The DVD Files for March 7
by Tim Wick
Are the studios still cycling through their backlog of films that many of us
breathlessly await on DVD?
Yes.
Are they still releasing some good stuff from 2001?
Yes.
Will there be fewer excuses for us to spend our hard earned cash on DVDs in
the next few months.
No.
DVD releases for March 5th
A.I: Artificial Intelligence
Among film fans, no movie created more genuine debate than this
brilliant/awful (depending on who you ask) marriage of the directorial
styles of Stanley Kubrick and Steven Spielberg. Few will dispute, however,
the electrifying performances of Halley Joel Osment and Jude Law. If you
missed this movie in the theatre (and the box office numbers would indicate
you most certainly did), now is your chance to see what everyone is talking
about. Love it or hate it, it is a movie you SHOULD make the time to see.
Then you should make the time to see it again. Kubrick films almost always
require at least two viewings. The Special edition release has over 100
minutes of extras including an interview with Steven Spielberg. If ever one
of Spielberg's films cried out for a directors commentary, it is this flawed
masterpiece that will go down as one of his most puzzling contributions to
film history. Alas, Spielberg continues his maddening practice of refusing
to do a commentary on his films.
Say Anything
Recently rated the best romantic film released since 1975 by Entertainment
Weekly
and featured in Roger Ebert's Great Movies Column
Say
Anything is Cameron Crowe's (Vanilla Sky, Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous)
directorial debut. The film is made for teenagers but speaks to adults just
as well. This is one of those movies I can watch over and over again. DVD
features include a commentary track by Crowe and stars John Cusack and Ione
Skye as well as some deleted scenes and the ubiquitous "featurette."
The Evil Dead - book of the Dead Limited Edition
A cult classic, this film has had a packed DVD release before but a few new
features complement the exciting rubberized cover! Each cover is apparently
unique so you Sam Rami fans should pull out your credit card and charge your
way into deeper debt. Commentary tracks by Sam Rami and Bruce Campbell are
probably worth the watch, but the new feature for this DVD is the Fanalyis
featurette put together by Bruce Campbell which features - among other - Mr.
Harry Knowles!
The One
The latest in the line of bad English Language films made by Jet Li. This
looked like a cut rate Time Cop where the lead lacked the charisma of Jean
Claude Van Damme (irony intended). I honestly didn't see it because a
friend of mine who loves just about every film he sees thought this was
crap. That is a bad review. DVD includes a commentary track by the
director. Don't you wish that directors of bad films would do a commentary
that included lines like "oh, god - I haven't actually watched this movie
since it's premiere I was so embarrassed" or "I don't know what I was
thinking when I included this shot" or "well the hack that wrote the script
really didn't give us any character development so we just threw in a couple
more explosions to pad the movie?"
The best of the rest:
This is a good week. Also released this week are Robert Redford's Military
prison drama The Last Castle, Ang Lee's Oscar nominated Eat, Drink, Man,
Woman The criterion edition of the well reviewed Japanese film In the
Mood for Love and the much sought after video documenting the New England
Patriot's Super Bowl winning 2001 season (sarcasm on that last one
intended).
DVD Releases for March 12th:
Heist
This Gene Hackman film (penned and directed by David Mamet) is pretty solid
(though The Score was a better heist film overall). The DVD is stripped
down to little more than a widescreen edition of the movie which suggests a
more complete edition sometime in the next couple of months. If you liked
the movie a lot and can't wait, buy it now. Otherwise you should keep your
eyes peeled for a more complete DVD edition.
Juliet of the Spirits
Another film in Roger Ebert's list of great movies, this
Fellini film languishes on my list of films I really need to see. The
release isn't as packed as some criterion collection releases but it does
boast a new digital transfer and improved subtitles. Fellini is one of the
"great" directors you hear ever film student talk about and a great new
digital transfer of one of his greatest film seems like a great place to
start an exploration of his work.
Williams Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet
Back in my first edition of the DVD files, I listed the
release of Baz Luhrman's Romeo & Juliet and suggested he may well be
coming out with a more complete DVD soon. I was right and here it is.
Unlike the January release, this film includes commentaries by Luhrman,
behind the scenes featurettes and interviews with members of the cast. I
waited and I'm glad I did.
Sexy Beast
This film disappeared from theatres quite quickly last spring but not before
it got everyone talking about Ben Kingsley's performance. That talk has
turned in to an Oscar nomination and if you want a chance to see the
performance everyone was talking about, your chance is finally here.
the best of the rest:
Again, this is a week packed with notable releases. In addition to the
films above, the teen thriller Joy Ride, a special edition of Night of
the Living Dead and the Ben Stiller comedy Zoolander will all be released
for your home viewing pleasure.
DVD of the week:
Toy Story 2
My 2 1/2 year old loves this movie at the moment so I've had the opportunity
to re-watch it in 15 minute segments about three times in the last two
weeks. If you want to see how a sequel can pay homage to it's predecessor
while surpassing it in almost every conceivable way, this is the perfect
film to see. I need to take a moment to mention the fantastic commentary
track supplied by John Lasseter and other members of the production team.
Lasseter really gives wonderful insights into the story development process,
character development, actor input and the structure of the humor in the
film. It is one of the best commentary tracks I have ever listened to.
Also included are the now classic outtakes that have become something of a
Pixar signature and the classic Pixar short Luxo, Jr. This is a great DVD
and one that any lover of Animation should own.
The original Toy Story is also a great movie and it contains an equally
compelling commentary track. But I just like this one a little better.
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