Pawn Stars: Volume 5 - DVD Review

***SYNOPSIS***


There is no better example of today’s pawnbrokers than the Harrison family’s Gold and Silver Pawn shop on the outskirts of Las Vegas — the modern day Mecca for people in need of quick cash. Three generations of Harrison men clash with friendly camaraderie over items from classic cars to samurai swords. Here, everything has a history, and everything has a price. And you never know what’s going to walk through the door. PAWN STARS: VOLUME 5 features 16 episodes never-before-released on DVD including the usual assortment of oddities for the Harrisons to consider like a 31-ton car-crushing Robosaurus, a mandolin that could be worth over $100,000 and an authentic Batmobile.


* DISC ONE - Darth Pawn / Put Up Your Dukes / Pawn Illustrated / Striking a Chord / Harrison For President / Wise Guys / Robosaurus / Ah, Shoot!

* DISC TWO - Going Postal / Chummobile / Evel Genius / Pablo Pawncasso / Sub for Sale / Missile Attack / Not on My Watch / Take A Seat





***MOVIE REVIEW***


Another volume of Pawn Stars arrives with another fun season despite the formula getting a little too predictable. Case in pint, whenever someone brings something historical or an autograph that Rick or Corey is going to say "let me call a buddy of mine". Still the show is a wealth of knowledge for many interesting items and the episodes move at a fast clip. 8.5/10


***VIDEO QUALITY***


Pawn Stars arrives on DVD with a 480p transfer in the original aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The show is filmed in HD and the downgrade to standard definition doesn't suffer any glaring problems. Colors were warm and friendly. Black levels were strong and contrast was just right. There were instances of noise in the image but nothing to wash over the fine details of the interesting items that are brought into the shop. 7.5/10



***AUDIO QUALITY***

Audio is provided by a Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 track. Dialogue is crisp and clean. The music that accompanies some scenes has a pleasant melody to it. This presentation perfectly suits the type of show this is. 7/10

Essential Games of the Chicago Cubs - DVD Review

***SYNOPSIS***

The dynamic between Wrigley Field, the home team Chicago Cubs, and their devoted passionate fan exceeds any normal measurements. A connection of team, place, and supporters that has stirred emotions across more than five generations and continues today.

This extraordinary collection of Cubs baseball games showcases four game telecasts that feature legendary lineups spanning five decades. The first game salutes a star-studded lineup featuring four Hall of Famers, and managed by one too (Ernie Banks, Ron Santo, Billy Williams, Ferguson Jenkins, Leo Durocher)!

The second game is stunning display of immense talent, as Ryne Sanberg led a shocking defeat of the St. Louis Cardinals. Jumping ahead to 1998 the one-game NL Wild Card tiebreaker capped a remarkable summer at Wrigley as Steve Trachsel and the Cubs stifled the San Francisco Giants. Our closing game features a Kerry Wood clinching victory to propel the Lou Piniella-led Cubs to another celebration.

100% classic Cubs. 100% Wrigley Field baseball.

FOUR ESSENTIAL CUBS GAMES NOW AVAILABLE ON DVD!

HALL OF FAME SHOWCASE vs. PHI, July 12, 1969: Hall of Famers Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Ron Santo, and Ferguson Jenkins headline a win over Philadelphia.

SANDBERG’S COMEBACK SHOCKER vs. STL, June 23, 1984: Ryne Sandberg’s monster game shocks Cardinals.

NL WILD CARD TIEBREAKER vs. SF, September 28, 1998: Cubs prevail over the San Francisco Giants in a one-game, winner-take-all Wild Card tiebreaker.

NL CENTRAL DIVISION CLINCHER vs. STL, September 20, 2008: Wrigley Field erupts as Cubs clinch a spot in the postseason for the second consecutive season.





***VIDEO QUALITY***

Essential Games of the Chicago Cubs arrives on DVD with a 480p transfer in the original aspect ratios of 1.33:1 and 1.78:1 The first three games are okay but suffer from some softness form time to time. Colors though were quite nice for the earlier games with only the 1969 game coming across a bit muted and dull. The last two game benefited from being filmed with modern tech and color saturation was even netter , Wrigley Field looks gorgeous. Contrast was just right. Fine detail was solid with players jerseys easily readable and crowds weren't blurred into the background. 8/10



***AUDIO QUALITY***

Audio is provided by a Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 track. A consistently crisp and clean track. The commentary from the announcers was great. 7/10

Exclusive First Look Photos - Halloween 4 & Halloween 5 Blu-ray Disc

Hey all. Just got in two highly anticipated Blu-ray discs for Horror and Michael Myers fans. Below are Exclusive First Look Photos of the upcoming Anchor Bay Home Entertainment releases Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers. Both titles are set to release on August 21,2012. Will have my review up for both films within the next day or so.

Exclusive First Look Photos - The Walking Dead: The Complete Second Season Blu-ray Disc

Here are some Exclusive first look pics of the upcoming The Walking Dead: The Complete Second Season set to release August 28,2012 as a 4-Disc Blu-ray set. Will have my review up within the next couple days.

Baseball's Greatest Games: Johann Santana's No Hitter - DVD Review

***SYNOPSIS***

This addition to the successful Baseball s Greatest Games series, features Johan Santana s memorable no-hitter and arrives just as the baseball season gets into full swing. It only took 8,020 games, but the Mets finally have a no-hitter! On 6/01/12 Johan Santana became the first player in Mets franchise history to ever accomplish this remarkable feat. Relive every moment of this instant classic on DVD.




***VIDEO QUALITY***

2011 World Series arrives on DVD with a 480p transfer in the original aspect ratio of 1.78:1. This is a pleasing standard def downgrade of the HD shot game. Color saturation was lush without and bleeding. Details on player uniforms was good. No major signs of edge enhancement or compression were noticed at all. 8/10



***AUDIO QUALITY***

Audio is provided by a Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 track. I noticed nice stereo separation that brings you into the game. The broadcast commentary is crisp and clean and the announcers were students of the game and pleasing to listen to.8/10

Giving away 3 copies of Girls Gone Dead (Unrated and Exposed Edition) DVD

Hello everyone. Our friends at eOne has offered us the chance to run a contest for 3 lucky individuals to win a DVD copy of Girls Gone Dead (Unrated and Exposed Edition).



To enter please send a personal message with the following Contact info: Name, Mailing Address, E-mail.

Contest will run from August 5,2012 to August 14,2012. After that 3 random names will be drawn from the replies and you will be notified if you won.

Best of luck to you all.

Forever Marilyn Collection - Blu-ray Disc Review

***SYNOPSIS***
Marilyn Monroe is an iconic sex symbol whose name still resonates today (who can forget when her skirt is blown up in 'The Seven Year Itch'). She passed away too young but her legacy lives on thanks to Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment release of the Forever Marilyn Blu-ray collection. We see her vulnerability, her cutie playfulness, and her underrated comedic chops. For me her best role was in the classic Some Like It Hot.

The packaging of the set is okay but would have preferred separate Blu-ray cases in a sturdy outer slip box. Instead we get a slim digipack style set with a very soft outer cardboard sleeve. The seven discs are housed in slots of either Book 1 or Book 2. It all works alright and do save space but they could have done a lot more for this major release.




***VIDEO QUALITY*** 
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes - Presented in the original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. Wow , the colors on display are stunning. The most striking color is the bold reds and pinks. Black levels were absolutely perfect. Fine detail and sharpness was consistently strong. 9/10

How To Marry A Millionaire - Presented in the original 2.55:1 aspect ratio. An overall pleasing presentation that starts a bit flat but comes around by the end. Color saturation is just right throughout with good skin tones. Black levels were consistently strong. 8/10

River of No Return - Presented in the original 2.55:1 aspect ratio. This is a really nice improvement over the DVD version. Colors are more saturated and detail has taken a big step up. Black levels were a little below average compared rest of the set. Overall a good upgrade though 7.5/10

There's No Business Like Show Business - Presented in the original 2.55:1 aspect ratio. Color saturation is just gorgeous, once again if you notice a pattern here these older films just have such a lovely look that you don't get in modern digitally shot movies. Black levels were rock solid but I didn't notice some instances of crushed blacks. 8.5/10

The Seven Year Itch - Presented in the original 2.55:1 aspect ratio. Colors are somewhat subdued on this one but not bland. There are some specks of bold colors in the dream sequences. Black levels were good. Fine detail wavers from time to time but this is another nice upgrade. 8/10

Some Like It Hot - Presented in the original 1.66:1 aspect ratio. This is the exact same disc that was released a while back and it is still a stunning presentation of this B&W classic. Black levels are consistent if not always inky. Contrast was close to perfect and highlights the subtle shades of white and grey. Sharpness was superb. 9/10

The Misfits - Presented in the original 1.66:1 aspect ratio. This is a solid performer but there were problems with softness in closeups. . Grayscale performance was strong with deep blacks and well managed contrast. 7.5/10


***AUDIO QUALITY*** 
Audio is provided by a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track for six of the films were pleasing listens. The most beneficial upgrade is the music cues and scores. LFE isn't deep by any means. Surrounds exhibited some nice bleeding of the music to the rears. Dialogue was crisp and clean throughout. No pops or hisses.

The Misfits only has a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. Dialogue is the best part of this track, it was clean and intelligible throughout. Bass was barely there and the musical score doesn't reach the highs that it should have.


***SPECIAL FEATURES*** 
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
* Movietone News: "Marilyn and Jane in Cement" (SD, 50sec)

* Theatrical Trailer (SD, 2min32sec)


How To Marry A Millionaire
* Movietone News: "How To Marry A Millionaire" Cinemascope (SD, 1min19sec)

* Trailer

River of No Return
* Theatrical Trailer (SD, 2min54sec)


There's No Business Like Show Business
* Trailers


The Seven Year Itch
* Commentary by Author Kevin Lally

* Isolated Score Track DTS-HD MA 5.1

* The Hays Code: Picture-in-Picture with Sexual Innuendo Meter

* Marilyn Monroe Interactive Timeline (1080p)

* Monroe and Wilder: An Intersection of Genius (1080p, 25min57sec)

* Fox Movie Channel Presents Fox Legacy with Tom Rothman (SD, 17min23sec)

* Deleted Scenes (SD, 3min32)

* Hollywood Backstories: The Seven Year Itch (SD, 24min25sec)

* Publicity (SD, 5min20sec)

* Still Galleries (1080p)


Some Like It Hot
* Audio Commentary

* The Making of Some Like It Hot (SD, 25min45sec)

* The Legacy of Some Like It Hot (SD, 20min22sec)

* "Nostalgic Look Back" Documentary (SD, 31min13sec)

* Memories of the Sweet Sues Featurette (SD, 12min03sec)

* Virtual Hall of Memories (SD, 21min04sec)

* Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 2min20sec)


The Misfits
* Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 3min45sec)