In Contention

Tag: DVD

  • ‘First Class’ Friday

    Which will you choose? Via press release:

    LOS ANGELES (July 19, 2011) – Before they were superheroes, the fate of humanity depended on an extraordinary group of youngsters who went on to become X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. Based on the international bestselling Marvel Comics franchise, this box office hit bursts onto Blu-ray and DVD Friday, September 9 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. For the first time ever, “X-Men” fans will have the power to choose a side between Professor X and Magneto with two versions of premium collectible Blu-ray packaging. Also exclusively on Blu-ray, fans receive access to over two hours of special interactive features PLUS ten Marvel “X-Men” Digital Comics including a never-before-seen “X-Men: First Class” backstory— redeemable through each Blu-ray’s unique packaging code…

    The first 1,000 fans to pre-order their Blu-ray or DVD copy of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS during San Diego Comic-Con (July 21 – 24) will receive a free limited edition T-shirt, showing their support for either “Team Charles” or “Team Erik.” Fans can pre-order their copy in person at the Fox booth #4313 or online at www.FoxConnect.com. During this time, X-MEN: FIRST CLASS will be available on Blu-ray and DVD at the exclusive price of $25.00 for Blu-ray and $18.00 for DVD.

    More on specs after the jump.

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  • ‘Lion King’ Father’s Day PSA

    The film will be re-released theatrically in 3D September 16 with an October 4 Blu-ray and DVD Special Edition close behind (trailer after the jump). Meanwhile, speaking of today, I figure I’ll shout-out a two-year-old list to commemorate.

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  • ‘White Material’ gets the Criterion treatment

    When you’ve been doggedly championing a film for the better part of 18 months, as I have with Claire Denis’s “White Material,” you do start to feel weirdly parental. So I was oddly touched by the raft of emails and tweets I got from assorted readers to inform me that the film has been revealed as one of Criterion’s April titles — it was as if I was being congratulated for someone else’s triumph.

    I’ve said before that I don’t really do the Criterion thing: US import charges making the discs even more of an indulgence for me, after all. If I make an exception for anything, however, it’ll be for the film that further viewings have established (after an already ecstatic first encounter) as my favorite of the last half-decade or so.

    Each revisit opens up both new avenues of political enquiry and an alternative set of possible answers, while the filmmaking also stuns on rotating, mood-dependent levels. One day, it’s Denis’s still-life camera that seems to lead the rich, fever-dream sound design; another, quite the reverse.

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  • Toasting the ‘Social Network’ DVD release

    Sony pulled out all the stops last night with a big to-do soiree on behalf of the DVD/Blu-ray release of “The Social Network.” You go to these things, you expect a certain level of restraint, and then I’m pulling up to Spago and they’ve got the red carpet rolled out and the flashbulbs are popping and, well — it wasn’t an intimate Il Cielo thing, that’s for sure.  It was a great time, though.

    Tons of cast and crew were on hand.  I finally got some face time with Jesse Eisenberg, who made me totally nervous, to be quite honest.  He has a flustered (but endearing) way about him, and is a true gentleman.  Nevertheless, it seemed to me he wanted out of there.  Hey, it’s a lot to deal with for a young, unassuming actor like him.  He’s right at the front of a massive Oscar campaign for a highly successful film.  What can you say?  Good luck to him.

    I’ve of course already spoken to composer Atticus Ross and film editor Kirk Baxter, but it was nice to put faces to the names.  Trent Reznor couldn’t attend.  Also from the crew was cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth, a great guy.  His first film was Fincher’s “Fight Club” back in 1999.  And Fincher was there.  Didn’t get a chance to speak with him.  Aaron Sorkin and Armie Hammer as well.  A brief exchange with Andrew Garfield.  Most everyone turned out.

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  • Seven years to the day

    Sony’s campaign for “The Social Network” sure is moving along swimmingly.  As if the critics’ groups didn’t give the film enough of a headwind going into the voting frame of phase one, the film is hitting DVD and Blu-ray January 11, a scant three months after theatrical release and right in the middle of the buzz maelstrom.

    Of course, it’s all by design, and a DVD release party being held at Spago in Beverly Hills Thursday night, press naturally invited en masse, will keep the good word spreading.  An Oscar run is all about timing, and so far, this one has it in spades.

    There’s something else that’s key to that date, though.  Film writer William Goss alerted me over the weekend to the fact that, on January 11, 2004, Mark Zuckerberg began this epic, defining journey when he bought the domain (“thefacebook.com”) that would become, after a slight tweak, the most-visited website on the internet.  Coincidence?

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  • CONTEST: Win DVDs of ‘Inception’ and ‘Shutter Island’

    This morning we wrapped up a massive two-part interview with actor Leonardo DiCaprio, whose performances in “Inception” and particularly “Shutter Island” in 2010 reflected a movie star very much at the top of his game.  So in the spirit of his wonderful year of output, it seemed a good time to kick off our contests with a chance to win a DVD of each film.

    But you have to work for it.  Stretch the ole’ brain a bit and come up with an engaging piece of persuasive writing.  Using the comments section below, tell us what your favorite DiCaprio performance is to date.  That’s the full canon, starting with the groundbreaking, brilliant, truly stunning and revelatory, uh, “Critters 3,” and moving all the way through his latest portrayal in Christopher Nolan’s summer blockbuster.  Be convincing.

    It’s best to put a limit on things, for purposes of length and also to make sure we get some potent responses.  I think 100 words is plenty, so anything that goes over that mark, I’ll have to disqualify.  Have at it!

    [Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures]

  • Extended ‘Avatar’ is the home video event of the year

    The most exciting Blu-ray/DVD release of the year (perhaps more so than the Criterion release of Terrence Malick’s “The Thin Red Line”) might be the three-disc Extended Collector’s Edition of James Cameron’s “Avatar.”

    I watched the nearly three-hour film this weekend and found it, without a doubt, a better, more fully realized experience than the film we saw in theaters a year ago.  Some of the material was already included in a “special edition” theatrical re-release in August.  Those elements mostly include bits and pieces here and there that certainly fill the film out a bit.

    However, in the early moments of the extended edition (which has been on shelves since Tuesday), we’re met with a sequence set on a ruined earth that provides a visual effects feast different than the rest of the film.  I loved this stuff mostly for the character-building moments provided for Sam Worthington’s Jake Sully.

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  • Toasting the DVD release of ‘How to Train Your Dragon’

    If you haven’t heard by now, Paramount Pictures is launching full speed into a Best Picture campaign for the animated hit “How to Train Your Dragon,” and why not?  When you’re talking about Pixar-level acclaim and a highly respectable box office take, it’s worth it to test those waters.

    A lovely soiree last night toasting the forthcoming Blu-ray and DVD release of the film was an early stop on that journey.  Last year you’ll recall the studio put together a similar event for the “Star Trek” home video release.

    The party was held at the new Red O restaurant on Melrose and among those in attendance were DreamWorks honcho Jeffrey Katzenberg and voice talents Craig Ferguson and America Ferrera.  Ferrera was a delight to chat with, eager to dive into the recently announced sequel.  I also had a nice talk with her fiancee, Ryan Piers Williams, a film buff and himself a filmmaker (Edinburgh hit “The Dry Land”).  The film’s directors, Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, were also in the crowd, as well as, randomly, actor Robert Forster.  Mostly though it was a room full of BFCA, LAFCA and HFPA members, so the aim was clear.

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  • Cover art for ‘Thin Red Line’ Criterion release

    A few weeks ago we told you about the upcoming DVD and Blu-ray Criterion release of Terrence Malick’s “The Thin Red Line,” perhaps one of the most anticipated Criterion announcements yet.  The information came with sell sheet cover art, but today we get a look at the actual cover art, and as one would expect, it’s gorgeous.  Check out the full image after the jump.

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  • Malick’s Pacific theatre makes its way to Criterion

    I haven’t picked up a copy of Terrence Malick’s “The Thin Red Line” on DVD because I’m so OCD.  As in, I can’t stand the “Fox war classics” thing at the top of the case.  It’s the same reason I have a love/hate relationship with my “John Wayne classics” version of “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.” I know, weird, but I also thought Malick’s film, one of the very best ever made, needed a big to-do from Criterion or SOMEONE willing to dig in.

    It looks like I’m finally getting my wish, as Criterion will be releasing the DVD and — ZOMG! — Blu-ray this September.  This follows the recent Criterion release of “Days of Heaven” from the director.  And it’s just in time for all the forthcoming “Tree of Life” buzz.

    Count me stoked.  REALLY stoked.  I’m not sure what the specifics of the release are, actually, but I long for the day someone digs up all the footage and gives us that six-hour cut.  Is all of that lost to the winds?  I’m out of the loop.

    Anyway, the sell-sheet cover art hit today, which typically eschews any poster art in favor of something more singular.  Check it out after the jump, but keep an eye on the official page for the film at Criterion for updates and, eventually, the “official” cover art for the release.

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  • Got a chuckle out of me

    Cover of Avatar Blu-ray

    There’s zero extras! There’s so few extras that you put it in, you push play, and the movie starts. There are no trailers, there’s no bullshit at the beginning that you have to endlessly go through. I have a deal with the studio and it goes like this: Any movie I make that makes over a billion dollars goes out without a bunch of crap trailers for your other movies.

    James Cameron, discussing the DVD/Blu-ray release of “Avatar” (which drops tomorrow).

    Check out the rest at Entertainment Weekly.

  • Great track

    “The Hurt Locker” hits shelves today on DVD and Blu-ray and I’ve been meaning to mention the film’s commentary feature, which I gave a listen over the weekend.  It’s an awesome track, wall-to-wall info and plenty of insights from director Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal throughout, who never let off the throttle.  Boal adds a number of wonderful notes from his own experience, how he came around to certain scenarios on the film that are based in real life, etc.  Anyway, just thought I’d mention it.  It’s well worth a look, though unfortunately, there are no other extra features besides a flimsy 12-minute behind-the-scenes featurette.  But anyway, go get it.

  • ‘Star Trek’ under the stars

    Griffith ObservatoryThe swank, spare-no-expense shin-dig last night at the historic Griffith Observatory was officially a DVD release party for one of the summer’s biggest critical and fiscal hits.  But with nearly the entire Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s membership on hand, the general vibe of awards season in the air and the obvious implications of a fall DVD release for an early-year hopeful, it’s fair to say it was ostensibly a call to Oscar arms for a film that has a pretty good shot at one of this year’s 10 Best Picture slots.

    Most of the “Star Trek” cast was on hand — Zachary Quinto, Bruce Greenwood, Karl Urban, John Cho, Clifton Collins Jr. — but Leonard Nimoy and Walter Koenig were the ones causing the biggest stir, as of course they would.  A specialty drink menu (Spock’s Mind Meld Mojito, Red Matter, Romulan Ale), little red matter balls in giant flower vases, telescopes trained on Jupiter, bright in the Southwest sky (including one of the big ones in the Observatory), the Observatory itself lit up by projected galactic imagery, the whole thing had a nifty, novel, interstellar vibe.

    And it might pay off.  After all, it only takes a little wining and dining to get the HFPA on your side, right?  But seriously speaking, there are a couple of Best Picture slots that, to my mind, are up for grabs.  Should the big anticipated films miss with the awards constituencies, then it’s just as well for a film like “Star Trek,” still one of the year’s best films.

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  • Will classic films no longer find audiences on DVD?

    (from left) Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh in Gone with the WindThe opening graph of this Macleans piece on classic films losing their home video champions in studios is so depressing I’ll just let it speak for itself:

    Though DVD sales are down, current movies are still guaranteed a DVD release. But for anything made earlier, collectors may be out of luck. Most of the studios have trimmed their schedule of classic movies on DVD to almost nothing; 20th Century Fox recently eliminated its Fox Classics website after cancelling plans for unreleased classics like A Tree Grows In Brooklyn. Even the prestigious Criterion Collection has cut back the number of classic foreign movies it releases, and brought out a much-derided current film, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, to make extra money. George Feltenstein, a senior vice-president at Warner Home Video (which still has some classics scheduled), says that “most of the studios have pretty much said ‘Screw it, we’re out of here, we’re not going to do this.’”

    Of course, the answer here, as the writer mentions briefly, is establishing an online home for these films.  But I’m not so big on “burn on demand” as I am simply being able to stream the films at an outlet such as, say, The Auteurs.  More of that, please.  Though I’m sure studios will cork that up if they can’t find a way to monetize it.

    Same as it ever was…

  • An idle rant for a Sunday morning…

    … but one that’s been simmering inside me for some time. Who the hell are the numbskulls who select the pull quotes for DVD cover art? Do they get paid for their efforts? If so, why? And what in God’s name are they reading?

    I know it’s a trivial concern, and it’s not entirely limited to the DVD side of things: there are any number of theatrical one-sheets out there with the most mind-bogglingly (pick the relevant combination) banal/inappropriate/lazy/barely creditable selection of critical endorsements graffitied over their increasingly uninspiring designs.

    But it’s for DVD that the marketers involved produce their biggest headscratchers, going blindfolded as they select the most random possible quotes from the most unimpressive sources, seemingly oblivious to the fact that they’re actually trying to sell the movies to punters.

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  • Sneek peek at the ‘Coraline’ DVD

    Neil Miller over at Film School Rejects has an exclusive clip from one of the special features on the forthcoming “Coraline” Blu-ray/DVD. “This little sequence is called ‘Wrapping Up Coraline,’” Miller writes, “and it focuses on director Henry Selick talking about the final stages of work that went into creating this wonderful little film. He also speaks a bit about the incredible amount of work that was turned in by countless artists and animators.”  Take a look below.  The disc hits shelves July 21:

  • Cheap thrills

    I was tickled by — and completely related to — this piece by Cinematical’s Elisabeth Rappe in which she expounds the joys of embarrassing bargain-bin DVDs.

    You know, the movies you know you shouldn’t own (and in some cases, don’t even like that much) but can’t resist picking up when you’re in the store and spy a mark-down sale sticker slapped on the cover. The ones you bury at the back of your bookshelf lest your cineaste friends see that you actually spent money on “13 Going on 30.” (Yeah, I did … and a well-spent pound it was too. Anyway, “Legally Blonde” needed company.)

    Here’s Rappe on her latest red-faced purchase:

    This week’s guilty grab was Australia, a film I was very disappointed in, and planned never to see again unless I stumbled on it while flipping through cable channels. But there it was on half.com, “watched once, brand new” for $5.00 … It’s really the perfect movie for knitting to, because I can just concentrate on turning my sock heel, and look at the pretty cinematography.

    My DVD shelf is chock full of such films. Kate and Leopold, The Long Kiss Goodnight (worth far more than whatever I paid), my entire Mel Gibson collection, Marie Antoinette, The Wedding Singer, and so on. The list is long and not very illustrious (Vanishing Point remake, anyone?), but at least I can say I didn’t go out of my way for most of them.

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  • New to DVD, ‘Revolutionary Road’ may yet be discovered for the masterpiece it is

    (from left) Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio in Revolutionary RoadWhen “The Wizard of Oz” was released in 1939, neither audiences or critics were particularly fond of the film and it died a rather quick death at the box office. When “Citizen Kane” was first released in theatres in 1941, audiences did not warm to it, and despite winning the New York Film Critics Circle award for best film, and nine Academy Award nominations, it too died a fast death.

    In 1956, John Ford’s magnificent western “The Searchers” was not nominated for a single Academy Award, and though well liked at the time, no one seemed to think it was the work of art it is considered to be today. Even Martin Scorsese’s “Raging Bull” did not find an audience when first released, and though the film had many strong reviews, no one thought iof it on the level they do today.

    It happens all the time.  Great films get ignored by both audiences and film critics. And though it would be an obvious stretch to consider Sam Mendes’s “Revolutionary Road” in the above company, it is nevertheless a perfect recent example.

    True enough, some critics (myself included) admired “Revolutionary Road” when it was released, but there were simply not enough of us to get the word out. Not even the casting of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winlet could help the film pull in audiences. Incredibly, the Hollywood Foriegn Press Association (their choices sometimes dubious at best) nominated the film for several awards and Kate Winslet rightfully won Best Actress in a Drama for her performance in the film. A couple of weeks later, collective jaws hit the floor when she was nominated for a leading actress Oscar, but for “The Reader,” a lesser performance and film.

    Earlier this week I received my DVD of the film, which hits shelves on June 2, and so I sat down at once to watch it again.  I made my way through the features, wanting to learn more and more about this astonishing film.  And it is my sincere hope that “Revolutionary Road” will some day come to be recognized for the sublime work of art it truly is.

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