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5/8//07 V11.19

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ONVIDEO'S WEEKLY GUIDE TO HOME VIDEO RELEASES
For Tuesday, May 8 -- Monday, May 14

Because I Said So
Diane Keaton stars as Daphne Wilder, a mother whose love knows no bounds or boundaries. She is the proud mom of three daughters: stable psychologist Maggie (Lauren Graham), sexy and irreverent Mae (Piper Perabo) and insecure, adorable Milly (Manfy Moore)--who, when it comes to men, is like psychotic flypaper. In order to prevent her youngest from making the same mistakes she did, Daphne decides to set Milly up with the perfect man. Little does Milly know, however, that her mom placed an ad in the online personals to find him. Mayhem unfolds as Daphne continues to do the wrong thing for the right reasons ... all in the name of love. In a battle of strong wills, the mother-daughter dynamic is tested in all its fierce, wacky complexity. Vitals: Director: Michael Lehmann. Stars: Diane Keaton, Mandy Moore, Lauren Graham, Piper Perabo, Stephen Collins, Tom Everett Scott, Gabriel Macht. 2007, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 102 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $42.304 million, Universal. 

Breaking and Entering
Story of a series of thefts -- some criminal, some emotional -- set against the backdrop of London's changing geographical and cultural landscape. Will (Jude Law) is a partner in a thriving landscape architecture firm which he runs with his friend, Sandy (Martin Freeman). Professionally, things could not be better but Will spends less and less time at home with his beautiful, melancholy partner, Liv (Robin Wright Penn) and her troubled 13 year-old daughter, Bea. Will's office has recently relocated to King's Cross, the center of Europe's most ambitious urban regeneration site and their state-of-the-art studio repeatedly attracts the attention of a local gang of thieves. After one of the break-ins, Will follows teenaged parkour enthusiast Miro (Rafi Gavron) back to the apartment he shares with his mother, Amira (Juliette Binoche), a Bosnian refugee. With his relationship already in crisis, Will embarks on a passionate journey into both the wilder side of himself and the city in which he lives. Vitals: Director: Anthony Minghella. Stars: Jude Law, Juliette Binoche, Robin Wright-Penn, Ray Winstone, Martin Freeman, Vera Farmiga, Rafi Gavron). 2006, CC, MPAA rating: R, 119 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $.909 million, The Weinstein Co./Genius Products. 

Catch & Release
After the sudden death of her fiance, Gray Wheeler (Jennifer Garner) finds comfort in the company of his friends: lighthearted and comic Sam (Kevin Smith), hyper-responsible Dennis (Sam Jaeger), and, oddly enough, his old childhood buddy Fritz (Timothy Olyphant), an irresponsible playboy whom she'd previously pegged as one of the least reliable people in the world. As secrets about her supposedly perfect fiancë emerge, Gray comes to see new sides of the man she thought she knew, and at the same time, finds herself drawn to the last man she ever expected to fall for. Vitals: Director: Susannah Grant. Stars: Jennifer Garner, Timothy Olyphant, Sam Jaeger, Kevin Smith, Juliette Lewis. 2006, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 112 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $15.269 million, Sony.

Music and Lyrics
Alex Fletcher (Hugh Grant) is a washed-up 80s pop star who's been reduced to working the nostalgia circuit at county fairs and amusement parks. The charismatic and talented musician gets a chance at a comeback when reigning diva Cora Corman invites him to write and record a duet with her, but there's a problem -- Alex hasn't written a song in years, he's never written lyrics, and he has to come up with a hit in a matter of days. Enter Sophie Fisher (Drew Barrymore), Alex's beguilingly quirky plant lady, whose flair for words strikes a chord with the struggling songwriter. On the rebound from a bad relationship, Sophie is reluctant to collaborate with anyone, especially commitment-phobe Alex. As their chemistry heats up at the piano and under it, Alex and Sophie will have to face their fears -- and the music -- if they want to find the love and success they both deserve. Vitals: Director: Marc Lawrence. Stars: Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore, Brad Garrett, Kristen Johnston, Haley Bennett, Aasif Mandvi, Campbell Scott. 2007, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 96 min., Romantic Comedy, Box office gross: $49.731 million, Warner.

Painted Veil, The
Based on the classic novel by Somerset Maugham, The Painted Veil is a love story set in the 1920s that tells the tale of a young English couple, Walter, a middle class doctor and Kitty, an upper-class woman, who get married for the wrong reasons and relocate to Shanghai, where she falls in love with someone else. When he uncovers her infidelity, in an act of vengeance, he accepts a job in a remote village in China ravaged by a deadly epidemic, and takes her along. Their journey brings meaning to their relationship and gives them purpose in one of the most remote and beautiful places on earth. Vitals: Director: John Curran. Stars: Naomi Watts, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Toby Jones. 2006, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 125 min., Drama, Box office gross: $7.932 million, Warner.

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

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NEWS

DVD Collectibles:
Six popular films get special treatments this week: "Donnie Brasco Extended Cut" expands director Mike Newell's 1997 "wise guy" film by adding back 20 minutes; the film stars Al Pacino, Johnny Depp, Michael Madsen, Bruno Kirby, James Russo and Anne Heche. Extras include commentary by Newell and a "Donnie Brasco: Out From the Shadows" featurette; from Sony ... Alfred Hitchcock's 1955 "To Catch a Thief" gets the royal treatment in a Special Collector's Edition from Paramount: The film, starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly, has been digitally transfered from the 8-perf VistaVision elements. Extras include commentary by Peter Bogdanovich and DVD producer Laurent Bouzereau, a making-of featurette, "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation," more ... "Mrs. Doubtfire Behind-the-Seams Edition" is a two-disc set of the 1993 film directed by Chris Columbus and starring Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, Harvey Fierstein, Matthew Lawrence and Mara Wilson. Extras include new interviews with Williams, deleted scenes, alternate scenes, "From Man to Mrs.: The Evolution of Mrs. Doubtfire" featurette, "Aging Gracefully: A Look Back at Mrs. Doubtfire" featurette, "Makeup Application With Ve Neill" featurette, "The Improvisation of Mrs. Doubtfire," behind-the-scenes photo gallery, more; from Fox ... For "Dirty Dancing Twentieth Anniversary," starring Jennifer Grey, Patrick Swayze, Jerry Orbach, Cynthia Rhodes, Jack Weston, Jane Brucker and Kelly Bishop, Lionsgate has put together a two-disc set of the 1987 film with an interview with Swayze, deleted scenes, extended scenes, outtakes, and more. ... Two Tom Hanks films from Fox get special treatment in what the company is calling its Tom Hanks Promotion: "Big Extended Edition" (1988), directed by Penny Marshall and starring Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Robert Loggia, John Heard, Jared Rushton, David Moscow, Jon Lovitz and Mercedes Ruehl, is a two-disc set with an extended cut with 25 additional minutes and such extras as commentary by writers Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg, deleted scenes, extended scenes, "Backstory: Big" featurette, "Big Beginnings" featurette, "Chemistry of a Classic" documentary, "The Work of Play" featurette, more; and "That Thing You Do Tom Hanks' Extended Cut" (1996), directed by Hanks and starring Tom Everett Scott, Liv Tyler, Johnathon Schaech, Steve Zahn, Ethan Embry, Tom Hanks, Charlize Theron, Obba Babatunde, Giovanni Ribisi, Alex Rocco, Peter Scolari, Rita Wilson and Chris Isaak; the two-disc set includes a "Making That Thing You Do" featurette, "The Story of the Wonders" featurette, "That Thing You Do" reunion, more.

From TV to Video:
Due this week: "Cagney & Lacey Season One," a four-disc set with 22 episodes, $39.98 from MGM ... "Everybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Eighth Season," a five-disc set with 23 episodes, $44.98 from HBO Video ... "The 4400: The Third Season," a four-disc set with 13 episodes, $42.99 from Paramount ..."McLeod's Daughters: The Complete Second Season," a six-disc set with 22 episodes; $59.98 from Koch Vision ... "Starhunter: The Complete Series," a four-disc set with 22 episodes, $29.99 from Echo Bridge Home Entertainment ... "That '70s Show Season Six," a four-disc set with 25 episodes, $49.98 from Fox ... "The Waltons: Season Five," a five-disc set with 24 episodes, $39.98 from Warner.

Buzzin' the 'B's:
"Backslash" (2007) stars Tara Platt in a thriller about an unrelenting killer who stalks two beautiful freshman students after they're cast as the unwitting stars of a low-budget student slasher film and its deadly Web site, from Central Park Media/Below the Radar ... "From Other Worlds" (2004) is a Sci Fi comedy about a lonely housewife who teams with an African immigrant to fight UFOs and save the earth, starring Cara Buono and Isaach De Bankole, from BFS Entertainment & Multimedia Ltd. ... "Graveyard Alive" (2003) stars Anne Day-Jones, Samantha Slan and Karl Gerhardt in a horror comedy about a dowdy nurse transformed into a flesh-eating sex kitten by a zombie-infected woodsman, from BFS Entertainment & Multimedia Ltd. ... New genre label Deimos/BCI Eclipse has two cult films from Spain's legendary star-director Paul Naschy: "Night of the Werewolf (El Retorno Del Hombre Lobo)" (1980) and "Vengeance of the Zombies (La Rebelion De Las Muertas)" (1972) ... In "The System Within" (2006) starring Tariq Alexander, Chingy, Hawthorne James, Bryce Eilson and Kim Poter, a corrupt government, greed and jealousy topple a top fashion model, from First Look Home Entertainment ... In "Things to Do" (2006), starring Mike Stasko and Daniel Wilson, a 25-year-old man abruptly leaves his mundane city office job and returns to his childhood suburban home, where he reunites with an eccentric high school acquaintance and embarks on a wacky path of personal growth, seting out to complete a "Things To Do" list, a collection of bizarre aspirations plucked from the gaps of an incomplete adolescence, from LifeSize Entertainment.

Special Interest:
"638 Ways to Kill Castro" (2006) is a documentary on the hundreds of alleged plots to assassinate Fidel Castro, and a look at the evolution of Cuban politics, from BCI Eclipse ... "Seven Spiritual Laws of Success" (2007) is based on the inspirational New York Times best-seller by the renowned doctor and scholar Deepak Chopra, from Fox ... "The Empire in Africa" (2006) unravels the complex dynamics behind the civil war in Sierra Leone, a war that lasted 11 years and resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (or one-third of the population); narrated by acclaimed musician Richie Havens. $24.95 from Cinema Libre Studio ... Decca Vision/Decca Label Group will release this week the first installment of "On Stage at World Cafe," a series of live concerts available for the first time on DVD. The first four shows include such diverse artists as singer-songwriter David Poe, rockers Living Colour, Old 97's front man Rhett Miller and The Knack. Each show is hosted by WXPN's legendary Philadelphia radio personality David Dye, who also fronts the nationally syndicated "World Cafe" radio program. The shows also feature interviews with the artists by Michaela Majoun, host of WXPN's Morning Show. The series will be debuting on PBS in early May as a 13-episode television run (check local PBS station listings for airdates) ... "Dateline Afghanistan: Reporting the Forgotten War" explores the conflict in Afghanistan through the prism of the men and women who cover it. The United States alone has some 20,000 troops fighting for hearts and minds in Afghanistan -- in the shadow of the media spotlight shining on Iraq. VeteranÊjournalist Bill Gentile spent a month in an embedded assignment with U.S. troops in Afghanistan, following fellow reporters and photographers from The New York Times, the BBC, Time, The Washington Post, and others, to reveal the daily personal and professional pressures of the men and women who send us the first draft of history. From Choices Inc. (www.choicesvideo.com).

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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

Backslash (2007) Tara Platt. An unrelenting killer stalks two beautiful freshman students after they're cast as the unwitting stars of a low-budget student slasher film and its deadly Web site. Extras: Production notes, behind-the-scenes gallery, art gallery, cast bios. (Central Park Media/Below the radar).

Because I Said So (2007) Dir.: Michael Lehmann; Diane Keaton, Mandy Moore, Lauren Graham, Piper Perabo, Stephen Collins, Tom Everett Scott, Gabriel Macht. Extras: "The Making of Because I Said So," "Designing a 'Wilder' World' featurette, The Weepies "World Spins Madly On" music video. (Universal).

Breaking and Entering (2007) Dir.: Anthony Minghella; Jude Law, Juliette Binoche, Robin Wright-Penn, Ray Winstone, Martin Freeman, Vera Farmiga, Rafi Gavron. Extras: Commentary by Minghella, "Lie. Cheat. Steal. Love. The Making of Breaking and Entering," deleted scenes. (The Weinstein Co./Genius Products.)

Cagney & Lacey Season One. Four-disc set with 22 episodes, $39.98. Extras: "Breaking the Laws of TV" two-part featurette.(MGM).

Catch & Release (2006) Jennifer Garner, Timothy Olyphant, Sam Jaeger, Kevin Smith, Juliette Lewis. Extras: Commentary by director-writer Susannah Grant and Kevin Smith, commentary by Grant and cinematographer John Lindley. Also available on Blu-Ray disc. Extras include the two commentaries; deleted scenes; making-of featurette; cast auditions from Kevin Smith, Juliette Lewis and Sam Jaeger. (Sony).

Dirty Dancing Twentieth Anniversary (1987) Jennifer Grey, Patrick Swayze, Jerry Orbach, Cynthia Rhodes, Jack Weston, Jane Brucker, Kelly Bishop. Two-disc set. Extras: Interview with Swayze, deleted scenes, extended scenes, outtakes, more. (Lionsgate).

Donnie Brasco Extended Cut (1997) Dir.: Mike Newell; Al Pacino, Johnny Depp, Michael Madsen, Bruno Kirby, James Russo, Anne Heche. Twenty minutes added back into the film. Extras: Commentary by director Mike Newell, "Donnie Brasco: Out From the Shadows" featurette. (Sony).

The Empire in Africa (2006) Unravels the complex dynamics behind the civil war in Sierra Leone, a war that lasted 11 years and resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (or one-third of the population); narrated by acclaimed musician Richie Havens. $24.95. Extras: Interview with director Philippe Diaz, additional footage. (Cinema Libre Studio).

Everybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Eighth Season. Five-disc set with 23 episodes, $44.98. Extras: Commentary by series creators and writers, bloopers, deleted scenes, more. (HBO Video).

The 4400: The Third Season. Four-disc set with 13 episodes, $42.99. Extras: Commentary by cast and filmmakers, three featurettes. (Paramount).

From Other Worlds (2004) Cara Buono, Isaach De Bankole. Sci Fi comedy about a lonely housewife who teams with an African immigrant to fight UFOs and save the earth. Extras: Commentary, Carla Buono audition. (BFS Entertainment & Multimedia Ltd.).

Graveyard Alive (2003) Anne Day-Jones, Samantha Slan, Karl Gerhardt. Horror comedy about a dowdy nurse transformed into a flesh-eating sex kitten by a zombie-infected woodsman. Extras: Commentary. (BFS Entertainment & Multimedia Ltd.).

McLeod's Daughters: The Complete Second Season. Six-disc set with 22 episodes; $59.98. (Koch Vision).

Mrs. Doubtfire Behind-the-Seams Edition (1993) Dir.: Chris Columbus; Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, Harvey Fierstein, Matthew Lawrence, Mara Wilson. Two-disc set. Extras: New interviews with Williams, deleted scenes, alternate scenes, "From Man to Mrs.: The Evolution of Mrs. Doubtfire" featurette, "Aging Gracefully: A Look Back at Mrs. Doubtfire" featurette, "A Conversation With Legendary Animator Chuck Jones," "Makeup Application With Ve Neill" featurette, "The Improvisation of Mrs. Doubtfire," behind-the-scenes photo gallery, original animation pencil test, final animation sequence with alternate backgrounds, makeup photo gallery, makeup tests, original 1993 featurette, more. (Fox).

Music and Lyrics (2007) Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore, Brad Garrett, Kristen Johnston, Haley Bennett, Aasif Mandvi, Campbell Scott. (Warner).

Night of the Werewolf (El Retorno Del Hombre Lobo) (1980 -- Spain) Cult film from Spain's legendary star-director Paul Naschy. Extras: Introduction by Naschy, still and advertising galleries, alternate scenes, extensive liner notes from Naschy expert Mirek Lipinski. (Deimos/BCI Eclipse).

The Painted Veil (2006) Naomi Watts, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Toby Jones. (Warner).

Seven Spiritual Laws of Success (2007) Based on the inspirational New York Times best-seller by the renowned doctor and scholar Deepak Chopra, $19.98. (Fox)

638 Ways to Kill Castro (2006 -- TV) Documentary on the hundreds of alleged plots to assassinate Fidel Castro, and a look at the evolution of Cuban politics. Extras: Interviews with director Dollan Cannell; former president Jimmy Carter; Miami detective Luis Posada Carriles (the 1976 Cubana airline atrocity); Ricardo Alarcon, president of the Cuban National Assembly; Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Miami Congresswoman; Tom Parrott, ex-CIA; Richard Goodwin, aide to president John F. Kennedy; Otto Reich, Cuban-American politician. (BCI Eclipse).

Starhunter: The Complete Series. Four-disc set with 22 episodes, $29.99. (Echo Bridge Home Entertainment).

The System Within(2006) Tariq Alexander, Chingy, Hawthorne James, Bryce Eilson, Kim Poter. A corrupt government, greed and jealousy topple a top fashion model. (First Look Home Entertainment).

That '70s Show Season Six. Four-disc set with 25 episodes, $49.98. Extras: Commentary on select episodes, "A '70s Flashback: Debra Jo Rupp" featurette, "A '70s Flashback: Kurtwood Smith" featurette, "Six Minutees of Season Six" featurette. (Fox).

Things to Do (2006) Mike Stasko, Daniel Wilson. When a 25-year-old man abruptly leaves his mundane city office job and returns to his childhood suburban home, he reunites with an eccentric high school acquaintance and embarks on a wacky path of personal growth, seting out to complete a "Things To Do" list, a collection of bizarre aspirations plucked from the gaps of an incomplete adolescence. (LifeSize Entertainment).

To Catch a Thief (1955) Dir.: Alfred Hitchcock; Cary Grant, Grace Kelly. Digital transfer from the 8-perf VistaVision elements. Extras: Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich and DVD producer Laurent Bouzereau, "Writing and Casting To Catch a Thief," The Making of To Catch a Thief," "Alfred Hitchcock and To Catch a Thief: An Appreciation," "Edith Head: The Paramount Years." (Paramount).

Tom Hanks Promotion: Big Extended Edition (1988) Dir.: Penny Marshall; Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Robert Loggia, John Heard, Jared Rushton, David Moscow, Jon Lovitz, Mercedes Ruehl. Two-disc set with extended cut with 25 additional minutes. Extras: Commentary by writers Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg; deleted scenes; extended scenes; "Backstory: Big" featurette; "Carnival Party Newswrap" vignette; "Big Beginnings" featurette; "Chemistry of a Classic" documentary; "The Work of Play" featurette. (Fox).

Tom Hanks Promotion: That Thing You Do Tom Hanks' Extended Cut (1996) Dir.: Tom Hanks; Tom Everett Scott, Liv Tyler, Johnathon Schaech, Steve Zahn, Ethan Embry, Tom Hanks, Charlize Theron, Obba Babatunde, Giovanni Ribisi, Alex Rocco, Peter Scolari, Rita Wilson, Chris Isaak. Two-disc set with extended cut with 39 additional minutes. Extras: "Making That Thing You Do" featurette, "The Story of the Wonders" featurette, "That Thing You Do" reunion, "The Wonders - Big in Japan" featurette, HBO First Look "The Making of That Thing You Do," "That Thing You Do" title song submission featurette. (Fox).

Vengeance of the Zombies (La Rebelion De Las Muertas) (1972 -- Spain) Cult film from Spain's legendary star-director Paul Naschy. Extras: Introduction by Naschy, still and advertising galleries, alternate scenes, extensive liner notes from Naschy expert Mirek Lipinski. (Deimos/BCI Eclipse).

The Waltons: Season Five. Five-disc set with 24 episodes, $39.98. (Warner).

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

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