The Couch Potato Report
In the Couch Potato Report This Week there’s a pair of failed box office releases
looking for success on video and DVD and one movie that made a Splash over 20 years ago.
“If you smell what The Rock is cookin’!”
If that quote means something to you then you know who The Rock is. If you are
wondering whoís cooking what, then you might not know that The Rock is one of the biggest – both in stature and size – professional wrestlers of all time.
After a mildly successful starring film debut in 2002ís THE SCORPION KING (after a brief role in THE MUMMY RETURNS) The Rock is now starring in THE RUNDOWN, a movie about a bounty hunter and a fugitive who team up to find a treasure.
For a man whoís 6í5 and 255 pounds The Rock is surprisingly light on his feet in THE RUNDOWN. He has charm and humor as well as the toughness it requires to play a cinematic bounty hunter.
Movie goofball Seann William Scott – who played Stiffler in the AMERICAN PIE films, is the fugitive, the one and only Christopher Walken is the bad guy, and the
delicious Rosario Dawson rounds out the cast.
The plot of THE RUNDOWN isn’t great, but parts of the movie are clever and the cast knows they are starring in WAR & PEACE, so they seemed relaxed and look like they enjoyed themselves making the movie.
THE RUNDOWN doesnít take itself too seriously and as a result itís an exceptionally entertaining action film, if you can smell what Iím cooking.
Youíll be able to smell this weekís other major new release from the moment you walk into the video store.
Oscar winner Halle Berry is a criminal psychologist who wakes up in mental hospital in GOTHIKA.
Berry is a criminal psychologist who wakes up to find herself a patient in the same prison for the criminally insane which she works. She has no memory of the murder of her husband that she’s accused of committing.
But instead of utilizing that premise and turning into a suspenseful, tense movie
GOTHIKA is a smelly train wreck.
It starts out alright, but then the wheels start coming off, one by one culminating
in one of the most insulting and idiotic endings of all time.
GOTHIKA is a very silly murder mystery and not worth your time.
On the other hand SPLASH is worth your time. It has been for 20 years. To
commemorate the fact that this movie about a man who falls in love with a mermaid has reached the two-decade milestone there is now a 20th Anniversary Edition DVD available.
This new DVD features the original auditions of stars Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah, a commentary on the film and itís success by Ron Howard and a new making of featurette.
And if nothing else, this 20th Anniversary Edition of SPLASH gives us another chance to enjoy the comedic brilliance of the late John Candy.
Finally this week is a DVD that wonít be everyoneís cup of tea, but I donít drink
tea, so Iíll take this Weezer DVD instead if you donít mind.
WEEZER – VIDEO CAPTURE DEVICE 1991-2002 has most of the music videos the band has made, including Undone – The Sweater Song, Buddy Holly, El Scorcho (directors cut), Hash Pipe, Keep Fishin’, and other cool stuff like ìWeezer Goes To NY: The Making of The Blue Albumî, ìWeezer Goes To Van Nuys: The Making of Pinkertonî, “Stoopid Fresh” (green album preparations)î, “How Not To Do An Interview” and much, much, much, much more!
There will also be a selection of 5 “Raw Nuggets” from 1991-2002, generally rougher footage, but still of very cool events, plus a selection of the TV ads crafted over the years to promote the release of the band’s albums. There will be optional band commentary on all the music videos and on about half of the “Documentary” and “Raw Nuggets” pieces.
I just have three words to sum up how psyched I am: Sweet. Sweet. Sweet!
THE RUNDOWN, GOTHIKA, the 20th Anniversary Edition of SPLASH and WEEZER – VIDEO CAPTURE DEVICE 1991-2002 are available right now at your favourite local video store.
COMING NEXT WEEK IN THE COUCH POTATO REPORT
Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton star in SOMETHINGíS GOTTA GIVE. Jack is an older man who falls for his younger girlfriend’s mother.
In the animated Disney film BROTHER BEAR an angry young man is transformed into a bear.
And
A woman vows to get her house back by any means necessary in the superb HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG. It stars Oscar winners Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley.
I’ll have more on those releases in seven days.
For now, that’s this week’s COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I’ll see you back here next week on The Couch!
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