Archive Page 532
January 10th, 2012 by Gerard Iribe
Twentieth Century Fox’s first-ever animated film, created by renowned director Ralph Bakshi, WIZARDS appears in a 35th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray + Book release on March 13 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Celebrating its 35th anniversary, the “epic fantasy of peace and magic” stars the voice talent of Mark Hamill (Star Wars Saga). The special edition Blu-ray + Book release is a must-have for fans and collectors, featuring 24-pages of amazing artwork from the film, some of the artwork never-before-seen, and a special message from Bakshi! Set on a post-apocalyptic Earth, this fantasy adventure follows the story of Avatar, the kindly, eccentric sorcerer-ruler of Montagar, a rainbow paradise inhabited by elves and fairies. Avatar’s evil brother, Blackwolf, dominates Scortch, a bleak land of goblins and wraiths. When the power-hungry Blackwolf attacks Montagar, Avatar, accompanied only by a spirited young woman and a courageous elf, must enter the darkness of Scortch to save his world. WIZARDS will be available as a Blu-ray + Book release for the ARP of $19.99. Continue reading ‘‘Wizards: 35th Anniversary Edition’ on Blu-ray March 13′
January 10th, 2012 by Gerard Iribe
Adam Sandler (Just Go With It, Grown Ups) plays both title roles in the outrageous slapstick comedy Jack & Jill, coming to Blu-rayTM with UltraViolet™, Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack, single disc DVD and Digital March 6th from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The film also stars Katie Holmes as the beautiful wife of Jack Sadelstein (Adam Sandler), a successful advertising executive, who dreads one event each year: the visit of his identical twin sister Jill (also Adam Sandler). The bonus features include the laugh-out-loud blooper reel “Laughter is Contagious,” deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes featurettes. Available for $35.99 SRP (Blu-ray), $40.99 SRP (Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack) and $30.99 SRP (DVD), Jack & Jill will also feature UltraViolet™. With UltraViolet, owners of the Blu-ray will be able to add Jack & Jill to their UltraViolet digital collection in the cloud, enabling them to instantly stream or download the film. Continue reading ‘‘Jack and Jill’ on Blu-ray March 6′
January 10th, 2012 by Sean Ferguson
A once-powerful warrior king takes on a new life as an assassin for hire in the DVD Original The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption, available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Download January 10, 2012. The latest chapter in Universal’s enormously popular The Mummy franchise, The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption brings the heroic, larger-than-life saga of the dethroned king Mathayus to face some of his fiercest demons and most vicious rivals—both real and supernatural—ever. In a dangerous, action-packed battle to regain his glory and reclaim the empire, Mathayus’s journey is steeped in intrigue, sorcery and romance. The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption stars Golden Globe winner Ron Perlman (“Sons of Anarchy,” Hellboy II: The Golden Army) as Horus, the powerful King of Egypt and Billy Zane (The Roommate, Titanic) as the villainous Talus. Directed by Roel Reiné, the film also stars Victor Webster (“Castle,” Surrogates) as Mathayus and UFC star Kimbo Slice (Locked Down), Bostin Christopher (Unbreakable); six-time WWE World Champion Dave Bautista, and Temeura Morrison (Green Lantern, Stars Wars: Episode 3 — Revenge of the Sith). Continue reading ‘The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption is Now Available! Check out these clips!’
January 10th, 2012 by Gerard Iribe
Teeming with murder, corruption, greed and sex, director Roman Polanski’s unforgettable classic CHINATOWN arrives for the first time ever on Blu-ray April 3, 2012 from Paramount Home Media Distribution. Starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway and John Huston, the film follows an intricate web of deception as private investigator Jake Gittes (Nicholson) unravels a mystery involving water rights that are critical to the development of Los Angeles, as well as unspeakable family secrets. Written by Academy Award® winner Robert Towne, CHINATOWN was nominated for 11 Oscars® and was named by the AFI as one of the top 25 American films ever made. With a new high definition transfer, the CHINATOWN Blu-ray sports packaging that features the original theatrical poster and includes a collectible booklet. The disc includes over 2 ½ hours of bonus material such as an illuminating, feature-length commentary by screenwriter Robert Towne and director David Fincher (Zodiac); an in-depth, three-part documentary on the history and impact of the Los Angeles Aqueduct and the continuing efforts to cultivate water resources for the metropolis; an appreciation of the film by prominent filmmakers; a look at the filming; an exploration of the legacy of this cinematic masterpiece; and more. Continue reading ‘‘Chinatown’ on Blu-ray April 3′
January 9th, 2012 by Aaron Neuwirth
The end of 2011 brought us War Horse and We Bought a Zoo, which were films that really poured on the sentiment. They were also films that I overall liked, mainly because their aim to be well-meaning and sweet-natured did not affect my judgment on other aspects of the films to arrive at an appropriate decision. Again, having sentiment is not a bad thing, if it stems from somewhere that doesn’t just feel like a film being manipulative for the sake of generating emotions. Dolphin Tale is fine. There is nothing that really makes it great, but nothing that really highlights its flaws. It is a cute movie, with the benefit of a charismatic cast to make up for its shortcomings. The real story that the film is based around helps matters a bit and I am sure families can appreciate the film’s Blu-ray presentation. Continue reading ‘Dolphin Tale (Blu-ray Review)’
January 7th, 2012 by Aaron Neuwirth
Formerly one of my favorite animated series and one of the more fun ways to experience clever and outrageous sci-fi humor, Futurama returns to Blu-ray once again with a batch of 13 episodes under the title of “Volume 6”. This Emmy Award winning season offers another collection of fun adventures, featuring all of characters people managed to love enough to resurrect from previous cancellation. Add to that some stunning animation which is well suited for Blu-ray, a lot of laughs that make this whole half of a season quite enjoyable (which includes the audio commentaries for every episode), and a few more additional extras, and this is a 2-Disc set that’s quite worth it. Continue reading ‘Futurama: Volume 6 (Blu-ray Review)’
January 5th, 2012 by Gerard Iribe
Legendary Swedish sex bomb Anita Ekberg (LA DOLCE VITA) stars as Sister Gertrude, a cruel nun who discovers depraved pleasure in a frenzy of drug addiction, sexual degradation and sadistic murder. Joe Dallesandro (FLESH FOR FRANKENSTEIN), Lou Castel (A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL), Alida Valli (SUSPIRIA) and the luscious Paola Morra (BEHIND CONVENT WALLS) co-star in this notorious ‘Nunsploitation’ based on actual events that took place in a Central European country not many years ago! Branded as obscene around the world and banned outright in Britain, KILLER NUN has been newly remastered from the original negative and is now presented with all its blasphemous sex and violence fully restored in sleazy High Definition! Continue reading ‘‘Killer Nun’ on Blu-ray April 24′
January 4th, 2012 by Jami Ferguson
Death is just as omnipresent as ever, and in Final Destination 5 it strikes again. During the bus ride to a corporate retreat, Sam (Nicholas D’Agosto) has a premonition in which he and most of his friends — as well as numerous others — die in a horrific bridge collapse. When his vision ends, events begin to mirror what he had seen, and he frantically ushers as many of his colleagues — including his friend, Peter (Miles Fisher), and girlfriend, Molly (Emma Bell) — away from the disaster before Death can claim them. But these unsuspecting souls were never supposed to survive, and in a terrifying race against time, the ill-fated group tries to discover a way to escape Death’s sinister agenda. Continue reading ‘Final Destination 5 (Blu-ray Review)’
January 3rd, 2012 by Sean Ferguson
When the staff of New York City’s most expensive and luxurious condominium discovers that the billionaire investment advisor living in the penthouse has plundered their retirement fund, they take matters into their own hands. Convinced that light-fingered Wall Street Titan Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) has stashed his ill-gotten millions in his apartment, building manager Josh Kovacs (Ben Stiller) rallies his troops and enlists the help of small-time thief Slide (Eddie Murphy) to make sure they get back what’s rightfully theirs. These rookie thieves—including high-strung concierge Charlie (Casey Affleck), broke ex-Wall Streeter Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick), new bellhop Dev’Reaux (Michael Peña) and feisty maid Odessa (Gabourey Sidibe)—know the building better than anyone. It turns out they’ve been casing the place for years…they just didn’t know it. Continue reading ‘Tower Heist is Available to Pre-order and Arrives on Blu-ray Feb. 21st!’
January 3rd, 2012 by Aaron Neuwirth
Archer is currently one of the best animated comedies on television, let alone one of the best comedies on television. It a show that takes the format of a basic spy series, but as opposed to coming off like another forgettable spy spoof, the series is full of rapid-fire humor, with jokes that range from being incredibly witty and reference heavy to incredibly raunchy and filthy. The stylized nature of the animation and character designs only add to the bawdiness of the humor. Now the complete 13-episode second season of Archer is available on Blu-ray and it looks and sounds great. Continue reading ‘Archer – The Complete Season Two (Blu-ray Review)’
January 2nd, 2012 by Aaron Neuwirth
It’s easy to write off sentiment. Having a sweet-natured sensibility is apparently a negative for films that wear their hearts on their sleeves these days. I don’t feel this way when the film is both effective and presents more than just these qualities. Before seeing Spielberg’s beautifully made War Horse, I had recently seen The Help for the first time. That’s a film that cuts down a significant struggle to simplistic storytelling and plays up the sentiment factor, but it works because of the strong acting present throughout. Similarly, War Horse does not present an agenda or have the need to delve into true darkness like past Spielberg films set during wartime. The goal of this film is to simply cover the lifetime of an equestrian protagonist and how he effects those around him, during the film’s various segments. Continue reading ‘Melodramatic ‘War Horse’ Is Beautiful And Stirring All The Same’
January 2nd, 2012 by Sean Ferguson
Two years after the release of its landmark Emmy-winning series WWII in HD, The History Channel shifts its focus to a new generation and one of the most controversial chapters in American history, the Vietnam War. Vietnam in HD will immerse viewers in the sights, the sounds and the stories of the Vietnam War as it has never before been seen. Thousands of hours of uncensored footage – much of it shot by soldiers in action – will detail every critical chapter of the conflict. The war will unfold onscreen through the gripping firsthand accounts of thirteen brave men and women who were forever changed by their experience in Vietnam. Continue reading ‘Vietnam in HD (Blu-ray Review)’
January 2nd, 2012 by Gerard Iribe
It’s been about a year and a half since The Expendables hit theaters to box office success and about a year since the Blu-ray hit stores. Well, at one point Sylvester Stallone himself made the announcement via his Twitter account that he was back in the editing suite working on a director approved extended cut for release sometime soon. He went to work on it immediately and hasn’t been heard as much from due to filming The Expendables 2 and other projects. The man did keep his promise and we have been graced with The Expendables: Extended Director’s Cut on Blu-ray. Will the extended cut measure up to the theatrical cut or will it be inferior? I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the Blu-ray, so let’s hit it! Continue reading ‘The Expendables: Extended Director’s Cut (Blu-ray Review)’
January 2nd, 2012 by Gerard Iribe
The late 90’s have caught up to me again, yo! Cop Land was to be the ensemble drama to end the decade. You had Sylvester Stallone, Ray Liotta, Harvey Keitel, and Robert De Niro headlining the film, but you also had Stallone not playing an “ordinary” character. Up until that point he was known as the hero and action star. Would this be his time to get an Oscar as opposed to just starring in a film named Oscar. Okay, that was a bit of a reach there, wasn’t it. Well, almost fifteen years later, and here we are with Cop Land on Blu-ray. How will this film stack up to scrutiny? Will Stallone’s performance shine through? How will the supporting cast perform? Will they chew up the scenery or will they let the film breathe a little? All this and more will be answered as Why So Blu tackles Cop Land on Blu-ray. Continue reading ‘Cop Land (Blu-ray Review)’
December 31st, 2011 by Will Santana
The third-dimension hasn’t been much of a discussion but more of a debate. You either hate it or love it. Some are fans of the depth that’s added to a movie’s visual presentation while others prefer pop-out effects that make you feel like you’re a part of the movie. The new Blu-ray 3D format has been questioned of its possible failure or success. 2011 had a slow start with 3D content being released, but by mid-year, the animation was popping out and by year’s end, the live-action films made way to the new format. Studio’s making certain titles exclusive with certain TV set brands has also made adopters of Blu-ray 3D frustrated. Making it very hard to view new content on a small market but finally during the summer, we started to finally see retail market releases for these exclusives. DreamWorks has decided to release their titles exclusively for BestBuy right now. Overall, 2011 was actually a pretty good release year for Blu-ray 3D with some hits and some misses here and there. Continue reading ‘Will’s Top 10 3D Blu-rays of 2011′
December 29th, 2011 by Aaron Neuwirth
About 45 minutes into this Russian-set alien invasion movie I realized that I had no idea what the names of the characters I had been following were. That probably sums up the character work done in this film to keep you hoping for their survival, even though the leads are fairly likable. I should also note that at this point, I’ll only refer to the actors by their real names. Nothing makes this badly timed release (Christmas Day, really?) an abysmal film, it just feels like an incompetent one, with a noticeably bad handle on its editing. As a result, The Darkest Hour is not as laughably bad (making it almost good, but not really) like Skyline, but it’s also not full of serviceable grit and over-the-top (but still kinda enjoyable) gusto like Battle: LA. It just sits in the “this will soon be available for $4 in a bargain bin” territory. But hey, at least it was shot in 3D, right? Continue reading ‘‘The Darkest Hour’ Didn’t Quite Brighten My Day’
December 28th, 2011 by Gregg Senko
I was kind of worried throughout the first half of the year that it wasn’t going to be a pleasant 2011 as far as theater viewings went. There were more than a few flops at the cinema by the time June came to a close with a sparse picking of films that had some ‘wow’ factor. Thankfully, the second half of 2011 made up for it in just about any genre you can think of, and as December winds down, I waited until seeing War Horse before releasing this list. However, that potentially epic film fell short and didn’t come close to making the list. So without any more delay, here are some of the best and worst films we’ve had the opportunity (or displeasure) of experiencing since January…
Continue reading ‘Gregg’s Top 10 Cinema Films of 2011 (and some duds too)’
December 27th, 2011 by Gerard Iribe
It’s been about three years or so since Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark began principle photography. All was fun and games until Miramax was bought out by Disney and several films in the Miramax slate were shelved. Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark was one of these films. At long last the film saw a wide release a few months ago, through different distributors, and we now have the latest Guillermo Del Toro produced picture on Blu-ray. Yes, it so happens that this version of Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark is also a remake of a cult horror favorite. Since Guillermo Del Toro is spearheading the project, it can only be good, right? Don’t be afraid of this review and come on in… Continue reading ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (Blu-ray Review)’
