HACHI: A DOG’S TALE

Hollywood legend and Golden Globe winner Richard Gere (‘Chicago’; ‘Unfaithful’; ‘An Officer And A Gentleman’) and three-time Oscar nominee Joan Allen (‘The Bourne Ultimatum’; ‘The Notebook’ and ‘Nixon’) head the cast of ‘Hachi: A Dog’s Tale’ which was released by Entertainment In Video on rental and retail DVD and Blu-ray on July 5. 

Based on an enchanting and heartwarming true story about the unbreakable bond between a dog and its master, the film opens with University professor Parker Wilson (Richard Gere) finding a lost puppy (Hachi) at his local train station. 

Not wanting to hand it over to the local dog pound, Parker takes it back home with him despite a ‘no dogs’ ban that has been decreed by his canine-hating wife Cate (Joan Allen).

At first Parker tries to hide Hachi from his wife but not surprisingly his best efforts are in vain and Cate soon finds out. They agree that Hachi can stay with them but only until they find a permanent home for the puppy or they can trace its owner. 
However, nobody comes forward to claim the dog and gradually Parker and Hachi become so inseparable that Cate cannot help but accept the mystery puppy into their family. 

The two of them develop an inexplicably close friendship and every morning Hachi accompanies Parker to the train station and then faithfully returns to greet his master every evening in exactly the same place and at exactly the same time. 
Through his daily trips to the station, Hachi becomes a regular fixture of the neighbourhood and a symbol of love, friendship and unyielding loyalty to everyone who meets him.  His faithful devotion to his master exposes the great power of love and how this simplest of acts can become the grandest gesture of all.

‘Hachi – A Dog’s Tale’ has a run time of approx 89  minutes and a ‘U’  certificate.

Rental DVD  EDR 4218  n/a

Retail  DVD  EDV 9682          £19.99  

Blu-ray  EBR 5167          £24.99 

DVD and Blu-ray bonus features:
- Making of ‘Hachi - A Dog’s Tale’
- Trailer

ARN: The Knight Templar

Simon Callow stars alongside Joakim Natterqvist and Sofia Helin in the medieval fantasy adventure ‘Arn: The Knight Templar’ which is released by High Fliers on rental and retail DVD and retail Blu-ray on 20 September 2010. 

The film - an epic story of war, treachery, intrigue and love – is based on the three Arn books by top selling Swedish writer Jan Guillou which are known as the Crusader trilogy. 

The son of a high-ranking Swedish nobleman, Arn Magnusson was born in 1150 on a farm in the West Gothia region of Sweden and grows up to become an educated young man and a skilled swordsman. 

He meets Cecilia, the love of his life, but a cruel and jealous world forces them apart after Cecilia becomes pregnant with his baby and he is falsely accused of also sleeping with her sister. 

Cecilia is imprisoned in a Convent and Arn is sent away as a Knight Templar to the Holy Land where war is raging between Christians and Muslims. 

Both Arn and Cecilia have to fight to survive and learn how to confront evil and overcome physical hardship. Their painful separation causes them to question their strong religious beliefs ...  but not their faith in each other and their belief that they will be re-united one day. 

When Arn eventually returns home from the Wars in the Middle East he finds himself with a new fight on his hands to reclaim his love for Cecilia and fulfill his dream to unite Sweden into one kingdom. 

‘Arn’ has a run time of 113 minutes, a 15 certificate and a recommended retail price of £ 12.99.

Company K

 

‘Company K’, a gripping and emotion-charged story of a unit of American marines in World War 1, is being released on retail DVD by Scanbox Entertainment on July 26. 

It is based on the classic novel by William March and his own personal WW1 experiences in the trenches of Frances. March’s book has long been considered one of the greatest war novels by an American author. 

The cast is headed by Ari Fliakos, Steve Cuiffo and Joe Delafield and the film is a stark reminder of the carnage and horrors of war in the First World War trenches.

Sergeant Joseph Delaney (Ari Fliakos) signs on for service with the US Marine Corps and the unit is shipped off to the front line at Verdun, France. On arrival the unit immediately comes under attack firstly from a German biplane bomber and then from the dreaded mustard gas which is thrown at the Americans as they enter the trenches. 

Delaney is ordered to stay on his feet and move forward but when the fighting subsides he’s taken off to spend time at a hospital behind the lines for treatment to his injuries. 

Meanwhile, back in the trenches a new lieutenant arrives who soon senses the men have no respect for him. Brashly he orders one of his sergeants to take some soldiers, advance to a clump of trees and set-up a machine gun nest, despite being warned against it. 

The Germans see the men crawling across No Man’s Land and open fire, realising that the Marines have no chance of retreating back to their own lines. 

The incident subsequently turns many of the men in Company K against their officers and for them the war becomes more and more of a test of sanity and survival which comes to a head when Delaney’s best friend Private Edward Carter (Steve Cuiffo) murders an officer.

When the war ends Delaney has his own burden of guilt to bear -  a German soldier he killed in a forest when he knows he could have taken him prisoner instead. 

Delaney, Carter and their friend Private Emile Ayres (Joe Delafield) must now learn to live the quiet life as civilians but they find its not as easy as they thought it would be to leave the memories of the war behind. 

“I have watched the reactions of many men to pain, hunger and death but all I have learned is that no two men react alike and that no one man comes through the experience unchanged”

                                                                              

‘Company K’ has a run time of 103 minutes, a 12 certificate and a recommended retail price of £12.99

Bonus Features :

• Three trailers
• Five deleted scenes
• William March Documentary
• Audio Commentary with Director Robert Clem
• Dolby Digital 5.1 Audio

Adventures Of A Teenage Dragon Slayer

‘Adventures Of A Teenage Dragon Slayer’ is 90 minutes of action-packed fun for kids of all ages which will be great summer entertainment for them when it is released by High Fliers on retail DVD on August 9. 

It stars Wendie Malick, Lea Thompson, Eric Lutes and Hunter Allan and with the current popularity of dragon movies is set to become one of this summer’s ‘must have’ kids DVDs! 

Branded as a ‘nerd’ and harassed by the school bully, 12-year-old Arthur spends his time playing fantasy games in the underground sewers. 

One day he finds himself rescued from his dismal existence by a magical troll who knows that the boy unwittingly holds the secret to defeat an evil dragon. 

Arthur’s loving mum, struggling to keep her devious ex-husband from gaining custody of Arthur, dismisses her son’s ‘fantasies’ until she realizes the all-too-real immediate danger. 

She joins forces with Arthur, the troll and a dashing but washed –up video game master and together they plot how they hope to conquer the dragon and the wicked vice-principal who between them threaten civilization! 

‘Adventures Of A Dragon Slayer’ has a run time of 90 minutes, a PG certificate and a recommended retail price of £ 12.99

Lebanon

“gripping, visceral, remarkable, extraordinary …”

                                                         London Metro 

“on a par with Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘The Hurt Locker’”

                                                           The Independent 

“powerful, immaculately acted”

                                                     The Observer 

“impressive autobiographical debut from director Samuel Maoz”

                                                     Daily Express                      
 

In June 1982, a 20-year-old Israeli tank gunner called Samuel Maoz killed a man for the first time in his life. It was the start of the first Lebanon War and what was to follow left the young man deeply scarred emotionally long after the war had ended.
Twenty five years later the same Samuel Maoz wrote and then went on to direct ‘Lebanon’, a film based on his horrific experiences inside that tank in 1982.
The result is a compelling and highly personal movie that was acclaimed by the critics when it was released theatrically earlier this year, has won a clutch of awards including the Golden Lion at the 2009 Venice Film Festival and which is to be released on DVD by Metrodome on August 23.

In ‘Lebanon’ the movie, Shmuel is the tank’s gunner, Assi the commander, Herzl the loader and Yigal the driver … four boys aged 20 plus who operate a huge and ferocious killing machine. 
They are dispatched to search a hostile town that has already been bombed by the Israeli Air Force but what seems on the face of it to be a simple and straightforward mission gets gradually out of control, eventually becoming a hellish nightmare as their tank becomes a potential death trap.
These boys are not fighters eager for battle, conquest or self-sacrifice. They’re brave kids losing their innocence in the most brutal way possible while being mentally destroyed. 
A raw basic instinct will push them to the limits as they struggle hard to survive in a situation they cannot contain anymore while at the same time desperately trying not to lose their humanity amid the chaos of war. 
‘Lebanon’ is an intense, explosive, exhilarating and ultimately redemptive film about survival against the most overwhelming odds in which the conflict between their basic instincts to stay alive and their human conscience inevitably claims its victims. 

‘Lebanon’ is out on DVD on 23 August and has a running time of approx 90 minutes, a TBC certificate and an RRP of £15.99

SALES

BONUS FEATURES 

• Commentary from director Samuel Maoz upon whose real life experiences the film is based
• History of the first Lebanon War (text document)
• ‘LEBANON’: the background story to the film (text document)

TV Masterclasss Soap Sessions for the Public

The 35^th annual Media Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival announces two ground-breaking sessions that will give the public the opportunity to engage in a British soap Masterclass for the first time, at Udderbelly.

Based on the MGEITF sessions, The Wonderful Wizards of Weatherfield - 50 Years of Coronation Street: A Masterclass andEastEnders at 25: A Masterclass, they will offer the general public the chance to get under the skin of two of Britain’s biggest television shows.

Attended by key show talent including Katherine Kelly (Becky Macdonald) from Coronation Street, and Charlie Clements (Bradley Branning) and Scott Maslen (Jack Branning) from EastEnders, each interactive Underbelly session will allow the public to get behind the sensational plotlines and heart-pounding cliff-angers that have captured the imaginations of British homes for decades.

From Weatherfield to Walford, the famous faces will be joined by the Producers and Controllers who are responsible for bringing these much-loved institutions of British broadcasting to life, week in, week out.

The unmissable workshops will take place at Udderbelly in the heart of The Edinburgh Festival and are a must for soap fans as MGEITF pays tribute to two of Britain’s best-loved TV programmes.

Tickets are available now at www.underbelly.com

The Wonderful Wizards of Weatherfield - 50 Years of Coronation Street:  A Masterclass

It began with 3 women - all with different temperaments, values, backgrounds and social standing and it instantly captured the hearts of the nation.  Fifty years on, and the audience are still captivated by these ordinary people leading ordinary lives.  Other soaps have evolved but the DNA of Coronation Street remains the same: strong characters, family ties, brilliant writing and a huge injection of humour.  Join actress Katherine Kelly (Becky MacDonald), the critic Gareth MacLean and producer Kieran Roberts to discuss the highs and lows of the wonderful world of Weatherfield.

Friday 27^th August (11am – 12pm) Udderbelly Edinburgh

Tickets - £10, £7.50 concessions

The Eastenders at 25: A Masterclass

Join soap stars Charlie Clements (Bradley Branning), Scot Maslen (Jack Branning) and BBC Controller of Drama Production, John Yorke, in an Eastenders master class. Featuring incredible unseen footage, discover the secrets of writing, producing and directing behind one of the most successful soap operas in the world. Learn how this year the production pushed the boundaries even further, producing its first live episode. You’ll be part of in-depth analysis of the story telling craft – cue drums.

Saturday 28^th August (11am – 12pm), Udderbelly Edinburgh

Tickets - £10, £7.50 concessions