With season six looming, NBC is releasing The Office: Season 5 on DVD and Blu-Ray this Tuesday. With the 26 episodes comes the typical bonus feature culprits – deleted scenes, episode commentaries and a gag reel – but in this case, that’s actually a good thing.
As has been the case with other seasons of The Office, the deleted scenes are the highlight of the collection; each episode is filmed with a goal of 38-or-so minutes, which is then whittled down to 24 minutes or less for television. This means that for each episode, 25-40% of the footage is left on the cutting room floor. Most of this footage is actually quite entertaining. Overall, there’s three hours worth of deleted scenes, many of them laugh-out-loud funny. (more…)
From the producers of Little Miss Sunshine comes another seemingly bright dramedy titled Sunshine Cleaning, about two down-and-out women who start a crime scene cleaning business. Though I’m generally not fooled by the “from the producers of” marketing spin films are often given, I did fall for this one: following the trailers, casting and even early reviews, Sunshine Cleaning did seem like another funny drama. Unfortunately, there isn’t much to sink your teeth into here.
Those expecting Superbad things from director Greg Mottola’s follow-up comedy Adventureland may be disappointed. The R-rated drama-comedy, about a young man in the 1980’s who desperately takes a job at a trashy carnival and finds first love, is a well-made and engaging film, but it isn’t nearly as funny as Superbad, nor is it meant to be.
Jessie Eisenberg, Kristin Stewart and Ryan Reynolds star in the film, which, if anything, can be compared to the classic John Hughes films of the ’80’s. While it definitely offers more swearing and at times crude humor, at its heart is, well, heart, and believable nuances that capture youthful love surprisingly well. Adventureland is now out on DVD, but, unfortunately, the DVD doesn’t have much to offer. (more…)
Paramount, in its never-ending battle (along with the other studios) to make money off of movies they’ve already released, is re-releasing How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days on DVD and Blu-Ray on August 25, 2009. The movie, which stars Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson as two opposing forces each trying to break the other, was an entertaining little romantic comedy when it came out, though it never quite lived up to expectations. (more…)
It must be crazy to say that Battlestar Galactica is one of the best television series ever made, simply because I and so many other people have been repeating such a statement for years now. Why say a thing repetitively when almost everyone who you talk to believes you already? That, my friends, is insanity.
The show is now over(except for the upcoming TV movie The Plan, which gives us one last BSG item to hold onto), as sad as that it is. That means it’s time for a complete series package, and a complete series package Sci-Fi Channel has made! (more…)
Joaquin Phoenix. What comes to mind when you hear that name? Two-time Academy Award nominee? Younger brother of River Phoenix? Or crazy, bearded rapper wannabe who embarrassed himself, either intentionally or not, on a variety of occasions over the last several months? Regardless, what he isn’t known for is his “final” movie Two Lovers, which he was supposed to be promoting on David Letterman during the now infamous gum chewing interview.
There are good movies, and there are bad ones. That’s a John Madden thing to say, but it’s true. Miss March, sad to say, falls clearly into the latter category, and doesn’t even appear to care.
Zach Cregger and Trevor Moore wrote, directed and star in this road trip movie, about a guy who fell into a coma in high school and has awoken four years later only to discover that he can no longer control his bowels, his parents have moved away and his girlfriend, once a proponent of abstinence, has become a Playboy cover girl. His best friend Tucker (played by Moore) decides to kidnap him from the hospital, travel across the country and crash a Playboy Mansion party to win her back. Antics ensue, all of which are allegedly funny.
When Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse debuted in February, I was mildly intrigued to see what the man had come up with. I never watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer but was a huge fan of Firefly and its companion film Serenity, and so Whedon’s name alone was enough to get me to watch the premiere. The show didn’t look all that great from the previews, as the Fox marketing team had once again failed to present it as quality material (when Firefly first came out, I also thought it looked incredibly stupid). The show also stars Eliza Dushku, a sexy woman who I like to look at but have always equated with B-grade television. (more…)
The Golden Globe-winning series Mad Men brings Season 2 to DVD this Tuesday, and along with it all 13 episodes of some of the best drama on television. Season 2 builds upon the foundations created in the first season while giving the characters more things to do, and more importantly, more avenues to explore. (more…)
There’s bad, and then there’s Street Fighter bad. And what’s worse than a Street Fighter movie but an unnecessary, unwanted sequel fifteen years after the franchise’s heyday, starring a TV actress and lacking a plot? Yes, it’s Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li.
One has to think that 20th Century Fox had this absurd idea when greenlighting the film that it would do well enough to fund several sequels titled Street Fighter: The Legend of Another Forgettable Character. Ah, Hollywood executives. You’re so cute sometimes.