Cars 2: 2-Disc Combo Pack (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

October 29, 2011 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“Cars 2″ is a fun family film with plenty of action and humor! Sure, it doesn’t feature Lightning McQueen as the main character but I found the whole Mater spy action storyline to be quite entertaining and fun! Also, he film looked absolutely incredible on Blu-ray! The lossless audio was immersive and awesome! I absolutely enjoyed this film!

TITLE: Cars 2: 2-Disc Combo Pack

FILM RELEASE: 2011

DURATION: 106 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (2:39:1), English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio ES, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital, English Near Field Mix 2.0, Subtitles: English SDH Subtitles, Spanish 7.1 DTS-HD HR, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital EX & Spanish Subtitles (US Only), French 7.1 DTS-HD HR, French 5.1 Dolby Digital EX & French

COMPANY: Walt Disney Home Entertainment

RATED: G

Release Date: November 1, 2011

Directed by John Lasseter and Brad Lewis

Screenplay by Ben Queen

Story by John Lasseter, Brad Lewis and Dan Fogelman

Produced by Denise Ream

Music by Michael Giacchino

Edited by Stephen Schaffer

Art Direction by Jay Shuster

Featuring the Voices of:

Larry the Cable Guy as Mater

Owen Wilson as Lightning McQueen

Michael Caine as Finn McMissile

Emily Mortimer as Holley Shiftwell

Eddie Izzard as Sir Miles Axelrod

John Turturro as Francesco Bernouli

Bret Musburger as Brent Mustangburger

Joe Mantegna as Grem

Thomas Kretschmann as Professor Z

Peter Jacobson as Acer

Bonnie Hunt as Sally

Darrell Waltrip as Darrell Cartrip

Franco Nero as Uncle Topolino

Jeff Garlin as Otis

Tony Shalhoub as Luigi

Patrick Walker as Mel Dorado

David Hobbs as David Hobbscap

Jenifer Lewis as Flo

Bruce Campbell as Rod “Torque” Redline

Jason Isaacs as Siddeley/Leland Turbo

Star race car Lightning McQueen and the incomparable tow truck Mater take their friendship to exciting new places in “Cars 2” when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car. But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage. Mater finds himself torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret mission orchestrated by master British super spy Finn McMissile and the stunning rookie field spy Holley Shiftwell. Mater’s action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world. The fast-paced fun includes a colorful new all-car cast, complete with menacing villains and international racing competitors.

There was no doubt that a sequel to Pixars “Cars” film would be made. It was all about when will it be made.

In 2006, the seventh Disney/Pixar film “Cars” was released in theaters. Needless to say, the film was a major hit as it was nominated for two Academy Awards, made over $461 million worldwide. The film was so popular that merchandise for the film is still sold in stores today and the cars have been popular toys that have earned over $5 billion in sales.

Needless to say, “Cars” was not just a box office success, it is one of Disney/Pixars biggest money making titles that is loved by critics and fans.

“Cars 2″ becomes the 12th Disney/Pixar film and once again, “Cars 2″ would meet box office success earning over $551 million worldwide. And now the film will be made available on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray and DVD on November 1st.

In “Cars 2″,the film begins with spy Finn McMissile (voiced by Michael Caine), trying to capture photos of the evil Professor Zundapp (voiced by Thomas Kreschmann) and his goons working on a deal. Unfortunately, one of the spies were captured and crushed. And next thing you know, Zundapp sees Finn and everyone goes after him with bullets and missiles. Needless to say, the enemies think they have destroyed him but being a spy with many vehicle modifications, he is able to turn into a submarine and escape.

Lightning McQueen’s (voiced by Owen Wilson) racing career is going great as he is a four-time Piston Cup champion. Meanwhile, back home at Radiator Springs, McQueen’s best friend Mater (voiced by Larry the Cable Guy), girlfriend Sally (voiced by Bonnie Hunt) and friends look forward to when Lightning can return back home.

And when McQueen does go back home, he is able to spend a good day with Mater but wants to spend a date night with his girlfriend Sally. While out on a date one night, Mater watches oil tycoon Miles Axlerod (voiced by Eddie Izzard), a green power advocate announcing the “World Grand Prix”. But the Italian formula racing car Francesco Bernoulli (voiced by John Turturro) is cocky and tells the world on television that Lightning McQueen is so slow and that he can beat him anytime. Upset by what Francesco is saying about his best friend, Mater calls up the TV show and tells Francesco that Lightning McQueen can beat him anytime.

When McQueen finds out what is happening, he tells Francesco that he will compete against him in Japan at the first event for the World Grand Prix.

As McQueen gets prepared to leave once again, Sally asks him if he could bring Mater along with him, not to be part of the pit crew but just to hang out. At first McQueen is against it but he reluctantly agrees.

When they leave to Japan, Mater is shocked about arriving in a new country. While in Japan, Mater accidentally mistaken wasabi as pistachio ice cream and downs a large chunk of it. With his mouth burning, Mater accidentally interferes with McQueens live interview and accidentally leaks himself in front of everyone.

Embarrassed, McQueen tells Mater to clean himself up and while Mater tries to get used to the technology of Japan’s bathrooms, spy Fin McMissile and spy tech Holley Shiftwell (voiced by Emily Mortimer) must retrieve information from an American spy. But with Professor Zundapp’s evil car goons all around the area, Fin knows that his cover can get blown, so he has Holley meetup with the American spy which she can find via GPS.

But the American spy is approached by two of Professor Zundapp’s evil goons and with quick thinking, the spy hides the information in the bottom of Mater while he leaves the bathroom.

Thinking that Mater is an American spy, both she and Fin try to help him and protect him from Zundapp’s evil crew and Holley goes so far to pretend that she is asking Mater out on a date.

Of course, Mater tells his friends about it but no one, including Lightning McQueen believes him.

Meanwhile, during the start of the Japan race, both McQueen and Francesco exchange barbs for their first race. And interesting enough, during the race, some of the cars explode while racing. But as McQueen And Francesco are neck-and-neck, Mater is contacted by Holley and he thinks that she is asking him out to a date at that minute. The truth is that Zundapp’s men were able to find out by torturing the American spy that Mater is the one carrying the information.

So, as Holley and Finn try to help Mater escape from the spies, Mater doesn’t know that his communication with Holley and what he is saying at the moment is being heard by McQueen and distracting him from the race. And eventually costing McQueen the win.

Upset about the loss and Mater being a distraction, Lightning McQueen ends up telling his friend that he is not needed. Hurt and dejected, Mater decides to go back home to Radiator Springs. But instead, Finn Missile ends up meeting with Mater and helping him leave the airport (which is surrounded by Zundapp’s goons). With Finn and Holley thinking Mater is an American spy, Mater (who doesn’t know what is going on) ends up joining the two on their mission to find out who is running the operations for Professor Zundapp.

Meanwhile, Lightning McQueen feels terrible about what he said to his best friend and wants him back with him. But the race must continue.

As for Mater, not knowing how big of a mission he is caught up in and the things he must do… What happens when he finds out that his best friend McQueen may be the next targeted for destruction by their mysterious enemy?

VIDEO:

“Cars 2″ is presented in 1080p High Definition (2:39:1 aspect ratio). As expected from a Disney/Pixar release, the picture quality is full of detail, colors are vibrant, blacks levels are deep and the textures and edges are fantastic. Everything about this film looks perfect. I didn’t see any banding, nor did I see any artifacts or edge enhancement.

Every detail from the rust and dents on Mater, the shine on McQueen, sparks, explosions, the asphalt, the backgrounds and yes, even the water looks amazing in this film. Overall, as one has expected from Disney/Pixar, they continue to deliver excellence for picture quality in this latest Blu-ray release!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Cars 2″ is presented in English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio ES, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital and English Near Field Mix 2.0.

Similar to the picture quality, Disney/Pixar is known for its lossless audio and everything from the tires squealing to the engines roaring, explosions, machine guns and the panning from one audio extreme to another, this is an immersive soundtrack. LFE showcases the booms of the explosions, surround channels showcase the gunfire, engines revving and because this film incorporates racing and action, the soundtrack delivers! Especially in ambiance as McQueen and Mater are in different countries, the lossless audio is amazing!

SPECIAL FEATURES

“Cars 2″ comes with the following special features:

Director John Lasseter Commentary – Co-directors John Lasseter and Brad Lewis talk about the film but also how promotion for the first “Cars” film internationally made him think about Mater (Lasseter always wears Hawaiian shirts but when invited to an F-1 party event, he realized how under-dressed and out of place he was in Italy) and Lasseter and his children’s love for the “Bourne Identity” films led to the storyline of “Cars 2″.
Toy Story Toon “Hawaiian Vacation” – (5:53) When Barbie and Ken are expecting to go with Bonnie and her family to Hawaii, they end up being left behind. With Ken wanting a romantic trip with Barbie and Barbie hoping to get that first kiss, Woody, Buzz and the gang decide to bring Hawaii to Bonnie’s bedroom.
Cars Toon “Air Mater” – (5:22) A story about Mater telling one of his stories and this time, him flying in the sky.

EXTRAS:

“Cars 2: 2-Disc Combo Pack” comes with a slipcover case and a DVD presented in 2:39:1 aspect ratio – Enhanced for 16×9 televisions, English 5.1 Dolby Digital EX, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital, English Near Field Mix 2.0 Dolby Digital, English SDH subtitles, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital EX & Spanish subtitles and French 7.1 DTS-HD HR, French 5.1 Dolby Digital EX with French subtitles.

“Cars 2″ may have not been the critic-friendly Disney/Pixar animated film that many have hoped for but for me, it was great to see Lassetter and friends do something different.

Part of the complaints by critics was how the film was devoid of it’s emotional storyline and how it focused more on Mater instead of Lightning McQueen. And depending on one’s feeling towards Mater, if you dislike the character, then chances are, the film may turn you off. Afterall, Lightning McQueen is the cool, dashing hero of the first film and Mater is a redneck-talking, rusted tow truck.

But for me, I enjoyed the film because it was able to take the characters out of Radiator Springs and showcase them in Japan, France and Italy. And as for Mater, yes…the storyline focuses on his character but if you enjoy spy films, to see him being mixed in an international spy case with the James Bond-ish Aston Martin-like Finn McMissile and the high tech Holley Shiftwell. Sure, Mater is not the smartest car on the planet but to see these action sequences happening quite often, I found that to be quite refreshing for a Disney/Pixar film.

But at the same time, I must acknowledge the problem that children might not understand the discussion about alternative fuels and why the bad evil cars were trying to sabotage other race cars throughout the World Grand Prix. I watched the film with my eight-year-old and he enjoyed the film for its action but the storyline of why the evil people were doing what they were doing, that went over his head completely.

But we were both in agreement of how cool the film was because of its action. And this of course, may be a problem for those expecting a deep and emotional storyline. Sure, every Disney/Pixar film typically touches you in someway and while Mater is not the typical character for some viewers not to feel sorry for, I think too much “Mater” for some, is not a good thing.

For me, I felt that his character was utilized in a way that was not too annoying and the fact that he is brought into this spy thriller was entertaining.

Like all Disney/Pixar films, the voice acting was excellent. But this film definitely was Larry the Cable Guy’s moment to shine as the voice of Mater as he is brought together with wonderful actor Michael Caine (who plays the Bond-like spy Finn McMissile) and actress Emily Mortimer (voice of Holley Shiftwell). But everyone on the film, Owen Wilson as Lightning McQueen, Eddie Izzard as Sir Miles Axlerod, John Turturro as Francesco Bernoulli, etc. They all do a wonderful job!

As for the Blu-ray release, as expected from a Disney/Pixar film, the picture quality and lossless audio is magnificent and perfect in every way! Disney/Pixar films have always been magnificent on Blu-ray when it comes to PQ/AQ that it was no surprise to me that everything looked and sounded great!

But…with this being an awesome Blu-ray release, recently I began to question Disney’s latest strategy of not including many special features for its normal Blu-ray release and adding them only on their Blu-ray 3D releases. One thing that I love about Disney Blu-rays and also Disney/Pixar Blu-rays is the amount of special features included.

The first “Cars” Blu-ray (and DVD) release was filled with special features but not this title. No Second Screen that Disney has been pushing, no deleted scenes, no interviews with the voice cast of “Cars 2″ but we do get the audio commentary and two animated shorts. And as grateful as I am for the inclusion of these three special features, I have to admit that it’s quite small for a major release such as “Cars 2″. But if you buy the much more expensive 3D version of “Cars 2″, then you get most of those special features.

It was one thing in the past, to include special features on Blu-ray and less for a DVD, in the hopes that people would upgrade to Blu-ray. And that was a no-brainer as Blu-ray players are quite cheap these days. But for people to upgrade to a 3D TV and purchase 3D glasses that is asking too much for the average consumer and unlike blu-ray players which are affordable, 3D TV’s are still a bit pricey for many people.

But with the “Cars 2: 2-Disc Combo Pack”, you do get that extra DVD, so with the holiday season coming up, you can definitely have the DVD playing for your children during those long traveling commutes or to keep them occupied during the holiday season.

Overall, “Cars 2″ is an enjoyable family film and an awesome Blu-ray sporting awesome animation and picture quality as well as audio quality via HD. While many people have their opinions of this film, I absolutely enjoyed this film because it was different than the first and that I love spy action films!

Recommended!

Filed Under: Blu-ray Reviews, Children's DVD/Blu-ray

Gnomeo & Juliet (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

May 12, 2011 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“Gnomeo & Juliet” is a charming and fun family film! While some may not have a care towards garden gnomes, if you can get over that, I personally have found the animation for the film to be well-done and its storyline inspired by Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet” was well-executed especially for the younger children who may be watching.

TITLE: Gnomeo & Juliet

DURATION: 84 minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:85:1), Audio: English 7.1 DTS-HD MA (48 kHz/24-bit), Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound, Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

RATED: G

COMPANY: Touchstone Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: May 24, 2011

Inspired by the William Shakespeare Play “Romeo & Juliet”

Directed by Kelly Asbury

Story by Rob Sprackling, John r. Smith, Andy Riley, Kevin Cecil, Kelly Asbury and Steve Hamilton Shaw

Screenplay by Andy Riley, Kevin Cecil, Mark Burton, Emily Cook, Kathy Greenberg, Steve Hamilton Shaw, Kelly Asbury

Original Screenplay by Rob Sprackling, John R. Smith

Producer: Baker Bloodworth, David Furnish

Executive Producer: Elton John

Producer: Steve Hamilton Shaw

Co-Producer: Igor Khait

Associate Producer: Kara Lord

Music by Chris Bacon, James Newton Howard, Elton John

Edited by Catherine Apple

Castin by Gail Stevens

Production Design by Karen deJong

Art Direction: Karen DeJong, Andrew Woodhouse

FEATURING THE VOICES OF:

James McAvoy as Gnomeo

Emily Blunt as Juliet

Ashley Jensen as Nanette

Michael Caine as Lord Redbrick

Matt Lucas as Benny

Jim Cummins as Featherstone

Maggie Smith as Lady Bluebury

Jason Statham as Tybalt

Ozzy Osbourne as Fawn

Stephen Merchant as Paris

Patrick Stewart as Bill Shakespeare

Julie Walters as Miss Montague

Hulk Hogan as Terrafirminator

Kelly Asbury as Red Good Gnomes

Richard Wilson as Mr. Capulet

Dolly Parton as Dolly Gnome

From a director of Shrek 2 comes your chance to step into the secret world of garden gnomes — Gnomeo & Juliet. Perfect for the whole family, this fresh and funny makeover of one of the world’s most timeless stories features music from Sir Elton John, and the voice talents of Emily Blunt, James McAvoy and Sir Michael Caine. Caught up in a feud between neighbors, Gnomeo and Juliet must overcome as many obstacles as their namesakes. But with flamboyant pink flamingos and epic lawnmower races, can this young couple find lasting happiness? Complete with hilarious never-before-seen bonus features, Gnomeo & Juliet is an out-of-the-ordinary animated comedy your entire family will love. We just gnome it!

Charming, delightful and fun for the entire family!

In Feb. 2011, Touchstone Pictures first animated feature since “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (1993) titled “Gnomeo & Juliet” was released in the U.S. The film topped the worldwide box office earning over $176 million.

But “Gnomeo & Juliet” was a film that has been in limbo for many years. Originally to be produced by Walt Disney, the film would exchange hands with Miramax Films but eventually was picked up and produced by Starz Animation in Toronto and released by Touchstone Pictures.

Directed by Kelly Asbury (“Shrek 2″, “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron”), the film would be inspired by William Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet” and would feature voices by talent which include Emily Blunt, James McAvoy, Sir Michael Caine, Patrick Stewart, Jason Statham, Ashley Jensen, Ozzy Osbourne, Julie Walters, Hulk Hogan, Dolly Parton and many more.

And now the film will be released on Blu-ray ala 3D (includes Blu-ray 3D and 2D, DVD and Digital Copy), a 2-Disc set with Blu-ray DVD and a normal DVD version.

In the film, Mrs. Montague (played by Juliet Walters) and Mr. Capulet (played by Richard Wilson) were a couple who now despise each other. Now each live next door to each other and Mrs. Montague’s yard is filled with blue garden gnomes, while Mr. Capulet’s garden has red garden gnomes. When the two are away, the gardens come alive and both blue and red gnomes despise each other as well.

But its time for the lawnmower race and representing the blue gnomes is Gnomeo (voiced by James McAvoy) and for the red gnomes is Tybalt (voiced by Jason Statham). While Gnomeo was about to win, Tybalt cheats and wins the race.

Gnomeo and his friend Benny (voiced by Matt Lucas) are upset and insult Tybalt for cheating and now the two want revenge.

So, both Gnomeo and Benny try to infiltrate the red garden with a disguise. Their plan, to spray paint the red lawnmower with blue paint. And Gnomeo nearly accomplishes their goal but Benny accidentally sprays Tybalt’s well and a security light is activated, which alerts the red gnomes that they the blue gnomes has infiltrated the garden.

Fortunately for both Gnomeo and Benny, the two escape but Gnomeo ends up in a different garden and accidentally runs into the red gnome named Juliet (voiced by Emily Blunt), the daughter of Lord Redbrick (voiced by Michael Caine) of the red gnomes.

Immediately, Gnomeo becomes smitten with Juliet and she with Gnomeo. For Juliet, she can’t help but confess her love of Gnomeo to her friend, a frog named Nanette (voiced by Ashley Jensen). The two continue to see each other by planning secret meetings.

But both may be pulled apart as tensions mount between the blue and red gnomes. Will the love between Gnomeo and Juliet remain strong despite their people despising each other and may fight against each other? Or will they be separated and looking at each other as enemies?

“Gnomeo & Juliet” features music by Elton John with collaborations with Lady GaGa and Nelly Furtado.

VIDEO:

“Gnomeo & Juliet” is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen (1:85:1). I’m not too familiar with the work of Starz Animation (Arc Productions) but what I can say about “Gnomeo & Juliet” is that one would want to see these characters show detail of their wooden ornamentation. So, while these garden gonmes to come to life, the animation is able to capture these characters but also showing the detail of their wooden surface. In fact, there are scenes where you can see wooden surfaces that are wet with water and it’s soaked to paint that has come off the wood. I was very pleased by how the CG was rendered for each character and the Blu-ray brings out those details.

You can see the dirt and grime including chips on the gnomes but also see the detail of the road, the ground, the trees and grass, even when Juliet is wearing a sock, you can see the cotton fibers. I was quite pleased by the film’s overalll look on Blu-ray. The film is vibrant and picture quality is very good! Blacks are also nice and deep and once again, you can compare the DVD included with the Blu-ray and noticed how much detail you are able to see when watching in HD.

AUDIO:

“Gnomeo & Juliet” is presented in English 7.1 DTS-HD MA (48 kHz/24-bit) and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. The lossless soundtrack was very well done. From the more action-based sequences, there is a good use of the surround channels including moments that the LFE was used. Also, because there is a lot of music utilized throughout the film, you can hear the music being utilized on the surround channels as well. And if you are familiar with the Elton John musical classics, you will definitely enjoy how his music was utilized in the film.

Subtitles are in English SDH and Spanish.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Gnomeo & Juliet” comes with the following special features:

Elton Builds a Garden – (5:47) How Elton John played a big part in the film and how he had been in the process of the varying production process.
2 Alternate Endings – Featuring two alternate endings (sketches) with commentary at the beginning. The following is in standard definition. Alternate Ending 1 – All’s Well That Ends Well (1:34) and Alternate Ending 2 – Dance Routine (1:29).
Deleted & Alternate Scenes – (42:25) Featuring alternate opening sequence and seven deleted scenes with filmmakers introduction commentary. Presented in standard definition.
Frog Talk with Ashley Jensen – (1:46) Actress Ashley Jensen talks about doing her first animated role and providing the voice of Nanette the frog.
Crocodile Rock Music Video – (1:32) Featuring the recording of “Crocodile Rock” with Nelly Furtado and Elton John.
The Fawn of Darkness – (1:29) Ozzy Osbourne talks about doing a voice of a fawn.

EXTRAS:

“Gnomeo & Juliet” comes with a slip cover case.

“Gnomeo & Juliet” is a charming, fun, family film.

But I also believe that for one to be open to it, it being the “garden gnome”. It’s one thing for a CG animated film to come out and have fresh, unique characters and sure, animated films such as “Toy Story” are able to capture one’s imagination because everyone grew up with toys. But not everyone grows up with having garden gnomes in their garden.

Elton John even said on the special features of how garden gnomes are popular in the UK and I would assume that they are popular in Europe, especially in Germany where they first originated in the 19th century. According to Wikipedia, the first garden gnomes were made in Grafenroda and a man named Philip Gribel made terracotta animals as decorations (which are featured in the film) and produced garden gnomes (which many are featured in the film) based on local myths as a way for people to enjoy the stories of the gnomes willingness to help in the garden at night.

It quickly spread across Europe wherever gardening was a serious hobby. And once in awhile, you will drive and see someone in America having one in their garden, some having more than others.

While many people are unaware of the history of garden gnomes, I know when commercials came out, my little one was wondering why there was an animation on small people. I told him they were garden gnomes…statues in the garden that come to life and he gave me a dumbfounded look. Until I told him that people put pranks on them and people dress them up with weird clothing or bring them along on vacation trips where people take a picture of them… and then he became amused.

I think that there are people who may feel the same way in the US, of why a film was created using garden gnomes? I suppose if there a movie about spy hamsters, ninja turtles or dogs with super powers can be made to films, why not garden gnomes. OK, I understand that spies, ninjas and super powers are cool but this movie is not too ridiculous as one may think.

There is a storyline which is inspired by William Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet”, blue gnomes and red gnomes who despise each other (and no, this was not done to emulate Los Angeles gangs) but these garden gnomes have personality. Like the Montague’s and the Capulets, these garden gnomes are constantly at each other’s throats until Gnomeo of the blue and Juliet of the red fall for each other.

And of course, because this is a children’s film, it has to have a happy ending.

But I was open to the film, the whole garden gnome character and without any feeling of “oh, garden gnomes, this movie is going to suck” mentality, I watched it and I was impressed by the animation. The garden gnomes, even when alive, look like their real-life counterparts with grime, aged dirt, chips on them. But also seeing closeups of the road, the wood and all these textures to make things more realistic was quite impressive. Granted, you’re not going to have the Pixar color pallette of everything so vibrant but yet, this film holds up well on its own for being a modern animated Disney-related film.

I also liked the voice talent that were involved in the film. You can tell which voice was Dolly Parton, Patrick Stewart, Hulk Hogan and Ozzy Osbourne but it was good to see talent such as Emily Blunt, James McAvoy, Jason Statham and Ashley Jensen involved in the film as well. Their performances were well-done and with the music of Elton John, you have this sense that the film an International feel to it. Which is good considering the fact that garden gnomes are popular overseas.

As for the Blu-ray release, it’s important to remind people that if you have a 3D-enabled TV and Blu-ray player, then you may want to check out the 3D version which comes with both the 3D, 2D, DVD and digital copy version of the film. For this release that I am reviewing, it comes with the Blu-ray and DVD release and it makes a very good family film to take on those long commutes as summer vacation is around the corner. The picture and audio quality is very good and there are a few short special features that are fun and amusing and are included in this release as well.

Overall, “Gnomeo & Juliet” was a film that I enjoyed. If one has negative feelings towards garden gnomes, I’m sure that’s going to affect one’s appreciation for this family film. But if you could care less and just want a film that young and old can watch together, then “Gnomeo & Juliet” is a film worth checking out!

Filed Under: Blu-ray Reviews, Children's DVD/Blu-ray

UPCOMING GUESTS ON “THE LATE LATE SHOW with CRAIG FERGUSON” ON THE CBS TELEVISION NETWORK (Oct. 21-Nov. 8)

October 21, 2010 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment

(Monday through Friday, 12:37-1:37 AM, ET/PT,

Following Broadcasts of the “Late Show with David Letterman”

*Denotes changes and/or additions to previous schedule, (n) Denotes new)

Thursday, Oct. 21 Comedian Don Rickles; actress Ellie Kemper

Friday, Oct. 22 The cast of the CBS comedy series “The Big Bang Theory”

Monday, Oct. 25 Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; former NFL quarterback Joe Theismann (n)

Tuesday, Oct. 26 Actor Danny DeVito; actress Brie Larson; comedian Henry Cho (n)

Wednesday, Oct. 27 Actress Marg Helgenberger from the CBS drama series “CSI”; talk and performance with Donald Glover (n)

Thursday, Oct. 28 Actor Michael Caine (n)

Friday, Oct. 29 Actor Jason Segel from the CBS comedy series “How I Met Your Mother”; actress Alison Brie; comedian Adam Hills (n)

Monday, Nov. 1 Actor Tyler Perry; actress Sophia Bush (n)

Tuesday, Nov. 2 Comedian Lewis Black; singer Bettye LaVette (n)

Wednesday, Nov. 3 Actor Stephen Fry; music by Dr. Dog (n)

Thursday, Nov. 4 Actress Cheryl Hines; philosopher/author Cornel West (n)

*Friday, Nov. 5 Actress Kerry Washington

*Monday, Nov. 8 Actress Rosie Perez

On the Web: www.cbs.com/latenight/latelate/

RATING: TV-14-D (Rating may change on day of broadcast due to specific subject matter.)

Filed Under: American Entertainment News

Harry Brown (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

August 22, 2010 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Compelling, gripping and an overall, an exciting film that showcases a wonderful performance from Michael Caine. If you enjoyed vigilante-style films such as “Gran Torino” or “The Brave One”, definitely give “Harry Brown” a chance!

TITLE: Harry Brown

FILM RELEASE DATE: 2009

DURATION: 103 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (2:40:1), English and French 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English Audio Description Track 5.1 Dolby Digital, Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Hindi

COMPANY: Samuel Goldwyn Home Entertainment/Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

RATED: R (For Strong Violence and Language Throughout, Drug Use and Sexual Content)

RELEASE DATE: August 31, 2010

Directed by Daniel Barber

Screenplay by Gary Young

Executive Producer: Reno Antoniades, Paul Brett, Tim Haslam, Christos Michaels, Steve Norris, Tim Smith

Producer: Keith Bell, Matthew Brown, Kris Thykier, Matthew Vaughn

Line Producer: David Higginson

Music by Ruth Barrett, Martin Phipps

Cinematography by Martin Ruhe

Edited by Joe Walker

Casting by Daniel Hubbard

Production Design by Kave Quinn

Art Direction by Chris Lowe

Set Decoration by Gemma Ryan

Costume Design by Jane Petrie

Starring:

Michael Caine as Harry Brown

Emily Mortimer as D.I. Alice Frampton

Charlie Creed-Miles as D.S. Terry Hicock

David Bradley as Leonard Attwell

Iain Glen as S.I. Childs

Sean Harris as Stretch

Ben Drew as Noel Winters

Jack O’Connell as Marky

Jamie Downey as Carl

Lee Oaks as Dean

Joseph Gilgun as Kenny

Liam Cunningham as Sid Rourke

Two time Academy Award(r) winner* MICHAEL CAINE (The Prestige, The Dark Knight) stars as Harry Brown. An ordinary, law-abiding citizen, who just wanted to quietly live out his retirement. But in this desolate urban wasteland, the residents live in fear of the drug dealers who rule the streets…and the police offers little protection. When Inspector Alice Frampton (EMILY MORTIMER, Shutter Island) can’t convict the thugs who killed Harry’s best friend, he decides to take the law into his own hands. Using skills honed as a Royal Marine, Harry begins to serve his own brand of justice– and no one will stop him. * Best Actor in a Supporting Role for THE CIDER HOUSE RULES (1999) and HANNAH and HER SISTERS (1986).

Trailer

Vigilante Pensioner

The Problem

Just Kids

In 2009, the vigilante film from the UK titled “Harry Brown” makes its way to the US on Blu-ray and DVD.

The film is directed by Daniel Barber (“The Tonto Woman”) and written by Gary Young (“The Tournament”, “The Last Drop”, “Shooters”) and is a vigilante film that stars Michael Caine (“The Cider House Rules”, “Hannah and Her Sisters”, “Sleuth”, “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels”) and Emily Mortimer (“The Pink Panther”, “Paris, je t’aime”, “Elizabeth”, Transsiberian”).

The film takes place in the UK where crime has been running rampant in South London. Young people are being initiated to gangs, drug dealings are done in public and an incident is shown of a group recording themselves on a shooting spree and killing a mother walking her baby in stroller a parkway.

We then meet Harry Brown (played by Michael Caine), an elderly former Royal Marine and North Ireland veteran whose wife is comatose and is hospitalized. Each day, Harry goes to visit her at the hospital, a short cut would be going through the tunnel area under the bridge. Problem is, that area is where most of the gang members hang out and anyone going close by there and has no business around that area tend to get beaten up or killed. So, Harry usually takes the long route to go there.

Harry’s wife passes away and all he has left is his best friend Leonard (played by David Bradley). But Leonard is scared of his life. Leonard tells Harry about the problems he is experiencing with the bad kids who continually to harass him and to protect himself, Leonard has his knife with him.

On that same day, Leonard finds the kids trying to kill him by putting something under his door which has caught and fire and trying to kill him with the smoke and Leonard manages to stop the fire and leave the apartment screaming to those kids who did this to him.

The next morning, Harry is visited by Detective Inspector Alice Frampton (played by Emily Mortimer) and Sergeant Terence (played by Charlie Creed Miles) who tell him the bad news that Leonard has been killed near a subway route. And the police want to know if there is anything or any information that Harry may have. Harry explains that his friend was being harassed and hopes the police can find the murderers.

We then see how much work the detectives have put into interrogating the young thugs but no one is commenting or not saying anything about the death of Leonard.

As Harry mourns his good friend by getting drunk at a pub, while he leaves, he is stopped by a mugger who holds a knife to him and is demanding his money. In self defense, Harry uses his military skill and ends up killing the mugger.

He is visited by Detective Alice Frampton once again and tells him that they are unable to find anyone and she tries to find out if he has any information of how Leonard may have died and Harry tells her how scared he was and how he had went to the police but they did nothing. Alice tells him that the killers may never be caught and this angers Harry.

And from this point on, Harry decides to take matters to his own hand and become a vigilante. To find the killer(s) of Leonard but also to remove some thugs off the street.

VIDEO:

“Harry Brown” is presented in 1080p High Definition (2:35:1). Picture quality is very well done. You can see the detail and skin pores of the characters, blood can be seen with detail, especially the detail of scars, tattoos, the injuries to the detail of the grungy, graffiti dominated walls and old apartments in rundown areas featured in the film.

Certain scenes are quite vibrant and colorful but most of the film is shot at night, in dark and dilapidated areas. Overall, good amount of detail, blacks are nice and deep and very well-done cinematography by Martin Ruhe (“The Countess”, “Linear”).

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Harry Brown” is presented in English 5.1 DTS-HD MA. The lossless audio for this film is fantastic. The gun sounds that are captured on screen are very crisp, loud and clear! Surround use is well done as we can hear crowd ambiance, telephone ringing so clear that you think it may be coming from your own house, a television in the background to various sounds that are utilized through the film.

Dialogue is absolutely crisp and clear through the center channels and front channels are well-done in capturing the various gun sounds to windows being destroyed, vehicles crashing into each other and in one scene, this churning of sound that is captured throughout the whole room utilize the surround channels and LFE. Overall, a good use of the lossless soundtrack!

Subtitles are in English and English SDH.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Harry Brown” comes with the following special features in high definition, English stereo and subtitles in English:

Audio Commentary with Director Daniel Barber, Producer Kris Thukier and Michael Caine - An informative and hilarious audio commentary. Director Daniel Barber and Kris Thukier set up the various scenes and discuss filming in various area and Michael Caine brings his humor to the commentary.
Deleted Scenes – (17:08) Featuring seven deleted scenes. Interesting to see some scenes that would have worked for the film but the boom mic’s can be seen on the top.
movieIQ+sync (logo) and BD-Live connect you to real-time information on the cast, music, trivia and more while watching the movie!

With similar films such as “Gran Torino” starring Clint Eastwood to “The Brave One” starring Jodie Foster, “Harry Brown” takes a familiar concept but this time taking place in a crime-infested area of London where gang violence or drug pushers have taken control of public areas, putting fear into those living in the area and innocent people are beaten or murdered and not even the police are there to defend the peace. Who else to defend the peace than one man’s act of vigilante-ism. Welcome to “Harry Brown”.

With “Harry Brown”, Michael Caine pulls of a fantastic performance and that certain situations can drive a man from law-abiding citizen to becoming a vigilante. He’s simply had enough of the violence that has plagued his neighborhood and after the film had screened in the UK, many people took to the forums and it was an interesting split of people who felt the world needs more people like Harry Brown and others who felt that there was no way an elderly man with emphysema can become a vigilante.

Needless to say, Gary Young has crafted a screenplay that is not only gripping, violent and literally draws you in (as you want to see Michael Caine really want to get back at the thugs) but the only way they were going to strike a chord with the general audience is that you have to show how things have gotten out of hand and how even the police are having their difficulties.

But where we have seen these problems unfold on the local news in metropolitan areas nearly everyday, many of us here in America may wonder, is this problem in London really that bad? The more I started to do my research on South and East London, the more I started to learn about the racial divide, how people were being forced to move away because of race and it has gotten so bad that the drug problem and crime has taken control of an area. Many Londoners have said that things have gotten out of hand in those areas that the character of Harry Brown really hit a nerve with many people who have had enough of the crime.

With that being said, I thought the film was smartly crafted but towards the third arc, that is where the film started to get far out there and without spoiling the film, as much as that third arc became a gripping and violent, the film strayed from what possibly can happen with a man turning vigilante and the cops suspecting him for murder to a film that was like a scene out of “Black Hawk Down” where there is just violence all over the city, the police were like soldiers venturing into an area of uncertainty and there was no decorum. The police look as if they were overtaken by the criminals and the characters that we have rooted for become victims.

The ending does work, it’s just a bit farfetched and things get off to easy. I can go into detail and become a bit nitpicky about that third arc, but I would be spoiling the film. So, I’ll leave it to the viewer to determine how they feel about the final half hour of the film.

But I did enjoy the film and to see the character of Harry Brown change to a vigilante was very cool. Michael Caine is a fantastic actor and by no means did the filmmakers try to turn his elderly character to the Punisher or anything like that. His performance was wonderful. Emily Mortimer’s character as Detective Alice Frampton is a character that had its potential but to tell you the truth, I don’t think the writers did any justice towards her character. She has the potential to be a strong woman and instead she becomes a weak victim and it’s not the way how I expected her character to be played out at the end. So, as much as the performances and the cinematography were well-done, part of my problem was with the actual screenplay and primarily for that third act.

I have to say that the young talent playing the criminals did a wonderful job in their interrogation scenes. I don’t know how much of it was improvised but young talent Ben Drew did a wonderful job playing Noel Winters dishing it, making it feel real and showing his disgust towards the police and to see that cocky, F-U attitude was pretty impressive.

As for the Blu-ray release, you do get an entertaining, informative and hilarious audio commentary by director Daniel Barber, producer Kris Thykier and Michael Caine and you get several deleted scenes and that is about it. I was hoping to see more featurettes from behind-the-scenes of the filming of the movie, interviews with the cast, Michael Caine preparing for this role. Just something extra would have been nice but you do get a few special features rather than none.

Overall, “Harry Brown” is a gripping, compelling vigilante film that really showcases Michael Caine’s talent and to show him in a different kind of film which many viewers have never seen him play before. The cinematography was really well done and it was good play of colors during those night scenes that were well-done as well. Despite my feeling that the third act became a bit too chaotic and like the London has reached Armageddon, if you get past that and just take the film as a whole, I had an enjoyable time watching this film.

If you are a fan of films such as “Gran Torino” or “The Brave One” and you enjoy the acting of Michael Caine, I definitely recommend giving “Harry Brown” a chance!

Filed Under: Blu-ray Reviews