Blu-ray 17th March Release

Bolt (Three-Disc Edition w/ Standard DVD + Digital Copy) [Blu-ray]

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment / 2008 / 96 Minutes / Rated G
Street Date: March 17, 2009

Genres: Animation, family

Starring: John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Susie Essman, and Mark Walton
Director: Chris Williams

Plot Synopsis: Bolt is a funny animated film about a dog who thinks he has superpowers. It is also a movie about friendship, perseverance, and the power of believing in oneself. Everyone knows that superheroes on television are not real, but super-dog Bolt (John Travolta) is a canine star who has been carefully raised to believe that he really possesses superpowers. Bolt is completely devoted to his human co-star Penny (Miley Cyrus), so when Penny is captured by the evil Dr. Calico (Malcolm McDowell) in their latest television episode and then Bolt accidentally gets loose in the real world, Bolt sets off on a journey to save her. Bolt is confounded when his super powers are suddenly ineffective, but inspiration strikes and Bolt quickly discovers the mysterious, power-stealing effects of Styrofoam packing peanuts. An encounter with alley cat Mittens (Susie Essman) gives Bolt some eye-opening lessons about being a real dog in the real world, while star-struck, ball-enclosed hamster Rhino (Mark Walton) revels in the opportunity to serve as Bolt's sidekick in the quest to rescue Penny. The trio traverses the United States from waffle house to waffle house on a hysterical quest to find Penny and prove that the relationship between Penny and Bolt is real. In the end, Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino learn that everyone is special in their own way and they discover the true power of believing in oneself and one's friends. Select theaters showed Bolt in Real-D 3-D which features some nice effects, but the film is probably equally enjoyable in the traditional format. A fun film with a nice message and a huge dose of cute, Bolt is good entertainment for the entire family.

Disc Features:

Disc One (Blu-ray)

• Featurette: "A New Breed of Directors: A Filmmaker's Journey" (5 minutes)
  
• Featurette: "Creating the World of Bolt" (7 minutes) - Probably the most interesting of the featurettes, here Williams and Howard discuss the use of painted backgrounds for the film, versus pure CGI. It's a neat technique, and gives 'Bolt' a unique visual look compared to most CGI movies made these days.
  
• Featurette: "Act, Speak! The Voices of Bolt" (9 minutes) - Miley Cyrus and John Travolta, plus a few of the supporting voice talent, discuss their characters, and we also get a glimpse of them in action in the recording booth.
  
• Music Video (HD) - Cyrus and Travolta return with this icky "I Thought I Lost You" tune. There's also a short featurette on the making of the "video," which is really just a bunch of film clips.
  

• Deleted Scenes (HD, 7 minutes) - There are two snipped scenes here, both presented in storyboard form. You can also watch each with or without a director's introduction.
  
• Short Film (HD, 5 minutes) - Finally, we have a newly-produced short film, "Super Rhino."
  

Disc Two (DVD)

• DVD Copy

Disc Three (DVD)

Digital Copy - Finally, we have a Digital Copy of the movie (in standard definition), compatible with PCs, PSP and iTunes.

Punisher: War Zone [Blu-ray]

Lionsgate Home Entertainment / 2008 / 103 Minutes / Rated R
Street Date: March 17, 2009

Genres: Action, Adventure

Starring: Ray Stevenson, Julie Benz, Doug Hutchison, Wayne Knight
Director: Lexi Alexander

Plot Synopsis: Punisher: War Zone cannot be adequately described as "over the top"--it's a relentless catalogue of brutal mayhem punctuated, here and there, with outrageous sentimentality. Frank Castle, a.k.a. The Punisher (Ray Stevenson, Rome) has dedicated his life to killing the kind of gangsters who murdered his family. But when he unknowingly kills an undercover FBI agent, Castle falls into a crisis of conscience and decides to lay down his guns. Unfortunately, one of the last gangsters he thought he'd killed survived, albeit horribly disfigured, and seeks revenge on the wife and daughter of that slain FBI agent--so Castle has to go one last spree of vigilante justice! But this plot summary will not prepare you for the jolting violence of Punisher: War Zone; rarely do more than a few minutes go by without startling physical savagery, particularly to people's heads, which get blown apart with numbing frequency. This violence somehow goes hand in hand with dizzyingly saccharine moments when a young girl gazes at Castle with trusting eyes, knowing in her heart that he's the only one who can protect her. The dialogue goes beyond cliche into tough guy baroque. Stevenson underplays Castle to good effect, because everyone else in the movie--including Dominic West (The Wire), Doug Hutchison (The Green Mile), and Wayne Knight (Seinfeld)--chews the scenery like it's slathered with gravy. Some viewers will find this movie revolting; others will worship it like a golden calf. You probably know where you stand.

Disc Features:

• Audio Commentary – Director Lexi Alexander and Cinematographer Steve Gainer sit down to provide a full feature-length audio commentary.
  


• The Making of Punisher: War Zone (HD, 9:02) – A short and straightforward featurette analyzing the characters, stunts, and more.


• Training to Become The Punisher (HD, 5:47) – Another brief featurette focusing on Stevenson’s weapon training with the U.S. Marine Corp and choreography with action sequence supervisor Pat Johnson.


• The Weapons of The Punisher (HD, 4:39) – Weapons supervisor Paul Barrette gives a closer look at some of the different types of weapons found in Frank Castle’s arsenal.


• Meet Jigsaw (HD, 3:34) – A vignette on Dominic West’s character and make-up effects.


• Creating the Look of The Punisher (HD, 2:46) – This featurette explains the color schemes and the reasoning behind the tri-color palette for the film.


• Theatrical Trailer (HD, 1:08) – Theatrical trailer for ‘Punisher: War Zone.’


• Also From Lionsgate (HD, 13:43) – More trailers for: 'Crank 2: High Voltage,' 'The Haunting in Connecticut, 'Transporter 3,' 'Saw V,' 'The Burrowers,' 'The Spirit,' and 'Hulk vs.'


• Digital Copy

The Princess Bride [Blu-ray]

MGM Home Entertainment / 1987 / 98 Minutes / Rated PG
Street Date: March 17, 2009

Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Romance

Starring: Robin Wright, Cary Elwes, Billy Crystal, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon
Director: Rob Reiner

Plot Synopsis: A classic fairy tale, with swordplay, giants, an evil prince, a beautiful princess, and yes, some kissing (as read by a kindly grandfather).

Disc Features:
• 2 Audio commentaries
• 7 Featurettes
• Theatrical Trailer

The Robe [Blu-ray]

Fox Home Entertainment / 1953 / 135 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: March 17, 2009

Genres: Action, Drama

Starring: Richard Burton
Director: Henry Koster

Plot Synopsis: The first movie ever filmed in CinemaScope, The Robe was nominated for five Academy Awards in 1953, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Richard Burton. Burton stars as Marcellus Galilo, the Roman centurian charged with overseeing the crucifixion. But when he wins Christ's robe in a gambling game at the foot of the cross, his life is forever changed.

Quo Vadis [Blu-ray]

Warner Home Video / 1951 / 171 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: March 17, 2009

Genres: Drama, Historical, War

Starring: Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr, Peter Ustinov
Plot Synopsis: A Roman commander under Nero falls in love with a Christian girl and jealous Poppea has them both thrown to the lions.

Disc Features:
• Audio Commentary by F. X. Feeney
• Documentary: "In the Beginning: Quo Vadis and the Genesis of the Biblical Epic"
• Theatrical Trailers