JBO: Joystiq Box Office, February 15 - February 19, plus Joyswag!
We can't be gaming all the time, despite our best efforts, and from time to time we'll actually take advantage of the movie-playing abilities on our gaming systems. JBO features our top picks for XBL, PSN, Netflix's Watch Instantly and Blu-ray each week.
Recommendation of the Week:
($12 HD digital download, $18 DVD, $49 deluxe)
Cory McAbee is one cool character. He's produced art, music, short films and feature films, and he's at his best when he's combining art and movie together. Last year at Sundance, he premiered his newest feature film, Stingray Sam. Set in the future, two interstellar cowboys who just happen to be convicts are given a shot at freedom, if they complete one mission. Along the way they encounter a lot of wacky stuff, and sing some bizarre songs. Songs that will stay with you long after you've seen the movie, like the Lullaby Song. It combines science fiction, music, Westerns and pure wacky in a package of pure delight. We have three copies of the Stingray Sam DVD and soundtrack to give away this week, so just read the rules and comment below, letting us know what your name would be if you were an outer space cowboy.
Read on after the break for the rest of our recommendations, and let us know what you're watching!
Xbox Live Video Marketplace (Xbox 360)
It Might Get Loud (480
($6) HD, 320 ($4) SD, to rent)
Jimmy Page, The Edge, Jack White. Three great guitarists who know how to rock get together for this documentary that is all about the art of the guitar. Each one of them talks intimately and at great length about how they developed their own sounds and styles, and why they play the way they do. They all three got together one day for this film, and they tell tales, learn from each other and play new music. It's a fantastic documentary that allows you to peek behind the curtain, and spends a lot of time with the fairly silent The Edge and the mysterious Jimmy Page talking about their craft. Jack White might seem thrown in to get the younger audiences into this film, but he holds his own next to these legends, and it's a terrific tribute to both music and movies. Highly recommended.
Netflix Watch Instantly (Mac/PC, Xbox Live, PS3, subscription required: starts at $8.99 per month)
WarGames
Shall we play a game? Every gamer needs to see this movie, just to know what supercomputers are capable of. Forget about Skynet and HAL and all that jazz, the WOPR computer from WarGames was a lot more realistic and terrifying. Which is exactly what Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy found out in this movie. They were just two kids, looking to hack into a video game company and play some stuff for kicks. One of those games turns out to be Global Thermonuclear War ... for real. Whoops. This one's a classic that needs to be appreciated by all generations of gamers, just as long as you ignore the direct to DVD sequel WarGames: The Dead Code. Seriously, avoid this at all costs. Instead, go back to the 1980s with WarGames, and then how about a nice game of chess?
PlayStation Store (PlayStation 3 or PSP)
Cold Souls
($5.99 HD, $3.99 SD, to rent)
This is a Charlie Kaufman movie without Charlie Kaufman being involved whatsoever. What does an actor do when they have trouble playing a character who is losing their soul? Why, they have their own soul taken out, of course, and put into cold storage. In this reality, there's a machine that can do such a thing for you, and it's quite popular for actors and celebrities to stick their soul in storage for a while. Which also gives rise to a Russian black market where, for a price, you can buy someone else's soul your own. Paul Giamatti plays himself in this black comedy, and he does it hilariously. The scenes of him rehearsing both with and without his soul as Uncle Vanya in the Chekhov play are brilliant. But once he goes to Russia to try and get his soul back, things get kicked up a few notches. Seriously great stuff.
Blu-ray Disc (PlayStation 3)
($35.99, lower at many retailers)
Seriously, Matt Damon is turning into a genius. Either that, or Steven Soderbergh is. They can both make anything watchable. On paper, this is a story about a whistleblower in the lysine price-fixing scandal from the 1990s. Gripping stuff, right? Well, it is when these two work together. If you check out the real story this is based on, Mark Whitacre seems like a douchebag. He's happily ratting out his company and spying on fellow co-workers, so he can try and do the right thing. Or is that really what he's doing? Damon's Whitacre is such a likable jerk that you can't really hate him. Even when things start falling apart, you really feel for the guy. Besides Damon, the film stars Scott Bakula as a lovable FBI agent, and there's a slew of cameos from people like Clancy Brown, Patton Oswalt, Paul F. Tompkins and others. The commentary track from Soderbergh is the best extra, and it looks extra-sharp in Blu-ray.
So, what are you watching? Plus, follow the instructions below to win one of the copies of Stingray Sam on DVD plus the soundtrack CD.
Leave a comment telling us what your outer-space cowboy name would be.
You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec).
Limit 1 entry per person (replies to other comments won't count as entries, so feel free to chat it up).
This entry period ends at 12:00PM PT on Monday, February 22.
At that time, we'll randomly select three winners to receive one copy of Stingray Sam on DVD ($18 ARV), plus the Stingray Sam soundtrack CD ($12 ARV).
For a list of complete rules, click here.
What is Joyswag? Since we don't keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes "Joyswag," which is passed along to our readers. For more info on our policy, click here.
