Why So Blu?

Aaron’s Top 10 Blu-rays of 2010

As little time as I have to actually sit at home and watch all the Blu-rays I own and check out all the special features they have to offer, there are a certain number of films that I could not pass up when it came to checking them out at my own leisure, in the comfort of my own home.  The following list is set of films that I consider to be some of the best that the Blu-ray format has had to offer for this year. I decided to follow a few rules for the sake of this list; the movies had to have been released on Blu-ray in 2010, obviously; I have to have actually watched the movie on Blu-Ray and delved into the special features; and most importantly, I decided not to put any film on the list that is also on my “top 10 films of the year” list.  This means that I am not counting: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Kick Ass, Inception, or Toy Story 3.  All of these films happen to have some of my favorite Blu-ray presentations and bonus features of the year, but I feel it would be too redundant to have all of these films on two different lists.  For the sake of keeping my list interesting, I followed these rules; so here we go:

10.  Vengeance Trilogy – This set consists of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, and Lady Vengeance.  A trilogy of films only linked by the theme of revenge, this series written and directed by Park Chan-Wook is one of my favorite recent collections of films.  Oldboy, in particular, is one of my favorite films in general.  All dark tales with a great visual aesthetic, and now I can watch all of them on glorious Blu-ray discs.  All of them look and sound great, not to mention the bevy of special features that are available for each film.  The spiffy tin box that houses these three films is quite nice as well.

“Laugh, and the world laughs with you.  Weep, and you weep alone.”

9.  Se7en – This is a film that I was really craving to have on Blu-ray.  David Fincher’s 1995 crime thriller is layered with thick atmosphere, which is perfectly suited for viewing under the best visual circumstances possible.  Add to that a ton of features that may have already been on the DVD, but still work to inform the viewer about nearly the entire production of this film, and you have a disc that people would easily want to take advantage of this format for.

“What’s in the box!?” (Blu-ray Review)

8.  The Evil Dead – Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead trilogy is amongst my favorite trilogies of all time, let alone one that I revisit much more frequently than others.  Now I can watch the original (along with the others) on Blu-ray, which is a great way for me to further observe the low budget zaniness of this trilogy in action.  Seeing and hearing moments such as the infamous “Pencil scene” in even grosser detail will be a great joy for me and my friends to behold during my annual “Halloween Evil Dead Marathon”.  Packed with some new bonus materials as well, this may be the umpteenth release of The Evil Dead, but I was certainly willing to go out and pick it up.

“Join us.” (Blu-ray Review)

7.  Iron Man 2 – While general audiences seemed to be divided on this film overall, I was a big fan.  There may have been less action (for whatever reason, despite looking good when if happened) and too much time spent on teasing The Avengers movie, but this still worked for me as a great ensemble comedy w/superheroes and featured a lot of cool scenes.  True to form, Marvel delivers on giving the fans what they would want, with a Blu-ray that looks and sounds amazing, and is also packed with additional features going over every aspect of the making of this film.  Shoot to thrill with this disc.

“I’ve successfully privatized world peace.”

6.  Moon – One of my favorite films from 2009, the debut feature film from director Duncan Jones was a great, low budget, sci-fi flick, and had a pretty fantastic performance from star Sam Rockwell.  The best part about this – Sony decided to load the Blu-ray with extra materials and make sure the look and sound of this film is great to experience at home.  Given that the film was made on a $5 million budget, the practical effects certainly lend themselves well to the format, as I watch the moon dirt kick up onto the screen and listen to the various moon mobiles move along the surface.  I hope many discover this little gem of a film on Blu-ray.

“Gerty, is there someone else in this room?”

5. Grindhouse – With this deluxe double feature release from directors Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, it really only means we’re that much closer to finally getting Kill Bill:  the Whole Bloody Affair on Blu-ray as well.  That being said, finally having the whole cut of Grindhouse (including the fake trailers) available for home viewing is great.  Even better is the fact that the disc is loaded with plenty of new special features, including extended trailers and a new cooking school segment from Rodriguez; nice! Oh, and everything looks and sounds super freaking great as well.

“I never miss.”

4.  (tie) Criterion Blu-rays:  Paths of Glory, M, Cronos, The Darjeeling Limited, Seven Samurai – It is a bit of a cheat, but Criterion Blu-rays, as a whole, take this spot on the list for a simple reason:  Criterion always delivers.  The flicks listed are the ones I have purchased, and they are all fantastic movies.  Add to that the amount of time that Criterion puts into all their releases, and you have a strong list of films that all get the best treatment possible, as they are designed to look and sound great, while also delivering on informing the viewer of the film’s history with the various little booklets always included and a nice collection of extras on the disc.

“We haven’t located us yet.”

3.  The Back to the Future Trilogy – The Back to the Future trilogy is one of the most accessible trilogies to sit down and watch.  These movies are all enjoyable to sit through and are certainly suited well for Blu-ray.  Watching these films in a crystal clear presentation, it’s great to see how well they hold up.  The first film, in particular, is literally a perfect example of having a high concept idea deliver on being a great time-traveling, comedy-adventure film for all to enjoy.  With these films now available on a pretty fantastic set of Blu-rays, I can only hope future generations are able to continue to experience the fun involved with these films.

“1.21 Gigawatts!”

2.  Aliens Anthology – There may only be two perfect films in this set, but that still means that you will get two perfect films.  The first two Alien movies are examples of classic cinema.  What is neat about the quadrilogy is how every film has a different director putting their stamp on it.  Now I can continue to experience these films in glorious high definition, as well as delve into the ridiculous amount of hours available to me in the form of special features, particularly the now uncut documentary regarding the production of Alien 3.  Plus, Ripley rules…you bitch!

“Game over man, game over.” (Blu-ray Review)

1.  Avatar: Extended Collector’s Edition – What makes this my number one Blu-ray (regardless of now negligible the rankings of this list are) is how well the work involved in the production of this film was communicated to me.  I’ve already acknowledged in plenty of other forums how much I do enjoy this film.  I am still not sure why a familiar story supposedly equals a bad story, but what I do know, is how time and newly invented technology equals awesome results.  The documentary on the making of Avatar is the true star of this Blu-ray set, as I was easily won over by this film even more, by seeing the sheer amount of work that James Cameron and his crew did during the making of this film.  The fact that the film looks and sounds great and that the disc boasts three different cuts of the film is also a nice touch.  One of the best examples for why Blu-ray is the format that I prefer to watch the movies I own on.

“That is one big, damn tree.” (Blu-ray Review)

Honorable Mentions:

Apocalypse Now, Saving Private Ryan, Psycho, The Man with No Name Trilogy, The Exorcist, Spartacus:  Blood and Sand, The Brothers Bloom, The Other Guys, Get Him to the Greek, Fantasia/Fantasia 2000

If you’d like to purchase any of these fine movies please click one of the links below:

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