DVD Talk: August 2003 Archives

Aisle View critic Megan Denny discovers the best action sequence this year isn't a CG effect in a Hollywood movie, it's the giant waves in the new surfing documentary from Dana Brown called Step Into Liquid. An exploration of the worldwide surfing tribe and the future of surfing, Step Into Liquid is true to its Endless Summer Roots. Want to get The Aisle View right when it's published? Sign Up to get The Aisle View delivered free to your email box!

This week The Blue Room takes a look at Digital Playground's No Limits - with a sizzling debut for their new contract girl Jesse Jane . The Blue Room also takes a look at Vivid's Jenna Loves Kobe - which marks the return of the queen of porn herself, Jenna Jameson, co-starring with popular Asian performer Kobe Tai, also Vivid's Sold - with the very cute and bubbly Kody, Private;s Michael Ninn's Acid Dreams where the real story is just how beautiful Ninn makes his actresses and their performances look. Finally if you SUBSCRIBE to get The Blue Room FREE via email you'll get an exclusive coupon emailed to you!! Be sure not to miss this week's The Blue Room!

This week the DVD Savant takes a look at Warners' The Kid Stays in the Picture a riveting partisan docu on the wild high life of producer/studio head Robert Evans, told in his own words, Criterion's definitive disc of Vittorio De Sica's Umberto D., the last and acknowledged apex of the Italian Neorealist movement, MGM's Midnite Movies Double Feature of two Ingrid Pitt Hammer epics, Countess Dracula and The Vampire Lovers - the second of these sexy horror pictures has been extensively restored, fulfilling the promise of an article Savant wrote in 1998, HVe's picture-perfect disc of Merchant/Ivory's The Europeans a heady mixture of fine performances and a beautiful New England Autumn for a background and John Steinbeck's The Red Pony, an overlooked gem. Read all this and more in this week's DVD Savant.

The wait is over! This week we're excited to bring you a special giveaway for Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers (Theatrical Edition) DVD. This exciting DVD features the Documentary 'On the Set: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers', 'Return to Middle-earth', eight featurettes, A Short film by Sean Astin entitled 'The Long and Short of It' an exclusive 10-minute behind-the-scenes preview of "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" and much much more. Enter Now for your chance to win one of 5 copies of Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers we're giving away this week!

A ton of great notable DVDs out this week including: New Line's first release of The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers [Review 1 & 2] more than just an appetizer for the Extended Edition, Columbia Tri-Star's Special Edition releases for Desperado [Review] and El Mariachi [Review] in anticipation for the Theatrical Release of Once Upon a Time In Mexico, Warner Bros has ER - Season 1 [Review] which was one of the most requested TV on DVDs at Amazon, Fox continues their line of successful TV DVDs with The Simpsons - Season 3 and HBO does a bang up job for Mr. Show - The Complete Third Season [Review].

Dreamworks Home Video has announced the DVD Release for Sinbad - Legend of the Seven Seas. Set for release on November 18th Sinbad - Legend of the Seven Seas will be released in separate Widescreen and Fullscreen editions both with Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 audio and feature: Audio Commentary with Directors Patrick Gilmore and Tim Johnson, The Making of Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas featurette, a 6 minute DVD Exclusive short 'Cyclops Island', 2 Deleted Scenes, and a ton of DVD-Rom games and activities. Pre-Order Sinbad - Legend of the Seven Seas Now at Amazon.com

Writer/director John Singleton was only 22 years old and fresh out of film school when he made his first feature film, the highly acclaimed Boyz 'N The Hood. Twelve years and many delays later, his debut is finally being revisited on DVD, this time with a number of bonus features improve on the initial lackluster DVD. DVD Talk Interviewer James W. Powell recently had a chance to sit down with Mr. Singleton to discuss the new DVD edition of Boyz 'N The Hood, his thoughts on the film, and how he feels the digital format is affecting Hollywood and Of course, for the comic book fans out there, the inside scoop on the feature film debut of Marvel Comics' Cage. Read the Complete Interview with John Singleton. Also be sure to read the DVD Talk Review of Boyz in the Hood.

Is The Medallion proof that it's time for Jackie Chan to retire? Check out this week's Aisle View to find out if your admission money would be better spent on some DVD rentals. Also in this week's Aisle View, a review of American Splendor the film/documentary hybrid about comic book writer Harvey Pekar that should set the bar for future bio-pics. Want to get The Aisle View right when it's published? Sign Up to get The Aisle View delivered free to your email box!

Love it or loath it. Rockin' Rob Zombie hasn't slowed long enough to care what you think of his House of 1000 Corpses, although in this exclusive CineSchlock-O-Rama interview, he did find time to answer the Unrated vs. Theatrical brouhaha, wonder if we're all just a wee bit spoiled by copious DVD extras and chart the grisly road ahead for a certain family of homicidal maniacs who like to get bleep'd up and do bleep'd up bleep. Also be sure to check out DVD Talk's Archive of Interviews for a ton of DVD related interviews!

This week the DVD Savant takes a look at John Carpenter's golden goose Halloween which re-emerges from the shadows once more, in a two-disc Anchor Bay special edition, George Romero's Day of the Dead a deluxe presentation from Anchor Bay - kind of a box of gore tied with a pink ribbon. Warners' The Haunting the original chiller-diller and still probably the best 'standard' ghost movie, Paramount's Paper Moon a another excellent disc with a fine set of docus to back up perhaps Peter Bogdanovich's best movie, Paramount's The Hunted a crackling action picture that avoids contemporary action-cutting trends but skimps on the characters with some of the most gruelling knife fights ever filmed. Read all this and more in this week's DVD Savant.

Fox Home Video has announced the DVD release for X-Men 2. Set for release on November 25th X-Men 2 will be released in separate widescreen and fullscreen editions with both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 audio and featuring: Audio Commentary by Director Bryan Singer and Cinematographer Tom Sigel, Audio Commentary by Producers/Writers, 'Nightcrawler Attack' an interactive multi-angle scene study, an In-Depth Look at the 'Wolverine/Deathstrike Fight Rehearsal', a Behind-the-Scenes Exploration, 'The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men': a making-of documentary, The featurettes: 'The Secret Origin of X-Men', 'Nightcrawler Reborn', 'Introducing the Incredible Nightcrawler', 'FX2"' a visual effects guide, and 11 deleted/extended scenes. Pre-Order X-Men 2 at Amazon.com or DVDEmpire.com

HBO Home Video has announced the DVD release for The Sopranos - The Complete Fourth Season. Set for release on October 28th The Sopranos: The Complete Fourth Season will be presented in 16X9 widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and feature: audio commentaries delivered by writer/co-exec. producer Terence Winter (episode 4: "The Weight"), writer/actor Michael Imperioli (episode 6: "Everybody Hurts"), writer/exec. producer Robin Green and writer/exec. producer Mitchell Burgess (episode 8: "Mergers & Acquisitions") and creator/writer/exec. producer David Chase (episode 13: "Whitecaps"), as well as recaps of previous seasons, episodic synopses, previews and recaps, cast and crew bios and an episode index. Pre-Order The Sopranos - The Complete Fourth Season at Amazon.com or DVDEmpire.com

WOW! What a week! After a number of luke warm release weeks we've got a whopper of a week for notable DVDs: Most notable is the Best Picture Academy Award winner Chicago [Review] and the DVD does have a lot of 'Razzle/Dazzle', another Oscar winner Bowling for Columbine [Review] hits DVD and it's one you'll definitely want to pick up along with Roger & Me [Review]. If great indie sleeper flicks are you thing be sure not to miss the superb All the Real Girls [Review], the very enjoyable Home Movie[Review] as well as the amazing documentary The Kid Stays in the Picture [Review], finally if you're looking for a good laugh be sure to check out the 20th Anniversary DVD release of National Lampoon's Vacation [Review] it's a classic!

Since The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers is such a huge DVD release, we don't just have 1 review for it, we've got 2!! Read the Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers reviews from DVD Talk Reviewers Aaron Beierle and David Blair. Also be sure not to miss reviews of: Chicago, Angel Season 2, Identity, Raising Victor Vargas, The Endurance and the Warren Miller Trilogy: Ride, Cold Fusion and Storm.

IFC TV will be broadcasting the landmark documentary A Decade Under the Influence starting Wednesday, August 20 and running through Saturday, August 23. To celebrate this documentary IFCTV presents a special DVD Talk Giveaway including a TON of prizes: A Signed Poster for Coming Home - Singed by Cinematographer Haskell Wexler, A Signed Poster for Blue Collar - Signed by Director Paul Schrader, A Signed Poster for Shampoo - Signed by Writer Robert Towne, 5 Shampoo DVDs and 5 A Decade Under The Influence DVDs. Enter Now for your chance to win!

Larry Cohen has made a career of developing the creepiest, weirdest B-movie monsters and characters. One of his most memorable films, Q: The Winged Serpent is seeing a new DVD release along with some of his other films, with a beautiful new print and a great director's commentary. To celebrate the release, Cohen is hosting a screening of the film at the Pioneer Theater this month. Cinema Gotham's Gil Jawetz took the opportunity to interview the director about the film, his career and some of his favorite classic monster flicks.

Le Divorce looks great on paper: the novel was a hit, Kate Hudson and Naomi Watts are beautiful and talented, and Merchant-Ivory made some of the best films of the 90's. In this week's The Aisle View find out if Le Divorce made good on it's promise. For fans of arthouse films, The Aisle View takes a look at The Stone Reader, a documentary that follows a very rare book. Finally, in the DVD Talk Theatrical Review Database we've got a review for New Line's long awaited Freddy vs. Jason & Kevin Costner's Open Range. Want to get The Aisle View right when it's published? Sign Up to get The Aisle View delivered free to your email box!

Columnist G. Noel Gross broke the news and was first to take readers behind-the-grue of the Godfather of Gore's first feature in 30 years. Now Blood Feast 2: All U Can Eat makes its historic debut, although one torpedo'd by a dubiously-appointed, hardly "special" edition. CineSchlock-O-Rama's Most Wanted heralds the captures of Chuck Heston's doomsday epics Soylent Green and The Omega Man. B-guru Joe Bob Briggs convenes his DVD lecture series with Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter. Troma invades the film frenzied French Rivera in All the Love You Cannes. Schoolgirl zombies rampage in Stacy. Plus, House of 1000 Corpses giveaway winners, responses to reader emails and Blood Diner joins the Most Wanted list.

Columbia Tri-Star has announced the DVD Release for Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. Set for release on October 21st, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle will be released in a Widescreen Unrated Version, a PG-13 Rated Full Screen Version as well as a Charlie's Angels (Superbit Deluxe) / Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (Unrated/Widescreen) 2 Pack. All of the Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle disc will feature: A 'Telestrator' commentary with Director McG, Writer's Audio Commentary, an Angel-Vision Trivia Track, the featurettes: Turning Angels into Pussycat Dolls, Rolling with the Punches, XXX-Treme Angels, Dream Duds: Costuming an Angel, Angels Makeover: Hansen Dam, Designing Angels: The Look of Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, a 'Full Throttle Jukebox', Cameo-Graphy and more. Pre-Order Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle Now at DVDEmpire.com, Amazon.com, or DeepDiscountDVD

With so many big movies coming out towards the holidays, Paramount Home Video and Lucas Film have decided to move the release date for The Adventures of Indiana Jones - The Complete Movie DVD Collection from November 4th to October 21st. The Box set specs remain the same. The three Indiana Jones films will be available only as a collection and will not be sold individually. Pre-Order Indiana Jones Now at DVDEmpire, Amazon or DeepDiscountDVD.

This week the DVD Savant takes a look at the re-issue of Casablanca - sporting a fantastic new transfer this is a great improvement over previous releases, the hotly awaited The Thing from Another World - a presentable disc with all of its oft-trimmed scenes intact, A treat for fans of classic horror from Warner Bros. with a double bill disc of House of Wax & The Mystery of the Wax Museum, Paramount's gem from Peter Bogdanovich's, his first real feature, Targets, which is not about a retail chain. Wait Until Dark with Audrey Hepburn whose fragile vulnerability makes it an especially gripping thriller, and The Quiet American which stresses romance over politics. Read all this and more in this week's DVD Savant.

HKFlix.com has a number of exclusive specials for DVD Talkers: Save $50 on the All-Region JVC XV-SA600/602 DVD Player with savings it's only $199.95! Get the Region 3 release of Godzilla X Mechagodzilla for Only $13.95 and finally get the final installment of Takashi Miike's "Dead Or Alive" trilogy Dead Or Alive: Final which plays in all regions for only $9.95! Great deals for DVD Talkers at HKFlix.com.

This week has a number of DVDs which are more notable for being bad than being good. Our reviewers rated more DVDs 'Rent It' and 'Skip It' than almost any week so far this year (including The Hunted, Head of State and Cradle 2 The Grave). In a week littered with less than amazing DVDs, there are a few standouts which caught the attention and praise of our reviewers including: Warner Bros. release of Babylon 5 - Season 3 [Review] - which is not only a fan pleaser but also a recipient of our highest rating! Disney has the extremely affable The Lizzie McGuire Movie [Review] - Hillary Duff's last stop as Lizzie McGuire before jump starting her musical career. Lion's Gate with 2 notable releases that have come out of their newly founded relationship with NBC Snl: 25 Years of Music [Review] and Will & Grace - Season 1 and the final notable DVD of the week House of 1000 Corpses [Review] - a movie we panned when it was in the theaters, but that got strong marks from our very own CineSchlock-O-Rama.

This week we have a special giveaway for the HBO Mini-Series The Corner - the first series from the creative team behind HBO's The Wire. This 3 time Emmy award winning series is runs 6 hours and takes a gritty look at the streets of Baltimore (based on a true series). The Corner recieved the Highly Recommended rating from DVD Talk's review staff (Read the Review) and is a must for any fans of The Wire. Enter Now for your chance to win one of 5 copies of The Corner that we're giving away this week!

Paramount Home Video has announced the DVD Release for The Italian Job. Set for release on October 7th The Italian Job will be released in both widescreen and full screen editions both with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and featuring: 6 deleted scenes, 5 featurettes, a gag reel and more. Also on October 7th, Paramount will release the original The Italian Job (1969) starring Michael Caine. The original The Italian Job (1969) will feature: Commentary by producer Michael Deeley and Matthew Field, author of "The Making of The Italian Job", 3 "Making of" Documentaries, and a Deleted Scene with commentary by Matthew Field. Pre-Order The Italian Job (2003) and The Italian Job (1969) at Amazon.com

20th Century Fox has announced the DVD release for the virus/zombie flick 28 Days Later - Directed by Danny Boyle (who Directed Trainspotting) and Writer Alex Garland (who wrote 'The Beach'). Set for release on October 21st 28 Days Later will be released in separate Widescreen and full screen editions both with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and featuring: Audio commentary with Danny Boyle and Alex Garland, 3 alternate endings (including the one playing at the end of the credits in theaters), deleted scenes, Pure Rage: The Making of 28 Days Later - featurette, production stills gallery with director commentary, Polaroid picture gallery with director commentary, Jacknife Lee music video, animated story boards, theatrical teaser and theatrical trailer . Pre-Order 28 Days Later at DVDEmpire.com

Buena Vista Home Video has announced the DVD release for the remake of Meredith Willson's The Music Man starring Tony Award Winner Matthew Broderick as Harold Hill. Set for release on November 11th The Music Man will be presented in full screen (it's original aspect ratio) with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and feature: A Behind The Scenes Making of The Musical and a Special Exclusive performance of 'Till There Was You'. Pre-Order The Music Man at DVD Empire, Amazon.com, or DeepDiscountDVD

One of this summers lighter, more enjoyable films, Bruce Almighty, is now up for pre-order. Set for release on November 25th Bruce Almighty will be released in separate widescreen and full screen editions both with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and featuring: audio commentary with Director Tom Shadyac, Deleted Scenes, 3 featurettes, a blooper reel and more. Pre-order Bruce Almighty at Amazon.com, DVDEmpire, or DeepDiscountDVD

TV cop show meets blockbuster action with the summer's twelfth major action movie, S.W.A.T. Samuel L. Jackson and Colin "The Recruit" Farrell star in this film which The Aisle View reviewer Megan Denny found to be better than she expected. Read the full review. Also new this week in The Aisle View: a remake of the 70's classic Freaky Friday. The latest version stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan and is sure to please its target audience of pre-teen girls. Read the full review. Want to get The Aisle View right when it's published? Sign Up to get The Aisle View delivered free to your email box!

This week the DVD Savant takes a look at the first round of DVDs from the The Billy Wilder Collection including: One, Two, Three, Avanti!, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes and Kiss Me, Stupid. Savant also takes a look at First Run Features' Fidel- a documentary on the Cuban revolutionary, Lion's Gate's Saturday Night Live: 25 Years of Music - a quarter century of live performances and musical skits in a 5 disc set, Images Salomé, and the early talkie experiment Lot in Sodom, Fox's studio classics of the Ingrid Bergman vehicle Inn of the Sixth Happiness and MGM's Rhapsody in August - Akira Kurosawa's postscript to the atomic bombing of Japan, 45 years after the fact. Read all this and more in this week's DVD Savant.

Love it or hate it, Universal Studios Home Video is unleashing The Hulk on DVD on October 28th. This big green special edition will be presented in anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and feature many featurettes including: Hulkification, Evolution of The Hulk, The Incredible Ang Lee, The Dog Fight Scene, Ang Lee Editing Style, and The Making of Hulk. Check out the 3 reviews of The Hulk from our Theatrical Review Team: Hulk Review 1, Review 2, Review 3. Pre-Order The Hulk at DVDEmpire.

This week we have a very special giveaway from Lions Gate Home Entertainment to celebrate the DVD release of Irreversible - one of the most challenging and gritty independent films we've seen in a very long time. Starring Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel, Irreversible tells the story of an evening of horrific events in reverse (from the end of the evening to the beginning) in an unflinching and gut wrenching style. In addition to Irreversible we're also giving away 3 other great independent films from Lions Gate Home Entertainment: Amores Perros, The Red Violin and Lantana. Enter Now for your chance to win one of 5 DVD Prize Pack (including all 4 films) from Lions Gate!

We have a very exciting EXCLUSIVE offer for DVD Talk Readers! Get 60% off the regular price of DVD Discoveries making it a steal of a deal the blowout price of only $3.95!! Go Behind The Scenes on How they make the 'Behind the Scenes' features on your favorite DVDs. DVD Discoveries contains nearly 3 hours of featurettes from some of the biggest names in the DVD-world, including Van Ling, David Prior, Charles de Lauzirika, Sharpline Arts, 1K Studios, and much more. This is a VERY Limited Time Offer and is limited to stock on hand. So don't hesitate or you'll miss this Exclusive offer. This is also your LAST chance to get DVD Discoveries! before it goes Out of Print! Get DVD Discoveries for $3.95 Now!

In this week's Chicago Sun Times, Roger Ebert quotes our very own DVD Savant about the restoration of the Sergio Leone classic The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. In case you hadn't read DVD Savant's article on The Good, The Bad and The Ugly you should definitely check it out along with Savant's previous article The Good, The Bad and The Restored as well as his review of The Man with No Name Trilogy (a trio of Sergio Leone films with Clint Eastwood which includes - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly). Be sure not to miss out on great Savant articles by Signing Up to get The DVD Savant Update Newsletter delivered free to your email box!

Rocker-turned-goreteur Rob Zombie leaps for the jugular in his raucous salute to '70s horror with House of 1000 Corpses -- enter to win one of five copies in this exclusive giveaway! Strap in for a toothy Critters crawl through the original Gremlins coattailer and its biting sequels. Discover whatever happened to PTL's Ms. Mascara via a mesmerizing gaze into The Eyes of Tammy Faye. C. Thomas Howell hits the road again in The Hitcher II: I've Been Waiting. Plus, Andy Sidaris giveaway winners, responses to reader emails and Loverboy joins CineSchlock-O-Rama's Most Wanted.

The cast of American Pie is back (well, some of them) for the third and final installment of the American Pie trilogy: American Wedding. Though not as sharp as the original, the spirit of the series remains. Read the full review of American Wedding in this week's The Aisle View. Als this week The Aisle View Takes takes a look at Northfork, the mysterious new film from the Polish Brothers. The film is as beautiful as it is convoluted; critic Megan Denny offers an interpretation of the film in addition to a full review. Also touring arthouse cinemas around the country: The Magdalene Sisters. This intense and powerful film about the opression of young Irish women in the 1960's and 70's is an example of indie filmmaking at its best. Read the full review. Want to get The Aisle View right when it's published? Sign Up to get The Aisle View delivered free to your email box!