**** new release list no. 115

Hey Out There,

We have another massive week of new stuff for you. Bunches of foreign films (PAN'S LABYRINTH, TEARS OF A BLACK TIGER, UN CHANT D'AMOUR, LA HAINE, FAMILY LAW, THE HISTORY BOYS, EXILES), TV (MAUDE: 1st SEASON), docs (ADDICTION, PLANET EARTH: THE COMPLETE SERIES), music (BAD BRAINS: LIVE AT CBGB'S 1982, LEONARD COHEN: UNDER REVIEW), kids stuff (CURIOUS GEORGE: ROCKET RIDE) and many other releases (DEAD GIRL, FUN DOWN THERE, THE FOUNTAIN, STOMP THE YARD, SERAPHIM FALLS).

Hope you enjoy them.

Best regards,
Ken

............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............

PAN'S LABYRINTH.
Drama/Romance.
Ivana Baquero/Sergi Lopez/Ariadna Gil/Doug Jones.
Directed by Guillermo del Toro.
* One of the most-acclaimed films of 2006. This fantasy horror tale won 3 Oscars and was nominated for 3 more. It is the tale of Ofelia (12-year old Ivana Baquero), the step-daughter of a psychotic army office in WWII Spain. She escapes her hellish life into an equally hellish fantasy world where she must prove her royalty by surviving three gruesome tasks. Del Toro's fine direction and superb story-telling shines in this dark fairytale about the intricate and and slippery power of imagination.

............//NEW TITLES//............


DEAD GIRL.
Drama/Mystery/Thriller.
Brittany Murphy/Toni Collette/Marcia Gay Harden/James Franco/Rose Byrne/Giovanni Ribisi/Kerry Washington/Mary Steenburgen.
Directed by Karen Moncrieff.
* Quiet and full of life, the death one of girl is the intersection of seven other lives.

EL TOPO.
Western.
Alexandro Jodorowsky/Mara Lorenzio/Jacqueline Luis.
Directed by Alexandro Jodorowsky.
* Vicious sheriffs, bizarre cults, clans of deformed people, master gunman, a remote cavern and a mission to build a tunnel out...Wow, it must be seen to be believed.

EXILES.
Drama/Foreign.
Romain Duris/Lubna Azabal.
Directed by Tony Gatlif
Two young Arab lovers leave Paris, without much money or food, in search of adventure. With the vague plan of visiting their Algerian relatives, the couple ends up having experiences they never could have predicted. - CD Universe

FAMILY LAW.
Comedy/Drama.
Daniel Hendler, Arturo Goetz, Julieta Diaz, Eloy Burman.
Directed by Daniel Burman.
* A light-hearted story about new father who is reconciling his relationship with his own father as he adjusts to life as a husband and a dad. This won multiple festival awards.

THE FOUNTAIN.
action/Drama.
Hugh Jackman/Rachel Weisz/Ellen Burstyn.
Directed by Darren Aronofsky.
* The motherlode, I think Hugh found it! The Fountain refers to the fountain of youth that exists in this tale of love, death and endless days.

FUN DOWN THERE.
Drama.
Michael Waite/Nickolas B. Nagourney/Martin Goldin.
Directed by Roger Stigliano.
* A gentle and sweet coming-of-age story about a gay kid from the country moving to the big city. And he's a dairy farmer!

THE HISTORY BOYS.
Comedy/Drama.
Richard Griffiths/Clive Merrison/Frances de la Tour/Stephen Campbell Moore.
Directed by Nicholas Hytner.
* Charming smart teenagers, looking for sex and being pursued by higher education. With the terrific Richard Griffiths (Withnail and I).

LA HAINE.
Crime/Drama.
Vincent Cassel, Saïd Taghmaoui.
Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz.
* Translating as "The Hate", this a tale tale of French suburban racial tension and violence. Three friends find a police man's lost gun and one swears to shoot a cop if their fourth friend dies from a beating he received from the police during riots the night before.

PAN'S LABYRINTH.
See Above: Release of the
Week

SERAPHIM FALLS.
Western.
Pierce Brosnan/Liam Neeson/Angie Harmon/Anjelica Huston.
Directed by David Von Ancken.
* A tense psychological thriller, Seraphim Falls follows Colonel Morsman Carver (Liam Neeson) at the end of the Civil War as he chases Gideon (Pierce Brosnan) intent on killing him.

STOMP THE YARD.
Drama/Musical/Romance.
Columbus Short/Meagan Good/Chris Brown/Brian J. White/Ne-Yo.
Directed by Sylvain White.
After the death of his younger brother, a troubled 19-year-old street dancer from Los Angeles is able to bypass juvenile hall by enrolling in the historically black, Truth University in Atlanta, Georgia. But his efforts to get an education and woo the girl he likes are sidelined when he is courted by the top two campus fraternities, both of which want and need his fierce street-style dance moves to win the highly coveted national step show competition. - Promo
Maybe lighter fare but...see also: Bring It On

TEARS OF A BLACK TIGER.
Cult Western/Foreign.
Chartchai Ngamsan/Suwinit Panjamawat.
Directed by Wisit Sasanatieng.
* A western from Thailand! A gang of outlaws make a region of countryside in Thailand unsafe. Treachery, betrayal, pumping music and spectacular battles make this an exciting romp.

UN CHANT D AMOUR.
Drama/Foreign.
Java/André Reybaz.
Directed by Jean Genet.
Two prisoners in complete isolation, separated by the thick brick walls, and desperately in need of human contact, devise a most unusual kind of communication. - IMDB

............//DOCUMENTARY//............

ADDICTION: HBO DOCUMENTARY.
Documentary.
Directed by Many.
* This is a documentary made up of nine separate segments on the topic of drug addiction.

PLANET EARTH: THE COMPLETE SERIES.
Series.
Narrated by David Attenborough.
* 40 Camera crews, 200 locations, 5 years in the making. This breathtaking and mind-boggling series will be a dream come true for nature doc lovers. The imagery is amazing. There are five one hour discs in this set.

............//MUSIC//............

BAD BRAINS: LIVE CBGB's 1982.
Music Video.
* Bad Brains, led by the irresistible HR, was one of the most influential bands of the American Hardcore scene. And they were versatile as well, mixing in a major dose of reggae to go along with the more thrashing stuff. This was culled from over 4 hours of footage from a three-day stint at the Hardcore Festival at CBGB's in late December 1982. As my bandmate JJ would say "Rawk!"

LEONARD COHEN: UNDER REVIEW.
Music.
* This is a 90 minute Doc on the music, poetry, performance and career of Leonard Cohen. The Under Review series takes a scholarly look at performers and mixes in analysis, hard to find footage, interviews and live performance in their review.

............//TELEVISION//............

MAUDE: 1ST SEASON.
Series.
Beatrice Arthur/Bill Macy/Adrienne Barbeau.
* Debuting on my third birthday (12 September 1972), Maude was a All In The Family spinoff series about Edith's liberal cousin Maude. This 70's comedy followed the path of it's originator and other shows of it's era (Good Times) in dealing with controversial issues of it's day..

............//ANIMATION//............

FILMS OF SUZANN PITT.
Animation.
Directed by Suzann Pitt.
* This collection presents three of Suzann Pitt's distinctly surreal animated film shorts: ASPARAGUS (1979) offers a revelatory exploration of female sexuality; JOY STREET (1995) documents a suicidal woman's spiritual redemption; and EL DOCTOR (2006) chronicles an elderly Mexican doctor's last days. -Newbury Comics

............//FAMILY//............

CURIOUS GEORGE: ROCKET RIDE AND OTHER ADVENTURES.
Kids.
George/Man with Yellow Hat.
* Come take a wild ride with George and his imperialist friend with the Yellow Hat! What the heck - my kids love this.



****

**** new release list no. 114

Hey Out There,

Thank you everyone who came to our party on Saturday. For those of you who couldn't make it, it was a lovely sunny day and Jeremy and Jamie and family and friends were on hand to thank you all for your support over the years. It was a really wonderful and emotional send-off for them and what felt like a new beginning for us; much yummy food was consumed. Thanks for all the delicious offerings, and please come pick up your plate or bowl at the store any day.

This week there are a few bigger releases (THE PAINTED VEIL, MUSIC AND LYRICS, BECAUSE I SAID SO, FUR: AN IMAGINARY PORTRAIT OF DIANE ARBUS), as well as a bunch of assorted other stuff. Probably the best of those is OLD JOY, starring indie music legend Will Oldham. We have more old war films (THE CAINE MUTINY, THE GUNS OF NAVARONE), as well as three awesome music offerings (ICKY FLIX: THE RESIDENTS, BAUHAUS: SHADOW OF LIGHT, 18 FILMS TO THE MUSIC OF CLOSER TO CARBON) that were all donated to us. Unfortunately, as we were entering some of the donated stuff, we lost track of who gave them to us, so please let us know if it was you so we can put some credits on your account! I am happy to report we have finally gotten SLINGS AND ARROWS (both seasons 1 and 2 - with 3 on the way), as well as the much anticipated documentary DELIVER US FROM EVIL. We have some new foreign films (TIGER AND THE SNOW, VIOLETTE, GIRL FROM PARIS, COMEDY OF POWER) as well as an art film (THE SECRET LIFE OF WORDS). Rounding it all out is a collection of Jewish film trailers (TRAILERS SCHMAILERS) and a Richard Linklater short about post-911 NY (LIVE FROM SHIVA'S DANCE FLOOR).

Keep the requests coming. We are starting to get a system down.

Thanks for supporting Four Star Video!

Best regards,
Ken

............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............

PAINTED VEIL.
Drama/Romance.
Naomi Watts/Edward Norton/Liev Schreiber.
Directed by John Curran.
* Based on a story by William Somerset Maugham, this is a tale of a cross-class marriage that is tested by a multitude of situations. When the upper-class wife of a middle class doctor falls in love with someone else, she is punished by being brought to a disease-ravaged remote part of China by her husband.

............//NEW TITLES//............

BECAUSE I SAID SO.
Comedy/Romance.
Diane Keaton/Mandy Moore/Lauren Graham/Gabriel Macht.
Directed by Michael Lehmann.
* This is a story of motherly love that truly knows no bounds, or perhaps boundaries is the more appropriate word. Diane Keaton's Daphne is a mother of three young women. Her attempts to set Milly (Moore) up with an online ad achieve amusing and maybe preposterous results.

CAINE MUTINY.
Drama.
Humphrey Bogart/Jose Ferrer/Van Johnson/Robert Francis/May Wynn/Fred MacMurray/E.G. Marshall/Lee Marvin.
Directed by Edward Dmytryk.
* There is very little cinematically more amazing than watching Capt. Queeg (Bogart) fondling his balls (marbles?) during the court martial hearing of the first officer who relieved him of his command during WWII. This film is a collector's addition of the classic!

CATCH AND RELEASE.
Comedy/Drama.
Jennifer Garner/Timothy Olyphant/Kevin Smith/Juliette Lewis/Joshua Friesen.
Directed by Susannah Grant.
* Catch and Release follows Gray Wheeler (Garner) during the period after her seemingly perfect fiancee dies suddenly. As secrets come out about him that tear down her notions of his life, Gray begins re-thinking herself and the people around her.

COMEDY OF POWER.
Comedy/Drama.
Isabelle Huppert/Francois Berleand/Patrick Bruel.
Directed by Claude Chabrol.
One of two this week from Claude Chabrol starring Isabelle Huppert. This one is about all the fun stuff: Corporate greed! Governmental oversite! An investigation! I'm laughing my head off just thinking about it. If you are an Isabelle Huppert fan, you must see this film.

FUR: AN IMAGINERY PORTRAIT OF DIANE ARBUS.
Imaginary Biograph/Drama.
Nicole Kidman/Robert Downey Jr.
Directed by Steven Shainberg.
* This is not a biography. It is a strange fantasy that imagines how Diane Arbus was drawn to the subjects of her later work. She falls in the love with the Chewbacca-esque Downey Jr character Lionel Sweeney who introduces her to the world of freaks and other marginalized people who become the object of Diane's fascination.

GIRL FROM PARIS.
Drama.
Mathilde Seigner, Michel Serrault.
Directed by Christian Carion.
In this critically-acclaimed directorial debut of Christian Carion, Sandrine (Mathilde Seigner), successful 30-something Parisienne, tires of her job in the rat race and yearns for a life both more fulfilling and simple. She decides upon a radically different direction, enrolls in a two-year course to become a farmer, and emerges ready to do just that. Enter Adrien (Michel Serrault), an older, embittered farmer ready to retire. Sandrine buys Adrien’s isolated farm with the caveat that he remain onsite for a period of time. The next 18 months find the pair living more in conflict than harmony; Adrien’s pessimism threatening to overcome Sandrine’s hopeful innocence. Challenged to find a medium between curiosity and confusion, Adrien and Sandrine find that the joys of a simple life may very well be possible, but are not necessarily simple. Resplendent with spectacular vistas of the Rhone-Alps, THE GIRL FROM PARIS is a touching story of growth and change and of the glorious ability of nature to stir the depths of one’s heart. - Amazon Editorial

GUNS OF NAVARONE.
War.
Gregory Peck/David Niven/Anthony Quinn/Stanley Baker/Anthony Quayle.
Directed by J. Lee Thompson.
* The star-studded cast does not disappoint as an ace commando team (the original A-Team!) is sent to the Greek island of Navarone to blow up some German guns that are preventing the British troops there from evacuating.

MUSIC AND LYRICS.
Romance/Comedy.
Hugh Grant/Drew Barrymore.
Directed by Marc Lawrence.
* Hugh is a washed up singer, Drew is a "plant-girl". Do you have a "plant-girl?" I think you should get one, in case you need to write brilliant lyrics for a teen pop-sensation to save your career. It worked for Hugh; it could work for you.

OLD JOY.
Drama.
Will Oldham/Daniel London.
Directed by Kelly Reichardt.
* The excellent musician Will Oldham (Palace Brothers, Palace Music, Bonnie Prince Billy) is terrific in this buddy-ish movie about two men hiking in Oregon. Mark (Oldham) is facing an impending fatherhood while Kurt (London) is bopping from one carefree adventure to the next. As they journey deeper into the mountains and closer to their hot spring destination, they are forced to confront their relationship and the changes that have transformed it.

PAINTED VEIL.
See Above: Release of the Week

THE SECRET LIFE OF WORDS.
Drama.
Sarah Polley/Tim Robbins/Julie Christie/Javier Camara/Eddie Marsan.
Directed by Isabel Coixet.
* A tale of a hearing impaired woman who goes on her holiday to care for a burn victim on an oil rig out at sea.
see also: Breaking the Waves

TIGER AND THE SNOW.
Comedy/Drama.
Robert Benigni/Nicoletta Braschi/Jean Reno/Tom Waits/Emilia Fox.
Directed by Robert Benigni.
A love-struck Italian poet finds himself in Iraq at the outset of the American-led invasion.

VIOLETTE.
Isabelle Huppert.
Directed by Claude Chabrol.
Isabelle Huppert (12-time César Award nominee for Best Actress) stars in an award-winning performance based on the true story of Violette Nozière. The daughter of a respectable middle-class couple, Violette leads a disreputable double life. Far from being the innocent young girl her parents mistake her for, she spends her nights with dissolute young men in the less than savory areas of Paris. To acquire money for her latest lover, Violette resolves to murder her parents so that she can inherit their wealth. - Amazon Editorial

............//DOCUMENTARY//............

DELIVER US FROM EVIL.
Documentary.
Oliver O'Grady.
Directed by Amy Berg.
* A very painful movie about the corruption of the Catholic Church that allowed an active and known pedophile to make his way from church to church harming countless children. This film is well worth watching for believers and non-believers alike.

............//MUSIC//............

ICKY FLIX: THE RESIDENTS.
Music Video.
Directed by Many.
Crazy wacked out zaniness from a band that was alternative before that word didn't mean anything. This is an awesome disc with many classics.

BAUHAUS: SHADOW OF LIGHT.
Music Video and Archive Footage.
Terrific live and archival footage, as well as music videos from one of the most influential gothic bands.

18 FILMS TO THE MUSIC OF CLOSER TO CARBON.
Music Video.
* I am not sure who Closer to Carbon is, and I have not seen this whole film (did you donate this to us? Let us know!), but the one I did see was beautiful, with amazing nature footage combined with sublime jazzy and experimental music.

............//TELEVISION//............

SLINGS AND ARROWS: SEASONS ONE AND TWO.
Series.
Paul Gross
Directed by Peter Wellington.
In the fictional town of New Burbage, legendary theatrical madman Geoffrey Tennant returns to the New Burbage Theatre Festival, the site of his greatest triumph and most humiliating failure, to assume the artistic directorship after the sudden death of his mentor, Oliver Welles. When Geoffrey arrives he finds that Oliver is still there, in spirit anyway, and with his guidance (and often in spite of it) Geoffrey attempts to reconcile with his past while wrestling the festival back from the marketing department. Despite a bitter leading lady, a clueless leading man, and a scheming general manager, he manages to stage a remarkable production of Hamlet -- the play that drove him mad. - Movie Network Synopsis

............//OTHER COOL STUFF!!!//............

TRAILERS SCHMAILERS.
Trailers.
Directed by Many.
* This is a collection of trailers from Jewish movies.

LIVE FROM SHIVA'S DANCE FLOOR.
Short.
Speedy Levitch
Directed by Richard Linklater.
* One man's rant-like take on post-911 New York City.


****

**** new release list no. 113

Nanu Nanu,

Ah, spring! What a glorious bunch of days we have had this week. It almost makes you hopeful that summer will be warm...sigh.

This week we have bunch of new releases with some huge films (DREAMGIRLS, LITTLE CHILDREN) combined with some sleepers (ALPHA DOG, DIGGERS). We have several art docs (WHO THE #$&% IS JACKSON POLLOCK, MATTHEW BARNEY: NO RESTRAINT) as well as a couple family releases (HAPPILY N'EVER AFTER, THOMAS' TRUSTY FRIENDS). We also have a tie-em-up and misbehave horror film (THE HITCHER) as well as a collection of all 2006 Academy Award nominated films.

I am proud to report that some customer requests are finally getting filled (could that be the ground beneath my feet?) and more are on the way. In other store news, we are researching and preparing to buy a serious DVD repair machine which will help us to provide you with the best possible viewing experience available every time.

It occurs to me that I haven't mentioned staff in the blog since becoming an owner. We are sure that you have noticed new people behind our counter and we are also very lucky to have some holdover from the previous ownership. Helming the staff, we have Shila and Rhodes who have helped us so very much. They love the store and love the customers and have helped to guide us through the transition. We thank them tremendously. Justine and Andrew have been at the store for about month and are picking things up very well. We'd also like to extend a welcome to neighborhood local, Teri, who has just began working at Four Star this last week.

Please take note that our second year of the Cinema Scout program will start in mid-June. More about that next week.

One last note: Please come say bye-bye to Jeremy and Jamie on Saturday, May 5th!!! The party will start around 3pm and last until the eve... Hope to see you there.

Best regards,

Ken
Four Star Video





............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............


LITTLE CHILDREN.
Drama/Romance.
Kate Winslet/Patrick Wilson/Jennifer Connelly.
Directed by Todd Field.
* Ah, marital infidelity, sexual purgatory, playground fantasy, poopy diapers! Parenthood is sexy! Well, maybe it is when Kate Winslet lures you away from your partner, but wait! - your partner is Jennifer Connelly. Damn, what to do, what to do... Throw in a renegade ex-cop and a newly released from prison sex offender and you have the full parameters of this engaging and intriguing Todd Field film (IN THE BEDROOM) The movie is dark and tense and is another in a line of tales of suburban life highlighting the main question: is the grass greener on the neighbors lawn?
see also: American Beauty, Closer

............//NEW TITLES//............


THE 2006 ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATED SHORT FILMS.
Directed by many.
* Over 200 minutes of short films that were nominated in 2006.

ALPHA DOG.
Crime/Drama
Bruce Willis/Justin Timberlake/Alan Thicke
Directed by Nick Cassavetes.
Alpha Dog is a film inspired by true events about some youthful drug dealers and a kidnap gone terribly wrong. Justin Timberlake got major kudos for his role in this film.

LITTLE CHILDREN.
See Above: New Release of the Week.

DIGGERS.
Comedy.
Paul Rudd/Lauren Ambrose/Shannon Barry/Andrew Cherry.
Directed by Katherine Dieckmann.
* A funny, heartfelt 70s era period piece set in the still-unspoiled Hamptons area of Long Island, DIGGERS is the story of two generations of hard-living clam diggers trying to maintain their way of life in the midst of the enormous changes swirling around them.

DREAMGIRLS.
Action/Crime/Thriller.
Beyonce Knowles/Anika Noni Rose/Jennifer Hudson/Jamie Foxx/Eddie Murphy/Danny Glover.
Directed by Bill Condon.
* Based on the 1981 Broadway musical, this tale tracks the lives of three young women and their quest for pop stardom. Jealousy, greed, romance; all play a role in this fictional tale of loosely based on the band The Supremes.
see also: Chicago, Moulin Rouge!

THE HITCHER.
Action/Crime/Thriller.
Sean Bean/Sophia Bush/Zachary Knighton/Neal McDonough/Lauren Cohn
Directed by Michael Bay.
* Another chapter in the terrible tale of a couple on a road trip gone terribly terribly wrong. Yes, they pick up a hitcher, and what a snotty little nasty hitcher he is. Unfortunately, psychotic and homicidal as well.


............//DOCUMENTARY//............

WHO THE #$&% IS JACKSON POLLOCK?.
Documentary.
Teri Horton.
Directed by Harry Moses.
Teri Horton bought a $5 dollar painting at a garage sale which she thinks is a genuine Jackson Pollock painting. This doc tracks her quest to have the painting certified and the subsequent battle with the art world that has ensued.

MATTHEW BARNEY: NO RESTRAINT.
Documentary.
Matthew Barney.
Directed by Alison Chernick.
Love him or hate him, performance artist Matthew Barney certainly provokes emotion. This doc is basically a making-of his latest film DRAWING RESTRAIN, which follows him and his collaborator Bjork in a "a fantastical love story of two characters that transform from land mammals into whales." (IMDB). OK, then!

............//KIDS NEW RELEASES//............

HAPPILY N'EVER AFTER.
Animation/Comedy/Family.
Sarah Michelle Gellar/Sigourney Weaver/Freddie Prinze Jr./George Carlin.
Directed by Paul J. Bolger.
* Many Disney characters band together to save the world from Cinderella's evil power hungry stepmother.


THOMAS & FRIENDS: THOMAS' TRUSTY FRIENDS.
Kids.
Thomas/Other Trains/Perhaps Animals.
The real questions are: Which friends? And - How trusty? You'll have to tune in to find out.


****

**** new release list no. 112

Greetings Earthlings,

We've got lots of stuff new at Four Star Video this week! Some of you will be very happy to hear that THE QUEEN has arrived. Also this week we have a thriller with Denzel, which seems like a DEJA VU, as well as a fun time with Ben Stiller in NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM. Sobering up the party is TSUNAMI: THE AFTERMATH, which focuses on some of those who survived the tragic disaster in 2004

We also have some new acquisitions this week for you, including some great war films (49th PARALLEL, THE BURMESE HARP, BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI), a vamp film with David Bowie (THE HUNGER) and some continuing series (SANDBAGGERS SET 3, and OZ: THE FOURTH SEASON).

We hope you enjoy everything this week. Also we want to remind you about our big party coming up May 5th at 3pm at the store. This party is serving both as a hello from us (Ken and Amy) and a goodbye and thank you to Jeremy and Jamie. We expect it will be a madhouse, and hope to see you all there.

Best regards,

Ken
Four Star Video



............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............


THE QUEEN.
Biography/Drama.
Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen.
Directed by Stephen Frears.
* The Queen tracks the interpersonal dealings between Tony Blair and Queen Elizabeth II in the aftermath of Princess Diana's death as the public clamoured for an emotional response from the royal family. This film has been described as touching, funny, thought-provoking, intimate, politically shrewd, engrossing and delightful. It was loved by the critics and Helen Mirren won the Best Actress Oscar for her performance.

............//NEW TITLES//............


THE QUEEN.
see above: "release of the week"

NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM.
Action/Comedy
Ben Stiller/Carla Gugino/Dick Van Dyke.
Directed by Shawn Levy.
* Ben Stiller plays a total loser (hah!) who, in his new job as the night watchman at the Museum of Natural History in New York, inadvertently unlocks an ancient curse that causes all of the animals and exhibits to come to life. Appearances by other comic greats, Mickey Rooney and Robin Williams, take all of the skillful computer graphics to amusing heights. As an interesting side note, Amy went to theater camp with the director, who--at theater camp--went out with Ken's friend from highschool, and who is now married to the high school girlfriend of Amy's college boyfriend. Diagrams available at the store. Small world!

DEJA VU.
Action/Romance.
Denzel Washington, Paula Patton, Val Kilmer.
Directed by Tony Scott.
* In a gripping example of unrestrained federal government, Denzel Washington plays an ATF agent who goes back in time to save the life of a woman, and ends up falling in ... wait, we don't want to give away the unpredictable surprises of the film. Shot largely in post-Katrina New Orleans, the New York Post called this film "a solidly entertaining time-traveling romance" and Variety says that "Cinema's natural felicities for time and action have seldom felt as beautifully dovetailed." Sounds like fun.

TSUNAMI: THE AFTERMATH.
Action/Crime/Thriller.
Tim Roth/Chiwetel Ejiofor/Sophie Okonedo.
Directed by Bharat Nalluri.
* Originally an HBO mini-series, this fictional account of the aftermath of one of the great natural disasters of our time follows an assortment of characters who each experience loss and transformation.

............//NEW ACQUISITIONS//............

A trilogy of great World War II films and a sexy rock vampire tale.

BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI.
Adventure/Drama/War.
William Holden, Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins.
Directed by David Lean.
New to DVD, this classic and tragic tale of life in a Japanese POW camp won 7 Oscars in 1958, including best picture, best actor (Alec Guinness), best director, best cinematography, best editing, best music for its score. And still some say that it was David Lean's study for the even-better Lawrence of Arabia!

THE BURMESE HARP.
Drama/War.
Rentaro Mikuni, Shoji Yasui.
Directed by Kon Ichikawa.
Nominated for best Foreign Language Oscar in 1957, this Criterion release of a 1956 film tracks a Japanese soldier in disguise as a Buddhist priest on a mission to bury the dead in the waning days of WWII.

49th PARALLEL.
Drama/History/Thriller.
Laurence Olivier, Leslie Howard, James McAvoy.
Directed by Michael Powell.
This is basically a propaganda film from 1942 made to convince the US government to join in the fight against the Nazi's starring some of the great actors of ANY period. Tragically, Leslie Howard would die at the actual Battle of Biscay just a year after this film was released. The movie is about a damaged U-Boat in Canadian waters struggling to get to the still-neutral US to avoid being captured.

THE HUNGER.
Drama/Horror/Romance.
Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, Susan Sarandon.
Directed by Tony Scott.
From the opening sequence of Bowie and Deneuve on the prowl at a nightclub where Bauhaus is rocking Bela Lugosi's Dead in a steel cage, to the sexy seduction of Sarandon by Deneuve, this 1983 sexy-rock-vampire love story is a must-see.

............//SERIES//............

SANDBAGGERS - SET 3.
Spy/Series/UK.
Roy Marsden.
Created by Ian Mackintosh.
The last 7 episodes of this tightly written Cold-War television series about covert operations of the British Intelligence.

OZ - SEASON FOUR.
Prison/Series/Drama.
Season Four of the acclaimed HBO drama about life in Prison.




****

**** new release list no. 111

Hello there,

This week we have just four new releases. Rest assured, new acquisitions, both from customer requests and library replenishment are on their way.

This last week was our first without the benefit of Jeremy and Jamie in the store on a daily basis and it was very exhilarating. It was scary and exciting and much like walking a tightrope without a net below. I only had to call them by 10am on the first morning they were gone (and almost every other day, since).

Amy and I cannot say enough about how much the J's have helped our transition. Obviously you all know how wonderful these guys are. We have decided on a date for a goodbye party for them, which will double as a hello party from us.

Please mark your calendars: May 5th at 3pm.

We'll have the party in the back patio at Four Star. A sign will be posted soon in the store. Some of you have requested we make it a pot-luck so that there is an opportunity to bring an offering to Jeremy and Jamie, so a pot-luck it shall be. However, please do not feel like you need to bring something to attend. We will provide some snacks and refreshments and good spirits and a place for everyone to gather. You can bring something or just yourself!

The films we are releasing this week feature some tremendous performances, Forest Whitaker's Best Actor portray of Idi Amin (THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND), Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett duking it out on the school grounds (NOTES ON A SCANDAL), as well as an inspired performance by Hilary Swank as a tough LA teacher (FREEDOM WRITERS) and a shoot-em-up/knock-em-down/take no prisoners mafia bad-bad-bad guy tale (SMOKIN' ACES).

Yours,
Ken
Four Star



............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............


NOTES ON A SCANDAL.
Psychological Drama.
Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett.
Directed by Richard Eyre.
* Notes on a Scandal is a deliciously insightful and almost Shakespearean tale of misery and evil and just plain bad judgment. The two powerhouse actors, Dench and Blanchett, are Barbara Covett and Sheba Hart a fine pair of school teachers who become tangled in a vicious web of secrets and lies. Barbara is near retirement living a lonely and bitter existence when she meets Sheba, a newly hired young attractive art teacher. Her cutting criticism for Sheba takes a few quick turns - first toward the competitive when she meets her family and decides they are less worthy of Sheba's attentions than herself - then toward the manipulative when she discovers Sheba sleeping with a young teenage student. Soon, Barbara's own intimate desires on Sheba arise, and from here the film spirals into a tense battle of drama and revenge. The true beauty of this film is watching Dench and Blanchett work their magic on the silver screen.


............//NEW TITLES//............


NOTES ON A SCANDAL.
see above: "release of the week"

FREEDOM WRITERS.
Drama.
Hilary Swank, Patrick Dempsey.
Directed by Richard LaGravenese.
* Inspired by a true story, FREEDOM WRITERS is the tale of renegade teacher (played by the highly skilled Swank) in the LA school system who inspires her at-risk students to grow emotionally and pursue higher education.
see also: Coach Carter

THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND.
Drama/History/Thrller.
Forest Whitaker, Gillian Anderson, James McAvoy.
Directed by Kevin Macdonald.
* Forest Whitaker won the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin. Told through the eyes of his personal physician, THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND follows the deterioration into depravity and psychosis of Idi Amin and the complicity of the protagonist. Critics decried this film as an African story told from the eyes of a Westerner without a tremendous amount of factual background. Still, even critics agree that Forest Whitaker climbs deep into the skin of Idi Amin and delivers a chilling and visceral performance.

SMOKIN' ACES.
Action/Crime/Thriller.
Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Andy Garcia, Ray Liotta, Alicia Keys.
Directed by Joe Carnahan.
* Hmmm. What to say about this film. Is it "A Viagra suppository for compulsive action fetishists" as the NY Times says? Or as Entertainment Weekly put it a "cheerfully disposable gangland freak-show thrill ride"? Which one a dese? Either way, it seems like the kind of entertainment that might kill a couple dozen character or a couple hours, whichever comes first.




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**** new release list no. 110

Howdy All Y’alls,

The word of the blog is Drama, as just about every new release and acquisition this week falls into that category. It comes in every flavor: Psycho, sexual, politico, religious, ecstatic, anxious, earnest, adolescent, comedic, etc. Mostly it just comes and comes. A few titles deal with imagined and real assassinations of government leaders (Bobby Kennedy in BOBBY, George W. in DEATH OF A PRESIDENT). Also we have an offering from Bobcat Goldthwait (SLEEPING DOGS LIE) that is almost a must-see just to see what he’s up to these days… For those of you baseball fans, we have recently acquired the Director’s Cut of THE NATURAL, guaranteed to create the perfect environment for you to watch Barry Bond (love him or hate him) and his inevitable march to the home-run record.

As some of you know, we have had an ownership change at Four Star. This is not a big sad goodbye to Jeremy and Jamie (not yet, that’s will arrive slowly over the coming weeks). No, this is more of a small hello, from us to you, and a request that you let us know what you want in the film department and how you think we can make Four Star Video remain the brilliant place that the J’s and David Ayoob have created over these past five years.


Dramatically,
Ken and Amy
Four Star



............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............


BOBBY.
Political Drama.
Emilio Estevez, Harry Belafonte, Anthony Hopkins, Heather Graham, Laurence Fishburne, Helen Hunt, Ashton Kutcher, William H. Macy, Lindsay Lohan, Nick Cannon, Sharon Stone, Demi Moore, Christian Slater.
Directed by Emilio Estevez.
* Where to start? That must be what Emilio Estevez asked himself as he embarked on this biopic about the death of political idealist Robert F. Kennedy. Instead of sticking to the facts, this story is a carefully set up experience of the events from the eyes of 22 imagined people at the Embassador Hotel on June 6th, 1968 — the day the young and handsome presidential candidate was killed. Although it was almost 40 years ago, many people will find the event still feels fresh in their minds as the hope and promise of another Kennedy in the White House was exchanged for the sorrow and desolation of another Kennedy shot down in his prime. The film may disappoint people looking for a JFK-esque conspiratorial investigation, but for anyone looking to contrast RFK against today’s political landscape, Estevez’s liberal outlook will certainly leave you wishing for impeachment hearings.
see also: THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON.



............//NEW TITLES//............


BOBBY.
see above: "release of the week

DEATH OF A PRESIDENT.
Crime/Drama/Thriller.
Hend Ayoub, Brian Boland, Becky Ann Baker, Robert Mangiardi.
Directed by Gabriel Range.
* A mock-doc, this film plays like an investigative documentary examining the as-yet-unsolved crime of the assassination of President George W. Bush in Chicago.
see also: Z, The Parallax View, The Bourne Identity.

DOWN THE PCH.
Drama.
Vincent Grashaw, Zack Bennett.
Directed by Sean Michael Beyer.
* This sort-of coming of age film surrounds the life of a politician's son as he tries to put his life together after serving a jail sentence for drug trafficking.

JONESTOWN: LIFE AND DEATH OF PEOPLE'S TEMPLE.
Documentary/History.
Directed by Marcia Smith.
* This thorough and disturbing documentary features never-before-seen footage of the People’s Temple, the cult-like church led by preacher Jim Jones, who eventually orchestrated a chilling mass suicide. On a more cheery note, the film features archive footage of our former mayor Willie Brown, who is certain to be dressed immaculately.

LE PETITE LIEUTENANT.
Crime/Drama.France.
Nathalie Baye, Jalil Lespert.
Directed by Xavier Beauvois.
* Le petite French murder mystery, centered around the personal interactions of two French lieutenants going in different directions in their respective careers. Nathalie Baye won the Best Actress Cesar (les Oscars de France), and the film was also nominated for Cesars for Best Director, Best Film, Best Writing and Best Supporting Actor.

SLEEPING DOGS LIE.
Comedy/Drama.
Melinda Page Hamilton, Bryce Johnson, Geoffrey Pierson, Colby French.
Directed by Bob Goldthwait.
* Is honesty the best policy? Perhaps the title reveals the answer… That question is at the heart of this quirky new film by the former comedian “Bobcat” Goldthwait. When a young woman is encouraged to open the floodgates of her sexual past to her new charming fiancé, all hell breaks loose! This film was also called “Stay” when it played on the festival circuit.
See also: CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER WOMEN.

SONS & LOVERS.
Drama/Romance.
Sarah Lancashire, Hugo Speer, James Murray.
Directed by Stephen Whittaker.
* Sexy adaptation of the D.H. Lawrence classic, made for British TV.

SWEENEY TODD.
Crime Drama/Horror.
Ray Winstone.
Directed by Dave Moore.
Another made for British TV special, featuring Ray Winstone (recently seen in THE DEPARTED) about the fantastic killer barber. (Try going to Tom’s on Cortland instead, we hear he’s gentle.)


TOM BROWN'S SCHOOLDAYS.
Drama.
Stephen Fry.
Directed by Dave Moore.
* Rounding out the bunch of British TV movie arrivals, this is a classic story of hooligan bullies at a breeding ground for hooligan bullies: A Rugby boarding school.


............//NEW ACQUISITIONS//............


THE NATURAL.
Drama/Sport/Fairytale. 1984.
Robert Redford, Glenn Close, Kim Bassinger, Wilford Brimley.
Directed by Barry Levinson.
* It’s baseball season! What better way to celebrate the springing of spring than to watch a thirty-something baseball player with otherworldly skills (no one drops the steroid stigma on Bob) bring a losing team to the top of the baseball world? This 1984 film is a must-watch for any baseball fan, or anyone looking to re-live a boyhood dream.
see also: THE SANDLOT.


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****new release list no. 109

In honor of the release of VOLVER, a real "women's movie," here's a random little shortlist of great woman things:

Eileen Myles reading last week at Dog Eared Books on Valencia Street from her new book, SORRY, TREE. She's so rad.

Kate Rosenberger, who owns Dog Eared, as well as Red Hill Books and Phonenix Books.

THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE, an incredibly melodramatic and awesome lesbian film from 1960s England. Check out the hip nightclub scene: The crowd looks like they could be hanging out at El Rio today!

Dawn Huston, who runs El Rio.

LA STRADA, NIGHTS OF CABIRIA and all other Giulietta Masina movies.

THE MARRIAGE OF MARIA BRAUN, THE BITTER TEARS OF PETRA VON KANT and all other Hanna Shyulla movies.

GLORIA, OPENING NIGHT and all other Gena Rowlands movies. OK, maybe not all other Gena Rowlands movies.

SHUT UP AND SING, the recently released documentary about the spitfire, confidence and perseverance of The Dixie Chicks.

Godard's TWO OR THREE THINGS I KNOW ABOUT HER, playing at the Castro Theater through April 5.


Cherchez la femme!
four star.



............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............


VOLVER.
Comedy/Drama. Spain.
Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Duenas, Blanca Portillo.
Directed by Pedro Almodovar.
* So good! Once again, Almodovar throws us in to his intensely colored world, where giggle-inducing humor bleeds into the deepest of tragedies. Almodovar's rich pallette, usually trained on the bright primaries of Madrid, is given another hue — the desolate and windy landscape of La Mancha (where Almodovar himself grew up). The film's title, VOLVER, meaning to return, says it all. The film also marks the return of the director's decades-long muse, Carmen Maura. She is part of a nearly all-female ensemble, making this the most highbrow "chick flick" in ages. With its themes of female solidarity and reinvention, we were reminded of the wonderful film BAGDAD CAFE. The Portland Oregonian: "In VOLVER, the latest marvel to emerge from his sharp and joyful mind, Almodovar blends autobiography, gossip, melodrama, music, the supernatural and the suffocatingly quotidian in a story about a woman — indeed, a tribe of women — struggling through a life of pain and disappointment." The mysterious (and hilarious) ghost story subplot plays gently with Catholic superstition. And once again, Almodovar uses music to intoxicate his actors and his audience, until the whole thing feels quite heady, like everyone has drunk too much sangria after a day in the sun. The New York Times: "Full of surprises and reversals, unfolds with breathtaking ease and self-confidence." The Washington Post: "Engages our hearts as well as our funny bones." All in all, one of his most crowd-pleasingist in a long line of crowd pleasers.
see also: ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER, TALK TO HER, BAGDAD CAFE.


............//NEW TITLES//............


THE GOOD SHEPHERD.
Drama/Suspense.
Matt Damon, Robert DeNiro, Angelina Jolie, Joe Pesci, John Turturro, Alec Baldwin, William Hurt, Billy Crudup.
Directed by Robert DeNiro.
* Hollywood, it seems, wants its spy dramas to be good again, like back in the '70s, except starring Matt Damon. And why not have DeNiro direct? He was around in the '70s: He must have gleaned some cinematic knowledge. Well, DeNiro certainly won over David Denby at The New Yorker, who calls this "one of the most impressive movies ever made about espionage." Was Denby duped? Variety countered, "Not boring, exactly, but undeniably tedious."
see also: THE BOURNE IDENTITY, THE DEPARTED, CASINO ROYALE.

JUMP IN!
Comedy/Sports/Teen.
Corbin Bleu.
Directed by Paul Hoen.

THREE NEEDLES.
Drama. (Afrikaans, Mandarin, Xhosa, French and English languages.)
Olympia Dukakis, Chloe Sevigny, Sandra Oh, Stockard Channing, Lucy Liu, Shawn Ashmore, Sook-Yin Lee.
Directed by Thom Fitzgerald.
Please note that our copies of this title have been slightly waylaid. They should be in stock within a few days.

VOLVER.
see above: "release of the week."



............//SERIES//............


ENTOURAGE, SERIES 3.
HBO Comedy/Drama Series.

TWIN PEAKS, SERIES 2.
Cult Classic Mystery Series.


............//FAMILY//............


CHARLOTTE'S WEB.
Drama/Family.
Dakota Fanning; Voices by Julia Roberts, Dominic Scott Kay, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey, Cedric The Entertainer, Kathy Bates, Reba McEntire, Robert Redford, Andre Benjamin, Sam Shepard.
Directed by Gary Winick.


DORA THE EXPLORER: SHY RAINBOW.
Animation/Family.


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