This week, another Hasbro toy franchise's debut hits DVD, as well as a modern remake of a suspenseful thriller, a couple of classics, a doc on the food industry, a couple of perennial Christmas favorites, and a box set of arguably the greatest sports film franchise. Check out our list of recommendations and see if a few of them don't make it onto your shelves!
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
With Michael Bay's Transformers franchise reaping box office profits like gangbusters, it was only a matter of time before someone decided to bring its Hasbro partner G.I. Joe to the big screen. For The Rise of Cobra, Paramount enlisted another blockbuster director, Stephen Sommers (the Mummy films), and secured a list of veteran actors like Dennis Quaid, as well as up-and-comers such as Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon Levitt, and Rachel Nichols. Unfortunately, though the movie followed through on its promises of explosive action, much like Transformers, critics found fault with its story and campy, over-the-top nature. Nevertheless, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra still scored over $150 million at the box office, proving summer audiences sometimes just want an excuse to watch larger-than-life heroes save the world once in a while. You can pick it up this week on DVD and Blu-Ray.
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
In the recent tradition of unnecessary remakes, director Tony Scott (probably best known for Top Gun) decided to revisit 1974's The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (which had actually already been remade as a TV movie in 1998) earlier this year, and the result was a mixed reaction from the critical community. Starring powerhouse actors John Travolta and Denzel Washington, Pelham depicts an intense showdown between a New York subway hijacker (Travolta) and an MTA dispatcher (Washington). While the performances were bolstered by a strong cast (including supporting roles from John Turturro and James Gandolfini), most felt that Tony Scott's direction was a bit too frantic and that the film lacked the punch of the original. Still, those looking for a tensely acted thriller, Pelham may not prove to be such a bad ride to take.
I Love You, Beth Cooper
High school humiliation is typically pretty funny, especially when seen through the detached lens of adulthood. This is perhaps why high school comedies lean on style... But then there are style-free humiliation fests. Here, for example, is I Love You, Beth Cooper, a sitcom tidy comedy about the fair-weather love of a valedictorian for the High School Hottie. Chris Columbus' film, based on the bestselling novel of the same name, fails to live up to the grandeur of the book, but the nostalgia the silly HS revamp drums up may make that all seem unimportant. With deleted scenes, alternate endings, featurettes and more, this notebook is stocked for the summer - which is good, because freshman year is a whole new bundle of humiliation.
Food, Inc.
The idea that dinner is dangerous should conjure up the memories of bad dates past, disgruntled Thanksgiving celebrations or maybe visions of zombie lobsters. But for Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser, the men who wrote "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and "Fast Food Nation," respectively, the grossest, most callous, inhumane and ultimately destructive part of your supper happens months before you even enter the restaurant. Director Robert Kennar's expose on the government ally protected policies that force scientists to modify, farmers to overproduce, livestock to suffer and citizens to get sick will leave you with lots to consider. The Blu-Ray includes deleted scenes, celebrity PSAs on the issue, "Nightline's" interview with the CEO of Chipotle, and 40 minutes of previously unseen footage.
Forrest Gump (Chocolate Box Gift Set)
Does Forrest Gump present an overly-simplistic perspective of the Baby Boom generation's trials and tribulations? Sure. Did it deserve to win best picture over Pulp Fiction and The Shawshank Redemption? No way. But c'mon, cynics: why all the Gump hate? The movie has a few big laughs, some of the best special effects of its time, and a protagonist who, as played by Tom Hanks, is one of recent cinema's most fundamentally decent heroes. The new Forrest Gump Chocolate Box Gift Set is loaded with making-of docs, interviews, and audio commentary from director Robert Zemeckis, producer Steve Sharkey, and art director Rick Carter. And that's all we have to say about that.
It's A Wonderful Life - 2-Disc Collector's Gift Set
Like Yule logs and eggnog, the holidays wouldn't be the same without a screening of It's a Wonderful Life. Which, come to think of it, is pretty strange; Frank Capra's 1946 classic is darker and more disquieting than most noirs, as its hero George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) embarks on a tumultuous journey of the soul before arriving at his titular conclusion. If you haven't seen this heartrending classic, the It's a Wonderful Life Two-Disc Collector's Gift Set, on DVD and Blu-Ray, is a good way to take the plunge (no pun intended). And though, this set contains no wings, it does come with a limited-edition Christmas ornament that will make you the envy of Bedford Falls, or whatever your hometown happens to be.
Wings of Desire - Criterion Collection
A substantial arthouse hit, Wings of Desire launched Wim Wenders to the forefront of world cinema, inspired a Hollywood remake (City of Angels), and almost certainly made Bono cry like a baby. And why not? It's a wonderful film, full of grand romantic gestures and haunting black-and-white cinematography. Bruno Ganz stars as an angel who yearns for the messy complications of everyday life instead of the coldness of immortality. This new Criterion edition features a ton of interviews with the film's cast and crew, as well as outtakes and audio commentary from Wenders and star Peter Faulk.
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - Ultimate Collector's Edition
In 1983, National Lampoon's Vacation earned its spot as a tried and true comedy classic, which made the failure of its follow-up, 1985's European Vacation, that much sadder. Who knew the franchise would return with a vengeance in 1989 with Christmas Vacation, which saw the Griswold family playing host to their decidedly less classy (is that even possible?) extended family during the holidays. Though critics still found Christmas Vacation inferior to the original, it found its niche as a classic holiday family comedy, sneaking its way into DVD players and onto TV channels every winter. Though this new release, available on both DVD and Blu-Ray, doesn't offer any new special features, it does come nicely packaged in a nifty collectible tin, along with stocking stuffers like fake snow, a moose figurine, coasters marked with memorable quotes, and Clark's Santa hat.
North by Northwest - 50th Anniversary Edition
North By Northwest is one of Alfred Hitchcock's most enjoyable thrillers, for reasons that are readily apparent. Featuring the ultra-suave Cary Grant at his wittiest, this espionage caper follows a hero on the run both from the authorities and a sinister cabal; his journey takes him across the country, where danger awaits at every turn. This 50th Anniversary Edition contains documentaries on Hitchcock and Grant, two in-depth looks at the film and its impact, an audio commentary from screenwriter Ernest Lehman, and a music-only track.
Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (Blu-Ray)
Alright kids, hold on to your gloves, because the ultimate collection of Rocky films is about to hit your video store shelves. Coming exclusively to Blu-Ray this week is Rocky: The Undisputed Collection. This seven-disc set contains not only every Rocky film, from the 1976 multiple Oscar-winning original to 2007's Rocky Balboa, but hours of special features, including a boatload of featurettes, tributes to various contributors to the films (including Burgess Meredith), a video commentary track with Sly Stallone himself, and more. Of course, it doesn't hurt that the whole collection is on Blu-Ray, so you'll get to see all the spatters of blood and spit in high definition.
Star Wars - The Clone Wars: The Complete Season One
Like a Korean War vet at the local VFW, Ben Kenobi wouldn't stop yapping to young Luke Skywalker about his service as a Jedi Knight in the Clone Wars. Now you can discover what all the fuss was about. Chronicling the events between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, the animated Star Wars The Clone Wars: The Complete Season One hits DVD shelves with a tie fighter-load of extended episodes and bonus materials, including a 64-page book of production stills and sneak peak at season two.
(1-20 of 75 posts) | Reply
on Nov 02 2009 04:35 PM G.I. Joe is one of the worst movies ever. Some of the actions are cool, but sometimes the special effects are terrible and unpolished. It sucks. But i do love forest gump :) (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 04:52 PM GI Joe was a film that was incredibly flawed. However it actually had the decency to tack on a plot that made the movie somewhat coherent. As opposed to throwing action sequence upon action sequence into the blender of Michael Bay's mind and expect it to come out with something worth watching. This is by no means a good film. It is just much better than Hasbro's other summer effort....... (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 05:06 PM "Rocky"? Are you serious? How many times will that come to DVD!? It's been re-released more than the "Star Wars" movies! I mean, it's a great movie, but good God. Enough is enough. Anyway, my brother saw "Food Inc." and told me about it. Now he's being a self-righteous a-hole and telling me "Why aren't you a vegtarian? Still eating at Burger King, you animal! Why do hate animals? Hmmm? HMMM?!" For that, I won't see it. "Forrest Gump" is one of my all time favorite movies. BUT I JUST BOUGHT IT ABOUT 4 MONTHS AGO! How cruel, to release a superior DVD soon after I get it. What DVD won't screw me! WAIT! I still haven't bought "North by Northwest", AND IT'S ONLY A GREAT MOVIE! Time to head to Wal*Mart! Wait...also, "It's A Wonderful Life"! GOTTA GET THAT TOO! Great week for DVDs. So great I can even ignore the terrible movies released. (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 05:37 PM In reply to this comment (#2558056) This. G.I joe didn't even have a plot. It had a premise. If you can explain the plot I'll give you a nickel. @ledawg Yeah I hate vegetarians like that too. If God didn't want us to eat animals he wouldn't have made them so goddamn stupid. (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 05:40 PM In reply to this comment (#2558068) or delicious (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 05:42 PM I would take G.I. Joe over Transformers 2 any day, but it's only worth a rent to me. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 06:45 PM I'm gonna end up buying the Watchmen: Ultimate Cut tomorrow. It was a hard decision but I got myself to wait an extra few months and buy this one. It must have really sucked when people bought the Director's Cut, opened the case and saw the coupon that read "Get 10% off the Watchmen Ultimate Cut!" (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 07:01 PM In reply to this comment (#2558068) @King Kubrick "If God didn't want us to eat animals he wouldn't have made them so goddamn stupid." Dude, that is a pretty moronic statement in many ways but people are pretty damn stupid if not more in a sense. We are the only species that kills each other just for the sake of killing. Many have said that the human race is the evil on this planet & when it comes down to it? It is hard to argue that statement on many occasions. I consider the human race half-witted & at times completely mindless. This planet would be better off without the human race in all honesty for the sake of mother nature but that's another subject. I'm not a vegetarian & I will admit I like a steak, a burger & so forth but I don't think humans by any means should kill, hurt & abuse animals just to do it like they do in this world with Dolphins, Dogs, Cats, Elephants, Bears & so forth as it's just sickening & vile. P.S. By the way, every film has plot in it whether you think so or not. If you don't think so? Then your just a ill-advise simpleton then. There no other way to put it. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 07:33 PM In reply to this comment (#2558084) hold on there cowboy, have you ever tasted poached elephant? It's delicious. Not every film has a plot. Watch Inland Empire and get back to me. I don't advocate senseless animal abuse. Just eating them. I didn't say put a kitten in a sack and smack it against the sidewalk for a lark. Sorry if saying I like eating meat brought you to tears. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 07:37 PM In reply to this comment (#2558084) Animals were made to be killed and eaten by us. Humans are stupid which is why we fight and kill each other. Facts of life. @KingKubrick You are correct. My apologies for that wrong use of the word plot. However when compared to Michael Bay's trash reel GI Joe is cinematic genius...... (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 07:52 PM NTROST, chill out man. It's pretty obvious that comment was intended to be humourous. I'm pretty sure King Kubrick is not in fact an animal-hating demon. Jeez. Anywho, doesn't look like the greatest week for DVDs; most of these are just re-releases. Seems a bit early for the Christmas movies too, but I guess the stores are already full of Christmas stuff, so I'm not that surprised. Ledawg, there can never be enough of anything Rocky related. Awesomest movie series ever :) G.I.Joe had a plot. It wasn't a good plot, but it was there. Just like it wasn't a good movie, but it was there. I did enjoy it though; I was amazed at how closely it held to the spirit of the cartoon show. I thought they'd tone it down a bit, especially with the initial publicity shots of the generic black combat suits, but it really did end up being just as over-the-top and bombastic as the show (and comics), what with all the crazy vehicles and weapons and undersea bases and whatnot. It was silly, but it was exactly what it should have been. I don't think it's worth buying right away at full price, but I'll pick it up someday when it gets cheaper. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 08:55 PM In reply to this comment (#2558097) Well, like I said, it's a great film, but I feel it's been released so many times. (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 08:57 PM Yeah G.I. Joe is way better than Transformers 2- you can actually follow the action, its not excessively bloated, and there's no cheap bathroom humor aka no humping dogs and ball jokes. (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 08:57 PM Definitely want to rent Pelham 1 2 3 because I am a huge fan of the original. Anyone here seen both of them? (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 08:58 PM In reply to this comment (#2558093) @King Kubrick "Not every film has a plot. Watch Inland Empire and get back to me." Dude, every film has a plot whether you think so or not. The only time films didn't really or at all consist of any kind of "plot" or narrative were films from the French cinema era in the 1920's. The french believed in "Dadaism" a general sense of rejection of stuffy, traditional artistic and cultural values. There where three types films back then which were either purely experimental films that employ only shapes and basic visual forms. Then there is Surrealistic films that use visual tricks with time and transition to create a symbolic, dreamlike and irrational universe. An there is also Naturalistic studies of human passion and sensation in which symbols and surreal touches help to render human feelings. These filmmakers were known as Impressionist filmmakers who had a passion to do things so differently that more often than not their films didn%u2019t even have stories. They were films without subjects completely divorced from any discernable narrative. Films about pure forms and shapes dancing around each other. Man Ray, Marcel Duchamp, & Jean Cocteau made such films. I don't think David Lynch's "Inland Empire" is neither of the three subjects meaning purely experimental film, a surrealistic film or a naturalistic studies of human passion and sensation film. "Inland Empire" has a premise which is about: A blonde actress is preparing for her biggest role yet, but when she finds herself falling for her co-star, she realizes that her life is beginning to mimic the fictional film that they're shooting. Adding to her confusion is the revelation that the current film is a remake of a doomed Polish production, 47, which was never finished due to an unspeakable tragedy. A film with a premise has a plot. Those three specific film fabrics I named didn't even have a premise to them. "Sorry if saying I like eating meat brought you to tears." No, I didn't come to tears by any means let alone even had a emotion to it but looking back at my prior comment. I carried the subject a bit far then it was actually called for. Anyways... (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 09:18 PM *whisper* hey guys, that NTROST guy is a tool! *whisper* rt, i don't get all the love for shawshank, i'd say gump's better. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 09:19 PM I guess I forget to mention "Star Wars: The Clone Wars". I hate it, DONE! Well George Lucas, if you're reading this, end the series. I mean, you're a freakin' genius, you made Indiana Jones and Star Wars, and if you're smart enough to do that, just end the damning series. (Reply to this) |
on Nov 02 2009 09:42 PM NTROST, I watched a documentary on chimpunks where a group of chipmunks went across the jungle, found another group of chimps and started an all-out murderous battle with them. What was their reason for the attack? Who really knows? But it just goes to show that humans are NOT the only species that kills just for the hell of it. That belief is way-too old-school. ledawg, Clone Wars is not movie worthy, but it is pretty darn good. It's the best non-comedy cartoon on TV, IMO. (And yes, there are more than one.) Hell, there's only a couple comedies that are better than it is. If you demand perfection from something you have no control over, you'll always get burned. Recognize it for its strengths! It does have some. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 09:44 PM Joker you have to be kidding me? You hate the humor in Transformers 2 but not the humor in GI Crap? I mean anyone who thinks that GI JOE is better than T2 should jump with the cows and head on over to the slaughter house. GI Joe's action was idiotic, overblown, and hard to follow. It had no plot at all and the villain was evil for no real reason. The twist was weak, the ruining of characters was even worse. God GI Joe makes Micheal Moore seem like a creative genius. I mean your statement is on the same level of stupidity as Ledawgs "Socialism is near flawless" statement. And just for you Ledawg for Halloween i went as Obama and had a sign around my neck that said "Spirit of Socialism", won myself a cool $100 bucks at the bar for having the best costume. (Reply to this) |
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on Nov 02 2009 09:45 PM Animals are ****ing stupid. Until a dog can build a rocketship or a monkey can cure a disease they will never be on our level. (Reply to this) |
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