'SPIDER-MAN' HOME-RELEASE PUSH TO BE HUGE.

Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer

CULVER CITY - Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment will spend an unprecedented $100 million to try to break all home video sales records when ``Spider-Man'' swings into retail stores Nov. 1, studio executives announced Monday.

Already the year's top-grossing film with a U.S. total of more than $400 million to date, the home video version of ``Spider-Man'' will have the biggest-ever marketing budget for a video title in Columbia's history - exceeding what is spent for the theatrical release of most major studio films.

``We want to break every record and we know this is the title that definitely can,'' said Suzanne White, vice president of marketing for Columbia's home video division. ``With such a broad-appeal film and the fact that it's the holiday gift-giving season, this is a natural.''

The studio hopes to surpass its own ``Men in Black'' to become the best- selling DVD of all-time as well as beating the three-day sales record set by ``Shrek'' last year. Most ambitiously, Columbia wants to top Disney's ``The Lion King'' as the all-time home video best seller.

``It's huge for home video, but there's a huge amount of heat that will surround this title,'' White said. ``You will be hard-pressed to find a consumer who won't know that this title is coming out on video.''

The DVD will face stiff competition because other recent blockbusters such as ``The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring'' and ``Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones'' will also be in stores vying for the attention of the DVD collector and holiday shopper.

The two-disc ``Spider-Man'' set will be loaded with the type of extra bonus materials that have helped the DVD format explode in popularity, especially among the growing legions of DVD owners who have started DVD movie collections at home.

Among the extra material: the screen test of Tobey Maguire who plays Spider-Man; an HBO special on the making of the movie; an E! Entertainment special about the movie; the historical documentary ``Spider-Man: The Mythology of the 21st Century''; a gag/outtake reel; theatrical trailers and television spots; music videos; and interactive games, Web links and much more.

A specially packaged limited-edition Collector's DVD Gift set will feature a wide-screen version of the film and additional extras including an exclusive collectible drawing and a collectible numbered cel from the movie. More details about the collector's set will be announced soon, the studio said.

Columbia has not released the prices for the DVD and VHS versions of the film, saying only that they would be priced similarly to other DVDs on the market. Details of what bonus materials will appear on the VHS version have also not been finalized.

Pre-orders, which has become an increasingly popular practice through such online outlets as Amazon.com and WalMart.com, will not begin until next month. Already lined up is a host of promotional partners such as Dr Pepper, Carl's Jr. and Cingular Wireless, which also partnered with Columbia for the theatrical release.

The studio's home entertainment division is also in discussions with major retailers such as Blockbuster and Tower to launch the video at midnight on Halloween in order to jump-start sales. A similar strategy was successfully used in May for the home video release of ``Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,'' the biggest-selling title so far this year.

``Halloween is so popular that it seems like a natural,'' White said.

When ``Spider-Man'' hit theaters May 4, it set scores of industry box office records, including becoming the first film to earn more than $100 million during its opening weekend and the first movie to bring in more than $40 million in a single day. The film now stands as the fifth-highest- grossing movie of all time.

``It's the number one movie of the year and appeals to so many different ages of people- from people who were fans of the comic books from the '50s to their grandchildren,'' White said.