‘Manchurian Candidate’ special edition out

“The Manchurian Candidate”

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If the legal problems that kept John Frankenheimer’s 1962 movie on the shelf for 25 years had never been resolved, we’d probably still be waiting on this military/political thriller starring Frank Sinatra. As it is, the movie has been available on DVD since 1998 and on VHS since 1988. Just in time for the release of Jonathan Demme’s remake, set for July 30 (starring Denzel Washington in the Sinatra role), MGM Home Video has released this special edition in widescreen (and the original black and white). Included are “featurettes” with filmmaker William Friedkin (“The French Connection”) and actress Angela Lansbury, a photo gallery and a remastered 5.1 Dolby soundtrack. (DVD only; 2:07; originally listed as Not Rated, updated to PG-13)

“Never Die Alone”

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Rapper DMX is a strong screen presence, but even he gets lost in Ernest R. Dickerson’s lame look at a drug kingpin’s return home to atone, supposedly, for his past misdeeds. Unstuck in time, the story blends the past, present and future to reveal everything pretty much at once. It’s all pretty flashy, but all the flair in the world can’t cover up, one, that the character DMX plays glorifies misogyny and, two, that the film has an ending so open-ended that it makes no sense whatsoever. (DVD, VHS; 1:28; rated R for strong violence, drug use, sexuality and language.)

“Against the Ropes”

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Encouraged as a little girl only by her uncle, real-life boxing promoter Jackie Kallen (Meg Ryan) grows up with no sense of self-esteem (though with a penchant for showing off her body). When challenged by a villainous promoter (Tony Shalhoub), she finds and helps develop a skilled-but-unpolished fighter (Omar Epps) into a champion. There’s a good story here, one that has the added benefit of seeing life through the eyes of a woman. But the script takes the easy route at every step. (DVD, VHS; 1:51; rated PG-13 for crude language, violence, brief sensuality, drug material.)