Before Memento, Inception and The Dark Knight Trilogy was Christopher Nolan's first ever feature film, Following, which is being re-released onto DVD and Blu-ray by the Criterion Collection. The new edition is our Recommendation of the Week and features a commentary from and an interview with Nolan and his short film Doodlebug.
First Release
- Ted (DVD and Blu-ray)
- The Bourne Legacy (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Ice Age: Continental Drift (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Why Stop Now (DVD and Blu-ray)
Re-Releases
- The Qatsi Trilogy (Blu-ray)
- Following (1998) (Blu-ray)
- Dick Tracy (1990) (Blu-ray)
- Les Miserables (1998) (Blu-ray)
- The Joy Luck Club (1993) (Blu-ray)
- Heavyweights (1995) (Blu-ray)
Following (1998) (DVD and Blu-ray)
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan
Starring: Jeremy Theobald, Alex Haw, Lucy Russell, John Nolan
Christopher Nolan is a fan-boy favorite and has made his name making movies like Memento, Inception and The Dark Knight Trilogy. But all directors have to start somewhere and Nolan’s origins are very humble, with the black-and-white thriller Following made on a budget of $6,000.
Lee (Jeremy Theobald) is a struggling writer who follows random people as he researches for his book. But one well-dressed man he follows, Cobb (Alex Haw) turns out to be a burglar and Lee becomes his partner in crime. Soon, Lee gets sucked deeper into the London Underworld after he befriends one of his victims (Lucy Russell).
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 76% (very good)
Player Affinity Score: 7.9/10
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: Audio commentary by Nolan; New interview with Nolan; Chronological rendering of the story; Side-by-side comparison of three scenes in the film with the shooting script; Doodlebug (1997), a three-minute film by Nolan, starring Jeremy Theobald; Trailers; PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic and programmer Scott Foundas
Amazon Price: $14.99 (DVD), $20.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
There are three big new releases on DVD and Blu-ray this week, the hit comedy Ted and the fourth entries in the Bourne and Ice Age franchises. Fans of art-house cinema have the Criterion Collection re-release of The Qatsi Trilogy.
Ted (DVD and Blu-ray)
Directed by Seth MacFarlane
Written by Seth MacFarlane, Alec Sulkin, Wellesley Wild (screenplay), Seth MacFarlane (story)
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Seth MacFarlane
Seth MacFarlane made his name making Family Guy, American Dad and the God-awful The Cleveland Show, and now he has made into first live-action film, directing, staring and co-writing Ted. The results were better than anyone could have dreamed, grossing $501.7 million worldwide.
John (Mark Wahlberg) is a Boston man who is about to get promoted and lives with a long-time girlfriend, Lori (Mila Kunis). But there is a problem: John’s best friend is Ted, the sentient teddy bear (MacFarlane) that came to life when he was a child. Lori wants John to commit and grow up, but Ted has a destructive effect on John as he has to choose between his romance and his bromance.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes: 69% (good)
Player Affinity Score: 7.6/10 (read our review)
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: Gag Reel; Ted: The Making Of; Feature Commentary with Director/Co-Writer Seth MacFarlane, Co-Writer Alec Sulkin and Star Mark Wahlberg (Theatrical Version Only)
Additional Blu-ray Special Features: Digital Copy of Ted (redeem by 4/30/2015); Includes UltraViolet (redeem by 4/30/2015); Deleted Scenes; Alternate Takes; Teddy Bear Scuffle; My Scenes; D-BOX; BD-Live; pocket BLU App
Amazon Price: $16.99 (DVD), $19.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): Content 3.5 stars, Video 4.5 stars, Audio 4.5 stars, Extras 3.5 stars, Replay 3 stars (out of 5). Recommended.
The Bourne Legacy (DVD and Blu-ray)
Directed by Tony Gilroy
Written by Tony Gilroy, Dan Gilroy (screenplay), Tony Gilroy (story), Robert Ludlum (characters)
Starring: Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, Edward Norton
Despite The Bourne Ultimatum seemingly ending the Bourne Series conclusively and Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass refusing to return, Universal didn’t want to keep a money-making series down and continued to make a sequel. Series writer Tony Gilroy stepped into the director’s chair and Jeremy Renner becomes the new lead for The Bourne Legacy.
Set at the same time of The Bourne Ultimatum, Blackbriar, Treadstone and the CIA’s black operations are about to be exposed to the world. A Defense Department program, Outcome, is about to be affected and its director, Eric Byer (Edward Norton) liquidizes the agents. Two people affected are Aaron Cross (Renner), a super-agent who needs pills to keep his enhanced physical and mental abilities and Dr. Martha Shearing (Rachel Weisz), a bio-chemist who helped make the pills. The two pair up as Byer and his agency hunt them down.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 56% (average)
Player Affinity Score: 6.8/10 (read our review)
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: Deleted Scenes; Re-Bourne; Capturing Chaos: The Motorbike Chase; Feature Commentary with Director/Co-Writer Tony Gilroy, Co-Writer Dan Gilroy, Editor John Gilroy, Director of Photography Robert Elswit, Second Unit Director Dan Bradley and Production Designer Kevin Thompson
Additional Blu-ray Special Features: Digital Copy of The Bourne Legacy (redeem by 4/30/2015); Includes UltraViolet (redeem by 4/30/2015); Enter Aaron Cross; Crossing Continents: Legacy on Location; Man vs. Wolf; Wolf Sequence Test; Moving Targets: Aaron and Marta; My Scenes; D-BOX; BD-Live; pocket BLU App
Amazon Price: $16.99 (DVD), $19.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): Content 3 stars, Video 4.5 stars, Audio 5 stars, Extras 3.5 stars, Replay 4 stars (out of 5). Recommended.
Ice Age: Continental Drift (DVD and Blu-ray)
Directed by Steve Martino, Mike Thurmeier
Written by Michael Berg, Jason Fuchs (screenplay), Michael Berg, Lori Forte (story)
Starring: Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Wanda Sykes, Queen Latifah, Keke Palmer, Peter Dinklage
Ice Age: Continental Drift is the fourth entry in the highly successful Ice Age franchise. Scrat the Saber-toothed Squirrel accidently breaks up Pangaea into the continents we know now. This event separates our heroes, Manny (Ray Romano), Sid (John Leguizamo) and Diego (Denis Leary) into the middle of the Ocean. As the trio try to get back to the herd, they are being chased by the ruthless pirate Captain Gutt (Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones), while Ellie (Queen Latifah) and teenage mammoth Peaches (Keke Palmer) try to lead the herd to safety.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 38% (poor)
Player Affinity Score: 6.0/10 (read our review)
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: Closed Caption; Whale of a tale: beasties and myths; Gutt's sing-along; Seafaring music videos; And more!
Additional Blu-ray Special Features: Disc 1: Over 4 hours of special features; Party with a pirate!: interactive viewing mode; Pirate Picasso: enhanced coloring app; Deleted scenes; Through a pirate's spyglass; And more!; ; Disc 2:; Ice Age Continental Drift in standard definition; Ice Age Continental Drift for portable media players
Amazon Price: $16.99 (DVD), $21.99 (Blu-ray), $24.99 (3D Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
Why Stop Now (DVD and Blu-ray)
Written and directed by Phil Dorling, Ron Nyswaner
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Melissa Leo, Tracy Morgan
Why Stop Now is a comedy-drama featuring three big leads, Jesse Eisenberg, Melissa Leo and Tracy Morgan. Eli Bloom (Eisenberg) is a piano prodigy with drug-addict mother and hires a drug dealer (Morgan) to place his mother into rehab as he prepares for the biggest audition in his life.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 25% (bad)
Player Affinity Score: N/A
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: Tracy Morgan interview; Featurette; Trailer
Amazon Price: $12.99 (DVD), $26.98 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
The Qatsi Trilogy (DVD and Blu-ray)
Koyannisqatsi (1982)
Directed by Godfrey Reggio
Powaqqatsi (1988)
Directed by Godfrey Reggio
Written by Godfrey Reggio, Ken Richards
Naqoyqatsi (2002)
Written and directed by Godfrey Reggio
From the Criterion Collection this week is The Qatsi Trilogy, a series of visually experimental documentaries from filmmaker Godfrey Reggio and all composed by Philip Glass as they explore how technology and industrialization have affected the world.
Koyannisqatsi (1982)
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 89% (excellent)
Player Affinity Score: 8.0/10
Powaqqstsi (1988)
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 63% (good)
Player Affinity Score: N/A
Naqoyqatsi (2002)
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 48% (average)
Player Affinity Score: N/A
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: New, restored high-definition digital transfers of all three films, approved by director Godfrey Reggio; Essence of Life, an interview program with Reggio and composer Philip Glass on Koyaanisqatsi; New interview with cinematographer Ron Fricke about Koyaanisqatsi; Early forty-minute demo version of Koyaanisqatsi with a scratch soundtrack by Allen Ginsberg, along with a new introduction by Reggio; New interview with Reggio about Koyaanisqatsi’s original visual concept, with behind-the-scenes footage; Impact of Progress, an interview program with Reggio and Glass on their collaboration; Inspiration and Ideas, an interview with Reggio about his greatest influences and teachers; Anima Mundi (1992), Reggio’s twenty-eight-minute montage of images of over seventy animal species, scored by Glass; Video afterword by Reggio on the trilogy; The Making of “Naqoyqatsi,” a brief documentary featuring interviews with the production crew; Panel discussion on Naqoyqatsi from 2003, with Reggio, Glass, editor Jon Kane, and music critic John Rockwell; Music of “Naqoyqatsi,” an interview with Glass and cellist Yo-Yo Ma; Television spots and an interview with Reggio relating to his 1970s multimedia privacy campaign in New Mexico; Trailers; PLUS: A booklet featuring essays on the trilogy by film scholar Scott MacDonald, Rockwell, and author and environmentalist Bill McKibben
Amazon Price: $53.99 (DVD), $53.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
Dick Tracy (1990) (Blu-ray)
Directed by Warren Beatty
Written by Jim Cash, Jack Epps, Jr. (screenplay), Chester Gould (comic strip)
Starring: Warren Beatty, Al Pacino, Madonna, Glenne Headly, Charlie Korsmo
Warren Beatty directed and starred in the adaptation of the popular 1930s comic strip Dick Tracy, earning three Oscar wins and a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Al Pacino.
In an American city, a new threat has emerged as gangster Alphonse “Big Boy” Caprice (Pacino) takes over the criminal underworld and unites the rival gangs. Only police detective Dick Tracy is able to stop him.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes: 64% (good)
Player Affinity Score: 8.0/10
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: N/A
Amazon Price: $18.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
Les Misérables (1998) (Blu-ray)
Directed by Bille August
Written by Rafael Yglesias (screenplay), Victor Hugo (novel)
Starring: Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, Uma Thurman, Claire Danes, Hans Matheson
With the release of the musical adaption of Les Misérables just around the corner, there is no better time to cash in and the 1998 adaptation of the non-singing Victor Hugo novel is now coming out on Blu-ray. Liam Neeson stars as Jean Valjean, an ex-convict and reformed man has to hid his past as he is hunted by a policeman Javert (Geoffrey Rush) as a student revolution is about to commence.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes: 74% (good)
Player Affinity Score: N/A
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: A First Look at Les Misérables
Amazon Price: $14.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
The Joy Luck Club (1993) (Blu-ray)
Directed by Wayne Wang
Written by Amy Tan, Ronald Bass (screenplay), Amy Tan (novel)
Starring: Ming-Na, Rosalind Chao, Lauren Tom, France Nuyen, Tamlyn Tomita, Kieu Chinh, Lisa Lu, Tsai Chin
Amy Tan helped adapt her own best-selling novel The Joy Luck Club, which tells the story of four young Chinese-American women exploring their relationships with their Chinese-born mothers and their own past in the old land.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes: 84% (very good)
Player Affinity Score: N/A
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: N/A
Amazon Price: $14.99 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
Heavyweights (1995) (Blu-ray)
Directed by Steven Brill
Written by Steven Brill, Judd Apatow
Starring: Aaron Schwartz, Ryan Steglich, Tom McGowan, Tim Blake Nelson, Ben Stiller
Heavyweights is a family comedy from Disney about a group of kids going to a fat camp under the promise that they can lose weight very quickly. But it turns out the camp is run a psychopathic ex-fitness instructor (Ben Stiller). The film is Judd Apatow's first feature film writing credit.
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 20% (very bad)
Player Affinity Score: 7.3/10
DISC DETAILS
DVD Special Features: Never-before-seen footage including: ; More than 30 deleted & extended scenes; Audio Commentarywith Judd Apatow, Steven Brill, Allen Covert, Aaron Schwartz, Shawn Weiss, Tom Hodges & Special Guest Paul Feig; The Making of Heavyweights; Super 8 - Footage shot by the Cast and Crew; Video Chat: Judd and Kenan; Where Are They Now? - See The Kids All Grown Up; Judd's Art Project - His bizarre photos from The Set; Theatrical Trailer
Amazon Price: $17.28 (Blu-ray)
Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A
