Armchair Commentary

Trailer Park: "Somewhere"

 

It's already played overseas, but opening December 22 in select U.S. cities is Somewhere, starring Stephen Dorff as a fast-lane Hollywood actor who has to adjust to life with his 11-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning). It's written and directed by Sofia Coppola, who earned an Oscar win (writing) and a nomination (directing) for Lost in Translation, now available on Blu-ray exclusively at Amazon.com. Is Somewhere headed for similar acclaim? It's still early in the awards season, but the National Board of Review named it one of the top 10 independent films of the year, and gave Coppola a Special Filmmaking Achievement Award for writing, directing, and producing it--the same award she won for Lost in Translation in 2003. You can watch the Somewhere trailer below. --David

 

More Lightning Deals and a customer vote

 

 

 

Unless you're already done with your holiday shopping (hey, I know a couple people who are), you may want to take an advance look at our upcoming Lightning Deals, starting Monday, December 13. Also, we're looking for your help to decide one of them. On Thursday, December 16, we'll be offering three special Blu-ray limited editions--Alice in Wonderland, The Dark Knight, and Watchmen--as Lightning Deals, but whichever one wins your vote will be available at the super-low price of $14.99. Make your voice heard! --David

How high would you rate "Spinal Tap"?

Someone recently pointed out IMDb's user rating of Spinal Tap is slightly unusual. --David

The Best Movies & TV of 2010: Classics

One of the sublists of our Best Movies & TV of 2010 is the top 10 Classics on DVD (restricted to movies and TV made before 1970). Although there were a number of outstanding rereleases this year, our choices include only those movies that came out for the first time on DVD, which made the top choice pretty easy since we've only been waiting for it since, oh, the beginning of the DVD era. We've also created a separate list below for notable classics that came out on Blu-ray in 2010. If you've wondered whether an older film will benefit from high-definition treatment, take a look at these.  --David

1. The African Queen: Probably the last major classic to be released on DVD, John Huston's great adventure paired Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart.
2. Bigger Than Life (Criterion Collection): In a great year for premium label Criterion, Nicholas Ray's neglected 1956 masterpiece rises to the top.
3. Three Silent Classics by Josef Von Sternberg (Criterion Collection): German-born, American-raised Sternberg created these films on the cusp of the sound era: Underworld, Last Command, and Docks of New York.
4. Night Train to Munich (Criterion Collection): Carol Reed (The Third Man) directed this breathless and fun wartime thriller.
   
5. Make Way for Tomorrow (Criterion Collection): Another example of what Criterion does best: shed light on a neglected Depression-era gem
6. Thriller: The Complete Series: This year we opened up our list to TV so we could include Boris Karloff's acclaimed 1960s horror series.
7. The Elia Kazan Collection: His politics are controversial, but his filmmaking skills are not. This collection is a collaboration among studios and includes five films never before available on DVD, including A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
8. TCM Spotlight: Errol Flynn Adventures: TCM's WWII-themed collection is especially notable for Lewis Milestone's powerful Edge of Darkness.
9. Evening Primrose: Rescued from the vaults, this television film featured the music of a young Stephen Sondheim and the singing talents of Anthony Perkins (Psycho) and Charmian Carr (Liesl in The Sound of Music).
10. CHICAGO The Original 1927 Film Restored: You've probably seen the 2002 Oscar winner, and maybe you've seen the 1942 Ginger Rogers version called Roxie Hart. Here's the 1927 original.

Ten classics we're glad to see on Blu-ray this year:

• The African Queen
• Seven Samurai (The Criterion Collection)
• A Star Is Born
• The Sound of Music
• Modern Times: The Criterion Collection
• TThe Bridge on the River Kwai
• Psycho
• The Maltese Falcon
• Jason and the Argonauts
• The Complete Metropolis

See the rest of the top 100 DVDs, the top 100 Blu-ray discs, and many other lists in the Best Movies & TV of 2010.

TV trailer #2: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I

Here's the second TV trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I, which opens in theaters on November 19, 2010. Less than four weeks to wait! --David

 

Help me watch Buffy!

Confession: I've seen every episode of Firefly at least twice, I've seen both Serenity and Dr. Horrible more times than I can count, and I've seen every episode of Dollhouse. So... Whedon fanatic, right? My dark secret is that I've never seen Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Well, I have seen one episode, "Hush," which I enjoyed, and I saw part of "Once More, with Feeling," before I gave in to everyone else in the room yelling at me to turn on something else. Since it's October and I'm getting in the mood to watch something spooky, I'm thinking about Buffy again.  But what's always intimidated me about the show is that it's seven seasons long, plus Angel ran five seasons, and as I understand it the two series intertwined. So not only do I have to watch all those Buffy episodes but I have to figure out where to slot in the Angel episodes among them. I've presented this conundrum to some Buffy fans and have gotten some suggestions:

• Skip season 1 of Buffy--the series took a while to get its footing
• Skip seasons 1 and 2 of Buffy--it really got good in season 3
• Skip Angel--it's just the spinoff anyway

I'm a completist--heck, I stuck out all nine seasons of The X-Files--and my normal tendency would be to watch everything. But the thought of all those episodes keeps me from getting started. So what do you think, Buffy fans? Are any of the above shortcuts valid, or is the complete experience worth it?  --David

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I will be 2D only

This press release just arrived: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I will open in theaters on November 19, 2010, in 2D only instead of 3D. The complete text from Warner Bros.:

Warner Bros Pictures has made the decision to release Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 in 2D, in both conventional and IMAX theaters, as we will not have a completed 3D version of the film within our release date window. Despite everyone's best efforts, we were unable to convert the film in its entirety and meet the highest standards of quality. We do not want to disappoint fans who have long-anticipated the conclusion of this extraordinary journey, and to that end, we are releasing our film day-and-date on November 19, 2010 as planned. We, in alignment with our filmmakers, believe this is the best course to take in order to ensure that our audiences enjoy the consummate Harry Potter experience.

Producer David Heyman said, "For 10 years, we have worked alongside Alan Horn and the studio, whose priority has always been to preserve the integrity of Jo Rowling’s books as we have adapted them to the screen, and this decision reflects that commitment."

Director David Yates continued, "This decision, which we completely support, underscores the fact that Warner Bros. has always put quality first."

As scheduled, on July 15, 2011, we will deliver to conventional and IMAX theaters our final installment of the film franchise, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, in both 2D and 3D formats.

So there you have it. I did see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in IMAX 3D, and the 3D portion was only about the first 10 minutes--it was cool, and I would have liked to see the whole thing in 3D, but it's not like the rest of the movie was ruined for me because it was only 2D.  I wonder if bad reviews of Warner Bros.' converted 3D release of Clash of the Titans played any part in the decision. Somehow it reminds me of another Harry Potter press release I blogged, when the sixth movie was moved back eight months. At least we'll still be able to see the movie as scheduled. --David

 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I posters

New character posters for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I, which opens in theaters on November 19, 2010. --David

Summer Glau introduces a clip from "Superman/Batman: Apocalypse"

Summer Glau, a fan favorite from sci-fi series Firefly and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, introduces a sneak peek at the new animated movie Superman/Batman: Apocalypse, in which she provides the voice of Supergirl. It's available September 28. See more in our DC Comics store. --David

 

Trailer #3: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I"

This just in: The third trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I, which opens in theaters on November 19, 2010. --David