ARRRRGH! I can feel my wallet getting lighter and lighter!
What an amazing week of releases. How can I possibly select only one as my pick of the week when there is both a new Criterion disc AND a box of my favourite TV episodes hitting the shelves? Solution: choose both!
PICK OF THE WEEK FOR APRIL 28 – STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES (SEASON ONE)
Paramount brings us the long awaited release of Star Trek: The Original Series with this first season box, timed to coincide with the theatrical release of J.J. Abrams’ re-imagining. I really can’t wait to get my hands on this and deliver a full review but from what I’ve read around the internets, I can tell you that this box is truly the definitive collection of this classic series. Season One features the first 29 episodes of Star Trek, starring William Shatner as Captain Kirk and Leonard Nimoy as his Vulcan first officer, Mr. Spock, in full 1080p High Definition in the original 4:3 television aspect ratio, with your choice of either 7.1 DTS-HD MA or the original English 2.0 Mono. While this set is chock-a-block full of special features (click over to our previous report to read all the details), what intrigues me most about it is the ability to toggle back and forth using the ‘angle’ button on your Blu-ray player remote between the original special effects and the updated CGI effects! I can’t wait to compare 1960s Enterprise-on-a-string to 2009 computer-generated, super-powered Enterprise. Here’s hoping that George Lucas is paying attention and gives his Star Wars films this treatment when they eventually hit Blu.
And there’s more good news about Star Trek: The Original Series (Season One)! Amazon.com has the box-set on sale for $64.99. That’s 50% of the MSRP of $129.99. Click on over to Amazon to pick it up before they bump the price back up.
PICK OF THE WEEK FOR APRIL 28 – IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES
It’s sad that In the Realm of the Senses, an explicit Franco-Japanese production directed by Nagisa Oshima, is looked upon as pornography. As a result, it’s been hacked, reframed and out-right banned in most countries, including Canada. Based upon a true story taking place in 1930s Japan (read profiles of the real-life Sada Abé and the actress who portrayed her on Criterion‘s website), Senses is “a graphic portrayal of insatiable sexual desire” about a prostitute and a hotel owner willing to sacrifice everything to indulge their hunger for one another. The film focuses on the power dynamics between the two characters, leaving Abé’s status as folk hero for others to explore (see Noboru Tanaka‘s film A Woman Called Sada Abé). Criterion’s Blu-ray treatment sports a 1.66:1 theatrical aspect ratio delivered in 1080p using the AVC codec and looks spectacular. Colours are rich and deep and the overall image is sharp without a hint of edge enhancement. Just what you’d expect from Criterion.
ALSO AVAILABLE THIS WEEK
[...] right, so I’ve been a little Star Trek crazy over here. You can’t blame a guy, really, what with the J.J. Abrams’ movie being so [...]
[...] The Blu-ray Blog Pick of the Week April 28 [...]
[...] The Blu-ray Blog Pick of the Week April 28 [...]