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Reviews
Dogfights (2005)
Impressive graphics, good for tactics, so-so for technical accuracy
I just watched the entire first season on DVD. This series is excellent for putting you "in the cockpit" to see how some specific dogfights unfolded. You are shown the tactical situations, the options available, the merits of each option, and what was actually tried. The specific dogfights span from Rickenbacker in the First World War to some modern jet dogfights. The commentaries by the pilots and eminent historians are excellent.
There are some minor weaknesses. The first is that some viewers might be put off by the heavy emphasis on American pilots. If you are looking for American exploits, you will like these episodes. The second is that there are many small technical errors. For example, when talking about the P-40, they once show some P-51A fighters, which are entirely different aircraft. They describe the German MK 108 cannon as the "Mark 108" cannon, although MK does not stand for "Mark" in that case (a common error). The graphic for the SB2C Helldiver shows it with a six-blade propeller. They refer to "laser-guided" air-to-air missiles when they actually mean "radar-guided". The videos are still wonderful, but some viewers might be annoyed as I was by the many minor errors.
The Hunted (2003)
Bad Movie
"The Hunted" is a cross between "First Blood" and "The Fugitive". However, I enjoyed it much less than those two classics. It's as if the writers asked themselves "What if we had Stallone's Rambo character pursued by Tommy Lee Jones' Sam Gerrard character from The Fugitive?" The answer is a poor movie.
I found this movie unnecessarily bloody, and my wife was disgusted. The character development was weak, and I felt I had little understanding of why the characters did some of the things they did. I also thought the action sequences were a little phony and unbelievable. The combat greatly over-emphasized, and idealized, knife fighting.
I gave it 3 out of 10.
Open Range (2003)
One of the Better Westerns
The dialogue was above average, the cinematography and scenery were great, and the acting was solid. The story reminded me a little of Unforgiven, High Noon, and toss in some Gunsmoke episodes. In other words, I liked it a lot. It's the best movie I've seen so far this year. 8/10
By the way, Costner's line about killing some men today sounded a little corny in the preview, but I thought it worked well in the context of the actual movie. It was not a super macho line, but an apology for the kind of man he used to be, and has to be again on this day.
I plan to see it again, and to buy the DVD when it comes out.