Entertainment
Entertainment Picks (March 5, 2010)
4 Things to check out this weekend
The Music of My Life
Neil Sedaka
CD ($11.98)
The prolific singer-songwriter behind dozens of pop hits, including “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do,” “Love Will Keep Us Together” and “Laughter In The Rain,” headed back to the studio after a decade-long hiatus to create this gorgeous collection of reflective pop ballads, do-wop delights and soaring love songs. Calling on six decades of influences, emotions and creative touchstones, Sedaka, now 71, shows he’s still got the ageless musical mojo that once helped fuel the careers of Patsy Cline, Elvis Presley, Tom Jones, Cher and dozens of other singing stars.
—Neil Pond, American Profile
Amelia
DVD ($29.99)
Hillary Swank stars in this high-flying biopic of the groundbreaking female aviator Amelia Earhart. Even knowing how it ends---with an ill-fated flight into the history books---doesn’t diminish the drama of how she earned her wings, her long marriage to a supportive publishing mogul (Richard Gere) or her alleged affair with another pilot (a dashing Ewan McGregor). Extras include a making-of doc plus Movietone News Reels of the real Earhart and her record-setting achievements.
—Neil Pond, American Profile
Vampire Forensics
By Mark Jenkins
Hardcover, 303 pages ($25)
Vampires are hot again on TV and movies, but they’ve been around virtually forever. In this entertaining, engrossing and enlightening look at the history, folklore, superstition and science behind the enduring concept of immortal creatures that have to constantly refuel with human blood, the former chief archive historian of the National Geographic Society creatively combs through the lore and the legend.
—Neil Pond, American Profile
Alice in Wonderland
DVD ($19.98)
Facing bankruptcy in 1933, Paramount Pictures herded most of its star stable---including Cary Grant, Clark Gable, W.C. Fields and Richard Arlen---into this live-action remake of the Lewis Carroll fantasy masterpiece. But it fizzled at the box office because almost none of the cast was recognizable behind the heavy makeup and crazy costumes. Now available for the first time on DVD, it’s a closet classic certainly worth checking out to see this ambitious, strange and now almost forgotten all-star misfire.
—Neil Pond, American Profile
- Entertainment
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Entertainment Picks (July 30, 2010)
Extraordinary Measures,
Doo Wop,
Jesse James’ Hidden Treasure
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Entertainment Picks (July 23, 2010)
The Karate Kid/The Karate Kid II Collector’s Edition,
The Devil Can Ride,
Alice in Wonderland
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Entertainment Picks (July 16, 2010)
Rock Shrines,
Clint Eastwood Sings Cowboy Favorites,
The Leaders We Deserved (And A Few We Didn’t)
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Entertainment Picks (July 9, 2010)
Steven Seagal Lawman: The Complete Season One,
I’ll Wait in the Car,
Twistable, Turnable Man: A Tribute to the Songs of Shel Silverstein
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GAMETIME: Split/Second
As we all know, racing involves drivers competing against each other at breakneck speeds in usually fragile cars. One wrong move can send one of these cars spiraling out of control and seriously ruin somebody’s day. If that doesn’t sound dangerous enough, the team behind the new racing game Split/Second decided to make your greatest enemy the tracks themselves. The premise behind Split/Second is simple: the titular show decides to rig racetracks with explosives and traps. The drivers can activate these tracks periodically throughout the races, to either destroy the other racers or alter the course. And of course, all of this resulting chaos is filmed and put onto the television. Big booms equal big ratings, right? It’s here that Split/Second runs into its biggest and most disappointing flaw: the only time you’re reminded that you’re racing for a show is the occasional announcer between episodes in the career mode. While this doesn’t hurt the gameplay in any real way, the game could’ve really benefited from announcers commenting on the chaotic races. It was a missed opportunity to not provide any witty or humorous voice-overs.
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Entertainment Picks (July 2, 2010)
The Book of Potentially Catastrophic Science,
The A-Team: The Complete Series,
Letter to Heaven: Songs of Faith and Inspiration
Dolly Parton -
Entertainment Picks (June 25, 2010)
Pop Memories of the ’60s,
Edge of Darkness,
Under the Neon Sky
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Entertainment Picks (June 18, 2010)
Valentine’s Day,
Curtains: Adventures of an Undertaker-In-Training,
The Sundance Kid,
NOW That’s What I Call the USA: The Patriotic Country Collection
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GAMETIME: Final Fantasy XIII
The Final Fantasy series has always been known for its stellar production values, brilliant storytelling and interestingly varied cast of characters. I’m talking about the “main” Final Fantasy series, the ones with the roman numerals, not the vast number of spin-off series that these games have started. Square Enix’s amazing work has earned them a large number of devoted fans, fans who eagerly look forward to the next title in the series; such as the recently-released Final Fantasy XIII. Square Enix has outdone itself with this latest title, which is easily apparent as soon as you boot up the game and the intro video gushes out of your TV screen. They make full use of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3’s graphic power to bring you a beautiful game, just like they used to with the PlayStation 2. If you aren’t playing this on a high-definition television, you’re definitely missing out on one of the best-looking games out there.
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Entertainment Picks (June 11, 2010)
Record Store Days,
Saving Private Ryan,
Life
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Entertainment Picks (July 30, 2010)
