How to Spend $20
By Eric Hughes
November 17, 2009
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Pick of the Week
For people who can't decide whether Leonard Nimoy or Zachary Quinto makes a better Spock: Star Trek (Special Edition)
Having made the trudge to theaters to see the likes of all three Spider-Mans, The Dark Knight, Iron Man and District 9 (and, regrettably, Star Trek: Nemesis, which some figured at the time to have had the influence to outright end the franchise's theatrical life), I'm a bit shocked I never got around to Star Trek, J.J. Abrams' critically and financially successful reboot of the popular series. Being one of my least favorite genres, science fiction typically gets totally ignored by me, unless, of course, its production values are high and/or critical opinion is positive. With 95% of reviewers giving Star Trek the thumbs up at Rotten Tomatoes, I'd be a fool not to at least tack this one on to my Netflix queue.
Paramount proved theatergoers still had a thirst for Star Trek when it followed up the series' worst performing entry, 2002's Nemesis ($43.3 million domestic), with a reboot that scored nearly $150 million more than Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, which previously held the domestic box office record at $109.7 million.
And because Abrams' film establishes an alternate reality through time travel, just about anything can happen in an anticipated sequel project, which could be here as early as 2011.
Disc includes: Deleted scenes, A New Vision featurette, To Boldly Go featurette, Casting featurette, Aliens featurette, Score featurette, gag reel, audio commentary, Star Trek game (free trial), digital copy
For people who don't think South Park is vulgar enough: Drawn Together: Complete Series, Party In Your Box (Set)
If there were ever a show that makes you want to take a nice, long shower after viewing it, it's Drawn Together, Comedy Central's three seasons and done laffer that dubbed itself as TV's first animated reality show when it debuted on cable in 2004. The gimmick was fairly simple and straightforward: eight strangers picked to live in a house – with cameras picking up their every move. Sort of like MTV's The Real World, but Drawn Together's characters were, well, cartoons.
It's embarrassing for me to admit to watching this dreadfully crude series, but I was a fairly religious follower of solely the first season. And I'm not throwing around "dreadfully crude" like it's any old thang. The lead story in one episode had Clara – a Disney princess knock-off (a la Little Mermaid's Ariel) – revealing to the group that her vagina was actually a dangerous, tentacled monster. What can I say? I was 18 and found it hilarious.
The series certainly wasn't a hit with critics, and its ratings were so low that even NBC would find reason to cancel it. To see that Drawn Together actually survived three seasons on Comedy Central is a bit surprising to me. Then again, we're talking about cable here.
Disc includes: Audio commentary, behind-the-scenes interviews, Karaoke Sing-Along, censored/uncensored game, deleted scenes
For people who think Cameron Diaz makes quite the MILF: My Sister's Keeper
Nick Cassavetes' My Sister's Keeper, based on the novel of the same name by Jodi Picoult, suffered immensely from the same issue that plagues so many other book-to-movie adaptations: My Sister's Keeper's source material is 400-plus pages, which is a tall order when you consider that New Line's movie version clocks in at a brisk 109 minutes. Not that every bit of Picoult's story is worth repeating in the film, because it isn't. (In fact, Picoult is annoyingly wordy. To adapt the whole thing would be like treating audiences to a Titanic/Gods and Generals double feature).
Even so, I couldn't help but think how cheated an audience member would be if they had neglected to read Picoult before seeing My Sister's Keeper in theaters. Though I managed to shed a tear during one specific scene in the movie, the adaptation failed to really engage me emotionally and felt significantly less powerful than what I had read just a few months prior.
In addition to the fact that the adaptation comes with an improved ending, I would like to point out that Sofia Vassilieva is excellent as Kate, a lead character whose medical condition – and the controversy stirred by her sister (or parents, depending on your point-of-view) – is the basis for the story. At the moment, Vassilieva sits at #4 in my Calvins list of the year's Best Breakthrough Performance. Next to My Sister's Keeper, Vassilieva is probably best known for playing Patricia Arquette's daughter, Ariel Dubois, on TV's Medium.
Disc includes: Additional scenes
$26.98?! I'd rather feed my Danny DeVito fix by purchasing multiple copies of The Rainmaker: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: It's a Very Sunny Christmas
I don't think I'm crazy for saying it's a bit ridiculous to ask for upwards of $25 for 43 minutes of video. If the pricing team behind It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Christmas special, It's a Very Sunny Christmas (list price: $26.98), were put in charge of determining the price of a standard 100-minute flashy Hollywood flick, we'd probably all have to resort to prostitution to help foot the bill. Well, either that or a much needed introduction to Bit Torrent 101.
Leaked onto the Internet earlier this month – would this be the reason we're getting a Sunny Christmas special before Thanksgiving? – It's a Very Sunny Christmas has the Paddy's gang determined to rediscover the joy of Christmas. Highlights of the troupe's adventures include run-ins with naked elves, kids videos and stolen toys, among other things. (Or, "the usual" as Sunny regulars have come to expect from the vulgar, envelope-pushing half-hour comedy). No word yet on whether the special will air on FX.
Disc includes: Deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes featurette, Sunny Sing-A-Long featurette
November 17, 2009
Blu-ray
Bruno
Chasing Amy
Clerks (15th Anniversary Edition)
Fight Club (10th Anniversary Edition)
Franklyn
Galaxy Quest
Gone With The Wind (Ultimate Collector's Edition)
Is Anybody There?
It's A Very Sunny Christmas
Kevin Smith 3-Movie Collection (Set)
Lords of the Street
Moonshot
My Sister's Keeper
National Geographic: Darwin's Darkest Hour
The Open Road
The Professional
Rome: The Complete Series
Scrubs: The Complete Eighth Season
Sex, Lies, And Videotape
Star Trek (Special Edition)
Tsubasa: Season 1
DVD
7th Heaven: Seasons 1-9 (Boxed Set)
7th Heaven: The Ninth Season
At Best Derivative (Special Edition)
The Beatles: Composing Outside The Beatles
Betty Blue (Director's Cut)
Blue Murder At St. Trinian's
Bruno
Chasing Amy
Clerks (15th Anniversary Edition)
Downhill Racer (Criterion Collection)
Drawn Together: Complete Series, Party In Your Box (Set)
Farscape: The Complete Series
Fight Club (10th Anniversary Edition)
Franklyn
Gone With The Wind (Ultimate Collector's Edition)
How to Be (Widescreen)
Humpday (Widescreen)
Is Anybody There?
It's A Very Sunny Christmas
Margaret Cho: Beautiful
My Sister's Keeper
The Open Road
Rolling Stones: In The 1960s
Rome: The Complete Series
Rush: Working Men
The Sopranos: The Complete Series (New Packaging)
Star Trek (Special Edition)
UFC: The Ultimate 100 Greatest Fights
Wagon Train: The Complete First Season (Special Edition)
WWE Hulk Hogan's Unreleased Collector's Series