Author Archives: Jeff Giles

About Jeff Giles

Jeff Giles is the founder and editor-in-chief of Popdose and Dadnabbit, as well as an entertainment writer whose work can be seen at Rotten Tomatoes, Paste Magazine, and a number of other sites.

DVD Review: “The Secret of Kells”

CD Review: Elizabeth Mitchell, “Sunny Day”

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As a parent of two small children, I value peace — and peaceful things — more than just about anything else. And as a music lover, I place a similar value on songs and albums created the old-fashioned way, with live musicians playing in the same space, with a respect for the roots of the craft they share.

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These are two of the reasons that I was thrilled to see Elizabeth Mitchell’s Sunny Day on the release schedule, and why it’s high on my list of the most wonderful family albums of 2010. Matter of fact, much like the Flannery Brothers’ New Explorers Club, I’d argue that this is an album that you can enjoy even if your kids aren’t around — or if you don’t have any children at all.

I’m a big fan of the New York axis of the kindie movement, and Mitchell is firmly ensconced as a jewel in its crown — something Sunny Day reaffirms with cameos from famous residents like Levon and Amy Helm, Larry Campbell, and Dan Zanes, as well as an obvious respect for standards like “Shoo Lie Loo” and “Mr. Rabbit” and American classics like “Keep on the Sunny Side,” as well as hip, smartly chosen covers like Bill Withers’ “Lovely Day” and Chuck Berry’s “School Days.” Continue reading →

Blu-ray Review: “Beauty and the Beast”

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Tale as old as time, [expletive]!

There’s nothing the folks at Disney love more than reissuing old movies, so it’s fortunate that they’re so good at it. Their ongoing Diamond Series, which already includes some must-have hi-def classics — including Pinocchio and Snow White — adds another spotless jewel to its crown with this remastered, expanded edition of Beauty and the Beast.

Originally released in the fall of 1991, Beauty and the Beast cemented the unlikely comeback Disney started with 1989’s The Little Mermaid; an affirmation that the studio had left behind B-level animation like The Black Cauldron, it grossed over $375 million and was an awards magnet, netting two Oscars, three Golden Globes, and four Grammys. If Mermaid raised the bar for modern animation, Beast set the standard. It was a peak Disney would find it increasingly difficult to reach over the next decade, but that’s another story — we’re here to talk about this three-disc set.

All of Disney’s Diamond Series releases have looked and sounded flawless, and Beauty and the Beast is no exception. As a father, I’m ambivalent about the overall message of most Disney movies, and as a consumer, I find their incessant “limited time only” reissues repugnant; that being said, it’s awfully hard to argue with entertainment this beautifully crafted, in a package this lovingly curated.

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I’ve seen a lot of Blu-ray reissues, and nobody comes close to Disney in terms of content or presentation — they clearly don’t rush their conversions, and they don’t skimp on the added content, right up to the way they bundle DVD copies in with the Blu-rays (a decision so smart I can’t believe it hasn’t been done away with). Continue reading →