Susan Granger’s dvd/video update for week of Friday, Sept. 4:
Distilled from the acclaimed BBC mini-series and narrated by James Earl Jones, DisneyNature’s gloriously-filmed, environmentally-propelled “Earth” follows the remarkable story of three animal families: polar bears, elephants and humpback whales. Unlike the BBC version, this sanitized version delicately avoids disturbing depictions of death. On the African plain, for example, there’s stalking, chasing and pouncing but the carnivores’ graphic consumption of their prey is not shown.
“Life After People” is thought-provoking documentary that combines superb visual effects with insights from experts in the fields of botany, engineering, ecology, biology, geology, climatology and archeology to demonstrate what might happen if humans disappeared from Earth. Also from the History Channel, “The Crusades” re-enacts the epic battles between Christians and Muslims during the Middle Ages.
Oscar-nominee Mickey Rourke (“The Wrestler”) and Oscar-winner Christopher Walken (“The Deer Hunter”) co-star in “Homeboy,” the story of a washed-up, alcoholic boxer who agrees to take part in the heist of a jewelry store that’s owned by a smooth-talking crook.
“Russell Simmons Presents Brave New Voices” is the latest creation from the hip-hop mogul. Transcending race, class, gender, orientation and politics, the seven-part HBO series features teams of teen poets from across the country doing verbal battle in a poetry slam competition.
Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month, Whistlefritz’s “Spanish for Beginners” DVD and CD blend live action with lively animation and amusing characters; Whistlefritz was founded in 2006 by a mom who wanted to teach her own kids Spanish, the world’s third most spoken language, in a way they’d remember. Also for kids already anticipating Halloween, there’s “Shaun the Sheep: Little Sheep of Horrors,” inspired by a horror film on TV and HIT Favorites “Trick or Treat Tales” for preschoolers.
PICK OF THE WEEK: In “State of Play,” Russell Crowe is an unkempt, double-cheeseburger-with-chili gobbling, whiskey-soaked newspaper reporter who reluctantly teams up with a gossipy political blogger (Rachel McAdams) to solve the mystery of why the pretty research assistant/mistress of a Philadelphia congressman (Ben Affleck) was crushed under a Washington D.C. subway train in front of hundreds of witnesses.