Burn Notice: Season One
|
List Price: Our Price: $13.00 You Save: $36.98 (74%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $7.99 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Burn Notice: Season One
Movie Review: "BURN NOTICE" IS HOT
Summary: 5 Stars
One of the biggest advantages to come of with the dawn of the DVD age is that television shows that might otherwise have gone unnoticed have been given a new chance at life with the release of series seasons on disc. Such is the case with BURN NOTICE, a fairly moderate hit on cable that has the chance to gain viewers with the release this week of season one on disc.
The story revolves around Michael Weston (Jeffrey Donovan), perhaps the best spy the US has. The problem begins when right in the middle of a transaction with foreign operatives, Weston is given his "burn notice". In effect, a burn notice is a termination of current employment where an agent is left in the field without identity, backup, funds or anything that might help him. Happening in the middle of an illegal transaction with killers is not the best time to be notified.
Weston escapes and lands in Miami. Using his knowledge and special ops skills, he sets up a place to stay, contacts his old friend Sam (Bruce Campbell) who helps set him up with some work. He also meets up with past girlfriend Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar) - an ex-IRA bomber that he left behind, and his mother (Sharon Gless), a chain smoking retiree.
Things are not the best he could hope for.
The character of Michael Weston is charismatic and yet hard at the same time. He has difficulty relating to what you and I might think of as normal civilians. Put him in the midst of a group of soldiers discussing weapons and explosives and he's in his element. Sitting next to a young boy whose father has been threatened by a rich employer who has set him up to take the fall for a fake theft and that's a whole different ballgame. As played by Donovan, the character is believable and easy on the eyes for female fans.
Most of the episodes consist of two stories running side by side. The ongoing story consists of Michael trying to discover who issued his burn notice so he can go back to doing what he does best. Whoever placed him there has let him know in no uncertain terms that he is to remain in Miami and let it go. FBI agents that follow him around, NSA members who visit him and more attempt to get that through his head. But Michael doesn't choose to take this situation lying down.
The second storylines involve Michael either being recruited to help someone in need or taking on jobs that his friend Sam puts him in contact with. Anything from a kidnapping to the fake theft mentioned above requires him to use his cunning and skills to help someone in need.
What I thought made this series work more than anything was the interplay between characters. Not only that but the casting choices make this work like a Swiss watch. Each actor has his or her piece to play and they do it to perfection.
Campbell has found his niche here playing the friend who was once involved in covert actions as well. Sam not only helps Michael but feeds information (usually false) to the Feds who keep an eye on Michael.
Fiona as played by Anwar offers an elegant looking woman with tremendous sex appeal but who has a deadly side that she lets loose now and then. Even then she offers some of the most humorous lines in the show as she matter of factly considers eliminating anyone who gives Michael trouble. This let's kill `em attitude coming from this petite woman makes for an interesting character.
The series offers plenty of action, lots of thoughtful plotlines, a ton of subtle humor and even a touch of romance. With the second season getting ready to begin this summer, now is the time to pick up season one and get caught up. The cliffhanger at season's end will be a great jumping on point this summer. Until then, give this DVD release a try. It's worthy of adding to any collection.
Movie Review: Fantastic ;-)
Summary: 5 Stars
I really love this show. It's one of my 'new' favourites. To be honest, I first started watching it because of Jeffrey Donovan, who plays the lead, Michael Weston. I used to watch him in The Pretender and Crossing Jordan and loved him, so I began to see what this was like. It's a great show and I make sure not to miss any episodes. Speaking of episodes, this is how season 1 plays out;
PILOT - Michael Weston, a contract agent for various agencies including the CIA, finds that a burn notice has been issued for him. Stranded in Miami, he takes the case of a caretaker accused of stealing millions from his boss.
IDENTITY - Weston is roped into helping his mother's friend get back money she lost in a scam, but Fi and Sam may ruin everything with their bumbling and bickering.
FIGHT OR FLIGHT - Michael's landlord, Oleg, is having a problem with one of his waitresses. She hasn't come into work because she witnessed a crime committed by a man who just happens to be a member of a local drug cartel. Michael is (mostly) happy to look into it, as he also continues his investigation into who stuck him with his burn notice.
OLD FRIENDS - Michael's brother is back in town, and he involves him in the search for a friend's daughter for less than pure motives. Elsewhere, an agent with a grudge comes after Michael.
FAMILY BUSINESS - Michael takes on arms dealers for an airport worker, while Nate obsesses about the car and their dad's will.
UNPAID DEBTS - Michael helps out an old SEAL buddy of Sam's who has gotten himself on the wrong side of a smuggler while trying to repossess his boat, and a new agent hits town set on making Michael's life miserable since he won't give up on finding his burn notice.
BROKEN RULES - Michael works to rid a community in little Havana of a crime boss, all the while baiting Jason Bly at the risk of his family and friends.
WANTED MAN - Fiona decides to try bounty-hunting, but then convinces Michael to help prove the man innocent.
HARD BARGAIN - A slightly dim house sitter's fiancée has been kidnapped, and Sam guilts Michael into a rescue while he's negotiating with a D.C. bureaucrat to stop the burn notice.
FALSE FLAG - Michael makes plans to leave Miami, but has to do one last job - locate a woman's missing son - so he can get a new identity.
LOOSE ENDS PART 1 - Phillip Cowan has arrived in Miami, but Michael has to put him off when a job involving heroin and blackmail goes south.
LOOSE ENDS PART 2 - With Cowan's bosses now tracking him, Michael must protect his family and rescue Sam all before his own capture if he doesn't move fast enough.
To elaborate just that little bit more, a 'burn notice' is when a spy is cut off, no jobs, nothing. Jeffrey Donovan is great in this and so is Gabrielle Anwar and the writing for this series is sharp. I was hooked from the first episode and I'm sure you'll be too. It's brilliant and I highly recommend it.
Movie Review: Most Entertaining (i.e. best) series since Dallas!
Summary: 5 Stars
Seemingly out of nowhere I discovered this gem of a tv-series. I guess I have not been engaged in a series save Seinfeld since Dallas and via the internet I discover "Burn Notice" already into it's fourth season. I am quickly correcting this "wrong" and am just finishing the third season. Simply stated, for this viewer, it's the best series on tv currently and the best since Dallas IMHO.
Where to start? Well, a good story and "Burn Notice" has one: a black-listed super spy dumped without any reason in the middle of a sensitive deal with African bad guys. Michael Westen, our super spy, is curious and I am too. He ends up in Miami with all assets frozen and only his fierly ex-girlfriend, and spy, the beautiful Fiona. Scrambling to get on his feet, to find out "what the hell happened, and just get by becomes his everyday life...Until, he can get his old life back. In a nutshell, this is our story.
Truth be told this could easily have been a one-season fantastic show (think: "My Own Worst Enemy"), but the story, the cast, the actual mechanism of using the clever "voice-over" technique, and the sly ever present humor have all come together to build an audience that absolutely, like me, craves this show. Sure, it can only help that the backdrop is the very hip Miami Beach area where most of the action takes place.
What makes this show tick and continue, in spite of the commonality of many episodes, might just be the tremendous chemistry of the cast and the changing dynamics between the characters. It's hard to notice that the writers are not as constrained as in past similar shows as the weaving in of gritty realistic darkness sometimes quite abruptly serves as as notice it is not a simplistic comedy. There is some heavy handed morality issues rearing at regular intervals which serves to keep an "edge" to the whole affair. The writing really serves to still guide the entire proceedings and, actually, not the characters who are very strong and who invest the viewer, but with the caveat that the stories dictate. This is in no way a simple, one dimensional, tv show and I, for one, am absolutely hooked. There is so much more, like the excellent use and explanation of technolgy. Is the use of the technology on the level? Well, I can't say as I care because the way it's presented it very palatble and believable within the knowledge of this being a fictional representation of spy vs. spy.
If anything I may have said seems interesting to you I think you have only one option: Get the first season DVD from Amazon and be your own judge. You could waste alot more money going to the theater and hoping to see something as good yet hardly ever feeling you got your money's worth!
Movie Review: Cool, intelligent, quirky, and sexy
Summary: 5 Stars
It's a rare thing when a show comes along that gets just about everything right. Perhaps the first season of Dead Zone, or maybe even Firefly would fall into this category. I'm very glad to report that Burn Notice can easily join that exclusive group.
The premise of Burn Notice is unique in itself. Michael Westen, a very capable spy (played by Jeffrey Donovan) is "burned" by his agency and left in a very bad spot with some African warlords. He ends up escaping to Miami where he has to nurse some broken ribs, all the while wondering how things turned so ugly so fast. Fortunately he's not alone. There's Fiona a gorgeous ex-girlfriend who used to work for the IRA (played by the goddess Gabrielle Anwar - made famous by her dance with Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman), an overbearing and effortlessly funny mother (Sharon Gless from Cagney and Lacey), and Sam the retired operative/Navy SEAL with enough experience and friends in law enforcement to forever be of value (played by Bruce Campbell from The Adventures of Brisco County Jr and many other B-movies).
The best part of this show (and others that came before) is the chemistry between the cast. Michael is smart, dangerous, and able to put on an award winning smile no matter how bad things look. Fi is stunning, both sexy and quirky - while still being a bit vulnerable. One of my very favorite scenes is when Michael has to break out her car window during one of their many staged mission encounters. She knows very well what he's doing, but she goes ahead and punches him three times in the face just to let him know that she doesn't appreciate the disrespect. You have to see it. My wife and I both got a good laugh. Sam is also a great character - both funny and able to adapt to nearly any situation. This was truly great casting.
I highly recommend this season. It is short, but you will love it. Do yourself a favor and give the season a few episodes before you make up your mind. My wife was a bit unsure by the narrated structure of the show at first. But by episode 3, she was totally hooked. Really good stuff.
Written by Arthur Bradley, author of "Process of Elimination" - a sexy thriller that pits a martial artist against a world-class sniper out to change the Presidential election.
As always, please be kind enough to indicate if reviews are helpful.
Movie Review: For my money, the best show on TV right now
Summary: 5 Stars
Burn Notice manages to blend spy thrillers and cinematic action with down-to-earth realism. Michael Westen isn't James Bond or Jason Bourne -- as he says in the very first episode, "Guns make you stupid. Better to fight your wars with duct tape. Duct tape makes you smart," just before he gets past an armored door using a stud finder and a roll of duct tape. Like a cool MacGuyver without the bad hair, Michael wins by out-thinking and out-planning his foes, not just by beating them up and shooting them (though there's plenty of that, too). And his running internal narration fills the audience in on WHY he's doing what he's doing. Yes, you too can turn a cell phone into an audio bug, and here's how!
The cast fits together like a glove and with amazing chemistry. His ex-girlfriend (and former IRA terrorist) Fionna adds impulsiveness and anger to the group, while his ex-military friend Sam (played by the amazing Bruce Campbell) alternates between the voice of reason and a hook for some skirt-chasing humor. The interplay and developing relationship between Michael and his mom (who swings between helping the crew -- sometimes even saving the day -- and being a serious thorn in Michael's side) is realistic and fun to watch. The relationships between all of the characters (but especially the one between Michael and his mom) grow and develop as the series goes on, which is one of the best reasons for watching it.
On each episode, someone comes to the team for help with a problem no one else can take care of (A-Team style). While the group is dealing with that, the overall "season plot" gets advanced a bit. In Season One, Michael is just trying to figure out who burned him and why. In Season Two, Michael is trying to get out from under their thumb. In Season Three, Michael has lost his protection and has deal with "real life" in the form of prying cops and old enemies. In Season Four, Michael has a broader view of what's going on, and is trying to stop a dangerous conspiracy. The "story arc" for each season is always advanced -- sometimes a little, sometimes a lot -- so you never feel like a show was just a throwaway they tossed together.
If you're not into Burn Notice, check it out, Thursdays at 9 on USA. If you are a fan, then what are you waiting for? Get this DVD set! The show is amazing!