The Aristocats

Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure

Pocahontas / Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World

The Rescuers / The Rescuers Down Under

The Tigger Movie

Seven movies on five discs, today’s release of new Blu-ray titles from Disney is unprecedented for the studio, and fans of quality hand drawn animation will not be disappointed.

Okay, so two of the titles, Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure and Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World, are direct-to-video sequels and don’t really deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as the rest of the group, but that doesn’t make their presence any less notable. In fact, with The Rescuers / The Rescuers Down Under (read my Blu-ray Review), The Aristocats  (read my Blu-ray Review) and Pocahontas Disney is finally showing a willingness to bring out its ‘lesser’ classics at a faster pace to Blu-ray than they’ve ever up to now exhibited. Better, the love and care they’ve given to these films is every bit as all-encompassing as what they’ve given to unquestioned classics like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Beauty and the Beast.

Weekend – Criterion Collection

From my theatrical review (read it here): “Writer and director Andrew Haigh’s Weekend is wonderful. An unflinching look at male intimacy, in many ways the movie plays like the gay version of Once, Before Sunrise or Brief Encounter. Romantic, tragic, heartbreaking and euphoric, this is an emotionally invigorating odyssey that held me spellbound all the way through, the movie elegantly building to a beautifully poignant coda that is as tearful as it uplifting.”

The Dictator

From my theatrical review (read it here): “[For] all its faults, The Dictator got me to laugh, got me to think and, more importantly, got me to ponder concepts and ideals I hadn’t before entering the theatre. While not great satire, Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest is still pretty darn good, and it doesn’t take a despot to urge those partial to this sort of thing to take a chance on the buying of a matinee ticket.”

Chimpanzee

From my theatrical review (read it here): “Chimpanzee did a fine job of transporting me right into the center of the rain forest. I felt like I was there with Oscar, Freddy and the others, was sitting next to them as the cracked nuts, climbed trees or defended their territory from invaders… if Disneynature keeps delivering efforts on this level here’s hoping this line of True-Life Adventures doesn’t come to an end anytime soon.”

Bernie

From my theatrical review (read it here): “In the truth is stranger than fiction files, few stories are more surreal and downright oddball than the one presented in Richard Linklater’s new film Bernie… [The movie] is simply unlike anything else out there making its way through the multiplexes. It is unique, tells a story most have never heard about, doing so with intelligence, style and panache.”

Wargames

Greetings, Professor Falken. Would you like to play a game? 

OTHER NOTABLE BLU-RAY RELEASES

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·         Black Magic Rites

·         Captain Carey, U.S.A.

·         Freelancers

·         Good Will Hunting – 15^th Anniversary Edition

·         Hell

·         Home Run Showdown

·         House M.D.: Season Eight

·         My Son John

·         One in the Chamber

·         Post Mortem

·         Private Hell 36

·         Pursued

·         Santa Fe Trail

·         Stephen  King’s Thinner

NOTABLE DVD RELEASES

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Virginia

A mentally unstable woman who has hidden a 20 year affair with a married sheriff, discovers that her son has fallen in love with the sheriff's daughter while searching for his father's identity. (Description reprinted from Amazon.com)

OTHER NOTABLE DVD RELEASES

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·         The Adventures Of Tintin: Season Three

·         The Closer: The Complete Seventh Season (Read Roy Earle’s DVD Review)

·         Mike & Molly: The Complete Second Season

·         NCIS: The Complete Ninth Season

·         NCIS: Los Angeles - The Third Season

·         Revenge: The Complete First Season

NOTABLE NEW BLU-RAY ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         Katy Perry: Part of Me (Sept 18, 2012)

·         Masters of the Universe (Oct 2, 2012)

·         Moonrise Kingdom (Oct 16, 2012)

·         That’s My Boy (Oct. 16, 2012)

·         Roshomon – Criterion Collection (Nov 6. 2012)

·         Sunset Boulevard (Nov 6, 2012)

·         Trilogy of Life – Criterion Collection (Nov 13, 2012)

·         Weekend (1967) – Criterion Collection (Nov 13, 2012)

·         Heaven’s Gate – Criterion Collection (Nov 20, 2012)