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.
After the Sunset - Pierce Brosnan does the thief thing again, this time with Salma Hayek. I swear, the guy doesn’t have to do Bond anymore, he can just keep doing thief capers with the exact same formula: thief “A” is in exotic location “B” and needs to steal priceless artifact “C” with exotic babe “D” before frustrated law enforcement/fellow thief “E” catches him. Repeat ad nauseum until you lose viewers or are forced to cast Halle Berry. I missed Sunset in theaters and while I heard it was easy on the eyes with a beautiful cast, I didn’t ever hear the film had much depth. Still, sometimes there is time for a mindless action flick that lets you sit back and enjoy the explosions, and if this is that kind of a film that’s fine by me.
Apollo 13 - 10th Anniversary Edition - This is one of those random gems I stumble upon from time to time. I tend to take movies like Apollo 13 for granted. It’s an excellent movie, but one I don’t return to often enough. I’ve watched my VHS copy something like three or four times over the years, but every time I put it in I remember how much I love the film, which puts the human aspect of the story over wowing audiences with special effects. This anniversary edition includes a lot of the extras that were available on previous editions (such as the film commentary with the real Jim and Marilyn Lovell), as well as two cuts of the film - a remastered 2.35:1 version of the original, and the shortened IMAX version offered in 1.66:1. If you’ve ever dreamed about being among the stars (and you don’t already own the existing release) this is a good movie to revisit on DVD.
Closer - I’m not a huge Julia Roberts fan. In fact, usually her presence in a movie is enough to turn me away completely unless I’m being dragged to one of her rom-com flicks (which usually involves me kicking and screaming). However any film that can get Princess Leia’s mom into something more revealing then the slave girl outfit definitely gets my attention. Closer takes your average love triangle and makes it a foursome, as two different couples swap emotions and partners through the course of the film. Unfortunately the DVD looks almost as bare-bones as they come, with only a music video provided in the way of extras. As always, when something is that short on extras my suggestion is always to rent it if you’re interested in checking the film out. More than likely, they’ll have a “collector’s edition” somewhere down the line designed to take your money a second time if you shell out for this one.
Murder She Wrote - Season One - It’s rare for a television show to extend beyond a decade. So many things change over the course of time, what made a show stand out when it first arrived on the scene may be cliche by the time it’s run is over with. “Murder She Wrote” is one of those rare shows. With Angela Lansbury as novelist Jessica Fletcher, the murder mystery show ran for twelve years. Along the way just about every guest star imaginable appeared at some point on the show, and for those looking for the sci-fi connection, one of the show’s writers went on to create a franchise that gave other franchises a run for their money - “Babylon 5”. (JMS wrote for the show during the show’s 8th season, and went on to write one of the “Murder She Wrote” telefilms to air after the series was canceled). This is another one of those shows that’s worth a look on DVD, when you can run several episodes back to back and try to get into Jessica Fletcher’s mind.
The Lone Gunman - The Complete Series - Don’t you love it when they advertise a show’s DVD release as “the complete series”? It’s so much better than phrasing it as “the first and only season of this failed program”. In this case the failed program is “The Lone Gunman”, a spin off from “The X-Files” with a more comedic feel to it. While I was only a passive “X-Files” fan, I did enjoy the Lone Gunman characters, although right from the start I didn’t think giving them their own show was a good idea. As is typical with Fox television shows, “The Lone Gunman” ended before it got a chance to tap a lot of its potential, disappointing the three people who sat home Friday nights to watch it. If you missed it on television (and most of us did or it would have lasted longer) check it out on DVD.
National Lampoon’s Gold Diggers - I remember when the name National Lampoon used to mean something. Alas, the title which used to provide entertainment like Animal House or Vacation is now pretty much a guarantee of a direct to video release. Gold Diggers somehow avoided that and actually saw a short theater run, but that doesn’t make the quality any better than their direct to video stuff. In an effort to boost sales, MGM is resorting to the rated/unrated version trap so many other studios use. Since the storyline involves two young men attempting to hustle money off of two not so young ladies, I’m not sure an unrated cut is going to involve any sort of nudity I might want to see. If you’re looking for a perverted, twisted, nasty tale of nudity and sophomoric humor, move on to the next title...
Orgazmo - Unrated Special Edition - Now we’re talkin’! This would easily be my pick of the week this week if I wouldn’t feel dirty (and a bit patriotic) putting it above Apollo 13. This movie is not for everyone, although there is a real easy way to tell whether you’ll like it. If the idea of a mormon trading in selling religion door to door for a life as a porn-star hero (complete with sidekick with a massive dildo on his head) doesn’t offend you, you’ll probably love this twisted comedy. If you are offended, don’t even think about this one. This disc has everything - naked ladies, Ron Jeremy, forty minutes of outtakes, three commentary tracks including Kevin Smith, “Weird” Al Yankovich, and John Houston, and more. This is a DVD to purchase and keep hidden in your sock drawer so company doesn’t see it when they visit, but don’t let that stop you from picking it up if it’s your type of flick.
The Saint - The Early Episodes, Set 1 - Before he carried a double-oh number, Roger Moore was “The Saint” - a similarly styled hero who worked on the other side of the law. Unlike the 1997 movie adaptation, this “Saint” had a certain charm and suaveness that made Moore the obvious contender when the time came to replace Sean Connery as James Bond. This set, called “the early episodes” actually contains the entire first season of “The Saint” - the first twelve black and white episodes. This is better then how A&E handled the release of the other British cult series - “The Prisoner” which only saw a few episodes released to a disc. Hopefully the studio will continue to be kind and release “The Saint” with season by season releases.
The Toxic Avenger (21st Anniversary Edition) - Toxie falls into that hard category to deal with. It really isn’t a great movie, but its campiness and fun is thoroughly enjoyable. This is the type of movie I’d typically pick up for one of my drunken movie marathon nights to show alongside Army of Darkness and Dead Alive. While versions of The Toxic Avenger have been out for years (including the director’s cut version of the film in the “tox box” four movie set), this release still finds something unique to bring to the table - scenes and songs from “Toxic Avenger the Musikill” stage show. Yes, that’s right. Someone has adapted everyone’s favorite toxic waste super hero into a stage show musical. Poor Broadway - first Seussical and now this. I’m wondering when they will just break down and go for “Debbie Does Dallas” the stage show.
Vera Drake - I must have missed the memo that set this as geriatric week on Cinema Blend. So far we’ve had geriatric novelist-crime fighters, and sugar mommas. Now we have an older abortionist. Vera Drake is Mike Leigh’s strong character study about a seemingly innocent housecleaner who turns out to be responsible for helping women get rid of unwanted pregnancies. Imelda Staunton was nominated for an Oscar for her take on Vera, and by a lot of accounts should have won for her powerful performance. Unfortunately, but not unsurprising given the film’s subject matter, no extras are included other than the theatrical trailer. Due to a small theatrical run, Cinema Blend missed this one in theaters, so be sure to check back for our review of the DVD later this week.
