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Hancock: Inept superhero careens onto DVD
Columbia Pictures photo
Jason Bateman (left) plays a PR expert who decides to help Hancock (played by Will Smith) redeem his superhero status in Hancock.
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Published: November 27, 2008
Hancock (PG-13 and Unrated versions): Will Smith stars in this action comedy as Hancock, a slovenly, alcoholic superhero whose attempts to do good invariably go bad, resulting in plenty of property damage and outraged civilians. He saves the life of a public-relations expert (Jason Bateman) who decides to help Hancock redeem himself. The two-disc unrated edition and Blu-ray version are loaded with extras including making-of featurettes and a digital copy for portable media players.
Fred Claus (PG): Talk about sibling rivalry. Fred (Vince Vaughn) is a charming but irresponsible guy whose younger brother just so happens to be Santa Claus (Paul Giamatti). When Santa asks big brother to come help out at the holidays, party-loving Fred decides to cut loose at the North Pole. Wackiness ensues. Much of the film's appeal hangs on whether you find Vaughn's screen persona lovable or insufferable.
Meet Dave (PG): Eddie Murphy's latest box-office bomb tells the story of an alien spaceship disguised to look like a human being.
The Nutty Professor (PG): Forget Eddie Murphy's fat-joke-filled remake. This computer-animated film is a sequel to Jerry Lewis's original 1963 film about a geeky scientist who unleashes a suave split personality using a potion. This time around, the grandson of the original Professor Kelp discovers grandpa's formula and tries it out for himself. Drake Bell provides the voice of young Harold, with Lewis reprising his role.
Space Chimps (PG): In this computer-animated family comedy, a simian slacker -- the grandson of NASA's revered chimpanzee-in-space pioneer -- becomes an unlikely hero during a critical space mission.
The Ron Howard Spotlight Collection (various ratings): This eight-disc boxed set proves what a talented director Little Opie Cunningham became after he gave up his acting career. It has four of his most popular films -- A Beautiful Mind, Backdraft, Apollo 13 and Cinderella Man. Each film is presented in a two-disc set with deleted scenes, featurettes and documentaries.
Bottle Rocket: The Criterion Collection (R): Before their success with such films as Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, director Wes Anderson and actors Owen and Luke Wilson made a splash with this quirky 1996 comedy about ambitious but incompetent would-be robbers. The long-awaited Criterion Collection special edition includes commentary, a documentary, deleted scenes, and several short films, including the original 13-minute black and white version of this story.
Superman Doomsday (PG-13): The straight-to-video animated film, which is already on DVD, is being re-released in a two-disc special edition and is making its Blu-ray debut with new bonus materials. Adam Baldwin provides the voice of Superman, who is up against an unstoppable, hulking monster. James Marsters voices Lex Luthor.
The story is based on the 1990s "Death of Superman" storyline in the comics, but the story has been changed significantly from the original version.
Sounder (PG): Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield star in this poignant 1972 drama about a poor southern family in the Great Depression.
Band of Brothers (Unrated): HBO's acclaimed World War II miniseries comes to Blu-ray with new extras not available in the original DVD set. It follows Easy Company, a group of U.S. Army soldiers fighting their way across Europe.
Freaks & Geeks: Yearbook Edition (Unrated): One of the best dramas in recent memory returns to DVD, telling the stories of two groups of friends in high school, circa 1980. Lindsay (Linda Cardellini) is a former math nerd who is taking her first tentative steps into teenage rebellion by hanging out with the "wrong crowd," a group of potheads and delinquents. Her uptight, geeky kid brother Sam (John Francis Daley) is concerned about her but doesn't know what to do.
Producers Paul Fieg and Judd Apatow do a splendid job creating complex characters and humor based on believable situations. As in Apatow's subsequent string of hit movies (The 40 Year Old Virgin, Superbad), much of the humor revolves around socially awkward situations, and viewers may cringe as much as they laugh.
This special edition, previously available only through mail order, is loaded with extras including several bonus discs with commentary, interviews, audition footage, table readings and more. And it's packaged in a lavish faux yearbook filled with behind-the-scenes photos and essays.
George Carlin: It's Bad For Ya (Unrated): The acerbic comedian, who died this year, stars in his final concert film. As usual, he rails against stupidity and provides clever commentary on modern society. He will be missed.
The Mod Squad: The Second Season Vol. 1 (Unrated): The first 13 episodes of the 1969-70 season of this crime drama, about young undercover cops, comes to DVD in this four-disc set.
Gomer Pyle, USMC: The Final Season (Unrated): Goll-ee! The Andy Griffith Show spinoff comes to an end with more good-natured goofiness from Gomer and more angst for the long-suffering Sgt. Carter in this fifth-season boxed set. Purists should be warned, though, that some music has been cut because of clearance problems.
Arctic Exposure With Nigel Marven (Unrated): This Animal Planet documentary miniseries follows Marven, a zoologist, on a nine-month excursion into the Canadian Arctic.
24: Redemption (Unrated): Only a few days after its broadcast debut, this TV-movie version of the popular Fox drama sets up events for the next season, which will start in January. Kiefer Sutherland reprises his role as superspy Jack Bauer, who has only two hours instead of the usual 24 to save the day. The two-disc special edition includes footage not seen in the original broadcast.
Beverly Hills 90210: The Sixth Season (Unrated): More soap opera angst among the way-older-than-they're-playing pretty young rich kids of Beverly Hills.
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