DVD Talk DVD Reviews https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/list/DVD Video DVD Talk DVD Review RSS Feed en-us The Cosby Show: Season 4 DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/29739 Sat, 11 Aug 2007 02:29:07 UTC Recommended

The Series

Once a popular series reaches its third or fourth season, it's pretty tough to keep track of which one was which -- but The Cosby Show made it easy: Season 4 is when Lisa Bonet left the cast to head off to college and a spin-off series called A Different World -- which also turned out to be quite the little hit for NBC. But for those who tune in mainly for The Coz, there's no reason to fret: The legendary comedian is still at the top of his game in his series' fourth season.

Actually, Denise went off to college in the third season, but it seems like season four is when the family got used to not having the teenager around -- which means there's a lot more room for the exploits of little Rudy, precocious Vanessa, underachiever Theo, newlyweds Sondra and Elvin, the lovely Claire -- and the main reason anyone even tuned in in the first place: Mr. Bill Cosby as lovable O...Read the entire review

]]>
Dead Heist DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/29708 Thu, 09 Aug 2007 12:31:13 UTC Rent It

The Movie:
A heist/vampire-zombie film with big named rappers like Big Daddy Kane may not be as rewarding as the works of say Martin Scorsese, but you can do a lot worse. For a low budget indie B-movie, "Dead Heist" is a surprisingly fun but flawed ride.

The plot: 4 men are looking to break out of street hustling by moving onto bigger and better crimes (in this case a bank robbery.) Aiding them in the robbery is a military veteran and bodyguard named Jackson (D.J. Naylor). Wanting to do the robbery in their own way, the four thugs decide to rob the bank without Jackson only to end up screwing up the job. As night rolls around, the thieves and hostages find themselves holding up in the bank as the town becomes ravaged by bloodthirsty flesh-eating creatures who were once human. Enter the character of Hunter (Big Daddy Kane) who is a mysterious character who has run into these creatures befor...Read the entire review

]]>
The Cosby Show: Season 3 DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/28279 Mon, 28 May 2007 02:48:50 UTC Highly Recommended

The Movie

Simplistic? Sure. Corny? Yeah, sometimes. Funny? Darn straight, thanks to one of the most beloved comedians of our age. And I'm not talking about Malcolm Jamal Warner, trust me.

My grandmother used to make a huge deal out of Thursday nights. Nobody could make her laugh like Bill Cosby, so we all had a great time with the man's mega-smash sitcom hit. By the time the third season had arrived on NBC, the Coz had hit his groove. The series gave the man a perfect stage on which to deliver his family-friendly, yet slyly insightful, brand of warm-hearted comedy. For those who just MIGHT not know, I'll remind you that The Cosby Show is about a good-natured OB-GYN who has a lovely wife and five (strategically aged) kids: Little Rudy, pre-teen Vanessa, high-schooler Theo, college freshman Denise, and grown-up Sondra. (Well, she's about to graduate college, anyway.)

Obviously the wid...Read the entire review

]]>
Repos DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/23088 Mon, 07 Aug 2006 04:16:34 UTC Skip It

The Movie:

Ugly, incredibly stupid and painful to watch.

It's not much of a blurb, but if there were truth in advertising, the aforementioned description would be emblazoned on all DVD packages for Repos, a beyond-abysmal comedy about a day in the life of two car repo men.

The threadbare storyline, which seems to be made up while the camera rolls, concerns two thoroughly unlikable repo men, Tea (rap mogul Master P) and Coffee (Michael Blackson), partners who work for a blowhard named Mr. Henderson (a moderately amusing Katt Williams).

Shot on video, Repos follows the pair as they rush to set a single-day car-repossession record, a feat that will snag them a healthy cash bonus from Mr. Henderson. Coffee, who is African, kicks things off by repoing the auto of his adoptive mother.

Coffee and Tea repo more cars. Then they repo some more. And then som...Read the entire review

]]>
The Cosby Show - Season 2 DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/20889 Thu, 30 Mar 2006 03:55:16 UTC Highly Recommended

Cosby fans, rejoice. One significant point I want to address before gettinginto the review. The Cosby Show Season 2 is presented here in theoriginal, uncut format. In a review on this site for the season oneDVD set it was rightly pointed out that the buyer was being stuck with TheCosby Show Season 1 in the syndicated version format, with a few minutes trimmedfrom each episode. Happily that is not the case here.

For decades Bill Cosby has been a comedian of legendary status, anddeservedly so. Not only did he manage to find a high degree of fame plyinghis standup act trade in the 60's, he did so as an African-American, pavingthe way for so many others that have come after. His acts always dealtin large part with heaping portions of his family life- his childhood, hisparents, and in turn his own marriage and several children, and rarely didCos veer into adults only material. He was al...Read the entire review

]]>
Skin Deep DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/12622 Fri, 08 Oct 2004 20:24:56 UTC Skip It

The Movie

Skin Deep, the 2003 film from writer/director Sacha Parisot and writer/producer Ken Karn, is notable for exploring issues of class and race divisions, the acceptance of interracial dating and miscegenation, societal norms and expectations in relation to ethnicity, and the argument of fidelity being either the cause or repercussion of a sexless, conflicted marriage. The film was the recipient of several awards, including Best Actor (Steve White) and Best Film fro...Read the entire review

]]>
Me and Mrs. Jones DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/12038 Tue, 24 Aug 2004 01:10:51 UTC Rent It

The Movie:
Me and Mrs. Jones is your standard romantic/comedy, with some bonus appeal. First of all, it's got Kim Fields, of Facts of Life and Living Single fame! Plus, it has adorable hunk Brian White as the leading man. And it's all wrapped up in a bow of cuteness.

The Story:
Tracy (Brian White) is a graphic designer looking for a job. And he finds a job—and more—when he goes to work for an internet dating service run by evil vixen Mrs. Jones (Wandachristine). It's not long before Tracy is climbing the corporate ladder…as a result of climbing atop Mrs. Jones! But Tracy's no playa, just a victim of circumstances. For he also meets hot thing Desiree (Kim Fields) and begins falling in love with her. And so begins his dilemma. He's being promoted left and right by Mrs. Jones, but he's falling in love with Desiree, and is forced to juggle his time between t...Read the entire review

]]>
Undercover Brother: The Animated Series DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/11931 Sun, 15 Aug 2004 00:58:42 UTC Rent It

The Film:
Those of you that enjoyed the silly but mildly entertaining Undercover Brother may want to check out this collection of animated shorts that served as the original inspiration for that film. Even if you haven't seen the live action version, these twelve shorts are worth watching. For those of you unfamiliar with the concept behind Undercover Brother, he is by day mild mannered Anton Jackson, a happy-go-lucky, non-threatening black man. But in reality, Anton is Undercover Brother, an asskicking secret agent who works for The B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D., a covert organization whose mission is to foil the sinister plans of The Man.

Featuring twelve episodes of the animated series that appeared on the Internet, Undercover Brother: The Animated Series kicks off with "Ain't Nuthin' But a Phantom Menace Thang", which introduces the characters and concepts of the series. The en...Read the entire review

]]>
MLS - Greatest Goals 1996-2003 DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/11581 Sun, 18 Jul 2004 20:21:44 UTC Rent It

The Movie:

Soccer may be an acquired taste, and it may be difficult for some to sit through 90 minutes of low-scoring soccer, but even the most hardened soccer-haters usually admit that a beautiful goal from the "Beautiful Game" is one of the most exciting moments in sports. All the build-up, the frustrations and the near-misses of the minutes preceding finally pay off in one touch, whether it is a 18-yard bicycle kick, a free kick of 30 yards out or a toe poke from two feet off the line.

Goals of the former variety are the focus in Major League Soccer: Greatest Goals, a compilation of all the highlight-worthy (some more worthy than other) strikes in MLS play since its inception in 1996.

Narrated by JP Dellacamera, former voice of the U.S. men's national team and current voice of the women's national team, the nearly 60 minute program shows goals ranging from...Read the entire review

]]>
All About You DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/10022 Wed, 24 Mar 2004 04:40:51 UTC Rent It

The Movie:

I like watching small independent movies.  The way the movie businessis set up today, it is very hard to get an independent movie widespreaddistribution, so there are many excellent films that simply get ignored. When an award winning film, such as All About You, finds it wayto DVD, I always have high expectation.  Unfortunately they were notfulfilled with this film.

Nicole (Renee Goldsberry) decides to forgo law school while her boyfriend,Robbie, finishes his schooling.  But when she starts talking aboutmarriage, she soon finds herself single.  Nicole moves in with a friend,Lisa, who lives in another town.  What Lisa hasn't told Nicole, isthat she is going away for a while, and has sublet her room out. Nicole isn't thrilled about this, but what can she do?  So Brian (TerronBrooks,) moves in, an attractive singer/songwri...Read the entire review

]]>
Robert Townsend: Partners in Crime, Vol. 2 DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/8576 Fri, 05 Dec 2003 22:02:19 UTC Recommended

Intro:

Robert Townsend has been a mainstream comic forquite sometime (over 15 years).  Before there wasChris Rock, Dave Chapelle or even the Wayans – there was Townsend.  Townsend's satirical brand of comedy inspiredshows like "In Living Color" and eventually Blackcomedy shows like "Def Comedy Jam". "Partners in Crime Vol. 2" was an HBO comedy special that airedin 1991.  We get to see some early looks ata few thenunknown comics like Sinbad, David Allen Grier and John Witherspoon.

 

Audio/Video:

Read the entire review

]]>
Platinum Comedy Series: D.L. Hughley DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/8344 Mon, 17 Nov 2003 08:12:23 UTC Highly Recommended

Opening Thoughts– One of the top Black comics in the game today is D.L. Hughley. The star of ABC's "The Hughleys", D.L. doesn't shy away from any controversial topic.

Review - D.L. Hughley, one of the "Kings of Comedy" hits it hard again with this hour-long stand-up routine. Filmed during this years Black Expo in Indianpolis, D.L. hits all of the right topics. From Bin Laden to Bill Clinton, D.L. touches on everything. He has an uncanny ability to hit our funny bone by talking about real life. We get treated to his muses on childeren, the differences between Whites and Blacks, and his political views. Once again, D.L. succeeeds in making us laugh.

Audio/Video-
This DVD is presented in a fullframe format and 5.1 surround sound.Most of the sound stage is limited to the front and center channelshowever. The video is very jerky at times, and does not have the...Read the entire review

]]>
Platinum Comedy Series: Bruce Bruce DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/8343 Mon, 17 Nov 2003 06:32:03 UTC Recommended

Opening Thoughts– The top Black comic today is arguably Chris Rock. A notch below Rock, are the self-proclaimed "Kings of Comedy" - Steve Harvey/D.L. Hughley/Cedric the Entertainer/Bernie Mac. The Kings have been able to cross-over and become mainstream comics. So now come the "B" players, these are comics that are known in the Black community, but have yet to find cross-over sucess. That is the type of comic featured in "Latham Entertainment Presents: An All New Comic Experience". On that disc we are introduced to Bruce Bruce, a fine comic in his own right. The DVD was filmed in Indianapolis at the Murat Theater and we are treated to great up and coming comic.

Review - Bruce Bruce is a very engaging comic. You may be familiar with him as the host of BET's ComicView. He opens his performance by picking at members of the crowd and covering topics that most Black comedians ...Read the entire review

]]>
Platinum Comedy Series: Cedric the Entertainer - Starting Lineup 2 DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/7960 Sun, 19 Oct 2003 18:52:19 UTC Rent It

"I ain't paid no bills in a minute, either. I ain't paid nothin', dog. Anthrax. I got bills just sittin' 'round, dog. Anthrax, anthrax, anthrax, dog. I can't pay it. I tell the phone company, 'Anthrax, sorry. You come open it. You come open it, you so bad.'"

Starting Lineup 2 is the second live comedy DVD from UrbanWorks Entertainment hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, who, in between his own stand-up, introduces viewers to up and coming comedic talents. The other comedians on this volume are Leon Rogers, Nema Williams, Rodney Perry, and Memphis radio personality Prescott Gilliam. The special was taped in the boxing ring at Mississippi's Biloxi Grand Casino, and accordingly, Cedric introduces t...Read the entire review

]]>
Platinum Comedy Series: Dave Chappelle - Killin' Them Softly DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/6813 Fri, 04 Jul 2003 03:17:27 UTC Recommended

Dave Chappelle is a funny man. I've been a fan and looked for his appearances for a few years now, even before his Comedy Central show or his movie Half Baked. While his Comedy Central show is often quite funny and, well, how should I put his kindly?... Half Baked has its audience,... really Chapelle is clearly comfortable and most gifted on the stage. It is obvious he has been doing comedy since he was a teen. Every time I've seen him doing standup, he always seems relaxed, natural, ready, never lost, never forced, and the jokes flow steadily. Like Lenny Bruce and Richard Pyror, Chapelle structures his material mainly as stories with several punchlines instead of cut and dry Seinfeldian observations or one-liners.

Killin' Them Softly begins with segment about the differences between blacks and whites. He talks about how things have changed and you'll now see streetcorner thugs w...Read the entire review

]]>