Extra Scoop: J-Lo fans to go gaga over seven deleted scenes

This column is written for The Advertiser by Jordan Riefe, a Los Angeles-based writer who is the West Coast radio correspondent for Variety magazine and a member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association. His film reviews appear in Hotdog magazines, and he is syndicated throughout Europe and Asia.

By Jordan Riefe
Special to The Advertiser

Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Lopez in a scene from "The Wedding Planner." Advertiser library photo

Always the bridesmaid, never the bride, a wedding planner falls in love with a man who happens to be the groom in a wedding she is planning.

Back in the days when she was still Jennifer Lopez, J-Lo had the sleeper hit of the season, "The Wedding Planner." The pop star/actress held both the top-grossing film and the No. 1 single in the same week in January.

If you're a fan of the film, you'll love the seven deleted scenes featuring a new opening, a flashback to when Lopez's character was a little girl with her mom and dad. A later deleted scene shows Lopez delivering a tortured monologue over her mother's grave; J-Lo fans, get out your handkerchiefs.

First-time director Adam Shankman's commentary is obsequious, lauding his cast on how good-looking they are. He is joined by writers Pamela Falk and Michael Ellis, a former couple who may have some issues that needed to be worked out.

Most of the discussion centers around what happened behind the scenes. Also included are a pair of featurettes, a making-of and "The Dancer and the Cowboy," a look at choreographing and shooting the dance sequence. Each looks as though it was ripped from an electronic press kit provided journalists by the studio. Rounding out the disc is the film's theatrical trailer and trailers for other Lopez movies, "U-Turn," "Anaconda" and a non-Lopez pic "My Best Friend's Wedding."

"Snatch" (Columbia/Tristar), 2000
R
103 minutes
Brad Pitt, Benicio Del Toro, Dennis Farina, Jason Statham, Jason Flemyng

Small-time London gangsters risk life and limb over a missing diamond and an amateur boxing bout.

During its run in Great Britain, "Snatch" made headlines with the biggest opening ever for an R-rated movie. "Brad and I were in the same car and I got out to tepid applause from 20,000 girls," said director Guy Richie, recalling the London premiere. "Then Brad Pitt got out of the car and I got completely flattened by a horde of screaming girls that were trying to tear Brad to pieces."

Oddly, the film was dead on arrival on American shores, fizzling at the box office. But that didn't stop Columbia/Tristar from giving "Snatch" the royal treatment with a two-disc special edition. Commentary from Ritchie and producer Matthew Vaughn is a riot as they joke and reminisce about making the film. On disc 2, extras include six deleted scenes and a 25-minute making-of documentary which, like the commentary, contains lots of laughs. Aside from the usual trailer, filmographies, etc., the disc is rounded out with storyboards for "Introduction to Characters," "Avi Goes To London" and "The Big Fight."

Director's Signature Series: The John Singleton Collection (Columbia Tristar)

"Boyz N The Hood," 1991
R
112 minutes
Cuba Gooding Jr., Ice Cube, Morris Chestnut, Laurence Fishburne

Three young men struggle to overcome gang violence and economic hardship in South Central Los Angeles.

Nominated for two Oscars, best director and best screenwriter, 23-year-old John Singleton was an overnight sensation fresh out of film school when "Boyz N The Hood" first hit theaters back in 1991. The DVD, however, is somewhat underwhelming as Singleton provides no commentary at all to a film that has so far been the highlight of his career. What is included are DVD basics like languages (English, Spanish, French), subtitles, trailers and a scene selection menu. Anchored by strong performances from Gooding, Fishburne and Angela Bassett, the film is highly watchable and remains a classic within its idiom.

"Poetic Justice," 1993
R
109 minutes
Janet Jackson, Tupac Shakur, Joe Torry, Regina King

A young poet and a kid from the 'hood find themselves falling in love on a road trip from Los Angeles to Oakland.

Janet Jackson makes her screen debut and acquits herself honorably, but is miscast as a struggling poet from the hood. With her rhinoplasty and celebrity sheen, it is hard to imagine her capable of the depth and yearning behind her poetry (provided by Maya Angelou).

The other poet in the mix is Tupac Shakur, who has a natural presence on film and would likely have become a gifted actor if his life hadn't been taken prematurely in 1996. "Whenever I cast male leads I ask young women who do you think I should put in my movie," Singleton says about casting Shakur. "Who do you think is hot? Who do you think is sexy?"

Most of Singleton's commentary is of a personal nature about how certain scenes and ideas relate to what was happening in his life at the time. Oddly, the disc eschews the widescreen option, providing TV format only. Other DVD extras include languages, subtitles, trailers and scene selections.

Rapper Ice Cube in character as "Fudge," from "Higher Learning," a 1994 Columbia Pictures release. Advertiser library photo

Ethnically diverse college freshmen are confronted with social ills on campus.

In the director's commentary, Singleton talks about how, because of his success, his horizons were expanding, making him comfortable writing nonblack, nonghetto characters. One cringes as he points out shots taken from Louis Malle and Stanley Kubrick as Singleton should never be mentioned in the same breath. He also recalls the discomfort of directing then-girlfriend Tyra Banks in her love scenes with Omar Epps. The disc is rounded out by the usual DVD extras including language options, subtitle options, trailers and filmographies.