Sunday, November 20, 2011

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

  • Choose from multiple authentic character classes, each with their own signature weapons and killing moves.
  • As Ezio, a legendary Master Assassin, experience over 15 hours of single player gameplay set in the living, breathing
  • Recruit and train promising young Assassins. Deploy them across the city as you see fit, or call upon them to aid you in your quests
  • Collaborate with real historical characters such as Leonardo da Vinci, Niccolo Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza
  • Swiftly eliminate your enemies using tools such as poison darts, parachutes, double hidden blades, hidden guns
Live and breathe as Ezio, a legendary Master Assassin, in his enduring struggle against the powerful Templar Order. He must journey into Italy’s greatest city, Rome, center of power, greed and corruption to strike at the heart of the enemy. Defeating the corrupt tyrants entrenched there! will require not only strength, but leadership, as Ezio commands an entire Brotherhood who will rally to his side. Only by working together can the Assassins defeat their mortal enemies and prevent the extinction of their Order. And for the first time, introducing a never-before-seen multiplayer layer that allows you to choose from a wide range of Assassin characters, each with their own unique weapons and assassination techniques, and match your skills against other Assassins from around the world. It’s time to join the Brotherhood.
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood is an epic action game for PlayStation 3 set across a blend of present and historical time periods, that places the player in the role of the leader of a Renaissance-era guild of assassins out for vengeance against the remnants of the Knights Templar. Set primarily in Rome, this sequel to the critically acclaimed Assassin's Creed II ! features returning characters from the previous game and inclu! des new features such as the ability to command members of your guild in combat, a new arsenal of weapons and multiplayer game support in which players can assume different assassin characters.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood game logo
Ezio flanked by some of the members of the Assassin's Brotherhood from Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Command the members of your assassin's guild in single player and become them in multiplayer.
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Ezio perched on the rim of a ruined collosium of Rome in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Explore the glory and faded grandeur of Renaissance-era Rome.
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Story
Live and breathe as Ezio, a legendary Master Assassin, in his enduring struggle against the powerful Templar order. He must journey into Italy’s greatest city, Rome, center of power, greed and corruption to strike at the heart of the enemy. Defeating the corrupt tyrants entrenched there will require not only strength, but leadership, as Ezio commands an entire brotherhood of assassins who will rally to his side. Only by working together can the assassins defeat their mortal enemies and prevent the extinction of their order.

Multiple Ways to Play
Expanding on the game world woven across the first two games in the franchise, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood provides players with mult! iple ways to play. In single player mode you take on an engrossing campaign playing as Ezio, the hero from Assassin's Creed II, who has now risen to the level of Master Assassin. Here players scour the expansive environment of Renaissance-era Rome, tasked with ridding the Eternal City of the continuing stain of the Templars and in the process ensuring the survival of the guild of assassins. You are not in this alone though. Additional AI members of your guild are at your command, and can be summoned to your aid if need be. In addition to this, for the first time in the Assassin's Creed franchise players can compete with other would-be assassins in multiplayer action. In multiplayer modes players choose from a range of Assassin characters, each with their own backstory, unique weapons and assassination techniques. Choose your assassin character, utilize the virtual reality capabilities of Abstergo Industries' Animus technology and match your skills against othe! r assassins from around the world. There's no time like now to! join th e Brotherhood.

Deadly Weapons Arsenal
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood features a wide variety of weapons, depending on the mode of play. In single player players primarily utilize Ezio's weapons of choice, the hidden blade and crossbow, while in multiplayer modes players gain access to a wide variety of weapon, depending on the character they choose to play as. Examples of this include: the Axe, wielded by the Executioner; the Fan, used by the Courtesan; the Syringe, the tool by the Doctor; the Dagger, used by the Priest; the Switchblade, carried by the Prowler; and the Claw, used by the Nobleman.

Key Game Features

  • As Ezio, a legendary Master Assassin, experience over 15 hours of single player gameplay set in the living, breathing, unpredictable city of Rome.
  • Recruit and train promising young Assassins. Deploy them across the city as you see fit, or call upon them to aid you in your quests.
  • Collaborate with real hi! storical characters such as Leonardo DA Vinci, Niccolo Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza.
  • Use your hard-won currency to revitalize the crumbling capital city. Rally the citizens to your cause and unlock extra factions and missions.
  • Swiftly eliminate your enemies using tools such as poison darts, parachutes, double hidden blades, hidden guns, and an advanced flying machine at your disposal.
  • Choose from multiple authentic character classes, each with their own signature weapons and killing moves. With richly-detailed maps and a wide variety of unique multiplayer modes, you’ll never fight the same way twice.

International Arrivals Black Nylon Barcelona Zippered Pouch, 12 x 8 Inches (113-30b)

  • Versatile nylon pouch
  • Front zippered mesh pocket, zippered interior pouch and velcro back pocket
  • Perfect for travel, menus or home storage
  • Measures 12 x 8 Inches
"A shockingly imaginative graphic novel that captures the sense of adventure and wonder that surrounds a new arrival on the shores of a shining new city. Wordless, but with perfect narrative flow, Tan gives us a story filled with cityscapes worthy of Winsor McCay." -- Jeff Smith, author of Bone

"A magical river of strangers and their stories!" -- Craig Thompson, author of Blankets

"Magnificent." -- David Small, Caldecott Medalist

In a heartbreaking parting, a man gives his wife and daughter a last kiss and boards a steamship to cross the ocean. He's embarking on the most painful yet important journey of his life - he's leaving home to build a better future for his family. Shaun Tan evokes univers! al aspects of an immigrant's experience through a singular work of the imagination. He does so using brilliantly clear and mesmerizing images. Because the main character can't communicate in words, the book forgoes them too. But while the reader experiences the main character's isolation, he also shares his ultimate joy.

It's early summer when Ginny and William's peaceful life in Vermont comes to an abrupt halt.

First, their daughter Lillian arrives, with her two children in tow, to escape her crumbling marriage. Next, their son Stephen and his pregnant wife Jane show up for a weekend visit, which extends indefinitely when Jane ends up on bed rest. When their youngest daughter Rachel appears, fleeing her difficult life in New York, Ginny and William find themselves consumed again by the chaos of parenthood - only this time around, their children are facing adult problems.

By summer's end, the family gains new ideas of loyalty and responsibility, ! exposing the challenges of surviving the modern family - and t! he old a dage, once a parent, always a parent, has never rung so true.It's early summer when Ginny and William's peaceful life in Vermont comes to an abrupt halt.

First, their daughter Lillian arrives, with her two children in tow, to escape her crumbling marriage. Next, their son Stephen and his pregnant wife Jane show up for a weekend visit, which extends indefinitely when Jane ends up on bed rest. When their youngest daughter Rachel appears, fleeing her difficult life in New York, Ginny and William find themselves consumed again by the chaos of parenthood - only this time around, their children are facing adult problems.

By summer's end, the family gains new ideas of loyalty and responsibility, exposing the challenges of surviving the modern family - and the old adage, once a parent, always a parent, has never rung so true.A human embryo is allowed to preview the world before deciding whether to be born. The embryo, named Prospect, is given a starter kit of human k! nowledge, and his consciousness is inserted into a synthetic twenty-year-old body. To help him make up his mind, he will meet a range of people. Among them, a greeting card writer who excels at sympathy cards, and Prospect's very own inscrutable parents. Trish Mesmer is the scientist charged with counseling Prospect, though she has more hidden agendas then a centipede has legs. Big Farm Technologies, the sponsor of the bio-experiment, exerts pressure on Mesmer to see a return on their formidable investment. At the same time, Trevor Grueling grows increasingly committed to derailing the bio-experiment all together, for personal reasons all his own. This cautionary tale is served up with equal helpings of whimsy and dread, with just a dash of hope. Those who appreciate the trippy, modern world on display in the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" or in the novels of the cool, Japanese writer Haruki Murakami may find themselves at home in this book.Versati! le nylon pouch with front zippered mesh pocket, zippered inter! ior pouc h and velcro back pocket. Measures 12 x 8 Inches.

Chloe New for Women. Eau De Parfum Spray 2.5-Ounces

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Casanova

  • Heath Ledger stars as the legendary Casanova, the world s most notorious seducer, a master of disguise and wit. It was said no woman could resist his amorous charms. But Casanova has finally met his match in the fiery intelligent beauty Francesca portrayed by Sienna Miller. Academy Award® winner Jeremy Irons also stars in this scandalously fun adventure from the director of Chocolat. Set in t
Casanova is back as you've never seen him before! The Eisner Award winning team of Matt Fraction (INVINCIBLE IRON MAN, UNCANNY X-MEN) and Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon (UMBRELLA ACADEMY, DAYTRIPPER, PIXU) bring their appropriately iconic book to ICON! FULL SIZE! FULL COLOR! REMASTERED and REBORN! Meet Casanova Quinn, morally flexible and terminally directionless, as he gets abducted across space and time to infiltrate his own father's E.M.P.I.R.E. of law and order. Featuring an all-new bonus story by Fra! ction and Moon. This is the book GQ called "devastatingly geeky-and brilliant."

COLLECTING:

Casanova: Arc One #1-4

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.Heath Ledger, Academy Award(R) nominee (Best Actor, BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, 2005), stars in the scandalously funny adventure CASANOVA. After a lifetime of women falling head over heels in love with him, the world's legendary ladies' man (Ledger) meets the love of his life -- the one woman who thinks he's a total heel. Comic chaos ensues in a hilarious whirl of misadventures, disguises, and mistaken identities as the love-struck Casan! ova tries to win the heart of the fiery feminist who wants not! hing to do with the man she thinks he is.A light farce dressed up as a lush 18th century costume drama, Casanova gives a fictional spin to the exploits of history's most rakish seducer of women. As played by Heath Ledger, this Casanova bears no resemblance to Donald Sutherland's unrepentant portrayal in Fellini's Casanova, filmed 30 years earlier. Instead, the great ladies' man of Venice is just biding time by bedding women, waiting for true love (and the return his long-absent mother) to settle down into blissful monogamy. He finds true love in Francesca (Sienna Miller), a feminist who initially resists Casanova's affections while director Lasse Hallström serves up a variety of lightweight subplots including Casanova's flight from the Vatican's inquisitor (Jeremy Irons); a host of mistaken identities involving, among others, the portly "Lard King of Genoa" (played with scene-stealing perfection by Oliver Platt in a blubbery fat suit); and the romantic negotiations of! Francesca's mother (played by Hallström’s wife, Lena Olin) and a young bumbler named Giovanni with his own promising future as a lover of women. It all adds up to a good-looking and harmless diversion that barely warrants an R-rating, and it makes a fine double-bill with the more enjoyable Dangerous Beauty, another Venetian lover’s tale that was also blessed by the presence of Platt, who gives this Casanova the majority of its entertainment value. --Jeff Shannon

Cliffhanger [Blu-ray]

  • Condition: New
  • Format: Blu-ray
  • AC-3; Color; Dolby; Dubbed; Subtitled; Widescreen
A mountain climber who has lost his nerve finds himself on a rescue mission involving millions of stolen Treasury dollars and ruthless criminals.
Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure
Rating: R
Release Date: 2-MAY-2006
Media Type: DVDCliffhanger was a 1994 comeback of sorts for action hero Sylvester Stallone, this time thanks to director Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2 and Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master) and some spectacularly rugged and vertigo-inducing high-mountain terrain. The opening sequence alone delivers what the title promises, and there's a doozy of an airplane stunt that was later reprised, with modifications, in Air Force One. Stallone, looking as tough and craggy as the mountains themselves, is a rescue climbe! r who finds himself going after a gang of crooks (headed by John Lithgow in his bad-guy mode) who've hijacked a U.S. Treasury plane and crash landed in the Rockies (played by the Italian Dolomites) with millions of bucks. --Jim Emerson Sarah was an inexperienced climber. She trusted Gabe to rescue her. But something went wrong high above the valley floor...Sylvester Stallone, John Lithgow, Michael Rooker, Janine Turner and Ralph Waite star in this high-altitude avalanche of action: a non-stop adventure peak with suspense and capped with heart-quaking terror. For Rocky Mountain Rescue, the mission is almost routine: locate five climbers. With the woman he loves (Turner) and his best friend (Rooker), Gabe Walker (Stallone) braves the icy peaks only to discover that the distress call is really a trap set by merciless international terrorist Eric Qualen (Lithgo! w). Now millions of dollars and their own lives hang in the ba! lance. A gainst explosive firepower, bitter cold, and dizzying heights, Walker must outwit Qualen in a deadly game of hide-and-seek.
Cliffhanger was a 1994 comeback of sorts for action hero Sylvester Stallone, this time thanks to director Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2 and Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master) and some spectacularly rugged and vertigo-inducing high- mountain terrain. The opening sequence alone delivers what the title promises, and there's a doozy of an airplane stunt that was later reprised, with modifications, in Air Force One. Stallone, looking as tough and craggy as the mountains themselves, is a rescue climber who finds himself going after a gang of crooks (headed by John Lithgow in his bad-guy mode) who've hijacked a U.S. Treasury plane and crash landed in the Rockies (played by the Italian Dolomites) with millions of bucks. Outrageous action-packed, snow-packed, and scenery-packed! chase sequences (featuring whirring helicopters, whooshing skis, popping gunfire, and clanging pitons that earned the movie Oscar nominations for sound and sound editing) take full advantage of the digital video disc's Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. --Jim Emerson

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)

!










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)










SEMI PRO - DVD MovieThe 1970s are back in all their exces! sive glory in Semi-Pro, an uneven but not uninspired Will Ferrell comedy about a professional basketball team that puts more energy into insane promotional schemes than playing well on the court. Ferrell stars as Jackie Moon, a former pop sensation who made enough money from a couple of hit records (the biggest: "Love Me Sexy") to buy Flint, Mich.'s the Tropics, a disorganized bunch of losers with one genuine talent named Coffee Black (Andre J. Benjamin). Despite knowing little about the game, Jackie is the Tropics' coach as well as a player, though his greater love is in coming up with such bizarre marketing stunts as wrestling a bear and attempting a motorcycle jump over a line of cheerleaders. When the Tropics look like they might be shut down, Jackie desperately agrees to let washed-up veteran player Monix (Woody Harrelson) take over coaching, turning the team's fortunes around--just a bit. The film's thin premise opens the floodgates to a series of absurd vignet! tes that suit Ferrell's silly-satiric brand of frat humor very! well. T here are choice moments, such as Jackie's table-shoving tantrum at a meeting of team owners (presided over by an aghast but tolerant commissioner, adroitly played by David Koechner), and his rapid escape from the Tropics' arena when he realizes everyone in the stands has won free corndogs (at Jackie's expense). Other performers shine, too, including Will Arnett and Andrew Daly as a glass-half-full/glass-half-empty pair of game announcers, and Maura Tierney as Monix's former love interest. The script is by Scot Armstrong (The Heartbreak Kid), and the film is the first directorial effort of producer Kent Alterman (Mr. Woodcock). --Tom KeoghTake 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-a! ddicted, 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 Fairc! hild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life w! ife, 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 w! hy 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

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Stills from Blades of Glory (click for larger image)

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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 with really 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 t! o a swee t 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 knee-slappin' funny that you can't help but surrender to the stupidity.

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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