09-16-2006

Got an itch for high-kicking, lightning punches, and unintentionally humorous monologuing? Well, then, come on down to... No, I can't talk like that. But the good news is that for the month of September, in case you didn't know, all of our martial arts titles are 20% off their sticker price.

From great classics by Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung to the more flashy Jet Li and Zhang Ziyi titles (oddly enough, she's not a martial artist and yet she appears in most of the big ones), there's something for every kung-fu-loving fan - we even have some silly spoofs thrown in there for good measure. Now is the perfect time to try out some new titles and see what's been inspiring Hollywood for the past few years.

Hiiiiiiiya!
Brendon @ DVD Wave

09-05-2006

Hello once again, people!

As we approach the 5-year anniversary of the events September 11th, 2001, (check out http://www.september11news.com/ for an archive of news articles and conspiracy theory essays) Hollywood has unsurprisingly given us some dramatized reminders to ensure that we "never forget." Given the nature of the hot-button topic, we'll forego any and all opinion and political analyses - there's plenty of theorists and over-vocal people on the Internet if that's what you're looking for. Instead we'll concentrate on the films in question; namely, United 93 (recently released to DVD) and World Trade Center (to be released sometime next year).

The first, United 93 - formally Flight 93 - tells the story of the fourth plane that went down near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, missing its intended Washington target due to the efforts of the passengers on board. While much of it is speculation on what might have possibly happened on the plane, the film was constructed using the flight recorder and passengers' phone calls. According to moviegoer reviews, the film is devoid of political stance and plays out a lot more like a real-time documentary, focusing on the event itself rather than any particular hero or heroine.

The second film, World Trade Center, still playing in theaters as of this writing, is a, "non-Oliver Stone, Oliver Stone film". That is to say, while Oliver Stone helmed the film, it's reportedly unlike his regular outings. WTC tells the story of Port Authority police officers who were trapped in the rubble of the buildings (who had survived to tell their story later). The film takes place both before and after the collapse of the towers and focuses entirely on the trapped officers and their families.

The following is all hearsay, so please note that this is not a review of either film by me:

While WTC is said to be more sentimental and Hollywood-ized than United 93, they are both said to be respectful treatments of their particular subjects, if not entirely accurate. While I personally have no interest in viewing either film, I don't feel that either should be avoided because of the nature of the subject. That is to say, I don't think anyone is going to be greatly offended by either film so if there's any worry about that, it's safe to watch either one (or both). Whether or not you were directly affected by the events of 9/11, Hollywood has presented you with two separate interpretations of two separate events. Each, like any other film, has its merits and flaws, but keep in mind that the general Internet consensus (if there's any modicum of reliability in it) is that both are great films, yet WTC tends to cram more forced-sentimentality moments into its presentation. Take that however you will.

In any case, I figured with all of the heated debating going on, I thought it'd be nice if someone dug through it all to get information on the films themselves rather than get into a discussion about the events. Whatever your stance on the subject (if any), both films appear to be solid efforts with a great deal of respect.

 

Your friendly neighborhood Spiderman,
~Brendon @ DVD Wave

 

07-02-2006

For those of you not so outdoor-oriented, the ridiculous humidity we're going through right now is the perfect excuse to hole up somewhere cool with movies you love. Fortunately for you, we have a collection of favorites on sale (see our front page for details) including (but not limited to) Vertigo, Spy Game, Snow Falling on Cedars, Hellboy, Terminator 3, Monster, the Bourne Supremacy, Harold & Kumar go to White Castle, Minority Report, and many, many more. Come and see for yourself, won't you?

Now before I let you go, here's some brain food to chew on. As most of our frequent visitors are avid movie lovers (and by extention avid collectors), I'm sure we all have a sort of mental list of favorites that we've been anxiously waiting to be released. Yet for some reason, these films aren't around nor are they scheduled to be released any time soon, even though - to us - it seems like an obvious choice to move the film to DVD.

Enter Intellectual Property (IP) law. While I won't delve into specifics, IP law in North America is a gigantic mess as far as the average consumer is concerned. In many other countries, IP law is a little more lenient in extending licenses to other media - this accounts for why you'll see some stuff released, for example, in the UK, but not here; however, in Canada and the States, IP law is handled a little bit differently. Licenses are limited to what seems like a single medium. In other words, just because a company had rights to distribute a film on VHS doesn't necessarily mean that the rights carry over to a new medium (DVD). Moreover, popular music licensed, for example, to be used in a television show needs to be re-licensed upon DVD release because it constitutes another medium. Fun, no? While this is hardly the most accurate description of what's involved, it's a good general primer.

The point is that the next time you stop and think to yourself, "Why hasn't that movie/TV show been released yet? It seems so obvious!" you might want to consider all the red tape that keeps the goods in the studio vaults. The more cynical of us would say, "everyone's out for their piece of the pie." Remember, however, that this is only one possible factor keeping your favorite stories in the shadows. From the business side of the hobby, there is a lot of competition for your hard-earned dollars, and sometimes the only thing keeping something from being released is simply that you might be the only one who wants to buy it. ;)

Professional Hoop-Jumper,
~Brendon @ DVD Wave

 

06-27-2006

It's been a while, yes? Just a few quick hits today.

- Keep an eye on your mailboxes as our next newsletter will be making its way there soon!

- The lovely Hope is gone for the week (26th-30th) on a much-deserved vacation. Please don't hesitate to defer questions to our regular staff. :)

Remember, the left is for passing,
~Brendon @ DVD Wave

 

05-24-2006

Hail, moviegoers!

I hope everyone had a great Victoria Day weekend (despite the weather). If you missed it, the easiest solution is to throw a BBQ, but that's neither here nor there.

Just a few words on this week's new releases, and then you're free to go.

Kingdom of Heaven - 4-Disc Director's Cut

Now I'll first off admit that this is all hearsay on my part as I never saw the theatrical cut of the film, but Kingdom of Heaven has been re-released to DVD in a four-disc set featuring the director's cut (Ridley Scott - Alien, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down) of the film.

Some of you may remember the negative reviews on the supposed blockbuster epic at the time of its release, but it seems that the director's cut, which adds somewhere around 17-20 minutes of cut scenes is starting to turn naysayers' heads. According to Scott, this is the version of the film that was meant to be seen, but the regular studio drama caused him to cut some of the more important pieces of the film out of its theatrical release.

Drama-aside, however, the truth is that the professionals (people who review movies for a living) are completely on board with this version of the film. The reviews have completely turned around, hailing the director's cut as one of the best films to be released over the past year.

For those who are interested, this 4-disc set might turn you around as well.

Deadwood - Season 2

Finally, finally, finally - Deadwood Season 2 has finally been released! Fans of the show need no justification to come out and pick it up - we've all been waiting for a very long time.

For those of you who have yet to see it, this is another HBO megadrama (my word for shows like Sopranos, Lost, Carinivale, etc.) featuring the lives and times of history's most famous Western heroes & villains, and the real town they lived in (that still exists today).

Unlike other Western films and television series, Deadwood is produced in a mature, gritty fashion with a focus entirely on authenticity and realism. Each character represented in the show actually existed and lived in the frontier mining town of Deadwood (for example, season one featured the famous Wild Bill Hickock) and many of the well-documented events that happened in the town are faithfully re-created in the show. More importantly, the gem of the series is that every character is a shade of grey so you never truly know what to expect - unless you know your history, of course.

For those of you familiar with (and who love) films like Unforgiven and Tombstone, Deadwood is an experience you won't forget and comes highly recommended for anyone interested in how the West really was.

Cheers,

~Brendon @ DVD Wave

05-10-2006

Hello, hello!

First off, congratulations to Jennifer Newberry for winning the $25 Gift Certificate in last month's newsletter contest! If you would like a chance to win, send us your name and e-mail address and we'll sign you up for next month's digital newsletter!

Er, you can do that here.

Actually, while I said, "first off," there really is no second part to this. Move along, nothing to see here. Cheers.

04-19-2006

Hi, everyone. Just a quick update today - just wanted to let everyone know that the upcoming release lists are back in action so you can get a good glimpse of what to expect in the next few weeks. Simply click on our New Releases tab up above to give yourself a gander. On another note, the contact information ought to be all fixed up now. Cheers!

04-05-2006

We all knew it was going to happen, and as of today, April the 5th, 2006, DVD Wave in Richmond Hill has closed its doors for good. We want to thank everyone both past and present for continuing to visit us over the past six and a half years. We were just as, if not more, fond of that little place on Leslie Street, but the time has finally come for us to move on and create new memories. It came a little earlier than expected, so we apologize to anyone who had plans to stop by later this week to say goodbye to the store.

There is, of course, no reason to fret because we are continuing to operate from our location in Markham (located at Woodbine Ave. and Hwy #7 on the northeast corner in the Michael-Angelo's plaza). Everything's still the same, only now we're on the other side of the 404, not more than a few minutes away from the old location. You can expect the same great service, selection, prices, and atmosphere that we've all come to know and love as DVD Wave.

Also, don't forget that we still have a booth at the Pickering Flea Market every weekend if you happen to be out that way. For a little history on our start in the Flea Market, see the post below!

As some of our friends have said, "It's the end of an era," but mark it also as the beginning of another one. Like watching an old favorite, it's instantly familiar, but you're always discovering new things.

~Brendon @ DVD Wave

04-01-2006

Happy April Fool's! (I assure you, there are no tricks hidden below)

Our first newsletter went out earlier this week and we're pleased to note that our members are taking full advantage of the promotion contained within. If you missed it or wish to receive future newsletters (containing all sorts of goodies for you), please send your name, number, and e-mail address to markham@dvdwavecanada.com! While you won't receive the recent newsletter, you'll definitely be able to take advantage of the next issue, so get that information to us. :)

As we begin to wind down our last week at the Richmond Hill location, I'd like to assure those of you who don't know yet that DVD Wave will continue to operate at our Markham location. If you haven't been there yet, now's as good as any time to drop in and visit. We're located right on the north-east corner of Woodbine Avenue and Highway #7 in Markham. We also have a stall open every weekend at the Pickering Flea Market if you're out that-a-way.

Of course, as we're here until the 15th, the more sentimental-types of you are invited to come visit us in Richmond Hill one last time (and I suppose you non-sentimental types can come, too) before the doors are locked and opened, as the raven quothed, nevermore... is 'quothed' a word?

~Brendon @ DVD Wave

03-25-2006

Greetings, programs!

It's official - DVD Wave is moving to its new home in Markham at Woodbine Ave. and Hwy #7. As of April 15th, we will be closing the doors to our Richmond Hill location. We want to thank everyone for visiting and supporting our little corner of the world for the past six years. As we continue to grow, we hope you will continue to visit us in Markham. We'll continue to offer the best prices, the best selection, the best service, and all the familiar friendly faces you've come to know.

As most of you know, DVD Wave began life as one of the first booths to bring movies into the trinket-filled flea market. The booth kept a healthy stock of movies on VHS (DVDs didn't exist yet) and as more and more flea market shoppers discovered our stall, we quickly discovered that there were people out there who loved movies just as much as us. The increasing demand for hard-to-find movies gave us our purpose: to make them not-so-hard-to-find! Soon enough, we had the best movie booth in the market (still do!) and made some great friends in the process.

With the advent of DVD, we recognized the format as a movie collector's dream. No longer did we have to worry about our favorite tapes degrading and losing their vibrance - we, as collectors and not simply casual renters or buyers, finally had a permanent format that we could utilize to preserve our favorite films. Thus, we were there when the first DVDs were released (only five titles). As the titles available on DVD increased along with demand from collectors, so, too, did we need to grow.

Flash back six years ago to a little plaza on Leslie St. in Richmond Hill - DVD was still a relatively new medium, but collectors knew it was the next big thing in the home video market - moreover, so did we. DVD Wave opened its doors as the first and only place to find DVDs in Richmond Hill and the surrounding area. Even places in Toronto were few and far between and none had completely embraced the format as we did.

With help from our friends at the flea market and curious visitors, DVD Wave quickly became what was known as the World's Best-Kept Secret, ranking right up there with the Colonel's secret recipe (maybe that's a stretch). We quickly became the place you'd tell your friends about to find the best selection and the best prices in the world. Simply by word-of-mouth, DVD Wave grew into one of the most popular places to visit. While we continued to grow, our greatest (and still our greatest) asset was you, our loyal customers and friends. As a customer myself, I've felt that DVD Wave has always been like an exclusive club for movie lovers and collectors and each and every one of you has had a hand in its growth. From the titles we carry to the way we interact with you, our friends for years and friends to come have always been the cornerstone of the Wave. To put it simply, we couldn't have done it without you. Thank you.

Now, as we eagerly watch the high-definition era crest the horizon, our little club continues to move forward. As a new era of home video begins, a new era of DVD Wave begins - though the chapter has turned its page, the story is far from over. Your continued loyalty and support keeps us on our feet and we hope you'll continue to journey with us into the future. Everything that you've all known and loved from DVD Wave will be right there waiting for you with welcome arms at our new location in Markham - the selection, the prices, the people you know, and especially that little feeling of home.

A little addition: For those of you who've been looking for a legitimate release of the notorious film, Battle Royale, we now have a 3-disc edition at our Markham location. The film comes in a beautifully-made foil-stamped box and is a region-free legitimate Korean-release import! Worry not - the original Japanese language track is available with English subtitles. If you've been hunting for this title, hunt no further!

For those of you who have not heard about this film, it's a Japanese film based on a book of the same name. The story features a chaotic future where the government creates a new program entitled BR (for Battle Royale) to control delinquent kids. In a country-wide 'lottery', a single Grade 9 class of high school students is selected and sent to an island for 3 days - the only catch is that the only way off the island is for the kids to kill each other until only one is left standing. If this goal is not met, then they all are put to death. You can see why it's never been localized in North America. However, despite its horrific premise, the story is more about how each student deals with the situation and makes amends with their own closet-skeletons before meeting their end - or fighting against it. Check it out!

03-04-2006

If you missed last week's announcement about our U.S. Imports, please scroll down to my last post for more information. There's not much else to say about the stores per se, so I'm going to use this post to talk about one of my favorite things - anime (AH-nee-may)!

With the upcoming releases of two Studio Ghibli films - the classic My Neighbor Totoro and the recent Howl's Moving Castle - I figure now is as good as any time to offer a bit of a primer for those who have had their curiosity piqued by anime and manga yet have been overwhelmed by the massive amount available that has been localized for the English-speaking world.

First off, the terms 'anime' and 'manga' are Japanese for 'animation' and 'comic book' respectively. North Americans (and other English-speaking countries) use these terms to define the style that pervades both media (you know, the whole "big eyes" thing).

Most anime today stems from a work of manga - that is to say, a comic book series begins (and normally doesn't end for a long time) and if it's popular enough, an animation studio will pick up the rights to animate it. This accounts for why most anime series are serial as opposed to episodic. Part of the appeal of anime shows (we'll get to films in a bit) is the over-arching and continuous storyline. With this kind of format (seen in miniseries like Band of Brothers or in a broader sense, like Sopranos or Deadwood), there is an incredible amount of character development and thus, much more emotional connection to the characters.

The other major selling point for most anime fans is that anime does not cater to a specific age group. While Studio Ghibli focuses mostly on family-accessible entertainment, there are several other shows and comics that take a much more mature route - every genre is accounted for, as well as a few Japanese-specific ones (like the 'salaryman' genre). From crime, drama, horror, comedy, teen comedy, science fiction, children's, educational, and even adult shows/movies, there's something for everyone. The reason for this is that anime and especially manga are a staple of the Japanese community. Artists and writers are far more respected and can even reach superstardom doing what they do. Some, like many literary writers on our side of the world, even throw in heavy socio-political commentary (like in Patlabor). Others are just clowning around. It ultimately depends on what you're looking for.

There is, however, a downside to the anime business model on our side of the world - high price. Most DVDs, for example, contain about two-hours worth of episodes (if it's a show), but the price is also determined by whether or not the show or film has been dubbed in English. Before DVD, there were pretty much two seperate video markets - subbed versions (subtitles) and dubbed versions. There are STILL arguments to this day over which is better, but the opinions differ enough that most localization companies will produce a dub. However, since DVD allows for both tracks, you must pay for both tracks as there is rarely ever a choice. That being said, most DVDs pack extras like interviews and artwork, so it's not necessarily a bum deal.

Finally, there's the animation style itself. Most shows and especially films will pay heavy attention to detail rather than action. Part of the reason why characters rarely lip-synch even in Japanese is because it allows for more detail to be placed in the drawing. Smoother animation requires more frames and thus more money, so the accepted practice is beauty first. Of course, most films have a pretty high animation budget, so you'll see much smoother animation and even lip-synching in them (among the best in terms of visuals, Akira still remains a high-budget pinnacle of animation in any country - the writing on the other hand...).

And before I go on, let's address the "big eyes thing" that many non-fans have issues with. As an animation principle, eyes are probably the most important component on any character for expressing emotion (you'd be surprised at how many people don't realize this until they're told). As anime spans all genres, the "big eyes thing" helps with character development and emotional drama. However, the reason why the "big eyes thing" exists is actually because the pioneers of manga (and thus, anime) - most notably Osamu Tezuka of Astro Boy fame - styled their own drawings off of the most prominent American 'toon - Betty Boop. So if you have to blame anyone, blame American animation :)

So with all of that useless information swirling around in your head, you may be asking yourself, "Well, sounds interesting, but where on Earth do I start?" With robots, shapely women, crazy-looking demons, space ships, and all of that stuff, where DOES one start? The trick with anime is that choosing something to start on is no different than choosing a movie to watch. You just have to know what kind of entertainment you're looking for. In fact, most of today's popular television shows like Lost and 24 follow a similar format that anime has followed for a long time.

First off, choose whether or not you want to see a feature film or start on a television series. When it comes to films, note that the choices are few and far between in terms of what gets localized here. They normally feature smoother animation combined with fantastic visuals and color. Most feature films are either science fiction or fantasy as dramas and horros don't tend to do well. You also have to note that anime films are either an extention of a television series or manga or completely stand-alone. For example, the Escaflowne movie is a re-telling of the entire television series condensed into a single film. Stand-alone films would be more like the whimsical drama Millenium Actress.

As for television series, they make up the majority of the anime that gets brought over here. Popular titles inclued InuYasha with its Shintoism roots or Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex which is a re-imagining of the Ghost in the Shell manga. Again, the trick here is to know your genres and see what appeals to you most. Keep in mind that Japanese manga that get turned into shows are normally either shou-nen (for boys) or shou-jo (for girls). Most people can enjoy either genre, but if you're a stickler for robots, steer clear of the high school dramas.

Okay, onto the good stuff (recommendations for the beginning anime enthusiast):

In the science fiction category, try the incredibly stylish Cowboy Bebop series. It is a very unique show about bounty hunters in space, following a ragtag group whose members each of a past. This is one of those rare shows that tries a lot of different genres over its run. At times it's comedy, at others it's serious drama, and there's even a few darker-themed ones in there. If you're looking more for what the big-robot genre is all about (referred to as mecha), you could easily try the new Gundam Seed (not Wing... ugh), a war drama that focuses not only on the machines they fight it with (massive human-shaped robots), but on the intrapersonal relationships between the characters. Great stuff there.

For the more socio-political stuff, I'd recommend the classic Patlabor movies (the first one, and WXIII). They, too, have large mechs running around as police patrols, but the focus is entirely not on the robots at all. It's mostly a crime/science-fiction mish-mash that's enjoyable and quite deep at times. The television show is pretty weak, though - but that's just me talking. While the commentary is pretty light compared to what was in the manga, you can always go with the action-packed Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex series, which I feel is much closer to capturing the feel of the manga than the films ever were.

If swordplay is your thing, you can't go wrong with Samurai Champloo, stylistically similar to Cowboy Bebop in presentation, the show pits two rival samurai against each other with a backdrop of... hip-hop? You'd think it wouldn't work, but trust me, it does.

On the more whimsical side of things, Millenium Actress recounts the life and times of an actress in vivid re-enactments... but are they really re-enactments? Like the darker Perfect Blue mystery, reality slips in and out and part of the fun is figuring out what's happening.

More light-hearted comedy stylings would point to Azumanga Daioh, a series based on a four-panel comic strip that follows a group of girls going through high school (but don't watch in hopes for romance - this is all about friends hanging out). Romantic comedies are best left to titles like Love Hina which is geared for the guys (it spawned a new genre involving single males living with several single females), or His or Her Circumstances (Kare Kano) for the more romantically (and at times neurotic) inclined.

Note that these are all older titles that have been released to their completion (if it was a tv show) so it shouldn't be too hard to find these - or you can buy/order them from us! The best thing to do is to see if anyone you know may have something to start you on - every fan is different. Just remember that simply because it's animated doesn't mean it doesn't have any merit. Anime is a great place to start to see what other countries can do with their entertainment. Trusted names are Geneon, Production I.G. (you saw their work in Kill Bill 1), Gonzo, and Gainax - any of these logos on the box should be a high-quality production.

Just be sure to steer clear of the ones marked, "Absolutely Not for Children" if you don't want to see the more adult-oriented stuff.

Oh, and if you're unsure of something you may be interested in, point your browsers here and see what other people have to say.

~Brendon @ DVD Wave