TASK DEFINITION: In this task, you are given product reviews about dvds. The goal is to classify the review as "POS" if the overall sentiment of the review is positive(the reviewer is satisfied) or as "NEG" if the overall sentiment of the review is negative(the reviewer is not satisfied).
PROBLEM: DO NOT BUY the 3D Version...less than 15 mins total 3D . I wish I came here first before allowing my 5 yr old daughter to save and buy this movie, we own the original (non 3D version) and she knew the 3D version was the same movie but was excited about the 3D aspect and the commercial rums every 15 mins here so she asked if she could get it. We made a chore chart and started saving and mom and dad pitched in half, (at least we had some learning involved with the chore chart), finally got up the money to go buy the 3D version, got home turned off lights put on glasses even made popcorn, Mom Dad Daughter, then we realized Bibble pops on and says take glasses OFF after a few mins of intro 3D? 15 mins goes by no 3d then you are told put glasses ON again etc, overall this movie contains about 10-15 mins total of 3D and most of it NOT in parts you would even WANT to see 3D action... Needless to say having already bought the first release, even knowing this would be the same movie but buying it for the 3D feature, it falls short bigtime due to the LACK of 3D in the movie. Buy the original it's better, and it IS a good movie! Just having kids take off the 3D glasses 5+ times per showing (expecting them to hold them I guess?) for 15-20 mins at a time between the 2-3 min 3D segments is just asking for broken paper 3D glasses and leads to an overall DUD of a supposed 3D release

SOLUTION: NEG

PROBLEM: I could not have enjoyed this more! . This is simply the PERFECT movie/series for anyone who is interested in polar exploration. It's beautifully filmed, interesting throughout, and really makes you feel you are there. True, Scott is, on the whole, shown in a less than favorable light, but given many of the decisions he made, it would be hard for that not to be the case. To the film's credit it goes to great lengths to give the context/history behind the mindset that led to those poor decisions. Likewise with Amundsen, you see his greatness mixed with his flaws. I wouldn't change a thing about the movie itself. As to the quality of the film transfer and the sound, it seemed perfectly fine to me - though I'm hardly an expert on such things. As for the packaging, I admit I was a little disappointed there was absolutely no booklet of any kind, nor are there any "extras" on the discs themselves. You strictly get the 7 episodes on 3 discs in a double-wide hard case. But given that exploration is rarely the subject of any movie, let alone one of this length, I consider this set a real find, worth every penny, and I will treasure it. One side note: The DVD case says "Featuring Hugh Grant & Max VonSydow", but a very young Hugh Grant has just a tiny little part in this 1985 film, so don't buy this hoping to see him or you'll be disappointed!

SOLUTION: POS

PROBLEM: emotionally and dramatically flat and lifeless; set decoration is the only lively thing on display . Roland Joffe directed two masterpieces: The Killing Fields & The Mission. But those two films, directed in 1984 & 1986, were made twenty or more years ago. I'd recommend either of those two films to anybody but Vatel I would recommend only to those viewers who can enjoy a film for its look, its set design and its attention to period detail even when the story and characters themselves are not all that captivating. Vatel is a film that should have everything going for it. As mentioned the director has at least two masterpieces to his credit, Tom Stoppard had a hand in the screenplay (more on that in a minute), Uma Thurman is beautiful, and Gerard Depardieu & Julian Sands & Tim Roth are each capable of delivering memorable performances when they feel inspired. The problem is no one feels inspired by this material. And that is in part due to a lackluster set of characters--supposedly based on actual people--and a story that never really manages to capture our imagination. Gerard Depardieu as master steward "Vatel" is required by his boss, the gout-stricken Prince Conde aka General Conde, to arrange elaborate feasts and entertainments for a visiting retinue of royals that include King Louis XIV, his mistresses, his brother, and various advisors & handlers. If these feasts and entertainments succeed in capturing the kings fancy then Vatel's boss may receive the honor of commanding the French troops in a war with Holland (that may or may not happen). So virtually every frame of the film is dedicated to following Vatel as he personally oversees virtually every dish and set decoration before it is presented to the royal retinue. As viewers we are amazed by Vatel's ingenuity with everything from outdoor theatrical sets that resemble large fold-out books to his ability to make delicate lanterns out of vegetable gourds (Martha Stewart would be impressed) but our interest is purely aesthetic because we never really care whether the Prince gets his royal comission or not and we barely care about Vatel. Next to the selfish, scheming and utterly corrupt royals the selfless and earthy and incorruptible Vatel seems, well, selfless and earthy and incorruptible. Along with his many domestic and artistic talents Vatel also has an uncanny way of understanding people's true natures and needs better than they. The problem with Vatel is that he is perhaps too selfless and so while he busies himself with entertaining others his own life is virtually a non-event. Uma Thurman plays a woman of precarious social standing. She is from a noble family but her position at court is not yet secure and like everyone else she must humor the King to assure his continued favor. When he suggests that they meet in private "for a cup of chocolate" she has no choice but to agree. She is under no illusion that she is anything but a temporary amusement for the King but to refuse the King's advances would be social suicide. The royal world sickens her and we are supposed to see her as somehow too earthy and real for court life but one problem is that this character is barely there. Uma just barely goes through the motions when she is onscreen; instead of seeming like she is dissatisfied with court life she just looks like she is dissatisfied with having to be in this royal dud of a picture. This is too bad because she is supposed to be the muse that awakens or re-awakens Vatel's long dormant passions but there is absolutely zero spark between Uma Thurman and Gerard Depardieu. When the obese fifty-something Depardieu kisses the thirty-something Uma we just don't get it. Few screen romances have ever felt so unconvincing and so void of passion and so uncomfortable to watch. We do know that Depardieu as Vatel is capable of feeling affection because he is very fond of his pet parrots but alas none of this affection is apparent when Uma Thurman is in frame. We're supposed to feel that its the rabid social competition of court life that reduces love to a mere game of conquest and that true love in such a world doesn't have a chance. Instead what we feel is that lack of chemistry between actors is what kills passion. Since the Depardieu-Thurman romance doesn't manage to throw off even one spark the primary story-line is D.O.A. . The elaborate theatrical productions and fireworks displays might hold your attention for a few minutes but this film is not interesting enough to hold your attention for two hours. Julian Sands does a pretty good job as King Louis XIV and Tim Roth an ok job as one of the kings advisors but neither of these actors are given anything very interesting to do or say. Though Tom Stoppard's name appears in the credits when you look closer you realize that Tom Stoppard didn't write an original screenplay rather he merely adapted a French text. Thus even though this film tries to ride on the coat tails of the Stoppard penned Shakespeare in Love this production does not have any of Stoppard's signature cleverness or wit.

SOLUTION:
NEG