(All DVDs and Blu-ray discs that are mentioned in this article hit store shelves on Tuesday, December 15th. All theatrical films mentioned here will be released in theaters on Friday, December 18th.)

THIS WEEK’S NOTABLE DVD & BLU-RAY RELEASES:

20th Century Boys 1: Beginning of the End [DVD] – I’ve seen this movie pop up on several news sites I frequent on the web (particularly Sci-Fi Japan) and it sounds like it could be an interesting watch. Based on a popular manga series, this film begins in 1969, where a young boy named Kenji and some friends come up with a fictional end of the world scenario and write it in their “Book of Prophecy.” Years later, in 1997, events occur that were written in Kenji’s prophetic book, and soon he and his friends are forced to deal with an apocalypse that they thought they had only dreamed up. As far as I’ve seen, this is a barebones DVD; the film is in widescreen with English and Japanese audio options.

Inglorious Basterds [DVD & Blu-ray] – Quentin Tarantino’s extensively talky war epic that features an alternate take on World War II history. It is enjoyable, though I found it to be a bit too long, and not nearly as action-packed (or as fun) as Enzo Castellari’s 1978 original. Basterds comes in single and two-disc versions on DVD, and a two-disc special edition (with digital copy) on Blu-ray. Since Amazon doesn’t post DVD extras or specs anymore (how annoying) I’ve had to surf around to seek out that crucial info. You can get the lowdown on the Blu-ray release here; the two-disc DVD should have most, if not all the same special features.

The Mel Brooks Collection [Blu-ray] – I love Mel Brooks and dread the day that this beloved comedic film maker shuffles off our mortal coil. This boxed set includes 9l of his feature films including such classics as Blazing Saddles, Spaceballs, and Young Frankenstein. (Dracula: Dead and Loving It and The Producers are all that’s missing here!) Full Blu-ray specs and extras for all nine films in this set can be found here.

Miike Collection [DVD] – This four disc set contains Takashi Miike’s Family 1 & 2 and Bodyguard Kiba 1 & 2. In Family, a hitman known as Lightning Takeshi blows his cover when he takes out a mobster. As revenge, a hit is put on Lightning Takeshi and his family by the Matsuma, but Takeshi’s two brothers, who are bosses in a rival gang, make sure their brother is well protected. The Bodyguard Kiba films revolve around Naoto Kiba, a one-man army that is hired to protect the Soryukai Family from a rival gang. Intense fights and bloody carnage ensue. Tokyo Shock put these titles out back in February 2008, so the extras and specs have probably remained unchanged since then.

Presenting Roger Corman’s …. Best of the B*s Collection 1: Hot Bikes, Cool Cars, and Bad Babes [DVD] – Roger Corman gets an Oscar for his massive filmography and now we get a new four-disc boxed set that boasts several Corman classics that have never been on DVD before. The only thing is that I can’t seem to find out WHAT FRIGGIN’ FILMS ARE IN THE SET! What gives?!

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians [DVD] – There are various DVD releases of this classic b-flick that was made famous by its appearance on Mystery Science Theater 3000. If you haven’t seen it, this film doesn’t really live up to its name: Santa is kidnapped by Martians to bring Christmas to the llittle boys and girls of Mars. In the end, Santa brings joy to Mars, survives repeated assassination attempts by an angry militant alien, and returns home to Earth to fulfill his yearly duty. What makes this particular release different from the rest is that it has horror-host segments featuring Mr. Lobo of Cinema Insomnia fame!

Sherlock Holmes Collection [DVD] – With Robert Downey Jr.’s Sherlock Holmes headed to theaters Christmas Day, it’s not too shocking for something like this to be released. This collection of Sherlock Holmes adventures is made up of the only five-surviving episodes of a BBC TV series featuring Peter Cushing in the lead role.

Star Trek: The Original Series – Season 3 [Blu-ray] – This six-disc set contains every episode of the classic Trek series, and is jammed with numerous featurettes as well as multiple versions of several popular episodes. If you don’t own the previous seasons, have no fear, Amazon.com is offering a bundle that contains the first three seasons of Star Trek. You can order it here!

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THIS WEEK’S CULT BLU-RAY RELEASES:
Basilisk: Complete Collection (Viridian Collection
The Butcher
G-Force (3-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo)
* Inglourious Basterds (2-Disc Special Edition)
* The Mel Brooks Collection
Samurai Champloo: The Complete Series
* Star Trek: The Original Series – Season 3
Star Trek: The Original Series – Seasons 1 – 3

THIS WEEK’S CULT DVD RELEASES:
18 Fingers of Death (Re-release)
* 20th Century Boys 1: Beginning of the End
Beyond Remedy
Bleach, Vol. 23
Bleeding
Case Closed: Last Wizard of the Century Movie
Chai Lai Angels: Dangerous Flowers
Chainsaw Cheerleaders
Criss Angel – Collector’s Edition DVD Set
El Cazador de la Bruja, Volume 1
El Cazador de la Bruja, Volume 2
G-Force (2-Disc Special Edition)
Ghost Hound: Collection 2
Honey and Clover Box Set 2
* Inglourious Basterds (Single & 2-Disc Special Edition)
Mental Scars
* Miike Collection
Murder By Decree
One Piece: Season 2, Fourth Voyage
* Presenting Roger Corman’s… Best of the B*s: Hot Bikes, Cool Cars, and Bad Babes
Red Canyon
* Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (Featuring Mr. Lobo)
* Sherlock Holmes Collection
To Love-Ru: Collection 1
Total Candor
Trunk

THIS WEEK’S NEW THEATRICAL RELEASES:
Avatar – A human soldier is turned into an alien being and set upon the surface of a planet called Pandora that is ruled by a race of magical blue cat people. The soldier is supposed to infiltrate and pave the way for a massive military invasion of the planet, but ends up fighting alongside the indigenous blueberry-colored felines. This movie is getting rave reviews from critics, but will it win over a jaded and overly sarcastic army of moviegoers, reviewers, and bloggers? I’m planning on giving James Cameron’s latest film a chance, I mean hell, it’s going to be in 3-D after all! Still, for a movie with such a huge budget, the effects seem a bit too cartoony… then again, it’ll have battle mechs! I suppose I’ll just have to go see it to make up my mind on wether or not to love or despise this epic sci-fi/adventure.

Rifftrax Live: Christmas Shorts-Stravaganza! – Mike Nelson, Bill Corbett, and Kevin Murphy will be hitting movie screens across the country on Wednesday, December 16th and Thursday, December 17th to riff on numerous holiday-themed shorts. With special guest, Weird Al Yankovic attending, this show should (amazingly) top their previous Rifftrax Live event! I’ve got tickets and I can’t WAIT to see these guys in action again!

Well this wasn’t really a terrible week for us cult movie fanatics, but the holiday season is really putting a crunch on our favorite genre. Next week is pretty dismal, with literally a handful of cult movie releases on DVD and Blu-ray (District 9 is the only major release worth noting at this time), but luckily we’ll have two worthwhile(?) movies in theaters on Christmas Day: The big-budget, action-packed, opium-fueled Sherlock Holmes starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, and Terry Gilliam’s latest cinematic oddity, The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus which features the final performance of the late and great Heath Ledger. Check back next Tuesday for the tiny list of genre releases and prepare for the inevitable onslaught of Christmas! – Vault Master