Bits and Extras from the DVD Front

January continues to be a decidedly mixed month for DVD. While there have been a number of notable DVD releases (like Troy, The Village and Leon - Deluxe Edition) there just hasn't anything I've been dying to watch. January has also unfortunately turned into a little bit of a dumping ground with titles like Catwoman, First Daughter and Without a Paddle. Looking out on the horizon, many of the DVDs I'm looking forward to haven't been announced, including: Old Boy, The Aviator, Closer, Sideways, A Very Long Engagement and The Machinist. So this year is ONLY going to get better.

The Forgotten:

Despite my best efforts to see it in theaters I managed to miss The Forgotten (and no... I didn't forget to see it...) I'm both a big fan of Julianne Moore and quite enjoy films with a dark sci-fi edge to them. Luckily I didn't have to wait long, as Sony Pictures Home Entertainment rushed this puppy from theaters to DVD in no time. Unfortunately my dash to watch The Forgotten was halted by a choice: Either play the Theatrical Version of the film and see what everyone saw in theaters or Play the Extended Edition with newly integrated footage and an entirely different ending. It's hard to know which way to go on these. In my experience it's a pretty even split between extended and theatrical editions in terms of which one is better. It's hard to think of watching The Butterfly Effect again and not watching the extended edition, or any of the Lord of The Rings. On the downside however, there's King Arthur: Extended Unrated Ridiculously Long and Pretentious Version, which didn't even give the option of seeing the theatrical cut and whose extended cut made a slow film even longer. For The Forgotten I decided to give the Extended cut a try....then I re-ran the last 15 mins of the film in 'Theatrical Cut' mode. The funny thing is, I liked aspects of both endings (which tonally were very different).... A lot of help I am.

Nirvana - With The Lights Out:

There are just way too many crappy DVDs out there whose sole purpose is to sell crappy albums. People have been snatching up these CD's with 'Bonus DVDs' for some time now only to find anemic self congratulatory pieces of crap (can you tell how much I LOVE them?) One of the extremely notable exceptions to this is the fantastic DVD which is part of the Nirvana - With The Lights Out Box Set. This DVD is as integral to the CD collection as the music on the CDs. DVD producer Lance Bangs (who has turned his lens on many a notable behind the scenes doc including The Director's Series) assembles some simply amazing footage that gives an honest look at the band. Included on the DVD are home videos of the band practicing at home (with one of them flicking on and off the light switch for effect), the bands own home video from the US Bleach Tour in 1989, the first time Nirvana played 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' live, and much more. DVD producers in the music space rarely get the kudos that feature film DVD producers get, so we give Lance Bangs a huge thumbs up for his great work here.

Wonderfalls:

For it's short 4 episode stint on TV, I completely followed Wonderfalls. It was a fun, quirky, dark humored show that followed the exploits of Jane Tyler - a well educated girl who returned to her home town, moved into a trailer and got a job at the local Niagara Falls souvenir shop. The only thing truly odd about Jane is that she just happens to hear voices from inanimate objects (like a plastic lion, or cow milk creamer). Jane is one of these strong, intelligent and highly dysfunctional characters that are extremely fun to watch (in the company of Lorelai Gilmore and Georgia Lass). Sadly Wonderfalls got yanked after just 4 episodes. How can a network really judge a show after only 4 episodes!?! When Fox announced that they were bringing this show on to DVD with 13 complete episodes (including 9 which never aired), I was extremely excited. Now, after watching several of the unaired episodes I can understand why Wonderfalls got the axe. It isn't that Wonderfalls is a bad show, it's just a little thin. Showtime's Dead Like Me (which unfortunately has also been canceled), managed to explore similar territory in a lot less cartoony manor, and Arrested Development took the quirky and dysfunctional family to the next level. Wonderfalls is a very watchable show, but with the bar for TV series getting higher and higher it here on DVD it just doesn't measure up.

Friday Night Lights

When it comes to DVDs for movies based on real events, there needs to be some sort of law that requires studios to have at least a couple of interviews with the real people behind the story. I'm happy to report that the good folks over at Universal are in compliance for the DVD release of Friday Night Lights. Aside from being an enjoyable movie, the Friday Night Lights DVD has interviews with several of the key players from the Permain Panthers, and to see what's happened to them now is almost as interesting as some of the key points in the movie itself. In addition there's some clips from actual game footage and a mini-reunion of the players. This is the kind of stuff DVD extras was created for and so I hope other studios will take note and make sure to include things like this in their future DVD releases.

Mean Creek:

Who would have ever thought that the 'Culkin Boys' could really act?!?! Between Macaulay Culkin's fantastic performance in Saved!, Kieran Culkin in Igby Goes Down and Rory Culkin's performance in Mean Creek, there might be more in those Culkin genes than what we saw in Home Alone. Mean Creek was shot in Oregon (the home state of DVD Talk) and showed at last year's Sundance Film Fest. It's a great example of how an indie film maker can do a lot with very little. The story is basic, but the performances aren't. Something to check out when you're in an indie mood.

That's about all for this installment of DVD Talk's Bits and Extras. If you've got a bit or extra you'd like to see us cover or general feedback let us know.

- Geoffrey Kleinman