Holiday Videos | Hot New Releases | Educational Videos & DVD's

New Releases

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire:  I'm a huge fan of Harry Potter.  I have listened to each story on CD and I'm not embarrassed to say I'm one of those people who can't wait for the next book to come out -- and hire a babysitter so I can see the movie when it hits the theatre. This movie does not disappoint, in fact, I think it's one of the best yet.  This Harry Potter is by far the darkest, but I think the best yet.  When Harry Potter's name emerges from the Goblet of Fire, he becomes a competitor in a grueling battle for glory among three wizarding schools - the Triwizard Tournament. But since Harry never submitted his name for the Tournament, who did? Now Harry must confront a deadly dragon, fierce water demons and an enchanted maze only to find himself in the cruel grasp of He Who Must Not Be Named. In this fourth film adaptation of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, everything changes as Harry, Ron and Hermione leave childhood forever and take on challenges greater than anything they could have imagined.  I can't wait for the Half Blood Prince! www.harrypotter.com

Robots (Fox) Rated  PG,  $19.95
With the voices of Ewan McGregor, Halle Berry, Greg Kinnear, Mel Brooks, Amanda Bynes, Drew Carey, and Robin Williams, how can you go wrong? In this adorable story, a robot named Rodney heads for the big city to pursue his dreams. There are many colorful characters. Madame Gasket (Jim Broadbent) is hilarious, as is Fender (Williams). It's a light-hearted, beautifully animated movie, with good music that keeps kids entertained and involved. It's a movie that they'll watch again and again. 

Wallace & Gromit in Three Amazing Adventures (Dreamworks) Unrated, $19.95
For the first time on DVD you can see three great short films starring Wallace & Gromit.  The DVD includes "Grand Day Out", which was nominated for an Academy Award in 1990, this was the first short-film adventure starring Wallace & Gromit.  It also features "The Wrong Trousers" which won the 1993 Academy Award for Best Animated Short where Wallace gives Gromit a pair of "techno-trousers" that can be programmed to take Gromit out for "walkies"  It's a hilarious short that both young and old just love.  Finally the DVD includes "A Close Shave" where Wallace and Gromit meet Wendolene Ramsbottom, a wool-shop owner whose dog, Preston, is the head of a sheep-napping scheme! In A Close Shave Wallace's latest invention is the Knit-O-Matic, a yarn-making machine capable of shearing a whole flock of sheep a bit close! 

Clueless "Whatever!" Edition (Paramount) Rated PG-13, $19.95
Alicia Silverstone stars in this fun and sassy movie.  In this re-release Clueless gets a bit of a makeover including special features like "The Class of 95" which has a then and now about the cast, "Fashion 101", and "We're History" which is stories from the cast and crew on the making of Clueless.  The movie which is about Cher, a matchmaking 15-year-old who is obsessed with shopping.  The movie stars a lot of actors that are quite a bit more famous now including Brittany Murphy, Jeremy Sisto and Paul Rudd.  It's a fun movie that everyone seems to enjoy! 

The Wizard of Oz Collector's Treasury (Warner Brothers) Rated G, $39.95
The Wizard of Oz is a classic story that many generations have seen and love.  In the Collector's Treasury the classic film has undergone a restoration, which has made it even more enchanting than ever.  The three DVD's also include the story read by Angela Lansbury there are documentaries, special features, deleted scenes and more.  It's a great gift for both old and new fans of the movie.

Teen Titans - Season 2, Volume 1 - Fear Itself  (Warner Brothers) Rated TV-Y7   $19.97
Join superteens Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Starfire and Raven for more crime-fighting adventures in Season 2 of the animated series based on the popular DC Comics characters.  The boys aged 4 and 5 who have been watching this movie ever since it arrived absolutely love it.  

The Batman - Season 1, Vol. 2 - The Man Who Would Be Bat  (Warner Brothers) Rated TV-Y7  $14.97 
Batman is a really hot property for boys aged 4 and up and this DVD provided a lot of entertainment for our young reviewers.  They played with their action figures as they watched the movie.  The movie is about a young Bruce Wayne is in his third year of trying to establish himself as Batman, protector of Gotham City. Living in Gotham, a metropolis where shadows run long and deep, beneath elevated train tracks, this younger Batman will confront each of his familiar foes for the first time.  

Holiday Videos

Elf (Infinifilm Edition) Rated PG, $29.95
Even if you aren't a fan of Will Farrell, which I find impossible to comprehend you will still love this movie.  Elf is downright fun.  It's clever, well directed and a real feel good film.  Elf is a story of a human, Buddy, adopted by Santa Claus who returns to the human world to find his father, who is on the naughty list.  Kids have a good laugh at some really silly parts in the movie, and adults will laugh at the sophisticated stuff that the kids miss. Zooey Deschanel, as a department store worker with whom Buddy falls in love, is sweet and there's a wonderful scene where the two of them are singing in the shower.  It's a feel good film that's not to be missed.

My Little Pony:  A Very Minty Christmas (Paramount)  $16.99
Our 5-year-old tester (and animal and My Little Pony fan) just loved this cd.  According to her mom, "she's watching it over and over!"  The DVD is colorful, sweet, has nice messages and songs.  Fans of My Little Pony will love this DVD.  It's a cute story about friendship that kids ages 3-7 will enjoy.

Brainy Baby: Jingle Bells (Brainy Baby) All Ages $16.98 
This is a fun holiday video that incorporates the Christmas tree, presents and songs. It encourages singing along which our mom-tester liked. Her daughter seemed to really enjoy the Christmas images, bright colors and sounds.  The movie includes popular songs such as:  Jingle Bells, Frosty the Snowman, Jingle Bell Rock and more.

Baby Santa's Music Box  (Buena Vista Home Video) Ages 2 and under, $19.99
If your grandchild is already familiar with Baby Einstein videos this one will not disappoint.  Just in time for Christmas, Baby Santa's Music box takes the sites and sounds of the Christmas season.  There is sledding, snowmen, ornaments and more.  Children dance, decorate a tree and more.  Throughout the movie the Baby Einstein Music Box Orchestra performs traditional Christmas music. Let the festivities begin!

Strawberry Shortcake - Berry, Merry Christmas (Fox Home Entertainment)  $14.98
In this adorable movie Strawberry Shortcake discovers what's really important about Christmas -- friendship.  This song-filled movie is only 45 minutes long, but it kept our 5-year-old test entranced.  She really enjoyed the song -- especially the music video at the end called "The Strawberry Shake." If you liked Strawberry Shortcake as a kid or with your kids - you'll enjoy watching it with the next generation!  A holiday winner!  (Ages 3 to 7)

Jingle Bell Baby (Small Fry Productions, ages 1 to 5, $15.95)
A delightful half-hour holiday video.  Little ones will enjoy watching children baking cookies, images of snow, ornaments and more.  It's a musical adventure that your grandchildren will enjoy watching again and again.

Arthur's Perfect Christmas (Sony Wonder, all ages, $12.98) 
If your grandchild is already a fan of Arthur this will not disappoint.  Arthur, D.W., Buster, Muffy, Francine, and more star in this holiday of holidays movie.  The movie incorporates a little bit about all the winter holidays including Chanukah and Kwanzaa.  For Arthur this Christmas is anything but traditional.  It doesn't snow, D.W. has her own ideas about decorating and Arthur breaks the "perfect" gift he's found for his mother.  Never-the-less Christmas turns out perfect.  It's a one-hour video that kids seem to love -- especially Arthur fans!

The Magic School Bus - Holiday Special (Warner Home Video, all ages, $19.98) 
Our 5-year-old tester thoroughly enjoyed this DVD.  Although she didn't go into too much detail why, her mother reported that she's already watched it about 10 times.  Of the three Magic School Bus episodes her favorite was the Rain Forest.  Her mother really liked the educational message about conservation, preservation and recycling.  It features the voices of Dolly Parton, and Lily Tomlin and is as enjoyable for kids as it is for parents.

Educational Videos & DVD's

My Fantastic Field Trip To The Planets (Wonderscape) All Ages, $14.99  
My daughter loved this movie. She’s almost 7 and really interested in the planets. She loved the songs (and sang them long after the movie was over.) The story is about Jake who takes a musical adventure inside his toy rocket. Jake's survival depends on the help of nine friendly planets, who magically talk and sing. She thought it was great and insisted she take it to school so her Science teacher could share it with all her classmates.

Know A Baby (knowababy.com) Ages: Birth - 3 yrs. $14.99 
Our mom-reviewer liked this educational video that she felt her daughter enjoyed. She liked the variety of animals, shapes, sounds, colors and music. She thought it was a healthy learning experience that didn’t overwhelm her little one. 

The Baby Society (The Baby Society) Ages 3-25 months $20.00 
Our mom-reviewer watched this video with her 9-month old son. Although he couldn’t comment she felt that it was engaging and liked the introduction to early vocabulary works. This video was developed by a pediatric speech-language pathologist and was well thought out. There is pleasant music, good visuals as well as real animals. Her son enjoyed watching the rubber ducks & hippo. 


No More Diapers (Consumer Vision, Inc) Ages 2+
Our tester of an 2-year-old liked this new approach to potty training. She’s purchased books and motivational tools, but her daughter seemed to respond positively to the animation of this video. The included stickers were a great bonus. The movie has cute characters and songs – so if you’re trying to potty train your little one she says “give it a try”! 

All About John Deere For Kids (Consumer Vision, Inc.) All Ages $14.98 
My husband has sold some of the major competitors to John Deere so viewing this was a treat for the kids but a bit painful for my husband. Never the less, my son and his friends enjoyed watching both the old and new John Deere equipment in action. They loved watching the tractors, excavators, dozers, and dump trucks etc. The music by James Coffey's added to the enjoyment. 

Meet The Numbers & Meet The Letters   (Preschool Prep Co.) Ages 9 months - 5, $14.99 years 
These two DVD’s are great educational additions to any DVD library. Our testers enjoyed learning about the letters and numbers and it kept their attention. We tested these with kids at a local Montessori school. The teachers and students liked the characters, animation and approach.  It kept the kids attention which is a real plus.

Baby Pro: Let's Make a Splash (Arrival Productions) Ages 9 months - 5 years, $12.98  
"Let's Make A Splash!" provides a introduction to swimming, diving, and surfing. Our 4-year-old tester who’s a like a fish in water loved it, according to his mother. The images, the music and action all made for an enjoyable experience. It’s a fun way to help your child overcome the fear of water.   Our mom-tester also really liked the fact that it is a video that promoted health and wellness.

International Baby: Let's Sing Together (International Baby) Ages 0 - 4 years, $14.99
This entertaining bilingual children’s DVD was enjoyable for the parent-tester and child to watch together. There are nursery rhymes and music that make it enjoyable for all. It’s a great video if you are a bilingual family. Note: The bilingual DVD can only be viewed in one language at a time. 

Baby Chatterbox - Volume One: Developing Early Speech Ages 3 -36 months, $19.95
Upon reviewing this DVD our tester had this to say, "I love this video for my daughter. My daughter, aged 7-months, is mesmerized by the bright pictures that show examples of basic first words. She smiles and giggles at the various objects and coos to the peppy music. As she gets older I truly feel this video will help with her language skills in an enjoyable fashion!"  The DVD has 25 one-minute language lessons and each one features a word like cat, dog, blocks, train, ball, and bubbles.