Welcome to the first The Special Edition: Coming Soon column. From here out, I will be posting all coming soon news in this, a new spin off column of the original The Special Edition. The original was becoming a monster to read, so I figured two normal-sized columns would be an easier read to get through than the giant one that I had built. The column will not really have a definite date that it will be released. I will release it when I have built up enough upcoming news to warrant it. The regular The Special Edition will still be released every Monday. Now, onto the column.
THE DARK CRYSTAL (25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
written and directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz
LABYRINTH (ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
written and directed by Jim Henson
cast: David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly
Two of Jim Henson’s best movies are getting Special Edition treatment. Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal are set to be released on August 14, and both will be released as 2-Disc Special Editions.
In The Dark Crystal (1982), the ideas of good versus evil are explored as Henson uses his Muppet creations to tell the story of a war on Thra, a planet with three suns. To really go into the storyline would be a waste of time to a person who has not seen the movie. It gets rather confusing to say the least. However it is a fun story that won Henson a Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film, which is more impressive since it had tough competition from Conan the Barbarian that year. I would say it would have won more awards if it had not been released the same year as E.T., The Wrath of Kahn, The Thing, Poltergeist and Blade Runner. Great year for Sci Fi/Fantasy/Horror films, you would have to say. The two-disc set will feature an all-new digital transfer, along with footage recovered from Jim Henson’s home, a new commentary by Conceptual Designer/Supervisor Brian Froud, and 50 minutes of all-new featurettes (including "Creatures and Creations", "Lifelike Illusion", and "Singular Vision and the Kingdom United"). The discs will have lenticular packaging.
In Labyrinth (1986), a young girl named Sarah (played by a fifteen year old Jennifer Connelly) is left to baby sit her baby brother. When the youngster would not stop crying, she said she wished the Goblins would come and take away her baby brother. Well, it happened and Sarah has to enter into the fantasy world of the Goblin King (played by David Bowie (Note from Ian: and Bowie’s pants!)) and his own personal labyrinth that she must conquer to save her baby brother. As well as an all-new transfer, the 2-disc set features never-before-seen footage recovered from Jim Henson’s home in England, and 60 minutes of exclusive featurettes (including "Paper, Cloth and Creatures", and "Coming of Age") that include interviews with luminaries such as George Lucas and Brian Froud. It will also have the special lenticular packaging.
ZODIAC
d. David Fincher
c. Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., and Jake Gyllenhaal
I love David Fincher. There, I said it. People seem to rip his entry into the Alien legacy. I personally dug it for what it was. I will say straight up that it is not as bad as people would have you believe. Then came Seven, which I saw in theaters when it was first released. I would say it is the first time there was complete silence after the movie. I mean not a word was spoke as the people filed out and went to their cars. It was that brutal – in a good way. That movie slapped you in the face and made you like it. The Game is another unappreciated movie that deserves more love than people give it. It may have become “cool” to rip on Fight Club lately, but I consider it to be a great film. It is one of my favorite movies, for sure. Panic Room was not up to the level of his previous efforts but it was a visual treat. There was some great stuff in that movie to watch. After a long five year break, we finally get his next movie, Zodiac. Based on the Zodiac murders that were never solved, the story is based on the true-crime novel by Robert Graysmith, in which the author believes he knows who the killer actually was. Well, the DVD will be released on July 24, and in a disappointing twist, there will be no extra material. Don’t be discouraged, though. Remember the original releases of Seven, Fight Club and Panic Room. Now think about the GREAT 2-Disc Seven, 2-Disc Fight Club and 3-Disc Panic Room (!!!) editions that came out later. Rent it when it comes out, but wait to buy it. The stuff on the web site for the movie alone is enough to fill multiple featurettes.
DELIVERANCE (35th ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
d. John Boorman
c. Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox, Jon Voight
The classic hillbilly survival horror movie Deliverance will be released in a 35th Anniversary Edition on September 18. The movie tells the story of a group of guys going out for a weekend of canoeing that turns into a fight for survival. Burt Reynolds stars as the guy who believes he is the skilled outdoorsman that leads the group of friends, but when they get lost and believe they are being tracked by killers, they adapt an attitude of survival of the fittest. Everything from the banjo playing kid to the sodomy perpetrated on Ned Beatty has become a thing of film legend. The version that sits on my shelf is not quite bare boned, as it includes a behind-the-scenes documentary, but this new version will be quite a treat as it will include the original documentary plus all new documentaries Deliverance: The Beginning, Deliverance: The Journey, Deliverance: Betraying the River and Deliverance: Delivered. The new edition will also include commentary by director John Boorman and the theatrical trailer. The cover art has not yet been revealed.
THE MONSTER SQUAD (20th ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
d. Fred Dekker
I really don’t know much about this movie, but it seems to be well liked. Released in 1987, and co-written by Shane Black (Lethal Weepon, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang), the movie presents Count Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, the Wolfman, the Mummy and the Gillman as they all adjourn to earth in search of a powerful amulet that will grant them power to rule the world. A group of kids – losers and outsiders – uncover the plan and join to form The Monster Squad, as they prepare to stop the monsters. The two-disc set will include an audio commentary with Writer/Director Fred Dekker and “Squad Members” André Gower, Ryan Lambert and Ashley Bank, a second audio commentary with Writer/Director Fred Dekker and Director of Photography Bradford May, a five-part retrospective, ‘Monster Squad Forever!’, featuring new interviews with writer/director Fred Dekker, actors André Gower, Ryan Lambert, Ashley Bank, Duncan Regehr, Tom Noonan and more, a ‘Conversation with Frankenstein’ featurette with a never-before-seen classic interview with the Monster himself (Tom Noonan), deleted scenes, the film’s original theatrical trailer, a television spot, and a stills gallery. It will be released July 24.
FLASHDANCE (SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION)
d. Adrian Lyne
c. Jennifer Beals
I read a lot of people talking about how sick they are of the recent trend of dance related movies. Well, all cycles are bound to repeat and the dance movie is nothing new. The 80’s gave us such movies as Dirty Dancing, Footloose, Fame and the most recent movie to get a special edition DVD, Flashdance. Say what you want about the recent onslaught of dance related movies, but the fact that reading this title alone makes that damnable Irene Cara song “Flashdance … What a Feeling” pop into my head means my pain is greater than yours. Director Adrian Lyne is lucky he gave us the superb Jacob’s Ladder as repentance for this. The special edition will be available to own on September 18. Extras will include a History of the Flashdance featurette, a Look of Flashdance featurette, a Music and Songs featurette, another featurette on the films choreography, a Releasing the Flashdance Phenomenon feature, the teaser and theatrical trailers, and a TV spot.
DISTURBIA
d. D.J. Caruso
c. Shia LaBeouf, David Morse, Sarah Roemer, Carrie-Anne Moss
Every year that are movies that really take you by surprise with their box office take. A movie that seemed like just another genre flick grows legs and outperforms it’s competition. Disturbia is one of those movies. With it’s $20m budget, it opened with $22m to knock Blades of Glory out of the top spot. Well, with the heavy hitters about to come out, I assumed it would be doomed. It was really just a remake of the Hitchcock classic Rear Window. It also starred Shia LaBeouf, who had never proven he could carry a movie on his shoulders. Devin gave it a good rating (8/10), but mentions that it is really just made for the teenage audience. Well, in week two of release it held the top spot above fellow thriller Fracture. In week three it continued strong, outmatching another thriller The Invisible. It finally took the power of Spider-Man 3 to knock it out of the top spot. Well, guess what? In the week I am announcing it’s DVD release, Disturbia just enjoyed it’s 9th weekend in the Top 10. It never hit the $100m mark, but it held steady and kept trucking, which says a lot about the movies staying power. The DVD will be released on August 07. Extras on the DVD will include a commentary with director DJ Caruso, Shia LaBeouf and Sarah Roemer, four deleted scenes, a making of featurette, a Hitchcock Flare featurette, a "Don’t Make Me Wait" – This World Fair music video, and outtakes. Completing the package will be a Serial Pursuit Trivia Pop-Up/Quiz, a photo gallery, Interstitials, and the trailer. HD-DVD and Blu-ray releases will be available.
INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
d. Philip Kaufman
c. Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum, Brooke Adams
One of the remakes of the 1956 classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers is about to be released in a 2-Disc Special Edition. The week before the latest remake (starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig) is scheduled to be released in theaters, MGM Home Entertainment will be releasing the two-disc collector’s edition of Philip Kaufman’s Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Kaufman’s version stars Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum and Leonard Nimoy, and will be available to own August 07. Kaufman would win a Saturn Award for his direction of the movie (beating out Richard Donner and Superman) but would go on to lose to Superman in the best picture category. Kaufman, who also wrote the story for Raiders of the Lost Arc, relocated the original setting to San Francisco and created a movie that pretty much matched the tension and greatness of the original. Extras will include an audio commentary by director Philip Kaufman, a Re-Visitors From Outer Space or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Pod featurette, a Practical Magic: The Special Effect Pod featurette, a Man Behind The Scream: The Sound Effects Pod featurette, an Invasion Will Be Televised: The Cinematography Pod featurette, and the original theatrical trailer.
CALENDAR OF UPCOMING JUNE RELEASES
JUNE 19, 2007
ARTHUR! ARTHUR!
BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA
GRAY MATTERS
IF… (CRITERION COLLECTION)
IN A DARK PLACE
MISS POTTER
PICKET FENCES: SEASON ONE
RENO 911! MIAMI
SWEET MOVIE (CRITERION COLLECTION)
WR: MYSTERIES OF THE ORGANISM (CRITERION COLLECTION)
JUNE 26, 2007
BEHIND THE MASK: THE RISE OF LESLIE VERNON
BLAKE SNAKE MOAN
DEAD SILENCE
FOUR LAST SONGS
HAUNTED FOREST
ISOLATION
LA JATEE/SANS SOLEIL (CRITERION COLLECTION)
PRIDE
PSYCHE: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON
SHOOTER
Well, that is it for the first column of The Special Edition: Coming Soon edition. I hope splitting these up makes it easier on you to get through. Drop me an E-mail at Chud1@starvingdogs.biz and I’ll catch you on Monday with the regular installment of The Special Edition.