National Lampoon's Van Wilder (R-Rated Edition) [VHS]

National Lampoon's Van Wilder (R-Rated Edition) [VHS] Review

In a futile but ambitiously decadent attempt to revive the loony legacy of National Lampoon comedies, Van Wilder will make you laugh out loud, or vomit, or both. It's that kind of movie, in which the title character (played by sitcom survivor Ryan Reynolds) is the resident slacker of Coolidge College for seven years and running. Enjoying his party-animal supremacy and reluctant to fulfill his potential, he's got an idolizing assistant from India (Kal Penn, the movie's ethnic stereotype, desperate virgin, and comedic highlight), and a journalism major (Tara Reid) assigned to uncover the secret of Van's controlled anarchy. Unfortunately, the movie's more Down to You than Animal House, opting for familiar teen romance over campus shenanigans, despite an abundance of flatulence, diarrhea, sicko sex jokes, gratuitous nudity, and one gag (involving a bulldog) that's disgusting by any standard. Keg-fueled frat-rats will surely elevate Van Wilder to semiclassic status; all others are urged to proceed with caution. --Jeff Shannon

Man From Hell's Edges

Man From Hell's Edges Review

Prison escapee Flash Manning saves the sheriff from from a deadly ambush set up by the notorious bandito, Lobo, and is made deputy. Months later, Manning's gang is released from prison, and plans to knock off the bank, with Flash as their leader. Lobo boasts about a murder he committed, not realizing that his victim was actually Flash's father. Flash must decide between executing the bank heist or going after his father's killer.

The Man From Hell's Edges stars Bob Steele and was directed by his father Robert Bradbury. Bradbury was notable for helming early John Wayne productions including Riders of Destiny (1933), The Lucky Texan (1934) and Blue Steel (1934).

Ceiling Zero [VHS]

Ceiling Zero [VHS] Review

War veteran pilots Dizzy Davis, Texas Clark and Jake Lee are working in an airline. Dizzy is fooling with one of the younger pilot's girl-friend and due to this, he changes flights with Texas. Texas' plane crashes attempting to land on their airfield under extremly bad weather circumstances, he is killed in this accident. Dizzy feels guilty for his friend's death and takes the next flight under even worse circumstances, testing a new anti-ice device on the plane.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: The Real Sherlock Holmes

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: The Real Sherlock Holmes Review

There are few characters from literature that take on a life of their own, but Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s fictional detective, is definitely one of them.

Come unlock the mystery of the man behind Sherlock Holmes and witness the birth of the greatest detective of all time in this fascinating, exclusive documentary.

Hot Wheels AcceleRacers, Vol. 3 - Breaking Point

Hot Wheels AcceleRacers, Vol. 3 - Breaking Point Review

Hot Wheels AcceleRacers, Vol. 3 - Breaking Point Feature

• The drivers enter the Neon Pipeline Realm where they have to master not only drafting, but also driving on the inside and outside of an elaborate network of pipes. The drivers discover the presence of the mysterious Silencerz team. In the Junk Realm, Kurt's brother, Wylde, gets captured by Gelorum and the evil Racing Drones.Running Time: 61 min. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: CHILDREN Rating

The exciting AcceleRacers saga continues in Hot Wheels AcceleRacers, Volume 3: Breaking Point, which picks up precisely where Hot Wheels AcceleRacers 2: The Speed of Silence left off. Kurt's brother, Wylde, is captured and physically altered by the evil Gelorum--though to what end isn't clear until the final scene. Meanwhile, a couple of AcceleRacers inventor Dr. Tezla's human drivers take their personal conflict into a Neon Pipeline realm, where they race against one another for awhile but soon confront Gelorum's monstrous, car-eating Sweepers and the unstoppable Racing Drones. Luckily, muscle-bound driver Pork Chop is determined, in his own laconic way, to bring his endangered teammates back from oblivion. Unlike the previous two AcceleRacers movies, Volume 3: Breaking Point is less a self-contained adventure than an obvious link in a larger story. But it's easy to get hooked by the drama and rich, computer-animated visuals, even if one isn't familiar with the preceding tales. --Tom Keogh The drivers enter the Neon Pipeline Realm where they have to master not only drafting, but also driving on the inside and outside of an elaborate network of pipes. The drivers discover the presence of the mysterious Silencerz team. In the Junk Realm, Kurt's brother, Wylde, gets captured by Gelorum and the evil Racing Drones.

DVD Features:
Challenges:Test your knowledge of the realms.
Music Video:"Accelorate"
Other:4 bonus micro-adventures

Digital Golf School: The Short Game

Digital Golf School: The Short Game Review

Digital Golf School: The Short Game Feature

• Run Time: 74 Mins
• Understand the basics of chipping, bunkers and putting.
• Basic elements of the short game
• Improve yourself to the next level.
• Holmes has trained more than 70 tour players.

In this DVD program recorded in high definition, Simon Holmes provides the instructions to understand the basics of chipping, bunkers and putting. You will learn the basic elements of the short game and improve yourself to the next level. Holmes has trained Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Robert Karlsson, Darren Clarke, and more than 70 other tour players.

The Meaning of Life

The Meaning of Life Review

Perhaps only the collective brilliant minds of the Monty Python film and television troupe are up to the task of tackling a subject as weighty as the Meaning of Life. Sure, Kierkegaard, Wittgenstein, and their ilk have tried their hands at this puzzler, but only Python has attempted to do so within the commercial motion picture medium. Happily for us all, Monty Python's the Meaning of Life truly explains everything one conceivably needs to know about the perplexities of human existence, from the mysteries of Catholic doctrine to the miracle of reproduction to why one should avoid the salmon mousse to the critical importance of the machine that goes ping! Using fish as a linking device (and what marvelous links those aquatic creatures make), The Meaning of Life is presented as a series of sketches: a musical production number about why seed is sacred; a look at dining in the afterlife; the quest for a missing fish (there they are again); a visit from Mr. Death; the cautionary tale of Mr. Creosote and his rather gluttonous appetite; an unflinching examination of the harsh realities of organ donation, and so on. Sadly, this was the last original Python film, but it's a beaut. You'll laugh. You'll cry (probably because you're laughing so hard). You may even learn something about the Meaning of Life. Or at least about how fish fit into the grand scheme of things. --Jim Emerson

Seven Days in May

Seven Days in May Review

SEVEN DAYS IN MAY - DVD Movie

Big Fat Liar & Little Rascals

Big Fat Liar & Little Rascals Review

Pitting kids against grown-ups has always been a reliable source of comedy, and Big Fat Liar indulges the "smart kid vs. dumb adult" fantasy with infectious enthusiasm. In this case it's Frankie Muniz from TV's Malcolm in the Middle, playing a Michigan eighth-grader whose penchant for lying results in parental scorn when he claims that a Hollywood movie mogul (ace character actor Paul Giamatti) has stolen the kid's hastily written English essay and turned it into his upcoming summer blockbuster. The kid only wants to prove his honesty and recruits his girlfriend (spunky TV star Amanda Bynes) to beat the honcho on his Hollywood turf. Elaborate practical jokes and slapstick gags turn this kid stuff (scripted and produced by two former child stars) into an enjoyable send-up of Hollywood absurdity. When combined with Giamatti's mastery of slow-burning megalomania, the show-biz in-jokes and Home Alone-style anarchy make this a harmless diversion for the young and young-at-heart. --Jeff Shannon

Kiss of Death [VHS]

Kiss of Death [VHS] Review

Richard Widmark's bravura debut as snickering gangster Tommy Udo, and particularly his infamous encounter with an old woman in a wheelchair, enjoys such pop cachet that the movie itself has been somewhat underrated. More's the pity. Henry Hathaway's third entry in 20th Century–Fox's series of post–WWII thrillers is just about the best of the bunch. These films incorporated the semidocumentary techniques and wondrously persuasive on-location shooting Hollywood learned from Italian neorealism and the wartime filming of some of its own best directors. Kiss of Death is more fictional than documentary in thrust, with a solid script by ace screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer. But that only makes its imaginative, atmospheric use of real places and spaces--e.g., a superb opening robbery sequence in a New York skyscraper--the more remarkable.

Victor Mature belies his rep as one of the Hollywood star system's bad jokes with his intense performance as Nick Bianco, a career criminal driven to turn squealer. Nick's motivation is family values: although he had gone to Sing Sing (yes, they filmed there, too) as a stand-up guy, "the boys" failed to take care of his wife and daughters as promised, with devastating results. Despite the best efforts of an assistant D.A. (Brian Donlevy), Nick is forced to lay everything on the line to rescue his family's future. The movie abounds in evocative texture, thanks to the no-frills excellence of Norbert Brodine's camerawork and an exemplary supporting cast including Millard Mitchell (as a sardonic police detective), Karl Malden (another D.A.), and Taylor Holmes (a flannel-mouthed Mob shyster). Kiss of Death was remade twice, as a Western titled The Fiend That Walked the West and as a straight thriller again in the '90s. --Richard T. Jameson

Big Momma's House [VHS]

Big Momma's House [VHS] Review

No one tries very hard in Big Momma's House, so your enjoyment of this Martin Lawrence vehicle pretty much depends on how much amusement you're able to derive from a guy dressed up as a very ample woman. The setup is of the eye-rolling, only-in-Hollywood nature: Lawrence, as detective Malcolm Turner, is after a killer, and apparently the only way to capture him is to pose as the bad guy's ex-girlfriend's grandmother, who--the film cannot stress this point too much--is quite large.

Apparently, Sherry (Nia Long), the young woman in question--she's as attractive as Big Momma is, well, you know--is none too bright, for she falls for Malcolm's ruse, which of course ostensibly amuses mainly because it's so transparent. She at least has an excuse--she hasn't seen Big Momma in two years--but Big Momma's oblivious friends must be functional morons. Screenwriters Darryl Quarles and Don Rhymer didn't tax themselves very much, as they have Malcolm-as-Big-Momma going through fairly predictable motions--botching a meal and delivering a baby unconventionally (Big Momma's a midwife), but ruling at basketball and self- defense and protecting Sherry while trying vainly not to flirt with her. Paul Giamatti is wasted as Malcolm's partner; director Raja Gosnell's clunky sense of comic rhythm is bewildering, because he used to be an editor (he brought a similar lack of magic to Home Alone 3).

Lawrence won't have anyone forgetting Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in Some Like It Hot, Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, or Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire anytime soon. Big Momma's House benefits mainly by being first to the marketplace ahead of Eddie Murphy's The Nutty Professor 2: The Klumps; Murphy's work in prosthetics is far more accomplished, versatile, and funny. --David Kronke

Dark Victory

Dark Victory Review

Critic Pauline Kael called this shamelessly enjoyable, vintage Bette Davis weepie a "kitsch classic," and time hasn't diminished its ability to give the tear ducts a good flushing. Davis plays a swinging socialite, living the fast life of booze, smokes, and--with the help of Humphrey Bogart as her Irish stableman--raising thoroughbred horses. When a brain tumor starts giving her headaches and eroding her vision, she falls in love with her surgeon (George Brent), who grows more determined than ever to cure her. Davis gives one of her most vibrant performances, and her costars also include Ronald Reagan and Geraldine Fitzgerald. The film received Oscar nominations for best picture, best actress, and for Max Steiner's score. --Jim Emerson

The Sherlock Holmes Collection, Vol. 2 (The House of Fear/The Spider Woman/Pearl of Death/The Scarlet Claw)

The Sherlock Holmes Collection, Vol. 2 (The House of Fear/The Spider Woman/Pearl of Death/The Scarlet Claw) Review

The Sherlock Holmes Collection, Vol. 2 (The House of Fear/The Spider Woman/Pearl of Death/The Scarlet Claw) Feature

• The House Of Fear: The Good Comrades are a collection of varied gentleman who crave one thing - solitude. They reside at Drearcliff House, ancestral home of their eldest member. All seems serene and convivial until one by one the members begin to perish in the most grisly of manners. Foul play is suspected by the Good Comrades' insurance agent, who turns to Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson f

Here are four strong entries (each beautifully restored by the UCLA Film and Television Archive) from the peak of Basil Rathbone's prolific, seven-year run as a definitive Sherlock Holmes for the big screen. Three of these films were released in 1944 alone, beginning with the gripping Pearl of Death, a then-contemporary update (set in the World War II years, as with most of the Rathbone-Holmes features) of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Six Napoleons."

A reluctant Holmes agrees to help a London museum recover a stolen, rare pearl. But the investigation takes a strange turn when the great detective and his sidekick, Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce), find their mystery linked to a series of odd murders involving the destruction of porcelain china. Typically, "Pearl of Death" has its share of inside jokes for true Sherlockians, including Holmes's declaration, "If I'm wrong, I'll move to Sussex and raise bees." Of course, that's exactly what Doyle's most famous character did upon retirement.

The Scarlet Claw is an original screenplay with elements loosely inspired by Doyle's "The Adventure of the Dancing Men." A skeptical Holmes and Watson attend a meeting of the Royal Canadian Occult Society in Canada, but are soon looking into a killing spree attributed to a fanciful marsh monster. Fantastic events are soon supplanted by an even stranger horror concerning a master actor bent on revenge.

The Spider Woman employs details of Holmes's apparent death and resurrection between "The Final Problem" and its follow-up, "The Adventure of the Empty House." But the movie takes a different direction when a bizarre series of late-night "pajama suicides" finds Holmes probing the involvement of a femme fatale. Of the quartet of features in this set (all produced and directed by the energetic Roy William Neill) Spider Woman has the most vivacity and familiar textures from Doyle's canon.

Finally, "The House of Fear," adapted from "The Five Orange Pips," is a chamber mystery concerning successive murders of the members of an elite club, the Good Comrades. On film, the tale seems a bit ludicrous, but its conclusion is among the most startling in the Rathbone films. There's also a fair amount of comedy between Watson and Inspector Lestrade's bumbling ways. --Tom Keogh The master detective Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) and his faithful cohort Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce) are back, preserved and digitally restored in 35mm to original condition by the UCLA Film and Television Archive. This newly restored version of the classic film includes the period war bond tag and studio logo and credits from its original theatrical release. Filled with ominous shadows and interesting camera angles, the visual beauty of the film in 35mm is stunning. Includes: Sherlock Holmes and The Scarlet Claw Sherlock Holmes and The Spider Woman Sherlock Holmes and The House of Fear Sherlock Holmes and the Pearl of Death

Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon

Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon Review

England is at war with Germany and Sherlock and Dr. Watson find themselves in the thick of a German plot to steal a secret weapon. A Classic and a MUST HAVE video.

Private Life of Sherlock Holmes [VHS]

Private Life of Sherlock Holmes [VHS] Review

This 1970 Billy Wilder comedy-drama about a major defeat in the career of Sherlock Holmes may have little to do with the legacy of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but in its uncut form it happens to be one of the finest films of the decade. Robert Stephens makes a perfectly splendid Holmes, brilliant, sophisticated, and deeply flawed, while Colin Blakely plays Dr. Watson as a drinker and ladies' man with more personality and intelligence than is often granted him by filmmakers. The case (which has some echoes of Doyle's story "The Bruce-Partington Plans") begins with Holmes aiding the distressed Madame Valladon (Geneviève Page), who is searching for her missing husband. The inquiry shifts to Scotland, and despite a stern warning from the hero's brother, Mycroft Holmes (Christopher Lee), Sherlock pursues events that reveal a top-secret government plan. Lush, energetic, funny, gorgeous to look at, and ultimately tragic, the film is layered with Wilder's familiar collision of cynicism and yearning, hope and betrayal, grace and isolation. --Tom Keogh

My Dear Secretary / Mr. Moto's Last Warning / Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon

My Dear Secretary / Mr. Moto's Last Warning / Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon Review

DVD with 3 full length features

Sherlock: Season One [Blu-ray]

Sherlock: Season One [Blu-ray] Review

Sherlock: Season One [Blu-ray] Feature

• SHERLOCK: SEASON ONE BBC/2009/TVBD (BLU-RAY DISC)

In the wake of Guy Ritchie's reimagining, the BBC puts its own stamp on Arthur Conan Doyle's sleuth--and sets him in a London filled with cell phones and laptops. In the pilot, director Paul McGuigan (a keen visual stylist) introduces Sherlock Holmes (Atonement's Benedict Cumberbatch) as a "high-functioning sociopath" and Dr. John Watson (The Office's Martin Freeman) as an army veteran with posttraumatic stress disorder. Through a mutual friend, the two become flatmates at 221B Baker Street (Una Stubbs plays their landlady). Holmes, who consults with Scotland Yard inspector Lestrade (Rupert Graves) on his trickier cases, drafts Watson to assist him.

In "Study in Pink," four people commit suicide by poison. When Holmes sets out to establish a link, he falls right into the culprit's clutches. Other cases concern a smuggling operation ("The Blind Banker") and a mad bomber ("The Great Game"). Though he doesn't make a formal entrance until episode three, an infamous figure from Sherlock's future has a hand in each mystery, while the detective's brother, Mycroft (co-creator Mark Gatiss), first appears when he tries to hire Watson for a case of his own, an offer that gives the good doctor pause. Through his job at a medical office, Watson also meets Sarah (Zoe Telford), who becomes his girlfriend.

Part of the fun of Jeremy Brett's Holmes (and Agatha Christie's Poirot) came from the period details, so this update takes a little getting used to--as does the occasional mumbled line--but Cumberbatch and Freeman share an enjoyable Odd Couple rapport, marked by flashes of deadpan wit, which compensates for the absence of deerstalker caps (Holmes favors scarves) and journals (Watson maintains a website). Extras include commentary on the finale, the original pilot, and a featurette, in which cocreator Steven Moffat (Doctor Who) notes that Cumberbatch was his only choice for the title role. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

A contemporary take on the classic Arthur Conan Doyle stories, Sherlock is a thrilling, funny, fast-paced adventure series set in present-day London. Co-created by Steven Moffat (Doctor Who, Coupling) and Mark Gatiss, Sherlock stars BAFTA-nominee Benedict Cumberbatch (Hawking, Amazing Grace) as the new Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman (The Office, Love Actually), as his loyal friend, Doctor John Watson. Rupert Graves plays Inspector Lestrade. The iconic details from Conan Doyle's original books remain--they live at the same address, have the same names and, somewhere out there, Moriarty is waiting for them. And so across three thrilling, scary, action-packed and highly modern-day adventures, Sherlock and John navigate a maze of cryptic clues and lethal killers to get at the truth.