‘Shakespeare in Love’ Arrives Loaded With Bells and Whistles

Miramax is offering a classy collector’s edition of its 1998 Oscar-winning best film, “Shakespeare in Love” ($40). Unlike the DVD version of the romantic comedy that was released several months ago, this collection has a lot of bells and whistles.

Included on the disc are a beautiful wide-screen print of the film, a plethora of Shakespearean facts and theatrical trailers. A short piece on the Oscar-winning costumes features an interview with designer Sandy Powell, who says she was inspired by Franco Zeffirelli’s “Romeo and Juliet.”

There is also an enjoyable behind-the-scenes documentary, “Shakespeare in Love and on Film,” which includes interviews with stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Ben Affleck, Judi Dench, director John Madden and screenwriters Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard. The documentary not only talks about the rocky road “Shakespeare” had getting to the screen--it was originally set to star Julia Roberts, but the script ended up languishing on the shelves at Universal--but also chronicles the history of Shakespearean plays on film.

Deleted scenes include an extended version of the ending, which is actually quite charming, and a funny scene involving a joke about Miramax kingpin Harvey Weinstein.

The disc offers two commentary tracks. The first features interviews with Powell, Madden, Norman, Stoppard, Paltrow, Rush and other members of the cast and crew. Norman explains that he was inspired to write the film 10 years ago when one of his teenage sons suggested the idea of Shakespeare in his early years.

Director Madden supplies the other commentary. He offers some fun and interesting insights, but the cast and crew commentary is the one worth listening to.

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Disney Home Video has just released a collector’s edition of its 1998 Pixar-animated hit, “A Bug’s Life” ($50). This two-DVD set is chock-full of spiffy goodies. Disc 1 features the computer-animated film in both wide-screen and full-screen, audio commentary from director John Lasseter, co-director and co-writer Andrew Stanton and supervising film editor Lee Unkrich. These are three wild and crazy guys, and their commentary is lots of fun.

Lasseter points out that the film’s complex opening, which begins with a panoramic landscape and then narrows down to the bug’s world, is so complicated that they didn’t even know how to do it when they started.

Also featured on the disc is an isolated music track and an isolated sound effects track.

Disc 2, hosted by Lasseter and Stanton, includes an early presentation reel done like a ‘50s educational movie, the original storyboards, character design, deleted sequences that didn’t work (including a prologue set in a museum), storyboard-to-final-film split-screen comparisons, a behind-the-scenes documentary on the creation of the film, a look at the voice talent and early production tests.

Sound engineer Gary Rydstrom talks about the movie’s unique sound design, including the odd things used to create the sound of the bugs, such as cracking open uncooked crabs and using the sound of various World War II bombers in flight. Also featured are both sets of hysterical outtakes and an explanation of how they were done.

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For the strictly undiscerning, there’s Warner Home Video’s digital version of “Wild Wild West” ($25). The wide-screen edition of the dreadful western comedy, starring Will Smith, Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh, includes Smith’s music video, a short behind-the-scenes documentary that aired on HBO, theatrical trailers, a stills gallery and a look at the special effects, props, gadgets and costumes.

For those with DVD-ROM, there is also a virtual tour of behind-the-scenes clips, a ROM game and two original essays.

Rounding out the disc is commentary by director Barry Sonnenfeld, who is a bit of a snooze. He talks about the special effects, the sets and working with the actors.