DVDS `MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE III' ALL SHOW.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

In ``Mission: Impossible III,'' Tom Cruise's super-agent Ethan Hunt and his crew are trying to prevent a super-villain played by Philip Seymour Hoffman from taking possession of the Rabbit's Foot.

Now, you can be assured that it's not some furry good-luck charm. It's supposed to be some powerful deadly weapon that in the wrong hands could pose terrible problems for the whole world.

But even at the end, Hunt doesn't learn what he has risked his life and the lives of his fiancee and crew for. ``It's on a need-to-know basis,'' he's told.

What's a MacGuffin?

Director and writer J.J. Abrams might as well have called it a ``MacGuffin,'' which in film terms is a plot device that motivates the characters and advances the story. The term was popularized by Alfred Hitchcock, who told a story about lion hunting in Scotland to illustrate it (look it up). The point was that a MacGuffin was meant to start the action, and it didn't matter what it was.

So the Rabbit's Foot is something of a drawn-out film joke in this nonstop thriller that plays out like a longer, bigger effects version of Abrams' ``Alias'' -- only without Jennifer Garner doing the running, and couch-jumping Cruise filling the role instead.

Some pundits believe that Cruise's antics contributed to reasons the film somewhat underperformed. Oddly enough, ``M:I:III's'' plot somewhat reflects the star's bizarre public life because in the film he has a fiancee (Michelle Monaghan) who becomes embroiled in the action.

Antics aside, though, ``M:I:III'' is fairly slick if very superficial entertainment. Cruise's Hunt is all show -- running, jumping, standing still. It's the standing still part that's the problem. We have little idea of the man, and the few moments of supposed emotion are mawkish and awkward.

A very helpful Hoffman

Luckily Hoffman makes a good villain, and its his menace that keeps the film alive. As with the other ``M:I'' films, no one is necessarily who they appear to be, but all that trickery isn't put to much use. You may enjoy ``M:I:III'' but it's about as memorable as an episode of the now off-the-air ``Alias.''

For fans of ``M:I,'' which came out Monday, there's a two-disc special edition with loads of extras.

Rob Lowman [phone]

[e-mail]

NEW FILMS

``Mission: Impossible III'' (Paramount; $29.98 and $34.98 for the two-disc special collector's edition)

``Keeping Up With the Steins'' (Miramax; $29.99)

TELEVISION

``CSI Miami -- The Complete Fourth Season'' (Paramount; $64.99)

``Ghost Whisperer -- The Complete First Season'' (Paramount; $72;99)

``A Touch of Frost -- Seasons 11 & 12'' (MPI; $39.99)

``The Last Detective -- Series 2'' (Acorn; $39.99)

``Martin & Lewis Collection -- Vol. 1'' Paramount; $49.99)

``Kids in the Hall -- Complete Season 5'' (A&E; $59.95)

OLDER FILMS

``The Tarzan Collection Starring Johnny Weissmuller, Vol. 2'' (``Tarzan Triumphs,'' ``Tarzan's Desert Mystery,'' ``Tarzan and the Amazons,'' and ``Tarzan and the Leopard Woman,'' ``Tarzan and and the Huntress,'' ``Tarzan and the Mermaids'') (Warner; $34.99)

``It's a Wonderful Life -- 60th Anniversary Edition'' (Paramount; $19.99)

MUSIC

``Barry Manilow -- First and Farewell'' (Rhino; $19.98)

``Bob Dylan -- 1966 World Tour -- The Home Movies'' (Music Video; $14.95)

``Dylan Speaks'' (Eagle; $9.99)

``Live at the Isle of Wight Festival'' (Eagle; $16.98)

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

Tom Cruise and Michelle Monaghan are caught in a plot to recover a weapon in ``M:I:III.''