It’s an exciting week to be a fan of NBC’s Heroes (we vote Petrelli — Peter Petrelli!) but the uninitiated also have rival figure skaters, real-life air guitarists, and plenty more Fresh titles to choose from today on DVD. Read on for the new release lowdown.
Heroes: Season 1 (Universal)
Tomatometer: N/A
Finally, it’s here! Seven glorious discs chock full of yummy Heroes goodness, including five behind-the-scenes featurettes, over 50 deleted and extended scenes, and the infamous 73-minute unaired pilot episode (which features a handful of different actors, sets, and an entire terrorist subplot — and a new character — that was excised from the season). Best of all, each episode of the modern day superhero series has its own commentary track, so you can sit back and soak in hours and hours of “why’d they do that” insight (for example, Tim Kring and Co. point out homages to The Godfather, The Naked Kiss, and Ran in the season finale alone). If you’re like us, you’ll be spending the next few weeks locked away re-watching every Milo Ventimiglia-filled minute in anticipation of next month’s all-new episodes!
Blades of Glory (Paramount)
Tomatometer: 69%
If you loved Will Ferrell and Jon Heder as figure skating’s first all-male pairs team, then the Blades of Glory DVD should serve you well. Not only can you relive the glory of Ferrell and Heder in the most ridiculous spandex costumes imaginable, you’ll also get the added treat of a bonus menu with plenty of comic goodies like the in-character featurette starring Hector the Psychofan and a DVD-stealing bit with real-life couple (and on-screen siblings) Amy Poehler and Will Arnett.
Air Guitar Nation (Docurama)
Tomatometer: 83%
For more comic hijinks, look for Air Guitar Nation on shelves this week. This rockumentary follows the ambitions of two aspiring invisible rock ‘n rollers as they battle for the U.S. Air Guitar Championship — and with names like C. Diddy and Björn Türoque, you’re promised one helluva show. More than an hour of extra features include even more air guitar performances, a “Where Are They Now?” update, and behind-the-scenes footage.
Offside (Sony)
Tomatometer: 97%
Director Jafar Panahi‘s dramedy about Iranian girls breaking the law to watch a World Cup match earned an impressive 97 percent on the Tomatometer for two reasons; it paints a comic portrait of pure, unadulterated soccer fever, but also calls for discussion of Iran’s strict gender-restricting statutes — rules that mean any females caught sneaking into a soccer stadium, for example, are subject to arrest. If you missed Offside in theaters, make sure to check it out now; the disc includes an interview with director Panahi.
Masters of Horror Box Set (Anchor Bay)
Tomatometer: N/A
Horror fans, put this on your list. The first season of Showtime’s Masters of Horror series is out today in a 14-disc box set, featuring all 13 hour-long episodes directed by horror legends like John Carpenter, Dario Argento, Tobe Hooper, and Takashi Miike. Each film has its own disc of a widescreen version, filmmaker interviews, commentary tracks, trailers, stills, and more; an extra disc of bonus featurettes is thrown in for added incentive to buy the set, since all thirteen films are available individually as well.
Other Safe Bets This Week
Red Road
Tomatometer: 90%
Andrea Arnold‘s feature debut thriller about a Scottish woman who works as a security camera operator and starts watching a man from her past won over critics, earning a 90 percent approval rating and the Special Jury Prize at Cannes in 2006.
Tomatometer: 72%
Molly Shannon stars as a meek woman with an unhealthy attachment to her pet dog in this quirky comedy, directed by Mike White (Chuck & Buck).
Tomatometer: 100%
Joe Swanberg‘s early entry in the emerging mumblecore movement — no-budget independent films largely about relationships among the twenty-something set — turns a tragicomic eye to three college grads who are dependent on technology, to the detriment of their love lives.
Friday Night Lights — The First Season
Tomatometer: N/A
The first season of NBC’s acclaimed serial, showcasing football mania in a small Texas town, is now out on DVD.
Don’t Say We Didn’t Warn You…
Tomatometer: N/A
America’s favorite Australian is back, sorta, in this unprecedented triple feature DVD. Good old Crocodile Dundee (Paul Hogan) and his lady friend Sue (Linda Kozlowski) have braved New York thugs, Columbian drug runners, and Hollywood studio execs, and you can watch the entire trilogy at once — if you dare.
Tomatometer: N/A
How funny Dane Cook‘s stand-up routines are is an arguable matter — audiences seemed to either love or hate his previous Tourgasm comedy road show — so perhaps this DVD consisting of two of Cook’s failed television pilots will serve up his comedy in more palatable style. Then again, they didn’t get picked up for a reason…
Tomatometer: 3%
Jamie Kennedy‘s Rip Van Winkle-esque tale of a 1980s breakdancer who wakes up after a twenty-year coma failed to impress 97 percent of the critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Go rent Beat Street, Breakin’ 2, or even You Got Served instead.
Until next week, happy renting!
