Susan Granger’s DVD Update for week of Friday, October 17:
Director Terrence Malick’s acclaimed, Oscar-nominated epic “The New World,” starring Colin Farrell, Christian Bale and Christopher Plummer, is now available in an extended version, adding 30 minutes of never-before-seen footage with more battles and more visual splendor as the Powhatan tribal people encounter the Jamestown settlement.
The seven-disc “The Ultimate Matrix Collection” debuts on Blu-ray Hi-Def with a bonus, “The Animatrix,” a nine-part anime film, for the first time in Hi-Def, and three additional discs with more than 35 hours of the Wachowski brothers’ Matrix experience.
From Argentina, in Spanish with English subtitles, “XXY” is an award-winning drama about sexuality, identity and coming of age, revolving around 15 year-old Alex (Ines Efron), who was born an intersex child with both male and female genitalia.
For sports fans, “The Greatest Stories of Michigan Football” includes defining moments with Heisman winners Charles Woodson and Desmond Howard, a look at NFL MVP Tom Brady and rare footage of Coach Bo Schembechler on the sidelines.
And there’s lots of fun for children with “Sing a Song of Wiggles,” “Care Bears Flurries of Fun,” “Strawberry Shortcake Holiday Dreams Collection,” “Barney’s I Love You Gift Set,” “Bob the Builder: BIG Build Collection,” and “Thomas & Friends Whistle Express Collection,” packaged with a train whistle.
PICK OF THE WEEK: Harrison Ford stars in “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” reuniting with Karen Allen in Peru and teaming up with hotshot Shia LaBeouf to race villainous Cate Blanchett as they search for the mysterious Crystal Skull. It’s available on a single-disc DVD (just the film) or a two-disc DVD and Blue-ray with segments on how this latest installment evolved, glimpses of the location shoots and segments on makeup, visual effects and the mythical crystal skulls.