Three Kings

The Perfect Storm / Three Kings (Double Feature)
$14.98
I should start by saying that this release is indeed a bargain since you get two full-length widescreen movies on one double-sided DVD disc. In addition, you get tons of extras like special commentaries, behind the scenes featurettes, and more. I encourage movie studios to release more double features like this.

I'm not one for sad endings, and unfortunately THE PERFECT STORM ends on a downer. It's an ambitious movie with fine acting and fabulous special effects, but like The Mist (Two-Disc Collector's Edition), the ending leaves you with an uneasy feeling.

Speaking of special effects, the tremendous storm and powerfully destructive water scenes were masterfully done through digital / computer effects, and it is absolutely impossible to distinguish the real water from the digital water. In short, this is a breathtaking movie (pun not intended).

THREE KINGS is a fast paced, quirky movie that requires several viewings for full appreciation. Yes, it's violent, but it never goes overboard on the blood; in the hands of a less skilled director, this could have been a much more gruesome movie. Luckily, the movie strikes a fine balance between humor and the realities of war.

THREE KINGS also has a unqiue visual style which was achieved through using different film stocks and through digital colorization. Like 300 (Two-Disc Special Edition) and the the SAW series, The Saw Trilogy (Saw/ Saw II/ Saw III), THREE KINGS is best appreciated on a flat panel / high definition TV that can faithfully reproduce dark, grainy, and over-exposed scenes.

Finally, I was happy to see that many of the Iraqi extras in THREE KINGS were actual IRAQIS! One of the bonus features was about the Iraqi men and women that were used in the movie, and this added an edge of authenticity to the viewing experience.

All in all, a 5-star release. If you're a fan of George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, and Said Taghmaoui (he interrogates Wahlberg in THREE KINGS and is the terrorist mastermind in VANTAGE POINT, Vantage Point (Two-Disc Special Edition) ), this double feature release is a must have.

King Kong - Extended Cut (Three-Disc Deluxe Edition)
$19.98
Screwed again, Extended Version out in January 31, 2010
What else can I say? I just bought this...

Three Kings: The Rise of an American Empire in the Middle East After World War II
$25.95
As American policy makers ponder a strategy for withdrawal from Iraq, one of our preeminent diplomatic historians uncovers the largely hidden story of how the United States got into the Middle East in the first place. A breathtaking recovery of decisions taken, brazen motives, and backroom dealings, Three Kings is the first history of America's efforts to supplant the British Empire in the Middle East, during and following World War II. From F.D.R. to L.B.J., this is the story of America's scramble for political influence, oil concessions, and a new military presence based on airpower and generous American aid to shaky regimes in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, and Iraq. Marshaling new and revelatory evidence from the archives, Gardner deftly weaves together three decades of U.S. moves in the region, chronicling the early efforts to support and influence the Saudi regime (including the creation of Dhahran air base, the target of Osama bin Laden's first terrorist attack in 1996), the CIA-engineered coup in Iran, Nasser's Egypt, and, finally, the rise of Iraq as a major petroleum power. Here, the tangled threads of oil, U.S. military might, Western commercial interests, and especially the Israel-Palestine question are visible from the very beginning of "The American Century"--a history with frightening relevance for the distant prospect of peace and stability in the region today.

Dora the Explorer: Dora Celebrates Three Kings Day!
$16.99
My granddaughter was delighted to see this video. She has watched it over and over again, which tells me that she enjoyed it. She is four years old and is a big fan of Dora The Explorer.