The miscellaneous Blu-Ray/DVD thread

[Iago]

Since Seamaster and I always end up sidetracking with discussions about upcoming films in whatever thread we are using, I thought that I would make a miscellaneous dump thread for anything like that. And I have a big one to dump for starters: I know that Seamaster is not a big Kaiju fan, but as a native of the UK he may appreciate Great Britian's one major contribution to the genre: the 1961 movie Gorgo. It comes out on Blu-Ray next week courtesy of VCI Entertainment. VCI has a deservedly mixed reputation regarding the quality of some of their releases, but after some research I read a fairly reliable report that they created a newly struck transfer from either an internegative or positive, so I really hope that this one looks good. If you have never seen Gorgo, it is not only a very good kaiju-style film, but it is a pretty decent Sixites-era scf-fi film in general.

http://www.vcientertainment.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=782

[Seamaster]

To be honest, I thought Gorgo an okay flick. The Godzilla films, in my opinion, are much better. However, it is an interesting Kaiju entry, especially for Kaiju fans.

I like the idea of a dedicated thread.

[Iago]

I ordered that along with the new Criterion release of Badlands for next week. The week after that, Criterion releases Chaplin's Monsieur Verdoux, and Scream Factory releases Phantasm II and From Beyond, and I have already pre-ordered those three. Scream Factory has also announced Blu-Rays for The Howling and The Fog, both of which will be definite pre-orders for me!

I did finish season 2 of Game of Thrones. Curious what you think of it.

[Iago]

You will also be happy to know that I finally picked up season two of Boardwalk Empire. $30 at WalMart cinched it.

[Seamaster]

Game of Thrones was good. I would love to see Geoffrey done in. Not sure if that is in the books or not, but it would make for a fan-pleasing moment, at least this fan. And Tyrion has become one of my favourite characters.

I did find Gremlins 2 on Blu, but only as part of a three-pack movie collection, which includes The Goonies, Gremlins and Gremlins 2. I haven't been able to locate a standalone release.

Let me know what you think of Boardwalk, Season 2, when you get into it. I really enjoyed it, but I found I had to pay attention, as it was easy to get lost with some of the subplots. But I found that with the first season too.

[Iago]

The hardest part for me is that it has been awhile since I watched the first season, so it may be extra difficult to follow.

I agree about Tyrion. My biggest disappointment with the second season was his fall from grace at the end. I was enjoying his triumphs too much. Hopefully he climbs back out of it in season three.

For the love of Joffrey, I offer you this:



(There are actually tons of "Joffrey slapped" videos on youtube, including some that repeat the same slap over and over again for the whole video!

[Seamaster]

Yes, Tyrion proves the wit beats brawn for overall, long-term appeal.

Joffrey is a waste of space. Credit to Jack Gleeson and the team for pulling off such a despicable character though. Incidentally, Jamie also makes a good likeable villain.

[Iago]

Well, I am not sure that I would call him "also . . . a good likeable villian" in context with Joffrey! I am not sure that in Joffrey's case you can even give him the "villian you love to hate" moniker. He is simply awful any way that you slice it. But yes, kudos to the writers and the actor for being willing to have no boundaries to his wretchedness. Most actors like to give some form of depth to the villians that they play, either in the form of motivation or at a minimum by exhibiting charm or a sense of humor. There is simply none of that whatsoever with Joffrey!

I plan to try to knock out at least a couple of episodes of Boardwalk this weekend.

[Seamaster]

Yes, good point. Jamie is likeable and Joffrey just isn't. Even the facial expressions Gleeson pulls are horrible. I wonder if he will have difficulty moving on from that role, at least initially?

[Iago]

Well, succesfully inhabiting a role has ruined many potential careers in the past, so for his sake I hope that he can succeed at different roles! I have not read the books, but if his character continues he has a long, long road and many seasons as Joffrey ahead of him!

I did knock down the first episode of Boardwalk Empire season two this weekend. The first episode was pretty good, and looks like it is setting up some interesting plotlines. I also watched the Blu-Ray for Seven Psychopaths, which was not in the league of Martin McDonough's first film In Bruges but it did have a few VERY memorable moments.

[Seamaster]

Martin has been applauded because he is not afraid to kill off main characters. So, there is hope for us yet! (I haven't read any of the books either, so I haven't a clue as to what's in store.)

The plot throughout Season 2 gets interesting, and even has a few surprises.

[Iago]

Got Gorgo and Badlands today; I am really looking forward to the former. Hopefully I will not get ripped off by a lousy transfer. I also put in my order for Phantasm II, From Beyond and Monsieur Verdoux this morning. Yikes. By the way, Scream Factory has also set dates for The Howling and The Fog. I think that I am going to be very, very happy with that label!

[Seamaster]

The Howling and The Fog -- exciting!

[Iago]

I know that you are no commentary fan, but the commentary track on The Howling, which appears to be the one originally recorded back in the Nineties for the laserdisc release, is literally one of the greatest commentary tracks ever recorded. It is an absolute must-listen. Dante, Dee Wallace Stone, the late Christopher Stone, and Bob Picardo were obviously great friends, and their interplay could not have been better if it was scripted.

[Seamaster]

I'll check that one out.

[Iago]

The highlight is when they are talking about Dennis Dugan, an actor in the film who later became a director. Bob Picardo played the first werewolf -- the serial killer that Wallace was investigating -- and later in the film he has a pretty complicated makeup job done on him for the scene where he had acid thrown on him. As Picardo sat in the makeup chair for hours, Dugan apparently walked past him and said: "Next time, read the script!" Dante's quip about that was, "That says a lot coming from the director of Problem Child."

[Seamaster]

The Howling is one of my favourite werewolf movies, so I think I'll quite enjoy the commentary. Of course, I need to order the damn disc. Or remember to run out June 18.

[Iago]

I got my copies of Phantasm II and From Beyond today. I watched most of Phantasm II but did not quite finish it. The transfer is nothing to write home about, but I am pretty certain that they were given the master by Universal, so they had to work with what they had. It has some new supplements that I am looking forward to. I am really looking forward to From Beyond. That is my favorite Stuart Gordon movie, and my favorite Lovecraft adaption outside of the HPLHS version of The Call of Cthulhu.

[Seamaster]

"From Beyond" is one of my favourite Lovecraft short stories. Not sure if you've read it, but it and the movie are pretty close to one another, but the movie does find it's own direction. Nothing wrong with that, of course, The literary piece is just a short story after all, and not enough content for a feature film. I really should pick up the film on Blu.

[Iago]

I have a couple of Lovecraft collections, but I cannot recall if that story was among them. I should probably find it and read it (or re-read it) before watching the movie. I was going to watch it last night, but opted for a couple of episodes of Boardwalk Empire instead. I did finish all the supplements on the Phantasm II disc, and they were first-rate. Some are ports from a Region 2 DVD set that Blu Underground did a few years ago, but it did have an all-new 41 minute featurette produced by Red Shirt Productions, who do very, very good making-of documentaries. That alone was worth the price of admission, and it really makes me look forward to what Scream Factory included on the From Beyond disc.

[Iago]

It was in another thread, but ask and ye shall receive!

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/news/show/MGMUA/Disc_Announcements/The_Great_Escape_Blu-ray_Supplements_Detailed_/11431

[Seamaster]

Awesome!

[Iago]

Unfortunately, you inglourious basterd you, after looking that up for you I am going to have "bum, bum bum, BUUUMMM bum bum, bum, bum . . ." going through my head FOR THE REST OF THE DAMNED WEEK. So, to torture you as well, I offer:

[Seamaster]

I would take you up the offer, but the video is blocked right now, so I will do so later.

One of my favourite plays on the bum-bum tune is from a Simpsons episode when Maggie leads the toddlers in an attempt to escape a daycare.

[Iago]

You may not need to check out the video of the theme, since clearly you know what I meant. Interesting how some music is so iconic that even a written "bum, bum, bum" is sufficient to convey exactly what is meant. So just keep humming it to yourself until madness takes over!


I started watching From Beyond last night but did not get very far; however, first impressions are that the transfer is definitely superior to Phantasm II. I did not get to many scenes with the added footage, however, so we shall see how it holds up. The censored material was restored for DVD several years ago and was in pretty rough shape, but they were able to do a good enough job with it that it intercuts pretty seamlessly with the theatrical footage -- that is, it did so for the DVD. I am assuming that it will stand out a bit more in HD, especially since the restoration was done that long ago, but we shall see. I trolled through the supplements, and while some are ported over from that older DVD there are some pretty cool looking new ones, and in HD as well.

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