Mystery Science Theater 3000: 20th Anniversary Edition
Shout
Available Now

Start your Christmas shopping early for the snarky smartass on your list with this limited-edition Mystery Science Theater 3000 box set that collects four of the series' most terrifically bad movies from a 20-year run that began on a Minneapolis public-access channel. First Spaceship On Venus, Laserblast, Werewolf and Future War are given the MST3K overdub treatment with hosts Joel Hodgson, Mike Nelson and their robot lackeys wisecracking at poor production values, improbable plot twists and the casting of Martin Sheen's less-talented brother, Joe Estevez, in Werewolf.

This set excels over other MST3K discs in print with its inclusion of bonus features, including a reunion panel from this summer's Comic-Con and an 80-minute documentary that delves into the show's history. If that doesn't seal the deal, also included are four 1950s-inspired reproductions of lobby cards and a plastic figurine of Crow T. Robot.

Rear Window; Psycho; Vertigo; Special Editions
Universal
Available Now

If you don't own these movies by now - and any self-respecting cinephile should - these new two-disc digitally remastered editions of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest films provide you with no more excuses.

Never mind that its most suspenseful scene has long since been ruined, Psycho (1960) remains a sleek thriller accented with plenty of black humour.

Jimmy Stewart is played for a fool by Kim Novak in Vertigo (1958), a story of mistaken identity and murder, and the movie most critics pick as their all-time favourite by the master.

Rear Window (1954) is the more compact and suspenseful of the three, and the best pick of this collection. It is the all-time great voyeur movie; Jimmy Stewart spends his time nursing a broken leg by snooping on his neighbours. He and the audience get involved in silent tales of young newlyweds, struggling songwriters and suspected murder, and it's still effective nearly 60 years later.

The full-length documentaries included on every disc are a treat, revealing the director's incredible attention to detail in every department, from sound, art direction and set design - the full-scale apartment building built for Rear Window is truly amazing. Each disc is capped off with trailers, an episode of the Alfred Hitchcock Presents TV series, excerpts from Francois Truffaut's legendary interview and much more.

Upcoming Releases
November 18 - Tropic Thunder; Wall-E; The Zombie Diaries; Bones: Season 3; McHale's Navy: Season 4.

Amanda Stefaniuk is a freelance writer who literally grew up in a video store.