To Kazuki Muto it all seems like a dream when he recalls saving a young girl from a strange monster, but dying in doing so. An encounter with a teacher who changes into something else – and finding his lost backpack in a location from his dream – jolt him, but not as much as having his life saved by the girl from his dream. He learns that Tokiko Tsumura, the girl from his dream, is an Alchemist Warrior who is trying to save the world from monsters called homunculi.

Tokiko saved his life by replaced his ripped out heart with a medallion called a kakugane – a magical device that gives its owner a powerful weapon, called a Buso Renkin, that is the essence of the person’s fighting spirit [in his case a spear with a long haft and a trailing red banner]. He learns that homunculi eat humans to life – the younger the better! Because he is the person he is, he insists on joining the fight.

The Buso Renkin Box Set #1 collects the first thirteen episodes of the popular series and introduces Kazuki [and us] to a world unlike anything he’s ever encountered. We meet his friends [the usual gang of idiots who complicate things at the worst possible moment, or get jealous of his new “girlfriend”], his sister [who is already pretending that Tokiko and her brother will marry – making Tokiko her sister-in-in-law], and several villains from the world of the homunculi – though not all of them are, in fact, homunculi.

The series is smart, wickedly funny and very entertaining. The Buso Renkins of the various Alchemist Warriors [and some homunculi] are wildly diverse and create unique battles. The characters are engaging and the pacing is fast enough to keep the viewer engaged, even during the character and exposition arcs. The first thirteen eps doing a very nice job of introducing the main characters and establishing the series mythology – and are entertaining as heck, to boot.

Features: Three Audio Commentaries [by the English vocal cast]: Episode One: A New Life; Episode Six [The Butterfly of Black Death], and Episode Nine: The Hayasaka Twins; Behind the Scenes of Buso Renkin, and a set of Postcards featuring various characters. The set comes in a bookcase-styled package with a card stock slipcase with embossed print.

Grade: Buso Renkin – Box Set 1 – B+

Grade: Features – A

Final Grade: A-

Imagine, if you will, that you could easily, and in total anonymity, execute criminals who had gotten off on a technicality. Not only that, but the only person who could even hope to figure out your identity was a consultant for the police – and your father was the police chief. This is the situation in which Light, a young man who has come into possession of a Death Note.

By the time Volume Four opens, Light has made an impact on crime but somehow not completely covered his tracks. Even better [or worse, if you’re the police], there is a second person who seems capable of the same kind of vigilante justice. Light has become known as “Kira” to the police, so he thinks of this new person as the Second Kira. And did I mention that each owner of a Death Note has a supernatural companion? Well, they do.

Throughout the four episodes on DN4, the cat and mouse game between Light and L [the aforementioned investigative consultant] is twisted and complex. The capture and interrogation of the Second Kira ties Light to a rising young model/actress and the series’ complications seem to grow at, pardon the expression, light speed. Because of the nature of the duel of the minds between Light and L, the writing needs to be sharp or we would never believe it – and it is that sharp and more [check out the reasoning behind the police chief having himself put behind bars!].

The animation is solid and the character designs seem a bit sharper than one might be used to. Both voice casts are excellent at sustaining the appropriate moods, and the overall effect is just about perfect [I’m definitely going to watch for the first box set!].

Features include: Audio Commentary [English Voice Cast] on Episode 14, “Friend,” Behind the Scenes: English Voice Cast Interviews and Recording Sections, and Production Art.

Grade: Death Note, Volume 4 – B+

Grade: Features – B+

Final Grade: B+

The folks at Fox Home Video are one of the first studios to come out with a Blu-Ray disk that supports the new 1.1 (or picture in picture) spec. One of the things that distinguished HD-DVD was it’s copious use of picture in picture for extra features. For instance on the 300 HD-DVD you could watch the entire movie in it’s original unedited green screen form and compare the original shots with the finished product. Very cool insight into how that film was made. Fox Home Video’s “Sunshine,” doesn’t do anything nearly as nifty as that. But it’s nice to know that they’ll have that capability in the future. For now the Sunshine Blu-Ray Disk has some basic pop-up featurettes that go in-depth into how certain scenes were made. The picture window is quite large and beautiful. The navigation menus on this disk are also really nice. They are transparent and float in and out of the picture with minimal fuss. It’s probably pointless to tell you that the movie looks amazing. It’s sharp, clear, and clean with no artifacts. The blacks are “blue black.”

As far as the movie goes, this is what Director Danny Boyle (you can read an exclusive interview I conducted with him in the Hollywood Insider category). This is a strange film to discuss, I don’t want to give away spoilers, but being vague doesn’t particularly help either. This film can be best described as a “smart,” sci-fi film with a fabulous cast. A group of scientist have to save the earth by reviving a dying sun. The previous crew got lost in space so this crew is humanity’s last chance of survival. The crew have to maintain their sanity while trying to ensure the mission succeeds which is jeopardy due to bad decisions early on. The movie is really slow, talky, and a bit depressing. It took a good 1/2 hour before I warmed to it, but eventually I was sucked in. Chris Evans gives a breakout performance as the “Audience guy.” He says and does everything that a real person would do faced with the choices he’s faced with. Every time you start thinking, why don’t they do this, or it’s obvious you have to sacrifice the other person. It’s Evan’s character that says and does it. The first 2 1/3rds of this film are brilliant - if you can stick with it. Unfortunately the movie falls apart in the 3rd act and becomes some sort of strange slasher in space flick before it rights itself again. There are a lot of good ideas explored in this and is well worth the time.

Sunshine is packed to the gills with features, none of which were filmed in HD:

A Brilliant Vision: Enhanced Viewing Mode with the Filmmakers of Sunshine

o Icarus Kitchen

o Designing Icarus / Kaneda´s Room

o Zero Gravity Rehearsal

o Oxygen Garden Fire

o Stunt Jump Through Space

o Cast Preparing for Film

o Pinbacker´s Makeup

o Mace Fixes Mainframe

o Space Suits

o Payload Showdown

§ Journey Into Sound: Surround Sound Enhancement

o Searle in Observation Room

o Capa Speaks with Icarus

o Capa Discovers Pinbacker

o Capa Battles Pinbacker

§ Deleted Scenes With Commentary By Danny Boyle:

o Playing Chess

o It Really Takes It Out Of You

o Washing Carrots In The Oxygen Garden

o Coolant Redirection

o Cooking

o Wake-up

o Demolished Oxygen Garden

o Searle Meets Capa

o In Deeper Space Than We Are

o Prepping For Docking

o Rough Docking Procedure

o Fight And Then We Die

o Alternate Ending

§ Web Production Diaries

o Danny Boyle Introduction

o Zero G Flight

o Cillian Murphy

o Pre Viz

o Science Of The Sun

o Hiroyuki

o Troy Garity Harvey Introduction

o Voice Of Icarus

o Michelle And O2 Garden

o Anita Screens

o Alwin Kuchler

o Cliff Curtis

o Bumps And Stunts

o Benny

o The Science Of Space Travel Physiology

o Space Suit

o Rose Byrne Intro

o Love Letters

o Chris Evans

o VFX

o Big Bangs

o The Science Of Sun Death

§ Short films

o Dad’s Dead Directed by Chris Shepherd

o Mole Hills Directed by Dan Arnold

§ Fox on Blu-ray Trailers

As a first stab at the new Blu-Ray picture in picture feature, Sunshine works really well and is a must own title for your Blu-Ray collection.

Movie Grade - B

Features Grade - A-

Picture Quality - A

Audio - A

Final Overall Grade - A

EM Review by
Michelle Alexandria
Originally posted 1/14/08

Action movies have become increasingly sophisticated but the advent of CGI hasn’t completely taken over. The summer’s best threequels took radically different approaches: The Bourne Ultimatum was almost completely shot in camera; Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End was a bravura usage of CGI. Then there was the summer’s one fourquel, Live Free or Die Hard, which relied heavily on practical effects to underscore that its hero was an analog guy in a digital world.

The Bourne Ultimatum

Paul Greengrass does a masterful job of taking a more-than-usually-thoughtful script [courtesy of Tony Gilroy, Scott Z. Burns and George Nolfi] and breathing adrenaline charged life into it. If there’s a better director with the handheld camera, I’m sure I don’t know who that might be. Under Greengrass’ direction, the camera soars, zooms, twists and jerks in a concerto of controlled pandemonium. Even the still moments [of which there are not many] carry an almost electrical charge.

Taken strictly on a technical level, The Bourne Ultimatum is a masterpiece of action filmmaking - but it’s not all there is here. Indeed, every burst of action - every moment of silence - is informed by the need for Bourne to know everything: who he is/was; why he has all these incredible skills; whether the people he’s killed really needed to be killed.

In a film that has built on every second of the previous two, Bourne has learned that there are consequences to his unremembered actions that have affected him deeply.

He may not remember why he’s killed, but he remembers the faces [if not the names] of every person he’s killed. He remembers flashes of his training, but not how he got there - or even why he was there. Because of his past, his girlfriend, Marie [Franke Potente, seen only in photos and flashback] was killed; because of his past, he has tried to apologize, if not make amends. Now he needs to know what really happened to him and that will have consequences for him as much as for any others.

It’s this need to deal with the consequences of his actions - and the further consequences of his actions in pursuing that need - that elevate The Bourne Ultimatum, and the trilogy as a whole, beyond the level of mere entertainment. Certainly that need takes the Bourne Trilogy beyond the need to merely expose and reckon with the bad guys [whether they’re on “our side” or not…]. To this end, there could be no better casting than Matt Damon for the role of Jason Bourne.

Damon has a look that suggests normalcy - the normalcy of an Eagle Scout, or the boy next door. But he also has an ability to turn off his eyes, to look relentless and remorseless - something that, as he learns more about his past, is replaced by guilt, pain and a longing to be free of his past even as he remembers more of it. When he looks into the eyes of the asset that has been assigned to kill and asks if he even knows the reason he was given the kill order, Bourne’s anguish speaks volumes. This evolution only works because of Damon’s skill…

Even without the emotional undercurrents, the weight of consequences to actions, the depth of Bourne’s personal journey and the conceit of having a large portion of this film take place between the last two scenes of The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum would be an amazing ride. With those things, it is something beyond special.

Features include: an unusually detailed Audio Commentary by Paul Greengrass; Deleted Scenes; Man on the Move [how the film’s locations actually influenced filming]; Rooftop Pursuit [how state-of-the-art technology figured in the filming of one of the greatest action sequences ever made]; Planning the Punches [Matt Damon reveals his complicated fight training]; Driving School [Matt Damon training for the film’s stunt driving], and New York Chase [an insider’s tour of how the chase sequences were filmed].

Grade: The Bourne Ultimatum – A+

Grade: Features – A

Final Grade: A

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End: 2-Disc Limited Edition

Gore Verbinski’s third Pirates movie had to do a lot of things: rescue Jack Sparrow [Johnny Depp]; find and destroy Davy Jones’ [Bill Nighy] heart; free Will Turner’s [Orlando Bloom] father [Stellan Skarsgard] from the crew of the Flying Dutchman; convene a gathering of the pirate Brotherhood; free a goddess [Noemie Harris]from her human form; unite lovers Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann [Keira Knightley], and introduce Sparrow’s father [Keith Richards] – among other things.For those reasons, the film may be excused its 169-minute running time.

Let’s face it, there were a lot of loose ends to tie up [and hints for a possible fourth movie to seed]. Somehow, in the midst of all these elements, we also got some terrific performances from the entire [enormous] cast – which grew to include Chow Yun Fat’s Sao Feng, Richards’ Captain Teague and the other members of the Pirate Lords of the Brethern Court.Maybe it’s because I’ve always loved pirate movies, but I never found any of the trilogy to be too long. I’ll admit that they could have been tightened up a bit, but I loved all the odd bits that others wished were gone.

The series’ wealth of details is what gave me the most pure enjoyment.I’m dispensing with a plot synopsis for two reasons: there’s so much plot it would take a good ten thousand words to even begin to approximate the goings on in this film. The big action set pieces have small grace notes of character and relationships sprinkled liberally throughout. At no point do we ever feel like we’re suffering from information overload. And, hey! There’s even a unique new use for an undead monkey! How can you not love that?

As for Captain Jack Sparrow, Depp plays him with more focus and determination than in Dead Man’s Chest. This time, the fey pirate is scheming and conniving for different reasons than before - much more personal reasons! There’s more of an edge to him - and edge that is blunted only by an encounter with his father [Keith Richards, excellent in a pivotal cameo]. Plus, there’s even a few moments where he becomes genuinely unselfish – without being the slightest bit out of character.

Features include: Disc One: Bloopers of the Caribbean; Disc Two: Keith and the Captain: On set With Johnny and the Rock Legend; Anatomy of a Scene: The Maelstrom; The Pirate Maestro: The Music of Hans Zimmer; Deleted Scenes; The World of Chow Yun-Fat; Masters of Design [James Byrkit: Sao Feng’s Map; Crash McCreery: The Cursed Crew; Rich Heinrichs: Singapore; Penny Rose: Teague’s Costume; Kris Peck: The Code Book]; Hoisting The Colours, and Inside The Brethren Court. [Lack of an Audio Commentary costs the Features a full grade.]Grade: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End – B+Grade: Features – B+

Final Grade: B+

Live Free or Die Hard – Unrated Widescreen Edition

As I wrote when Live Free or die Hard was released: John McClane [Bruce Willis] is back and he’s still not terribly thrilled about it. In the best pure action flick of the summer, McClane is stuck with trying to prevent a fire sale - a systematic shut down of transportation, finances and utilities - nationwide! All he has for help is a scared computer geek who inadvertently supplied the villains with a piece of code that makes accessing a key location possible. And you thought you were having a bad day…!The reason for the film’s success was simple: we always want the guy who stumbles into trouble to stumble out of it.

In the case of McLane, there is a an extra layer of relatibility that comes from his wondering how it is that he always seems to find himself in these jams – well, that and his acceptance, however surly, of being “that guy…” … the one who steps up because there’s no one else around who will.This time around, he’s both helped and hindered by a computer hacker [Justin Long] who’s unintentionally provided a key piece of a puzzle that allows a disgruntled former government worker [Timothy Olyphant] to shut down those previously mentioned parts of the national infrastructure: transportation, finances and utilities. Further complications are provided by the villain’s beautiful but deadly right hand person [Maggie Q], and another top flight hacker,

The Warlock [Kevin smith] and the presence of McClane’s estranged daughter [Grindhouse’s Mary Elizabeth Winstead]While there are a couple of prodigious CG effects [in the interest of safety – and an inability to shut down a major throughfare] – the vast majority of the effects are shot, in camera, practically [killing a choper with a car? Yup. A fight scene in a dangling SUV? Yup. Etc.]. Coupled with Willis’ trademark dry, laconic performance and some exceedingly fine sarcasm from Long, Winstead and Smith, they give the film a layer of realism that a lot of action flicks lose right out of the gate because of reliance on CG.

Features include: Disc One: The Theatrical and Unrated Versions of the film; Audio Commentary by Willis, director Len Wiseman, and editor Nicolas Toth [discussing shooting the film they wanted to shoot and what makes a film PG-13 or R]; Analog Hero in a Digital Age: The Making of Live Free or Die Hard; Yippee-Ki-Yay, Motherf******!; Music Video: Die Hard by Guyz Nite; Behind the Scenes With Guyz Nite; Fox Movie Channel Presents Fox Legacy, and the Theatrical Trailer.

Grade: Live Free or Die Hard – A+

Grade: Features – B+Final Grade: A-

Hey Everyone, one of my studio friends sent over a review for Blade Runner. He’s a studio plant, but the review is good, and I’m interested in this DVD. I’ll admit, I never got the Blade Runner thing. I’ve tried to watch a couple of times in the past and can’t make it past the first 1/2 hour. I’m going to give it one more try when the new DVD set hits next week.  My plant wanted to let you know that he does freelance stuff for Universal and has nothing to do with Warner Brothers.  If he keeps up with the good review, I may give him his own byline.

UNDER THE BLADE
BLADE RUNNER – THE FINAL CUT
New Film and DVD Review
By Studio Plant

Even though the original version of BLADE RUNNER was one of my favorite films of the 1980s and one of the most (if not THE most) seminal science fiction films ever made, I have a terrible confession to make: until this week, I had never before seen the movie projected on film in a theater. In a way, that oversight was saved for perhaps the best, ultimate version of BLADE RUNNER that was released this fall in a limited amount of theaters and is being released on DVD this December 18.

Needless to say, THE FINAL CUT version of the film, following the somewhat compromised 1982 US theatrical version, the 1982 international version, and the 1990s director’s cut, is possibly the most pure vision of the film as prescribed by director Ridley Scott. Of course, with its cleaned up negative, the film looks gorgeous – new, in fact – and has a richness in a theatrical setting that cannot be matched on virtually any smaller home systems. Thus, any BLADE RUNNER aficionados have a responsibility to see this version in a theater before properly purchasing their DVD.

Science-fiction fanatics know all about Scott’s marvelous staging of every setup in the film, Jordan Cronenweth’s sumptuous cinematography, Lawrence G. Paull’s amazing sets (based on futurist Syd Mead’s designs), and the unprecedented special photographic effects by Douglas Trumbull, David Dryer, and Richard Yuricich. Of note, no computer-generated imagery was utilized for BLADE RUNNER’s astounding visuals, which, in the early 1980s, were instead achieved with miniatures, motion-control photography, and optical printing.

For THE FINAL CUT, computers were used for specific fixes such as minor enhancements of backgrounds, wire removal on the practical “spinner” cars, and a scene where Joanna Cassidy’s character Zhora is killed. In previous versions, due to time constraints, the scene was executed with an obvious stunt double in a fairly shabby wig. THE FINAL CUT includes new footage of Cassidy against green screen replaced over the stunt double’s head – in the completed scene, the effect is seamless and is much more effective.

Additionally, in THE FINAL CUT’s climactic moments, when Rutger Hauer’s Roy Batty confronts his maker, Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel), his new line of “I want more life, father” represents a new twist on a moment that formerly featured an expletive in place of “father.” Again, integrated fluidly, it gives the meeting more power and a relevant subtle meaning. Later, when Batty releases a dove before his death, “the dove now flies into a consistent BLADE RUNNER-esque environment, replacing the original shot,” according to THE FINAL CUT’s associate producer, Paul Prischman.

Other relevant changes among the many that were done include a recutting of Deckard’s “unicorn dream” to match Ridley Scott’s intended vision for that scene and corrected lip-synch issues with Deckard’s conversation with the Egyptian in Animoid Row. These touches and others only contribute to a more full experience of the world of the film and its many nuances – too many in fact to absorb upon one viewing of THE FINAL CUT.

Which brings us to the long-awaited DVD. In addition to the requisite commentaries on Disc One, the real prize is saved for Disc Two, the three-hour-plus documentary DANGEROUS DAYS: MAKING BLADE RUNNER. Here we finally get the much-deserved treatment of the film as the revered classic that is has been for 25 years. Many new interviews abound with all key living cast and crew members. Expertly written and directed by Charles de Lauzirika, with masterful editing by William Hooke, this is a dream doc created by the same team who did the outstanding documentary about the ALIEN quadrilogy four years ago.

In addition to the revealing interviews, de Lauzirika and his group provide us with numerous stills and original footage from BLADE RUNNER’s early 1980s production, including backlot material from New York street at The Burbank Studios (now the Warner Bros. lot), clips from the cast and crew on downtown Los Angeles locations, and pristine dailies from various sets. All of which makes for a truly compelling look into the making of this difficult but essential sci-fi film. What more can you say about a documentary that runs over three hours but still leaves you wanting more?

If BLADE RUNNER was overshadowed by lighter films including E.T. in the summer of 1982, its ultimate legacy is that its styles, designs, makeups, costumes, acting, and direction have influenced an entire generation of moviegoers and filmmakers alike. THE FINAL CUT should be mandatory viewing both in theaters and on DVD for any cineastes who feel similarly.