How to Spend $20
By Les Winan
March 16, 2005
BoxOfficeProphets.com

Good lord! Kirstie Alley will destroy us all!
Taking a look ahead at the week's DVD releases is always dicey for your wallet. Nearly every week, there's a disc that would fit nicely into any size collection. When it comes time to decide what to buy, there are really two determining factors: how much you love the content and the quality of the extra features on the disc.

As a result, decisions will be totally subjective (I bought the full run of the unjustly canceled ABC dramedy Sports Night, no matter that the discs are featureless, The Criterion Collection edition of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a disc I had been dreaming of for years). The massive unreleased studio (film and television) back-catalogue means that every week there's likely something for every film fan.

For people feeling slightly confused about their intelligence: What the Bleep Do We Know!? (2004)

I don’t know what the bleep this movie is all about, but I do know that I’ve heard a lot of people talking about how much they liked it. Sounds like there’s some sort of sciency cosmic mumbo jumbo involved. Personally, I’d rather just read Bill Bryson’s A Short History of Nearly Everything again. Particularly because it doesn’t include a music video or bleepin’ featurettes.

For people who like watching really good-looking people have sanitized movie sex: Alfie (Widescreen) (2004)

It’s never good when a movie is mostly notable for one song on the soundtrack. Unfortunately for Alfie and the film’s star Jude Law, that’s about all that can be said for the film. Nothing like being overshadowed by a tossed off collaboration between a member of one of the world’s greatest rock and roll bands and that guy from the Eurythmics who isn’t Annie Lennox. While the movie Alfie has something to do with Jude Law being attractive and having a lot of sex with attractive women (nothing like alienating all the men in your potential audience, morons), I know for certain that the song in reference has to do with old habits dying hard. Literally, that’s my entire impression of the Alfie experience. If you have a different impression or are collecting all 206 Jude Law films from 2004 (Sean Penn clearly has no sense of humor), you’ll be impressed with the extra features (though not if you want a Jude Law audio commentary). On the disc are an audio commentary with director (and writer) Charles Shyer, editor Padraic McKinley, and co- writer/producer Elaine Pope; deleted scenes; photo galleries; additional footage and featurettes.

For people who just can’t stop playing cards: High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story (2003)

This just in, poker is huge right now. If you must have the story of the young poker savant with a drug addiction who died young, you’ll appreciate that the DVD includes commentary by star Michael Imperioli, director A.W. Vidmer, and poker expert Vince Van Patten. Realistically, though, when it comes to poker, only a Van Patten would know whether or not this pair of eights are enough.

For living up to your title: The Incredibles (Widescreen) (2004)

It’s hard to say enough about the brilliance of The Incredibles, director Brad Bird and Pixar in general. Discussing the movie, BOP’s own Kim Hollis may have said it best in her Big Board entry on the film: “Sheer perfection”…and it’s true. To simply say that The Incredibles is a terrific movie would sell it severely short. Pixar continues its string of brilliance with the film, which explores the exploits of a family of super-powered humans and what happens when they suddenly return to a life of heroism. 2004 was THE year for superhero films, with Spider-Man 2 and The Incredibles taking the genre to new heights. Don’t miss out on The Incredibles, the DVD Pick of the Week. Included on the disc is an audio commentary with Academy Award-winning director Brad Bird; deleted scenes; an alternate opening; bloopers and outtakes; animated shorts and a making-of featurette. It’s a fantastic package for a movie that lives up to its title.

March 15, 2005

800 Bullets (2002)
Alfie (Full Frame) (2004)
Alfie (Widescreen) (2004)
The Band Wagon (Special Edition) (1953)
Being Ron Jeremy (2003)
Bells are Ringing (1960)
Call Northside 777 (1948)
Dead Birds (2004)
Deep Crimson (1997)
Easter Parade (Special Edition) (1948)
End of the Century: The Story of the Ramones (2003)
Finian's Rainbow (1968)
A Fond Kiss (2004)
The Gospel of John (2003)
Gypsy (1993)
High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story (2003)
The Incredibles (Full Frame) (2004)
The Incredibles (Widescreen) (2004)
L'Eclisse (Criterion Edition) (1962)
The Last Sign (2004)
Laura (1944)
Miss Congeniality (Deluxe Edition) (2000)
Nascar: The IMAX Experience (2004)
New Suit (2002)
The Oracle (1985)
Panic in the Streets (1950)
Side FX (2005)
Star Trek: Final Contact (Special Collector's Edition) (1996)
Starsky and Hutch: The Complete Third Season (5-DVD Set) (1977)
Sword of Doom (Criterion Edition) (1967)
Toolbox Murders (2003)
waydowntown (2001)
What the Bleep Do We Know!? (2004)
Wooden Camera (2003)
Young Toerless (Criterion Edition) (1966)