Eureka Seven, Volume 10 (Episodes 39-42)

Eureka Seven, Volume 10 (Episodes 39-42) Review

In Eureka Seven Volume 10 you will recieve four very interesting and insightful episodes of the show on DVD. Specifically, these episodes include 39 up to and including 42 of the series. If you haven't seen all episodes before these, my following review may confuse you, so read on at your own risk.

The Gekkostate, along with Master Norb, take a brief break from the journey to do something Master Norb considers to be very important...play soccer! The first episode shows how good members of the Gekko are at the game, and is the most lighthearted one on the disc. By its end, you are reminded of Dewey's tremendous power and that the mission is only beginning.

Next, the Gekko travels to the Vadarac shrine in the hope that Renton and Eureka will be able to meet the mysterious Lady Sakuya. After a difficult and sneaky entrance, the two succeed and learn of the tragic past of a girl named Sakuya and a boy named Norb. In truth, both Sakuya and Eureka were created by the scub coral to communicate with humans. When Norb is appointed to take care of Sakuya, the two accidentally form an unbreakable bond. They try to get past the Great Wall and reach the Promised Land in the hope that it will save humanity, but fail as Sakuya transforms into a flower bud and Norb has a compac drive embedded in his chest.

All hope is not lost however, as Sakuya is told of the birth of another - Eureka, who may be able to accomplish what she could not. After hearing the story, Norb tells the two to go, as he and Sakuya will open the way for them, along with the Nirvash, to reach the Promised Land and get passed the Great Wall!

This isn't as easy as it seems however, as outside Dewey is determined to stop them. Ultimately, Holland sacrifices his own ship, the 909, to stall The END long enough for Renton, Eureka, Nirvash, and the children to reach the Promised Land, while Anemone is brutally rejected. Now that they have entered the Promised Land, what will Renton and Eureka find?

Ultimately, these are four very interesting episodes, with the first being the most comic and warm. The story of Sakuya and Norb is truly a tragic one, but one that has a happy end thanks to Renton and Eureka as the last image of the two seen is them walking away, holding hands... The extras on the disc are lacking, but do have audio commentary on one episode by the original Japanese voice actors, as usual, and an interview by the English voice of Holland. Overall, if you're a fan or collector, this disc is a must have. With only 2 discs and 8 episodes of the series remaining, how will the story change, now that it is coming dangerously close to its conclusion? On their journey to the Great Wall the Gekko makes a pit stop in an outpost on the borders of the Vordarac holy site. Master Norb has prepares one last challenge for the crew in an attempt to prepare them for the task that lies ahead. What exactly does Norb expect the members of Gekkostate to learn about themselves in a grueling game of soccer? The Gekkostate infiltrates the Vodarac shrine in an attempt to reunite Master Norb and Eureka's predecessor, Sakuya, so that they may guide Eureka and Renton into the Promised Land. A story of a Coralian girl, a young monk and their failed attempt to pass a barrier between worlds is revealed inside the heart of the temple. Outside, the skies are set ablaze as Dewey summons torrents of Scub Coral upon the Vodarac to halt a young couple's journey past the Great Wall. Anemone is dispatched as Holland and the Gekko try to buy the Nirvash desperately needed time so that the Great Wall may finally be breached. Once beyond, what will Eureka and Renton find in the Promised Land? Genre: Action/ Mecha/ Sci-Fi.

Silence (1971) ( Chinmoku ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ]

Silence (1971) ( Chinmoku ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ] Review

Silence (1971) ( Chinmoku ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ] Feature

• THIS DVD WILL NOT WORK ON STANDARD US DVD PLAYER

Great Britain released, PAL/Region 2 DVD:it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: English ( Subtitles ),SPECIAL FEATURES: Booklet, Interactive Menu, Remastered, Scene Access,SYNOPSIS: Adapted from the renowned novel by Shusaku Endo, Masahiro Shinoda's 1971 film Silence (Chinmoku, co-written with Endo) explores the violent cultural conflict amid the arrival of Jesuit missionaries in seventeenth-century Japan. Shinoda's excellent direction coupled with a pensive score by the legendary Toru Takemitsu gives cinematic expression to inner spiritual paradox, and imbues with religious mystery a landscape that seems already sentient with wind, rain, and light. Two Portuguese priests disembark upon an anonymous Japanese shore. Under cover of nightfall, they seek to infiltrate those Christian sects driven underground by a ruthless magistracy, and re-establish the foothold of the Church on the isolated island-nation. Soon, however, the priests find themselves drawn into the mire of persecution, and gradually learn the truth behind the ominous disappearance of another Catholic missionary decades earlier... By way of a heavily made-up and polyglot Tetsuro Tanba (Assassination, Kwaidan, Samurai Spy), Silence builds toward a revelation that approaches the impact of Colonel Kurtz's entrance in Conrad's Heart of Darkness (or Marlon Brando's take on Kurtz in Coppola's Apocalypse Now). Rendered in a tender colour palette courtesy of master cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa (Rashomon, Yojimbo, Ugetsu monogatari), Silence unearths lies and beauty at the intersection of religion and Japanese society. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present for the first time on DVD in the UK Masahiro Shinoda's Silence based upon the same novel that has intrigued American filmmaker Martin Scorsese for decades, and spurred his own work on a film adaptation of the source

Kuroneko ( Yabu no naka no kuroneko ) ( Black Cat from the Grove ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - United Kingdom ]

Kuroneko ( Yabu no naka no kuroneko ) ( Black Cat from the Grove ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - United Kingdom ] Review

It's easy enough to hack dvd players to play this, so all fans of atmospheric horror should buy it and treat themselves. Soldiers rape and murder a mother and daughter who come back as bloodsucking cat ghosts. But it's also a love story, because the daughter's husband was forced to fight, and he returns after years of absence.... No cheesy effects: it's all in the artful use of shadow and light. Plus, the use of sound (pulsing drums, sparse screeching noises) is just amazing. Kubrick definitely studied this film.

Kuroneko ( Yabu no naka no kuroneko ) ( Black Cat from the Grove ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - United Kingdom ] Feature

• THIS DVD WILL NOT WORK ON STANDARD US DVD PLAYER

United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: Japanese ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Anamorphic Widescreen, Booklet, Cast/Crew Interview(s), Interactive Menu, Photo Gallery, Remastered, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: Set in feudal Japan, this atmospheric and violent ghost story (whose title literally translates as The Black Cat in the Bush) begins with the brutal murder of two women by a band of mercenary samurai, whose leader is subsequently tracked down, seduced, and murdered by a young woman possessed by the shape-shifting specter of his victim. Called upon to avenge the warrior's death is none other than the woman's former husband, who has been ordered by his superiors to assassinate the guilty party. Plot twists abound as the older, vengeful spirit seeks to exact poetic justice despite the younger ghost's reluctance to destroy the man who once loved her. Though not on the epic level of Kwaidan or Onibaba, this adaptation of an ancient folk tale benefits from the same cultural richness, as well as a touch of social allegory.

Unconditional Love : Widescreen Edition

Unconditional Love : Widescreen Edition Review

Chicago housewife Kathy Bates has an obsessive crush on recording heartthrob Victor Fox (Jonathan Pryce). When he is murdered before she can meet him, she decides to attend his funeral in England, where she lands in the middle of a battle for his reputation: on one side his sister (Lynn Redgrave), on the other his gay lover (Rupert Everett). Wild chases, wacky comedy, and sentimental soul-searching ensue. Barry Manilow and Julie Andrews show up as themselves, while Dan Ayckroyd, Peter Sarsgard, and Jack Noseworthy wind up chasing them all. It's a very cute movie that will make you feel good. Beware the dwarf in the red raincoat.

Unconditional Love : Widescreen Edition Feature

• Widescreen

Product Description It's never too late to start living! Kathy Bates, Rupert Everett and Dan Aykroyd star in this hilarious comedy about a woman who learns to live life to the fullest after her husband leaves her and her favorite crooner is murdered.

The Final Cut

The Final Cut Review

In FINAL CUT, director Omar Naim presents a not too distant future that features a technology that gives the film its dramatic impetus. When a child is born, his/her parents can opt for a pricey implant, called a Zoe, which fits in the child's head and will record every second of the child's life right up to the moment of death. Now this concept has a myriad of possibilities to alter society and the way that people can or dare to interact with each other. However, director Naim chooses to avoid these wider psycho-social implications to focus on a standard thriller of industrial espionage. This tightening of focus works since Naim wanted to entertain the viewer without morphing the film into a "message" medium that might have emerged as insufferably pedantic. Robin Williams is Alan Hakman, whose job is to edit or "cut" a lifetime of memories into a handy movie-length summary suitable for viewing at funerals. I was mildly surprised that no one in the movie seemed to find a use for such an implant. Each person would be an infallible lie detector. Juries would have no trouble assessing a defendant's guilt. Hakman works under enormous pressure. There are many protestors who violently oppose what he does on moral grounds. The several vignettes that show these protestors reminded me of leftists who think nothing of violating the rights of others with curses and beatings to exercise their own rights of free expression. Further, Hakman daily has to edit out the unsavory aspects of his deceased client, thus forcing him to see evil up close and personal, and then delete the offending scene only to have to go home to wrestle with his conscience. Williams portrays Hakman as a tightly wound up individual who has his own demons of memory to contend with. Mira Sorvino is his lover who cares for him but only just so far since his job erects a massive wall of social static that bars true intimacy. Jim Caveziel is a former "cutter" who tries to strongarm Hakman into giving him access to a recorded memory that if exposed will topple the entire industry of re-memorizing.

FINAL CUT uses a constant series of claustrophobic scenes that intensify the torment that is right there on the viewing screen of a recorded memory. The technology involved does not seem that far fetched, but viewer interest does not lie in that. We watch movies like FINAL CUT because it is full of quirky characters, none of whom is truly evil, but all of whom are torn in deciding what is right, not what is the path of least resistance. FINAL CUT forces us to conclude that life's precious memories must not be hawked for sale, but deserve a silent and private contemplation that has no place for a public forum. Omar Naim's The Final Cut is startlingly different than a conventional science fiction film. It's a compelling fable that offers a vision of a world where memory implants record all moments of a person's life. Post mortem, these memories are removed and edited by a "Cutter" into a reel depicting the life of the departed for a commemorative ceremony, called a Rememory. Robin Williams' powerful portrayal of Alan Hackman, a troubled "cutter," propels this character driven story that forces us to question the power of our memories and the sanctity of our privacy

Naked Island ( Hadaka no shima ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ]

Naked Island ( Hadaka no shima ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ] Review

There are some good reviews of this film over the Net, and I don't think I can add more to this wonderful experience. Because that is the word: watching "Naked Island" (without breaks, and in a big screen if you can) is an experience. The repetitive and hard life of a family of agricultural peasants adquires greater significance when located in a small island (a big rock is maybe a more appropiate description) inside a bay. The superb music and visuals become one, explaining perfectly how the pre-capitalist leg of a mid-20th century economy worked in some places of the world. You simply can sense human effort when watching this. I cannot give an opinion on the quality of this copy, the one in film I saw was without scratches but blurred.

Naked Island ( Hadaka no shima ) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ] Feature

• THIS DVD WILL NOT WORK ON STANDARD US DVD PLAYER

Great Britain released, PAL/Region 2 DVD:it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: Japanese ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ),English ( Subtitles ),ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Anamorphic Widescreen, Booklet, Commentary, Interactive Menu, Photo Gallery, Remastered, Scene Access,SYNOPSIS: The titular island in this Japanese domestic drama is an agrarian flyspeck, almost completely cut off from contact with the mainland. Here the island's residents mechanically go through their everyday farming tasks. The film concentrates on a family of five, content with their existence despite its hardships. When the oldest son dies, it is the first of many devastating blows that nearly rip the family asunder. Originally titled Hadaka No Shima, the film was also released as Naked Island. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: BAFTA Awards, Moscow International Film Festival,

Mystic River (Widescreen Edition)

Mystic River (Widescreen Edition) Review

I'll admit it's been a while since I've seen Mystic River in the movie theater. While initially my impression of the film was disgust(especially with the ending) I've recently picked up the DVD and watched it again with a new perspective. Mystic River is pretentious with it's self-importance and some will still argue whether or not the hype (and subsequent Academy Awards) is justified, however the honesty and emotions running through the film make it one of the more memorable films of it's time.

Mystic River is basically a melodramatic tragedy about three friends and how their actions effect the people around them. Sean's a cop, Jimmy's an ex-con, and Dave's their friend who was sexually molested when they were all kids. The movie centers around the murder of Jimmy's daughter and the actions the three friends take to deal with it. There's alot more to the story of these damaged characters and the film mostly focuses on their personal lives rather than the murder investigation itself. The movie's very raw and there is no happy ending for any of these characters. It's a very cynical story, but Clint Eastwood films Mystic River like an overbearing melodrama with over-the-top acting, camera work and music which at times is really unnecessary and gives the movie an accelerated sense of self-importance (which in my opinion is VERY annoying). I think Mystic River would've benefited with a more documentary approach and better shots of Boston (the movie's called 'Mystic River', why not show more of it?).

The acting, while sometimes over-the-top is very solid and believeable. Sean Penn is well cast as Jimmy and while the scene of him finding out his daughter's dead is waaaaaay over-blown his quiet intensity rings true through the rest of the film. Tim Robbins is perfectly simpathetic as the tortured Dave and you really feel terrible about what happens to him at the end of the movie. Kevin Bacon is a great actor but I felt Sean was a bit underused as a character though I can understand since most of his actions in the novel focused on him investigating Jimmy's daughter's murder and again the film is more about the character's personal lives.

The one bit of this movie that feels like a giant misfire is in how the ending is handled. SPOILER ALERT!----------

As I said in my opening I was disgusted and quite outraged with the ending of the film because in a lot of ways it seems to try and justify Jimmy's actions. Jimmy isn't supposed to be likeable despite the fact he really feels he's doing the right thing. I also hated how it de-humanized Dave and made his murder at Jimmy's hands seem "all for the best" with Sean's dismissiveness (in the novel Sean's much more progressive about the situation). It sort of gives the feeling that Dave deserved to die simply for being a child-rape victim. It certainly didn't help when Laurence Fishburne's character claiming Dave should be locked away simply for being a victim of sexual abuse. Sort of spreads the message that sexual abuse victims are less than human.

I like to think this was just a misstep on the filmmakers part thanks to Clint Eastwoods more sensationalist direction. I like to think what happens to Dave in the end is just part of the human tragedy of the story and NOT trying to justify Jimmy's actions as a concerned parent. I don't think Jimmy and Sean's actions in the end are unbelieveable though. Jimmy's already murdered someone before so obviously what he did isn't going to haunt him for too long. Sean's too caught up with his wife and kid and despite knowing what Jimmy did feels no matter what he does now can only make a bad situation worse by going after Jimmy(or maybe he does? The ending's a bit ambiguous). It's not a satisfying ending nor do I think it's meant to be. It is however very believeable and I think that's what the filmmakers were trying for.

So while Mystic River is far from the flawless masterpiece it claims to be it is a very powerful film. I can't say everyone will enjoy it, but it's a movie that no one will forget.



Drama. Mystic River tells the story of three men whose dark, interwoven history forces them to come to terms with a brutal murder on the mean streets of Boston.