Hollywood Blogslap - DVD

Second Chance Spin - Week of 12/13

nospam@example.com (William Goss) — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 23:05:03 -0700

My stab at a regular contribution will be Second Chance Spin, a weekly column in which a spotlight film is picked that may have missed its audience on the way to DVD shelves.

This week's selection: Michael Bay's The Island.

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NO LATE FEES! Well okay, some late fees.

nospam@example.com (Oz) — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 15:50:03 -0700

It was good while it lasted.

Who honestly thought this wouldn't happen? Blockbuster, despite making their big push for liquidity dependent on the concept of the abolition of all late fees, has announced that a third of their US stores are quietly reinstating late fees.

The 'no late fees' credo has been popular with the customers, depsite the ever-so-sneaky back-door trap of charging customers' credit cards for the purchase price of any film returned a little too late, but anyone who has walked into a Blockbuster store over the past few weeks has in all likelihood noticed three things:

1. There are no movies on the shelves.

2. On weekends, the place is shoulder-to-shoulder busy.

3. During the early to mid-week, the stores are all but empty.

Of course, in hindsight, all of the above makes perfect sense. After all, if you don't HAVE TO go to a Blockbuster store on a Monday night, why would you? Then again, if it's a rainy weekend and the kids are bored, hey, that'd be a good time to go return those movies you've had for a week and a half.

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40-Year-Old Virgin opens huge on DVD

nospam@example.com (Oz) — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 15:22:45 -0700

Remember when the DVD format first came out and the studios weren't really sure if it would catch on? Remember how some embraced the technology, and others kind of dribbled out product without much thought about its possibilities?

Welcome to the new world order. Hot on the heels of Disney claming that they were considering releasing films on DVD and in theaters simultaneously, comes the news that the 40-Year-Old Virgin, a film that was definitely successful in theaters considering its genre, has sold TWO MILLION COPIES on its first day on DVD.

Now, think about that for a second - two million DVDs in one day. Let's imagine that Universal makes only $7 per disc (a conservative estimate when they can sell for $25 or more in some stores), that comes out at a $14m opening day - or 50% more than the box office on the opening day big screen release of Peter Jackson's King Kong!

Is it any wonder that the studios are abandoning the big screen in favor of the take-home option when the payday on a middle of the road movie on disc can be larger than the big screen blockbuster of the season?

The DVD contains bonus features including deleted scenes, behind the scenes footage, commentary by the filmmakers and cast, and extra "you know how I know you're gay?" dialogue. There's also an unrated version, which has an extra 17 minutes of the film, specifically shot for the DVD release.

Eat it up, people, but take my word for it - if the studios actually do make DVD releases simultaneous with theatrical releases, successes like the 40-Year-Old Virgin won't happen. Think about it, the reason this film is selling so hugely on DVD is BECAUSE the theatrical release was so well received. People have been waiting for this film to hit DVD, and if you take away that anticipation, you take away the chance for an explosive debut like this.

The Thrifty Jew's DVD Shopping List (12/13)

nospam@example.com (Scott Weinberg) — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 04:38:47 -0700

With the holiday shopping season in full swing, 12/13 marks a very expensive day for the DVD-aholics out there. Here's a little guide on what's cheapest and where. (Sales start today, but new releases aren't out till Tuesday.) And trust a jew on this: DVDs make awesome stocking stuffers.

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No nudes is good nudes

nospam@example.com (Doug Bentin) — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 14:22:14 -0700

Mick Garris said recently that horror is the rock 'n' roll of cinema. Not bad, but I'd extend that and say that "B" movies are the rock of film. I would add to that the notion that Roger Corman is the Ramones. Fast, funny, elegant in simplicity, wearing jeans with the knees worn out. Well, maybe not the last one.

Of all companies, Buena Vista is currently distributing yet another collection of Corman "classics." I took a look at "Big Bad Mama" over the weekend, a picture I haven't seen in 25 years or so, and was delighted with the nudity, most of which came our way in the person of Angie Dickinson. No complaints there.

But then one of her co-stars appeared nude with her and it was William Shatner. I'll pause while that sinks in.

Yes, that William Shatner. You'll forgive me if I don't go into details about it. I feel like someone who's just seen an alien. I think I need to warn others but I don't want to dwell on the experience.

Of course, the good Captain was much slimmer then than he is now, but he was still a bit on the stocky side. The guy is just a pudge, which isn't saying anything bad about him. I tend that way myself. Way that way. But then, I keep my clothes on when someone whips out a camera. I mean, there are kinky groups in the far East that are into all kinds of sick, perverse stuff, but even they'd pay a quick visit to the vomitorium if they caught a glance of my unironed birthday suit.

But enough about that.

I just wanted to inform the Star Trek completists that this moment of cinema history is available to them, and warn everyone else.