Cinematical

Indiana Jones -- The Adventure Collection
... or any of the three special editions -- Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, Last Crusade

We're just over a week and a half away from seeing Harrison Ford run around as Indiana Jones for the first time in almost twenty years in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and hopefully not collapse in an arthritic fit. Of course, that means putting out a collection for Indy buffs to buy -- just in time for a late-night triple feature before the big release. However, unlike the Die Hard re-do, which stripped tons of extras away, and other releases that just fill up landfill space, there is a perk in this whole money-grab: aside from getting them as a collection, you can pick them up for the first time separately.

That's music to my ears, since I detest Temple of Doom, and would be happy not to see it again. Pick up one, pick up a few, or pick them all up in the Adventure Collection, which is just the three special editions in a fancy cardboard box. Each disc has a bunch of extras -- intros, interviews, special effects, storyboards, and more. Some is old footage, but there's lots of new bits as well -- including a look at Skull on the Last Crusade DVD.

Buy the Collection | Buy Raiders | Buy Doom | Buy Crusade

The Great Debaters
There have been, well, debates about the factual accuracy of The Great Debaters, like the fact that Hollywood made the opposing team Harvard rather than USC (presumably to make the achievement more impressive). However, for those who are not as concerned with factual accuracy in feature films, this is another inspiring school story to add to the collection.

Denzel Washington, who also directed the film, stars as Melvin Tolson; an outspoken professor at Wiley College who challenges Jim Crow laws and helps lead his debate team to the National Championships. It's got all the requisite passion of a school film, plus powerhouses like Washington and Forest Whitaker. Also, as I noted in an old news piece, the film even has Denzel Whitaker playing Forest's son. They're no relation, but the kid is named after Washington.

Debaters has scored itself a 2-disc edition that includes delete scenes, commentary, music videos, and featurettes.

Check out Scott Weinberg's Review | Buy the DVD

Other New DVD Releases (May 13)

Untraceable
Mad Money
A Raisin in the Sun

Check out Peter's Indies on DVD for even more new releases.