Tag: Blu-Ray

“Star Trek: The Next Generation”- Season 3 And “The Best of Both Worlds” Blu-ray Review

by Eric Diaz

Ever since the high definition restoration of Star Trek: The Next Generation was announced last year for Blu-ray, the show’s third season was the one all the fans have really been waiting for. Year three of TNG was the “now we’re cookin’ with gas” season, where the show finally stepped out of the shadow of the original Star Trek, and became a legitimate pop culture phenomenon of its own. By the time the season came to its end, and Captain Jean-Luc Picard was assimilated by the Borg in Trek’s first ever cliffhanger, arguments like “is Picard a better Captain than Kirk?” seemed like relics of the past. TNG had finally carved its own niche.

Star Trek: The Next Generation had a rough first two seasons creatively…and that’s kind of putting it mildly. Although the show was a ratings hit from day one, TNG had serious creative problems from the get go. Writers and producers came and went, and two original cast members left early on; Denise Crosby (Lt. Tasha Yar) left at the end of season one, and Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher) was fired around the same time. The 1988 writer’s strike cut down the number of episodes in season two, and by the end of that particular season, the show’s replacement chief medical officer (Diana Muldaur)  had departed the series as well. The Next Generation wasn’t a show that was living up to its premise or its cast, and by the end of the second season, TNG was a series in crisis.

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Enter Michael Piller, the series’ new show runner and head writer. Piller was in charge of the writing staff on season three, and he made two massive changes to the way the show was run that changed the series’ fortunes forever. First, he made a declaration that from now on, the series would shift away from “alien of the week” or “guest star of the week”,  and focus on character, first and foremost. Any given episode would be a Data episode, or a Worf episode, or Picard episode, but they all had to be focused on one of the series’ main characters and their emotional journey, and not just the moral quandary or “lesson” of the week.

Michael Piller, the man who saved Trek.
Michael Piller, the man who saved Trek.

Secondly, Piller instituted an open door policy in regards to script submissions, which meant fans and amateur screenwriters could send their scripts to Paramount in hopes of catching their big break. Most of the scripts ended up in what they called the “slush pile,” with most never to be used. But the cream rose to the top, as within that pile were some true gems. Some fan favorite episodes that season began as fan submissions. Add to that a new director of photography, Marvin Rush, who gave the show a more lush, filmic look, sleek new uniforms for the crew and a brand new opening credits sequence, and from the first episode that year, Star Trek: The Next Generation season three was almost like a soft reboot that the entire series needed. And it paid off, in spades.

Now these episodes are finally being released on a six-disc Blu-ray set from CBS Home Video, and if you consider yourself a Trek fan at all, I highly recommend going on Amazon or hitting Best Buy or wherever on April 30th when this puppy is released. Skip the first two seasons if you must, but this particular set belongs on your shelf.

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The Episodes

The original Star Trek had their best year from a creative standpoint during their first season on the air. By the time they reached their third season, having barely made it back on the airwaves, and with their budget slashed in half, the quality of the show went down the drain. In that third and final year, the show’s cancellation was something of a mercy killing. Next Generation had the opposite problem–after two years of struggling, the show came together in year three, and because of that, they boldly went where the previous Trek never did; into a fourth season. And a fifth, and sixth, and so on.

After struggling for so long, TNG found its groove, and most of the season three episodes range from good to great. In fact, unlike most other seasons of the show that have some obvious stinkers, I can only think of one out of 26 episodes in season three that would really qualify as bad in any way (and for the record, that episode is Menage a Troi, a “comedic” episode focusing on Deanna Troi’s mother. Every season had one of these Mrs. Troi episodes, and 90% of them were terrible. This one is no different.)  But the rest of the twenty five episodes on this Blu-ray set are the cream of the crop for this series. Episodes like The Offspring, Sins of the Father, The Bonding, Who Watches the Watchers, Tin Man, Hollow Pursuits, Sarek, and most especially Yesterday’s Enterprise and The Best of Both Worlds, are among the very best episodes of the show’s entire seven season run.

Episodes Rating: A-

Data and his daughter Lal, from the episode "The Offspring."
Data and his daughter Lal, from the episode “The Offspring.”

The Restoration

The team at CBS Digital has once again done an astonishing job on the HD restoration of the series, surpassing their work on season one. As someone who has seen these episodes dozens of times over the past twenty plus years, it is still amazing to see them in such jaw dropping clarity. In many ways, I feel like I’m watching them for the first time. One could never really see all the details on the sets, or the costumes, or the model work before in such great detail, and it is a true testament to everyone involved just how well everything holds up to the unforgiving clarity of high definition. The folks at CBS Digital have set the standard for how one restores classic television shows from before the high-def era for modern audiences, specifically those shot on 35mm film, but edited on video tape. If you’re only used to watching the show the old way, or in re-runs on Sci-Fi Channel or BBC America, then you’ve never seen the show. Because of this restoration the colors and details pop like never before, and the show looks like it was shot yesterday, not twenty three years ago.

Restoration Rating: A+

The Extras

Once again, the team at CBS, spearheaded by Robert Meyer Burnett and Roger Lay Jr, have created the definitive look back at this seminal series with various behind-the-scenes documentaries. There are two all-new hour length documentaries; the first is Inside The Writer’s Room; hosted and moderated by Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane, himself a massive Next Gen geek. This feature reunites four of the writers from the glory days of the show, Ronald D. Moore, Brannon Braga, Rene Echevarria and Naren Shankar. This feature is pretty loosey-goosey in terms of how it is structured, but it’s a blast to watch these four just get together in a room and shoot the shit about the glory days of the Trek franchise. Everyone is pretty candid about not only the good times, but also the bad times, and some of the crappier episodes they produced (they had to churn out 26 of these in a nine month period every year…they’re not all gonna be classics people.) All four of these guys have gone on to long careers in the television business, but it is obvious how much they all still love Trek and look back fondly on that part of their lives.

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The other main documentary Resistance is Futile: Assimilating the Next Generation, is split into three parts- Biological Distinctiveness, Technological Distinctiveness, and The Collective. This covers the show’s transition is season three from a troubled show looking to find its voice, into a pop culture phenomenon by the end of that year. Co-executive producer Ira Steven Behr is mainly featured in this documentary above most of the other writers, and has great stories to tell, mostly about butting heads with the other series main producers Rick Berman and Michael Piller (an ailing Gene Roddenberry was still in the mix at this point as well, although most of his crazier suggestions were mostly ignored by just about everyone, kind of like everyone’s crazy ol’ grandpa.) Ira Behr was only on staff for that third seasons, and is pretty candid about the show being hell to work on at the time.  In his words, no one back then knew they were in the middle of the show’s creative renaissance, they were all just trying to make it from week to week and not go totally crazy. And there were many times were they came this close to a staff mutiny, especially when dealing with the less than warm and cuddly Michael Piller.

There are other great features here too, including four audio commentaries for some of the most beloved episodes of the season The Bonding, Yesterday’s Enterprise, The Offspring and Sins of the Father. Three of these feature Ronald D. Moore, who has some particularly funny stories to tell about his very first gig in Hollywood, long before he was the much lauded creator of the new Battlestar Galactica. Once upon a time, he was the guy who happily came in to work on holidays and brought everyone donuts, mostly afraid that someone on staff would realize he was only hired there on a week-to-week basis, and some higher-up would figure it out and fire him.

A fifteen minutes tribute to the late Michael Piller is included here as well. Piller of course steered the course of the show that third season, and stayed a part of the Trek family throughout the rest of Next Gen, co-created Deep Space Nine and Voyager, and stayed with the television franchise all the way until the second season of Voyager. He also wrote Star Trek: Insurrection. Sadly, he died of cancer in 2005. Interviews with the former writing staff and his own wife and son are showcased here, a fitting tribute for a man for whom the Trek franchise owes its continued existence to. While it is clear that his writing staff often butt heads with him, it is clear that just like a stern dad that pissed them all off on occasion, they all still loved the hell outta the guy, and miss him dearly.

Rounding out the extras are an HD Gag Reel, and several scenes with the late actor David Rappaport (Time Bandits) from the episode The Most Toys. He originally played the villain in that episode, Kivas Fajo, but only a few scenes of his were shot due to a suicide attempt he made during the time he was making the episode. (He was replaced by actor Saul Rubinek.) Not long after he was replaced, he succeeded in killing himself, but during the restoration of the episodes for HD, his footage he did film was discovered, and is included here–a rare glimpse into what might have been. An all the special features from the old DVD sets are included here as well, in standard definition of course. No stone was left uncovered.

Extras Rating: A

But WAIT! That’s Not All!

Also on April 30th, CBS Home Video is also releasing a special stand alone release of The Best of Both Worlds two part episode, featuring the famous Borg cliffhanger from season three, and the second part from the as-yet released season four, edited together as one epic movie. This single disc release has its own series of extras, unique to this release, including a gag reel, an audio commentary (not on the season three set, I might add) and a behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of this now classic two-parter. Of course, some fans might feel it’s a cash grab, and truth be told,  it kind of is. But what self respecting Trek nerd doesn’t want The Best of Both Worlds: The Movie on their shelf? You know you’ll watch it more often than most of the Next Generation feature films.

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Overall Rating For Both Releases: A

CBS Digital has gone above and beyond the call of duty for these Blu-ray restorations, and the discs show just how much TLC was put into these releases. The work from everyone involved here has been nothing short of amazing. I simply can’t wait for seasons 4-7, and The Prophets willing, Deep Space Nine in the not-too-distant future. Both Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 3 and The Best of Both Worlds are available everywhere April 30th, 2013, and are highly recommended.

1990’s ‘Captain America’ Coming To Blu-Ray In May!

by Derek Kraneveldt

After the phenomenal thrill ride that was 2012’s The Avengers, and with Iron Man 3 hitting theatres in less than a month, you’re more than likely hankering for even more Marvel superhero content. Sadly, we’re still a whole year away from the release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier; the film just began production, and only a single (albeit cool) image has been released.

So, why not head all the way back to 1990, and check out Matt Salinger’s portrayal of Steve Rogers? Starting May 21st, Captain America: The Collector’s Edition will be available for the first time on Blu-Ray. The disc comes complete with a new HD transfer, and never-before-seen interviews with director Albert Pyun and actor Matt Salinger. If you’ve never seen the 1990 adaptation of Captain America, there has never been a better time than now.

Watch the trailer for Captain America below, and let us know what you think! You can pre-order the Blu-Ray on Amazon for the cool price of $10.99.

Long ago, Steve Rogers (Matt Salinger) was a true American hero, a brave super soldier created by scientists to help the Allied Forces fight for freedom in World War II. But during a battle with the sinister Red Skull (Scott Paulin), he was lost, entombed in ice. Decades later, his body has been found and revived and Steve must again don the mantle of Captain America to help save the President of the United States (Ronny Cox) — and the world — from his arch-nemesis once and for all.

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Star Trek: The Next Generation – Season Two Blu-Ray Review

by Eric Diaz

Last week CBS Home Video continued its meticulous and expensive restoration of Star Trek: The Next Generation, begun earlier this year, with the release of the complete second season on Blu-ray. The popular consensus over the years has been that Star Trek: The Next Generation (or, for brevity’s sake, just TNG from now on) was a more or less crappy show in its first two seasons, and only really got good and became the TNG we all know and love from season three forward. That’s kinda true….and also kinda not. Yes, season one of the show was mostly a hot mess, with only a handful of episodes really any good. Truth is, Trek creator Gene Roddenberry had a large hand in that first season of the show, and (blasphemous as it may sound) the more Roddenberry had to do with the franchise, the worse it usually was. His idea of a future where humanity was perfect, and therefore no conflict existed between “elevated” future humans, was a ridiculous notion that he came to in old age and was not present in the original series. But the first season of the show is filled with these bland “perfect” 24th century drama free people. But despite all the creative issues in that first year, the show was a massive ratings success for Paramount from the get go; the trick was to be both popular and good in the following season, which meant lots of changes would have to be made for year two.

Unfortunately, season two was hampered by a lot of problems going into it; the WGA writer’s strike of 1988 happened right as the series ended its first season and lasted six months, delaying the start of production. Denise Crosby, who played security chief Tasha Yar, had left the series at the end of season one. And not long after season one wrapped Gates McFadden, who played Dr. Beverly Crusher, was unceremoniously fired from the show. The special features on this Blu-ray set cover this situation pretty candidly for the most part, but don’t go into great detail. But it has been reported over the years that McFadden was let go due to rebuffing the alleged unwanted sexual advances of one of the producers of the show, Maurice Hurley. If that is indeed true, it makes me throw up in my mouth a little that Roddenberry and co-executive producer Rick Berman would have allowed such a thing to take place. Sexism was, I guess, alive and well in the 24th Century after all. None of this is covered in special features on the set, but a quick Google search will provide all the salacious gossip you need.

Season Two Cast and Crew Changes

Of course, the two biggest changes to the series were the cast additions; Whoopi Goldberg joined the cast on a recurring basis as Guinan, the alien bartender on the ship’s new crew lounge called Ten-Forward, and Diana Muldaur as the new Chief Medical Officer,Dr. Katherine Pulaski. The addition of Whoopi, who at the time was an actual big time movie star was a huge boon to the series. To this day, I remember watching episodes when they originally aired, and non Trek people wandering in the room, jaws agape that such a legitimate movie star would want to be on a syndicated  sci-fi show (cut to two decades later, where Whoopi hosts a daytime talk show and is a recurring guest star on Glee. My, how times have changed) Goldberg’s character, who was a cross between Yoda and a bartender on Cheers, could have been gimmicky, but more often than not she worked extremely well with the cast and was a huge asset to the series.

Season two cast addition Whoopi Goldberg makes weird finger puppets at Q while Jean-Luc tries to figure out what the hell is going on.

The addition of television staple Diana Muldaur was less permanent, but still changed the show in a fundamental way in the long run. After the firing of Gates McFadden, Roddenberry begged Muldaur to come out of retirement and join the series, as she had been a guest star on the classic show and therefore had goodwill from the fanbase for this reason. She complied, but she refused to ever sign a standard multi-year contract, and was never even in the opening credits. Instead, she was always listed as “special guest star’, which makes me think she was never planning to be permanent. Pulaski was older than Crusher by at least decade, was a lot more opinionated and far less likely to make doe eyes at Picard. Personally, I loved her, but fans (specifically, young male fans) wanted the sexier MILF of Starfleet back, and eventually got their wish once McFadden’s nemesis, producer Maurice Hurley, left the show. To this very day, fanboy opinions of Pulaski fall under “she wasn’t hot enough, and therefore needed to go.” Strangely though, a lot of Pulaski’s personality traits, like her backbone when dealing with the Captain, were transferred over to Crusher when she returned. So while Kate Pulaski is only ever mentioned again once after she departed the show, in a strange way her character lingered on in a revamped and better written Beverly Crusher.

Diana Muldaur only served one tour of duty on the Enterprise, but it was a memorable one.

Aside from the new faces on board the ship, underutilized characters from the first season found new roles that better suited them. Levar Burton’s character of Geordi Laforge was not much more than a blind version of Sulu from the classic show in year one, so in year two he was promoted to Chief Engineer and suddenly had a lot more to do. Also finding a much bigger role now was Worf, who was now Chief of Security (which, as Patrick Stewart ponders on the special features, makes you wonder just what WAS he doing in season one??) Commander Riker grew a beard and got a lot less stiff, and the transporter chief got a name, O’Brien. He’d eventually grow so much as a character that he’d be spun-off to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine some years later. All the pieces of the show were finally starting to fall into place.

TNG On Blu-Grading The Contents

The Episodes

Season two probably gets its rep as not being very good probably due to the fact that some of the very worst episodes of the entire series are among its number. I’m speaking now of shows like The Outrageous Okona, where Data is instructed by 80’s comedian Joe Piscopo how to be funny (he fails. So does the episode.)  There was also Manhunt, an excruciating show where Deanna Troi’s mother comes on board looking for a husband, and bad sitcom shenanigans ensue (really, that’s the whole plot.) And worst offender of all is the season finale Shades of Gray, which was the first and only “clip show” in Star Trek history. A clip show of course is that tired old television trope of characters pulling a “remember when?” moment, and flashbacks occur which are just clips from older shows. It’s is the kind of tedious television making that was the stuff of bad sitcoms like The Facts of Life or Webster, and beneath a show like Star Trek. And there are one or two other groaners this season too.

Having said all that, there are some true gems of episodes in this season, far more than in season one, starting with the Sherlock Holmes themed Elementary, Dear Data. Other highlight episodes are A Matter of Honor, where Riker joins a Klingon crew in an exchange program, Peak Performance, where the Enterprise plays in war games with an eighty-year-old derelict ship, and Pen Pals, a Prime Directive-themed episode centered around Data’s friendship with an alien child. The Emissary is another terrific episode that introduces Worf’s half Klingon/half human lover K’ehylar to the series. Even so-so episodes like Samaritan Snare are worth watching for scenes like the usually erudite Jean-Luc Picard having sandwiches while on a long shuttle trip with Wesley, all while talking about his wayward youth as a brawling hooligan.

But the two highlight episodes from that season have got to be The Measure of a Man and Q Who? Measure is not only the best episode of the season, it is one of the best episodes of the series, period. The episode is essentially a courtroom drama, where Data is put on trial to determine if he is indeed a sentient being or merely Starfleet property, with Picard defending him and Riker being forced to prosecute. Many consider the first truly great episode of TNG, including actor Patrick Stewart. And as a bonus for this Blu-ray set, since the series had to undergo a top to bottom reconstruction for HD, an extra twelve minutes were discovered and re-inserted into the episode making for the first extended version of a Star Trek episode ever.  And Q Who? is beloved for not only returning fan favorite nemesis Q to the series, but introducing one of Trek’s most famous villains in the form of the Borg. If I had to grade on a curve, I’d have to give the season two episodes overall only a slightly above average rating, if only because some of the bad ones are just so bad. Grade: B

The High-Def Restoration

Just like season one, TNG season two was shot on 35mm film but edited on video tape, so the same complete re-scanning of the film elements in high def had to be done for this season.  Trek veterans Mike and Denise Okuda were back on board to oversee the entire restoration, and make sure it matched the original effect shots as much as humanly possible. For the restoration of season two however, CBS Digital turned over the film elements to another company rather than doing it in-house like season one. I believe the idea here is to alternate between seasons, so these season sets can come out faster. For the most part, the effect is the same..the live action footage looks great, miles better than what it was before on DVD or broadcast, but certain effects elements, usually planets and starship shots, are not quite up to the same standard CBS digital displayed with their season one restoration. It’s a minor issue, as 90% of an episode is on-set footage. But I’ll be glad to see CBS Digital return for season three, which is in my opinion, the show’s best season. For a huge TNG fan like me though, I have to say these episodes have never, ever looked better regardless. But objectively, I have no choice but to give it a lower grade than I’d give the season one set in terms of restoration effort having seen the superior effects in year one. Grade: B+

The crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D, as they appeared in the second season.

Special Features

Once again, director Roger Lay Jr. and editor Robert Meyer Burnett do a bang up job on the special features, just as they did with season one. The crown jewel on this set in terms of extras is the 25th Anniversary cast reunion called Reunification, which was filmed in Calgary earlier this year at a  Star Trek convention. This was the first time the entire first season cast was together again at a convention in many years, and CBS wasted no time in sending Burnett and Lay to record the group together for an intimate panel discussion on the show and its legacy. The cast of TNG clearly love each other and are a true family, and it really shows. Moderator Rob Burnett asks good questions here, and wisely lets most of the cast steer the course of the conversation during the reunion. Grade: A+

The other major new documentary feature, Making it So: Continuing The Next Generation, is divided in two parts. Part 1:  Strange New Worlds, goes into detail about the problems with season one as it was winding down. Everyone from series producer Rick Berman to most of the main cast members reflect on the highs and lows of that first year, including the death of Tasha Yar, and the near departure of Michael Dorn, who was tired of going into several hours in the make up chair mostly to stand around and do nothing. Ironically, the departure of Crosby allowed Worf to take over her role as chief of security, and the following season Worf’s part grew and he eventually became a fan favorite. Other topics covered are the failure of creating formidable new villains in the form of the Ferengi, who ended up coming across as a joke, which would lead to the creation of the far more successful adversaries the Borg in year two.

In Part 2: New Life and New Civilizations, they go into great detail about the troubles going into getting the second season off the ground. Patrick Stewart is very candid about the fact that Gates McFadden was fired, and how upset this made him, as well as the rest of the cast. Wil Wheaton, who played Dr. Crusher’s son Wesley, was almost certain he would be next to go. Everyone was made to feel expendable.  Also talked about was how due to the writer’s strike still going on as production began on the second season, old scripts for the aborted 1970’s series Star Trek: Phase II had to be used, but with the old characters changed out for their TNG counterparts. The second season premiere episode- The Child –was an old script from 1977, recycled eleven years later. Only some costume tests and some random test footage was ever filmed for Phase II before the series was scrapped and replaced with Star Trek: The Motion Picture, but what footage there is can be found in this documentary. For this fan though, the biggest delight was the inclusion of Diana Muldaur in the cast interviews, as she has been (more often than not) the red-headed step child of TNG, almost never referred to in any series retrospectives, almost as if she wasn’t part of the series’ legacy. This documentary corrects that oversight. Also included in this nearly 90-minute two part documentary is a treasure trove of archival footage, and even a small appearance from Family Guy creator (and hardcore Trek geek) Seth McFarlane. All in all, this documentary really covers all the bases for any true Trek geek. Grade: A.

Also included in this set are all the old features in standard definition from the old DVD sets, as well as a pretty damn funny gag reel (in HD too) and other bits and pieces, like  Levar Burton’s PBS series Reading Rainbow’s trip to the set of TNG in a vintage episode. There’s also a brief feature on the new high tech upgrade to the old effects called Energized: Season 2 Tech Update, as well as other odds and ends, all providing hours of entertainment for any hardcore Trekker.

Overall Grade: A.  Season two might not be the show’s highest point (in my opinion, that would be the next season) but If you love Star Trek: The Next Generation at all, then this set belongs on your shelf.  In this fan’s opinion, season three can’t get here soon enough.

Geekscape Reviews The Red vs. Blue X 14 Disc Box-Set!

by jake108

It was in April 2003 when we first got a dose of Rooster Teeth’s Red vs. Blue. It’s hard to believe it’s been so long and it’s been an amazing run so far. Red vs. Blue X helps commemorate the awesomeness that is Red vs. Blue in this 14-disc set that packs over 18 hours of footage and remastered 5.1 surround sound. Just take a look at it for yourself!

I’ll reserve any comments I have about the actual episodes and story of the Red vs. Blue saga, mainly because we all know how awesome it is already, and instead will focus on the presentation and packaging of the set. Firstly, the packaging:

The box folds out twice revealing the majority of the discs. The others are located on the other side of the second fold. Each disc is securely in place and owners won’t have to worry about any disc slipping out and developing scratches over time.

If you haven’t seen a Red vs Blue Menu yet, know that they are just as humorous as the show itself.  The 14-Disc DVD Pack is amazing, and Blu-Ray makes it that much better. Special features include a collectible booklet, miniseries, interviews, and behind-the-scenes footage that totals an additional eight hours to runtime. Rooster Teeth couldn’t have picked a better time to release this box set. I can see it now: Thanksgiving hangover accompanied by a flashback to start of the Blood Gulch Chronicles. Bliss.

If you’re thinking about buying this set and are a fan of Red vs. Blue and Halo, you should make the purchase. Even if you were once a fan and fell off the wagon, use this opportunity to catch up, because honestly, there’s no better way to watch these episodes than on your HDTV. And if you don’t have an HDTV, the Holiday Season is upon us and it’s 2012.

Red vs. Blue X – DVD

Red vs Blue X – Blu-Ray

‘Bill & Ted’ Hit Blu-Ray! Check Out This ‘Excellent’ Infographic!

by Derek Kraneveldt

After 23 long years, history’s most excellent duo is finally making the move into HD. Just two days ago Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure saw its first release on Earth’s most current optical media, Blu-Ray.

Before watching the new, higher resolution Bill & Ted, maybe you need your memory jogged. The pair meet a TON of historical figures on their journey through time and space, and it can be hard to keep track of them all! We’ve got you covered! Just check out this excellent infographic, which puts everything in one place and lets you who who was BOGUS, and who was EXCELLENT!

Again, Bill S. Preston Esq and Ted “Theodore” Logan are available on Blu-Ray now!

Click for a HUGE version!

 

Thursday Only! Watch A Beautifully Restored 4K Restoration Of ‘Lawrence of Arabia’

by Derek Kraneveldt

Lawrence of Arabia I hear, is quite the film. It’s a title that I have not yet had the pleasure to see, despite it being on my list of ‘Stuff I Have To See’ for some time now. This is some pretty cool news, and if I was anywhere near a theatre having a showing, I would be there for sure.

The Blu-Ray release of the film is set to release in November. For this, Sony Pictures Entertainment has taken the original negatives, and meticulously restored them to a beautiful, digital 4K transfer. This is a huge upgrade from any edition that has been seen so far!

But it’s not just on Blu-Ray that you can experience this! For one day only, this Thursday October 4th, Lawrence of Arabia returns to theatres. Tickets and participating locations can be found at www.FathomEvents.com. Over 630 theatres! Not a single one in Canada though, so I suppose I’ll be sitting out on this one!

You should pick up tickets quickly though, the showing is just a couple days away, and tickets are sure to be going fast!

Check out the trailer for the transfer below, and let us know if you’re going!

Geekscape Contests: Enter For A Chance To Win ‘The Princess Bride’ On Blu-Ray!

by GeekscapeStaff

Inconceivable! It’s been 25 years since Princess Buttercup and Wesley found true love in one of the only fairy tales a guy isn’t ashamed to admit he enjoys. The 25th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray of The Princess Bride is out next Tuesday, Oct. 2, from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment and in celebration Geekscape is holding a picture caption contest to give one lucky fan a copy of their own . It’s free to enter and easy to do!

Here are the rules: Come up with the BEST caption for the picture below. Then find our contest post on our Facebook page and leave your caption in the comments section (please keep the captions clean and profanity free) and whichever caption has the most “likes” by Monday (10/1) at 11:59PST is the winner. Pretty easy right? Now get to work captioning and sharing the image with your friends and win yourselves a Blu-ray copy of Princess Bride!
Again, the contest is only open to residents of the United States (because we support freedom and democracy but mostly due to postage being waaaaay cheaper)!

“Jaws” Blu-ray Review

by Eric Diaz

This past week saw the long awaited Blu-ray debut of Steven Spielberg’s classic film Jaws. In reviewing this new Blu-ray, I’m not going to review the actual movie itself because really, if you’re reading a site called Geekscape and you’ve never seen Jaws, well….I’m not even sure what to say to that, except you should probably get on that and rent it already. Or better yet, just buy the new Blu-ray sight unseen. Unless you have really awful taste in film, you won’t regret it. Because Jaws isn’t just one one of the greatest genre films of all time, it is one of the greatest films of all time, period. And in many ways helped create the modern movie landscape we all live in today.

How Jaws Changed Everything

To say Jaws changed the movie marketplace is not doing the film justice. Star Wars gets a lot of credit for being the first Summer Blockbuster, but the truth is Jaws did it two years before Star Wars hit cinemas, in the Summer of 1975. Popular opinion says that the 1970’s was the age of the more serious, director driven adult movies, especially in comparison to today. When people say “the films of the 70’s” they think of films like Taxi Driver, Apocalypse, Now and The Deer Hunter. And to a large extent that is true, the 70’s was the last great age of serious films coming out of the Hollywood system. But it was also the birth of the modern Hollywood blockbuster era.

The blueprint for how modern Hollywood movies are contstructed, filmed and eventually marketed began in the 1970’s. While more serious adult fare was indeed becoming the norm in Hollywood, also true was the rise of once disreputable source material given the A list treatment by the movie studios. Two mega blockbusters that predated Jaws by just a couple of years were The Godfather and The Exorcist, one a gangster movie and the other a supernatural horror film. In the previous decades in Hollywood, neither of those subject matters was considered “serious” enough to be given the A List treatment that movies like The Ten Commandments or The Sound of Music got, and were always relegated to B pictures at the local drive in. Both movies proved that the American masses loved their pulp fiction, and they also love their pulp fiction done with a high degree of integrity. The one-two punch of both of those moves layed the groundwork for Jaws being the gigantic hit it became, not just here but all over the world.

While there were mega hit movies before, what Jaws was, though, was the first true Summer blockbuster, and the first movie to take true advantage of a wide release, instead of the slow rollout over the course of several months from city to city, as was always done before. Until Jaws, a typical Hollywood movie would debut in say, New York, then months later in Chicago, or LA, and a movie could play differently in one city in comparison to the next. If a movie performed badly in too many cities, it just might not ever even make it to release where you live. The idea of releasing a movie nationwide, with a major marketing blitz of television ads and merchandising behind it, was started by Jaws.

The Digital Transfer And Restoration

Instead of reviewing the actual movie here, because I think it is pretty safe to assume you’ve seen it or at the very least know it is a classic,  I’m just going to review the new   Blu- ray transfer of the film instead. In short, the transfer is stunning. There were moments it was hard to believe I was watching a movie from 1975 (although some of the more hideous clothes and hairstyles served to remind me, especially Mayor Vaughn’s horrid jackets) The team assigned to the restoration of Jaws should be given some kind of an award, because their work on this movie is breathtaking. As shown in one of the special features included on the disc, Jaws was painstakingly restored frame by frame, with every piece of dirt and every scratch removed from the original camera negative. But although dirt and scratches were removed, there wasn’t any annoying digital grain removal, the kind that gives older movies that weird plasticy look at times. The result is a movie that looks like it was shot yesterday, but isn’t overly glossy or too polished looking. The grit is still there, but not in your face.

I’m not an audiophile, so it is hard for me to really review the sound on this Blu ray (my speakers are merely my television speakers) I will say that the new Blu ray has the original mono track as well as a new DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1, for those of you for whom that means something. For me thought, the real treasure on this Blu-ray, aside from the movie itself of course, is the wealth of special features, especially the two feature length documentaries included here.

Young Steven Spielberg and “Bruce” the mechanical shark that almost never worked. Bruce was named after Spielberg’s lawyer. Oh Steven, you crack up you.

The Making of Jaws (1995)

Steven Spielberg is infamous for not providing audio commentary on any of his films. I’m not sure why, because he has no problem talking about his movies in great detail in other special features in the form of rather lengthy interviews. A rather lengthy interview with Spielberg is included on this disc in The Making of Jaws, Laurent Bouzereau’s 2 hour long documentary from the 1995 Laserdisc box set. In this documentary, not only does Spielberg go into great detail about the making of the film, but there are also lots of other talking head interviews with the likes of original novelist Peter Benchley, Roy Schieder, Richard Dreyfuss, composer John Williams, and producers Richard Zanuck and David Brown, along with most of the main principal players behind the making of the movie.

The whole thing is shot in a very boring manner, 80’s PBS style, and the production value scream “on the cheap,” but this was a time when any movie was lucky to get a special feature in any capacity. (the 90’s were a dark time for film geeks. Laserdiscs cost a fortune, and barely had any special features. You brats today don’t know how lucky you are) But if you can get past the low grade production standards, this two hour doc is a wealth of information on the making of Jaws, and worth watching all two hours of. I’m so glad Universal included it here, despite how dated it all looks. Looks aren’t everything after all.

The Shark Is Still Working (2009)

In many ways though, the crown jewel of the special features is the documentary The Shark Is Still Working. The documentary was made by “Jaws” fans  James Gelet, Jake Gove, Erik Hollander, and James-Michael Roddy over a seven-year period, using  Laurent Bouzereau’s1995 documentary, The Making of Jaws as merely a starting off point. The movie gets its name from the often told anecdotes of Richard Dreyfuss, who in interviews often shared stories about the troubled production of Jaws and the quote “The shark is NOT working” which he said he heard over and over again from frustrated members of the crew. Once the mechanical shark was finally up and running, Dreyfuss would regularly hear the quote “The shark is still working” with equal regularity. Unlike The Making of Jaws, this documentary delves into every aspect of the Jaws phenomenon, from the brutal shoot in the Summer of 1974 off of Martha’s Vineyard with an overwhelmed twenty six year old Steven Spielberg, to the merchandising avalanche that followed, to things like Jawsfest today, where fans gather and share their adoration of all things related to the film.

This documentary leaves no Jaws stone unturned, interviewing people like the artist who created the original iconic movie poster, the various real life locals who played small parts in the movie, and even the man who provided the narration in the oh so very effective trailer to the film, Percy Rodriguez, whose trailer tagline was just as iconic for an entire generation as the movie itself (“It is as if God made the devil, and gave him…JAWS!” Brilliant!) This documentary was completed in 2007 or so, and shown at many festivals to rave reviews, but legal red tape has held up the films release until now. It seems perfect and fitting that the movie is finally released on the same Blu ray as Jaws itself.

Aside from The Shark Is Still Working, the Blu ray has tons of other special features, like On The Set, a BBC news report made from the actual Martha’s Vineyard shooting location back in 1974, deleted scenes and outtakes, storyboards, trailers. The only thing really missing from the movie is a commentary track, but Spielberg never does them for any movie, so it isn’t a big shock really.

If you’re a fan of this movie, this is a must own Blu-ray. I don’t care if you have the DVD already, time to Ebay that shit. This is how Steven Spielberg’s classic needs to be viewed from here on out. So do yourself a favor and buy Jaws on Blu-ray.

Scooby Doo Tag-Teaming With WWE For An All-New Animated Movie!

by Shawn Madden

Scooby-Doo and the gang are returning in an all-new movie animated movie that will take place in the world of professional wrestling. Yes, you can expect all your favorite WWE wrestlers to make cartoonish cameos. No, I don’t know which one will secretly by Mr. Johnson in a mask.

WWE Studio’s press release:

Warner Bros. and WWE Studios (NYSE:WWE) announced they will co-produce a Scooby-Doo animated feature that will find Scooby and the gang solving a mystery at WrestleMania®.The announcement was made today by Jeff Brown, Executive Vice President and General Manager, TV, Family & Animation, Warner Home Video and Michael Luisi, President, WWE Studios.

WWE Superstars and Divas including Triple H®, John Cena®, Kane, The Miz®, Brodus Clay™, Santino Marella®, Sin Cara™ and AJ™ will appear in animated form and lend their voices to the project. WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon® will also lend his voice and appear in animated form.

The Warner Bros. Animation movie will be made available on Blu-ray, DVD, VOD, and digital download.

Source: WWE/Indiewire

Geekscape Contests: Enter For A Chance To Win A Copy of ‘Spaceballs’ On Blu-ray!

by GeekscapeStaff

After 25 years, the Schwartz is still with you! The 25th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray of Spaceballs is out this Tuesday from Fox Home Video and in celebration Geekscape is holding a picture caption contest to give one lucky fan a copy of their own . It’s free to enter and easy to do!

Here are the rules: Come up with the BEST caption for the picture below from Episode 1. Reach down deep and find your inner Mel Brooks. Then find our contest post on our Facebook page and leave your caption in the comments section (please keep the captions clean and profanity free) and whichever caption has the most “likes” by Wednesday at 11:59PST is the winner. Pretty easy right? Now get to work captioning and sharing the image with your friends so you can gang the system and win yourselves a Blu-ray copy of Spaceballs!
Again, the contest is only open to residents of the United States (because we support freedom and democracy)!

May the Schwartz be with you!

Trailer For ‘Marvel Cinematic Universe – Phase One: Avengers Assembled’ Box Set

by Shawn Madden

Have you been wondering just what comes in the ten-disc Marvel Cinematic Universe – Phase One: Avengers Assembled Box Set? Well we now have a trailer for you detailing just what you will be getting. Minus the access denied folder with contents that not even I know. Trust me…I am dying to know what’s in it. Our own Scott Alminiana has pre-ordered this set after we saw it on the floor of this years San Diego Comic-Con. Will you assemble and purchase this ultimate collection?

SDCC Panel Roundup: Star Trek: The Next Generation, DC All Access, & Batman’s Biggest Secret

by Eric Diaz

Some people love coming to the San Diego Comic Con for the cosplay, the shopping, and just the sideshow carnival aspect of it all. While I love all of those things too, I’m really a panel whore here. I love getting to sit and hear behind the scenes stuff on comics and movies and television shows more than anything else at the con. So here’s my run down on all the best panels, or at least the best panels I actually made it into, starting with Thursday, Day One.

Before and After: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Journey into High Definition

The first panel I hit on Day One was Before and After: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Journey into High Definition. I am a pretty big Trek geek here, but I am the biggest Trek geek mostly for Star Trek: The Next Generation, or just TNG from now on for brevity’s sake. TNG premiered right when I turned thirteen years old, and went off the air right when I was about to turn twenty, so my entire formative teenage years were spent with Captain Picard and the crew of the Enterprise-D. While the original series got a brilliant high definition upgrade a few years back, the common thinking was that TNG would never receive a similar upgrade. The reason being for this is that like most shows from the 80’s and 90’s, TNG was shot on 35mm film, but was edited on low grade video tape. That is why when you watch TNG on DVD or Netflix, it kind of looks like ass today. It just doesn’t hold up at all to modern standards.

Well, that is all about to change. CBS Home Video has done an unprecedented (and very costly and expensive) thing here, and is re-editing all seven seasons from the original camera negatives, and recompositing the effects using all the original elements they can find. CGI is being used only very sparingly, and only when an original element is lost. As shown at this before and after presentation, the results are jaw dropping. Watching some of the before and after videos shown at the panel really made you realize the time and care that the production design team put in when creating the original sets and costumes back in the day, as they bothered to put in small details that no one could ever have noticed when this was all in crappy standard definition.

Spearheading this whole restoration are Mike and Denise Okuda, who have been involved with the Star Trek franchise since TNG premiered twenty five years ago (all the digital displays on TNG, Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise are referred to as “Okudagrams”) As they were there from the beginning, no one is better suited for this task that the Okudas, and from what they showed, what they’ve done is nothing short of amazing. The restoration project’s film transfer technician, Wade Felker, went through endless cans of film negative to make sure that what was re-assembled matched what was aired over two decades ago. The episodes are all finished at a resolution of 1080i now. And no, the framing for this project is still old school 4×3, not 16×9. So get used to those black bars on the sides kids, because that is how the show was shot, and the intent here is to preserve that look.

Aside from the upgrade, the series is getting a host of all new special features, including a cast reunion moderated by Free Enterprise director Robert Meyer Burnett (who moderated the panel as well) He’s gone out of his way to get new interviews with all the key players, and judging from what was shown, this was more candid and fun than most of the fluffy EPK stuff found on the old DVD sets from around a decade or so back. Burnett even got an interview with the man who turned down the role of Jean Luc Picard. Possibly the most fun is the discovery of the original camera tests for the wardrobe etc, like the one for Geordi LaForge below. Someone let their Soul Glo for sure.

Original costume test for the character of Geordi La Forge. Thank God they went another route and got rid of the “Soul Glo” hair and Prince mustache.

Star Trek: The Next Generation arrives on Blu Ray on July 24th, and this panel served to whet my appetite even more. Job well done.

DC Entertainment-All Access: DC NOW!

The next panel was DC Entertainment-All Access: DC NOW! While the panel hosted several creators from DC’s New 52 initiative, the clear stars of the show were DC CCO Geoff Johns and Batman and Swamp Thing writer Scott Snyder. Both of them talked very passionately about their forthcoming books, and they were clearly the fan favorites judging from the applause they received. Geoff Johns has three of the best selling DC books right now (Justice League, Green Lantern and Aquaman, believe it nor not) and he spoke briefly about what’s coming up for each title. With Justice League, Johns says says there are a lot of surprises coming up in issue #12, which features Aquaman calling the rest of the lineup out and telling them they have to behave a lot more like a team, and less like a group of loosely affiliated individuals. In year two the JL will be getting several new members, including Shazam, who until now has been featured only in back up stories in the main JL title. Johns is also re-introducing classic Wonder Woman villain the Cheetah in issue #13, which will lead into next summer’s Trinity War event.

DC’s untouchable two, Geoff Johns and Scott Snyder.

The topic then shifted to Green Lantern. Johns says that Earth’s as yet unnamed new Green Lantern carries a gun because he’s skeptical about the concept of rings running only on energy, and that the new “Third Army” is created by the Guardians of the Universe to eradicate free will in the cosmos. In the mind of Geoff Johns, the robotic Manhunters were the Gaurdians’s first attempt at a universal peace keeping force, but their lack of emotion was their downfall. So then they made the Green Lantern Corps, only to eventually find that emotion was as much a liability as a strength. So now they are making a third army, one to eradicate all free will, which they now see as the source of all suffering. In other words, the Gaurdians are now officially villains. Aquaman #0 was briefly talked about as well, and it will flashback to Arthur Curry’s first meeting with his Atlantean people.

Batman writer Scott Snyder was up next, and talked in depth about his upcoming arc Death of the Family, which he calls his definitive Joker story, his version of Arkham Asylum or Killing Joke. Snyder’s run on Batman has been the character’s most well received storyline in years, especially his just wrapped Court of Owls saga. As for the Joke, he was last seen briefly in last year’s Detective Comics #1, getting his face willingly sliced off, and then pretty much vanished. Now he’s coming back with a vengeance. As Snyder put it “Joker sees Batman as the King (of Gotham) and he has all these Knights/Squires. But Joker sees himself as the court jester to the King, it is his job to amuse him and inspire him. And he’s been ignored for a year and he’s not happy.”

This time, the Joker is coming for the whole Bat family, and not just for Bruce Wayne. Says Snyder “He came after Batgirl in The Killing Joke, but he was really going after Commissioner Gordon. So when Batgirl realizes that here, too, it’s almost like the Joker is staring at her saying -I’m coming after you this time. I’ll kill everyone and burn down everything in your life to do what I did to your father, but to you. So in that way, he’s saying that to every member of the Bat-family. To Nightwing and everyone, saying – You’ve never faced me before. I’ve never actually targeted you. I’ve only used you as pawns to get at Batman. So welcome to your worst nightmare.” Death of the Family will run through Batman #13-17, and have sort of crossovers (similar to the recent Night of the Owls) in Nightwing, Batgirl, Batman and Robin, Teen Titans (for Tim Drake) Suicide Squad (for Harley Quinn) and the Jason Todd starring Red Hood and the Outlaws.

It wasn’t all Gotham talk from Snyder at this panel though, as Snyder thanks the fans for reading his Swamp Thing and Jeff Lemire’s Animal Man, which he called a labor of love for both writers. Both Swamp Thing and Animal Man have been the two biggest surprise hits of the new 52, and having been receiving great reviews all across the board. Snyder even briefly talked about his work on Vertigo’s American Vampire series. He talked about American Vampire: Lord of Nightmares, saying that it explores the history of vampire races in the American Vampire world

After the one two punch of two of DC’s biggest names came poor Rob Liefield, who not only is (arguably) the most hated creator in modern  comics, but had the tough act to follow both Johns and Snyder on a panel, who are the comic book equivalent of rock stars. He talked a bit about his three (yes three) DC books, Hawkman, Deathstroke and Grifter. I don’t remember any of it, because it all sounded so yawn inducing. Some guy sitting next to me at the panel said “wouldn’t it be funny if someone just ran up and punched him right now?” To which I agreed…yes, it would be funny. I’ve often wondered just what Liefield has on certain editors at DC and Marvel. Did he do a lot of blow and God knows what else with them in the 90’s, and he’s got it all recorded? How does this man keep getting books? We may never know.

Only slightly less hated in the comics world is writer Scott Lobdell, who DC has given the task of taking over Superman. Lobdell’s writing style is often like the worst part of the 90’s, so I don’t know why DC would entrust their flagship character to him. Although I will admit, unlike Liefield, Lobdell has his moments. He’s not all bad. Unlike Batman, Superman has not found much success in the new 52 (with the exception of Grant Morrisson’s Action Comics) Lobdell will take over the book with issue #13, where he said that readers will see “a lot of Superman and a lot of Clark at the same time. What we’re really going to examine is what it means to be the most powerful person on the whole planet, and yet you can’t actually ever behave in a way that you are that person. You’re hiding out among humanity.” He seemed enthusiastic, so I’m hoping for the best here, because Superman deserves the best.

Also on the panel were Jimmy Palmiotti and wife Amanda Conner, each talking about their respective DC books. Amanda’s art from Before Watchmen: Silk Spectre was shown, and so was art from Palmiotti’s All Star Western. Usually Western books die on the vine, but the connections to 19th century Gotham City have made this one something of an unofficial Batman book and a minor success. And finally. Flash writer Brian Buccellato says Flash #0 will explore who Barry Allen’s origin in the new 52, and how it differs from what we knew before. And according to Buccellato, “there is no Wally in this run at all, I’m sorry.” The crowd booed. Way to end on a down note there DC!

Batman’s Biggest Secret: The Bill Finger Story

Sometimes the best panels at SDCC aren’t the ones that get all the attention, they’re the ones that are in some smaller room at the ass end of the convention center, and you don’t ever have to wait in line to get in. Such was the case with the panel for Batman’s Biggest Secret: The Bill Finger Story. Now I imagine most of you reading this are well aware that Batman was created by artist Bob Kane, because it says so on every comic about Batman, as well as every television series and movie for seventy years. But it also has been known now for many years that Batman also had a co-creator, a man named Bill Finger. Based on five years of research for his new book Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman, writer Marc Tyler Nobleman layed it all out for those attending this panel. He started by showing two pictures of Bill Finger, and said they were the only two pictures ever published of the man before his death in 1974. They were, in fact, the only two pics of the man I had ever seen, and I’m pretty well schooled in my comic book history.

The cover for Bill The Boy Wonder, which is illustrated by Batman Adventures artist Ty Templeton. Next to it is one of the very few pics of Bill Finger to ever make it in print before his death.

Bob Kane came up with the name Bat-Man to be sure, and the idea that he had no powers also came from him. But it was struggling writer Bill Finger who came up with the most of the elements that make Batman BATMAN. According to an old interview with Finger “Bob Kane had an idea for a character called ‘Batman’, and he’d like me to see the drawings. I went over to Kane’s, and he had drawn a character who looked very much like Superman with kind of … reddish tights, I believe, with boots … no gloves, no gauntlets … with a small domino mask, swinging on a rope. He had two stiff wings that were sticking out, looking like bat wings. And under it was a big sign … BATMAN.”

But it was Finger who gave Kane the idea of turning the stiff wings into a scalloped cape instead, who suggest the gray/black instead of red, and who changed the domino mask into a cowl. He even named the character Bruce Wayne, and gave him his brutal origin, named Gotham City, created (or at the very least co-created) the Batcave and Batmobile, not to mention characters like the Joker (co-created with Jerry Robinson) Catwoman, The Penguin, The Riddler, and Two-Face. Even Kane admitted in his own autobiography “Batman and Me” that it was Bill Finger who turned Batman into more than just a vigilante, but also a detective in the Sherlock Holmes mold. And yet, mostly due to Kane’s father being a lawyer, Kane receieved sole credit as Batman’s creator, and Finger got nothing.

One of the only photos of Bill Finger known to circulate for decades, as well as a picture of what Bob Kane’s Bat-Man looked without input from Finger.

As Nobleman pointed out in this panel, DC Comics was not the main villain in this story, nor was it entirely Bob Kane either. In many ways, Bill Finger himself was the villain in his own story, as he never fought DC for credit as co-creator of Batman in his lifetime. No one knows why, although it is simply possible he didn’t want to lose his job as a writer. The first time any one publicly brought up the notion that someone other than Kane helped create Batman was in a fan newsletter in the 1960’s during the tv show’s heyday. Kane responded with “early sketches” of a Batman character from 1934, five years before Batman’s debut, to prove his point. Unfortunately, the sketches had Batman with a cape and cowl, which are things that Finger was publicly said to have contributed to the character and Kane even admitted to. Those pictures provided by Kane that were dated in very large letters as 1934 were in fact forgeries. This would not be the only time Bob Kane would do something like this; from the 40’s through the 60’s, Bob Kane has ghost artists on his Batman stories, and in fact when he started to sell paintings of Batman and related characters as “fine art,” even those were made by other artists. So Kane was hardly ever above lying through his teeth to keep his only claim to fame in life all his.

Bob Kane’s grave has no less than nine words to describe how awesome he was, and how he and Bruce Wayne were really one. Feel free to roll your eyes.

Finger died in anonymity of a heart attack in 1974 at the age of 59, found days later on his couch by a friend. His ashes were spread on a beach by his only son, in the shape of the Bat symbol (you could hear the audience in that room choke up at that point) When his son, who was gay, died of AIDS in 1990, it was thought that he was the end of the family line…but he was’t. Nobleman found that Finger’s son had a daughter, one he discovered on (of all places) MySpace. He knew he had the right person when he saw she had a dog named Bruce Wayne. He has convinced the daughter to fight not for money…but for her grandfather’s rightful place as the credited co-creator of Batman. And so the panel ended on that hopeful note that mabye one day soon the man will finally get his due after all.

And thus ends SDCC Day One…come back tomorrow for Day Two, where I’ll talk the Green Arrow pilot, Joss Whedon and a little bit of Breaking Bad.

‘Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventures’ Comic-Con Blu-Ray Trailer Shows You What To Expect

by Shawn Madden

Are you ready to re-visit a re-mastered Temple Of Doom? Well on September 18th you’re going to be able to. The trailer has Comic-Con slapped on the title so I’m pretty sure we will be seeing this one playing at booth #2913 which will feature a live snake pit. Will I be going there? No. No way at all.

Amazon currently has this listed at $74.96

The Details On Marvel Studios Short Film ‘Item 47’

by Shawn Madden

After ‘The Avengers’ hit theaters it was revealed that Marvel had a shot a short film in secret. The short film that will be featured on the Blu-Ray as well as receiving a screening during Comic-Con next week is titled ‘Item 47’. Now thanks to Entertainment Weekly we have details on the cast and just what the 12 minute ‘Item 47’ is about and how it is expanding the Marvel universe.

The film is the latest in the company’s series of shorts dubbed “One-Shots,” a comic book term for stories that wrap up in one issue. Lizzy Caplan (Party Down, pictured) and Jesse Bradford (Flags of Our Fathers) star as a down-on-their-luck couple who find one of the discarded alien guns from the finale to The Avengers — and proceed to make some incredibly bad decisions.

Item 47 refers to the gun itself, which S.H.I.E.L.D. would like very much to retrieve from the hapless young troublemakers. “The world is topsy-turvy now. There’s been an alien invasion, and things are crazy,” explains Marvel Studios co-president Louis D’Esposito, who directed the film himself. “So when this gun ­literally fell into their lap, this is a sign: We’re going to rob a few banks, we’re going to buy a boat, we’re going to the Caribbean, and all our problems will be solved.”

Two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents (Maximiliano Hernández, returning from Thor and The Avengers, and Lost’s Man in Black Titus Welliver, making his Marvel debut) are given the job of cleaning up the mess and stopping this modern Bonnie and Clyde (not coincidentally named Benny and Claire.)

The goal was to show some non-superpowered people reacting to the aftermath of The Avengers. “Anything that expands the world and shows you the more human elements of it, that just makes the world more colorful and fun for the average viewer,” says Eric Pearson, who wrote the screenplay for Item 47, as well as the previous two One-Shots: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor’s Hammer and The Consultant.

 


‘Cabin In The Woods’ Blu-Ray Details Released

by Shawn Madden

If you haven’t seen ‘Cabin In The Woods’…what the fuck have you been doing with your life? On September 18th (my birthday…just sayin’ Geekscapists) you’ll have the chance to own one my favorite movies that came out this year. Check out our review from SXSW here, and you can watch Jonathan talk with cast & crew here.

If you think you know the story, think again. Experience the film that critics and audiences are raving about when The Cabin In The Woods arrives on Blu-ray Disc (plus Digital Copy), DVD (plus Digital Copy) and On Demand and Pay-Per-View September 18 from Lionsgate. The Cabin In The Woods will also be available on EST September 4, two weeks prior to the Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand release. Co-written by fan favorites, Joss Whedon (The Avengers, TV’s “Buffy The Vampire Slayer”) and Drew Goddard (Cloverfield) and directed by Goddard, The Cabin In The Woods is a film that “horror fans will be gushing about for years” (FearNet).

The Cabin In The Woods begins as a conventional horror movie then transforms into a genre-bending, mind-blowing experience that cleverly mixes screams with pop-culture wit as the scared teens are revealed to be watched by a group of technicians that control their every move behind the scenes.

Starring Kristen Connolly (The Happening), Chris Hemsworth (The Avengers), Anna Hutchison (TV’s Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior), Fran Kranz (The Village), Jesse Williams (TV’s “Grey’s Anatomy”), Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) and Bradley Whitford (TV’s “The West Wing”), The Cabin In The Woods is not like any horror movie you have seen before. Both formats come complete with a must-have behind-the-scenes “making of” featurette along with numerous additional featurettes that focus on the make-up, effects, animatronics and more, audio commentary with Writer/Director Drew Goddard and Writer/Producer Joss Whedon and the Wonder-Con Q&A, while the Blu-ray Disc includes the exclusive”It’s Not What You Think: The Cabin in the Woods” Bonus View Mode. The Wonder-Con Q&A will also be available on Digital Download. The Cabin In The Woods Blu-ray Disc (plus Digital Copy) and DVD (plus Digital Copy) will be available for the suggested retail price of $39.99 and $29.95, respectively.

Audio commentary with writer-director Drew Goddard, writer-producer Joss Whedon
We Are Not Who We Are: Making The Cabin in the Woods documentary
The Secret Secret Stash featurette
Marty’s Stash
Hi, My name is Joss and I’ll be your guide
Wonder-Con Q&A with Joss and Drew
An Army of Nightmares: Make-Up & Animatronic Effects featurette
Primal Terror: Visual Effects featurette
It’s Not What You Think: The Cabin in the Woods Bonus View Mode (Blu-ray Exclusive)

Source: Lionsgate

‘The Raid: Redemption’ Gets A DVD Release Date

by Shawn Madden

Mark your calenders. On August 14, 2012 ‘The Raid: Redemption’ comes to DVD and Blu-ray. Now whether you never heard of this film (where have you been…in a cave?), want to relive the action over and over again or just missed its limited theatrical run… this is a must-have DVD in any collection. One of the greatest action films ever made.

“Deep in the heart of Jakarta’s slums lies an impenetrable safe house for the world’s most dangerous killers and gangsters. Until now, the run-down apartment block has been considered untouchable to even the bravest of police. Cloaked under the cover of pre-dawn darkness and silence, an elite swat team is tasked with raiding the safe house in order to take down the notorious drug lord that runs it. But when a chance encounter with a spotter blows their cover and news of their assault reaches the drug lord, the building’s lights are cut and all the exits blocked. Stranded on the sixth floor with no way out, the unit must fight their way through the city’s worst to survive their mission. Starring Indonesian martial arts sensation Iko Uwais.”

Source: DVD Releases

Star Trek TNG Boldly Goes to the Big Screen

by Matt Blackwood

In celebration of the July 24th release of Star Trek: The Next Generation on Blu-Ray, the show is going where no one episode has gone before.

Star Trek: The Next Generation 25th Anniversary Event will be in theaters nationwide for one night only on Monday, July 23. The showing will include two fan-favorite episodes, “Where No One Has Gone Before” and “Datalore”, as well as a sneak peek at the Blu-Ray’s behind-the-scenes special features.

The TNG episode "Datalore" was a head of its time.

Trekkers can get their hands on tickets from the Fathom Events website starting on Friday, June 8th. You can thank CBS Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Media Distribution, who partnered with NCM Fathom Events to make it so.

Marvel Studios ‘Phase One’ Of Movies Being Released As 10-Disc Collector Set

by Shawn Madden

Amazon.com has listed a new item. It was five years of build up that led to one of the greatest (well… if not the best) comic book movies of all time… ‘The Avengers’. And now you can get them all in one collectors set.

(10-Disc Limited Edition Six-Movie Collector’s Set) [Blu-ray]
• Marvel’s The Avengers (Blu-ray 3D and Blu-ray)
• Captain America: The First Avenger (Blu-ray 3D and Blu-ray)
• Thor (Blu-ray 3D and Blu-ray)
• Iron Man 2 (Blu-ray)
• The Incredible Hulk (Blu-ray)
• Iron Man (Blu-ray)
• Bonus Disc – “The Phase One Archives” (Blu-ray)
• Collectible packaging with exclusive memorabilia from the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Release date is still TBA. Check back on Amazon for more details.

“E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” Coming To Blu-ray This Fall!

by Scott Alminiana

Buy yourself a pack of Reese’s Pieces and get ready to relive your childhood. Steven Spielberg’s 1982 classic, “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial,” is coming to Blu-ray for the first time this fall. The Blu-ray will be digitally remastered from the original 35MM film elements, with 7.1 surround sound, and will contain “hours of bonus features”. It looks as if fans will get the original theatrical version of the film and not the 2002 digital release, if not both. Here’s the trailer:

In Case You Didn’t Know… “Gremlins” and “Gremlins 2” Are Finally Out On Blu-ray Today!

by Jonathan

The fine folks at Warner Bros. want you to know that Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch are finally out on Blu-ray today. In fact, the Gremlins disc is a 25th Anniversary Edition and both pretty loaded with extras.

I’ve been waiting for these to be released for a while now. The first Gremlins movie holds a really special place in my heart. I remember my father taking my brother Paul and I to see it while my older brother Daniel went to see The Karate Kid with my mom. It drove me nuts. I wanted a Gizmo of my own. At the same time, I was haunted by the horrible things that would happen if I ever messed up and I was pretty scarred by the final image of Stripe’s skeleton falling apart in the last scene in the garden center. At the same time, we laughed like crazy when the old woman in the motorized lift went sailing out the window. Really, what person who grew up in the 80s and 90s doesn’t know the rules for raising a Mogwai?

The movie really has so many scenes that have become classic. I almost feel sorry for kids today because there’s really no modern equivalent. Can you think of a kids movie released in the last 20 years that is just as dark, funny and well done as the original Gremlins (and remember that Jurassic Park is now over 20 years old!)? Joe Dante really doesn’t get enough credit for what he and Stephen Spielberg accomplished with this film (and my wife considers it a holiday staple).

Now, Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a mixed bag, but one that I’ve come to love almost as much over the years. It really took a lot of risks with some of the jokes (a sexualized hooker Gremlin anybody?) and is kind of a more interesting movie in some respects. The first time that I saw it was in Guadalajara with my cousins and besides being the first time I’d seen Christopher Lee on film, it led to one of the big mysteries of my childhood. It concerns the scene midway through the movie in which the fourth wall is broken and Hulk Hogan shows up to address the audience and get rid of the Gremlins that are interrupting the film. Now, thanks to Wikipedia, I know that The Hulkster is in the theatrical version of the film. But on home video, the scene was altered to have a voice acted John Wayne kick the Gremlins out of your VCR. I got in so many middle school arguments while insisting that Hulk Hogan was in a version of that scene… and I was right! I just couldn’t prove it until the advent of Youtube or this Blu-ray was finally released! It has the alternate home video sequence as one of the extras!

Okay. So I love these films. As much as I want to see the franchise continue, if it’s not done right, I’d rather live with what we’ve got. And these Blu-rays make that option so much more agreeable.

Agreeable…?

Here’s the box art for each, their synopsis (in case you’re living in a cave and know nothing about Gremlins) and the extras for each disc. And I look forward to having you over this holiday for a Gremlins 2 part marathon… but it has to be over by midnight.

Gremlins (it’s $7.99 from the WB store? Ridiculous!)

Gremlins is a wildly original roller-coaster ride of hilarious mischief. One minute your hair will stand on end, the next you’ll hold your sides with laughter at the havoc these supposedly gentle furballs create when the rules surrounding their care and feeding are inadvertently broken one fateful Christmas. Written by Chris Columbus and directed by Joe Dante, Gremlins unleashes special effects that dazzle and enchant and merriment that lingers in the memory. And isn’t that “what superior popular moviemaking is all about” (Richard Corliss, Time).

Features: Over 10 Minutes of Additional Scenes
Making-of Featurette
2 Commentaries:
Director Joe Dante, Phoebe Cates, Zach Galligan, Dick Miller  and Howie Mandel
Director Joe Dante, Producer Michael Finnell and Special Effects Artist Chris Walas
Photo/Storyboard Gallery
Theatrical Trailers

Gremlins 2


Billy Peltzer and Kate Beringer move to New York City and meet up with their Mogwai friend, Gizmo, when a series of accidents creates a new generation of diverse gremlins. Billy, Kate, and Gizmo must once again use all their experience to prevent another catastrophe.

Features: Audio Commentary: with director Joe Dante and producer Michael Finnell
Deleted Scenes: Over 20 minutes of never-before-seen footage
Documentary: Behind-the-scenes
Filmographies: Cast/Crew Film Highlights

“The Fades” Series 1 Blu-Ray Review

by Stephen Prescott

BBC America has been doing great recently bringing quality UK shows to the US. What they haven’t been great at though is bringing them to cable on demand in HD. I know this because I tried very hard to watch The Fades on on demand, but the standard quality video mixed with the dark lighting and color tones made it nearly impossible to enjoy. I could tell though that underneath there was a quality show so I of course jumped at the chance to get my hands on a copy of series 1 on blu-ray to review. I’m glad I did because it is a really good show.

The Fades is about Paul (Iain De Caestecker, Coronation Street) a geeky and awkward 17 year old who it turns out is an Angelic, a being with special powers that allow him to see ghosts trapped on earth known as Fades. Fades can not be seen, heard, or touched by regular people but one fade in particular has found a way to change that and in doing so is mounting a war against the humans.

The key to the show though is the intricately interwoven cast of supporting characters featuring Paul’s mother (Claire Rishbrook, Doctor Who), twin sister Anna (Lily Loveless, Skins), love interest Jay (Sophie Wu, Sucker Punch), Angelic mentor Neil (Johnny Harris, This is England ’86), history teacher Mark (Tom Ellis, Doctor Who), and best friend Mac (Daniel Kaluuya, Skins)


Mac is the really stand out character of the show and can be easily described as someone who would hang out in the forums of this very website. He speaks in movie and geek references and not only provides much needed comic relief, but gives, at least this viewer, a character on which to hang the hat of relate-ability. It makes sense then that the special features on the blu-ray would mainly focus on his character.

The blu-ray features the standard set of special features: Behind the Scenes, Outtakes and Deleted scenes, but it also features 2 sections that focus heavily on Mac. The first is the “Mac Explains” web videos.

These shorts feature Daniel Kaluuya in character explaining aspects of the show such as “What are the Fades?” and “What are Angelics?” I believe they originally aired on the BBC3 website and in the context of marketing the show while it was running on television they make a lot of sense. Have the favorite character explain the details directly to the audience. Except that I feel that they are executed kind of poorly. None of what makes the character funny or interesting comes through in these videos and we’re left with what is essentially an actor reading wikipedia pages. It’s great that they are included on the blu-ray for posterity’s sake, but for anyone who actually watches they show they don’t add anything as the concepts are explained pretty clearly in the narrative.

I did however enjoy the extra scenes included on the blu-ray. I don’t know exactly what constitutes an “extra scene” as opposed to a “deleted scene,” but these extra scenes highlight the friendship between Paul and Mac as they sit and have geeky conversations in their local café that could easily have come out of a Kevin Smith movie. I would say that if anything was missing from the series as a whole it would have to be more moments like these extra scenes. While the relationship between Mac and Paul is definitely fully realized within the context of the series the quieter moments of them simply geeking out and being teenaged boys would have still been very appreciated.

The Fades is a great show. The episodes run a little slow and long in places, but the mythology being created is a fairly rich and interesting one. There are some great surprises that happen throughout the course of the series as well that I would be remiss to spoil here. If you are a fan of the current crop of supernatural shows running on British television these days such as Being Human or Bedlam I highly suggesting picking up this set and giving it a whirl. I don’t think you will be disappointed.

The Fades, series 1 is out now on 2-disc DVD and Blu-Ray for an MSRP of $34.98 and $39.98 respectively.

 

Indiana Jones Finally Coming To High Definition This Fall

by Eric Diaz

The last holdout of the big genre franchises to come to high definition has finally been announced, as Paramount and Lucasfilm made it official today: The Complete Indiana Jones Collection will arrive on Blu Ray in Fall 2012. Yes, they said “complete”, meaning that you’ll have to buy a copy of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull as well. But who cares? Use it as a coaster or something. All that matters is Raiders of the Lost Ark in high def. Everything else is gravy.

According to the press release “The Complete Indiana Jones Blu-ray Collection will be excavated in the fall of 2012 and will include all four of Indy’s thrilling adventures, using the highest possible high definition picture and audio presentation – along with a “best of” collection of documentaries, interviews, featurettes and a few new surprises.” I imagine when they say “best of” they mean they’ll be porting over all the documentaries from the old DVD sets, and maybe like the Star Wars collection last Fall, they’ll include the original vintage “Making Of” docs as well. Sadly, extensive new special features are mostly a thing of the past in this day and age, but this being Indy, I imagine they’ll thrown in something new. I wish they’d include Jamie Benning’s wonderful filmumentary on the making of Raiders that was released this past year, but that’s a long shot.

Along with Indy, this year will also see the release of Spielberg’s Jaws, E.T., and the rest of the James Bond series on Blu Ray. If you still haven’t upgraded to high def, I’d say now would be the time.