I finally watched Brave and now I fully understand why it’s doing so well on the Blu-Ray sales charts. Instead of trying to convince you to add it to your collection, I’ll just point you in the direction of our Brave Blu-Ray review. Last week’s featured Blu-Ray, The Expendables 2, isn’t doing so well even though I thought it was a boatload of eighties-action awesomeness. Our own review was posted in our Blu-Ray reviews section yesterday for your reading pleasure.
This week, Men in Black 3 tries to make time travel even groovier, ParaNorman takes you on a creepily-fun ride, and one of my favorite guilty pleasures gets its second season released on Blu-Ray.
Ready for this week’s top releases? Then read on.
Men in Black 3
Release Date: November 30th, 2012
Starring: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Jemaine Clement, and Emma Thompson.
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Your favorite alien-policing duo returns after a lengthy hiatus for a third (but possibly not final) outing. Come for the laughs, but stay for Josh Brolin’s excellent depiction of a younger Tommy Lee Jones.
Plot: Agent Jay (Smith) travels back in time to 1969, where he teams up with a younger version of Agent Kay (Brolin) to stop an evil alien from destroying the future.
My Thoughts: I was a big fan of the first Men in Black, indifferent about the second, but pleasantly surprised with the third. If you’re looking for something light, fun, and in the realm of softcore science-fiction then definitely pick this up. Surprisingly, it was the highest grossing film in the series and made over $624 million. Unsurprisingly, due to the film’s success, another sequel is on the way.
Check out our own Men in Black 3 review over in our movie reviews section.
ParaNorman
Release Date: November 27th, 2012
Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, John Goodman, and Casey Affleck.
Directors: Chris Butler and Sam Fell.
Another great way to entertain the kids while you grab some quiet time. Although this stop-motion animated comedy horror film didn’t do so well at the box office, it garnered some very positive reviews from critics.
Plot: A misunderstood boy who can speak with the dead, takes on ghosts, zombies and grown-ups to save his town from a centuries-old curse.
My Thoughts: A great story done in a style that manages to feel fresh and familiar all at the same time. The film caused some controversy due to (SPOILER ALERT) the revelation in its final moments that one of the characters is gay. The character is said to be the first openly gay character in a mainstream children’s animated film.
Check out our own review of ParaNorman over in our movie reviews section.
Lawless
Release Date: November 27th, 2012
Starring: Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Gary Oldman, Guy Pearce, Jessica Chastain, and Mia Wasikowska.
Director: John Hillcoat
An adaptation of Matt Bondurant’s historical novel The Wettest County in the World, this film features a high-level cast but failed to get high-level results at the box office.
Plot: Set in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a bootlegging gang is threatened by authorities who want a cut of their profits.
My Thoughts: I haven’t seen this yet; mostly because I’ve developed an aversion to Shia LaBeouf ever since that ‘swinging with the monkeys’ scene from the last Indiana Jones film. I’ve heard it’s a decent thriller with an exploitative amount of violence though, which is a lot nicer than what our own review of the film has to say about it.
Transformers: Prime (Season 2)
Release Date: November 27th, 2012
Starring: Peter Cullen, Frank Welker, Steve Blum, Jeffrey Combs, Sumalee Montano, and Kevin Michael Richardson.
Director: Various
Relive your childhood, or give a child a real show to watch besides the lamer educational morning shows that are cropping up everywhere. This revamped television cartoon series has won multiple Daytime Emmy Awards and is darker in tone than the usual animated fare.
Plot: The Transformers saga starts a new chapter as old foes return, legendary heroes rise, and new ones are found in unlikely places. The new series deepens the epic mythology of both the Autobots and Decepticons, while starting a new chapter for a new generation of fans
My Thoughts: This is my guilty pleasure that I announced earlier. You probably thought I was referring to Once Upon A Time or something, but I have no guilt over watching that. If you’re a fan of Transformers in any shape or form, then you definitely need to start watching this show. If you are watching this show on television already, then do yourself a favor and start making the series a part of your collection.
Serial Experiments Lain: The Complete Series
Release Date: November 27th, 2012
Starring: Kaori Shimizu, Sho Hayami, and Yasuo Iwakura.
Director: Ryūtarō Nakamura
This near-cyberpunk 1998 anime series is heavily influenced by philosophical subjects such as reality, identity, and communication.
Plot: The series focuses on Lain Iwakura, an adolescent girl living in suburban Japan, and her introduction to the Wired, a global communications network similar to the Internet. Lain lives with her middle-class family, which consists of her inexpressive older sister Mika, her cold mother, and her computer-obsessed father. The first ripple on the pond of Lain’s lonely life appears when she learns that girls from her school have received an e-mail from Chisa Yomoda, a schoolmate who committed suicide. When Lain receives the message at home, Chisa tells her (in real time) that she is not dead, but has just “abandoned the flesh”, and has found God in the Wired. From then on, Lain is bound to a path which will take her ever deeper into both the network and her own thoughts.
My Thoughts: This series was quite a hit in Japan and even spawned its own PlayStation game, but left some reviewers on our side of the pond confused. I liked it, and if you’re looking for something that’s different from a lot of other anime out there, then treat yourself and dip into your rainy day fund.
That’s all for this week folks. I know we only had a short time together, but be sure to check back next week for loads more of our Blu-Ray picks. Remember: the only thing better than doing your Christmas shopping early, is going shopping for yourself instead.
Are you a fan of any of this week’s releases? Let us know in the comments below.