How to Spend $20
By Les Winan
June 21, 2005
Taking a look ahead at the week's DVD releases is always dicey for your wallet. Nearly every week, there's a disc that would fit nicely into any size collection. When it comes time to decide what to buy, there are really two determining factors: how much you love the content and the quality of the extra features on the disc. The massive unreleased studio (film and television) back-catalogue means that every week there's likely something for you.
Before we begin, if you haven’t seen Batman Begins yet, you’re really missing out. It’s not just a superhero movie; it’s a superhero film. Most movies don’t get much better than this, particularly action films. Ignore the obviously sealed-by-contract relationship between Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise and just see Batman Begins.
For everyone who wants to see what would REALLY happen if Nicole Kidman twitched her nose: Bewitched: The Complete First Season (in Black and White) (4-DVD Set) (1964)
If you're like me, you grew up on non-cable reruns of classic television like The Brady Bunch, Scooby Doo and Bewitched. At the time, cable was extremely expensive and a luxury, not the standard it is now. As a result, the only television that was on regularly in the afternoons after school was said reruns, meaning I have seen a significant number of episodes of all of these shows. That said, nothing is going to make me buy the first season of Bewitched. Clever gags with disappearing household items aside, the show doesn't hold up particularly well in the age of digital effects and shows with no laugh track. Included on the four-disc set are outtakes, featurettes and the trailer for the new film adaptation (starring Will Ferrell and Nicole Kidman), which might be the most interesting portion of the set for modern audiences.
For everyone wishing Samuel L. Jackson had gotten to yell more as a Jedi: Coach Carter (Widescreen) (2005)
Now that Hollywood is remaking-by-combination movies like Hoosiers and Lean on Me in such derivative vehicles as Coach Carter, we can only hope that soon coming to theaters is a new movie combining films that are one part Casablanca, one part Bio Dome. It seems a formula destined to break the box office slump Hollywood is currently bemoaning. Although, on second thought, I smell the problem that Hollywood refuses to acknowledge. At what point does Hollywood need to acknowledge that crappy production and derivative plots are the cause of their woes? Dumbing down every possible part of a film to appeal to the broadest (read: dumbest) portion of the populace may have finally backfired. If the lesson is learned, then I am forever grateful. For anyone with lower expectations, I highly encourage you to watch the derivative, yet based-on-a-true story Coach Carter. After all, the disc does feature some deleted scenes and featurettes. Also, it has some serious Samuel L. Jackson yelling.
For following the examples of Angelina Jolie, Halle Berry, and other Academy Award winners with stupid agents: The Jacket (2005)
Now, I'm as big of a fan of Keira Knightley as any other straight man, but my high opinion of Keira can't possibly make me see The Jacket. I'm sure that Adrien Brody's agent pretty much lit himself on fire after he realized that this film about a man going into the future and seeing death would be the first released film for Adrien Brody, post-Best Actor Oscar. Oops! Now, I realize there is no way to know when someone is going to win an Oscar, but you’d think they’d be less than thrilled with this follow-up. Much like how anyone who purchases this DVD is going to be less than thrilled with the sparse extra features of deleted scenes and featurettes. Hearing an audio commentary where Brody bemoans the simple twist of fate that lead him to this career mishap would probably have been more entertaining than the film.
For sequels that deserved their fate: Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (Widescreen) (2005)
Not every successful comedy deserves a sequel - particularly a one-joke film like Miss Congeniality. I will cop to being extremely pleased that the poor reviews scared off my wife, who had loved the original to the point where I was starting to question our relationship. I think that, when historians look back on the inexplicable Sandra Bullock era of Hollywood, they will wonder just exactly what people enjoyed about her work. She’s certainly not offensive in a Hilary Duff sort of way, but there’s no great breadth or quality to her work. In fact, it seems that nearly any other actress willing to make herself look foolish could have made Miss Congeniality work. But no self-respecting DVD fan can make purchasing this DVD work, what with no extra features.
For seeing what happens when Batman REALLY comes unhinged: American Psycho (Unrated Collector's Edition) (2000)
Not only does American Psycho rank high on the list of good movies I have no interest in seeing again, it’s a terrific adaptation of the book on which it is based. While it seems that decent adaptations of good books are actually becoming more common (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, High Fidelity, About a Boy, Seabiscuit, Harry Potter films, etc.), American Psycho not only is a good adaptation, it’s a great adaptation. American Psycho manages to get the stream-of-consciousness materialism of the protagonist on screen in a way you would never think possible when reading the book.
Much of that credit has to go to star Christian Bale, who is quite possibly one of the freakiest, yet most interesting psychopaths in recent film history. Watching Bale flex, have sex with a prostitute and groove to Huey Lewis and the News is far more disturbing than watching him kill Reese Witherspoon (and it’s not just because Witherspoon is the anti-Christ) and Bale knows it. That’s part of what makes his performance so magnetic. In fact, the 1980s aesthetic aside, Bale’s performance is what makes American Psycho work.
What makes American Psycho the DVD Pick of the Week, however, is the impressive list of extra features. Included on the disc are commentary tracks with director Mary Harron, screenwriter Guinevere Turner; a four-part documentary, featurettes and deleted scenes. It’s a nice set for an underrated freakfest of a movie.
June 21, 2005
ABC Africa (2002)
American Psycho (Unrated Collector's Edition) (2000)
The Attractive One (2004)
Bewitched: The Complete First Season (in Black and White) (4-DVD Set) (1964)
Bewitched: The Complete First Season (in Color) (4-DVD Set) (1964)
Bigger than the Sky (2005)
Black Saturday (2004)
Callas Forever (2002)
Coach Carter (Full Frame) (2005)
Coach Carter (Widescreen) (2005)
Cursed (2004)
Cursed (Unrated) (2004)
Dark Water (2002)
Hostage (2005)
Hustle (1975)
I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can (1982)
Immortal (2004)
In the Realms of the Unreal (2004)
The Jacket (2005)
Kick'N Rush (2003)
Lifeguard (1975)
Loch Ness (1996)
Lost and Found (1996)
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (Full Frame) (2005)
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (Widescreen) (2005)
Oz: The Complete Fifth Season (3-DVD Set) (2002)
Piano Man (1996)
Pretty Cool (2001)
Princess Tam Tam (1935)
The Promise (2004)
The Ring Virus (1999)
Starting Over (1979)
They Came Back (2004)
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Full Frame) (1971)
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Widescreen) (1971)
Yellow Asphalt (2001)
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