Weekly Digital Disk Picks for November 15th, 2011

Blaine: Disney is trying something new this year, that I apologize for not noticing sooner: the highly economical single disc DVD releases of major titles are shipping a few weeks later than the deluxe editions. Since these discs appear identical to the ones included in the previously released combination packs, I can only conclude that the entire point of releasing them later is to get people who want them but who don’t look ahead at release schedules to buy a more expensive edition first.

Title Available Formats
Action
The Tom Cruise Blu-Ray Collection
Includes Collateral, Days of Thunder, Minority Report, Top Gun and War of the Worlds.
Treasure Hunter
Anime
Blassreiter: S.A.V.E. Edition
Bleach the Movie: Fade to Black
Ice Complete Collection
Alex: A post-apocalyptic anime that’s serving as a vehicle for members J-Pop group AKB48, based around a future where a virus has wipe out all men and most women.
Love Hina: Box Set (Classic)
Shuffle: Complete Series S.A.V.E. edition
Art House
Three Colors: Blue, White, Red (Criterion Collection)
Blaine: My film geek friends keep raving about this trilogy, but none of them have been able to articulate why. Still, it’s tempting.
Biopic
60 Minutes – Steve Jobs
Classics (Traditional)
Jean Harlow Collection
Includes Bombshell, The Girl from Missouri, Personal Property, Reckless, Riffraff, Saratoga and Suzy.
The Rules of the Game (Criterion Collection)
Comedy
Beginners
Betty Boop: 15 Animated Featurettes
Blaine: I don’t know which 15 cartoons are here. Betty Boop is probably the most popular classic cartoon character who hasn’t had a remastered chronological collection hit the market, likely because her history is so inconsistent. She was originally a poodle who costarred in another character’s cartoons, who was turned human when they decided her schtick would be losing her top (at least) in each cartoon before she was transformed again into a more family friendly character.
The Big Lebowski
Documentary
Superheroes
Comparing societal trends to the superheroes created at the time. Could be quite interesting.
Family
DreamWorks Dragons: Gift of the Night Fury / Book of Dragons
The Lion King
Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume One
Blaine: I haven’t gone through every single title, but this appears to be a Blu-Ray upgrade of cartoons already released in the Golden Collections. Aside from the numbering on the package, I’m not sure what makes the “Ultimate” edition any different from the regular edition.
Shaun the Sheep: Season 2
Fantasy
Being Human: Season One
The American version, not the U.K. version.
Neverwhere: 15th Anniversary Edition
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Horror
Evil Dead 2: 25th Anniversary Edition
This entry in the series could just as easily be listed under comedy.
Music / Musical
Bizet: Carmen in 3D
The California Raisins Collection
The front of the box only advertises the two specials, but the Editorial Reviews section says it also includes the complete 13 episode Saturday morning series.
Gilbert and Sullivan
These are the Opera Australia versions, not the U.S. theatrical versions from the 1950s and 1960s.
My Fair Lady
West Side Story: 50th Anniversary Edition
  • Blu-Ray only: Amazon
  • Blu-Ray Collectors Box Set only: Amazon
Mystery
Crime Story: The Complete Series
Alex Michael Mann’s other major television series (aside from Miami Vice)
Romance
Larry Crowne
Science Fiction
Farscape
  • Season One Blu-Ray only: Amazon
  • Season Two Blu-Ray only: Amazon
  • Season Three Blu-Ray only: Amazon
  • Season Four Blu-Ray only: Amazon
  • Complete Series Blu-Ray only: Amazon
Note that the complete series box, like the DVD version, does not include the Peacekeeper Wars.
Giorgio Moroder Presents Metropolis
Blaine: This version of the 1927 Fritz Lang classic has a score composed of 1980s pop, including Pat Benetar, Billy Squier, Freddie Mercury, Bonnie Tyler, Adam Ant, Jon Anderson, Freddie Mercury and the like. I haven’t seen it, but I’m tempted.
Red vs. Blue: Season Nine
Suspense
It Takes a Thief: Complete Series
Blaine: This was originally listed a couple of weeks ago. There was a last minute delay in the release when the manufacturer discovered a manufacturing defect and chose to correct it before shipping instead of after.

Finally, the picks of the week. Blaine says, “of the titles I’ve seen, the most interesting is Farscape (though I’ve only seen the first two seasons so far), followed by Looney Tunes and The Lion King. I haven’t seen this particular edition of Metropolis or The Rules of the Game yet, but both are “must see” items.” Alex says, “Farscape on Blu-Ray is something I’d definitely get if I had the money. On the anime front, I’m interested in how ICE executes its concept – but I’m on the fence due to the show basically being a vehicle for a hyper-cutsy J-Pop group.”

3 replies on “Weekly Digital Disk Picks for November 15th, 2011”

  1. While I loved Farscape, I have to wonder if the effects and puppetry would hold up to HD standards. The first three seasons were not even filmed in widescreen format, if I recall correctly. They looked fine on my DVD set. If I didn’t already own the DVDs, the Blu-Ray set might be tempting, but there is a reason that some series (Like Buffy) don’t go back and release Blu-Ray sets. The quality of the early episodes just isn’t there to justify an “upgrade” like that.

    • I’d go for Farscape. I watched the whole series a bit ago and while the effects might not be fantastic anymore, the puppetry is still great. This is Jim Henson Creature Shop. THe puppets are pretty much on the same level as the actors.

      And since I don’t have Farscape on DVD I might as well get the blu-ray!

  2. Betty’s shtick, in her best cartoons, was the Fleischer Brothers’ batpoop insanity. Her pre-Hays Code adventures were wild, she was clearly topless (though covered) in one, and popular rumor claims the animators would reveal her breasts in a single frame per cartoon (not visible to the audience), but this was never her shtick, nor what made her famous.

    As for her insane chronology, that is another matter. There is a chronological VHS series from the 90s that covers her history. That seems ripe for rerelease.

Comments are closed.