Girls can be raunchy too. That’s the lesson taught to us by one of this summer’s big R-rated comedy hits, which just so happens to be available for rent on VUDU this week.
The following titles enter the VUDU stream this week:
- ‘Breaking the Press’ (9/20)
- ‘Bride Flight’ (9/20)
- ‘Bridesmaids: Theatrical Version’ (9/20)
- ‘Bridesmaids: Unrated Version’ (9/20)
- ‘Mardi Gras: Spring Break’ (9/23)
- ‘My Run’ (9/20)
- ‘Nothing Like the Holidays’ (9/23)
- ‘Spooky Buddies’ (9/20)
Honestly, the only title of note on this list is ‘Bridesmaids‘, the breakout comedy hit for writer/star Kristen Wiig. VUDU has both theatrical and Unrated versions for rental.
I’m kind of embarrassed to admit that I’ve actually seen the Dutch romantic drama ‘Bride Flight‘. In my defense, I knew nothing about it going in. I don’t recommend the film. It’s basically ‘The Notebook’ with subtitles. Although Rutger Hauer is listed as the headlining star, he’s in the movie for all of three minutes at the beginning. The rest of the story then flashes back to his character’s youth. Ironically, the young actor who looks the most like Rutger Hauer doesn’t play that character. It’s distracting. The movie is sappy and dull. Just pretend you’ve never heard of it.
Josh’s Random VUDU Pick:
With all this talk about bridal-themed movies, I feel like I need to pick a title out of the VUDU catalog with a little testosterone in it. This week’s random recommendation goes to ‘Glengarry Glen Ross‘, James Foley’s crackerjack adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by David Mamet about the most miserable real estate office in the world. The amazing cast includes Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Kevin Spacey, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin, Jonathan Pryce, and a legendary appearance from Alec Baldwin that steals the whole movie out from under all of them.
Every line of dialogue in this thing is a scorcher:
“Fuck you. That’s my name! You know why, mister? Because you drove a Hyundai to get here tonight, I drove an $80,000 BMW. That’s my name… And your name is ‘You’re wanting.’ You can’t play in the man’s game? You can’t close them? Then go home and tell your wife your troubles. Because only one thing counts in this life – Get them to sign on the line which is dotted!”
Mrs. Z despises this movie. She’s wrong. It’s brilliant.
All dates provided refer specifically to rental availability. Check VUDU for sell-through availability, if interested. Be sure to also check for VUDU’s $0.99 Movie of the Day offers, which are announced each day on the company’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
Jane Morgan
Sony and JVC are releasing 4K home projectors this fall.
Will VUDU start releasing movies in 4K HDX?
Josh Zyber
AuthorI’m not sure about Sony, but JVC’s new “4k” projectors don’t actually have 4k worth of pixels. They use a technique similar to wobulation to cheat half the resolution.
I don’t think there’s nearly enough bandwidth available to support 4k streaming anytime in the near future.
Jane Morgan
The Sony VPL-VW1000ES uses new SXRD 4K native panels. 4096×2160, at 1,000,000:1 contrast, and 2000 lumens.
It has a 4K upscaler for all content. SD, HD, 2D, 3D. It displays Full HD 3D, even anamorphic, with IR and active shutter glasses.
Price is $25K, shipping in December.
Why would would Sony release this, unless they have a secret plan to provide 4K content?
‘The Amazing Spider-Man,’ shot on Red Epic, could look incredible on this.
Are they thinking 4K Blu-ray?
Josh Zyber
AuthorI wouldn’t hold your breath. Blu-ray as it exists now is going to be the last physical disc format for movies, and it will be years before there’s enough bandwidth to stream 4k (likely with a totally new video codec at much higher compression ratios than we use now).
These companies are releasing 4k projectors now mostly to be able to say that they’ve done it. 4k will serve little to no useful benefit in the home environment, but it’s great for marketing: “We have twice as many pixels as the competition!!!”
Same as that 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, which is of course dynamic contrast under untenable viewing conditions. The native calibrated contrast of that projector will be closer to 1,000:1.
Josh Zyber
AuthorKeep in mind that the majority of modern movies are locked to 2k resolution at the Digital Intermediate. Even 4k projectors in theaters are upconverting 2k source files.
On the screen sizes used in the home environment (even home theater projectors), 4k exceeds the point of diminishing returns. It’s really only useful in professional theaters, where the screen sizes are much larger.
Jane Morgan
DVDs upscaled to 1080p are good. Blu-rays upscaled to 4K could be sexy.
Until display technology exceeds the full potential of the human eye, 2700p, full color, infinite contrast, it will evolve, better and cheaper.
It wasn’t that long ago, 720p plasmas and projectors cost $20,000.
The iPhone 4 created an insatiable lust for 300dpi displays.
Within two years, 27″ computer monitors will be 7680×4320.
You think TV manufacturers will stop competing?
The PS4 will most likely be 4K and disc based.
Once games go 4K, won’t Hollywood be pressured to “catch up”?
Red and Sony both have 4K cameras available now. Within three years, they will have 8K cameras. ‘Baraka’ was scanned at 8K.
Would it not be nice to have the digital equivalent of 70mm at home?
Wasn’t that the dream, ever since you were a little laserdisc boy?
Jane Morgan
We’re only a few years away from 7680x4320p.
What is more likely, 1TB discs, or rock-solid 100 Mbps streaming?
In my heart, I don’t want to believe that blu-ray is the best that movies will ever look.
There has to be many more levels of awesomeness for us to aspire to.
Tim Tringle
Blu-Ray is absolutely not the best that movies will ever look. The problem is that the movie studios seem to be dead set against giving people a good value when it comes to streaming.
They want to charge you for every view you watch, and instead want to punish popular streaming sites by locking down new releases for 28 days to 3 months.
Idiots. People will just to back to pirating.
Tim Tringle
I don’t know about enough bandwidth, I once (bill gates like) said that software decoding of DVD’s would never rival that of (at the time) hardware based decoders.
Of course not only was I wrong, but some of the best DVD playback I’ve ever experienced was through free open source based on the fly manipulation of the original DVD data.
That was before HD, and HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. Now if it’s not already 1920×1080 or at the very least a nice 1080×720 encode I don’t want want to watch it.
So I would bet that in a few years there will be new processors and chips that will have no problem with 4K material.
Jane Morgan
David Mamet and Al Pacino are together again for a 2012 biopic on HBO.
Deaditelord
Great random Vudu pick with Glengarry Glen Ross Josh. Is this available in HDX? I keep holding out hope for a blu-ray release but I’d settle for an HDX version until then.
PS: You’re correct: Your wife is wrong in this case.
Josh Zyber
AuthorYes, all of my Random Picks are available in HDX.