A good source of ideas for dramatic layered lighting for different rooms, especially the use of sharply focused downlights, indirect diffused uplights, and backlit shelves.

In this opulent adaption of the Nutcracker by the Royal Ballet (filmed in 2000), Peter Wright introduces Hans-Peter as the young nephew of magician Drosselmeyer, who in turn is the godfather of young Clara. The back story Wright used was that Hans-Peter had been transformed into an ugly Nutcracker, and the only way to break this spell was for him to kill the Mouse King and be loved by a young girl in spite of his ugly appearance. After killing the Mouse King in Act 1, Hans-Peter and Clara dance in the Land of Snow, replacing the traditional Snow King/Queen. In Act 2, they also appear in many of the national dances, which is not traditional. Wright also restores all the traditional cuts for the Pas de deux. The ballet ends with Drosselmeyer, back in his workshop, discovering that the spell on his nephew's spell has indeed been broken.

Don't miss the extra feature of the fixed wide video clip of the transformation of the living room and Christmas tree into a fantasy battlefield for mice and men.

Extraordinary film sequences follow a male eagle whose mate dies and then successfully attracts another female eagle. The couple works on their nest, and raises two eaglets through the harsh winter of the upper Mississippi valley. Another eagle family undergoes early sibling rivalry, before the eaglets can develop their wing power and jump off the nest on their first flight. The banning of DDT in 1973 was instrumental in this resurgence of American eagle family life.

A smattering of interesting and not-so-interesting episodes on the natural history of Hawaii and of Cuba. The volcanic film sequences on Hawaii were noteworthy. Not one of the better programs in the Nature series.

From the makers of the BBC Planet Earth comes this spectacular series on Human Planet. On this DVD, there are three episodes, chronicling how humans have adapted to living in the Jungles, Mountains, and Grasslands. I especially enjoyed the Behind the Lens epilogues at the end of each episode, which provides a glimpse of how they filmed it. Check it out!