If I had to choose a favorite Criterion Collection DVD (yep, I’m old), Fishing with John would undoubtedly be the one. It’s so ridiculously and perfectly goofy, I never tire of it. There’s the ice fishing with Willem Dafoe episode, the shark fishing with Jim Jarmusch episode, Dennis Hopper and the giant squid, Tom Waits in Jamaica, and Matt Dillon too. The concept is that actor/musician John Lurie, who knows next to nothing about fishing, takes his friends fishing with him in exotic places, brings a camera crew along to document everything, and then has a pompous sounding narrator tell us what’s going on as we watch the finished “shows”. Apparently John got a Japanese company to bankroll the thing and then years later the Independent Film Channel decided to run the original episodes. And the audio commentary by John Lurie is just as funny as the show itself. I don’t want to give any more away than I have to, but if the sight of a seasick Tom Waits putting a red snapper in his pants appeals to you, check this show out as soon as humanly possible.
[With the demise of Filmstruck, you will need to track down the disc for the commentary track.]