On Dvd

Newcastle Herald

Friday June 13, 2008

BY JAMES JOYCE

DEEP WATER

Hopscotch, G, 93 mins, rent/buy, $39.95

THIS fascinating documentary recounts

the doomed 1968 voyage of Englishman

Donald Crowhurst, a competitor in the

first solo, non-stop, round-the-world

yacht race.

Crowhurst had staked everything on his

endeavour, for which he was hopelessly

unprepared.

So, he faked his journey.

This film uses archival footage and contemporary

interviews to delve into the

tragic true story of a man's journey into

folly and madness.

Extras: unpreviewed.

Rating: ****

ROGUE

Roadshow, M, 93mins, rent/buy, $39.95

THE writer-director of Wolf Creek, Greg

McLean, does Jaws with claws.

Radha Mitchell leads the cast as a Top

End tour guide taking tourists, including

cynical American Michael Vartan (from

TV's Alias), on a croc-spotting boat ride

through Kakadu.

When the boat is rammed by a supersized

croc the group is stranded on an

island in a backwater billabong.

You'll feel like you've seen this movie

before.

But when the violins hit the upper register,

McLean's teasing glimpses of his

realistic croc build solid tension.

Extras: making-of featurettes.

Rating: *** 1/2

SWEENEY TODD

Warner, MA, 111mins, rent/buy,

$39.95

JOHNNY Depp stars in this slasher

movie with show tunes.

For Tim Burton's version of the

Stephen Sondheim stage

musical Depp swaps his

Cap'n Jack sword for

a straight razor to play

a fiendish stylist of hair and slitter of

throats in ye olde London.

Helena Bonham Carter plays his partner

in crime, who fillets, grinds and bakes his

ex-customers into juicy meat pies.

We're used to lavish grotesqueries from

Burton and Depp (Edward

Scissorhands, Sleepy

Hollow) but this bloodand-

gore opera is a bore.

Extras: unpreviewed.

Rating: **

OWN YOUR OWN

SIGMUND AND THE SEA MONSTERS

Sony, G, 411mins, $29.95

NOT as well known as their H.R. Pufnstuf, this 1973 series by Sid and Marty Krofft follows the beachside

escapades of a shaggy green sea creature called Sigmund Ooze and his young human pals Johnny and Scott

Stuart (Johnny Whitaker and Scott Kolden).

This is cheesy fun and filled with bubblegum pop songs from the composers of many of The Monkees? hits.

The three-disc set contains all 29 episodes from the first season.

Extras: audio commentaries; interviews; video jukebox.

Ratings: **

RATINGS

***** Masterpiece

**** Excellent

*** Good

** Not bad

* Not good

BOMB Stand clear

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

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