Monday, November 28, 2011

Blood Diamond (Widescreen Edition)

  • An ex-mercenary turned smuggler (Leonardo DiCaprio). A Mende fisherman (Djimon Hounsou). Amid the explosive civil war overtaking 1999 Sierra Leone, these men join for two desperate missions: recovering a rare pink diamond of immense value and rescuing the fisherman's son, conscripted as a child soldier into the brutal rebel forces ripping a swath of torture and bloodshed across the alternately bea
An ex-mercenary turned smuggler (Leonardo DiCaprio). A Mende fisherman (Djimon Hounsou). Amid the explosive civil war overtaking 1999 Sierra Leone, these men join for two desperate missions: recovering a rare pink diamond of immense value and rescuing the fisherman's son, conscripted as a child soldier into the brutal rebel forces ripping a swath of torture and bloodshed across the alternately beautiful and ravaged countryside. Directed by Edward Zwick (Glory, The Last Samurai), this urgent, intense! ly moving adventure shapes gripping human stories and heart-pounding action into a modern epic of profound impact.Leonardo DiCaprio puts a handsome face on an ugly industry: In parts of Africa, diamond mining fuels civil warfare, killing thousands of innocents and drafting preteen children as vicious soldiers. DiCaprio (The Departed) plays Danny Archer, a white African soldier-turned-diamond-smuggler who gets wind of a large raw jewel found by Solomon Vandy, a native fisherman (Djimon Hounsou, In America) recently escaped from enslavement by a brutal rebel leader. Archer offers a deal: He'll help Vandy find his war-scattered family if Vandy will share the diamond with him. Drawn into this web of exploitation is journalist Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly, Little Children), who agrees to help if Archer will tell her the details of how conflict diamonds make their way into the hands of the corporations who sell them to the Western world. DiCaprio is compell! ing because he never flinches from Archer's utter ruthlessness! ; Archer ends up doing the morally justifiable thing, but only because his desperate greed has led him to it. Hounsou and Connelly, though saddled with all the moral and political speeches, rise above the cant and keep the movie's treacherously formulaic plot rooted in human characters. But in the end, the story won't stick with you as much as the dead stillness in the child soldiers' eyes; the horror of African civil strife refuses to be contained by Blood Diamond's uplifting message--and the movie is all the more potent as a result. --Bret Fetzer

Dreamgirls (Widescreen Edition)

  • Actors: Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Jennifer Hudson, Beyoncé Knowles.
  • Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC.
  • Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1).
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only).
  • DVD Release Date: May 1, 2007. Run Time: 130 minutes.
Director Bill Condon brings Tom Eyen's Tony award-winning Broadway musical to the big screen in a tale of dreams, stardom, and the high cost of success in the cutthroat recording industry. The time is the 1960s, and singers Effie (Jennifer Hudson), Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose), and Deena (Beyoncé Knowles) are about to find out just what it's like to have their wildest dreams come true. Discovered at a local talent show by ambitious manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx), the trio known as "the Dreamettes" is soon offered the once-! in-a-lifetime opportunity of opening for popular singer James "Thunder" Early (Eddie Murphy). Subsequently molded into an unstoppable hit machine by Taylor and propelled into the spotlight as "the Dreams," the girls quickly find their bid for the big time taking priority over personal friendship as Taylor edges out the ultra-talented Effie so that the more beautiful Deena can become the face of the group. Now, as the crossover act continues to dominate the airwaves, the small-town girls with big-city dreams slowly begin to realize that the true cost of fame may be higher than any of them ever anticipated.The spirit of Motown runs through the long-awaited film adaption of the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, which centers around a young female singing trio who burst upon the music scene in the '60s, complete with bouffant hairdos, glitzy gowns, and a soul sound new to the white-bread American music charts. Sound familiar? You aren't the first one to draw comparisons to th! e meteoric rise of the Supremes, and despite any protests to t! he contr ary, this is most definitely a thinly veiled reinterpretation of that success story. The Dreamettes--statuesque Deena (Beyonce Knowles), daffy Lorell (Anika Noni Rose) and brassy Effie (Jennifer Hudson)--are a girl group making the talent-show rounds when they're discovered by car salesman and aspiring music manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx). Sensing greatness (as well as a new marketing opportunity) Curtis signs the Dreamettes as backup singers for R&B star James "Thunder" Early (Eddie Murphy). But when Early's mercurial ways and singing style don't mesh with primarily white audiences, Curtis moves the newly-renamed Dreams to center stage--with Deena as lead singer in place of Effie. And that's not the only arena in which Effie is replaced, as Curtis abandons their love affair for a relationship with star-in-the-making Deena.

Besides the Supremes comparison, one can't talk about Dreamgirls now without revisiting its notorious Oscar snub; though it received ! eight nominations, the most for any film from 2006, it was shut out of the Best Picture and Director races entirely. Was the oversight justified? While Dreamgirls is certainly a handsomely mounted, lovingly executed and often vibrant film adaptation, it inspires more respect than passion, only getting under your skin during the musical numbers, which become more sporadic as the film goes on. Writer-director Bill Condon is definitely focused on recreating the Motown milieu (down to uncanny photographs of Knowles in full Diana Ross mode), he often forgets to flesh out his characters, who even on the Broadway stage were underwritten and relied on powerhouse performances to sell them to audiences. (Stage fans will also note that numerous songs are either truncated or dropped entirely from the film.) Condon has assembled a game cast, as Knowles does a canny riff on the essence of Diana Ross' glamour (as opposed to an all-out impersonation) and Rose makes a peripheral char! acter surprisingly vibrant; only Foxx, who never gets to pour ! on the c harisma, is miscast. Still, there are two things even the most cranky viewers will warm to in Dreamgirls: the performances of veteran Eddie Murphy and newcomer Jennifer Hudson. Murphy is all sly charm and dazzling energy as the devilish Early, who's part James Brown, part Little Richard, and all showman. And Hudson, an American Idol contestant who didn't even make the top three, makes an impressive debut as the larger-than-life Effie, whose voice matches her passions and stubbornness. Though she sometimes may seem too young for the role, Hudson nails the movie's signature song, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," with a breathtaking power that must be seen and heard to believe. And for those five minutes, if not more, you will be in Dreamgirls' thrall. --Mark Englehart

Beyond Dreamgirls


Other Musicals on DVD

More Motown on DVD

The Soundtrack

Stills from Dreamgirls (click for larger image)











District 13: Ultimatum

  • Two years have passed since elite police officer Damien Tomasso (Cyril Raffaelli) teamed up with reformed vigilante Leito (parkour originator David Belle) to save the notorious District 13, a racially charged ghetto populated by violent drug dealing gangs and vicious killers. Despite government promises to maintain order, the state of the district has deteriorated, and a group of corrupt cops and
With bone crunching fights and death defying leaps, this adrenaline charged follow-up takes the groundbreaking parkour action from DISTRICT B13 to thrilling new heights. (Fangoria)
Two years have passed since elite police officer Damien Tomasso (Cyril Raffaelli) teamed up with reformed vigilante Leito (David Belle) to save the notorious District 13, a racially charged ghetto populated by violent drug dealing gangs and vicious killers. Despite government promises to maintain order, the state of th! e district has deteriorated. A group of corrupt cops and elected officials conspire to cash in on the redevelopment of the district by proposing its destruction under nuclear air strike. Damian and Leito must join forces again, using their martial arts and unique physical skills, to bring peace to the neighborhood by any means necessary.Get ready to chase across rooftops, shatter plate-glass windows, and vanquish the enemy with a priceless van Gogh canvas (explanation forthcoming): the agile battlers from District B13 (a.k.a. Banlieue 13) are back. As played by David Belle (one of the inventors of the building-hopping practice called parkour) and Cyril Raffaelli, the two expert head-knockers from the first film return to fight yet another serious threat against the walled-off neighborhood in a slightly futuristic Paris. This time some corrupt government officials have a devious plot to raze the slum and funnel the rebuilding contracts to their payoff-happy cor! porate pals at Harriburton (a name that bears absolutely no re! semblanc e to any real-life corporate behemoth). Wisely delaying the reunion of our heroes, the movie opens with Raffaelli's epic throw-down against a gang of desperadoes, which he executes while wielding the van Gogh painting as a shield/weapon. Nice. Then Belle gets onstage for a typically graceful parkour workout across various buildings. This action, especially in its overblown, belief-defying later stages, has more than its share of fromage, but isn't that what we expect from writer-producer Luc Besson? Ultimatum isn't as sleek and effective as the first movie, but it has enough deft action and buddy-picture one-liners to justify its existence--and Belle and Raffaelli bristle with real movie-star appeal, especially when doing their Butch-and-Sundance routine. The ending suggests another sequel will need to have a very different setting, but that might not be such a bad thing. --Robert Horton

Koch 3211593 1-1/2 Cable Block, Fixed Eye, Zinc Plated

  • Cable block has a fixed eye and is zinc plated
  • Sheave diameter is 1-1/2-inch
  • Maximum rope size is 3/16-inch
  • Capacity is 420 pounds
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Newsweek columnist takes on the presidents Bush, Mr. and Mrs. Clinton, Y2K, 9/11, trickle-down economics, Brooks Brothers suits, the essence of golf, and of course, those damn Yankees.

"It has taken me sixty years to identify the three keys to a happy life," writes George Will. "A flourishing family, hearty friends, and a strong bullpen." The title of this book -- Will's seventh collection of newspaper and magazine pieces, book reviews, speeches, and occasional writings -- is taken from the W. H. Auden poem "The Horatians," which dictates that we look at this world with a happy eye but from a sober perspective.

And so it is with a happy eye indeed that Will shares his vision of Ame! rica just before and after the birth of the twenty-first century. Featuring five years' worth of observations on politics, current affairs, and international relations, With a Happy Eye But...is a brilliantly diverse collection from America's most widely known commentator at his sober, happy, and controversial best.Webster's bibliographic and event-based timelines are comprehensive in scope, covering virtually all topics, geographic locations and people. They do so from a linguistic point of view, and in the case of this book, the focus is on "Eye," including when used in literature (e.g. all authors that might have Eye in their name). As such, this book represents the largest compilation of timeline events associated with Eye when it is used in proper noun form. Webster's timelines cover bibliographic citations, patented inventions, as well as non-conventional and alternative meanings which capture ambiguities in usage. These furthermore cover all parts of speech (p! ossessive, institutional usage, geographic usage) and contexts! , includ ing pop culture, the arts, social sciences (linguistics, history, geography, economics, sociology, political science), business, computer science, literature, law, medicine, psychology, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and other physical sciences. This "data dump" results in a comprehensive set of entries for a bibliographic and/or event-based timeline on the proper name Eye, since editorial decisions to include or exclude events is purely a linguistic process. The resulting entries are used under license or with permission, used under "fair use" conditions, used in agreement with the original authors, or are in the public domain.

The True Story of Charlie Wilson (History Channel)

  • No one suspected that playboy Congressman Charlie Wilson and his partner Gust Avrakotos--an aggressive CIA agent nicknamed Dr. Dirty --would mastermind the covert arming of the Afghan Mujahideen in what became the largest and most successful campaign in CIA history. THE TRUE STORY OF CHARLIE WILSON profiles this unorthodox alliance, and chronicles the epic journey the two men undertook to guara
Academy Award® winners Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman star in this compelling and witty film from Oscar®-winning director Mike Nichols and Primetime Emmy®-winning writer Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing). Based on the outrageous true story, Charlie Wilson's War shows how one congressman who loved a good time, one Houston socialite who loved a good cause and one renegade CIA agent who loved a good fight conspired to bring about the largest covert operation in history.Political movies ! about backroom negotiations need not be dry or heavy-handed, as Charlie Wilson's War delightfully proves. Based on the true story of playboy congressman Wilson's efforts to fund Afghanistan's defense against the Soviet invasion of the 1980s, the film is borne along on breezy attitude and a peppery script by West Wing scribe Aaron Sorkin. Wilson, played by Tom Hanks (who also produced), is the perfect hero for this kind of tale, because there's nothing perfect or heroic about him: He's a highball-swilling, fanny-pinching gadabout who becomes radicalized on the issue of helping the Afghans against their mighty aggressor. He has help in the form of a right-wing Texas anti-Communist (Julia Roberts) with a genius for raising money, and a sardonic CIA operative (Philip Seymour Hoffman, stealing the show) who lacks all the social skills Wilson has in abundance. Sorkin's syncopated speech is just the ticket for director Mike Nichols, who understands exactly how to ke! ep this kind of political comedy popping (the complicated stor! y comes in at a hair over 90 minutes, amazingly). Some scoundrels are on the right side of the angels, and the movie's Charlie Wilson is one of them. --Robert Horton


Beyond Charlie Wilson's War on DVD


More Tom Hanks

Films by Mike Nichols

More Julia Roberts



Stills from Charlie Wilson's War (Click for larger image)

!











Academy Award® winners Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman star in this compelling and witty film from Oscar®-winning director Mike Nichols and Primetime Emmy®-winning writer Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing). Based on the outrageous true story, Charlie Wilson's War shows how one congressman who loved a good time, one Houston socialite who loved a good cause and one renegade CIA agent who loved a good fight conspired to bring about the largest covert operation in history.Political movies about backroom negotiations need not be dry or heavy-handed, as Charlie Wilson's War delightfully proves. Based on the t! rue story of playboy congressman Wilson's efforts to fund Afghanistan's defense against the Soviet invasion of the 1980s, the film is borne along on breezy attitude and a peppery script by West Wing scribe Aaron Sorkin. Wilson, played by Tom Hanks (who also produced), is the perfect hero for this kind of tale, because there's nothing perfect or heroic about him: He's a highball-swilling, fanny-pinching gadabout who becomes radicalized on the issue of helping the Afghans against their mighty aggressor. He has help in the form of a right-wing Texas anti-Communist (Julia Roberts) with a genius for raising money, and a sardonic CIA operative (Philip Seymour Hoffman, stealing the show) who lacks all the social skills Wilson has in abundance. Sorkin's syncopated speech is just the ticket for director Mike Nichols, who understands exactly how to keep this kind of political comedy popping (the complicated story comes in at a hair over 90 minutes, amazingly). Some scoundrels ! are on the right side of the angels, and the movie's Charlie W! ilson is one of them. --Robert Horton


Beyond Charlie Wilson's War on DVD


More Tom Hanks

Films by Mike Nichols

More Julia Roberts



Stills from Charlie Wilson's War (Click for larger image)











A gripping and vibrant book soon to be released as a major motion picture starring Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts and directed by Mike Nichols, Charlie Wilson’s War was a New York Times, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times best seller when it was published in 2003. Crile’s book is the true story of how a Texas Congressman and a rogue CIA agent conspired to launch the biggest, meanest, and most successful CIA campaign ever — the operation to fund the mujahideen in their fight against the Soviet army that had invaded Afghanistan. Moving from the back rooms of the Capitol to secret chambers at Langley, from arms dealers’ conventions to the Khyber Pass, Charlie Wilson’s War presents an astonishing chapter of our rec! ent past, and the key to understanding what helped trigger the sudden collapse of the Soviet Union and ultimately led to the emergence of a brand-new foe in the form of radical Islam.
No one suspected that playboy Congressman Charlie Wilson and his partner Gust Avrakotos--an aggressive CIA agent nicknamed Dr. Dirty --would mastermind the covert arming of the Afghan Mujahideen in what became the largest and most successful campaign in CIA history.

THE TRUE STORY OF CHARLIE WILSON profiles this unorthodox alliance, and chronicles the epic journey the two men undertook to guarantee the success of their freedom fighters. Now, THE HISTORY CHANNEL examines the unforeseen and far-reaching effects of the CIA s efforts to assist the Afghan rebels in the fight against the Soviet Union--namely, the Afghan uprising against the West. Revealing the full story behind the Hollywood blockbuster Charlie Wilson s War, THE TRUE STORY OF CHARLIE WILSON penetrates the inner-workings ! of the CIA to uncover the men and the designs that have return! ed to ha unt America today.

Blue Tooth Virgin

  • BLUE TOOTH VIRGIN, THE (DVD MOVIE)
When David, a magazine editor, gives his best friend’s latest screenplay a negative review, he hilariously learns that sometimes the truth isn’t always the best policy. Starring Bryce Johnson, Amber Benson, Karen Black and Roma MaffiaA writer asks a writer friend for his honest, truthful, no-holds-barred opinion on a newly-completely screenplay. This can only end badly. The Bluetooth Virgin is the concentrated tale of this dire situation, rolled out in a series of discrete scenes that (appropriately enough for a movie about writing) highlight the word above all else. Sam (Austin Peck) is the author looking for feedback, and David (Bryce Johnson) is his pal, a magazine editor; the script in question has the frankly terrible title of The Bluetooth Virgin. One high point comes early, on the golf course, as David's initial encouraging reactions to the piece ! gradually give way to admitting that, well, the script had a lot of problems. Primarily a batch of two-person dialogues, the movie also gets boosts from Lauren Stamile and a formidable Karen Black. Writer-director Russell Brown arranges the movie around the Mamet-esque exchanges of his characters, who are generally not really wanting the thing they say they're wanting. This sort of assertively "written" dialogue can be exciting to listen to, especially in an age that values a lax naturalism in movie dialogue, and Brown has a fine ear for self-delusion. The danger in such an approach, and Brown doesn't elude it, is that such a movie can feel like a self-contained system, without room for breath or uncertainty. But it's an undeniably clever system. --Robert Horton

Fair Game

  • Jessica, a beautiful young woman, alone on an isolated outback farm in Australia, becomes the unwilling participant in a series of dangerous games with three shooters. At first they are content to tease and shock her, but when they star shooting on her land and endangering wildlife she is forced to take a stand. One by one, Jessica's avenues of escape are destroyed and she is forced to fight f
From the director of The Bourne Identity comes this riveting thriller inspired by the experiences of real-life CIA officer Valerie Plame (Academy Award® nominee Naomi Watts). When Plame's retired ambassador husband Joe Wilson (played by Academy Award® winner Sean Penn) writes a newspaper article challenging the basis for the U.S. war on Iraq, the White House leaks Plame s undercover status leaving her international contacts vulnerable, her career in shambles and her life in danger. Crackling with shar! p dialogue, gripping intrigue and heart-pounding suspense, Fair Game is the adventure that s so unbelievable, it can only be realThe skullduggery surrounding the Valerie Plame affair is already the stuff of an espionage thriller, even if at the time of the making of Fair Game many details of the incident remained murky. Naomi Watts plays Plame, a longtime CIA agent whose classified status was exposed to the world by columnist Robert Novak in 2003. The move was widely seen as retaliation for the fact that Plame's husband, diplomat Joseph Wilson (Sean Penn), had just written an op-ed piece contradicting an assertion in President Bush's State of the Union address--an assertion that was part of the Bush administration's drum-beating enthusiasm for the Iraq War. The movie can't answer all the questions about who wanted Plame exposed, but at the least it could create a convincing piece of Beltway intrigue. Instead, Fair Game steers in the direction of domestic melod! rama, as the marriage between Plame and Wilson is severely tes! ted by t he unwanted notoriety. It's not that the actors are unable to bring this situation to life; Penn is forceful (and he cleverly suggests the vanity of a longtime cocktail-party maven), while Watts, though quite capable, is somewhat frozen by her character's mixed, ambivalent reactions. The main problem is simply that these relationship scenes tip the balance, as though the Plame-Wilson marriage carried greater weight than allegations of weapons of mass destruction and the ramp-up to the Iraq War. Meanwhile, director Doug Liman tries to whip up some spy-movie "energy" with lots of noise and cutting, all of which feels increasingly hollow as the movie goes along. A calmer, cleaner documentary on the same subject might do a superior job someday. --Robert HortonPlames status as a cia agent was revealed by white house officials allegedly out to discredit her husband after he wrote a 2003 new york times op-ed piece saying that the bush administration had manipulated intellige! nce about weapons of mass destruction to justify the invasion of iraq. Studio: Uni Dist Corp. (summit) Release Date: 03/29/2011 Starring: Naomi Watts Sean Penn Run time: 107 minutes Rating: Pg13 Director: Doug LimanThe skullduggery surrounding the Valerie Plame affair is already the stuff of an espionage thriller, even if at the time of the making of Fair Game many details of the incident remained murky. Naomi Watts plays Plame, a longtime CIA agent whose classified status was exposed to the world by columnist Robert Novak in 2003. The move was widely seen as retaliation for the fact that Plame's husband, diplomat Joseph Wilson (Sean Penn), had just written an op-ed piece contradicting an assertion in President Bush's State of the Union address--an assertion that was part of the Bush administration's drum-beating enthusiasm for the Iraq War. The movie can't answer all the questions about who wanted Plame exposed, but at the least it could create a convincing pi! ece of Beltway intrigue. Instead, Fair Game steers in t! he direc tion of domestic melodrama, as the marriage between Plame and Wilson is severely tested by the unwanted notoriety. It's not that the actors are unable to bring this situation to life; Penn is forceful (and he cleverly suggests the vanity of a longtime cocktail-party maven), while Watts, though quite capable, is somewhat frozen by her character's mixed, ambivalent reactions. The main problem is simply that these relationship scenes tip the balance, as though the Plame-Wilson marriage carried greater weight than allegations of weapons of mass destruction and the ramp-up to the Iraq War. Meanwhile, director Doug Liman tries to whip up some spy-movie "energy" with lots of noise and cutting, all of which feels increasingly hollow as the movie goes along. A calmer, cleaner documentary on the same subject might do a superior job someday. --Robert HortonAN ATTORNEY AND A COP ON THE RUN FROM A HIGH TECH CRIME RINGTHAT CAN TRACK THEIR EVERY MOVE.She's a lawyer. He's a cop. Som! e former KGB-types with a wide variety of slippery accents and enough sophisticated technological surveillance gadgets to make one wonder how the Soviet Union could have possibly failed, want her dead. The cop (William Baldwin) is the only man who can save her. It helps that the high-powered attorney is played by Cindy Crawford, who gives new meaning to the phrase "habeas corpus." So the plot doesn't make any sense: First they try to kill her, no questions asked. Then they capture her and spill their guts about all the details of their nefarious plan. But logic is not what Fair Game is about. It's about explosions, car crashes, and more explosions. The only pauses in the action are for showers (one for Baldwin, two for Crawford) and a change of clothing (Crawford slips out of a tight T-shirt into an even tighter tank top). The best feature of the DVD is the addition of a Gallic track. With very little actual sex in the movie, having the main characters ! conversing in French definitely adds some sauciness to the di! alogue s cenes. --Richard Natale

Patricia Briggs, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Mercy Thompson novels, "always enchants her readers." (Lynn Viehl, New York Times bestselling author) Now her Alpha and Omega series-set in a world of shifting shapes, loyalty, and passion- brings werewolves out of the darkness and into a society where fear and prejudice could make the hunters prey...

They say opposites attract. And in the case of werewolves Anna Latham and Charles Cornick, they mate. The son-and enforcer-of the leader of the North American werewolves, Charles is a dominant alpha. While Anna, an omega, has the rare ability to calm others of her kind.

Now that the werewolves have revealed themselves to humans, they can't afford any bad publicity. Infractions that could have been overlooked in the past must now be punished, and the strain of doing his father's dirty work is taking a toll on Charles.

Nevertheless, Charle! s and Anna are sent to Boston, when the FBI requests the pack's help on a local serial killer case. They quickly realize that not only the last two victims were werewolves-all of them were. Someone is targeting their kind. And now Anna and Charles have put themselves right in the killer's sights...

FROM THE EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF THE BOURNE FILMS COMES THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING SEAN PENN AND NAOMI WATTS

Based on Fair Game, Valerie Plame Wilson’s historic and unvarnished account of the personal and international consequences of speaking truth to power.On July 6, 2003, four months after the United States invaded Iraq, former ambassador Joseph Wilson's now historic op-ed, "What I Didn't Find in Africa," appeared in The New York Times. A week later, conservative pundit Robert Novak revealed in his newspaper column that Ambassador Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame Wilson, was a CIA operative. The public disclosure of that secret informati! on spurred a federal investigation and led to the trial an! d convic tion of Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Scooter Libby, and the Wilsons' civil suit against top officials of the Bush administration. Much has been written about the "Valerie Plame" story, but Valerie herself has been silent, until now. Some of what has been reported about her has been frighteningly accurate, serving as a pungent reminder to the Wilsons that their lives are no longer private. And some has been completely false--distorted characterizations of Valerie and her husband and their shared integrity.

Valerie Wilson retired from the CIA in January 2006, and now, not only as a citizen but as a wife and mother, the daughter of an Air Force colonel, and the sister of a U.S. marine, she sets the record straight, providing an extraordinary account of her training and experiences, and answers many questions that have been asked about her covert status, her responsibilities, and her life. As readers will see, the CIA st! ill deems much of the detail of Valerie's story to be classified. As a service to readers, an afterword by national security reporter Laura Rozen provides a context for Valerie's own story.

Fair Game is the historic and unvarnished account of the personal and international consequences of speaking truth to power.



Read the First Chapter from Fair Game

Joining the CIA
Our group of five--three men and two women--trekked through an empty tract of wooded land and swamp, known in CIA terms as the "Farm." It was 4 a.m. and we had been on the move all night. Having practiced escape and evasion from an ostensible hostile force--our instructors--we were close to meeting up with our other classmates. Together we would attack the enemy, then board a helicopter to safety. This exercise, called the final assault, was the climax of our paramilitary! training. Each of us carried eighty-pound backpacks, fill! ed with essential survival gear: tents, freeze-dried food, tablets to purify drinking water, and 5.56 mm ammunition for our M-16s. The late fall weather was bitter, and slimy water sloshed in our combat boots. A blister on my heel radiated little jabs of stinging pain. My friend Pete, a former Army officer, usually ready with a wisecrack and a smirk, hadn't spoken in hours, while John, our resident beer guzzler, carried not only his backpack but at least fifty extra pounds of body weight. His round face was covered with mud and sweat.

Read the Publisher's Note and First Chapter from Fair Game




FROM THE EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF THE BOURNE FILMS COMES THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING SEAN PENN AND NAOMI WATTS

Based on Fair Game, Valerie Plame Wilson’s historic and unvarnished account of the personal and international consequences of speaking truth to power.FAIR GAME - DVD ! MovieFROM THE EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF THE BOURNE FILMS COMES THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING SEAN PENN AND NAOMI WATTS

Based on Fair Game, Valerie Plame Wilson’s historic and unvarnished account of the personal and international consequences of speaking truth to power.On July 6, 2003, four months after the United States invaded Iraq, former ambassador Joseph Wilson's now historic op-ed, "What I Didn't Find in Africa," appeared in The New York Times. A week later, conservative pundit Robert Novak revealed in his newspaper column that Ambassador Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame Wilson, was a CIA operative. The public disclosure of that secret information spurred a federal investigation and led to the trial and conviction of Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Scooter Libby, and the Wilsons' civil suit against top officials of the Bush administration. Much has been written about the "Valerie Plame" story, but Valerie herself ! has been silent, until now. Some of what has been reported! about h er has been frighteningly accurate, serving as a pungent reminder to the Wilsons that their lives are no longer private. And some has been completely false--distorted characterizations of Valerie and her husband and their shared integrity.

Valerie Wilson retired from the CIA in January 2006, and now, not only as a citizen but as a wife and mother, the daughter of an Air Force colonel, and the sister of a U.S. marine, she sets the record straight, providing an extraordinary account of her training and experiences, and answers many questions that have been asked about her covert status, her responsibilities, and her life. As readers will see, the CIA still deems much of the detail of Valerie's story to be classified. As a service to readers, an afterword by national security reporter Laura Rozen provides a context for Valerie's own story.

Fair Game is the historic and unvarnished account of the personal and international ! consequences of speaking truth to power.



Read the First Chapter from Fair Game

Joining the CIA
Our group of five--three men and two women--trekked through an empty tract of wooded land and swamp, known in CIA terms as the "Farm." It was 4 a.m. and we had been on the move all night. Having practiced escape and evasion from an ostensible hostile force--our instructors--we were close to meeting up with our other classmates. Together we would attack the enemy, then board a helicopter to safety. This exercise, called the final assault, was the climax of our paramilitary training. Each of us carried eighty-pound backpacks, filled with essential survival gear: tents, freeze-dried food, tablets to purify drinking water, and 5.56 mm ammunition for our M-16s. The late fall weather was bitter, and slimy water sloshed in our combat boots. A blister on my hee! l radiated little jabs of stinging pain. My friend Pete, a! former Army officer, usually ready with a wisecrack and a smirk, hadn't spoken in hours, while John, our resident beer guzzler, carried not only his backpack but at least fifty extra pounds of body weight. His round face was covered with mud and sweat.

Read the Publisher's Note and First Chapter from Fair Game




Jessica, a beautiful young woman, alone on an isolated outback farm in Australia, becomes the unwilling participant in a series of dangerous games with three shooters. At first they are content to tease and shock her, but when they star shooting on her land and endangering wildlife she is forced to take a stand. One by one, Jessica's avenues of escape are destroyed and she is forced to fight for her life. Jessica sets up whatever makeshift defenses she can and waits for the inevitable showdown. In the mayhem of the climax her farm is reduced to smoking ruins, but her courage and endur! ance proves to be a match for the brute strength of man and machine

Big Fish

  • Anamorphic widescreen
  • Aprox 125 minutes
  • Special Features section
  • English/french Subtitles
  • Pg 13
Throughout his life Edward Bloom (Ewan McGregor) has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, portrayed by five-time Best Actor Oscar(r) nominee Albert Finney (Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Erin Brockovich, 2000), he remains a huge mystery to his son, William (Billy Crudup). Now, to get to know the real man, Will begins piecing together a true picture of his father from flashbacks of his amazing adventures in this marvel of a movie.After a string of mediocre movies, director Tim Burton regains his footing as he shifts from macabre fairy tales to Southern tall tales. Big Fish twines in and out of the oversized stories of Edward Bloom, played as a young man by Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge, Down with Lo! ve) and as a dying father by Albert Finney (Tom Jones). Edward's son Will (Billy Crudup, Almost Famous) sits by his father's bedside but has little patience with the old man's fables, because he feels these stories have kept him from knowing who his father really is. Burton dives into Bloom's imagination with zest, sending the determined young man into haunted woods, an idealized Southern town, a traveling circus, and much more. The result is sweet but--thanks to the director's dark and clever sensibility--never saccharine. Also featuring Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman, Helena Bonham Carter, Danny DeVito, and Steve Buscemi. --Bret FetzerThroughout his life Edward Bloom (Ewan McGregor) has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, portrayed by five-time Best Actor Oscar nominee AlbertFinney (Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Erin Brockovich, 2000), he remains a huge mystery to his son, William (Billy Crudu! p). Now, to get to know the real man, Will begins piecing toge! ther a t rue picture of his father from flashbacks of his amazing adventures in this marvel of a movie.After a string of mediocre movies, director Tim Burton regains his footing as he shifts from macabre fairy tales to Southern tall tales. Big Fish twines in and out of the oversized stories of Edward Bloom, played as a young man by Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge, Down with Love) and as a dying father by Albert Finney (Tom Jones). Edward's son Will (Billy Crudup, Almost Famous) sits by his father's bedside but has little patience with the old man's fables, because he feels these stories have kept him from knowing who his father really is. Burton dives into Bloom's imagination with zest, sending the determined young man into haunted woods, an idealized Southern town, a traveling circus, and much more. The result is sweet but--thanks to the director's dark and clever sensibility--never saccharine. Also featuring Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman, Helena Bonham Carter, Danny! DeVito, and Steve Buscemi. --Bret FetzerThroughout his life Edward Bloom (Ewan McGregor) has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, portrayed by five-time Best Actor Oscar® nominee Albert Finney (Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Erin Brockovich, 2000), he remains a huge mystery to his son, William (Billy Crudup). Now, to get to know the real man, Will begins piecing together a true picture of his father from flashbacks of his amazing adventures in this marvel of a movie.After a string of mediocre movies, director Tim Burton regains his footing as he shifts from macabre fairy tales to Southern tall tales. Big Fish twines in and out of the oversized stories of Edward Bloom, played as a young man by Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge, Down with Love) and as a dying father by Albert Finney (Tom Jones). Edward's son Will (Billy Crudup, Almost Famous) sits by his father's bedside but has little patience wit! h the old man's fables, because he feels these stories have ke! pt him f rom knowing who his father really is. Burton dives into Bloom's imagination with zest, sending the determined young man into haunted woods, an idealized Southern town, a traveling circus, and much more. The result is sweet but--thanks to the director's dark and clever sensibility--never saccharine. Also featuring Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman, Helena Bonham Carter, Danny DeVito, and Steve Buscemi. --Bret FetzerThroughout his life Edward Bloom(Ewan McGregor) has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, portrayed by five-time Best Actor Oscar nominee Albert Finney (Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Erin Brockovich, 2000), he remains a huge mystery to his son, William (Billy Crudup). Now, to get to know the real man, Will begins piecing together a true picture of his father from flashbacks of his amazing adventures in this margel of a movie.
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