Video Reviews and News

****Excellent ***Good

**Ordinary *Poor

Recent videocassette releases, reviewed by Times critics.

MORE NEW RELEASES

Movies

“Big Top Pee-wee” (Paramount, $89.95, PG) is one of those movies that is perfect to wait and see as a videocassette. Not because this comedy is a good film--it isn’t by a long shot, falling far below the fun of Pee-wee Herman’s debut in “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” (directed by Tim “Beetlejuice” Burton, who skipped this one). No, it’s perfect VCR fodder because you can watch the delightful opening farm sequence and then, about 20 minutes into the film, hit the stop button and plug in the other video you’ve rented--saving yourself the pain of watching the movie go completely awry.

What should that other rental be? Well, if you’re in the mood for something completely different, as Monty Python used to say, and you’ve shuffled the kiddies off to bed, there’s “Point Blank” (MGM/UA, $79.95), a mean-as-they-get (for the ‘60s, anyway) revenge thriller directed with style by John Boorman. The 1967 release stars Lee Marvin and Angie Dickinson.

Or else, if you’d like to stick with the lighter stuff, there are six Elvis Presley films new to video this weekend. None are among his best, but “Kissin’ Cousins” (1964), “Girl Happy” (1965), “Spinout” (1966) and “The Trouble With Girls” (1969) are easy to take if you don’t expect too much. The other two, “Live a Little, Love a Little” (1968) and “Stay Away, Joe” (1968) are for dedicated fans only. They’re all $19.95 from MGM/UA.

Other new films include “Casual Sex?” (MCA, $89.95, R), a female-buddy comedy/drama from earlier this year, and “Howling IV: The Original Nightmare.” (IVE, $79.95, unrated).

Other Videos

Just in case you missed all 840 minutes--or was it 840 hours?--”War and Remembrance” is now on video (MPI, $139.95 for seven cassettes).

Compiled by Terry Atkinson