Double Platinum

Starring:Diana Ross, Brandy Norwood, Christine Ebersole, Allen Payne, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Roger Rees, Samantha Brown, Ed Lover, Peter Francis James, Harvey Fierstein, Marie Lillo, Lou Carbonneau, Adriane Lenox, John Di Benedetto, Jacinto Taras Riddick, Ron C. Jones, Bernard Addison, Lisa Renee Pitts, Terry Alexander, Moss Porter
Director: Robert Allan Ackerman
Studio: Sony Pictures
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
A soapy backstage melodrama originally produced for network broadcast, Double Platinum downplays show biz verisimilitude to turn on the tears. With '60s soul queen Diana Ross and '90s pop princess Brandy sharing production credit as well as billing, this formulaic tearjerker focuses on its stars' dramatic chops more than their musical prowess, a choice that won't deter their respective audiences, even as it disappoints less partisan music fans who might have hoped for a stronger musical component.

Olivia King (Ross) is the former St. Louis housewife who abandoned her family for pop stardom, only to return 18 years later determined to meet, and reconcile with, her daughter, Kayla (Brandy), now nurturing her own footlight fantasies. But when the prodigal mom finally does reveal herself to the bright, feisty teen, Kayla is outraged and then hard-boiled. Olivia's offer to help the undeniably talented girl make industry contacts is accepted, with the bitter caveat that the superstar should abandon any hopes of a true maternal bond with her embittered daughter. The usually imperious Olivia meekly accepts those terms, while the secretly yearning Kayla keeps up her tough-cookie cover, but the plot telegraphs its ultimate destination, even as the tears flow.

Amazon.com

A soapy backstage melodrama originally produced for network broadcast, Double Platinum downplays show biz verisimilitude to turn on the tears. With '60s soul queen Diana Ross and '90s pop princess Brandy sharing production credit as well as billing, this formulaic tearjerker focuses on its stars' dramatic chops more than their musical prowess, a choice that won't deter their respective audiences, even as it disappoints less partisan music fans who might have hoped for a stronger musical component.

Customer Reviews:

Movie.......2007-01-09

My friend had been looking all over for this movie. I knew that I could count on Amazon to have it. Received the movie within five days in perfect condition. She was very happy. She watches it over and over again.

double platinum.......2006-12-28

double platnium is one of the best movies i've ever seen. it has a magnifesent cast.brandy did a wonderful job playing kayla. also diana did a wonderful job playing olivia.this is a must see movie.i know i cried a few times. when i saw it i rented it a million times.then on my last birthday i got it.i've watched it another million times since.i also loved the songs that brandy and diana sang.like have you ever,almost doesn't count,love is all that matters,and happ. it is a wonderful drama.i loved that movie so much.i am so glad that they came out with that movie.also the cast.

Double Platinum.......2006-08-05

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Double Platinum was heartwarming as well as inspiring. Diana Ross is truly the consummate diva. She captures your attention whenever she walks out on a stage. The music made me cry, dance, think, and it made me want to sing. Yes, I ordered the CD, Every Day is a New Day! I have worn the grooves out of the CD and watched the movie three times. The duet with Diana Ross and Brandy was one of the highlights of the movie.I hope you will enjoy it as much as I have.

Enjoyable Diana Ross Flick.......2006-06-14

Despite soul music legend, Diana Ross remaining one of the most successful female recording artist in history (a total of eighteen U.S number one hit titles to her credit) her movie career has never quite hit the heights of success as anticipated following her breathtaking performance as tortured Jazz legend, Billie Holiday in the oscar-nominated, Lady Sings The Blues (1972).

Following Lady Sings The Blues, Diana went on to star in the moderately successful, Mahogany (1975), The Wiz (1978) which was a hip, all-black version of The Wizard Of Oz (which subsequently bombed at the Box Office as well as enduring much ridicule from critics) whilst winning deserved and wide critical acclaim for her harrowing performance as a paranoid schitznophrenic in the devastating movie, Out Of Darkness (1993).
(Diana Ross also pursued an obsessive interest in playing the role of 1920's dancing legend, Josephine Baker who became the darling of Paris and was renowned for dancing topless, but sadly the role would later be taken by Lynne Whitfield in a T.V mini series adaptation, much to Ross' dismay).

In 1999, she starred alongside R&B teen sensation Brandy in Double Platinum which was directed by Robert Ackerman whom Diana Ross worked with closely (it's also clear that she was able to provide many of her own ad-libs throughout the film).

The plot of the movie unravels where Olivia (Diana Ross - the character is a mere imitation of the Ross mystique and legendary status) is a struggling lounge singer at a downtown nightclub who inadverently abandons her daughter Kayla (Brandy) to pursue her showbiz dreams.

Flash foward 18 years later and Olivia is now a superstar phenomenon to whom Kayla - who is still ignorant of her orgins and is embarking on her own singing career - goes to for advice. When Kayla finds out that Olivia is infact her mother she becomes bitter and almost vengeful and allows Olivia to introduce her to some useful contacts in the business though makes it blatantly clear that it's purley to further her own career and not to form any sort of mother-daughter bond as Olivia hopes.

Whilst certainly being somewhat predictable where the scripts certainly run through a fair few old-fashioned cliches, the film is firmly enhanced by the dramatic and on-screen presence of Diana Ross. Her heart is clearly in the role and carries the film so convincingly proving that she hadn't lost any of that dramatic power and dazzling on-screen presence that had made Lady Sings The Blues (1972) such an enduring success.

R&B singer, Brandy, puts in a likeable performance and the two stars enjoy a number of dramatically moving and impressivley powerful scenes together.

The film is a tear-jerker and though the ending is predictable, is still so heart-warming and encapsulates a genuine feel-good factor. The film closes with the two stars singing the sparkling, vibrant ballad, Love Is All That Matters (a solo version can be found on Diana Ross' 1999 studio entry, Everyday Is A New Day on which many tracks that she sings in this film are also featured).

A personal highlight of the film for me is her endearing performance of the gospel-flavoured, He Lives In You which she sings with style, conviction and verve, where she is backed by an extradionary South African choir and orchestra. Diana also proves she still hasn't lost any of that fire and sassiness from her earlier years and is still the dynamic diva when she performs the rip-roaring dance tune, Carry On, at the award ceremony sequences and belts the song out with all her heart and soul sounding like a true club mama in the process.

Double Platinum does career along at times like an extended soap opera and whilst critics argued that this is purely an old-fashioned tale that has been doen countless times before, it really is just a joy to see Diana Ross back on the screen who makes the most of her role, biting into it with a vengeance and displaying a raw, instinctive performance that is both credible and convincing.

Ian Phillips

Not widescreen.......2006-01-15

Double Platinum was filmed in Widescreen even though it was a made for tv movie. the region 2 PAL dvd in the UK is Widescreen. Re-release this dvd in widescreen

Average customer rating:

A 3-and-one-half star edge-of-the-chair thriller
Hidden Gem

Backfire
Starring: Karen Allen , Jay Brazeau , Virginia Capers , Bernie Casey , and Leslie Ewen
Director: Gilbert Cates
Manufacturer: Platinum Disc
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Customer Reviews:

A 3-and-one-half star edge-of-the-chair thriller.......2006-10-11

This UK-based ITC Productions 93-minute 1987 film fits comfortably in the same genre as "Above Suspicion" (Christopher Reeve), "Murder by Natural Causes" (Hal Holbrook), and "Death Trap" (Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine): not strictly murder mysteries, but close.

Non-working Donny (Jeff Fahey) isolates himself on a small Pacific-northwest island in an elaborate mansion inherited with sister Jill (Dinah Manoff) from the estate of their late rich parents. He is having terrible, repetitive flashback dreams of his Vietnam battlefield experiences which spill over into his waking hours. He also obsesses that wife Mara (Karen Allen) has unwholesome side interests in old flame Jake (Dean Paul Martin) - perhaps also part of Donny's post-traumatic stresses? Enterprising and money-conscious Mara, a local timber mill manager from the more deprived side of the social tracks, thinks Donny's mental state is deteriorating and attempts to deal with the situation as she deems best. Enter mysterious stranger Reed (Keith Carridine) who seems ready to fill any gaps that may develop; followed by Clinton James (Bernie Casey, Martian Chronicles' Spender) as the suspicious, nosy sheriff who gets involved when Jake disappears and things start snapping.

This tidy thriller has an engagingly convoluted plot; surprises even for the jaded; good British Columbia cinematography; fine acting and direction; realistic dialog; and a fairly good script (but with better reasons available, why did Mara return home during the night just because no one answered the phone?) With some ambiguities, this film is untainted by obvious Hollywood-style plot meddling, gratuitous sex and gore, and juvenility.

Originally filmed in Panavision, the unfortunate aspect ratio of this DVD is 4x3, though (remaining) picture and sound are fine. Hardly a profound masterpiece, but for the price, this entertaining film is nevertheless a pretty good buy.

Hidden Gem.......2004-01-28

For anyone who enjoys a solid mystery with good, interesting characters, Backfire is the movie. Seemingly missed among mainstream movies, this one is a breath of fresh air when compared to the many lackluster, computerized movies Hollywood seems to produce today. Excellent movie with surprising ending.

Average customer rating:

The Immortals
Starring: Kevin Bernhardt , Steve Buscemi , Tia Carrere , Brian Finney , and William Forsythe
Director: Brian Grant
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Ann Rule Presents: The Stranger Beside Me - The Ted Bundy Story

Average customer rating:

Read the Book and Stick with The Facts
A shallow story for a shallow person
Fairly Disappointing

Ann Rule Presents: The Stranger Beside Me - The Ted Bundy Story
Starring: Bill Campbell , Barbara Hershey , Kevin Dunn , Suki Kaiser , and Brenda James
Director: Paul Shapiro
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Release Date: 2005-12-27

Customer Reviews:

Read the Book and Stick with The Facts.......2007-06-10

all of the Ted Bunies Movies have been so farfetched. i wanted to see the true STORY of Ted Bundy!! i didnt get that. i want them to show us what his life was like growing up as a child and slowly progress into 1974 so we get the whole picture...little things also annoyed me! if you havnt read the book, dont watch the movie!! everything in it is false. the color of his VW, the names of the victims..even great parts of the book were edited out. boring. boring. boring.

A shallow story for a shallow person.......2006-12-02

For the price ($5.50), I found it to be a good picture. Upon viewing it initially I was disappointed but after thinking about it for a while, I realized that this movie should be done in a shallow way. That's because thats what Ted Bundy really was, just like Scott Peterson and others who murder strangers and family alike. All his "good" talents were really morphed over time. Too bad he was born to be handsome later, but accompanied by different influences that turned out to be deadly probably starting in 1962.

Fairly Disappointing.......2006-08-20

I bought this DVD after reading Ann Rule's fascinating book of the same name. A longtime fan of both Billy Campbell and Barbara Hershey, I was anxious to see their portrayal of Rule's riveting (and true) story about her longtime friendship with Ted Bundy. Unfortunately, I was disappointed.

Everyone knows that made-for-TV movies often lack the quality acting and scripting of feature films, and this one was no exception. Although I know Hershey and Campbell to be fine actors, I think the poor quality of the script dragged them down in this instance. The most riveting feature of Rule's book was her emotional dilemma in trying to reconcile the Ted Bundy she knew as a witty, giving friend with the gruesome serial killer he became. Rule's struggle about what she feels for Bundy -- if she should stand by him or turn her back on him -- just doesn't come across in this movie, nor does the lingering affection she feels for the man even AFTER she accepts what he's done. Perhaps it's because so much of the development of the Rule/Bundy friendship is either changed or left out entirely. In my opinion, the weak script just didn't provide enough opportunity for Campbell and Hershey to generate any kind of chemistry at all.

More often than not, Hershey portrays Rule as someone who is often annoyed with Ted and simply tolerates him even BEFORE she learns what he's done. I never really buy them as good friends at all. I did not get the same impression from Rule's book in which she seems to feel rushes of emotion for Ted, and often wants to protect him as a big sister might. Certainly Rule detested Ted's acts and felt betrayed by him, but right up until the end, she felt true emotion for the friend she once knew. I don't get any of that from Hershey's version. Campbell's performance as Bundy is ok -- even decent at certain times - but again, a weak script limits him.

Factually, this movie is riddled with glaring mistakes that will really annoy someone familiar with Bundy's murder sprees. The changing of victims' names is totally justified, but things like the circumstances of Bundy's final arrest, his two escapes from jail, the way he flees from the Chi Omega crime scene, and even the color of his VW are unecessarily rewritten -- and not even in a way that improves the drama. Bundy's famous kidnapping and murder of two girls from Lake Sammamish State Park in 1974 is left out altogether.

Perhaps this patched together TV movie was even more disappointing because the source material was so rich -- and so wasted. I don't know if Ann Rule wrote the teleplay, but if she did, that's even more of a crime. The emotion between important "characters" -- all based on real people -- just falls flat.

I have not seen the Mark Harmon TV-movie on Bundy (The Deliberate Stranger), but from what I can gather, you'd be better off obtaining and watching this one rather than the Campbell/Hershey version.

Average customer rating:

This is PG-13 garbage

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Starring: Craig Stepp , Holly Sampson , Nicole Hilbig , and Kyle Kleefeld
Director: Madison Monroe
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Release Date: 2005-10-04

Customer Reviews:

This is PG-13 garbage.......2007-03-10

I love Holly Sampson and she looks great in this film. The problem is that this film has edited every love scene into some sort of joke. If there is an unedited version then this could be a good softcore movie but the version I purchased was garbage. Is there anything worse then a edited softcore movie?

Average customer rating:

Interesting twist on the Casino biz
ROCK HUDSON'S LAST FILM

The Vegas Casino War
Starring: Robert Costanzo , Rock Hudson , James Earl Jones , Noriyuki "Pat" Morita , and Tony Russell
Director: George Englund
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Interesting twist on the Casino biz.......2007-05-13

Interesting twist on the Casino biz.
Sharon Stone MMMMM LOL!!
Fun movie, with a fun no limit ending!!

ROCK HUDSON'S LAST FILM.......2006-09-09

and it's a good one....even though this movie was made for tv during progressive stages of his illness, rock hudson still carries the show with the charisma that made him famous...he plays a donald trump-like casino persona who at one minute is on top of the world and the next flat broke...james earl jones is outrageous, sharon stone is so young, and pat morita is his usual self...but it's rock hudson, with withdrawn cheekbones soon to die, who breaths life into this film as he did as president in another excellent made-for-tv movie, world war III...what a powerful and daring performance he delivers to end his career...the gamble,lost in real life, here becomes an immortal win.

Average customer rating:

To love, honour & murder (?)

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Starring: Adrien Brody , Holly Gagnier , Nicholas Pasco , Jeff Wincott , and Kari Wuhrer
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To love, honour & murder (?).......2005-12-05

The men in Mario's (Adrien Brody) family all die young, so Mario is desperate to find love. So desperate in fact, that he scares off his latest girlfriend Louise (Holly Gagnier). And being a undertaker also doesn't help him on his quest!

But business is booming, thanks to a ongoing mob war between two families. This war isn't helped any when hitman Rocco kills three opposing family members, unknowingly witnessed by Louise. To protect Rocco, his brother Alberto (Burt Young) fakes Rocco's death, then starts arranging for him to be moved out of the country. Until then however, Rocco needs somewhere to hide out. And where better then Mario's funeral home?

So 'cousin Albert' comes to stay with Mario. Of course, there are soon problems: Mario fancies Rocco's 'Widow' Maria (Kari Wuhrer), Louise fancies the false beard wearing Rocco, a bord Rocco makes a play for Louise, while Mario tries to woo her back.

Just when you think it can't get any worse, hot-headed Maria lets her temper get the better of her in a big way. So Mario rushes to help her, otherwise she'll need his professional services!

Average customer rating:

C.I.A. II: Target Alexa
Starring: Kathleen Kinmont , Larry Manetti , John Ryan , John Savage , and Lorenzo Lamas
Director: Lorenzo Lamas
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Release Date: 2005-12-13

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Zorro's Black Whip
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Release Date: 2004-02-24

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Jekyll & Hyde
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