Newsletter - FOR THE WEEK OF July 13th, 2009

This Week's Highlights

If there are DVD titles you'd like us to cover - please feel free to recommend!

Gary at 2ze dot com

• $14.99 Blu-ray SALE - 96 titles to choose HERE

• Amazon UK Blu-ray SUMMER SALE HERE

• Use Amazon code SONYPIC5 for $5 off Dr. Strangelove on Blu-ray

• Use Amazon code GHOSTBLU for $5 off Ghostbusters on Blu-ray

• Blu-rays from only £8.98 at Amazon UK HERE

• 36% OFF CRITERION FAVORITES HERE

• SALE STILL ON FOR SOME CRITERIONs at AMAZON (Blu, Pre-order and others): • El Norte [Blu-ray] (37% OFF!), The 400 Blows [Blu-ray] (45% OFF!), The Last Emperor [Blu-ray] (37% OFF!), The Man Who Fell to Earth [Blu-ray] (37% OFF!), Ace in the Hole (37% OFF!), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (35% OFF!), Last Year at Marienbad [Blu-ray] (32% OFF!), Wages of Fear [Blu-ray] (32% OFF!), The Seventh Seal [Blu-ray] (32% OFF!), Drunken Angel (32% OFF!), Alexander Korda's Private Lives (25% OFF!), The Third Man [Blu-ray] (37% OFF!), Chungking Express [Blu-ray] (37% OFF!), The Last Metro [Blu-ray] (32% OFF!), Bottle Rocket [Blu-ray] (35% OFF!), Empire of Passion (27% OFF!)

• WORLD CINEMA SALE STILL ON - UP To 70% OFF HERE

• SALES: US Blu-ray up to 53% OFF        UK Blu-ray 2 for 3 SALE       Amazon France Blu-ray SALE (BUY 1 get 1 FREE!)

LATEST ADDITIONS to the Calendar: (PRE-ORDER & save!):

North by Northwest [Blu-ray] (Alfred Hitchcock, 1959) (probably region FREE) UK Warner Home Video

The Wizard of Oz [Blu-ray] (Victor Fleming, 1939) (probably region FREE!) UK Warner Home Video

Cinema Paradiso [Blu-ray] (Giuseppe Tornatore, 1988) R'B' UK - Arrow Films

Lost: The Complete Fifth Season [Blu-ray] - Walt Disney Home Entertainment

Godzilla [Blu-ray] (Roland Emmerich, 1998) Sony Pictures

Miracle on 34th Street [Blu-ray] (George Seaton, 1947) Twentieth Century Fox

Audition: 2-disc Collector's Edition [Blu-ray] (Takashi Miike, 1999) Shout! Factory

Monsters vs Aliens [Blu-ray] (Rob Letterman + Conrad Vernon, 2009) Paramount

Lies & Illusions (Tibor Takács, 2009) [Blu-ray] Starz / Anchor Bay

The Soloist [Blu-ray] (Joe Wright, 2008) Dreamworks Video

Eagles Over London [Blu-ray] (Enzo G. Castellari, 1970) Severin Films

Easy Rider [Blu-ray] (Dennis Hopper, 1969) R'B' UK Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Angels & Demons [Blu-ray] (Ron Howard, 2009) R'B' Uk Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

The Dam Busters [Blu-ray] (Michael Anderson, 1955) R'B' UK Optimum Home Entertainment

The Red Balloon [Blu-ray] (Albert Lamorisse, 1956) R'B' UK Network

Heat [Blu-ray] (Michael Mann, 1995) - Region FREE UK – Warner

Gone with the Wind [Blu-ray] (Victor Fleming, 1939) (probably Region FREE) UK – Warner

The Green Mile [Blu-ray] (Frank Darabont, 1999) (probably Region FREE) UK – Warner

The Girl Cut in Two (Claude Chabrol, 2007) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Katyn (Andrzej Wajda, 2007) R2 UK Artificial Eye

Grey Gardens - How could a ravishing young debutante and her life-of-every-party mother -- relatives of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, no less -- become crazy cat ladies, occupying a dilapidated 28-room East Hampton mansion? "Grey Gardens," an HBO movie inspired by the eponymous documentary shot in 1973, doesn't fully answer that question -- indeed, there's a rather sizable hole in the story -- but nevertheless has a fabulous time contemplating it, showcasing marvelous performances by Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange. It's a must-see for those fascinated by the lore of the U.S.' modern Camelot, as well as another sure to be lavishly adorned movie for the pay channel. DVD Release Date: July 14th, 2009

Shark Week: The Great Bites Collection BR - Where in the world can you find the strangest and most deadly sharks? Why do sharks sometimes prey on humans? When are you most likely to be attacked? And what can you do to avoid becoming shark food? If you're hungry for answers, join the experts and some of Discovery Channel's bravest hosts as they go swimming with the ocean's most feared predator to answer all your biting questions. Blu-ray Release date: June 14th, 2009

Separation BR - Separation, scripted and starring Jane Arden, concerns the inner life of a woman during a period of breakdown - marital, and possibly mental. Her past and (possible?) future are revealed through a fragmented but brilliantly achieved and often humorous narrative, in which dreams and desires are as real as the 'swinging' London (complete with Procol Harum music and Mark Boyle light show) of the film's setting. Blu-ray Release date: July 20th, 2009

The Most Important Thing: Love - Sure it comes across as an arthouse melodrama but Zulawski's L'IMPORTANT C'EST D'AIMER is one of the most moving and agonizingly emotional statements of a theme that runs through much of Zulawski's work (up to his most recent LA FIDELITE) that, as the title states, the most important thing is to love. For Zulawski, love is more important than bourgeous concerns of honor and fidelity which is illustrated in the love triangle of actress (Romy Schneider in what she considered her finest performance for which she won a César award) torn between her moral obligation to husband (Jacques Dutronc) and her growing love for a photographer (Fabio Testi). Mondo Vision DVD Release Date: 16 June 2009

Repulsion BR - Roman Polanski followed up his international breakthrough Knife in the Water with this controversial, chilling tale of psychosis. Catherine Deneuve is Carol, a fragile, frigid young beauty cracking up in her London flat when left alone by her vacationing sister. She is soon haunted by specters real and imagined, and her insanity grows to a violent, hysterical pitch. Thanks to its disturbing detail and Polanski’s adeptness at turning claustrophobic space into an emotional minefield, Repulsion is a surreal, mind-bending odyssey into personal horror, and it remains one of cinema’s most shocking psychological thrillers. Blu-ray and DVD Release Date: July 28th, 2009

Watchmen - Director's Cut BR - That level of symbolism is coiling away beneath all superheroes. What appeals with Batman is his humanity; despite his skills, he is not supernormal. “Watchmen” brings surprising conviction to these characters as flawed and minor gods, with Dr. Manhattan possessing access to godhead on a plane that detaches him from our daily concerns — indeed, from days themselves. In the film’s most spectacular scene, he is exiled to Mars, and in utter isolation reimagines himself as a human, and conjures (or discovers? I’m not sure) an incredible city seemingly made of crystal and mathematical concepts. This is his equivalent to 40 days in the desert, and he returns as a savior. Blu-ray Release date: July 21st, 2009

The Red Shoes BR - A glorious Technicolor epic that influenced generations of filmmakers, artists, and aspiring ballerinas, The Red Shoes intricately weaves backstage life with the thrill of performance. A young ballerina (Moira Shearer) is torn between two forces: the composer who loves her (Marius Goring), and the impresario determined to fashion her into a great dancer (Anton Walbrook). Blu-ray Release Date: July 6th, 2009

Lola Montes - Andrew Sarris in 1963 dubbed this film the greatest ever made, and although he's noted for his quirky opinions, he's no fool. A masterpiece, LOLA MONTES is certainly director Max Ophüls' greatest achievement. In flashback, we take a fascinating look at the life of the passionate yet oddly passive title character (Carol, more perfect in the part than she could possibly have fathomed). Introduced by a New Orleans circus master (Ustinov), the aging Lola answers (or has answered for her) personal questions from the audience for a small fee. The ringmaster tells of her many romances throughout Europe, including one with Franz Liszt (Quadflieg) and another with the king of Bavaria (Walbrook). In the last scene, Lola (who throughout has been made to perform various acts like a well-trained seal) stands atop a high platform, preparing for a dangerous jump. Her health is as precarious as her position, yet the ringmaster removes the safety net. The finale is unforgettable. Restored Edition DVD Release Date: July 6th, 2009

The Edge of Love BR - It all kicks off in the 1940 London Blitz, with bomb shelters in the Underground. Enter Vera (an impressive Keira Knightley) under makeshift stage spotlights. A singer raising morale for those at home. Meeting Dylan for the first time again in years, her heart is flushed. Their eyes shine through the smoke of the room with purity of passion last experienced as teenage lovers. Dylan is no sanctified, sanitised poet. It is as if to be master of his vices he must experience them all fully. He hardly breaks his stride as he introduces his wife - mother of his child and love of his life - before continuing to woo Vera with every word and gesture. Blu-ray Release date: July 14th, 2009

Explicit Ills BR - For much of its 87 minutes, “Explicit Ills,” an episodic movie about a number of Philadelphians living, working and often struggling in the same neighborhood, appears to move from life to life without particular reason. Its first-time writer and director, Mark Webber, doesn’t immediately reveal the story’s structure or his intentions: he simply places you among some dozen characters — children and young adults of different colors and with differing economic contexts — without introduction. A young boy buys a soda in one scene, an older boy explains the benefits of a vegan diet in another; one man sells pot while another sells colonics. Blu-ray Release date: July 14th, 2009

Lady Cop & Papa Crook BR - “Chaotic” is a word that crops up in reviews of this film and, while apt in some ways, a little pandemonium is not entirely a bad thing. I found its sense of anarchy not only consistent with the basic premise of the story - who’s in charge here? (a better title, in any case) – and the madness of it star character: Inspector Maureen Szeto Mo Lin, played by the effervescent and sassy Sammi Cheng (Chung Mo Yim, Needing You and My Left Eye Sees Ghosts – all directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai). Maureen has been living with a sculptor who, for some years, has promised he will marry her once he finishes his long-suffering present project – which happens to take up a good portion of their apartment. The artist’s life does leave a certain amount of time to indulge in love-making and Maureen finds herself pregnant at about the same moment that she begins to suspect that her boyfriend may have other romantic interests.

Spaceballs BR - Spaceballs is what I guess people call a guilty pleasure. It's a loosely strung together movie whose very bodaciousness is its charm. All would-be parodies, take note. Mel Brooks can now feel that he has done his worst to the space opera genre, as he has done for the western (Blazing Saddles), horror (Young Frankenstein), costume drama (History of the World, Part 2), Hitchcockian thriller (High Anxiety) and silent movies (Silent Movie.) Brook’s movies are of remarkably variable quality, even considering that many are parodies, for which the bar is lowered accordingly. At his best (The Producers & Young Frankenstein), he imbues warmth into his characters that moves us despite the overt sex jokes and downright silliness. Blu-ray Release date: June 16th, 2009

Time Between Dog and Wolf - Instead of a show built around food, twins separated at birth, or the Joseon Dynasty, Time Between Dog and Wolf is a contemporary crime drama about an police undercover operation that goes deadly awry. It still has some familiar Korean-style elements: a love triangle, amnesia, and childhood friends who reconnect as adults, but the substance of the story and the action shared between Korea and Thailand have a newish feel. Moreover, the performance of its lead actor, Lee Jung Ki, is riveting, and the main reason for checking this out. DVD Release date: May 31, 2009

Week of July 27th, 2009