The Ten

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. In addition to the titles below, Good Luck Chuck and Mr. Woodcock are also now on DVD. So . . . there's that.

Extras: The Complete Series
This full series package is more of a "What to Amazon." Have you missed out on the Golden Globe-winning comedy series Extras? Well, here's your chance to check out the entire series — including the Christmas finale.

The show follows Andy (Ricky Gervais), a struggling actor whose aspirations greatly exceed his resume — and his talent. He and his buddy Maggie (Ashley Jensen) are just barely getting by as extras in big-name films, so the episodes always feature cameos by A-list stars willing to poke fun at Hollywood culture.

This complete series box set doesn't include any new special features that don't appear on the previously released DVDs of Seasons One and Two, but it is — so far — the only place to find the 84-minute series finale.

Another new release if you read more

I think Paul Rudd is cute and funny. I think the concept of making a movie using ten vaguely intersecting comedic skits is potentially great and funny. So why, then, is The Ten just not that funny?

The movie has Paul Rudd playing Jeff, a kind of surreal host on a sparsely furnished "stage," of sorts, introducing each of the film's stories based on the Ten Commandments. Between each segment we get an update on the travails of Jeff's love life (the end of his rocky marriage, followed by his relationship with the bouncy young Liz (Jessica Alba), etc.). The stories themselves are moderately interesting. For the commandment about stealing we do indeed find Winona Ryder playing a young woman who steals a ventriloquist dummy with whom she's fallen in love. The piece featuring Adam Brody (based on the commandment about worshiping false gods) is a pretty funny commentary on the phenomena of American celebrity. Ten stories starts to feel like an awful lot, however, and when the mildly amusing musical finale comes, it arrives in the form of silly relief. For more on my perplexed "eh" reaction to this movie, read more

Some of the eclectic cast of The Ten came out for the NYC premiere last night. It's no secret that we love seeing Winona, and when she's on the arm of personal favorite Paul Rudd it's all the more welcome. A very pregnant Gretchen Mol and Famke Janssen looked great on the red carpet, but some of the movie's other stars like Adam Brody and Jessica Alba missed the screening. Hey, maybe next time. Meanwhile, something always looks a little off with the beautiful Rashida Jones, right? I definitely can't wait to see this little dark comedy, which consists of vignettes about the 10 Commandments, when it comes out August 3. In case you missed the awesome trailer, check it out here.

To see a lot more pictures of the event including Winona Ryder, Gretchen Mol, Paul Rudd, Famke Janssen, David Wain, Rashida Jones and more just read more

News about The Ten first caught my eye when it screened at Sundance back in January. After that I kind of forgot about it... until yesterday when the full trailer hit the web — and the trailer is awesome.

The broad cast seriously runs the gamut, from comedic people I'm a little in love with (Paul Rudd, Rob Corddry, Ken Marino and other members of "The State") to mainstream actors (Adam Brody, Jessica Alba, Winona Ryder). The result is bizarre, but also looks like it could be really funny. Opening August 3, The Ten tells ten stories, each with the theme of one of the Ten Commandments.

To see the trailer, read more

On Tuesday, I professed my love for the portrait studio at the Sundance Film Festival, where the casts of each film pose for a series of casual yet artful shots that are inexplicably fun to look at.

So fun, in fact, that I've put together another gallery of celebs at Sundance. This one feature Parker Posey, Justin Timberlake and Christina Ricca from Black Snake Moan, Chapter 27 star Jared Leto, Ira Glass of This American Life, and the guys from The Ten. (Is it just me or is Paul Rudd totally rocking that beard?) To see the portraits, read more

Winona Ryder, Adam Brody and Paul Rudd were just some of the stars who were on hand for the premiere of director David Wain's The Ten. Jessica Alba is also in the film but evidently she didn't make it to the festival. Love that Adam Brody wouldn't put down his burger for the promo pics! But it's all in good fun, just like the film itself, which is composed of ten interrelated short films, each one based on one of the Ten Commandments. Even before it premiered it was getting buzz for its impressive cast and dark but silly humor. For instance, Winona's story involves her being romantically infatuated with a ventriloquist dummy. Sounds a little odd but we're just psyched she'll be back on the big screen soon.

For more pics including Cheryl Hines, David Wain, Famke Janssen, Gretchen Mol and Justin Theroux just read more

The Sundance Film Festival kicked off on Thursday in Park City, Utah. It's tough to underestimate the significance of Sundance, since the awards handed out and the subsequent buzz have helped to make many now-mainstream films successful, including Clerks, Memento, Murderball, and Hustle and Flow. I did some research to find out what films look the most promising and thought I'd share what look to be this year's stand-out projects. For today's installment, I'll focus on the must-see comedies.

Smiley Face
Starring The Office's John Krasinski (the beloved Jim Halpert), Anna Faris, and Adam Brody, Smiley Face looks like it will become popular with the same crowd that so warmly embraced Napoleon Dynamite. Faris plays an actress whose day goes in an interesting direction when she accidentally consumes her roommate's pot cupcakes.

Three more, so read more