Wednesday, November 10, 2010

This Week in DVD

Grown-Ups: This looks totally infantile if not stupid, and I don't even particularly want to see a bunch of these guys go through another juvenile comedy--oh, hell, who am I kidding? It has Salma Hayek, so I'll probably see it eventually.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: Judging by the (lack of) reaction to this in theaters, I think this is more like Michael Cera vs. Everyone Who's Sick of Him.

Love Ranch: Basically, Joe Pesci as the owner of a brothel. Hey, don't blame me for any nightmarish images you carry with you the rest of the day. We Report, You Cringe.

Elia Kazan Collection: Big, ol' humongous box set from Fox proves that the studio is still in the classics-on-DVD business--or does it? A few single-disc releases would be nice, you know, or something besides those nifty 4-to-a-box value packs I see all over the place at Target. When Fox teased that "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" would be available in 2010, I kind of figured one wouldn't have to pay 200 bucks to get it.

Hunt to Kill: I'm just listing this here to remind everyone that Stone Cold Steve Austin still has a lively and profitable acting career.

Knucklehead: The Big Show, on the other hand, maybe isn't so much a viable direct-to-video star. Oh, this one had a token theatrical release, but I think we all know this ain't worth much. Nevertheless, the presence of Dennis Farina and, even more random, Mark Feurstein as a mixed martial artist, makes me almost want to watch this.

I Knew It Was You: This documentary about died-too-young actor John Cazale is really well done, but when I saw it on HBO, it was something like 45 minutes. Unless there are some awesome bonus features--and it doesn't seem that there are--this probably doesn't warrant a buy at regular price, even if you love Cazale and his work.

Men of a Certain Age Season 1: Hey, this is really good, too. Catch up now so we can all check out season 2 together on TNT in a few weeks (Wow, it's almost December already?)

Sherlock Season 1: OK, while you're catching up on "Men of a Certain Age," I'm gonna catch up on this 3-episode Sherlock Holmes revamp, which currently sits on my DVR.

Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam: Not actually a new feature film from DC animated despite what the packaging implies, but a compilation of shorts, most of which have been on previous Blu-Ray and special edition DVDs. So Warner Brothers is compounding the ripoff of withholding special features for the pricier editions by tying them into a misleading NEW edition.

Bing Crosby TV Specials Volume 2 (Christmas Specials): So I guess if Netflix hasn't gotten around to carrying Volume 1, I probably shouldn't count on renting this in time for Christmas, huh? Thanks a lot, Ebenezer Netflix.

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