The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the Quick Stop Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
When the boss writes a book, you’d better believe I’d have to at least mention its release. Lucky for me and my conscience, I actually dug the contents of My Boring-Ass Life: The Uncomfortable Candid Diary Of Kevin Smith (Titan Books, $14.95). The book collects over a year-and-a-half’s worth of Smith’s blog postings at SilentBobSpeaks.com, including some exclusive entries. Why not get a signed copy over at Jay & Silent Bob’s Secret Stash?
While the members of the troupe have planted themselves firmly in the modern comedy scene, the little TV show that helped launch an improv comedy revolution on both coasts is finally getting its second season released on DVD. Of course I speak of Comedy Central’s Upright Citizen’s Brigade (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$26.99 SRP). The 2-disc set features all 10 episodes, plus live audio commentary recorded at the UCB Theater, regular audio commentary, an audience Q&A, deleted scenes, and early live performances.
Sublime doesn’t even begin to describe the exquisite chemistry between William Shatner and James Spader, both still going strong in the 3rd season of Boston Legal (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP). Add Candice Bergen, Rene Auberjonois, John Larroquette, and the underappreciated Gary Anthony Williams to the mix, and you have the best dramedy to come down the pike in ages. The 7-disc set features all 24 episodes, plus a pair of featurettes.
While it’s unfortunate that the mega-set release of Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez’s experimental Grindhouse isn’t being offered in its original form in the near future (due, most likely, to lackluster box office), at least we get a 2-disc extended and unrated edition of Tarantino’s segment Death Proof (Genius, Not Rated, DVD-$29.95 SRP) – which just so happens to my favorite of the two. Maybe it’s just because it stars Kurt Russell as a sociopathic stuntman who picks the wrong ladies to stalk one fateful night, and the result is a balls-to-the-wall car chase and stunt spectacular that plays like a mashup of Pulp Fiction and Duel. The 2-disc edition features behind-the-scenes featurettes, spotlights on Kurt Russell and the stunt work, trailers, and more.
Greed must be very, very good, because we’ve now got a 20th anniversary edition of Oliver Stone’s monument to the 80’s decade of avarice, Wall Street (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP). The 2-disc set features an audio commentary from Stone, an in-depth documentary, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
They’re not up to the same fun standards as the songs from the earlier seasons, but the 3rd collection of tunes from The Simpsons – Testify (Shout! Factory, $18.97 SRP) – contains a fair number of toe-tappers from the last 9 seasons. At the very least, it’s worth it for the inclusion of 4 previously unaired tracks, and Ricky Gervais singing “Lady”.
In these difficult times, it’s comforting to know that we can all own our own copy of The Ultimate Counterterrorist Home Companion (Santa Monica Press, $12.95 SRP). Any guide that bears the subtitle “Six Incapacitating Holds Involving A Spatula And Other Ways To Protect Your Family” is an essential addition to any library.
What better way to ring in the fall hunting season than with a deluxe edition of that classic male bonding on the river flick, Deliverance (Warner Bros., Rated R, DVD-$19.97 SRP). The new edition features a 4-part anniversary documentary with brand new cast & crew interviews, an audio commentary from director John Boorman, a vintage featurette, and the original theatrical trailer.
For 58 episodes between 1969 to 1971, Johnny Cash hosted a wonderfully eclectic number of musical guests on the titular Johnny Cash Show (Sony Legacy, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP) – a 2-disc best of collection of which is now available. With musical acts including Bob Dylan, Waylon Jennings, CCR, James Taylor, Pete Seegar, Derek and the Dominos, Ray Charles, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and more – including Cash himself – it’s a must-have time capsule.
Reel Talent: First Films By Legendary Directors (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP) is pretty self-explanatory, featuring the first films – mostly student films – of filmmakers including George Lucas, Stephen Sommers, Robert Zemeckis, Richard Kelly, Kevin Reynolds, Richard Bare, Jon Turteltaub, James Foley, and Shawn Levy. Bonus materials include interviews with Lucas, Zemeckis, and Bare.
Buy The Ticket, Take The Ride: Hunter S. Thompson On Film (Starz, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP) is a star-studded documentary celebrating the life and work of the original gonzo journalist, featuring interviews with Johnny Depp, John Cusack, Tom Wolfe, Ed Bradley, Gary Busey, Sean Penn, and many more.
Ah, Silver Spoons (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$29.95 SRP) – back when Rick Schroder was Ricky Schroder (and before he became all crazy conservative), he was every kid’s wish-fulfillment fantasy as the son of millionaire toy mogul Edward Stratton III (Joel Higgins), who had an assistant played by the gorgeous Erin Gray. Flashback to the 80’s, when money was cuddly and fun, and every kid wanted to be a preppy kid with a miniature train going through their living room. The 3-disc first season set features all 22 episodes, but nary an audio commentary (not even on the MR. T episode!).
The air begins to chill, the leaves begin to fall, and the nights lengthen as we march towards one of my favorite holidays of the year – Halloween. Why not begin planning your macabre film viewing festivities by pocking up the 7-film Vincent Price: MGM Scream Legends Collection (MGM, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP). Contained in the set are Tales Of Terror, Twice Told Tales, Theater Of Blood, Madhouse, Witchfinder general, The Abominable Dr. Phibes, and Dr. Phibes Rides Again!. There’s a bonus “disc of horrors” packed with featurettes and rarities.
While that’s a hefty bunch of Halloween titles, it’s not nearly enough to fill a month, so you might as well pick up the 8-flick Roger Corman Collection (MGM, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), which sports Gas-s-s-s!, The Trip, The Young Racers, The Wild Angels, Bloody Mama, A Bucket Of Blood, The Premature Burial, and X: The Man With The X-Ray Eyes. My only regret is that MGM has gone with those loathsome double-sided discs.
And before we drop the Halloween thing this week, allow me to clue you in to the release of more chucks of glorious cinematic effluence as part of MGM’s Midnite Movies Double Feature Collection – The Beast Within/The Bat People & Tales From The Crypt/Vault Of Horror (MGM, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP each).
Take the Producers arc of Curb Your Enthusiasm – in which Larry was cast as Max Bialystock on Broadway – and condense it into a feature film mockumentary starring Jeff Goldblum (as himself) setting his sights on what looks to be an increasingly disastrous out-of-town production of The Music Man, and you have Pittsburgh (Starz, Not Rated, DVD-$26.98 SRP). Is it fun? Yes, it is. Bonus features include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, and a trailer.
Does Hong Kong action fit into your plans for the weekend a little more? How about a flick that features both Sammo Hung and Michael Biehn? What is the flick? Dragon Heat (Genius, Not Rated, DVD-$19.95 SRP). How can you go wrong with that?
Join inquisitive glutton for punishment Mike Rowe on 24 adventures in another man’s shoes in the first collection of the Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs (Image, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP). The 2-disc set also features the “100th Dirty Job Special”, packed with clips and bloopers.
It’s unfortunate to visit an old friend that you just can’t seem to relate to anymore. That’s the feeling I get when I watch the episodes features in the 5th volume of Family Guy (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP). I dug the show’s original run something fierce, but since it made its comeback a few years back, it seems the spark is gone. I don’t know if it was due to the staff they lost when the original shut down, but the jokes seem tired, and the stories flat. The 3-disc set features 13 episodes, plus audio commentaries, a trio of animatics with optional commentary, deleted scenes, optional censored audio, and featurettes.
While it’s not the original Criterion release, the new 2-disc anniversary edition of Robocop (MGM/UA, Not Rated, DVD-$22.98 SRP) just about replaces the memory of it – particularly with sparkling new transfers of both the original theatrical release and the extended cut. The 2-disc set is no slough in the bonus department, either, featuring an audio commentary, 6 behind-the-scenes and retrospective featurettes, storyboards, a TV spot, the theatrical trailer, and more.
Bored this weekend? A bit sadistic? Pick up a copy of Pete Firman’s Tricks To Freak Out Your Friends (Chicago Review Press, $14.95 SRP). The title is self-explanatory, and the tricks are sure to make many a friend think twice about inviting you over again.
Elvis fans will probably want to snag a copy of Elvis: Viva Las Vegas (RCA, $ SRP), a collection of over a dozen newly remastered live tracks from The King.
Soon we shall have ever Hanna-Barbera cartoon series on DVD – and to prove my point, you can now get the complete Josie and the Pussycats (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$26.98 SRP). The sole bonus feature is a much-deserved profile of the late Dan DeCarlo.
Brothers And Sisters (Buena Vista, Not Rated, DVD-$59.99 SRP) is one of those shows that premieres with a concept that turns out to be too specific, but eventually relaxes and let’s the organic chemistry between the cast members dictate where things should go. Such is the case with the story of the Walker family – a sprawling bunch of conflicting personalities who come together under matriarch Sally Field when their father passes away suddenly. The first season set features all 23 episodes, plus audio commentaries, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes featurettes, bloopers, and the original pilot.
Just in time for her big screen Golden Age, Cate Blanchett’s original turn as the virgin queen Elizabeth (Universal, Rated R, DVD-$14.98 SRP) gets a re-release of its special edition, featuring an audio commentary, making-of featurettes, and a look at Elizabeth: The Golden Age.
Check another TV series off the list, as the 3rd volume of The Addams Family (MGM, Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP) wraps up the run of that mysterious and ooky clan. The 3-disc set features all 21 episodes, plus audio commentary, trivia, and more.
The movie made little impact at the box office, but I’m sure the feature film adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust will be quite the cult hit on home video. It’s a visually rich flick, which makes perusing Stardust: The Visual Companion (Titan Books, $24.95 SRP) such a treat. Check it out.
The best way to describe Hex (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$49.95 SRP) is the BBC’s take on Buffy, replete with Brit atmosphere, pacing, and storytelling pace. If you were to make Buffy into a boarding school student who becomes aware of the supernatural world around her, gains powers, and battles… Well, you know the story. Still, it’s a nice jaunt from across the pond, and worth checking out. The 3-disc set contains all 10 first season episodes, plus deleted scenes and a making-of featurette.
I think by the sixth season of Smallville (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP), the producers began to realize that the whole “Clark isn’t Superman yet” thing was beginning to wear a little thin. However, instead of making the daring move – of moving the show to Metropolis and going for broke – they instead decided to keep bringing everyone and their brother in the superhero universe to small town Kansas. Way to push it, guys. The 6-disc set features all 22 episodes, plus unaired scenes, webisodes, featurettes, and more.
I’m not a fan by any stretch of the imagination, but my mother loves Ghost Whisperer (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$72.99 SRP). Don’t ask me why – I think it’s a saccharine heir to Touched By An Angel. Still, she loves it. The 6-disc second season set features all 22 episodes, plus behind-the-scenes featurettes, webisodes, and more.
The second season of Prison Break (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP) – considering the events of the first season’s finale – really didn’t have much to do with a prison. Instead, it found brothers Michael and Lincoln on the run after the big break out, leading a cadre of fellow prisoners on the run. The 6-disc box set features all 22 episodes, plus audio commentaries, featurettes, and a spotlight on the theme.
I don’t know about you, but for years after it ended, I wondered what Raj, Dwayne, Shirley, Dee, and Rerun were up to. Finally, the late 90’s answered the long-festering question What’s Happening Now? (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$29.95 SRP) by reuniting the entire cast (sans mama). Hey – this is the series that gave us Rerun as TV pitchman Swami Stubbs. That, sirs, is gold. The 3-disc set features all 22 first season episodes.
Remember the good ol’ days when the governor of California was a mere action star, blasting his way across the screen in Commando (Fox, Rated R, DVD-$19.98 SRP) with the new special edition – featuring both the original theatrical and extended director’s cuts, an audio commentary, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
By the seventh season of Married With Children (Sony, Not Rated, DVD-$39.95 SRP), the once-risqué Bundy clan had become a sitcom cliché, with the introduction of a precocious kiddie to the cast. I guess it had to happen eventually. The 3-disc set features all 26 episodes, and not a single extra.
Not as refined and surprisingly, less well-written, the animated Legion Of Superheroes (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP) is an attempt to cash in on the success of Teen Titans by bringing the futuristic superteam to the small screen. The first volume features 4 episodes, plus a featurette on translating the Legion from comic to cartoon.
I must be all triumphant sports movie-d out. The formulaic We Are Marshall (Warner Bros., Rated PG, DVD-$28.98 SRP) – which tells the true story of the rebuilding of the Marshall Football program after an air crash killed their entire team – didn’t even raise a blip on the gut-level, even though it pushed all those rah-rah buttons that everything from Hoosiers to Rudy have slapped us with in the resent past. Ah well, maybe I’ve just developed an immunity. Bonus features include a featurette on legendary coaches who overcame adversity, and the theatrical trailer.
All things must end, and so it has with the release of the 9th and final season of Everybody Loves Raymond (HBO, Not Rated, DVD-$44.98 SRP). The 4-disc set features all 16 episodes, plus 8 audio commentaries, deleted scenes, interviews, and bloopers.
If you’ve got that dancing on the ceiling feeling, then two brand new special editions should fulfill all your toe-tapping needs. Not only is there a brand new edition of Flashdance (Paramount, Rated R, DVD-$19.99 SRP), but a 30th anniversary edition of Saturday Night Fever (Paramount, Rated R, DVD-$19.99 SRP). Flashdance features 5 behind-the-scenes/retrospective featurettes and trailers, as well as a bonus CD with 6 tracks from the film. Fever features commentary with director John Badham, a 5-part documentary, a dance lesson, and more. Be a dancing fool this weekend.
If you want a sad example of executive interference in a franchise, look no further than the animated adaptation of Superman: Doomsday (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, DVD-$19.98 SRP). Under the ignorant guidance of WB animation honcho Sander Schwartz (the Avi Arad of Warners), the Bruce Timm designed animated DC universe was dismantled in favor of stunt pictures like this, with lousy recasting of voices and a bastardized character design. Typical, and sad. Bonus features include a documentary on the whole Superman death and rebirth stunt, audio commentary, a featurette on the voice casting, and a look at the upcoming Justice League: New Frontier.
So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…
-Ken Plume
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