now on DVD: the 2-Disc definitive anniversary platinum ultimate special collector's restored uncut/recut limited extended edition DVD...with Flair!

These movie studios have got to stop it. How many goddamn versions of Kangaroo Jack can a man watch?!?!

The constant double-dipping and re-hashing of movie releases by film studios simply to gain an extra buck has driven me crazy for years now, with a single bonus feature / DVD-ROM feature / guest commentary / special edition poster being the only difference between buying a $10 year-old edition and a $35 brand new edition. And simply changing the title from "Special Edition" to the "Don't Call Me Shirley! Edition" gives you no excuse to jack up prices either (although I gladly purchased the DCMS! edition, if not only for the mail-in Otto the Autopilot blow-up toy that proudly sits at my desk).

My last nerve was finally hit on this afternoon, when I discovered by chance that Back To The Future has been re-released on DVD, now in single editions, as opposed to the complete trilogy, which I snapped up nearly seven years ago upon its release. Of course, the discs are virtually identical to the set I have, except for two crucial differences: an epic 9-part documentary on the trilogy and its cultural impact...and a music video for "The Power Of Love" by Huey Lewis & The News. Now how can an honest BTTF fan (not to imply that also means I'm a Huey fan...) live without this? But is it worth the extra $45 just for that? No way.

Especially for a release for a sci-fi comedy in the middle of February, this will probably not sell very well. Around Christmas perhaps, but squeezing this release in a down season, in the middle of a recession, simply means a waste of effort and money on the part of the studios, and a waste of money to the consumers. No individual ever needs more than three versions of Apocalypse Now and its various supplemental films, yet they seem to keep churning out faster than the original cut of the film itself.

So studios: stop re-releasing these damn movies over and over, with one bonus nugget of content to force us to drop an extra $50. I still won't forgive you for the Seinfeld roundtable bonus DVD, and now I certainly will not for tarnishing the Back To The Future franchise, simply trying to sell extra tickets to the Universal Studios ride.

Do something useful and release the last two seasons of Fresh Prince Of-Bel Air already, would you?