50 Most Anticipated Films Of 2008: #30 - #21

Okay, things are getting a bit more serious now. The next 10 of my most anticipated flicks in 2008 come under the umbrella of movies I'm quite excited about seeing:

30. How To Lose Friends
And Alienate People

dir: Robert B. Weide / 3 October

Simon Pegg stars as a disillusioned magazine publisher, who has a love/hate relationship with fame and celebrity -- later becoming the very thing he's rallied against all his life. Comedy drama based on Toby Young's best-selling memoir, co-starring Transformers hottie Megan Fox, Kirsten Dunst, Jeff Bridges and Gillian Anderson. A little teaser can be found here.

29. The Box
dir: Richard Kelly / autumn

After the catastrophe of Southland Tales, Donnie Darko writer-director has a make or break chance to satisfy his fans – with this big-screen adaptation of a story by renowned sci-fi author Richard Matheson. The Box concerns a couple (Seann William Scott and Cameron Diaz) who discover a wooden box that can bring them untold fortunes... but at a moral cost.

28. Angels & Demons
dir: Ron Howard / 19 December

Prequel to The Da Vinci Code, again directed by Ron Howard, with Tom Hanks reprising his role as academic Robert Langton. Da Vinci may have underwhelmed audiences and disappointed fans, but its written prequel is a cut above its more renowned forbearer. The plot concerns a serial killer in Rome, who has planted a bomb in the Vatican...

27. Get Smart
dir: Peter Segal / 20 June

Big screen remake of Mel Brooks' cult spy spoof, starring Steve Carrell (US TVs The Office) as Maxwell Smart, an inept secret agent who has to save the world with the help of sexy Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway). Co-starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Alan Arkin, Masi Oka (Heroes) and Terence Stamp. Click here for a little teaser.

26. The Day The Earth Stood Still
dir: Scott Derrickson / 12 December

Remake of the 1951 science-fiction classic about an alien (Keanu Reeves) and his humanoid robot, who arrive on Earth to warn world leaders that continued aggression will lead to self-annihilation… but find nothing but fear and prejudice from mankind.

25. Pineapple Express
dir: David Gordon / 8 August

Yet another Judd Apatow-produced comedy, this one focusing on two stoner friends (James Franco and Seth Rogen; reuniting after TVs Freaks & Geeks) who go on the run from the police after they witness a cop kill someone. Co-stars Bill Hader, James Remar (Dexter) and Gary Cole. For a full scene, head over here.

24. The X-Files 2
dir: Chris Carter / summer

Second big-screen adventure for iconic FBI agents Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson). This will apparently be a standalone paranormal mystery set in the television series' mid-90s history. Co-starring Amanda Peet (the best thing about Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip), rapper Xzibit and… um, Billy Connelly.

23. Iron Man
dir: Jon Favreau / 2 May

Superhero adventure based on the successful Marvel comic-book character. A billionaire weapons designer (Robert Downey, Jr) suffers a heart injury in Afghanistan and builds himself a flying suit of armour to defeat criminals. Co-starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges and Leslie Bibb. The international teaser trailer is here.

22. The Fighter
dir: Darren Aronofsky / autumn

An Irish boxer (Brad Pitt) struggles to become world light welterweight champion after his half-brother is nearly killed by drugs and crime trying to accomplish the same feat. A crucial film for Aronofsky, who stumbled last year with arty sci-fi The Fountain after the critically-adored Requiem For A Dream and compelling debut Pi.

21. The Time Traveler's Wife
dir: Robert Schwentke / winter

Romantic drama based on the celebrated novel by Audrey Niffenegger, about a librarian (Eric Bana) with a genetic defect that causes him to involuntarily jump around in his own lifetime -- causing heartache and problems for his linear wife (rising star Rachel McAdams from Enchanted).

Tomorrow: a lion roars, an 80s icon returns, a spooky disaster, a red demon, a hated superhero, and much more...

ROBIN HOOD 2.12-2.13 - "A Good Day To Die" & "We Are Robin Hood"

Writer: Dominic Minghella

Director: David Evans

Cast: Jonas Armstrong (Robin), Lucy Griffiths (Marian), Keith Allen (Sheriff), Richard Armitage (Guy Of Gisborn), Sam Troughton (Much), Gordon Kennedy (Little John), Harry Lloyd (Will Scarlett), Joe Armstrong (Allan-a-Dale), Anjali Jay (Djak), Agost Zord (George), Paul Usher (Ellingham), Gabor Nagypal (Mercenary Messenger), Rela Gados (Innkeeper), Abhin Galeya (Nasir), Mark Smith (Karim), Nadima Sawalha (Bassam), Konnie Huq (Konnie), Joseph Kennedy (Carter), Steven Waddington (King Richard) & Berna Illyes (Soldier James)

Robin and the gang are trapped in a barn, surrounded by mercenaries, while the Sheriff and Guy head to the Middle East to assassinate King Richard...

Warning! Spoilers! Warning! Spoilers!

Robin Hood's much-improved second year sprints to a close with a double-bill, both written by series creator Dominic Minghella. The first episode, A Good Day To Die, is essentially a cost-cutting exercise with the gang trapped in a barn surrounded by mercenaries, led by Ellingham (Paul Usher), on Robin's birthday...

The insurmountable odds of a 5 against 100 situation references 300's Battle of Thermopylae, before Djak (Anjali Jay) manages to keep the mercenaries at bay by threatening them with "black powder" explosives. From there, the bulk of the episode is taken up with Robin (Jonas Armstrong) trying to celebrate his birthday, whilst simultaneously thinking up a last stand attack that will likely result in their deaths.

Djak proposes a customary truth-telling game before they attack at dawn, which gives her the chance to tell Will (Harry Lloyd) how much she loves him. This is all very well, and a plausible development for their characters, but it just comes out of nowhere! I can't remember any foreshadowing of Djak/Will even fancying each other, so their mutual declaration of deep love rings very hollow.

Meanwhile, the Sheriff (Keith Allen) and Guy (Richard Armitage) are planning to assassinate King Richard themselves, leaving England from Portsmouth. Marian (Lucy Griffiths), now unmasked as the Nightwatchman by Guy, hears of the dastardly plot by snoop Alan (Joe Armstrong) and tries to kill the Sheriff herself. Unfortunately, she fails in her own assassination attempt, and and Guy is forced to tell the Sheriff about her treachery and true identity.

At the barn, Much (Sam Troughton) once again gets upset about how his close relationship with Robin has deteriorated since they both returned from the Crusades, Robin tells the gang he's engaged to Marian, and Little John (Gordon Kennedy) regrets not being around for his family.

Later, the Sheriff, Guy and Alan take Marian as their prisoner to Portsmouth (via a "Road To Portsmouth" that, handily, runs directly from Nottingham?) The Sheriff expects his mercenaries to slaughter Robin's gang when the barn standoff reaches its inevitable end, but Alan's good side bubbles to the surface after talking with Marian, and he returns home to rescue his old friends -- seconds before their last stand gets underway. However, Ellingham quickly realizes he's been hoodwinked and the reunited gang are forced to fight to the death.

A Good Day To Die is okay, but merely the appetizer for the finale's main course. The sudden romance between Djak and Will is badly crowbarred into the story, Much's incompetence and whining has twisted his character's role as comic relief into an irritating liability, and we get another allusion to the Sheriff and Guy having a sexual relationship in a weird dream sequence!

Still, I appreciated the efforts to put more characterisation into the episode, and there were some worthwhile developments for Marian and Allan -- but the episode ultimately just laid some foundations and focused your attentions on where each character's relationship stands right now, before episode 13...

We Are Robin Hood is where the double-bill's real action is to be found. Having survived their encounter with the mercenaries, Robin and his gang have followed the Sheriff to the Holy Land, briefed by Allan about the plot to assassinate King Richard (Steven Waddington) as part of operation Shah Mat.

At Acre, the Sheriff outlines his plan for a Saracen called Nasir (Abhin Galeya) to pose as Saladin's messenger and convince the King to meet Saladin -- alone. With the King drawn out into the open to secure peace and end the Holy War, the Sheriff will kill his own monarch and secure power and importance under the kingship of Prince John.

Robin's gang soon bump into blonde warrior Carter (Joseph Kennedy), from the Get Carter episode, and they all head off to warn King Richard that his life's in danger. Unfortunately, the Sheriff has already primed the King to expect an assassination attempt from a "trusted friend" -- so, despite Robin's apparently good intentions and personal history with the King, his gang come under suspicion and are later strung up in the scorching desert... left to die, if God wills it.

Imprisoned Marian can do very little to help anyone, but she appeals to Guy's sense of decency to stop the assassination. As a final resort, she agrees to marry him if he kills the Sheriff, but Guy is too focused on his thirst for power, and his loyalty to the Sheriff has now become unbreakable.

King Richard agrees to meet Saladin alone in the desert, believing the fake messenger sent by the Sheriff (who was in possession of a genuine seal and password). In the desert, the gang face certain death together (not for the first time, eh?), before the Sheriff arrives with Marian (in a true Lawrence Of Arabia horizon moment) and enjoys a good gloat... before leaving Marian behind with them to die. This gives Robin his last opportunity to exchange marriage vows with Marian, with his friends as witnesses...

Just when it seems the end is nigh, heroic Carter arrives and frees the gang from their bonds, believing they've been framed by the Sheriff -- and they all head off to thwart the King's assassination. Indeed, with the Sheriff and Guy watching from atop a sand dune, their assassin approaches King Richard -- only to discover England's monarch is actually Robin in disguise! A mass fight ensues, with everyone eventually riding off across some epic sandy landscape to a nearby town, for a final standoff...

During the ensuing fight in the deserted town, the Sheriff takes an opportunity to kill Carter, before managing to shoot an arrow into the King's back (I'm so glad they've made the Sheriff more pro-active in his villainy lately!) Guy rushes over to finish him off, but Marian appears and pleads desperately for him stop -- also revealing her love for Robin Hood. Unable to accept the shocking news, Guy plunges a sword into Marian's stomach and leaves her for dead.

With the King receiving medical attention, Robin comforts Marian, but it becomes clear that removing the sword will end her life. They proclaim their undying love for each other, before she takes the sword out herself... and dies. The King make a full recovery and attends Marian's funeral in the Holy Land. As Robin and his gang prepare to leave for England as the King's official representatives back home, Will and Djak inform Robin of their intention to stay behind and carve out a new life for themselves.

And there it ends, with a surprisingly emotional climax. We Are Robin Hood was pretty epic at times, making great use of the real locations (with minimal need for special-effects). The story was pretty thin, but it moved fast and kept you guessing. Above all, it was just nice to see the season as a whole come into sharp focus in the finale, with the year's more cohesive plots all leading up to this point.

People and ideas set-up earlier in the season -- Carter, the Black Knights, Allan's treachery, Marian/Guy's strained romance, the assassination plot, the pigeon messages, Robin/Marian's engagement -- they all had some degree of pay-off in the finale, which was great to see.

Steven Waddington was a fine choice for King Richard; macho, noble, handsome, and a plausibly charismatic man who would command respect from his people. The supporting cast of ethnic actors were also solid and the script was careful not to give in too easily to stereotypes (and did you spot Blue Peter's Konnie Huq in a small role?)

Not everything worked brilliantly: plucky Marian was disappointingly marginalized for most of the finale, the gang encounter certain death so often it no longer has any impact, and over-emotional Much spoiled the touching Robin/Marian moment during their "marriage", but for the most part the finale worked perfectly.

Of course, the talking point is going to be the brave (foolhardy?) decision to kill Marian. I don't know for sure, but I assume Lucy Griffiths asked to leave the show -- probably because she was only contracted for 2 seasons and didn't fancy spending half of 2008 filming in Hungary again. Likewise Anjali Jay and Harry Lloyd. I can understand the actors' reasoning for wanting out now, but it's a massive blow to the show. A big part of the Robin Hood myth is the Robin/Marian romance, so can the show cope without that?

In terms of characterisation, Robin Hood has been most successful with the Marian/Guy/Robin triangle, which will now be obsolete. The only positive is that Marian's death will make scenes between killer Guy and "widowed" Robin even juicer next year -- but the cost of losing the underrated Griffiths is a high one. Perhaps most alarmingly, it's the end of the Robin/Marian relationship that always underpinned the Hood legend and helped make it one of the great folk legends.

So it's with mixed feelings that I leave Robin Hood's second season. It was an undoubted improvement on the stilted first year; the quality was mostly consistent, the storylines were more original, the production looked fresher, the locations became more expansive, plots were more cohesive episode-to-episode, and the finale was the cherry on top...

But the loss of Anjali Jay, Harry Lloyd and especially Lucy Griffiths has me concerned about what season 3 has in store: a miserable, grieving Robin seeking revenge on Guy... before a rosy-cheeked Marian replacement turns up, I expect. But Lucy Griffiths will be hard to replace... and is anyone else disappointed Carter was killed, too?


29 December 2007
BBC1, 7.00 pm

50 Most Anticipated Films Of 2008: #40 - #31

Continuing my countdown of films that are "on my radar" for 2008. If yesterday's back ten are movies that have me slightly intrigued, today's 10 can probably have me quite curious...

40. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
dir: Nicholas Stoller / 30 May

Possibly to be retitled Dumped, this comedy comes from the team behind Knocked Up and Superbad. It concerns a man (Paul Rudd) who breaks up from his girlfriend (yummy Kristen Bell) and goes to Hawaii to get over her, only to find she's travelled to the same resort with her new boyfriend, a weird British rocker (our very own Russell Brand). Grab the trailer here.

39. Be Kind Rewind
dir: Michel Gondry / 23 January

Oddball comedy from the stylish director of Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, about two video rental clerks (Mos Def and Jack Black) who decide to personally remake the films they stock, after all their cassettes are accidentally wiped clean. A hilarious oddball concept, or tedious excuse for some low-budget parodies? We'll see. The trailer is here.

38. Scanners
dir: Darren Lynn Bousman / 17 October

Inevitable remake of David Cronenberg's 1981 horror classic, from the director of the Saw sequels. The premise involves a subculture of humans with the ability to control minds, known as "scanners". This remake bound to annoy Cronenberg's fans, but the premise is probably due a slick update, as the original is quite creaky. Just wait for the inevitable "which exploding head scene was better?" debates.

37. Horton Hears A Who!
dir: Jimmy Hayward & Steve Martino / 14 March

Computer-animation based on a Dr Seuss novel, with Jim Carrey voicing an elephant called Horton who discovers an entire world of people living on a speck of dust. After tedious live-action dabbling with Seuss' books (the plodding Grinch, the sickening Cat In The Hat), the nifty trailer looks like CGI is definitely the way to go.

36. Burn After Reading
dir: Joel & Ethan Cohen / winter

A disk containing the memoirs of a CIA agent comes into the possession of two gym instructors, who attempt to tell it. Starring George Clooney, John Malkovich, Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton.

35. RocknRolla
dir: Guy Ritchie / autumn

London-based crime film from Guy Ritchie (Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels), about a Russian mobster's shady dealings. Stars Gerard Butler (300), Jeremy Piven, Thandie Newton and Tom Wilkinson.

34. Valkryie
dir: Bryan Singer / 27 June

Bryan Singer leaves comic-book superheroes behind for this true life drama about German soldier's plan to murder Adolf Hitler. Stars Tom Cruise as Stauffenberg the assassin, Bill Nighy and Kenneth Branagh. March to the trailer here.

33. The Love Guru
dir: Marco Schnabel / 20 June

Mike Myers make a belated return to physical form (after voicing Shrek movies post-Austin Powers) with another crazy character; Pita, the eponymous love guru, and his attempt to break into America's self-help culture. Co-starring Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake and Ben Kingsley.

32. The International
dir: Tom Twyker / 15 August

Run Lola Run director Tom Twyker returns with this espionage thriller, starring Clive Owen as an Interpol agent trying to expose a financial institutes's involvement in arms dealing. Co-stars the superb Naomi Watts.

31. Wanted
dir: Timur Bekmambetov / 28 March

The visionary Russian director of the Night Watch/Day Watch movies makes his western debut, with this high-octane action thriller based on a graphic novel by Mark Millar. It stars James McAvoy as an ordinary man who discovers his father was a top assassin and is trained by Morgan Freeman to replace him. Co-stars Angelina Jolie (back on ass-kicking duties) and the steely gravitas of Terence Stamp.

Tomorrow: Simon Pegg returns, before Da Vinci, the truth is out there, an iron superman, Keanu Reeves arrives on Earth, and much more...

50 Most Anticipated Films Of 2008: #50 - #41

2007 is firmly behind us now, so it's time to look ahead at what 2008 will bring... in terms of movie entertainment. There are 50 films that I'm personally looking forward to, for a variety of reasons.

Many of the films listed will be quite mediocre (or awful), but that's not the point. The point is: I'm excited, eager, keen, or just intrigued enough to keep an eye on them...

I'll be offering up 10 a day for... um, 5 days. Any available release dates are for the US premiere.

50. Zack And Miri Make A Porno
dir: Kevin Smith / winter

Seth Rogen (Knocked Up) and Elizabeth Banks (Slither) star as platonic friends who decide to solve their cash-flow problems by making a porno together. Sex comedy from Kevin Smith, the cult director of Dogma, Clerks and Chasing Amy.

49. Trailer Trash
dir: Eli Roth / 22 August

Inspired by his experience directing a fake trailer for Grindhouse (by far the best aspect of that double-bill turkey last summer), Hostel director Eli Roth is now planning a whole film made up of fake horror movie trailers. The gore-obsessed filmmaker has already confirmed that a second trailer for Thanksgiving will appear, as will a trailer for The Leap Year Killer...

48. The Changeling
dir: Clint Eastwood / tbc

Angelina Jolie plays a woman whose kidnapped son is returned, but may not be the child she actually lost. Unusual subject matter for the legendary Eastwood to direct, as he usually focuses on heartwarming drama (Bridges Over Madison County) or war films (Letters From Iwo Jima), written by J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5).

47. The Mummy: Tomb Of
The Dragon Emperor
dir: Rob Cohen / 1 August

An unnecessary (unwanted?) sequel to a franchise that already began to strain credibility with The Mummy Returns. This time Rob Cohen (xXx) wrangles the special effects, Brendan Fraser and John Hannah are back for more, but indie darling Maria Bello replaces Rachel Weisz. Expect more of the same, but with an Asian vibe, as the tomb-raiding family try to stop Jeti Li's bandaged-baddie.

46. Fanboys
dir: Kyle Newman / tbc

In 1999, two Star Wars fans travel to the Skywalker Ranch to steal an early copy of The Phantom Menace to show their dying friend. Stars Sam Huntington, Dan Fogler, Jay Baruchel... and the scrumptious Kristen Bell in a Princess Leia bikini. Catch the trailer here.

45. 10,000 B.C
dir: Roland Emmerich / 7 March

The director of Independence Day delivers another visual extravaganza; but this time based on reality. 10,000 B.C follows a lone mammoth-hunter on an adventure across dangerous terrain, to secure the safety of his tribe. Hunt down the trailer here.

44. The Forbidden Kingdom
dir: Rob Minoff / 18 April

An American kung fu obsessive travels to China and becomes embroiled with a gang of martial arts warriors, to help free an imprisoned "Monkey King". Starring Jet Li, Jackie Chan and Michael Angarano. Take a sneak look here.

43. Choke
dir: Clark Gregg / summer

This is an adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk's popular novel, concerning a sex-addict (Sam Rockwell) who fakes choking in restaurants and has an unusual family lineage. Palahniuk has won a big following since his first novel Fight Club became a touchstone for disillusioned youths after David Fincher turned it into a modern classic. And, while I personally didn't like Choke anywhere near as much, it could certainly be elevated to greatness in the cinema.

42. Babylon A.D
dir: Mathieu Kassovitz / 29 August

Vin Diesel plays a mercenary who must escort a woman from Russia to China, unaware she's carrying an organism that a cult wants to produce a genetically-modified Messiah. Children Of Men-esque, no? But from the director of Gothika. Ahem.

41. Son Of Rambow
dir: Garth Jennings / 2 May

This Sundance 2007 critical hit gets a worldwide release. Directed by the talent behind The Hitch-Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy movie, it's set in the world of some children obsessed with films in the 1980s -- particularly First Blood's anti-hero Rambo.

Tomorrow: Brand on a beach, a Cronenberg remake, Dr. Seuss returns, Hitler, Mike Myers, and more...

Box Office Charts: w/e 4 January 2008

In the US, National Treausure hangs on at #1... the Chipmunks overtake I Am Legend, up from #3 to #2... indie hit Juno benefits from strong word-of-mouth, moving up 4 places to #5 in its second week of release... fantasy sea monster adventure The Water Horse limps in at #6... Aliens Vs Predator 2 goes down 1 place to #7... horror musical Sweeney Todd has perplexed US audiences, heading down from #5 to #9 in only its second week... and Enchanted re-enters the chart at #10 (presumably because there weren't many any feel-good releases for Christmas in the States... bah, humbug!)

US TOP 10

1. National Treasure: Book Of Secrets $54.5m
2. Alvin & The Chipmunks $41.3m
3. I Am Legend $39.1m
4. Charlie Wilson's War $19m
5. Juno $16.1m
6. The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep $14.1m
7. Aliens Vs Predator: Requiem $13.7m
8. P.S I Love You $13.6m
9. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street $11.9m
10. Enchanted $9.76m

In the UK, I Am Legend is the surprise Christmas hit, nudging The Golden Compass into second place... Enchanted and St Trinian's are the sugar n' spice of girl power flicks, holding at #3 and #4, respectively... animations Alvin & The Chipmunks and Bee Movie hang on mid-chart... bad reviews ensure Balls Of Fury pings in at lowly #7... drama The Kite Runner flies low at #8... P.S I Love You is doing well at #9, because it only goes on national release today... and Mr Magorium takes his last breath before shutting up shop at #10, methinks...

UK TOP 10

1. I Am Legend £11m
2. The Golden Compass £2.19m
3. Enchanted £2.15m
4. St. Trinian's £1.7m
5. Alvin & The Chipmunks £1.3m
6. Bee Movie £1.08m
7. Balls Of Fury £638k
8. The Kite Runner £468k
9. P.S I Love You £339k
10. Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium £223k

UK RELEASES THIS WEEK

LUST, CAUTION
During WWII, a young woman becomes wrapped up in emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure. Period drama from director Ang Lee.

P.S I LOVE YOU

A young woman discovers that her deceased husband has left her 10 letters to help her grief from beyond the grave. Romantic comedy starring Hillary Swank, Gerard Butler, Lisa Kudrow and Gina Gershon.

Hip! Hip! Blu-Ray!

I stayed with family over Christmas and, as luck would have it, my brothers have already taken the plunge in upgrading to HD (thanks to the recent purchase of a PS3 and a need to update their cheap CRT widescreen TV).

Hey, it's still early adopting, but I don't blame them! If you need a new TV, it makes sense to get a 1080p HD one, and if you're a gamer who's opted for the PS3, you'd be mad not to rent a few blu-rays. Even if HD-DVD eventually wins the HD format "war", you can always sell-on your PS3 and buy a HD-DVD player. Sony's Trojan horse tactic with their next-gen console has definitely worked in that respect...

So, seeing as my brothers had a Playstation 3, connected via HDMI to a brand new 32" Panasonic Viera HD television (able to display 1080p images at 60Hz), we took advantage of their next-gen purchases to view some blu-ray films...

And below is what I thought of each movie we watched (from Blockbusters' depressing small selection and a few titles ordered online from Lovefilm). The ratings only reference the picture quality, not the film's overall ranking. Oh, and my brothers don't have surround sound, so I can't really judge the discs aurally. But they all sounded fine in standard stereo.

Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

The first blu-ray to be watched was one of the formats' so-called "demo discs", apparently the best video transfer of the films its sandwiched between in the trilogy. I'm no fan of the film itself, but it's a wonderful disc to show off HD's capabilities. The 1080p picture is flawless and the levels of detail is remarkable: you can see every wisp of a beard in close-up, you notice all the tiny ropes spiderwebbing sails, the thousands of water droplets can be seen individually during seafaring sequences, and splinters on wood are suddenly in focus. Colours are sumptious, clean and smooth, too.

Of particular note was how more impressive the CGI creations are in HD, especially that "hammerheaded" henchman, the Kraken sea monster, and Davey Jones' squid-face. There is one scene in Cutler's office where you can see through his window, out across a jetty to a moored boat, then past it to the ocean's horizon... and everything is there to see. It's like you're there, seeing it with your own eyes. You can see tiny men standing on the jetty, a few seamen crawling around on the boat beyond, and other people walking along the beach to the left! These details are hazy smears (at best) on DVD, but seeing them really makes the film come to life. A superb viewing experience on every level.

Mission: Impossible III

A very clean and crisp experience, if not exactly jaw-dropping. You can see the pores on Tom Cruise's face, all the computer readouts are pin-sharp, the stone-white Vatican architecture looks brilliant, the night scenes in Shanghai are gorgeous (every skycraper window can be seen), and the explosions in the bridge attack are awesome. It's all very good, and a big improvement on the DVD experience, but the film itself lacks the variety to show-off what blu-ray is truly capable of.

Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix

A great film to test out how blu-ray handles darker films, with Potters' gloomy palette looking smooth and jet-black where it counts. It's a great transfer that outclasses the DVD purely because of how well it copes with the night-time visuals and CGI. Yes, even that shoddy-looking giant is somehow improved by the added detail 1080p affords. But the best stuff is in the Dumbledore vs Voldemort confrontation, with every shard of glass and droplet of water appearing pristine.

Blade Runner: The Final Cut

For anyone concerned that HD will just show-up older films' shortcomings, have no fear. Sure, some old-fashioned special-effects might look a bit shoddier now, but if the celluloid print has been maintained and the transfer to HD goes smoothly... the result is jaw-dropping, if Blade Runner is any indication! It's actually hard to believe this film is 25 years old, as it's simply gorgeous to look at on blu-ray and details are astonishing.

Honestly, the already-lauded cityscapes take on new dimensions on HD, and there isn't a dodgy moment to be found anywhere. The remastering has ensured Ridley Scott's masterpiece is crisp, smooth, rich and textured to the nth degree. A truly remarkable achievement. Every dot of light is visible, every background banner readable (check out the cinema billboard when Deckard enters that alleyway!), every drip of rain can be seen, and the colours are smooth as silk. I didn't ntoice any grain on the print and the special-effects (already decades ahead of their time), look like they were created last year. Just marvellous.

Apocalypto

This is a great disc for the spectacle of mother nature herself, free of obvious CGI tinkering and styling. The film takes place in the great outdoors and the detail/depth to the jungle environment is staggering at times, and improves at the film goes along -- check out the awesome river crossing sequence, or the amazing detail of the temples. Day, night, outside environments, human bodies, fast-moving visuals -- there's plenty here to test blu-ray, and I was surprised by immersive the film became when you're left gawping the scale and clarity of Apocalyto's natural beauty.

And there you have it. Clearly, I was very impressed. HD isn't the quantum leap in quality from VHS to DVD back in the late-90s, but it's quite amazing how more immersive and detailed the picture is. It's what DVD should have been from the start.

Not one of these blu-ray discs left me cold, and getting my own HD set-up is now a more enticing prospect. Blu-ray or HD-DVD, though. Hmmm. That's still the question.

DVD Releases: January 2008

Happy New Year! Do you have money left after Christmas? Perhaps some aunts slipped a few tenners into some Christmas cards, and you can hit the January sales for some DVDs? If so, here's my picks of the most notable Region 2 discs due for release this month...

7 JANUARY

The Fast & The Furious Collection
Secret Diary Of A Call Girl
Sicko
Wrong Turn 2: Dead End
Weeds: Season 1 & 2 Boxset


14 JANUARY

Boston Legal: Season 3
Death Proof
Earth - The Power Of The Planet
I Now Pronounce You Chuck And Larry
Scrubs: Season 6
Stargate Atlantis: Season 3


21 JANUARY

The Brave One [HD-DVD]
Disturbia [HD-DVD]
Eagle Vs. Shark
Family Guy Presents Blue Harvest
Kenny
Pan's Labyrinth [HD-DVD]
Shoot 'Em Up [DVD/BLU-RAY]
Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip
Superbad [BLU-RAY]
Superbad (2-Disc Special Edition)
Thundercats: Season 1


28 JANUARY

3:10 To Yuma [DVD/BLU-RAY]
Day Watch
The Kingdom
The Mighty Boosh: Series 3
The Mummy/The Mummy Returns/The Scorpion King Box Set
Night Watch/Day Watch Box Set
The Office (US): Season 2
Mr Woodcock [BLU-RAY]