2005 Calvins: Best DVD
By Reagen Sulewski
February 16, 2005
We're a little DVD crazy here at BOP, with our collections being a little larger than is strictly healthy for our wallets and our time. Even so, we can't stop buying (just where is the crack in these things?), and we present to you our list of the best of them in 2004.
It's a clean sweep for the Lord of the Rings in this category, as each one of its Extended Editions has won the top prize the last three years. The final echo (we promise) of Peter Jackson's epic trilogy, this DVD once again features an extended cut (over four hours, making the series an incredible 12+ hours in length), two extra discs of material, and one of the funnier easter eggs I've ever seen. OK, so next year, the field is finally wide open.
The idea of putting TV shows onto DVD has been one of the greatest in marketing history. Six of our top ten DVDs this year are TV sets. And being the Simpsons nuts that we are, the two that were released this calendar year place second and third in the balloting. Representing some of the finest comedy ever put to any medium, these two seasons represent the high water mark of the series. The standard set of features for both merely is the cherry on the sundae.
Another Matt Groening creation comes in fourth. The final volume of Futurama, the unjustly cancelled and ill-treated Fox animation series, ended up being split over three broadcast years and continually pre-empted by football. In their typically dunderheaded logic, Fox used this as evidence the series couldn't hold an audience. Now it simply sits in the ever growing list of "great shows Fox has cancelled". At least now we've got the entire run of the series out
there.
More animation fills in the fifth spot, but this time of the cinematic variety. There's a pretty strong contingent of fans of the 1999 film The Iron Giant, a relatively unseen gem directed by Brad Bird (who you might know as the man behind this year's The Incredibles). Initially given only a barebones DVD release, this year saw an expansive edition of the film complete with commentary, missing scenes, and various other behind-the-scenes information. It's not so much that the features are great, but that this film is finally receiving the treatment it deserves.
Two more mistreated shows bring up sixth and seventh place, the first season set of Fox's Arrested Development and the full run of NBC's Freaks and Geeks. Arrested Development is redefining what television sitcoms can do and the list of talent that came out of F&G is too long to list here. However, rumblings have now developed about Arrested Development's lifespan and Freaks & Geeks was cancelled far before its time. Memo to studio accountants: if you stop cancelling these series, you will have more of these box sets to sell!!
The relationship with the Star Wars franchise and this site is a love/hate one; we love to hate it. However, that's more for what it's become rather than what it was and The Star Wars Trilogy DVD release comes in at eighth place. Even if they are the semi-bowdlerized "Special Editions" (Greedo didn't shoot first!), they are landmark films and it's about time they exist in a decent format for home viewing.
A three-way tie rounds out the top ten, consisting of the second edition of Looney Tunes classic cartoon shorts (aka The Golden Collection), still another TV series, the fast-talking The Gilmore Girls Season 1, and Shaun of the Dead, the sole 2004 released movie to make the list.
Falling just short were the second season of The Gilmore Girls (we're fanboys – get over it), last year's Best Picture winner Lost in Translation and the relatively feature-poor release of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which has already had its bait-and-switch special edition come out.
|
Top 10
|
| Position |
Film |
Total Points |
| 1 |
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - Extended Edition |
52 |
| 2 |
The Simpsons - The Complete Fifth Season |
40 |
| 3 |
The Simpsons - The Complete Fourth Season |
35 |
| 4 |
Futurama: Vol. 4 |
31 |
| 5 |
Iron Giant Special Edition |
30 |
| 6 |
Arrested Development: Season One |
26 |
| 7 (tie) |
Freaks and Geeks: The Complete Series |
25 |
| 7 (tie) |
Star Wars Triolgy |
25 |
| 9 (tie) |
Looney Tunes Golden Collection |
22 |
| 9 (tie) |
Gilmore Girls: Season 1 |
22 |
| 9 (tie) |
Shaun of the Dead |
22 |
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