DVD | Reviews | Uinterview

'Girls' Blu-Ray: Witty Woes Of White Girls

12/21/2012

The debut episode of HBO’s Girls opens with a break-up of sorts: during a fancy dinner with her parents, Hannah (played by Girls creator, writer, and director Lena Dunham) learns that she won’t be receiving financial assistance anymore. Mom and Dad have been supporting her “groovy lifestyle” since her college graduation two years ago and they’ve had enough. Hannah appears shocked, if not mildly offended, an expression which will last the entire season. She defends her unemployed status.

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‘Paranorman’ DVD Is A Ghostly Treat

12/19/2012

Paranorman is the second stop-motion animation film from LAIKA, the creators of 2009’s critically-acclaimed Coraline. Featuring the voice talents of John Goodman, Jeff Garlin, Leslie Mann and Casey Affleck, among others, Paranorman is the story of Norman, a zombie-obsessed social outcast who can communicate with spirits. This ability is, ironically, worthy of condemnation in a Salem-esque town steeped in supernatural lore; the town’s monument is a creepy old witch, sentenced to die 300 years before.

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'Expendables 2' DVD: Senseless Fun With The Senior Set

12/10/2012

The sequel to 2010’s The Expendables is, in its simplest form, a continued celebration of past and present action film bad-asses, regardless of how old said bad-asses have become. It simultaneously lauds and jabs at the endurance of the actors made famous in in the 80s and early 90s, and doesn’t take itself too seriously (i.e. during the film’s climax, Arnold Schwarzenegger rehashes a famous Terminator zinger – can you guess which one?). It’s good old senseless fun. The film boasts the best of the best: Sylvester Stallone, Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris and Jason Statham, just to name a few.

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'Desperate Housewives Season 8': A Last Visit To Wisteria Lane

10/26/2012

The climactic season finale of Desperate Housewives came along with the sad goodbyes of desperation from fans everywhere. The astute and crafty women of Wisteria Lane have been in our lives as a guilty pleasure for so long, leaving us wondering if there will be anything to ever replace them. Much like their urban counterpart Sex and the City we can only anticipate an ideal follow up movie featuring the progression of the women who have vastly redefined suburban life forever. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here.

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These Are Not 'People Like Us'

10/26/2012

In the frantic opening scenes of People Like Us, Sam (Chris Pine) strides through companies, spitting out bull in rapid fire as a New York salesman. He does it all while wearing that slick squinty-eyed smile of the guy who knows he's good at this game of getting points by pulling fast ones. As it turns out, after he closes his latest deal, his boss (Jon Faverou) tells him that the FTC is going to be coming after him because of a poorly thought-out transfer of tomato juice. When Sam gets home to his girlfriend Hannah (Olivia Wilde), she informs him that all those calls he had been ignoring all day from his mother were to let him know that his father had passed.

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'Marley' Sings Praises Of A Legend

10/15/2012

People tend to remember history in a way that accommodates them best, and such fickle notions shimmer greater when remembering someone else. Thankfully, director Kevin Macdonald (Last King Of Scotland) turns in a masterful, unbiased documentary in Marley, co-produced by the late legend’s son Ziggy Marley and with around 60 personal interviews from friends and family. By showcasing Marley’s life through intimate and rare footage, we get a glimpse of a man that struggled with acceptance his whole life.

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CelebSelect

Danielle Panabaker's Top Pop Picks
- Favorite Band: The Avett Brothers
  
  "I'm really into the Avett Brothers as of late."
- Favorite Book: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  
  "My girlfriends are I - we are very nerdy. We started a book club and the first book we read was Gone Girl."
- Favorite New Movie: Silver Linings Playbook
  
  "I thought it was a great film and I thought Jennifer Lawrence was incredible, you know those angry tears, I've certainly experienced that."
Paul Van Dyk: Current Favorites
- School of the Seven Bells
  
  The New York-based band unites Benjamin Curtis of "Secret Machines" and Alejandra Deheza. Formed in 2007, the duo is named after a mythical South American pickpocket training academy of the same name.
- Linkin Park
  
  The Californian rock veterans have come a long way since 'Hybrid Theory.' Back now with their fifth studio album in over a decade, 'Living Things' is one of Paul Van Dyck's favorite albums this year.
- Jupiter Jones
  
  The German punk rock band formed in 2002, but has already released several LPs, including an eponymously-named album in 2011.
- Depeche Mode
  
  The legendary Essex electronic band from the 80s remains a classic for Van Dyk. It was also recently among 'Q' magazine's "50 Bands That Changed The World!".
Cody Simpson
- Favorite Movie
  I'm still really into the Ocean's series. I got into them recently. I was always too young to watch them.
- Favorite Book
  This book called Contest by Matthew Reilly, he's an Australian author.
- Favorite Album
  Drake's Take Care — big fan of that
- Favorite TV Show
  The Mentalist
Styx's Lawrence Gowan
- Bossypants by Tina Fey
  
  "That’s got me laughing hysterically on airplanes."
- Making Mirrors by Goyte
  
  "I thought that was a tremendous record."
- The Artist
  
  "It really impressed me."
- Keane
  
  "They’re really strong."
90210's Michael Steger: My Favorite Stuff
- Favorite TV Show: Rome
  
  HBO's series starring Cirian Hinds
- Favorite Album: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
  
  "Either that or The Gypsy Kings."
- Favorite Book: The Fountainhead
  
  "Probably my favorite book of all time."
- Favorite New Movie: Attack The Block
  
  “It reminded me of The Goonies.”