Articles Index

Napoleon Dynamite Special Edition - Selected DVD Bonus Features
Selected bonus features on the Napoleon Dynamite Special Edition DVD.

DVD Profile: King Kong Two-Disc Special Edition
King Kong (2005), a remake of the 1933 classic, was directed by Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings), and Naomi Watts takes the role played by Fay Wray in the original. The remake boasts greatly improved special effects and runs an hour and 20 minutes longer, but the story remains essentially the same. The movie won Academy Awards for sound, sound editing and visual effects. Read an in-depth profile of the King Kong Two-Disc Special Edition DVD.

DVD Profile: Memoirs of a Geisha
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) is a gorgeous-looking, Hollywoodized period piece that was nominated for six Academy Awards and won three: Cinematography, Art Direction and Costume Design. It features high production values and three beautiful Asian actresses (Ziyi Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li) portraying geishas. The key male character is a businessman played by Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai). The movie was directed by Rob Marshall (Chicago).

DVD Preview: "Pride & Prejudice"
The Pride & Prejudice is worth watching for the entertainment value of the movie itself, but the DVD comes with a few bonus materials. Read a profile and preview of Pride & Prejudice on DVD.

DVD Profile: "Cinderella Man"
Russell Crowe, Renée Zellweger and Paul Giamatti star in "Cinderella Man," an entertaining biopic about boxing great James J. Braddock. Crowe plays Braddock, Zellweger portrays his wife and Giamatti plays his manager. Find out about "Cinderella Man" on DVD

DVD Profile: "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith"
Star Wars Episode III - Revenge of the Sith is the follow-on to Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and the prequel to the original 1977 "Star Wars" movie. On November 1, 2005, two DVD editions of "Sith" were released—a widescreen edition and a full-screen edition. Both are two-disc sets, and they are the same except for the aspect ratio of the feature film. Read a profile of Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith on DVD.

Profile: "Crank Yankers - Season One Uncensored" DVD
Although I found Crank Yankers - Season One Uncensored on DVD to be hilarious, I also considered it a bit of a guilty pleasure because of the low-brow nature of the humor. Of course I wasn’t expecting anything too sophisticated here, given that the show consists of puppets making a variety of crank calls that definitely live up to the “uncensored” part of this two-disc DVD set's title.

DVD Profile: "The Sound of Music" 40th Anniversary Edition
Find out about the "The Sound of Music" 40th Anniversary Edition on DVD. This feature includes a DVD profile and detailed information about what's on the DVDs.

Interview: Jeff Dowd and "The Big Lebowski"
Joel and Ethan Coen's hilarious comedy "The Big Lebowski," which stars Jeff Bridges and John Goodman, came out in 1998 and became something of a cult favorite. In it, Bridges plays a memorable character called Jeff "the Dude" Lebowski who is based loosely on a colorful guy named Jeff Dowd. I spoke with him in connection with the DVD release of the Widescreen Collector's Edition of "The Big Lebowski."

DVD Profile: "The Aviator"
Directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, The Aviator was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won five. The movie is a biopic about Howard Hughes. The Aviator begins in 1927 and covers Hughes's glory years up through 1947. During these years, Hughes made movies like Hell's Angels and "The Outlaw. The Aviator also chronicles some of Hughes's romantic relationships, including one with Katharine Hepburn and another with Ava Gardner.

Profile: "Team America: World Police" DVD
Trey Parker and Matt Stone, creators of South Park, spoof action movies in Team America World Police, a comedy whose characters are puppets. Read a profile of Team America World Police on DVD.

Profile: "Battle of the Bulge" DVD
Battle of the Bulge is a World War II combat movie that stars Henry Fonda and Robert Shaw. There are several other well-known actors in the cast, including Robert Ryan, Dana Andrews, Telly Savalas, and Charles Bronson. The film is a big-budget extravaganza that uses plenty of vintage German and American military uniforms and equipment, particularly tanks. Read a profile of Battle of the Bulge on DVD.

Profile: "Hotel Rwanda" DVD
Hotel Rwanda is an inspirational movie that takes on the important subject of genocide and features a terrific performance by Don Cheadle. Read an in-depth profile of the movie Hotel Rwanda on DVD.

Profile: "Sideways" DVD
Sideways was nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director, and it received the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. Read a DVD profile of the movie Sideways.

Profile: "The Incredibles" DVD
Winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, The Incredibles is a slam-bang action-adventure family movie that contains lots of humor, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment has released it on DVD as a 2-disc Collector's Edition loaded with extras. Actually, The Incredibles is available on DVD as two separate products, one with the feature film in widescreen, the other with the movie in full-screen. However, the bonus materials and special features of the two products are identical.

Profile: "Raging Bull" Special Edition DVD
Martin Scorsese's "Raging Bull" (1980) is arguably the greatest American biopic ever made. It's a character study based on the life of boxer Jake La Motta from 1941 to 1964, and Robert De Niro won the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of the professional prizefighter.

"Ray" DVD
Nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Jamie Foxx), and Best Director (Taylor Hackford), "Ray" has been a hit both with critics and at the box office. Effective February 1, 2005, this biopic about legendary musical entertainer Ray Charles is available on DVD.

"Nurse Betty" DVD
About the movie Nurse Betty on DVD.

"Bedazzled" (2000) DVD
About the movie Bedazzled on DVD.

Profile: "Garden State" DVD
I thoroughly enjoyed Garden State when I watched it on DVD. I got a lot of chuckles out of this heartfelt, slightly offbeat little comedy that was written and directed by Zach Braff. Braff also plays the lead in the movie, and Natalie Portman takes the role of his love interest. Find out more about the release of this movie on DVD

"Garden State"
What's on the Garden State DVD.

“Collateral” DVD Details
The DVD details for the movie Collateral.

Profile: "Spider-Man 2" DVD
About the movie Spider-Man 2 on DVD.

Profile: "The Hebrew Hammer" DVD
About the movie The Hebrew Hammer on DVD.

Profile: "Strangers With Candy - Season Three" DVD
I thoroughly enjoyed Strangers With Candy - Season Three on DVD and found that it was laugh-out-loud funny throughout. I particularly liked the way it imaginatively mixed outrageous, often politically incorrect humor with tongue-in-cheek melodrama as it spoofed after school TV specials and other television shows that put too cloyingly sweet a spin on high-school life.

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