Christmas is exactly one week away. You have all your shopping done, right? No? Well, you know what to get everyone on your list, at least, right? No? We’re here to help. Here are some of the best recent releases for the film buff on your list. Chances are, there’s something here for just about everyone you know. What red-blooded American, after all, doesn’t love movies?
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” opened in theaters this weekend. The complicated plot of John le Carre’s classic 1974 novel didn’t quite fit into the film’s two-hour running time. Those still scratching their heads over who knew what when will appreciate the BBC’s five-hour miniseries version of the spy story. In conjunction with the new film, Acorn Media has re-released “Tinker Tailor” and “Smiley’s People,” the further adventures of MI6 operative George Smiley. Compare Gary Oldman’s portrayal of the unassuming (but never unaware) spy to that of the late, great Alec Guinness. Both series feature interviews with le Carre as part of their extras.
If you love to shop locally, Silver Spring-based Acorn has plenty of other box sets available, particularly for the Anglophile on your list. PBS’s “Masterpiece” recently screened a new version of the classic series “Upstairs, Downstairs.” Acorn has a splendid set of the 1970s original. “Upstairs, Downstairs: 40th Anniversary Edition” has 21 bonus-packed discs.
Children are easy to please this holiday: The final “Harry Potter” film has made its way to DVD, which means you can complete their set — or buy them one from scratch. “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2” has plenty of bonuses to keep kids occupied during their school break, with deleted scenes, a studio tour, and making-of featurettes. The Blu-ray edition offers more: “A Conversation with J.K. Rowling and Daniel Radcliffe,” the woman who wrote the mega-best-selling books and the actor who brought her creation to life.
Finally, true fans know what they want this Christmas. For the film geek, “Star Wars: The Complete Saga” made its debut on Blu-ray this season. The six films of George Lucas’ sci-fi classic are all here — and a full three discs of extras. That’s 30 hours of material not counting the movies, including never-before-released deleted and alternative scenes. For the classic film buff, the movie often called the greatest ever made also made its way onto Blu-ray. But even fans without the latest technology might want this new release of “Citizen Kane.” That’s because it includes — on regular DVD, not Blu-ray — Orson Welles’ second film (“Kane” was his first, if you can believe it), “The Magnificent Ambersons.” That 1942 drama, starring Joseph Cotton and Anne Baxter, and based on the Booth Tarkington novel, has been unavailable on DVD. Even many Welles fans have never seen it.
Kelly Jane Torrance is the Washington Examiner movie critic. Her reviews appear weekly and she can be reached at [email protected].
