Tag: Blu-ray new releases (Page 3 of 5)

Blu Tuesday: Earth, Heroes and State of Play

September 1, 2009 /

There are quite a few big Blu-ray releases in the month of September, and two of them (“Braveheart” and “Gladiator”) are headlining the rollout of Paramount’s new Sapphire Series premium label. Unfortunately, I didn’t receive either one in time to review for this week’s column, which is too bad, because I’m hearing that the subpar transfer on the “Gladiator” disc is going to cause a major ruckus in the Blu-ray community. There are still a few cool releases coming out today, but nothing that absolutely demands your attention… or your money.

“Earth” (Walt Disney)

I wasn’t very fond of nature documentaries before seeing BBC’s “Planet Earth,” but now that I have, I can’t imagine seeing one even remotely as good again. The people at Disney must feel the same way, because instead of going out and trying to make their own nature doc, they decided to just reuse footage from the award-winning miniseries to create a feature-length version. Simply titled “Earth,” the 90-minute film is narrated by James Earl Jones and plays out like a Greatest Hits of the documentary’s best moments – from the more narrative-driven stories about families of polar bears, elephants and humpback whales to an amazing look at caribou migration and the birds of paradise. Fans of “Planet Earth” probably won’t be interested in the more ADD-friendly edition, but at least Disney has included some cool extras for those thinking about buying “Earth” for their kids, like a pop-up trivia track and a new Blu-ray feature (Living Menu) that offers nature facts and video clips every month.

“Heroes: Season Three” (Universal)

The third season of “Heroes” was supposed to be a return to form for the superhero drama, but despite an excellent season premiere, it turned out even worse than its harshly criticized sophomore year. The meaningless deaths of a few fan favorites certainly didn’t help the situation, but there were a few positives to be drawn from what could effectively be called a train wreck of a season. For starters, Zachary Quinto proved that he could play a good guy just as well as a baddie, while guest stars Robert Forster and Zeljko Ivanek delivered memorable performances as the show’s marquee villains. Season Three may not have lived up to its promises, but the Blu-ray release of the show continues to deliver with picture-in-picture audio commentaries, a slew of production featurettes, and more. The HD edition also includes additional behind-the-scenes footage and a sneak peek of Season Four. It doesn’t make up for the disappointing string of episodes, but if the show really does get back to its roots this year, you’ll want Season Three to complete your collection.

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Action Movies, External Movie DVDs, Heroes, Movie Dramas, Movie DVDs, Movies, TV, TV Dramas, TV DVDs, TV Sci-Fi

Blu Tuesday: Battlestar Galactica, Fast & Furious and Green Lantern

July 28, 2009 /

After last week’s fantastic selection of Blu-ray titles, you’d think that we’d have to wait another month or two before getting anything even remotely as good, but for fans of sci-fi, you really can’t do much better than today’s offering. There are no less than six geek-worthy Blu-rays this week, as well as a few other major titles definitely worthy of a spot in your collection.

“Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Series” (Universal)

Okay, so I may have never actually watched “Battlestar Galactica” (save for the pilot/miniseries), but it’s one of those shows that I’ve been meaning to check out for quite awhile. And with the release of the complete series box set, what better time than now? This is the first time the show has been available on Blu-ray, and thanks to the fact that it’s actually shot in HD (though not broadcast that way, curiously enough) old and new fans alike can finally enjoy the show as it was meant to be seen. The included extras are mostly a retread of previously released bonus material, but Blu-ray owners do get a few exclusives, like picture-in-picture video and a pop-up encyclopedia. The series is housed in a sweet metallic cube that expands to reveal all four seasons and includes your very own frakkin’ toaster figurine. Even if you’re not a fan of the series, that’s pretty hard to resist.

“Fast & Furious” (Universal)

I don’t care how you may feel about the fourth installment of the popular car porn franchise, or even the series as a whole, because Universal has delivered yet another fine Blu-ray packed with just about everything you could hope for. Personally, I thought the movie was good mindless fund, but I know that a lot of people found it silly and contrived. Fair enough, but for those of you who did enjoy it, the double-disc effort includes a director commentary, stunt featurettes and even a cool Vin Diesel-directed short film that acts as a prequel to the movie. Of course, the real highlight is the Take Control feature, which offers an in-depth look at the film hosted by Justin Lin and Paul Walker. Though it’s only activated for the bigger sequences, it enables the filmmakers to go into further detail than the typical commentary track. Lin pauses, rewinds and fast-forwards his way through key moments, highlighting things with the help of storyboards and behind-the-scenes footage. Zack Snyder may have technically beaten everyone to the punch with a similar feature on the “Watchmen” Blu-ray, but it’s just good to see that Warner Bros. isn’t the only studio looking ahead. This is the future of the HD format.

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Action Movies, Actors, Battlestar Galactica, External Movie DVDs, Movie Comedies, Movie Dramas, Movie DVDs, Movies, TV, TV Comedies, TV Dramas, TV DVDs, TV Sci-Fi

Blu Tuesday: Watchmen, Coraline and 300

July 21, 2009 /

Due to the lack of options that Blu-ray enthusiasts were presented with over the last few weeks, it’s been a while since I’ve written a proper column. Though I had originally planned to combine two weeks’ worth of HD titles into one write-up, I ultimately decided against it because, well, even that selection wasn’t very inspiring. It’s a different story today, however, with three must-buy titles and several more worth checking out.

“Watchmen” (Warner Bros.)

The Blu-ray release of “Watchmen” has been the subject of attention since before the movie even arrived in theaters, but that’s what happens when you adapt something as popular as Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ groundbreaking graphic novel. The good news is that after all the legal issues with 20th Century Fox and the film’s less-than-stellar box office performance, Warner Bros. has still come through with one of the coolest Blu-rays of the year. Not only does it feature a director’s cut with over 20 minutes of additional footage, but the three-disc set also introduces the much-publicized Maximum Movie Mode, which is kind of like Universal’s U-Control feature on steroids. Quite simply, this is the future of Blu-ray, with Zack Snyder hosting an in-depth look at key sequences (often pausing the movie to discuss certain details), while other extras — like a timeline comparing historical events from Our World to Their World, picture-in-picture interviews with the cast and crew, and storyboards and comic book comparisons — supplement the experience. Also included are a series of video diaries that you can hop over to while watching the film, as well as a second disc packed with featurettes on the graphic novel, the psychology of vigilantes, and the science of “Watchmen.” If there’s one release that should help convince consumers why Blu-ray is better than DVD, this is it.

“Coraline” (Universal)

“The Nightmare Before Christmas” might have the bigger fanbase, but Henry Selick’s latest stop-motion adventure, “Coraline,” is by far the better of the two films. Then again, when you consider that the source material was written by Neil Gaiman, it isn’t at all surprising that the movie would turn out as good as it did. Though it’s debatable whether or not “Coraline” will scare the younger crowds, the film is unequivocally a must-see for any fan of Selick’s past work. The Blu-ray release makes the experience even better, too, with the option to watch the film in 2-D or 3-D (glasses included), as well as a host of awesome extras ranging from a director commentary to an in-depth making-of featurette that might as well have been called Stop-Motion 101. The two-disc set also includes Universal’s standard U-Control feature with a picture-in-picture video track filled with behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, and the ability to watch the full-length animatic alongside the movie. Were it not for the fact that Warner Bros. was releasing “Watchmen” on the same day, this easily would have been the best release of the week, and possibly the month.

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Action Movies, External Movie DVDs, Movie Comedies, Movie Dramas, Movie DVDs, Movies, Prison Break, TV, TV Dramas, TV DVDs

Blu Tuesday: Do the Right Thing, Street Fighter and Jonas Brothers 3-D

June 30, 2009 /

Much like last week’s disappointing selection of high-def titles, today’s pick of the litter isn’t quite as fresh as one might hope. There’s definitely a good variety among the movies available, but there’s nothing here that exactly screams “Buy me.” Still, while my personal collection will remain unchanged for another week, other Blu-ray enthusiasts might find something they’ve been waiting to pick up, or at the very least, take for a test drive.

“Do the Right Thing” (Universal)

I’ve never been a fan of Spike Lee, save for the uncharacteristic crime thriller, “Inside Man.” His fabricated racism is annoying, and it never fails in ruining an otherwise good story. Though it’s admirable to want to address a serious issue like racism through film, the way in which he tries to achieve it is nothing short of scandalous. Take Danny Aiello’s character in “Do the Right Thing,” whose life is ruined when a brawl inside his pizzeria leads to the accidental death of Radio Raheem. Not only is he completely warranted in his actions, but he isn’t even responsible for Raheem’s untimely demise. Of course, Lee wouldn’t have the ending he so desperately needs if he doesn’t lay the blame on Aiello, and instead of pointing a finger at Raheem (who refused to turn off his boom box after being asked nicely) or Giancarlo Esposito’s Buggin Out (the real culprit of the altercation), he decides to cook up a theory that even the much-loved (but still white) owner of the local hangout is a racist. Personal thoughts aside, the 20th anniversary Blu-ray release looks incredible, and the addition of a new retrospective documentary and audio commentary by Lee is a nice treat for fans of the film. You really have to love Lee’s work to want to sit through “Do the Right Thing” more than once, but if you do, you might as well watch it in HD.

“Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li” (20th Century Fox)

Go ahead and file this one under Reasons Why Fanboys Hate 20th Century Fox. It’s not that the studio does a bad job of choosing properties to adapt. In fact, it’s quite the opposite, because they often make movies that no other studio would even bother with. Unfortunately, they don’t put nearly as much thought into the actual making of the film as they do into how much money they might make it if it’s a hit. I didn’t think it was possible to outdo the first “Street Fighter” film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme in terms of sheer crappiness, but “The Legend of Chun-Li” wins hands down. This is a movie that is so determined to ground the world of “Street Fighter” in reality that it loses all connection to the source material except for its characters’ names. The end result is just another generic martial arts movie with some of the worst acting you’ll ever see. It’s difficult to single out just one performance (take your pick), but when all is said and done, Chris Klein is practically guaranteed to walk away with a Razzie. “The Legend of Chun-Li” is a guilty pleasure at best, but unless you’re a fan of the game, and don’t mind seeing your a piece of your childhood ruined, you’d be best to stay away.

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Action Movies, External Movie DVDs, Movie Dramas, Movie DVDs, Movies

Blu Tuesday: Waltz with Bashir, Confessions of a Shopaholic and Inkheart

June 23, 2009 /

I’m not exactly sure how movie studios decide when to release their films on DVD and Blu-ray, because sometimes (like last week, for instance), competition can be so stiff that titles get lost in the background, while if they were released just one week later during a day like today, they’d likely be the highlight of the all the new releases. Whatever the reason, it really makes it hard to be a consumer, because though there are few decent titles available on Blu-ray this week, the selection could have been so much better if some smarter planning was involved on the studios’ end.

“Waltz with Bashir” (Sony)

It might not have won the Oscar for Best Foreign Picture like many industry insiders had it pegged for, but “Waltz with Bashir” would certainly have been deserving of such an honor for its innovative fusion of documentary and animation. Equal parts interview and flashback reenactment, “Waltz with Bashir” is the latest from Israeli filmmaker Ari Folman who, after a friend tells him about a recurring nightmare involving the First Lebanon War, decides to reconnect with old acquantainces in order to recover lost memories of the 20-year-old event. Though the movie isn’t as potent as 2007’s likeminded “Persepolis,” “Waltz with Bashir” is a cinematic achievement that’s only downfall is its incorporation of news archive footage at the end. Though this is the kind of film you can really only watch once, cinephiles will love the extras included on the Blu-ray release, including a making-of featurette that not only debunks the general belief that the film’s visual style was achieved through rotoscoping, but details the advanced method of how the movie was actually animated.

“Confessions of a Shopaholic” (Walt Disney)

Completely undeserving of its critical lashing, “Confessions of a Shopaholic” might not be the most original romantic comedy to come down the pipeline, but what it lacks in originality it more than makes up for with a great cast, a solid script, and the manic energy of star Isla Fisher that is so captivating, you could bottle it up and sell it in stores. Of course, it’s hardly a movie you can expect a lot from in the special features department, but Disney has still done a pretty good job of putting together a decent collection of extras. The Blu-ray exclusive six-part “Behind the Fashion” may only run a scant 13 minutes long, but it covers everything from costume and production design to filming on location in New York. That’s hardly going to convince anyone to buy the film, but if you’re looking for a fun little date movie that won’t have you scratching out your eyeballs, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to discover that “Confessions of a Shopaholic” isn’t quite as bad as you were lead to believe.

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External Movie DVDs, Movie Comedies, Movie Dramas, Movie DVDs, Movies

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