Monday, July 26, 2010

Blu-ray 27th July Releases

Clash of the Titans (Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy)

Warner Brothers / 2010 / 106 Minutes
Street Date: July 27, 2010

Overall Grade 4 out of 5 Recommended









Genres: Action, Fantasy, Epic

Starring: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes
Director: Louis Leterrier

Plot Synopsis: In Clash of the Titans, the ultimate struggle for power pits men against kings and kings against gods. But the war between the gods themselves could destroy the world. Born of a god but raised as a man, Perseus (Sam Worthington) is helpless to save his family from Hades (Ralph Fiennes), vengeful god of the underworld. With nothing to lose, Perseus volunteers to lead a dangerous mission to defeat Hades before he can seize power from Zeus (Liam Neeson) and unleash hell on earth. Battling unholy demons and fearsome beasts, Perseus and his warriors will only survive if Perseus accepts his power as a god, defies fate and creates his own destiny.

Disc Features:

Maximum Movie Mode: Harnessing the Gods, with Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, and director Louis Leterrier and enhanced picture-in-picture; enhanced scene breakdowns; enhanced VFX breakdowns; on-the-spot vignettes; close-up views of the Kraken, the Scorpiochs, Medusa, stuntwork, filming locales, and more
Sam Worthington: An Action Hero for the Ages
Alternate ending: Perseus confronts Zeus on Mount Olympus
Additional scenes

Repo Men (Unrated) [Blu-ray]

Universal Studios / 2010 / 120 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: July 20, 2010

Overall Grade 3.5 out of 5Violently nice!










Genres: Action, sci-fi thriller
Starring: Jude Law, Forest Whitaker
Director: Miguel Sapochnik

Plot Synopsis: In the future, artificial internal organs will be widely available, but their high cost will lead to a thriving, if bloody, repossession business--at least that's the idea in Repo Men, whose title characters must carry scalpels, and not scruples. When clients default--and, at 19 percent interest rates, it happens all the time--it's up to Remy (Jude Law) and Jake (Forest Whitaker), the two most swashbuckling field operatives at the Union company, to reclaim the merchandise. The film's reviewers largely seemed to miss the wicked humor that underlies Repo Men's kooky futuristic world, as Remy's domestic situation is portrayed with typical backyard barbecues and typical nagging wife who wants hubby to ask his boss about that promotion, already. Everything's amusingly typical, that is, except for the fact that Remy regularly charges into people's apartments and grabs their kidneys. It would be nice to report that director Miguel Sapochnik was able to maintain the initial air of satire (RoboCop comes to mind at least as often as an obvious inspiration such as Brazil), but this movie begins to stumble in its middle section, as Remy himself becomes a subject for organ replacement. (His efforts at self-medicating procedures, especially a climactic surgery sequence, leave Patrick Swayze's similar efforts in Road House far behind.) Sudden shifts to a woman-in-peril scenario--with capable Alice Braga as the target of Union's organ hunters--make for an even more puzzling turn, and the jumbled rhythm of the second act suggests a certain amount of postproduction futzing around. The soundtrack is rife with Guy Ritchie-style song cues, some of which are fun, and Liev Schreiber has a good time smirking his way through his role as Remy's cold-hearted boss. The biggest problem here is that once the movie is over, a great many things don't make any logical sense, and a last-minute switcheroo only muddies the waters. Which are pretty bloody to begin with.

Disc Features:
  • Audio Commentary - With Miguel Sapochnik, Eric Garcia and Garrett Lerner, on the unrated cut.

  • Deleted Scenes (SD, 8 min) - With optional commentary by the same trio who provided the commentary for the film.

  • The Union Commercials (SD, 3 min)

  • Inside the Visual Effects (HD, 6 min)


Batman: Under the Red Hood [Blu-ray]

Warner Brothers / 2010 / 75 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: July 27, 2010

Overall Grade 4 out of 5 Recommended










Genres: Animation, fantasy, superhero
Starring: Russell Tovey, Lenora Crichlow, Aidan Turner, Jason Watkins, Dylan Brown
Director: Brandon Vietti

Plot Synopsis: Batman faces his ultimate challenge as the mysterious Red Hood takes Gotham City by firestorm. One part vigilante, one part criminal kingpin, Red Hood begins cleaning up Gotham with the efficiency of Batman, but without following the same ethical code. Killing is an option. And when the Joker falls in the balance between the two, hard truths are revealed and old wounds are reopened.

Disc Features:
Featurette: Robin’s Requiem: The Tale of Jason Todd - The story of how DC Comics heard the fan outcry and reshaped the Robin character for the new millennium.
2 bonus episodes from Batman The Animated Series Season 1 handpicked by Bruce Timm
Next Upcoming DCU Sneak Peak (10 min)
DC Showcase: Jonah Hex – animated short. The tough-as-nails bounty hunter Jonah Hex always gets his man – until someone else gets to him first – in this case a murderous madam who wants to steal more than just his bounty from Jonah Hex. Based on a story from the award-winning Jonah Hex comic series.
Featurette: Robin: The Story of Dick Grayson- Explore the evolution of the character through the years.
2 bonus episodes from Batman The Animated Series Season 1 handpicked by Bruce Timm

Back Catalogue/ Other Blu-ray Releases:











'Inception' Unshakeable At No.1


Last weekend Warner Bros. enjoyed a sensational second weekend for its sci-fi thriller Inception which capitalized on amazing buzz to remain the most popular film in North America. Angelina Jolie's new action pic Salt had to settle for second place but the spy thriller still generated a healthy opening. Like last weekend, funny films had the best holds while everything else dropped harder.

Declining by a slim 31%, Inception topped the charts once again with an estimated $43.5M rocketing its ten-day tally to a stellar $143.7M. It was the second lowest drop witnessed all year for a wide release in its sophomore frame and put the Leonardo DiCaprio hit on track to break the $250M mark and possibly the $300M barrier as well. Playing in 3,792 theaters, including 197 IMAX sites, the mind-bending film averaged a muscular $11,473 which was tops among all wide releases.

Inception has an incredible road ahead of it. Word-of-mouth is amazing, repeat business is solid, competition over the coming weeks is not too fierce, and midweek sales have been enormous. It may even extend its streak to three weeks at number one. The hold was especially impressive given the arrival of another star-driven action thriller in Salt.

That Angelina Jolie starrer debuted well in the runner-up spot with an estimated $36.5M from 3,612 locations for a meaty $10,105 average. The Sony espionage thriller about a CIA agent on the run when suspected of being a Russian secret agent played to an adult audience and had cross-gender appeal. Studio research showed that 53% of the crowd was female and 59% was over 25. Reviews were mixed and moviegoers responded to the starpower of the lead and the promise of action and stunts. Unlike Inception, Salt featured very few special effects.

The media gave extensive coverage to the fact that Tom Cruise passed on doing the film and opted for another spy flick, Knight and Day, instead. But paying customers were more excited by Jolie as Salt grossed more in its first 3 days than Knight did in its first 9 days. Cruise's latest project is set to end its domestic run with less than $80M while Salt stands a great chance of breaking $100M.

Audience favorite Despicable Me held up remarkably well in its third frame sliding only 27% to an estimated $24.1M boosting the 17-day total to a stunning $161.7M. Universal's highest-grossing film in three years, the 3D toon is well on its way to reaching at least $225M and could go even higher as competition in the coming weeks is not too strong for its target audience.

Disney's big-budget misfire The Sorcerer's Apprentice fell to fourth place with an estimated $9.7M failing to break double-digit millions in its second weekend in theaters. With only $42.6M in 12 days, the effects-driven Nicolas Cage action title looks to reach $70-80M which would be only half of its production cost.

Giving the Mouse House better news was Toy Story 3 which still had good legs dipping only 25% to an estimated $9M in its sixth round.

Fox bowed its new girl pic Ramona and Beezus in sixth place with a quiet $8M, according to estimates. The G-rated film based on the popular children's books by author Beverly Cleary averaged a mild $2,942 from 2,719 theaters and played mostly to young girls and their moms. The low cost $15M production attracted an audience that was 69% family and 75% female. Reviews were generally upbeat.

Sony's Grown Ups followed in seventh with an estimated $7.6M, down 23%, pushing the total to $142.4M. Off 46% in its fourth weekend was The Twilight Saga: Eclipse with an estimated $7M boosting the cume to $279.7M. That puts the newest vampire pic at number 45 on the all-time list ahead of 2004's Meet the Fockers which grossed $279.2M.

Rounding out the top ten were action movies aimed at two different age groups of males. The PG-rated The Last Airbender grossed an estimated $4.2M, down 46%, for a $123.3M total. Paramount's franchise hopeful ranks as M. Night Shyamalan's third biggest hit ever trailing The Sixth Sense and Signs which still hold career highs for Bruce Willis and Mel Gibson, respectively, as actors. Fox's ultraviolent Predators fell 59% to an estimated $2.9M putting the sci-fi pic at $46.6M.

# Title Jul 23 - 25


Weeks
Cumulative Distributor










1 Inception $ 43,505,000


2
$ 143,663,000 Warner Bros.
2 Salt 36,500,000


1
36,500,000 Sony
3 Despicable Me 24,120,000


3
161,721,000 Universal
4 The Sorcerer's Apprentice 9,685,000


2
42,643,000 Buena Vista
5 Toy Story 3 9,030,000


6
379,529,000 Buena Vista
6 Ramona and Beezus 8,000,000


1
8,000,000 Fox
7 Grown Ups 7,600,000


5
142,412,000 Sony
8 The Twilight Saga: Eclipse 7,000,000


4
279,700,000 Summit
9 The Last Airbender 4,173,000


4
123,264,000 Paramount
10 Predators 2,850,000


3
46,568,000 Fox

Saturday, July 24, 2010

SALT Opens This Week!

The force of 'girl power' is attacking box office crowd this week with the gun-totting Angelina Jolie headlining the action film Salt from Sony. My prediction for 'Salt' that it would be generating around $35Million mark for its cumulative box office collection by this weekend.

SALT
Copyright © 2010 Columbia Pictures (Sony)

In Columbia Pictures' Salt, Angelina Jolie stars as Evelyn Salt, a CIA officer who swore an oath to duty, honor, and country. When she is accused by a defector of being a Russian sleeper spy, Salt goes on the run to clear her name and ultimately prove she is a patriot. Using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative, she must elude capture and protect her husband or the world's most powerful forces will erase any trace of her existence.

Liev Schreiber stars as Winter, Salt's boss and friend on the Russian desk at the CIA, and Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Peabody, a CIA counter-intelligence officer.





Ramona & Beezus
Copyright © 2010 20th Century Fox

Based on the Ramona series of novels written by Beverly Cleary. As everyone knows, Ramona Quimby lives on Klickitat Street. The stories of her adventures begin in Beezus and Ramona, where Beezus, who is just turning ten, finds four-year-old Ramona an exasperating little sister.




Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Blu-ray 20th July Releases

The Losers (Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy)

Warner Brothers / 2010 / 97 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: July 20, 2010











Genres: Action packed!

Starring: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Chris Evans
Director: Sylvain White

Plot Synopsis: An explosive action tale of betrayal and revenge, The Losers centers around an elite Special Forces unit sent to the Bolivian jungle on a search-and-destroy mission. But the team – Clay, Jensen, Roque, Pooch and Cougar – soon find that they have become the target of a deadly double cross instigated by a powerful enemy known only as Max. Making good use of the fact they’re now presumed dead, the group goes deep undercover in a dangerous plot to clear their names and even the score with Max.

Disc Features:
Zoe and the Losers
Band of Buddies: OPS Training
The Losers: Action-Style Storytelling
Sneak Peek at Batman: Under the Red Hood
Deleted scenes

Cop Out (Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy)

Warner Brothers / 2010 / 107 Minutes / Rated R
Street Date: July 20, 2010

Overall Grade 3.5 out of 5Greatly done!









Genres: Action comedy.

Starring: Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfriend.
Director: Kevin Smith

Plot Synopsis: Officers Jimmy Monroe and Paul Hodges have their weapons drawn on a gun-wielding killer. They agree to shoot on three. But, wait, does that mean 1…2…shoot or 1…2…3…then shoot? Punches hit hard and laughs hit harder (or is it the other way ’round?) when action star Bruce Willis and ace comic Tracy Morgan pair as bickering-but-got-your-back Brooklyn buddy cops. Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy) directs the gritty, goofball goings-on as the guys hunt for a stolen 1952 mint-condition baseball card (Jimmy needs it to fund his daughter’s wedding), 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!

Disc Features:
Maximum Movie Mode with Kevin Smith and Seann William Scott: Never-before-seen extended scenes and outtakes, picture-in-picture moments with Kevin Smith and Seann William Scott, walk-ons by Kevin Smith, Wisdom from the S*** Bandit, factoids about the movie and other information.

Being Human: Season 1 [Blu-ray]

BBC / 2009 / 345 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: July 20, 2010







Genres: TV, Fantasy, Mystery
Starring: Russell Tovey, Lenora Crichlow, Aidan Turner, Jason Watkins, Dylan Brown

Plot Synopsis: At first sight there doesn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary about flatsharers George and Mitchell, but both harbour dark secrets. Once a month, geeky hospital porter George is transformed into a rabid, flesh-tearing werewolf, while womanising, man-about-town Mitchell is trying to forego his blood-sucking vampire instincts. As they take the keys to their new home, the boys discover that their flat has another occupant - lonely ghost Annie, who died in a car accident days before she was due to marry her fiance.

Disc Features:

Deleted scenes
Behind-the-scenes featurettes
Video diaries
Character profiles
Interview with creator Toby Whithouse

Back Catalogue/ Other Blu-ray Releases:






Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Inception Hit #1. Nolan's rock, Bruckheimer's Flopped!


Moviegoers were in the mood for using their brains as the smart sci-fi thriller Inception debuted atop the North American box office chart while the generic effects-driven action pic The Sorcerer's Apprentice was utterly rejected stumbling into third place with a weak showing. Funny holdovers held up well while most others fell sharply as the overall marketplace remained strong.

Following much anticipation, Warner Bros. unleashed its Leonardo DiCaprio-led crime thriller Inception and was met with a strong response from ticket buyers taking in $62.8M in its opening weekend, according to final studio figures. It was $2.4M better than originally estimated on Sunday. The studio released the Christopher Nolan-directed pic in 3,792 theaters including a record 197 IMAX sites and averaged a sizzling $16,557 per location. It was the actor's biggest opening ever beating out the $41.1M of Shutter Island from just five months ago. Inception also delivered the third biggest opening of the year for a 2D film following the high-profile summer sequels Iron Man 2 and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.

Fans had been waiting for Nolan to follow up on his 2008 megahit The Dark Knight and Inception provided a thinking person's pic thanks to an original story written by the director. Films with openings like this are usually based on some kind of pre-existing source material or are headlined by stars that routinely open pictures at this level. Reviews and word-of-mouth so far have been very strong and the complex storyline does encourage repeat viewing so the road ahead could be promising. The PG-13 pic cost $150M to produce.

Overseas, Inception premiered in Nolan's native U.K. plus a half-dozen Asian territories to a solid estimate of $16.5M and rolls out into 29 more markets this coming weekend including Japan, France, Mexico, Australia, Korea, and Russia. Thirteen more countries including Germany open on the following frame.

Knocked down to number two but still packing quite a punch was the 3D toon Despicable Me which grossed $32.8M in its second weekend. The Universal hit fell just 42% which represented a terrific hold considering all the summer competition. Steve Carell's turn as a lovable supervillain has pulled in a stellar $118.4M in its first ten days and with strong midweeks could very well be headed past the $200M mark. The struggling studio has had only two other films join the double-century club over the last five years - King Kong and The Bourne Ultimatum - and is now well-positioned as one of the last major studio players in the lucrative animation world.

Superproducer Jerry Bruckheimer suffered one of the worst openings of his career with the weak launch of the big-budget adventure film The Sorcerer's Apprentice which bowed to just $17.6M in third place. With $24.7M in the five days since its Wednesday start, the PG-rated pic managed to average $5,028 from 3,504 theaters. Apprentice stars Nicolas Cage as a wizard that takes on a protégé to help him in his long battle with a rival wizard.

The performance was about even with the producer's 2004 summer adventure King Arthur which also bowed midweek in July in third place and opened to $15.2M over the weekend ($4,923 average) and $23.6M in five days. That film, still ranking as one of Bruckheimer's biggest failures, sold about 13% more tickets in its five-day debut and ended its domestic run at just $51.9M.

Reportedly costing around $150M to produce, the flop follows Bruckheimer's other pricey summer action offering Prince of Persia which has been a disappointment in North America grossing less than $90M to date despite a budget that was much higher. The veteran producer has long been a steady supplier of hits for Disney but this summer marks a rare case of back-to-back clunkers from his signature genre of loud and expensive summer action movies. Apprentice offered impressive special effects, but its generic feel prevented audience members from getting any excitement.

# Title Jul 16 - 18

Theaters Weeks
Cumulative Distributor










1 Inception $ 62,785,337

3,792 1
$ 62,785,337 Warner Bros.
2 Despicable Me 32,803,660

3,501 2
118,434,555 Universal
3 The Sorcerer's Apprentice 17,619,622

3,504 1
24,708,059 Buena Vista
4 The Twilight Saga: Eclipse 13,420,480

4,001 3
264,791,897 Summit
5 Toy Story 3 11,998,276

3,177 5
362,965,378 Buena Vista
6 Grown Ups 9,911,016

3,074 4
129,165,357 Sony
7 The Last Airbender 7,755,153

2,805 3
115,138,607 Paramount
8 Predators 7,016,502

2,669 2
40,300,543 Fox
9 Knight and Day 3,608,021

1,925 4
69,117,400 Fox
10 The Karate Kid 2,288,707

1,532 6
169,290,675 Sony

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Inception & The Sorcerer's Apprentice Opens This Week

Highly acclaimed director Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight) return this summer with 'Inception' stars Leonardo DiCaprio which already had a very strong 'word of mouth' and good reviews everywhere is seems to win big in this week's box office race.


Inception
Copyright © 2010 Warner Bros Pictures

Acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan directs an international cast in an original sci-fi actioner that travels around the globe and into the intimate and infinite world of dreams. Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a skilled thief, the absolute best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state, when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobbs rare ability has made him a coveted player in this treacherous new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossibleinception. Instead of the perfect heist, Cobb and his team of specialists have to pull off the reverse: their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one. If they succeed, it could be the perfect crime. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move. An enemy that only Cobb could have seen coming. This summer, your mind is the scene of the crime.





The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Copyright © 2010 Walt Disney Pictures

Dave (Jay Baruchel) is just an average college student, or so it appears, until the sorcerer Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage) recruits him as his reluctant protégé and gives him a crash course in the art and science of magic. As he prepares for a battle against the forces of darkness in modern-day Manhattan, Dave finds it is going to take all of the courage he can muster to survive his training, save the city and get the girl as he becomes The Sorcerer's Apprentice.


Friday, July 16, 2010

Blu-ray 13th July Releases

The Bounty Hunter [Blu-ray]

Sony / 2010 / 110 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: July 13, 2010












Genres: Romantic action comedy

Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Gerard Butler
Director: Andy Tennant

Plot Synopsis: In the bouncy romantic comedy The Bounty Hunter, Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler aim to be a contemporary Nick and Nora for an audience that's never even heard of The Thin Man. Ex-cop-turned-bounty hunter Milo Boyd (Butler, 300) is ecstatic when he gets his new assignment: his ex-wife, reporter Nicole Hurley (Aniston), has skipped bail to pursue a breaking story. Naturally, when he catches her, he also gets caught up in the mystery--though the mystery is really just an excuse for quirky comic bickering between the estranged lovebirds. Refreshingly, the script has the kind of off-beat rhythms and flavors of comedy-action flicks like Midnight Run, Out of Sight, and Something Wild, and the supporting cast (featuring Christine Baranski, Mamma Mia!; Peter Greene, Pulp Fiction; Jeff Garlin, Curb Your Enthusiasm; Siobhan Fallon, Saturday Night Live; Cathy Moriarty, Raging Bull; and beloved character actress Carol Kane) is a colorful collection of great faces and pungent personalities. It's unfortunate that the leads are a tad bland; Aniston and Butler aren't bad, but they don't have the snap, crackle, and pop that the movie craves.

Disc Features:

Making The Bounty Hunter
Rules for Outwitting a Bounty Hunter
Stops Along The Road: Hunting Locations
movieIQ™+sync and BD-Live connect you to real-time information on the cast, music, trivia and more while watching the movie!

Chloe [Blu-ray]

Sony / 2009 / 96 Minutes / Rated R
Street Date: July 13, 2010












Genres: Erotic thriller, Drama

Starring: Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfriend.
Director: Atom Egoyan

Plot Synopsis: A missed flight...a lack of intimacy...guarded secrets... To Catherine (Julianne Moore), every detail suggests that her husband David (Liam Neeson) has been unfaithful. But there's only one way to know for sure. Catherine pays the mysterious Chloe (Amanda Seyfriend), an escort, to seduce her husband. She wants to know exactly how far she can trust him. But soon Catherine finds herself pushed beyond all limits as passions burn and obsessions build. From Academy Award®-nominated director Atom Egoyan (The Sweet Hereafter, 1997).

Disc Features:

Commentary with Actress Amanda Seyfried, Director Atom Egoyan and Writer Erin Cressida Wilson
Introducing Chloe: The Making of Chloe
Deleted Scenes

White Collar: The Complete First Season [Blu-ray]

20th Century Fox / 2009 / 677 Minutes / Rated PG
Street Date: July 13, 2010











Genres: Crime, Thriller, TV series

Starring: Matthew Bomer, Tim Dekay, Willie Garson, Sharif Atkins

Plot Synopsis: When Neal escapes from a maximum-security prison to find his long-lost love, Peter nabs him once again. Rather than returning to jail, Neal suggests an alternate plan: He'll provide his criminal expertise to assist the Feds in catching other elusive criminals in exchange for his eventual freedom. Initially wary, Peter quickly finds that Neal provides insight and intuition that can't be found on the right side of the law.

Disc Features:
Disc 1: 230 Minutes
  • Pilot
  • With commentary featuring Jeff Eastin, Tim DeKay, Tiffani Thiessen & Matt Bomer.
  • Threads
  • Books of Hours
  • Flip of the Coin
  • The Portrait

Disc 2: 216 Minutes

  • All In
  • Free Fall
  • With commentary featuring Jeff Eastin, Matt Bomer & Willie Garson
  • Hard Sell
  • With commentary featuring Jeff Eastin, Matt Bomer & Tim DeKay
  • Bad Judgement
  • Vital Signs
  • With commentary featuring Jeff Eastin, Tim DeKay, Willie Garson & Tiffani Thiessen
  • Home Invasion

Disc 3: 135 Minutes

  • Bottlenecked
  • Front Man
  • Out of the Box
  • With commentary featuring Jeff Eastin, Tim DeKay & Matt Bomer.

Special Features:

  • Gag Reel
  • Deleted Scenes
  • Featurettes:
  • Pro and Con
  • A Cool Cat in the Hat
  • Nothing But the Truth

Back Catalogue/ Other Blu-ray Releases: