Phillip Seymour's Greatest Performance Yet

Advantages: Groundbreaking and thrilling movie
Disadvantages: Initially anoying, and a movie that distractions could prove dangerous

...and relationships are at breaking point. Out of the blue, through his brother Andy (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) an opportunity to earn some cash comes Hank's way. The plan for the ultimate crime has one flaw and it's a big one in order to earn this bounty of cash Hank needs to rob his own parent's store, but the perfect heist goes terribly wrong and as one person dies and another lies in the balance both Hank and Andy find themselves in a dark world where the death may be the best option. Straight off the bat if you don't have a good level of concentration then you don't want to be watching this movie. It's one of those films where the slightest of distractions could affect the whole outcome of the movie for you as the viewer. Even a casual glance across the room, or a mind wander could have a devastating effect to how this movie will work. Thankfully...

sghawken 14.01.2008 · Read review
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Review of Before the Devil Knows You're Dead DVD

FREE DVDs

Advantages: Free trial, large choice, post included,new realeases
Disadvantages: see review

...I like movies and I like freebies, so when you get offered both in one swoop you?re bound to accept! I used my two week free trial with this company and remained with them for a couple of monthsbefore moving on to try many other companies free trials (and winning a new DVD player on Tesco DVD rental site on their free trial offer). I then had an email from DVDs 365 asking me to go back, and offering me a free DVD if I did so. I had just left Tesco (with my new DVD player) so I chose to go back with them. ∆◊◊ THE SERVICE THEY OFFER ∆◊◊ Basically it?s like going to a video shop and hiring films on DVD, except you don?t pay for each film you chose ? rather a monthly fee for which you can watch as many movies as you can fit in, for us this is usually around 8 a month (2 a week usually weekends...

dabmim 15.11.2004 · Read review
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Review of dvds365.com

mat hoffmans

Advantages: brilliant gameplay and the great graphics
Disadvantages: none

...The first thing that hit me when I played Mat Hoffmans Pro BMX is the incredible similarity to both Tony Hawks and Tony Hawks 2. Is this a bad thing? HELL NO! Tony Hawks 1 and 2 are two of the best games I’ve played on any console. I may be a dedicated Ninty but that doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy great games on other platforms. MHP BMX is in fact made by the same people who made Tony Hawks. The same engine is used and the game plays almost exactly the same. So why’s this game so good? Because of those very reasons I just gave! A game that more than closely resembles Tony Hawks can’t be bad! Can it?! I picked up the controls amazingly easily. They are just so simple. It’s this kind of simplicity that is missing from games today but thankfully MHP BMX has simplicity in abundance. You can...

martinwright 23.07.2001 · Read review
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Review of Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX (PlayStation)

Surprising Picture Quality - Panasonic DVD-S54

Advantages: Incredible picture quality when compared to my old non-upscaling player with a scart lead
Disadvantages: Sometimes disc drive can be really noisy when DVD's initially load.

...At first I wasn't convinced by up-scaling DVD player technology but was persuaded after reading an article in "What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision" magazine. Unable to afford a Blu-Ray player my sister and I bought the Panasonic DVD-S54 to match our parents brand new Panasonic TX-32LZD80 LCD television as their Christmas 2008 present. Admittedly it was a slightly selfish purchase as we both live at home and wanted to watch DVDs on the big new TV ourselves! We bought the player from the electrical retailer Comet for about £100 just before Christmas so there were no discounts applied. On Christmas day when opened we found a relatively small box tightly packed with the player in polystyrene packaging. All the components such as cables, remote and manuals were well presented in their own protective plastic bags, to keep them protected. The player...

bobbacon985 12.02.2009 · Read review
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Review of Panasonic DVD-S54

Hoffman .vs. Hawk

Advantages: Everything!
Disadvantages: Nothing!

...Mat Hoffman Pro BMX is the latest biking game to grace the PS1, and it does so in style. Activision have done themselves justice with this amazing game, and from the opening video sequence, you will notice the close resemblance to Tony Hawk's Pro Skater. Similarities are noticeable immediately. Like THPS, Hoffman plays like a dream, and the graphics are amazing. If we had to find a new THPS, this would undoubtedly be it, hands down. The first mode you will encounter is Career Mode. You are to choose from a vast selection of the most respected bikers, including Mat Hoffman, Mike Escamilla and many more. You can then browse the currently very small collection of bikes and calibrate it to your preference, with very miniscule details such as the tires and the handlebars, which albeit unnecessary, are still very interesting. However...

Desert_Beetle 18.02.2002 · Read review
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Review of Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX (PlayStation)

Dustin Hoffman does romance

Advantages: lovely story
Disadvantages: bit short

...Harvey (Dustin Hoffman) has a job making jingles for TV ads. He travels from the US to the UK to take part in his estranged daughter's wedding, only to find he is ostracised and unwanted. When he loses his job over the phone, he's left pretty much all alone. Kate (Emma Thompson) is a single woman with a nagging mother who won't leave her alone. When the two meet, it just shouldn't work, but will it? This is a stunning film. Fresh and different, it adds a whole new slant to the romantic comedy genre. What's so great about it is the way that the two main characters are so used to having crap lives, they expect that as the norm. When love rears its head, they expect nothing from it. The storyline, therefore, is interesting, varied, different and compelling. The acting is just sublime. These two worked together on Stranger than...

bruffyboy 14.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of Last Chance Harvey (DVD)

Motivation

Advantages: An enthralling read from the master writer
Disadvantages: None

...Some of the best Ciao writer?s will only publish one or two ops a month. Some of the best writers will only publish a book every year or two. Gerald Seymour falls in this category. I try and savour each book, because I know I?ll never read anything as good for at least another year; when his next novel is published. I?ve been reading Gerald Seymour?s books for over 14 years; and they just get better and better. His early works were all about bullets, bombs and knives, and he created great books such as ?Harry?s Game?, ?The Glory Boys? and ?In Honour Bound?. Then he suddenly changed, some may say he matured as a writer and he became more interested in the motivation of his heroes and villains. ?The Fighting Man? was the first to go this way. Despite his change in writing style he is still one of the greatest modern war, crime...

borntoloaf 10.01.2003 · Read review
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Review of The Untouchable - Gerald Seymour

Feed me Seymour

Advantages: Alot of extras over the video version.
Disadvantages: none i can think of! not available in the uk?

...Before I start, let me clarify, the version of this film I am reviewing is the 1986 Musical version directed by Frank Oz. NOT the 1960 version with Jack Nickelson. I also got the region 1 version. If you can find a region 2 DVD (I find it hard to believe as I searched long and hard!) it may not have all features I mention. This is a story about a singing plant, a daring hero, a sweet girl and a demented dentist!!! With its outrageous 80s attitude, this musical would probably appeal to similar cult followings as The Rocky Horror Picture Show! The film follows the entertainment that ensues in a local flower shop on Skid Row - Mushnik's Flower Shop. Business is non-existent, but the shop assistant Seymour (Rick Moranis) has been working on a very SPECIAL plant. Mr Mushnik agrees to display the flower in the window, and business...

kano 30.04.2001 (04.08.2001) · Read review
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Review of Little Shop Of Horrors (DVD)

The Dull Blue Diary :(

Advantages: beautiful descriptions, kat was a lively character I enjoyed reading about
Disadvantages: overall it was dull, dull dull!

...) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I thought the premise of this story was intriguing; all families have secrets and no one is perfect, but I found the idea of a seemingly perfect family who is well liked and respected holding such a dark and terrifying secret impossible to resist and I was curious to see how it would be portrayed and tackled. Hoffman doesn't take long to delve into the heart of the story, which on the plus side means that there is no long and laborious lead up to the "exciting" part of the book, but it also means that I was unable to gather much sympathy or understanding of Ethan's character before his past crime is revealed to the community. This could have been what the author intended; that the reader only sympathise with Jorie and her son Collie, but I don't think this was her intention at all. The beginning of the story explains how Ehtan...

burtybookworm 27.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Blue Diary - Alice Hoffman

One Remarkable Life

Advantages: Interesting read and good insight into Hellé Nice's life
Disadvantages: Too absorbing - you'll finish it too quickly

...Until I found this book in the biography section of my local bookstore, I had never heard of Helene Delangle, or Hellé Nice, the stage name that she took. The synopsis on the back cover intrigued me, and once I'd started reading the opening chapter, I knew I had to purchase and read this book. Helene Delangle was born in 1900 in a tiny French village, just outside of Chartres. She moved to Paris and became a dancer but went on from there to become the fastest woman racing driver of her time, setting many records along the way. A serious accident almost ended her racing days, and then later, after the Second World War she was accused of having collaborated with the Gestapo. I'm not going to use this review to go into her life further, as Seymour does this during her book, and frankly, I don't want to ruin it for you! Seymour...

sally.jenkins 14.06.2006 · Read review
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Review of The Bugatti Queen - Miranda Seymour