Valentine DVD Review Round-Up

Ready to cuddle with your honey in front of the home entertainment center or just gather up the BFFs for a girls'-night-in romance-a-thon movie marathon? For you offbeat types, we've also got romance gone wrong and a girl who loves her horse! We've got some great DVDs for you! Some are sets; others singles. Check out our heartfelt reviews....

From Paramount Home Entertainment

The Girls' Night In Collection

This fun combo-set includes Just Like Heaven, How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, What Women Want, Forces of Nature and Win a date with Tad Hamilton. The set is star-packed with faves like Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, Sandra Bullock, Ben Affleck, Mel Gibson, Kate Bosworth, Topher Grace and Josh Duhamel and Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo.

From what we can figure out, the films in this collection exist as they last did when released separately on DVD. All films are the widescreen versions and look quite crisp and clean with decent sound effects and hearable dialogue.

Extras: These vary by the movie; some have more and some films, less. On How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days: commentary by Director Donald Petrie, Cast and Crew Interviews, 5 Deleted Scenes with Director comments, A location featurette, a Keith Urban Music Video "Somebody Like you". On Forces of Nature: Production Notes, Cast and Filmmaker Bios, a Behind-the-Scenes Featurette, Deleted Scenes and a Trailer.

On Just Like Heaven: A Making Of featurette, a Cast line-up, Deleted Scenes and a Gag Reel. On Win a Date with Tad Hamilton: A Gag Reel, over 15 Deleted Scenes with Paris Hilton, Sean Hayes and Nathan Lane in them. On What Women Want: Cast and Crew Interviews, a Behind-the scenes Featurette, a Commentary by Director Nancy Meyers and production designer and 2 Trailers.

These special features consist mostly of "selling" short, electronic press kit style interviews. Some of the deleted scenes and gag reels are funnier or more appropriate to be cut than others. Commentaries are a bit dry but I enjoyed Nancy Meyers'.

Wrapping Up: Is this DVD set for you? It all boils down to stars and stories. If you were charmed by any of these when in theaters, you can't go wrong with this worthy romance set. All are modern films made in the last few years. Worth a rent for sure and a buy for your collection if you want to visit that glorious and often heartbreaking world of relationships.

The Matthew McConaughey DVD Collection

Does that manly cutie who plays bongos al buffo ring your chimes? Well, then this is the set for you! We do have one repeat performance. The collection also contains How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, one of Matthew's more cutesy roles. The DVD is exactly the same as the one in the "Girls' Night" set so we won't go there again. Also included is the very recent Failure to Launch, in which the "McCon" co-stars with Sarah Jessica Parker. We've also got the big adventure flick with Matt's squeeze Penelope Cruz,Sahara; great if you like to see Matt in muscle tees and in Indiana Jones mode.

Again, these aren't new releases of the DVDs but are all widescreen versions with crisp pictures (hey, these films are pretty new) and decent sound. The sound on Sahara is more bombastic and gives your speakers a work-out due to the exploding chase action. Nothing to complain about "looks" and "sound-wise".

Extras: On Failure to Launch: A Making of featurette, a Failure to Launch Phenomenon feature which talks about why kids are staying home with the 'rents way into their 30's now, a fun interview with Matthew and his "dad" in the film Terry Bradshaw, a trailer and a contest opportunity that may be over now. On Sahara you get: commentaries by director Breck Eisner and Matthew McConaughey, 3 featurettes; "Across the Sands of Sahara", "Visualizing Sahara" and a Cast and Crew Wrap Party Film; Deleted Scenes with optional commentary.

The featurettes on "Failure" are okay, especially the little chat between Matthew and dad Terry.. the rest are just the usual 'selling' "We love this Movie" featurettes. On Sahara, you get more of the fun "Making Of" and on location.. and partying with Cast and Crew stuff that we love. Commentary by Matt and Breck is more fun that the one with Breck alone. The three featurettes cover everything from script to casting to the final wrap party. A lot of Matt on these and not the usual press kit fluff.

Overall, Hey, let's face it, if you are a Matt-a-holic, you are gonna want this set unless you already bought all three movies separately. If not, at least rent it. Sahara isn't considered a "romance" per se but it did launch a real-life romance between Penelope and Matt!

From Universal Home Entertainment

Romantic Favorites Collection

This bunch of really fun relationship movies should be called "The Hugh Grant Collection" although you've got Julia Roberts, Rachel Weisz, Toni Collette, Keira Knightley, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, and Renee Zellweger too.

The set includes: Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Love Actually, About a Boy and Notting Hill.

Again, these are all widescreen releases of DVDs already out there but, these are some really good movies if you don't already have them in your collection.

Some of the sound and video is better on some discs than others; some have a bit of grain but all are passable. We're not watching bigscreen action here.. more personal, one-on-one maneuvers that don't require bombastic sound. Dialogue and music etc. are all quite clear and don't require surround sound.

Extras: On Notting Hill you get: commentary with director Roger Michell with producer and writer, Hugh's Movie Tips, Deleted Scenes, Music Highlights A Travel Book, Production Notes, Cast and Crew bios, a DVD-Rom Behind the Scenes feature. On About a Boy there are, Deleted Scenes, Feature commentary with directors Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz, Music Videos by Badly Drawn boy.. a "Santa's Super Sleigh" lyric list, a Making Of featurette.. a funny English to English dictionary. On Love Actually you get: Feature commentary with Hugh, Bill Nighy, Thomas Sangster and director Richard Curtis, Deleted Scenes with intros by Curtis, featurette on the Music and a Kelly Clarkson Music Video "The Trouble With Love Is". On Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason there are: alternate beginning scenes, Deleted Scenes, a "Who's Your Man" quiz, A featurette on the Big Fight Scene (between Hugh and Colin). Cast commentary with Renee and Colin in character, an interview with Colin and Renee..in character.

The best film for features is "Bridget Jones" but you might enjoy the music videos on About a Boy and Kelly Clarkson on Love Actually. I actually wish this set included the original Bridget Jones film and not this less-funny sequel but, hey it's still a fun film. The other three films are romantic comedy classics with Hugh Grant at his droll, misunderstood and fumbling best.

Bottom line, if you don't have these films in your collection, you should. If you do, don't bother with re-buying here. If you don't, I'd say buy this set! You won't see such a worthy combo for relationship woe films again. If you like Hugh Grant, all the better but all other cast members are superior in their roles. At least a must rent!

From Universal Home Entertainment

Hollywoodland

Okay, now to the off-beat relationship films... We include this one because of a great performance by Ben Affleck, who has done his share of Romantic comedies. Diane Lane, Adrien Brody and Bob Hoskins are also very very good in the movie. Ben plays actor George Reeves, stamped forever and typecast to career ruin as "Superman" on TV in the 1950's. Diane Lane is his sexy galpal and Adrien is the private detective who struggles to solve the mystery of Reeves' death. This movie is noir-ish, stylish and full of romance gone very, very wrong!! So, if you get bored or are getting a tooth-ache from all the sweetsy kissyface covered in the reviews above, then pop this little gem into your player.

Sound and Video are excellent on this new widescreen DVD. The sepia-toned color looks great and true to the era.. other scenes are bright and really showcase the cool art direction here. Extras: Commentary by Director Allen Coulter has him talking a lot about Adrien Brody's acting and contributions to many scenes and gives us insight into both real life and fictional characters; interesting. There are deleted scenes that we can see why were cut and you get three featurettes "Re-creating Old Hollywood" noting that a lot of this film was shot in Canada! "Behind the Headlines", about the death of Reeves, and "Hollywood Then and Now", a cool retro-piece that is enjoyable.

Wrapping Up: Many thought that Ben Affleck deserved an Academy Award nomination for this film and I agree. Forget all the Ben and Jen (1st and 2nd) hype. The guy poured his soul and his own angst at being typecast and overlooked into his character and he's very, very good in the film. Diane is the total "older woman" sex kitten and Adrien the perfect washed up and desperate P.I. This DVD looks and sounds great and is totally worth a rent if not a buy.

From 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

Flicka

Okay, we're reaching here but Valentine's Day brings out feelings of love and closeness; Flicka is a family film featuring warm fuzzy family love and the special love of a teen gal for her favorite horse. So, again, a break film from the cycle of the girl/gal relationship angst of the movie sets we are covering.

Audio and Video on this recent film are good. This DVD comes as a "flipper disc" with widescreen on one side and full-frame on the other. I always choose widescreen. Sound is good and well-balanced among your speakers. Dialogue comes through fine.

Extras: Director Michael Mayer's Commentary is affable and a bit amusing. Not a bad feature. On the full-screen side of the disc our get two deleted scenes and an extended one with optional commentary. The music video for Tim McGraw's "My Little Girl" is sappy but beautiful really and you also get a few cute bloopers and a gag reel.

Wrapping up: Okay, this film was pretty sappy and predictable. Some of the dialogue was too corny or right on the nose but performances were quite good; especially 27-year-old Alison Lohman who can actually play age 16 convincingly, as the lonely gal with an urge to tame a beautiful stallion. If you haven't seen the film, at least rent it. If you love girl and her horse stories or Tim McGraw, buy.

***

Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.