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 Quick Stop Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
Very quickly after the release of the 10th Mystery Science Theater 3000 collection, the box set was pulled due to a rights tangle over the inclusion of the film Godzilla vs. Megalon. It’s been over a year since the set was pulled from circulation, but a corrected edition is now available – one which swaps out Godzilla for the previously unavailable Giant Gila Monster in the appropriately retitled Mystery Science Theater Collection: Volume 10.2 (Rhino, Not Rated, DVD-$59.95 SRP). As an added incentive, the new disc also features a reunion of Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, and Frank Conniff reprising their roles of Joel Robinson, Dr. Forrester, and TV’s Frank (plus the ‘bots, Crow and Tom, with Frank assuming the role of Tom) for a brand spanking new host segment explaining about the Godzilla mix-up and how to “dispose” of that old disc. The guys are in fine form, and further proves that, save for the machinations of certain parties, MST could still return.
Just in time for Oscar season, Warners has delivered the awkwardly titled Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Academy Awards Animation Collection (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$44.98SRP). Despite that mouthful, this is a must-have compilation of 15 Academy Award-winning cartoons from the Warner/MGM library, plus an additional 26 nominees that bring in selections from the Fleischer Popeye and Superman series. The 3-disc set also features audio commentaries on select cartoons, an hour-long documentary Drawn For Glory: Animation’s Triumph At The Oscars, and the Bugs Bunny short What’s Cookin’, Doc?.
As much as the writing and direction, what made the Chuck Jones cartoons at Warner Bros. so memorable – including classics like What’s Opera, Doc?, Rabbit Seasoning, Duck Dodgers, Duck Amuck, and dozens more – are the incredible backgrounds created by designer Maurice Noble. Finally getting the appreciative tome he so richly deserves, Stepping Into The Picture: Cartoon Designer Maurice Noble (University of Mississippi Press, $20.00 SRP) is a wonderful look at the life and work of an incredible artist.
If leaving behind his acting career means we’ll get more flicks in the vein of his fine freshman effort Gone Baby Gone (Miramax, Rated R, DVD-$ SRP), I’d be happy if Ben Affleck never acted again. The film – about a pair of private detectives (Casey Affleck & Michelle Monaghan) hired to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a young girl that leads them both down the rabbit hole – is a real corker. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, an extended ending, and a pair of behind-the-scenes featurettes.
If you’re still jonesing for more Harvey Birdman, your only – and best – option is to get yourself a Wii and a copy of Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law (Capcom, $39.99 SRP). Essentially a Harvey version of Capcom’s other legal eagle videogame, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, this one features newly written content within the Birdman universe, featuring all of the characters you love with the original voice cast intact (minus Stephen Colbert, who – it seems – is now too good for cartoon roles). It’s a fun little game experience, and it’s nice to revisit the characters again. Do I smell sequel?
One of the nice things about the dumping of massive amounts of shows on DVD is that I’m able to re-watch – sometimes 20 years later – shows that I dug during their original network runs, but haven’t seen since. I’ve been looking forward to the release of each additional season of Family Ties (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$29.99 SRP) – the third season of which is now available. It’s still a great show, and time has not dulled the writing or performances any. As far as bonus materials go, the inclusion of a gag reel is much-appreciated… Hopefully Paramount will begin to loosen the reins on special features for their other TV releases in the future (Hello, Cheers!).
With only one viewing under my belt, I think I feel the same way about writer/director John Tuturro’s Romance & Cigarettes (Sony, Rated R, DVD-$24.96 SRP) as I felt after seeing the Coen Brother’s Big Lebowski for the first time – I know there’s probably a great film in there, but it just didn’t click. With Lebowski, it took a few viewings for that “click” to come. Any film that takes the risk to make a musical in this day and age – like some kind of gritty version of the Blues Brothers, with just as great a cast (including James Gandolfini, Susan Sarandon, Kate Winslet, Mary-Louise Parker, Aida Tuturro, and Christopher Walken) – is worth a second look. Bonus features include an audio commentary, an introduction, deleted scenes, and a behind-the-scenes featurette.
The Beatrix Potter Collection (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP) brings together 9 animated versions of Potter’s classic children’s tales – The Tale Of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny, The Tale Of The Flopsy Bunnies and Mrs. Tittlemouse, The Tale Of Tom Kitten and Jemima Puddle-duck, The Tale Of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and Mr. Jeremy Fisher, The Tale Of Mr. Tod: The Further Adventures Of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny, The Tale Of Two Bad Mice and Johnny Town-Mouse, The Tale Of Pigling Bland, The Tale Of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly Poly Pudding, and The Tailor Of Gloucester.
Criminy, has it already been a quarter of a century since Michael Jackson’s Thriller (Sony Legacy, $19.98 SRP)? Considering that we’re getting a 2-disc 25th anniversary edition, I guess that much time has passed. Completely remastered, the album itself features an excerpt from Vincent Price’s recording session, 5 new collaborations (with will.i.am, Akon, Fergie, & Kanye West) and an unreleased track from the original sessions (“For All Time”). The second disc is a DVD featuring the videos for “Thriller”, “Beat It”, and “Billie Jean”, as well as Jackson’s performance of “Billie Jean” from Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, and Forever.
I admit it – I was a fan of Perfect Strangers (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP). Like an 80’s mash up of The Odd Couple and the country mouse, the fish out of water interactions of Chicago-dwelling Larry Appleton (Mark Linn-Baker) and his cousin from the tiny Greek island of Mypos, Balki Bartokomous (Bronson Pinchot), made for some pleasant, affable slapstick. The first 2 seasons are now available in a 4-disc box set, so commence the dance of joy!
Round out the first season of Route 66 with volume 2 (Infinity, Not Rated, DVD-$29.98 SRP), which contains the final 15 episodes of the first trip down America’s road. The 4-disc set also contains original TV commercials and filmographies.
If you take the whole rat angle out of Ratatouille and focus on the love between two chefs (Catherine Zeta-Jones & Aaron Eckhart) and throw in a kid (Abigail Breslin), you’ve basically got No Reservations (Warner Bros., Rated PG, DVD-$28.98 SRP), a charming enough romantic comedy that never quite falls flat, but certainly isn’t a soufflé. As far as bonus features go, there’s an episode of Food Network’s Unwrapped.
One of the more well-made shows of the 80’s is finally arriving on DVD, starring Edward Woodward as private detective Robert McCall – aka The Equalizer (Universal, Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP). The 5-disc set features all 22 first season episodes, plus an audio commentary with show creator Michael Sloan, and a bonus season 2 episode (“Beyond Control”).
The eighth season of Dallas (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP) is when the series began its spiral into the bizarre and surreal – most notably in the big finale, which would eventually lead to a certain well-known shower scene. The 5-disc set features all 24 episodes, plus a featurette on the season’s new costume design.
As much as they’d like it to be, HBO’s Tell Me You Love Me (HBO, Not Rated, DVD-$69.98 SRP) is no replacement for its quickly vanishing glory days of series like The Sopranos, Oz, and Deadwood. In fact, it’s mainly an outlet for softcore porn made profoundly uncomfortable and boring courtesy of its sex therapist and the couples in need drama that plays like Dream On minus the funny. The 4-disc set features all 10 episodes, plus a quartet of audio commentaries.
The second volume of the Joan Crawford Collection (Warner Bros., Not Rated, DVD-$49.98 SRP) delivers 5 flicks from the actress’s impressive catalogue at Warners – this time including Sadie McKee, Flamingo Road, Strange Cargo, A Woman’s Face, and Torch Song – all of which are just as impressively restored to an almost better-than-new luster. Bonus materials include a trio of newly-produced featurettes (“Crawford At Warners”, “Gable & Crawford”, & “Tough Baby: Torch Song”), vintage shorts, cartoons, radio shows, and Torch Song recording sessions.
If for nothing else, We Own The Night (Sony, Rated R, DVD-$28.95 SRP) would be worth a spin for the cast – Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, and Robert Duvall. That it’s actually a pretty good flick is a relief, as it’s never pleasant when a cast like that is shoved into a turkey. The film revolves around prodigal son Bobby Green (Phoenix), who turns his back on his family’s law enforcement tradition as a nightclub owner who turns a blind eye to the drug trade occurring in his Brooklyn club. His past rears its head when his brother and father (Wahlberg & Duvall) crack down on the club, forcing Bobby to choose which side of the law he’s on. Bonus features include an audio commentary and a trio of behind-the-scenes featurettes. The Blu-Ray edition ($38.96 SRP) features an identical list of bonus materials.
Imagine a schlockier Roger Corman, and you have a pretty good bead on the producorial career of Morty Fineman (Jerry Stiller). After decades of producing fare such as Twelve Angry Men And A Baby and The Heart Is A Strong Muscle, Morty’s in the financial tank, and it’s up to his daughter to try and help him raise the money to make his latest flick – Ms. Kevorkian. The Independent (Allumination Filmworks, Rated R, DVD-$14.98 SRP) is a faux documentary featuring interviews with Morty’s celeb friends and clips of his infamous films, and is a smart, well-written picture worth a spin.
Want a great soundtrack to pick up? Get yourself a copy of Honeydripper (Rhino, $18.98 SRP), from the John Sayles flick, which features a toe-tappin’ selection of tracks from the eponymous early 50’s juke joint, both new and vintage.
All these years later, The Wiz (Universal, Rated G, DVD-$19.98 SRP) is just as bizarre an enterprise as it always was. The fully remastered special edition sports a brand new retrospective featurette and the theatrical trailer, plus an 8-track soundtrack CD.
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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Cabin Fever (hosted by the twisted souls Brian Fitzpatrick and Aaron Poole) is the result of having too much time on your hands and access to your local community radio station.
Even though I’ve read the entire story in its original run, I admit to waiting eagerly for the release of each new volume of Scholastic’s re-release of Jeff Smith’s Bone just to see it all in glorious color. We’re now down to the home stretch in the 9-volume series with the release of 
Dave Gorman has found other Dave Gormans, lived his life by the astrology page for a month, and went on a Googlewhack adventure. This time, though, he’s decided to tackle the United States – and see if it’s possible to cross the land of the free without stopping at a single chain restaurant, gas station, or hotel. Is it possible to make such a long journey while only patronizing Mom & Pop businesses? That’s the challenge Gorman faces in 
As calculated as it is, there’s still no denying the ability of Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan to ingratiate themselves to a wary audience in 
Not content to turn in one stellar performance last year, Casey Affleck pulled off a twofer with his role as the titular coward in the historical drama 
They’ve been absent from the shelves for a few months due to printing problems, but the latest issues of both 
Not since the golden age of television has a radio show made the successful transition to television, but such is the rare case with Ira Glass’s This American Life (Paramount, Not Rated, DVD-$19.99 SRP). Consider it a post-modern travelogue, as Glass travels the country finding ordinary folks and stories that are then brought together under a series of themes throughout the season. This set features all 6 first season episodes, plus audio commentary, and is currently a Borders store exclusive. Give it a spin.
It’s become almost cliché now – a Jodie Foster flick that casts her as an almost masculine action hero fiercely defending herself against a world out to get her and the ones she loves. In 
Everything old is new again, which means it’s time for another edition of the modern comedy classic 
Billy Wilder’s 
As an interviewer myself, I’m always keen to dive into how other interviewers tackle a subject, which is why I always love reading the series of tomes collecting interviews with various personalities that the University of Mississippi Press puts together. Their latest trio of must-haves are 
The epitome of the Brit “kitchen-sink realism” school of realism, 
Inspiration for numerous jokes and references, the tale of a young American sentenced to a Turkish jail for attempting to smuggle hash out of the country, director Alan Parker’s 
It’s not quite The Kids In The Hall, but there is plenty of humor to be found in 
We’re now fully into the “every flick getting a special edition” territory when it comes to Disney’s animated films, and the latest to get the treatment is the marginal 
In the wake of 9/11, it seemed a no-brainer that there’d be a show like 
The new 25th anniversary edition of that cross-dressing comedy classic 
Long before his big-screen success, Clive Owen starred as scheming rogue Derek “Dex” Love in the Brit series 
Cate Blanchett returns to the film role that launched her career in 
Giving Warner Bros. and Paramount a run for their money, the Weinstein Brothers’ Genius Products has waded into the cinema classics on DVD field with their new “Miriam Collection” imprint, named after their mother. The first release is a 2-disc collector’s edition set of Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren’s 
If it’s a film with even a modicum of class about it, Criterion has given it a special edition. Add Swedish filmmaker Alf Sjoberg’s 
Harm and Mac are reunited in the fifth season of 
For all we know about British sitcoms, American knowledge of Canadian sitcoms is virtually nonexistent. If you want a solid introduction into overcoming that ignorance, try the complete collection of 
Cut that hair, fix that hare lip, and a little rhinoplasty, and Vincent wouldn’t have to live in the sewers. Since he’s so adverse to a little nip/tuck, we get 
It’s another round of accidents and casualties in the fourth season of the 70’s classic 
Cartoon Network’s animated 
After 6 seasons of awkward and painful comedy, the brilliant 
I’ve long been a fan of Monty Python alum Terry Jones’s series of historical documentaries, going back to his fascinating look at the Crusades. Jones presents the material with both a dramatic and affable flair, making intimidating subject matter as fascinating as it should be, while also illuminating oft misunderstood periods of history. His latest is 
We’re already up to the penultimate volume of DC’s 4-volume collection, 
The 4-part 
It’s taken 3 years, but my nephew has now been fully consumed by the SpongeBob virus, and has become Sqaurepantsed. With that in mind, I can guarantee that he will watch the new episode collection – 
The 8th season of 
Released in the late 70’s, The Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes (DC Comics, $19.99 SRP) was a multi-volume set of tomes presenting the histories of various comic book characters up to that point in the academic style of an Encyclopedia. Given full access to the DC library, author Michael Fleischer produced the first mainstream attempt at treating comics as an art form whose character histories were worth studying. DC has been re-releasing these long out-of-print editions, with the volumes on 
After whetting her appetite on The Shield, Glenn Close decided to jump into a TV series of her own with 
Through my nephew, I’ve been made aware of Nickelodeon’s CD version of Muppet Babies meets the Get-Along Gang, The Backyardigans. The multi-hued menagerie of backyard adventures have released a celebrity-studded album of songs from and inspired by the show, 
If you want a good lesson on how not to remake a film (and recent retake on The Stepford Wives wasn’t enough for you), then look no further than 
Oh, Aqua Teen. I once loved you, and thought you were the bees knees. The episodes contained in the 5th season set of the once funny 
