Trust me: an assortment of DVDs, ranging from the latest Academy Award winners to a half-century-old western classic, have one thing in common—they're well worth going out of your way to see. . - Entertainment - movie review

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Sept, 2002 by Robert S. Rothenberg

Monster's Ball (Lions Gate Entertainment, 112 minutes, $24.99) captured the best actress Oscar for Halle Berry, setting off one of the most emotion-filled acceptance speeches in Academy history, celebrating the first time two black actors (Denzel Washington taking best actor for "Training Day") won the major awards. Berry is riveting as the widow of an executed murderer, stumbling into an unlikely interracial love affair with the embittered Death Row guard who was in charge of his electrocution. Billy Bob Thornton portrays the guard with the same underplayed style he used in "The Man Who Wasn't There," a trait that is beginning to wear upon viewers, leaving ample room for Berry's more-emotional flights. Peter Boyle as Thornton's father, a racist former guard in the same prison, is excellent, and Sean (Puff Daddy) Combs shows unexpected acting chops in his brief role as the doomed convict. Special features include audio commentary by the two stars, director Marc Foster, and director of photography Roberto Schaefer; more than an hour of behind-the-scenes coverage; and an assortment of outtakes and deleted scenes.

No Man's Land (MGM Home Entertainment, 97 minutes, $26.98) turned out to be the upset winner of the best foreign film Oscar over the French entry, "Amelie." Shown in Slovenian with English subtitles, it is a harrowing, yet often darkly amusing, examination of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, played in microcosm. The plot is relatively simple, considering the complexities of that ethnically divisive conflict. A pair of Bosnian soldiers, one of whom is wounded, are pinned down in a trench between the two sides' lines--hence the film's title--after the rest of their patrol has been wiped out. A pair of Serbian soldiers are sent out to reconnoiter the trench and, while the unwounded Bosnian is hiding, booby-trap his comrade, who they believe to be dead. They, in turn, are attacked by the unwounded Bosnian, who kills the veteran Serb, the only one who can disarm the bomb, and captures the rookie. His comrade awakens, and the three soldiers find themselves in a standoff, unable to remove the wounded soldier from the bomb that is under him or get back to their own lines without being shot by the enemy. Before long, UN peacekeeping forces, their bureaucratic superiors, and international journalists are dragged into the situation, each with their own agenda. The bitterly ironic ending is in keeping with the tone of this extraordinary picture and should leave American audiences with a better idea of what the hatred in that part of the world is all about. Overcome your aversion to subtitles and see this movie that is well-deserving of the Academy's accolade. There are no special features except the original trailer.

Gosford Park (Universal Studios Home Video, 138 minutes, $19.95) was nominated for seven Academy Awards, but the sole winner was Julian Fellowes for his screenplay. Considering the fact that director Robert Altman assembled a stellar cast of the cream of British actors for this delicious cross between "Upstairs, Downstairs" and an Agatha Christie mystery, it is surprising, especially with Hollywood's usual ongoing love affair with the English, as evidenced by the long and distinguished list of past Oscar winners. Maggie Smith and Helen Mirren, both nominated for best supporting actress, are particularly outstanding, but there are stellar turns from Alan Bates, Michael Gambon, Derek Jacobi, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Emily Watson as well. Perhaps the sliest twist is the arrival of Stephen Fry as the police detective sent out to investigate the murder, who, going totally against the grain of this cinematic genre, turns out to be bumblingly incompetent. Having this movie on DVD is a blessing for even those who saw it during the original theatrical release, since Altman's signature style of having his actors talk over each other, as people often do in real life, had most viewers turning to the person sitting next to them and plaintively asking, "What did he (or she) say?" Thanks to being able to reverse the film and listen to the dialogue again--and again--one can patiently decipher all of the words, despite the mixture of upper-class British, cockney, Scottish, and Irish accents, as the camera careens back and forth between the drawing rooms and bedrooms of the aristocracy and the servants' corners. The Collector's Edition DVD is rich in special features, including audio commentaries by Altman and Fellowes, a "Making of ..." documentary, deleted scenes, an examination of the authenticity of the settings and portrayals of the various classes, and interviews with the cast and the filmmakers.