Seems that with every DVD release nowdays there is the “theatrical” version that can be rented and there is the “unrated” version that can be bought.
Eg. Good Luck Chuck, Beowulf, SinCity, 40 year-old Virgin, etc.
Are there any good movie websites that detail differences in the two releases?
The Alternate Versions section of the movie’s IMDB listing sometimes has details on the Unrated version. It’s the best I’ve found because I’ve often wondered the same thing.
Be careful, though. I once rented the “unrated” version of the movie Electra, starring Shannon Tweed.
Why was it unrated? Because if you put “PG” on a Shannon Tweed movie, nobody would rent the @#$% thing!
The only time I’ve ever consciously decided to pick up Unrated instead of rated was for Live Free or Die Hard. Mostly because I refused to believe that the PG-13 version of it really existed.
All I know is that for 40 Year Old Virgin, there is a significant amount of extra footage in the unrated version, including some funny jokes. Whenever I’ve caught it on TV I have to turn it off because I’ve seen the unrated one a bunch of times and it’s just not the same.