How to Spend $20
By Eric Hughes
August 17, 2010
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Pick of the Week
For people who can sympathize with serial killers: Dexter: The Fourth Season
Dexter doesn’t pick up again until late September, so that’ll give newbs (or the diehards) plenty of time to watch (or re-watch) the Showtime series’ masterful fourth season. Like season three, season four of Dexter is a slow burn – especially in relation to the two that preceded it. But holy smokes… that season finale? I could still talk anyone’s ear off about it.
The finale, actually, was watched by 2.6 million viewers, a record for Showtime’s original series and the network’s highest rated telecast in more than 10 years.
One thing we all figured out very quickly was that John Lithgow plays creepy waayyyyy too well. His season-long turn as Arthur Mitchell won him a Golden Globe, probably will win him an Emmy and honest to god makes a friend of mine freeze up whenever she sees an older gentleman walking a dog at night. The dude could very well be the nicest man on the planet, and yet my friend will at first glance assume he probably kills people in cold blood.
In the show’s fourth season, Dexter faces off against the Trinity Killer, a murderer who disposes of bodies in one particular sequence: young woman in bathtub, old mother falling to her death and a father bludgeoned to death. Meanwhile, Dexter adjusts to his new role as a family man with the birth of his first and only son, Harrison.
Disc includes: Interviews with Actors featurette, Californication (season 3, episodes 1 and 2), The Tudors (season 4, episodes 1 and 2)
For people who think what Ricky Gervais touches is mostly gold: Cemetery Junction
A film that surprisingly received little to no press before or around the time of its release was Cemetery Junction. I say surprisingly because it’s a product of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the tag team behind some of England’s most fascinating TV shows (The Office and Extras). Ricky Gervais is also, well, Ricky Gervais – the guy who memorably hosted the Golden Globes earlier this year and, no matter your leanings, is a pretty big deal in Hollywood.
And yet, Cemetery Junction – a movie he has been quoted as saying is a delicious combination of The Office and Mad Men – was only released theatrically in the U.K. Expansion into other European countries is expected through November, though the same doesn’t hold true for the United States. At the box office, the flick earned £641,218 over its opening weekend, and £1,329,002 total.
Though Ricky appears in the film, his character is by no means a lead character. Instead, Cemetery Junction is a the coming-of-age story of a handful of young, professional men at an insurance company in 1970s England.
Disc includes: Watch The Directors: A Conversation with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant featurette, audio commentaries, deleted scenes, bloopers, The Lads Look Back: The Stars Discuss Cemetery Junction featurette
For people who want something new to watch now that they’re all caught up on [insert good show here]: Friday Night Lights: The Fourth Season/Cougar Town: The Complete First Season
There are many shows out there that are favorites of the higher ups at BOP. Yet Friday Night Lights, and to a lesser extent Cougar Town, are two titles that will get positive shout-outs from staff.
While Cougar Town is one of those shows whose consensus seems to be that it got better as the season went on, Friday Night Lights has apparently been not only good, but great since like the beginning. FNL is a series I’ve been meaning to add to my queue – I’m torn between it and The Wire – for some time now. Its critical praise borders on ridiculous, and maybe one of these days I’ll get around to finding out what all the fuss is about.
Friday Night Lights disc includes: Deleted scenes, three featurettes, Peter Berg Intros, audio commentary
Cougar Town disc includes: Bloopers, deleted scenes, Taming Cougar Town featurette, Jimmy Kimmel Live: Saber-Tooth Tiger Town featurette, As Barb: The Ultimate Cougar Answers Your Questions featurette, Stroking It with Bobby Cobb featurette
For people who want to see Brendan Fraser get outsmarted by raccoons: Furry Vengeance
Because I pursued a new column idea, it’s been awhile since I’ve done Trailer Hitch. Even so, the one for Furry Vengeance still sticks out in my head as one of the worst I’ve seen in my nearly two-year history with the column. Furry Vengeance has a) animals that are furry, b) animals that can talk and c) Brendan Fraser. What more do you need?
Not that Fraser’s oeuvre was anything like DiCaprio’s or De Niro’s, but remember when the guy worked on movies like Crash? Gods and Generals? Excluding Furry Vengeance, his last five pictures have been Extraordinary Measures, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Inkheart, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor and Journey to the Center of the Earth. I didn’t want to see (nor have I seen) any of those movies.
Disc includes: Audio commentary, deleted scenes, The Pitfalls of Pratfalls featurette, Working with Animals featurette, gag reel
August 17, 2010
Blu-ray
Black Orpheus (Criterion Collection)
Casshem: Part 1
Casshem: Part 2
Cemetery Junction
The City of Your Final Destination
Dead Man Running
Dexter: Seasons 1-4
Dexter: The Fourth Season
DOA: Dead or Alive
Furry Vengeance
The Good, The Bad, The Weird
Hamlet
The Last Song
Nanny McPhee
Origin Special Edition
Skellig: The Owl Man
WWE: Best Pay Per View Matches of the Year 2009-10
DVD
About The Golden Rule (Limited Edition)
Black Orpheus (Criterion Collection)
Cemetery Junction
The City of Your Final Destination
Cougar Town: The Complete First Season
Dexter: Seasons 1-4 (Set)
Dexter: The Fourth Season
DOA: Dead or Alive
Friday Night Lights: The Fourth Season
Furry Vengeance
The Good, The Bad, The Weird
Hamlet
L'Enfance Nue (Criterion Collection)
The Last Song
Nanny McPhee
National Geographic: Inside Hurricane Katrina (Commemorative Edition)
One Tree Hill: The Complete Seventh Season
Origin (Special Edition)
Orlando (Special Edition)
Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends: Season 4
Skellig: The Owl Man
Ugly Betty: The Complete Fourth and Final Season