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Career cop Charlie Crews (Damian Lewis) was framed for a triple
homicide and served 12 years of a life sentence in maximum security prison, a
walking target in a population of convicts, before he was exonerated. He went
through hell and came through the other side with a new philosophical grounding,
a childlike appreciation for the little joys of life, and a multimillion-dollar
settlement. Now he's back on the job and promoted to detective, much to the
discomfort of a department that would rather see him and the now-unsolved murder
case just fade away. The high-concept show has a lot of things going for it
(witty scripts; volatile dramatic tensions; Charlie's distinctly unique
perspective on human psychology that is equal parts Zen calm and prison yard
insight) but it's Lewis' performance that sells it. It's a slow dance to a
private tune and he observes details in his calm that everyone else misses. His
tranquility and offbeat sense of humor centers him as he conducts his own
private investigation into who framed him for murder. "You don't have to
understand here to be here."
Sarah Shahi plays his partner, dealing with
her own dark past; Robin Weigert (who played Calamity Jane in "Deadwood") is his
boss, looking for any excuse to drum him out of the force; and Adam Arkin is the
former embezzler now managing his fortune. The 11 episodes of the abbreviated
debut season are collected on three discs in a fold-out digipak. The meatiest
supplements of the set are the commentary tracks on five episodes by creator
Rand Ravich and members of the cast and creative staff, and the multi-angle look
at a two-minute deleted scene from the pilot episode is a fun peek into the
production and editorial process. But the two brief featurettes are light and
slight, more promotional pieces than introspective documentary. There are also
slideshows of stills and the usual deleted scenes and bloopers.
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| Eli Stone: Complete First Season |
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"I don't want to be a prophet; I want to be a lawyer." But
fast-rising Los Angeles lawyer Eli Stone (Jonny Lee Miller) may not have a
choice in the matter when his conscience erupts in musical hallucinations, with
George Michael as his Jiminy Cricket, singing "You gotta have faith" in a
private living room concert. That's the premise of this eccentric legal show:
Eli has an inoperable brain aneurism that gives him overwhelming hallucinations
that just may be a message from on high, or so his spiritual guide (James Saito)
suggests. It's courtroom drama meets musical production number with plenty of
offbeat humor. And, if nothing else, it's worth seeing Victor Garber, the
eternally humorless authority figure of "Alias," sing and dance through his law
office lobby. Natasha Henstridge is Eli's fiancée, Loretta Devine his sassy
secretary, and Thomas Cavanagh appears in flashbacks as his deceased alcoholic
dad. Thirteen episodes on four discs stacked in a standard case, with an
extended version of the pilot (with optional commentary), featurettes and
deleted scenes.
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| Honey West: The Complete Series |
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Anne Francis created TV's sexiest private eye as Honey West, the
society babe who inherited her dad's business and partner, Sam (John Ericson), a
protective buddy and a flirtatious colleague. The show plays off her obvious
assets (Francis was as curvy as they come) but also makes her a judo expert and
a smart cookie. She's the brains behind this outfit, and Sam has no problem
playing sidekick to the headstrong Honey. The half-hour PI adventure show plays
out in the high society glamour of the California sun, and the cool fashions and
the swinging score create a groovy little series. Did I mention she has a pet
ocelot? Too bad it only lasted a single season. Thirty episodes on four discs in
a standard case with a hinged tray. Good looking transfers for this vintage
series, but only a few stills galleries and vintage commercials for
supplements.
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| The Big Bang Theory: The Complete First Season |
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I'm not a sitcom fan by nature, but this show about a pair of
uber-nerd physics geniuses and the hot chick across the hall is pretty funny.
Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons are the socially handicapped child-men who can
speak Klingon but can't speak to girls -- Parsons is the borderline
autistic with a sardonic streak, and Galecki the almost socially presentable one
who crushes big time on their new neighbor -- and Kaley Cuoco is the
sweetie of a blond beauty who not only speaks to them but also enjoys their
company. Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar complete the geek squad that hangs out
at their third-floor walk-up. Seventeen episodes on three discs in a standard
case with a hinged tray, plus a featurette.
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| The Office: Season Four |
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Steve Carell's blindly insensitive, blithely sexist, utterly
ineffectual manager Michael Scott is back in the front office of Dunder Mifflin,
desperately trying to make his staff like him in the American incarnation of the
cult British comedy series. It's a slyer, more squirrelly kind of humor than you
usually find on network TV, a brilliant comedy of discomfort in the awkward
silences and embarrassed stares. John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer and Rainn Wilson
head the terrific ensemble, and the final episode welcomes Amy Ryan as the
newest member of the office. Fourteen episodes on four discs in a fold-out
digipak, with commentary on four episodes, deleted scenes and outtakes, a
"Writer's Block" panel discussion with the show's writing staff, plus a booklet
reproduction of the script to the "Dinner Party" episode.
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Sean Axmaker is a film critic for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and a
DVD columnist for MSN Entertainment, and a contributing writer to GreenCine.com,
Turner Classic Movies Online, Parallax View and Asian Cult Cinema, among other
publications. You can find links to all of this and more on his shamelessly self-promoting blog.
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Get Smart! Please!In honor of bumbling Maxwell
Smart, a brief history of our favorite clueless detectives On the RocksWith 'Iron Man' and 'Hancock' featuring
heavy-drinking protagonists, we reflect on the most memorable drunks in movie
history UnclassicsThough they may be listed among the
greatest films of all time, these 10 movies deserve to be
downgraded | |
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