Knight at HOME at the Movies
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Drama! Action! Dramedy! Comedy!
Four great movies; grand entertainments all. Something to please everyone in these DVD recommendations me thinks.
Four great movies; grand entertainments all. Something to please everyone in these DVD recommendations me thinks.
Helen Mirren made 2006 the year of The Queen. Her transcendent performance as
Elizabeth II dealing with the critical attacks on the royal family following the death of
Princess Diana took just about every acting prize for her efforts. Mirren’s immensely
satisfying portrait was just one of the pleasures of Stephen Frear’s insightful film (the
movie's score by Alexandre Desplat was another). Peter Morgan’s richly detailed script
provided Mirren and her supporting cast a marvelous opportunity. More than any other
film (even more than The Departed) that hit theatres at the end of last year, this is the
one friends and acquaintances asked me when the DVD (from Miramax) was coming out.
The wait is over and it’s been worth it to once again revel in this hugely entertaining film.
The disc doesn’t have much in the way of special features and only includes a making of
featurette and two commentary tracks (from Frears and Morgan and a separate, insightful
one by royal historian Robert Lacey). That, of course, means a Special Edition will arrive
at some future date. In the meantime, the film alone is enough to keep me happy.
The summer of 3peat blockbuster sequels will soon be upon us and to kick start it in the
home entertainment market, Sony Pictures is offering an extended, 2-disc version of one
of their biggest franchises, Spider-Man 2.1. This double disc edition of the 2004 film
includes eight minutes of never before seen footage incorporated into the movie, a
featurette detailing just what was put back in, a trivia track, a close up on the storyboards
for the film, and several featurettes promoting the upcoming Spider-Man 3. As usual with
these studio upgrades, many fans who bought the original version have cried “foul” and
sniped that the added footage doesn’t really make the upgrade worth it. But these added
scenes are usually the ones that help deepen the characters or add moments of whimsy.
Such is the case here and for that reason alone I’m recommending this new version.
Also, for those that never purchased the disc, obviously this is the one you’ll want to pick
up. I didn’t catch the movie in theatres and only saw parts of it on cable thereafter so it
was a genuine pleasure to see this new, “complete” (for now I’m guessing) version.
I think Parenthood from 1989 is director Ron Howard’s best film – perhaps because it
seems to be his most personal. It’s a beautifully written, acted, shot, and scored piece
that follows the messy lives of an extended Midwestern American family. A huge cast
headed by Steve Martin in one of his best performances (maybe the best) enact the four
separate stories of the Buckmans who are caught up in the daily problems involved with
raising kids, job and relationship frustrations. Naturally, like the lives of most regular
folks, it’s a dramedy. The stories are nicely entwined by screenwriters Lowell Ganz and
Babaloo Mandel who carefully balance interest in all the stories. Life is like a rollercoaster
is the theme of the picture – some like it, some don’t, and some never get on it at all.
This new version from Universal Studios offers (at last!) a Widescreen transfer of the film
and an assortment of very interesting making of featurettes – most newly created for this
edition. Ganz and Mandel sit with Howard and producer Brian Grazer and recall key
moments in the development of the script and shooting of the film while another very
welcome featurette focuses on the gorgeous score by Randy Newman. His music for the
movie’s final sequence has never failed to bring me to tears – it’s a perfect melodic
amalgam of sweetness and wistfulness. This is a terrific, very welcome new edition of a
film that I never get tired of watching. If I have a quibble it’s that the movie doesn’t
include a gay character – even Larry, the character of the ne’er do well brother played by
out actor Tom Hulce the obvious choice to fill that spot is straight. But I imagine at some
later date someone from the Buckman family came out (maybe the young, anxious
Kevin).
I have loved the Peter Cook-Dudley Moore 1967 vehicle Bedazzled since my college film
professor first screened it back in the mid-70s, calling it his favorite comedy. The veddy
British duo, madcap precursors to the Python gang, basically riff their way through a wacky
take-off on the Faust legend under the direction of Stanley Donen. Cook plays the Devil,
Mr. Scratch, who offers Moore as Stanley (named after Donen, a none to subtle nod to
their tempestuous relationship with him), a suicidal short order cook, seven wishes in
exchange for his soul. With nothing to lose, Stanley agrees and is soon trying his best to
win the hand of Margaret Spencer (Eleanor Bron who had an Oscar nod the same year with
Two For the Road) the waitress at Wimpy Burger’s who hasn't noticed him after working side
by side with him for years. The seven wishes lead to a series of funny fantasy sequences
(in one Moore encounters Raquel Welch as Lust) that show off the duos comedic talents.
My favorite is the segment in which Moore (after saying the magic words, “Julie Andrews!”)
is transformed into a prototypical 60s pop star. In a ripe parody of “Ready, Steady, Go!”
Moore belts out his catchy hit single, “Love Me!” and is immediately trumped by Cook as
rock’s newest sensation who sings the title song. 20th Century Fox has added some
great behind the scenes footage that are fun and insightful as well (including a vintage
interview with Cook and Moore). There’s also a new interview with Harold Ramis talking
about his love for the film and its influence on his own work. I also liked that the remake
(with Brendan Fraser and Elizabeth Hurley), which wasn't half bad, is given a shout out and
mention is made of Moore’s talents as a jazz pianist and composer (he wrote the score
for the movie and the catchy parody songs as well). A delight.
Elizabeth II dealing with the critical attacks on the royal family following the death of
Princess Diana took just about every acting prize for her efforts. Mirren’s immensely
satisfying portrait was just one of the pleasures of Stephen Frear’s insightful film (the
movie's score by Alexandre Desplat was another). Peter Morgan’s richly detailed script
provided Mirren and her supporting cast a marvelous opportunity. More than any other
film (even more than The Departed) that hit theatres at the end of last year, this is the
one friends and acquaintances asked me when the DVD (from Miramax) was coming out.
The wait is over and it’s been worth it to once again revel in this hugely entertaining film.
The disc doesn’t have much in the way of special features and only includes a making of
featurette and two commentary tracks (from Frears and Morgan and a separate, insightful
one by royal historian Robert Lacey). That, of course, means a Special Edition will arrive
at some future date. In the meantime, the film alone is enough to keep me happy.
The summer of 3peat blockbuster sequels will soon be upon us and to kick start it in the
home entertainment market, Sony Pictures is offering an extended, 2-disc version of one
of their biggest franchises, Spider-Man 2.1. This double disc edition of the 2004 film
includes eight minutes of never before seen footage incorporated into the movie, a
featurette detailing just what was put back in, a trivia track, a close up on the storyboards
for the film, and several featurettes promoting the upcoming Spider-Man 3. As usual with
these studio upgrades, many fans who bought the original version have cried “foul” and
sniped that the added footage doesn’t really make the upgrade worth it. But these added
scenes are usually the ones that help deepen the characters or add moments of whimsy.
Such is the case here and for that reason alone I’m recommending this new version.
Also, for those that never purchased the disc, obviously this is the one you’ll want to pick
up. I didn’t catch the movie in theatres and only saw parts of it on cable thereafter so it
was a genuine pleasure to see this new, “complete” (for now I’m guessing) version.
I think Parenthood from 1989 is director Ron Howard’s best film – perhaps because it
seems to be his most personal. It’s a beautifully written, acted, shot, and scored piece
that follows the messy lives of an extended Midwestern American family. A huge cast
headed by Steve Martin in one of his best performances (maybe the best) enact the four
separate stories of the Buckmans who are caught up in the daily problems involved with
raising kids, job and relationship frustrations. Naturally, like the lives of most regular
folks, it’s a dramedy. The stories are nicely entwined by screenwriters Lowell Ganz and
Babaloo Mandel who carefully balance interest in all the stories. Life is like a rollercoaster
is the theme of the picture – some like it, some don’t, and some never get on it at all.
This new version from Universal Studios offers (at last!) a Widescreen transfer of the film
and an assortment of very interesting making of featurettes – most newly created for this
edition. Ganz and Mandel sit with Howard and producer Brian Grazer and recall key
moments in the development of the script and shooting of the film while another very
welcome featurette focuses on the gorgeous score by Randy Newman. His music for the
movie’s final sequence has never failed to bring me to tears – it’s a perfect melodic
amalgam of sweetness and wistfulness. This is a terrific, very welcome new edition of a
film that I never get tired of watching. If I have a quibble it’s that the movie doesn’t
include a gay character – even Larry, the character of the ne’er do well brother played by
out actor Tom Hulce the obvious choice to fill that spot is straight. But I imagine at some
later date someone from the Buckman family came out (maybe the young, anxious
Kevin).
I have loved the Peter Cook-Dudley Moore 1967 vehicle Bedazzled since my college film
professor first screened it back in the mid-70s, calling it his favorite comedy. The veddy
British duo, madcap precursors to the Python gang, basically riff their way through a wacky
take-off on the Faust legend under the direction of Stanley Donen. Cook plays the Devil,
Mr. Scratch, who offers Moore as Stanley (named after Donen, a none to subtle nod to
their tempestuous relationship with him), a suicidal short order cook, seven wishes in
exchange for his soul. With nothing to lose, Stanley agrees and is soon trying his best to
win the hand of Margaret Spencer (Eleanor Bron who had an Oscar nod the same year with
Two For the Road) the waitress at Wimpy Burger’s who hasn't noticed him after working side
by side with him for years. The seven wishes lead to a series of funny fantasy sequences
(in one Moore encounters Raquel Welch as Lust) that show off the duos comedic talents.
My favorite is the segment in which Moore (after saying the magic words, “Julie Andrews!”)
is transformed into a prototypical 60s pop star. In a ripe parody of “Ready, Steady, Go!”
Moore belts out his catchy hit single, “Love Me!” and is immediately trumped by Cook as
rock’s newest sensation who sings the title song. 20th Century Fox has added some
great behind the scenes footage that are fun and insightful as well (including a vintage
interview with Cook and Moore). There’s also a new interview with Harold Ramis talking
about his love for the film and its influence on his own work. I also liked that the remake
(with Brendan Fraser and Elizabeth Hurley), which wasn't half bad, is given a shout out and
mention is made of Moore’s talents as a jazz pianist and composer (he wrote the score
for the movie and the catchy parody songs as well). A delight.
