Saturday Matinee #1

Audiobook-Heaven has been up and running for a little over a year now, and is really beginning to thrive. Since we are just kicking off a new year, I thought it would be a good time to kick off a new feature here at Audiobook-Heaven as well.
In addition to listening to lots of audiobooks, for the last several months I have also been listening to lots of DVS movies. For those of you who may not know, DVS stands for descriptive video service, and it provides narrated movies for blind and visually impaired people, like myself. Basically, it is the audio track of the movie, complete with dialogue and music, with a narrator describing the action and scenery in between the lines of dialogue.
I’m a movie lover from way back, and when I first heard about DVS I was skeptical. To my surprise, I found that I can enjoy listening to DVS movies almost as much as I used to enjoy watching them on the screen. It’s a pretty awesome service.
Anyway, since I publish audiobook reviews throughout the week, I thought I might try publishing mini-reviews on Saturdays, for some of the DVS movies I have listened to recently. I’m giving this new feature the completely predictable name of Saturday Matinee. I might do this every Saturday, or maybe just once a month, as time permits.
So without further ado, welcome to Saturday Matinee.

Title: Wild, Wild West
Starring: Will Smith, Kevin Kline, Salma Hayek
Narrator: Matthew Vickers
Running time: 94 minutes
Released in: 1999
Genre: comedy
Filed in: Movie reviews

It’s the year 1869, and Dr. Arliss Loveless is disgruntled about the south losing the war. Oh, and he’s a little peeved that he lost the lower half of his body to said war as well. That’s why he’s been kidnapping all the top scientists in the world and forcing them to help him exact his revenge on President U S Grant, and the United States government.
It’s up to Captain James West of the U S Army (Will Smith), and brilliant inventor and U S Marshal Artemis Gordon (Kevin Kline) to stop the fiend before his plan reaches its fruition. It won’t be easy though, because all those kidnapped scientists have been building Loveless an eighty-foot, steam-powered, mechanical spider, and it’s hot on the trail of President Grant.
Will Smith and Kevin Kline are pretty funny guys, and this movie was no exception. I liked all the little gadgets Artemis Gordon kept inventing, most of which backfired with hilarious results. The surprise hit of the movie was Kenneth Branagh’s highly theatrical performance as Arliss Loveless. He played a very convincing, and very enthusiastic mad scientist.
Sometimes the DVS productions include a reading of the end credits, and sometimes they don’t. This one did not I’m sorry to say.

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Title: The sixth Sense
Starring: Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment
Narrator: Peter Haydu
Running time: 130 minutes
Released in: 1999
Genre: horror
Filed in: movie reviews

“I see dead people.”
Who could forget a tag-line like that? I’m just guessing here, but I’ll bet “The Sixth Sense” is still one of the most memorable movies for anyone who’s seen it. As touching as it was creepy, this film gave a whole new meaning to the phrase “plot twist.” A little boy who sees ghosts, a child psychologist who needs a second chance to correct a mistake he made ten years ago, and a young widow who is still haunted by the presence of her husband. I’d call that a formula for success.
And a success it was! “The Sixth Sense” was M Night Shyamalan’s third movie. His first two films grossed about $350,000 combined; “The Sixth Sense” grossed about $672 million, and made Shyamalan a household name.
Everyone knows this movie so I won’t drone on about the plot, but I would like to mention the musical score. When you’re listening to DVS movies, and you’re not distracted by pictures on a screen, you can develop a whole new appreciation for the music in a film. James Newton Howard’s score for the film was very well done, lots of strings moving on multiple levels to create that feeling of suspense and discord, and then quick, high jabs delivered at the critical moments to send a jolt through you.
On a final note, this particular recording featured some interview segments at the end. The comments by Shyamalan and several of the key actors gave some interesting background on the movie. Also included was a full reading of the end credits.

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All of the DVS movies I listen to come from the Three Blind Mice. They have hundreds of titles to choose from in mp3 format, and they can all be downloaded right to your computer, completely free. Visit Three Blind Mice by following the link on the sidebar.
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Movie reviews by Steven Brandt.
Come back soon for more movie reviews from Audiobook-Heaven.