OnVideo JULY 1996 Releases
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OnVideo JULY 1996 Releases

12 MONKEYS
Between the past and the future, dreams and reality, lies the mystery of this film, which stars Bruce Willis as a convict from the year 2035 sent to the present to warn humankind of an impending airborne viral holocaust. Deemed mad, Willis is put in an asylum where only his shrink (Madeleine Stowe) comes to believe his story. Fabulous Terry Gilliam sci-fi noir/mystery a la the director's "Brazil."
Director: Terry Gilliam. Stars: Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt, Christopher Plummer. CC (R 130 min.) Science Fiction 1996 (MCA/Universal 82751) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/9
4 stars go back

BROKEN ARROW
When a U.S. stealth bomber crashes in the desert, the military goes on red alert to recover two nuclear weapons on board the plane. What they don't know is that the crash is part of a nuclear extortion plot. John Travolta and Christian Slater star as two military pilots engaged in a no-holds barred battle against time and each other in a race to recover the "broken arrows" Fast-paced, slam-bang action.
Director: John Woo. Stars: John Travolta, Christian Slater. CC (R 108 min.) Action 1996 (FoxVideo 8963) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/2
4
stars go back

CITY HALL
This gritty urban thriller stars Al Pacino as a tough New York City mayor whose finely tuned administration is thrown into a scandal when a 6-year-old boy is accidentally killed in a shoot-out between a cop and a drug dealer. Co-stars John Cusack as Pacino's idealistic deputy mayor, Bridget Fonda as a suspicious attorney, Danny Aiello as a back room power broker, David Paymer as the mayor's shrewd chief of staff and Martin Landau as a judge.
Director: Harold Becker. Stars: Al Pacino, John Cusack, Bridget Fonda. CC (R 112 min.) Thriller 1996 (Columbia TriStar 77333) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/30
2 stars go back

CITY OF LOST CHILDREN, THE
This fantastical sci-fi film tells the imaginative story of a brave little girl and a gentle giant who embark on a series of wondrous but harrowing adventures when they escape the clutches of a horrible scientist who kidnaps children to steal their dreams. Just off the coast of a dank, teeming harbor town they encounter a community of Cyclops, Siamese twin sisters who operate an orphanage and a black-market business, and an amnesiac diver who collects refuse from the bottom of the harbor, eventually returning to the evil Krank's laboratory to face his clones, his assistant (a disembodied brain) and fight on a level-playing field: within the world of a boy's dream.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Stars: Ron Perlman, Joseph Lucien, Daniel Emilfork. CC (R 114 min.) Sci-Fi Fantasy 1995 (Columbia TriStar 83723) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/23
3 stars go back

CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY
Based on Alan Paton's internationally acclaimed novel, this melodrama is the story of a Zulu Christian pastor's journey from a quiet Natal province to a modern, sinister Johannesburg in search of his son, his sister and his brother -- all of whom have disappeared into an urban quagmire of crime, sin and political intrigue. By tragic circumstance his son, Absalom, has accidentally killed the social reformer son of a leading Natal farmer, and the story plots the reconciliation of these two men, who have each lost a son to the violence of South Africa -- one black, the other white.
Director: Darrell James Roodt. Stars: James Earl Jones, Richard Harris, Charles S. Dutton. CC (PG-13 120 min.) Drama 1995 (Miramax 7768) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/16
2 stars go back

EYE FOR AN EYE
Sally Field plays her typical role of the safe, good mother challenged by the realities of a cruel world. Here her life is shattered when a stranger (Kiefer Sutherland) enters her home, murders her daughter and, despite overwhelming evidence, is set free on a legal technicality. Outraged and grief-stricken, Field embarks on a personal mission to see justice done.
Director: John Schlesinger. Stars: Sally Field, Kiefer Sutherland, Ed Harris, Joe Mantegna, Beverly D'Angelo. CC (R 102 min.) Thriller 1995 (Paramount 33091) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 0716
3
stars go back

FOUR ROOMS
"Four Rooms" is an anthology film featuring short work by four "hot" young talents: Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, Allison Anders and Alexandre Rockwell. Each has written and directed a segment that takes place in a hotel on New Year's Eve in Los Angeles, woven together in the nightmare that is Ted the bellhop's first night on the job. There's a coven of witches, a married couple with psychosex on their minds, a gangster dad looking for a babysitter and a late-night bet no none should ever accept.
Director: Anthology by four directors. Stars: Antonio Banderas, Madonna, Marisa Tomei, Tim Roth. CC (R 98 min.) Drama 1995 (Miramax 7956) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/16
2 stars go back

GEORGIA
Jennifer Jason Leigh puts in a rave performance in this musical drama about two very different sisters, written for Leigh by her mother and actor-turned-writer Barbara Turner. Leigh plays sister Sadie, a rebellious, energetic rock singer whose career is going nowhere; Mare Winningham plays sister Georgia, a successful folk-rock singer and mother of two. While Sadie hangs out on the fringes of the Seattle rock scene, Georgia retreats with her husband to a Washington farmhouse. The tension between the two - Sadie worships her sister - fuels the energy of this raw and penetrating film. Director: Ulu Grosbard. Stars: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mare Winningham. CC (R 117 min.) Drama 1995 (Miramax 7764) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/23
3
stars go back

HAPPY GILMORE
This is a showcase for comic Adam Sandler, one of many refugees from "Saturday Night Live." Here he plays a hockey player with a great slap shot but weak skating skills who turns his best attribute into a way to make money on the golf course when the IRS takes his grandmother's house. Joining the Pro Golf Tour, he brings a ferocious temper, outlandish humor and hockey-cum-golf fans to the links.
Director: Dennis Dugan. Stars: Adam Sandler, Carl Weathers. CC (PG-13 92 min.) Comedy 1996 (MCA/Universal 82820) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/16
3
stars go back

HOMEWARD BOUND II: LOST IN SAN FRANCISCO
This enjoyable sequel features two dogs, Chance and Shadow, and a Himalayan cat, Sassy, (voiced by Michael J. Fox, Ralph Waite and Sally Field, respectively), who get lost in San Francisco when they break out of their cages on the way to the airport to join their humans on a trip to Canada. The threesome isn't prepared for the lurking dangers that cross their path on their way across the Golden Gate Bridge back to the suburbs. A delightful outing for the family.
Director: David R. Ellis. Stars: Chance, Sassy and Shadow. CC (G 89 min.) Family 1996 (Walt Disney 7893) $22.99 SRP Available: 7/31
4 stars go back

JUROR, THE
This psychological thriller stars Demi Moore as an unwitting juror in a mafia trial who is approached by a shadowy figure (Alec Baldwin) who wants to "convince" her to sway the other jurors to vote not guilty. With her son's life at stake, the juror leaves the country but must find the inner strength to defeat "The Teacher," as he's called in the underworld, in a dramatic showdown among the ancient ruins of Guatemala.
Director: Brian Gibson. Stars: Demi Moore, Alec Baldwin. CC (R 118 min.) Thriller 1996 (Columbia TriStar 11603) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/9
2
stars go back

La Collectionneuse
This is one in a series of six films, "The Moral Tales," by Eric Rohmer (a sextet that includes "Claire's Knee" (1971), "Chloe in the Afternoon" (1972) and "My Night at Maud's" (1969)), that examines moral posturings and correctness (particularly sex and eroticism) in modern society. A connecting theme in all the "Moral Tales" is the attraction Rohmer's men have for certain women: be it a young man's obsession for a girl he doesn't like, a married man's fascination with a kooky girl during the day, or a religious man's attraction to a complete opposite. In all the "Tales," the men are faced with moral decisions and generally, in the end, take the route of the status quo. Here, a handsome young man is faced with making the decision of whether or not to sleep with a pretty young seductress who is staying at the same boarding house during his vacation in St. Tropez. She, of course, is much freer than him, causing the young man at first to push himself away from her, all the while being drawn into her web. (In French; English subtitles.)
Director: Eric Rohmer. Stars: Patrick Bauchau, Haydee Politoff, Daniel Pommereulle, Alain Jouffroy, Mijanou Bardot In French with English subtitles (NR 88 min.) Romantic Comedy 1971 (Fox Lorber FLV-1218) $19.98 Available: 7/30
4 stars go back

MR. HOLLAND'S OPUS
This is a tour-de-force for Richard Dreyfuss, playing the role of Glenn Holland, a composer whose aspirations to write a great opus take a back street to teaching chores when he takes a part-time job to make a living. The film follows 30 years in his life as he transforms from a substitute teacher into a passionate and much- loved role model whose dedication and self-sacrifice make a lasting impact on several generations of students. A sentimental winner.
Director: Stephen Herek. Stars: Richard Dreyfuss, Glenne Headly, Jay Thomas, Olympia Dukakis. CC (PG 143 min.) Drama 1995 (Hollywood 5779) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/2
4 stars go back

NIXON
Oliver Stone mixes together reality and fiction again as he profiles Richard M. Nixon, one of most complex, captivating and controversial figures in American history. Anthony Hopkins takes on the title role in the journey of Nixon from poverty-stricken law school days to landslide Presidential election to fall from grace to resurrection as an "elderly statesman." Co-stars Joan Allen, Powers Boothe, Bob Hoskins, Paul Sorvino, Ed Harris, Madeleine Kahn, Mary Steenburgen and James Woods.
Director: Oliver Stone. Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Joan Allen, Powers Boothe, Bob Hoskins, James Woods. CC (R 192 min.) BioDrama 1995 (Hollywood 6701) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/9
3 stars go back

RUMBLE IN THE BRONX
Jackie Chan is a legend in Asia as a hard-working, no-holds- barred martial arts expert who tears up the screen with non-stop visceral excitement. Chan performs his own stunts, no matter how dangerous, and the spin-kicking, body-slamming, high-speed action of his films have captivated millions of fans. In his first American actioner (though he's not really new to these shores: his films are all available here) he defends his uncle's deli against a nasty gang.
Director: Stanley Tong. Stars: Jackie Chan. CC (R 91 min.) Action 1996 (New Line N4410V) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/16
3 stars go back

SCREAMERS
Set in the year 2078, this thriller takes place on a planet ravaged from a decade of devastating warfare. After scientists develop the ultimate weapon -- mobile, self-replicating killing machines called Screamers -- designed to hunt down and destroy the enemy, the machines evolve to the point where they have a new mission: destroy all life. Stars Peter Weller and Andy Lauer as soldiers who face off against the monsters.
Director: Christian Duguay. Stars: Peter Weller, AndyLauer, Jennifer Rubin. CC (R 108 min.) Science Fiction 1996 (Columbia TriStar 11863) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/23
3 stars go back

SHANGHAI TRIAD
This is the captivating story of a hardened yet alluring prostitute, Xiao Jinbao (Gong Li), whose charms act as bait between feuding warlords in 1930s Shanghai, told from the point of view of a 14-year-old boy who's brought into the Tang Brotherhood by his uncle, Mr. tang, to watch over the woman. As China's political underpinnings shift, so does that of the gang, and when the number two man, Song, seeks to overthrow Tang, Xiao Jinbao secretly aligns herself with the deputy. In the end she's banished to a heavily guarded island and realizes that the men in her life are ready to sacrifice her when she is of no further use.
Director: Zhang Yimou. Stars: Li Boatian, Gong Li, Wang Xiao. CC (R 107 min.) Drama 1996 (Columbia TriStar 11853) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/9
3
stars go back

TWO BITS
This warmhearted, coming of age story, starring Al Pacino and newcomer Jerry Barone, takes place on one steamy summer day in Philadelphia in 1933. It's a remarkable day for 12-year-old Gennaro (Barone), who wakes up and discovers not only that he's one quarter shy of being able to attend the extremely important grand opening of South Philly's newest movie palace, but also learns that his grandfather (Pacino) has decided that this is the day that he's going to die. In vain Gennaro travels the back streets of the city, sweeping floors, singing, taking in astonishing instances of humility, humanity and compassion, confusion and madness, but still coming away with empty pockets. Finally grandpa offers to give him a quarter if he'll apologize for him to a woman he hurt a long, long time ago, when he was a young man, giving him one last chance at dying a happy man. Gennaro not only earns his money, he learns the difference between need, which comes from the belly, and want, which comes from the heart.
Director: James Foley. Stars: Al Pacino, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio. CC (PG-13 85 min.) Drama 1995 (Miramax 3625) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/23
2 stars go back

UNFORGETTABLE
This thriller stars Ray Liotta as a forensics expert accused of killing his wife who stumbles upon an experimental drug that allows the user to relive the memories of another person, living or dead. Stealing a dose of the dangerous compound, he injects himself and embarks on a mind-bending quest for the truth that plunges him into a realm of physical and psychic peril beyond his wildest nightmare. Co-stars Linda Fiorentino.
Director: John Dahl. Stars: Ray Liotta, Linda Fiorentino. CC (R 116 min.) Thriller 1996 (MGM/UA 905530) No SRP: Priced for rental Available: 7/23
2
stars go back


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