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…)
While you’re counting the days that have comprised this massively long wait for the start of the 6th season, dive into the complete 5th season of 30 Rock (Universal, Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP), featuring all 22 episodes plus audio commentaries (Would you believe Val Kilmer is on one?), deleted scenes, the West Coast version of the “Live Show”, animated shorts, and more.
Looking for an easier way to send countless texts to friends and family this holiday season in a much, much easier fashion? How about augmenting your iPhone with a Bluetooth Sliding Keyboard Case ($24.99)? That’s right – Not only is it a sliding keyboard for your iPhone, but t also acts as a case. How much more practical can you get?
Many (including me) celebrated the release of the Rhino DVD sets as a golden age for fans of the show, but Shout Factory has proved that those Rhino days were but pyrite compared to the torrent of Mystery Science Theater sets they’ve delivered over the past few years. Case in point, just months after all of the Gamera films, we get Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XXII (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$59.97 SRP). The four films in the set include a few that fans have been desiring for years – Time Of The Apes, Mighty Jack, The Violent Years, and The Brute Man. There also some introductions, featurettes, MST3K Hour wraps, and the 1997 special The Making Of MST3K.
Watching the 4th, penultimate (and last full) season of The Sarah Jane Adventures (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP) makes me miss the late Elisabeth Sladen all the more, as even though the kid-geared stories could sometimes be uneven, there’s a palpable and enjoyable charm to the series. And as a bonus, this season features guest appearances by Matt Smith’s Doctor and former companion Jo Grant.
I don’t want you to think that I didn’t enjoy The Hangover: Part II (Warner Bros., Rated R, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP), because I did. It just didn’t seem as fresh or as focused as the first film, which came out of nowhere and managed to slap the population upside the head with it’s crass panache. Though I will give this sequel props for using “Downeaster Alexa”. Yes, I will. Bonus materials include featurettes and a gag reel. I assume the unrated version is only a few short months away.
For a unique home 3D experience that’s also quite educational, join Werner Herzog for a journey into the Cave Of Forgotten Dreams (IFC, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP), which find everyone’s favorite German director journeying deep into the Chauvet Cave in France, which houses the world’s most ancient pictorial art (stretching back over 30,000 years). Bonus materials include a short film and the theatrical trailer.
Oh, Cowboys And Aliens (Universal, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP). There really was a grand film to be had out of your title. Unfortunately, that film is nowhere to be found. Instead, we get an overlong, deadened flick starring Daniel Craig in a bracelet and Harrison Ford’s Christian Bale Batman voice. And a dog. I do actually like the dog. Bonus materials include an audio commentary and a clutch of featurettes.
One of the great war films of all time gets a high definition release with Tora! Tora! Tora! (Fox, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP). If you’re not aware of the film, it was unique in that it told the tale of the attack on Pearl Harbor from both the American and Japanese perspectives. Bonus materials on this release include an audio commentary, documentaries, Fox MovieToNews, and the theatrical trailer.
In the documentary The Love We Make (Eagle Vision, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.98 SRP), we’re treated to a behind-the-scenes look as Paul McCartney, who was actually in New York during the event, prepares for the major benefit concert that was pulled together shortly after 9/11. It’s an interesting look at a time that seems very long ago, with a man to whom New York and its people mean a great deal.
I am shocked to say that I found The Smurfs (Sony, Rated PG, 3D Blu-Ray-$45.99) an entirely watchable film. Surprisingly, the least watchable parts of it were any time it was mired in the real world, with Neil Patrick Harris (no slight to him). I would much rather have seen a film entirely in the medieval world around Smurf village, with Hank Azaria’s Gargamel. Truly. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
I’ve always thought that Colin Quinn was a pretty sharp comedian with a not terribly sharp delivery, but in his first stand-up special – Colin Quinn: Long Story Short (VSC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.95 SRP) – he manages to hit a presentational sweet spot that makes this Jerry Seinfeld-directed guide through history a tour de force. Bonus materials include an audio commentary and additional footage.
Listen, I know that the John Milius Conan film has its flaws, but there’s an energy and grit that permeates every frame of that flick that’s simply not found in the too-slick, too-affected, too-boring modern Conan The Barbarian (Lionsgate, Rated R, 3D Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) featuring Jason Momoa as the Cimmerian warrior in a tale that has monsters, sure, but nothing to match James Earl Jones. Bonus materials include audio commentaries and a clutch of featurettes.
If you’ve waited your whole life to see Jim Carrey cavort with penguins in an elegant New York apartment, then Mr. Popper’s Penguins (Fox, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) is the sort of heart-warming and somewhat funny family film for you. Because he does. Cavort with penguins. Bonus materials include a gag reel, deleted scenes, featurettes, and an animated short.
I kept hoping that Friends With Benefits (Sony, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$40.99 SRP) would eventually become as funny and meta romantic comedy as it was painfully trying to be, but besides the always-likeable Mila Kunis & Justin Timberlake, nothing ever came together. In fact, I’ve largely forgot about the movie as I was watching it. Bonus materials include an audio commentary and featurettes.
Ben returns to take on the abounding extraterrestrial menaces in Ben 10 Ultimate Alien: The Wild Truth (Cartoon Network, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP). The 2-disc set contains another 12 episodes of alien fighting.
It’s been the requisite amount of time, so what do we get? Why, we get another season set of Spongebob! Spongebob Squarepants: The Complete Seventh Season (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$26.98 SRP) packs over 9 hours of Bikini Bottom madness onto 4-discs, including a quartet of animated shorts.
Things take a dark, unpredictable turn in the 5th and final season of Big Love (HBO, Not Rated, DVD-$59.99 SRP), which finds the Henrickson clan under fire after patriarch, and newly elected state Senator, Bill announces his polygamy on election night. And things go from bad to worse as a vengeful Alby Grant makes his return. Bonus materials include audio commentaries and a featurette.
If you’d like to fulfill your very special movie quota, check out The Help (Touchstone, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$44.99 SRP), about a group of women who work across 1960’s Southern racial and societal barriers on a writing project. Bonus materials include featurettes and deleted scenes.
For history buffs, the perfect companion to their recent WWII set is the equally fascinating/gripping Vietnam In HD (History Channel, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.95 SRP), featuring home movies and rare archival footage never before available, presented in high definition.
Sideshow Collectibles’ premium format figure line has been plenty of impressive scaled recreations of classic pop culture characters over the years, but the really impressive thing is when they manage to wow me with a character I would not have been expected to be wowed by. Case in point is their 1/4-scale Emperor Palpatine and Imperial Throne ($499). If you’re wondering about the elevated pricetag above their standard premium format figures, it should be readily apparent that not only are you getting the accurately sculpted and clothed leader of the evil Empire, but also his absolutely massive imperial throne. And, to make it that much more authentic (and worth the price), there’s even a light feature, as they underside of the top canopy features a blue LED for that screen-accurate look. If you’re still able, be sure to get the Sideshow Exclusive edition, which features a swappable head sporting Palpatine’s angry bastard face.
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
##
Comments: None
Leave a Reply |