The Grassroots of Business Success

The arrival of 3D TVs do not threaten the way forward for big-screen Imax flicks in the theater, it does present a possibility, the Manager of Imax Company recounted on Thursday. “We provide a novel, top-end, out-of-home entertainment experience that folk will wish to see even though it’s available in the home,” expounded Head honcho Richard Gelfond in a talk with Reuters. “I don’t truly think 3D in the house is going to adversely impact us.

On the other hand we entered into a letter of broad terms with Sony ( 6758.T : Quote ) and Discovery ( DISCA.O : Quote ) to make the 1st 3D in home satellite television network.”. Discovery Communications, whose Television brands include Discovery Channel, TLC and Animal Planet, announced in January that it plans to launch a dedicated network with Imax and Sony in the U.

S. starting in 2011. Toronto-based Imax, which reported better than anticipated quarterly results on Thursday and forecast a powerful year ahead, asserted it’s still arranging a last agreement with Sony and Discovery and could issue an update in a month. “Since we’ve got the premium brand in 3D and have been in 3D longer than anyone and have some exclusive technology, we are hunting for alternative ways to migrate into the home and think we’ll be in a position to find a money base in the home,” he announced. While its concepts are “just theoretical” at this time, Imax is considering a variety of licensing options to take advantage of its 3D content library, as an example, or conversion technology for 2D to 3D material, he claimed.

For me, one of the most logical — I am just using this by way of an example — would be a 3D video recorder, the Imax 3D camcorder,” he revealed.

An adventure 65 million years in the making… such is the tagline for Jurassic Park, the onscreen adaptation of Michael Crichton’s wildly successful novel about the human-aided return of dinosaurs to planet Earth. One of Steven Spielberg’s greatest achievements, Jurassic Park was, and remains, a special effects masterpiece unrivaled by its peers. Dinosaurs roam the plains and scour the forests against the backdrop of conductor John Williams’s original score (some of the best music of his career, which is saying a lot). Unlike the Godzilla movies of years past, you can’t see human hands or construction paper props in the background of this movie. The computer generated creatures are so amazingly animated, that you’ll finish the film believing that Jurassic Park is a real life destination…

Dr. Alan Grant’s (Sam Neill) life is dinosaur bones and the study of the various ancient reptiles that once dominated the Earth. He and his colleague Dr. Elli Sattler (Laura Dern) spend their days excavating the barren hills of South Dakota and loving every minute of it. But when Dr. Grant is approached by the eccentric multimillionaire John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) in regard to touring “something of great interest,” the man’s world of dinosaurs becomes more realistic than he ever thought possible.

Hammond’s creation is an isolated island called “Jurassic Park” where his company uses dinosaur DNA extracted from mosquitoes encased in amber during the Jurassic period many millennia before to clone dinosaurs. Prior to opening his park to the public, Hammond wants to take a number of experts on a tour of the facilities, among them are Grant and Sattler, a lawyer named Donald Gennaro (Martin Ferrero), and a mathametican/philosopher - Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum). When everyone but the lawyer expresses great reservations about the very idea of cloning dinosaurs (especially the carnivores), not to mention the safety concerns for an aspiring theme park, Hammond insists on putting their fears to rest personally.

But John Hammond’s dream goes terribly awry when a disgruntled computer programmer, Dennis Nedry (Wayne Knight of Seinfeld fame), compromises the island’s security systems in order to smuggle some dinosaur embryos off the island, where a competing corporation has offered him a handsome monetary reward. Nedry’s death, and the inadequate security systems of Jurassic Park, put the dangerous T-Rex and the lightning fast raptors on level ground with the island’s human inhabitants. Now, Hammond and his guests no longer spend their idle time assessing the merits of Jurassic Park, but instead spend every waking minute fighting for their survival…

You’ll be hard pressed to find a film which rivals the brilliant special effects of Jurassic Park. The Star Wars films are the only movies even in the same league. But Jurassic Park also offers an interesting and compelling story, lots of action, and reams of suspense. Even an occasional lawyer joke helps to break up the intensity… Jurassic Park has it all. A summer blockbuster by a director who almost single-handedly invented summer blockbusters, Jurassic Park is a definite must-see movie. If you shy away from excessively commercial films, then make an exception for this one. I promise, you won’t be disappointed…

About the Author

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of the Jurassic Park (DVD).

Before Seinfeld redefined the sitcom, The Simpsons came along and redefined prime time animation. Straying from the usual formula of innocence concocted by The Flintstones and The Jetsons, The Simpsons left no area of society untouched by its raw politically-incorrect satire. With an almost endless array of unforgettable characters, a trip to Springfield is a breath of fresh air, and hilarious as a television comedy can be…

The Simpsons (Season 2) DVD offers a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere in which Bart makes a deal with school nerd Martin Prince. Bart will make Martin cool if Martin agrees to tutor Bart into a top-notch student. When Martin reneges on his end of the deal, Bart must pass on his own merit, and his D- earns the respect of Homer and Mrs. Krabappel. In “Treehouse of Horror” (#16), Bart and Lisa take turns telling horror stories in an episode foreshadowing the Simpson Halloween Specials which followed in years to come. Other notable episodes include “Dancin’ Homer” in which Homer becomes the local minor league team’s mascot and “Itchy & Scratchy & Marge” in which Marge takes on the cartoon violence warping Springfield’s youth…

Below is a list of episodes included on The Simpsons (Season 2) DVD:

Episode 14 (Bart Gets an F) Air Date: 10-11-1990
Episode 15 (Simpson and Delilah) Air Date: 10-18-1990
Episode 16 (Treehouse of Horror) Air Date: 10-25-1990
Episode 17 (Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish) Air Date: 11-01-1990
Episode 18 (Dancin’ Homer) Air Date: 11-08-1990
Episode 19 (Dead Putting Society) Air Date: 11-15-1990
Episode 20 (Bart vs. Thanksgiving) Air Date: 11-22-1990
Episode 21 (Bart the Daredevil) Air Date: 12-06-1990
Episode 22 (Itchy & Scratchy & Marge) Air Date: 12-20-1990
Episode 23 (Bart Gets Hit By a Car) Air Date: 01-10-1991
Episode 24 (One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish) Air Date: 01-24-1991
Episode 25 (The Way We Was) Air Date: 01-31-1991
Episode 26 (Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Amendment) Air Date: 02-07-1991
Episode 27 (Principal Charming) Air Date: 02-14-1991
Episode 28 (Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou?) Air Date: 02-21-1991
Episode 29 (Bart’s Dog Gets an F) Air Date: 03-07-1991
Episode 30 (Old Money) Air Date: 03-28-1991
Episode 31 (Brush with Greatness) Air Date: 04-11-1991
Episode 32 (Lisa’s Substitute) Air Date: 04-25-1991
Episode 33 (The War of the Simpsons) Air Date: 05-02-1991
Episode 34 (Three Men and a Comic Book) Air Date: 05-09-1991
Episode 35 (Blood Feud) Air Date: 07-11-1991

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of The Simpsons (Season 2) DVD.