It wasn’t until I popped in the first disc of the Carol Burnett Show spin-off Mama’s Family: The Complete Collection (Time Life, Not Rated, DVD-$199.95 SRP) that I remembered why I always used to watch it whenever I caught it during its original syndicated run – It’s just a solid character comedy that’s eminently relateable. And even better, because of its strong characters, it all holds up as a timeless sitcom that never tried to preach. The box set sports a pair of exclusive bonus discs loaded with featurettes, bonus cast interviews, and bloopers. All in all, a very nice trip down memory lane.
The title doesn’t lie – Slimed!: An Oral History Of Nickelodeon’s Golden Age (Plume, $20.00 SRP) really does give the full, unabashed, ridiculously candid history of the only channel where kids win from it’s early days on the cable dial to the mid-90’s (pre-Spongebob). Within its pages, you get to learn about the unique executives and corporate culture that allowed bonzo programming like You Can’t Do That On Television, Double Dare, and Ren & Stimpy to flourish. Kudos to author Mathew Klickstein for getting so many of the suits and creatives on the record about a unique era we probably will never see again.
And speaking of true tales of creative people told with remarkable candor, Very Naughty Boys: The Amazing True Story Of Handmade Films (Titan Books, $14.95 SRP) is the tale of the scrappy little independent film company founded by George Harrison and Denis O’Brien to fund Monty Python’s Life Of Brian, which then produced the likes of Time Bandits, Withnail & I, and The Long Good Friday over the course of a tumultuous history and rather sad flameout. Featuring interviews with the likes of the Pythons, Robbie Coltrane, Richard E. Grant, Richard Griffiths, and more, it’s a tale worth diving into.
While not as impressive as seeing it in its IMAX presentation, the 3D remastering and its accompanying restoration for the 75th anniversary edition of The Wizard Of Oz (Warner Bros., Rated G, 3D Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP) is pretty darn spectacular even in a home theater, bringing to vivid life details and vibrancy you wouldn’t expect in a film 3/4 of a century old. Bonus materials include everything from the previous Blu-Ray release, plus an all-new feature-length documentary.
Perhaps the best praise I can give World War Z (Paramount, Rated R, 3D Blu-Ray-$54.99 SRP) in this zombie-cluttered age is that it’s an enjoyable popcorn flick that realizes it’s essentially the undead equivalent of a Roland Emmerich “The World Is Going To Hell” pic, only with Brad Pitt as a combination of Jeff Goldblum/Will Smith/John Cusack. Its effects work is serviceable and uses its 3D to reasonably good effect. Bonus materials include a clutch of featurettes.
If there’s anything that The Hangover III (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP) proves it’s that it’s probably a good time for the Wolf Pack to end their increasingly surreal misadventures, as there’s really no place else for the comedy to go before it simply becomes in exercise in desperate absurdity. For this final outing, though, we at least get an Alan (Zach Galifiankis) centric trip. Bonus materials include featurettes, extended scenes, and outtakes.
Packed with 20 episodes, audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted sequences, and more, the 6th season of Robot Chicken (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) arrives packing plenty of ha-ha and ho-ho, even if it all seems to fly right by in bite-sized snatches.
The new deluxe edition of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (Warner Bros., Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$29.98 SRP) brings together the formerly 2-part adaptation of Frank Miller’s landmark tale into a unified presentation, porting over the bonus features from the previous releases while adding in a brand-new feature length documentary on Miller and the story’s legacy.
This year’s classic Who-palooza continues with another pair of releases, including the DVD debut of the 4th Doctor Tom Baker story Doctor Who: Terror Of The Zygons (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$34.98 SRP) – featuring the shape-changing villains who will be playing a role in the upcoming 50th anniversary special. Also available is the next volume of Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), which focuses on Doctors 5-8, presenting one complete story from the tenures of Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, and Paul McGann.
Eight seasons on, Bones (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$69.99 SRP) is still a charming little procedural that plays like CSI meets The Thin Man, but I was most excited to see the great Dave Thomas pop up on the show, and to learn it was a prelude to his joining the writing staff for the upcoming ninth season. How can you not watch this show? Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
As bonkers as the first season was, American Horror Story: Asylum (Fox, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$59.99 SRP) manages to trump it with an even more disturbing tale, bringing the chills to the Briarcliff Home for the Criminally Insane with a cast that includes Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, and James Cromwell. Bonus materials include deleted scenes and featurettes.
A tale of adventure and revenge set in German East Africa pre-WWI and starring Lee Marvin, Roger Moore, and Ian Holm? Yes, I do believe I will give Shout At The Devil (Shout Factory, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$19.97 SRP) a watch, just for those elements alone. Who cares if it’s good or bad? It’s an adventure!
Kudos to In The Flesh (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP) for finding a new spin on the zombie trope, as it brings us a world wherein zombies have been treated and are being reintroduced to society after a devastating war. So what happens when a troubled teen who had committed suicide only to rise from the dead is rehabilitated and sent back to family and friends who never thought they’d see him again? There’s the crux of this series, and a fascinating one at that.
It’s certainly nor Pixar or even Dreamworks quality, but there’s enough charm to Alpha And Omega 2: A Howl-iday Adventure (Lionsgate, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$24.98 SRP) to keep the kids occupied over the holiday season with its wintry adventure featuring the wolf cubs from the first Alpha And Omega. Bonus materials include featurettes and games.
If you’ve ever wanted to binge view Hollywood’s “classic” horror series about a children’s doll inhabited by the spirit of a killer, look no further than Chucky: The Complete Collection (Universal, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$84.98 SRP), which collects all 6 films starting with the original Child’s Play right up to the brand new Curse Of Chucky. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, a gag reel, and more.
Con man Neal Caffrey’s alliance with FBI Agent Peter Burke is already on shaky ground when he ditches his tracking anklet and disappears as we delve into the fourth season of White Collar (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), featuring an audio commentary, a featurette, deleted scenes, and a gag reel.
Keen on a proper British ghost story? Give a spin to The Secret Of Crickley Hall (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$19.98 SRP), the adaptation of James Herbert’s tale of a couple who move to the titular countryside house after the death of their son, only to have the seemingly idyllic manor turn sinister when various disturbing phenomena begins occurring, including the cries of their son.
Yes, it feels more like a series of sketches than the more unified narratives of Holy Grail and Life Of Brian, but I still enjoy Monty Python’s swan song, The Meaning Of Life (Universal, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$19.98 SRP), if only for the massive production number for “Every Sperm Is Sacred”. So, yes, it’s great that the film has finally made its way to high definition, porting over all of the previous DVD’s bonus material plus an absolutely delightful and brand new one-hour reunion of the 5 remaining Pythons.
