Warner Home Video Triple Dog Dares You! The studio is inviting fans to create their favorite scene from the classic A Christmas Story for a chance to win a trip to the A Christmas Story Museum.
Ian Petrella who starred in the movie as Ralphie’s little brother explains the details:
We also have a DVD copy of the movie to give away. All you need to do is comment by 11:59 p.m., Wednesday, December 14 and tell us your favorite Christmas story. The judgment of ComicMix‘s judges will be final. The lucky winner will be notified by e-mail.
Marvel Knights Animation’s epic adaptation of “Iron Man: Extremis” by Warren Ellis and Adi Granov is now available for streaming on Hulu.com. Here’s the first episode…
One complaint: in the credits, they give special thanks to Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Larry Lieber– but they skipped over the original artist, Don Heck. Classy, guys.
If you prefer, this is included in the [[[Marvel Knights Animation Collection]]] now out on DVD, or you can buy it on its own.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year… or so the song goes. Except when it’s not.
I have my Christmas favorites on DVD or TV that I watch every year. They include A Christmas Carol (the Reginald Owen version and the much better Alastair Sim version as well as, oddly, Mister Magoo’s Christmas Carol which adds songs and does a pretty fair job of summing up the story in less than a half hour), It’s A Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, and the cartoons – How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Karloff beats Carey hands down) and, of course, A Charlie Brown Christmas.
And, a day or so after Christmas, I add in Bad Santa just to wash all the treacle away. Your choices may differ and that’s fine – these are mine.
My best Christmas was probably the one when I proposed to my late wife, Kim Yale, on Christmas Eve. I had bought the ring and I was pretty sure she would say yes but I was still nervous. Kim and I opened presents on Christmas Eve so I mapped out my strategy. My gifts included a Tim Truman sketch of GrimJack (one of Kim’s faves and part of our becoming a couple), signed by Timbo and carrying the Gaunt message: “You’ve done right by my pal so far, sweetheart. How about makin’ it permanent?”
Then she got a specially made teddy bear (Kim was huge on teddy bears) that was a GrimJack teddy bear and he was holding a poem from me, a sonnet that would up with my proposal (I made her read it aloud) and as she finished reading it, I brought out the ring. Kim took a dramatic pause (she was great at dramatic pauses) that were the longest seconds of my life but then she said “Yes!” and we off to the races.
That was our first Christmas together. The hardest one was our last.
Kim had breast cancer and she was dying of it. I knew that but she didn’t; her cancer doctor had called me with the news but insisted I not tell her. It might make her give up, he insisted. So, for a while, I went along with that.
Kim was in the hospital a lot at that point; her immune system was in bad shape from the chemo and the radiation. She didn’t like being there alone so I spent a lot of nights there with her. It wouldn’t have been possible without our friend, Mary Mitchell, who spelled me many nights. We were joined later on by my friend Joe Edkin, who would spell us both.
It was trying some times. People would come to visit and Kim would rally her energy, putting on what we referred to as “the Kimberly Show.” This is no criticism of our visitors, who gave lovingly of themselves and were very welcome, but afterwards Kim would have no energy left for me, Mary, and Joe, and sometimes that was hard.
It came to a boil at Christmas. Holidays bring out the best and worst of us. Kim’s final Christmas brought a bit of both in me.
HOLLYWOOD, CA (November 21, 2011) – Paramount Home Entertainment is celebrating the November 22nd Blu-ray and DVD debut of director J.J. Abrams’ gripping adventure SUPER 8 with an out-of-this-world sweepstakes. From November 20th through December 4th, fans can visit www.Super8Sweeps.com to enter the “Super 8: Watch It & Walk-On” sweepstakes. Visitors will be challenged to answer trivia questions about the critically-acclaimed thriller SUPER 8 for a chance to win one of two walk-on roles in Abrams’ highly-anticipated Star Trek sequel, scheduled to debut in theaters in 2013.
Participants must be at least 18 years old to enter the “Super 8: Watch It & Walk-On” sweepstakes and will be allowed one entry per day during the sweepstakes period. Two winners will be randomly chosen in December from among all the entries and will receive travel to the filming city, as well as accommodation for two nights for a non-speaking walk-on role. For complete rules and terms, please visit www.Super8Sweeps.com.
The SUPER 8 Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack with Digital Copy debuts on November 22nd and boasts more than two hours of enthralling special features including eight behind-the-scenes featurettes, an in-depth deconstruction of the breathtaking train crash, interviews with cast and crew including J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg and more.
J.J. Abrams’ Super 8 is now a DVD release and to celebrate, a $5 offcoupon is available at www.Super8Coupon.com, which allows users to print a coupon for $5 off the DVD or Blu-ray from 11/22 – 11/27.
Meantime, Paramount Home Entertainment is inviting fans across the country to enter into the world of mystery and adventure created by director J.J. Abrams in his sensational coming-of-age story Super 8 with a unique Twitter promotion. In celebration of the film’s home entertainment debut on November 22, PHE will hide Blu-ray/DVD Combo Packs signed by J.J. Abrams in 20 cities across the U.S. and begin offering clues to the locations today via the film’s @Super8Movie Twitter account and Super8Tweet.com. Each day, the clues will get more specific until all of the prizes are found.
I grew up on Hergé’s Adventures of Tintin, long before I knew there were graphic albums featuring Belgium’s greatest export after chocolate. Then, in the 1990s, they tried again with different results and it is that latter series being collected on DVD this month from Shout! Factory.
For those in need of reminding, take a look: (more…)
In August, I raved a bit about Griff the Invisible, a charming independent film about man who dreams of being a superhero. The movie opened and closed without much attention, which is shame because it dared to think big on a tiny budget. Fortunately, though, the film is coming out this week on DVD and is well worth your attention.
This Australian film was written and directed by Leon Ford, who did some commentary on camera with the 50th Anniversary DC Universe poster seen over his shoulder, a testament to his affection for the super-hero. His movie had plenty of heart, anchored by a dynamite performance by Ryan Kwanten.
Fantasy and reality is approached by Griff, a lonely salaryman and Melody (Maeve Dermody), a scientist challenging the laws of physics. They make an unlikely, but thoroughly charming couple of misfits, falling in love.
Shot on 16mm for atmosphere, the film transfers nicely to Blu-ray but lacks the sharpness of the bigger budgeted behemoth super-hero films that also came out this year. Same with the audio so overall, it’s fine on disc and watching it on a home screen makes it feel more intimate and touching than on a Cineplex screen. In some ways, this is better at home than anywhere else.
The disc comes with only a handful of extras, all a little perfunctory such as the commentary form Ford, Producer, Nicole O’Donohue, and actor Patrick Brammall. Ford is also the focus of director diary videos which are too short to be worth seeing. He touches on his thoughts before, during, and after production but never really says anything. There are also several pieces under the umbrella title Anatomy of a Scene — Opening Sequence (3:16), the All-In-One Shot (2:16), and the Anyhoo (2:00) — but is shot and edited in such a way that there’s little to be learned. There’s also the 4:08 making of featurette that again is too short to be worthwhile. Brammall also hosts a 1:24 set tour that shows you only brief sections and again leaves you wanting something with substance. The best part of the extras are the 7:36 of deleted scenes, none of which were vital to the story but did flesh out the story and characters.
Here’s an interesting holiday recipe – take a popular stoner comedy franchise, toss in some claymation and even a musical number. It’s A VERY HAROLD & KUMAR 3-D CHRISTMAS, destined to burn up DVD shelves after it escapes theaters. We talk to John Cho & Kal Penn about how they’ve changed even if their movie counterparts haven’t. Plus more with Ed GHelms on how THE OFFICE still owes so much to Steve Carrel, and DC breaks even bigger comic sales records in October.
Back in August, I told you about Griff the Invisible, a small indie film about a would-be super-hero feature the terrific Ryan Kwanten. The movie opened and closed in the blink of an eye, probably while you were on line to see Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and you missed out.
Vivendi Entertainment is releasing the film on Blu-ray and DVD on November 15 so you get a second chance at catching this charming film.
Better, we have been given three DVDs to give away. Here’s what you need to do in order to win:
By 11:59 p.m., Saturday November 12, tell us what super-power you most desire and how you would use it to fight for truth and justice. The final decision of the ComicMix judges will be final.
Griff (Kwanten), a shy and awkward office worker by day, finds escape from his ordinary life by assuming the identity of a fantastic superhero each night. Griff’s secret is jeopardized when he meets Melody (Dermody), a cute but unconventional daydreamer. She quickly becomes fascinated by his idiosyncrasies, which are equal only to her own. In the face of mounting pressure to live in the “real world,” it’s up to Melody to rescue GRIFF THE INVISIBLE for the sake of herself, Griff and their newfound love for each other.
As is the new habit in basic cable, the Cartoon Network split the current season of its hilarious Robot Chicken into two halves, airing the first part of the fifth season late last year and then, a few weeks ago kicking off the second season. Where they didn’t follow the script was releasing Robot Chicken Season 5 on DVD just days after the second half debuted October 23.
All 20 episodes are included and I am late in bringing this to your attention because I have been savoring the installments, catching up on what has aired, and working ahead. The show, from co-creators Seth Green and Matthew Senreich, available on Blu-ray and standard DVD in separate packages. And as has become their wont, there are hours of bonus features, some exclusive to the Blu-ray edition, which was not sent for review.
Last year, the show won a much-deserved Emmy Award for Outstanding Short-Format Animated Program and will likely be nominated again based on how much belly-laughing I did with the antics skewering pop culture celebrities, music, television and movies. You can watch mashups like Saving Private Gigli, Schindler’s Bucket List, and Casablankman (and its sequel, airing later this month), although my favorite title was Major League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
Extras include seven deleted scenes, over 50 deleted animatics with video introductions (always worth watching), selected episode commentary with the celebrity guests, an assortment of Behind the scenes featurettes and the funny On-air promotions. The Blu-ray also offers alternate audio takes from various sketches throughout the fifth season. DVD purchasers get an exclusive of their own: the ability to download an exclusive, uncensored version of the “Blue Rabbits” song.
Among the more amusing segments: Skeletor watches in horror when Snake Mountain is foreclosed on; Gargamel disguises himself as a Smurf; Major Nelson has Jeannie exactly delicious revenge when NASA fires him, NASA’s Lego people have a very bad launch day. One of my favorites was the war between the Keebler Elves and the Cookie Monster. Given my own recent roast, I can also appreciate the GI Joes’ attempt to spoil one for Cobra Commander.
You want guest stars in on the fun? How about, to name only some: Mila Kunis, Macaulay Culkin, Seth MacFarlane, Clare Grant, Michael Ian Black, Katee Sackhoff, Christian Slater, Michelle Trachtenberg, Abraham Benrubi, Alyson Hannigan, Skeet Ulrich, Olivia Munn, Alan Tudyk, the great Frank Welker, Lea Thompson, Emma Stone, Diablo Cody, Josh Groban, Mark Hamill, Sean Astin, Donald Faison, Amy Smart, the wondrous Adrianne Palicki, Jennifer Lawrence, January Jones, Kevin Bacon, Naomi Watts, Andy Serkis, and, in his final role before an untimely death, Gary Coleman.
ComicMix readers will definitely want to see Geoff Johns’ take on the DC Universe in an extended segment that has yet to air. Additionally, there’s the issue of who’s faster: Superman or Santa Claus and more recently a pretty funny bit between Green Lantern and Sinestro.
While most of the Adult Swim is not aimed at me (or I find particularly entertaining or funny), this is brilliant, knowing humor that I adore and so should you.
