Reviews (6)

Bizarre to say the most!!
I guess I am one of those who just does not get this movie! I found it boring and difficult to sit through for 130 minutes. I guess there is supposed to be a point to all the madness, but I never saw it. There was no plot, and the acting was poor in most cases. In my opinion, there are far better movies out there!

What are the odds?
I, like most people in the reviews you've probably already read, happend upon this movie by total chance. I was flipping through the channels one day and stopped on HBO and watched a little of this movie. That was encounter #1. Encounter #2 happend after I decided that I liked what I saw so much that I'd try to remember the name of the movie the next time I saw it. I was sitting on the couch on a weekend, and again stopped on HBO, and this movie was on again. This second encounter is what really intrigued me. I know what I like in movies: usually anything comical is an immediate plus, but I also loathe the unusual and the out-of-the-ordinary, like Quinton Tarintino's "Pulp Fiction" and "Resevoir Dogs" and my all time favorite (tied with this movie) "The Big Lebowski." There is something about this movie. I don't know what it is, you have to watch it to understand why I, and everyone else, give it 5 starts and two thumbs up.
P.S. You really should rent The Big Lebowski, it's a fabulous movie, if you like it, you'll definately like this movie.

"One word: Mis...under...stood."
This movie is brilliant, much moreso than most people would think. It is a shame that some of the flights of character fancy in the film get interpreted as naive filmmaking when in fact they are sly, sarcastic winks at life's idiosyncracies. Prime example: when Kelsey Grammer notes that men spend life sucking on women's breasts and then concludes, "Life Sucks," not only is it a funny look at his genius-yet-pervy character but it's also a brilliant way of tying in the fact that 'galaxy' literally refers to milk. This idea that space is nurturing is one of the central ideas of the story.

Yes, some of the acting is bad, but it's terribly endearing. Beth, played by Susan Walters, is acted at times so awkwardly that she becomes a parody of the throngs of annoying real people just like her character. After she pleads her groom-to-be Adam for an answer why he is no longer interested in sex, he tells her that the urge to procreate is a chemical reaction which "stems from the R-complex." She replies disgustedly: "No! It stems from your complex!" This is ingenious in its stupidity! It's real life!

The movie can seem preachy or crammed with rhetoric, but it's all entertaining and pertains to the film's central point, so just sit back and listen; most of it will really make you think.

The part of the film that everyone sites as the funniest is in my opinion less impactful: James Ward's performance as the escaped mental patient is absolutely hilarious for his spot-on impressions and goofiness, but somewhat pointless and unnecessary to the plot.

Some people may find it hard to identify with an overly- analytical, geeky white guy who has a nervous breakdown and ditches his own wedding to wander the desert. But if you have ever felt like your brain is stuck in overdrive and life can be overwhelming when you just can't reconcile people's need for more Walmarts with the violence of the universe, then you will identify with this film and it will speak to you. If, on the other hand, being preoccupied with your Frappucino and your cell phone is enough to keep your mind off the homeless guy bugging you for change, and you just want to see hot chicks and explosions while you're waiting for the lord to call you home, then pop in Die Hard and shut your mouth. Or who knows? Even you might see the world differently through director John Ryman's lens.

Besides, this movie has explosions and hot chicks, too: Everyone thinks Adam is killed when a missile hits his car; and the line I used for the title of this review is spoken by one of the most beautiful women on the screen - Lisa Todd, who is the operator in those 1-800-DENTIST commercials!

Inspired, Hilarious Filmmaking
I chanced upon this one (like most of us) by accident. Don't take it too seriously. On the surface, it looks like a "profound movie", when in fact it is satirizing those type of self-important flicks. It still manages, mostly I think by accident, to have a few serious messages. Primarily, the movie moves from one hilarious and/or surreal scene to another, the story slowly coming together. The scene with the impressionist in the desert is one of the funniest I have ever seen on film, period. It isn't perfect - the pacing drags in places, and some comic scenes just don't work. Nonetheless, you won't be disappointed.

Bizare To Say The Least
This movie is unlike any other movie I have ever seen. This is both good and bad. The flashes of brillance are dimmed by some of the awarkness of whatlooks like first time film making. Some of the "profound insight" sounds a little contrived. The most annoying thing about the movie is Dweir Brown's performance. He seems to be acting wide eyed and innocent, when he should be harsh and bitter. But on the other hand, there is some inspired stuff here. There's some great imagery, and some really funny lines. There is also a great perfomance by James R. Ward as a man whose entire thought process is shaped by televison. And, over all, I'd have to say that I agree with the basic message of this film. What ever happed to John Ryman? A guy who seems to have so much talent has only made this one film. ... Read more

Description

In 1962, her decision divided a nation. The nation is still divided. Based on the true story of the regional presenter of the 1960's TV show ' 'The Romper Room' ', when Sherri has to terminate a pregnancy and the press find out, her private matter soon becomes a controversial and all-too public affair. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

3 and a half stars
This was a great movie. It was based on a true story about a women who decided to get an abortion because there was something wrong with her baby. This was before abortion was legal and when word got out it caused quite a scandal, and the hospital couldn't do the abortion anymore (her doctor had recommended it, and the hospital had already done other abortions- I found it interesting that doctors and hospitals found ways to get around the abortion laws to do abortions before they were legal)

This movie was very emotional, as well a interesting and important historically.
I only wish it was out in dvd- and maybe with a documentary about what really happened, and about the history of abortions, and so on as the extras.
I highly recomend this movie.

one of the best
This is one of the best movies i have ever saw... It made me cry it made me laugh.. You just have to watch it... TRUST me!

Bravo to the actors in this real life drama!
It is not often that a movie comes along that has this much grit and real life emotion. I think that both sides of the abortion issue can clearly see the agony this family went through because of the portrayals of Bob and Sherri Finkbine. God bless them and the brave director of this masterpiece! ... Read more

Amazon.com

In the early spring of 1993, a year before the series was launched, the two-hour movie and series pilot Babylon 5: The Gathering appeared. This proto-Babylon staked out the initial territory for the series (some of which would change by the first episode), introducing primary characters and sketching out the alliances and rifts in interplanetary diplomacy. Some of the primary characters bowed out after their initial appearances (Tamlyn Tomita's Lt. Commander Laurel Takashima and Johnny Seka's Dr. Benjamin Kyle never returned; Patricia Tallman's telepath Lyta Alexander made periodic revisits beginning in the second season, eventually rejoining the cast permanently). Set on the first anniversary of the Babylon 5 (none of the first four stations survived even a month), the central story involves the attempted assassination of the newly arrived Vorlon, the mysterious Ambassador Kosh, at the hands of (perhaps) Commander Jeffrey Sinclair (Michael O'Hare). Security Chief Michael Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle, a smart-aleck tough guy in the Bruce Willis vein) investigates and uncovers a web of conspirators, a portent of things to come. When TNT picked up the series for the fifth season Straczynski reedited the pilot, weaving back in a dropped subplot while cutting the rest of the film more tightly, tweaking special effects, and commissioning a new score from Christopher Franke. This is the cut released on video, a stronger, more engaging film, but still a broad first stab at characters that would redefine themselves through the course of the show's run. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Babylon 5 -- And So It Begins
I still remember the first time I saw this pilot episode on television. Having watched the Star Trek franchises for many years, I thought they were the benchmark against which all other science fiction storylines would be compared. My first impression of the B5 pilot, "The Gathering," seemed to bear that out.

I felt this B5 storyline was too dark, and I especially disliked the make-up of Mira Furlan's character, D'Lenn. She looked TOO evil, especially her chin. How could a prominent character like hers project a sense of compassion for the human race? "Humans form communities, and from that comes a strength that no race can defeat." She would make a statement like this later in the series. So, it would do her character an injustice to make her look like an evil and malevolent person.

Then there was G'Kar -- he, too, had an evil look to him. Granted, his race is malevolent and seeks only to advance its personal agenda, and it has suffered dearly at the hands of its former masters, the Centauri. But I got no sense that there was any redeeming quality in G'Kar, and that he would just be a stereotypically evil person.

Then there was Londo Mollari -- I thought of him as a "Broom Head." He looked like all he was good for was sweeping up messes. Nor did he project a sense of authority that was due his position. In effect, he was nothing more than a clown.

I also didn't like the musical score for the original pilot episode. It made Babylon 5 feel like a funeral parlour, rather than "Our last, best hope for peace."

In essence, I felt that "The Gathering" was a waste of time, and that it had no future on television.

However, having seen how the five-year storyline unfolded after that pilot episode, I really started to appreciate JMS's vision.

In addition, when the new version of "The Gathering" came out on DVD in 2001, I felt that JMS had really done a good job of cleaning the pilot episode up. There was a new sound track that didn't feel as depressing, although it still retained that dark nature that I came to appreciate even better than I originally did. Then there are the additional scenes that were put in, especially those with Sinclair and his girlfriend. These added more depth to the plot.

I was also happy to see in the series that Mira Furlan lost the evil chin and that the facial features of Andreas Katsulas' character were also softened to make him look less malevolent.

All in all, this new version of the pilot episode is much better than its original broadcast in 1993. While I cannot give it five stars out of five, it definitely deserves four stars for having been cleaned up.

Not the best, but still an intriguing start to Babylon 5
This series pilot does a very good job introducing the major alien races, their history with the Earth Alliance, and their diplomats, all of whom will play an important part in the unfolding Babylon 5 saga. This updated, revised edition of the pilot gives a darker, more sinister edge to some of the plot and main characters, most notably, Lieutenant Commander Laurel Takashima (Tamlyn Tomita) and Minbari ambassador Delenn (Mira Furlan). Anyone who expects "Star Trek" may be disappointed, since the story is far more complex and thoughtful than almost anything I have seen in all the versions of "Star Trek". While this is not "Babylon 5" at its best, it offers the viewer much promise, along with tantalizing hints as to what will follow over the course of the five year-long saga.

Not as advertised, not the best
As you have no doubt already read, this is *not* the premiere movie from 1993 but rather the 1998 TNT version. That irked me, and I hope that the distributors of this movie and amazon.com correct this mistake.

This DVD literally contains an ad for Season 1 on DVD and the TNT version of "The Gathering". Nothing else. There's not even a menu on this DVD. This is as bare-bones as it gets, but then again, you are paying a few bucks for it so you get what you pay for.

The only reason this merits two stars is literally the content. This is a editing of the movie that started it all for Babylon 5, laying the groundwork for a five year storyline. While it can seem a bit drab and drawn out, if you watch the show you will return to this movie and see things you never saw before.

For completists, get this. For everyone else, wait until the Babylon 5 movies set comes out and buy that instead. You will get a much better experience with the same movie as part of that set.

Babylon 5's pilot TV Movie The Gathering now in WIDESCREEN!
I bought this DVD in the store even though I have the original two-story release DVD The Gathering/In the Beginning and am planning to get the movie box set.

The reason I did so was because that it said on the label that it was the original pilot episode from March 8, 1993. That version was only ever released on VHS not DVD. I was skeptical but for a few dollars I decided to take a chance.

Not to my surprise it was the TNT Special Edition not the original. The Gathering Special Edition much like the Star Wars Special Editions added scenes, deleted scenes and redid effects and dialogue. Strangely the creator of B5 J. Michael Straczynski was praised by his fans for doing so whereas Lucas was condemned for his changes.

The thing though that made this DVD worth getting after all was that they have reformatted the movie which was only made in 1:33:1 fullscreen to a widescreen presentation like they did the Kung Fu TV series DVD's even though the labeling on the back says it is in standard format like it's original exhibition.

Don't buy this
This is not a wide screen version on this, because unlike the rest of the show, the pilot was not shot in wide screen. There will not be a wide-screen version unless they crop it down. Don't buy this unless you are a collector, because they are about to release a box set with all the movies including this one with commentary. This is a waste of a few bucks unless you are going to buy everything b-5 that was ever made. If not hold out for the Movie Box set due out soon. ... Read more

Amazon.com

At its best, Babylon 5 functioned more like chapters in an epic than stand-alone episodes in the Star Trek vein of science fiction shows. These initial episodes, like much of the first season, are in that latter tradition: short, mostly self-contained stories that nonetheless serve to expand our understanding of the Babylon 5 universe. The series pilot "The Gathering" is a conspiratorial adventure with a futuristic twist, set in the murky web of alien alliances and intergalactic political tensions. "Midnight on the Firing Line," set six months after the pilot, is the first broadcast episode of the series proper and introduces five new series regulars. As deadly raiders plunder space freighters around the galaxy, the Narn invade a Centauri colony in an act of revenge for wrongs done to their race decades ago, hinting at the blood fury that will drive these races to even greater evils against one another. "Soul Hunter" introduces a race that imprisons the souls of great artists and leaders at the moment of death. When one of them arrives on the station, it sets off a near panic in the alien races and an emotional response from the usually circumspect Delenn (Mira Furlan) that borders on homicidal. "Born to the Purple" plays on the weakness of Ambassador Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik) for pretty young women and drink, in a plot by a manipulative information peddler (guest star Clive Revill) to secure secret blackmail files (which, we find out, is the only coin worth anything in Centauri politics). "Infection" stars David McCallum as an archeologist who draws his former protégé Dr. Richard Franklin (Richard Biggs) into a scheme involving a technological find that carries a deadly secret. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (12)

A Must-Have for Collectors and Fans
First of all, you have to understand: This box contains the first four one-hour episodes of Season One and the two-hour pilot episode, The Gathering, for only $35 dollars. Considering the pilot as 2 episodes, that's less that 6 dollars a shot. (Other popular SF shows sell single episodes for $15. Or 2 for $20.) Secondly, it is the Special Edition pilot episode - complete with new score by Christopher Franke and missing footage. The result is a tighter, faster paced, more staisfying introduction to the complex world of Babylon 5. Thirdly, each video jacket has it's own individual cover design. One gets the feeling that each video is a special part of a much greater whole. Fourthly, it's just good TV - arguably the most compelling SF TV ever. Midnight on the Firing Line goes for your throat right at the beginning and doesn't let go. Other episodes include, in order, Soul Hunter, Born to the Purple, and Infection.

The only deterrent may be a desire to wait until the entire series appears on DVD. But... well. I'll let you decide.

The Best Sci-Fi series, ever!
Babylon 5 easily buries any television science fiction series. Star Trek is nothing to it, Battlestar Galactica ended very badly, and all the Star Trek spin offs make me sick. Babylon 5 is an epic. Babylon 5 is indeed a rare gem. Bravo jms!

Babylon 5 is what Sci Fi was meant to be!
When Babylon 5 first came around, I thought, bah, just another sci fi show. I'll just go watch DS9. Eventually, my friends talked me into watching it. Fortunately, a friend had copied all the episodes to tape. Thus, I was able to view them in sequence from the beginning, to what was then current...without commercials. I was HOOKED. I now own a complete set of episodes (or at least, very close)... Political intrigue, characters with depth, POWERFUL story, no "perfect" society. And a side comment, though the picture on the box appears to be the station "upsidedown". There is no "up" in space, and therefore, it cannot be upsidedown. :)

Beginning of a very deep rich sci-fi experience
I could write a review of each B5 video, but instead I decided to consolidate my thoughts into 1 review at the start of the published series. As a 48 year old professional man who has historically had little interest in sci-fi, I was deeply touched and engrossed in B5, when it originally aired on UPN, and subsequently moved to TNT. This is a series written by a master story teller, mapped out with great detail and depth with a 5 season plan. Not like your typical TV sci-fi show (e.g., the perennial Star Trek derivatives that seem to often rely on the "monster/alien invasion/crisis of the week" and contain characters who march around in skin tight military body suits doing their non-thinking duty like the personified ideal of some totalitarian society of the future), B5 portrays a world of real human beings. There is still poverty, corruption, back biting, political pressure, dirt, grime, swearing, humor, mourning, hope, charity and kindness. In other words, the future is still a REAL PLACE, not a white washed Disney Land where high technology has somehow solved all mankind's problems so we can focus on testosterone goals, such as boldly going where we were not invited!

Instead, B5 (in a sense a huge metaphor for our times), shows a cosmos populated with the self-interest of bickering alien races and the attempts of the crew of B5 to maintain a space station created by earth (after a devastating war that almost destroyed human kind) to bring them all together to discuss peace (yet another attempt at a UN that works?). The eventual acknowledged failure of that goal leads to interplanetary war between 2 "older races", the Vorlons and Shadows with the younger races being caught in the middle, (a metaphor for the cold war when America and Russia were at each other's throats and the other nations of the planet were pawn pieces?).

If you are looking for an ADULT sci-fi masterpiece that evolves via a continuing connected story line over 5 seasons, try B5. Although not a rich man, I have bought ALL the published videos to enjoy the greater visual quality, even though I taped many of them from the original live TV broadcast.

My only complaint is much of seasons 3 and 4 are not available via Amazon.com. I would hope this will be remedied at some point in the future. If you did not have access to these seasons of B5 on TV (now showing them on the sci-fi channel), you may be a bit lost if you must rely only on the tapes available on Amazon.com for the complete story line.

Final note: do not judge the series by the first tape in this series. I understand it was originally a made-for-TV movie that was later transformed into the weekly series. Characterizations were still weak at that point, the scenery was much more murky (dark) than what became standard in the series, and some of the major characters (who I also saw as weak) were replaced by the first episode of the TV series. So much the better! Evolution is the word that springs to mind for this series, not filler between internet provider commercials (casting a final aspirsion upon Star Trek, the boom-bam show that high tech advertisers cattering to yuppie boredom love...).

Masterpiece of Fiction
Having long been a fan of the early and newer Star Trek shows,I was somewhat apprehensive about this series when it first premiered...HOWEVER,boy was I floored!!..This show is what Star Trek never really was.While Star Trek always seemed to present the future in rose colored glasses,with thouchy feely episodes.Babylon 5 offered a more REALISTIC view of the future..And more importantly,the series had a beggining and end..From the very first episode to the last,the series was building charachter and plot lines that would lead to its 5 year conclusion...Simply outstanding actors and performances,allowed for the viewer to become part of this universe,and learn from both its good and bad personalities..Everyone in this show had a purpose,and every episode,(unlike many Star Trek)was fascinating..Actually,you really couldnt miss an episode because of the many subtle hints that were key to the finale...This show probably offered the best view of ourselves and our "growth" as a species,and didnt resort to gimmicky "beam me up" and "hollow deck" technological fantasies...Ok,yes Im being hard on what was considered the best sci-fi of all time..However,after experiencing the run of Babylon 5,I now KNOW that the best vision,storytelling and charachter developement in a sci-fi drama belongs to Babylon 5.....I have all the old and new Star Trek shows,(voyager also) recoreded...However,I only find myself drawn back to view my collection of Babylon 5 episodes...I think you will also..! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

3 and a half stars
This was a great movie. It was based on a true story about a women who decided to get an abortion because there was something wrong with her baby. This was before abortion was legal and when word got out it caused quite a scandal, and the hospital couldn't do the abortion anymore (her doctor had recommended it, and the hospital had already done other abortions- I found it interesting that doctors and hospitals found ways to get around the abortion laws to do abortions before they were legal)

This movie was very emotional, as well a interesting and important historically.
I only wish it was out in dvd- and maybe with a documentary about what really happened, and about the history of abortions, and so on as the extras.
I highly recomend this movie.

one of the best
This is one of the best movies i have ever saw... It made me cry it made me laugh.. You just have to watch it... TRUST me!

Bravo to the actors in this real life drama!
It is not often that a movie comes along that has this much grit and real life emotion. I think that both sides of the abortion issue can clearly see the agony this family went through because of the portrayals of Bob and Sherri Finkbine. God bless them and the brave director of this masterpiece! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Not too bad.
Overall, The Return is an okay Bonanza to have. It's about a murderer, who claims to have shot someone's son is a fair fight, who returns to Virginia City to get settled. Nobody cares for him nor likes him. But the Cartrights hire him and try to help him out. Then he tries to run away with a girl he loves, the man who's son got shot's daughter. How bad is that? But it has a very surprising ending. So if you really wanna see a great Bonanza, I suggest trying to find The Flapjack Contest, Woman of Fire, Springtime, The Smiler, or The Wooing of Abigail Jones.

It was a good family movie
It was a good family movie. I liked it though it is not the future I would foresee for the Cartwrights.

Aren't they missing someone?
For a lot of Bonanza fans, the series was about Ben Cartwright's three sons, but they were named Hoss, Joe and Jamie. The later "return to" and "next generation" treatments seem to indicate Jamie mysteriously vanished sometime after the last episode of the original show. He is never mentioned, even though he was a legally adopted member of the family. I guess family only matters if it's *blood*.

Otherwise, nice western. Good popcorn film. ... Read more