Perhaps the biggest release of the year (at least for me) is the loooong-await release of the Fleischer theatrical Popeye cartoons of the 1930s. These black and white gems are some of the finest cartoons ever, ranking up there with the best of the Warner Brothers cartoons. Yet they have never had an official video release, on tape or DVD, because of murky rights issues. Now, finally, they are coming out, and coming out right.
This week’s Popeye the Sailor 1933-1938: Volume One (the second volume is due out next year) offers a very meaty 60 cartoons on four discs, including the first appearance of Popeye in cartoon form, as a guest in a Betty Boop short. Also included are two of longer color cartoons the Fleischers did, although I am not so much a fan. Extras include Popeye retrospectives, commentaries on some of the cartoons and ‘behind-the-toons’ featurettes. The set will cost you close to $50, but it’s worth it. Astounding stuff.
Meanwhile, action movie fans will be able to add Hot Fuzz to their DVD libraries, as no doubt the main characters of the film itself would do. Made by the Shaun of the Dead guys, this is a stylish, very funny action/mystery spoof, and features a great cast including Tim “James Bond” Dalton and Edward “The Equalizer” Woodward. By the way, why isn’t The Equalizer out on DVD yet? That was a great show.
TV collections this week include Archies: The Complete Series (the cartoon series that spawned the only hit song from the endless number of pop tunes cranked out for dozens of Saturday morning cartoon shows of the period), Biography: Karloff, the Gentle Monster, Complete Space 1999 Megaset; Complete Thunderbirds Megaset; Dallas S7; Hawaii Five-O S2 and Sabrina the Teenage Witch S2.
On the movie front: 20 Million Miles to Earth gets a two-disc special edition, including a colorized version of the film that I guess Harryhausen has given his OK to. If you can get past the whole moral /aesthetic idea of colorization, then I guess this is a good one. Other extras include a Harryhausen commentary, a making-of documentary, an interview with Harryhausen conducted by director Tim Burton, and a documentary about the film’s composer, David Schechter.
300 surely needs no introduction, and presumably looks fabulous on huge hi-def TV sets.
Blue Water, White Death is a famous 1971 documentary on great white sharks, featuring at the time astounding underwater footage of the beasties. Basically the film is the grandfather of the Discovery Channel’s annual Shark Week.
Cosmos: War of the Planets is one of those great, goofy, utterly insane Italian sci-fi films of the ’60s. Can’t miss stuff.
Dead Clowns is a zombie clown film. Hard to see how that wouldn’t creep people out.
Film Noir Classics Collection Vol. 4 is Warners’ latest Noir set, rescuing the usual collection of well made crime mellers from unwarranted obscurity. For under $50, you get ten films, all (!) with commentaries by film historians. We’re almost used to this sort of value by now, but we should still be glad for it.
Free White and 21 is a Larry Buchanan racial drama. Buchanan had a real interest in making social dramas, often highly paranoid and sleazy ones, despite being better known for hilariously cheap sci-fi movies like Zontar, Thing from Venus.
Mutant Monsters Triple Pack: Features The Being, The Dark and Creatures from the Abyss. I think these have all been available on disc already, but here they are in one cheap package running about $15. If you like cheesy monster films, these certainly fill the bill.
Peter Benchley’s Creature: Yes, this is that TV mini-series starring Craig T. Nelson, and about a murderous Shark Man. Who, if I remember correctly, has been known to hide up in trees. Hmm, I might have to give this one a more extended look.
Roboman: Also know n as Who?, this 1973 spy thriller sounds too weird to sum up in a sentence or two. Further details here. From this description, the cheesy box art looks quite misleading. Stars Elliot Gould and Trevor Howard.
