Landware The Leonard Maltin Movie and Video Guide Electronic Version Review

I love movies!   Earlier, I reviewed the Video Hound Movie Guide for Palm (they have it for Windows devices as well) and now it is time to give a nod to the other PDA/smartphone movie software, Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide for 2008.

While a few thousand movies shy of what the Video Hound gives you, and more business like ( no audible "Woofs" for bad movies) It sill does a great job of giving you a concise movie synopsis while you are at the video store or at Best Buy rummaging through the DVD bargain bin.  The software ranges its ratings from "Bomb" to 4 stars in half star increments.  It also allows you to look up the body of work on 5840 directors and 34,547 actors.  From Will Farrel to Errol Flynn, you want to know all the movies they were ever in?  This works great!  Just tap on their name from an alphabatized list and zing, there you are - a complete compendium of their lifes work.  Tap on a movie from the list and you are taken to the movie review

Each capsule review includes movie length, what formats it is available in, MPAA rating (that is "G" or "PG" etc)  and country of origin.  Also listed are any acadamy awards that the movie may have garnered.  Another neat feature for trivia buffs is a tab that displays the most popular movie of each decade from the 1930's to present and also most popular movies by Genre (Horror, western, Sci-Fi, etc)  as voted on by several hundred thousand Maltin Groupies (who they are and how they were polled, I have no idea).  But it is a good way to recommedations if you feel like a scary movie on a particular night. 

The software is updated 2 or 3 times a year and can be done wirelessly.  Also,  when you do the wireless update, it has a DVD release schedule so you can be aware of when your favorite movie is available for purchase.

I would have given this 4.5 stars but there are no half star increments.  It needs a few more movies to round out its library and more frequent updates but otherwise, my advice is to watch for sales at Palmgear etc and get both Maltin and the Video Hound.   Enjoy!