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Disney continues their winning streak with this showroom quality release. The 1080p AVC-encoded transfer has impeccable detail from the slightest dents and rust on the cars to the vast crowds of vehicles at the races. Color quality is electric, giving viewers vibrant primary colors, especially the neon in the Japanese sequence. Digital anomalies are pretty much absent. With so much red in the palette, the absence of banding and aliasing is impressive.

Sonically the DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track matches the luxury level of the picture. Combining cars and spy action provides for a great many opportunities to impress and the release delivers. From the engine revving races to the explosions and gunfire of the chase sequences the soundtrack utilizes the full range of the sound field. Races and bullets race from left to right speakers and front and back. The LFE track rumbles as racecars zip by. All the powerful sound effects are balanced perfectly with the dialogue and Michael Giacchino’s classic Bond-esque score.

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While it's not perfect, Sony does bring a handsome transfer of this low budget production, which is destined to become a cult classic. The MPEG-4 AVC encoded Blu-ray is true to its source. The color palette is desaturated and dark due to the low light. This lessens detail in the outdoor night sequences, as well as suffers from limited pixelation, but the picture becomes richer in the brighter indoor scenes. Film grain is natural and unobtrusive. Black levels, however, are inconsistent, but shine in the inky black of the alien invaders, which are meant to look like black holes running across the screen. And boy do the glow in the dark teeth of the aliens pop.

The DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless track is very well mixed with some genuine dynamic moments. Dialogue is clean and balanced with the score and sound effects well. This is crucial considering the thick South London accents of the characters. Ambience is subtle but effective. Directionality is surprising at times as fireworks rocket from the front to back speakers or the ape wolf aliens leap across the front sound field. The LFE track booms with the dramatic score as the gang returns to the apartment complex.

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From Fox comes a beautiful transfer of Francis Lawrence's romantic ode to the circus. The AVC encoded 1080p transfer is a nearly perfect. The color palette is rich and nuanced. The bookend sequences, which have a heavier film grain, have a more natural tone. When the film moves to the Depression era, the saturated colors pop. The lavish red of August's ringmaster jacket. The rustic circus banners. The detail provides that virtual 3-D appeal. Look at the detail of the face of elephant and the vintage costumes. The only blaring problem is pixilation during the scene where Jacob catches the train at night. This is probably due to the scene being shot day for night and digitally rendered dark.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack is full of ambience and detail. Crowds, animal sounds and the closing stampede fill the entire sound field. Especially in the latter example, directionality comes into play as animals race across the soundscape. The mix is spot on, giving dialogue, music and sound effects all their proper due. The LFE track is utilized best during scenes with the rumbling train.

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Part of what made SHREK 2 work was the addition of Puss in Boots to the franchise. It's not surprising that he would get his own film. Unfortunately some of the sharpness the character brought to that film has been declawed for this one. The irreverent take on fairy tales is gone. In its place — cat jokes.

Don't get me wrong the cat gags are the funniest bits, but they don't have the layers that made the first two SHREK films special. In this origin story, Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas, DESPERADO) is cast as an orphan who becomes blood brothers with fellow orphan outcast Humpty Dumpty (Zack Galifianakis, THE HANGOVER). They are in search of the magic beans of legend. The duo continuously get in trouble until one day Puss gets a taste of being a hero and vows to go straight. Bad blood forms and Puss is wrongfully believed an outlaw. Years later he is reunited with Humpty, who now has a female feline thief sidekick named Kitty Softpaws (Selma Hayek, DESPERADO). Humpty wants to put their past behind them and work together to steal the magic beans from the notorious murderers Jack and Jill (Billy Bob Thonrton, SLINGBLADE & Amy Sedaris, STRANGERS WITH CANDY).

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Roland Emmerich is best known for destroying the world in films like INDEPENDENCE DAY, GODZILLA, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW and 2012. This period political thriller is the furthest from his other work as any film he has done. It’s also easily his best film. Do I believe in its central premise that Shakespeare didn’t write his plays? Not any more than I believe that Shakespeare based ROMEO AND JULIET one his own love affair with a noble woman who dreamed of acting.

During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (Vanessa Redgrave, JULIA), the stage was seen ripe with sedition. The problem was that the queen loved plays, so her handlers William Cecil (David Thewlis, HARRY POTTER) and his hunchback son Robert (Edward Hogg, 2004’s ALFIE) had to tread lightly in their censorship campaign. Amid this backdrop, Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford (Rhys Ifans, NOTTING HILL), the son-in-law of William Cecil, writes plays in secret. After watching the work of Ben Johnson (Sebastian Armesto, BRIGHT STAR), the nobleman, who is wasting away his inheritance, commands the playwright to stage his work under the writer’s name. Unwilling to take the risk, the opportunistic actor William Shakespeare (Rafe Spall, SHAUN OF THE DEAD) begins to claim he is the author of such works as HENRY VI, MACBETH and HAMLET.

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Read my review of WINNIE THE POOH

Disney proves once again why Blu-ray is so great for animation. This 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer of the new WINNIE THE POOH feature shows off the richness of the hand drawn animation. Line quality is detailed throughout. The watercolor backgrounds are painterly. Colors range from the subtle to the striking primaries used for Pooh's shirt for instance. Blacks are inky and consistent. Digital compression issues are nonexistent. The picture is about as flawless as it can get.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack isn't as dynamic as the picture, but that's the nature of the film rather than the quality of the mix. Dialogue, music and sound effects are mixed clearly. The rear speakers are chiefly utilized for the music. The LFE track is used minimally, but effectively when needed such as the Backson sequence. Directionality is subtle as bees buzz or Tigger bounces across the soundscape. Ambience brings in the sounds of the Hundred Acre Wood across all the speakers.

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Is this the most disturbing film ever made? Many have said so. A great deal depends on what you bring to it. A fan of extreme cinema might find it less provocative than say someone who sticks to PG inspirational films. It contains graphic depictions of rape, necrophilia and pedophilia. Many of the concepts are some of the vilest ideas I've ever seen in any film. It stands in infamy with the likes of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST and SALO. But is it simply exploitation or something more?

Milos (Srdan Todorovic) is a retired porn star that has settled down in a simple domestic life with his beautiful wife Marija (Jelena Gavrilovic) and adorable young son Petar. His former co-star Lejla (Katarina Žutic) offers him a once in a lifetime opportunity to work on an art porn film for the auteur Vukmir Vukmir (Sergej Trifunovic). The money would set up Milos and his family for life, but he worries about the secrecy surrounding what he will have to do.

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Read my review of A SERBIAN FILM

Invincible Pictures isn't a top distributor, but one wouldn't know that from the picture quality of this release. As ugly as the subject matter of the film is, the AVC encoded 1080p transfer is not ugly at all. The flawless RED camera cinematography is captured with striking clarity. Details pop to the point of giving the picture increased depth. Desaturation of color is intentional to go along with the grim subject matter. So when it gets bloody the crimson reds are striking.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 soundtrack is less impressive because it's not 5.1. However, for 2.0, it does the job. It's hard to say exactly how clear the dialogue is because it's Serbian. The metal score and brutal sound effects are aggressive. The soundscape does a good job shaking the viewer just as much as the disturbing imagery.

Unfortunately the disc has no special features at all. If any film calls for some comment from its director this is one. Srdan Spasojevic has defended his sick opus at film festivals around the world. I would have liked to see hear it as well. This is an angry film and it would be insightful to hear from Spasojevic about what inspired him.

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Wayward souls are often the prey of sociopaths. They either turn into victims or accomplices or something in the middle. Cult leaders from Charles Manson to Jim Jones have used the veneer of family and community to twist people's minds into believing terrible things. They make it too scary to leave. The outside world becomes foreign. So how can one cope if they do get away?

Martha (Elizabeth Olsen, PEACE, LOVE, & MISUNDERSTANDING) is such a young woman. She flees from Patrick (John Hawkes, WINTER'S BONE) a much older man who leads a family of young men and women on a rural farm. She doesn't really know where she is. The other members follow her. Watts (Brady Corbet, 2007's FUNNY GAMES), one of the members, finds her at a diner and tells her to come home. He doesn't force her, but the impression that if she doesn't something bad will happen to her is strongly implied.

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I've been reading a lot of reviews of this Blu-ray release hating the darkness of it, but then saying that it's part of the film. When reviewing the quality of a transfer the only thing to really take into account is the intent of the filmmakers and has that been brought to the home entertainment experience. With Disney's 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer of the fourth PIRATES film, they have done this masterfully. Yes, some of the early scenes are dark and mysterious, but that was director Rob Marshall and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski point. Even in the darkness you can relish in the inky blacks and remarkable detail. It has been described as smoky, which is true, but nothing is lost. When the film sails into the day, the details jump from the screen in the clothing and sets. The color palette is muted, but uber natural, which provides some of the visual awe. Digital anomalies are minimal. There is some faint digital fuzziness in the darker scenes and edge enhancement ringing can be found if you're looking for it.

If people have been nitpicking the picture quality, they are not doing so with the lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 because you can't. This is one of the Blu-rays of the year to rock the surround sound with. Directionality is masterfully done to the point that it actually made my head turn — hey what's that behind me. Pans across the soundscape and the general ambiance make for a very immersive experience. Dialogue, score and sound effects are balanced precisely. Every sword clash, pistol fire, explosion, splash or snarky line is given its proper due.