Blu-ray Movies
"Babette's Feast"
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- Category: Blu-ray movies Blu-ray movies
July 2013
A Dinner Made with Love That Changes Lives
The Criterion Collection 665
Format: Blu-ray
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When Babette’s Feast comes up in casual conversation, most people will say it's the ultimate film about food, but I think it's really about love and the human spirit. Food and spirit merge during the meal that Babette prepares, and it manifests itself as love for all mankind.
"Things to Come"
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June 2013
Utopia According to Wells
The Criterion Collection 660
Format: Blu-ray
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H. G. Wells (1866-1946) wrote his most important science-fiction novels early in his career. The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, and The Island of Doctor Moreau were from that period -- the fiction that led to Wells being called "the father of science fiction." Jules Verne had previously been accorded the same honor. But Wells wrote much more than science fiction; he authored contemporary novels, histories, essays, and social commentary. And in 1936 he authored the screenplay for Things to Come, based in large part on his book, The Shape of Things to Come.
"Richard III"
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May 2013
A Classic Restored to Glory
The Criterion Collection 213
Format: Blu-ray
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The recent discovery of Richard III's skeleton has called into question past assessments of his character and appearance. A facial reconstruction shows a young man of almost feminine beauty. There has been lots of speculation, but two things are certain: Richard III reigned but two short years and died a violent death at Bosworth Field in 1485. The wounds on his skeleton show that he was struck with many blows, including two extremely severe knocks to the head, lending credence to Sir Laurence Olivier's portrayal of his death, which shows dozens of soldiers pummeling the downed monarch.
"Jack Reacher"
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April 2013
A Pristine Blu-ray Reveals an Entertaining Crime Procedural
Paramount 7922916
Format: Blu-ray
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Werner Herzog. He’s a film director extraordinaire, having directed both documentaries (Grizzly Man, Encounters at the End of the World) and fiction adventures (Fitzcarraldo, Nosferatu the Vampyre, Rescue Dawn, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans). He has staged opera at Bayreuth and La Scala, written over 50 film scripts, produced over 20 titles, and has worked in many aspects of film, including sound. This everyman has also acted, and in Jack Reacher, we find him perfectly cast as the Zec, a man who has sacrificed his fingers over the years, proving that he’s willing to go to any length to survive.
"The Blob"
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April 2013
'50s Sci-Fi Fave in Radiant Color
The Criterion Collection 91
Format: Blu-ray
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"It creeps and leaps and glides and slides . . ." It's hard not to like a villain from outer space that can be described in a Burt Bacharach-Mack David title song, and it's easy to overlook The Blob's deficiencies, given such an earnest presentation. If it's not a great horror story or an A-list science-fiction thriller for you, The Blob is a slice of Americana and a time capsule to the long past 1950s. In spite of its cheesy special effects (or perhaps because of them), it has become a cult favorite.
"Badlands"
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March 2013
One Sumptuous-Looking Crime Spree
The Criterion Collection 651
Format: Blu-ray
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In 1973, Badlands established Terrence Malick as a new director to be noticed and launched the careers of Martin Sheen (Kit) and Sissy Spacek (Holly). It was Malick's first feature film, based on a killing spree by teenager Charles Starkweather that occurred in the late 1950s. Starkweather and his 14-year-old girlfriend, Caril Ann Fugate, fled Lincoln, Nebraska, after Starkweather killed Fugate's mother, stepfather, and two-year-old stepsister. While on the run, Starkweather killed seven additional victims but was caught and sent to the electric chair on June 25, 1959. Fugate protested that she had been Starkweather's captive, but the court didn't buy it and found her guilty as an accessory. She served 17 years in prison.
"Africa: Eye to Eye with the Unknown"
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March 2013
BBC Earth Documentary Is One of the Best of Its Kind
BBC Earth
Format: Blu-ray
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Have you ever wondered what the black rhinos and elephants do after dark down by the watering hole? Puzzle no longer, as the newest BBC Earth documentary, Africa: Eye to Eye with the Unknown, uses special new starlight cameras to show you. Spoiler alert: it turns out that rhinos aren't really loners all the time, and that they can even go a little crazy by the light of the moon. One truly trips out. Elephants, not to be outdone, have their own sort of post-hippie love fest.
"On the Waterfront"
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February 2013
No Matter What the Aspect Ratio, Brando's Performance Towers
The Criterion Collection 647
Format: Blu-ray
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The Criterion Collection has consistently brought us the best extras to contribute to a fuller enjoyment of its feature films. But for On the Waterfront, the company has outdone itself, bringing us three different versions of the movie. To clarify, it’s exactly the same cut presented in three different aspect ratios: 1.66:1 on the main Blu-ray Disc, and 1.33:1 and 1.85:1 on a second Blu-ray.
"The Awakening"
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February 2013
Standard Ghost Story Benefits from One Good Extra Feature
Universal 61124958
Format: Blu-ray
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Extras can often heighten one's enjoyment of a Blu-ray's feature presentation, but they are usually self-congratulatory puff pieces. There are plenty of those here, as director Nick Murphy really likes to talk, even when he's just repeating what he's already said. But imagine my surprise to find a genuinely interesting special feature on this Blu-ray: a little piece called "A Time for Ghosts."
"The Tin Drum"
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January 2013
The Banned German Classic Now on Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 234
Format: Blu-ray
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Made in 1979, The Tin Drum is a visually stunning film that will leave every viewer with images to remember, although it will probably be a different list for each person. Directed by Volker Schlöndorff, and based on the popular novel by Günter Grass, the movie tells the story of Oskar Matzerath, who decides at age three that he doesn't want to be an adult. To get his wish, he falls down a flight of stairs, and from that point on, with one exception, he never grows on the outside but matures inside until he becomes a 17-year-old boy in a child's body. And Oskar has a weapon to keep the adult world at bay: his scream breaks glass -- everything from spectacles to windows.
