Green Lantern
Blu-ray Combo | Blu-ray | DVD
Directed by Martin Campbell
Starring Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Mark Strong, Peter Sarsgaard, Tim Robbins, and Angela Bassett
Warner Bros Home Video
Release date: October 14, 2011

In the interest of full disclosure, let the record show the following: I am a HUGE fan of not only the Green Lantern mythology, but particularly of Hal Jordan. There is something about his character that has stuck with me through the years, and after it was announced, you couldn’t get me to shut up about Green Lantern. Every time new casting announcements were made, or new footage was released, I would be glued to my iPhone/laptop. This was my most hotly anticipated film of the year by far, and while it may not have been all that it could have been, I really liked Green Lantern.

I won’t go into too much detail about the film in general in this review, as my colleagues have already done a great job both here and here. What I will say is that for my dollar, the movie was expertly cast, particularly in the roles of both Sinestro and Hal Jordan. Mark Strong‘s performance as the chaos abhorrent Sinestro is magnificent. The one criticism I’ll make here is that we didn’t see Sinestro enough, so lets hope the alleged sequel sees the light of day. In my opinion, Ryan Reynolds was a fantastic Hal Jordan. He displayed the quick wit and willingness to leap into danger without forethought that have marked Hal’s character for years while making the character his own.

After watching Green Lantern in the theater I couldn’t wait for the Blu-Ray. I’m the kind of movie fan that loves to go deep into the experience by watching all of the behind the scenes extras tat have become standard issue on home releases, and this Blu-Ray did not disappoint. If you enjoy this kind of experience as well, be sure to check out the Maximum Movie Mode. Watching the theatrical version of the film with MMM turned on allows the viewer to access eight featurettes, galleries, and other special content pertaining to the exact moment of the film.

The featurettes themselves are all very well put together, but the consistent presence of longtime Green Lantern writer Geoff Johns in them is what gives these informational tools re-watch value. Fans of the film’s source material know how integral Johns was in not only reviving Hal and the Green Lantern Corps, but making them relevant enough to warrant their own major motion picture. After watching his interviews in the featurettes, his enthusiasm for seeing the Corps on the big screen is unmistakeable. The constant grin on his face in each shot is the exact grin we fans had while reading Rebirth, and all throughout his run of Green Lantern.

Being the film geek that I am, I’ll watch a movie anytime, anywhere. I have enjoyed the trend of including a digital copy with the home release, and I must say I love the way Green Lantern’s digital copy has been included. Rather than downloading a physical copy to clog your mobile device, this Blu-Ray includes access to Ultraviolet, a way to stream the movie whenever you have internet access from any of your devices. I had so many movies on my iPod that I had to start rotating them out, so being able to stream a new release without paying extra is a big plus.

After having taken in the contents of Green Lantern’s special features, I feel much the same way as I did while the credits were rolling in the theater. Not only did I get to watch one of my favorite characters and universes come to life, but I now feel completely immersed in all the film has to offer, and I couldn’t recommend this release more.