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Something to Watch: DVD’s

In theatrical films to DVD, Ong Bak 3 ramps up the supernatural elements introduced in the first two movies, but looses none of the trilogies brutal and intense martial arts action. This film completes the story line of this Thai epic.

Here’s a title I have been waiting for on DVD for a while: Doctor Who: The Movie (Special Edition). This 1996 made for TV movie was Paul McGann’s only onscreen turn at the Doctor, although he has done a bunch of radio plays in that persona over at Big Finish and the BBC. It was also the first time Doctor Who was co-produced by an American company, unfortunately Fox. I thought Eric Roberts brought a nice touch of evil to The Master in this one, and while this has previously been released on VHS it will be nice to finally have it as a disk.

For Anime, Chrome Shelled Regios is the new title, with parts 1 and 2 being released the same day. People live in mobile armored cities, avoiding the terminal levels of pollution in the world outside. It doesn’t always stay outside, but their military caste is ready to protect them.

And then there are a few classics being re-released in the US, including FLCL (pronounced Fooley Cooley), a truly insane little animation series from the folks who made Gurren Lagann and Neon Genesis Evangelion. While only six episodes long, this OVA has enough twists and turns for a full season of most other productions, and a killer soundtrack by The Pillows. The other classic title is Chrono Crusade, the story of a heavily armed nun and her demon sidekick battling the forces of evil in 1928 New York. If you missed getting either of these in your collection the first time around, now is your chance, and at a decent price if you shop around. Depending on which web site you believe, these two series might also be released on 22Feb11 rather than this week.

Something to Watch: Online

Another place to watch Anime online is Manga Dot Com. At any given time they have a small selection of truly classic episodes, including titles such as Macross Plus, Gurren Lagann, Dante’s Inferno, and Noein, to name just a few. They also have some feature length films, including Paprika, Dead Leaves, and The Castle of Cagliostro. I particularly like Anime Reloaded, which is a lot like the animated version of MST3K as performed by Saturday Night Live.

Steampunk Film Festival, missed clone movie

I am embarrassed to say I missed a Sci-Fi DVD release this week: Never Let Me Go, the new film based on the book by Kazuo Ishiguro. He also wrote a little story called The Remains of the Day, but this time around we follow the lives of three people over three decades who were brought to life for a single reason: to be spare parts. This first person story about the lives of clones in an alternate timeline is not a happy tale, but it touches the heart in unexpected ways. This is the kind of movie The Island could have been, if it had someone at the helm who understood what being human was about.

The Rose City Steampunk Film Festival takes place in Portland, Oregon’s Clinton Street Theater on the 13th of February, 2011. The event has several feature length films and a boatload of shorts as well as some music videos and a writers panel. The theater is also running the Steampunk thriller Zenith from the 4th through the 10th, they are showing the classic Valley Girl for their Valentine presentation on the 14th, and every Friday night they run REPO: THE GENETIC OPERA, while every Saturday night they run the Rocky Horror Picture Show. I now have a favorite movie theater in yet another town I have never been to.

ZENITH 2011 TRAILER from Surla Films on Vimeo.

J-Rock

J-Rock comes in a variety of forms, many of them going Thumpa Thumpa in a loud voice. Some of them are not quite so intense, like Yuki Kajiura’s Song of Storm and Fire, and her Yume no Tsubasa, which you may recognize from an anime series. Then there is Maaya with a J-Pop song that was never so sweet as this version, even if it isn’t the jazz vocal riffs she is known for. And then an uptempo J-Pop ditty followed by a J-Rock tune by May’N; enjoy!