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AIOMA INA 14 - "WEEKEND STAR" FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2001 # KINGCHURCH NISSAN § Ajax, Ontario 1-800-565-6365 = 905-686-0555 wc. .- 1995 BMW 318 Ti f§ SPORTS COUPE 4} This is a well maintained automatic with p. windows, locks, cruise & tilt. Just 98,000 kms. of | ¥ © WORRY FREE TV. : and we're not stopping there! EAN SAV =] \\ HOMES Superman collection comes to DVD From Page 9 Jason Alexander, so good as George Costanza on Seinfeld all those years, has a nice supporting role as Hal's buddy, who may actually be more shallow than Hal himself. Alexander has proven he can play a creep, remember him as the sleazy lawyer in Pretty Woman (1990)? Here, he is obsessed films in with beautiful woman, with no time for anyone else. It is a terrific piece of acting and a solid reminder that Alexander deserves a major career in film. His new television series, Bob Patterson, has just been cancelled, leaving him room to move into films. Hardly movie art, Shallow Hal is great fun, and often very funny. It represents a major move forward for the Farrelly Brothers as artists because this time, in addition to making us laugh, they almost make us cry. SHREK (2001) Now on video/DVD {t222¥) 'One of the best films of the year, Shrek has recently been released on DVD and video, which is curious consid- ering the film has a strong shot at an Academy Award for best picture. 0 Released theatrically back in May, the film opened at the Cannes Film Festival, where it knocked the world's toughest critics out with its blend of stunning animation and sly, wicked humour. Produced by Dreamworks, the film is the brainchild of Jeffrey Katzenberg, former head of Disney, and much of Shrek is lethal comedy pointed in the direction of rival Disney. The two studios have been at war from the beginning, producing computer animated bug 1998 -- Antz, from Dreamworks, and A Bug's Life from Disney -- and this year Dreamworks chose to release Shrek on DVD and video the very day Disney's latest animated film, Monsters Inc., opened. Shrek is a marvelous fantasy tale for young and old, beautifully voiced by Mike Myers as the green ogre, Cameron Diaz as the princess, Eddie Murphy as Shrek's buddy, and John Lithgow as the bad guy. I cannot think of another animat- ed film that so perfectly utilized the voice talents of its cast; Shrek does so to near perfection. Murphy is hysterically funny as the wound up, hyperactive donkey who intrudes into the exis- tence of the isolated Shrek, who loves his own space. Myers' Scottish brogue wanders a tad, but it works nicely for the character throughout the film. The DVD is loaded with special features, including a longer end- ing, behind the scenes footage of the making of the film, including the voice over tracks, and much more. Look for Shrek to become the second animated fea- ture nominated for an Oscar for best picture, and richly deserving of - It. THE SUPERMAN COLLECTION Now on DVD In 1978, on New Year's Eve | headed out with my girlfriend to see Superman, one of the most talked about and highly promoted films of the year. The ads touted, in an ominous voice, "You'll believe a man can fly", so they had a lot to live up to. The lights went dark, and for the next two hours | was swept away. into one. of the screen's great fan-- tasies. Superman (1978) was a superb tasy, and surprising 4 film, blending adventure, fan- humour together to cre-, ate one of the year's best films. Christopher Reeve was perfect as the . Man of Steel, but was even better as the fum- bling Clark Kent. His first major moment: in the tights and cape are among my favourite scenes in movie history. Lois Lane is dangling high above New York, hanging onto a seat belt to a crashed chopper on the side of the building. Kent sees this when exiting the building and springs into action. She falls, but as she is falling, he flies breathlessly through the air to catch her, and then in one frame, catches the chop- per that is falling right at them. It was stunning, and the audience went wild. Superman II (1981) was actually better than the first, but after that the series went down- hill, ending with the hor- rible Superman 1V, which was co-written by Reeve. Warner Brothers has just released a boxed set of DVDs, which includes all four films in beautifully re-mastered prints, with terrific widescreen copies of each film. Digitally remastered, they are superb in every way. Well worth a look, for the first two films at the very least. htt oe a ST TRE yee Wl RR RA Th TE NA Ty Se RE THA I oe al SARA OJ a