What to rent: New DVD releases for 7/8/08

This week is a spectacular one for DVD releases. We get a great bunch of Batman releases, plus a few great TV shows, a horror film and much more. Weeks like this make me wish my full-time job was watching movies.

Let’s get on with all the releases:

Mike Recommends:

Batman: A boatload of goodies

There is a bunch of Batman stuff this week, like the Blu-Ray release of Batman Begins. It also comes in a Limited Edition Blu-Ray Gift Set for those wanting something extra special. You can get that in the regular DVD version as well. We also have the fifth season of the animated series, The Batman, which is produced by the CW Television Network.

But perhaps biggest of all is the direct-to-DVD release of Batman: Gotham Knight, which is supposed to tell six separate stories that take place during the span between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight (which is in theaters July 18th).

There is a Blu-Ray version, a 2-disc Collector’s Edition and also a Single Disc version.

To give you a taste of Gotham Knight, here is a little featurette of the movie involving the writers.

The Ruins

A pretty fun horror flick based on the novel by Scott B. Smith, The Ruins is a decent renter for those looking to have some good scares this weekend.

TV Series Galaore!

Wow, so there are quite a few DVD releases this week in the TV department. First we get the fourth season of Stargate: Atlantis, then the sixth season of Monk, followed by the second season of Psych, and finally the special edition of X-Files: Revelations.

The X-Files DVD collection is actually very, very cool. It contains eight critical episodes hand-picked by series creator Chris Carter, with all new introductions to each episode from Carter and Frank Spotnitz. There is also a trailer for the upcoming X-Files sequel and a Free Movie Cash Ticket. The eight episodes are:

Pilot (from Season 1), Beyond the Sea (from Season 1), The Host (from Season 2), Clyde Bruckmans Final Repose (from Season 3), Memento Mori (from Season 4), Post-Modern Prometheus (from Season 5), Bad Blood (from Season 5) and Milagro (from Season 6)

Moody Blues: Lovely To See You (Blu-Ray)

A high-definition concert from the amazing Moody Blues. I am posting this recommendation mainly for my Dad, who raised us on this music, which accounts for my ability to sing most of their songs word-for-word still to this day.

What You’ll Probably Rent:

Stop-Loss

An Iraq war movie starring Ryan Phillippe…heard decent things about it, nothing too great.

Superhero Movie

It has Pamela Anderson listed as one of the cast members, but you’ll probably rent this anyways. It’s another one of those movies that makes fun of other movies. You know what I mean.