FROM a silent British thriller to the latest Hong Kong actioners, there are plenty of new DVDs for movie buffs on your Christmas gift list.
The silent “A Cottage on Dartmoor” (Kino International), directed in 1929 by Anthony Asquith, tells the story of a London barber (Uno Henning) who goes ballistic when a customer (Hans Adalbert von Schlettow) gets too friendly with the manicurist (Norah Baring) who works in his shop.
Asquith’s direction brings to mind early Hitchcock, and the opening scene – a dash across the moors – has a German Expressionist flavor.
The disc also contains an informative 88-minute documentary, directed by David Thompson, about silent British cinema.
The Criterion Collection is known for its meticulous work, and the new seven-disc “Berlin Alexanderplatz” box set is no exception.
It includes a restored version of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s 15-hour-plus epic, originally made for German TV in 1980, as well as a 90-minute adaptation of the same story, directed in 1931 by Phil Jutzi. Both are based on a 1929 novel by Alfred Doblin.
The extras (and for $124.95 there better be a lot of extras) include three documentaries.
Looking for something a little less cerebral? Consider Synapse Films’ “Legend of the Poisonous Seductress” series. The three discs, sold separately, detail the exploits of revenge-seeking swordswomen.
Junko Miyazono has the lead in all three films: “Female Demon Ohyaku” (1968), “Okatsu the Fugitive” (1969) and “Quick-Draw Okatsu” (1969). Nobuo Nakagawa directs the trio.
When it comes to the latest Asian thrillers and horror films, nobody beats Tartan Video. Consider: “Election” (2005) and “Triad Election” (2006), by Hong Kong’s ass-kickin’ Johnnie To.
Blood flows freely in these stylish thrillers (sold separately) about mob rivalry. And the fact that I’m quoted on the cover of one of the DVD boxes has no bearing on my recommendation.
Noir fans will get off on Kino’s five-disc box set of “classics from the studio vaults”: Fritz Lang’s “Scarlet Street” (1945), Ida Lupino’s “The Hitch-hiker” (1953), Michael Powell’s “Contraband” (1940), Alberto Cavalcanti’s “They Made Me a Fugitive” (1947) and Anthony Mann’s “Strange Impersonation” (1946).
V.A. Musetto is film editor of The Post; [email protected]