Stay Up for ‘Sleeping’

“Sleeping With the Enemy” (Fox, $92.98, R) is a superior suspense film about a woman (Julia Roberts) trying to hide from her psychotic, abusive husband. It’s even more enjoyable on videocassette, where you can fast-forward past that unnecessary, irritating dress-and-dance-to-the-oldies scene in the middle. “Sleeping With the Enemy” also leaves a few loose ends, but its near-constant tension will definitely keep you awake.

On the other hand, “Hamlet” (Warner, $92.99, PG) may be the ticket if you’re an insomniac who’d like a tape that’ll put you to sleep. With its miscasting (Mel Gibson as the melancholy Dane, Glenn Close as his too-young mom), Franco Zeffirelli’s slicing and dicing of Shakespeare’s drama, and prevailing dullness, this is an even worse “Hamlet” than the Tony Richardson-Nicol Williamson version (1969). By all means, choose Olivier’s (from 1948) instead.

“Alice” (Orion, no list price, PG). Woody Allen’s latest is a light, sweet dessert after his sumptuous banquet “Crimes and Misdemeanors,” and if you approach it that way its mild charm and eventual surprises might prove enjoyable. A well-to-do but bored woman (Mia Farrow) consults a Chinese herbalist (and oh what herbs!) about her aching back--and her desire to have an affair.

Also new: The contemporary Western “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” (Media, $92.98, PG), the recent TV version of “Robin Hood” (Fox, $89.98), and the Jean-Claude van Damme martial-arts adventure “Lionheart” (MCA/Universal, no list price, R).

Non-Movie Video: It’s a big week for rock ‘n’ roll tapes. Performances (many live) from “Shindig!”--perhaps the best U.S. rock TV show ever--are collected on six $14.95 volumes from Rhino. MPI’s four-volume set “The Rock ‘n’ Roll Collection” ($99.98) consists of lip-synced “American Bandstand” appearances. For more contemporary music, there’s “Just Say Yes: The Video,” two $14.98 volumes of clips and interviews with Depeche Mode, Lou Reed and others (Warner Reprise).

Lasers: New video discs from Image include a seven-disc boxed set containing all 13 episodes of the superb British-TV history of the silent screen, “Hollywood” ($249.95), a three-CAV-disc version of Joseph Strick’s 1967 filming of James Joyce’s “Ulysses” ($49.95), and wide-screen editions of “Wild at Heart” ($49.95) and “Predator 2” ($39.98).

Coming Attractions: Next week: “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II.”

Future features (rental-priced cassettes unless otherwise noted): “Awakenings” (Aug. 7), “King Ralph” and “He Said, She Said” (Aug. 8), “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” (Aug. 14), “Home Alone” (Aug. 22, $24.98), “Dances With Wolves” (Aug. 28), “La Femme Nikita” and “Waiting for the Light” (Sept. 4), “Daddy Long Legs” (Sept. 12, $19.98), “Children of Paradise” (Sept. 16), “The Rescuers Down Under” (Sept. 20, $24.99), “The Doors” (Sept. 26), “The Godfather Part III” (Oct. 10), “Fantasia” (Nov. 1, $24.99).