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06.22.06 by Widge @ 7:38 pm    Anime Boxed Set of the Week: Gun Sword, Vol. 1: Endless Illusion. Endless Illusion is the name of the planet, not a pop album from the 80s. It's about a guy looking for revenge for the bride that was murdered, pretty standard fare except for the sword he has that can change shape, and he's doing all this running around in a tux. The first four episodes are here on this first disc and it also comes with a box to hold the rest of the series as those titles hit. Bonus bit is also a diecast metal key chain. This arrives from Geneon. (Buy it) Theatre Set of the Week: The George Bernard Shaw Collection. We'll admit it: we couldn't find a huge Shaw fan around the office. But when it comes to this BBC set, which gives you ten plays in total across six discs (four are considered "bonus"), all you have to do is look at the actors involved: John Gielgud, Patrick Stewart, Tom Baker, Lynn Redgrave, and Helena Bonham Carter to name a few. Then we get excited. Comes with two bonus programs regarding shaw, and more. (Buy it) Categorized as: Recommendations
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06.19.06 by Widge @ 10:35 pm   Art Book of the Week: Fairies by Yoshitaka Amano. Sah. Amano. I love pretty much everything that man does, but here, in this volume, brought to our shores by Dark Horse, he appears to have taken a trip down Froud Lane and brought his own sensibilities to the folks of Titania and Oberon. Yes, plenty of Midsummer Night's Dream is here, and along with the short squat creatures there are the gorgeous, long-limbed beauties that Amano is famous for. Amazing colors and mind-blowing details. You'd want just about every page of this hanging on your wall. Maybe if we ask nicely Dark Horse can do a 2007 calendar of some of this stuff, hmm? I had to import an Amano calendar for this year from Japan. Help us, DH! In the meantime, slake your thirst for incredible art with this. (Buy it) Movie Book of the Week: The Art of Cars by Michael Wallis with Suzanne Fitzgerald Wallis. For some reason, a lot of people were disappointed in this film. I think it's a matter of screwed up expectations. But regardless, for those of us who appreciate Pixar and appreciate their work, especially those of us who like to peek behind the curtain, this is a great opportunity to do so without having to wait for the inevitable Uber Mongo DVD. It's all here: from photos to concept art to various stages of the development process. And Wallis, you might have caught, was the voice of the Sheriff in the flick. Nice. This hits from Chronicle Books. (Buy it) Categorized as: Recommendations
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06.17.06 by Widge @ 12:10 am     Action DVD of the Week: Mr. & Mrs. Smith: Unrated. Another re-release that sports "unrated" like a badge of honor (but really is only a few extra minutes of footage), this Fox release is for those of you who dug the film. And really, if you can turn your brain off enough, you can enjoy the "Goes Boom" factor. This time around it's a two-disc set that sports a single commentary, different than any on the last release (this time the director goes solo), plus deleted scenes, an alternate ending, a large "film school" bit with director Doug Liman, a behind-the-scenes docu, a featurette and more. (Buy it) TV DVD of the Week: Life Goes On: The Complete First Season. Warner Brothers brings the first twenty-two episodes of this series to DVD, and it's got a significant fanbase. Even those of us who don't watch television (like myself) remember the series and what it accomplished: bringing a "disabled" individual to prime time television in a major role and dealing with (in this case) him as a realistic character. Corky was a groundbreaking character and won over a lot of viewers, thanks also to a supporting cast and writers who would give him good stories to work with. This is a six-disc set and comes with commentary by the actor who played Corky as well as the series creator, plus screen tests and a gag reel. (Buy it) Categorized as: Recommendations
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06.10.06 by Widge @ 8:06 pm     Useful Audiobook of the Week: 100 Bullshit Jobs...and How to Get Them by Stanley Bing. So apparently we have an ongoing fascination with bullshit, as we've shown. Bing tells you how to turn your tolerance for bullshit into a possible career, as occupations like aromatherapists, baristas and even bloggers involve a great deal of it. Of course, if you've been reading this site for long, you know that we'll tell you straight up what we do is bullshit. Although...do people get paid to do this? Where? Anyway, this mildly amusing bit hits from Harper Audio. (Buy it) Thriller Audiobook of the Week: Nightlife by Thomas Perry, performed by Shelly Frasier. Yes, it's time for another book with a serial killer. Although this time it's a woman behind the murders, changing her identity as she moves from place to place looking for her next victim. And she's a cold one. It's up to an equally female detective to try and bring her to justice. And, as you can imagine, hijinks ensue. This Tantor release is unabridged, so no mayhem gets left on the cutting room floor...just like we like it. (Buy it) Sports Audiobook of the Week: Sound and Fury by Dave Kindred, performed by Dick Hill. The film by Michael Mann aside (hopefully far aside), fans of Howard Cosell and Muhammad Ali will want to pick this book up as it traces the careers of both men, how they intersected and then built each other up in an uneasy and sometimes unbalanced friendship, and then their respective declines. This unabridged Blackstone Audio release is capably read by Hill and will keep the sports fan listening for several days' worth of commutes. (Buy it) Classic CD of the Week: The Buddy Holly Definitive Collection. This Geffen release doesn't have anything on it that fans haven't seen before, make no mistake. But if somebody is looking for a nice best-of for those unfamiliar with Holly's work, this will prove a good primer. And with twenty-six tracks for fourteen bucks, it serves that purpose well enough. (Buy it)    Blues CD of the Week: Delta Hardware by Charlie Musselwhite. You know when Real World Records puts out any album, it's going to be good. Of course, when they hit a genre squarely on the head, like they do here with blues, then you know it's going to be impressive. And this is the best of both worlds, reaching back to the roots of blues and yet giving it a modern tweak (but not tweaking so much that anything, you know, falls off). It's excellent. Check out "Clarksdale Boogie" and "Church is Out" if you want to grab some samples. (Buy it) Kids' CD of the Week: High School Musical. Personally, this release from Disney scares me. Don't go into it expecting your typical musical theatre, as it's much more "hip" than that. I suppose if anything we should be grateful that kids (who are apparently buying the absolute hell out of stuff associated with this TV movie) are interested in anything to do with musicals, so we'll be happy. Be aware that this is the two-disc special edition, though, so it comes with a bonus disc of all-karaoke versions. So be prepared to hear singing from the back seat when you're driving any place. (Buy it) Categorized as: Recommendations
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06.05.06 by Widge @ 4:11 am    Classic DVD of the Week: John Wayne: An American Icon Collection. Another Universal boxed set that should be welcomed with open arms by fans, it brings five films of which, as far as I can tell, three have never seen DVD before, and the other two are out of print. So bonus. The films are The Conqueror, Jet Pilot, Pittsburgh, Seven Sinners, and The Shepherd of the Hills. All five are on two discs, and as you might imagine: no bonus bits. But again, for a little over five bucks a flick, it wouldn't pay to complain. (Buy it) Musical DVD of the Week: The Producers. The film that returns a story to its original medium brings over the show that gave Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick careers on stage from now until the end of time if they don't mind it. Sure, Will Ferrell and Uma Thurman are along for the ride instead of the actors from Broadway, but it's Mel Brooks back in the saddle, so we can't be too disappointed. Dead and Loving It--all is forgiven. This Universal release comes with a director's commentary, deleted scenes, outtakes and a scene analysis bit. (Buy it) Comedy DVD of the Week: Mystery Science Theater 3000, Vol. 9. Four more classics and a short film fill out this latest set from the folks at Rhino. You get The Sinister Urge (introduced by actor Conrad Brooks), Wild Rebels, Women of the Prehistoric Planet (introduced by actress Irene Tsu), and personal favorite movie title of all time: The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies. And of course, the useful short is "Keeping Clean and Neat." Must-own for our readers, because we know what sickos you all are. (Buy it)     Music DVD of the Week: Faith No More Double Feature. Ah, Mike Patton, vocal god. He and his crew put on a hell of a show at Brixton Academy that was captured in the film You Fat Bastards. Not only is Rhino giving you that here, but you also get Who Cares a Lot?, their music videos. Shows you just how bad my memory is getting--upon watching them, I realized I had seen them before, except for later on when I quit watching television. The shining moment is still their cover of Lionel Richie's "Easy." You haven't lived until you've seen guitarist Jim Martin lip sync to that. (Buy it) Family DVD of the Week: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. No secret that I wasn't a huge fan of the film, but as far as family fare goes, it's nice and safe. I think you're better off with the books, but if you want to use this to shoehorn some reading in with your kids, be my guest. This Disney release comes with a commentary from the kids and the director, a separate commentary with the crew, blooper reel, and multiple featurettes. The FX stuff is worth the price of admission. (Buy it) History DVD of the Week: Egypt: Rediscovering A Lost World. Not a straight up docu, this is actually a six-part miniseries from the BBC that dramatizes the efforts of Howard Carter, the guy who found King Tut's tomb, Giovanni Belzoni, who made multiple discoveries, and Jean Francois Champollion, who deciphered hieroglyphics. The story's there, warts and all, and both the story and production quality's there like only the BBC (when they have a decent budget) can provide. Comes with a featurette. (Buy it) Foreign DVD of the Week: The Warrior. A guy whose employed as the title suggests suddenly has an apostrophe while in the midst of battle and swears off violence. But as Al Pacino learned in the third Godfather movie, they just pull you back in. Renouncing his ways will cost him, and he will have to deal with his past before he can deal with his future...if he still has one. This Miramax comes with a director's commentary, deleted scenes with optional commentary, and a making-of featurette. (Buy it) Categorized as: DVD and Recommendations
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