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OnVideo's Weekly Guide to Home Video Releases
At the Gate of the Ghost (aka The Outrage)
(2011 -- Thailand) Ananda Everingham, Mario Maurer, Chermarn Bonnyasak, Phongpat Wachirabanjhong, Phettai Wongkamlao, Dom Hetrakul. Adaptation of the Japanese film "Rashomon," here about three different interpretations of the murder of a warlord, from the perspective of the bandit Singh Khan, the wife of the deceased warlord, and a shaman who conjures up the warlord's spirit. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: "The Making of a Legendary Story," behind the scenes, international trailer. (Magnolia Home Entertainment).
Ben 10: Destroy All Aliens
(2012) Feature-length CGI-animated movie has 10-year-old Ben Tennyson returning from summer vacation to go to the Total Alien immersion training program -- but total immersion means he can never turn human again. Stuck in his alien form Ben becomes the target of a new evil alien engaging in a deadly cross-world battle where nothing is as it seems. Formats: DVD, $12.97. Extras: "behind the Scenes Sizzle," original animatics, original artwork of character development and scenes, commentary, more. (Cartoon Network/Warner).
China Beach: The Complete Series
(2012) The much-anticipated release of the ground-breaking and award-winning TV series finally comes to DVD as a 21-disc set featuring all 62 episodes and over 10 hours of exclusive, never-before-seen bonus features including a recent cast reunion; extensive
The Colombian Connection
(2011) Robert Thorne, Tom Sizemore. Former cop Jack Hooks is framed by his corrupt partner and sentenced to jail for a drug crime he didn't commit. When the DEA offers an early release deal, he embarks on a do-or-die mission to bring down his former partner's drug trade. Formats: DVD. (Inception Media Group.).
Counting Cars: Season 1
(2012) Two-disc set with 12 episodes of the History "Pawn Stars" spin-off series that follows Danny Koker, a Sin City legend, as he and his team restore, customize and sell cars in record-breaking time. Formats: DVD. Extras: Bonus footage. (Lionsgate).
Delhi Safari
(2012 -- India) Voices of Jason Alexander, Carey Elwes, Bard Garrett, Christopher Lloyd, Jane Lynch, Vanessa Williams. A wacky pack of mismatched animals takes on the human race as they travel to the big city to protest the destruction of their jungle. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. (ARC Entertainment).
Disneynature: Wings of Life
(2013) Spectacular, closer-than-close, high-definition look at the intricate world of butterflies, hummingbirds, bees and bats, and their life-sustaining collaboration with flowers. Narrated by Meryl Streep. Formats: Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital. (Disney).
Django Unchained
(2012) Dir.: Quentin Tarantino; Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Walton Goggins, James Remar, Don Johnson, RZA, Gerald McRaney, Anthony LaPaglia, James Russo. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, Digital Download, UltraViolet. Extras: "Reimagining the Spaghetti Western: The Horses and Stunts of Django Unchained," "Remembering J. Michael Riva: The Production Design of Django Unchained," "The Costume Designs of Sharen Davis," "20 Years in the Making: The Tarantino XX Blu-ray Collection," "Django Unchained" soundtrack spot. (The Weinstein Company/Anchor Bay).
Dragon
(2011 -- Hong Kong) Donnie Yen, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Wei Tang. A sinful martial arts expert wants to start a new tranquil life, only to be hunted by a determined detective and his former master. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: "The Making of Dragon" featurettes with Donnie Yen, "Lost in Jianghu" music video. (Anchor Bay).
Eclipse Series 38: Masaki Kobayashi Against the System
One of the most important filmmakers to emerge from Japan's cinematic golden age, Masaki Kobayashi is best remembered today for his 1959 epic "The Human Condition," but that is just one of the blistering films he made in a career dedicated to criticizing his country's rigid social and political orders. He first found his voice -- rebellious, angry, engaged -- in the fifties, following his life-altering experiences as a soldier in World War II; the four films collected here, made in the same period as "The Human Condition," reflect Kobayashi's coming into his own as an artist. He fought to get these powerful dramas made at a studio more oriented at the time toward quiet family melodramas; they are unforgettable pictures of a postwar Japan troubled by identity crises and moral corruption on scales both intimate and institutional. "The Thick-Walled Room" (1953), a drama about a group of rank-and-file Japanese soldiers jailed for crimes against humanity; "I Will Buy You" (1956), Kobayashi's pitiless take on Japan's professional baseball industry; "Black River" (1957), an expose of the rampant corruption on and around U.S. military bases following World War II; "The Inheritance" (1962), a condemnation of unchecked greed: On his deathbed, a wealthy businessman announces that his fortune is to be split equally among his three illegitimate children, whose whereabouts are unknown to his family and colleagues. A bevy of lawyers and associates then begin machinations to procure the money for themselves, enlisting the aid of impostors and blackmail. Formats: DVD. (The Criterion Collection).
Flash Gordon: The Complete Series
(2011) Four-disc set with 22 episodes from the Syfy Channel series, $14.98.
Formats: DVD. (Mill Creek Entertainment).
4Some
(2012 -- Czech Republic) Jenovefa Bokova, Gregor Buaer, Vaclav Marhold, Valerie Samalova. Two ostensibly ordinary middle-aged couples, Marie and Vitek, and Dita and Ondra, are linked by more than just a lifelong friendship, a shared house in a small town and same-aged adolescent children: they are linked by love. Both men, Ondra and Vitek, who are work colleagues, sincerely love their wives, but they both also harbor a secret yearning for the other's wife. When, by a stroke of fortune, the foursome finds themselves on an almost uninhabited island in the Caribbean, it's just a matter of time before their long-suppressed feelings come out. Formats: DVD. (Strand Releasing).
The French Chef: Julia Child's Dinner Party Favorites
Collection of six original black-and-white episodes from the 1960s brings Julia back into the kitchen to teach cooks of all abilities how to prepare French specialties. Formats: DVD, $19.99. (PBS Distribution).
Future Weather
(2012) Perla Haney-Jardine, Marin Ireland, Amy Madigan, Lili Taylor, William Sadler. When her single mom runs off to California and abandons her, 13-year-old Lauduree, a passionate environmentalist, clings to her rural home and a carbon sequestration experiment. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted scenes; director Jenny Deller's debut short film, "Save the Future." (Virgil Films).
The Great Divide
(2012) Tosha Landry, Richard T. Jones, Darrin Dewitt Henson, Golden Brooks. An eccentric wife sets up an evening of games for her friends and their husbands, resulting in a comedic night pitting men against women, the revealing of deeply hidden secrets and the unleashing of boiling passions and tempers. Formats: DVD. (Entertainment One).
The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia
(2013) Abigail Spencer, Chad Michael Murray, Katee Sackhoff, Emily Alyn Lind, Cicely Tyson.
Sequel has a young family moving into an historic home in Georgia, only to learn they are not the house's only inhabitants: They find themselves in the presence of a secret rising from underground and threatening to bring down anyone in its path. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital, UltraViolet. Extras: Commentary with Director Tom Elkins,writer David Coggeshall and co-producer Brad Kessell; "Seeing Ghosts: The True Story of the Wyricks" featurette; deleted scenes; blooper reel. (Lionsgate).
Iron Man: Rise of Technovore
(2012) New chapter in the animated Iron Man franchise featuring Marvel super heroes such as War Machine, Nick Fury, Black Widow, Hawkeye and The Punisher. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Two featurettes: "Tale of Technovore" and "S.H.I.E.L.D.: Protecting the Marvel Universe." Blu-ray adds conceptual art gallery. (Marvel Entertainment/Sony).
Last of the Summer Wine: Vintage 1998
(1998) The world's longest-running sitcom returns with more antics from everyone's favorite elder delinquents. Two-disc set with 10 episodes, $34.98. Formats: DVD. (BBC Home Entertainment).
The Magic School Bus: All About Earth
(2012) Three never-before-released episodes with three eco-friendly adventures to honor Earth Day (April 22): "The Magic School Bus Goes to Seed" (on gardening), "The Magic School Bus Blows Its Top" (on volcanoes) and "The Magic School Bus Goes on Air" (about the mysteries of air pressure).
Formats: DVD, $12.95. Extras: Bonus episode. (Scholastic Storybook Treasures).
Makers: Women Who Make America
(2013) Three-hour miniseries chronicles unforgettable moments in history and shares the stories of exceptional women whose pioneering contributions in the Women's Movement of the last 50 years helped shape the world in which we live. Narrated by Meryl Streep, the film takes its cue from the movement's motto, "The personal is political," delving into the personal lives of Gloria Steinem, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Phyllis Schlafly, Oprah Winfrey, Katie Couric, Hillary Clinton, Linda Alvarado, and many "ordinary" women who confronted the dramatic social upheaval in their own lives. Formats: DVD, $29.99. (PBS Distribution).
A Monster in Paris
(2012) Voices of Vanessa Paradis, Sean Lennon, Catherine O'Hara, Adam Goldberg, Bob Balaban, Danny Huston, Jay Harrington. A whimsical animated world of Parisian adventure and fantasy, set in the 1910s, directed and written by Bibo Bergeron ("Shark Tale"). A wacky inventor, his camera-crazy best friend and a madcap monkey make a massive mistake when let loose in a mad scientist's laboratory, where they accidentally create Franc, the product of a reaction between a common flea and one of the scientist's mystery concoctions. But this "monster" is actually a soft-centered soul with an astounding talent for music. With the help of an enchanting nightclub singer Lucille, Franc becomes the talk of the town, just as stories of Paris's newest monster attract the attention of the egotistical police commissioner, hell bent on securing a big prize to help his battle to become mayor. The unwitting scientists and the singer must team up to protect Franc, a monster with more than a musical career to protect. Formats: DVD, two-disc Blu-Ray 3D combo pack with Blu-Ray 3D + 2D + DVD + Digital Copy. (Shout! Factory).
Not Suitable for Children
(2012) Ryan Kwanten Sarah Snook, Ryan Corr. Life's a party for a trio of housemates enjoying their hedonistic twenties -- with weekly house parties unimpeded by adult responsibilities and long-term entanglements ... until Jonah is diagnosed with testicular cancer and, facing infertility, he becomes obsessed with having a child before it's too late. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital. Extras: Interviews with cast and crew, "Behind the Scenes of Not Suitable for Children," "Through the Lens," "In the Closet." (Well Go USA).
One Day on Earth
(2012) On 10/10/10 across the planet, documentary filmmakers, students and other inspired citizens recorded the human experience over a 24-hour period and contributed their voices to a global day of media creation called "One Day on Earth." It was the first-ever simultaneous filming event occurring in every country in the world and it became a showcase of the amazing diversity, conflict, tragedy and triumph that occur in one day. This event also inspired filming around the world on 11/11/11 and 12/12/12. Formats: DVD,VOD, Digital. (New Video/Cinedigm).
Pedal-Driven
(2011) An escalating conflict between mountain bikers and the federal land managers charged with protecting public lands is highlighted in this feature documentary that has become a grassroots phenom. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (New Video/Cinedigm).
Police Story/Police Story II BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1985/1988) A double feature with the two films that made Jackie Chan a household name among action film lovers in the United States (he was already directing and starring in martial arts films in China). Chan's combination of humor and action was something new in the martial arts world and it brought him worldwide accolades. Both films co-star Maggie Cheung. $19.97. A DVD set is also available for $12.99. Extras: Outtakes, trailers. (Shout! Factory).
Quentin Tarantino's Rolling Thunder Pictures Triple Feature
Three exploitation films hand-picked by Tarantino: "The Mighty Peking Man" (1977), "Detroit 9000" (1973) and "Switchblade Sisters" (1975). Formats: DVD, $14.98. (Miramax/Lionsgate).
Repo Man
(1984) A quintessential cult film of the 1980s, Alex Cox's singular sci-fi comedy stars the always captivating Harry Dean Stanton as a weathered repo man in desolate downtown Los Angeles, and Emilio Estevez as the nihilistic middle-class punk he takes under his wing. The job becomes more than either of them bargained for when they get involved in reclaiming a mysterious -- and otherworldly -- Chevy Malibu with a hefty reward attached to it. Featuring the ultimate early-eighties L.A. punk soundtrack, this grungily hilarious odyssey is a politically trenchant take on President Reagan's domestic and foreign policy. New high-definition digital restoration, approved by director Alex Cox, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: Commentary featuring Cox, executive producer Michael Nesmith, casting director Victoria Thomas, and actors Sy Richardson, Zander Schloss, and Del Zamora; interviews with Cox, Richardson, and Zamora, producers Peter McCarthy and Jonathan Wacks, actors Olivia Barash, Dick Rude, Miguel Sandoval, and Harry Dean Stanton, musicians Keith Morris and Iggy Pop, and Sam Cohen, the inventor of the neutron bomb; deleted scenes; the complete "cleaned-up" television version of the film, prepared by Cox; trailers; booklet featuring an essay by critic Sam McPheeters, an illustrated production history by Cox, with his original comic and film proposal, and a 1987 interview with real-life repo man Mark Lewis. (The Criterion Collection).
Save the Date
(2012) Lizzy Caplan, Geoffrey Arend, Alison Brie, Martin Starr, Mark Webber. An independent young woman begins to confront her shortcomings after she rejects her boyfriend's hasty proposal and soon finds herself in a rebound romance. Formats: DVD. (IFC Films).
Secrets of War -- Espionage
Ten episodes culled from the 1998-2002 series narrated by Charlton Heston, $9.98.
Formats: DVD. (Mill Creek Entertainment).
Secrets of War -- Shadows of the Reich
Ten episodes culled from the 1998-2002 series narrated by Charlton Heston, $9.98.
Formats: DVD. (Mill Creek Entertainment).
Spies of Warsaw
(2013) David Tennant, Janet Montgomery. Four-episode miniseries based on The New York Times Bestselling author Alan Furst's acclaimed novel that follows French and German intelligence operatives locked in a life-and-death struggle in the years leading up to the Second World War. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: David Tennant on Spies of Warsaw. (BBC Home Entertainment).
State of Emergency
(2010) Jay Hayden, Tori White, Andy Stahl. Chaos consumes a small town when a chemical facility explodes releasing a deadly toxin, transforming the unsuspecting populace into a roaming army of flesh-eating zombies. Formats: DVD, Digital. (RLJ Entertainment/Image Entertainment).
Sugartown
(2011) Three episodes of the BBC comedy set in the seaside hamlet of Sugartown, which has been kept afloat for years by the Burr candy factory. Faced with the decision of what to do with the town's struggling candy company, Jason Burr is determined to keep the factory open and his family's legacy alive, while his posh brother, Max, has plans to shutter the factory in favor of a trendy "entertainment complex." Formats: DVD, $29.99. (Acorn media).
A Whisper to a Roar
(2013) Democracy begins to break out in five far-flung countries that have suffered for generations under dictatorship and authoritarianism -- and it's all recorded as it happened in this powerful and eye-opening documentary. Focuses on the recent and ongoing struggles for democracy in Egypt (the Arab Spring), Malaysia, Ukraine (the Orange Revolution), Venezuela and Zimbabwe. Directed by Ben Moses (creator and co-producer of "Good Morning, Vietnam") and narrated by Alfred Molina. Formats: DVD, $19.99. (Virgil Films).
Women in Love
(2011) Rosamund Pike, Rachael Stirling, Rory Kinnear. Adaptation of D. H. Lawrence's shocking novel "The Rainbow" -- banned in the U.K. for 11 years -- and its sequel, "Women in Love." Combining elements of both novels, this telefilm focuses on the lives of two sisters, Ursula and Gudrun Brangwen, as they struggle with their desires for two friends, Rupert Birkin and Gerald Crich. Formats: DVD. (BBC Home Entertainment).
WWII Diaries: Volume 1 Sept. 1939-June 1942
Nine-disc set highlights the details and daily headlines of September 1939 through June 1942 showcasing the beginning conflicts between the Axis and the Allies. Includes bonus documentaries from the "Why We Fight" propaganda series used to garner support from soldiers and the public:
"Prelude to War" (won an Oscar for Best Documentary) and "The Nazis Strike." Formats: DVD$29.98. (Mill Creek Entertainment).
Django Unchained
Set in the South two years before the Civil War, "Django Unchained" stars Jamie Foxx as Django, a slave whose brutal history with his former owners lands him face-to-face with German-born bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz). Schultz is on the trail of the murderous Brittle brothers, and only Django can lead him to his bounty. The unorthodox Schultz acquires Django with a promise to free him upon the capture of the Brittles -- dead or alive. Success leads Schultz to free Django, though the two men choose not to go their separate ways. Instead, Schultz seeks out the South's most wanted criminals with Django by his side. Honing vital hunting skills, Django remains focused on one goal: finding and rescuing Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), the wife he lost to the slave trade long ago. Django and Schultz's search ultimately leads them to Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), the proprietor of "Candyland," an infamous plantation. Exploring the compound under false pretenses, Django and Schultz arouse the suspicion of Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson), Candie's trusted house slave. Their moves are marked, and a treacherous organization closes in on them. If Django and Schultz are to escape with Broomhilda, they must choose between independence and solidarity, between sacrifice and survival.
Vitals: Director: Quentin Tarantino. Stars: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Walton Goggins, James Remar, Don Johnson, RZA, Gerald McRaney, Anthony LaPaglia, James Russo.
2012, CC, MPAA rating: R, 165 min., Western Drama, Box office gross: $154.516 million, The Weinstein Company.
interviews with Dana Delany, Marg Helgenberger, producers John Sacret Young and John Wells; original featurettes ("Life's a Beach -- A Look at the Real China Beach," a documentary about the real China Beach/My Khe Evac Hospital, "Hit the Beach -- How it All Began" about the origins of the program; as well as "Tales From the Five & Dime," a collectible memory book containing casting notes, rare, archival photos, emotional, heartfelt letters from Vietnam veterans and more. Packaged in a deluxe collector's box featuring metallic printing and original artwork and logo treatments from the series; included are keepsake China Beach dog tags. $199.95. For the many die-hard "China Beach" aficionados who've patiently awaited the release of the series, a Collector's Edition, priced at $274.95, will be available: The set includes three original, complete scripts, with reproduced covers sporting autographs from the entire cast and key production personnel, along with a numbered Certificate of Authenticity. Also included will be four 8 x 10 color photographs of the original China Beach cast and the recent reunion. Both are available exclusively at ChinaBeachOnDVD.com. Formats: DVD. (Time Life).
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April 14, 2013
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