ScreenScribe

A Fish Called Wanda at last lands on Blu-ray, along with a raft of back-catalogue collectibles. But fans of this John Cleese classic risk calling themselves stupid if they rush out to upgrade their two-disc special edition DVD expecting a pr-pr-pr-pristine image from a budget (sub-$20) release. “A Fish Called Wanda looks tired and drab [...]

The Press newspaper in Christchurch is using Wednesday’s premiere of the Downton Abbey Christmas Special on Prime to test the credentials of wannabe TV critics. It’s looking for a regular TV columnist for easily the country’s best TV/tech lift-out, The Box (full disclosure: I’m among its contributors). Box editor Will Harvie is inviting freelance opinion [...]

It’s not quite win-win for Blu-ray buyers this week but there are two winners among the handful of new releases. The latest Jane Eyre adaptation “arrives on Blu-ray with a terrifically detailed 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 transfer with only a couple of very minor flaws”. “The level of detail is sublime throughout, save for a few moments [...]

Fans of the smokin’ comedy/drama Weeds at last can experience earlier seasons in HD. Following Wednesday’s season-seven finale, Sky’s SoHo channel will screen the series about a family that goes to pot from the first episode of the first season (starting February 6 in In Treatment’s 11.30pm weeknight slot). And Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will [...]

Critics were divided over the HD benefits of the comedy, Friends With Benefits. “This is a very disappointing presentation of material that should have been HD eye candy,” argued High-Def Digest. “The only area in which Friends With Benefits exceeds is within its colour scheme.” But Blu-ray.com found it more user-friendly: “Friends With Benefits scores [...]

Two of SoHo’s signature dramas bow on Blu-ray this week: Boardwalk Empire and The Hour. The latter lands here only weeks after its broadcast while the former’s taken more than a year to arrive. Indeed, season one of Boardwalk Empire is being released on the eve of SoHo’s season-two finale (Sky 10, 8.30pm Sunday). I [...]

The Tree of Life may be bewildering but the Blu-ray of Terrence Malick’s enigmatic meaning-of-life drama is brilliant. “It’s simply one of the best looking Blu-rays I’ve ever seen,” albeit with the minor caveat of “slight banding” in the creation/space scenes. “Tree of Life was shot in a combination of 35mm, 65mm, and HD, and [...]

Horrible Bosses they may be but the latest R-rated comedy’s Blu-ray transfer is “really sweet … Sharp details, fantastic picture depth, superb textures, close up shots that literally wowed me”. “The only nagging issue worth mentioning is some limited crush, which doesn’t really result in any major mishaps. All in all, Horrible Bosses’ high definition [...]

Entries close 5pm on Wednesday for the draw to win Cars 2 on Blu-ray. Screenscribe.tv has four copies to give away, thanks to Walt Disney Studios Entertainment. As co-director John Lasseter says in his cheerfully exhaustive commentary, Cars 2 isn’t just a “retread”. It relocates racing car Lightning McQueen and his tow-truck mate Mater to Europe for a World Grand Prix, where [...]

Yahoo! The sci-fi shoot-‘em-up, Cowboys & Aliens, is a wild blue yonder sensation on Blu-ray. The 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 encode is near-reference quality, “filling the entire screen with tons of beautiful panoramic shots of New Mexico. “Part of this rich, distinct clarity comes from a pitch-perfect contrast balance, extending visibility into the far distance … Taken [...]