VIDEO : GREAT (AND CHEAP!) HOLIDAY GIFTS.Byline: Robert Bianco Special to the Daily News If you have movie lovers on your holiday gift list, does video have a gift for you! The video business is in the midst Adv. 1. in the midst - the middle or central part or point; "in the midst of the forest"; "could he walk out in the midst of his piece?" midmost of an unprecedented sell-through explosion, meaning the choices for video buyers have never been better. From the current big hits to long-absent classics, the video stores and catalogs have something for just about everyone - often for much less than the suggested retail price you'll find listed here. Looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. a movie for your kids? Choices this year include such well-promoted favorites as ``E.T.'' (1982, MCA/Universal; $14.98), ``Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory'' (1971, Warner; $19.98), ``James and the Giant Peach'' (1995, Disney; $22.98), ``Pocahontas'' (1995, Disney; $26.99), ``The Aristocats'' (1970, Disney; $26.99), ``Oliver and Company'' (1988) (Disney; $26.99), and the two best kids' choice of all, ``Toy Story'' (1995, Disney; $26.99) and ``Babe'' (1995, MCA/Universal; $22.98). Unfortunately, these movies have been so well-promoted, your children may have already talked you into buying them, which means you need a slightly less obvious choice. The same goes for the year's big adult hits, ``Twister'' (Warner; $22.98), ``Independence Day'' (Fox; $22.95) and ``The Nutty Professor'' (MCA/Universal; $22.95). Oh, and ``Mission: Impossible'' (Paramount; $19.98) is out there, too, for those who are shopping for someone they don't really like. For the rest of us (abuse) for The Rest Of Us - (From the Macintosh slogan "The computer for the rest of us") 1. Used to describe a spiffy product whose affordability shames other comparable products, or (more often) used sarcastically to describe spiffy but very overpriced products. 2. , here are a few suggestions: Kids: Children should love the Oscar-winning clay-animated adventures of ``Wallace & Gromit,'' out now on CBS/Fox video CBS/Fox Video was a home video company formed and established in 1982. The company was a merger between 20th Century Fox Video, formerly Magnetic Video Corporation, and CBS Video Enterprises. . Their three films - ``The Wrong Trousers,'' ``A Grand Day Out'' and ``A Close Shave'' - are available in a gift set for $24.98 or individually for $9.98. Surely you didn't think Disney was done with you? The company's Christmas release is ``101 Dalmatians: Pongo and Perdita's Sing Along Songs,'' a $12.99 live-action video tied to the theatrical release of ``101 Dalmatians.'' If you're looking for something a bit more unusual for preschoolers, consider ``Gregory and Me!'' - a personalized video available from Kideo kid·e·o n. Slang Kidvid. [kid + (vid)eo.] at (800) 335-4336. But you'll have to act fast if you want it for Christmas. You send them a photo and $34.90, and they'll send you a video that has your child interacting with a group of puppets. Don't expect ``Forrest Gump''-like technical sophistication so·phis·ti·cate v. so·phis·ti·cat·ed, so·phis·ti·cat·ing, so·phis·ti·cates v.tr. 1. To cause to become less natural, especially to make less naive and more worldly. 2. : Basically, your kid's disembodied head is stuck on top of a puppet and a cartoon. But little kids will probably like it just for the way Gregory keeps using their names. Comedy: It's a great year for TV favorites. Big spenders should consider three great gift sets from CBS/Fox video, ``The Honeymooners Classic 39 Collection Gift Set,'' ``The Complete Black Adder Gift Set'' or the ``Absolutely Fabulous Gift Set,'' each $99.98. If you're looking for something a little less fabulous, consider ``The Comedians: Good Stuff! - Stand-up stand·up or stand-up adj. 1. Standing erect; upright: a standup collar. 2. Taken, done, or used while standing: a standup supper; a standup bar. Debuts from `The Tonight Show''' (Buena Vista; $14.99), a compilation tape featuring the debuts of such comics as Jerry Seinfeld, Garry Shandling and Drew Carey. Drama: Feeling romantic for the holidays? Consider either ``The Bridges of Madison County'' (1995, Warner; $19.98) or ``The Jane Austen Duet Gift Set'' (Columbia TriStar; $39.95), a two-tape combo of the recent BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. version of ``Persuasion'' and Emma Thompson's ``Sense and Sensibility Sense and Sensibility is a novel by the English novelist Jane Austen, that was first published in 1811. It was the first of Austen's novels to be published, under the pseudonym "A Lady". .'' Adventure: The latest Bond film, ``GoldenEye'' (1995; $19.98), is new to sell-through, where it competes with various gift-set collections of the old Bond films. There's also a new release of one of the decade's best action films, ``Speed'' (1994; $19.98), available now from FoxVideo in a remastered, wide-screen version. And if you want to introduce someone in the family to classic action, consider Akira Kurosawa's 1961 Japanese masterpiece ``Yojimbo'' (Home Vision; $29.95), the inspiration for ``A Fistful fist·ful n. pl. fist·fuls The amount that a fist can hold. Noun 1. fistful - the quantity that can be held in the hand handful containerful - the quantity that a container will hold of Dollars.'' History: There are several big-ticket items for history buffs: Look at ``The West'' (Time Life; $149.99), ``Floating Palaces'' (A&E; $59.95) or the 12-tape ``Century of Warfare'' ($199.99). Those looking for something less stratospheric strat·o·spher·ic adj. 1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of the stratosphere. 2. Extremely or unreasonably high: "money borrowed at today's stratospheric rates of interest" should consider ``The Hindenberg'' ($29.95), a fascinating account of one of the world's most famous travel disasters. Performance: If you can't get tickets to ``Riverdance'' (Columbia; $24.95), you can still enjoy this celebration of tap on tape. Sports: Tapes for sports fans include ``Michael Jordan: The Ultimate Collection'' (CBS/Fox; $29.98), ``College Football's All-Time Rivalries'' (ESPN ESPN Entertainment and Sports Programming Network ; $14.95) and ``Ice Hot: The Best of the 1995-96 NHL NHL Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, see there Season'' (CBS/Fox; $14.98). Guilty pleasures: Why punish someone with ``Mission: Impossible'' when you can give them a really enjoyable bad movie? For just under $10, you can get ``The Concorde: Airport '79'' (MCA/Universal; $9.98), a movie almost as funny as the ``Airplane!'' spoof it helped inspire. Share it with someone you love. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: If you want to spend a little more, give a heaping helping of Jackie Gleason with ``The Honeymooners Classic 39 Collection Gift Set,'' for $99.98. |
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