DISC JUST IN for 11/3/09

Here’s a look at the hottest new DVD and Blu-ray Disc releases for the week of November 3, 2009:

BLU-RAY MOVIES
Aliens in the Attic (Fox)
Answer Man (Magnolia)
A Christmas Carol (1951) (VCI)
Command Performance (First Look)
Direct Action (First Look)
Food, Inc. (Magnolia)
Forrest Gump (Paramount)
G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra (Paramount)
Howard’s End (Criterion)
I Love You, Beth Cooper (Fox)
It’s a Wonderful Life (Paramount)
Living Fireplace: Vol.2 (Screen Dreams)
Love Actually (Universal)
Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs IMAX (Image)
The Narrows (Image)
Nat.Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation: CE (Warner)
North by Northwest: 50th Anniversary (Warner)
Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (MGM)
Say Anything: 20th Anniversary (Fox)
The Taking of Pelham 123 (Sony)
Two Girls and a Guy (Fox)
Wings of Desire (Criterion)

DVD MOVIES
Aliens in the Attic (Fox)
Answer Man (Magnolia)
Bela Fleck: Throw Down Your Heart (Docurama)
The Claudette Colbert Collection (Universal)
Columbia Pictures Film Noir Classics I (Sony)
Command Performance (First Look)
Direct Action (First Look)
Food, Inc. (Magnolia)
G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobbra (Paramount)
I Love You, Beth Cooper (Fox)
Living Fireplace: Vol.2 (Screen Dreams)
Mickey’s Magical Christmas (Disney)
Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs IMAX (Image)
The Narrows (Image)
Nat.Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation: CE (Warner)
North by Northwest: 50th Anniversary (Warner)
Rockford Files Movie Collection: Vol.1 (Universal)
Rocky: The Undisputed Collection (MGM)
Say Anything: 20th Anniversary (Fox)
Spin City: Season 3 (Shout! Factory)
The Storm (RHI)
The Taking of Pelham 123 (Sony)
TCM Greatest Classic Films: Comedy (Warner)
TCM Greatest Classic Films: Hitchcock (Warner)
TCM Greatest Classic Films: Holiday (Warner)
Unmistaken Child (Oscilloscope)
Wings of Desire (Criterion)

TV-on-DISC
Fraggle Rock: Complete Series (Lionsgate)
Fraggle Rock: Final Season (Lionsgate)
G.I. Joe: Resolute (Paramount)
G.I. Joe: Season 1.2 (Shout! Factory)
Here’s Lucy: Season 2 (MPI)
Mission: Impossible: Final Season (Paramount)
Ruby-Spears SUPERMAN (Warner)
The Shield: Complete Series (Sony)
Star Wars: Clone Wars: Season 1 (Warner) (BD)
Witchblade: Complete Series (FUNimation) (BD)
Zorro (1957): Season 1 (Walt Disney Treasures)
Zorro (1958): Season 2 (Walt Disney Treasures)

HIGHLIGHTS

Christmas Vacation - Last year Warner Bros. had the brilliant idea of taking their beloved holiday classic A Christmas Story and decking it out as a superb cookie tin Collector’s Edition. It even came with leg lamp cookie cutters! This year, Warner continues the tradition and gives similar treatment to National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation in honor of its 20th anniversary. Except this time, in place of leg lamps, we get a miniature Wallyworld mug, drink coasters, fake snow and a Santa hat. It would have been nice to see the Griswolds get a high def video overhaul, but this movie still manages to get funnier ever time I watch it.  

Food, Inc. – They say ignorance is bliss. There may be something to that. This documentary on our nation’s food industry is positively required viewing for anyone who eats in this country. I tend to roll my eyes at the organic food craze and anyone who can’t appreciate the tastiness of a flame-broiled burger – but after seeing Food, Inc. I can promise you that my eyes have stopped rolling. Magnolia’s Blu-ray edition sports some occasionally fantastic HD imagery – but it’s the subject matter on display here that makes this must-see TV. Highly recommended.

Forrest Gump – Paramount has stopped sending out screeners, so consider this one a box of chocolates. I’m afraid I just can’t tell you what you’re gonna get.

G.I. Joe – Ditto on this one, another Paramount title. Yo, Joe or Ho, Hum? I wish I could tell you.

Howard’s End – Criterion gives the Merchant/Ivory classic a pristine HD restoration boasting exceptional image detail and a remarkably clean, blemish-free print with its film grain intact. As is the case with virtually all Criterion titles, Howard’s End gets a healthy assortment of wonderfully-produced extras, including a lengthy documentary on the making of the film plus a 1080p segment with James Ivory on the beginnings of his partnership with Ismail Merchant. Fans of this Anthony Hopkins/Emma Thompson classic shouldn’t hesitate to pick this one up.

Living Fireplace, Vol.2 - Best. Fake fireplace. Ever.

Love Actually – I’m working on a holiday round-up, so I’m going to save my thoughts on this one for that article. Suffice to say, Love Actually is a great little film with a large and eclectic cast of wonderful performers. Fans of romantic comedies and holiday films alike should definitely have Love Actually on their radar.

Mummies - I’m a sucker for IMAX. Although most home televisions can’t begin to create the IMAX theater-going experience, a front projection screen and these Image Entertainment Blu-ray editions get us closer than ever before. Like the IMAX-filmed seqences during The Dark Knight, Mummies boasts incredible amounts of fine detail and a three-dimensionality that creates a wholly immersive experience.

Rocky: Undisputed Collection – Yo, Blu-ray! Fans of the Italian Stallion have been patiently waiting for high def versions of Rocky II, III and IV and thankfully, the wait is over. (I can’t imagine anyone was actually waiting for part V.) This six-movie box set from MGM, which includes the satisfying final chapter (Rocky Balboa) is something of a mixed (punching) bag. First, the good news. It’s great to see the aforementioned three films finally getting the Blu-ray treatment and they look pretty good, particularly the underrated Rocky IV. However, the original Rocky, nominated for ten Academy Awards and winner of three – including Best Picture – hasn’t been given the restorative upgrade we were all hoping for. Rocky received an uninspiring MPEG-2 Blu-ray release in late 2006 and unfortunately MGM has simply carried that same disc over to this new box set. And that’s unfortunate because it makes this collection less of an "Undisputed" victory and more of a TKO.   

Say Anything – The quintessential John Cusack movie, and arguably Cameron Crowe’s best as well, it’s hard to believe it’s been twenty years since Lloyd Dobler first raised that boombox and permanently placed Peter Gabriel’s "In Your Eyes" into the movie music hall of fame. This new Blu-ray edition from Fox is a solid winner, provided of course that you don’t mind buying something that’s been processed and sold.

Taking of Pelham 123 – Generally speaking, it’s a safe bet: Denzel Washington + Tony Scott action = solid entertainment. Aside from Pulp Fiction, I’ve never really been able to buy John Travolta as a gun-toting baddie, but I suppose he aquits himself well enough here. As is the case with most of Sony’s new releases, this Blu-ray benefits from a stellar technical presentation headlined by stunning 1080p video. An adequate mix of extras rounds out this solid, BD LIVE-enabled high def package.

GREG’S PICK OF THE WEEK

North by Northwest (Blu-ray)
Warner Home Video | Not Rated | 1959 | 136 mins | $34.99

Willy Wonka, The Wizard of Oz, Casablanca - the list goes on. As they’ve done with so many classics, Warner once again pulls out all the stops and delivers a first-rate restoration on Alfred Hitchcock’s immortal North by Northwest. Thanks to a new 8k scan and a painstaking print clean-up, the resulting 1080p image is a sight to behold. Specks and visible print damage are nowhere to be found and image detail and color saturation have received a generous boost. Put simply, Cary Grant has never looked better – or tanner, for that matter. The newly-created Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack isn’t the surround event of the year, but nor should it be. This is a subtle, pleasing mix with strong, intellibible dialogue. Copious (and often lengthy) extras plus upscale DigiBook packaging round out this classy Blu-ray offering from the wizards at Warner. Highly recommended.

EVALUATION SYSTEM
Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 1080 projector
Carada Masquerade screen system (92")
Panasonic DMP-BD35 Blu-ray Disc player
Oppo DV-983H DVD player
Onkyo TX-SR805 A/V receiver
Noble Fidelity L-55 LCRS speakers
Datacolor SpyderTV PRO 2007 video calibration
Monster Power HTS5100 power center
BetterCables HDMI interconnects
UltraLink speaker wire