Lots of ‘Good,’ Some Bad but No ‘Titanic’ Yet on the Horizon

The shelves of video stores will be filled this summer with recent Oscar winners, box-office hits (and some misses), art-house films, vintage flicks and a few Disney goodies.

Though there still isn’t any news on when the Academy Award-winning blockbuster “Titanic” will hit video stores, there’s plenty of “good” news. Columbia TriStar has just released “As Good as It Gets,” featuring the Oscar-winning performances of Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt. On tap for July 7 from Miramax is “Good Will Hunting,” which won two Oscars--for Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s original screenplay and for best supporting actor (Robin Williams).

Julie Christie’s Oscar-nominated turn in “Afterglow” (Columbia TriStar) hits video stores on June 9; Miramax has scheduled “The Wings of the Dove,” starring Oscar nominee Helena Bonham Carter, for June 16; and New Line is unleashing the political satire “Wag the Dog,” starring Dustin Hoffman in his Oscar-nominated turn as an oily film producer, on July 7.

For the literary-minded, Francis Ford Coppola’s hit version of John Grisham’s “The Rainmaker” (Paramount), starring Damon, arrives on June 2. Clint Eastwood’s disappointing version of John Berendt’s popular bestseller “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” (Warner) also arrives on June 2. Also due that date from FoxVideo is Gillian Armstrong’s “Oscar and Lucinda,” based on the novel by Peter Carey. The ‘90s version of Charles Dickens’ 19th century masterwork “Great Expectations” (Fox) arrives July 21.

Aficionados of truly bad movies will relish such turkeys as “Home Alone 3” (Fox), due June 2; Kevin Costner’s “The Postman” (Warner), set for June 9; the Spice Girls’ infamous debut vehicle “Spice World” (Columbia TriStar), which arrives June 16; and the David Schwimmer comedy “Kiss a Fool” (Universal), on tap July 14.

Other notable titles include the Denzel Washington thriller “Fallen” (Warner), scheduled for June 16; Steven Spielberg’s historical epic “Amistad” (Universal), on tap for June 30; and the Daniel Day-Lewis drama “The Boxer” (Universal) bowing on July 7.

Arriving Tuesday from New Line are Woody Allen’s latest, “Deconstructing Harry,” and Atom Egoyan’s award-winning drama “The Sweet Hereafter.”

Due June 16 from Miramax is the Spanish comedy “Mouth to Mouth”; Errol Morris’ acclaimed documentary “Fast, Cheap and Out of Control” (Columbia TriStar) follows on June 23; and the Golden Globe-winning Belgian film “Ma Vie En Rose” (Columbia TriStar) debuts on June 30.

Emma Thompson headlines Alan Rickman’s intimate drama “The Winter Guest” (New Line), scheduled for July 14, and the Coen brothers’ latest opus, “The Big Lebowski,” (PolyGram) is set for Aug. 11.

Disney has several movies on the summer horizon. “Melody Time,” a 1948 animated/live-action musical with Roy Rogers and Bobby Driscoll, is set for June 2. Following on Aug. 4 is the 1985 animated fantasy “The Black Cauldron.” Arriving Aug. 25 is “Pocahontas: Journey to a New World,” a made-for-video sequel to the 1995 hit, “Pocahontas.”

Vintage movie buffs will also be in film heaven. On tap for Tuesday is Orion’s “Soul Cinema Collection,” which includes such ‘70s classics as “Foxy Brown” and “Truck Turner.” Also new that day from Universal are “All My Sons,” “The House of Seven Gables,” a 1934 version of “Great Expectations,” “The Major and the Minor,” “You Gotta Stay Happy,” “The Pink Jungle” and “The Brass Bottle.”

On June 16, Kino on Video unveils its “They Had Faces Then” series, spotlighting silent classics starring Rudolph Valentino, Louise Brooks, Richard Barthelmess and William S. Hart. And on July 21, Kino will release the final four volumes of its ambitious “Slapstick Encyclopedia” collection, highlighting notable short comedies of the silent era.

For mystery fans, there’s MGM’s six-volume “Charlie Chan Collection,” debuting on July 21. And Warner has scheduled the 25th anniversary special edition of the horror classic “The Exorcist,” for Aug. 25.