The Sword in the Stone<\/a>‘. Unless you’re a huge fan, you’ll probably want to skip this one.<\/p>\nWasn’t the theatrical cut of ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey<\/strong>‘ already long enough? True to form, too much is never enough for director Peter Jackson. So, here comes the inevitable Extended Edition<\/em> in multiple 2D and 3D options, now with extra bird poop and bunny sleds.<\/p>\nWith his blockbuster ‘The Birth of a Nation’, D.W. Griffith invented much of what would become standard film language. However, the exceedingly racist nature of the movie’s story drew enormous criticism and controversy, even in its day. To his credit, the director took this to heart when making his follow-up, the silent epic ‘Intolerance<\/strong>‘, which interweaves four stories from separate historical eras, all on the theme of man’s inhumanity to man. Although a commercial failure in its day, the film would earn a reputation as one of the greatest masterpieces of the silent era. At least four alternate versions of the movie are known to exist. The Blu-ray from Cohen Media Group is based on a recent restoration and clocks in at 197 minutes.<\/p>\nMore classics arrive with William Wyler’s Oscar-sweeping post-war drama ‘The Best Years of Our Lives<\/strong>‘, Joanne Woodward’s Oscar-winning turn as a woman suffering from Multiple Personality Disorder in ‘The Three Faces of Eve<\/strong>‘, and Cary Grant’s beloved romance ‘The Bishop’s Wife<\/strong>‘.<\/p>\nLet’s wrap this section up with a pair of Westerns. ‘My Name Is Nobody<\/strong>‘ is a proper feature film from Italian master Sergio Leone. ‘The Gambler<\/strong>‘, on the other hand, is a TV movie in which Kenny Rogers demonstrates the finer points of knowing when to hold ’em vs. knowing when to fold ’em. <\/p>\n[Note: A pair of Cinerama travelogues restored in Smilebox format were announced for release this week, but appear to have been pulled from most retailer listings. However, they still appear to be available for order direct from the Flicker Alley web site<\/a>.]<\/em><\/p>\nTelevision<\/h5>\n
Even the TV schedule is jam-packed with new box sets this week. These would include the first season of the dopey ‘Under the Dome<\/strong>‘, the sixth season of ‘Mad Men<\/strong>‘, the second season of ‘Magic City<\/strong>‘, a complete collection of ‘