They're Digging in the Wrong Place!

The official press release for the TV-on-DVD relase of the short-lived The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles has been sent out and, while I'm all for in depth special features---this is ridiculous!


You can read the press release in its entirity at: http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=7945

However, here's the jist of it:
The show itself consisted of 44 episodes, most of which two parters that create a total of 22 made-for-tv-movies.
Renamed as The AdventuThere will be three volumes of the TV series, with the first featuring 7 episodes.

These 7 episodes will be spread over 12(!!!!!) discs featuring 38 in-depth documentaries that will more than overshadow the actual Indy content in terms of length.

OK, I may have been remotely inclined to buy one box set containing the entire series. To be honest, I'm not too familiar with the show, but love the Indiana Jones film series enough to give into blind-buy temptation. However, there is no way I'm going to drop my hard earned money on three volumes, regardless of how good the special features may be or how awesome that box art looks...especially when the MSRP for the first volume is $117.99!!!!

Yes, the MSRP is always higher than what a sane person will actually pay in the store (Amazon is offering it for $75.99), but still there's no way I'm going to bite. While $80 is somewhat reasonable for 12 discs worth of content--it's still too damn excessive when they could've put two movies per disc (most TV on DVD has about 4 episodes per disc) and release the entire series in one 12 disc set. There even would have been room remaining for a modest amount of special features, I imagine.

I really shouldn't be surprised--this set is being put out by Paramount, the same company that loves to violate Star Trek fans' wallets with price-gouging and redundant releases.

This is why I subscribe to Netflix--so I don't have to play your game, Paramount!

Am I overreacting? Is this show really that beloved? Did the fans demand this? Share your thoughts in the COMMENTS section.

Returning Soon to a Blog Near You

I must render my apologies to those who come by this site looking for new posts - it has been a CRAZY summer and I have been incredibly busy with family visiting from overseas. But rest assured that new reviews are coming in the next few weeks. So be sure to check back soon!

And so, It Begins....

One of these movie posters is a fake, created by the dynamic duo Tycho and Gabe over at Penny Arcade, while the other is, sadly, a real poster for a soon-to-be "feature" film. While it should be relatively easy to spot the fake (or is it?), both the Ruxpin and Alvin as a full-length live-action films are equally ridiculous, and are signs of the current "play-it-safe" nostalgia exploiting Hollywood trend. Rather than spending time developing original Intellectual Property (IP), it's much easier to find a beloved franchise and make a new "totally rad" and "contemporary" remake in film form.

Transformers is out, it's doing well, and because of that now the decision has been made to dredge up another part of my childhood and squeeze it's guts out until it fills a couple hours of celluloid. While I haven't seen Transformers, but have heard some good things, I have no doubt that Alvin and the Chipmunks will wander more into Garfield territory than Autobots land.

Is this really necessary? At this rate, a few years from now I won't be able to look back on any part of my childhood without seeing it transmogrified into a cinematic abomination. I look forward to Belvedere: Streaks on the China, and Captain Planet: The Power is Yours to be hitting theaters in late '08 or early '09. Am I kidding? Well, if there's any doubt in your mind, that should tell you there's a serious problem with the Hollywood animal.

Roll Out! More Transformers thoughts...

Due to reasons both professional and personal, it’s been a while since I’ve had the opportunity to contribute to the blog---which is a shame, because I’ve seen a slew of interesting films over the last couple of weeks that I’m dying to write about. Hopefully things will slow down a little and I can dedicate some time to catching up, but until then I’ve decided that-since I devoted a post earlier addressing how worried I was about the just-released Transformers feature film-I should follow up with some thoughts now that I’ve actually seen the thing. For a more formal review, check out H-Dogg’s assessment found here.

In short, I echo the earlier review in feeling that it’s far from a Phantom Menace level disaster (though some bodily fluid humor skirted that line a little closely)—but find it not quite a classic. To be honest, though, I shouldn’t have and couldn’t possibly have expected it to be anything more than a product of the Hollywood blockbuster machine---proven formulas (ordinary meeting extraordinary, disparate protagonists rallying together for a common good, occasionally juvenile humor, things blowing up) utilized to make a film that’s designed to be liked by the largest audience possible. The film couldn’t exist any other way: it takes a lot of cash to create spectacle, and since Transformers as a franchise is by nature tied to its merchandise (the beloved mythology was created in it’s entirety to sell toys) it only makes sense that this iteration of the franchise be equally marketable.

I realize this all doesn’t quite sound like a compliment---but it’s not intended exactly as a slam either. Transformers succeeds as a perfectly fine summer time-waster---the crowd pleaser that the majority of this season’s 3quels failed to be. It brings out the thirteen year old boy in all of us. When this boy was around thirteen, the big summer movie was Independence Day---and while I watch that film now and see mainly the flaws, at the time it felt like the coolest film I’d ever seen. Transformers feels like that now---robot on robot action is as big of a Hollywood spectacle as I can imagine. However, as the years go by and flashier films come and go, the jive-talking Autobots, eye-rolling product placement (I can live with the GM endorsements…but that Mountain Dew/X-Box sequence was unforgivable), and plot holes one could fly Astrotrain through will become more and more distracting.

Spider-Man 3 divided audiences earlier this summer, and while that film is certainly flawed, it at the very least had a distinct director’s influence (Sam Raimi’s loopy sense of humor) behind it and was willing to take chances (that didn’t always work). Bay’s Transformers, while far and away the director’s best film, continues to reveal that Bay-while full of visual flair-isn’t an auteur (unless his artistic vision is to make the most commercial film possible and making lots of money). The film went out of its way to not step on any toes (other than those still upset at Prime having lips).

These criticisms are all from the film geek side of me, the Transformers nerd was just thrilled to see these characters brought to the screen. Sure, I wish the Decepticons (mainly Starscream) were given more screen time and that Bumblebee didn’t piss on John Turturro----but it was a freaking live-action Transformers movie!!!! It’s something I didn’t think I’d ever see in my lifetime. I’ll forgive that it reminded me too often of 1998s Godzilla in its mindless largeness, and let it entertain me—like a summer blockbuster should. If I were to rate it: 7/10

Knocked Up: A Satisfying Comedy

It felt like I waited forever to see Knocked Up. More and more people just kept telling me that it was a good movie and despite my intent to see it in a timely manner, things just kept popping up to keep me out of the theater. Finally I just cleared an afternoon and went solo to a matinee.

It was $5.75 well spent.

Judd Apatow (writer/producer) once again delivers a fine comedy. For those unfamiliar, he also wrote and produced the wildly popular 40 Year Old Virgin starring Steve Carell and while many seem to prefer that effort over Knocked Up, I hereby go on record to say that enjoyed this one a bit more. Virgin was good, but this one made me laugh more.

Knocked Up is the story of Ben (Seth Rogan) and Alison (Katherine Heigl) who come from completely places in life only to hook up for a one night stand after meeting in a nightclub. Its just a simple hook-up, or so it would seem. That is until 8 weeks later when Alison is suddenly feeling sick and gets some life altering news - she's pregnant. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that morning after the "deed" she very much regretted being with Ben. Can you smell that muchachos? That's awkward comedy!

Ben is not what one might refer to as a "mover and shaker". Ben is an illegal Canadian immigrant living with a bunch friends who are trying to launch a website that provides users with documentation for when their favorite actresses appear nude in movies. Ben is also not your male model specimen of a man - he's big, he's not popular and he's going effectively nowhere in life. Not to mention that after the sex, things were pretty awkward when talking with Alison.

Alison is upscale. She is professional and works for E! Entertainment News. She just landed the role of host on Talk Soup. Yes, the timing for having Ben's child couldn't be worse. Reluctantly, she contacts him to break the news over dinner. It doesn't take long for the sparks to start flying but out of the anxiety and confusion Ben and Alison decide to try and make things work between them.

In ways Knocked Up may be color by numbers, but there is an added dimension to the focus of the film, namely an examination of the nature of committed relationships. Its more than just awkward guy tries to do right by attractive girl, although there is plenty of that. Relationship is examined in parallel through the characters of Debbie and Pete, Alison's sister and brother-in-law. They are married (obviously) and have two kids and while really in a successful relationship have plenty of their own issues and bumps in the road. Alison and Ben end up looking to them, perhaps unwittingly, for advice and guidance. Of course Alison and Debbie are close but Ben ends up really connecting with Pete which culminates in them escaping for a wild weekend in Vegas where the male perspective on relationships is discussed quite comically.

Also a source of comedy in the film is Ben's troupe of house mates, a motley crew in their own right, they provide plenty of one-liners, much like Andy's co-workers in Virgin. The running gag (making fun of one of the guys for not shaving) had some great lines attributed to it!

In short, this was a well handled comedy with some genuine character. It wasn't your typical hollow comedy. Performances from Heigl and Rogan were excellent and I am quite happy that I was able to catch this one in the theater. Oh yeah, and as far as I know they live happily ever after. If you haven't seen it, put this on your list to rent. 8/10