You’ve Got Mail (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

Another delightful and enchanting pairing of Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in the 1998 Nora Ephron film “You’ve Got Mail”.  But fans of this romantic comedy will definitely want to upgrade and purchase the Blu-ray release as you also get the Ernst Lubitsch’s 1940 romantic comedy “The Shop Around the Corner” on DVD.  Two romantic comedies for under $10…what a fantastic deal and two films that are highly recommended!

Images courtesy of © 2011 Warner Bros., Inc. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: You’ve Got Mail

FILM RELEASE DATE: 1998

DURATION: 119 minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:85:1), English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, Francois Dolby Digital 5.1, Espanol 2S, Subtitles: English SDH, French & Espanol

COMPANY: Warner Bros.

RATED: PG (Some Language)

Release Date: January 3, 2012

You’ve Got Mail

Based on the play “Parfumerie” by Nikolaus Laszlo

Directed by Nora Ephron

Screenplay by Nora Ephron, Delia Ephron

Executive Producer: G. Mac Brown, Julie Durk, Delia Ephron

Produced by Nora Ephron, Lauren Shuler Donner

Co-Producer: Donald J. Lee, Jr.

Associate Producer: Dianne Dreyer

Music by George Fenton

Cinematography by John Lindley

Edited by Richard Marks

Casting by Francine Maisler

Production Design by Dan Davis

Art Direction By Ray Kluga, Beth Kuhn

Set Decoration by Susan Bode, Ellen Christiansen

Costume Design by Albert Wolsky

The Shop Around the Corner

Directed by Ernst Lubitsch

Based on the play “Parfumie” by Miklos Laszlo

Screenplay by Samson Raphaelson

Produced by Ernst Lubitsch

Music by Werner R. Heymann

Cinematography by William H. Daniels

Edited by Gene Ruggiero

Art Direction by Cedric Gibons

Set Decoration by Edwin B. Willis

“You’ve Got Mail” Starring:

Tom Hanks as Joe Fox

Meg Ryan as Kathleen Kelly

Greg Kinnear as Frank Navasky

Parker Posey as Patricia Eden

Jean Stapleton as Birdie Conrad

Steve Zahn as George Pappas

Heather Burns as Christina Plutzker

Dave Chappelle as Kevin Jackson

Dabney Coleman as Nelson Fox

John Randolph as Schuyler Fox

Hallee Hirsh as Annabelle Fox

Jeffre Scaperrotta as Max Fox

“The Shop Around the Corner” Starring:

Margaret Sullavan as Klara Novak

James Stewart as Alfred Kralik

Frank Morgan as Hugo Matuschek

Joseph Schildkraut as Ferencz Vadas

Sara Haden as Flora

Felix Bressart as Pirovitch

William Tracy as Pepi Katona

Inez Courtney as Llona

Cara Seymour as Gillian QuinnThe stars (Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan) and director (Nora Ephron) of Sleepless in Seattle reteamed for this charming audience favorite. Greg Kinnear, Parker Posey, Jean Stapleton and more great co-stars add note-perfect support to this cinematic love letter in which superstore book chain magnate Hanks and cozy children’s bookshop owner Ryan are anonymous e-mail cyberpals who fall head-over-laptops in love, unaware they are combative business rivals. You’ve got rare Hollywood magic when You’ve Got Mail.

1998.  It was a time when more and more people would be using the Internet, a time when a lot of news showcased people who found love on the Internet.

Having enjoyed “The Shop Around the Corner” (which was an adaptation of the 1937 Miklos Laszlo Hungarian play “Parfumerie”) and the Broadway musical adaptation, “She Loves Me”,  writer/director Nora Ephron and producer Laura Schuler Donner wanted to create a modernized version featuring a romantic comedy centered around love found on the Internet but yet using elements from Ernst Lubitsch’s 1940 romantic comedy”.

And having struck gold with romantic comedies that starred actress Meg Ryan in “Sleepless in Seattle” and “When Harry Met Sally” and the amazing chemistry between Ryan and Tom Hanks in the 1993 film “Sleepless in Seattle” and the 1990 film “Joe Versus the Volcano”, the filmmaker would reunite the two talents for her 1998 romantic comedy “You’ve Got Mail”.

The film which can be seen as a sign of the times as it utilized then-popular Internet provider American Online (AOL) and it’s popular trademark e-mail greeting “You’ve Got Mail”, “You’ve Got Mail” would become a major hit in the box office as the $65 million film would earn over $250 million in the box office and would go on to also achieve success in the home video market.

And now both the original Ernst Lubitsch 1940 film “The Shop Around the Corner” via DVD and “You’ve Got Mail”  (via Blu-ray) was released together in January 2012.

“You’ve Got Mail” is a film that focuses on two characters.  Kathleen Kelly (played by Meg Ryan) is dating liberal postmodernist New York Observer journalist Frank Navasky (played by Greg Kinnear) and is a happy owner of the bookstore “Shop Around the Corner” which her mother started long ago.

While Frank is not so keen about technology, Kathleen has been communicating with a mystery man over e-mail via American Online using a screen name “Shopgirl”.  Both met in a chat room and enjoy their conversations through e-mail.  Because there is no personal discussion nor there is any personal contact, Kathleen is perfectly fine with the anonymous communication with this man, who she knows as his screen name “NY152″.

While Kathleen loves to spend her time communicating with NY152, she is often busy working at her bookstore along with her three store assistants, Birdie (played by Jean Stapleton), Christina (played by Heather Burns) and George (played by Steve Zahn).

Which leads us to the second character, Joe Fox (played by Tom Hanks) is a businessman who’s wealthy family are the owners of “Fox Books”, known for it’s chain of “mega” bookstores around the country and for its discounts and serving coffee.  Also, a threat to independent and smaller book stores who can’t compete with a megastore selling books with a discount.

But for the Fox family, it’s all business.  And the family is planning to open a new store, not far from the bookstore “Shop Around the Corner”, a place which Joe’s grandfather is familiar with and was smitten by the woman who once owned the bookstore but passed it on to her daughter.

Joe is currently dating Patricia Eden (played by Parker Posey), a woman that is the opposite of him.  Meanwhile with the creation of the new Fox Books in New York, he leaves it to branch manger Kevin (played by David Chappelle) to keep an eye on business.

And when he’s not busy with business, Joe loves to go online via American Online and communicate with a mystery woman known as “Shopgirl”, not knowing that she is Kathleen Kelly, the owner of the family bookstore that his own Fox Books will force to make them lose business and close.

One day, while Joe is taking his eleven-year-old aunt Annabel (played by Hallee Hirsh) and four-year-old brother Matthew (played by Jeffrey Scaperrotta) around town, Joe and the children decide to stop by the family bookstore Shop Around the Corner and Joe meets Kathleen Kelly.  Both individuals enjoy their short time with each other but Joe manages to keep it secret that he is the owner of the Fox Books store that will be opening several blocks away.

Needless to say, Kathleen eventually finds out that Joe is the owner of Fox Books and responsible for taking customers away from her store and through the help of “NY152″ who gives her advice to fight back, Kathleen goes on a media war campaign against Joe Fox and Fox Books, meanwhile maintaining communication with NY152 and enjoy those moments.

Eventually, Kathleen “Shopgirl” Kelly and Joe “NY152″, both who have no idea who each other are via e-mail decide to meet with each other for the first time.  But when Joe is about to meet Shopgirl at a restaurant, he finds out that she is Kathleen Kelly.  He then decides to not tell her he is “NY152″ and tries to get closer to her as Joe Fox.  But will she ever accept the man who may end up hurting her business?

Ernst Lubitsch’s 1940 romantic comedy “The Shop Around the Corner” is a film that stars James Stewart, Margaret Sullavan and Frank Morgan and has been well-regarded as one of the top romantic comedies of all time (#28 in the American Film Institute’s “AFI’s 100 Years…100 Passions”) and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 1999 by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.

The film is set in Budapest where Alfred Kralik (played by James Stewart) is a top salesman at a gift shop owned by the wealthy Mr. Hugo Matuschek (played by Frank Morgan).

Alfred reveals to his friend Pirovitch (played by Felix Bressart) that he has been corresponding anonymously to an intelligent and cultured woman whose ad that he saw on the newspaper.  For Alfred, communicating with this woman is the light of his life.

Meanwhile, Mr. Matuschek expects all his employees at the gift shop to push sales, especially a cigarette box that plays “Ochi Chernye” when it is opened.  Alfred thinks the cigarette box is annoying and that Matuschek should keep away from it.  Meanwhile, a young woman named Klara Novak (played by Margaret Sullavan) who worked in sales for another store and is desperately looking for a job as a saleswoman at the gift shop.

Mr. Matuschek has no plans to hire anyone new and Alfred tries to tell Klara that his boss is not hiring.  But when Klara shows Mr. Matuschek that she can sell, by using the cigarette musical boxes as an example with customers and selling them.  She is eventually hired.

As both Alfred and Klara are now working together at the gift shop, unfortunately both do not get along at all and are often bickering with each other.

But for Klara, despite the aggravation she feels…nothing is going to ruin her day as the mysterious man that she is communicating with by mail has made her happy.  And she dreams that this man of her dreams will one day marry her.  But Klara doesn’t know the man she has been communicating with is Alfred Kralik and Alfred doesn’t know that the intelligent and cultured woman he is smitten with is Klara.

For Alfred Kralik, he has worked at the gift shop for many years and is the top salesman.  He hopes to ask Mr. Matuschek for a raise but lately, the relationship between Alfred and Mr. Matuschek have soured.  The reason is that Mr. Matuschek has an investigator following his wife, as he fears she is having an affair with one of his employees.  Mr. Matuschek thinks the only person that can do such a thing is Alfred Kralik, because he was the closest one to the family (when in reality, it’s another one of this male employees that is having an affair with his wife).

When Alfred goes to ask for a raise, instead he is fired by Mr. Matuschek and shocked by what has taken place (because he was the most trusted employee with the best sales record), Alfred knows that without a job, he probably should stop communicating with the mystery woman but he has made a promise to meet with her at a restaurant. So, he feels obliged to do just that.

So, along with Pirovitch, Alfred has Pirovitch check inside the restaurant to let him know how the mystery woman he is to meet, looks like.  And sure enough, Pirovitch tells Alfred that the woman that he has been communicating with all this time, is his former co-worker that he doesn’t get along with… Klara Novak.

But despite how Klara does not like Alfred, Alfred now knowing that Klara was the intelligent and cultured woman that he has been communicating with all this time, decides to keep his identity of the mystery man as a secret to Klara, but as Alfred Kralik, try to get close to her on his own.

But will Klara ever let someone like Alfred, a man she doesn’t like or care for, into her life?

VIDEO:

“You’ve Got Mail” is presented in 1080p (1:85:1 aspect ratio) and unfortunately it is a film that slightly shows its age, yet there is enough detail and better colors that makes this version much better than the previous DVD releases.

First the bad.  There are some moments where the film looks oversaturated and also soft and there are moments where you do see artifacts popping up once in a while.  While it shows up a few times, most people will probably not be bothered by it.  But for those expecting a pristine version of the film, it does have its issues which can be seen on a larger monitor/screen.

With that being said, the film still looks better than its previous DVD counterparts.  The colors tend to pop much more, you can see the skin pores on Tom Hanks’ face during closeups and while some areas look its age, some don’t and look very good.  So, for the most part, this is the best looking version of the film thus far.  It may not be the pristine picture quality that I was hoping for, but nevertheless, it does look much better than the DVD version.

As for “The Shop Around the Corner”, the film looks absolutely wonderful considering it is a 71-year-old film.  The contrast levels are good, the film source looks very good for its age and I didn’t detect any major problems with video quality at all.  Grays and whites are well-contrast, black levels are nice and deep and for the most part, the presentation of “The Shop Around the Corner” looks good on DVD.  Too bad, this classic film it was not converted to a Blu-ray release.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“You’ve Got Mail” is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Dolby Digital Francois and Espanol 2.0 stereo.

For this romantic comedy and like most films of the genre, most of the lossless soundtracks tend to be center and  front-channel driven with mild use of surround channels for ambiance.  The same can be said about “You’ve Got Mail”.  Primarily, everything is center and front channel-driven and dialogue and it’s musical soundtrack is crystal clear.

As for “The Shop Around the Corner”, the film’s dialogue is also clear and didn’t notice any more hiss or crackling during my viewing of the DVD.

Subtitles are presented in English SDH, Francois and Espanol.

SPECIAL FEATURES

“You’ve Got Mail” comes with the following special features:

• Audio Commentary - Featuring audio commentary by writer/director Nora Ephrone and producer Lauren Shuler Donner who discuss the film, the cast and more.
• Delivering You’ve Got Mail - (25:29) A 10th year anniversary interview with Nora Ephron and her two leads, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Also, featuring producer Lauren Shuler Donner, co-writer Delia Ephron and more.
• You’ve Got Chemistry – (26:18) A Warner Bros. featurette about iconic couples that appeared in Warner Bros. classic films including Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn, William Powell and Myrna Loy, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall and others.
• Isolated Score Track – Watch the film with only George Fenton’s musical score.
• First Look Television special – (14:19) The HBO preview for the film.
• Discovering New York’s Upper West Side – (10:09) Nora and Deliah Ephron talk about their favorite scenes in New York City featured in the film.
• Music Video – Featuring Carole King’s “Anyone at All” music video.
• Theatrical Trailer – The two original theatrical trailers for “You’ve Got Mail”: “The Best Way to Meet Someone” (1:24) and “They Couldn’t Stand Each Other” (1:26)

EXTRAS:

“You’ve Got Mail” comes with a DVD version of the classic Ernst Lubitsch 1940 romantic comedy, “The Shop Around the Corner”.

I’m not afraid to admit that I am a big fan of Meg Ryan’s hit romantic comedies and especially enjoy the chemistry and pairing of Ryan along with Tom Hanks.

Back in the 1930′s through the 1950′s, there were Hollywood couples that would light the screen in multiple films, for today’s modern films, there really hasn’t been American couple other than Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, two talents that viewers fell in love whenever they were together in a romantic comedy.

And like many people who couldn’t wait for “You’ve Got Mail” to be released in theaters, I was among the many who look forward to watching the film.  For one, I love Nora Ephron romantic comedies and how she is able to focus on character but also incorporate the city that a film is shot in.

She has an eye for location but also knows what she wants from her talents and Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan have discussed how Nora Ephron’s direction is much different than other filmmakers.  And for Ephron, her love for the Ernst Lubitsch classic “The Shop Around the Corner”, especially for her passion towards the Broadway musical “She Loves Me” would lead to romantic magic for “You’ve Got Mail”.

But back in 1998, this film was highly anticipated because I enjoyed watching Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan together, watching a Nora Ephron film but interesting enough, I also had a similar experience of meeting someone on the Internet with similar circumstances as the characters featured in the film.

And I was there to buy the first DVD release of the film and here we are 14-years later with a Blu-ray release of “You’ve Got Mail”.  And where films such as “When Harry Met Sally” and “Sleepless in Seattle” are not dated due to technology, “You’ve Got Mail” manages to date itself with old technology via modem connection, old product placement during a time when American Online (AOL) was on top of Internet providers and also during a time when mega bookstores were not threatened by the emergence of online bookstores such as Amazon.

But still, despite the older technology and the fads of the time, I was not turned off by it.  In fact, I was nostalgic of how things were back then.

But “You’ve Got Mail” still manages to captivate me as it did back then.  Sure, it was not my favorite Meg Ryan romantic comedy especially when compared to “When Harry Met Sally” and “Sleepless in Seattle” but there is a magic that exists in the film, because of the wonderful chemistry between Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.  The two can literally take on these characters and bring amazing life to them, making them believable and entertaining to watch.  And also Nora Ephron’s ability to make the locations and the music selections compliment the characters as well.

Also, the film managed to bring in a pretty enjoyable supporting cast with Parker Posey, Dave Chappelle, Steve Zahn, Heather Burns and Dabney Coleman.  But also “You’ve Got Mail” would feature actor Greg Kinnear (“As Good as It Gets”, “Ghost Town”, “Little Miss Sunshine”) and “Grey’s Anatomy” actress Sara Ramirez before they became popular.

Also, I was impressed at the time of how the Ephron sisters were able to modernize the film from its original predecessors.  I absolutely adore Ernst Lubitsch’s 1940 classic “The Shop Around the Corner” and I’m so glad “You’ve Got Mail” was not a remake.  Sure it incorporates certain situations that were seen in the original film, but for the most part, everything was new and everything worked.

“The Shop Around the Corner” is simply a wonderful romance film that is different in the fact that both lead characters work in the same gift shop but there is also a dramatic element as the shop owner thinks the lead character Alfred Kralik (played by James Stewart) is having an affair with his wife.  But this classic film is a wonderful feel-good romantic comedy that has managed to stand the test of time, even over 70-years-later…I’m still enjoying this film no matter how many times I have watched it.  And while not on Blu-ray but on DVD, the film still looks very good on DVD!

While the Blu-ray release of “You’ve Got Mail” and its video quality does show the film’s age due to softness and also some instances of artifacting, there is still a good amount of detail and beautiful colors that make this Blu-ray release worth owning and worth upgrading from the DVD release.  If you were an owner of the first DVD release, a lot of the special features do make it onto this Blu-ray, but also the inclusion of the 2008 10th anniversary reunion between Nora Ephron, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in the featurette “Delivering You’ve Got Mail” (which was released in a later DVD release of “You’ve Got Mail”).

Also, the biggest addition for me which I absolutely loved was the inclusion of Ernst Lubitsch’s 1940 romantic comedy, “The Shop Around the Corner”.  While a DVD, not Blu-ray…still you are getting two films when you purchase the “You’ve Got Mail” Blu-ray release and for hopeless romantics, the fact that these two films are included is fantastic!  And did I mention that you can find this Blu-ray release for under $10 on Amazon?  Awesome!

Overall, “You’ve Got Mail” is still as delightful and highly entertaining as when I first watched it in theaters back in 1998.  Sure, things have changed a lot in technology and also economic settings when it comes to the mega bookstores in today’s society, but Internet romance is much more prevalent today than it was back then and more and more people are discovering love online, so the film still has relevance today.

If you love romantic comedy films, you’re going to enjoy “You’ve Got Mail” on Blu-ray for the fact that you get two films for the price of one and if you enjoyed the film back then and owned the DVD, you’re definitely going to want to upgrade to Blu-ray.  It’s a wonderful deal and both films are highly recommended!

Is John Mellencamp dating Meg Ryan?

After last week’s report that John Mellencamp and fashion model Elaine Irwin were separating after 18 years of marriage, PEOPLE Magazine is reporting that the singer has found a new love….actress Meg Ryan. A source tells the publication that the two have been dating for seven weeks.

Meg Ryan was married to actor Dennis Quaid and divorced after ten years of marriage in 2001.

Hanging Up (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

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MOVIE COMPANY: Columbia Pictures
CAST: Starring Meg Ryan, Diane Keaton, Lisa Kudrow and Walter Matthau
DIRECTED BY: Diane Keaton
PRODUCED BY: Laurence Mark and Nora Ephron
RATING: Rated PG-13
INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE URL: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0162983
TYPE OF MOVIE: Drama, comedy
DURATION: 95 minutes

When Eve (Meg Ryan) isn’t being pulled in a million directions by her own life, she’s being sucked into lengthy phone conversations with her cranky father (Walter Matthau), or her two sisters, successful magazine entrepreneur Georgia (Diane Keaton) and career-challenged Maddy (Lisa Kudrow).  As the family becomes more and more dependent on Eve, transforming her into the human switchboard that connects them all together, Eve discovers that the ties that bind can also be the ties that gag!  Her revelation doesn’t sit well with her sisters, though, forcing Eve to realize that sometimes to be heard, you just have to, well, hang up!

From the novel by acclaimed writer Delia Ephron, producers Laurence Mark (Jerry Maguire) and Nora Ephron (You’ve Got Mail), and director Diane Keaton comes Hanging Up.

DVD EXTRAS:

• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby
• Theatrical trailer(s)
• Deleted sequence
• Outake Gag Reel
• Isolated Music Score
• HBO First Look: Getting Connected, the Making of Hanging Up
• Talented Files: Diane Keaton, Meg Ryan, Lisa Kudrow, Walter Matthau, Delia Ephron and Nora Ephron
• Widescreen anamorphic format

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I could find.

DVD REVIEW:

Whenever I find out that Nora and Delia Ephron’s name is connected to a movie and it stars either Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks or Billie Crystal…I’m definitely going to watch it!

I’ve always found their movies “When Harry Met Sally”, “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail” to be magical but although this one starred Meg Ryan and was definitely not a romantic love comedy, I figured that…what the heck…  I’m sure it’s going to be good but is this movie more geared to women?  Will I even care for it?

First, this movie is either…you love it or hate it.  It is a story about three sisters and their cranky father who is getting old, tends to drink a lot and when the people you love start to lose their memory.  Many people have people like this in their personal lives and can related with the three sisters.  Trying to have your own life, raise a family, staying close with your family and watching over your parent.  You see the character Eve (Meg Ryan) evolve.

Although I enjoyed the movie, it was short and I felt there were holes.  For one, they included a deleted sequence in the movie which I felt should have not been cut.  In fact, when you watch the HBO First Look on the making of “Hanging Up” which comes with the DVD, they show a lot of the sequence that was later cut in the movie.  I did like the casting of the three women.  Each are different in character but aren’t all siblings.  Meg Ryan was very good, Lisa Kudrow was almost like her “Friends” character and Diane Keaton still has it

As for the DVD, the audio is more dialogue but you can hear the girls speak clearly.  The colors are very nice and I like the use of the red, white and black colors.  The color coordination with the clothes of the women and so forth.  The special features are good….but where’s the commentary.  You can tell the girls had so much fun…just watch the gag reel!  But I wish there was a director’s commentary included with the DVD.

All in all, the movie is very touching, not as powerful compared to the other Ephron related movies but nevertheless I enjoyed it. 

THE MOVIE:  B-
THE DVD EXTRAS:  B-
THE DVD OVERALL:  B-

When Harry Met Sally (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

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MOVIE COMPANY: CASTLE ROCK ENTERTAINMENT
CAST: Starring Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher, Bruno Kirby and more.
DIRECTED BY: Directed by Rob Reiner
PRODUCED BY: Rob Reiner and Andrew Scheinman
RATING: Rated R
INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE URL: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0098635
TYPE OF MOVIE: Comedy, Romance
DURATION: 1 Hr., 36 minutes

“Brimming over with style, intelligence and flashing wit” (Rolling Stone), this “splendid and irresistible” (Los Angeles Times) film from director Rob Reiner (The American President) is one of the best-loved romantic comedies of all time.  Featuring dazzling performances from Meg Ryan, Billy Crystal, Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby, exceptional music from Harry Connick Jr., and an Oscar-nominated screenplay by Nora Ephron, When Harry Met Sally is an “Explosively funny” (Newsweek) commentary on friendships, courtships – and other hardships – of the modern age.

Will sex ruin a perfect relationship between a man and a woman?  That’s what Harry (Crystal) and Sally (Ryan) debate during their trip from Chicago to New York.  And eleven years later, they’re still no closer to finding the answer.  Will these two best friends ever accept that they’re meant for each other…or will they continue to deny the attraction that’s existed since the first moment When Harry Met Sally?

DVD EXTRAS:

• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen
• Commentary by director Rob Reiner
• Theatrical trailer(s)
• Newly produced 35-minute “Making Of” documentary featuring interviews with Rob Reiner, Nora Ephron, Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal
• 7 minutes of never-before-seen footage
• Music video by Harry Connick, Jr.
• Widescreen anamorphic format

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I know of.

DVD REVIEW:

This has to be one of my favorite movies of all time.  It’s a movie that I got many friends hooked on.  It’s a modern love story although not as realistic as some may hope (note: Even in the special features both Reiner and Ephron comment on this), this movie is awesome!

It’s a DVD that many of us have waited for a long time and now it’s finally here.  With a gorgeous video transfer and the music very well done, aside from the beautiful story, what people will want to know is “what does the DVD come with?”

The DVD comes with 7 deleted scenes from the movie which were very interesting to watch.  Not sure why Rob Reiner cut a few of them out but nevertheless really fun to watch footage.  The golden apple of the DVD for special features is the “Making-of” documentary with the cast and crew.  Absolutely a must see!   Also included is the theatrical trailers for this movie and two other Reiner movies and like the video, the cool Harry Connick Jr. music video of “It had to be you”.

A highly recommended DVD for romance movie fans!

THE MOVIE:  A+
THE DVD EXTRAS:  A
THE DVD OVERALL:  A

You’ve Got Mail (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

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CAST: Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Greg Kinnear, Jean Stapleton
DIRECTED BY: Nora Ephron
WRITTEN BY: Nora Ephron
RATING: PG
INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE URL:http://us.imdb.com/Title?0128853
TYPE OF MOVIE: Comedy, Romance
DURATION: 119 minutes

The underlying narrative is an even more old-fashioned romantic pas de deux that is casually hooked to a newfangled device. The script, cowritten by the director and her sister, Delia Ephron, updates and relocates the Ernst Lubitsch classic, The Shop Around the Corner, to contemporary Manhattan, where Joe Fox (Hanks) is a cheerfully rapacious merchant whose chain of book superstores is gobbling up smaller, more specialized shops such as the children’s bookstore owned by Kathleen Kelly (Ryan). Their lives run in close parallel in the same idealized neighborhood, yet they first meet anonymously, online, where they gradually nurture a warm, even intimate correspondence. As they begin to wonder whether this e-mail flirtation might lead them to be soul mates, however, they meet and clash over their colliding business fortunes. (IMDB)

DVD EXTRAS:

• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby
• Commentary by director Nora Ephron and producer Lauren Shuler-Donner
• Production notes
• Theatrical trailer(s)
• Musical score on alternate audio track
• Behind-the-scenes documentary: “HBO First Look: A Conversation with Nora Ephron”
• Interactive map tour “Discover New York’s Upper West Side”
• Widescreen anamorphic format

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S):

Comparison feature:
Press Skip while watching the HBO documentary to see a feature that compares various scenes with the two prior movie versions of the story, The Shop Around The Corner and In The Good Old Summertime.

Hidden interviews:
Advance to the following sections of the disc to view various interviews:

Title 57, Chapter 1
Title 58, Chapter 1
Title 59, Chapter 1
Title 60, Chapter 1

DVD REVIEW:

Nora Ephron scores again with another romantic comedy starring Meg Ryan.  First, “When Harry Met Sally” which she wrote and then “Sleepless in Seattle” and now we have “You’ve Got Mail”.  A romantic comedy about people who meet via e-mail.

The movie came out at the right time in the theaters because the talk then was about internet romance and what better than to take the movie “The Shop Around The corner”, “In the Goold Old Summertime” and add the Internet twist.  It worked!

The DVD is also beautiful with good colors and the audio is typical for a dialogue movie.  The DVD has quite a commentary, isolated score, a documentary and an interactive map.

If you enjoyed the movie, I highly recommend buying this DVD!

THE MOVIE: B+
THE DVD EXTRAS: A-
THE DVD OVERALL: A-

ANASTASIA (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

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MOVIE COMPANY: TriStar Pictures, Centropolis Entertainment
CAST: The following voice actors in the movie included top names such as Meg Ryan, Hank Azaria, John Cusack, Christopher Lloyd, Angela Lansbury, Kelsey Grammer and more.
DIRECTED BY: Don Bluth and Gary Goldman
RATING: G
INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE URL: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0118617
TYPE OF TV SHOW: Animation, Family, Music

Based on a true story and brought to life with stunning animation and the voices of Meg Ryan, John Cusack, Kelsey Grammer, Hank Azaria, Christopher Lloyd and Angela Lansbury, “Anastasia” is an epic tale of breathtaking action and intrigue certain to captivate the entire family.

A spellbinding mix of adventure, comedy, romance and music, this acclaimed animated spectacular tells the thrilling story of the lost Russian princess Anastasia and her incredible quest to find her true identity.

When the shadow of revolution falls across Russia, the royal family’s youngest daughter barely escapes with her life.  Years later, Anastasia and a band of heroic companions must battle the evil Rasputin, his sidekick Bartok the bat and a host of ghostly minions in a headlong race to reach Paris, reclaim her rightful destiny….and solve the greatest mystery of the 20th Century.

DVD EXTRAS:

• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Color, Closed-captioned, Animated, Widescreen
• Production notes
• Theatrical trailer(s)
• Pan & Scan Format has Aspect Ratio 1.48:1
• Documentary: Anastasia: A Magical Journey (27 min.)
• Making-Of Featurette (7 min.)
• Interactive Puzzle
• Two Sing-Alongs
• Full-screen and widescreen letterbox formats

KNOWN DVD SECRET:  None that I know of at this time.

DVD REVIEW:

I saw the trailer for this animated movie many times.  The thing is I don’t watch to many animated features in a theater and decided to hold off until this video went to video.

I know of the story of Anastasia and a tragic story it is.  When Mulan came out, I remember my professor of Asian studies complaining of how Disney is misinforming the public.  Is 20th Century Fox doing the same here?  Not really.  The thing is that no one knew the truth about Anastasia until recently during DNA tests.  With many people claiming to be Anastasia, the person many people thought was Anastasia and a person who survived ended up being a fake.  Anastasia’s tragic story can be read on many websites and you will read other websites of fake Anastasia’s still claiming they are the real person.  Are they?  Do you believe the DNA tests?  Whether you do or you don’t, I give this movie credit because not only is it a beautiful animation but an animation that captures your attention.

The staff who created this video did such a wonderful job and you can see their work through the extra’s on the DVD.  I truly commend them for their hard work.  Also, to the voice actor’s who did a wonderful job.  And last, to the people who wrote and somewhat involve with the music soundtrack.  Absolutely beautiful.

The video and the sound was really good.  In terms of child viewability, there are times when the dead Rasputin has limbs coming off and as a parent, it is your choice if you want them to watch it or not.  Nevertheless the movie is just plain awesome!

The extras…There are quite a few of them but they are long.  From the games, puzzles and trailers to the featurette and a special documentary hosted by Alliyah, this is one DVD that I have to highly recommend.

For a non-Disney animated film, this movie is definitely one of the best out there.  Highly recommended!

THE MOVIE:  A
THE DVD EXTRAS:  A
THE DVD OVERALL:  A

Sleepless in Seattle (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

BUY THIS DVD

MOVIE COMPANY: TriStar Pictures
CAST: Starring Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Rob Reiner, Bill Pullman, Rita Wilson, Rosie O’Donnell, David Hyde Pierce and more.
DIRECTED BY: Nora Ephron
PRODUCED BY: Gary Foster
RATING: Rated PG
INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE URL: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0108160
TYPE OF MOVIE: Comedy, Romance

Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan star in Nora Ephron’s wonderfully romantic comedy about two people drawn together by destiny.

Hank stars as Sam Baldwin, a widowed father who, thanks to the wiles of his worried son, becomes a reluctant guest on a radio call-in show.  He’s an instant hit with thousands of female listeners, who deluge his Seattle home with letters of comfort.  Meanwhile, inspired in equal parts by Sam’s story and by classic Hollywood romance, writer Annie Reed (Ryan) becomes convinced that it’s her destiny to meet Sam.  There are just two problems:  Annie’s engaged to someone else, and Sam doesn’t know – yet – that they’re made for each other.  Co-starring Rosie O’Donnell, Rita Wilson and Rob Reiner, SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE is “absolutely enchanting-one of the year’s most completely enjoyable motion pictures” Michael Medved, Sneak Previews.

DVD EXTRAS:

• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen
• Commentary by director/co-writer Nora and co-writer Delia Ephron
• Theatrical trailer(s)
• Featurette Love In The Movies
• Music Video: Celine Dion and Clive Griffin, When I Fall In Love
• Trailers for My Best Friend’s Wedding, It Could Happen To You, Philadelphia and Nothing in Common
• Full-screen and widescreen anamorphic formats

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I could find.

DVD REVIEW:

I have been a fan of Ephron’s work and also of movies such as “When Harry Met Sally”, “You’ve Got Mail”…love stories.  I’m not sure how many times I have seen this movie but I love it.

The thing is I own the VHS copy and when the first DVD came out, “Widescreen Edition”, I was disappointed.  The reason is because it was just the movie and it was widescreen, that’s it?

Well, not too long ago, they released a second DVD.  The “Special Edition”.  Now, I’m happy because it’s widescreen and it has quite a few extras but it wasn’t in digital 5.1.  I know this is a dialogue movie but I watched many dialogue movies that still use 5.1.

Aside from that this is the right DVD to get, especially if you enjoy love stories.  I’m so happy to see the music video of “When I Fall in Love” by Celine Dion and Clive Griffin.  Also, there are a few theatrical trailers.  Also, they included subtitles from other three Asian countries (except Japanese…what’s up with that?)

The commentary was very interesting.  To hear Nora Ephron and her sister (the fourth writer in the movie) Delia discuss how certain things happen in the movie and especially how Tom Hanks did certain things to enhance a scene.  It shows how good and how true this actor is for his work.

I know there were several cut scenes but I wish they included them in the movie.  The featurette was interesting especially to see Adam Corolla and Dr. Drew of “Loveline” in it.

What it boils down to is it’s better than the VHS version if you love the movie and it’s definitely better than the previous DVD because it comes with more features.

If you enjoy love stories, this is one that will be a classic for romantics forever.

THE MOVIE:  A
THE DVD EXTRAS:  B+
THE DVD OVERALL:  A-