Top 5 Blu Ray Picks of 2008

After finally taking the plunge and buying a Playstation 3 over the summer, I was excited to experience the Blu Ray format I had been hearing so much about. In fact, since purchasing the console, I have made it a point to try and watch at least one new Blu Ray disc a week. While there are a ton of Blu Ray discs that are well worth purchasing, I’ve managed to narrow it down to the 5 Blu Ray films from 2008 that I feel give the most bang for your buck, literally. Keep in mind that I am not evaluating these movies in terms of special features included and things like that, strictly on picture and sound quality and overall cinematic experience. Here they are in no particular order:

1) Iron Man.

This is probably pretty obvious to anyone who has seen this film. There are tons of explosions and bullets flying everywhere. Oh, and not to mention Iron Man, who looks amazing on Blu Ray. Everything from small scratches and nicks in his armor come alive on the screen. You almost feel like he’s about to fly into your living room.  The effects are so well done it is easy to forget that many of them are CGI.

 2) Speed Racer

While the movie didn’t do great at the box office, anyone who has seen this film should be able to appreciate the vision of the Wachowski brothers and the universe they have created with this film. It is literally a visual orgasm, and at times almost an overload on the senses, but in a good way. I have never seen the concept of “speed” conveyed so well in a movie before. While the majority of the film is shot on a blue screen, it holds up surprisingly well to the increased scrutiny of Blu Ray’s high definition. This film is a definite must see on blu ray, even if its only a rental.

3) Hellboy 2

Admittedly, I was a bit disappointed with this movie when I saw it in theaters. It didn’t seem to live up to the high expectations I had for it. However, one thing that never fails to disappoint is Director Guillermo Del toro’s creativity, particularly in the creatures and environments he creates. As is standard for the Hellboy franchise, there are stange creatures galore, many of which are extremely unique and unlike any seen before in other films. The level of detail in the creation of these creatures is astounding and their actual existence seems almost plausible given the amount of care and attention given to bringing them to the screen. The scenes with the troll market and later with the golden army are incredible, as even the most minute details hold up nicely in high def. The sheer creativity and scope of this movie is enough to earn a spot on this list, and even George Lucas would be well served to take notes.

4) Wanted

This is a movie that remained relatively low on my radar up until its release in theaters. I watched it with fairly low expectations and wound up being pleasantly surprised. The action in this movie is definitely over the top, which translates perfectly to the blu ray format.   The movie’s effects borrow pretty liberally from other films, however it combines them all and presents them in a way that is unique to this film. All of the action seems tailor made for the blu ray format, which only serves to intensify an already adrenaline infused experience.  While I didn’t think it was entirely possible, Angelina Jolie actually looks even hotter on Blu Ray.  If that fact alone doesn’t get ‘Wanted’  Blu Ray discs flying off of store shelves, I don’t know what will.

5) The Dark Knight

It was only a matter of time before this movie showed up on the list and I really had to try to save it for last. Portions of the movie were shot in IMAX format, which is often problematic for directors to try and use multiple formats. It all translates beautifully to Blu Ray, however. The dark and gloomy blue tinted hues so prevalent throughout the movie come through nicely, and the black levels in the picture are perhaps some of the best yet so far on Blu Ray. If the quality and substance of the film itself isn’t enough to make people buy this, the enhanced blu ray experience will definitely help to quiet the naysayers and convince those on the fence about purchasing this Blu Ray.

Honorable Mention:

Wall-E, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

While these two movies didn’t make the top 5, they are well worth checking out on Blu Ray for their special effects and presentation alone.  All of the movies on this list, including the honorable mentions, would make an ideal gift this xmas for anyone seeking a quality high definition cinematic experience.