‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ DVD Commentary a Real Gift

What’s this? What’s this?

An awesome DVD.

What’s this?

“Why” you ask to me?

What’s this?

I can’t believe my ears

I must be dreaming

You haven’t seen this movie?

What’s this?

 

What’s this? What’s this?

That’s something very wrong.

Cronenberg’s ‘The Fly’ Commentary has Greatness in its Genes

(I doubt people would read a review of the commentary before seeing the movie itself, but just in case…. SPOILER ALERT!!)

The Fly has gone through a long metamorphosis. Originally a short story written by George Langelaan and published in Playboy Magazine in 1957, it was first adapted into a film in 1958 which spawned two sequels, 1959’s Return of the Fly and 1965’s The Curse of the Fly. In 1986, David Cronenberg released his darker, emotionally-driven remake, which led to its own sequel, The Fly II, released in 1989 without Cronenberg’s involvement. Cronenberg revisited the material in 2008 to create an opera in collaboration with composer Howard Shore. Cronenberg’s remake of The Fly won an Academy Award for Best Makeup and three Saturns, and has left a strong legacy among critics both as a horror film and as a film in its own right. Traces of its DNA can still be found over 20 years later in films such as 2010’s excellent Splice.

‘Frailty’ Writer Brent Hanley’s DVD Commentary Quite Strong

(I doubt people would read a review of the commentary before seeing the movie itself, but just in case…. SPOILER ALERT!!)

Much stronger than its title suggests, Frailty features a strong cast and a story that slowly coils around viewers before squeezing the breath out of them with a twist ending that ranks with The Sixth Sense and The Usual Suspects. With the slew of similar films that have come out since its release, first-time viewers may not get quite as wrapped up in it, but its blend of crime, religion, and Southern Gothic horror still leaves a unique impression.

Writer Brent Hanley’s commentary is one of three offered on the DVD (the others being a production commentary with editor Arnold Glassman, composer Bryan Tyler, and producer David Kirschner, and a director commentary by Bill Paxton) and it complements an interview with Hanley posted at DVDtalk.com. A commentary dedicated to the writer is rare and seemed worth checking out in light of the film’s well-constructed story.