Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

$22.99

Dreamworks Video

For their fifth film collaboration, director Tim Burton and actor Johnny Depp forgo the twisted whimsy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the fairy tale qualities of Edward Scissorhands to take a decidedly darker stab, (or slash) at the musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

The adaptation is based on the 1979 Stephen Sondheim Tony Award-winning Broadway smash, which starred Angela Landsbury as Mrs. Lovett, Todd’s partner-in-crime, who is portrayed by Helena Bonham Carter in the film.

Set against the backdrop of dreary 19th century England, Sweeney Todd (Depp) is a man wrongly accused of a crime. He sets out to exact revenge on the years he’s lost and to right the wrongs against his wife and daughter.

He sets up a barbershop above Lovett’s flagging meat pie shop, and the two make mincemeat out of those Todd seeks vengeance on, including Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman of the Harry Potter films) and rival barber, Signor Adolfo Pirelli (Borat’s

Sacha Baron Cohen).

Depp’s performance, balancing his villainous acts and simultaneously eliciting sympathy, as the titular Demon Barber of Fleet Street, garnered him much praise, and earned him a Golden Globe as Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and a Best Actor Oscar nod.

Burton delivers a healthy dose of show tunes and gore for a bloody good time. His trademark flair for helming films that are visually appealing earned the film a Best Art Direction Academy Award and a Best Motion Picture Golden Globe.

“A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila: The Complete Uncensored First Season”

$35.99

MTV

“A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila” turned the atypical dating reality show genre on its ear, when 16 men and 16 women vied for the attention of bisexual, über-popular (she has upwards of two million cyber friends online) MySpace girl-most-likely-to-be-featured-on-a-dating-reality show, Tila Tequila.

The catch of hooking “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila,” (with both men and women contending for amore) was unbeknownst to the competitors until after they were living under one roof.

There is drama abound on this three-disc “too hot for TV” edition, where hookups and envy gets the better of some of the rivals, and Tequila must choose between a bevy of suitable suitors.

The Complete Uncensored First Season also features extended scenes, as well as ones that were deleted from original broadcasts.

“The Big Gay Sketch Show: The Complete Unrated Second Season”

$26.98

MTV

LOGO’S sketch comedy show will be available on April 29, in an unrated format.

The sophomore season features eight episodes revolving around GLBT characters, musical numbers and pop culture jabs.

Sit back and enjoy the laughs as traditional TV fare from yesteryear, including “The Facts of Life” and “I Love Lucy,” get a queer makeover, courtesy of The Big Gay Sketch Show’s cast of characters.

There are special guest appearances from Rosie O’Donnell (the show’s executive producer), Chastity Bono, Elaine Stritch and comedian Kate Clinton.

This month we are taking a trip to the dark side with the horror flick The Living and the Dead and the sci-fi shocker Socket.

The Living and the Dead

$19.99

TLA Releasing

A dysfunctional family is the focus of what Salon.com is calling “an indie-horror classic of the future.”

In The Living and the Dead, the well-to-do Brockleback family, including father Donald, mother Nancy and mentally challenged son, James, live out the days in Longleigh House, a dilapidated former shell of a prestigious home.

Facing bankruptcy and trying to sell the home, Donald is forced to leave his gravely ill wife Nancy in the care of their schizophrenic son in order to leave the manor and come up with the money to pay for her operation.

All hell breaks loose when James decides to forgo taking his medication. His slip into the dark abyss of reality versus a horrific version of fantasy propels the film to its shattering climax.

Socket

$19.99

TLA Releasing

When gay doctor Bill Matthews, (Derek Long) is struck by lightning, he learns a whole new meaning of the term “hooking up.”

He is nursed back to health by a hunky hospital intern (Matthew Montgomery) who introduces Matthews to a group of others who have been struck by lightning, and who meet to get plugged into electricity for sexual satisfaction.

Soon, the twosome finds an outlet for their carnal desires (each other) in this highly charged erotic sci-fi fantasy.

IM

Rick R. Reed

$17.95

Quest

Author Rick R. Reed has been called “the gay Stephen King” by Unzipped magazine, and for good reason. Much like King, Reed takes ordinary characters and places them in extraordinary circumstances, cranking up the chills component and leaving the readers thermostats edging upward.

His latest thriller, IM, is set in cyberspace – where no one can hear you scream. A serial killer prowls hookup sites for more than a one-night stand – he’s out to satiate his appetite for bloodlust. The killer uses false pretenses to make his way into the victims’ homes, although he makes good on his promises of an unforgettable evening.

To unravel the mystery, the Chicago police bring in detective Ed Comparetto, the private dick previously ousted and outed in the force. While solving the crime, Comparetto finds his personal and professional lives threatened, as he scrambles to unmask the killer’s identity before he strikes again.

George Michael

TwentyFive

$19.97

Epic

This two-disc set compiles a quarter century of music from George Michael, both from his days as the front man for WHAM! and his subsequent solo career.

The two discs are separated into “For Living,” which features a wide range of Michael’s more upbeat tempos, including “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,” “Fast Love,” and “Freedom ’90”; and “For Loving,” which has Michael slowing it down with “Careless Whisper,” “Praying for Time,” and “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,” his duet with Elton John.

There are other duets with Mary J. Blige and Paul McCartney on the discs and six new songs.

And, in case you didn’t know, Michael will be kicking off his North American Tour in San Diego on June 17.

Mariah Carey

E=MC2

$13.98

Island

Mariah Carey’s eleventh studio album finds the multi-octave diva off to a good start. The first single off E=MC2, “Touch My Body,” was her 18th career No. 1 hit, putting her ahead of Elvis Presley and two songs behind The Beatles for most No. 1 hits on The Billboard Hot 100.

E=MC2 has a slew of guest producers, like will.i.am of The Black Eyed Peas, “L.A.” Reid and the man who helped her craft her comeback album,The Emancipation of Mimi, Jermaine Dupri.

The album runs the gamut from dance beats (on “O.O.C (Out Of Control)”) to reggae (“Cruise Control” featuring Damian Marley). Carey tackles marriage gone sour on “Side Effects” featuring Young Jeezy, and shows her softer side on the ballad “I Stay in Love.”

Moby

Last Night

$14.98

Mute

It seems just yesterday Moby’s Play was on repeat in many a CD player. Fast forward nine years and Moby is back with his latest album, Last Night, which features guest vocalists, and a very dance driven, electronic format.

Songs like “Everyday it’s 1989” and “Disco Lies” hearken listeners back to days gone by when groups such as Black Box utilized thumping beats and big voiced divas to front their work.

Moby also offers up the rave-tinged tracks “Ooh Yeah” and “I’m in Love.”

Last Night is the closest sounding project to Play that Moby has released since that groundbreaking CD, with its fusion of techno, pop, rave and rock.

Madonna (featuring Justin Timberlake & Timbaland)

“4 Minutes”

Looks like Madonna is on the brink of having her first No. 1 single since 2000’s “Music,” with “4 Minutes,” a collaboration with Justin Timberlake and production mogul, Timbaland.

And, it’s easy to see (and hear) why.

The song begins with a brassy marching band sound and bleeds into hip-hop sensibilities with the brass as undercurrent.

For some reason, the tune doesn’t play like a traditional duet.

There are plenty of catchy hooks in “4 Minutes,” with choruses of “If you want it, you’ve already got it. If you thought it, it better be what you want,” and “Grab a boy/grab a girl,” with a few well-placed “yeahs” and “tick tocks” here and there from her Madgesty.

If this any indication of what is to come from Madonna’s eleventh studio album, Hard Candy, due out April 29, then it is going to be one long, hot summer.