Mike’s August DVD Picks
1. 21 Jump Street: The Complete Third Season 2. The Chase 3. Ravenous 4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy 5. Red Vs Blue: Season Three 6. Don’t be a Menace to South Central While Drinking your Juice in the Hood 7. Lady in White 8. The Longest Yard 9. Mallrats: 10th Anniversary Extended Edition 10. Swamp Thing 11. UFC 52 12. Evil Dead 2: The Book of the Dead 2 Limited Edition 13. A Knight’s Tale: Extended Edition 14. Lords of Dogtown: Unrated Extended CutHey people, Mike here. It is now September and while this month's list is a little shorted than recent months, there is still some pretty good stuff coming out so strap in and check out the new list.
21 Jump Street: The Complete Third Season
Release Date: 9/6/05
Man I loved this show when I was younger. Once it was in syndication then life was sweet cause I could watch it every day of the week! Anyway, in season three things really started to heat up. The show got darker, a lot darker and it lost some of its silliness. Don’t get me wrong, there was still a fair amount of humor to the show but it stopped being hokey and really became dramatic television for the first time… Imagine that, dramatic television for teenagers!The Chase
Release Date: 9/6/05
OK, so The Chase isn’t exactly a great movie. That’s OK, I don’t mind. It’s a silly little story about a guy who steals a car while trying to stay out of jail and ends up taking a girl hostage who ends up falling in love with him during the car ride. I know, it’s a little hokey but it does actually have several really cool things working for it, namely appearances by Henry Rollins, Anthony Kiedis, Flea and Ron Jeremy. I mean, with people like that starring in this movie, how could possibly even think of not adding it to your collection?Ravenous
Release Date: 9/6/05
I first saw Ravenous when it came out in 1999 and was totally blown away by the fact that it was so totally unlike anything I had ever seen. It was part period film, part cannibal film and part vampire film. It was also the first film I had seen Guy Pierce in and he has since become a real favorite of mine. Ravenous is about a soldier named Capt. John Boyd (Pierce) in the Mexican-American War who commits an act of cowardice but as a result becomes a hero. His commanding officer, knowing about Boyd’s act of cowardice but not being able to discipline him because of his hero status sends him to a remote outpost in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Once there, as you might imagine, things start to get really wacky and people start getting eaten and the film get really intense. This is one of the better modern horror movies in my opinion, one that most people don’t even know about. On a side note, I already own a copy of this and have for years but I might just have to get this one if for no other reason than its killer box cover!The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Release Date: 9/13/05
OK, I never got a chance to see this film but from everything I’ve seen and Micah’s overwhelmingly positive review I’m putting this on my Picks of the Month list anyway because of how much I want to see it. I don’t really know much about it so I won’t waste your time with a meaningless blurb. I’m going to buy it and so should you!Red Vs Blue: Season Three
Release Date: 9/13/05
OK, so Red Vs Blue: Season Three has already been technically released, this however the first time it has been available from any place but the RVB website or Gamestop. Now, if you have never heard of Red Vs Blue then you SERIOUSLY can't even begin to understand what you're missing. Here's the setup basic idea, a few really bored college guys in San Marcos, TX were sitting around one day and decided to make a video using the Xbox game Halo and add their own funny dialogue. This stuff is quite frankly the funniest stuff I think I have EVER seen. Period. And season three has quite possibly the best episode in the entire series, the sixteen and a half minute Episide 50: Silver Linings. If you like to laugh until you puke then Red Vs Blue is an ABSOLUTE must have.Don’t be a Menace to South Central While Drinking your Juice in the Hood
Release Date: 9/20/05
As much as I like all the old hardcore gangsta films from the early to mid 90’s I think I like this one even more. The Wayans brothers are at their absolute side splitting best in this spoof of every one of the aforementioned films and I can’t wait to add this one to my collection. You can bet they pissed off at least as many as they made laugh with this movie. This one will be one of those that will be featured in the movie parties that I will eventually have if I’m ever able to afford that big screen TV I’ve been drooling over that last year or so.Lady in White
Release Date: 9/20/05
It’s funny how life works sometimes. I was just telling Clif about a month or so ago about how cool this movie was without knowing that it was coming out on DVD this month. It’s about a little kid on Halloween in 1962 who gets locked in the coat closet of his school classroom by some bully’s overnight and as a result sees the ghost of a little girl who was murdered 10 years earlier. He of course gets drawn in to the mystery and tries to help the girl’s ghost finally rest while attempting to keep from becoming a ghost himself. This is another movie that I love that few people actually know about. Kind of a quirky little film but really good none the less.The Longest Yard
Release Date: 9/20/05
OK, this film was one of the funnier ones I saw this year. Even my wife, who hates Adam Sandler, liked this one…a lot. If you want a more detailed account of why you should buy it then read the review!Mallrats: 10th Anniversary Extended Edition
Release Date: 9/20/05
Arguably Kevin Smith’s funniest film, Mallrats has earned an honored spot in my collection. This film is just FILLED with hilarious lines.
“Man, she called you callow!”
“You say that as if it’s a bad thing.”
“It means frightened and weak willed.”
“Really? I thought that was the only part of the letter that was complementary.”
How can you not love that?Swamp Thing
Release Date: 9/20/05
YES! Swamp Thing! I LOVE this movie. Half man, half plant, a directed by Wes Craven to boot! I had the biggest crush on Adrienne Barbeau and her enormous…talents when she made this film and Louis Jordan is the coolest villain ever. In fact, right after he made this film, he was the lead baddie in the Bond film, Octopussy. All in all a great comic book style sci-fi/semi-horror film.UFC 52
Release Date: 9/20/05
One of the most anticipated rematches in the history of the UFC was Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell for the Light Heavyweight Championship. Here it is finally! I have been wanting to see this fight for MONTHS and now I finally get my chance! So pull up a chair and get ready to see a bunch of poor saps get the shit kicked out of them while warming up for the main event.Evil Dead 2: The Book of the Dead 2 Limited Edition
Release Date: 9/27/05
OK, this one is a total no brainer for any movie fan who is even remotely worth their salt. With all the extra features like the audio commentary by Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, Co-Writer Scott Spiegel and Special Make-Up Effects Artist Greg Nicotero and the featurettes (Evil Dead 2: Behind the Screams and The Gore the Merrier), not to mention the Limited Edition Book of the Dead packaging designed by special effects artist Tom Sullivan you would be absolutely retarded to not buy this one immediately. I have the original Evil Dead: The Book of the Dead Limited Edition still in the shrink wrapping.A Knight’s Tale: Extended Edition
Release Date: 9/27/05
OK, you might laugh when you see this on my Picks of the Month list but I have to admit, A Knight’s Tale is one of my guilty pleasure films. I don’t know why but I love unabashedly love this film. Every time I watch it (and I’ve seen it quite a few times) I enjoy just as much as the first time I ever saw it. I just never gets old to me and while you might not agree, I think this one HIGHLY entertaining film that deserves a place of honor in everyone’s collection. Besides, it’s a great party DVD. As a side note, I think that we are getting this extended version due to the fact that Lord’s of Dogtown (which also stars Ledger…duh) comes out on the same day.Lords of Dogtown: Unrated Extended Cut
Release Date: 9/27/05
Growing up in a small town with not much to do besides grab a skate board and act cool even though I couldn’t ride to save my life, I worshipped guys like Tony Hawk, Christian Hosoi, Steve Cabalerro and of course Tony Alva. They were the ultimate in cool for me. There job was to ride a freakin skate board and they were treated like rock stars. I thought it was the greatest thing in the world and that their lives couldn’t have possibly been easier. Well, years later we finally got to see how wrong I was starting with the killer documentary Dogtown and Z Boys and now things go even further with Lords of Dogtown. This film is about the meteoric rise of the first generation of the megastar skaters. Guys like Alva, Jay Adams and Stacy Peralta pioneered pro skateboarding rose to the highest points before they sank to the lowest lows. All in all a really cool film about the beginnings of pro skating and the dangers of instant fame and how some can handle it and others can’t.
