DVDs, Movies, TV

The life and treks of Sir Edmund Hillary are chronicled in “Hillary”

Hillary is not about dear Ms. Clinton.

It is from New Zealand, a six-part mini-series based on the life of mountaineer and philanthropist Sir Edmund Hillary. Capturing Hillary’s life of incredible bravery and heartbreaking tragedy, the program lovingly and vividly brings back to life the man New Zealander’s affectionately called “Sir Ed.”

The saga is available on DVD from PBS Distribution.

Based on thousands of hours of exclusive interviews, Hillary tells the story of the first man to conquer Mt. Everest. The program recounts his beekeeping days in South Auckland, to his ascent of the world’s highest mountain with climbing partner Tenzing Norgay, to the plane crash that killed his wife and daughter.

When he summited Everest in May 1953 and, as he told it, “knocked the bastard off,” Hillary put his small home country on the map. He was so beloved in New Zealand that his likeness is featured on the five-dollar note, and he was given a state funeral after his 2008 death.

Andrew Munro stars as Hillary, while Dean O’Gorman plays George Lowe, his longtime friend and climbing partner, and Amy Usherwood plays his wife, Lady Louise Hillary.

Magnificent!

DVDs, Movies

It’s murder to make a movie in the Hollywood. Witness “The Big Take”

It’s murder to make a movie in the Hollywood.
Witness The Big Take, available on DVD and Digital, thank to Archstone Distribution via Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Save the date: September 4.

Oscar nominee Robert Forste, James McCaffrey, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Zoë Bell, Bill Sag and Dan Hedaya star in this comedic and suspenseful caper about a blackmailed movie star and an aspiring screenwriter looking for his big break whose lives become intertwined following a deadly case of mistaken identity. The film marks Justin Daly’s writing and directorial debut, previously working behind-the-scenes on such movies as the action classic Taken and the hit indie comedy Big Night.

The Big Take  is the perfect entertainment for thriller fans looking for big laughs and even bigger thrills this September.

DVDs, TV

“The Outback”, a new three-part series that explores the people and animals of Australia’s Kimberley region, is great

Filmed over the course of two distinct seasons, The Outback is a new three-part series that explores the people and animals of Australia’s Kimberley region in North West Australia, a vast, rugged and remote wilderness bursting with character. As large as California, the Kimberley has a population of only about 40,000 people, living alongside animals so superbly adapted to the harsh and beautiful extremes of their habitat. It’s a spectacular adventure into the life of Australia’s unique and precious North West corner.

 Catch the adventures on the PBS Distribution on DVD, though you have to save the date: It will be released August 2.

Episodes for this program include:

The Kimberley Comes Alive
The Kimberley region in North West Australia boasts some of the most spectacular wilderness—and tough characters—in existence. As the wet season comes to an end, the humans and the creatures begin their adventures across this diverse and surprising landscape. From tiny, orphaned joeys to majestic ospreys, survival takes guts (and sometimes even the huge hearts of humans to care for them). It’s a land where humans and animals live in dangerous, and exquisite, proximity.

 The Dry Season
It might be the dry season but there’s no rest in the Outback: there are turtle eggs to be laid, saltwater crocodiles to dodge and young birds on maiden flights. Cattle must be mustered from the far corners of vast cattle properties and, when that is done, rodeos spring into action. More quietly, archaeologists are led through remote wilderness by traditional owners, revealing breathtaking galleries of ancient rock art. Out at sea, elite athletes dive the ocean depths in the name of the world’s most spectacular pearl, risking dangerous encounters with curious giants. While mother to marsupials, Mandy Watson, sets her babies free.

Return of the Wet
Inland Kimberley is now so stiflingly hot, everything and everyone moves with caution with the exception of gold diggers Honest John and Steve. The region’s remaining waterholes are packed with animals, forced dangerously close together. Windjana Gorge is a prime example–a pristine oasis where brave humans wade into crocodile-infested water in the name of science. The coast is also a place to congregate. Thousands of shorebirds arrive from the world’s longest single migration, only to be blasted with nets by crafty bird lovers. The humidity builds until the skies finally explode with thunder and rain. Nyul Nyul ranger Albert Wiggan sings a welcome to the life it brings and arrival of a new season in his ancient land.

DVDs, TV

PBS Distribution flies high with the landmark “Kingdoms of the Sky”

PBS Distribution flies high with Kingdoms of the Sky, a landmark three-part series, presented in partnership with the BBC, reveals the extraordinary animals and remarkable people who make a home on the iconic mountain ranges of the world, including the Himalaya, the Rockies and the Andes.

It’s now available on DVD and the Blu-ray edition hits Blu-ray on August 7.

Episodes for this program include:

Himalaya
Meet the extraordinary wildlife and people of the Himalaya–the highest mountain range on earth, where the air is the thinnest, the wind the strongest, the storms the fiercest. The higher you climb, the tougher it gets to survive. See snub-nosed monkeys, snow leopards on the prowl, and Tibetan monks performing ancient rituals high in the mountains.

Rockies
The Rockies stretch 3000 miles across a beautiful wilderness of snow-capped peaks and hidden valleys. It is home to cougars, wolverines, wolves, and grizzlies, and where daredevil wingsuit fliers jump from high peaks and Native Americans compete in breakneck horse races.

Andes
The longest mountain range on the planet holds dozens of hidden worlds, from the driest desert on Earth to cloud forests teeming with life. Pumas hunt guanaco, shape-shifting frogs hide in remote forests, and the descendants of Inca build bridges of grass. Magnificent snow sculptures, huge salt lakes, and spectacular peaks are all found in these rugged peaks.

DVDs, TV

PBS Distribution offers two hot new “Nature” titles on DVD

Mother Nature, with some help from  PBS Distribution, has two new hot NATURE titles: Nature: Shark Mountain and Nature: The World’s Most Wanted Animal on DVD and Digital HD. Both titles are also available now on Digital HD.

Nature: Shark Mountain
In the dead of the night, a team of filmmakers jump into the ocean to film hunting behavior on the reef. But first, they must make it through a pack of as many as 50 large and dangerous sharks gathering just below the surface. It is not a dive that many would make. But with Howard and Michele Hall, two of the world’s leading underwater filmmakers, something incredible is always just about to happen.

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Thousands of sharks–silkies, white tips, black tips and hammerheads–hunt along the volcanic reefs of Cocos Island, so many that the island has also become known as Shark Mountain. But the waters around this tiny outpost in the Pacific are filled with ocean life so rich and diverse that the island and a twelve-mile zone all around it has been designated a Costa Rican National Park and World Heritage Site.

Shot in spectacular high definition video, the program takes viewers on the underwater journey of a lifetime, showing the wonders of Cocos. Yet it is a world that is disappearing as the years pass, for even places as remote and protected as Cocos are at risk in today’s world.

Nature: The World’s Most Wanted Animal
Pangolins are often described as “the most endangered animal you’ve never heard of.” The world’s only scaly mammal, pangolins are now trafficked at a higher rate than rhinos, elephants and tigers combined, for medicinal use in China, Thailand and Vietnam. Very little is known about even their most basic biology, and this is hampering conservation efforts–pangolins almost always die in captivity. In Namibia, conservationist Maria Diekmann found herself on the frontline of the battle to save these wanted animals after unexpectedly becoming a surrogate mother to an orphaned baby pangolin named Honey Bun.

On an emotional journey, Diekmann travels to Asia to better understand the global issues facing pangolins, before joining forces with a Chinese megastar to help build a campaign to bring awareness to the plight of these surprisingly charming creatures.

DVDs

Jackie Chan’s “Bleeding Steel” co-stars? Thrills, chills and deranged, mech-enhanced villain

Jackie Chan is back. Big time. The Honorary 2016 Oscar recipient plays Hong Kong police inspector Lin Dong who, while tracking down a deranged, mech-enhanced villain, discovers that a geneticist’s lost biochemical invention has been surgically implanted into his missing daughter.

With help from a hacker, Lin tries to connect the dots between the device, a sinister army, and a strange phenomenon called “Bleeding Steel” . . . which also is the  name of the non-stop thriller arriving on Blu-ray (plus Digital), DVD and on Digital August 21 from Lionsgate. The  action-packed drama reminiscent of ’80s techno-sci-fi thrillers, is currently available On Demand.

DVDs

A dog that talks? Flies planes? Meet the foxy Archie!

And we thought our dog Oona was not your normal dog. Then we/she met Archie. He has unimaginable talents that include talking and flying planes! Archie tags along as his owner Sydney runs away to join a struggling family circus.

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But clumsy Sydney’s only hope of stardom is a fake ventriloquist act featuring his wisecracking, woofing pal. Together they’re a hit and the circus is saved—until a villain plots to steal the priceless dog and trade him for big bucks.

Step right up for thrills, chills and laughs, Archie-style, with Archie 2 (Lionsgate).

Featuring Michael J. Fox as the voice of Archie, along with Sara Canning and Robin Dunne, this animal adventure won the Dove Seal of approval for all ages.

Is there room for Oona?

Books, Movies

New bio of Madeleine L’Engle, “I’m painting a portrait of one of the spiritual giants,” says author

Lauren Bacall once told us that she earned her own of her wrinkles. She called them her “time lines”.

Wonder if she ever read Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time? The author was known for her fascinating perspectives on science, art, story and faith. She was also a lightning rod for controversy—too Christian for some, too unorthodox for others. Somewhere in the middle was a complex woman whose embrace of paradox continues to be a beacon for generations of readers struggling to reconcile faith and science, art and religion, sacred and secular.

In A Light So Lovely: The Spiritual Legacy of Madeleine L’Engle, Author of A Wrinkle in Time, (Zondervan, $19.99) Sarah Arthur explores L’Engle’s spirituality and what her story means for each of us, now, in our own unique moment and within a larger narrative. Arthur recounts stories about L’Engle from friends and family as well as interviews with writers and thinkers who have been profoundly shaped by L’Engle’s writing.
“I’m painting a portrait of one of the spiritual giants who has gone before us,” writes Arthur. “And I’m encouraging a new generation of readers to seek and trust her as a spiritual guide. To borrow imagery from A Wrinkle in Time, we’re Meg Murry and she’s Mrs. Whatsit, traveling through time to challenge and encourage us.”

Arthur traces L’Engle’s spiritual journey through seven key movements including her self-proclaimed lonely childhood, her fascination with science and faith, her writings as a whole—specifically A Wrinkle in Time—and her influence on generations of artists who now embrace art as a spiritual vocation. Arthur also explores L’Engle’s paradoxical propensity to blur fact and fiction, and the impact of that tendency on her closest relationships.

Charlotte Jones Voiklis, L’Engle’s youngest granddaughter and literary executor, penned the foreword for A Light So Lovely.  In it she recalls crying the first time Sarah interviewed her. “We talked about my grandmother’s life: her habits, milestones and challenges, and what we each knew to be her impact on others. As we spoke, what moved me to tears was Sarah’s willingness to look at Madeleine and accept her as a full and flawed human being; an icon and iconoclast, not an idol.”

For a new generation that has known nothing but the increasingly polarized and contentious climate of contemporary religious discourse, L’Engle’s embrace of paradox is a welcome path forward. Arthur writes, “Let’s strike a match, light a candle. Let’s illuminate the life and legacy of this extraordinary woman such that we experience both the grace and the struggle that helped her share a generation and beyond. Because ultimately, it’s not her own light we’re drawn to, but the light of Christ she lifted up, however imperfectly, to the world. By knowing her better, we might better understand our own particular darknesses, in this unique chapter of American history, and how we’re called to be light-bearers too.”

Uncategorized

Harper Design’s “The Secret Garden” is a stunner, another gem from MinaLima

There are gorgeous book. And then there is Harper Design’s new edition of The Secret Garden ($29.99).

Once again MinaLima has woven their most creative hands. The classic by Frances Hodgson Burnett, about a young orphan called Mary Lennox who is sent to live with Archibald Craven, an uncle she’s never met, is beautifully illustrated with interactive features from the visionary design studio behind the graphics for the Harry Potter film franchise.

Stunning indeed!

The Secret Garden by [Burnett, Frances Hodgson]

Part of Harper Design’s series of deluxe reimagined children’s classics, this captivating unabridged gift edition takes readers on a memorable journey that teaches them lessons about hardship, friendship, happiness, and restoration. Originally published in 1911,  Burnett’s beloved classic has captured reader’s hearts for more than a century. Die-hard fans should know that The Secret Garden will also be brought back to life on the big screen soon, in a new live-action film adaptation from Disney and Universal starring Colin Firth and Julie Walters. The book has been adapted for the big-screen film before, perhaps most famously in 1993.

While waiting to have your own copy of Harper Design’s new book, we’ll share some of The Secret Garden‘s 10 interactive features. They include

  • A layout of the Manor House and grounds
  • A map of the Secret Garden
  • A dial showing how plants grow throughout the season
  • A cut-out paper doll of Mary and her clothes
  • A removable letter to Dickon from his older sister, the maid who tells Mary the story of the garden

DVDs, TV

PBS offers America’s Best Streets, Monuments and Modern Marvels

Yep, they are the best.
A new series from PBS Distribution takes audiences on a lively exploration of American architecture, design and urban planning. Hosted by Geoffrey Baer and produced by Dan Protess, the series illustrates how our built environment came to be and how our monuments, streets and modern marvels reflect our nation’s history, values, ingenuity and hopes for the future. Take a tour of the places where American history was born.

Episodes for this program include:
10 Monuments That Changed America
Explore the stories behind ten wholly-original American monuments and the historical moments that inspired them. From the Statue of Liberty to Mount Rushmore, and from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial to the AIDS Quilt, discover pivotal moments in the evolution of American monuments when daring artists found new ways to honor our history.

10 Streets That Changed America
Trace the 400-year evolution of Broadway in New York from a Native American road to a poster child for the “complete streets” movement of the future. Also visit the Boston Post Road; St. Charles Avenue in New Orleans; and Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. It’s an episode about how streets have connected the nation, divided communities, and changed the way Americans live, work and shop.

10 Modern Marvels That Changed America
Meet arrogant engineers who have scoffed at the laws of nature and defied naysayers by undertaking amazing feats of engineering. Each story in this episode includes a fun physics lesson and a tale of human folly, from the Hoover Dam and the Interstate Highway System, to the Holland Tunnel and Eads Bridge. Find out which 10 modern marvels made the list.