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 didn’t think Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the tale about a WWI cavalry War Horse (Dreamworks, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$45.99 SRP) would be terribly interesting, but I shouldn’t have doubted Spielberg’s ability to at least ring a watchable flick out of material. And then make it into one of his strongest films in years, with a powerful sweep and emotional depth found in his best work. Bonus materials include an in-depth behind-the-scenes documentary, featurettes, and more.
What a brilliant geek alchemy the fine folks at LEGO unleash every time they release another their vehicle sets based on the classic Star Wars films, and all of the buttons are duly pushed with their new LEGO: X-Wing Fighter ($59.99), which perfectly replicates – in brick form – the workhorse starfighter of the Rebel Alliance. Not only do you get workable wings, but also minifigs of Luke Skywalker, R2-D2, Jek Porkins (!), & R5-D8. Come on – As soon as you know you can get a Porkins minifig, how can you not get this set?
One of the biggest surprises of last year was Chris Elliott’s triumphant return to television with the Adult Swim take on Walker, Texas Ranger, Eagleheart (Adult Swim, Not Rated, DVD-$19.97 SRP), which stars Elliott as the cranked to 11 eponymous Federal Marshall. The disc features all 12 episodes of the first season, plus commentaries, deleted scenes, outtakes, and featurettes.
It doesn’t really address some of the stories I’ve heard about how ambitious he was in his rise to the top of the Sesame Street food chain, but Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey (New Video, Rated PG- DVD-$29.95 SRP) is really more about being a touchy-feely tale of how a Baltimore teenager named Kevin Clash followed his dream of working with Jim Henson and The Muppets and grew up to be the performer behind one of the most recognizable characters in the pop culture landscape. Bonus materials include featurettes, interviews, a Q&A, and more.
Short-lived and forgotten, who couldn’t love Bob Newhart as a superhero comic artist in the sitcom Bob (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP). Audiences, it seems, as it only lasted a little over a season. Not even the incredible power of Betty White could save it, even though it is a fun show. The complete series set contains original Entertainment Tonight interviews with Bob & Betty, and a digital version of the “Mad-Dog” comic.
It’s always a delight when a classic piece of cinema makes its way to high definition, and so we have Roman Polanski & Robert Towne’s still brilliant Chinatown (Paramount, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$26.98 SRP), looking and sounding superb. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, featurettes, and the theatrical trailer.
Very few sitcoms have gotten the high definition treatment, and particularly not one that goes back over 10 years, but That 70’s Show: Season One (Mill Creek, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) looks pretty darn good, even more so because it’s presented for the first time in anamorphic widescreen. Certainly worth checking out, and here’s hoping they release the rest of the series. Bonus materials include featurettes and a new-to-Blu-Ray look at how the show’s signature transitions were created.
Shout Factory continues their noble mission of re-releasing Mystery Science Theater 3000 episodes that have gone out of print with a pair of returns – MST3K: The Wild World Of Bat Woman & MST3K: Girl In Gold Boots (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$14.99 each). Here’s hoping they continue to release ’em!
Cartoon Network’s decidedly indie kiddie cartoon gets it’s first DVD release with Regular Show: Slack Pack (Cartoon Network, Not Rated, DVD-$14.97 SRP), featuring 12 episodes of awesome plua s a bonus. Yeah. Even adults will dig it.
When he puts his mind to it, Cameron Crowe certainly knows how to make an affable – overly-so – film, and that’s exactly what he does with We Bought A Zoo (Fox, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), which is based on the true story of a journalist who moves his fracturing family out of the city and to a dilapidated zoo. Which, yes, they restore – at the same time they restore their family. Guessed that, did ya? Bonus materials include an audio commentary, featurettes, deleted scenes, a gag reel, and more.
As much as I thought Torchwood was a misguided, often frustrating, and even more often boring series (and regrettable spin-off from Doctor Who), it wasn’t until the recent Torchwood: Miracle Day (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$59.99 SRP) that I truly began to loathe it, as every character in the convoluted, ultimately insulting story about death taking a global holiday is a tone deaf parody of genre cliches. Don’t believe me? Watch at your own risk… And mourn the lost potential of the once-exciting Captain Jack Harkness. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, featurettes, and more.
Wil Wheaton fans eager to complete their collections of his cinematic output will want to thank MGM’s MOD Limited Edition Collection for the release of Fish Don’t Blink (MGM, Rated R, DVD-$19.98), while Freddie Prinze fans get the comedic heist pic The Million Dollar Rip Off (MGM, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98). Meanwhile fans of obscure, misguided attempts to be comedically hip in the 60’s will want to get Sergeant Deadhead (MGM, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98), and aficionados of dated 80’s drama will want Modern Girls (MGM, Rated PG-13, DVD-$19.98).
Watch as a franchise already on thin ice gets in trouble in the tropics with Alvin & The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (Fox, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), which finds the singing animal trio saddled with the Chippettes on a remote island after a cruise trip goes wrong. Bonus materials include featurettes, extended scenes, music videos, and more.
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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Those gloriously wonderful folks at Shout Factory have rescued yet another beloved but neglected classic television show from the pits of neglect in the form of The Bob Newhart Show: The Complete Series (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$129.99 SRP). That’s right – you can now get all 142 episodes in one super-box, packed with audio commentaries and a bonus disc sporting the original version of the pilot, a reunion featurette, the 1991 19th anniversary special, a gag reel, and more. THIS is why Shout Factory is one of the best companies out there. Now, if only they could get their hands on Sgt. Bilko, I’ll be a very happy chappie.
For Doctor Who fans, Mark Gatiss’s docudrama An Adventure In Space And Time (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) is a brilliant love letter to the franchise, its creators, and its fans, as it tells the tale of the show’s humble origins as a simple kid’s show that managed to make all of the right decisions – including the casting of the irascible first Doctor, William Hartnell – to become an institution. Bonus materials include a making-of, deleted scenes, recreated classic Who scenes using vintage cameras, and a bonus DVD with the first Doctor’s inaugural story, “An Unearthly Child”.
After quite a long wait, the fine folks at Criterion have given another quirky Wes Anderson curiosity a high definition upgrade with The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (Criterion, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.95 SRP), and it both looks and sounds as snazzy as you were hoping. The massive clutch of bonus features should be familiar to fans of Criterion’s DVD release, including an audio commentary, the making-of documentary “This Is An Adventure”, an Italian talk show interview, an intern video journal, interviews with the cast and crew, a Mark Mothersbaugh interview, deleted scenes, still galleries, a conversation between Anderson and his brother, and Seu Jorge performing Bowie songs in Portuguese.
With a script from the Coen Brothers and a fun cast including Colin Firth, Cameron Diaz, and Alan Rickman, it’s surprising that Gambit (Sony, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$30.99 SRP) has made barely a ripple, as it’s a little confection of a con comedy, with an art curator (Firth) deciding to snooker his abusive media tycoon boss (Rickman) by getting him to purchase a fake Monet. Give it a spin.
Hard to believe there was a time that Clint Eastwood was the star of a TV show – and one that ran for eight years, at that – but now you can witness the end of that era with the release of that eighth and final season of Rawhide (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), starring Eastwood as trail boss Rowdy Yates.
It was only a matter of time before a documentary was made about the life and career of Vincent Furnier, the preacher’s son better known to the world as Alice Cooper. Super Duper Alice Cooper (Eagle Vision, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.98 SRP) is that documentary, and it’s an exhaustive, engaging piece, peppered with contributions from contemporaries like Elton John and John Lydon, in addition to rare footage. Bonus materials include deleted scenes, additional rare footage, and interviews.
There’s no denying that Parts Per Billion (Millennium, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$29.99 SRP) is a downer of a film. Considering it deals with humanity on the verge of extinction after a biological disaster, there should be little surprise in that. But thanks to a cast that includes Frank Langella and Gena Rowlands, it’s a fascinating character piece about how a trio of couples cope with the looming specter of death.
For anyone who doubted that we’d ever see the rest of it, Warners has released The New Adventures Of Superman: Seasons 2 & 3 (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$19.97 SRP), featuring 32 episodes produced by Filmation from 1966-1970. That just leaves the fourth and final season and it’s a wrap.
Catch up on the sixth and penultimate season of True Blood (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$79.98 SRP) before the final season premieres, as Sookie Stackhouse prepares to confront her parents’ killer at the same time the Louisiana governor calls open season on vampires. Bonus materials include audio commentaries and featurettes.
It’s become a go-to joke for a yokel paradise, but the story behind the Redneck Vegas, Branson, Missouri, makes for a fascinating story in the documentary We Always Lie To Strangers (Virgil Films, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP). It doesn’t change my opinion of the place, but it does allow me to understand why it became the powerful Ozarks oasis that exists today.
Even though outside success means that the days of Adam, Blake, and Ders are probably numbered, enjoy the merry misadventures of Workaholics (Comedy Central, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$22.98 SRP) in its fourth season. Two words: Renaissance Faire. Bonus materials include deleted/alternate scenes and outtakes.