Pick of the Week

It's that time of the week again, the time when I choose one of the myriad desirable DVD titles coming out today. This week, like most weeks, had a number of excellent choices. The top pick for this week is: Goodfellas: Special Edition. Actually, it was a pretty easy decision, this is a decidedly light on the must haves scale.

This is a film that any film lover should have in their collection. I haven't seen it in a number of years as I don't rent too often, and I refused to buy the flipper version that's been on the shelves for years. I also knew that a special edition would be coming down the pipe at some point, it just took a little longer than expected. It is finally here, and I can't wait to pop it in the player. It looks like a nice set too with commentary by Scorsese, remastered picture and sound, featurettes, a making-of, and more.

For the two of you unfamiliar with the movie, it is one of Martin Scorsese's finest works. It stars Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Robert DeNiro, and Lorraine Bracco. It chronicles the rise and fall of gangster Henry Hill. It is possibly the best gangster movie ever made, and a must see.

There are a couple of other titles of interest out this week:

• Babylon 5: The Movie Collection. A set of all the television films made for the series, a must for any fan of the show.
• Candyman: Special Edition. This was a movie I found to be truly scary, Tony Todd is at his menacing best as the title character
• Duel. Steven Spielberg's directorial debut, a television movie about a menacing truck. This disk has had a troubled history of release/recalls, so hopefully we'll all get to see it now.
• Taking Lives. An interesting thriller with Angelina Jolie tracking a serial killer. A bit derivative, but still entertaining.
• Stir of Echoes: Special Edition. Not sure why this got a new edition, the original release was pretty good. Kind of like The Sixth Sense with adults.
• The Guyver Part 1 and Part 2. Never saw these, heard they were pretty bad, but I would still like to check them out.
• Happy Days Season One. Come on, it's Richie and the Fonz!
• Ring Virus. The Korean version Ringu (The Ring in the US) I've heard it is quite good.

On the music side of things there are a couple titles I'm interested in:

• Saliva: Survival of the Sickest. I am a converted fan after seeing them tear down the house at a recent concert, this is there latest release.
• The Presidents of the United States of America: Love Everybody. Newly reunited, I hope they still have the magic that gave us hits like "Lump" and "Peaches."