edited by Jonathan Doyle

Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

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Traitor

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Goal II: Living the Dream

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We Were Strangers

(Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, 2.22.2005)

Minutes after We Were Strangers begins, Jennifer Jones' freedom-fighter brother is gunned-down by Cuba's vigilante police force. Without missing a beat, Jones transforms into a cold-blooded avenger looking to exterminate the entire Cuban government. Within minutes of her brother's funeral, she joins forces with John Garfield and a team of haphazard assassins -- not unlike the robbery team in the Coen brothers' re-make of The Ladykillers -- to plan an explosion that will send the president, his cabinet, and every other Cuban villain "to hell, where they belong." Now, imagine that story told in roughly the style of Key Largo, The Maltese Falcon, and The Asphalt Jungle and you have some idea what's in store.

Released in 1949, We Were Strangers is one of the great, forgotten John Huston films. Last month, I managed to see a 35mm print of the film and the month before that I was actually in Cuba so, as far as I'm concerned, this is an extremely well-timed release. Unavailable on video for several years, the film now returns in a surprisingly reverent DVD release from Sony Pictures. While the full frame transfer includes flashes of dirt and debris throughout, it looks significantly better than the print I saw last month and, given the film's age and relatively minor stature, this is an impressively sharp and detailed presentation.

Sony Pictures obviously expects this DVD to travel far and wide, as they've included 4 subtitle choices: English, Japanese, French, and Spanish. Japanese freedom-fighters should be particularly pleased with this development.

The only real feature, if you can call it that, is a series of un-related theatrical trailers for 3 other Sony Pictures releases: Castle Keep, Lawrence of Arabia, and another impressive entry in the revolutionary, guerilla, assassin genre, Fred Zinnemann's Behold a Pale Horse (more on that in a moment).

John Huston was an extremely eclectic and eccentric director -- remember, this classical Hollywood filmmaker also made some exceedingly personal, one-of-a-kind works such as Reflections in a Golden Eye, The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean, and Wise Blood -- and, while this is by no means his strangest film, it is one of his earliest forays into cult film territory. Highly recommended. -- Jonathan Doyle

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