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 love a film that can expertly blend comedy, action, and genuine heart, and last year brought two films that accomplished that hat trick with flair – Guardians Of The Galaxy and Big Hero 6 (Walt Disney, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP). Gah, how I love Big Hero 6, from its visual design to the story itself, it really is a beautiful, memorable package. B9onus materials include the theatrical short Feast, deleted scenes, and featurettes. Now can anyone tell me why we didn’t get a 3D home video release?
A long time Anglophile, a little over a year ago I made my first trip to London, during which I picked up the habit of having a pot of tea each day as a lovely little pick me up. Despite spending weeks on the other side of the pond, I sampled only a small amount of the immense variety of “teatime” snacks that function as a delightful accompaniment to that daily ritual. So, ever since, I’ve picked the brains of my friends for their recommendations of various must-have treats. Recently, my friend Tony insisted I try Welsh cakes. I had never heard of Welsh cakes, but made the assumption that they must have originated in Wales, and also be some type of cake. Doing a bit of research, I found I didn’t have to import that particular delicacy in order to try it, as a company in California has begun cooking and selling them here in the US, based on an old family recipe and expanded to include many non-traditional but still wonderful flavors. The Welsh Baker (WelshBaker.com) kindly sent over a sampling of six of their 12 available varieties – Currant, Lemon Poppy, Cranberry Orange, Cinnamon, Chocolate Chip, and Blueberry – for me to experience. And what a fantastic experience it was. Hand griddled (not baked!) and best eaten warmed (which you can do with a quick pop in the microwave), I followed another friend’s recommendation and dolloped them with a bit of clotted cream and strawberry conserve, and… well… yeah, they were great. Beyond great. And ridiculously low in calories for their size and richness. Oh, and perfect with tea. So, Welsh cakes? Yes, please. Now go! Partake of all the goodness available from The Welsh Baker! In the meantime, I’m going to go have another Welsh cake. And then another. And then… You know. (UPDATE: The Welsh Baker is offering a promo code FRED on their website, that will get you 15% off any order. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS DELICIOUS OFFER.)
The 4th season of Game Of Thrones (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$79.98 SRP) found a lot of fans’ prayers answered when it comes to the fate of a certain character, but then also managed to excite and irk fans of G.R.R. Martin’s books, as it managed both rousing interpretations and irksome deviations from the text in equal measure. But even with the pedant rollercoaster, it remains must-see TV. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
Even knowing its pastoral trappings soon reveal a brutally faithful adaptation of Richard Adam’s brutally dystopian tale of a rabbit community under threat – a nature a traumatized young me was unaware of before watching what he thought was a simple cartoon – the power of Watership Down (Criterion, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.95 SRP) remains undiminished, and now Criterion has remastered it in full HD glory. Bonus materials include interviews, featurettes, PIP storyboards, a trailer, and more.
We already got a sparkling high definition Blu-Ray release of the film a few years back, so there’s no better way to celebrate its 70th anniversary this year than with the deluxe Walt Disney Records Legacy Collection treatment of Pinocchio (Walt Disney, $14.99 SRP). The 2-disc set features the remastered version of the original songs and score, plus a second disc of bonus tracks featuring Jiminy Cricket’s tunes from The Mickey Mouse Club and “Lost Chords” re-creations of a trio of tunes cut from the film.
It’s been years since I watched The Green Mile – it still holds up, natch – and Warners has made it very easy for you to do so by bringing it under one box set with both The Shawshank Redemption and the high-def debut of The Majestic in The Frank Darabont Collection (Warner Bros., Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP), which celebrates the titular director’s films complete with bonus features including commentaries, additional scenes, and more.
Yes yes yes, Eddie Redmayne is every bit as amazing as you’ve heard as the young Stephen Hawking in The Theory Of Everything (Universal, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP), but criminally overlooked is his costar Felicty Jones, who makes this tale of young love work as well as it does by bringing to vivid life the couple’s courtship and eventual marriage while Hawking’s physical world closed in around him as his illness took hold. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, a featurette, and deleted scenes.
After a bit of a stumble last year, new Doctor Peter Capaldi gets to inaugurate his 12 incarnation of the Time Lord into the longstanding tradition of the annual holiday special. Doctor Who: Last Christmas (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.98 SRP) finds him brow-to-brow against Nick Frost’s Santa Claus as Clara and the crew of an arctic base come face-to-face-hugging-a with an alien foe in a nifty mash-up of The Thing and Alien. Bonus materials include an audio commentary and a behind-the-scenes featurette.
When it comes to chronicling the art, artists, and history of comic books, no one has done it as consistently well as Twomorrows, so much so that every one of their releases are a must-have. That goes double for their latest tomes – Marvel Comics In The 1980s: An Issue By Issue Field Guide To A Pop Culture Phenomenon (Twomorrows, $27.95 SRP) and the 30th installment in their long-running artist spotlight series Modern Masters: Paolo Rivera (Twomorrows, $15.95 SRP).
Steven Spielberg’s Munich (Universal, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$14.99 SRP) finally makes its high definition debut, and it remains very much a stark, brutal, un-Spielbergian drama that resonates just as much all these years later, both as a piece of historical drama and filmmaking. Bonus materials include an introduction from Spielberg and six featurettes. It’s also currently a retailer exclusive at Best Buy.
His last couple of outings have been somewhat shaky, but Terry Gilliam returns to fun and freaky form with the deeply contemplative Zero Theorem (Well Go USA, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.98 SRP), which evokes the best dystopian elements of Brazil with the disillusion of Fisher King and trippy gonzo nature of Fear & Loathing. And the story? Just watch it, and drink it all in. Bonus materials include featurettes and the theatrical trailer.
Listen, Michael Keaton is amazing and wonderful and turns in a fine performance, but I just can’t bring myself to do anything but shake my head at the unmitigated & off-putting pretension of Birdman (Fox, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), a film which wallows in its self-importance like an overwrought student film. But Michael Keaton’s great. Bonus materials include a chat with Keaton & director Alejandro G. Inarritu, a featurette, and a gallery of on-set photos.
Yes, we know, you’re still suffering withdrawal symptoms from The LEGO Movie. Well, get your LEGO fix with a superhero twist courtesy of the feature-length Justice League vs Bizarro League (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP), in which our titans team up with their ersatz counterparts to take on the menace of Darkseid. Bonus materials include the Batman Be-Leagured TV special, bloopers, and “Me Am Bizarro” featurette.
Oh, Olive Films – You continue to delight with your ridiculously impressive dedication to releasing massive amounts of niche catalogue titles new to high definition. This week, they’re dropping the Frankie Avalon & Annette Funnicello beach flicks Beach Blanket Bingo & Muscle Beach Party (Olive, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP each), Billy Wilder’s Kiss Me Stupid (Olive, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Peter Fonds & Nancy Sinatra in The Wild Angels (Olive, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Jack Lemmon in How To Murder Your Wife (Olive, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Dean Stockwell & Jack Nicholson in the trippy Psych-Out (Olive, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Robert Downey Jr & Kiefer Sutherland in 1969 (Olive, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), the 1981 adaptation of Lady Chatterley’s Lover (Olive, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Ring Starr in Carl Gottlieb’s bizarre Caveman (Olive, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), and the last of the Hope & Crosby “Road” pictures, The Road To Hong Kong (Olive, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP).
BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE, catalogue title fans! Olive Films have dropped even more vault titles, including Norman Lear’s The Night They Raided Minsky’s (Olive, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Eric Roberts and Dennis Hopper in Blood Red (Olive, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Ang Lee’s Eat Drink Man Woman (Olive, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), Mickey Rourke & Jacqueline Bisset in Wild Orchid (Olive, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP), and John Stockwell in Dangerously Close (Olive, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.95 SRP).
Not to be outdone, the fine folks at Shout Factory have also unleashed the floodgates of high-def catalogue releases, including Kenneth Branagh’s epic adaptation of Henry V (Shout Factory, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$24.97 SRP), Katharine Hepburn and Henry & Jane Fonda in On Golden Pond (Shout Factory, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$24.97 SRP), the cheesy sci-fi flick Supernova (Shout Factory, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$24.97 SRP), and the double features Love At First Bite/Once Bitten & Vampire’s Kiss/High Spirits (Shout Factory, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$24.97 SRP each).
The first was a solid if unmemorable comedy, and its sequel, Horrible Bosses 2 (Warner Bros., Rated R, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP), upholds that workmanlike precedent, as our hapless working stiff heroes decide to become their own bosses, with disastrous results. Bonus materials include featurettes, alternate lines, and more.
May the bromance never end, as My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic – Adventures Of The Cutie Mark Crusaders (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$14.97 SRP), arrives, filled with 5 new-to-DVD equestrian adventures for Bronies the world over to enjoy.
There’s an added poignancy that legendary film critic Roger Ebert has become the subject of a posthumous documentary celebrating his life the same way he devoted his life to celebrating film, but one can’t help but wonder what his review of Life Itself (Magnolia, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.98 SRP) would have been.
The latest in the long line of visually lush animated films from the legendary Studio Ghibli, The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya (Universal, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP) is now available to view in your home theater, and it’s a uniquely told epic of a mysterious princess. Bonus materials include a feature-length making-of documentary, featurettes, trailers, and TV spots.
The tiny kinder set get a trio of releases of their own this week with the monster truck mini-movie Blaze And The Monster Machines: Blaze Of Glory (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), Max & Ruby: Sweet Siblings (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), and the seasonal compilation Springtime Adventures (Nickelodeon, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), which features episodes of Wallykazam, Bubble Guppies, Team Umizoomi, Dora The Explorer, Blue’s Clues, and Wonder Pets.
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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I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
As a child, I must have watched 
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I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.