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BACHELOR, THE Male chauvinism comes to the fore in this silly comedy about a confirmed bachelor who has 24 hours in which to get married in order to inherit $100 million bequeathed him by his grandfather. Chris O'Donnell plays the bachelor who's adult life has been devoted to having fun and avoiding getting "suckered" into marriage. Now, to his horror, he must confront that reality -- for money -- and he has to go through his list of ex-sweethearts to find one who will marry him, instantly. And to complicate matters, he's already fallen in love -- but that woman has rejected him. Loosely based on Buster Keaton's classic 1928 film. Director: Gary Sinyor. Stars: Chris O'Donnell, Renee Zellweger, James Cromwell, Brooke Shields, Artie Lange, Edward Asner. Director: Gary Sinyor. Stars: Chris O'Donnell, Renee Zellweger, James Cromwell, Brooke Shields, Artie Lange, Edward Asner. CC, (MPAA rating: PG-13, 101 min.), Comedy, 1999, Box office gross: $21.290 million, (New Line), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/18, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount BOYS DON'T CRY True story of Teena Brandon, a sexually distraught 19-year-old girl who passes herself off as a youg man (Brandon Teena), dates a beautiful though also confused young woman, and is raped and murdered when her ruse is discovered. Powerful drama. Director: Kimberly Peirce. Stars: Hilary Swank, Chloe Sevigny, Peter Sarsgaard, Brandon Sexton III, Alison Folland. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 114 min.), Drama, 1999, Box office gross: $7.802 million, (Fox), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/4, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount END OF DAYS A return to form for Schwarzenegger. Here he plays an ex-cop turned security expert who must save the world from the Devil himself, who has come to Earth in the last hours of 1999 to sire the Antichrist. Taking the form of a Wall Street trader, the Devil (Gabriel Byrne) travels the streets of New York, seeking the woman born 20 years earlier to be his bride. Standing in his way are a secret clique of priests -- sent by the Pope -- to kill the woman before the Devil can get his do, as well as Schwarzenegger, who wants to save the woman and beat the Devil. Spectacular effect and action, particularly a great race to the death in New York's subway system. The film's unspoken motto: trust no one. Director: Peter Hyams. Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Pollak, Robin Tunney, Rod Steiger, CCH Pounder. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 118 min.), Thriller, 1999, Box office gross: $63.185 million, (Universal), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/18, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount FIGHT CLUB Controversial film about a group of alienated men who test their mettle by conducting bare-handed fights, leading to out-of-control terrorism. The dark and incredibly nihilistic film follows the breakdown of morality of a liability specialist for a car company, played by Edward Norton, as he befriends and comes under the spell of a brainy but nasty loner (Brad Pitt). As their friendship grows, so too does their search for meaning in a world they feel is all too commodified and conformist. Their solution -- violence. Not for the squeamish. Director: David Fincher. Stars: Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, Helena Bonham Carter, Meat Loaf Aday, Jared Leto. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 135 min.), Drama, 1999, Box office gross: $36.978 million, (Fox), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/25, DVD: June 6. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount FOR LOVE OF THE GAME Absorbing and loving baseball drama has Kevin Costner as an aging pitching ace reminiscing about his life and career on what may be the most important day of his life -- he's on his way to a no-hitter against the New York Yankees. The action shifts from his stance on the mound to mental flashbacks, which includes his failed romance with a single mother/fun-loving journalist. Costner's pitching job gets more difficult as the innings go by and he discovers that his team has been sold and the new owners want him to retire. A change of pace for "Evil Dead" director Sam Raimi. Director: Sam Raimi. Stars: Kevin Costner, Kelly Preston, John C. Reilly, Jena Malone, Brian Cox. CC, (MPAA rating: PG-13, 137 min.), Drama, 1999, Box office gross: $35.168 million, (Universal), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/4, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL Terrific remake of William Castle's 1958 film about a reckless millionaire who offers a substantial amount of money (originally $10,000, now $1 million) to a group of people if they can spend one night in a spooky, "haunted mansion." The only problem is that the people who show up aren't the invited guests, the millionaire has booby-trapped the premises, his wife has plans to kill him, and the house, originally a mental institution in which patients were slaughtered by a mad doctor, has plans all its own. Though there's plenty of effects and gore, the thrills and chills come more from the setups than the execution. This one truly keeps you on the edge of your seat. Director: William Malone. Stars: Geoffrey Rush, Famke Janssen, Taye Diggs, Peter Gallagher, Ali Larter. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 92 min.), Horror, 1999, Box office gross: $40.486 million, (Warner), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/18, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount INSIDER, THE Controversial film about CBS' "60 Minutes" and its attempt to expose the tobacco industry's coverup of the dangers of tobacco, using the testimony of ex-Brown & Williamson Tobacco Co. employee Jeffrey Wigand. Focusing in on Wigan, played by Russell Crowe in a definite Academy Award turn, and "60 Minutes" producer Lowell Bergman, played by Al Pacino, the film -- cast as an exciting thriller by director Michael Mann -- alternately examines Wigand's deterioration as his life is smeared by the tobacco forces and his wife leaves him, and Bergman's wild attempts to get and air the story -- despite the news show's buckling under corporate pressure and cancelling the interview. An exciting and robust dramatic retelling of real events. Director: Michael Mann. Stars: Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, Christopher Plummer, Diane Venora, Philip Baker Hall, Lindsay Crouse. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 155 min.), Drama, 1999, Box office gross: $28.152 million, (Buena Vista), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/11, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount MESSENGER, THE: THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC This big-screen extravaganza tells the story of the 15th century teenage girl who rallied the French -- under the yoke of England after the Hundred Years War -- to victory against overwhelming odds, bringing King Charles VII to the throne. Milla Jovovich plays the young woman -- prone to hearing voices and having visions -- who was given charge of the French army and was later betrayed and burned at the stake as a witch in 1431. Swirling camerawork and extravagant battle scenes make this a female version of Mel Gibson's "Braveheart." Director: Luc Besson. Stars: Milla Jovovich, Tcheky Karyo, John Malkovich, Faye Dunaway, Dustin Hoffman. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 148 min.), Drama, 1999, Box office gross: $14.271 million, (Columbia TriStar), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/4, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount MUSIC OF THE HEART Based on the true story of Roberta Guaspari (Meryl Streep), a teacher in East Harlem who passionately believed that music and art can provide a strong catharsis for disadvantaged kids. Creating the East Harlem Violin Project, over the years she trained 1,500 students. Though the program was a rousing success, it was nearly destroyed by the faceless bureaucrats who run the school system. To survive, Guaspari organized a Carnegie Hall fund-raising concert that attracted some of the world's leading musicians. An uplifting tale. Based on the 1996 documentary "Small Wonders." Director: Wes Craven. Stars: Meryl Streep, Aidan Quinn, Angela Bassett, Gloria Estefan, Cloris Leachman, Jane Leeves. CC, (MPAA rating: PG-13, 126 min.), Drama, 1999, Box office gross: $14.849 million, (Miramax), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/25, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount STAR WARS: EPISODE I -- THE PHANTOM MENACE The first prequel to the most popular series of films of all times traces the origins of Darth Vader and lays the groundwork for the creation of the evil Empire. To say that director George Lucas pulled out all the stops for special effects is an understatement; his Industrial Light and Magic outfit has created some of the most memorial virtual characters in the history of film (including the cleverly executed but much despised Jar Jar Binks). The great effects overshadow what many felt was a disappointing story line that merely lays the groundwork for more imaginative goings-on in the two prequels to follow ("Star Wars II" is due next year). Director: George Lucas. Stars: Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Frank Oz, Samuel L. Jackson. CC, (MPAA rating: PG, 132 min.), Sci-Fi, 1999, Box office gross: $431.065 million, (Fox), No SRP, Pan-and-scan edition: $24.98. Special Widescreen Video Collector's Edition (includes behind-the-scenes footage, a 35mm film strip from the film, 48-page booklet: $39.98. Available: 4/4, DVD: No. Buy or preorder the VHS editions STUART LITTLE This delightful live-action and CGI telling of E.B. White's 1945 kids classic about a family that adopts a mouse as their new son has all the right elements in all the right places for a family classic. All Stuart the mouse wants is to be a part of the Little family, but to do so he first has to win over his new (human) brother with feats of courage and daring. Complicating matters is a jealous house cat who finagles with a gang of shady felines to have Stuart eliminated. Though slow at times, the performances (Stuart voiced by Michael J. Fox and Snowball the cat voiced by Nathan Lane) are terrific. There's a positive lesson here for kids, too -- we all have to learn to accept ourselves for what we are. Director: Rob Minkoff. Stars: Geena Davis, Hugh Laurie, Jonathan Lipnicki, voices of Michael J. Fox and Nathan Lane. CC, (MPAA rating: PG, 85 min.), Family, 1999, Box office gross: $137.465 million, (Columbia TriStar), $24.96 SRP. Available: 4/18, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount SUPERSTAR Saturday Night Live regular Molly Shannon brings her SNL character Mary Katherine Gallagher -- a hyperactive Catholic schoolgirl who lives in her own oddball world -- to the big screen. Her one goal in life (or at least in this film) is to be kissed just like in the movies. So when she finds out about a Catholic Teen Magazine talent contest -- with the grand prize a trip to Hollywood -- so pulls out all the stops to make sure she's a winner. If you can sustain disbelief long enough to accept a 30-year-old playing a teenager, then give this one a chance. Otherwise it's just for SNL cultists only. Director: Bruce McCulloch. Stars: Molly Shannon, Will Ferrell, Elaine Hendix, Harland Williams, Glynis Johns. CC, (MPAA rating: PG-13, 82 min.), Comedy, 1999, Box office gross: $30.628 million, (Paramount), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/11, DVD: Day & Date. THREE KINGS This loopy action-adventure black comedy takes place just after the Gulf War ended in 1991 and follows the adventures of four disgruntled GIs (George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, Spike Jonze) who take off through the Iraqi desert on their own in search of stolen Kuwaiti gold. They quickly find the gold but also get more than they bargained for: Iraqi solders are killing and torturing dissidents right before their eyes. With moral valor coming to the fore, the soldiers champion the refuges, putting their own lives on the line to become unwilling heroes. Using grainy images, unconventional camera angles, and symbols usurped from pop culture, director David O. Russell takes unrelenting jabs at race, politics, war, greed, consumerism and the media. Director: David O. Russell. Stars: George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, Spike Jonze, Nora Dunn, Jamie Kennedy, Mykelti Williamson. CC, (MPAA rating: R, 110 min.), Action Comedy, 1999, Box office gross: $60.652 million, (Warner), No SRP, Priced for rental, Available: 4/11, DVD: Day & Date. Buy or preorder this title at up to 40% discount All films are screened using the DVD version, when available, on a reference Onkyo DV-S717 DVD player. | Contents/Site Map | Home | Resources | VidNews | KidVid | Calendar | Sell-Through | DVD | Reviews | E-mail: mail@onvideo.org © 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 OnVideo. All rights reserved March 15, 2000