DVD and Blu-ray Releases for July 24th, 2012
July 23, 2012
I'm getting tired of saying this, but it is a slow week on the home market. There is one prime release, Star Trek: The Next Generation: Season One on Blu-ray, which is currently leading this week's new releases, according to Amazon.com. The second best selling new release is Masterpiece Mystery: Inspector Lewis Series 5 on DVD. It's a good show, but it is a British Import and these rarely make an impact on the chart. Third best selling new release? Game of Thrones. This is the third or fourth time the first season of this TV show has been "released" on the home market. I don't know why they are doing this, but it is getting annoying. There are not a lot of contenders for Pick of the Week either. Jiro Dreams of Sushi on Blu-ray and Star Trek: The Next Generation are the two leading contenders. While ST:TNG became an amazing series, it started out weak, so Jiro Dreams of Sushi is the better choice, but both are easily worth picking up.
2012 NBA Championship: Highlights - Blu-ray / DVD Combo Pack - Buy from Amazon
Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon: Big Easy Express, Brake, Clannad: After Story: Complete Collection, Dracula vs. Frankenstein, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Last Days of Disco (Criterion Collection), The Last of England, Life, Metropolitan (Criterion Collection), My Way, Mystery Men, On the Inside, Peter Gabriel: Secret World: Live, and They Made Me a Fugitive
Boss: Season 1 - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Childrens Hospital: The Complete Third Season - Buy from Amazon
Dave's World: Season Three - Buy from Amazon
Dawn Riders - Buy from Amazon: DVD, Blu-ray, or Video on Demand
The Deep Blue Sea - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
The Faculty - Blu-ray - Buy from Amazon
Footnotes - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
The Girl from the Naked Eye - Buy from Amazon
Masterpiece Mystery: Endeavour - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Masterpiece Mystery: Inspector Lewis Series 5 - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Meeting Evil - Buy from Amazon
MGM MOD Wave 16:
Michael Wood's Story of England - Buy from Amazon
Monitor - Buy from Amazon
Nature: Cracking the Koala Code - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
NHL Stanley Cup Champions 2012 - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Queen & Country - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Silent House - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Touched By An Angel: Season Five - Buy from Amazon
Treasure Island - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Untouchables: Season Four - Buy from Amazon: Volume One and Volume Two
WWE: Undertaker - The Streak - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Real fans want full games.
Not much here worth picking up. Either of the two Criterion Collection releases or They Made Me a Fugitive are your best bet. Mystery Men is goofy fun, while The Island of Dr. Moreau reaches the so bad it's good level for some.
Kelsey Grammer stars as Tom Kane, mayor of Chicago. The film earned excellent reviews and Kelsey Grammer even won a Golden Globe for his performance, but it was ignored by Emmy voters. Strange. Extras include two audio commentary tracks and a making of featurette. That's okay but not great.
This 1993 Hong Kong martial arts movie hits the home market this week. It has a strong cast, but is the end result worth it? Check out our review for my opinion.
I might get a chance to review this TV show. It has a lot of comedic talent, and I've heard good things about it. I've also heard it is a rather strange show.
I really like Dave Barry's writing, but the sitcom was only mediocre. It was a good way to waste 30 minutes, but there wasn't a whole lot of replay value.
A low-budget remake of a John Wayne western from 1935. Is it worth checking out for fans of the genre? Read our review to find out.
Rachel Weisz plays a woman post World War II, who is torn between her loveless marriage to a rich and powerful man, Simon Russell Beale, and a free-spirited but poor man, Tom Hiddleston. Its reviews were fantastic, but it started out weak at the box office; however, it held on better than expected and crossed $1 million at the box office.
An early film from Robert Rodriguez, and the first full film of his to not earn overwhelmingly positive reviews. Has it aged better? Or is it only for hardcore fans? Check out our review to find out.
This film earned outstanding reviews and even picked up an Independent Spirit Award It earned just over $2 million at the box office, which is amazing, but unfortunately, the DVD and Blu-ray are a little light on extras. It's still worth picking up, but not a contender for Pick of the Week.
Just a quick update to last week't review. The Blu-ray has arrived and I was able to check it out. There were no exclusive extras on the Blu-ray, but I was fairly certainly that was true last week. The video is better than expected with a very high level of detail, vibrant colors, deep blacks and strong contrast. There are no significant compression issues or digital artifacts. The audio's solid, but not showy. It's a dialogue driven drama, so there's not a lot of activity from the surround sound speakers, but there's enough to not seem bare. Definitely worth the price.
Good action, wooden acting, weak story. Is that enough for an overall recommendation? Depends on how much you like martial arts revenge movies.
One of the biggest box office hits for the genre this year. Is it also one of the best? Is it worth picking up? Should you order in sushi before you start watching? Check out our review for my opinion.
A prequel to the Inspector Morse series. The TV movie earned excellent reviews and if you are a fan of the series, it is worth checking out.
A British murder mystery series. It's very good, but very pricey, unless you consider it three TV movies.
A box office bomb that earned zero positive reviews. Skip it.
Mr. Wong in Chinatown - Buy from Amazon
Sixpack Annie - Buy from Amazon
Lisa - Buy from Amazon
Boris & Natasha: The Movie - Buy from Amazon
The latest round of MGM MOD releases. Made on Demand titles are generally third-tier or lower, those the studio thinks won't generate enough interest for a full DVD release. Are there any hidden gems to be found here? Check out our review to find out.
The look of the history of England from the Roman times till today, through the eyes of one village, Kibworth, Leicestershire. The TV series earned good reviews, but I'm not sure how many people here will be interested enough in this level of British history to buy the DVD.
I might get a chance to review this movie. Its reviews are good, while Noomi Rapace is a great actress, so I hope the screener arrives soon.
Koala's have codes? I always knew they were up to something.
Real fans want full games, not a highlight reel. It is selling better than I expected, on the other hand, Maybe hockey is gaining fans in the United States.
First the royal wedding and now this. It's like the Queen is trying to raise an army to retake the United States and is using DVD and Blu-ray sales to pay for it.
I was really looking forward to this movie, as Elizabeth Olsen really impressed me in her first film. However, the reviews were weak and it went nowhere at the box office. This could explain why there's only an audio commentary as an extra, which further hurts the overall value. Call it a rental, but I was hoping for more.
At one time, this show was the most successful syndicated show of all time. This is not surprising, as it is part of one of the most successful Sci-fi franchises of all time. However, did the series get off to a strong start during its first season? And is the Blu-ray worth the price? Check out our review to find out.
It has been a while since this show was released on DVD. If you are a fan of the series, you'd better buy this DVD right away, because poor sales might mean the other seasons never come out.
A mini-series based on a famous novel. Its reviews are only mixed, while the extras are light (audio commentary track and a handful of short featurettes). If you like some of the cast and are a fan of the story, it is worth a rental.
Good show, but I don't like it when studios split the season into two volumes. It almost always means the end result is overpriced.
Not a fan of wrestling, but I mention the releases, because they tend to sell well, so obviously there are enough people interested that I should mention them.
Filed under: DVD and Blu-ray Releases, Home Market Releases, Life, The Faculty, Mystery Men, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Lisa, The Last Days of Disco, Metropolitan, The Deep Blue Sea, Friends with Kids, Meeting Evil, He'arat Shulayim, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, Silent House, Brake, Mai wei, Dawn Rider, The Girl From the Naked Eye, On The Inside, San lau sing woo dip gim, The Last of England, They Made Me a Fugitive, Boris & Natasha: The Movie, Sixpack Annie, Mr. Wong in Chinatown