Rocket Science Review

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(More customer reviews)For some, the joys of being a teenager include excelling at sports, having a girlfriend or boyfriend, being part of a close circle of friends, or just having fun. For others, there is only the constant feeling of being an outsider looking in. For some, even the thought of getting out of bed in the morning to go to school is filled with dread. Case in point - Hal Hefner, a fifteen year old attending Plainsboro High School in New Jersey, who is trying to make sense of growing up but is burdened by a stutter so debilitating that he cannot even tell the cafeteria worker at school that he wants pizza instead of fish. Rocket Science, the second feature by Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound), who overcame his own stuttering disability, is a teen comedy that poignantly captures the painful loneliness of adolescence.
While on paper Rocket Science sounds like other coming of age films such as Election and Rushmore, it manages to capture something unique and very special about being a teenager without having to rely on grossness, stereotypes, or implausible situations. Brilliantly played by Vancouver actor Reece Thompson, Hal's sweetness and innocence is totally captivating and we identify with his pain and root for him to succeed. His family support, however, is virtually nonexistent. His brother Earl (Vincent Piazza) is a compulsive thief and bully who calls him by girls' names, his father has moved out of the house and his mother (Lizbeth Bartlett) has a Korean boyfriend, a Small Claims judge, (Steve Park) who laughs inappropriately and whose son Heston (Aaron Yu), a bisexual, shows an unusual amount of interest in him.
Hal has a speech therapist, Mr. Lewinsky (Maury Ginsberg), but he is so incompetent that he tells him that he wishes Hal was hyperactive so he would know how to treat him. Under these circumstances, the last place he would want to be is on the high school debating team, a collection of driven, super-confident word magicians who can speak with authority at breakneck speed on both sides of an issue. Surprisingly however, Hal is recruited by top debater Ginny Ryerson (Anna Kendrick) to be her debate partner after her former partner Ben Wekselbaum (Nicholas D'Agosto) went blank at last year's championship match.
Ginny, a charming but overly aggressive super student, tells Hal that "deformed people" make good competitors because they have so much anger to express. Hal's first inclination is to say no but he is so taken with Ginny and flattered that someone could see some possibility in him that he accepts. Giving it the old high school try, he stumbles badly both in pursuing his romance and in debating the subject of sexual abstinence in high school, so badly in fact that he often has to hide in the janitor's closet from embarrassment.
Mr. Lewinsky advises Hal to try singing the words of the debate to the tune of Battle Hymn of the Republic, or speaking with a foreign accent and he does both with hilarious effect. Partly out of revenge and partly out of desperation, he turns to failed debater Ben Wekselbaum, now working in Trenton in a cleaners, to be his new partner after Ginny transfers to a different school. The ending is ripe for the big debate in which all the pieces fit neatly together but Blitz does not go there. Instead he relies on the inner strength of the characters to see them through, not on a contrived narrative.
While there are some predictably oddball characters like Philosophy major Lionel (Jonah Hill), pint-sized Josh (Lewis Garrles) who spies on Ginny for him (and models her bra that he has stolen), and an older couple who practice the Kama Sutra and play Violent Femmes "Blister In The Sun" duets on the cello and piano, Rocket Science has few false notes. It is wise, honest, funny, touching, and painfully sad with Oscar-caliber performances. It's not rocket science to figure out why it is the best film so far of 2007.

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Picturehouse and HBO Films present a story about Hal Hefner, an ordinary, shy 15 year-old boy who's struggling to make it through High School. On top of his parents' recent divorce and an obsessive- compulsive, kleptomaniac older brother, Hal has a stuttering problem. In spite of this speech impediment, the high school debate team star, Ginny Ryerson, invites Hal to join the team. Stumbling his way to the championship, Hal falls in love, gains confidence and ultimately, realizes that love and life should not be rocket science.DVD Features:FeaturetteMusic Video

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This Is Elvis (Two-Disc Special Edition) (1981) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is Elvis is a Documentary that traces the life of Elvis from his early days in Tupelo and Memphis, his audition for Sam Phillips at Sun records, his first rush of fame, his early TV apperances, the contraversy over his performing style, his army years and his first meeting with Pricilla, his movie years, his 1968 comeback, his touring years in the 1970, up to his death in 1977. This is elvis combines actual footage of Elvis with reenactments with actors representating him at 11, 23, and 42 years old. It is narrated by Ral Donner, an Elvis impersonator who sounds excatly like him. Also other people in Elvis life, including former girlfreind Linda Tompson and road manager Joe Espisito, also provide narration.
As noted in previous reviews, you do get to see upstairs at Graceland, as well as how it looked when Elvis died. Scenes from his early TV apperances, including the Milton Berle performance that caused a scandal as well as the "above the waist" performance on Ed Sullivan. Concert scenes from his 1968 show, Thats the way it is, Aloha from Hawaii, and from his last filmed show in 1977, are here as well. The 1977 show has never been on DVD, manily because Elvis was in bad health and it was just seven weeks before his death. Still he sings a good verison of My Way.
This DVD set will include the original Theactral version from 1981, and the version that has been on VHS that had more footage. As noted in a review, Elvis does make some off color remark to his friends about a woman he had been with the night before, in the home verison, Ral Donner overdubed something less off color. Also the theatracial verson, in the 1977 concert, had the version of Are You Lonesome Tonight, where Elvis fouls up the spoken part of the song saying plus tax etc. In the home version, it is replaced with Love Me.
Thanks to The Elvis Presley Estate for finally releasing this on DVD. It is a must for all Elvis fans, young and old.

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THIS IS ELVIS:SPECIAL EDITION - DVD Movie

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Rock Star (2001) Review

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(More customer reviews)First of all let me start off by saying that although Rock star didn't do very well at the box office, I thought it was a lot of fun and it made for an enjoyable hour and three quarters viewing. Loosely based on the life of Tim `Ripper' Owens, the office supplies salesman who replaced Rob Halford in Judas Priest, Rock Star combines satire, morality, romance and a good old fashioned rags to riches storyline.
So what's the plot? Salesman and ordinary working stiff Chris Cole (Mark Wahlberg) and wannabe rock star has been obsessed for years in his devotion to British heavy metal band Steel Dragon. As part of a tribute band, he is derided by his older brother who feels he should get a real job and his devotion to mimicry is so much that even his fellow tribute band members are sick of him, and they eventually dump him. Comforted by his patient and devoted girlfriend (Jennifer Anniston) Chris swears that he will prove them all wrong but he even he is shocked when he is invited to audition as the replacement singer in the band he adores. Of course he wins the gig and so begins a journey through the world of a rock idol, full of drugs, groupies, drink and general excessive behaviour.
I'm not quite sure why this movie wasn't that successful. Sure it's not the greatest movie you will ever see and it offers no original insight but there's also very little to dislike about it. Critics may complain that it's neither full on satire such as `This Is Spinal Tap' or that it is full of clichés but this is a movie that doesn't take itself too seriously and does not try to portray reality. Mark Wahlberg is perfectly cast as Chris Cole and Jennifer Anniston gives a very pleasing and likeable performance as Chris's loyal girlfriend, whilst some of the supporting turns (particularly from Timothy Spall as the seen it all before manager) are excellent too. Stephen Herek's direction is perfectly paced and unlike most modern movies it is not overlong and it feels shorter than it actually is. It has some truly excellent moments and you could do much worse than to check this out on a Saturday night.

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A COPY MACHINE REPAIRMAN'S WORLD IS ROCKED WHEN HE'S TAPPED TOBE THE NEW SINGER FOR HIS FAVORITE BAND. A KNOWING, FUNNY LOOKAT '80S METALHEAD ROCK AND THE PRICE OF FAME.

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Les Miserables: The 10th Anniversary Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall (1995) Review

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(More customer reviews)This new edition of the Les Miserables 10th Anniversary Concert (taped in 1995 at the Royal Albert Hall in London) is a welcome new edition for any person who found the original concert enjoyable and thrilling. The 2-DVD set comes in a good quality hard case with new artwork. The performances continue to be mostly excellent and one really does not miss the staging too much. There are several new positive additions to this edition. First is the wide-screen presentation of the concert. It was painfully obvious at certain points during the original release (especially the bigger numbers) that you were missing some of the singers on the sides. The new wide-screen presentation opens up the experience so you can watch the concert as it was originally taped. The second positive aspect of this issue is that the whole concert is on one side of one disk, which makes it much more convenient to watch. The third is the inclusion of the "Stage By Stage" Documentary from the late 80s tracking the recording of the Complete Symphonic Recording as a supplement on the second disk. Finally, for those who want to, you can follow along with new (optional) on-screen lyrics.
However, this edition is not without its disappointments. The first and by far the biggest disappointment is how it's only presented in stereo and not Dolby Digital 5.1 or better. Not having a digital audio option in 2008 is ridiculous and I would have greatly put up with changing disks if it meant having a better quality performance. The second disappointment is the deletion of parts of the concert previously available, which include part of "Little People" and the speeches by the creative talent behind the show at the end of the concert before the encore. Even if space was limited on the first disk, these deletions could have easily been put on the second disk as supplementary material.
So, while the concert itself continues to be quite enjoyable and there are some new additions that makes it a must have for any Les Miserable fan, there are some basic disappointments that keep this edition from being perfect.


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A performance of Les Miserables by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, for a 10th Anniversary Concert celebration.

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Music From the Inside Out Review

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(More customer reviews)I watched this incredible dvd several times in recent months, including one of the
extras, which is a great radio interview of the filmmaker and the principal first and
second violinists of the Philadelphia Orchestra. 5 stars isn't a high enough rating - this
is more than a must see for (classical) music lovers.
In my experience this is a totally unique production. Interesting, entertaining, intimate,
thought-provoking interviews of professional orchestral musicians are the main focus,
interweaved with many scenes of the musicians in live performances, in rehearsals as an orchestra
or in smaller groups, as well as in other venues, playing chamber music and also non-classical
music - I'll pass on the bluegrass, but the scene with the trombonist playing Latin music was
great! These fine musicians discuss their craft and music itself from many points of view. The
interviews are done sometimes with only one musician, other times in groups. And of course
either in the background, or in the foreground, we are always hearing great classical music.
I felt like on some level I was really getting to know some of the musicians, through the
magic of music, and because of the depth, directness, and honesty of their comments. There
are so many inspiring, insightful comments, so much music packed in to this 90-minute
production, along with interesting travel footage of the orchestra in Europe and Asia.
A few of the comments/scenes I noted:
a) "You can't define great musicianship, but you know when you hear it."
b) We might think that musicians are competitive (and they are sometimes!), and yet on
the dvd we hear otherwise. One violinist comments on how blown away he was when he heard
Sarah Chang play a Paganini concerto when she was nine. He and another musician express not
envy but are rather deeply inspired by her phenomenal talent.
c) The amazing story of the concertmaster, David Kim, who didn't quite make it as a
soloist, but still feels he has fulfilled the expectations of his deceased Mother. The music for
this entire scene is Schubert's Cello Quintet, which Kim calls "pure ecstasy," and we feel
the same feeling in our own way, through the beauty of the music and the playing (he with
other members of the orchestra).
d) One of the percussionists makes a statement near the end of the dvd that music
expreses something Divine.
e) Another musician, who is also an artist, comments about the timelessness of
the music, that playing (and listening) is like time-traveling, and she feels like she
knows the composers in some way.
Words can't really convey the depth of the experience of watching this dvd, but I
don't think a person can appreciate it unless they like classical music. One other excellent
production feature is the very visually-appealing, spatial arrangements of the musicians
during rehearsals, so much more interesting than the normal look of an orchestra on stage.
This is better than a 5-star production, but I would have appreciated it if the
title of the pieces were displayed so I would know exactly what I was hearing (though
some of the pieces are recognizable). The names of the pieces are listed at the end
of the main feature, but I think they omitted several, like the Debussey piece that
was so well presented, along with an insightful explanation about connecting sounds and
impressions.
As mentioned at the beginning of the review, one of the extras, the radio interview of
the filmmaker with 2 of the principals, gives more insight and enjoyment into the music,
the music process, and other things you will see for yourself when you watch it.

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Acclaimed by audiences and critics alike, MUSIC FROM THE INSIDE OUT is a cinematic exploration of the magic and mystery of music through the stories, passion, and artistry of the 105 musicians of The Philadelphia Orchestra. This groundbreaking film, directed by Oscar-nominee Daniel Anker, is a feast of sound--with jazz, bluegrass, salsa, classical and world music interwoven with the musicians’ personal stories, each of which has at its core the universal struggle for self-expression.

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