Description

Includes CSI Seasons 1-4 ... Read more

Amazon.com

Jean-Claude Van Damme stars as maverick cop Lou Burke, the only lawman tough enough to go undercover in a prison recently plagued by suspicious deaths. Posing as a hardened con, Burke stands up to sadistic guards and makes martial arts mincemeat out of brutal inmates, all the while investigating those mysterious murders. Following the standard Van Damme formula at the height of the actor's B-picture popularity, the script essentially inserts him in a series of increasingly nasty situations from which he then has to kick, punch, and chop his way out. For services rendered, the Muscles from Brussels gets to kiss Cynthia Gibb, who plays a lawyer assigned the dubious task of posing as Burke's wife. With Van Damme safely tucked into his story formula, a slightly more discriminating viewer can find pleasure in a supporting performance from Robert Guillaume (as an aging inmate), while freakier types will enjoy top-drawer nemesis the Sandman (Patrick Killpatrick), a psycho killing machine who forces poor Burke to break a sweat. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Another Van Damme punchfest
Jean-Claude is at it again as a cop who goes undercover in the prison system to investigate a plot involving corruption among the cell guards.

The film heats up when Van Damme's arch-rival, a psychopathic killer who for some reason, which is never explained, can withstand bullets and other fatal moves, shows up at the prison and exposes him as an undercover cop.

If you're in for Van Damme, you know what to expect though this is a lot slower and less action-filled than a lot of his other features.

Van Damme takes it to a whole new level...
If you would of said Van Damme back in 1990,people would of responded he was in Bloodsport or Kickboxer which were simply martial art type of films.Van Damme stepped up to the level with Schwarzenegger and Stallone in this box-office hit.Even though jail movies have been done before like Stallones "Lockup" and Sean Penn's "Bad Boy's" Death Warrant took it into overtime,having a convincing villian in the "Sandman" and a believing hero in Van Damme.An undercover cop in jail?Dangerous if you ask me but Van Damme fights the odds and comes up victorious in an all out supercharged war.With fast pace kicks and fight sequences Van Damme is your ticket to nonstop action...

A LITTLE MEDIOCRE AT FIRST, BUT GIVE IT SOME TIME
A COP [VAN DAMME] IS ASSIGNED TO POSE AS A NEW INMATE AT A PRISON TO INVESTIGATE THE REASONS BEHIND A SERIES OF MURDERS THAT'RE HAPPENING AT THE PRISON. IT STARTS OUT KINDA BORING, BUT AFTER A WHILE, IT GETS BETTER. THIS MAY NOT RANK AMONGST THE BEST MOVIES THAT VAN DAMME HAS DONE, BUT IT IS A LOT BETTER THAN MANY OF THE VAN DAMME MOVIES THAT'VE CAME OUT IN RECENT YEARS. IT'S WORTH RENTING IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY SEEN THIS.

WOW!! Van Damne is in prison
I liked this movie, filled with a couple of fight scenes.At the end he fights the sandman,across Van Damne kicked his ass.This is a good slambanging Van Damne flick.

Van Damme in Prison!
Van Damme (immortal genius) goes undercover to investigate mysterious murders in a prison. That's the whole plot. How genius of the writers and director. He encounters "The Sandman" and fights him in front of the whole ward. "The Sandman" thought he was smooth by breaking a lightbulb and trying to hurt Van Damme with it. He didn't succeed and Van Damme kicked him with his trademark noise and facial expression. Ultimate appreciation for that lord. The man wouldn't go down; Van Damme tried everything, until an ultimate Van Damme kick sent him to destruction. Astonishing! ... Read more

Reviews (15)

An exciting and worthy action movie
"Terminal Velocity" is without a doubt Charlie Sheen's best action movie so far and one of the best skydiving movies. It's a Cold War story about a sky-diving instructor (Charlie Sheen) who has a not so great record. He unwillingly becomes involved in a major Russian scam after one of his students (Nastassja Kinski) cheats death and makes everybody think that she fell to her death when really she didn't. Now they both must try to avoid running into the Mafia so they can have a chance to stay alive.

"Terminal Velocity" is an action packed and exciting action movie. It has a lot of thrilling and exciting parts to it such as when Charlie Sheen is inside a car that is free falling down to earth. The skydiving sequences in the movie aren't the only good parts to it, however. It also has other good action packed sequences while Sheen and Kinski are eluding and running away from the Mafia, and it has some gun-shooting parts to it as well. The plot might be a bit choppy in parts, but it's still easy enough to figure out and the acting in the movie isn't bad either.

If you like good action movies that are fun to watch and suspenseful at the same time, I recommend getting "Terminal Velocity."

Action movie that delivers
Terminal Velocity is an action movie and it passes the first critical test of the genre-its action scenes are plentiful and well staged.The adrenaline rush of the quality action movie is here present and correct with plenty of moments that leave a viewer on the edge of the seat.
Charlie Sheen plays Brodie ,a flying and parachute instructor one of whose pupils is presumed killed while on her first parachute lesson.He is suspicious and discovers that his pupil is not only very much alive but is involved in a plot to prevent the Russian Mafia getting their hands on a gold shipment and thus further destabilising the newly emergent Russian state.The pair are pusued by the villains and there are car chases,aerial stunts (the last one in particular is stunning)and shotouts galore before the final resolution.
The problems start when the action stops -which is not very often.Sheen sleepwalks through the role and there is zero chemistry between him and Natassja Kinski as the KGB agent he becomes involved with.It is left to the bad guys as played by James Gandolfo and Christpher McDonald to steal the acting honours ,while the writers ability to write good dialogue lags well behind their ability to set up action scenes.
When the action is gping on -4 stars ;when the pace slows -2 stars.

PUT ON YOUR SEAT BELTS !!
I watched this film for the first time during a long distance plane journey, many years ago and I just had to rewind the tape and watch it all over again as the film just enthralled me.
It is far superior to many action films that have done better than this at the Boxoffice.
Charlie Sheen and Natassia Kinski have great chemistry and the dialogues between them are really funny and engaging.
The director Deran Serafian does a great job of keeping the action, suspense and the story moving along at a fast clip and the tongue-in cheek humor goes a long way to keep everything in perspective.
Trust me and jump in for the ride, you won't be disappointed.

hold on
a great ride, but Sheen seems misplaced in this one. Nastassja Kinski has never been sexier and awesomer. thrilling and action packed. the end with the windmills is the higlighted showdown

The SQUAD
What a milestone. BRILLIANT film. Ditch Brodie is the greatest of all skydiving he-men. Team this specialist of the air up with Gabe Cash (land), Casey Ryback (sea) and Special Agent Johnny Utah (land, air AND sea- he's a surfer remember) as the ultimate early 90s American League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the "Squad" for short). Make Bill Blazejowski their manager (why? cuz he's the best character in cinema history & besides Keaton needs the work). Set them against a gallery of rogues including Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber, Powers Boothe's Joshua Foss, Christopher Walken's Max Zorin and Kurtwood Smith's Clarence Boddicker (you know, the muscle) for the perfect match between good & evil. Package & sell it to Hollywood for a cool $100 million: I guarantee they'll make it back the first weekend, for who could resist? Long live Tripod. ... Read more

Description

Yasmine Bleeth (Nash Bridges, Baywatch) stars as a woman who accidentally cuts off a delivery driver (Jere Burns, Dear John, Good Morning, Miami) in congested traffic, triggering the man's fury and leading to an ever-escalating nightmare that also endangers the woman's husband and young daughter. With its many white-knuckle twists and turns, this tense nail-biter will keep you riveted to your seat! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Great if you don't own season 1 already
This is a Canadian release that I bought about 3 months before the complete season 1 was released (after which I had to find the Canadian release of the Early Cases vol. 2 to get the rest of season 1). As for the sound issue someone brought up, remember that this is only a Dolby Digital 2.0 recording, not a 5.1 like season 2. Therefore, you will really enhance your listening experience if you add a digital audio receiver with optical input and then listen to the episodes in Dolby ProLogic or ProLogic II. When I watch in PL II, I experience none of the problems you have encountered.

I think I know.....
I stumbled upon this item looking for information on the 3rd Season release. I've searched around on other sites and *apparently* this DVD set is the first 12 episodes of Season 1. It *apparently* is a Canadian release, but who knows. All I know is if you own the Season 1 set, don't buy this. Mind you, all this is second hand info, but I found it on a site I trust. I myself don't own this set, I do own the 1st & 2nd Season sets, though, and HIGHLY recommend them. Hope this helps.

Help Please?
Sooooo..... is this part of CSI the series? If so, where does it fit in? Is it a single DVD that's got stuff that's part of what's been released in a set, is it something completely different? ...I'm a bit confused and don't want to buy it if I'm going to get stuff that's already in the complete series set.

Anyone out there know?

Great show, really bad sound
My sister bought CSI: Early Cases. I'm watching the second episode right now. The show itself is great fun to watch, although I did have to get through the whole "it doesn't really work that way" thing (husband and dad are cops, friend is CSI).
My problem with this set is that the sound varies wildly in volume. Anything with music is too loud, anything with speech is too soft. There is no happy medium. I've been watching it with the subtitles on (a nice feature) because the sound is so bad.
The video looks good, but I probably wouldn't buy this for myself and I sure won't be buying the full series until I find out if the sound is better. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Good movie hurt by video format.
It is a shame Gunmen didn't get fair treatment when it was brought to DVD. Originally shot in 2.35:1 widescreen, the DVD and obviously, the video are only available in 1.33:1 full TV screen format. Almost half the picture is missing, and it shows. Even ignoring the lush scenery cut off, too often the characters' faces are missing from the frame. Even worse is that the DVD transfer is rotten. It may have been from a S-VHS master from what it looks like. It is full of film grain which compresses awfully on DVDs, making the entire movie look muddy.

This is a terrible shame because Gunmen is a fun, lightweight flick of two guys, one good, the other bad, forced to work together against a common enemy. There are many funny one liners, and the action scenes are pretty good, though low budget. Denis Leary is always fun to watch when he's angry or evil, and he's almost always both in Gunmen.

Horrible
Mario is a cop who is looking for some drug money. It was a waste of time for me to watch this. IMHO it was just poorly put together.

Congratulations Artisan, You've Ruined Another Great Movie
Gunmen is one of my favorite action movies, it's got great scenery, action galore, a fast pace, and great performances, especially from Denis Leary, who steals the show as villain Armor. However this DVD really hurts the film. It's presented in pan-and-scan with poor quality and so-so sound, and has no extras. Artisan ruined another great movie called Joshua Tree (or Army Of One, as the DVD cover for that movie incorrectly states) with the DVD, which featured a similar DVD transfer (very poor). I'd wait for a re-release with a better transfer and sound and with the film in it's OAR plus with some extras, like a commentary and making-of featurette...

"i gotta tell ya, I don't swallow"
Real nice B-grader, Lambert has a real flair for the comedy, if only the people behind the camera could make up their mind whether it's a action comedy, or action thriller.
Because it's certainly not the latter, but the laughs dry up a bit after the hilarious first half hour.
Leary always entertains as the bad guy as well.

Sigh! Artisan does it again.
This film was shot full anamorphic 2.35:1 Panavision and is full of gorgeous and pretty scenery. But just like they did with another Christopher Lambert film, Fortress and the Dolph Lundgren movie Joshua Tree they have released this in mutilated pan and scan format with about half the picture missing.

Gunmen is a lively and entertaining movie with a witty script, nonstop action and a first rate cast. Denis Leary once again nails the bad guy role to a tee and Lambert and Peebles (who starred together in Highlander 3) make for a great buddy team.

But I cannot recommend this movie to you on DVD. I waited so long for this to be released only to be dissapointed by the lack of OAR. Even the cover art is horrid. I mean I don't remember any volcanos in the film.

Stay away from this DVD. Stick with your VHS. It is of the same quality. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Is there TVSpots ?
Hey everyone ! First, I think that BTVS Starter Set is a good idea for everyone who wants to know Buffyverse. But the reason I'mwriting this topic is because I want to know if there'sTVSpots in this StarterSet. By TVSpots I mean TV Spots who passed originally on The WB and UPN every weeks to announe the show...not trailers of the Buffy seasons box set. Because there's only one reason I wanna buy this Starter Set and it's because of TV Spots...Is Therr someone who could answer to me inn his topic please...

Great Show, Good episodes, bad idea
Before I go into anything else, I have to say that I loved this show. Also, for the person below me, this show was not cancelled by 2 networks. The WB wasn't willing to up the show's budget, so Joss and Co. moved over to UPN. Sarah Michelle Gellar was always the person that the continuing of the show depended on, seeing as she was Buffy, and after 7 years, she decided, not UPN, to call it quits. As for the rest of your review, well that's your opinion.
Buffy was a unique show in that while never a huge ratings success it was a critical darling and had a large group of fans that dearly loved the show. The first season, while better than most TV, was not the most shining season of the show and the 2 episodes in question are good and definitely will leave a taste for the rest of the series. About the only thing that would make this intriguing to a fan is if the pilot that Joss Whedon personally financed was included, I'd pay 10 bucks to see that. If you're really not sure if you're going to like the show, check you local listings for Buffy reruns and watch a few to see what you think. If you simply must own this DVD, then by all means buy it, but don't say that you weren't warned when you buy Season 1 on DVD and find the same episodes there. So 3 stars because the show rocked and the episodes are good, but the packaging idea is dumb.

***YAWN**** ***SNORE**** IS IT OVER YET????
Plain and simple Buffy stunk. It was a dumbing down of action and horror shows. It tried to be politically correct and wound up like al PC shows to be very stupid. Anyone who found this show to be entertaining probably thinks the WWF is real wrestling. It was yet another PC show that failed miserably. Cancelled by 2 networks gives you an idea of how bad it was. I see a reviewer disagrees but facts are facts it was cancelled twice due to low ratings and just plain stupid shows.

An interesting marketing ploy with the "BtVS" pilot
Certainly the idea of a "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: TV Starter Set" is interesting, but the more I think about it the less sense it makes.Essentially, you pick up this DVD, which has the first two episodes from the first season of "BtVS," which is the two-part pilot, "Welcome to the Hellmouth"/"The Harvest," and if you go on to buy one of the complete season sets the $10 coupon means you got this for free.Of course, if you buy "Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season One" you get these two episodes along with the other ten that made up the abbreviated debut season.The only thing is that the price of the season one "BtVS" DVD set has reduced that already it makes more sense to go pay a few extra bucks to pick up the whole thing.Add to that the fact that the DVD season sets of Joss Whedon's shows, including "Angel" and "Firefly," have always been fan friendly when it comes to pricing (cf. any "Star Trek" or HBO series), that this sort of incentive seems totally superfluous.Now, if they had the original "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" pilot with the other Willow, that could justify true fans picking up something like this DVD, but we already have all seven season of the show.Consequently, the attraction here might simply be for somebody who likes to collect television pilots, which would still make this DVD a strange little experiment.

Joss Whedon wrote both parts of the pilot (which aired as a two-hour movie on March 10, 1997), saving his character from the rather bizarre fate Buffy first met in the 1992 theatrical film where his script was turned by director Frank Rubel Kuzui into pure camp.But if you listen to the words and ignore how they are being said by Kristy Swanson, Paul Reubens and the rest of the cast, you can hear Whedon's voice.In "Welcome to the Hellmouth," Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) moves from Los Angeles to Sunnydale, California.There she faces her first big challenge, to be friends with the high school's queen bee, Cordelia Chase (Charisma Carpenter), or hang out with the painfully shy Willow Rosenberg (Allyson Hannigan) and her goofy friend Xander Harris (Nicholas Brendan).Her second challenge is found in the school library, where Rupert Giles (Anthony Stewart Head) informed Buffy he is her new Watcher.It seems Sunnydale is located on the Hellmouth, a focal point for demonic activity, which explains why the Master (Mark Metcalf), a very old and extremely powerful vampire is trying to break free.

"The Harvest" focuses on the Master's plan to have his loyal servant, Luke (Brian Thompson), serve as his vessel.Luke goes to the Bronze, the local teen hangout, where he will gorge himself on blood, which will give the Master enough power to break free of the Hellmouth. Warning Buffy of the danger to come is not only Giles, but also the mysterious Angel (David Boreanaz), who is tall, dark, and handsome.He is also really, really cryptic, which does not sit well with Buffy.The showdown at the Bronze serves as the big climax, after which Buffy and her friends are ready for the next adventure against the creatures of the night.The premise for the show is established, including the basic mission statement that "high school is hell."

Looking back at the pilot today it is interesting to see what the characters were like in the beginning.Buffy is never more Valley Girl (except for the later flashbacks to the "movie" period), Willow is a totally whipping girl for Cordelia, and Cordelia is the most obnoxious junior girl in the history of the world.Xander Giles is really foppish, and Angel is actually not as brooding and haunted as he ends up being.But then you go back and look at any pilot episode and you will see that characters are always rather rough at the beginning until the writers and the cast find their way.Still, the key thing is that Whedon establishes the key set of characters, the relationships that they will build upon, and the first rules of the game for vampire slaying in the Sunnydale environs.Most importantly, the best is yet to come (i.e., "Becoming, Part II" at the end of the second season).Five stars for the pilot, three stars for the marketing ploy, and divide by two.

I think this is an awesome idea
It's a good start to Buffy that may get people interested in getting the whole series. And besides it's free once you use the $10 coupon, so a free Buffy DVD is never a bad thing. Awesome show, awesome incentive to start buying them if you haven't already. I have all the seasons but I'm still picking up one of these for the Buffy/Angel DVD tv spots and will gladly give the coupon away to a friend to get them started. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Good movie hurt by video format.
It is a shame Gunmen didn't get fair treatment when it was brought to DVD. Originally shot in 2.35:1 widescreen, the DVD and obviously, the video are only available in 1.33:1 full TV screen format. Almost half the picture is missing, and it shows. Even ignoring the lush scenery cut off, too often the characters' faces are missing from the frame. Even worse is that the DVD transfer is rotten. It may have been from a S-VHS master from what it looks like. It is full of film grain which compresses awfully on DVDs, making the entire movie look muddy.

This is a terrible shame because Gunmen is a fun, lightweight flick of two guys, one good, the other bad, forced to work together against a common enemy. There are many funny one liners, and the action scenes are pretty good, though low budget. Denis Leary is always fun to watch when he's angry or evil, and he's almost always both in Gunmen.

Horrible
Mario is a cop who is looking for some drug money. It was a waste of time for me to watch this. IMHO it was just poorly put together.

Congratulations Artisan, You've Ruined Another Great Movie
Gunmen is one of my favorite action movies, it's got great scenery, action galore, a fast pace, and great performances, especially from Denis Leary, who steals the show as villain Armor. However this DVD really hurts the film. It's presented in pan-and-scan with poor quality and so-so sound, and has no extras. Artisan ruined another great movie called Joshua Tree (or Army Of One, as the DVD cover for that movie incorrectly states) with the DVD, which featured a similar DVD transfer (very poor). I'd wait for a re-release with a better transfer and sound and with the film in it's OAR plus with some extras, like a commentary and making-of featurette...

"i gotta tell ya, I don't swallow"
Real nice B-grader, Lambert has a real flair for the comedy, if only the people behind the camera could make up their mind whether it's a action comedy, or action thriller.
Because it's certainly not the latter, but the laughs dry up a bit after the hilarious first half hour.
Leary always entertains as the bad guy as well.

Sigh! Artisan does it again.
This film was shot full anamorphic 2.35:1 Panavision and is full of gorgeous and pretty scenery. But just like they did with another Christopher Lambert film, Fortress and the Dolph Lundgren movie Joshua Tree they have released this in mutilated pan and scan format with about half the picture missing.

Gunmen is a lively and entertaining movie with a witty script, nonstop action and a first rate cast. Denis Leary once again nails the bad guy role to a tee and Lambert and Peebles (who starred together in Highlander 3) make for a great buddy team.

But I cannot recommend this movie to you on DVD. I waited so long for this to be released only to be dissapointed by the lack of OAR. Even the cover art is horrid. I mean I don't remember any volcanos in the film.

Stay away from this DVD. Stick with your VHS. It is of the same quality. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Good movie hurt by video format.
It is a shame Gunmen didn't get fair treatment when it was brought to DVD. Originally shot in 2.35:1 widescreen, the DVD and obviously, the video are only available in 1.33:1 full TV screen format. Almost half the picture is missing, and it shows. Even ignoring the lush scenery cut off, too often the characters' faces are missing from the frame. Even worse is that the DVD transfer is rotten. It may have been from a S-VHS master from what it looks like. It is full of film grain which compresses awfully on DVDs, making the entire movie look muddy.

This is a terrible shame because Gunmen is a fun, lightweight flick of two guys, one good, the other bad, forced to work together against a common enemy. There are many funny one liners, and the action scenes are pretty good, though low budget. Denis Leary is always fun to watch when he's angry or evil, and he's almost always both in Gunmen.

Horrible
Mario is a cop who is looking for some drug money. It was a waste of time for me to watch this. IMHO it was just poorly put together.

Congratulations Artisan, You've Ruined Another Great Movie
Gunmen is one of my favorite action movies, it's got great scenery, action galore, a fast pace, and great performances, especially from Denis Leary, who steals the show as villain Armor. However this DVD really hurts the film. It's presented in pan-and-scan with poor quality and so-so sound, and has no extras. Artisan ruined another great movie called Joshua Tree (or Army Of One, as the DVD cover for that movie incorrectly states) with the DVD, which featured a similar DVD transfer (very poor). I'd wait for a re-release with a better transfer and sound and with the film in it's OAR plus with some extras, like a commentary and making-of featurette...

"i gotta tell ya, I don't swallow"
Real nice B-grader, Lambert has a real flair for the comedy, if only the people behind the camera could make up their mind whether it's a action comedy, or action thriller.
Because it's certainly not the latter, but the laughs dry up a bit after the hilarious first half hour.
Leary always entertains as the bad guy as well.

Sigh! Artisan does it again.
This film was shot full anamorphic 2.35:1 Panavision and is full of gorgeous and pretty scenery. But just like they did with another Christopher Lambert film, Fortress and the Dolph Lundgren movie Joshua Tree they have released this in mutilated pan and scan format with about half the picture missing.

Gunmen is a lively and entertaining movie with a witty script, nonstop action and a first rate cast. Denis Leary once again nails the bad guy role to a tee and Lambert and Peebles (who starred together in Highlander 3) make for a great buddy team.

But I cannot recommend this movie to you on DVD. I waited so long for this to be released only to be dissapointed by the lack of OAR. Even the cover art is horrid. I mean I don't remember any volcanos in the film.

Stay away from this DVD. Stick with your VHS. It is of the same quality. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Plant Monsters, Bee Girls, And A Lizard-Man!
Alien Predators is a mixed bag for sure! Disc #1- Side A- The sci-fi classic DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS. Giant carnivorous plants attempt to take over the world after blinding the vast majority of the populace (with a strange meteor shower). Can a small band of sighted heroes save the day? Side B- LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. All about a giant carnivorous plant (named Audrey Junior) and the boy who loves it. A Roger Corman masterpiece! Disc #2- Side A- GRAVEYARD TRAMPS (aka: INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS). Mutated "Bee girls" attempt to take over the world by... um... er... well, mating their male victims to death. Meanwhile, the head Bee girl is busy making her hive bigger. Lotsa nudity and laughs a plenty! Side B- TRACK OF THE MOON BEAST. A lunkhead gets beaned by a meteorite, which turns him into a murderous, reptilian psychopath. His girlfriend sticks by him anyway. Will true love prevail? A schlock fest. This double disc is definitely worth the cheap price! Don't miss it...

This is a horror classic, with little to none popularity
Alien Predator and I go way back. I remember watching it on cable premium channels when i was younger. If you are looking for something with great plot, watch titanic. However if you like cheesy, simple plot, low budget horro films... this one is a good time. ... Read more