May 11, 2008
Jam
Music
Movies
Television
Video
      DVD Reviews
      Actors A-Z

Theatre
Books
Country



ENT Blog
RSS Feed

MACCA


Trailer Park Boys DVD crude fun
By -- Sun Media


From left to right: Julian (John Paul Tremblay), Bubbles (Mike Smith) and Ricky (Robb Wells) are up to their usual monkeyshines in The Trailer Park Boys.

Fetid, foul-mouthed and full of mischief: The Trailer Park Boys are back on DVD.

These big-hearted, small-brained, larcenous losers are the outlaws of Canadian culture. They smoke up and guzzle down booze. They pollute, puke and mess up Sunnyvale trailer park. They drive junkers and deal in junk metal. They sell home-grown to cops, kids and model train enthusiasts. They are mean to one another and kind to animals.

With every move recorded in a mock-doc, the Boys spread madness throughout the land, which happens to be Nova Scotia. And we love them for it! By we, I mean a collective of idiot adults with a warped sense of humour about the Great White North.

"You know," says their former Grade 3 teacher when she catches Julian and Bubbles bong toking in a public parking lot, "it's never too late to change the path you're going down in life, boys!"

Sorry, Mrs. Anderson, it is way too late! Plus any change would dilute the humour, de-fun the farce.

Check it out for yourself -- if you dare. Trailer Park Boys: The Complete Seventh Season: Deluxe Set is new on DVD in Canada. Deluxe means a widescreen-only, two-disc offering with raucous bonus materials.

Ricky (Robb Wells), Julian (John Paul Tremblay) and Bubbles (Mike Smith) do an in-character group commentary. Makeup artist Annemarie Cassidy tells how she transformed herself into an animal wrangler to look after Sheryl Crow, as well as some furballs. Singer Sebastian Bach (Skid Row) shows up in an episode and stops by for the DVD cameras.

Profane like the boys, Bach says he loved introducing (Love is) A Bitch Slap in the episode where the Boys go to Bangor, Maine, for trains and tokers. "I feel really effing thankful and grateful that I got my new song in the show," Bach says. He also dined with the Boys. "I found out that they are pretty close to their screen counterparts ... which is a very good thing!"

Trailer Park Boys, filmed in Halifax and environs, launched in 2001. Because it broadcasts on Showcase, it gets away with profanity, drugs, sex, lewd behaviour, general stupidity and obsessive references to Patrick Swayze. This is so not the Maritime version of kindly Corner Gas (although I find it easy to love both shows).

Trailer Park Boys boasts a byzantine Oscar connection. The show impressed Canadian filmmaker Ivan Reitman, who then produced Mike Clattenburg's Trailer Park Boys: The Movie (2006). Ivan is the father of Jason Reitman, who directed Haligonian Ellen Page to an Oscar nom for Juno (2007). Page was a Sunnyvale original in 2001.

As a 14-year-old fresh from the obscure series Pit Pony, Page joined Trailer Park Boys as Treena Lahey. Not recognizing her future fame, the editors cut her scenes out of episode one, "Take Your Little Gun and Get Out of My Trailer Park," which chronicles Ricky and Julian's return from jail. Page did, however, make it to air for four episodes in season two, starting with "I've Met Cats and Dogs Smarter Than Trevor and Cory."

The beauty (eh!) of this history is that it is all available on DVD. As well as the movie, each season so far has been released. One and two were combined in a three-disc collector's edition. Each since is a two-disc deluxe set. There is also a prequel DVD, Xmas Special: The Dope and Liquor Edition.


HOT VIDEO HEADLINES
'Breaking' DVD a Twihard dream
No frills 'Transformers' a shock
So-so quality on 'Big Year' DVD
Gosling doubles up on DVD
'Steel' the real deal on DVD
'Paranormal' extras very boring
Silent 'Wings' soars on in DVD
Oscar race comes to DVD
Allen's 'Midnight' hits DVD
'Empire' a masterpiece on DVD
More Headlines
'Moneyball' DVD a home run
'Attack' sizzles on DVD
'Does It' less annoying on DVD
Contagion 'a cautionary tale'
Winter the dolphin no diva
Bloody good gore in 'Destination'
Top 10 DVDs/Blu-rays of 2011
Funny 'Ice Age' short on logic
Triple DVD thrill for action fans
DVD, Blu-ray gift ideas


DVD column
Toronto Sun writer Bruce Kirkland gives you his take on the latest DVD releases.
Who's coming and when
Want to know when your favourite band is coming to town? Check out Clive, JAM Music's extensive Canadian concert listings.

Movie Listings
Find out what's playing at a theatre near you.
TV Listings
Wondering what's on tonight? Check out our TV listings for the complete schedule in your area.






What did you think of Madonna’s halftime show?
She’s still got it
I wasn’t impressed


Results