DVD and Blu-ray Releases for August 28th, 2012
August 28, 2012
We are clearly in TV on DVD season on the home market as there are five TV on DVD releases among the top six selling releases, with Battleship being the only first run release to break up the TV on DVD dominance. There are many such releases that are contenders for Pick of the Week: Boardwalk Empire: Season Two on Blu-ray, Homeland: Season One on Blu-ray, Once Upon a Time: Season One on Blu-ray, and The Walking Dead: Season Two on Blu-ray. However, in the end I went with The Pirates! Band of Misfits on 3D Combo Pack as the Pick of the Week. Meanwhile, Monsieur Lazhar on DVD or Blu-ray earns a rarely awarded Puck of the Week.
Battleship - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon: Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein, Agatha Christie's Poirot: Series 6, Airport, Apartment 143, Atonement, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Freezing: Complete Series, Harvey, Heineken Kidnapping, K-On: Season Two, Collection Two, Lonesome (Criterion Collection), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Lovely Molly, Out of Africa, Quadrophenia (Criterion Collection), and Sixteen Candles
3D Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon: Bloodsport, Go For It!, and The Pirates! Band of Misfits
Boardwalk Empire: Season Two - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Darling Companion - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Green Lantern: Animated Series: Season One, Part One - Buy from Amazon
Headhunters - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Homeland: Season One - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
In Plain Sight: Season Five - Buy from Amazon
Jersey Shore: Season Five - Buy from Amazon
Looney Tunes the Chuck Jones Collection Mouse - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
The Lucky One - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Monsieur Lazhar - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic: Royal Pony Wedding - Buy from Amazon
Sons of Anarchy: Season Four - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Starship Troopers: Invasion - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Streets of San Francisco: The Complete Fourth Season - Buy from Amazon
Think Like a Man - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Transformers Japanese Collection: Victory - Buy from Amazon
Two and a Half Men: Season Nine - Buy from Amazon
The Walking Dead: Season Two - Buy from Amazon: DVD, Blu-ray, or Collector's Edition Blu-ray
A History Channel TV series about actual history. That's a plus. But can it avoid the pitfalls of some of its less scholarly shows? Read our review to find out.
One of several films that struggled domestically but thrived internationally. Unfortunately, it was an overpriced movie and it will need a lot of help on the home market to break even. The reviews suggest it won't get there. Extras on the DVD include some featurettes, while the Blu-ray has a Picture-in-Picture track and some smaller extras. If you really want to buy the movie, the Blu-ray is worth the extra $3, but I can't recommend anything more than a rental.
Two Nickelodeon original TV movies coming out on one DVD. Are either of them worth checking out? And is the combined value worth the price? Check out our review for my opinion.
Universal's 100th anniversary celebration continues on Blu-ray, and they have a lot of great films coming out this week. However, I think Quadrophenia is the Blu-ray I'm most interested in.
The Pirates! Band of Misfits is a Pick of the Week contender. The other two releases are post-production 3D conversions released direct-to-DVD. I'm not sure how I feel about that. It could mean some interesting releases are on the way. Or it could mean studios will try to sucker people into spending more money on bad 3D effects.
Last year, I put in a request for a screener for season one of this show, but it never showed up. (There's always limited product and a lot of sites looking for screeners.) This year, I did the same, but so far it hasn't arrived. I remain hopeful that the screener is merely late. However, even sight-unseen, I can safely say this show is a Pick of the Week contender. It certainly has earned a lot of love from critics and Awards Season voters.
A Canadian movie based on the exploits of a real life bank robber. It failed to generate any noise at the box office, but does it deserve better on the home market? Read our review for my opinion.
Great Cast, terrible reviews, move along.
One of my favorite preschool shows around, because it has a lot of educational value. So what can kids, and their parents, learn about on this DVD? Read our review to find out.
D.C. rules the animated world when it comes to comic book adaptations. It's too bad for the studio that they can't seem to translate that success into live action movies, outside of Batman, of course. On a side note, these shows have a large enough adult following that a Blu-ray release would probably make sense.
Just a quick note that the screener has arrived, but it arrived late. I will get to it A.S.A.P.
Some have called this the best new show of last season. I'm not sure if that is true or not and I won't be able to make a judgment call till after the screener arrives. I'm really looking forward to it and with solid extras (audio commentary track, making of featurette, deleted scenes) it is a contender for Pick of the Week.
For fans of this series, it is a bittersweet week. Season five comes out on the home market, but that marks the end of the show's run.
Proof humanity is not worth saving.
Chronological order. Warner Bros. is not getting another cent from me till they start releasing their sets in chronological order.
Based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks. 90% of the people reading this already know if they want to buy or not. His films generally suck, but there is a core audience that loves them. This one is no different. However, its reviews are even worse than average. The DVD and the Blu-ray have a trio of featurettes, which is not enough to lift the film to the rental level, unless you are a hardcore Sparks fan.
This film earned stellar reviews and even an Oscar nomination. Extras are limited to a featurette and an interview, but it is still Pick of the Week material.
One of three or four featured reviews on this week's list that involve vampires. (I'm not sure if The Living Dead Girl was a true vampire or not. Is this film worth checking out for fans of the genre? And is the DVD or Blu-ray worth picking up? Read our review to find out.
The screener arrived a little late, but was it worth the wait? Check out our review for my opinion.
One of two network shows that debuted last fall that dealt with fairytales in the modern world. The other was Grimm, but I'm still waiting for that screener to arrive. In the meantime, is this show worth checking out? And is the DVD or Blu-ray worth picking up? Read our review for my opinion.
Only the third 3D I've had a chance to review. Is it better than the first two? Is it worth spending the money for the 3D effects? Check out our review to find out.
Black Magic Rites - Buy from Amazon
The Living Dead Girl - Buy from Amazon
Two Orphan Vampires - Buy from Amazon
Three horror films from the Redemption library. Are any of them worth checking out? And are the Blu-rays worth picking up? Read our review to find out.
One of FX's biggest hits; in fact, season four was the show's best showing in terms of ratings, although the show didn't do as well with Awards Season voters as it has in the past two seasons. Extras include extended editions of some episodes, audio commentary tracks on a few episodes, featurette, deleted scenes, and outtakes. Worth picking up for fans of the show and the Blu-ray is worth the extra $5.
Dora the Explorer: Dora's Halloween Parade - Buy from Amazon.ca
Two Halloween themed DVDs from Nickelodeon are coming out this week, although one of them is a Canadian only release. Are either of them worth picking up? Or are we dealing with too many double-dips? Read our review for my opinion.
The original bombed at the box office, so why do they keep making direct-to-DVD sequels?
Great show, but the price-per-minute is a little high due to the split-season release.
A romantic comedy based on the relationship advice book by Steve Harvey. I haven't read the book, but I've seen some examples of really bad advice found within, but the reviews were better than expected, as was its box office performance. Extras include five featurettes and some deleted scenes. It's worth picking up if you are a fan of the genre and / or cast.
I'm still waiting for the screener for this DVD to arrive. I did like the other Japanese Transformers series I got a chance to review, so I'm cautiously optimistic here as well.
An unchallenging TV sitcom that has overstayed its welcome.
This show became an immediate hit with fans of genre TV (Sci-fi, fantasy, and horror) and was also heavily praised by critics. Season two brought in even more viewers, but some critics started voicing concerns over the quality of the show, as it entered soap opera territory too often. It is still a great show, but there are signs they need to get back to what made season one amazing. Extras include five audio commentary tracks, a collection of short making of featurettes, webisodes, and deleted scenes. There are no exclusives on the Blu-ray, but it only costs $5 / 20% more, which is a good price. On the other hand, the Collector's Edition costs twice as much, which is asking a lot.
Filed under: DVD and Blu-ray Releases, Home Market Releases, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Out of Africa, Atonement, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Sixteen Candles, Bloodsport, Battleship, The Lucky One, The Moth Diaries, Darling Companion, The Pirates! Band of Misfits, Hodejegerne, Go For It!, Think Like a Man, Monsieur Lazhar, Lovely Molly, Emergo, Citizen Gangster, Starship Troopers: Invasion, Riti, magie nere e segrate orge nel trecento, Les deux orphelines vampires, La Morte Vivante