Change Your Image
plugpray
Reviews
Dorothy Dandridge: Singing at Her Best (2003)
30 min of songs - 30 min of movie trailers
What is included in this DVD is good but there's really not enough to satisfy Dandridge fans. There has to be a lot more film of Dorothy Dandridge singing in nightclubs and on TV available somewhere.
The producers of this DVD dug up a few "soundies" and a couple of TV performances and combined that with a some movie trailers. There is some narration that provides a little context. The narration is pretty good but the overall quality of all the films is very poor.
Soundies were an early form of music video that were produced in 16mm and played on a type of jukebox found in nightclubs, bars, restaurants and other public places.
It's a real shame that so many of Dorothy's films and musical performances have disappeared or are gathering dust somewhere because of licensing issues. She deserves a lot better, but this is just another tragedy from a life that was full tragedy and ended all too soon.
Off to War (2005)
As Real as it Gets
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Other reviews completely misrepresent the entire point of this film. It is not intended to be a "fair and balanced" debate on whether we should have gone to war in Iraq or whether we should still be there.
This is the real story of real small-town people who, mostly because of bad economic conditions, signed up for the National Guard to earn some extra money and "play army" as well. It was a good deal and it was fun until they got called up.
They were scared and in most cases had to give up a lot, but they went anyway because they believed in the mission and they believed in doing their duty. Prior to their departure I heard them say several times, "...when they attacked us" or "...because they attacked us" in reference to 9/11. Thing is, Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, but these soldiers and their families believed it because that's what they were told by the government they trusted.
These people weren't professional soldiers. They were clueless young men and fat, middle-aged men who should never have been sent to a war zone. They were an Engineer Battalion, but they were being used to guard prisoners, provide security, and run patrols where they were essentially put out in dangerous areas to draw fire from the insurgents. Those are not appropriate missions for citizen-soldiers with old, barely-functioning equipment. That they performed as well as they did and lost so few solders is amazing, considering what they had to work with.
Once in country and seeing what was being asked of them, it's no wonder they began to question their assumptions and beliefs. That eventually turned to anger and resentment. What makes this documentary so brilliant is that we are able to see exactly what the soldiers and their families went through during this period, and how their views evolved. It is an honest reflection of what actually happened to them and so many others who have sacrificed so much for the Iraq war.
I am always touched by the patriotism, love of country and willingness to sacrifice of ordinary Americans like these folks. Sadly, this is also why they can so easily be manipulated by craven politicians. Even those on the home front who re-elected Bush and the soldiers who supported the war seemed to be to be doing so mostly because they could never accept that their sacrifices might have been in vain.
24 (2001)
Best way to watch this series
I never watched this show as it was broadcast, but I bought the Seasons 1-5 Box set recently and started watching it. Now this is the way to watch a series! No interruptions. No waiting. Just one episode after another.
I just finished Season 4 last night and I've been recording the Season 6 episodes so that they will be ready when I am. I will soon be caught up and I suppose at that point I won't be able to resist watching each episode as it's broadcast.
I think it's a great show, but there are times when I want to throw something at one of the characters for being so stupid. I guess they have to do certain things to keep the plot going, but it really bothers me to see supposedly intelligent characters acting so stupidly.
Another thing that bothers me is how quickly they will resort to torture, even when it's one of their own people. And then when they find out it was a mistake, the person just goes back to work as if nothing had happened.