On Friday's General Hospital:

Angry and hurt, Sam confronted Jason asking why he didn't call to let her know he was arrested, but when Ric let himself into the briefing room to taunt them, they put up a united front. It would seem a front is all it will be, however. Jason's heart is with his son, and to a certain extent, Liz. Jason's secret coupled with her new found fame is expanding the divide between them.

When Sonny happened across Amelia's ever-thickening file of Sam's dirty deeds, she came completely clean, warning Sonny that Jason is probably just another target on the con woman's list of marks. Sonny immediately took the information to Jason, who was a lot less suspicious of Sam. He insisted she's changed, but later called Amelia and asked her to visit him at the jail.

It looks like we're seeing the beginning of the end of Sam and Jason. Whether Kelly Monaco is taking her leave, something that has come up several times with the actress, or the writers are just looking to switch things up a bit, remains to be seen.

Lucky apologized to Elizabeth for getting angry about her visiting Jason, but no return apology from the woman for spending time with the mob hit man instead of being in court with Lucky and his family. With each passing day, it seems, Liz is getting more and more selfish and hypocritical. She wants Lucky raising her children because he is stable and safe, but Jason always takes priority. It's getting harder and harder to understand and sympathize with her.

When Jax introduced Kate to Alexis, the two found common ground in their deep-seated dislike for Carly. Playing off each other with wit and charm, I think this is a gal-pal relationship with real potential. As Carly continues to drive Kate nuts, I hope we see her confide in her new friend.

Determined to move forward with his plans to kidnap Laura before Scott can take her away, Luke asks Lulu to enlist Spinelli's help in finding which hospital the court is holding her in. The Jackal is, of course, successful. This story should kick into high gear this coming week.

Warning! News and Spoilers Ahead!

• Having found Laura, Luke allows the kids to say good-bye to their mother before disappearing with her. When Scott finds out, he has Tracy arrested. It is Lulu who bails her out of jail, not her family, prompting Tracy to insist Lulu move back into the Quartermaine mansion.
• The word is Wally Kurth will be back as Ned for the summer. Is he here to help Tracy with her "ghostly" problem and/or sanity?
• Jason finally comes clean about his secret pain to Sonny, who advises him to fight for his parental role with his son. Jason believes Sam is not the person she was, until Amelia confides Sam has known the truth about Jake for weeks now.
• Things will heat up between Patrick and Robin in July. When their parents try to lend a helping hand, will things heat up between Noah and Anna too?

Wife, mother, aspiring novelist, and music editor at BC Magazine, Connie Phillips spends most of her time in a fantasy land of her own creating. In reality, she writes about music, television, and the process of writing, when she’s not cheering on her kids at equestrian events. Contact: Phillips.connie@gmail.com

Breach is the true story about the F.B.I.'s capture of the worst spy in American history — and one of it's own — one Robert Hanssen. But this is much more than a tale about the cloak and dagger intricacies of espionage. It is also a riveting character study of Hanssen himself, who is brilliantly portrayed as a deeply conflicted man — one who is equal parts genius and sociopath — by Oscar winner Chris Cooper.

Hanssen is a guy who wears the same conservative suit daily, and who attends church every single day like clockwork. Although he admits that the Russians are smarter and more devious, he chalks up their downfall to their "godlessness." This is a guy who has a cross on his office wall, and keeps religious icons on his desk. What makes all of this so fascinating is that this doesn't appear to be a cover at all — the apparent patriotism and religious devotion appear to be absolutely genuine. You want conservative? This guy's favorite band is the Andrews Sisters.

But lying beneath the surface of this postcard for family values, there are secrets. What good is a spy story without them, right? Here is a guy with more dualities than a pair of Siamese twins. Hanssen is portrayed here as a brilliant, but deeply bitter man. By day his life is religiously ordered, while by night he secretly makes home pornos of rough sex with his wife, without her knowledge. At work, he is impersonal in his relationships with subordinates, as well as authoritarian and anal retentive to a fault. He is also a computer genius who the movie paints as equally frustrated and misunderstood. If there ever was a sympathetic portrayal of a creepy guy, this is it.

On the other side of the coin, we get Ryan Phillippe's turn as Eric O'Neill, the agent who brought Hanssen down. O'Neill is portrayed by Phillippe as an immediately likeable, if somewhat cocky guy. But his heart of hearts appears to be in all the right places. He loves his wife deeply, and he is morally conflicted at first when he feels that the F.B.I.'s case against Hanssen is bullshit. Playing the gopher to Hanssen's boss, O'Neill respects him even if there doesn't appear to be much to like about him.

From here, the movie weaves a tale that is as much about trust as it is about anything else. The paranoia runs very deep here — not just in the cloak and dagger sense, but in the personal relationships involved as well. Why doesn't O'Neill trust his wife? And how does O'Neill gain the trust of Hanssen — a boss who by this time is begrudgingly growing to like him even as he tests his loyalty pretty much every second of the way?

The one thing that bugged me throughout this movie was the way it failed to reveal the motivations behind Hanssen's apparent treachery toward America in selling out his country to the very "godless" Russians he seems to be so dead set against. The clues offered for this elusive motive throughout the movie are mostly subtle ones. It was never about money it seems — but more about ego. Until he is caught, Hanssen covers his tracks in the same meticulous way that the most clinical serial killer does.

And although I loved this movie, the way it finally paid off by answering that question was a classic case of a cheap Hollywood cop out. Hanssen looks as fiendishly deranged as Hannibal Lechter as he asks O'Neill to "pray for me" in the film's final scene.

Still, as a tightly woven reality based psychological thriller, Breach succeeds on every level in holding you by the edge of your seat throughout it's just under two hour running time. Extras on the DVD include deleted scenes and a profile of the Hanssen case that originally ran on NBC's news magazine Dateline.

Breach will be available this Tuesday in video stores.

You’ll find Blogcritics contributing editor and music raconteur Glen Boyd sharing his Thoughtmares about everything from music to politics to professional wrestling on his personal blog The World Wide Glen: Welcome To My Thoughtmare. In his alter-ego as “Disco Glen,” Mr. Boyd is also the undisputed king of the dancefloor.

With an identity crisis always pushing it forward, You, Me, and Dupree is inconsistently funny. At times it’s a hard drama, over the top goofy comedy, and then a basic relationship tale. It feels disjointed, as scenes fail to flow together, yet there’s still enough material here to laugh at.

Owen Wilson is the star here, playing the lovable Dupree, the down on his luck slacker. Matt Dillion plays Carl, his best friend. Carl’s new wife is played by a gorgeous Kate Hudson, generally taking the role of the sympathizer.

Dupree lands on hard times, and moves in with Carl for what should be a brief period. This sets off the expected conflicts, especially as Dupree attempts to relive his younger days. Laughs take a long time to develop, and are spaced wide apart. The brief payoff is usually brief, though enough to carry the film until its next event.

This is a movie at its best when Owen Wilson is allowed to take over. Carl ends up overloaded at work, and this creates a separate conflict that simply isn’t that entertaining to watch in either a comedic or dramatic way. These scenes, even though Michael Douglas handles the role of Carl’s boss and in-law nicely, don’t feel like they fit. They give the film a hard edge, which negates some of the comedy.

It’s a shame too, as the simple premise of Wilson’s character hanging around, creating awkward situations, and attempting to find work would have been enough. Spinning into the relationship downfall and corporate power struggles leads it into a path that it can’t find a way out of. In the end, it feels as if the comedy is secondary.

That said, this is still worthwhile to watch, simply for Dupree’s antics. It’s a great character that you root for to finally find some success. You’ll need to sit through some uglier spots to find the fun, yet you’ll still come away happy.

The film comes to the hi-def format sporting some of the best, brightest, and overall stunning color you’ll find. The bold presentation never bleeds or lets compression show through. Black levels are rich and deep. This is a clear transfer, with average detail in close ups. A fine layer of grain can be visible during long shots.

Dupree does have some small surround potential. A sequence outdoors in a thunderstorm showcases both booming bass and nice positional audio as the rain lands. Other uses or movement through various channels are noticeable, if not forgettable.

Extras start off with Universal’s typical “U-Control” features that are available only while watching the movie via picture-in-picture windows. It’s not worth watching twice to simply see some photos and brief behind the scenes footage. Two commentaries offer different looks at the making of the movie, one from co-directors Tony and Joe Russo while the other comes from first time writer Michael LeSieur and producer Scott Stuber.

An alternate ending, with optional commentary, would have worked fine in the film, though it lacks the uplifting fun of the included one. Eight deleted scenes run six minutes, with little of note aside from Owen Wilson trying to board a flight. Four great minutes of outtakes are a must see, including a priceless prank played on Matt Dillon.

Dupree’s Memoirs is a digital scrapbook of his life. It’s a nice way to get a little deeper with the character, though most will see it after the film and it’s impact is then wasted. Finally, a spoof trailer plays the film up as a horror movie in funny fashion.

Sci-fi fans have a small treat to look for. Michael Douglas has a sword on his desk in his office. It’s the same style dragonhead from the TV series Highlander.

Matt Paprocki is the reviews editor for Digital Press, a classic video game website which he called home after his fanzine (Gaming Source) published its final issue. The deep game collection which spans nearly 30 systems and 2,000 games line his walls for reasearch purposes. Really. He has also begun writing freelance for the Toledo Free Press.

It's been a long time — 16 years to be precise — since the water mark was set so high by The Silence of the Lambs for serial killer thrillers. And in those 16 years, there has yet to be a movie that even comes close to surpassing it. So it is fair to say I didn't have my hopes set so high when I finally got off of my ass to see Mr. Brooks.

Good thing too.

Kevin Costner plays Earl Brooks a highly successful businessman with a very dark secret. That secret, predictably, is that he enjoys killing people. And after a two year hiatus, he gives in to his more sinister side and once again the "Thumbprint Killer" strikes again. Only this time, he's gotten sloppy and left a witness. That person, Mr. Smith (Dane Cook), reaches out to him — not for money — but to join him on his next assault.

All the while, diligently pursuing Brooks is the very sexy detective Tracy Atwood (Demi Moore). Sprinkled throughout the movie are subplots involving Atwood's nasty divorce, a released inmate, Thorton Meeks (Matt Schulze) hell-bent on revenge, and Brooks' daughter Jane's (Danielle Panabaker) own demons.

As I had expected, I couldn't find any major flaws (or any superlatives) in the way Kevin Costner portrayed the outwardly meek, quiet Mr. Brooks. A great deal of Brook's communication is done through his eyes and through his body language. Costner didn't have far to stretch — he has the eyes and mannerisms of someone you need to keep an eye out for.

What was unexpected — and the only reason Mr. Brooks is remotely entertaining — is watching the inner dialogue Earl has with his other personality Marshall (William Hurt). Marshall is the dark, cruel side that yearns for the kill thrill. He is extremely calculating and exacting; always thinking things through and focusing on the effects of any actions. Hurt's unemotional, flat delivery is the perfect contrast to Costner's nervous, pathetic half.

Other than Hurt's performance, there is little that makes Mr. Brooks remarkable. Much of story is dragged in forty different directions which I found rather irritating. Of what worth was it to focus so much energy on the divorce proceedings of Demi Moore's character? It certainly didn't add anything of vital importance. I again asked myself the same question when presented with Jane’s dilemma. Was it spliced into the film to show that a serial killer can be compassionate about his family? Was any of it really necessary?

Anyway, for me Mr. Brooks left a lot to be desired. I would have preferred it if the movie focused more on the inner turmoil that Brooks continually battles with, rather than seeing so much frivolous shit jammed into the movie as filler. The movie would have certainly flowed better and would have provided to me a much better viewing experience. It’s a shame to see something with so much promise fail miserably. As it stands now, Mr. Brooks is a misguided psychological thriller with little thrill. Ho hum.

Nine years before the movie Ghostbusters became a cultural phenomenon, CBS aired a low-budget live-action series with a nearly identical name – The Ghost Busters – on Saturday mornings. The series lasted one season, and was all but forgotten until Ivan Reitman's wildly successful movie was released in 1984, when the show was briefly revived as an animated series (not to be confused with The Real Ghostbusters, the "official" animated spin-off from the film). Now, proving that every TV series makes its way to video eventually, all fifteen episodes of the 1975-76 Ghost Busters have been released on DVD.

These Ghost Busters were played by F Troop's Forrest Tucker and Larry Storch, with Bob Burns as their tamed gorilla, who served as the brains of the operation. Operating out of a shabby office, Spencer, Tracy, and Kong (Kong is not the ape) were regularly given Mission: Impossible-style assignments to track down and capture ghosts and monsters. Fortunately for them, it wasn't that hard to track down the ghosts, considering that they usually appeared in the exact same graveyard and hid out in the exact same castle in every episode. Live-action Saturday-morning shows are made on the tiniest of budgets, and The Ghost Busters regularly re-used the same four or five sets in every episode.

The humor in The Ghost Busters is pretty corny, with the gorilla providing most of the laughs. It's more interesting to see some '60s and '70s TV stars show up as guest spooks, most notably Jim "Thurston Howell III" Backus as the ghost of Eric the Red. Yes, Backus played Eric the Red. His role wasn't quite as dignified as his part as an extreme-right militia leader in the MST3K classic Angels Revenge, but I suppose it paid the mortgage for a few months.

The Ghost Busters DVD set features quite a few special features, including interviews with Bob Burns and producer Lou Scheimer, photo galleries, and even a full episode of the awful animated version made to cash in on mid-eighties Ghostbuster-mania. (That series is available on DVD as well.) Baby boomers with fond memories of the show will probably be happy with this set, but will modern kids enjoy it? Children are much more sophisticated about this kind of thing than they were in the 1970s, and I suspect even six- and seven-year-olds will be turned off by the moldy gags and low production values. Younger viewers will like the gorilla, though.