Not much is slated to come out on DVD for December 1, 2009 (the heavy-hitters will be coming out closer to Christmas). However, that's not to say that there aren't a few decent films hitting shelves on Tuesday.
There's Terminator Salvation coming out, which stars Christian Bale as John Connor, as well as Anton Yelchin (Charlie Bartlett, Star Trek) and Sam Worthington (Avatar, Clash of the Titans). The film was critically panned for being generally lifeless, but it's a guaranteed fun watch, regardless of its lack of depth. In addition to a theatrical cut coming out on both DVD and Blu-Ray, a director's cut of the film will be available exclusively on Blu-Ray.
Also out on DVD and Blu-Ray is Night at the Museum: Battle at the Smithsonian, the children's film starring Ben Stiller and Robin Williams. It got some negative reviews, but will likely be a big seller for younger audiences, especially with Christmas approaching.
For fans of more Indie films, there's the film Paper Heart on both DVD and Blu-Ray. Starring the reliably awkward Michael Cera (Arrested Development, Superbad) and Charlyne Yi, the movie shows the two playing meta-fictional versions of themselves, who get into a relationship. It's been called a "hybrid documentary" because it mixes fictional and non-fictional elements together.
The Criterion Collection is re-releasing Arnaud Desplechin's film A Christmas Tale. The film, first released in 2008, was almost awarded the Palme d'Or at the Cannes film festival, and appeared on numerous top-ten lists of 2008. The story tells of a family with strained relationships uniting for Christmas. Criterion will also be releasing a Blu-Ray edition of the 1970 documentary Gimme Shelter, which focuses on the Rolling Stones during their 1969 U.S. tour. It also originally premiered at Cannes.
Finally, in anticipation of the upcoming film Sherlock Holmes, British director Guy Ritchie's debut film, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels will be released on Blu-Ray. The film, a screwball comedy about gangsters, is an absolutely fantastic piece, and should be even better on Blu-Ray.
