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For Immediate Release
Paramount Home Entertainment Proudly Presents Five Unforgettable
War Dramas:
"CATCH-22," "HELL IS
FOR HEROES," "IN HARM'S WAY," "UNCOMMON VALOR"
and "THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI"
-- Battling Their Way to DVD Before Memorial Day --
"CATCH-22" contains commentary by director
Mike Nichols
and Double Oscar-nominated filmmaker Steven Soderbergh
HOLLYWOOD, CA -- All the major wars of the late 20th century are
represented in a cluster of war movies Paramount Home Entertainment is
delivering to DVD for the first time on May 22. CATCH-22 is the anti-war
story of a soldier desperate to escape World War II and features an all-star
cast that includes Alan Arkin (Gattaca), Orson Welles (Don Quixote) and
Jon Voight (Varsity Blues). HELL IS FOR HEROES stars Steve McQueen (The
Towering Inferno) and James Coburn (Affliction) as soldiers trying to
prevent a German attack during World War II. IN HARM'S WAY follows the
lives of two Navy officers played by John Wayne (The Shootist) and Kirk
Douglas (Spartacus) as they survive the attack on Pearl Harbor. THE BRIDGES
AT TOKO-RI chronicles the life of a Navy fighter pilot (William Holden,
Paris When It Sizzles) during the Korean War. UNCOMMON VALOR stars Gene
Hackman (Crimson Tide) as a father who tries to rescue his son from a
Vietnamese POW camp, ten years after his abduction. Prebook for these
DVDs is April 10.
A classic war drama based on the legendary novel by Joseph Heller and
directed by Mike Nichols (The Graduate), CATCH-22 (1970) stars
Alan Arkin as Yossarian, a World War II bombardier stationed at a Mediterranean
air base. Desperate to get out of the war, Yossarian finds that a cleverly
worded loophole - "catch-22" - prevents him from ever leaving
until the army is through with him. While he's flown enough missions to
get out of the war, his commanders Colonel Cathcart (Martin Balsam, Cape
Fear) and Colonel Korn (Buck Henry, Grumpy Old Men) keep raising the number
of missions needed for discharge. Burnt out from the struggles and weary
from the politics of war, Yossarian realizes that the only way to escape
his situation is if the doctor (Jack Gilford, Cocoon: The Return) declares
him insane. Resolved to go home, Yossarian attempts to convince his comrades
that he is indeed crazy, until his initially sane friends, Nately (Art
Garfunkel, Boxing Helena) and Dobbs (Martin Sheen, TV's "The West
Wing") genuinely lose their minds. Compounded by Milo Minderbinder's
(Jon Voight, Midnight Cowboy) plans to sell off the base bit by bit to
the Nazis and General Dreedle's (Orson Welles, Macbeth) desire to shoot
airmen who comment on the figure of his shapely secretary, everything
soon goes awry. Murders, mistaken identity, self-deception and the eventual
bombing of the base escalate in CATCH-22 leading Yossarian on an even
more determined quest to escape. The CATCH-22 DVD includes a commentary
by director Mike Nichols and filmmaker Steven Soderbergh; a photo gallery
and the theatrical trailer.
HELL IS FOR HEROES (1962), follows a squad of weary American infantrymen
who in the autumn of 1944 think they are on their way home when they are
suddenly thrust back to the front line against the Nazis. Composed of
Privates J.J. Corby (Bobby Darin, TV's "The Bobby Darin Show"),
Kolinsky (Mike Kellin), Cumberly (Bill Mullikin) and their Polish refugee
Homer (Nick Adams, Mission to Mars), the troops are led by staff Sergeant
John Reese (McQueen) and his superior Sergeant Larkin (Harry Guardino,
Fist of Honor). Desperate to convince the enemy that there is a large
American force behind them, they enlist the help of demolition expert
Corporal Henshaw (James Coburn) and rig a jeep belonging to Private James
E. Driscoll (Bob Newhart) to make it sound like a tank. Filled with fierce
fighting, bravery under fire and even a bit of comedy, HELL IS FOR HEROES
is a cult classic war drama directed by Don Siegel (Dirty Harry). The
DVD contains the theatrical trailer.
Starring John Wayne as Captain Rockwell Torrey and Kirk Douglass as Commander
Paul Eddington, IN HARM'S WAY (1965) is the story of two Navy officers
who survive the attack on Pearl Harbor. Going behind the scenes of World
War II and into the lives of the people who fought in it, IN HARM'S WAY
explores the lives of Torrey and Eddington as they try to balance the
stress of their personal lives in the middle of a war. Romantically involved
with no-nonsense nurse Maggie Haynes (Patricia Neal, Cookie's Fortune),
Torrey also tries to restore his relationship with his estranged son and
young Naval officer Jeremiah (Brandon de Wilde, All Fall Down) while Eddington
is on a path to self-destruction. The story of human struggle and revenge,
IN HARM'S WAY was directed by Otto Preminger (Laura). The DVD contains
a theatrical trailer.
Based on the novel by James Michener, THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI (1954)
stars William Holden as Harry Brubaker, a military pilot who served during
World War II. When Brubaker is called back into duty during the Korean
War, he is reluctant to leave behind his wife (Grace Kelly, To Catch a
Thief), family and successful law practice, but accepts his new mission
nonetheless. Assigned to blow up five crucial bridges in Korean territory,
Brubaker puts his life on the line to make sure the effort is a success.
Also starring Frederic March (The Iceman Cometh), Mickey Rooney (The Black
Stallion), Robert Strauss (Frankie and Johnny) and Charles McGraw (Spartacus),
THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI focuses on the dangers and futility of war. The
DVD contains the theatrical trailer.
In UNCOMMON VALOR (1983), Gene Hackman stars as Colonel Cal Rhodes,
a father determined to find his son who was reported "missing in
action" during the Vietnam war. Obsessed by his own mission and with
the financial backing of a Texas oil tycoon (Robert Stack, BASEketball),
Colonel Rhodes enlists the help of five of his son's wartime buddies and
sets off for southeast Asia to rescue the POW's. After receiving an aerial
photograph of what appears to be the P.O.W. camp in Laos, they assemble
a full-size replica and use it as a training facility. Joined by the young
former G. I., Kevin Scott (Patrick Swayze, Dirty Dancing), the group embarks
on a series of grueling training exercises and an emotional final battle
to reclaim their own. The DVD contains the theatrical trailer.
The DVDs of CATCH-22, HELL IS FOR HEROES, IN HARM'S WAY, and UNCOMMON
VALOR are repackaged and remastered and presented in widescreen format
enhanced for 16:9 televisions (THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI is in standard version).
All are closed captioned and subtitled in English for the deaf and hard
of hearing. CATCH-22 and UNCOMMON VALOR are in Dolby Digital English 5.1
Surround and French Mono; IN HARM'S WAY is in Dolby Digital English 5.1
Surround and THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI and HELL IS FOR HEROES are in Dolby
Digital English and French Mono. All DVDs are encoded with the Macrovision
AntiCopy process.
All five DVDs are priced at $29.99 each (S.R.P.) in the U.S. and $39.99
each (S.R.P.) in Canada. HELL IS FOR HEROES, IN HARM'S WAY, and THE BRIDGES
AT TOKO-RI are Not Rated (NR) in the U.S. by the Motion Picture Association
of America (and PG, PG and G respectively in Canada). CATCH-22 and UNCOMMON
VALOR are rated R in the U.S. by the MPAA (and 18A and 14A respectively
in Canada). CATCH-22 has a running time of approximately 121 minutes,
HELL IS FOR HEROES is approximately 89 minutes long, and IN HARM'S WAY
is approximately 167 minutes. THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI has a running time
of approximately 103 minutes while UNCOMMON VALOR is approximately 104
minutes long.
Visit www.paramount.com/homevideo to learn more about Paramount Home
Entertainment's new releases, as well as other classic Hollywood films,
television programs, animated titles and family and special interest programming.
Paramount Home Entertainment is part of the operations of Paramount Pictures,
a unit of Viacom Inc.
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