Video NewBriefs, September 1, 2010

Alexander Street Press, whose publishing partners include PBS, the BBC, and the History Channel, will launch three new annotated streaming video collections for the library and education markets this year: World History in Video: English-Language More...

VIDEO REVIEWS, September 1, 2010

FICTION A Bit of a Do. 4 discs. color. 658+ min. David Reynolds & others, ITV Studios, dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2010. DVD ISBN 9781598283921. $59.99. F This award-winning British comedy series, which More...

What's Coming on DVD/Blu-ray, September 1, 2010

The Darjeeling Limited. 2 discs. color. 91+ min. Wes Anderson, dist. by Criterion Collection c/o Image Entertainment. Oct. 2010. DVD ISBN 9781604653342. $29.95; 1-disc Blu-ray ISBN 9781604653335. $39.95. COMEDY A trio of American siblings train More...

Top Foreign & Indie Picks

Everlasting Moments. 2 discs. color. 131 min. In Swedish w/English subtitles. Criterion Collection, dist. by Image Entertainment. 2008. DVD ISBN 978-1-60465-284-0; Blu-ray ISBN 978-1-60465-303-8. $39.95. Abused by her loutish if occasionally charming husband, a spirited More...

Video NewsBriefs

According to a survey of 753 Internet-­using adults conducted by the Pew Internet Project during a three-day period in June 2009, 69 percent of adult Internet users watch streaming or downloaded videos online. Since 2007, More...

The Ultimate Goldbergs.

3 vols. b/w. 32+ hrs. Regents of University of California, dist. by Shout Factory, www.shoutfactorystore.com. 2010. DVD ISBN 978-1-60399-405-7. $59.95. F/TVGertrude Berg used to start every episode of The Goldbergs (1949–56) with a friendly greeting More...

Video

FictionThe Diary of a Nobody. color. 116 min. Susanna White, Clerkenwell Films, dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-82519-6. $29.99. FCharles Pooter is a middle-aged, middle-class, midlevel clerk in a London firm. More...

Trailers

The Lovely Bones. color. 130+ min. Peter Jackson, dist. by Paramount Home Entertainment. May 2010. DVD UPC 0-97363-52424-3. $19.99; 2-disc Blu-ray UPC 0-97360-73924-4. $29.99. Rated: PG-13. DRAMAAlice Sebold's New York Times best seller about a More...

Video News Briefs

Library Ideas cofounder Brian Downing has spearheaded a pilot program bringing Redbox DVD-rental kiosks to library locations around the country. Participants include the Princeton Public Library, NJ; Henderson Libraries, NV; Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, NC; Orange More...

Video

FictionArmchair Thriller. Set 1. 4 vols. color. 487+ min. Robert Tronson & others, Thames Television Prod., dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-82789-3. $59.99. FThis four-volume set of psychological thrillers involving ordinary More...

Trailers

Afghan Star. color. 88+ min. In English, Dari, & Pashto w/English subtitles. Havana Marking, dist. by Zeitgeist Video. Apr. 2010. DVD UPC 7-95975-11243-7. $29.99. INT AFFAIRSContestants vie for more than a record deal in this More...

Fast Scans

The Burning Plain. color. 107 min. Magnolia Pictures. 2009. DVD UPC 8-76964-00194-6. $26.98; Blu-ray UPC 8-76964-00195-3. $29.98. Rated: R.While not quite in a league with his scripts for 21 Grams and Babel, this, screenwriter Guillermo More...

Video

FictionHeartland. Season 1, Pt. 2. 2 discs. 270+ min. Dean Bennett & others, Dynamo Films & SEVEN24 Films, www.iloveheartland.com. DVD ISBN 978-1-4172-3260-4. $24.98.McLeod's Daughters: The Original Movie. color. 94+ min. Michael Offer, Australian Film Finance More...

Trailers

The Abbott and Costello Show: The Complete Series. 9 discs. b/w. 28+ hrs. E1 Entertainment. Mar. 2010. DVD ISBN 978-1-4172-3263-5. $59.98. COMEDY/TVThe comedy duo supreme. Who's on first?Bigger Than Life. color. 95+ min. Nicholas Ray, More...

News Briefs

In December 2009, the critically acclaimed Arthouse Films documentary Herb & Dorothy (LJ 1/10), which tells of how postal clerk Herb Vogel and his librarian wife, Dorothy, built one of the world's most important contemporary More...

Video

FictionLocal Color. color. 107 min. George Gallo, Alla Prima Prods., dist. by Monterey Media, 805-494-7199; www.montereymedia.com. 2009. DVD ISBN 978-1-56994-346-5. $26.95. Closed-captioned. Rated: R. FBased on the life of writer/director Gallo, Local Color takes place More...

Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women.

color. 84 min. Nancy Porter, Nancy Porter Prods. & Thirteen/WNET, dist. by Nancy Porter Prods., 781-652-8755; www.louisamayalcott.net. 2010. DVD home video $29.95; public libraries $69.95; acad. libs. $225. litObie winner Elizabeth Marvel takes the role More...

Best on Blu-ray, continued[web exclusive]

Earth. color. 96 min. Disney. 2009.Blu-ray UPC 7-94051-40012-3.$39.99.Migrating polar bear, elephant, and hunchback whale families are magnificently captured in their disparate habitats in this stunning nature documentary, adapted from the BBC/Discovery series Planet Earth. For More...

Video

FictionAgatha Christie's Marple. Series 4. 4 vols. color. 372 min. ITV Studios & WGBH-Boston, dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-82139-6. $59.99. SDH subtitles. FJane Marple would make a good librarian. Not More...

Trailers

Blind Date. color. 80+ min. Stanley Tucci, dist. by E1 Entertainment. Dec. 2009. DVD ISBN 978-1-4172-3282-6. $26.98. ROMANCE Trying to reconnect, a husband and wife (Tucci and Patricia Clarkson) start dating.A Christmas Tale. 2 discs. More...

News Briefs

Newly available from Vook and Atria: Simon & Schuster, Narine Kikogosian's Return to Beauty, a multiformat skincare guide combining text with video content accessible online or as stand-alone iPhone and iPod Touch apps. (More info More...

News Briefs

This year marks the 30th anniversary of First Run Features. Browse the independent film distributor's catalog of over 400 films, by directors Spike Lee, Barbara Kopple, Claude Chabrol, Jan Svankmajer, and others, at www.firstrunfeatures.com.Vivendi Entertainment More...

Fast Scans

Last Year at Marienbad. b/w. 94 min. In French w/English subtitles. Criterion Collection, dist. by Image Entertainment. 1961. 2-disc DVD ISBN 978-1-60465-157-7; 1-disc Blu-ray ISBN 978-1-60465-158-4. $39.95.Narrative films don't get more enigmatic than this love-it-or-hate-it More...

Video

FictionDoc Martin. Series 2. 3 discs. color. 464 min. Ben Bolt & Minkie Spiro, Buffalo Pictures in assoc. with Homerun Film Prods., dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-83019-0. $49.99. SDH subtitles. More...

Video

FictionAgatha Christie's Poirot: The Movie Collection. Set 4. 3 vols. color. 186+ min. ITV Global, dist. by Acorn Media; 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-81209-7. $49.99. SDH subtitles. FThe long history of successful Agatha Christie More...

Trailers

Betty Blue: Director's cut. color. 185 min. Jean-Jacques Beineix, dist. by Cinema Libre. Nov. 2009. DVD ISBN 978-1-59587-115-2. $24.95. DRAMAEroticism and obsession follow our eponymous heroine; based on the novel by Philippe Djian.Irving Berlin's White More...

Fast Scans

Dakota Skye. color. 89 min. E1 Entertainment, www.kochvison.com. 2008. DVD ISBN 978-1-4172-3209-3. $24.98. SDH subtitles. Rated: R.A 17-year-old girl with the uncanny ability to hear the truth behind every lie has some serious trust issues More...

Video

FictionHome. color. 84 min. Mary Haverstick, The Home Project, dist. by Monterey Media, 800-424-2593; www.montereymedia.com. 2009. DVD ISBN 978-1-56994-663-3. $26.95. Rated: PG-13. FBeautiful, touching, yet sometimes harsh, this multilayered drama centers on poet Inga (Tony More...

Video

Fiction Save Me. color. 96 min. Robert Cary, Garbus Kroupa Entertainment, dist. by First Run Features, 800-229-8575; www.firstrunfeatures.com. 2009. DVD UPC 7-20229-91359-1 or 7-20229-91362-1. $24.95. Closed-captioned. F/GENDER STUDIESChad Allen is eerily authentic as Mark, a More...

Video News Briefs

The winner of the Gale 2009 Librareo "Power to the User" Ad Madness Video Contest, launched in April during National Library Week, is Jason McCullough of Millington, MI, whose $5000 prize will be equally split More...

Documentary DVDs

1Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series. Warner Bros. 2007. ISBN 978-1-4198-4936-7. $79.98.2Man on Wire. Magnolia Home Entertainment. 2008. UPC 8-76964-00156-4. $26.98.3Young @ Heart. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. 2008. UPC 0-24543-52702-2. $19.98.4Religulous. Lionsgate Home Entertainment. More...

Video

FictionThe Hunger: The Complete First Season. 4 discs. color. 616 min. Ridley & Tony Scott, Park Entertainment for Showtime, dist. by E1 Entertainment, www.kochvision.com. 2009. DVD ISBN 978-1-4172-3207-9. $39.98. HORRORThis lackluster horror anthology series comes More...

Trailers

Almost Heaven. color. 102 min. Shel Piercy, dist. by E1 Entertainment (formerly KOCH Entertainment). Aug. 2009. DVD ISBN 978-1-4172-3236-9. $24.98. SDH subtitles. ROMANTIC COMEDY A has-been TV director gets a second chance…in Scotland. Go to More...

Fast Scans

Alain Resnais: A Decade in Film. 4 discs. color. 414 min. In French w/English subtitles. KimStim Collection, dist. by Kino Intl. 1983–89. DVD UPC 6-98452-20713-1. $49.95.Repackaged as a four-disc, single-case set selling for less than More...

Video

FictionThe Ruth Rendell Mysteries. Set 3. 3 discs. color. 460 min. Granada, dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2008. DVD UPC 0-54961-80659-1. $49.99. FThis edition of The Ruth Rendell Mysteries features five explorations of obsession More...

Video

Fiction Rain Shadow. Series 1. 2 discs. color. 324 min. Australian Broadcasting Corp., dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2008. DVD UPC 0-54961-81309-4. $39.99. FThis 2007 Australian miniseries stars Rachel Ward as a veterinarian in More...

Video Updates

Last Stop for Paul (LJ 5/1/09) is now available exclusively from the producer, Neil Mandt, Mandt Bros. Productions, LLC, 6910 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90038; 323-466-6600; neil@mandtbros.com.The review of Jamesie, King of Scratch More...

Video

FictionThe Adventure Collection. 14 discs. 29+ hrs. A&E Television Networks, dist. by New Video, 800-314-8822; www.newvideo.com. 2008. DVD ISBN 978-1-4229-2840-3. $99.95. FThis massive collection (over 20 hours of feature content) includes some of the finest More...

Fast Scans

Danton. 2 discs. color. 136 min. In French w/English subtitles. Criterion Collection, dist. by Image Entertainment. 1983. DVD ISBN 978-1-60465-126-3. $39.95.An indomitable GĂ©rard Depardieu tears into the title role of celebrated hero of the French More...

Video

FictionThe Beiderbecke Affair. 2 vols. color. 300 min. David Reynolds & Frank W. Smith, Yorkshire Prod., dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-81619-4. $39.99. FThis "delightfully quirky" British mystery series was originally More...

Video News Briefs

On view through May 9 at The New York Public Library: "Dance Theatre of Harlem: 40 Years of Firsts," a multimedia exhibition tracing the theater's history, community outreach, and productions through costumes, stage props, posters, More...

Video

FictionShe Stoops To Conquer. 2 vols. color. 245 min. Tony Britten, Capriol Films, dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2009. DVD UPC 0-54961-81669-9. $39.99. SDH subtitles. FShe Stoops To Conquer, playwright Oliver Goldsmith's 18th-century classic More...

Fast Scans

The Edge of Heaven. color. 116 min. In English, Turkish, & German w/English subtitles. Strand Releasing. 2007. DVD UPC 7-12267-28012-4. $27.99.The accidental death of a prostitute impacts the lives of a handful of people whose More...

Video News Briefs

Beginning with Ken Burns's 1990 public television series The Civil War, General Motors (GM) has been a major sponsor of the famed documentary filmmaker's work. That relationship is about to end: Burns's 12-hour The National More...

Trailers

Chekhov & Maria. color. 86 min. Eric Till, dist. by Cinema Epoch c/o KOCH Entertainment. May 2009. DVD UPC 8-91514-00190-0. $24.98. DRAMA How the Russian playwright, with the aid of his sister, wrote The Cherry More...

Video: News Briefs

Visit www.libraryjournal.com for LJ's 2009 collection development calendar, which links to video, audio, print, gaming, and music resources useful to collection development and readers' advisory librarians.At the Jefferies fifth annual Internet and Media conference in More...

Iraqi Freedom or Frustration?

Ahlaam (Utopia). color. 110 min. In Arabic w/English subtitles. Mohamed al-Daraji, Human Film, dist. by Pathfinder Home Entertainment, pathfinderpictures.com. 2008. DVD UPC 8-25307-91759-8. $24.98. F This Iraqi-made feature portrays life under Saddam Hussein. Through flashbacks, More...

Video

FictionLadies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains. (Rock'n'Roll Cinema). color. 87 min. Lou Adler, Rhino, dist. by Ryko Distribution, www.rykodistribution.com. 2008. DVD UPC 6-03497-81779. $19.95. FDirector Adler's 1981 feature film, which never received a wide theatrical More...

Video

FictionThe Duchess of Duke Street: The Complete Collection. 10 discs. color. 27 hrs. John Hawkesworth, BBC & Time-Life Films, dist. by Acorn Media, 888-870-8047; www.acornonline.com. 2008. DVD UPC 0-54961-80999-8. $99.99. Closed-captioned. FProducer Hawkesworth followed his More...

Video News Briefs

In October, Macmillan signed a partnership with Rabineau Wachter Sanford & Harris allowing the Los Angeles-based literary agency to sell exclusive film and TV rights to the unagented titles on its list. This, following news More...

Fast Scans: Foreign & Indie Films

Drunken Angel. b/w. 98 min. In Japanese w/English subtitles. Criterion Collection, dist. by Image Entertainment. 1948. DVD ISBN 978-1-60465-001-3. $39.95.Akira Kurosawa (Seven Samurai, Rashomon) elicits a powerfully raw performance from Toshiro Mifune as a mobster More...

Video

Wheat Cookin' Made Easy with Pam Crockett. color. 63 min. Focus Digital Prods., dist. by AV Café, 6201 S. 58th St., Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68516; 877-228-2233; www.theavcafe.com. 2007. DVD $11.95. Public performance. COOKERYIn Wheat More...