by that book. What I really appreciated from the flick was that it tried to be as realistic as possible. Sutherland's character constantly forging IDs, being invisible using common creative methods, as well as the movie used common weapons seen today rather than James Bond like gadgets, or giant machine guns so commonly seen today in many dimwitted Hollywood blockbuster style movies.

To me Banks is more of a regular person instead of the James Bond/Rambo type or mafia assassin which may exist but however those people are extremely rare. Because of this it gives a new twist to these types of stories. It's realistic and shows how people are who do this type of work for a living...as bizarre as that seems. Although Sutherland's character is a very ordinary like man to me he's truly playing a realistic professional. Some people who seem to be interviewed about being in this type of work such as "The Iceman"/Richard Kuklinsky seen on HBO whose type is always caught because these type of people aren't concerned with their freedom/life causing them to get into the trade because of that, as well as wanting to be a infamous tough guy often easily seen by true criminals like him or John Gotti type personalities, etc.

Anywayzzz....to stay on topic anyone enjoying this there are two more classics to go with it in my opinion. They're -The Day of the Jackal- (73' Version of course) and -The Mechanic- with Charles Bronson. The Mechanic isn't very popular I guess because it's not simple minded Steven Seagal BS like so many of his movies were.

I highly recommend this movie to people who like to see the mental aspects of subjects like this. It's not going to be the best movie you've ever seen for most people but if you like movies like this then you'll enjoy.

sutherland and walters are great.......2003-12-06

Sutherland(Truth or Consequences N.M.) is a killer who makes women become partners in crime, manily women and then kills them after hes done with them...this time he picks the wrong woman..Melora Walters(Magnolia) who in the end turns out to be a cop..the movie ends great...Walters thinks Sutherland's dead but then we see his feet come in view of the screen..which was a great ending..Jamey Sheridan(The Ice Storm and tv's Law and Order:Criminal Intent)also stars.

Flight of the Phoenix (Widescreen Edition)

Average customer rating:

Great extras, mediocre film
Large mediocre with cheese
Alright movie
Great old-school adventure film!
An action movie...demonstrates teamwork & ingenuity among diverse characters under extremely hostile conditions!

Flight of the Phoenix (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Dennis Quaid , Tyrese Gibson , Giovanni Ribisi , Miranda Otto , and Tony Curran
Director: John Moore
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
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The Flight of the Phoenix
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ASIN: B0007KIFI2
Release Date: 2005-03-01

Amazon.com

As superfluous remakes go, Flight of the Phoenix could've been better, and could've been worse. It's a passable popcorn adventure, especially for those unfamiliar with the 1965 original, which starred James Stewart, made headlines for the crash-landing death of stunt-pilot Paul Mantz, and now stands as a minor classic of its era. This flashy remake stars Dennis Quaid in Stewart's role, adds a woman to the list of plane-crash survivors, and showcases Giovanni Ribisi, who gives a cleverly eccentric performance as the model-airplane designer who proposes to rebuild a crashed cargo plane into a single-engine escape from certain death in the remote Gobi desert. Both films are essentially identical, but this remake is somehow less believable (due to shortcuts in a haphazardly written screenplay) and much more spectacular, owing to the advantage of impressive special effects. Otherwise it's a routine dose of survivalist entertainment from the director of Behind Enemy Lines, never convincing enough to be genuinely compelling, but certainly never boring. --Jeff Shannon

Description

An action-adventure in which a group of air crash survivors - cast-offs from society who will never be missed - are stranded in the Mongolian desert with no hope of rescue. As they attempt to build a new plane from the wreckage of the old one, in hopes of flying back to civilization, they experience a rebirth of their own.

Customer Reviews:

Great extras, mediocre film.......2007-06-17

Sadly, Flight of the Phoenix is just another duff remake. Despite massive advances in special effects and a moderately exciting last two minutes, this feels even longer than Robert Aldrich's much longer original, and the reason is pretty elementary: lack of characterisation and drama. Where Aldrich typically set his flawed protagonists at each others throats in a hostile environment that was driving them mad and dealt with the way the pilot who crashes off-course in the desert turns his guilt into anger at his passengers, this is mostly feel-good stuff, full of life lessons, spiritual slogans and far too much high fiving for any self respecting survival drama - at one point they even get down and boogie. A modicum of drama is thrown in at the last minute in the wake of the key revelation about the new plane's designer, but it's so little and so late that it totters on the edge of laughable. As a result, some good actors and Giovanni Ribisi (horribly overacting the old Hardy Kruger part minus the Nazi undertones) are stranded by committee filmmaking rather than the elements and poor piloting.

Strangely, for such a bland film, the making of documentary is surprisingly gloves off, showing director John Moore in full effing and blinding mode as he throws several fits (and he's not the only one). At least one of the extended scenes (involving a biplane) was good enough to be in the feature, and the commentary throws up the odd interesting fact amid the mutual back slapping. The result is a modest extras package that easily outshines the film.

Large mediocre with cheese.......2007-04-01

Usually, movies with actors as good as those in Flight of the Phoenix guarantee that the movie will be good. Not so here. The movie is basically sound but it fails to provide real suspense. F-bombs and s-words are dropped like loose change, and there is slight innuendo. The ONLY bright spot is the acting, which cannot be faulted.

Alright movie.......2007-01-03

I got it cause it had Hugh Laurie in it.. watched it like 2 x's and then sold it on Ebay...

Great old-school adventure film!.......2006-12-19

This remake of "Flight of the Phoenix" is a load of fun. If you've never seen the original, then it holds up as a solid adventure flick in the old-fashioned tradition (which is always a good thing). If you have seen the original, then this new version still has it's own merits, and approaches the story just differently enough to allow it to stand on its own legs. This Dennis Quaid version doesn't try to equal the gut-wrenching, male-bonding acting of the original, dirty, gritty original. There are no more Jimmy Stewarts out there anymore, after all. Instead, it goes for a somewhat cleaner, more dynamic aesthetic. As a work of art, that may make this inferior to the earlier classic, but at least it isn't just a by-the-book remake. What would be the point in that, after all? As a longtime fan of the original, I found myself readily able to enjoy this new version. Both are worth seeing. Don't get me wrong. If you are only going to see one version, go with the classic version. But if you're willing to see both, I recommend doing so!

An action movie...demonstrates teamwork & ingenuity among diverse characters under extremely hostile conditions!.......2006-07-30

I understand this movie is actually a remake of an earlier movie starring James Stewart in the sixties. I did not watch the earlier movie, even though James Stewart was a favourite actor of mine, but I certainly enjoy watching this one.

The storyline is very simple: A ragtag bunch of characters on a cargo plane crash-landed somewhere in the Gobi Desert. They worked together, led (or misled?) by an eccentric character, Elliot (played menacingly by Giovanni Ribisi), who had only some experience with model air plane design, to rebuild the plane from the wreckage & then to fly back to civilisation.

In a nut shell, it is essentially a movie about the triumph of the indomitable human spirit. What I like about this movie is watching the ragtag bunch of diverse characters eventually working together & using their sheer ingenuity & imagination to rebuild the plane, in spite of extremely hostile conditions - no contact with the outside world, brutal environment (scorching sun & scathing sandstorms), dwindling resources & attack by desert marauders. The dialogue is very witty...sometimes funny...coupled by a spectacular crash sequence, which has been seemingly extended for viewers' enjoyment.

This movie also brought back some sweet memories of my trip across the southern end of the Gobi Desert about a decade ago. At that time, I was trying to retrace the journey of Marco Polo along the Silk Road. I rode on a camel as well as on four-wheels across some short stretches. The view of the sand dunes was magnificent & enchanting, but I could sense the harsh reality of the environment. [This movie was actually filmed on location in Namibia, Africa.]

Only one aspect of the movie really puzzles me. As a Chinese, I noted that the desert marauders apparently spoke Cantonese. The crash scene happened in the Mongolian part of the Gobi Desert - people there don't speak Cantonese.

Lastly but not the least, I have also enjoyed watching Dennis Quaid, one of my favourite actors, playing the lead role of Frank Towns, the crack pilot.

Overall, the movie has been great to watch.

Average customer rating:

Great extras, mediocre film
Large mediocre with cheese
Alright movie
Great old-school adventure film!
An action movie...demonstrates teamwork & ingenuity among diverse characters under extremely hostile conditions!

Flight of the Phoenix [Blu-ray]
Starring: Dennis Quaid
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: Blu-ray