Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back silent movie

I’ve heard rumors of this “Final Cut” of Blade Runner for years. Blade Runner was one of the first movies released on DVD, but was such poor quality I was extremely disappointed. It is definitely one of my favorite movies, and felt a bit cheated that the transfer was so poor. The picture was grainy and the soundtrack was only in Dolby 2.0, not even 5.1 surround sound which was the main advantage to DVD (besides increased resolution) at the time. I’ve been meaning to review the original Director’s Cut DVD (without Rick Deckard’s narration and the happy ending) but haven’t gotten around to it yet.

I’m glad to see that Blade Runner is finally getting the love and care it deserves. I have only seen the Director’s Cut, and have watched just a few scenes of the theatrical release with the narration on cable from time to time. I’m excited to see all of the different versions offered together. There are 3 different releases announced with a variety of alternate cuts of the movie. There is a 2 disc Special Edition, 4 disc Collector’s Edition, and 5 disc Ultimate Collector’s Edition (DVD, HD-DVD, Blu-ray). I plan on getting the 4 disc DVD version and reviewing it here in the near future. Both Blu-ray and HD-DVD 5 disc versions are available without the “Ultimate” briefcase for a lower price, but for some reason that option isn’t available for DVD. Don’t miss this release, check out all of the pre-order options (there are MANY) that are available on Amazon.

Sunshine is another movie I noticed on a “must watch” Sci-Fi movie list. The premise of the movie is that the Sun is dying, leaving the Earth in a permanent winter. A group of astronauts are riding on the back of a big bomb the equivalent size of Manhattan island. They are supposed to launch the bomb into the sun to kick start it back up to full brightness. Sounds simple enough, right? (more…)

Released July 16, 2004 (IMDB)

First things first, this movie has only has a few things in common with the book of short stories written by Isaac Asimov (also reviewed). Keep in mind that the NAME was licensed to the movie studio after the script was already written. Scenes were adjusted to include the 3 laws, Susan Calvin, and Alfred Lanning. That is about where the similarities between the book and the movie end. There might be a few concepts stripped from some of the stories, but by no means is the film “based” on the book. To give the movie makers credit, they only say “inspired” by in the opening.

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