On Guard (VHS)
This superb swashbuckler stars Daniel Auteuil as Legardere, a swordsman in 18th-century France who befriends his fellow fencing student, the dashing Duke de Nevers (Vincent Perez), only to wind up on the run and accused of his murder. Nevers` villainous cousin (Fabrice Luchini) has orchestrated the killing, and is now after the Duke`s infant child, Aurore, who is rescued and raised by Legardere. The years pass and Aurore grows into a ravishing beauty (played by Marie Gillain), who has inherited her father`s skill with a sword, and, controversially, developed more than just a daughterly love for her protector. Sworn to avenge the Duke`s death and restore Aurore`s rightful title, Legardere undertakes a daring scheme of retribution and revenge. Like a great old novel (it`s adapted from LE BOSSU by Paul Feval) the film grips one`s attention firmly from beginning to end, with Auteuil a dashing Fairbanks-esque hero, Luchini a most hissable villain, and Gillain a damsel worth dying for. Sumptuous photography lovingly captures the epic sets and breathtaking outdoor locations without ever distracting from character, plot, or pace.NR"
Director: Phillippe De Broca
ACTORS: Daniel Auteuil, Fabrice Luchini, Vincent Perez, Marie Gillain, Sacha Bourdo
National Geographic Video - The Photographers (DVD)
Tag along with National Geographic`s award-winning photographers as they document the mysteries of nature in breathtaking compositions.NR"
The Abyss (DVD) Widescreen; Single Disc After a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks in a remote part of the ocean floor, a team of divers on a prototype underwater oil rig are pressed into service by the U.S. Navy in a rescue attempt. When a hurrican...
After a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks in a remote part of the ocean floor, a team of divers on a prototype underwater oil rig are pressed into service by the U.S. Navy in a rescue attempt. When a hurricane cuts off contact between the surface and the underwater depths, the crew begin to see evidence of a strange, possibly alien intelligence at work. While chief Bud Brigman (Ed Harris) bickers with his ex-wife and boss (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), the Navy commander begins to grow increasingly paranoid about the mysterious alien life and threatens to use a recovered nuclear weapon to destroy everything. James Cameron`s undersea epic is a tale of sacrifice and hope in an amazing alien landscape that covers 2/3 of the Earth`s surface. Featuring landmark visual effects but plagued by production difficulties, the cast and crew were stretched to the breaking point and THE ABYSS became one of the most expensive films ever made in its time, but the final result is a remarkable blend of action and human drama. Scenes cut from the theatrical version, including a number of special effects sequences involving huge tidal waves threatening the cities of the world, are restored in the Special Edition versions.
PG-13"
Director: James Cameron
ACTORS: Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, Leo Burmester, Chris Elliott
Valdez is Coming (DVD)
Bob Valdez (Burt Lancaster), a Mexican-American deputy sheriff, is forced to kill an accused murderer by ruthless land baron, Frank Tanner. When he discovers that the accused left behind a pregnant girlfriend, he asks around town for money to support her, and is severely beaten and left for dead by Tanner`s posse. After his recovery, Valdez prepares for vengeance, sending the simple message to Tanner that Valdez is coming. PG-13"
Director: Edwin Sherin
ACTORS: Burt Lancaster, Susan Clark, Frank Silvera, Richard Jordan, Jon Cypher
Rio Grande (DVD) Collector`s Edition DVD In RIO GRANDE, the last part of John Ford`s classic Cavalry Trilogy, John Wayne stars as Kirby York, a colonel at an army outpost along the U.S.-Mexico border where the Apache are always a problem. When his son,...
In RIO GRANDE, the last part of John Ford`s classic Cavalry Trilogy, John Wayne stars as Kirby York, a colonel at an army outpost along the U.S.-Mexico border where the Apache are always a problem. When his son, Jeff (Claude Jarman Jr.), whom he hasn`t seen in more than a decade, arrives at the fort after flunking out of West Point, Yorke treats him coldly, warning the young man not to expect preferential treatment, which Jeff assures him he doesn`t want. Yorke`s ex-wife, Kathleen (Maureen O`Hara), appears, intending to persuade Jeff to leave the army. Yorke refuses to do the necessary paperwork to release his son, a decision seconded by Jeff, who has begun to adapt to army life--and before Kathleen can regroup for another attempt, the fort is attacked by the Apache. The making of RIO GRANDE was mandated by producer Herbert Yates, who would agree to finance the director`s THE QUIET MAN only if Ford first made a Western, as insurance, with that film`s proposed leading actors. Ford continues the series` realistic depiction of the rigors of life on a cavalry post in the late-19th-century Southwest, and members of the director`s stock company--most notably Victor McLaglen, Harry Carey Jr., and Ben Johnson--acquit themselves admirably.
NR"
Director: John Ford
ACTORS: John Wayne, Maureen O`Hara, Claude Jarman, Ben Johnson, Chill Wills
