FRED Entertainment

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…)

I was genuinely wary about how good Red Dwarf X (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP) would be. It had been over 10 years since the last actual series, and while it had its moments, the recent Back To Earth was a relatively dry affair. Thankfully, the Dwarfers return to a studio audience and the character comedy that I fell in love with from the show’s early seasons. Bonus materials include deleted scenes, a gag reel, and an absolutely incredible feature-length documentary chronicling the difficult journey in producing the show’s return.

Thinkgeek time! Whether it be for travel purposes or just emergencies, having battery backups able to recharge mobile devices is a plus, and one of the newer ones to consider is the iGeek Large Capacity Portable Charger ($69.95), which has the unique distinction of being able to recharge the power hungry iPad.

Much has been said about the genius of Looper (Sony, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP). But, truth be told, I don’t share the hyperbolic enthusiasm – rather, I’ll just say it’s en enjoyably solid time travel flick anchored by wonderful performances from Joseph Gordon Levitt & Bruce Willis, and leave it at that. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, featurettes, and deleted scenes.

Making the transition from TV to feature film is an often tricky proposition, and its quite a rare thing for it to be a comedy making that transition. To do it and to do it well is nearly unprecedented, which makes the success of The Inbetweeners Movie (Lionsgate, Rated R, DVD-$26.98 SRP) worth celebrating. And it’s also a great film, which finds the 4 lads out of school and having a decidedly awkward holiday. There’s also hours of bonus materials, from featurettes and deleted scenes to a gag reel and 24 takes of walking out of a door.

It was quite a surprise to hear that Tim Burton’s nigh-legendary stop-motion short made during his brief tenure at Disney would be turned into a full-fledged feature, but then it shouldn’t have been, since Frankenweenie (Walt Disney, Rated PG, 3D Blu-Ray-$49.99 SRP) was a charmer, and the expended film largely manages to keep that charm of a young boy using science to bring his dearly departed dog back to life intact. Bonus materials include the original live action short, a making-of documentary, and a brand-new short subject, to boot.

If you’re curious about how moderate John McCain compromised his principles and ultimately threw away his chance at the Presidency, take a look at HBO’s Game Change (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.99 SRP), which dramatizes the machinations of the 2008 election that led to such a downfall in principles. Bonus materials include a pair of featurettes.

If you enjoyed the first series of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant torturing the hapless Karl Pilkington by sending him to exotic locales within which to moan, then expect more of the same with An Idiot Abroad 2 (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$34.98 SRP). Just don’t expect him to bungee jump. Bonus materials include featurettes and deleted scenes.

Though I wasn’t expecting much from it, it was a pleasant surprise to a find a fun outing in Episodes (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), the tale of a husband-and-wife UK writing team whose delight at having their hit show adapted for the US market turns to despair as the adaptation of their intelligent show turns into a dumbed-down sitcom starring Matt LeBlanc (hilariously sending himself up). The 2-disc set contains the first and second season, but sadly no bonus features.

As long as teenage girls go crazy at the sight & sound of the latest pop sensation, much to the confusion and consternation of adults, then the musical Bye Bye Birdie (Masterworks Broadway, $11.99 SRP) will still be as relevant today as it was 50 years ago, as the tunes in this newly remastered version of the original soundtrack recording (starring Janet Leigh, Dick Van Dyke, Ann Margaret, & Paul Lynde).

It’s saccharine sweet, but there’s something in how matter-of-factly The Odd Life Of Timothy Green (Walt Disney, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) presents its simple little fable of a mysterious boy who arrives one night to be a barren couple’s perfect son that caught me off guard enough to accept its sweetness at face value. Fancy that, eh? Bonus materials include an audio commentary, featurettes, deleted scenes, and a music video.

In the rush to dramatize the killing of Bin Laden, the first film out of the gate was Seal Team Six: The Raid On Osama Bin Laden (Anchor Bay, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$24.99 SRP), which – while lacking the Oscar pretensions of the more recent take on events – is a solid look at the dangerous operation and the servicemen that carried it out. Bonus materials include a making-of featurette.

Combining the best of Mad Men and Newsroom, the BBC period drama returns in The Hour 2 (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP), which brings the team to 1957 and rapid change, both social and from within the office.

I know it’s got a rapid fan following, and for those rabid fans, the arrival of Archer: Season Three (Fox, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) is probably a cause for celebration, as it brings with it audio commentary on select episodes, featurettes, and an enhanced version of the “Heart Of Archness” Trilogy.

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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