Some cool DVDs coming out lately, in addition to the View Askew stuff. The new Die Hard box set is going to keep things VERY occupied this week, the series has always been a guilty pleasure…And speaking of which, Big Brother and Fear Factor are proving hard to resist during the slower summer TV months. As for theaters, Scary Movie 2 really wasn’t that good (aside from that inspired Exorcist into and the subtle John Woo reference), but the Jay & Bob trailer looked very slick. Still no word on when we’ll have an online version of that trailer, but those of you who have yet to see it will be surprised. While the trailer DOES show a great deal of the film and the characters that appear, it keeps the jokes and the plotline stuff fairly minimal. Hopefully this will still leave a lot of laughs and surprises for you this August. Doesn’t look like they’re taking the American Pie route and showing EVERY funny sequence in the trailer. A good move. Finally, though it’s been an incredibly busy week, the DVD review of A Better Place is in the works. There’s still a commentary track to listen to before finishing it up, but look for that coming soon.
Phew. Alright. All that being said, let’s take a look at some news for today:
The L.A. Times Calendar section also gives the film another mention in an article about upcoming Marvel comics-related films:
“Jay and Silent Bob’s comic book alter-egos from JSBSB come to life in all their 8-inch glory, thanks to new figures from Graphitti Designs. Sportin’ 16 points of articulation apiece, Bluntman (that’s Bob) and Chronic (that’s be Jay) will be sold separtely, and come with replaceable hands. Chronic comes with a monkey, Bluntman with a “marijuana-leaf throwing star” and “bong saber.” Graphitti boss Bob Chapman also promises “a pile of poop someone stepped in.”Above, you’ll see a scan of the article above …It’s not the best pic, but hopefully we’ll have a clearer first look at these guys once they come closer to production. No release date for Bluntman & Chronic has been announced at this point. If anyone from Graphitti’s checking out the page though, get in touch with us!
I’m going to be very sorry when it’s over. I’m only in one scene, but I’m just having a blast and I didn’t know what to expect. You know I got kind of nervous because a lot of times I’ve met people that you say that maybe it’s better if I didn’t meet them. You know, “I like their act or whatever.” I’m not disparaging them, but I’m just saying the person doesn’t always match up with the image you have of what that person must be like. Whether it’s a musician, a comedian, an actor… or anything, the director’s the same. You know there’s a slight chance, “I’ve heard he’s a nice guy”, but there’s a chance of coming away less of a fan than I am now. In a way I’d like to keep it at arms distance.
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With Kevin I’m just so amazed at how easy he is. Obviously, he’s such an original voice with no background in Hollywood whatsoever and to be that successful – is so encouraging for all of us who think that “Oh, it’s got to be like generations, who you know, who you’re married to and who your agent is.” I think it should be very encouraging to people with just raw talent. You know you can really connect and hit one out of the ballpark. And having said that, you come in and you think, “Well his scripts are pretty much gospel.” And yet, he’ll say “…and that’s when you come up and say that line. Do you like that line? How would you say it?” I’m shocked that he’s willing to be so collaborative. I think that’s just the mark of someone who’s really secure with what it is they want and who it is they are.
You can read the whole piece HERE.
Tood Doogan’s review at the the Bits is excellent, and really should be printed in full here, however, since we’ll be running one ourselves next week, here’s a snippet for now, but you definitely wanna read the full review HERE:
So that brings us to the DVD. Is it worth the wait? Yep. Synapse has always been a good company for going out of their way to bring little seen films to DVD. I think I should go out of my way here to say that I’ve been very proud of Don May, Jr. for sticking to his guns and his pocketbook to support films like this. It’s not a cheap endeavor, and with the post-production tweaks put into this film by Don and Vincent, this is more a labor of love than a cash cow for anyone involved. Give him a big hug when you see him at the next film or horror convention he shows up at.
The video quality is incredible when you consider a few factors. One, the film was shot 16mm. This flick sure doesn’t look like it was shot 16mm anymore. It still has low-budgetitious with bumpy camera shots, out of focus scenes and one jarring shot that went bad in camera but was too important to loose. You’ll also see a couple of new shots in the film, added for the DVD director’s cut, that were pulled from a work print. But unless you’re intimately knowledgeable about the film, I doubt you’ll even notice them – they’re cleaned up nicely. The video itself is nicely clean. Colors are well rendered and the blacks are pretty solid. Any grain you see (and it’s surprisingly not much) is there because this is a 16mm. But the good thing is the transfer was taken from the original film element – not some 35mm blow-up.
Cleaned up even better is the sound. We get a very playful and expansive Dolby Digital 5.1 track, which was pulled together at Skywalker Ranch. You can listen to the film either blown out in 5.1, or with a suped-up Dolby Digital 2.0. Even cooler is an extra feature that allows you to compare the Dolby Digital 5.1 with the original, icky mono track for three scenes. It’ll show every wannabe filmmaker out there the power of professional sound, I tell ya.
The review gives the film and disc A’s across the board, quite an achievement, but a much deserved one, as the disc and film truly are outstanding. Check back next week for our HUGE wrapup of the disc, and get ready for your copy to arrive later this month…If you didn’t order, do it now! This one’s a keeper.
