DVD Roundup ...

Lars Von Trier's Europe Trilogy: I've been lusting after this set since the day I saw it announced and, following a bit of a shipping delay, my copy arrived today. A fan of Von Trier or european film in general? This is an absolute must have. If you already have the Criterion and HVE releases of these films, all of which are pretty solid, you need to sell them and upgrade. Not only is this the best Lars Von Trier package ever put out but it is easily the best box set I've ever seen devoted to a single film maker.

You get the three film from Von Trier's Europe Trilogy - The Element of Crime, Europa (AKA Zentropa) and Epidemic. The masters on all three are pristine. Each film includes new commentary tracks - two each on Element and Europa, one on Epidemic - new anecdotal documentaries and making of docs from the initial release on both Element and Europa. And then there's the fourth disc, jammed solid with new and vintage docs on Von Trier and his films. Every single feature features English subtitles ... actually, they feature enough different subtitles to satisfy virtually anybody.

It'll take days of devoted viewing to get through everything that's on here and it'll be time well spent. I gave the new Von Trier commentary on Element a quick spin when I opened the package and it had me giggling away in no time ... brash, funny and utterly unconcerned with political correctness. Here's hoping this sells well enough that the producers consider giving his subsequent Golden Heart Trilogy (Breaking the Waves, The Idiots, Dancer in the Dark) the same treatment.

Constantine: Comic book purists be damned - figuratively speaking, of course - I like Constantine. Quite a lot. Yes, the move from London to LA is baffling but they got the character right where it matters, it's one of Reeve's better performances and director Francis Lawrence has a fantastic visual style.

The two disc Warner Brothers DVD release is solid on all fronts. The second disc of extras feels a little too much like an EPK rah rah session, but there's a stack of good information in there tracking all aspects of the film's development. The bonus comic book is a nice touch, a way of connecting the film's fans back to the source material, and the film itself is given a pristine presentation. The major strength of the bonus features is the commentary track ... Lawrence comes across as a goofily endearing uber geek and both Lawrence and the writers are startlingly frank in addressing the process of developing the film and the changes that were made to the character. I honestly expected that they would stay as far away from the changes as possible but everyone involved jumped right in and whether you like the Americanized Constantine or not it gives you a fantastic look into the development process.

Cursed: a relatively minor Japanese horror release from Media Blasters, Cursed revolves around the staff of a haunted convenience store. 7-11 under demonic control? The premise certainly has promise but after a beautifully executed and shockingly bloody opening scene the film generally plays it safe. There are a handful of genuinely memorable images scattered throughout the film but I can't quie get over the feeling that veteran character actor Susumu Terajima is slumming it a bit in this one.

Les Fils Du Vent: While Banlieue 13 drew widespread attention to the yamakasi phenomenon in France - in which highly skilled and apparently fearless athletes make a habit of leaping between rooftops - many overlooked the fact that there were poeple involved in the movement beyond David Belle and that quite a lot of them made a film right around the same time as Banlieue 13.

To say that Les Fils Du Vent has a wafer thin story line is a wee bit generous. The premise, fankly, is pretty ridiculous as are the perpetually hooded evil henchmen. It also veers into some shockingly blunt stereotypes. What it does have, however, is a fantastic visual style (hooded goons notwithstanding), a cast of staggeringly talented athletes and a handful of breath taking set pieces. You pretty much need to turn the brain off entirely when watching this one but there's solid entertainment value to be had.

The Reflecting Skin: Ah ... after making me wait a mighty long time Philip Ridley's southern gothic tale of exploding frogs, flaming suicides, possible vampires and field after field of wheat has hit DVD in Japan. The disc is quite bare on the extras front but I'm happy just to have the film itself here and that is well presented: anamorphic widescreen with a crisp transfer and the original audio track. I've despaired of Ridley's films ever getting a decent North American release so this is likely to remain the only option.

Eros: Mei Ah's Hong Kong release of the Eros anthology lives up to the high standards of their recent releases with a solid presentation of the film itself and a second bonus disc that features half an hour of interviews with Wong Kar Wai, Gong Li and Chang Chen discussing their entry in the anthology. The transfer is excellent, it includes a DTS soundtrack, and the DVD includes the handy feature of either watching the Antonioni segment with the sound off and subtitles disabled or simply turning it off altogether.

Hero Director's Cut: A good news / bad news release. The good news is that the new Edko release of this longer cut is world's better than the horrid GD Face edition of a while back. The bad news is that the colors are noticably washed out, a major problem for a film that manipulates color to as much effect as this one does. This gives you at least a tolerable option for watching the longer cut of the film but it's a long way from being flawless.