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…)
It’s not the tightest of flicks, but when it comes to the sordid history of films adapted from sketches on Saturday Night Live, MacGruber (Universal, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP) scores in the upper percentile, alongside the likes of Wayne’s World and Stuart Saves His Family. Wil Forte’s MacGyver parody does the right thing by playing the elements around his bombastic action hero with seriousness. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
If you’ve been looking for the perfect headwear to not only keep your noggin warm, but also show that you are a loyal officer serving the Empire, you’ll want to pick up your very own Imperial Death Star Officer’s Cap ($39.99). Just be sure you don’t insult Vader, or let any pesky rebels get away.
Got a Blu-Ray player? Like science fiction? Well, Warners has gotten a weekend filler for you, as they’ve unloaded quite an impressive stash of high-def catalogue releases appealing to those of the geek persuasion – titles like Forbidden Planet, THX-1138, Mars Attacks!, A Scanner Darkly, Lost In Space, & Matrix Reloaded (Warner Bros., Rated G/PG-13/R, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP each). Forbidden Planet sports a pair of follow-up projects featuring Robby The Robot, deleted scenes, featurettes, a TCM documentary, trailers, and more. Lost In Space gets a pair of commentaries, additional scenes, featurettes, a Q&A with the original cast, and the theatrical trailer. A Scanner Darkly gets an audio commentary, a featurette, and a trailer. THX-1138 has got an audio commentary, a pair of documentaries, featurettes, and Lucas’s original student film. Finally, Matrix Reloaded gets the same bonus material it had in the larger Matrix Blu-Ray set.
After a declining 4th season, The Office (Universal, Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP) rebounded a bit in its 5th season, particularly with the introduction of Kathy Bates as the CEO whose printer company takes over Dunder-Mifflin. The 5-disc set contains a brand-new digital short, two hours of deleted scenes, bloopers, the “Welcome To Sabre Company” video, and more. A Blu-Ray edition ($69.98 SRP) is also available, with identical bonus materials.
While the US awaits the DVD release of Matt Smith’s first season of the Doctor, fans can fill the void with a trio of classic releases featuring a pair of Peter Davison adventures – Planet Of Fire (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$34.98 SRP) & The King’s Demons (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP) – and the Tom Baker era The Creature From The Pit (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP). Bonus features are the usual copious complement of commentaries, interviews, featurettes, and more.
Just as scathing and satirical as it was upon its release, Robert Altman’s comeback film The Player (New Line, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) makes its way onto high definition, sporting an audio commentary, deleted scenes, an interview with Altman, and the theatrical trailer.
Superman in everything that name, the creators behind Smallville (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP) have been tying themselves up in pretzels trying to keep Clark Kent from actually, finally, donning the suit and becoming the superhero that, by this point, we’d like him to just go ahead and be, if only to put the show out of its misery. Take a look at the ninth season and see what I mean. Bonus features include a pair of commentaries, deleted scenes, and featurettes.
If you’ve yet to pick up the 7 series comprising Helen Mirren’s tour de force as flawed Detective Jane Tennison, you can get the whole lot via Prime Suspect: The Complete Collection (Acorn, Not Rated, DVD-$124.99 SRP). The box set also contains a behind-the-scenes special, a behind-the-scenes featurette, and a photo gallery.
Originally released years ago, Boy Meets World: Season 1 Season 2 & Season 3 (Lionsgate, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP each) are being re-released with an eye towards finishing up the full 7-season run. In other words, if you’re a fan, best to pick these initial releases up.
For some reason it’s not a high definition release, but Oliver Stone’s original Wall Street (Fox, Rated R, DVD-$14.98 SRP) gets a 2-disc special edition just in time for the sequel’s arrival in theaters, featuring an audio commentary and a pair of in-depth featurettes.
The main reason that I occasionally dip into Criminal Minds (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$55.98 SRP) is for Joe Montegna and the always wonderful Paget Brewster. Otherwise, it’s a pretty predictable procedural. The 5th season set contains all 23 episodes plus featurettes, promos, and a gag reel.
The 3rd season of Chuck (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP) was specially crafted to bring in a wider audience, upping the action quotient and also bringing in Brandon Routh to shake things up a bit. Did it work? Well, the 4th season premieres soon, so I guess so. Bonus materials include featurettes, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
The adventures of the slightly older Ben continue in Ben 10 Alien Force: Volume 8 (Cartoon Network, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), in which out hero goes toe-to-toe with Vilgax for the fate of the Earth, loses his powers, and accidentally turns Kevin into a monster.
Put Deadwood & Big Love into a blender, throw the contents onto some Harleys, and you’ve pretty much got Sons of Anarchy (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP), the 2nd season of which finds the Sons reeling from an ATF crackdown, murder, leadership challenges, and loyalty issues. The 4-disc set contains all 13 episodes, plus audio commentaries and featurettes.
Dip into the heady days of 60’s counter-culture and the burgeoning 70’s easy-rock scene with Legends of the Canyon (Image, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP), which looks at the extensive list of singers and songwriters who came to call LA’s Laurel Canyon home – including the likes of The Doors, The Byrds, The Mamas & The Papas, and more.
Hey! Remember the Jonas Brothers? Those teen dreams that were banished to limbo upon the arrival of the one called Bieber? Well, they returned alongside costar Demi Lovato for the Disney Channel sequel Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (Blu-Ray, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$44.99 SRP), which finds them all back in an extended edition. Bonus materials include featurettes, music videos, and the standard edition DVD.
The great war against Satan becomes a lot more complicated in the 5th season of Supernatural (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$59.98 SRP), particularly with the arrival of the Four Horsemen, plus a few unexpected departures. The 6-disc set contains all 22 episodes, plus audio commentary, webisodes, featurettes, an unaired scene, and a gag reel.
If you’re needing a chick flick marathon in a box, look no further than the Celebrated Women Of Color Film Collection (Fox, Rated PG-13/R, DVD-$29.98 SRP), which contains How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Beauty Shop, Waiting To Exhale, & Holiday Heart.
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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