Saturday, November 19, 2011

Appaloosa

  • In Marshal Virgil Cole and deputy Everett Hitchs line of work, you shoot quick, you shoot clean, and you reload straightaway. No remorse. No looking back. No feelings. Feelings get you killed. Paired as rivals in A History of Violence, Ed Harris (who also directs, produces and co-scripts) and Viggo Mortensen stand together as longtime friends and for-hire peacekeepers Cole and Hitch in this charac
In Marshal Virgil Cole and deputy Everett Hitchs line of work, you shoot quick, you shoot clean, and you reload straightaway. No remorse. No looking back. No feelings. Feelings get you killed. Paired as rivals in A History of Violence, Ed Harris (who also directs, produces and co-scripts) and Viggo Mortensen stand together as longtime friends and for-hire peacekeepers Cole and Hitch in this character-driven, bullet-hard Western based on Robert B. Parkers novel. Blood will spill in the town called Ap! paloosa.The Western has been an endangered species, on and off, for something like 40 years now. Welcome to Appaloosa, Ed Harris's film of the Robert B. Parker novel--first because it exists at all, but even more because Harris as star, director, and co-screenwriter (with Robert Knott) has managed to bring it to the screen with no hint of fuss or strain, as if the making of no-nonsense, copiously pleasurable Westerns were still something Hollywood did with regularity. Harris plays Virgil Cole, one of those ace gunfighter-lawmen whose name need only be mentioned to make a saloon go still. Cole and his shotgun-toting partner Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen) accept a commission to enforce law and order in the New Mexico town of Appaloosa. That basically means protect it from rapacious rancher Randall Bragg (Jeremy Irons, looking right at home on the range), who murdered the previous town marshal like swatting a fly. Life becomes complicated when, about the time Bragg h! as been jailed to await trial, a fancy-dressing piano player c! alling h erself Mrs. French (Renée Zellweger) steps down off the train. Cole commences to have feelings, and as he ruefully reminds Hitch, "Feelin's can get ya killed."

In his second directorial effort (following the 2000 biopic Pollock), Harris takes his cue from novelist Parker's often deadpan-comic touch, allowing action and character to accumulate in accordance with an overall eccentric rhythm. (The film's main disappointment is that it would benefit from more running time to allow things to stew a bit longer, especially in the second half.) The character work is choice, from the moment Tom Bower, James Gammon, and Timothy Spall step into view as Appaloosa's civic leaders; the director's father Bob Harris contributes a cameo as a mellifluous-tongued circuit judge, and an age-thickened Lance Henriksen turns up midfilm as gunman Ring Shelton, trailing affability and menace. In collaboration with Dances With Wolves cameraman Dean Semler, Harris sets up shots an! d scenes in such a way that we often see into and out of Appaloosa's various buildings simultaneously, to excellent dramatic and atmospheric effect, and there's a thrillingly vertical dynamics to a scene involving a train at an isolated water stop. The action is lethal when it needs to be, but never dwelt upon. "That was over quick," Hitch observes after one gun battle. Cole's response says it all: "Everybody could shoot." --Richard T. Jameson


With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa

  • ISBN13: 9780891419068
  • Condition: New
  • Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
The climactic novel in Lara Adrian's New York Times bestselling Midnight Breed series--and her hardcover debut--Darker After Midnight invites readers to enter a thrillingly sensual world where danger meets desire. [Siren Menage Everlasting ManLove: Erotic Alternative Paranormal Menage a Trois Romance, M/M/M, vampires, werewolves, shape-shifters, public exhibition, sex toys] It's been eight years since Boston and Flynn loved and parted, but the pain of Flynn's betrayal still has the power to bring Boston to his knees. Flynn doesn't know why Boston pushed him away and disappeared, but he aims to find out. When he realizes they have a second mate, he couldn't be happier. Too bad Bost! on is running scared from Malakai as well. Malakai was left alone and brokenhearted because Boston refused to accept their mating. When fate offers a second chance, he seizes it with both hands. He's not willing to come between Flynn and Boston, but he hopes the two shifters have room in their hearts for him as well. When a coven leader petitions for a mating contract with Malakai, the only thing that can save him is a claiming bite from his mates. But first, they'll have to accept himâ€"fangs and all. ** A Siren Erotic Romance
[Siren Menage Everlasting ManLove: Erotic Alternative Paranormal Menage a Trois Romance, M/M/M, vampires, werewolves, shape-shifters, public exhibition, sex toys] It's been eight years since Boston and Flynn loved and parted, but the pain of Flynn's betrayal still has the power to bring Boston to his knees. Flynn doesn't know why Boston pushed him away and disappeared, but he aims to find out. When he realizes they have a second mate, he couldn'! t be happier. Too bad Boston is running scared from Malakai as! well. M alakai was left alone and brokenhearted because Boston refused to accept their mating. When fate offers a second chance, he seizes it with both hands. He's not willing to come between Flynn and Boston, but he hopes the two shifters have room in their hearts for him as well. When a coven leader petitions for a mating contract with Malakai, the only thing that can save him is a claiming bite from his mates. But first, they'll have to accept himâ€"fangs and all. ** A Siren Erotic Romance
In The Wall Street Journal, Victor Davis Hanson named With the Old Breed one of the top five books on epic twentieth-century battles. Studs Terkel interviewed the author for his definitive oral history, The Good War. Now E. B. Sledge̢۪s acclaimed first-person account of fighting at Peleliu and Okinawa returns to thrill, edify, and inspire a new generation.

An Alabama boy steeped in American history and enamored of such heroes as George Washington and Daniel Boone! , Eugene B. Sledge became part of the war’s famous 1st Marine Divisionâ€"3d Battalion, 5th Marines. Even after intense training, he was shocked to be thrown into the battle of Peleliu, where “the world was a nightmare of flashes, explosions, and snapping bullets.” By the time Sledge hit the hell of Okinawa, he was a combat vet, still filled with fear but no longer with panic.

Based on notes Sledge secretly kept in a copy of the New Testament, With the Old Breed captures with utter simplicity and searing honesty the experience of a soldier in the fierce Pacific Theater. Here is what saved, threatened, and changed his life. Here, too, is the story of how he learned to hate and killâ€"and came to loveâ€"his fellow man.

Pomegranate Frank Lloyd Wright/City By The Sea Standard Boxed Note Card Set (Pack of 2)

  • 20 note cards and envelopes per box
Drama. When a respected New York homicide detective (Robert De Niro) discovers the prime suspect in a murder case is his estranged son (James Franco), he is forced to return home to the decaying boardwalks of Long Beach, Long Island to confront the darkness of his past. During the course of the investigation, he realizes that his failures as a father - and his unresolved anguish about the painful estrangement - have deeply influenced his son's life, and he must put his own life on the line in order to do right by both his family and his profession. A welcome throwback to the cop dramas of the '70s, City by the Sea is an average film improved by its cast. Robert De Niro stars as veteran New Jersey detective Vincent LaMarca, lamenting the once glorious Asbury Park boardwalk, now dilapidated from the decay of changing times. A good cop but a regrettable! father, LaMarca must confront past mistakes and repressed memories when his estranged son (James Franco) becomes the prime suspect in the killing of LaMarca's partner (George Dzundza). There's a nagging inevitability to Ken Hixon's otherwise intelligent screenplay, but De Niro and Frances McDormand--as LaMarca's compassionate neighbor and part-time girlfriend--turn this simmering drama into something deeper than it is. McDormand's role would be thin without the depth and humanity she brings to it, and both De Niro and Franco mine gold from their troubling father-son legacy. Based on a true story, City by the Sea has that kernel of authenticity that good actors thrive on. --Jeff ShannonDrama. When a respected New York homicide detective (Robert De Niro) discovers the prime suspect in a murder case is his estranged son (James Franco), he is forced to return home to the decaying boardwalks of Long Beach, Long Island to confront the darkness of his past. During t! he course of the investigation, he realizes that his failures ! as a fat her - and his unresolved anguish about the painful estrangement - have deeply influenced his son's life, and he must put his own life on the line in order to do right by both his family and his profession. A welcome throwback to the cop dramas of the '70s, City by the Sea is an average film improved by its cast. Robert De Niro stars as veteran New Jersey detective Vincent LaMarca, lamenting the once glorious Asbury Park boardwalk, now dilapidated from the decay of changing times. A good cop but a regrettable father, LaMarca must confront past mistakes and repressed memories when his estranged son (James Franco) becomes the prime suspect in the killing of LaMarca's partner (George Dzundza). There's a nagging inevitability to Ken Hixon's otherwise intelligent screenplay, but De Niro and Frances McDormand--as LaMarca's compassionate neighbor and part-time girlfriend--turn this simmering drama into something deeper than it is. McDormand's role would be thin without the de! pth and humanity she brings to it, and both De Niro and Franco mine gold from their troubling father-son legacy. Based on a true story, City by the Sea has that kernel of authenticity that good actors thrive on. --Jeff ShannonDrama. When a respected New York homicide detective (Robert De Niro) discovers the prime suspect in a murder case is his estranged son (James Franco), he is forced to return home to the decaying boardwalks of Long Beach, Long Island to confront the darkness of his past. During the course of the investigation, he realizes that his failures as a father - and his unresolved anguish about the painful estrangement - have deeply influenced his son's life, and he must put his own life on the line in order to do right by both his family and his profession. A welcome throwback to the cop dramas of the '70s, City by the Sea is an average film improved by its cast. Robert De Niro stars as veteran New Jersey detective Vincent LaMarca, lamentin! g the once glorious Asbury Park boardwalk, now dilapidated fro! m the de cay of changing times. A good cop but a regrettable father, LaMarca must confront past mistakes and repressed memories when his estranged son (James Franco) becomes the prime suspect in the killing of LaMarca's partner (George Dzundza). There's a nagging inevitability to Ken Hixon's otherwise intelligent screenplay, but De Niro and Frances McDormand--as LaMarca's compassionate neighbor and part-time girlfriend--turn this simmering drama into something deeper than it is. McDormand's role would be thin without the depth and humanity she brings to it, and both De Niro and Franco mine gold from their troubling father-son legacy. Based on a true story, City by the Sea has that kernel of authenticity that good actors thrive on. --Jeff ShannonIt's said that the sins of the father are visited upon the son, a theme that permeates this based-on-a-true-story cop film with a generational twist. Given the film's troubling emotional core and urban landscape, composer John Mu! rphy scores it with remarkably eclectic panache. Starting with a somber, string-driven theme that subtly evokes the story's undercurrents of Greek tragedy, Murphy quickly draws upon everything from ska rhythms, Chopin piano pieces, house music, and even East Asian flourishes to bring its various emotional and cultural conflicts into focus. It's a score whose range and dynamic sense alone are impressive, but also one that never forgets where its heart lies. Murphy occasionally lapses into predictable action cues, but it's his evocative side excursions into the pop vernacular that balance the autumnal orchestral themes and impart the entire score with compelling new dimensions. It's a great example of how music can be more than merely the sum of its parts. --Jerry McCulley In this richly illustrated celebration of the nation's oldest seaside resort, Emil R. Salvini leads the reader through Cape May's two hundred tumultuous years, which have forever earned it the monike! r "Queen of the Seaside Resorts."

During its beginning! as a co astal getaway not for New Jerseyans but for Philadelphians, middle-class families would endure the two-day journey to the site then known as Cape Island. With the advent of the steamboat and the railroad, the Cape became the premier destination for vacationers from surrounding areas.

In the 1880s, however, traffic slowed and the city entered a period of decline. Subsequent attempts at modernization failed, which actually saved the quaint wooden village that is visited by so many today.

Eventually, residents realized that the future of the Cape lay in the past. Preservation advocates succeeded in reviving interest in the resort, resulting in Cape May being designated a National Historic Landmark in 1976.

Readers of The Summer City by the Sea will be tempted to take the last exit off the Garden State Parkway. While fashionable resorts come and go, Cape May endures, a tribute to its tenacity and tradition.Using basic draftsman's tools--square, triangle! s, compass--Frank Lloyd Wright created dazzling, highly abstract works of art applied to windows, lamps, rugs, mosaics, and furniture. Like his mentor, Louis Sullivan, Wright believed in ornamentation that was integral to a building's design (as opposed to applied decoration). His work was often so far ahead of its time that it failed to win the respect it deserved from the contemporary mainstream. In hindsight, Wright's remarkable architectural and interior details form a logical, natural step on the path to purely abstract graphic designs, such as those adapted for these notecards. Wright's integral ornamentation combines a draftsman's technical mastery with the fluid imagination of a musician to form dazzling variations on elegantly simple themes. This notecard set celebrates Frank Lloyd Wright's 1956 mural design, City by the Sea, for the Music Pavilion at Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Arizona.

Good Luck Chuck (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

  • Actors: Dane Cook, Jessica Alba, Dan Fogler, Connor Price, Troy Gentile.
  • Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC.
  • Language: English. Subtitles: English, Spanish.
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only).
  • Not Rated. Run Time: 96 minutes.
Studio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 09/09/2008 Run time: 101 minutes Rating: UrIn a perfect world, Good Luck Chuck would've captured the humor of Superbad and the raunch of the American Pie films. But what we're left with, instead, is a raunchy film with an anemic storyline. Cursed as a child with a hex that prevents him from finding true love, Charlie "Chuck" Logan (Dane Cook) finds that the women he dates find the men of their dreams immediately after they've dumped him. For a guy who enjoys dating beautiful women, it doesn't seem like such a horrible thing. ! But then he meets and falls for beautiful and klutzy Cam Wexler (Jessica Alba). Charlie wants to have a meaningful relationship with her, but how can he make her fall in love with him without losing her to some unknown man waiting to sweep her off her feet? Good Luck Chuck isn't an original movie; Cook and Alba make for an attractive couple that exudes warm chemistry. And Alba proves that while she may be famous for her body, she's quite adept at physical comedy. Dan Fogler doesn't fare as well. He has the thankless role of playing Charlie's obnoxious best friend Stu, a borderline perv plastic surgeon who proudly displays a set of Pamela Anderson's breast implants in his office (which, coincidentally enough, is located right next door to Charlie's). The dialogue is crass and the direction is all over the place. Everything is played for laughs, but little actually is very funny in this comedy. This movie actually could've used a bit more good luck. And lots more wit.! --Jae-Ha Kim

ATL (Full Screen Edition)

  • Sometimes 17-year-old Rashad and his pals hang out at the Waffle House, trying to figure out what's next after they graduate. But on Sunday nights, they know what's coming. They'll be at the Cascade roller rink: laying down moves, chillin' with friends.and for a few hours leaving what's outside outside.ATL is a Sunday night fever of laughs, drama and crunk sounds. Video director Chris Robinson ma
Sometimes 17-year-old Rashad and his pals hang out at the Waffle House, trying to figure out what's next after they graduate. But on Sunday nights, they know what's coming. They'll be at the Cascade roller rink: laying down moves, chillin' with friends...and for a few hours leaving what's outside outside. ATL is a Sunday night fever of laughs, drama and crunk sounds. Video director Chris Robinson makes his feature debut, guiding an ensemble that includes astonishingly natural movie newcomers Tip Harr! is (aka rapper T.I.), Lauren London and Antwan Andre Patton (aka Big Boi of the duo OutKast).

DVD Features:
Deleted Scenes
Featurette
Music Video
Theatrical Trailer

If you've grown weary of gangsta thrillers and violent depictions of thug life, ATL will hit you like a breath of fresh air. Based on a story by Antwone Fisher (writer and subject of the 2003 film that bears his name) and written by Tina Gordon Chism, it's essentially a contemporary African-American riff on American Graffiti, focusing on a group of teenagers on the cusp of adulthood, learning valuable life lessons as they strive to make a better future for themselves and their loved ones. The title refers to the airport designation for Atlanta, and that's where orphaned 17-year-old Rashad (Tip Harris, aka rapper T.I.) lives with his younger brother Anton (Evan Ross) and uncle George (Mykelti Williamson). They're poor like most Southside famili! es, but they're making ends meet, caring for each other and fo! rging li fe-long friendships with guys like the smart, ambitious Esquire (Jackie Long), transplanted New Yorker Brooklyn (Albert Daniels), and likable homeboy Teddy (Jason Weaver). On Sunday nights they hang at the Cascade roller rink, trying to impress the girls with their latest moves, and director Chris Robinson (veteran of many music videos) captures it all with casual momentum and genuine affection for his characters. A little too casual perhaps (the pacing sometimes lags), but with a lively mix of color and music, ATL manages to be positive and hopeful without sanitizing the harsher realities (including drugs and violence) of modern urban America. There are threats and obstacles to overcome, but ATL is all about potential, striving for goals and accepting responsibility for one's own actions. Between this and Get Rich or Die Tryin', which example would you prefer to follow? --Jeff Shannon

Good Bye, Lenin! [Russian, German][PAL][REGION 5][IMPORT]

  • DVD
  • PAL
  • Import
Contemporary comedies rarely stretch themselves beyond a bickering romantic couple or a bickering couple and a bucket of bodily fluids, which makes the ambition and intelligence of Good bye, Lenin! not simply entertaining but downright refreshing. The movContemporary comedies rarely stretch themselves beyond a bickering romantic couple or a bickering couple and a bucket of bodily fluids, which makes the ambition and intelligence of Good bye, Lenin! not simply entertaining but downright refreshing. The movie starts in East Germany before the fall of communism; our hero, Alex (Daniel Bruhl), describes how his mother (Katrin Sass), a true believer in the communist cause, has a heart attack when she sees him being clubbed by police at a protest. She falls into a coma for eight months--during which the Berlin Wall comes down. When she awakens, her fragile heal! th must avoid any shocks, so Alex creates an illusive reality around his bedridden mother to convince her that communism is still alive. Good bye, Lenin! delicately balances wry satire with its rich investment in the lives of Alex, his mother, and other characters around them. Funny, moving, and highly recommended. --Bret FetzerContemporary comedies rarely stretch themselves beyond a bickering romantic couple or a bickering couple and a bucket of bodily fluids, which makes the ambition and intelligence of Good bye, Lenin! not simply entertaining but downright refreshing. The movie starts in East Germany before the fall of communism; our hero, Alex (Daniel Bruhl), describes how his mother (Katrin Sass), a true believer in the communist cause, has a heart attack when she sees him being clubbed by police at a protest. She falls into a coma for eight months--during which the Berlin Wall comes down. When she awakens, her fragile health must avoid any shocks,! so Alex creates an illusive reality around his bedridden moth! er to co nvince her that communism is still alive. Good bye, Lenin! delicately balances wry satire with its rich investment in the lives of Alex, his mother, and other characters around them. Funny, moving, and highly recommended. --Bret FetzerContemporary comedies rarely stretch themselves beyond a bickering romantic couple or a bickering couple and a bucket of bodily fluids, which makes the ambition and intelligence of Good bye, Lenin! not simply entertaining but downright refreshing. The movie starts in East Germany before the fall of communism; our hero, Alex (Daniel Bruhl), describes how his mother (Katrin Sass), a true believer in the communist cause, has a heart attack when she sees him being clubbed by police at a protest. She falls into a coma for eight months--during which the Berlin Wall comes down. When she awakens, her fragile health must avoid any shocks, so Alex creates an illusive reality around his bedridden mother to convince her that communism ! is still alive. Good bye, Lenin! delicately balances wry satire with its rich investment in the lives of Alex, his mother, and other characters around them. Funny, moving, and highly recommended. --Bret FetzerContemporary comedies rarely stretch themselves beyond a bickering romantic couple or a bickering couple and a bucket of bodily fluids, which makes the ambition and intelligence of Good bye, Lenin! not simply entertaining but downright refreshing. The movie starts in East Germany before the fall of communism; our hero, Alex (Daniel Bruhl), describes how his mother (Katrin Sass), a true believer in the communist cause, has a heart attack when she sees him being clubbed by police at a protest. She falls into a coma for eight months--during which the Berlin Wall comes down. When she awakens, her fragile health must avoid any shocks, so Alex creates an illusive reality around his bedridden mother to convince her that communism is still alive. Good b! ye, Lenin! delicately balances wry satire with its rich in! vestment in the lives of Alex, his mother, and other characters around them. Funny, moving, and highly recommended. --Bret FetzerFollowing the huge success of the 'Amelie' soundtrack, Yann Tiersen strikes back by composing the soundtrack of 'Goodbye Lenin', for the German director Wolfgang Becker. EMI/Labels. 2003.quando sua madre, orgogliosamente socialista nella germania dell'est, si sveglia dal coma otto mesi dopo la caduta del muro di berlino, alex recluta amici e parenti per far credere alla donna che nulla e' cambiato.East Germany, the year 1989: A young man protests against the regime. His mother watches the police arresting him and suffers a heart attack and falls into a coma. Some months later, the GDR does not exist anymore and the mother awakes. Since she has to avoid every excitement, the son tries to set up the GDR again for her in their flat. But the world has changed a lot...

The Stieg Larsson Trilogy (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo / The Girl Who Played with Fire / The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest) [Blu-ray]

  • STIEG LARSSON TRILOGY, THE BLU-RAY (BLU-RAY DISC)
The stunning third and final novel in Stieg Larsson's internationally best-selling trilogy...

Lisbeth Salander--the heart of Larsson's two previous novels--lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She̢۪s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she̢۪ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge--against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

Once upon a time, she was a victim. N! ow Salander is fighting back.Amazon Best Books of the Month, May 2010 As the finale to Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is not content to merely match the adrenaline-charged pace that made international bestsellers out of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire. Instead, it roars with an explosive storyline that blows the doors off the series and announces that the very best has been saved for last. A familiar evil lies in wait for Lisbeth Salander, but this time, she must do more than confront the miscreants of her past; she must destroy them. Much to her chagrin, survival requires her to place a great deal of faith in journalist Mikael Blomkvist and trust his judgment when the stakes are highest. To reveal more of the plot would be criminal, as Larsson's mastery of the unexpected is why millions have fallen hard for his work. But rest assured that the odds are ! again stacked, the challenges personal, and the action fraught! with ne ck-snapping revelations in this snarling conclusion to a thrilling triad. This closing chapter to The Girl's pursuit of justice is guaranteed to leave readers both satisfied and saddened once the final page has been turned. --Dave Callanan

Readers all across America are talking about Stieg Larsson’s #1 best-selling trilogyâ€"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nestâ€"which has more than 12 million copies in print. 

Now, just in time for the holidays: a deluxe, slip-cased set of the three hardcover novelsâ€"each unjacketed, bound in full cloth and uniquely stamped, with maps and individual full-color endpapersâ€"as well as On Stieg Larsson, a previously unpublished collection of essays about and correspondence with the author.

The perfect collectible for the Stieg Larsson fan and the ideal gift for those who have yet to meet his heroine, Lisbeth Salander, “o! ne of the most fascinating characters in modern genre fiction” (San Francisco Chronicle).

Get to know the bestselling series that Amazon (and its customers) have loved from the very beginning with this deluxe, slip-cased set of all three hardcover books in the Millennium Trilogy, along with On Stieg Larsson, a never-before-published collection of reflections about and correspondence with the author. Read our reviews of the books:

Amazon Best of the Month, September 2008: Once you start The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, there's no turning back. This debut thriller--the first in a trilogy from the late Stieg Larsson--is a serious page-turner rivaling the best of Charlie Huston and Michael Connelly. Mikael Blomkvist, a once-respected financial journalist, watches his professional life rapidly crumble around him. Prospects appear bleak until an unexpected (and unsettling) offer to resurrect his name is extended by an ol! d-school titan of Swedish industry. The catch--and there's alw! ays a ca tch--is that Blomkvist must first spend a year researching a mysterious disappearance that has remained unsolved for nearly four decades. With few other options, he accepts and enlists the help of investigator Lisbeth Salander, a misunderstood genius with a cache of authority issues. Little is as it seems in Larsson's novel, but there is at least one constant: you really don't want to mess with the girl with the dragon tattoo.

Amazon Best of the Month, July 2009: The girl with the dragon tattoo is back. Stieg Larsson's seething heroine, Lisbeth Salander, once again finds herself paired with journalist Mikael Blomkvist on the trail of a sinister criminal enterprise. Only this time, Lisbeth must return to the darkness of her own past (more specifically, an event coldly known as "All the Evil") if she is to stay one step ahead--and alive. The Girl Who Played with Fire is a break-out-in-a-cold-sweat thriller that crackles with stunning! twists and dismisses any talk of a sophomore slump. Fans of Larsson's prior work will find even more to love here, and readers who do not find their hearts racing within the first five pages may want to confirm they still have a pulse. Expect healthy doses of murder, betrayal, and deceit, as well as enough espresso drinks to fuel downtown Seattle for months.

Amazon Best Books of the Month, May 2010 As the finale to Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is not content to merely match the adrenaline-charged pace that made international bestsellers out of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire. Instead, it roars with an explosive storyline that blows the doors off the series and announces that the very best has been saved for last. A familiar evil lies in wait for Lisbeth Salander, but this time, she must do more than confront the miscreants of her past; she mus! t destroy them. Much to her chagrin, survival requires her to! place a great deal of faith in journalist Mikael Blomkvist and trust his judgment when the stakes are highest. To reveal more of the plot would be criminal, as Larsson's mastery of the unexpected is why millions have fallen hard for his work. But rest assured that the odds are again stacked, the challenges personal, and the action fraught with neck-snapping revelations in this snarling conclusion to a thrilling triad. This closing chapter to The Girl's pursuit of justice is guaranteed to leave readers both satisfied and saddened once the final page has been turned.


The stunning third and final novel in Stieg Larsson̢۪s internationally best-selling trilogy

Lisbeth Salanderâ€"the heart of Larsson’s two previous novelsâ€"lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she reco! vers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revengeâ€"against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back.


From the Hardcover edition.Amazon Best Books of the Month, May 2010 As the finale to Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is not content to merely match the adrenaline-charged pace that made international bestsellers out of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire. Instead, it roars with an explosive storyline that ! blows the doors off the series and announces that the very bes! t has be en saved for last. A familiar evil lies in wait for Lisbeth Salander, but this time, she must do more than confront the miscreants of her past; she must destroy them. Much to her chagrin, survival requires her to place a great deal of faith in journalist Mikael Blomkvist and trust his judgment when the stakes are highest. To reveal more of the plot would be criminal, as Larsson's mastery of the unexpected is why millions have fallen hard for his work. But rest assured that the odds are again stacked, the challenges personal, and the action fraught with neck-snapping revelations in this snarling conclusion to a thrilling triad. This closing chapter to The Girl's pursuit of justice is guaranteed to leave readers both satisfied and saddened once the final page has been turned. --Dave CallananThe stunning third and final novel in Stieg Larsson̢۪s internationally best-selling trilogy

Lisbeth Salanderâ€"the heart of Larsson’s two previous novelsâ€"li! es in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revengeâ€"against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back.


From the Hardcover edition.Stieg Larsson̢۪s Millennium Trilogy is now available in a complete hardcover set.

All across America, readers are talking about Stieg Larsson’s best-selling novels, set in Sweden and featuring Lisbeth Sala! nderâ€"“one of the most original and memorable heroines to s! urface i n a recent thriller” (The New York Times). The trilogy is an international sensation that will grab you and keep you “reading with eyes wide open” (San Francisco Chronicle). “[It] is intricately plotted, lavishly detailed but written with a breakneck pace and verve” (The Independent, U.K.), but “be warned: the trilogy is seriously addictive.” (The Guardian, U.K.).

“Believe the hype . . . It’s gripping stuff.”
â€"People

“Stieg Larsson clearly loved his brave misfit Lisbeth. And so will you.”
â€"USA Today
“Larsson has bottled lightning.”
â€"Los Angeles Times

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Harriet Vanger, a scion of one of Sweden̢۪s wealthiest families disappeared without a trace more than forty years ago. All these years later, her aged uncle continues to try to discover what happened to her. He hires Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist recently sideline! d by a libel conviction, to investigate. Blomkvist is aided by the pierced and tattooed computer prodigy Lisbeth Salander. Together they tap into a vein of unfathomable iniquity and astonishing corruption on their way to discovering the truth of Harriet Vanger̢۪s fate.

The Girl Who Played with Fire
Mikael Blomkvist, now the crusading publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to run a story that will expose an extensive sex trafficking operation. On the eve of its publication, the two reporters responsible for the article are murdered, and the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to his friend Lisbeth Salander. Blomkvist, convinced of Salander̢۪s innocence, plunges into an investigation of the murders. Meanwhile, Salander herself is drawn into a murderous game of cat and mouse, which forces her to face her dark past.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet̢۪s Nest
Lisbeth Salander lies in critical condition, a bullet wound! to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hos! pital. S he’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. On her own, she will plot revengeâ€"against the man who tried to kill her, and against the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

“Unique and fascinating . . . Like a blast of cold, fresh air.Ӊ€"Chicago Tribune

“Wildly suspenseful . . . Intelligent, ingeniously plotted, utterly engrossing.”
â€"The Washington Post

“A gripping, stay-up-all-night read.” â€"Entertainment Weekly

“Dynamite.” â€"Variety
A crazy, wacky, sexy, romantic short story. Seymour is an aspiring writer who wants to be the next Stieg Lars! son. He also needs to get a life--a love life, so he responds to an Internet ad and dates a girl who literally kicked the hornet's nest. Comedy and high jinks follow with several plot twists and a surprise ending. This content contains some profanity and may not be suitable for all readers.
A crazy, wacky, sexy, romantic short story. Seymour is an aspiring writer who wants to be the next Stieg Larsson. He also needs to get a life--a love life, so he responds to an Internet ad and dates a girl who literally kicked the hornet's nest. Comedy and high jinks follow with several plot twists and a surprise ending. This content contains some profanity and may not be suitable for all readers.
THe Stieg Larsson Dragon Tattoo Trilogy includes "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo", "The Girl Who Played with Fire" and "The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest". Includes a fourth disc with two hours of bonus features.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Fans of! Stieg Larsson's Men Who Hate Women may have been con! cerned a bout how the Swedish author's novel would translate to the screen, but they needn't have worried. Significant changes to the source material have been made, but director Niels Arden Opley's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, as it's now called, is mostly riveting. As the story begins, middle-aged investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) has just been convicted of a bogus charge of libel against a rich and corrupt corporate hotshot when he's unexpectedly offered a most unusual gig. An aging captain of industry named Henrik Vanger (Sven-Bertil Taube) wants Blomkvist to figure out what happened to Vanger's niece, who disappeared more than 40 years earlier; not only is the old man convinced that she was murdered, but he suspects that another member of his large and rather disagreeable family (which includes several former Nazis) is the culprit. Blomkvist takes the job, which includes spending at least six months on Vanger's isolated island in the middle! of winter. But what he doesn't know is that he's being spied on by twentysomething Lisbeth Salander (brilliantly played by Noomi Rapace in a career-making performance), the titular Girl and the possessor of remarkable skills as a sleuth and computer hacker. With her gothlike piercings and all-black clothes, Lisbeth is a vivid character, to say the least. While we don't exactly know the details of her dark past, it's obviously still with her; indeed, she's just been assigned a new "guardian" (like a parole officer) to look after her finances and other matters. We also know that she is not someone to mess with; when the guardian turns out to be a thoroughly vile monster, Lisbeth gets back at him in one of the more satisfying revenge sequences in recent memory. That Lisbeth and Mikael should end up working together, and more, isn't especially surprising. But the horrifying details and depths of depravity they uncover while working on the case (parallels to The Silence of ! the Lambs are facile but appropriate) definitely are, and! Opley d oes a nice job of keeping it all straight. At more than two and a half hours, the film is long, with its share of grim, graphic, and scary moments, but The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a winner. --Sam Graham

The Girl Who Played With Fire
The toughest chick in Sweden returns to action in The Girl Who Played with Fire, the second film adaptation of the late author Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy novels. That would be Lisbeth Salander, once again played with quiet, feral intensity by Noomi Rapace. As Larsson's readers and anyone who saw the first film (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, also released in 2010) knows, Lisbeth is small in stature but big trouble for any man who crosses her--after all, this is the woman who set her father on fire after he abused her mother and later, after being released from a mental institution, took extreme revenge on her legal guardian after he brutally assaulted her (those! scenes are briefly revisited for the enlightenment of those who missed the earlier film). Also back is investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist), Lisbeth's erstwhile lover and partner in solving the Dragon Tattoo mystery. When two of his young colleagues are killed while at work on a story about sex trafficking, followed shortly by the murder of the aforementioned guardian, Salander is the prime suspect. But Mikael is sure of her innocence; in fact, he's convinced she's the next victim, leading to a tangled tale in which Lisbeth learns more about her family and its very dark secrets than she ever wanted to know. The story is compelling, if a bit slow to take shape, and director Daniel Alfredson, taking over for Niels Arden Oplev, skillfully sustains the mystery and tension (there are also doses of nudity and violence, the latter much more graphic than the former). But Lisbeth isn't on screen nearly as much this time, and her relationship with Blo! mkvist, so central to Dragon Tattoo, is almost an aft! erthough t. Still, The Girl Who Played with Fire will certainly whet fans' appetites for the next installment, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest; and considering the overall class and quality of these Swedish productions, one shudders to think how they'll turn out in the inevitable American versions, the first of which is due in 2011, with Daniel Craig as Blomkvist. --Sam Graham

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
It takes a while, but the saga of one of the more fascinating characters put on the page or the screen in recent years comes to a satisfying conclusion with The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, the last installment of the late Swedish author Stieg Larsson's so-called Millennium Trilogy. That character is Lisbeth Salander, the computer-hacking, Goth-loving, dark angel of revenge, played by Noomi Rapace with the same black stare and taciturn charisma that were so riveting in the first two films (! The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire, both also released in 2010). When we last saw her, Lisbeth was trying to kill her father, a Russian defector and abusive monster; in the process, the girl was seriously wounded by her half-brother, a hulking freak with a strange condition that renders him impervious to physical pain. As the new film opens, all three are still alive, and she's being taken to a hospital to recover while waiting to stand trial for attempted murder. Meanwhile, her champion and erstwhile lover, journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist), sets about uncovering the full extent of the conspiracy responsible for (among other crimes) Lisbeth's being sent to an asylum at age 12 while her father was protected by evil forces within the government. This investigation, which puts not only Lisbeth but also Blomkvist and his colleagues in considerable danger, leads to "the Section," a thoroughly repellent bunch of aging liar! s, killers, thieves, and perverts with a great many secrets th! ey'd lik e to keep (the oily Dr. Peter Teleborian, who was responsible for Lisbeth's "treatment" as a child, emerges as the most vile antagonist since the guardian who brutally assaulted her in the first film). Although much of the exhaustive detail about these and other matters has been eliminated by director Daniel Alfredson (who also helmed The Girl Who Played with Fire) and screenwriters Jonas Frykberg and Ulf Ryberg for the purpose of adapting the novel to the screen, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is still quite long (148 minutes), and less kinetic and violent than the earlier films; there are some exciting sequences, but Lisbeth, previously an unlikely but magnetic action heroine, is seen mostly on a hospital bed or in a courtroom, and much of the film is spent on procedural matters. Still, the fact that the loose ends are wrapped up in fairly conventional fashion doesn't make the conclusion any less satisfying. In fact, the only real letdown comes fro! m knowing that we won't get to see Noomi Rapace play Lisbeth Salander again. --Sam Graham

Friday, November 18, 2011

Charlie's Angels [Blu-ray]

  • Condition: New
  • Format: Blu-ray
  • AC-3; Color; Dolby; Dubbed; Subtitled; Widescreen
This five-disc compilation features the entire First Season with the original Angels Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith and all their adventures from one of the most classic shows in television history.

Once upon a time, Jill, Sabrina and Kelly were police officers whose skills were being wasted in menial duties such as answering phones and filing. A mysterious millionaire named Charles Townsend took them away from all that by opening his own private investigation agency and hiring these gorgeous ladies as his operatives with John Bosley acting as their assistant and liaison. America's guiltiest pleasure of 1976--the inaugural season of Charlie's Angels--has returned in all its jiggly, jolly glory in this tidy boxed set. It's hard to describe just how captivated the nation's! media and viewing public were with cheesemeister Aaron Spelling's ABC-TV hit, but for awhile Charlie's Angels was wildly popular appointment television at its most self-consciously banal. The first season's three (and best-remembered) belles--lioness Farrah Fawcett (then Farrah Fawcett-Majors), pin-up babe Jaclyn Smith, and Thinking Man's beauty Kate Jackson--were something like primetime Spice Girls, gracing countless magazine covers and bestselling posters. The idea (even if a fan of the show didn't happen to be a straight male) was that one was compelled to choose a favorite angel as a kind of ink-blot window onto one's subconscious life.

While the 2000 Angels feature film (starring Cameron Diaz, etc.) kept faith with the original show's self-mockingly sloppy storytelling, there's nothing like seeing the old episodes for a lesson in narrative hubris. Basically, the three leading characters were bored policewomen wooed away to a private firm owned and ! operated by the unseen sybarite, Charlie (voiced--over speaker! phone--b y an uncredited John Forsythe). After a long set-up each week, the girls' investigations typically saw them going undercover: as fashion models--no great stretch--in "Night of the Strangler"; nurses in "Terror on Ward One"; roller-derby stars in "Angels on Wheels"; and vulnerable convicts (of course) in "Angels In Chains." The exploitation factor is not as bad as it might have been. The cast was so glamorous, their chemistry so perfect, Charlie's Angels never became a mere meat market. Despite such nods to modernity as Fawcett's no-bra look, the episodes were old-fashioned in their heroine-in-peril appeal, yet there was a difference: The Angels looked out for themselves and each other. --Tom KeoghAdventure has never been more beautiful than Charlie's Angels! Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu star as the captivating crime-fighting trio who are masters of disguise, espionage and martial arts. When a devious mastermind embroils them in a plot to destroy in! dividual privacy, the Angels are on the spot with their brains, brawn and high-tech toys. Aided by their loyal sidekick Bosley (Bill Murray), the girls are about to bring down the bad guys when a terrible secret is revealed that makes the Angels a target of assassination. Now, it's a matter of life or death as the stunningly smart detectives use their state-of-the-art skills to kick evil's butt in this sexy, high-octane comedy!For every TV-into-movie success like The Fugitive, there are dozens of uninspired films like The Mod Squad. Happily--and surprisingly--this breezy update of the seminal '70s jiggle show falls into the first category, with Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore (who also produced), and Lucy Liu starring as the hair-tossing, fashion-setting, kung fu-fighting trio employed by the mysterious Charlie (voiced by the original Charlie, John Forsythe). When a high-tech programmer (Sam Rockwell) is kidnapped, the angels seek out the suspects, with the daff! y Bosley (Bill Murray in a casting coup) in tow. A happy, corn! ball pop corn flick, Charlie's Angels is played for laughs with plenty of ribbing references to the old TV show as well as modern caper films like Mission: Impossible. McG, a music video director making his feature film debut (usually a death warrant for a movie's integrity), infuses the film with plenty of Matrix-style combat pyrotechnics, and the result is the first successful all-American Hong Kong-style action flick. Plenty of movies boast a New Age feminism that has their stars touting their sexuality while being their own women, but unlike something as obnoxious as Coyote Ugly, Angels succeeds with a positive spin on Girl Power for the new millennium (Diaz especially sizzles in her role of crack super agent/airhead blonde). From the send-up of the TV show's credit sequence to the outtakes over the end credits, Charlie's Angels is a delight. --Doug ThomasAnother season of the hit classic series comes to DVD! This season, the A! ngels go on the Love Boat to investigate a major art theft, go back to college to stop a white slavery ring, and find more than just fingerprints when Charlie's yacht is stolen. Jill gets help from the Angels after her date with a crown prince is interrupted by sniper fire, and Kelly meets a man who may be her long-lost father.The Angels continue to fight the bad guys, with Jill̢۪s little sister Kris taking her place and Charlie's voice guiding them all. Stars Jaclyn Smith, Kate Jackson and introducing Cheryl Lad. Includes all 26 episodes from the second season.Charlie's Angels: The Complete Second Season has no shortage of the good-natured cheese and eye candy that made the primetime television show's debut season wildly popular in 1976. The Angels had a new look in their second year: Farrah Fawcett, arguably the most popular of the show's three actresses, departed before the sophomore season and was replaced by another blonde dazzler, Cheryl Ladd. (Ladd's characte! r, Kris Munroe, was the younger sister of Fawcett's Jill Munro! e, whose exit is explained in the premiere episode as a liberated woman's career move: Jill has decided to race cars in Spain.)

No sooner does Kris settle in than a crisis sweeps through off-screen Charlie's private investigation agency. While cavorting on Oahu in the two-part "Angels in Paradise," Charlie is kidnapped by a smuggler (France Nuyen), who demands the Angels break her husband out of jail in exchange for their boss's life. Bubbly Kris, brainy Sabrina Duncan (Kate Jackson), beauteous Kelly Garrett (Jaclyn Smith), and sidekick Bosley (David Doyle) are compelled to soak up rays and sip fruity mixed drinks in Waikiki while fighting crime in various guises, re-establishing, for another season, Charlie's Angels' dramatic and aesthetic game plan for every episode: start slow with lots of idle chatter, put the girls in a ridiculous undercover situation, and get them out of their clothes as much as possible.

The pattern continues in the silly "Angels on Ice," star! ring old hands Phil Silvers and Jim Backus, in which our heroines join an ice show to find out who kidnapped a pair of skaters. "Pretty Angels All in a Row" finds Kelly and Kris reluctant entrants in a "Miss Chrysanthemum Pageant" (no, you won't find Kate Jackson in a swimsuit this year, either) rigged by organized crime. "Circus of Terror," co-starring James Darren, enlists the Angels in the carney life. If there is anything to complain about regarding season 2, it is that the novelty of Charlie's Angels has worn a little thin, and every episode feels the same. Still, there are surprises: "The Sammy Davis Jr. Kidnap Caper" stars the late rat-packer in peril and much bemused by the presence of three comely bodyguards. --Tom KeoghThe Superbit titles utilize a special high bit rate digital encoding process which optimizes video quality while offering a choice of both DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. These titles have been produced by a team of Sony Pictures Dig! ital Studios video, sound and mastering engineers and comes ho! used in a special package complete with a 4 page booklet that contains technical information on the Superbit process. By reallocating space on the disc normally used for value-added content, Superbit DVDs can be encoded at double their normal bit rate while maintaining full compatibility with the DVD video format.For every TV-into-movie success like The Fugitive, there are dozens of uninspired films like The Mod Squad. Happily--and surprisingly--this breezy update of the seminal '70s jiggle show falls into the first category, with Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore (who also produced), and Lucy Liu starring as the hair-tossing, fashion-setting, kung fu-fighting trio employed by the mysterious Charlie (voiced by the original Charlie, John Forsythe). When a high-tech programmer (Sam Rockwell) is kidnapped, the angels seek out the suspects, with the daffy Bosley (Bill Murray in a casting coup) in tow. A happy, cornball popcorn flick, Charlie's Angels is played for laugh! s with plenty of ribbing references to the old TV show as well as modern caper films like Mission: Impossible. McG, a music video director making his feature film debut (usually a death warrant for a movie's integrity), infuses the film with plenty of Matrix-style combat pyrotechnics, and the result is the first successful all-American Hong Kong-style action flick. Plenty of movies boast a New Age feminism that has their stars touting their sexuality while being their own women, but unlike something as obnoxious as Coyote Ugly, Angels succeeds with a positive spin on Girl Power for the new millennium (Diaz especially sizzles in her role of crack super agent/airhead blonde). From the send-up of the TV show's credit sequence to the outtakes over the end credits, Charlie's Angels is a delight. --Doug ThomasThree beautiful private detectives who work for a suave playboy boss are called in to rescue soon-to-be billionaire software mo! gul Eric Knox, when he is kidnapped from his office at Knox Te! chnologi es. While rough-and-tumble Alex, wild-child Dylan, and nerdy Natalie use an impressive array of high-tech gadgetry and martial arts moves to retrieve Knox from the clutches of rival Roger Corwin and his goons, they unwittingly become embroiled in a battle to protect the world from a wide-scale invasion of privacy that threatens to occur when good technology falls into the hands of bad people.For every TV-into-movie success like The Fugitive, there are dozens of uninspired films like The Mod Squad. Happily--and surprisingly--this breezy update of the seminal '70s jiggle show falls into the first category, with Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore (who also produced), and Lucy Liu starring as the hair-tossing, fashion-setting, kung fu-fighting trio employed by the mysterious Charlie (voiced by the original Charlie, John Forsythe). When a high-tech programmer (Sam Rockwell) is kidnapped, the angels seek out the suspects, with the daffy Bosley (Bill Murray in a casting co! up) in tow. A happy, cornball popcorn flick, Charlie's Angels is played for laughs with plenty of ribbing references to the old TV show as well as modern caper films like Mission: Impossible. McG, a music video director making his feature film debut (usually a death warrant for a movie's integrity), infuses the film with plenty of Matrix-style combat pyrotechnics, and the result is the first successful all-American Hong Kong-style action flick. Plenty of movies boast a New Age feminism that has their stars touting their sexuality while being their own women, but unlike something as obnoxious as Coyote Ugly, Angels succeeds with a positive spin on Girl Power for the new millennium (Diaz especially sizzles in her role of crack super agent/airhead blonde). From the send-up of the TV show's credit sequence to the outtakes over the end credits, Charlie's Angels is a delight. --Doug Thomas

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