DVDBeaver Newsletter - July 11th, 2011

Newsletter - FOR THE WEEK

OF July 11th, 2011

	This Week's Highlights
	Mu pan ŋge! - In the midst of the Summer blahs but excellent representation with Satyajit Ray, Terry Gilliam, Jean Cocteau and Jerzy Skolimowski being some of the directors represented via Blu-rays releases; Our calendar updates include films-to-digital by Giuseppe Tornatore, Todd Haynes, Michael Curtiz, Danny Boyle, Richard Linklater, Franklin J. Schaffner, Brian De Palma, Gus Van Sant, Andrei Tarkovsky, Agnes Varda and others - a great Criterion Blu-ray prize for this week's contest clip! Au Ag! FOLLOW US on TWITTER! (where we post important reviews, contests - prizes, calendar updates - plus much more...) Feature DVD and Blu-ray chosen for July 2011 *HERE* Leonard has reviewed the new Oppo BDP-95 Universal audiophile Blu-ray player HERE!
	TOOLBAR THE 'DVDBeaver Toolbar'! Give it a test drive! I've created a very simple toolbar for Film-Fans/DVD-o-philes/cinephiles. It embeds effortlessly within Internet Explorer 5.0+ (Windows Vista/XP/2000) and Firefox 1.0.1+ (Windows, Mac, Linux). It offers quick links to Searching both the Net (via Google) and DVDBeaver directly, Amazons, Asian etailors, Forums (Criterion, Home Theater, AVS, Rotten Tomatoes, Film Noir), IMDb, DVDBasen, Beaver links, Blu-ray information, Cinephile Blogs/Journals (Rosenbaum, Kehr, Acquarello etc.). What do you think? FOR MORE INFORMATION / AVAILABLE HERE *** (We can adjust this to suit popular opinion - on-the-fly - no re-install required!)
	July 11th CONTEST - identify the clip on the CONTEST PAGE to win a *Criterion Blu-ray of Zazie dans le Metro*
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NOTE:_	If there are DVD titles you'd like us to cover - please feel free to recommend! Gary at 2ze dot com

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LATEST ADDITIONS TO THE RELEASE CALENDAR:

Baarìa [Blu-ray] (Giuseppe Tornatore, 2009) Image Entertainment

Dark Days (Marc Singer, 2000) Oscilloscope Laboratories

A Separation (Asghar Farhadi, 2011) R2 UK Artificial Eye

The Big Picture (Eric Lartigau, 2010) R2 UK Artificial Eye

The Tree (Julie Bertuccelli, 2010) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Mildred Pierce [Blu-ray] (Todd Haynes , 2011) Region FREE UK HBO

The Breaking Point (Michael Curtiz, 1950) Warner Archive

Trainspotting [Blu-ray] (Danny Boyle, 1996) - Lionsgate Miramax

Me and Orson Welles (Richard Linklater, 2008) Warner Home Video

Assignment to Kill (Warner Shop LINK) (Sheldon Reynolds, 1968) Warner Archive

The Double Man (Warner Shop LINK) (Franklin J. Schaffner, 1967) Warner Archive

24 Hours to Kill (Warner Shop LINK)(Peter Bezencenet, 1965) Warner Archive

Avalanche Express (Warner Shop Link) (Mark Robson, 1979) Warner Archive

Once Before I Die (Warner Shop Link) (John Derek, 1966) Warner Archive

Kona Coast (Warner Shop LINK) (Lamont Johnson, 1968) Warner Archive

Tortilla Flat (Warner Shop LINK) (Victor Fleming, 1942) Warner Archive

Dressed to Kill [Blu-ray] (Brian De Palma,1980) MGM

The Lookout [Blu-ray] (Scott Frank, 2007) Miramax

Tom & Jerry Golden Collection: Volume One [Blu-ray] - Warner

Bach: Well Tempered Clavier (complete) - [7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio Disc] [Blu-ray] - MediaInVision/ Surround Records

Under Suspicion [Blu-ray] (Simon Moore, 1991) Image Entertainment

Hostage [Blu-ray] (Florent Emilio Siri, 2005) Miramax Lionsgate

Good Will Hunting [Blu-ray] (Gus Van Sant, 1997) Lionsgate Miramax

Scream Trilogy [Blu-ray] - Lionsgate Miramax

Mirror (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1975) R2 UK Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW)

Ivan's Childhood (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1962) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Stalker (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1979) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Solaris (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1972) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Le Bonheur (Agnes Varda, 1964) R2 UK Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW)

La Pointe Courte (Agnes Varda, 1954) R2 UK Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW)

L'Une Chante, L'Autre Pas (Agnes Varda, 1977) R2 UK Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW)

Jurassic Park Ultimate Trilogy [Blu-ray] - Universal

Jurassic Park Ultimate Trilogy Gift Set [Blu-ray] - Universal

Schloss Vogelöd (aka The Haunted Castle - F.W. Murnau, 1921) R2 UK Masters of Cinema

Colossal Youth (Pedro Costa, 2006) R2 UK Masters of Cinema

Agent 8 3/4 [Blu-ray] (Ralph Thomas, 1964) VCI Entertainment

Campbell's Kingdom [Blu-ray] (Ralph Thomas, 1957) VCI Entertainment

Little Sparrows (Yu-Hsiu Camille Chen, 2010) FilmMovement

Red Psalm (Miklós Jancsó, 1972) R2 UK Second Run

Our Beloved Month of August (Miguel Gomes, 2008) R2 UK Second Run

The Inspector General (Henry Koster, 1949) Shout! Factory

Vampires, Mummies And Monsters Collection [Roger Corman Cult Classics] (Lady Frankenstein, Time Walker, The Velvet Vampire & Grotesque) Shout! Factory

The Exterminator [Blu-ray] (James Glickenhaus, 1980) Synapse Films

Hellraiser [Blu-ray] (Clive Barker, 1987) Image Entertainment

The Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection Vol. 2 - Cult of the Cobra (1955), Dr. Cyclops (1940), The Land Unknown (1957), The Deadly Mantis (1957) and The Leech Woman (1960) - Universal (BEAVER REVIEW)

ONE VOICE (not Ellsworth Monkton Toohey): I liked most of what I saw this past week, but was totally enamored with Satyajit Ray's The Music Room via Criterion Blu-ray making a huge advance upon my last SD edition. Certainly essential. And speaking of that word - Skolimowski's Essential Killing with Vincent Gallo had a pile of worthwhile positives - region FREE to boot. Criterion's Blu-ray of Beauty and the Beast by Cocteau had subtle superiority over their 2003 DVD as did Universal's 1080P rendition of Terry Gilliam's always-watchable Brazil. On the apocalypse-front Damnation Alley had enough going for it to encourage a late-night guilty-pleasure indulgence. I'm the world's biggest sucker for 50's sci-fi and The Colossus of New York slides into that enjoyable category. Eric covered some of his own Grindie-genre with Slaughter High plus intriguing plots in The Carrier and generically entitled Things.


	THIS WEEK's REVIEWS / COMPARISONS
	Essential Killing BD - Captured by the US military in Afghanistan, Mohammed (Vincent Gallo) is transported to a secret detention centre in Europe. When the vehicle he is riding in crashes, he finds himself suddenly free and on the run in a snow-blanketed forest, a world away from the desert home he knew. Relentlessly pursued by an army that does not officially exist, Mohammed must confront the necessity to kill in order to survive. Blu-ray Release date: July 9th, 2011 Beauty and the Beast BD - Once upon a time, in a world of magic and wonder, the true love of a beautiful girl may finally dispel the torment of a feral but gentle-hearted beast. Beauty and the Beast (La Belle et la Bête) is a landmark feat of cinematic fantasy in which master filmmaker Jean Cocteau conjures spectacular visions of enchantment, desire, and death that have never been equaled. Blu-ray Release Date: July 19th, 2011 The Colossus of New York - After the accidental death of a brilliant scientist… his lunatic father and brother transplant the dead man’s brain into the body of a giant robot. The operation is successful, but the Colossus Robot mourns for his wife and child and doesn’t want to be the guinea pig in his father’s psychotic project and starts displaying homicidal behaviors. Sci-Fi specialist Eugène Lourié (Gorgo) directs this Frankenstein-flavored feature. DVD Release Date: August 16th, 2011 Damnation Alley BD - The world is devastated by a nuclear holocaust, causing the Earth to tilt on its axis and bringing vast meteorological chaos. As the weather stabilizes, mutated insects start to emerge, preying on the survivors. The surviving crew at a U.S. Air Force bomb shelter in the Mojave Desert picks up radio signals coming from Albany. The commander, Major Eugene Denton (George Peppard, The A-Team), unveils two armored vehicles he has constructed and announces a plan to cross Damnation Alley, the hundred-mile-wide strip between areas of radiation hazard, to join the survivors. They set off, taking on two civilians, a novice singer they find in the ruins of Las Vegas and a wild teenager (Jackie Earle Haley, *Watchmen), along the way. The journey is also beset by giant mutated cockroaches, storms and crazed survivalists, making for some hair-raising escapes in this post-apocalyptic thriller. Blu-ray Release date: July 12th, 2011* The Music Room BD - With The Music Room (Jalsaghar), Satyajit Ray brilliantly evokes the crumbling opulence of the world of a fallen aristocrat (the beloved actor Chhabi Biswas) desperately clinging to a fading way of life. His greatest joy is the music room in which he has hosted lavish concerts over the years—now a shadow of its former vivid self. An incandescent depiction of the clash between tradition and modernity, and a showcase for some of India’s most popular musicians of the day, The Music Room is a defining work by the great Bengali filmmaker. Blu-ray Release Date: July 19th, 2011 Brazil BD - Pitting the imagination of common man Sam Lowry (the brilliantly befuddled Jonathan Pryce) against the oppressive storm troopers of the Ministry of Information, Terry Gilliam's Brazil has come to be regarded as an anti-totalitarianism cautionary tale equal to the works of George Orwell, Aldous Huxley, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Gathering footage from both the European and American versions of this masterpiece, Gilliam has assembled the ultimate, 142-minute director’s cut of his most celebrated film. Blu-ray Release Date: July 12th, 2011 Slaughter High - Marty (Simon Scuddamore) is the unfortunate geeky misfit of Doddsville High, and the student body has planned a most cruel April Fools prank on him (as if that were bad enough, it also happens to be his birthday). After sexually humiliating him, a bit of bad pot and some fiddling with his chemistry experiment leads to a fiery inferno and a face full of nitric acid (although, Marty was the one who decided to store the open bottle on top of a rickety shelf). Ten years later, the responsible circle of friends are stupid enough to accept an invitation to a reunion at the now-derelict, cobweb-strewn school on April Fool's Day. From then on, it's a parade of creative deaths (including acid beers and acid baths, electrified beds, and lawnmower blades to the guts, along with a handful of less imaginative kills). DVD Release Date: July 11th, 2011 The Carrier - Beneath the idyllic surface of the town of Sleepy Rock lies bigotry, hypocrisy, and racism. Young Jake (Gregory Fortescue) is ostracized because the townspeople believe that he caused the fire that killed his parents and destroyed his home. Jake now lives in a shack on his family farm (with a matte painting of the home's burnt-out ruins looming above) and only comes into town for a bottle of Jack Daniels. One stormy night, lightning strikes the church tower and only bridge out of town is washed out. That same night, Jake is attacked by a furry black thing which scratches him. He shoots it and it dissolves into the soil. Unbeknownst to Jake, he has become the carrier of a contagion that is spread through inanimate objects, which proceed to absorb any human, animal, or insect that comes into contact with them. DVD Release Date: October 26th, 2010 Things - Don (Barry J. Gillis) and Fred (Bruce Roach) get a ride into the wiles of Grizzly Flats, California to visit Don's eccentric brother Doug (Doug Bunston), who lives in a remote cabin with his pregnant and ailing wife Susan (Patricia Sadler). Before you can say THE EVIL DEAD, Don and Fred discover a tape recorder and a book (the book is actually about Aleister Crowley), but that's quickly forgotten when they discover a supposedly destroyed painting of the devil's daughter by Salvador Dali, but that falls by the wayside when they discover another odd painting supposedly gifted to Doug by the Queen of England. DVD Release Date: July 12th, 2011

Next 4 weeks on the Calendar

July 11th, 2011

Animal Kingdom [Blu-ray] (David Michôd, 2010) RB UK Optimum (BEAVER REVIEW)

Battle Beyond the Stars [Blu-ray] (Jimmy T. Murakami, 1980) Shout! Factory

The Body Snatcher (Robert Wise, 1945) R2 UK Odeon Entertainment

Brazil [Blu-ray] (Terry Gilliam, 1985) Universal (BEAVER REVIEW)

Buster Keaton - Short Films Collection: 1920 - 1923 (3-Disc Ultimate Edition) [Blu-ray] - Kino

Damnation Alley [Blu-ray] (Jack Smight, 1977) Shout! Factory (BEAVER REVIEW)

Essential Killing [Blu-ray] (Jerzy Skolimowski, 2010) UK Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW)

Insidious [Blu-ray] (James Wan, 2011) Film District

The Lincoln Lawyer [Blu-ray] (Brad Furman, 2011) Lionsgate

My Dog Tulip (Paul Fierlinger, Sandra Fierlinger, 2009) R2 UK Axiom Films

Naked [Blu-ray] (Mike Leigh, 1993) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW)

Obsession [Blu-ray] (Brian De Palma, 1976) Arrow Video (BEAVER REVIEW)

Patagonia [Blu-ray] (Marc Evans, 2010) Verve Pictures

Rango [Blu-ray] (Gore Verbinski, 2011) Paramount Pictures

Set the Piano Stool on Fire (Mark Kidel, 2010) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Slaughter High (George Dugdale, Mark Ezra, 1986) - R2 UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW)

Szindbád (Zoltán Huszárik, 1971) R2 UK Second Run DVD

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010) Strand Releasing

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives [Blu-ray] (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010) Strand Releasing

Whisky Galore [Blu-ray] (Alexander Mackendrick, 1949) RB UK Optimum

Women in Prison Triple Pack - Chained Heat (1983), Red Heat (1985), Jungle Warriors (1984) - Panik House (BEAVER REVIEW)

July 18th, 2011

24 Hours to Kill (Warner Shop LINK)(Peter Bezencenet, 1965) Warner Archive

Amélie [Blu-ray] (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001) Miramax Lionsgate

Assignment to Kill (Warner Shop LINK) (Sheldon Reynolds, 1968) Warner Archive

Avalanche Express (Warner Shop Link) (Mark Robson, 1979) Warner Archive

Beauty and the Beast [Blu-ray] (Jean Cocteau, 1946) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW)

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (Fritz Lang, 1956) R2 UK Exposure Cinema

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas [Blu-ray] (Mark Herman, 2008) Miramax Lionsgate

Boyz n the Hood [Blu-ray] (John Singleton, 1991) Sony Pictures

Chocolat [Blu-ray] (Lasse Hallström, 2000) Miramax Lionsgate

Dark Days (Marc Singer, 2000) Oscilloscope Laboratories

Deep End [Blu-ray] (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1970) RB UK BFI Video

Deep End (3-disc Collector's Edition) [Blu-ray] (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1970) RB UK BFI Video

Desert Flower [Blu-ray] (Sherry Horman, 2009) Arts Alliance Amer

The Double Man (Warner Shop LINK) (Franklin J. Schaffner, 1967) Warner Archive

The Funhouse (Tobe Hooper, 1981) R2 UK Arrow Video

The Funhouse [Blu-ray] (Tobe Hooper, 1981) R2 UK Arrow Video

House of the Rising Sun [Blu-ray] (Brian Miller, 2011) Lions Gate

Kona Coast (Warner Shop LINK) (Lamont Johnson, 1968) Warner Archive

Limitless [Blu-ray] (Neil Burger, 2011) 20th Century Fox

The Music Room (Satyajit Ray, 1959) Criterion Collection
The Music Room [Blu-ray] (Satyajit Ray, 1959) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW)

Once Before I Die (Warner Shop Link) (John Derek, 1966) Warner Archive

Potiche [Blu-ray] (François Ozon, 2010) Music Box Films

Requiem for a Village [Blu-ray] (David Gladwell, 1975) RB UK BFI Video

Skidoo (Otto Preminger, 1968) Olive Films (BEAVER REVIEW)

The Sound of Insects: Record of a Mummy (Peter Liechti, 2009) Lorber Films

Went the Day Well? [Blu-ray] (Alberto Cavalcanti, 1942) RB UK Optimum

July 25th, 2011

5th Ave Girl (Gregory La Cava, 1939) R2 UK Odeon Entertainment

American Grindhouse / Nightmares in Red, White & Blue: Double Feature - Lorber Films

National Lampoon's Animal House [Blu-ray] (John Landis, 1978) Region FREE Universal Pictures UK

Apa - The Father (István Szabó, 1966) R2 UK Second Run

The Blues Brothers [Blu-ray] (John Landis, 1980) Universal Studios

The Breaking Point (Michael Curtiz, 1950) Warner Archive

The Call of the Wild [Blu-ray] (Ken Annakin, 1972) Universum Film

Dante's Peak [Blu-ray] (Roger Donaldson, 1997) Universal Studios

High and Low [Blu-ray] (Akira Kurosawa, 1963) Criterion Collection

A High Wind in Jamaica (Alexander Mackendrick, 1965) R2 UK Eureka (BEAVER REVIEW)

The Kremlin Letter (John Huston, 1970) R2 UK Eureka Entertainment (BEAVER REVIEW)

Lake Mungo (Joel Anderson, 2008) R2 UK Second Sight Films

The Last Man on Earth [Blu-ray] (Ubaldo Ragona, 1964) RB DE Savoy Film

Léon Morin, Priest (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1961) Criterion Collection
Léon Morin, Priest [Blu-ray] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1961) Criterion Collection

Life During Wartime (Todd Solondz, 2009) Criterion Collection
Life During Wartime [Blu-ray] (Todd Solondz, 2009) Criterion Collection

Love Like Poison (Katell Quillévéré, 2010) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Mao's Last Dancer [Blu-ray] (Bruce Beresford, 2009) 20th Century Fox

Monamour [Blu-ray] (Tinto Brass, 2006) Cult Epics

Source Code [Blu-ray] (Duncan Jones, 2011) Summit Entertainment

Taking Off [Blu-ray](Milos Forman, 1971) Koch Media

To Be Twenty (Fernando Di Leo, 1978) - Raro Video USA

Tortilla Flat (Warner Shop LINK) (Victor Fleming, 1942) Warner Archive

August 1st, 2011

Better Off Dead... [Blu-ray] (Savage Steve Holland, 1985) Paramount

Copycat [Blu-ray] (Jon Amiel, 1995) Warner Home Video

Conan the Barbarian [Blu-ray] (John Milius, 1982) Universal Home Video

Conan the Destroyer [Blu-ray] (Richard Fleischer, 1984) Universal Home Video

The Lavender Hill Mob (60th Anniversary Edition) [Blu-ray] (Charles Crichton, 1951) RB UK Optimum

Limitless [Blu-ray] (Neil Burger, 2011) RB UK Momentum Pictures

Marvel Knights: Iron Man & Spider Woman [Blu-ray] - Shout! Factory

The Name of the Rose [Blu-ray] (Jean-Jacques Annaud, 1986) Warner

Outside the Law [Blu-ray] (Rachid Bouchareb, 2010) Palisades Tartan

Sands of the Kalahari (Cy Endfield, 1965) Olive Films

Sands of the Kalahari [Blu-ray] (Cy Endfield, 1965) Olive Films

A Screaming Man (Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, 2010) Film Movement

The Silent House [Blu-ray] (Gustavo Hernández, 2010) RB UK Optimum

Sleepers [Blu-ray] (Barry Levinson, 1996) Warner Home Video

The Strange Case of Angelica [Blu-ray] (Manoel de Oliveira, 2010) - Cinema Guild

Submarine [Blu-ray] (Richard Ayoade, 2010) RB UK Optimum

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