Secretariat

SECRETARIAT is one of those rare movies that is moving and inspirational without being overly sappy. Diane Lane (My Dog Skip, Unfaithful) trains the titular stallion to become a champion. Lane puts in a solild performance, aided capably by John Malkovich (Con Air), James Cromwell (Spider-Man 3), and Scott Glenn (The Keep). Now available on Blu-ray/DVD combo pack!

Full Eclipse

FULL ECLIPSE is one of those gems that you don't hear a lot about, and turns out to be well worth finding. Starring Mario Van Peebles (New Jack City, Highlander: The Final Dimension), the film features a special team of cops led by Bruce Payne (Passenger 57, Warlock III: The End Of Innocence), who have a strong desire to take a bite out of crime. Payne tries to recruit Van Peebles, but he resists the leader's offer. Enter Patsy Kensit (Lethal Weapon 2, Twenty-One), who has her own methods of persuasion. Patsy is beautiful in this movie. Gorgeous. Stunning. Beautiful. Did I say she's beautiful? Anyway, over the years I have watched this movie on VHS tape, Laserdisc, and ultimately on DVD (no Blu-ray Disc yet, darn it anyway!), and I never get tired of it. FE does a fresh take on the werewolf and shoot-'em up genres by mixing them, and the result is very enjoyable. Gary Chang's original music adds a special flavor, and Anthony Hickox's direction is impeccable.

Heavy Metal Blu-ray Disc Edition

One of my all-time favorite animated films is HEAVY METAL, the 1981 movie based on the great magazine of the same name. It captures the feel of the early issues of the magazine and improves upon it, with ground-breaking animation and a hard-rocking soundtrack. I first saw it on a pay-tv service called SelecTV back in 1983. Later I saw it every way imaginable, on various cable channels, VHS tape, Laserdisc, DVD, Superbit DVD, and finally in the theatre last August. Now it has arrived on Blu-ray Disc, which is probably the ultimate format for watching movies at home. With a picture resolution of 1080p, and high-definition digital sound, the new edition of HEAVY METAL is truly stunning. When I saw it in on the big screen, the theatre showed the remastered re-release print from 1996. The Blu-ray is extremely close in quality to that print, showing minute details that even the high quality of the Superbit DVD didn't quite capture. On the supplemental side, the materials are mostly borrowed from the Collector's Edition DVD, including the Rough Cut with optional commentary by Carl Macek, Deleted Scenes, and the Imagining Heavy Metal documentary. Right now it's a Best Buy Exclusive, so if you have a store near you, I highly recommend picking it up!