Pretty new DVD player at home, but thus far I've been feeding it crap.

Last night I finally watched The Mummy. This past weekend I watched Moulin Rouge. Help! What movies should I be watching instead of these horrors?

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Answers

I would suggest "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" and the Paradise Lost documentaries.

And I would imagine new Godfather DVDs would be great if you want to take advantage of the DVD features.

Oh, and "Shadow of the Vampire" is really good, as well.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

"Memento" is pretty kick ass as it is, but I bet that the DVD would have even more kick-ass features.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I'll second the MOC on my beloved West Memphis Three. "I'm 'on bay on TAY-VAAAAY!"

We watched Hedwig and the Angry Inch this weekend, and it was great. I'll recommend that one, too, if you haven't seen it. I thank the good Lord every night that Master V hasn't got an angry inch.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I also know that the first DVD I'm going to buy (when I get a DVD player) is "The Natural History of the Chicken." Have y'all seen it on PBS? It's fantastic, for real.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I own both Dick and Bring it On on DVD. And yet, no DVD player.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Well, I'm not going to recommend Attack the Gas Station! again until Melissa H says she likes it. Also good luck finding it to rent. (I'm just going to buy, myself, once I actually own a DVD player . . . )

Let's think. In the Mood For Love is now out on DVD and should have gotten wide enough release to be available. It's slow, but really, really gorgeous and sexy. Definitely one to watch with the partner.

I poked around the old DVD reviews on Salon. Apparently The Wizard of Oz DVD has lots of interesting features. I'd also love to see the DVDs of It Happened One Night and Cabaret.

And while I don't know what the extras are like on either DVD, I would recommend both The Getaway (the original, with Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw) and Harold and Maude.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Oooh, so many! Keep them coming.

The MOC makes me laugh, because we bought the Godfather set for my stepfather for the holidays, and I let the men be in control of staying up all night watching them. I forgot about O' Brother, which I've seen but the Partner hasn't. But I found Shadow of the Vampire to be quite lame. It was just soooo slooooow. Tell me what I missed.

More more! Has anyone seen The Anniversary Party? I've been wanting to for ages, and it comes out today for rent!

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I liked it, Robyn, though it gets very, very overwrought at the end. Which I think is a typical tendency for films directed by actors, you know? They want that big "acting" scene.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I just bought and saw Chocolat, which was pretty good, but just made me hungry. Seriously. I didn't think I would like Along Came A Spider, but I did...lots of twists and turns.

One that I really want to get is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I just think you gotta have that one. It's just so fun.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I know you didn't call Moulin Rouge a horror. Man, that makes me want to cry.

The Almost Famous Bootleg Cut CD (aka Untitled) is kick ass, even if you've seen it or the previous DVD. The added scenes for the most part were probably best cut but there is one that adds so much more to the Russell/Penny plot line. In that it made me finally understand why she put up with so much shit from him. Plus the commentary track is Cameron Crowe and his mother and his mother? Is 20 times cooler than she is portrayed in the film.

There's nothing new or exciting on the Practical Magic DVD but it does have Goran Visijic and, well, I just unabashedly love that movie. Don't ask.

I'm blanking on the other DVDs we own right now. I will however take this space to boast that apparently my promotion last fall got me put on the Super Special Studio list and I've gotten a ton of "For YOur Consideration" videos and DVDs recently. Today I got I Am Sam, yesterday I got Ali and Black Hawk Down, Miramax sent me a box of 5 DVDs, it's crazy. I am way over excited to be able to see I Am Sam at home and not cry like a fool in public.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

I've been waiting to get "Attack the Gas Station" until I get a DVD player, but no player yet. The SF Bay area has a large Asian population, I'm thinking I might be able to find it to rent on VHS if I go to the right place.

I'd recommend "A Room With A View." It has a wonderful sound track that should sound great on a DVD player. (I haven't checked to see if it's on DVD, but I don't see why it wouldn't be.)

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Hi, I'm Julie, and I'm addicted to DVDs.

Lately I've been buying old favorites:

True Romance Heathers Pulp Fiction Suicide Kings Office Space Fight Club Tron

Yeah, my husband may have slightly influenced some of those choices. But I like them all. Robocop, on the other hand? That's all him.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Melissa, I'm soliciting help on my favorite Asian film discussion board on where to rent in SF. Will get back to you soon as I can.

Word on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

If you like your animation really dark and adult-themed, both Princess Mononoke and Ghost in the Shell are on DVD.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Y'all make me so happy. Most of the movies you guys mentioned we already own on video, and I think it's time we started revisiting on DVD.

The first DVD we bought for ourselves was Almost Famous. I adore that move, and am so thrilled with the bootleg cut. We even watched the secret Stairway to Heaven scene, but were too lazy to get the album on, so we watched it in silence and giggled our asses off.

Moulin Rouge hurt my head. Too many flashing images, possibly I am too old to enjoy it. It was very colorful, though. Um, yeah.

The one DVD that we have not unwrapped is Elvis in Las Vegas. It's being saved for a special night. My fingers are double crossed for extra footage, and I hope he's all sweaty and drugged up. Yay Elvis!

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Waiting for Guffman Spinal Tap Happy, Texas Best In Show Dazed and Confused Slacker (not Slackers, that crap that is showing in theatres soon) Suburbia Welcome to the Dollhouse

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

All of these suggestions are so good, I'm making a list for my next trip to the video store!

I totally second the Hedwig DVD, and want to add a special word for the Making Of documentary, which is nearly as long as the actual movie, and shows you, well, how they made the movie out of a play. So good.

I can't say enough good things about the Criterion Collection edition of Rushmore. Criterion are totally the Cadillac of DVDs, and this one is chock full of extras -- Charlie Rose Show interviews w/Wes Anderson and Bill Murray, the MTV Video Awards Show Max Fischer Players adaptations of Out of Sight and Armageddon, a Making-Of featurette, and one of the best commentary tracks I've ever heard (done by Anderson, Owen Wilson, and Jason Schwartzman). I could watch it weekly and not get bored.

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2002

Ooh, sophie, after hearing about the Rushmore DVD, no I HAVE to get one of those damn things!

(Plus, maybe having a DVD player will keep us from getting the funny looks we get when people find out we don't have cable and we rarely use our 15-year-old VCR because it makes an annoying whining sound. We're cheap! It's not a big deal. People assume we have some heavy moral stance against cable, but really, we're just cheap! Without cable, we have about $60 bucks a month extra that we can spend on important things, like wine! Sheesh.)

-- Anonymous, January 16, 2002

So. Movie suggestions. C and I were trying to remember all the movies we've seen during the past year or so (on video or in the theater). There were a lot of really good ones that we remembered: The Contender, You Can Count On Me, Crouching Tiger, Memento, Lord of the Rings, Ghost Dog, Oh Brother, Down From The Mountain... (And I really liked Bridget Jones's Diary, mainly because the similarities between Mark Darcy and C are uncanny, I think. Shut up.)

We saw several that we had almost forgotten seeing: Finding Forrester, Harry Potter (I know.), Bounce, The Virgin Suicides. And there are a lot that I'm sure I've forgotten about completely.

So. My point is, what makes a movie memorable?

-- Anonymous, January 16, 2002

Inspired writing makes a movie memorable. A good plot. I usually can't get into a movie that has major flaws in logic.

I purposely didn't say great writing because some of my favorite movies are goofy like Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. Not exactly great writing, but more clever than you average teen flick. Other, more 'proper' movies would be period pieces based on great novels like A Room With A View, Emma and Sense and Sensibility.

I think one of the most memorable movies I ever saw was Repo Man, but I've never been able to explain why. It just is.

-- Anonymous, January 16, 2002

I'm not sure if it's out on video (if not, it will be very soon), but Ghost World is pretty outstanding. I absolutely loved that movie.

Other DVDs I've liked lately -- Hedwig if fab, Made is pretty decent and I really did love Dancer in the Dark (although it will make you cry like a little baby)

If you've never seen The Sweet Hereafter, that's really good, too, as is Amores Perros (pulp fiction-like Mexican film with great characters -- translates to "Love's a Bitch"), Out of Sight (one of my favorite DVDs) and Memento.

Can't wait for "Amelie" to make it to DVD. That's probably my favorite movie right now.

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2002

See, I'm holding out against Amélie. I saw a trailer for it before seeing Battle Royale (which was a bad decision on the marketers' part -- the only thing those two films have in common is their non-English status) and it looked far too cutesy and silly for me. But so many people have told me, in no uncertain terms, to see it.

One question about Amores Perros: if the title translates to "love's a bitch," why isn't it written Amor Es Perros? As far as I know, "amores" is not an actual word in Spanish. I'm just curious because every reference I have seen to the film has the two- word title.

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2002

See, I thought Made was awful. I couldn't even get through it. And I'm the biggest Vince Vaughn fan evah.

The American Pie 2 DVD with their supposed 10 hours of extras? Lies.

Moulin Rouge really is an excellent DVD. 2 discs - the second chock full of goodies. I haven't watched any of the extras yet because I'm still too enamored by the film. I just keep watching my favorite scenes over and over. (Chapters 14 and 21 [I think] if you're curious.)

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2002

See, I didn't think "Made" was great, but I liked it ok. It reminded me how everyone has that one friend in their life who just cannot shut the fuck up EVER and always gets you in trouble. I like Jon Favreau a lot.

"Amelie" is not as cute or schmaltzy as I thought. In fact, it's a little darker than I expected, but just fantastic, wonderful filmmaking. I walked out just smiling up a storm after it was over. Go see it. Now. Seriously.

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2002

The Criterion version of Chasing Amy. The commentary with Kevin Smith, Ben Affleck and the gang is hilarious. One night I watched just the commentary. IT's THAT funny.

Bring It On has lots of extras as well and it smart assy funny although I'm not sure if this is Robyn's definition of crap or not.

Silence of the Lambs The Cider House Rules

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2002

As soon as I get paid again (with my university pay all messed up no one seems to know when that might be) I'll be ordering the View Askew collection. We are insanely amused by them all and I have frequent naughty dreams about Kevin Smith.

I thought Bring It On was cute, especially watching it the second time with my Mom.

This weekend is all about The Anniversary Party. I've waited and waited, and Blockbuster assured me that they would have it on the 15th. Anyone who wants to sit quietly near me while I watch it is welcome.

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2002

Y'all. What is the deal with this new Nicole Kidman movie, Birthday Girl? I know that I should judge a movie by the trailer, but seriously: "My name is Natasha." "My name is not Natasha." "She doesn't speak English!"

For one, if they really wanted someone who couldn't speak English, shouldn't they have cast Penelope Cruz? For all the pretty and talented that girl is, she really just doesn't speak English all that well. It's as convincing as listening to the Beatles sing, "Komme gibt me Deiner Hand!" And for two, really. Nicole Kidman's accent is so - so bad - in those trailers, are we supposed to take her seriously? There were better Russian accents in Red Dawn! Please, someone, explain.

-- Anonymous, January 22, 2002

I saw Storytelling, the new Todd Solondz film, last night, and it may be the first film that I enjoy less in retrospect than while seeing it.

Meanwhile, my good friend, she who wrote her senior thesis on Boogie Nights, saw Attack the Gas Station! and loved it. Hooray!

And I saw The Big Sleep for the second time. Love that movie. Love, love, love it. If WNET/13 just shows The Big Sleep every Saturday night, and my week can end with Iron Chef, strange game shows hosted by Takeshi Kitano, and The Big Sleep, I will be a happy girl.

And a strange girl. But y'all knew that.

-- Anonymous, January 22, 2002

T - I know. They had a trailer for Birthday Girl right before In the Bedroom (which by the way, people, if you like TRUE drama, you'll love this film. It's amazing). I still don't even understand what BG is about, besides the guy from Truth about Cats & Dogs orders a wife over the internet and suddenly Nicole Kidman is Russian.

-- Anonymous, January 22, 2002

Moulin Rouge really is an excellent DVD. 2 discs - the second chock full of goodies. I haven't watched any of the extras yet because I'm still too enamored by the film. I just keep watching my favorite scenes over and over. (Chapters 14 and 21 [I think] if you're curious.)

I just have to second Hannah on this. I got a chance to view my Moulin Rouge DVD this weekend and I think it has more extras than almost any other DVD I own. The dances? You can chose to watch them in extended play or multi-camera versions. How cool is that? Just one of the many extras.

-- Anonymous, January 29, 2002

I haven't seen Vanilla Sky yet, but Mr. Boy & I watched the Spanish version (Abre Los Ojos) the other night, and it was very satisfying, in that creepy "what the hell?"-inducing way. I almost don't want to see the Tom Cruise version, because I'm afraid he will have ruined his role's credibility by being so larger than life (the actor who plays the lead role in Abre... is a total honey, but he's not TOM CRUISE, you know? His looks don't get in the way of his acting, is what I'm saying, here.), but I am curious about remakes in general, so I'll probably check it out at the $3 movie theater this week.

If you like to be scared, and you like the "adolescence is hell" themes of the early seasons of Buffy, I suggest you look no further than Ginger Snaps, which is a funny, spooky, and moving movie about two really close sisters, one of whom turns into a werewolf. The actors who play the sisters are fantastic, but the standout of the movie is Mimi Rogers as the super-perky mom who doesn't quite get her increasingly goth offspring. Who knew she had such comic timing?

-- Anonymous, February 03, 2002

If you were satisfied with the spanish version of Vanilla Sky, stay away from the TC/PC version. It tried to be good, it really did, but it wasn't.

-- Anonymous, February 07, 2002

Don't go see "Big Fat Liar" or the Japanese anime film "Metropolis."

Seriously. You've been warned.

-- Anonymous, February 07, 2002

Y'all, I'd be a bad Asian film aficionado if I didn't pimp Shiri. It's got a limited release, but the "limited" includes SF, LA, and DC, so at least three regulars of this board can go check it out; and if it gets good box office this (its opening) weekend, maybe it'll spread.

There's action! There's heartbreak! There's lots of bloody deaths, fish eviscerations, kissing in the rain, races against the clock, potential double-crossings, gorgeous assassins . . . anyway. Good film. If you want to see an action picture this weekend, I'd choose this one over Collateral Damage twenty times over.

(Besides, the director's hot.)

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

I forgot: here's the website, with trailer, clips, listing the theaters, etc.

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

Wait. Omar - are you saying that a Japanese animated film might actually be bad? Gracious!

(Y'all, I just can't endure the anime.)

Do y'all think anyone will go see Rollerball? I can appreciate the Sci-Fi, y'all, and I think that I can tell the good Sci-Fi from the bad, but this movie just looks too bad to bear.

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

Oh, Rollerball looks awful. But isn't LL Cool J in it? And, if so, doesn't that mean we have to see it?

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

One bad anime movie can tint your experience with the genre for life. It would be the equivalent of thinking all Disney movies were like Pocahontas II.

To those who have not done well with the anime, I typically recommend Miyazaki. I have some friends who can't stand his work, and some of it is admittedly uneven, but I still say that anyone left uncharmed by the cat-bus in My Neighbor Totoro is inhuman.

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

totally OT>
Y'all, I know less than dick about anime, but my brother does, and he named his cat Totoro. Isn't that cute? we call her "toro" for short and everyone thinks we mean bull-in-Spanish.

Because they are dumb.

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

I've seen some good (AKira, of course, and Princess Mononoke which is long, but lovely), but Metropolis was just really muddled. It looked great, but was exhausting and not as interesting as I expected.

-- Anonymous, February 08, 2002

I hope you don't mind a lurker popping in with a comment, but...

Omar, the reason Metropolis seemed so muddled was that it was trying to condense a story told over hundreds of pages of manga (comics) into one movie. Imagine what would happen if all the Harry Potter books were condensed into one two-hour movie. Yikes. Some good anime movies to try: Tonari no Totoro/My Neighbor Totoro, Majo no Takyubin/Kiki's Delivery Service, and Grave of the Fireflies. Word of warning on the last one - Grave of the Fireflies is a gritty look at the aftermath of the firebombing of Tokyo during WWII from the perspective of two orphans. Not for the faint of heart.

-- Anonymous, March 04, 2002

You should definitely see "Wet Hot American Summer". It's fairly recent, with Janeane Garafolo and David Hyde Pierce. Hilarious. So so hilarious. I cannot recommend it enough.

-- Anonymous, March 04, 2002

Emily, you're the second person in a week to recommend "Wet Hot American Summer," so I think it's a must. I missed it up here in theatrical release, but it's on video now, right?

-- Anonymous, March 05, 2002

I think everyone missed it in the theater because it was there for 38 seconds, but I second Emily's recommedation. It's really excellent and funny as hell.

I however would NOT recommend Crazy/Beautiful. Not only is it Mad Love Part Duex, but I couldn't get over how dirty Kirsten Dunst looked. Is that like a rule? To play crazy you have to have dirty hair?

-- Anonymous, March 05, 2002

Yeah, she did look sort of smudged all over. Her clothes looked nasty enough to get up and pitch themselves into the washer, too.

-- Anonymous, March 05, 2002

I have to so incredibly second the Hedwig and the Angry Inch recommendations. I laughed, I cried, I made the boy immediately copy the soundtrack onto a tape to play in the car....

So good, y'all.

-- Anonymous, April 01, 2002

We watched "Training Day" last night on DVD and the acting was excellent. Denzel was an over the top bad guy and played that role with all the fervor it deserved. The only extra feature that we watched was the alternate ending which pretty much sucked, so I can't really comment on the extra features for this one.

-- Anonymous, April 01, 2002

Don't rent On the Line, starring Lance Bass. Because, not that my hopes were high or anythign, but he really, really can't act. At all.

-- Anonymous, April 01, 2002

If I rented a movie with Lance Bass in it, it would not be to enjoy his acting abilities. It would be to drool pathetically at hs fresh- scrubbed cuteness.

-- Anonymous, April 02, 2002

Favorites for me include "Waking Ned Devine," "The Full Monty," and "Mystery, Alaska." That last one has a great soundtrack but I haven't been able to find it anywhere - I don't think they made one for public consumption, which is too bad.

-- Anonymous, April 02, 2002

The official best movie of all time is "Stigmata". This movie is amazing, and just plain awsome. The second best movie is "Momento". The official worst movie of all time is "The New Guy". Please don't waste money and see that crap on a stick or shit on a shingle [whichever floats your boat.].

-- Anonymous, May 21, 2002