Joe Carnahan’s adaptation of the popular 80′s TV show went toe to toe with other masculine mercenary flicks last summer and hold its own. Now that it’s out on DVD, it’s got an extra 16 minutes of footage. Is that the secret ingredient to turn it from very good to great?

This week we cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war with a battle of the box sets, Oliver Stone vs. The Coen Brothers vs. Terry Gilliam vs. er… Buddy the Elf. Christmas season brings all kinds of treats to entice the compulsive collector – and we’ve got 2 more of our cents to offer about four of them. All this, plus The Fisher King and The Devil & Daniel Johnston from the Vault, and the trailers for Hall Pass and Sucker Punch too. Dig in!

1. First up is the Oliver Stone collection on Blu-ray. There’s only 3 flicks in this set, but they’re all director’s cuts. Does it have the chops to take on the competition?
2. The Coen Brothers collection’s got 6 editions from their repertoire, but they’re not all exactly what we would deem classics. Can the one-two punch of Joel and Ethan win the top spot?
3. 6 of Terry Gilliam’s films have been collected to form his set, but there are a couple glaring omissions as far as Steve’s concerned. Is this fractured set still worthy of winning this battle?
4. For a special Christmas treat Jon Favreau’s Elf has been released in a special tin case with all kinds of festive accouterments. Can a solo film rise above the other sets?
5. Finally Brian offers up The Devil & Daniel Johnston and Steve moons over The Fisher King for their Vault picks, and we discuss the trailers for Hall Pass & Sucker Punch.

Steve, Brian and The Mad Hatter offer up a unanimous Keeper for Dreamworks latest animated film starring the voice of Jay Baruchel as Hiccup, the reluctant dragon tamer.

With nothing on our DVD slate this week, we’ve got a bit of a mixed bag including organizing Steve’s movie collection and measuring the summer’s mercenary flicks against each other.

1. Brian is fresh from seeing The Expendables, so we take some time to see how it measures up against the other mercenary films of the summer. Apparently, casting isn’t everything.
2. With Steve’s DVD collection pushing the 530 mark, he’s reaching out for help and advice on how to organize everything. Alphabetical? Chronological? Autobiographical? Emotional? What kind of order should they go in?
3. Brian’s shares his top 5 favourite sketch comedy shows. Be ready for some show you’ve never heard of, and also be prepared for Monty Python to not be on this list.
4. Brian is tickled pink that Burn Notice is finally making it’s way to Canadian airwaves. Don’t know what Burn Notice is? Brian can explain it for you. He’s also got his impressions on The Good Guys – apparently the news is good.
5. Man on Wire and Unbreakable are broken out of the Vault, and then there’s just enough time for the trailers for Black Swan and I’m Still Here.

Thanks for tuning in, your feedback is always appreciated.

It’s probably the best show on Showtime’s roster, and the fourth season ranks as one of the best, but what otherwise should have been a slam-dunk “Keeper” winds up a “Renter” due to lacklustre special features.

This Swedish mystery film is a near-perfect movie and the first one to receive Steve’s “criticsm proof” designation.

Bleak would be the bets word to describe this beautifully shot and painstakingly acted adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel. Will it wander its way into the Cynics’ collections?

Rarely has a DVD been released that has been so conspicuously devoid of special features.

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