November 2003
DVD Releases

Compiled by Wilson Morales

DVD Releases

As the winter holidays are quickly approaching with Thanksgiving around the corner, it's time to stack up on the DVDs that would be great to watch when there are many repeats on TV and many sporting events that may not be of interest. Among the highlights of this week's releases is the collector's DVD gift set of The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers, which includes a new version of the film. If you happen to be a James Bond 007 fan, then you will happy to know that MGM has put most of his films in 2 box sets, Volumes 2 & 3. That's 13 films all together. And speaking of volumes and box sets, the first season of The West Wing is also out this week on DVD. If this is too much to handle, and you just want to see one adventurous film, then there's Lara Croft Tomb Raider- The Cradle of Life, which stars Angelina Jolie and Djimon Houson. And if you are looking for a film that kids will enjoys, there's Santa Clause 2 and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas.


The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition Collector's Gift Set) (2002)

Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler, & Cate Blanchett
Format: Color, Closed-captioned, Box set, Dolby
Rated: PG13
Studio: New Line Home Video
DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003
DVD Features:
  • * (C) 2002 New Line Productions, Inc. The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, and the characters, events, items, and places therein are trademarks of The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises under license to New Line Productions, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
  • Four-disc Platinum Series Special Extended DVD Edition of The Lord of Rings: The Two Towers
  • Collectible Gollum polystone statue created by Sideshow Weta
  • Exclusive bonus DVD on the Weta Workshop and how the Gollum statue was created
  • Exclusive printed companion piece showing how Gollum evolved from pencil sketch to digital character
  • Special Extended DVD Edition of The Lord of Rings: The Two Towers
  • DISCS 1-2: The Feature:
  • A new version of the second installment includes over 40 minutes of never-before-seen footage incorporated into the film. (approx. 208 minutes)
  • Four audio commentaries by the director, writer, the design team, and production team featuring more than 30 participants including Peter Jackson, Richard Taylor, Howard Shore, Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, and Orlando Bloom.
  • DISCS 3-4: The Appendices:
  • Two discs with hours of original content including multiple documentaries and design/photo galleries with thousands of images to give viewers an in-depth behind-the-scenes look at The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
  • DISC 3:
  • Adapting the book into a screenplay & planning the film
  • Designing and inspiration for locations in Middle-earth
  • Storyboards to pre-visualization
  • Weta Workshop visit: See sculptors in action as they create weapons, armor, creatures, and miniatures from the film
  • Atlas of Middle-earth tracing the journey of the Fellowship
  • An interactive map of New Zealand highlighting the location scouting process
  • Galleries of art and slideshows with commentaries by the artists
  • DISC 4:
  • Sending the actors into battle: sword fighting
  • Principal photography: Stories from the set
  • Digital effects including motion capture and the computer program to create the armies of Orcs
  • Bigatures: a close-up look at the miniatures
  • Galleries of behind-the-scenes photographs and personal cast photos
  • Post-Production: editing it all together
  • Sound design demonstration
  • DVD-ROM Content: Includes access to exclusive online features
  • Widescreen anamorphic format
  • Number of discs: 4

Sinbad - Legend of the Seven Seas (Widescreen Edition) (2003)

Starring:

Starring: Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dennis Haysbert, & Joseph Fiennes Director: Patrick Gilmore & Tim Johnson

Director: Lee Unkrich, Andrew Stanton
Format: Widescreen, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound
Rated: PG
Studio: Umvd/Dreamworks
DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003

The James Bond 007 Special Edition DVD Collection, Volume 2 (2000)

Starring:

Starring: Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, & Pierce Brosnan


Format: Color, Box set, Dolby, Closed-captioned
Rated: NR
Studio: MGM/UA Video
DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003
DVD Features:
  • From Russia with Love (commentary by director Terrence Young and members of the cast and crew; "Inside From Russian with Love" and "Harry Saltzman: Showman" documentaries)

  • You Only Live Twice (commentary by director Lewis Gilbert and members of the cast and crew; "Inside You Only Live Twice" and "Silhouettes: The James Bond Titles" documentaries)

  • Diamonds Are Forever (commentary by director Guy Hamilton and members of the cast and crew; "Inside Diamonds Are Forever" and "Cubby Broccoli: The Man Behind Bond" documentaries; deleted scenes)

  • Moonraker ("Inside Moonraker" and "The Men Behind the Mayhem" documentaries; still gallery)

  • For Your Eyes Only (commentary by director John Glen; commentary by producer Michael Wilson and crew members; "Inside For Your Eyes Only" documentary; "For Your Eyes Only" music video by Sheena Easton; behind-the-scenes photo gallery with over 150 pictures)

  • The Living Daylights (commentary by director John Glen and the members of the cast and crew; "Inside The Living Daylights" and "Ian Fleming: 007's Creator" documentaries; never-before-seen deleted scene; music video)

  • The World Is Not Enough (commentary by director Michael Apted; commentary by production designer Peter Lamont, second unit director Vic Armstrong, and composer David Arnold; "The Making of The World Is Not Enough" documentary; The Secrets of 007: Featuring Alternate Video Options; "The World Is Not Enough" music video by Garbage)

  • Theatrical trailer(s), radio spots

  • Animated storyboard sequences

  • Collectible booklets

  • Widescreen anamorphic format

  • Number of discs: 7


The James Bond 007 Special Edition DVD Collection, Volume 3

Starring: Sean Connery, Roger Moore, & Pierce Brosnan
Format: Color, Box set, Dolby, Closed-captioned
Rated: NR
Studio: MGM/UA Video
DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003
DVD Features:
  • Thunderball (commentary by director Terence Young; commentary by the cast and crew; "The Thunderball Phenomenon" and "The Making of Thunderball" documentary; "Inside Thunderball" featurette; still gallery)
  • On Her Majesty's Secret Service (commentary by director Peter Hunt and the cast and crew; "Inside On Her Majesty's Secret Service and "Inside Q's Laboratory" documentaries; "Above It All" featurette; still gallery)
  • Live and Let Die (commentary by director Guy Hamilton; commentary by screenwriter Tom Manckiewicz; "Inside Live and Let Die" documentary; "On the Set with Roger Moore" featurette; still gallery; United Kingdom milk board commercial)
  • A View to a Kill (commentary by director John Glen and the members of the cast and crew; "Inside A View to a Kill" and "The Music of James Bond" documentary; deleted scene; music video)
  • Octopussy (commentary; "Inside Octopussy" and "Designing Bond: Peter Lamont" documentaries; music video)
  • Die Another Day (commentary by director Lee Tamahori and producer Michael G. Wilson; commentary by Pierce Brosnan and Rosamund Pike; trivia track with video streaming; "Inside Die Another Day" documentary; storyboard-to-final-shot comparisons for key scenes; multi-angle explorations of stunts and action sequences; an inside look at all the visual elements in the opening credits sequence; before-and-after comparisons of digitally altered footage; featurettes with original animation and in-depth descriptions of each gadget, including the Aston Martin Vanquish; photo gallery; Madonna's "Die Another Day" music video; making of Madonna's "Die Another Day" music video)
  • Theatrical trailer(s)
  • Collectible booklets
  • Widescreen anamorphic format
  • Number of discs: 6

Lara Croft Tomb Raider - The Cradle of Life (Widescreen Edition) (2003)

Starring: Angelina Jolie, Gerard Butler, Djimon Hounson, & Noah Taylor
Director: Jan de Bont
Format: Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen
Rated: PG13
Studio: Paramount Home Video
DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003
DVD Features:
  • Commentary by director Jan De Bont
  • 6 Deleted Scenes and an alternate ending, all with commentary by Du Bont
  • Gerard Butler's screen test
  • Five featurettes on the film's training, weapons and vehicles, visual effects, stunts and scoring
  • Music Videos by Korn and The Davey Brothers
  • The Original Theatrical Web-Site Archive DVD-ROM
  • Widescreen anamorphic format

The West Wing - The Complete First Season (1999)

Starring:

Martin Sheen, Rob Lowe, Allison Janney, Richard Schiff, & Bradley Whitford

Format: Color, Closed-captioned
Rated: NR
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Release Date: November 18, 200
DVD Features:

Commentaries from Aaron Sorkin, "The West Wing" Creator and Director Thomas Schlamme on five key episodes, including the "Pilot," "What Kind Of Day Has It Been," "Take This Sabbath Day," "In Excelsis Deo" (featuring additional commentary from Co-Executive Producer/Director Alex Graves) and "Celestial Navigation" (with Co-Executive Producer/Director Chris Misiano joining Sorkin and Schlamme)

All-new digital transfers

"The Primaries" and "The West Wing Inauguration" - in-depth making-of documentaries

Exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage from "The West Wing's" first season, including "Capital Beat" and "Sheet Music"

"Gag Order" - a collection of outtakes and bloopers

"Off the Record" - outtakes from various cast and producer interviews

Deleted scenes

Number of discs: 4


The Santa Clause 2 - The Mrs. Clause (Widescreen Edition) (2002)

Starring:

Tim Allen, Elizabeth Mitchell, Eric Lloyd, David Krumholtz, & Judge Reinhold

Director: Michael Lembeck
Format: Widescreen, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound
Rated: G
Studio: Walt Disney Home Video
DVD Release Date: November 18, 2003
DVD Features:
  • Commentary by director Michael Lembeck
  • 7 deleted scenes
  • Gag reel
  • Set-top game "Operation Toy Box"
  • Making-of featurette
  • "True Confessions of the Legendary Figures"
  • Director's tour of Elfsburg
  • DVD-ROM: 3 games and a coloring book
  • Widescreen anamorphic format