30 Years of The Joshua Tree

Today marks the 30th anniversary of U2's landmark 1987 album The Joshua Tree.

I can still remember heading over to the my neighborhood Peer Records after school to pick up a cassette copy on its release day. I had been a fan since 1983 when a buddy had played the band's War LP for me one day after junior high. I had bought their breakthrough multi-platinum release The Unforgettable Fire the following year with my allowance money (also on cassette), playing it incessantly on my Walkman to the near point of disintegration.

I hurried home that sunny March afternoon three decades ago today, closed my bedroom door, tore off the cellophane wrapper, placed my purchase in my Emerson turntable/cassette player, pressed PLAY, leaned back on my roomy double bed and embarked on an incredible 50-minute, 11-song musical journey that to this day still ranks as one of my favorites of all time.

There had been no advance singles (radio stations had been allowed to play "With Or Without You" just five days prior to the album's release) so nobody really knew what to expect upon that first listening.

The album opens with the crescendo-building, toe-tapping anthem "Where The Streets Have No Name," glides into the reflective, hand-clap-inducing "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," then segues into the haunting "With Or Without You." Talk about an opening trifecta. Those three songs, in that order, may just be the closest thing to a religious awakening I have ever experienced. I don't think I knew the album had eight more tracks until sometime around May or June.

But more great songs did indeed follow: "Bullet The Blue Sky," "Running To Stand Still," "In God's Country," "One Tree Hill" and "Exit" to name a few. In point of fact, each one of the 11 songs is a great listen, so much so the collection was named Album of the Year at the Grammys the following March.

The Joshua Tree became a cultural phenomenon, selling more than 25 million copies worldwide and elevating the four childhood friends from Ireland to rock-god status. To this day, the album is universally considered not just one of the best of the decade, but of all time.

For me, it will always take me back to that transition year of 1987, when my taste in music would evolve from pop to more thought-provoking alternative fare.

Albums like R.E.M.'s Document, The Alarm's Eye of The Hurricane, The Smiths' Strangeways Here We Come and The Joshua Tree would become my new records of choice as I shed the gumball sweetness of my early adolescence and began walking the formative path to adulthood. Ah, to be 16 again.

Oscar: The Morning After/Remembering Bill Paxton

I know I said Friday that Moonlight may prove to be the spoiler for Best Picture, but somehow I didn't think it would play out quite the way things transpired last night. What a wild ending for an otherwise pedestrian and ultimately predictable Oscar telecast.

Granted, Casey Affleck's Best Actor win was a bit of a surprise (Denzel thought so, too) and some of Jimmy Kimmel's bits evoked a laugh or two, but the show still remains too long and devoid of any real reverence for the culture or legacy of cinema.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the American New Wave and groundbreaking films like The Graduate, Bonnie and Clyde and In The Heat of the Night. There should have been packages put together on all those films. Dustin Hoffman and Katherine Ross should have been presenters. Sidney Poitier should have made an appearance. Sure we got a noble attempt at trotting out Faye and Warren at the end, but we all know how that turned out. I'm all for celebrating cinema's contemporary accomplishments, but let's not forget about its past.

That said, congratulations to both Moonlight and La La Land, two great films that deserve all the accolades and hardware bestowed upon them. It seems we've gotten past all the ill-feelings and contentiousness from last year. Here's to hoping it stays that way.

The other big news on Sunday was the sudden passing of veteran film and television actor Bill Paxton at 61 of complications from surgery.

Paxton's career spanned five decades and included beloved films like The Terminator, Weird Science, Aliens, Near Dark, One False Move, Tombstone, True Lies, Apollo 13 and Titanic, not to mention TV shows like Big Love and Hafields & McCoys.

Seeing Bill Paxton's name on a poster or during the opening credits always promised a little punch to a given film or series. No matter how big or small the role, he effortlessly went about his business and made every character unforgettable. His mischievous smile and dedication to craft will be missed.

Oscar Predictions

Below are my picks in the major categories for Sunday's 89th Annual Academy Awards. Damien Chazelle's La La Land leads the pack with 14 nominations and is pretty much the consensus pick to nab Best Picture, but I've got a feeling Moonlight may just prove to be the spoiler. We shall see. Enjoy the show.

Picture: Moonlight
Director: Damien Chazelle, La La Land
Actor: Denzel Washington, Fences
Actress: Emma Stone, La La Land
Supporting Actor: Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Supporting Actress: Viola Davis, Fences
Original Screenplay: Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By The Sea
Adapted Screenplay: Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

Hasbro Unveils 40th-Anniversary Star Wars Figures

The annual American International Toy Fair was held this past weekend in New York and Hasbro used the occasion to unveil its plans for commemorating the 40th anniversary of Star Wars.

In addition to new board games and lightsabers, the company announced it will release the original 12 action figures from the popular 1977 film in the highly articulated six-inch format, on vintage-style cardbacks, starting in April.

And if that weren't enough, collectors will be able to purchase a retro-style display stand that can hold all 12 figures, just like the one released back in 1978.

The original 12 figures (Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, Obi-Wan, R2, Threepio, Vader, Stormtrooper, Death Squad Commander, Sand People and Jawa) have always been the cornerstone of any self-respecting Star Wars collection. Hasbro re-released most in the smaller three 3/4-inch size on varying vintage cards from 2004 - 2011, but this will be the first time all will be made available on their original Star Wars cardbacks since the late '70s.

Re-living your childhood won't come cheap, though: figures will retail for $19.99 each. That's $240 for the complete set, not to mention tax and the added cost of the display stand. Better start praying for a deep-pocketed Jedi looking for a ride to Alderaan.

Ask & You Shall Receive II: The Hindenburg Now Available On Blu-ray

Well if I knew it was going to be this easy I would have spoken up a long time ago. Yes, another title on my recent Five Films That Still Deserve Some Love in 2017 post has finally arrived on Blu-ray: Robert Wise's The Hindenburg.

With no advance notice, Universal quietly dropped the 1975 disaster flick as a Walmart exclusive on Tuesday. No word yet on any extras, although with a $9.96 list price it's probably just the film and nothing more.

Kind of surprising that Universal released the 42-year-old film themselves, opting not to follow the growing studio trend of licensing deep catalog titles to a specialty label like Kino Lorber.

However it found its way to store shelves, this is great news for a film I've enjoyed since childhood. Looks like I'm headed to a Walmart this weekend. Two down, three to go.

I also wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the passing of veteran televison actor Richard Hatch yesterday at 71. Hatch is best known for playing Apollo on the original Battlestar Galactica series from 1978-'79, another one of my favorites from childhood.

Paired with Dirk Benedict's Starbuck, the duo's weekly galactic scrapes and tussles made for some pretty thrilling Sunday nights at my house. He'll be missed.

Update 2/10/17: It now appears The Hindenburg Blu-ray will go into wider distribution May 2, carrying a $14.98 MSRP (Amazon has it up for pre-order now). I actually picked up a copy yesterday at Walmart. No extras, just the film. Last two on the shelf.

Ask And You Shall Receive: Streets of Fire Coming To Blu-Ray In May

With the ink barely dry on my Five Films That Still Deserve Some Love In 2017 post last Friday, Shout! Factory announced this week that they'll release Walter Hill's 1984 rock-n-roll fable Streets of Fire on Blu-ray May 2.

Released through the label's Shout Select line, the film will feature a new 2k scan and an entire second disc of bonus content.

Way to go, Shout! I can picture that opening "Nowhere Fast" sequence stretched across my widescreen in beautiful high-definition already.

One down, four to go.

Five Films That Still Deserve Some Love In 2017

With the new year comes new hopes and aspirations. For some it's that sought-after job or home. Others yearn for peace and happiness. Many want to believe that a penthouse-residing real estate billionaire will actually make a good president and deliver the country back to the working man.

For me, it's all about keeping my fingers crossed that five long-neglected catalog films will finally find new life in the 21st century. You gotta have your priorities, right?

2017 marks the 20th anniversary of the home-video revolution known as DVD. Yes, two decades ago we finally shed those cumbersome plastic videocassettes and began enjoying movies in our living rooms via crystal-clear, digitally enhanced compact discs. No more rewinding or fast-forwarding. No more fuzzy pictures. Now we could experience our favorite flicks in beautiful widescreen splendor, savor loads of extras and get to know a fun little feature called a commentary track. How on earth did we ever survive the Beta/VHS era?

Unfortunately, there are still several films that have yet to receive that deluxe treatment. Oh sure, some have actually been released on DVD, but you'd never know it with their distorted full-screen or non-anamorphic pictures and crackling sound.

You'd think after 20 years, 10 of those in the high-definition Blu-ray era, that one of the studios or specialty labels (Criterion, Kino Lorber, Twilight Time or Shout! Factory) could have rendered a halfway decent copy of all the lost little gems out there by now. Below you'll find five worthwhile titles that still need some love in 2017.

1. Matewan: I'm still waiting for a "watchable" copy of this 1987 coal-mining classic from indie maverick John Sayles. I seriously have not seen this film since I tried watching the current full-screen Artisan DVD back when Bill Clinton was president. C'mon, Criterion or Twilight Time, get this on the schedule for the film's 30th anniversary. I'm begging you.

2. Streets of Fire: Walter Hill's enjoyable 1984 rock-n-roll fable was released on disc by Universal back in 1998. Unfortunately, it wasn't enhanced for widescreen TVs. There was an anamorphic version struck back in 2007, but it was for the ill-fated HD DVD format that lasted about 10 minutes before being discontinued. This one would be perfect for Kino Lorber of Shout! Factory to finally release on Blu-ray.

3. Iceman: Fred Schepisi's moving 1984 tale of a recently thawed caveman and the Artic scientist who befriends him got a full-screen DVD release from Universal back in 2004. Not a big hit when released, but it does feature nice performances from Timothy Hutton and John Lone and deserves a widescreen edition. Another good one for Kino or Twilight Time.

4. The Hindenburg: A product of the 1970s disaster craze, Robert Wise's 1975 speculative dramatization of the infamous 1937 zeppelin crash received a non-anamorphic DVD release from Universal back in 1998. Sure it's dated and a bit heavy-handed, but it's also entertaining as hell and deserves to be seen in all its widescreen glory. This one's a perfect match for Kino.

5. The Star Wars Trilogy: Sure, the films look and sound great on Blu-ray, but I want the original, unaltered movies I grew up with in that format, not the silly special editions. We know they still exist, Disney, what better time than the franchise's 40th anniversary to finally give fans the versions that actually built the Empire.