Recreated meticulously by director Gary Winick (“13 Going on 30”) and producer Jordan Kerner, "Charlotte’s Web" is the story about friendship, loyalty and sacrifice. The film’s cinematography is gorgeous, having been shot in Australia outside Melbourne. The computer-generated graphics melt finely with the real deal.
The DVD is packed with special features, including two commentaries, one with Winick, who clearly loves how this film turned out, the other with Kerner and visual effects supervisor John Andrew Berton Jr. (“I, Robot”) Viewers can meet the voices behind the characters in another featurette, including Julia Roberts (Charlotte), Thomas Haden Church (Brooks the crow), John Cleese (Samuel the sheep), Kathy Bates (Bitsy the cow) and Oprah Winfrey (Gussy the goose). It’s intriguing to hear about the film’s technical aspects, but also the real-life dealings with some 46 or 47 pigs that played “Some Pig” Wilbur.
Each was adopted by a place where the new owners promised to let the pigs live out their natural born lives unscathed (another movie featurette). There’s also a tremendous amount of emphasis on making White’s book true to the late author’s portrayal of a barn and the realism involved. That’s why Charlotte and Templeton the Rat (Steve Buscemi) look so real.
Although this film harkens back to 1995’s "Babe," this tale still remains based on a classic book that generations have read and will continue to read, and now view. (Enhanced widescreen, 2006, G) 
So far the most constant factor with Universal’s HD-DVD U-Control function is the lack of it – control, that is. Viewers should be able to access pop-up video clips at will while viewing a film.
This works better in theory than it does in “The Good Shepherd” (audio: ****, video: ****, extras: **). That’s a shame because this story about the birth of the CIA could use some background. Directed by Robert De Niro from a script by Eric Roth (“Munich,” “Ali”), it’s a long sit at nearly three hours.
The story is more John le Carre than Ian Fleming in essence and its strong cast – Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, Alec Baldwin, William Hurt and De Niro – has a lot to carry. Deleted scenes, available on both the HD-DVD and DVD combo disc, provide a subplot similar to the one that plays out in the film. We watch secrets twist the people who keep them, a story we’ve all seen before.
HD viewers should be able to access behind scenes footage, interviews and historical data through the U-Control. Unfortunately, this means you have to wade through the film, remote in hand, waiting for those little icons to appear. (Forget popcorn, unless you want a greasy remote.
) Once you click the icon, the pop-up takes over as the film shrinks and runs in the background. That’s when it works – some players don’t read these discs correctly and might require software upgrades. Pop-ups – that are on or off – are still the best way to go.
(HD widescreen enhanced widescreen, 2006, R for some violence, sexuality and language) 
When they disappear, Kellyanne (Sapphire Boyce) falls mysteriously ill. Her older brother, Ashmol (Christian Byers), decides to discover the true meaning behind Kellyanne’s friends for her family and for her town. The 86-minute movie is heartwarming with a tremendous theme about seeing and believing .
.. or not.
It’s too bad extra features couldn’t delve more into the screen writing of the piece and its casting. The young actors were fabulous, and it would have been that added bonus to find out more about them and the making-of the film. Nevertheless, this one is worth at least a rent for the family.
(Enhanced widescreen, 2005, PG for thematic elements, language and some violence) 
His characters live in secrets and use those secrets to help one another. The film is available in standard-def and high-def Blu-ray where vibrant locals, sets and fashions shine. There is plenty of color to be appreciated and Blu-ray makes the most of it.
Still, you won’t be disappointed by the DVD. Each disc carries the same extras. There are no English soundtracks here, only Spanish – but don’t let the fear of subtitles stop you from seeing an excellent film.
“Volver” won and was nominated for a variety of awards, including a Best Actress Oscar nomination for Penelope Cruz. Cruz is the young earth mother of the film, always working, always protective and loving – even as she cleans the blood from her kitchen floor. You will never look at paper towel commercials the same way after this.
In other hands, scenes might have become comic, even slapstick, but Almodóvar’s touch brings a smile. You will hear that smile in his voice during the commentary he shares with Cruz. “Volver” – translating to “come back” – was filmed in Almodóvar’s native area of La Mancha.
“The background is so flat, it forces you to use your imagination or go crazy,” he says in an interview, referencing Cervantes, another local writer who penned the immortal “Don Quixote.” (HD widescreen enhanced widescreen, 2006, R for some sexual content and language) Tweens and teens everywhere can "Push it to the Limit" with Disney’s release of "Jump In!: Freestyle Edition" (audio: ***½, video: ***½, extras: **).
A reminder: "High School Musical" popularity-wise it ain’t. The movie’s about an aspiring teen boxer Izzy Daniels (Corbin Bleu, "High School Musical") who discovers his attraction for Double Dutch and neighbor Mary (Keke Palmer, "Akeelah and the Bee"). Despite his father’s push for his son to become a pro boxer and other teens ribbing him for his sport of choice, Izzy comes through and helps his Double Dutch team rock the jump-rope world.
For a Disney release, this DVD is light on extras. It’ll only take about 15 minutes to get through them all. Of course, there’s music videos: "Jumpin’" performed by Keke Palmer, who plays Mary in the movie; "Vertical" by T-Squad, which played numerous times on the Disney Channel leading up to the flick’s debut.
The DVD also includes a brief behind-the-scenes look called "Inside the Ropes: The Making of ‘Jump In!’, and Bleu, Double Dutch instructor Chris Emerson and film actresses Shanika Knowles and Laivan Greene teaching viewers had to do some moves, including turning, jumping in, jumping out and some advanced tricks. Bottom line, practice makes perfect.
(Full-screen, 2007, TV-G) 
But this Chicken Little, voiced by Zach Braff (“Scrubs”), spins off the boy-who-cried-wolf. A piece of the sky falls, but no one believes him. After much trial and tribulation, the little chick with the big glasses lucks himself into a winning position – only to have another unbelievable sky-falling experience.
The story picks up towards the end, however, and both adults and children will enjoy the finale. Along with the great HD viewing, Disney has loaded the disc with all of the extras of the standard-def presentation, as well as a few new ones. New deleted scenes offer rough animation, music videos and an instant access to select scenes that highlight the HD picture and sound.
(HD widescreen, 2005, rated G) HBO's hilarious ensemble comedy about the ups and downs of life in Hollywood's fast lane. Change is the season's big theme as Ari (Jeremy Piven) starts his own agency, Vince (Adrian Grenier) watches his star rise with the release of "Aquaman," and Eric (Kevin Connolly) juggles two women. As always, "Entourage" has plenty of entertaining cameos.
James Cameron, Seth Green, Malcolm McDowell, Edward Burns, Martin Landau, and Mercedes Ruehl are all in fine form. But no one tops James Woods, playing himself, in one of the season's funniest bits. The only extras included in the three-disc set are three light weight but entertaining audio commentaries with creator Doug Ellion and actors Kevin Dillon (Drama )and Jerry Ferrara (Turtle) and a ten minute featurette promoting the episode set in Vegas.
Part 2 of Season Three begins on HBO on April 8th. Don't miss it. (Enhanced wide-screen, 2006, unrated) Holiday cheers!
Yeah, right. In “Black Christmas” (audio: ***, video: ***, extras: ***), cheers may not be the word. This remake of its 1974 underground classic is, for some, your basic slasher-killer-scare-us-out-of-our-wits movie … updated and redone with a good deal of sensationalism.
The plot involves mental patient Billy Lenz, who escapes from the institution and terrorizes a nearby sorority house full of young, hot women, and their housemother, who have not yet left the school for the Christmas holiday. Without going into all of the ways the women, and men who are unlucky enough, are killed, this horror flick brings to mind “Halloween” and “Scream.” And rightfully so, since the first “Black Christmas” came out years before either.
The movie stars Katie Cassidy, Oliver Hudson, Jessica Harmon and Andrea Martin as Ms. Mac, the house mother who explains how Billy killed his mother and stepfather after fathering his sister/daughter, whom he later attacked and is deranged as well. Twisted, huh?
I’ll say. The film, from the makers of the “Final Destination” series, includes extras such as three alternate endings (each of which are just as frightening as the one released in the theaters), several deleted scenes, a making-of featurette, “What Have You Done?: The Remaking of ‘Black Christmas,’” and “May All Your Christmases Be Black: A Filmmaker’s Journey.
” The most interesting featurette is the first, which shows the director of the first “Black Christmas” discussing the part he played in the remake, and how he felt happy about the way the new one turned out. All in all, this is a good, scary film. Pass the popcorn and turn on the lights.
(Enhanced widescreen, 2006, not rated, but there is language and sexual matter not recommended for children.) 
Hang on to your hats, adventure lovers – here comes the “Errol Flynn: Signature Collection Volume 2” (audio: ***, video: ****, extras: ****). Look for five more great films from a Hollywood icon, plus a fine variety of extras including “Warner Night at the Movies” intros, award winning short subjects, galleries, cartoons and more.
“The Adventures of Don Juan” (1948), a delightful period piece, includes the sole commentary of the set from the film’s director, Vincent Sherman, and historian Rudy Behlmer. “Don Juan” was an on-again, off-again project for a number of years. Period films had been shelved during World War II, since the foreign market was all but lost to fighting.
Once the war was over, Warner decided it was time to broach the castles again. Who better to bring the famed lover to life than Flynn? Aside from the costumes and derring-do, Flynn plays Don Juan with a generous dash of humor.
It had been eight years since “The Sea Hawk,” and he knew how to poke fun at himself, Behlmer tells us. He also knew how to wear a costume, engage in swordplay and deliver a speech. “Dive Bomber” (1941) gives Flynn a chance to act against character as a flight medical researcher while Fred MacMurray gets the action as a squadron commander.
Michael Curtiz, of “Casablanca,” directs from a script co-written by aviation pioneer Frank Wead. A new making-of featurette, “Dive Bomber: Keep ‘Em in the Air,” offers vintage footage. Again directed by Cutiz, “The Charge of the Light Brigade” (1936) pairs Flynn and a favorite lady co-star, Olivia de Havilland, in a historical piece based on Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem.
Those who have enjoyed Frank Miller’s “300” might want to look into this death defying charge: “Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward/All in the valley of Death/Rode the six hundred.” Yes, it might be tame by today’s standards of gore, but the heroic moment is still there. Flynn had one of his favorite roles as “Gentleman Jim” (1942), the challenger to heavyweight champ John L.
Sullivan. He never shied away from the physical aspects of his roles and this was no exception. Ward Bond – the old wagon master of TV’s “Wagon Train – is the flamboyant Sullivan.
Vintage shorts include “Shoot Yourself Some Golf” with Ronald Reagan. Last but never least is “The Dawn Patrol” (1938) where Flynn co-stars with Basil Rathbone, David Niven and Donald Crisp. Flynn and Niven are young World War I British flyboys in this classic.
The stunning dogfights, the horrors of war - it’s a story that still works. (All: full-screen, not rated) John Stockwell had made a career out of putting gorgeous young woman into tiny bikinis. Teenage boys must love this because his DVDs rent and sell extremely well.
"Blue Crush" (featuring Kate Bosworth in a bikini) and "Into the Blue" (featuring Jessica Alba in a bikini) are male fantasy pictures with long, lingering shots of tan female bodies and rear ends. In “Turistas” (audio: ***, video: ***, extras: **1/2) Stockwell has decided that beautiful girls in bikinis is no longer enough. He'd also like to see them get cut up.
Of course, what else do you expect to happen when a busload of tourists in Brazil crashes near a beach paradise secretly run by monstrous doctors looking to steal their internal organs for profit? Obviously, this isn't a great film. But Stockwell packs one unforgettable chase sequence into the movie set in an underwater caves that nearly salvages this one from oblivion.
The film is available on one flipper disc with the theatrical R-rated cut on one side and the gorier unrated version on the other. The extra footage involves a very conscious young woman in a bikini getting her kidneys removed. The R-rated version of the film includes an audio commentary by Stockwell and producer Kent Kubena who discuss shooting on location in Brazil and point out how many of the special effects were accomplished.
Deleted scenes, an alternate ending, and a short featurtte about the make up effects are also included. (Enhanced widescreen full-screen, 2006, unrated and R for strong graphic violence and disturbing content, sexuality, nudity, drug use and language) Who cares if the intricate, multilayered storyline eventually collapsed under the weight of its own cleverness? The small-town supernatural mystery “Twin Peaks: The Complete Second Season” (audio: ***, video: ***, extras: *1/2) played like a fever dream that you were too embarrassed to tell your parents about, or even your best friend.
It's one of the most original television experiences ever created, courtesy of the wonderfully demented mind of co-creator David Lynch ("Blue Velvet," "Mulholland Drive"), and the hauntingly original score by Angelo Badalamenti. During the years between the DVD releases of seasons one and two, when the rights to the show were apparently tied up, the producers were busy rounding up show participants for interviews. Lynch's daughter, Jessica, divulges how she was given free reign to write Laura Palmer's diary, which figures prominently in the season, and how she was told who Palmer's killer was early on (rebutting the popular theory that the writers were making it up as they went).
Episode directors also enthuse about their creative freedoms. Caleb Deschanel suggested the flashback of brothers Ben and Jerry as children (trivia note: director David Fincher's sister dances in the background). And Todd Holland, who also added his own, Fincher-like beginning to the beginning of an episode, asserts how ongoing storylines in TV shows such as "Lost" owe a debt of gratitude to this groundbreaking series.
He's right. (Full-screen, 1990-1991, not rated, but adult themes and scary elements) “The Lost Room” (audio: ***, video: ***, extras: *), which aired on the Sci Fi Channel is, well, deep. The series involves a motel room and about a hundred ordinary objects from that room the posses unusual powers, a comb that freezes time, a key that unlocks doorways through time and space.
The whole deal begins with The Event, which is the exact moment in time that the Lost Room was created, May 4, 1961, at 1:20 p.m. This is explained by one faction that says this is the result of reunification – that the objects are portions of God’s mind and body.
(Told you the show was deep.) The other premise is that reality was shattered when the room was created, and that person who would come to possess the objects would have control over reality. THERE!
So now we come to Detective Joe Miller (Peter Krause of “Six Feet Under”) whose daughter gets lost inside the room. Miller sets out to get his daughter back while tracking down the objects, starting with the key. Julianna Marguiles also stars in this show.
Truthfully, you have to watch the whole thing in order to understand it. (And then, you might have to go back to a point to watch it again.) The only extra offered with this two-disc set by LionsGate is a behind-the-scenes “Inside the Lost Room” featurette.
Check it out. It could twist your mind around. And back again!
(Enhanced widescreen, 2007, not rated) Once upon a time, there were just two components to addictive primetime drama: the police who investigate the crimes and the district attorneys who prosecute them. “Law Order: The Fifth Year” (audio: **, video: **, extras: *) perfected this formula in 1994-95 with Chris Noth in his final season as Detective Mike Logan before he headed off for Big-ger things on HBO’s “Sex and the City.” The series, now available in anamorphic widescreen, has riveting plot twists without the flashy forensic science or hackneyed interrogation of later incarnations of the show.
Guest stars include Laura Linney, Edie Falco and Sarah Paulson. The 23-episode, five-disc set is slim on extras, featuring only “America’s Top Sleuths,” a flawed top 10 list of TV detectives that includes Gil Grissom of “CSI” but leaves off Andy Sipowicz of “NYPD Blue.” But the set doesn’t need special features or “Criminal Intent” or “Special Victims” to be solid.
It has the comfortingly crusty quips of Detective Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and the courtroom posturing of Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) to keep fans coming back, no matter how ubiquitous the show has become. Despite the hype surrounding musical theater and film, there are only a handful of people who can create genuine razzle-dazzle. Bob Fosse is at the head of that list.
(You know he wrote “Chicago,” right?) There is no one who captures the eye — or the id — as well. But you can see for yourself in “All That Jazz: Special Musical Edition” (audio: ***, video: ***, extras: ****).
And what an ego! Written and directed by Fosse himself, the story is based on the choreographer’s life. Roy Scheider plays Joe Gideon/Bob Fosse in a bravura performance that earned him a Best Actor nomination.
Outstanding co-stars include Jessica Lange, Leland Palmer, Ann Reinking and Erzsebet Foldi as the Angel of Death, Ex-Wife, Lover and Daughter — Gideon’s great loves. There are terrific musical sequences here from the opening “Cattle Call” scene where hundreds of dance gypsies audition to George Benson’s “On Broadway,” to the “Bye-Bye Life” finale. The in-your-face sensuality of “Air Otica/Come Fly With Us” still drops jaws.
It is classic Fosse. Extras offer a featurette on the making of “On Broadway.” The film won an Oscar for Best Film Editing.
This is a great example, and you can pick up pointers in the commentary by film editor Alan Heim. “Portrait of a Choreographer” provides interviews with folks who worked with Fosse. You can also “Movie-Oke” along to “Come Fly With Us.
” (Enhanced widescreen, 1979, R for adult situations, sensuality, drug use and some nudity) “The Mind of Mencia: Uncensored Season 2” (audio ***, video ***, extras ***) is hilarious. Carlos Mencia, for Comedy Central, tackles race, sex, religion, politics likes nobody else. He picks, or should we say CONTINUES TO PICK, on EVERYONE!
Basically, the show picks up where the first season ended, which is good for Mencia fans, as there is not the sometimes-watered-down method of changing the groove from season to season … which doesn’t always work. But Mencia’s season 2 (uncensored) works. “You think it, he says it,” according to many who speak of the standup comedian, who’s based in Los Angeles.
The extras of this two-disc boxed set are good to go, too. With about a half-hour of uncensored material: outtakes, bloopers and deleted scenes, we see how demented this man’s mind really can be. At the end of each episode on the DVD set is Mencia often going on with a skit or part of his monologue that, frankly, would be too racy for even his own TV show.
Funny stuff, but not for the feint of heart. As a matter of fact, MOST of the Mencia’s material cannot be printed here. The man is funny, though.
Straight up. And as he puts it, “If you ain’t laughin’, you ain’t living.” (Full screen, 2006, parental advisory for explicit content) "Full House" (audio: ***, video: ***, extras: 0) is back on DVD with its sixth season.
This season sees eldest Tanner daughter, D.J. (Candace Cameron), getting a boyfriend, father Danny Tanner (Bob Saget) proposing to his girlfriend in a two-episode season finale filmed at Disney World and the twins of Becky (Lori Loughlin) and Jesse (John Stamos) turning into tiny Elvis impersonators.
"Full House," in its sixth season, remains an upbeat show about family and family values, love, respect and lessons learned. If you’re a fan, it’s a must have for solid episodes with corny Joey (Dave Coulier) jokes and impersonations and Michelle Tanner (Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen) one-liners. Don’t own it for the extras.
There aren’t any.
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