If you have an interest in early cinema, you'll want to check out DVD Talk review John Sinnott's coverage of the Vitaphone shorts and features available through the Warner Archive Collection. WB has made a treasure trove of very rare and wonderful films readily accessible, and they are great fun to watch. John covers Vitaphone Varieties Volumes One and Two, the six-disc Vitaphone Cavalcade of Musical Comedy Shorts, and The Vitaphone Comedy Collection Vol. 1 (featuring Roscoe ''Fatty'' Arbuckle and Shemp Howard), as well as two features: Don Juan staring John Barrymore and On with the Show. With a great assortment of vaudeville acts, big band performances, early appearances by some big name stars, and two discs devote to shorts shot in two-strip Technicolor, there is some great entertainment in these collections. Get the whole story in DVD Talk's exclusive look at Vitaphone movies.

Before you head off to the cinema this weekend, check out DVDTalk's reviews of the latest releases including: Pain & Gain [a second review] - Michael Bay directed this action/comedy film about a trio of kidnappers, played by Mark Wahlberg, Anthony Mackie, and Dwayne Johnson, and based on a true story; The Angels' Share - a sublime and genuinely heartwarming drama about a quartet of criminal misfits who make an appeal to whatever heaven they believe in to change their lives; and Graceland - a thriller that definitely commands your attention. Other recent films include: Oblivion, Graceland, 42, Simon Killer, Evil Dead (2013),G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Olympus Has Fallen, and The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. Check out these, and more, in DVDTalk's Theatrical Review section.

More TV shows have made their way on to DVD, and DVD Talk has got them covered. Check out our reviews of the newest TV releases including: Ken Burns: The Central Park Five - Anyone with an interest in history or social justice ought to see this; Nova: Earth From Space - this collection of graphics, satellite imagery and interviews does a fine job of showing us the cause and effect of weather patterns, natural disasters and other secrets within "the blue marble"; and Maigret: The Complete Collection - a very solid entry in the small-screen detective genre. Other shows recently reviewed include:  Duck Dynasty: Season 2 , Celebrate With Clifford, and Phi-Brain Season 1.  Want more?  Check out all of the TV on DVD reviews in the DVDTalk database.

This week the DVD Savant has a number of new reviews and articles including: Django Unchained - Quentin Tarantino pulls off miracle after non-PC miracle in this generic mashup of Spaghetti westerns and Blaxploitation epics. Incredibly gory entertainment doesn't shy away from the consequences of slavery, earning its right to be as vulgar as it pleases; Major Dundee - Sam Peckinpah's mysteriously mangled epic western comes to HD in a two-disc edition that permits the experimental 2005 revision, with its controversial replacement music score, to eclipse the original from 1965; and The Devil and Miss Jones - a millionaire curmudgeon goes undercover in his own department store, to personally root out the agitators causing trouble among his employees. He instead finds true friendship and a new set of values. Great stuff. Read all this and more in this week's DVD Savant.

Another banner week for DVDs with the studios releasing some great films and boxed sets such as: Jurassic Park 3D [review] - 20 years later, the leaps in visual magic that made this film such an eye-opening experience at the time still impress; Cold Prey II [one review, another review] - a back-to-basics slasher sequel that manages to stand on its own and breathes life into a genre... it grips the viewer early on, and never lets up on the pressure; and Gangster Squad [review] - an entertaining look at the crackdown on organized crime in 1940s Los Angeles Other reviews of note include The Impossible [review] and Grapes of Death [review]. Be sure to check out our DVD Talk Review Database for all the latest reviews including an entire section devoted to reviews of DVDs out this week.

A lot of great older films have been viewed by the DVD Talk review panel lately. Check out some of these notable movies from Hollywood's golden age: Vitaphone Cavalcade of Musical Comedy Shorts -A truly wonderful compilation of some very entertain and historical short subjects; The Lineup - this film is a violent, unsettling, and still-creepy noir classic; and Wyoming Outlaw - this John Wayne "Three Mesquiteers" film is an unusually grim, topical, mostly serious fact-based tale. Other recent reviews include: Three Hours to Kill, The Bamboo Prison, and Westward Ho.  Visit the DVD Talk Review Database for all the latest reviews including an entire section devoted to reviews of DVDs out this week. Visit the DVD Talk Review Database for all the latest reviews including an entire section devoted to reviews of DVDs out this week.

Advertise With Us

Review Staff | Newsletter Subscribe | Join DVD Talk Forum
Copyright © DVDTalk.com All rights reserved | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Manage Preferences | Your Privacy Choices