Lust, Caution (Widescreen Edition) (2007) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Ang Lee breaks through again with a masterful adaptation of Eileen Chang's short story, Lust/Caution (like what he did with Annie Prolux's similarly brief story, Brokeback Mountain). While the hype seems to be mostly misplaced on the controversial acrobatics displayed by Tony Leung and Tang Wei in bed, Lee's storytelling leaves one breathless.
The love story unfolds against the backdrop of 1930's Japanese-invaded Shanghai where tyranny and suffering were synonymous. Nubile Wang Jia Zhi played by Tang Wei joins the resistance movement and gets herself drawn into the role of a spy to crumble the traitor, Mr Yee. In between the espionage and wild climatic trysts, both of them unknowingly embroil themselves in love and deceit, much deeper than they would have liked themselves to.
Tang Wei, as a newcomer to cinema, is impeccable. Her evolution from a wide-eyed country girl to a seductive temptress is enough to make the hardest of most men, in this case, the distrusting Mr. Yee fall for her. Wei acts pretty much on instincts and her body language does wonders at seducing the somewhat vulnerable Mr. Yee played by multiple-award winner Tony Leung. Wei breaks down in the memorable scene where she's talking to the resistance leader on her unyieldingly sacrificial role that is both a torment and insidious attack to her emotions.
As usual, Tony has the penchant for playing dark brooding men and in this instance, an evil Chinese traitor. He does not act. His presence already commands attention as the cynical no-nonsense minister. The pivotal sex scenes, split into three parts, are not just there for visual enhancement. They actually convey the shift in roles between the two throughout their complex relationship. The raw emotions displayed on their faces were enough to convince anyone hard-hearted to think twice about the essence of love. I must say these are some of the best bed scenes you'll ever witness on film.
Of course, the supporting cast of Joan Chen as Mrs Yee and Wong Lee-Hom as Tang Wei's resistance compatriot, Kuang Yu Min, is every bit just as spectacular. In the end, the story about love is bittersweet. You'll also see how fervent the resistance movement, which puts the enemy above self and others, was through Wang Jia Zhi's eyes. Lust Caution is 157 minutes' of rewarding watch that will linger on in your minds well after the credits roll. (A+)


Click Here to see more reviews about: Lust, Caution (Widescreen Edition) (2007)

Provocative, thrilling and passionate, Lust, Caution is the daring new film from acclaimed Academy Award®-winning director Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). Set against the backdrop of a transforming country,a young woman finds herself swept up in a radical plot to assassinate a ruthless and secretive intelligence agent. As she immerses herself in her role as a cosmopolitan seductress, she becomes entangled in a dangerous game that will ultimately determine her fate. Erotic, breathtaking and suspenseful, this award-winning film is being called "exquisitely beautiful" (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times) and "lushly sensual" (Leah Rozen, People).

Get 37% OFF

Click here for more information about Lust, Caution (Widescreen Edition) (2007)

The Erotic Dreams of Jeannie Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Erotic Dreams of Jeannie is, you guessed it, a softcore parody of the "I Dream of Jeannie" television series. This was my first Retromedia title, so I didn't know what to expect. From the description of the release I was a little worried that I wouldn't get too much actual softcore. Fortunately, that wasn't the case, and what they advertise about the release isn't really what ended up on the DVD: "Full of parody, political satire, and hip insider humor ...". Okay, I can agree on the parody, but political satire? Hip insider humor? I must have missed that part. "... a laugh-filled special effects-laden spoof ...". Now this is accurate. There were many places I was laughing at the pathetically bad special effects that were used.
But, on to what counts. This video delivered nicely in the sex department. There are six sex scenes. Three are boy/girl, two are girl/girl, and one is boy/girl/girl. All the women were gorgeous and included pornstar Nicole Sheridan and softcore veteran Beverly Lynne. There were two other women who were also very attractive. The sex was decently explicit and filmed well. The sounds of the actors were still audible during the scenes and all scenes went to completion.
Extras included a still gallery and a commentary track from a couple of people involved in the movie's production. I listened to a bit of it, and it sounded interesting, so I'll probably go back later and listen to the whole thing.
This is a good video, but Retromedia could have done better. The actual movie only ran about sixty-five minutes. But in order to pad out the runtime to make it appear like a full length film, the opening and closing credits are stretched out to run as long as they possibly can. There was plenty of opportunity to fit in one or two more sex scenes. They also need to advertise their product better. Like I said before, it isn't very clear that this is a softcore video, and I can imagine people passing it up because of that. I also had no idea that Beverly Lynne was in this video until I watched it. She's a softcore hall of famer. Why they didn't have her name on the outside packaging is beyond me.
For the price, this is a good release and I recommend it. I'll probably be checking out other Retromedia releases, but they aren't going to achieve the distinction of studios like Playboy or Surrender unless they improve their quality and value. They've got some beautiful women and talent, they just need to use both of them more effectively.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Erotic Dreams of Jeannie

In a remote cave in Moronico, an Army major uncovers a strange treasure chest containing a beautiful bottle with one sexy surprise: a gorgeous genie (Nicole Sheridan)! Back in America no one believes his story, and soon the Major's in hot water with his future father-in-law who, along with his daughter, is plotting to get his hands on Tony#s $6 million inheritance. Packed with parody, political satire and hip humor, here's a laugh-filled, effects-laden spoof that'll leave you breathless!

Click here for more information about The Erotic Dreams of Jeannie

Family Business -The Complete First Season (2003) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)It would have been easy (and probably expected) for a reality series on the porn industry to showcase nothing but the most shocking. While there's plenty of nudity and a few on-set scenes that pushes the limits of even pay television, this series succeeds because it allows you to see that porn is a business (almost) like any other, and the people involved can be pretty normal. Everybody is extremely likable - Adam is the hip, badly dressed drinking buddy, his mother is the caregiver concerned about her son's lack of a significant other, and Cousin Steve is the cantankerous relative who you can't help but love despite his lack of tack. Even the porn actors and actresses that frequent each episode are not the stereotypical strung-out sluts willing to be degraded for a few bucks. Instead, they're seen as fun-loving women (and men)who love their job. I'm sure some of this viewpoint is intentional on Glasser's part, but this is easily one of the most enjoyable reality tv series I've ever seen...it certainly beats the Real World, Average Joe, and those wretched Bacherlor/Bachelorette cretins.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Family Business -The Complete First Season (2003)

Family Business is a reality-style series about Adam Glasser and hisalter-ego "Seymour Butts", his meddling but well-meaning mom, Lila, and hiscantankerous cousin Stevie, all working in, yes, the family business . . . which justhappens to be adult entertainment! The series follows Adam as he faces the sameproblems that many people encounter – running his own company, juggling a hecticschedule, and looking for the love of his life. *Contains adult content, graphic language, nudity, and strong sexual content.

Click here for more information about Family Business -The Complete First Season (2003)