DVD/Blu-ray Reviews

Director: Kevin Greutert
Writer: Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan
Cast: Tobin Bell; Betsy Russell; Costas Mandylor

Well, it isn’t a prequel, but if you seriously think that everything has been leading up to the wooden acting that plagues Saw 3D, then you are sadly mistaken.  Sure, you’ll get answers.  You’ll get gore.  The 3D - while largely silly - isn’t a complete loss either.  Hell, you even get Cary Elwes again…just don’t expect much in the way of Jigsaw.  Too bad.  He’s been part of the fun of the Saw franchise chronology because – for John Kramer – death was certainly not the end, but his lessoning appearance in the series is dully noted in this the supposed final installment.  Yet, in spite of it all, Saw 3D does have its moments of cutting-edge fun, just not enough to keep the franchise propelling itself forward.

MPAA Rating: PG for some action, sensuality, and language.
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writer: Robert Zemeckis, Bob Gale
Cast: Crispin Glover; Michael J. Fox; Christopher Lloyd
Genre: Sci-fi | Adventure | Family
Memorable Movie Quote: "The way I see it, if you're gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style?"
Blu-ray Release Date: October 26, 2010.

Its script may be credited to four names, but, let’s be honest, Due Date is simply a weak update of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles – without the heart and charm of John Hughes – and, yes, even that film was a minor disappointment...

Tired of the Megamind marketing blitz that’s been saturating the TV airwaves and Internet digital bits for the better part of the last eight months? From partnering on Justin Bieber concerts to sponsoring the baseball World Series...

MPAA Rating: R for sequences of strong bloody violence, grisly images and language.
Director: Neil Marshall
Writer: Neil Marshall
Cast: Michael Fassbender; Dave Legeno; Axelle Carolyn
Genre: Action | Adventure
Memorable Movie Quote: "My name is Quintus Dias, I am a soldier of Rome, and this neither the beginning nor the end of my story."
Release Date: No wide theatrical release
Blu-ray Release Date: November 2, 2010.

MPAA Rating: This title not rated by the MPAA
Director: Lewis Milestone
Writer: Harry Brown and Charles Lederer
Cast: Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr, Frank Sinatra, Joey Bishop
Genre: Comedy | Crime
Memorable Movie Quote: "Because one December, every time I picked up the 'phone they sent me out into the snow to play with my friends. That was at the Bulge."
Release Date: August 10, 1960
Own it on Blu-ray: November 9, 2010.

MPAA Rating: This title not rated by the MPAA. TV-PG. This program contains language that may not be appropriate for all viewers. Viewers' discretion is advised.
Director: Maro Chermayeff, Jeffrey Dupre
Genre: Television | Documentary
Memorable Movie Quote: "Load out. Load in. 16-20 hours a day."
Release Date: Television Premier November 10, 2010
Blu-ray Release Date: November 9, 2010.

MPAA Rating: This title not rated by the MPAA
Creator: Kenneth Johnson
Cast: Elizabeth Mitchell; Morris Chestnut; Joel Gretsch
Genre: Sci-fi | Television
Official Site: www.vtvondvd.com
Memorable Quote: "To lose someone so close... it's devastating"
Own it on Blu-ray: November 2, 2010
V: The Complete First Season [Blu-ray]

MPAA Rating: PG for some mild rude humor and language.
Director: Jon Favreau
Writer: David Berenbaum
Cast: Will Ferrell; James Caan; Mary Steenbergen
Genre: Comedy | Family | Holiday
Official Site: www.warnerblu.com
Memorable Quote: "You're a cotton-headed ninny-muggins"
Tagline: This holiday, discover your inner elf.
Release Date: November 7, 2003
Own it on Blu-ray: October 26, 2010
Elf (Ultimate Collector's Edition) [Blu-ray]

There’s no hiding the fact that Morning Glory holds its fair share of debt to the scripted highs of James Brooks’ Broadcast News from 1987. In fact, one can suggest that the characters that make up the journalistically-minded ensemble are entirely...

MPAA Rating: Not rated by the MPAA
Director: Frank Lloyd
Writer: Talbot Jennings & Jules Furthman and Carey Wilson
Cast: Clark Gable; Charles Laughton; Franchot Tone
Official Site: warnerblu.com
Genre: Classic | Adventure
Memorable Movie Quote: "When you're back in England with the fleet again, you'll hear the hue and cry against me. From now on they'll spell mutiny with my name."
Release Date: November 22, 1935
Own it on Blu-ray: November 16, 2010.
Mutiny on the Bounty [Blu-ray Book]

25th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition

Director: Richard Donner
Writer: Chris Columbus
Cast: Sean Astin; Josh Brolin; Corey Feldman
Genre: Family | Adventure
Memorable Quote: "Dad! Dad! It's my marble bag. The Fratelis forgot to check it. I emptied out all of my marbles and put the jewels in. We don't have to leave the boon docks!"
Tagline: They call themselves "The Goonies." The secret caves. The old lighthouse. The lost map. The treacherous traps. The hidden treasure. And Sloth... Join the adventure.
Release Date: June 7, 1985
Blu-ray Release Date: November 2, 2010

The Harry Potter franchise, film by film, usually leaves me momentarily satisfied. The films - while never truly resonating with me - usually don’t disappoint with a narrative that simply refuses to fulfill its own imagination. They also don’t...

MPAA Rating: Not rated by the MPAA.
Director: Buster Keaton
Writer: Jean C. Havez & Joseph A. Mitchell & Clyde Bruckman
Cast: Buster Keaton; Kathryn McGuire; Joe Keaton
Genre: Classic; silent
Memorable Movie Quote: "We are lost! He is sending for the world's greatest detective - Sherlock Jr.!"
Release Date: April 21, 1924
Blu-ray Release Date: November 16, 2010.

There’s a scene in George Tillman Jr’s Faster which says everything you need to know about the movie.  Actually, it’s just a shot.  Maybe two seconds in length, too.  The camera is positioned behind the glass of the MPH...