Entries in DVDs (3)
Week of June 6, 2011
Every week, we list our recommendations of new music, books, comics, movies and TV to check out. This is Recs in Effect:
New Music
The Book of Mormon
Who's Responsible? Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Robert Lopez
What Is It? The broadway musical by South Park's Parker & Stone and Avenue Q's Lopez focuses on the pros and cons of faith by examining two Mormon missionaries' exploits in Uganda. Hilarity Ensues?
Why's It Worth Noting? Firstly, Parker & Stone have proven their musical chops many times previously (Orgazmo, South Park, Team America) and paired with the more playful (and less dark) Lopez, they deliver a great musical that craps all over religion - but it also highlights the functions that religion can serve; basically stating that religion is dumb but can provide meaning and direction. The album was released on iTunes a couple of weeks ago, but the CD comes out on Tuesday and is definitely worth picking up. The songs are infectious, hilarious and brilliantly vulgar. Here's a sample (semi-NSFW, language):
Phantom of the Paradise
Double Dip Demands is a column in which I propose films that deserve a re-release on DVD/Blu-Ray with more special features, better transfers and other nerdy bits. Some of the films have no DVDs out there for Region 1 viewers, and some of them have a really crappy version that's bare bones or poorly put together. Who speaks for these films? I do.
The Film: Phantom of the Paradise (1974)
Cast & Crew: Brian De Palma (writer & director); Paul Williams, William Finley, Jessica Harper
Plot Synopsis (from IMDB): A disfigured musician sells his soul for the woman he loves so that she will perform his music.
Is It Out on DVD Currently?: Yes - but in a bare bones release with no extras.
Why Does It Deserve Special Features?: Phantom of the Paradise is an underappreciated gem that has gone on to influence many of the most lauded filmmakers today. Of particular note, Edgar Wright, Guillermo Del Toro and Quentin Tarantino have referenced the movie directly in interviews and implicitly in their films. A movie that is a crossroads between the stories of the past and the direction of the future, Phantom of the Paradise deserves a closer examination and analysis. A deluxe Phantom disc would be a great way to spread the gospel to cinephiles everywhere.
What Should Be On the Disc?
The Game
Double Dip Demands is a column in which I propose films that deserve a re-release on DVD/Blu-Ray with more special features, better transfers and other nerdy bits. Some of the films have no DVDs out there for Region 1 viewers, and some of them have a really crappy version that's bare bones or poorly put together. Who speaks for these films? I do.
The Film: The Game (1997)
Cast & Crew: David Fincher (dir.), John D. Brancato & Michael Ferris (writers), Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, Deborah Kara Unger, James Rebhorn.
Plot Synopsis (from IMDB) : Wealthy financier Nicholas Van Orton gets a strange birthday present from wayward brother Conrad: a live-action game that consumes his life.
Is It Out on DVD currently? Yes - but with no extras. There was a laserdisc edition that had many special features and there continue to be rumors of a Criterion Collection edition coming out at some point.
Why Does it Deserve Special Features? The Game is the only film in Fincher's canon that has never received a proper DVD. Panic Room, Fight Club, Benjamin Button - hell, even Alien3 have all been repackaged with great special features, which lends credence that Fincher is a filmmaker deserving of such examination. Add on to that that this film dealt with Augmented Reality Games (ARG) before most people even knew what they were, and it seems like it's a movie well worth delving into.
What Should be On the Disc?