ShareThis(MOVIE LEGENDS: BOB HOPE. 1943-66. NOT RATED. MGM. $39.98. SEVEN DISCS)Bob Hope used to make money on the relative mediocrity of his film career every year when he hosted the Oscars. He wasn't a bad comic film actor by any stretch of the imagination, but like some other stand-up comics -- Jack Benny, Phyllis Diller, Ellen DeGeneres -- the charm didn't translate all that well to the screen.The seven films in the MGM Legends Collection run the gamut from pretty funny ("They Got Me Covered") to virtually unwatchable ("Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number"). There's also a "Road" picture with Bing Crosby in the collection, although most of the others in that series were done for Paramount. This one, "The Road to Hong Kong," is fairly funny, thanks to cameos by Peter Sellers and David Niven, and a nice supporting performance by Robert Morley."The Facts of Life," with Lucille Ball, is a very odd duck, a black-and-white attempt to get hip with '60s morality as Bob and Lucy have an extramarital affair and go off to Monterey together. It's not just that it isn't funny, but it's also rather repugnant. It's not as terrible as "Wrong Number," which features Elke Sommer in a towel as a Hollywood starlet in hiding and Diller as an unconvincing housekeeper."Alias Jesse James" (on DVD for the first time), "The Princess and the Pirate" and the giddy "I'll Take Sweden," with Tuesday Weld as Bob's teenage daughter, round out the collection nicely. -- DAVID WIEGAND(DARK BLUE ALMOST BLACK. 2006. NOT RATED. STRAND RELEASING $27.99)Daniel Sanchez Arevalo toys frequently with elements of farce in his charming 2006 film "Dark Blue Almost Black," so much so that the film could be called Spanish farce, not to be confused with the French variety. The film is the story of Jorge (Quim Gutierrez), a handsome young man who works as a janitor while studying for his business degree. Just as he's ready to escape his dead-end life, his father collapses and he's forced to stay home to take care of him. His infertile older brother is in jail and wants Jorge to father a child with his jailed girlfriend, Paula (Marta Etura), because he's afraid he'll lose her otherwise. Meanwhile, Jorge's best friend, Israel (Raul Arevalo), is on the roof photographing a masseur working on his clients when he sees his own father strip down for a rubdown with benefits. Before long, Israel is visiting the masseur as well. Jorge makes regular "face-to-face" visits to the women's prison to carry out his brother's wishes and, inevitably, begins to fall for Paula. Sanchez Arevalo not only draws wonderful performances from his cast but also knows exactly how to balance light and dark elements in his admittedly unbelievable story. It's a perfect mix of grit and fluff. -- DAVID WIEGAND(STAR TREK: SEASON 1. 1966. NOT RATED. PARAMOUNT HOME VIDEO. $194.99. 10 DISCS) Capt. James T. Kirk and the Starship Enterprise never looked so good. Thank 21st century technology for digitally rejuvenating the cast and enhancing the special effects. The original plots and unique characters -- despite some hilariously bad acting by extras and guest stars -- remind one why "Star Trek" became the giant franchise that it did.Some purists may disapprove of the tweaked effects, but the digital masters have added a freshness to some of the phony settings and stagnant shots. Season 1 includes episodes with guest stars such as Sally Kellerman, Michael J. Pollard and Joan Collins. The original pilot starred Jeffrey Hunter as Capt. Christopher Pike, but when he opted out, the writers and producers cleverly integrated the first episode into a two-part series with the cast as we know it. It takes the regular cast a few episodes to shape up, but the diversity of the crew, from Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) to Sulu (George Takei), is impressive for the time.Pointy-eared Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Scotty the engineer (James Doohan) and the irascible Dr. "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley) are all here (Chekov, played by Walter Koenig, didn't appear until Season 2). And, of course, there's William Shatner -- that Shakespearean actor -- who has just the right swagger to make Kirk unparalleled among the succeeding Star Fleet who have become such an important part of our pop culture. -- LEBA HERTZ(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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