I usually quite enjoy British films, and Cemetery Junction, released on Blu-ray by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on August 17th, is no exception.

This engaging little movie is a coming of age film set in a small British town in the seventies.

Three friends, Freddy, Bruce and ‘Snork’, are stuck in the rut of their small town lives.

Freddy for one has had enough, and aims to escape through a job selling life insurance.

While his friends remain stuck in their dead end low class jobs, Freddie finds that selling insurance is harder than he imagined.

When the boss’s daughter turns out to be a childhood friend, they rekindle their friendship and Julie turns out to be somewhat of a breath of fresh air.

The three lads struggle with their respective challenges and weaknesses on their personal journeys to a ‘better life’.

The film is a very enjoyable watch that has a lot of wit and charm, and great chemistry between the characters and actors.

The essence of the seventies has been authentically captured and the performances are all excellent and believable.

The cast includes three relatively unknown actors Christian Cooke, Tom Hughes and Jack Doolan in the roles of the three friends, along with well known British actors Ralph Fiennes, Emily Watson and Ricky Gervais.

Cemetery Junction was directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, who are most famous for creating the TV Show The Office in the UK.

While Gervais was an actor in the film, I think it was great to see him focus on the directing side and to make a film with someone else in the main roles.

The movie has been fairly well received by the critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 62% and an IMDb score of 7.2/10.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 26 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1.

The film definitely carries the look of film from the seventies, and this style is well preserved in the video presented here.

Find full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc at the details page for Cemetery Junction.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 24 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 38.3 GB used and is coded for both Region A and Region B.

Supplements for this title incorporate BD Live Network features, including the MovieIQ feature that presents film facts while viewing the movie.

The movie features a pair of audio commentaries, one with the directors and a second with the cast.

Additional footage is presented in the form of both a selection of deleted scenes and a blooper reel.

There is also a fairly extensive set of behind the scenes segments, including an interview with the directors Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant.

The Lads Look Back features and interview with the main cast for the movie.

The challenges of shooting a film set thirty years ago are studied in the Seventies Style: Production and Costume Design featurette.

Additional production featurettes present a lot more of the hands on film making experience for Cemetery Junction.

I very much enjoyed Cemetery Junction and am happy to recommend it, especially for folks who like Ricky Gervais or British film in general.

The Blu-ray release has a great set of supplements and is another strong release from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

The retail price is $30.95, or order it right now at Amazon for $23.49, saving 24%!

Extras:

• Watch The Directors
• Audio Commentary with Director
• Audio Commentary with Cast
• Deleted Scenes
• Bloopers
• The Lads Look Back: The Stars Discuss Cemetery Junction
• Seventies Style: Production And Costume Design
• Additional Featurettes

Synopsis:

Cemetery Junction tells the funny, touching and universal story of being trapped in a small town and dreaming of escape. In 1970s England, three blue-collar friends spend their days joking, drinking, fighting and chasing girls. Freddie (Christian Cooke) wants to leave their working-class world but cool, charismatic Bruce (Tom Hughes) and loveable loser Snork (Jack Doolan) are happy with life the way it is. When Freddie gets a new job as a door-to-door salesman and bumps into his old school sweetheart Julie (Felicity Jones), the gang are forced to make choices that will change their lives forever.

The most recent link in the Miley Cyrus chain is the movie The Last Song, released on Blu-ray by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on August 17th, 2010.

Make no mistake, this movie was created to serve Miley Cyrus, with writer Nicholas Sparks writing the novel and screenplay concurrently, all the while with Cyrus in mind for the main character.

In fact the screenplay was finished before the novel was completed, so it is perhaps more fair to say that the novel is based on the film.

The movie follows a summer in Georgia where an angsty teen and her little brother go to spend time with their estranged father.

The angry daughter was an accomplished pianist who quit playing when her father left home in an act of defiance.

Ronnie, played by Cyrus, is about as angry and annoying as a teen can be, and suffering through her behavior at the start of the film is a real burden.

The plot is not particularly imaginative and while she mellows slowly throughout the film, Ronnie is still prone to bouts of moodiness, even after the advances of the most eligible bachelor on the beach.

The story also suffers somewhat from ‘Showgirls syndrome’, where the main character is a lot of trouble, yet the other seemingly sane characters do whatever they can to befriend the her regardless.

Along with Miley Cyrus the cast includes Bobby Coleman and Liam Hemsworth, with Greg Kinnear delivering a pretty decent performance as the estranged father.

The Last Song was directed by Julie Anne Robinson in her directorial debut.

The movie was dismally received by critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 19% and an IMDb score of 3.6/10.

The Last Song was however somewhat of a success in the cinema, earning $63M at the US box office.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 26 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1.

See the details page for The Last Song for full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 24 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 32.9 GB used and is coded for Region A.

The disc has a small collection of supplemental features, including a feature audio commentary as well as an alternate opening sequence and deleted scenes with optional director commentary.

The only behind the scenes production featurette on the Blu-ray Disc is the Set Tour with Bobby Coleman, with the young actor interviewing various members of the crew - it is a very cute segment.

The remaining supplemental features are a Miley Cyrus music video for When I Look At You and a making of segment covering the music video.

The package also contains a DVD version of the movie for legacy players in the car or the kids’ room.

The Last Song is somewhat of a trying movie, though it does pick up after a while.

Still it is probably only really appealing to Miley Cyrus fans.

The Blu-ray Disc is a fairly decent release from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, perhaps a nice gift for the Miley Cyrus fan in your family.

The retail price is $39.99, or order it right now at Amazon for $24.99, saving 38%!

Extras:

• Alternate Opening Sequences
• Deleted Scenes
• Set Tour With Bobby Coleman
• Miley Cyrus Music Video
• The Making Of
• Audio Commentary

Synopsis:

Miley Cyrus shines as the star of this heartwarming coming-of-age movie that will strike your emotional chords. Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks (Dear John, The Notebook), The Last Song follows Ronnie (Cyrus) and her estranged father as he tries to restore the loving relationship they once had. But reconnecting with his rebellious daughter isn’t easy, so he chooses the one thing they still have in common — music. Complete with not-to-be missed bonus features - the Miley Cyrus music video “When I Look At You,” exclusive interviews with the actress and more - this uplifting and touching drama about family, first loves and second chances is a heartfelt story you won’t soon forget.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment gives us another Day and Date Blu-ray release with Death at a Funeral, which hit shelves August 10th, 2010.

This movie is a remake of the British film with the same title, and features some of the top African American comedians in a dark, often bad taste comedy.

Aaron Barnes’ father recently passed away and the funeral starts off badly when the wrong body is delivered, and only goes down hill from there.

Challenged with sibling rivalry, acid masquerading as Valium, an extortionist, a naked man on the roof and a wife that needs to conceive a child, Aaron can only hope to deliver a great eulogy.

The comedy of errors continues its downward spiral as Aaron goes from crisis to crisis, attempting to keep the funeral sane and respectful.

The film started off a little slowly for my liking, but once things got rolling it certainly picked up.

The movie has a remarkable ensemble cast that includes comedy stars Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Danny Glover, Tracy Morgan and Luke Wilson, along with Loretta Devine, Regina Hall, Keith David, Ron Glass, Kevin Hart, James Marsden, Zoe Saldana and Columbus Short.

Interestingly enough, Peter Dinklage reprises the role that he had in the original film.

Death at a Funeral was directed by Neil LaBute, the man behind Lakeview Terrace and the remake of The Wicker Man.

The movie received a pretty cold reception from the critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 38% and an IMDb score of 5.0/10.

Death at a Funeral had a fairly decent run at the cinema however, reaching $42.7M at the US box office.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 30 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1.

The movie was shot digitally and the Blu-ray looks both sharp and clean.

For full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc you can check the details page for Death at a Funeral.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 24 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 44.8 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

Supplements for this title include BD Live Network features, including the MovieIQ feature where you can see IMDb movie details along while screening the movie.

The disc also features ‘traditional’ features like an audio commentary with the director, along with additional footage in a gag reel and a selection of deleted scenes.

The behind the scenes featurette Last Rites, Dark Secrets covers the production of the movie along with interviews with the cast and crew.

The Family Album featurette highlights the characters in the movie, featuring interviews with the actors that play them.

The cast and crew’s feelings on the topic of death are presented in the Death for Real featurette.

This release includes a Digital Copy for both iTunes and Windows Media, as well as a PSP digital copy that can be transferred off the Blu-ray Disc from a Playstation 3.

Death at a Funeral is a fairly entertaining movie that for me didn’t really live up to expectations given the talent involved.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment’s Blu-ray release has a decent set of supplemental features and looks and sounds the part.

The retail price is $34.95, or order it right now at Amazon for $21.99, saving 37%!

Extras:

• Gag Reel
• Deleted Scenes
• Behind The Scenes
• Audio Commentary

Synopsis:

Death At A Funeral is a hilarious day in the life of an American family come together to put a beloved husband and father to rest. As mourners gather at the family home, shocking revelations, festering resentments, ugly threats, blackmail and a misdirected corpse unleash lethal and riotous mayhem.

The latest release to get the Digibook treatment from Warner Home Video is the musical documentary Elvis on Tour, released August 3rd 2010.

For the most part the film presents on stage performances from Elvis and his backing band, inter-cut with behind the scenes footage from the tour.

Elvis on Tour also contains scenes from recording studio sessions and a variety of segments featuring screaming Elvis fans, as well as some historical archival footage.

One of the striking aspects of the film is the split-screen style arrangement, often with different views of the same events on stage or even in the behind the scenes sequences.

The movie covers the 15 city tour in April 1972, and features performances from venues in Virginia, North Carolina and Texas.

A number of classic Elvis songs appear in the movie, as well as songs like Proud Mary and Bridge Over Troubled Water.

Watch for fan favourites Don’t be Cruel, Love Me Tender, Can’t Help Falling in Love and Burning Love, which was a new song at the time.

In the downside, the original Johnny B. Goode performance has been removed from the opening credits of the film, apparently due to copyright issues.

Elvis on Tour was Presley’s last appearance in a movie, and the film won the 1972 Golden Globe Award for Best Documentary.

In many ways the fascination with Elvis Presley has never completely subsided, with countless references in popular culture - however since Elvis passed away over 30 years ago, we don’t see the real Elvis all that often these days.

When watching this film, I became struck with just how much of a phenomenon Elvis was when he performed, and while the film was intended as a current documentary, it has now become a historical record of one of the most popular performers of all time.

Elvis on Tour was directed by Robert Abel, who worked on other music documentaries like Let the Good Times Roll, with Martin Scorsese supervising the montage sequences.

The movie has a fairly middle of the road IMDb score of 6.9/10.

The video on the disc is a VC-1 1080p encode at 22 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.40:1.

The original film elements are showing their age somewhat, and there is fairly heavy grain likely due to the ‘low light’ nature of the shows.

However the presentation is clean and has a pretty natural feeling - it looks like I imagine it should, all considered.

Check out the details page for Elvis on Tour to see full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 24 bits resolution at 48 kHz, and sounds pretty good considering the age of the recording.

The disc is a single layer BD25, with 19.3 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

While the disc itself has no additional features, the disc is packaged in a 40 page Digibook filled with photographs and information about the tour and about Presley’s life in general.

All in all it is a nicely presented package.

Elvis on Tour is a great testament to Elvis Presley, the King of Rock and Roll - certainly a no brainer for Elvis fans.

While the Warner Home Video Blu-ray release lacks supplements, the Digibook packaging is a nice addition here.

The retail price is $34.99, or order it right now at Amazon for $27.99, saving 20%!

Extras:

• 40-Page Book Filled with Photos, Trivia and Tour Info

Synopsis:

After Elvis: That’s the Way it is, which was filmed live in Las Vegas, the king and his crew were eager to follow that success with another captivating concert documentary. How could they make it different? By going on the road for one thing. And via the innovative split-screen process used in Woodstock to convey the whirlwind, you-are-there energy and performances thrills of Elvis on Tour. More than 25 numbers spotlighting Elvis Presley’s talent, range and showmanship fill this lively chronicle of his multi-city 1972 series of concerts. Plus montage sequences ( supervised by Martin Scorsese) showcase Presley’s early career and movies. And the results of this different look at the king? Fan euphoria - and a Golden Globe for Best Documentary.

Blu-ray fans received a fresh dose of British television with the BBC Home Video Blu-ray Disc release Being Human: Season One on July 20th, 2010.

This show was popular in the UK and is very much in a similar vein to Torchwood.

While it is partly promoted as witty and occasionally is, this show is far from a comedy, rather more being a stylistic thriller.

As with many BBC shows, the season runs six full one hour episodes.

Being Human is based on an intriguing premise, with a vampire and a werewolf living in a house along with the ghost a woman that died in the house.

While the members of the house are cursed, supernatural creatures, they want nothing more than to be normal and fit in with the civilized world.

Each of the characters is different in nature and handles their affliction in a different way.

George the werewolf is a very sensitive, intelligent and neurotic fellow who now faces the monthly curse of his transformation.

The vampire is Mitchell, who is now 120 years old and has decided to shun the killing and feeding lifestyle and is trying to refrain from drinking human blood.

Annie the ghost unhappily died before her wedding and is still madly in love with her fiance, who has now moved on, though still visits the house in the role of landlord.

For the most part, the episodes cover the trials of each of the characters, often with a focus one particular character.

There is also a season length story arc with the vampires secretly planning to take over the Earth from the humans.

While the show starts off a little slow for my liking, I found after a couple of episodes I was hooked and had to watch the story play out to its conclusion, which also sets up the premise for the second season which will be released later this year.

Overall I found this series to be entertaining and well worth a look, especially for fans of Torchwood and Doctor Who.

The cast features Russell Tovey, Lenora Crichlow and Aidan Turner in the lead roles, and also includes Sinead Keenan and Jason Watkins in key supporting roles.

Being Human: Season One was created by Toby Whitehouse, who has written for Doctor Who and Torchwood.

The series has a very respectable IMDb score of 8.3/10.

The video on the disc is a VC-1 1080i encode at 30 Mbps, and is presented at 1.78:1 aspect ratio, filling the HDTV screen.

This high bitrate encode does a pretty good job of presenting this show which is often dark and occasionally ‘noisy’.

See the details page for Being Human: Season One for full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc.

The main audio is presented in Dolby Digital with 2.0 channels, encoded at 448 kbps.

With many BBC titles featuring DTS-HD audio, it was a bit disappointing to see lossy Dolby Digital used here.

The discs are dual layer BD50, with around 43 GB used and are coded for All Regions.

This release comes with quite a range of supplemental features including a lot of cast and crew interviews.

Additional footage is presented in the form of deleted, extended and alternate scenes.

The Character Profiles featurette runs 20 minutes and covers not only the three main characters but also a number of the key supporting characters.

The nature of the vampire is covered in Vamping it Up, which goes into the vampire ‘rules’ that the show incorporates, as well as some traditional traits that they chose to ignore.

Toby Whitehouse on the Journey has the show creator looking into the history of the show and the direction it took - be sure to not watch this before watching the actual show - many spoilers contained!

The technicalities and techniques of the werewolf transformation that George goes through a number of times in Season One is covered in Becoming a Werewolf.

The Stunts Package studies a couple of the major  stunt sequences that appear in the show, one with Annie falling down the stairs and a second that involves a vehicle striking a couple of pedestrians.

The Video Diaries run almost 15 minutes and features a lot of behind the scenes footage and footage of the actors discussing the process as they shoot the production, all shot by the three main actors.

Our Journey’s End is certainly another supplement that you will want to hold off on until you have seen the complete series as this talks about the set up for Season 2.

Additional featurettes cover the show’s locations, sets, costumes and make up.

Being Human: Season One is a pretty strong TV series produced by the BBC in the supernatural thriller genre.

The Blu-ray release is for the most part a strong title from BBC Home Video, with the only down side being the stereo Dolby Digital sound track.

The retail price is $39.98, or order it right now at Amazon for $28.49, saving 29%!

Extras:

• Alternate Scenes
• Character Profiles
• Vamping it Up
• Toby Whitehouse on the Journey
• Locations
• Costumes and Make Up
• Deleted Scenes
• Extended Scenes
• Stunts package
• Video Diaries
• Our Journey’s End
• Becoming a Werewolf

Synopsis:

What’s a vampire to do if he wants to live a normal life? In the first hit season of this “engaging, dark and wickedly funny” (SciFi Wire) BBC series, Mitchell swears off blood and shares a house with George-a reluctant werewolf equally committed to escaping the dark side. As luck would have it, though, the house is already occupied by Annie, an insecure ghost. Enjoy the trio’s unconventional friendships and supernatural adventures, starring Aidan Turner (Desperate Romantics) and Russell Tovey (Little Dorrit).

The latest Asian movie release from Magnolia Home Entertainment is the film Mother, released on Blu-ray Disc July 20th, 2010.

This Korean drama delves into the sacrifices and lengths a mother will go in an effort to save her only son.

Do-joon is the rather simple minded young Korean man who gets pushed around a lot, though occasionally stands up for himself with the help of his friend Jin-tae.

After a night out drinking, Do-joon ends up being the last person to see a murdered schoolgirl alive.

Do-joon is eventually charged with the murder and his mother can’t believe that it is possibly true.

After the Police close the case, his mother decides that she has to prove her son’s innocence and starts her own investigation into the death and who might have really killed the girl.

Her investigation leads her to discover many unseemly facts that feed her drive to do whatever it takes to free her son.

The film has many excellent qualities, including amazing cinematography, strong themes of family and excellent performances from the cast.

Hye-ja Kim was superb in the role of the mother and the supporting cast including Bin Won as Do-joon and Jin Goo as Jin-tae also came across as natural and realistic characters.

Mother was directed by Joon-ho Bong, the man behind a number of Korean movies including The Host and also a segment for Tokyo!

The movie was very well received by critics - it earned a Rotten Tomatoes score of 94% and IMDb score of 8.1/10.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 28 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1.

This high bitrate transfer helps to preserve the intriguing style and cinematographic choices of the film makers.

You will find full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc at the details page for Mother.

The main audio is lossless Korean DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 24 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

On this release there is no English audio, though there are of course English subtitles.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 42.0 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

Supplements for this title include the usual BD Live Network features in addition to a wide range of behind the scenes featurettes, which are all subtitled Korean audio.

The main Making Of featurette runs a massive 90 minutes and is loaded with behind the scenes footage and interview material from the cast and crew.

The main focus of this program is the discussion of the themes of the movie and many of the film makers discuss their personal relationships with their own mother, as well as the mother/son relationship we see in the film.

There are also a number of shorter segments that cover specific areas of the film’s production.

The lead actress who portrays the titular Mother is studied in A Look At The Actress Kim Hye-Ja, while a second segment covers the supporting cast.

Further featurettes focus on the production design, cinematography and musical score aspects of the production.

There is an additional teaser Behind The Scenes featurette that covers the basics of the production.

All in all there is a lot of coverage - it is apparent that this film was a fairly big deal over in Korea, and as such the production has been well documented.

Mother is powerful drama with strong performances and story and is beautifully photographed - I don’t hesitate to recommend it fans of foreign cinema or people who just like a well acted drama, though the subtitles may be a negative for some.

Magnolia Home Entertainment has gone the extra mile with this Blu-ray Disc release, offering a high bitrate transfer and hours of behind the scenes coverage on a dual layer disc.

The retail price is $29.98, or order it right now at Amazon for $26.49, saving 12%

Extras:

• Making Of
• A Look At The Actress Kim Hye-Ja
• Behind The Scenes
• Production Design
• Supporting Actors Featurette
• Cinematography Featurette
• Music Score Featurette

Synopsis:

Mother is a devoted single parent to her simple-minded twenty-seven-year-old son, Do-joon. Often a source of anxiety to his mother, Do-joon behaves in foolish or simply dangerous ways. One night, while walking home drunk, he encounters a school girl who he follows for a while before she disappears into a dark alley. The next morning, she is found dead in an abandoned building, and Do-joon is accused of her murder. An inefficient lawyer and an apathetic police force result in a speedy conviction. His mother refuses to believe her beloved son is guilty and immediately undertakes her own investigation to find the girl’s killer. In her obsessive quest to clear her son’s name, Mother steps into a world of unimaginable chaos and shocking revelations.

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment continues their dedication to family releases with James and the Giant Peach, released on Blu-ray Disc August 3rd, 2010.

The movie is based on the Roald Dahl story and is a combination of live action and stop motion animation in the style of The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Another similarity is the inclusion of a number of songs, though in this film the music is courtesy of Randy Newman.

The film follows the story of young James Henry Trotter, who is orphaned when his parents are eaten by a demonic rhinoceros.

His new guardians are his two abusive aunts Spiker and Sponge, who make him work from dusk until dawn and feed him things like fish heads.

Things change significantly though when a mysterious stranger appears with some magic green “crocodile tongues” which should make his life better.

However the tongues escape from the bag and create a magic giant peach which James’ aunts take advantage of financially.

When he follows a spider from the house, James finds one remaining magic crocodile tongue and it transforms him into an animated world where he finds a number of the local insects have grown huge and gained the ability to talk.

James and his new insectoid friends set off in the peach on a journey to New York City, a place his parents promised to take him before their untimely demise.

James’ delightful journey includes harnessing seagull power, a run in with a giant mechanical shark and an appearance by an easily recognized Skellington.

I found the film to be an enjoyable family version of the classic hero’s journey theme, blended with quirky elements that are unmistakably Roald Dahl.

The cast includes Paul Terry as James, Joanna Lumley and Miriam Margolyes and the evil aunts, and the voice talents of Simon Callow, Richard Dreyfuss, Susan Sarandon and David Thewlis.

James and the Giant Peach was directed by Henry Selick, who also directed The Nightmare Before Christmas, and most recently Coraline.

The critical reception for the movie was very strong, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 93%, though it didn’t do so well with casual viewers with only 6.7/10 at the IMDb.

James and the Giant Peach was also earned $28.9M at the US box office.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 35.5 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1.

The film makers opted for a very grainy look for this title and this style has been well preserved with this high bitrate encoding.

Find full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc at the details page for James and the Giant Peach.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 24 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 29.3 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

The Blu-ray disc is somewhat short on new extra features, though it does include Spike The Aunts, a new interactive Java based game.

The game is based on the special sequence at the end of the credit roll, where you control a mechanical rhinoceros and try to spike the two aunts to win points.

The Blu-ray also contains the original DVD features, which include a Behind the Scenes Making Of featurette and Randy Newman’s Good News music video.

The original trailer is also presented, along with a collection of still picture galleries.

It would have been nice to see some of these features, like the trailer, upgraded to high definition.

For a change, the sneak previews are actually well worth a look, with a trailer for the upcoming Beauty and the Beast, Alice in Wonderland 60th Anniversary and The Lion King releases, along with Tinker Bell promoting genuine Disney products over pirated versions and Panasonic advertising.

The package also includes a DVD copy which features the movie in the legacy format for portable players and the kid’s room.

James and the Giant Peach is a fun and entertaining movie that the whole family can enjoy.

While it is not as fully featured as some Disney titles, this Blu-ray release from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment presents a super high bitrate encode of the movie that is sure to please fans of releases that look like film.

The retail price is $39.99, or order it right now at Amazon for $24.99, saving 38%!

Extras:

• Spike The Aunts Interactive Game
• Behind The Scenes Making Of
• “Good News” Music Video
• Still Frame Gallery
• Original Theatrical Trailer

Synopsis:

In an all-new digitally restored special edition from Tim Burton, the acclaimed director of Alice In Wonderland, comes the astounding film that captured the hearts of fans and critics all across the world. Inspired by Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s book, Burton, Denise Di Novi and Director Henry Selick combine a fascinating mix of live-action, stop-motion animation and computer-generated special effects to create a world beyond your imagination. After the daring rescue of a spider, a young boy named James gains possession of some magic crocodile tongues. When James spills them in the garden, out sprouts an enormous peach! Climbing inside, he meets an astonishing cast of characters and embarks on a magical odyssey full of thrills and adventure. Voiced by an all-star cast, including legendary actors Richard Dreyfuss, Susan Sarandon, Simon Callow and Jane Leeves, and featuring the celebrated music of Randy Newman, this classic story is delicious entertainment for the whole family!

July 20th, 2010 marked the arrival of Kevin Smith’s latest movie on Blu-ray Disc with the Warner Home Video release of Cop Out.

This film is unusual for Smith in that while he directed the film, he didn’t write the original screenplay.

This fact certainly created a number of skeptics, including myself.

Originally titled A Couple of Dicks, some consider even the title to be a cop out.

I consider myself to be a pretty big Kevin Smith fan, and as such I really wanted to like the film.

I think that one’s level of enjoyment of the movie depends on where expectations are set and how much one likes the comedy of Tracy Morgan.

For me the downside was that I didn’t think Tracy Morgan was very funny.

On the other hand, as a homage to the eighties style cop movie in the style of Fletch or Beverly Hills Cop, the movie works pretty well in my opinion.

The movie even has music created by eighties soundtrack icon Harold Faltermeyer.

The story essentially follows unorthodox NYPD partners Jimmy and Paul as they try to track down a valuable baseball card that was stolen and has ended up in the hands of local drug lord and memorabilia fanatic Poh Boy.

The cast features Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan in the lead roles, along with Seann William Scott, Adam Brody and Kevin Pollak.

Cop Out was of course directed by Kevin Smith, famous for movies like Clerks, Dogma, Chasing Amy and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.

The movie received pretty rough treatment with the critics - it scored only 19% at Rotten Tomatoes, though did better at the IMDb with a score of 5.8/10.

Cop Out was one of Smith’s more successful in the cinema, earning $44.9M at the US box office.

Like most Kevin Smith movies though, I imagine that this title will do much better on home video than at the box office.

The video on the disc is a VC-1 1080p encode at 18 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.40:1.

For full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc, check out the details page for Cop Out.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 16 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 45.7 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

Supplements for this title include Bonus View Picture in Picture streams and BD Live Network features.

The main feature though is the Maximum Movie Mode, that has been renamed Maximum Comedy Mode for this title.

As with other Maximum Movie Mode titles, the disc uses seamless branching to allow Kevin Smith to pop up and interrupt the movie with fun facts and deleted scenes.

The ‘MCM’ feature on this title includes extensive sets of deleted footage and outtakes, as well as copious banter from Kevin Smith and occasional footage from Seann William Scott.

For Kevin Smith fans, this feature is probably the best part of the release.

It is so dense with content that the MCM version of the movie runs almost three hours - more than an hour more than the original run time of the movie.

The MCM feature also allows access to the Focus Points and  pop up video featuring the Wisdom From The Shit Bandit segments.

The Focus Points are a bunch of more traditional behind the scenes segments that are also accessible outside of the Maximum Comedy Mode.

Cop Out aka A Couple of… discusses the original title of the movie.

The combination of  Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan is covered in The New Buddy Cop Duo.

Kevin Pollak - Man of a Thousand Voices and Interests focuses on the talents of Kevin Pollak with his impersonations of the likes of Christopher Walken and Robert De Niro.

Improvisation played a big part in the movie and this aspect is exposed in Improvising - Now That’s Funny.

Poh Boy’s Diamond Vault covers the huge range of baseball memorabilia in Poh Boy’s house.

The action sequences and stunts in the movie are the topic of the Stunts - Brooklyn Style segment.

The focus falls on one side of the ‘funny’ side of the cop duo in Tracy Morgan Speaks Spanglish.

Dave’s Calling Card discusses Seann William Scott’s character Dave’s tendency to leave a turd in the toilet of the places he burgles.

We see Smith in charge of the production in the Kevin Smith Directs segment.

The Wisdom From The Shit Bandit sequences are also accessible outside of the Maximum Comedy Mode and are essentially mock wisdom from Seann William Scott.

Like all day and date Warner titles, this release includes a Digital Copy for both iTunes and Windows Media, and a DVD copy for legacy players.

As an homage to the eighties style buddy cop movies, Cop Out is a pretty decent film, and if you like Tracy Morgan this movie is a no brainer.

The Maximum Comedy Mode is a great supplemental feature exclusive to this Blu-ray release, and as such this is a very strong title from Warner Home Video.

The retail price is $35.99, or order it right now at Amazon for $22.49, saving 38%!

Extras:

• Maximum Comedy Mode with Kevin Smith and Seann William Scott
• Focus Points
• Wisdom From The Shit Bandit
• DVD
• Digital Copy

Synopsis:

Action star Bruce Willis and ace comic Tracy Morgan play bickering-but-got-your-back Brooklyn buddy cops. Kevin Smith directs this gritty, goofball goings-on as the guys hunt for a stolen 1952 mint-condition baseball card, a hunt plunging them into a gunslinging war with a deadly drug ring: Batter up, fans. The boys are ready to take you out to the ol’ brawl game!

Magnolia Home Entertainment continues its run of quality Asian films with its release of The Warlords on June 29th, as part of the 6 Shooter series from Magnet.

The Warlords is a  Hong Kong/Chinese war epic set in the 1860’s - the time of the Taiping Rebellion against the Ching Dynasty.

When the Ching Army’s General Pang is the only survivor from a vicious confrontation with the rebels, he takes refuge with some bandits.

When the bandit’s village is raided and left without food, Pang and the two bandit leaders take a oath of brotherhood and rejoin the Army in order to earn money to help the village survive.

While General Pang has a strong drive to face the rebels in battle, he does not get the reinforcements he needs from the Ching leaders.

Regardless of the decisions of the Ching Lords, the three ‘blood brothers’ persist in their efforts to drive the rebels out and retake the cities that they occupy.

As the film plays out the story, subtextual themes including love, war and honour flow though the film.

The film is largely a historical epic that contains fairly graphic fight scenes, though perhaps less gory battle scenes compared to some of the films in this genre.

There is also a romantic back story that persists throughout the film, and overall I think it is one of the better war epic movies out of China.

The film swept the top categories in the 27th Hong Kong Film Awards  and also took Best Film and Best Director in the 45th Golden Horse Awards.

Most notably the cast includes Jet Li in the role of General Pang, along with chinese film favourites Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro, with Xu Jinglei in the role of the love interest.

While Jet Li was an expensive cast member, consuming more than a third of the film’s budget, his participation was seen as key to get international distribution.

The Warlords was directed by Peter Chan, who is better known for his romance movies like Perhaps Love.

The movie received a pretty decent critical response, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 62% and IMDb score of 7.2/10.

The Warlords also had a small run in the domestic cinema, earning $124k at the US box office.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 26.5 Mbps, and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1.

For full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc, check out the details page for The Warlords.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 16 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

Both English and original Chinese language sound tracks are available, though I found the subtitle options to be confusing and ended up using the English for hard of hearing, which seemed to be the only option that covered all of the dialogue - at least with my player.

The disc is a dual layer BD50, with 43.0 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

The selection of deleted scenes is fairly extensive and runs for almost an hour, though the scenes just run back to back with no explanations or commentary.

The Making Of featurette is in fact made up of as many as 15 different segments covering production aspects such as the movie’s themes, specific scenes, production challenges and the cast and crew.

The production journal featurette presents chronological coverage of the 117 days of movie production in a video diary type format.

The Warlords Behind The Scenes Special runs 17 minutes and is essentially a trailer followed by more behind the scenes footage and cast/crew interviews.

Like most Magnolia titles, the disc includes the HDNet: Look At The Warlords segment.

The international trailer for the movie is included, and the disc also features Magnolia’s BD Live Network connectivity features.

The Warlords is pretty entertaining and well made, and certainly comes recommended for fans of the genre.

Magnolia Home Entertainment’s Blu-ray release is has more extensive features than most of their releases and is one of the few of their titles to be authored on a BD50 dual layer disc.

All in all I think this Blu-ray release will be well enjoyed by fans of these epic Chinese action movies.

The retail price is $29.98, or order it right now at Amazon for $21.49, saving 28%!

Extras:

• Deleted Scenes
• Making Of
• Production Journal
• Behind The Scenes Special
• HDNet: Look At The Warlords
• International Trailer

Synopsis:

Set in the midst of the Taiping Rebellion of the 1860s, The Warlords stars Jet Li as General Pang, who barely survives a brutal massacre of his fellow solders by playing dead, and then joins a band of bandits led by Er Hu (Andy Lau) and Wu Yang (Takeshi Kaneshiro). After fighting back attackers for a defenseless village, the three men take an oath to become “blood brothers,” pledging loyalty to one another until death. However, their lives quickly derail as they become embroiled in a web of political deceit and a love triangle between Pang, Er Hu and a beautiful courtesan (Wu Jing-Lei).

Magnolia Home Entertainment continues their run of excellent foreign releases with Irish movie The Eclipse, on Blu-ray June 29th, 2010.

The film defies a single label or genre, being part drama, part romance, part ghost story and part thriller.

While ’scares’ certainly aren’t the main intention in this film, there are a number of moments in the movie that make the audience jump.

The film also features striking cinematography - in fact I would say it is worth watching The Eclipse solely for the beautiful images and intriguing lighting choices.

In many ways the shooting style is like a modern Film Noir.

The film largely follows the story of an Irish widower who occasionally sees the ‘ghost’ of his father in law in unusual situations.

While helping out with a local literary festival he spends time with an author who writes ghost stories and the two become friends as they discover shared interests and experiences.

Matters are somewhat complicated by the presence of a popular American author who had a brief affair with the ghost story writer and is aiming to rekindle the spark.

The movie deals with a number of themes including love, life, death, grief and the supernatural.

While this all sounds like a bit of a jumble, it comes across very truthfully, largely due to the strong performances.

With solid performances and excellent photography, the film is a very worthwhile experience in my book.

The cast includes European actors Ciaran Hinds and Iben Hjejle, along with Aidan Quinn in the role of the American.

The Eclipse was directed by Conor McPherson with his third feature film.

The movie received a strong critical reception, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 75%, though a less impressive IMDb score of 6.4/10.

The Eclipse had a small run at the cinema, earning $133.4k at the US box office.

The video on the disc is an AVC 1080p encode at 18 Mbps, and is presented in an unusual aspect ratio of 2.00:1.

The striking cinematography in this film has been presented well on this high definition transfer.

For full resolution PNG screen captures taken directly from the disc you can check the details page for The Eclipse.

The main audio is lossless DTS-HD Master Audio with 5.1 channels - 16 bits resolution at 48 kHz.

The disc is a single layer BD25, with 17.5 GB used and is coded for All Regions.

While the bitrate and the disc space used are somewhat low, I didn’t notice any encoding artifacts while watching the movie.

The disc contains a couple of behind the scenes featurettes, and the usual Magnolia BD Live network features.

The main feature is a Making Of featurette that  runs roughly half a hour and presents behind the scenes footage and interviews with the cast and crew.

The disc also includes the HDNet: A Look at The Eclipse coverage.

The Eclipse is a nice little movie that I truly enjoyed, with a European sense of style though with an English language soundtrack.

While the Blu-ray release is not huge on extras, this Blu-ray release from Magnolia Home Entertainment is a competent presentation of the movie.

The retail price is $29.98, or order it right now at Amazon for $24.49, saving 18%!

Extras:

• Making Of
• HDNet: A Look At The Eclipse

Synopsis:

Michael Farr (Ciaran Hinds), a teacher raising his two kids alone since his wife died two years earlier, has been seeing and hearing strange things late in the night. He isn’t sure if he is having nightmares, or if he’s experiencing a haunting. Working as a volunteer for an international literary festival, he is assigned to Lena Morelle (Iben Hjejle), an author of books about ghosts and the supernatural. Establishing rapport with one another, Michael opens up and shares his terrifying experiences with her. However, Lena’s attention is distracted by another novelist, Nicholas Holden (Aidan Quinn), with whom she had a brief affair. The trajectories of these three people lead them into a life-altering collision where the challenges of love, fear of the unknown, and a release from the burden of grief are explored.