Umberto D. – Criterion Collection

Speaking of great movies, Vittorio De Sica’s unimpeachable classic of a retired bureaucrat living off his meager pension in Rome is every bit as powerful and poignant today as it must have been when first screened for audiences back in 1952. A sensation in every sense of the word, this is a title every cinephile worth their salt owes it to themselves to both see as well as add to their personal collection.

Safe (2012)

From my theatrical review (read it here): “[Safe]is fun, a ton of it, and for those eager to eat this sort of stuff up I’m hard-pressed to believe they won’t have a blast of a time watching it all unfold. [Writer/director Boaz] Yakin has crafted the type of B-movie extravaganza John Woo used to be able to pull off his during his Hong Kong days, and for those in the know if that isn’t high-praise I’m not entirely sure what else I could say would be.”

The Five-Year Engagement

From my theatrical review (read it here): “[I] can’t erase my frustrations caused by Segel and Stoller’s seeming inability to maintain focus or completely trust their audience. As courtships go, [The Five-Year Engagment] doesn’t have enough oomph to get me to the alter, making returning the ring far easier to do than I’d ever have expected it to be.”

Piranha 3DD

I’m not saying the 2010 remake/reimagining of Piranha was anything great, but Alexandre Aja’s feature had both a sense of humor and new how to set a standard for gross-out gore effects that few recent films have even come close to equaling. For fanatics of this sort of thing, it’s hugely re-watchable, and when screened with a group of friends the hooting and hollering tends to be rather on the extreme side.

What’s this have to do with the barely released sequel, Piranha 3DD? Nothing, nothing at all, which is not so incidentally all I have to say about the film here, i.e. nothing, nothing at all.

Hocus Pocus

There are those that adore this Disney family comedy revolving around a trio of witches (played by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy) doing Very Bad Things to a trio of kids (played by Omri Katz, Thora Birch and Vinessa Shaw) on Halloween night. There are those who don’t understand what they heck they see in the darn thing. Color me in that second group.

Mother’s Day (1980)

Speaking of B-movie cult horror favorites, 1980’s Mother’s Day, a work of ‘art’ (there’s a reason that word is in quotes) from the folks at Troma, makes it’s Blu-ray debut today. Why? Probably because the remake just came out a month or so ago, but also because it does have a fairly substantial following who enjoy waxing poetic about it. Deserved? Probably not, but there is some nasty grotesque unhinged charm to be found here if you’re in the mood for that sort of thing, and I certainly don’t feel even a wee bit embarrassed or bad that I tend to be in said mood more often than not.

High School

Pot comedy revolving around a school valedictorian who decides to experience the effects of marijuana for the first time who suddenly finds himself the target of a random drug test, the movie is notable more for its unhinged supporting cast (including a borderline brilliant Adrien Brody) than it is for either its central storyline or the young cast of unknowns the majority of the narrative focuses upon. There are laughs here, a lot of them, but not enough to make up for the choppy nature of the script or the haphazard way the whole thing feels thrown together.

2 Broke Girls: The Complete First Season

Bored to Death: The Complete Third Season

Fringe: The Complete Fourth Season

Haven: The Complete Second Season

How to Make It in America: The Complete Second Season

Hung: The Complete Third Season

The Office: Season Eight

Person of Interest: The Complete First Season

Thought there were a ton of television Blu-ray releases last week? Wait until you get a look at what is hitting shelves today. It’s a diverse group, each with their own following and shouts of support. Of the eight, the only one I’ve gotten a hard look at is Person of Interest (I’ll have a Blu-ray review up shortly). As for the rest, Haven and Fringe never did it for me, same goes for The Office. As for the rest, haven’t seen an episode of any of them, so I can’t make a statement towards quality (or lack thereof) so the decision whether to buy, rent or skip is totally up to you.

Mad Monster Party

The Rankin-Bass stop-motion animated cult favorite, long thought lost due to the original negative being damaged beyond repair, is given the best Blu-ray treatment possible considering all that Lionsgate was able to work with while preparing this release. Definitely worthy of a look, especially those with a fondness for Rankin-Bass classics like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and are curious to see the studio go into rather weird territory a bit outside their comfort zone.

My Sucky Teen Romance

Watched this during the 2012 Seattle International Film Festival. I shouldn’t have. Read into that what you will.

OTHER NOTABLE BLU-RAY RELEASES

(Support this site! Click title to buy from Amazon!)

·         Blindness (Read Sara’s Theatrical Review)

·         Child’s Play (1972)

·         Cold Creek Manor

·         The Hand that Rocks the Cradle

·         Harry Potter Wizard’s Collection (Item releases on Sept 7, 2012)

·         Man on a Swing

·         The Navigator

·         A New Leaf

·         Pursued

·         Secret Beyond the Door

·         Sleepwalkers

·         White Vengeance

·         Woman Thou Art Loosed: On the 7^th Day

NOTABLE DVD RELEASES

(Support this site! Click title to buy from Amazon!)

Megaforce

What the…? Is this for real? Megaforce is getting a DVD release? How is it not getting a Blu-ray release as well? Seriously, this piece of 1980’s sci-fi cheese is a total hoot in a so-bad-it-almost-good sort of way, and even though I was a kid the last time I saw it part of me is so enthused I’m almost tempted to buy this disc sight unseen (emphasis on ‘almost’).

Sacrifice

To save the only child of the Zhao Family, whose whole clan is massacred at the hands of a nefarious minister, a doctor sacrifices his own son, and later becomes intent on seeking vengeance against the minister after the child grows up. (Description reprinted from Amazon.com)

OTHER NOTABLE DVD RELEASES

(Support this site! Click title to buy from Amazon!)

·         Criminal Minds: Season 7

·         The Good Wife: The Third Season

·         Grey’s Anatomy: The Complete Eighth Season

·         Parks and Recreation: Season Four

NOTABLE NEW BLU-RAY ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         Arachnophobia (DATE CHANGE: Sept 25, 2012)

·         The Great Mouse Detective (DATE CHANGE: Oct. 9, 2012)

·         Magic Mike (Oct 23, 2012)

·         Wrong Turn 5: Bloodlines (Oct 23, 2012)

·         Excision (Oct 30, 2012)

·         Your Sister’s Sister (Nov 6, 2012)

·         Step Up 4: Revolution (Nov 27, 2012)