In the film’s opening sequence, Michael Keneely (Gould) and Patrick Farrel (Blake) bust a high-end hooker named Jackie Faraday. Keneely is the smirking smartass while Farrel is the tough guy. These guys are a tad unorthodox as evident by the way a routine undercover assignment in a gay bar erupts into chaos when one guy (Fargas) gets too fresh with Keneely. The Faraday bust seems like a pretty open and shut case until their boss tells them that she got released thanks to a phone call from someone with juice.

Something about the hooker case doesn’t sit well with Keneely and when he checks out Faraday’s client book after it’s been entered into evidence he notices it’s missing all the pages with her clients. Naturally, the case is dismissed for lack of evidence and the two vice cops know something is rotten. They decide to pursue it further by digging deeper despite the opposition that mounts, including smug local crime boss Carl Rizzo (Garfield).

Elliott Gould and Robert Blake make an intriguing team with their contrasting acting styles. During the ‘70s, Gould epitomized disheveled cool and continues that look with the bushy mustache, unkempt hair and rumpled attire that he sported in Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H (1970). He adopts a laidback attitude and is always ready with a joke. Much like his take on Philip Marlowe in Altman’s The Long Goodbye (1973), Gould’s cop treats everything as a joke on the surface but underneath he cares about doing his job, especially when it comes to the corruption he and Farrel uncover. In contrast, Blake, with his tight t-shirts and muscular build, is all intensity and no bullshit attitude. They play well off each other and adopt a shorthand that makes them believable as long-time partners. They have a nice scene together in an empty bathroom where their characters reassess what they’re doing and if they should continue to pursue a case where the odds are clearly stacked against them.

Journeyman cinematographer/director Peter Hyams has had a checkered career with the unnecessary sequel 2010 (1984) and generic thrillers like The Presidio (1988) littering his filmography but Busting may be his best film. He does an excellent job juggling the shifting tones throughout, bouncing back and forth between comedy and drama. Hyams adopts long takes during the action sequences that are very effective and come across as refreshing in this day and age where action films are so heavily edited. For example, there is a sequence early where Keneely and Farrel chase three crooks through an apartment building, on the street and engage in a tense gun battle in a crowded farmer’s market that is comprised of a series of uninterrupted long takes. Unlike William Friedkin’s edgy hand-held camerawork in The French Connection, Hyams employs smooth, gliding tracking shots and yet still manages to convey an urgency and excitement during the action sequences. Hyams is one of those Hollywood filmmakers able to adapt to prevailing trends. With Busting, he made a gritty ‘70s buddy cop film and then more than 10 years later made the kind of buddy cop film that was popular in the 1980’s with Running Scared (1986).

Special Features:

Theatrical trailer.

Allen establishes his ambitious intentions right from the start with a grandiose montage of the city scored to George Gershwin and photographed in gorgeous black and white by Gordon Willis. This is the Big Apple as seen through Allen’s eyes as he presents rarefied social strata of well-educated, neurotic people entangled in messy relationships with each other. Still stinging from a bitter divorce, Isaac Davis (Allen) is now dating Tracy (Hemingway), a 17-year-old girl (“I’m dating a girl who does homework.”). His best friend Yale (Murphy) is having an affair with a journalist named Mary (Keaton).

Isaac and Yale’s lives are a mess with the former writing for a television show he loathes and the latter trying to finish a book and start up a magazine. The last thing they need is to complicate their romantic lives. Isaac realizes that Tracy is too young for him (“You should think of me as a detour on the highway of life.”) and gets involved with Mary after Yale introduces them. At first, Isaac and Mary can’t stand each other, arguing over an art exhibit and several artists she feels overrated but he thinks are great, however, he likes her unflinching honesty and she’s attracted to his sense of humor.

Woody Allen and Diane Keaton continue their undeniable on-screen chemistry playing so well off each other. She is allowed to tone down the more exaggerated comedic gestures she used in Annie Hall to create a more nuanced character in Manhattan. Mary is torn between her love for Yale, even though she knows its wrong and her attraction to Isaac. Allen is more than a neurotic joke machine as Isaac wrestles with his own moral dilemmas – his love for Tracy, even though he knows she’s too young for him, and his attraction to Mary who is much more compatible.

While Manhattan features an abundance of Allen’s funny one-liners, the screenplay he co-wrote with Marshall Brickman tempers it somewhat with the characters’ messy personal lives, like the resentment Isaac feels towards his ex-wife (Streep) for leaving him for another woman, or Yale cheating on his perfectly lovely wife (Byrne) with Mary. Allen expertly shifts gears from comedy to drama from scene to scene and sometimes even within the same scene.

Allen takes us through a guided tour through the city with key scenes taking place at famous establishments, like Elaine’s and the Russian tearoom, or tourist spots like the Hayden Planetarium, in such a way that New York becomes a character unto itself. It also doesn’t hurt that Willis’ gorgeously textured black and white cinematography makes everything look so good. Sadly, several of the places the characters frequent no longer exist making Manhattan a historical document of sorts. Allen’s film is arguably the best representation of his worldview: highly educated people with very little common sense when it comes to their personal lives, making bad decisions even when they realize it. But like the rest of us, they keep on trying, hoping that the next relationship is the one.

Special Features:

The Blu-Ray presentation of Manhattan is the best Allen’s film has ever looked and sounded, showing off Willis’ incredible cinematography. This is definitely worth upgrading if you own the DVD.

In keeping with Allen’s wishes, there are no extras on this disc except for the requisite theatrical trailer.

Alvy Singer (Allen) is a successful comedian that gets involved with an unsuccessful actress Annie Hall (Keaton). He’s a raging neurotic and she’s incredibly insecure and together they make a great couple because they are willing to put up with each other’s many idiosyncrasies – he obsesses about death and she says inappropriate things. Over the course of the film, we see them fall in love and then break up when she moves to Los Angeles, wooed there by a record producer (Simon) who is attracted to her. Throughout it all, New York City serves as the backdrop to their romantic escapades.

Unlike most romantic comedies, Annie Hall draws attention to itself as a film with Allen addressing the camera or stopping a scene to make a point, like when he and Annie are waiting in line for a film and he complains about some pretentious boob pontificating endlessly nearby. Allen then produces famous academic Marshall McLuhan to refute the man’s incorrect theorizing. Allen also employs split screens and subtitles for ironic effect as well as appearing in flashbacks to comment on his past self. What also sets Annie Hall apart from Allen’s earlier work is his decision to hire legendary cinematographer Gordon Willis to shoot his film. Willis gives it a definite cinematic look occasionally incorporating hand-held camera to create a more intimate feel.

None of these clever techniques would mean anything if Annie Hall wasn’t anchored by the strong performances by Allen and Keaton and the undeniable chemistry they have. Already a seasoned pro, he spouts funny one-liners with excellent comic timing and Keaton matches him beat for beat as his ideal foil. They also both have the chops to handle the semi-serious stuff like when Alvy and Annie’s relationship sours. Of course, they have fantastic material to work with thanks to the well-written screenplay by Allen and Marshall Brickman, which is so much more than a collection of one-liners. It also features all kinds of wonderful observations about love and relationships, like how Alvy is unable to enjoy life and Annie calls him on it, which forces him to examine his own life. Alvy realizes that he still loves Annie and regrets breaking up with her.

Annie Hall was a big breakthrough for Allen, winning four Academy Awards and influencing countless romantic comedies, from When Harry Met Sally… (1989) to Singles (1992) to High Fidelity (2000). Arguably, only Allen has been able to top Annie Hall when, two years later, he released Manhattan (1979), which managed to be an even greater artistic achievement.

Special Features:

I think it’s safe to say that Annie Hall has never looked better with an excellent-looking transfer. It’s time to throw away your DVD and upgrade to this Blu Ray version.

Sadly, in keeping with other Allen home video releases there are no extra features save for a theatrical trailer.

When her husband and daughter are killed in an automobile accident, which she survives, Julie (Binoche) is understandably devastated. She shuts herself off emotionally, never wanting to feel anything again after such a traumatic experience. In the opening scenes of Blue, actress Juliette Binoche displays an incredible range of emotions as her character tries to comprehend her world, which has been shattered. She ends up suppressing raw emotion with detachment.

Over the course of Blue, Julie experiences a series of epiphanies as symbolized by bursts of the color blue and a loud swell of classical music, which acts as an emotional Greek chorus. Music is her voice, channeling the emotion she keeps in check most of the time. As the film progresses, she finds a way to free herself from her past and from the revelations about her husband’s life. She puts herself through a series of exercises to test her feelings – is she ready to face the world without emotion? Julie has shut herself off from the world but eventually learns how to become a part of it again.  Kieslowski draws us into this world so that we become invested in its inhabitants, in particular Julie who endures unimaginable tragedy and must find a way to continue.

If Blue is ostensibly a tragedy, then White is a darkly comic revenge story. Karol Karol (Zamachowski) is a Polish hairdresser who lives with his beautiful young bride Dominique (Delpy) in Paris but she divorces him early on in the film for failing to consummate their marriage. She takes him to court and coldly tells him that she doesn’t love him anymore. Karol soon finds out that his bank account has been frozen and he becomes homeless, which leaves him wondering if he has the strength to go on. Dominique has completely destroyed him and so he goes back to his native Poland where he rebuilds his life and plans an elaborate revenge plot.

Actor Zhigniew Zamachowski has an incredibly expressive face that he uses to make Karol instantly sympathetic but it isn’t too hard after all the horrible things Dominique does to him. Your heart really goes out to Karol just as Julie Delpy’s cold, cruel character really makes you hate her and hope that she gets her well-deserved comeuppance, but as with Kieslowski’s films, it’s never that simple and the ending is surprisingly hopeful.

The first third of White is utterly heartbreaking as poor Karol deals with one soul-crushing injustice after another. In the second third, he rebuilds his life in Warsaw in an inspirational turn of events as he is employed as a bodyguard for a local criminal while cutting hair for his brother on the side. Karol is a quiet, unassuming guy. As a result, people, like his wife and the local crooks, underestimate him. They don’t realize just how clever he is and this is used to his advantage. Finally, the last third of the film is Karol’s payback on those who wronged him. In White, the traditional roles are reversed as Karol is the ingénue while Dominique is led by her sexual drive. Over the course of the film, we see him reassert his own identity while refusing to lose his optimism or romantic nature.

Red concludes the Three Colors trilogy with a moving examination of the notions of fate and chance as a beautiful runway model named Valentine (Jacob) crosses paths with Joseph (Trintignant), a bitter retired judge, when she accidentally hits his dog with her car. She lives in Geneva and maintains a long distance relationship with her irrationally jealous boyfriend over the phone. There is also subplot concerning a young man studying to be a judge and who is also having relationship problems.

Joseph spends his time eavesdropping on his neighbors’ phone calls, an odd hobby for a retired judge. Valentine is struck by his honesty and fascinated with his outlook on life, shaped by years of his profession. Now, he is a voyeur, listening to other people’s conversations while he has no life of his own. She believes that people are basically good while he believes the opposite, which was no doubt cultivated over years of seeing the worst of humanity paraded in front of him. Valentine inspires Joseph to reconnect with humanity while he inspires her to be more independent and proactive in her relationships.

Initially, Valentine comes across as a ditzy model with no common sense (especially in regards to the dog) but Irene Jacob’s soulful performance suggests that there is more to her character and this becomes apparent over the course of the film. Like Julie in Blue, Joseph is emotionally disconnected from others and seems not to care about Valentine hitting his dog with her car. Jean-Louis Trintignant is excellent as the jaded ex-judge and it is fascinating to watch his character go from an indifferent observer to someone that can reconnect with the rest of humanity. Trintignant has wonderful chemistry with Jacob and it is fascinating to see the relationship develop between their characters during the course of the film. With Red, Kieslowski reminds us of the importance of being connected with others and with humanity. By that extension, the entire trilogy is an epic treatise on the strengths and weaknesses of humanity.

Special Features:

Those of you who own the Miramax box set might want to hold onto it as not all of the extras have been carried over to the Criterion Collection edition. For example, the audio commentaries film scholar Annette Insdorf did for each film have not been included. Also omitted are the selected scene commentaries that actresses Julie Delpy and Irene Jacob did for White and Red respectively. While some of Kieslowski’s student films have been included on this new set, Concert of Wishes, Trolley, and The Office have been omitted. Completists will want to hold onto the Miramax edition.

New to this set is “On Blue,” a video essay by film studies professor Annette Insdorf where she gives a brief background to the Three Colors trilogy before examining the themes explored in Blue. She also analyzes the film’s striking style as well as the moving classical score.

“Kieslowski’s Cinema Lesson” sees the filmmaker discussing a specific scene from Blue and the importance of close-ups in the film.

Also included is a selected scenes commentary by actress Juliette Binoche. She talks about meeting Kieslowski for the first time and how they talked about philosophy. She turned down a role in Jurassic Park (1993) to do Blue. The actress gives her impression of the director and what it was like to work with him.

There is a new interview with composer Zbigniew Preisner. He had worked with Kieslowski on several films, including the Three Colors trilogy. By the time they did Blue together the two men had a very familiar shorthand and knew what the wanted. Preisner recalls first working with Kieslowski and talks about his working methods.

“Reflections on Blue” takes a retrospective look at the film with critics and historians talking about the production and offering analysis. They point out that Kieslowski avoided making an overt political statement with these films by focusing on the personal: the tragic life of a woman. The film’s cinematographer, editor and Binoche also offer their thoughts on the film.

Another new extra is “On White,” a video essay by film scholar Tony Rayns. He provides backstory to the film. It was the first film Kieslowski had made since The Decalogue (1989). Rayns also provides details on the socio-political conditions in Poland at the time. In White, Kieslowski confronted the changes to the country since the fall of Communism.

“Kieslowski’s Cinema Lesson” features the director’s views and he talks about the opening scene of the film. He also explains why he included shots of the suitcase and how it ties in with the opening scenes of the other two films.

There are new interviews with actors Zbigniew Zamachowski and Julie Delpy. They talk about how they met Kieslowski and were cast in White. They both talk about working with the director and how he was very exact in his methods with no improvisation.

Another new extra is an interview with co-writer Krzystof Piesiewicz where he talks about working with Kieslowski. They first met in 1982 and Piesiewicz noticed that the director was lost in life having gone through some personal ordeals. They became friends and worked together over 15 years on 17 films.

“The Making of White” features some excellent behind the scenes footage of Kieslowski making the film in Poland. He describes White as a “lyrical comedy” and also a “sad comedy.”

Yet another new extra is “On Red,” a video essay by film critic Dennis Lim. He discusses the film’s themes, chief among them the notion of isolation. He also analyzes Red’s style, in particular, the use of color.

“Kieslowski’s Cinema Lesson” features the director discussing a scene with Valentine and the dog she accidentally hit with her car. He says that it is the film’s first critical moment. The ever eloquent director explains his intentions with this scene and why it was shot the way it was.

There is a new interview with actress Irene Jacob and she talks about her experiences working with Kieslowski on Red. She also discusses her first meeting with him and how that led to her being cast in The Double Life of Veronique (1991). Jacob talks about working with her Red co-star Jean-Louis Trintignant and comes across as a smart and engaging person.

Producer Marin Karmitz talks about the making of Red and tells a story about an elaborate shot that was achieved and the difficult logistics involved. He also recounts a story of how the film received three Academy Award nominations as an American film!

Editor Jacques Witta talks about why certain scenes in Red were cut and his impressions of working with Kieslowski. There are excerpts of this footage which are quite interesting but one can see why they were removed.

“Kieslowski Cannes 1994” is a short documentary about Red’s world premiere at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival where the director famously announced his retirement. There are interviews with the two lead actors who came to the festival to help promote the film. This is a nice snapshot of Red’s debut.

“Kieslowski: The Early Years” takes a look at the director’s early life with interview soundbites from film scholars and collaborators. He moved around a lot as a child and didn’t dream of being a filmmaker but rather fell into it. This featurette provides insight into what motivated Kieslowski to become a filmmaker and how it shaped his later films.

Also included are two student films, The Tram (1966), about a boy flirting with a pretty girl, and The Face (1966), where he played a tormented artist.

There are two short documentaries, Seven Women of Different Ages (1978), which looks at several ballet dancers, each one on a different day of the week, and Talking Heads (1980), a fascinating film where 40 different people of various ages are asked the three same questions.

Also included are trailers for all three films.

“Behind the Scenes of Red” features footage of Kieslowski directing the film juxtaposed with the actual scene as it appeared in the film. This featurette provides some insight into how he worked.

Finally, a new addition to this set is “Krzysztof Kieslowski: I’m So-So,” a 55-minute documentary made in 1995 shortly after he retired from filmmaking. He talks about his life and films. As always, Kieslowski speaks eloquently and thoughtfully about a variety of topics in this fascinating portrait.

Sean (Logue) and Claudia (Price) Finnerty got pregnant and married at an early age. They’re now in their 30s with three kids: two precocious boys – Jimmy (Frazen) and Henry (Burbage) – and Lily (Bartilson), a mercurial teenage girl. Added to the mix is Eddie (Corrigan), Sean’s ne’er-do-well brother and their strict father (Riehle). At times, Grounded for Life comes across as a slightly hipper version of Roseanne with Logue and Corrigan giving it indie cred. Not surprisingly they are best thing about the show with Logue acting flustered when his kids do something bad and Corrigan playing the slightly creepy uncle always cooking up scams (like hooking up illegal cable in the pilot episode).

Logue has a real knack for physical comedy while Corrigan has an offbeat style of delivering his dialogue. Together, they make this traditional sitcom worth watching. However, the show’s secret weapon may very well be Megyn Price who brings an earthy sexiness to her role and has excellent comic timing. She plays well off of Logue and they are quite believable as parents making it up as they go along. Amazingly, they have chemistry right from the first episode.

One of the better episodes in the first season features Sean and Claudia going to see the Ramones with their kids even though one of them has to finish a school project and gets in trouble as a result. In a nice twist, it is the parents who are irresponsible, not the kids. The highlight of the episode is when Sean gets into an argument with a nun over the artistic merit of the Ramones.

In another episode, Sean tries to keep Eddie from hitting on Claudia’s best friend Nina who just caught her husband cheating. We get a funny flashback depicting a series of disastrous dates Eddie went on with women Sean set up for his brother. Over the course of the episode, Sean, his dad and his kids play a spirited game of Monopoly that is quite funny to watch. Corrigan gets a lot of screen time and interacts with Logue for some hilarious moments. Unfortunately, after the show’s run, Logue and Corrigan returned to appearing in and alternating between indie and studio films.

Special Features:

Everything from the previous box set is included with the notable exception of the audio commentaries on various episodes.

“Donal Logue: Meet the Finnertys” features the actor talking about his character and how he put a lot of himself in Sean. Logue talks about working with Megyn Price and sings her praises. He also speaks highly of Kevin Corrigan. There are loads of clips from the show mixed in with soundbites from Logue.

“Claudia: Not the Sitcom Mom” features the actress speaking fondly about her character and the show. She said that the producers felt she was too young at the time to play Claudia but got the role anyway. Price talks about working with the other cast members.

“Lynsey Bartilson: Life with Lily” She claims that the bitchy part of her character was the most fun to play. Naturally, she talks about working with her television parents and what she thought of them.

“A Collaboration is Born: Mike Schiff and Bill Martin” The two creators of the show talk about how they met and cut their teeth writing for 3rd Rock from the Sun. They also talk about the various characters and how they cast the show.

“Grounded for Life: The Bloopers” is a funny collection of the cast blowing lines and goofing around with Logue adlibbing like crazy.

“Grounded for Life: Parents in Training” features highlights of Sean and Claudia’s not so better moments as parents but with hilarious results.

In the episode, “Vanstock,” the gang goes on a roadtrip and, much to Kelso’s dismay both Jackie and Laurie tag along, which creates much hilarity. On the homefront, Midge (Roberts), Donna’s mom, gets Red (Smith), Eric’s dad, to watch her favorite soap opera and it is amusing to see him get drawn into the show. Danny Masterson and Kurtwood Smith really shine in this episode as they get to deliver some classic zingers.

“Sleepover” introduces Tommy Chong as Leo, the terminally clueless hippie who gives Hyde (Masterson) a job at his photomat. Leo is obviously a PG riff on his stoner character from the popular Cheech and Chong movies. Eric and Donna think about whether they should have sex or not and this episode highlights the sexy, girl-next-door vibe that Laura Prepon exudes as Donna. Jackie is often seen as the typical beauty of the show but it is Donna who is smart and beautiful while also willing to stand up for herself.

In “Kelso’s Serenade,” he tries to win back Jackie by writing a song for her, which allows Ashton Kutcher to show Kelso hit rock bottom, blubbering like a baby. His song is hilariously awful and Kutcher really sells it well, drawing a lot of humor out of its creation and execution. When Eric and Donna have a moment of miscommunication, she imagines their future to be like that of the classic sitcom All in the Family with Kelso as Meathead, Jackie as Gloria, Donna as Edith and Eric as Archie Bunker for a spot-on parody that also addresses the problem their characters have in real life.

Special Features:

All of the extras from the previous box set are included in this one except for the audio commentaries for three episodes.

The first disc has behind the scenes webisodes for six episodes from season two. They provide a little insight into how they were made. They were shot in front of a live studio audience and we see the cast and crew goofing around between takes and blowing lines while taping. It is interesting to see the inner workings of the show.

The third disc includes “Season One: A Look Back,” which is a brief recap of the highlights from what went down in the first season. This brings one up to speed when starting into this season.

Finally, there is “Season Two: A Talk with Director David Trainer,” which features the show’s director recalling when he knew That ‘70s Show had hit its stride. He talks about how it is the voice of a sole creator, Mark Brazill, who based it partially on his life growing up and his friends. There are lots of clips from the show with soundbites from Trainer.

Originally called Teenage Wasteland, That ‘70s Show is a sitcom about the lives of a group of teenagers living in Wisconsin during the late 1970’s. Eric Foreman (Grace) is the everyman who is unlucky with girls; Michael Kelso (Kutcher) is the not-too-bright jock/ladies man; Steven Hyde (Masterson) is the sarcastic practical joker and stoner; Donna Pinciotti (Prepon) is the sexy tomboy; Jackie Burkhart (Kunis) is the vain, rich girl; and Fez (Valderrama) is the borderline geek from another country whose full name nobody can pronounce.

The first season spans 1976 to 1977 and introduces us to these characters and the world they inhabit with the first episode establishing Eric and his tight-knit group of friends as they make their way to a Todd Rundgren concert. Right from the get-go it feels like these actors have worked together for years. They play so well off each other and have excellent comic timing, in particular Ashton Kutcher as Kelso with his dumb questions and silly pronouncements and Danny Masterson with nicely timed deadpan sarcastic quips. The first season tracks the gradually developing relationship between Eric and Donna as go from friends to boyfriend and girlfriend. A number of guest stars make appearances, including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Mitch (The X-Files) Pileggi, but it is a young Joseph Gordon-Levitt that impresses the most as Buddy, Eric’s new lab partner who also happens to be gay, which leads Eric to temporary confusion as to his own sexual orientation.

One of the show’s reoccurring motifs is dream sequences demonstrating the colourful imaginations of the characters and the 360-degree scenes (also known as the Circle) that usually illustrate the teens smoking pot in Eric’s basement. As they talk about whatever comes to mind, the camera moves in a circle stopping on each character as they address the camera directly. It became a clever way to show them getting high without actually showing them lighting up with only puffs of smoke in the background as an obvious reference.

The diversity of the cast accounts for a large part of the show’s appeal with Topher Grace and Kutcher drawing the teenage demographic and established veteran actors like Kurtwood Smith appealing to an older generation who may also watch for nostalgic reasons – a trip down memory lane evokes simpler times. Smith is the show’s secret weapon as Eric’s gruff, no-nonsense father, Red. He gets some great zingers with his dry, sarcastic remarks and referring to those he dislikes as dumbasses and threatening to put his foot up the ass of anyone who crosses him, which is usually Eric.

The appeal of these characters is that they are archetypes that anyone can relate to. We’ve all known or been a jock or a geek or the popular kid. While That ‘70s Show is hardly groundbreaking television it is very entertaining and quite funny, which is all you really want from a show like this.

Special Features:

All of the extras from the previous box set are included in this one.

“Hello Wisconsin! – Season One” is featurette that takes a look at the show that was done at the time it was being made. The creators talk about the timeless nature of the show while the cast members talks about their characters.

“That ‘70s Trivia Show” features cast members testing your knowledge of various aspects of the show.

Finally, there is “Promo-palooza,” a collection of ads promoting the show.

Charles (Blain) has just arrived from the country to visit his cousin Paul (Brialy) who lives in Paris. The city dweller is a theatrical bohemian type that starts things off by giving his cousin a tour of his uncle’s spacious bachelor pad. Charles is enrolled in a university and concerned that he’s not studying enough. He’s the more sensitive type in comparison to Paul’s larger than life personality that comes complete with dry sarcasm. We get some insight into his character when he deals with the news of a girlfriend’s pregnancy by paying for her to have an abortion as casually as you would send someone out to buy milk.

The next day, Paul and Charles are driving around Paris in his sports car as the former tries to set the latter up with a girl. At a bar, Paul introduces Charles to Florence (Mayniel) and he becomes immediately smitten with her. Charles meets the rest of Paul’s hipster friends when they host a party. They’re a colorful assortment of characters with varying degrees of pretension. However, Charles does cross paths with Florence again and the two hit it off.

Charles is certainly the more mature of the two but he’s still trying to figure out what he wants out of life while Paul lives for the moment. Gerard Blain and Jean-Claude Brialy do an excellent job of inhabiting their respective characters and fleshing out their relationship as they wrestle with notions of friendship and jealousy. Charles wears his heart on his sleeve while Paul plays things close to the vest.

Les cousins explores the complex relationship between two wildly different cousins while also capturing what it meant to be young and in Paris during the late 1950’s. He nails the often poseur nature of young artsy types as they live in that nebulous period of their lives between school and settling down to adult life. Sadly, Chabrol made a series of unsuccessful films and became a director for hire in the mid-1960’s but kept working, making over 50 features.

Special Features:

There is an audio commentary by film critic Adrian Martin. He starts off by putting Chabrol in the context of the French New Wave. The director was more conventional in style and content then someone like Jean-Luc Godard. Martin points out that Chabrol was fascinated with crime fiction and Les cousins questions the nature of evil. Martin talks about the importance of Blain and Brialy in French cinema. The film critic provides a nice mix of analysis and production information including how the film was received at the time of its release.

Also included is a theatrical trailer.

This 2000 British comedy – directed by Julian Kemp – stars well known names including Bruce Forsyth, Keith Chegwin and Kelly Macdonald. Together, they form the ultimate comedic cast.

We see Welsh-Italian Giovanni Anzani’s bingo hall, La Scala, reaching the end of its hay-day. The bingo hall is ageing and run down, but the staff who work there remain loyal. It is up to them to work as a team to save the bingo hall which their lives seem to revolve around. Linda, (Kelly Macdonald), discovers she has a psychic ability to predict bingo numbers. The team hope they can use this skill to save the bingo hall from being driven out of business by a new huge bingo hall planned to be opened close by.

This review doesn’t give too much away, so if you want to research the film a little more, then there are plenty of trailers and soundtracks you can find online to get a little taster. So while you play Cheeky Bingo to get in the bingo mood, or you’re just browsing the web, you can watch a preview and see if it is your kind of film. Alternatively, reading reviews will give you a brief overview of the plot and some information about the production.

Despite the plot being based around a bingo hall, this dull premise is brought to life with the cleverly written script and the well cast characters. It could be summed up in one mysterious yet entertaining phrase of – The ultimate Welsh Psychic Bingo Movie. It adds a whole new level to this typical OAP game, plus it has a quirky plot which you couldn’t possibly have predicted.

Set in Los Angeles during the first Persian Gulf War, the Coens weave a decidedly unconventional tale about a man known as The Dude. Jeff “The Dude” (“or El Duderino if you’re not into the whole brevity thing.”) Lebowski (Bridges) is a laid-back kinda guy, an aging Hippie who spends his days drinking White Russians, smoking pot, and bowling with his buddies — Walter (Goodman), a bitter Viet Nam veteran, and Donny (Buscemi), a not too-bright surfer. One night, two thugs invade the Dude’s home, rough him up, and urinate on his rug. It seems that they have him confused with another Lebowski, a rich millionaire (Huddleston) whose young trophy wife (Reid) owes money all over town. Bummed at having his prized rug ruined, The Dude decides to contact the other Lebowski and in doing so becomes immersed in a very strange, convoluted plot that involves nihilists, a kidnapping, Busby Berkley dream sequences, British performance artists, and, of course, bowling.

Most films do not take the time to flesh out their respective worlds or the characters that live in them but this is not the case with the Coens. The world that they create in The Big Lebowski is populated by a humorous and an often-bizarre collection of characters and this includes fully-realized ones, both major and minor, that have their own unique habits and mannerisms. You have the obnoxiously narcissistic bowler named Jesus (Turturro) who is also a convicted pederast, feminist performance artist/painter Maude Lebowski (Moore) who wants the Dude to help her conceive a child, and, of course, the Nihilists, failed Euro-pop musicians who prove to be one of the more formidable antagonists for the Dude and his buddies.

You would think that all of these wildly eccentric characters would overshadow the main character, but they merely enhance the wonderful performance by Jeff Bridges, who is the heart and soul of this film. Some of the funniest moments are how he reacts to these weird characters that he meets. From the first time we see him, Bridges is The Dude. And even though he is a down-and-out loser, there is something undeniably likable about him, and this is due in large part to Bridges’ performance.

The Big Lebowski may not have the dramatic weight or substance of Miller’s Crossing (1990) or Fargo (1996) but that is sort of the point. It is more of a comedic odyssey or romp through a surreal landscape known as Los Angeles. The Coens have done what Robert Altman achieved in the 1970’s with The Long Goodbye (1973): use the hard-boiled world of Raymond Chandler as a starting point to satirize Los Angeles culture. Like Altman’s film, The Big Lebowski dispenses with a conventional narrative in favor of atmosphere, colorful characters and insanely quotable dialogue. The joy of this film is in watching the entertaining diversions, subplots and minor characters. You’re not supposed to really care about if the convoluted storyline is resolved or not. That is merely window-dressing for the Coens to showcase this highly engaging world that they’ve created.

I daresay that The Big Lebowski is the Coen brothers’ best film to date. It is the perfect mix of their flashy style, eccentric characters, and distinctive dialogue. It is a rare comedy that can be watched over and over and never gets old. They have created a richly detailed world that is so inviting and entertaining that you want to revisit it again and again. The Dude abides.

Special Features:

The transfer on this disc really highlights the bright color scheme that the Coens used for The Big Lebowski with some excellent detail. The film’s awesome soundtrack gets a nice showcase on a DTS 5.1 surround sound, which should show-off your sound system. This new edition carries over all the extras that were on the 10th Anniversary edition, which include:

The film is introduced by Mortimer Young, the old, pretentious windbag film preservationist who savaged the Coens’ Blood Simple (1984) on his “audio commentary” for that film’s DVD. Likewise, he basically serves as a goof by the Coens as they parody the notion of special editions, director’s cuts and restored prints.

“The Dude’s Life” features Jeff Bridges, Steve Buscemi, Julianne Moore, John Goodman, and John Turturro reminiscing about the film, its legacy and their characters. It is obvious that these actors had fun making the film and still regard it fondly. Turturro gets the best moment when he talks about his idea for a spin-off film focusing on his character.

“The Dude Abides: The Big Lebowski Ten Years Later” is a nice retrospective look at the legacy of this film. Cast members talk about its initial lackluster reception among critics and audiences only to gain a dedicated cult following over the years. The cast is quick to dispel the notion that dialogue was improvised – everything was scripted. This is a nice look at the film.

There are the standard production notes that could have easily been downloaded off the Internet.

Also included is a theatrical trailer.

“Jeff Bridges Photobook” has the actor take us through all of the photographs he took on the set of The Big Lebowski and then presented to cast in a book upon completion of the film. There are some really good candid shots and Bridges is quite the talented shutterbug.

Next up is “Photo Gallery,” a three-minute montage that condenses the previous extra, which seems rather pointless now.

Also included is the 30-minute promotional video entitled, “The Making of The Big Lebowski.” While not nearly as informative or exhaustive as the book of the same name that was released in conjunction with the film, this promo is worth watching if only to see Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, and, in particular, the interview-shy Coens talk about their film.

“The Lebowski Fest: An Achiever’s Story” features excerpts from The Achievers documentary, which chronicles the annual festival that celebrates the film with bowling and a screening. It also allows fans to dress up as their favorite characters and meet one another and bond. It started in 2002 and has been going strong ever since.

“Flying Carpets and Bowling Pin Dreams” takes a brief look at “Gutterballs,” the Dude’s surreal dream sequence and how it was done.

There is an “Interactive Map” allows you to visit key locations in the film with a clip juxtaposed with the actual locations as it looks now.

For what it’s worth, the transfer of the movie has improved significantly from the previous edition now that it no longer has to share disc space with the pan and scan version. But that is not enough to warrant double-dipping unless you really feel the need.

New to this edition is the U-Control function, which allows you to watch the film with cast and crew interviews and behind the scenes footage while viewing the film. Another feature allows you to watch the film with a running count on the number of curse words and “Dude-isms” used throughout. Finally, you can watch the film with a text commentary that identifies each song as it plays, which is handy for such a track-heavy motion picture.

Finally, there is a trivia game that allows you to be either the Dude or Walter as you try to complete various memorable lines of dialogue from the film. Cute but hardly essential.

A nice touch is the accompanying booklet, which features liner notes, a brief interview with the real dude, Jeff Dowd, how to make your own White Russian, a quiz and a guide to all the characters and the actors that played them.