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 FRED Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…

(Please support FRED by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)

Much like the film it gets compared to most often, Attack The Block (Sony, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP) is a quirky, genre-bending-but-loving flick like Shaun Of The Dead. Where Shaun tackled classic zombie flicks, Attack is a brilliant hybrid between Predator, Aliens, Monster Squad, and the very best of John Carpenter, as a group of shady teens are turned into heroes as they defend their block against an alien invasion. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, unfilmed sequences, and more.

We’ve left the summer behind and I didn’t see a single firefly. I recall the summers of my youth being filled with fireflies. Well, I can alleviate some of that nostalgic disappointment with the electronic Firefly In A Jar ($19.99), from the same folks that brought us the electronic Butterfly In A Jar. At a tap on the lid, this firefly flits about the interior, posterior aglow. It’s not the real thing, but I’m glad to have it.

Often overlooked, the artistry that exists behind the action is explored and given a chance to shine in the latest installment of Disney’s incredible art series Walt Disney Animation Studios – The Archive Series: Layout & Background (Disney Editions, $50.00 SRP). Packed with hundreds of sketches, layouts, and absolutely stunning background paintings that set the scene for your favorite animated films, this is a must-have for your home library.

While it’s not the release of 1941 I was hoping for, I suppose it is nice to have beautiful high-definition editions of Spielberg’s dinosaurs via the Jurassic Park: Ultimate Trilogy (Universal, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$79.98 SRP), which contains all three films looking and sounding quite spectacular compared to the original DVD releases. All of the bonus materials from those previous releases have carried over, supplemented by a newly produced retrospective documentary that spans all three discs.

Disney’s Winnie The Pooh (Walt Disney, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) is intended to be a return to the studio’s 2-D, traditionally animated roots and, by and large, it succeeds as a reaffirmation of that neglected legacy and a nice tale of that silly old bear, as the gang set out to recover Eeyore’s lost tale. Bonus materials include deleted scenes, featurettes, and a pair of shorts.

I’ve seen plenty of documentaries, and very few of them are as entertaining as Winnebago Man (Kino, Not Rated, DVD-$14.95 SRP), which is one man’s quest to find unintentional viral video star Jack Rebney, dubbed “The Angriest Man In The World”. Bonus materials include the lost Winnebago sales video, a featurette on the NYC premiere, and the theatrical trailer.

If you’re not watching Idris Elba’s new series, then pick it up with the second release, Luther 2 (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$34.98 SRP), and see a brilliant series and an even more brilliant performance from Elba as Detective John Luther, who returns to the force after a devastating tragedy and betrayal and tries to put his career back together.

There might have been an interesting film to be had with the idea of presenting exactly why fans feel so betrayed by George Lucas’s handling of the Star Wars franchise over the past 15 years, but The People Vs. George Lucas (Lionsgate, Not Rated, DVD-$27.98 SRP) never quite pulls together a cohesive vision of what exactly it’s trying to accomplish. Is it trying Lucas? Is it just an excuse to shoot odd footage of odd uberfans? A missed opportunity. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, additional footage, a Gary Kurtz interview, and a music video.

Now only do you get 20 regular episodes in the 5th season set of Robot Chicken (Adult Swim, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), but you also get the very special 100th episode, plus deleted scenes & animatics, featurettes, audio commentaries, promos, and more. Yes, fans – you know you’re going to get this.

Get your man flick fix this weekend with the high definition release of The Guns Of Navarone (Sony, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP), which stars Gregory Peck, David Niven, and Anthony Quinn as a WWII special ops team tasked with making their way into Nazi territory and eliminating a pair of deadly long-range guns. Simple as that. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, a trio of documentaries, and featurettes.

It’s been a few months, so it makes sense that we’re getting the second volume of the first season of Young Justice (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), which contains episodes 5-8 of the latest DC animated phenom. There are no bonus features to speak of, but those will usually come in the inevitable complete season collection.

A few years back, Sideshow fulfilled many a fanboy’s dream by releasing a 12″-scale Indiana Jones figure. While appreciated, it wasn’t one of their better sculpts of Harrison Ford, and also suffered from a waxy, unrealistic paintjob. For that reason, I was beyond happy to hear that one of Sideshow’s partners, Hot Toys, had decided to make a MMS DX Indiana Jones ($249.99). This is Hot Toys absolute premium line, featuring adjustable eyes, multiple outfits (the Raiders-specific regular togs and the Tanis Map Room robes), more accessories than you can shake a stick at (idol, Staff of Ra, hands galore) and an absolutely stunning, borderline photorealistic likeness of Harrison Ford. It’s quite brilliant that Sideshow seems to be working more closely on licenses with Hot Toys, because absolutely no one else in the business is able to do sculpting and realistic paint jobs like Hot Toys. Check the photos below if you don’t believe me, and try your damndest to get one of these, and all of the other great figures coming up (cough cough Superman cough).

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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