Cast: Kirk Franklin, John Legend, Dr. Bobby Jones, J Moss, Patti LaBelle, Pastor Shirley Caesar
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: April 29, 2008

Every now and then we receive something for review that no one at Literary Illusions is really interested in seeing. When this happens the DVD or product is usually given to the writer with the least seniority to handle. The idea is that eventually, they won’t be the last in line and they will not have to do DVDs that no one else will review. As the last in line, Celebration in Gospel - Spirit in Song was mine. This just prompts me to recommend that Literary Illusions start taking applications for reviewers post haste. I am only one man and I’m not sure I can handle another repeat performance of a dry, over-edited piece of junk again.

The premise of this BET series is simple enough and from what I can tell, people seem to really enjoy the television production of Celebration in Gospel . However, this heavily edited piece of television history is likely not worth the cost of the DVDs that it was placed on. I don’t recall seeing anything on the cover that explains that this DVD is edited from the performances that were shown on television though I heard this common complaint from the people that seem to like this show. For me, it didn’t really matter though the addition of Steve Harvey might have added some comedy to the boredom that I was forced to endure while watching this crap.

Release Information:
Celebration in Gospel - Spirit in Song was made available by Paramount Home Video and BET on April 29, 2008. This DVD, which likely has limited release availability, is able to be found at most DVD venues online, including Amazon, where it is available for $20. Why anyone would want to pay $20 for a DVD that lasts an hour and has been edited more than an episode of Sesame Street where the Muppets smoke crack is beyond me, but if you want the DVD you know where to find it.

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Writers: Michael Baez, Jonisha Rios
Director: Michael Baez
Cast: Jatnna Toribio, Jose Feliciano, Luis Jimenez, Giselle Blondet, Reymond Wittman, Mariana Seoane, Alessandra Ramos
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Date: November 13, 2007

I deliberately postponed my review of A Wonderful Christmas, which is also known by the name Feliz Navidad. I wanted to wait until it was closer until Christmas. I know that the fact that Christmas movies are released as early as September and October these days is an utter turn off. I’m not ready for the season to begin until Thanksgiving is over. It’s best to take it one holiday at a time.

With that in mind, I decided to post my review of A Wonderful Christmas in early December. At this time, nearly everyone is in the Christmas spirit, so this fun, overlooked Christmas comedy is the perfect gift to place in a loved one’s stocking. Even if you aren’t buying this movie for Christmas, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of A Wonderful Christmas. Surprisingly enough, it is my favorite, new Christmas movie to be released. I don’t think I’ve laughed at a movie quite so hard in a long time.

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One of my favorite horror movies growing up in the 80s (and one of the first ones I saw) was Poltergeist. There’s just something creepy about an angelic looking five year old getting sucked into another realm filled with purplish-pink ectoplasm and evil spirits, while her brother almost gets eaten by a tree and strangled by a clown. Of course, seeing JoBeth Williams with her Nancy-gray (a la A Nightmare on Elm Street) is one of the funniest scenes in a movie more filled with horror than anything else.

During the 1980s, Hollywood’s top directors delved into the horror genre. Oliver Stone took on horror with, The Hand. Stephen Spielberg chose to do so with, Poltergeist, and what both of these directors have managed to do is create cult classics that remain true horror favorites even today, over 20 years after they were originally made. Despite, The Hand being an excellent film, Spielberg was more successful with, Poltergeist.

Release Information:
This is the 25th Anniversary edition of Poltergeist. It is hard to believe that it has been 25 years since the film was first released, but it’s true. Poltergeist debuted in 1982. In April of 1997, the first DVD release of this movie was made by Turner Entertainment. This is the second release of the film on DVD, which was released by Warner Bros. Home Video on October 9, 2007. Much to the chagrin of fans of the series, this edition is only available in a single disc edition DVD.

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While I had heard about the movie, The House without a Christmas Tree, I had never had the chance to see this movie, which I knew many considered to be a Christmas Classic. I was raised watching movies like A Christmas Story, the original Miracle on 34th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, Christmas Vacation and other, similar, higher budget Christmas movies that have been tucked away as a part of the Christmas tradition for many homes across the United States.

The House without a Christmas Tree, while it has its devoted fans, was a few years before my time. The first audiences of this Christmas movie were able to see it on television. The story is a made for TV movie, and for many years, remained elusive to those of us who only knew about it by name though we had not seen it. Luckily, Paramount has put The House without a Christmas Tree out on DVD for all older audiences who remember this film, and newer audiences yet to be introduced, to this story to enjoy together.

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The story for Amityville: Dollhouse had promise. It wasn’t that the story was bad. It’s that the story became ridiculous about halfway through the film. There were way too many holes in this story, the acting was sub par, and the plot went from something that could have been cool to “WTF” pretty darn quickly.

Release Information:
Amityville: Dollhouse was released in a three pack (three movies on one disc) by Lionsgate Films on October 16, 2007. The other two films in the bunch are Amityville: A New Generation and Amityville: It’s About Time. While none of these were particularly interesting from what I’ve read of the other two reviews, I would have to say Amityville: Dollhouse took the cake for the one that turned stupid the fastest and the one that had one of the dumbest endings.

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After watching all the movies, adding up all the totals for their star count, and examining the entire box set, I have to recommend the Twisted Terror Collection. I must also warn you that you will find some movies in here you won’t like, but the overall collection is decent enough to warrant the purchase of this DVD set. This six pack DVD Set was released on September 25, 2007 courtesy of Warner Bros. These movies were voted on by the general public, who helped to decide what would be included in this pack.

The Twisted Terror Collection is made up of six movies. Each of these movies was made between the mid-70s and the early 90s. Here is a brief synopsis and information on each movie that is included in this six pack.

Deadly Friend (1986) – This movie was directed by Wes Craven and stars Kristy Swanson and Matthew Laborteaux. After moving to a new town and befriending his cute, next door neighbor (Samantha) who just happens to have an abusive father, Paul cannot handle it when Sam is badly injured. This genius, teenager taking college classes decides the answer to bringing Sam ‘back to life’ is a robot chip, which he places in her brain. [Click here to read the full review and find out more]

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This movie was not what I expected. While it stars Peter Cushing, one of Britain’s greatest horror actors, the movie was uninteresting, unentertaining and I couldn’t get into it at all. I have heard you have to understand British storytelling to “get” this movie, but I’m a fan of many other films that come from Britain (most famously Monty Python though you wouldn’t consider it a horror film) and understand the quirky British sense of humor. Whatever the reason is, I just didn’t like this film.

Release Information:
From Beyond the Grave was originally released in 1973. This movie was the first movie directed by British film director, Kevin Connor. The writer for the film, Raymond Christodoulou, is basically known for From Beyond the Grave and that’s about it. It is pretty clear to see why he didn’t have a flourishing career as a screenplay writer. The screenplay was adapted from short stories written by British author R. Chetwynd-Hayes. I can only hope the stories were better than this movie.

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I have seen it written that The Hand was one of Oliver Stone’s best pieces of work. If only he’d stuck with the brilliant storytelling he told in The Hand, he might actually be a good director. Somehow, I have to disagree with that assessment. The Hand was the best movie in the Twisted Terror Collection, no doubt, but how can anyone even compare it to Platoon, Wall Street, Alexander (which I liked), JFK, Born On the Fourth of July, and my favorite Stone film, Natural Born Killers? Though some may not like Stone’s style, it is hard to deny he has a gift. Luckily, that budding gift is apparent in one of his earliest films, The Hand.

Release Information:
The Hand is one of six movies included in the Twisted Terror Collection. The original release of The Hand was in 1981, and was the second semi-major release by Oliver Stone. The other movies in the Twisted Terror Collection are From Beyond the Grave, Someone’s Watching Me, Deadly Friend, Dr. Giggles and Eyes of a Stranger.

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Who knew that when Manny Coto wrote Dr. Giggles, he’d one day be both writing and executive producing the hit Fox drama, 24. That is exactly what happened though his writing style has vastly improved since the days when he was writing about a deranged doctor who had high pitched giggle fits. On September 25, 2007, this film was released in the Twisted Terror Collection Box Set along with five other movies. As a pack, the collection of movies is decent, though there are a few duds in the pack. Dr. Giggles will leave you either warm or cold, making it one of the few films that consumers of this Box Set will not be able to agree on when it comes to its quality and worth.

Release Information:
Dr. Giggles is one of six movies in the Twisted Terror Collection. The other movies include From Beyond the Grave, The Hand, Eyes of a Stranger, Someone’s Watching Me, and Deadly Friend. Dr. Giggles is the latest movie out of all of them to be released, having first made its debut with audiences in 1992. With all of the movies made between the late 70s and early 90s, the quality of the filmmaking appears to be similar. All of them are horror movies and most of them have a lower budget then the Blockbusters Hollywood is used to pumping out. Still, this collection of DVDs has promise.

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Before there was Pet Semetary there was Deadly Friend. In Pet Semetary dead animals and humans could be brought back to life by burying them in sacred Native American grounds. In Deadly Friend, all you need is a robotic chip, which is implanted into the human brain. Sounds similar, right? Well…maybe not, but the zombie-like behavior of the “un-dead” in Deadly Friend is quite similar to that of the “un-dead” in one of Stephen King’s most famous book to movie adaptations.

There are a few pluses to Deadly Friend. First, Kristy Swason is in it. I like Kristy. She’s an okay actress. Second, her co-stars include the late, great Anne Ramsey (Throw Momma from the Train, The Goonies) and Matthew Laborteaux (Albert from Little House on the Prarie). Unfortunately, this fairly decent cast can’t save even the most preposterous of storylines. To make this even more surprising is the fact that this film was directed by Wes Craven. Craven was just coming off the success of A Nightmare on Elm Street when Deadly Friend was released in 1986. Why he directed this film is anyone’s guess.

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