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Nowadays, I’m more shocked when a sequel doesn’t get made than when it does. I mean hell, even Pixar has caught sequelitis. Many have given the studio a pass because it’s still, mostly, churning out quality. Yet please don’t forget the house put in a good 20-some years before resorting to reprise.

But this post shouldn’t be about Pixar. It’s about DreamWorks Animation, which succeeded in building franchises rather early in the game. This, of course, includes Shrek, which was delightful the first (and, yes, second) time ‘round. Though in much the same way I’ll ignore Little Fockers, I decided against round three when Shrek and his bride had ogre babies.

Also out today is the Shrek franchise in one convenient set. I’d dub the set complete, but that – Scream, Friday the 13th: The Final Friday – may not be so.

Shrek Forever After disc includes: The Animator’s Corner featurette; Shrek’s Interactive Journey: IV featurette; Spotlight On Shrek featurette; Secrets of Shrek Forever After featurette; deleted scenes; audio commentary; Conversation with the Cast featurette; The Tech of Shrek Forever After featurette; Shrek, Rattle & Roll: Music and More featurette

For people who work at Best Buy: The 40 Year-Old Virgin [Blu-ray]

One of my favorite comedies in recent memory, The 40 Year-Old Virgin helped launch the exciting career of Steve Carell, who I believe to be only getting started. What with his seven-year run on The Office ending in May and his announced deal to write a new comedy over at NBC for next season, the dude is a rocket ship. I respect his desire to move on from Michael Scott because a) I think it’s the right move and b) I’m oh-so-excited to see what he does next with his brand of comedy.

But before Steve Carell was Steve Carell, he starred in Judd Apatow’s debut feature, The 40 Year-Old Virgin. Mostly cast with other unknowns who have since become knowns – Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Jane Lynch – the comedy was admired by folks much like me for, yes, its raunchy humor but also its genuine heart. Smart comedy is a challenge, and Apatow excelled at it here.

A sex comedy about a man’s desire for, well, fornication is of course nothing new. What separates The 40 Year-Old Virgin, though, from just about all of its predecessors is that it isn’t about a nerdy teen who prays to lose his virginity by prom; it’s about a nerdy fortysomething (actually, 40, as the title implies) who’s terrified to do it. It’s an original twist on an old idea.

Disc includes: Audio commentary, deleted scenes, You Know How I Know You’re Gay? Featurette, Date-A-Palooza featurette, Line-O-Rama featurette, gag reel, Judd’s Video Diaries featurette, Waxing Doc featurette, My Dinner with Stormy featurette, Raw Footage featurette, Poker Game Rehearsal featurette, Auditions featurette, Reel Comedy Roundtable featurette, Cinemax (R) Final Cut: The 40-Year-Old Virgin, 1970’s Sex Ed Film featurette

December 7, 2010
Blu-ray
About Last Night...
Across the Line: The Exodus of Charlie Wright
Ayaka Is Your Angel
Barry Munday
Beyonce: I Am World Tour
The Big Hit
Caged Animal Rental
Carlton Lukather Band: Paris Concert
Closer
Cronos Criterion Collection
The Deep
Dinosaurs Alive! (IMAX)
Echo: An Elephant to Remember
Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk
Half Past Dead
Harpoon: Whale Watching Massacre Unrated
Inception
Iwo Jima: 36 Days of Hell
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Les Gamins
Letters to God
Mademoiselle Chambon
The Mission
MLB 2010 World Series Champions: San Francisco
Pearl Harbor: (70th Commemorative Edition)
Restrepo
Robben Ford: New Morning Paris Concert
Rush Hour
A Scanner Darkly
The Shawshank Redemption
Shrek Forever After
Shrek: The Whole Story Quadrilogy
St. Elmo's Fire
UFC: Ultimate Heavyweights
Videodrome (Criterion Collection)
Wild Ocean
The Year of Getting to Know Us

DVD
About Last Night... (Widescreen)
Against All Odds (Special Edition)
Betty White: In Black & White
Bonnie And Clyde (New Packaging)
Boy Meets World: The Complete Fourth Season
Cronos (Criterion Collection)
Half Past Dead
Hoarders: Season 2, Part 1
Inception
Law & Order: The Eighth Year
Letters to God
MLB 2010 World Series Champions: San Francisco
Pearl Harbor: 70th Commemorative Edition (Anniversary Edition)
The People Vs. Larry Flynt (Special Edition)
Restrepo
Short Circuit 2 (Widescreen)
Shrek Forever After
Shrek: The Whole Story Quadrilogy
Vega$: The Second Season, Volume 1
The Virginian: The Complete Second Season
The Year of Getting to Know Us

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