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1. THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON

I never in a million years thought I would put a show called The Vampire Diaries in the number one slot. Not being a Twilight fan (I’m more of a Bela Lugosi/Christopher Lee kind of vampire lover!) I kept my distance from the CW series this past year, avoiding what I perceived to be another network television dud. I couldn’t have been more wrong!

This is one hell of a show! I only got my review copy in a few days ago and have been trying to burn through the episodes as quickly as possible but sadly wasn’t able to make it to the end before having to talk about it. But let me tell you, I’m past the halfway point and I’m having a blast with the series! It starts off with a thud – another CW-tween clunker from the mind of Kevin Williamson, the creator of Dawson’s Creek. Those first few episodes are really clunkers, playing more like a rancid mixture of the worst parts of Gossip Girl and Twilight than quality horror/drama. Thankfully, the series takes a quick 180, and busts out an intriguing plot-line with enough gory twists and turns to satisfy even the most discriminating soap-operatic TV viewer. With it’s central human-girl and vampire-boy love story, coupled with more supernatural supporting characters and sub-plots than you can shake a stick at, the first season of The Vampire Diaries ends up playing more like a satisfying True Blood-lite than Twilight knock-off.

The image on the Blu-ray is pretty but also pretty inconsistent, with detail waxing and waning, colours running hot then cold and black crushing the crap out of everything. Not technically the picture of a reference release but very appropriate for the style of the series. As such, I’ve got to believe that the show was shot this way and not a product of a bad transfer. Audio is sadly only offered in a compressed Dolby Digital 5.1 surround mix, WHV standard for TV releases.

Despite a weaker-than-expected A/V polish for the Blu-ray release of The Vampire Diaries, the special features on the discs really shine. Along with a pretty compelling collection of featurettes and a commentary track from the series creators, the discs feature a downloadable audiobook of the first novel in the L.J. Smith series that the TV show is based on. Check out the full list of extras below.

Special Features:

• Pilot commentary
• Into Mystic Falls: bringing vampire lore and the high school experience from page to screen
• When Vampires Don’t Suck!: the popularity of vampires and the fans who love them
• The Vampire Diaries: A New Breed of Vampires — Casting the Series
• The Vampire Diaries: Vampires 101 – The Rules of the Vampire
• Unaired scenes
• The Vampire Diaries: A Darker Truth webisodes
• Second Bite: gag reel
• Downloadable audiobook of the bestselling novel The Vampire Diaries: The Awakening by L.J. Smith

Amazon: $44.99

2. THE EVIL DEAD

Completing the famous tongue-in-cheek horror trilogy in high-def, the original Evil Dead is now on Blu-ray and from what I’ve seen the transfer is out of this world! Sam Raimi fans shouldn’t hesitate to pick up this first-ever 1080p presentation of the film, as it appears to be the absolute best the film will ever look. Most of the extras are relegated to an unfortunate SD presentation, stuck on the bonus DVD in the package but the Blu-ray itself features a brand-spanking-new commentary track from the director and star Bruce Campbell. Highly recommended!

Amazon: $17.49

3. RED RIDING

I’m pretty bummed out that IFC crammed all three films of the Red Riding trilogy onto one disc. Based on David Peace‘s books about serial murder and police corruption in Britain over a period of time between the 70s and 80s, these made-for-TV efforts are so well done that they actually saw a limited theatrical release here in North America! After such critical acclaim, I’m really surprised they weren’t afforded more pomp and circumstance in their Blu-ray release.

Amazon: $24.99

4. SONS OF ANARCHY: SEASON TWO

I know very little about this show aside from the fact that it’s about guys on bikes. And that people love the crap out of it! Reviews have been fairly positive and seeing as how there isn’t a whole heck of a lot out on BD this week, I thought it was probably the most deserving of the number four slot this week. Am I wrong? Should I run out and grab this second season set when I’m through with my Vampire stories?

Amazon: $41.99

5. HARRY BROWN

Michael Caine packing heat, out for revenge in Get Carter mode, cracking the skulls of those who have wronged him — That’s all you need to know about Harry Brown. I haven’t seen it yet, though I’ve heard that it doesn’t quite live up to it’s Gran-Torino-UK premise. But negative reviews aside, this is exactly the sort of film that I’m a sucker for.

Amazon: $21.49

ANIME OF THE WEEK: Black Blood Brothers: The Complete Series

We must be inching closer to Halloween because all the vampire fliks are crawling out of the crypt! This weeks big anime release from our pals at FUNimation is the complete Black Blood Brothers series on Blu-ray and, while it’s a much different beast from its fanged high-def companion, it’s equally as entertaining.

The story is a deeply textured affair, following an ancient, powerful vampire named Jiro who is traveling with his young brother to the secret “Special Zone” where humans and vampires live together in peace. Caught up in the struggle to stop bloodthirsty creatures from the Kowloon Bloodline, Jiro uncovers a conspiracy to resurrect their dead king and infect both vampires and humans in the Zone.

The plotline sounds like adolescent trash but plays out to a fairly satisfying conclusion. Combined with a reasonable up-ressed transfer, booming Dolby TrueHD 2.0 English and Japanese audio and a lengthy collection of special features, this Blu-ray set is bound to be a hit with anyone who enjoys anime, battling vampires or battling anime vampires.

Special Features:

• Episodes 1 – 8 Commentary
• Episodes 9 – 12 Commentary
• Original TV Spots (1.33:1, 480i/60; 0:02.27)
• Original Commercials (1.78:1; 480i/60; 0:04.29)
• Sneak Peeks (1.33:1; 480i/60; 0:05.16)
• Textless Opening Song — Ashita no Kioku
• Textless Closing Song — Shinkirou
• Trailers:
  • Corpse Princess/Shikabane Hime
  • Dragon Ball Z Kai
  • Nabari no Ou
  • My Bride is a Mermaid
  • Full Metal Panic!

Amazon: $33.99

ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY THIS WEEK
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This might not be the biggest, most overwhelming release week of the year but there are a couple Blu-ray discs here that any serious collection simply can’t be without. And everything else this week somehow seems lesser as a result. That’s not to say the other films aren’t worth watching but when you’ve got two behemoths of cinema vying for your attention as these discs are, it’s tough to validate giving their competitors even the slightest regard. But then again, there’s Snake Plissken on Blu-ray. What’s a nerd to do?

1. SAVING PRIVATE RYAN

Saving Private Ryan was sitting in my number two slot in this list for the longest time. And that’s where I would rate it in terms of necessary purchases this week. In terms of the importance of the films as cinema classics. But, I changed my mind at the last minute to better reflect the real world demand for the titles. This is the one most people want. And with good reason. This is a killer Blu-ray disc with a nearly perfect transfer. It could be the new go-to demo disc!

Read more about the Blu-ray disc here: Paramount brings Saving Private Ryan to Blu-ray

Amazon: $22.99

2. DOCTOR ZHIVAGO

Ahhh. David Lean. This is my personal top pick for the week – the disc I’m most desperate to get my dirty little mitts on. Everything Lean touched just screams cinema and “big screen”. The perfect content to bring to Blu! If I’m going to be brutally honest here, I would, of course, rather have Lawrence of Arabia or Bridge on the River Kwai in high-def but watching Doctor Zhivago, in all its restored, 1080p splendour is like the ultimate warm up for those, arguably Lean’s finest and most epic films.

Amazon: $28.99

3. TETRO

You know it’s an imperfect Top 5 list when a new Coppola flik pulls in at number 3! But bear with me and with Tetro. It’s an imperfect film from a filmmaker who seems to be slowly but ever so surely crawling out of his two decade long rut. Tetro is no Godfather or The Conversation but it is a thoughtful effort full of ideas. And hey, who doesn’t love Vincent Gallo?!

Amazon: $29.99

4. HAMLET

This one is for all you Doctor Who and Star Trek fans out there. Oh yeah, and anyone who just can’t get enough of the old bard. This is Hamlet re-imagined as a modern psychological thriller, starring David Tennant as the tortured Danish prince and Captain Jean-Luc Picard as his treacherous uncle. The language might be old school but everything else about this production is contemporary and quite riveting! A stellar take on an old favourite with a stellar cast!

Amazon: $16.99

5. DIRTY DANCING: LIMITED KEEPSAKE EDITION

Word on the street is that this bulked up Dirty Dancing Blu-ray package contains an all new transfer of the film, which easily bests the garbage that Lionsgate foisted on its audience in the earlier 2007 edition of the film. I can’t speak from first-hand experience about the quality of the Blu-ray presentation (still can’t get Lionsgate to acknowledge my existence and send out some screeners!) but I can say that it comes with a 52-page book and a featurette tribute to my boy, Jerry Orbach. Nobody puts Lenny Briscoe in a corner!

Amazon: $23.99

ANIME OF THE WEEK: Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE: Collected Memories Box Set

Tsubasa might not be exactly to my tastes but then again, I’m a couple of decades out from the age of its target audience. This is the stuff that my nephew would totally eat up! And this amazing, comprehensive collection from FUNimation really delivers for fans. You get every single episode of the show as well as the “film”, The Princess in the Birdcage (also available this week on the Clamp Double Feature: Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE and xxxHOLiC Blu-ray disc) along with a bunch of decent extras. Be warned, however, that you won’t want to pick this up if you already own the season 1 set as you get both season 1 and 2 in this box. If that’s you then just gran the stand-alone season 2 set. Fans with a keen eye will be happy to learn that transfer quality improves slightly into the second season.

Amazon: $91.99

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Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers have become a single entity in my mind. I have a hard time recalling what events, what story-points are covered in which film/show. Both the film and the series have the same creative teams at their core and feel very similar, from the way they were shot to the music behind them. That being said, I’m a big fan of both. And very excited to tell you about Paramount‘s upcoming Sapphire Series release of Saving Private Ryan, timed to be released just days before V-E day.

The timing of the release is also advantageous in that it can ride the wave of hype surrounding HBO‘s upcoming Band of Brothers “sequel”, The Pacific (premiering March 14th).

Kathryn Bigelow‘s (The Hurt Locker) K-19: The Widowmaker and John Carpenter‘s Escape From L.A. will also make their Blu-ray debut on the same day. I’ve got to say, I’m a bit sad that we’re getting the Snake Plissken sequel on Blu before a domestic release of Carpenter’s far superior Escape From New York. I’m not going to hold my breath for EFNY though, what with the rights being owned by MGM and that studio being currently mired in financial trouble. If I’m feeling desperate, I can always import Optimum‘s Blu-ray release of the film from the UK, which I understand is a mild upgrade from the DVD.

UPDATE: Saving Private Ryan details added!

SAVING PRIVATE RYAN: SAPPHIRE SERIES EDITION

Special Features:

• An Introduction—Director Steven Spielberg discusses his interest in WWII and how it led him to make the film.
• Looking Into the Past—Steven Spielberg explains the research done for the film, the evolution of the screenplay and his intentions.
• Miller and his Platoon—Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and other cast members introduce the different characters and how the actors worked together.
• Boot Camp—Memories from the cast about the intense boot camp they went through with Captain Dale Dye.
• Making Saving Private Ryan—Steven Spielberg and his collaborators discuss the look of the film, the production design, the costumes and the photography.
• Re-creating Omaha Beach—A look at how the filmmakers re-created this historical event.
• Music and Sound—Discussion with the team that edited, scored and brought sound to the film.
• Parting Thoughts—Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks share their final thoughts on the experience of making the film.
• Into the Breach: Saving Private Ryan—A 25-minute documentary with the cast and crew.
• Shooting War—Tom Hanks hosts and narrates this documentary on WWII combat photographers in Europe and the Pacific theater of war.
• Theatrical Trailer (HD)
• Re-Release Trailer (HD)

K-19: THE WIDOWMAKER

Special Features:

• Theatrical trailer (in HD)

ESCAPE FROM L.A.
(May 4, 2010 – MSRP $29.99)
Video: 2.39:1 1080p
Audio: Dolby TrueHD 5.1

Special Features:

• Commentary by director Kathryn Bigelow and cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth
• Featurettes:
  • The Making of K-19: The Widowmaker
  • Exploring the Craft: Make-Up Techniques
  • Breaching the Hull
  • It’s in the Details
• Theatrical trailer (in HD)

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Yes, it’s another kids review with Max and Olivia. They’re starting to become old pros at this now. Expect to see them hosting a cable show in the next year with a plan to branch out to national syndication in the near future. Sheesh. Who knew you could have so much going for you before the age of 10?

Ha! Funny kids. They absolutely loved it. But so did my sister. And my girlfriend. And I thought it was pretty all-right as well, you know. What it lacks in inspired design sense and nuanced animation (read Ren and Stimpy creator John K‘s brilliant technical analysis of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs here) it makes up for in wit and charm. It’s smart and funny in all the right places.

And the Blu-ray is no slouch either! As I’m sure you can imagine in a direct digital transfer, this thing is pitch perfect in damn near every way. Bright, vivid colours, incredibly deep blacks and every bit and byte of computer animated detail represented in gorgeous 1080p. Beautiful! The DTS-MA 5.1 is also a stunner, being one of the more well rounded and immersive tracks I’ve heard so far this year. I would even go so far as to say it’s exciting!

The supplemental features on the Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Blu-ray are a blend of extras for the kids and for adults. Kids will enjoy the ‘Flint’s Food Fight‘ BD-Java game and the Interactive “Splat” Feature that allows them to launch digital food at the screen while the movie plays. Adults will appreciate the entertaining commentary track with Bill Hader (the voice of lead character Flint) and co-directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller and the behind-the-scenes featurettes, “A Recipe for Success: The Making of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” and “Key Ingredients: The Voices of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs“. The set is rounded out by a music video (with a “making of” featurette), extended scenes, early development scenes and 9-minutes of Progression Reels with introductions by visual FX supervisor Rob Bredow. There are also DVD and Digital Copies of the film included.

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Happy new year! I hope you managed to score a bevy of excellent films on Blu-ray over the last couple of weeks. I know I sure did. I was finally able to pick up the Black Friday orders I had placed with Amazon (I ship to my Aunt in Florida and pick up when I can. Shipping here to Montreal from the USA is waaaaay too expensive!) I’m pleased to say that my collection of Criterion Blu-ray discs has just multiplied by a factor of three! I’m very excited to crack into them.

But never mind the holidays, we’ve got a new year on our hands here and a ton of new Blu-ray discs, released only this week for our enjoyment.

I wasn’t really sold on Columbia/Sony Animation‘s Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs until recently, when the Blu-ray showed up at my door for review. This is a surprising little film that, while not quite able to compete with the Pixar giants out there, provides a lot of entertainment value for kids and adults alike. Good stuff!

Amazon: $24.99

Oh yeah! More of the Duke on Blu! It’s always cause for celebration when another John Wayne film shows up in high-def and I, for one, am really looking forward to checking out Warner‘s newest edition of The Green Berets. If the transfer is up to Warner’s current standards we’re in for a real treat.

Amazon: $18.99

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I’ve got good news, great news and really, truly foul news. I’m sure from reading the headline you can sort out which is which. That’s right, the foul news is that Stephen Sommers‘ Van Helsing, potentially the most abysmal film I’ve ever struggled through and the greatest celluloid insult to Universal‘s classic pantheon of monsters, is about to stink it’s way onto Blu-ray. Poor Blu-ray! I hope the format survives the insult…

The good and great news might be a little more subjective. Army of Darkness has been announced for Blu. This, to me, is pretty good news. I love Army. I love Raimi. And I love me some Bruce! What I don’t love is that we’re getting the film crammed onto a BD-25 disc. Not cool, Universal! This film deserves a full 50g disc! Anyway, I’m fairly certain that we’ll eventually see Army of Darkness reissued five million times on Blu-ray, just as it was on DVD. One of the versions is bound to be decent.

The truly amazing news is that Universal is giving us the gift of Landis‘ landmark horror film, An American Werewolf in London on Blu-ray! And the disc looks packed to the bloody fangs full of awesome features. I can’t wait to get my hands on this!

AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON: FULL MOON EDITION
(September 15, 2009 – MSRP $26.98)
Video: 1080p VC-1
Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio

Special Features:

• I Walked With A Werewolf (HD)
• Beware The Moon
• Making An American Werewolf in London, An Original Featurette
• An Interview With John Landis
• Make-up Artist Rick Baker On An American Werewolf in London
• Casting of the Hand
• Outtakes
• Storyboards
• Photograph Montage
• Feature Commentary with Cast Members David Naughton & Griffin Dunne
• BD Live Basic Download Center

VAN HELSING
(September 15, 2009 – MSRP $26.98)
Video: 1080p VC-1
Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio

Special Features:

• Van Helsing: The Story, The Life, The Legend
• Track the Adventure
• Bringing the Monsters to Life
• You Are In The Movie!
• The Music of Van Helsing
• Bloopers
• Dracula’s Liar is Transformed
• The Masquerade Ball Scene “Unmasked”
• The Art of Van Helsing
• Monster Eggs
• Feature Commentary with Director Stephen Sommers and Editor/Producer Bob Ducsay
• Feature Commentary with Richard Roxburgh, Shuler Henley and Will Kemp
• D-Box
• BD Live – Basic Download Center

ARMY OF DARKNESS: SCREWHEAD EDITION
(September 15, 2009 – MSRP $26.98)
Video: 1080p VC-1
Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio

Special Features:

• Creating the Deadites
• Alternate Ending
• Theatrical Trailer
• U Control – Production Photos
• BD Live – Basic Download Center

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