Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • Page 61

FRIDAY, MARCH 22001 VIDEOS STAR TRIBUNE PAGE E3 Family New releases Fraser dazzles in 'Bedazzled' Brendan Fraser makes any film he's in worth watching. In wildly different roles, from "Encino Man" to "God and Monsters" to "The Mummy," he has proven to be a charismatic chameleon. No more is that true than in "Bedazzled" (rated PG-13 for sexual references; out of four stars), a surefire winner that finds the actor playing five hilarious variations of his main character. In this broad remake of a 1967 film, Fraser stars as Elliot Richards, a "lovesick, desperate, oblivious, eager to please, lonely doormat" who repels co-workers. He Pick to click The creators of "Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure" (Buena Vista, VHS $26.98, DVD the sequel to the 1955 Disney classic "Lady and the Tramp," went to a lot of trouble to pay proper respect to the original, even matching the wallpaper in the home of the Darlings.

That's where the refined cocker spaniel (Jodi Benson, "The Little and the domesticated mutt (Jeff Bennett) now live with their three daughters and their son, Scamp. The movie also revisits the famous spaghetti-noodle-sharing scene for Scamp and his girlfriend with a clever twist. There's more to this mildly charming sequel than re-creations, but not a lot It's a fairly basic story of a young boy (Scamp) bucking the advice of his parents in order to shed his boring life for the seemingly carefree lifestyle of hanging with junkyard dogs. None of Melissa Manchester's five new songs come close to measuring up to the likes of the vampy Peggy Lee number "He's A Tramp" or the spaghetti seduction song "Bella Notte," which is pleasantly reprised during the credits but they're serviceable and adorably animated. Children unfamiliar with the original and parents who haven't seen it for many years should be satisfied with this sequel, which falls well below "The Lion King II" but above "The Little Mermaid II." Entertainment News Service "Baby" (VHS, not rated): A family (including Farrah Fawcett and Keith Carradine) torn apart by the death of a child finds an infant on the doorstep.

Premiered on TNT in October. "Bootmen" (VHS; R): Flashdance the sequel? A small-town steel worker leaves his job to pursue a lifelong dream of dancing and finds love. "The Fantasticks" (VHS, DVD; PG): Two teenagers on neighboring farms hide their romance from their feuding families, not knowing that their fathers are secretly good friends who have arranged their marriage. "Last of the Blonde Bombshells" (VHS, DVD; PG-13): A widowed woman tries to reassemble the swing band she played with in England during World War II. With Judi Dench, Cleo Laine, Ian Holm and Olympia Dukakis.

Premiered on HBO. "Lost Souls" (VHS, DVD; R): Winona Ryder is convinced that a crime writer is the target of a Satanic conspiracy. "Nurse Betty" (VHS, DVD; rated R): Rente Zellweger is a small-town Kansas waitress who, after witnessing the brutal murder of her husband, sets off in an altered state of mind to find her dream man, followed closely by her husband's killers. With Greg Kinnear, Morgan Freeman and Chris Rock. "The Original Kings of Comedy" (VHS, DVD; R): Comedians Steve Harvey, D.L Hughley, Cedric The Entertainer and Bernie Mac, filmed over two nights before an audience in Charlotte, N.C.

Directed by Spike Lee. "The Queens of Comedy" (VHS, DVD; R): Miss Laura Hayes, Adele Givens, Sommore and Mo'Nique Imes, filmed at the Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, hold forth on life and relationships. "Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the 13th" (VHS, DVD; R): A female reporter teams up with a bumbling mall cop to track a killer targeting popular high school students. With Tiffani Theissen, Tom Arnold and Coolio. From News Services desperately desires Alison (Frances O'Connor), she of the upturned nose, but devastatingly realizes he'll never have her.

So when Satan (Elizabeth Hurley) promises to fulfill Elliot's every desire, he's only too willing to give the devil her due. He gets seven wishes, but, as they say: "Be careful what you wish for; it might just come true" especially if you don't detail exactly what you want. So when Elliot asks to be rich, powerful and married to Alison, the crafty she-devil makes him a Colombian drug lord with restless underlings and a cheating wife. Fraser's total transformations into each character at the center of Elliot's wishes are an utter delight His performances are convincing without becoming too cartoonish, and he never loses sight of Elliot's own gentle transformation. Other actresses probably could have done better as the Princess of Darkness, but Hurley is fine.

She certainly looks devilishly delicious in various sexy costumes. And, hey, she's British. RandyASalas Photo provided by 20th Century Fox Elizabeth Hurley offers to provide Brendan Fraser with his heart's desire In "Bedazzled." If you rent the DVD Available March 13. Basics: Widescreen (2.35:1 ratio, anamorphic); Dolby Digital 5.1 audio; English, Spanish subtitles. Extras: Two commentary tracks; costume-design and making-of featurettes; deleted scene; photos; orchestral scoring sessions; Nuon enhancements.

Good stuff: An extended deleted scene with improvised banter between sports announcers is so funny that you can hear the director and crew laughing. Hollywood gives the devil his due Shelf life Top video rentals TIT The devil made them do it: "Fantasia" (1940, not rated): Walt Disney's groundbreaking marriage of animation and classical music ends with a stunning sequence that juxtaposes the profane and sacred. To the terrifying tune of Mussorgsky's "A Night on Bald Mountain," nightmarish spirits celebrate the coming of Chernobog, the god of hell (essentially, the devil). Good eventually triumphs over evil, though, as dawn breaks and a lighted procession moves to the angelic strains of Schubert's "Ave Maria." Mickey Mouse might get all the "Fantasia" press for his catastrophic dabbling in sorcery, but the film's finale remains its most memorable episode. Randy A Salas "Rosemary's Baby (1968, R): Roman Polanski's thoroughly creepy tale is a horror classic, without the blood and gore.

Sweet, naive Rosemary (Mia Farrow) moves into an old Gothic New York City apartment building with husband Guy John Cassavetes). He becomes a little too friendly with the "The Omen" (1976, R): A U.S. diplomat (Gregory Peck) and his wife (Lee Remick) adopt a cute but strange tyke, and bad things start to happen. People get punctured by flying poles. They lose their heads literally.

And the wife has a messy fall from the second floor. Peck begins to believe the people who are telling him the devil is making the kid do it. It's a intense, well-made drama that will leave you entertained but drained. (M.R.) "Angel Heart" (1987, R): Private investigator Harry Angel (Mickey Rourke) is hired by a strange guy named, urn, Louis Cyphre (Robert De Niro) to locate a missing man, which leads him down a serpentine path filled with dead bodies. Lisa Bonet in a role that got her booted from "The Cosby Show" shows up as a mysterious practitioner of black magic.

"Heart" is hypnotically atmospheric, but ultimately devolves into a morass of mumbo-jumbo. The video includes a sex scene that was cut to avoid an rating. Mt(GDJ oddball neighbors, who become a little too interested in Rosemary's unborn baby. Could they be witches aligned with Satan? And could her doctor and even her husband be in on the deal? Spiraling paranoia and gripping tension make this a must-see unless you're pregnant. Cindy Dickison "The Exorcist" (1973, R): A high-profile actress (Ellen Burstyn) believes her daughter (Linda Blair) has become possessed by a devilish spirit and enlists a priest who is doubting his faith (Jason Miller) and an exorcist with health issues (Max von Sydow) to drive the entity away.

Naturally, there are a few problems. The film features excellent performances, a solid story and superb direction by William Friedkin. The film was a trendsetter in horror in its day and spawned a host of copycats. It's been recently rereleased with additional scenes, irkirk Milford Reid The week's top rentals nationally, courtesy of Video Software Dealers Association: 1. "What Lies Beneath" 2.

"Bring It On" 3. "The Watcher" 4. "Bless the Child" 5. "Get Carter" 6. "Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2" 7.

"Me, Myself Irene" 8. "The Kid" 9. "Dr. and the Women" 10. "Coyote Ugly" Look for top video sales in Tuesday's Variety.

Next week's major rental releases: "The Broken Hearts Club," "The Contender," "The Little Vampire" and "Meet the Parents." Photo provided by New Line Cinema Winona Ryder fights Satan with the help of Ben Chaplin In tost Souls." Look for previews of next week's new rental videos in Sunday's Arts Entertainment and news and reidemfor videophiles in Tuesday's Variety. 737" t'" i Jf 0 TELEVISION from El Stefanson didn't grow up with movie-star dreams to shatter Other actresses in their late 20s who have had so many brushes with fame but never made the cover of People magazine might be bitter. But Stefanson seems as bright-eyed as a Hollywood tourist For lunch, she selected a small cafe a few blocks from her cramped LA apartment, which could have been lifted out of low-rent Manhattan, dripping ceiling and all. "This profession becomes easier when you're my age," said Stefanson, 29, wearing a camel-colored sweater and looking like Sharon Stone's kid sister as she ate a bowl of vegetarian minestrone soup. "I can play a mother, a teacher or anything, really.

I like the parts in the scripts I see. It's just a matter of getting them, which is difficult because there are so many fine actresses my age." Perhaps Stefanson's optimism and generosity of spirit have re- -mained intact because she didn't grow up with any movie-star dreams to shatter. She and her.two older sisters were raised in Moorhead, where her dad, Randy, practices law and her mom, Corinne, runs a clothing store. Stefanson spent more time running track than hitting the boards, although she did dabble in acting, including a part as one of the Von Trapp kids in a college production of "The Sound of Music" while in grade school. It wasn't until her college days that acting became a serious endeavor.

After studying literature at Drew University in New Jersey and Columbia University in New York City, she began working steadily with a New York theater group that produced strictly original work. A short modeling career led to small parts in "The Cowboy Way" (1994) and "The Mirror Has Two Faces" (1996), as well as a 1997 Lee's Jeans commercial that aired during the Super BowL Through it all, her family has been in her corner. She calls home at least five times a week and they often arrange to visit her ok location, whether it be Toronto II Photo provided by NBC Leslie Stefanson, shown here playing Joan Kennedy, was raised in Moorhead, and didn't take acting seriously until college. 1 VefIZIa CO woman Bruce Willis flirts with on the train in the opening sequence; Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard were impressed enough to meet with her this month. And she was the only actress considered for the role of Joan Kennedy and the first of the three title roles to be cast.

"She has great access to her emotions," said Sheri Singer, executive producer of "Women of Camelot." "She was able to take small moments that could have disappeared and really made them come alive. That's themark of someone really talented." Right after lunch, Stefanson was on her way to another audition, this one for a Jet Li movie. Does she like this part of the process? "I have to," she said. "Or I'd be so miserable every night." Neal Justin can be contacted at njustinstartribune.com foft. 3f.iM ii Jit-' 4if.

I 3 or Jamaica. "I know it's a cliche but if you have a good base, you're much better off," Stefanson said. "If I didn't have the parents I have, I don't know where I'd be." Randy Gustafson, her father, recognizes how critical this time in her daughter's career is and how important it is that she have people to lean on. "The real question is: If things aren't going well, can they call home or come home for support before things spin out of control?" he said. "A lot of these kids are stars at 18 or 19 years old.

Some of them handle it very well, but a lot of them don't have the ability to do that. They end up suing their parents for all kinds of things. It's a tricky proposition." Gustafson is aware that his daughter has not yet reached stardom, but it may be coming soon. She had a small but pivotal role In "Unbreakable" (2000), as the Mi I SAINT rosf SK yrtartrtxiie.conw.