American Beauty (DVD) Review

American Beauty (DVD) Review

by: Britt Gillette

Nominated for eight Academy Awards, and winner of five including Best Picture, American Beauty is one of the best films of all time. Exploring the depths of the American Dream – a good job, a nice house, the perfect marriage, etc. – the film is dripping with symbolism and satire. A cinematic study of societal dysfunction, American Beauty will affect a broad range of emotions within its viewing audience, and it’ll make you laugh as well. This is a great movie, and although some people will shy away from it, everyone should see American Beauty at least once so they can form their own opinion.Kevin Spacey plays the role of Lester Burnham, a middle-aged suburban resident who seemingly lives the American Dream. He and his wife Carolyn (Annette Bening) have a nice house, a beautiful daughter Jane (Thora Birch), and successful careers. But things aren’t always as they seem. In reality, the Burnham’s are the definition of dysfunctional. They fight over everything, screaming at the dinner table about ridiculous things such as vegetables. Carolyn is engaged in an affair with rival real estate broker Buddy Kane (Peter Gallagher), and Lester is suffering from a creeping depression/mid-life crisis. Meanwhile, Jane is developing an infatuation with the strange boy who recently moved in next door, Ricky Fitts (Wes Bentley) – a drug dealer/homespun director with a homophobic Marine Corps father, Frank. When the source of Frank’s homophobia bubbles to the surface, we learn that – just like the Burnham’s – most of the neighborhood is living a different life from that which shows on the outside… Kevin Spacey follows up his amazing performances in The Usual Suspects and L.A. Confidential with his Academy Award for Best Actor in this film. Some of the funniest scenes in American Beauty involve the depressed Lester Burnham and his mid-life crisis meltdown. The way in which Spacey walks out of his job is utterly hilarious, and his weed-smoking, weight-lifting regimen in an effort to get pumped up and impress his daughter’s friend is classic. But Spacey’s performance is not alone. His brilliant role is complimented by Annette Bening’s Oscar-caliber transformation into Lester’s bitchy, cut-throat real-estate broker wife, Carolyn Burnham. Together, the two can stage an onscreen fight like no other fake married couple in cinema history, and it’s a true pleasure to watch. American Beauty is further strengthened by Chris Cooper’s role as the Burnham’s homophobic neighbor (October Sky, The Patriot, Seabiscuit) and Mena Suvari’s role as the big-talking school girl Angela Hayes, object of Lester’s desires (Kiss The Girls, American Pie). American Beauty is a film bursting with stage talent, one that benefits from solid direction, a well-designed screenplay, and superb dialogue. Odds are, you’ll either love it or hate it. But irrespective of your final take, American Beauty will invoke passion one way or the other. That’s why this film ranks as a definite must-see.

Finding Nemo (DVD) Review

Finding Nemo (DVD) Review

by: Britt Gillette

Winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, Finding Nemo continues the Disney tradition of producing high-quality, blockbuster films that entertain audiences of all ages. Featuring the wonders of the Pixar animation technology, the film is a breathtaking window into the future of animated pictures, with borderline 3-D visual effects and the introduction of original animated film techniques certain to influence future masterpieces. Boasting a slew of talented voiceovers such as Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe, and John Ratzenberger, Finding Nemo is certain to maintain a place in the hearts of children of all ages for generations to come.The epic story begins somewhere in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Australia. A clown fish named Marlin (Albert Brooks) lives a wonderful life in a peaceful underwater colony of fish and other fascinating sea life with his wife. However, that serene setting is demolished when a vicious predator attacks their home, killing his wife. Distraught, Marlin takes comfort in the egg left behind which grows into his son, Nemo (Alexander Gould). Because of this early trauma, Marlin is extremely overprotective when it comes to Nemo. He follows a step behind everywhere his son goes, makes Nemo stay in the house whenever possible, and remains quite apprehensive about his son going to school. Marlin’s fears are realized when Nemo is captured on his first day of school and taken away to live in a fish tank on land. Intent on freeing his son, Marlin sets out on a bold and daring quest to retrace the path of the abductor’s boat. Wandering through the ocean depths, he meets up with Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) – an absent-minded, yet friendly – fish who remains determined to help her new friend recover his lost son. Together, they encounter a pack of sharks and a countless array of diverse and fascinating underwater creatures. Meanwhile, Nemo is plunged into a dentist office fish tank overlooking Sidney Harbor where he meets a number of new and exciting friends. The other aquatic life, long confined to the tank themselves, initiate Nemo into their fraternity, revealing the history of their attempts to escape. Enlisting Nemo as their point man (or fish), they concoct a number of schemes such as clogging the tank’s filter so they can make a break for it when they’re taken out for the tank cleaning. With the threat of the dentist presenting Nemo as a present to his nerdy niece, the stakes are raised for our young hero and time is of the essence. Sporting one of the best written animated screenplays of all-time and a breathtaking original score by Thomas Newman, Finding Nemo is a pleasurable affair for both parents and children. The writers pull off an admirable job of combining adult and kid humor throughout the script in such a way that it doesn’t detract from the experience for either age group. With a number of likeable characters, the audience will find itself rooting for Marlin, Nemo, and all their friends to accomplish the task before them. Overall, this is a must-see film for all age groups, not only because of the great story and artful performances, but if anything, simply because the animation is a wonder in-and-of itself.

The Beauty of Playstation 2 Games

The Beauty of Playstation 2 Games

by: Morgan Hamilton

Can you remember the first videogames that introduced the world to the joys of videogames?  I’m talking about the ones that were introduced in the 80s. We had the ever-popular Pac-Man, Asteroids, and Centipeed. Those outstanding innovations were the bomb!  I remember how I used to play pitfall on my Atari and it was great fun.It is really cool that it has gotten even better now.  It amazingly just keeps getting better and better. Those amazing electronics and graphics always improve.  It really is an endless source for fun and relaxation. For example, check out some of the more recent playstation 2 games. Wow, what a difference from the old-school Atari. I mean, the game depths alone are amazing.  It is startling to think that there are people all over the world that love playing PlayStation 2 games. Do you have it too? Are you a big PS2 fan?  When the council first came out I was blown away. The big pitch didn’t only concern the playstation 2 games, but also the DVD option.  PS two was actually a flexible enough to use as a DVD player. Folks loved this convenient option. Suddenly they didn’t need to purchase a DVD player. You could actually watch movies with the period It was an all-in-one deal.  How cool is that? I recall the first time I headed over to my brother’s house to take a look at his new PS2 and his new playstation 2 games. Being out of the video game loop since the first Nintendo, I was utterly flabbergasted at the realistic graphics and sound effects. These new playstation 2 games are just so real.  It is such a quantum improvement over the classic Atari games that it isn’t even funny. No more stick men. There was anything from martial arts games to sports games to spy adventures. It looked incredibly lifelike.  Who wouldn’t love playstation 2 games? Now people all over the world take great pleasure in playstation 2 games. They compete against friends and strangers alike, and battle the bad guys for as long as Mom and Dad allows it. One of the great benefits of the PS2 is the versatility. Regardless if you had a PS1, you could still play the games on your PS2 as well.  How many other products can you do that with? If you’re on the lookout for new playstation 2 games, you can always find a huge selection at your local Best Buy and Wal-Mart stores, or simply go online where you’ll find the best deals.  Buying used PlayStation 2 games really add up to considerable savings. With the world at your fingertips, you will surely find that playstation 2 game you’re searching for.

How to Watch Movies on Your PSP

How to Watch Movies on Your PSP

by: Neil Wallace

If you’re like most people who own one of Sony’s beautiful PlayStation Portables, you’re probably in love with it. But you also want to be sure you get the most out of your investment and enjoy every one of its incredible features. And that includes the ability to watch all your favorite movies.Sony’s PlayStation Portable or PSP, built primarily for gaming, comes fully equipped with superb multimedia features. So if you thought it was just for playing games, think again. Not only can you play multiplayer games over the Internet, you can also watch movies, listen to music, browse the Internet, and more. It uses a small, yet powerful, Memory Stick PRO Duo, and the performance is superb due to advanced technology using Mp4 encoding. Mp4, also known as MPEG-4, is the global multimedia standard defined by the Moving Picture Experts Group that delivers professional-quality audio and video streams over a wide range of bandwidths. Mp4 enables DVD-quality video to be delivered at lower data rates and smaller file sizes, and that’s very important on smaller devices with limited storage capacity. Your PSP comes ready to play music and movies in Mp4 format. Transferring music and movie files to your PSP is easy. First, download the files you want from the Internet to your PC. Second, ensure any movies are in mp4 format. Third, transfer the files to your Memory Stick PRO Duo. Your PSP instruction manual offers several ways to do that.  Finally, insert the Memory Stick PRO Duo in your PSP and select either video or music from the home menu. This is a beautiful device and it would be a shame to use it only for one purpose and to miss out on all its other uses. So I guess now you’ll be watching movies, listening to music and playing games, all day long. Who’s going to get any work done?