Saturday, November 5, 2011

Marvel Heroes Collection (Daredevil/Elektra/X-Men/ X2/X-Men 3: The Last Stand/ Fantastic Four & Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer)

  • Disc 1: X-MEN; Disc 2: X2 X-MEN UNITED; Disc 3: X-MEN 3:THE LAST STAND; Disc 4: FANTASTIC FOUR;
Catch a wave of "terrific adventure" and "non-stop action" (CBS-TV) in this fun and fantastically entertaining smash-hit! "Invisible Woman: Sue Storm and "Mr. Fantastic" Dr. Reed Richards are about to be married when a mysterious alien... the Silver Surfer... crashes the proceedings and heralds Earth's impending destruction. With time running out, the Fantastic Four reluctantly teams up with the nefarious Dr. Doom in a thrilling effort to save our planet!Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is another entertaining romp for the Marvel-superhero franchise. Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd), is treading on thin ice when his fiancée, Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman (Jessica Alba), thinks he's more interested in a series of cosmic phenomena occurring around the earth than in the p! reparations for their upcoming wedding. Sorry, ladies, but Reed is right. The disturbances are caused by a surge of cosmic power from a mysterious being called the Silver Surfer (an all-CGI creation, modeled by Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishburne), who not only zooms around the skies on his board, but also has enough power to fight the FF, sometimes by turning their own power against them, not only mixing up Sue and Reed, but also Johnny Storm, the Human Torch (Chris Evans), and Ben Grimm, the Thing (Michael Chiklis). But that's not the worst of it. The Surfer is only an opening act, a herald looking for planets that his master, Galactus, can consume for his sustenance.

With its initial installment, Fantastic Four established itself as the superhero franchise that didn't take itself too seriously, and that continues here. There are numerous moments of laugh-out-loud humor, and the most angst they suffer is whether Sue and Reed will ever be able to live a ! normal family life. (That, and whether they'll ever really get! married , of course.) If Fantastic Four were a normal superhero franchise, the ending would be a knock-down drag-out war with Galactus, featuring the FF in a colossal battle for the planet Earth and the lives of everyone on it. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer just doesn't do that, and we don't quite get the payoff we expected. Effects are dazzling, but the Surfer looks too metallic, more like a skyriding T-1000 robot. --David Horiuchi

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer Extras


View exclusive clips (including interviews with Fantastic Four Creator Stan Lee and Screenwriter Don Payne), download AIM icons and wallpapers and browse the extensive photo gallery at our Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer minisite.










Beyond Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Fantastic Four Toys & Games

Fantastic Four Paperback Series

Fantastic Four Comics & Graphic Novels


Fantastic Four Video Games

Fantastic Four Posters, Stickers and More

Fantastic Four Apparel

More of the Four on DVD


Fantastic Four Extended Cut

The Fantastic Four Animated Series

Fantastic Four on Blu-Ray



Stills from Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer







Catch a wave of "terrific adventure" and "non-stop action" (CBS-TV) in this fun and fantastically entertaining smash-hit! "Invisible Woman: Sue Storm and "Mr. Fantastic" Dr. Reed Richards are about to be married when a mysterious alien... the Silver Surfer... crashes the proceedings and heralds Earth's impending destruction. With time running out, the Fantastic Four reluctantly teams up with the nefarious Dr. Doom in a thrilling effor! t to save our planet!Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Sur! fer is another entertaining romp for the Marvel-superhero franchise. Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd), is treading on thin ice when his fiancée, Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman (Jessica Alba), thinks he's more interested in a series of cosmic phenomena occurring around the earth than in the preparations for their upcoming wedding. Sorry, ladies, but Reed is right. The disturbances are caused by a surge of cosmic power from a mysterious being called the Silver Surfer (an all-CGI creation, modeled by Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishburne), who not only zooms around the skies on his board, but also has enough power to fight the FF, sometimes by turning their own power against them, not only mixing up Sue and Reed, but also Johnny Storm, the Human Torch (Chris Evans), and Ben Grimm, the Thing (Michael Chiklis). But that's not the worst of it. The Surfer is only an opening act, a herald looking for planets that his master, Galactus, can consume for his sustenan! ce.

With its initial installment, Fantastic Four established itself as the superhero franchise that didn't take itself too seriously, and that continues here. There are numerous moments of laugh-out-loud humor, and the most angst they suffer is whether Sue and Reed will ever be able to live a normal family life. (That, and whether they'll ever really get married, of course.) If Fantastic Four were a normal superhero franchise, the ending would be a knock-down drag-out war with Galactus, featuring the FF in a colossal battle for the planet Earth and the lives of everyone on it. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer… just doesn't do that, and we don't quite get the payoff we expected. Effects are dazzling, but the Surfer looks too metallic, more like a skyriding T-1000 robot. --David Horiuchi

View Stills from the Blu-Ray's Exclusive Games (Click for larger image):

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Catch a wave of "terrific adventure" and "non-stop action" (CBS-TV) in this fun and fantastically entertaining smash-hit! "Invisible Woman: Sue Storm and "Mr. Fantastic" Dr. Reed Richards are about to be married when a mysterious alien... the Silver Surfer... crashes the proceedings and heralds Earth's impending destruction. With time running out, the Fantastic Four reluctantly teams up with the nefarious Dr. Doom in a th! rilling effort to save our planet!Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is another entertaining romp for the Marvel-superhero franchise. Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd), is treading on thin ice when his fiancée, Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman (Jessica Alba), thinks he's more interested in a series of cosmic phenomena occurring around the earth than in the preparations for their upcoming wedding. Sorry, ladies, but Reed is right. The disturbances are caused by a surge of cosmic power from a mysterious being called the Silver Surfer (an all-CGI creation, modeled by Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishburne), who not only zooms around the skies on his board, but also has enough power to fight the FF, sometimes by turning their own power against them, not only mixing up Sue and Reed, but also Johnny Storm, the Human Torch (Chris Evans), and Ben Grimm, the Thing (Michael Chiklis). But that's not the worst of it. The Surfer is only an opening act, ! a herald looking for planets that his master, Galactus, can co! nsume fo r his sustenance.

With its initial installment, Fantastic Four established itself as the superhero franchise that didn't take itself too seriously, and that continues here. There are numerous moments of laugh-out-loud humor, and the most angst they suffer is whether Sue and Reed will ever be able to live a normal family life. (That, and whether they'll ever really get married, of course.) If Fantastic Four were a normal superhero franchise, the ending would be a knock-down drag-out war with Galactus, featuring the FF in a colossal battle for the planet Earth and the lives of everyone on it. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer just doesn't do that, and we don't quite get the payoff we expected. Effects are dazzling, but the Surfer looks too metallic, more like a skyriding T-1000 robot. --David Horiuchi

On the DVD
Are you getting tired of big movies initially coming out on substandard DVDs only to be released in be! tter versions later? No such worries with the Power Cosmic Edition of Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, which delivers the goods. The double-sided disc 1 has both widescreen and full-screen editions of the movie, with two commentary tracks. On the first, director Tim Story talks about FF inside jokes and what had to be cut out of the movie. The second combines producer Avi Arad (has anyone recorded more superhero DVD commentaries?), screenwriter Don Payne, and editors Peter S. Elliot and William Hoy (only the last two sound like they were actually in the room at the same time) covering some of the same ground: comic-book references, special effects, etc. On disc 2 are five extended/deleted scenes (almost 10 minutes total) with commentary by Story, including a longer title sequence and some comic relief. "Family Bonds" is a 46-minute "fly on the wall" documentary that follows the crew as they scout locations, test early special effects, and then work wi! th the cast. There's a multi-angle look at the Fantasticar an! d five f eaturettes (some of which are more substantial than you'd expect for that term). Topics include the development of the Fantasticar (10 minutes), the Surfer effects (15 minutes), the history of the Surfer in comic books (39 minutes, with interviews of Stan Lee, Jim Starlin, and Ron Marz, and Lee describes himself as his own biggest fan!), the Thing suit (11 minutes), and the music score (four minutes). --David Horiuchi

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer Extras


View exclusive clips (including interviews with Fantastic Four Creator Stan Lee and Screenwriter Don Payne), download AIM icons and wallpapers and browse the extensive photo gallery at our Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer minisite.










Beyon! d Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Fantastic Four Toys & Games

Fantastic Four Paperback Series

Fantastic Four Comics & Graphic Novels


Fantastic Four Video Games

Fantastic Four Posters, Stickers and More
Fant astic Four Apparel

More of the Four on DVD


Fantastic Four Extended Cut

The Fantastic Four Animated Series

Fantastic Four on Blu-Ray



Stills from Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer







Fantastic Four

Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis head a sexy, star-powered cast in this explosive adventure about a quartet of flawed, ordinary human beings who suddenly find themselves with extraordinary abilities.

After exposure to cosmic radiation, four astronauts become the most remarkable, if dysfunctional, superheroes of all time. Unfortunately, the mission's sponsor has also bee! n transformed ? into the world's most lethal supervillain ? s! etting t he stage for a confrontation of epic proportions. Packed with nonstop action, big laughs and awesome special effects, Fantastic 4 is "powerful fun" (The Baltimore Sun) from start to finish! 

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Catch a wave of "terrific adventure" and "non-stop action" (CBS-TV) in this fun and fantastically entertaining smash-hit! "Invisible Woman: Sue Storm and "Mr. Fantastic" Dr. Reed Richards are about to be married when a mysterious alien... the Silver Surfer... crashes the proceedings and heralds Earth's impending destruction. With time running out, the Fantastic Four reluctantly teams up with the nefarious Dr. Doom in a thrilling effort to save our planet!

Daredevil

For Daredevil, justice is blind, and for the guilty?there's hell to pay! Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner ignite dangerous sparks and nonstop thrills in this "dazzling action-adventure"! (The Film Journal) about the newest breed of superhero. By day, blind attorney Matt Murdock (Affleck) toils for justice in Hell's Kitchen. By night, he's Daredevil, The Man Without Fear - a powerful, masked vigilante stalking the dark streets with an uncanny "radar sense" that allows him to "see" with superhuman capabilities. But when the love of his life, fiery Elektra Natchios (Garner), is targeted by New York City's ruthless Kingpin of crime (Michael Clarke Duncan) and his deadly assassin Bullseye (Colin Farrell), Daredevil may be about to meet his match.


Fantastic Four

Marvel Comics' first family of superherodom, the Fantastic Four, hits the big screen in a light-hearted and funny adventure. It begins when down-on-his-luck genius Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd, Horatio Hornblower) has to enlist the financial and intellectual help from former schoolmate and rival Victor Von Doom (Julian McMahon, Nip/Tuck) in order to pursue outer-space research into ! human DN A. Also on the trip are Reed's best friend, Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis, The Shield); his former lover, Sue Storm (Jessica Alba, Dark Angel, Sin City), who's now Doom's employee and love interest; and her hotshot-pilot brother, Johnny Storm (Chris Evans, Cellular). Things don't go as planned, of course, and the quartet becomes blessed--or is it cursed?--with superhuman powers: flexibility, brute strength, invisibility and projecting force fields, and bursting into flame. Meanwhile, Doom himself is undergoing a transformation.

Among the many entries in the comic-book-movie frenzy, Fantastic Four is refreshing because it doesn't take itself too seriously. Characterization isn't too deep, and the action is a bit sparse until the final reel (like most "first" superhero movies, it has to go through the "how did we get these powers and what we will do with them" churn). But it's a good-looking cast, and original comic-book ! cocreator Stan Lee makes his most significant Marvel-movie cameo yet, in a speaking role as the FF's steadfast postal carrier, Willie Lumpkin. Newcomers to superhero movies might find the idea of a family with flexibility, strength, invisibility, and force fields a retread of The Incredibles, but Pixar's animated film was very much a tribute to the FF and other heroes of the last 40 years. The irony is that while Fantastic Four is an enjoyable B-grade movie, it's the tribute, The Incredibles, that turned out to be a film for the ages. --David Horiuchi

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is another entertaining romp for the Marvel-superhero franchise. Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd), is treading on thin ice when his fiancée, Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman (Jessica Alba), thinks he's more interested in a series of cosmic ph! enomena occurring around the earth than in the preparations f! or their upcoming wedding. Sorry, ladies, but Reed is right. The disturbances are caused by a surge of cosmic power from a mysterious being called the Silver Surfer (an all-CGI creation, modeled by Doug Jones and voiced by Laurence Fishburne), who not only zooms around the skies on his board, but also has enough power to fight the FF, sometimes by turning their own power against them, not only mixing up Sue and Reed, but also Johnny Storm, the Human Torch (Chris Evans), and Ben Grimm, the Thing (Michael Chiklis). But that's not the worst of it. The Surfer is only an opening act, a herald looking for planets that his master, Galactus, can consume for his sustenance.

With its initial installment, Fantastic Four established itself as the superhero franchise that didn't take itself too seriously, and that continues here. There are numerous moments of laugh-out-loud humor, and the most angst they suffer is whether Sue and Reed will ever be able to live a norma! l family life. (That, and whether they'll ever really get married, of course.) If Fantastic Four were a normal superhero franchise, the ending would be a knock-down drag-out war with Galactus, featuring the FF in a colossal battle for the planet Earth and the lives of everyone on it. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer just doesn't do that, and we don't quite get the payoff we expected. Effects are dazzling, but the Surfer looks too metallic, more like a skyriding T-1000 robot. --David Horiuchi

Daredevil

Darker than its popular comic-book predecessor Spider-Man, the $80 million extravaganza Daredevil was packaged for maximum global appeal, its juvenile plot beginning when 12-year-old Matt Murdock is accidentally blinded shortly before his father is murdered. Later an adult attorney in New York's Hell's Kitchen, Murdock (Ben Affleck) uses his remaining, superenhanced senses to! battle crime as Daredevil, the masked and vengeful "man witho! ut fear ," pitted against dominant criminal Kingpin (Michael Clarke Duncan) and the psychotic Bullseye (Colin Farrell), who can turn almost anything into a deadly projectile. Daredevil is well matched with the dynamic Elektra (Jennifer Garner), but their teaming is as shallow as the movie itself, which is peppered with Marvel trivia and cameo appearances (creator Stan Lee, Clerks director and Daredevil devotee Kevin Smith) and enough computer-assisted stuntwork to give Spidey a run for his money. This is Hollywood product at its most lavishly vacuous; die-hard fans will argue its merits while its red-leathered hero swoops and zooms toward a sequel. --Jeff Shannon

  • Disc 1: X-MEN WS
  • Disc 2: X2 X-MEN UNITED SE WS
  • Disc 3: X-MEN 3:THE LAST STAND WS
  • Disc 4: FANTASTIC FOUR WS
  • Disc 5: FANTASTIC FOUR 2 WP
  • Disc 6: DAREDEVIL DC WS
  • Disc 7: ELEKTRA WS
  • Disc 8: Fantastic Four: Wor! ld’s Greatest Heroes Volume 1 P&S

Manga Studio Debut 4 (Win/Mac)

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The #1 New York Times bestseller by Kathryn Stockett comes to vivid life through the powerful performances of a phenomenal ensemble cast. Led by Emma Stone, Academy Award®-nominated Viola Davis (Best Supporting Actress, Doubt, 2008), Octavia ! Spencer and Bryce Dallas Howard, The Help is an inspirational, courageous and empowering story about very different, extraordinary women in the 1960s South who build an unlikely friendship around a secret writing project â€" one that breaks society’s rules and puts them all at risk. Filled with poignancy, humor and hope â€" and complete with compelling, never-before-seen bonus features â€" The Help is a timeless, universal and triumphant story about the ability to create change.There are male viewers who will enjoy The Help, but Mississippi native Tate Taylor aims his adaptation squarely at the female readers who made Kathryn Stockett's novel a bestseller. If the multi-character narrative revolves around race relations in the Kennedy-era South, the perspective belongs to the women. Veteran maid Aibileen (Doubt's Viola Davis in an Oscar-worthy performance) provides the heartfelt narration that brackets the story. A widow devastated by the death of her son, sh! e takes pride in the 17 children she has helped to raise, but ! she's ha rdly fulfilled. That changes when Skeeter (Easy A's Emma Stone) returns home after college. Unlike her peers, Skeeter wants to work, so she gets a job as a newspaper columnist. But she really longs to write about Jackson's domestics, so she meets with Aibileen in secret--after much cajoling and the promise of anonymity. When Aibileen's smart-mouthed friend Minny (breakout star Octavia Spencer) breaches her uptight employer's protocol, Hilly (Bryce Dallas Howard) gives her the boot, and she ends up in the employ of local outcast Celia (Jessica Chastain, hilarious and heartbreaking), who can't catch a break due to her dirt-poor origins. After the murder of Medgar Evers, even more maids, Minny among them, bring their stories to Skeeter, leading to a book that scandalizes the town--in a good way. Not since Steel Magnolias has Hollywood produced a Southern woman's picture more likely to produce buckets of tears (and almost as many laughs). --Kathleen C. Fennessy

With more than 3 million copies sold, the #1 New York Times bestseller is now available in a special gift edition.

A modern classic, The Help has been a cultural touchstone for the millions of readers who have cheered on Skeeter, laughed with Minny, and hissed at Hilly. The noble and strong Aibileen has become a heroine for countless fans whose letters have poured in from all over the world. Now the bestselling and beloved book is available in a deluxe gift edition.

The Help has been on bestseller lists for longer than any other hardcover fiction title since The Da Vinci Code. It was USA Today's 2009 Book of the Year and has been published in thirty-seven countries around the world.

The movie The Help, produced by DreamWorks and 1492 Pictures, is scheduled for a major motion-picture release in August 2011.

This beautiful edition, destined to be passed down from generation to generation, i! s filled with special features, including:
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This deluxe gift edition is the perfect gift for someone you love-or as a special treat for yourself.

The wildly popular New York Times bestseller and reading group favorite.

Aibileen is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who's always taken orders quietly, but lately she's unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She's full of ambition, but without a husband, she's considered a failure. Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town...The wildly popular New York Times bestseller and reading group favorite.

Aibileen is a black maid! in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who's always taken orders quietly, but lately she's unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She's full of ambition, but without a husband, she's considered a failure. Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town...Smith Micro Software Manga Studio v.4.0 Debut Hybrid MSDC40BX2 658Manga Studio Debut 4.0 is your all-in-one solution for stunning, ready-to-publish manga and comics. Invigorate your artwork using color, express motion using speed lines, apply dimension with screen tones and add dialog through built-in word balloons. Manga Studio helps you create professional manga and comics from start to finish!

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Talladega Nights - The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

  • Condition: New
  • Format: DVD
  • AC-3; Closed-captioned; Color; Dolby; Dubbed; DVD; Subtitled; Widescreen; NTSC
When rival figure skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) go ballistic in an embarrassing, no-holds-barred fight at the World Championships, they are stripped of their gold medals and banned from the sport for life. Now, three-and-a-half years on, they’ve found a loophole that will allow them to compete: if they can put aside their differences, they can skate together â€" in pairs’ figure skatingTake two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous storyline, and you've got Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky skati! ng champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into an on-podium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite), both skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating events. Forever. Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's found a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events, but there's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg ! (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of ! Satur day Night Live and Mean Girls fame). The Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competition, even if that means literally beating up the competition. They have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office) to seduce both men to try to break up the team.

The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so enth! ralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim

Beyond Blades of Glory


More "Blades" on DVD

More DVDs with Will Ferrell

The Soundtrack

Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)










No Description Available.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 12-FEB-2008
Media Type: DVDTake two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous storyline, and you've got Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky skating champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into an on-podium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite), bo! th skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating e! vents. F orever. Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's found a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events, but there's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of Saturday Night Live and Mean Girls fame). The Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competition, even if that means literally beating up the competition. T! hey have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office) to seduce both men to try to break up the team.

The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so enthralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who! gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim

! Beyond Blades of Glory


More "Blades" on DVD

More DVDs with Will Ferrell

The Soundtrack

Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)

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When rival figure skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) go ballistic in an embarrassing, no-holds-barred fight at the World Championships, they are stripped of their gold medals and banned from the sport for life. Now, three-and-a-half years on, they’ve found a loophole that will allow them to compete: if they can put aside their differences, they can skate together â€" in pairs’ figure skatingTake two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous storyline, and you've got Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky skating champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into an on-podium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimm! y MacElroy (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite), both skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating events. Forever. Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's found a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events, but there's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of Saturday Night Live and Mean Girls fame). T! he Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competitio! n, even if that means literally beating up the competition. They have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office) to seduce both men to try to break up the team.

The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so enthralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, ! Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim

Beyond Blades of Glory


More "Blades" on DVD

More DVDs with Will Ferrell

The Soundtrack

Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)









When rival figure skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) go ballistic in an embarrassing, no-holds-barred fight at the World Championships, they are stripped of their gold medals and banned from the sport for life. Now, three-and-a-half years on, they’ve found a loophole that will allow them to compete: if they can put aside their differences, they can skate together â€" in pairs’ figure skatingTake two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous storyline, and you've got Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky s! kating champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into a! n on-pod ium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite), both skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating events. Forever. Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's found a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events, but there's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of Sa! turday Night Live and Mean Girls fame). The Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competition, even if that means literally beating up the competition. They have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office) to seduce both men to try to break up the team.

The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so ! enthralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life ! skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim

Beyond Blades of Glory


More "Blades" on DVD

More DVDs with Will Ferrell

The Soundtrack

Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)










Take two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous storyline, and you've got Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky skating champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into an on-podium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite), both skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating events. Forever. Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and ! cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's found a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events, but there's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of Saturday Night Live and Mean Girls fame). The Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competition, even if that means literally beating up the competition. They have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office) to seduce both men to try to break up the team. The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that ! comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so enthralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim

Beyond Blades of Glory


More "Blades" on DVD

More DVDs with Will Ferrell

The Soundtrack

Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)










Take two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous sto! ryline, and you've got Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky skating champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into an on-podium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite), both skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating events. Forever. Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's f! ound a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events! , but th ere's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of Saturday Night Live and Mean Girls fame). The Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competition, even if that means literally beating up the competition. They have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office) to seduce both men to try to break up the team.

The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in! Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so enthralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim

Beyond Blades of Glory


More "Blades" on DVD

More DVDs with Will Ferrell

The Soundtrack

Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)










Will Ferrel (Old School, Elf) is Ron Burgundy, a top-rated 1970's San Diego anchorman who believes women have a place in the newsroom - as long as they stick to covering fashion shows or late-breaking cooking stories. So when ron is told he'll be working with a bright young newswoman (Christina Applegate) who's beautiful, ambitious and smart enough to be ! more than eye candy, it's not just a clash of two TV people wi! th reall y great hair - it's war! Filled with wicked wit and slapstick humor, Anchorman is the year's most wildly irreverent, must-see comedy hit!Will Farrell followed up his star-making vehicle Elf, which matched his fine-tuned comic obliviousness to a sweet sincerity, with a more arrogant variation on the same character: Ron Burgundy, a macho, narcissistic news anchor from the 1970s. Along with his news posse--roving reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd, Clueless), sports guy Champ Kind (David Koechner), and dim-bulb weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell, Bruce Almighty)--Burgundy rules the roost in San Diego, fawned upon by groupies and supported by a weary producer (Fred Willard, Best In Show) who tolerates Burgundy's ego because of good ratings. But when Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate, View from the Top) arrives with ambitions to become an anchor herself, she threatens the male-dominated newsroom. Anchorman has plenty ! of funny material, but it's as if Farrell couldn't decide what he really wanted to mock, and so took smart-ass cracks at everything in sight. Still, there are moments of inspired delirium. --Bret FetzerTHE STORY OF NASCAR RACING SENSATION RICKY BOBBY WHOSE 'WIN ATALL COSTS' APPROACH HAS MADE HIM A NATIONAL HERO. WHEN AFLAMBOYANT FRENCH FORMULA ONE DRIVER, JEAN GIRARD, CHALLENGES HIM FOR THE SUPREMACY OF NASCAR, RICKY BOBBY MUST FACE HIS OWNDEMONS & FIGHT GIRARD TO BE KNOWN AS RACING'S TOP DRIVER.

Sweet baby Jesus, we thank you for blessing Will Ferrell and Adam McKay with the talent to create a NASCAR comedy as hilarious as Talladega Nights. The so-called "Ballad of Ricky Bobby" is hardly flawless in fact it's not always firing on all cylinders but with comedy star Ferrell and director McKay still hot from the success of their previous comedy hit Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, most of this 108-minute spoof of oval-track racing is so k! nee-slappin' funny that you can't help but surrender to the st! upidity.

Obviously, Ferrell's the shining star, and his portrayal of lead-footed pit-crew-member-turned-#1 NASCAR champion Ricky "I Wanna Go Fast" Bobby (how can you not love that name?) is spot-on perfect, righteously spoofing the entirety of NASCAR culture without insulting its oft-ridiculed roots in redneck bootlegging of a bygone era. You could even argue that Talladega Nights is truer to NASCAR than Tom Cruise's Days of Thunder, and it's certainly more entertaining, especially when you add John C. Reilly as Ricky's life-long pal, teammate, and eventual rival Cal Naughton, Jr. (together ! they're nicknamed "Shake 'n Bake"), and Sacha Baron Cohen (from Da Ali G Show and Borat) as gay French "Formula Un" driver-turned NASCAR rival Jean Girrard, to a stellar cast including Molly Shannon, Greg Germann, Amy Adams and Michael Clarke Duncan.

Sure, it's mostly a showcase for Ferrell's loud, over-the-top antics and nonsensical non sequiturs (like cameo appearances by Elvis Costello and Mos Def), but with Ferrell behind the wheel, Talladega Nights rolls into victory lane with fuel to spare, and there's one final bit of comedy (with a tip of the hat to William Faulkner) for those who sit through the credits. --Jeff Shannon

Stills from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby(click for larger image)







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