Each Thursday (or Friday, since some weeks we seem to be running behind on everything), Needcoffee.com's staff of whackos will wrack our brains to give you interesting and new things to do over the
weekend. Books, movies, whatever. We'll throw them out, you do with them what you will. And hey...if you have something
you want to recommend--whatever it is--drop us a line.
Incidentally, we've provided links where we can for you to buy the stuff or find out more if you're interested, courtesy
of those Amazon types. Hey, come on, we can't be totally selfless in
this, can we?
May 14, 2004
Book of the Week:
by Bart D. Ehrman. One of our favorite kinds of books? Deleted scenes from The Bible. Yeah, at one point
we thought the book had sprung from the head of the divine fully formed as well, so don't feel bad. Instead, check out
the skinnee on a bunch of stuff that didn't make canon: like The Gospel of Mary, The Acts of Thecla, Pseudo-Titus (which Julie Taymor
directed), and...hey, just like those Left Behind guys, Peter and Paul had Apocalypses too. Fascinating stuff
from Oxford University Press. Wish it came with optional commentary, though.
Comic Book of the Week:Dead@17: Blood of Saints #2
by Josh Howard. What's the only thing better than an undead schoolgirl with mysterious arcane abilities? TWO
undead schoolgirls with mysterious arcane abilities, of course! Everyone that's not looking for Nara is looking for Violet,
the latest young lady to get up and boogie after being slain. Nara finds an old friend, who gives her some shitty news,
and Hazy and Elijah find Violet...and will probably wish they hadn't. If you miss out, you will be lost, so buy now and
buy often. Howard continues to rock our world.
TV DVD of the Week:
. Whether you want to admit it or not, you watched this series. And chances are, you liked it. How could you
not? Redd Foxx was ridiculously funny for pretty much the entire run. Here, Columbia-Tristar throws the fourth season
your way. You get all twenty-four episodes (including the first bit where Foxx was conveniently missing due to contract
disputes); no bonus features, but the comedy's enough to carry the day.
DVD of the Week:
. Even before we heard what this was about (and we were afraid, I mean, come on, it's directed by Schumacher),
we wanted to see it. Cate Blanchett? Done deal. Missed it in cinemas, but Buena Vista rides to the rescue with the title
on DVD. Blanchett plays the title character in this based-on-a-true-story drama of a reporter who tries to expose Dublin's
seedy drug-laced underbelly. The disc is stacked, and this pleases us: two commentary tracks, a deleted scene, footage of
the real Guerin, a making-of featurette, and some interaction with producer Jerry Bruckheimer. And Cate? She rocked, of
course.
Anime DVD of the Week:
. Welcome to the world of Harlock. Yes, we're spelling it with an "A" again, get over it. Central Park Media
brings you three hours of classic sci-fi anime. It's the space pirate again, dealing with the gold of the gods which
has gotten rogued by somebody--if Harlock doesn't get the gold back, the gods are going to hand the entire universe its
ass. Bonus goodies include a making-of bit on the English dub, an interview with the creative team (including Leiji Matsumoto),
clean opening, and more.
Docu Video of the Week:
. While you're taking a break from watching the Brad Pitt flick struggle to make back its bloated budget, feast
your eyes on this release from Delta. Covering the various aspects of the story, the mythology, the history, and the legendary events
from Homer's story, it's educational enough without evoking snores and makes for a good way to pass the time.
Boxed Set DVD of the Week:
. Lions Gate provides a boxed set of comedy that really takes me back--back to the halcyon days
of Saturday Night Live. Yes, back to when the show was actually funny, but also back to where these sick, twisted
gems from the mind of Walter Williams first appeared. Spanning three discs, you get all the classic shorts, the Vegas
and Hollywood bits, the Christmas Special and the 20th Anniversary Special. It comes with all manner of goodies, including
games, photo albums, interviews, bloopers and more. Oh yes.
Musical DVD of the Week:
. How can you not enjoy this musical flick? Peter O'Toole, James Coco, Sophia Loren, the whole play within a
play structure, some cool songs and staging--hey, maybe we're suckers, but sue us. MGM brings this to DVD with naught but
a photo montage and a trailer, but it's still worth it for the musical fiend or O'Toole completist. It needs to be seen at
least once, regardless.
Music CD of the Week:
by James Brown. We like JB around here. We admit it proudly. As I've said before, no man can have a band
vamp for ten minutes straight while yelling random bits into a microphone--and have it be priceless--like The James Brown.
Polydor helps us by releasing this remastered edition of this album, including some bonus tracks like "Think" and "I'll
Go Crazy." Sounds better than ever. So get on up, dammit.
Book of the Week:
by Bart D. Ehrman. One of our favorite kinds of books? Deleted scenes from The Bible. Yeah, at one point
we thought the book had sprung from the head of the divine fully formed as well, so don't feel bad. Instead, check out
the skinnee on a bunch of stuff that didn't make canon: like The Gospel of Mary, The Acts of Thecla, Pseudo-Titus (which Julie Taymor
directed), and...hey, just like those Left Behind guys, Peter and Paul had Apocalypses too. Fascinating stuff
from Oxford University Press. Wish it came with optional commentary, though.
