Tag: DVD

Shoot Em Up (Region 2) DVD Review

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 Shoot Em Up has bystander Clive Owen interrupt in a murder saving a pregnant woman’s child. What happens is a shoot more, think less movie with constant strong gunplay from the first scene to the last. Taking along old associate Monica Bellucci Owen takes on main hired bad guy Paul Giamatti and his endless stream of henchmen. There are some funny scenes like his having to order more men over the phone. Its just like he was ordering a pizza. When the film is over there is no doubt that Giamatti steals the show.

If you are looking for a deep movie with a lot of emotional content for those actors wanting Oscars this is not it. Forget the loose storyline and all you have is 75 minutes of gunplay where your mind must be firmly switched off. Lets face it that’s not a bad thing. You do end up feeling though that the movie is more a one watch rental and not a purchase though.

DVD extras are deleted/alternate Scenes, commentary by Writer/Director Michael Davies, Ballet of bullets: Making Shoot ‘Em Up, animatics and a theatrical trailer.

Verdict: –

Death Sentence (Region 2) DVD Review

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 As a plain revenge trip Death Sentence does very well at keeping you entertained. After seeing his son murdered at a gas station average Joe Kevin Bacon goes hunting. While he just starts out by killing the gang member who killed his son things soon turn more serious as the rest of the gang retaliate against him. While Death Sentence is not a high profile movie it is a high quality one with some really good chase scenes and a long shootout at the end. In short it’s the Punisher done right. The only criticism is that the movie would have had a better ending if it ended about 13 seconds earlier. When you see it you will understand.

As far as DVD extras are concerned there is a ‘Making of Death Sentence’ featurette and that’s all in this case.

Verdict: +

Blood Ties – Season One (Region 2) DVD Review

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 Blood Ties is a TV show based on a series of modern day books about vampires. The story follows Vicki Nelson (Christina Cox) a former cop who is now a private investigator as she investigates cases of the bizarre and unusual. Think a grown up version of Buffy with the standard monster of the week that comes with it.

While investigating the cases she joins up with former partner cop Mike Celluci (Dylan Neal) and vampire Henry Fitzroy (Kyle Schmid). The show in essence uses the same formula as Angel where a monster is encountered and then the vampire is sent in to fight it. There is more to the story though in even a full season set there is only a single bad episode. The rest are stories about vampires, exorcisms, haunted paintings and the list goes on.

Even though the show does sound rather generic on paper with the vampire sidekick and romance storyline that shows it type of book origins it is a good show. It takes a while to get used to and the DVD has no extras but the show is excellent and takes repeat viewings.

Verdict: +

Blade: The Series – Jill Wagner Interview

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To celebrate the DVD release February of Blade: The Series in the US we had the chance to talk to the lead actress in the show Jill Wagner.

Blade: The Series stars Kirk ‘Sticky Fingaz’ Jones as Blade the vampire hunter. Plus there is Jill Wagner as Krista Starr a newly turned vampire playing both sides and the head vampire Marcus Van Sciver played by Neil Jackson. Blade is supported by Shen (Nelson Lee) and Marcus has Chase (Jessica Gower).

How did you come to be in Blade: The Series?
My manager gave me the script on a Sunday. I auditioned for it on a Monday, callbacks were Tuesday and Wednesday. Thursday was the studio test and Friday was the network test. I found out Friday on my way home from the Network test that I got the part and that Sunday I moved to Vancouver to begin filming. It was quite fast process.

What did the audition entail?
Four scenes, a few with Blade (Sticky [Fingaz] read with me in the network test).

Tell us about your character Krista Starr.
She is a war vet. She is a bit of a tomboy and a lets just way she’s not afraid to run with the boys. She is hardened by the news of her brothers murder and seeks revenge. She could be seen as the victim in this series but I try to show her stronger side. She goes through an emotional roller coaster throughout the series. She was a great character to play.

Your character guides the audience through the world of Blade and the vampires. Did you find it hard to play someone torn between the two sides working for Blade and living with them?
Yes. I was always thinking as Krista and finding it hard to even smile at Marcus after what he had done. She leads two lives. Good and Evil.

Did you ever have second thoughts about being involved with a sci-fi show? Knowing sci-fi fans are more critical than other audiences?
No not at all, I have always loved sci-fi and the stunt work that comes with it really attracted me. I love to hear what the fans say…good and bad. Sometimes it helps me to think about certain things in a different light.

Do you have a favorite fight from the show?
Probably the last episode when I fight Chase.

Did you find it hard to do the action sequences the role required?
No.

It’s said that you have a gun collection, did this help you prepare for a high action role?
Of course, however you never get fully comfortable with pointing a gun at someone or vice versa.

What was your funniest experience when filming the series?
Neil [Jackson] was carrying me out of the ritual room from the 1st episode and he forgot to turn my body to fit through the door and about took my head off. The set was silent until everyone heard me laugh, them the jokes poured in. Neil was always the funny one on set.

What are your best memories from making Blade?
Hanging out with the cast and crew on set from day to day. We had such an amazing group all around.

Is there a part of Krista’s past you wish had been covered more?
Yes, her life and experiences in the military. My dad was a marine (war vet) so I always wanted to play a character who had been in the military.

Were you familiar with the Blade franchise before the show? If so in what format: Comics/Movies?
I had seen and was a fan of the movies.

Are you a fan of any other vampire shows/movies/books?
Bram Stoker was my favorite.

The season ended in a cliffhanger. Could you tell us what you know about what was to be the second season’s storyline and how the cliffhanger was to be resolved?
I wish I could tell you. I knew nothing.

Are there any current plans for a second season?
I think there were some talks about having another TV movie that wrapped up the cliffhanger… not sure if that is still in talks though.

Do you know if you will be making a third appearance in Stargate: Atlantis, if so when can we expect it?
I believe so, have no clue when though, but as soon as I know I will post it on my Myspace page at Myspace.com/jillwagner

Do you have any upcoming projects?
A Sci-fi thriller movie called Splinter coming out in Jan or early Feb.

Blade: The Series – The Complete Series arrives on Region 1 DVD on February 12th. The pilot House of Chthon is available now on both Region 1 and 2 DVD.

CSI Las Vegas Season 7 Part 1 (Region 2 DVD) Review

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This 7.1 set is a real high point as far as the quality of the episodes is concerned. You have a few action and a few drama with a number of interesting plot points added for later. An interesting point is the addition (at least for a while) in the last episode of the set of Liev Schreiber as a new CSI. For those of you who dont know the name he played Cotton in the Scream movies and was also in Sum of all fears. He is also expected to be the bad guy in the new Wolverine movie.

As far as the extras go though this is a real low. There are no features or even featurettes to mention and after the huge number of extras on the last boxset its somewhat of a shock. If your looking for a good few interesting episodes to see that the show is still going strong then you should see this but if your after something more than what you would get from watching the show on TV then this isnt it. Good as a TV show but bad as a DVD. Lets just hope that the second half of the season is where the extras are.

Verdict: –

CSI Las Vegas Season 6 Part 2 (Region 2 DVD) Review

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The set for the second half of season six provides a great deal of extra material. These include things such as segments about the technology seen on screen used by the characters and a look back at how the season has progressed. If anything the extras on this one set are better than the actual episodes where none really stand out enough from the crowd.

Verdict: +