ROTTEN TOMATOES: RT on DVD: Watchmen Director's Cut, Coraline, Animated GI Joe

RT on DVD: Watchmen Director's Cut, Coraline, Animated GI Joe

Get your geek on with Watchmen, Godard, Stargate, and more.

by Jen Yamato | July 20, 2009

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As the entire combined forces of North American geek culture descend on San Diego's Comic-Con this week, fear not; geekiness galore is to be found in this week's new releases! First up, pick up the eagerly anticipated extended version of a superhero fan favorite (Watchmen: Director's Cut), and watch as Henry Selick brings a Neil Gaiman fairytale to life -- in three dimensions (Coraline)! Sci-fi nerds should like the recut, feature-length pilot of a long-running series (Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods), while French New Wave enthusiasts have a Jean-Luc Godard double feature, courtesy of Criterion (Made in USA, Two or Three Things I Know About Her). Finally, hearken back to the '80s with a hearty, "Yo, Joe!" (GI Joe: Season 1.1).

Updated: So, you think you can dance? Watch an exclusive clip from the DVD release of So You Think You Can Dance Get Fit in this week's column!

Watchmen: Director's Cut -- 64%

With Comic-Con just around the corner (follow our daily updates from San Diego starting Thursday!) you'll get a few chances to geek out with this week's new DVD releases. The biggest of them all? Zack Snyder's superhero opus, Watchmen, which arrives in its full three-hour-plus glory. (186 minutes, to be exact.)

Watchmen the Director's Cut features 25 extra minutes of footage, primarily consisting of extended dialogue that was missing from the theatrical cut, and the extension of Hollis Mason's (AKA the original Nite Owl) storyline. Additionally, the 2-disc DVD contains a handful of new bonus features, including the 11 online making-of journals used in promotion before Watchmen's debut, a "Phenomenon" featurette, a digital copy of the theatrical cut, and a My Chemical Romance music video. Blu-ray fans get all that and more, including the ability to watch Watchmen in "Maximum Movie Mode," which inserts fun tidbits, Snyder commentary, page-to-screen comparisons, interviews, and more. A third Blu-ray disc contains additional featurettes, including a fascinating look at the "real" physics of the Watchmen world ("Why is Dr. Manhattan blue?").

Finally, Warner Bros. knows that it will suck to double dip when the massive 5-disc Ultimate Edition hits shelves in December (which will feature the mini story Tales of the Black Freighter into the film, pretty much all previously released supplements such as the Under the Hood "documentary" and motion comic, and commentary by Dave Gibbons and Zack Snyder). Pop open your copy of Watchmen: the Director's Cut and find a $10 off coupon for the Ultimate Edition. You know you'll want it.

Next: Henry Selick does Neil Gaiman's Coraline

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(1-20 of 55 posts) | Reply

Joben writes:
on Jul 20 2009 05:48 PM

I will definitely be picking up both Watchmen and Coraline.:)

(Reply to this)

tomwaitsjr writes:
on Jul 20 2009 05:55 PM

Does anyone know how to see Coraline in 3-D if they have Netflix? Like, is there a place to buy the 3-D glasses, where do they offer it in 3-D to rent? etc.

(Reply to this)

ARTaylor writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:00 PM

I know people swear by Watchmen calling it the greatest thing ever written. My opinion of the film was about the same as the graphic novel, honestly I wasn't all that impressed. I may rent it but probably won't buy it. It was entertaining but not fantastically wonderful. It had it's moments but if I hadn't read the book I would have enjoyed it far less. It didn't seem to work as a stand-alone film. Seemed more tailored towards existing fans who would see it anyways rather than trying to draw in new fans.

(Reply to this)

John D. writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:03 PM

Question for you guy, buy Watchmen now or wait 6 months for the ultimate Watchmen box set?

(Reply to this)

jokerboy1991 writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:20 PM

I'm picking up the blu-rays for Watchmen and Coraline, so excited for the Director's Cut!

(Reply to this)

tomwaitsjr writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:27 PM

So far every review i've read ranks Watchmen Director's Cut as superior to the theatrical version.

(Reply to this)

Mr. Bo Ziffer writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:36 PM

Definitely picking up Watchmen, no matter how many bottles I need to return or how many hookers I need to turn down to get that cash. It's too bad I'm too poor and lazy to pick up a Blu-Ray player, otherwise I'd be rockin' it with my 13-inch Samsung TV. ;-)

Coraline looks pretty awesome, too. As a kid, I wasn't really into A Nightmare Before Christmas, but I've really been digging it lately. Glad to see that Henry Selick returned to form after (shudder) Monkeybone.

(Reply to this)

R writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:37 PM

Surely RT should add a separate listing for the Director's cut as it as done with other non-theatrical versions?

(Reply to this)

Chris B. writes:
on Jul 20 2009 06:38 PM

can't wait to get Watchmen. I heard the DC was way better than the theatrical cut. wish I could've watched the DC in theaters.

(Reply to this)

JohnnyJonJon writes:
on Jul 20 2009 07:07 PM

I'm also getting Watchmen Director's Cut. It's a shame it wasn't released as is in theaters. Studios always assume they know what will attract fans and almost always get it wrong.

(Reply to this)

Paints Hz Shirt Red writes:
on Jul 20 2009 07:22 PM

In reply to this comment (#2529060)
@ tomwaits, i know blockbuster sells 3d glasses. they did with my bloody valentine.

(Reply to this)

Glenn W. writes:
on Jul 20 2009 07:45 PM

i've got the Amazon exclusive Watchmen BluRay set with the Owlship replica on preorder. i figured if they're gonna put out an Ultimate Edition at the end of the year, i might as well get the most impressive-looking version of the Director's Cut to make buying it now worth it.

(Reply to this)

Magic is Might writes:
on Jul 20 2009 07:57 PM

When is the director cut ever worse than the shown version?

(Reply to this)

jokerboy1991 writes:
on Jul 20 2009 08:03 PM

In reply to this comment (#2529086)
Donnie Darko perhaps?

(Reply to this)

Mr. Bo Ziffer writes:
on Jul 20 2009 08:09 PM

In reply to this comment (#2529090)
And Max Payne, just because it made it longer. Ooh, and Daredevil, too. Did they think they could improve the movie if they left Coolio in it? COOLIO?!?!?!

(Reply to this)

Bilent_slob writes:
on Jul 20 2009 08:32 PM

In reply to this comment (#2529086)
The directors cut of the exorcist, terminator 2 and the lord of the rings completely ruined the pacing IMO.

(Reply to this)

jokerboy1991 writes:
on Jul 20 2009 08:33 PM

In reply to this comment (#2529093)
Woah, I thought the director's cut of Daredevil was much better and actually enjoyable.

(Reply to this)

knowingtoast85 writes:
on Jul 20 2009 08:45 PM

Second the director's cut of Darko -- Explaining the "mythology" of the movie ruins any semblance of mystery and mood that it had. In fact, if you watch the director's cut with commentary by Richard Kelly and Kevin Smith, you can hear Smith groan and make jokes about the lame mythology as Kelly explains it.

(Reply to this)

Mr. Bo Ziffer writes:
on Jul 20 2009 08:46 PM

In reply to this comment (#2529096)
I preferred the Director's Cut of Donnie Darko, so I guess we're even.

I will admit that the subplot was interesting and tied the story together well in Daredevil, but that's just poor casting. I mean, you would think that the perfect person to play a violent gangsta with a wrap sheet would be . . . a violent gangsta with a wrap sheet. They would have been better off with Tom Cruise in a fat suit. No wonder he went on to be in Pterodactyl after that.

(Reply to this)

UnseenBBQ writes:
on Jul 20 2009 09:11 PM

I'm extremely excited for this, rocketing off the walls as I type.

What I find strange, though, is that I'm more excited to watch this for the 3rd time as opposed to seeing Watchmen, which I still have not seen yet, despite me being a huge fan of the graphic novel. But I'll be sure to get that alongside Coraline. But the latter is the very first on my to-do list.

(Reply to this)

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