TWIN PEAKS Complete Second Season
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Free Twin Peaks 2!
By: Brian ThomasDate: Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Not long ago we published my interview with the Film Crew, a revival of sorts of Mystery Science Theater 3000 in which final cast members Kevin Murphy, Mike Nelson and Paul Corbett would riff on obnoxious psychotronic flicks in a series of DVDs. The guys decided to let you vote on their website to pick which one of four features would be released first. Well, though they haven’t taken the voting page down yet, we’ve received word that the first movie to be Crewed will be the sordid 1968 drama Hollywood After Dark (AKA Walk the Angry Beach), starring 34-ish former Broadway star Rue McClanahan, destined for fame as a sitcom star, but here put through the wringer as a Tinseltown hopeful forced to become a stripper to make ends meet. The DVD will hit stores on July 10, followed on August 7 by the second Film Crew title, Killers From Space.
From our Prize Closet this week, CBS/Paramount is providing us with two copies of Twin Peaks Complete Second Season. For a chance to win one, just send an email to which includes your name and address DVD Shopping List, and in the subject line put the name of Laura Palmer’s horse.
We also have one copy of The Good Shepherd to give away, courtesy of Universal. For this one we’ll be less tricky – you just have to put the words “MATT DAMON” in the subject.
SPOTLIGHT OF THE WEEK
This week, our spotlight falls on a seasoning long in coming:
(O) TWIN PEAKS Complete Second Season (CBS/Paramount) A mysterious giant appears. Laura Palmer’s killer is revealed. A soul is trapped in a doorknob. Nadine gains super strength. Cooper’s dead partner returns. And Bob reappears. All 22 episodes on six discs plus Log Lady intros and interviews.
NEW RELEASES
(O) THE ACID EATERS / WEED (Image) Something Weird Video presents Byron Mabe’s 1968 mindbender in which Satan (Buck Kartalian) guides a gang of weekend bikers to his giant tower of LSD! Followed by Alex de Renzy’s 1972 anti-marijuana shockumentary. DOOMED © MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA ©
(O) ATTACK OF THE GRYPHON (Sony) Two warring kingdoms unite to battle a monster controlled by an evil wizard. Based on a true story! Only, well, it was a few rednecks beating up a drunk gator in Florida instead of a prince and princess facing a dragon in a mythical kingdom. And the wizard was an old hippy on mushrooms sitting on his front porch in his underwear all day.
(O) AXIS OF EVIL COMEDY TOUR (Image) Comics of Middle Eastern descent yuck it up over cultural differences and similarities.
(O) BEDAZZLED (Fox) The original Peter Cook / Dudley Moore 1967 British comedy classic, not the dull remake.
(O) BLACK CHRISTMAS (Dimension/Genius) Remake of the fine Canadian proto-slasher horror film, this time with TV stars. Standard and unrated edition, which includes featurettes and deleted footage.
(O) BLACK EMANNUELLE’S BOX Volume 1 (Severin) Laura Gemser in Emanuelle In Bangkok, Sister Emanuelle and Emanuelle Around The World (X-rated European version available separately), plus a bonus CD. Delayed from last week.
(O) A BOTHERED CONSCIENCE (Brain Damage) A man suffers dangerous mental illness due to the bloodshed in his family background.
(O) BOTTOM FEEDER (Genius) Sewer worker Tom Sizemore and crew are menaced by a monstrous medical experiment gone wrong. Includes Making-Of.
(O) CAMP BURLESQUE ( Starlight) Modern burlesque performers go to camp.
(O) CHARLOTTE'S WEB (Paramount/Nickelodeon) Wilbur the pig avoids a trip to the butcher shop with the help of a crafty spider. Widescreen and “fullscreen” editions include two commentraks, Making-Of featurettes, gag reel, deleted footage, music videos and more.
(O) THE CONVENT (Lionsgate) Professor Joihn Malkovich and wife Catherine Deneuve visit an ancient Spanish monastery to research his theories on Shakespeare, but they’re distracted by the temptations of the strange and wicked guardians.
(O) FREEWAY (Lionsgate) Reese Witherspoon is wonderful in her debut lead as an innocent teen who escapes her inner city dangers to visit her lonely grandmother in a trailer park, but she’s waylaid by the predatory Kiefer Sutherland and ends up in jail after the ensuing melee. An auspicious first feature by Matthew Bright, who adds a commentrak.
(O) GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN (Classic Media) Today CM releases to retail outlets two Godzilla deluxe discs previously available online only. Includes both Japanese and US versions of the film, plus a commentrak, featurettes and more.
(O) THE GOOD SHEPHERD (Universal) Matt Damon is recruited by the fledgling CIA, prospering at espionage work while neglecting wife Angelina Jolie at home. Robert De Niro directs. Widescreen and “fullscreen” editions include deleted footage.
(O) GOREGOYLES 2 (Brain Damage) Horror anthology.
(O) KAMEN RIDER THE FIRST (Media Blasters) 2005 adaptation of the original helmeted cyborg hero manga that spawned several TV series. Listed under “Masked Rider”, but this is the title on the cover art I’ve seen.
(O) KARLA (Monterey) Laura Prepon stars as Karla Homolka, who with her partner Paul Bernardo (Misha Collins) became the most notorious cold blooded killers in the history of Canada. Includes commentrak, deleted footage and featurette.
(O) KIDNAPPED (Anchor Bay) Two versions of Mario Bava’s tense crime thriller (AKA Rabid Dogs), which was completed posthumously by son Lamberto Bava and released on DVD in the 1990s. With commentrak by Bava biographer Tim Lucas, Making-Of and more.
(O) KILLER STORY (Brain Damage) Horror anthology in which two pulp writers try to outdo each other.
KUNOICHI COLLECTION (Media Blasters)
(O) LIFEBLOOD (Brain Damage) Gothic horror in Philadelphia, with a man trying to get revenge on the vampire who killed his wife.
(O) THE LOST ROOM (Lionsgate) Sci-Fi Channel mini-series in which Peter Krause finds an interdimentional vortex inside his motel room. Includes featurette.
(O) MARIO BAVA COLLECTION Volume 1 (Anchor Bay) Includes Black Sabbath, Black Sunday and The Girl Who Knew Too Much, all with commentraks by Bava biographer Tim Lucas and more, plus Kill Baby Kill and Knives of the Avenger.
(O) ROYAL FLASH (Fox) 1975 comedy adventure starring mAlcolm McDowell, Alan Bates, Florinda Bolkan and Oliver Reed. Includes commentrak and featurettes.
(O) THE SHADOW WHIP (Image) 1971 Shaw Bros. action with Cheng Pei-Pei
(O) S*P*Y*S (Fox) This 1974 espionage comedy staring Elliot Gould and Donald Sutherland was meant to draw the same audience that loved them in M*A*S*H.
(O) SUPERCROC (The Asylum) The mission: beat Rogue into theaters and Primeval onto DVD.
(O) VOLVER (Sony) Pedro Almodovar’s international hit in which two sisters are plagued by ghosts in an old house.Includes commentrak, Making-Of, interviews and more.
(O) ZOMBIES GONE WILD (Westlake) Zombedy © in which the living dead invade Spring Break. Includes outtakes, featurette and more.
BLU-RAY DISC CORNER
(O) G.I JANE (Buena Vista)
(O) IDENTITY (Sony) Includes commentrak, deleted footage, featurette and more.
(O) KING ARTHUR (Buena Vista)
(O) VOLVER (Sony) Includes commentrak, Making-Of, interviews and more.
HD-DVD CORNER
(O) THE GOOD SHEPHERD (Universal) DVD Combo includes deleted footage.
NOT ON DVD CORNER
We welcome the input of Maniacs who want to share input on this section, where we highlight a different genre feature that has yet to come to digital disc format – just send your suggestions to DVD Shopping List in an email identified with “NOT ON DVD” in the subject line.
(O) TWIN PEAKS Season 1 (Paramount? Warner Bros.? New Line? Lionsgate?) What’s that you say? You already own the Season One set released a few years ago? Well, that really doesn’t cut it and you know it. The pilot/premiere episode was expanded into a feature to be shown in Europe, the dumped onto VHS and laserdisc in the USA. So when the series was released on laserdisc (by Image) and the first season on DVD (by Artrisan), they weren’t able to include the first episode in any form. Now, it’s taken so long for Paramount to get Season Two out that Season One is long out of print and generally available only at high prices on eBay. What the public really wants is a box set containing the Fire Walk With Me movie prequel (presently on DVD through New Line), the pilot movie (rights still held by Warner Bros., I believe), the complete 8-episode first season (Artison’s rights may still have been absorbed by Lionsgate), and the 22-episode second season just arrived from Paramount/CBS. Whew! What do you think the chances are that all these parts can be fit together in one box? About the same as all these studios merging? Or is there a chance that at least the series rights will soon revert to one owner? Only my log knows the answer…
Be sure to check back next week—and every week—for Mania’s DVD Shopping List! And don’t forget Anime Avalanche every Monday!
DVD Shopping List (© 2007 Brian Thomas) is our weekly DVD column. Brian Thomas is the author of the massive book VideoHound’s Dragon: Asian Action & Cult Flicks, available now!
Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think at DVD Shopping List.
I mean, before Mania, we were always able to click on a picture, regardless of the size, and always get a clean picture. Now, it's not even worth it to click on the picture if you can't see larger then a 2'' size picture.
Just a though.