BBC 'Office Special' as good as TV comedy gets
By Terry Lawson
Knight Ridder News Service
I want my BBC! But in the face of my cable company's hesitance to add the channel to my selections, I can at least take comfort in a growing trend, also being exploited by PBS, A&E, the History Channel and HBO, to release shows on DVD either simultaneously with broadcast or soon thereafter.
That's why we have "The Office Special" (Warner) only a couple of weeks after it was broadcast in the United States.
Originally shown on the real BBC last Christmas in two parts, this is the capper to the two-season sitcom that can, without reservation, be called one of the best TV shows of any description, ever.
Set three years after the life-changing events of the second season, it has that ever-present documentary film crew, former manager David (Ricky Gervais) in tow, dropping in on the old gang at the paper company to see what's up.
David has pretty much milked dry the reality-series celebritydom he earned and is under the delusion that his former employees actually miss him.
As to what's happened to Gareth (Mackenzie Crook) and the others, I will leave that to you to discover. I'll say only that everything and nothing has changed and that the special lives up to its name.
'Elf' is released
Last year's holiday hit "Elf," in which adult elf Will Ferrell discovers he is the adopted child of Santa and runs away to New York to find his real dad, was released this week in an edition (New Line) loaded with deleted scenes, featurettes and, for the kids, games and activities.
Most of these can be accessed during the movie via the InfiniFilm branching option.
'Riddick' disappoints
"The Chronicles of Riddick" (Universal), this year's sequel to the low-budget sci-fi thriller "Pitch Black," proves once and for all that bigger is not better, at least not when a film's budget is squandered on computer effects as opposed to the story.
It also proves Vin Diesel is not the breakout action hero he was billed to be.
The film comes in three versions: full screen, wide screen and unrated, which adds 15 minutes. The additional violence does not make the film less tedious.
