CD-Charts Position 1
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The Shield - Season 1 [2002]

starring: Michael Chiklis, Walton Goggins, Jay Karnes, Michael Jace, Catherine Dent
directed by: Clark Johnson, D.J. Caruso, Gary Fleder, Guy Ferland, Leslie Libman

Release Date July 21, 2003
...Oh, you thought that was The Wire? Th Shield is much better. Everything here is driven by character - and these are some of the most fascinating, flawed, complex characters to be found anywhere in fiction. There are none of the archly winsome performances and "writerly" dialogue and scene juxtapositions that in The Wire keep reminding you that you're watching a work of fiction. The Shield sucks you right in. Start at the beginning and you're in for a visceral experience that is the nearest TV drama has got to Shakespearean tragedy.

CD-Charts Position 2
Average Rating:

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The Shield : Series 2

starring: Michael Chiklis, Catherine Dent, Walton Goggins, Michael Jace, Kenny Johnson
directed by: Brad Anderson, Davis Guggenheim, Félix Enríquez Alcalá, Guy Ferland, John Badham

Release Date August 09, 2004
the second season of the shield starts 4/5 weks after the first season ended. vic mackey's personal life is falling apart as his wife has disappeared with the kids!!! this season sees major changes for all the characters and some new faces on both sides of the fight. throughout the season the strike team are trying to get their hands on their "retirement" fund, which is mostly dodgy dealings which they are known best for. great writing, great acting and the real life feel is still there!!!

CD-Charts Position 3
Average Rating:

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Benny And Joon [1993]

starring: Johnny Depp, Mary Stuart Masterson, Aidan Quinn, Julianne Moore, Oliver Platt
directed by: Jeremiah S. Chechik

Release Date July 23, 2001
I recently purchased this DVD after reading the reviews on amazon! Im glaad i did! its such a lovely film and Johnny Depp is fab in it with his yet again eccentric character choice! its a romantic comedy, which i will watch over and over again! fab!

CD-Charts Position 4
Average Rating:

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Face/Off [1997]

starring: John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Joan Allen, Alessandro Nivola, Gina Gershon
directed by: John Woo

Release Date June 11, 2001
"Face Off" is that rarest of films, an intelligent and soulful action movie which is both excellent and bad in equal measure.

In fact, as far as I can remember, only "The Last Boy Scout" starring Bruce Willis was comparable; an exploration of the characters' humanity which was almost ruined by the usual clichés.

Aside from the slow-motion gun battle in which the young boy is listening to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," almost all of the `Action' in this film is gratuitous rubbish. The metaphors are so blatant that they might as well be highlighted in neon. Even the plot itself is wildly implausible and full of gaping chasms. So in the end, the one thing that earned this film four stars was Nicolas Cage's incredible acting.
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CD-Charts Position 5
Average Rating:

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End Of Days [1999]

starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Gabriel Byrne, Robin Tunney, Kevin Pollak, CCH Pounder
directed by: Peter Hyams

Release Date August 01, 2005
End of days is a film that has had alot of criticism thrown at it and clearly some of it has stuck,it isnt a perfect film,there are flaws and holes in the storyline and the odd trick doesnt work but in terms of being dark and sinister this film has it nailed on.
Arnie pops up as a beaten down drunk who has lost his faith and much more besides,gabe byrne plays the devil who needs to concieve the spawn of satan and unlock the gates of hell,both forces are sure to meet.
The film has some good ideas,while not always realised there is plenty to admire,the violence is good and the pace of the film is lively enough,there is room for sentiment also as arnie has his flaws and is far from a 'terminator' here,as another reviewer stated this compares to other ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 6
Average Rating:

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Bagdad Cafe [1988]

starring: CCH Pounder, Marianne Sägebrecht, Jack Palance
directed by: Percy Adlon

Release Date May 11, 2002
I bought this because of the Amazon 5star rating. On the upside it's quirky. The back cover describes it as a comedy - it has strong elements of German humour with conceptual developments of jokes: it does have some good jokes and it is amusing, but I doubt many English people would think it a comedy.
The pace quickens after the first half hour from comatose to slow, if you can stay with it that long.
It is goppingly sentimental, and the nearer you are to the end of the film, the nearer you should keep the bucket.
Overall rating - "Harmless"

CD-Charts Position 7
Average Rating:

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Return to Lonesome Dove [1993]

starring: Jon Voight, Barbara Hershey, Rick Schroder, Louis Gossett Jr., William Petersen
directed by: Mike Robe

Release Date October 07, 2002
The original Lonesome Dove was a milestone in cinema - a big budget epic, which was driven by developments in characters rather than events. So how to follow such an evocative drama? Well, surprisingly well as it happens - by continuing the coming of age of Newt, Captain Calls unacknowledged son. Events this time are more event driven, with a faster pace than Lonesome Dove. Following the death and burial of Gus in the first series, the Captain gathers a new crew to take a herd of horses North to his new ranch. Meantime, the ranch is having its own difficulties, and Newt falls in with a rancher played by Oliver Reed, not least due to the allure of his wife, played by a surprisingly young looking Reese Witherspoon. Events move on at a fair lick, smoothing over the occasional ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 8
Average Rating:

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Prizzi's Honor [1985]

starring: Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, Robert Loggia, John Randolph, William Hickey
directed by: John Huston

Release Date April 08, 2002
So many of the laughs in Prizzi's Honor come from the plot twists (most of them included in the film's trailer, conspicuous by its absence on this DVD) that it's best not to go into it knowing too much. The fact that I'd forgotten so many of them is perhaps why I enjoyed it so much more the second time around. It's a civilized entertainment - perhaps a little too civilized at times, although William Hickey's deathly white vampiric Don gives a whole new meaning to the phrase Cookie Monster - elegantly made and plotted, which wasn't so rare in 1985 but these days is a positive novelty. Jack Nicholson's hamming it up again, but not as much as usual as the luckless Mafia enforcer who meets the woman of his dreams only to discover she's ripped off the family. His comparative restraint ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
Average Rating:

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Girlfriends: The Fourth Season (REGION 1) (NTSC)

starring: Crystal Kwon, Lisa Lang, Michelle Noh, Jill Scott, CeCe Tsou
directed by: Katy Garretson, Leonard R. Garner Jr., Mary Lou Belli, Salim Akil, Sheldon Epps

Release Date July 29, 2008
So many of the laughs in Prizzi's Honor come from the plot twists (most of them included in the film's trailer, conspicuous by its absence on this DVD) that it's best not to go into it knowing too much. The fact that I'd forgotten so many of them is perhaps why I enjoyed it so much more the second time around. It's a civilized entertainment - perhaps a little too civilized at times, although William Hickey's deathly white vampiric Don gives a whole new meaning to the phrase Cookie Monster - elegantly made and plotted, which wasn't so rare in 1985 but these days is a positive novelty. Jack Nicholson's hamming it up again, but not as much as usual as the luckless Mafia enforcer who meets the woman of his dreams only to discover she's ripped off the family. His comparative restraint ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 10
Average Rating:

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Face Off [HD DVD] [1997] [US Import]

starring: John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Joan Allen, Alessandro Nivola, Gina Gershon
directed by: John Woo

Release Date October 30, 2007
"Face Off" is that rarest of films, an intelligent and soulful action movie which is both excellent and bad in equal measure.

In fact, as far as I can remember, only "The Last Boy Scout" starring Bruce Willis was comparable; an exploration of the characters' humanity which was almost ruined by the usual clichés.

Aside from the slow-motion gun battle in which the young boy is listening to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," almost all of the `Action' in this film is gratuitous rubbish. The metaphors are so blatant that they might as well be highlighted in neon. Even the plot itself is wildly implausible and full of gaping chasms. So in the end, the one thing that earned this film four stars was Nicolas Cage's incredible acting.

To be honest, as far as I'm ... Read More: