The Hills: The Complete First Season
Paramount
Buy now from CalgaryMovies DVD Store!

The star of the glamorous MTV hit "reality" series LAGUNA BEACH (Season One) heads for the more adult tinsel of Los Angeles in THE HILLS. Lauren Conrad embarks on a new set of more mature struggles as she bunks up with entertainingly ditsy roommate Heidi, attends fashion merchandising classes at FIDM, and tackles a demanding internship at Teen Vogue. Between professional and academic responsibilities, LC has little time left for drama, but still manages to squeeze in some troubled romance with LAGUNA heartbreaker Jason.

The Hills is the kind of show that gives Paris Hilton credibility. It's about as shallow a show I have ever seen as young girls mope about their boyfriends, shop, sleep in and complain about their jobs. And it all takes place in the upscale world of Los Angeles. Oh, the struggle; oh, the drama.

Everything is so superficial in The Hills that it's impossible to buy into it. That, and I'm not what the girls would consider a "hottie." The conflicts arise from all these relationships that appear to revolve more around clubbing and booty calls than intimacy. But that could be in part because as much time is spent on skyline transitions than on conversations, so it seems.

I do have to admit there were brief bits that I found myself getting a little bit caught up in the soap opera of it all, mainly with the stuff revolving around Lauren and her internship. It was probably a flashback to the glory days of 90210/Melrose Place Wednesdays and the summer I spent following The Young and the Restless. But those short moments were cut off after the 20-minute episodes wrapped up so neat and messily (in a melodramatic sense) and I snapped back into reality.

Perhaps if the show revolved around real struggles rather than rich kids whining and ready to quit their job because they can't go clubbing on their jerk boyfriend's birthday, I might have been able to buy into The Hills. But it is what it is, and that's a piece of cotton-candy fluff that's been sitting in the back seat for two weeks in the hot summer sun. Needless to say, this trash belongs just there.

Video: How's it look?
Showing the change towards widescreen televisions, The Hills is presented in a widescreen format. The picture looks like it was shot digitally, but it's quite sharp and appealing, bringing out the best of LA in the many transitions.

Audio: How's it sound?
Unfortunately the sound is only in Dolby Digital stereo. Given the relatively easy surround possibilities, it's kind of like the equivalent of getting a tape player rather than a hot IPod or MP3 player.

Extras: What additional goodies are included?

• This complete season set contains ten episodes across three DVDs (two discs of episodes and a disc of extras).
• 19 deleted scenes totaling more than a half-hour.
• Comprehensive interviews with all the main cast members.
• In case you care about how the cast dress themselves on party nights, there's "The Hills: The Premiere Party" and all its red-carpet goodness.
• The girls go shopping to kick off "MTV Movie Awards", the most mind-blowing feautrette I have ever seen. Okay, maybe not.
• Running almost an hour, "The Best of The Hills: The After Show" takes the best bits from the first year of this equivalent to the endless Sunday football post-game commentaries.
• Previews for Laguna Beach: Season 2, Laguna Beach: Season 3, Save the Last Dance 2 and Run's House Seasons 1 & 2.

Closing Thoughts
So The Hills isn't for me. The show is trash and has no real value. However, the first season's DVD release has lots of value. Although I hated the show, fans are sure to enjoy the complete run of episodes and the many extras, superficial as they may be.


Review brought to you by our friend Ryan @ Movie-Views.com