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Doogan's Views at The Digital Bits
page added: 11/21/06



Gobble, Gobble

Doogan's Views - Main Page

Happy Thanksgiving y'all. Hope you're all gearing up for a good time with the family and/or friends. I'll be heading over to the parentals with my puppy girl, a stack of discs and well, . . . no PS3. I wasn't one of the lucky 10 in my line. Sucks for me, but what are you going to do? Now I have something to ask Santa for.

As Bill commented in his Two Cents yesterday, I also saw the new Bond over the weekend. I liked it. It's a really good reboot for the franchise in the Batman Begins sense. At this point, I'm actually more excited for the sequel now that the set-up is out of the way. Craig is a good Bond and I hope they keep on in the direction they set-up for him at the end. Bond's not quite the quick-quiping cold blooded killer, but very willing to get there soon enough.

In terms of DVD, it's generally a light week, and sadly, I didn't get sh&t this week, so I know next to nothing about any of the discs on this week's ship list. But here's the line-up for you to use if you go shopping on Black Friday. Hopefully you'll find some good deals.


New Releases

These are the discs making their premiere on DVD this week...


Ice Age: The Meltdown

Ice Age: The Meltdown

The early mammals are back again, hunting for nuts and booty. Queen Latifah joins the cast of regulars.

An Inconvenient Truth

An Inconvenient Truth

Al Gore tells us about global warming. Bill says it's a brilliant documentary and as scary as it is smart. Bill's also a leftist commie.

[Editor's Note: Todd suspects that Stanley Kubrick conspired with NASA to film the Moon landings in a warehouse in Area 51, so... ahem... the defense rests.]

Scoop

Scoop

Woody Allen once again joins forces with Scarlett Johansson's glorious cleavage. Hugh Jackman and Al Swearengen also star.

[Editor's Note: Swegen! C--ksucka!]

You, Me and Dupree

You, Me and Dupree

Matt Dillon is Me, Kate Hudson is You and The Butterscotch Stallion is Dupree. Looks cute if you're an Owen Wilson fan.


Cult Releases

So, here's were we can talk about the really fun discs coming out this week. You know you want 'em. Well, come and get them.

Azumi

Azumi

This is actually a really good ninja flick from the director of Versus and Godzilla: Final Wars. Based on the manga, Azumi already has a sequel that I haven't seen, but hope to soon.

H6: Diary of a Serial Killer

H6: Diary of a Serial Killer

Spanish painter turned director Martín Garrido Barón brings us into the mind of a killer. A young man, freed from prison after murdering his girlfriend, takes up in a dilapidated hotel/brothel he inherited and starts killing the morally unclean. This Spanish film is pretty no-holds barred - although not quite as visceral as say, Hostel. There's a bit more of a journey to be had here, and if you're a fan of horror films, this one may be a rental for you.

Grand Theft Auto: Tricked-Out Edition

Grand Theft Auto: Tricked-Out Edition

Ron Howard made his move to director here, under the guidance of Roger Corman who in exchange for appearing in Eat My Dust, gave the go ahead for Howard to co-write, star and direct. A simple story with some really fun car action, if you're looking for something better than DaVinci Code, this might do the thing.

The Samurai Collection Featuring Sonny Chiba

The Samurai Collection Featuring Sonny Chiba

I know very little about these DVDs, but I am a samurai flick fan and a Chiba fan, so you just knew I was going to put these on my list. The set includes G.I. Samurai, Ninja Wars and Legend of the Eight Samurai. Looks good. If anyone out there picks this one up, please let me know what you think.


The Ol' Double Dip

Here's some titles that have made more than one trip to the woodshed on DVD so far...

How the Grinch Stole Christmas: 50th Birthday Deluxe Edition

How the Grinch Stole Christmas: 50th Birthday Deluxe Edition

I'm sure it's better both extras and video-wise, but this is the fourth frickin' time this has come out.

Miracle on 34th Street

Miracle on 34th Street

Second time's the charm for this one.

A Fish Called Wanda

A Fish Called Wanda

This is a good film and worth picking up if you didn't do so the first time it came out. This two-disc SE features a nice new transfer, commentary with John Cleese and a new documentary. Fans of Monty Python should enjoy. That's pretty much everyone, right?

The Punisher: Extended Cut

The Punisher: Extended Cut

Did we need this?


TV on DVD

Weird that two sets on our list are also big blog-news hits: Doogie Howser is gay and Michael Richards has a temper and spouts completely inappropriate racist comments to make a point most didn't catch due to the shock.

Alias: The Complete Fifth Season, Alias: The Complete Series, Boston Legal: Season Two, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist: Season Two, How I Met Your Mother: Season One, Perry Mason: The Complete First Season, Seinfeld: Season 7, So Notorious: The Complete Series and Star Trek: The Animated Series


The Criterion Collection Corner

So, because I've supported Criterion even before they took a wait and see approach to DVD, I've decided to pull them out and spotlight them for you each week. You know you want these, because having a gap in your collection sucks.

The Double Life of Veronique

The Double Life of Veronique

Jahnke should be happy: Krzysztof Kieslowski's incredible film staring Irene Jacob comes to Criterion DVD. Packed with extras including commentary by film scholar Annette Insdorf, three documentaries directed by Kieslowski: Factory, Hospital and Railway Station, a short film by Kazimierz Karabasz (mentor to Kieslowski), the alternate U.S. ending, a documentary made during production of Veronique: a new documentary about the filmmaker entitled 1966 - 1988: Kieslowski, Polish Filmmaker, video interviews with actress Irène Jacob, cinematographer Slawomir Idziak, and composer Zbigniew Preisner and a booklet of essays by Jonathan Romney, Slavoj Zizek, and Peter Cowie, with an excerpt from the book "Kieslowski on Kieslowski." Pretty much a no-brainer.

Pandora's Box

Pandora's Box

I will always think Louise Brooks is one of the most beautiful women who ever walked the Earth. This G.W.Pabst silent is a milestone film for the era and a must own for any self-respecting film fan. Extras on this set include four different interpretive musical scores, each offering its own interpretation of the film, audio commentary by film scholars Thomas Elsaesser and Mary Ann Doane, the documentary Louise Brooks: Looking for Lulu from 1998 a rare, 48-minute interview with Louise Brooks by documentarian Richard Leacock and Susan Steinberg Woll, interviews with Richard Leacock, about Brooks, and Michael Pabstm the director's son, a stills gallery and the essay booklet with a Kenneth Tynan essay from 1979 essay, an article by Louise Brooks on her relationship with Pabst, and a new essay by critic J. Hoberman. Frankly I don't care about the extras. Just knowing Criterion preserved my beloved LuLu in all her glory is enough for me to pick this one up.


Special Mention Box Set

This is where we can showcase a super expensive but worthwhile product. In this case, it's...


Classic Comedy Teams Collection

Classic Comedy Teams Collection

Really all you have to do is list the comedy teams and the films in the set to sell it: Three Stooges: Meet the Baron & The Gold Raiders; Abbott and Costello: Lost in Harlem & Abbott and Costello in Hollywood and Laurel and Hardy: Air Raid Wardens & Nothing But Trouble. See 'nuff said.

See you next week. Pass the mashed potatoes!

Doogan
todddoogan@thedigitalbits.com
Atlanta, GA 11/21/06


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