This Tuesday marks the first day in February, which
drags us out of the video release doldrums an into a
wealth of worthwhile mediocrity with a couple of true
gems thrown in for good measure.
First, the genre releases:
- Andromeda
–
Season 3 Collection: The complete season. - Babe
Family
Double Feature: The first was great. The second,
not so much. - Charmed
– The
Complete First Season: Well, boys, it’s finally
out on DVD. Try
not to wear out the “pause” button. - The
Grudge: A good but not great thriller. - Ray
Harryhausen – The Early Years Collection: More
Harryhausen
goodness. - Wonderfalls
–
The Complete Series: 9 of the 13 episodes here
were never
broadcast.
Now, the non-genre releases:
- Blue
Lagoon /
Return to the Blue Lagoon: This double feature - Chariots
of
Fire (Special Edition): Go Vangelis! - Cheers
– The
Complete Fourth Season: Dianne was still on the
series at this
time, although it was getting close to the end of her
run. - Classic
Rock
Set: Now there’s some good music! This set
includes The Who, Deep
Purple, the Doors, Pink Floyd, and Eric Clapton. - Classic
Rock
Set 2: This one includes Elton John, Genesis,
Foreigner, the Bee
Gees, and the Pretenders. - Frasier
– The
Complete Fourth Season: I had already stopped
watching when this
season came out, but I still respected the show more
than other
sitcoms. - Friends
– The
Complete Fifth Season: I had given up on this
show about four
seasons before this. - Hard
Rock
Set: This five DVD set includes Metallica, Judas
Priest, Def
Leppard, Ted Nugent, and Alice Cooper. - I
Love Lucy –
Season Three: This was a genuine landmark. Even
if you don’t
enjoy the series, you have to respect its place in
sitcom history. - The
Karate Kid
Collection: A set of all four movies that will
make you wonder why
they didn’t stop at two. - La
Commare
Secca: Another Bertolucci entry into the
Criterion Collection. - The
Last of
the Mohicans: This is the Director’s Expanded
Edition. - The
Look Who’s
Talking Box Set: This three DVD collection makes
you wonder why
they didn’t stop at one. - Night
and the
City: “Film noir” + “Criterion Collection” =
“Man, I wish I had
more money.” - Oz –
The
Complete Fourth Season: An extremely well
respected show that I
haven’t seen yet. - Penn
and
Teller – Bullsh*t! The Complete Second Season:
It’s Penn and
Teller. ‘Nuff said. - Ray:
The
link here is for the limited two disc special
edition. There is also
a single
disk
widescreen edition, a single
disk
fullscreen edition, and an edition enhanced
for blind
and low vision viewers. - Shall
We
Dance: Yet another unnecessary remake. - Theives’
Highway: Yet more Criterion Collection Film
Noir.
Finally, the pick of the week. Given the wealth of
non-genre material
out this week, it should surprise nobody that the
choice is not genre
entertainment. The
French
Connection is a great movie that won Hackman an
Oscar. I can’t
tell if this is a rerelease of the existing edition,
or if it’s a new
single disk release, but I know I’m quite happy with
my copy of the
two disk edition. I prefer The
Conversation
for my fix of Gene Hackman making art films, but that
doesn’t mean
The French Connection isn’t great. I just
wish it didn’t
have the “where are they now” epilogue attached.
Hillary Swank
…was the last Karate Kid. Way before her Oscar days, and before she played the boxer in Million Dollar Baby. It’s a awful movie, but cheesy enough to be fun watching as a guilty pleasure.
Pick of the week – Wonderfalls.
Proving that Fox can please the fans it pissed off earlier. The show was a lot of fun (I’ve seen 7 of the episodes), but even I knew that people weren’t going to get it. It’s about a slacker who’s basically forced to be nice and help others, and gets talked to by inanimate objects? Riiiiiight…. I couldn’t get my friends to watch this. Not to mention that Fox had “fun” rearranging the schedule on an almost daily schedule.
More than anything, I’m glad they’re releasing it. It was a fun show that deserved better, and hopefully it’ll pick up some new fans.
Re: Pick of the week – Wonderfalls.
Remind anyone of Firefly?
Andromeda
Does anyone here like Andromeda? I’ve tried to watch it a few times, but I
never make it all the way through an episode — it just seems really dumbed
down, trite, and silly. I’m not trying to bag on the show unecessarily, I’m just
wondering if there are any fans out there who could advise me on how to
approach this series, and if it’s worth watching.