It was announced by former Disney CEO Michael Eisner that Disney’s Home on the Range would be the companies last hand-drawn animated feature film due to the rise of CGI animated movies.  It was inevitable the end was coming with such flops as Brother Bear and Treasure Planet and such CGI blockbusters as Disney / Pixar’s Finding Nemo and Monsters Inc. along with other hits as Dreamworks Shrek.  Thankfully a very dedicated and true Disney spirit that stood for quality (John Lasseter) was promoted to chief creative officer of both Pixar and Walt Disney Animated Studios.  Lasseter pushes for great stories told with heart and standards Disney has been held up to for so many years allowing for a return toward traditional 2D animation.  Finally, after many revisions, Disney has gallantly restored its rightful place as a king in animation.

Featurette: The Return to the Animated Musical (Bonus)

From directors John Musker and Ron Clements (Aladdin, Little Mermaid and Hercules), The Princess and the Frog tells the story of a lovely teenage girl Tiana (ANIKA NONI ROSE) living in New Orleans of the early 1920’s with a dream of someday owning her very own restaurant, Tiana’s Place.  After the passing of her father, yes another Disney story with only one parent, Tiana’s dream seems unreachable without having enough money to fix up an old falling apart building.  Tiana is still determined and hopes that her obnoxiously spoiled diva yet hysterically funny of a best friend Charlotte le Bouff (JENNIFER CODY) will marry Prince Naveen of Maldonia (BRUCE CAMPOS) to help pay to fix up the old hole in the wall.

The prince is however in town to strike a deal with a shady voodoo doctor, our villain of the story, voiced by KEITH DAVID.  When the deal goes wrong, the prince is turned into a frog.  The prince attempts to become human again by a kiss on the lips with Tiana due to some confusion with a promise to her that he will pay for her restaurant.  That kiss takes an unexpected turn causing Tiana to turn into a frog herself where the insane adventures begin on their quest to become human again.

The two frog’s wild and sometimes ludicrous journey is filled with many outrageous obstacles to get where they are headed.  Okay, this is something seen in countless movies time and time again, but it doesn’t matter how many movies this takes place in as long as the journey justifies the outcome and we found the characters progressing in the story.  Fortunately, The Princess and the Frog manages to pull it off.   Their adventure will take them through the mystical bayous of Louisiana to the banks of the Mississippi and back to the French Quarter for Mardi Gras with a little bit of ageless humor and buoyantly cheerful music.  Along their journey the Prince and Tiana learn about one another as they get help by a 197-year-old priestess, a hopeless romantic Cajun firefly cleverly named Ray, and a trumpet-playing alligator to help their coming of age story teaching them what they want isn’t what they need.

This is a very charming tale with fantastic music that’s actually a nice change from the typical Disney cheesy sing-a-longs from the past.  Instead, the audience is treated to high-energy original themed music very fitting to the time period and setting of the film.  It’s very jazzy and upbeat with a sense of soul and gospel; never too much of one way or another allowing the music to appeal to a broader audience.  There are the traditional and needed slower songs to share emotion from Tiana’s character and dark somewhat scary music, yet strangely more comically big band jazz music to accompany the villains twisted moments.

The entire film is absolutely gorgeous, just magnificent; truly whimsical when appropriate and lush and colorful at other times.  The opening sequence has the great multipane camera shots allowing for multiple background layers and shots zooming in and through trees.  The rays of sun sparkle to an almost gold shine lighting up the trees in each shot.  Music quickly begins with a musical score by Randy Newman giving it a warm feel to the movie similar to Toy Story or Monsters Inc. which is fine except I have watched too many satires making fun of how he sings ruining it for me a little.  Nonetheless, the majority of the time his music is faintly in the background and doesn’t interfere.

The Princess and the Frog brings a new level to an animated Disney film.  It follows more along the lines of Pixar with story and heart and has the charm of the Disney films of the 50’s and early 90’s.  It’s finally a film that has an organic feel to it making everything seem natural and not contemporary like most new CGI films of the 2000’s.  The film still follows a classic formula set by Disney.  Toward the beginning is a Shag styling scene in much remembrance of scenes like “Just Want to be King” in The Lion King or the simplistic less realistic stylized song numbers like “You Got A Friend In Me” in Aladdin or “Be Our Guest” in Beauty and the Beast.  There always seem to be one or two of these abstract scenes in almost every one of Disney new animated musicals.  This keeps the audience realizing you are watching a dream or an outlandish production number that wouldn’t be realistic in the setting or tone of the rest of the film.

You can argue the Americanization of Disney stories and other factors that have been argued about Disney films for the past 50 to 60 decades, but the point is that this movie has everything the classics have had that lead them to such success.  It will surly bring joy to children in theaters across the nation.  It’s a throwback to old fairytales the parents grew up with giving plenty enjoyment and new memories for families.  I anticipate this to be highly successful not just now, but over the course of the future too.  Princess Tiana is now in the Disney Princess line up and I doubt she’s going anywhere.

Throughout our lives we hope to find that one person. Not the one we want to spend our lives with, so to speak, but that one friend who knows us best. What your thoughts are, what you are going to do, how to set you up to succeed, or back you up when all hell breaks loose. Or do you? This is the story of “Old Dogs” with John Travolta (Bolt, Hairspray) and Robin Williams (Night at the Museum, Man of the Year) under the direction of Walt Becker (Wild Hogs, Van Wilder) and we are just about to find out one such friendship in this family comedy.

Along with these two powerhouse names in Travolta and Williams are two very lovable actors in Conner Rayburn (Invention of Lying, According to Jim) and introducing Travolta’s daughter Ella Bleu Travolta. Rounding out the cast in this romp about those whom we should trust is Seth Green (Family Guy, Robot Chicken) as the exec, who’s obsessed with Japanese culture, Kelly Preston (Sky High, Cat in the Hat) as the fling who shows up with a surprise, Lori Loughlin (90210, Full House) as the interpreter, and a throng of cameos including Ann-Margaret, Matt Dillon, Rita Wilson and the late Bernie Mac. Creating the mayhem of life director Becker had the written talents of David Diamond and David Weissman (Minutemen, Evolution).

This is about two men, Charlie and Dan (Travolta, Williams) who are owners of a sports marketing firm. Two friends who have been together since high school, gone to college, started a business together and are working on their biggest venture to date. All the while Charlie is the impulsive one who is all adventure, chasing young women, party guy and Dan is the down to earth, by the numbers, failed marriage and not too good with children guy. This friendship is tested when 8 years after Dan’s divorce, a weekend fling, Vicki (Preston) shows up with a surprise. He’s a dad and to add to that, twins, Zach and Emily (Rayburn, Ella Bleu). At this point we find out that Vicki has to go to jail for her political mischief and after Dan injures the, would be, sitter Aunt Jenna (Wilson). Dan steps up to get to know his kids and watch them during Vicki’s incarceration, not taking into account he is working on a multi-million dollar deal with a Japanese corporation. This is where the fun ensues when you take two kids who are at an age where everything is about fun and put them with two guys who are not “kid” friendly.

The story is a good, humorous look at two men who are polar opposites when it comes to their personal lives but in business work really well together. Travolta playing the philanderer comes of like a cross of his previous characters Danny Zuko from Grease and Woody Stevens from Wild Hogs. Williams is fun to watch purely for the fact he plays the ‘straight’ man in this comedy, almost like a fish out of water at times. The true stars of this film are Rayburn and Ella Bleu. It is true that it’s tough to do any productions with kids because they can steal a show. These two work very well with one another and it shows on the screen. Like two veteran actors doing there umpteenth film. Rayburn truly is a little veteran having done several years on TV and now making the push to the big screen. Ella Bleu is wonderful to watch as she grows into the character as the film progresses. It will be a treat to see these two grow professionally. I wish them the best. The supporting cast of this film does well to play there parts and keep the film moving as we see these four come together as a family. And a family affair it was with Preston playing Vicki.

Added to this Blu-ray combo are the DVD and Digital Copy and features that show some fun and excitement of working with such a dynamic cast. An enjoyable look at Travolta and Williams is thru an interview by their young co-stars, Rayburn with Williams and Ella Bleu with her dad. My favorite part of the interview is Rayburn asking Williams to pay for his college tuition and Williams agreeing as long as Rayburn will employ him. Of course no Williams’s comedy can be complete without bloopers. This segment truly shows that when you’re on set with the likes of Travolta and then throw in Williams there is bound to be numerous takes because you never know what’s going to happen. There are also three deleted scenes that were good choices to cut even though the “Body Check” scene is admirable in context. Two music videos are also include, one with Bryan Adams playing every part of the band for the title song “You’ve Been a Friend to Me” and the fun redo of the Bobby Brown song “Every Little Step” by Ella Bleu and Travolta. This video is a fun video that all parents would love to do with their children. Don’t forget it shows what the one thing most of my generation know, Travolta can still sing.

(Click to Watch the Trailer!)

When I look back at the overall aspect of the film it shows the true bond of a friendship. Yes it has some extreme circumstances of schadenfreude* but when you look past that you see there will always be tough times. When you have that one friend, that confidant, it doesn’t matter what happens because they will always be there for you. You’ll have your fights and times where you’re “done” but they’ll be miniscule compared to nights of exploits or memories of first class bonding. “Old Dogs” is an entertaining family comedy of camaraderie.

*This is for those “Avenue Q” fans out there who will appreciate the humor. If you don’t get it, look it up and have a good laugh.    ;)

Miller’s masterpiece was filmed for the BBC in 1966 and stars acting legends Peter Sellers, John Gielgud, Michael Redgrave, Peter Cook and Leo McKern, with dreamlike music written and performed by Ravi Shankar. In this Alice, an enigmatic young girl wanders through a Victorian landscape populated by the most bizarre and astonishing characters. Alice gently questions each one in turn, subtly mocking their middle-class English values. Packed with extras from the BBC vault, this Alice in Wonderland is a feast for the imagination!

Writer/producer/director Jonathon Miller takes us on a mind-numbing odyssey wherein our protagonist, Alice (played by Anne-Marie Mallik, who went on to do nothing else in the world of film or TV), falls asleep one lazy afternoon and soon finds herself being led through a strange land by the White Rabbit character (Wilfrid Brambell). It’s a world where everyone talks in conundrums. Alice frequently talks to herself (literally: she has conversations with her own inner monologue), with dialogue that even the most pretentious of intoxicated philosophers would scratch their heads over in disbelief.

Soon, Alice meets the Mad Hatter (played here by the great Peter Cook, whose tendency to act peculiarly makes his Hatter seem like the winner of an “Upper-Class Twit Of The Year” from that Monty Python’s Flying Circus sketch) and his companions (Wilfrid Lawson and Michael Gough). Sir John Gielgud has a fetching bit as the Mock Turtle, while Peter Sellers makes his own Inspector Clouseau seem normal as a clucking King of Hearts. Since it was hard enough to get British actors to appear on the telly to begin with, don’t expect to see anyone in “animal” make-up: the entire cast of Wonderland Weirdoes are seen wearing traditional attire.

BBC Home Video has done an exemplary job of bringing The Wednesday Play’s Alice In Wonderland to DVD, with a transfer that stunningly captures Miller’s beautiful dreamlike photography. Choosing to shoot this on one with 35mm film as opposed to the BBC’s 16mm standards was a wise choice on Miller’s part: and the end-result is just as memorable as is the tele-film itself. A mono English track accompanies the print, which boasts a tiny audio discrepancy here and there, but for the most part, is fantastic. SDH subtitles are available, should anyone want to make sure they are actually hearing what they think they’re hearing.

You wouldn’t expect any extras on a catalogue title like this (particularly for a TV show as old as this), but BBC Home Video has opted to give its viewers a treat here. The first three items were available on a previous release of the title, and begin with an audio commentary with Jonathan Miller gives the filmmaker a chance to talk about the making of this project. Another version of Alice In Wonderland — this time from 1903 — shows us a severely-damaged silent short, which is narrated by historian Simon Brown. A gallery of still photos taken by Terence Spencer

The latter special features were included on a previous release of the title, but two new bonus ditties have been thrown in by the BBC for good measure. First off, there’s a vintage behind-the-scenes look at Ravi Shankar in the studio recording the soundtrack. Lastly, we get another episode from The Wednesday Play entitled Alice, wherein George Baker portrays as Lewis Carroll (or Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, if you prefer) and Deborah Watling as the real-life Alice that allegedly inspired him to write his famous novel.

A heartwarming and lushly animated retelling of a beloved fairytale, Ponyo comes to Blu-ray™ Hi-Def and DVD on March 2, 2010 from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. Presented by legendary filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki and featuring the exquisitely hand-drawn animation that has won Miyazaki worldwide acclaim, Ponyo transports audiences into an enchanting dreamscape where anything seems possible. Inspired by the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale “The Little Mermaid” also  incorporates a very contemporary concern for nature. Hayao Miyazaki’s Ponyo is packed with never-before-seen bonus features. The Ponyo Blu-ray and DVD brings audiences a breathtaking introduction to the world of global animation for children and adults, making it a perfect holiday gift for the whole family. 

Miyazaki creates a bold, imaginative vision of a magical world from a child’s point of view. The first film from Miyazaki to be made available on Blu-ray, Ponyo brims with color and energy on a stunning journey into a child’s inner life.  With a story that families can enjoy together, the film’s star-studded voice cast includes Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth, Babel), Matt Damon (The Bourne Ultimatum), Tina Fey (“30 Rock”), Liam Neeson (The Chronicles of Narnia), Cloris Leachman (Castle in the Sky), Betty White (“The Golden Girls”), comedian Lily Tomlin and introduces Noah Lindsey Cyrus (as Ponyo) and Frankie Jonas (as Sosuke).

Creator of acclaimed and beloved animated classics including Academy Award®-winner Spirited Away (2002 winner for Best Animated Feature) and Howl’s Moving Castle, Miyazaki is founder of the legendary Japanese animation studio, Studio Ghibli. John Lasseter, chief creative officer of Pixar Animation Studios, is a two-time Academy Award winner (1998 winner for Best Short Film, Animated for Tin Toy and 1995 Special Achievement Award for Toy Story) and a recognized pioneer in the field of animation. He is credited with executive producing as well as directing the English language voice cast on the film.  Joining Lasseter as executive producers of the English-language version are Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall.

Walking on the beach near his home, a five-year old boy named Sosuke (voiced by Frankie Jonas) finds a beautiful goldfish trapped in a bottle. He releases the tiny creature and, sure that she is no ordinary fish, names his new friend Ponyo (Noah Lindsey Cyrus). As Ponyo and Sosuke grow closer, she reveals to him that she is the daughter of a powerful wizard (Liam Neeson) and a sea goddess (Cate Blanchett), and magically transforms herself into a real human girl. But by crossing from her watery world onto land, Ponyo has created a dangerous imbalance in nature. As the moon begins to draw closer to the earth, sea levels rise and a giant tsunami threatens to destroy Sosuke’s home. Ponyo’s father marshals all his might to find his missing daughter, as the two children embark on an adventure of a lifetime to try and save the world.
 
Bonus Features
The World of Ghibli- Allows fans to immerse themselves in the amazing worlds from each film created by legendary filmmaker, Hayao Miyazaki in this multi-layered interactive experience. 

Lands to explore include: 
• PONYO’S Land
• KIKI’S Land
• CASTLE’S Land
• TOTORO’S Land
 
Behind the Studio- Unprecedented access to all the background, inspiration and process behind he making of Ponyo and the inner workings of Studio Ghibli through a series of documentaries. They include all new interviews with Hayao Miyazaki, and composer Joe Hisaishi.

Also included in this feature are: 
• Creating Ponyo
• Ponyo & Fujimoto
• The Nursery
• Behind the Microphone: The Voice of Ponyo
• Producers Perspective: Telling the Story
• Scoring Miyazaki
• The Scenery in Ghibli
• Original Japanese Trailer

I’d like to preface the review you are about to read is just an opinion and that alone. Any and all instances of real life happenings are added for amusement. “So There”

It is always pleasurable to poke a little fun back at the production you are about to review. But, I must add a little background. A good friend once told me a great anecdote about one’s memory, my memory in particular, and thought it would be appropriate since this movie deals with one’s memory quite often. She said, “Your mind is like an iceberg and all your memories are penguins on that iceberg. When you get a new memory, an old penguin jumps off and the new one hops on. You though, don’t have an iceberg, you have a glacier and there are vast amounts of penguins piled on there. I don’t think they jump off but just get buried and pop out every now and then to say hi.” This film does just that by piling on so much information and situations that it’s like one of those penguins popping out just to fill you in.

Mark Whitacre is about to get dealt a hand in life that is partially brought on with images of his own grandeur and fueled by people around him not giving him the necessary help he needed to be better just in his own life. Steven Soderbergh (Oceans 11-13, Traffic) directs a good believable cast of Matt Damon (Oceans 11-13, The Good Shepherd) as Mark Whitacre, a corporate officer turned whistleblower for the FBI who acts like a secret agent, Scott Bakula (Men of a Certain Age, Quantum Leap) as Brain Shepard, the FBI agent handling the case,  Joel McHale (Community) as Ben Herndon, Brain’s FBI partner, based on Scott Z. Burns (The Bourne Ultimatum) screenplay of Kurt Eichenwald’s book “The Informant!” based on a true story.

Mark Whitacre (Damon) is a PhD biochemist who became the highest level executive to ever turn whistleblower on a Fortune 500 company, ADM. ADM (Archer Daniels Midland) was in the agri-business where Whitacre was in charge of lysine production. It was here that Whitacre learned of how the top execs were working with foreign companies to price-fix the sale of lysine to reap in the millions of dollars of profit. At the same time though, Mark has a different agenda and is taking kickbacks from his own company as a “safety net”. What really intrigued me about this movie is how brilliant this man, Whitacre, really is. Granted it took 17 minutes just to let us know what the story was about, it makes more sense in the end and will also make the “penguins” story understandable. Throughout the film we hear Whitacre’s thoughts as monologues. It goes to show how he knew every little detail of what was happening around him, yet he couldn’t tell what consequences could happen either. This leads to the dilemma of the FBI as they were sending in a civilian with no formal training to be undercover for an undisclosed amount of time. Eventually everything comes out as Whitacre is diagnosed with bipolar disorder and the pressure of the investigation took its toll through the stories he kept spinning and not being able to back up or even keep straight.

Soderbergh’s choice to use the “head” talk of Whitacre to help drive the story was fun and inquisitive at times. To hear little anecdotes about fellow workers or products that his company is involved with to tying thoughts together and find connections between those thoughts and how they relate to a situation he is in. Damon delves deep to bring compassion to Whitacre, though you see the joy he takes to play a character in the 90’s and during the height of some of the films of the time like “The Firm”. Scott Bakula and Josh McHale playing the FBI agents that are Whitacre’s handlers do a good job of being the face of the government but yet still worried about what they are doing to this man. One role in particular that I feel was not touched on more yet seemed to have a big part of the story was played very well by Melanie Lynskey (Heavenly Creatures, Ever After) and is of Whitaker’s wife, Ginger.  Talk about a woman who has a story of her own.

Included on “The Informant!” Blu ray is feature commentary with Steven Soderbergh and Scott Z. Burns as well as 4 deleted scenes. Now we all know that some scenes are cut from the final film. Some of these would have been nice to have seen since they were part of the trailer initially. In the movie when we first see Whitacre going to work ‘wired’ he narrates everything he is doing. It is quite a funny scene. It would have been fun to see this deleted scene that was in the trailer of FBI Agents Brian and Ben tell him he does not have to narrate everything. My favorite deleted scene is something that actually happened during the investigation where Whitacre in order to have some leverage, would were the ‘wired’ suits to have conversations with his own FBI handlers. It’s a fun scene and again would have added to the film in a good way.

“The Informant!” is an eclectic ride thru the investigation of a lifetime. It goes out to show that even though we have our own agendas in life we can always do the good deed. Just remember each event in your life has a consequence that may be good or bad. Either way we learn and grow. Now I can have that penguin go hide again.

When you hear “everybody’s fine”, you start to think to yourself, what’s being held back from me. Robert De Niro (Stardust, Meet the Fockers) is about to find out, playing Frank Goode. Directed and written by Kirk Jones (Nanny McPhee) from the original screenplay and film by Giuseppe Tornatore, is a movie about truly seeing what makes one’s family.

De Niro plays Frank, who coated power and telephone lines to support his family. After the death of his wife he continues on even while dealing with his health issue of fibrosis of the lungs. After his kids have all called to cancel what would be their summer gathering, Frank decides to go surprise his kids and see each of them. This sets up how Frank sees not just his kids but how he has lived his life, that he does not know everything within his own family. His kids, Amy played by Kate Beckinsale (Whiteout, Van Helsing), Robert played by Sam Rockwell (Frost/Nixon, The Hitchhiker’s Guide), Rosie played by Drew Barrymore (50 First Dates, Charlie’s Angels) and the nowhere to be found David who is briefly played by Austin Lysy (Law & Order:SVU).

This movie takes it adaptation from Giuseppe Tornatore’s Italian film “Stanno Tutti Bene” where a widower goes out to surprise his kids and spend time with them only to find that their lives are not what he’s been told. In Kirk’s updated American version, we have Frank (De Niro) doing just that after all of his kids have canceled their summer gathering. What ensues is Frank wondering what’s true and what has been hidden from him all these years from his recently departed wife. Traveling via trains and busses Frank goes to each kid one by one trying to surprise them. What we find is through Franks travels, Amy (Beckinsale) is separated living alone with her son and seeing someone from her work, Robert (Rockwell) is not a conductor of an orchestra but just a percussionist, Rosie (Barrymore) has a child and is bi-sexual, and then David (Lysy) who is missing through most of the film and is the secret the kids have been hiding from their dad.

Kirk’s vision for the film by interlacing conversations Frank has on the road between the family visits shows us how we take pride in our family even though we may not know everything that is happening in their own lives. I also enjoy how Frank still sees his kids as “kids”. Something we all know our own parents do. The transitions of seeing the telephone lines Frank has helped create, along with hearing the conversations between people, more poignantly between his kids who are trying to find David, before dad finds out, help reiterate that even though we may live our lives we still communicate with each other because family is forever.  We all need to take the bad with the good; we should never hide ourselves especially from those who should know us best.

De Niro does some good work playing a down to earth well lived man who loves his family. Beckinsale and Barrymore playing sisters doing everything they can to find their brother and yet still make dad happy, comes off genuine. Rockwell shows his character’s disappointment in himself, kind of forced but still very well. The overall dynamic of the family at the end shows just how much these characters do care about each other, even through tough times. This is also brought out in the ending song written by Sir Paul McCartney, “(I Want to) Come Home”. The special features at the end include a making of the song and how Paul came up with tying together the music and the film of what family is. Family is important, no matter if it is the family you are born into or the family you choose. It is the one constant in your life that will always be there for you.

Chaos reigns in Los Angeles after a mysterious event causes everyone in the world to lose consciousness at exactly the same moment. Was it an act of nature? Something man-made gone wrong, or something even more sinister? Whatever it was, every person on Earth blacks out for two minutes and seventeen seconds and sees a series of events from their own future, taking place on April 29, 2010 at 10:00 p.m., Pacific Time. For some the future will be joyous and hopeful; for others, shockingly unexpected; and for a few, it simply doesn’t seem to exist.

Knowing their fate will alter each person’s life in one way or another and poses the questions: Can destiny be changed? And by changing just one destiny, what effect would that have on those of others?  Viewers will be able to catch up on the first ten episodes of ABC’s thrilling new drama “FlashForward” before it resumes airing in March 2010.

The series premiered on September 24th 2009, and after ten episodes, went on hiatus. With episode eleven scheduled for broadcast on March 18th, ABC released the first ten episodes in a two-disc set on February 23rd. This would appear to be a marketing ploy to allow people who have possibly missed some of the shows to get caught up, but more importantly to draw attention to a series that has been off the air since November. One can certainly wonder how effective this will be since the episodes are available online, and people who are interested in owning the series would wait for a full season release.

“FlashForward” stars Joseph Fiennes as Mark Benford, John Cho as Demetri Noh, Jack Davenport as Lloyd Simcoe, Zachary Knighton as Bryce Varley, Peyton List as Nicole Kirby, Dominic Monaghan as Simon, Brían F. O’Byrne as Aaron Stark, Courtney B. Vance as Stanford Wedeck, Sonya Walger as Olivia Benford and Christine Woods as Janis Hawk.

Flash Forward has the potential to follow in the successful footsteps of the phenomenon that is Lost. The writing needs to get back on track, allow the characters to be more consistent in their behavior, and some of the performances need to get better. There is certainly enough pure energy and mystery in the first few episodes of the series to make them worth owning, but waiting for the entire first season to be available would seem to be a better choice in these tough economic times.

Check-Out A Clip from the DVD!

 
The 2-disc box set includes all 10 episodes from the first half of the season, and the following bonus material:

CREATING A CATASTROPHE: THE EFFECTS OF A GLOBAL BLACKOUT
 Go behind-the-scenes of the pilot and discover what went in to creating FlashForward’s most iconic scene, the freeway disaster.  Through interviews with David S. Goyer and his production team we go on the set to see how destruction is developed and explosions are executed.
 
FLASHFORWARD: A LOOK AHEAD
Be the first to get a “FlashForward” with this exclusive look at the teaser to episode 111.
 
“COULD”
A look at the second half of FlashForward Season 1, narrated by Dominic Monaghan.