On Blu-ray This Week: May 19 to May 25, 2008
Last week we had a slew of Blu-ray releases that catered to most family members. This week we have another diverse batch of movies: Nicolas Cage action and adventure flicks, comedy films the likes of Blades of Glory and Anger Management, documentaries from Questar about nature and wildlife, and the critically-acclaimed Hugo Weaving-Natalie Portman starrer, V for Vendetta. For a complete list of Blu-ray releases for this week, head on over to the full article.
Last week’s Blu-ray releases were a hodgepodge of movies for almost everyone in the family to watch and enjoy. This week however, we’ll be seeing a lot of action-packed movies and specials from no other than the Academy Award-winning actor Nicolas Cage and the WrestleMania event, some comedies in the form of movies and a musical, eight documentaries bundled in four separate releases, an animated movie, and an action-thriller where you’ll see Natalie Portman without her gorgeous locks.
Let’s take a look first at the slew of Nicolas Cage flicks lined up for this week’s Blu-ray releases. We have National Treasure and National Treasure: Book of Secrets from Walt Disney Pictures where Cage plays Benjamin Franklin Gates. In the first film, Gates is trying to find a trove of artifacts and gold, but unfortunately, he needs to take a close peek at the Declaration of Independence document itself before finding clues to what he and his ancestors before him have been searching for.
In the sequel, Book of Secrets, Ben Gates sets out to clear the name of his great-great grandfather Thomas Gates who had been implicated in the murder of President Abraham Lincoln. His only clue lies in the missing page in a diary which his grandfather translated for John Wilkes Booth and another unknown man. If these two movies from Cage aren’t enough though, then be aware that his 2007 movie Next and the 1997 film Face/Off with John Travolta are also coming out on Blu-ray.
If you’re after films to get you into a positive mood, then the following batch is a must-have. Will Ferrell and Jon Heder partner up (in more senses than one) in the 2007 comedy Blades of Glory from DreamWorks. Former rivals in the WinterSport Games men’s singles skaters category, they now have to team up and join the ice dancing or pair skating category to take advantage of a loophole in the WinterSport Games’ regulations. Another unconventional cheer-me-upper is Company: A Musical Comedy, a musical which tackles love and commitment in Manhattan as perceived by a 35-year old bachelor.
Adam Sandler and Jack Nicholson team up in the 2003 film Anger Management from Columbia Pictures and Revolution Studios. In the film, Sandler is forced to undergo anger management instead of going to jail after a misunderstanding with a flight’s air marshal. A few therapy sessions, some brawls, and other misunderstandings happen along his path to graduating from anger management.
DreamWorks Animation’s Bee Movie on the other hand, also falls under the comedy category for this writer, because, in all honesty, can any movie featuring Jerry Seinfeld’s voice not be funny? In this animated film, we follow the story of a bee named Barry B. Benson who finds out how important his and the other bees’ job of pollinating flowers are to the the world.
Questar is also releasing eight documentaries bundled in twos – Nature: The Desert Lions bundled with Life in Death Valley, Nature: In the Valley of the Wolf clumped with Christmas in Yellowstone, Nature: Shark Mountain released with Supersize Crocs, and Nature: Under Antarctic Ice grouped with Encountering Sea Monsters.
Other great flicks to see a Blu-ray release include the 2006 action-thriller V for Vendetta which stars Natalie Portman, Stephen Rea, and Hugo Weaving; the 1986 classic science fiction Short Circuit starring Ally Sheedy, Austin Pendleton, and prototype robot Johnny 5; and, WWE: WrestleMania 24 which showcases famous wrestlers Undertaker, John Cena, Triple H, Edge, and Randy Orton, and skilled boxer Floyed Mayweather Jr.
A meaty release for Blu-ray home entertainment system owners indeed. You can check out the list below of these great Blu-ray releases for May 20, 2008:
- National Treasure 1 & 2 (Disney/Buena Vista)
- National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (Disney/Buena Vista)
- National Treasure: Collector’s Edition (Disney/Buena Vista)
- Face/Off: Special Collector’s Edition (Paramount Pictures)
- Next (Paramount Pictures)
- Blades of Glory (DreamWorks)
- Company: A Musical Comedy (Image Entertainment)
- Anger Management (Sony Pictures)
- Short Circuit (Image Entertainment)
- V for Vendetta (Warner Bros.)
- Bee Movie (DreamWorks Animation)
- WWE: WrestleMania 24 (WWE Home Video)
- Nature: Desert Lions (Questar)
- Nature: In the Valley of the Wolf (Questar)
- Nature: Shark Mountain (Questar)
- Nature: Under Antarctic Ice (Questar)