I missed The Sorcerer’s Apprentice in theaters, mainly on purpose, but I watched it on Blu-ray last night and it was actually an enjoyable movie. It’s not great cinema, but it was a pretty good adventure with great special effects and a healthy dose of Nicolas Cage scowling at the camera. So in other words, there’s something for everyone!

To be honest, the story was very predictable and cliche, and besides the fact that they tried connecting magic with science, the actual use of it was very very Harry Potter influenced.

Jay Baruchel is still fun to watch, and until Hollywood typecasts him into oblivion I think he will be for a while. Still, that’s not enough to save a movie with a laughable plot, Nicolas Cage as a Sorcerer, and a boring, tacked-on, love interest subplot.

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If there’s a product I’ve bought more times than any other, it has to be the Peanuts Holiday collection. I’ve owned these classics on VHS, twice on DVD (someone borrowed and never returned), and now on Blu-ray. In twenty years, if movies are downloaded directly into chips in our brains, I’ll be sure to make room for these. The Peanuts holiday specials are like comfort food for your TV.

The Blu-ray box set contains the previously released Remastered, Deluxe Editions in a special slip-cover. (I previously reviewed the Charlie Brown Christmas Blu-ray by itself). Each disc contains it’s own bonus episodes and features. Here’s the rundown:

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Now that Tophat Sasquatch is officially in business (formerly Saturday Morning Central, if you’re new), I can finally start reviewing the Blu-rays and DVDs that have been piling up over the past few weeks. The one I am probably most excited about is Toy Story 3.

I’m a huge Pixar nut, and the Toy Story trilogy practically defines my life as a movie fan. I saw the first in 1995 when I was just ten, and instantly fell in love with Pixar’s ability to tell stories (and this fancy new CGI thing). Toy Story 2 came a few years later and was one of the first movies I took my first niece to see. I think TS2 surprised everyone.

Fast forward eleven years and the Toy Story characters are back on the screen for the third and final part of the trilogy, this time helmed by Lee Unkrich.

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I love the minor animation releases Disney puts out in between their huge ones like Beauty and the Beast and Snow White. They’re usually some of my favorite Disney movies. Robin Hood, The Aristocats, Three Caballeros, and now The Black Cauldron. To celebrate its 25th Anniversary, Disney has re-released it on DVD (no Blu-ray, sadly), and I got to see it again for the first time in years.

I know it represents a very low period in the history of Disney animation, but it’s a fantasy that’s a bit darker than the usual from Disney, and it has some great moments. It’s based on the “Chronicles of Prydain” book series from Lloyd Alexander and features the awesome John Hurt as the Horned King.

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I don’t know how, but I completely missed out on The Pirates of Darkwater when I was a kid. It aired on Fox Kids in the prime of my cartoon-watching days, when I was about six years old. I thought Pirates were pretty cool, but still, I totally missed this one.

Luckily, thanks to WB and their Warner Archive, I now have the entire series on DVD.

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