There are DVDs you might want to rent on a rainy day, and then there are DVDs you absolutely must buy the day they arrive in stores. Already one of the best reviewed films of the year -- and a strong candidate for a Best Picture Oscar nod -- Pixar's WALL-Efinally arrives on DVD this Tuesday, November 18th in spectacular fashion. Folks, if you haven't converted to Blu-ray yet, I'd seriously recommend penning a letter to Santa real soon, because not only are WALL-E and The Dark Knight unveiling pretty ridiculous Blu-ray DVDs during the next month, but the format is really starting to produce some outstanding product.
That all being said, you've probably already realized that I'll be giving you a sneak peek at the 3-Disc Blu-ray DVD for WALL-E, which is all sorts of awesome, but I'll also clue you in on what the regular DVD offers too. First off, feel free to check out the gallery below, which includes images from the brand new short film BURN-E (featured on both Blu-ray and DVD), along with a few Fun Fact Sheets, like one called Hidden Things (little Pixar Easter Eggs throughout the film) and one called How Did They Make That Sound (pretty self-explanatory).
Hellboy II: The Golden Army The red beastie with a penchant for kittens is back. This time, Hellboy must stop an underworld leader bent on awakening an army of unstoppable gizmos created to take over the world. He's got problems with Liz, and new aggravations from Johann (voiced by Family Guy creator Seth Macfarlane). You can pick up the regular old simple edition, a big 3-disc set, or if you like collectibles, a boxed collector's set with a statue, poster, and book on regular DVD or Blu-ray. (More info on the DVD right here.) Buy it.
Mister Foe On the less flashy front, there's the excellent Jamie Bell in Hallam Foe. Another victim of renaming, the film is known as Mister Foe stateside, but still covers Bell as Foe -- a peeping Tom on the streets of Edinburgh after his mother's untimely death. You won't get the mass of goodies that Hellboy has, but there are a few extras to dip into. Rent it.
Sukiyaki Western DjangoUber popular Japanese cult filmmaker Takashi Miike now brings us Sukiyaki Western Django -- riffing on spaghetti westerns, two clans battle for a town's treasure as a gunslinger strolls into town. According to Jeffrey M. Anderson's review: "Miike has managed the best Spaghetti Western knockoff in years."Buy it on DVD or Blu-ray.
Clockwise from top left: Get Smart, Transsiberian, Kung Fu Panda, Budd Boetticher Box Set, Planet of the Apes 40th Anniversary Collection.
Welcome to this week's edition of Spin-ematical, chock full of alternatives to election coverage!
Kung Fu Panda Though some of the celebrity voices were useless, Jack Black is great, and the film itself is pleasant, good-natured, and respectful of Asian culture. Available in at least seven editions, including widescreen, full-screen, Spanish, a Christmas gift set, with and without Secrets of the Furious Five (a 20-minute short), and on Blu-ray; oddly, this doesn't release until Sunday. Buy it.
Transsiberian Traveling by train in the dead of winter from Beijing to Moscow should be much more restful than what happens to Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer in this adventure / suspense / thriller; Ben Kingsley plays a menacing Russian detective. I'm recommending this one sight unseen because Brad Anderson (Session 9, The Machinist) directed. Includes a 34-minute "making of"; also available on Blu-ray. Replays are inevitable. Buy it.
Get Smart The bumbling Maxwell Smart as a generic action hero? (*sigh*) Steve Carell makes the character his own by repeating the old catchphrases without enthusiasm and proving to be far too adept for his own -- or the movie's -- good. Anne Hathaway is a very sexy spy, but Dwayne Johnson is miscast and even Alan Arkin struggles. The TV series never took itself too seriously; if only the movie had done the same. Available in widescreen and full-screen editions, as well as a two-disk version and on Blu-ray; a plethora of bonus scenes are included, notably a 5-minute "vomit reel." Ugh. Skip it.
After the jump ... Indies on DVD, more Blu-ray debuts, and Collector's Corner.
Kit Kittredge -- An American Girl It's the feature film for all the little girls out there who have American Girl dolls, and those who have long since grown up. Abigail Breslin stars as a young, budding reporter who tries to help her family during the Great Depression. She's surrounded by the financial woes of the time, plus prejudice and a situation that asks for a little Nancy Drewing. It's a must-see for the kids, and anyone who can enjoy a youthful dip into the past. Buy It.
Billy the Kid Jennifer Venditti had come to the small Maine town to do some casting for Bugcrush, but she found something better -- Billy. Spending a week with the 15-year-old, Venditti captured a young man's highs and lows, his triumphs and vulnerabilities. The film is wildly funny, but also a telling account of the danger of assumption, the troublesome labels that get put on us during our youth, and the tribulations of the unique. Check out my review for more information.Buy It.
Hell Ride Presented by Quentin Tarantino, this Larry Bishop film was pretty much ravaged by critics (11% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). But if you like the rumble of a bike barreling down the road, Hell Ride follows some badass bikers trying to avenge the death of one of their own by a rival gang. There's lots of talent in this puppy -- Madsen, Balfour, Hopper, Carradine -- but unless you really like to just lose yourself in footage of bikers on bikes, Skip It.
Also on DVD: Journey to the Center of the Earth (see: Blu-ray), Tinker Bell (see: Blu-ray), Zombie Strippers.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull The big release this week is, undoubtedly, the latest adventures of Indiana Jones. There are so many fan goodies involved with this release, that you can check out our previous two posts for specifics -- one for the disc extras and one for the collectible extras. As for the film itself -- it's gotten a lot of banter about its plusses and minuses, but in the end, it's still 77% fresh. So basically, this is a Buy It if you're an Indy fan, and a Rent It, if you're not sure.
War, Inc. This is the feature that plagues me. It has John Cusack. It was co-written by the wildly insane, talented, and fun Mark Leyner. Nevertheless, War, Inc. failed to impress. You know you've got to worry when a review starts with: "What do you say when a film is so bad that you actually feel physical pain for everyone involved?" So, I say with a heavy heart: Skip It.
Y.P.F -- aka -- Young People F**king This is merely a funny and mostly honest look at sex, but with a title that flings out the F-bomb, it's gotten a whole slew of drama ranging from political movements to Ebert responses. But when it comes down to it, the Canadian comedy is funny, but it's not shockingly racy and has barely any nudity. You'll see more jaw-dropping sex and skin on True Blood. Buy It!
Imagine Spider-Man murdering a young boy. The Rebel isn't a revisionist superhero movie, but it does star Johnny Nguyen, who was the masked stunt double for Spider-Man and Green Goblin in two of Sam Raimi's web-spinning adventures. Here Nguyen plays Cuong, an enforcer for the French exploiters in 1920s Vietnam. Anti-colonial protests have been gaining force and exerting pressure upon the ruling French, and Cuong is expected to help put them down. Caught up in his violent duties, Cuong kills a boy almost without realizing what he's done. He feels instant, piercing regret, as though the guilt for all his sins has come crashing down upon him. His remorse becomes a galvanizing force that pushes him to stop shedding the blood of his own people.
To begin, he tries to help a young rebel escape torture and certain death. The beautiful Thuy (Veronica Ngo, AKA Ngo Thanh Van) is important to both sides: her father is leader of the anti-government movement. She is understandably wary about Cuong's true intentions. Just as he's making headway in convincing her of his sincerity, his cynical, ambitious overlord Sy (Dustin Nguyen, of 21 Jump Street fame, who's never been better) appears. Sy is less interested in Cuong's allegiance than in the possibility that he can lead him to Thuy's father.
While the story is riddled with contrivances and genre conventions, the action sequences set the film apart. Johnny Nguyen is flat-out amazing in his grace and control, while Dustin Nguyen more than holds his own in close-quarters fighting. Floating like a butterfly but stinging like a bee, Veronica Ngo, a dancer/model/singer/actress, looks extremely convincing as she fiercely defends her friends and her honor. Oh, and she's a babe and a half.
Iron Man At the risk of drawing the ire of Batfans everywhere, I'll just come out and say it: Iron Man is the best my favorite superhero movie of the year. (Dear Comic-Con: Please don't revoke my press pass.) Dark Knight is indeed brilliant, and brilliantly dark, but Iron Man is just so much more ... fun (AND it has social messages!). Poor Jeff Bridges may not hold a candle to the late Heath Ledger in the villain department, but Iron Man wins out elsewhere. Its characters are colorful and layered, its action is supremely stylish and never overbearing (unlike Transformers, even in its hot metal-on-metal action) and thanks to sensibilities of Robert Downey Jr. and director Jon Favreau, it's flat-out funny. Man-crush alert: Downey Jr. is fast on his way to becoming an acting icon, right up there with Al Pacino and Jared from Subway. Buy it!!! (Available in both single disc and two-disc special edition)
Forgetting Sarah Marshall The latest from Camp Apatow stars a far-too-naked Jason Segel, an almost unrecognizably sexy Mila Kunis 2.0, a scene-stealing Russell Brand, and Kristen Bell. The film definitely has its moments, but I'm just not sold on Segel as a leading man, who seems to equate "comedic skill" with "revealing your junk." And as much as we enjoy rooting for a lovable loser, at some point in the movie it helps if he stops moaning, crying and being generally so extremely pathetic. After Pineapple Express, Tropic Thunder and The Happening, Sarah Marshall will have to settle for being the fourth funniest movie so far this year. Rent it, or buy it in the discount bin (Available in both single disc and two-disc collector's edition)
There's a slew of new releases hitting shelves this week. Some are flashy, some are sweet, and some you should be ashamed if you spend your hard-earned money on them. As Peter said last week, we're still working out kinks in the new format, so weigh in below with your thoughts.
MAIN PICKS AND MISSES Speed Racer (Pick) Made of Honor (Miss) The Love Guru (Miss) The Babysitters (Miss)
INDIES ON DVD Young@Heart, Finding Amanda, Harold, Snow Angels
BLU-RAY Speed Racer, Hulk (2003), The Mist
COLLECTOR'S CORNER High School Flashback Collection, Risky Business Deluxe Edition, and more!
The Promotion After Dane Cook's Employee of the Month ripped out our interest in office-led comedies and stomped on it, The Promotion was a welcome breath of fresh air that has become a comedic emblem over here at Cinematical. It's graced a top films of 2008 list, popped up in a few fanrants, and has been part of a lot of multimedia. And now, after a modest release, the comedy is on DVD.
Seann William Scott and John C. Reilly play supermarket workers who vie for the same management position in a new store. Scott is told that he's a shoo-in for the gig, which will be nestled near his neighborhood, while Reilly is a new hire straight out of Quebec who is eager for the position. They fall into an insane battle of one-upmanship. In Scott's review, he said: "I just watched it with a jam-packed house at SXSW -- and these folks were laughing like nitrous oxide had just been pumped into the air ducts."
The disc features deleted scenes, a commentary with writer/director Steven Conrad and producers Jessika Borsiczky Goyer and Steven A. Jones, a making-off featurette, promotional webisodes, and finally, outtakes.
Just last week I received the latest release from the critic-led Benten Films -- Kentucker Audley's mumblecore film Team Picture, which comes out on DVD today. Imagine a Slacker sort of world with everyday life and a collection of varied people, but without the rolling conversation of UFOs and Like a Virgin pap smears.
Audley's style is to show a more realistic life without the allure of stars or irresistably charismatic actors. He leads the film as a slacker musician who really encapsulates the ideas of slackerdom in every area of life -- indifferent to his girlfriend's unhappiness, the need for a future path, and even the quirks of his roommate. While not for moviegoers looking for a fast-paced, tightly written story, Team Picture does have some charm as a sort of dead-pan voyeuristic look into modern slackers. Check out the video above to see what I mean.
The DVD has a commentary, a new epilogue, a short film, music performances, deleted scenes, trailer, and an essay by Nick Dawson.
Last week, I alerted you to a few sneak previews for the new Collector's Edition of The Nightmare Before Christmas, and now you can see the discs in all their glory for yourselves!
The stop-motion classic stars Chris Sarandon as the voice of Jack Skellington -- the Pumpkin King of Halloweentown. He gets bored with the town's work of scaring humans on Halloween, and when he accidentally falls into Christmas and sees all the good tidings, he comes back with a plan to nab Santa and have Christmas Halloween-style. This, of course, leads to a whole big mess of kidnapping and stolen paramours.
Being a real Collector's Edition (and not a crappy re-release preying on our collector mindsets), there's a ton of special features to enjoy. There's a commentary, a tour of the Haunted Mansion done up for a holiday tour, a featurette on the seasonal transformation, Tim Burton's original poem narrated by Christopher Lee, and a making-of featurette -- just on the first disc! The second mainly includes the goodies from the previous release. There's Frankenweenie, Vincent, deleted scenes,art galleries and animation tests, a storyboard/film comparison, and a selection of posters and trailers. The blu-ray disc only offers an extra 30-second intro, but the ultimate contains a digital copy on a third disc, plus funky keepsake packaging and collectible extras.
It's a slow week, packed mainly with television box sets, but there are a few little-known films you might want to check out.
Please Vote for Me This was a film that I was dying to see at TIFF last year, but scheduling conflicts kept me from it. Luckily, the highly praised Please Vote for Me is now hitting DVD shelves.
Imagine a group of third-grade students putting Tracy Flick to shame as they hold a democratic election for school monitor. In my day (man, that phrase makes me feel old...), school elections boiled down to some crappy posters and speeches, all resulting in a popularity contest. These Chinese students, however, have taken a cue from the political bigwigs. We're talking political consultants, polling, and exploitation -- basically a real election full of tiny tots.
Unfortunately, the only extra on this release is a theatrical trailer, but considering the reviews and how purely awesome this film sounds, I bet it's still worth it.
Brand Upon the Brain! If you ever loved the artistry of David Lynch, but thought his films were too dark and incomprehensible, there's Guy Maddin to ride in on a sea of comedic absurdity. With his silent film Brand Upon the Brain! he did something entirely different -- he created the ultimate live theater experience, one that can never be replicated at home unless you're ridiculously rich with a live orchestra, group of foley artists, a celebrity narrator, and a castrato at your disposal. But even still, this Criterion release does a fine job of coming close.
But first, the plot. The film focuses on a young Guy Maddin as he lives on a remote island that holds a lonely orphanage. His mother reigns with an iron fist and peeping watchtower while trying to reverse the weariness of age with her strange, scientist husband. Meanwhile, one of the orphans dies, strange holes are found on some of the kids, and some teen detectives come to investigate, all in the pulsing throb of teenage rebellion and sexuality.
While you can't create the live experience at home, Criterion has done everything possible to make this disc like the live experience. Each screening across Canada and the states had a celebrity narrator, and this disc allows you to choose between the seven narrators, which essentially gives you seven different ways to view the film -- from Maddin himself to Isabella Rossellini, John Ashbery, and Crispin Glover. There's also a documentary with interviews, two new short films, deleted scenes, a trailer, and an essay by Dennis Lim. Check out James Rocchi's Review | Buy the DVD
The movie DVD choices from this week's release schedule are quite scarce, but there is Abigail Breslin swinging in to save the day.
Nim's Island In the vein of classic family adventure scenarios, Breslin stars as Nim, a young girl who lives with her scientist father on a far-off tropical island. Life is idyllic until Nim's dad (Gerard Butler) is stranded far away leaving Nim to not only survive on her own, but also fight off the tour companies that threaten her island home. But she needs help and unknowingly turns to the worst person for the job -- the agoraphobic author (Jodie Foster) of her favorite literary adventure character, Alex Rover.
The DVD has a healthy amount of features for those looking to dip behind the scenes. You can choose between two commentaries -- one with Jodie Foster and Abigail Breslin, and the other with directors/writers Mark Levin and Jennifer Flackett. There's also 3 featurettes, a piece called "Abigail's Journey and Working on Water," and finally, deleted scenes.
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Imagine Spider-Man murdering a young boy. 
