It was announced yesterday that the original Star Wars trilogy would be released yet again on DVD. This time as "attractively priced individual two-disc releases". Basically, disc 1 is the dvd you already own and disc 2 is the unmolested trilogy. Apparently, there will be no added bonus content. So, why bother? I have both versions on DVD. And, most likely, I will buy it again, because...well, I'm just not all the bright.
But it got me to thinking about a conversation that I had last weekend. I think it was last weekend. If it wasn't, lets pretend that it was. A movie I think should get a new version, a "special edition" perhaps, is the 2000 John Cusack film High Fidelity.
The DVD, when it was originally released, was amazingly sparse in terms of special features. A few deleted scenes and a couple interviews. By today's standards, you could hardly call them special features. So, here's the special features that I would want on my fantasy DVD...
1) Commentaries. 3 of them actually. The first would be Cusack and director Stephen Frears. The second would be a cast commentary with Cusack again, Jack Black and Todd Luiso. Iben Hjejle would also be welcome here. The third, and I think this would be great, would be Nick Hornsby, who wrote the novel the movie was based on. He'd be able to talk about the differences in the stories and how he felt about them.
2) Deleted Scenes Undeleated. That's right, take the deleted scenes and put them back into the movie. Or, at least make it an option.
3) A trivia track. The Ultimate Edition of The Fifth Element has one. Shaun of the Dead has one. I think they're fun, and a great use of a subtitle track. I wouldn't want it to go all Pop-Up Video or anything, but a little bonus information at the bottom of the screen would be pretty nice.
4) A gag reel. They're just fun.
5) Behind the scenes kind of stuff. Mini documentaries. Making ofs. Something like that.
If High Fidelity ever gets a new version, I'll buy it. But these would just make it a great DVD as opposed to a DVD with a great movie.
