Universal Pictures UK will release Alfonso Cuaron's prophetic apocalyptic drama Children of Men on DVD on January the 15th.

The film is set in the near-future, when mankind has become sterile, and society is on the brink of collapse. It tells the story of the first woman to give birth in nineteen years, and her dangerous journey across country, as she looks to seek sanctuary with an elite group called The Human Project.

The film stars Sin City's Clive Owen, Far From Heaven's Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Love Actually's Chiwetel Ejiofor and Shooting Dogs' Claire Hope Ashitey. It will be presented in anamorphic 1.85:1 format, with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. The disc will have optional English SDH subtitles.

The film will be supplemented by a featurette called Men at War. The RRP is £19.99.

HBO Video will release the third season of The Wire on DVD on February the 5th.

The five-disc set will feature all thirteen episodes of the acclaimed 2004 series, which deals with the fight against drugs on the streets of Baltimore (and specifically looking at the city's problems from a political perspective, as local mayoral elections loom, and pressure mounts).

Two episodes will be accompanied by audio commentaries.

The RRP is £39.99.

BFI Video will release a trilogy of "digitally restored and re-mastered" Derek Jarman films on DVD on January the 29th: Caravaggio, Wittgenstein and The Angelic Conversion (the films were made with the BFI Production Board).

Caravaggio, the story of the seventeenth-century Italian artist, stars Nigel Terry, Sean Bean and, in her first role, Tilda Swinton, who would go on to feature in several of the director's projects.

The film will be presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen format.

The disc will feature specially-commissioned interviews with Swinton, Terry and Production Designer Christopher Hobbs; a commentary track by cinematographer Gabriel Beristain; filmed and audio interviews with Jarman; storyboards and production sketches galleries; Derek Jarman's notebooks; and an eighteen-page illustrated booklet with an essay by Colin McCabe, and an interview with costume designer Sandy Powell.

The Angelic Conversion, Jarman's radical interpretation of Shakespeare's love poems, features readings of fourteen sonnets by Judi Dench. The film was shot on Super-8, and then transferred to 35mm, giving it a distinctive aesthetic look. The film will be presented in 1.33:1 full-frame format.

The disc features new interviews with Producer James Mackay and Production Designer Christopher Hobbs; Derek Jameson in conversation with Simon Field (a 1989 interview, 32m); a stills gallery; and a twenty-page illustrated booklet featuring an introductory essay by Colin McCabe, Tilda Swinton's testimonial letter to Derek Jarman, and photo's taken during the film's production.

Wittgenstein, Jarman's off-kilter biography of the Austrian philosopher, features Tilda Swinton, Michael Gough and Karl Johnson.

The film will be presented in anamorphic 1.66:1 format.

The disc will feature new interviews with Swinton, Johnson and producer Tariq Ali; "extensive" behind-the-scenes footage showing Jarman at work; a filmed introduction by film historian Ian Christie; a 1994 short film featuring Jarman, The Clearing (7m); and an eighteen-page booklet with an introductory essay by Colin McCabe, and and interview with Sandy Powell.

All three discs have optional English HoH subtitles "on all items", and an RRP of £19.99.

18th December 2006

ZETA MINOR NEWS

Our database of forthcoming releases, Incoming, is constantly being updated with new information. If you've not had a look at it recently, it's well worth a perusal! Recent additions include a slew of box sets from MGM and Fox, as well as early sightings of theatrical releases Marie Antionette, The Queen and De Palma's The Black Dahlia. Please help support Zeta Minor by using our affiliate links to buy your DVDs!

Apologies to those who find the falling snowflakes a little cheesy - they won't be here long! Merry Christmas!

DVD NEWS

Nucleus Films will release the award-winning British horror film London Voodoo on February the 5th (a couple of weeks later than some sources are quoting).

The film, which stars Band of Brothers' Doug Cockle and Sugar Rush's Sara Stewart, will be presented in anamorphic 1.81:1 format, with a choice of Dolby Digital 2.0 or 5.1 audio tracks (at 192kbps and 448kbps, respectively).

Bonus features are a production video documentary, The Voodoo Diaries (59m); an Interview With a Voodoo Priest (19m); deleted scenes (14m); two trailers; a commentary track (by director Robert Pratten); premiere interviews (5m, including comments by the film's composer, Siouxsie and the Banshees' Steve Severin); and a Nucleus Films promo' reel (which includes a trailer for their forthcoming release of the 1980 video favourite Death Ship). The RRP is £14.99.

Buena Vista Home Entertainment will release the first series of US top ten hit Criminal Minds on DVD on February the 12th.

The series features an elite team of psychological profilers, headed by Chicago Hope's Mandy Patinkin. It also stars Dharma & Greg's Thomas Gibson and Tru Calling's A.J. Cook.

The twenty-two episodes will be accompanied by a behind-the-scenes documentary, The Making of Criminal Minds (25m); an exclusive interview with Matthew Gray Gubler (who plays the weird one, Doctor Spencer Reid) (14m); deleted scenes; a Stage Tour (3m); Goobie Awards (4m); and unspecified "Easter Eggs". The RRP is £44.99.

Universal will release the notorious Anne Hathaway film Havoc on DVD on February the 5th.

The film, about affluent teenagers who aspire to belong to LA street gangs, also features Michael Biehn, Freddie Rodriguez, Bijou Philips and Roswell's Shiri Appleby.

The film will be presented in "16 x 9" format, with a choice of Dolby Digital 2.0 and 5.1 audio tracks, and optional English ENNHOH subtitles.

The quoted "81 minutes" running time suggests that the UK might not be getting the unrated version that's on the US disc (which runs for just over 92m - accounting for PAL speedup, this would be about 88m). The RRP is £12.99.

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will release The History Boys on DVD on March the 5th.

The film, which is based on the award-winning play by Alan Bennett, stars Richard Griffiths, Bright Young Things' Stephen Campbell Moore and Starter For Ten's Dominic Cooper. It marks the second time director Nicholas Hytner's second collaboration with the playwright, following 1994's The Madness of King George. The film is a nostalgic look at sixth form school life in Sheffield in the 1980s.

No technical details, or details of any bonus materials - if there are any - were released. The RRP is £19.99.