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DVDs
November 23, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 11/24/09
“Golden Age of Television” (Criterion): Criterion makes an odd choice this month, bundling highly esteemed but little-seen old TV productions like “Marty” and “Requiem for a Heavyweight.”
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Air America,” “Angel Heart,” “Cujo,” “Frailty,” “Monster Squad,” “My Bloody Valentine,” “The Way of The Gun” (Lions Gate); “Blood: The Last Vampire” (2000), “Ghost in the Shell 2.0” (Manga); “My Brilliant Career” (Blue Underground); “Santa Buddies” (Walt Disney); “The Sopranos” Season 1 (HBO)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Angels & Demons,” “The Maiden Heist” (Sony); “Four Christmases” (New Line); “Imagine That” (Paramount); “Shorts” (Warner Bros.)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Avant-Garde 3: Experimental Cinema 1922-1954” (Kino); “Gomorrah (Criterion); “New Police Story” (Lions Gate); “Cairo Station” (Arab Film Distribution)
BEST OF TV
“Alfred Hitchcock Presents” Season 4, “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” Season 4 (Universal); “Beverly Hills 90210” Season 8, “Hogan’s Heroes” Complete Series, “Melrose Place” Season 5, Vol. 2 (Paramount); “The Jerry Lewis Show,” “The Spike Jones Show” Best of (Infinity); “Life on Mars” Series 2 (Acorn Media); “Superman” Complete Animated Series (Warner Bros.)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (Walt Disney)
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November 2, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 11/3/09
PICK OF THE WEEK “The Claudette Colbert Collection” (Universal): Six films starring one of the greatest screwball heroines, easily found online for a cost of under $6 per film. Contains “Three-Cornered Moon,” “The Maid of Salem,” “I Met Him in Paris,” “Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife,” “No Time for Love,” and “The Egg and I.”
OTHER TOP PICKS “The Dead” (Lions Gate): John Huston could hardly have picked a better last film as director than this elegiac James Joyce adaptation starring daughter Anjelica.
“Columbia Pictures Film Noir Collection Volume 1” (Sony): Old noir favorite “The Big Heat” joins four titles (like Don Siegel’s “The Lineup”) that have never seen DVD before, all introduced or dissected by afficionado-practitioners like Martin Scorsese and James Ellroy.
“Food, Inc.” (Magnolia): An effective and engrossing primer on the ecological and health issues raised by modern agriculture, Robert Kenner’s documentary may convince you to change the way you shop.
“Say Anything” 20th Anniversary Edition (Fox): Standing outside your beloved’s window with a jambox: heartbreakingly romantic, or cause for a restraining order? Decide for yourself on Blu-ray.
“The Taking of Pelham 123” (2009) (Sony): The new one’s fun and all, but couldn’t Sony pair it with the original for a home video double feature?
“Wings of Desire” (Criterion): Wim Wenders’s potently romantic view of angels among us gets the Criterion treatment in both video formats.
“Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Live” (Time-Life): A whopping nine discs full of live performances drawn from 25 years of the HOF’s existence.
NEW ON BLU-RAY “A Christmas Carol” (1951) (VCI); “Forrest Gump,” “It’s a Wonderful Life” (Paramount); “Godzilla” (Sony); “Howards End” (Criterion); “Love Actually” (Universal); “North By Northwest” (Warner Bros.); “Two Girls and a Guy” (Fox)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX “Aliens In The Attic,” “I Love You, Beth Cooper” (Fox); “The Answer Man” (Magnolia); “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” (Paramount)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN “Before the Fall,” “Lemon Tree” (IFC)
DOCUMENTARIES “Bela Fleck: Throw Down Your Heart” (Docurama); “The Ister” (First Run / Icarus); “Unmistaken Child” (Oscilloscope); “The Way We Get By” (The Way We Get By Productions)
IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE… “Christmas Story” (2007, with John Turturro) (Anchor Bay); “Home for Christmas” (VCI); “One Christmas” (Vivendi); “Scruff: A Christmas Tale” (Image); “White Christmas” (Paramount)
BEST OF TV Doctor Who: “The Black Guardian Trilogy,” “The War Games”; “Edge of Darkness” Complete Series (BBC); “The Donna Reed Show” Season 3 (Virgil Films); “G.I. Joe: Resolute,” “Mission: Impossible” Final Season (Paramount); “G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero” Season 1.2, “Merry Sitcom!,” “Spin City” Season 3 (Shout! Factory); “Here’s Lucy” Season 2 (MPI); “The Rockford Files: The Movie Collection Vol. 1” (Universal); “The Shield” Complete Series (Sony); “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” Season 1 (Warner Bros.); “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” Season 7 (Lions Gate); Walt Disney Treasures: “Zorro: The Complete First Season” and “The Complete Second Season” (Walt Disney); “Will Ferrell: You’re Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush” (HBO); “Wolverine & the X-Men” Volume 3 (Lions Gate)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE Almodóvar’s “All About My Mother,” “Law of Desire,” “Matador,” and “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown” (Sony); “Rocky: The Undisputed Collection” (MGM); “Transformers” Gift Set (Paramount); “Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut” (Warner Bros.)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO Dolph Lundgren in “Direct Action” and “Command Performance” (First Look); “InAlienable,” directed by Walter Koenig, aka Chekov of “Star Trek” (Anchor Bay); Robin Givens in “A Mother’s Prayer,” Vincent D’Onofrio in “The Narrows” (Image); John Leguizamo in “Where God Left His Shoes” (IFC)
KIDS’ STUFF “Dora the Explorer: Dora’s Christmas Carol Adventure” (Nickelodeon); “Fraggle Rock: A Merry Fraggle Holiday,” “LeapFrog: Learning DVD Set,” “Thomas & Friends: Holiday Express” (Lions Gate)
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October 26, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 10/27/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“The Sam Fuller Collection” (Sony): Beloved B-movie auteur (“Shock Corridor”) Fuller is featured in this very welcome box collecting seven underexposed features (some familiar here from Austin Film Society screenings) like “The Crimson Kimono” and “Underworld.”
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Z” (Criterion): Costa-Gravas’s tense1969 drama about a political leader’s assassination in Greece struck chords for viewers who saw in its real-life subject an echo of coverups and government misdeeds all over the globe.
WARNER ARCHIVE
A fresh batch of WB’s new no-frills, manufacture-on-demand DVDs is now available at www.wbshop.com, with highlights like the “Joe McDoakes” short film series, Michael Caine hunting “Jack The Ripper,” Cary Grant in “Every Girl Should Be Married,” and Eve Arden’s “Our Miss Brooks.”
“Monty Python: Almost The Truth” (Eagle Rock/IFC): A new six-hour doc about the groundbreaking comic troupe pairs new interviews with appreciations from such fans as Eddie Izzard and Dan Aykroyd.
“Death In The Garden” (Microcinema): The first DVD release of this little-seen Luis Buñuel film starring Simone Signoret.
ON BLU-RAY
“The Prisoner” (A&E); “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” (Blue Underground); “Highlander: The Series” Season 1 (LegendaryHeroes); “Stargate” (Lions Gate)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” (Fox); “Nothing Like The Holidays” (Anchor Bay); “Orphan” (Warner Bros.); “Whatever Works” (Sony)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
John Malkovich in “Afterwards” (Weinstein Co.); “Il Divo,” “Fear(s) of the Dark” (MPI); “Don’t Die Without Telling Me Where You’re Going,” “The Saragossa Manuscript” (Facets); “Sauna” (IFC)
DOCUMENTARIES
“The Achievers: The Story of the Lebowski Fans” (K-Man Productions); “The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins” (Indiepix); “Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soapbox” (Passion River); “Election Day,” “Lioness,” “Soldiers of Conscience” (Docurama); “You Weren’t There: A History Of Chicago Punk 1977-1984,” “High School Record Starring Members Of No-Age And Miko Mika,” “All The Way From Michigan Not Mars With Rosie Thomas And Sufjan Stevens” (www.factorytwentyfive.com)
BEST OF TV
“The Barbara Stanwyck Show” Vol. 1 (E1 Entertainment); “Battlestar Galactica: The Plan” (Universal); “The Diary of Anne Frank” (2009) (Well Go USA); “Expedition: Africa” (A&E); “The Fugitive” Season 3, Vol. 1, “The Guardian” Season 1, “Mannix” Season 3, “Tales from the Darkside” Season 2 (Paramount); “Hell’s Kitchen” Season 2 (Visual Entertainment); “Monty Python: Almost the Truth (Eagle Rock)
CULT CORNER
“I Can See You” / “The Viewer” (Kino); “Night of Death!” (Synapse); “Night of the Creeps” (Sony); “Stan Helsing” (Anchor Bay)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
Morgan Freeman, Christopher Walken, and William H. Macy in “The Maiden Heist” (Sony); the “Daily Show“‘s Wyatt Cenac in “Medicine for Melancholy” (MPI); “The New Year Parade” (Carnivalesque); F. Murray Abraham in “Perestroika” (Strand)
KIDS’ STUFF
Two volumes titled “Saturday Morning Cartoons,” one for the ’60s and one for the ’70s, plus “The Secret Saturdays” Vol. 2 (Warner Bros.); “Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure” (Walt Disney)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Adult Swim In A Box,” “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” (Warner Bros.); “Monty Python: The Other British Invasion” (A&E)
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September 30, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “Wages of Fear” (1953; Henri-Georges Clouzot): Four desperate derelicts, including the strapping Yves Montand, willingly risk their lives to deliver truckloads of nitroglycerin across harrowing terrain in South America. Every bump and jar along the way is an opportunity for explosive obliteration, but the drivers’ need for money supplants good sense. Clouzot’s thriller, at times unbearably tense, recalls Huston’s “Treasure of the Sierra Madre.” Both are about bootstrap survival and rivalries among men, with setting playing a decisive role. Holds up terrifically.
- “Ballast” (2008; Lance Hammer): Hammer’s stunningly assured, award-winning debut never made it to Austin theaters, but arrives on DVD on Nov. 10. Set in a poor town on the Mississippi Delta, it follows a single mother and her troubled son as they struggle to stay afloat while pieces of their painful past swirl to the surface. Understated and impressively muted, a sturdy entry in the unofficial neo-neo-realism movement and a vital piece of recent American indie cinema.
- “Frownland” (2007; Ronald Bronstein): A fascinating, baffling what-is-it tightly (claustrophobically) focused on a manic, unhinged fellow ((Dore Mann, in a frighteningly committed performance) in the throes of an urban crack-up. This relentless and uncompromising character study basks in its jagged, grainy aesthetic for a concentrated dose of the modern human condition. It’s often hard to watch, with the screen dominated by a spluttering one-man carnival of perspiring neuroses. But it’s equally hard to pull your eyes away.
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September 21, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 9/22/09
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September 14, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 9/15/09
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“An American Werewolf In London,” “Army of Darkness,” “Van Helsing” (Universal); “48 Hours,” “Deep Impact” (Paramount); “Child’s Play” (MGM); “The Hannibal Lecter Anthology,” “Misery” (MGM); “Sex, Lies, and Videotape” (Sony); Ultimate Force of Four Box Set, containing “Hero,” “Iron Monkey,” “The Legend of Drunken Master,” & “Zatoichi” (Walt Disney / Miramax); “Wrong Turn” 1 & 2 (Fox)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Easy Virtue” (Sony); “Next Day Air” (Summit); “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” (Fox)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“The Adventures of Werner Holt,” “The Axe of Wandsbeck” (First Run Pictures); Essential Art House #4, including “Le Jour se Leve,” “Gervaise,” “Mayerling,” “The 39 Steps,” “Tales of Hoffman” & “Throne of Blood” (Criterion); “Nightwatching” (E1 Entertainment); “Rumba” (Koch); “Treeless Mountain” (Oscilloscope); “Triangle,” a three-parter from Asian auteurs Tsui Hark, Ringo Lam and Johnnie To (Magnolia); “White Night Wedding” (IFC)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Big Pun: The Legacy” (Vivendi); “Directed by John Ford” (Warner Bros.); “Full Battle Rattle,” “Old Jews Telling Jokes” (First Run Pictures); “Nerdcore Rising” (Virgil Films); “Note by Note” (Docurama); “Trumbo” (Magnolia); “The Wonder of It All” (Indican)
BEST OF TV
“Astro Boy” Volumes 1-5 (Sony); “The Beiderbecke Tapes” (Acorn Media); “C.S.I.: Miami” Season 7, “One Step Beyond” Season 1 (Paramount); “Crash” Season 1 (Anchor Bay); “Doctor Who: The Next Doctor” (BBC); “Fame” Seasons 1 & 2 (MGM); “Grey’s Anatomy” Season 5, “Private Practice” Season 2, “X-Men” Volumes 3 & 4 (Walt Disney); “The IT Crowd” Season 3 (MPI); “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia” Season 4, “My Name Is Earl” Season 4 (Fox); “Sanctuary” Season 1 (E1 Entertainment); “Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Clone Commandos” (Warner Bros.); “Top Chef: Season 5 (A&E); “Transformers” Season 2 (Shout! Factory)
FROM THE VAULTS
“The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” / “The Scarlet Claw” & “The Hound of the Baskervilles” / “Pursuit to Algiers” (MPI); “King Kong Escapes,” “King Kong vs. Godzilla” (Universal)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Friday the 13th” Parts 7 & 8, “Varsity Blues” (Paramount); “John Carpenter: Master of Fear” collection, “Wes Craven Horror Collection,” “The Wolf Man” (1941) (Special Edition) (Universal); “The John Wayne/John Ford Film Collection” (Warner Bros.); “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Collection” (New Line)
CULT CORNER
Action up-and-comer Michael Jai White in “Blood & Bone” (Sony); “Bodyguard: A New Beginning,” “Four Dragons” (Lions Gate); “Deadgirl” (Dark Sky); “Nude In Dracula’s Castle” (Secret Key); “Phantasm II” (Universal); “The Shadow Boxer” (Image)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Bionicle: The Legend Reborn” (Universal); James Franco and Sienna Miller in “Camille” (2007) (E1 Entertainment)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Barney: Jungle Friends” (Lions Gate); Go Diego Go!: “Diego’s Mega Missions!” & “Diego’s Artic Rescue” (Nickelodeon)
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September 2, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “Marlene” (1984; Maximilian Schell): Marlene Dietrich, grand Deutsch diva, is marvelously frank and haughty in this miraculous documentary portrait of the late actress. Schell recorded hours of audio with Dietrich and intersperses the interviews over scenes from her life and films. She can be impatient and hilariously forthright. For example, she calls Emil Jannings, her celebrated co-star in “The Blue Angel,” an awful “ham.” Hypnotically watchable, the doc was nominated for an Oscar.
- “Men in War” (1957; Anthony Mann): A masterpiece of combat drama by the great Mann, whose films consistently prove him one of the strongest directors of male-oriented action. (Check out his westerns and noirs — tough and indelible.) As soldiers with conflicting missions, consummate macho guys Aldo Ray and Robert Ryan go head to head in this Korean War-set nail-biter, a tragically unsung knockout.
- “The Fountainhead” (1949; King Vidor): Stodgy but entertaining adaptation of the Ayn Rand novel stars Gary Cooper (always a little stodgy but entertaining) as architect Howard Roark, whose individual artistic vision butts head with society’s conformist mores. Obvious and heavy-handed, with some romantic action between Cooper and Patricia Neal telegraphed through amusingly clunky visual symbolism.
- “Sunshine Cleaning” (2008; Christine Jeffs): A smart, subtle dark comedy starring the irrepressibly glowing Amy Adams and an archly funny Emily Blunt as unlikely cleaners-up of gory crime scenes. Sprightly, and surprising, entertainment.
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September 1, 2009
Cinemax lassoes Beesley's 'Rodeo'
Austin filmmaker Brad Beesley’s documentary “Sweethearts of the Prison Rodeo” is airing at 6 p.m. Sept. 17 on Cinemax, with a repeat showing at 6:30 a.m. Sept. 25.
The film about female prisoners who throw a wild rodeo contest played SXSW this year. Read Charles Ealy’s write-up HERE.
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August 31, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 9/1/09
TOP PICK
“Braveheart” and “Gladiator”: To inaugurate a new “Sapphire Series” of prestige Blu-ray reissues, Paramount offers two of its most reliably popular catalog titles, whose massive action scenes and exotic settings are particularly well suited to the format.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Earth” (Walt Disney): For those whose interest in nature footage isn’t sufficient to sit through the BBC’s whole “Planet Earth,” series, Disney offers this condensed version of the show with new narration by James Earl Jones.
“Gaumont Treasures: 1897-1913” (Kino): Three discs of silent-era films from one of early cinema’s most important companies; each disc is devoted to a single filmmaker, the most famous of whom is Louis Feuillade (“Les Vampires”).
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“State of Play” (Universal); “Sugar” (PG-13 version) (Sony)
NEW ON BLU-RAY: “The Girl Next Door” (2004), “High Crimes,” “M*A*S*H” (Fox); “Monster” (2003) (First Look)
ARTHOUSE / FOREIGN
“Sin Nombre” (Universal); “Take Out,” “The Toe Tactic” (Kino)
FROM THE VAULTS
“Along for the Ride,” aka “Forever Lulu” (First Look); “Homeboy” (Lions Gate)
BEST OF TV
“Brothers and Sisters” Season 3, “Desperate Housewives” Season 5 (Walt Disney); “C.S.I.” Season 9 (DVD and Blu-ray) (Paramount); Doctor Who: “Delta and the Bannerman, “Image of the Fendahl, “The Deadly Assassin”; “People Like Us” Complete Series (BBC); “Heroes” Season 3 (DVD and Blu-ray) (Universal); “Impact,” “Rescue Me” Season Five, Vol. 1 (Sony); “Meteor” (Genius); “National Geographic: The Human Family Tree,” “Supernatural” Season 4 (DVD and Blu-ray), “Two and a Half Men” Season 6 (Warner Bros.); “Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares” Season 2, “Stephen Fry in America” (Acorn Media); “Stella: Live In Boston” (Shout! Factory)
DOCUMENTARIES
“If I Die Tonight” (Indican); “The Meerkats” (Weinstein Co.)
KIDS’ STUFF: “Ben 10 Alien Force” Season 4 (Warner Bros.); “Pooh’s Heffalump Halloween Movie” (Walt Disney); “Shaun the Sheep: Little Sheep of Horrors” (Lions Gate); “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?: Hello Mummy” (Warner Bros.)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Bring It On: Fight To The Finish” (Universal); “Drifter: Henry Lee Lucas” (Lions Gate); “The Family Hour” (Image)
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August 17, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 8/18/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Husbands” (Sony): Finally available on disc, John Cassavetes’s study of three not-necessarily-happy married men stars Peter Falk, Ben Gazzara, and the director himself.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Tyson” (Sony): The troubled boxer shows his vulnerable side to friend and filmmaker James Toback.
Criterion Blu-rays: The boutique label revisits two of its previous titles, Kurosawa’s color epic “Kagemusha” and Jacques Tati’s “Playtime,” for Blu-tastic reissues.
“Icons of Sci-Fi: Toho Collection” (Sony): Ishiro Honda, onetime Kurosawa collaborator, directed these three films, the most famous of which is “Mothra.”
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Go” (Sony)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Hannah Montana: The Movie” (Walt Disney); “The Last House On The Left” (2009) (Universal); Jennifer Lynch’s “Surveillance” (Magnolia)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“The 5 Deadly Venoms” (Weinstein Co.); “Absurdistan,” “Fish Fall in Love” (First Run Pictures); “Julia” (2009) (Magnolia)
FROM THE VAULTS
“Spring Break” (Anchor Bay)
DOCUMENTARIES
“The Achievers: The Story of the Lebowski Fans (K-Man Productions); “Albert Schweitzer: Called to Africa,” “Angry Monk” (First Run Pictures); “The Garden” (Oscilloscope)
BEST OF TV
“The Beast” Season 1 (Sony); “Dexter” Season 3, “Everybody Hates Chris” Season 4 (Paramount); “Dirty Sexy Money” Final Season, “Eli Stone” Final Season (Walt Disney); “Gossip Girl” Season 2 (Warner Bros.); “Man vs. Wild” Season 3, “One Way Out” (Image); “Simon & Simon” Season 3) (Shout! Factory); “The Simpsons” Season 12 (Fox)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Pete’s Dragon,” “Ride a Wild Pony,” “Yellowstone Cubs” (Walt Disney); “Swan Princess: Secret of the Castle” (Sony)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Final Destination Collection” (New Line)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
The late David Carradine in “The Golden Boys” (Lions Gate); Carrie Fisher’s co-scipted “grumpy old women” comedy “These Old Broads” (Sony)
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August 11, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “Trouble in Paradise” (1932; Ernst Lubitsch): The Lubitsch touch, those glimmering fingerprints, are all over this velvet comedy (put out by the Criterion Collection). Silky-suave Herbert Marshall and kewpie-doll-cute Miriam Hopkins are lovers and thieves who connive to rob a rich madame (Kay Francis). Marshall gets a job as the madame’s personal secretary in order to get close to her cash, but he also gets close to her heart, to Hopkins’ dismay. Comic confusion ensues. Not my favorite Lubitsch (that goes to 1940’s “The Shop Around the Corner”), but fine froth.
- “Take Out” (2004; Sean Baker and Shih-Ching Tsou): A marvel of social realism in the vein of Ramin Bahrani’s neo-neo-realism films (“Chop Shop”). A Chinese immigrant working for a grubby take-out joint has one day to pay off a crushing debt. Raw, with striking verite textures and excellent acting by a cast of newcomers. A pearl in the indie new wave.
- “A Raisin in the Sun” (1961; Daniel Petrie): Can’t believe it took me so long to finally see this majestic theatrical melodrama, but it was worth the wait. Sidney Poitier scintillates as the luckless head of a poor, struggling household in Chicago, and he’s backed by an impeccable cast, including Claudia McNeil, who will tear your heart out.
- “Late August, Early December” (1998; Olivier Assayas): The genre-hopping Assayas, one of world cinema’s most interesting auteurs, creates a completely engaging human drama about a group of friends facing the death of one of theirs. Subtle, funny, moving and elegant.
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August 3, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 8/4/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Icons of Screwball Comedy” Volumes 1 & 2 (Sony): Film buffs who know the difference between vintage romantic comedy and dreck like “The Ugly Truth” will find hours of diversion in these two packages, each of which features four little-known films with stars like Jean Arthur, Fred MacMurray and Irene Dunne.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Flight of the Conchords” Season 2 (HBO): Sure, the novelty has dulled and the songs aren’t always brilliant, but there’s enough steam left in this New Zealand import to carry it through a probable third season.
“You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story” (Warner Bros.): Film critic Richard Schickel wrote and directed this documentary portrait of the great studio, which is narrated by Schickel hero Clint Eastwood.
“The Soloist” (Paramount): Oscar winner Jamie Foxx + should-be Oscar winner Robert Downey, Jr. + homelessness and mental illness = prestige tearjerker
“Ulysses” (1954) (Lions Gate): Think Homer, not James Joyce, for this Kirk Douglas sword-and-sandal adaptation.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Big Trouble in Little China,” “My Cousin Vinny” (Fox); “Sling Blade” (Walt Disney / Miramax); “Stargate: Atlantis: Fan’s Choice” (MGM); “The Waterboy” (Walt Disney)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Delgo” (Fox); “Obsessed” (2009) (Sony); “Race To Witch Mountain” (Walt Disney)
BEST OF TV
“Agatha Christie’s Marple” Season 4 (Acorn Media); “Days That Shook the World” Season 2 (BBC); “Elvis Presley: The Ed Sullivan Shows” (Image); “The Love Boat” Season 2, Vol. 2 (Paramount); “Project Runway” Season 5 (Genius); “Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!” Season 3 (Warner Bros.)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“The Last Starfighter” 25th Anniversary Edition, also on Blu-ray (Universal)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“The Window” (Film Movement)
FROM THE VAULTS
“The Last of the Mohicans” (Serial version starring Harry Carey) (VCI)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
Val Kilmer in “The Chaos Experiment” (Genius); Forest Whitaker and others in “Fragments” (Sony); “The Greatest Song” (Image); Lindsay Lohan in “Labor Pains” (First Look); the Michael Chabon adaptation “The Mysteries of Pittsburgh” (Phase 4); James Caviezel in “Nature’s Grave” (Universal); “Shadowheart” (Anchor Bay)
CULT CORNER
“Cravings” (Lions Gate); “Demon Warriors,” “Mutant Chronicles” (Magnolia)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Daffy Duck’s Quackbusters” (Warner Bros.); Sid the Science Kid: “Change Happens” and “The Bug Club” (NCircle Entertainment); “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” box set (New Line); “The Tigger Movie” (Walt Disney); “VeggieTales: Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Noah’s Umbrella” (Big Idea)
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July 27, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 7/28/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Repulsion” (Criterion): Roman Polanski made his English-language debut with this classic thriller, set in Swinging London and starring a young Catherine Deneuve. Gorgeous in black-and-white, it’s available on both DVD and Blu-ray.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Bad Lieutenant” (Lions Gate): Before Werner Herzog’s unlikely “Bad Lieutenant” movie gets to theaters, Lions Gate offers an overdue special edition of the original.
“Harvard Beats Yale 29-29” (Kino): Who’d guess that a tied college football game would make for one of last year’s most praised documentaries?
Offbeat animation: Led off by Bill Plympton’s new film “Dog Days” (Microcinema) is a quartet of new art-animation titles including “The Astonishing Work of Tezuka Osamu,” “Extreme Animation: Films By Phil Mulloy” (Kino), and “The Animation of Alexeieff” (Facets).
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Bad Boy Bubby” (Blue Underground); “Inglorious Bastards” (Severin); “A River Runs Through It” (Sony); “This is Spinal Tap” (MGM)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Dragonball Evolution,” “Miss March” (Fox)
BEST OF TV
“Agatha Christie: Poirot & Marple” (A&E); “Battlestar Galactica” Season 4.5 and Complete Series sets (Universal); “Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead” (BBC); “Dollhouse” Season One (Fox); Kyle Chandler in “Early Edition” Season 2, “Krod Mandoon And The Flaming Sword Of Fire” (Paramount); the original “Life On Mars” Series One (Acorn Media): “The Middleman” Complete Series (Shout! Factory); “The Red Hand Gang” Complete Series (Virgil Films); “The Spectacular Spider-Man” Season 1 (Sony); “The Terry Jones Collection,” “Great Artists 2 with Tim Marlow” (Microcinema)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“The 10th Victim” (Blue Underground) ; “Just Love Me” (Facets)
FROM THE VAULTS “Becoming Charley Chase,” “The Green Hornet,” “The Green Hornet Strikes Again” (VCI)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“The Fast & The Furious” (Universal); “Richard Pryor: Live & Smokin’” (Weinstein Co.)
CULT CORNER
“Animalada” (Synapse); “Big Man Japan” (Magnolia); “Torso” (Blue Underground)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Claude Levi-Strauss: In His Own Words” (Facets)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“An American Affair” (Universal); “Angel of Death,” “The Fifth Commandment” (Sony); “Green Lantern: First Flight” (Warner Bros.); “The Land That Time Forgot” (2009) (Asylum); “Streets of Blood” (Anchor Bay)
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July 20, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 7/21/09
“The Mighty Boosh” Seasons 1 through 3 (BBC): Another quirky Britcom ripe for Stateside rediscovery, this winner involves a pair of misfits who work for a shoestring-budgeted zoo when not having surreal musical daydreams.
“Robot Chicken Star Wars: Episode II” (Warner Bros.): Like all good (and bad, and very bad) “Star Wars”-related efforts, the incredibly funny “Robot Chicken” parody now has a sequel.
“2 or 3 Things I Know About Her” and “Made in U.S.A.” (Criterion): Criterion goes ga-ga for Godard, with two newly restored mid-’60s titles.
“Watchmen: Director’s Cut” and “300: The Complete Experience” (Warner Bros.): For all those fanboys who think that director Zack Snyder’s epic-sized, computer-enhanced comic book adaptations weren’t long enough in the theaters…
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry” (Universal); “Midnight Express” (Sony)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“An Empress and the Warriors” (Weinstein Co.); “The Unknown Woman” (Image)
FROM THE VAULTS
“A Dog of Flanders” (E1 Entertainment)
DOCUMENTARIES
“American Outrage,” “Human Rights Watch” Box Set (First Run Pictures); “Anita O’Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer” (RED); “Carmen & Geoffrey” (First Run Pictures); “A Life Among Whales” (Indiepix)
BEST OF TV
“Charlie’s Angels” Season 4 (Sony); “The Donna Reed Show” Season 2 (Virgil Films); “The Lucy Show” Season 1, “This American Life” Season 2 (Paramount); “Monk” Season 7, “Psych” Season 3 (Universal); “Prison Break: The Final Break” (Fox); “Pushing Daisies” Season 2 (Warner Bros.); “Spongebob Squarepants: To Squarepants or Not To Squarepants” (Nickelodeon); “Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods” (MGM); “Wire in the Blood” Season 6 (E1 Entertainment); “Wolverine & the X-Men” Vol. 2 (Lions Gate)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Echelon Conspiracy” (Paramount); “Explicit Ills” (Phase 4); “The Great Buck Howard” (Magnolia); “Messengers 2: The Scarecrow” (Sony)
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July 15, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “Near Dark” (1987; Kathryn Bigelow): Bigelow’s Texas vampire road movie holds up well, with its wily humor and sun-baked vampire lore forging a tangy twist on a hoary genre. Bill Paxton has particular joy eating up flesh — and the desert and roadhouse scenery. Bloody fun.
- “The Tin Drum” (1979; Volker Schlondorff): A visually sumptuous and thrillingly imaginative adaptation of the famous Gunter Grass novel set in Nazi Germany. To protest the cruel absurdities of humankind — including Nazism — a 3-year-old boy decides to stop growing. A political fable told in broad but colorful and damning strokes.
- “A Song is Born” (Howard Hawks; 1948): Hawks remade his superb comedy “Ball of Fire” into a so-so musical, with the bendy Danny Kaye assuming the stuffy Gary Cooper role. Perky Virginia Mayo fills the firecracker Barbara Stanwyck part, but it’s hardly the same. Still, some crack jazz, with Benny Goodman, Louis Armstrong et al, and puff-pastry enjoyments.
- “Zabriskie Point” (Michelangelo Antonioni; 1970): A woolly examination of late-’60s youth culture in America, with languorous hippie interludes, through the eye of the ever-arty Antonioni. Has aged poorly — its points are made in shrieking italics — and, for such a straight-forward message movie, it’s narratively baggy when it really shouldn’t be.
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July 14, 2009
The forgotten 'Chinatown'
This article in the Wall Street Journal has me wondering why no one, to the best of my knowledge, has ever released a DVD including a version of ‘Chinatown’ where you can hear Phillip Lambro’s original score, which has been described as ‘dissonant, weird, scratchy.’ Could it really alter the experience of seeing the movie as much as this piece suggests?
Update: Here’s an interesting discussion board about the Lambro score.
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July 13, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 7/14/09
OTHER TOP PICKS
“For All Mankind” (Criterion): This documentary drawing on original footage of NASA’s lunar missions gets a welcome upgrade to Blu-ray, the better to convey the inky grandeur of its astronaut interviewees’ experiences.
“Mad Men” Season 2 (Lions Gate): Adman Don Draper smokes and boozes his way through a second season of this critically beloved AMC series.
“Grey Gardens” (2009) (HBO): Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange put their spin on the ineffably strange Beale women in the recent fictionalized adaptation of 1975’s cult-beloved documentary.
“The Human Condition” (Criterion): Stacking up at nearly ten hours, Masaki Kobayashi’s 1959 Japanese epic (adapted from a six-volume novel) follows one idealistic man’s melodramatic travails through WWII.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
Martial Arts 3-fer including “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “House of Flying Daggers,” & “Curse of the Golden Flower”; “I Still Know What You Did Last Summer” (Sony); “This is Spinal Tap” (MGM); “The Towering Inferno” (Fox)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“12” (Sony); Marco Ferreri’s “Bye Bye Monkey” & “Don’t Touch the White Woman,” “Menage” (Koch); “The Edge of Love” (Image); “Eldorado” (Film Movement); “Roselyne and the Lions” (Cinema Libre); “Sorry, You Can’t Get Through!” (Dolce)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“The Haunting in Connecticut” (Lions Gate)
TV ON DVD:
“Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations” Season 4, “Shark Week: Great Bites” (Image); “Bewitched” Season 8 (Sony); “ER” Season 11 (Warner Bros.); “G.I. Joe” Season “1.1” (Shout! Factory); “Leverage” Season 1 (Paramount); “Peyton Place” Part 2 (Shout! Factory); “Red Skelton: America’s Clown Prince” (Timeless); “Tracey Takes On…” Seasons 3 & 4 (Eagle Vision); “Wild Pacific” (BBC)
KIDS’ STUFF
“The Wiggles Go Bananas” (Warner); “Bob the Builder: Built For Fun,” “Thomas & Friends: Percy and the Bandstand” (Lions Gate)
DOCUMENTARIES
“The Beatles Rare And Unseen” (MVD); “A River of Waste: The Hazardous Truth About Factory Farms” (Cinema Libre); “The Unwinking Gaze” (Indiepix)
CULT CORNER
“[Rec]” (Sony); “Night Train” (National Entertainment Media); “Sleepy Eyes of Death” (AnimEigo)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
A recent appearance by David Carradine in “Break” (Cinema Epoch); “Mad Men“‘s Elisabeth Moss in “El Camino” (Lifesize); the Dennis Quaid thriller “Horsemen” (Lions Gate); “National Lampoon’s Van Wilder: Freshman Year” (Paramount)
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July 6, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 7/7/09
TOP PICKS
“Near Dark” (Lions Gate): Slightly late for the latest vampire craze but just in time for “The Hurt Locker,” Kathryn Bigelow’s fantastically pulpy 1987 take on the undead gets a fresh new edition.
The California Newsreel Collection: A nearly three-decade-old project preserving African cinema for American viewers, California Newsreel is now making 70 or so African films (from 25 countries) available to consumers in addition to the educational market. See www.newsreel.org for more info.
Universal’s “Backlot Series”: As the name suggests, the exotic lands in these vintage pix may actually have been located within driving distance of the Brown Derby. Three titles are being released this week: “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” “Beau Geste,” and “Trail of the Lonesome Pine.”
“The John Barrymore Collection” (Kino): This set of four silents featuring one of cinema’s oldest stars includes the first release — on either VHS or DVD — of Barrymore’s 1922 “Sherlock Holmes.”
“Strongbad Emails Volume 6,” “Strongbad Emails: 50 Greatest Hits” (Microcinema): The internet ‘toon sensation keeps plugging away, with more episodes of cantankerous Q&A occasionally guest-starring Homestar Runner.
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Knowing,” “Push” (Summit); “The Unborn” (2009) (Universal)
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“The Deep” (Sony); “Grumpy Old Men” (Warner Bros.); “The Universe” Season 2 (A&E)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Cinemad” (Microcinema)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Garrison Keillor: The Man on the Radio with the Red Shoes” (Docurama); “The Little Red Truck” (Passion River); “Reclaiming the Blade” (Galatia); “Resolved” (Image)
BEST OF TV
“Agatha Christie’s Poirot: The Movie Collection” Set 4 (Acorn Media); Doctor Who: “Attack of the Cybermen” & “The Rescue / The Romans” (BBC); “Matlock” Season 3, “Petticoat Junction” Season 2, “Reno 911!” Season 6 (Paramount); “Coco Chanel,” “Murder, She Wrote” Season 10 (Universal); “Mr. Rock ‘n Roll: The Alan Freed Story” (Eagle Vision); “Peanuts 1960’s Collection,” “Third Watch” Season 2 (Warner Bros.); “Young and Handsome: A Night with Jeff Garlin” (Shout! Factory)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Five Fingers,” “A Day in the Life” (Lions Gate)
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June 29, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 6/30/09
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Lookin’ to Get Out” (Warner Bros.): Star and producer Jon Voight has championed this never-before-seen edit of the late-career comedy by Hal Ashby (“Harold & Maude,” “Being There”), swearing it restores a director’s vision badly mangled by the original distributor.
“Eastbound & Down” Season 1 & “Entourage” Season 5 (HBO): The HBO debut of love him/hate him funnyman Danny McBride’s quirky series shares a release date with the latest installment of the cable channel’s most guilty pleasure, which happily hasn’t been derailed by costar Jeremy Piven’s little sushi problem.
“Jonas Brothers: The Concert Experience” (Walt Disney): The performance film from Disney’s mega-stars is available in both video formats, but only the Blu-ray version offers the theatrical 3-D experience.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Flawless” (Magnolia)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Dark Streets” (Sony); “Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li,” “12 Rounds” (Fox); “Two Lovers” (Magnolia)
BEST OF TV
“Ali On Ali: The Lost Interviews,” “Swiss Family Robinson” Complete Series (Image); “Apollo 11” (Acorn Media); “The IT Crowd” Season 2 (MPI); “Secret Diary of a Call Girl” Season 2 (Lions Gate); “Stargate: Atlantis” Season 5 (MGM)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Kamp Katrina” (Carnivalesque); “RiP! A Remix Manifesto” (Disinformation)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Los Bastardos” (Kino); “Tokyo!” (Liberation)
FROM THE VAULTS
“British Cinema: Renown Pictures Crime & Noir” (VCI); “M. Butterfly” (Warner Bros.)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“The Education of Charlie Banks,” directed by Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst (Anchor Bay); “The Human Contract,” directed by Jada Pinkett Smith (Sony)
CULT CORNER
“Door Into Silence,” “Fulci Frenzy” (Severin); “Header” (Synapse); “Kaidan” (Lions Gate); “Women In Prison” (Shock-O-Rama)
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June 15, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 6/16/09
TOP PICKS
“The Diary of Anne Frank” (Fox): The grade-school literary fave got a ’50s movie adaptation courtesy of director George Stevens, who was then fresh from “Shane” and “Giant.”
“The Seventh Seal,” “Bergman Island” (Criterion): Criterion reissues one of the first titles they put on DVD, with both a two-disc standard DVD and a very welcome Blu-ray; “Island,” a recent doc, is available packaged with the reissue or as a standalone disc.
“Strange One” (Sony): The feature-film debut of Ben Gazzara, set in a military school, is remembered for homosexual overtones considered quite daring in 1957.
“My Breakfast with Blassie” (MVD): Beating Criterion’s “My Dinner With André” into stores by a week, this cult favorite finds Andy Kaufman hanging out in a diner with pro wrestler Classy Freddie Blassie. No Algonquin references here, folks, but plenty of bizarro energy.
“Scott Walker: 30th Century Man” (Oscilloscope): One of pop music’s great mysterious introverts gets his documentary due.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Dr. Strangelove,” Ghostbusters” (Sony); “Generation Kill,” “John Adams” (HBO); “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” “Lost” Seasons 1 and 2, “Miracle” (Walt Disney); “Kickboxer” (Lions Gate); “Spaceballs” (MGM); Three “Visions of…” titles, focused on France, Italy and the British Isles (Acorn Media)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes To Jail” (Lions Gate); “What Goes Up” (Sony)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“L’Important C’Est D’Aimer” (Mondo Vision)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Morning Light” (Walt Disney); “Nerdcore Rising” (Virgil Films)
BEST OF TV
“Burn Notice” Season 2, “Family Guy” Season 7, “Saving Grace” Season 2 (Fox); “Everwood” Season 2, “Tom and Jerry’s Greatest Chases, Vol. 2” (Warner Bros.); “House of Payne” Season 4 (Lions Gate); Four “Nature” titles: “America,” “Kilauea - Mountain of Fire,” “The Dragon Chronicles,” “The Wolf That Changed America” (Questar); “The Secret Life of the American Teenager” Season 2 (Walt Disney); “The Three Stooges Collection” (1949-1951) (Sony); “Transformers” Season 1 (Shout! Factory)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Essential Art House Vol. 3” (Criterion); Four “Friday the 13th” flicks, including “A New Beginning,” “Jason Lives,” “The Final Chapter,” and this year’s remake.
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Body Armour” (Image); “The Cell 2” (New Line)
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June 8, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 6/9/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Woodstock” Ultimate Collector’s Edition (Warner Bros.): You can’t get the whole “3 Days of Peace and Music” on home video, but a four-hour cut of the famous concert film should last you a while. This new version offers 18 new live performances, including material from the Grateful Dead, who unbelievably were not included in the original film. Also available on Blu-ray.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Crawford” (Virgil Films): David Modigliani’s doc about Dubya’s briefly adopted hometown gets wider distribution this week, thanks to the company that just released Richard Linklater’s “Inning By Inning.”
“Gran Torino” (Warner Bros.): Clint Eastwood directs himself in what is reportedly to be his final acting role — that of a edgy old dude quick to point guns at people. It’s a stretch.
“The Jack Lemmon Film Collection” (Sony): A handful of lesser-known Lemmons, including: “Phffft!,” “Operation Mad Ball,” “The Notorious Landlady,” “Under the Yum Yum Tree,” and “Good Neighbor Sam”
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Fatal Attraction,” “Indecent Proposal” (Paramount); “Predator 2,” “The Siege” (Fox)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Fired Up,” “The International” (Sony)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Goddess” (Image)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Home” (2009) (Fox)
BEST OF TV
“The Cleaner” Season 1, “Perry Mason” Season 4, Vol. 1 (Paramount); “Father Knows Best” Season 3 (Shout! Factory); “The Norman Lear Collection,” “The Shield” Season 7 (Sony); “Open All Hours” Complete Series (BBC); “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” Best-of (Warner Bros.); “Z Rock” (Anchor Bay)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
Harrison Ford and Ashley Judd in “Crossing Over” (Weinstein Co.); Alan Rickman in “Nobel Son” (Fox); Ray Liotta and Forest Whitaker in “Powder Blue” (Image); Sarah Jessica-Parker and Beau Bridges in “Spinning Into Butter” (Universal)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Bob the Builder: Truck Teamwork,” “Care Bears: Tell-Tale Tummies” (Lions Gate); “Wonder Pets!: Ollie’s Slumber Party” (Paramount); “Shaun the Sheep: Sheep on the Loose” (Lions Gate)
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June 5, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “The Strange One” (1957; Jack Garfein): Most notable for being the first film of both Ben Gazzara and George Peppard, this offbeat drama has Gazzara playing a raging jerk in a Southern military academy, who takes his malicious hazing of underclassmen too far. It’s based on Calder Willingham’s play, and feels stagy and literary. It’s fascinating and frustrating, mostly for Gazzara’s compellingly obnoxious performance. Newly out on DVD.
- “Galaxy Quest” (1999; Dean Parisot): A small cult of fans has bloomed around this novel comedy, which shows what happens when the cast of a “Star Trek”-like TV show is mistaken for real space cowboys by admiring aliens. As the head of the cast — the Cptn. Kirk role — Tim Allen is surprisingly smooth and funny. For some of us, he’s a revelation. He can act! (For more on this note, see David Mamet’s “Red Belt.” Allen is terrific.) A pleasant, inventive diversion.
- “My Dinner with Andre” (1981; Louis Malle): Two smart guys having dinner for almost two hours. Talking. The whole time. About themselves. This impossibly eccentric classic of arthouse cinema, starring Andre Gregory and Wallace Shawn, is a small miracle. It tinkles with insights about art and life and being. With Louis Malle’s silky, invisible direction and Gregory’s plummy tones, it puts you under its logorrheic spell. Now out on a two-disc set from the Criterion Collection.
“Story of Women” (1988; Claude Chabrol): The fine Isabelle Huppert plays an illegal, back-room abortionist in Occupied France during WWII. As much a portrait of a woman forced to compromise herself in dire times, Chabrol’s film, based on actual events, is a condemnation of the Nazi regime specifically and benighted minds in general.
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June 1, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 6/2/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” (New Video): Okay, it’s not a full-length feature, but this goofy riff on superheroes and supervillans — with some pretty great show tunes thrown in for fun — is a cult favorite more worthwhile than many of creator Joss Whedon’s more famous shows.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Nature’s Most Amazing Events” (BBC): For the surprising number of “Planet Earth” addicts out there, BBC offers this nature’s-splendors follow-up, complete with plummy narration by David Attenborough and high-def visuals.
“Revolutionary Road” (Paramount): The feel-bad movie of last year, this difficult but worthwhile tale of marital strife is enough to erase nostalgic memories of Kate and Leo in “Titanic.”
“Eddie Murphy: Delirious” (Anchor Bay): Remember when Eddie Murphy was hilarious, and anything but safe for a family film? Here’s proof you didn’t invent those memories.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Air Force One,” “Glory” (Sony); “Bruce Almighty,” “Fletch” (Universal); “Dark Blue,” “Roadhouse,” “To Live and Die In L.A.” (MGM)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Defiance” (Paramount); “He’s Just Not That Into You” (New Line); “The International” (Sony); “Spring Breakdown” (Warner Bros.)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Henry Hills: Selected Films (1977-2008)” (Tzadik)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Ernesto Che Guevara: The Bolivian Diary” (Alive Mind); “Fillmore: The Last Days” (Rhino); “Inning By Inning: A Portrait of a Coach” (Virgil Films)
BEST OF TV
“The Complete Abbott and Costello Show” (Passport Video); “Highlander: The Animated Series” Complete Series (Image); “Prison Break” Final Season (Fox); “Quincy, M.E.” Season 3 (Universal); “Sesame Street: Elmo and Abby’s Birthday Fun” (Genius); “Weeds” Season 4 (Lions Gate)
CULT CORNER
“Drive-In Classics Collection” (Image); “Grindhouse Double Feature: Punk Rock / Pleasure Palace” (Secret Key); “Shaw Bros. Legendary Heroes” (Image); “Shinobi No Mono 4: Siege” (AnimEigo)
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May 21, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “The Friends of Eddie Coyle” (1973; Peter Yates): A terrific, taut crime drama about informers and their pals. Robert Mitchum plays a sad-sack ex-con who doesn’t want to return to the pen, so he sets his “friends” up for the cops. But a misunderstanding messes everything up. A noirish, hardboiled pleasure, co-starring ’70s stalwarts Peter Boyle and Alex Rocco.
- “Stranded: I’ve Come from a Plane That Crashed on the Mountains” (2007; Gonzalo Arijon): Utterly engrossing. Two hours is on the long side for a documentary, but this masterly recollection of the famed 1972 plane crash in the Andes (which inspired the book and movie “Alive”) whizzes by. You watch in a trance as survivors and judicious re-enactments relate a painfully and shockingly intimate story of survival, which of course demanded cannibalism. A knockout.
- “Soylent Green” (1973; Richard Fleischer): I dodged this movie for a very long time, and now I know why. It’s not horrible, but these low-budget Charlton Heston sci-fi flicks (see: “Omega Man”) are rickety contraptions not made for longevity. Heston’s teeth-gritting detective stumbles upon a ruling corporation’s dirty little secret, and I don’t care that I’m doing a fat spoiler here: The nation is feeding its people green wafers made of its dead. “Soylent Green … is … people!” Cue chills. And chortles. (Factoid: The name Soylent is a combo of soy and lentils.)
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May 18, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 5/19/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“The Friends of Eddie Coyle” (Criterion): Crime novelist George V.
Higgins got to see Robert Mitchum bring his title character to life in this low-key gangster picture directed by Peter Yates (“Bullitt”), a film Mitchum fans have long ached to see on DVD.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Friday Night Lights” Season 3 (Universal): Thanks to some creative deal-making involving an exclusive DirecTV window, Austin’s critically beloved series survived another year. Now anyone confused by the unconventional scheduling can watch it all from start to finish on disc.
“A Bug’s Life” (Walt Disney): The ‘toon Pixar made between the two “Toy Story” films hits stores in a new Blu-ray edition, just in time to promote “Up.”
“Valkyrie” (MGM): Not as pulse-pounding as it should have been, this Tom Cruise vehicle about a plot to kill Hitler was still far better than the early buzz suggested.
“Man Hunt” (1941) (Fox): Fritz Lang (“M”) directs a cast of English actors for a thriller set in the Nazi-era Germany he himself had escaped years earlier.
“Pigs, Pimps & Prostitutes: 3 Films by Shohei Imamura” (Criterion): Three early-’60s films crusing through the lower rungs of the Japanese social order.
“Fanboys” (Weinstein Co.): Good-natured road film in which “Star Wars”
fanatics try to break into Skywalker Ranch.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Batman” (1989) (Warner Bros.); “Changing Lanes,” “The Machinist,” “Three Days of the Condor” (Paramount); “Circle of Iron,” “Fast Company” (Blue Underground); “Lions for Lambs” (MGM); “Spy Game” (Universal); “Terminator 2” (Lions Gate)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Paul Blart: Mall Cop” (Sony)
FROM THE VAULTS
“Catlow” (Warner Bros.)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Black Hollywood: Blaxploitation and Advancing Independent Black Cinema,” “Llik Your Idols” (MVD); “Crips and Bloods: Made In America” (Docurama); “Kobe Doin’ Work” (New Line); “Lavender Limelight: Lesbians On Film,” “The Top Secret Trial of the Third Reich” (First Run Pictures); “We Feed the World” (Kino)
BEST OF TV
“24” Season 7 (Fox); “Russell Brand: In New York City” (Paramount); “True Blood” Season 1 (HBO)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Army of Darkness” Screwhead Edition (Universal); “Arnold Schwarzenegger DVD Collection” (Lions Gate) “Billy Jack” (Warner Bros.); “El Dorado,” “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”
Centennial Collection (Paramount)
CULT CORNER
“Muscle Madness” (Infinity); “My Bloody Valentine 3- D” (Lions Gate); “Nightmare Castle” (Severin); “Eden Log” (Magnolia); and a barrel full of Japanese genre pictures including “3 Seconds Before Explosion,” “Detective Bureau 2-3: Go to Hell Bastards!,”
“Debauched Desires (Four Erotic Masterpieces by Masaru Konuma) (Kino), “Wandering Ginza Butterfly,” and “Wandering Ginza Butterfly 2: She-Cat Gambler” (Synapse)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Dr. Dolittle: Million Dollar Mutts,” “Driven to Kill” (Fox)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Thomas & Friends: Team Up With Thomas” (Lions Gate); “Treasury of 25 Storybook Classics: Dinosaurs, Trucks, Monsters,” “Treasury of 25 Storybook Classics: Fairytales, Magic and More” (Scholastic)
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May 8, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “In Between Days” (2006; So Yong Kim): An effortless, super lo-fi little story about a teenage South Korean immigrant in America, whose only friend is another Korean immigrant. She clearly likes him, but his protective platonic shield is up high, so sexual tension sizzles then fizzles between them in dramatic ebbs and flows. Minimalist to the max, the film is the debut of So Yong Kim, whose next feature, “Treeless Mountain,” opens June 5 at the Arbor. (Odd: This is one of those movies you’ve already seen but sort of forgot it until you pop it in the player and realize what happened. I’ve now seen it twice.)
- “Basquiat” (1996; Julian Schnabel): If you can get past David Bowie’s jarringly dissonant impersonation of Andy Warhol and its lost but ego-inflated title character (Jeffrey Wright), this is a riveting look at the ’80s New York art scene and its morbid casualties. Colorful and inspired direction are the hallmarks of this biopic and have become Schnabel’s auteurist trademark. He’s gotten even better, coming into his own as a visionary filmmaker (“Before Night Falls,” “Butterfly and the Diving Bell”). I saw this film some time ago, but my allergy to biopics put me off. It was much better this time.
- “Man Push Cart” (2005; Ramin Bahrani): I’ve also seen this before, but re-watched as part of my recent Ramin Bahrani (“Chop Shop,” “Goodbye Solo”) kick. A completely assured first feature that, as others have said, encapsulates American independent film: non-professional actors, no musical score, grainy hand-held camerawork, live locations. Modest in scope but generous in humanity, it’s another minimalist entry in the unofficial “neo-neorealism” genre. Captivating and gratifying.
- “Wise Blood” (John Huston; 1979): I don’t know how I forgot most of this wry and funny and wonderfully offbeat drama, but a second viewing brought it all back, and better. Huston’s take on the famed Flannery O’Connor material is a southern-gothic blast and scathing critique of old-time religion gone rancid and exploitative. A lot of fun with glorious performances by a cast that seethes eccentricity: Brad Dourif, Ned Beatty, Amy Wright, Harry Dean Stanton and others, including Huston himself.
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May 4, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 5/5/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount / Criterion): Some moviegoers felt David Fincher’s sweeping fantasy was too long. Here’s hoping more folks are willing to brave the running time in the comfort of home — a big dose of old-fashioned movie romance awaits those who do.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Big” (Fox): Who needs “17 Again” when (arguably) the world’s best age-bending comedy has just been upgraded for Blu-ray?
“Wendy and Lucy” (Oscilloscope): One of the year’s most celebrated indie films, made by SXSW alum Kelly Reichardt (“Old Joy”) and starring Michelle Williams as a woman suffering some tough breaks on the way to a job in Alaska.
“Enchanted April” (Walt Disney / Miramax): Well-liked period piece about Brits vacationing in Italian splendor benefits from a cast including Miranda Richardson, Joan Plowright and Jim Broadbent.
“A Grin Without a Cat” (First Run / Icarus): Another previously-unavailable work by film essayist Chris Marker, this one a left-wing globe-trot through Vietnam, Bolivia, and Prague, is finally on disc for adventurous cinephiles.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“There’s Something About Mary” (Fox); “Dexter” Season 2, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” “Grease,” “Saturday Night Fever” (Paramount); “Dog Soldiers” (First Look); “It Could Happen to You,” “Roxanne” (Sony); “Twilight” (Summit)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Incendiary” (Image); “Last Chance Harvey” (Anchor Bay); “Smother” (Universal)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“A Song of Innocence” (“La Ravisseuse”) (Synkronized USA); “Chandni Chowk To China” (Warner Bros.); “Momma’s Man” (Kino); “Under the Bombs” (Film Movement)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Fashion in Film” (Anchor Bay); “Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills” (Indiepix); “Tony Palmer’s Film of O Thou Transcendent: The Life of Ralph Vaughan Williams,” “Tony Palmer’s Film of O, Fortuna” (United States of Distribution)
BEST OF TV
“Bleak House” (2005), Doctor Who: “Battlefield” and “E-Space Trilogy” (BBC); “Boston Legal” Season 5 (Fox); “Crusoe,” “Lipstick Jungle” Season 2 (Universal); “Florence Nightingale” (1985), “Ivanhoe” (1982), “Living Proof” (Sony); “Gigantor,” “A Little Princess” (1987) (E1 Entertainment); “That Girl” Season 5 (Shout! Factory); “Yawara!: A Fashionable Judo Girl” (AnimEigo)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” Deluxe Edition (Paramount)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey’s Big Splash,” “Imagination Movers: Warehouse Mouse Edition” (Walt Disney); “A Plumm Summer” (Paramount)
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thirtysomething goes to DVD
We’re finally about to be thirtysomething all over again. The TV show about young urban professionals (‘thirtysomething’ was too good to call them yuppies), which ran from 1987- 1991, is finally coming out on DVD Aug. 25.
Shout Factory, which had success with the DVDs for “My So-Called Life,” (also created by Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz) will release season one first, with the next three seasons to come out at six-month intervals.
A couple of factors have kept ‘thirtysomething’ from making it to DVD until now, chief among them a lack of transferrable masters. A few episodes had to be remastered, which is a time-swallowing process. The other hitch was getting music rights clearances, but Shout Factory, which specializes in licensing oldies for reissue, was able to get all the music played on the show.
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April 30, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
- “The Howling” (1981; Joe Dante): I was puzzled to realize I’d never seen this impoverished wannabe of John Landis’ still-brilliant “An American Werewolf in London,” which is scarier, gorier, funnier, boasts a genius soundtrack and spectacularly better special effects. This low-budget copywolf wallows in feeble camp, is rarely gory and is witty the way Roger Corman’s films are witty (with a groan). John Sayles wrote and makes a cameo — his and Dante’s follow-up to their imitation-crab “Jaws” spoof, “Piranha.”
- “The Tall T” (1957; Budd Boetticher): I love this scrappy western, even after three viewings. Boetticher regular Randolph Scott gets tangled in a group of kidnapping killers, and the moral shadings — Boetticher is a master of nuanced human nature — hold you in its vice. Tight and crunchy, with neato B acting, and, if you pay attention, lovely compositions and use of tension in space. Story by Elmore Leonard.
- “Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans” (1927; F.W. Murnau): German expressionist Murnau’s maiden Hollywood feature convulses with camera tricks, dolly shots, fades and just about the entire lexicon of visual grammar. This silent melodrama — some of its acting and emotions are applied with a paint roller — holds its spot as a groundbreaker. It won a special artistic Oscar at the first Academy Awards in 1928.
- “Germany Year Zero” (1948; Roberto Rossellini): Brutal, fascinating Italian neo-realism by the progenitor of the genre. Another stark post-war drama, following Rossellini’s “Rome, Open City,” about a 12-year-old German boy in bombed-out Berlin doing whatever he must, legal or not, to survive. The imagery, all crumbled shells of real buildings on location, mesmerizes. With an ending so bleak, you almost can’t believe it.
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April 28, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 4/28/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“The Hit” (Criterion): This early outing by Stephen Frears (“Dangerous Liaisons,” “The Queen”) is a prickly, tight little crime drama giving a fine central role to Terence Stamp, who deserved more of them in his career, and offering viewers a peek of Tim Roth before he made his name Stateside.
OTHER TOP PICKS
Two by Oshima: The Criterion Collection resurrects two button-pushers by Japanese filmmaker Nagisa Oshima, “Empire of Passion” and “In the Realm of the Senses.” The latter (also being made available on Blu-ray) courted controversy in the ’70s by presenting unsimulated sexual activity in a film meant to be shown in mainstream theaters.
“JCVD” (Peace Arch): It isn’t as mind-blowing as your fanboy friends may have told you, but this odd, possibly tongue-in-cheek drama featuring has-been action star Jean-Claude Van Damme does contain one captivating monologue worth the price of admission.
“Nothing But the Truth” (Sony): Another Rod Lurie film playing off contemporary politics, this one starring Kate Beckinsale as a journalist who, like Judith Miller, exposes a C.I.A. agent and is jailed for refusing to name her source.
“What Doesn’t Kill You” (Sony): Mark Ruffalo and Ethan Hawke play low-rent gangsters in South Boston.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“The Da Vinci Code” (Extended Cut) (Blu-Ray); “The Reader” (Weinstein Co.); “Star Trek” Season 1 (Paramount)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Bride Wars” (Fox); “Hotel for Dogs,” “The Uninvited” (Paramount)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Alain Resnais: A Decade in Film” (Kino); “Big Story in a Small City” (Passion River); Tarkovsky Resurrected: “The Steamroller and the Violin” / “Voyage in Time” (Facets)
DOCUMENTARIES
“The Price of Sugar” (New Yorker)
BEST OF TV
“Dalton Trumbo’s Johnny Got His Gun” (Shout! Factory); “Little Dorrit” (2008) (BBC); “Mission: Impossible” Season 6 (Paramount); “Pulling” Season 1 (MPI); “The Waltons” Season 9 (Warner Bros.)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Beethoven’s 5th” (Universal); “Legally Blondes” (MGM); “While She Was Out” (Anchor Bay)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Jetsons: The Movie” (Universal)
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April 20, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 4/21/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
‘The Wrestler’ (Fox). Mickey Rourke rediscovers his soul, playing a down-and-out pro wrestler alongside Marisa Tomei in a movie that also counts as something of a comeback for ‘Requiem for a Dream’ director Darren Aronofsky.
OTHER TOP PICKS
‘Frost/Nixon’ (Universal). A slightly different showdown from the grudge matches in ‘The Wrestler,’ Ron Howard’s latest prestige film benefits from great performances by Michael Sheen and Frank Langella.
‘Science Is Fiction: 23 Films by Jean Painlevé’ (Criterion). Yo La Tengo provides music for these delightfully strange shorts in which science footage of such subjects as sea horses is transformed into quasi-surrealist comedy.
‘The Last Picture Show’ / ‘Nickelodeon’ (Sony). No very good reason exists to sell these films as a two-pack, but Peter Bogdanovich fans will be happy to have a chance to revisit ‘Nickelodeon,’ his second pre-war feature starring Ryan and Tatum O’Neal
‘Notorious’ (2009) (Fox). Late rapper Christopher Wallace gets the biopic treatment in the new film starring newcomer Jamal Woolard.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
‘Arctic Tale’ (Paramount); ‘The Arrival’ (Lions Gate); ‘Sin City’ extended edition (Miramax); ‘The Wages of Fear’ (Criterion); ‘X-Men Trilogy’ (Fox)
DOCUMENTARIES
‘Inside the Third Reich’ Box Set, ‘A Jihad for Love,’ ‘K*ke Like Me’ (Kino)
BEST OF TV
‘Caprica’ Pilot Episode (Universal); ‘Dallas” Season 11,’ ‘Freakazoid!’ Season 2, ‘Tiny Toon Adventures’ Season 1, Vol. 2 (Warner Bros.); ‘Hawaii Five-O’ Season 6 (Paramount); ‘Rhoda’ Season 1 (Shout! Factory); ‘Wolverine & the X-Men: Heroes Return Trilogy’ (Lions Gate)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
‘Hellraiser’ Box Set (Anchor Bay)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
‘Into the Blue 2: The Reef’ (MGM)
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April 13, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 4/14/09
NEW ON DVD
‘The Reader’ (Weinstein Co.): Kate Winslet gives her second-best performance of 2008 in a film that is ultimately owned by Ralph Fiennes, despite the fact that he’s barely in the movie at all for its first half.
‘The Spirit’ (Lionsgate): After the boos and hisses that greeted this solo-directing debut, will Frank Miller go back to writing hard- boiled comics, or will he just hang out with Robert Rodriguez and make a dozen ‘Sin City’ installments?
‘The Lost Collection’: A slew of Lionsgate releases gather movies most people are happy to forget, like the Keanu Reeves vehicle ‘The Night Before,’ Jon Cryer in ‘Morgan Stewart’s Coming Home,’ and a classic called ‘My Best Friend is a Vampire’
NEW ON BLU-RAY
‘8 Mile’ (Universal); ‘The Last Kiss,’ ‘Mean Girls’ (Paramount); ‘The Thirteenth Floor,’ ‘Universal Soldier: The Return’ (Sony) Documentaries. ‘Crude Impact’ (Docurama)
BEST OF TV
‘House of Saddam’ (HBO); ‘Knots Landing’ Season 2, National Geographic’s ‘North Star’ and ‘The Everglades’ (Warner Bros.); ‘The Ruth Rendell Mysteries’ Set 4 (Acorn Media); ‘Skins’
Volume 2 (BBC); ‘Wings’ Season 8 (Paramount) Reissue/repackage. ‘Rounders’ (Miramax)
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April 9, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
“Le sang des betes (Blood of the Beasts)” by Georges Franju (1949; France): Franju is best known for the spectacularly unsettling horror picture “Eyes Without a Face,” and this, his first film, is a 20-minute short included on the Criterion DVD of “Face.” The brutal documentary about the slaughterhouses of Paris never flinches; animal lovers will want to avoid it. I got glum watching it, and speeded up the DVD during some scenes. It’s stark, cold, black-and-white realism, a day in the life of horse, cow and sheep killing. Its industrial images, sooty and grime-rimmed, remain powerfully influential (see the film below).
“Eraserhead” by David Lynch (1977; USA): Lynch’s landmark avant-garde debut holds up beautifully. I hadn’t seen it in years, but the images shock and awe in an aesthetically stupendous way. You won’t shake them: the girl in the radiator with the cauliflower face; the piteous shrieking monster-baby; the hissing steam and industrial dystopia. The visuals look borrowed from the above movie and clearly spilled over into Lynch’s next masterpiece “The Elephant Man.”
“A Doll’s House” by Patrick Garland (1973; Britain): Anthony Hopkins, Claire Bloom, Denholm Elliot and Ralph Richardson star in this crisp adaptation of Ibsen’s play (by Christopher Isherwood). I like the play plenty but really rented this to watch the mesmerizing Hopkins, whom I’ve loved since I saw “The Elephant Man” (see above) as a kid. People always crow about Hopkins in “Silence of the Lambs” — he’s great in that — but I still think “Elephant Man” is one of his very best.
Next up on the DVD changer: A stack of Criterion Collection classics, including Bunuel’s “The Exterminating Angel,” Stephen Frears’ “The Hit,” and Nagisa Oshima’s “In the Realm of the Senses” and “Empire of Passion.”
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April 6, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 4/7/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Doubt” (Miramax): One of last year’s finest films won’t suffer much from the transition to the small screen, as it relies heavily the performances of three actors whose faces convey a wealth of emotion and calculation in close-up.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Cecil B. DeMille’s Cleopatra” (Universal): A 75th Anniversary edition of the version starring not Elizabeth Taylor but a possibly even more unlikely actress, Claudette Colbert.
“Pre-Code Hollywood Collection” (Universal): Universal gets into the game with Warner’s “Forbidden Hollywood” series, gathering occasionally naughty early movies like “Hot Saturday” and “Merrily We Go to Hell.”
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“2010: The Year We Make Contact,” “Above the Law,”
“Point of No Return,” “Taking Lives” (Warner Bros.); “American History X,” “Final Destination,” “John Q,” “The Wedding Singer” (New Line); “Fly Away Home,” “Winged Migration” (Sony)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Bedtime Stories” (Walt Disney); “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (2008) (Fox); “Not Easily Broken” (Sony); “The Tale of Despereaux,” (Universal); “Yes Man” (Warner Bros.)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Alexandra” (New Yorker); “La Grande Bouffe” (Koch); “The Loyal 47 Ronin” (AnimEigo); “Vinyan” (Sony)
FROM THE VAULTS
“A Rather English Marriage,” “Tales of Ordinary Madness” (Koch); “TCM Spotlight: Doris Day Collection” (Warner Bros.); 3 musicals from MGM, “The Goldwyn Follies,” “It’s a Pleasure,” and “A Song Is Born” (MGM)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Glass: A Portrait of Philip In Twelve Parts” (Koch)
BEST OF TV
“Beverly Hills 90210” Season 7 (Paramount); “Davey &
Goliath: The Lost Episodes” (CVD); 3 volumes of the “Disney Animation Collection,” “Tigger, Pooh & A Musical Too” (Walt Disney); “Max Fleischer’s Superman: 1941-1942” (Warner Bros.); “The Paper Chase”
Season 1 (Shout! Factory)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“The Boys From Brazil” (Lions Gate); “No Country for Old Men” (Miramax)
CULT CORNER
“Donkey Punch” (Magnolia); “Tokyo Zombie” (Anchor Bay)
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April 4, 2009
What I'm watching
Wherein our movie critic periodically shares what DVDs he’s been viewing in his spare time …
“3 Seconds Before Explosion” by Motomu Ida (1967; Japan): Goofy, noirish exploitation, post-war Japanese-style. Not as snappy as you’d hope, but some brisk hand-to-hand action, shiny color visuals (including garish shades of blood) and sprinkles of wit. Ida is no Seijun Suzuki (“Branded to Kill”), but his film is serviceable pulp.
“It’s Winter” by Rafi Pitts (2006; Iran): Beautifully depressing tone poem from the Iranian new wave about a man’s struggle to get work and support his family — a quaint patriarchal notion still alive in the Middle East. It’s told with simplicity and heartbreaking purity, flaunting the hallmarks of latter Iranian cinema — unhurried quitetude, non-professional actors, arid realism — while flouting the form with a linear story and a romantic-love thread. The evocative title expresses its elegiac mood. Would fit well in today’s “neo-neo-realism” trend.
“Landscape in the Mist” by Theodoros Angelopoulos (1988; Greece): This sweet and sour picaresque following a young brother and sister as they make their way alone to Germany is deemed the Greek maestro’s masterpiece. No argument here. Rambling but emotionally acute, it’s a classic, almost Truffautian tale of innocence robbed and coming-of-age amid a backdrop of indifferent adults and harsh lessons.
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March 30, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 3/31/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
‘Slumdog Millionaire’ (Fox). It wasn’t the best movie of the year, no matter what the Academy says, but Danny Boyle’s often delightful, oddly old-fashioned romance has charm to burn.
OTHER TOP PICKS
‘Fallen Angels’ & ‘Happy Together’ (Kino). Two of the more accessible outings by style-obsessed Wong Kar-Wai, just out in editions with worthwhile bonus features.
‘Pride and Prejudice’ (1995) (A&E). Colin Firth as Mister Darcy, finally able to agitate Jane Austen fans on Blu-ray.
‘Tell No One’ (MPI). It drops the ball just a tiny bit at the end, when a character stands around and explains secrets that should unveil themselves more cinematically, but this French thriller about a widower who believes his wife isn’t dead gets the job done.
‘Timecrimes’ (Magnolia). The Fantastic Fest fave from Spain, in which a man hops back in time an hour, largely so the filmmakers can include many shots of the same naked woman.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
‘John Carpenter’s Ghosts of Mars,’ ‘The One’ (Sony); ‘National Geographic: Kingdom of the Blue Whale’ (Warner Bros.); ‘The Robe,’ ‘South Pacific’ (Fox); ‘Two Evil Eyes’ (Blue Underground)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
‘Marley and Me’ (Fox); ‘Seven Pounds’ (Sony)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
‘Danton,’ ‘Il Generale Della Rovere’ (Criterion); ‘Same Old Song’ (New Yorker); ‘Tehilim’ (Kino)
BEST OF TV
‘Dennis Miller: The HBO Comedy Specials’ (Kultur); ‘The IT Crowd’ Season 1 (MPI); ‘Ricky Gervais: Out of England’ (HBO)
KIDS’ STUFF
‘Baby Einstein: Baby World Music,’ ‘Hannah Montana: Keeping It Real,’ ‘Schoolhouse Rock: Earth’ (Walt Disney); ‘Goosebumps’: ‘Return of the Mummy’ and ‘The Scarecrow Walks At Midnight’ (Fox); ‘Thomas & Friends: High Speed Adventures’ (Lions Gate)
CULT CORNER
‘The Cremator’ (Dark Sky); ‘Erotic Horror Triple Feature’ (Seduction Cinema); ‘Exposed’ (Synapse)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
‘The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations’ (Lions Gate)
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March 23, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 3/24/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“The Last Metro” (Criterion): Okay, so it’s not François Truffaut’s most groundbreaking film. But the auteur sure pleased a lot of viewers (and voters for the French César awards, who gave it a slew of statues) with this tale of a theater company trying to survive the Nazi occupation of France. Having Catherine Deneuve and Gerard Depardieu as the leads couldn’t have hurt. (“Metro” is new to DVD; both it and Truffaut’s “The 400 Blows” are being released on Blu-ray.)
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Forbidden Hollywood Collection” Vol. 3 (Warner Bros.): This time out, Warner’s series of box sets collecting daring early cinema focuses exclusively on the films of William Wellman, like the Barbara Stanwyck vehicle “The Purchase Price.”
James Bond: As usual, the home-vid release of a recent theatrical 007 adventure — the bloodthirsty outing “Quantum of Solace” — is joined by reissues from MGM. This time out, the new ones (including “Goldfinger, Moonraker,” and others) are on Blu-ray.
“Twilight” (Summit): Vampires in high school. Perhaps you’ve heard of it.
“Bolt” (Walt Disney): John Travolta and Miley Cyrus lend their voices to the CG animated tale of a dog who plays a super-mutt on TV.
Beyond the movie: Two theatrical releases have made-for-video addendums this week, with the “Kung-Fu Panda” mythology being expanded by “Secrets Of The Furious Five” (Paramount, now available as a stand- alone title) and “Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter” (Warner
Bros.) aimed at satisfying those who couldn’t get enough of the “Watchmen” film. (Do such viewers exist?)
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“The Fast and the Furious Trilogy” (Blu-Ray) (Universal); “The Kite Runner,” “A Mighty Heart,” “Things We Lost in the Fire,” (Paramount)
BEST OF TV
“Andy Richter Controls the Universe” Complete Series (Paramount); “Doctor Who” Mega Set Vol. 2 (BBC); “The Dog Whisperer” Very Best of (Universal); “In Treatment” (HBO); “The Riches” Season 2 (Fox); “Star Wars: The Clone Wars: A Galaxy Divided” (Warner Bros.); “Stephen Hawking and the Theory of Everything” (Acorn Media); “A Woman Called Golda” (Paramount)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
Guy Maddin’s “Careful” (Zeitgeist); “Lilo & Stitch:
Big Wave Edition” (Walt Disney); “The Matrix,” 10th Anniversary Blu- Ray edition (Warner Bros.); “Centennial Collection” editions of “The Odd Couple,” “To Catch a Thief” (Paramount)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Opera Jawa” (First Run Pictures)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
Rob Schneider directs and stars in “Big Stan” (Warner Bros.)
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March 17, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 3/17/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“Elegy” (Sony): Penélope Cruz won the Oscar this year for her movie with Woody Allen, but odds are good that voters were also thinking of her performance here, in a role (opposite the very fine Ben Kingsley) allowing her to draw herself in as much as she cut loose in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.”
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Dodes’ka-Den” (Criterion): Akira Kurosawa’s first color film, from 1971, in an improved edition including documentary features on the director, cinematographer Takao Saito, and esteemed composer Toru Takemitsu.
“Murnau” (Box Set) (Kino): Though not nearly as showy as last fall’s huge set from Fox, this collection offers some of German auteur F.W. Murnau’s best known work (restored versions of “Faust” and “Nosferatu”) alongside material that hasn’t been available on disc before.
Eclipse Series 15: Travels with Hiroshi Shimizu (Criterion): The little-known Japanese filmmaker is represented by three films from the ’30s and one from 1941 in this no-frills box.
“The Cake Eaters” (Universal): In time for “Twilight“‘s DVD release and the upcoming “Adventureland,” this well reviewed but little seen Kristen Stewart film gets a video release.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“The Princess Bride” (MGM); “Quo Vadis” (Warner Bros.); “The Robe” (Fox)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Azur and Asmar” (Weinstein Co.); “Lost Souls” (1980) (Image); “Yella” (New Yorker)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Punisher: War Zone” (Lions Gate)
BEST OF TV
“Barney Miller” Season 3, “Married…With Children” Season 10, “The Nanny” Season 3, “The Three Stooges” Collection #5 (1946-1948) (Sony); “Degrassi: The Next Generation” Season 7 (Echo Bridge); “J*A*G” Season 8 (Paramount)
KIDS’ STUFF
“Bob The Builder On Site: Skyscrapers” (Lions Gate); “The Velveteen Rabbit” (2007) (Anchor Bay)
DOCUMENTARIES
“The Beautiful Truth,” “Cafe Chavalos” (Cinema Libre); “Portrait of Petula Clark” (Infinity)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“My Zinc Bed” (HBO); “Walled In” (Anchor Bay)
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March 9, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 3/10/09
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Milk” (Universal): If “Milk” sounds too much like a civics lesson, consider watching it back-to-back with “Pineapple Express” for a jaw-droppingly yin-yang James Franco experience.
“Rachel Getting Married” (Sony): Anne Hathaway stretches out as an addict trying to cope with family grief and joy in a single stress-filled weekend.
“Synecdoche, New York” (Sony): The movie of the year or the year’s biggest cinematic self-indulgence? Let the debate begin.
“Let The Right One In” (Magnolia): The vampire flick that plays like a Euro art film. Because it is.
“Cadillac Records” (Sony): Beyonc´ as Etta James and Jeffrey Wright playing Muddy Waters? Count us in.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Batman: The Motion Picture Anthology (1989-1997)” (Warner Bros.); “Brokeback Mountain” (Universal); “Rockers” (MVD)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Battle in Seattle,” “Role Models” (Universal); “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” (Miramax); “Transporter 3” (Lions Gate)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“L’Innocente” (Koch); “Shinobi No Mono 3: Resurrection” (AnimEigo)
FROM THE VAULTS
“20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” (1954), “Escape to Witch Mountain” (Walt Disney); “Max Fleischer’s Gulliver’s Travels (1939) (Koch)
DOCUMENTARIES
“The Singing Revolution” (New Video)
BEST OF TV
“Cracker” Complete Collection (Acorn Media); “Family Ties” Season 5, “South Park” Season 12 (Paramount); “Get Smart” (Season Two) (HBO); “Woody Woodpecker Favorites” (Universal)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Howard the Duck” (Universal); Pinocchio (Walt Disney, also on Blu-ray); “Primal Fear” (Paramount, also on Blu-ray)
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March 2, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 3/3/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“I’ve Loved You So Long” (Sony): A deeply wounded, quietly stunning performance by Kristin Scott Thomas anchors this French film, which holds out secrets for the end but doesn’t do it just to tease.
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Ashes of Time Redux” (Sony): Wong Kar-Wai’s breakthrough film — early masterwork, or impenetrable tone poem in which mood trumps substance?
“Treasures From American Film Archive: Vol. 4 (Avant-Garde)” (Image): The series of box sets devoted to obscure short films turns to experiments in cinema by Joseph Cornell, Shirley Clarke, Jonas Mekas and many others. New music by John Zorn.
“The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1982) (Sony): Who knew Anthony Hopkins once played everyone’s favorite spinally-challenged icon? Co-stars Derek Jacobi, John Gielgud and Lesley-Anne Down, that’s who.
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Australia” (Fox); “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” (Walt Disney); “Lake City” (Universal)
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“The Silence of the Lambs” (MGM); “Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic” (Warner Bros.); “In the Electric Mist” (Image); “Brokeback Mountain” (Universal)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Back To Normandy,” “Wonderful Town” (Kino); “Moses and Aaron” (New Yorker); “Weapons” (Lions Gate)
BEST OF TV
“7th Heaven” Season 8, “The Hills” Season 4, “Nash Bridges” Season 2, “The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” “Spongebob vs. The Big One” (Paramount); Six “Doctor Who” adventures, “Planet Earth” Vol. 3 & 4 (BBC); “East of Eden” (1981 Miniseries), “Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares” (Acorn Media); “ER” Season 10 (Warner Bros.); “My Two Dads” Season 1 (Shout! Factory); “The Tales of Beatrix Potter” (Lions Gate)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Ace Ventura Jr.: Pet Detective” (Warner Bros.); “Air Bud” (Walt Disney); “The Scarlett Johansson Collection” (Lions Gate)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Real Time” (Image); “Stiletto” (First Look); “The Village Barbershop” (Monterey)
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February 23, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 2/24/09
PICK OF THE WEEK:
Blu-ray Goes Crazy for Car Chases: Fox/MGM are rolling out a quartet of classics on Blu-ray that will be embraced by lead-footed film buffs everywhere. The first and second “French Connection” films are joined by cult classic “Vanishing Point” and the modern globe-trotting adventure “Ronin.” Don’t let the kids lay their hands on your keys after renting these.
TOP PICKS:
“Ironweed” (Lions Gate): Nicholson and Streep go to seed in Hector Babenco’s 1987 adaptation of the William Kennedy novel.
“What Just Happened?” (Magnolia): Robert De Niro offers one of his most enjoyable performances of recent years — admitedly, that’s not saying much — in this satire of the movie-producing biz.
“The Whole Shootin Match” (Watchmaker Films): For the first time on DVD — in fact, it was “unavailable in any format for at least two decades” — this influential Austin film is joined by a doc about Eagle Pennell and copious reprinted archival material.
Roller Derby Mania: Two derby docs, “Jam” (Virgil Films) and the Austin-centric “Hell on Wheels” (IndiePix), follow skaters who like to rough each other up in front of a crowd.
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Extreme Movie” (Weinstein Co.); “The Haunting of Molly Hartley” (Fox); “Sex Drive” (Summit)
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Akira” (Bandai)
“The Bird With The Crystal Plumage” (Blue Underground)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Cat Dancers,” “Wonders Are Many” (Docurama); “Chris & Don: A Love Story” (Zeitgeist); “Dear Zachary: A Letter To His Son About His Father” (Oscilloscope); “The FTA” (Docurama)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“Man Walking On Snow,” “The Pear Tree,” “Poil de Carotte” (Facets)
FROM THE VAULTS
“The Pickwick Papers,” “Svengali” (VCI)
BEST OF TV
“Breaking Bad” Season1, “Just Shoot Me” Season3 (Sony); “Dirty Jobs” Collection 4 (Image); “Enemy at the Door” Series 1, “Painted Lady,” “Trial & Retribution” Set 2 (Acorn Media); “Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder” (Fox); “Oliver Twist” (2007 Miniseries) (BBC)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Last House on the Left” (MGM)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Cyclops” (Anchor Bay); “Red Sands” (Sony)
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February 16, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 2/17/09
TOP PICKS
The Paul Newman Film Series (Warner Bros.) : The late, great Paul Newman is celebrated in DVD releases of a handful of not-so-famous outings, from his first screen gig (a Bible epic called “The Silver Chalice”) to the “Rashomon” adaptation “The Outrage” and one of his directing efforts, “Rachel, Rachel,” starring wife Joanne Woodward.
“Hobson’s Choice” (Criterion) : Like the undeservedly obscure “Ruggles of Red Gap,” this David Lean film shows the underexposed comic side of Charles Laughton, better known for haughty stuff like “Mutiny on the Bounty.”
“High School Musical 3: Senior Year” (Walt Disney) : Disney’s hugely popular series squeezes in one more installment before sending the kids off to college.
“Changeling” (Universal) : For your Oscar-rooting pleasure, Angelina Jolie plays a woman who loses her child only to have him replaced by someone else’s.
“Body of Lies” (Warner Bros.) : Leonardo Di Caprio flees from “Revolutionary Road” to someplace less frightening — the Middle East — in this CIA flick from Ridley Scott.
“Choke” (Fox) : Actor Clark Gregg makes his directing debut with an adaptation of Chuck (“Fight Club”) Palahniuk’s tale of depravity.
“Joni Mitchell’s ‘The Fiddle and the Drum’” (Koch Vision) : Highlights from Mitchell’s career are used as the basis for an Alberta Ballet Company work focused on war and environmental dangers.
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Flash of Genius” (Universal); “How To Lose Friends and Alienate People” (MGM); “The Midnight Meat Train” Director’s Cut (Lions Gate)
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Capote / In Cold Blood”(Double Feature), “Gandhi,” “Kramer vs. Kramer” (Sony); “Raging Bull,” “The Passion of the Christ” (Fox)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Blindsight” (Image); “Moving Midway” (First Run Pictures); “Religulous” (Lions Gate)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“I Served the King of England” (Sony)
BEST OF TV: “The Beverly Hillbillies” Season 3, “Sabrina, The Teenage Witch” Season 5 (Paramount); “Dead Like Me” Complete Series (MGM); “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” Season 8, “Murder, She Wrote” Season 9 (Universal)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
John Cassavetes’s “Faces” & “Shadows” (Criterion)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“Feast 3: The Happy Finish” (Weinstein Co.); “Quarantine” (2008) (Sony); “Still Waiting… ” (Lions Gate)
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February 9, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 2/10/09
TOP PICKS
“Blindness” (Miramax) & “Frozen River” (Sony): Two chilly, desperate films (in very different ways) that ranked among the best of 2008; in the latter, Melissa Leo delivers a performance to rival the bigger stars she’s competing with for the Oscar.
“Obama: All Access” (CBS): Standing out in the glut of Obama product out there, this “60 Minutes” presentation gathers the Inaugural address with other highlights like the news program’s own coverage and his Philadelphia speech on race.
“The Exterminating Angel” & “Simon of the Desert” (Criterion): Two late-ish-career highlights by “Un Chien Andalou” provocateur Luis Buñuel.
“Dennis Potter: 3 To Remember” (Koch): Three teleplays by Potter (“The Singing Detective”), one of the most important writers in British TV history.
“What Makes Sammy Run?” (Koch): The scathing showbiz novel by Budd Schulberg, in a 1959 made-for-TV adaptation starring Larry Blyden and John Forsythe.
“Faerie Tale Theatre” (Koch): Two themed single-disc collections come out this week, but don’t overlook a recent complete collection of the Shelley Duvall-hosted show, which draws on such surprising talents as Tim Burton and Frances Ford Coppola.
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” (Paramount); “Miracle at St. Anna” (Touchstone); “Nights In Rodanthe” (Warner Bros.); “Soul Men” (Weinstein Co.); “W.” (Lions Gate)
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Amadeus” Director’s Cut (Warner Bros.); “Boondock Saints,” “Donnie Darko” (Fox); “Doom,” “The Rundown” (Universal); “A History of Violence” (New Line); “Pretty Woman” (Touchstone)
DOCUMENTARIES
“Iggy Pop: Lust for Life” (MVD); “My Name Is Bruce” (B-movie hero Bruce Campbell, that is) (Image); “Obscene,” “The Universe of Keith Haring” (Arts Alliance America)
ARTHOUSE/FOREIGN
“The Geisha” (AnimEigo); “The Romance of Astrea and Celadon” (Koch)
FROM THE VAULTS
“Ode to Billy Joe” (Warner Bros.)
BEST OF TV
Curious George” “Monkey Collection, Vol. 1 & “Robot Monkey and More Great Gadgets” (Universal); “Kennedy” Complete Series, starring Martin Sheen (MPI); “Melrose Place” Season 5, Vol. 1, “Tales from the Darkside” Season 1 (Paramount); “Shaun the Sheep: Back in the Ba-a-ath,” “Thomas & Friends: Railway Friends” (Lions Gate); “She Stoops to Conquer” (Acorn Media); “Tim and Eric Awesome Show” Season 2 (Warner Bros.)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE
“Clint Eastwood: American Icon Collection” (Universal); “The Enforcer” (Jet Li,1995) (Weinstein Co.); Hitchcock’s “The Lodger,” “The Paradine Case,” “Sabotage,” and “Young & Innocent” (MGM); “The Skulls Trilogy” (Universal); “Street Fighter” (1994, Blu-ray and DVD) (Universal); “Wallace & Gromit” short films (Lions Gate)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
Steven Seagal tries horror in “Against the Dark” (Sony); “Chocolate,” by “Ong Bak” director Prachya Pinkaew (Magnolia); dubious Hitchcock remake “The Lodger” (2008) (Sony); “Spy School” (Universal); Cuba Gooding, Jr. in “The Way of War” (First Look)
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February 2, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 2/3/09
Pick of the week
“Office Space” (Fox): Call us shameless local boosters, but any chance to celebrate this lovable Mike Judge comedy — one of those fortunate films whose audience grows on home video — is one we’ll take.
Other top picks
“Being There” (Warner Bros.): Peter Sellers’s enigmatic outing as “Chauncey Gardiner,” arguably the last great Hal Ashby film, gets the Blu-ray treatment in addition to a standard DVD reissue.
“Zack and Miri Make a Porno” (Weinstein Co.) & “Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist” (Sony): Two romantic comedies for those fed up with the usual generic fare.
Natalie Wood: Warner Bros. celebrates the actress not only with “The Natalie Wood Signature Collection,” which includes numerous new-to-DVD titles, but with a standalone version of the sci-fi flick “Brainstorm,” directed by Douglas Trumbull — best known for the trippy effects in “2001: A Space Odyssey.”
“I Love the 80’s”: Paramount’s odd reissue series continues, using a VH1 marketing tie-in, corny graphic design, and bonus music CDs to sell both titles that fit its silly retro vibe (“Flashdance,” “Staying Alive”) and those that don’t fit in the least (“Gallipoli,” “Ragtime”).
“Martini Movies”: Sony offers its own odd series of catalog titles, presumably suggesting that everything from the Jeff Goldblum/Cyndi Lauper vehicle “Vibes” to Stephen Frears’s tongue-in-cheek “Gumshoe” either revolves around — or would benefit from — free-flowing intoxicants.
“Rent” (Filmed Live on Broadway) (Sony): For fans of the original musical who thought the Hollywood adaptation left something to be desired.
“The Cure: Trilogy” (Eagle Rock): The hardest working goths in eyeliner take to the stage for straight-through performances of three albums: “Pornography,” “Disintegration,” and “Bloodflowers.”
New on Blu-Ray
“Assault On Precinct 13” (1976), “Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself,” “K.D. Lang: Live in London” (Image); “Clerks 2” (Weinstein Co.); “Little Miss Sunshine,” “Napoleon Dynamite,” “Sideways” (Fox)
Fresh from the multiplex
“The Secret Life of Bees” (Fox)
Arthouse/Foreign
“Ben X” (Film Movement)
From the vaults
“Inside Moves” (Lions Gate); “The Magnificent Trio” (Image); “Oliver & Company” (Walt Disney); “Yentl” Extended Director’s Edition (MGM)
Best of TV
“Afro Samurai: Resurrection” (FUNimation); “The Berenstain Bears: Springtime Surprises,” “Bewitched” Season 7, “The Partridge Family” Season 4 (Sony); “Columbo” Mystery Movie Collection (Universal); “Mystery Science Theater 3000” Vol. XIV (Shout! Factory); “Tom and Jerry Tales” Vol. 6 (Warner Bros.)
Reissue/Repackage
“Alec Guinness Collection,” “Peter Sellers Collection” (Lions Gate); “Friday the 13th” Parts 1, 2, and 3-D (Paramount)
Straight(ish) to video
“Space Buddies” (Walt Disney); “Bottle Shock” (Fox)
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January 5, 2009
Noteworthy DVDs released 1/6/09
PICK OF THE WEEK
“The Films of Michael Powell” (Sony): Though this small box set’s name suggests something far more comprehensive, the two films offered here (in uncensored cuts) are more than welcome: “A Matter of Life and Death,” a Pearly Gates-testing affair starring David Niven, and “Age of Consent,” which will be an eye-opener for anyone who knows Helen Mirren only from “The Queen” or “Prime Suspect.”
OTHER TOP PICKS
“Appaloosa” (New Line) : The second feature directed by actor Ed Harris is a straight-ahead Western most appealing for the relationship between Harris’ icy gun-for-hire and his more human sidekick played by Viggo Mortensen.
“Pineapple Express” (Sony) : Stoner humor by way of the Apatow crew and David Gordon Green, who’s better known for highbrow fare like “All the Real Girls.”
“The Wackness” (Sony) : Another pot-centric flick, this Sundance crowd-pleaser got attention with Ben Kingsley playing a shrink who scores drugs from a patient.
“Blind Mountain” (Kino) : A young Chinese woman gets sold into captivity in this drama by Yang Li, director of the similarly named “Blind Shaft.”
“The Lizard” (Image) : Also known as “Bi hu,” this is the latest installment in Image’s Shaw Brothers kung-fu reissue series.
“Patti Smith: Dream of Life” (Palm Pictures) : Commercial photographer Steven Sebring took over a decade making this documentary portrait of punk icon Smith.
NEW ON BLU-RAY
“Caligula” (Image); “Dexter” Season 1 (Paramount); “Friday Night Lights” (Universal); “The Last Emperor” (Criterion)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX
“Babylon A.D.” (Fox); “Bangkok Dangerous,” “Disaster Movie” (Lions Gate); “Ping Pong Playa” (Image); “Righteous Kill” (Anchor Bay)
BEST OF TV
“Battlestar Galactica” Season 4 (Universal); “Bob the Builder: Race to the Finish” (Lions Gate); “Duckman” Seasons 3 & 4, “Transformers: Animated” Season 2, “The Tudors” Season 2 (Paramount); “Frisky Dingo” Season 2, “The Waltons” Season 8 (Warner Bros.)
STRAIGHT(ISH) TO VIDEO
“The Alphabet Killer” (Anchor Bay); “Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia” (Fox); “Eden Lake” (Weinstein Co.); “Hard Gun” (BCI Eclipse, also on Blu-ray)
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December 15, 2008
Noteworthy DVDs released 12/16/08
PICK OF THE WEEK:
“Into the Wild” (Paramount): “Milk” fans impressed with Emile Hirsch’s supporting performance can see him starring for director Sean Penn in last year’s critics’ favorite, just upgraded to Blu-ray.
OTHER TOP PICKS:
“Generation Kill” (HBO): David Simon and Ed Burns, writers of “The Wire,” head to Iraq for a seven-part TV miniseries.
“Grindhouse: Death Proof” & “Grindhouse: Planet Terror” (Weinstein Co.): Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez intentionally mutilated their latter-day exploitation flicks to make them a sleazy double feature; now both are expanded to feature-ish length and — beware of bad splices! — immortalized on Blu-ray.
“Same Old Song” (New Yorker): Musical comedy from Alain Resnais, better known for the highbrow brainteaser “Last Year at Marienbad”
“Mamma Mia!” (Universal): Did someone say “musical comedy”? With plenty of ABBA and theater fans disappointed in this adaptation, marketers are pitching it as a home sing-along experience.
“Sangre De Mi Sangre” (IFC): Sundance prize-winner about a Mexican man seeking his father in New York City
“Traitor” (Anchor Bay): The recent Don Cheadle vehicle hits stores on Friday, for some reason, days after the customary Tuesday new-release day.
“The Little Mermaid Trilogy” (Walt Disney): One family favorite bundled with two made-for-video sequels.
NEW ON BLU-RAY:
“8 Mile” (Universal); “Bottle Rocket,” “Chungking Express,” “The Man Who Fell to Earth,” “The Third Man” (Criterion); “Coach Carter,” “The Heartbreak Kid” (2007), “Old School,” “Tommy Boy” (Paramount)
DOCUMENTARIES:
“Billy the Kid” (Zeitgeist); “The Corporal’s Diary” (Typecast); “Garbage Warrior” (Open Eye Media); “Operation Filmmaker” (First Run / Icarus)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX:
“The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” (Universal)
FROM THE ARTHOUSE:
“The Wedding Director” (New Yorker)
BEST OF TV:
“Aqua Teen Hunger Force” Volume 6 (Warner Bros.); “Will Shakespeare” (1978 Mini-series starring Tim Curry as the Bard), “Mr.
Bean” Ultimate Collection (A&E); “Swingtown” Season 1 (Paramount)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE:
“The Mummy Trilogy” (Universal)
BLU-RAY IN THE CONCERT HALL:
“Rigoletto” (ArtHaus); “Tchaikovsky Gala” (BelAir); “Der Rosenkavalier” (Medici Arts); “Carmen,” “Zoroastre,” and Balanchine’s “Jewels” (Opus Arte)
STRAIGHT-TO-VIDEO:
Alan Arkin and Frank Langella in “Crossroads” (aka “The Novice”) (MTI); middle-aged author Campbell Scott flings with co- eds in “Crashing” (ThinkFilm)
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December 8, 2008
Noteworthy DVDs released 12/9/08
PICK OF THE WEEK:
“Murnau, Borzage and Fox” (Fox): This year’s bonanza for film history buffs is a twelve-feature, two-book set that is all the more impressive for devoting such scholarship and production value to filmmakers whose names aren’t as famous as the one celebrated in last year’s John Ford set.
OTHER TOP PICKS:
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.): Hitting living rooms and home theaters just in time for the “could it get nominated?” Best Picture buzz.
“Man on Wire” (Magnolia): Transfixing and dumbstruck-grin-inspiring, James Marsh’s film about the man who walked a Twin Towers tightrope may be the doc of the year, even in a year that gave us a new Errol Morris film.
“Europa” (Criterion): A weird nightmare that will look even stranger to those who know Lars Von Trier only for his Dogme 95 efforts.
“Three Short Films by Werner Herzog” (New Yorker): ‘Nuff said.
“The Wire” & “Deadwood” (HBO): Complete-series sets of series whose tangled plots and brilliant language reward close viewing and (despite the hours involved) tempt viewers to revisit them.
“TV Party: Color Show” & “TV Party: The Sublimely Intolerable Show” (MVD): A vintage public access show serves as a time capsule of late-’70s hipster New York.
NEW ON BLU-RAY:
“Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story,” “Super Troopers” (Fox); “Dumb and Dumber,” “The Mask” (New Line); “Jet Li’s Fearless” (Universal)
DOCUMENTARIES:
“Flow: For Love Of Water” (Oscilloscope)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX:
“Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!” (Fox); “Sex and the City: The Movie” (New Line)
FROM THE ARTHOUSE:
“Peter & The Wolf” (2008), the Oscar-winning animated short (Magnolia); “The Quare Fellow,” “Takva: A Man’s Fear of God” (Koch)
BEST OF TV:
“Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist” Best of; “Happy Days” Season 4 (Paramount); “Lost” Season 4 (Walt Disney / Touchstone)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE:
“Great Directors Box Set” Volume 1 (Kino); “I Am Legend” Ultimate Collector’s Edition (Warner Bros.); “Irma Vep” (Zeitgeist); “It Happened One Night,” “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town,” “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” “You Can’t Take It With You” (Sony)
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December 1, 2008
Noteworthy DVDs released 12/02/08
Pick of the week:
“Casablanca” (Warner Bros.): “Ultimate Collector’s Editions” and the like can be silly, knick-knack-plagued affairs, but it’s hard not to be forgiving of this one — which, in addition to unnecessary cute stuff like a luggage tag and passport wallet sporting the film’s logo, includes reproduced lobby cards and inter-studio memos and, most important, lets the classic romance’s die-hard admirers have it on their choice of standard or Blu-ray disc.
Other top picks:
“The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951) (Fox) & “Assault on Precinct 13” (1976) (Image): Two unlikely subjects for high-definition — a B&W icon of science fiction and a Hawksian standoff from one-man pulp factory John Carpenter — get the Blu-ray treatment, and fans will rejoice. With Gort arriving on Blu-ray, who needs interstellar visitations from Keanu Reeves?
“Frost/Nixon: The Watergate Interviews” (Liberation) & “Nixon” (Warner): Just in time for all the “Frost/Nixon” moviegoers who want to see the source material comes a DVD of the original broadcast interview. If that’s not enough for you, Oliver Stone’s recently reissued biopic offers the disgraced president a slice of humanity.
“Saturday Night Live” Season 4 (Universal): The first three boxes of classic SNL have been a treasure trove of long-ago-memorized skits and hilarious surprises; there’s more to come before the series’s first slump.
“The Shawshank Redemption”(Warner Bros.): Users of IMDB have voted it the best film of all time. That’s absurd, but there’s no denying this Stephen King adaptation is popular enough to justify a fancy reissue.
New on Blu-Ray:
“Austin Powers Collection” (New Line); “Home Alone,” “Jingle All the Way,” “The X-Files: Fight The Future” (Fox); “La Femme Nikita,” “The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc,” “Stranger Than Fiction” (Sony); “The Contract,” “Day of the Dead” (2007) (First Look)
Fresh from the multiplex:
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” (Walt Disney); “Fly Me to the Moon” (Summit); “The Longshots” (Weinstein Co.); “Wanted” (Universal); “Step Brothers” (Sony); “The X-Files: I Want To Believe” (Fox)
Recent music-related titles:
“Stax: Respect Yourself/Stax-Volt Revue” (Concord); “Cash for Kenya,” a 1991 Johnny Cash benefit concert (Mercury); “Sex Pistols: There’ll Always be an England” (Rhino); “Parliament/Funkadelic: Live 1976” (Shout Factory); “Planet B-Boy” (Arts Alliance); “Words for the Dying,” about John Cale sessions produced by Brian Eno (Provocateur); “Inside Bob Dylan’s Jesus Years” (MVD); “Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell” (Plexifilm); “Population: 1,” starring The Screamers’ Tomata Du Plenty; “Focus: The Filmstrips of Brian Dewan” (Bright Red Rocket); “Ken Russell at the BBC,” a collection of eccentric portraits of Debussy, Elgar, Isadora Duncan and others.
Documentaries:
“A Galaxy Far, Far, Away” (Cinevolve); “The World Within: C.G. Jung In His Own Words” (Kino); “I, Claudius: The Epic That Never Was” (Image)
Best of TV:
“Hey There, It’s Yogi Bear!,” The Man Called Flintstone,” “Metalocalypse” Season 2 (Warner Bros.); “Law & Order” Season 6 (Universal)
From the Arthouse:
“My Father My Lord” (Kino)
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November 24, 2008
DVD picks for the week
Noteworthy DVDs released 11/25/08
PICK OF THE WEEK: “Bottle Rocket” and “Chungking Express” (Criterion): Two gems from the nineties, each of which introduced a unique filmmaking voice (Wes Anderson and Wong Kar-Wai, respectively) to a broad audience of American cinephiles. (WKW had made many previous films, but none got this kind of Stateside exposure.) Both have been on disc before, but Criterion gives them premium treatment — technophiles should postpone buying for a few weeks to see just how premium, as these two are in the (slightly postponed) first batch of Blu-ray titles the company will release.
OTHER TOP PICKS:
“The Spy Who Came in from the Cold” (Criterion): Put Bourne and Bond aside for a moment to return to John le Carré’s version of international intrigue, in a B&W thriller starring Richard Burton.
“Still Life” (New Yorker): Jia Zhang-ke’s award-winner examines the lives of people whose town is about to be destroyed by China’s enormous Three Gorges dam project.
“A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All” (Paramount): Tongue-in-cheek genius Stephen Colbert may be just the man to make the ever-expanding holiday season not only bearable but fun.
“Hancock” (Sony): Despite some head-spinning twists that don’t play out nearly as satisfyingly as they should, this grumpy-superhero yarn offers some enjoyable smart-alec moments for Will Smith, who returns to Serious Acting this season in “Seven Pounds.”
“Sounder” (Koch): The much-loved family film gets what, shockingly, appears to be its first release on DVD.
“Becket” (MPI): However dated and stodgy this Peter O’Toole / Richard Burton historical drama may be, its arrival on Blu-ray is surprising enough to tempt us to revisit it.
“ABBA: The Movie” (Universal Music): The big screen “Mamma Mia” didn’t do it for you? Go straight to the source with a 1977 tour film (directed by Lasse Hallström), just released on Blu-ray.
NEW ON BLU-RAY: “George Carlin: It’s Bad For Ya” (MPI); “Jarhead,” “The Kingdom” (Universal)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX: “Fred Claus” (Warner Bros.); “Meet Dave,” “Space Chimps” (Fox)
FROM THE VAULTS:
FROM THE ARTHOUSE: Afro-Cuba: Yesterday and Today: “The Last Run of Papa Montero” / “Sara Gomez: An Afro-Cuban Filmmaker,” “Johan Van Der Keuken: The Complete Collection Vol. 4” (Facets); “Moses and Aaron” (New Yorker)
STRAIGHT(ISH)-TO-VIDEO: “Closing the Ring” (Weinstein Co.); “River Queen” (Weinstein Co.); “Superman: Doomsday” (Warner Bros.)
BEST OF TV: “24: Redemption” (Fox); “Beverly Hills 90210” Season 6 (Paramount) “The Doris Day Show,” “Family Affair” (MPI)
CULT CORNER: Psychic Killer (Dark Sky)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE: “The Atomic Cafe” (Docurama); “Freaks and Geeks” Yearbook Edition (Shout! Factory); “The Pink Panther: Ultimate Collection” (MGM); “The Ron Howard Spotlight Collection” (Universal)
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November 17, 2008
New picks for DVDs
Noteworthy DVDs released 11/18/08
PICK OF THE WEEK:
“Tropic Thunder” (Paramount): Nasty and unrepentantly over-the-top, Ben Stiller’s sendup of war flicks inevitably drew protests but is often hilarious and much sharper than detractors admit. One of its cast members deserves an Oscar nomination — and we don’t mean Matthew McConaughey, though he may be more fun here than in anything since “Dazed and Confused.”
OTHER TOP PICKS:
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney): If Pixar’s delightful robo-enviro fable exhibited a shortage of subtlety in imagining the human race’s blubbery future, it more than made up for it with its hero’s delicate, lovable performance.
“Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (Universal): Guillermo del Toro’s moody hero returns in multiple home-vid editions boasting gee-whiz special features.
“Encounters at the End of the World” (Image): Werner Herzog’s recent polar expedition is also the first of his movies to get a Blu-ray release — great for all those icy vistas.
“D.W. Griffith Masterworks Vol. 2” (Kino): “Birth of a Nation” may be plenty for some, but Kino’s 5-disc box offers new restorations of rarely seen titles like “Sally of the Sawdust” and an extensive documentary on the cinematic trailblazer.
“Fanfan la Tulipe” (Criterion): Swashbuckling comedy offers a taste of what the French were watching before the New Wave came along.
“Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson” (Magnolia): The SXSW-shown doc about Thompson’s career hits stores concurrently with “The Gonzo Tapes,” a 5-CD box set of his home recordings.
“Up the Yangtze” (Zeitgeist): Widely praised doc explores the impact of China’s Three Gorges Dam, the largest hydroelectric project in the world.
NEW ON BLU-RAY: “Blue Streak,” “Mirrormask,” National Security,” “Revolver,” “Southland Tales” (Sony); “Caligula,” “Encounters at the End of the World” (Image); “Heathers,” “Mad Money” (Anchor Bay); “Lucky Number Slevin” (Weinstein Co.); “Paris, Je T’aime” (First Look); “The Stendhal Syndrome” (Blue Underground)
DOCUMENTARIES: “The Chomsky Sessions” (Docurama); “High Fidelity: Adventures of the Guarneri String Quartet” (First Run Pictures); “The Last Klezmer” (New Yorker); “Manhattan, Kansas” (Carnivalesque Films); “Stax” (Infinity); “Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell” (PlexiFilm); “Wu: The Story of the Wu-Tang Clan” (Paramount)
FROM THE ARTHOUSE: “The Derek Jarman Collection” (Kino); “The Films of Michael Sporn” (First Run Pictures); “Mister Lonely” (IFC)
BEST OF TV: “Doctor Who” Series 4 & “Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest” (BBC); “Hannah Montana” Season 1 (Walt Disney); “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” Complete Series (A&E); “Night Gallery” Season 2 (Universal); “SpongeBob SquarePants” Season 5, Vol. 2; “Star Trek” Original Series Season 3 (Remastered with new CGI effects) (Paramount); Victor Borge Classic Collection (Questar)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX: “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2” (Warner Bros.)
REISSUE/REPACKAGE: “300” (Warner); “Columbia Best Pictures Collection” (Sony); “Monty Python Holy Trinity” (Sony)
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November 10, 2008
New picks for DVDs
Noteworthy DVDs released this week
PICK OF THE WEEK: — “JFK” (Warner Bros.): Hot on the heels of the underwhelming “W.” comes an entry from the other end of the Oliver Stone-does-history spectrum. Though sometimes infuriating, the conspiracy-happy “JFK” lingers in the cinematic craw in a way “W.” isn’t likely to, and its lurid vision is just the thing for a new Blu-ray edition.
OTHER TOP PICKS:
— Director’s Series: Roberto Rossellini (Lions Gate): Two little-seen titles, “Dov’è La Libertà” and “Era Notte A Roma,” from the Italian master’s mid-career.
— Walt Disney Treasures (Disney): The latest batch of archival goodies, ranging from obscure (1964’s “Dr. Syn”) to the nostalgic (an Annette-centric Mickey Mouse Club disc).
— “Shogun Assassin” box set (AnimEigo): A quintet of bloody samurai films that are English-dubbed versions of the famous Japanese adaptations of the “Lone Wolf and Cub” manga series.
— “The Boys in the Band” (Paramount): Ten years before he drew fire from gays with “Crusing,” director William Friedkin adapted Mart Crowley’s more gay-friendly (if now very dated) play.
— “Madame Bovary” (1991) (Koch): Claude Chabrol + Isabelle Huppert + Gustave Flaubert = Arthouse catnip.
— Paramount’s “Centennial Collection”: A new line of double-disc classics launches this week with reissues of the much-loved “Roman Holiday,” “Sabrina,” and “Sunset Boulevard.” Sadly, the remasters aren’t available on Blu-ray.
NEW TO BLU-RAY:
“Band of Brothers” (HBO); “Black Christmas” (Somerville House); “Firefly” (Fox); “Soundstage: Sheryl Crow Live,” “Soundstage: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers” (Koch)
FROM THE ARTHOUSE:
“…And the Earth Did Not Swallow Him,” “Liberty Kid,” “Little Fugitive” (1953) (Kino); “Camp de Thiaroye” (New Yorker); “Love Songs” (Somerville House); “Mister Foe” (Magnolia); “Opium: Diary of a Madwoman” (Koch); “Sukiyaki Western Django” (First Look)
FROM THE VAULTS:
“The General” (Kino); “The Homefront Collection,” ” Classic Holiday Collection,” Quo Vadis (Warner Bros.)
RECENT DOCUMENTARIES:
“Dalí in New York” (Jack Bond); “The Dalí Dimension” (Dalí Society); “Here Is Always Somewhere Else” (Cult Epics); “The Kennedys: America’s Emerald Kings” (Warner); “Operation Valkyrie: The Stauffenberg Plot To Kill Hitler” (Koch); “Planet B-Boy” (Arts Alliance America); “Toots” (Indiepix)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX:
“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (Warner Bros.)
BEST OF TV:
“The Cosby Show” box set (First Look); “I Dream of Jeannie” (Sony); “Little House on the Prairie,” “Shaun The Sheep” (Lions Gate); “Scrubs” Season 7 (Walt Disney / Touchstone); “The Sopranos” Complete Series (HBO)
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November 3, 2008
Best of the new DVDs
Noteworthy DVDs released this week:
Pick of the week: The Films of Budd Boetticher (Sony): How significant are these five 1957-1960 Westerns directed by Boetticher and starring Randolph Scott? Ask Clint Eastwood and Martin Scorsese, who provide introductions on this set, which marks their first-ever release on DVD.
OTHER TOP PICKS:
The Gregory Peck Film Collection (Universal): The Peck classics ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and ‘Cape Fear’ are joined by four new-to-DVD titles including ‘Arabesque.’
‘Planet of the Apes’ (40 Year Evolution Blu-ray Collection) (Fox): The entire dirty-ape saga, presented in high-def splendor.
‘A Christmas Story’ (Warner Bros.): It’s good enough news that this Yuletime classic is now out on Blu-ray. The string of ‘leg lamp’ Christmas lights in the new ‘Ultimate Collector’s Edition’ box is just goofy icing on the cake.
‘Tenacious D: The Complete Master Works 2’ (Sony): Concert footage plus a second disc with the AFF-shown doc ‘D Tour.’
‘The Persuaders’ Triple Feature (Lions Gate): Swinging secret agents Roger Moore and Tony Curtis globe-trot their way through three adventures.
‘What We Do Is Secret’ (Peace Arch): Biopic of Darby Crash of The Germs.
‘DJ Spooky’s Rebirth of a Nation’ (Anchor Bay): D.W. Griffith’s troublesome masterpiece gets remixed by DJ Spooky.
‘Futurama: Bender’s Game’ (Fox): Another feature-length outing of the Matt Groening sci-fi comedy that wouldn’t say die.
‘Waterworld’ Extended Edition (Universal): For everyone who thought 136 minutes wasn’t enough.
Documentaries: ‘All Together Now,’ about the Beatles/Cirque du Soleil event ‘Love’ (EMI); ‘Comic Books Unbound’ and ‘Too Tough to Die: A Tribute to Johnny Ramone’ (Anchor Bay)
New to blu-ray: ‘Monster’s Ball’ and ‘Universal Soldier’ (Lions Gate); ‘Vexille’ (FUNimation)
Fresh from the multiplex: ‘Get Smart’ (2008) (Warner Bros.); ‘Henry Poole Is Here’ (Anchor Bay); ‘Transsiberian’ (First Look); ‘When Did You Last See Your Father?’ (Sony)
Best of TV: ‘The Batman’ Complete Animated Series and ‘Popeye the Sailor’ Volume 3 (Warner Bros.); ‘Fraggle Rock’ Complete Series (Lions Gate); ‘Get Smart’ Gift Set (HBO); ‘The Howdy Doody Show’ (Mill Creek); ‘Project Runway’ Complete 4th Season (Genius); ‘The Starlost’ Complete Series (VCI); ‘The Wild Wild West’ Complete Series (Paramount)
Guess it’s nearly that time again: ‘A Christmas Carol’ (1951) (VCI); ‘Christmas Is Here Again,’ ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’ (2000) (Universal); ‘The Christmas Toy’ (Lions Gate); ‘This Christmas,’ ‘The Perfect Holiday’ (Sony)
Reissued/repackaged: ‘Alvin and the Chipmunks’ (Fox), ‘Star Wars’ Trilogy, ‘Star Wars’ Prequel Trilogy (Fox); ‘The Bourne Trilogy’ (Universal); ‘Madagascar’ (Paramount)
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October 28, 2008
The best of the new DVDs
Noteworthy DVDs released 10/28/08
PICK OF THE WEEK: Austin-related films are creeping into the digital realm by hook or by crook lately. David Modigliani’s doc “Crawford” has recently been the most popular feature at video website Hulu.com, and can now be ordered on disc from crawfordmovie.com; Ellen Spiro’s “Body of War” (Docurama) arrives in stores this week; and Jeff Nichols’s “Shotgun Stories” has been out for a while now. “The Unforeseen” (New Yorker) came out after an attention-getting if short theatrical run, and “Hell on Wheels” (IndiePix) carried the tough-girl roller-derby scene out to the rest of the country.Meanwhile, SXSW-veteran documentarians David Redmon & Ashley Sabin aren’t only releasing their own work (like the affecting “Kamp Katrina,” and “Mardi Gras: Made in China”) via carnivalesquefilms.com; this week they’re branching out with Sam Douglas and Paul Lovelace’s music doc “The Holy Modal Rounders: Bound to Lose.”
OTHER TOP PICKS:
“Abbott and Costello: The Complete Universal Pictures Collection”: (Universal): It’s a suitcase full of fat man/skinny man hijinks. Need we say more?
“Baraka” (MPI): The ultra-high-def Blu-ray remaster of this 65mm travelogue has had ultra-picky videophiles raving, with this Roger Ebert quote the most ecstatic: “The restored 2008 Blu-Ray DVD is the finest video disc I have ever viewed or ever imagined.”
“Elf” (New Line): The Will Ferrell charmer is has joined “A Christmas Story” as a modern holiday ritual, and a new Blu-ray version just makes an eighth viewing that much more appealing.
Kirk Douglas x2: Two oddities from the star’s late career emerge, as the internationally-cast “Rain of Fire” (Lions Gate) plays with nuclear disaster and a visit from the Antichrist while the enjoyable time-travel adventure “The Final Countdown” (Blue Underground) comes to Blu-ray.
High-def 3-D: Two titles this week — “Polar Express” (Warner Bros.) and “Journey to the Center of the Earth” (New Line) — promise to bring the theatrical 3-D revival into living rooms, funny glasses and all. Regular 2-D versions are included, for the headache-prone.
DOCUMENTARIES: “Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens” (Warner Bros.), “Billy the Kid” (2007) (Zeitgeist), “Inside Bob Dylan’s Jesus Years: Busy Being Born…Again!” (MVD), Collector’s Editions of “Paradise Lost” & “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill” (Docurama)
FRESH FROM THE MULTIPLEX: “Death Defying Acts” (Weinstein Co.), “Hell Ride” (Dimension), “Kit Kittredge: An American Girl” (New Line)
BEST OF TV: Complete-series collections of “The Flintstones” (Warner Bros.), “The Little Rascals” (Genius), “NewsRadio” & “Sanford and Son” (Sony), and “War and Remembrance” (MPI); also, the scandalous “Fanny Hill” from Acorn.
CULT CORNER: Fans of the fringe have their plates full this week, with a slew of titles from genre leader Synapse including “Patrick” and “Strange Behavior”; a new edition of “The Beyond” (Grindhouse); recent productions “Hank and Mike” (Magnolia) and “Red” (2008) (Magnolia); and the Serge Gainsbourg/Jane Birkin “Slogan” (Cult Epics). Heck, Sony’s “Zombie Strippers” is even arriving on Blu-ray.
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