Blu-ray Recommendations

[CloneEmperor]

I have over 500 DVDs and I have no plans to upgrade them all to Blu-ray, so I am interested in what people think are the best movies that have to be watched in high definition. Chat has failed me. From the ten or so regulars there I only received one suggestion, so I am turning to the masses in here to see if anyone can help me find some good movies. I've ordered the Aliens quadrilogy and pre-ordered the Star Wars saga, and I won't get Lord of the Rings until they release the extended edition. Anything else is fair game. Wow me please.

[MisterFubar]

The only Bluray discs I own are Toy Story 3 and Ironman 2. Both looked and sounded pretty good. Only bought those because I knew we'd watch TS3 again and again and again and again and Ironman 2 wasn't available in HD On demand the weekend I wanted to watch it.

What movies do you rewatch on a regular basis? I'd probably buy those on Bluray if I were you.

[Draykov]

This post is in the right forum, however, I'd have to assume you'd generate more conversation on a dedicated site (linked from Digital Bits).

People might be able to give you honest opinions about what Blu-ray discs have the best transfers or special features, but if you'd rather own Uncle Buck than the Godfather, then you should buy the movie you like.

[CloneEmperor]

I'm just trying to gauge what people think are good movies to own on Blu-ray. It's possible that someone may have a favorite that I hadn't considered before, so I'm just looking for opinions. That's what happened with the Aliens Quadrilogy, I really enjoy the first two movies and I read a few glowing reviews of how well made the Blu-ray was, including our own Ace's, so decided to go for that. Thanks for your advice though.

[Morgan19]

This is sort of a roundabout way of answering your question, but as a general suggestion I'd recommend visiting DVDverdict.com and doing some reading up on stuff you're interested in. I make a point of visiting the site every day, as they post new reviews of DVDs and Blu-rays daily; they're consistently well-written, comprehensive, intelligent, and informative.

m19

[Joedward]

You know, if I was in chat as often as I used to be... or at all for that matter, I probably would have bored you with recommendations. Also, I can't find a link for it at the moment (and those ^ wont load at work for some reason, so I don't know if it's them or not) but I know there's a dedicated website that focuses a whole helluva lot on the quality of new BluRays, and comparisons on how they stand up against their DVD counterparts. I'll see if I can find them name and post it later.
Anyhow, if you happen to have any form of personal rating system for the films you like/watch, start with anything that you would equal to a glowing 5 star review. If you have a truly great film (good place to look), it's always well worth it to see it in the best possible quality.
Off the top of my head, of what I can recall of my brothers collection that are well worth the price, and look great in HD.
The Shawshank Redemption, Black Hawk Down maybe, just about any film made by Pixar, or original Disney films, Casino Royale, Batman Begins and TDK, 2001, Terminator 2, Iron Man looks pretty amazing... might add more later.
If you really like Gladiator, I know that a second run has, or will be, started on the BluRay as the quality of the first released was so under par.

Most importantly though, as Draykov said, go with your favourite first, and from there chances are you'll be able to find out how well it got HD-ified.

[Inzane]

As someone who just recently added blu-ray ability to my home entertainment system myself, I can relate. I have a substantial DVD collection myself.

The philosophy I'm taking right now is not to necessarily re-do my entire back-catalog by re-buying movies again on blu-ray. (Keep in mind that blu-ray players and/or modern displays can do a really good job of upconverting standard DVDs). But instead to focus on new movies going forward, as well as older bargain-bin movies that I didn't own previously.

Anyway, here are a few recent titles I would highly recommend on blu-ray:
- Inception
- Avatar (the extended version)
- Toy Story 3 (I got the DVD/Blu-Ray/Digital copy combo disc)
- Iron Man 2 (I got the DVD/Blu-Ray/Digital copy combo disc)

Inception and Avatar are both considered "reference" discs by Sound & Vision Magazine, both for video and audio excellence.

[dWhisper]

Both Iron Mans are good, and you can't go wrong with Pixar, and while I own several Blu-Rays, I'm starting to believe that it's just a bad idea to spend much money on the discs. It's a format that was almost outdated before it's time, simply because entertainment is moving into a fully digital and medialess format.

[thepatient]

The Star Trek reboot is really pretty to watch on Blue-Ray.

My suggestion would be go with the more visually stunning stuff on Blue-Ray. Anything that is more Story/Character driven, you can get by with the DVD format. Watching Resevoir Dogs in HD doesn't improve the story any more. Watching other things, mostly Si fi or horror, it does enhance the veiwing experience making the jump to Blue-Ray.

Also, nature shows like Planet Earth, totally awsome on Blue-Ray.

Inzane has some really good selections there. I have a VISIO HDTV, and I make it a point to set the disc player settings on the TV at Brilliant Color (some say Vibrant). When watching Avatar; the greens and yellows really stand out.