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DVD/Blu-ray DISCussion (New for 9.20.11)

From the school of Judd Apatow, Player Affinity’s Recommendation of the Week is surprise comedy hit Bridesmaids, which pleased audiences the world over. It is now set to be a hit on DVD and Blu-ray, offering film fans deleted and extend scenes, behind the scenes documentaries and commentaries.

First Releases
- Bridesmaids (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Set Up (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Terry Pratchett: Going Postal (DVD and Blu-ray)

Re-Releases
- Dumbo (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Les Cousins (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Le Beau Serge (DVD and Blu-ray)
- Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Blu-ray)
- The Others (Blu-ray)
- Sophia Loren: Award Collection (Blu-ray)


Bridesmaids (DVD and Blu-ray) *Recommendation of the Week*

What’s the Deal?
Bridesmaids was a surprise hit, making over $280 million worldwide from a $32.5-million Budget. The Judd Apatow produced comedy was written by actresses Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig and directed by TV director Paul Feig (The Office, Arrested Development). Wiig leads the cast and is joined by a top female cast: Maya Rudolph (Away We Go), Rose Byrne (X-Men: First Class), Wendi McLendon-Covey (Reno 911), Ellie Kemper (The Office) and Melissa McCarthy (Gilmore Girls). Bridesmaids shows that audiences can be interested in an R-rated female-led comedy.

Annie (Wiig) is a woman whose life has not turned out for the best. Her business has fail, loses her boyfriend and lives with a strange brother and sister. Her best friend Lillian (Rudolph) has gotten engaged and Annie is made the maid-of-honor. But she has a rival in the form of Lillian’s new friend Helen (Byrne) as Annie tries to be the perfect bridesmaid in this raunchy comedy.

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 90% (excellent)
Player Affinity Score: 7.5/10

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: Deleted Scenes; Extended & Alternate Scenes; Gag Reel; Line-O-Rama; Cholodecki's Commercial; Feature Commentary with Filmmaker's And Cast

Additional Blu-ray Special Features: Roomates; Cholodecki's; Made of honor: behind the scenes of Bridesmaids; Annie vs. Helen; Drunk-o-rama; Annie's blind date with Dave

Amazon Price: $15.99 (DVD), $21.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  Content 4.5 stars, Video 4.5 stars, Audio 4.5 stars, Extras 3.5 stars, Replay 4 stars (out of 5). Highly Recommended.


A number of classic movies have been re-released onto Blu-ray this week, including the Disney classic Dumbo, the beloved Audrey Hepburn movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s and the Sophia Loren: Award Collection. Also available is the psychological horror The Others and this week’s new releases are the TV Movie Terry Pratchett: Going Postal and the straight-to-DVD crime movie Set Up.


Set Up (DVD and Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
Bruce Willis is of course an A-list action star who has also shown his acting chops in a number of movies, but not all of them can be winners, as this one never arrived in theaters. Ryan Phillippe, the eternally awful 50 Cent and Jenna Dewan (Step Up) also star in this movie that was directed by Live Free or Die Hard stuntman Mike Gunther.

A group of friends attempt a diamond heist which turns deadly after one of them betrays the others. Sonny (50 Cent) sets out to get revenge and teams up with Detroit Mob Boss, Biggs (Willis) to achieve it.

When Amazon.com describes a movie as “unoriginal and incompetent on almost all counts,” then you know you should have low expectations.

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): N/A
Player Affinity Score: N/A

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: Commentary with Director Mike Gunther and Actor Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson; Making Set Up; Interviews with Cast and Crew; A Look at the Weapons used on the set of Set Up; Trailer Gallery

Amazon Price: $13.99 (DVD), $22.49 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com): N/A


Terry Pratchett: Going Postal (DVD and Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
Sir Terry Pratchett’s comic fantasy novels have fans the world over and from all age groups. Only a few of his novels have been given the film treatment and turned into TV Movies by the British TV company Sky One. Going Postal is the third adaptation by Sky One of Pratchett’s work and stars Richard Coyle (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time), David Suchet (Poirot), Charles Dance (Alien 3) and Claire Foy (Little Dorritt). TV writing partners, Richard Kurti and Bev Doyle (Sherlock Holmes and the Baker Street Irregulars) adapted the novel for Jon Jones (The Diary of Anne Frank) to direct.

Moist von Lipwig (Coyle) is a criminal and a con-artist who has somehow escaped the hangman’s noose. The supreme ruler of Ankh-Moorpark (Dance), offers him the job of Postmaster General of the nation, a position that has not been filled for years. If he does not take it he would be plunge into a bottomless pit.  Moist has to go through a number of challenges, deliver years of undelivered mail, take on a private postal monopoly and his own possible insanity.
 
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): N/A
Player Affinity Score: N/A

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: Terry Pratchett Video Introduction (5 min.); Director Jon Jones Audio Commentary; Bonus Disc with cast, crew, and fan interviews (62 min.); Deleted Scenes; Blooper Reel; Image Galleries

Amazon Price: $36.49 (DVD), $35.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com): Content 3.5 stars, Video 4 stars, Audio 3.5 stars, Extras 3.5 stars, Replay 3.5 stars (out of 5). Highly Recommended.


Dumbo (DVD and Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
Dumbo is Disney’s fourth animated movie and considered a classic from the studio‘s back catalog. Directed by Ben Sharpsteen (Pinocchio), Dumbo is based on a novel by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl.

Mrs. Jumbo is a veteran circus elephant who receives a baby from the stork. But he is cruelly mocked by the herd because of his massive ears and nicknamed “Dumbo.” After his mother tries to defend him she is locked up as a mad elephant and he is left alone in the world. But a mouse, Timothy Q. Mouse, sets out to help Dumbo achieve his full potential and a group of crows convince the elephant that he can fly.

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 97% (excellent)
Player Affinity Score: 7.5/10

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: Never-before-seen deleted scene; Never-before-heard deleted song; Taking flight: the making of Dumbo; The magic of Dumbo: A ride of passage - A heartfelt look at Disneyland's most popular ride ; Audio commentary

Additional Blu-ray Special Features: Disney view - Expanded viewing experience ; Cine-explore experience ; Never-before-seen deleted scene; Never-before-heard deleted song ; Taking flight: The making of Dumbo ; The magic of Dumbo: A ride of Passage - A heartfelt look at Disneyland's most popular ride ; Audio commentary ; Celebrating Dumbo - featurette ; Art galleries ; Animated short "The Flying Mouse" ; Animated short "Elmer Elephant" ; What do you see? - Decipher the scrambled images in this game ; What do you know? - Fun trivia game for all ages;

Amazon Price: $17.99 (DVD), $21.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  N/A


Les Cousins (DVD and Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
From the Criteron Collection this week are two French New Wave movies directed by Claude Charbrol. The first is the 1959 movie, Les Cousins which won the Golden Bear at the 9th Berlin International Film Festival.

Charles (Gerard Blain) is a young man who goes to Paris to study law. He is a naïve and honest man who lives with his cousin Paul (Jean-Claude Brialy) who is a fun-loving pleasure seeker. Charles falls for one of Paul’s acquaintances but how would Paul react to a true loving relationship?

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 100% (excellent)
Player Affinity Score: N/A

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: New digital restoration; Audio commentary featuring film scholar Adrian Martin; A 2011 documentary by filmmaker Pierre-Henri Gibert about the making of Les cousins, featuring director Claude Chabrol, star Stéphane Audran, assistant directors Charles Bitsch and Claude de Givray, and others; New and improved English subtitle translation; Theatrical trailer; PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Terrence Rafferty

Amazon Price: $21.99 (DVD), $27.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  N/A


Le Beau Serge (DVD and Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
The second Claude Chabrol movie is his 1958 debut Le Beau Serge which also features Gerard Blain and Jean-Claude Brialy. This movie focuses on Francois (Brialy), a theology student who returns to his home village. He finds the village has not changed but the people have and his best friend Serge (Blain) is now an alcoholic. It is up to Francois to find out what happened to his friend and how to help him.

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): N/A
Player Affinity Score: N/A

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: New digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition; New audio commentary featuring Guy Austin, author of Claude Chabrol; Segment from a 1969 episode of the French television series L’invité du dimanche in which Chabrol revisits Sardent, the town he grew up in and the film’s location; A 2011 documentary by filmmaker Pierre-Henri Gibert on the making of Le beau Serge; New and improved English subtitle translation; Theatrical trailer; PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Terrence Rafferty

Amazon Price: $21.99 (DVD), $27.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  N/A


Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
Based on a novella by Truman Capote, Breakfast at Tiffany’s is considered one of the definitive Audrey Hepburn movies and earnesd her an Oscar nomination. Writer George Axelrod (The Manchurian Candidate) also earned an Oscar nomination and the movie won two golden statuettes for Best Score and Best Original Song for "Moon River." Directed by Blake Edwards (The Pink Panther), Breakfast at Tiffany’s has now been met with controversy because of the portrayal of a Japanese-American character played by Mickey Rooney.

Holly Golightly (Hepburn) is a young attractive New York socialite and feted by the wealthy men of the city. She starts a friendship with aspiring writer Paul Varjak (George Peppard) as they hit the scene of high society in the Big Apple.

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 88% (excellent)
Player Affinity Score: 8.0/10

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: Original Theatrical Trailer (HD) - Commentary by Producer Richard Shepherd; A Golightly Gathering (HD); Henry Mancini: More Than Music (HD); Mr. Yunioshi: An Asian Perspective (HD); The Making of a Classic; It's So Audrey: A Style Icon; Behind the Gates: The Tour; Brilliance in a Blue Box;  Audrey's Letter to Tiffany; Galleries

Amazon Price: $19.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  Content 4.5 stars, Video 3.5 stars, Audio 4 stars, Extras 4.5 stars, Replay 4.5 stars (out of 5). Highly Recommended.


The Others (Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
Written and directed by Chilean Alejandro Amenabar (Open Your Eyes), The Others was his first English-language movie and it was a highly praised psychological horror film. Starring Nicole Kidman she is supported by Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who) and Fionnula Flanagan (Waking Ned).

Grace Stewart (Kidman) is a widowed woman, her husband died in World War II and her children, Anne (Alakina Mann) and Nicolas (James Bentley) are deathly allergic to sunlight. They live under strict rules in an English country estate but all that has to change when Grace is forced to hire new servants.

Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 84% (very good)
Player Affinity Score: 8.5/10

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: N/A

Amazon Price: $9.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  Content 4 stars, Video 3.5 stars, Audio 3.5 stars, Extras 2.5 stars, Replay 3.5 stars (out of 5). Highly Recommended.


Sophia Loren: Award Collection (Blu-ray)

What’s the Deal?
If you are looking for some Italian sophistication and culture then you cannot go wrong with the Sophia Loren: Award Collection. Well known for beauty and her acting talent, four of Loren's movies are now in a Blu-ray box-set, including her highly rated comedies, Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow and Marriage Italian Style and World War II drama Sunflower. Also included is a documentary about the legendary director Vittorio De Sica, Vittorio D, which features interviews with Clint Eastwood and Woody Allen. Loren won the David di Donatello award for Best Actress award three times in this collection.

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 86% (excellent)
Player Affinity Score: N/A

Vittorio D
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): N/A
Player Affinity Score: N/A

Marriage Italian Style
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): N/A
Player Affinity Score: N/A

Sunflower
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): N/A
Player Affinity Score: N/A

Boccaccio 70
Critics Rating (Rotten Tomatoes): 67% (good)
Player Affinity Score: N/A

DISC DETAILS

DVD Special Features: N/A

Amazon Price: $89.99 (Blu-ray)

Score (DVDTalk.com):  Content 5 stars, Video 3 stars, Audio 3 stars, Extras 3 stars, Replay 5 stars (out of 5). Highly Recommended.

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