Monday, June 9, 2008

Blu-ray 10th June Release

Jumper (Blu-ray)

Fox Home Entertainment / 2008 / 88 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 10, 2008

Overall Grade 4 out of 5 A must have action flick collection.






Genres: Action, Sci-fi thriller

Starring: Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson
Director: Doug Liman

Disc Features:

Fox has included a wealth of bonus materials for 'Jumper,' starting with a port of the entire supplemental package from the standard DVD. Happily, the studio has bumped up the quality of most of the video extras to full 1080 HD, so this is a case of quantity and quality. (Optional subtitles are provided in English, French, Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin and Korean.)

  • Audio Commentary - Director Doug Liman, writer/producer Kinberg and producer Lucas Foster sit down for a lively discussion. 'Jumper' experienced a good deal of production headaches, and if this track is not as raw as the documentary (see below), it's still far more candid than most audio commentaries these days. There is much talk of script development issues and integrating extensive effects on a limited budget, which goes a long way in explaining why 'Jumper' itself is not a particularly great movie. This track isn't good enough to warrant a must-listen, but fans of the flick shouldn't skip it.

  • Documentary: "Doug Liman's Jumper: Uncensored" (HD, 35 minutes) - A step up from your standard fluff job, this digest of director Liman's struggles on 'Jumper' is often fascinating. The script problems, budget limitations and practical challenges are laid surprisingly bare, and anyone who thinks making big-budget Hollywood action flicks is fun (or glamorous) will find "Uncensored" quite eye-opening. I wish this doc was a lot longer, but regardless it's definitely the best of the supplements on the disc.

  • Featurette: "Jumping Around the World" (HD, 11 minutes) - A travelogue of the film's many locations, this is a breezy visit with the film's location managers and other production personnel. Mildly interesting.

  • Featurette: "Making an Actor Jump" (HD, 8 minutes) - Much cooler is this look at the film's "jumping" effects, which are a neat combination of live-action and CGI.

  • Featurette: "Jumping from Novel to Film: The Past, Present and Future of Jumper" (HD, 8 minutes) - As I'd never even heard of Steven Gould's series of young adult novels before seeing 'Jumper,' this was interesting stuff. Given the mixed success of the film, however, this featurette's prediction of a long-running movie franchise may be in question...

  • Deleted Scenes (SD, 11 minutes) - There are six scenes in all (presented in standard-def only), and none really add much to the flick. All are dialogue/character extensions, though barely-in-the-movie Diane Lane at least gets some more screen time here.

  • Animated Graphic Novel: "Jumpstart: David's Story" (SD, 8 minutes) - Further fleshing out David's backstory, this nifty little extra is nicely animated, and I actually felt it delivered a fun style and tone sadly missing from the actual flick.

  • Previz: Future Concepts (SD, 5 minutes) - Rounding out the main extras are rough renderings of three of the film's action scenes. Video is standard-def only.

  • Digital Copy (SD) - Included on a second disc is a Digital Copy of 'Jumper,' allowing for download for viewing on portable devices, such as your laptop and the iPhone. (Presented in 480 standard-def video only.)

HD Exclusive Content:

Blu-ray fans get a nice high-def exclusive with 'Jumper' -- a Bonus View (Profile 1.1) picture-in-picture track.

Jumping Around the World - Essentially an extension of the "Jumping Around the World" featurette (see above), this integrates the content into the film itself, giving viewers a guided tour of the film's locations. (Note that if you don't have a Profile 1.1-equipped player, you can access this content via a separate manual menu. I should also mention that the PIP track does not fill up the entire runtime of the main flick, and in fact the actual amount of video content here could have been far greater. Still, it's nice when studios at least attempt to give us something exclusive.)


The Bucket List (Blu-ray)

Warner Home Entertainment / 2007 / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 10, 2008

Overall Grade 4 out of 5 A moving drama.






Genres: Comedy

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman
Director: Rob Reiner

Disc Features:
• Featurette: "Writing the Bucket List"
• John Mayer Music Video

HD Exclusive Content:
• Trivia Track
• Featurettes: "Rob Reiner Interviews the Stars of the Bucket List," "Making of the Music Video"


The Other Boleyn Girl (Blu-ray)

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment / 2008 / 115 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 10, 2008







Genres: Drama, Romance

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana, Natalie Portman
Director: Justin Chadwick

Plot Synopsis: Based on the best-selling novel, The Other Boleyn Girl is a captivating tale of intrigue, romance and betrayal about two sisters who rival for the bed and heart of King Henry VIII.

Disc Features:
• Audio Commentary by Director Justin Chadwick
• 3 Featurettes: "Members of the Court," "To Be A Lady - Court Etiquette," "Translating History to the Screen"
• Deleted and Extended Scenes
• Camera Tests with Narration by Director Justin Chadwick

HD Exclusive Content:
• Picture-in-Graphics Track: "Inside the Court" (Bonus View)


Be Kind Rewind (Blu-ray)

New Line Home Entertainment / 2008 / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 10, 2008








Genres: Comedy

Starring: Jack Black, Mos Def, Mia Farrow
Director: Michael Gondry

Plot Synopsis: Experience the antics of two outcasts, Jack Black (School of Rock) and Mos Def (The Italian Job), as they attempt to save the local video store in Be Kind Rewind, an outrageous and offbeat comedy from Academy Award®-winning writer/director Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind). Amateur film director Mike (Def) must find a way to save the business after his magnetized friend, Jerry (Black), erases every movie in the store. Using an outdated video camera and their own special effects, the two embark on an adventure to remake all of the movies, from Ghostbusters to Driving Miss Daisy, turning the two town misfits into local celebrities.

Disc Features:
• Featurette: "Passaic Mosaic," "Behind-the-Scenes," "Conversation with Jack Black and Michael Gondry"
• Musical Tribute to Fats Waller with Mos Def, Michael Gondry, and Jean Michel-Bernard
• Jack Black and Mos Def Improvise "Sweded" Theme Songs
• Complete Fats Waller Biopic short film


Witless Protection (Blu-ray)

Lionsgate Home Entertainment / 2007 / 98 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 10, 2008







Genres: Comedy

Starring: Larry the Cable Guy, Jenny McCarthy, Eric Roberts
Director: Charles Robert Carner

Plot Synopsis: During a routine day spent patrolling his small town, Larry witnesses a beautiful, sophisticated woman, Madeleine (Ivana Milicevic, Casino Royale), being held against her will by four mysterious, black-suited men. Recognizing the opportunity to save the day, Larry “kidnaps” her, only to learn that Madeleine is actually a key witness in a high-stakes Chicago crime case, and her captors are FBI agents assigned to protect her. Madeleine is furious. However, Larry, who rightly suspects the agents are crooked and Madeleine is in danger, forces her on a harebrained trip to Chicago to solve the case himself. Together, the hilariously mismatched duo must grapple with angry FBI agents, quack doctors and Chicago high society in Larry the Cable Guy’s funniest, most unpredictable adventure yet.

Disc Features:
• 3 Featurettes: "Making Witless: 'The Cast on the Cast,'" "Larry's Use of the Analogy," "The Musicians of Witless Protection."

HD Exclusive Content:
• Featurette: "A Cast of Critters"
• Gag Reel: "Die Laughing!"
• Deleted and extended scenes


Natural Born Killers (Blu-ray)

Warner Home Video / 1994 / 118 Minutes / Rated R
Street Date: June 10, 2008








Genres: Crime

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Juliette Lewis, Woody Harrelson
Director: Oliver Stone

Disc Features:
• Audio Commentary with Oliver Stone
• Deleted Scenes
• Charlie Rose Show Interview with Oliver Stone
• Theatrical Trailer
• Collectible 42-Page Booklet


The Professionals (Blu-ray)

Sony Home Entertainment / 1966 / 117 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 10, 2008








Genres: Western

Starring: Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin, Robert Ryan, Woody Strode, Jack Palance
Director: Richard Brooks

Plot Synopsis: Four soldiers of fortune are hired to rescue the kidnapped wife of a wealthy Texan oil baron (Ralph Bellamy) from a ruthless revolutionary (Jack Palance). The four rugged professionals, each regarded as a specialist in his selected field - an expert marksman and tracker (Woody Strode), an explosives master (Lancaster), a horse handler (Robert Ryan) and one skilled in tactics and weaponry (Marvin) - make their way across the treacherous landscape to retrieve the beautiful kidnappee, but soon discover all is not what it seems in an explosive climax.

Disc Features:
• Featurette: "'The Professionals' - A Classic," "Burt Lancaster: A Portrait," "Memories from "'The Professionals'"


Heart: Alive in Seattle (Blu-ray)

Image Entertainment / 2003 / 102 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: June 10, 2008








Genres: Music

Starring: Nancy Wilson, Ann Wilson
Plot Synopsis: Music's most famous sisters, Ann and Nancy Wilson, have been successfully writing and performing chart-toppers since their 1975 debut album. From acoustic to folk to hard-driving rock 'n' roll, the ladies instill emotional energy into every song. This special hometown concert showcases a rich musical legacy that's distinctively Heart!

National Geographic: Sea Monsters (Blu-ray)

National Geographic Video / 2007 / Unrated
Street Date: June 10, 2008








Genres: Documentary, Nature

Plot Synopsis: For nearly 200 million years while dinosaurs roamed the Earth, the seas teemed with some of the most awe-inspiring ocean creatures of all time. Sea Monsters, a National Geographic Giant Screen film, is an entertaining journey into prehistoric oceans. Inter-cutting between the animated story and the reenactments of fossil discoveries combine the appeal of "Indiana Jones" with the CGI that brings these prehistoric monsters to life. Perfect for the whole family.

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