New DVD and Blu-Ray Releases to Crave: Pull a Fast Five on Scream 4 While The Lion King Roars

By Chris Kavan - 10/03/11 at 11:16 PM CT

Enjoy a mix of something old and something new this week as you have a few sequels and the return of some favorites in high definition to dedicate a few hours of you life to.

1) Who says you can't reinvent the wheel? Or in this case the whole car-related movie. With four films of varying quality, one could argue that Fast Five is the best of the bunch, or at least one of the better films in the series. Focusing more on an Ocean's Eleven vibe, but keeping the same action and, of course, flashy cars, it's a man's film that actually has plot and character to keep it going. Now all we can hope is that they don't go and screw thins up again.

2) While it didn't get as much attention, Scream 4 also tried to capitalize on a name brand and familiar characters. I think they waited a bit too long between sequels myself and a lot of the impact has been lost. Still, if you were a fan of the original films, there's no reason why you should miss out on this one.

3) If you're a fan of movies a little off the beaten path, the coming-of-age comedy Submarine should be on your radar. Careful - it's also British, so make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. The description kind of reminds me of a cross between Wes Anderson and Woody Allen - whether you take that as a good or bad thing is entirely up to you.

On the Blu-Ray front, there are some heavy hitters coming out to play. Leading the charge is the movie that has lit up the box office recently, Disney's The Lion King - out of the vault and on Blu-Ray. Certainly one of the best animated films Disney has made, there's a reason it has done so well against new movies: both parents and their children can enjoy it. The story is classic, the songs are fun and memorable and the animation is top-notch. It's one for the collection. If that isn't enough good news, Quentin Tarantino comes in with a one-two punch of his own. The oft-imitated (and quoted) but never duplicated Pulp Fiction brings its fractured story-telling to roost while the ode to blaxploitation Jackie Brown. While Pulp Fiction may get all the attention, there's nothing wrong with Jackie Brown. Finally two cult films of a very different sort also come at you in high definition. If you like violence, but in a totally tongue-in-cheek, ultra-gory way Peter Jackson, long before Lord of the Rings, makes gore fun again with Dead Alive. On the other hand, man-child Paul Reubens brings Pee Wee Herman to the big screen with Pee-wee's Big Adventure. It's a film unlike any other, but it's certainly entertaining in a bizarre sort of way.

There are other films to consider of course. To see the rest, head on over to the
FilmCrave New DVD Releases and FilmCrave New Blu-Ray Releases pages today.