Category Archives: DVDs

Oct 01 2013
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DVDs, Pop Culture

Brad Vs. The Zombies

It’s the end of the world, but Mr. Pitt’s on the job

WorldWarZ_BWorld War Z

Blu-ray $39.99, DVD $29.99 (Paramount Home Media)

It’s a global zombie apocalypse, but don’t worry: Brad Pitt’s on the job! The world’s hunkiest United Nations crisis-control specialist gets called into action for the assignment of his life when a sweeping pandemic begins turning entire countries into rampaging armies of the undead. Can he save his own family, let alone the whole world? Bonus features include documentaries on how the bestselling novel on which the film was based made the transition from page to screen; the scientific realities of “zombie” behavior in nature; and several behind-the-scenes looks at the international massive production on location in Philadelphia, South Korea and Jerusalem.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

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Sep 24 2013
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DVDs, Pop Culture

‘Kings’ Rule a Glowing, Golden Summer

A modern-day indie-flick Huck Finn tale

TheKingsofSummerThe Kings of Summer

Blu-ray $35.99, DVD $30.99 (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)

This film festival coming-of-age charmer, popular enough to break out into the mainstream sunlight in some movie markets, tells the tale of three teenage buddies who, in a bold act of summer independence, run away from their suburban homes to build their own house in the woods and live off the land. With young stars Nick Robinson (from TV’s Melissa and Joey), Gabriel Basso (the movie Super 8) and Moises Arias (from TV’s Hannah Montana) joined by familiar TV players Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation), Alison Brie (Community) and Megan Mullally (Will and Grace), it’s a modern-day Huck Finn fable about families, friendships and young hearts on the glowing, golden cusp between childhood and maturity.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

Sep 11 2013
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DVDs, Pop Culture, Television

How Norman Got ‘Psycho’

TV’s ‘Bates Motel’ serves up a creepy-cool contemporary prequel

BatesMotelS1Bates Motel: Season One

$49.98 Blu-ray / $44.98 DVD (Universal Studios Home Entertainment)

Even if you’ve never seen Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 classic Psycho, you can still get appreciate the deep, darkly chilling vibes of this modern-day prequel set in a creepy old manor above a motor inn where very bad things just keep happening to teenage Norman Bates (Freddie Highmore), his clingy mom (Vera Farmiga) and the people around them. Last season’s critically acclaimed hit TV series, a moody mix of scares, suspense and twisty surprises, comes with deleted scenes and a panel discussion with the cast and creative team.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

Sep 11 2013
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DVDs, Movie Reviews, Pop Culture

‘Fugitive’ Runs With New Baggage

20th anniversary Blu-ray loaded with bonus features

TheFugitiveThe Fugitive

Blu-ray $19.98 / Warner Home Video

The 20th anniversary high-def re-release of the 1993 action-thriller, about a doctor (Harrison Ford) wrongly convicted for the murder of his wife, escaped from federal custody, looking for the mysterious one-armed man who did the dirty deed, and relentlessly pursued by a persistent U.S. Marshal (Tommy Lee Jones), comes with an all-new reunion interview with its two stars and director, plus a behind-the-scenes featurette, a look at the making of the movie’s spectacular train-crash scene, and other extras.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

Sep 04 2013
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DVDs

A Hip Hocus-Pocus Caper

Magicians have rarely ever looked so cool

NowYouSeeMe2Now You See Me

Blu-ray $39.99 / DVD $29.95 (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)

Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Dave Franco and Isla Fisher star in this mesmerizing hocus-pocus caper about a group of hip young magicians whose signature trick—cleaning out money from bank vaults and giving it away to their audiences—attracts the attention of a team of FBI agents (Mark Ruffalo and Mélanie Laurent). Like most magic acts, there’s more going on than meets the eye! But this movie’s neatest trick: making stage magicians look sexy, hip and cool. Bonus features include a look behind the scenes, commentary, and “A Brief History of Magic” documentary.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

Sep 04 2013
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DVDs

‘Shane’ Comes Back

Iconic Western gets 60th anniversary hi-def dust-off

ShaneShane

Blu-ray $19.98 / Warner Home Video

Director George Stevens’ 1953 Western, acclaimed as one of the most iconic cowboy movies of all time, stars Alan Ladd as a stoic drifter who comes to the aid of a homesteading family menaced by a wealthy cattle baron and his terrifying hired gun (Jack Palance). And just try to keep a dry eye during the final parting scene between Shane and the family’s son, so memorably played by a young Brandon De Wilde. (“Shane! Come back!”) This 60th anniversary Blu-ray edition features commentary by the late director’s own son, who served as the movie’s production assistant.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

Aug 27 2013
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DVDs Image

Here Comes The Bride!

Family comes together for weekend of here-comes-the-bride mayhem

The Big WeddingThe Big Wedding

Blu-ray $24.99 / DVD $19.98 (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)

Big wedding, big stars, big laughs, big cast—Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Susan Sarandon, Robin Williams, Katherine Heigl, Amanda Seyfried and Topher Grace headline this rollicking romantic comedy about a family trying to get through a wild wedding weekend full of secrets, shocks and surprises before it becomes a full-blown fiasco! A behind-the-scenes feature shows just how much fun the cast had creating all the here-comes-the-bride mayhem.

—Neil Pond, American Profile Magazine

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