Dexter: The Third Season
Starring: Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz, Jennifer Carpenter, C.S. Lee, Lauren Velez, David Zayas, James Remar, and Jimmy Smits
From the box:
The groundbreaking and critically acclaimed series from Showtime returns on Blu-Ray with all 12 thrilling and riveting episodes in Dexter: The Third Season. Having faced his darkest demons and eluding the FBI, Dexter has a new take on life when a high profile case puts him in the sights of the most powerful and influential D.A. in Miami. Will Dexter's need to do away with those who slip through the cracks finally lead to his undoing? Or will his new friend in the D.A.'s office prove to be all he needs to have his cake and eat it too?
Showtime's absolutely brilliant show Dexter arrives on Blu-ray and DVD today with the complete third season.
Click the Rawr! for our complete review.
I'll say it flat out: Dexter is fantastic. Each season the show gets progressively better and with Season Three, that trend continues.
This time, Dexter finds himself in the midst of several life changes. The kind of changes you wouldn't expect to see our lovable serial killer experiencing. None the less, there they are and Dexter is forced to become more human than even he believed himself capable of.
He even finds himself with something he never thought he'd have: a friend. Right?
This friend is played brilliantly by Jimmy Smits. I've never been a huge fan of his but he really threw himself into this role and played the part wonderfully.
The show continues to be tense, and exciting, and often times tinged with a perfect amount of humor. Each episode increases the tension and you never know just how Dexter is going to get out of the mess he's in this go around. You never feel secure in knowing that everything is going to turn out okay.
With this show, we have a cast that just gets better with each season. Especially, its star Michael C. Hall who never ceases to impress. He is ripe for an Emmy win. The cast seems to fall more and more into place, building chemistry and playing off each other. Even when new characters are added, they immediately feel like part of the family. SAG needs to recognize this cast asap.
The writing continues to be top notch. Clever, funny, dark, and keeping a serial killer as someone we not only like but care for. For all his flaws, Dexter is a great character.
Season Three is even better than the previous seasons which gives me high hopes for Season Four. Especially, knowing that John Lithgow is coming on board.
The show is gorgeous in High-Def. Crystal clear picture, vibrant colors, crisp sound. It's the way Dexter is meant to be seen.
The special features include: Excerpts from the books (which are a must read for any fans of the show), The first two episodes of the equally brilliant United States of Tara, Two Episodes from Season Three of The Tudors, cast interviews, and more.
It's a pretty decently supported set but honestly the features are just fluff compared to the genius of the show.
I've said before that Showtime is the new HBO and not even the greatness of True Blood can change the fact that Showtime has one of the best shows on TV now with Dexter.
This is a can't miss show.
Dexter: The Third Season is available DVD and Blu-ray today.
The Reader
Written by: David Hare
Based on the novel by Bernhard Schlink
Directed by: Stephen Daldry
Starring: Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, and David Kross
Blu-ray Specs:
1080p
English 5.1 True HD, English Dolby 5.1, French Dolby 5.1
Spanish and English SDH subtitles
Special Features:
Deleted Scenes, Adapting A Timeless Masterpiece: Making The Reader, A Conversation with David Kross & Stephen Daldry, Kate Winslet On The Art of Aging Hanna Schmitz, A New Voice: A Look At Composer Nico Muhly, Coming To Grips With The Past: Production Designer Brigitte Broch, Theatrical Trailer
A highly acclaimed drama, yet curiously defined as a thriller, The Reader seems like it's getting a lot more credit than it really deserves. It's not a horrible movie but it's certainly not worthy of the seemingly unending praise it's received. It absolutely did not deserve a Best Picture nomination over The Dark Knight. So the question then remains, why did it get such praise and award recognition? Is it the Holocaust aspect? Is that subject automatically flagged for Awards? Is it the fact that Winslet's character is an illiterate pedophile? That could certainly be the perfect mix of Oscar potential. Truth is, I don't really know why people are clamoring over it so much.
It's not that great of a movie.
Click the Rawr! for the full review.
The Reader is about a woman who has a brief yet torrid affair with a teenage boy who reads to her (when they are doing uh...other things). Years later, the boy comes across her again, only now she is the defendant in a notorious case and he is a law student watching the trial. It is during this trial that he realizes the horrible secret his former lover is determined to keep hidden, no matter the cost. We see how the relationship he has with her affects his life as a grown man.
The film as a whole is a bit underwhelming. I love Kate Winslet, but her performance here wasn't as great as people seemed to think it was. It was serviceable, but was it really award worthy? As for the rest of the cast, they all did well. Ralph Fiennes appeared a bit stiff for some reason. David Kross was working with some heavy hitters here and he held his own rather well.
The movie comes across a bit melodramatic and the supposed twist is not a twist at all. It's actually only stating the obvious. There just didn't seem to be much emotion in the film. There was a lot of reaction but I never really believed the relationship between Winslet and Kross. It didn't really ring true.
That said, the film does look rather well on blu-ray. It's picture clarity is perfect and the sound is crisp. The features are interesting but in reality I wasn't terrible excited about any of it. The film didn't lend itself to me wanting to learn more about it.
The Reader is worth watching to see the role that Kate Winslet was finally given Oscar recognition for but overall, it's a bit overblown in terms of hype.
Worth a rental at best.
The Reader is available on Blu-ray today.
