Stumped on what to buy someone on your gift list? Here at FLOOD, we polled the staff and put together our own picks for what we’d like for holidays. Humble? Hm, not exactly, but here are a few helpful hints for the film buff/television addict who has everything. And we brought along a friend from the LA chapter of the Best Friends Animal Society to help us model some of the goods.
1. Saturday Night Live: The Book
Everyone’s wanted to shout “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!” at some point in their lives. C’mon, admit it. You think you could belt out that catchphrase better than most of the current cast, right? Well, we can’t help you become a featured player on Saturday Night Live—that’s still Lorne Michaels’ call—but we can help you get the inside scoop on all things SNL with TASCHEN’s new book. With never-before-seen photos as well as thousands of iconic images, an “illustrated breakdown of the 6-day show cycle,” and a detailed season reference guide to all hosts, musical guests, and cast members, Saturday Night Live: The Book is the holy grail gift for any Conehead, Vogelcheck, Blues Brother, or Canteen Boy in your life. $50 at TASCHEN.com
2. Dont Look Back director–approved edition
Dont Look Back is the pinnacle of music documentary filmmaking, and it’s essential viewing whether you’re a Bob Dylan fan or simply a fan of film in general. Already immortalized in the Library of Congress, D. A. Pennebaker’s landmark achievement has now received the Criterion treatment, making this the single most comprehensive and well-prepared release of this movie available. Along with a new, Pennebaker–approved 4K digital transfer, the edition comes with all the additional features you would expect—commentary, outtakes, supplemental materials, etc. Grab your favorite pair of Wayfarers and dive in. $24 at Criterion.com
3. The End of the Tour
In a year filled with big-budget blockbusters and superhero flicks, The End of the Tour is a welcome piece of reflection and heart. The film, which stars a brilliant Jason Segel as David Foster Wallace, allows the audience to get to know the Infinite Jest author through one week in his short life. Now on Blu-ray and HD DVD, The End of the Tour is a strong enough film on its own to warrant a spot on this gift guide, but this edition also includes audio commentary by Segel as well as deleted scenes. Watch it to jumpstart your holiday efforts to read Infinite Jest in its entirety. $15 at Amazon.com
4. Mad Men: The Complete Collection
You don’t have to admit that Mad Men is over if you don’t want to. And now there is a stylish way to feed the Don Draper beast inside of you. Watch all seven seasons of long cigarette drags, tall drinks, and subtle (but very important) glances over and over again with the deluxe box set of the AMC series. Not only do you get every single episode (including the one where Lane decks Pete in the conference room), Mad Men: The Complete Collection comes with two low-ball tumblers that look like they were nicked from Draper’s office, four coasters featuring the art of the iconic title sequence, and a pile of special features. Raise a glass of liquor (or Coke) to the SC&P team and relive all the Draper family drama. $115 at Amazon.com
5. Star Trek Complete Original Series box set
Although 2015 will go down as the year of Star Wars, 2016 will be owned by Trekkies. The franchise will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary next year, and with a TV reboot in the works, now is the perfect time to pick up the complete original series for that friend or family member who’s a bit more Spock than Yoda, a bit more phaser than blaster, a bit more spandex than robe. $45 at Amazon.com
6. Non-film-related Star Wars merch
Oh sure, there’s plenty of great Star Wars stuff out there that treats the films with the reverence they deserve; you’ve got your action figures, your deluxe film treatments, your scholarly tomes. But let’s be honest—while Star Wars can be a metaphor for pretty much any worldview you want to assign to it, there’s no empire more intergalactic than the film’s weird merchandising arm. Save your files with a Darth Vader USB drive. Toss your action-figure packaging into this R2D2 garbage can (Just kidding! Don’t do that!). Stay clean with the Vader shower head (The Force produces great water pressure). Or turn your kitchen into a canteen with the Death Star waffle maker and Millennium Falcon cutting board. Whether you’re looking to buy a novelty toy for your Wookiee or something a little classier, there’s bound to be a Star Wars version of it available in this galaxy.
7. Fargo shotgun shell Thermos
It gets mighty cold in Fargo, and if you’re staking out by, oh, let’s say a red cabin in the woods, you’re going to need something warm to drink. Luckily for you, the makers of the inexplicably amazing Coen Brothers–adjacent television series Fargo have you covered thanks to their Mike Milligan–approved shotgun shell Thermos. It’s a great opportunity to advertise your love of caffeine, guns, and funny accents all at once! $75 at FXNetworks.com
8. Jeff the Diseased Lung in a Cowboy Hat t-shirt
If you live in Uruguay, you might know Jeff the Diseased Lung in a Cowboy Hat as the new Marlboro mascot gracing your local bus shelters. Or if you live in North America, you may know him as the face of the guerrilla campaign launched by Last Week Tonight‘s John Oliver to protest cigarette companies’ unfair trade practices. With this t-shirt, you can sport Jeff anywhere you go, from the basketball court to the international tribunal court. #JeffWeCan $15 at HBO.com
9. Ikiru
Referred to by Roger Ebert as Akira Kurosawa’s greatest film, Ikiru tells the tale of Kanji Watanabe, a bureaucrat dying of cancer, who seeks to find contentment and meaning before checking out. As with any Kurosawa film, you’d be best off seeing this one on the big screen if you can, but as always, Criterion’s home-video package is as good as it gets, particularly when it comes to foreign films. On that note, this release offers an updated English subtitle treatment—which is always appreciated—as well other traditional goodies. $32 at Criterion.com
Hazel, a three-year-old terrier mix, experiencing a bit of angst after bingeing on Mad Men / photo by Justin Baker
Best Friends Animal Society is the only national animal welfare organization focused exclusively on ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters. A leader in the no-kill movement, Best Friends runs the nation’s largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals, as well as lifesaving programs in partnership with more than 1,300 rescue groups and shelters across the country. In LA, Best Friends leads the No-Kill Los Angeles (NKLA) initiative, which is focused on ending the killing of dogs and cats in city shelters by 2017, and it operates two centers: the NKLA Pet Adoption Center in West LA and the Best Friends Pet Adoption and Spay/Neuter Center in Mission Hills. Since its founding in 1984, Best Friends has helped reduce the number of animals killed in American shelters from 17 million per year to an estimated 4 million. For more information, visit BestFriends.org.
