‘The New Adventures of Old Christine’ Season One The first “Seinfeld” cast member to return to television with a major hit, Julia Louis-Dreyfus stars as a zany yet vulnerable single mom struggling to hold things together as she attempts to get back into the dating game. The premise stems from the fact that her former husband is seeing a younger woman of the same name and to avoid confusion is called New Christine, while the divorcee’s confidence is tested as she is given the unfortunate nickname of Old Christine. Dreyfus won an Emmy for her role here. Thirteen episodes on two discs also include unaired scenes, a gag reel, and interviews with the cast as well as the series creator, Kari Lizer. (Warner Bros) ‘When Harry Met Sally’ Collector’s Edition This classic romantic comedy directed by Rob Reiner featuring Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan, stylishly and intelligently lays out the truths involving the issue of sex in friendships between men and women. Feature-length audio commentary by Reiner, Crystal, and writer Nora Ephron are included. Additional bonus features include: What Harry Meeting Sally Meant, I Love New York, Stories of Love, It All Started Like This, When Rob Met Billy, Creating Harry and So, Can Men and Women Really Be Friends? (MGM) ‘Groundhog Day’ 15th Anniversary Edition Bill Murray is at his wry, wisecracking best in this imaginative romantic comedy. He stars as a television weatherman trapped in a personal time warp on the worst day of his life stuck in a small Pennsylvania town covering the annual Groundhog Day festivities. Co-starring Chris Elliott and Andi MacDowell, special features include: “The Weight of Time” documentary, “The Study of Groundhogs: A Real Life Look at Marmots”, deleted scenes, and an interview with director Harold Ramis. (Sony) ‘Rockford Files’ Season Five One of the most beloved detective shows in television history offers its 22 episode fifth season (1978-79) on a five-disc set. This year ex-con-turned private detective Jim Rockford (James Garner in an Emmy-winning role) is joined by guest stars Tom Selleck, Harold Gould, and Rita Moreno among others in a variety of stories such as protecting a former fiancee from a paid assassin, stumbling onto an underground organ transplant ring, and finding himself in the middle of a gun-running operation. A young writer on the show, David Chase, would go on to create “The Sopranos.” (Universal) ‘Summer of 1957’
Baseball fans prepare to be transported back in time with over three hours of rare interviews, highlights, and never-before-seen footage of one of the major leagues’ greatest seasons. A digital gem, it features some of the sport’s best players in action. “Summer of 1957” captures the talents of such Hall-of-Famers as Hank Aaron, Ted Williams, and Mickey Mantle. Preserved on DVD for the first time, this smorgasbord of baseball nostalgia begins from spring training all the way to the World Series and covers old stadiums, the all-star game, off-the-field activities of the game’s top stars, even the old hand-operated scoreboards. Material on all 16 teams of the era are lovingly restored and presented in Dolby digital. (Rare Sports Films) ‘American Gangster’ Complete First Season Ving Rhames (”Pulp Fiction”) narrates six true stories about infamous African- American criminals. Two discs comprise the initial and controversial episodes that aired on Black Entertainment Television. The true-crime genre is slickly produced here. Spectacular rises and disastrous falls are evenly chronicled in riveting fashion of such notorious felons as Leroy “Nicky” Barnes, a Harlem drug kingpin for over three decades and Stanley “Tookie” Williams who goes from a Los Angeles gang leader to Nobel Peace Prize nominee. (Paramount) RANDY WILLIAMS
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 25, 2008. Read the original PDF.