FILM CRITICCarina ChocanoStrum like the man in...

FILM CRITIC

Carina Chocano

Strum like the man in black

At his house near Bon Aqua, Tenn., Johnny Cash kept a Model D-28 guitar from C.F. Martin & Co.-- the same model Joaquin Phoenix plays in the new biopic about the singer, “Walk the Line.” Cash also owned a D-76, D-18 and D-42, but the D-28 was the guitar he wrote songs on for the last 30 years of his life. According to the website of the National Music Museum at the University of South Dakota, where the guitar now lives, “it was more intimately connected with him than the hundreds of other guitars that came and went through his hands on the road.”

Martin Special Edition D-28 Marquis guitar, $3,570 from Guitar Center, 2660 E. Colorado Blvd. Pasadena. View a complete list of Martin dealers at www.martinguitar.com.

The call of the wild

Two of this year’s best documentaries, “March of the Penguins” and “Grizzly Man,” centered on the lives of wild animals whose environments are threatened. If you know someone who’d like to contribute to the off-screen cause, think about giving them a membership in the Natural Resources Defense Council or Sierra Club.

In 1975, grizzlies in and around Yellowstone National Park were listed under the Endangered Species Act. Since then, Yellowstone’s grizzlies have rebounded to about 600 bears, spurring the Interior Department to announce its intent to remove the animals from the protection of the Endangered Species Act. The council and the Sierra Club are protesting the move. The National Resource Defense Council also educates kids on the effects of global warming on Arctic and Antarctic animals.

To help the bears and penguins, donate or get a gift membership to the Natural Resources Defense Council, $15, www.nrdc.org/joinGive/join/egift.asp, or the Sierra Club, $25, www.sierraclub.org/membership.

A horse, of course

In “Dreamer,” Dakota Fanning bonds with a horse, as girls are wont to do. Griffith Park Farms is a full-service show and training barn that offers private and group lessons, along with custom training for horse and rider, and lease programs.

Griffith Park Farms, Los Angeles Equestrian Center Barn B, 480 Riverside Drive, Burbank, (818) 841-4024, www.griffithparkfarms.com. Prices for the Level 1 track of one lesson a week begin at $260 a month.

Heroines seeking Mr. Right

Asked whether he ever read fiction, philosopher Gilbert Ryle replied, “All six of them, every year.” He was referring to the novels of Jane Austen. “Pride and Prejudice,” “Sense and Sensibility,” “Emma,” “Mansfield Park,” “Persuasion” and “Northanger Abbey” as well as the lesser-known epistolary novel and unfinished last novel, published together as “Lady Susan, the Watsons, Sanditon,” makes a complete set to tide you over until someone gets around to adapting “Northanger Abbey.” Austen’s novels come in many editions, but the Penguin Classics are the nicest, featuring period paintings rather than the latest movie stars to portray Elizabeth, Emma, Fanny, Marianne, et al.

Jane Austen novels, Penguin Classics, $7 to $9 each, with a discount on buying the complete set. us.penguinclassics.com.

STAFF WRITER

Susan King

Shakespeare, re-envisioned

“Ran,” Akira Kurosawa’s masterful re-imagining of Shakespeare’s tragedy “King Lear,” has something for everyone -- incredible battle sequences, memorable cinematography, themes of madness, murder, betrayal and even a cross-dressing TV performer in the role of the fool.

The new two-disc set from Criterion features the restored high-definition digital transfer, astute commentary from Kurosawa scholar Stephen Prince, an introduction to the film by director Sidney Lumet and “A.K.,” Chris Marker’s acclaimed documentary on the filming of “Ran.”

“Ran,” Criterion Collection, $29.96, www.criterionco.com.

Yada, yada, yada

It was eight years ago this Christmas that Jerry Seinfeld announced he was going to end his Emmy Award-winning NBC comedy, “Seinfeld.” Not only does the eight-disc set of the fifth and sixth seasons include the famously funny episode “The Puffy Shirt,” it also features a miniature collectible puffy shirt -- think of a dressed bobble-head without the head. In addition to 26 hours of bonus materials, rounding out the set is a “reproduction” of a handwritten script by Seinfeld.

“Seinfeld -- Seasons 5 & 6 Giftset,” Sony, $77.97, www.sonypictures.com/homevideo.

Horror that wasn’t sold by the gross

Contemporary horror films today are filled with blood, guts, severed limbs and stomach-churning special effects. But back in the 1940s, producer Val Lewton made a series of low-budget movies for RKO that dealt more with psychological horrors, without the cheap tricks.

The films included in the new “Val Lewton Horror Collection” are “Cat People,” perhaps the best known of the Lewton films; “The Curse of the Cat People,” which marked Robert Wise’s directorial debut; “I Walked With a Zombie,” a clever retelling of “Jane Eyre”; and “The Seventh Victim,” which marked the film debut of Oscar-winning actress Kim Hunter. Also included is a documentary on Lewton, trailers and audio commentaries.

“Val Lewton Horror Collection,” Warner Home Video, $41.98, www.warnervideo.com.

POP MUSIC CRITIC

Robert Hilburn

In the path of Bono

The book “Killing Bono,” despite the title, isn’t a formal study of the U2 lead singer. Bono is simply a recurring character in an autobiography by Neil McCormick, who went to school with the singer and shared dreams of being a rock musician. Eventually, McCormick gave up that quest and became a London journalist. What is endearing is his relationship with Bono, who, despite their divergent paths, remained a good and loyal friend. In a cynical age, it is reassuring to know that the singer is every bit the good guy that his music and actions suggest.

“Killing Bono,” Pocket Books, $14, www.simonsays.com.

Take them out to the ballgame

This may not be baseball season, but true fans are always ready for a bit of nostalgia, and the four-CD set “The Great American Baseball Box” is fabulous. The only thing missing is Cracker Jack. You can relive highlights of some of the game’s greatest moments as well as hear classic baseball songs and folklore. A musical highlight: Sister Wynona Carr’s gospel-flavored “The Ball Game,” which uses baseball imagery as a sermon on getting to heaven: “First base is temptation / You know that second base is sin / Third base is tribulation / If you pass, you can make it in.” Four hours of baseball nirvana.

“The Great American Baseball Box,” Shout! Factory, $59.98, www.shoutfactory.com.

Recording the record industry

One thing pop fans and baseball fans have in common is a love of statistics. Just as baseball devotees can tell you how many career no-hitters Nolan Ryan had (seven), pop followers can fill you in on how many No. 1 albums the Beatles had in the ‘60s (13). But even the most hard-core music fan will learn a lot from Joel Whitburn’s Record Research books. Entire volumes are devoted to such matters as the chart position of every hit pop single since 1955 and album cover photos from every No. 1 album since 1945. Delights, all.

Record Research Books, about $15 to $80, www.recordresearch.com.