The Art of Buster Keaton (The General / Sherlock, Jr. / Our Hospitality / The Navigator / Steamboat Bill Jr. / College / Three Ages / Battling Butler / Go West / The Saphead / Seven Chances / 21 Short Films)

• ART OF BUSTER KEATON, THE BOX SET (DVD MOVIE)

HIGH ART - DVD MovieSyd (Radha Mitchell) is an editor at a painfully pretentious art magazine; by chance, she becomes acquainted with lesbian photographer Lucy (Ally Sheedy) and her weirdo German girlfriend (Patricia Clarkson, in a strange Dietrich-like role). Syd becomes captivated with Lucy and her work and, smelling a career move, offers to feature her in the next issue of the magazine. The two become attracted, but their relationship is fraught with perils--Syd loses her rather square boyfriend, Lucy's girlfriend takes a hike, the avaricious management at the magazine pressures Syd, and, most importantly, the pair begins to travel down the road of heroin addiction. Besides the lesbian theme, High Art addresses such subtexts as what an artist will (or won't) be willing to do for recognition, and what price that recognition carries. ! High Art is a remarkably honest work, painful at times but understated and thoughtful. It does an excellent job of portraying the heroin-induced torpor of Lucy and her bohemian friends as they lie around and become consumed with the stuff. It's a cautionary tale, a sincere love story, a reflection on the nature of art, and a "lesbian film" for which the lesbianism is integral but not part of an overriding agenda. Sheedy is excellent, as is Mitchell in a very expressive role. It's far from being a feel-good movie, but High Art undeniably has some power behind it that will stick with you past the closing credits. --Jerry RenshawSyd (Radha Mitchell) is an editor at a painfully pretentious art magazine; by chance, she becomes acquainted with lesbian photographer Lucy (Ally Sheedy) and her weirdo German girlfriend (Patricia Clarkson, in a strange Dietrich-like role). Syd becomes captivated with Lucy and her work and, smelling a career move, offers to ! feature her in the next issue of the magazine. The two become! attract ed, but their relationship is fraught with perils--Syd loses her rather square boyfriend, Lucy's girlfriend takes a hike, the avaricious management at the magazine pressures Syd, and, most importantly, the pair begins to travel down the road of heroin addiction. Besides the lesbian theme, High Art addresses such subtexts as what an artist will (or won't) be willing to do for recognition, and what price that recognition carries. High Art is a remarkably honest work, painful at times but understated and thoughtful. It does an excellent job of portraying the heroin-induced torpor of Lucy and her bohemian friends as they lie around and become consumed with the stuff. It's a cautionary tale, a sincere love story, a reflection on the nature of art, and a "lesbian film" for which the lesbianism is integral but not part of an overriding agenda. Sheedy is excellent, as is Mitchell in a very expressive role. It's far from being a feel-good movie, but High Art undeniably has some power behind it that will stick with you past the closing credits. --Jerry RenshawSyd (Radha Mitchell) is an editor at a painfully pretentious art magazine; by chance, she becomes acquainted with lesbian photographer Lucy (Ally Sheedy) and her weirdo German girlfriend (Patricia Clarkson, in a strange Dietrich-like role). Syd becomes captivated with Lucy and her work and, smelling a career move, offers to feature her in the next issue of the magazine. The two become attracted, but their relationship is fraught with perils--Syd loses her rather square boyfriend, Lucy's girlfriend takes a hike, the avaricious management at the magazine pressures Syd, and, most importantly, the pair begins to travel down the road of heroin addiction. Besides the lesbian theme, High Art addresses such subtexts as what an artist will (or won't) be willing to do for recognition, and what price that recognition carries. High Art is a remarkably hones! t work, painful at times but understated and thoughtful. It d! oes an e xcellent job of portraying the heroin-induced torpor of Lucy and her bohemian friends as they lie around and become consumed with the stuff. It's a cautionary tale, a sincere love story, a reflection on the nature of art, and a "lesbian film" for which the lesbianism is integral but not part of an overriding agenda. Sheedy is excellent, as is Mitchell in a very expressive role. It's far from being a feel-good movie, but High Art undeniably has some power behind it that will stick with you past the closing credits. --Jerry RenshawBETTER THAN CHOCOLATE - DVD MovieMany lesbian movies are long on charm and short on production values; Better Than Chocolate has a solid dose of both and steamy sex scenes to boot. Our heroine Maggie (Karyn Dwyer), a clerk at a lesbian bookstore, meets footloose butch Kim (Christina Cox) and, after Kim's van is towed away, they move in together. Unfortunately for their romantic bliss, Maggie's mother, Lila (Wendy Crewson), an! d teenage brother move in that very evening thanks to Lila's impending divorce. But what really complicates matters is that Maggie can't bring herself to come out to her mother; even when she tries, Lila steamrolls through the conversation, like she knows what's coming and doesn't want to hear it. Interwoven with this is the struggle of Judy (Peter Outerbridge), a male-to-female transsexual who's in love with the bookstore's owner, Frances (Ann-Marie MacDonald), who's freaking out because customs officers are holding a list of books at the border that they claim are obscene. The overlapping plots are deftly juggled, the personal and political are compellingly interwoven, and, most satisfying of all, the characters have problems that aren't going to be easily resolved. A handful of candy-colored lip-synching musical numbers give the movie some flash and the sex scenes give the movie some heat, but it's the elements of sorrow and ambiguity that really make the joy in Bett! er Than Chocolate something to savor. --Bret FetzerLike a jump-spinning roundhouse kick to the side of your head, VOLCANO HIGH will smash to pieces everything you thought an MTV movie could be. In a wild high school setting, the kick-ass martial arts action explodes as rival sports teams go at it kung-fu style. With mind-blowing special effects, a hip-hop soundtrack and an impressive cast of celebrity voices including André 3000, Lil' Jon, Snoop Dogg, Method Man and Mya, this film will keep your pulse racing. Brace yourself, Grasshopper.ART OF BUSTER KEATON COLLECTION - DVD MovieBuster Keaton was arguably the cinema's first modernist, an old-fashioned romantic with a 20th-century mind behind a deadpan visage. His films brim with some of the most breathtaking stunts and ingenious gags ever put on film, all perfectly engineered to look effortless. And, as Kino's magnificent 11-disc boxed set The Art of Buster Keaton conclusively shows, they are among the funniest ever made. Keaton warped gags until they left the plane of ! reality in such shorts as The Playhouse (1921) and The Frozen North (1922), and takes a logic-defying leap into the very nature of cinema itself in his hilarious Sherlock Jr. (1924). He takes on the mechanical world with Rube Golberg ingenuity in The Navigator (1924) and perfects his match between man and massive machine in Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928), which features the funniest hurricane scene ever put to film, and The General (1927), one of the greatest comedies of all time.

In addition to the previously released 11 features and 19 shorts from the peak of Keaton's career, this set boasts the exclusive Keaton Plus, a collection of rarities and tributes. The greatest find is the long-lost ending to Hard Luck (1921), now restored to complete the film's final inspired gag. Other highlights include newly discovered scenes from Daydreams (1922) and The Love Nest (1923), entertaining excerpts f! rom Keaton's 1951 TV show Life with Buster Keaton (he'! s still got it!), and his rare dramatic turn in the 1954 television play The Awakening. --Sean Axmaker