The Spy Who Came on DVD

I'm writing this column from G-Fest, the annual Godzilla fan's North American convention, which should not be confused with B-fest, the annual 24-hour B-movie marathon, but it's almost as much fun. Every summer for the past 11 years, Godzilla fans from all over the world have gathered to celebrate the King of the Monsters, and their numbers keep growing every year. This year's con is especially exciting Godzilla is 50, the first Godzilla film is enjoying a successful theatrical run in its original form, and Toho Studios are planning a special feature (GODZILLA: FINAL WARS) to be released in Japan (and maybe America) this December. However, to date about a dozen films in the Godzilla series have yet to appear on DVD in the USA, and many that have appeared are only available in poor editions. Let us join hands, concentrate, and pray to Mothra that this situation will improve quickly.

Our spotlight travels from last week's focus on film noir to international espionage:

(O) THE ASSASSINATION BUREAU (Paramount) 1969 UK thriller in which Oliver Reed accepts a challenge to become the target of his own stable of contract [IMG2R]killers.
(O) THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (MGM) Classic 1962 thriller starring Frank Sinatra about brainwashed Commie sleeper agents programmed as assassins. Includes commentrak with director John Frankenheimer, interviews and more.
(O) THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD (Paramount) Intense spy drama from John Le Carre's best seller in which spy Richard Burton refuses to take a desk job until he tracks down a ruthless Commie agent.

(O) AGENT CODY BANKS 2: Destination London (MGM) Frankie Muniz is back as a junior superspy. Hey, maybe he can team up with the Spy Kids before they're all college graduates. Includes video commentrak, featurettes, deleted scenes, and quiz.
(O) BEYOND THE STARS (Brentwood) Set of four space adventures from the 1960s: ASSIGNMENT OUTER SPACE, Gamera in DESTROY ALL PLANETS, the goofy TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE and PHANTOM PLANET. Plus the first four chapters of the serial FLASH GORDON.
(O) BLUE DEMON VS. THE DIABOLICAL WOMEN (Rise Above/VAS)
(O) BLUE DEMON VS. THE WOMEN INVADERS (Rise Above/VAS) El Santo's friendly wrestling & crimefighting rival takes on a bunch of crazy chicks!
(O) THE BOURNE IDENTITY (Universal) Extended edition of the hit action thriller in which amnesiac Matt Damon slowly learns that he's a secret agent marked for death, now with extra footage, an alternative ending, interviews, featurettes, deleted scenes, music video, a coupon to see THE BOURNE SUPREMACY in theaters and more.
(O) BOX 507 (TLA) Hitchcockian Spanish suspense in which a bank manager locked in his vault during a robbery stumbles upon evidence of a conspiracy.
(O) DEMON SUMMER (Tempe) Small town teens uncover the terrible secret behind an old unsolved murder. Includes director/actors commentrak, outtakes, and featurettes.
(O) DEMON UNDER GLASS (Brentwood) A powerful serial killer is actually the result of a secret government experiment.
(O) EVILSPEAK (Anchor Bay) Silly [IMG3L]1981 horror about a nerdy military cadet who learns to summon black magic via computer. Remembered by many for the creepy performance of Clint Howard in the lead. Includes commentrak.
(O) FARSCAPE Season 4 Collection 5 (ADV) Episodes 419-421 of the Saturn-winning series.
(O) THE 5^TH MUSKETEER (Columbia TriStar) Star-studded 1978 Euroversion of MAN IN THE IRON MASK produced to cash in on Richard Lester's hit Musketeer movies.
(O) GUN CRAZY: A Woman from Nowhere (ADV) Ryoko Yunekura stars as a gunslinging woman out to get Japan's most vicious crime boss. Includes interview.
(O) HELL HIGH (Media Blasters) A troubled teacher snaps when hostile teens invade her home.
(O) HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS Season 4 (Anchor Bay) Includes commentraks with star Kevin Sorbo, plus CD-ROM with screensavers.
(O) IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (Republic) This is labeled the "original uncut version", so one wonders just what we haven't seen.
(O) JOHN WAYNE: LEGEND OF A COWBOY (Brentwood) 20 of Wayne's 1930s oaters on 5 discs: DESERT TRAIL, LUCKY TEXAN, RIDERS OF DESTINY, HURRICANE EXPRESS, PARADISE CANYON, THE MAN FROM UTAH, BLUE STEEL, WINDS OF THE WASTELAND, THE TRAIL BEYOND, RAINBOW VALLEY, HELL TOWN, SAGEBRUSH TRAIL, HIS PRIVATE SECRETARY, TEXAS TERROR, WEST OF THE DIVIDE, STAR PACKER, DAWN RIDER, 'NEATH ARIZONA SKIES, RANDY RIDES ALONE, and LAWLESS FRONTIER.
(O) LONE WOLF & CUB 6: White Heaven in Hell (AnimEigo) Itto Ogami and his toddler son are surrounded by an army of enemies in this classic samurai film based on the hit manga series.
(O) LOVE OBJECT (Lions Gate) Evil sex doll thriller. Includes commentrak, interviews, behind-the-scenes and storyboard.
(O) MEGALODON (Monarch) About time that folks on oil rigs quit fooling around with ghosts, killer sharks and squids and got down to the business of defending themselves from an awakened 60-foot prehistoric monster. Stars Robin Sachs and Leighanne Litrell, with hubby Backstreet Boy Brian tagging along to make a cameo, and hopefully get eaten.
(O) NEVER DIE ALONE (Fox) Rapper DMX is such a bad actor in this crime drama that David Arquette is brought in to make him look good. Includes director commentrak, deleted scenes and Making-Of.
(O) THE NICK & JESSICA VARIETY HOUR (Image) Scientific experiment that attempts to determine just where a camp novelty becomes a train wreck.
(O) 150 SERIAL EPISODES CLASSICS (Treeline) A dozen great serials in one bargain megapack: NEW ADVENTURES OF TARZAN, DICK TRACY, ACE DRUMMOND, ZORRO'S FIGHTING LEGION, UNDERSEA KINGDOM, Bela Lugosi in THE PHANTOM CREEPS, THE LOST CITY, S.O.S. COAST GUARD, and John Wayne in HURRICANE EXPRESS, SHADOW OF THE EAGLE and THREE MUSKETEERS.
(O) PUPPETS WHO KILL (MVD) 13-episode first season of the Canadian cable TV comedy about puppets in a halfway house. Two-disc set includes commentrak, featurette and outtakes.
(O) RED SIREN (Artisan/Lions Gate) French thriller with Asia Argento in which a contract killer transports a little girl across Europe with a gang of assassins on their trail.
(O) REVENGERS TRAGEDY (Fantoma) Thomas Middleton's 17^th century play about revenge for a bride's wedding day murder, updated to a post-apocalyptic setting by director Alex Cox. Includes director commentrak, diary, Making-Of, and more.
(O) ROADKILL (MVD) Early arthouse hit from director Bruce McDonald about a girl's adventures on the road in Canada who befriends a serial killer wannabe. Musical guests include the Ramones and Cowboy Junkies.
(O) SCARED STIFF (Brentwood) Five-disc, 10-movie set includes MALIBU BEACH VAMPIRES, COLLINSVILLE, BLOOD REVENGE, DEMONSOUL, BLOODBATH, EVIL SISTER, THE SCREAMING, HELLSPAWN, NIGHT CRAWLER, and STIGMA.
(O) SLASHER (New Video) Nope, [IMG4R]not a horror movie. Those who've been asking me "what's John Landis been up to lately?" can find one answer in this comedic documentary about an eccentric used car salesman who can sell lemons other dealers won't touch. Includes director commentrak, Making-Of, deleted scenes and more.
(O) STATE OF SHOCK (Brentwood) Two-disc set includes KNIGHT CHILLS, TIL DEATH DO US PART, NIGHT TRAIN TO TERROR and SILO KILLER.
2LDK (TLA) Japanese black comedy in which two actress roommates battle to the death when they're up for the same role. Includes Making-Of and press conference.
(O) TIEMPO REAL (Maverick) Spanish heist thriller gained fame for being shot in one take with a "hidden" camera, all in - real time.
(O) TOXIE'S TRIPLE TERROR: Volumes 1 & 2 (Brentwood/Troma) That's right Troma nuttiness on loan to Brentwood! Volume 1 features DEADLY DAPHNE'S REVENGE, CURSE OF THE CANNIBAL CONFEDERATES and DEMENTED DEATH FARM MASSACRE, while Volume 2 serves up EVIL CLUTCH, CHILLERS and BEYOND EVIL.
(O) UZUMAKI (Elite) The people of a small mountain town become obsessed with a certain pattern, which leads to otherworldly madness. Very creepy Japanese horror (aka SPIRAL) from the director of RINGU. Delayed from last week but definitely worth another mention.
(O) VINTAGE MOVIE CLASSICS: Phantom Menacers (Vintage) Last month Retromedia gave us a set of phantoms from the 1940s. Here are three from the '50s: PHANTOM FROM SPACE, PHANTOM FROM 10,000 LEAGUES and PHANTOM PLANET.
(O) VINTAGE MOVIE CLASSICS: Psychotic Connections (Vintage) The cryo-thriller CHILLER, Dwain Esper's MANIAC and the birth of literary horror is dramatized in GOTHIC.
(O) VINTAGE MOVIE CLASSICS: Strike of the Black Cobra (Vintage) A trio of BLACK COBRA movies starring Fred "The Hammer" Williamson.
(O) THE WORST MOVIES EVER MADE (Passport) Oh, yeah? Wanna fight about it?!
(O) ZATOICHI MEETS THE ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN (AnimEigo) The [IMG5R]blind swordsman meets another movie hero with a "disability" in this 1971 adventure starring Shintaro Katsu and Jimmy Wang Yu.

And finally, we close off each weekly list with a rundown of the constant stream of anime from around the world:

(O) BIRTH: A War of Two Worlds (ADV) SF action feature on a planet where a mysterious sword holds the key to defeating invaders.
(O) DRAGON BALL GT: Reaction (Funimation)
(O) DRAGON DRIVE Volume 2: Another Dimension (Bandai) Hit series from Madhouse Studios (NINJA SCROLL). Includes 3-D card.
(O) GATEKEEPERS Volume 4: A New Threat (Geneon) Episodes 10-12. Fighting weird menaces!
(O) HELLO KITTY & FRIENDS: Timeless Tales (ADV) Third of six Kitty releases.
(O) INITIAL D Battle 6: Asphalt Angels [IMG6L](Tokyopop)
(O) JUSTICE LEAGUE: Starcrossed the Movie (Warner Bros.) Hawkgirl is revealed as a spy for her home planet!
(O) KNIGHTS OF THE ZODIAC Volume 5: Pirates from the Island of Spirits (ADV) Seiya tries to save the Gold Helmet from capture.
(O) MEGAZONE 23 Volume 2 (ADV) Bikers vs. robots! Includes poster.
(O) ROBOTECH REMASTERED MACROSS COLLECTION Volume 4 (ADV) 12 episodes on two discs, plus collectible transforming mecha toy.
(O) SABER MARIONETTE R Volume 1 (Media Blasters) In a future kingdom in which androids have replaced the dwindling female population, a prince is defended from assassins by a trio of protective Marionettes.
(O) SAILOR MOON S TV: Heart Collection 6 (Geneon) Go Sailor Scouts!
(O) TENCHI MUYO! GXP Volume 4: New Illusions (Funimation)
(O) TENCHI MUYO! OVA Volume 4 (Geneon)
(O) TENCHI UNIVERSE Collection 4 (Geneon) More chaos for Tenchi and friends.
(O) TRIGUN 6: Project Seeds (Geneon) Episodes 17-19. Vash searches for answers.
(O) WEDDING PEACH Volume 4: Summer Flower (ADV) Love Angels battle ghosts and devils in five episodes.