Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

DVD Review: The Station Agent, Garden State, The Hangover

  • Craig Bentley
  • Film Producer, 
  • MonopolyDocumentary.com

Tom McCarthy, the director of The Visitor and Win Win, started his directing career with The Station Agent.  I can’t think of another director who’s so faithful to his characters — he never goes for the cheap shot or cheap laugh.

Among recent documentary releases, my choice (excluding the one I produced, of course) would be Waste Land.  I enjoyed it on several levels: getting to know the interesting people who make their “living” picking recyclables from the largest dump on Earth; the art that comes from their efforts, thanks to photographer Vik Muniz; the environmental message; and finally, the effect being made “movie” stars has on these impoverished landfill workers.

Sponsored
Sponsored
  • The Station Agent (USA) 2003, Miramax
  • List price: $19.99
  • Waste Land (Brazil/England) 2010, New Video Group
  • List price: $29.95

  • Kevin Tostado
  • Film Producer

Garden State — starring, written, and directed by Zach Braff — is one of the films that inspired me to become a movie producer. It’s an authentic-feeling story loosely inspired by Braff’s upbringing in New Jersey. When Braff got word that he was cast in Scrubs, he quit his waitering job only to discover the show wouldn’t begin shooting for months. During that downtime, he wrote the first draft of Garden State.

I recently re-watched the epic series Battlestar Galactica, which reimagined the original 1978 series of the same name. This space opera masterfully delves into the relationships of the flawed yet noble characters and constructs a universe in which the robots that humanity has created fight back against their parents. The box set includes unaired editions of the episodes shown on TV as well as the direct-to-DVD coda The Plan.

  • Garden State (USA) 2004, Twentieth Century Fox
  • List price: $14.98
  • Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (USA) 2004, Universal
  • List price: $199.98 (26 discs)

  • Sandy Moul
  • Publicist, UltraStar Cinemas

Love and Other Drugs, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, was an enjoyable departure from the typical love story, following two quirky characters on a path to love that is neither straight nor narrow. Hathaway is strong in her portrayal as a commitment-phobic free spirit battling Parkinson’s disease, while Gyllenhaal’s ladies’ man realizes he’s finally met his match.

The Hangover is one of those DVDs that I pull out regularly for great entertainment. This film took the buddy comedy to a whole new level, thanks to the comedic genius of director Todd Phillips and performances by Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, and Ken Jeong. Who can forget the baby in the closet, the tiger in the bathroom, and Stu’s quickie marriage during the most unforgettable night in Vegas ever documented?

  • Love and Other Drugs (USA) 2010, Twentieth Century Fox
  • List price: $29.98
  • The Hangover (USA) 2009, Warner Brothers
  • List price: $19.98
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Croome Brothers Trio, Jack Tempchin, Ricky, Swami & the Bed Of Nails, Kahlil Nash

Acoustic and electric in Del Mar, La Jolla, Little Italy, and City Heights
Next Article

Angry Pete’s goes from pop-up to drive-thru

Detroit Pizza sidles into the husk of a shuttered Taco Bell
  • Craig Bentley
  • Film Producer, 
  • MonopolyDocumentary.com

Tom McCarthy, the director of The Visitor and Win Win, started his directing career with The Station Agent.  I can’t think of another director who’s so faithful to his characters — he never goes for the cheap shot or cheap laugh.

Among recent documentary releases, my choice (excluding the one I produced, of course) would be Waste Land.  I enjoyed it on several levels: getting to know the interesting people who make their “living” picking recyclables from the largest dump on Earth; the art that comes from their efforts, thanks to photographer Vik Muniz; the environmental message; and finally, the effect being made “movie” stars has on these impoverished landfill workers.

Sponsored
Sponsored
  • The Station Agent (USA) 2003, Miramax
  • List price: $19.99
  • Waste Land (Brazil/England) 2010, New Video Group
  • List price: $29.95

  • Kevin Tostado
  • Film Producer

Garden State — starring, written, and directed by Zach Braff — is one of the films that inspired me to become a movie producer. It’s an authentic-feeling story loosely inspired by Braff’s upbringing in New Jersey. When Braff got word that he was cast in Scrubs, he quit his waitering job only to discover the show wouldn’t begin shooting for months. During that downtime, he wrote the first draft of Garden State.

I recently re-watched the epic series Battlestar Galactica, which reimagined the original 1978 series of the same name. This space opera masterfully delves into the relationships of the flawed yet noble characters and constructs a universe in which the robots that humanity has created fight back against their parents. The box set includes unaired editions of the episodes shown on TV as well as the direct-to-DVD coda The Plan.

  • Garden State (USA) 2004, Twentieth Century Fox
  • List price: $14.98
  • Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series (USA) 2004, Universal
  • List price: $199.98 (26 discs)

  • Sandy Moul
  • Publicist, UltraStar Cinemas

Love and Other Drugs, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, was an enjoyable departure from the typical love story, following two quirky characters on a path to love that is neither straight nor narrow. Hathaway is strong in her portrayal as a commitment-phobic free spirit battling Parkinson’s disease, while Gyllenhaal’s ladies’ man realizes he’s finally met his match.

The Hangover is one of those DVDs that I pull out regularly for great entertainment. This film took the buddy comedy to a whole new level, thanks to the comedic genius of director Todd Phillips and performances by Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, and Ken Jeong. Who can forget the baby in the closet, the tiger in the bathroom, and Stu’s quickie marriage during the most unforgettable night in Vegas ever documented?

  • Love and Other Drugs (USA) 2010, Twentieth Century Fox
  • List price: $29.98
  • The Hangover (USA) 2009, Warner Brothers
  • List price: $19.98
Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Croome Brothers Trio, Jack Tempchin, Ricky, Swami & the Bed Of Nails, Kahlil Nash

Acoustic and electric in Del Mar, La Jolla, Little Italy, and City Heights
Next Article

Navy solves San Diego homeless crisis by retiring four locally moored ships

Decommision Accomplished
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.