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David Vaughn

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Frankenweenie

Filed Under: 3D Blu-ray Movie Reviews, Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Jun 19, 2013 • 0 comments

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Coerced into playing baseball by his father, Victor connects with the hit of his life and sails one over the fence. His beloved dog, Sparky, thinks it’s a game of fetch, races after the ball, is hit by an oncoming car, and dies. Terribly depressed and lonely, Victor is inspired by his science teacher to bring his dog back to life. Successful in his task, his home-sewn creature draws the attention of an evil classmate when he escapes, and Victor is forced to reveal his secret on how to raise the dead. All hell breaks loose when the town is suddenly overrun by reanimated pets, and it’s up to Victor and Sparky to save the day.

Arbitrage

Filed Under: Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Jun 10, 2013 • 0 comments

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From the outside looking in, Robert Miller is living the American dream. He’s a Wall Street billionaire who lives a life of luxury, has a loving wife and family, and is financially set for life. Unfortunately for Miller, he’s living a lie, and the house of cards he’s built is about to come crashing down.

Hotel Transylvania

Filed Under: 3D Blu-ray Movie Reviews, Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Jun 10, 2013 • 3 comments

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When Toy Story launched the digital animation genre in 1995, you just knew that every Hollywood studio would eventually set up its own department to cash in on the latest movie trend. Throw in vampires with the Twilight phenomenon and 3D with Avatar, and it was just a matter of time before all three concepts would be mixed together into one picture, hence we get this entertaining animated tale from Sony Pictures.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Parts 1 and 2

Filed Under: Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: May 22, 2013 • 1 comments

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The seven Harry Potter novels have sold more than 450 million copies and are the best-selling book series in history. With such a rabid and loyal fan base, it was a foregone conclusion that Hollywood would come knocking on author J.K. Rowling’s door. In 1998, Warner Bros. purchased the rights to the first two novels for more than $1 million, and director Chris Columbus had the pleasure— and challenge—of casting all the various characters who would entertain audiences for the next 10 years.

The three main characters, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, were perfectly cast with Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson, respectively. Audiences got to see these three kids grow up as people and actors over the years, and Warner Bros. executives were able to keep them and the rest of the all-star cast together until the final film in 2011.

Sunset Boulevard

Filed Under: Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: May 08, 2013 • 0 comments

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One of silent film’s biggest stars, Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), enlists the talents of a down-on-his-luck Hollywood screenwriter Joe Gillis (William Holden) to help edit a screenplay she wrote in hopes of launching her big comeback. Little does Gillis know, the poor lady is off her rocker. But when you’re broke, you have to take work when you can get it. The pair watch her old movies with her trusty butler—who hides his own dirty secret—at the helm of the camera, but the more time Gillis spends with the ex-starlet, the more he becomes accustomed to the lavish lifestyle she provides him.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Filed Under: Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: May 02, 2013 • 0 comments

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Steve Martin stars as Neal Page, an uptight advertising executive who misses his scheduled flight from New York to Chicago when an obnoxious salesman steals his cab. As fate would have it, the cab thief turns out to be a shower curtain ring salesman (John Candy) who just happens to sit next to Neal on his flight home. Due to inclement weather, their plane is diverted to Wichita, and when they land, Neal fails to secure a place to stay for the evening. Lucky for him, his new “friend” has booked the last room in town. Thus begins a relationship made in heaven—or hell, depending on your perspective.

Flawless 1080p? ParaNorman on Blu-ray

Filed Under: Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Apr 16, 2013 • 0 comments

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In many ways, Norman Babcock is a typical kid trying to find his way in the world. He enjoys watching TV with his grandma, gets bullied at school, and what he wants more than anything is acceptance. Unfortunately, Norman has a certain ability that seems to turn people off—he can see and speak with the dead. In fact, his grandma has been dead for a while, and whenever he mentions to his family that he enjoys spending time with her, Mom and Dad kind of freak out. Poor Norman is considered the town freak of Blithe Hollow because of his ability, but little do the townspeople know that the young man is about to save them from a witch who was executed more than 300 years earlier and is seeking her pound of flesh.

Emotiva UMC-200 Preamp/Processor

Filed Under: Preamp/Processor Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Apr 10, 2013 • 12 comments

Emotiva UMC-200 Preamp/Processor
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Price: $599 At A Glance: Audiophile audio quality at a bargain price • Customizable EQ solution • Outstanding value

I’m not an engineer, and no, I don’t play one on TV either, although I’ve been around the A/V business long enough to know the technological challenges manufacturers face when creating a new pre/pro or AVR from the ground up. This is especially hard for smaller companies with limited budgets in an HDMI-enabled world.

Rock of Ages

Filed Under: Blu-ray Movie Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Mar 20, 2013 • 0 comments

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If you aren’t a fan of 1980s rock music or musicals, stop reading right now and save yourself a few minutes because you’ll absolutely hate this movie otherwise. For those of you who have stuck around, you’ll absolutely love this movie—as long as you aren’t turned off by actors bursting out in song in the middle of a scene.

Denon AVR-2313CI A/V Receiver

Filed Under: AV Receiver Reviews

By: David Vaughn • Posted: Feb 28, 2013 • 5 comments

Audio Performance
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Price: $900 At A Glance: Fabulous video processing • Audyssey MultEQ XT enabled • Apple AirPlay enabled

With over 100 years of history behind it, Denon Electronics has high standards for any product it releases. And in my experience, it generally delivers the goods. Its AVRs (audio/video receivers) are often among the best on the market and run the gamut from the budget category all the way up to high-end models that will set you back a few months’ worth of mortgage payments.

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