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8/16/05 V9.33

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ONVIDEO'S WEEKLY GUIDE TO HOME VIDEO RELEASES
FOR TUESDAY, August 16 -- MONDAY, August 22

BALLAD OF JACK AND ROSE, THE
Jack (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his 16-year-old daughter Rose
(Camilla Belle) live in relative isolation on a beautiful island
off the East Coast. When he invites his mainland girlfriend
(Catherine Keener) and her two teenage sons to come live with
them, it is Rose's first exposure to society -- and sexuality. As
worlds collide, the consequences will threaten not only Jack and
Rose's way of life but also their unusually close bond. Director:
Rebecca Miller. Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Camilla Belle, Catherine
Keener, Paul Dano, Ryan McDonald, Jena Malone, Beau Bridges,
Jason Lee. 2005, CC, MPAA rating: R, 112 min., Drama, Box office
gross: $0.687 million, MGM, No VHS SRP, Priced for rental.

THE BROWN BUNNY
"The Brown Bunny" is both a love story and a haunting portrait of
a lost soul unable to forget his past. After finishing a
motorcycle race in New Hampshire, Bud Clay (Vincent Gallo) loads
his racing bike into the back of his van and begins a cross-
country odyssey to Los Angeles, where he is to compete in another
race. During his trip, he meets three very different women:
Violet, a wholesome all-American gas station attendant; Lilly
(Cheryl Tiegs), a fellow lost soul he connects with at a highway
rest stop; and Rose, a Las Vegas prostitute. Throughout his
journey, Bud can never escape his intense feelings for the love
of his life, Daisy (Chloe Sevigny), so he plans to reconcile with
her when he reaches Los Angeles. Arriving in Los Angeles, Bud
checks into a motel before visiting the abandoned home he once
shared with Daisy. He leaves a note, hoping she will turn up at
his motel room ... Building to a notorious climax, the film
presents one of the frankest portrayals of male sexuality ever
seen in American cinema. Director: Vincent Gallo. Stars: Vincent
Gallo, Chloe Sevigny, Cheryl Tiegs. 2004, CC, MPAA rating: NR, 92
min., Drama, Box office gross: $0.365 million, Sony. DVD only.

PLATFORM
Masterpiece of the New Chinese Cinema that criticizes old-style
Maoism and its replacement -- Western commercialism -- in modern
China. The film spans the 1980s by following four performers in
the state-run Fenyang Peasant Culture Group. As China begins to
move toward Western-influenced consumer capitalism, the group
starts to sport spandex and play electric guitars. Rich in detail
-- shot in long, fixed camera tableaux -- the film conveys a
sense of time passing and ineluctable change. In Chinese with
English subtitles. Director: Zhang Ke Jia. Stars: Hong Wei Wang,
Tao Zhao, Jing Dong Liang, Tian Yi Yang, Bo Wang. 2003, CC, MPAA
rating: NR, 150 min., Drama, New Yorker, $24.95 VHS SRP.

SIN CITY
Based on the graphic novels by Frank Miller, "Sin City" is
infested with criminals, crooked cops and sexy dames, some
searching for vengeance, some for redemption. Visually stunning,
the film has been translated from page to screen by remaining
absolutely faithful to the look, feel and dialogue of the books.
Sin City beckons to the tough, the corrupt, the brokenhearted.
Some call it dark. Hard-boiled. Then there are those who call it
home. A universe of unlikely and reluctant heroes still trying to
do the right thing in a city that refuses to care. Miller and
Rodriguez plucked the stories of Sin City right off the comic
book page. Then, using cutting-edge digital filmmaking, they
pasted these ultimate urban tales of louts, lugs, heroes and
hussies to the screen without losing any of the comic's
silhouetted look and staccato rhythms. The central story follows
Marv (Mickey Rourke), a tougher-than-nails street-fighter who has
always played it his way. When Marv takes home a Goddess-like
beauty named Goldie (Jaime King), only to have her wind up dead
in his bed -- he scours the city to avenge the loss of the only
drop of love his heart has ever known. Then there's the tale of
Dwight (Clive Owen), a private investigator perpetually trying to
leave trouble behind, even though it won't quit chasing after
him. After a cop is killed in Old Town, Dwight will stop at
nothing to protect his friends among the ladies of the night.
Finally, there's the tale of John Hartigan (Bruce Willis) -- the
last honest cop in Sin City. With just one ticking hour left to
his career, he's going out with a bang as he makes a final bid to
save an 11 year-old girl from the sadistic son of a Senator ...
with unexpected results. Director: Frank Miller, Robert
Rodriguez. Stars: Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba,
Clive Owen, Nick Stahl, Powers Boothe, Rutger Hauer, Elijah Wood,
Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro, Jaime King, Devon Aoki,
Brittany Murphy, Michael Clarke Duncan, Carla Gugino. 2005, CC,
MPAA rating: R, 124 min., Thriller, Box office gross: $72.212
million, Dimension, $29.99 VHS SRP.

WEDDING DATE, THE
Meager and predictable romantic comedy. Kat Ellis (Debra Messing)
is determined to attend her younger half-sister's wedding with a
date. Kat wouldn't be so urgently in need were it not for her
spoiled, gets-everything-she-wants sister's wedding where the
best man happens to be Kat's handsome ex-boyfriend. What's worse,
the currently single Kat has to schlep all the way from New York
-- where she's made her life -- to London, where her wildly
dysfunctional family lives. That's one long, thankless trip to
take solo. Rather than face the ridicule of her family and in
order to show up her ex-fiance, she resorts to the Yellow Pages
to find a last-minute escort, Nick (Dermot Mulroney). True to
form -- and to Kat's delight -- his dashing good looks and quick-
witted charm wins over her family. But for Kat, what begins as
merely a face-saving ruse with a dashing guy-for-hire -- strictly
a business arrangement -- quickly starts to become more than she
ever expected. Love doesn't come cheap. Director: Clare Kilner.
Stars: Debra Messing, Dermot Mulroney, Amy Adams, Jack Davenport,
Sarah Parish, Jeremy Sheffield, Peter Egan, Holland Taylor. 2005,
CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 90 min., Romantic comedy, Box office
gross: $31.585 million, Universal, $29.98 VHS SRP.

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


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NEWS

COMING SOON:
Due October 25: "Bewitched," based on the classic TV show,
starring Nicole Kidman, Will Ferrell, Shirley MacLaine, Michael
Caine, Jason Schwartzman and Kristin Chenoweth, from Sony;
"Herbie: Fully Loaded," starring Lindsay Lohan, Michael Keaton
and Matt Dillon, from Buena Vista; and Woody Allen's "Melinda and
Melinda," starring Will Ferrell, Jonny Lee Miller, Radha
Mitchell, Amanda Peet, Chloe Sevigny, Wallace Shawn and Larry
Pine, from Fox ... Due November 15 is the animated smash comedy
"Madagascar," with the voice talent of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock,
David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith, Sacha Baron Cohen, Cedric
the Entertainer and Andy Richter, from DreamWorks ... On November
29 Fox will release the sexy action comedy "Mr. & Mrs. Smith,"
starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, with commentary by
director Doug Liman and deleted scenes on the DVD ... and Ron
Howard's "Cinderella Man," starring Russell Crowe, Renee
Zellweger, Paul Giamatti and Craig Bierko, slugs it way to VHS
and DVD from Universal.

DVD COLLECTIBLES:
Another fine classics set is due this week from Warner: "Astaire
and Rogers Collection Volume One," a five-disc set with the Fred
Astaire-Ginger Rogers' collaborations "The Barkleys of Broadway,"
"Follow the Fleet," "Shall We Dance," "Swing Time" and "Top Hat";
each DVD is loaded with extras; $59.92 the set or $19.97 each ...
also from Warner comes "Jamboree," a 1957 rock 'n' roll
exploitation film about the rise and fall and rise of "America's
singing sweethearts" (played by Paul Carr and Freda Holloway,
who's voice is supplied by Connie Francis), notable only for its
brief performances by Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Slim
Whitman, and Count Basie and Joe Williams ... The folks at Disney
will release to DVD this week "Walt Disney's Timeless Tales,
Volume 1," a collection of favorite animated stories from the
Disney vaults: "The Prince and the Pauper," "The Three Little
Pigs," "The Tortoise and the Hare," "The Grasshopper and the
Ants" and "The Pied Piper"; and "Walt Disney's Timeless Tales,
Volume 2," with "The Wind in the Willows," "The Ugly Duckling,"
"Ferdinand the Bull" and "The Country Cousin"; $19.99 each ...
From Buena Vista comes two modern classics of Japanese animation
directed by Studio Ghibli's Isao Takahata: "My Neighbors the
Yamadas" (1994) with the original Japanese language track plus
English-track featuring the voices of Jim Belushi, Molly Shannon,
David Ogden Stiers; and "Pom Poko" (1999) with the original
Japanese language track plus English-track featuring the voices
of Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Clancy Brown and Olivia D'Abo, in a
two-disc set.

FROM TV TO VIDEO:
"The Andy Griffith Show -- The Complete Third Season," a four-
disc set with 32 episodes, $39.99 from Paramount ... "I Love Lucy
-- The Complete Fifth Season" (1955-56), a four-disc set with 26
episodes, $54.99 from Paramount ... "The Mind of the Married Man:
The Complete First Season," a two-disc set with 10 episodes of
Mike Binder's offbeat series about marriage and men, $39.98 from
HBO Video ... "The Office: Season One" is a single disc with the
first six episodes of the quirky mockumentary on life in a
dysfunctional paper supply company in Scranton, Pennsylvania,
starring Steve Carell with episodes directed by Amy Heckerling
and Ken Kwapis, $29.98 from Universal ... "Phil of the Future:
Volume 1," with four episodes, $19.99 on VHS and DVD from Buena
Vista ... "The Simpsons: The Complete Sixth Season," a four-disc
set with 25 episodes in a cool box shaped like Homer's head,
$49.98 loaded with extras, from Fox ... "That's So Raven: Volume
2: Disguise the Limit," four episodes, $19.99 from Buena Vista on
DVD and VHS ... "Undeclared: The Complete Series" (2001-2002), a
four-disc set with all 17 episodes, $49.98 from Shout! Factory.

ON THE INDIE FRONT:
"Girl Play" (2004) is a sensual romantic comedy about two
actresses who fall in love while rehearsing a play. starring
Robin Greenspan, Lacie Harmon, Mink Stole and Dom Deluise, $24.95
DVD from Wolfe Releasing.

SPECIAL INTEREST:
"Alien Planet" is a 2005 Discovery Channel special that merges
science and futuristic simulation to create a dramatic virtual
mission to a "newly discovered" (fictional) planet, Darwin 4.
Extras include interviews with George Lucas and noted scientists
Stephen Hawking, Craig Venter, Jim Garvin, Jack Horner and Michio
Kaku; $19.94 from Sony ... "Dave Chappelle: For What It's Worth"
is a Showtime special recorded live at San Francisco's legendary
Fillmore Theatre; $19.94 from Sony ... Demolition Pictures has
released two DVDs of "underground" female fighting: "Extreme
ChickFights Volume 1" and "Extreme ChickFights Reloaded" at
$19.95 each VHS and DVD; check out www.extremechickfights.com for
more information.

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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

** Alien Planet (2005 -- TV) Discovery Channel special merges
science and futuristic simulation to create a dramatic virtual
mission to a "newly discovered" (fictional) planet, Darwin 4.
Extras: Extras: Interviews with George Lucas and noted scientists
Stephen Hawking, Craig Venter, Jim Garvin, Jack Horner and Michio
Kaku; $19.94. (Sony).
** The Andy Griffith Show -- The Complete Third Season. Four-disc
set with 32 episodes, $39.99. (Paramount).
** Astaire and Rogers Collection Volume One. Five-disc set,
$59.92; $19.97 each. (Warner).
-- The Barkleys of Broadway (1949) Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers,
Oscar Levant, Billie Burke. Extras: New featurette "Reunited at
MGM: Astaire and Rogers Together Again," vintage sort "Annie Was
a Wonder," classic Droopy cartoon "Wags to Riches."
-- Follow the Fleet (1936) Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers,
Randolph Scott, Harriet Hilliard. Extras: New featurette "Follow
the Fleet: The Origins of Those Dancing Feet," musical short
"Melody Master: Jimmie Lunceford and His Dance Orchestra,"
classic cartoon "Let It Be Me."
-- Shall We Dance (1937) Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edward
Everett Horton. Extras: Commentary by Kevin Cole and Hugh Martin,
new featurette "hey CanOt Take That Away from Me: The Music of
Shall We Dance," musical short "Sheik to Sheik," classic cartoon
"Toy Town Hall."
-- Swing Time (1936) Dir.: George Stevens; Fred Astaire, Ginger
Rogers. Extras: Commentary by John Mueller, author of "Astaire
Dancing"; musical short "Hotel a la Swing"; classic cartoon
"Bingo Crosbyana."
-- Top Hat (1935) Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edward Everett
Horton. Extras: Commentary by Astaire's Daughter, Ava Astaire
McKenzie and film dance historian Larry Billman; new featurette
"On Top: Inside the Success of Top Hat"; comedy short "Watch the
Birdie With Bob Hope"; classic cartoon "Page Miss Glory."
** The Ballad of Jack and Rose (2005) Dir.: Rebecca Miller;
Daniel Day-Lewis, Camilla Belle, Catherine Keener, Paul Dano,
Ryan McDonald, Jena Malone, Beau Bridges, Jason Lee. (MGM/Sony).
** The Brown Bunny (2004) Dir.: Vincent Gallo; Vincent Gallo,
Chloe Sevigny, Cheryl Tiegs. Superbit edition. (Sony).
** Dave Chappelle: For What It's Worth. Showtime special recorded
live at San Francisco's legendary Fillmore Theatre; $19.94.
(Sony).
** The Deal (2005) Christian Slater, Selma Blair, John Heard,
Angie Harmon, Colm Feore, Robert Loggia, Kevin Tighe. (Sony).
** Girl Play (2004) Robin Greenspan, Lacie Harmon, Mink Stole,
Dom Deluise. Extras: Behind-the-scenes featurette: "At Play With
Girl Play." (Wolfe Releasing).
** The Glass Shield Special Edition (1994) Ice Cube, Lori Petty,
Michael Boatman, Elliot Gould, Michael Ironside, M. Emmet Walsh.
Extras: Commentary by writer-director Charles Burnett and
composer Stephen James Taylor, a conversation with Burnett, film
scoring featurette with Stephen James Taylor. (Miramax).
** I Love Lucy -- The Complete Fifth Season (1955-56). Four-disc
set with 26 episodes, $54.99 . (Paramount).
** Jamboree (1957) Kay Medford, Bob Pastine, Paul Carr, Freda
Holloway, with music by Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Slim
Whitman, Frankie Avalon, Connie Francis, Count Basie and Fats
Domino. (Warner).
** The Mambo Kings (1992) Antonio Banderas, Armand Assante, Cathy
Moriarty. Extras: Additional scene not shown in theaters,
commentary by director Arne Glimcher, behind-the-scenes
featurette. (Warner).
** The Mind of the Married Man: The Complete First Season. Two-
disc set with 10 episodes, $39.98. Extras: Commentary by Mike
Binder and Sonya Walger, deleted scenes. (HBO Video).
** My Left Foot Special Edition (1989) Dir.: Jim Sheridan; Daniel
Day-Lewis, Brenda Fricker, Hugh O'Connor. Extras: "The Real
Christy Brown" featurette, "An Inspirational Journey: The Making
of My Left Foot" featurette, still photo gallery. (Miramax).
** My Neighbors the Yamadas (1994 -- Japan) Dir.: Isao Takahata;
Animated; Original Japanese language track plus English-track
featuring the voices of Jim Belushi, Molly Shannon, David Ogden
Stiers. Extras: "Behind the Microphone With Voice Talent From the
Film," complete storyboards. (Disney).
** The Office: Season One. First six episodes on one disc,
$29.98. Extras: Deleted scenes, outtakes. (Universal).
** Phil of the Future: Volume 1. Four episodes, plus never-
before-seen episode "Team Diffy." $19.99. Extras: "2121" Fall
Cyber Catalogue" of futuristic gizmos and gadgets from the show.
(Buena Vista).
** Platform (2003 -- China) Dir.: Zhang Ke Jia; Hong Wei Wang,
Tao Zhao, Jing Dong Liang, Tian Yi Yang, Bo Wang. (New Yorker).
** Pom Poko (1999 -- Japan) Dir.: Isao Takahata; Animated;
Original Japanese language track plus English-track featuring the
voices of Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Clancy Brown, Olivia D'Abo.
Two-disc set. Extras: Complete storyboards. (Disney).
** The Simpsons: The Complete Sixth Season. Four-disc set,
$49.98. Extras: Introduction by Matt Groening; commentary by
actors, writers and producers; animation showcase; deleted
scenes; "Springfield's Most Wanted" TV special; commercials;
featurettes. (Fox).
** Sin City (2005) Dir.: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, with
special guest director Quentin Tarantino; Bruce Willis, Mickey
Rourke, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Nick Stahl, Powers Boothe,
Rutger Hauer, Elijah Wood, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro,
Jaime King, Devon Aoki, Brittany Murphy, Michael Clarke Duncan,
Carla Gugino. Extras: Behind-the-scenes featurette with
Rodriguez, Miller, Tarantino, Willis, Alba, del Toro, Murphy,
Owen, Rourke and Dawson. (Dimension).
** That's So Raven: Volume 2: Disguise the Limit. Four episodes,
$19.99. Extras: "Master of Disguises," commentary by Raven.
(Buena Vista).
** Undeclared: The Complete Series (2001-02). Four-disc set with
all 17 episodes, $49.98. Extras:Never-before-seen episode;
commentaries with directors, cast and writers; deleted scenes,
auditions, outtakes, rehearsals, extended takes; Loudon
Wainwright live concert footage; Museum of Television & Radio
Q&A; 28 page booklet; script for unproduced episode. (Shout!
Factory).
** Walt Disney's Timeless Tales, Volume 1. Collection of favorite
animated stories from the Disney vaults: "The Prince and the
Pauper," "The Three Little Pigs," "The Tortoise and the Hare,"
"The Grasshopper and the Ants" and "The Pied Piper," $19.99.
(Disney).
** Walt Disney's Timeless Tales, Volume 2. Collection of favorite
animated stories from the Disney vaults: "The Wind in the
Willows," "The Ugly Duckling," "Ferdinand the Bull" and "The
Country Cousin," $19.99. (Disney).
** The Wedding Date (2005) Debra Messing, Dermot Mulroney, Amy
Adams, Jack Davenport, Sarah Parish, Jeremy Sheffield, Peter
Egan, Holland Taylor. Extras: Commentary by Messing, over 10
minutes of deleted scenes, "A Date With Debra" featurette.
(Universal).

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:

** Phil of the Future: Volume 1. Four episodes (Buena Vista):
$19.99
** Platform (2003 -- China) Dir.: Zhang Ke Jia; Hong Wei Wang,
Tao Zhao, Jing Dong Liang, Tian Yi Yang, Bo Wang (New Yorker):
$24.95
** Sin City (2005) Dir.: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, with
special guest director Quentin Tarantino; Bruce Willis, Mickey
Rourke, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Nick Stahl, Powers Boothe,
Rutger Hauer, Elijah Wood, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro,
Jaime King, Devon Aoki, Brittany Murphy, Michael Clarke Duncan,
Carla Gugino (Dimension): $29.99
** That's So Raven: Volume 2: Disguise the Limit. Four episodes
(Buena Vista): $19.99
** The Wedding Date (2005) Debra Messing, Dermot Mulroney, Amy
Adams, Jack Davenport, Sarah Parish, Jeremy Sheffield, Peter
Egan, Holland Taylor (Universal): $29.98

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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