Nick’s Picks 08/15/12

DVD REVIEWS

FREE DVD GIVEAWAY

We are doing a Free DVD Giveaway! If you are interested in a chance at winning a free copy of Chuggington Traintastic Adventures, Dawn Rider, Treasure Island, Lethal Landscapes, Craft in America Collection or Weight of the Nation, it is really easy! All you have to do is send me an email at HoustonMovieGuy@gmail.com. The subject line of the email should read DVD GIVEAWAY. In the body of the email, be sure to put your name, full mailing address and which DVD or Blu-ray you would like. Winners will be selected by random drawing. Best of luck!

CHUGGINGTON TRAINTASTIC ADVENTURES – Anchor Bay

Join the Chuggington crew in these 6 Traintastic Adventures — plus a Bonus Badge Quest Episode — as they put their wheels to the rails! Watch as Brewster tests a speedy new invention, Koko’s stunt-training saves the day, Wilson gets stuck on the track lift and everybody competes in a big chug-of-war! With friends like Harrison, Speedy and Action Chugger along for the ride, your own little ones will be introduced to valuable social skills that include accepting responsibility, tackling new challenges, being patient, helping others and the importance of teamwork!

DAWN RIDER – Vivendi

Christian Slater, Jill Hennessy and Donald Sutherland star in this gripping story of vengeance and passion set in the American West. When the father of gunslinger John Mason (Slater) is shot to death by masked bandits, Mason sets out with guns blazing to track down the bandits who killed him. During his quest, he finds himself involved in a grim love triangle when he falls for Alice, the determined and beautiful woman also adored by John’s best friend. Based on the timeless John Wayne adventure, Dawn Rider is a gripping saga of vengeance, duty and valor in the American West.

TREASURE ISLAND – Vivendi

Young Jim Hawkins is the only one who can successfully get a schooner to a legendary Island known for buried treasure. But aboard the ship is a mysterious cook named John Silver (Eddie Izzard), whose true motivation on the journey challenges Jim s trust in the entire crew. This is an exciting and atmospheric new take on the definitive pirate action adventure of reckless buccaneers, buried fortunes and a friendship forged in peril on the high seas.

LETHAL LANDSCAPES – PBS

This documentary explores the little-known world of the combat artist, trained to paint, sketch and draw the terrors of battle, as well as the mundane moments in between. The show s highlight is a female Marine artist, who, after graduating from DINFOS, went to Iraq to capture on canvas what our troops are experiencing. The show also examines the history of military art from the Civil War through Iraq and Afghanistan.

CRAFT IN AMERICA COLLECTION – PBS

The Craft in America Collection two centuries of artists and objects. The Peabody Award-winning series that promotes and advances original handcrafted work and inspires people of all ages to pursue their own creativity. In this collection discover the beauty and originality of our nation’s rich cultural heritage through these seven specials.

WEIGHT OF THE NATION – HBO

Continuing the tradition of 2007’s Addiction and 2009’s The Alzheimer’s Project in spotlighting the nation’s most pressing health issues, HBO addresses the issue of obesity in The Weight of the Nation, an initiative that will help launch one of the most far-reaching public health campaigns on this epidemic to date. Developed in partnership with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and in association with some of the world’s foremost health-research organizations. Three years in the making, The Weight of the Nation spotlights the facts and myths of this public-health crisis, showing how obesity affects the health of the nation and cripples the health care system.

KILL LIST – IFC

Eight months after a disastrous hit job in Kiev left him physically and mentally scarred, ex-soldier turned contract killer Jay (Neil Maskell) is pressured by his partner Gal (Michael Smiley), into taking a new assignment. But as they descend into the bizarre, disturbing world of the contract, Jay’s reality begins to unravel until fear and paranoia send him reeling towards a horrifying point of no return. From director Ben Wheatley (Down Terrace), Kill List is a mind-blowing psychological horror film that plunges into the heart of human darkness.

AMERICAN PICKERS: Volume Four – A&E

Junk piles and relics are the treasures of the future throughout small town America! Specialists scour the flea markets and garage sales across the country in order to uncover the next hidden gem that will make money. This program follows Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz who are professional “pickers.” They find everything and anything of value, make money and provide the audience a look into the open window of Anytown, USA.

THE FRESH BEAT BAND – Nickelodeon

Join the Fresh Beat Band for their first funky-fresh season! Kiki, Twist, Marina and Shout are four musical friends who do everything together – from going to Music School to rocking the Groovy Smoothie to making music at a luau! Whenever there’s a problem that needs solving, The Fresh Beat Band always find a way … a musical way! Will you catch the beat along with them!

BEL AMI – Sony

Based on Guy de Maupassant’s classic novel, this tale of temptation and obsession chronicles Georges Duroy’s (Robert Pattinson) rise to power from his meager beginnings as a penniless ex soldier by using the city’s most influential and wealthy women. Set in turn of the century Paris, Duroy seduces Mme de Marelle (Christina Ricci) then marries a former comrade’s wife, Madeleine Forrestier (Uma Thurman). Fueled by his insatiable quest of lustful greed, Duroy conquers Madame Walter (Kristen Scott Thomas), only to learn that every conquest is marred by betrayal and true love eludes him.

POWER RANGERS SUPER SAMURAI: Volume One – Lionsgate

Join the Samurai Rangers when their ongoing conflict with Master Xandred reaches epic proportions as he sends more dangerous Nighlok monsters to finish the Samurai once and for all. It’s up to Mentor Ji and Gold Ranger Antonio to uncover the secrets of a legendary black box that will morph the Rangers into SUPER SAMURAI! By combining their extraordinary power symbols and Megazords to create new and incredible combinations, the Samurai become better and stronger. But will that be enough when a new villain surfaces, determined to defeat the Rangers once and for all? Includes 4 Megazord-powered adventures!

THE CALLERS – First Run Features

The Callers explores the world of auctions with a group of Pennsylvania auctioneers who move mounds of merchandise to eager buyers, year-round. Through its portrayal of several experienced auctioneers and a host of curious buyers, this new feature documentary reveals our complex relationship with stuff – with consuming, collecting, and hoarding. An antiquated profession, auctioneering is as relevant today as it’s ever been. People across America who were fooled by bankers and brokers can go to the local auction house and decide for themselves how much something is worth through the auction method – arguably the fairest method. And when you’re elbow to elbow with a crowd of bidders, adrenaline coursing through your veins, your heart pounding as you flick your card, wiggle your nose, scratch your ear in time to the auctioneer’s call, it is undeniably a most entertaining one.

PAWN STARS: Volume Five – A&E

Las Vegas is the modern day Mecca for people in need of fast cash. The face of the pawnbroker industry in the USA is the Harrison family of the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop. Three generations of Harrisons argue and broker over everything from swords to cars. History and prices are all bartered and negotiated as items go in and out the doors of the most famous pawn shop in the country. This set includes 16 episodes as well as some additional extras for your viewing pleasure.

MASTER QI & THE MONKEY KING – First Run Features

This beautifully realized documentary chronicles the life and work of Qi Shu Fang, one of the preeminent masters of Chinese Opera living in the United States. It is a compelling story of ambition, love, the creative impulse and the struggle to survive against all odds. The film highlights the intricacies of Peking Opera, an art form that is hardly known in the West and is declining in popularity in China. At the same time it explores why Ms. Qi, her husband, Ding Meikui, and their company of Chinese Opera performers have made the difficult move to the United States, where they, like so many immigrants, must balance pressures to assimilate with the needs of cultural expression and preservation.

INVENTING OUR LIFE – FIrst Run Features

Set against the backdrop of the kibbutz movement’s glorious 100-year history, Inventing Our Life reveals the heartbreak and hope of Israel’s communal living experiment as a new generation of women and men confront an essential question: can a radically socialist institution survive a new capitalist reality? In this illuminating and entertaining documentary, director Toby Perl Freilich explores the modern history of Israel, from its revolutionary settlers to the political upheaval that shook the socialist foundations of the state. With their desire to create a Jewish homeland and build a more just society, the first settlers helped place kibbutzim in the vanguard of Israeli history. In doing so, they became a magnet for all those who shared one thing in common – a powerful urge to invent their own life.

THE HUNGER GAMES – Lionsgate

Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the Capitol of the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. A twisted punishment for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic, the Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which “Tributes” must fight with one another until one survivor remains. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen volunteers in her younger sister’s place to enter the games, and is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy when she’s pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives. If she’s ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

ART IS THE PERMANENT REVOLUTION – First Run Features

The anger and outrage captured by graphic artists and printmakers have defined revolutions through the centuries, depicting the human condition in all its glories and struggles so powerfully that perceptions, attitudes and politics have been dramatically influenced. In Art is the Permanent Revolution, three contemporary artists and a master printer explore how social reality and protest are conveyed in art. While the stirring works of the masters sweep by– among them graphics by Rembrandt, Goya, Daumier, Kollwitz, Dix, Grosz and Picasso — the making of an etching, a woodcut and a lithograph unfolds before our eyes as the contemporary artists join their illustrious predecessors in creating art of social engagement.

BARACK OBAMA: From His Childhood to the Presidency – A&E

Utilizing interviews from family and friends, A&E provides a glimpse into the life of our current commander and chief. The story of Barack Obama provides a look into the man who fought against everything in order to fight for what he believed in. His early years in Hawaii to his landmark presidential victory, follow our president through his identity struggles, his studies at Columbia and Harvard and then the start to his political career in Chicago where he earned major kudos with his focus on ethics and political reform. This A&E dvd is without a doubt a must own for any fan of history.

TITANIC: 100 Years in 3D – A&E

In order to commemorate the sinking of the Titanic 100 years ago, A&E has put together this stunning documentary on the unsinkable ship using stories, images and phenominal direction surrounding the real life drama of the TItanic. Utilizing optical sonar and acoustic imagery, the expedition from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute documented the entire site of the Titanic wreck. The visuals put together, combined with the wonderful stories of those who were on board that fateful night, are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. The unforgettable stories are enough to take you back in time, but coupled with the pictures, you are certain to thoroughly enjoy this dvd.

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Posted by FortBendStar on Aug 15 2012. Filed under Nick's Picks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.