Published December 08, 2005. Harakiri Directed by: Masaki Kobayashi (Paradox/Criterion) Masaki Kobayashi’s 1962 moral drama avoids (even criticizes) the epic scale inherent in samurai films. Yet it’s thrilling and involving in ways that few straight genre films accomplish. Harakiri?the Japanese term for ritual suicide?has a scene of extended violence of such sobriety it really succeeded […]
Mark Palermo
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Pirates
PiratesDirected by: Joone(Digital Playground)Ray Harryhausen-style effects are incorporated into this adventure film, a cash-in on Pirates of the Caribbean mania. Except it’s also a porno. Does it work as a “real movie”? Its story is amusing, though the production values veer closely to an episode of The Adventures of Sinbad. Director Joone’s thing for tall […]
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The Wizard of Oz: Collector’s Edition
Published December 08, 2005. The Wizard of Oz: Collector’s Edition Directed by: Victor Fleming (Warner) The movie seen by everyone who’s ever seen a movie receives another DVD treatment. But this extensive collection has the feel of something ultimate. The third disc of extras, with Oz films that predate this one, is the most enticing. […]
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Jules and Jim
Published August 25, 2005. Jules and Jim Directed by: Francois Truffaut (Criterion) Francois Truffaut wrote one of the key manifestos on which the Auteur Theory was born. When the former film critic for Cahiers du cinema put some of his theories into effect on Jules and Jim (1962), the result was an integral work of […]
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Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Volume 1
Published December 08, 2005. Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection Volume 1 Directed by: Mike Judge, Yvette Kaplan (Paramount) The first collection of the Beavis and Butt-Head cartoons that creator Mike Judge hasn’t deemed too embarrassing to release is a nostalgic trip back 10 years, enforcing that despite the dim duo’s media saturation, the […]
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Night on Earth
Night on EarthDirected by: Jim JarmuschCriterionThe most unfairly neglected of Jim Jarmusch’s films, it hasn’t the indie cache of his early stuff (Stranger than Paradise, Down by Law) or the aging-hipster appeal of later works (Ghost Dog, Broken Flowers). This series of taxi encounters around the planet ranges from haunted (Paris) to zany (Rome) to […]
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Dune: Extended Edition
Dune: Extended EditionDirected by: David Lynch(Universal)David Lynch turned down Return of the Jedi for this adaptation of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic. Herbert’s novel proved too dense for two-and-a-half hours, and critics in 1984 were as offended by idiosyncratic commercial films as they are now (note Dune’s film school faux pas of multiple narrators). But the […]
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Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle
Published December 08, 2005. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle Directed by: Danny Leiner (New Line) The college sex comedy meets the buddy road movie, handled with a mounting insanity that’s a step away from being a horror film. Danny Leiner’s one-night adventure of Chinese and East Indian best buds on a trek for […]
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Point Break: Pure Adrenaline Edition
Point Break: Pure Adrenaline EditionDirected by: Kathryn Bigelow(Fox)So many titles have now hit DVD that 2006 has been more notable as a year for rereleases with new features. It also gives you a second chance to pick up Point Break. Kathryn Bigelow, one of the best action directors of the ’80s and ’90s, gives this […]
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Blade Runner
Blade RunnerDirected by: Ridley ScottWarnerFans have been anticipating a special edition DVD of Blade Runner since the format’s introduction. Now that it will be available December 18, the goods are almost overwhelming. You can choose between four discs with four versions of the film, five discs with five versions (packaged in a briefcase with a […]
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F For Fake
F For FakeDirected by: Orson Welles(The Criterion Collection)Half the challenge of discussing Orson Welles’ last completed film F For Fake is pinpointing what it is. “An essay documentary,” is how Welles’ friend, director Peter Bogdanovich classifies it. Things get complicated pretty fast. A good portion of F For Fake is lifted from a documentary on […]
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The Bela Lugosi Collection
Published December 08, 2005. The Bela Lugosi Collection Directed by: Edgar G. Ulmer (Universal) All substance, no gristle. The Bela Lugosi Collection has a couple of trailers, but that’s it as far as extras go. What it offers is five movies for about $5 each. Three of them (Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Black […]
