This Week on DVD & Blu-ray (09-24-13)

Despite being better than its previous sequel, “Iron Man 3” was met with much scorn amongst fanboys and moviegoers. Some of the criticism I got, but there’s no denying that the first movie of Marvel’s Second Wave was action-packed, fun and entertaining. Director Shane Black did a fine job reteaming with the incomparable Robert Downey, Jr. and even managed to humanize superhero Stark in a relatable and funny way. Pretty rare for a summer blockbuster.  Speaking of summer, “The Kings of Summer” is an indie film that earned some good buzz as it made its rounds on the festival circuit before earning a limited theatrical release last May. An underrated John Carpenter gem from 1987, “Prince of Darkness”, starring Donald Pleasance, comes out on a Collector’s Edition Blu-ray, thanks to the Shout Factory! folks and their Scream Factory line. It’s a trippy film that belongs in the religious horror subgenre, involving Anti-Christ, Anti-God and Anti-Matter. That can’t be Anti-Bad, right?

That’s not all for John Carpenter fans this week. There’s also a special newly-packaged 35th Anniversary Edition of his classic “Halloween” – even though it seems like they pakage one up this time each year. The movie is an irrefutably influential and the one that kicked off the slasher movie craze in the 70s & 80s. As for other horror flicks, there’s plenty of sequels to choose from.  There’s older ones (“Psyho II” and “”Psycho III”) and a couple new selections (“I Spit On Your Grave 2” and “V/H/S/2”), for your viewing pleasure.

And then there’s the ginormous “The Dark KnightTrilogy: Ultimate Collector’s Edition” and depending on whether or not you’re an “Ultimate” collector, you’ll be snatchin’ this one up. This one is loaded with Special Features, including never-before-seen audition tapes with Christian Bale (in Val Kilmer’s Batman suit, working with Amy Adams), Cillian Murphy, Anne Hathaway and Tom Hardy) and three different model vehicles for each movie. This has to be the last time Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies will be collected – right?

That’s it for this week. Previous reviews are highlighted below. Enjoy the Rundown!

• 2 Broke Girls: The Complete Second Season (DVD)
• American Horror Story: Season Two (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Barabbas (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Blood of Redemption (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Bloody Homecoming (DVD)
• City of God/ City of Men (Blu-ray)
• Dark Girls (DVD)
• The Dark Knight Trilogy: Ultimate Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray)
• Dean Martin Celebrity Roast-Collectors Edition (DVD)
• The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts (DVD)
• Dear Mom, Love Cher (DVD)
• Doctor Who: The Complete Seventh Series (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Fill the Void (DVD)
• Geronimo Stilton: Operation ShuFongFong (DVD)
• Halloween: 35th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray)
• Hannibal: Season One (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Hawaii Five-O: The Third Season (DVD/Blu-ray)
• He’s Way More Famous Than You (DVD)
• I Spit on Your Grave 2 (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Iron Man 3 (DVD/Blu-ray)
• The Kings of Summer (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit – The Fourteenth Year (DVD)
• Legend of Kung Fu Rabbit (DVD)
• Modern Family: The Complete Fourth Season (DVD/Blu-ray)
• The Neighbors: The Complete First Season (DVD)
• The Power Of Love (DVD)
• Prince of Darkness: Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray)
• Psycho II (Collector’s Edition) (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Psycho III (Collector’s Edition) (DVD/Blu-ray)
• South Park: The Complete Sixteenth Season (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Two and a Half Men: The Complete Tenth Season (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Unfinished Song (DVD)
• V/H/S/2 (DVD/Blu-ray)
• Voyage of the Damned (Combo Pack) (Blu-ray)