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OnVideo's Weekly Guide to Home Video Releases
Barbie in the Pink Shoes
(2013) A ballerina with big dreams tries on a pair of sparkling pink shoes and is whisked away to a fantastical ballet world where she must dance in her favorite ballets ("Giselle" and "Swan Lake") in order to defeat an evil Snow Queen. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, Digital Download, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Outtakes, music video, "Barbie Life in the Dreamhouse" episode and music video. (Universal).
Border Run
(2012) Sharon Stone, Billy Zane, Manolo Cardona, Miguel Rodarte, Rosemberg Salgado. A gritty and gripping drama that follows an American reporter as she searches for her missing brother against the backdrop of violence and human smuggling across the U.S./Mexican Border. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. (Anchor Bay).
Chasing Mavericks
(2012) Dir.: Michael Apted, Curtis Hanson; Gerard Butler, Jonny Weston, Elisabeth Shue, Abigail Spencer. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Deleted scenes; "Surf City," "Shooting Waves," "Live Like Jay" and "Surfer Zen" featurettes; commentary by director Michael Apted and writers Brandon Hooper and Jim Meenaghan. (Fox).
Chicken With Plums
(2011) The latest film from Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud, the Academy Award-nominated filmmakers of "Persepolis." Like "Persepolis," this is an adaptation of a graphic novel by Satrapi that pushes the boundaries of filmmaking by combining live-action sequences reflecting a mixture of genres (expressionism, fantasy, melodrama) with a clever animated sequence of the classic tale "Appointment in Samarra." Tehran, 1958. Since his beloved violin was broken, Nasser Ali Khan, one of the most renowned musicians of his day, has lost all taste for life. Finding no instrument worthy of replacing it, he decides to confine himself to bed to await death. As he hopes for its arrival, he plunges into deep reveries, with dreams as melancholic as they are joyous, taking him back to his youth and even to a conversation with Azrael, the Angel of Death, who reveals the future of his children. As pieces of the puzzle gradually fit together, the poignant secret of his life comes to light: a wonderful story of love, which inspired his genius and his music. Formats: DVD. Extras: Commentary with Satrapi and Paronnaud, Tribeca Q&A with Paronnaud and Satrapi. (Sony).
Chronicle of a Summer
(1961 -- France) Few films can claim to be as influential to the course of cinema history as "Chronicle of a Summer." The fascinating result of a collaboration between filmmaker-anthropologist Jean Rouch and sociologist Edgar Morin, this vanguard work of what Morin would term cinema verite is a brilliantly conceived and realized sociopolitical diagnosis of the early 60s in France. By simply interviewing a group of Paris residents in the summer of 1960 -- beginning with the provocative and eternal question "Are you happy?" and expanding to political issues, including the ongoing Algerian War -- Rouch and Morin reveal the hopes and dreams of a wide array of people, from artists to factory workers, from an Italian emigre to an African student. "Chronicle of a Summer's" penetrative approach gives us a document of a time and place with extraordinary emotional depth. New high-definition digital transfer of the Cineteca di Bologna restoration of the film, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: "Un ete + 50" (2011), a 73-minute documentary featuring outtakes and new interviews with co-director Edgar Morin and some of the film's subjects; archival interviews with co-director Jean Rouch and Marceline Loridan, one of the film's subjects; new interview with anthropology professor Faye Ginsburg, organizer of several Rouch retrospectives; booklet featuring an essay by scholar Sam Di Iorio. (The Criterion Collection).
The Client List: The Complete First Season
(2012) Three-disc set with 10 episodes, $45.99. Formats: DVD. Extras: Outtakes, deleted scenes. (Sony).
Company of Heroes
(2013) Tom Sizemore, Chad Collins, Vinnie Jones, Neal McDonough, Jurgen Prochnow. An unlikely brotherhood of soldiers during the Battle of the Bulge makes a daring raid into the heart of Nazi Germany to stop Hitler from developing an atomic super weapon. Based on the video game. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: "In the Trenches: Filming Company of Heroes" featurette, "Fabricating World War II" featurette. (Sony).
Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare
(2012) Documentary tackles one of the most pressing issues of our time: How can we save our badly broken healthcare system? The powerful and thought-provoking film examines the American healthcare system, exposing its triumphs and failures through dramatic, interspersed scenes of personal stories of those affected and interviews with industry leaders fighting to change the system.
Formats: DVD, $27.98; Digital Download. Extras: Commentary with the directors, a "making of" featurette, deleted and extended scenes, updates on some of the main stories, and clips from the film's Sundance World Premiere. (Lionsgate).
Fast Girls
(2012) Lenora Crichlow, Lily James, Bradley James, Rubert Graves. Set in the world of competitive women's track and field, a street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete. Formats: DVD, Digital. Extras: Six featurettes: "Cast Training,"The Relay" "Costume Design," "Night Shoot," "The Fast Girls Championship," "Fun With the Fast Girls." (RLJ/Image Entertainment).
Freaky Deaky
(2012) Christian Slater, Crispin Glover, Michael Jai White, Billy Burke, Roger Bart, Andy Dick, Bill Duke, Gloria Hendry, Sabina Gadecki. Set in the 1970s and based on Elmore Leonard's best-seller, this trippy comedy follows an ex-bomb squad cop who gets involved with the seedy side of Los Angeles when he's transferred to the vice squad. Formats: DVD. Extras: Making-of featurette. (Entertainment One).
Garrow's Law: The Complete Collection
(2009-11) All three series of the absorbing legal drama featuring Andrew Buchan as William Garrow, a revolutionary legal mind determined to defend the downtrodden in 18th-century England. Based on a true story, the series follows Garrow as he advocates for prisoners' rights and pioneers the idea of innocence until proven guilty. Six-disc set with 12 episodes, $79.99. Formats: DVD. Extras: Behind-the-scenes featurette, "William Garrow: Fact and Fiction" featurette, "Garrow's Law: From Dawn to Dusk" featurette, photo galleries, biography of William Garrow, cast filmographies. (Acorn Media).
Girls Against Boys
(2012) Danielle Panabaker, Nicole LaLiberte, Liam Aiken, Michael Stahl-David. After a series of bad experiences with men, a college girl teams up with a co-worker who has a simple, deadly way of dealing with the opposite sex: The two embark on a gruesome killing spree, terrorizing and brutally murdering not just their attackers, but any man who gets in their way. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: Commentary with Danielle Panabaker and writer-director Austin Chick. (Anchor Bay).
Holy Motors
(2012 -- France) Denis Lavant, Eva Mendes, Edit Scob, Kylie Minogue, Elise Lhomeau, Michel Piccoli. Over the course of a single day, Monsieur Oscar travels by limousine around Paris to a series of nine appointments, transforming into new characters at each stop. He is a captain of industry, a gypsy beggar, a digitized ninja warrior (and reptilian sex god!), a gibberish-spewing troglodyte, the melancholy father of a teenage daughter, a shadowy assassin, a dying old man, and a thwarted lover reuniting with a past flame. Features new, original music performed by Kylie Minogue. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: "Drive In -- The Making of Holy Motors" behind-the-scenes featurette, interview with Kylie Minogue. (Indomina Films).
How to Survive a Plague
(2012) Academy-award nominated documentary about the fight against AIDS. It's the story of two coalitions -- ACT UP and TAG (Treatment Action Group) -- whose activism and innovation turned AIDS from a death sentence into a manageable condition. Boasting a wealth of archival footage, this impassioned documentary follows the genesis of the protest groups that took to the streets during the height of the epidemic to push for more aggressive drug trials. Facing opposition from both within and without, the protestors made themselves and their cause known to the public at large, via a variety of nonviolent protests and canny media moves. Directed by David France. Formats: DVD. (IFC Films).
Iron Road
(2008) Sam Neill, Peter O'Toole, Luke Macfarlane, Charlotte Sullivan, Betty Sun. TV miniseries tale of forbidden love set against the 19th century backdrop of the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad through the Canadian Rockies. Formats: DVD. (Entertainment One).
Joshua Tree
(1993) Dolph Lundgren, George Segal, Kristian Alfonso, Geoffrey Lewis, Michelle Phillips, Bert Remsen. A former race car driver who transports stolen exotic cars is framed for a cop's murder, escapes prison, takes a female hostage (who turns out to be a deputy sheriff) and heads for L.A. in a high-speed chase with the police. Formats: Blu-ray/DVD Combo. Extras: Commentary with director Vic Armstrong and producer Andy Armstrong; alternate ending; new interviews with Vic Armstrong, Andy Armstrong and actors Dolph Lundgren and Kristian Alfonso. (Shout! Factory).
Law & Order: The Twelfth Year
(2001-02) Five-disc set with 24 episodes, $36.98. Formats: DVD. (Universal).
The Loneliest Planet
(2011) Gael Garcia Bernal, Hani Furstenberg. An engaged couple's backpacking trip in the Caucasus Mountains is derailed by a single misstep -- when they encounter an armed man and his two sons -- that threatens to undo everything the pair believed about each other and about themselves. Formats: DVD. (IFC).
Maigret Complete Collection
Michael Gambon stars in the acclaimed adaptations of Georges Simenon's classic detective novels. Broadcast on PBS's Masterpiece Mystery! in the early 1990s. Four-disc set with 12 episodes, $59.99. Formats: DVD. Extras: Eight-page booklet with articles on Georges Simenon, Jules Maigret, and the television series. (Acorn Media).
Man From Shaolin
(2011) Peng Zhang Li, Brian Ames, Linda Elena Tovar. A well-known Shaolin fighting monk must protect his New York City Kung-Fu school from a ruthless promoter. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. Extras: Interview with filmmaker Li Zhang, deleted scenes. (Lionsgate).
The Master
(2012) Dir.: Paul Thomas Anderson; Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jesse Plemons, Laura Dern, Barlow Jacobs, Ambyr Childers, Madisen Beaty, Lena Endre, Patty McCormack, Mimi Cozzens, Jillian Bell. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo. Extras: "Back Beyond" outtakes and additional scenes edited to music by Johnny Greenwood; "Unguided Message," an eight-minute behind the scenes short; "Let Their Be Light (1946)," John Huston's landmark documentary about WW-II veterans. (The Weinstein Company/Anchor Bay).
May I Be Frank
(2010) Frank Ferrante is a 54 year-old Sicilian from Brooklyn living in San Francisco. A lover of life, great food, beautiful women and a good laugh, Frank is also a drug addict, morbidly obese, pre-diabetic, and fighting Hepatitis C. The film documents the transformation of Frank's life when he stumbles into a local raw and vegan restaurant, becomes friends with the staff, and strikes an agreement to turn his life over to three twentysomething young men to be coached physically, emotionally and spiritually, into a new person. Formats: DVD. (Cinema Libre Studio).
My Lucky Elephant
(2013) First Khunchan, Somboon the elephant. A little orphan boy becomes best friends with an elephant named Lucky. Formats: DVD. (Arc Entertainment).
NOVA scienceNOW: How Smart Can We Get?
(2013) Four stories uncover what intelligence is and what scientists are learning about it: "Einstein's Brain," "What Is Intelligence?" "Mystery of the Savant Brain" and "Profile: Sian Beilock"; hosted by The New York Times and Scientific American columnist David Pogue.
Formats: DVD, $24.99. (PBS Distribution).
Phineas and Ferb: Animal Agents
(2013) Perry the Platypus -- a.k.a. Agent P -- and his fellow operatives team up to thwart Dr. Doofenshmirtz and his dastardly "Inators." Twelve animated adventures including the two-part "Phineas and Ferb" cliffhanger "Where's Perry?" Formats: DVD, $19.99. (Disney).
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
(1978) Geraldine McEwan stars in the classic adaptation of Muriel Spark's beloved novel in the DVD debut of the 1978 PBS series. Formats: Three-disc DVD set. (Acorn Media).
The Reagan Presidency
(2013) New three-part series offers an in-depth study of President Reagan's work in the White House as he dealt with high unemployment, skyrocketing interest rates and the escalation of the Cold War as both Soviet and American leaders fired heated rhetoric from behind their podiums of power. Formats: Three-disc DVD, $24.98. (PBS Distribution).
Rolling Stones -- Mick vs. Keith: The Strange Case of Jagger & Richards
(2012) Although the Rolling Stones have clocked 50 years together, Jagger and Richards have had to tolerate each other a fair bit longer than that. This two-disc set takes a unique and previously uncharted look at the relationship and music produced by Mick and Keith during this near lifetime of close association, and in so doing, reveals much about one of the most curious partnerships of the rock age. Formats: DVD, $26.95. (MVD Entertainment).
Sansho the Baliff BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1954 -- Japan) When an idealistic governor disobeys the reigning feudal lord, he is cast into exile, his wife and children left to fend for themselves and eventually separated by vicious slave traders. Under the dazzling direction of Kenji Mizoguchi, this classic Japanese story became one of cinema's greatest masterpieces, a monumental, empathetic expression of human resilience in the face of evil. Restored high-definition digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack. Extras: Commentary by Japanese-literature professor Jeffrey Angles; video interviews with critic Tadao Sato, assistant director Tokuzo Tanaka, and legendary actress Kyoko Kagawa, on the making of the film and its lasting importance; booklet featuring an essay by film writer Mark Le Fanu and two versions of the story on which the film was based: Ogai Mori's 1915 "Sansho Dayu" and a written form of an earlier oral variation. (The Criterion Collection).
Scooby-Doo! Mask of the Blue Falcon
(2013) An all-new Scooby-Doo! animated movie. The lovable Great Dane and his pals attend a popular comic book and media convention where they find themselves battling a legendary super villain -- the hideous Mr. Hyde, from the classic Blue Falcon television series -- who comes to life and terrorizes everyone at the convention. Formats: Blu-ray/DVD Combo, UltraViolet (cloud). (Warner).
A Simple Life
(2011 -- Hong Kong) Andy Lau, Deanie Ip. Roger (Andy Lau) is a successful movie producer. Ah Tao (Deanie Ip) has worked for Roger's family as a nanny and maid over the course of four generations. When Roger comes home to find Ah Tao has suffered a severe stroke and is unable to care for herself, he agrees to help her relocate to a nursing home. He wants to help, but fears he'll fail her. She needs his kindness, but doesn't want to be a burden. As their roles reverse, he becomes her caregiver, and comes to understand how much she means to him.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital Download. (Well Go USA).
Sins (aka Sins Expiation)
(2012 -- Italy) Giovanni Martorana, Danny Glover, Michael Madsen, Steven Bauer, John Savage, Anne Jeffreys. A New York mafiosa returns to his roots in Sicily to atone for his past sins, setting the stage for a bloody confrontation with his "family." Formats: DVD, VOD. (Green Apple Entertainment).
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Rise of the Turtles
(2012) Nickelodeon's new, CGI-animated TMNT series with the voices of Jason Biggs, Sean Astin, Rob Paulsen and Greg Cipes. Five episodes, $14.99. Formats: DVD. Extras: Six "making-of" animatics; theme song karaoke music video; exclusive Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles poster for a limited time only. (Nickelodeon/Paramount).
"The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn -- Part 2"
(2012) Dir.: Bill Condon; Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Dakota Fanning, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Anna Kendrick, Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz, Peter Facinelli, Billy Burke, Elizabeth Reaser. Formats: Two-disc DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: "Forever: Filming Breaking Dawn Part 2" seven-part making-of documentary, "Two Movies at Once" featurette about the simultaneous shooting of both "Breaking Dawn" parts, commentary with director Bill Condon, "Jump to" features that allow fans to watch only their favorite scenes in the film featuring Edward Cullen and Jacob Black, "The Forgotten" Green Day music video. (Lionsgate).
Ultimate Zombie Feast Volume 1
Collection of cool zombie films from around the world, ranging from 5 min. to 62 min., including the exclusive 62-min Mormon zombie film "The Book of Zombie" and festival winners "It Came From the West" and "Dead Hungry," and India's first zombie film "Savages." Other titles: "Zombies and Cigarettes," "Plague," "Bitten," "Arise," "Not Even Death," "Fear of the Living Dead," "Kidz," "ZomBeer." Formats: DVD. (Vanguard Cinema).
The Master
A striking portrait of drifters and seekers in post World War II America, the film follows the journey of Naval veteran Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix) who arrives home from war unsettled and uncertain of his future -- until he is tantalized by The Cause and its charismatic leader, Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman). As the faith-based organization begins to catch on in America, Quell becomes Dodd's lieutenant. As the faith begins to gain a fervent following, Freddie finds himself questioning the belief system he has embraced, and his mentor. Stunning performances by Phoenix, Hoffman and Amy Adams as Dodd's wife.
Vitals: Director: Paul Thomas Anderson. Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jesse Plemons, Laura Dern, Barlow Jacobs, Ambyr Childers, Madisen Beaty, Lena Endre, Patty McCormack, Mimi Cozzens, Jillian Bell.
2012, CC, MPAA rating: R, 138 min., Drama, Box office gross: $16.008 million, The Weinstein Company/Anchor Bay.
Holy Motors
Over the course of a single day, Monsieur Oscar travels by limousine around Paris to a series of nine "appointments," transforming into new characters or incarnations at each stop. Fetched in the morning by Celine, his trusty chauffeur on this surreal journey, Oscar begins the day as a captain of industry. Then he becomes a gypsy crone, begging for spare change on a bridge over the Seine. Inside a digital production facility, he's a ninja warrior transformed by cutting-edge technology into a reptilian sex god. Next he's a gibberish-spewing troglodyte who kidnaps a fashion model from a photo shoot in Pere-Lachaise cemetery, ferrying her to his underground lair in the sewers. Then he's the melancholy father of a teenage daughter, followed by a shadowy assassin sent to kill his own doppelganger, a dying old man, and finally a thwarted lover revisiting a flame from his past atop a decaying Right Bank department store next to the Pont-Neuf. The film is a monster movie, film noir, romantic drama, musical, crime thriller, futuristic sex fantasia ... and, then again, none of these. It is a ravishing, shape-shifting, fever dream of becoming, unraveling and starting all over again. From celluloid magic to the digital data stream, Monsieur Oscar's epic journey of the soul is all of our dreams. In French with English subtitles.
Vitals: Director: Leos Carax. Stars: Denis Lavant, Eva Mendes, Edit Scob, Kylie Minogue, Elise Lhomeau, Michel Piccoli.
2012, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 115 min., Drama, Box office gross: $.600 million, Indomina Films.
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn -- Part 2
The conclusion to the multi-billion dollar book, movie and merchandise franchise. Brought back from near-death by Edward after childbirth, Bella begins her new life as a vampire and mother to their daughter, Renesmee. When the Volturi are led to believe that Renesmee was not born as a vampire but, rather, turned into one in violation of their code, the Volturi set out to destroy the child and the Cullen clan. The Cullens band together with vampires from around the world to stand united against the Volturi.
Vitals: Director: Bill Condon. Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Dakota Fanning, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Anna Kendrick, Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz, Peter Facinelli, Billy Burke, Elizabeth Reaser.
2012, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 115 min., Action Romance, Box office gross: $289.133 million, Lionsgate.
Chasing Mavericks
The inspirational true story of real life surfing phenom Jay Moriarity (newcomer Jonny Weston). When 15-year-old Moriarity discovers that the mythic Mavericks surf break, one of the biggest waves on Earth, is not only real, but exists just miles from his Santa Cruz home, he enlists the help of local legend Frosty Hesson (Gerard Butler) to train him to survive it. As Jay and Frosty embark on their quest to accomplish the impossible, they form a unique friendship that transforms both their lives, and their quest to tame Mavericks becomes about far more than surfing. "Chasing Mavericks" was made with the help of some of the biggest names in the surfing world, and features some of the most mind-blowing real wave footage ever captured on film.
Vitals: Director: Michael Apted, Curtis Hanson. Stars: Gerard Butler, Jonny Weston, Elisabeth Shue, Abigail Spencer.
2012, CC, MPAA rating: PG, 116 min., Drama, Box office gross: $5.904 million, Fox.
Chronicle of a Summer
(1961 -- France)
Sansho the Baliff
(1954 -- Japan)
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February 24, 2013
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