For romance-starved audiences desperate for a repeat of Sleepless in Seattle's formulaic magic, "Mail" delivers with a vengeance. There is hardly a single moment in this romantic comedy not calculated to woo and win the audience, from Meg Ryan's patented sweetheart grins and the bouncy Harry Nielsen songs on the soundtrack to a montage of Hanks cavorting with adorable children at a street carnival (set to a pop hit, of course). Hanks stars as Joe Fox, whose new book superstore poses a threat to Ryan's independent children's book store, a neighborhood fixture (the film's anti-chain mentality does not extend to Starbucks, which gets prominent product placement). These business rivals don't realize that they are each other's romantic e-mail pals. Director Nora Ephron continually subverts Hanks' supposedly cold-hearted character, who in one scene does get to gloat as another indie book store "bites the dust." Ryan's bookstore, by the way, is called "The Shop Around the Corner," which is the name of the vastly superior 1940 Ernst Lubitsch classic that inspired "Mail," and is highly recommended. Still, the sell-through price and the popularity of the stars in this remake make purchase a no-brainer. (K. Lee Benson)[DVD Review—Feb. 5, 2008—Warner, 120 min., PG, $19.98—Making its second appearance on DVD, 1998's You've Got Mail (Deluxe Edition) sports a solid transfer. DVD extras include an audio commentary (by director Nora Ephron and producer Lauren Shuler Donner), the new production featurettes “Delivering You've Got Mail” (26 min.) and “You've Got Chemistry” (26 min.), the HBO First Look production “A Conversation with Nora Ephron” (14 min.), an 11-segment section on “Discovering New York's Upper West Side” locations (11 min.), the “Anyone at All” music video performed by Carole King, a music-only audio track option, and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a popular film that received a lukewarm critical reception.]
You've Got Mail
(Warner, 119 min., PG, VHS: $22.95, <b>DVD</b>) Vol. 14, Issue 3
You've Got Mail
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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