Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City aka Vengeful Zebra City Blu-ray/DVD (Funimation)
The last week of November finds plenty to get excited about. Time to get started on your Christmas shopping if you haven’t already. Who doesn’t love a good Asian blu-ray stocking stuffer? So here is our list of Asian and genre blu-ray and DVD releases for the week of 11/29/11:
ASIAN CINEMA
Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City (Blu-ray + DVD combo) – Zebraman is back for a futuristic adventure in Takashi Miike’s 2010 sequel. Zebra Screw Punch!
Flying Guillotine (DVD) – the 1975 Shaw Brothers classic that introduced the now infamous weapon is now on DVD with restored picture and original language audio track
Flying Guillotine 2 (DVD) – the 1977 sequel to the “Flying Guillotine” features Hong Kong legend Ti Lung (“A Better Tomorrow”)
Zen (DVD) – a thoughtful, G-rated 2009 Japanese biopic about Dogen Zenji, a Japanese Zen Buddhist teacher and the founder of the Soto school of Zen
Jackie Chan 4 Film Collection (blu-ray) – it appears as though Echo Bridge Entertainment has taken the Miramax prints and dubs of several of Jackie Chan’s films and put them on blu-ray without improving the picture or sound at all. On this collection, you get: “Project A,” “Project A 2,” “Armour of God,” and “Armour of God 2: Operation Condor.” There’s a review on Amazon that goes into detail about this disc’s failings, mostly that the prints are subpar and the movies offer no Cantonese language track. In the end, the reviewer still recommends the disc for hardcore Jackie Chan fans. The good news is that this set is only $10
FOREIGN CINEMA
Kidnapped (DVD) – a 2010 Spanish language home invasion thriller that won rave reviews from the likes of Twitch Film and Arrow in the Head
The Wave (DVD) – a 2008 German film about a high school social experiment detailing the effects of totalitarianism
Vampires (DVD) – a 2010 Belgian mockumentary that has been called the “Spinal Tap” of vampire movies
ANIMATION
Loups=Garous (blu-ray/DVD) – a post-apocalyptic 2010 Japanese anime about a group of young girls in a closed society who try to contact the outside world just as a series of murders rocks their isolated community
CULT
Another Earth (blu-ray + DVD combo) – what would you do if there was another world, with another you, and a fresh chance to start over? That’s the premise of this 2011 meditative science fiction film that won rave reviews at Sundance
Cave of Forgotten Dreams (DVD) – the 2011 documentary from Werner Herzog finds the iconoclast heading deep underground to examine cave paintings that are over 30,000 years old
The Future (DVD) – the latest, 2011 quirky indie film from scene darling Miranda July
Chillerama (blu-ray/DVD) – a 2011 throwback to the era of Troma movies and drive-in cinema, co-starring Ray Wise (“Twin Peaks”) and Eric Roberts
MAINSTREAM
5 Days of War (blu-ray/DVD) – a different kind of movie from “Cliffhanger” director Renny Harlin, this 2011 film follows the struggles of war journalists
TELEVISION
The Six Million Dollar Man: Season 1 (DVD) – the fan favorite television show starring Lee Majors, now on DVD
Mission: Impossible – The ’88 TV Season (DVD) – the “Mission: Impossible” series briefly returned to television with this 80’s revival, now on DVD
HORROR
Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (blu-ray/DVD) – Magnet Films presents this 2011 fan favorite horror satire about backwoods rednecks who run afoul of some accident-prone teenagers
The Horror Express (blu-ray + DVD combo) – Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing star in this 1972 horror film about what happens when the “Missing Link” wakes up from a deep thaw while being transported aboard the Trans-Siberian Express
Needle (DVD) – a 2010 Australian horror film with a bit of a “Hellraiser” inspiration. What happens when a college student inherits an ancient mechanical device with supernatural properties? All hell breaks loose, naturally
House of Seven Corpses (DVD) – a 1974 zombie chiller starring John Carradine, supposedly filmed in a bonafied haunted mansion
Interested in any of these movies? If so, we hope that you’ll consider ordering from our affiliate to help support this site. Thank you!
