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…)
If you pare Jackass down to its bare essentials, it’s pretty much just Johnny Knoxville doing stupid things. And that’s pretty much the embarrassingly sublime simplicity of Jackass Presents Bad Grandpa (Paramount, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), which finds Knoxville in his 86-year-old Irving Zisman make-up doing stupid stunts in public with the added bonus of a kid sidekick. Bonus materials include deleted scenes and featurettes.
While there have been a handful of figures released in Sideshow’s GI Joe line already, the real gem I’ve been eagerly awaiting is the arrival of Cobra’s supreme leader, Cobra Commander ($174.99). Thankfully based on his classic appearance from the original Real American Hero cartoon, the maniacal terrorist sorts either his reflective battle helmet or his hooded visage via swappable heads. There are plenty of extra hand variations (including one crushing a small globe), plus his scepter, pistol, laser rifle, and knife. Overall, exactly what I was hoping for.
Now that Sherlock has wrapped, get your Benedict Cumberbatch fix from The Fifth Estate (Touchstone, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$36.99 SRP), where he plays WikiLeaks mastermind Julian Assange in the true tale of espionage and intrigue behind the foundation’s founding and mission. Bonus materials include featurettes, TV spots, and trailers.
At a time when all of the other studios are opening up their vaults and releasing their deep catalogue titles, CBS has come up with a trio of their own starring some quite big names, starting with Dustin Hoffman in the quirky comedy Who Is Harry Kellerman And Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me (Paramount, Rated R, DVD-$19.99 SRP). Then we’ve got a pair of films featuring Jack Lemmon – The April Fools (Paramount, Rated PG, DVD-$19.99 SRP), with Catherine Deneuve, and The War Between Men And Women (Paramount, Rated PG, DVD-$19.99 SRP), with Barbara Harris.
Just in time for Mardis Gras comes the complete collection of HBO’s Treme (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$134.98 SRP), which brings together all 36 episodes of the epic story of the Big Easy’s rise from the ashes of Katrina, told through a collection of musicians, chefs, and residents. In addition to audio commentaries and featurettes, the set also contains an exclusive bonus disc with 15 music video performances from the show.
The fine folks at BBC Earth return with a new pair of visually stunning and informative nature documentaries – Penguins: Spy In The Huddle & Snow Babies (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP each). My only wish for both of these is that they could have gotten a true high definition Blu-Ray release.
The rescue of a boatful of illegal immigrants forces a struggling island family off the coast of Sicily to make difficult decisions in the fascinating import Terraferma (Cohen, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP). Bonus materials include a making-of featurette and the theatrical trailer.
Even though I’m not a fan of the sport, I’m a sucker for a well-made documentary, and 1 (Millennium Entertainment, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.99 SRP), about the history and danger of Formula 1 Racing and narrated by Michael Fassbender, certainly is an interesting watch.
And speaking of Formula 1 racing, that’s the subject of Ron Howard’s latest film, Rush (Universal, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP), which dramatizes the real-life rivalry between drivers James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl) as they clash both on and off the track. Bonus materials include featurettes and deleted scenes.
While the 60’s film is a much more romanticized take on the material, the recent miniseries take on Bonnie & Clyde (Sony, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$55.99 SRP) hews much closer to the facts of the couple’s bloody crime spree and even bloodier end. Bonus materials include a clutch of featurettes.
If you’re keen to give a gift of a romantic flick-a-palooza, try the 7-film Nicholas Sparks Collection (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, DVD-$69.97 SRP), which includes Safe Haven, The Lucky One, Dear John, Nights In Rodanthe, The Notebook, A Walk To Remember, and Message In A Bottle. The set also includes collectible postcards and a letter from Sparks.
For years, it’s been nigh-on impossible to buy 10th Doctor action figures for any decent price on the secondary market. Well, with the new Doctor Who: Doomsday Set (Underground Toys, $54.99 SRP), you get not only David Tennant’s Doctor (with 3D glasses), but also a Dalek and a Cyberman.
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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Criminally unavailable on DVD in any proper and suitably loving presentation until now, the loveable chaps at Shout Factory have released 
And what better Jack Benny chaser is there than 
The art of animation reduced down to its most primal level is the magic to be found in 
While the show in many ways hasn’t aged very well with very uneven seasons, kudos must once again be paid to Paramount for the absolutely stunning restoration and high definition remastering job they’ve done for 
After the abomination of the first film, it’s with great relief that, while not a particularly good film, 
Toddlers can take another ride on The Magic School Bus with a pair of new releases – 
I guess it all had to end eventually. Sadly, 
The budget-conscious folks at Mill Creek, mindful of just how precious your hard-earned money is, have dropped another clutch of reasonably-priced catalogue films and documentaries – the Charlton Heston narrated series 
I know it should no longer impress me, because they’ve done it with each of their classic high definition releases, but Disney’s restoration of their newest Diamond Edition, 
Celebrate special events in aeronautic style with the incredibly easy to use (and quite beautiful) 
Following up on his stellar turn in series 5, Murray Gold keeps the roll going with his music for 
It’s very much of the period, but there’s no denying that the chemistry between Ryan O’Neal and Ali McGraw as two star-crossed lovers is what made 
Collecting together a trio of character-based live specials from earlier in his career, 
If you’re in the mood for a brilliant little two-hander, Cormac McCarthy’s 
If there’s one overriding takeaway from the Harold & Kumar movies, is that they’re really not interested in anything much besides giving audiences a pleasant viewing experience. In that, 
Lucas Cruikshank’s internet sensation Fred Figglehorn returns for another adventure in the spooky 
In the mood for a small character drama this weekend? Give a spin to 
Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson star in the charming little drama 
Tween girls will probably want to snap up the Disney Channel movie 
After teasing fans with a best-of collection a few years back, the complete, digitally remastered first season of 
I love bubbles. My nephews love bubbles. Who doesn’t love bubbles? Well, perhaps people who hate Lawrence Welk. Still – most people love bubbles. How about really big bubbles? Surely big bubbles equal big fun. And it’s true – big bubbles equal big fun. How can you make big bubbles easily? Why, with 
If you’ve yet to see the brilliant Stephen Fry’s equally brilliant journey across the United States in the 6-part documentary 
I never thought that I’d eventually get to watch a high definition version of 
Leave it to Warner Bros. to take an incredible legacy and talent base for their animated DC properties and continue to spin out neither here nor there direct-to-DVD features that recast already brilliant actors for the sake of gimmicky stunt casting. So it goes with 
The one thing I can say about the otherwise flat, lifeless, and sadly boring remake of 
Long available in the complete series set, high definition enthusiasts can now pick up the penultimate 3rd season of 
As Stallone’s big action flick The Expendables is right around the corner, it’s no surprise that there’d be a tie-in release of 
I suppose it must be a sign of soft sales at retail that the 3rd season of 
Just in time for the healthcare debate but ignored in theaters, 
Largely depressing but endlessly fascinating, 
After 7 seasons and years of releases, the DVD journey of 
When I interviewed Berke Breathed a few years back, I asked him if there would finally by a comprehensive Bloom County collection like the recently available Calvin & Hobbes and Peanuts volumes. Breathed was dismissive of the idea, claiming that no one wanted to read the strip, that it was no longer relevant, and it just wasn’t going to happen. Well, a few years have gone by, someone talked a bit of sense into him, so we have the first, glorious volume of 
Ever wish you had the ability to switch something on and off with a regular ol’ wall switch? Like a lamp, or a game system? But without having to have the switch be on the wall? And have it be wireless? Well, now you can, with the 
I’m often baffled by their selection process, but the one thing the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame manages to impress with on a rather consistent basis is the musical performances of the inductees – and tributes from other artists who perform their work. With a roster that includes everyone from Paul McCartney and The Doors to John Lee Hooker and Little Richard, it’s an eclectic bunch, to be sure. For those who’ve never caught the ceremonies in the past – or just want to relive the music – Time Life has delivered an incredible collection across 9 volumes – 
Hitchcock’s classic 
Another strip which IDW has begun collecting is Bil Keane’s precocious kids via the 
A very close second to the original cross-country trek of the Griswold clan, I’m a big fan of 
It’s the holidays, which means some classic perennials are getting an upgrade and re-release just in time for seasonal viewing. Getting the high definition treatment is Frank Capra’s 
There are unique minds, and then there are uber-unique minds… Minds which create their own sphere of reality, daring others to step within the range of its influence and be swept away. One of those minds is Tony Millionaire, whose work has been given a must-have hardcover tome in 
Long, long after the release of the penultimate 3rd season and a poorly-packaged complete series box set, everything is made right with the release of 
More so even that ET, 
By its 3rd season, 
Whereas the live action film was a mess, I thought that 
You know that great Saturday Night Live book from a few years back – the one by Tom Shales that features dozens of interviews telling the tale of the show’s history in a remarkably candid way? Well, Author Mike Thomas has done the same thing for the legendary improvisational group which spawned many an SNL castmember – and comedy icon – with 
While it’s not the educational films I would have liked to have seen in the series (or Song Of The South), I welcome the Walt Disney Treasures release of both 
I’m not exactly sure what the concept is behind 
Bit by bit, we’re getting DVD releases of all of the various Saturday morning animated iterations of the DC superheroes, and the latest to get its time on plastic is the short-lived 
There’s nothing quite so electrifying as Muhammad Ali in interviews, even those when he was in the early years of his decline, and you’ll find plenty of them in 
Really – it seems like there are an unlimited number of classic Doctor Who adventures. Are we even close to getting them all on DVD? They just keep coming and coming. Latest is an arc from the Peter Davison years – 
I know I should be swept up in its formulaic, rom-comminess, but there’s an unavoidable charm to Richard Curtis’s 
It may not be a very well-written or executed superhero cartoon, but I have find childhood memories of the episodes contained in 
It may not be as polished as the films of Pixar, but there’s a lot of charm and energy in the Ice Age series, and I was surprised to find out that there was still some steam in 
How do you make sure the DVD re-release of 
It’s certainly not the holidays without penguins, right? Right. Which makes 
In the vein of goofy babysitter flicks of the 80’s like Batteries Not Included and Spaced Invaders comes the kids & extraterrestrials romp 
It’s not the sharpest, most clever of political commentary, but there’s a certain closure to Will Ferrell’s Broadway outing 
The TV show releases are wrapped, which brings us to the first volume of 
As a tour guide into the work of Charles Darwin and his landmark theory of evolution, one couldn’t hope for a better, more engaging host than Sir David Attenborough, who takes by the hand on 
I admit, there was a schlocky appeal to the first Wrong Turn, and it’s always worth watching Eliza Dusku (well, except in Dollhouse – there’s nothing about that worth watching. But with Eliza long gone, there’s very little to 
Hell has finally frozen over and swine fly through the skies, as 
Sometimes, I love gadgets that are completely and utterly useless to me personally. As I don’t work in an office, or in a cubicle, the 
When I wasn’t playing with Transformers in early 80’s, I was usually playing with the dozens of GI Joe figures I had hounded my parents incessantly for. Yes, that means I also was a daily viewer of the episodes contained in 
Twomorrows’ always wonderful artist spotlight series turns its eye towards yet another worthy illustrator with 
Amongst the many documentaries hitting DVD to tie in with the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, near the top of the “must watch” list is the new high definition transfer of filmmaker Al Reinert’s documentary 
Most shows suffer in their sophomore season, but it’s always nice when a program bucks the trend and turns in a stellar outing – and such is the case with 
If you’re keen on quick, easy, one-stop shopping to get all of the classic Peanuts specials you remember so well, I urge you to snag a copy of 
There are over 16 hours of vintage ads contained in 
The 11th season of the now-departed 
It was never must-see TV for me, but whenever I’d see Andy Griffith as lawyer Ben Matlock, it felt like hot cocoa and a warm, almost smothering blanket. Fans can lay their hands upon 
Just in time for the porous yellow one’s 100th episode festivities comes the CD release of 
Yes, I admit to being a person who occasionally gets sucked into The Discovery Channel’s annual Shark Week celebrations. But what to do the other 51 weeks of the year? Well, now you can dive into the 2-disc 
The penultimate adventure for young Harry Potter (well, in the books, anyway – there’s still two more films to go) finds events becoming much darker, and Nicholas Hooper’s score to 
Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange tackle the roles of “Big Edie” and “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale in the engaging adaptation of the now legendary documentary revealing their sad, eccentric, privileged lives, 
The first season of the TNT original 
Tick another show off the list, as we get the release of the eighth and final season of 
Get over the laughable “based on a true story” tag, and 
I have no emotional attachment whatsoever to 
You know what? Between you and me, the less said about 
It’s nice to know that we live in a world where a quirky show like