Chagall

Starring:Marc Chagall
Studio: Image Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com essential video

Glenn Savan's depressing and self-loathing novel about a 27-year-old upper-class Jewish widower mired in self-pity after his beloved wife dies, and who finds love and sexual rebirth with a trailer-trash older woman, was brought to the big screen by the competent director Luis Mandoki (When a Man Loves a Woman, Message in a Bottle). But the savage irony in Savan's book has been face-lifted by screenwriters Ted Tally (The Silence of the Lambs) and Alvin Sargent (Ordinary People) into something else entirely: what passes for low-rent "slumming" in Hollywood means hiring sexy Susan Sarandon to play Nora Baker, the poor, uneducated 43-year-old waitress in a White Palace burger joint who strikes up an unlikely relationship with sad Max Baron (James Spader). Widower Max attends a bachelor party for best pal Neil (Jason Alexander) and discovers that the local White Palace has stiffed the boys a whopping six burgers. Max barges into the joint, bent on getting his money back, and meets a testy Nora, who is bemused at the young man's insolence. While driving home, Max stops abruptly at a bar for a drink. Inside, Nora is nursing a vodka and takes a shine to the tuxedo-clad, handsome, and morose younger man. He gives her a lift, she seduces him, and the rest of the movie examines how two such opposites in manners and morals can find happiness. The only common bond they have is great sex and a private tragedy. White Palace nudges at the dark journey and the smashing of illusion that was at the heart of the novel, but there is still a fairy-tale element to the film that negates the earthy essence that distinguished the book. In Mandoki's vision, White Palace is about overcoming class, family, and outside opinion to find true love. In Savan's book, Max wastes into decline while Nora ultimately thrives in the quest for truth, redemption, and self-forgiveness. She becomes his salvation only after he stops hating himself. But mainstream Hollywood shuns making "protagonists" so mad, bad, or sad, and as such, too much glitter is tossed on Spader, while Sarandon, as usual, is the only one who seems to embody and understand her character's angst. She deserved her Oscar for Nora, not the nun in Dead Man Walking. --Paula Nechak

Customer Reviews:

"What you see isn't always what you get!".......2007-05-27

I remember watching this movie long ago and I'd forgotten how sexy Susan Sarandon can be. Because of her age, (and market pressure of course) Sarandon may never be marketed or packaged and sold as sex symbol; but she should be. In White Palace, Sarandon proves my personal inclination that older women have a deliciously ample level of depth capturing and conveying the essence of womens' true sexual prowess. Or maybe this is simply evidence of my admiration for older women. In any event, this is a classy and giving love story that smolders from start to finish.

one of my favourites.......2007-05-15

This is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again. A feel good movie that is one of the best around. I love it.

Mature Romance.......2007-04-22

Don't be fooled by the steamy cover art that would lead you to believe that this is some kind of Zalman King potboiler. There are perfunctory love scenes for sure(Susan, was that a body double?) but this film is a thoughtful exploration of romance between two seemingly disparate persons that avoids both stereotyping and cliche. Both James Spader and Susan Sarandon are superb here in making us believe that their characters could bridge both the generational and cultural gaps in fulfilling a meaningful relationship. My only qualification here is I don't think that certain story elements were fleshed out enough.

White Palace.......2007-01-12

I like both actors featured in this movie.
Had seen it years ago and remembered it.
I think it is a good love story.
A bit predictable but well worth watching.

White Palace.......2006-08-06

no subtitles at all; as I am over 77 years of age , subtitles
are a must for DVD

Average customer rating:

Quite possbily the dumbest, most unrealistic movie ever made.
The Last Supper
great little film
Fundamentalist Librals yeah look what they could do
DARK SATIRE OF THE LEFT AND RIGHT

Last Supper (Ws Sub)
Starring: Cameron Diaz , Ron Eldard , Annabeth Gish , Jonathan Penner , and Courtney B. Vance
Director: Stacy Title
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

( L ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B00007CVRS
Release Date: 2003-01-07

Amazon.com

Painted in mile-wide strokes of black satirical comedy, The Last Supper turns intolerance into a parlor trick, then repeats it ad nauseam in case we missed the joke. Still, redundancy can be fun when applied to the premeditated murder of right-wing extremists by self-righteous left-wing zealots; director Stacy Title is an equal-opportunity offender, never taking sides. The grisly high jinks commence when a truck-driving, child-molesting, Hitler-loving ex-Marine (Bill Paxton, acing the role) is accidentally killed while dining with a clutch of snobby liberal grad students, played with uniform excellence by Cameron Diaz (showing early promise), Ron Eldard, Courtney B. Vance, Annabeth Gish, and coproducer Jonathan Penner. Having acquired a taste for blood, the wine-poisoning liberals stage "last suppers" with hand-picked targets (Charles Durning, Mark Harmon, Jason Alexander, and ultimately Ron Perlman), eventually attracting a suspicious sheriff (fine work by SNL alumnus Nora Dunn). It's got all the subtlety of a pile-driver, but The Last Supper craftily defends free speech by exposing its most vicious violations. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Quite possbily the dumbest, most unrealistic movie ever made........2007-06-25

Hard to watch since you could drive a semi through the plot holes, and the ending should have been so obvious to the main characters.

Plus, NO ONE ever told their friends where they were going for dinner?

Just a terrible movie through and through.

The Last Supper.......2007-03-10

Excellent movie with a wonderful reversal at the end. Good for its sociopolitical rammifications

great little film.......2006-12-18

To express it in non-American political terms:

The movie revolves around 1990s students who, being middle-class with some conscience, agonize and cannot decide if they are good liberals or genuine leftists. By killing people who express morally and socially repressive views, they think that they have found a solution. Nevertheless, they are firmly stuck within the ideology of individualism (hence, the initial naive, or even stupid premise that if you eliminated Hitler, fascism would not have come about).

Finally, they are tricked and killed by a wily demagogue who, being himself a liberal in the 19th c sense (ie he does not advocate monarchy and accepts the trappings of a liberal democracy such as parliaments and elections), poses the same question that has crippled the US left for most of the century: free speech (notably, the movie does not problematize big media -- it's all an individual choice, right?).

You could argue the Clintonite intelligentsia lefty-liberal students get what they deserve from a fellow liberal on the rightist side of the spectrum. This is what makes the movie so amusing and appealing to all kinds of American liberals, whether on the left or on the right: is it a tragedy, a comedy or a farce?

We'll see the next round of this game in 2008, folks...and it won't be for the better of most of us, especially for the conservative pinkoes among us.

Fundamentalist Librals yeah look what they could do.......2006-10-03

You have heard of fundamentalist Christians and Muslims and what that can do. Look what could theoretically happen when a bunch of librals gets fundamentalist too. This is not a movie about christ and the last supper. This is about the people at the table you see on the cover. I do not want to give this away. It is a great movie. Look at what happened when these people's ideas went astray.

DARK SATIRE OF THE LEFT AND RIGHT.......2006-09-28

"The Last Supper" is a great gem of a film that spoofs both the left and the right. The story centers around five liberal graduate students who gather around the dinner table not only for their meal, but to take in the days political and social talk. Enter a guest whose car has broken down (Bill Paxton). He has been given a lift by (Ron Eldard). Offered food and shelter, the conversation shifts to politics. And here is where the film takes off. Paxton is a veteran of the Gulf War and ridicules his guests as pseudo-intellectuals who only talk, but never act.

However, things turn for the worse when he pulls out a knife and threatens one of the liberal students. In turn, he is accidentally killed. When the others find out later that he was wanted in the connection with a missing child [suspected serial killer] they believe they have done good. Moreover, they take it to another step: such as inviting rightwing demogogues and other extremists to their weekend dinner with the intent to kill them, and therefore, in their eyes, rid the world of evil. Only their own moral and ethical tenets are put to the test when they begin to kill anyone who happens to harbor even the slightest rightward tilt.

One of the funniest guests is a pastor [Charles Durning] who happens to believe AIDS is Gods will, and that those who suffer from it are only being made to suffer due to Gods will. His character is very funny. However, when they happen to stumble upon their greatest nemesis, [Ron Perlman] who portrays a sort of Rush Limbaugh type character, his logic challenges them at the dinner table. In turn they choose not to kill him. [All five must agree to the killing]. If any single one of them say no, then they cannot go ahead with the killing.

This largely forgotten classic dark-comedy is full of funny wit. Both the guests with their extreme rightwing views; and their five liberal hosts, make for one funny and witty satire of both the extreme elements of the left and the right. The writing is very witty as both the liberal students as well as their rightwing guests are parodied to the hilt. I have this film on DVD, however, amazon has it listed only as a VHS. If you can, get hold of a copy, it is well worth owning. Highly recommended. [Stars: 5+]

Artists of the 20th Century - Marc Chagall

Average customer rating:

Dull Work on an Unusual Painter

Artists of the 20th Century - Marc Chagall
Starring: Artists of the 20th Century
Manufacturer: Kultur Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Biography | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

Art & Artists | Special Interests | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Artists of the 20th Century: Henri Matisse
Artists of the 20th Century - Wassily Kandinsky
Artists of the 20th Century: Salvador Dali
Artists of the 20th Century - Paul Klee
Artists of the 20th Century - Pablo Picasso

ASIN: B00019G8BK
Release Date: 2004-02-10

Description

The definitive biography of artist Marc Chagall accompanied by spectacular images of his greatest work.

Customer Reviews:

Dull Work on an Unusual Painter.......2007-03-15

This work teaches the viewer about the anti-Semitic discrimination that Chagall and his family faced in Russia. It speaks of how his work differed from the surreal art of Western Europe. It even proved that no all of his work, especially earlier productions, were surreal.

Still, this was a somewhat dull art lecture just put on a DVD. I think high school art students would not pay attention to it if their teachers spent a class period showing it. Most viewers will not want to sit through slide after slide and hear babble after babble. This may only be for hardcore Chagall fans or those who want to learn more about a potential idol.

Average customer rating:

"What you see isn't always what you get!"
one of my favourites
Mature Romance
White Palace
White Palace

White Palace
Starring: Susan Sarandon , James Spader , Jason Alexander , Kathy Bates , and Eileen Brennan
Director: Luis Mandoki
Manufacturer: Good Times Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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

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

( W ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Dream Lover
sex, lies, and videotape
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ASIN: B00000F4O0
Release Date: 2001-05-01

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

"What you see isn't always what you get!".......2007-05-27

one of my favourites.......2007-05-15

This is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again. A feel good movie that is one of the best around. I love it.

Mature Romance.......2007-04-22

White Palace.......2007-01-12

I like both actors featured in this movie.
Had seen it years ago and remembered it.
I think it is a good love story.
A bit predictable but well worth watching.

White Palace.......2006-08-06

no subtitles at all; as I am over 77 years of age , subtitles
are a must for DVD

Average customer rating:

MYSTIC ARTIST

Chagall
Director: Kim Evans
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Biography | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

Jewish Heritage | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

Art & Artists | Special Interests | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Homage to Chagall
Joan Miro - Constellations: Color of Poetry
Artists of the 20th Century - Marc Chagall
Miro - Theatre of Dreams
Picasso: The Man and His Work - Part 2 (1938-1973)

ASIN: B000055XMR
Release Date: 2001-01-16

Amazon.com

Chagall is a portrait of portraits, for it studies the art as much as the artist while it explains how Marc Chagall came to create joyous and fantastical paintings, a rarity in the early 1900s. The production's conceit is in following the journey of a young artist who sets out to find out why "the grand old man of French painting" came to paint the way he did. The camera follows him as he visits places Chagall lived and worked, views exhibits, and seemingly ponders installations of astonishing art, including a ceiling painting for the Paris Opera and stained-glass windows that appear painted with light. Stock footage of historical events is interwoven with stills and film showing Chagall at work. The pace, which can seem slow at times, is an asset, for it lingers on his paintings, allowing you to study them. In the end, the conceit works, and "the man of masks" is, at least, partly revealed. --Valerie J. Nelson

Description

During his own lifetime, Marc Chagall became a legend--the grand old man of French painting. Born in the Jewish ghetto in provincial Russia, he broke away from the restrictions of poverty and religious constraints to become swept up in the political and artistic maelstrom of the Russian Revolution before moving to Paris, at that time the artistic capital of Europe. Cubism, Expressionism, Surrealism--Chagall learned from all of these movements and rubbed shoulders with many of the great painters and poets of the century, but he stayed very much his own man and developed a unique style which was his hallmark through the years. This important film was completed shortly before Chagall's death and is the only film made about this great artist during his lifetime.

Customer Reviews:

MYSTIC ARTIST.......2000-09-18

A flying cow, an artist with seven fingers, two lovers engaged in an intimate kiss but one of them has an elongated neck that resembles a snake and then we see the face of a fiddler, a green face. What in the world are these images doing on a canvas? Is the artist insane or just playing with our minds? If you have come across those images, welcome to the world of Marc Chagall who captivated art lovers for over half a century.

Who is this man? We are given a guided tour of his works and life by an artist who is trying to figure out the same question. He does this by taking us to the places where Chagall worked, introduces us to Chagall's techniques as a painter and explores the impact of his personal life on his art. Born in a Jewish Ghetto in Russia and later moving to Paris, Chagall rose to become the greatest artist of his time.

Customer Reviews:

Homage to Chagall.......2007-07-03

A demanding but richly rewarding study of this magnificent artist, who lived and worked in France. A poet and mystic as well as painter, Chagall was a fascinating personality. Here, haunting shots of his work are juxtaposed with readings of the artist's own words by actors Mason and Wiseman. What emerges from Rasky's tribute is a profound portrait of a bona-fide genius, whose goal was to portray the many shades and facets of love.

Not a bad film... just a bad print.......2007-02-03

The movie was pretty good, with lots of
shots of some of Chagall's most lovely pieces. But the
DVD was very blurry and the colors were VERY faded throughout, making
us feel like we were watching a VHS tape that had been dubbed
from another VHS tape which had been dubbed from another... and another.

One other complaint was the painfully poor dubbing over Chagall's
voice during the Q&A session. It was distracting and amateurish.
The only
thing worse than the dubbing was watching Chagall's wife trying to translate what he was saying into English. She clearly had
no talent for translating, and admitted it. Why didn't the director use subtitles?

Average customer rating:

The Last Supper [Region 2]
Starring: Cameron Diaz , Ron Eldard , Annabeth Gish , Jonathan Penner , and Courtney B. Vance
Director: Stacy Title
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( L ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Last Supper (Ws Sub)

ASIN: B000083EF7

Average customer rating:

"What you see isn't always what you get!"
one of my favourites
Mature Romance
White Palace
White Palace

White Palace [Region 2]
Starring: Susan Sarandon , James Spader , Jason Alexander , Kathy Bates , and Eileen Brennan
Director: Luis Mandoki
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

( W ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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sex, lies, and videotape
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The Stickup

ASIN: B0000UM0OO

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

"What you see isn't always what you get!".......2007-05-27

one of my favourites.......2007-05-15

This is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again. A feel good movie that is one of the best around. I love it.

Mature Romance.......2007-04-22

White Palace.......2007-01-12

I like both actors featured in this movie.
Had seen it years ago and remembered it.
I think it is a good love story.
A bit predictable but well worth watching.

White Palace.......2006-08-06

no subtitles at all; as I am over 77 years of age , subtitles
are a must for DVD

THE NANNY REUNION SPECIAL - A NOSH TO REMEMBER

Average customer rating:

THE NANNY REUNION SPECIAL - A NOSH TO REMEMBER
Starring: Charles Shaughnessy , Daniel Davis , lauren Lane , Nicole Tom , and Benjamin Salisbury
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Television | Genres | DVD | Video

Reunion Special
New Sealed DVD

ASIN: B000MA1OVW

Product Description

The original cast of The Nanny all get together at Fran's Ocean front home. You will see some of the best clips and watch their home movies, bloopers that no one has ever seen. Join Fran and the rest of the cast for her Nosh to Remember.

Average customer rating:

Homage to Chagall
Not a bad film... just a bad print

Homage to Chagall: The Colours of Love
Starring: Jean Gascon , James Mason , and Joseph Wiseman
Director: Harry Rasky
Manufacturer: Kino Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

( H ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Chagall
Artists of the 20th Century - Marc Chagall
Picasso: Magic Sex Death
My Life
Dali

ASIN: B00001ODI7
Release Date: 1999-06-22

Customer Reviews:

Homage to Chagall.......2007-07-03

Not a bad film... just a bad print.......2007-02-03

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