TNMC

Tigerland -- after saturating the mid and late 90s with some of the worst movies ever committed to film, director Joel Schumacher has totally redeemed himself. This 16mm flick follows the military training of some new recruits, right before they get shuffled off to Vietnam. Schumacher has finally abandoned excess, instead choosing to focus on the essentials, and drawing great performances from a cast of unknowns, though it is doubtful Colin Farrell will remain that way. Tigerland refers to the final-week, live-ammo simulation of Vietnam. The DVD is light on extras (director's commentary, trailer, and Farrell's screen test), but if you like war movies, you need this one.

Hamlet (2000) -- Michael Almereyda's retelling of the Shakespeare classic, featuring a great cast that includes Ethan Hawke, Julia Stiles, Bill Murray, Kyle McLachlan, and Sam Shepard. The transition to the modern day, corporate world of New York City works surprisingly well, and it's way more watchable than 1996's Romeo + Juliet. Even if you're not familiar with the play, do yourself a favor and check this one out. The only downside is this disc has literally no extras, so the question may indeed be, "to DVD, or not to DVD?"...oh, god...I'm sorry....

Billy Elliot -- the latest heartwarming, crowd-pleasing import from England. Billy's dad is a struggling miner, who scrapes together enough money for Billy to take boxing lessons. Problem is, Billy wants to dance, baby! Witty, laconic dialog ensues. A pretty amusing flick, if you can handle all the dancing. Comes with a trailer, a "making of" featurette, film highlights, and some DVD-ROM content.

The Gospel According to Philip K. Dick -- if you don't know who Dick is, you're probably not going to watch this, but you probably should. Covers the life of the conflicted sci fi master whose stories "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" and "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" were the basis for Blade Runner and Total Recall, respectively. His other works also inspired Screamers, and the upcoming Minority Report. Comes with extra footage, director interviews, a behind the scenes photo gallery, and "The Philip K. Dicktionary." Obviously, you ought to buy this disc if you're a Dick fan. Uh....get your minds out of the gutter...

Space Cowboys -- or more accurately, Geriatrics in Space. Normally, space in the title means I'm buyin', but this movie just doesn't do it for me. It's undeniable, however, that Eastwood, Garner, Sutherland and Jones have some real good chemistry. It's probably the most loaded of any disc this week, coming with a trailer, four featurettes, including inside looks at the special effects and an interview with Unforgiven Oscar-winning editor Joel Cox. Read Shea's review for more.

The Ladies Man -- what? an SNL movie that doesn't suck like a black hole? It's true! Tim Meadows is a pretty funny guy, and this movie will actually make you laugh, unlike the disasters that were Superstar, or A Night at the Roxbury. The DVD is pretty skimpy, with just cast & crew interviews and the trailer, but do you really need a commentary track on this? Probably not. Check out the club's review, here.