Having problems with message search?
******************************
ONVIDEO E-MAIL NEWS
******************************
4/14/09 V13.15
This is an automated mail list; please do not reply to this
e-mail. Messages should be sent to mail@...
ONVIDEO'S WEEKLY GUIDE TO HOME VIDEO RELEASES
For Tuesday, April 7 -- Monday, April 13
Reader, The
Deeply moving film opens in post-WWII Germany, when teenager Michael Berg becomes ill and is helped home by Hanna, a stranger twice his age. Michael recovers from scarlet fever and seeks out Hanna to thank her. The two are quickly drawn into a passionate but secretive affair. Michael discovers that Hanna loves being read to and their physical relationship deepens. Hanna is enthralled as Michael reads to her from "The Odyssey," "Huck Finn" and "The Lady With the Little Dog."" Despite their intense bond, Hanna mysteriously disappears one day and Michael is left confused and heartbroken. Eight years later, while Michael is a law student observing the Nazi war crime trials, he is stunned to find Hanna back in his life -- this time as a defendant in the courtroom. As Hanna's past is revealed, Michael uncovers a deep secret that will impact both of their lives. "The Reader" is a haunting story about truth and reconciliation, about how one generation comes to terms with the crimes of another. Vitals: Director: Stephen Daldry. Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Kate Winslet, Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Maria Lara, Linda Bassett, David Kross, Karoline Herfurth, Jeanette Hain. 2008, CC, MPAA rating: R, 123 min., Drama, Box office gross: $19.0 million, The Weinstein Co.
Spirit, The
Adapted from the legendary comic strip. Classic story of a former rookie cop who returns mysteriously from the dead as the "Spirit" (Gabriel Macht) to fight crime from the shadows of Central City. His arch-enemy, the Octopus (Samuel L. Jackson) has a different mission: he's going to wipe out Spirit's beloved city as he pursues his own version of immortality. The Spirit tracks this cold-hearted killer from Central City's rundown warehouses, to the damp catacombs, to the windswept waterfront ... all the while facing a bevy of beautiful women who either want to seduce, love or kill the masked crusader. Surrounding him at every turn are Ellen Dolan (Sarah Paulson), the whip-smart girl-next-door; Silken Floss (Scarlett Johansson), a punk secretary and frigid vixen; Plaster of Paris (Paz Vega), a murderous French nightclub dancer; Lorelei (Jaime King), a phantom siren; and Morgenstern (Stana Katic), a sexy young cop. Then of course, there's Sand Saref (Eva Mendes), the jewel thief with dangerous curves. She's the love of his life turned bad. Will he save her or will she kill him? Vitals: Director: Frank Miller. Stars: Gabriel Macht, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendes, Paz Vega, Jaime King, Sarah Paulson, Stana Katic, Johnny Simmons. 2008, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 108 min., Action Adventure, Box office gross: $10.8 million, Lionsgate.
---------------------------------------------------------
NEWS
Just Announced:
The chase is on June 9 as spy thriller "The International," starring
Clive Owen and Naomi Watts and directed by Tom Tykwer ("Run, Lola,
Run"), arrives on DVD and Blu-ray from Sony. Bonus features include
deleted scenes, director and screenwriter commentary and four
behind-the-scenes featurettes. The plot centers on an obsessive
Interpol agent (Owen) who spearheads an investigation into one of the
world's most high-profile and powerful banking institutions in an
attempt to expose them for worldwide arms brokering, corruption and
murder. Watts plays a Manhattan assistant district attorney who
partners with the agent to take down the institution.
"House of Saddam" (2008) is an HBO miniseries that explores the inner workings of Saddam Hussein's family and his relationship with his closest advisers, from HBO Home Entertainment ... "Intelligence, Season 2" (2007) is a four-disc set with the 12 concluding episodes of the award-winning crime drama in the vein of "The Wire"; available to U.S. audiences for the first time; $59.99 from Acorn Media ... "Knots Landing: The Complete Second Season" (1980-81) is a four-disc set with 18 episodes; $39.98 from Warner.
Buzzin' the 'B's:
A rugged detective must crack an ancient ninja cult before they unleash a mysterious weapon on the unsuspecting world in "Mask of the Ninja"
(2008), starring Casper Van Dien, Kristy Wu, Anthony Wong and Robert
Gant, from Genius Products ... Two years after their loved ones were
murdered in obsessive rage, the survivors of the tragedy are dragged
into a horrific psychological breakdown ... and blood soaked plan for
revenge in "November Son" (2008), a gay horror thriller film from Ariztical Entertainment ... "Teen Boxer (AKA Kickboxing Academy)"
(1997) is a steamy martial arts actioner set in Miami Beach notable for
the fact that the romantic interests are brother and sister in real
life, starring Chyler Leigh, Christopher Khayman Lee and Steven Bauer,
from Infinity Entertainment/Retromedia Entertainment ... James Caan,
Christopher Lambert, Catherine McCormack and Burt Young star in "North Star" (1986), a Western set during the Alaskian Gold Rush in the 1880s, from Warner.
Special Interest:
All things British this week: "Lost in Austen"
(2008) is a British four-part miniseries that puts a modern spin on
Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice": A bored and frustrated modern-day
Londoner who longs for the old-fashioned world of courtship and romance
is whisked into the 19th century via a time portal and switches places
with the novel's central character, Elizabeth Bennet; from Image
Entertainment ... "The Ruth Rendell Mysteries Set 4"
is a two-disc set with two Inspector Wexford mysteries based on the
fiction of bestselling British crime-writer Ruth Rendell; $39.99 from
Acorn Media ... "She Fell Among Thieves" is a classic
BBC drama that aired as the first episode of Mystery! on PBS in 1980.
Malcolm McDowell and Eileen Atkins are perfect foils in this British
drama set in a Pyrenees chateau in the 1920s. McDowell plays the
gallant Richard Chandos, a vacationing English gentleman who must pit
his wits against the evil Vanity Fair (Atkins) and her motley band of
assorted criminals; $39.99 from Acorn Media.
THIS WEEK'S DVD RELEASES:
Intelligence, Season 2 (2007) Four-disc set with 12 concluding episodes of the award-winning crime drama in the vein of "The Wire"; available to U.S. audiences for the first time. The series focuses on the uneasy alliance between Vancouver's chief intelligence officer and the city's most successful drug boss, probing the high-stakes world of international crime and espionage, complete with murderers, moles, and call girls. $59.99. (Acorn Media).
Knots Landing: The Complete Second Season (1980-81) Four-disc set with 18 episodes, $39.98. (Warner).
Lost in Austen (2008) British four-part miniseries puts a modern spin on Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice": A bored and frustrated modern-day Londoner who longs for the old-fashioned world of courtship and romance is whisked into the 19th century via a time portal and switches places with the novel's central character, Elizabeth Bennet. (Image Entertainment).
Mask of the Ninja (2008) Casper Van Dien, Kristy Wu, Anthony Wong, Robert Gant A rugged detective must crack an ancient ninja cult before they unleash a mysterious weapon on the unsuspecting world. (Genius Products).
North Star(1986) James Caan, Christopher Lambert, Catherine McCormack, Burt Young. Western set during the Alaskian Gold Rush in the 1880s. (Warner).
November Son (2008) Judith
O'Dea, Brinke Stevens, Sacha Sacket, Lloyd Pedersen. Two years after
their loved ones were murdered in obsessive rage, the survivors are
dragged into a horrific psychological breakdown...and blood soaked plan
for revenge. A gay horror film. (Ariztical Entertainment).
The Ruth Rendell Mysteries Set 4. Two-disc set with two Inspector Wexford mysteries based on the fiction of bestselling British crime-writer Ruth Rendell. $39.99. Extras: "Super Sleuths: Inspector Wexford," a documentary featuring George Baker; and Ruth Rendell biography. (Acorn Media).
She Fell Among Thieves (1980) Malcolm McDowell, Eileen Atkins, Michael Jayston. Classic BBC drama, that aired as the first episode of Mystery! on PBS in 1980. Malcolm McDowell and Eileen Atkins are perfect foils in this British drama set in a Pyrenees chateau in the 1920s. McDowell plays the gallant Richard Chandos, a vacationing English gentleman who must pit his wits against the evil Vanity Fair (Atkins) and her motley band of assorted criminals. $39.99. (Acorn Media).
The Spirit (2008) Dir.: Frank Miller; Gabriel Macht, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendes, Paz Vega, Jaime King, Sarah Paulson, Stana Katic, Johnny Simmons. Also available on Blu-ray Disc. (Lionsgate).
Teen Boxer (AKA Kickboxing Academy) (1997) Chyler Leigh, Christopher Khayman Lee, Steven Bauer. Steamy martial arts actioner set in Miami Beach notable for the fact that the romantic intere
For more DVD info, check out our DVD calendar pages at
<http://www.onvideo.org/calendar/cal_dvd.htm>
------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright 2009 CyberPod. All rights reserved.
ISSN 1094-3676
An archive of past issues of the OnVideo E-Mail News can be found
at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/onvideoguide
Messages and missives: mail@...
Thanks to the Woo family of Culver City, Calif. and Leslie
Rigoulot for helping support this issue of the news.
Subscriptions to OnVideo E-Mail News are
free for the asking by sending an e-mail request to
onvideoguide-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
No subject or body text is required.
If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, you can
un-subscribe by sending an e-mail message to
onvideoguide-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
No subject or body text is required.
And don't forget to bookmark our major OnVideo Web site located
at http://www.onvideo.org
Offline 
Send Email