It’s Tuesday, which means new titles! And this week we’ve got some of the highest profile titles of the year including The Hobbit, This is 40, Zero Dark Thirty, and Les Misérables, as well as some critical favorites including Rust and Bone, and The Other Son. And of course, Timerider appears in it’s Blu-ray debut with lots of other fun releases!
Fire up those queues!
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Blu-ray/DVD + UltraViolet Digital Copy Combo Pack)
The first in a trilogy of films based on the enduring masterpiece “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey follows the adventure of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome Dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the Wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of 13 Dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild, through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins, Orcs and deadly Wargs, as well as a mysterious and sinister figure known only as the Necromancer.
Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain, first they must escape the Goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever…Gollum.
Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of ingenuity and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities…A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-Earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know. Extras include 10 Production Videos: Embark On Your Own Journey Behind The Camera With Director Peter Jackson As He Personally Guides You Through The Adventure Of Creating The Hobbit. Join Him From The Start Of Production And Visit Hobbiton, Go On Location, See How Jackson Pushed The Boundaries Of Filmmaking And Walk The Red Carpet. In addition, Peter Jackson will host a live first look at “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” the second film in The Hobbit Trilogy, on Sunday, March 24 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern/Noon Pacific. Content will be streamed live and an edited version will be archived on the Trilogy’s official website. Access to the live event will be limited to holders of an UltraViolet code available by purchasing “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack or 2-Disc Special Edition DVD. Select digital retailers will issue access codes upon purchase of the film. Visit www.thehobbit.com/sneak for more information.
From the director of the multi-award-winning A Prophet comes a gripping tale of two souls finding strength in each other after tragedy reunites them. Marion Cotillard (Academy Award winner, 2007, Best Actress, La Vie En Rose) gives a tour-de force performance as Stephanie, an orca trainer whose life is transformed when tragedy strikes during a show. Faced with unbearable circumstances she turns to Ali (Matthias Schoenaerts, Bullhead), a street boxer fighting his own battle of life-changing events. As their stories intersect, they navigate a gritty relationship in a world where love and courage appear in many forms. Features include Commentary With Jacques Audiard And Thomas Bidegain Deleted Scenes With Commentary, Making Rust And Bone: A Film By Antonin Peretjatko, VFX Breakdown By Mikros, On The Red Carpet: Toronto International Film Festival.
Set against the backdrop of 19th-century France, Les Misérables tells the story of ex-prisoner Jean Valjean (Jackman), hunted for decades by the ruthless policeman Javert (Crowe), after he breaks parole. When Valjean agrees to care for factory worker Fantine’s (Hathaway) young daughter, Cosette, their lives change forever. This enthralling story is a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit. Hooper’s Les Misérables co-stars Amanda Seyfried, Eddie Redmayne, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen and Samantha Barks. The Blu-ray edition of Les Misérables features 1080p video, a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track, standard DVD and UltraViolet digital copies of the film, and numerous extras including featurettes Les Misérables Singing Live, Battle at the Barricade, The West End Connection, Les Misérables on Location, The Stars of Les Misérables, Creating the Perfect Paris, The Original Masterwork: Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables and Feature Commentary with Director Tom Hooper.
Kathryn Bigelow directs this Academy Award-winning military action thriller about the mission by American special operations forces to capture or kill al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Shining a light on the secretive processes behind the world’s greatest manhunt, the film details the work done by the intelligence team responsible for finally tracking down bin Laden, graphically documenting the unfolding ten-year intelligence hunt through the eyes of CIA analyst Maya (Chastain), whose initial minor role assumes ever-greater importance as a crack US Navy Seal team readies itself for its most important mission ever. Extras include Special Features: No Small Feat – Making Zero Dark Thirty, The Compound – Tour the film’s rebuilt compound, Geared Up – Watch the cast train with authentic SEAL gear and Targeting Jessica Chastain – A look at the role of Maya.
This is 40 is an unfiltered, comedic look inside the life of an American family. After years of marriage, Pete (Rudd) and Debbie (Mann) are approaching a milestone meltdown. As they try to balance romance, careers, parents and children in their own hilarious ways, they must also figure out how to enjoy the rest of their lives. Featuring Melissa McCarthy, Jason Segel, Megan Fox, John Lithgow and Albert Brooks, This is 40 is a candid and heartwarming comedy about the challenges and rewards of marriage and parenthood in the modern age. The Blu-ray edition of This is 40 offers both an R-Rated theatrical version and Unrated Cut of the film, as well as a standard DVD and UltraViolet digital copy. Special features include: Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Judd Apatow, The Making Of This Is 40, This Is Albert Brooks (At Work), Graham Parker & The Rumour: Long Emotional Ride, Brooks-O-Rama, Biking With Barry, Triumph The Insult Comic Dog, Kids On The Loose 3, Bodies By Jason Commercial, Fresh Air With Terry Gross, Deleted, Extended & Alternate Scenes, Over A Half Hour of Music with Graham Parker and the Rumour, and Ryan Adams, Gag Reel, Line-O-Rama, More Deleted Scenes, More Music from Graham Parker and the Rumour, and Ryan Adams.
On the night before an old friend’s wedding, three frisky bridesmaids go searching for a little fun but find much more than they bargained for. With lovely Becky (Rebel Wilson) set to marry her handsome sweetheart, Dale (Hayes MacArthur), the remaining members of her high school clique reunite for one last bachelorette bacchanal in the Big Apple. Regan (Kirsten Dunst) is an overachieving, uber-Maid of Honor who’s secretly smarting over the fact that she’s not the first to marry, while Gena (Lizzy Caplan) is a whip-smart sarcastic who’s actually a closet romantic, and Katie (Isla Fisher) is a ditzy beauty who loves the good life. But when Becky insists on keeping the bachelorette party tame, the women proceed with an after-hours celebration of their own. Special Features include bloopers, behind the scenes of Bachelorette featurette and audio commentary with writer /director Leslye Headland.
Paul Exben (Romain Duris) is a handsome and successful Parisian lawyer with a beautiful wife, two children, and a glimmering future in the firm he co-owns with his mentor, Anne (Catherine Deneuve). But behind this deceptively perfect facade lies a restless spirit who’s uncomfortable in his conformist life and envies the freedom of his neighbor Greg, an uncompromising photojournalist.
After Greg’s unexpected death throws his life into chaos, Paul embarks on a cross-continent odyssey of self-discovery and reinvention, leading him to uncover the answer to the question: is it possible to become someone else?
With Hitchcockian precision and echoes of Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley, director Eric Lartigau explores the themes of identity and creativity through one man’s gripping journey from Paris and Brittany to Montenegro and points beyond, crafting a suspenseful thriller about the dangers that persist even after one engineers the ultimate fresh start. Extras include a theatrical trailer.
In the early 1920’s, on the streets of Beijing, the nation’s most talented performers have gathered to show off their most spectacular skills. The challenge is set: a handsome prize to whomever can reproduce a magic trick called the Eight Immortals’ Treat. Zhang Xian (Tony Leung) appears amidst the waiting crowd and decides to give it a try.
So begins a legend of pure magic. Adapted from the Zhang Haifan novel, led by award-winning director Derek Yee and starring the three most powerful stars in Chinese cinema – Tony Leung (Hero, Red Cliff), Lau Ching-wan (Mad Detective) and Zhou Xun (Cloud Atlas), The Great Magician is an endearing spectacle of high-spirited action and fantasy. Extras include Making The Magic featurette and Trailers.
Timerider: The Adventures Of Lyle Swann
Lyle Swann (Fred Ward) is a champion off-road racer who accidentally gets zapped into a time-travel experiment and sent 100 years into the past! When a gang of brutal bandits steals his motorcycle, Swann must outsmart the local cowboys and submit to the desires of a beautiful outlaw woman (Belinda Bauer). Armed with only his wits and a map from an Exxon station, will Lyle Swann survive the Wild West and get back to his future? Peter Coyote, L.Q. Jones, Ed Lauter and Richard Masur co-star in this cult film co-written and directed by William Dear (Harry and the Hendersons, Angels in the Outfield) and produced, co-written and scored by Michael Nesmith (Repo Man, Elephant Parts). Extras include Audio Commentary with Director William Dear, Interviews with Producer Michael Nesmith and William Dear, Storyboard Gallery.
Joseph (Jules Sitruk), an 18-year-old musician preparing to join the Israeli army for his mandatory military service, lives at home in a comfortable suburb of Tel Aviv with his parents, France-born physician Orith (Emmanuelle Devos) and Israel-born army commander Alon Silbers (Pascal Elbé). A blood test for Joseph’s military service reveals that he is not their biological son; during the Gulf War Joseph was evacuated from a clinic along with another baby; both were given back to the wrong families. While the Palestinian Joseph went to Tel Aviv with the Silbers, their actual Jewish son, Yacine (Medhi Dehbi) was brought to the West Bank by the Arab couple, Said (Khalifa Natour) and Leila (Areen Omari). The revelation turns the lives of the two families upside-down, forcing them to reassess their respective identities, values and beliefs. Extras include Making of Featurette, Deleted Scenes, Blooper Reel, On Approval.
Now you will see them too.
Sudden Unexplained Nocturnal Death Syndrome is a real phenomenon where seemingly young, healthy people can die mysteriously in their sleep. Survivors of the syndrome report a feeling of terror while being paralyzed in their bed as a shadowy figure attempts to grab or strangle them.
When a rash of sleep fatalities is reported on air by a struggling late night radio host, Dallas Robert, a skeptical CDC investigator, Alison Eastwood, is called in to verify his claims. What they discover is a deadly, psychological condition where fear causes the shadow beings to appear.
This supernatural thriller, based on true events, interweaves never-before-seen archival footage, interviews and new reports about this horrifyingly, real phenomenon. Extras include Shadow People: More To The Story.
This gorgeous animated sci-fi story explores the theme of the transformative power of love between two women. As our story begins it is the 28th century, 200 years after the Great Earth Exodus. We re on Ganymede, one of Jupiter’s moons. Our hero Naia is a feisty, young singer-songwriter who falls in love with the beautiful saxophonist Parker. The two embark on their new relationship and also form a band and now they have to not only make it as musicians but also to fight for their freedom. Dramatically rendered in rich, hand drawn animation, Strange Frame brings us into a world of space pirates, indentured slaves and genetic mutations infused with music throughout, to create a dreamlike tale unlike anything you ve ever seen. EXTRAS- Featurette: In the Studio with Claudia Black, Tara Strong, Ron Glass,Cree Summer, Juliet Landau, Michael Dorn & George Takei Featurette: Claudia Black: On Strange Frame, Sex Scenes and Sci-FI Deleted Scene, and Trailer.
In this final season, America’s favorite housemates all return to their home away from home in Seaside Heights, NJ. The house dynamic is headed into unchartered territory as their lives outside the Shore take off in exciting new directions. While things are definitely a little bit different this time when the cast hits the boardwalk, their trademark hilarity and family dysfunction remain the same. Extras include After Hour Specials, Reunion Special, “Most Outrageous Moments” Special, “Gym, Tan, Lookback” Special,“Breakdowns, Boobs & Bronzer” Special, Deleted Scenes.
Clive Brook adapted and stars as George, the 10th Duke of Bristol, in this hilarious adaptation of Frederick Lonsdale’s play. George and his equally impoverished friend Richard (Roland Culver) are invited to spend a month at a Scottish mansion by two wealthy women (played by Beatrice Lillie and Googie Withers) to test their compatibility as potential marriage partners. What follows is a delightfully witty romance described by Lindsay Anderson as “the funniest British light comedy ever made. Released for the first time on Blu Ray, featuring a new High Definition transfer from the original 35mm master. Features a bonus interview with Googie Withers and commentary by Jeffrey Vance.
Academy Award® winner Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln, There Will Be Blood) plays Jonathan, the ungainly, neglected eldest son of a family living in the highly industrialized “Black Country” area of England. His younger brother, Harold, is everything he is not – athletic, handsome and smart. Despite the favoritism shown to Harold, the two boys build a close friendship that lasts a lifetime, yet ends in tragedy. Based on the Edwardian romance novel by Francis Brett Young.
Daniel Day-Lewis Triple Feature
This new triple feature from BBC Home Entertainment features Academy Award® winner Daniel Day-Lewis in three early television appearances illustrating his profound ability to reinvent himself over and over. How Many Miles to Babylon is the story of two Irishmen – Alex Moore (Day-Lewis), a protestant, and his childhood friend Jerry, a Catholic, who enter WW1 as soldiers and see their friendship tested as they experience the harsh realities of war. The Insurance Man, directed by Richard Eyre from a screenplay by Alan Bennett, shows Day-Lewis as an insurance bureaucrat in 1945 Prague caught in a tale of government intrigue and corruption. In Dangerous Corner, Day-Lewis plays advertising executive Gordon Whitehouse, who, with friends at a country retreat, sees the disastrous repercussions of one guest’s chance remark.
