Blu-Ray Review Round Up: Armageddon, Tombstone and Poseidon

Two great and one so bad its fun films have arrived on Blu-ray. Let's check out the stats:

Poseidon
Written by: Mark Protosevich
Directed by Wolfgang Peterson
Starring:  Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas, Richard Dreyfuss, Emmy Rossum, Jacinda Barrett, Mike Vogel, Mia Maestro, Jimmy Bennett and Andre Braugher
Special Features:  Poseidon: A Ship On A Sound Stage: The Complexities of Making a Modern Adventure Movie, A Shipmate's Diary: A Film School Intern's Experiences on Set, Poseidon: Upside Down: A Unique Set Design Chronicle, and The History Channel Documentary Rogue Waves: Explore the Mystery of This Powerful Phenomenon of Nature.

Armageddon
Written by: Jonathan Hensleigh and J.J. Abrams
Directed by: Michael Bay
Starring:  Bruce Willis,  Billy Bob Thornton, Liv Tyler,  Ben Affleck, Will Patton, Peter Stormare, Keith David and Steve Buscemi.
Special Features: Aerosmith's Award Winning Music Video "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing", Theatrical Trailer, Teaser Trailer

Tombstone
Written by: Kevin Jarre
Directed by: George P. Cosmatos
Starring: Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, MIchael Biehn, Powers Boothe, Robert Burke, Dana Delany, Sam Elliot, Stephen LAng, Joanna Pacula, Bill Paxton, Jason Priestly, Michael Rooker, Jon Tenney, Billy Zane and Charlton Heston
Special Features: The Making of Tombstone, Director's Original Storyboards, Trailers & TV Spots

I chose to do these three titles together because, well, they're all good.  Well Tombstone is great, Armageddon is great and Poseidon is good so I thought I'd do a round up with three positive reviews in it.  Really make you decide which one you want to pick up.

Let's start with WB's remake of  Poseidon.    I had previously heard that this movie was pretty bad.  I think my enjoyment of disaster type movies allowed me to really enjoy this one though (same with 2012). It was pretty fun.  The effects were great and the acting was pretty on point.  Nothing mind blowing or game changing but it really was a fun watch. I do think that giant wave effect is used in every disaster movie.  I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same shot just flipped and reused.

As far as the Blu-ray goes? It looks great.  Really gorgeous colors and clear picture. These effect movies really prove just how good the format is. The sound is spectacular as well. It feels like you're right on the boat with them.

Like I said before the acting is good.  I'm glad to see Richard Dreyfuss on screen and hope that someone kicks out a new Jaws movie and includes him in it.  Gotta admire the acting chops when you're spending most of the movie climbing out of a flipped over cruise ship soaking wet.

Out of the three discs discussed here, Poseidon has the most special features.  We get  some featurettes, making of, a somewhat interested feature on a film student intern, and a History Channel Documentary on Rogue Waves.  That last one is a cool idea and I think more of this type of feature should be included on releases.

Forget what you've heard and have a look at Poseidon.  It's a fun watch and probably better than you think it is.

Up next, Tombstone.

There is a reason a lot of people consider this one of the best westerns pretty much ever.  It definitely ranks up there with the best.  Great characters played by great actors, including Jason Priestly!  It's just beginning to end a great watch.

The story of Doc Holiday and Wyatt Earp at the OK Corral is told extremely well here. I'd never seen it before and I'm really glad I go the chance to see it now.

I don't think this is the director's cut, so I will be wanting to check that out.  It's a shame that isn't included here.  That aside, the film looks and sounds beautiful.

The film, unfortunately, lacks any decent features. We get storyboards, a making off and trailers.  Nothing in the way of interesting supplemental materials. No commentary, no historical features, nothing. That's pretty sad considering the capabilities of the format. Why discs are being released with a minimum of features is beyond me.

That's my only real complaint here for Tombstone and unfortunately, it's the same issue I have with the last release we're covering here: Armageddon.

Y'know I get a lot of flack for this but I love this movie.  It's the pinnacle of popcorn films from the 90's.  Dramatic, action packed, fun, exciting and completely ridiculous. What's not to love? Bruce Willis is great.  Billy Bob Thornton is stellar.  They send oil drillers to a frakkin asteroid!  It's awesome!

It's complete Michael Bay and I love it.  The music, the acting, the effects, the story.  It got me when I first saw it years ago and it gets me now.  And the film still holds up and looks just as good as it did years ago, maybe better, on Blu-ray. It's no Avatar certainly but it still looks and sounds incredible.

My biggest complaint is the complete lack of features. There is really nothing of value included in this release (besides the film itself of course).  It's a music video and two trailers.  That seems like a waste of all the space this format has to offer.

Besides that, there are no complaints.

It's gonna be a difficult choice between the three of these films.  They're all fun to watch (Armageddon being my favorite) so choose wisely!

Poseidon, Tombstone and Armageddon are all available now.