Batman & Mr. Freeze - Subzero/Batman - Mask of the Phantasm DVD Review

Written by General Jabbo

Double features are all the rage again with the release of two classic Batman animated features on one DVD. Batman & Mr. Freeze: Subzero (1997) and Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) give fans a double dose of the caped crusader.

Based on the excellent Batman – The Animated Series TV show, both movies feature the voice talents of Kevin Conroy as Batman. Phantasm ups the ante with a number of celebrity voices, including: Dana Delaney as Andrea Beaumont, Mark Hamill as The Joker, and Abe Vigoda as Salvatore “Sal the Wheezer” Valestra.

In Subzero, Mr. Freeze (played by Michael Ansara) scrambles to find a cure to save his dying wife. She needs an organ donor with the right blood type and would not survive long enough to be put on a waiting list. Desperate, Freeze enlists the help of Dr. Gregory Belson (played by George Dzundza) who, after doing a search, discovers that Barbara Gordon – Batgirl (played by Mary Kay Bergman) – is a perfect match.

Freeze kidnaps Gordon, who said she’d help if he released her. Not trusting Gordon, Freeze resists releasing her and Batman and Robin (played by Loren Lester) come to her rescue. In the ensuing battle, Freeze is presumed dead of drowning after falling off an oilrig into the water. Meanwhile, Gordon saves Freeze’s wife through an organ transplant and the world mourns the fact that while considered a villain, Freeze cared deeply for his wife and didn’t live long enough to see that his cryogenic chamber kept her alive long enough to find a cure. The movie ends with Freeze, who survived the fall, back home in the Arctic Circle watching a news report of his wife being saved. Freeze is portrayed in a sympathetic light in this excellent movie as a distraught man willing to do anything to save his spouse.

When the mysterious Phantasm – a masked villain with an appearance similar to Batman – kills a group of mobsters, our hero gets framed for murder in Mask of the Phantasm. As Batman attempts to solve these murders and clear his name, an old flame, Andrea Beaumont reappears. We learn through a series of excellent flashbacks that Bruce Wayne was once engaged to Beaumont. She had to leave Gotham City for Europe with her father to flee from the mafia, who were out to collect a debt he owed. Wayne is torn between finding happiness with Beaumont and upholding his promise to his parents to fight crime.

One of the shady characters associated with Beaumont’s father was The Joker, who, upon learning of the Phantasm’s plans, begins fearing for his own life. The Joker confronts the Phantasm and we learn the Phantasm’s identity in a surprising twist. The Joker then attempts to blow up Batman and the Phantasm in the film’s climactic final battle.

Bonus features for Subzero include “The Hunt for Mr. Freeze Game,” “Get the Picture: How to Draw Batman,” a music montage, cast and crew information, and trailers, including the theatrical version for Phantasm. Both movies adapt the comic books very well – better than some of the live-action Batman films – and this double feature is a must-own in any Batman fan’s collection.

Sarah Brightman - Symphony CD Review

Written by General Jabbo

Crossover superstar, Sarah Brightman, returns with Symphony, her first album of new material in five years. Recorded in Germany, and produced by longtime producer, Frank Peterson, Symphony is an exciting mix of classical, pop, and rock.

The album opens with the eerie “Gothica,” which serves as the perfect intro for the surprisingly hard rock “Fleurs du Mal,” inspired by French Poet Charles Baudelaire’s poems of the same name. The heavy guitars and Brightman’s breathtaking vocals are an ideal match for a song whose name translates to “flowers of evil.”

The title track is a lush power ballad with soaring vocals not unlike a Celine Dion production, but more powerful. Once again, rock guitars mix with classical instruments and a chorus of heavenly voices to create something stunning. On “Sanvean,” Brightman covers Dead Can Dance, doing justice to Lisa Gerrard’s haunting original vocal.

The album features four duets, the first of which is “Canto Della Terra,” where Brightman is reunited with Andrea Bocelli. Sung in Italian, “Canto” is a beautiful love song, with Bocelli’s powerful vocals contrasting with Brightman’s delicate verses until both cut loose at the end with a huge chorus to bring the song to its dramatic finale.

Brightman is joined by fellow Phantom of the Opera alumnus, Paul Stanley of Kiss, on “I Will Be With You (Where the Lost Ones Go).” Though not written by Stanley, “I Will Be With You” is a rock ballad that would be at home on Stanley’s underrated Live to Win CD. Brightman originally performed the song with Chris Thompson as the theme song to, oddly enough, Pokemon Movie 10: The Rise of Darkrai.

On “Sarai Qui,” Brightman is joined by Italian tenor, Alessandro Safina. “Sarai Qui” mixes classical with pop to great effect, even changing keys on the last chorus like so many great pop songs. Penned by pop songstress, Diane Warren, it is easily the best track on the disc. “Pasión” finds Brightman joined by Spanish counter tenor, Fernando Lima. Brightman and Lima’s voices blend beautifully on this tender ballad with Latin overtones and Spanish guitar.

With “Running” Brightman reminds the listener why she is the only artist to hold the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Classical and Dance charts at the same time. The song opens with a beautiful classical vocal, before tribal drum rhythms take over midway through the song only to finish with Brightman’s soprano set against violins and classical instruments. A hidden track reprising the theme of “Fleurs du Mal” brings the album to a dramatic close.

The CD features lavish packaging worthy of such a big production. The photos have a gothic theme and feature Brightman as a blonde. On Symphony, Brightman mixes enough styles to make the listener say, “why not?” The results are incredibly powerful and worth a listen.

Honeydripper Sound track Review

Written by General Jabbo

American music was at a crossroads in 1950. The big band music of the previous generation was fading in popularity with new forms taking its place. Not quite rock and roll, blues, jazz, or swing, this music would serve as the transition between the big band era of the ‘40s and the rock and roll era of the ‘50s. This is the music prevalent in the soundtrack to John Sayles’ new film, Honeydripper.

The album opens with two instrumentals – The Aces Of Spade’s “Honeydripper Lounge,” a swinging ode to the Alabama clubs the movie is set in, and “Tall Cotton,” with its rich, harmonica blues. Legendary Stax soul singer, Dr. Mable John takes on “No Matter How She Done It” with a touch of vaudeville while the New Beginnings Ministry adds their gospel sound to “Standing by the Highway.”

The soundtrack also features original period pieces, including Hank Williams’ “Move it on Over,” Lil Green’s “Why Don’t You Do it Right,” and Memphis Slim’s “Bertha May” – a haunting song played on a celeste that inspired the funeral scene in the film.

Honeydripper’s star, Danny Glover even takes on “Goin’ Down Slow,” with Sonny Leyland on piano. It’s hard to tell from the recording whether it was made in 1950 or 2008 such is its authenticity.

The album serves as a showcase however for relatively unknown-guitarist Gary Clark, Jr., described by Texas Music Magazine as ”probably the most talented Texas guitarist since a certain SRV.” High praise indeed, but he backs it up on covers of “Good Rockin’ Tonight,” “Blue Light Boogie,” and on the rollicking original, “China Doll,” co-written by Sayles and Mason Daring.

The new and vintage recordings mix together well to provide an exciting look into a musical era gone by, resurrected to great effect by Sayles with Honeydripper.

Kissology 3 DVD Review

Written by General Jabbo

You wanted the best, you got the best. Kissology: The Ultimate Kiss Collection Vol. 3 is the third and, depending on who you believe (Gene Simmons claims there will be 10 volumes total), final volume of the excellent Kissology DVD series.

Covering the years 1992-2000, Kissology 3 features six concerts, starting with the band's Auburn Hills, MI appearance on their 1992 Revenge tour. One is immediately taken aback by both the picture and sound quality of the show, as well as the musicianship of the excellent Revenge lineup. This was one of the shows recorded for 1993's ALIVE III.

Up next is a behind-the-scenes look at their now-legendary MTV Unplugged appearance - which featured their first performance with founding members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss in 16 years. It is here we learn from Unplugged producer, Alex Coletti, that Frehley and Criss were almost no-shows at the actual taping due to legal issues and that Paul Stanley and current Kiss guitarist, Tommy Thayer, had to help Frehley relearn his old guitar parts. Disc one concludes with the complete MTV Unplugged performance.

Discs two and three document the band's reunion period, with their performance at Tiger Stadium - the first full show of the reunion tour, their 1996 MTV Video Music Awards' performance at the Brooklyn Bridge, their Dodger Stadium show from the Psycho Circus tour, the Detroit Rock City movie premiere party in Los Angeles and The Last Kiss pay-per-view from 2000's farewell tour. While it is great as a fan to have the Tiger Stadium show, from a performance perspective, it is very sloppy with lots of missed notes and timing issues. In stark contrast, the Brooklyn Bridge performance shows a tight, hungry, focused band that looks to be enjoying each other's company. Peter Criss in particular seems to be having the time of his life, singing along to "New York Groove." We also learn from the commentary that when the band was assembling the footage for the Dodger Stadium show, they could not find any of the footage from the drum cams and, as such, Peter Criss is rarely seen up close in this show.

Though the band has continued since 2000, the farewell tour was indeed the last time the original lineup all performed together, so The Last Kiss pay-per-view is a nice document of that tour to have. It also features the added novelty of the band playing "Heaven's On Fire" as they had adopted songs from their non-makeup period into the set at this point.

Disc four may be the real gem of this collection, however. Teased as an Easter Egg on Kissology 1, the full 1973 performance from the Coventry in New York is included on Kissology 3. This is the earliest filmed performance of the band and while the picture quality is nowhere near the rest of this set, the historical value is immense. It's shot in black and white and the audio is not bad for it being a 34-year-old single camera video. It also features the seldom-played "Let Me Know," an added bonus to an already rare show.

Kissology 3 features commentary from Simmons, Stanley, Thayer, and Bruce Kulick and has regular stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes. It also has a number of Easter Eggs, including rehearsal footage for the VMAs in street clothes and no makeup, a behind-the-scenes look at the recording of Carnival of Souls, the last album recorded by the Revenge lineup, and "2000 Man" from the band's millennium concert in Vancouver, BC. Initial copies include bonus discs depending on which retailer they are purchased from. These shows are the KROQ Weenie Roast from 1996 (The first reunion performance by the band), Brazil 1994 and Madison Square Garden 1996.

While Kissology 3 touts having six complete concerts, that really isn't the case. Auburn Hills, Tiger Stadium and The Last Kiss all have songs cut, possibly to avoid repeats of material. The commentary and liner notes also include a fair amount of Ace and Peter bashing by Simmons and Stanley, which is surprising given the fact that they are on a large portion of the material presented, but also refreshing in the sense that the band isn't pulling any punches and is being very candid with the fans.

As this material is the most recent chronologically in the Kissology series, it is also of the highest quality, both in terms of picture and sound. The rarity and quality of the material more than make up for the fact that some of the shows aren't complete and make Kissology 3 a fine addition to any Kiss fan's library.

Frasier - The Tenth Season DVD Review

Written by General Jabbo

For over 20 years, Emmy Award-winner Kelsey Grammer played the character of Dr. Frasier Crane, first on Cheers, then on his own spin-off show, Frasier. During that time, Fraiser's snobby exploits always remained funny and the fact the character never "jumped the shark" is a testament to the excellent writing on the show.

In the tenth season, we are treated to more of the same. The season opens with Frasier's brother Niles (Played by David Hyde Pierce) and his girlfriend Daphne (played by Jane Leeves) eloping in Las Vegas. They plan to tell Frasier and his father (played by John Mahoney), but don't say anything when they learn that both Frasier and his father would have been crushed not to have been there. Next, the couple tries to get married before a judge, only to have Daphne's mother Gertrude (played by Millicent Martin) object as the wedding was not performed by a minister. As she storms off, the couple decides to get married without her present, only to have her regret telling them what to do, so a third wedding is planned where the couple finally tells everyone when the actual wedding took place.

Another episode finds Frasier defying a parking garage attendant. When he drives into the garage only to change his mind about parking there, he tries to pull out and leave, only to find out he has to pay the $2 parking fee. Outraged since he hadn't actually parked, Frasier refuses to pay and sits in his car at the gate, causing a traffic jam and many irate people. Frasier pleads with them that he is doing this for their own good, but they aren't having it. The attendant tells Frasier he can't open the gate unless he pays, so Frasier decides to get his $2 worth and sits in his car for the full 20 minutes. When he argues that all of this could have been avoided, he goes over the time limit and ends up getting charged $4.

Roz's (played by Peri Gilpin) cousin Jen comes to visit in one episode. She is pushy and opinionated and irritates everyone in her path - except for Frasier's boss Kenny (played by Tom McGowan). She appreciates Kenny for taking her seriously when she announces she wants to visit Vietnam as Americans haven't discovered it yet and encourages him to break out of his own rut. Kenny had not unpacked any of his belongings, including his awards, as every time he did, he had gotten fired from that job and he expected the same at this job. Meanwhile, Jen's main goal in life is to party every night with Roz, which eventually wears Roz out. Roz gives one of Frasier's callers a lecture about growing up and appreciating your age. Kenny hears the speech and takes it to heart, unpacking his photos and awards.

Frasier's ex-wife and ex-Cheers castmate Lilith (played by Bebe Neuwirth), shows up unexpectedly and announces to Frasier she wants to have another child - with Frasier. She tries to get Frasier to donate his sperm to the cause, appealing to him by talking about the good times they had together with their first son Frederick, but Frasier eventually decides he can't do it because he'd be doing it for the wrong reasons. Meanwhile, Niles notices a close-up shot of a nipple in a roll of film that he first mistakes for a flying saucer, but later thinks is Daphne trying to take an erotic photo for him. Turns out he was wrong on both counts as the nipple in the picture belonged to his father.

Not all is fun and games though as Niles has to go in for open heart surgery in a three-part episode that reminds the viewer that no one knows when their time is up and that they should cherish every moment they have with their loved ones. Each character's life passes before them in a series of vignettes that show the entire cycle of life taking place in a hospital.

There is no commentary or bonus features of any kind on the DVD, which would have been the thing to make a good DVD set great, but the quality of the episodes still makes this set worthwhile.

Frasier ran one more season after this one. After numerous awards and nominations, Frasier left us with many laughs and good stories. The tenth season, like all the others, was a winner and belongs in the hands of all fans of the show.

U2 - The Joshua Tree Remastered 2-CD Expanded Edition Review

Written by General Jabbo

It's been 20 years since U2 released their landmark album, The Joshua Tree. The album that made them go from big to huge from arenas to stadiums. The album that put them in the same rarefied air as the Beatles or the Stones. The album that put them on the cover of Time magazine and garnered the band their first Grammy awards. The album that was number 26 in Rolling Stone's top 500 albums of all time list. To commemorate the anniversary of this historic album, Island is re-releasing it in an expanded two-CD edition. A version exists with a bonus DVD live in Paris, 1987 as well.

After touring extensively in the United States for their previous albums, U2 set out to record an album that represented what they saw of America at the time. "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" is the band's response to the materialism of the period, while "Bullet the Blue Sky" is about the American military effort to overthrow the leftist government in El Salvador and remains appropriate in the current political climate.

Not all the songs were about America, however. The song "Running to Stand Still" details the heroin epidemic in Dublin in U2's native Ireland. The album also contains some of the band's best-loved singles, including "Where the Streets Have No Name," "In God's Country" and "With or Without You."

The second disc contains a number of B-sides to the album's many singles, compilation songs such as "Silver and Gold (Sun City)" from the Sun City - Artists United Against Apartheid album and some unreleased songs from The Joshua Tree sessions. Here we find songs that either didn't have time to be finished (the band had a glut of material during this period) or which ended up becoming one of the songs on the finished album. One such example is "Desert of Our Love," which formed the basis of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." These unreleased tracks provide a fascinating insight into the songwriting process for the band.

The CD comes in a slipcase, with liner notes by Bill Flanagan and The Edge and features a number of photos, as well as lyrics to the songs.

It's easy to look at U2 now as one of the biggest bands in the world, if not the biggest. However, Joshua Tree is the album that put them in that position. One cannot underestimate how huge the album was upon its release and, like many classic albums before it, the impact it continues to have to this day. This reissue is a worthy document of perhaps U2's finest hour.

A Charlie Brown Christmas Original Soundtrack CD Review

Written by General Jabbo

In 1965, A Charlie Brown Christmas, the first of the animated Peanuts specials, aired on CBS. Though now considered a holiday classic, the special wasn't a sure thing when it first aired. The network was concerned about the lack of a laugh track or the scene with Linus reading Bible passages about the birth of Christ. There are also scenes where Schroeder is playing Beethoven and Charlie Brown is talking about Nebudchadnezzar - hardly the stuff most eight-year-olds are into.

It comes as no surprise then that this unorthodox cartoon would feature an unorthodox soundtrack. It was unusual at the time (and to this day) for a children's program to feature a jazz soundtrack, but that's exactly what A Charlie Brown Christmas had.

And what a soundtrack it was. The Vince Guaraldi Trio delivered one of the most memorable Christmas soundtracks of all time. Who doesn't think of the beloved Peanuts characters when listening to "Linus and Lucy," or think of Schroeder playing the piano for Lucy when they hear Beethoven's "Fur Elise," or see the smile on Charlie Brown's face when the other kids have saved his Christmas tree by giving it some love and decorating it when they hear "Hark the Herald Angels Sing?"

The music of A Charlie Brown Christmas has become as famous as the special itself. Guaraldi's tasty piano runs blending perfectly with Fred Marshall's nimble bass and Jerry Granell's drums. This is a timeless story set to timeless music. Over 40 years later, it remains a staple of the holiday season.

The CD is a straight reissue of the original 1965 soundtrack on Fantasy Records and, at 40:23, is actually over 15 minutes longer than the special itself. The CD features liner notes written by Ralph J. Gleason. For fans of Peanuts, good piano jazz, and Christmas music in general, A Charlie Brown Christmas is a must-own CD.