[November 21st, 2007]

1 There’s More to Life Than a Little Money, You Know

This Christmas, theaters will be filled with the seasonal sounds of the Coen brothers and violent murder, as No Country for Old Men hits the multiplex. Shouldn’t your home be filled with the same merriment? Yah, you betcha: The Coen Brothers Movie Collection ($49.99, Borders Books and Music, 708 SW 3rd Ave., 220-5911 and other locations) includes five investigations of malfeasance: Fargo, Raising Arizona, Miller’s Crossing, Blood Simple and Barton Fink . (AWM)

2 You Can Listen to It While Walking in Slow Motion

What can you get the Wes Anderson obsessive who has everything—including the Darjeeling Limited soundtrack? You can find even more music approved by indie film’s premier mix-tape maker: the Wes Anderson iTunes Playlist ($12.87, iTunes.com) . He’s selected songs from the usual suspects—Devo, New Order, Van Morrison—along with Billy Joel’s doo-wop “For the Longest Time,” which he admits he performed as a child “in the family living room to great effect.” (AWM)

3 The Owls Are Still Not What They Seem

Two important questions have always surrounded David Lynch’s Twin Peaks : Who killed Laura Palmer, and when will there be a complete DVD set? Consider the second question answered with Twin Peaks : The Definitive Gold Box Edition ($89.98, Music Millennium, 3158 E Burnside St., 231-8926) which includes all 22 hours of the series, a new “making-of” documentary and some Japanese coffee commercials. (AWM)

4 World-Class Plaid

While First Act’s Paul Westerberg Signature Guitar ($159.99, Costco, 4849 138th Ave., 252-2243, and other locations) might be scoffed at by master shredders—it has the look and feel of a Fred Meyer-style beginner’s guitar—it’s just the thing for that niece or nephew you’ve desperately been trying to turn on to some good music. (AGM)

5 Man-Eating Tadpoles Are a Universal Language

No monster-movie lover should go another holiday without owning The Host ($26.99, Suncoast Motion Picture Co., 2201 Lloyd Center, 288-8797) . It’s got your mutated giant tadpole, your lovably dysfunctional family and your evocative Korean waterfront setting. Trust us: This movie is frighteningly good. (AWM)

6 How to Fight Loneliness

It may be a stretch from the real thing, but Unkl Brand’s Wilco Six-Pack ($49.94, Just Be Complex, 107 NW 5th Ave., 796-2733; Missing Link, 3314 SE Belmont St., 235-0032; unklbrand.com) is still a lot of rock in a little package—as long as you’ve got a stereo. Simply crank the Wilco album of your choice and let these 2-inch replicas of the band—which accurately depict everything from Nels Cline’s ice-blue eyes and grumpy scowl to the Tweedster’s wild mop o’ hair (in the local toy company’s signature spherical-headed, club-legged style, of course)—rock your holiday world. (AGM)

7 Heart of Chrome

Based on his recent Keller Auditorium performance, there’s not much parents dig more than Neil Young . Which is why the legendary songwriter’s latest, Chrome Dreams II ($16.99 and up, Jackpot Records, 3736 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 239-7561; 203 SW 9th Ave., 222-0990) is a pretty no-fail gift for the adults in your life. (AGM)

8 Your Wall Will Be That Much More Metaphysically Troubling

There was a time—the fall of 1969, to be exact—when the iconic red poster for Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow-Up could be found on every college dorm-room wall. With Antonioni’s death this summer, now’s the time to bring back that groovy, sexy shot of David Hemmings perched atop Vanessa Redgrave. And why settle for a reproduction when you can have the real thing ($300, posteritati.com )? For cheaper wall art check out the cool collection of ready-to-tack-up movie art at Everyday Music (1931 NE Sandy Blvd., 239-7610; 1313 W Burnside St., 274-0961 and other locations). They carry a wide selection of original images, including everything from Cecil B. Demented to Blue Velvet to Lost Boys for just $7 for average-sized posters and $14 for the harder to find super-sized ones. (AWM)

9 The Sound of Music

It’s just not fair, is it? Mac folks get sweet music-recording software bundled with their new computers, but those with PCs are left to fend for themselves. Fear not: Sony’s Sound Forge ($69.95, Sony Style, 9581 SW Washington Square Road, 968-5279) is a cheap, versatile and generally user-friendly way to record music at home. Acid (also $69.95) comes in handy as a companion program for fine-tuning recordings. (CJ)

Gimme More

Dead Man Singing:

Relive the years when musical geniuses George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty got together for some of the most legendary jam sessions of all time with the Traveling Wilburys Collection 2-CD/1-DVD Box Set ($38.99, Music Millennium, 3158 E Burnside St., 231-8926) .

Ready To Let It Go?

The Numark TTUSB Turntable ($199.95, Jackpot Records, 203 SW 9th Ave., 222-0990) has a built-in USB interface so you can rip your old vinyl to MP3. Come on, wouldn’t that original LP of Led Zeppelin III sound better digitally transferred to your computer, compressed and played through an iPod?

Care Bears 2.0: Judgment Day:

Thought the Care Bears were creepy in the ’80s? That was nothing compared to their all-new straight-to-DVD CGI adventure, Oopsy Does It! ($14.75, Target, 9800 SE Washington St., 252-5850 and other locations) . Comes with free Oopsy Bear toy and “We are the Care Bears” music video.