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Bourne Before

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  • Title: The Bourne Identity (1988)
  • IMDB: link

bourne-identity-tv-dvdRichard Chamberlain as Jason Bourne?  Yeah, that’s a little head-scratching I’ll admit.  However this version of the Ludlum novel does stay closer to the character and themes of the orginal, and includes the book’s villain Carlos the Jackal.

Staying true to the novel by Robert Ludlum Jason Bourne (Chamberlain) awakes after being shot and left for for dead in the ocean knowing nothing of himself or his surroundings.

Leaving the small sleepy southern French village where he washed up our protagonist heads out to discover who he is, but he his search only leads to more questions.  He is haunted by flashbacks of a women and a child and images of violence and death.

His one clue leads him to a Swiss bank account where he learns his name as his life is put in danger.  Taking a woman, Marie St. Jacques (Jaclyn Smith), as a hostage Bourne escapes.

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A Futuristic World of Black and White

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  • Title: Renaissance
  • IMDb: link

Renaissance

Inspector Barthélémy Karas (Daniel Craig) is put on the case to find the missing IIona Tasuiev (Romola Garai), a leading scientist of Avalon, the largest and most powerful company in Paris in the year 2054 whose main focus is genetic research and the search for eternal youth.

With the help of Bislane (Catherine McCormack), Illona’s sister and a record keeper at Avalon, Karas begins searching for the missing scientist, but what he finds are half-truths and lies.  What was she working on that the company wants kept quiet?  Why was she kidnapped?  And once Karas learns the truth, what will he do with information that could change the world forever?

The film is both wonderous and quite brutal.  The hard look of the film’s stark black and white animation mirror the personality of Karas who is forced to make hard decisions throughout the film.  Seen here Pairs is a dark city, one without hope, much like Karas himself.

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Yo-Yo Girl Cop

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In a style reserved for anime, but done in live action, Yo-Yo Girl Cop (actual real name of the movie stands for delinquent girl cop) kicks a little ass with a young and sexy teen going undercover. Japanese film geeks will love it; but for the most part, the rest of us will only be content with some of the cool yo-yo action tricks. The story and quality is so-so and has been done in many different formats amongst Hollywood films; an okay rent, but not a keeper.

Yo-Yo Girl Cop
1 & 1/2 Stars

High school will never be the same after Yo-Yo Girl walks through those doors. Ready to fight crime on an adolescent level, she uses her special powered yo-yo and cute little school uniform to defeat the bad guys.

From the award-winning director/writer of Battle Royal and Battle Royal II Requiem comes Yo-Yo Girl Cop, a film filled with action, mystery and suspense, spinning its way onto DVD July 17th from Magnolia Home Entertainment. (according to the press release)

 
YoYo Girl Cop

A daughter of a former agent is shipped back from New York to Tokyo, believed to be out of control and extremely dangerous “K” (Matsuura) is chained up and treated with top alert. She is offered freedom in exchange for going undercover, like her mom, and busting an internet predator who is turning students onto bombs, torture and excessive nastiness towards each other. She agrees and is sent off armed with a deadly yo-yo, a school uniform and a new identity, Saki Asamiya. Right out of the gates Saki befriends a girl, Reika (Ishikawa) who is being picked on and makes her an informer. Finding out the leader of the Web site called Enola Gay, Saki must figure out how to infiltrate and over take the villain before the clock counts down.

With an over the top final battle and plenty of awesome moves with a yo-yo and a short skirt, Yo-Yo Girl Cop is the perfect camperific film for an over air-conditioned summer day. Get yourself a nice glass of cold lemonade and some delicious Chinese food and have a great time with this rental. Who can beat a hot looking teen that can certainly kick a little ass?

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Psych – The Complete First Season

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  • Title: Psych – The Complete First Season
  • tv.com: link

psych-season-one-dvd

What do you say about a show where the main character pretends to be psychic just in order to use his highly observant skill set to solve crimes, all while acting like a complete jackass? If you’re me, you call it fun.

After falling into the role of a psychic detective, lifetime quitter Shawn Spencer (James Roday) and his much more buttoned-down best pal Gus (Dulé Hill) start their own psychic detective agency solving crimes. Those included in this First Season collection involve murder at a Civil War reenactment, a missing wedding ring, a trip to Comic-Con,  a retired police captain (Kurtwood Smith) with an unsolved murder, underground poker, the National Spelling Bee, a psychic cat (who Gus is jealous of, whether he’ll admit to it or not), and an urban legend (which Shawn and Gus inadvertently started as kids). One of my favorites involves Shawn, Gus and Juliet (Maggie Lawson) helping Lassiter (Timothy Omundson) solve a murder at the planetarium.

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Veronica Mars Survives Senior Year

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  • Title: Veronica Mars – The Complete Second Season
  • tv.com: link

With Nancy Drew opening on Friday I thought it would be a good time to look back at the coolest teen private eye of the new millennium…

“Just when I think I’m out, they pull me back in!”

veronica-mars-dvd-season-2After solving Lily’s (Amanda Seyfried) murder, Veronica (Kristen Bell) tries her hand at a more normal life, but her reputation, skills, the needs of her friends, and a bus she should have been on going over a cliff compel her to return to the P.I. game.

The first season hinged on slowly giving us glimpses at the old Vernoica through Lily’s eyes as Vernoica fought to discover who killed her best friend.  With this case solved there is something missing from the framework of the story, though the fallout from the first season will be dealt with over the course of season two.

My other complaint with the second season is the abscence of Wallace (Percy Diggs III) for a handful of episodes.  What makes the series work are the relationships between the characters, and Veronica without her Watson is a real bummer.  Once Wallace returns, with new baggage for Veronica to help him through, the season picks right back up through the revelations of the final episode.

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