DVDs Downton Abbey Fans Better Brace Themselves

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DVDs: Downton Abbey Fans Better Brace Themselves This week I cover the new season of Downton Abbey (without any spoilers), some new releases including Adam Sandler's biggest hit in years, another excellent Criterion release, a John Ford gem and a round-up of (mostly) British TV. Enjoy. DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON THREE ($54.99 BluRay; PBS) -- I won't spoil thenew season of Downton Abbey for you; creator Julian Fellowes does that verynicely on his own, thank you very much.Those who can't bear to wait for theepisodes to air on American TV can rushout now and see the entire season,including the holiday special finale. I'lldiscuss the show once it has ended in theU.S. But it's no spoiler to say there will bemany twists and turns before the seasonends. Brace yourselves: not since the season one finale of The Killing on AMC or the "it was all a dream" lunacy on Dallas has a show worked so hard to alienate its fans. I think the main problem is that Downton Abbey looks like a prestigious drama, has the trappings of a prestigious drama, has the great cast of a prestigious drama and follows in the footsteps of one of TV's all- time champs, Upstairs Downstairs . Unfortunately, Downton Abbey is a daytime soap and any possibility of character growth and development is squashed underneath the desire to make you squeal over some unexpected change. Dramas allow you to explore a character, a world, a relationship. Soaps simply leave you wondering what happens next. I thinkseason three was a huge improvement over season two, in which characters behavedidiotically and completely out of touch with who they are. But it leaves no doubt thatanyone hoping for greatness will have to settle for far, far less. HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA ($55.99 3-D BluRay Combo; Sony)FRANKENWEENIE ($39.99 BluRay combo; Disney)TALES OF THE NIGHT ($34.95 BluRay combo; Gkids/New Video) --Adam Sandler isn't going anywhere. He's May 1, 2014 This is the print preview: Back to normal view » Posted: 02/01/2013 5:04 pma smart actor who knows how to make movies at a reasonable cost and usuallydelivers an audience. Sometimes they misfire commercially, like the misbegotten That's My Boy . More often they misfire creatively but still pull in an audience, like Jack And Jill or Grown Ups (which has a sequel in the works). But life must be most enjoyable whenSandler can enjoy the rare film that getspretty good reviews and strong box office.The animated film Hotel Transylvania is his biggest worldwide hit yet and actuallyhas a little heart to it. It's not as rich asParaNorman (the vaguely similar film that also came out last year), but by Godit's not the train wreck that Jack And Jillwas. Tim Burton expands his breakthrough short film Frankenweenie for no good reason in this stop-motion black andwhite feature. Why he bothered is hard todetermine. All the charm of the moviecan be enjoyed simply by watching theshort. And nothing much is gained. True,it's like manna from heaven compared tothe witless Dark Shadows. But it does emphasize how bereft of inspiration he seems. Burton's two best films since his debut with PeeWee's Big Adventure -- the dramas Ed Wood and Edward Scissorhands -- were entirely original. Ever since he's remade movies, folk tales,musicals and books, all to diminishing returns. Here's hoping he takes some time off to recharge and find something that trulyinspires him. Inspiration is no problem for director Michel Ocelot, who follows his animated masterpiece Azur & Asmar from 2009 with a sweetly diverting collection of tales. Like in his earlier collection of stories called Princes & Princesses , a teacher and two students gather in an abandoned cinema and create a string of fairy tales, such as the story of ayoung man who stumbles into the realm of the dead and wins the hand of the princessand the story of a villager who believes he's been given a magic drum and uses its rhythmsto save his people from warriors. Each tale is told in vibrant colors and a silhouette styleof cutouts that is surprisingly effective and shows us how rich the world of animation canbe. Only the lack of progression in the relationship of the boy and girl who tell thesestories keep this from being as great as Azur & Asmar, but it's delightful all the same.SEARCHING FOR SUGARMAN ($35.99 BluRay; Sony) -- Like so manydocumentaries today, this ramshacklework has a very interesting story that isn'tmatched with any particular filmmakingskill. They also play fast and loose withthe details of Sixto Rodriguez, a 1970srecording artist who delivered some verygood music and then sank into obscurity,never realizing he'd become a superstar ofsorts in South Africa. The film sort ofglides over the fact that his revival tookplace in the 1990s (meaning the movie israther late to the game of rediscoveringRodriguez) and that he'd already been rediscovered in Australia in the late 1970s and early 1980s (even opening for Midnight Oiland recording a live album). Still, it's a good reminder of how fickle fame can be since Rodriguez clearly had the goods. He's reportedly considering making a new album and has 30 or so songs ready to go, so perhaps this latest rediscovery will finally stick. IVAN'S CHILDHOOD ($39.95 BluRay) -- Like Ingmar Bergman, director Andrei Tarkovsky has an austere, intimidating reputation. Those who started with his final work The Sacrifice may have never ventured beyond it. But the clever Steven Soderbergh remake of Solaris and this debut feature from Tarkovsky himself may give adventurous filmgoers a chance to rediscover this Russian master. Focused on a young boy, it shows himdealing with the horrendous nightmare ofWorld War II while flashing back to lifebefore the war which now seems almostimpossibly ideal. Remember, the Soviet Union bled for the war like no other country; military losses alone were about 10 millionwith another 13 million in civilian deaths, dwarfing everyone else. This film is beautifullyshot and heart-rending, easily his most accessible. Extras include several essays,interviews with scholars, the cinematographer Vadim Yusov and star Nikolai Burlyaev.Most importantly, the film looks terrific. HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY($24.99 BluRay; FOX)WHITE ZOMBIE ($24.95 DVD; Kino) THE DUELLISTS ($19.97 BluRay; Shout Factory)THAT OBSCURE OBJECT OFDESIRE ($29.99 BluRay; Lionsgate)GENTLEMAN'S AGREEMENT ($24.99 BluRay; FOX)WILD RIVER ($24.99 BluRay; FOX) -- John Ford's How Green Was My Valleyis studio filmmaking at its finest. It's anintelligent adult story but also quiteaccessible to kids thanks to the characterplayed by Roddy McDowall that is at theheart of the film. When war preventedthem from filming this story in Wales,they simply built a massive set in theSanta Monica Mountains and the Welshthemselves probably wondered what localtown it was shot in. The sound of themining disaster alarm still sends shivers.Sentimental, heart-tugging to be sure, buttold with restraint and craftsmanship of the highest level. A real champ. It was only 1932, but Bela Lugosi already felt the weight of his breakthroughperformance as Dracula haunting hiscareer. He would only ever enjoy real artistic success in horror films but they didn't all have to be variations on that role. Case in point: White Zombie . This super low budgeter set in Haiti letsLugois put his inimitable stamp on thezombie genre. It's great to see a 6 minute clip of Lugosi being interviewed at the time and historian Frank Thompson puts the film in context. I'm not quite surewhy they included the entire unrestoredversion of the film as well as the cleanestdigital copy they could achieve. Surely aclip or two would be enough todemonstrate the work they did. But itmakes no matter; this zombie flick showshow much could be made with little. Somehow I have no problem with British actors playing, say, Russians. (In fact, ithappens so often I'm sometimessurprised when Russians don't haveBritish accents.) But Americans playingFrench? It just strikes me as absurd,whether it's Kirk Douglas foolishlypretending to be French in StanleyKubrick's Paths Of Glory or Harvey Keitel and Keith Carradine posing asFrenchmen in The Duellists . Still there's no denying Ridley Scott's visual flair; thisis a gorgeous looking movie to rivalanother Kubrick film, Barry Lyndon . Scott offers a commentary track but Iespecially appreciate the chance to hearcomposer Howard Blake weigh in on hiscontributions. Composers andcinematographers and set designers often are far less circumspect and self-censoring than directors and therefore alot more fun. I'm simply not a Luis Bunuel fan but if you're going to talk about world cinemayou simply must tackle some of his keywork, including his final film ThatObscure Object Of Desire , an Oscar- nominated comic drama about sexualobsession presented here in a fine BluRayprint. Gentleman's Agreement by director Elia Kazan is a woefully earnest film I found a bit heavy-handed even the first time Isaw it as a 12-year-old. Gregory Peckdiscovers how different the world is when he starts to pretend he is Jewish for a magazine article on anti-Semitism. The making ofthe film is far more interesting than the film itself. Most studio chiefs were Jewish andavoided Jewish themed films like the plague (they thought assimilating meant ignoringtheir roots) and were truly wary of the bestselling book that inspired the movie. Complainabout anti-Semitism? When it was made anyway, they offered to buy it from FOX so they could lock it away forever. But the film went on to much success and won the Oscar for Best Film. Director Elia Kazan went on to direct Wild River some 15 years later. It gets lost in the shuffle of his bigger movies and personally I find it sad to watch the always subtly sad actor Montgomery Clift in his post-accident phase. But the story of a government agent who must clear out a small town so a dam can be built is low-key drama of the sortstudios rarely tackle anymore and Martin Scorsese, for one, considers it one of Kazan'sneglected gems. POIROT AND MARPLE: FANFAVORITES ($99.99 DVD; Acorn) BEING HUMAN SEASON FOUR ($49.98 DVD; BBC) MISFITS SEASON TWO ($24.98 DVD; BBC) FEMME FATALES COMPLETE FIRST SEASON ($29.98 DVD; EOne) WODEHOUSE PLAYHOUSECOMPLETE COLLECTION ($59.99 DVD; Acorn)DOCTOR WHO: SHADA ($39.98 DVD; BBC) -- Can you have too muchHercule Poirot or Miss Marple? No, Idon't suppose you can. However, I'm notquite sure who this collection will appealto. It contains greatest hits (selected byfans) of both Poirot (played by DavidSuchet) and not one but two Marples(assayed by Geraldine McEwan and JuliaMcKenzie). Now, many people enjoydetectives but they usually have a favoriteand when it comes to their favorite theydefinitely have a favorite actor theyprefer. That doesn't stop them fromwatching each and every version, mindyou. But this sort of set seems designed tostart arguments. Serious arguments thatmight turn into rows that might lead to...murder. For those willing to risk it, youget 11 mysteries totaling about 16 hours in all. I've never been entirely sold on Being Human , the high concept comic drama which features young people who just happen to be a ghost, a werewolf and a vampire coming together as roomies. But the British version is superior to theAmerican remake. Season Four is a hardhurdle even for hardcore fans since manyactors were ready to move on. You'vebeen warned. Misfits is another British import. I'm kind of astonished this show hasn't been remade in the U.S. yet, focusing as it doeson teens blessed with unexpected powers.In this season a masked hero or threat ishovering over the gang. The show isalready into its fourth season so the DVDs are lagging behind a bit. There's even afeature film in the works. Sometimes you just want pulpy fun and that's what the undemanding Cinemaxanthology series Femme Fatales has on top. Spot the babe with the smoking gunon the cover and you know what toexpect. Happily, the series modestly out-delivers. Tanit Phoenix is the host, settingup each episode's storyline and thenstepping in at the end to wrap it up (notto mention popping in during some talesto push the plot along). You get someclever overlap from one episode to thenext with a minor character here takingcenter stage there. Gratuitous sex isdependably available in each episode andmost of the time, to be fair, the storiesare a little rote. But it's just good enoughin its way to make you wish they'd aimeven higher. Or is that lower? Now, it's not truly possible to read only P.G. Wodehouse and only watch Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie in the TV series Jeeves & Wooster . I know; I've tried. Eventually life must move on. That's when you dive into Wodehouse Playhouse , a British series from the 1970s that adaptednon-Jeeves and Wooster stories in ananthology series starring Pauline Collinsand her husband John Alderton (Thomas of the original Upstairs, Downstairs ). The pilot has been lost but the remaining 20 episodes are here. If you enjoy this sort of nonsense, it really only works well when doneby the Brits. Best of all, Wodehouse himself intros the first seven episodes. I can't believe I'm starting to agree with those who insist that Matt Smith may be even better than David Tennant as the Doctor. But my first Doctor -- Tom Baker -- will alwaysbe the one who pops to mind when I read that character's name. Here's one of the moremysterious adventures from his reign that lasted from 1974-1981, famously the only talenever to be finished. The BBC offers very admirable and engaging extras on these DoctorWho reissues: this set is truly loaded with the story of why this tale never ended, a 90 minute documentary on the show, a 27 minute short on how labor strikes have affectedthe show in general and much more. Still, I long for a complete boxed set for everyDoctor. Someday...***** Most titles listed here will be available in multiple formats and in multiple combinations, including DVD, BluRay, digital download, video on demand, streaming and the like. Theformat listed is the format provided for review, not all the formats available. It is oftenthe most expensive version with the most extras. Do check individual titles foravailability in all their various guises and price points. Thanks for reading. Michael Giltz is the co-host of Showbiz Sandbox , a weekly pop culture podcast that reveals the industry take on entertainment news of the day and features top journalists and opinion makers as guests. It's available for free on iTunes. Visit Michael Giltz at his website and his daily blog . Download his podcast of celebrity interviews and his radio show, also called Popsurfing and also available for free on iTunes. Link to him on Netflix and gain access to thousands of ratings and reviews. Note : Michael Giltz is provided with free copies of DVDs and Blu-Rays with the understanding that he would be considering them for review. Generally, he does notguarantee to review and he receives far more titles than he can cover. Follow Michael Giltz on Twitter: www.twitter.com/michaelgiltz

DVDs Downton Abbey Fans Better Brace Themselves

📄 DVDs Downton Abbey Fans Better Brace Themselves

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