Daniel Craig’s debut as 007 generates new interest in Bond movies
Need a last minute gift? Getting one is as easy as visiting your favorite DVD store.
A bounty of Bonds
Daniel Craig’s debut as 007 in “Casino Royale” has generated new interest in the James Bond franchise. The best way to experience the previous titles featuring the British spy with a license to kill is via “The James bond Ultimate Edition: Volumes 1, 2, 3 & 4” (MGM; $89.99 each).
The titles – featuring Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan as 007 – have been restored and re-mastered and contain enough bonus material to keep Bond fans busy through 2008.
The titles are:
“Volume 1:” “Goldfinger,” “The World Is Not Enough,” “Diamonds Are Forever,” “The Man With the Golden Gun” and “The Living Daylights.”
“Volume 2:” “Thunderball,” “Die Another Day,” “The Spy Who Loved Me,” “A View To A Kill” and “Licence to Kill.”
“Volume 3:” “GoldenEye,” “Live and Let Die,” “From Russia With Love,” “For Your Eyes Only” and “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (featuring Lazenby’s only Bond appearance).
“Volume 4:” “Tomorrow Never Dies,” “You Only Live Twice,” “Dr. No,” “Octopussy” and “Moonraker.”
And what if your budget limits you to the purchase of a single set? Go with “Volume 1,” since “Goldfinger” remains the best of the Bonds as far as I’m concerned, and “Diamonds Are Forever” is a spirited adventure with 007 turning Las Vegas upside down. Both titles also star the incredible Connery.
Great ‘Adventures’
Four installments of Disney’s Academy Award-winning nature series receive attention in the “Walt Disney Legacy Collection: True-Life Adventures” series ($32.99 each, DVD).
The double-disc titles, each loaded with extras and an introduction by Roy Disney, are:
– “Volume 1: Wonders of the World,” including the Oscar-winning documentary “White Wilderness” (1958) and the shorts “Water Birds” (1952), “Beaver Valley” (1950) and “Prowlers of the Everglades” (1953).
– “Volume 2: Lands of Exploration,” with two Oscar-winning features, “The Living Desert” (1953) and “The Vanishing “Prairie” (1954), and the short “Seal Island” (1948).
– “Volume 3: Creatures of the Wild,” with “African Lion” (1955), “Jungle Cat” (1960) “Olympic Elk” 1955) and the Oscar-winning short “Bear Country” (1953).
– “Volume 4: Nature’s Mysteries,” with “Secrets of Life” (1956) and the Oscar-winning short “Nature’s Half Acre” (1951).
All of the titles were either produced or supervised by Walt Disney.
The ‘Man’ returns
Forget about the recent remake of “The Wicker Man” with Nicolas Cage.
What that film buff on your list will really want is the original 1974 British version that has arrived in “The Wicker Man: 2-Disc Special Edition” (Anchor Bay; $19.99, DVD).
The set contains both the original theatrical cut and an extended version with 11 minutes of additional footage.
Directed by Robin Hardy and written by Anthony Shaffer, the intriguing import concerns a sexually repressed police investigator (Edward Woodward of TV’s “The Equalizer”) who travels to a remote Scottish island to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. There, he encounters a charismatic cult leader (Christopher Lee of “Horror of Dracula”) and some followers who have a profound influence upon him.
The respected fantasy magazine Cinefantastique once described “The Wicker Man” as “the ‘Citizen Kane’ of horror films,” which suits the moody and memorable film even though it’s much different from a traditional fright film.
Now Playing!
The following DVD titles either are coming soon or recently landed at a video store near you.
If your local outlet doesn’t stock them, the DVD offerings can be mail ordered by calling (800) 523-0823 or going to the Web site moviesunlimited.com or amazon.com, unless otherwise noted.
Movies
– “All the King’s Men” (Sony; $28.99, DVD; $38.99, Blu-ray Disc; Dec. 19) with Sean Penn (“Mystic River”), Jude Law (“Alfie”), Kate Winslet (“The Holiday”) and James Gandolfini (HBO’s “The Sopranos”) in an R-rated political film about a governor succumbing to corruption.
– “The Celestine Prophecy” (Sony; $24.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Hector Elizondo (“Pretty Woman”) in an adaptation of James Redfield’s novel about a movement to spirituality sparked by the discovery of ancient scrolls in the rainforests of Peru.
– “The Dean Martin Double Feature: ‘Who Was That Lady?’ and “How To Save a Marriage (and Ruin Your Life)” (Sony; $19.99, DVD; now available), co-starring Janet Leigh and Stella Stevens, respectively.
– “House of Sand” (Sony; $29.99, DVD; now available) with Fernanda Montenegro (“Redeemer”) in an R-rated drama from Brazil about a mother and daughter who are abandoned in a desert wilderness and survive with the help of a former slave.
– “Invincible” (Disney; $29.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Mark Wahlberg (“The Departed”) in the uplifting PG-rated biography of Vince Papale, a 30-year-old football enthusiast who got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play with the Philadelphia Eagles. Greg Kinnear (“As Good As It Gets”) co-stars as Dick Vermeil, the NFL coach who gave Papale the opportunity.
– “Jet Li’s Fearless” (Universal; $29.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with the Hong Kong action star in a fact-based historical epic about a fighter whose martial arts skills made him China’s greatest hero. It will be available in Unrated and PG-13 versions.
– “Lady in the Water” (Warner; $28.99, DVD; $34.99, Blu-ray Disc; $39.99, HD DVD; Dec. 19) with Paul Giamatti (“Sideways”) and Bryce Dallas Howard (“The Village”) in director M. Night Shyamalan’s PG-13 fairy tale about a sea narf being helped by a maintenance man.
– “Little Miss Sunshine” (Fox; $29.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Steve Carell (“The 40 Year-Old Virgin”), Toni Collette (“The Sixth Sense”) and Greg Kinnear (“Fast Food Nation”) in an R-rated ensemble comedy about a dysfunctional family racing to transport a little girl to a child’s beauty pageant and hitting constant roadblocks.
– “My Super Ex-Girlfriend” (Fox; $29.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Uma Thurman (“Kill Bill, Vol. 1”) and Luke Wilson (“Rushmore”) in a PG-13 comedy about a guy who faces the wrath of his superhero significant other after breaking up with her.
– “Police Story: Collector’s Edition” (Genius; $24.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Jackie Chan in his PG-13 action favorite (1985) about a Hong Kong policeman in a fight against the narcotics trade. The extras include a video tribute (“Impressions of a Master”), a retrospective interview with Chan (“A Moment of Glory”) and a featurette (“Stunts Unlimited”) on the Jackie Chan Stunt Team.
– “The Promise” (Warner; $27.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Chinese filmmaker Kaige Chen (“Farewell My Concubine”) directing a painstakingly mounted import that follows a powerful general, a beautiful princess and a brave slave in a romantic triangle.
– “A Scanner Darkly” (Warner; $27.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Keanu Reeves (“The Matrix”) and Winona Ryder (“Girl, Interrupted”) in director Richard Linklater’s R-rated adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s novel of paranoia that unfolds in a world where the war on drugs has failed and friends and neighbors spy on each other. The filmmaker employed interpolated rotoscoping (drawing over live-action figures) for the fantasy.
– “Step Up” (Touchstone; $29.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Channing Tatum (“She’s the Man”) and Jenna Dewan (“Take the Lead”) in a hip-hop influenced dance/musical, rated PG-13.
– “The Wicker Man” (Warner; $28.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Nicolas Cage (“World Trade Center”) in a PG-13 remake of the 1974 British cult favorite about a sexually repressed policeman dispatched to a remote island to locate a missing girl.
Classic Collections
– “The Charlie Chan Collection – Volume Two” (Fox; $59.99, DVD; now available) with Warner Oland in four films – “Charlie Chan At the Opera,” “Charlie Chan At the Olympics,” “Charlie Chan At the Race Track” and “Charlie Chan At the Circus” – in the vintage series about the brilliant detective. Boris Karloff co-stars in “At the Opera,” and the bonus features include a featurette on Keye Luke, who played Chan’s son in the series.
– “DVD Decision 2006” (Warner; $19.99 each, Dec. 19) with 10 previously unavailable titles selected for release through a vote on Amazon.com. They are: “The Illustrated Man” (1969) with Rod Steiger,” “There Was a Crooked Man” (1970) with Kirk Douglas, “Presenting Lily Mars” (1943) with Judy Garland, “Up Periscope” (1959) with James Garner, “Operation Crossbow” (1965) with Sophia Loren, “The Arrangement” (1969) with Faye Dunaway, “Band of Angels” (1957) with Clark Gable, “Gymkata” (1985) with Kurt Thomas, “Looker” (1981) with Susan Dey and “Madame Curie” (1943) with Greer Garson.?n “The Motion Picture Masterpieces” collection (Warner; $49.99, boxed set; $19.99 each; now available) with “Marie Antoinette” (1938) with Norma Shearer, “David Copperfield” (1935) with W.C. Fields, “Pride and Prejudice” (1940) with Laurence Olivier, “A Tale of Two Cities” (1935) with Ronald Colman and “Treasure Island” (1934) with Jackie Cooper and Wallace Beery as Jim Hawkins and Long John Silver, respectively.
– “TCM Archives: Forbidden Hollywood Collection: Volume 1” (Warner; $39.99, DVD; now available) with three vintage films -“Baby Face” (1933) with Barbara Stanwyck, “Red Headed Woman” (1932) with Jean Harlow and “Waterloo Bridge” (1931) with Mae Clark – created in Hollywood prior to the Pre-Production Code era in which movies were censored.
Television
– “Fair Haired Child” (Anchor Bay; $16.99, DVD; now available) with Lori Petty (“A League of their Own”) in a segment of Showtime’s “Masters of Horror” series about a 13-year-old girl who’s kidnapped and put in a basement with a boy holding a terrible secret.
– “Married … with Children: The Complete Sixth Season” (Sony; $39.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Ed O’Neil (“Spartan”) and Katey Sagal (TV’s “8 Simple Rules”) in a boxed set with all 26 episodes from the sitcom’s sixth year. The guest stars include Joey Lauren Adams (“Chasing Amy”), Matt LeBlanc (TV’s “Friends”), Denise Richards (“Wild Things”) and Edd Byrnes (TV’s “77 Sunset Strip”).
– “The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season” (Fox; $49.99, DVD; Dec. 19) with Matt Groening’s animated characters in a four-disc set with all 25 episodes from the show’s ninth year. The guest stars include Helen Hunt, Martin Sheen, Jay Leno, U2, James Earl Jones, Janeane Garofalo, Joe Namath and Alex Trebek.
– “Stacked: The Complete Series” ( Fox; $29.99, DVD; now available) with Pamela Anderson (TV’ “Baywatch”) in a three-disc set with all 14 original episodes about a party girl who takes a normal job to add some stability to her wild lifestyle. Christopher Lloyd (TV’s “Taxi”) co-stars.
Children/Family
– “The Fox and the Hound 2” (Disney; $29.99, DVD; now available) with the voices of country-singer Reba McEntire, comic Jeff Foxworthy and Patrick Swayze (“Dirty Dancing”) in G-rated animated sequel about the bond of friendship between two natural enemies who find themselves introduced to country music at a county fair.
– “Garfield & Friends: Behind the Scenes” (Fox; $19.99, DVD with a plush toy; $14.99, DVD only; now available) with “Garfield” creator Jim Davis selecting his 15 favorite titles from the animated series about the ultimate fat cat.
– “The Year Without a Santa Claus” (Warner; $19.99, DVD; now available) with John Goodman (“The Big Lebowski”) and Eddie Griffin (“Scary Movie 3”) in a family film in which St. Nick feels that people have forgotten the Christmas spirit and decides to take the year off and not deliver any gifts.
– Four vintage titles with critic Leonard Maltin introducing each double-disc offering in the “Walt Disney Treasures Wave VI” series (Disney; $32.99 each, DVD; Dec. 19). They are: “More Silly Symphonies” (a new collection of animated shorts), “The Complete Pluto Volume 2” (all of the cartoons from 1947 to 1951 featuring Mickey Mouse’s canine), “Your Host, Walt Disney” (with Disney in footage from episodes of his TV series), and “The Mickey Mouse Club Featuring The Hardy Boys” (with Tim Considine and Tommy Kirk as the teen crime solvers in books that were serialized on “The Mickey Mouse Club”).