The DVD Filter

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By Logan Hill
Published Aug 13, 2007

Laura Dern in Inland Empire.

(Photo: Courtesy of Rhino)

House of Games
David Mamet’s apogee of con artistry. R; $39.99.

The Lookout
Joseph Gordon-Levitt grounds this ridiculously convoluted heist flick. R; $29.99.

The Dark Crystal/Labyrinth
Puppets were creepy, Jennifer Connelly was a cutie. PG; $24.96 each.

The First Films of Samuel Fuller
Watch I Shot Jesse James to prepare for Brad Pitt’s new fall flick, The Baron of Arizona to see Vincent Price play a real-estate crook Donald Trump would love, and The Steel Helmet to see the birth of Fuller’s brutal aesthetic. NR; $49.95.

OUR PICK
David Lynch may have embraced digital video with his baffling, yet fascinating trip Inland Empire, but he’s not a complete convert. For instance, he does not want you to watch this film on your “fucking telephone.” He’s not even very thrilled that you’re watching it on DVD. But since “it’s not a perfect world,” he asks viewers to use the chapter breaks when “using the loo … rather than fast-forwarding or rewinding.” We disagree: Repeat, rewind, pause, and fast-forward through both the film and Lynch’s boatload of extras. There’s a stunningly simple short film of a ballerina, a cooking lesson, and more interviews so weirdly charming they’re an argument for a David Lynch one-man show. As for the deleted scenes, well, you’re on your own. R; $29.95.