And now for something entirely different. Film critics and theater audiences had a mixed reaction to this computer-animated release. So mixed, in fact, that it moved in and out of theaters last fall before it had a chance to develop any word of mouth.
When a rogue Russian extremist seizes control of enough of Russia's armaments to nuke the US, the <I>USS Alabama</I>, along with other nuclear missile subs, is sent in harm's way as a deterrent or possibly even a first-strike weapon to take out the Russian missiles before they can be launched.
Start with a look at Marine boot camp not much different than what we've seen in countless war movies. Move on to a boring look at bored Marines killing time in the desert in the buildup to the 1991 Gulf War. They're depicted as dumb, disorganized, rowdy, and undisciplined. The promotional copy for the movie, included in the cover art, says that the troops are "in a country they don't understand, against an enemy they can't see, for a cause they don't fully grasp. Believe me, the troops in the first Gulf War were fully briefed on the country they were going to, could usually see the enemy (his back, typically), and understood that they were fighting to free a country occupied by the forces of an expansionist dictator. That promotional copy was clearly written as a not-too-subtle analogy to the <I>current</I> Iraq war.
David Lean's 1970 epic Ryan's Daughter (Warner; Movie •••½, Picture/Sound ••••, Extras ••••) gets the grand treatment in this two-disc special edition. Sourced from restored 65mm picture elements, the 2.2:1 transfer is consistently crisp, revealing every crag in stone houses.
The most surprising Oscar winner for Best Picture in decades, Crash (Lionsgate; Movie •••½, Picture/Sound •••½, Extras ••½) has a couple of secret weapons that quietly recommended it to members of the Academy. First, it captures the true look and feel of Los Angeles, where the majority of Oscar voters live.
The greatest kaleidoscopic experience without the benefit of hallucinogens, the terrific six-disc Busby Berkeley Collection (Warner; Movies ••••½, Picture/Sound ••••½, Extras ••••) has five of the choreography genius's best-known works: Gold Diggers of 1933, Footlight Parade (1933), Dames (1934), Gold Diggers of 1935
THE SOPRANOS (HBO, above - left). Jersey mafia don Tony Soprano: bigger than your average bear, and ten times as deadly. These movie-quality transfers set the standard, with excellent contrast, rich colors, and crisp, atmospherically lit images.