Cain, Christopher

Pure Country

After 25 chart-topping hits, the singing star becomes a movie star! George Strait makes his film debut in an entertaining look into the heart and soul of country music from Young Guns director Christopher Cain.

Superstar Dusty Chandler (Strait) is tired of the smoke, the strobe lights and the overmiked sound of his arena spectaculars. One night, something snaps. "I'm just going to take a little walk," Dusty says as he walks out of the empty hall, ditching his beard, ponytail - and temporarily, his career - to reclaim his down-home country roots. But his manager (Leslie Ann Warren) retaliates: a stand-in (Kyle Chandler) lip-synchs his songs in concert. And a romance with a lovely rancher (Isabel Glasser) is on again, off again like a rodeo cowboy. The simple life can be complex, but it's nothing a revitalized country boy can't handle!

The Karate Kid Collection (Four Film Set)

A sizable hit with both teen audiences and sports-themed movie enthusiasts, 1984's The Karate Kid had the right combination of heart and action to spawn three sequels of varying quality between 1986 and 1994; all four features have been packaged together in this three-disc set. Though plot elements varied from film to film, the core story (and the series' greatest strength) remained the same--the relationship between a wise Japanese martial arts teacher (skillfully underplayed by comedian Pat Morita) and his young American student (Ralph Macchio in the first three films, and future Oscar winner Hilary Swank in the final entry, The Next Karate Kid). The first of the Morita/Macchio matchups remains the best of the four features, with excellent performances from both leads and director John G. Avildsen (who also handled Rocky and the first two Kid sequels) expertly balancing the emotional moments with the pure excitement of the martial arts tournament that serves as its finale.

The subsequent sequels with Macchio seemed pulpier (especially The Karate Kid, Part II, with its rekindled wartime romance subplot), and the inevitable come-from-behind competitions lacking the impact of the original; 1994's The Next Karate Kid (directed by Christopher Cain) put a slight spin on the formula by replacing Macchio with belligerent teen Swank, but it too seems like a retread of the first film. Still, the messages inherent to each film--finding one's inner strength, trusting your heart--should ring true to new generations of younger viewers. Fans may find the Collection light on supplemental features--while all four films are presented in anamorphic widescreen format, only the original (which was previously released in pan-and-scan only) offers commentary by Avildsen, Macchio and Morita and several making-of featurettes; the three sequels, packed into two discs, offer no extras. --Paul Gaita

Young Guns (Special Edition)

The year is 1878 Lincoln County. John Tunstall a British ranchowner hires six rebellious boys as "regulators" to protect his ranch against the ruthless Santa Fe Ring. When Tunstall is killed in an ambush the Regulators led by the wild-tempered Billy the Kid (Estevez) declare war on the Ring. As their vendetta turns into a bloody rampage they are branded outlaws becoming the objects of the largest manhunt in Western history.System Requirements:Starring: Emilio Estevez Kiefer Sutherland Lou Diamond Phillips Charlie Sheen Dermot Mulroney and Casey Siemaszko. Running Time: 102 Min. Color. This film is presented in "Widescreen" format. Copyright 2003 Artisan Entertainment.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: WESTERN/MISC. Rating: R UPC: 012236125945 Manufacturer No: 13850

Part of what was touted as a late-1980s revival of Westerns (and you can see how long that lasted), this good-looking, empty-brained film was like a spurs-and-chaps version of a Joel Schumacher movie, filled with pretty faces, prettier imagery, and absolutely no new ideas. The idiotically grinning Emilio Estevez is cast as Billy the Kid, who slowly accumulates a gang of Brat Pack buddies (Lou Diamond Phillips, Kiefer Sutherland, Dermot Mulroney) and fashions them into a group of male models with six-guns. The action is confused and the script is trite, though Terence Stamp is intriguing as the old reprobate who helps the gang get its act together. Followed by an even worse sequel. --Marshall Fine

The Magnificent Seven - The Complete Second Season

The final season of the legend comes to DVD! In a time of outlaws, seven young heroes, each with unique talents and abilities, band together to help tame the wild west and protect the citizens of a small frontier town. The Magnificent Seven are back. Season 2 is full of action and some startling revelations, including the series' stunning final episode in which Chris comes face to face with his wife's killer. Saddle up for western-style adventure and excitement!

The Magnificent Seven - The Complete First Season

PILOT: Seven men unite to save a Seminole Indian village from The Ghosts of the Confederacy, a group of renegade soldiers threatening complete annihilation. The Seven courageously defend the village from the pillaging soldiers in this electrifying series premiere. ONE DAY OUT WEST: J.D. (Andrew Kavovit) volunteers to serve as a sheriff when a Federal Judge comes to clean up the town, and Judge Travis enlists the Seven to protect it. WORKING GIRLS: The town takes in a group of 'working girls' escaping from their vengeful master. SAFECRACKER: An ex-safecracker traveling through town is forced to return to her nefarious ways by an adamant ex-partner. WITNESS: Mary's (Laurie Holden) young son visits, only to be haunted by his memories of a rogue townsperson. Erza's (Anthony Starke) con-artist mother comes into town. NEMESIS: Chris pursues the man he believes is responsible for the murder of his wife and sons. The rest of the seven try their best to keep Chris from doing something he might regret. A reporter follows the men around to get a story. THE COLLECTOR: The Seven get involved when a "collector," Guy Royal, attempts to buy a string of homes: the future home of the railroad. Royal's hired gun has a bone to pick with Chris over an incident many years back. Josiah (Ron Perlman) is excited with his former love, saloon singer Emma comes to town. MANHUNT: Vin takes the lead in a manhunt to catch an escaped prisoner who took a local woman hostage. The girl's father, the local preacher, seeks vengeance. INMATE 78: Chris is arrested and thrown into a gulag-type prison camp while intervening in the arrest of an innocent man. He's subsequently informed that the sheriff identifies drifters who look like they have money, and arrests them on trumped-up charges until their families pay the bail. Vin, Ezra and the boys search for Chris when he doesn't return.

Pure Country/Honeysuckle Rose

They're singing the songs...and living them. George Strait already had 25 chart-topping hits when he made his film debut in Pure Country (Side A). He plays Dusty who ditches his superstar C&W career to rediscover his simple roots...and finds that the simple life can be complex when his manager (Lesley Ann Warren) retaliates. Next in another savvy song-filled slice of the performing life Willie Nelson is On the Road Again for a film that's not autobiographical yet knows its highways and byways well. Dyan Cannon Amy Irving and Slim Pickens join Nelson in a film that has the knack for providing the right song at the right time. Get on the bus. With Honeysuckle Rose (Side B) marking its DVD Debut you can't help but go places.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: WESTERN/MISC. Rating: PG UPC: 012569815216 Manufacturer No: 81521

September Dawn

Academy Award® winner Jon Voight Terence Stamp and Trent Ford star in this film based on the true story of the Mountain Meadows Massacre the brutal murder of 120 men women and children on September 11 1857 as their wagon train passed through Utah on its way to California. The question of whether the attack was carried out by local Paiute Indians or by a renegade sect of the Mormon church remains unresolved to this day.Set against the breathtaking beauty of the Utah mountains September Dawn explores what might have happened when the ill-fated settlers stopped near Cedar City to rest before completing the last leg of their journey. Local Mormon Bishop Jacob Samuelson (Voight) is suspicious of the group so he dispatches his oldest son Jonathan (Ford) to spy on them. Jonathan soon falls in love with an angelic member of the wagon train the minister s daughter Emily (Tamara Hope) and is horrified when he discovers that his father thinks the settlers are enemies of the church and is planning an attack on them.While Jonathan makes plans to escape with Emily his father sets in motion a chain of events fueled by revenge and fanaticism which culminates in a violent and tragic ambush.System Requirements:Run Time: 111 Mins.Format: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: DRAMA/LOVE & ROMANCE Rating: R UPC: 043396198166 Manufacturer No: 19816

September Dawn is an unusual hybrid: a love story, a Western, a historical drama, and a statement against religious intolerance. The fit between the four parts is uneasy at best. Christopher Cain (Young Guns) begins in 1877 as Utah governor Brigham Young (Terence Stamp, making no effort to disguise his British accent) presents his side of the story. (The director's son, Dean Cain, cameos as Joseph Smith.) The narrative then returns to 20 years before: A Missouri wagon party seeks permission from Bishop Jacob (Jon Voight) to rest on his land for a fortnight before continuing to California. Jacob gives his consent, but comes to regret his hospitality; after all, the state of Missouri forced his people to flee in order to practice their religion in peace. Then his son, Jonathan (Trent Ford), falls for the "gentile" Emily (Tamara Hope). Jacob becomes convinced the travelers will corrupt his entire community if he doesn't take action, so he negotiates with the Paiute tribe to execute the lot of them, leading to the Mountain Meadows Massacre of September 11th, 1857. On that date, as many as 140 settlers were killed, some by Native Americans, some by Mormons. Though the movie may have been made to "set the record straight," it seems more likely to offend modern-day members than to provide catharsis for descendents of the victims. Suffice to say, September Dawn was not produced with the support of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Gone Fishin'

Gone Fishin' has been called "the Ishtar of the '90s," but that's giving it too much credit. Danny Glover and Joe Pesci (who could have used their Lethal Weapon series buddy Mel Gibson in here) star as slow-witted friends who take their dream fishing vacation in the Florida Everglades and end up having a series of disasters. Trouble is, director Christopher Cain can't get a handle on any of the comedy essentials for a project such as this. The result is a badly timed, badly toned, unfunny movie wasting a lot of great talent across the board. --Tom Keogh

This hilarious hit stars Danny Glover (LETHAL WEAPON series) and Joe Pesci (MY COUSIN VINNY, LETHAL WEAPON II & III) as the funniest fishermen ever to throw out a line! Best buddies Gus (Glover) and Joe (Pesci) eagerly anticipate another quiet, relaxing fishing trip. Only things don't go quite as they planned! Instead, they innocently create an unstoppable series of outrageous mishaps, destroying everything in their wake! Catch all the crowd-pleasing fun and nonstop laughs as these pals land in one comic disaster after another and deliver one of the wildest comedy adventures in years!

The Principal

The Next Karate Kid

A vast improvement over its immediate predecessor, The Karate Kid III, this appealingly understated 1994 drama features a compelling performance by Hilary Swank, who would later win a Best Actress Oscar^® for her work in Boys Don't Cry. Swank plays 17-year-old Julie Pierce, the recently orphaned and troubled granddaughter of an old war buddy of Miyagi Yakuga (Noriyuki "Pat" Morita, the lone holdover from the previous Karate Kid films). Harassed at school by adolescent boys under the sway of an evil coach (Michael Ironside), Julie reluctantly finds refuge in the calm teachings of Mr. Miyagi. While the film's violence is as contrived and silly as that of the other KK features, the script provides exotic compensations via a subplot set in a peaceful Buddhist monastery. Still, it's Morita's crafty professionalism and Swank's emotional authenticity that makes this film more watchable than anyone might have expected. --Tom Keogh