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Hamlet - Criterion Collection

Actors: Laurence Olivier, Peter Cushing, Eileen Herlie, Stanley Holloway, Esmond Knight
ASIN : 0780021312
Sales Rank : 8680
Director : Laurence Olivier
Brand : Image Entertainment
Studio : Criterion
Region Code : 1
Format : Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780780021310
ISBN : 0780021312
UPC : 037429128428
Release Date : December 19, 2000
Publisher : Criterion
Manufacturer : Criterion
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Criterion
Running Time : 155

Product Description

Studio: Image Entertainment Release Date: 09/19/2000 Run time: 155 minutes

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In the opening scene of Hamlet (1948), Laurence Olivier's voice-over describes the play as "the tragedy of a man who couldn't make up his mind." But Olivier's screen adaptation is considerably more thoughtful and complex than this thesis would suggest. Drawing on his experience playing the prince on stage at Elsinore in 1937, the legendary thespian provides the film with the patina of greatness and shows how the constitution of the formerly cheerful prince weakens increasingly under the burden of his own thoughts and inability to accept his mother's hasty marriage to uncle Claudius (Basil Sydney). As Ophelia, Jean Simmons captures the character's early spirit better than her gradual disintegration. Purists may bemoan the loss of Fortinbras, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern, but these choices allow Olivier to focus more squarely on Hamlet's plight. The winner of four Oscars^® (Best Picture, Actor, Art Direction, and Costumes), this is a Hamlet for the ages. The rest is silence. --Kevin Mulhall

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Mr. Destiny

Actors: James Belushi, Linda Hamilton, Michael Caine, Jon Lovitz, Hart Bochner
ASIN : B000068MC0
Sales Rank : 15877
Director : James Orr
Studio : Walt Disney Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0786936188325
UPC : 786936188325
Release Date : December 03, 2002
Publisher : Walt Disney Video
Manufacturer : Walt Disney Video
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Walt Disney Video
Running Time : 110

Description

Imagine if one day, out of the blue, your wildest dreams came true! That's exactly what happens to junior executive Larry Burrows (James Belushi -- TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS) when he bumps into a mysterious stranger (Michael Caine -- MISS CONGENIALITY, CIDER HOUSE RULES). Instantly, Larry's ho-hum life becomes his ultimate fantasy -- huge mansion, beautiful wife, cars galore. But before long, his new lifestyle isn't so enchanting. Ultimately, Larry discovers it's going to take a lot more than wishful thinking to get back to where he once belonged! Co-starring Linda Hamilton and comedian Jon Lovitz, MR. DESTINY is a delightful rags-to-riches comedy brimming with totally magical entertainment!

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Inventing the Abbotts

Actors: Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly, Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup, Will Patton
ASIN : B000056BSF
Sales Rank : 12198
Director : Pat O'Connor
Brand : Twentieth Century Fox
Studio : 20th Century Fox
Region Code : 1
Format : Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0024543012153
UPC : 024543012160
Release Date : December 13, 2001
Publisher : 20th Century Fox
Manufacturer : 20th Century Fox
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Label : 20th Century Fox
Running Time : 110

Description

Forbidden love and impossible dreams intertwine when the handsome working-class Holt brothers are drawn to the beautiful and wealthy Abbott sisters. Sparks fly, passion flare, and family loyalties are suddenly torn and tested against a small town backdrop of social boundaries and dark secrets. Starring Liv Tyler and an all-star cast including Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup and Jennifer Connelly, "Inventing the Abbotts" re-invents the trials and triumphs of coming of age in a time of innocence that was anything but.

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A showcase for bright young stars, Inventing the Abbotts aspires to be the kind of 1950s melodrama--like Splendor in the Grass--that was perfected by directors like Elia Kazan and Douglas Sirk. Calling on the strength of his earlier Circle of Friends, Irish director Pat O'Connor brings many of that film's admirable qualities to this similar ensemble piece (set in late-'50s Illinois), but it's held together by looser and weaker threads. And yet this tale of class division and forbidden love is sensitively written and beautifully filmed, highlighted by two young lovers at the center of an interfamilial conflict.

"Alice is the good daughter, Eleanor's the bad one, and I'm the one that just sorta gets off the hook." That's how rich girl Pam Abbott (Liv Tyler) describes herself and her older siblings (Joanna Going and Jennifer Connelly, respectively), whose father made his fortune in manufacturing. Working-class neighbor Jacey Holt (Billy Crudup) has "invented" Mr. Abbott as a villain whose wealth came at the Holts' expense and destroyed the reputation of Jacey's widowed mom (Kathy Baker in a fine but underwritten role). Jacey retaliates by callously bedding each Abbott sister in sequence, but his destructive behavior is countered by younger brother Doug (Joaquin Phoenix), whose love for Pam is sweetly genuine. Memorable scenes abound, and the film's period design is impeccable, but sluggish pacing and filigrees of plot make Inventing the Abbotts a faint echo of its '50s predecessors. The fine cast makes it worthwhile, however, and Michael Keaton's (uncredited) narration adds another layer of retrospective charm. --Jeff Shannon

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High School Musical (Two-Disc Remix Edition)

Actors: Zac Efron, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Alyson Reed
ASIN : B000I2J6SM
Sales Rank : 13594
Director : Kenny Ortega
Brand : Buena Vista Home Video
Studio : Walt Disney Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Special Edition, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0786936722918
UPC : 786936722918
Release Date : December 05, 2006
Publisher : Walt Disney Video
Manufacturer : Walt Disney Video
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Label : Walt Disney Video
Running Time : 98

Description

The power of music explodes in this spectacular, show-stopping, two-disc REMIX EDITION of the Emmy(R) Award-winning HIGH SCHOOL MUSCIAL! The smash-hit Disney Channel Original Movie everyone is talking about now features hours of awesome new bonus features that will rock your world. Take a front-row seat on the red carpet for the star-studded Hollywood premiere, and join the High School Reunion, where the cast reunites in an exclusive interview where they talk about how their lives have changed dramatically since being a part of this movie phenomenon. Plus, stand up and experience the Dance Along (as seen on Disney Channel), where Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, and Ryan give step-by-step instructions to popular dance sequences "Get'cha Head In The Game" and "We're All In This Together." Hear two exclusive remix versions of your favorite songs and watch three new music videos. HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL REMIX EDITION is everything you've been looking for -- and more!

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The Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical is a combination of backstage action and Grease without the unwholesome habits. Scoring record ratings at the time of its January 2006 broadcast, it's a smash hit with tween audiences (ages 6 to 10), but appealing for all ages. At a New Year's Eve party, Troy (Zac Efron of the WB's Summerland) has a chance meeting with Gabriella (Vanessa Anne Hudgens) when they share a karaoke song. Lo and behold, when school resumes, they discover that Gabriella has just transferred to Troy's East High School, a campus divided into tight cliques of jocks, cheerleaders, brainiacs, and skater dudes. Eager to recapture the magic they'd discovered during karaoke, Troy and Gabriella consider auditioning for the school's upcoming musical, much to the dismay of the school's frost queen/theater goddess, Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale of The Suite Life of Zack and Cody). Problem is, Troy is also the star of the basketball team and Gabrielle is being recruited to compete in the Scholastic Decathlon. Will they give up their cliques to start something new, or will they do as the show's first big anthem urges and "Stick to the Status Quo"? Well, this is a Disney movie, so maybe the sacrifices won't be that hard, and even the hints of romance are mild.

The bestselling soundtrack is catchy in that Disney-pop kind of way, mixing in a dash of hip-hop ("Getcha Head in the Game," punctuated by squeaky basketball shoes and other sound effects), salsa ("Bop to the Top"), and the endearingly hammy ("What I've Been Looking For" performed by Sharpay and her brother, Ryan, played by Lucas Grabeel). It's not hard to imagine High School Musical becoming a semi-staple for high school groups to perform themselves. --David Horiuchi

On the DVD
The two-disc Remix Edition of High School Musical retains all the bonus features of the original DVD and adds a Spanish audio track and 34 minutes of new features. Following a couple minutes of red-carpet interviews from the DVD release party, "High School Reunion" (6 min.) gathers the cast for some more interviews, glimpses of their other Disney Channel credits, and appearances on the Teen Choice Awards and in London and Sydney. The longest feature is the dance-along, in which the cast teaches the choreography for "Get'cha Head in the Game" and "We're All in This Together." At 16 minutes, it allows for move-by-move instruction followed by half- and full-speed runthroughs, though they're facing the camera, so home participants will have to figure out the mirror image or simply ignore the left-right directions and do it backward. And because this is the Remix Edition, there are videos of the remixed versions of "Breaking Free" and "We're All in This Together" as well as a video of "Eres Tu," a Spanish version of "What I've Been Looking For" (the Ryan and Sharpay version) by Mexican band Belanova. Retained from the original DVD are the sing-along subtitles, the making-of featurette, the "Bop to the Top" rehearsal, and the music videos for "We're All in This Together" and "I Can't Take My Eyes Off of You." Not included in this version: the trivia-packed "pop-up edition" that debuted on the Disney Channel on Thanksgiving weekend 2006. So even if the Remix Edition is a little thin for two discs, fans will enjoy the new stuff while they wait for High School Musical 2. --David Horiuchi

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Diagnosis Murder - The Complete 1st Season

Actors: Dick Van Dyke, Barry Van Dyke, Victoria Rowell, Charlie Schlatter, Michael Tucci
ASIN : B000FZETJI
Sales Rank : 10924
Director : Alan Myerson, Anson Williams, Christian I. Nyby II, Frank Thackery, Jerry London
Brand : Paramount
Studio : Paramount
Region Code : 1
Format : Box set, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0097360788945
UPC : 097360788945
Release Date : December 12, 2006
Publisher : Paramount
Manufacturer : Paramount
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Paramount
Running Time : 885

Description

Emmy award winner Dick Van Dyke stars as Dr. Mark Sloan, a dedicated doctor who dabbles in detective work in DIAGNOSIS MURDER. Caring and compassionate, Dr. Sloan enlists the help of his police detective son, Steve (Barry Van Dyke) whenever he suspects one of his patients is the victim of foul play. And he won’t rest until the bad guys are put to bed - permanently! Working alongside Sloan is pathologist Amanda Bentley (Victoria Rowell). For star performances and classic "whodunit" suspense, the right prescription is DIAGNOSIS MURDER.

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One of America's most beloved TV actors, Dick Van Dyke, proved his longevity and acting chops in Diagnosis Murder, as Dr. Mark Sloan, chief of staff at L.A.'s Community General Hospital, as well as a consultant for the police department on confounding murders. The show was originally conceived as a Murder, She Wrote-with-boys, to tap into the late '80s and early '90s wave of spunky-senior shows (Golden Girls, Matlock et al.). But Van Dyke's versatility and charisma drew fans of all ages, and the first season shows his breadth as an actor. The mysteries range from the fairly typical (a beautiful patient surrounded by intrigue has amnesia--or does she?) to the gritty and offbeat (Sloan's son, played by Van Dyke's real son, Barry, gets too close to a gang of corrupt cops, with near-disastrous results). Through it all, Van Dyke's Sloan is avuncular, thoughtful, warm, and serious, but conveys enough wry humor and cheekiness to take considerable advantage of Van Dyke's comic timing. One episode in this season, "Inheritance of Death," features Van Dyke playing multiple roles--young, old, men, women--in a conniving family grasping for the inheritance of an ancient family member, and it's laugh-out-loud funny. Another standout in the cast is Scott Baio as Sloan's earnest sidekick, Dr. Jack Stewart. The boxed set features all 19 episodes of the first season, plus the episode of Jake and the Fatman which introduced the character of Dr. Mark Sloan. --A.T. Hurley

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Avengers '65 - Set 1, Vols. 1 & 2

Actors: Patrick Macnee, Diana Rigg, Honor Blackman, Linda Thorson, Ian Hendry
ASIN : B00000JMQJ
Sales Rank : 32316
Studio : A&E Home Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Box set, Black & White, DVD-Video, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780767018746
ISBN : 0767018745
UPC : 733961700282
Release Date : December 31, 1999
Publisher : A&E Home Video
Manufacturer : A&E Home Video
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : A&E Home Video
Running Time : 340

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A toast to A&E for releasing this two-volume set of vintage episodes from the fourth season of The Avengers. The Avengers debuted in Great Britain in 1961 (predating the James Bond films), but it was not until the late 1960s that it found a welcome home in the United States. Unlike other baby-boomer-era series, The Avengers was not widely syndicated or officially released on home video. This may be one reason why these rarely seen episodes seem as cool as when they first aired. Another reason, of course, is Diana Rigg in her signature role as the ravishing Emma Peel, partner to Patrick Macnee's urbane, umbrella-toting spy John Steed who is every bit his equal in dispatching villains or engaging in provocative banter. What makes this collection of particular interest is that these episodes introduced Mrs. Peel. Steed and Mrs. Peel were the Mulder and Scully of their time; they investigated extraordinary goings-on in the most ordinary locales, such as a seaside town populated by sinister imposters, in "The Town of No Return" or a department store that has been rigged with a nuclear bomb, in "Death at Bargain Prices." Also included is "The Cybernauts," which was the first Avengers episode to be broadcast in America. It is representative of the series' best, with its automated assassins and a colorful madman who plots to install an electronic dictatorship. Other episodes are the haunting "Castle De'ath," "The Gravediggers," and "The Master Minds." All are in glorious black and white and highly recommended. --Donald Liebenson

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Cannon: Season One, Vol. 1

Actor: Cannon
ASIN : B001675ZJM
Sales Rank : 7549
Brand : Paramount
Studio : Paramount
Region Code : 1
Format : Box set, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0097368924246
UPC : 097368924246
Release Date : December 08, 2008
Publisher : Paramount
Manufacturer : Paramount
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Paramount
Running Time : 615

Description

The weekly adventures of Frank Cannon, an overweight, balding ex-cop with a deep voice and expensive tastes in culinary pleasures, who becomes a high-priced private investigator. Since Cannon's girth didn't allow for many fist-fights and gun battles (although there were many), the series substituted car chases and high production values in their place.

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William Conrad became television's first plus-sized detective in this Quinn Martin production that ran for six seasons. His girth makes him the butt of snide comments. In the episode, "Salinas Jackpot," a good 'ol boy invites Cannon to shoot a game of pool. Referring to The Hustler, he says, "Ever since I seen that movie, I've always wanted to take on a champion fat man." In the pilot episode, a little boy bluntly asks him, "How'd you get that fat?" But the balding, pipe-smoking Cannon has a style all his own (check out his boating shorts in the episode, "A Lonely Place to Die."). Fleeing miscreants may be just as surprised as viewers at just how fleet he is on his feet in a chase. The pilot episode fleshes out Cannon's backstory: He is a former Los Angeles cop-turned-private insurance investigator. He is introduced in his swank apartment (that comes complete with personal firing range), but the rest of the episodes find him in outlying locations that are at odds with his bon vivant lifestyle. Though expensive and "the best," he does handle desperate personal cases, as in the pilot episode, in which his investigation of a Korean War buddy's death leads him to "a town that reeks of bad money." Cannon is nothing but intuitive. He tracks down the bar from which a threatening phone call was made by noting the sound of a phone booth ceiling fan's faulty bearing. His imposing size, gruff manner, and blunt talk do not win him many friends. "Go back where you came from" is a representative greeting from those who don't want to be bothered by "the fella with all the questions." Among the most compelling episodes include "Death Chain," in which a married man turns to Cannon when his mistress is murdered, and "Stone Cold Dead," in which he defends a Viet Nam veteran falsely accused of murder. Cannon has no sidekick or office staff to banter with, but Conrad deftly carries the show on his hefty shoulders. Guest stars of note include Vera Miles, Earl Holliman, Keenan Wynn, and John "Tigger" Fiedler in the pilot, Tom Skerritt as a killer disguised as a rodeo clown in "Jackpot," and a pre-Star Wars Mark Hamill as a farm boy in "Country Blues." While Cannon may not rank in the pantheon of TV detectives, it's good to have him back pounding the beat on DVD. --Donald Liebenson

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Tokyo Story - Criterion Collection

Actors: Chishu Ryu, Chieko Higashiyama, Sô Yamamura, Setsuko Hara, Haruko Sugimura
ASIN : B00005JLV7
Sales Rank : 22501
Director : Kazuo Inoue, Yasujiro Ozu
Studio : Criterion
Region Code : 1
Format : Black & White, Color, DVD-Video, Special Edition, Subtitled, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780780027657
ISBN : 0780027655
UPC : 037429183922
Release Date : December 28, 2003
Publisher : Criterion
Manufacturer : Criterion
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Label : Criterion
Running Time : 136

Description

Yasujiro Ozu's Tokyo Story (Tokyo Monogatari) follows an aging couple, Tomi and Sukichi, on their journey from their rural village to visit their two married children in bustling, post-war Tokyo. Their reception, however, is disappointing: too busy to entertain them, their children send them off to a health spa. After Tomi falls ill, she and Sukichi return home, while the children, grief-stricken, hasten to be with her. From a simple tale unfolds one of the greatest of all Japanese films. Starring Ozu regulars Chishu Ryu and Setsuko Hara, the film reprises one of the director's favorite themes—that of generational conflict—in a way that is quintessentially Japanese and yet so universal in its appeal that it continues to resonate as one of cinema’s greatest masterpieces.

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An Autumn Afternoon - Criterion Collection

Actors: Shima Iwashita, Daisuke Kato, Kyoko Kishida, Shin-Ichiro Mikami, Kuniko Miyake
ASIN : B001BEK8CE
Sales Rank : 11059
Director : Yasujiro Ozu
Brand : Image Entertainment
Studio : Criterion Collection
Region Code : 1
Format : Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC, Subtitled
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0715515031721
UPC : 715515031721
Release Date : December 30, 2008
Publisher : Criterion Collection
Manufacturer : Criterion Collection
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Label : Criterion Collection
Running Time : 113

Product Description

Yasujiro Ozu's final film is also his final masterpiece, the gently heartbreaking story of a man's dignified resignation to both life s ever-shifting currents and society's gradual modernization. Though widower Shuhei Hirayama (Ozu's frequent leading man Chishu Ryu) has been living comfortably for years with his grown daughter, a series of events leads him to accept and encourage her marriage and departure. As elegantly composed and achingly tender as any of the Japanese master's films, An Autumn Afternoon (Sanna no aji) is one of cinema s fondest farewells. SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES: New, restored high-definition digital transfer, New audio commentary featuring David Bordwell, author of Ozu and the Poetics of Cinema, Excerpts from Yasujiro Ozu and the Taste of Sake, a 1978 French television program looking back on Ozu's career, featuring film critic Michel Ciment, Theatrical trailer, New and improved English subtitle translation, PLUS: A booklet featuring new essays by film scholars Geoff Andrew and Donald Richie

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Deceptively breezy, Yasujiro Ozu's final film, made in 1962, is the lovely culmination of the mysterious writer-director's fascination with family, and the social mechanisms by which different generations fulfill obligations to one another and to themselves. The central character, Shuhei Hirayama (Chishu Ryu, Ozu's longtime collaborator), is a 60-ish executive and widower who slowly grows concerned that his 24-year-old daughter, Michiko (Shima Iwashita), has not married because she feels responsible for taking care of him at home. Taciturn, low-key, but affable, Shuhei is a hard man to read. But through his friendships, habits, daily reminders of his past and fear that he might rob his daughter of her youth, Shuhei gradually comes to terms with his responsibility to see Michiko fulfilled and happy. There is also more to it than that: An Autumn Afternoon is also about Shuhei turning a page in his small part in history, the closing chapters of a life that involved military service during World War II and settling into post-war, largely Westernized Japan. These things are all understated, but Ozu gives every character a shape, a recognition that one must play the cards one is dealt without self-deception. With that comes a certain Zen serenity, humor and perhaps melancholy, but in An Autumn Afternoon's spirit of acceptance, a bittersweet life is a good life. Special features on this Criterion release include trailers and excerpts from a French television special about Ozu. --Tom Keogh

Browse ( O ) Online

Hamlet - Criterion Collection

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Mr. Destiny

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Inventing the Abbotts

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High School Musical (Two-Disc Remix Edition)

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Diagnosis Murder - The Complete 1st Season

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Avengers '65 - Set 1, Vols. 1 & 2

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Cannon: Season One, Vol. 1

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Tokyo Story - Criterion Collection

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An Autumn Afternoon - Criterion Collection

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Maverick (Television Favorites)

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