HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY On DVD And Blu-ray
The roughest, toughest, most unlikely hero of all is back in
HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY , available in 3-disc special edition DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray on November 11, 2008 from Universal Studios Home Ent.
With bigger muscle, badder weapons and more ungodly villains than ever before, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY is available in multiple home entertainment versions. In standard definition DVD, fans can purchase either a widescreen or full frame single disc version for $29.98 SRP. For a limited time, fans can take home a widescreen 3-disc special edition DVD ($34.98 SRP) or 2-disc Blu-ray ($39.98 SRP), featuring a digital copy of the film and hours of additional in-depth bonus features that take fans deep inside the movie's extraordinary creative process -- all encased in 3-D packaging.
HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY is also available in a limited edition collector's set featuring all of the bonus features of the 3-disc special edition plus a collectible Golden Army statuette, limited edition poster, director's production journal and certificate of authenticity. This set is priced for collecting and gift giving at $64.98 SRP for standard definition DVD and $69.98 SRP for Blu-ray.
Del Toro returns audiences to the exhilaratingly original world of HELLBOY. Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones and Jeffrey Tambor reprise their roles from the groundbreaking first Hellboy film, joined by Luke Goss as Nuada, a renegade elvish prince, and more than 30 startling new creatures drawn from del Toro's untamed imagination. Based on characters created by Mike Mignola for Dark Horse Comics, HELLBOY has become one of the most successful independent comic books of all time, bursting with outlandish creatures, over-the-top action and unexpectedly comedic moments.
After an ancient truce existing between humankind and the invisible realm of the fantastic is broken, hell on Earth is ready to erupt. A ruthless leader who treads the world above and the one below defies his bloodline and awakens an unstoppable army of creatures. Now, it's up to the planet's toughest, roughest superhero to battle the merciless dictator and his marauders. He may be red. He may be horned. He may be misunderstood. But when you need the job done right, it's time to call in Hellboy (Perlman). Along with his expanding team in the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Development -- pyrokinetic girlfriend Liz (Blair), aquatic empath Abe (Jones) and protoplasmic mystic Johann -- the BPRD will travel between the surface strata and the unseen magical one, where creatures of fantasy become corporeal. And Hellboy, a creature of two worlds who's accepted by neither, must choose between the life he knows and an unknown destiny that beckons him.
The movie was the largest character animation project ever undertaken by lead vfx vendor Double Negative. The facility had just delivered Grawp for HARRY POTTER & THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX, as well as the saber toothed tiger and the terror birds for 10,000 BC, so lessons learnt from these prior projects were incorporated into the nascent creature pipeline.
"The real challenge here was to gather all the different pieces of a creature pipeline developed on other shows," says co-CG Supervisor Andrew Chapman. "We had to form a complete character pipeline that would handle the vast array of different creatures we were animating, as well as a very high volume of creatures within a single scene, up to about 5,000 Tooth Fairies in some shots."
Double Negative's pipeline was modeled in Maya, ZBrush and XSI; rigging and lighting were done in Maya; effects work were done in both Maya and Houdini; rendering was done in RenderMan through a proprietary Maya-RenderMan tool called Rex; and compositing was done in Shake.
The Blu-ray, single- and 3-disc DVDs all feature the following bonus content:
--Feature Commentary with Director Guillermo del Toro
--Feature Commentary with Cast Members Jeffrey Tambor, Selma Blair and Luke Goss
--Set Visits: Seven mini documentaries provide viewers with unlimited access to the HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY set.
--Troll Market Tour with Guillermo del Toro: Using sketches and backstage video, del Toro walks the audience through the creation of one of the film's most distinctive sets, the legendary Troll Market.
--Animated Zinco Epilogue Comic
--Deleted Scenes With Optional Commentary by Director Guillermo del Toro
In addition, the Blu-ray and 3-disc special edition DVD also include the following in-depth features:
--Prologue: A special introduction to the DVD from director Guillermo del Toro.
--Pre-Production Vault:
* Director's Notebook: Exclusive interviews, image scans and text from Guillermo del Toro's personal notebook.
* Concept Art Gallery: Original designs and concepts for HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY's costumes and sets.
--Hellboy: In Service Of The Demon: Over two hours of footage that takes fans into the creation of this film.
--Production Workshop: Professor Broom's Puppet Theatre: A special look inside the opening sequence of the film including storyboards and animatics.
--Image Gallery Featuring Teaser Banners, One-Sheets and Poster Explorations
--DVD Rom: HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY Script
Exclusive Blu-Ray Bonus Features:
--BD-Live:
*My Chat: Using your Internet-connected player, host a text chat with your friends who also own HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY on Blu-ray while you watch the movie in synchronization.
*Sneak Peek of WANTED: Watch never-before seen footage from WANTED, starring Angelina Jolie and James McAvoy.
*My Scenes Sharing: Show your friends your favorite scenes from HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY via BD-Live.
--Comic Book Builder: Create an original downloadable HELLBOY adventure by selecting still images from the movie, dropping them into comic book layouts and adding text. The result can be e-mailed to friends or published via BD-Live buddy lists.
--U-Control: Universal's exclusive signature feature U-Control allows viewers to delve into the making of the film with the click of the remote without ever leaving the movie.
*Scene Explorer: Schufften Goggle View: View scenes from the film as it progresses from storyboards and early renderings of the visual effects to the final film.
*Director's Notebook: Fans will get an interactive glimpse at the director's personal journal and view how early thematic concepts evolved into the final film. Includes an introduction by Guillermo Del Toro.
*Set Visits: Interactive vignettes provide information about key moments in the film.
*Comic Book Back-Story Interactive Feature: Clickable motion pages provide backstories of the film's characters.
STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS On DVD And Blu-ray
Lucasfilm Animation and Warner Home Video present the theatrical release of
STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS . As the Clone Wars sweep through the galaxy, the heroic Jedi Knights struggle to maintain order and restore peace. More and more systems are falling prey to the forces of the dark side as the Galactic Republic slips further and further under the sway of the Separatists and their never-ending droid army.
Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan learner Ahsoka Tano find themselves on a mission with far-reaching consequences, one that brings them face-to-face with crime lord Jabba the Hutt. But Count Dooku and his sinister agents, including the nefarious Asajj Ventress, will stop at nothing to ensure that Anakin and Ahsoka fail at their quest.
"George [Lucas] put Jabba in it," concedes director Dave Filoni, who serves as supervising director of the series and previously directed the AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER series. "It wasn't really the original plan, but when the master of the universe says it's going to be Jabba's son, you make it work.
"The movie has a lot of action and is a self-contained story [during this time of war]. We are trying to emphasize Anakin as a hero and good guy. We deal with his attachment issue [he loses his mother, he loses the droids], which brings him down and destroys the galaxy, by furthering the master/apprentice relationship. We give him a protege to help him mature and take responsibility and not be so reckless. I took a lot of pages from Han Solo and Luke Skywalker. I described him to the crew and writers as a grease monkey like Han, but he's naive like Luke. It also brings in more of the Princess Leia element: the brassy girl that likes to snark at the boys."
Special Features Include:
--Deleted scenes
--Behind-the-scenes footage
--Sneak preview of season one of STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS TV series on Cartoon Network
Blu-ray Exclusives Include:
--Hologram Memory Challenge game
--Filmmaker video commentary
CHUCK: The Complete First Season On Blu-ray
Chuck Bartowski, ace computer geek at the BuyMore, is not in his right mind. That's a good thing. Ever since he unwittingly downloaded stolen government secrets into his brain, action, excitement and a cool secret-agent girlfriend have entered his life. It's a bad thing, too. Because now Chuck is in danger 24/7. Exec producers Josh Schwartz and McG merge techno-gadgetry, martial-arts smackdowns, narrow escapes and gorgeous spies in short shorts into this action comedy about a millennium Everyguy.
The three-disc collector's set will be releases on Blu-ray on November 11 and includes all 13 episodes, along with two fabulous featurettes, a file of declassified scenes, a hilarious gag reel, and more. CHUCK: The Complete First Season is priced at $49.99 from Warner Home Video.
Zoic Studios handles the bulk of vfx work for
CHUCK and Andrew Orloff details his company's involvement with the series. "Starting with the pilot, the Visual Effects Supervisor/Coordinator Mike Leone and I worked together with production to find the overall vfx credo. McG, who is the exec producer and the director of the pilot, was very interested in having it playing like an old-fashioned James Bond spy drama. He didn't want to do anything too overt or crazy, but there was a lot of work designing the cool, retro-look to a lot of the stuff in the pilot."
Episodes:
"Pilot"
"Chuck Versus the Helicopter"
"Chuck Versus the Tango"
"Chuck Versus the Wookie"
"Chuck Versus the Sizzling Shrimp"
"Chuck Versus the Sandworm"
"Chuck Versus the Alma Mater"
"Chuck Versus the Truth"
"Chuck Versus the Imported Hard Salami"
"Chuck Versus the Nemesis"
"Chuck Versus the Crown Vic"
"Chuck Versus the Undercover Lover"
"Chuck Versus the Marlin"
Blu-ray Special Features Include:
--Declassified Scenes
--Chuck's World -- An inside look at character development and casting sessions
--Chuck on Chuck -- Series stars Zachary Levi and Joshua Gomez join creators Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedek for some point/counterpoint
--Chuck vs. the Chuckles -- a.k.a: The Gag Reel
--Chuck's Online World -- Gallery of Web-originated mini-featurettes
SUPERNATURAL: The Complete Third Season on Blu-ray
The yellow-eyed demon is vanquished, but at a terrible price. The battle that brought him down released hundreds of demons from Hell into an unsuspecting world and cost Sam his life. But a grief-stricken Dean made a deal with the Crossroads Demon -- his soul in exchange for Sam's resurrection. Now Dean has just one year to live. One year to fight the unholy, the twisted, the ghoulish. One year to say farewell to Sam, and one year for Sam to search desperately for some way to save his brother. Mind-bending adventure awaits as the Winchester brothers continue their astonishing odyssey into the supernatural... and their personal odyssey into destiny. The three-disc collector's set features all 16 one-hour episodes and over an hour of special features, including a special effects featurette, gag reel, and commentaries, plus a bonus offer for a Digital Copy of the entire season. SUPERNATURAL: The Complete Third Season will be available on Blu-ray on November 11 and is priced at $79.98 SRP from Warner Home Video.
For season two and beyond, SUPERNATURAL employed an in-house vfx team, work on the pilot was done by Entity FX and work in season one by Stargate Digital.
"The mandate for vfx on our show has always been to achieve the 'real supernatural',"
says vfx supervisor Ivan Hayden . "It's not over-the-top, glowy vfx. We want to get the fear of the monster and the danger across without taking people out of the scary moment."
For example, a scene might show something that was caused by a supernatural creature, such as plants dying, rather than the creature itself. "It's always a case of less is more in the horror genre," Hayden says. "We want the hair on the back of your neck to stand up rather than showing you the blood and guts. We don't want to step into the world of sci-fi and fantasy."
Blu-ray Special Features Include:
--From Legends to Reality -- SUPERNATURAL Effects
--Impala Featurette -- A look inside the classic 1967 Chevrolet Impala
--Scene Specifics -- Short segments showcasing creative team members discussing favorite aspects of particular episodes
--Ghostfacers! Confessionals minifeaturette gallery
--Gag reel
WALT DISNEY TREASURES Wave VIII
The popular WALT DISNEY TREASURES series continues with three new double-disc DVD sets from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. Each of the specially packaged collections includes never before seen bonus features on DVD that will delight Disney enthusiasts and fans of classic film and television alike. Available on November 11, 2008 in limited supply, all three WALT DISNEY TREASURES DVDs arrive just in time for the holidays.
THE CHRONOLOGICAL DONALD, VOLUME FOUR stars the short-tempered but hilarious Donald Duck in 31 films dating from 1951 through 1961 and presented for the first time on DVD in the original widescreen format. The final volume of the sputtering superstar's collected shorts, THE CHRONOLOGICAL DONALD, VOLUME FOUR includes WORKING FOR PEANUTS, Donald's 1954 foray into 3-D animation.
Special Features Include:
--Donald Goes To Press -- A retrospective look at Donald's prolific career in comic books.
--The Unseen Donald Duck: Trouble Shooters -- Storyboards for an unproduced Donald Duck cartoon pitched by famed Disney animator, Eric Goldberg.
--Audio Commentary by Leonard Maltin and Jerry Beck
THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB PRESENTS: ANNETTE stars Annette Funicello, Disney's most beloved Mouseketeer, in an original 20-episode serial on DVD for the 50th anniversary of the serial's conclusion. Adorable Annette plays a spunky country orphan who has to make big adjustments when she is sent to live with her sophisticated city cousins. Devoted MICKEY MOUSE CLUB fans will be delighted to see Tim Considine and David Stollery of SPIN AND MARTY in supporting roles.
Special Features Include:
--Musically Yours, Annette -- From a 1992 interview, Annette recalls her career as a recording star and her years on THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB. This mini documentary also includes interviews with Annette's fellow teen idols Paul Anka, Frankie Avalon and Fabian.
--To Annette, With Love -- A newly produced tribute to everyone's favorite Mouseketeer.
--THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB -- The first and last episodes of the popular television program
Based on the popular series of three novels, DR. SYN: THE SCARECROW OF ROMNEY MARSH tells the story of a mild-mannered parson by day who becomes the Scarecrow, an anonymous champion of the oppressed by night. All three original TV episodes of this WONDERFUL WORLD OF DISNEY miniseries are presented for the first time ever in widescreen format, with an all-new digital restoration 5.1 audio mix as well as the original restored mono track. The DVD also includes the theatrical film version, released exclusively in England.
Special Features Include:
--Dr. Syn: The History of the Legend -- A look at the evolution of the legend of Dr. Syn from his literary origins to the Walt Disney film version.
--Walt Disney: From Burbank To London -- A featurette about the first satellite studio established by Walt Disney in the 1950s in England.
--Walt Disney TV Introductions in Widescreen
Noted film historian, author, and critic Leonard Maltin provides exclusive commentary for the series. Each DVD is individually numbered, with an authenticity certificate, and an exclusive lithograph in the collectible, unique packaging tins. They are available in a limited supply only. Each DVD has a suggested retail price of $32.99 (U.S.) and $35.99 (Canada).
BAND OF BROTHERS On Blu-ray
Based on the bestseller by Stephen E. Ambrose, the epic 10-part miniseries BAND OF BROTHERS tells the story of Easy Company, 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division, U.S. Army. Drawn from interviews with survivors of Easy Company, as well as soldiers' journals and letters, BAND OF BROTHERS chronicles the experiences of these men who knew extraordinary bravery and extraordinary fear. Airing on HBO in 2001, BAND OF BROTHERS features vfx by Cinesite.
Special Features Include:
--DVD ROM Features: Weblinks to the original BAND OF BROTHERS Website and more
--Documentary: "We Stand Alone Together: The Men of Easy Company" -- 80 minute documentary featuring interviews with the real men of Easy Company
--Featurette: 30-minute "The Making of Band of Brothers"
--The Premiere On The Beaches of Normandy - includes interviews with Easy Company vetrans and heads of state for the United States, Great Britian, France and Canada.
--Interviews: Ron Livingston's Video Diaries - The experience of making BAND OF BROTHERS through the eyes of one actor.
--Other: Interactive "Field Guide": An extensive reference feature that details the people, places and events associated with Easy Company's campaigns through Europe, and World War II as a whole, including sections such as: soldiers, timelines, maps, chain-of-command and glossary of terms.
--Scene Access
Blu-ray Exclusives Include:
--Picture-in-picture commentary by the Easy Company veterans
--Interactive field guide, featuring timelines, maps, soldier profiles and more.
STORM HAWKS: SHOWDOWN IN THE SKIES On DVD
STORM HAWKS: SHOWDOWN IN THE SKIES soars onto DVD November 11 from Sony Pictures Home Ent. In addition to the final 13 episodes of the first season; the two-disc DVD contains an exclusive bonus feature -- "Storm Hawks Fleet" -- a 360 degree view of the vehicle transformations from the show. Cartoon Network's hit kids 3D animated series was produced by Ken Faier, Asaph "Ace" Fipke and Nerd Corps Ent. This latest volume follows the previously released STORM HAWKS COLLECTORS SET: HEROES OF THE SKY and will be available for $24.94 SRP.
The action-packed series follows five heroic and fearless teens, a squad of Sky Knight protectors who call themselves the Storm Hawks. Riding motorcycles transformed into flying machines and powered by the air's energy-generating crystals, the Storm Hawks defend the people of Atmos against the evil oppressors of Cyclonia. These daring warriors, shifting gears from easy riders to easy gliders, patrol Atmos's largely mountainous world against the worst villains ever to hit the skies.
Episodes Include:
"A Little Trouble"
"Thunder Run"
"Escape!"
"Forbidden City"
"Leviathan"
"Infinnity"
"Terra Neon"
"The Storm Hawks Seven"
"Talon Academy"
"Siren's Song"
"Calling All Domos"
"The Lesson"
"Dude, Where's My Condor"
DVD Special Features Include:
--"Storm Hawks Fleet" -- a 360 degree view of the vehicle transformations from the show.
SHAUN THE SHEEP: OFF THE BAA! On DVD
SHAUN THE SHEEP, an all-new series from Aardman Animations, will have Wallace & Gromit fans cracking up over new barnyard adventures. After Shaun first appeared in the 1995 Oscar-winning Wallace & Gromit short film, A CLOSE SHAVE, the popularity of the character led to a spin-off series of 40 seven-minute episodes, which currently air as one of the top-five shorts on the Disney Channel.
One of the most mischievous, adventurous and entertaining animals on the farm, Shaun deals with situational comedy conflicts in each episode. Combining slapstick humor and classic silent comedy, SHAUN THE SHEEP will have fans of all ages flocking to the new DVD to enjoy all his wacky, wooly antics!
SHAUN THE SHEEP: OFF THE BAA! contains these eight comical adventures:
--"Off the Baa" -- Shaun turns a head of cabbage into a soccer ball for the ultimate midday soccer match. But he has to watch out -- the neighboring Naughty Pigs look to steal the ball for an afternoon snack!
--"Timmy in a Tizzy" -- Little lamb Timmy is in tears when his stuffed teddy bear is in the clutches of the Farmer.
--"Buzz Off Bees" -- An altercation with a lone bee incites the hive into retaliation against the flock. Can Shaun take the sting out of a bad situation?
--"Who is the Mummy" -- The newly-hatched chicks think Shaun is their mom. Will Shaun be able to get rid of them?
--"Mower Mouth" -- Here's a goat with an appetite for... everything. When the mad muncher gets loose, he takes Shaun for the ride of his life.
--"Fleeced" -- It's wool-shearing time. From sabotaging the clippers to hiding in disguise, the flock will do anything to keep their wool on. It's THE GREAT ESCAPE -- sheep style.
--"Shaun Shoots the Sheep" -- Say cheese! When tourists leave a camera behind, the sheep are ready for their close-ups. But when the Naughty Pigs swipe the clicker, it becomes a fight to the photo finish.
--"Mountains Out Of Molehills" -- It's a mole lotta trouble! When a mole creates earthly havoc around the barnyard, the flock takes action to get rid of him.
DVD Special Features:
--Meet the Animals
--Video Game Sneak Peeks -- Nintendo's SHAUN THE SHEEP and Telltale Games' WALLACE & GROMIT'S GRAND ADVENTURES
PINGU'S SOUTH POLE ADVENTURES On DVD
Join the ultimate party penguin, Pingu, in PINGU'S SOUTH POLE ADVENTURES, a cool new collection of eight snowy and hilarious adventures sliding onto DVD November 11, 2008 from Lionsgate and HIT Ent.
Take a trip to the South Pole where you'll find him chilling with the Abominable Snowman, getting his first job and dancing the night away in his igloo. Laugh along as he learns the hard way that penguins can't fly, plays tag with his sister, and takes a trip on a motorized sled for the very first time.
PINGU'S SOUTH POLE ADVENTURES includes:
--"Pingu and the Abominable Snowman" -- Pingu makes a new friend: a snow monster.
--"Pingu and the Daily Igloo" -- Pingu gets a paper route, which ends up being a lot more work than our frosty-feathered friend anticipated.
--"Pingu Boogaloo" -- Pingu gets his groove on to his favorite song, though getting to hear the song in its entirety takes a lot of maneuvering around several obstacles and distractions.
--"Pinga Sleepwalks" -- Pinga is sleepwalking and Pingu follows his baby sister on a harrowing nocturnal stroll.
--"Pingu Tries to Fly" -- Pingu sets out to fly (despite being a flightless species of bird) and hilarious results abound.
--"Pingu Plays Tag" -- A harmless game of hide-and-seek finds Pingu trapped in an unexpectedly high-perched situation.
--"Pingu Gets Carried Away" -- A driving lesson from Father proves even good intentions can quickly turn into mayhem thanks to an out-of-control sled.
--"Pingu's Big Catch" -- Pingu goes ice fishing and catches everything but fish. Misfortune soon takes a turn for the better, though, when a junk collector comes along and buys Pingu's trove of trash with an enormous fish.
DVD Special Features:
--Pingu's Family Album -- a character gallery
--Snowball Roll and Bowl Game -- an interactive game
