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3rd Rock from the Sun - Season 1

Actors: John Lithgow, Jane Curtin, Kristen Johnston, French Stewart, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
ASIN : B0007WQGVI
Sales Rank : 1472
Director : James Burrows, Robert Berlinger
Studio : Anchor Bay Entertainment
Region Code : 1
Format : Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0013131328790
UPC : 013131328790
Release Date : December 26, 2005
Publisher : Anchor Bay Entertainment
Manufacturer : Anchor Bay Entertainment
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Anchor Bay Entertainment
Running Time : 442

Description

3rd Rock from the Sun, which has earned 31 Emmy nominations,is an inspired half-hour comedy series farcically dealing with the human condition. It was created by Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner in association with Carsey-Werner Productions, LLC for NBC-TV. Set in the fictional city of Rutherford, Ohio, this gentle-hearted series stars John Lithgow as the High Commander of an investigative team sent to Earth on a mission to learn everything about humans and their so-called advanced cilvilization.

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In the irreverent tradition of My Favorite Martian and Mork and Mindy, Bonnie and Terry Turner (That ‘70s Show) created 3rd Rock From the Sun. Launched in 1996 as a midseason replacement, the alien comedy ran for six seasons, garnering 31 Emmy nominations and eight wins, including three for John Lithgow and two for Kristen Johnston.

In the pilot ("Brains and Eggs"), four extra-terrestrials suddenly materialize in the college town of Rutherford, Ohio. Disguised as humans, they dub themselves the Solomons. They are Dick (Lithgow), Sally (Johnston), Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), and Harry (French Stewart). On the surface, Dick is a physics professor and Tommy is his hormonally challenged 14-year-old son. In reality, Dick is the high commander, Tommy (who's actually the oldest) is the senior information officer, Sally (who's actually a man) is the lieutenant, and squinty-eyed Harry is the transmitter/receiver. The humans in their lives include Dick's colleague--and object of his affections--Mary (Jane Curtin, Kate and Allie), secretary Nina (Simbi Khali), and landlady Mrs. Dubcek (Elmarie Wendel). The first season also introduces Officer Don (Wayne Knight, Seinfeld), who will appear more often in future seasons.

There were 20 episodes in the first year. In each, the Solomons learn something new about the human condition. In the debut, it’s feelings. Dick finds them silly, until he realizes how essential they are--you can't be fully human without them. Then there's sportsmanship ("Green-Eyed Dick"), mortality ("Body & Soul & Dick"), and so on. Guest stars include Harry's dream girl, Martha Stewart ("Post-Nasal Dick"), The Gilmore Girls’ Lauren Graham ("Dick's First Birthday"), and Newsradio’s Phil Hartman ("Lonely Dick"). After the show’s demise, the cast would move on to other ventures, most notably Broadway hit Dirty Rotten Scoundrels for the versatile Lithgow and independent drama Mysterious Skin for the grown-up Gordon-Levitt. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

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Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead

Actors: Jason Yachanin, Kate Graham, Ron Jeremy, Allyson Sereboff, Rose Ghavami
ASIN : B001D5C1PS
Sales Rank : 2809
Director : Lloyd Kaufman
Studio : Troma
Region Code : 1
Format : Anamorphic, Box set, Dolby, DVD-Video, HiFi Sound, Surround Sound, THX, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0790357937196
UPC : 790357937196
Release Date : December 28, 2008
Publisher : Troma
Manufacturer : Troma
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Troma
Running Time : 99

Product Description

Only 15,000 individually numbered DVDs will be pressed! From Director Lloyd Kaufman, President of Troma Studios and the Creator of The Toxic Avenger comes Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead! When the American Chicken Bunker, a military themed fast food restaurant, builds its latest chain restaurant on the site of an ancient Native American burial ground, the displaced spirits take revenge on unsuspecting diners and transform them into chicken zombies! Now, it's up to a dimwitted counterboy, his collegiate lesbian ex-girlfriend and a burqa-wearing fry cook to put an end to the foul feathered menace once and for all.

The 3-Disc Eggs-clusive Limited Edition DVD includes a feature-length behind-the-scenes documentary 'Poultry in Motion: Truth is Stranger than Chicken'!

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Independence Day (Single Disc Widescreen Edition)

Actors: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell, Judd Hirsch
ASIN : B00005V9IK
Sales Rank : 2818
Director : Roland Emmerich
Brand : INDEPENDENCE DAY (WIDE SCREEN/SINGLE DIS (DVD
Studio : 20th Century Fox
Region Code : 1
Format : Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0024543036685
UPC : 024543036685
Release Date : December 11, 2003
Publisher : 20th Century Fox
Manufacturer : 20th Century Fox
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : 20th Century Fox
Running Time : 145

Description

One of the biggest box office hits of all time delivers the ultimate encounter when mysterious and powerful aliens launch an all-out invasion against the human race. The spectacle begins when massive spaceships appear in Earth's skies. But wonder turns to terror as the ships blast destructive beams of fire down on cities all over the planet. Now the world's only hope lies with a determinded band of survivors, uniting for one last strike against the invaders - before it's the end of all mankind.

Amazon.com essential video

In Independence Day, a scientist played by Jeff Goldblum once actually had a fistfight with a man (Bill Pullman) who is now president of the United States. That same president, late in the film, personally flies a jet fighter to deliver a payload of missiles against an attack by extraterrestrials. Independence Day is the kind of movie so giddy with its own outrageousness that one doesn't even blink at such howlers in the plot. Directed by Roland Emmerich, Independence Day is a pastiche of conventions from flying-saucer movies from the 1940s and 1950s, replete with icky monsters and bizarre coincidences that create convenient shortcuts in the story. (Such as the way the girlfriend of one of the film's heroes--played by Will Smith--just happens to run across the president's injured wife, who are then both rescued by Smith's character who somehow runs across them in alien-ravaged Los Angeles County.) The movie is just sheer fun, aided by a cast that knows how to balance the retro requirements of the genre with a more contemporary feel. --Tom Keogh

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Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Actors: Sumi Shimamoto, Mahito Tsujimura, Hisako Kyôda, Gorô Naya, Ichirô Nagai
ASIN : B0001XAPZ6
Sales Rank : 995
Director : Hayao Miyazaki
Studio : Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Region Code : 1
Format : Anamorphic, Animated, Color, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780788824005
ISBN : 0788824007
UPC : 786936175240
Release Date : December 22, 2005
Publisher : Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Manufacturer : Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Running Time : 117

Product Description

Warrior/pacifist princess nausicaa desperately struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and their dying planet. Studio: Buena Vista Home Video Release Date: 02/22/2005 Run time: 117 minutes

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Hayao Miyazaki gained widespread attention in Japan for his complex ecological manga series, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1982), which he adapted for the screen two years later. One thousand years after a war devastated much of the Earth, humanity clings to existence at the fringes of a vast, polluted forest inhabited by monstrous insects. Only Nausicaä, the princess of the tiny realm of the Valley of the Wind, grasps the environmental significance of the forest. She sees beyond petty wars and national rivalries to the only viable future for the planet. In Nausicaä, Miyazaki began to explore elements he would develop more fully in his later films: daring, compassionate heroines; exciting flying sequences; colorful side characters; strong interpersonal relationships; and a call for an ecologically sustainable way of life. Nausicaä prefigures Sheeta in Castle in the Sky and Chihiro in Spirited Away, just as the rough and ready Asbel anticipates Pazu in Castle in the Sky and Ashitaka in Princess Mononoke. For years, Nausicaä was available in the United States only as the badly re-edited Warriors of the Wind. The new English dub from Disney presents the film in its entirety, with strong vocal performances by Uma Thurman, Patrick Stewart, Alison Lohman, and Edward James Olmos. (Rated PG: violence, frightening imagery) --Charles Solomon

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The Year Without a Santa Claus / Nestor, The Long-Eared Christmas Donkey / Rudolph's Shiny New Year

Actors: Shirley Booth, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, George S. Irving, Bob McFadden
ASIN : B00004VVPA
Sales Rank : 962
Director : Arthur Rankin Jr., Jules Bass
Brand : Warner Brothers
Studio : Warner Home Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Animated, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780790751863
ISBN : 0790751860
UPC : 012569053724
Release Date : December 31, 2000
Publisher : Warner Home Video
Manufacturer : Warner Home Video
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Warner Home Video
Running Time : 125

Description

At the North Pole, the Christmas rush is on. Everyone from elves to reindeer are merrily preparing for Santa Claus’ yearly sleigh ride. Everyone…except Santa! Feeling forgotten by the children of the world, old St. Nick decides to skip his gift-giving journey and take a vacation. Eager to help, Mrs. Claus and two spunky little elves set out to see where all the season’s cheer has disappeared to. Aided by a magical snowfall, they reawaken the spirit of Christmas in children’s hearts – and put Santa back in action. Shirley Booth and Mickey Rooney (as Mrs. And Mr. Claus) are the starring voices in this wonderful Yuletide favorite. Year: 1974

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This DVD contains three holiday titles from Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass.

The Year Without a Santa Claus
Even Santa can suffer a case of the holiday blues. In this 1974 stop-motion holiday family favorite, a sparkly eyed Mrs. Claus (voiced by Shirley Booth) sings and tells about the year her hubby felt too weary and too unappreciated to prepare for his annual Christmas rounds. Mickey Rooney stars as the voice of Santa, a rosy-nosed puppet who travels incognito to Southtown in search of his tiniest reindeer, Vixen, and two well-meaning elves. Seems Mrs. Santa sent them to find proof of Christmas spirit--but all they've discovered is ambivalence about Santa's year off. Luckily, when Santa arrives and befriends a buck-toothed lad named Ignatius Thistlewhite, spirits begin to lift rapidly. Adult fans of this cousin to the 1970 television special Santa Claus Is Coming to Town will remember it as the Heat and Snow Miser movie. Their vaudevillian theme songs, complete with trombone and piano riffs, are hard to forget, but other treasured musical moments include "I Believe in Santa Claus," "I'll Have a Blue Christmas Without You," and "Here Comes Santa Claus." --Liane Thomas

Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey
The wondrous story of Christ's birth is told by an unlikely source: Nestor, a gentle donkey with incredibly long ears and a first-hand knowledge of life in a stable. This simple tale, which takes place in the days of the Roman Empire, is about a humble couple about to take a long journey to Bethlehem and a small, insignificant donkey that is destined to help them along. By all outward appearances, Nestor does not deserve such a privilege. Stable animals tease him incessantly for his long appendages until, finally, he is cast out of the barn into the winter cold. Snow and ice bring about even greater calamity for Nestor until he receives a dose of divine goodness. Nestor meets Tilly, a heavenly cherub (voiced by Brenda Vaccaro) who imparts guidance to the despairing burro and tells him that soon he will be chosen to participate in a miracle involving a star, a baby, a lowly stable, and some travelers named Mary and Joseph. Short and sweet, this stop-motion Christmas gem from Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass is narrated by Roger Miller. Get out the hanky for an understated holiday classic that will appeal to families of all ages. --Lynn Gibson

Rudolph's Shiny New Year
Rudolph is legendary for saving Christmas, but did you know he saved the New Year as well? While Santa Claus is recuperating from his December sleigh ride, he receives a letter from an old friend, Father Time. Seems that Baby New Year is missing, and if the little tyke isn't found, Old Year will continue forever--a catastrophe for Father Time, whose job it is to keep things moving forward. A search party is essential, yet with such thick fog, there's only one reindeer fit for the job. "Rudolph with your nose so bright, you've six days left to set things right," says Santa. Trouble hits immediately when Rudolph discovers that Aeon the Terrible, a big-beaked monster bird, is also searching for the missing baby. Rudolph gets help from a giant whale and a good-natured caveman, who dish up plenty of song and dance in between narrow escapes in their race against the end of the calendar year. Sound far-fetched? Perhaps, but it contains as much magic as its predecessors, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town, all produced and directed by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr., and written by the esteemed Romeo Muller. The same stop-motion animation we've grown to love is here as well, and narrator Red Skelton has as trusted a voice as Burl Ives and Fred Astaire. While the New Year holiday will never be as celebrated as Christmas, this title is a welcome addition to any Rankin and Bass collection of holiday films. --Lynn Gibson

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I Am Legend (Widescreen Two-Disc Special Edition with Digital Copy)

Actors: Will Smith, Charlie Tahan, Thomas J. Pilutik, Salli Richardson, Paradox Pollack
ASIN : B00005JPTK
Sales Rank : 324
Director : Francis Lawrence (II)
Brand : Warner Brothers
Studio : Warner Home Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Anamorphic, Color, Special Edition, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0085391176367
UPC : 085391176367
Release Date : December 18, 2008
Publisher : Warner Home Video
Manufacturer : Warner Home Video
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Warner Home Video
Running Time : 101

Product Description

Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 11/11/2008 Run time: 100 minutes Rating: Pg13

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Will Smith stars in the third adaptation of Richard Matheson’s classic science-fiction novel about a lone human survivor in a post-apocalyptic world dominated by vampires. This new version somewhat alters Matheson’s central hook, i.e., the startling idea that an ordinary man, Robert Neville, spends his days roaming a desolated city and his nights in a house sealed off from longtime neighbors who have become bloodsucking fiends. In the new film, Smith’s Neville is a military scientist charged with finding a cure for a virus that turns people into crazed, hairless, flesh-eating zombies. Failing to complete his work in time--and after enduring a personal tragedy--Neville finds himself alone in Manhattan, his natural immunity to the virus keeping him alive. With an expressive German shepherd his only companion, Neville is a hunter-gatherer in sunlight, hiding from the mutants at night in his Washington Square town house and methodically conducting experiments in his ceaseless quest to conquer the disease.

The film’s first half almost suggests that I Am Legend could be one of the finest movies of 2007. Director Francis Lawrence’s extraordinary, computer-generated images of a decaying New York City reveal weeds growing through the cracks of familiar streets that are also overrun by deer and prowled by lions. It’s impossible not to be fascinated by such a realistically altered cityscape, reverting to a natural environment, through which Smith moves with a weirdly enviable freedom, offset by his wariness over whatever is lurking in the dark of bank vaults and parking garages. Lawrence and screenwriters Mark Protosevich and Akiva Goldsman wisely build suspense by withholding images of the monsters until a peak scene of horror well into the story. It must be said, however, that the computer-enhanced creatures don’t look half as interesting as they might have had the filmmakers adhered more to Matheson’s vampire-nightmare vision. I Am Legend is ultimately noteworthy for Smith’s remarkable performance as a man so lonely he talks to mannequins in the shops he frequents. The film’s latter half goes too far in portraying Smith’s Neville as a pitiable man with a messianic mission, but this lapse into bathos does nothing to take away from the visual and dramatic accomplishments of its first hour. --Tom Keogh

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Blue's Clues - Blue's Big Musical Movie

Actors: Steve Burns, Traci Paige Johnson, Nick Balaban, Spencer Kayden, Jenna Marie Castle
ASIN : B00004WI5C
Sales Rank : 1050
Director : Todd Kessler
Brand : Paramount
Studio : Nickelodeon
Region Code : 1
Format : Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Live, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780792167570
ISBN : 0792167570
UPC : 097368397248
Release Date : December 03, 2000
Publisher : Nickelodeon
Manufacturer : Nickelodeon
Label : Nickelodeon
Running Time : 78

Product Description

Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 02/03/2004 Run time: 78 minutes Rating: Nr

Amazon.com essential video

Blue bounds into her first feature-length film ready to sing. She gets sidetracked along the way, of course, but that's part of the brilliant Blue's Clues formula. Each half-hour TV show presents engaging, easy-to-grasp mini-mysteries that are within toddlers' reach. This time Blue; her huge-eyed, slightly loopy human companion, Steve; and their cadre of talking-object friends are scurrying around, preparing for a backyard music show that day. Everybody picks a number to perform; Blue's is a duet with Tickety Tock, but the clock contracts laryngitis. Who will be Blue's new partner? A game of Blue's Clues reveals the hardly reluctant replacement. The standard discovery of three clues followed by the usual wind-down song would add up to a colossal disappointment in a feature film, so substantial rounding-out is provided. Steve stumbles onto a keyboard inhabited by a note called G-Clef (the unmistakable voice of Ray Charles), who gives a tour of how to make a song. First you pick the notes, then you work on rhythm, then comes tempo, and, last but not least, "you've got to give it soul." This movie's themes include perseverance (Tickety Tock can't sing but finds a way to contribute anyway) and self-empowerment. Blue's Big Musical Movie is a feast for little eyes and ears; the sets are so colorful they hurt grown-up eyes, and the songs--especially the one that gets the Charles treatment--are all sing-along-with-me winners. --Tammy La Gorce

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Clash of the Titans

Actors: Laurence Olivier, Harry Hamlin, Claire Bloom, Maggie Smith, Ursula Andress
ASIN : B00005JKO7
Sales Rank : 260
Director : Desmond Davis
Brand : Warner Brothers
Studio : Warner Home Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780790745497
ISBN : 0790745496
UPC : 012569513723
Release Date : December 01, 2004
Publisher : Warner Home Video
Manufacturer : Warner Home Video
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Warner Home Video
Running Time : 118

Description

The classic Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda re-told with an all-star cast. To win the right to marry his love (Andromeda) and fufill his destiny, Perseus must complete various tasks including taming Pegasus, capturing Medusa, and answering riddles. The result is a timeless adventure that's a treat for kids and adults.

Amazon.com

You have a classic tale full of drama, passion, and adventure. A tale of universal archetypes that speak to everyone. A tale that has remained unfailingly popular for thousands of years. Why not spice it up with a wacky mechanical owl? Such was the thinking behind Clash of the Titans. Maggie Smith, Laurence Olivier, and Harry Hamlin (one of these things is not like the others...) star in a toga-ripper about a valiant hero, capricious immortals, and lots and lots of giant stop-action monsters. Perseus (Hamlin) is the favored son of the god Zeus (Olivier), but he has unwittingly ticked off the sea goddess Thetis (Smith). Just to make things worse, Perseus falls in love with the lovely Princess Andromeda, who used to be engaged to Thetis's son. Soon Perseus is off on one quest after another, with Zeus helping, Thetis hindering, and lots of innocent bystanders getting stabbed, drowned, and squished. Of course, the whole thing is just an excuse to show as much of Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion animation as possible, and good thing too. It's an old technique, but it still looks pretty darn cool, and it means the cast can just relax and do a bunch of reaction shots. Don't use this one to study for that big classical mythology exam, but if you just turn your brain off and enjoy the Kraken, it's pretty good fun. --Ali Davis

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Dr. Seuss - How the Grinch Stole Christmas/Horton Hears a Who

Actors: June Foray, Boris Karloff, Thurl Ravenscroft
ASIN : B00004VVP9
Sales Rank : 78
Director : Ben Washam
Brand : Warner Brothers
Studio : Warner Home Video
Region Code : 1
Format : Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Enhanced, Full Screen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780790751870
ISBN : 0790751879
UPC : 012569540927
Release Date : December 31, 2000
Publisher : Warner Home Video
Manufacturer : Warner Home Video
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Warner Home Video
Running Time : 60

Description

Every Who down in Who-ville likes Christmas a lot & ; But the Grinch who lived just north of Whoville did NOT! So the cuddly as a cactus Grinch (with termites in his smile and garlic in his soul) tries to wipe out Christmas for the cheerful Who-villians, only to discover: Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more! Magnificently narrated by Boris Karloff and animated by cartoon legend Chuck Jones, it's an award-winning Who-roast-beast-feast of a holiday classic!

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This all-time classic now has Horton Hears a Who! on the same video for a great double bill.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas
To heck with the kids--this is one of the best holiday presents you can give yourself. Adapted from the children's book by Dr. Seuss, this charming story is one to watch every holiday season. It is just edgy enough to help you forget the more cloying aspects of Christmas, yet it is also sweet enough to remind you of the reason for all that holiday cheer. Animation genius Chuck Jones directed this 1966 television production featuring the voice of Boris Karloff as the mean greenie. Bitter and selfish, the Grinch decides to steal Christmas away from the Whos, the sweet little folk who live at the bottom of his mountain home. When little Cindy Loo Who returns his hateful act with kindness, she melts the old miser's heart. There are many reasons to watch this: inventive wordplay, Karloff's impressive narration, and a very memorable soundtrack. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Horton Hears a Who!
Chuck Jones was chief animator on this lively adaptation of the famous book by Dr. Seuss. The story of a friendly elephant named Horton who discovers--deep inside a daisy--a tiny city called Whoville with tiny, intelligent residents--this film (fleshed out a bit from the source) is strong on character and has striking, appealing visuals. The little folks of Whoville, with their natural air of aristocracy, are a kick, and when they come to see Horton as a hero for his democratic view of all life big and small, the effect is quite touching. This should be a real treat for kids already familiar with the book, and just might inspire those who haven't read it to pick it up. --Tom Keogh

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The Hogfather

Actors: Neil Pearson, Tony Robinson, David Jason, Stephen Marcus, Joss Ackland
ASIN : B0010X741Y
Sales Rank : 1041
Director : Vadim Jean
Brand : WELLSPRING/GENIUS
Studio : Genius Products (TVN)
Region Code : 1
Format : AC-3, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0796019806046
UPC : 796019806046
Release Date : December 04, 2008
Publisher : Genius Products (TVN)
Manufacturer : Genius Products (TVN)
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Genius Products (TVN)
Running Time : 189

Description

Hogfather is the magical, menacing, wicked, and witty family story unlike anything else you could ever imagine. From the imagination of best-selling author Terry Pratchett comes Hogfather. It’s the holiday of Hogswatch, the night when kids anticipate presents from the beloved Hogfather. But someone wants the Hogfather out of the way. Now it’s up to the most unlikely of heroes to get the holiday back on track. Just in time for the Easter season, Hogfather is a cross between Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter that’s sure to be a family favorite you’ll be watching for years and years to come.

Amazon.com

Based on a fantasy novel by Terry Pratchett, The Hogfather is an extraordinary satire-adventure set in the mythical realm of Discworld, a kind of parallel-universe version of Earth. Discworld’s alternative to Santa Claus is the Hogfather, who also chases around in a sled delivering gifts to children (on a Christmas-like night known as Hogwatch), but who looks like, well, a wild hog and is pulled through the skies not by reindeer but a bunch of grunting porkers with long, dangerous teeth. Just as the Hogfather is about to complete his annual mission to leave toys for kids under their Hogwatch trees, a specter makes a deal with a professional assassin to kill the jolly old fellow. The job is farmed out to a psychotic monster named Teatime (Marc Warren), who sets about trying to get to the Hogfather through, of all things, the Tooth Fairy. While danger stalks these immortal characters, Death (Ian Richardson) himself takes the Hogfather’s place on his magical rounds, with comic consequences. Meanwhile, a governess named Susan (Michelle Dockery), possessor of a strange secret and awesome powers, determines that the Hogfather is in danger. She sets about trying to find him and discovers Teatime’s plot, while a cluster of clumsy wizards (led by Joss Ackland) try to make sense of what has happened and what they can do about it. It’s hard to explain the charm and wit of The Hogfather, which is full of quirky, ironic humor, except to say that it’s easy to fall in love with this British television special and its dark delights. (Some a bit too dark for younger viewers.) The cast includes a very funny Tony Robinson of Black Adder. --Tom Keogh