COLUMBO: THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON (1973-1974) / THE MUPPET SHOW: SEASON ONE (1976-1977). The popularity of TV shows on DVD may have caught the industry by surprise, but the decision makers have since regained their composure and are presently flooding the marketplace with all manner of boob tube fare. Still, it's the classics that will continue to endure -- even in this relatively new format -- and here are two of the most memorable.
Having already established itself as the most popular series on the rotating NBC Mystery Movie, Columbo returned for a third go-around for the 1973-74 season and subsequently earned the Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series. The two-disc DVD set includes all eight episodes from that season -- look for Vincent Price, Martin Sheen and Johnny Cash on the guest lists -- as well as a bonus episode from the short-lived 1979 spin-off, Kate Columbo (with Kate Mulgrew as the missus who solves her own mysteries on the side). There are no extra features in this collection. In addition to this set, Universal Studios Home Entertainment has just released two fellow Mystery Movie regulars: McMillan & Wife: Season One and McCloud: Seasons One & Two.
Although Jim Henson's Muppets had been around since the 1950s, it wasn't until they starred in their own syndicated series in the 70s that they emerged as a global phenomenon, eventually reaching more than 200 million people in over 100 countries. Smartly constructed as a variety show about the running of a variety show (presided over by the tireless Kermit the Frog), the program managed to incorporate everything from Shakespeare to Star Wars, from Beethoven to The Beatles, with a different guest star appearing each week to take part in the merriment. This four-disc set includes all 24 episodes from the historic first season, introducing us to such enduring stars as Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Animal and my favorites: Fozzie Bear and those grumpy old men in the balcony, Statler and Waldorf. As for the guests, this season's batch includes Peter Ustinov, Vincent Price, Jim Nabors, Lena Horne and, to really bring back that 70s nostalgia vibe, Valerie Harper and Avery Schreiber. DVD extras include "Muppet Morsels" (optional fun facts presented as text throughout each episode), the original pitch reel that Henson shopped around to the various networks, and a promo gag reel.
Columbo: ***1/2
The Muppet Show: ***1/2
SIN CITY (2005). Three Frank Miller graphic novels were stylishly fitted for the big screen by director Robert Rodriguez, with Bruce Willis, Clive Owen and Mickey Rourke cast as the tough guys who must contend with sultry femme fatales and raging psychopaths. As a gimmick, Sin City is a beaut. Rodriguez faithfully copied Miller's panels and in the process created a visually stunning yarn in which speckles of color add further resonance to the otherwise black-and-white imagery. Yet the movie isn't mere eye candy: In addition to nailing the scrawl-to-screen process, Rodriguez has also created a neo-film noir that, extreme violence aside, largely captures the mood of those time-honored noir flicks from the 40s and 50s. The glee with which Rodriguez films the sadism may be off-putting, but the joy with which he pays tribute to both the comic form and film noir is positively infectious. DVD extras include a behind-the-scenes featurette and theatrical trailers.
Movie: ***
THE TRUMAN SHOW (1998). Who could have guessed that it wouldn't even require a full decade for this movie to prove prophetic? The reality TV craze didn't hit until after this film debuted in the summer of '98, further elevating the worth of a picture that was already a resounding success from the moment it premiered. Jim Carrey stars as Truman Burbank, a likable, 30-year-old businessman who has no idea his entire life has been nothing more than a television show that's proven to be a ratings smash around the globe -- much to the delight of its quietly menacing creator (Ed Harris in a superb performance). The script by Andrew Niccol is endlessly inventive, and director Peter Weir finds just the right tone for the project, providing it with a welcome buoyancy but never letting us forget its darker underpinning (namely, that Truman is the ultimate victim of our nation's voyeuristic tendencies). Harris, Weir and Niccol all earned richly deserved Oscar nominations. DVD extras include a making-of feature, a piece on the visual effects, four deleted scenes and trailers.
Movie: ***1/2
THE WEDDING DATE (2005). We expect TV stars trying to make the transition to cinema to find themselves saddled with subpar material, but this one takes that notion to the extreme. To say that the script for The Wedding Date is bottom-of-the-barrel would be too kind; this one was already decomposing under a mountain of mulch before Will & Grace's Debra Messing unwisely fished it out. Messing plays a woman whose neurotic impulses are meant to be endearing but who instead comes across as something of a pill. Required to fly to England to attend the wedding of her loathsome sister (Amy Adams), she can't stand the thought of arriving alone, so she spends $6,000 to hire a male prostitute (Dermot Mulroney) to pretend to be her boyfriend. This was clearly inspired by the success of Brit-flavored confections like Four Weddings and a Funeral and Bridget Jones' Diary -- but the comparisons end there. DVD extras include audio commentary by Messing, deleted scenes and an interview with Messing.
Movie: *