Absolutely Fantastic

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Hi J, Here is this week's column and pic. Thanks again.Mark GIMMEE SOME SUGAR October begins and it's the month of Halloween, so what better time than now to highlight a horror series that recently made its way to disc. Fans of EVIL DEAD 1 & 2 and ARMY OF DARKNESS have thrilled to the horrific and yet humorous adventures of Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) since the first film arrived way back in 1981. Praised by Stephen King, loved by fans and a nominee on nearly every list of favorite horror films, the original played for scares while the two sequels more for laughs. They launched the career of Sam Raimi to the point he directed 3 Spider-man films. And now Ash has made his way to series and a disc set.A basis overview of the original: Ash and friends discover an ancient book bound in flesh that when read aloud unleashed a demonic evil that kills his friends. Ash ends up having to cut off his own hand and take on the demon alone, even going back in time to do so. A quick summation but all you need.In the Starz series ASH VS EVIL DEAD the story picks up years later. Ash remains one handed, still works a low level job in retail and retains possession of the Necronomicon or Book of the Dead. He's still the same goofy character we came to love years ago, smart mouthed, subtle as a shovel to the head and more inclined to look for a party than trouble. Unfortunately one drunken hookup has Ash bragging and showing off the book to his conquest of the night and then reading from it. Of course this show off stunt unleashes the Deadites (Evil dead bad guys/demons) again.Various Deadite occurrences follow. One involves police detective Amanda Fisher (Jill Marie Jones) and her partner investigating a dark house. Her partner is killed and then possessed by a Deadite forcing her to shoot him to defend herself. Put on leave she begins to look into any and all clues on her own time to find out just what's going on, eventually leading her to Ash.But Ash has his own problems when Deadites attack the store where he works. With the help of co-worker Pablo (Ray Santiago) who worships Ash and Kelly (Dana DeLorenzo) they escape to his trailer where he hopes to find a way of destroying the book. At that trailer they are attacked and the two youngsters get to see Ash in action as he grabs his "boomstick" aka shotgun to take out one Deadite and straps on his chainsaw to the stump where his hand once was to take down another. Yes, that may sound crazy but it works.And like that the threesome is destined to take the path of trying to save the world. With a few stops along the way like checking on Kelly's family and a visit to Pablo's shaman uncle. Each 30 minute episode takes us down the road they're traveling and offers us more clues as to what is going on and how to stop it. The end result is that Ash must face the responsibility he's been trying to avoid all these years and become the hero he was meant to be, albite a tarnished one at best.The show takes the best parts of the original trilogy and multiplies them to a point where they work marvelously well. The character of Ash is a hoot, with a ton of humor on the surface and a hero buried underneath it all that just needs brought out. Pablo is a fantastic sidekick, wanting to join the good fight for the wrong reason (to get closer to Kelly) but willing to follow Ash anywhere. And Kelly offers that tough girl exterior who has a soft spot as well, who thinks of Pablo as a brother but who may change eventually. While Ash doesn't want their help initially he eventually knows he'll need it.Every actor in this series is well suited for their parts. Let me say up front as a fan of Campbell he once again brings Ash to life, and I mean that in a good way. He offers the broad strokes when needed and the subtle ones when called for. Ash is the reluctant hero, a man whose crass ways lead him to make mistakes but someone you'd want in your corner once he gets there. Santiago and DeLorenzo are fresh faces to me and handle their roles well enough to keep up with Campbell, growing into them with each episode.The first season now on disc only lasts 10 episodes which is a shame. When it was over I found myself wanting more. Season 2 has just started on Starz but I can wait for the season to make its way to disc. That means I can take the time to savor each episode. I can also enjoy the fact that they've announced Lee Majors to portray Ash' father! In the meantime I think I'll find myself watching this one more than once, just like I did the original movies. Maybe a weekend of EVIL DEAD with all three films and this series is in order. That might make a fun filled Halloween weekend. This is one not to rent but to add to your shelf. The combination of horror, extreme gore and laughs make it just that good.Past Digital Views reviews, other current reviews and more can be found online at http://dvddigitalviews.blogspot.com, including reviews BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, MONEY MONSTER and JOHNNY GUITAR.

Many people just think of this as simply a fantastic western movie, I mean it must have had a big distribution deal because it had huge box office takings world wide. But I think there is more depth to this movie than just that, I think the music that went along with it was truly amazing. I really like the pace at which the action in this movie plays out. The screen writers did a fantastic job is writing the script for the film also.I can't rate this film enough, I gate it 8 out of 10, maybe there were moments that could have been better but there are not many. Credits go out to all of the cast stand out performances from each one of them.Watch this film you will not be disappointed.

In this Republic Pictures movie produced by Herbert J. Yates and directed by Nicholas Ray, Joan Crawford, who could be more awe-inspiring than any man alive, was a woman who needed the man who had run out on her years before, Johnny Guitar himself: Sterling Hayden was his sometimes boisterous self, but, again, in this movie Vienna (played by Crawford) was a woman who needed Johnny Guitar, since she was harassed by Emma Smalls, a woman who was poisoned with hate toward Vienna; Mercedes McCambridge was outstanding as the hate-possessed woman. Another actor who was mean toward Johnny Guitar was Ernest Borgnine, who played Bart. Ward Bond was his loud self as Mr. McGivers, Ben Cooper played well his part as Turkey, a young eighteen-year-old boy who was trying hard to be a man, and Scott Brady was definitely an arrogant man. The story is simple: at the beginning there is a stagecoach robbery...in which Emma Small's brother is killed... as Johnny Guitar is going into town, and Emma Smalls who, unlike Vienna, does not want the railroad to come through, is so prejudiced toward Vienna that she, in her own mind, thinks Vienna was responsible for the robbery. Then, after a bank robbery by Scott Brady and his three cohorts, Emma is again convinced that Vienna is responsible, and she leads a posse to pursue and kill Vienna; and no, Vienna can not survive without Johnny Guitar. Not only do Crawford and Hayden play two people who love strongly, but the movie addresses hatred, bitterness, extreme anger, and prejudice, and the effects of same. New Mexico looked beautiful (in its own way) and Peggy Lee's voice is melodious as she sings the title song from the movie. The superb acting, the beautiful scenery, and the thought-provoking story render this movie an outstanding production.

It's difficult to resist this ridiculously OTT 'Freudian' western and far easier to sit back and enjoy a cast with at least twelve actors who regular film buffs will readily identify from Royal Dano to Frank Ferguson, albeit there is only one lead in the shape of Joan Crawford. Interestingly instead of a menage a trois we have a menage a quatre with Sterling Haydyn ostensibly vying with Scott Brady for Crawford's affections whilst Mercedes McCambridge clearly fancies both Brady and Crawford and - just to complicate things - off set Brady and young Ben Cooper were an item. The plot is so outrageous a passing zephyr let along a strong wind would see it off in nothing flat but wisely Nick Ray, clearly aware of this, keeps the whole thing moving lickety-spit to the Gotterdammerung-light finale. Enjoy