Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Brandon Grafius's Top 10 of 2006 Best Picture and Sound on DVD

1. The Seven Samurai (The Criterion Collection, 3 discs). A mini film-school course on Akira Kurosawa and the samurai genre. Fifty-year-old movies have no business looking this good.

2. King Kong (2005, Deluxe Extended Edition; Universal, 3 discs). Congratulations to those who waited for this monster-size set!

3. The Searchers (Ultimate Collector's Edition; Warner, 2 discs). The Duke has never looked so good, and the extras are a wonderful introduction to John Ford's masterpiece.

4. Howl's Moving Castle (Disney, 2 discs). Hayao Miyazaki's most richly imagined world is brought to life in stunning colors and outstanding detail.

5. The Wild Bunch (Original Director's Cut; Warner, 2 discs). First The Searchers and now Sam Peckinpah's masterpiece: Clearly, 2006 was a good year for classic Westerns on DVD.

6. The Complete Mr. Arkadin (a.k.a. Confidential Report) (The Criterion Collection, 3 discs). Another Criterion triple, another triumph. Includes three versions of the film that Orson Welles never finished.

7. Double Indemnity (Legacy Series; Universal, 2 discs). The noir-est of them all, finally on DVD in a gorgeous transfer.

8. Monster House (Sony). CGI effects have never looked more human.

9. A History of Violence (Platinum Series; New Line). The extras really help open up a deeply ambiguous film.

10. Hostel (Unrated Cut; Sony). Eli Roth's gritty, nasty return to '70s-style horror looks and sounds bloody perfect.