**** 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.




****

**** 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.


****

****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.


****

****new release list no. 108

What's pops in our shops? (Part II) Continued from last week, here are some movies that are getting great feedback from customers...

We know that many parents are excited to share the love of foreign films with their kids. But where to start? Two new films, THE CAVE OF THE YELLOW DOG (from the director of THE STORY OF THE WEEPING CAMEL) and MONGOLIAN PING-PONG, have come recommended as good quality films that young adults can grasp.

Two Asian-American independent films, RED DOORS and THE MOTEL, are both earning high marks. Of RED DOORS, the Chronicle wrote, "A gentle, pleasant film about people you genuinely like." LA Weekly: "A peppy if uneven charmer with a fetchingly wistful edge." Meanwhile, the beginning sections of THE MOTEL reach a rare mix of melancholy and laugh-aloud humor. Unfortunately, the film's resistance to sentimentality is so ardent that its narrative fizzles a bit by the end. Still, both are worthwhile viewing for fans of indie film.

A little manic — but with some great moments emerging from the mess — the dysfunctional coming-of-age story RUNNING WITH SCISSORS reminds us of the weird humor of John Irving combined with the camp minutia of David Sedaris. It's a surprisingly odd entry to the shelves.

Confusing and intoxicating, THE PRESTIGE — a story of rival magicians from the director of MEMENTO — is filled with enigma even while letting you in on backstage secrets. Just by the merits of its design alone, it leaves the other recent magic movies — SCOOP, THE ILLUSIONIST — in the smoke.

Sometimes customers begin to lose track of all the titles they want to see. And who wants to carry around a list? When you're browsing in the shop, just ask us to make a note of "to-see movies" on your account, so we can remind you of your wish list the next time you come in.

And now, on with the newest arrivals. There's tons of stuff: Lots of exciting new titles, and you can thank new owners Ken and Amy for stocking up on all of the latest Criterion releases. British TV fans may be interested to note the arrival of a new set of THE MIDSOMER MURDERS, as well as the vintage series THE SANDBAGGERS. Those same British TV fans may want to kill us for finally caving in and stocking the American version of THE OFFICE. Hey, people tell us "it's not that bad."

yours,
four star.



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


CHILDREN OF MEN.
Sci-Fi/Thriller.
Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Claire-Hope Ashitey.
Directed by Alfonso Cuaron.
* It's not every sci-fi thriller that comes with a DVD commentary by Slovenian cultural theorist Slojav Zizek. Based on a P.D. James novel, CHILDREN OF MEN is set in a near-future dystopia, in which all of humanity has become barren, immigration cotrol and class divides have escalated to barbarism, and warring factions fight to gain control of what future might possibly be left. But this isn't just a movie of ideas: It's also an exhilarating, if nightmarish, chase movie — with suspense sequences that creep up on you from all sides. The LA Times writes that CHILDREN OF MEN is "made with palpable energy, intensity and excitement." The Chicago Tribune: "It is that rare futuristic thriller: grim in its scenario, yet exhilarating in its technique." The cast is stellar (everyone seems to love Michael Caine in this). And while director Cuaron's "new Mexican cinema" colleagues Alejandro Inarritu and Guillermo del Toro both also released films to high praise last year (BABEL and PAN'S LABYRINTH, respectively), this one could be the underrated gem of the batch. The New York Times: "CHILREN OF MEN may be something of a bummer, but it’s the kind of glorious bummer that lifts you to the rafters, transporting you with the greatness of its filmmaking." The Onion: "It's a heartbreaking, bullet-strewn valentine to what keeps us human."
see also: 28 DAYS LATER.


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


CANDY.
Drama.
Abbie Cornish, Heath Ledger, Geoffrey Rush.
Directed by Neil Armfield.

CHILDREN OF MEN.
see above: "release of the week."

COLOR ME KUBRICK.
Comedy. England.
John Malkovich,
Directed by Brian W. Cook.
* Variety: "A sly, enormously entertaining romp based on the antics of real-life Brit conman Alan Conway who rooked his way around '90s London posing as Stanley Kubrick." Salon.com: "Malkovich is of course an international signifier for intelligent cinema, and this showboat performance is certainly worth seeing. Curiously, it does little to redeem director Brian Cook's film, which is often funny but never rises above campy, mean-spirited trash."
see instead: SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION.

CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER.
Adventure/Drama. China.
Chow Yun-Fat, Gong Li.
Directed by Zhang Yimou.

FOLLOWING SEAN.
Documentary.
Directed by Ralph Arlyck.
* This could be the antidote to THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS, which is also released this week and also follows a precocious kid around San Francisco. But this documentary resists, by its very verité nature, any hint of Disney-style resolution. Filmmaker Ralph Arlyck first met Sean while living as a graduate student in San Francisco's Haight Ashbury neighborhood at the height of the 1960s. Thirty years, three generations, and a lifetime later, Arlyck returns to the city in search of the adult Sean might have become. The Chicago Reader: "What promises to be a standard postmortem on '60s ideology becomes a thoughtful essay on the choices we all make between work, family, and personal freedom." The Chronicle: "At its exhilarating best, FOLLOWING SEAN is reminiscent of the lauded British documentaries that began with 7UP."
see also: TARNATION, STONE READER, THE UP SERIES.

THE GODDESS OF 1967.
Romantic Comedy. Australia.
Rose Byrne, Rikiya Kurokawa.
Directed by Clara Law.

HACKING DEMOCRACY.
Documentary.
Directed by Simon Ardizzone and Russell Michaels.

HAPPY FEET.
Animation//Family/Musical.
Voices by Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Brittany Murphy.
Directed by George Miller.
* This is the one families have been waiting for... A PG-rated treat, of which The New York Daily News wrote, "In the year of the animated movie, this one soars above them all. " Lots of CGI emperor penguins come together through song as they learn to accept a sheepish little runt who cannot sing like the rest of them (he tap dances instead). Yet another chance for actress Brittany Murphy to prove to the world that she can sing! (Or at least belt emphatically.) The Onion: "It's a gorgeously rendered marvel that pulls out all the stops to wow its viewers, but in spite of its crowd-pleasing ploys, it holds onto its integrity with a smart and surprisingly deep story."
see also: FINDING NEMO.

PERVERT!
Comedy/Horror.
Directed by Jonathan Yudis.

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS.
Drama.
Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Thandie Newton.
Directed by Steve Conrad.
* The sort of aspirational "American dream" movie that tends to succeed everywhere else except San Francisco... And so the producers set the film in San Francisco, thus cornering the last remaining demographic! But seriously, this film — the story of an evicted father trying to work his way back up— has its fair share of both defenders and detractors. The debate is familiar: Is it sappy or complex? Manipulative or triumphant? The Baltimore sun writes, "It's a genuinely transporting inspirational movie because it's also a cautionary tale." And the Charlotte Observer claims, "My sentimentality meter never went off." However, Film Threat warns: "Especially to anyone with kids, the film packs some punch. Apart from that, PURSUIT is emotionally manipulative and way too glossy to really hit home." The Village Voice adds: "Too emotionally slick to work, too visually glib to have an impact, made by people who think grit is something that's brought in by the prop department."
see also: COACH CARTER.

TURISTAS.
Horror.
Directed by John Stockwell.

WOMAN IS THE FUTURE OF WOMAN.
Comedy. South Korea.
Directed Sang-Soo Hong.

YELLOW BRICK ROAD.
Documentary.
Directed by Keith Rondinelli and Matthew Makar.



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



MIDSOMER MURDERS, SERIES 8.
British Detective Series.

THE OFFICE (AMERICAN VERSION), SERIES 1 & 2.
NBC Sitcom.
* Purists, forgive us: The addition of the American version of THE OFFICE to our library is an act of keen response to popular demand. True geeks can compare and contrast all sorts of details at THE OFFICE'S Wikipedia page, which includes a rather Wernham-Hogg–looking chart thing.

THE SANDBAGGERS, SERIES 1 & 2.
Vintage British Espionage Series.

THE SHIELD, SERIES 5.
FX Crime Series.
Please note that our copies of this title have been slightly waylaid. They should be in stock within a few days.



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



ZOOM.
Adventure/Sci-Fi/Family.
Tim Allen, Courteney Cox, Chevy Chase, Spencer Breslin.
Directed by Peter Hewitt.



............//NEW TO DVD//............



THE BICYCLE THIEVES. (Criterion Collection edition.)
Drama. Italy. 1948.
Directed by Vittorio De Sica.

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF.
Musical/Drama. 1971.
Topol, Norma Crane.
Directed Norman Jewison.

FIRES ON THE PLAIN. (Criterion Collection edition.)
Drama/War. Japan. 1959.
Directed by Kon Ichikawa.

GREEN FOR DANGER.(Criterion Collection edition.)
Mystery. England. 1946.
Directed by Sidney Gilliat.

THE NAKED CITY. (Criterion Collection edition.)
Noir. 1948.
Directed by Jules Dassin.

PAUL ROBESON FILMS: (Criterion Collection box set edition.)
BODY AND SOUL. 1925. Directed by Oscar Micheaux.
BORDERLINE. 1930. Directed by Kenneth Macpherson.
THE EMPEROR JONES. 1933. Directed by Dudley Murphy.
THE PROUD VALLEY. 1940. Directed by Pen Tennyson.
NATIVE LAND. 1942. Directed by Leo Hurwitz and Paul Strand.
SANDERS OF THE RIVER. 1935. Directed by Zoltan Korda.
JERICHO. 1937. Directed by Thornton Freeland.

TEMPEST.
Drama. 1982.
John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, Susan Sarandon, Raul Julia, Molly Ringwald.
Directed by Paul Mazursky.

WHEN A WOMAN ASCENDS THE STAIRS. (Criterion Collection edition.)
Drama. 1960.
Directed by Mikio Naruse.

****

****new release list no. 107

What's pops in our shops? Well, besides the usual suspects (like BABEL and BORAT), there are a few smaller titles that are earning high marks from our customers...

A little French film called WHEN THE SEA RISES centers on a middle-aged woman who travels from town to town with her one-woman avant-garde theater piece. Reminiscent of Fellini's collaborations with Guilietta Masina, this title piqued our interest after a series of satisfied customers returned it with a smile. Salon.com wrote, "A delightfully off-kilter love story. I don't want to oversell this winsome little movie, but if you want a bittersweet but cheerful pick-me-up on a cold winter evening, it's just the ticket."

How can a documentary be a romp? Well, think back on the guerilla tactics of Michael Moore, but subtract some of that aggression, and you're somewhere near THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED, a surprisingly entertaining and funny investigation of the MPAA film ratings board. We love the novice lesbian private detective who is hired to help out.

What kid wouldn't be intrigued by an animation adventure set in the sewage pipes under London? And FLUSHED AWAY is one for parents to watch along with: For although the compromise is that the folks from the Aardaman Group (responsible for WALLACE & GROMIT) are using computer graphics rather than claymation, they manage to retain their British sense of humor (a clever repositioning of marmite on toast, for instance). Hugh Jackman's energetic vocal contribution ensures that the main character — an uptown rat named Roddy — is especially charming.

As for the TV shows, HBO's THE WIRE continues to build its audience relentlessly. But if that show is just too grown up for you, we recommend the high school detective series VERONICA MARS. Winner of Salon.com's "Buffy Award" for underrated TV series, it's kind of like TWIN PEAKS rewritten by a young adult novelist. We also love WONDERFALLS, which The Onion called "one of the most recent additions in the pantheon of brilliant-but-cancelled series." It's got to be one of the all-time greatest premises ever: An underachieving young woman, recently graduated from Brown, moves back to her hometown of Niagra Falls, where she works at its premiere tacky gift shop. Oh, and the little knick knacks for sale talk to her.

We'll keep you updated on these little sleepers. And now, on to the new entries...

love
four star.


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


BLOOD DIAMOND.
Drama/Adventure.
Leonardo Di Caprio, Dijmon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly.
Directed by Edward Zwick.
* Mixed reviews for this drama, set during the 1990s civil war in Sierra Leone. The New Yorker cooed: "Essentially a romantic adventure story with politics in the background — an old-fashioned movie, I suppose, but exciting and stunningly well made." The San Francisco Chronicle, however, wrote: "Director Edward Zwick tried to make a great movie, but somewhere in the process he forgot to make a good one." Jonathan Rosenbaum defended the film's good intentions: "Action-adventure pictures have a lamentable tendency toward mindlessness, but Zwick's epic story has numerous virtues apart from suspense and spectacle." One user on metacritic.com countered: "The impression I get from this movie is, the filmmakers googled around for some heart-breaking story to exploit (so they could pretend they were making a difference). They then drastically simplifed the issues to the point of distortion so we could all feel moved without actually being edified."
see also: THE CONSTANT GARDENER, PLACE VENDOME, HOTEL RWANDA.


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


BLOOD DIAMOND.
see above: "release of the week."

THE BRIDESMAID.
Thriller. France.
Directed by Claude Chabrol.

ERAGON.
Fantasy/Family.
Ed Speleers, Jeremy Irons, Robert Carlyle, John Malkovich, Dijmon Hounsou, Rachel Weisz.
Directed by Stefan Fangmeier.

MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY.
Documentary.
Directed by Laura Poitras.

THE NATIVITY STORY.
Drama/Family.
Keisha Castle-Hughes.
Directed by Catherine Hardwicke.

ROCKY BALBOA.
Drama/Sport Action.
Sylvester Stallone, Burt Young, Geraldine Hughes, Milo Ventimiglia, Mike Tyson.
Directed by Sylvester Stallone.


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


EVERYONE'S HERO.
Animation/Family.
Voices by William H. Macy, Rob Reiner, Robert Wagner, Forest Whitaker, Whoopi Goldberg.
Directed by Christopher Reeve.


............//NEW TO DVD//............


MURIEL.
Drama. France. 1963.
Directed by Alain Resnais.

****