KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST NEWS
Follow us on TWITTER »
Get our DINING IN AND OUT newsletter
GET BREAKING NEWS ON YOUR PHONE
Text PNEWS to 744559
Harry Hamlin starred as Perseus in 1981's "Clash of the Titans," which featured effects by Ray Harryhausen. A 3D remake will hit theaters on April 2.
Classics in their earlier versions
We've been hit with another tsunami of Hollywood remakes, including Sherlock Holmes, helmed by Guy Ritchie; The Wolfman, starring Benicio Del Toro as the furry creature; Alice in Wonderland, from fabulist Tim Burton; and a mega-budget take on Greek myths, Clash of the Titans, set to open on April 2.
Contact staff writer Tirdad Derakhshani
A slew of new DVDs offer fans previous versions of these classics.
The Wolf Man (Special Edition) from Universal (http://homevideo.universalstudios.com/; $26.98; not rated) is a gorgeously packaged, two-disc edition of the 1941 classic starring Lon Chaney Jr. as the ill-fated Everyman bitten by the beast. The 1990 TV series, She-Wolf of London: The Complete Series, is a fun curio from Universal ($39.98; not rated) featuring Kate Hodge as an American grad student in London who is bitten by a werewolf.
Brush up on Holmesiana with The Complete Sherlock Holmes Collection, due March 30 from MPI (www.mpihomevideo.com; $129.99; not rated), a five-disc collection of 14 classic Holmes films starring the inimitable Basil Rathbone.
By the by, Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes is due March 30 from Warner (www.wbshop.com/; $28.98 DVD; $35.99 Blu-ray-DVD combo; rated PG-13).
It's nigh impossible to enumerate all the versions of Alice in Wonderland.
My favorite is the psychedelic, trippy Alice in Wonderland (1966) from the BBC (www.bbcamericashop.com/; $14.98; not rated). It has an amazing cast, including Peter Sellers, John Gielgud, and Michael Redgrave, and a wealth of extras, including Dennis Potter's biopic, Alice, about the real-life Alice Liddell.
Go classic with Alice in Wonderland (1933) from Universal ($19.98; not rated), which stars Cary Grant, Gary Cooper, and W.C. Fields. Disney's Alice in Wonderland (2-Disc Special Un-Anniversary Edition) (1951) due March 30 (http://disneydvd.disney.go.com/; $29.99; rated G), offers an animated version of the tale. Whoopi Goldberg and Robbie Coltrane star in NBC's Alice in Wonderland (1999) out from RHI (www.rhitv.com/; $19.93; not rated). Kathy Bates, Matt Frewer, and Harry Dean Stanton grace cabler Syfy's four-hour miniseries, Alice (2009 Miniseries) from Lionsgate (www.lionsgateshop.com/; $19.98; not rated).
A young Harry Hamlin battles some nifty creatures, including a spooktacular Medusa, created by effects guru Ray Harryhausen, in Clash of The Titans (1981) from Warner ($14.98 DVD; $34.99 Blu-ray; rated PG). The effects can be a bit cheesy, especially the blue laser light show that surrounds Zeus (Laurence Olivier), but it's a fun ride.
Seeking vengeance
Before it's ruined by Hollywood, catch South Korean auteur Park Chan-wook's acclaimed Vengeance Trilogy (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance/Oldboy/Lady Vengeance) from Palisades Tartan (www.tartanfilmsusa.com/; $49.99 DVD; $64.99 Blu-ray; rated R). The new, expanded eight-disc box set includes an impressive array of extras.
Max Ophüls' legacy
Critics were initially bemused by Max Ophüls' final film, Lola Montès, an odd, almost surreal biopic about the 19th-century dancer Lola Montez, whose independent spirit - and widely publicized affairs with Franz Liszt and King Ludwig of Bavaria - shocked the world. Shot in dazzling colors and exquisitely framed in widescreen, Lola stars Peter Ustinov as a circus ringmaster who saucily narrates the cabaret star's life story to a leering audience as an older Lola dances for them.The 1955 film is structured in Citizen Kane-like flashbacks and presciently analyzes the social plague that has befallen us all: celebrity culture.
Lola was released in America in a heavily edited version, but is finally available in the fully restored edition, Lola Montès (Criterion Collection) from Criterion (www.criterion.com/; $39.95 DVD and Blu-ray; not rated).
The two-disc set features a commentary by Ophüls scholar Susan White and a making-of featurette directed by Ophüls' filmmaker son, Marcel Ophüls.
Despite its initial reception, Lola has rightly been recognized as one of the greatest films since World War II and deserves multiple viewings.
Contact staff writer Tirdad Derakhshani
at 215-854-2736 or tirdad@phillynews.com
