DVD Addict PDF - DNA Publishing

Release date: 12 March 2007
FITNESS DVDS
Does my bum
look big in this?
If your new year’s resolution to get in shape is slipping, why not enlist
the help of some celebrity pals and their keep-fit videos?
W
SPECIAL REPORT
ould you like to drop a dress size in time for the summer? Silly question, of course
you would, but it’s easier said than done. If the gym isn’t for you and you’ve tried every
trendy fat-busting diet going, maybe it’s time you called in the big guns: the celebrity
keep-fit video. Usually fronted by some z-list has-been, these DVDs clutter the shelves of every
supermarket and video store in the country and sell in their millions. While some offer as much
fat-burning potential as a slow walk to the shops, others will leave you feeling like you’ve run a
marathon. Fortunately, for living room keep fit fanatics everywhere, there are a few that strike a
happy medium and present a well-balanced exercise regime which will genuinely help you lose
weight and change your body shape for the better. In a not-entirely-serious investigation,
DVD ADDICT slipped on its favourite leotard and tried out some of the leading titles...
VCI £17.99
2 Entertain £17.99
Davina
Jade’s
Er, who? Davina McCall,
Big Brother presenter
who repeatedly seeks
approval from her mum
every time she washes her hair
in the Garnier Nutrisse advert.
Porkiest moment: Presenting
Big Brother 2, 4 and 7. But she
was pregnant.
Davina says: “Working out can
be more fun than you think!”
Good for: Toning.
Workouts: Legs and bums,
upper body, abdominals.
Let’s have a go then: Davina’s
hour-long session of bending,
stretching, kicking and – eek
- sit-ups come in both “simple”
and “advanced” versions. She
smiles throughout, most likely in
the knowledge of how much it’s
going to hurt in the morning.
DVD extras: Davina on clothes,
food and shopping.
Worked for Davina, work for
you? Follow Davina’s workout
and you’ll soon be releasing a
fitness DVD of your own.
Most amusing bit: Davina’s
revelation that she lost her flab
by exercising regularly and
watching what she ate. Er, is
there any other way?
Recommended for: Anyone who
wants to wake-up and shape-up.
Er, who? Jade Goody, the
most financially successful
Big Brother contestant
turned most controversial
Celebrity Big Brother contestant.
Dull boyfriend, mad mum.
Jade says: “The workout that lost
me two stone.”
Porkiest moment: When we met
her on Big Brother 3 and she was
branded “Miss Piggy” by The Sun.
Good for: Burning flab.
Workouts: Two circuit
workouts, core training and
resistance workout.
Let’s have a go then: Well, it’s
certainly knackering. Lots of
running, jumping and squatting.
There’s not a lot of difference
between the two main circuit
workouts, but Jade’s emphasis
on time saving (what does she do
all day anyway?) means a session
only has to last 15 minutes.
Who the hell is that? Jade’s
nameless fitness instructor
(a large man in tight shorts)
spurring Jade on more than
she’s motivating you.
DVD extras: Just that horrific
picture of the “before” Jade
bursting on the back of the box.
Worked for Jade, work for you?
No diet in the world is going to
keep that gob shut, but yes, she’s
Power of 3
Shape Challenge
now figure-hugging, not figurerevolting. There’s hope for us all.
Most amusing bit: Jade’s cutaway grins to camera before each
workout. You just know she’s
thinking about her dinner.
Recommended for: The
unassuming beginner who is
likely to count bending down
to load up the DVD as halfway
to finishing
the workout.
EMI £19.99
Liberation Entertainment £17.99
Kym Ryder’s
Jennifer Ellison’s
Burn & Firm
Workout
West End Workout
Er, who? Ex-Brookside
actress turned lad magfriendly glamour model
turned actress again.
Starred in Chicago in the West End
and due to join the new series of
BBC1’s Hotel Babylon.
Porkiest moment: A little chubbier
in her Brookside days.
Jen says: “If the gym isn’t for you,
this workout is”.
Good for: Fitness.
Workouts: Upper body, bums and
tums, lower body.
Let’s have a go then: Jen glides
through her gut-wrenching
selection of crunches, squats and
jumps without hardly breaking a
sweat. Successfully synchronising
yourself with her dance routines
is unlikely unless you’re a trained
dancer. But it’s fun trying.
DVD extras: Bonus dance routine.
Worked for Jen, work for you?
She’s the current 31st sexiest
woman in the world according
to FHM magazine. Follow Jen’s
workout and you’ll get the curves
if not the bank account.
Most amusing bit: Jen having
obvious trouble audibly counting
to anything above eight. Who
said she was just a pretty face, eh?
Recommended for: The
adventurous exerciser with a
penchant for the art of dance.
Channel 4 £24.99
Max and Paddy’s
The Power of Two
Er, who? Phoenix Nights’
doormen last seen on their
personal Road To Nowhere
featuring Peter Kaye and
Patrick McGuinness, who have been
mates since school.
Porkiest moment: They say all
great comedy double-acts come
with a big and small one. This is
no exception.
Max and Paddy say: “Getting fit has
never been so fun.” Nor so funny!
Good for: Fighting the flab whilst
having a laugh.
Work outs: Lots of getting bent into
funny shapes by your mate who
seems a lot better at this than you.
Universal £17.99
Coleen McLoughlin’s
Brand New Body Workout
Er, who? Surprisingly
attractive WAG who’s
clearly dropped down a few
leagues to date England
player, Wayne Rooney. Rooney
took her to see Austin Powers 2 for
their first date and proposed to her
on a BP garage forecourt. See what
we mean?
Porkiest moment: That probably
belongs to Wayne.
Coleen says: “I dropped a jean size!”
Good for: Overall fitness.
Workouts: High intensity
cardio, boxing, abdominals and
core conditioning.
Let’s have a go then: A demanding
bout of bounding, punching and
crunching. Her pleased-to-meetyou grin quickly gives way to a
“phew I’m knackered” grimace.
DVD extras: “Building the body”
section, ie more exercise. Bugger.
Worked for Coleen, work for you?
Well, it’s no frills, no gimmicks and
tough work. Very professional.
Most amusing bit: Probably the
thought of Wayne getting down
on one knee at that BP garage.
Recommended for: Those who’d
prefer a “real” girl to show them
how to lose a few pounds.
Let’s have a go then: Alright
– but you’re going to have to
stop laughing first and resist the
temptation to watch the Road
To Nowhere DVD instead (which is
also included).
Who the hell is that? An entire party
of Max and Paddy fans, thin and fat!
DVD extras: Brian Potter workout
live from the Phoenix Club.
Recommended for: Billed as
“An extraordinary workout for
extraordinary people”, Max And
Paddy’s The Power of Two doesn’t
disappoint. Will have you laughing
your jean sizes away.
Er, who? Kym Marsh,
ex-member of boy/girl
band Hear’Say who
won ITV’s Popstars in
2001. Now Michelle Connor in
Coronation Street, and married
to Jack Ryder off Eastenders.
Porkiest moment: Never really
had anything to worry about,
but that didn’t stop Popstars
judge “Nasty” Nigel Lythgoe
reducing her to tears on air by
suggesting she should lose
some weight.
Kym says: “I lost 12 pounds in
four weeks and so can you!”
Good for: Body sculpting.
Workouts: Fat busting, sofatone, box and burn, pillow
boxing, aero dance, abs.
Let’s have a go then: A perfect
example that the grass is never
greener. Each routine is as
tiring as the last. Don’t fall for
the one that you do sat down
on your sofa.
Who the hell is that? Her bald,
Australian personal coach, Paul,
whose eyes look like they’re
about to burst out of his head
at any moment.
DVD extras: Kym’s food tips
and “exclusive” interview.
Worked for Kym, work for
you? Makes good use of your
household items. It’s a surprise
she hasn’t got you doing
weights with your fridge.
Most amusing bit: Kym’s
horrendous taste in
wallpaper. Did someone call
Changing Rooms!?
Recommended for: The hardworking but attention-deficit
fitness fan who is going to try
to keep at it.
Release date: 12 March 2007
THE ULTIMATE weekly GUIDE TO DVD
Primeval
Charlie and Lola
£19.99 | PG | 19 MARCH
£12.99 | U | 19 MARCH
A TIME portal has opened in the
Forest of Dean and prehistoric
creatures are strolling through,
much to the joy of evolutionary
scientist Nick Cutter (Douglas
Henshall) and his Scooby-Doo
gang of dino hunters. This basic
premise provides all the excuse you
need for some occasionally dire
dialogue (“we have proof that the
past exists” and “the anomalies are
time’s equivalent of earthquakes”)
and a multitude of primeval
encounters that knows its audience
perfectly. It’s a Saturday night
family-orientated adventure show
that gives even the BBC’s
reinvigorated Doctor Who a run for
its money. And what better excuse
is there for S Club 7’s Hannah
Spearritt to wear skimpy underwear and wiggle her nose? The
Making Of Primeval documentary
offers no surprises, however. They
used computers to animate the
dinosaurs. Really? HHHHH
TV SHOWS for the under fives can
be so nauseatingly sweet and giddy
that any adults given even short
exposure are in danger of developing
Type 2 diabetes. Charlie and Lola is
different and this collection of
stories from series two will provide
infinite viewing for restless toddlers
while adults can sit back with a cup
of tea and enjoy Charlie and Lola’s
young and adjective-packed
descriptions of their everywhere
world. The stories could come from
any young child’s average day, but
it’s the loving approach that makes
the series a winner with every word
spouted reminding the old of how
they used to be and the young
exactly how they are. The animation
style – a collage of 2D animation,
paper cutouts, fabrics and
photo-montage – simply adds to
the show’s charm. The woefully
short blooper reel is hilarious and
will leave even the greatest cynic
begging for more.
HHHHH
Hollywoodland Hotel Babylon
£19.99 | 15 | 19 MARCH
£29.99 | 15 | 19 MARCH
When 1950s Superman actor
George Reeves (Ben Affleck) dies
in an apparent suicide after his
career takes a nosedive, his mother
hires a private detective (Adrien
Brody) to find out who really put
the bullet through her son’s brain.
This fictional investigation into
one of Hollywood’s most famous
unsolved deaths is filled with
intrigue, deceit and double dealing.
Affleck is outstanding in the
flashback sequences that pepper
the film and detail how a man who
wanted to be the next Errol Flynn
becomes broken by the very studio
that built him. There is a genuine air
of tragedy and pathos in his
portrayal of Reeves and there are
obvious parallels to Affleck’s own
stalled career. Brody’s gumshoe
detective is less effective, however,
and his overlong framing
sequences simply detract from an
otherwise heart-rending tale of a
limited actor choosing to take his
own life.
HHHHH
Lacking the sharp humour of
Imogen Edwards-Jones’s original
book, the BBC’s TV adaptation of
Hotel Babylon offers a frothy but
ultimately superficial look at the
seedy underbelly of an anonymous
five star London hotel. The result is
a collection of individual stories that
use the hotel’s swinging doors to
introduce a constant stream of
appalling characters and ridiculous
situations. While the book worked
hard to expose the moral deficiency
of its hotel guests, the TV show
simply revels in their debauchery
and stupidity. That said, it’s still
great fun, mainly because of an
excellent cast including Tamzin
Outhwaite as a slightly aloof hotel
boss and Max Beesley as Charlie,
the head receptionist who is
involved in most of the storylines.
Best of all, though, is Dexter
Fletcher who plays the savvy
concierge and is able to procure or
organise almost anything
imaginable – for a price. HHHHH
Casino Royale
£22.99 (2 discs) | 12 | 19 MARCH
Starting with a pre-credit action sequence in which
Bond earns his licence to kill, the differences between
this reboot of the 007 franchise and what has gone
before could not be more pronounced. This is Bond at
the start of his career: cocky, self-assured and arrogant
but also fallible. Daniel Craig plays him with all the
brass-knuckled charm of an early Sean Connery and his
performance is a million miles from the indestructible
arched eyebrows of Roger Moore or gigolo good looks
of Pierce Brosnan. The support cast, too, is excellent
with Mads Mikkelsen turning in a polished performance
as 007’s main adversary, Le Chiffre – a villain who
literally cries bloody tears. Eva Green’s Vesper Lynd is
another excellently realised character and has
considerably more depth to her than the usual Bond
girl. Her verbal sparring with Bond is particularly pithy
and revealing.
No other Bond film has followed the plot of the
source book so closely, so there are no metal-mouthed
henchmen, no super villains in mountain fortresses
and the most utilised gadget is a simple mobile phone.
What you get instead is a Batman Begins makeover and
a 007 agent who looks like he could genuinely kill a
man with his bare hands if the mood took him. While
action packed there’s a strong thread of believability
that rings true to Ian Fleming’s vision while the script is
full of clues to Bond’s future that make repeated
viewing essential. All the Bond books should be reapproached this way since Casino Royale is the only
film in 30 years to do them justice.
HHHHH
DVD EXTRAS
n Becoming
Bond is a
revealing look at
the challenges
Daniel Craig
faced when
taking on the
role while James
Bond: For Real
demonstrates
the movies
delicious
reliance on
proper stunt
work. The music
video and TV
special on Bond
girls are
welcome, but
where’s the
detailed look at
the book?
Release date: 19 March 2007
THE ULTIMATE weekly GUIDE TO DVD
Happy Feet
The Holiday
Waterloo Road
£19.99 | 12 | 26 MARCH
£29.99 | 12 | 26 MARCH
this by-the-numbers romantic
comedy suffers from a messy script
and a telegraphed storyline.
Thankfully, it’s also stuffed to
bursting with Hollywood A-listers
who just about manage to salvage
something from the film’s cloying
sentimentality. Cameron Diaz and
Kate Winslet are on top form
playing two successful single
women who swop homes (and
countries) for the Christmas
holidays and find love in the
process. Winslet lands a swanky
pad in LA while Diaz settles into a
picture-postcard cottage in the
English countryside. Winslet then
meets Jack Black and Diaz hooks
up with Jude Law and – bingo –
everyone lives happily ever after.
Despite such contrived nonsense,
the film’s two storylines are packed
with some snappy one-liners and
Kate Winslet’s sub-Bridget Jones
dithering is a delight to watch.
HHHHH
it’s a new school term at
troubled inner-city comprehensive,
Waterloo Road, and Jack Rimmer
(Jason Merrells) has taken over the
headship after the last incumbent
suffered a nervous breakdown.
With the school at the bottom of
almost every league table
imaginable, Jack is determined to
turn things round. Sadly, the show
is as predictable as it sounds with
its mix of warring and dysfunctional
teachers and unruly, gobby pupils.
It retreads old ground, adequately
covered before in Channel 4’s
excellent Teachers (starring
Andrew ‘Egg from This Life’
Lincoln) and offers nothing new to
the “edgy school drama” it aspires
to be. The kids are so stupid you
wouldn’t wish a single GCSE on the
lot of them, and the teachers are so
emotionally imbalanced and prone
to petty infighting, it’s a wonder
they haven’t all been sectioned.
HHHHH
Extras
Series Two
Jackass
Number Two
£21.99 | 15 | 26 MARCH
£19.99 | 18 | 26 MARCH
Extras is the second comedy
mule from the stable of Stephen
Merchant and Ricky Gervais and it
definitively proves that the duo are
no one-trick ponies. Where the “it’s
so cringe-worthy, it’s funny”
humour of The Office came from
David Brent, this time it’s the guest
celebrities who brilliantly lay
themselves open to ridicule. Chris
Martin wants to get home from yet
another charity appeal because
“Gwyneth’s doing drumsticks” for
tea; David Bowie ad-libs an off-thecuff song about “the sad little fat
man”, and Daniel ‘Harry Potter’
Radcliffe brags he’s “done it with a
girl”. The show-within-a-show
(Ricky’s character Andy Millman
has now got his own sitcom, When
The Whistle Blows, which he hates)
is Extras 2’s weakest point. But a
British Comedy Award-winning
performance from Stephen
Merchant as Andy’s hapless agent
Darren Lamb makes Extras 2 a
comedy must-see.
HHHHH
Whether you class a bunch of
grown men (grown, with the
exception of Johnny Knoxville, into
a bunch of circus freaks)
humiliating themselves in all
manner of hideously painful ways
as entertainment will determine
whether you’re shocked, offended
or just bored by the Jackass
franchise. In this, their second
feature film, they’ve certainly tried
to kill themselves in more
imaginative ways than ever before,
strapping themselves to an
exploding rocket, fishing for sharks
with human bait and going oneon-one with a raging bull (while
wearing a blindfold). It’s certainly
one step beyond the whoops-Islipped-on-a-banana-skin
innocence of You’ve Been Framed.
At times, the Jackass team seem
almost like human cartoons, living
out some strange Roadrunner-type
fantasy, but the injuries they suffer
are only too real.
HHHHH
£18.99 | U | 26 MARCH
memorably described by narrator Robin Williams
as March of the Penguins meets Michael Flatley’s
Riverdance, the Oscar-winning Happy Feet is an allsinging, all-dancing animated spectacular. It tells the
tale of Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood), a young tonedeaf emperor penguin who can’t carry a tune. Sadly
for him, singing is how penguins attract a mate and
his inability to belt out a ‘heartsong’ sets him apart
from his peers. Sent for singing lessons by his
concerned parents Memphis (Hugh Jackman) and
Norma Jean (Nicole Kidman), Mumble’s voice coach
sums up the gravity of the situation: “A penguin
without a heartsong is hardly a penguin at all.”
Despite this handicap, Mumble has a trick up his
sleeve – he’s a bit of a mean tap-dancer – and breaks
into a dance routine whenever the mood grabs him.
This leads to some impressive Busby
Berkeley-inspired song and dance
numbers including
an underwater ballet
sequence and a
rave using the southern lights
as illumination. It’s all hugely
entertaining, but doesn’t overshadow
the film’s message that it’s okay to be
yourself no matter what anyone else
thinks. For good measure, there’s also
a strong ecological theme running
throughout, but this doesn’t undermine
the story, it adds to it. HHHHH
DVD EXTRAS
n Happy Feet
comes packed
to the beak with
extra features.
There are two
new animated
shorts to enjoy, a
behind-thescenes look at
how the film was
put together
(including the
stunning
recreation of
Antarctica) and
a marvellous
piece on Savion
Glover, the reallife tap-dancing
wizard whose
dance routines
were motion
captured to
make Mumble’s
dancing really
come to life.
Release date: 27 November 2006
High School Musical
Encore Edition
£14.99 | PG | 4 DECEMBER
THE ULTIMATE weekly GUIDE TO DVD
He’s the handsome
basketball player, she’s
the gorgeous new girl
who can solve complex
equations by smiling,
but dare they risk
absolutely nothing by
auditioning for the school musical? Insipid dance
routines break up a film that follows Grease’s lead but
removes such deadweight as plot, character
development or memorable songs. It provides kids
with a view of school that’s so unrelentingly sweet
that it makes the sexual swaying of Travolta and
Newton John seem like something that should only
be available on the internet, locked behind a
password and a crucifix. Extras include a sing-a-long
karaoke version.
HHHHH
Nacho Libre
£19.99 | PG | 4 DECEMBER
Superman Returns
£25.99 (2 discs) | 12 | 4 DECEMBER
X-Men director Bryan Singer adored the first
two Superman movies so much that he’s crafted a
love letter that picks up where Superman II left off.
The result is a mixed bag of nostalgia and action
scenes that, while directed with bravado, fail to
deal with the problem of finding heroism in an
invincible hero.
The film opens with Superman returning to Earth
after a five year absence. While he was gone,
searching for the remnants of his home planet of
Krypton, Lois Lane has become engaged and has a
five-year-old-son (yes, you’re meant to be
suspicious...). She’s also gone from being
Superman’s number one fan to being his biggest
detractor (and winning a Pulitzer prize for her
efforts). The rest of the film has Superman playing
out some kind of sad stalker fantasy, desperate to
rekindle his relationship with Lois, while
simultaneously dealing with archfiend Lex Luthor’s
plans to enter the real estate business by creating a
new super-continent. Thankfully, there’s plenty of
jaw-dropping moments, too, as Superman rescues
civilians from falling masonry, saves a Shuttle from
crashing and stops a speeding bullet in the blink of
an eye. Literally.
Kevin Spacey enjoys himself playing a pantomime
Luthor while newcomer Brandon Routh does his
best to fill the cape and tights left behind by
Christopher Reeve – although his performance
comes dangerously close to mimicry at times.
Superman Returns is an effective reboot of the
franchise – more a recreation than a reimagining –
that works best if seen as a set-up for 2009’s
Superman: The Man of Steel. HHHHH
Jack Black is a
Mexican priest who
decides to realise his
true calling by entering
the wrestling ring as
the masked Nacho
Libre. Black does his
best with a script so light that his determined stare
and slapstick pratfalls provide the funniest lines and
the quirky mind of Napoleon Dynamite writer/
director Jared Hess continues to find small smiles in
unusual places. Unfortunately, the film comes across
as a series of gentle sketches puffed up by the usual
money-for-the-orphans storyline. The result is 100
minutes of barely-conscious movie that feels like it
should have made a humorous 15 minute short.
HHHHH
Over The Hedge
£19.99 | U | 4 DECEMBER
DVD EXTRAS
n This two-disc
set is bolstered
by the addition
of Requiem for
Krypton: Making
Superman
Returns, a twohour warts-andall documentary.
It includes Roth’s
screentest, lots
of behind-thescenes clips –
you’ll believe a
man can fly (on a
piece of string) –
and Singer losing
his temper on
set. There are
also 11 deleted
scenes to enjoy
and a minifeaturette on the
digital trickery
needed to bring
Marlon Brando
back to life.
RJ the Racoon,
voiced by Bruce Willis,
has until Full Moon to
replace all the food he
stole from a bear or
end up as its dinner.
Enlisting the help of a
group of cute forest foragers he introduces them to
the fun of boosting grub from suburbia. Expect a
satirical look at urban life with smirks coming through
characterisation and a knowing script rather than any
much-needed Tom & Jerry action.
The Special Edition disc features a wealth of cast
interviews, loads of kids’ games and a five-minute
short starring Hammy, the hyperactive squirrel,
coming to grips with the aerodynamics of a
boomerang. Ouch. HHHHH
Trivial Pursuit
£19.99 | PG | 4 DECEMBER
the original
board game was a
painful exercise in
humiliation as it slowly
dawned on you that
you didn’t actually
know anything. At all.
The DVD edition is even less fun thanks to its
insistence on only two teams of players. Questions,
although boosted with video clips, rely heavily on
multiple choices and timed rounds and so much of
the excitement for the individual getting a question
right is limited by group yelling. There are some
benefits to this screen version, though, since no one
can be blamed for deliberately skipping a square or
losing a piece of plastic pie down the sofa. HHHHH
DVD
BOXSETS
With Christmas fast
approaching, DVD
boxsets are coming thick
and fast. Marvel Heroes
combines
the first
two X-Men
movies with
the hollow
final act,
adds the
ignoble
Elektra, irritating
Daredevil and barely
acceptable Fantastic Four
and suggests you pay
£44.99 for the privilege.
Infinitely dumber super
heroics can
be found in
the Chuck
Norris
Collection
where
Missing
in Action,
Code of Silence and
Lone Wolf McQuade
all combine to provide
the fastest and most
ironic way
to spend
£24.99 yet
devised
by man
while the
curiously
entitled
The Best of Stephen King
manages to include six
movies over ten discs
without touching on
Carrie,
Christine
or Misery.
John
Wayne
Volume
4, at
£12.99 the
cheapest set on offer,
features two films,
McLintock and Angel
and the Badman, and
two documentaries while
The Peter
Sellers Box
Set 1 gives
enthusiasts
Hoffman,
The
Smallest
Show
On Earth and CarltonBrowne Of The F.O. and
zero extras. American Pie
1-5 does include all the
movies from the series,
which, even
at £34.99,
is a mixed
blessing
with more
toilet
humour
being
available as Rik Mayall
and Ade Edmondson
splutter 6th form laughs
in The Big Bottom
Box. Whether they still
have toilets in the 23rd
Century is never made
clear, but Star Trek: The
Animated Series (£39.99)
is a lost gem and features
the voices
of most of
the original
crew of
the USS
Enterprise
including
William
Shatner
(Kirk) and Leonard
Nimoy (Spock). If you
really want to play it safe
come present giving
time,
plump for
the fivedisc Martin
Scorsese
Collection
(£45.99).
Class.