edited by Jonathan Doyle

Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

Upcoming

November 12

Slumdog Millionaire

November 14

A Christmas Tale

B.O.H.I.C.A.

Dostana

The Dukes

Eden

House of the Sleeping Beauties

How About You

Quantum of Solace

We are Wizards

November 21

The Betrayal

November 30

Murder One: The Complete First Season

(Fox Home Entertainment, 2.8.2005)

In 1996, as Murder One's ratings against ER began slipping, ABC ran a promo with a man standing in front of a TV/VCR. A cassette popped out, and ER was written on the tape label in marker. The speaker's message: "Watch Murder One. Tape ER." Murder One was so radical that even its ads broke the mold. Steven Bochco's ambitious conceit -- one trial, tracked day in and day out, from crime to arrest to verdict, over 22 episodes -- stands as a precursor to 24's focused reformatting of the medium and also to the cinematic ambitions of HBO's best shows.

But more than even its structure, or its uniformly superb acting, what's striking about Murder One is its urgency. The impact of the OJ Simpson case on American life reflects heavily in The People vs. Neil Avedon (Jason Gedrick), a spoiled Hollywood bad boy accused of raping and murdering a 15 year-old girl. The show approaches issues of celebrity, race, and entertainment in the justice system with slick cynicism and cold rationality, exemplified by Daniel Benzali's commanding performance as defense attorney Teddy Hoffman. He speaks with a tiger's purr and accepts each new twist without a flinch.

There's a confident swagger to every scene of every episode in the acting, in the dynamic visual mix of faux-Court TV footage, expressive lighting, the camera circling through the courtroom and cutting in for the right close-up, in the media flashbulbs and sordid LA underworld burying the truth under drugs and seedy sex. Murder One stands as a summation of our mid-90s obsession with glamorous depravity, yet, as Benzali observes, it's also touched by Chandler-esque noir flourishes, a drive to separate that grey back into black and white.

The "Making the Case" featurette at the end of disc 6 catches up with most of the principal performers, though Stanely Tucci (the show's impeccably smarmy black heart), Dylan Baker, and Patricia Clakson are notably absent. Also absent is Bochco himself and Aaron Schneider, the DP credited for much of the show's look.

Two episodes feature fairly paltry commentary tracks -- one by director Randy Zisk, the other by Gedrick -- but it is funny listening to Gedrick describe how he stalked a beautiful co-star. Little is said about the show's short run but that might be better left to a commentary on the Anthony LaPaglia cases. Or maybe that ad I remember says it all. -- Joey Tayler

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