honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, July 11, 2008

The Iraq war film you'll want to see again

By Bruce Dancis
McClatchy-Tribune News Service

  • "Stop-Loss"

    Paramount Home Entertainment, rated R

    One of the more powerful movies to come out of the Iraq war, this drama is about two friends (Ryan Phillippe and Channing Tatum) who enlist together and fight in Iraq, only to discover when they return home that they've been ordered to serve beyond their original terms.

    Director Kimberly Peirce provides an audio commentary with co-writer Mark Richard.

  • "Batman Begins"

    One and two discs, Warner Home Video, PG-13

    Coinciding with the July 18 debut of "The Dark Knight," director Christopher Nolan's 2005 film, which introduced Christian Bale as Batman/Bruce Wayne, is out in three new DVD editions.

    A Blu-ray Hi-Def Limited Edition Gift Set comes with a 32-page booklet, a "Dark Knight" prologue featuring the first six minutes of the forthcoming film, script pages, story boards and collectible postcards. A Blu-ray Hi-Def version includes "The Dark Night" prologue, and a standard-definition Limited Edition Gift Set comes with postcards and more.

  • "Mon Oncle Antoine"

    Two discs, Criterion Collection, not rated

    Often cited as one of the greatest Canadian films of all time, Claude Jutra's 1971 drama portrays the coming of age of a young boy in rural Quebec during the 1940s. The movie has a restored, high-definition digital transfer supervised by cinematographer Michel Brault and bonus features including a 2007 documentary on the movie; a 2002 documentary, "Claude Jutra: An Unfinished Story," on the director.

  • "The X-Files Revelations"

    Two discs, Fox Home Entertainment, not rated

    With the new "X-Files: I Want To Believe" movie set for a July 25 opening, series creator Chris Carter has put together this DVD set, including eight episodes from the TV series' first six seasons with introductions by Carter and producer Frank Spotnitz about how they relate to the forthcoming movie.

    Bonus features include a panel discussion from February 2008 with Carter, Spotnitz and series stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson.

  • "Superhero Movie"

    Genius Products/The Weinstein Co., PG-13

    Yet another movie spoof, this one makes fun of "X-Men," "Spider-Man," "The Fantastic Four" and other adventures. It stars Drake Bell as an orphaned teenager who is bitten by a radioactive dragonfly, develops some super powers, etc.

    DVDs are available in both the original theatrical version and in an extended edition with deleted scenes.

  • "Cannon: Season One, Volume One"

    Four discs, CBS/Paramount Home Entertainment, not rated

    The deep-voiced William Conrad stars as atypical private investigator Frank Cannon in this TV series from 1971 to 1976. The clever Cannon, overweight and middle-aged, uses his lucrative earnings to finance his gourmet taste in food and the high-priced cars he often drives in high-speed chases.

    Twelve first-season episodes of this Quinn Martin production are included here, along with episodic promos.