First Blood - 8:49pm

Kicking off today's news is the latest from Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment. On February 3rd, they will release the recent Meg Ryan erotic thriller In the Cut, which marked a dramatic departure for the normally perky actress. Directed by Jane (The Piano) Campion, the film will be available in separate R-rated and Unrated editions, each presented in anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital 5.1, with extras that include an audio commentary by Campion, making-of and "Slang Dictionary" featurettes and trailers. Retail will be $26.95.

Other new releases due on the 3rd include the Full Monty-esque comedy Once Upon a Time in the Midlands (also starring Monty's Robert Carlyle) and the foreign action hit Returner. Each is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and Dolby 5.1, plus bonus trailers only. Retail will be set at $24.95 a pop. Columbia will also issue a wave of new price reductions to take effect on the 3rd, for nearly a dozen catalog favorites: Big Girls Don't cry, The Caine Mutiny, The Crime of Padre Amaro, The Endurance, From Here to Eternity, GIlda, The Guns of Navarone, The Howards of Virginia and A Man for All Seasons. The new list price will be $19.95, and specs remain the same.

Lucky Seven - 8:49pm

Just in from The Criterion Collection are no less than seven new special editions due in February, stretched over two street dates, the 17th and the 24th. All are presented in their original sound formats and theatrical aspect ratios and, if widescreen, anamorphic encoded. The lineup features: Henri-Georges Clouzot's Le Corbeau/The Raven, which includes a video interview with director Bertrand Tavernier, excerpts from 1975 documentary "The Story of French Cinema by Those Who Made It: Grand Illusions 1939 – 1942," and a new essay by scholar Alan Williams; Robert Bresson's Diary of a Country Priest, with an audio commentary by film historian Peter Cowie, deleted scenes and a new essay by critic Frédéric Bonnaud; Barbet Schroeder's rarely-seen 1973 drama Maitresse, which includes a video interview with Schroeder and a new essay by film critic Elliott Stein; the late Sam Fuller's Pickup on South Street, with a one-on-one interview with Fuller and film critic Richard Schickel, excerpts from the "Cinema Cinemas" series, an illustrated biographical essay by Jeb Brody, a still gallery, trailers, and a booklet including excerpts from Fuller's autobiography "A Third Face"; Francesco Rosi's Salvatore Giuliano, including an audio commentary by film historian Peter Cowie, a 55-minute Italian television documentary, video interviews with Rosi and film critic Tullio Kezich, an essay by historian Michel Ciment, written tributes by Martin Scorsese, Federico Fellini, and Francis Ford Coppola, and the original theatrical trailer; Ronald Neame's Tunes of Glory, with a video interview with Neame, a new audio interview with actor Sir John Mills, an essay by historian Robert Murphy, and the original theatrical trailer; and finally, Laurence Olivier's Richard III, which sports a cut of the film incorporating newly discovered footage from the original theatrical release, an audio commentary by playwright Russell Lees and former Governor of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre John Wilders, a "Great Acting: Laurence Olivier" 1966 BBC interview with Olivier, a still gallery, excerpts from Olivier's autobiography "On Acting," an essay by historian Bruce Eder, the trailer, and an extended 12-minute television trailer with Olivier and crew. Retail will be $29.95 each, except for Diary of a Country Priest and Richard III, which will list for $39.95.

Make Me Laugh - 8:49pm

Rounding out today's news are some new street dates from MGM Home Entertainment, for the March comedy lineup of new catalog releases making their first-ever DVD debuts: Carbon Copy, Martin Short in Clifford, Mad Dog Time, the guilty pleasure Spacecamp, Takes This Job and Shove It, Walk Like a Man and the Sherlock Holmes satire Without a Clue, starring Michael Caine. All feature trailers and will retail for $14.95.Aspect ratio and sound format information is not yet available, but stay tuned. MGM will also issue a huge wave of price reductions, dropping over two dozen catalog faves to a new low price of $14.95: Bull Durham, 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag, Best Men, Billion Dollar Hobo, Bio-Dome, The Birdcage, Breaking In, Cadillac Man, Canadian Bacon, City Slickers, Clean Slate, The Couch Trip, Desperately Seeking Susan, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Dirty Work, Easy Money, Eight Men Out, Extreme Adventures of Super Dave, A Fish Called Wanda, Jackie Robinson Story, Kingpin, Married to the Mob, Mr. Saturday Night, Once Bitten, The Pride of the Yankees, Privates on Parade, Radio Days, Spaceballs and Zelig. Specs and features remain the same as the previously released versions.