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ONVIDEO E-MAIL NEWS
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7/19/05 V9.29

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ONVIDEO'S WEEKLY GUIDE TO HOME VIDEO RELEASES
FOR TUESDAY, July 19 -- MONDAY, July 25

CONSTANTINE
Based on the DC/Vertigo comic book "Hellblazer," "Constantine"
tells the story of irreverent supernatural detective John
Constantine (Keanu Reeves), who has literally been to hell and
back. Born with a gift he didn't want, the ability to clearly
recognize the half-breed angels and demons that walk the earth in
human skin, Constantine was driven to take his own life to escape
the tormenting clarity of his vision. But he failed. Resuscitated
against his will, he found himself cast back into the land of the
living. Now, marked as an attempted suicide with a temporary
lease on life, he patrols the earthly border between heaven and
hell, hoping in vain to earn his way to salvation by sending the
devil's foot soldiers back to the depths. But Constantine is no
saint. Disillusioned by the world around him and at odds with the
one beyond, he's a hard-drinking, hard-living bitter hero who
scorns the very idea of heroism. Constantine will fight to save
your soul but he doesn't want your admiration or your thanks --
and certainly not your sympathy. All he wants is a reprieve. When
Constantine teams up with skeptical policewoman Angela Dodson
(Rachel Weisz) to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister
(also played by Weisz), their investigation takes them through
the world of demons and angels that exists just beneath the
landscape of contemporary Los Angeles. Caught in a catastrophic
series of otherworldy events, the two become inextricably
involved and seek to find their own peace at whatever cost.
Director: Francis Lawrence. Stars: Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz,
Shia LaBeouf, Djimon Hounsou, Max Baker, Pruitt Taylor Vince,
Gavin Rossdale, Tilda Swinton, Peter Stormare. 2005, CC, MPAA
rating: R, 121 min., Horror thriller, Box office gross: $75.390
million, Warner, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental.

ICE PRINCESS
A high-school bookworm transforms into a swan in this family
entertainment. Brainy Casey Carlyle (Michelle Trachtenberg) has
never quite fit in. Caught between her fantasy of becoming a
championship figure skater and her strong-willed mother (Joan
Cusack), who has her on the fast track to Harvard, she can only
hope to be like Nikki, Tiffany and Gen -- three elite skating
prodigies who are ruthlessly competing on the U.S.Figure Skating
circuit (and have attitudes to match). But when Casey gets the
chance to train with Gen (Hayden Panettiere) and her coach, a
disgraced former skating champion who also happens to be Gen's
mother (Kim Cattrall), she must dash her own mother's hopes in
order to pursue her dream. Now, with only the support of Gen's
teenage brother, a hunky Zamboni driver (Trevor Blumas), Casey
takes on the challenge of her life when she finds herself
competing against the best to make it into the championship
circuit and become a real "ice princess." Director: Tim Fywell.
Stars: Joan Cusack, Kim Cattrall, Michelle Trachtenberg, Hayden
Panettiere, Trevor Blumas, Connie Ray, Kirsten Olson. 2005, CC,
MPAA rating: G, 92 min., Family, Box office gross: $20.942
million, Buena Vista, $29.99 VHS SRP.

MAN OF THE HOUSE
A by-the-book Texas Ranger Roland Sharp (Tommy Lee Jones) tracks
down a key informant with the help of an ex-con turned preacher
Percy Stevens (Cedric the Entertainer). But when the informant is
offed, the hard-headed Sharp is assigned to protect the only
witnesses to the crime -- a group of University of Texas
cheerleaders -- by going undercover and moving in with the five
uncontrollable college s. For a guy used to ducking bullets
and confronting heavily armed dealers, he's now up to his
elbows in poms-poms. Director: Stephen Herek. Stars: Tommy Lee
Jones, Cedric the Entertainer, Christina Milian, Paula Garces,
Monica Keena, Vanessa Ferlito, Kelli Garner, Anne Archer. 2005,
CC, MPAA rating: Pg-13, 97 min., Comedy, Box office gross:
$19.118 million, Sony, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental.

NOWHERE MAN
A potent brew of suspense and black humor, "Nowhere Man" is the
story of one man's search for his missing member, severed and
stolen by his jilted fiancee after her ographic past comes to
light. To make matters worse, she's demanding a ransom for the
penis -- which a doxtor says can be re-attached if tracked down
in time -- and is hiding out with the well-endowed star who
started all the trouble. Weird, idiosyncratic low-budget film
(shot on video) with intriguing plot (the search for manhood) and
top-notch acting. It's a pulp psychodrama of love and revenge.
Not for the squeamish. Director: Tim McCannn. Stars: Michael
Rodrick, Debbie Rochon, Frank Olivier, Bob Gosse, Lloyd Kaufman.
2005, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 80 min., Drama, First Run Features.

SLIM SUSIE
Award-winning director Ulf Malmros' bold visual style, breakneck
pacing, and a pulse-pounding soundtrack make this a viscerally
exhilarating black comedy. In a quaint rural village filled with
small town madness, former beauty queen Susie (Tuva Novotny) is
missing. Her brother, Erik (Jonas Rimeika) returns from Stockholm
to find out what happened to her, and is shocked to discover his
sweet and sister was anything but! In Swedish with
English subtitles. Director: Ulf Malmros. Stars: Tuva Novotny,
Jonas Rimeika, Bjuorn Starrin, Kjell Bergqvist. 2003, CC, MPAA
rating: NR, 97 min., Comedy, Home Vision Entertainment.

SPACE STATION
One of the most popular Imax films ever, "Space Station" treats
audiences like real astronauts from blast-off to life inside the
International Space Station. Made with the cooperation of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), "Space
Station" is the story of the unique partnership of 16 nations
building a laboratory in outer space -- a permanent facility for
the study of the effects of long-duration exposure to zero
gravity and the necessary first step towards the global co-
operative effort needed if man is to someday set foot on Mars.
The film is highlighted by the challenges, setbacks and triumphs
of this groundbreaking engineering feat -- and ultimately, the
shared international victory of men and women whose dreams exceed
the limits of life on Earth. "Space Station" follows two separate
space shuttles that leave from Florida's Kennedy Space Center and
Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome to rendezvous with their new home in
orbit 220 miles above Earth. A gorgeous and involving film.
Director: Toni Myers. 2002, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 47 min.,
Documentary, Box office gross: $50.287 million, Warner. DVD only.

UP AND DOWN
A dysfunctional family reunion between a college professor, his
long-estranged son and the lover they both shared. Two petty
pickpockets who attempt to rob a black belt in karate. A
dimwitted soccer hooligan whose wife buys a baby in a pawnshop.
These are just a few of the unconnected strangers who find a
common connection in the award-winning comedy from the director
of "Divided We Fall." Winner of five Czech Lion Awards including
Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Actress. In
Czech with English subtitles. Director: Jan Hrebejk. Stars: Petr
Forman, Emilia Vasaryova, Jan Triska, Ingrid Timkova, Kristina
Bokova. 2005, CC, MPAA rating: R, 113 min., Comedy, Box office
gross: $0.204 million, Sony.

For more release info, check out our calendar pages at
<http://www.onvideo.org/calendar.htm>


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NEWS

FROM TV TO VIDEO:
Due this week: "Cleopatra 2525: The Complete Series" is a three-
disc set with all 28 episodes, $49.98 from Universal ... ð
Like Me: The Complete Second Season" is a four-disc set, $49.96
from MGM ... "Earth 2: The Complete Series" is a three-disc set
with all 21 episodes, $49.98 from Universal ... "Laguna Beach:
The Complete First Season" is a three-disc set with 11 episodes,
about $30 from Paramount ... "Lost in Space: Season Three, Vol.
2" is a three-disc set with the final nine episodes, $29.98 from
Fox ... "Sliders: The Third Season" is a four-disc set with 25
episodes, $59.98 from Universal.

BUZZIN' THE 'B's:
"Charlie" is a gritty crime adventure that chronicles the true
story of the rise and fall of Charlie Richardson, England's most
notorious and brutal gang leader, starring Luke Goss, on DVD from
Fox ... "The Crow: Wicked Prayer" is the fourth installment in
"The Crow" series, here starring Edward Furlong, Tara Reid and
Dennis Hopper, as The Crow resurrects a young man so he can get
even with a gang of satanic bikers, from Dimension on DVD ...
"Nowhere Man" is a quirky thriller about a man who searches for
his missing member, severed and stolen by his friend after a
fight, from First Run Features on DVD ... Roy Scheider, Michael
Pare and Oleg Taktarov star in "Red Serpent," about an American
businessman in Russia who turns to a washed-up KGB officer for
help after his daughter is kidnapped by a ly smuggling
ring, from MTI Home Video on VHS and DVD ... First Look Home
Entertainment has two actioners due this weekend: "Tornado,"
about a photographer who teams with his ex-wife to track ly
storms, and "Blast," about a Navy SEAL who must fight off
terrorists who hijack an offshore oil rig, starring Eddie
Griffin, Breckin Meyer and Vivica A. Fox; both on VHS and DVD.

FOREIGN:
"The Farewell" (2000 -- Germany) depicts one day in the life of
Bertolt Brecht as he prepares to leave his lakeside home and his
mistresses in the summer of 1956 to return to Berlin for the fall
theater season, directed by Jan Schutte and starring Josef
Bierbichler and Monika Bleibtreu, on VHS and DVD from New Yorker
... "Slim Susie" (2003 -- Sweden) is a viscerally exhilarating
black comedy in the tradition of "Pulp Fiction" and
"Trainspotting.," about a quaint rural village filled with small
town madness, in which former beauty queen Susie goes missing.
When her brother Erik returns from Stockholm to find out what
happened to her, he's shocked to discover his sweet and
sister was anything but! Directed by Ulf Malmrosis and starring
Tuva Novotny, Jonas Rimeika, Bjoorn Starrin and Kjell Bergqvist,
from Home Vision Entertainment.

FOR THE KIDS:
Due this week is "Dora The Explorer: Super Babies" (2005),
featuring four animated episodes from the best-selling Nick Jr.
series, on VHS and DVD from Paramount ... Warner Home Video will
release two new DVDs of animated adventures for pre-schoolers, "A
Pup Named Scooby-Doo, Vol. 1" and "A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, Vol.
2," featuring the Mystery Inc. gang as kids and Scooby as a pup;
each DVD has four episodes and sells for $14.98 ... The latest
installment in "The Baby Einstein" series for toddlers is "Baby
Wordsworth," created to expose children to first words and the
idea that communication can take various forms; the show is
hosted by the classic Baby Einstein puppets and includes a
special guest appearance by Marlee Matlin; on $14.99 VHS and
$19.99 DVD from Walt Disney.

SPECIAL INTEREST:
Docurama has three interesting releases this week: "Balseros"
(2002), a documentary account of seven Cuban refuges who risked
everything to escape Cuba on homemade rafts in pursuit of the
American Dream; "Guerilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst (aka
Neverland: The Rise and Fall of the Symbionese Liberation Army)"
(2004), a documentary on the infamous ist group; and "A
Night in Havana: Dizzy Gillespie in Cuba" (1989), a stirring jazz
performance recorded live at the Fifth International Jazz
Festival in Havana; $26.95 each on DVD only ... "The Errol Morris
DVD Collection" is a three-disc set with "Gates of Heaven," "The
Thin Blue Line" and "Vernon, Florida"; $19.98 each or $49.96 the
set from MGM ... "Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry: Season
Three" culls seven half-hour editions of the HBO late-night
series that showcases practitioners of def poetry, $19.96 from
HBO Video ... Westlake Entertainment Group will release two DVDs
of "underground" female fighting: "Extreme Chick Fights" and
"Extreme Chick Fights Reloaded" at $14.98 each ... First Run
Feature's offerings this week are "The Open Road: America Looks
at Aging," a PBS documentary that examines the personal and
social impact of the impending retirement of America's 77 million
Baby Boomers, $19.95 on DVD; and "Hiroshima No Pika" and
"Hellfire: A Journey From Hiroshima," a DVD with two films that
confront the dropping of the ; the first an animated film
based on the award-winning book by Japanese artist Toshi Maruki
that tells the story of a young and her family who live
through the horrific ing, na by Susan Sarandon; the
second a documentary on artists Iri and Toshi Maruki, who have
spent decades creating a testament to the effects of the atomic
bomb -- the Hiroshima Murals; $29.95.


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THIS WEEK'S DVD RELEASES:

Weekly listings of DVD releases can now be viewed on mobile
devices at www.tagtag.com/onvideo

** The Best of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Search.
Single disc (80 min.) with highlights -- including never-before-
seen footage -- as s contend for the chance to grace the
pages of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and secure one of
the most coveted ing contracts in the business; $12.99. (NBC
Universal/Genius Products).
** Charlie (2004 -- U.K.) Luke Goss, Steven Berkoff, Leslie
Grantham, Anita Dobson, Marius Weyers. (Fox).
** Cleopatra 2525: The Complete Series. Three-disc set with all
28 episodes, $49.98. Extras: Deleted scenes, outtakes, special
effects and stunts featurette. (Universal).
** Constantine (2005) Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz, Shia LaBeouf,
Djimon Hounsou, Max Baker, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Gavin Rossdale,
Tilda Swinton, Peter Stormare. Extras: Single disc: 18 minutes of
deleted scenes, including an alternate ending. Two-disc deluxe
edition: (Includes exclusive collectible Hellblazer comic
featuring a reprint of Issue #41 "Dangerous Habits" and a
Hellblazer Short Story); Commentary by Francis Lawrence, Akiva
Goldsman, Frank Cappello and Kevin Brodbin; "Passive" music video
by A Perfect Circle; 18 minutes of deleted scenes, including an
alternate ending; "The Production From Hell" documentary;
"Imaging the Underworld" documentary gallery; "Conjuring
Constantine -- From the Comic Book to Film" featurette;
"Constantine Cosmology -- The Mythology Behind the Movie"
featurette; "Foresight: The Power of Pre-Visualization"
featurette; Easter eggs. (Warner).
** The Crow: Wicked Prayer (2005) Edward Furlong, Tara Reid,
David Boreanaz, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Dennis Hopper. Direct-to-
video. Extras: Deleted scenes, storyboards, production design,
behind-the-scenes featurette, commentary. (Dimension).
** Like Me: The Complete Second Season. Four-disc set,
$49.96. Extras: Two behind-the-scene featurettes, deleted scenes,
photo gallery. (MGM).
** Dora The Explorer: Super Babies (2005) Four animated episodes,
$16.99. (Paramount).
** Earth 2: The Complete Series. Three-disc set with all 21
episodes, $49.98. Extras: Deleted and extended scenes, outtakes.
(Universal).
** The Farewell (2000 -- German) Dir.: Jan Schutte; Josef
Bierbichler, Monika Bleibtreu, Jeanette Hain. (New Yorker).
** Ice Princess (2005) Joan Cusack, Kim Cattrall, Michelle
Trachtenberg, Hayden Panettiere, Trevor Blumas, Connie Ray,
Kirsten Olson. Extras: Commentary by Trachtenberg, Panettiere,
Blumas and Olsen; deleted scenes; alternate opening; music
videos. (Buena Vista).
** Laguna Beach -- The Complete First Season. Three-disc set with
11 episodes, about $30. Extras: Deleted scenes; cast Interviews;
casting tapes; "The Laguna Triangle"; "Laguna Looks";
featurettes; "LC's House Tour," "Lo's Guide to Laguna Beach,"
"Behind-the-Season One Finale With Kristin & Trey"; seven music
videos; Season 2 previews. (Paramount).
** Lost in Space: Season Three, Vol. 2. Three-disc set with final
nine episodes, $29.98. Extras: Interviews with Bill Mumy and
Jonathan Harris, bloopers. (Fox).
** Man of the House (2005) Tommy Lee Jones, Cedric the
Entertainer, Christina Milian, Paula Garces, Monica Keena,
Vanessa Ferlito, Kelli Garner, Anne Archer. Extras: Making-of
featurette, cheer camp featurette. (Sony).
** Nowhere Man (2005) Michael Rodrick, Debbie Rochon, Frank
Olivier, Bob Gosse, Lloyd Kaufman. Extras: Commentary by director
Tim McCann and Rochon, biographies, more. (First Run Features).
** Red Serpent (2002) Michael Pare, Roy Scheider, Oleg Taktarov.
Extras: Commentary. (MTI Home Video).
** Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry: Season Three. Seven half-
hour editions of the HBO late-night series that showcases
practitioners of def poetry, $19.96. (HBO Video).
** Sliders: The Third Season. Four-disc set with 25 episodes,
$59.98. Extras: Gag reel. (Universal).
** Slim Susie (2003 -- Sweden) Dir.: Ulf Malmrosis; Tuva Novotny,
Jonas Rimeika, Bjsorn Starrin, Kjell Bergqvist. Extras: Making-of
documentary, deleted scenes, an essay by Jan Goransson of The
Swedish Film Institute. (Home Vision Entertainment).
** Space Station (2002) Imax documentary on the International
Space Station; na by Tom Cruise. Extras: Featurette:
"Adventures in Space -- The Process of Moviemaking,"
director/astronaut commentary, two audio-visual astronaut guided
tours of the ISS, photo gallery (including never-before-seen
photos). (Warner).
** Up and Down (2005 -- Czech ) Dir.: Jan Hrebejk; Petr Forman,
Emilia Vasaryova, Jan Triska, Ingrid Timkova, Kristina Bokova.
Extras: Making-of featurette, "Hello America" music video.
(Sony).

For more DVD info, check out our DVD calendar pages at
<http://www.onvideo.org/calendar/cal_dvd.htm>


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THIS WEEK'S VHS SELL-THROUGH RELEASES:

** Ice Princess (2005) Joan Cusack, Kim Cattrall, Michelle
Trachtenberg, Hayden Panettiere, Trevor Blumas, Connie Ray,
Kirsten Olson (Disney): $29.99

For more sell-through info, check out our Sell-Through/Repriced
pages at <http://www.onvideo.org/reprice.htm>


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Copyright 2005 CyberPod. All rights reserved.
ISSN 1094-3676

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