OnVideo Guide to Home Video Releases: October Calendar of Releases

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Guide to Home Video Releases:
October Release Calendar


DVD Releases

Movies are rated on a scale of one to five, with five denoting a classic. For more information on how we rate, check out our
Rentability Index.

calendar page Back to Calendar Index.

October 5
  • Fahrenheit 9/11 One of the most controversial and provocative films of the year, Fahrenheit 9/11 is Academy Award-winning filmmaker Michael Moore's searing examination of the Bush administration's actions in the wake of the tragic events of 9/11. With his characteristic humor and dogged commitment to uncovering the facts, Moore considers the presidency of George W. Bush and where it has led us. He looks at how -- and why -- Bush and his inner circle avoided pursuing the Saudi connection to 9/11, despite the fact that 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudis and Saudi money had funded Al Qaeda. "Fahrenheit 9/11" shows us a nation kept in constant fear by FBI alerts and lulled into accepting a piece of legislation, the USA Patriot Act, that infringes on basic civil rights. It is in this atmosphere of confusion, suspicion and dread that the Bush Administration makes its headlong rush towards war in Iraq -- and "Fahrenheit 9/11" takes us inside that war to tell the stories we haven't heard, illustrating the awful human cost to U.S. soldiers and their families. And that's just the tip of the iceberg, as Moore exposes all the foibles and follies of the president and his administration. You'll be dumbfounded as the president sits dumbfounded after aides interrupt his reading of a children's book to an elementary school class to inform him of the attacks of 9/11. Admittedly, Moore here is preaching to the Gospel -- but it's a gospel that's growing larger and larger every day, as witnessed by the astonishing boxoffice take of the film. If you're a Bush supporter, or straddling the fence, see this film. It may just change your mind. (And please note: polemics and manipulation of images aside, Moore had all the facts he presents in this film verified by neutral sources). Director: Michael Moore. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R, 122 min., Documentary, Box office gross: $113.229 million, Columbia TriStar, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date. 4 stars

  • Saved! "Good girl" Mary (Jena Malone) and her domineering best friend, Hilary Faye (Mandy Moore), are starting their senior year at the top of the social food chain at American Eagle Christian High School -- that is until Mary's boyfriend tells her he thinks he might be gay. When Jesus appears to her in a vision, she heeds his message to "do everything she can to help him," and, to her horror, she ends up pregnant. Suddenly, Mary begins to question everything she's believed in, and Hilary Faye and her devoted "disciples" (including Heather Matarazzo) turn against her. As an outcast, Mary finds herself alone until she's befriended by the school's other pariahs: Hilary Faye's cynical, wheelchair-bound brother, Roland (Macaulay Culkin); the principal's skater heartthrob son, Patrick (Patrick Fugit); and the high school's lone Jew, an exuberant rebel named Cassandra (Eva Amurri). Director: Brian Dannelly. Stars: Mandy Moore, Macaulay Culkin, Patrick Fugit, Heather Matarazzo, Eva Amurri, Martin Donovan, Mary-Louise Parker. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 92 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $8.479 million, MGM, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date. 2 stars

  • Five Obstructions, The Director Lars von Trier performs yet another cinematic experiment. In 2000, the Danish director challenged his mentor, director Jorgen Leth, to remake his classic 12-minute 1967 short, "The Perfect Human" (a film that von Trier admires greatly and claims to have seen more than 20 times) five different times, but each time von Trier put forward obstacles, constraining Leth to rethink the story and the characters of the original film. Playing the naive anthropologist, Leth attempts to embrace the cunning challenges set forth by the devious and sneaky von Trier. Five times Leth has to deal with the limitations, commands and prohibitions made by von Trier. It's a game full of traps and vicious turns with a surprising outcome. A unique investigative journey into the filmmaking process. In Danish with English subtitles. Director: Lars von Trier, Jorgen Leth. 2003, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 90 min., Documentary, Box office gross: $0.099 million, Koch Lorber. DVD: Only.

  • Deadline What would you do if you discovered that 13 people slated for execution had been found innocent? That was exactly the question that Illinois Governor George Ryan faced in his final days in office. He alone was left to decide whether 167 death row inmates should live or die. In the riveting countdown to Ryan's decision, "Deadline" details the gripping drama of the state's clemency hearings. Documented as the events unfolded, "Deadline" is a compelling look inside America's prisons, highlighting one man's unlikely and historic actions against the system. "Deadline" was the first independent feature film to air as a special two-hour edition of "Dateline NBC." NBC chairman-CEO Bob Wright spotted the documentary when it premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival and personally approached filmmakers Katy Chevigny and Kirsten Johnson following the screening. As a result, NBC aired the documentary on July 30th. Director: Kirsten Johnson, Katy Chevigny. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 90 min., Documentary, Home Vision Entertainment. DVD: Only.

October 12
  • Day After Tomorrow, The What if we are on the brink of a new Ice Age? This is the question that haunts climatologist Jack Hall (Dennis Quaid). Hall's research indicates that global warming could trigger an abrupt and catastrophic shift in the planet's climate. The ice cores that he's drilled in Antarctica show that it happened before, 10,000 years ago. And now he's warning officials that it could happen again if they don't act soon. But his warning comes too late. It all begins when Hall witnesses a piece of ice the size of Rhode Island break off the Antarctic Ice Shelf. Then a series of increasingly severe weather events start to unfold around the globe: hail the size of grapefruit batters Tokyo, record-breaking hurricane winds pound Hawaii, snow falls in New Delhi, and then a devastating series of tornadoes whips through Los Angeles. A phone call from a colleague in Scotland, Professor Rapson (Ian Holm), confirms Jack's worst fears: these intense weather events are symptoms of a massive global change. Melting polar caps has poured too much fresh water into the oceans and disrupted the currents that stabilize our climate system. Global warming has pushed the planet over the edge and into a new Ice Age. And it all will happen during one global super storm. While Jack warns the White House of the impending climate shift, his 17 year-old son Sam (Jake Gyllenhaal) finds himself trapped in New York City where he and some friends have been competing in a high school academic competition. As full-scale, massive evacuations to the south begin, Jack heads north to New York City to save Sam. But not even Jack is prepared for what is about to happen -- to him, to his son, and to his planet. Director: Roland Emmerich. Stars: Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Emmy Rossum, Dash Mihok, Jay O. Sanders, Sela Ward, Ian Holm. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 124 min., Science fiction, Box office gross: $180.215 million, Fox, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date. 4 stars

  • Raising Helen Fluffy comedy. Twenty-something Helen Harris (Kate Hudson) is living the life she always dreamed of. Her career at a top Manhattan modeling agency is on the rise, and she enjoys the city's non-stop nightlife. But her carefree lifestyle comes to a halt when one phone call changes everything. Helen soon finds herself responsible for her sister's children (Hayden Panettiere, Spencer Breslin, Abigail Breslin). The fun begins as Helen goes through the transformation from super hip to super mom. Along the way, Helen finds love in the most unusual place -- with Dan Parker (John Corbett), the handsome young pastor of the kids' new school. Helen realizes she has to make a choice between the life she's always loved and the new loves of her life. Director: Garry Marshall. Stars: Kate Hudson, John Corbett, Joan Cusack, Hayden Panettiere, Spencer Breslin, Abigail Breslin, Helen Mirren. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 119 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $36.221 million, Buena Vista, $24.99 VHS SRP. DVD: Day & Date. 3 stars

  • Battle of Algiers, The One of the most influential films in the history of political cinema, Gillo Pontecorvo's "The Battle of Algiers" focuses on the harrowing events of 1957, a key year in Algeria's struggle for independence from France. Shot in the streets of Algiers in documentary style, the film vividly recreates the tumultuous Algerian uprising against the occupying French in the 1950s. As violence escalates on both sides, the French torture prisoners for information and the Algerians resort to terrorism in their quest for independence. Children shoot soldiers at point-blank range, women plant bombs in cafes. The French win the battle, but ultimately lose the war. The three-disc set features a new high-definition digital transfer. In French with English subtitles. Director: Gillo Pontecorvo. Stars: Brahim Haggiag, Jean Martin, Yacef Saadi. 1965, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 117 min., Political drama, The Criterion Collection. DVD: Only. 4 stars

  • Breakin' All the Rules Breaking up is never easy. For Quincy Watson (Jamie Foxx) it's just another misfortune added on to his list of problems. After getting fired from his job and dumped by his girlfriend, Quincy has motivation to do nothing else but sit at home and write anguished letters to his ex telling her how bad he feels over how tactlessly she ended their relationship. His cousin Evan (Morris Chestnut) is the publisher of a popular men's magazine and persuades Quincy into transforming his letters into an instructional book about how to successfully break up with your girlfriend. Quincy becomes an instant expert on the subject and his book tops the best-seller charts. The problems start to arise when Quincy starts doing the dirty work for his friends -- he goes as far as showing up in the place of Evan to break up with his girlfriend Nicky (Gabrielle Union). What unravels after this is a whirlwind of mistaken identities and romantic confusions, but when Nicky finds out what Quincy is up to, the tables are turned and a heated battle of the sexes is underway. Director: Daniel Taplitz. Stars: Jamie Foxx, Gabrielle Union, Morris Chestnut, Jennifer Esposito. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 85 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $11.827 million, Columbia TriStar, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date. 2 stars

  • Mother, The A sensual tale of lust, jealousy and self-discovery. After her husband dies, May (Anne Reid), a shy suburban housewife, moves to London to be near her grown children and their families. Quite unexpectedly, she becomes attracted to Darren (Daniel Craig), a handsome carpenter half her age who's currently having an affair with her daughter. After Darren returns her advances, the two embark on a forbidden affair that threatens to destroy May's family in this powerful film that proves that with great passion comes a great price. Director: Roger Michell. Stars: Anne Reid, Daniel Craig, Steven Mackintosh. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R, 112 min., Drama, Box office gross: $0.843 million, Columbia TriStar, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Japon In this provocative film, a painter leaves Mexico City for the remote countryside where he plans to take his life. But once there, he encounters an old Indian widow in her rickety home overlooking a desolate canyon. In the vastness of a wild, breathtaking nature, he confronts the old woman's infinite humanity and oscillates between cruelty and lyricism. His dulled senses return to him, reawakening his desires and instincts for life and raw sexuality. In Spanish with English subtitles. In R and unrated director's cut editions. Director: Carlos Reygadas. Stars: Alejandro Ferretis, Magdalena Flores, Yolanda Villa. 2002, CC, MPAA rating: R/NR, 126 min., Drama, Tartan Video, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Bush's Brain An insightful political documentary that introduces us to one of the most powerful political figures in America today, Karl Rove, President Bush's closest advisor. The relationship between Rove and Bush is one of the most unique political marriages in history. Feared and admired by Republicans and Democrats alike, Rove has raised a new and disturbing question for America: Who really runs the country? "Bush's Brain" explores the remarkable political journey of this ultimate insider and the extraordinary role he has played in Bush's rise to the top. Is he a puppeteer pulling the presidential strings? From his masterful political skills, to the secret machinations he carefully orchestrates, to his dramatic influence on foreign policy, Rove's fingerprints are found throughout the political process. "Bush's Brain" -- a thought-provoking film designed to inspire debate -- is based on the best- selling book by James C. Moore and Wayne Slater. Director: Joseph Mealey Michael Paradies Shoob. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 80 min., Documentary, Tartan Video, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Stateside Based on a true story, "Stateside" follows the adventures of an outlaw rich kid, Mark Deloach (Jonathan Tucker) who lands in the Marine Corps to avoid jail and is trained by hard-hitting Drill Instructor Skeer (Val Kilmer), who's on a mission to make the kid a man. When on leave, Deloach meets and falls in love with a crazy young actress/pop singer, Dori Lawrence (Rachael Leigh Cook), whose career is crashing. The two outcast lovers cling to their romance despite everything standing in their way. Director: Reverge Anselmo. Stars: Jonathan Tucker, Rachael Leigh Cook, Joe Mantegna, Val Kilmer, Ed Begley Jr., Penny Marshall, Carrie Fisher, Diane Venora, Agnes Bruckner, Daniel Franzese. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R, 97 min., Drama, Box office gross: $0.174 million, First Look Home Entertainment, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Valentin Precocious and imaginative 8-year-old Valentin is raised by his grandmother. He dreams of becoming an astronaut and spends his time developing space suits made from whatever materials he can find. He also dreams of having a normal family and misses his mother, who abandoned him. During a visit from his father, he finds out about his father's current girlfriend, Leticia. Valentin asks to meet her with the hope that she will become his mother. This encounter between Valentin and Leticia opens up old secrets but also creates an opportunity that Valentin just can't pass up. In Spanish with English subtitles, from Argentina. Director: Alejandro Agresti. Stars: Julieta Cardinali, Carmen Maura, Jean Pierre Noher, Mex Urtizberea, Rodrigo Noya. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 83 min., Drama, Box office gross: $0.271 million, Miramax. DVD only.

October 19
  • Van Helsing Deep in the mountains of Carpathia lies the mysterious and mythic land of Transylvania -- a world where evil is ever-present, where danger rises as the sun sets, and where the monsters that inhabit man's deepest nightmares take form. Set in 19th Century London, Rome, Paris and Transylvania -- where mankind is in constant danger from incarnate evil in a multitude of forms: monsters that outlive generations, defying repeated attacks from the doomed brave souls that challenge them in their never-ending war upon the human race -- the film follows the adventures of Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman), the legendary monster hunter born in the pages of Bram Stoker's "Dracula." In his ongoing battle to rid the world of its fiendish creatures, Van Helsing, on order of a secret society, travels to Transylvania to bring down the lethally seductive, enigmatically powerful Count Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) and joins forces with the fearless Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale), out to rid her family of a generations-old curse by defeating the vampire. Also populating the film's dense canvas are Dr. Frankenstein's misunderstood monster, Anna's stalwart brother who transforms under the full moon into the Wolf Man, Dr. Frankenstein's loyal yet treacherous assistant, Igor; Carl, a friar entrusted with ensuring Van Helsing's safe return; and Dracula's three bloodthirsty brides who will stop at nothing to help their master in his plan to subvert human civilization and rule over a world of havoc, fear and darkness. Director: Stephen Sommer. Stars: Hugh Jackman, Kate Beckinsale, Richard Roxburgh, David Wenham, Will Kemp, Shuler Hensley. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 132 min., Horror thriller, Box office gross: $118.972 million, Universal, $22.98 VHS SRP. DVD: Day & Date. 3 stars

  • Uncovered: The War On Iraq Slowly, methodically, and convincingly, Robert Greenwald presents evidence that George W. Bush's administration lied to the American Public, the United Nations, and the world, about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and links to terrorism. A number of respected talking heads are interviewed, including former officials of the CIA, military, and White House, and -- most damagingly -- Bush-appointed weapons inspector David Kay. Their conclusions reveal that the neoconservative Bush team ignored the carefully assembled reports of their intelligence agencies, while untrustworthy Iraqi "defectors" were taken at their word by both the press and the Pentagon. Unlike Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11," Greenwald relies less on emotion to make his points. Rather, he lets his experts expose each lie, one by one, via crosscutting with footage of press conferences and speeches given by President Bush, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, and national security adviser Condoleezza Rice. Whatever one's political leanings, the evidence presented here is hard to ignore, as is the awful toll the war has taken on civilians, soldiers, and the reputation of America throughout the world. This is one of a slew of political documentaries released in 2004 showing how cinema can be a powerful forum for political and social change. Director: Robert Greenwald. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 84 min., Documentary, Cinema Libre. DVD: Only.

  • Cinderella Story, A Substitute a cell phone for a glass slipper, a convertible for a pumpkin, and an L.A. suburb for a kingdom far, far away and what do you get? A pre-teen twist on the Cinderella tale! High school student Sam (Hilary Duff) scrubs floors at a diner, copes with her wicked stepmother and stepsisters, and all the while dreams of Princeton (the perfect spot for a would-be princess to find a prince). But maybe she has a Prince Charming already: her anonymous e-mail buddy (Chad Michael Murray) who arranges to meet her at the Halloween dance. Sam panics when Mr. Anonymous turns out to be the coolest guy on campus. Can he love a girl who isn't part of the in crowd? Can fairy tales come true? Director: Mark Rosman. Stars: Hilary Duff, Chad Michael Murray, Jennifer Coolidge, Regina King, Dan Byrd. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG, 95 min., Teen romance, Box office gross: $51.140 million, Warner, $22.99 SRP. DVD: Day & Date . 2 stars

  • Intermission An urban love story about people adrift and their convoluted journeys in the search for some kind of love. A misguided break-up between two young lovers initiates a series of events affecting everyone around them with cataclysmic results. All the characters are blissfully unaware of the accidental nature of life and the way in which their lives intersect, careening from the hilariously funny to the heart-breakingly sad. The hapless lover and his best mate, the sex-starved singleton; the maverick detective and a ruthless petty thief; the pretty girl on the rebound with an older married man; the deserted wife on the brink of breakdown; the ambitious TV producer; the robbed and abandoned fiancee and a 9-year-old tearaway all find their lives interweaving in this story of modern romance with a bitter twist. Director: John Crowley. Stars: Shirley Henderson, Kelly Macdonald, Colm Meaney, Cillian Murphy, Colin Farrell. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R, 105 min., Comedy thriller, Box office gross: $0.889 million, MGM, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Love Me If You Dare Young Julien is endlessly energetic and precociously brilliant, but unable to bear the impending heartbreak of his beloved mother's death. Sophie is wildly imaginative, mischievous and determined to be different, yet in search of someone to accept and love her. When they meet one another, everything changes. They begin what seems to be a child's momentary amusement. Every time they exchange a symbolic tin box (a gift to Julien from his mother), the one who takes the toy also has to take a dare. The pranks they force one another to play range from talking dirty in class to crashing a wedding buffet, but each one becomes a little bigger, a little more irreverent, a little riskier than the last. Despite the constant trouble they get into, Julien and Sophie cannot stop the game's mad, wild and often destructive rush. Even when they go off to college, the game continues, progressing into more difficult, bizarre and often crueler challenges, each and every new dare seemingly a way for Julien and Sophie to drive one another further away, to avoid admitting they are crazily in love with one another. When they finally reach adulthood -- Julien growing more serious, Sophie even more of a libertine -- the uncompromising, child-like nature of the game comes into question. Now Julien and Sophie must choose between the game and their careers, between the game and their spouses-to-be, between the game and the conventions of everyday life. Yet ... how can they resist? Just when they think it's all over and life has become banal, the game is afoot again, and they realize they want it to go on and on, without end. In French with English subtitles. Director: Yann Samuell. Stars: Marion Cotillard, Guillaume Canet. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R, 94 min., Romantic drama, Box office gross: $0.537 million, Paramount, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Butterfly, The A charming family film about the powerful and unexpected relationships between children and their elders. Much like a modern day Heidi or the recent hit Whale Rider, the film tells the tale of a young girl who is overlooked by her mother and finds herself pulled toward the support of a father figure. Eight-year-old Elsa (Claire Bouanich) and her mom Isabelle (Nade Dieu) move in next to Julien (Michel Serrault), an ornery entomologist with a lavish butterfly collection in his apartment. Because her mother often leaves her alone, Elsa soon grows attached to her neighbor. When he sets out on a weeklong hike in the Alps in search of a rare and beautiful butterfly, Elsa (who has never left Paris and yearns for the countryside) hides herself in his car. Although Julien prefers the solitude and peace of the mountains, he reluctantly agrees to let Elsa tag along and unwittingly finds himself becoming an important part of her life, teaching her about both the natural and human world. In French with English subtitles. Director: Philippe Muyl. Stars: Michel Serrault, Claire Bouanich, Nade Dieu. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 80 min., Family, Box office gross: $0.038 million, First Run Features. DVD: Only.

  • Healer, The (Julie Walking Home) A young boy's ailing chances of survival cause his family untold grief in this made-for-TV drama from director Agnieszka Holland ("Europa Europa"). Julie (Miranda Otto) is the mother of a child diagnosed with cancer who meets extreme resistance from her husband and friends when she seeks a healer to help the sick boy. But when the mystical healer turns up, it appears some powers beyond the realm of human comprehension are about to be unleashed. Director: Agnieszka Holland. Stars: Miranda Otto, William Fichtner, Lothaire Bluteau. 2002, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 114 min., Drama, First Look Home Entertainment, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Fat Girl Twelve-year-old Anais is fat. Her sister, Elena, is a teenage beauty. While on vacation with her parents, Anais tags along behind Elena, exploring the dreary seaside town. Elena meets Fernando, an Italian law student, who seduces her with promises of love, as the ever-watchful Anais bears witness to the corruption of her sister's innocence. Precise and uncompromising, Catherine Breillat's "Fat Girl" (A Ma soeur!) is a bold dissection of sibling rivalry and female adolescent sexuality from one of contemporary cinema's most controversial directors. In French with English subtitles. Director: Catherine Breillat. Stars: Anais Reboux, Roxane Mesquida, Libero De Rienzo, Arsinee Khanjia. 2001, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 93 min., Drama, The Criterion Collection. DVD: Only.

  • I'm Not Scared Something sinister is lurking under the surface of 10-year old Michele's (Guiseppe Cristiano) idyllic summer. While the days in his remote southern Italian village are filled with the familiar routines of childhood, a chance discovery leads to a shocking revelation. He discovers another young boy hiding in a small hole. Nobody in the village seems to know anything about him -- but then the mystery around the discovery is revealed when the Michele listens in on a conversation between the second boys' parents. Now, suddenly beyond the point-of-no-return, Michele digs further to find that even his own parents may be involved in a monstrous crime. In Italian with English subtitles. Director: Gabriele Salvatores. Stars: Guiseppe Cristiano, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, Dino Abbrescia, Giorgio Careccia. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R, 101 min., Thriller, Box office gross: $1.605 million, Miramax. DVD only.

  • Bionicle 2: Legends of Metru Nui This new CGI-animated direct- to-video feature, based on the tremendously popular Lego toys, reveals the events that transformed six chosen Matoran villagers into magnificent Toa action heroes. When mysterious dark forces threaten the glorious city of Metru Nui, Toa Lhikan gives six Matoran the tools and responsibilities of new Toa. These guardians must quickly master their new powers, demonstrate their worth to their honorable leader Turaga Dume, retrieve the hidden Great Kanoka Disks and rescue the inhabitants of their island city. Sequel to hit movie "Bionicle: Mask of Light," one of the top 10 selling direct-to-video movies of 2003. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: NR, Animated, Buena Vista, $22.99 VHS SRP. DVD: Day & Date.

  • Garfield the Movie The long-running, popular comic strip about the fat and lazy cat named Garfield comes to life with this live-action Hollywood comedy. Based on characters created by Jim Davis, the film tells the story of this supremely spoiled pet, who wants the affection of everyone around him, only he wants it on his own terms. Trouble arises one day when, under the influence of the beautiful veterinarian Liz (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Garfield's owner Jon (Breckin Meyer) stuns him by bringing home a cuddly dog, Odie. Jealous at the attention Odie is receiving, Garfield locks Odie out of the house. Odie runs away and when he's kidnapped by the evil television personality Happy Chapman (Stephen Tobolowsky), Garfield realizes his mistake, and embarks on a brave mission to rescue his new housemate. A real snoozer. Director: Peter Hewitt. Stars: Breckin Meyer, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Stephen Tobolowsky, Bill Murray (Voice of Garfield). 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG, 82 min., Animated, Box office gross: $71.926 million, Fox, $19.98 VHS SRP. DVD: Day & Date. 2 stars

October 26
  • White Chicks Two ambitious but unlucky FBI agents (Shawn and Marlon Wayans) go deep undercover as female, high society debutantes in the exclusive Hamptons resort to investigate a kidnapping ring. But as they strut their way into the biggest social event of the year they find that breaking into high society scene is a lot tougher than it looks. Despite their best efforts, agents Marcus and Kevin Copeland have worked their way down to the bottom of the FBI food chain. Their most recent bust was a failure and they are hanging on to their jobs by a thread. When a plot to kidnap spoiled socialite sisters Brittany and Tiffany Wilson is uncovered, the big case is given to Marcus and Kevin's rivals Vincent Gomez (Eddie Velez) and Jake Harper (Lochlyn Munro). To add to their humiliation, Kevin and Marcus are handed a thankless menial task -- to escort the Gucci-clad spoiled brats safely from the airport to their hotel in the Hamptons. Even they can't get that one wrong. Right? When Tiffany's pampered pooch, Baby, causes a traffic mishap, a fight ensues and the two women get bruised and refuse to show their less than perfect faces at the important society weekend. Faced with the prospect of unemployment, Kevin hatches a plan: He and Marcus will go undercover as the demanding divas and, in the process, try to snare the kidnappers and restore their reputations. With the real Wilson girls safely ensconced in a luxury New York hotel, Marcus and Kevin assume their identities and spring their most unlikely sister act on the unsuspecting creme de la creme of Hamptons society. Director: Keenen Ivory Wayans. Stars: Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Jaime King, Frankie Faison, Lochlyn Munro, John Heard. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 108 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $68.880 million, Columbia TriStar, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental. DVD: Day & Date. 3 stars

  • Dawn of the Dead A re-envisioning of George A. Romero's apocalyptic zombie horror classic 25 years later. Why it started -- where it started -- NOT KNOWN. Whatever happened, however it started, overnight, the world has become a living nightmare of surreal proportions, with the planet's population hit by an inexplicable, unfathomable and lethal plague -- and the dead aren't staying dead. Corpses yearning for their next meal are now stalking the few remaining survivors, driven by their insatiable hunger to feed upon the flesh of the living. After a terrifying escape from her suburban Wisconsin home on the morning after, Ana Clark (Sarah Polley) runs into a small group of the still-living, including: a stoic police officer, Kenneth (Ving Rhames); Michael, an unassuming electronics salesman (Jake Weber); a street- rough Andre (Mekhi Phifer) and his pregnant wife. This ragtag group seeks refuge in a fortress of the late 20th Century -- an abandoned, upscale suburban mall. As the world outside grows more hellish, as the ever-increasing army of decomposing zombies tirelessly strive to infiltrate the mall, the survivors battle the undead, each other and their own fears and suspicions. Sealed off from the rest of what used to be the world, the mall's inhabitants -- now one of the last bastions of humanity -- must learn to co-exist with each other and use every available resource in their fight to remain alive, and more importantly, human. When there is no room in hell, the dead will walk the earth. Available in the R-rated theatrical version and a never-before-seen unrated director's cut deemed too scary for theaters. Director: Zack Snyder. Stars: Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, Mekhi Phifer. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: R and unrated, R: 101 min., unrated: 110 min., Horror, Box office gross: $58.885 million, Universal, $22.98 VHS SRP. DVD: Day & Date. 3 stars


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    All DVDs are screened on a reference system consisting of a Rotel RDV-1060 DVD Audio/Video Player, a Rotel RSX-972 Surround Sound Receiver, and Phase Technology 1.1 (front), 33.1 (center), and 50 (rear) speakers and Power 10 subwoofer.

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