Media | DVD Releases | November 06, 2007: Welcome to this week's Ratatat-tastic home video releases, focused entirely on the American market. Sorry, rest of the world.

Roundup by VsRobot | Posted November 5, 2007

Pick of the week

Ratatouille
Emperor-In-Chief of GameSpite Parish covered the film in detail here, but you just can't say it enough: Ratatouille is a marvel, an instant classic, one of the most gorgeously animated movies ever, and proof that the loss of cel animation as a standard in feature film animation isn't the death knell for creativity in the genre. Taking a bog-standard formula and elements that don't seem like they would work for a general audience (like rodents, the French and fine cuisine), Brad Bird has crafted a classic for the ages. Don't simply add it to your queue, add it to your library. It's the single most worthy purchase in the history of this column.

Also out this week

Pixar Short Films
A clear pick of the week in any other week, the only competition Pixar has is Pixar. Many words have been written on the golden age of animation, and while Warner Brothers and Disney proper will probably never live up to their rich history again, we have Pixar, and that's enough. BUY BUY BUY BUY.

Deck the Halls
Way to counter-program, Deck the Halls. "Dang it, Ratatouille is all out, and I promised the kids. Oh wait, what's this? This ought to shut 'em up." If you bring this home instead of Ratatouille, you fail at life. Ratatouille is exemplary; this movie was released expressly for the purpose of filling the yearly holiday crapfest quota and separating frazzled parents from their few remaining holiday dollars. So the lesson here: if Ratatouille is out at your video provider of choice keep looking.

I Now Pronounce you Chuck and Larry
Wow, a movie where you can laugh at gays along with Adam Sandler. But it's all okay and not at all crass intolerance because (spoiler!) he learns a valuable lesson!

Sicko
Michael Moore is a frustrating film maker; while he can make excellent points, his documentary style and methods leave him so open to criticism that instead of starting a dialog about his subject matter, his films end up sparking debates about misled participants, manufactured footage, and manipulative editing.

4 by 3 Blues: TV on DVD

I really like that one episode of Wonder Woman where she gets tied up. So the entire box, really.

High-Def Alert: The World of Blu-Ray and HD DVD

Many multi-film box sets are being released in anticipation of the holiday shopping season, but since they are simply repackaged from previously released discs I've skipped including them. Also, the new batch of films reveals that CG animation looks really, really great in high-def. I feel bad for the folks who bought the cheap HD DVD players at Wal-Mart last weekend, because while I'm going to be gorging on Pixar this week, they'll be watching...

Chuck and Larry! And while a sub-$100 HD DVD player might result in a huge market shift towards that format, for this week at least Blu-ray still has my vote. Of course, smart folks are avoiding both formats all together until the big media companies get their stuff together. Which might actually be forever!

Pain Doesn't Lie: Horror on DVD

The bold title of Amateur Porn Star Killer is admirable, as many horror titles will only hint at the exploitive pleasures to be found within. Not here, though! The title tells you everything you need to know: naked chicks getting murdered. Ah, the nostalgia of my youth... watching movies about naked chicks getting murdered. Now excuse me while I go make a donation to NOW so I don't feel so bad about myself.

A few more movies to add to the erotic vampire genre this week. Man, people really like watching half-naked (or more!) people sucking on one another's necks.

So, I guess you guys noticed that I've decided to continue the horror call-outs, despite the holiday that inspired this section having passed. Seriously, collecting and displaying these mostly-awful images is some of the most fun I have doing this work.

What do you guys think? Should I keep calling out horror in it's own section? Is there a better animated film in the last ten years than Ratatouille? Discuss these topics and more on the official thread in the forum!

Save a Life: Adopt a Homeless Pet

This week's column is dedicated to all the rescue organizations out there finding homes for homeless rats. Northern California pet lovers can find rescued rats here. Rats make great pets. Support rat rescue organizations in your area! The Google machine should help you find one in your region if you're interested.

Prepared with the assistance of The Digital Bits, a wonderfully comprehensive home media site, and cover art courtesy of Amazon, where you can purchase any of these titles. Rent all of the movies covered in the column online at Netflix. We recommend waiting until the format war is over before investing in an HD player, but if you have to do it right away our money is on Blu-ray. Be sure to PM the author via the forums if you have any suggestions for the column. I am not resurrected through my own power. I am resurrected through human desires. For power, they steal. And power becomes the only justice. Thanks for reading!