Video

Fiction

These eight superb BBC productions—Pride and Prejudice, Victoria and Albert, Emma, Jane Eyre, Lorna Doone, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Tom Jones, and Ivanhoe—faithfully adapt the classic novels, with close attention to the original story, and are beautifully acted by exceptionally well-cast ensembles. Panoramic scenes of the choppy English Channel, the English countryside, 17th-century London, and dark and forbidding Scottish moors are captured gloriously and often heighten the drama. Things to note, however, when considering purchase: true to the original sources, the blood, gore, and sexual encounters portrayed could be frightening or objectionable for children; if a person is old enough to read the book, he or she can see the DVD. Too many scenes are ultradark, filmed through a scrim—far from being artistic, they merely confuse. The productions run from three to more than seven hours, so overnight borrowing periods won't fly. Libraries might do well to circulate the stories individually. But all in all, a splendid value for the price; highly recommended for public libraries and academic literature collections.—Sheila S. Intner, Emerita, Simmons GSLIS at Mt. Holyoke Coll., South Hadley, MA

This enormously entertaining documentary tells the bittersweet story of Wetlands Preserve, an ecofriendly New York City nightclub and activism center opened by naïve but ambitious music lovers Laura and Larry Bloch in 1989 and home to eclectic live music ranging from jam bands to hip-hop to punk rock. Despite their inexperience, the Blochs successfully steered Wetlands through a litany of roadblocks in the 1990s before selling out to the equally naïve and earnest Peter Shapiro, who maintained the club's hippy spirit for several years until eventually giving in to gentrification efforts. This well-told tale of the doomed struggle to keep a unique and beloved nightclub afloat is also a celebration of the talented musicians who made Wetlands special, among them Dave Matthews, Branford Marsalis, Phish, and Blues Traveler. The Blochs are interviewed extensively, but it is the musicians' input that makes this documentary so insightful. Generous extras include additional live footage, outtakes, and a list of Wetlands performers. Highly recommended.—Douglas King, Univ. of South Carolina Lib., Columbia

In 1977, Gary Wilson self-released You Think You Really Know Me, a unique rock record that decades later would become a much sought-after collectible. It's a work of heart-on-my-sleeve lyrical honesty mixed with funky groove, Farfisa keys, twisted baby-faced soul, synth pop, and splashes of avant-garde freak-out jams. This documentary presents Wilson's lost journey from his Endicott, NY, beginnings to his relocation to San Diego, where he lived in anonymity until, in an effort to rerelease his work, he was tracked down by now-defunct Motel Records. Former Blind Date band mates, friends, and Motel Records employees herald Wilson as ahead of his time both musically and in his mixing method—on a four-track Teac reel-to-reel in his father's basement. Their enthusiasm led to a reunion performance and speculation as to whether Wilson would finally make good on his musical potential. Unfortunately, the surreal patchwork of home movie footage shot by Wilson's friends is more intriguing than this less-than-extraordinary biographical profile. Still, the music alone makes this recommended for comprehensive pop culture collections.—Eric Pasteur, Naperville P.L., IL

Freeman (theater, TV, & film, San Diego State Univ.) has crafted an excellent video that explores performance poetry, poetry slams, poet/performer, and the impetus to write poetry. Eight poets are shown performing their works at slams, with some of the poems further enhanced with creative videos. Freeman explores their motivation to write and perform and the life experiences that inspire or sometimes make their way into the works. This inexpensive, high-quality video will provide support for high school, college, and community performing arts or creative writing efforts. Chapter format allows direct access to individual poets. The parallels between rap music and performance poetry could be used to interest young adults in creative writing or stage performance. Some adult language is included and some adult situations described. Highly recommended for general library collections and specialized collections in literature, poetry, and the performing arts.—Cliff Glaviano, Bowling Green State Univ. Libs., OH

Nimrod Nation documents life in Watersmeet, MI, a small town in the Upper Peninsula in which residents are drawn to family life, hunting and fishing, and the titular local high school basketball team, which has high expectations for the upcoming season. Central to the story is the Peterson family: George III coaches the Nimrods in addition to his duties as Watersmeet Township school principal, athletic director, and Gogebic County commissioner; his son George IV is a forward on the team. The program includes other families as well as a group of elderly men who discuss basketball in the local coffee shop. Suddenly, the team becomes secondary as the audience is exposed to life in rural America. This eight-episode series, which originally aired on the Sundance Channel, is recommended for public and academic libraries. Bonus features include deleted scenes.—Michael LaMagna, Cabrini Coll. Lib., Radnor, PA

Roses bloom in December, wrote Jean Donovan to her family, rhapsodizing about the incredible beauty of El Salvador, where, as a lay missionary, she arrived in 1979 to teach nutrition and child care. On December 2, 1980, Jean and three nuns with whom she worked were raped, murdered, and buried in shallow graves. Their killers were not identified. The official position that the women were helping the revolutionaries and killed by low-level militia went unchallenged by the U.S. government, which had trained, armed, and funded El Salvador's repressive government during the 1970s and 1980s. This 1982 program opens as rescuers unearth the bodies and continues with interviews with Jean's parents, her fiancé, priests, and friends. Her brother, however, is angry that there has been no serious investigation despite the headline news. While neither unbiased nor thorough, Roses still offers a perspective on a horrific incident that has mostly faded from collective memory. Recommended as a responsible, although nonessential, purchase for academic libraries. Extras include an essay from Human Rights Watch and a gallery.—Diane Kazlauskas, Univ. of North Florida, Jacksonville

As this brisk combination of documentary and journalism shows, professional critics are fans, too, just like their readers. The writers and broadcasters interviewed here, including Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic Stephen Hunter, book critic Maureen Corrigan, and the late movie reviewer Joel Siegel, discuss their individual methods and approaches, taking their respective abilities to disseminate their thoughts and opinions on the cultural artifacts of the day seriously. They view criticism at its best as a vital art form that is endangered by an increasing emphasis in the media on frivolity over skillful analysis. Kudos to DeWerth-Pallmeyer for this informative, enjoyable, and accessible look at a fascinating but often thankless job. Recommended for collections on performing arts, journalism, and cultural or communication studies. Some profane language, but the content is suitable for its intended mature audience.—J. Osicki, Saint John Free P.L., NB

Independents is perfectly suited to today's library. The questions about what is creative and where ideas are born converge with the timely topics of graphic novels, comics, fan fiction, and self-publishing that are pushing the boundaries of what libraries traditionally collect and what young adults are reading. Interviews with new artists and writers are cut around shots of comic cons and shops, while the profound ideas are explained by a psychologist who looks part anime, part manga. This reviewer's one quibble is the film's aspect ratio, made for letterbox, which doesn't allow everything to display on her old-fashioned tube TV. Interesting and entertaining, Independents should be required viewing for all public library staff.—Ellen Druda, Half Hollow Hills Community Lib., Dix Hills, NY

'Til Death Do Us Part introduces us to women who are serving life sentences in a California prison for killing their abusive partners. Forty of them talk about their lives, their relationships, and how prison has affected their families. Through these painful accounts, interspersed with disturbing evidentiary photos, the history of the violence and the feelings of hopelessness that preceded these murders are revealed. The women also discuss self-defense statutes, failures of the judicial system, and the hope for parole through a new set of laws that would allow battered women's syndrome to be considered in their defense. These stories create a vivid picture of how an abuser controls through isolation, anger, blame, and violence. Bonus features include director's notes, updates on the profiled women, and two short films, Cops to Courts and Bybee. Highly recommended for all libraries.—Beth Traylor, Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libs.

Fantastic images of laughing and smiling children on their educational journey fill this film about California's Journey School, a K-8 public charter school based on the Waldorf method devised by Austrian Rudolf Steiner. The 100-year-old theory stresses imagination, spontaneity, the arts, and the integration of education with the natural world. Parents, students, and teachers speak to the school's success in preparing students for life beyond eighth grade. Faculty also address the process of aligning Steiner's stratagems with state standards. For example, we see a math class open with movement exercises. It would have been enlightening to see the alignment in other subjects as well. Parents would have benefited most from learning how these mothers and fathers seized power to enhance their children's education, i.e., how did they create Journey School? Those unfamiliar with the Waldorf method will be informed and excited by this film.—Ernest Jaeger, formerly with North Plainfield Schs., NJ

Bachelor Farmer examines the lives of gay men and a lesbian living in the small town of Kendrick, ID (population 369). Their personal stories vary widely, yet all depict people with a fierce determination to live their lives in an environment that at first might seem impossibly hostile. While these individuals have encountered instances of intolerance, the community's overwhelming acceptance is inspiring. Granted, this acceptance often means walking a fine line between living open, honest lives and necessary compromises such as eschewing public displays of physical affection that city living might offer. The film presents candid interviews with community members who struggle to balance their moral beliefs about homosexuality with the reality of the people they've come to know—and the sadness and sense of betrayal that often result. Yet what makes this film so moving is its ultimate affirmation that when given time and opportunity, people often have a greater capacity for tolerance than might be assumed.—David Gordinier, Coll. at Brockport Lib., NY

Viewers will need a strong stomach to endure the horrors depicted here, which include historical footage of the World War II Japanese invasion of Nanking and extremely graphic Japanese human medical experiments, Japanese army tortures and atrocities, and other footage, although alleviated somewhat by footage of the Ainu (aborigines of northern Japan) and the cartoon "Loose Lips Sink Ships." The older footage is grainy and faded, but otherwise the production values are solid. The narration, in or subtitled in English (Rape of Nanking is also in Mandarin), is perhaps a bit too matter of fact, however. This important document is difficult to recommend owing to its graphic depictions. For inclusive collections on human rights and their violations.—Kitty Chen Dean, formerly with Nassau Coll., Garden City, NY

Jumping between interviews with people who live in suburbia and the unfinished landscapes of new suburban neighborhoods, this satire focuses on the problems with new suburbia, including the lack of a neighborhood feel, private space vs. public space, and the separation of housing from shops, employment, and schools no longer within walking distance. There are also interviews with urban designers, academics, and authors on defining the concept of community and its loss as well as the creation of an image of a neighborhood and the essential pieces of the suburban 1950s neighborhood that are missing from designs now. This exaggerated look at life in the suburbs is recommended for public and university libraries as a supplement to more comprehensive programs on urban design.—Beth Traylor, Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libs.

While the package describes this program as "the must-have educational tool for today's culinary student," it is very useful and practical for the average home baker. Two discs cover 16 topics, from mise-en-place (setting up your baking area) to dessert sauces and plating. Not only does the audience get to see the techniques involved in processing the flour, yeast, and other ingredients, but the instructor explains the science behind the different methods and how they affect the end result. The instructor's presentation is always straightforward and informative. Recommended for public libraries and cooking classes.—Lori Lampert, Coll. at Brockport Lib., NY

While sustainability seems to be an urgent priority, it also appears adventurous in this 13-episode cable series that features a good balance of expert talking heads and engaging stories of positive action on topics such as fuels, building, city living, clothes, food, vehicles, furniture, art, sports, and work. Each episode cuts between scenes in different U.S. locales. The furniture segment tours the new Herman Miller factory, visits the two-person MIO Culturelab, and makes an alley run for waste hardwood with another ecological duo called Scrapile. In the most audacious project, an architect reuses a pair of jumbo jet wings as a roof. All in all, a wide-ranging view of some earth-friendly living in America. Note, there are sponsors and product placement, which is probably what makes this lengthy program so affordable. Highly recommended for public libraries.—David R. Conn, Surrey P.L., BC