DVD Releases for May 13th.

Blind Eye (2006) Nick Mancuso, Levi Oliver, Roddy Piper. (MTI Video)

An ex-cop is called by his estranged wife to help find their missing daughter, only to discover that there's more to the disappearance than his "friends" are letting on.

Crash and Burn: Unrated (2008 -- TV) Erik Palladino, Michael Madsen. (Genius)

An undercover FBI agent who agrees to infiltrate the ruthless underground world of "choppers" is quickly thrown into a world of fast cars and high stakes.

DNA (AKA DoNovAn) Tom Conti, Samantha Bond. Two DVD-set with five episodes, SRP $39.99 (Acorn Media)
"Tom Conti stars as Joe Donovan, an accomplished but troubled criminologist who returns from a mental breakdown to lead Manchester’s crack Forensic Investigations Unit. Called in to consult on a murder case that suspiciously resembles the one that drove him into near madness years ago, Donovan redeems his reputation and rediscovers his devotion to the job. Yet his professional dedication bleeds into his personal life, alienating his wife (Samantha Bond) but appealing to his son (Ryan Cartwright, The Grimleys), who wants to follow in his father’s footsteps."

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark Special Edition (1981) Dir.: Steven Spielberg; Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott, Alfred Molina. Extras: Raiders of the Lost Ark: An Introduction by Steven Spielberg & George Lucas"; "Indiana Jones: An Appreciation" by the cast and crew of "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull"; "The Melting Face" recreation of the amazing physical effect of the villain's melting face in "Raiders"; "Storyboard Sequence -- The Well of Souls"; Galleries: llustrations & props, production photographs & portraits, effects/ILM, marketing; "Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures" Game demo and trailer. (Paramount).

Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is no ordinary archeologist. When we first see him, he is somewhere in the Peruvian jungle in 1936, running a booby-trapped gauntlet (complete with an over-sized rolling boulder) to fetch a solid-gold idol. He loses this artifact to his chief rival, a French archeologist named Belloq (Paul Freeman), who then prepares to kill our hero. In the first of many serial-like escapes, Indy eludes Belloq by hopping into a convenient plane. So, then: is Indiana Jones afraid of anything? Yes, snakes. The next time we see Jones, he's a soft-spoken, bespectacled professor. He is then summoned from his ivy-covered environs by Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott) to find the long-lost Ark of the Covenant. The Nazis, it seems, are already searching for the Ark, which the mystical-minded Hitler hopes to use to make his stormtroopers invincible. But to find the Ark, Indy must first secure a medallion kept under the protection of Indy's old friend Abner Ravenwood, whose daughter, Marion (Karen Allen), evidently has a "history" with Jones. Whatever their personal differences, Indy and Marion become partners in one action-packed adventure after another, ranging from wandering the snake pits of the Well of Souls to surviving the pyrotechnic unearthing of the sacred Ark. A joint project of Hollywood prodigies George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, with a script co-written by Lawrence Kasdan and Philip Kaufman, among others, Raiders of the Lost Ark is not so much a movie as a 115-minute thrill ride. Costing 22 million dollars (nearly three times the original estimate), Raiders of the Lost Ark reaped 200 million dollars during its first run. It was followed by Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1985) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), as well as a short-lived TV-series "prequel."

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom Special Edition (1984) Dir.: Steven Spielberg; Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, Jonathan Ke Quan, Amrish Puri. Extras: "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: An Introduction by Steven Spielberg & George Lucas"; "Creepy Crawlies"; "Locations" featurette, "Storyboard Sequence -- The Mine Cart Chase" Galleries: llustrations & props, production photographs & portraits, effects/ILM, marketing; "Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures" Game demo and trailer. (Paramount).
The second of the George Lucas/Steven Spielberg Indiana Jones epics is set a year or so before the events in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1984). After a brief brouhaha involving a precious vial and a wild ride down a raging Himalyan river, Indy (Harrison Ford) gets down to the problem at hand: retrieving a precious gem and several kidnapped young boys on behalf of a remote East Indian village. His companions this time around include a dimbulbed, easily frightened nightclub chanteuse (Kate Capshaw), and a feisty 12-year-old kid named Short Round (Quan Ke Huy). Throughout, the plot takes second place to the thrills, which include a harrowing rollercoaster ride in an abandoned mineshaft and Indy's rescue of the heroine from a ritual sacrifice. There are also a couple of cute references to Raiders of the Lost Ark, notably a funny variation of Indy's shooting of the Sherpa warrior.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Special Edition (1989) Dir.: Steven Spielberg; Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Denholm Elliott, John Rhys-Davies. Extras: "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: An Introduction by Steven Spielberg & George Lucas"; "The Women: The American Film Institute Tribute" with the three Indiana Jones women (Karen Allen, Kate Capshaw and Alison Doody); "Friends and Enemies" discussion with Spielberg, Lucas and Indiana Jones writers; "Storyboard Sequence -- The Opening Sequence"; Galleries: llustrations & props, production photographs & portraits, effects/ILM, marketing; "Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures" Game demo and trailer. (Paramount).

The third installment in the widely beloved Spielberg/Lucas Indiana Jones saga begins with an introduction to a younger Indy (played by the late River Phoenix), who, through a fast-paced prologue, gives the audience insight into the roots of his taste for adventure, fear of snakes, and dogged determination to take historical artifacts out of the hands of bad guys and into the museums in which they belong. A grown-up Indy (Harrison Ford) reveals himself shortly afterward in a familiar classroom scene, teaching archeology to a disproportionate number of starry-eyed female college students in 1938. Once again, however, Mr. Jones is drawn away from his day job after an art collector (Julian Glover) approaches him with a proposition to find the much sought after Holy Grail. Circumstances reveal that there was another avid archeologist in search of the famed cup — Indiana Jones' father, Dr. Henry Jones (Sean Connery) — who had recently disappeared during his efforts. The junior and senior members of the Jones family find themselves in a series of tough situations in locales ranging from Venice to the most treacherous spots in the Middle East. Complicating the situation further is the presence of Elsa (Alison Doody), a beautiful and intelligent woman with one fatal flaw: she's an undercover Nazi agent. The search for the grail is a dangerous quest, and its discovery may prove fatal to those who seek it for personal gain. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade earned a then record-breaking $50 million in its first week of release.

Lovejoy: Season 3 (1992) Ian Mcshane. Extras: Ian McShane looks back on Lovejoy Part 3, Pebble Mill interview with Ian McShane (Warner/BBC America)

The worlds quirkiest crime-solving antiques hero is back in Season three, now with four discs of side-splitting and outrageous escapades! Much to Lovejoys annoyance, hes not the only one on a never-ending quest for wealth and valuables. However, while he proves unstoppable in the face of sinister Italians, vengeful customers and even Erics vintage motorbikes, can he manage to escape the snares of love?

Mission Impossible: The Fourth TV Season (1969-70) Seven-disc set with 26 episodes, $54.99. Peter Graves, Peter Lupus, Greg Morris, Leonard Nimoy(Paramount).

The head of the "Impossible Missions Force", a top-secret government group of operatives, starts a tape recorder and finds out about his latest assignment. Throughout most of the series, they would have to stop some petty dictator or powerful bad guy from whatever evil plot they had against the U.S. or Democracy in general. The elaborate use of electronic gadgetry, masters of disguise and detailed plans that require split-second timing made this tv show an "on the edge of your seater"!


The Rat Patrol Complete Series Seven-disc set with all 58 episodes, $49.98. (MGM).
Four elite Allied commandos of 111th Armor Recon team up as they blaze across the North African deserts to fight Field Marshal Rommel’s vaunted Africa Corps during WW II. Outfitted with Jeeps, machine guns and bravery, “The Rat Patrol” conducted raids into enemy territory.


Untraceable (2008) Diane Lane, Colin Hanks, Erin Carufel, Billy Burke, Joseph Cross, Mary Beth Hurt. Extras: Commentary, four featurettes, Available on Blu-ray Disc. (Sony).

Within the FBI there exists a division dedicated to investigating and prosecuting criminals on the internet. Welcome to the front lines of the war on cybercrime, where special Agent Jennifer Marsh (Diane Lane) and Griffin Dowd (Colin Hanks) have seen it all?until now. A tech-savvy internet predator is displaying his graphic murders on his own website and the fate of each of his tormented captives is left in the hands of the public: the more hits his site gets, the faster his victims die. When this game of cat and mouse becomes personal, Marsh and her team must race against the clock to track down this technical mastermind who is virtually untraceable.

For more DVD releases and info, check out our DVD Calendar.

DVD Review: DNa series one and two.

Acorn Media
2 DVDs with 5 episodes - Approx. 344 min
SRP: $39.99

Stars: Tom Conti, Samantha Bond, Ryan Cartwright

I have come to expect pleasant offerings from Acorn Media, as often as not in a lighter vein. Such expectations did not prepare me for DNa starring Tom Conti, a sort of British CSI with less procedure and more character drive. This is one artfully crafted. wonderfully acted piece of drama that hits like a sixties encounter bat, a canvas and foam implement for beating the snot out of your significant other without doing any actual damage. Think adult pillow fight. And DNa has plenty of impact. Every time you are sure you know where it's going it whacks you again. Delightfully. This short series is a treat with a capital T. And Conti is perfectly cast as Joseph Donovan, former forensic expert whose last case literally drove him nuts.

Now a successful writer, he is called in to consult on a case very like the one that sent him round the bay. Think you see where it's going don't you? Well you're wrong. This is no study in angst and soul searching via our hero. In fact our hero may be a suspect. Our hero looks damn good as the villain. There are twists, turns, serpentines and zags to keep this humming along without seeming rushed or descending into much darkness. It is a mystery with all that implies.

The set includes series one and two, where he is now head of forensics and is three shorter stories whereas one has one tale in two parts. The three shorter pieces are first rate in their own right and would have earned a good review by themselves, but for my money season one is the jewel in this crown. If you are looking for something very different in your mysteries, this is them. If you're not surprised I'll be surprised.

Order DNA from Amazon.

Lee Crawford
For more reviews from Lee, and the rest of the Crimespree crew, check out the index of reviews.

Charlaine Harris' True Blood gains another vampire.

Veteran actor Stephen Root (News Radio, Office Space, No Country for Old Men) will be drinking blood on HBO.

Root has signed on for a three-episode story arc for the upcoming True Blood.

TB is based on the novels of Charlaine Harris and set in Louisiana in a world where vampires walk the earth.

Root will be playing Eddie Gautier, a lonely vampire that becomes "smitten" with Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis).

The show stars Anna Paquin as Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic waitress and Stephen Moyer as Bill Compton, a vampire.

Alan Ball, creator of Six Feet Under, is producing the series.

This has certainly raised my own interest level in the series. I loved Root as radio station owner Jimmy James on News Radio.

Writer/Director Rian Johnson talks about feedback from intial test screenings of The Brothers Bloom.

Last week, The Brothers Bloom had a test screening in Sherman Oaks, CA. A couple of reviews are currently on Aint It Cool.

Writer/Director Rian Johnson commented, on his forum, on the screening recently:

“We did indeed have a test screening last Thursday in Sherman Oaks... after my experience with test screening Brick (oh god, the blood, the blood) I was terrified at the prospect. But it went shockingly well. Seemed to play really well, we got good scores and lots of laughs in the right places. We're going to do a bit of tweaking to it, but overall it's feeling good.

The reaction ran the gamut from people who loved it to those who thought it was ok but didn't get on the bus to just a couple haters. Sounds like the second AICN review was from the middle group. Eh. What can you do? For the record, I promise that the movie does indeed have a con, and an ending. Though not perhaps the type of either that you would automatically expect. “

The Brothers Bloom is a con artist film and stars Oscar winners Adrien Brody (The Pianist, Hollywoodland) , Rachael Weis (The Mummy, The Constant Garnder), and Maximilian Schell (Judgement at Nuremberg, The Black Hole) as well as Mark Ruffalo (Zodiac, All The Kings Men), Oscar nominee Rinko Kikuchi (Babel) and Robbie Coltrane (The Harry Potter films, U.K. version of Cracker).

The Brothers Bloom lands in theaters on October 24th.

DVD Review: Intelligence season one.

Acorn Media
Four-disc set with 14 episodes
SRP $59.99

Stars: Ian Tracey, Klea Scott

Last year, I stumbled across season one of a Canadian series called Da Vinci’s Inquest. After watching only a couple of episodes, I fell in love with it. It featured realistic characters that did not always do the right thing.

Now, DVI creator Chris Haddock brings us a show that may very well be the smartest crime drama since The Wire.

Intelligence mixes the worlds of organized crime with that of government intelligence and espionage, and does so while offering up dynamic, believable characters and rich, complex storylines.

Jimmy Reardon (Ian Tracey of Da Vinci’s Inquest) is loving father, hard-working owner of several businesses and an organized crime boss in Vancouver. It is in his blood, as he is a third generation crime boss. Reardon wants out, but needs to keep control until he can go legit. He is facing many challenges, including a biker gang that is looking to muscle in on his criminal enterprises.

Mary Spalding (Klea Scott), the head of Vancouver’s Organized Crime Unit, finds herself battling those within her own government almost as much as the criminals she has been ordered to take down. Spalding is looking for big results so she can continue to climb the ladder of success.

Mary and Jimmy find themselves forming an alliance. He provides becomes her confidential informant and she goes after his rivals and turns a blind eye to his operations. They are allies, but hardly pals, as each benefits without really investing too much trust in the other.

Intelligence does a wonderful job of avoiding the simplistic tags of good and bad. Neither Mary nor Jimmy are angels, yet both feel they are clearly doing what they feel is the right thing. Jimmy is drug supplier and is involved in a number of illegal activities, but is a reasonable, levelheaded guy that clearly cherishes those around him. Mary believes in what she is doing, but also has no problems making deals and cutting corners to continue to better her career.

Intelligence is loaded with strong performances by great actors. I hate to compare it to The Wire, but like that show, it assumes the viewer has at least some IQ points. Both shows also have no problems showing the bad with the good, and each offers criticisms of the institutions around them.

While not as universal strong as The Wire, Intelligence is a very good show that assumes it's viewers actually have so.

Order Intelligence from Amazon.

Jeremy Lynch
For more reviews from myself, and the rest of the Crimespree crew, check out the index of reviews.

Eckhart talks about Dark Knight, Two-face.

As the release date for The Dark Knight nears, the lips of cast and crew are starting to loosen.

Aaron Eckhart (D.A. Harvey Dent) recently spoke with the L.A. Times and his comments revealed a little more about his current character, as well as the eventual transformantion to Two-Face.

Before you read any further, I have to warn you that some of his comments may result in you figuring out some key plot elements.

You have been warned!

In talking about Two-Face, it sounds as though this version of the character will be more of a vigilante and less of a criminal (theft and whatnot). It sounds as though Two-Face is focused on hunting down criminals. Not unlike Batman, though more than willing to cross the lines that the Dark Knight won’t.

This is not surprising. When Batman underwent relaunch years back, Harvey Dent was one of Gordon’s initial suspects for the alter-ego of the Batman. He was a man that ended up being an ally of both Batman and Gordon. His disfiguration and transformantion into Two-Face was hard on both Wayne as well as Gordon.

"The difference between Batman and Two-Face is how far they are willing to go and how they make their point," Eckhart said. "Otherwise, we're talking about vigilante crime-fighting. That's what Batman is all about. He has a strong sense of justice. And Harvey Dent has an extremely strong sense of justice. His fiancée is killed. He's horribly injured. But he is still true to himself. He's a crime fighter, he's not killing good people. He's not a bad guy, not purely."

"My guy identifies with everybody in the movie," Eckhart said. "Really, all of it is more than an adventure tale, it's somewhat of a mirror of our times. It deals with some fundamental questions of what's going on in society. To me, this film is about how Batman feels about justice, how he takes care of the city, how he feels about the Joker when he meets him and sees what he is capable of doing. How he feels when Harvey Two-Face takes matters into his own hands. It's not simple, and it gets ugly. I think people will be surprised."

In talking about what folks might expect visually:
"That's right, people don't really know yet," actor Aaron Eckhart said with grin. "I can tell you that, basically, when you look at Two-Face, you should get sick to your stomach. Being the guy under all that, well, that was a lot of fun for me. It's like you would feel if you met someone whose face had pretty much been ripped off or burned off with acid. I can't talk about it beyond that because I don't want to give away too much of the plans by Chris."

“There are fans on the Internet who have done artist's versions of what they think it will look like, and I can tell you this: They're thinking small; Chris [Nolan, Director] is going way farther than people think."


The Dark Knight lands in theaters on July 18th.

Mission Impossible IV could happen.

Variety is reporting that Viacom head Summer Redstone has stated that he would have no problems with Cruise reprising his role of Ethan Hunt for a fourth Mission Impossible film.

Cruise and his production partner, Paula Wagner were sent packing in 2006, after some of Cruise's more colorful public moments.

Redstone and Cruise were seen eating together a couple of months back, leading to speculation that the two had patched up their rocky relationship.

While I have enjoyed the MI films, none of them were stellar. If a fourth is going to be made, I hope they sign on Scott Frank (Writer of The Lookout, Out of Sight, Get Shorty, Minority Report, director of The Lookout), Shane Black (Writer of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and Lethal Weapon, director of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang) or even Tony Gilroy (writer of Bourne films, writer/director of Michael Clayton).

Put somebody in the driver's seat that can really cook up something special...and fun.

Mystery Writers of America pick Dexter, Michael Clayton for Edgars.

The Mystery Writers of America handed out the Edgar awards on Saturday night.

I will provide a link for all of the winners, but want to talk about the two that are related to this site: Best Teleplay for Series Episode and Best Film Screenplay.

Matt Nix picked up the Best Teleplay for Series episode Edgar for the pilot script for Burn Notice. Nix beat out
"It's Alive" from Dexter (Showtime), Teleplay by Daniel Cerone
"Yahrzeit" from Waking the Dead (BBC), Teleplay by Declan Croghan
"Pie-Lette" from Pushing Daisies (ABC), Teleplay by Bryan Fuller
"Senseless" from Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC), Story by Warren Leight & Siobhan Byrne O'Connor, Teleplay by Julie Martin & Siobhan Byrne O'Connor

A very impressive win considering the level of quality of the competition. Congtats to Nix.

Best Film Screenplay:
Writer/Director Tony Gilroy snags it for Michael Clayton. Gilroy beat out
Eastern Promises, Screenplay by Steven Knight
The Lookout, Screenplay by Scott Frank
No Country for Old Men, Screenplay by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, based on the book by Cormac McCarthy
Zodiac, Screenplay by James Vanderbilt, based on the book by Robert Graysmith

Gilroy has previously written for the Bourne films, while I enjoyed them, I had no clue that he was capable of something this good. If Clayton is any indication, Gilroy will be a creative force to be reckoned with in Hollywood.

Congrats to not only Gilroy and Nix, but all of the winners and nominees in each catagory.

Read all of the winners and nominees.

From the mean streets of Baltimore to the posh ones of Beverly Hills: The Wire's Michael to star in 90210 spin-off.

Tristan Wilds has signed on to star in the upcoming spin-off of Beverly Hills 90210. Wilds played Michael in the fourth and fifth seasons of The Wire.

Wilds will star as Dixon, the adopted son of a Beverly Hills family. His character is described as "a bright but troubled lad."

His sister, Anne, will be played by Shenae Grimes (Degrassi: The Next Generation). She is a sensitive theater student.

Dixon's best friend will be Navid, who is of Persian decent and is a Scientologist, is the producer of West Beverly Hills High School's TV newscasts.

Now before anyone cringes, remember that this is being written (At least the pilot) by Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas.

Will I watch? Likely not, but it is nice to see Mr. Wilds getting a steady gig.

New Trailer for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

The new trailer is online for the latest Indiana Jones flick. Unlike the previous teasers, this actually gives us a decent idea of what to expect.

Check it out.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull opens on May 22nd.