Chuck: The Complete Third Season (Blu-Ray)

Judge Patrick Bromley is a master of Chuck Fu.

Rescued from the brink of cancellation at the end of its second season (thanks to a groundswell of fan support and Subway sandwiches), the wonderful NBC series Chuck came back for a third season that pushed the show in awesome new directions. Now, Chuck: The Complete Third Season arrives on in a Blu-ray package that's technically underwhelming but which is more than made up for by the quality of the show itself.

It would be impossible to discuss certain elements of Chuck: The Complete Third Season without spoiling specific plot elements from the series thus far. Therefore, if you haven't watched any of Chuck but have every intention of doing so, read no further. You have been warned.

Season Three of Chuck picks up a little while after Season Two left off. That season ended with Chuck (Zachary Levi, Less Than Perfect) downloading the Intersect 2.0, giving him not just knowledge of all the government's secrets but also an endless series of spy abilities (Who could forget the amazing "I know kung fu" moment that ended the last season?). With his newfound abilities, Chuck is now in training to become an actual spy—though first, he's got to pass (and survive) a series of tests and missions. Complicating matters somewhat are Chuck's emotions, which are out of control after a huge decision leaves his future with Agent Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski, The Canyon) uncertain and a new superstar member, Agent Daniel Shaw (Brandon Routh, Zack and Miri Make a Porno) is added to Team Bartowski. Together with militant John Casey (Adam Baldwin, Independence Day), the team continues to fight the evil forces of The Ring and protect the secret of Chuck and the Intersect. Also this season: new characters are let into Team Bartowski, new love interests (including Smallville's Kristin Kreuk) are introduced and new plugs for Subway are crowbarred into the show.

I love, love, love Chuck. It's not a show for everyone, but the people it's for, it's really for. Criminally underwatched but with a fervently devoted fanbase (closing in on the cults surrounding canceled-too-soon shows like Firefly and Dollhouse; more on Joss Whedon in a bit), Chuck is one of the most consistently enjoyable shows on television—perhaps all the more so because we are in near-constant danger of losing it forever. For those that bailed after the truncated first season, the show made a huge leap in quality in its second season, ramping up both the silliness and the action and making every effort to create a real mythology for the show. And though the third season doesn't demonstrate quite the same growth as its sophomore season did over Season One, it's at least as good (and possibly better).

Season Three's best episodes are the ones that advance the show's ever-growing mythology. The "villain of the week" episodes are still entertaining (and this year include Angie Harmon, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and Robert Patrick), but have always been where Chuck has faltered most (and are what comprised most of Season One, which is why I suspect a lot of the show's audience didn't return for the second season and weren't around when it got really great). But this most recent season wisely advances many of the stories and characters that have been bogging it down for three years now. I won't say what those are, but it involves new people finding out about Chuck's secret and being brought into the overall story in a way they haven't been before—the gap between Chuck's spy life, his home life and his life at the Buy More begins closing to the show's benefit. Scott Bakula also returns for a multi-episode arc as Chuck's dad, doing great work—he really is an underrated actor—and rising above his own stunt casting (Bakula is already a geek icon, having starred on both Star Trek: Enterprise and Quantum Leap) to become an integral part of the show; you feel his presence even when he's not around.

Yes, there are missteps. The show takes shortcuts in storytelling, too regularly depending on Chuck accessing the intersect to get out of a jam (and just in time, too). Some of the storylines, like Chuck's sister Elle and her husband's marital troubles and participation in Doctors Without Borders are unnecessary distractions that only marginally tie in to the greater narrative. The first half of the season, in particular, is occasionally marred by too much romantic longing and moping—too many repetitive, wistful looks between Chuck and Sarah well past when we've gotten the point (and I say this as a major Chuck-and-Sarah "shipper"). Sarah's entire character, in fact, is sidelined too much in the early goings. She's a symbol—a placeholder at the center of a love triangle rather than an active participant. Thankfully, it's easy to overlook a lot of that, because at the same time some of the most interesting stuff of the season is going on with the addition of Brandon Routh's Shaw, playing against his Superman niceness (though not before the show can make a joke at his expense) and becoming one of the best elements of a terrific season. And, if you're a shipper like myself, Season Three has some well-deserved payoffs.

Quick sidebar: I'm constantly told I should be watching The Big Bang Theory on CBS. I like sitcoms, and that show is supposedly about geeky stuff pitched at fellow geeks, so I've given it a shot three or four times. Maybe I haven't given it a fair shake yet. Maybe the show is not for me. But when I hear people go on and on about what an excellent celebration of geekdom BBT is, I get frustrated. The few times I've seen the show, it's gotten stuff wrong. There are jokes about movies and DVDs and comic books that are incorrect, and while that's fine for the average viewer it's just not going to cut it for geeks. If that's who you're pitching your show to (I would argue that Big Bang Theory is not actually pitched at geeks), you should be sure you're getting stuff right. The show that people are actually talking about when they say "it's a show for geeks" is Chuck.

Actually, the series that Chuck reminds me most of is the late, great Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I'm not suggesting that Chuck is as good as Buffy (hardcore Whedonites scare me, because they will literally cut a brother); Buffy was richer and darker with better metaphors and an insanely compulsive need to kill off its characters. But, like Buffy, Chuck is able to juggle a number of genres and tones: it's a comedy, a romance, an action adventure, a spy thriller, a pop culture celebration and more. And, like Buffy, it doesn't just shift gears from scene to scene; more often than not, it's all of these things at once. Plus, Chuck is often a lot more light and fun. After all, Buffy's role as the slayer was a curse; Chuck's role as a spy is all about adolescent male wish fulfillment. He's the nerd-turned superhero, seeing the world, getting the girl (and what a girl; there are hardly words to describe Stahovski) and beating the bad guy and, better yet, he doesn't need to really change to do so. He retains his nerdiness—in fact, more than once it's exactly what gets him and his partners out of a jam.

While pop culture references do not a compelling show make, I'd be lying if I said I didn't get a kick out of them. That's probably because Chuck always gives me credit enough to catch them on my own—it's a show that's actually for geeks that way. From The Big Lebowski nod in the season premiere to a Rocky III finale to Fight Club to The Warriors to The Empire Strikes Back, Chuck is forever paying homage to geeky genre cinema in ways both big and small. Even in one of Season Three's most pivotal moments, Chuck takes the time for a visual reference to Die Hard. No direct attention is called to it, and it's not necessary for you to catch the reference to appreciate the scene—it manages to work on more than one level (on a network show, no less). But knowing that the reference is there does, in fact, make the moment more enjoyable. After all, the central character of Chuck is a geeky guy who grew up loving comic books and video games and genre movies like Die Hard, so the fact that his life has taken such a direction as to resemble an action movie is enough to give savvy viewers a vicarious thrill. We live out the fun of living in a movie by watching him do it. Or maybe that's just me.

For three seasons now, Chuck has had something of a checkered history on Blu-ray; while The Complete Third Season is a marginal improvement over past seasons, it's still got a lot of its own problems. The 1.78:1, 1080p transfer is plagued by a lo of the issues that have plagued Chuck in the past: excessive noise, inconsistent flesh tones (ranging from too-hot orange to unnatural pink) and rampant softness can be found throughout. Some of the flaws—like the amount of noise and grain in the image—appear to be a product of the source material and not a bad transfer, but the HD visuals can be disappointing all the same. The 5.1 audio track is just as disappointing. Like most (all?) Warner Bros. TV releases, no lossless audio option has been included, and though the standard surround track does have occasional dimensionality (like some of the neat effects during the opening credits), most of the action takes place front and center. Even some of the action noise is inconsistent and, at times, downright wimpy. Don't get me wrong: there's nothing about the Chuck Blu-rays that ruin watching the show, but from a technical standpoint the discs just can't compare with superior HD offerings.

The same thing goes for the meager offering of bonus material. Besides a collection of deleted scenes on each disc, all of the supplements (I say "all" as though there are a lot) are relegated to the fourth disc. There's a pair of featurettes: "Chuck Fu and Dim Sum," which gives the standard overview of the season, and "The Jeffster Revolution," a Behind-the-Music-style piece about the show's popular musical duo Jeffster that's amusing but little else. The only other extra feature is a gag reel consisting of the actors blowing takes.

Despite being on the bubble for cancellation for the past two years, Chuck has been granted another stay of execution and is miraculously returning for a fourth season on NBC. I couldn't be happier about that—particularly given where Season Three leaves a lot of the characters and the overall story. If you're not already watching Chuck, please start. I would like the ratings to go up so NBC will continue renewing it. I want as much Chuck as possible.

Did we give Chuck: The Complete Third Season (Blu-Ray) a fair trial? yes / no

What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.

Studio: Warner Bros.
Video Formats:
• 1.78:1 Non-Anamorphic (1080p)
Audio Formats:
• Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround (English)
Subtitles:
• English (SDH)
• French
• Spanish
Running Time: 817 Minutes
Release Year: 2009
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Genres:
• Action
• Blu-ray
• Comedy
• Espionage
• Television

• Deleted Scenes
• Featurettes
• Gag Reel

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Stomp The Yard: Homecoming (Blu-Ray)

Judge Franck Tabouring prefers stomping the basement.

Sylvain White's 2007 dance flick Stomp the Yard grew into quite a profitable release, collecting more than $60 million at the box office, which quickly prompted a sequel: Stomp the Yard: Homecoming (Blu-ray). The follow-up didn't make an appearance in theaters, but is now available on DVD.

Collins Pennie stars as lead character Chance, a hard worker and enthusiastic street dancer who's stoked about joining the Theta Nu fraternity at Truth University. Chance is also looking forward to the big step competition that is scheduled to take place on campus during homecoming weekend, and he's been working hard with his team because he strongly believes they've got a shot at victory. Sadly for Chance, his growing personal problems quickly start to threaten his dreams, which eventually forces him to reconsider his priorities in order to make the best out of his situation.

It's pretty safe to say when you've seen one dance movie, you've seen them all. Stomp the Yard: Homecoming certainly doesn't add anything new to the genre, and its plot and characters are as predictable as the rest of them. Shallow and often cheesy at best, the story falls victim to the same old formula that has rendered most of these films utterly unremarkable. Consequently, it only takes a couple of minutes to understand why this sequel went straight to DVD.

In some cases, the quality of dancing prevents some films from qualifying as disasters, but this time around, even the stepping failed to impress me. There's definitely nothing wrong with the choreography or the way these guys execute their moves in Homecoming, but compared to other movies out there, these dance sequences are by far not intense or visually captivating enough to leave a mark. Some of the spins and jumps we get to observe here are fun to watch, but looking at it from a broader perspective, the stage performances lack the power to help overshadow the film's other flaws.

Speaking of flaws, the film overdramatizes the protagonist's journey from a kid in trouble to a college star. Before you know it, Chance's problems seem more annoying than compelling. Not only does Chance get in trouble for not helping his dad (Keith David) run his cherished restaurant, but he also struggles to keep his girlfriend all while trying to avoid a street gang pestering him for an unpaid debt. Oh, and did I mention Theta Nu's rivalry with another college stepping fraternity? This is just way too much content to stuff into a 88-minute film. As expected, Stomp the Yard: Homecoming comfortably deals with all this conflict by resolving it faster than it appears. Don't go look for any depth in any of these characters or themes.

Rob Hardy's film may not be engaging enough to keep your attention, but it sure all looks great in high definition. The Blu-ray disc boasts a superb 1.78:1 non-anamorphic widescreen presentation of the film that includes a sharp, clean image and strong, beautiful colors. The audio transfer impresses as well, with Sony's 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio track doing a great job at balancing dialogue, sound effects and soundtrack. Technically, this one's a winner. The bonus material includes deleted scenes, a short piece on the choreography, and a fairly amusing audio commentary with the filmmakers. The Blu-ray edition also includes a regular DVD version of the feature.

Simplistic dialogue, mediocre acting, and so-so dance sequences dominate Stomp the Yard: Homecoming, an unnecessary sequel that may appeal to diehard fans willing to look past weak storytelling and repetitive action. The film is not as boring as I feared, but the numerous weaknesses it's burdened with pretty much eliminate its chances to qualify as a satisfying viewing experience.

Did we give Stomp The Yard: Homecoming (Blu-Ray) a fair trial? yes / no

What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.

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Tinker Bell And The Great Fairy Rescue (Blu-Ray)

Yeah, Judge Dan Mancini likes Tinker Bell movies. What of it?

Here comes another entry in the Disney Fairy series of direct-to-DVD and Blu-ray releases.

During an expedition to the English countryside to initiate summer, Tinker Bell (Mae Whitman, Arrested Development) becomes mesmerized by an old jalopy driven by a human. She leaves the other fairies to investigate and is captured by Lizzie Griffiths (Lauren Mote in her debut), an imaginative little girl who believes in fairies. Despite her budding friendship with Lizzie, Tink longs to return to Pixie Hollow, but is unable to fly in the persistent summer showers. When Lizzie's lepidopterist father discovers Tinker Bell's existence, he wants to capture her for display in a London museum. Meanwhile, the other fairies—Vidia, Silvermist (Lucy Liu, Kill Bill: Volume 1), Iridessa (Raven-Symone, The Cheetah Girls), Rosetta (Kristin Chenoweth, The West Wing), Bobble, and Clank—embark on a dangerous journey by foot to save their friend.

The first of the Disney Fairies movies, Tinker Bell was a clever adventure that provided Disney's most famous fairy with an origin story, while also cleverly tipping its hat to 1953's Peter Pan, the movie in which she was introduced. Though more epic and with plenty of action-packed entertainment, Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure didn't really advance the mythos or play satisfactorily with the events in J.M. Barrie's classic story. It was a fun movie, but not as clever as the original. In many ways, Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue feels more like a direct sequel to Tinker Bell than its predecessor. Set on the human mainland a decade or so before Peter Pan's adventures with Wendy Darling, the story includes numerous nods to the Tinker Bell of the 1953 film: her discovery that pixie dust enables human beings to fly (which leads to a few gorgeously animated sequences of a child defying gravity), and the revelation that other fairies may understand Tink's speech but, as in Peter Pan, humans hear her voice as a jingling bell. While impetuous and a little klutzy in Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure, Tink never gets worked up and angry in that movie the way she does in Peter Pan. Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue features a scene in which she flies off the handle at Lizzie's father, pantomiming her fury to the clamor of tinkling bells; it is the closest yet that any of the three Disney Fairies movies has come to presenting the character exactly as she is in Peter Pan. Most important, Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue does a fine job of laying the groundwork for Tinker Bell alone among the other fairies having a special connection to people—a fact that has obvious import for our heroine's later adventures. The Disney Fairies movies are, in many ways, far removed from Peter Pan, but their careful attention to Tinker Bell as an iconic character makes them entirely satisfying.

As with the previous Disney Fairies movies, Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue delivers some beautifully animated and exciting action. Highlights include the fairies' trek across the rain-soaked countryside and near-death experience in a mud puddle; their evasion of the Griffiths family cat as they leap across dinner plates floating in the kitchen via the magic of pixie dust; and Tinker Bell's race through the bowels of an automobile in a frenzied attempt to save Vidia, who has been jarred and is being taken to a museum by Lizzie's father. In addition, all of the scenes of flight—whether involving the fairies or Lizzie—are fast-paced, beautifully framed, and vertiginous. Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue may have been made with little girls in mind, but it's not a dainty affair. Tinker Bell and the other fairies are action heroines, through and through. They face real danger and overcome it with fearless ingenuity and derring-do. The movie a thoroughly modern tale with a subtext of female empowerment that teaches young ones the importance of personal integrity and acting in the interest of one's community, while also delivering genuine drama, exciting action, and age-appropriate laughs. It's good stuff.

When Pixar honcho John Lasseter was named chief creative director of Disney Animation Studios, he gutted the direct-to-DVD division on the grounds that most of the productions weren't up to Disney snuff and only served to dilute the company's most beloved brands. The Disney Fairies line was one of the few productions spared. It's no wonder. If the 3D computer animation of the three Tinker Bell movies isn't quite up to the quality of big-budget theatrical features, then it's awfully close. The movies may not be as staggeringly gorgeous as WALL-E, but they're nearly as rich and detailed as any of the Shrek movies. Character movement is fluid and impressive, while their faces are supple and full of emotion. Backgrounds are stunningly rich in detail; they explode with vibrant color. Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue is gorgeous in high definition. The 1080p/AVC transfer presents the film in the 16:9 aspect ratio. More than any other studio, Disney has a grasp of how to deliver superb high def home video. The quality of their releases—whether animated or live action—is consistently stellar. If the digital transfer of Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue isn't perfect, it's close enough to fool me. Colors are spectacular, and every detail of the animation is immaculately rendered. There are no digital artifacts of any kind. The visuals are reference quality.

Audio is presented in a DTS-HD Master Audio track that is crisp and clean, but leans too heavily on the front soundstage. The prevalence of thunderstorms throughout the story presented the disc's authors with the opportunity to assemble a truly dynamic audio mix. Unfortunately, that opportunity was largely wasted. Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue doesn't sound bad, but it could be better.

Each of the previous Tinker Bell movies was a bit of a disappointment in the extras department. Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue doesn't break the cycle—in fact, it has an even slimmer, weaker batch of supplements than the other movies.

There are three deleted scenes with optional introductions to each by director Brad Raymond and producer Helen Kalafatic. The scenes are unfinished, presented in an animated storyboard format. The entire reel runs 14 minutes in length. There's also a music video for "How to Believe," performed by Bridgit Mendler (Good Luck Charlie). The clip combines scenes of Mendler performing with shots from the movie. A Games and Activities section on the menu leads to "Fairy Field Guide Builder," an interactive featurette that combines trivia quizzes with constructing a virtual scrapbook. Finally, a Backstage Disney section contains a two-minute featurette that challenges kids to design their own model fairy houses, like Lizzie Griffith's.

The keepcase also houses a separate DVD presentation of the movie. It is a standard definition copy of the Blu-ray, right down to the extras.

Disney has yet to strike out with any of their Tinker Bell movies. Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue is an even better entry in the series than its predecessor, Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure (which itself was plenty of fun). This Blu-ray offers an impeccable transfer of 3D computer animation that is of such high quality that the movie really could play theatrically. If your child is a fan of the series, don't hesitate to grab this disc. Even if you don't yet have a Blu-ray player, future-proof your collection by nabbing this two-disc set, which contains the feature and all of the supplements on both BD and DVD.

Did we give Tinker Bell And The Great Fairy Rescue (Blu-Ray) a fair trial? yes / no

What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.

Studio: Disney
Video Formats:
• 1.78:1 Non-Anamorphic (1080p)
Audio Formats:
• DTS HD 5.1 Master Audio (English)
• Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround (French)
• Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround (Spanish)
Subtitles:
• English (SDH)
• French
• Spanish
Running Time: 77 Minutes
Release Year: 2010
MPAA Rating: Rated G
Genres:
• Adventure
• Animation
• Blu-ray
• Disney
• Family
• Fantasy

• Deleted Scenes
• Music Video
• Activities
• DVD Copy

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Charade: Criterion Collection (Blu-Ray)

Would someone please remove the orange from under Judge Clark Douglas' chin?

It's a guessing game of mirth and mystery!

"Of course, you won't be able to lie on your back for a while but then you can lie from any position, can't you?"

The lovely Regina Lambert (Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's) has just returned to Paris after a pleasant ski vacation in Switzerland. She needed the relaxation, as she's about to divorce her husband. Alas, she soon makes a series of startling discoveries. First, her apartment has been ransacked. Second, her husband has been murdered. Third, her husband recently participated in the theft of $250,000. Fourth, he was in possession of the money until recently, but now it's gone missing. Worst of all, Mr. Lambert's sinister partners in crime Tex Panthollow (James Coburn, The Great Escape), Leopold W. Gideon (Ned Glass, Save the Tiger and Herman Scobie (George Kennedy, Cool Hand Luke) are now in pursuit of the missing cash and will stop at nothing to get it.

Though flustered and frustrated, Regina still finds time for romance (it is Paris, after all), striking up a relationship with the charming Peter Joshua (Cary Grant, North by Northwest), who quickly volunteers to help Regina locate the missing cash and fend off the bad guys. Alas, he hasn't told her what he's planning to do with the money once he's helped her locate it. So begins a tale of mystery, romance, adventure and betrayal—Charade!

It's a reliable formula that's been popular for decades: two movie stars are unexpectedly thrust into the midst of an action-packed adventure, trading quips and falling in love with each other along the way. Hitchcock did this in films like The 39 Steps and To Catch a Thief, while more recently we've seen it in such films as the Tom Cruise/Cameron Diaz vehicle Knight & Day and the forthcoming Johnny Depp/Angelina Jolie lark The Tourist. However, it has been persuasively argued that the king of all such films is Charade, which offers the impossibly delightful pairing of Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. Yes, the film is lightweight, silly, playful fluff—but it's about as good as lightweight, silly, playful fluff gets.

The film was directed by Stanley Donen, whose pleasant, easygoing personality is reflected in the films he made. His achievements include such charmers as Singin' in the Rain, Funny Face, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Bedazzled. Delightful as these films are (and it's hard to dispute the idea that Singin' in the Rain is his masterpiece), Charade will always hold a special place in my heart as my favorite Donen flick. No, it isn't a perfect film or even a terribly ambitious one, but it does what it does so well and with such smile-inducing wit that I've found myself returning to it again and again.

The film is a blatantly commercial affair, but this is a prime example of Old Hollywood crowd-pleasing at its finest. Made in 1963, the film feels like one of the last great hits of the old establishment; part of the last batch of innocent, carefree treats that dominated the movies before the walls were torn down and a new generation of ambitious, edgy filmmakers conducted their revolution. Donen's direction is crisp and breezy, Peter Stone's screenplay is loaded with delightful exchanges ("How about making me vice president in charge of cheering you up?"), Henry Mancini's frothy score energetically invites the viewer to revel in the proceedings and Charles Lang's cinematography captures Paris at its loveliest.

However, the whole thing would be disposable were it not for the skills of the two stars at its core. Has there ever been an actress as naturally appealing as Audrey Hepburn, or an actor as effortlessly charming as Cary Grant? Critics tend to pay high compliments to movie stars on occasion by likening them to Hepburn or Grant, but no one could ever replace the unique presence of either star. Of course, great movie stars sometimes simply fail to generate great chemistry, but thankfully that wasn't a problem for the stars of Charade. Hepburn and Grant seem delighted at the opportunity to play off each other; each actor enhances the other tremendously. They were the quintessential movie stars of their generation, and though both have greater films on their resume than Charade, there is perhaps no better film to demonstrate why they were so beloved.

Grant and Hepburn are backed up by a terrific supporting cast, with James Coburn and George Kennedy seeming to have a particularly good time chewing on the scenery. It's worth noting that while violence and death play a significant role in the proceedings, such scenes are generally handled in such a playful manner that they do nothing to dampen the mood. It's as if the film is saying, "Hey, it's only a movie." Walter Matthau is effective as the no-nonsense CIA man, whose presence brings the level of required gravitas to a handful of scenes that aren't quite so cheerful.

Charade was released and then re-released by Criterion on DVD in the past, and it's nice to see them add the title to their library of hi-def titles. As you might expect, Charade lands on Blu-ray with a sparkling 1080p/1.85:1 transfer (its original aspect ratio, despite the fact that a Universal DVD release presented it in 2.35:1). The Blu-ray release is a pretty significant improvement from the DVD, which is particularly noteworthy given that Criterion's DVD releases sometimes look nearly as good as their HD counterparts. The image is cleaner, brighter and benefits from considerable depth. Detail is excellent, with a faint layer of natural grain present throughout. Flesh tones are warm and accurate. The mono audio is also clean and clear, with a vibrant soundtrack and blemish-free dialogue. Sound design is surprisingly nuanced at times for a film of this age.

I only have one small complaint with this release, which is that Criterion still hasn't afforded Charade the lavish attention in the supplemental department that most of its other releases receive. All you get is the same old recycled commentary with Donen and Stone (a charming listen, to be sure), a trailer and the usual Criterion booklet. This flick is ripe for a meaty retrospective documentary. Ah, well.

If you haven't seen Charade, you're in for a treat. If you're a longtime fan of the film such as myself, you'll be delighted to discover that it looks better than ever. It's worth an upgrade, to be sure.

Did we give Charade: Criterion Collection (Blu-Ray) a fair trial? yes / no

What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.

• Commentary
• Trailer
• Booklet

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The Peacemaker (Blu-Ray)

Judge Gordon Sullivan wants someone to make a piece of pepperoni with peppers and extra cheese for him.

How do you get the world's attention?

Let me take you back, dear reader, to the heady days of 1997. In those strange, backwater times the great George Clooney was still known primarily as a hunky doctor on E.R.. His forays onto the big screen had impressed cult fans (in From Dusk Till Dawn) and annoyed the comic book crowd (in Batman and Robin), but he'd yet to hook up with the man who would demonstrate his full potential, Steven Soderbergh, for Out of Sight. In between these extremes he worked with veteran director Mimi Leder and silver screen siren Nicole Kidman for some old-school action hijinks in The Peacemaker. The result is a solid entry for all involved. Even if The Peacemaker (Blu-ray) is just a straight port of a so-so DVD release, the film is worth watching for action fans.

As The Peacemaker opens, someone on the inside of the Russian military is working to explode a nuclear device being transported on a Russian train. When the smoke clears, Lt. Colonel Thomas Devoe (George Clooney, Out of Sight) and Dr. Julia Kelly (Nicole Kidman, Australia) put two and two together and realize that the explosion wasn't a terrorist act but a cover so that the other nuclear weapons on the train could be stolen and sold. Now Devoe and Kelly have to track down the missing nukes, a job which will take them all over the world in a race against time.

Although it wasn't intentional, I sat down to watch The Peacemaker on the anniversary of September 11th. Considering the film's plots of nuclear terrorism and U.S. intervention, it seemed an appropriate moment to reflect. However, rather than reflecting on terrorism or life post-9/11, The Peacemaker got me thinking about how they don't make action films like they used to. I'm not usually one to decry "MTV-style editing" or anything like that, but there's a definite old school vibe to The Peacemaker that's refreshing. The film opens with a 10-plus minute scene that plays nearly silently as we see the Russian nukes hijacked and the train exploded. It's a tight, tense scene that kept me riveted, but also exactly the kind of scene you're unlikely to see in a film these days, especially as the opening.

The next set of scenes put me in mind of Howard Hawks' classic films from the '30s and '40s, especially those with Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. No, The Peacemaker isn't a screwball comedy. However, George Clooney has the same kind of comic/dramatic mix of charm and infuriating arrogance that made Cary Grant such a fine actor, and Nicole Kidman plays the intelligent women trapped in a man's world with equal aplomb. The sparks fly between these two from the moment they're introduced, and the plot gives them plenty of opportunities to show their stuff.

Speaking of the plot, it's a tight little example of post-Soviet era international espionage. Amongst the bad guys we see a nice mix of idealism and money grubbing greed. The political message—that getting involved in the affairs of other countries can have disastrous consequences for individuals—is an important one, but never handled too heavily. All the pieces fall together in a neat little package that includes a slam-bang finale.

If there's one thing bad I can say about The Peacemaker it's that the film is sometimes too well done for its own good. It feels a little too generic sometimes because everything is neatly and cleanly executed. The film is too well structured to take any risks, and because it doesn't take any risks it doesn't really push any boundaries or limits on the genre.

This Blu-ray is a hi-def port of the old DVD from everything I can tell. The upgrade in the audiovisual department is only so-so. During the film's brighter, more vibrant scenes, the AVC encoded transfer looks great, with lots of sharp details and color saturation. However, the darker scenes suffer from blocky blacks and occasional noise. It's still very watchable, just not reference quality. The DTS-HD soundtrack is appropriately clear, with big booms for the explosions and nicely rendered dialogue. However, I found myself reaching for the volume knob pretty frequently as the balance between dialogue and effects wasn't the greatest.

The few extras pretty much define short and sweet. First up is a five-and-a-half-minute collection of "stunt footage" that mixes on-set cameras with the film's finished scenes to show how the stunts contributed to the film's final look. Then, we get three minutes of gag reel that sticks with Clooney and Kidman, and the two are remarkably charming when they flub lines. Finally, we get the film's theatrical trailer.

The Peacemaker is a solid entry in the '90s canon of action flicks. It doesn't quite rise to the top because of its by-the-numbers approach, but any fan of Clooney or Kidman will likely enjoy the film's twists and turns. Those who love the film will probably see little reason to upgrade: the video does look better than DVD can offer, but not so much to make this a must-own. For other action fans, this disc is worth at least a rental.

The Peacemaker throws together a winning pair in Clooney and Kidman. For that, it's not guilty.

Did we give The Peacemaker (Blu-Ray) a fair trial? yes / no

What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.

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