Home Entertainment : Some Last-Minute Video Gifts for Dad

What to get Dad for Father’s Day. . . .

If you haven’t figured it out by Saturday and desperation sets in, you might try finding a suitable video. Here are some suggestions:

Dads who like horror movies would appreciate something in the collection of Vincent Price films that is just out on Orion at $15 each, including “The Masque of the Red Death,” “Tales of Terror,” “Master of the World” and “Scream and Scream Again.”

For fathers who are into vintage TV videos, try Buena Vista’s four-volume, $60 set of highlights from Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show” or MCA/Universal’s new Jack Benny series--featuring two episodes per $15 tape.

Sports videos make good Father’s Days gifts. Check out a sporting goods store for the best selection, particularly if your father is into such outdoor sports as fishing and hunting.

For the father who’s a weekend baseball or softball player, ABC’s “Let’s Play Baseball” is chock-full of terrific tips. St. Louis Cardinals’ shortstop Ozzie Smith proves to be an impressive teacher, explaining the fine points of pitching, batting, running and fielding.

Golfers might like “Mental Golf,” which shows you how to improve your game through psychological means. Golfer-psychologist Donna LaTreill argues that golf is a “mind game” too. For $20 from LIVE.

And then there are Westerns. They do great business around Father’s Day. You might look for such classics as “Shane” or “High Noon” or any John Wayne movies, especially “Stagecoach,” “Rio Bravo” and “The Searchers.”

Some more obscure Westerns make good gifts too, particularly the sets. For instance, Republic has packaged some vintage, fairly obscure Wayne Westerns from his days as a B-movie star back in the 1930s.

Foreign Films

There’s finally a release date for Miramax’s “Like Water for Chocolate,” which grossed more than $20 million, making it one of the most popular foreign-language movies ever. It’s due Aug. 24--in both dubbed and subtitled versions--and will be readily available because of major distribution through Buena Vista.

Chen Kiage, who directed “Farewell My Concubine,” did an even better movie in 1991, “Life on a String,” about a blind Chinese man who hopes to see again. Available on Kino. . . . A Gerard Depardieu oldie--from 1977--”This Sweet Success” is out on World Artists. It’s a bleak drama about obsessive love. . . . A Venice Film Festival award winner, the Spanish comedy “Jamon Jamon” is coming out July 27 on Academy. . . . Repriced down to $20 and available from Orion on June 29, the 1991 French version of “The Vanishing” and the erotic Japanese classic “In the Realm of the Senses”--both dubbed and subtitled.

Special Interest

Trainers knowledgeable about exercise walking recommend Denise Austin’s “Trimwalk,” which includes an effective post-walk workout. From Parade at $25, (201) 344-4214. . . . Norman Rockwell, cornball illustrator of Americana or skilled, insightful artist? You get a convincing, pro-Rockwell perspective in the hour video “Norman Rockwell: An American Portrait.” For $20 from VIEW, (800) 843-9843.

Assembled by Duke University experts, “It’s Sleepy Time” offers everything you need to know about establishing regular nap and sleep routines for toddlers. From Kidvision, a 45-minutes tape for $20. . . . “More Than Bows and Arrows” is an excellent one-hour guide to and history of Native American culture--cutting down myths and citing influences on mainstream culture. For $20 on Wood Knapp, (800) 521-2666.

What’s New On Video

“The Pelican Brief” (Warner). A law student (Julia Roberts) and a journalist (Denzel Washington) probe the assassinations of two Supreme Court justices. This adaptation of novelist’s John Grisham’s thriller has some exciting sequences but is hardly an edge-of-the-seat grabber.

“Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” (Warner). This is like one of those screwball Jerry Lewis movies of the 1950s, with Jim Carrey playing the lovable goofball. Most adults will have a low tolerance for this silly tale of a buffoonish pet detective hired to find a missing dolphin, but Carrey’s mugging and crude, reckless slapstick has strong appeal for youngsters--particularly boys.

“The Getaway” (MCA/Universal). A remake of a 1972 hit, about an ex-con and his wife on the run from gangsters. There’s much stronger chemistry between original stars Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw than between Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger in the remake. It does bog down in stretches but as a violent action movie, the remake generally delivers--particularly the explosive finale.

“Dangerous Game” (MGM/UA). Harvey Keitel plays the slimy lead character in director Abel Ferrara’s first-rate, disturbing “Bad Lieutenant.” Keitel plays another slimeball--this time a film director--in Ferrara’s latest, which is a step or two down in quality from “Lieutenant.” About the filming of a movie, “Game” is partly pretentious and chaotic and partly abrasive, searing drama.

“Iron Will” (Disney). Early in the century, to rescue his family from financial ruin, iron-willed young Will (Mackenzie Astin) suffers through a grueling cross-country dog sled race, hoping to win the $10,000 prize. Too syrupy at times but thanks to terrific race footage and gorgeous landscapes, it’s an exciting family film.

“The Air Up There” (Hollywood). A Disney-style, cliche-filled sports comedy about a brash college basketball coach (Kevin Bacon) on a recruiting mission in Kenya. He gets mixed up in tribal conflict and has to coach a team of warriors. If you liked “The Mighty Ducks” and “Cool Runnings,” you might like this.

FILMS ON VIDEO

Recent films coming out on video: Buena Vista’s “Angie,” featuring Geena Davis, on Aug. 3; Columbia TriStar’s “My Girl 2,” starring Jamie Lee Curtis, on Aug. 10; Paramount’s “Blue Chips,” with Nick Nolte, due Aug. 24. Also: “Six Degrees of Separation,” “Geronimo: An American Legend,” “Tombstone” and “Gunmen” (Wednesday); “Philadelphia,” “In the Name of the Father” and “Naked” (June 29); “Grumpy Old Men,” “Sugar Hill,” “House Party 3,” and “Romeo Is Bleeding” (July 6); “Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit,” “Shadowlands,” “Reality Bites,” “Searching for Bobby Fischer,” “Blink,” “Heaven and Earth,” “Body Snatchers” and “On Deadly Ground” (July 13); “Car 54, Where Are You?” and “My Father the Hero” (July 20); “Thumbelina” (July 26); “Wrestling Ernest Hemingway,” “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?,” “Cabin Boy” and “Blank Check” (July 27); “Major League II” and “The Chase” (Aug. 3); “Beethoven’s 2nd” (Aug. 9); “The Ref” and “Chasers” (Aug. 10); “I’ll Do Anything” (Aug. 17); “Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas” (Sept. 30); “Jurassic Park” (Oct. 4); “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (Oct. 28).