Nicole Kidman and Jude Law sure are purty

Like any worthy historical epic, "Cold Mountain" (Miramax, R) provokes relevant questions about today: Is it right to desert a war you don't believe in? And who's prettier: Jude Law or Nicole Kidman?

In director Anthony Minghella's 154-minute chick flick, young Inman (Law) and Ada (Kidman) exchange longing glances and meaningful lemonade before he gets called away. But war, as the FCC knows, is Heck, and they're separated when Inman leaves with the Confederate Army. He's wounded in battle and goes AWOL for the long odyssey home, encountering characters that include a priest on the run (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and a lonely young mother (Natalie Portman).

Another question: Did Renée Zellweger deserve the best supporting actress Oscar for her hammy role as the earthy broad who helps Ada hold down the farm against male predators?

The two-disc collector's edition DVD includes plenty of making-of material, an audio commentary from Minghella and editor Walter Murch, and a batch of deleted scenes with at least one that's more interesting than the usual cutting-room-floor scraps: Portman's baby dies, and she kills herself. Also from Miramax, more longing glances, passion interruptus and tragedy in Minghella's best picture winner, "The English Patient" (1996, R).

Our Re-release of the Week is another important historical epic: "Blazing Saddles" (Warner, 1974, R). The 30th anniversary DVD of Mel Brooks' insane classic about a black sheriff (Cleavon Little) in the old West is funnier than ever, and shows how sanitized and gutless comedy has become.

" 'Blazing Saddles' for me was a film that truly broke ground. It also broke wind," Brooks says in a "scene-specific" commentary covering the movie's first half. That and a "Back in the Saddle" documentary include plenty of dish about the politically incorrect movie's evolution. Studio execs ixnayed the film's earlier titles, "Tex X" (as in Malcolm X) and "Black Bart."

James Earl Jones was the first choice for sheriff Bart, then Richard Pryor. And it's hard to imagine anyone but Gene Wilder as the alcoholic Waco Kid. But musical star Dan Daily was the first choice; and depending on whom you believe, he backed out either because of the script's racy talk or bad eyesight. Next came Gig Young, who started shaking for real and spewing green stuff during his intro scene hanging upside-down in the jail cell. Brooks' lesson learned: If you're looking for a lush, don't cast a real one.

The DVD has scenes from the edited TV version, with the farting sounds, ah, cut from the legendary campfire segment. There's also the painful pilot episode of the "Black Bart" TV spinoff with Louis Gossett Jr. as the sheriff, Steve Landesberg as his sidekick and a grating laugh track.

Spider-mania is in full swing with "Spider-Man 2" in theaters, and the old cartoon with the cool theme song finally hits DVD: "Spider-Man: The '67 Collection" (Buena Vista, unrated). The 52 short episodes on six discs look prehistoric, but they're major unfinished business for boomers and fans, featuring Doc Ock and other villains only foreshadowed in the movies, not to mention Ray Ellis' jazz score. The box also includes lyrics for Bob Harris and Paul Francis Webster's theme song.

"Wonder Woman — The Complete First Season" (Warner, 1976): The campy series makes you appreciate how far female action has come with "Alias" and "Kill Bill." But remember, it came on the heels of the awful 1974 "Wonder Woman" TV movie starring Cathy Lee Crosby, and Lynda Carter was the perfect embodiment of William Moulton Marston's heroine. Also, it gave female viewers in the '70s a role model and gave males Carter shoehorned into a preposterous bullet-breasted costume.

The short doc points out that Wonder Woman's magic lasso compelled people to tell the truth, and Marston helped invent the polygraph. Young Debra Winger, who plays Wonder Girl, is MIA from the extras.

More TV: "The Sid Caesar Collection: Buried Treasures" (New Video). Sketches from one of the inventors of TV comedy illustrate the art of catching an innocent bystander in the middle of a couple's squabble and then destroying him. In "Bus Station," Sid (wearing Roman sandals from the previous sketch — live TV!) and Imogene Coca tear the clothes off a man who asks for directions; and Sid gets the same treatment when she sits by him in a movie theater and her jealous husband shows up.

"Land of the Lost — The Complete First Season" (Rhino, 1974). The secret of the Sid & Marty Krofft favorite about a family transported to dinosaur time: established genre writers familiar to Trekkies, such as David Gerrold, D.C. Fontana and Larry Niven, who do episode commentaries. From Paramount: The hilarious fourth season of "South Park"; season one of "CSI: Miami."

"Barbershop 2: Back in Business" (MGM, PG-13): Worthy follow-up with shop owner Ice Cube fighting gentrification of the 'hood and the evil Nappy Cutz franchise opening across the street, with history filled in on loudmouth Eddie (Cedric the Entertainer).

"The Perfect Score" (Paramount, PG-13): A gang of students (including Scarlett Johansson and Erika Christensen) plan a caper to steal S.A.T. answers. Passable, but it's no "Breakfast Club" and no "Ocean's Eleven."

And finally, Blue Underground wishes you a happy Fourth of July with the classic schlock that made this country great: "Deathdream" (1974, R): A "Monkey's Paw" variation and surprisingly powerful metaphor, with a Vietnam vet returning home angry and dead. "Uncle Sam" (1997, R): The tag line should be enough for any patriot: "I Want You ... Dead!"

Mark Rahner: mrahner@seattletimes.com