DVD Collectors Online

Poltergeist, a review by Danae Cassandra

Poltergeist
Year of Release: 1982
Directed By: Tobe Hooper
Starring: Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams, Beatrice Straight, Oliver Robins, Heather O'Rourke
Genre: Horror, Suspense/Thriller

Overview:
"THEY'RE HERE," playful at first...but not for long. A storm erupts, a tree attacks and little Carol Anne Freeling is whisked away into a spectral void. As her family confronts horrors galore, something else is here too: a new benchmark in Hollywood ghost stories. Producers Steven Spielburg and Frank Marshall and director Tobe Hooper head the elite scream team of this classic horror. Welcome to Home Sweet Haunted Home.

My Thoughts:
This was really good. I think I watched this as a kid when it was broadcast on TV, because there were definitely scenes I remembered. Yet so much of the film was new to me that it was like watching it for the first time.

I think the thing I appreciated most was the character of the mother. There were a lot of good things going on here - atmosphere, performances, some great effects for their time, but I liked the mother the best. I liked that she didn't just stand around and do nothing but scream. That she was the one that entered the portal to the other world, that she ran back into the house to save the kids. Glad to see a woman who takes action despite her own fear.

Watched For:  Hoop-tober 3.0, Scavenger Hunt 19, Horror/Halloween Challenge 2016

Bechdel Test: Pass
Mako Mori Test: Pass

Overall: 4/5

Horror/Halloween Challenge Films: 22/52

(From Horror/Halloween 2016 Challenge on October 10th, 2016)

La passion de Jeanne d'Arc , a review by goodguy

La passion de Jeanne d'Arc (FR 1928)IMDb Director:  Carl Theodor Dreyer Writer: Carl Theodor Dreyer, Joseph Delteil Cast: DVD: Criterion (US 1999) My rating:

I think I made two mistakes when watching the film. First, I watched it immediately after Bresson's version, which I found far superior. Second, I watched it with Eichhorn's Voices of Light  as score, which is quite wonderful, but more than a little overbearing. Anyway. Especially the early grotesque caricatures of the judges and clerics during the trial were very distracting and severely diminished the experience for me. That includes Falconetti's performance as Joan, which in its juxtaposition becomes equally over the top. The film redeems itself somewhat in the second half and I can admire the sparse and stylized set design and some of the editing choices on a technical level, but overall I was nonplussed.


(From goodguy's Watch Log on June 20th, 2011)

Pete's Pilots, a review by addicted2dvd

The Fugitive


Fear in a Desert City
Breaking free of Gerard's custody, Kimble escapes to Tuscon, Arizona-where he befriends an attractive piano player with a jealous husband.

My Thoughts:
A great classic series. Though it is a more slow-paced series... which I normally don't like. But it works for this one. Only problem is I can only watch so many at a time of this show. Which is why after owning the series for almost 2 years now and I am still working on Season 1 Vol. 1.  In this pilot episode The Fugitive is already on the run. You are introduced to the characters and what happen in the opening credits.

My Rating:

(From Pete's Pilots on January 26th, 2010)