"WAR HORSE" AVAILABLE ON DVD, BLU-RAY, ON-DEMAND & DIGITAL APRIL 3, 2012

War Horse 4-Disc Combo Pack

One of my favourite Films of 2011 will soon see a DVD/Blu-ray release and Fans of the Film have every reason to be excited. Best Picture-nomianted War Horse from Director Steven Spielberg will be available in a gratuitous a 4-Disc Combo Pack (2-Disc Blue-ray + 1 Disc DVD + Digital Copy) which includes the following: 

• A Filmmaking Journey - Academy Award®-winning Director/Producer Steven Spielberg provides a unique and unprecedented look into the making and filming of War Horse. 

• Editing & Scoring - Multi-Oscar® winners Michael Kahn (Film Editor) and John Williams (Composer) discuss specific aspects of editing the film and composing music for War Horse, as well as the secret to their long and successful collaborations with Steven Spielberg. 

•  The Sounds of War Horse - Seven-time Academy Award®-winning sound designer Gary Rydstrom takes us through the sophisticated sound design he created for War Horse

• Through The Producer's Lens - Producer Kathleen Kennedy shares the photos she took during filming and recounts how she discovered the source material, as well as her appreciation of Steven Spielberg's vision, the team that sounds him, and why War Horse appealed to her. 

• War Horse: The Look - Director/Producer Steven Spielberg introduces us to his creative team of production designer Rick Carter, Costume Designer Joanna Johnston and Director of Photography Janusz Kaminski, who discuss what it took to design the look for the film. 

• An Extra's Point of View - Film extra Martin Dew explains how and why he was brought in -along with a hundred other men- to be featured alternately as both German and British Soldiers.

Read my Review of War Horse here.

War Horse will be available on DVD, Blu-ray, Digital and On-Demand April 3, 2012.  Order it here.

(Photo credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada)

"WAR HORSE" - MOVIE REVIEW

Still from War Horse

After his Father Ted (Peter Mullan) makes the impulsive decision to purchase a Thoroughbred Horse for 30 guineas, Albert (Jeremy Irvine) finds himself scrambling to train it into a Workhorse in hopes of recouping its expensive price.  The Boy develops an inseparable bond with the Colt, whom he names Joey, ably training him into a contributing Helper on their Farm.

Possibly facing eviction by their ruthless Landlord Lyons (David Thewlis), Ted sells Joey off to Captain Nichols (Tom Hiddleston) at the onset of World War I.  This breaks Albert's spirits completely as both he and Joey are separated indefinitely - their futures uncertain in dangerous times.  War Horse is the heartwarming Story of two unlikely Heroes - Human and Equine - who are driven apart by times of change and also inspired to fight to survive under those same circumstances.

Director Steven Spielberg pulls out all stops to deliver a compelling Story on the grand scale which it deserves to be told. His characters are multidimensional and human and he truly takes us on a real Journey where we grow with both Albert and Joey, empathizing at every unfortunate turn and setback along the way.  "The War is taking everything from everyone", we are reminded in the Film.  Admittedly I could not stop crying throughout War Horse - especially in a powerful sequence where Joey breaks free from his Captors - and also the beautifully-lit final moments of the Film.  Literally, I teared-up so much that my face began feeling numb at the end of the two-and-a-half hour Journey. And that's a good thing.

"WAR HORSE" WORLD PREMIERE PHOTOS

The Cast of War Horse with Director Steven Spielberg

The great-looking Cast of Steve Spielberg's War Horse hit the Red Carpet at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts' Avery Fisher Hall last night for its official World Premiere. If emerging Actor Jeremy Irvine isn't on your radar yet, by all means he will be after seeing War Horse.  The heartwarming/heartbreaking Tale opens via DreamWorks Pictures on Christmas Day. The six-time TONY Award Winner opens at the Princess of Wales Theatre in Toronto also on February 10, 2012.

Stars Irvine, Tom Hiddleston (sporting a Goatee), Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Celine Buckens, David Kross, Robert Emms, Director Steven Spielberg all attended the high-profile Premiere.   See how dapper Irvine looks in his Burberry Suit, paying homage to his native Britain. Mega-hot Elizabeth Olsen (getting lots of Oscar buzz for Martha Marcy May Marlene) and Gossip Girl's Ed Westwick also showed-up to show their support.

See more Photos from the Premiere below:

MICHELLE YEOH AT TIFF 2011 WITH "THE LADY"

Michelle Yeoh at TIFF 2011

Growing up in a Family which watched a lot of Chinese Cinema and Television, I have always adored Michelle Yeoh so it is with great privilege and honour that I can say that I've now met her.  The stunning Actress is gaining a fair amount of buzz for her work in Luc Besson's The Lady, which has her starring as controversial Burmese Politician Aung San Suu Kyi, who was slated to make a surprise appearance at the Roy Thomson Hall Gala for the Film.

Yeoh looks unchanged since hitting the height of her career in the early '90s and although many of us know her work in 2005's Memoirs of a Geisha and 2000's Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Lady should not be discounted come Awards season.  Sporting a Snake-embroidered Dress earlier in the day at the Press Conference for the Film, Fans and Autograph Collectors alike were impressed by her generosity!  Heck, I even went in for an Autograph.  Love that Woman!

After having screened The Lady, I can say that both Yeoh and Co-star David Thewlis as Ang San Suu Kyi's Husband Michael Aris, despite spending much time apart, are extremely convincing as that famous Couple.  Yeoh steps up the to challenge of learning Burmese for her role and is superb in her portrayals, especially in Speech scenes, shifting from diplomacy to devastation.  Where the Biopic falters is its verbose and overly-romanticized Script which at times reads clumsily.

The Lady will be released tentatively at the end of November.

See more of Yeoh below: