Beavis and Butt-head - More details for Volume 2

When Beavis and Butt-Head first appeared on MTV more than a decade ago, critics dismissed them as brainless couch potatoes who did nothing but watch TV and make lewd jokes about bodily functions. Today we know they were ahead of their time. Beavis and Butt-Head's unique idiocy profoundly changed television, movies, pop culture and the world. This historic box set, personally edited by creator Mike Judge, includes their finest episodes, specials, promos and guest appearances that so enriched a grateful and stupid nation. Creator, Mike Judge has chosen his next set of favorite episodes & music videos for this collector's edition box set.

Paramount and MTV have released more information on the second volume of Beavis and Butt-Head, featuring 40 cartoons (226 mins) selected by Mike Judge. Here's what we can expect:

Music Videos:
Beastie Boys: Sabotage
Seaweed: Kid Candy
Pantera: I'm Broken
Mercyful Fate: The Bellwitch
Compulsion: Delivery
Madonna: Secret
Six Finger Satellite: Parlour Games
Pizzicato 5: Twiggy, Twiggy
Rush: Stick It Out
Radiohead: Fake Plastic Trees
Extreme: Hole-Hearted
Helium: Pat's Trick
MC 900 Ft. Jesus: If I Only Had A Brain
Taint of Greatness: The Journey of Beavis & Butt-Head, Part 2
Butt-Bowl '94
Butt-Bowl '95
Butt-Bowl '96
MTV 20th Anniversary Special
Calvin Klein Ad Parodies
Moron-a-thon Clips
Unaired I Love the 90's Segment
Beavis and Butt-Head Promos
Montages
Previews

The set goes on sale June 6.

"Brokeback" DVD ride set for April 4

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "Brokeback Mountain," which stunningly lost the best picture Academy Award this month to "Crash," is being rushed out on DVD in two weeks to capitalize on Oscar buzz, its distributor said Monday.

The gay-cowboy romance will be available on April 4, according to Universal Studios Home Entertainment.

The release is notable, not only because the film is still playing in theaters, but because there is usually a six-week window between the announcement and the street date. Observers say the narrowing gap reflects the growing clout of mass merchants over video specialists.

"You don't need six weeks to sell to Wal-Mart," said one insider.

"Brokeback" is the latest in a series of high-profile films with drastically shortened DVD solicitation periods. While the March 28 release date for "King Kong" had been speculated on by the media since early February, Universal didn't officially announce the Peter Jackson remake until the second week in March. Similarly, 20th Century Fox waited until mid-February to announce the February 28 release of "Walk the Line."

The "Brokeback Mountain" DVD boasts a documentary in which stars Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal discuss their preparations for the film, such as training for a rodeo and for wrangling. There's also a profile on Ang Lee, who won the best director Oscar for "Brokeback," as well as interviews with Oscar-winning scribes Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana as they discuss bringing Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx's short story to the screen.

Music DVDs see growth spurt, data show

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The music DVD business grew at a higher rate in 2005 than the DVD business overall, according to sales data issued Tuesday.

Excluding CD-DVD combos, suppliers last year sold 21.4 million music DVDs, up from 20.6 million in 2004, according to Nielsen Entertainment research presented at the second annual Music DVD Awards. That translates to nearly 4% growth compared with growth of less than 1% for the DVD business overall.

Even so, music DVDs account for just 2.7% of total music transactions recorded in 2005, the first year the total number of transactions topped 1 billion. CDs still account for the vast majority of music purchases, Nielsen research shows, with 61.7%, followed by digital tracks at 35.2%.

Among retailers, mass merchants are in the lead when it comes to music DVD sales, enjoying 7% growth in 2005. Also on the upswing is the DualDisc, a hybrid that consists of a bonded disc with CD content on one side and DVD content on the other. Nielsen research shows that since the format's official bow in February 2005, 9.7 million DualDiscs have been snapped up by consumers, or 15% of total music sales.

During the conference, produced by trade publication Home Media Retailing in partnership with The Hollywood Reporter, DEG: the Digital Entertainment Group and the Video Software Dealers Assn., panelists discussed ways to grow the market while realizing music DVDs always will be a niche business.

Music DVDs can serve as a strong branding opportunity for an artist or group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment senior vp sales Harry Safter said. His company's release of a Los Lonely Boys DVD served as a bridge between two album releases, keeping interest and visibility high for the Texas-based country-rock group.

Labels primarily consider DualDisc an audio product, and they aren't abandoning the practice of releasing double-disc sets that include a DVD and CD separately. "The days of a single-format world are over," said Bill Sondheim, executive vp at DualDisc Worldwide for Sony BMG.

Also possibly on the horizon are more window-like strategies for music DVDs and the music market as a whole, panelists said.

The ideal window strategy for a music DVD would be to time it with an artist's new album release and tour, offering a digital-cinema blast around the street date and then have a TV airing, said Steve Sterling, senior vp programming and production at Live Nation, formerly Clear Channel Entertainment Home Video.

"If I could schedule that every time, I'd feel good about spending $1 million-$2 million on a release," he said. "But it's still art we are dealing with here, and it's very hard to put art in a bottle, let alone on a schedule."

How to monetize all the opportunities that the Internet and digital delivery can offer is a key issue the business must start addressing to keep up with the consumer, panelists said. Music DVDs need more and better marketing to draw in the core fans and broaden the awareness of product as it hits the streets.

Earl Hickey, Meet Stewie Griffin

LOS ANGELES -- Imagine for a moment a TV world in which Earl Hickey, after winning his $100,000 and getting run over by a car, doesn't see Carson Daly talking about karma from his hospital bed.

Imagine, instead, that he instead took a life lesson from ... Stewie Griffin.

Or, save yourself some imaginative effort and just wait until the first season of "My Name Is Earl" is released on DVD sometime later this year. Because then you'll find out.

Greg Garcia, creator of the hit NBC comedy, unveiled plans for the show's first-season DVD set Tuesday night (March 7) to the audience at the Museum of Television & Radio's annual Paley Festival. He says it should be released before the show's second season begins in the fall, and it will contain a fair number of bells and whistles including commentary tracks and selections from "hours and hours" of gag-reel footage cast and crew have accumulated this year.

"We're actually doing 15-minute mini-episode [that asks] what if Earl [Jason Lee] passed by Carson Daly and landed on Stewie from 'Family Guy,'" Garcia says. Garcia is a former producer on "Family Guy," and both it and "Earl" are produced by 20th Century Fox TV.

Lee and Garcia also discussed the origins of television's most famous facial hair since the heyday of "Magnum, P.I." Garcia says that NBC initially was hesitant about having a mustachioed Earl, "but Jason said, 'Trust me, I look funny with facial hair.'"

The network did, however, convince Lee to trim the 'stache back a little bit. "I originally went for a fu manchu, but NBC said no. I guess it made me look a little bit too trashy," he says. "So we sort of shaved off the chu and left the fu man."

"My Name Is Earl" is in the homestretch of production for this season, with three episodes and part of a fourth left to shoot. Garcia says in the season finale, we'll find out the No. 1 item on Earl's karmic to-do list, which was the misdeed he performed just before he won the lottery.

Other upcoming episodes include two that were screened for the audience Tuesday: one in which Earl and Randy (Ethan Suplee) try to make up for all the bad Mother's Days they've given their mom (Nancy Linehan and Beau Bridges reprise their roles as Earl's parents) and a flashback-heavy episode that shows how Earl, Randy, Joy (Jaime Pressly) and Darnell (Eddie Steeples) lived through Y2K.

New, improved on DVD, "Network" hasn't aged a day

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "I think I'd like to be an angry prophet denouncing the hypocrisies of our time," fallen news anchor Howard Beale tells co-workers in the opening minutes of Paddy Chayefsky's masterpiece "Network."

Writer Chayefsky, equally mad as hell, used his black comedy about a raggedy fourth TV network to denounce the hypocrisies of 1976 and warn of media evils to come.

Like his creation Sybil the Soothsayer, "Paddy was capable of seeing the future," director Sidney Lumet says. Chayefsky warned of entertainment masquerading as news, corporate meddling, violent reality shows, the tyranny of ratings, foreign ownership of U.S. media -- essentially the strip-mining of what already was a vast wasteland.

"The vision that the movie displayed so eloquently is alive today," producer Howard Gottfried maintains. Adds Lumet, "TV today has become its own satire."

Warner Bros. has released "Network" in a double-disc set that's tagged "Still mad as hell after 30 years." Disc 1 includes a sober but quite good commentary from Lumet, who focuses on who won what Oscar, why he rehearses actors and the thinking behind the "Network" lighting scheme, in which "even the camera is corrupted" as the movie descends into anarchy.

The extra features leadoff is a making-of by DVD documentary specialist Laurent Bouzereau. It includes chapters on the late Chayefsky, the "mad as hell" phenomenon and the film's powerhouse actors. The docus cover a lot of material and get the job done, but don't expect much of that loopy "Network" spirit.

Also on Disc 2, Chayefsky ponders "Network" on a segment of the talk show "Dinah!" And there's an hour-long Lumet retrospective from 2005, when he received an honorary Oscar, partly to atone for oversights that included losing the best director award (for "Network") to John Avildsen for "Rocky."

"THE DEATH HOUR." A GREAT SUNDAY NIGHT SHOW FOR THE WHOLE

FAMILY.

Aside from "Network's" on-air killing of a TV personality -- "because he had lousy ratings" -- all of its outrageous events happened in real life, Lumet points out.

"Network" anchorman Beale (Peter Finch) starts his wild ride by threatening to kill himself on camera. Crazy talk, but it mirrored headlines of the time. In 1974, as Chayefsky was writing "Network," a Florida TV personality shot herself to death on a morning show, saying it was "in keeping with (the) policy of bringing you the latest in blood and guts." In the world of "Network," an on-air suicide was good for "a 50 share, easily."

The home video hit "Faces of Death" followed "Network" by two years, launching an above-ground snuff franchise. "Cops," "The Morton Downey Jr. Show" and Howard Stern were in the wings.

Today, death and violence -- real and imagined -- do brisk business in all media. News divisions draw and redraw the line between electronic journalism and morbid pandering. Freeway chases don't always end with surrenders and handcuffs, a percentage play that keeps viewers tuning in at 10 and 11. Local TV news "is as corrupt as anything I've ever seen," Lumet charges.

As for death in primetime, the director says: "On one of the reality shows it'll happen. There will be a real death. And it'll be shown to you, I promise."

Ratings are money, Chayefsky said in 1976. "If you follow the desire to get ratings . . . we will pursue this right into 'Coliseum '77' -- in which we will throw Christians to the lions every Saturday night."

The message of "Network," he said, was, "When do we say 'Hold it!' A human life is a hell of a lot more important than your lousy dollar."

Star Faye Dunaway reflects: "The reason ('Network') was so funny was because it was so outrageous. You're thinking, 'C'mon, nobody's going to kill somebody on television, are they?' And now we sort of think, yeah, we think so."

THE NEWS DIVISION WILL BE REDUCED FROM AN INDEPENDENT

DIVISION TO A DEPARTMENT ACCOUNTABLE TO NETWORK.

Walter Cronkite, who worked with Lumet on the historical re-enactment series "You Are There," recalls CBS news staffers' reactions to "Network": "I understand it was supposed to be a combination of drama and comedy, but to us it was all comedy -- it was so overdrawn. . . . We howled with laughter."

Chayefsky talked extensively with NBC's John Chancellor but otherwise relied on his own adventures in live television. Cronkite says accusations that Chayefsky and Lumet were turning on the medium that made them were just "sour grapes from some who were envious." Adds Lumet: "We didn't leave TV. It left us."

Of ratings demands on network news, Cronkite says, "It is a fact that the pressure is there" to entertain. But taken too far, "The newspeople would revolt, pressure and maybe quit." As they did in "Network." Sort of.

Cronkite, whose daughter Kathy played the film's Patty Hearst lookalike, says the film's legacy is "it waved a banner of warning to the TV industry that it better not let things do as far as it did on that (UBS) network."

ALL I WANT OUT OF LIFE IS A 30 SHARE AND A 20 RATING.

Faye Dunaway's portrayal of lone-wolf programming VP Diana Christensen won her the best actress Oscar -- and it is her top-billed performance that gets the most attention in the DVD extras.

Diana, "who learned life from Bugs Bunny," stalks the sagging UBS network's news division, eventually hijacking its madman anchor for her evening news carnival. The ratings potential of her show "The Mao Tse-Tung Hour," featuring the criminal exploits of black radicals, brings the slinky executive to orgasm. She beds the everyman news chief (William Holden), stealing him from his wife and then stealing his division.

The part "wasn't easy to say yes to," Dunaway says. "I was advised not to do it. Because, you know, she didn't have a soul. She was a TV baby. There was a vacantness behind those eyes. People were afraid I'd be thought of that way."

Theater veterans Dunaway and Finch helped Holden adjust to Lumet's drawn-out rehearsals, a new one on the longtime film star. Dunaway says rehearsals "always struck me as insane not to do" on films.

SHE GETS THE WINTER PASSION; I GET THE DOTAGE.

Three "Network" players won Academy Awards: Dunaway, Finch (posthumously) and Beatrice Straight. There were five acting nominations in all, making the cast the most honored in Oscar history.

Straight, a stage actress, took home the supporting actress gold for one five-minute scene, in which Holden's newsman tells his wife of 25 years he's in love with the beautiful young programming exec. Her reply, in a heartbreaking monologue, contains some of Chayefsky's finest writing. Lumet says he deliberately exhausted the actress by making her do repeated takes, then captured this amazing scene.

Ned Beatty, who played a corporate chieftain, likewise was nominated for a single scene in which he uses the voice of doom to warn Beale that he's "meddled with the primal forces of nature." Beatty, who mimicked his hometown holy roller for the tirade, describes himself as just "a day player" on the film.

"Network" couldn't beat "Rocky" in the best picture race, a loss that Chayefsky took hard. "I think it's a hell of a film," he told Dinah Shore.

VIDEO DIFFICULTIES ARE TEMPORARY -- PLEASE DO NOT ADJUST

YOUR SET.

The new! improved! "Network" DVD smokes Warner's bare-bones versions of 1998 and 2000. Images are suitably colorful and handsome for a '70s film, though the presentation suffers from some speckling and unwelcome grain. The stereo Dolby Digital seems challenged by the audio's occasional spikes, lessening their intended impact. The aspect ratio is 2.35:1; the video employs the enhancement for widescreen monitors.

Woody serves up Match Point

A serious departure for Woody Allen in virtually every respect, Match Point still bares the soul of its director from start to finish. Dreamworks will unveil the story of luck and disaster on DVD this spring.

A one-time tennis pro, Chris Wilton (was used to falling just short in his life. But when he befriends Tom Hewett (and marries his sister, Chloe), the doors are opened to the kind of money and success that Chris had once only dreamed of. Chris should have settled for happiness, but he is torn by his attraction to Tom’s impossibly beautiful and sensual fiance, Nola. The attraction turns to an obsession that forces Chris to make a critical choice. Now everything in his life hinges on if Chris falls short again…and whether or not his luck runs out.

The DVD like all Allen films will be in mono only, but with an anamorphic widescreen transfer. No supplements appear to be included.

The DVD arrives on April 25th with a $29.98 suggested retail price.

DVDs: Oscar special

Sunday is Oscar's golden moment so it is no surprise that a slew of Oscar-nominated films are coming to DVD.

One crucial factor is that most of the 2006 Academy Award nomination leaders are art films and/or edgier material, not mainstream studio blockbusters. So they need awards to fuel their financial success, in theatres and on DVD.

Of the 35 films that received at least one Oscar nomination in the feature categories for 2005, 12 have already been released and the rest are pending.

Here are the titles that are available:

WALK THE LINE

Out on DVD tomorrow. James Mangold's stirring biopic of legendary country music couple Johnny Cash and June Carter earned five Oscar noms but missed out in the best picture category. Both Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon are acting contenders, with Witherspoon cited as the likely best actress winner. Both actors are excellent dramatically and -- because their vocal stylings invoke the originals -- ace the singing, too.

The DVD is available in the basic one-disc release, in separate full and widescreen editions. It has Mangold's excellent, thoughtful commentary plus 10 deleted scenes with optional commentaries.

Better is the widescreen-only, two-disc Collector's Edition that, in addition to five souvenir postcards, has the same first disc plus a second disc of first-rate bonus materials. There are extended versions of three songs, with Cocaine Blues the star entry. Strong featurettes background Cash & Carter, focus on the upheavals of 1968 as the year of crisis and redemption for Cash and explain how Mangold struggled for a decade to make this film.

The crucial thing missing is live performances by Cash & Carter. For that, and a lot of religion, turn to tomorrow's widescreen DVD release of Gospel Road: A Story Of Jesus (1973), in which Cash talks/sings through a docu-drama about the life of Jesus, with Carter as Mary Magdalene. It is crudely done but heartfelt.

PRIDE & PREJUDICE

Out tomorrow as well. Joe Wright's lovely reworking of Jane Austen's classic novel earned four nominations, key among them Keira Knightley as best actress. The DVD is available in separate full and widescreen editions that boast good extras.

Wright's droll commentary is articulate, as is his participation in the four featurettes which delve into the history of Austen and the making of the film. The highlight is listening to Donald Sutherland wax poetic about Knightley, whom he adores and respects, and watching Brenda Blethyn with her bubbly brood of girls on set.

GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK

Out on DVD March 14. George Clooney's sly second film as a director is less a conventional narrative and more of a poetic mood piece about a political era: The upheavals of Joe McCarthy's Communist witchhunts of the 1950s. It earned six noms -- including best picture, Clooney as best director and the wonderfully subtle David Strathairn, who plays crusading TV journalist Edward R. Murrow, as best actor.

The widescreen DVD will feature a sometimes funny, even silly, but often useful commentary shared by Clooney and co-writer/co-star Grant Heslov. The DVD is good but this is a title that demands more, perhaps even a civics lesson. A special edition DVD would be welcome.

CAPOTE

Out on DVD March 21. Bennett Miller shocked Hollywood with the subtle yet explosive quality of his biopic about colourful writer Truman Capote and his controversial research for In Cold Blood. The film earned five noms, including as best picture and Philip Seymour Hoffman as best actor. Hoffman is the front-runner for not merely his mimicry of Capote's high-pitched voice but his embodiment of Capote's tragic internal conflicts.

The widescreen DVD will contain a lineup of excellent extras, none of them hype and all created with the same clear-minded care as the film. Among insights, Miller says of casting Hoffman: "It was a huge risk for Phil to take. The possibility of profound humiliation is always there."

CRASH

On DVD since Sept. 6 last year; a special edition due April 4. Paul Haggis, who was born in London, Ont., leapt into the public eye by writing Million Dollar Baby. Now his remarkable L.A. race drama has six noms, including as best picture, with Haggis named as best director and for best original screenplay (shared with Bobby Moresco).

The original DVD, available in full or widescreen, has a commentary shared by Haggis, Moresco and Don Cheadle, as well as a punchy featurette on the making of the film and its ambition to illuminate the race struggle. "This is a passion piece," Haggis says. That is why the special edition due in April is appropriate. Even more is a good thing.

OSCAR'S DVD LIST

Release dates for selected Oscar nominees:

Crash: Sept. 06, 2005
Batman Begins: Oct. 18, 2005
Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge Of the Sith: Nov. 1, 2005
Charlie And The Chocolate Factory: Nov. 8, 2005
War Of The Worlds: Nov. 22, 2005
Cinderella Man: Dec. 6, 2005
The Constant Gardener: Jan. 10
Hustle & Flow: Jan. 10
Junebug: Jan. 17
Tim Burton's Corpse Bride: Jan. 31
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit: Feb. 7
North Country: Feb. 21
Walk The Line: Feb. 28
Pride & Prejudice: Feb. 28
Howl's Moving Castle: March 7
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire: March 7
Good Night, And Good Luck: March 14
A History Of Violence: March 14
Capote: March 21
The Squid And The Whale: March 21
Memoirs Of A Geisha: March 28
King Kong: March 28
Brokeback Mountain: April 4
Crash: April 4 (Special Edition)
The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe: April 4
Munich: TBA
Match Point: TBA
Syriana: TBA
Mrs. Henderson Presents:TBA
Transamerica: TBA
The New World: TBA

The Couch Potato Report - February 21st, 2006

This week The Couch Potato Report includes two releases that I don't really have an opinion on.

Each week I sit here and give you my thoughts, musings and opinions on new video and DVD releases.

Whether it is a release I loved - like DOCTOR WHO - or one I hated - such as WAITING - I usually have an opinion.

This week I don't.

Over the past seven days I watched the film NORTH COUNTRY and the first season of the TV show GREY'S ANATOMY, but neither release moved me enough to have an opinion about it.

I didn't like them, I didn't hate them. I didn't enjoy them, I didn't not enjoy them.

Wait, was that a double negative? Well, if there is a double negative in my thoughts, at least there isn't a double negative regarding this week's two releases.

No negatives, no positives, just some thoughts. So let me get to them.

I'll start with NORTH COUNTRY.

This film is "based on real life events" that took place in the late seventies and eighties at a mine in Minnesota state.

Academy Award winner Charlize Theron from MONSTER stars as a woman who goes to work in the mine, to the dismay of her male co-workers.

Theron only wants the job because she has two children to feed after leaving her husband and the mine will pay six times what she was making elsewhere.

From her first day on the job she learns that she isn't wanted. Even the human resources manager tells her and her female counterparts that he doesn't want them there and if it wasn't for the Supreme Court, he wouldn't have hired them.

But NORTH COUNTRY is only partially about the hardships that Theron and her co-working women face in the mine. It is also about the first class action sexual harassment lawsuit that was filed against the mine in the early 1990's.

A case of which the outcome is clearly revealed on the film's packaging, an outcome I am not going to give you.

The women in NORTH COUNTRY's story are threatened, attacked, degraded and made to feel like second-class citizens.

While watching the movie I felt sorry for them, and I felt saddened that they had to put up with this abuse just because they wanted to earn a living.

But once you know the outcome of the lawsuit, there is no drama in the film. The middle of the film, the "how do they get from the mine to the conclusion" has little to offer as a movie, and by the end of the two hour plus running time I was indifferent.

It is a very positive thing that these real life women fought back against their oppressors. Everyone should do that! The fictionalized movie named NORTH COUNTRY that tries to tell their story is neither positive nor negative.

It isn't good enough to recommend it and it isn't bad enough for me to tell you to ignore it.

Charlize Theron may have received an Oscar nomination for her work, but the movie she is in just didn't move me enough to have any feelings about it whatsoever.

And neither did the first season of the medical ensemble drama GREY'S ANATOMY.

The second season of this show airs on TV Sunday nights and last week the show was the fourth highest watched program in North America.

Now, GREY'S ANATOMY - SEASON ONE is available on DVD.

GREY'S ANATOMY is a one-hour drama that is primarily about five young and very competitive surgical interns at a fictional hospital in Seattle.

The doctors all juggle romance - in and out of work - and try to remain friends while they simultaneously try to grab the best cases and perform surgeries.

I never got in to the show when it first debuted, and I don't watch GREY'S ANATOMY now, but I did sit down and watch all nine of the episodes on this new 2-DVD set.

As I was watching them I started to think of the medical dramas that I have enjoyed over the years from ST. ELSEWHERE to SCRUBS, and while I didn't feel that GREY'S ANATOMY was in the same league as those shows, I had no problems watching all 9 of the episodes, and the DVD's extra features.

I didn't love it, I didn't hate it, and I didn't try and figure out how the show is doing so well in the ratings.

I watched it, it ended, yet I don't have an opinion about it.

Of course, I suppose the fact that I don't have an opinion on GREY'S ANATOMY or NORTH COUNTRY can be taken as a negative review since if I liked them I would just say I liked them.

However, I didn't like them, and I didn't dislike them.

I watched them, and they are over.

And now both NORTH COUNTRY and GREY'S ANATOMY - SEASON ONE are available at a store near you for you to watch and see if you can form an opinion about them.

Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report

The superb WALK THE LINE is a cinematic look at the early years in the life of Johnny Cash.

Jane Austen's book PRIDE & PREJUDICE is given a youthful update with Oscar nominee Keira Knightley leading the cast.

And it is time to celebrate the 50th ANNIVERSARY EDITION of Walt Disney's masterpiece LADY & THE TRAMP.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next time on The Couch!

Napoleon Dynamite gets the Special Edition treatment

Scheduled for release in May, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has just unveiled plans for Napoleon Dynamite - Like The Best Special Edition Ever!
“Napoleon Dynamite” is a new kind of hero, complete with a tight red 'fro, sweet moon boots, and skills that can’t be topped. Napoleon spends his days drawing mythical beasts, duking it out with his brother, Kip, and avoiding his scheming Uncle Rico. When two new friends enter Napoleon's life - shy Deb and mustachioed Pedro - the trio launches a campaign to elect Pedro for class president and make the student body's wildest dreams come true. But if Pedro is to beat by stuck-up Summer, Napoleon will have to unleash his secret weapon...

This 2-disc Special Edition will contain an anamorphic widescreen transfer of the film complete with a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track, as well as Dolby surround tracks in English, French and Spanish. Additionally, the release will contain a Commentary Track featuring Jon Heder, director Jared Hess and producer Jeremy Coon.

A selection of Deleted Scenes will be included, complemented by optional commentary, as well as a Photo Gallery.

On the second disc of the release you will find The Short Film “Peluca” complete with a commentary track, as well as a Featurette called “The Wedding Of The Century!” “The Real Napoleon Dynamite” is another Featurette found on the release, as well as a “Behind-the-scenes” featurette. Then there will be the MTV Interstitials as well as Outtakes from these interstitials, as well as Interstitial Raw Tapes.

Last but not least, you will get to see “Napoleon Sightings,” a selection of “Napoleon Dynamite” Interstitials and Clips including the ESPN clip – “2005 Scripps National Spelling Bee”, clips from TRL, clips from the MTV Movie Awards, the opening of SNL with Jon Heder, Cartoon Network-Napoleon Bonomite, the 2004 Teen Choice Awards-Napoleon Dynamite & Nicole Richie Playing Tetherball, the 2005 Teen Choice Awards-Hissy Fit Award, new outtakes and deleted scenes, sweet Jumps-Nap on the bike outtakes, Lord of the Dance-freestyle dance of Napoleon filmed during Peluca and Chugger - alternate scenes of chugging sports drink.

“Napoleon Dynamite - Like The Best Special Edition Ever!” will be in stores on May 16 and carry a $26.98 suggested retail price.

Doctor Who - Canadian Release Of 2005 Show Delayed?!?!

The 2005 version of Doctor Who, starring Christopher Eccleston as the 9th Doctor, was delayed in the USA until the 4th of July holiday, due to the SciFi Channel's pick-up of the show for broadcast in the USA on the popular cable network.

The Canadian release, as of last week, was still on track for its long-planned February 14th release.

Even though Amazon.ca's website now states "Usually ships within 24 hours." there are some internet rumours that the streetdate is now March 7th.

I have ordered it from Amazon.ca and in my account information it states: "Delivery estimate: Feb 21 2006 - Feb 23 2006."

I can't get any real confirmation on this, but if it is delayed until March, it is still coming out four months ahead of the south-of-the-border DVD release!

Cash dividend: 3 "Line" DVDs arriving February 28

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Hoping to ride on the Oscar buzz for "Walk the Line," 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is rushing the Johnny Cash biopic to DVD in three versions February 28.

"Line" is up for five Oscars, including best actor for Joaquin Phoenix, who portrays the Man in Black, and best actress for Reese Witherspoon, who plays his wife and musical partner, June Carter.

Consumers can choose from a single-disc widescreen edition, a single-disc full-screen edition and a two-disc special edition packed with extras.

All three versions come with a commentary by director James Mangold and 10 deleted scenes.

The two-disc edition also comes with three extended musical sequences, three featurettes and collectible postcards.

The film won three Golden Globe Awards last month, for Phoenix and Witherspoon and as best picture in the musical/comedy category.

"Baywatch" washing up on DVD

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Beach-and-babes TV series "Baywatch" is finally headed to DVD.

A late-summer best-of set, with episodes chosen by star Pamela Anderson, will be the initial release, followed by complete series sets.

"Baywatch," which aired from 1989-2001, is again making headlines, with a big-budget movie in the works from director Eli Roth ("Hostel," "Cabin Fever").

The series gained fame for its look at the Southern California beach lifestyle as seen through the eyes of a team of sexy lifeguards.

Armstrong Recalls 'Moonlighting' Days

Curtis Armstrong had an atypical introduction to film and television work.
"I was spoiled going into movies, because my first movie was 'Risky Business' and I was spoiled for television by 'Moonlighting,'" says the veteran character actor.

Armstrong arrived on "Moonlighting" early in its third season, a transitional moment for the private investigator comedy. The show had just received 16 Emmy nominations, including a somewhat peculiar outstanding drama series nod.

"Once 'Moonlighting' had established its reputation for being clever and flip and self-referential, that's what everybody was looking for and at the same time everyone's looking for that, maybe the leads are saying, 'You know, we've done a pie fight and we've done drag. Now I would like to do something that gives me a little exercise.'" Armstrong says.

Introduced as an unwilling love interest for Allyce Beasley's Agnes, Armstrong's Herbert Viola initially provided an awkward, bumbling injection of humor, allowing stars Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd to concentrate on their emotions.

"As much as it may have pleased Bruce to do serious dramatic stretches on that show, it may not have been what the audience particularly wanted," explains Armstrong. "They might have liked the flip, crazy David Addison of the old days, so they needed somebody to dress up as a woman and pop out of a cake and that was me."

The show's third season, premiering on DVD on Tuesday (Feb. 7), had only 15 episodes. Amidst that truncated schedule came classics like "Atomic Shakespeare," the show's take-off on "Taming of the Shrew."

"They wrote the script, which was so clever, and they had these fabulous costumes ... and then we went to shoot at the Court of Miracles at the backlot of Universal and, for me, this was the biggest thrill of my life, because I had grown up loving the old Universal horror movies and the Universal Sherlock Holmes movies, which all took place on that set," Armstrong recalls.

That season also featured "The Straight Poop," a behind-the-scenes exploration of the animosity between Willis' Dave Addison and Shepherd's Maddie Hayes, which parodied tabloid rumors surrounding the real on-set antics.

"Because of the tensions around the set there were different camps and you had to avoid being in any of the camps -- and I'm not just talking about two camps, there were other camps," Armstrong says. "They were dancing around this Maypole of weirdness and stress."

Armstrong only recently revisited his "Moonlighting" experience, screening an episode for his daughter.

"It was enough to live it and I've never really been compelled to relive it," he laughs.

Armstrong has found Europeans associate him with "Moonlighting," while Americans recognize his familiar face from films like "Revenge of the Nerds" and "Better Off Dead." Armstrong has never had a problem being approached by fans, even ones calling him "Booger."

"The way I look at is, if you're an actor and you have one role in a career that people remember with affection and write you letters about and stop you in the street, then you're damned lucky. To have more than one is an incredible blessing."

PHASE OF THE 'MOON'

Twenty years after it debuted, "Moonlighting" is still a constant presence for stars Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis and show creator Glenn Gordon Caron.

Shepherd and Willis, who shot to fame on "Moonlighting," famously had their ups and downs — with their own lives and with each other — during the show's storied run.

The third season of "Moonlighting," which some consider the show's best — and a season fraught with interruptions, delays and agita on the part of ABC execs — is being released Tuesday on DVD (Lion's Gate).

"I think we'd be fine working together," Shepherd says. "People sure want Bruce and I to work together again. They want the 'Moonlighting' reunion, obviously, but Glenn doesn't know how to do it.

"He feels like we shouldn't revisit it because we did it so well. Just leave it in the past," Shepherd says.

Tuesday's DVD release reminds everyone of one of the most tumultuous, nerve-wracking, controversial and exciting seasons for any show in TV history.

"I do have a diary that I kept," says Shepherd. "I dictated it into a cassette recorder. And I wouldn't want that published."

Everyone knows about the on-set fighting, the delayed scripts, the weeks between original episodes and the prints — delivered to ABC so late the nights they aired, the network saw the new episodes the same time as America.

And, in the midst of it all, Shepherd gave birth to twins.

"Oh, how in the world did I do that?" laughs Shepherd, just back from Sundance with her new movie "Open Window." "I really don't know how."

The show only produced 15 episodes in that third season, thanks to that pregnancy, a skiing accident with Willis and the lengthy delays as Caron crafted scripts. But the results were legendary.

One episode began with a Movietone newsreel story about the lack of episodes. Another episode — a stop-gap clip job — featured gossip queen Rona Barrett on the set talking with cast members about their squabbles.

And then there's Maddie getting married to a dweeb she barely knew, Dave and Maddie finally sleeping together and perhaps the most famous "Moonlighting" episode of all: "Atomic Shakespeare," their re-telling of "The Taming of the Shrew."

The fights ("I once threw a director's chair against a wall," admits Shepherd) didn't get in the way. In some ways, they helped.

"When we met, Bruce and I had this great sexual chemistry and also the idea of sending each other up," says Shepherd.

"We would see the absolute worst in each other as characters, as David and Maddie. We fought before every scene in which we had a fight.

"At some point, I realized it and mentioned it to Bruce and he said, 'Yeah, you're right.' That didn't change it."

The twins Cybill gave birth to played a big role, too.

"When we did the interviews and commentary for the DVDs, Bruce thanked me profusely for getting pregnant because it made it possible for him to do 'Die Hard.' "

'Mermaid' Swims to DVD Oct. 3

The Little Mermaid will be the next Walt Disney animated classic to get the full VIP treatment on DVD.

The 1989 film won two Oscars (for best song and best original score) and is credited with revitalizing Disney’s animated features after a long dry spell. It will arrive in stores Oct. 3 (prebook Aug. 8) at $29.99 as the studio’s eighth “Platinum Edition” DVD, a designation that brings with it significantly more bells and whistles than a standard DVD release.

The film is Disney’s eighth Platinum Edition DVD — following Lady and The Tramp, which streets Feb. 28 — and marks the first time The Little Mermaid will be available on DVD in seven years.

“The Little Mermaid is a monumental film in the history of Disney animation that is beloved by everyone,” said Gordon Ho, EVP of brand marketing and business development for Buena Vista Home Entertainment. “It signaled the beginning of a new era of animation at the Walt Disney Studios that included Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King.”

Ho said Mermaid is the most-requested Disney movie for release on DVD and will be backed by a massive marketing campaign similar to that for Cinderella, last year’s holiday-season Platinum Edition release. Cinderella went on to sell more than 6.5 million units and, according to Nielsen VideoScan data, is the No. 8 DVD seller of 2005, outselling such major new theatricals as Batman Begins and Ray.

Like other Platinum Edition releases, The Little Mermaid will be a two-disc set, with one disc reserved solely for bonus materials. Several cutting-edge features still are being developed, along with such expected extras as deleted scenes, commentaries, and featurettes on various aspects of the making of the movie. The DVD also will include several musical bonuses.

Ho said the film itself has been digitally restored, as has the audio track.

And like Cinderella, Ho said, Disney Consumer Products is working with a variety of partners to develop “a whole range of licensed products” to hit stores at the same time as the DVD, from costumes and other apparel to dolls and toys — more than 2,000 new products, in all.

“One of the greatest things about working on DVD releases like The Little Mermaid is that unlike a big theatrical release, we have the ability to plan very far in advance because we don’t have to guess whether the film will become a hit,” Ho said. “It already is.”

Two 'Narnia' versions to hit DVD in April

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Disney has big DVD plans for "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," preparing two versions of the blockbuster hit for release on April 4.

Both the single-disc version ($19.99) and a two-disc edition ($29.99) will include two commentaries with director Andrew Adamson, one in which he's accompanied by other filmmakers and the other, by children. Both versions also will come with pop-up windows throughout the film with facts on the movie and "Narnia" author C.S. Lewis.

The double-disc "Narnia" also will come with a booklet, concept art, storytelling diaries of the filmmakers, a "making of" featurette, an interactive map of Narnia and other extras.

Also in the works from Disney is a single-disc version of "Chicken Little," the studio's first computer-animated film produced in-house rather than by Pixar. The DVD will be out March 21 and include music videos, "making of" featurettes on the animation process and the vocal talent, and deleted scenes, including an early take in which Chicken Little is a girl voiced by Holly Hunter.

Disney also has begun showing an 11-minute preview of the direct-to-video sequel "Bambi II" on the film's Web site (http://www.bambi2DVD.com) in advance of the February 7 street date. The belated sequel to the 1942 animated classic will be in stores only 70 days before it is placed on moratorium.

The controversial sitcom Action comes to DVD in February!

The show too controversial for network television Action: The Complete Series – Uncut and Unbleeped!, starring Jay Mohr, Illeana Douglas, Buddy Hackett, Jarrad Paul and Jack Plotnick, debuts on DVD this February from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

“Action” took on Hollywood and the censors with its no holds barred, bleep-filled take on the film industry. Executive Producers Joel Silver, Ted Demme and Don Reo took great pride in pushing sitcom boundaries with their wry, campy and irreverent humor along with a “no mercy” attitude toward Hollywood and the show’s characters. Shot with just a single camera, the innovative series featured cameos by top talent in almost every episode, including appearances by Keanu Reeves, Salma Hayek, Sandra Bullock and Scott Wolf.

In the show, mega-producer Peter Dragon (Jay Mohr) has a track-record of huge box-office hits, and a hugely inflated ego, even by Hollywood standards. A Xantac-popping, stereotypical over-the-top producer who everyone loves to hate, Peter’s record of box office hits was perfect … until his last cinematic bomb. Determined to remain on the Hollywood "hit" list he resorts to desperate measures. Dragon hires Wendy Ward (Illeana Douglas), a former child TV star who is now a call girl, to be his new development executive since she’s the only one he can trust to tell him the truth. Rounding out the cast are Jack Plotnick as Vice President of Development Stuart Glazer, Jarrad Paul playing neurotic writer Adam Rifkin and Buddy Hackett as Uncle Lonnie, the head of security who spends most of his time sleeping on the couch.

The DVD version will feature all 13 episodes from the show in 2-disc DVD set. The release is scheduled for February 21 and will carry a $24.96 suggested retail price.

The year in DVD

From collector's editions to favourite shows, Hollywood brought it home

DVD sales have long been Hollywood's crutch of choice. While movie audiences have been shrinking for years, the home entertainment business has assured robust profit margins for studios that now rake in more cash from DVDs than box office. 2005 leaves us, however, with the industry facing an uncertain future. In question is who will win the critical battle to determine what next-generation DVD technology looks like. Sony, which backs Blue-ray high-definition discs, appears to be the likely victor because it has the support of both Hollywood studios -- and will be built into next year's PlayStation 3 game console.

Opposing the Blu-ray group (not to be confused with the Blue Man Group) is a consortium, including Toshiba, that has developed the HD DVD format. Time is of the essence because sales of flat-screen high-definition television sets are spiking.

Worrisome, too, are recent reports that DVD sales may be peaking amid a pop culture landscape exploding with entertainment choices and ever-new technologies.

We say -- let the suits do the fretting. We're happy to kick back and pop in our favourite movie. Here are the Calgary Sun's picks for the best movies released in 2005 on DVD.

1) SIDEWAYS: Alexander Payne's keenly-observed follow-up to About Schmidt is both a mellow character study and a high farce drunk with emotion. The commentary by Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church reveals the easy rapport they share on-screen translates off-camera too.

2) MILLION DOLLAR BABY: "I'm just doing what feels right," Clint Eastwood tells effusive interviewer James Lipton (Inside The Actors Studio) during a chat with Oscar-winning trio Eastwood, Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman on the DVD. "I don't think too much about it." True, as a director, Eastwood makes every blow count. His wrenching, Oscar-winning Million Dollar Baby is as spare and economical as the screen icon himself. Eastwood's drama is as much about faith, sacrifice and contrition as exchanging left hooks.

3) STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH: The year's biggest DVD -- and movie -- redeemed creator George Lucas with its sinister tale of how Anakin Skywalker finally fell to the dark side of the Force to become Darth Vader. The DVD's bounty of extras is a Wookiee-like shout-out to fanboys.

4) CINDERELLA MAN: Ron Howard's biography of Depression-era boxing legend James Braddock is a crowd-pleaser that entertains more than it illuminates. That said, it's also packs a sucker punch thanks to an Oscar-worthy turn by Russell Crowe. For fans, the DVD goes so far to provide analysis of the actual Braddock-Baer fight that concludes Howard's drama.

5) THE INCREDIBLES: Smart, sly, sleek and sophisticated entertainment that continues Pixar's unprecedented dominance of all that is animated (Toy Story, Monsters Inc., A Bug's Life and Finding Nemo). The two-disc DVD is crammed with extras -- the standout being the Brad Bird-directed short film Jack Jack Attack.

6) BATMAN BEGINS: Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins scraps the neon gaudiness of Joel Schumacher's movies and puts Bats (Christian Bale) back in black. It's darker, fiercer and far more ambitious than the previous films.

7) FAMILY GUY PRESENTS STEWIE GRIFFIN: THE UNTOLD STORY: Punctuated by cheerfully offensive humour that wouldn't have flown on Fox, Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story plays very much like an extended episode as the matricidal infant searches for his real father.

8) MARCH OF THE PENGUINS: Think mating is hard for humans? Try being an emperor penguin in the South Pole. Or better still, watch this spectacular documentary from the warmth of your living room.

9) KUNG FU HUSTLE: Imagine The Matrix's Morpheus discovering Wile E. Coyote is "The One" and you begin to understand the over-the-top zaniness actor-director Stephen Chow's go-for-broke live-action cartoon comedy achieves. Chow knows that just because your film is fun, doesn't mean it has to be stupid.

10) THE UPSIDE OF ANGER: Joan Allen provides the fiery centre of Mike Binder's hilarious, human comedy, but it's Kevin Costner -- delivering his best performance in eons as Allen's neighbour -- who steals the show as a has-been baseball star turned talk-radio DJ who begins a boozy romance with the simmering widow.

BEST TV ON DVD

DAILY SHOW INDECISION 2004: The most hilarious DVD of 2005 is this collection of memorable election-themed bits from The Daily Show With Jon Stewart. Included is correspondent Stephen Colbert's featurette: Requiem for a Show That Was Daily.

SCRUBS -- THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON: In praising Arrested Development, critics often overlook this medical comedy starring Zach Braff. It's whimsical, sweet and consistently funny.

LOST -- THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON: Among eight hours of buried bonus treasure are audition tapes, fun facts (Evangeline Lilly almost didn't get the part of Kate because they couldn't get the Canadian actress a work visa) and what-might-have-beens (producers wanted Michael Keaton to play Jack -- and then kill him off).

THE OFFICE SEASON 1: A worthy remake of the British original thanks largely to Steve Carell's fitfully funny performance as a boss whose incompetence approaches the superhuman.

MUPPETS: THE MUPPET SHOW: SEASON 1: It's Muppet-ational. Each episode in this boxset features optional pop-up "Muppet morsels" that teach you about the show as you go.

MIAMI VICE SEASONS 1 AND 2: Enough '80s goodness to make you want to gag yourself with a spoon. This cop drama fused an MTV aesthetic to genre television, changing the look and sound of the small screen.

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SEASON 1: This dark, gritty remake has reimagined the cheesy show into a space-bound parable for today's anxiety-ridden paranoid world.

ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS: Nobody ever did comic noir better than Hitchcock, as evidenced by these engrossing 39 episodes of this 1950s series.

NIP/TUCK: SEASON 2: It's as silly as it is sinful, but this drama about cosmetic surgeons is heartlessly addictive.

EMERGENCY: SEASON 1: Before ER, there was this 1970s drama about paramedics.

BEST COLLECTORS EDITIONS

GLADIATOR EXTENDED EDITION: After the likes of Alexander and Troy, Ridley Scott's Oscar-winning epic Gladiator only looks better than it did in 2000. The three-disc DVD includes a new widescreen edition of the film that's 17 minutes longer, along with new commentary by Scott and star Russell Crowe -- who won an Oscar for his role -- and an embarrassment of behind-the-scenes riches.

VINTAGE MICKEY: This 90-minute disc continues the recent Disney trend of releasing classic animated footage on DVD. Vintage Mickey contains nine cartoons, including The Birthday Party, Plane Crazy, Mickey's Revue, Building A Building and the legendary Steamboat Willie.

THE JAMES DEAN COLLECTION: James Dean has been dead for half-a-century, but the actor remains a pop culture icon. The Complete James Dean Collection includes two-disc special editions of Dean's best-known films: East of Eden (1955), Rebel Without a Cause (1955), and Giant (1956). This is the first time East of Eden has been out on DVD. The set even includes the "Drive Safely" ad Dean shot before his death in a car crash.

TOY STORY ANNIVERSARY EDITION AND TOY STORY 2 SPECIAL EDITION: It's been a decade since this pioneering CG-animated comedy from Pixar Studios about the secret lives of toys revolutionized the industry. But Toy Story and its sequel are much more than just a landmark in cinematic technology -- they're deliriously joyous movies that, for sheer entertainment value, are unparalleled. The two-disc special edition of the original includes deleted scenes, games, making-of featurettes and a preview of Pixar's next film Cars.

GHOSTBUSTERS GIFT SET: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis are superbly deadpan as a trio of paranormal investigators who get a lot more than they bargained for when New York is overrun by ghoulish spirits in the sublime 1984 original. Too bad the 1989 sequel is a letdown -- a tepid, misguided retread. This gift set includes both films as well as a host of extras, including three featurettes, deleted scenes and commentary from Ramis and director Ivan Reitman.

JAWS 30TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION: Steven Spielberg was just 26 years old when he directed Jaws. He lurched into the project, almost sank with the difficulties of shooting a scary drama at sea, and then found himself with a hit movie that remains as shocking today as it was in 1975. The 30th Anniversary Edition DVD is a classy two-disc set which includes an excellent two-hour documentary.

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD: The two-disc edition of this classic features Gregory Peck's Oscar acceptance speech, commentary from director Robert Mulligan and producer Alan J. Pakula, the theatrical trailer as well as a documentary about the legendary leading man. There's also an introduction penned by author Harper Lee.

THE DEER HUNTER: The last thing this five-time Oscar-winner needed was a longer version, yet the film, collected here in a two-disc set, provides keen insight into a particular time in the American psyche. A very young Robert DeNiro and Christopher Walken are superb as life-long friends torn apart by the tragedy of the Vietnam war.

THE STING: This sly and wickedly smart Oscar-winner stars Paul Newman and Robert Redford, who established the standard by which all cinematic buddy flicks are measured. A comedy and caper set in the 1930s about two con men, it remains a vast entertainment.

CINDERELLA PLATINUM EDITION: Cinderella, the downtrodden maid-turned-glass-slipper-wearing-princess, has a fairy godmother to make her gorgeous. Cinderella, the Walt Disney musical, has digital wizards to restore its shimmering beauty -- something that's abundantly evident in the studio's sparkling new Platinum Edition release of the 1950 animated musical based on the Grimms' fairy tale. Along with the restored picture and sound, the two-disc DVD features an embarrassment of extras.

EDWARD SCISSORHANDS 10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION: Tim Burton's enchanting fable about a boy (Johnny Depp) who is blessed but mostly cursed with razor-sharp scissors for hands. Since its release in 1990, Edward Scissorhands has been hailed as Burton's most personal film, possibly explaining why it's his best.

THE BRUCE LEE ULTIMATE COLLECTION: Five of Bruce Lee's martial arts movies -- The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, Way of the Dragon, Game of Death and Game of Death II -- are collected in this informative must for fans of the superstar.

BILL & TED'S MOST EXCELLENT COLLECTION: For some, Marlon Brando will always be Stanley Kowalski. For others, Robert De Niro is Travis Bickle. And for others, Keanu Reeves will always be Ted of Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and its sequel, which starred Reeves and Alex Winter, as a pair of affable '80s-era dufuses. This Excellent Collection features an air guitar tutorial, interviews and even a cartoon episode of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures. To this we say, "Whoa."

DONNIE DARKO: DIRECTOR'S CUT: Since its 2001 release ,this surreal drama starring a pre-Brokeback Mountain Jake Gyllenhaal, developed enough of a cult following to justify a director's cut. It remains one of the odder American films not directed by David Lynch in the past 20 years.

The Couch Potato Report - December 13th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features one of the best, and one of the worst films of the year.

It has been said that laughter is the best medicine.

I put that theory to the test one week in late August when I was in need of some hilarity.

Luckily I wasn't disappointed, and I felt better after one dose, but I went back for two more.

The medicine I took was a movie called THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN.

Steve Carell from ANCHORMAN and BRUCE ALMIGHTY is THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN.

The plot of the film is exactly what the titles suggests, it's about how a 40-year-old virgin named Andy looks for love.

Not just sex, but love.

Along the way Andy discovers chest waxing, speed dating, and he is encouraged by his friends and co-workers.

THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN is incredibly funny, all of the main and supporting characters are personable and interesting, and the dialogue is always entertaining, and sometimes insightful.

When I needed to laugh, this movie made me laugh, and every time I have watched it since, I still laugh just as hard.

I don't think you can ask for more from a comedy than that.

THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN is one of my favourite films of the year.

On the other hand is THE ISLAND.

I wouldn't call THE ISLAND the worst film of 2005, but it is definitely close.

In the film Ewan McGregor from BIG FISH and Scarlett Johansson of LOST IN TRANSLATION star as clones.

They are residents of what they perceive to be a utopian facility sometime in the mid 21st century.

Every resident of this carefully controlled environment hope that they are chosen to go to the "The Island" - reportedly the last uncontaminated location on the planet.

But soon McGregor's character finds out that he, and everyone else in the facility are clones.

After that, the film's interesting premise is thrown aside and THE ISLAND becomes a run and hide, explosion and chase film.

That isn't too big of a surprise as the movie was directed by Michael Bay, the man responsible for the less-than-subtle films ARMAGEDDON and PEARL HARBOUR.

McGregor and Johansson are both talented, personable actors with great physical appeal, but they are wasted in THE ISLAND and if you watch the movie your time will be wasted as well.

To recap, I think THE ISLAND is a waste of your time.

Some other people think that sitting and watching TV is the ultimate waste of time.

For others - like me - watching TV is an enjoyable way to relax and be entertained.

When I was in high school I used to relax and be entertained by MIAMI VICE. Soon after I completed my education, THE SIMPSONS became a staple of my daily and weekly TV watching.

Now, there are new box sets available for both shows!

MIAMI VICE: SEASON TWO and THE SIMPSONS: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON.

The former continues to follow the adventures of the vice squad detectives of the Miami Police Department; specifically the adventures of Crockett and Tubbs.

The 3-disc set for SEASON TWO features the 22 episodes of the 1985-86 season and begins with "Prodigal Son," a two-hour episode that transplants Crockett and Tubbs to New York.

Along the way are guest stars Peter Allen, Gene Simmons, Pam Grier, Phil Collins, Bruce McGill, David Strathairn, Little Richard, Bob Balaban, and G. Gordon Liddy.

MIAMI VICE is a TV show that is a product of the 80s, and many of the episodes reflect the period so effectively that at times it does seem a bit dated.

But that is also a part of its charm. I enjoyed MIAMI VICE in the 80s and I still recommend MIAMI VICE now because it remains a great show and a great waste of time.

MIAMI VICE ran from 1984 to 1989 and the year it went off the air was the same year THE SIMPSONS debuted.

THE SIMPSONS: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON contains all 25 original episodes, and another incredible array of commentaries, deleted scenes and extras.

Some of the episodes in the season include the answer to "Who Shot Mr. Burns?", the Radioactive Man movie, Bart selling his soul for five dollars, "Lisa the Vegetarian", featuring Paul and the late Linda McCartney, "King-Size Homer", Sideshow Bob returns, former President George Bush moves next door, "Homerpalooza", and "The Treehouse of Horror' special features Homer in 3-D.

My favourite is "The Simpsons 138th Show Spectacular', hosted by Troy McClure - who is voiced by the late, great Phil Hartman.

THE SIMPSONS is still airing new episodes, and will be back next year for it's eighteenth season, but it is the episodes in the seasons that are already available on DVD that make it worth watching, owning, and laughing at.

And even if watching TV is a waste of time, remember laughter is the best medicine.

THE SIMPSONS: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON, MIAMI VICE: SEASON TWO, THE ISLAND and THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN are all now available at a store near you.

Coming up in three weeks on the next Couch Potato Report

Bill Murray stars as a man who travels across the country to find his son in BROKEN FLOWERS, Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are WEDDING CRASHERS, and the TV show FIREFLY becomes the movie SERENITY.

Also on the next Report, Jennifer Connelly's talent and beauty can't save DARK WATER and Jessica Alba only has her beauty on display in INTO THE BLUE.

And then there is the documentary GRIZZLY MAN about two grizzly bear activists who were killed in October of 2003 while living among grizzlies in Alaska.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in twenty-one days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next time on The Couch!

Seinfeld: Season 5

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has also added some hidden features on 'Seinfeld: Season 5' for you to uncover. Here is how to get to them.

Insert the third disc of the DVD set and from the Main Menu go to the 'Extras' section. There, highlight the menu entry 'Setup' and then press the 'Right' arrow key on your remote control. This will highlight the zig-zagging lifeline on the screen. Now press the 'Enter' key and you will see the Seinfeld cast discuss the 1994 Northridge Earthquake.

Now insert the fourth disc of the DVD set and from the Main Menu go to the 'Setup' section. Highlight the menu entry 'subtitles' here and then press the 'Left' arrow key on your remote control. This will highlight the heart symbol and if you press the 'Enter' key now you will get to observe a suggested camera angle of the ugly baby.

Seinfeld: Season 6

A number of Easter Eggs can also be found on the season 6 DVD set of 'Seinfeld' from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

Insert the first disc of the set in your DVD player and form the Main Menu go to the 'Setup' section. There, highlight the 'Main Menu' entry and press the 'Left' arrow key on your remote control to highlight the enter key on the keyboard. Press 'enter' now and you will see a clip of the Seinfeld cast talking about the Rob Reiner tribute.

Now go to the 'Extras' section of the disc and highlight the entry' Running With The Egg: Part 1. Press the 'Up' arrow key to highlight the poison spray can.

Press the 'Enter' button and you will get to see the Seinfeld-imation.

Now insert the second disc and go to the 'Extras 'section, accessible from the Main Menu. There, highlight the menu entry 'Setup' and press the 'Right' arrow key on your remote control twice to highlight the pecan. You will now see a small clip featuring Jerry Seinfeld talking about the little things in the show.

Time to insert the third disc of the set. There, go to the 'Extras 'section and highlight the 'episodes 'menu entry. Then press the 'Left' arrow key on your remote control to highlight the pencil, which will take you to a clip of Jerry Seinfeld talking about the Dark Side.

Finally, insert the fourth disc of the DVD set and go to the 'Extras' section. Highlight the menu entry 'Cramer vs. The Monkey' and then press the 'Up' arrow key on your remote control. This will highlight the hot dog and if you press 'Enter' now you will get to view a clip of Jerry discussing the pain he caused on the show.

The Couch Potato Report - December 6th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features a Cinderella man, and a man who is no longer with us.

It is rare when a film that is as good as CINDERELLA MAN fails to find an audience.

And make no mistake, CINDERELLA MAN is good, and it did fail to find its audience when it was released in theatres in June.

Now that it is available on video and DVD I hope the film finds it's audience, because it is a film that is worth seeing.

In CINDERELLA MAN Russell Crowe from GLADIATOR plays James J. Braddock, a real person who lived and was a boxer in the early 1930's and during The Great Depression.

As the depression takes away his money, and injuries take away his career, almost everyone in his inner circle turns their back on Braddock. Eventually his injuries end his boxing career and he struggles to support his family.

Renee Zellweger from COLD MOUNTAIN plays Braddock's loving and supportive wife.

Unable to fight, Braddock looks for any kind of work he can get, but he also believes that he will box again.

Through a twist of fate, the day does arrive, and he gets a second chance at success.

CINDERELLA MAN is a complex film with great acting from Crowe, Zellweger and Paul Giamatti from SIDEWAYS. The movie also benefits from the experienced direction of Ron Howard.

Be warned though, if you are looking for the type of sentimental melodrama that Howard brought to A BEAUTIFUL MIND, THE MISSING, and some of his other films, you won't find that here.

The desperate struggle of the Depression is on plain view, and the boxing scenes are very realistic and at times they are very violent.

No, CINDERELLA MAN didn't find its audience in theatres, but I hope that people who enjoy well made, quality movies will ensure it finds success on video and DVD, because this is a film that should be seen.

As a side note, CINDERELLA MAN was filmed in Toronto, partially at Maple Leaf Gardens. The theatre where I first saw it in was on the site of where the Montreal Forum used to stand. Thus, for me, in addition to enjoying this boxing film, I was enjoying memories of hockey's greatest rivals as well.

But I digress, and we move on now to a film that has been available on video for years but is now - finally - debuting on DVD.

That film is 1988's IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON.

With the world pausing to remember that it has been 25 years since we lost the man, the time is right for this film to be released again.

The film is part documentary, part biography, and all Lennon and it was put together using nearly 240 hours of film and videotape that Lennon took during his life.

Director Andrew Solt took that material and created a fascinating story of one of the most complex and fascinating people in music history.

If you are fan of John Lennon, or The Beatles, this movie is a must have.

And if you are curious about why people are making such a big deal about this guy twenty-five years after he died, then IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON is a great place to start.

I have worn out my video copy, so I am pleased to now own IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON on DVD.

For the record, I will never own the movie versions of FANTASTIC FOUR or THE DUKES OF HAZZARD on DVD, or video for that matter.

That isn't because the films are horrible, but just because I will never need to see them a second time. Yes, each one does have parts that are worth seeing, just not a second time.

As far as FANTASTIC FOUR is concerned, that is too bad as I remain a huge fan of the comic book to this day. But films based on comic books have to be judged by their source material and this film doesn't hold up.

The source material in the film sees Reed Richards, Victor Von Doom, Ben Grimm, and Sue and Johnny Storm travel into outer-space in order to do research into human DNA.

Things don't go as planned, and the result is superhuman powers. Four of the five use their powers for good, Victor Von Doom does not.

To its credit, FANTASTIC FOUR is a light-hearted and funny adventure that doesn't take itself too seriously, but that also works against it. If the people making the film took it more seriously then a better movie could have been the result.

Since they don't, the character development is only mildly interesting, and there isn't much action in the movie until towards the end.

FANTASTIC FOUR isn't horrible, but it could have been great.

Great like the X-MEN films and THE INCREDIBLES.

The film version of the 1970s and 80s TV show THE DUKES OF HAZZARD isn't horrible either, and it also doesn't take itself too seriously either, but unlike FANTASTIC FOUR, THE DUKES OF HAZZARD is just stupid - and not always in a good way.

The plot of the film, as it is, centers around Cousins Bo and Luke Duke, their sexy cousin Daisy, and their Uncle Jesse's attempts to save the family farm from destruction by the town's corrupt and evil commissioner Boss Hogg.

In order to save the farm the cousins must elude the authorities over and over again in their car "The General Lee."

But as I said, the film is just stupid, and so are many of the characters in it. On occasions when that stupidity involves Deputy Enos, or pop star Jessica Simpson as Daisy, the film is mildly entertaining.

All other times, it isn't.

No, the film version of THE DUKES OF HAZZARD isn't horrible, but it is definitely the last, and least of this week's new releases.

And it is now available at a store near you along with FANTASTIC FOUR, IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON, and the overlooked in theatres CINDERELLA MAN.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

Steve Carell from THE DAILY SHOW is THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN. Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johanson star as clones in THE ISLAND, and there will be new box sets available for MIAMI VICE: SEASON TWO and THE SIMPSONS: THE COMPLETE SEVENTH SEASON.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

The Couch Potato Report - November 29th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features 8 new releases, and I will overuse the word "surprise."

One of the most successful films of the year was a complete surprise.

It was surprise that it did as well as it did at the box office, and it was surprisingly entertaining.

That film is MARCH OF THE PENGUINS a documentary about the over-100 kilometer journey that emperor penguins have to make every year in order to survive and procreate.

The film is narrated by Morgan Freeman and at times it is dramatic, suspenseful, and informative. At other times it is just funny and entertaining.

Actually, the film is entertaining from start to finish.

Penguins can either be waddling entertaining, or incredibly graceful and in MARCH OF THE PENGUINS you get to experience both.

The film is a perfect mix of science and entertainment and the whole family will enjoy it.

Yes, the documentary MARCH OF THE PENGUINS was a surprise.

So was the documentary MURDERBALL.

I had no idea what to expect from this film about quadriplegic rugby - or "Murderball" as it was formerly known.

The film shows us players in modified wheelchairs in a hardcore, full-contact sport trying to win Gold at the Athens Paralympics. But in addition to MURDERBALL being about the sport, it is also about some very interesting people who play it.

The film is a unique mix of sports documentary and inspirational profiles of triumph over adversity.

The majority of the people in MURDERBALL are disabled, but since the film doesn't focus on that, by the end of the film you won't be thinking about that it at all.

Unlike MARCH OF THE PENGUINS, MURDERBALL isn't for the entire family. But both documentaries are completely entertaining, and both are full of surprises.

MR. AND MRS SMITH isn't full of surprises, in fact it doesn't have any. But some films don't have to have surprises, or be a surprise to be entertaining.

And make no mistake, MR AND MRS SMITH sure is entertaining.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie play an unhappy couple who are bored with each other and their mundane day to day home life.

Their relationship improves once they discover their mutually-hidden identities as world-class assassins.

Unfortunately they have each been hired to kill the other one.

No MR AND MRS SMITH doesn't contain any major surprises or plot twists, but the performances of Pitt and Jolie are fun to watch and the dialogue is a treat to listen to. Plus, Jolie looks amazing as always, and Pitt is always fun to watch in a film.

Director Doug Liman gave us a better action film with THE BOURNE IDENTITY, and MR AND MRS SMITH should've been a better movie than it is, but I still enjoyed it.

I also sort of enjoyed SKY HIGH, even if I am not in the film's target demographic.

In this film the son of superheroes must save the world, and I suspect the demographic the filmmakers were shooting for was between 12 and 16 years of age.

Sky High is a high school in the clouds for kids with super-human powers or abilities.

At this school gadgets, acts of bravery, and magical skills are part of high school the same way that peer pressure and dating are.

SKY HIGH isn't unique, especially if you've seen THE INCREDIBLES, but it is a surprisingly fun film, whether you are in the correct demographic or not.

Finally this week, I would like to talk about THE MUPPET MOVIE, THE GREAT MUPPET CAPER, MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND and THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL because all four films are being re-released to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Kermit The Frog.

Yes, it has really been 50 years since Jim Henson introduced us to Kermit The Frog.

I have made no attempt over the years to hide my adoration for Jim Henson and The Muppets, so I won't bother to review these four releases for you, other than to say that I watched all four again this week and they still entertained me on every level, especially THE MUPPET MOVIE and THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL.

I've seen each of these films dozens of times over the years and it still surprises me how much I am entertained by them.

Happy Anniversary Kermit!

THE MUPPET MOVIE, THE GREAT MUPPET CAPER, MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND, THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL, SKY HIGH, MR AND MRS SMITH, MURDERBALL and the superb MARCH OF THE PENGUINS are all available now at a store near you.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

CINDERELLA MAN is the underlooked, but very good, true story of heavyweight boxer Jim Braddock starring Russell Crowe, Renee Zellweger and Paul Giamatti.

IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON is the superb 1988 documentary about the man made with home movies. The audio from those movies allows Lennon himself to
be the narrator.

The movie version of the classic comic book FANTASTIC 4 is less than classic, and much less than fantastic, but it isn't horrible. On the other hand the film version of THE DUKES OF HAZZARD is horrible, but somehow it is worth seeing.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

The Couch Potato Report - November 22nd, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features Cruise, Spielberg and "The Beav."

For some summer films, like THE LONGEST YARD, FANTASTIC FOUR, and THE DUKES OF HAZZARD, it was easy to check your brain at the door and just enjoy them.

Doing that with some other summer movies was harder, primarily due to expectations.

For instance, if Steven Spielberg decided to make another science fiction movie, there would be expectations.

After all he's the man who made CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and E.T. - THE EXTRA TERRESTRIAL.

And if that film starred Tom Cruise, the world's biggest movie star, and was going to be based on the classic H.G. Wells book "The War Of The Worlds", well, talk about expectations!

In the end, despite that pedigree, and the best special effects money can buy, the newest version of WAR OF THE WORLDS isn't very good.

The film is very faithful to the book and the story still focuses on aliens who are looking destroy humankind as quick as possible.

But unlike the WAR OF THE WORLDS inspired INDEPENDENCE DAY this movie doesn't give us much of a thrill ride. Ultimately, that is why I didn't find it very entertaining.

Yes, it has the special effects, Spielberg's unflappable direction, and Cruise's reliable performance as a divorced father who has to rise to the challenge to save his kids, but it doesn't have enough thrill ride moments to make it a great action film, or even a great summer movie.

In reality, it is just a dramatic film with some summer explosions thrown in for good measure.

But it is the second most popular film of 2005 in theatres, so people must have enjoyed it, right?

Well, I didn't enjoy it when I saw it in a theatre, and when I watched the DVD this week I was more than bored.

WAR OF THE WORLDS has great special effects, great directing, a great cast and a great premise, but unfortunately the sum of the movie's parts are nowhere near great.

Another film base on a book is also new on video and DVD this week and I hope this film becomes a cherished holiday classic alongside IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE and A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS.

When THE POLAR EXPRESS was released in theatres a little over a year ago much of the publicity the film received was due to the fact that the film used a "performance capture" technique to translate live performances into all-digital characters.

I admit that if you focus on the technological side of the film you won't enjoy THE POLAR EXPRESS as much as you should.

However, if you can enjoy the film you will find it to be a classic! It is a wonderful celebration of the Christmas spirit, and yes I said Christmas and not Holiday Spirit.

Late one Christmas Eve night, a doubting boy boards a magical train with many other pajama-clad children. The train is headed to the North Pole and only one of the children will be chosen to receive a magical gift that only those who still believe in Santa are eligible.

Tom Hanks' voice stars in THE POLAR EXPRESS and he is directed by Robert Zemeckis, the man who gave us FORREST GUMP and the BACK TO THE FUTURE FILMS.

Yes, THE POLAR EXPRESS is visually stunning, but the story is what is most overwhelming. And who knows, it might even fill you with the childhood joy of Christmas.

Christmas - and Holiday - gift giving might be easier this year if you have people on your list who love TV shows on DVD.

After all there is a wide array of DVD Box Sets already available, and this week we add four more.

And I must admit that it is about time for one of these releases!

My friends, LEAVE IT TO BEAVER has finally debuted on DVD!

LEAVE IT TO BEAVER premiered in the fall of 1957 and instead of looking at life from a parents point of view it focused on the adventures of seven-year-old Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver and his 12-year-old brother, Wally.

Ward and June Cleaver try to keep their youngest son in line, but he always ends up in one kind of jam or another.

Some of the stories are a little dated today, but the show's charm still shines through. It remains one of the best TV shows ever and now all 39 episodes from the show's first season have been digitally remastered and they are available in a three-disc box set.

"Seinfeld" is another classic television show, albeit from a different era. SEINFELD - SEASON 5 and SEASON 6 are also new on DVD this week.

Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer continue to go through life, discussing and experiencing things that we can all relate to on one level or another.

SEASON FIVE includes: The Puffy Shirt, The Sniffing Accountant, The Bris, The Lip Reader, The Stall and The Opposite and you will find The Big Salad, The Gymnast, The Soup, The Race, The Label Maker and The Kiss Hello on the SEASON SIX set.

Each of the sets are four discs and they also include an array of retrospective interviews and behind-the-scenes features.

Since I have already raved about seasons ONE to FOUR here on The Couch Potato Report, you know I love the show, so let me just conclude by saying: Giddy-up!

The final DVD set that I am going to speak about this week is also our final "leftover." Yes, we have now covered all of the major titles that came out while there were no shows this summer.

So, that final "leftover" is the DVD set for A DIFFERENT WORLD - SEASON ONE.

IN 1987 the show debuted as a spin off of THE COSBY SHOW. Daughter Denise was sent off to college to find out that there was "a different world" awaiting her outside the Huxtable house.

In addition to Lisa Bonet as Denise, this first season of the show stars the young, and always beautiful, Marisa Tomei, who would eventually go on to win an Academy Award for her work in MY COUSIN
VINNY.

Denise, Maggie, Whitley, Dwayne Wayne, Ron. They are all still attending Hillman College on this new 4-DVD box set.

A DIFFERENT WORLD - SEASON ONE, SEINFELD - SEASONS 5 & 6, LEAVE IT TO BEAVER - SEASON ONE, THE POLAR EXPRESS and WAR OF THE WORLDS are all available now at a store near you.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report is the superb documentary THE MARCH OF THE PENGUINS; Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie star in MR. AND MRS. SMITH as a couple who hide their real jobs from each other; and in SKY HIGH the son of superheroes must save the world.

There is also FAMILY GUY - VOLUME THREE, MURDERBALL and THE MUPPET MOVIE, THE GREAT MUPPET CAPER, MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND and THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL are being re-released to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Kermit The Frog!

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

Peak 'Seinfeld' Seasons to Be Released

NEW YORK - "Seinfeld" has not suffered from shrinkage. Seven years after its finale, not only does the classic sitcom air up to two hours a day in some markets, but the reruns remain fresh enough to spark watercooler chitchat about everything from puffy shirts to mimbos.

"Isn't it weird how present it still is on the television landscape?" Jerry Seinfeld wondered during a recent joint interview with Jason Alexander (who played George), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Elaine) and Michael Richards (Kramer).

"I hear it all the time, `We go to bed with you guys. We never miss it,'" says Alexander.

Tuesday marks the DVD release of seasons five and six, a period when "Seinfeld" was at its peak with episodes like "The Fusilli Jerry," "The Face Painter" and "The Opposite."

"Most people, you do a TV series, it ends three, four, five years later; it's a relic," Seinfeld says. "But we're still hearing from the people, the audience, the people on the street, as if we're still doing it.

"It feels alive."

Seeing the four principals together again is like a reunion of the Beatles — for the actors as well, who are rarely together any more. Despite last year's acrimony over DVD proceeds, today they revel in each other's company, quickly recounting dialogue when certain scenes are mentioned.

Recalling Kramer's exploits to save a severed pinky toe by commandeering a city bus, Alexander repeats Jerry's line: "You kept makin' all the stops?"

"They kept ringing the bell!" Richards replies, in character.

And they all laugh — it's still funny to them. Similarly, on many of the DVD commentaries, insider insight devolves into simple laughter; the viewer no longer has a guide, but a companion on the couch.

"The show had an intense comedic energy that you do not find on other shows," Seinfeld says. "There's an intense comedic scene happening all the time, and that's the way we tried to make them, really packed, tight, strong — and that just holds the audience."

Alexander adds, "On this show, the comedy was the thing, so if you had to kind of trash a character a little bit..."

"Or entirely," chimes Louis-Dreyfus, whose character perhaps suffered the most — a long, subtle descent from "sponge-worthy" to flirting with Newman, if needed.

"Seinfeld" nearly didn't get the chance to become a hit. It wasn't until the third or fourth season that the show really found its rhythm and audience.

"It seemed early on that it was such a specific audience and when every new element of the audience came on, I was just thinking, `Wow,'" Alexander says. He remembers being astounded when he saw, through his mother's friends, "the senior citizen community groovin' on our show."

"It really was written and geared for a very specific audience, but our comedic strength trumps all of that," Seinfeld says. "The subject matter, the dialogue, the tone isn't right for most of America."

Part of what he's referring to is the racy material. Though vulgarity is often hidden by acrobatic metaphors and pregnant omissions ("You know, I was alone..."), "Seinfeld" still managed to slide plenty past the censors.

How did they get away with their most heralded triumph, "The Contest," from season 4?

"We were somewhat unsupervised," Seinfeld says. "The audience was there and the network is not going to complain if everyone's liking the show."

But one fact of television life is that it can't help but eventually feel dated. While "I Love Lucy," "M A S H" and "Cheers" still have their charms, they are very much of their era.

The absence of cell phones, Jerry's old computer and the group's fondness for "Melrose Place" may soon feel antiquated. Louis-Dreyfus cringes at some of her outfits and hairstyles, and is quick to correct Seinfeld's claim that her clothes have aged more than his.

After the show ended, Seinfeld, 51, mostly went back to standup, a journey chronicled in the documentary "Comedian." The other three have tried new shows: Alexander with last season's canceled "Listen Up," Richards with the failed "The Michael Richards Show," and Louis-Dreyfus on "Old Christine," which debuts at midseason on CBS.

But being pigeonholed by "Seinfeld" is a price the cast will gladly pay. "What actor wouldn't want that kind of experience?" says Louis-Dreyfus, 44.

Perhaps inevitably, the foursome is further removed from "Seinfeld" than many fans. Richards, 56, says he never says "Giddy up!" — "not even when I'm on a horse."

They say they rarely watch their old show, though Alexander, 46, recounts the fun of watching "Seinfeld" with his children, who were surprised what a jerk their father was.

The cast will nevertheless have plenty to remind them of "Seinfeld." People actually practice Mr. Constanza's pseudo Christmas holiday, Festivus, for example. Alexander still gets shouts of "Can't-stand-ya" and "these pretzels are makin' me thirsty!" Louis-Dreyfus hears "yada yada yada," and Seinfeld is asked "where's Kramer?"

So what does Richards get?

"Wish you were back."

Sartorial 'Seinfeld' latest in DVD marketing

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - As the market for TV series repackaged on DVD becomes a bigger and bigger chunk of the overall home video business -- it's now at 25%, or about $4 billion a year in consumer spending -- studios are upping the ante in packaging and marketing as well.

Complete-season sets of the original "Star Wars" trilogy come in specially crafted plastic containers built to look like the TriQuarters used in the films. For Season 6 of "The Simpsons," 20th Century Fox ditched the customary cardboard box in favor a plastic case shaped like Homer's head. Warner Home Video has begun staging gala launch parties for DVDs of such classic TV shows as "Gilligan's Island" and "Dallas." And in September, a "Desperate Housewives" DVD release party was canceled only at the last minute because of media coverage of Hurricane Katrina.

The latest: Sony Pictures is offering consumers Seasons 5 and 6 of "Seinfeld" in an elegant $120 gift set that includes a copy of a handwritten script and a miniature replica of the famed "puffy shirt" that triggered Jerry Seinfeld's notorious whine, "But I don't want to be a pirate."

The gift set, which arrives in stores Tuesday, is the latest in a series of extravagant trappings for the celebrated series' DVD rollout that began last fall with an elegant launch party at New York's Rainbow Room and continued the next day with the real puffy shirt's enshrinement in the Smithsonian.

"We're essentially treating 'Seinfeld' the same as we do big theatricals because it's become an integral part of American culture," Sony Pictures Home Entertainment president Benjamin Feingold said. "Everyone knows 'Seinfeld."'

What's next for Seasons 7 and 8, which will be released in tandem in November 2006?

"We're on the boards now," said "Seinfeld" executive producer Howard West, who with partner George Shapiro oversees the DVD production and marketing. "We have to go back and examine all the episodes, but rest assured it will be big."

The Couch Potato Report - November 16th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features some good, some bad, and some very funny penguins!

With the holiday season fast approaching the home entertainment industry continues to release strong titles for your gift giving consideration.

The latest animated film the industry is hoping you will pick up is MADAGASCAR.

Chris Rock, Ben Stiller, Jada Pinkett Smith and David Schwimmer lend their voices to - respectively - Marty the Zebra, Alex the Lion, Gloria the Hippo, Melman the Giraffe.

They are four friends who all live in the New York City Zoo.

Marty the Zebra decides that he wants to know what is outside of the walls he's surrounded by and he escapes. The friends realize that they have to rescue him so they escape as well to try and bring him back.

Their escape and eventual capture leads to a public outcry about the state of mind of animals in captivity and the friends find themselves back in the wild.

I know, it all sounds a bit boring, doesn't it?

I love animated films, but when MADAGASCAR opened in theaters back in May I didn't go see it because that synopsis, and the film's trailers, didn't make the film look remotely entertaining.

Yet when I finally sat down last week and watched the film, I found it very entertaining.

Especially all of the scenes involving the penguins!

This group doesn't need Sidney Crosby to be it's savior, they score all on their own!

The plot in MADAGASCAR isn't superb, the story isn't anything you haven't seen before, and the animation isn't as good as what you've seen in THE INCREDIBLES, FINDING NEMO, or even CHICKEN LITTLE, but for some reason MADAGASCAR works.

And those penguins are tremendous!

I also use that word - tremendous - when I talk about the TV show SCRUBS.

SCRUBS is situation comedy that gives us an interns'-eye view of hospital life and the torturous, tragic, and triumphant route to becoming a doctor.

The show has a great cast and is exceptionally written.

SEASON TWO of the show features the continuing development of the characters of JD, Turk, Elliot, Carla, and Dr. Cox and the Janitor!

I already said that I find the show tremendous, but I feel just as comfortable describing it as hilarious, poignant, and just plain entertaining!

There won't be new episodes of the show airing on TV until January. In the interim SCRUBS - SEASON TWO is a 3-disc box set with all of the 22 hilarious episodes from SCRUBS sensational second season. And it is available right now!

Plus, it is tremendous, hilarious, poignant...did I mention that already?

I did? Well, let me just move on to THE SKELETON KEY then.

This film is a mildly entertaining supernatural thriller that takes place in rainy, mild Louisiana.

Kate Hudson from ALMOST FAMOUS plays a compassionate caregiver who takes a job in the rural plantation home of a woman and her invalid husband.

The place is creepy and in all of the house's rooms are secrets, especially in the rooms that no one goes in.

Ohhhhh!!!!

I like Kate Hudson, and I usually enjoy supernatural thrillers, but this one just has too many scenes that have nothing going for them other than a stereotypical scary movie music score.

The main spell in the film only effects you if you believe it. I didn't believe it, so the film didn't effect me.

If you don't expect much, maybe you will enjoy THE SKELETON KEY more than I did.

Finally this week, I want to compare a brand new film that has just been released to this week's "leftover."

Both HAPPY ENDINGS - the new film - and CRASH * the "leftover" - are ensemble dramas with large casts.

Both tell many stories with one or two things that happen that tie everyone and all their stories together.

But both aren't successful in keeping you engaged as a viewer.

CRASH does, HAPPY ENDINGS does not.

Let me start with the latter.

HAPPY ENDINGS features three main stories. Lisa Kudrow from FRIENDS is having an affair with a masseuse when a wannabe filmmaker blackmails her to get a movie made.

Her gay stepbrother believes that his boyfriend may be the father of the child of a lesbian couple.

And a homeless, gold-digging karaoke singer tries to make her life better.

Even re-reading those story points, I think it would make a great film. But they don't.

HAPPY ENDINGS is interesting, but it just isn't engaging enough to hold your attention. It certainly didn't hold mine.

The film's characters are interesting, but their situations are not.

The result can only be described as a disappointment.

Now CRASH on the other hand is engaging from start to finish!

CRASH is an intelligent, completely engaging and moving exploration of the interlocking lives of a dozen Los Angeles residents.

Those residents include a politically nervous white district attorney and his wife who get car-jacked by two black youths; a rich black T.V. director and his wife who get pulled over by a white racist cop; and a black detective who is investigating a white cop who shot a black cop.

Normally I would never focus on a character's race in a review, but CRASH is a film that demands it.

Canadian writer/director Paul Haggis spins his characters in unpredictable directions, and refuses to let any one of them become a stereotype.

CRASH is a film that will anger you, entertain you, enrage you, and make you smile, but most of all it will make you think.

The cast of CRASH includes many well known actors, including Sandra Bullock, Brendan Fraser, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Ryan Phillippe, Jennifer Esposito, Terrence Howard, and rap star Ludacris, but it is the writing and the film itself that make it worth seeing.

HAPPY ENDINGS is an ensemble picture that doesn't work at all, CRASH is one that does.

Both films are available now at a store near you. So are MADAGASCAR, SCRUBS - SEASON TWO and THE SKELETON KEY.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

The summer blockbuster WAR OF THE WORLDS is Steven Spielberg's take on H.G. Wells science fiction classic. Tom Cruise and Tim Robbins star.

Tom Hanks is the star of the animated film version of the classic book THE POLAR EXPRESS. He voices five characters in this heartwarming story about a group of children are taken to the North Pole to meet Santa.

Three television shows from different eras are new releases on DVD. I'll talk about LEAVE IT TO BEAVER - THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON, SEINFELD - SEASON 5 and SEASON 6 and A DIFFERENT WORLD - SEASON ONE is our final "leftover."

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

New Line makes Dumb a little Dumber

New Line Home Entertainment has just unveiled plans that a new version of the hilarious Farelly Brothers comedy Dumb And Dumber is coming to DVD in January, featuring an Unrated cut of the film with 6 minutes of additional, never-before seen footage inserted back into the movie.

Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels are too lame to live - and too dense to die - as a pair of deliriously dim-witted pals on a cross-country road trip to return a briefcase full of cash to its rightful owner. Along the way they'll confound cops, kidnappers and anyone and everyone who had the misfortune of crossing their paths in this comic caper for every idiot in the family!

The 2-disc Platinum Series release will feature an anamorphic widescreen transfer of the film, complete with a 5.1 channel Dolby Digital track in English and a number of extras, such as 3D Animated Menus and 2 Alternate Endings. Also included on the release are 9 Deleted Scenes as well as a new Retrospective Documentary. Further the DVD will contain a selection of Trailers, TV Spots and Fake Trailers.

Scheduled for release on January 3, “Dumb And Dumber: Unrated” will carry a $19.97 suggested retail price.

The Corpse Bride rises

Tim Burton's return to the world of creepy puppets comes to DVD early next year with the arrival of The Corpse Bride from Warner Home Entertainment.
Set in a 19th century European village, this stop-motion, animated feature follows the story of Victor, a young man who is whisked away to the underworld and wed to a mysterious Corpse Bride, while his real bride, Victoria, waits bereft in the land of the living. Though life in the Land of the Dead proves to be a lot more colorful than his strict Victorian upbringing, Victor learns that there is nothing in this world, or the next, that can keep him away from his one true love.

The disc will come in seperate fullscreen and anamorphic widescreen versions, both in Dolby Digital 5.1 EX. Extras on the disc include the three documentaries Tim Burton: Dark vs. Light, Voices from the Underworld and Danny Elfman Interprets the Two Worlds, the featurettes Making Puppets Tick and Inside the Two Worlds, interviews, art galleries and an isolated score.

With a $29.98 suggested retail price, the DVD arrives on the 31st of January.

Kiss Keeps Rocking With Live DVD

Make-up clad rock icons Kiss will on Dec. 13 release a double-disc concert DVD, "Rock the Nation Live!," via Image Entertainment. Although there are countless Kiss home videos and DVDs on the market, "Nation" sets itself apart with an abundance of rare songs, the "Kiss Powervision/Select-A-Kiss" option to hone in on an individual member and candid behind-the-scenes vignettes.

Taped in summer 2004 in Washington, D.C., and Virginia Beach, the DVD features core members Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons flanked by guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer. "We were playing a lot of songs that Kiss hadn't played in years, or haven't played at all," Thayer tells Billboard.com. "One day, Doc McGhee, the manager, came into the dressing room, and said, 'We really need to film and record this show, because it's so good. It's probably the best Kiss performance I've seen.' So we said, 'OK.' That was the spark that got the whole thing going."

"At any moment, a viewer can choose what they want to see, and use different camera angles," Stanley adds. "So if you happen to have the good taste to see me, you can watch pretty much solely that. It's really your mix and your version of the show. I don't think we can forget that the band is really in peak form, and that's really shown on this DVD."

Stanley admits he was thrilled to air out such Kiss oldies as "Christine Sixteen," "She" and "Parasite" during the tour. "To be able to go out and play every and any Kiss song was very freeing," he enthuses. "We reached a point where a lot of the tours after the reunion tour were virtually the same set list, and it wasn't because we didn't want to play other songs. Once Tommy and Eric came in, on any given night, we could change the show, and really dig deep into our catalog. A band that's been together this long not only should be able to play 'Rock and Roll All Nite' and 'Love Gun,' but [also] 'Two Timer' or 'Got To Choose.'"

Still, fans continue to await a vault-clearing visual release, a project that Stanley acknowledges is closer to reality than ever before. "Yesterday was the beginning of planning really the ultimate Kiss experience," he says. "That Scorsese/Dylan piece ['No Direction Home: Bob Dylan'] was eye opening, at least to me, in terms of how you can be immersed in a time capsule, and not only see the music and be part of the crowd, but also get a sense of who Dylan was then. There are times when I'm much more interested in actual footage of somebody in the moment than somebody reminiscing 20 or 30 years later. It's fascinating to see where somebody was at, and what their mindset was in the midst of storm, as opposed to looking back on it. That set a really high bar, and I think that is more likely our approach at this point."

For now, it is unknown when Kiss may return to the road. "There's definitely talk," Stanley acknowledges. "I had a hip replacement a year ago, and that unfortunately didn't go as well as it should have, and they did it again, and that also didn't go as well as it should have. So the recovery from that has been longer, although about six weeks ago we did a corporate show for 15,000 people, in Columbus, Ohio. The band is as good and ready to go as ever. The difference is that I have to make sure that I can commit 100% of my energy for a tour, and not just a show."

Here is the track list for "Rock the Nation Live!":

Disc one:
"Love Gun"
"Deuce"
"Makin' Love"
"Lick It Up"
"Christine Sixteen"
"She"
"Tears Are Falling"
"Got To Choose"
"I Love It Loud"
"Love Her All I Can"
"I Want You"
"Parasite"

Disc two:
"War Machine"
"100,000 Years"
"Unholy"
"Shout It Out Loud"
"I Was Made For Lovin' You"
"Detroit Rock City"
"God Gave Rock & Roll to You II"
"Rock and Roll All Nite"

The Couch Potato Report - November 8th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features a movie remake, a TV show spinoff, and Live 8 on DVD.

The first movie I ever saw in a theatre was WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, a film based on Roald Dahl's book CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY.

Admittedly, I don't remember much about my first cinematic experience, but I will never forget the film.

Gene Wilder was brilliant as the title character, and the sights and sounds that fed my senses inside the chocolate factory were overwhelming!

To this day, when I hear the words "come with me, and you'll be, In a land of pure imagination," I am instantly taken back inside Willy Wonka's world.

And I love it there!!!

I love it there so much, that when I heard that director Tim Burton was going to do his own version of the film, it didn't bother me. I was also okay with Johnny Depp taking over as Willy Wonka.

To their credit, Burton and Depp did a great job and there are many things to enjoy in their film.

However, I like my original version better.

That isn't necessarily because one version is better than the other, after all it is Roald Dahl's original story that is the basis for both, but I still prefer the original.

And I bet thirty-four years from now, when they inevitably make another film version, there will be someone who proclaims the 2005 version to be the preferred one because it was the first film they saw.

Whichever film you prefer, the story will always be the same unique tale of Charlie Bucket, a poor boy who is fortunate enough to receive one of only five golden tickets that grant the holder exclusive entry into recluse Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, and they will get to experience the wonders with.

Once inside, due to the winners' unfortunate personality traits, they eventually disappear until only one ticket holder remains.

That person is in store for a wonderful gift, if he can accept it.

And of course, if you haven't read the book, or seen either movie, I don't want to give anything away.

However, the book and the newest film are called CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY.

But I digress.

It might not be my preferred version of this classic story, but Depp and Burton's CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY is very entertaining. Specifically, Depp does an incredible job playing a very, very unlikable character. His Wonka is actually very mean at times, but in a good way.

I say just think of this as a guilty pleasure and enjoy it.

Another guilty pleasure this week is the DVD set for A DIFFERENT WORLD - SEASON ONE.

IN 1987 the show debuted as a spin off of THE COSBY SHOW. Daughter Denise was sent off to college to find out that there was "a different world" awaiting her outside the Huxtable house.

In addition to Lisa Bonet as Denise, this first season of the show stars the young, and always beautiful, Marisa Tomei, who would eventually go on to win an Academy Award for her work in MY COUSIN VINNY.

Denise, Maggie, Whitley, Dwayne Wayne, Ron. They are all still attending Hillman College on this new 4-DVD box set.

Another 4 disc box set that is now available is the LIVE 8 BOX SET.

On July 2nd some of the biggest names in the music industry- including Coldplay, Robbie Williams, Mariah Carey, Sarah McLachlan, Bryan Adams, Black eyed Peas, Jet, Elton John, The Who, Sting, Paul McCartney, U2 and a re-formed Pink Floyd - took part in a series of concerts around the world. Two decades after he gave the world LIVE AID Bob Geldof staged an even more ambitious series of continent-spanning concerts dedicated to raising funds and public consciousness about international debt relief.

This Box Set focuses on the two biggest concerts that took place in London and Philadelphia. Sadly, even though there were a series of shows there is very little from them in this set.

That is the bad, but there is plenty of good on the LIVE 8 BOX SET. In addition to the concerts themselves there is also a backstage documentary and the entire performance from Pink Floyd and their pre-concert rehearsal.

Now if you are interested in the individual concert DVDs from Toronto, Paris, Rome or Berlin, they are also available as single discs.

However it is the Box Set that is most worthy of your time.

Plus, royalties from sales of the set will go to the Band Aid Trust for the relief of hunger and poverty in Africa.

From LIVE 8, we go now to this week's "leftovers."

Up first is the superb 2001 TV show UNDECLARED about Steve Karp and his fellow freshman dorm-mates.

They are all about to embark on one the greatest experiences of their lives...unfortunately for Steve, the girl he slept with last night has a boyfriend, and his lonely and recently divorced father is tagging along for the ride.

If you were a fan of the under appreciated FREAKS AND GEEKS then you will enjoy the humour and honesty that is front and centre in UNDECLARED.

And now UNDECLARED- THE COMPLETE SERIES is now available in an incredible 4-disc box set with an array of extras.

I declare that I love UNDECLARED, and I am quite pleased that I now own THE COMPLETE SERIES on DVD.

I am just as pleased that I now own a movie version of Douglas Adams' classic book THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY.

After almost twenty years development THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY was finally turned into a movie this year.

For those unfamiliar with the story, everyman Arthur Dent wakes up one morning to discover that the entire planet of Earth is about to be destroyed for an interplanetary bypass.

Dent is saved by his best friend, and alien-in-disguise Ford Prefect and that sets the stage for a series of interesting and goofy trips across the galaxy, accompanied - of course - by the trusty Hitchhiker's Guide.

Many of my friends revere Douglas Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" book, and the BBC television series. Many of them were subsequently disappointed in this film adaptation.

But I enjoyed it. The cast seems to be having a good time, and the result is a fun, breezy movie that is a treat to watch.

THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY movie might not be as good as the book, or the series, but it is an entertaining film nonetheless!

And it is available now at a store near you, along with CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, A DIFFERENT WORLD - SEASON ONE, the LIVE 8 BOX SET and UNDECLARED.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

The funny film MADAGASCAR features four zoo animals who end us shipwrecked outside of their friendly confines.

SCRUBS - SEASON TWO is the 3-disc box set with all of the 22 hilarious episodes from SCRUBS sensational second season.

THE SKELETON KEY is the title and the item that reveals the secrets of an old mansion.

And our "Leftover" is the 2005 version of CRASH. In this exceptional film several stories interweave during two days in Los Angeles involving a collection of inter-related characters.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

The Top Selling TV Shows on DVD

IN case you are curious, or just love useless facts, here they are!

Rank Title Units sold in millions Revenue in millions

1. Chappelle's Show: Season 1 Uncensored 3.68 $95.6
2. Family Guy, Volume 1 3.21 $120.4
3. The Simpsons: The Complete First Season 2.96 $110.8
4. Seinfeld First and Second Seasons 2.55 $95.6
5. Chappelle's Show: Season 2 Uncensored 2.51 $94.3
6. Band of Brothers 2.25 $180.2
7. Saturday Night Live: The Best of Will Ferrell 2.13 $25.5
8. Sex and the City: The Complete First Season 2.07 $77.5
9. Family Guy Volume 2 2.06 $53.6
10. The Simpsons: The Complete Second Season2.03 $76.1M

Source: Home Media Retailing through Oct. 31

Titanic: Special Collector's Edition

Paramount Home Entertainment has included three hidden features on the Special Collector’s Edition of James Cameron’s blockbuster epic 'Titanic.'

Insert disc 3 from the DVD set and from the Main Menu access the 'Marketing' section. On the following sub-menu, highlight the entry 'Fox TV Special: Titanic – Breaking New Ground' and then press the 'Down' arrow key on your remote control. This will highlight the life preserver on the right side of the screen.

Press the 'Enter' key and you will see the skit from the 1998 MTV Movie Awards with Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, and James Cameron.

Next, go to the 'Deleted Scenes' section and select the 'chapter' menu entry. On the following screen, highlight 'Chapter 29,' the extended Carpathia sequence, and then press the 'Down' arrow key on your remote. This will highlight the couple at the bottom of the screen. Press 'Enter,' and you will see the Saturday Night Live 'Titanic' skit featuring Bill Paxton.

Finally, go to the 'Special Features' section and select 'Still Galleries.' On that section’s sub-menu, highlight 'Production Artwork.' This will take you to the box on the right side of the screen. Highlight 'View Entire Gallery' and then press the 'Up' arrow key on your remote control to highlight the arrow in the middle of the screen. Press 'enter' now and you will see the short animated film 'Titanic in 30 Seconds with Bunnies.'

Top-flight titles target post-holiday DVD rush

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Although the jury is still out on the ultimate strength or weakness of the fourth quarter, studio DVD marketers are charging ahead with plans for next year.

Already, three big theatrical features -- one a certifiable blockbuster -- have been slotted for January release. "The Wedding Crashers" (New Line) will arrive in stores January 3 with a $207.8 million theatrical pedigree. A week later comes "Red Eye" and "Transporter 2."

Other likely January titles include "Flightplan" and "The Constant Gardener," which is generating a lot of buzz in awards circles.

Contenders for February DVD releases include " Tim Burton's Corpse Bride," "Just Like Heaven" and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit," and "A History of Violence"

"It's a fantastic time for home video," Warner Home Video president Ron Sanders said of the January-February time period. "That's why New Line has 'Wedding Crashers' and we had 'Troy' in that same slot last year. We were very pleased with the results."

Sanders credited the booming gift-card market, which according to Deloitte & Touche USA Llp. grew 20% last year and boosted retail sales by an estimated $18 billion.

"As gift cards become bigger and bigger retail items, we have a greater opportunity to sell DVDs after the holiday period," Sanders said.

It's not just new releases, either. Dozens of classics have been slotted for January and February release, including Warner's "Oscar Classics Collection," consisting of seven Academy Award-winning films that never before have been available on disc. Arriving in stores January 31: best picture winner "Cimarron" (1931), "The Champ" (1931), "Captains Courageous" (1937), "The Good Earth" (1937), "Kitty Foyle" (1940), "Johnny Belinda" (1948) and 1956's "Lust for Life."

The Couch Potato Report - November 2nd, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features a classic end to a classic saga and three leftovers.

It is amazing what memories we keep with us from our childhood.

For some, there are the memories of lying under a tree on a summer day, looking up at the clouds.

Others have memories of trips to the city to go shopping with siblings and mom and dad.

I have those memories, and many more as well from my childhood. Many of them remain vivid to this day.

One more very vivid memory that I have kept from my childhood is the way I felt back in 1977 when I first saw a movie called STAR WARS.

I was simply overwhelmed!

The intervening years have seen that film changed, "updated", and renamed STAR WARS - A NEW HOPE, but every time I see the film, or think of that summer 28 years ago when I first saw it, I feel like a kid again and I remain overwhelmed.

The release of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK in 1980 and THE RETURN OF THE JEDI in 1983 only cemented my passion.

When prequels to those films came out in the late nineties, my passion remained.

There were many people who's passion for STAR WARS diminished after the release of STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE in 1999 and STAR WARS: EPISODE II - ATTACK OF THE CLONES in 2002, but I wasn't one of them.

With every STAR WARS film, I felt like a kid again.

A kid sitting in a darkened movie theatre with a drink and some Maltesers getting ready to be taken to a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.

Now, with this week's release of STAR WARS: EPISODE III - REVENGE OF THE SITH on DVD the saga is complete.

It is the sixth and final film in the series and Lucas has said that he will do no more movies. Yes, he will tinker with the six he has already created, but he won't be making any new ones.

But if it had to end, I am glad it ended with REVENGE OF THE SITH, because tis is one superb film.

A film that gives us the final piece of the puzzle in the story of the rise, fall, and redemption of Darth Vader. <