This week my heart breaks as my favorite TV show makes its swan song on DVD and we finally get a slate of decent watchable films including Clint Eastwood’s triumphant return.
Pick of the Week
The Shield: Season Seven – The Final Act
Very few shows start and end strong. The Shield is one of them. I wondered for seven years how they would end this show which had Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) get deeper and deeper into trouble and this last season was an excellent conclusion. The set has a commentary on every episode and two featurettes as well as a ton of deleted and alternate scenes to give you solace as you look for a new show to watch.
Gran Torino (the Blu-ray comes with a Digital Copy)
Clint Eastwood gets back in front of the camera for the first time since Million Dollar Baby for this character study on a Korean War vet who rises above his racism against Koreans to defend some of his neighbors against a gang. I missed this in the theater and I can’t wait to check this movie out, which is supposed to be amazing, although the DVD features are a little weak.
The International
The original pitch was that this movie would be a picture of how the Bond franchise might have looked if they chose Clive Owen instead of Daniel Craig. This is worth checking out just to see the action set-piece in the Guggenheim, which looks insane.
Nobel Son
A clever thriller that is a little convoluted but excellently cast by wonderful character actors who love their odd characters. It’s definitely worth a rental and you can get a more detailed review here.
Crossing Over
Harrison Ford leads an ensemble cast in an ethics drama, similar to Crash, about the issues surrounding the immigration problems in the United States. The film was considered too weak to fight for Academy Awards, but was still praised as a decent drama. It is likely worth a rental, especially since the director’s last film was The Cooler, an amazingly clever film.
Fired Up (the Blu-ray comes with a Digital Copy)
Fired Up is a gratuitous comedy about two guys who skip football camp to join a cheer camp and hang out with hot girls. The big selling point is, of course an Unrated edition with an !UNRATED! gag reel. Usually these things are far less exciting and are only unrated because it wasn’t screened by the MPAA, not actually scandalous material cut from the film to achieve a lower rating.
TV and Re-Issues
Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music Director’s Cut (40th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition)
You can choose between a two-disc edition which features the 1970 documentary which is a four hour director’s cut version, or a limited three-disc edition which has eighteen previously unreleased performances from artists like The Who, CCR, and Santana.
Reaper: Season 2
This may be the final season as the CW officially cancelled the show, but ABC is shopping it around for a possible cable or syndication deal. I wouldn’t get your hopes up, but it may be a cheaper option for a network needing to fill a timeslot, and may be better suited for a smaller network given its niche appeal.
The Cleaner: First Season
Benjamin Bratt stars as a man who will do anything to get people off of drugs and that includes some wildly unethical means. A&E has a lot riding on the show since they have been out of the drama business for six years, but the show is clever enough to survive for at least one more season.
WWE: Macho Madness – The Randy Savage Ultimate Collection
OOOOH YEEEEAAAAHHH! You classic wrestling fans can relive your Macho Man days with this WWE collection.
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