Holiday Gift Guide: Older DVDs/Blu-rays

Today I present another list of movies. This one is targeted towards those that are on a bit tighter of a budget or are simply thriftier than others.  There are 5 movies on this list from the past few years that you can probably get or pretty cheap most places.  All but one of them are animated but don’t let that throw you; they are all worth the time of whoever will be receiving them.

Superman: Doomsday

            DC has had some amazing animated movies lately some of which are even better than the Marvel live-action films.  This list has three of these spectacular films and here lies the first.  It is an incredible tale that deals with how important Superman is to those in his life whether it’s Lois Lane or Lex Luthor.  It is a more mature animated film, actually all three on this list are, it deals with the loss of a hero and any long time Superman fans will love it, but it will also be enjoyable for those who only know a little about the character.  

Green Lantern: First Flight

            The next DC Universe film on the list is an origin story for one of comics’ greatest heroes.  I still haven’t seen the live action Green Lantern movie but from the reviews of that one I feel really confident in saying that this is the best Green Lantern movie out there.  Like I mentioned above this is a more mature film then you might expect because it is animated.  It is sort of like a crime drama where an innocent rookie gets partnered with a dirty cop because the Green Lanterns are galactic police and there is some moral ambiguity when trying to find the best way to protect everyone.  Teens and adults who like superheroes will love it; you don’t have to know a lot about Green Lantern going in because it is a great origin tale.

Batman: Under the Red Hood

            This is the final DC film on this list and to be frank the best.  Unfortunately it doesn’t feature the voices from the animated series that everyone knows and loves but the guys they hired do a great job in their place.  It is the darkest of the three films, definitely PG-13 much like the Dark Knight.  In fact next to The Dark Knight this is my favourite Batman film ever and yes that does include Batman Begins.  For any of the Batman lovers on your list this is a must and after they watch it they will think you are the greatest.  Note: The greatest after Batman.

Halo: Legends

            Halo has a vast universe set up in its fiction, luckily you don’t really need to read all the books and what not to enjoy the games.  If, however, you know someone who just loves the game’s universe you might want to get them this.  It is an anthology of eight short films each involving other types of characters from the Halo mythology.  For instance there is an episode about ODSTs, one about Marines, one about a former Arbiter and so on.  Each episode was made by a different Japanese animation studio so they are all unique and have their own appeal.  This set gets very series because it is about war and I know many parents buy these games for kids, but they won’t grasp the emotion and intensity that is present in some of these episodes.  Also just a heads up, one of the episodes is non canon and meant as a humorous take on the series so don’t rage at it like I did for all of its mistakes.

Kick-Ass

            Superhero/comicbook adaptations are everywhere now.  One of the best ones that I have ever seen comes not from the iconic Marvel or DC universes but from a team working for one of Marvel’s subsidiaries.  Going into this film all I knew was what I had heard from other people who had seen it or some coverage on TV and maybe a trailer.  It blew me away and if you have anyone on your list who ever wanted to be a hero (who hasn’t) and doesn’t mind a lot of bloody violence, swear words and some sexual content get them this movie.  Also it is a Nicolas Cage film that doesn’t suck, so for that alone you have to show it to people.

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Holiday Gift Guide: New DVDs/Blu-rays

            This is a list of 10 great movies that were released this year on DVD or Blu-ray, which you should consider buying for your friends and/or loved ones this holiday season.  There are more articles on the way soon so stay tuned for those.  Also this is in no particular order.


Thor

            Marvel did a surprisingly good job with this movie.  The settings along with the special and visual effects are incredible; Asgard is an amazing site to see.  If you’re shopping for someone who loves Marvel, it doesn’t really matter what age, this is a solid choice.  It is also an important movie to see for anyone who is looking forward to The Avengers.  For those of you who don’t know the film it is about Thor the Norse God of Thunder, who has his powers taken away from him and then gets banished to Earth.  He must then try to accept his banishment and adapt to the new world, which isn’t that hard because he gets to be with Natalie Portman all the time.  Best…punishment…ever!

The Lincoln Lawyer

            This is a great Legal Thriller starring Matthew McConaughey who delivers, in my opinion, his best performance to date.  The film does a great job of building tension and while I don’t believe it’s great for repeat viewings because the suspense and tension is obviously lower when you know what is going to happen, it is great the first time around.  So while you could just rent it for yourself, you can’t do that for your friends, so why not buy it for them.  It wasn’t a blockbuster by any means so there is a really good chance that whoever you get it for hasn’t seen it.  The film is about murder and the law so obviously not for kids, but I think the mature adults on your list might really enjoy it.

X-Men First Class

            For those of you who have seen any of the past X-Men movies you should know that this is not related in any way.  It is a reboot of the series and once again deviates quite heavily from the comics.  That being said it is my favourite X-Men movie, seeing Charles and Eric meet and become friends is something that any X-Men fan on your list will love.  This is targeted for an older audience than Thor because of the more mature story and characters.  Also it is quite different than most superhero films so those who don’t usually like them might enjoy this one.

Star Wars: The Complete Saga

            You most likely have someone on your list that is a fan of Star Wars.  If they are they will love it, if they are super-fans they will hate it but get the satisfaction of hurling insults at it or burning it out of contempt for George Lucas’s changes.  If they haven’t seen Star Wars before this is a great opportunity to forever influence them and turn them over to the nerd side.  You should all know that this is essentially for all ages and as I said great for pretty much anyone.

The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy

            For those of you who don’t feel like buying someone the Star Wars collection because maybe they prefer fantasy to sci-fi, you’re in luck.  This is an awesome gift for any fantasy lover and one that LOTR fans will rejoice over.  Not only does it come with the three films in their extended editions but it also comes with nine DVDs of bonus footage!  This film series is much darker than Star Wars so if you are giving it to people who haven’t seen it before they should probably be at least teenagers and willing to give up the rest of their holiday to watch it all.

Captain America: The First Avenger

            If you need more ideas for any Marvel fans on your list this is the last I’ve got.  Captain America tells the story of a man who has always dreamed of doing great things but has always been picked on due to his size, quite familiar I know.  Then he is recruited for a genetic experiment that turns him into a super solider who kills Nazis.  Now we’re talking!  It stars Chris Evans who is great in every role he gets. The film is a great addition to any Marvel fan’s collection and once again helps set up the Avengers film next summer.  It’s also great for any alternative history buffs out there!

Sucker Punch

            The first movie to ever be reviewed on this site is a lot of fun.  It is filled with awesome action, special & visual effects and an incredible soundtrack.  It also features some sexy yet incredibly badass female leads, which is better than what we usually get which is attractive women used as nothing more than eye candy.  The story is very dark and while it isn’t gory you might want to respect the R rating due to the sexual themes throughout.  Also it is heavily influenced by video games so gamers are probably the ones on your list who will appreciate this film the most.

Tron: Legacy     

            Like Sucker Punch this film has an amazing soundtrack and while the action isn’t as good the effects are much better.  If you know any sci-fi fans they will easily get lost in the incredible world of The Grid, which happens to exist inside of computers.  Some people complained about the story but I enjoyed it and you don’t have to see the first movie to understand it since almost every character is new and everything you need to know gets explained eventually.  Kids probably won’t get what’s going on but they will like all the effects, the film is best suited for teens and adults.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

            This series tends to divide many people, mainly critics and fans, but I am a Transformers fan and I enjoy this series.  The third isn’t the best and has a lot of weird flaws like for some reason the Transformers now have a red liquid inside of them that wasn’t there before so that it looks like blood when they fight.  I guess some people couldn’t get the same message from sparks that they do from red liquid.  Anyway if you have a Transformers fan on your list who liked the others he is sure to enjoy this one as well.  The humour is pretty immature so older fans of the classic series may not enjoy this as much as a teenage fan would.

The Lion King

            For those of you looking for a family friendly gift that you can give to kids or actually just about anyone this is it.  The Disney classic is on Blu-ray and who doesn’t enjoy a Disney film now and again.  It is great for families to sit down and watch together and a way to share a movie that you probably enjoyed when you were younger with the next generation.

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Weekly Wrap Up

Never Dead release date

            Konami’s latest IP is a little violent and a lot weird.  If you don’t know about this game yet it is about a demon hunter in a modern age who has been cursed with immortality.  Despite what they say it isn’t the first game to feature an immortal protagonist, Lost Odyssey & Otogi 2 springs to mind, but it does more with the ability than any other.  When in combat your limbs and head get blown off and you must run, hop or role your way around to put yourself back together.  The combat will also change a bit as you will have only one hand to shot with and what not.  The way they seem to be playing up the immortality makes it seem like you can’t actually get a game over, just get relentlessly torn to bits over and over again.  Personally I’m not that excited about the game but for anyone looking for a wacky and different gaming experience you might want to clear some room for Feb 2.

Metal Gear: Rising gets a new producer

            I don’t know about you guys but I am eagerly awaiting the release of MGS: Rising.  Unfortunately the game hasn’t been shown off lately and the team keeps switching control.  First Kojima, the series’ creator, gave his position to Shigenobu Matsuyama so that he could work on a new game and now Matsuyama has handed it off to Yuji Korekado.  Whenever control transfers (more like transfarrs, am I right Kojima) on a project it takes time to reassess and organize, especially on a project the size of a triple A video game.  I’m worried that all the transfers will cause the game further delays and quite frankly I want a new Metal Gear experience instead of just HD-Remakes and 3DS ports.  Also there were rumours circulating again about MGS5.  They were also proven to be meaningless since PSM-UK had an interview with Kojima where he stated, “I think we’ll probably have to make it at some point, but what that will be, we have no idea,” so claim down it isn’t coming anytime soon.  

More news on Gears 3 DLC

            Epic has already released the Horde Command Pack for Gears of War 3 and has now revealed more details about the next add-on.  I already knew and wrote that it would feature Michael Barrick from Zeta Squad in the Gears novels.  Now I know who else will be featured and what it will be called.  Both of which can be revealed at the same time: “RAAM’s Shadow”.  For those who didn’t play the original Gears of War you probably don’t know who General RAAM is.  He was the first game’s main adversary and final boss and now you can play as him and tear apart the COG.  It is pretty interesting to play the other side of the war and while I tend not to bother with DLC if it is more than a few hours I just might buy it, if for nothing else but to finally make others experience the pain of the Kryll.  It will be released on Dec 13^th.

Oh so many games

            This past week saw the release of many video games and here is a list of some of the biggest in case you were confussed by the number of titles or simply too busy playing Skyrim to notice.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations

Halo Combat Evolved: Anniversary

Need For Speed: The Run

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Saints Row: The Third

Rayman: Origins 

For all the latest updates on the blog be sure to follow me on Twitter @Aeonofdoom360  and be sure to let me know what you think in the comments section below, no sign up or registration needed.