DVD REVIEWS OF NEW RELEASES.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

`Ladder 49' fails to set off sparks

They laugh, they cry, they feel pain, they feel joy ...

That's the picture you get from ``Ladder 49,'' Hollywood's Hallmark card tribute to the men who fight fires for a living.

This isn't to slight firefighters, who put themselves more at risk in a few moments than most of us do in a lifetime. But this by-the-numbers melodrama plays it safe, with its only seeming aim to bring a tear or two to your eyes.

Directed by Jay Russell (``Tuck Everlasting''), ``Ladder 49'' starts the heart-tugging process early. The men of a Baltimore company commanded by John Travolta (playing the gruff but good-hearted Mike Kennedy) are fighting a vicious blaze at an industrial site when one of the men, Jack Morrison (Joaquin Phoenix), is injured in a fall and trapped inside the building after rescuing a worker.

As he lies in a daze, Jack thinks back on his life as a fireman, conveniently starting when he shows up as a rookie at Mike's station and having the joke played on him that's played on all newcomers. These remembrances are periodically intercut with scenes of the company's frantic effort to rescue Jack. As the two story lines ultimately converge, we see the camaraderie of the men, the funny moments, the tragic ones, Jack meeting his wife, marrying, having kids ... none of this really packs much of an emotional impact. Beyond the fires, there's not much real life in `Ladder 49.''

The extras on the DVD include a making-of featurette in which Russell talks about going to Ron Howard, who directed the firefighting film ``Backdraft,'' for advice. Howard told him not to do the fires digitally. That and some of the other interviews may prove more interesting than the film.

``Ladder 49'' (Buena Vista; $29.99).

'The Ring,' 'Doppelganger,' 'Koma,' 'Phone'

With ``The Ring Two'' right around the corner, a special edition of ``The Ring'' is being released with a 16-minute original short called ``Rings.''

If you've forgotten or repressed the plot, ``The Ring'' involved watching an eerie videotape, shortly after which its viewers received a call telling them that they would be dead in seven days. The only way to stop the curse was to make a copy of the tape and show it to someone else before the week was up.

The film was truly a creep-fest, complete with the spectral images of a mysterious girl, dead horses and flies that could be picked off a video screen. ``Rings'' involves a group of college students who get their thrills by watching the tape, surviving as much fear and weirdness as they can while camcording everything, before passing the curse on to someone else. But for their newest member (Ryan Merriman), they have other plans.

The short is fairly effective, though it doesn't have the impact of the feature. The DVD also has interviews with ``Ring'' director Gore Verbinski and the film's star, Naomi Watts.

While critics were lukewarm toward ``The Ring,'' audiences weren't. Its eerie, otherworldly depiction of horror - as opposed to the kind found in slasher movies - tapped into some deep-seated fears. The film was the first of the Japanese horror films remade for American audiences. ``The Grudge'' was next, and more, including ``Dark Water'' with Jennifer Connelly, are coming. But if you're interested, a number of Asian horror films are being released, including ``Doppelganger'' from Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa. It involves a scientist who comes home one evening to find his exact double waiting for him in an update on ``Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.''

The Hong Kong film ``Koma'' is a bit of ``Dirty Pretty Things'' and a dash of ``Single White Female,'' with a woman needing an organ transplant and a woman suspected of murder crossing paths.

And then there is ``Phone,'' with the catch phrase, ``The last call you'll ever make.'' After writing a serious of articles about a sex scandal, a young journalist starts to receive frightening calls that turn very spooky.

There are a number of other ones, but one thing these films have in common is that they don't concern themselves with logic; instead, they seem concerned with creating images to make your skin crawl. And they are often very successful at it.

``The Ring - Collectors Set'' (DreamWorks; $26.99).

``Doppelganger'' (Tartan Video; $24.99).

``Koma'' (Tla; $24.99).

``Phone'' (Tla; $24.99).

`Friends' and more TV

The ninth season of ``Friends'' - its second to last - involved the usual emotional and romantic entanglements and a number of fun guest stars: Christina Applegate (who plays Rachel's ``other sister''), Hank Azaria, Selma Blair, Jeff Goldblum, Freddie Prinze Jr., Jon Lovitz, John Stamos, Elliott Gould (who walks in on Monica and Chandler doing it in a closet) and Dermot Mulroney.

Other TV collections are listed below.

``Friends - The Complete Ninth Season'' (Warner; $44.98) includes commentaries and featurettes.

``Columbo - The Complete Second Season'' (Universal; $39.98).

``21 Jump Street - The Complete Second Season'' (Anchor Bay; $44.98).

``Felicity - Senior Year Collection (The Complete Fourth Season)'' (Buena Vista; $59.99) includes commentary and featurettes.

``Green Acres - The Complete Second Season'' (MGM; $29.98).

Rob Lowman, [phone]

robert.lowman(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) JOAQUIN PHOENIX, left, and JOHN TRAVOLTA in ``Ladder 49''

(2) Courtney Cox Arquette in ``Friends''