How to Spend $20
By Eric Hughes
May 4, 2010
BoxOfficeProphets.com
For people who dig good music: Carole King & James Taylor: Live at the Troubadour
In 1970, Carole King and James Taylor performed together at the Troubadour in West Hollywood, California. At the time, Taylor had just released his debut album, and King was getting her feet wet as a solo performer after writing a number of hit songs for other artists. The pair reunited at the Troubadour for a two-week run a year later, and then again for six shows in 2007 for the club’s 50th anniversary. A two-disc CD/DVD combo out today documents the anniversary shows, featuring 15 songs and 75 minutes of music.
I had the pleasure of going to see a show at the Troubadour late last year when a friend and I booked tickets for Blind Pilot, a band with a sound not unlike James Taylor himself. The concert is easily one of the best I’ve been to, because of the artist I went to see and the venue I saw them in. The troubadour is standing room only, yet small enough that you feel close enough to the stage no matter where you stand. Carole King and James Taylor performing at a site like the Troubadour must have been simply transcendent.
Disc includes: N/A
For people who didn’t know Judi Dench has got some pipes: Nine
I don’t get around to seeing too many movie musicals, but Nine struck my fancy a few weeks before its release as a movie with a lot of promise. Its trailer was high energy and its lead cast – Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson and Nicole Kidman – couldn’t have been any more A-list if it tried. The result, however, was a bit disappointing, as movie musicals tend to be. I speak more on the plot, which lacked necessary substance. It also didn’t make much sense, as Guido Contini’s (Day-Lewis) cast rehearsed music and his crew constructed sets and designed costumes literally without a script to work off of.
Yet Nine’s music and dance numbers were remarkably great. Favorites of mine include Kate Hudson’s “Cinema Italiano” and Fergie’s beachy “Be Italian.” Those performances, along with Penelope Cruz’s “A Call from the Vatican,” were the movie’s saving graces.
Disc includes: Audio commentary, eight featurettes, three music videos, Sophia Loren Remembers Cinecitta Studios featurette, Screen Actors Guide Q&A Session with the Cast featurette
For people who like to drink their weight in Sunny D: Juno / Thank You For Smoking / Waitress (Set)
I generally don’t cover double and triple feature DVD packs on How to Spend $20, but a new three-movie set was a bit difficult to pass up. (It’s also, well, a regrettably slow week for new DVD/Blu-ray content). Today, 20th Century Fox releases Juno, Thank You for Smoking and Waitress in a three-pack bundle.
Juno and Thank You for Smoking, both from director Jason Reitman, are solid entertainment. Juno became this perfect storm of great writing, quirky yet fun music and inspired casting choices. I really wouldn’t have swapped out any of the leads (or the supporters for that matter) for other actors. As for Thank You for Smoking, which Reitman also wrote, it only gets better with repeat viewings. I liked it enough the first time I saw it, but found it to be a special gem of movie by the time I had seen it a second and third time. Among other things, it put Aaron Eckhart on the map. His work in Thank You for Smoking as tobacco lobbyist Nick Naylor probably led to him being cast as Harvey Dent/Two-Face in Warner Bros.’s epic The Dark Knight.
Juno disc includes: Audio commentary, deleted scenes, gag reel and gag take, Cast and Crew Jam featurette, Screen Tests featurette
Thank You for Smoking disc includes: Audio commentary; deleted scenes; The Charlie Rose Show Interview with Jason Reitman, Aaron Eckhart, Christopher Buckley and David O. Sacks; Making-Of featurette; American: Living in Spin featurette
Waitress disc includes: This is How We Made Waitress Pie featurette; audio commentary; Written and Directed by Adrienne Shelly: A Memorial featurette; Hi! I’m Keri, I’ll Be Your Waitress featurette; The Pies Have It featurette; Fox Movie Channel Presents In Character with Keri Russell, Cheryl Hines and Nathan Fillion
For people who think John Lithgow could pass for Amy Adams’ dad: Leap Year
If Leap Year did anything good, it was in casting Adam Scott as Amy Adams’ boyfriend, Jeremy. Scott is one of the most underrated actors working today, and it’s pleasing to me that he’s finally getting lead Hollywood roles after paying his dues in mostly television projects. I first discovered Scott when he guest starred for multiple episodes as David Fisher’s boyfriend on Six Feet Under. Then, I truly realized his acting ability when his performances in Party Down (along with Jane Lynch’s) got me addicted to the Starz comedy. He also starred as Palek on HBO’s Tell Me You Love Me, and in 1998-99 he guest starred for seven episodes on Party of Five.
In Leap Year, Amy Adams’ character expects to follow Irish tradition by proposing to her boyfriend in Ireland on February 29th. Her plan backfires when her plane diverts to Wales. She enlists the help of an Irish innkeeper (Matthew Goode) to help her make it to Dublin time. Of course, he’s an attractive piece of meat. With a production budget of $19 million, Leap Year grossed just $27.8 million worldwide.
Disc includes: Deleted scenes
May 4, 2010
Blu-ray
Barbra Streisand: One Night Only
Bobby Dogs
Celtic Thunder: It's Entertainment
Chelsea on the Rocks
Chickenfoot: Get Your Buzz On
Collective Soul: Home
Dark Nature
Dirty Dancing (Limited Edition)
Doctor Zhivago (Anniversary Edition)
Dogora
Elektra (Director's Cut)
Hamlet
JCVD / Exit Speed
John Carpenter's Escape From L.A.
K-19: The Widowmaker
Leap Year
Midnight Movie / Killer Movie
Nine
The Notebook (Special Edition)
Preacher's Kid
Saving Private Ryan
Tetro
Tooth Fairy
Tsubasa: Season 2
Tsubasa: The Complete Series
Visions of Nature: Timescapes
DVD
According to Jim: The Complete Second Season
America's Test Kitchen: Season 7
Area 51: The Alien Interview (Special Edition)
Carole King & James Taylor: Live at the Troubadour
Chelsea on the Rocks
Chickenfoot: Get Your Buzz On
Dirt: Season 2
Dirty Dancing (Limited Edition)
Doctor Zhivago (Anniversary Edition)
Dogora
Elektra (Director's Cut)
Evil Toons (20th Anniversary Edition)
The Facts of Life: The Complete Fourth Season
Iron Man: The Complete 1994 Animated Series
Juno / Thank You For Smoking / Waitress (Set)
Leap Year
Man vs. Wild: Season 4
Marcus Welby, M.D.: Season One
The Namesake / Slumdog Millionaire (Double Feature)
Nine
The Notebook (Special Edition)
Penn & Teller: Bullshit! Seasons 1-7 (Uncensored)
Penn & Teller: Bullshit! The Seventh Season (Uncensored)
Tetro
Tooth Fairy
Tracey Ullman's State of the Union: Season 2
Velvet Underground: Vanishing Point (Widescreen)
WWE: Wrestlemania XXVI (Collector's Edition)