A great French film and a boxed set of nostalgia are featured this week.

On Blu-ray: That Man from Rio

What an enjoyable film! I was not aware of this stylish French comedy adventure until it turned up in my mailbox and I only knew its director, Philippe de Broca, from his art house favorite “The King of Hearts.”

My big question is whether or not Stephen Spielberg and George Lucas had studied this movie from 1964 prior to their collaboration on “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

Jean Paul Belmondo plays Adrien, a French airman on a seven-day leave to Paris where he intends to see his girlfriend Agnes (Françoise Dorléac). When he arrives at her home he discovers she is involved in the investigation of a theft of a priceless artifact from Brazil. Her late father had been part of the expedition that found three statues. He was murdered and his statue stolen several years previous.

She is kidnapped right before Adrien’s eyes and he begins a quest that leads him to Brazil to try to rescue her.

What we discover is that the three statues are from an ancient civilization and should lead their owner to untold treasure.

The tone of the film alternates appropriately from rousing adventure to romantic comedy. Adrien and Agnes bicker as much as they profess their love and the effects are charming performances in a film that certainly holds our attention.

Belmondo is a Buster Keaton style hero: a stranger in a strange land who is the epitome of resourcefulness. He cons his way onto the flight to Brazil to follow Agnes. He arrives in Brazil without money or a passport and yet he manages to suvive and succeed.

I also was impressed with the number of stunts Belmondo clearly did himself – another Keatonesque trait!

de Broca has a keen eye for the settings of the film and uses the then in construction capital of Brazil, Brasilia, as an impressive backdrop to a key segment.

This beautifully restored print is in its original French and is subtitled. A lengthy making-of feature is included, as well as the follow-up feature “Up to His Ears.”   

On DVD: The Best of the Ed Sullivan Show

This six-disc set will probably be seen as nostalgic to some, historic to others and puzzling to a third group. Since there is now nothing on television that is remotely like the Sullivan show, this collection demands to be put into context.

Sullivan produced and hosted one of the longest running variety shows (1948 to 1971) in the history of the medium. It was a Sunday night powerhouse and it featured appearances by an amazing wide range of performers. On any given show you could have an opera singer, a comedian, a plate spinner or acrobat and Zippy the Chimp.

And you had Sullivan himself, one of the most unlikely hosts in television. Stone-faced and always appearing physically ill of ease, nonetheless Sullivan had his finger on the pulse of popular entertainment. This is the guy who brought the Beatles to America and featured the Rolling Stones on his show. Whether or not he could personally appreciate these acts and others wasn’t important. Sullivan seemed to know what his audience wanted and who his audience was.

This set includes a 50th anniversary show shot in 1998 hosted by Carol Burnett that gives a great overview of the Sullivan experience. A long-time newspaper columnist, Sullivan had long tried to break out of ‘papers and into another medium. He was given the chance in 1948 hosting and putting together a show called “The Toast of the Town,” which became “The Ed Sullivan Show” seven years later.

The discs include one featuring comics, while others have novelty acts, animal acts and interviews about Sullivan. Those are interesting as they reveal a bit about his personality and working habits.

I was happy to see the one artist whom I wanted to see inlcuded in the collection.  Watching the Sullivan show was a ritual in our house and I was fascinated by Senor Wences, the Spanish ventriloquist whose act featured a head in a box and a dummy whose head was formed by Wences’ hand. I only wish his whole act was presented, instead of a clip.

A who’s who of American entertainment from the mid-20th Century, “The Best of the Ed Sullivan Show” is an enjoyable time capsule.