Good Movies Out on DVD

Thanks to the kind, Christmas-time generosity of my sister, I am a happy NetFlix Movie Viewer! I don't watch network television and haven't for years, but I do enjoy a movie every day. I like all kinds of movies, documentaries and TV series'.

I started out adding a new movie review to this HUB every few days, but it has become quickly apparent that this will cause this HUB to be too lengthy and difficult to navigate, so I am moving some away to their own locations and adding links. I will leave some of the favorites here and continue to add a few and move a few from time to time.

Be sure to check all the links for new reviews!

There are currently SIX movie and series reviews on this page.

Be sure to scroll all the way down to see them all and to rate and/or share this HUB!

If there is a movie or series you would like to see reviewed, be sure to drop me a line, leave a note in the general comments box immediately below, or "Ask a question!" I am highly likely to have seen it!

I hope we will all enjoy lively discussion of what's great, and what's not so great, on DVD!

(All reviews on this page were written by and are the intellectual property of Suzanne Bennett.)

Set on a windswept, mysterious Massachusetts island in 1954, this two-plus hour psychological thriller starring Leonardo di Caprio as Teddy Daniels, a US Marshall/WWII veteran investigating the disappearance of a mental patient from spooky Shutter Island (a hospital for the criminally insane) is just full of twists and turns. This film is a classic moody suspense thriller. The sets are dark and foreboding, the island wild and mysterious, the music ominous and suspenseful (and sometimes way too loud!)

Without spoiling the plot, I will say that we never know from start to finish exactly who is who, or what the real situation is at Shutter Island and we are left with some doubts at the end. It's a fun ride if you don't mind some rather graphic violence and disturbing scenes. The cast is fantastic. Leonardo di Caprio is edgy and intense as the suspicious and disturbed Teddy Daniels. Mark Ruffalo is rumpled and likeable as his partner. Ben Kingsley is, as always, smooth, charming and impressive.

Martin Scorcese's direction is reminiscent of some of Hitchcock's more rattling offerings, and the movie is well-crafted. The plot twists kept me pleasantly puzzled throughout the movie, and when the final twist revealed all (or perhaps not) I was eager to watch again to see if I could spot any missed clues. Unlike some movies of this sort, in which reality is veiled until the end, (e.g. The Sixth Sense ) it is enjoyable to watch Shutter Island more than once. The puzzle is not spoiled. Even the second time around, I was left with questions and a rather satisfying sense of mystery.

If you are like me, the second time you watch, you will pay close attention to lighting and sets, and you will notice that light is used to great effect when key knowledge is revealed. Additionally, we learn more about the inner workings of Teddy Daniels as he explores deep into the dark, buried recesses of the most dangerous wards of the hospital or climbs a jagged cliff to find secrets hidden in a secret cave lit only by fire. Indeed, the ultimate truth is not revealed until he breaks into the heavily guarded lighthouse and climbs floor after floor, into and out of light, opening doors onto one empty, strangely shaped room after another, finally arriving at the top to unveil an amazing secret. It is this kind of layered crafting that makes it possible and enjoyable to watch Shutter Island multiple times. There is something new to be found in each viewing.

If you enjoy psychological thrillers and clever mysteries, you will enjoy Shutter Island . I liked it and found it thought provoking. I am likely to watch it again, but it is not one that I will add to my own collection as something I will long to see from time-to-time.

I give it 4 Stars.

I had begun reading and loving the book series, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, when I discovered that there was a miniseries. I ordered it quickly and was incredibly pleased with it from the moment I began viewing. Even with characters introduced who are not in the books, the stories remain faithful to the spirit and feel of these delightful and cozy light mysteries. In these stories, the mystery is really not ever much of a mystery. Instead, the focus is on relationship, love of home and country (beautiful Botswana) and the process of transitioning from a traditional, old fashioned society to a modern society.

Charming and talented Jill Scott plays Precious Ramotswe, a thirty-something Batswana woman of "traditional build" who decides to open her own detective agency with the proceeds from the sale of some of her inheritance of her father's cattle. Ms. Scott is perfectly cast as Mma Ramotswe, as are all of the other actors in the cast.

It is very rare to read a series of books and then see the movie or television adaptation and feel that the characters are exactly as you imagined them, but that is the case with this series. Having seen the entire series, I continue to read the books and happily cast all of the characters in my minds' eye, just as they are in the series. Each and every one of them is perfectly chosen.

The animations at the beginning and end of each show are charming and fun. The music is catchy and authentic. Glimpses into the culture and scenery of Botswana are fascinating. Be sure to watch the extras with the books’ author, Alexander McCall Smith as well as interviews with the actors and director. They are interesting and give a more in-depth view of the captivating landscape of Botswana and the experience of creating this charming series.

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series is just very enjoyable. Both male and female reviewers rate it very highly. You will find interesting stories, well-developed, complex and likeable characters, and viewing that is appropriate for the whole family. Although young children will probably not find the stories interesting, there is surely nothing offensive or inappropriate about them.

I highly recommend doing as I did. Read the books, and watch the series simultaneously. It is a rich and full experience.

I give The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (both books and series) a sparkling 5 Stars!

This movie, directed by Steven Spielberg, features Christian Bale in his first movie role. He was eleven-years-old when he starred in this movie treatment of the true story of author James Ballard's years spent in a Japanese prisoner of war camp during WWII. In the course of the movie, his character is transformed from a sheltered nine-year-old to a toughened and traumatized thirteen-year-old. Christian Bale's performance was stunning.

For some strange reason, this movie was not popular when it was made. I will never be able to understand that because it is one of my absolute favorites. I have my own copy and have watched it many times. It is the movie that prompted me to read everything James Ballard ever wrote and to follow Christian Bale's career as proudly as if he were my own son.

The movie is beautiful, the cinematography is gorgeous, the music is spectacular, and the acting and directing could not have been better. One of the most striking scenes comes toward the end of the movie when the Americans fly over the POW camp. Jamie (now called Jim) who has always been fascinated with airplanes, climbs to the top of a tower. A bomber comes down and flies right past him. The pilot waves.

This scene is striking for a number of reasons. First, Christian Bale acted it beautifully against a blue screen. Second, this event, which happened to James Ballard in real life, is very much like the real life childhood experience of Dieter Dengler, whom Christian Bale would later play in Rescue Dawn. I can only imagine that, when Christian Bale told this story in his role as Dieter Dengler, he must have drawn upon his experience in Empire of the Sun .

This is truly one of the best films of all time. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It definitely deserves 5 stars in my book!

This is not the very popular movie of just a few years ago. This movie, directed by David Cronenberg and starring James Spader, Holly Hunter, and Rosanna Arquette, is a very strange movie and not an especially good one. I include it here because it is based on one of James Ballard's other novels. Before watching this movie, it is important to understand that James Ballard was "Jamie" of Empire of the Sun, and he really was snatched from his comfortable and sheltered home at the age of 9 and thrust into an extremely arduous and cruel situation for the next 4 years. He emerged quite toughened and went on to write many fascinating and bizarre novels. All of his novels are essentially about people who are going along minding their own business in rather cushy and protected settings, when suddenly, something bizarre happens and their world is turned upside down.

To truly appreciate Crash, I think it is necessary to imagine that the James Ballard in this movie is Jamie of Empire of the Sun. When looked at in this light, the actions of the main character make a lot more sense. In Crash, a television director who is living a comfortable and rather dull life is involved in a terrible car crash. The crash throws him together (figuratively) with Dr. Helen Remington, played by Holly Hunter. The two become sexually involved and begin to find excitement in the violence of car wrecks. They soon find that there is an entire seamy underworld of people who share their fetish. It is a study in the ways in which the human mind can perversely transform traumatic, negative events and make them seem something they are not - much as a young boy might romanticize spending his formative years as a prisoner of war.

I don't particularly recommend this movie; however, if you do find yourself exploring JG Ballard's novels after watching Empire of the Sun, you may become curious (as I did) to see this film.

I would give this movie 2 Stars; however, if I had not seen Empire of the Sun and read JG Ballard's works extensively, I would probably give it 1 Star!

In this movie, Christian Bale plays real-life POW, Dieter Dengler who was a German-American pilot during the Vietnam war. Dengler had fallen in love with flying and airplanes when, as a boy in Germany during WWII, he watched bombers flying over his small village. As he looked through his attic window, one flew right down in front of him. The pilot looked at him and waved, and from that moment, he knew he had to fly. Dengler immigrated to America at 18 and began a long journey that would take him finally into the Navy where he would fly a fighter plane. Unfortunately, his flying career would only last a few hours. He was shot down two hours into his first mission in 1966 and was captured by enemy forces. He was held in a torture camp until he was able to effect a daring escape.

This is a fantastic, gritty war movie. Christian Bale is fabulous as always, losing weight down to a dangerous level, eating real meal worms, being dragged by an ox, chomped on by real leaches, and hung upside down with an ant hive tied to his face while acting circles around any actor on screen today to portray a very interesting and complex character. The story is compelling, entertaining, and inspiring. As always, Werner Herzog does everything he can to create a very realistic cinematic experience.

I am happy to give this movie 5 stars! :)

Before directing Rescue Dawn, Werner Herzog met and befriended the real Dieter Dengler. Through interviews and what must have been a rather uncomfortable trip back to Vietnam for Mr. Dengler, we hear the whole story of Dieter Dengler's amazing experience. Honestly, no one but Werner Herzog would think it would be a good idea to take a POW back to the site of his imprisonment and run him through the jungle in chains! Nonetheless, Dieter Dengler was a heck of a sport and seemed to take this treatment in stride!

Usually, if there is a movie and a documentary of an event, I like to watch the documentary first and then watch the movie; however, I did not do that this time, and I recommend that you see the movie first and then the documentary. It provides a kind of continuity. Since Herzog directed both the movie and the documentary, and Christian Bale does, indeed, look quite a bit like young Dieter Dengler and captures his enthusiastic, optimistic spirit perfectly, I came away from the documentary feeling as if I had witnessed the actual events via the movie and then gotten a more in-depth explanation from Mr. Dengler years after the fact.

Little Dieter Needs to Fly definitely deserves 5 Stars in my book! :)

I hope so!

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