RA: Renters Anonymous - November 25th, 2008

Posted by Trevor

November 25, 2008

This Week: November 25th, 2008

New Releases

Hancock - 6.5/10 - Trailer
Starring Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman
The powerful alcoholic and clumsy John Hancock is the most hated person in Los Angeles, as in spite of saving lives, he also destroys properties causing high cost to the city to fix his damages. When he saves the life of the PR Ray Embrey from a train, the executive feels in debt with Hancock and decides to change his image. He brings the anti-hero to have dinner at his home, and introduces him to his son and fan Aaron and to his wife, Mary. But Mary does not want Hancock in her life.

Single Disc Special Features:

2.35:1 Widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1
Theatrical Version (92min) and Unrated Version (102min) - Sold Seperately
Featurettes: “Superhumans: The Making of Hancock”, “Seeing the Future”, “Building a Better Hero”, “Bumps and Bruises”, “Mere Mortals: Behind the Scenes with ‘Dirty Pete’”

Two-Disc Special Features:

2.35:1 Widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1
Theatrical Version (92min) and Unrated Version (102min) plus a Digital Copy
Featurettes: “Superhumans: The Making of Hancock”, “Seeing the Future”, “Building a Better Hero”, “Bumps and Bruises”, “Mere Mortals: Behind the Scenes with ‘Dirty Pete’”, “Home Life”, “Suiting Up”

Blu-ray Features:

All of the features of the 2-Disc DVD plus:
2.35:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with Dolby TrueHD 5.1
“On-Set Visual Diary” with PiP

Recommendation: Pass

Fred Claus - 5/10 - Trailer
Starring Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, John Michael Higgins, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Wesz, Kathy Bates, Kevin Spacey, Chris Bridges
Fred Claus has lived his entire life in his brother’s very large shadow. Fred tried, but could hardly live up to the example set by the younger Nicholas, who was just a perfect, well, saint. True to form, Nicholas (a.k.a Santa Claus) grew up to be the model of giving, while Fred became the polar opposite: a fast-talking repo man who’s run out of luck and money. Eventually Fred’s bad behavior catches up with him and he is sent to jail. His only recourse is to turn to his brother. Over Mrs. Claus’ objections, Nicholas agrees to help his brother on one condition: that he come to the North Pole and earn the money he needs by working in Santa’s Toy Shop. The trouble is that Fred isn’t exactly elf material and cut out for creating toys and spreading good cheer. With Christmas fast approaching, Fred could jeopardize the jolliest holiday of the year and ruin Christmas.

Special Features:

2.40:1 Widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1
Commentary with David Dobkin
Additional Scenes

Blu-ray Features:

2.40:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with Dolby Digital 5.1
All of the features of the DVD release, plus:
“Vince and Paul’s Fireside Chats”
Ludacrismas music video
“Pause for Claus: Elves Tell All”
“Sibling Rivalry”
“Meet the Other Claus”
Digital Copy of the film
DVD Game: “Fred Claus: Race to Save Christmas”

Recommendation: Rent (if you’re into Holiday films)

Meet Dave - 7.3/10 - Trailer
Starring Eddie Murphy, Elizabeth Banks, Gabrielle Union, Ed Helms, Scott Caan, Kevin Hart
There’s something that makes Dave stand out from everyone else in New York City. It’s that he’s an alien! More accurately, he’s an alien ship, on a mission to Earth to save his home planet. Torn between the voices in his head – a tiny alien crew led by a high-strung, miniature version of himself – and the world around him, Dave struggles to appear normal. But when he falls for an Earth woman, the consequences are hilarious.

Special Features:

1.33:1 Widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1
Gag Reel
Crew Confessions
Trailers

Blu-ray Features:

1.85:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and Dolby Digital 5.1
All of the features of the DVD release, plus:
Crew Profiles
Mission: Reboot (Game)
Deleted Scenes and an Alternate Ending
The Making of Meet Dave
Fox Movie Channel Presents: “Life after Film School with director Brian Robbins”, “In Character With”, “Making a Scene”, “World Premiere”

Recommendation: Rent

Space Chimps - Trailer
Starring Andy Samberg, Cheryl Hines, Patrick Warburton, Jeff Daniels
When a $5 billion NASA probe disappears into an intergalactic wormhole, the agency recruits Ham III (Andy Samberg), grandson of the the first chimpanzee in space, to help retrieve the wayward craft. However, Ham is a free-spirited circus performer more interested in zero-gravity hijinks than living up to his illustrious heritage. The simian slacker becomes a reluctant hero and learns the true meaning of courage as he and his crewmates, the fearless Luna (Cheryl Hines) and their uptight commander, Titan (Patrick Warburton), risk everything in an effort to save the peaceful inhabitants of a distant planet from the evil dictator Zartog (Jeff Daniels).

Special Features:

2.35:1 Widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1
Still Gallery, TV Spots and Trailers
Fox Movie Channel Presents Casting Session

Blu-ray Features:

2.35:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with Dolby Digital 5.1
All of the features of the DVD release, plus:
Trivia Blast Off

Recommendation: Pass

Re-Releases

Pink Panther Ultimate Collection
Presented on 18 discs and featuring 9 feature films and 9 volumes of the classic cartoon (each volume between 2 and 2.5 hours)

Films:

The Pink Panther: Collector’s Edition (1963)
A Shot in the Dark (1964)
Inspector Clouseau (1968)
The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978)
Trail of the Pink Panther (1982)
Curse of the Pink Panther (1983)
Son of the Pink Panther (1993)
The Pink Panther (2006)

The Pink Panther Classic Cartoon Collection: Volumes 1-9

Volumes 1-4 are Untitled
Volume 5: The Ant & the Aardvark
Volume 6: The Inspector Vol 1
Volume 7: The Inspector Vol 2
Volume 8: Roland and Ratfink
Volume 9 is Untitled

Plus a Pink Panther encyclopedia book: Pink Panther, The Ultimate Guide to the Coolest Cat in Town!

Also, if you wish to complete your Pink Panther film collection, you will need to pick up a separate copy of The Return of the Pink Panther (which is not included in this collection because MGM does not have the rights to distribute the film on home video)

Recommendation: Buy

Jarhead (Blu-ray) - 6.4/10
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Lucas Black, Brian Geraghty, Marty Papazian, Jamie Foxx
Jarhead (the self-imposed moniker of the Marines) follows “Swoff,” a third-generation enlistee, from a sobering stint in boot camp to active duty, sporting a sniper’s rifle and a hundred-pound ruck on his back through Middle East deserts with no cover from intolerable heat or from Iraqi soldiers, always potentially just over the next horizon. Swoff and his fellow Marines sustain themselves with sardonic humanity and wicked comedy on blazing desert fields in a country they don’t understand against an enemy they can’t see for a cause they don’t fully fathom… Sergeant Sykes is a Marine lifer who heads up Swofford’s scout/sniper platoon, while Troy is Swoff’s friend and mentor, a die-hard member of STA - their elite Marine Unit.

Blu-ray Features:

2.35:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Commentary with Sam Mendes, William Broyles Jr and Anthony Swofford

Recommendation: Buy

The Kingdom (Blu-ray) - 7.5/10
Starring Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Kyle Chandler, Richard Jenkins, Jeremy Piven, Ashraf Barhom, Ali Suliman
After a terrorist attack to an American housing compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where families and the spy Francis Manner are murdered, FBI agent Ronald Fleury blackmails the South Arabian consul to get five days of investigation in the location. He travels with agent Grant Sykes, Janet Mayes and Adam Leavitt to revenge their friend and try to find the responsible for the bombing. The agents find all sorts of difficulties in their investigation, but they are supported by Colonel Faris Al Ghazi that advises the team how to act in a hostile environment.

Blu-ray Features:

2.35:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Deleted Scenes
Commentary by Peter Berg
U Control: PiP
Character by Character: the Apartment Shootout
History of The Kingdom - an Interactive Timeline
Constructing the freeway sequence
Creating The Kingdom

Recommendation: Rent

Superman Doomsday
Starring Adam Baldwin, Anne Heche, James Marsters
When LexCorps accidentally unleash a murderous creature, Doomsday, Superman meets his greatest challenge as a champion. Based on the “The Death of Superman” storyline that appeared in DC Comics’ publications in the 1990s.

2-Disc Special Features:

1.78:1 Widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1
Commentary with Bruce Timm, Duane Capizzi, Andrea Romano and Gregory Noveck
When Heroes Die: The Making of Superman Doomsday
The Clash of the Juggernauts
Behind the Voices
Four episodes of Superman The Animated Series
Justice League New Frontier Sneak Peak
Wonder Woman Sneak Peak

Blu-ray Features:

1.78:1 Widescreen 1080p Transfer with Dolby Digital 5.1
All of the features of the 2-Disc DVD

Recommendation: Rent

The Unrated Blogger’s Cut

Well, I saw Hancock and I did not like it, it felt like separate films, if only the film stuck to the story of the first half of the film and it would have turned out all right. Now with it being the Holiday season the Christmas films are coming out and among them is Fred Claus. I sort of wanted to see it in the theater but I never got around to it so now that it’s on DVD, I’m going to give it a shot. The Pink Panther collection looks awesome, at first I thought they were just releasing the films again but with the new remake attached but they decided to be awesome and throw in some DVDs of the cartoon as well. Now if I didn’t already own the first Pink Panther Collection DVDs, I would be all over this, now I don’t know what I’m going to do.

Coming Soon: