Reviews (17)

"Napoleon" Is Simply Dynamite
The delightfully original film "Napoleon Dynamite" follows the life of a geeky teenager of the same name, and through his misadventures at his high school and at home in Preston, Idaho. This film first began to delight audiences at the Sundance Film Festival, and now that it has been nationally released across the country, I finally got the chance to see why. It is a movie that doesn't seem to bother with an intricate storyline, but is simply tales from Napoleon's everyday life, small events to an outsider but from his perspective, his whole world. This, in a sense, makes the picture a more realistic depiction of teenage life.

The character of Napoleon, brought to life by Jon Heder, is a caricature of a high school teenager. With a tuft of brownish hair, glasses, and a permanent look of confusion, getting pushed against lockers by popular jocks are regular occurrences for Napoleon, and strange behaviors as talking about hunting werewolves or saving tatertots in his pants pockets for later seem normal to him. He is delightfully quirky, and it makes the audience root for him as the unlikely hero. From his adventures at school with his friends Deb (Tina Majorino) and Pedro (Efren Ramirez), to his life at home with his geeky 31-year-old brother Kip (Aaron Ruell), his football crazed Uncle Rico (Jon Gries), and his llama Tina, Napoleon brings a unique charm to the screen that is only enhanced by the crazy characters around him.

"Napoleon Dynamite" is certainly one of the most original and strangely hilarious films of the year, and thanks to the brilliant script co-written by Jared and Jerusha Hess, the direction by Jared Hess, and the performances by all members of the cast, it is sure to win over any audience member, as quickly as it won me over.

I wish I could give it six stars
This is truly the feel-good movie of this year; there's not a curse word to be heard, no more violence than a few noogies, and no sex at all. Still, I defy you not to want to cheer at the end of this. The story of misfit Napoleon Dynamite and his miniscule circle of friends in rural Idaho, this movie manages to present the total nerd characters with their nerdiness intact, as well as their inherent dignity and humanity. I'm not going to tell you one plot point, because I want you to have the total pleasure of discovering them for yourself.

The friend of mine who saw this at Sundance told me that a jaded audience of Hollywood types 2000 strong cheered, stomped their feet and clapped their hands raw at this movie. You will too.

No log off and go see this right now.

The Prince of Preston
This is a small film, a very good one, told large. The director, Jared Hess, is a 24 year old wunderkind from the barrens of Preston, Idaho, and he has created a gem; a cousin to the Coens. This is a comedy that will sneak up on you, the stuff of belly laughs. Last year he did a 9-minute short film, PELUCA, starring Jon Heder, and it seems to have been the outline for this feature film. Hess is from Preston, and he filmed it as only a resident could; full of empty landscapes, lonely roads, farmers, ranchers, and rednecks. A scene where Napoleon gets a job for the day on a chicken ranch is worth the price of admission.

There have been numerous comparisons for this movie to WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE, and RUSHMORE. But for me, this film stands firmly on its own. It plays out like an absurdist straight drama that also happens to be funny. It is reminescent of some of the best moments in the Coen Brother's RAISING ARIZONA.

The film was a big hit at Sundance, and it has been distributed well; a lucky break for Hess. Wouldn't it be wonderful if more of the youth of our country could rally behind this tiny epic, and create it as a cult film; that for a moment they step away from the commedia del raunchy that they mostly immerse themselves in; that they actually laugh at themselves, the way they really are, just kids struggling to grow up? The 13-30 year old demographic dictates our art, our music, and our movies. This little film could go a long ways in restoring the missing heart, the naivete and grace to the comedic genre.

One real plus for me was the odd wholesomeness of this movie. There was zero profanity. Most of the time when a script deletes realistic high school vernacular, and changes the language to a lot of goshs, dangs, hecks, frigging, and freaking, it usually morphs quickly into the landscape of the lame. But somehow, Hess makes the lack of profanity work, and we don't miss it.

Peter Travers of Rolling Stone called Jon Heder," geek deadpan perfection." He loved the film, and directs us," to laugh until it hurts." Heder is a lanky beanpole with a red Afro, all Adam's apple and oversized glasses, and overbite. At first glance one sees a young Yahoo Serious, or a Scott "Carrot Top" Thompson. But no, Heder is more natural, more believable, more absurd, and wonderfully unselfconscious. He is less the over-the-top screamer. In his best moments, like when he played tetherball with himself, or practiced his killer dance moves in his room, he reminded me of some of the great clowns; like a young Jerry Lewis, and even the precursory shadings of the great ones like Jackie Gleason in GIGOT, or Jacques Tati. Heder is Napoleon Dynamite, a prince of Preston, a nerdish Conan out to slay demons, or maybe just to get laid.

The setting for the film seems to be the early 1990's. Napoleon, and his older brother, Kip, live with their grandmother, played by Sandy Martin, who does a great turn as a biker grandma, who still dates, eats entirely too much steak, and loves her llama.
Aaron Ruell, as the brother Kip, a 32 year old who has been a nerd for so long he is oblivious to it, does a fine job with the role. He lives in front of his computer, logging countless hours in chatrooms, searching for cyber-love, running up huge internet bills. Tina Mjorino, as girlfriend Deb, was wonderfully wacky, off-center, and loveable. A former child star, from films like WATERWORLD, she is 19 years old now, and she is good enough to be slugging it out with the likes of Thora Birch, Jena Malone, and Christina Ricci for those Odd Girl parts. She found the sweet quirkiness and heartfelt honesty of her character. Jon Gries, an actor since 1968, son of famed film director Tom Gries, was very good as the arrogant deluded ignorant Uncle Ricco; a man stuck in the past, reliving a fake fantasy that when he played high school football he might have been a great star, even turned pro...if his stupid coach had not left him on the bench so much. Efrem Ramirez, as Napoleon's best friend, Pedro, is a veteran actor from 10 films. His babyface, and deadpan delivery served him well. He did an excellent job. When he decided to run for class president, against a popular cheerleader, the tempo begins to shift, and we begin to see that this sad and funny drama was going to bend into a kind of fantasy tale; with underdogs rising to the occasion, taking on overwhelming odds, and of course, emerging victorious.

In smaller roles we first find Diedrich Baker as the karate teacher Rex, and he is the most seasoned veteran of the cast, having appeared in 33 films. He had a lot of fun with this part, prancing around in his American flag "bad-boy" pants, and pushing around the local kids while taking their money. Then there is Shondrella Avery appearing as Kip's cyberlove La Fawnduh. She is one hot mama, and she seems to like short skinny white dudes. When Kip boards the bus with her, bandana on his head, glasses in his pocket, suitcases in his hands, leaving home for the first time, we realize the film has come full circle, and now is a fairy tale.

I had approached this film skeptically, not being sure how I would react or relate to it...but it won me over. It was not just another dumb comedy that would disentegrate two points off my intelligence quotient just by sitting through it. Rather, it was a fine little film, large on ambition, that I came to care about. I recommend it highly.

Soooo FUNNY!!!!!
I loved this film. It is funny like the mainstream films try to be but usually don't live up to. Its got some really gross parts to so watch out. Every scene is laugh out loud. I was laughing so hard I was crying. It also has a really good theme. The minority actually gets the upper hand by using creativity, not giving up and still being themselves. The actors were absolutely outstanding! The story is fresh and original without the cliches that seem unending in many films. Napoleon is a boy in high school who would be considered a nerd. He is different because normally the nerd cliche would be to not stand up for yourself but Napoleon has a temper and isn't afraid to speak out for himself. Its just that he does it so funnily. Napoleon is not the only funny character, the film just overflows with creative characters, his brother who is 34, still living with grandma who cooks steaks all the time. He is also nerdlike and possibly slow. But he is so funny, he wants to be a karate fighter, he and Napoleon get into a slap fight, its just hilarious. The brother has a girlfriend he meets on the internet, who shows up and changes the brother into Mr. Cool, but it just isn't possible. The Uncle is Uncle Rico who loves football and is stuck in the 80's. He wants to go back and play in the 4th quarter and become a pro, which he didn't get to do. He buys a time machine on the net, another lol scene. Pedro is from Juarez, Mexico who gives a deadpan performance. His acting alone makes the movie a winner. He decides to run for president against the most popular girl in school. He never gives up and neither does Napoleon. Napoleon's love interest switches to Mel who is also another interesting character. Into photography and also somewhat nerdy. She is played by Tina Majorano (sp.) She was that little girl in When a Man Loves a Woman. Another great performance. I can't say enough about the film. I think most ages would like this film, there is some cussing and some gross out scenes, no sex. Go see it!

Lisa Nary

Napoleon Dynamite. More Movies should be like this.
Napoleon Dynamite was a fantastic movie. I came into the theatre about 10 minutes late, it was still great. Some movies have their fabulous moments, but not this one. The whole movie itself is a fabulous moment. I love movies with no point! Example: Welcome to The Dollhouse, I thought Nothing could even be the same as that movie or replace that movie. Then all the sudden a brilliant writer came up with this movie. I really appreciate Napoleon Dynamite. I really do not think anybody knows how much I appreciate it or even understand. I do not want to rate this movie a five, I want to rate it a 6. Sadly I can't, anywho for all of you who have not seen it go see it, then go see it again. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Ever spend eight hours in a "Productivity Bin"? Ever had worries about layoffs? Ever had the urge to demolish a temperamental printer or fax machine? Ever had to endure a smarmy, condescending boss? Then Office Space should hit pretty close to home for you. Peter (Ron Livingston) spends the day doing stupefyingly dull computer work in a cubicle. He goes home to an apartment sparsely furnished by IKEA and Target, then starts for a maddening commute to work again in the morning. His coworkers in the cube farm are an annoying lot, his boss is a snide, patronizing jerk, and his days are consumed with tedium. In desperation, he turns to career hypnotherapy, but when his hypno-induced relaxation takes hold, there's no shutting it off. Layoffs are in the air at his corporation, and with two coworkers (both of whom are slated for the chute) he devises a scheme to skim funds from company accounts. The scheme soon snowballs, however, throwing the three into a panic until the unexpected happens and saves the day. Director Mike Judge has come up with a spot-on look at work in corporate America circa 1999. With well-drawn characters and situations instantly familiar to the white-collar milieu, he captures the joylessness of many a cube denizen's work life to a T. Jennifer Aniston plays Peter's love interest, a waitress at Chotchkie's, a generic beer-and-burger joint à la Chili's, and Diedrich Bader (The Drew Carey Show) has a minor but hilarious turn as Peter's mustached, long-haired, drywall-installin' neighbor. --Jerry Renshaw ... Read more

Reviews (493)

Way underrated
Anyone who has ever worked in corporate America will relate to this hilarious gem.
It is low key as opposed to slapstick comedy. I think the movie was well cast about a cube dweller who had enough and basically quits working and gets a promotion to upper management while his hard working and dedicated buddies get slated for layoffs by "The Bob's" two management consultants.
Ron Livingston does a great job as Pete Gibbons, and Ajay Naidu as "Samir Nu, ne, nunu, uh nnn ,not work here anymore" David Herman as Micheal-why should I change - Bolton.
The boss Lundbergh is played perfectly deadpan by Gary Cole, and I think there is a Tom Smykowski and Milton Waddams in every organization. Lets not forget the "Bob's" I knew two idiot consultants just like them.
Office Space has it all, from stupid meetings, CI programs, and of course the infamous TPS reports - "didn't you get the memo about the new cover sheets?"
I could not stop laughing through the whole thing.

Well worth the price of the DVD, even though the transfer was only fair.

Hiliariously Close to the Truth
Though the situations and characters in Office Space are certainly larger than life, they are not that far from the truth--to which those of us in the corporate world will readily attest. That's what makes the movie so delightfully funny: seeing characters on screen act out (without much exaggeration) the trials and tribulations of today's desk-bound workforce.

The plot of the movie itself is somewhat secondary to its entertainment value. Basically, the main character (Ron Livingston) isn't happy with his job; having been asked once by his high school guidance counselor to picture what he'd do without being paid and consider that his ideal job, he responded that he's like to sit around and do nothing. The rest of the main plot centers on his attempt to get his life back on track, from discovering a love interest in a local waitress (Jennifer Anniston) also unhappy with her job to plotting revenge on his company for firing his friends.

Quickly one sees exactly why the characters are so unhappy with their jobs: a clueless, paper-shuffling boss who speaks in total monotone; inane office regulations requiring more time spent on reports than on real work; faulty office equipment; and so on. Carefully crafted to represent archetypes we all know from our own office experiences, the characters and their attempts to break free of the 9-to-5 drudgery are absolutely hilarious.

You don't have to be a computer programmer or engineer to enjoy this film--all you need is to have worked somewhere once in your life that was far from the ideal environment. Watch this film and enjoy a laugh at schmucks who have it ten times worse than you ever have!

THE comedy movie to see from the late 90s
If you see one comedy from the late 90s, see this one! The cast is great, and the story is better. The only person I know who didn't like this movie just doesn't understand the modern industrial/metroplitan environment. Driving to work in Silicon Valley REALLY IS THIS BAD, and if your definition of heavy traffic is going 15-20 mph on the freeway, you might not appreciate this film.

Dilbert's got it easy!
OFFICE SPACE either suffered from bad marketing or poor distribution because I had never heard of it nor did many of my movie-going friends. When I saw it on cable, I kept asking myself, "Where did this come from?" While the film occasionally breaks down in predictable sequences and cheap shots, it really does hold together remarkably well. This is one of the better written, directed and acted comedies in a long time. Even though the late 90's office world it illustrates is long gone, muddle-headed supervisors, know-nothing consultants, and very weird office workers are not. Enjoy this movie!

A MODERN CULT CLASSIC
Having seen and enjoyed bits and pieces of this movie countless times on cable (usually on Comedy Central) over the last couple of years, I finally broke down and purchased it to add to my DVD collection. Smart move on my part. Now that I've seen the entire movie from start to finish, it makes a lot more sense now (I'd never seen the hypnotism scene). It has all the makings of a modern cult classic. How do I know? Because every time I roll across it on cable I usually wind up watching the balance of the film and enjoying it all over again. Having 2 Geto Boys songs on the soundtrack and co-starring Jennifer Aniston doesn't hurt either. Damn it feels good to be a gangsta. ... Read more

Reviews (306)

cute kid's show
While Ice Age does have adult themes running through it (and a few adult jokes), it doesn't have the broad appeal that you find with Shrek, Toy Story, or Monsters, Inc. But it is a good movie to sit down with the whole family to watch. There's little violence and no sexual content. The animation is a little cartoony--but the animators aren't shooting for realistic here, they are looking for more of a 'Shrek' type look. It has its charm. It does have a strong cast. I'd never have pictured Ray Romano as a mammoth, but his dead pan delivery does fit well with the personality of a gigantic mammoth. Dennis Leary plays the saber-tooth tiger, but holding Leary back to a PG rating takes away from his appeal. Still, he does a fairly good job with what he has, and the funniest moments in the movie come from his interaction with John Leguizamo, who is brilliant as the sloth. Cedric the Entertainer, Jack Black, and Gorin Visjnic (casting him as the leader of the tigers was a stroke of genius, I wish there had been more scenes featuring him) have small supporting roles. The dvd contains all kinds of extras, but it is the short animation 'Bunny' that really makes this dvd worth buying (and the cave painting scene in the movie). You can see the animators genius there. This isn't a dvd you want to rush out to buy, but one you might want to put on your list of dvds to get.

Slow Start, But Turns Around Halfway Through
The Story: Manfred the mastodon (Ray Romano), Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo), and Diego the saber-toothed tiger (Denis Leary) are getting ready to migrate, separately, when fate brings them together and puts a human infant in their care. They travel through the brutal but starkly beautiful landscapes of 20,000 years ago, seeking the child's father, who is migrating with his tribe. Of course, the prey-predator factor complicates things, as man hunts everything, saber-toothed tigers hunt everything, sloths are usually prey, and mastodons are prize prey that are usually passed up because of their size. Oh, and along the way, a squirrel (?) tries to gather acorns for the (extremely long and harsh) winter.

Story Commentary: This is a computer-animated remake of "The Three Godfathers" but the first half seemed a LOT like "Shrek" meets "Monsters, Inc." transposed into the distant past. Then, something happens, and the movie became wondrous for me. The things that created this transformation were: the turmoil and complexity of Diego's emerging character as he discovers a different way of being; the whole scene in the ice cavern, and especially the wall-drawing of the mastodon that Manfred sees (and then imagines into a microcosmic summary of Ice Age life); the growing sense of duty, stewardship, and surrogate fatherhood. The ice cavern scene is the start, and is an unforgettable movie moment for me. The interspersed vignettes of the squirrel (coati mundi?) provided great comic relief, plus an ending to make one chuckle.

Technical Commentary: This film looks very different than did "Shrek" and "Monsters, Inc." but is on a par, technically, with them. The stark beauty of an Ice Age winter, turned into an icy playground with lethal traps and pitfalls, was a work of minimalist art.

At the halfway point, I would have given the film two to three stars, and complained that it lacked originality times three. The last half gets five stars.

Profound AND Funny
I got indignant when one of my favorite reviewers panned this film and decided to rise to its defense. Not only does this film work brilliantly as an allegory about bridging ethnic and cultural divides, but it is by turns hilarious and deeply touching. The story follows a group of migrating prehistoric mammals (a saber-toothed tiger which is a predator; and a sloth and woolly mammoth, which are prey species) who find a lost human infant and ultimately make the difficult and dangerous decision to reunite it with its human tribe. The personalities of all three are well developed, and their nonstop bickering is a riot. Naturally, there are many internal divisions, and the saber-toothed tiger is secretly plotting to ambush the group, but in the end the shared experience of bonding with the infant unites them. There is a highly entertaining scene where the group travels through an ice cave in which is embedded hilarious references to other life forms including extraterrestrials. There is a very touching scene in which the mammoth contemplates human pictographs of hunters killing a family of mammoths with spears, only to be comforted by the human infant in his care. The animation, especially the facial expressions for the animals, and of course the ill-fated squirrel whose attempts to gather and store nuts form a cruelly funny sub-theme, is incredibly clever. The film is just brimming with sly humor, tenderness, and witty sight-gags; I've probably seen it five times and haven't gotten bored yet.

Cold Laughs
This is a great movie. The characters and situations are just so funny. I really couldn't stop laughing. I highly recommend it.

very cute, and the squirrel is a riot!
A film by Chris Wedge and Carlos Saldanha

The first hint I had of what "Ice Age" would be was a preview long before the movie ever came out. The preview featured a squirrel trying to bury an acorn in the snow, but nothing was working and in the attempt to bury the acorn, the poor little squirrel inadvertently caused an avalanche. It was funny, and it was the one of the best previews that I had seen. Fortunately, this squirrel makes several appearances throughout "Ice Age" and steals every scene that he appears in (which is saying something for a piece of animation). However, the main story of the film has nothing to do with the squirrel.

A pack of saber tooth tigers are seeking to attack a human settlement in revenge for some of their own being killed by human hunters. The plan is to take the human baby of the lead hunter. The tigers attack, but the baby's mother manages to escape and dives into the river. With her last breath the mother places the baby at the feet of a mastodon who is standing by the riverbank.

This much is still set up for the primary story being told, and that is the story of Manfred the mastodon (Ray Romano) and Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo). Since the world is in the middle of an ice age, the animals are migrating south to get out of the cold. Manfred is initially going north to get away from everyone else when he comes upon Sid. Sid was left behind and he also needs protection. He's a sloth, but rather than being exceptionally slow, he appears to be more clumsy than anything else. The two animals end up traveling together (over the objections of the mastodon), and it is then that they come across the human baby. Manfred is ready to leave the baby behind, but Sid insists on keeping the child until they can find another human settlement. Enter Diego (Denis Leary). Diego is a saber tooth tiger who has been sent by his pack to reclaim the human baby as revenge for the pack. Even a tiger fears to go up against a mastodon, so Diego pretends to have the best interests of the baby at heart and now we have the rather strange group of Manfred, Sid, and Diego all trying to return the baby (except for Diego, who is only pretending).

"Ice Age" is a very cute movie, suitable for children of all ages. It is funny at times (any time the squirrel gets to make an appearance is a highlight for me), and it should be enjoyable for children and adults. Excellent animation and excellent voice acting. "Ice Age" is a good movie that should not be overlooked (even though it was overlooked in the theatre because of Pixar's "Monsters Inc"). ... Read more

Amazon.com

Opening with a Bond-style action sequence, the 2005 Disney Channel Original Movie Kim Possible: So the Drama finds our heroine attempting to foil Drakken's most insidious plot yet.What can he possibly want with robots from Nakasumi Toys (the company from the series' first episode, "Crush"), Dr. Possible's cybertronic technology, creepy syntho-drones, and the latest teen fads?Kim's used to fighting Drakken; the bigger problem is finding a date to the prom, or--worse--going with Ron, who's so not that kind of friend.Enter the new guy in school, Eric, who's cute enough to inspire cootie alerts.But that means no more hanging out with Ron, who's also having major issues with Bueno Nacho's new management.Hang-ups aside, the two friends will have to figure out a way to save the world one more time, leading to the debut of a spankin'-new outfit and a surprise ending.So the Drama marks the end of Disney's Kim Possible series.For its cool adventures, its nifty gadgets, its hip wit, and a teen heroine that appeals to both youngsters and oldsters, it will be missed.--David Horiuchi ... Read more

Reviews (26)

BADICAL!!!!!!!!
I saw this when it first aired on Disney Channel April 8th. I recorded it because I am a HUGE K.P. fan. This movie was AWESOME or in the words of Kim's best friend and sidekick: Ron Stoppable It's "BADICAL"! I must have watched it like 5x's everyday since the DVD came out then I watched DVD just as much if not more and I still am! I love this movie! I am 20 I know too old for cartoons, well I don't believe you are ever too old for cartoons! K.P. is a perfect example of this! I know grandparents who are huge fans! And Disney is DUMB for wanting to cancel the only good show on TV today! Hey Disney once you get rid of K.P. I will never watch your channel ever again! Have fun watching yourselves go down the toilet because YOU made the mistake to cancel K.P.! Anyways this movie deserves more than 100 stars! The story is:

Kim is bummed because her cheerleader rival: Bonnie Rockwaller(major snob!) told her she is pretty much pathetic for not having a boyfriend or in Bonnie's eyes a star athelet BF like herself and the rest of the cheerleader squad.Especially since the prom is coming up! Then Erik appears and him and Kim fall for each other while her best friend and sidekick Ron is left out and realizes his feelings for Kim(it is very sad watching Ron being left out and sad). Meanwhile Dr. Drakken, Kim's evil archfoe and my fav character on the show is planning an evil(with Drakken everything is evil, lol) scheme that no one knows about but himself. Not even his awesome and definitly the coolest evil henchwoman and villainess EVER (and his crush, awww. You go Dr. D!): Shego knows. His excuse for not letting her in(first time ever!)on his evil plans is Kim Possible is not smarter than her so if she can't figure it out Kim can't figure it out. Drakken is very very successful in his evil scheme and what a cool evil scheme it is! Kim goes to the rescue with Ron, her new and very cool suit, and to save her bf:Erik(Oh poor Kim, she doesn't know what's in store for her with Erik. It makes for a great turn of events though!) after he was captured by Drakken and Shego for an awesome showdown and with a cute ending that should please K.P. fans!

The fights and action in this movie are awesome! Though the final fight between Kim and Shego(both of them I should say, since it's kinda a 2-part fight) could of at least been a minute longer! The opening sequence is awesome enough!

The music in this is really good and clicks really well with the scenes! I really loved the K.P. theme song remix during the opening credits. It was kinda like James Bond style! And Christy Carlson Romano's(who voices our heroine K.P.) new song: "Could it Be" is really good and fits right in with the world of K.P. And of course all the original songs we hear everyday on the show are in this movie with some new added songs(like the song playing when Kim fights Shego for the first in her battle suit).

The voice acting is perfect! Christy is always great with Kim Possible and really brings her to life. Will Friedle is perfect as Ron and in fact the way he does Ron's voice makes him more funny and enjoyable! John DiMaggio(he used to do the voice of Bender the Robot on Futurama) is EXCELLENT as the evil Dr. Drakken! His voice matches him perfectly! Nicole Sullivan(Of MadTV) is AWESOME as Shego! You can tell she has fun voicing this awesome villainess! And the rest of the cast is just as good! Everyone is perfectly casted and all the voices match the characters perfectly!

I highly recommend this movie for fans and those who don't know what K.P. is exactly. And hopefully due to high DVD sales on this movie alone Disney will come to their senses and have K.P. come back for at least 1 if not more seasons!

Drakken is wrong, Kim IS all that
Kim Possible is a witty, adventurous, fun-filled cartoon series and this short movie lives up to the same expectations. On top of saving the world, Kim has the added pressure of finding a Prom date.The Evil Drakken hatches a clever plan (yes, Drakken can be clever!Amazing!) involving buying out the Nacho chain and distributing evil toys that are really some kind of mutating cybernetic gizmos. Ron Stoppable (and Rufus the naked mole rat) are upset with all the changes going on at his favorite Nacho restaraunt...but he has other problems too.When Kim finds the perfect Prom date, Ron suddenly wonders why he should be so jealous.Could this be the start of something more between Kim and Ron?
Ron is always comic relief for Kim but this adventure has a sweet romantic twist between Kim and Ron.The villians, the story, and the jokes keep things lively and fun too, as always.
Just so you know, I'm a 35 year old, but I still love this show.It's clever and action packed and better than a lot of stuff on TV.The animation is top-notch and so is the writing.
Kim may have been inspired by old shows like Johnny Quest, but it has a lot more style and character.If you're like me, you're getting burned out on the cynical animated antics of warped characters like those on Family Guy and other shows.If so, Kim Possible is for you.Grown-ups, kids, and everyone should watch this show.

"Syntho-dude you are going down!"
I submitted a review two weeks ago that didn't go through so I am trying again. My daughter and I have loved this TV show since it began in 2002 and are hoping the Disney will soften its stance on the 65 episode policy. Animated though she is, Kim's an outstanding role model - a true heroine but always struggling with insecurities too.

This movie exceeded my high expectations. The storyline was very interesting, the animation (especially the fight scenes) was darker and more gripping (the culminating fights are especially brutal - I literally flinched when Drakken's robotic "son" slammed Ron face-first into the wall. Kim and Shego's fight scenes throughout the movie are spectacular animated works of martial art.)

It's the chemistry between the leads that makes this such a touching work. He faces the prospect of losing her to a handsome newcomer at the school and keeps it together to prove himself backing her up as they face Drakken and Shego. Kim and Ron are heroes to each other. The end of the movie is very sweet and affecting. That this can be conveyed in a cartoon is also an accomplishment.

I am not sure what direction the series would go if it could be renewed, on the other hand, the series creators are enormously inventive. I am sad to see it end. I am hoping that interest in and kudos for the movie might change the bureaucratic mind of Disney Corp.

Nancy Melucci
Huntington Beach CA

*hyperventilate*
Sorr about my spelling but, i have a big headache and cant speel properly today. i thought this movie was so cool, i like shego but kim is cool. ron and kim are cute, so say 1 million others, and i am SO MAD at the disney channel for cancelling Kim Possible! I will never watch them again, if they do this. i will watch nickalodeon. i have downloaded the song, could it be, its so nice. this movie is my faveourtie movie now, lol!

How to save Kim Possible from cancellation
I don't wish to repeat myself so referring to this amazing film I will only say that I recommend it to everybody and I think if you appreciate good animation, you should buy it.

The main message of this review is to tell everybody how they can help save this amazing show form cancellation. Simply go to http://kp.savedisneyshows.org/index.html and read the information on the website. It tells you how you can send letters, emails and do everything you can to save this show for future generations to enjoy. From this site you can find links to other sites which are about saving other Disney shows which are doomed because of their limited episode rule. Please we need your help because without it, we will never achieve our goal. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Great Movie!!
I thought this movie was fabulous! It had a totally wacked plot line, but it was funny as hell!

teresa's tattoo
I would actually give it 3.5 stars total.It was funny, the cast was funny, and the storyline was funny, too. Okay, so it may not be like the Odd Couple, but it still ranks close with or ties with American Pie and Dumb and Dumber. This movie is funny.

This has the makings of a cult classic
This is one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. In this movie, a grad student gets drugged, kidnapped and tattooed by a group of not-so-smart gangsters who incidentally work for a frozen food factory owner. The action and laughter go on and on in a zany and unbelievably immaginitive plot that intertwines lesbian hookers, a redneck step-family and a corrupt FBI agent. But the one-liners in this movie make it worth seeing, alone. There are also many familiar actors and actresses in the cast ,but actors Lou Diamond Phillips and Diedrich Bader put on the most brilliant performances. The video is a little pricey, yet it is still one of the funniest shows you will ever see. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Simpsons creator Matt Groening helped create this delightful animated adaptation of the popular Christmas book. Originally shown on the Fox channel in 1999, Olive deals with a upstanding dreamer of a pooch (voiced expressively by Drew Barrymore) who hears Santa's angst when Blitzen breaks a leg just before the holiday, messing up Santa's delivery schedule. Olive hears Santa's quote about "all of the other reindeer" as "Olive, the other reindeer," and she is convinced she must go to the North Pole to help. Using equal parts traditional Christmas themes (unselfishness, the importance of being good instead of naughty) and Simpsons-esque humor (wordplay, contemporary cultural references), the 45-minute short is a refreshingly fun holiday pleaser. Purists may chafe at the action pieces and a scene in a rough 'n' tumble bar, but the filmmakers keep the spirit--and the unique look--of J. Otto Seibold's and Vivian Walsh's book. With some snappy songs (including one performed by R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe) and great zingers (one reindeer calls Rudolph an urban legend), it's a fine holiday time for ages 5 and older. --Doug Thomas ... Read more

Reviews (32)

Inoffensive cartoon dog saves Christmas, delights Christian.
First off, this animated Christmas special is not for toddlers or infants. If you are looking for something stimulating and harmless for the high-chair set, try sitting junior in front of some colored, blinking lights and leave the wit and satire to those who can properly appreciate it. "Olive the Other Reindeer" is a funny, wonderfully animated story that has layers of meaning and humour that are best suited to the 10-to-adult, 'Simpsons' fan-base.

The message of hard work, acceptance and charity that is expressed in this special is far from 'anti-Christian' and is, in fact, much better than the 'buy our toys' sentiment conveyed by most contemporary holiday fare. With jokes, songs, celebrity cameos and an innovative, cut-paper animated style, "Olive" is truly 'family-entertainment' that can be enjoyed by most everyone in the family - except those who wear bibs and diapers (sorry Grandpa).

P.s. To the irrate 'Christian' who, among other things, thinks that the representation of a Menorah denotes an anti-Christian slant: what does Santa Claus have to do with Christ anyway? I must've missed that passage in the Bible in which Kris Kringle and the flying reindeer make an appearance.

A great film for the holidays!
My family loved Olive the Other Reindeer. It's the story of a cute dog whose pet flea convinces her that Christmas will be cancelled unless Olive, the other reindeer, helps Santa out. Of course, Santa really said "ALL OF the other reindeer", but Olive is convinced otherwise, and makes her trek to the North Pole.

The voice for Olive is played by Drew Barrymore, who does a fantastic job. The simple song she sings at the beginning and end of the movie is so cute, and really adds to the special feeling the film has to offer. From the opening shot, the animation is amazing ... it truly has to be seen to be appreciated. The rest of the movie's music is also excellent, and it brings a very festive, joyous tone to the film.

Overall, Olive the Other Reindeer is sure to become a classic holiday hit, that your family will enjoy season after season!

What a disappointment! Parents beware...
Just recently my 5 year old brought home "Olive the Other Reindeer" book and we have read it together many times and loved it. We were surprised to see the DVD ay the video store (I didn't realize this existed until now), and my 5 year old insisted on renting it. We were expecting to be delighted and ended up HATING it! The story was changed (what was wrong with the original story?) and it was very mean spirited and not appropriate for young children. For example, a penguin talks about smuggling "dirty magazines" into the zoo! PLEASE!!!!! My 3 year old was asking me what dirty magazines are!!!! The character portrayal was base and crude, and Drew Barrymore was an AWFUL choice for the voice of Olive. She sounded like a stupid monotone teenager instead of a cute dog. I didn't make any comments to my children and just let them watch it. They left the TV after the first 10 minutes and never asked to watch it again. The only redeeming parts of this horrible show are the cute opening and closing songs by Barrymore (Olive). Even Santa's reindeer are mean and sarcastic (there is a scene where they attempt to throw Olive off the roof just because she wants to be one of the reindeer), Please tell me that I am not the only parent on the world who thinks this show is not appropriate for children!!!!!

The Best Christmas Movie
This is my favorite Christmas movie! I watch it dozens of times each year and it's SO cute!! It features Drew Barrymore, the voice of Olive, a dog who thinks she's a reindeer. Despite the evil postman who wants to destroy Christmas, Olive succeeds in saving the holiday when Blitzen is injured in a practice flight. We taped this special a few years ago, and the picture wasn't very good. I was VERY impressed with the quality of the DVD and the documentary of the making of the movie. This is a GREAT addition to your Christmas collection! If you don't have it, BUY IT NOW!

Olive the Other Reindeer
What a cute movie! Loosely based on the popular children's book by Vivian Walsh, this half-hour animated special is appropriate for ages 7 or so and up. Some of the material is kind of mean-spirited and almost too scary for younger kids, and devout Christians have apparently found it quite offensive, but my husband, teenaged daughter, and I enjoyed it quite a lot. If you're looking for a traditional holiday tale, consider Frosty or Rudolph; if you're looking for something a little more edgy and modern, but still sweet, Olive is for you! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Based on the Disney theme park attraction Country Bear Jamboree, The Country Bears is the tale of one cub's quest to discover his destiny. While a family's love may be unconditional, Beary just doesn't feel a sense of belonging within his family. With a push from his malcontent brother, Beary heads to Country Bear Hall, a place where "you can be different and still fit in." Beary's disillusionment upon finding the hall on the brink of demolition quickly turns to resolve as he realizes his purpose: to reunite the once famous Country Bears band and save the hall. The disparate lives of the ex-band members make the reunion highly implausible, but thanks to Beary's influence, each member soon realizes the power of collective effort. In the process, Beary gets a boost to his self-esteem and discovers how important he is to his own family. This 88-minute presentation features great music and puppetry, a healthy dose of humor, and a wonderful message about diversity and collaborative effort. (Ages 4 to 9) --Tami Horiuchi ... Read more

Reviews (31)

The PG Blues Brothers Band
"Bringing back the band to raise money for a significant landmark", "cameos by a bunch of musicians, Elton John/ Don Henley/Queen Latifah to name a few", "a musical number here and there which pauses the plot of the movie just to flash "hey, we can sing and dance!""...and you got a knock off of "The Blues Brothers", hence the title! "The Country Bears", based on Disney's own attraction off Disney World, is flat out cheesy. The bear-lives-among-us theme isn't quite believable but still adorable on every ASPECT. (Which they should bring the Bernstien Bears to the big screen!) When Disney gets tired of making dozen's of sequels to beloved classics, only finding their way to the direct-to-video-piles and when Disney can't think of another "Honey, we shrunk the Disney execs", Disney starts creating plot points to their own attractions. While "The Country Bears" is underrated, it still didn't come on to strong. Kids under 4 just don't give a .... anymore. They want to see smartass Sherk's or another Toy Story. Disney just doesn't have it anymore (note: maybe because some brainless company fired a brilliant producer, who then went to Spielberg to form Dreamworks, which is not just kicking Oscar ... but also kicking Disney's as well). Disney has now developed a plan...for the next couple of years, they will bring to life their own attractions. With the "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" released couple of weeks ago, "The Haunted Mansion" in a few months...it will be interesting to see how the kiddies will react to Disney's approach. Who knows, prepare for "Hall of President's" and "The Movie Ride" if this venture takes off!

The Country Bears
This why in Disneyland has no more Country Bears there. The movie didn't do so good. What's next? Disney going make the movie "It's small world." "Spash MT.", etc.

Never want to see it again
Not good, very bad, easy to beat, so bad "blockbuster," flat out horrible movie to see. You waste your good movie time.

It Won't Put You Into Hibernation
"The Country Bears" is a good family film. It isn't the best movie Disney ever cranked out, but it will hold your attention for about an hour and a half. It follows the story of young Beary Barrington, a boy/bear unsure of his purpose in life. He doesn't fit in with his human family(or at least that's what he thinks), so he sets out for "Country Bear Hall," where he believes he'll fit in. When he gets there, the place is about to be leveled to the ground, so he decides to reunite the band for a benefit concert. What follows is a good, clean family film about friendship, family, and tons of musical cameos.

It has a solid cast of well-known and not-so-well known actors. Christopher Walken plays the sore loser turned destructive banker bent on destroying Country Bear Hall. Deidrich Bader and "Chill" Mitchell play two goofy state highway patrolmen. Haley Joel Osment provides the voice of "Beary." Steve Tobolowsky plays the fun father figure of this film.

The film has a good overall message, but some younger kids may be turned off by the pace. It does introduce the younger lot to musicians like Don Henley, Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Elton John, Brian Setzer, and Don Was. It also has cameos by stars the youngsters will probably recognize like Wyclef Jean and Queen Latifah. I think that's what I like most about this film. It covers the Country Bear's "influence" across the board and manages to mix a number of musical genres into one. From hip-hop to rockabilly, it's all covered here. The Country Bear band has a Southern rock sound, with a little Eagles thrown in to boot.

For good family fun, I recommend this one.

The Moose Hole - Un'bear'able!
Walt Disney Pictures used to be the center of original family entertainment year after year. It used to be the studio that all others looked up to for the next big thing for children young and old. What happened?! It seems the once center of fantasy magic has had a drought in the department of original ideas as the company recently announced the rollout of three live-action feature films based the Mouse House's theme park attractions. The first of these to test the mainstream waters is The Country Bears with Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and The Haunted Mansion soon to follow. Along with these attraction-based features, the studio will be digging through their archives and updating such classics as The Shaggy Dog and Freaky Friday. Will this work in revitalizing the studio's sagging box office returns? Hard to say at this point but critics have already given a thumbs down on the matter.

The story focuses on the adventures of a young talking bear out to discover his roots and reunites an old band in the process. Beary Barrington (some joke, huh?) always knew he was different then other boys but when his older brother informs him that he is adopted, the bear cub runs away figuring he doesn't fit into his adopted family. Beary sets out to seek his higher purpose in life and along the way he falls upon Bear Hall, the former home of his favorite band, The Country Bears. Unfortunately due to conflicting issues amongst the band members, they broke years ago and the Hall is faced with destruction if $20,000 isn't paid in time. Beary's new mission is to reunite the old members of The Country Bears so that they can perform a benefit concert to save Bear Hall before it meets the wrecking ball. The story for The Country Bears resembles that of the theme park attraction, from which this is based on, in that it offers a few catchy tunes but the performance wares on as the show rolls along. The uninventive storyline is all too familiar to the plot for the Blue Brothers 2000, thus the whole movie seems uncontrived and lacking in the least sense of substance.

Most of the main characters for the film are ... well, you guessed it, bears! Actually, they are audio animatronic puppets, created by the talented folks at Jim Henson's Creature Shop, who have facial expressions controlled by puppeteers off screen but have a person inside the costume walking through the scenes. Granted there are some human characters within the feature but they are as interesting as the audio-animatronic bears. Beary's family, unfortunately, is like any other typical Disney movie family complete with the loving father, worried mother and punky older brother. These were the least interesting characters in the film, which defeats the film's message of the importance of family entirely. Deidrich Bader and Daryl Mitchell offer some off-beat comic relief as Officer Cheets and Officer Hamm (get the joke?) but intentions can be deceiving especially by viewing the trailer for the film. They aren't nearly as funny as television spots made them out to be and the filmmakers seem to know this as the two officers seem to disappear completely near the end of the film. The only redeeming factor is the casting of Christopher Walken, who never seems to disappoint his fans. He presents a relatively serious character in the beginning but manages to make humorous in the long run.

Overall, The Country Bears is one of the most unoriginal feature films of the year and quite a disappointing start to Disney's theme park feature rollout. There is little to compliment this film, though one can make the argument about the music. The songs themselves, for the most part, were catchy and get your foot tapping every now and then but if you want to go for the music then just go to the local store and buy the soundtrack. The main problem with the musical numbers, though, is the feeling that they are too staged. Someone in the course of the film would utter a one line comment and then suddenly the entire cast would brake out into a song and dance number. Outside of Christopher Walken and some of the songs, The Country Bears leaves little to the imagination. Note that the film is intended for children and thus this review may be meaningless to them. Take this into consideration when taking the children to the film. But if you are a parent and hate to be dragged to this then follow my suggestion: Sit back, relax, pay attention when Christopher Walken comes on screen, tap your foot to some of the music and thank God that they didn't make an It's A Small World movie. ... Read more

Description

Each Dynamotion video consists of six interactive music-driven movement segments and five fitness breaks that follow a particular theme such as nutrition, sports or science.Dynamotion is not an aerobics class, but a complete education about the body, drawing from a variety of disciplines including life science, physical science, mathematics, social studies, and music. Dynamotion is designed as a proactive health literacy campaign created for children during their formative years. Through a grant from the National Institutes of Health, scientific research shows that Dynamotion teaches children how their bodies work and how to keep them healthy. Electronic media is here to stay, so why not use them as tools to increase physical activity and promote healthy eating habits and behaviors?Dynamotion is all about kids moving to music, learning how their bodies and muscles work, and most importantly, having fun!

-- Amy DeLouise, Anice Hoachlander, & Tyler Whitmore co-creators of Dynamotion ... Read more

Reviews (306)

cute kid's show
While Ice Age does have adult themes running through it (and a few adult jokes), it doesn't have the broad appeal that you find with Shrek, Toy Story, or Monsters, Inc. But it is a good movie to sit down with the whole family to watch. There's little violence and no sexual content. The animation is a little cartoony--but the animators aren't shooting for realistic here, they are looking for more of a 'Shrek' type look. It has its charm. It does have a strong cast. I'd never have pictured Ray Romano as a mammoth, but his dead pan delivery does fit well with the personality of a gigantic mammoth. Dennis Leary plays the saber-tooth tiger, but holding Leary back to a PG rating takes away from his appeal. Still, he does a fairly good job with what he has, and the funniest moments in the movie come from his interaction with John Leguizamo, who is brilliant as the sloth. Cedric the Entertainer, Jack Black, and Gorin Visjnic (casting him as the leader of the tigers was a stroke of genius, I wish there had been more scenes featuring him) have small supporting roles. The dvd contains all kinds of extras, but it is the short animation 'Bunny' that really makes this dvd worth buying (and the cave painting scene in the movie). You can see the animators genius there. This isn't a dvd you want to rush out to buy, but one you might want to put on your list of dvds to get.

Slow Start, But Turns Around Halfway Through
The Story: Manfred the mastodon (Ray Romano), Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo), and Diego the saber-toothed tiger (Denis Leary) are getting ready to migrate, separately, when fate brings them together and puts a human infant in their care. They travel through the brutal but starkly beautiful landscapes of 20,000 years ago, seeking the child's father, who is migrating with his tribe. Of course, the prey-predator factor complicates things, as man hunts everything, saber-toothed tigers hunt everything, sloths are usually prey, and mastodons are prize prey that are usually passed up because of their size. Oh, and along the way, a squirrel (?) tries to gather acorns for the (extremely long and harsh) winter.

Story Commentary: This is a computer-animated remake of "The Three Godfathers" but the first half seemed a LOT like "Shrek" meets "Monsters, Inc." transposed into the distant past. Then, something happens, and the movie became wondrous for me. The things that created this transformation were: the turmoil and complexity of Diego's emerging character as he discovers a different way of being; the whole scene in the ice cavern, and especially the wall-drawing of the mastodon that Manfred sees (and then imagines into a microcosmic summary of Ice Age life); the growing sense of duty, stewardship, and surrogate fatherhood. The ice cavern scene is the start, and is an unforgettable movie moment for me. The interspersed vignettes of the squirrel (coati mundi?) provided great comic relief, plus an ending to make one chuckle.

Technical Commentary: This film looks very different than did "Shrek" and "Monsters, Inc." but is on a par, technically, with them. The stark beauty of an Ice Age winter, turned into an icy playground with lethal traps and pitfalls, was a work of minimalist art.

At the halfway point, I would have given the film two to three stars, and complained that it lacked originality times three. The last half gets five stars.

Profound AND Funny
I got indignant when one of my favorite reviewers panned this film and decided to rise to its defense. Not only does this film work brilliantly as an allegory about bridging ethnic and cultural divides, but it is by turns hilarious and deeply touching. The story follows a group of migrating prehistoric mammals (a saber-toothed tiger which is a predator; and a sloth and woolly mammoth, which are prey species) who find a lost human infant and ultimately make the difficult and dangerous decision to reunite it with its human tribe. The personalities of all three are well developed, and their nonstop bickering is a riot. Naturally, there are many internal divisions, and the saber-toothed tiger is secretly plotting to ambush the group, but in the end the shared experience of bonding with the infant unites them. There is a highly entertaining scene where the group travels through an ice cave in which is embedded hilarious references to other life forms including extraterrestrials. There is a very touching scene in which the mammoth contemplates human pictographs of hunters killing a family of mammoths with spears, only to be comforted by the human infant in his care. The animation, especially the facial expressions for the animals, and of course the ill-fated squirrel whose attempts to gather and store nuts form a cruelly funny sub-theme, is incredibly clever. The film is just brimming with sly humor, tenderness, and witty sight-gags; I've probably seen it five times and haven't gotten bored yet.

Cold Laughs
This is a great movie. The characters and situations are just so funny. I really couldn't stop laughing. I highly recommend it.

very cute, and the squirrel is a riot!
A film by Chris Wedge and Carlos Saldanha

The first hint I had of what "Ice Age" would be was a preview long before the movie ever came out. The preview featured a squirrel trying to bury an acorn in the snow, but nothing was working and in the attempt to bury the acorn, the poor little squirrel inadvertently caused an avalanche. It was funny, and it was the one of the best previews that I had seen. Fortunately, this squirrel makes several appearances throughout "Ice Age" and steals every scene that he appears in (which is saying something for a piece of animation). However, the main story of the film has nothing to do with the squirrel.

A pack of saber tooth tigers are seeking to attack a human settlement in revenge for some of their own being killed by human hunters. The plan is to take the human baby of the lead hunter. The tigers attack, but the baby's mother manages to escape and dives into the river. With her last breath the mother places the baby at the feet of a mastodon who is standing by the riverbank.

This much is still set up for the primary story being told, and that is the story of Manfred the mastodon (Ray Romano) and Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo). Since the world is in the middle of an ice age, the animals are migrating south to get out of the cold. Manfred is initially going north to get away from everyone else when he comes upon Sid. Sid was left behind and he also needs protection. He's a sloth, but rather than being exceptionally slow, he appears to be more clumsy than anything else. The two animals end up traveling together (over the objections of the mastodon), and it is then that they come across the human baby. Manfred is ready to leave the baby behind, but Sid insists on keeping the child until they can find another human settlement. Enter Diego (Denis Leary). Diego is a saber tooth tiger who has been sent by his pack to reclaim the human baby as revenge for the pack. Even a tiger fears to go up against a mastodon, so Diego pretends to have the best interests of the baby at heart and now we have the rather strange group of Manfred, Sid, and Diego all trying to return the baby (except for Diego, who is only pretending).

"Ice Age" is a very cute movie, suitable for children of all ages. It is funny at times (any time the squirrel gets to make an appearance is a highlight for me), and it should be enjoyable for children and adults. Excellent animation and excellent voice acting. "Ice Age" is a good movie that should not be overlooked (even though it was overlooked in the theatre because of Pixar's "Monsters Inc"). ... Read more

Description

Each Dynamotion video consists of six interactive music-driven movement segments and five fitness breaks that follow a particular theme such as nutrition, sports or science.Dynamotion is not an aerobics class, but a complete education about the body, drawing from a variety of disciplines including life science, physical science, mathematics, social studies, and music.

Dynamotion is designed as a proactive health literacy campaign created for children during their formative years. Through a grant from the National Institutes of Health, scientific research shows that Dynamotion teaches children how their bodies work and how to keep them healthy. Electronic media is here to stay, so why not use them as tools to increase physical activity and promote healthy eating habits and behaviors?Dynamotion is all about kids moving to music, learning how their bodies and muscles work, and most importantly, having fun!-- Amy DeLouise, Anice Hoachlander, & Tyler Whitmore co-creators of Dynamotion ... Read more

Reviews (2)

My son's favorite video
Buy this video! My son has watched it everyday for the last 3 months and loves it. He knows all of the songs, the different ways our bodies use food, and loves to mimic the activity on the show. This is one of the best kid videos I have ever seen, every child should watch it!

My kids love it
My 6 year old girl and 4 year old boy are fascinated by this video. I heard jumping in the living room, and was prepared to go in and tell them not to jump on the couch, and they were actually doing an exercise together along with the Dynamotion crew. I watched with them for a bit and when the animated heart asked them how big is their heart, they both held up their fists! They are learning a lot and having fun doing it. While driving the other day my son out of the blue said, I wish Dynamo (the animated dog in the video) could come to our house. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Predictably predictable
A regrettable rental, this run-of-the-mill conspiracy silliness is made all the more painful by the its actors' sincerity. Basically, in the mid-90s someone got the idea of capitalizing on the country's X-Files fetish by producing this paint-by-numbers, half-hearted script. Everything that isn't telegraphed in advance is an inevitable cliche. You end up wanting to ask this dedicated ex-FBI woman as she's wandering around in her desperate confusion, "What's wrong with you? Haven't you seen any conspiracy flicks before?" Typical dialogue:
"They will stop at nothing."
"But who are They?"
"You never know who They are. They are like shadows."
"That's right. You never know who They are until it is too late."
"What are Their objectives?"
"Only this: Power."

I guess if we actually swallowed such farcical and lazy writing, we would be seized with paranoia, but since our leaders are admittedly only so-so when it comes even to geography, it's hard to be impressed by such callow, pandering ridiculousness.

Worth Seeing
As made for video movies go, this is much better than most with solid performances and a conspiracy story-line which is much more than what you expect. Give it a try. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Daming Evidence
WhAT I CAN'T UNDERSTAND IS HOW COME THERE WERE SO MUCH DAMING EVIDENCE TO CONVICT ROBERT CHAMBERS OF MURDER AND HE STILL GOT THE CHANCE TO PLEAD GUILTY TO A LESSER CHARGE OF MANSLAUGHTER. STRANGULATION IS A RESULT OF CONTINOUS PRESSURE, SO HOW COULD IT BE AN ACCIDENT?. WAS THE JURY STUPID OR WHAT? I REMEMBER A JUROR SAYING THERE WASEN'T A CLEAR CUT PATH TO SHOW MURDER. WHAT MORE DID THEY WANT? BRUISING ALL OVER JENNIFER LEVIN'S BODY, STRANGULATION MARKS, PROVING SHE WAS BEATED AND STRANGLED. ... Read more

Amazon.com

This 70-minute feature is made up of three TV segments from Disney's popular Hercules series. The video, like the show, follows the daffyadventures of Hercules as a teenager, when his strength is amazing but his control is not. For kids who have not seen the cable TV series, this will be a worthwhile video. Like most of Disney's spinoffs, the animation is solid, the music is hip, and many key members of the original vocal pool (including Tate Donavan as the hero) return. Unfortunately, as with most episodic TV, the stories can be pretty uninspired. The best segment here is the finale, which has James Woods returning as Hades with another plan to topple Zeus (Rip Torn). The wraparound story of Meg finding out her rippling love's past is new but hardly constitutes the bulk of the video. The threesegments are "Hercules and the First Day of School," "Hercules and the Grim Avenger," and "Hercules and the Visit from Zeus." --Doug Thomas ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Hercules is back!
Yes, Hercules is back and the movie opens, after Hercules (Tate Donovan) and Meg (Susan Egan) got married and are moving into a home together. But when stuff from Hercules' high schools days, gets delievered to him, he has it sent back to Philoctetes "Phil" (Robert Costanzo). But Meg badly wants to see Hercules's hish school stuff. But Hercules is embrassed by it, because high school was not one of Hercules' favorite of his life. (And I don't blame him). So Meg sneaks off to find Phil, and he tells of Hercules first days in high school.

With Direct to Video movies, always KNOW what you're buying!
This video is not REALLY a sequel, it's not REALLY a new feature length movie. What this video REALLY is, is a compilation of 3 episodes of the very funny and entertaining Disney's Hercules animated TV series.
The video takes three episodes of the TV show and links them together with some rather badly done animation of Hercules and Megara moving into their new home together after their Honeymoon. Megara comes across Herc's High School Yearbook, er, scroll, and suddenly wants to know more about Herc's High School days. She rides on Pegasus to visit Phil, Herc's trainer/manager, and he gives her the whole story. This is where the episodes of the TV show take over. First we have Herc's First Day At (High) School. In the second story, a new student comes to Herc's school, who is actually a Batman type superhero, and the pair teams up to fight a menacing monster. In the third story, Herc's dad Zeus poses as a teenager to see what life is like for Herc. Meanwhile, his brother Hades plans a hostile takeover.
The video ends with Meg singing a pretty horrid song to the man of her dreams, but the heart of the video, the episodes of the wonderful TV show, earn it a five star rating from me, and I wish Disney would give us more episodes of their wonderful shows on video, preferably DVD. But I wish they knew that the wraparound stories are really unnecessary. Hercules: Zero To Hero, is a great buy for anyone who enjoyed the TV show, but remember that this IS a TV show. Don't expect spectacular animation. At least most of the original voice actors reprised their roles for this TV series, and James Woods always rocks as Hades!

A perfect way to start Greek mythology.
If you're learning Greek mythology, this video is for you (no matter what grade you're in) even though the cartoon graphics may be appealing to younger kids. Even better than the original movie. Contains conversations about how Hercules aged and how he was trained. Even tells you what Greek names there are and what greek urns look like. There are some frightening Halloween-like scenes of the bull/man that may not suit young kids. The Muses explain Hercules' life as a teenager throughout the movie.

Will kids want to see it?

Probably. The blue and pink color of Panic and Pain that reminded me of the boo-hoo/shh-shh verses of Clap Hands look mighty appealing to them.

I enjoyed this video
I thought this video was very entertaining. Although it wasn't as enjoyable as watching the series on tv, it was a cute little project. I hope they release more of the series (now that is apprarently has been canceled), but in individual episodes.

The cover art was awful. Not even gonna go there.

HORRIBLE!!!!!!!!
WHAT WAS WORSE, HERCULES OR HERCULES ZERO TO HERO? THEY TIE. THIS MOVIE HAS DOZENS OF THINGS WRONG WITH IT. SINCE WHEN DOES ZUES BE MORTAL WHENEVER HE WANTS TO? HE COULD EASILY DIE! WELL, HERES THE PLOT. HERULES TELLS ABOUT HIS YOUNGER YEARS AS A HIGH SCHOOL KID. HE GOES TO SOME GREEK ACADEMY. VERY FUNNY, DISNEY. AND HE SAVES THE DAY A FEW TIMES. ANYONE WITH A I.Q. OF O.0000001 AND ABOVE SOULD NOT SEE THIS MOVIE!!! ... Read more

Reviews (493)

Way underrated
Anyone who has ever worked in corporate America will relate to this hilarious gem.
It is low key as opposed to slapstick comedy. I think the movie was well cast about a cube dweller who had enough and basically quits working and gets a promotion to upper management while his hard working and dedicated buddies get slated for layoffs by "The Bob's" two management consultants.
Ron Livingston does a great job as Pete Gibbons, and Ajay Naidu as "Samir Nu, ne, nunu, uh nnn ,not work here anymore" David Herman as Micheal-why should I change - Bolton.
The boss Lundbergh is played perfectly deadpan by Gary Cole, and I think there is a Tom Smykowski and Milton Waddams in every organization. Lets not forget the "Bob's" I knew two idiot consultants just like them.
Office Space has it all, from stupid meetings, CI programs, and of course the infamous TPS reports - "didn't you get the memo about the new cover sheets?"
I could not stop laughing through the whole thing.

Well worth the price of the DVD, even though the transfer was only fair.

Hiliariously Close to the Truth
Though the situations and characters in Office Space are certainly larger than life, they are not that far from the truth--to which those of us in the corporate world will readily attest. That's what makes the movie so delightfully funny: seeing characters on screen act out (without much exaggeration) the trials and tribulations of today's desk-bound workforce.

The plot of the movie itself is somewhat secondary to its entertainment value. Basically, the main character (Ron Livingston) isn't happy with his job; having been asked once by his high school guidance counselor to picture what he'd do without being paid and consider that his ideal job, he responded that he's like to sit around and do nothing. The rest of the main plot centers on his attempt to get his life back on track, from discovering a love interest in a local waitress (Jennifer Anniston) also unhappy with her job to plotting revenge on his company for firing his friends.

Quickly one sees exactly why the characters are so unhappy with their jobs: a clueless, paper-shuffling boss who speaks in total monotone; inane office regulations requiring more time spent on reports than on real work; faulty office equipment; and so on. Carefully crafted to represent archetypes we all know from our own office experiences, the characters and their attempts to break free of the 9-to-5 drudgery are absolutely hilarious.

You don't have to be a computer programmer or engineer to enjoy this film--all you need is to have worked somewhere once in your life that was far from the ideal environment. Watch this film and enjoy a laugh at schmucks who have it ten times worse than you ever have!

THE comedy movie to see from the late 90s
If you see one comedy from the late 90s, see this one! The cast is great, and the story is better. The only person I know who didn't like this movie just doesn't understand the modern industrial/metroplitan environment. Driving to work in Silicon Valley REALLY IS THIS BAD, and if your definition of heavy traffic is going 15-20 mph on the freeway, you might not appreciate this film.

Dilbert's got it easy!
OFFICE SPACE either suffered from bad marketing or poor distribution because I had never heard of it nor did many of my movie-going friends. When I saw it on cable, I kept asking myself, "Where did this come from?" While the film occasionally breaks down in predictable sequences and cheap shots, it really does hold together remarkably well. This is one of the better written, directed and acted comedies in a long time. Even though the late 90's office world it illustrates is long gone, muddle-headed supervisors, know-nothing consultants, and very weird office workers are not. Enjoy this movie!

A MODERN CULT CLASSIC
Having seen and enjoyed bits and pieces of this movie countless times on cable (usually on Comedy Central) over the last couple of years, I finally broke down and purchased it to add to my DVD collection. Smart move on my part. Now that I've seen the entire movie from start to finish, it makes a lot more sense now (I'd never seen the hypnotism scene). It has all the makings of a modern cult classic. How do I know? Because every time I roll across it on cable I usually wind up watching the balance of the film and enjoying it all over again. Having 2 Geto Boys songs on the soundtrack and co-starring Jennifer Aniston doesn't hurt either. Damn it feels good to be a gangsta. ... Read more

Reviews (27)

WELLL DOGGIES THEIR ON THE BIG SCREEN
Penelope Spheeris does a GREAT job directing this feature film based on the 1962-71 CBS-TV series. The plot is basically the same as the classic TV sitcom. A family of hillbillies become millionaires overnight when the father,while hunting a rabbit,misses his shot and strikes oil. Jim (Ernest) Varney stars as "JED CLAMPETT". The role made famous by Buddy Ebsen in the TV series. Cloris Leachman is "GRANNY", Lily Tomlin is "JANE HATHAWAY" and Dabney Coleman is "MILBOURNE DRYSDALE" the President of the Commerce Bank of Beverly Hills. This big budget box-office smash also has a cameo by Dolly Parton as herself and a cameo appearance by Buddy Ebsen as private detective "BARNABY JONES" the other role he portrayed about a year after the cancellation of his classic sitcom. TWO THUMBS-UP to one of the best based-on-TV series movie ever filmed.

A nice movie that is worth watching!
I liked this movie which I saw before The original Beverly Hillbillies TV show which I had never seen before they started showing reruns on TV Land. I liked everyone but especially Diedrich Bader who was a wonderfully idiotic Jethrow and Jim Varney who though not as good as Buddy Ebson was a good Jed Clampett. Erika Eleniak though not as good as Donna Douglas was really quite good as Elly May but Chloris Leachman and Lily Tomlin though giving decent performances were not nearly as good a Jane Hathaway as Nancy Kulp or as good a Granny as Irene Ryan, but lets face it no one could possibly be as good a Granny as Irene Ryan she's the definitive Granny! one of my favorite scenes in this movie is when Miss Hathaway rang the