So why wait? Let’s talk DVDs…

I’m Not There

An interesting little movie that I haven’t seen yet, but it has 12 different actors playing various forms of Bob Dylan, including Christian Bale, Heath Ledger and Cate Blanchett, who was nominated for Best Support Actress in this role.

The movie claims to be Inspired “by the music and many lives of Bob Dylan”, but there are no characters of that name anywhere to be found. It has a 78% rating on RT, and 7.5 on IMDB.

P.S. I Love You

A chick flick to the max from what I hear, but it has Hillary Swank who can be a great actress at times. Lisa Kudrow also co-stars. In the film, Swank is married happily to a guy who comes down with an illness and dies. But somehow, it was like he knew it was coming, and he had created this sort of “scavanger hunt” of things she needs to do that she wouldn’t have before.

If the wife rents it, I’ll likely sit down and watch it with her…but this was just a tip to all you ladies out there. Chick flick time!

Twister (Blu-Ray)

This seems like it would be fun to see on Blu-Ray. I loved Twister, for whatever reason, and I make no apologies for it. Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton and Cary Elwes make chasing tornadoes around look like a lot of fun.

My close friends would tell you that I’m a weather nut, and if I could have a vacation chasing storms around during the summer in the midwest, I’d take it.

The 4400 – Complete Fourth Season

I believe this was the last season of this sci-fi series on USA, and there were a ton of fans devastated over it being canceled right as it was getting back on track.

I may want to check this whole thing out someday, I know Jason was a big fan.

Blu-Ray Releases

• The Air I Breathe (Image)
• The Devil’s Own (Sony)
• First Sunday (Sony)
• Helvetica (Plexifilm)
• Helvetica (Limited Edition) (Plexifilm)
• Ozzfest: 10th Anniversary (Warner Music Group)
• P.S. I Love You (Warner)
• Saawariya (Sony)
• Shall We Dance? (Walt Disney)
• Twister (Warner)

The Dark Knight

The one everyone wants to know about the most is, of course, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, the Batman Begins sequel in which Ledger portrays The Joker. Since the filming for this movie actually wrapped quite some time ago, Ledger’s part in the film was pretty much completely finished. He even mentioned recently in an interview that he had already done the voice over work and other things that are sometimes required in post-production.

Of course, just because his role in the film was completed doesn’t mean the studio doesn’t have choices to make. Almost the entire marketing campaign of the film centered on Ledger’s Joker character and the tagline “Why So Serious?” (The Dark Knight Teaser Poster Is Here!). The tagline somehow seems inappropriate now as every time someone reads it they’re thinking of Ledger’s death and not the film. This leaves the studio scrambling to make some tough decisions on how to proceed with the marketing for a film that was set to be one of the summer’s biggest hits.

In an almost unprecedented move the studio replaced the Official Website for a time with a tribute to Ledger (which you can still view by going here). In fact, if you click on anything on the official page right now it takes you to the memorial page.

I’m Not There

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Perhaps the project most effected by Heath Ledger’s unexpected death is director Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. Ledger was actually on a break from filming the $30 million picture when he died. The film had wrapped the London leg of its shoot last Saturday and blue-screen work was due to start next week in Vancouver, Canada, where shooting was to continue till March.

The Faustian story of the film centers on the boisterous Dr. Parnassus (played by Christopher Plummer), a 1,000-years-old performer who offers audience members a chance to enter fantastical worlds of imagination (via a magical mirror) in a race with the devil for the life of his daughter. If audience members make a righteous choice, their soul is awarded to Parnassus. If they make a heinous one, their soul belongs to the devil. Ledger was playing a mysterious outsider who embarks on his own quest through parallel worlds to save the girl.

As the biggest name in the ensemble cast, Ledger’s involvement was considered the key component that secured the $30 million financing for the picture in the first place. With half a film to shoot and their star player now dead, the producers fired everyone who was still working on the film on Wednesday. It is not known at this time if it would be possible to finish the film without Ledger via some sort of digital process or if too much of the film remains to be shot. It is unlikely the part would be recast and reshot as the expense would be prohibitive.

Terry Gilliam’s Bad Luck

Unfortunately for Terry Gilliam (Twelve Monkeys, The Brothers Grimm), if this film is shut down for good it would mark the second time such a thing has happened to the director. The filmmaker’s 2000 feature, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote with Johnny Depp, was stopped within a week of filming due to the dire health of actor Jean Rochefort.

The Queen’s Gambit

Ledger’s death also came just as he was gearing up to make his feature film directing debut. Ledger was working with British writer/producer Allan Scott to adapt the Walter Tevis novel The Queen’s Gambit. The leading role of a young, female chess prodigy was reportedly offered to Oscar nominee Ellen Page. Ledger, himself a highly rated chess player who was known to frequently play chess in Washington Square Park when in New York City, was to play a supporting role.

Last Photos of Heath Ledger

As far as we can tell, the photos below are the last known photos to be taken of Heath Ledger before his death. It is reported that they were taken on the set of The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.