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Monday, August 22, 2011

The Beaver, Win Win, TrollHunter, and Others on DVD Tomorrow



"What're you looking at, Sugar Tits?"

By Josh Amato

One day, our children will take off their Netflix Instant Viewing Googles and ask "Mommy . . . Daddy . . . what's a DVD?" It's the kind of question that you cringe upon hearing, hoping it was going to come when the kid was older. Your mind will scramble as you figure out where to start. VHS, LaserDisc, DVD, Blu-Ray . . . it's all so confusing. So first, you think of some examples of which films were on DVD.

You probably won't be using the following DVD releases as examples, but I just needed a segue that wasn't 100% crap (I usually settle for 90%).



The Beaver - Directed by Jodie Foster, this film was supposed to be Mel Gibson's street cred comeback, complete with a hot script and a humble, but showy, performance from Mad Max himself. Then some audio tapes were released with Mel ranting about blowjobs and burning down houses. Oh, and toss a handful of racial slurs in. This pretty much killed the film's chances in theaters, so here it is on DVD.
I haven't seen it yet, but I hear Gibson gives a FANTASTIC performance. So if you're a fan of the man and can put aside his personal life from his art, I'd say give it a chance. For FREEEEEEEDOMMMMMMM!!!!!!
(Also available on Blu-ray)









Win Win - Next up is the feel good indie of the year starring Paul Blart, sorry, Giamatti as a part-time wrestling coach. I haven't seen the film yet but it comes across as a white version of The Blind Side. Well, that film was pretty white, actually. Just take the big black guy everyone is using to excuse their white guilt and replace him with a troubled young teen. I only understand commentary that is in my face, so this is beyond me.
Anyway, haven't seen it but the reviews are great and writer/director Thomas McCarthy has an excellent track record so far.
(Also available on Blu-ray)








Pom Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold - Oh, man! Look out Corporate America, Morgan Spurlock is at it again! This time he's taking on brand names, advertising, and product placement. All while getting all of these companies to actually FUND the film by having it advertise for them. See what Spurlock did there? Shit's crazy.
(Also available on Blu-ray)













TrollHunter - The last good Troll movie was probably Troll 2. And given the massive critical and box-office success that film was, it's hard to see why they wouldn't have made Trolls 3-7. But we're just talking fiction with those films. TrollHunter is a real-life documentary, following a crew of filmmakers as they are investigating bear attacks. Things take a turn for the worst when they come across a real life giant troll. What? You didn't know trolls existed? Idiot.
(Also available on Blu-Ray)











So what say you, loyal readers? Have you seen any of these films? If not, are you considering renting any of them? All these answers and more can be posted in the comment section. And if you just feel like saying hi, well go ahead! Don't be shy. We won't bite (we're gentle nibblers).