Each week DVDs come out. Some of them are worth your time and money and some aren’t. Some of them are movies I’ve seen, and some of them aren’t. Regardless, I give you my opinion on the big releases of the week. Take it or leave it, here’s the DVD Blend.
Bridget Jones - The Edge of Reason - To me, Renee Zellweger was at her best in her first dramatic breakout performance, Jerry Maguire. Since then those pouty lips and puffy eyes have started to grate on my nerves and with the exception of standout films like Chicago, I’ve not really gone out of my way to see her in anything. Knowing that, it should come as no big surprise that I’m not a big fan of the Bridget Jones movies, and really could care less this is coming out this week on DVD. It’s not “just a guy thing” either - I passed the DVD review on to one of our unsuspecting female critics, and even they rolled their eyes and asked “do I have to cover this?”. Ah, sometimes it’s good to be whatever it is I am this week.
Being Julia - Being Julia kind of got the short end of the release stick and never really saw a huge theatrical release. Because of that I don’t know tons about the film, other than Annette Bening, who I probably like less than Renee Zellweger, received an Oscar nomination for her leading part in the film. Not surprisingly for a film with such a limited theatrical release, the DVD is light on extras, with a few featurettes and a commentary that includes Bening, her costar Jeremy Irons, and director István Szabó. Cinema Blend missed this one in the theaters, but be sure to check back later this week as we offer up a review of the DVD release.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - TV Starter Set - The new trend in TV on DVD seems to be these “Starter Sets”, the highlight of which this week is Buffy (also available: “Mary Tyler Moore” and “The Pretender”). The set retails for around $10 and features the first couple of episodes of the series along with a coupon for $10 off one of the series’ sets. Presumably the theory is to whet your appetite for more and then let you move the money you spent on the starter set over to one of the full releases. Personally, I don’t get it. I don’t check out new television series on DVD. If I like a series, I’ll pick up the DVD, otherwise I don’t bother with it. I’m not sure I’d drop money on a series I didn’t know if I liked, even if it was just a “starter set”. Still, if you’re willing to drop money on a show you’re not sure you’ll like, here you go.
Doogie Howser MD - Season One - Neil Patrick Harris has gained new fame and respect recently with an awesome game on “Celebrity Poker Showdown” and his appearance as himself in Harold and Kumar go to White Castle. So many celebrities take themselves too seriously, but Harris is quickly proving he’s able to look back and not only laugh at his past, but also make some fun of it. That past started with “Doogie Howser MD”, the story of a child prodigy as he tries to mesh his life as a doctor with the things normal teenagers do - you know, removing that inflamed appendix between making out with the girlfriend and getting a driver’s license. The show was campy comedy most of the time, but it did bring us Harris (along with hottie girlfriend Wanda), so it can’t be all bad.
Fat Albert - Hey Hey Hey, who came up with this crap? The notion of 1970s icons Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids coming to life (out of the television set) and exploring the world of today would make me think Bill Cosby lost a bet somewhere. Unfortunately he must have been involved somehow, because the DVD case sports his mug with a “From the Mind of Bill Cosby” claim... or maybe that’s an excuse. Either way, Cosby appears in what (from trailers) looks like a travesty of an adaptation. Putting character’s from old shows in today’s environment really only worked in The Brady Bunch movie, mainly because it was willing to make fun of itself. Instead Fat Albert takes no such stance, attempting to make a more serious comedy and, as the old show did, teach a lesson or two along the way.
Finding Neverland - Johnny Depp continues his tradition of making every character he tackles unique with his presentation of the scottish brogued J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan. To me this film should have won more Oscars, including a category it didn’t even receive a nomination in - Best Supporting Actor (Dustin Hoffman is excellent in the film). While it’s not the happiest tale, Depp truly shines and the kids who inspire his world of Neverland avoid the usual problems of child actors with some good performances as well. My description doesn’t do the film justice though - it’s beautifully shot with some great images and brilliant performances, and with promising extras including deleted scenes and outtakes, this DVD is definitely worth checking out.
The Final Cut - Another film that didn’t see nearly wide enough release in theaters, The Final Cut really intrigued me with its concept - memories are recorded on tape and Robin Williams plays a guy who gets the “final cut” over how those memories are stored. It’s a concept close to Strange Days, which really executed the idea of sharing memories/experiences, even if the film was underrated. I have the feeling The Final Cut will be the same way - Robin Williams is interesting enough as a dramatic actor, but with a small release in theaters and a bare bones DVD, this film probably won’t be seen by many.
The Pretender - Season One - I never got into “The Pretender”, but my wife loved the show, so most likely my household will be picking this up - hey, maybe we should check out one of those TV Starter Sets... hmmm, did I just become a hypocrite in the middle of this column? Anyway, “The Pretender” is Jarod, an extremely intelligent person who is able to slide into people’s lives/personalities/etc. It sounds very “Quantum Leap” minus the whole quantum thing, and this was actually one of those few shows CinemaBlend was going to cover the DVD release of. Unfortunately the opportunity to cover the set didn’t come to fruition so I just get to mention it here. It’s a tv set which means it isn’t cheap. Pick it up if you liked the series (or if your wife liked the series in my case) or move past it if you didn’t. I’m sure reruns are on tv somewhere so if you think you might like it check those out (or look at the TV Starter Sets I was against earlier).
MTV’s Pimp My Ride - Season One - This release wins the award for most useless DVD release of the week, possibly the whole month. While reality shows like “Pimp My Ride” are interesting to watch once or twice (or a billion times depending on how many times MTV airs them in any given week), they really aren’t the kind of thing you want on DVD. The shows I buy on DVD are shows that I can pop in when I feel like watching a couple episodes. I just don’t see that with this show. Besides, the grandaddy of all of these kind of shows, “American Chopper” hasn’t tried a DVD release, and “Trading Spaces” (probably the most popular of the reality fix-em-up series) has only attempted a “Best of” disc release. MTV - you can pimp our rides, but stop trying to pimp this show.
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead - If you are a fan of any of Shakespeare’s works this is an absolute must see. “Hamlet” is, of course, one of Shakey’s most popular plays, and Rosencrantz & Guildenstern presents the famous tale from the point of view of the title characters, excellently played by Gary Oldman and Tim Roth (telling you who is who would be accomplishing something even the two characters can’t seem to do). With fantastic performances by Roth, Oldman, and Richard Dreyfuss, this is a great comedy and one that is overlooked by too many people. If you can tolerate Shakespeare, check it out and see the great Bard’s play turned on its ear.
Stand By Me (Deluxe Edition) - I would love for Stand By Me to be my pick of the week. I’ve always had a soft spot towards this coming of age story. When the movie first came out it quickly captured my family’s attention because at that age I was the spitting image of Gordie LaChance (Wil Wheaton) and something like the plot of this film was easily something me and my friends would do. I’ve owned the Special Edition of this film for years and would quickly buy this Deluxe Edition if it wasn’t the exact same disc. Yup, this Deluxe Edition is the exact same release of Stand By Me that’s been out for years, with the addition of a soundtrack sampler and a commemorative booklet. With most of the cast still finding success in different venues years later, there’s plenty of room for a retrospective look back at the film, so this Deluxe Edition is quite a disappointment. I won’t be standing by this release.
Star Wars - Clone Wars, Vol 1 - Originally I was planning on reviewing this release in this week’s reviews. After all, I reviewed Star Wars: The Ewok Adventures, so why not these “Clone Wars” cartoons? Because there’s really nothing about this release that I can’t sum up in this paragraph. The cartoon kicks much ass as it explores the Clone Wars that occur between Episodes II and III. Some of the voices are dead on likenesses of Ewan McGregor, Frank Oz, and Samuel Jackson, and the ones that aren’t you adjust to quickly enough. Word has it the 3-5 minute cartoons have been put all together rather than presented as the shorts that originally aired, making a longer cohesive story (we weren’t able to screen this to confirm this though). As an added bonus, Lucas uses this as yet another opportunity to offer a sneak peek at Episode III, although I’m betting there’s nothing here that hasn’t already been seen elsewhere.
Volcano High - I honestly don’t quite know what to say about this one. For those who haven’t heard of it, Volcano High is actually a presentation of the Korean film Whasango. Of course, kung-fu films don’t already have enough of a following, so MTV has taken the film and had the voices dubbed by some big names in hip-hop music. Mya, Method Man, Snoop Dogg, and Andre 3000 all lend their voices to a bizarre way of presenting an 81-minute edit of the full length film. If that was all that was being offered, I’d be bitching more about MTV here, but thankfully Fox has seen fit to include the original 121-minute cut of the film as well. By including the original version for people who prefer their kung-fu movies Snoop-free, this release gets some points with me - I still probably won’t be checking it out though. Some things are just too weird even for me.
