dvd news on the march

We're back with some great DVD news that should tickle your fancies. Three new DVD releases that have my attention, and with any luck will be on my own shelf in the future.

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, Vol.I
(Release Date: Oct. 23)
I know we talked about this one not too long ago. Here, after several years of putting it together, is the long awaited release from George Lucas and Spielberg. The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones was a series of feature-length adventures featuring a teenage, or in some cases, a 9 year old Indiana Jones. The shows combined history, romance, adventure, and plenty of the little things here and there that would contribute to making the adult Indy in the films. This first Volume will contain 12 discs which will include the 7 features from the first season, along with a ton of special features. Each feature will have accompanying in-depth historical documentaries; 38 of them in all. Also included will be an interactive timeline and game and a historical overview of the series.
The second volume will follow on December 18th and the final third volume will be released in Spring 2008. All told, the three volumes sets will eventually contain all 22 feature length adventures and some 94 documentaries. All I can say is, it's worth the wait. The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, Vol. I is currently available for pre-order through Amazon.

The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. I 1934-1936 (Release date: Oct. 30)
At last, after years of haphazard DVD releases, and some unfortunate colorization attempts, the Stooges are getting their due on DVD with a long promised chronological collection. The first Volume in this multi-volume set will contain all 19 shorts from 1934-1936. Included will be: Woman Haters, Punch Drunks, Men In Black, Three Little Pigskins, Horses' Collars, Restless Knights, Pop Goes The Easel, Uncivil Warriors, Pardon My Scotch, Hoi Polloi, Three Little Beers, Ants In The Pantry, Movie Maniacs, Half-Shot Shooters, Disorder In The Court, A Pain In The Pullman, False Alarms, Whoops, I'm an Indian and Slippery Silks. Sony, which owns and distributes the Columbia catalogue, has promised special features as well. Possible features for this set that have been discussed are a biographical documentary on Moe Howard, interviews with some of the surviving Stooge secondary players, and some audio commentaries. Considering the amount of time it would take to release all of the shorts in two year sets, let's hope Sony speeds up the release schedule and releases several sets a year. The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. I 1934-1936 is currently available for pre-order through Amazon.

Ford at Fox (Release Date: Dec. 4)
Here is a box set that just jump starts my heart! A huge release this year from Fox just in time for Christmas: Ford at Fox. One of America's most celebrated directors, and one of my all time favorites, John Ford spent much of his early career at Fox studios. Fox has collected 24 of those films, 18 of which will be new to DVD, to be released in this massive collector's box set. The films are:
Just Pals, The Iron Horse, 3 Bad Men, Four Sons, Hangman's House, Born Reckless, Up the River, Seas Beneath, Doctor Bull, Pilgrimage, Judge Priest, The World Moves On, Steamboat Round the Bend, The Prisoner of Shark Island, Wee Willie Winkie, Four Men and a Prayer, Drums Along the Mohawk, Young Mr. Lincoln, The Grapes of Wrath, Tobacco Road, How Green Was My Valley, My Darling Clementine, When Willie Comes Marching Home and What Price Glory.
A bonus disc included will be a documentary disc: Becoming John Ford. Also in the set will be a hardcover book featuring unpublished photographs, lobby card reproductions, production stills and a look at Ford's films and career, and several poster reproductions. Many of the discs will have individual extras, and some will be released later as stand alone discs or in triple feature collections.
After our look at 20 influential westerns of the 20th century, I lamented on the lack of a DVD release of The Iron Horse. With this box set, all of the Westerns on our list will be available on DVD! This set isn't available for pre-order yet from Amazon, but Fox has a SRP on the set of $299.98. Start saving now!

That's all for now folks, but there's more where that came from. Coming up: A DVD review of Warner Brother's recent Shakespeare Collection. Stay tuned. Also don't forget: 3:10 to Yuma is in theaters starting today. It looks good. Is the Western genre gaining new ground? We'll see...



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