William Friedkin

The Exorcist (The Version You've Never Seen)

Director William Friedkin was a hot ticket in Hollywood after the success of The French Connection, and he turned heads (in more ways than one) when he decided to make The Exorcist as his follow-up film. Adapted by William Peter Blatty from his controversial bestseller, this shocking 1973 thriller set an intense and often-copied milestone for screen terror with its unflinching depiction of a young girl (Linda Blair) who is possessed by an evil spirit. Jason Miller and Max von Sydow are perfectly cast as the priests who risk their sanity and their lives to administer the rites of demonic exorcism, and Ellen Burstyn plays Blair's mother, who can only stand by in horror as her daughter's body is wracked by satanic disfiguration. One of the most frightening films ever made with a soundtrack that's guaranteed to curl your blood, The Exorcist was mysteriously plagued by troubles during production, and the years have not diminished its capacity to disturb even the most stoical viewers. Don't say you weren't warned! --Jeff Shannon

To Live and Die in L.A. (Special Edition)

Secret Service agent Richard Chance will do anything--whether legal or not--to nail the creep who murdered his partner. Then he gets a lead on the killer...but the wily criminal is smooth enough to keep eluding capture.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE UPC: 027616886453 Manufacturer No: 1004604

William Friedkin briefly revived his faltering career with this sleek, bleak thriller of a pair of secret service agents on the trail of a counterfeiter. William L. Peterson is the hotshot protégé of a career agent killed by the ruthless, almost feral counterfeiting genius Willem Dafoe (Platoon). Now Petersen, teamed with the smart but still green John Pankow (TV's Mad About You), is ready to twist arms, lean on criminals, steal, and even murder to exact his revenge. The harrowing chase through the streets of Los Angeles that climaxes on the freeway at rush hour, where Friedkin's brilliant twist sends them heading the wrong way, careening through a sea of cars coming straight at them, is still one of the most breathtaking car chases ever filmed. Friedkin's edgy crime thriller, stylishly shot in steely blues against hazy red and orange skies by Robby Muller (Paris, Texas), paints a very thin line between the good guys and the bad guys, and Wang Chung's techno soundtrack sets the proper mood--jumpy and alienated. It's a cynical and very brutal look into the world of law enforcement (adapted by Friedkin and former Secret Service man Gerald Petievich from his novel) and a cold portrayal of the power games between cops and feds, and cops and informants. John Turturro, Dean Stockwell, and Robert Downey Sr. are featured in supporting roles. --Sean Axmaker

The French Connection

Two narcotics detectives "Popeye" Doyle and his partner Buddy Russo (Gene Hackman Roy Scheider) start to close in on a vast international narcotics ring when the smugglers unexpectedly strike back. Following an attempt on his life by one of the smugglers Doyle sets off a deadly pursuit that ultimately takes him far beyond mere New York City limits. Based on a true story this action-filled thriller with its renowned chase scene won five Academy Awards® including best picture and Best Actor for Gene Hackman.System Requirements:Running Time 104 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: R UPC: 024543163589 Manufacturer No: 2226358

William Friedkin's classic policier was propelled to box-office glory, and a fistful of Oscars, in 1972 by its pedal-to-the-metal filmmaking and fashionably cynical attitude toward law enforcement. Gene Hackman's Popeye Doyle, a brutally pushy New York City narcotics detective, is a dauntless crime fighter and Vietnam-era "pig," a reckless vulgarian whose antics get innocent people killed. Loosely based upon an actual investigation that led to what was then the biggest heroin seizure in U.S. history, the picture traces the efforts of Doyle and his partner (Roy Scheider) to close the pipeline pumping Middle Eastern smack into the States through the French port of Marseilles. (The actual French Connection cops, Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso, make cameo appearances.) It was widely recognized at the time that Friedkin had lifted a lot of his high-strung technique from the Costa-Gavras thrillers The Sleeping Car Murders and Z--he even imported one of Costa-Gavras's favorite thugs, Marcel Bozzuffi, to play the Euro-trash hit man plugged by Doyle in an elevated train station. There was an impressive official sequel in 1975, French Connection II, directed by John Frankenheimer, which took Popeye to the south of France and got him hooked on horse. A couple of semi-official spinoffs followed, The Seven-Ups, which elevated Scheider to the leading role, and Badge 373, with Robert Duvall stepping in as the pugnacious flatfoot. --David Chute

Cruising (Deluxe Edition)

A sadistic serial killer is targeting New York's gay community and in response the NYPD sends rookie cop Steve Burns undercover to find the killer. Burns who is straight poses as a homosexual and enters the world of gay S&M sex clubs learning their rules and mores as he goes along. But as Burns arduously tracks down the murderer he finds himself growing attracted to these clubs and the gay lifestyle forcing him to question -- and possibly confront -- his own sexual identity.System Requirements:Running Time: 102 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 085391167969 Manufacturer No: 116796

Al Pacino hunts for a serial killer in a lurid world of gay leather bars in Cruising. Because of his resemblance to the victims of a series of slayings, cop Steve Burns (Pacino) goes undercover as a gay man, wandering through wild, gyrating bacchanalias straight out of a Tom of Finland painting, hoping that the killer will be drawn to his dark, tormented eyes. Cruising is a peculiar movie, a gritty police procedural that director William Friedkin (The French Connection, The Exorcist) tried to push into a quasi-metaphysical dimension with some casting tricks and subliminal images. Due to the controversy the movie sparked in the gay community, Friedkin goes to great lengths in the commentary and featurettes to defend the authenticity of the movie's sources (about a bizarre scene where a muscular black man wearing nothing but a jock strap and a cowboy hat appears out of nowhere and slaps a suspect being interrogated by the police, Friedkin claims this actually happened, though no context is offered). The movie passes no apparent judgment on the overtly sexual scenes in gay bars...yet clearly these scenes are expected to provoke unease in the viewer. Cruising is sure to provoke arguments: Is Pacino's performance vulnerable or tentative? Is the movie about homophobia or homophobic itself? What does the ending mean? Yet there's no denying it's claimed a place in cinematic history; far more people know about it than have seen it. For that--as well as the stylish cinematography--Cruising is worth seeing. --Bret Fetzer

Tales from the Crypt - The Complete First Season

Based on the legendary and gruesome EC Comics from publisher William Gaines this horror anthology featured stories of murder the super natural gore and humor and always had a twist ending of sorts. Some of Hollywood's biggest names took part either working in front or behind the camera. Hosting duties fell to everyone's favorite decaying corpse the Cryptkeeper. The success of this series spawned a Saturday morning cartoon series (Tales From the Cryptkeeper) a short-lived Saturday morning game show on CBS (Secrets of the Cryptkeeper's Haunted House) and lots of merchandise. Two feature films (Demon Knight and Bordello of Blood) were also produced and released in the late 90's. The TV series originally aired on HBO but was later syndicated to Fox the Sci-Fi Channel and most recently AMC. Despite being a short season (only 6 episodes) Season 1 enjoyed the highest ratings in its HBO airings.Running Time: 168 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLERS UPC: 012569682894

Here's some grisly good news for fear fans: the first season of HBO's long-running TV horror anthology Tales from the Crypt, based on the notorious '50s-era E.C. comic books, emerges on DVD in a two-disc set that's sure to have 'em shrieking (with joy, of course). Shepherded by a host of top Hollywood producers and directors (including Joel Silver, Richard Donner, Robert Zemeckis, and Walter Hill), the Tales from the Crypt series brought together major talent both in front of and behind the camera to give life to E.C.'s over-the-top stories of gruesome revenge and ghastly terror. Season 1 offers six star-studded spooktaculars, including Donner's "Dig That Cat… He's Real Gone," with The Sopranos' Joe Pantoliano as a carnival performer with a knack for surviving horrible endings; Zemeckis's "And All Through the House," with Larry Drake as a homicidal Santa Claus terrorizing a woman who has just killed her husband (this story was also adapted in the 1972 theatrical version of Crypt); and Hill's "The Man Who Was Death," featuring a topnotch performance by William Sadler as a jailhouse executioner who takes the law into his own hands. Comic purists may decry liberties taken by updating the original stories (and current audiences may find elements in some episodes out of date, most notably Mary Lambert's "Only Sin Deep"), but the blend of gore and black humor should keep most horror heads happy, as should the chattering presence of the animatronic Crypt Keeper (well-voiced by John Kassir), who serves as the show's ghost host.

The two-disc set's chief extra is an interesting documentary about the original comics, featuring interviews with co-editor Al Feldstein and legendary artist Jack Davis, as well as directors and authors inspired by the comics like George Romero, John Carpenter, and R.L. Stine. The Crypt Keeper also weighs in with a new intro for the DVD, as well as his reminiscences of the first-season episodes, complete with plenty of behind-the-scenes production photos. In short, pleasant screams are ensured for all. --Paul Gaita

Sorcerer

Following the blockbuster success of The Exorcist, director William Friedkin had the clout to make any film he wanted, and he nearly ruined his career making Sorcerer, an ill-fated remake of the classic French thriller The Wages of Fear. Given the big-budget treatment that Friedkin could command, the original plot remains unchanged: In an unnamed Latin American country, Roy Scheider leads a group of four fugitives who will earn their freedom if they can successfully transport truckloads of volatile nitroglycerine over treacherous terrain to extinguish a raging oil fire. The unstable explosives could prove deadly at any point of the journey, and numerous obstacles threaten the completion of the mission. Produced under rugged conditions in the jungles of the Dominican Republic, the film is visually impressive and contains intense moments of astonishing suspense, but the specter of the superior French version hangs over every scene. This version remains a folly of directorial ambition run amuck, but for the very same reason Sorcerer is a film that's hauntingly unforgettable, fueled by an atmosphere of dread and the forceful powers of nature. Presented in full-screen format on DVD, the film is aided immeasurably by Tangerine Dream's eerie electronic score. --Jeff Shannon

The Night They Raided Minsky's

Britt Ekland portrays a young Amish girl who becomes the toast of New York after she inadvertently invents the striptease in this tantalizing burlesque comedy that co-stars Jason Robards.System Requirements:Running Time: 99 minutes Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY/CLASSICS Rating: PG UPC: 883904106814 Manufacturer No: M110681

Rules of Engagement

Director William Friedkin knows a thing or two about staging harrowing action sequences, and if you don't believe that, you've never seen The French Connection or To Live and Die in L.A. He comes through niftily in this film as well, with an opening Vietnam battle sequence that sets the stage for the rest of the story, and then with the central moment in the film: a rescue mission involving Marines extricating the American ambassador from an embassy surrounded by hostile protesters in Yemen. Unfortunately, Friedkin can't do much about the implausible plot that follows, in which the Marine commander, played by the always-terrific Samuel L. Jackson, is accused of slaughtering innocent civilians (who actually were shooting at him and his men). He must rely on an old Marine buddy--a lawyer played by Tommy Lee Jones--to get him through the jury-rigged court martial. But the central premise--that an evil presidential aide would perjure himself and destroy evidence simply to maintain good relations with U.S. allies in the Middle East, rather than defending a highly decorated Marine colonel who risked his life--is inevitably hard to swallow. And the ending is even flimsier. --Marshall Fine

Bug (Special Edition)

William (The Exorcist, The French Connection) Friedkin directed this harrowing portrait of slow-boiling paranoia about a lonely waitress (Ashley Judd) whose world spirals out of control after meeting a charismatic but damaged drifter (Michael Shannon). Said drifter fills the gulf of loneliness that has swallowed Agnes (Judd) whole as she struggles to stay afloat in a backwater desert town; gradually, Shannon reveals that his stint as a soldier in the Middle East has left him infested with microscopic bugs that he believes are part of a government conspiracy. The force of his conviction (combined with the horrific physical self-abuse he endures) slowly persuade Agnes that she, too, is infested, and the pair undergo a gruesome mental and physical meltdown. Based on the theatrical production by Tracey Letts (who also wrote the screenplay), Bug has a hard time escaping its stage origins (much of the action takes place in one dingy motel room), but Friedkin ramps up the intensity to near uncomfortable levels, and Judd and Shannon (recreating his performances in the New York and London productions) are more than up to the challenge. Their fearless turns are well-matched by Harry Connick, Jr., as Agnes' creepy ex-husband and Brian F. O'Byrne as a medic who may or may not be part of Shannon's shadowy government cabal. Viewers should be forewarned that the violence is intense and often bloody; those that find insects unsettling should avoid at all costs. -- Paul Gaita

A lonely waitress with a tragic past, Agnes (Judd) rooms in a run-down motel, living in fear of her abusive, recently paroled ex-husband (Connick Jr.). But when Agnes begins a tentative romance with Peter (Shannon), an eccentric, nervous drifter, she starts to feel hopeful again - until the first bugs arrive...

The Hunted (Widescreen Edition)

William Friedkin's taut direction highlights The Hunted, a bloodsport thriller that works best without dialogue. It's a prime vehicle for costars Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro, whose rugged screen personas are perfectly matched in a manhunt between a military assassin and the man who trained him to kill. Traumatized by atrocities in Kosovo four years earlier (the site of an action-packed prologue), Hallam (Del Toro) is seemingly psychotic and now killing in the forests of Oregon; Bonham (Jones) is lured out of retirement by a tenacious FBI agent (Connie Nielsen) to end Hallam's murder spree. The hackneyed plot is derivative to a fault (no surprise from the screenwriters of Collateral Damage), and the whole movie's a foregone conclusion, but Friedkin inspires fine work from his well-trained stars while exploring the ambiguity of Hallam's character. Lushly photographed by Caleb Deschanel, The Hunted is a survivalist's dream, militarily authentic and most effective when its primal instincts are cinematically expressed. --Jeff Shannon

Directed by Academy Award winner William Friedkin, THE HUNTED follows FBI agent Abby Durrell (Nielson) and her new recruit, L.T. Bonham (Jones) - a specialist in deep-woods tracking, as they team up to track and hunt down trained assassin, Aaron Hallam (Del Toro), who made a sport out of fatally shooting deer hunters in the forests outside Portland, Oregon. Using his well-honed nature skills to locate Hallam, Bonham soon finds himself and his partner lured into a gut-wrenching game of cat and mouse. With ruthless precision and murderous skill, Hallam remains one step ahead of his pursuers as Bonham and Durrell try to outwit him in the natural and urban wildernesses before Hallem turns them into his next victims.