Out Today on DVD 6/16/2009

Perhaps one of the finest and funniest motion pictures ever made finds it way to Blu-ray today: Ghostbusters. This film has always been one of my favorites and I’m eager to see it full screen. If it’s been a while since you’ve seen this film, now is the perfect time to pick this version of the film up and give it another glance. The effects have aged well, the script is perfect, the acting is superb and the comedy is still hilarious.

Ingmar Bergman’s masterpiece, The Seventh Seal, is being distributed the Criterion Collection and is perhaps one of their finest new transfer jobs. Expect a more in depth review soon, but long story short: If you’re not adding this to your collection, you might need your head examined.

Today sees the 25th anniversary release of Transformers: The Complete First Season. I’ve had some time to root around on this set and I have to say I’m quite impressed. They’ve gone through each episode, cleaned it up digitally, restored all the original scenes and made a Transformers set worth having. Sure, parts of the show are cheesy, but it’s endearing all at the same time. This is definitely a set worth owning.

Another one of the best movies ever made is coming out on Blu-ray today, Stanley Kubricks comedic masterpiece, Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.. With an all-star cast that includes Peter Sellers (x3), George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Slim Pickens and James Earl Jones among many others. This film is required viewing and I love the way black and white looks on Blu-ray.

Woody Allen’s What’s Up, Tiger Lily? is coming out with a reliable American version. Previous versions available were bad imports and this is going to fix all of that. This gets my highest recommendation.

There’s also the first two seasons of Lost on Blu-ray that come out today. Lost always looks better in HD and if you’ve got friends that have been hemming and hawing about watching the series, buying this and introducing it to them in hi-def is a very good way to start.

Next on the list is The Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 6: 1949-1951. This is the first all Shemp collection after Curly’s untimely death. Shemp catches a lot of flak for his stint with the Stooges as Curly’s replacement, but he performs capably and helps bring the funny to the table.

There’s also a bevy of Friday the 13th movies coming out. Expect a review of the lot of them in a few days.