After a very slow start on the DVD front this year—and added to the fact that I’m trying to cut down quite a bit on my spending—I’ve been buying very few discs lately. However, recently a few announcements have caught my attention. One was for the Kill Squad DVD I mentioned in an earlier blog entry. Everyone gets annoyed when they have to double dip on DVDs.
In a way, it’s even more painful with Criterion DVDs, because they cost more than normal releases. On the other hand, they usually don’t do re-releases unless there’s a valid reason, like a markedly better print of the film showing up. I’ve skipped over many such revamps, again because of financial concerns. (Thanks to my friend Jeff for getting me that Ran set for Christmas, though.)
However, Criterion in May will be releasing a new, two-disc edition of The Third Man, surely one of the greatest films ever made, and in any case one of my all-time favorites. I’m sure I’ve seen it 20-30 times, often in theaters, and it remains fascinating. And this new edition is indeed loaded. Details can be found here.
Anyhoo, time to make sure I’ve got $30 put aside that for one.
Meanwhile, the good folks at Media Blasters has released some details on their next Toho release. According to DVDdrive-in.com: “Here’s a brief update on the Shriek Show/Media Blasters DVD release of Frankenstein vs. Baragon / Frankenstein Conquers the World. Not all of the details have been confirmed, but we are told it will be a two-disc set with the Japanese version (2.35:1) on disc one and the English version (1.78:1 from an HD master) on disc two. The English dub will be the familiar one with actor Nick Adams’ voice. Extras will most likely be distributed over the two discs. The release date is now 6/26/07.”
That’s awesome. Meanwhile, Classic Media, who has released stunningly good DVD sets for four Godzilla movies up to now, has Ghidrah the Three Head Monster and Monster Zero (aka Invasion of the Astro-Monsters) on their slate for later this year.
I really don’t get excited about movies anymore, because they so rarely pay off entirely. If a movie is really good, it’s a pleasant surprise. If it’s lame (as I generally expect, even given the paucity of occasions on which I actually venture out to a theater), then at least I’m not disappointed. This also explains why I see nearly as many old movies in theaters as new ones. Let’s admit it, I’m more likely to enjoy seeing The Seventh Seal in a theater than Charlie’s Angels 2.Even so, I’m getting an increasingly good vibe on this upcoming Iron Man movie. Director Jon Favreau is really making all the right moves, including most noticeably assembling a really top-notch cast of actual actors. Moreover, whenever I read what he has to say, it all sounds spot on. On his MySpace page, Favreau wrote the following on that production, which is due to start shooting next week:
“Stan Winston Studios has been unveiling suits for us. Once again, they have exceeded our expectations. Those of you who follow my career know that I am very skeptical about the overuse of CGI. I am happy to report that the film will be a healthy mix of both computer generated and practical effects. My goal is to make the two integrate in a way that they usually do not.” Wow, that attitude makes my *very* happy. CGI has its place, and especially in a project like this. However, that Favreau intends to use practical effects as indicated is great to know.
Moreover, Favreau really sounds like a fanboy. “[Jeff] Bridges has a haircut that will no doubt be of interest to any of you fans of the books.” When a guy is worried about nailing things like haircuts, either he completely doesn’t know what he’s doing, or he complete does know what he’s doing. I hope and increasingly trust that Favreau in the second camp.
On the box office front, the dreadful-looking Wild Hogs (and unlike many, I actually kind of like Tim Allen) made an astounding $38 million this weekend. I dug this quote: “We chose this date because of the historical success we had with The Pacifier and Bringing Down the House, and Wild Hogs seemed to fit that mold,” according to Chris LeRoy, Buena Vista’s senior vice president general sales manager. That’s right, they’ve picked this annual weekend out as the “Make a Lot of Money off Shitty Comedies Weekend.”
Only we can stop the madness. (Well, expect that ‘we’ didn’t go see any of those in the first place, probably. I know I didn’t.)
