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“LAND OF THE LOST: THE COMPLETE SERIES”
"CRIPS AND BLOODS: MADE IN AMERICA"
“THE CLOSER: THE COMPLETE FOURTH SEASON”
"THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY"
“ROBIN HOOD – PRINCE OF THEIVES: EXTENDED VERSION”
“JEEVES & WOOSTER: THE COMPLETE SERIES”
“TRUE ROMANCE: DIRECTOR'S CUT”
Blu-ray widescreen and DVD widescreen, 2009, PG for language and some suggestive material
Best extra: The 30-minute making-of documentary highlighting the production filmed during the dead of winter in Winnipeg, Canada
IMAGINE SHOOTING A movie at 50 below zero. Unthinkable?
Not for director Jonas Elmer and his crew and cast, including Renée Zellweger and Harry Connick Jr., huddled in mitten-warmer stuffed parkas for days – even filming in the middle of the night with hundreds of extras. Zellweger and Connick could only laugh about their dreaded nose icicles and many other maladies, confirming it was indeed REALLY COLD.
This mildly amusing romantic comedy follows Lucy Hill (Zellweger), a driven executive from Miami, who’s shipped to a frost-bitten Minnesota town to down-size a food processing plant.
Predictability ensues as her priorities change influenced by the simple but spunky small-town folks – who love to scrapbook – and a quirky love connection with Ted Mitchell (Connick Jr.), the local union guy. The movie is somewhat redeemed by Lucy’s secretary Marge (Siobhan Fallon Hogan with a “Fargo” accent to boot) and her famous tapioca pudding.
The disc includes a hi-def featurette on “The Folk Art of Scrapbooking” – which was the real inspiration for the movie from screenwriter Kenneth Rance. His wife is an avid scrapper. You get to see her create with half-dozen others. The Blu-ray includes an audio and video commentary with co-stars J.K. Simmons and Hogan and co-writers C. Jay Cox and Rance, who considers scrapping the organic thread that holds the story of relationships, community, love and friendship all together.
— Kristina Healy
“LAND OF THE LOST: THE COMPLETE SERIES”
DVD full-screen, 1974-76, unrated
Best extra: The full three seasons of this classic cheesy/cool mid-70s Saturday morning sci-fi romp come packed in a full-size retro “Land of the Lost” lunch box.
THE BRAINCHILD of Sid and Marty Croft (producers of “H.R. Pufnstuf,” “The Banana Splits,” and countless other 1970s fare), “Land of the Lost” premiered in 1974 and ran, via reruns, well into the 80s. Ask pretty much any Gen Xer who “Cha-Ka” or the Sleestaks were, and they’ll instantly recognize the names as coming from this series. In its day, it was a Saturday morning staple, every bit as much as Scooby Doo, Fat Albert and Grape Ape.
Like fine wine, some things get better with age. The original “Land of the Lost” is not one of them. The effects were painfully low-budget even when the series was new. Now, they’re watchable – if you’re a fan of camp. Otherwise, don’t bother … even if you were a fan of the series as a kid. Sometimes, it’s best to leave childhood memories in childhood.
Released to coincide with the upcoming Will Ferrell vehicle of same name, this collection includes free (up to $7.50) admission to the film, which premieres June 5. If the trailer (included in this collection) is any indication, the movie will likely be more entertaining to the average viewer, circa 2009.
— Robert Hatfield
"CRIPS AND BLOODS: MADE IN AMERICA"
DVD widescreen, 2008, not rated
Best extra: 30-minutes of deleted scenes.
WHEN HE WAS a child, Kumasi wanted to be a Boy Scout, but was told he wasn't welcome because he was black.
Documentary filmmaker Stacey Peralta ("Dogtown and Z-Boys") takes this incident and traces African American history in Los Angeles beginning with a wealth of good factory jobs during World War II that vanished in the aftermath and led to poverty and strict real estate lines that kept blacks and whites segregated. Black teenagers who wandered from their neighborhoods into the white world were harassed by police officers and returned to their prisons. Not surprisingly, street gangs sprang up. What is surprising is that the gangs, which started out using fists and soon graduated to guns and drug dealing, has taken the lives of 15,000 young men since their creation.
Peralta's powerful documentary, which includes incredibly passionate interviews from original and current members of these gangs, is interspersed with a running narration by Forrest Whitaker. Archival footage demonstrates how the Los Angeles Police Department dealt with African Americans in the 1950s and 60s (they were trained under Chief William Parker to view blacks as enemies and to use military force to keep them in line). It must be seen to be believed. Also included is more recent and disturbing footage of young black men laying dead in the streets from gunfights. Interviews with academics, historians, and those who have dedicated their lives to gang intervention, help put what we're seeing and hearing in context.
The saddest thing we're told is that some of these young gang members have never left the neighborhoods they rule over. They’ve never even seen the nearby ocean.
Highly recommended.
— Josh Boone
“THE CLOSER: THE COMPLETE FOURTH SEASON”
DVD Widescreen, 2009, not rated
Best extra: Interviews with interrogators with tips on how to catch liars.
IN THE SEASON ender, LAPD Deputy Chief Brenda Lee Johnson finally marries her longtime partner, FBI Special Agent Fritz Howard. But don’t expect a big “Closer” prep and wedding. It happens in quick takes, around the crime she is solving. And as usual, Johnson and her squad solve the crimes with psychology, intuition and investigative work.
The extras follow the theme of previous “Closer” sets, letting viewers into the mind of interrogators. They give away secrets such as making the suspects comfortable before they will tell the truth, and reading body language. It could inspire someone so inclined to begin interrogating people.
In another extra, actor Corey Reynolds rides along with a retired homicide detective to important murder sites in his career. Some are solved, and one is not – and tears at the detective, still.
There are also deleted scenes on this 4-disc set and a gag reel of no consequence.
— Judy Le
Blu-ray widescreen, 1996, R for strong violence, language and sexuality
Best extra: "Minnesota Nice" is a solid 30-minute documentary (carried over from DVD) with anecdotes from the cast and crew and behind-scenes footage.
"THIS IS A TRUE STORY" is the text you'll see at the beginning of the film although "Fargo" is anything but. The Coen Brothers borrowed elements from several true crime stories, including one where a Connecticut man killed his wife and disposed of her body by feeding it into a wood chipper (Yikes!). Still, the characters and storyline are completely fictional.
This Coen Brothers classic arrives on Blu-ray with a wonderful filmic transfer that surpasses all previous home video versions and further impresses on the viewer just how fine a cinematographer Roger Deakins ("No Country For Old Men" and many other Coen films) is. The uncompressed audio is also of high caliber. Although the film is largely dialogue driven, music and effects get their due; there is little in the way of surrounds.
Extras are identical to the 2003 DVD edition minus the "Charlie Rose" show clip that was present on that edition. What is here is quite good even if the Coens take their usual backseat and allow others to do most of the speaking for them. You can listen to Deakins on a solo commentary where he discusses his process of lighting and what it’s been like working with the Coens over the years. While listening to his track, you can also access the "Trivia Nice" track which is filled with oodles of information about North Dakota, the cast and crew, and other random facts about America.
Although there are no new extras here, the audio/video quality alone makes this worth the upgrade for fans of the film.
— Josh Boone
Blu-ray widescreen, 1989, PG-13 for action violence and drug content
Best extra: A 30-minute hi-def retrospective documentary with interviews with actor Timothy Dalton and director John Glen
FOR SOME CRAZY reason, American moviegoers turned their back on 007 in “Licence to Kill.” Globally, it was a different story; the 16th Bond starring Timothy Dalton set all kinds of box office records – while only breaking even stateside. In the documentary, director John Glen has his own theories for the U.S. downfall.
Maybe it was the title? Originally, it was named “Licence Revoked,” which is a major plot point. Studio executives felt Americans wouldn’t understand the word “revoked.”
How about the frozen budget? For nearly a decade, Glen filmed five Bonds with basically the same amount of cash – $30 million. MGM and producer Albert R. Broccoli also forced Glen to shoot in Mexico City at a sub par studio that had been nearly destroyed after a major earthquake a few years earlier.
Where’s the sex? For this film, Glen and Dalton preferred a meaner and grittier Bond who had little time for the ladies. After all, CIA buddy Felix Leiter had just been fed to a shark by drug kingpin Sanchez (Robert Davi) and henchmen (Anthony Zerbe) and 007 is out for revenge. (You should also, keep an eye out for young 22-year-old Benicio Del Toro as Sanchez’s bully.)
Although it became Glen’s and Dalton’s last Bond film, the British director still considers “Licence” his best. Glen worked the Bond series for more than 20 years, first as a film editor and second unit director on “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” and “The Spy Who Love Me.” Then, taking the helm as director on “For Your Eyes Only” (1981), followed by the next four Bond’s, including “Licence.”
The Blu-ray imagery is solid with excellent color and plenty of hi-def detail highlighting the gorgeous Key West and Acapulco Bay scenery.
The disc includes two commentaries, all spliced together from the documentary interviews, behind-scene footage from ’89, trailers and a photo gallery.
For Bond fans, it's worth every penny.
— Bill Kelley III
"THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY"
Blu-ray widescreen, 1998, R for strong comic sexual content and language
Best extra: Directors’ commentary with Peter and Bobby Farrelly
BLU-RAY BRINGS OUT the blue in Cameron Diaz’s eyes and the "love blisters" on Chris Elliott’s face in "There’s Something About Mary." The transfer is crisp, clear and captivating. The music concert-like in your living room.
The plot and antics of Mary, (Diaz), Ted (Ben Stiller), Pat (Matt Dillon), Dom (Elliott) and others still hit the funny bone 11 years later. The Farrelly brothers took an already funny script by Ed Decter and John J. Strauss and punched it up a few notches, adding humor that borders on gross.
The standard-def bonus features are carried over from the collector’s edition, but, nonetheless, entertain and educate about a movie that took nearly a decade to make. They include theatrical and extended versions of the movie, director commentary, director scene-specific commentary, writers’ commentary; cal-animated titles with optional directors’ commentary, AMC "Backstory" on the making of the movie; a foreign language end scene, various featurettes on the movies’ actors and its music and outtakes.
Even after all these years, there’s still something grand about this flick.
— Toni Guagenti
Blu-ray widescreen, 1989, PG for language
Best extra: Commentary with director/script writer Phil Alden Robinson and director of photography John Lindley.
THE SUBTLE MAGIC of “Field of Dreams” comes through beautifully on Blu-ray’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. There are no flying dragons or exploding fireworks – just clear dialogue and that haunting whisper: “If you build it, he will come.”
Shivers!
You’ll also find an excellent visual transfer. Color is great. Flesh tones appear natural, but the moment you see that lush green cornfield and white farmhouse, you’ll know good things are going to happen. Detail is also excellent.
If you’re looking for a special film to pick up for Father’s Day – or a feature classic for your collection – it’s hard to find anything better. AMC compiled a list of movies that make men cry. “Field of Dreams” is in there, along with “Rudy,” “Saving Private Ryan,” “Braveheart” and the eternal “Brian’s Song.” Yet the movie that extols the father/son relationship belongs to “Field,” it’s superb cast – Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, James Earl Jones, Burt Lancaster and Ray Liotta – fine script from the book by W.P. Kinsella, and Robinson’s direction.
Additional extras include “From Father to Son, Passing Along the Pastime,” a feature where cast, crew and major league baseball players discuss father-son memories and what the film meant to them; “The Diamond in the Husks,” a visit to the “Field of Dreams,” which still exists; a tour of “Galena, Illinois, Pinch Hits for Chisholm, Minnesota”; a roundtable with Costner, Bret Saberhagen, George Brett and Johnny Bench; “Bravo’s From Page to Screen: Field of Dreams” documentary, deleted scenes and a scrapbook.
Recommended.
— Mike Reynolds
“ROBIN HOOD – PRINCE OF THEIVES: EXTENDED VERSION”
Blu-ray widescreen, 1991, PG-13 for action violence and thematic material
Best extra: Commentary with director Kevin Reynolds and Kevin Costner (Robin Hood)
THIS VERSION OF the legendary Robin of the Hood owes more to Showtime’s series “Robin of Sherwood” (1984-1986) than Errol Flynn. But that’s OK. Actors Kevin Costner, Morgan Freeman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio and Christian Slater have a fine time in the wilds of old Sherwood. And Alan Rickman is possibly the most outrageous Sheriff of Nottingham ever to appear on film. Then there’s the terrific score by Michael Kamen and the theme by Bryan Adams (“Everything I do, I Do It For You”).
How can you miss?
The picture in Blu-ray looks great. Color is good but the detail is terrific, especially in costumes and scenery. On the negative, digital grain reduction flattens a few scenes. A Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround track provides a clear mix of dialogue and score, along with excellent effects during action scenes.
There are plenty of extras carried over from earlier presentations including an extra commentary with actors and producers, a campy TV special on “Robin Hood: Man, Myth and Legend,” vintage interviews with the film’s stars, a music-only audio track and Adams performing at Ireland’s Slane Castle.
— Mike Reynolds
DVD full-screen, 1941, unrated, brief violence
Best extra: The feature “Rogue Male: The Making of ‘Man Hunt’ ”
HARD TO BELIEVE, but after fleeing Nazi Germany, Fritz Lang had to sell himself to Hollywood. Imagine, producers weren’t familiar with “Metropolis” or “M.” Anyway, he got his restart with this adaptation of “Rogue Male,” the best-selling, 1939 cat-and-mouse thriller by Geoffrey Household.
Big-game hunter Alan Thorndike stalks Hitler to his mountain retreat, but just as he’s about to pull the trigger, he’s captured. The Germans want him to confess to being an assassin working for the British government. He refuses, is beaten and escapes. The bad guys track him to London.
Walter Pidgeon is unconvincing as Thorndike and Joan Bennett’s Cockney accent is the worst this side of “Mary Poppins’ Bert the chimney sweep, but the movie works because, as it’s pointed out in the feature “Rogue Male,” it had all the Lang hallmarks: It’s claustrophobic and, thanks to a spiffy remastering job, shadowy. It pits one man against a network of persecutors. It involves spies.
It also boasts the skills of screenwriter Dudley Nichols and cinematographer Arthur Miller, frequent collaborators of John Ford, who was on board to direct before bowing out.
It also works because of its timing. The Neutrality Act kept the United States out of the brewing turmoil in Europe. “Man Hunt” was seen as a way to enlighten the nation. In fact, Lang biographer Patrick McGilligan says in his commentary that the government was so concerned about British activity in Hollywood that the Senate convened hearings to address pro-message movies like “Man Hunt” that propagandized entering the war.
Those hearings, he adds, were cut short on Dec. 7, 1941.
— Craig Shaprio
“JEEVES & WOOSTER: THE COMPLETE SERIES”
DVD full-screen, 1990-93, unrated, nothing objectionable
Best extra: Make that only extra – a bare-bones biography of author P.G. Wodehouse
NOW THIS WOULD be a bonus: You’re the fly on the wall when unsuspecting fans of “House” spot this set and say, “Hey, that’s Hugh Laurie. Let’s check it out.”
Their reaction to seeing him inhabit Bertie Wooster, who, with an assist from his unflappable gentleman’s gentleman, navigates the parlors and country homes of British swelldom, would be a stitch.
Inhabit is no exaggeration. It’s as if P.G. Wodehouse had Laurie and Stephen Fry in mind when he put pen to paper. That, of course, is not news for those who picked up on this series when it crossed the pond and remember their sketch series, “A Bit of Fry and Laurie.” Still, it’s nice to be reminded.
But if you already have the DVDs, there’s no reason to pick up on this new version, unless it’s to save shelf space. The set has been streamlined, sort of like what was done recently with “Monty Python,” but hasn’t been remastered or outfitted with any significant extras. The lone extra, a biography of Wodehouse, is hardly worth the bother – just a few screens of copy and a bibliography. They couldn’t have tacked on a picture of him?
Oh well, carry on.
— Craig Shapiro
Blu-ray widescreen and DVD widescreen, 2009, R for sexual content, nudity, language and some drug use
Best extra: Commentary with writer/director Timothy Linh Bui ("Green Dragon") and producer Tracee Stanley
IF YOU’RE FEELING lonely, "Powder Blue" could push you over the edge. Then again, it could give you hope. That’s the beautiful dichotomy of this movie about loneliness in Los Angeles and redemption through love.
The movie in Blu-ray is purposefully grainy in parts, dark and dreary – reflecting the lives of some of its characters. In other parts, the colors help the characters glow, as when Jessica Biel’s character, Rose-Johnny, is escaping her stripper life in a red dress against the backdrop of a beautiful work of graffiti. The imagery is incredible, the music, haunting and surreal.
That’s why the commentary with Bui and Stanley is so fantastic. They deal with the screenplay, the character development, the imagery, the cinematography, camera angles, props and the movie’s theme. A standard-def, making-of feature also is spot on. If you want to get into the characters’ minds, this will help, with Biel, Forest Whitaker, Ray Liotta and Eddie Redmayne analyzing their parts. Viewers also get a still gallery of photos and the movie’s trailer.
Unfortunately, this movie didn’t make much of a splash in the theaters, but will do more than enough to entertain and make you think in the comfort of your own home.
— Toni Guagenti
“TRUE ROMANCE: DIRECTOR'S CUT”
Blu-ray widescreen, 1993, not rated with violence, language, simulated sex and drug use
Best extra: There’s nothing new here – all carry over from the DVD – Tarantino’s breathless solo commentary still steals the show.
TARANTINO TALKS FAST, very fast, and he has a lot to say about his "old girlfriend," "True Romance." Tarantino was thrilled to learn that Tony Scott would be directing his film because "Revenge," Scott's Kevin Costner thriller, was one of his all time favorite films. Tarantino was less happy that Scott didn't want to use his original ending or his time-jumping structure, but now feels that the choices Scott made were absolutely right for his version of the film.
"Romance" comes to Blu-ray with a very disappointing transfer. The image is flat and excessively soft and there has been some noise reduction and edge enhancement used causing ringing and no real facial detail. Warner owes this classic a restoration. Instead of striking a new HD master, they have obviously used the same source as the 2002 DVD edition. The uncompressed TrueHD track is quite good, especially when taking the film's age into account. An endless stream of Tarantino's trademark dialogue makes for a centered and front heavy experience (from the original 2-channel stereo) and there is some nice rear and surrounds here as well for the score, pop songs, and climactic gun battle.
Extras are identical to the 2002 DVD edition and include an avalanche of commentaries with stars Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette sharing a track, while Scott and Tarantino have solo tracks. There are also screen-specific commentaries by Dennis Hopper, Val Kilmer, Michael Rappaport, and Brad Pitt, who each briefly discuss their work on the film. It's important to note that the footage viewers will have to watch while listening to the scene specific commentary by Hopper and Co. is in standard-def. Thirty minutes of deleted and extended scenes and two short vintage making-of featurettes are also included.
Not worth the upgrade. Skip it.
— Josh Boone
DVD full-screen, 1977, unrated
Best extra: Text biography of Colin Watson, author of the novels on which series is based.
WHILE NOT THE greatest video quality, as a result of how these BBC-TV shows were filmed, this series about the likeable, pipe-smoking Detective Inspector Purbright (Anton Rodgers) is enjoyable. The box set contains seven episodes on three discs (some are 2-parters), and each story is set in the fictional village of Flaxborough. There are plenty of murders, but they may be a bit too dated and restrained for hard-core crime show lovers, used to being spared no gory detail or image.
The only extras are text filmographies of the cast and a brief biography of Watson who based Flaxborough on his home of Boston, Lincolnshire.
— Peggy Earle
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