Corona | Coming Attractions

DVD Review: Dredd

Comic book movies are all the rage. Some might believe that it’s a fad with an end to come soon but not I. If there’s a moment that I can point to and claim as evidence in my belief it’s the stratospheric success of The Dark Knight, released in 2008. That ushered in a new approach to the mainstream superhero: one that played down the origins of the source material (from comic books) and made it secondary to the story.

Spec'd: Dredd

Dredd, the 2012 movie adaptation that stars Karl Urban (Star Trek) as the helmeted 2000 AD comic book lawman, is coming to 3-D Blu-ray, DVD and digital download on January 8, 2013.

While Dredd only managed to eke out a disappointing $13 million dollars from the domestic box office (and that was just a third of the haul that the Sylvester Stallone starrer Judge Dredd made back in 1995), it found supporters from the online film community as well as its core comic book fanbase that appreciated the movie's faithful tone and approach to character.

Spec'd: Prometheus Blu-ray

Details have finally emerged about Ridley Scott's Prometheus home video release. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is bringing two different releases to consumers, a 2-disc Blu-ray combo pack and a 4-disc collector's edition pack.

Spec'd: The Dark Knight Rises Blu-ray & DVD

The Dark Knight Rises, the final chapter in director Christopher Nolan's Batman movie trilogy will arrive on store shelves on December 4, 2012. Warner Bros. will be releasing the film on Blu-ray, DVD and digital download, and there will also be a special limited edition "bat pod" box set for Bat-collectors to add to their collection.

DVD Review: Ghosts of the Abyss 3D

There's almost a sub-genre of cinema based on James Cameron's interest in the deep ocean. The Abyss and Titanic are the two fictional movies but Cameron has also created documentaries that serve almost as companion pieces to these pictures, namely Aliens of the Deep and Ghosts of the Abyss. The latter was an theatrically release hour-long show that came out in 2003. With the staggering billion-dollar success of 1997's Titanic, Cameron was convinced (perhaps not financially but certainly creatively) to go back and revisit the final resting place of the most infamous passenger vessel to traverse the ocean.

Trailer: Blade Runner 30th Anniversary DVD

On June 25, 1982, Blade Runner opened in theaters. It wasn't warmly received by critics or audiences, but before the decade was finished it had gained a sizeable audience from people that caught it on home video. Through three decades, Ridley Scott's second science fiction movie has grown in its significance to where it is considered today: one of the great pieces of 20th century cinema.

Spec'd: The Amazing Spider-Man

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is bringing home The Amazing Spider-Man on Friday, November 9 as a 3D combo pack, limited edition gift set and Blu-ray/DVD.

The Blu-ray/DVD combo comes with three discs:

Avengers movie alternate opening revealed

In the editing suite a movie can change its tone dramatically. By inserting a serious moment here, removing a comedic or lighter touch there, and presto-chango, your emotional reaction to what you see on-screen shifts.

Sometimes it works well for the movie's box office results. Other times...not so much.

3.8 million Hunger Games DVDs sold

Lionsgate chose to release the DVD/Blu-ray of The Hunger Games last Friday, and it seems to have paid off. The company is reporting that they have seen sales of 3.8 million units of the movie over the weekend.

As well, people were downloading the movie digitally. More first day transactions for The Hunger Games flick were made on Comcast that any other movie in the past four years. The Hunger Games also generated more first day sales on Xbox Live's Zune Video and broke the previous record for sales on iTunes.

Trailer: The Dark Knight Returns Part 1

Ever since the announcement that Warner Bros. Animation would be doing a direct-to-disc adaptation of Frank Miller's seminal Batman tale The Dark Knight Returns, I've been wondering what feeling the first look at it would give me. After watching the trailer for Part 1 (the story is being broken up into two films released on separate dates), the emotion that I'm feeling is...encouraging.

Item 47 extra short to be included on Avengers DVD

I've got to say, I do dig what Marvel Studios is doing with these short "one-shot" films they're adding to their movie DVD releases. With the Captain America and Thor flicks, we got two day in the life of Agent Coulson stories. Now with Clark Gregg out of the Marvel cinematic universe (for the time being, if you know what I mean, wink wink), I was wondering if Marvel would keep going on with their short films.

The answer to that question is yes.

Spec'd: Marvel's The Avengers DVD

Arriving on September 26, 2012 on home video is Marvel's The Avengers, the highest-grossing superhero movie of all-time and present third-highest grossing movie ever. Paramount Home Video is handling the home video release of the film (as per their agreement with Walt Disney, the owners/theatrical distribution studio.)

The Avengers will have three disc versions: a 4-disc Blu-ray, a 2-disc Blu-ray DVD and a single-disc DVD. Perhaps the most important bonus feature listed on the discs will be an audio commentary track by screenwriter/director Joss Whedon, so expect a lot of comic book geeking out when you pop that one on the player.

Indiana Jones Blu-ray set arrives September 18

A release date for the four-movie Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventures Blu-ray set has been announced, and it's set to come out on September 28, 2012.

Marking the first time that any Indiana Jones film has come out on the format, the Blu-ray set features remastered versions of all four Indy films: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008).

DVD Review: John Carter

After first reviewing Disney’s John Carter movie three months ago upon its theatrical release, I wanted to take a second look at the film again once it hit home video. Did I find the movie more appealing to me upon a second viewing? No, I didn’t, but neither did I find it diminished either. I stand by my original review and observations of John Carter: that it’s a serviceable sci-fi pulp escapist film, one that doesn’t draw you into its hero or world the same was as James Cameron’s 3D descendant Avatar.

Voice cast announced for The Dark Knight Returns

Published in 1986, Frank Miller's graphic novel The Dark Knight Returns had a profound impact on the current pop culture take on The Batman. Released at a time when comic books weren't considered capable of rising above juvenile status, TDKR showed us a grim, stark future for a 55-year-old Bruce Wayne. Long since retired from being the Batman, Bruce decides to put on his cape and cowl again to battle a new breed of Gotham City criminal. That sets the stage for Batman's final confrontations with The Joker, Two-Face and a fight-to-the-death street brawl with none other than the Man of Steel, Superman.