Here are CraveOnline, we love Blu-rays. Sure, digital streaming is convenient, but you can’t own a movie you buy on Amazon Instant or VOD; you only pay to access it from a server that may or may not exist a few years from now, or which can decide to stop carrying it at any time without warning. If you love movies, and you want to own them, physical media is the only way to go: reliable, collectible, and all yours, forever and ever, unless your a-hole roommate decides to use them as coasters.
The fall season is always a good time to be a Blu-ray collector. The big summer movies finally start to come out, and there are usually tons of special editions on the way, vying for that valuable real estate in your loved one’s Christmas stocking. There are so many coming out, in fact, that it can be difficult to keep track of them all, so we here at CraveOnline have decided to put the highlights together in this handy-dandy Fall Blu-ray Preview, with a weekly run down of all the biggest and best discs coming down the pipe from now until November (December is coming too, but most of the releases haven’t been announced yet; give it time, dear collectors, give it time).
Related: Fall Movie Preview: 24 Oscar Hopefuls
So scope out our calendar of fall Blu-ray releases, keep an eye out for the most anticipated discs coming out every week, and make sure to scroll down for a list of all the other home video offerings that you should keep an eye on as well.
(Note: Release dates are subject to change, and more exciting Blu-rays will be announced as the fall season continues. Keep coming back to CraveOnline for more news and reviews.)
William Bibbiani is the editor of CraveOnline’s Film Channel and the host of The B-Movies Podcast and The Blue Movies Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
Fall Blu-ray Preview
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September 2, 2014
Must Own: Dracula (1979)
With Dracula Untold heading to theaters in October, audiences are likely to be looking for the best previous films about the world's most famous vampire. This version, directed by Saturday Night Fever's John Badham (who provides a commentary on the Blu-ray), is definitely one of them, featuring an unforgettable performance by Frank Langella as the title character.
Other Notable Releases:
Draft Day (2014)
Heavenly Sword (2014)
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: The Complete Season 9 (2014)
They Came Together (2014) -
September 9, 2012
Must Own: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
The film that changed the Marvel Cinematic Universe forever comes to home video with an in-depth commentary track from directors Joe and Anthony Russo, deleted scenes and more. Watch it in conjunction with "Agents of SHIELD," which also premieres on Blu-ray this month, and which ties directly into the events of the blockbuster film.
Other Notable Releases:
Agents of SHIELD: The Complete First Season (2014)
Borgman (2014)
Brick Mansions (2014)
Flowers in the Attic (1987)
Gone with the Wind: 75th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition (1939)
Hannibal: Season 2 (2014)
Pumpkinhead (1988)
Young Frankenstein: 40th Anniversary Edition (1974) -
September 16. 2014
Must Own: Eraserhead (1977)
One of the greatest cult movie experiences in movie history finally gets the Criterion Collection release it deserves on September 16, with documentaries, interviews and new restorations of director David Lynch's short films. Whether you love art house movies or hate them, Eraserhead is an experience that every movie lover needs to experience at least once in their lives.
Other Notable Releases:
Arrow: The Complete Second Season (2014)
The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
From Dusk Till Dawn: The Complete Season One (2014)
Ghostbusters 1 & 2: Limited Edition Gift Set (1984-1989)
Godzilla (2014)
Silent Night, Deadly Night: 30th Anniversary Edition (1984)
Sleepy Hollow: The Complete First Season (2014) -
September 23, 2014
Must Own: Halloween: The Complete Collection (1978-2009)
Every single Halloween movie, in the same Blu-ray set, for the very first time. This 15-disc set brings together the original classic franchise and the Rob Zombie remakes along with new commentary tracks and the fabled Producer's Cut of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Meyers, which has never before been (officially) released on home video.
Other Notable Releases:
Attack on Titan: Part 2 (2014)
The Exorcist: The Complete Anthology (1973-2005)
Ghost in the Shell: 25th Anniversary Edition (1989)
The Innocents (1961)
Neighbors (2014)
Saw: The Complete Movie Collection (2004-2010) -
September 30, 2014
Must Own: Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)
Michael Bay's latest Transformers movie may have sucked as much (if not more) than all the rest, but each film in the blockbuster franchise has been a home theater demo disc worth owning. This sucker's gonna blow out your speakers like nobody's business, and that's reason enough to own it.
Other Notable Releases:
24: Live Another Day (2014)
Ben-Hur: 55th Anniversary Diamond Luxe Edition (1959)
Chef (2014)
Cold in July (2014)
Gremlins: 30th Anniversary Diamond Luxe Edition (1984)
Leprechaun: The Complete Movie Collection (1993-2014)
Natural Born Killers: 20th Anniversary Diamond Luxe Edition (1994)
Once Upon a Time in America: Extended Director's Cut Collector's Edition (1984) -
October 7, 2014
Must Own: Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
The movie that should have been a huge blockbuster, but which got swallowed whole by an overcrowded summer season, hits home video on October 7 and we dare you to watch it and tell us it wasn't better than it looked. Edge of Tomorrow will find its audience on home video, mark our words, so check it out for yourself if you missed it in theaters and start spreading the word.
Other Notable Releases:
Adventure Time: The Complete Fourth Season (2013)
Billion Dollar Brain (1967)
Chuck Norris Total Attack Pack (1983-1986)
Obvious Child (2014)
Rick and Morty: The Complete First Season (2013)
Sharknado 2 (2014) -
October 14, 2014
Must Own: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre: 40th Anniversary Black Maria Limited Edition (1974)
If you were thinking of buying X-Men: Days of Future Past on Blu-ray this week, don't... it's getting an extended edition next year. Instead, invest in this gorgeous boxed set of one of the best horror movies ever made, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, with new and comprehensive special features, which comes in a replica of the truck from the end of the film.
Other Notable Releases:
Fargo: Season One (2014)
Mr. Peabody & Sherman (2014)
My Darling Clementine (1946)
Steven Spielberg Director's Collection (1971-1997)
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) -
October 21, 2014
Must Own: Snowpiercer (2014)
The indie film that looks and plays like a blockbuster hits home video and you have no reason not to see it. Snowpiercer stars Captain America's Chris Evans as the leader of a revolution in a post-apocalyptic future, where all of society lives on a giant train circumnavigating the Earth, but as they take over each new car they learn horrifying truths about the world in which they now live. It's smart, it's action packed, and there has been nothing like it this year.
Other Notable Releases:
Earth to Echo (2014)
F for Fake (1975)
La dolce vita (1960)
Mad Men: The Final Season, Part 1 (2014)
Pee-Wee's Playhouse: The Complete Series (1986)
See No Evil 2 (2014)
The Vincent Price Collection II (1959-1964) -
October 28, 2014
Must Own: Nightbreed: The Director's Cut (1990)
The day cult movie fans have been waiting for is finally here: the director's cut of Clive Barker's Nightbreed, now with 40 minutes of footage previously trimmed against Barker's will. Nightbreed always played like a classic that had been taken away from us... will the director's cut finally make good on the horror author's promises? We can't wait to find out.
Other Notable Releases:
My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks (2014)
The Complete Jacques Tati (1949-1974)
The Vanishing (1988) -
November 4, 2014
Must Own: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - Extended Edition (2013)
Fans of Middle Earth will no doubt rejoice as The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug gets even longer, and possibly even more enjoyable. (The longer cut of An Unexpected Journey was a hell of a lot better than the theatrical release, after all.) Plus, the new extended edition comes with all of the in-depth "Making Of" documentaries we've come to expect from this epic franchise.
Other Notable Releases:
Doctor Who: The Complete Matt Smith Years (2010-2013)
Maleficent (2014)
The Newsroom: The Complete Second Season (2013)
The Sopranos: The Complete Series (1999-2007) -
November 11, 2014
Must Own: Batman: The Complete Television Series (1966-1968)
The classic TV series comes to home video for the very first time EVER with a slew of special features and HD restorations of every single episode. The rights for this one were tangled up for decades, with only the feature film available for fans of the Adam West era of Batman. Now, we can at last (legally) revisit the show that started it all... for better or worse.
Other Notable Releases:
A Christmas Carol (1938)
Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
Dolls (1987)
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) -
November 18, 2014
Must Own: Princess Mononoke (1997)
Disney finally releases Hayao Miyazaki's most mature fantasy epic in high-definition with the original Japanese language track and the admittedly stellar English-language dub written by fantasy author Neil Gaiman. It's one of the best movies of its kind, and one of the best movies by Hayao Miyazaki (who is one of the best directors in the world). If you've seen it, you want this disc. If you haven't, you NEED this disc.
Other Notable Releases:
It Happened One Night (1934)
Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)
The Wind Rises (2013) -
November 25, 2014
Must Own: Tootsie (1982)
The Oscar-winning cross-dressing comedy Tootsie gets a well-deserved Criterion Edition release with new interviews and classic special features from the original laserdisc release. It's one of the funniest movies ever made, and you'll finally be able to watch it the right way with a presumably glorious new transfer, since that's what Criterion is famous for.
Other Notable Releases:
L'avventura (1960)
Les Blank: Always for Pleasure (1968)
The Long Goodbye (1973)
Shock Waves (1977)
