DVD REVIEWS OF NEW RELEASES AL-JAZEERA UP CLOSE.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

Of the many documentaries released prior to the election, ``Control Room'' stands apart and heads above most of them.

Jehane Noujaim's film about Al-Jazeera, the Arab satellite news network, during the American invasion of Iraq doesn't try to hammer home points but instead open eyes with its cool cinema verite.

When Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld condemns Al-Jazeera as being a mouthpiece for Iraq in ``Control Room'' with the statement, ``Truth ultimately finds its way to people's eyes and ears and hearts,'' the film proves him right - only ironically. The film shows us how much of the Iraq war we didn't see and how much we didn't understand - and how it played in the Arab world. (They're making Saddam a hero, one Al-Jazeera journalist says, shaking his head sadly.)

A key figure in the film is Lt. Josh Rushing, an Army spokesman at Central Command - and a key figure in the film - at the temporary media village in Qatar. Watching him begin to recognize other possible truths of the situation (other than the Army's and the administration's), should make those of us watching in the States reconsider what we saw on U.S. television.

Rushing tells of how he had been sickened the night Al-Jazeera aired shots of U.S. POWs and dead soldiers, but he admitted, ``It was powerful, because Americans won't be shown those kinds of images.''

He then adds that he later remembered how, the night before, he had seen similar images of dead and wounded Iraqis and hadn't thought much of it. He then realized that the ``people on the other side and those people in the Al-Jazeera offices must have felt the way I was feeling that night, and it upset me on a profound level that I wasn't bothered as much the night before.''

Noujaim's film has an impersonal style that gives it its urgency. When the Al-Jazeera headquarters in Baghdad is attacked by a U.S. warplane (chillingly caught on film), Noujaim's camera captures the scene as the grim reality of the death of one of their reporters sets in on the network's staff in Qatar.

While Al-Jazeera does wear its Arab heart on its sleeve, it appears no less balanced than some American networks. In light of what we know now about the war, it becomes evident as you watch ``Control Room'' that, had we seen what Al-Jazeera broadcast, it would have given us a clearer picture of Iraq today.

``Control Room'' (Artisan; $26.98)

`Dawn of the Dead,'

`The Hunger,'

`The Fearless Vampire Killers,'

`White Chicks,'

'Tis the season to be gory. Not as in Edward but as in ``Dawn of the Dead'' - both the new version starring Sarah Polley trying to escape the hordes of zombies and George Romero's original.

Romero's film is considered by horror fans to have have some wit, but not being a fan of splattering blood, I must have missed it when I saw it. As for the new one, Polley makes a convincing damsel in distress. Other ghoulish films out recently that you might check out include ``The Hunger,'' the Susan Sarandon-Catherine Deneuve-David Bowie 1983 vampire film. More odd than scary, the Tony Scott film is remembered more for its lesbian scene between Sarandon and Deneuve than for its bite.

For the curiously morbid, there's Roman Polanski's 1967 ``The Fearless Vampire Killers,'' starring Polanski and his future wife Sharon Tate, who was brutally murdered by the Manson family while 8 1/2 months pregnant. Oh, by the way, ``Vampire Killers'' is a comedy. It's even charming. Tate wasn't much of an actress - she appears through most of the film in various states of undress or in a bathtub, but she had an innocent appeal. Still, it's hard to watch the film without thinking of what happened to her - and of Polanski's own sordid history.

Of course, there's always ``White Chicks,'' which technically isn't a horror film but stars the same Wayans brothers - Shawn and Marlon - who were in ``Scary Movie.'' But there is something frightening, though, about the African-American pair playing FBI agents made up with the help of rubber prosthetics to be white sorority sisters. Talk about zombies.

``Dawn of the Dead (Widescreen Unrated Director's Cut)'' (Universal; $29.90) includes commentary and featurettes on the new version.

``Dawn of the Dead (Ultimate Edition)'' (Anchor Bay; $49.90) includes numerous extras and commentary on four discs on the 1978 version.

``The Hunger'' (Warner; $19.97) includes commentary by Scott and Sarandon.

``The Fearless Vampire Killers, or Pardon Me but Your Teeth Are in My Neck'' (Warner; $19.97) includes a making-of featurette.

``White Chicks'' is available in both an unrated and uncut edition and a PG-13 edition (Columbia; $28.29 each).

`Mulan'

Ming-Na, who voiced the title character in ``Mulan'' back in 1998, now has a 4-year-old who is watching the lovely animated Disney film, which is being released in a special-edition set.

As a Chinese-American, the ``ER'' actress was well aware of the fable of a young Chinese girl who disguises herself to take her infirm father's place in the army and then leads them to victory in turning back invading Huns. Ming-Na says she also had an affinity for the heroine.

``Mulan was a young girl who was uncomfortable in her own skin. She was disappointing everybody, and she felt she couldn't do things right,'' says Ming-Na. ``For me, that's definitely true growing up in white suburbia, wanting to be an actress and never feeling like I fit in. And maybe that's why I became an actress, so I could pretend I was somebody else. And in a way, Mulan did that pretending to be a boy and joining the army and in the process discovers that she's OK just being her.''

It is in this area - as inspiration for young girls -that ``Mulan'' succeeds admirably. The new two-disc edition contains a number of extras, including one featuring an amusing Jackie Chan singing in Chinese.

As for Ming-Na's ``teenage 4-year-old,'' she's beginning ``to put the pieces together'' that her mom is Mulan. ``It's probably going to scar her for life,'' the actress says with a laugh.``Mulan'' (Disney; $29.99) includes deleted scenes, music videos and making-of featurettes.

TV on DVD 

The TV box set front has a number of intriguing titles starting with ``21 Jump Street,'' the late-'80s series that helped launch Johnny Depp's career. Depp played a police officer who goes undercover to fight juvenile crime. With its combination of youth appeal and its willingness to delve into serious issues like AIDS, the Stephen Cannell series was an early hit for Fox.

With more than 30 years of distance, ``Bob Hope - The Vietnam Years 1964-1972'' is a strange time capsule. Though a hawk on the war, Hope's commitment to entertaining the troops should never be questioned, as he tried to provide some comfort to soldiers away from home. But his upbeat shows seem odd in light of the final outcome. A lighter form of nostalgia can be found in ``Sonny & Cher Christmas Collection''

As I wrote awhile back, the late Jeremy Brett seemed to perfect Sherlock Holmes. He was more in keeping with the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle character than any other filmed portrayals. ``The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes DVD Collection'' includes six more episodes with Brett as the great sleuth.

Two recent series are making their bow on DVD, the first seasons of ``That '70s Show'' and ``The O.C.''

``21 Jump Street'' (Anchor Bay; $39.98) includes 13 episodes, interviews and commentary on four discs.

``Bob Hope - The Vietnam Years 1964-1972'' on three discs.``The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes DVD Collection'' (MPI; $39.98) on three discs.

``Sonny & Cher Christmas Collection'' (R2 Entertainment; $19.99).

``That '70s Show - Season 1'' (Fox; $49.98) includes 25 episodes on four discs.

``The O.C. - Season One'' (Warner; $69.98) on seven discs.

Rob Lowman, [phone]

robert.lowman(at)dailynews.com

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``Mulan''