Writer/Director John Wells wanted to make this film after the dot-com bust earlier this century but couldn't get the project underway. After the recent downturn in the economy he was able to adjust the script and delivers a fantastic drama about how a layoff can ruin your life. The all-star cast includes Chris Cooper and Kevin Costner, although my favorite character in the film is Tommy Lee Jones who plays the executive with a conscience.

Broadcast on PBS and Showtime in the 1980s, this British series certainly shows its age with the outdated music, 1.33:1 framed image, and campy production value. The series has a cult-like following and I don't mean to insult the fans, but I don't get it. My wife and I did our best to get through all 13 episodes, but couldn't make it to the end.

George Lucas is known for his Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, but this film was his first commercial success, and it earned five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. Not only is it wildly entertaining, it's a blast to see future stars Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford, Cindy Williams, Somers before they became household names.

My biggest complaint with this film has always been its length, so I'm not exactly thrilled with the additional 17 minutes in the director's cut. Frankly, Maxwell would have been better served by cutting the run time down at least an hour. It's nearly impossible to get through the entire 271 minutes in one sitting, but having watched it over two nights, I have to admit the history lesson was an enlightening experience.

I love history (especially American history), so I really wanted to like this film. Unfortunately, the script is all over the place and the pacing is downright awful. It doesn't help that it's been expanded with an additional hour of footage and clocks in at 280 minutes in order to lengthen certain scenes and adds a subplot of John Wilkes Booth (Chris Conner). On the plus side, the battle scenes are well done and Duvall's depiction of Lee is marvelous.