Monday, September 18, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Battlestar Galactica, Chucky Collection, The Unit S1 & More! - Xoanon @ 10:38 PST
10th and the Wolf James Marsden, Giovanni Ribisi, Brad Renfro, Piper Perabo, and Dennis Hopper star in the Philidelphia-set street drama about gangsters and family, co-written and directed by Bobby Moresco, co-writer of Crash. Lesley Ann Warren, Tommy Lee, Brian Dennehy, and Val Kilmer co-star. Details: Color, 107 mins, THINKFilm/Lionsgate, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Filmmaker Commentary featuring Academy Award Winner Bobby Moresco and FBI Agent Joe Pistone, aka "Donnie Brasco"; Deleted Scenes; Behind the Scenes; Trailer Gallery. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

8th & Ocean - The Complete First Season The MTV reality series about 10 models at one of the top South Beach agencies, living together in two apartments, as they try to make the leap into the big time. Details: Color, 220 mins, MTV/Paramount, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 10 episodes on 3 discs from the 2005-2006 season; Talesha and Adrian's Miami Hot Spots featurette; Advice from the Experts featurette; Casting tapes; Deleted scenes; TRL Appearance; MTV Overdrive segments; Cast bios. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Angry Harvest (West Germany, 1985) Agnieszka Holland's masterpiece stars Armin Mueller-Stahl as a lonely, middle-aged farmer in Poland during the early days of World War II who rescues an upper-class Jewish refugee (Elisabeth Trissenaar) and hides her in his cellar. As his loneliness leads to an oppressive reign of terror, her dependency breaks her resolve and her strength. One of the most powerful films about the Holocaust and the nature of power and tyranny, it was an Academy Award-nominee for Best Foreign Language Film in 1985. Details: Color, 106 mins, Image, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: German (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional English subtitles.

Backdraft (1991) Ron Howard directs this drama of New York firefighter brothers (Kurt Russell and William Baldwin) estranged due to competitive natures and expectations and brought back together by the work of a marauding arsonist. Scott Glenn is the firefighting veteran and father figure to Russell, Donald Sutherland is a Hannibal Lector-like arsonist in prison, and Robert DeNiro a methodical arson investigator who takes Baldwin under his wing. Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca De Mornay, Jason Gedrick, and J.T. Walsh co-star. Details: Color, 138 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Ron Howard Introduction; Deleted Scenes; "Igniting the Story" featurette; "Bringing Together the Team" featurette; "Explosive Stunts" featurette; "Creating the Villain: The Fire" featurette; "Real-Life Firemen, Real-Life Stories" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Barbie in the 12 Dancing Princesses Feature length made-for-video feature with Barbie dolls, brought to life through with CGI animation. Details: Color, 82 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Dancing Fun: Shine Music Video Sing-Along; Merry Memory Ballet Game; Trailers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Battlestar Galactica - Season 2.5 The inspired revival/creative rebirth of the clunky, kitschy 1980s sci-fi series flies strong and true through its second season, which concludes in this collection. We left off with the fleet on the verge of civil war as one-time nemeses Commander Adama (Edward James Olmos) and the civilian President (Mary McDonnell) join forces against the authoritarian fleet Admiral (Michelle Forbes) who has little use for civilians or the journey to Earth. There's plenty of myth and prophecy along with the more human challenges of the clash between civilian and military authority and the increasing complexity of the Cylon endgame (they are no monolithic villain, as conflicts within reveal) and evolution. Forget the robots and space ships and such, and get over the fact that Starbuck is a girl (Katee Sackhoff), because she's a cigar-chomping, rule-breaking girl who looks like she could kick Dirk Benedict's ass around the galaxy and back. This is a smartly written, dramatically compelling series that finds its best dramas in human conflict and metaphysical explorations, and the season ends on a cliffhanger that will have you desperate for season 3 to start. Details: Color, 521 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: 10 episodes on 3 discs; Deleted Scenes; Audio Commentary for Extended "Pegasus" Episode with Executive Producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick; Podcast Commentaries; David Eick's Videoblogs; R & D Logos. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

The Big Hit (Blu-ray) Melvin Smiley, a successful young hitman, is living a normal all-day life for his jewish fiancé Pam, but kills for money in Paris' organization. In addition, he has a relationship with a beauty from the neighbourhood and gets bothered by a pimply video store guy, because he did not return "King Kong Lives" for two weeks. He and his three teammates Cisco, Crunch and Vince one day decide to kidnap the daughter of super-rich businessman Jiro Nishi - off the record. What they do not know, is that Jiro just went completely bankrupt due to a successless movie production, and, even worse, that his daughter Keiko is the god-daughter of Paris, the boss of the kidnappers. He and his men are now searching for the kidnappers in order to grind them up properly. Meanwhile, handcuffed Keiko falls in love with killer Melvin while both preparing a kosher meal in order to satisfy Pam's visiting parents, who are out of the house with Pam - with a body in the trunk.

Bob and Tom Radio: The Comedy Tour Radio host team Bob & Tom host this live stand-up comedy concert featuring Mike Armstrong, Greg Hahn, Drew Hastings, Roy Wood Jr., and Bob Zany. Details: Color, 74 mins, Image, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Bob Newhart: Button Down Concert (1995) Bob Newhart returns to his stand-up comedy roots in this 1995 concert. Details: Color, 62 mins, 20th Century Fox, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Bob Newhart: The Complete Fourth Season (1975-1976) "Hi, Bob." Buttoned-down comedian Bob Newhart is TV's greatest therapist in the third season of the hit sitcom that once anchored the unbeatable Saturday night comedy block. Newhart is perfect casting for Chicago psychologist Bob Hartley, the ever-calm (at least on the outside) in the center of the neurotic storm swirling around him. He only seems like a rock of stability until he's next to his down-to-Earth wife, elementary school teacher Emily (Suzanne Pleshette), who has the corner on normalcy in this professional couple. Bill Daily co-stars as his insecure airline pilot neighbor Howard, Peter Bonerz his overconfident orthodontist friend Jerry, Marcia Wallace their lively receptionist Carol, and Jack Riley, Florida Friebus, and John Fiedler are among his longtime patients. Newhart's muted delivery and blank stares make him the funniest straight man on TV, a master of the deadpan gag, the slow motion stammer, and delayed reaction laughs. Details: Color, 607 mins, 20th Century Fox, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 24 episodes on 4 discs; Commentary on five episodes by Bob Newhart and others; "A Second Family" featurette; Gag reel. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Boris Karloff Collection Five of the lesser-known vintage horrors and thrillers starring Boris Karloff are collected in this "Franchise Collection" box set. The best and best known of the collection is Tower of London (1939), starring Karloff as the bloodthirsty executioner to the murderous Richard, Duke of Gloucester (Basil Rathbone) in Hollywood's gothic take in Richard's bloody rise to the throne as King Richard III. Rowland V. Lee directs. In The Strange Door (1951), adapted from a Robert Louis Stevenson story, he plays servant to a mad aristocrat (Charles Laughton) who sends innocents into his booby-trapped dungeon. Also features the crime film Night Key (1937), where he plays an inventor who is cheated out of a new burglar alarm and forced by burglars to help subvert the system in their spree; The Climax (1944), with Karloff as a mad doctor driven into a murderous jealousy over an opera singer; and The Black Castle (1955), a gothic thriller starring Stephen McNally as an evil Count and Richard Greene as a nobleman looking for his missing friends, and featuring Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr. in small roles. Details: Color/Black and White, Universal, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: Five film on three discs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono). Optional French and English subtitles.

Brain Damage A normal, average guy who lives in New York City becomes dependent on an evil, disembodied brain. The brain feeds the guy a narcotic substance in exchange for his unwilling assistance in obtaining the brains of innocent victims for sustenance. This turns into a tour of circa-1980s underground NYC clubs, backlots, and other seedy locations. One scene features the band Swimming Pool Cues playing the song "Corruption."

Cartoon Network Fridays, Vol. 1 No description available

Case Closed 4: Season 1 Another night looms, but Conan Edogawa isn’t afraid of the dark. He doesn’t have time to be afraid. He’s catching murderers, exposing killers and busting up kidnapping plots. Criminals beware – the night belongs to Detective Conan. Episodes: Lights, Camera… Murder Smooth Sailing Part 1 Smooth Sailing Part 2 Better Off Forgotten The Counterfeit Ransom Kidnapping Jack Attacks DVD Features: More than 150 minutes of action, mystery and intrigue! English and Japanese subtitles

The Chris Rock Show - The Complete First and Second Seasons (1997-1998) The debut seasons of the Emmy-award winning series created by and starring Chris Rock for HBO. Features stand-up monologues, sketches and commercial parodies, musical performances and interviews, with such guests as Conan O'Brien, Tracy Morgan, George Carlin, Busta Rhymes, Puff Daddy, LL Cool J, Whoopi Goldberg, Missy Elliot, Usher, Vivica A. Fox, and others. Details: Color, 510 mins, HBO, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 17 episodes on 3 discs. Optional subtitles.

Chucky: The Killer DVD Collection The "Franchise Collection" box set of the Child's Play/Chucky series is conspicuously missing the first film in the franchise, but it does feature the inspired Bride of Chucky (1998), Ronny Yu's demented and darkly comic revival of the slasher series about a toy doll brought to life by the spirit of a serial killer. In this, the fourth in the series, the sardonic, pint sized killed (voiced by Brad Dourif) is revived by his old girlfriend (Jennifer Tilly), and he returns the favor by finding a doll for her own spirit. Katherine Heigl and Nick Stabile are teenage lovers caught in the killers' plot and John Ritter and Alexis Arquette co-star. The set also features Child's Play 2 (1990), directed by John Lafia, and Child's Play 3 (1991), directed by Jack Bender, and the final film to date in the series, Seed of Chucky (2004), where the demonic spawn of Chucky and Tiffany bring the killer dolls back to life. Directed by series creator Don Mancini, it features a cameo by John Waters. Details: Color, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Commentary on Bride of Chucky by director Ronny Yu; Commentary on Bride of Chucky by actors Brad Dourif and Jennifer Tilly and writer Don Mancini; "Bride of Chucky Spotlight on Location" featurette; Commentary on Seed of Chucky by writer/writer Don Mancini and actress Jennifer Tilly; "Conceiving the Seed of Chucky" featurette; Jennifer Tilly on The Tonight Show. Audio: on Bride of Chucky and Seed of Chucky (Dolby Digital 5.1), on Child's Play 2 and Child's Play 3 (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Criterion Coll: Spirit of the Beehive (Spain, 1973) Victor Erice's delicate and haunting film about childhood and wonder in a world that does not reward such trust and innocence is one of the masterpieces of Spanish cinema. Little Ana Torrent is heartbreaking as the little girl who opens her soul to the wonders of the world and loses her heart to the lost monster in the movie "Frankenstein" (dubbed in Spanish and shown in a village meeting hall), trying to take in this giant innocent hated by all. The echoes of the Spanish Civil War can be felt in the background as Ana wanders the Castilian countryside looking for the lost monster and finds a wounded soldier. Fernando Fernán Gómez plays her father, lost in his own dream world of nostalgia and regret. It's one the great films about childhood and a hypnotic classic of world cinema. Details: Color, 99 mins, Criterion, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.66:1. Supplements: All-new, restored high-definition digital transfer; "The Footsteps of a Spirit," a documentary featuring director V'ctor Erice, producer El'as Querejeta, co-screenwriter Ángel Fernández-Santos, and actor Ana Torrent; "Victor Erice in Madrid", an interview with the director by filmmaker Hideyuki Miyaoka; New interviews with actor Fernando Fernán Gómez and film scholar Linda C. Ehrlich; Booklet with a new essay by film scholar Paul Julian Smith. Audio: Spanish (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional English subtitles.

The Devil and Daniel Johnston The story of alt-rock legend Daniel Johnston, the influential singer-songwriter and primitive artist tormented by depression and madness his entire life. Beck, Sonic Youth, and Pearl Jam have recorded his songs and Kurt Cobain (who wore a T-shirt with his artwork for weeks on end) called him "the greatest living songwriter." Jeff Feuerzeig directs the documentary. Details: Color, 110 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Deleted Scenes ; Sundance World Premiere Featurette ; Laurie and Daniel Reunion Featurette ; Daniel's reunion with his high school sweetheart Laurie ; Legendary WFMU Broadcast Featurette ; Cinema of Daniel Johnston ; Personal Movies of Daniel Johnston ; Daniel's Audio Diaries; Personal recording of Daniel Johnston ; Commentary with Director Jeff Feuerzeig and Producer Henry S. Rosenthal . Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French subtitles.

Dinosaur (Blu-ray) Long before humans appeared on the planet, dinosaurs ruled the earth. On a little off-coast island, a clan of lemurs finds a dinosaur egg, hatching. Since there are no parents, the lemurs take care of the newborn, Aladar. Years later, a medium meteor goes down close to the island and the shockwave forces its inhabitants to flee to the continent. There, Aladar and his family meet other dinosaurs for the first time as well as real dangers. The destruction caused by the meteor here has also forced a herd of different herbivores to move to a remote valley that can provide food and protection against the carnivorous predators following after. Since Aladar grew up with a different understanding of the ways of the world, his way of helping others first isn't accepted within the herd, but soon it is proven that reason may be better than panic.

Eight Below (Blu-ray) In the Antarctic, after an expedition with Dr. Davis McClaren (Bruce Greenwood), the sled dog trainer Jerry Shepherd (Paul Walker) has to leave the polar base with his colleagues due to the proximity of a heavy snow storm. He ties his dogs to be rescued after, but the mission is called-off and the dogs are left alone at their own fortune. For six months, Jerry tries to find a sponsor for a rescue mission while his dogs fight for survival.

Elvira's Movie Macabre: Frankenstein's Castle Of Freaks (Italy, 1974) Rossano Brazzi plays Count Frankenstein, who uses his experimental expertise to bring a Neanderthal (who just happened to rampage through an Eastern European village and get killed by angry villagers) back to life. Michael Dunn is his evil dwarf assistant, Gordon Mitchell is Igor, Edmund Purdom and Simonetta Vitelli co-star, and Robert Oliver directs. Includes an option to watch the film with the original "Movie Macabre" wraparounds and occasional interruption by Cassandra Peterson's eighties era TV horror host persona Elvira. Details: Color, 102 mins, Shout! Factory, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

Elvira's Movie Macabre: The Werewolf Of Washington (1973) Dean Stockwell is an American reporter in Hungary bitten by a mystery beast and discovers the political animal within when he returns to Washington as a press secretary to the President. Includes an option to watch the film with the original "Movie Macabre" wraparounds and occasional interruption by Cassandra Peterson's eighties era TV horror host persona Elvira. Details: Color, 96 mins, Shout! Factory, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

Everybody Loves Raymond - The Complete Seventh Season (2002-2003) "Hi, I'm Ray and I live here in Long Island with my wife, Debra." Things couldn't be better for Long Island family man and successful sportswriter Ray Barrone (Romano), a man at ease with his good life, except for one thing. His meddling parents (Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts) technically live across the street but seem to spend more time trying to run Ray and Debra's life, and his sad-sack brother (Brad Garrett) tags along. Most of the cast have won Emmy Awards for their performances over the 8 year run of the hit sitcom. Details: Color, 750 mins, HBO, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: 25 episodes on five discs; Commentary on four episodes by series creator Phil Rosenthal, Ray Romano, Chris Elliott, Monica Horan, Anna Romano, Fred Willard, and writers Tucker Cawley and Mike Royce; Bloopers and deleted scenes. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Ghost Hunters: Part 1, Season 2 This one-hour weekly docu-soap from the creator/executive producer of "American Chopper" follows a group of real-life paranormal researchers as they investigate haunted houses throughout the country, encountering every type of imaginable haunting. Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, plumbers by trade, head up TAPS -- The Atlantic Paranormal Society -- a group of ordinary, everyday people with an interest in getting to the bottom of your otherworldly disturbances.

Gilmore Girls: The Complete Sixth Season Lauren Graham is sweet, strong, somewhat kittenish single mother Lorelei and Alexis Bledel is the headstrong Rory, both her daughter and her best friend, in this bright, witty dramedy for mothers, daughters, and anyone who appreciates smarts and snap in their TV shows. This season opens with Lorelei finally taking the next step in the long-simmering game of romantic tag with Luke (Scott Patterson) getting engaged at the same time that Rory drops out of college and moves in to the poolhouse of her blue-blood grandparents (Kelly Bishop and Edward Herrmann), causing a rift between the once inseparable mother/daughter act. Keiko Agena is Rory's best friend Lane, and the eccentric population of the picaresque Stars Hollow, the small town that Lorelei and Rory call home, provides plenty of character humor and color. Details: Color, 945 mins, Warner, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 22 episodes on six discs; Episode guide. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional Spanish and French subtitles.

Grease: Rockin' Rydell Edition (1978) It's the time, it's the place, it's the motion, and it's where we are living. The bouncy fifties-inflected rock musical starring John Travolta as a black leather jacket bad boy and Olivia Newton-John (making her American film debut) as the white sweater good girl who fall in love across high-school clique lines gets a new edition. Stockard Channing, Jeff Conaway, and Didi Conn co-star, with "special guest appearances" by Eve Arden, Frankie Avalon, Joan Blondell, Edd Byrnes, Sid Caesar, Alice Ghostley, Dody Goodman, and Sha-Na-Na. Comes wrapped in a leather jacket sleeve. Details: Color, 110 mins, Paramount, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Rydell Sing-Along: Rock along with your favorite Grease songs; 11 deleted, extended, alternate scenes with introduction by director Randal Kleiser; Grease memories from John & Olivia; DVD launch party: A collection of memorable moments from the 25th anniversary DVD launch party; The moves behind the music; Thunder roadsters. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround) and French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional English subtitles.

Go for Zucker (Germany) Subtitled "An Unorthodox Comedy," the first German-Jewish comedy to come out of Germany since World War II, an energetic farce with broadly drawn characters and big performances (especially Henry Hübchen as the charming scamp of a hustler Zucker), was also the biggest German film of the year and the winner of six Lolas (the German equivalent to the Oscar), including Best Picture, Best Actor (for Henry Hübchen), Best Direction, and Best Screenplay. Details: Color, 91 mins, First Run Features, widescreen. Supplements: Director Dani Levy on making a German-Jewish comedy; Production notes; Director biography; Photo gallery. Audio: German (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

The Great Raid (Blu-ray) Set in the Philippines in 1945, THE GREAT RAID tells the true story of the 6th Ranger Battalion, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mucci (Benjamin Bratt) who undertake a daring rescue mission against all odds. Traveling thirty miles behind enemy lines, the 6th Ranger Battalion aims to liberate over 500 American prisoners-of-war from the notorious Cabanatuan Japanese POW camp in the most audacious rescue ever.

Gunslinger Girl: Complete Box Set The Social Welfare agency, a government sponsored corporation is in the business for saving orphaned or abandoned children who are terminally ill or injured beyond the point of saving. Using cybernetic implants, the Agency uses a process called 'conditioning' to turn orphaned children into emotionless killing machines with hardly any memories, no human comfort and worst of all, no free will. The girls who make up the assassination unit within the Social Welfare agency are Henrietta, Triela, Claes, Rico and Angelica, all whom have shady backgrounds which led to their involvement with the agency. Each girl is skilled in martial arts, weapons and tactics, demolitions, foreign languages, espionage and counter-terrorism, skills that are necessary when dealing with terrorism, illegal arms deals or even crime organizations who have a serious stranglehold on the country of Europe. But while these girls are the perfect weapons against these types of everyday problems, they must constantly do their best to hold on to what little pieces of their humanity they have left, as they are being forced to commit cold-blooded murder, sometimes even killing innocent people who get in the way. Jose, Henrietta's handler doesn't like the way she and the other girls are being treated as tools for massacre and it pains him everyday to see Henrietta and her friends having to go through this type of life. But if Henrietta and the others want to live to see tomorrow, they have to play the guinea pigs and earn their keep, by getting their hands dirty for the Social Welfare agency, who is responsible for giving them their second chance at life. Because if they don't play by the agency's rules...they will die.

Hard Candy Ellen Page is teenage girl who sets up a coffee date with 30-something male photographer (Patrick Wilson) she met online and winds up getting plied with drinks and encouraged to shed her clothes for an impromptu photo shoot in his apartment… until she turns the tables. David Slade's controversial thriller, which stirs up revenge with the modern world of underage internet porn, co-stars Sandra Oh and Odessa Rae. Details: Color, 105 mins, Lionsgate, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Commentary by director David Slade and writer Brian Nelson; Commentary by actors Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page; Deleted and extended scenes; "Creating Hard Candy" featurette; "Controversial Confection" mini-featurette; DVD-ROM: Production notebook; Trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Hart to Hart: Complete Second Season (1980-1981) Self-made millionaire Jonathan Hart (Robert Wagner) and his beautiful wife Jennifer (Stefanie Powers), a former freelance journalist, would seem to have it made. But in this glitzy mystery series, created by Sidney Sheldon and produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg, the fabulously wealthy couple would rather be sleuthing than resting on their laurels in the lap of luxury. Lionel Stander co-stars as their loyal butler and trusty sidekick, Max. The series ran for 5 seasons and was revived for a series of TV movies in the 1990s. Details: Color, 987 mins, Sony Pictures, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 20 episodes on 5 discs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0) and Portuguese (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional Portuguese subtitles.

He-Man & The Masters of the Universe Season 2 V.2 (1983) In the land of Eternia, where magic and technology co-exist, the "cowardly" Prince Adam grasps the magical Sword of Power and transforms into He-Man, the most powerful man in the universe, to protect his people from the evil Skeletor and his crew of villains. Think of a barbarian Superman with a team of loyal heroes (among them Battle Cat and Teela). The animated adventure series was essentially a promotional tool for a line of toys and action figures, but it became an unexpected hit and found a cult following among adults as well as children. Episodes 99-130, which concludes the season and series. Details: Color, 688 mins, BCI, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 32 episodes on 6 discs; 2 original documentary featurettes on the creation of the series; 2 4x6 collectable cards with art by Dan Brereton and Mike McKone; Commentary on 3 episodes by Lou and Erika Scheimer, Larry DiTillo, Tom Sito, Tom Tataranowicz, and Dave Teague; Full length animated storyboards for 2 episodes; Character profiles; Trivia; 5 DVD-ROM accessible scripts. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

High Tech Soul: The Creation of Techno Music Documentary on the rise of Techno music set against the cultural history of its birthplace, Detroit. Gary Bredow directs. Details: Color, 64 mins, Plexifilm, widescreen, 1.66:1. Supplements: Deleted scenes; Outtakes; Bonus interviews. Optional German and English subtitles.

Inner Sanctum Mysteries: Complete Movie Collection The entire six-film collection of the feature film series inspired by the hit radio show of mystery and the macabre, all starring Lon Chaney Jr.: Calling Dr. Death (1943) with Patricia Morison and J. Carrol Naish, Dead Man's Eyes (1944) with Jean Parker and Acquanetta, Weird Woman (1944) and The Frozen Ghost (1945) with Evelyn Ankers and Milburn Stone, Pillow of Death (1945) with Brenda Joyce and J. Edward Bromberg, and Strange Confession (1945) with Brenda Joyce, J. Carrol Naish, and Lloyd Bridges. Each of the B-movie thrillers runs barely over an hour. Details: Black and White, Universal, 1.33:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional subtitles.

Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back (Blu-ray) Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back is a tale of adventure on the open road. When Dante and Randal (of Clerks fame) get a restraining order to keep the punchy Jay and his hetero life-mate, Silent Bob, from selling drugs in front of the Quick Stop convenience store, their lives are suddenly empty. They find new purpose when their friend, Brodie, informs them a movie is being made featuring two infamous characters based on their likenesses. After visiting one of the creators of the Bluntman and Chronic, Holden McNeil, they set out to get what fat movie cash they deserve and hopefully put an end to people slandering them on the Internet. Along the way, they learn the rules of the road from a hitchhiking George Carlin, ride with a group of gorgeous jewel thieves, and incur the wrath of a hapless wildlife marshal for liberating an orangutan named Suzanne. The quest takes them from New Jersey to Hollywood where a showdown involving the police, the jewel thieves, and the Bluntman and Chronic filmmakers will decide the fate of Suzanne, Jay, Silent Bob, and their good names.

Jigoku - Criterion Collection (Japan, 1960) One of the most influential of Japanese horror films, Jigoku (which translates to "Hell") is the story of a young theology student who flees a hit-and-run accident and is plagued by his conscience and by a mysterious doppelganger, both of which send him on an escape route straight to hell. The horrific and gory imagery was a departure for the genre, more in keeping with the New Wave than traditional Japanese ghost stories, and its influence can be felt in the recent new wave of Japanese horror. From director Nobuo Nakagawa, considered the father of the Japanese horror film. Details: Color, 101 mins, Criterion, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: New, restored high-definition digital transfer; "Building the Inferno," a new documentary on director Nobuo Nakagawa and the making of the film; Theatrical trailer; Galleries of posters from selected Nakagawa and Shintoho studio films; Booklet with a new essay by noted Asian-cinema critic Chuck Stephens. Audio: Japanese (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional English subtitles.

King of Queens: The Complete Sixth Season (2003-2004) Kevin James and Leah Remini are back as the down-to-earth blue-collar couple trying to raise their family in relative chaos in the working-class suburb of Queens, New York. Jerry Stiller is Remini's twice-widowed and slightly eccentric father, who lives with the family and drives parcel delivery driver James crazy, and often out of the house and into the company of his drinking buddies (Patton Oswalt and Victor Williams). Guest appearances this season include Janeane Garofalo, Jon Favreau, Rachel Dratch, Judge Reinhold, Anne Meara, and Lou Ferrigno. Details: Color, 528 mins, Sony Pictures, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 24 episodes on 3 discs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Kittens No description available

A Knight's Tale (Blu-ray) Inspired by "The Canterbury Tales," this is the story of William, a young squire with a gift for jousting. After his master dies suddenly, the squire hits the road with his cohorts Roland and Wat. On the journey, they stumble across an unknown writer, Chaucer. William, lacking a proper pedigree, convinces Chaucer to forge genealogy documents that will pass him off as a knight. With his newly-minted history in hand, the young man sets out to prove himself a worthy knight at the country's jousting competition, and finds romance along the way.

Loverboy A quirky film about a single mother and the suffocating, tragic love she has for her 6-year-old child, Loverboy serves as an answer to anyone who might wonder if you can love your child too much: Absolutely. Emily (Kyra Sedgwick from The Closer) is an eccentric, anti-social woman yearning for the affection her parents showered on each other, but never on her. All her hopes and dreams are thrust upon her young son Paul (Dominic Scott Kay). Not only is adorable, but he's also incredibly mature and patient. Though his mother lavishes him with attention, gourmet meals, and an almost fairytale existence, Paul wants stability and normalcy. He yearns for a father. He wants to go to school with the other kids. And though he's only 6, he's old enough to know that having a mother who refers to him as "Loverboy" is just plain wrong. Directed by Sedgwick's husband, Kevin Bacon (The Woodsman, Mystic River), the film veers unsteadily between ironic comedic moments and touching drama. Full of cameos (Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon, Oliver Platt, Marisa Tomei, and Bacon, who plays Emily's father in flashback sequences), the film does a fine job of conveying Emily's desperation to be the only person who matters to Paul. But because she's such a manipulative freak, it's difficult for the viewer to feel much empathy for her as she tries to shelter her boy from the world. "There's no falling in love like the falling in love with a child," she says early in the movie. Ultimately, that's her downfall.

Marius and Jeannette (France, 1997) Jeannette (an earthy and energetic performance by Arian Ascaride) is a motor-mouth single mom and Marius (Gerard Meylan, quietly generous and wry) is a soft-spoken immigrant who meet in a poor section of Marseilles where they live. Director Robert Guediguian has a gift for capturing character and location in this sunny, sassy story of working class stiffs and marginalized characters, and he fills the film with anecdotal detail and courtyard kibitzing among the rich set of supporting characters. Details: Color, 102 mins, New Yorker, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Interview with director Robert Guediguian; Foreign theatrical trailer. Audio: French. Optional English subtitles.

Mister Roberts Mister Roberts is aboard a US cargo ship, working in the Pacific during the Second World War. He'd do anything to leave the quiet of the ship to join in the "action". Trouble is, the captain of the ship, is a bit of a tyrant, and isn't willing to sign Roberts' transfer requests. Also on board is Ensign Pulver, who avoids work as best he can, whilst living off the riches of his buying and selling. Roberts and the crew are in constant battle, even over the smallest of disagreements.

My Name Is Earl: The Complete First Season "Karma is a funny thing." There is plenty of TV based on redemption, but this may be the first sitcom literally grounded in the philosophy of karma in action. Jason Lee is Earl, a career lowlife who receives a life-changing epiphany when he's hit by a car seconds after getting a winning lottery ticket. The minute he starts to make amends for his wrongs (and it's a long list), the ticket blows back into his life and his life's journey of redemption is sealed. Lee brings a laid-back benevolence to Earl, following the windy road that karma has mapped for him with the help of his dumb as a rock and loyal as a pup brother Randy (Ethan Suplee) and their motel maid Catalina (Nadine Sanchez), who signs on as an unofficial guide to the vagaries of morality and social contracts. Former Playboy model Jaime Pressly finds the role of a lifetime as Earl's trashy ex-wife, a conniving blonde in hot pants trying to chisel money out of Earl. It's damnably funny, very clever and full of attitude, and the last episode of the season comes full circle to the stolen cash Earl used to buy the winning lottery ticket and the winding karmic path it charted. Among the supplements is the DVD exclusive mock "lost pilot" "Bad Karma," an alternate reality version of the show where Earl takes the path of vengeance with alarming results. Details: Color, 526 mins, 20th Century Fox, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Commentary by creator Greg Garcia, stars Jason Lee and Ethan Suplee, and others on 5 episodes; Commentary by the mothers of Greg Garcia (Natalie Garcia), Marc Buckland (Mary Buckland), Jason Lee (Carol Lee) and Ethan Suplee (Debbie Suplee) on the episode Dad's Car; Exclusive Earl Mis-Adventure "Bad Karma"; "Karma Is A Funny Thing" Blooper Reel ; "Making Things Right: Behind The Scenes Of My Name Is Earl" featurette; Deleted Scenes. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

The Proposition The jagged Australian frontier western in the key of Peckinpah is a family drama with a psychopath at the head of the clan. Guy Pierce is an outlaw given a choice by a steely lawman (Ray Winstone): bring in his savage, psychotic older brother (a nicely underplayed Danny Huston) or his younger brother will hang. The original script by Nick Cave has rich characters and a savage social subtext under its austere plotting which director John Hillcoat allows to bubble up from the fierce conflicts between law and outlaw, justice and social expediency, and brothers whose sense of loyalty is torn by the fits of sadistic violence perpetrated by its eldest. John Hurt, David Wenham, and Emily Watson co-star. Details: Color, 104 mins, First Look, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Director and Writer Commentary; 5 Behind the Scenes Featurettes; Still gallery; Previews. Audio: English (DTS 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

Roar: Complete Series A young Irish chieftain fights against Roman encroachment.

S.W.A.T. An arrested drug kingpin is transported by a Los Angeles Police Department SWAT team led by Jackson's character out of the city and into federal custody. Plans go awry when the kingpin offers $100 million to anyone who can free him.

The Shogun Collection No description available

Spirited Killer No description available

Stay Alive - Unrated Director's Cut A group of video gamers get addicted to a new sensation that sucks them in and then kills them, thanks to the ghost in the machine: at the heart of the software is the ancient " Blood Countess" Elizabeth Bathory, whose tastes for blood in insatiable. Jon Foster, Samaire Armstrong, Frankie Muniz, Milo Ventimiglia, Sophia Bush, and Jimmi Simpson are the photogenic victims and targets of the insatiable Blood Countess and they get dispatched in various photogenic ways. Wendell Pierce and Adam Goldberg co-star and William Brent Bell writes and directs. Available in separate PG-13 and "Unrated Director's Cut" editions. The "Unrated Director's Cut" runs 15 minutes longer than the theatrical version. Details: Color, 100 mins, Hollywood Pictures Unrated, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Visual effects reel; Interactive bonus menus. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Commentary by filmmaker (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Stick It The feature debut of Jessica Bendinger, a former music video director and screenwriter of the cute and brash Bring It On, is a sports empowerment fantasy of the best kind. Missy Peregrym is a rebellious world class gymnast (Missy Peregrym) who returns to the sport and finds a new cause: to take the sport back from the edicts of its at times arbitrary judges and redefine it as a form of self-expression and personal achievement. Bendinger breaths new life into old clichés with attitude, cheeky humor, youthful energy and fresh style. Jeff Bridges is the maverick coach of a gymnastics academy and Vanessa Lengies is bitchy rival whose competitive streak is matched only by her ignorance. Details: Color, 103 mins, Touchstone, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Buttaharas: Outrageous bloopers & outtakes; Skinny Fat: Hilarious deleted scenes with two optional commentaries; Missy Elliott music video: "We Run This"; Jeannie Ortega featuring Papoose Music video: "Crowded"; Hard Corps: The real gymnasts who were stunt doubles for Stick It; The Elites: Full gymnastics routines performed by some of the world's best with optional commentary; The Judges' Table: Uneven bar routines in slow motion with optional commentary; Read My Mind: Multiple feature commentaries - director and actors, director and filmmakers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Tears of the Sun (Blu-ray) Navy SEAL Lieutenant A.K. Waters and his elite squadron of tactical specialists are forced to choose between their duty and their humanity, between following orders by ignoring the conflict that surrounds them, or finding the courage to follow their conscience and protect a group of innocent refugees. When the democratic government of Nigeria collapses and the country is taken over by a ruthless military dictator, Waters, a fiercely loyal and hardened veteran is dispatched on a routine mission to retrieve a Doctors Without Borders physician, Dr. Lena Kendricks. Dr. Kendricks, an American citizen by marriage, is tending to the victims of the ongoing civil war at a Catholic mission in a remote village. When Waters arrives, however, Dr. Kendricks refuses to leave unless he promises to help deliver the villagers to political asylum at the nearby border. If they are left behind, they will be at the mercy of the enormous rebel army. Waters is under strict orders from his commanding officer Captain Bill Rhodes to remain disengaged from the conflict. But as he and his men witness the brutality of the rebels first-hand, they are won over to Dr. Kendricks' cause and place their lives at risk by agreeing to escort the villagers on a perilous trek through the dense jungle. As they move through the countryside on foot, Waters' team, experts at evasion and concealment, are inexplicably and ferociously pursued by an army of rebels. They are confounded until they discover that, among the refugees, is the sole survivor of the country's previous ruling family, whom the rebels have been ordered to eliminate at all costs. Waters and his small band of soldiers must weigh the life of one man against their own and the refugees they feel obliged to protect.

The Tomie Collection No description available

The Unit - The Complete First Season They are The Unit, a covert Special Forces team operating outside the usual military chain of command. Whether stateside or aboard, these heroes are on the frontlines protecting U.S. citizens and foreigners alike, slipping in under the radar and risking their lives to save the day then leaving just as quietly without any well-deserved credit or thanks. Starring Dennis Haysbert and Scott Foley, this riveting, action-packed drama is as realistic and pulse-pounding as it gets.

Zoo TV-Live from Sydney This is U2 at their creative highpoint. Zoo TV was far ahead of it's time, and is captured very well on this release. Disc 1 is the same as the 1994 VHS release. The video has been cleaned up to todays DVD standards, and is worth getting for that alone. However, the sound has been upgraded as well, and will not disappoint.

Monday, September 11, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Original Star Wars, Smallville, Lucky Number Slevin & More! - Xoanon @ 13:20 PST
The Adventures of Chico & Guapo - The Complete First Season The animated series co-created by Orlando Jones about best friends who work as interns in the music industry. Originally created as a series of shorts on The Orlando Jones Show, it was spun off as a series for MTV 2. Details: Color, Paramount, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 16 shorts from The Orlando Jones Show; Animated storyboards; "The Gift" - Director's cut version; Orlando Jones' TAL appearance; Early sketches; Original scripts. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Agatha Christie Classic Mystery Collection Helen Hayes stars in this box set of three made-for-TV features. She plays Christie's Miss Jane Marple in A Caribbean Mystery (1983), co-starring Maurice Evans, Swoosie Kurtz, and Barnard Hughes (with a script co-written by Sue Grafton), and Murder with Mirrors (1985), where she teams up with a crafty inspector (Leo McKern) to solve a murder in a country-house. Bette Davis and John Mills co-star. Hayes is Lavinia Fullerton, an armchair detective who teams up with a computer wiz (Bill Bixby), in Murder Is Easy (1982), and Lesley-Anne Down, Olivia de Havilland, and Jonathan Pryce co-star as the suspect gallery. Also available in the eight-disc Agatha Christie Classic Mystery Collection. Details: Color, Warner, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional Spanish, Korean and English subtitles.

America's Funniest Home Videos: Nincompoops and Boneheads (1990) Two episodes from the long-running family series, hosted by Tom Bergeron and Bob Saget. Details: Color, 80 mins, Shout! Factory, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

America's Funniest Home Videos: Sports Spectacular (1990) Two episodes from the long-running family series, hosted by Tom Bergeron. Details: Color, 80 mins, Shout! Factory, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

Backdraft A rookie firefighter tries to earn the respect of his older brother and other firefighters while taking part in an investigation of a string of arson/murders. This detailed look into the duties and private lives of firemen naturally features widespread pyrotechnics and special effects.

Ballets Russes Acclaimed documentary on the revolutionary twentieth-century dance troupe known as the Ballets Russes, which was born in turn-of-the-century Paris and spawned rival dance troupes who fought legendary "ballet battles" on pre-World War II London before shutting down in the 1960s due to rocketing egos, outside competition, and internal mismanagement. Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine direct. Details: Color/Black and White, 118 mins, Zeitgeist, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: "Encores": a 55-minute, four-part series of additional behind-the-scenes, rehearsal and interview footage with Ballets Russes dancers and collaborators; Rare archival footage, including Ballets Russes performances not in the film; Extensive photo galleries of Ballets Russes staris, additional dancers and vintage Playbill Covers; Original Theatrical Trailers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

The Batman - The Complete Second Season The second season of the revised animated superhero series about the young Batman in the early years of his crime-fighting career, battling such criminal masterminds as the Joker, Mr. Freeze, Penguin, and the Riddler with the support of police detective Jim Gordon. Part of the "DC Comics Kids Collection" featured on the Cartoon Network. Details: Color, Warner, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 13 episodes on 2 discs; "Catching up With… The Batman: Inside Season 2" featurette. Optional subtitles.

Beavis & Butt-Head Do America Our intrepid adolescent heroes wake up to find their beloved television stolen, and embark on an epic journey across America to recover it, and, who knows, maybe even score. On the way they encounter a murderous smuggler of a deadly virus and his treacherous wife, an FBI agent with a predilection for cavity searches, a couple of rather familiar looking ex-Motley Crue roadies, Mr. Van Dreesen singing "Lesbian Seagull", a little old lady and of course Mr. Anderson and his trailer. Can the Great Cornholio save the day? Uh-huh. Huh-huh.

Black Magic A magician makes money by charging people to cast love spells on the objects of their affection. Complications arise when he decides that he wants a customer's bride for himself.

Black. White. What's it like to live in someone else's skin? Find out by watching this fascinating documentary series in which the African-American Sparks family (Brian, Renee and 16-year-old Nick) trades places with the Caucasian Wurgel family (Bruno, Carmen and 17-year-old Rose) thanks to an incredible visual transformation created by Hollywood make-up artists. The two families agree to share a home for the duration of a six-week social experiment that will challenge their beliefs and core values in ways they could have never imagined. Their unscripted experiences are often explosive, always intriguing and ultimately insightful...resulting in a totally unique cultural perspective that's anything but black-and-white!

Bloodz vs Wolvez No description available

Bottoms Up Kevin Smith regular Jason Mewes stars as a Midwest bartender and heads to Hollywood, where he hooks up with a pampered starlet (Paris Hilton), in the romantic comedy from Erik MacArthur. Details: Color, 89 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French and English subtitles.

Clifford: Clifford's Big Halloween Kooky ghosts, spooky costumes and leaf piles are all part of the fun when Clifford and friends share in fall festivities on Birdwell island. DVD includes the episode Boo! where on Halloween night, Clifford gets tangled up in a white sheet, and the whole town gets a great big scare from the mysterious ghost dog of Birdwell Island. In these eight great episodes, Clifford and friends learn about doing your job, keeping a promise and making a new friend. Get ready to dig for Dinosaurs and meet a true superhero!

Code Lyoko: First Season "Code Lyoko" tells the story of a group of students who uncover a parallel universe called Lyoko inside a super-computer that is threatened by a renegade program named XANA that could destroy the world. It's up to four boarding school students named Jeremy, Yumi, Ulrich, and Odd to help a humanoid being inside Lyoko named Aelita to stop the rogue program X.A.N.A and his plans to attack their world. Jeremy, who is in love with Aelita, struggles through season 1 to find a way to "materialize" aelita, so she can become human by exiting the scanners that connect Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi to Lyoko. If Jeremy accomplishes this, he will be able to shut down Lyoko and defeat XANA. In the episode "Code: EARTH", we witness Jeremy finally materializes Aelita, and accomplishes his dream. The group deactivate Lyoko, but the didn't guess what would happened. XANA apparently infected Aelita with a virus before she was materialized so that if XANA goes, she does too! After being distraught by this dilemma, Aelita and Jeremy spend time together. After returning Aelita to her temporary home, Yumi's house, Jeremy heads back home. In the beginning of season 2, we witness the dawn of new technology. Jeremy programs vehicles into Lyoko, for faster travel, and he also makes a better scan program to detect "activated towers", so Aelita can live on earth, without having to stay in Lyoko to look out for XANA's attacks on earth! ALong with that, Jeremy announces that he is working on an anti-virus good enough to save Aelita from XANA! Franz Hopper, a brilliant scientist, seems related to Aelita after some research. After discovering the Lyoko gang discovers the truth, we learn that Aelita was created on Lyoko as the guardian of it by Franz Hopper. Lyoko and even XANA were made by him, although XANA became evil by himself. With Jeremy, Odd, Ulrich, Yumi, and Aelita against XANA, we're sure to experience a great adventure!

Crypt of the Vampire Count Karnstein sends for a doctor to help his sick daughter Laura. Her nurse believes she is possessed by the spirit of a dead ancestor;Carmilla. A young woman becomes intrigued by the mysterious deaths surrounding Laura after a carriage accident outside the castle forces her to stay. They become close friends until Laura becomes convinced the spirit of Carmilla is forcing her to kill.

Death of Mr Lazarescu (Romania) Cristi Puiu's dark, barbed social satire, set in the bureaucratic nightmare of Romanian socialized medicine, stars Ion Fiscuteanu as a flinty pensioner who starts off the film complaining of headaches and stomach cramps and ends up bounced from hospital to hospital, deteriorating to a state of numb incoherence while doctors and admitting nurses scold him like a naughty child. The scathing dark comedy cuts like a scalpel and won the Prix de Certain Regard at Cannes in 2005. Details: Color, 153 mins, Tartan, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Interview with the director; Perspective on the U.S. Healthcare System by Dr. Fred Berlin. Audio: Romanian (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Romanian (DTS 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Diagnosis Murder - Complete 1st Season (1993-1994) Decades after starring in one of the landmark sitcoms on American TV, Dick Van Dyke returned to the small screen as the jovial Dr. Mark Sloan, a Los Angeles city hospital intern with a sideline as a consultant for the police, notably his Police Detective son (played by Van Dyke's real life son Barry Van Dyke), and a nose for mysteries. Along with Angela Lansbury in Murder, She Wrote and Andy Griffith in Matlock (who participated in a cross-over episode with Van Dyke), he was part of the last wave of geriatric detective stars. Victoria Rowell co-stars as pathologist Amanda Bentley, Scott Baio is fellow doctor Jack Stewart, and Michael Tucci is the hospital administrator. Van Dyke's comic talents brought a light touch and no small amount of humor to the mystery drama and kept the show alive for a healthy eight seasons. Details: Color, Paramount, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 19 episodes on 5 discs. Optional subtitles.

Disney Princess Stories, Vol. 1 - A Gift From the Heart No description available

Film Noir: The Dark Side of Hollywood Box set of five previously released discs, repackaged in thinpak cases. Fritz Lang directs the World War II resistance thriller Hangmen Also Die (1943) with Brian Donlevy, Henry Fonda stars in The Long Night (1947), the remake of the French poetic realist drama Le Jour se leve by Anatole Litvak, Anthony Mann directs the low-budget Railroaded (1947), a marvelously tawdry thriller starring John Ireland as a cop-killing thug, Budd Boetticher directs Behind Locked Doors (1948), a B-movie thriller starring Richard Carlson as a reporter undercover in a mental hospital to find a wanted man in hiding, and Joan Crawford stars in the Oscar nominated Sudden Fear (1952) as a target in a murder plot by seductive Jack Palance and his scheming lover Gloria Grahame. Details: Black and White, Kino, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional subtitles.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Conqueror of Shamballa Edward Elric and his younger brother Alphonse were living quite happily with their mother... until she died. So Edward and Alphonse decided to try to raise her from the dead. The resurrection failed, leaving Edward without an arm and a leg and Alphonse's soul attached to a suit of armor. Now they roam around the country trying to find a way to restore their bodies.

Gloomy Sunday Budapest in the thirties. The restaurant owner Laszlo hires the pianist András to play in his restaurant. Both men fall in love with the beautiful waitress Ilona who inspires András to his only composition. His song of Gloomy Sunday is, at first, loved and then feared, for its melancholic melody triggers off a chain of suicides. The fragile balance of the erotic ménage à trois is sent off kilter when the German Hans goes and falls in love with Ilona as well.

Goal: The Dream Begins Santiago Munez is the soccer-mad immigrant in Los Angeles whose dream of playing on a world class squad comes true when he's scouted for one of England's premiere clubs, Newcastle United, and lands in a culture where soccer is a religion and the star players are gods. The rousing sports drama directed by Danny Cannon co-stars Alessandro Nivola as the team's troubled star player, Anna Friel as the local girl who falls for the new recruit, Marcel Lures as the coach, and Stephen Dillane as the talent scout who makes it all happen. The game scenes feature footage from pro matches. Details: Color, 118 mins, Touchstone, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.40:1. Supplements: Extended PG-13 version; The Beautiful Game: Featurette about the fast-paced, exciting worldwide phenomenon of soccer; Behind the Pitch: Making-of featurette about how the film's intense soccer action was integrated with real matches played by superstar athletes; Happy Mondays music video: "Playground Superstar"; Golden Moments of the FIFA World Cup featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0). Commentary by filmmakers Danny Cannon, Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional Spanish subtitles.

Golgo 13: Kowloon Assignment No description available

The Great New Wonderful The Great New Wonderful weaves five stories against the backdrop of an anxious and uncertain post-9-11 New York City.

The Great Yokai War A young boy with a troubled home life becomes "chosen," and he stumbles into the middle of a great spirit war, where he meets a group of friendly spirits who become his companions through his journey. Now he must fight to protect his friends and free the world of the spirits from oppression. The creatures and ghosts are taken directly from Japanese folklore and range from the cute and silly to the disturbing.

Grey's Anatomy: The Complete Second Season doctor following in the footsteps of her mother (Kate Burton), discovered that her Dr. McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey) was married. In her second year the wife (Kate Walsh) moves to Seattle and joins the staff of Seattle Grace Hospital, just one of the complications in the hectic lives of Grey and her fellow interns (Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl, Justin Chambers and T.R. Knight) in the second season. A cross between E.R. and Scrubs, it's an addictive but light soap opera of a medical show, with plenty of energy and style, a pop soundtrack, and the usual romantic complications among the life-and-death crises that face the young doctors every day. Chandra Wilson is "The Nazi" (aka their attending physician Dr. Miranda Bailey), James Pickens Jr. the head of surgery, and Isaiah Washington is the talented surgeon who pairs off with the intense and aggressive Sandra Oh. Details: Color, 1180 mins, Buena Vista Uncut, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: 27 episodes from the 2005-2006 season on six discs; Four extended episodes; "The softer side of Dr. Bailey" interview with Chandra Wilson; "The Doctors Are In" - Favorite characters answer fans' burning questions; Deleted scenes; Exclusive set tour; Creating "Pink Mist": Anatomy of a special effect; Grey's Anatomy on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Commentary by director Jeff Melman and writer Krista Vernoff ("Into You Like a Train") (Dolby Digital 2.0), Commentary by Creator Shonda Rimes and editor Susan Vaill ("Thanks for the Memories") (Dolby Digital 2.0), Commentary by Sandra Oh and director Peter Horton ("Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer") (Dolby Digital 2.0) and Commentary by Creator Shonda Rimes, director Peter Horton and editor Edward Ornelas ("It's the End of the World" and "As We Know It") (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

Headspace Horror film about a young man (Christopher Denham) whose intellect suddenly grows out of his control, with deadly side-effects, after a chance encounter with a stranger. Andrew van den Houten directs and Olivia Hussey, William Atherton, Sean Young, Larry Fessenden, Dee Wallace, and Udo Kier co-star. Details: Color, 89 mins, Freestyle/Visual Entertainment, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Filmmaker commentary; Deleted, extended, and alternate scenes; "Fractured Skulls: The Making of Headspace" featurette; FX Journal; Isolated music score; Photo gallery; Talent bios; Trailer; Easter Eggs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish subtitles.

Hollywood Greats Daytime, primetime, then late-night talk and variety show. Often there was only one guest (GA Gov. Lester Maddox walked out angrily during one interview). Cavett was intelligent and witty, perhaps too much so for television.

House of Wax (HD DVD) A group of friends on their way to a college football game falls prey to a pair of murderous brothers in an abandoned small town. They discover that the brothers have expanded upon the area's main attraction.. the House of Wax. And created an entire town filled with the wax-coated corpses of unlucky visitors. Now the group must find a way out before they too become permanent exhibits in the House of Wax...

I Am a Sex Addict Director Caveh Zahedi's I Am A Sex Addict may be Zahedi's most autobiographical and, consequently, narcissistic film to date. Previously, when Tripping With Caveh featured Zahedi and musician Will Oldham wandering through meadows high on LSD, some viewers wondered what the point was. Now, "Caveh" relays his history of sex addiction, in nauseating detail, before taking wedding vows with his third wife to-be. Beginning the tale in Paris, 1984, Zahedi narrates the story of Anna, his first true love, Caroline, his second love played by actress Rebecca Lord, and the destruction of both relationships due to his insatiable desire for prostitutes. Speaking directly towards the camera or acting out dramatized scenes, Zahedi explains his deep-seated psychological needs to gawk at women. When his girlfriends repeatedly dump him, he hits rock bottom and begins attending Sex Addicts Anonymous meetings. Besides a frankly disgusting plot, Zahedi's experimentalism seems pretentious, as he explains, for example, why he casts actors before showing them on-screen. Perhaps the unsavory topic explored in I Am A Sex Addict is suitable for other fellow sex addicts, in a therapeutic sense. Otherwise, the question arises throughout: Why should I care?

Inspector Lewis Inspector Morse is dead, but his old partner Inspector Robert Lewis (Kevin Whately) returns in this British TV mystery, returning from a two-year assignment in the British Virgin Islands and landing in the midst of a murder in Oxford, England that has ties to an old Morse case. This time, Lewis is the senior partner to a former divinity student turned DI (Kevin Whately). Originally seen in the U.S. on the PBS anthology series Mystery!. Details: Color, 95 mins, WGBH, widescreen, 1.78:1. Optional subtitles.

International Cinema Collection A Very Long Engagement: The filmmaker and star of Amelie! Jean-Pierre Jeunet directs Audrey Tautou (The Da Vinci Code) in a spellbinding and widely honored tale of lovers separated by WWI. Day for Night: Anything that can go wrong on the set does in Francois Truffaut's giddy, glorious valentine to movies. "The best movie ever made about the movies" (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times). The Damned: Luchino Visconti brings flamboyant style to a tale of a corrupt German industrialist family giving way to greater corruption: the rise of the Nazis. With Dirk Bogard, Charlotte Rampling and more. Gloomy Sunday: The art-house favorite about entangled romance, the Holocaust and a song that swept the world is "a stirring and provocative affirmation of the power and resilience of love" (Philip Wuntch, The Dallas Morning News). Death in Venice: Thomas Mann's meditation on beauty, age and obsession is "splendidly brought to the screen" (Leaonard Maltin's Movie Guide) by Luchino Visconti, Dirk Bogard stars.

Jan Svankmajer: The Ossuary & Other Tales No description available

Kill the Poor When a marriage of convenience becomes the real thing, Joe (David Krumholtz) moves his pregnant French wife (Clara Bellar) to a tenement building on New York's Lower East Side. The street is like a war zone with none of the nostalgic appeal that Joe remembers from tales of his immigrant grandparents arriving in the same neighborhood with a new life. This is the urban frontier filled with a wildly funny mixture of gentrifies, homeboys, dealers and local residents simply bent on staying a float.

La Petite Jerusalem (France) Karin Albou's drama about a family of Sephardic Orthodox Jews in a shabby Paris suburb, tackles touchy issues -- namely desire and sexual pleasure within the laws of religion -- with a respectful frankness. Fanny Valette and Elsa Zylberstein star as sisters whose opposing philosophies find common ground and Bruno Todeschini and Aurore Clément co-star. Details: Color, 94 mins, Kino, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Interview with writer/director Karin Albou; Still gallery; Trailer. Audio: and Hebrew. Optional English subtitles.

Las Vegas: Season Three James Caan playing "Big Ed" Deline, a tough but amiable President of Operations and a father figure to his protégé and right-hand man Danny McCoy (Josh Duhamel) in the splashy, sexy TV series set in lavish trappings of the (fictional) high rolling Montecito Casino. The third season opens with the rebuilding the Monticello (after the fire that ended season two), a new owner (Lara Flynn Boyle), and a whole bunch of episodes devoted to pulling the old crew back together, and ends with yet another new owner (Dean Cain), a wedding, and a murder. In between are card sharks, high stakes heists, and bodacious babes in low-cut fashions and bikinis. Nikki Cox, Molly Sims, Vanessa Marcil, and James Lesure co-star, Cheryl Ladd has a recurring role as Big Ed's wife, and guest stars this season include Jill Hennesy and Jerry O'Connell (as their Crossing Jordan characters) and Rachel Leigh Cook. Details: Color, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: 23 Episodes on 5 discs; "In With the New" time-lapse photography featurette of the construction of the new hotel; Gag reel. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Laurel and Hardy Collection 2 Episode Description: The Laurel & Hardy Collection Volume 2 contains 3 classic comedies A-Haunting We Will Go, Dancing Masters, and Bullfighters. These titles are all available for the first time on DVD in a slipcase for $34.98 & $46.98. Disk 1: A-HAUNTING WE WILL GO (1942) *Full Frame Feature **Commentary by Randy Skretvedt **Movietone News **Theatrical Trailer Disk 2: THE DANCING MASTERS (1943) *Full Frame Feature **Commentary by Scott MacGillivray **A Ship's Reporter **Grand Hotel: The 1932 Laurel & Hardy Tour **Trailers Disk 3: BULLFIGHTERS (1945) *Full Frame Feature **Commentary by Scott MacGillivray **Laurel & Hardy: The Fox Years **Trailers

Lethal Weapon 2 (HD DVD) Riggs and Murtaugh are at it again in this sequel to the original Lethal Weapon in 1987. When a red BMW crashes while they are chasing it, they discover the trunk is full of South African Krugerands. Their boss assigns them to protect a federal witness named Leo Getz to try and keep them out of trouble. When the witness reveals he has been doing business with South Africans, the story evolves into a fast moving chase.

Love & Marriage "America's Funniest Home Videos" was inspired by a series of successful TV specials, where home viewers were invited to send in videotapes of their "funniest" moments. In "AFHV," host Saget provided commentary to the home videos which often showed wedding and sports bloopers, children and pets either being themselves or getting into trouble, furniture or other objects giving way (usually contributing to someone's fall) and "comical" reactions to getting inadvertently hit (usually in the groin). Sometimes, certain videos were grouped into themes, such as Christmas or a summer vacation, or had sentimental value to them, such as a marriage proposal; other times, videos were set to classic rock tunes. The top three videos of the week as selected by the producers were eligible for each week's $10,000 top prize; the audience would electronically vote for their one favorite video. Weekly winners got to compete in a later special for a $100,000 top prize.

Lower City (Brazil) Lázaro Ramos, Alice Braga, and Wagner Moura are three points in an erotic triangle playing out in the "lower city" of tropical Salvador da Bahia in the directorial debut of Sergio Machado. Details: Color, 98 mins, Palm, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Behind-the-scenes featurette; Deleted scenes; Cast rehearsal; U.S. theatrical trailer. Audio: Portuguese (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Lucky Number Slevin Josh Hartnett as a seemingly innocent bystander caught up in an absurdly convoluted plot about a scheming hitman and criss-crossing assassination conspiracies in this Tarantino-esque crime pastiche from director Paul McGuigan and screenwriter Jason Smilovic. Bruce Willis, Lucy Liu, Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley, and Stanley Tucci fill out the cast of quirky characters in the twisting story. Available in separate widescreen and full screen editions. Details: Color, 110 mins, The Weinstein Company/Genius, widescreen. Supplements: Commentary by actors Josh Hartnett and Lucy Liu and writer Jason Smilovic; Commentary by director Paul McGuigan; "Making Lucky Number Slevin" featurette; Deleted scenes and alternate ending. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

The Maid (Singapore) Singapore's first homegrown horror movie (which broke domestic box office records on its theatrical release) follows the ordeal of a young Filipino maid in Singapore who breaks the "rules" of the seventh month and faces the supernatural consequences. Kelvin Tong writes and directs. Details: Color, 89 mins, Asia Extreme/Tartan, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: "The Making of The Maid" featurette; Trailer. Audio: with some English and Tagalog (Dolby Digital 5.1) and with some English and Tagalog (DTS 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Masters of Horror: Tobe Hooper - Dance of the Dead Showtime has amassed some of the greatest horror film writers and directors to bring to you the anthology series, "Masters of Horror". For the first time the foremost names in the horror film genre have joined forces for the series consisting of 13 one-hour films each season.

The Miracle of Life A new DVD edition of the Emmy Award-winning documentary The Miracle of Life (1996), featuring microscopic photography by Swedish photographer Lennart Nilsson. Also features the bonus documentary Life's First Feelings, originally made for Nova. Details: Color, 112 mins, WGBH, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

The Miracle Match Sports movie veteran David Anspaugh turns to soccer for this "based on a true story" drama about the rag-tag team put together to represent America in the 1950 World Cup that pulled off one of the all-time great upsets in sports history. Gerard Butler, Wes Bentley, Jay Rodan, Gavin Rossdale, Costas Mandylor, Bill Smitrovich, John Rhys-Davies, and Patrick Stewart star. Originally titled The Game of Their Lives and renamed for DVD. Details: Color, 101 mins, Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.40:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Moonlighting: Season 4 The top model Maddie Hayes was betrayed by her investment adviser who flew with all her money to South-America and began the hard life of a Casino owner. All the unfaithful manager has left Maddie is her house, her unbelievable beauty and intelligence and the run-down detective-agency "City Angels" (renamed by Maddie into "Blue Moon"). Because of her lack of money, she wants to sell the agency, but the houses only detective David Addison tries to convince her to join the agency as the new boss. So Maddie Hayes becomes involved in the work of a real private detective, which means so hard work as to spy upon unfaithful husbands, find missing people or murderers, foil attempts on VIP's lives, stop killers, help lovers and by the way save the world`s peace and existence. While doing this Maddie and David try to get used to each other and this way they recognize their complete difference in life-style, humour, amusement and of course in the way how to run a detective agency. Maybe this is why they always seem to us as the perfect couple. Will they become lovers or not? The real thrill of the series you get, hearing the fantastic confusing, charming, frightening and senseless dialogues, seeing Maddie Hayes` eyes and David Addison`s smile. Real cracks will be really amazed by Miss Dipesto`s rhymes to the telephone.

My Little Pony - The Runaway Rainbow If it’s all about rainbows it must be about RAINBOW DASH. And it is. She loves this time of year when Ponyville and Breezie Blossom are all about celebrating rainbows. Meanwhile in a new magical place called Unicornia, RARITY is being taught how to be a Unicorn Princess and the importance of making the first rainbow of the season. But RARITY is quite a little rascal and embarks on an incredible ride that includes a MAGIC WAND, falling through the clouds right into the middle of Breezie Blossom, a visit to Ponyville, meeting SPIKE THE DRAGON and a huge adventure (with lots of mishaps) as she tries to get back to Unicornia. RARITY soon realizes that getting home in time to create the first rainbow of season is not an easy thing to do --- but it is fun! Come on, won’t you join RARITY and all her friends in the most colorful My Little Pony adventure ever?

The Nugget 'The Nugget' is a tale about a group of three roadworkers who stumble upon the world's biggest nugget, and become instant millionaires - or so they think. The roadworkers are mates from way back, and each weekend they go out to an old goldmining site hoping to strike it rich. Each weekend they come back with nothing but a hangover. But then everything changes when they discover the world's biggest nugget - worth many millions of dollars.

The Office: Season Two The American incarnation of the acclaimed British comedy series is a rare transplant that keeps both the attitude and the spirit of the original (a masterpiece created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant) while finding its own direction, which finds firm ground in the second season. Steve Carell carves out his own take as the attention-starved Michael Scott, an insensitive, blithely sexist, cluelessly racist (in a harmless way), and utterly ineffectual office manager who is convinced that he's the epitome of managerial efficiency and understanding. Rainn Wilson is the geeky, brown-nosing assistant manager Dwight ("No, that's assistant to the manager") who loses the long-running battle of wits with smart-alecky salesman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski), a prank-loving guy smitten with secretary Pam (Jenna Fischer), his unhappily engaged partner in pranks. It's a slyer, more squirrelly kind of comedy than you usually find on network TV, but behind the awkward silences and embarrassed stares is an often unexpected compassion and generosity. Details: Color, 477 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: 22 episodes on four discs; Commentary on 10 episodes by the actors, writes, directors, and producers; Deleted Scenes; "Faces of Scranton" video (from the episode "Valentine's Day"); Fake PSAs; Webisodes from nbc.com; Blooper Reel; Olympics promo; Steve on Steve. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

On The Buses: The Ultimate Collection “This double-decker Britcom classic stars Reg Varney as jack-the-lad bus driver Stan, Bob Grant as his chirpy conductor and best mate Jack, and Stephen "I'll have you Butler!" Lewis as the long-suffering, dim-witted Inspector Blakey, who does his best to get the buses out on time while making Stan and Jack’s lives as miserable as possible. One of the most successful TV series ever made, running from 1969 to 1973, On The Buses is British comedy at its best delivering laughter from beginning to end!”

Phantom Flicker Alley, in partnership with the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Foundation is proud to present, Phantom, which marked a major turning point in the influential career and the groundbreaking style of cinema poet F.W. Murnau. In this beautifully reconstructed and restored edition from an amazingly detailed, original 1922 negative, Alfred Abel (Metropolis, Dr. Mabuse) plays Lorenz Lubota, a man obsessed with his own desires to achieve fame and wealth, who must confront the barriers of class keeping him from a woman (Lya de Putti)with whom he has had a fateful encounter. Featuring a magnificent new orchestral score by Robert Israel, this powerfully expressive and surprisingly insightful film is a triumph of German Weimar cinema and a wonderful collaboration of many of its most skilled artisans and recognizable performers. Through dazzling visuals and memorable characters, Phantom paints a portrait of the corrupting influence of money, the conformity of societal norms, and the redemptive power of family.

Reading Rainbow Favorites No description available

Red Dragon (HD DVD) FBI Agent Will Graham has been called out of early retirement to catch a serial killer, known by authorities as "The Tooth Fairy". He asks for the help of his arch-nemesis, Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter, so that he can be able to catch "The Tooth Fairy" and bring him to justice. The only problem is that "The Tooth Fairy" is getting inside information about Graham and his family from none other than Dr. Lecter.

Roseanne: Complete Fifth Season (1992-1993) Another season of the hit working class sitcom starring Roseanne Barr as a working mother trying to juggle a job with her domestic responsibilities and John Goodman as a loving husband and father, a contractor with an innate reluctance to pitch in with household chores. Laurie Metcalf is Roseanne's sister Jackie, Sara Gilbert, Lecy Goranson, and Michael Fishman plays the kids, and Johnny Galecki and Glenn Quinn join the cast as the brothers next door. It was a rarity on American TV, a portrait of blue collar family life in the suburbs, from family troubles to money troubles, and found an audience eager for such familiar realities in their comedy. Details: Color, Anchor Bay, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 25 episodes on 4 discs; Exclusive Interview with Roseanne; Roseanne Answers the Top 10 Questions by Her Fans. Optional subtitles.

Seabiscuit (HD DVD) A half-blind ex-prizefighter (Maguire) and mustang breaker (Cooper) team up with a millionaire (Bridges) and his rough-hewn, undersized horse, Seabiscuit. The men bring Seabiscuit incredible heights, helping him earn Horse of the Year honors in 1938. Based on a true story.

Serving In Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story (1995) The acclaimed TV movie based on the true story of Colonel Margarethe Cammermeyer, the highest-ranking military officer to ever be discharged from the service for being gay. Glenn Close and Judy Davis both won Emmy awards for their performances and Close produces with Barbra Streisand. Details: Color, 92 mins, Sony Pictures, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: "Silent No More: Behind the Scenes of Serving in Silence" featurette; "Hollywood Premiere: January 23, 1995" featurette; "1996 GLAAD Media Awards" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Smallville - The Complete First Five Seasons A meteor shower bursts from the heavens, raining destruction on the unsuspecting citizens of Smallville. Present day. Twelve years later and the healing process has left the town's inhabitants with scars and secrets. From the ashes of tragedy, a popular yet awkward teen attemptsto decipher the meaning of his life and his clouded past. As he struggleswith the transition from boyhood to adulthood, his strength and strangeabilities set him uncomfortably apart from his peers, and his name is Clark Kent.

Smallville: The Complete Fifth Season A meteor shower bursts from the heavens, raining destruction on the unsuspecting citizens of Smallville. Present day. Twelve years later and the healing process has left the town's inhabitants with scars and secrets. From the ashes of tragedy, a popular yet awkward teen attemptsto decipher the meaning of his life and his clouded past. As he struggleswith the transition from boyhood to adulthood, his strength and strangeabilities set him uncomfortably apart from his peers, and his name is Clark Kent.

Space Cowboys (HD DVD) In 1958, the members of Team Daedalus, a group of top Air Force test pilots, were ready to serve their country as the first Americans in space but were pushed aside. Now, as a Russian satellite fails and is about to crash into earth, Team Daedalus is back in action in a rescue mission.

SpongeBob SquarePants - Season 4, Vol. 1 The character-driven toon chronicles the nautical and sometimes nonsensical adventures of SpongeBob, an incurably optimistic and earnest sea sponge, and his undersea friends. Dwelling a few fathoms beneath the tropical isle of Bikini Atoll in the sub-surface city of Bikini Bottom, SpongeBob lives in a two-story pineapple. Instead of taking the logical approach to everyday challenges, SpongeBob approaches life in a wayward and unconventional way. Whether searching for the ultimate spatula to perfect his burger flipping technique at the Krusty Krab, or just hanging out with his best friend Patrick (an amiable starfish), SpongeBob's good intentions and overzealous approach to life usually create chaos in his underwater world.

Star Wars Episode IV - A New Hope Part IV in a George Lucas epic, Star Wars: A New Hope opens with a rebel ship being boarded by the tyrannical Darth Vader. The plot then follows the life of a simple farmboy, Luke Skywalker, as he and his newly met allies (Han Solo, Chewbacca, Ben Kenobi, C-3PO, R2-D2) attempt to rescue a rebel leader, Princess Leia, from the clutches of the Empire. The conclusion is culminated as the Rebels, including Skywalker and flying ace Wedge Antilles make an attack on the Empires most powerful and ominous weapon, the Death Star.

Star Wars Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back Fleeing the evil Galactic Empire, the rebels abandon their new base on Hoth. Princess Leia, Han Solo and the droids R2-D2 and C-3P0 escape in the damaged Millenium Falcon, but are later captured by Lord Darth Vader on Bespin. Skywalker, meanwhile, follows Ben Kenobi's posthumous command and receives Jedi training by Yoda on Dagobah. Will Skywalker manage to rescue his friends from the dark lord?

Star Wars Episode VI - Return of the Jedi Darth Vader and the Empire are building a new, indestructible Death Star. Meanwhile, Han Solo has been imprisoned, and Luke Skywalker has sent R2D2 and C3PO to try and free him. Princess Leia - disguised as a bounty hunter - and Chewbacca go along as well. The final battle takes place on the moon of Endor, with its natural inhabitants, the Ewoks, lending a hand to the rebels. Will Darth Vader and the dark side overcome the rebels and take over the universe ?

Stella - Season One Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, and David Wain play unemployed roommates in the offbeat comedy series they created for Comedy Central. The show plays like a surreal sitcom that sends them in and out of oddball skits with the flick of a comment. Guest stars include Josh Charles, Janeane Garofalo, Topher Grace, Tim Blake Nelson, Ed Norton, Sam Rockwell, Alan Ruck, and Paul Rudd. Details: Color, 215 mins, Comedy Central/Paramount, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 10 episodes on 2 discs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Taps: 25th Anniversary Special Edition An announcement that the venerable Bunker Hill Military Academy, a 141 year old institute, is to be torn down and replaced with condos sets off the young cadets led by their stodgy commander (George C. Scott). Under the command of a student cadet major (Timothy Hutton), the cadets seize the campus, refuse entry of the construction crews and ultimately confront the real military.

Teen Titans - The Complete Second Season Season two of the animated series about the teen superhero team led by Robin and featuring Cyborg, Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy and new team member Terra. Part of the "DC Comics Kids Collection" superhero series featured on the Cartoon Network. Details: Color, Warner, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 13 episodes on 2 discs; "Catching Up with… Teen Titans" featurette. Optional subtitles.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Season 4 This show tells the adventures of four turtles who were transformed into humanoids by a strange ooze and were trained as ninja by a human martial arts master, Hamato Yoshi, who was changed into a humanoid rat, Splinter, by the same substance. Together with the intrepid reporter, April O'Neil, they fight against the threats against the world, like Shredder and Krang.

Too Hot Not to Handle Documentary on the effects of global warming in the United States, originally made for HBO. Details: Color, 54 mins, HBO, Academy Ratio. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Traffic (HD DVD) A modern day look at America's war on drugs told through four separate stories that are connected in one way or another. A conservative politician who's just been appointed as the US drug czar learns that his daughter is a drug addict. A trophy wife struggles to save her husband's drug business, while two DEA agents protect a witness with inside knowledge of the spouse's business. In Mexico, a corrupt, yet dedicated cop struggles with his conscience when he learns that his new boss may not be the anti-drug official he made himself out to be.

Twitches Tia and Tamera Mowry star as "twin witches" who use their newfound magical powers to fight the evil force of Darkness in the Disney Channel Original Movie. Stuart Gillard directs. Details: Color, 86 mins, Disney, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: Alternate ending; The Magic Behind Coventry: Inside look with Tia and Tamera; Twitches' Crystal Ball Predictions. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional subtitles.

The Whore's Son (Austria) A 16-year-old boy (Stanislav Lisnic) discovers the secret of his mother's "working" nights -- and the reason everyone swears at him on the street -- in the debut feature film from director Michael Sturminger. Chulpan Khamatova, Ina Gogalova, and Miki Manojlovic co-star. Details: Color, 86 mins, Picture This!, widescreen. Audio: German (Dolby Digital 5.1) and German (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

The Wild Kiefer Sutherland provides the pleasantly rumbling voice of zoo lion Samson, who heads to Africa with a merry menagerie of critters to rescue his cub in this computer animated adventure. Resemblances to Madagascar are coincidental but no less obvious, but this gets downright weird when Samson's merry menagerie land on a volcanic island where a wildebeest cult is staging an evolutionary coup to transform from prey to predator. Other voice actors include Jim Belushi, Greg Cipes, Janeane Garofalo, and Eddie Izzard, who steals the show by quipping a hilarious barrage of ad-libs. Details: Color, 82 mins, Disney, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Deleted scenes; Blunders & bloopers: Eddie Izzard unleashed; Everlife music video: "Real Wild Child". Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0). Commentary by Film's creators (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional subtitles.

Wildboyz - Complete Seasons 3 & 4 Uncensored Jackass stars Chris Pontius and Steve-O are back in their spin-off series, where they travel the globe to try their risky stunts and asinine antics in colorful cultures and wildlife settings with dangerous animals. Created for MTV by Jeff Tremaine and Dimitry Elyashkavich, who helped create the original Jackass. Details: Color, 350 mins, Paramount, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 16 episodes on 3 discs; Commentary by Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Johnny Knoxville, and others; Outtakes; Bonus segments; Top 10 Widlboyz moments; Still gallery. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Monday, September 04, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Lost S2, United 93, Old School Doctor Who & More! - Xoanon @ 14:54 PST
The Abbott & Costello Show: 100th Anniversary Collection Season 1 Who's on first? You'll be on Cloud 9 with this rare and riotous collection honoring the 100th birthday of Lou Costello and featuring the landmark Abbott & Costello Show that Jerry Seinfeld calls the inspiration for his own hit series! This remarkable 5-disc collection contains all 26 episodes of the first season (1952-1953), complete and unedited, digitally remastered and looking better than ever. In addition to Bud and Lou, there's the unforgettable supporting cast: Sid Fields, Hillary Brooke, Joe "Stinky" Besser and Gordon "Mike the Cop" Jones. PLUS: Never-before-seen home movies of Lou Costello and his family from the 1940s and '50s - many in full color with sound! (Even Bud manages to make a few "guest appearances.") And, for the first time anywhere, the recently restored short 10,000 Kids and a Cop made in 1948, featuring Bud and Lou, as well as Jimmy Stewart and William Bendix. To round things out, Lou's daughters, Paddy and Chris, share warm and wonderful anecdotes about their father in exclusive interviews. A treasure for Abbott & Costello fans everywhere! The Drugstore The Dentist Office Jail The Vacation The Birthday Party Alaska The Vacuum Cleaner Salesman The Army Story Pots & Pans The Charity Bazaar The Western Story The Haunted House Peace & Quiet Hungry The Music Lovers The Politician The Wrestling Match Getting a Job Bingo Hillary's Birthday Television Las Vegas Little Old Lady The Actors' Home Police Rookies Safari

Ace Ventura: Deluxe Double Feature Jim Carrey scored his first hit in the goofball comedy Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994) and was quickly signed up for a sequel, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995), before his career went through the roof. This 3-disc box set features both films (including the first widescreen DVD release of Pet Detective) and a bonus disc with 3 episodes of Ace Ventura: The Animated Series. Details: Color, Warner, Widescreen anamorphic, Academy Ratio, 1.85:1. Supplements: Includes; Ace Ventura: Pet Detective in widescreen for the first time; Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls; Selected cartoons from Ace Ventura: The Animated Series; Commentary by director Tom Shadyac on Ace Ventura: Pet Detective; New digital transfers; Theatrical trailers and TV spots. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

All the King's Men(1949) Just in time for the Sean Penn remake is a re-release of Robert Rossen's Oscar winning drama, based on Robert Penn Warren's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and inspired by real life Louisiana Governor Huey Long. Broderick Crawford (who also won an Oscar for this portrayal) brings blustery charm and oversized performance to charismatic populist politician Willie Stark who turns his back on ideals when he discovers the real currency of political power. Mercedes McCambridge took home an Oscar in her film debut as the cool mistress come calculating assistant and John Ireland as the newsman turned political flack turn this film into an American classic. Details: Black and White, 110 mins, Sony Pictures, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: Sneak peek of the new theatrical film of All the King's Men, including interviews with James Gandolfini, Jude Law, and Anthony Hopkins; Theatrical trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

Almost Strangers (2001) BAFTA award-winning British mini-series from writer/director Stephen Poliakoff (who won an Emmy for his telefilm The Lost Prince), starring Matthew Macfadyen as a member of powerful family who gets seduced by the glamour of their world at a family reunion. Michael Gambon, Lindsay Duncan, Claire Skinner, Toby Stephens, and Timothy Spall co-star. 2 discs. Details: Color, 237 mins, BBC/Warner, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Commentary by writer/director Stephen Poliakoff, producer John Chapman, and composer Adrian Johnston; Interviews with Stephen Poliakoff and the cast; Photo montage. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

Angry Harvest In the winter of 1942-43, a Jewish family leaps from a train going through Silesia. They are separated in the woods, and Leon, a local peasant who's now a farmer of some wealth, discovers the woman, Rosa, and hides her in his cellar. Leon's a middle-aged Catholic bachelor, tormented by his sexual drive. He doesn't tell Rosa he's seen signs her husband is alive, and he begs her to love him. Rosa offers herself to Leon if he'll help a local Jew in hiding who needs money. Leon pays, and love between Rosa and him does develop, but then Leon's peasant subservience and his limited empathy lead to tragedy. At the war's end, a ray of sunshine comes from an unexpected place.

Anne of Avonlea (1975) Kim Braden plays the spunky orphan in this 6-part miniseries adaptation of L.M. Montgomery's beloved novel, originally made for the BBC. David Garfield, Barbara Hamilton, Madge Ryan, and David Garfield co-star. 2 discs. Details: Color, 312 mins, Koch Vision, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

Amarcord (Italy, 1973) Criterion remasters Fellini's carnivalesque portrait of provincial Italy during the Fascist period, one of the label's initial DVD releases, for this new 2-disc special edition. It's considered Fellini's most personal film and features a classic, nostalgia-tinged score by Nina Rota. Details: Color, 123 mins, Criterion, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Commentary by scholars Peter Brunette and Frank Burke; A deleted scene; "Fellini's Homecoming," a new 45-minute documentary on the complicated relationship between Fellini, his hometown, and his past; Video interview with star Magali Noël; Fellini's drawings; "Felliniana," a presentation of Amarcord ephemera ; Audio interviews with Fellini, his friends, and family by Gideon Bachmann; Trailers; A booklet featuring a new essay by Sam Rohdie and Fellini's 1968 memoir, "La mia Rimini". Audio: Italian (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional English subtitles.

The Assassination of Trotsky After having been forced to leave the Soviet Union 1929 Trotsky has ended up in Mexico 1940. He is still busy with the politics. Stalin has sent out an assassin, Frank Jacson. Jacson befriends a young communist and gets an invitation to Trotsky's house.

August in the Empire State Using the tumultuous 2004 Republican Convention and the animated reaction of New Yorkers as its backdrop, August in the Empire State takes the viewer behind the scenes during one of the most intense moments in recent American history. By following a homeless rights activist, a journalist, and a congressional candidate before and during the convention, the film exposes the people and the very personal stakes behind what divides us as a country.

The Bela Lugosi Box Set: 15 Frightful Films In this creepy collection of 15 feature films, Bela Lugosi's villainous versatility is shown off to its best advantage with powerful performances that span more than four decades - from the silent cinema through the Ed Wood years. Most are outright horror films, but some are melodramas, detective stories, and even a few borderline comedies. Lugosi was, of course, the definitive Dracula - a role he created on the Broadway stage in 1927 and immortalized on film in 1931. But Bela was so much more than the caped count. Classically trained on the Hungarian stage, he played everyone from Romeo to Jesus before becoming Hollywood's most recognizable vampire. Bela Lugosi had such a strong presence, he's always memorable - even if some of his films are forgettable. As a bonus, horror great Christopher Lee hosts an affectionate salute to Bela. This 5-disc collection is truly a treat for fans of horror and classic cinema!

Blade Runner:Director's Cut In a cyberpunk vision of the future, man has developed the technology to create replicants, human clones used to serve in the colonies outside Earth but with fixed lifespans. In Los Angeles, 2019, Deckard is a Blade Runner, a cop who specialises in terminating replicants. Originally in retirement, he is forced to re-enter the force when five replicants escape from an offworld colony to Earth.

Blazing Saddles  (Blu-ray) The Ultimate Western Spoof. A town where everyone seems to be named Johnson is in the way of the railroad. In order to grab their land, Hedley Lemar, a politically connected nasty person, sends in his henchmen to make the town unlivable. After the sheriff is killed, the town demands a new sheriff from the Governor. Hedley convinces him to send the town the first Black sheriff in the west. Bart is a sophisticated urbanite who will have some difficulty winning over the townspeople.

Brazil - The Criterion Collection (1985) Previously released by Criterion in a deluxe 3-disc special edition, Terry Gilliam's dark, dense science fiction fantasy gets a stripped-down single-disc edition. An absurdist nightmare of Kafka-esque dimensions, it's like "1984" rewritten by Monty Python, and this features Gilliam's definitive version of the film, culled from materials in numerous different release cuts, in a newly restored high-definition master and a remastered soundtrack. Details: Color, 142 mins, Criterion, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Commentary by Terry Gilliam; Booklet with an essay by Jack Mathews. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround). Optional subtitles.

Broken Trail The best TV western since Lonesome Dove stars Robert Duvall as an aging small rancher who teams up with his estranged nephew (Thomas Haden Church) to drive a herd of horses from Oregon to Wyoming, and winds up a fatherly guardian to five abused Chinese girls sold into prostitution. Walter Hill directs the laconic drama, drawing understated performances from both stars and bringing a hard, unforgiving edge to their world. Greta Scacchi, Chris Mulkey, Rusty Schwimmer , and Gwendoline Yeo co-star in the mini-series originally made for American Movie Classics. Details: Color, 184 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: "Broken Trail: The Making of a Legendary Western" featurette; Bonus Previews. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Charlie and Lola, Vol. 1 Charlie has this little sister Lola. She is small and very funny. Lola will NEVER eat a tomato! She is also not sleepy and will not go to bed. And how will she cope when she is not well and may never smile again? It falls to Charlie to win her around, and he uses every trick in the book ? logic, humor, but mostly, the power of his imagination. Using 2D cel animation, paper cutout, fabric design, photomontage and archive footage, all the distinctive style and exuberance of Lauren Childs award-winning picture books come to life. Glorious music and sound effects help to conjure up fantastical worlds that only a child could invent, while realistic dialogue, voiced by children, ensures these magical adventures really resonate with kids.

Commander in Chief - The Inaugural Edition, Part 2 Episodes 11-18 of the 2005 series starring Geena Davis as President Mackenzie "Mac" Allen, the first female President of the United States. Donald Sutherland is the grasping, scheming, oily Speaker of the House who feels the office is his due and does his best to sabotage her, Kyle Secor is Allen's former Chief of Staff and husband who bristles as he's shifted into the First Gentleman role and Harry Lennix is her new Chief of Staff. Created by Rod Lurie, the show premiered to huge ratings, then faltered when it fell behind schedule and cycled through three different executive producers. Davis won a Golden Globe for her performance. Details: Color, 390 mins, Buena Vista, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Episodes 11-18 from 2005-2006 season on two discs; "A conversation with Madame President" - One-on-one with Geena Davis; Deleted Scenes; "White House Umor" - Bloopers and Outtakes. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Commentary by writer/Producer Dee Johnson ("The Elephant in the Room") (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

Dead Man's Shoes Paddy Considine is a hard-bitten former soldier returns to his rural village to take violent revenge on the local drug dealer (Gary Stretch) and his gang who tormented and killed his simple-minded little brother. Shane Meadows directs from a script he wrote with Considine. Details: Color, 90 mins, Magnolia, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Commentary by director Shane Meadows, co-writer/star Paddy Considine, and producer Mark Herbert; "In Shane's Shoes" featurette; Deleted scene; Alternate ending. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

District B13 (France) Pierre Morel's twist on "Escape From New York" set in 2010 Paris is a lean, clean, adrenaline and indignation-fueled B-movie. Urban athlete David Belle is a ghetto hero arrested for rocking the boat and former stunt man Cyril Raffaelli is the kick-ass undercover cop who reluctantly team-up to stop a drug king from detonating a hijacked nuclear weapon in Paris. Behind the action is an overheated socio-political commentary on the ghettoization of neighborhoods into impoverished prisons, abandoned by civil authority. It's not subtle and the straight-faced outrageousness is as essential to the film's charge as the speed, stunts, and human special effects. Details: Color, 84 mins, Magnolia, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: "The Making of District B13" featurette; Extended Fight Sequence; Outtakes. Audio: French (Dolby Digital 5.1 EX) and English (Dolby Digital 5.1 EX). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Doctor Who: Inferno - Episode 54 An experiment gone awry sends the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) to a parallel universe where his friends and companions are members of a fascist regime in this thrilling and popular episode from the long-running British science fiction series Doctor Who. Inferno is the name of a project designed to drill into the Earth's core and release a powerful energy source called Stahlman's Gas; what's yielded instead is an insidious substance that transforms men into monsters. The resulting chaos interrupts the Doctor's travel in the TARDIS and knocks him into an alternate Earth run by a military dictatorship, and where Project Inferno's progress threatens to bring about an apocalypse. This seven-part story arc from 1970 is a high-water mark for the already superb Pertwee-era Doctor, a tense, imaginative adventure that evokes the U.K.'s chilling Quatermass TV productions and movies in its mix of science fiction and horror. Fans will particularly appreciate the opportunities afforded to longtime Who supporting players Nicholas Courtney (as the Brigadier) and Caroline John (as the Doctor's companion Liz) to step outside their usual roles and essay memorably villainous turns as their parallel-Earth selves. The double-disc presentation of Inferno offers the by-now-standard wealth of extras, including commentary by Courtney, script editor Terrance Dicks, producer/director Barry Letts, and co-star John Levene (Sgt. Benton) and lengthy featurettes on the making of the story and the UNIT brigade during Pertwee's tenure (the latter featuring interviews with much of the supporting cast and crew). A short deleted scene from the episode (featuring Pertwee in a rare second turn as the voice of a radio announcer), a promo film for the BBC Visual Effects Department (which features clips from the Who stories Ambassadors of Death, Caves of Steel, and a missing episode from Doomwatch), and PDF files of the 1971 Doctor Who Annual and Radio Times round out the supplemental features.

Doctor Who: Web Planet - Episode 13 "Somewhere, somehow we are being slowly dragged down!" When Doctor and his friends stray from their astral plane and the Tardis materializes in eerie alien surroundings, a mysterious force prevents them from leaving. Is it a natural phenomenon or some malevolent intelligence? Uncanny occurrences are followed by encounters with the deadly Zarbis and their unknown leader, to whom the travellers fall prey. With their allies, the Menoptra, the travellers must discover how to immobilize the Zarbis, save the Menoptra from massacre and rid the planet of this powerful and horrifying evil. As a growing web begins to envelop the planet, imprisoning the travellers in its mesh, the Doctor must consult all of his wisdom to escape its hypnotic power. But what is at the center of the web and from where does it draw its power?

Escape to Witch Mountain / Return From Witch Mountain Tia (Kim Richards) and Tony (Ike Eisenmann) are two orphaned youngsters with extraordinary powers. Lucas Deranian (Donald Pleasence) poses as their uncle in order to get the kids into the clutches of Deranian's megalomaniacal boss, evil millionaire Aristotle Bolt (Ray Milland), who wants to exploit them. Jason (Eddie Albert), a cynical widower, helps Tia and Tony "escape to witch mountain," while at the same time Tia and Tony help Jason escape the pain of the loss of his wife.

Family - The Complete First and Second Seasons (1976-1977) Sada Thompson and James Broderick are the parents of a modern seventies family in the acclaimed drama series that charted the trials and tribulations of the Lawrence family: attorney father Doug (Broderick), housewife, student and musician Kate (Thompson), eldest daughter and divorced mother Nancy (Elayne Heilveil in the initial 6 episodes, taken over by Meredith Baxter Birney in the second season), teenage son Willie (Gary Frank) and adolescent daughter Buddy (Kristy McNichol). The show, which tacked such issues as child and spousal abuse, teenage drinking and extramarital affairs, began with a 6-season midseason replacement run and went on for four full seasons. Produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg. It won Emmy Awards for supporting performers Gary Frank and Kristy McNichol in its second season. Details: Color, 1328 mins, Sony Pictures, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 28 episodes on six discs. Optional subtitles.

Fantastic Four After exposure to cosmic radiation, four astronauts become the most remarkable, if dysfunctional, superheroes of all time. Unfortunately, the mission's sponsor has also been transformed ? into the world's most lethal supervillain ? setting the stage for a confrontation of epic proportions. Packed with nonstop action, big laughs and awesome special effects, Fantastic 4 is "powerful fun" (The Baltimore Sun) from start to finish!

Firewall  (Blu-ray) With his family held for ransom, the head security executive for a global bank is commanded to loot his own business for millions in order to ensure his wife and children's safety. He then faces the demanding task of thwarting the kidnapper's grand scheme, which makes him look guilty of embezzlement.

Flintstones: Complete Sixth Season (1965-1966) Yaba-daba-doo! The sixth and final season of the first and longest running animated prime time series (until The Simpsons decades later). Think of them as middle class Honeymooners in a prehistoric suburbia full of crazy sight gags, with Fred as Ralph Kramden by way of Sgt. Bilko and Barney a happy-go-lucky, somewhat smarter Ed Norton, always scheming to pull one over on wives Wilma and Betty and, invariably, getting caught. Features guest voices Tony Curtis (The Return of Stony Curtis), Elizabeth Montgomery and Dick York (Samantha), and Harvery Korman as The Great Gazoo in multiple episodes. Details: Color, 690 mins, Warner, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 26 episodes on four discs; The Flintstones Meet Pop Culture: Stephen Baldwin hosts a look at the effect of pop culture on the show, and vice versa; The Great Gazoo: From A to Zetox. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0), Spanish (Dolby Digital 1.0) and French (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional subtitles.

Forensic Investigators Series One You've seen it fictionalized on today's most popular television shows; now watch as the true horror and heroism unfold right before your eyes in this chilling journey into the crimes and minds of actual murderers and serial killers in this six episode series.

Fraggle Rock: The Complete Second Season (1984) Join the Fraggle gang - Red, Gobo, Wembley, Boober, Mokey and Uncle Traveling Matt - in Jim Henson musical Muppet series about a fun-loving group of furry subterranean creatures. Created to entertain kids while also encourage an understanding and embracing of diversity, it found an eager audience among kids and even some adults during its 5 season run on HBO, and its subsequent showings all over the world. Details: Color, 720 mins, 20th Century Fox, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 24 episodes on 5 discs; Jerry Juhl Special Tribute; Exclusive Interviews with the cast. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Frankenstein Unbound The ultimate weapon which was meant to be safe for the mankind produces global side effects including time slides and disappearances. The scientist behind the project and his car are zapped from the year 2031 to 1817's Switzerland where he finds Dr Victor Frankenstein and his contemporaries.

Full Metal Jacket  (Blu-ray) A two-segment look at the effect of the military mindset and war itself on Vietnam era Marines. The first half follows a group of recruits in basic training under the command of the punishing Sgt. Hartman. The second half shows one of those recruits, Joker, covering the war as a correspondent for Stars and Stripes, focusing on the Tet offensive.

Gatchaman Collection 7 (Japan, 1972) The classic animated space opera, about the 5 member superhero team called G-Force that protects planet Earth from the invaders of the planet Spectra, was retitled Battle of the Planets when it played stateside in 1978. This box set feature the original, uncut Japanese editions of episodes 73-84 of the landmark anime series on 2 discs with 5 episodes apiece, plus a bonus disc of supplements, in a box set in a chipboard box with original art by Alex Ross. Details: Color, 300 mins, ADV, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Gatchaman 13, Ghost Water & the Jungle of Death: episodes 73-78; "Minions & Mayhem" commentary with Josh Grelle, Glenn Fraser, and Chris Ayres; New "Gatchaman Karaoke" ; Gatchaman 14, Iron Spiders & Delirium Beams: episodes 79-84; Episode commentary track with Marty Fleck (Director Anderson) and ADR Director Charles Campbell; Clean opening animation; Clean closing animation; Dr. Nambu profile; Character sketches of Dr. Nambu; Interview with voice actor Andy McAvin (Dr. Nambu); Dr. Nambu audition footage; Episode sketches; Gatchaman music; Installment of the Gatchaman Manga: Mortal Blow! Gatchaman Fire; Chipboard box with art by Alex Ross. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Gang Wars Two documentaries about the culture of gangs and street violence in Little Rock, Arkansas, originally made for HBO by Marc Levin. Gang War: Bangin' in Little Rock (1994) profiles members of rival gangs to illustrate the migration of big city gangs to middle America. Back in the Hood: Gang War 2 (2004) follows one of the former gang-leaders after he's released from a ten year prison term. 2 discs. Details: Color, 120 mins, HBO, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: Commentary by producer/director Marc Levin and others; "One Decade Later" interviews; "Notes From the Coroner" interview with county coroner Steve Nawojczyk. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and Spanish. Optional subtitles.

Godzilla: Gojira Deluxe Collector's Edition (Japan, 1954) The mother of all Japanese monster movies created an entire industry, spawned over 20 sequels, and opened the door for a whole host of oversized brethern: Mothra, Rodan, Gamera, and more. But none of them ever matched the righteous anger or terrifying ferocity of the Big G in his first film, who descends upon Tokyo like some biblical retribution. But you've really seen the film until you've watched the the original, uncut, Japanese version of the original atomic monster. Gojira, available for the first time in the U.S., is a much darker film than the American version, with an anti-Atomic Bomb message and references to surviving Hiroshima along with a much slower, moodier build-up in the first act before Godzilla's first appearance. This set also features American version Godzilla: King of the Monsters (1956), which features new footage featuring Raymond Burr and is still 20 minutes shorter than the original version. Details: Black and White, 98 mins, Classic Media, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: Japanese (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional English subtitles.

Heart of Darkness: Vietnam War Chronicles 1945-75 7-part documentary series on the longest military conflict in U.S. history, produced and directed by Edward Feuerherd. 3-disc digipak. Details: Color, 321 mins, Koch Vision, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 4 bonus episodes. Optional subtitles.

House of the Damned An architect and his wife are staying in an empty castle in California. They are joined by an unhappily married lawyer and his wife. Things start getting strange when they spot a half man/half beast prowling around the house and keep seeing a headless woman wandering the grounds.

Hustle - Complete Season One (2004) The con artists are the good guys -- sort of -- in this smooth, sleek, sexy and funny series, a British/American co-production about a team of grifters who team-up to score big scams on some sleazy marks. Yes, these guys have a code, of sorts -- they only target marks that deserve a fleecing -- but who cares. These guys are fun, they're smart, their stylish, and they have a way with spinning a spell that can distract the audience as well as it does their mark. Adrian Lester leads the team as Mickey Bricks, the GQ cover model of the London com game, Marc Warren is Danny Blue, the street-con with attitude who signs on a junior member, Jaime Murray is Stacie Monroe, "the bird" who provides most of the distraction, Robert Glenister is tech expert and forger Ash Morgan, and Robert Vaughn is team mentor and sly father figure Albert Stroller. Details: Color, 356 mins, BBC/Warner, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: "Assembling the Team" featurette; Cast bios; 6 episodes on 2 discs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

I, Vampire - Trilogy of Blood Three short films with vampire themes: Spawn of Hell and Undead Evil (from director Ted Nicolaou) and From the Grave. Each have been edited down from a previously released feature film. Details: Color, 85 mins, Koch Vision, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Optional subtitles.

Jackass - The Movie (Unrated) What do Johnny Knoxville and his gang of Jackasses consider too much for TV? It's all here in this mix of performance art, freak-show exhibitionism, and documentary, a series of stupid human tricks designed to make you laugh, gawk, gasp, and possibly throw up. Details: Color, 88 mins, MTV/Paramount Unrated Special Collector's Edition, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Over 4 minutes of extended scenes added to the original film; Commentary by star Johnny Knoxville with director Jeff Tremaine and cinematographer Dimitry Elyashkevich; Commentary by the cast of Jackasses; The Making of Jackass The Movie MTV special; Outtakes; 27 minutes of additional footage ; "Too Hot for MTV" additional footage; Inside look at Jackass Number Two. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional English subtitles.

Japan's Longest Day (Japan, 1967) Kihachi Okamoto directs Japan's own story of the end of World War II and the events of August 15th, 1945, the day the Emperor announced Japan's surrender. Toshiro Mifune stars as War Minister Anami and Chishu Ryu is the Prime Minister. Also known as The Emperor and the General. Details: Black and White, 158 mins, AnimEigo, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Interactive program notes; Image gallery; Trailers. Audio: Japanese. Optional English subtitles.

Jesse James The railroads are squeezing farmers off their land. When a railroad agent kills their mother, Frank and Jesse James take up robbing banks and trains. The public regard them as heroes. When Jesse retires his erstwhile friend Robert Ford shoots him in the back to get the reward.

Kinky Boots A conservative family shoe business on the verge of bankruptcy takes a radical turn when the young heir (Joel Edgerton) hires a cross dressing cabaret singer (Chiwetel Ejiofor) as their new creative consultant and turns to radical new designs for a new market: drag queens. Sarah-Jane Potts, Linda Bassett, and Nick Frost co-star in the British comedy, inspired by a true story. Details: Color, 107 mins, Miramax, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.40:1. Supplements: Deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Julian Jarrold; "The Real Kinky Boots Factory" featurette; "Journey of a Brogue" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French. Commentary by director Julian Jarrold and stars Joel Edgerton, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Sarah-Jane Potts (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Lethal Weapon  (Blu-ray) Martin Riggs is an L.A. cop with suicidal tendencies and Roger Murtaugh is the unlucky police officer with whom Riggs is assigned. Together they uncover a huge drug-smuggling operation, and as their success rate grows so does their friendship.

Lost: Complete Second Season The mysteries just get more complicated on J.J. Abrams' addictive high concept survival series, about the survivors of a plane crash stranded on a tropical island honeycombed with secret government facilities and already inhabited by an aggressive tribe with a secret agenda. The season begins with the opening of the hatch and the introduction of a whole new mythology involving "The Dharma Initiative," but that's just the beginning of the complications. The rescue mission scuttled at sea washes ashore and discovers more crash survivors on the other side of the island, barely alive after being picked off by "the Others," who continue their raids and infiltrations. Creator Abrams uses these supernatural echoes and conspiratorial hints to keep the show shrouded in a tantalizing mystery, but he finds the most interesting mysteries among the marvelously sculpted characters themselves and the complications to throws in through their flashbacks. It's almost as addictive the second time around. Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Josh Holloway, Naveen Andrews, Terry O'Quinn, Emilie de Ravin, Dominic Monaghan, Daniel Dae Kim, Yoon-jin Kim, Harold Perrineau Jr., and Jorge Garcia are joined this season by Michelle Rodriguez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Cynthia Watros, Sam Anderson, among others. Details: Color, 1056 mins, Buena Vista, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: 24 episodes from the 2005-2006 season on 7 discs; Exclusive unaired flashbacks; LOST connections: interactive experience that plants seeds for season three; Conspiracy theories with creators, writers, fans; Fire and Water: Anatomy of an Episode; Secrets From the Hatch; Deleted Scenes; Bloopers; Channel UK promo directed by David LaChapelle; The World According to Sawyer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Commentary by Executive producers Damon Lindelof, Carleton Cuse, Bryan Burk and Jack Bender on "Man of Science, Man of Faith" (Dolby Digital 2.0), Commentary by director Paul Edwards, Director of Photography Michael Bonvillain, and co-star Evangeline Lilly on "What Kate Did" (Dolby Digital 2.0), Commentary by Executive producers Damon Lindelof, Carleton Cuse and Bryan Burk on "The 23rd Psalm" (Dolby Digital 2.0), Commentary by director Jack Bender, co-stars Jorge Garcia & Cynthia Watros on "Dave" (Dolby Digital 2.0) and Commentary by Co-stars Yunjin Kim and Daniel Dae Kim, writers Elizabeth Sarnoff and Christina M. Kim on "The Whole Truth" (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

Mrs. Parker & the Vicious Circle Dorothy Parker remembers the heyday of the Algonquin Round Table, a circle of friends whose barbed wit, like hers, was fueled by alcohol and flirted with despair.

National Lampoon's Dorm Daze 2 (Unrated) This time, the turf hits the surf as the students of Billingsley U. ditch campus life for fun, sun and high times on the high seas. When the good ship Surveyor leaves port for romantic Mexico, rules, inhibitions and school clothes are quickly cast off as the salty air and the skimpy swimwear get everyone in the mood to mate. All aboard for laughs as these college hotties put the motion in the ocean in this wet 'n' wild romantic comedy.

One Take Only (Thailand, 2001) Oxide Pang (of the Pang Brothers) makes his solo-directorial debut in this thriller about a hooker and a drug dealer who team up for a big score in the Bangkok underworld. Details: Color, 90 mins, Asia Extreme/Tartan, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Film Notes by Justin Bower; "The Making of Oxide Pang's Ab-Normal Beauty" featurette; Trailers. Audio: Thai (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Thai (DTS 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Our Brand Is Crisis Documentary about the strategists-for-hire who shape the messages of political candidates insides and outside of the United States. Director Rachel Boynton follows strategist James Carville, pollster Jeremy Rosner and a team of political consultants as they launch a campaign for Bolivian presidential candidate Gonzalo Sánchez de Loz. Details: Color, 87 mins, Koch Lorber, widescreen. Supplements: Commentary by director Rachel Boynton; Trailer. Audio: and Spanish with English subtitles (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Oz - The Complete Sixth Season The final season of the most violent and volatile show on cable, a testosterone and blood driven soap opera for men that races at a pace untouched by any other show on TV due to its unique structure, and the feuds, the power-plays, the operatic emotions, and the violence never lets up. It all comes to end here: Cyril O'Reilly (Scott Williams Winters) is on death row, the once peaceful Islamic leader Said (Eamonn Walker) seeks to recover his inner peace, and the toxic affair between Beecher (Lee Tergesen) and Keller (Christopher Meloni) takes dramatic and psychotic turns that pull the sadistic Aryan Nations leader Schillinger (J.K. Simmons) back into their lives. Details: Color, 520 mins, HBO, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 8 episodes on 3 discs; Three audio commentaries ("Dead Man Talking," "A Day in the Death" and "Exeunt Omnes") with series creator Tom Fontana, cast members Terry Kinney, Eamonn Walker, Dean Winters, Scott Winters and writer Bradford Winters ; 30 minutes of deleted scenes ; Original cast audition tapes ; Exclusive extended cut of the series finale: "Exeunt Omne". Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

The Palgue Clive Barker is a producer on this apocalyptic horror thriller about a future where the children of the world are sent into a ten year coma and then awaken with a mission to kill all adults. James Van Der Beek, Ivana Milicevic, and Brad Hunt star and Hal Masonberg directs. Features both full screen and widescreen versions on the same disc. Details: Color, 88 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, Academy Ratio, 2.35:1. Supplements: Commentary by the cast and the editor; Deleted scenes. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional French and English subtitles.

Playtime - Criterion Collection (France, 1967) Jacques Tati's masterpiece gets a new special edition with an all-new high-definition transfer. His ever popular Mr. Hulot, the gangly pipe-smoking bachelor, goes to Paris as a tourist in a huge group of French sightseers, American tourists, and urban businesspeople whose paths criss-cross through a largely plotless film. Tati's humor graduates from the inspired to the sublime, his gags layered through every wide, deep focus shots his characters confronting the world on their own terms, and the cast uniting in a brilliant, inclusive third act that moves like a comic ballet. Details: Color, 124 mins, Criterion, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Video introduction by Terry Jones; Selected scene audio commentary by film historian Philip Kemp; Alternate international soundtrack; "Au-delà de Playtime," a short documentary featuring archival behind-the-scenes footage from the set; "Tati Story," a short biographical film about Tati; "Jacques Tati in Monsieur Hulot's Work," a 1976 BBC Omnibus program; Rare audio interview with Tati from the U.S. debut of Playtime; Video interview with script supervisor Sylvette Baudrot; Cours du soir, a 1967 short film written by and starring Tati; Booklet with a new essay by Jonathan Rosenbaum. Audio: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Pride Fighting Championships: Bushido, Vol. 5 No description available

Pride Fighting Championships: Final Conflict 2005 No description available

Running with the Hitman Comedy about a frustrated grandfather (Judd Hirsch), his underachieving son-in-law (Gil Bellows), a low-level mobster who wants to get "made" (Danny Aiello), and his bubbly wife (Mercedes Ruehl), who all collide in an ill-conceived murder plot. Details: Color, 88 mins, Echo Bridge, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

Say Uncle Peter Paige directs and stars as a gay artist whose affection for the local children becomes a neighborhood controversy in this satirical black comedy. Kathy Najimy, Lisa Edelstein, Gabrielle Union, and Melanie Lynskey co-star. Details: Color, 91 mins, TLA, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.77:1. Supplements: Director commentary; Behind-the-scenes featurette; Storyboards; Trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Secrets of Mary Magdalene Documentary on one of the world's most controversial religious figures, based on the non-fiction book of the same title by Dan Burstein and Arne de Keijzer, directed by award-winning filmmaker Rob Fruchtman, and narrated by Marisa Berenson. Also features the bonus program A Mary Magdalene Roundtable: The Experts Speak with six leading experts. Details: Color, 96 mins, Koch Vision, widescreen, 1.78:1. Supplements: "More Secrets of Mary Magdalene" featurette; Trailer. Optional subtitles.

Seven Samurai - Criterion Collection (Japan, 1954) How can you go wrong with the most rousing samurai saga ever made? Americans are constantly remaking this classic (most notably as The Magnificent Seven) but nothing beats the original, starring Kurosawa favorite actors Takashi Shimura as the humble group leader who puts together a fighting force to protect a poor village from bandits and a young, fiery Toshiro Mifune as an angry maverick who invites along on the adventure. At over three hours the film never flags; it ebbs and flows like a tide as each of the hired swords reveals his character during and between battles. As a purely visual display it's astounding, a samurai ballet in the dust and mud. The Seven Samurai is Kurosawa's masterpiece, which (in a career is rich as Kurosawa's) places it in the pantheon. The new 3-disc edition features a new high-definition master and new supplements unavailable on Criterion's first release. Details: Black and White, 207 mins, Criterion, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: All-new, restored high-definition digital transfer ; Two audio commentaries: one by film scholars David Desser, Joan Mellen, Stephen Prince, Tony Rayns, and Donald Richie; the other by Japanese-film expert Michael Jeck ; A 50-minute documentary on the making of Seven Samurai, part of the Toho Masterworks series Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create ; My Life in Cinema, a two-hour video conversation between Akira Kurosawa and Nagisa Oshima produced by the Directors Guild of Japan ; Seven Samurai: Origins and Influences, a new documentary lookimg at the samurai traditions and films that impacted Kurosawa's masterpiece ; Theatrical trailers and teaser ; Gallery of rare posters and behind-the scenes and production stills ; New and improved English subtitle translation ; A booklet featuring essays by Peter Cowie, Philip Kemp, Peggy Chiao, Alain Silver, Kenneth Turan, Stuart Galbraith, Arthur Penn, and Sidney Lumet and an interview with Toshiro Mifune . Audio: Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround) and Japanese (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional English subtitles.

Shock-O-Rama Direct-to-video tribute to the gruesome horror comics of the fifties and the seventies from director Brett Piper. Stars Misty Mundae, Julian Wells, and AJ Kahn. Details: Color, E.I Independent Cinema, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Commentary; Interviews; Behind-the-scenes featurette; New York City premiere. Optional subtitles.

Shock Treatment (1981) Following on from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show", this musical is set several years later in Brad and Janet Majors' hometown - which has become a giant TV station; residents are either participants or viewers. They are married now, but their romance has fallen on the rocks. Ostensibly to fix their marriage, Brad is imprisoned on the program "Dentonvale" (the local mental hospital) while Janet is conscripted to become a new star. As Janet is entranced by the high life, she forgets Brad. Who is trying to woo her away?

Shooting the Past (1999) British TV mini-series from writer/director Stephen Poliakoff, about a corporate representative trying to turn a country house into a modern business school while the staff, which curates a unique photographic collection at the home, resists his efforts. Lindsay Duncan, Timothy Spall, Liam Cunningham, Billie Whitelaw, and Emilia Fox star. 2 discs. Details: Color, 183 mins, BBC/Warner, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Commentary by writer/director Stephen Poliakoff, composer Adrian Johnston, and production designer JP Kelly; Interviews with Stephen Poliakoff and the cast; Photo montage. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0). Optional English subtitles.

Silent Partner Murder mystery starring Nick Moran as a young CIA analyst investigating the apparent suicide of an international businessman and Tara Reid as a mysterious woman whose link to the dead man puts her own life in peril. Gregg Henry co-stars. Details: Color, Ventura. Optional subtitles.

Silk Stalkings: Complete Fifth Season Cassandra "Cassy" St. John and Tom Ryan are the new duo in town. It is now their job to catch the killers of Palm Beach. They are ex-partners, who got married, and then divorced. Now they are partnered together again. Rita left the show to care for her and Chris's unborn child.

Sister Street Fighter Collection No description available

Stupidity What is America's fascination with stupidity? This documentary looks at the "dumbing down" of contemporary culture through television news, reality shows, internet sites and popular films and the comments of John Cleese, Noam Chomsky, Salma Hayek and Bill Maher. Details: Color, 77 mins, Disinformation, widescreen, 1.78:1. Supplements: Commentary by director Albert Nerenberg; Extended interviews with Noam Chomsky, Bill Maher, Joel Schumacher, and others; Documentary Channel interview with director Albert Nerenberg. Optional subtitles.

Supernatural - The Complete First Season The youth take on Kolchak: The Night Stalker by way of X-Files style drops two estranged brothers (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) into a '67 Chevy Impala and on the road to find their missing father, who has been obsessed with unexplained phenomenon and supernatural lore ever since his wife -- their mother -- died in one of the freakiest spectacles you've seen on network TV. Their a pair of junior Mulders without a badge but plenty of fake ID and smooth lines, and a trunk full of equipment bought from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer fire sale. It's shot in Vancouver and features the same dark forests and foggy backroads that defined the look of X-Files and pilot director David Nutter (an X-Files veteran) pushes that resemblance as far as he can. Details: Color, 968 mins, Warner, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.77:1. Supplements: 22 episodes on six discs; Commentary on "Pilot" by creator Eric Kripke, director David Nutter, and producer Peter Johnson; Commentary on "Phantom Traveler" by Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles ; "Supernatural: Tales from the Edge of Darkness" - 15 minute never-before-seen making of documentary ; "Day in the Life of Jared and Jensen" - Never-before-seen featurette focusing on Jared and Jensen on the set of Supernatural ; Gag reel ; Unaired scenes ; Still gallery; DVD-ROM capabilities with link to exclusive website content featuring a sneak-peek into season 2, original pilot script, access to Dean's computer and much more. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish, Portuguese and French subtitles.

Tales from the Grave Trilogy of horror tales about the dead rising up for revenge, from executive producer Charles Band: Beyond Death, Brides of the Dead, and The Rotting Dead. Each have been edited down from a previously released feature film. Details: Color, 85 mins, Koch Vision, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Optional subtitles.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Volume 5 12 episodes from the third season of the animated series about four pet store turtles flushed into the sewers and mutated into a pizza-munching fighting force. Details: Color, 289 mins, Lionsgate, Academy Ratio. Supplements: 12 episodes on 1 disc. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

The Ten Commandments - The Complete Miniseries Dougray Scott is Moses and Omar Sharif is Jethro in the recent TV miniseries version of the bible story. Naveen Andrews, Linus Roache, Mia Maestro, Richard O'Brien, Paul Rhys, Susan Lynch, and Claire Bloom co-star and Robert Dornhelm directs. Details: Color, 176 mins, Echo Bridge, widescreen, 1.78:1. Supplements: "The Making of The Ten Commandments" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional subtitles.

Three Musketeers (1966) Jeremy Brett is D'Artagnan, Gary Watson is Aramis, and Brian Blessed is Porthos in the 10-part BBC mini-series, directed by Peter Hammond and broadcast 40 years ago. 2 discs. Details: Black and White, 243 mins, Koch Vision, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 1.0). Optional subtitles.

The True Story of Jesse James Legendary fifties director Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without A Cause) retells the Jesse James saga, starring Robert Wagner as the legendary bank robber. As Jesse James attempts to evade the law, those who know him best -- his brother Frank (Jeffrey Hunter), wife (Hope Lange) and mother (Agnes Moorehead) -- ponder the question, "What turned this simple farmboy to a life of lawlessness?" And as Jesse continues his ride into notoriety, the key events in his life are scrutinized in a desperate attempt to close in on him for good.

Toshiro Mifune - The Ultimate Collection (Japan) Box set of 5 samurai classics starring Toshiro Mifune. In Samurai Assassin (1965), directed by Okamoto Kihachi, he's a scruffy swordsman who joins a secret sect plotting to assassinate the Emperor's advisor, who has built himself up to become the most powerful man in Japan. Samurai Banners (1969), from director Inagaki Hiroshi, is a sweeping story of two men attempting to build an empire in 16th century Japan. In Red Lion (1969), he plays a common stablehand who returns to his village impersonating a great military officer just as the corrupt governor has kidnapped a number of locals. And finally, Mifune revives his beloved rogue samurai character Yojimbo in Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo (1970), his only showdown with Shintaru Katsu's legendary samurai character, and in Incident at Blood Pass (1970), hired for an assignment so mysterious that he isn't even told what it is. Details: Color/Black and White, 639 mins, AnimEigo, widescreen. Audio: Japanese. Optional English subtitles.

Twitches An original Disney Movie which is based on a best selling book series with the same name, starring one of the famous twins, Tia and Tamera Mowry as Alex Fielding and Camryn Barnes who was separated at birth. Taken each by their protectors, Karsh and Illeana to their safety to the next dimension, during in the peak of the war between Coventry and the Darkness, after it had taken the life of their father, Aron who had given them his every drop of powers to each of them.

United 93 The first theatrical feature to deal with the events of September 11 imagines the drama aboard United 93, the lone flight that never reached its objective. Upon getting cell phone messages about the attacks upon the Twin Towers, the passengers rose up against the hijackers and grounded the plane. Paul Greengrass, who knows something about recreating touchy human tragedies (see the powerful Bloody Sunday), casts unknowns in the passenger roles (some of the real life tower crew even play themselves) and shoots the drama like a real-time documentary. While no one will ever know the real drama that unfolded in the air, this portrait pays tribute to the ordinary Americans with a respectful dignity. Available in separate widescreen and fullscreen editions. Details: Color, 111 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Feature Commentary with Director Paul Greengrass; "United 93: The Families and the Film" featurette; Memorial Pages. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), French (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

United 93 The first theatrical feature to deal with the events of September 11 imagines the drama aboard United 93, the lone flight that never reached its objective. Upon getting cell phone messages about the attacks upon the Twin Towers, the passengers rose up against the hijackers and grounded the plane. Paul Greengrass, who knows something about recreating touchy human tragedies (see the powerful Bloody Sunday), casts unknowns in the passenger roles (some of the real life tower crew even play themselves) and shoots the drama like a real-time documentary. While no one will ever know the real drama that unfolded in the air, this portrait pays tribute to the ordinary Americans with a respectful dignity. Available in separate widescreen and fullscreen editions. Details: Color, 111 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Feature Commentary with Director Paul Greengrass; "United 93: The Families and the Film" featurette; Memorial Pages. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), French (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Unknown White Male: A True Story Rupert Murray's documentary about Doug Bruce, a man who reportedly lost his memory sometime between July 1 and July 3, 2003, and found himself aboard a Coney Island subways with no idea of who was or where he came from. There's been some controversy about this film, which has come under scrutiny concerning Murray's relationship to Bruce (they were friends before the memory loss) and vague details surrounding Bruce's affliction. Details: Color, 88 mins, Wellspring/Genius, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: "Visualizing Memory: Making of…" featurette; "Where He Is Now" featurette; Interviews with friends; Extended interviews with experts; Q&A with the director and producer; Original Sand Dune sequence. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional subtitles.

Vermilion Pleasure Night Vol. 1 - Optical Erotica (Japan) The late-night variety show that spawned the surreal cult series The Fuccons (aka Oh! Mikey) plays like an avant-garde sketch comedy show by way of MTV on hallucinogens. Dancing girls perform strange routines between sexually charged English lessons, mannequin sitcom weirdness, and animated sequences. Features episodes 1 and 2. Details: Color, 100 mins, ADV, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: Japanese (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Viva Zapatero No description available

Where There's a Will A loser con artist (Frank Whaley) thinks he has a sure thing when he's asked to take care of his ailing grandmother (Marion Ross), but getting the inheritance turns out to be trickier than he thought. Keith Carradine co-stars in the TV-movie comedy. Details: Color, 86 mins, Echo Bridge, widescreen. Optional subtitles.

Monday, August 28, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Arrested Development S3, Lonesome Jim, Romancing the Stone & More! - Xoanon @ 11:49 PST
9/11 Commemorative Box Set: No description available

The Abs Diet Workout, Vol. 2: David Zinczenko, Editor in Chief of Men's Health Magazine, with Ted Spiker reveal how to reshape your body in The Abs Diet Workout 2, as based on the new, best selling book The Abs Diet Get Fit, Stay Fit plan. The Abs Diet Workout 2 introduces a new workout system -ABS3- based on simple, highly effective principles to help you lose weight and tone your body.

Agatha Christie: A Life in Pictures: Olivia Williams plays Agatha Christie in this TV-movie biographical drama based around her real-life 11-day disappearance in 1962, with flashbacks to her earlier life. Anna Massey plays the aged Christie and Raymond Coulthard and Anthony O'Donnell co-star. Previously available in the box set Agatha Christie's Romantic Detectives. Details: Color, 90 mins, Acorn, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Agatha Christie archival photo gallery; Cast filmographies. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Akeelah and the Bee: Doug Atchison's heartwarming odyssey of a diminutive girl (the adorable Keke Palmer) from South Central L.A. who spells her way to the National Spelling Bee finals is a celebratory drama engineered to leave you choked up and cheering. Laurence Fishburne, who is also the producer, plays the resistant college professor who becomes her coach and mentor and Angela Basset is her overworked mother. The inspirational drama celebrates pride in intelligence and scholastic achievement, an idea worth spelling out to a young audience. Available in separate widescreen and full frame editions. Details: Color, 112 mins, Lionsgate, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: "The Making of Akeelah and the Bee" featurette; "Two Peas in a Pod" featurette; "Inside the Mind of Akeelah" featurette; Deleted scenes; Gag reel; Music video. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

American Gun: Linda Cardellini, Tony Goldwyn, Donald Sutherland, Forest Whitaker, and Marcia Gay Harden are among the disparate people whose lives are impacted by gun violence and its ricochets in the American indie drama co-written and directed by Aric Avelino. Forest Whitaker also produces. Details: Color, 95 mins, IFC/Genius, Widescreen anamorphic. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

The Best Of The Awful Truth: (1999-2000) 6 handpicked episodes of Michael Moore's Emmy-nominated, hell-raising documentary series, a satirical skew on American politics and policy. Details: Color, 180 mins, Docurama, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Commentary on 2 episodes by Michael Moore; Michael Moore bio. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

The Andy Griffith Show - The Complete Seventh Season: It was a colorful season seven for The Andy Griffith Show, 30 more fun-filled visits to the familiar streets of Mayberry, and to the warm-hearted folks who brought the town to life. By all accounts, this was the most successful season yet for the critically acclaimed family show. It was the top-rated half-hour of the 1966-’67 season and earned two Emmy® Awards for the supporting work of Don Knotts (as fumbling Barney Fife) and Frances Bavier (as beloved Aunt Bee). Relive your favorite Mayberry moments and join Andy (Andy Griffith), Opie (Ron Howard), Floyd (Howard McNear, in his final season) and the rest of the town for this five-disc odyssey to a time and place when mistakes, misadventures, and even disagreements eventually would work out just fine.

An Image: (Germany, 1983) Noted documentary filmmaker Harun Farocki chronicles the shooting of a Playboy centerfold. Details: Color, 25 mins, Facets, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Cine-Notes Collectible Booklet. Audio: German. Optional English subtitles.

Arrested Development: Season 3: Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), a widower with a 13-year-old son, named George-Michael (Michael Cera), is forced to keep his large and dysfunctional family together after his father (Jeffery Tambor) is arrested for shifty accounting practices at the family-owned conglomerate and the Bluth family assets are frozen, making each member of the eccentric family panicing. Michael's snobbish mother, Lucille (Jessica Walter), finds herself living alone in a penthouse without the financial means to maintain it, while Michael's two brothers, GOB (Will Arnett) and Buster (Tony Hale), and his sister Lindsay (Portia DeRossi) with her husband Tobias (David Cross) and her daughter Mae (Alia Shawkat) also find themselves having to recreate their lifestyles to fit their new financial status.

Baghdad ER: A camera crew captures the day-to-day lives of the doctors, nurses, medics, chaplains, and soldiers in the 86th Combat Support Hospital in documentary originally made for HBO. Details: Color, 64 mins, HBO, widescreen, 1.78:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Bill's Dirty Shorts: A Collection of Bill Plympton's Newest Naughty Shorts: No description available

Black Cat: No description available

Black Pit of Dr. M. (Misterios de ultratumba): AKA Misterios de Ultratumba. By day, Dr. Mazali (Rafael Bertrand) runs an insane asylum. By night, he lashes out at the veil between this life and the next, desperate to contact his former partner, Dr. Harrison Aldeman (Jacinto Aldama), who was executed for a crime he did not commit. What follows is madness, tragedy, agonizing violence and the unrelenting horror of infinite damnation.

Brainiac AKA El Baron Del Terror: In 1661 Mexico, the Baron Vitelius of Astara is sentenced to be burned alive by the Holy Inquisition of Mexico for witchcraft, necromancy, and other crimes. As he dies, the Baron swears vengeance against the descendants of the Inquisitors. 300 years later, a comet that was passing overhead on the night of the Baron’s execution returns to earth, bringing with it the Baron in the form of a horrible, brain-eating monster that terrorizes the Inquisitor’s descendants.

Brother Bear 2: The direct-to-DVD sequel to the animated Disney adventure follows the odyssey of brother bears Kenai and Koda as they go on a great journey with Nita. Features the voices of Mandy Moore, Patrick Dempsey, Jeremy Suarez, Michael Clarke Duncan, Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, Andrea Martin, Catherine O'Hara, Kathy Najimy, and Wanda Sykes, plus new songs by Melissa Etheridge. Details: Color, 70 mins, Disney, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Behind The Music Of Brother Bear 2; Game: Trample Off, Eh?. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0), French (Dolby Digital 2.0) and English (DTS 5.1). Optional subtitles.

The Castle of Cagliostro (Lupin the III) - Special Edition: Reknowned international thief Lupin III (known as "Wolf" in the English dub) comes to the small European duchy of Cagliostro to investigate some excellently-forged money and stumbles across a national conspiracy going back some hundreds of years. Lupin and his friends must rescue the beautiful Clarice from the hands of the evil Count Cagliostro and solve the mystery of a hidden treasure dating back to the 15th century.

Charles Bukowski Tapes: When Barbet Schroeder (More, General Idi Amin Dada, Single White Female) began work on the movie Barfly, he had no idea that it would be such a struggle. During the seven years it took him to complete the film, he turned his cameras on its screenwriter, poet and novelist Charles Bukowski.

Criss Angel: Mindfreak - Halloween: Halloween special with 21st century magician Criss Angel. Details: Color, 96 mins, A&E, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Two "best of" episodes from the first season of Criss Angel: Mindfreak. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Christie Malry's Own Double-Entry: Black comedy, based on the cult novel by B.S. Johnson, about a working-class bank clerk (Nick Moran) who avenges the imagined and real slights against him with acts of revenge that spiral out of control. Paul Tickell directs. Details: Color, 91 mins, Image, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional subtitles.

Criterion Coll: Seduced & Abandoned: Agnese a 15-year-old Sicilian girl is seduced and impregnated by Peppino, her sister's Matilde fiancé;. Soon Vincenzo, Agnese's father, discovers everything and after had hit like hell his daughter run to Peppino house and did the same. He also oblige Peppino to marry the `dishonored' Agnese instead than Matilde.Peppino run away and Vincenzo send his son Antonio to kill him!! At this point Agnese go to the police to try to stop the events. They all are taken to the court. But the events couldn't be stop, there is still space for a fake kidnapping! An happy end is still possible.

Colossal Sensation: (Hungary) Political satire of circus twins in 1950s Hungary separated when joke upsets local Communist Party officials, sending one to the gulag and another into the crucible of the 1956 Budapest revolution. Robert Koltai directs. Details: Color, 95 mins, Bunyik/Facets, widescreen. Supplements: "Making of" featurette; Trailer. Audio: Hungarian. Optional English subtitles.

Colossal Sensation: Documentary mini-series profiling the comedy legends that came from Canada, from Rich Little, Tommy Chong and the SCTV stars to Michael J. Fox, Mike Myers, and the Kids in the Hall, with directors Norman Jewison and Ivan Reitman and producer Lorne Michaels tossed in for good measure. 180 minutes in all. Details: Color, 180 mins, SRO/Kultur, widescreen, 1.78:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Curse of Lizzy Borden: No description available

Darkwing Duck-V01: In the city of St. Canard, they are plagued by the most bizarre criminals, but they have a protector as well, Darkwing Duck. This bumbling and egotistical superhero battles evil in that fair city with the help of his dumb pilot sidekick, Launchpad McQuack and his rambuctious adopted daughter, Gosalyn.

Desperate Housewives - The Complete Second Season: In its first season, the show reveals the mystery of why Mary Alice took her own life and the quest by a mysterious "plumber" named Mike Delfino (James Denton) to find out the fate of his former lover, drug addict Dierdre. By the end of the season, the show resolves the mystery with the revelation that 15 years ago, when Mary Alice's name was Angela Forrest, she buys the heroin-addicted Dierdre's only son Dana, and then flees with her husband Todd (now Paul) to Fairview (the town Housewives is set in) to keep the child (now named Zach) from being taken away from them. When Dierdre finds them, Mary Alice refuses to give up the child. Upon being accused of being back on drugs, Dierdre hits Paul (Mary Alice's husband) and goes to get her son. Mary Alice, shocked, murders her, checks her arm for signs of drug use (she was not), and has her horrified husband dismember the body, put it in Zach's toy-chest, and bury it where the family is building a new pool in their backyard. All this happens while a 4-year-old Zach is watching them from the staircase. What Mary Alice does not count on is that one of her neighbors, Martha Huber, learns of Mary Alice's secret from her sister, Felicia, (with whom Mary Alice had worked before coming to Fairview). After learning the secret, Martha attempts to blackmail Mary Alice. Rather than face the blackmail, Mary Alice kills herself. Later, when Paul finds this out, he kills Martha after she tells him she does not have any regrets about her blackmailing and its result. Mike (Dierdre's former lover) learns of this information from Paul whom Mike leaves in the desert (rather than killing) after Mike realizes that Zach is his son.

Duck Season: (Mexico) A breezy slacker comedy about a couple of school chums (Diego Cataño and Daniel Miranda) on a lazy Sunday afternoon, a flirtatious neighbor girl who commandeers their kitchen, and a nerdy pizza delivery guy who refuses to leave. Shot in black-and-white and directed at the lolling pace of an all-night bull session, it's a low key, underplayed comedy of day tripping captured with a deadpan appreciation of the quirky absurdity of it all. Fernando Eimbcke directs. Details: Color, 91 mins, Warner, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Trailer. Audio: Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Epitafios - The Complete First Season: A teacher took as hostage 4 students so the school authorities would listen to his demands. Due to an accident, the 4 students died that night. 5 years later, the corpse of that teacher is found, along with 2 graves that bears the names of 3 people who were directly involved with the incident that night; focusing particulary on Laura Santini (a psychologist) and Renzo Marquez (a policeman that retired after the incident and now works as a taxi driver). Following the clues left in the crime scene, soon they realize that the person behind it has been planning a series of murders for the last 5 years, and that he intends to kill everyone who was involved with the school incident; leaving Laura and Renzo for the end.

Flavor of Love - The Complete First Season: In "Flavor of Love," 20 single women from all walks of life, selected for their expressed love for Flav, move into a "phat crib" in Los Angeles and vie for his affection. With help and advice from Big Rick, Flav's gigantic body-guard and chauffeur, Flavor Flav will date all of the women, weed out the ones who are only after his fame and fortune...and in the end will choose his one true love.

Fourteen Hours: A young man, morally destroyed by his parents not loving him and by the fear of being not capable to make his girlfriend happy, rises on the ledge of a building with the intention of committing suicide. A policeman makes every effort to argue him out of that.

Friends with Money: Frances McDormand, Joan Cusack, and Catherine Keener are the friends referred to in the title, women with husbands, money, and a bump in status from their previous lives, and Jennifer Aniston is their free-and-easy, unmarried college friend who gave up her teaching career (and much of her ambition) to become a housekeeper, in Nicole Holofcener's comic drama set in the spendy suburbs of Los Angeles. The ensemble piece about class, career, money, and degrees of happiness also features Simon McBurney, Jason Isaacs, Scott Caan, and Greg Germann. Details: Color, 90 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, Academy Ratio, 2.35:1. Supplements: Commentary by writer/director Nicole Holofcener and producer Anthony Bregman; Behind-the-scenes featurette; Los Angeles Premiere featurette; Sundance Film Festival featurette; DVD contains both widescreen and full screen formats. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional French and English subtitles.

Galaxina: Crew of interstellar police ship is sent to recover a mysterious crystal, the blue star. Sub Plots: The ships female android and a crew member fall in love. Alien is spoofed as as the captain gives birth to an alien who grows up on the ship thinking the captain is its mother

Golub/Spero: Collection of art documentaries from Chicago's Kartemquin Film collective. Golub: Late Works Are the Catastrophes (1988) profiles the work of Leon Golubm, whose work confronts nightmarish images of war, torture, death squads and mercenaries. Also features two short documentaries on his wife and studio partner, feminist and anti-war artist Nancy Spero: Woman As Protagonist: The Art Of Nancy Spero and Nancy Spero in the NYC Subway. Details: Color, Kartemquin/Facets, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Galleries spanning five decades of both artists' work; Interview with the director of Golub: Late Works Are the Catastrophes; Outtakes. Optional subtitles.

The Hard Corps: Another Jean-Claude Van Damme action movie ends up going direct to video. Viviva A. Fox co-stars in this one, an urban thriller set in the world of rap and revenge. Sheldon Lettich directs. Details: Color, 110 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Her Majesty: (2001) Family drama from New Zealand about a 13-year-old girl who befriends an elderly Maori woman (Vicky Haughton) on the eve of a visit from the Queen of England, and is changed by the old woman's stories of her tribe's history and culture. Details: Color, 105 mins, Image, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: "Making of" featurette; Trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Joan Rivers - Live at the London Palladium: Stand-up comedy concert featuring Joan Rivers in her first annual farewell tour. Details: Color, 63 mins, SRO/Kultur, Academy Ratio. Optional subtitles.

Iron Island: (Iran) Mohammad Rasoulof's lyrical drama of a cast-off population living on an abandoned oil tanker and the patriarch/landlord/benign dictator (Ali Nasirian) who connives to keep his makeshift society afloat and functioning is part utopian fairy tale and part cautionary drama. Details: Color, 90 mins, Kino, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Still gallery; Trailer. Audio: Persian. Optional English subtitles.

The Jewel of the Nile: SE: This is the sequel to "Romancing the Stone" where Jack and Joan have their yacht and easy life, but are gradually getting bored with each other and this way of life. Joan accepts an invitation to go to some middle eastern country as a guest of the sheik, but there she is abducted and finds her- self involved with the "jewel". Jack decides to rescue her with his new partner Ralph. They all go from one adventure to another... What is the story of this "jewel"?

Kill Your Idols: Documentary on the history of the New York art-punk scene from the late 1970s to the 1980s, featuring Lydia Lunch, Sonic Youth, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and more. Scott Crary directs. Details: Color, 71 mins, Palm. Supplements: Bonus interviews and performances; Live clips; Photo galleries; Trailers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

The Kingston Trio Story - Wherever We May Go: In 1958 three young men known as The Kingston Trio recorded a simple folk tune called "Tom Dooley." In less than a year, they were major stars with the best-selling album in the country. The Kingston Trio Story: Wherever We May Go celebrates the group’s musical hits and sheds light on their fascinating and largely unknown 50-year history through rare performance footage and revealing interviews with band members and friends.

Kissing on the Mouth: Raw. Honest. Naked. "Kissing on the Mouth" is post-college life in close-up. Ellen is sleeping with her ex-boyfriend while trying to ignore the fact that he's looking for more than just sex. Her roommate, Patrick, isn't helping matters with his secretive and jealous behavior. The small cast served as the only crew on this intimate and humorous film featuring real interviews with recent college graduates and a documentary approach to the graphic sex and conversations.

Let's Scare Jessica to Death: Jessica (Zohra Lampert) has just been released from a mental hospital. Wanting to "start over", she moves into an old New England farmhouse with her husband (Barton Heyman) and a friend (Kevin O'Connor). Before they even arrive Jess starts having strange encounters, and after they find a young transient in their new home (Mariclaire Costello), things start getting rather nasty. Seems this redheaded hippie chick is in fact a vampire, a onetime resident of the house who drowned on her wedding day, and all the old guys in town are her harpies (they all have scarred necks and arms). Or is Jess really having another breakdown? Who knows...

Life After Death Row: No description available

Lonesome Jim: Steve Buscemi's third film as a director is a shaggy independent comedy about a would-be writer (Casey Affleck) who moves back to his small town home and dysfunctional family. Liv Tyler is his single mom girlfriend (who, apparently, find gloom, defeatism and depression endearing), Kevin Corrigan his suicidal older brother, and Mary Kay Place and Seymour Cassel his parents. Details: Color, 91 mins, IFC/Genius, widescreen. Supplements: Commentary by director Steve Buscemi and writer James C. Strouse; "Making of" featurette. Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

The Best Of Mr. Bean: (1990-1995) 5 favorite episodes of the original British comedy series starring Rowan Atkinson as the bumbling goofball in (mostly) silent movie skits of modern life, including the pilot episode and the Christmas episode. Details: Color, 125 mins, A&E, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: Five fan-selected sketches, including "Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean"; "The Story of Bean": 40-minute documentary; Rowan Atkinson biography and filmography. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World: Albert Brooks always seems to be playing exaggerated versions of himself, but this time he is Albert Brooks, comedian, sent by the government on a mission to find what makes the Muslim world laugh. John Carroll Lynch and Jon Tenney play the two state department handlers who accompany his combination research mission and stand-up comedy tour, and Sheetal Sheth and Fred Dalton Thompson co-star. Details: Color, 98 mins, Warner, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Additional scenes; Theatrical trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Mountain Patrol: Kekelixi: (China) Drama about a Beijing journalist (Zhang Lei) who arrives in a remote Tibetan village and ends up as part of a vigilante posse on the trail of poachers decimating the sacred antelope population of the area. Lu Chian directs. Details: Color, 89 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.40:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French and English subtitles.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: 10: When zany mad scientist Dr. Clayton Forrester (Trace Beaulieu) and his loopy assistant Frank (Frank Conniff) get bored with their work at the Deep Thirteen research center, they kidnap Joel the janitor (Joel Hodgson) and shoot him into orbit on the Satellite of Love. While in space Joel builds wacky robot sidekicks Tom Servo (Kevin Murphy) and Crow T. Robot (also Trace Beaulieu) to help him withstand an onslaught of grade 'Z' movies that the mad scientists force him to watch.

NASCAR Driven to Win - Season 1: Documentary series that takes viewers behind the scenes of the NASCAR circuit with 13 up-and-coming drivers on and off the track. 2 discs. Details: Color, The Biography Channel, Widescreen letterbox, 1.78:1. Supplements: All Access: NASCAR behind the scenes; Hot Laps: Driver Q&A; Driver bios; 1.78 widescreen letterbox format. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Nip/Tuck - The Complete Third Season: Sean McNamara and Christian Troy are two plastic surgeons running a partnership in Miami, Florida with different issues to life. Sean is a wishy-washy, weak-kneed, family man who distances himself with work to avoid his dysfunctional home life which includes his needy and spiteful wife Julia, his rebellious teenage son Matt and young daughter Annie. The more slicker Christian is an arrogant, narcissistic, unethical, ladies man who worships wine, women, and the all mighty dollar, and will do just about anything to get what he wants (lie, cheat, steal, blackmail and seduce)and has no qualms about practically anything.

Nobelity: A look at the future through the eyes of nine Nobel Laureates (Wangari Maathai, Joseph Rotblat, Amartya Sen, Richard Smalley, Desmond Tutu, Harold Varmus, Steven Weinberg, Jody Williams, and Ahmed Zewail), who discuss the world's most pressing problems and offer insights into their solutions. Turk Pipkin directs. Details: Color, 84 mins, Monterey Video, Widescreen letterbox. Supplements: Profiles of the Nobel Laureates; Director's statement; Call to Action; Slide show; Trailer. Optional subtitles.

Old Grey Whistle Test 3: (1971-1987) 28 more performance highlights from the live BBC rock and roll music showcase featuring Jackson Browne, Fairport Convention, Supertramp, Janis Ian, The Jam, B.B. King, Joe Jackson, Simple Minds, Lone Justice, The Bangles and others. Details: Color, 145 mins, BBC/Warner, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: Commentary by presenters Mark Ellen, David Hepworth, and Andy Kershaw; Reminiscences by Roger Daltrey, Jools Holland, Rick Wakeman, Bob Geldof, Roddy Frame and others; Artists' gallery. Optional English subtitles.

Portrait: This unusually touching memoir, released in 1994, finds John Denver speaking directly to his longtime fans as well as fellow environmentalists, peace advocates, and die-hard romantics. Seated comfortably on a rustic fence or rock wall, his beloved Rocky Mountains in the background, the middle-aged Denver recalls highlights from his life and career: a youth spent in Oklahoma, Arizona, and Alabama before Colorado won his heart; the way a camping trip and the Perseids meteor shower led to composing "Rocky Mountain High"; his adventures with Jacques Cousteau while writing "Calypso." There's plenty of video accompaniment, including old performance footage, deep-sea imagery, documentary material on the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, and even custom-made music videos to dress up the sexy "Don't Close Your Eyes Tonight" and Jimmy Webb's haunting composition, "Postcards from Paris (Wish You Were Here)." Most of all, there's John Denver's striking if low-key humanity, his finest asset as an artist.

Pretty in Pink: Everything's Duckie Edition: Young Andie is one of the not-so-popular girls in high school. She usually hangs out with her friends Iona or Duckie. Duckie has always had a crush on her, but now she has met a new guy from school, Blane. He's one of the rich and popular guys but can the two worlds meet?

Private: (Italy) Tinto Brass's erotic comedy follows the sexy adventures of six young couples in six different stories. Available in separate English language and a longer Italian language versions. Details: Color, 87 mins, Cult Epics, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: "Making of" featurette; Photo gallery; Bonus XXX rated photo gallery; Tinto Brass trailers. Audio: Italian. Optional English subtitles.

Romancing the Stone: The writer of romantic novels Joan Wilder travels to south America to look for and rescue her kidnapped sister. She finds herself stranded in the jungles and finds help in the form of the soldier of fortune Jack Colton. The two go through a number of adventures, deal with the bad villains Ralph and company, and end up falling in love.

Roseanne: Halloween Special: (1988-1997) Seven Halloween episodes from the hit sitcom collected on a single disc. Details: Color, 186 mins, Anchor Bay, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Commentary by Roseanne. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Savage Sinema from Down Under: From revered Australian filmmaker Mark Savage (Best Director, Melbourne Underground Film Festival 2000), SAVAGE SINEMA FROM DOWN UNDER is a collection of the most erotic, violent and controversial films ever made, including DEFENCELESS (Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Actress; Melbourne Underground Film Festival 2005), SENSITIVE NEW AGE KILLER (the most successful independent release ever in Australia) and MARAUDERS. A bonus fourth disc includes Savage¹s poignant cable TV drama STAINED (based on true events; shot on HD) plus a collection of his early super-8 horror and fantasy shorts. Exclusive commentaries, featurettes and still galleries as well as production diary booklets round out this impressive set.

Sentinel: Michael Douglas is a veteran Secret Service agent framed in a conspiracy to assassinate the American President and Kiefer Sutherland is the investigator on his trail, a former friend turned rival and a relentless agent, in the slickly executed thriller. Adapted from a novel by Secret Service veteran turned author Gerald Petievich and directed by Clark Johnson, it co-stars Eva Longoria, Martin Donovan, and Kim Basinger. Available in separate widescreen and fullscreen versions. Details: Color, 108 mins, 20th Century Fox, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.40:1. Supplements: Commentary by director Clark Johnson and screenwriter George Nolfi; Alternate ending and deleted scenes with optional commentary by screenwriter George Nolfi; "The Secret Service: Building on a Tradition of Excellence" featurette; "In the President's Shadow: Protecting the President" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround) and French (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Sentinel: Michael Douglas is a veteran Secret Service agent framed in a conspiracy to assassinate the American President and Kiefer Sutherland is the investigator on his trail, a former friend turned rival and a relentless agent, in the slickly executed thriller. Adapted from a novel by Secret Service veteran turned author Gerald Petievich and directed by Clark Johnson, it co-stars Eva Longoria, Martin Donovan, and Kim Basinger. Available in separate widescreen and fullscreen versions. Details: Color, 108 mins, 20th Century Fox, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.40:1. Supplements: Commentary by director Clark Johnson and screenwriter George Nolfi; Alternate ending and deleted scenes with optional commentary by screenwriter George Nolfi; "The Secret Service: Building on a Tradition of Excellence" featurette; "In the President's Shadow: Protecting the President" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround) and French (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Some Kind of Wonderful (Special Collector's Edition): A young tomboy, Watts, finds her feelings for her best friend, Keith, run deeper than just friendship when he gets a date with the most popular girl in school. Unfortunately, the girl's old boyfriend, who is from the rich section of town, is unable to let go of her, and plans to get back at Keith.

Smut: (1999) Lee Holmes plays a man on a spiritual journey that lands him working in an adult bookstore and turning his video interviews into a community controversy in the indie production from David Wendell. Jenette Goldstein, Maxwell Caulfield, Mark Boone Junior, and Melvin Van Peebles co-star. Details: Color, 89 mins, Future Farmers.Ryko, widescreen. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional subtitles.

South Park: Season 8: South Park is an animated series featuring four foul-mouthed 3rd graders, Stan, Kyle, Kenny and Cartman. The show is set in the Colorado town of South Park where weird things keep happening, whether its being abducted by aliens or avoiding Kyle's little brother Ike. The show is based on the short film by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, "The Spirit of Christmas".

Stargate: Egyptologist Daniel Jackson is brought to an underground military base where he decodes the symbols on Egyptian cover stones as star constellations. That allows a alien device known as the Stargate to be opened and a team led by Air Force Colonel Jack' O' Neil and Jackson to travel across the known universe to a distant planet. Arriving on the planet, they find a culture ruled by someone pretending to be the Egyptian sun god Ra. Soon, Ra captures the team and takes control of a nuclear weapon brought to the planet in case of the discovery of hostile aliens. Jackson and O'Neil escape and must fight Ra and his army of warriors to save Earth from being destroyed by Ra.

Stephen King's Desperation: En route to Lake Tahoe for a much anticipated vacation, the Carver family is arrested for blowing out all four tires on their camper. Collie Entragian is the arresting officer, the self-made sheriff of a town called Desperation, Nevada, and the quintessential bad cop. Unbeknownst to the Carvers, Entragian regularly sniffs out passerbys on this stretch of road, and in fact has done in nearly every resident of his hometown. He can also change form and summon the help of creepy creatures, including scorpions, snakes and spiders.

Stir of Echoes: Tom's a regular guy, a utilities lineman, married, with a young son, his wife is pregnant; he hangs out with long-time pals in a Chicago neighborhood. At a party, his sister-in-law hypnotizes him, and he goes into a deep trance. Before waking him, she suggests that he keep his mind open. That night he sees flashes of violence and the ghost of a young woman. His young son, too, is "a receiver," but while the boy is calm and coherent in his conversations with spirits, Tom is confused and agitated. Over time, the young woman's story comes to the surface, and Tom begins a hunt for her body that puts him and his usually understanding wife, Maggie, in grave danger.

Storm the Skies: (Argentina, 1996) Documentary about Ramón Mercader, one of Lenin's most loyal followers and the assassin of León Trotsky. José Luis López-Linares and Javier Rioyo write and direct. Details: Color, 96 mins, Cinemateca/Facets, widescreen. Supplements: Photo gallery; Trailer. Audio: Spanish. Optional English subtitles.

Story of a Cloistered Nun: A woman who was promised to a powerful family's son at birth falls in love with another man, refuses to renounce him, and is sent to a nunnery by her shocked parents. Once there, she first undergoes degradation to acclimatize her to convent life; then she experiences rampant lesbianism by the repressed nuns, and becomes pregnant by her lover. Finally, her refusal to accede to one nun's lascivious lesbian advances leads to plotting and treachery, and her lover being murdered out of jealousy. Her life now ruined, she further scandalises her family by refusing to take her vows, and leaves the convent, devoting her existence to those in need. Claims to be based on a true story !

Survivor Palau - The Complete Season: Over the spring of 2000, sixteen average Americans (divided into two tribes which eventually merge into one) were sequestered on the deserted island of Pulau Tiga for 39 days. For their stay, they must learn to live as a tribe, although eventually, it is everyone for themselves. They compete in challenges for "luxuries" (a barbecue, a phone call home, etc.) and immunity. Every three days, the losers of the latter challenges must face tribal council, where they will account for their actions by voting one person off of the island. At the end of day 39, there will be only one survivor left who will leave the island with one million dollars. Based on the Swedish game show, "Operation Robinson."

The Swindle: (France, 1997) Isabelle Huppert, Michel Serrault, and François Cluzet star in Claude Chabrol's lightfingered crime caper about a duo of small time con artists who wind up on opposite sides of a high stake scam. Details: Color, 105 mins, New Yorker, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: "Le Farfale" (dance excerpt from 1907 silent film); Foreign theatrical trailer. Audio: French. Optional English subtitles.

Take The Lead: Antonio Banderas is a ballroom dance instructor hired by an inner city high school principal (Alfre Woodard) to bring a new kind of attitude to her detention class of angry, aggressive students. He winds up soaking up a little of their attitude when he gets a lesson in hip-hop as they learn his classical moves and the fusion of styles drives them to the national championships. Directed by Liz Friedlander and inspired by a true story, the high school drama of inspiration, achievement, and self-respect co-stars Rob Brown and Dante Basco. Details: Color, 118 mins, New Line, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: 7 deleted scenes; 3 Behind-the-Dance featurettes; "You Take the Lead" - Interactive Tango demonstration; 3 trailers remixed by internationally known DJs. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Commentary by director Liz Friedlander and editor Robert Ivison. Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Talking to Heaven: Two-part TV mini-series about a man who begins seeing visions of the victims of a serial killer. Based on the novel "Talking to Heaven: A Medium's Message of Life After Death" by James Van Praagh and directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal, it stars Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen, Diane Ladd, Michael Moriarty, Queen Latifah, and Jack Palance. Details: Color, 175 mins, MTI, Academy Ratio. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

Talespins-V01: This casts key characters from the Jungle Book into a 1930's pacific setting where Baloo is a bush pilot who finds himself as part of a struggling courier company.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Season 5: This show tells the adventures of four turtles who were transformed into humanoids by a strange ooze and were trained as ninja by a human martial arts master, Hamato Yoshi, who was changed into a humanoid rat, Splinter, by the same substance. Together with the intrepid reporter, April O'Neil, they fight against the threats against the world, like Shredder and Krang.

The Thames Shakespeare Collection: Four of William Shakespeare's ageless tales of drama and passion come together in this stellar collection featuring award-winning actors and acclaimed directors. From royal family struggles and star-crossed lovers to a shipwreck romance and witches' prophecies, the productions in this collection represent the finest in Shakespearean stage adaptation. MACBETH: Witchcraft, manipulation, and murder mark Macbeth's ascension to power and his subsequent downfall. This classic production features the unsurpassed talent of Ian McKellen, Oscar® winner Judi Dench, and the Royal Shakespeare Company. KING LEAR: When King Lear renounces his throne to divide his kingdom among his daughters, treachery, madness, and murder follow. This compelling production stars Patrick Magee (A Clockwork Orange) and other mainstays of stage and television. ROMEO & JULIET: This moving interpretation of Shakespeare's ageless tale of family feuds, star-crossed lovers and tragic, untimely death features a first-rate cast, authentic sets and colorful costumes that will envelop you in world's most famous love story. TWELFTH NIGHT: Showcasing the directorial talents of Kenneth Branagh, this popular and enduring comedy revolves around unrequited love and mistaken identity. An insightful and witty performance by the Renaissance Theatre Company provides a humorous commentary about who and how we love. DVD Features: Interviews with Kenneth Branagh, Ian McKellen and Patrick Mower; "Romeo & Juliet - A Family Feud" Featurette; Cast and Director Biographies; Timeline of William Shakespeare's Life and Plays; Interactive Menus; Scene Selection

Tick: Season One: After "crashing" the super hero convention in Reno, the nigh invulnerable blue-clad super hero, the Tick, is deemed the protector of "The City." On his first patrol he runs (more like "falls") into Arthur, an accountant in a moth costume. They soon strike up a partnership. When the villainous and muffled idea men threaten to flood The City, the Tick and Arthur come to the rescue. Along the way we meet Die Fledermaus, American Maid, and the Caped Chameleon. The Human Bullet cameos.

Tokyo Rampage (aka Pornostar): (Japan, 1998) Toshiaki Toyoda directs this thriller about an angry, brutal young man hired by pimps to stand up against their Yakuza bosses, where he proves to be more unpredictable and psychopathic than anyone imaged. Details: Color, 98 mins, Image, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Still gallery; Trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Trilogy of Terror: Three stories interwoven together in this Dan Curtis production starring Karen Black in each segment. The first, about a high school student infatuated with his teacher. The second, a paranoid tale of two sisters - one good, the other evil, and the third about an African tribal doll that comes to life and terrorizes a woman in her apartment.

Ultimate Crime Box Set All'italiana: A MAN CALLED MAGNUM: This time around, Merenda stomps the terra as Dario Mauri, a Milanese cop transferred to Naples, where his only clues to stopping a range war between an aging Mafiosi and a merciless independent operator are the strange, violent drawings of a child. Called Napoli si Ribella in Italy, this hopping poliziotteschi belongs to a subset of crime films associated with Naples, including Umberto Lenzi’s Napoli Violenta, Mario Caino’s Napoli Spara, Ciro Ippolito’s Lacrime Napulitane and Alfonso Brescia’s two-shot of Napoli… La Camorra Sfida, La Cittá Risponde and Napoli… Serenata Calibro 9.

Vabank: (Poland, 1981) Caper comedy set in the 1930s, about a loyal safecracker and thief who emerges from prison and plots his revenge on the former accomplice who framed him, now a bank president, is the debut film from Juliusz Machulski. Details: Color, 104 mins, Polart/Facets, Academy Ratio. Supplements: Director bio. Audio: Polish. Optional English subtitles.

Washington the Warrior: Documentary portrait of George Washington's early life in the military and his rise to leader, with dramatic re-enactments of historical events. Stacy Keach narrates. Details: Color, 92 mins, History Channel, Widescreen letterbox, 1.78:1. Supplements: Behind the scenes: "History in the Making". Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Water: (India) Deepa Mehta's drama about an young girl widowed at the age of 8 and sent to a home for Hindu widows to live their lives in social isolation was an incendiary controversy in India even before it was finished. The final film in Deepa Mehta's elemental trilogy stars Seema Biswas, Lisa Ray, and John Abraham. Details: Color, 117 mins, 20th Century Fox, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: Commentary by director Deepa Mehta; "The Story Behind the Making of Water" featurette; Behind-the-Scenes featurette. Audio: Hindi (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

White Nights: An expatriate Russian dancer is on a plane forced to land on Soviet territory. He is taken to an apartment in which a black American who has married a Russian woman lives with her. He is to become a dancer for the Bolshoi again, but he wishes to escape, but can he trust the American?

The Who: In Their Own Words:

Will & Grace: Season Five: Will & Grace are best friends. Will is a gay lawyer and Grace is a straight interior designer. They both live in New York. Grace is engaged to a real jerk, but when that relationship falls apart, she moves in with Will. This is only supposed to be until Grace finds a place of her own, but she and Will end up with each other as permanent roommates. Also in the cast are Jack, Will's flamboyant gay friend and Karen, Graces' secretary/assistant who doesn't really need to work because she married money several times.

Zatoichi, Vol. 5: The blind masseur Zatoichi (Shintaro Katsu) wanders through Japan looking to ply his trade. But wherever he goes, trouble follows and he must use his legendary, lightning sword skills to dispatch evildoers and defend justice.

The Zodiac: Serial killer thriller, based on actual events, about a killer in a small Northern California town. Justin Chambers, Robin Tunney, Rory Culkin, William Mapother, and Philip Baker Hall star. Details: Color, 96 mins, THINKFilm, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: Commentary by director Alexander Bulkley and co-writer Kelly Bulkley; "Behind the Zodiac" featurette; Chronology of the Zodiac killings; Trailers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish subtitles.

Monday, August 21, 2006

DVD Tuesday: House S2, Invasion, Poseidon & More! - Xoanon @ 10:23 PST
Apartment: Max is on his way to Tokyo. He lives in Paris and likes to flirt but has decided to get married. By chance, he seems to have seen Lisa, his greatest love, in a cafe. Max forgets everything, his trip to Tokyo and his fiance. Obsessed with meeting Lisa he finds out where she lives and hides in the apartment. However, a different girl, called Alice, finds Max in the flat. Alice looks quite similar to Lisa, and they have sex. To complicate matters further, Alice is also the girlfriend of Max's buddy Lucien and Lisa is followed by an older man.

Arthur's Missing Pal: The animated star of the educational series (based on the books by Marc Brown) makes his feature film debut in this direct-to-DVD CGI-animated adventure. Details: Color, 68 mins, Lionsgate, widescreen. Supplements: Storyboard sequences; "Puppy Paw Pursuit" game; "Follow That Truck" game; Trailers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Beyond the Poseidon Adventure: After "The Poseidon Adventure", in which the ship got flipped over by a tidal wave, the ship drifts bottom-up in the sea. While the passengers are still on board waiting to be rescued, two rivaling salvage parties enter the ship on search for money, gold and a small amount of plutonium.

The Bill Cosby Show - Season One: The Bill Cosby Show: Season One, Cosby's Emmy-nominated first situation comedy (featuring 26 fully restored uncut episodes from the 1969-70 season), is a fresh mix of intelligent character studies and real-life situations, seamlessly infused with his trademark sense of humor and positive outlook. Chet Kincaid (Cosby) is a gym teacher at an urban high school in Los Angeles, an all-around good guy and an inspiration to his friends, family and students. Chet's good heart gets him into tons of predicaments, such as losing a one-on-one basketball game to a student he considered too short to make the team, his accidental involvement in a domestic dispute when he answers a pay phone and going on a date in a borrowed garbage truck.

Bit of Fry & Laurie: Season Two: (1987-1989) The comedy team of Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, whose chemistry sparked in Black Adder and Jeeves and Wooster, went solo (or, rather, duo) for the original BBC skit comedy series. Their urbane, erudite wit, surreal skits, and meta-comedy approach recalls "Monty Python" at times, but with a chemistry and kookiness all their own. Details: Color, 212 mins, BBC/Warner, Academy Ratio, 1.33:1. Supplements: 7 episodes, including the original 1987 Christmas Special. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Blackstar:Complete Series: Astronaut John Blackstar's shuttle passes through a black hole and crashes on the planet Sagar. He is rescued by the gentle Trobbits, who live under the tyranny of the Overlord, possessor of one half of an all-powerful sword. Armed with the other half, Blackstar aids the resistance with his dragon, Warlock; the shape-shifter Klone; and the sorceress, Mara.

Blue Thunder: Complete Series: Lt. Frank Chaney of the LAPD is a maverick cop with unorthodox methods who is assigned to the Blue Thunder Team, which uses a very advanced gadget-filled helicopter in its fight against crime. "Blue Thunder" is capable of great speed and maneuverability, can run silently in "whisper mode", and is armed with the most powerful weapons in development. His partner is a fresh-faced rookie with the improbable name of Wonderlove, and ground support is supplied by ex-athletes Ski and Bubba, who drive a sophisticated van.

Bone Collector (HD DVD): He takes his victims’ lives and leaves behind mysterious pieces of a bizarre puzzle. And the only person who may be able to make sense of the serial killer’s deranged plan is Lincoln Rhyme (Denzel Washington), a onetime top homicide investigator. But after a tragic accident changes his life forever, Rhyme can only watch as other cops bungle the case...until he teams up with a young rookie, Amelia Donaghy (Angelina Jolie), who bravely searches out the clues that could help them solve the case. But as the killer senses the cops closing in, Rhyme realizes that he and his partner are on the trail of a vicious, sadistic murderer who will stop at nothing on his deadly mission. And at any moment, Rhyme and Amelia could become his next targets — and their first case could become their last.

Caddyshack (HD DVD): The greenskeeper is about to start World War III against a gopher. The judge plays to win but his nubile niece has her mind set on scoring her own way. The playboy shoots perfect golf by pretending he is the ball. And the country-club loudmouth just doubled a $20,000 bet on a 10-foot putt. Insanity? No. Caddyshack. Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight and Bill Murray tee off for a side-splitting round of fairway foolishness that does for golf what Animal House did for college fraternities and Police Academy did for law enforcement. Chase's laid-back delivery has kept audiences of Saturday Night Live and movie hits National Lampoon's Vacation, Fletch and Spies Like Us in the aisles for years. Sharing his wisdom with a caddy or his bed with debutante Lacey Underall, he never misses a shot. Rodney Dangerfield is well, Rodney Dangerfield. Even when he's off camera, he's on. And fans that have made Easy Money and Back to School box-office hits like him just fine. Knight-possessor of the best slow burn since Laurel and Hardy fusses, fumes and finesses his way through his role as Bushwood Country Club's one-man Legion of Decency. Murray's hole-in-the-head assistant greenskeeper is straight out of Looney Tunes. Murray, who brought the house down in Meatballs, Stripes and Ghostbusters, is funny even when he talks to himself. In Caddyshack, the term "golf nut" takes on a deranged double meaning and the laughs are par for the course!

Conviction: The Complete Series: In the cutthroat New York judicial system, if you’re intelligent, ambitious and new, there’s only one way to get things done – with Conviction. Get ready for all 13 gripping episodes of The Complete Series from award-winning creator Dick Wolf (Law & Order). When five young assistant district attorneys enter the world of public justice, they struggle to make sense of their challenging caseloads and equally provocative personal lives. Under the leadership of bureau chief Alex Cabot (Stephanie March, Law & Order: SVU), these rookie prosecutors are about to get a crash course in love, life and the law. Also starring Eric Balfour, J. August Richards, Anson Mount, Jordan Bridges, Julianne Nicholson and Milena Govich.

Criterion Coll: Kicking & Screaming: After college graduation, Grover's girlfriend Jane tells him she's moving to Prague to study writing. Grover declines to accompany her, deciding instead to move in with several friends, all of whom can't quite work up the inertia to escape their university's pull. Nobody wants to make any big decisions that would radically alter his life, yet none of them wants to end up like Chet, the professional student who tends bar and is in his tenth year of university studies.

Dances With Wolves: Lt. John Dunbar is dubbed a hero after he accidentally leads Union troops to a victory during the Civil War. He requests a position on the western frontier, but finds it deserted. He soon finds out he is not alone, but meets a wolf he dubs "Two-socks" and a curious Indian tribe. Dunbar quickly makes friends with the tribe, and discovers a white woman who was raised by the Indians. He gradually earns the respect of these native people, and sheds his white-man's ways.

Demonic: Tom Savini (Land of the Dead) leads a terrifying trip into the darkness of desire…when five teens become stranded in a forest roamed by beautiful and deadly creatures who seduce unsuspecting victims to their deaths.

Devil's Rejects (Blu-ray): Sequel to 'House of 1000 Corpses' is set some months later with the Texas State Police making a full-scale attack against the murderous Firefly family residence for the 1,000+ murders and disappearances of the past several years. But three of the family members escape, including Otis, Baby Firefly and Baby's father Captain Spaulding. The evil trio go on a road trip, leaving dozens of mangled bodies in their wake. Evading a massive Texas Rangers dragnet as well as a group of equally murderous bounty hunters led by Ken Dwyer (the brother of a policeman Mamma Firefly killed in 'House of...') who's obsessed with finding the deadly killers, the surviving Firefly clan gather at a run-down amusement park owned by Captain Spaulding's half-brother, Charlie Altamont, whom offers them shelter and a new base of operations for their killing spree as Sheriff Dwyer, the Texas Rangers, the FBI and others slowly close in.

Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan, Vol. 3: Cesar Milan's show isn't just about troubled dogs and their owners. It's a fully realized serial documentary-- and a hugely engaging one-- on urban America. Milan grew up on a farm in Mexico, so he understands a great deal about the behavior of domesticated animals (and even wild ones), but he specializes in a common household pet that needs special attention because the owners invariably anthropomorphize their pet-- and even more than that, they treat the dog as a family member, all but forgetting that Poochie is a pack animal with altogether different emotional wiring than humans have. He reconnects people with nature.

Double Indemnity: Smooth talking insurance salesman Walter Neff meets attractive Phyllis Dietrichson when he calls to renew her husband's automobile policy. The couple are immediately drawn to each other and an affair begins. They cook up a scheme to murder Mr. Dietrichson for life insurance money with a double indemnity clause. Unfortunately, all does not go to plan...

Galaxina: Crew of interstellar police ship is sent to recover a mysterious crystal, the blue star. Sub Plots: The ships female android and a crew member fall in love. Alien is spoofed as as the captain gives birth to an alien who grows up on the ship thinking the captain is its mother.

Good Night & Good Luck (HD DVD): "Good Night, And, Good Luck." takes place during the early days of broadcast journalism in 1950's America. It chronicles the real-life conflict between television newsman Edward R. Murrow and Senator Joseph McCarthy and the House Un-American Activities Committee. With a desire to report the facts and enlighten the public, Murrow, and his dedicated staff - headed by his producer Fred Friendly and Joe Wershba in the CBS newsroom - defy corporate and sponsorship pressures to examine the lies and scaremongering tactics perpetrated by McCarthy during his communist 'witch-hunts'. A very public feud develops when the Senator responds by accusing the anchor of being a communist. In this climate of fear and reprisal, the CBS crew carries on and their tenacity will prove historic and monumental.

Grumpy Old Men/Grumpier Old Men: They're Grumpy Old Men [Side A]. And since they're played by famed screen odd couple Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, they're also Funny Old Men. The wit hits the fan as the two play Minnesota ice-fishing pals whose crusty friendship grows hilariously icier as they vie for an attractive widow (Ann-Margret). Also in the cast are Daryl Hannah, Kevin Pollak, Ossie Davis and an outrageously randy Burgess Meredith. The two leads grab their fishing rods to reel in another comic whopper in the sequel Grumpier Old Men [Side B]. Most of the original cast returns, and Sophia Loren plays the vivacious newcomer who wants to turn the beloved bait shop into a chichi ristorante. Of course, in this part of the Land of 1000 Lakes, that means war! Enjoy. And, yes, this is the movie with the "man-sized manicotti" outtakes!

H6: H6 tells the story of Antonio Frau, a serial killer set free after serving 25 years in jail for the violent murder of his girlfriend. After inheriting and old motel from a relative he never knew, he sees this as a signal and takes to his holy task of relieving the grief of those who have lost the will to live. He takes his victims to room Number 6 in the motel where he `purifies' them, while, at the same time, continues his everyday life next to his wife. A mistake leads to his arrest, and his plan to become rich and famous takes relevance.

House: Season Two: An antisocial maverick doctor who specializes in infectious diseases does whatever it takes to solve puzzling cases that come his way.

Hunger: In 1890, Pontus, the starving writer, wanders the streets of Christiania, in search of love and a chance to get his work published. All he meets is defeat and suffering while his sense of reality is withering. One moment his is delighted and the next he curses everybody. All the time he manages to maintain human dignity and pride.

Invasion: The Complete First Season: In the aftermath of a hurricane, a Florida Park Ranger and his family deal with strange occurrences, including luminescent creatures in the water and people that somehow seem to have changed after surviving the night of the disaster out in the open.

John Entwist;e - An Ox'a Tale: Documentary on the life and career of the legendary bassist for The Who, featuring footage of Entwhistle on and off stage. Peter Frampton narrates. Details: Color, 78 mins, Image, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Woodstock Concert '99 footage; The John Entwhistle Band: Live in Detroit; Home Movies; Chris Entwhistle on "The Last Time I Saw Dad". Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Just My Luck: Screen divette Lindsay Lohan plays the luckiest girl in Manhattan whose good fortune takes a nose-dive when she meets a disaster-prone (but quite handsome) guy (Chris Pine) at a party and swaps karma with a kiss. Faizon Love, Missie Pyle, and McFly co-star in the young adult/teen and tweener romantic comedy, directed by Daniel Petrie. Features both widescreen and fullscreen editions on flipper disc. Details: Color, 103 mins, 20th Century Fox, Widescreen anamorphic, Academy Ratio, 1.85:1. Supplements: Deleted and extended scenes; "Look of Luck" featurette; Behind the scenes featurette on the band McFly. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.1 Surround). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Maid: Alone for the first time and away from her family in rural Philippines, Rosa Dimaano arrives in the cosmopolitan city state of Singapore to work as a maid. Her employers Mr and Mrs Teo runs a Chinese Teochew dialect opera troupe takes well to their new domestic help. So do their mentally disabled son, Ah Soon. In Chinese superstition, the seventh month of the lunar calendar is regarded as the month when the gates of hell open for forsaken spirits to walk the earth for 30 days. Unknown to Rosa, she arrives on the eve and her hell is about to begin.

Poseidon: Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas go all alpha male to lead a group of survivors in a capsized luxury liner up through the bowels of the ship in Wolfgang Petersen's update of the all-star seventies disaster classic, based on the Paul Gallico novel. Russell is a former big city mayor and a former fireman hero and Lucas plays a jaded Navy SEAL turned pro gambler, to the testosterone runs high. Their ragtag squad includes single mom Jacinda Barrett (and her child), heartbroken gay millionaire Richard Dreyfuss, Russell's daughter Emmy Rossum and her fiancé Mike Vogel, and hangers-on Kevin Dillon, M'a Maestro, Freddy Rodr'guez. Andre Braugher tries to hold it together back in below-sea-level ballroom as the ship's doomed captain (come on, do you really think anyone who decides to stay put will survive?). Yet despite the soap-opera set-up, there's very little story, just a lot of death-defying escapes and a handful of victims lost along the way. Available in separate widescreen and full screen editions, plus a 2-disc special edition with exclusive bonus supplements and a lenticular slipsleeve. Details: Color, 98 mins, Warner, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: "Poseidon: A Ship on a Soundstage" documentary on the complexities of making a modern adventure movie; "A Shipmate's Diary" - a film school intern's experiences on the set; "Poseidon: Upside Down" featurette on the set design; Rogue Waves documentary, originally made for The History Channel; Theatrical trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish, French and English subtitles.

Redwall: Season Three: Matthias, a young novice is marking ten years after he was adopted by an abbey named Redwall after his home and family were destroyed by the vicious Rat warlord, Cluny the Scourge. While he has grown to value and respect the peaceful philosophies of the order, he dreams of becoming a great warrior like the order's greatest member, Martin the Warrior. That dream becomes most relevent when the abbey is besieged by Cluny himself. The abbey is determined to resist in what becomes a war of arms, will and wits. Now, Matthias must protect his home with everything he can contribute, while he discovers that a tapestry depicting the history of Martin, is really a prophesy and clues about himself...

Renegade: Seasons 2 & 3: After crooked cop Lieutenant "Dutch" Dixon kills his girlfriend and frames him for murder, Reno Raines escapes from jail and goes on the run. Teaming up with Bobby Sixkiller and Cheyenne Phillips, Reno works as a bounty hunter while searching for the only man who can clear his name.

Robinsons: Complete Series One: Martin Freeman (of the original BBC The Office) stars as the morose youngest grown son of miserable parents and brother of uptight control freak siblings in the BBC sitcom created by Justin Sbresni and Mark Russell. He may be a divorced adult man who loses his job and every girl he meets and is considered a loser by his brother, but compared to the rest of the insufferable South London family, he's not too badly off. Hugh Bonneville, Anna Massey, Amanda Root, Abigail Cruttenden, and Richard Johnson co-star. All 6 episodes of the first series. Details: Color, 180 mins, BBC/Warner, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Six episodes; Commentary by writer-producer-directors Justin Sbresni and Mark Bussell and others on each episode; Outtakes; Behind the scenes. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Sea of Fear: Two couples on a sailboat vacation have their worst fears come true. One by one each of the seven passengers aboard a sailboat cruise begin to disappear. A murderer is among them, or is it one of them? Or could it be the mysterious boat that is following them. There are rumors of modern pirates in these waters. Soon everyone will discover the truth – or they will die trying.

Searchers (HD DVD): Working together for the 12th time, John Wayne and director John Ford forged The Searchers into an indelible image of the frontier and the men and women who challenged it. Wayne plays ex-Confederate soldier Ethan Edwards, a believer more in bullets than in words. He's seeking his niece, captured by Comanches who massacred his family. He won't surrender to hunger, thirst, the elements or loneliness. And in his obsessive, five-year quest, Ethan encounters something he didn't expect to find: his own humanity.

Silent Hill: Radha Mitchell is a mother on the edge of desperation. Her adopted daughter's ailment border on supernatural possession and in a last-ditch effort to find some explanation she returns to the girl's birthplace and discovers a spooky ghost town where a religious cult kidnaps her daughter. Christophe Gans directs the spooky and, at times, incomprehensible film adapted from the video game by screenwriter Roger Avary without worrying a whit about making sense of it. He follows his own tonal logic to create a genuinely creepy film of a living purgatory in shades of ash and smoke, where demented puritans continue to burn witches at the stake (and their definition is, to say the least, broad) and grotesque creatures emerge from the fires to hunt stray members of the pitiless flock. Sean Bean, Laurie Holden, Deborah Kara Unger, Kim Coates, Tanya Allen, and Alice Krige co-star. Features separate widescreen and fullscreen editions, as well as a Blue-Ray release. Details: Color, 125 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: "Path of Darkness": Six Silent Hill Production Diaries: ; Part One: Origins of Silent Hill; Part Two: Casting the film; Part Three: Building Silent Hill (the town); Part Four: Stars and Stunts; Part Five: Creature Choreography; Part Six: Constructing the Creepy Creatures from the film. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Silent Hill (Blu-ray): Radha Mitchell is a mother on the edge of desperation. Her adopted daughter's ailment border on supernatural possession and in a last-ditch effort to find some explanation she returns to the girl's birthplace and discovers a spooky ghost town where a religious cult kidnaps her daughter. Christophe Gans directs the spooky and, at times, incomprehensible film adapted from the video game by screenwriter Roger Avary without worrying a whit about making sense of it. He follows his own tonal logic to create a genuinely creepy film of a living purgatory in shades of ash and smoke, where demented puritans continue to burn witches at the stake (and their definition is, to say the least, broad) and grotesque creatures emerge from the fires to hunt stray members of the pitiless flock. Sean Bean, Laurie Holden, Deborah Kara Unger, Kim Coates, Tanya Allen, and Alice Krige co-star. Features separate widescreen and fullscreen editions, as well as a Blue-Ray release. Details: Color, 125 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 2.35:1. Supplements: "Path of Darkness": Six Silent Hill Production Diaries: ; Part One: Origins of Silent Hill; Part Two: Casting the film; Part Three: Building Silent Hill (the town); Part Four: Stars and Stunts; Part Five: Creature Choreography; Part Six: Constructing the Creepy Creatures from the film. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional English subtitles.

Sketches of Frank Gehry: Sydney Pollack directs the portrait of his friend, the architect Frank Gehry, in the first documentary from the veteran Hollywood director. Pollack confesses at the outset that he knows nothing about architecture, but he does know about being an artist working in a commercial medium. The result is a marvelous introduction to the sculptural art and artist, full of a curiosity of the creative process and an appreciation for the angles, curves and textures of Gehry's finished buildings, including the famous Bilbao Guggenheim Museum. Details: Color, 84 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Supplements: Q&A with director Sydney Pollack; Trailers. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French subtitles.

Spy Game (HD DVD): When a top-secret, unauthorized mission goes awry, CIA agent Tom Bishop (Brad Pitt) is captured — and sentenced to die, with just 24 hours to get him out alive, Bishop’s boss, Nathan Muir (Robert Redford), must battle enemies abroad and the system inside the CIA to save his friend. Now the clock is ticking and the race is on…as the deadliest game of all explodes into the spectacular, adrenaline-fueled thriller that ABC Radio says "sizzles with suspense!"

State of the Union: Kay Thordyke loves Grant Matthews and helps him become Republican nominee for President. The party machine begins to worry as Grant begins to speak for himself. At an important dinner his wife Mary condemns corrupt politicians and Grant learns to speak out even more boldly..

Stir of Echoes: Tom's a regular guy, a utilities lineman, married, with a young son, his wife is pregnant; he hangs out with long-time pals in a Chicago neighborhood. At a party, his sister-in-law hypnotizes him, and he goes into a deep trance. Before waking him, she suggests that he keep his mind open. That night he sees flashes of violence and the ghost of a young woman. His young son, too, is "a receiver," but while the boy is calm and coherent in his conversations with spirits, Tom is confused and agitated. Over time, the young woman's story comes to the surface, and Tom begins a hunt for her body that puts him and his usually understanding wife, Maggie, in grave danger.

This Island Earth: Dr. Meacham is chosen along with others by the inhabitants of the planet Metaluna to do research that will help save their dying planet. However, an evil scheme is uncovered by the suspecting Dr. Meacham when he discovers the Metalunan's plan to take over Earth. Dr. Meacham then escapes an exploding Metalunan built Earth lab along with Dr. Adams only to be kidnapped while flying away in a small plane. A flying saucer wisks both the scientists off to Metaluna where they are held accountable for blowing up the Metalunan Earth lab during their escape. They later escape there with the help of Exeter the friendly Metalunan. Metaluna then self destructs and the Doctors make it safely back to Earth, which is saved from Metalunan invasion.

Threshold - The Complete Series: A team of experts are assembled when the U.S. Navy discovers an extra-terrestrial craft has landed in the Atlantic Ocean.

Transformers: the Movie: Essentially a movie involving the battle between the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons, two warring factions of transforming robots from the planet Cybertron, the plot also involves the giant planet named Unicron, who's ready to consume anything that stands in its way. The only thing that can stop Unicron is the Autobot Matrix of Leadership, which is possessed by the Autobots and which the Decepticons, through Unicron's orders, plan to take away from them.

Tromeo & Juliet-10th Anniversary Edition: A modern, punk adaptation of Shakespeare's classic. Told irreverently, this film attempts to impact the viewer in the same way theatre-goers were effected in Shakespeare's time. Bawdy, Violent, Humorous, and Romantic.

Uninvited Guest: (Spain) An architect (Andoni Gracia) living alone in a house he designed who begins to question his grasp on reality when a mysterious visitor (Agustin Villaronga) vanishes in his house and strange events begin to manifest. Guillem Morales directs the Spanish horror film. Details: Color, 109 mins, HBO, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.78:1. Audio: Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Veronica Mars - The Complete Second Season: After her best friend is murdered and her father is removed as the town sheriff, Veronica Mars, dedicates her life to cracking the toughest mysteries in the affluent town of Neptune.

The Wicker Man: Sgt. Howie travels to Summerisle to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. He discovers that the locals are weird and unhelpful, and becomes determined to get to the bottom of the disappearance.

Wizard: (1989) Fred Savage runs away from home with his emotionally disturbed younger brother (Luke Edwards) and discovers the kid has a talent: he's a video game whiz. Tomboy Jenny Lewis convinces them to head for the video game championships in California. Beau Bridges and Christian Slater co-star. Details: Color, 100 mins, Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

TOPPS LOTR Masterpieces Images - Xoanon @ 23:03 PST

Matt from Topps writes: We have several cool components to the LOTR Masterpieces set, an all artwork LOTR set, that we think people should hear about:

• Original, newly commissioned artwork ‹28 pieces in total‹ from top
  illustrators Drew Struzan, John Alvin and Mark Chiarello
  
• 2 sketch cards per box in the hobby guaranteed. We can provide some early artwork that¹s already come in for this, as well.
  
• An etch-foil 6 card set by artist Rafael Kayanan, one of the most popular sketch artists from the LOTR Evolution set. We can provide the artwork for this, as well. The original artwork used to create these cards will also be available in the hobby as 6 1/1 exclusives.
  
• 3 levels of parallels to our Foil Art cards in the hobby, two of which are sequentially numbered, and 1 of which are also 1/1s.
  

Monday, August 14, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Memento Blu-Ray, Simpsons Season 8, Scary Movie 4 & More! - Xoanon @ 11:23 PST
3rd Rock From the Sun: Season 5: A group of aliens have come to Earth to learn about its population, customs, etc. To avoid detection, they have taken on human form which gives them human emotions, physical needs etc. WITHOUT the understanding of what they mean or the inhibitions normally present in humans. Their leader takes the position of a college professor, their military expert as his sister, their intelligence expert, supposedly oldest of group takes form of his teenage son. The uninhibited reactions turn everyday events into unusual situations.

Animal House:  (HD DVD) Faber College has one frat house so disreputable it will take anyone. It has a second one full of white, anglo-saxon, rich young men who are so sanctimonious no one can stand them except Dean Wormer. The dean enlists the help of the second frat to get the boys of Delta House off campus. This film gives high-jinks and fooling around a bad name. P The dean's plan comes into play just before the homecoming parade to end all parades for all time.

Apocalypse Now - The Complete Dossier: Based on Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness, this is a controversial addition to the multitude of Vietnam war movies in existence. We follow Captain Willard on his mission into Cambodia to assassinate a renegade Green Beret who has set himself up as a God among a local tribe. Notes taken by Coppola's wife have recently been used to create "Hearts Of Darkness" - a fascinating and revealing account of the making of this movie.

Asia Argento Pack: Scarlet Diva Scarlet Diva is a semi-autobiographical, dramatic and surreal descent into the shockingly intimate world of rising actress Anna Battista. Anna's journey plunges her into the dark heart of the film industry where she experiences despair, loneliness and degradation while trying to recapture her innocence and purity. This film is a sexually charged and unforgettable cinema experience! Love Bites Starring International cult icon Asia Argento! Asia starred in and directed Scarlet Diva, and co-starred with Vin Diesel in XXX. Antonio makes his living off others, sleeping at his friend's health club, borrowing money, and crashing parties.

Cape of Good Hope: You could describe Mark Bamford's multi-cultural romantic drama, set around the orbit of an animal shelter in Cape Town, as a post-Apartheid South African Crash. Debbie Brown stars as the shelter's dedicated founder with lousy romantic instincts, Jean Claude LeReve as her magnanimous handyman (who was an astronomy professor in his former life in the Congo), and Nthati Moshesh is the single mother he woos. Details: Color, 107 mins, New Yorker, widescreen. Supplements: Video Comments on the Film by director Mark Bamford & actor Eriq Ebouaney; Theatrical Trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 2.0) and English (Dolby Digital 5.0). Optional subtitles.

The Cheyenne Social Club/Fire Creek: They can be tough as leather. Or as down-home as any pair of good ol' boys. Either way, there's a sense of warm respect between the two stars. The off-camera friendship of James Stewart and Henry Fonda goes back to their days as struggling actors and roommates. The Cheyenne Social Club [Side A] casts them as saddle-weary Texans who, surprised to find they've inherited a Wyoming bawdy house, feel honor-bound to defend it against a gun-wielding gang. Gene Kelly produces and directs this mix of fun and Western action. Next comes a firestorm of character-driven excitement in Firecreek [Side B]. Fonda plays an outlaw preying on small towns, and Stewart is the jittery, $2-a-month part-time lawman who must find the courage to stop him. This will be some showdown!

Clark Gable Collection 1: Bonus Features: **The Clark Gable Fox Classics Collection Volume One consists of Call of the Wild, Soldier of Fortune and The Tall Men. **All for the first time on DVD, in a box set for $49.98 & $69.98.** Episode Description: Disc 1: Call of the Wild (1935) Disc 2: Soldier of Fortune (1955) Disc 3: The Tall Men (1955)

Criterion Coll: Six Moral Tales By Eric Rohmer: The multifaceted, deeply personal dramatic universe of Eric Rohmer has had an effect on cinema unlike any other. A succession of jousts between fragile men and the women who tempt them, the Six Moral Tales unleashed onto the film world a new voice, one that was at once sexy, philosophical, modern, daring, nonjudgmental, and liberating. Includes: The Bakery Girl of Monceau, Suzanne's Career, My Night at Maud's, La collectionneuse, Claire's Knee, and Love in the Afternoon.

Do You Like Hitchcock: Italian Master Of Horror Dario Argento – the director of SUSPIRIA, DEEP RED, TENEBRE and OPERA — returns to the thriller genre with this sly and sexy tribute to The Master Of Suspense. Elio Germano stars as Giulio, a nerdy film student and lifelong voyeur who begins to believe that two lovely young strangers may have conspired to commit a brutal murder. But when reel obsession leads to real danger, one question alone holds the key to terror: DO YOU LIKE HITCHCOCK? Elisabetta Rocchetti, Chiara Conti and Cristina Brondo co-star in this bold giallo co-written by Argento and Franco Ferrini (PHENOMENA, THE CARD PLAYER), featuring a masterful score by Pino Donaggio (DRESSED TO KILL, CARRIE, TRAUMA), gore effects by Sergio Stivaletti (CEMETERY MAN, DEMONS), and filled with the classic touches of two true masters!

The Duchess of Duke Street - Series 2: Louisa Trotter works her way up from being a skivvy to being the Queen of cooks, cook to the King, and owner of the Bentink Hotel. Her life and happenings among the guests and staff of the Hotel make up the 31 episodes.

Escape from the Newsroom:

Eternity and a Day: (Greece, 1998) Theo Angelopolous's meditative, introspective, delicate journey through time and memory takes one day in the life of an aging Greek poet (Bruno Ganz, dubbed into Greek), whose life-changing encounter with a young street kid, a Balkan refugee, sends the poet thinking back on his own Balkan heritage. Angelopolous' camera glides through the cinematic landscape with almost geometric precision while his characters wander through the same path with very human hesitations and detours. Winner of the Palme D'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Details: Color, 130 mins, New Yorker, widescreen. Supplements: Video Introduction by scholar Andrew Horton (author of "The Films Of Theo Angelopoulos"); "The Journey Through Time of Theo Angelopolous" (from the French TV program "Metropolis"); Poetry by Greek masters . Audio: Greek (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional English subtitles.

The FBI Story: The story of the FBI unfolds through the eyes of one of its agents. During his career he investigates gangsters, swindlers, the klu klux klan, Nazi agents and cold war spies.

The Flying Nun: The Complete Second Season: The large headgear on 90-pound novice Sister Bertrille, of the convent San Tanco in Puerto Rico, enables her to fly in any stiff breeze. Her gift enables her to aid others, whether they wish it or not.

Full House: Complete Fourth Season: This is a story about a sports broadcaster later turned morning talk show host Danny Tanner and his three little girls, D.J. (Donna Jo), Stephanie and Michelle Tanner. Before the show begins, Danny Tanner's wife is killed by a drunk driver. So he needs help raising his three little girls. He asks his rock musician brother-in-law, Jesse Katsopolis and his comedian best friend, Joey Gladstone to move in with them. As the show goes on, Jesse gets married to Rebecca Donaldson, Danny's co host of the talk show. The two have kids of their own, who are twins, Alexander and Nicholas Katsopolis. However, the show is about what happens as the story is going on.

Gatchaman, Vol. 8: Collection: A team of bird-themed superhero ninjas battle the menace of Galactor, a technologically advanced international terrorist organization determined to conquer the world.

Hong Kong Phooey: Complete Series: Animated childrens show about a dog who is the janitor for a police station...until danger threatens, at which point he turns into the martial arts superhero Hong Kong Phooey!

Hoot: Carl Hiaasen's Newbery-winning young adult novel with an eco-awareness message comes to the screen with the help of Hiaasen buddy Jimmy Buffet, who produces, provides original music, and even has a small role. The stars, however, are a trio of teens -- new kid Logan Lerman, tough-girl soccer jock Brie Larson, and barefoot eco-warrior Cody Linley -- who band together to save a burrowing owl breeding ground from being bulldozed under by a pancake house franchise. The adults are one dimensional at best and ineffectual by definition, but the kids have good chemistry and there's some fun oddball humor snuck in around the slapstick. The gorgeous postcard photography of the Gulf Coast beaches, waterways and wildlife brings their mission to life. Luke Wilson co-stars as a bumbling but well-meaning small town cop, Clark Gregg does villain duty as a cold corporate executive who, apparently, enjoys torturing helpless animals, and Tim Blake Nelson is his dimwitted henchman. Wil Shriner directs. Details: Color, 90 mins, New Line, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Commentary by director Wil Shriner and author Carl Hiaasen; 6 featurettes: "Jimmy Buffet: Filmmaker in Paradise," "Director on the Set," "Meet the Kids in the Cast," "Animals in Action," "Meet the Creator of Hoot," and "National Wildlife Federation."; Blooper reel; 3 DVD-ROM games. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer: The teen horror movie franchise goes direct-to-video in its final installment, where a new collection of kids winds up killing a friend in a Fourth of July prank and then get picked off on the anniversary a year later by "The Hook." Brooke Nevin, David Paetkau, Torrey DeVitto, Ben Easter, and Don Shanks star. Details: Color, 91 mins, Sony Pictures, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: "Making Of" featurette; Director's commentary. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Optional French and English subtitles.

Into the Blue:  (Blu-ray) Sam (Jessica Alba) and Jared (Paul Walker) are a young couple in the Bahamas, divers and aspiring treasure hunters. While the arrogant salvager Bates (Josh Brolin) has loads of expensive equipment, Jared gets by with a small, battered boat. Jared and Sam find a historic wreck, but nearby is a wrecked airplane with a large quantity of cocaine. Jared and Sam want the treasure; their diving partners also want the drugs. Dangerous criminals realize the plane and cocaine are submerged somewhere in the area. When the bad guys learn that the couple has located the drugs, Jared and Sam find themselves in mortal peril.

James Stewart - The Signature Collection: In his early years, Jimmy Stewart came to personify the Everyman. "Hollywood dishes out too much praise for small things,'' Jimmy once said. "I won't let it get me, but too much praise can turn a fellow's head if he doesn't watch his step.'' - Through a Hollywood career spanning 50 years James Stewart has thrilled, touched and delighted audiences with over 80 films. Six of those films are now available on DVD in the all new James Stewart: The Signature Collection.

Knute Rockne All American: "I've decided to take up coaching as my life work," Knute Rockne says. Coach he does, revolutionizing football with his strategies, winning close to 90 percent of his games, and helping establish the University of Notre Dame's Fighting Irish as a gridiron powerhouse. But victories alone do not mean success to Rockne. He wants to shape his players into responsible and honorable men. This famed sports biopic combines a passion for the game (and footage of actual Notre Dame contests) with two superb performances: Pat O'Brien in the title role and Ronald Reagan as George Gipp, the gifted but doomed halfback whose deathbed plea is "win just one for the Gipper." The line remains one of cinema's most memorable. And for the rest of his life, Reagan would often be called the Gipper.

L'enfant: (Belgium) The lovely and often powerful drama by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne follows a young, emotionally immature couple scraping by on the streets of a Belgian steel town after they have a baby, which the petty thief father (Jérémie Renier) sees as a short-term opportunity for money. The disarming simplicity to the story and directness in storytelling creates a drama of compelling authenticity and touching compassion. Déborah François and Jéremié Segard co-star. Details: Color, 96 mins, Sony, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.66:1. Supplements: Interview with the directors. Audio: French (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French and English subtitles.

Land of the Blind: Ralph Fiennes is a citizen of a totalitarian regime who joins a charismatic dissident leader (Donald Sutherland) to overthrow the despotic Fascist dictator (Tom Hollander), and then watches his hero transform into a repressive Communist despot in his own right in the satirical political allegory written and directed by Robert Edwards. Marc Warren and Lara Flynn Boyle co-star. Details: Color, 101 mins, Vivendi Visual Entertainment/Bauer Martinez, Widescreen anamorphic. Supplements: "Anatomy of a Thriller: Behind the Scenes" featurette; Theatrical trailer. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional subtitles.

Lemming: (France) Laurent Lucas and Charlotte Gainsbourg are a seemingly perfect young couple whose lives are infected by his philandering boss (Andre Dussollier) and his boss's bitter, spite-driven wife (Charlotte Rampling) in Dominik Moll's follow-up to his droll thriller With a Friend Like Harry. It's a strange study in obsession and malice from beyond the grave and, yes, there is a mysterious lemming enigmatically connected to all the weirdness. Details: Color, 129 mins, Strand, widescreen. Supplements: Original Theatrical Trailer. Audio: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and (DTS). Optional English subtitles.

Love Comes to the Executioner: Dark comedy about a young man (Jonathan Tucker) who takes a job as the executioner at the local prison, where his father was executed and his brother (Jeremy Renner) now sits on Death Row, and winds up falling in love with his brother's ex-girlfriend Dori (Ginnifer Goodwin), who is also on death row. Details: Color, 90 mins, Velocity, Widescreen letterbox. Supplements: Cast Interviews; Outtakes; Trailer; Trailer Gallery. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish subtitles.

Magilla Gorilla: Complete Series: Magilla Gorilla, is a loveable but clumsy gorilla, who lives in Mr. Peebles' Pet Shop. Mr Peebles repeatedly tries to sell or give away the gorilla with no success. Backing segments include Punkin' Puss & Mushmouse and Rocochet Rabbit & Droop-a-long Coyote. These 23 complete cartoons plus 8 bonus Magilla Gorilla classic Hanna Barbera cartoons are now available for the first time ever on DVD!

Masters of Horror: Dario Argento - Jenifer: Dario Argento's contribution to the horror anthology series originally made for Showtime adapts a contemporary horror comic by writer Bruce Jones and artist Bernie Wrightson, about a modern-day Lolita with a deformed face, a stunning body, and siren-like powers over men. Steven Weber scripts and stars as the police officer who rescues and adopts the girl, only to find himself in her snare, and Carrie Anne Fleming plays Jenifer. Details: Color, 58 mins, Anchor Bay, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.77:1. Supplements: Commentary by Writer/Actor Steven Weber and DVD Producer Perry Martin; "So Hideous My Love - An interview with Dario Argento" featurette; "Working With A Master: Dario Argento" featurette; "Behind The Scenes: The Making of Jenifer" featurette; "Howard Berger And The Make-Up of Jenifer" featurette; On Set: An Interview with Steven Weber; On Set: An Interview with Carrie Anne Fleming; Script To Screen: Jenifer; Trailers; Still Gallery; Dario Argento Bio; Screenplay (DVD-ROM); Screensaver (DVD-ROM). Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional subtitles.

Memento:  (Blu-ray) Leonard (Guy Pearce) is an insurance investigator whose memory has been damaged following a head injury he sustained after intervening on his wife's murder. His quality of life has been severely hampered after this event, and he can now only live a comprehendable life by tattooing notes on himself and taking pictures of things with a Polaroid camera. The movie is told in forward flashes of events that are to come that compensate for his unreliable memory, during which he has liaisons with various complex characters. Leonard badly wants revenge for his wife's murder, but, as numerous characters explain, there may be little point if he won't remember it in order to provide closure for him. The movie veers between these future occurrences and a telephone conversation Leonard is having in his motel room in which he compares his current state to that of a client whose claim he once dealt with.

Naked Spur: A bitter Howard Kemp heads westward to the Rockies from Abilene, Kansas on the trail of murderer Ben Vandergroat and the $5000 reward on Vandergroat's head, money after which Kemp lusts in order to re-purchase the ranch that his absconding fiancée had sold during his stint in the army. Kemp unexpectedly crosses paths with an old, star-crossed gold miner, Jesse Tate, and with a recently-discharged soldier of questionable repute, Roy Anderson. Teaming up, they nab Vandergroat and his girl, Lina Patch, but Vandergroat tries to turn his three distrustful, avaricious captors against each other during the return trip.

Remington Steele: Season 4 & 5: It's business as usual at the Remington Steele Detective Agency, which means a caseload bursting with action, adventure, romance and danger! It's all in a day's work for the enchanting Laura Holt and the dashing Remington Steele, whose personal and professional relationships continue to heat up. Season four finds the jet-setting detective duo solving crimes at home and around the world, and season five features the show's thrilling final episodes in which Steele's shadowy past clashes head-on with his uncertain future. At the Steele Agency, it's never just another dull day at the office!

Rome: The Complete First Season: (HBO Dramatic Series) Four hundred years after the founding of the Republic, Rome is the wealthiest city in the world, a cosmopolitan metropolis of one million people; epicenter of a sprawling empire. The Republic was founded on principles of shared power and fierce personal competition, never allowing one man to seize absolute control. But now, those foundations are crumbling, eaten away by corruption and excess. After eight years of war, two soldiers, Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo unwittingly become entwined in the historical events of ancient Rome. A serialized drama of love and betrayal, masters and slaves, husbands and wives, ROME chronicles a turbulent era that saw the death of the republic and the birth of an empire.

Ronald Reagan - The Signature Collection: Before he became the 40th president of the United States of America or even governor of California, Ronald Reagan was a veteran Hollywood actor who, though he played mostly in Warner Bros.' films. He was extremely likable as an actor -- handsome, charismatic and accessible-- the very ingredients required to be a successful leading man in Hollywood in the 30's and 40's. Now available on DVD are five of Reagan films in Ronald Reagan: The Signature Collection.

Rv:  (Blu-ray) Robin Williams plays a workaholic executive who cancels the family Hawaiian vacation for a cross country RV trip (so he can attend a career-making meeting in Colorado) in the holiday trip farce from director Barry Sonnenfeld. Cheryl Hines is the exasperated wife, Joanna "JoJo" Levesque and Josh Hutcherson his neglected kids, and Jeff Daniels and Kristin Chenoweth an overly friendly couple who seem to be following their itinerary. Details: Color, 99 mins, Sony Pictures, pan and scan, 1.33:1. Supplements: Director's Commentary with Telestrator ; Gag Reel ; Alternate Scene ; "On Set with Director Barry Sonnenfeld" featurette; "JoJo: The Pop Princess" featurette; "RV Nation: The Culture of Road Warriors" featurette; "Robin Williams: A Family Affair" featurette; "The Scoop on Poop" featurette; RV Reveries; Storyboard-to-Film Comparison . Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French and English subtitles.

RV: Robin Williams plays a workaholic executive who cancels the family Hawaiian vacation for a cross country RV trip (so he can attend a career-making meeting in Colorado) in the holiday trip farce from director Barry Sonnenfeld. Cheryl Hines is the exasperated wife, Joanna "JoJo" Levesque and Josh Hutcherson his neglected kids, and Jeff Daniels and Kristin Chenoweth an overly friendly couple who seem to be following their itinerary. Details: Color, 99 mins, Sony Pictures, pan and scan, 1.33:1. Supplements: Director's Commentary with Telestrator ; Gag Reel ; Alternate Scene ; "On Set with Director Barry Sonnenfeld" featurette; "JoJo: The Pop Princess" featurette; "RV Nation: The Culture of Road Warriors" featurette; "Robin Williams: A Family Affair" featurette; "The Scoop on Poop" featurette; RV Reveries; Storyboard-to-Film Comparison . Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional French and English subtitles.

Safe Men: (1998) Sam Rockwell and Steven Zahn play inept lounge singers mistaken for crack safecrackers by a low-level mobster (Paul Giamatti) and forced into carrying out a series of heists that puts them in the middle of a the rival gangs of Providence, P.I. Mark Ruffalo, Josh Pais, Christina Kirk, Harvey Fierstein, and Michael Lerner co-star and John Hamburg writes and directs. Details: Color, 88 mins, Focus/Universal, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Commentary by Director John Hamburg and actors Sam Rockwell and Steven Zahn; Deleted Scenes; Tick - Director John Hamburg's Student Film. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1) and Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo). Optional Spanish and French subtitles.

Sars Wars: Bangkok Zombie Crisis: A ZOMBIE COMEDY IN THE TRADITION OF SHAUN OF THE DEAD, SARS WARS SPOOFS COUNTLESS MOVIES- FROM RESIDENT EVIL AND KILL BILL, ALL THE WAY TO STAR WARS! STARRING SOME OF THAILAND'S HOTTEST TALENT, SUPAKORN KIJSUWAN (TEARS OF THE BLACK TIGER) AND TEP PO-NGAM (KILLER TATTOO), SARS WARS HAS DELIGHTED FILM FESTIVAL AUDIENCES WORLDWIDE AND IS DESTINED TO BECOME A CULT CLASSIC!

Scary Movie 4: Airplane co-creator David Zucker returns for another romp through recent horror movies and pop-culture icons with a scattershot barrage of low-minded gags with high-spirited energy and a rapid-fire pace that keeps 'em coming until something hits the target. Anna Faris returns as the cheerfully clueless resident ditz, this time romping through spoofs of War of the Worlds, Saw, The Grudge, and The Village (with sidetrack visits to Brokeback Mountain and Million Dollar Baby) with new romantic interest Craig Bierko (doing a hyperactive Tom Cruise), best friend Regina Hall, and Leslie Nielson as the Commander in Chief. Charlie Sheen, Dr. Phil and Shaq make memorable cameos. Available in three separate versions -- a 91-minute unrated widescreen and fullscreen editions (featuring footage unseen in the theatrical version), and the 84-minute PG-13 fullscreen edition. Details: Color, 91 mins, Dimension/Genius Products, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Commentary by the filmmakers; 15 deleted and extended scenes with commentary; Bloopers; "The Man Behind the Laughs" featurette with director David Zucker; "Zany Spoof Humor - Zucker Style" featurette; "Interviewer's Worst Nightmare" - a look at what happens when interviews go terribly awry on the set; "The Youngbloodz" featurette; "Rappers & Actors" interview featurette; "The Visual Effects of Scary Movie 4" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 5.1). Optional Spanish and English subtitles.

Sense and Sensibility:  (Blu-ray) When Mr. Dashwood dies, he must leave the bulk of his estate to the son by his first marriage, which leaves his second wife and three daughters (Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret) in straitened circumstances. They are taken in by a kindly cousin, but their lack of fortune affects the marriageability of both practical Elinor and romantic Marianne. When Elinor forms an attachment for the wealthy Edward Ferrars, his family disapproves and separates them. And though Mrs. Jennings tries to match the worthy (and rich) Colonel Brandon to her, Marianne finds the dashing and fiery Willoughby more to her taste. Both relationships are sorely tried. But this is a romance, and through the hardships and heartbreak, true love and a happy ending will find their way for both the sister who is all sense and the one who is all sensibility.

The Simpsons - The Complete Eight Season: The Simpsons are very politically incorrect family. Homer works with pride in a nuclear power plant run with more regard for profit that safety. His wife is Marge, a kind of supermom. They have three kids: Bart, an underachiever ("and proud of it"), Lisa (who is as serious and responsible as Bart isn't), and Maggie.

Simpsons: Season 8: The Simpsons are very politically incorrect family. Homer works with pride in a nuclear power plant run with more regard for profit that safety. His wife is Marge, a kind of supermom. They have three kids: Bart, an underachiever ("and proud of it"), Lisa (who is as serious and responsible as Bart isn't), and Maggie.

Spirit of St Louis: On May 21, 1927, the world changed. "Lucky Lindy" landed outside Paris. And people who previously talked about the limitations of air travel suddenly dreamed of its limitless possibilities. The Spirit of St. Louis is six-time Academy Award? winner* Billy Wilder's recreation of the struggles and success of Charles A. Lindbergh, the pioneering flyboy who, like test pilots and astronauts to follow later, had the "right stuff" of aviation heroism. Lindbergh fan James Stewart, himself a pilot, sought the role ? and was initially turned down. But his persistence paid off, as Stewart added Lindy to his gallery of indelible portrayals of American heroes. He and Wilder together manned the cockpit of a stirring epic entertainment. Director: Billy Wilder Starring: James Stewart, Patricia Smith, Murray Hamilton

Stratton Story: The movie is about Chicago White Sox pitcher Monty Stratton (Jimmy Stewart), who in the 1930s, compiled a 37-19 won-loss record in three seasons. After he became the winningest right-hander in the American League, his major league career ended prematurely when a hunting accident in 1938 forced doctors to amputate his right leg. With a wooden leg and his wife Ethel's (June Allyson) help, Stratton made a successful minor league comeback in 1946, continuing to pitch in minor leagues throughout the rest of the 1940s and into the 1950s.

Surface - The Complete Series: What do naval officers in the South Antarctic Sea, a family in Wilmington, N.C., the oceanographic institute in Monterey, and fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico all have in common? They're all about to be the first to meet a new form of sea life -- it's beautiful, the kids may even want to play with it, and it likes to make the water warm. But what they don't know yet is that they are on the verge of a world disaster. "Surface" is a series full of continuously evolving twists that deliver across several long-term arcs.

Twisted Sisters: Twisted Sisters is a dark thriller dealing with the personal struggle between two twins. Jennifer was given everything a girl could wish for, Norah learned to survive on nothing. Now it is time for the tables to turn. Locating, stalking and mimicking the life of her sister, Norah decides it is time that she had it all - and no-one will get in her way.

Unleashed:  (HD DVD) A man treated like a dog and raised as a fighting machine his entire life, ends up in a coma and is taken in the care of good people, but his sinister owner is looking to retrieve his most prized possession: a non stop human weapon triggered by the collar leashed on his neck.

The Weird Al Show - The Complete Series: The basic plot of this show was that Weird Al was coming to you from a split-level cave twenty miles below the surface of the earth, along with his pet, Harvey The Wonder Hamster. Each show would have a rather loose plot around which strange and weird things would happen.