2014 Holiday Gift Guide:
DVDs for Nov. 25 by Boo Allen
This week, we offer holiday gift suggestions for movie-lovers. Which is, everyone. We mix in some new with some old and maybe even something that might appeal to you.
Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection
Warner Brothers Home Entertainment has packaged eight films from one of our greatest filmmakers for a ten disc Blu-ray set that also includes six full length documentaries on Kubrick and his work. The films include, in chronological order, Lolita, Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, Eyes Wide Shut. To assemble this impressive package, Warners gained complete access to the Kubrick archives. An added 78 page hardcover photo book lends testimony to Kubrick’s lasting influence.
Sherlock: The complete seasons 1-3 Limited Edition Gift Set
BBC Home Entertainment offers this collection of the three relatively short seasons of their popular series starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes, with Martin Freeman as Dr. Watson. The seven disc (810 minutes) set also includes all the original supplements along with new commentaries, outtakes, deleted scenes, and other collectibles, such as limited edition art cards and even mini-busts of Holmes and Watson. If insufficient, the BBC website offers more Holmes memorabilia, such as t-shirts, keychains, and the like.
And for fans of their popular science fiction series, BBC also offers a collection of 16 discs covering the three seasons of Dr. Who: The Complete Matt Smith years.
The Wonder Years: complete series
StarVista Entertainment offers what has been the year’s most striking collection with this 26 disc set containing 115 episodes of the popular family program that began in 1988 on ABC-TV. An eye-catching miniature metal-locker holds the discs along with two notebooks, a replica yearbook, show memorabilia, cast photos, liner notes, and much more. The set also includes over 23 hours of bonus supplements.
Harry Potter Hogwarts Collection
This massive yet encompassing collection holds not only all eight Harry Potter films, but also more than 45 hours of bonus supplements originally found on each individual film’s DVD release. The boxed set of 31 discs holds the eight part documentary “Creating the World of Harry Potter.”
The Best of Bogart: Blu-ray collection
Warners, the original home of Humphrey Bogart, offers four of his best known films in one set: Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, The African Queen, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. The films include the usual full menu of Warners’ supplements, such as vintage cartoons, newsreels, film shorts of the era, and more.
The Midnight Special Collector’s Edition
This eleven disc collection begins with the seminal 1972 pioneer music program. Eight discs offer 130 live performances from some of the most renowned names of the era: Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Jim Croce, John Denver, The Doobie Brothers, and many more. Two discs include the supplements featuring many performer interviews along with a dozen or more featurettes. One disc offers comedy performances from the period’s best known comics.
John Wayne: the epic collection
Epic indeed is this 38 disc collection of 40 films starring America’s most iconic actor. A complete title rundown can be found elsewhere, but most of the Duke’s best known work is included: True Grit, The Searchers, and much more.
Warners also offers other, more modest collections centered on a single subject:
Audrey Hepburn collection: Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Sabrina, Funny Face.
Grace Kelly Collection: Mogambo, Dial M For Murder, Country Girl, The Bridges at Toko-Ri, To Catch a Thief, High Society.
Nicholas Sparks Limited Edition DVD: Safe Haven, The Lucky One, Dear John, Nights in Rodanthe, A Walk to Remember, Message in a Bottle, The Notebook.
Of course other outlets and studios besides Warners also offer specialized collections:
Steven Spielberg’s Director’s Collection: Jaws, E.T., Jurassic Park, Duel, The Sugarland Express, 1941, Always.
Alfred Hitchcock: The Classic Collection: Rebecca, Spellbound, Notorious.
The Hannibal Lecter Collection: Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, Manhunter.
And from the TV offerings:
Friends: The Complete Series
The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Complete Series.
The Twilight Zone: The Complete Series
Twin Peaks: The Entire Mystery
And if all those are not enough, try one of the year’s top selling single-movie DVD titles:
X Men: Days of Future Past, How to Train Your Dragon 2, Guardians of the Galaxy, Maleficent, Planes: Fire and Rescue, Frozen, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, 22 Jump Street, Sleeping Beauty: Diamond Edition.
Or, if you prefer individual classic movies, the year offers many re-issues and belated debuts: Mary Poppins: 50th anniversary edition, The Wizard of Oz: 75th anniversary edition, Gone With the Wind: 75th anniversary edition, Psycho: limited edition steelbook, The Nutty Professor: 50th anniversary collector’s edition, Woodstock: Three Days of Peace and Music: 40th anniversary limited edition, Once Upon a Time in America: Extended Director’s Cut, and Extended Director’s Cut Collector’s Edition Blu-ray. Also available this year are new releases of children’s classic animated favorites: The Jungle Book, Alice in Wonderland, Dumbo.