Jeff Stein Movies
- 1999
- Add Sly and Robbie: Strip to the Bone to QueueAdd Sly and Robbie: Strip to the Bone to top of Queue
The hottest rhythm section in Jamaica lays down the beat for the hottest exotic dancers in Los Angeles in this unique DVD release. Features Sly and Robbie's red-hot, stripped-down soundtrack remixed for 5.1 Surround playback, as well as standard PCM stereo. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1997
- Add The Vandals: Sweatin' to the Oldies - Live to QueueAdd The Vandals: Sweatin' to the Oldies - Live to top of Queue
West coast punk mainstays the Vandals play it fast, loud, and goofy in this live video, directed by Jeff Stein, who compiled the acclaimed documentary on the Who, Who: The Kids Are Alright. The Vandals: Sweatin' to the Oldies -- Live features the band ripping it up for their Orange County fans; songs include "Anarchy Burger," "Pizza Tran," "Girls Turn Eighteen Every Day," "Goop All Over the Phone," "Mohawk Town," and (of course) many more. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Here's the premise for season one of Ned and Stacey: abrasive counter-culture journalist Stacey (Debra Messing) is in desperate need of an apartment. Arrogant advertising executive Ned (Thomas Haden Church) needs a wife to improve his image at the ad firm of Kirkland and Haywood, which caters heavily to the "family values" crowd. It so happens that Stacey's sister Amanda (Nadia Dajani) is married to Ned's chief accountant and best friend Eric (Greg Germann). At Amanda's urging, Ned and Stacey enter into an in-name-only marriage, with the understanding that they can continue going out with others. Not surprisingly, the couple find it impossible to get along for any more than a few minutes at a time, but they do manage to find prospective dates for one another. As the season progresses, Stacey leaves her job at The Village Voice and signs on with "Skyward," a cheap in-flight magazine for a cut-rate airline. Ned finally fixes Stacey up with "Mr. Right" and she falls deeply in love -- thus neatly bollixing up the couple's marriage of convenience. The season ends with a spirit of hearty recrimination and a determination on the part of both Ned and Stacey to get a divorce. But how can one dismiss that long, passionate kiss between them in the middle of Ned's apartment? Recurring characters during season one include Harry Goz and Dori Brenner as Stacey's parents Saul and Ellen; Andrew Arons as Eric and Amanda's son Howard; and James Karen as Ned's boss Patrick Kirkland. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Haden Church, Debra Messing, (more)
- 1992
Duvall's Emmy- and ACE award-winning animated bedtime stories, narrated by celebrities. Each tape contains two stories and are available individually. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1990
An all-star cast is included on this children's adventure that follows a search for Mother Goose by her son (Dan Gilroy) and Little Bo Peep (Shelley Duvall). ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1982
- PG
Latter-day comedy stars like Dan Aykroyd and John Candy host this compilation of clips from Hollywood's most famed bad movies, including Plan 9 From Outer Space, Untamed Women and Robot Monster. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, (more)
The classic rock group The Who are featured in this 1979 documentary about the career of the group. It is enhanced by rare footage of the performers, including a television interview with the later-deceased Keith Moon. Highlights include footage from many of the band's early performances. Among the many songs featured are "Magic Bus," "Won't Get Fooled Again," "My Generation," "Young Man's Blues," "Happy Jack," and excerpts from the innovative rock-opera Tommy. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, (more)
In 1977, while Jeff Stein was compiling The Kids Are Alright, his excellent documentary on legendary British rockers the Who, the filmmaker felt he lacked strong film footage of several classic Who tunes and wanted performances that would bring the picture up to date. With this in mind, Stein arranged for the Who to play a show to be filmed for the movie, and six 35mm film cameras were on hand when the band took the stage at the State Kilburn Theatre on December 15, 1977. However, Pete Townshend was openly disappointed with the Who's show that day (even saying on camera "This wasn't f--king worth filming, Stein -- might as well send the cameramen home" midway through their set), and they shot another concert several months later that was used in the movie. However, more than three decades later the Kilburn State Theatre set has finally been made available on the DVD release The Who at Kilburn 1977. Compared to the Who's best work on film, The Who at Kilburn 1977 does capture the band on a relative off night -- Keith Moon is clearly out of shape and has trouble keeping up with the band, while John Entwistle and Roger Daltrey appear to be a bit out of practice -- but Townshend is on fire throughout the show, and this footage confirms that the Who were a powerfully exciting act even when they weren't delivering one hundred percent. The Who at Kilburn 1977 has been given a widescreen transfer to disc, letterboxed at the 1.78:1 aspect ratio on conventional televisions and enhanced for anamorphic play on 16x9 monitors. The original film elements are practically spotless and the depth and clarity of the 35mm film image is truly impressive, as is the vivid but realistic color balance. The audio (which was recorded using a 16-track mobile truck) has been mastered in three formats, Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, and DTS 5.1 Surround. The stereo mix sounds tighter and more powerful than the 5.1 version, but either way the results are impressive and capture the force of the Who on stage with admirable accuracy. The performances are in English, with no subtitles or multiple language options. As a bonus, this package comes with a second disc featuring another show from the Who's archives -- a December 1969 performance at the London Coliseum Theater in which the band performed the recently-released rock opera Tommy in full along with a set of their bet known tunes. The 1969 show was filmed in 16mm by a small crew who didn't use any additional lighting; consequently, the image is often dark and grainy and at times the band is all but invisible, while the print is in rough shape and there are bits where the editors have to make do with "stylized" substitute footage when both cameramen ran out of film. But the Who are in excellent form in this bonus gig, and while the audio is sometimes boomy and distorted, it inarguably captures a more interesting concert than the one on disc one. (It's also presented in widescreen, with both stereo and surround options.) The Who at Kilburn 1977 delivers two flawed but fascinating shows from one of the greatest bands in rock history, and serious Who fans will certainly want this in their collection. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
