Blu-ray

Joel and Ethan Coen’s ‘handsome film about men in hats’ (as cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld once described it) has never been one of the most widely acclaimed of the filmmaking siblings’ movies. And yet, following a quick office poll, this beautifully shot and often wickedly funny mix of gangster and film noir tropes ranks up with the Coens’ very best work among the HCC team.

Loved by children everywhere, Gru's little yellow sidekicks from the Despicable Me cartoons have graduated to their own feature film.

This fourth outing in this enduring franchise finds director Brad ‘The Incredibles’ Bird making a successful jump from animation to live action with an enjoyable tale of international espionage.

Monsters is in many ways a remarkable film. Shot entirely on location for less than £500,000 with a tiny crew, two unknown actors and visual effects knocked up by writer/director/cinematographer/etc. Gareth Edwards on his home computer, Monsters is a testament to just what it’s possible for a filmmaker to do with such limited resources these days. However, Monsters is also notable for the way it was knowingly mis-sold to audiences, with promises of epic sci-fi spectacle rather than the road-movie-cum-immigration-allegory it actually delivered. On its own terms Monsters is a success, but it’s one that audiences expecting more traditional sci-fi thrills may find difficult to engage with.

While some may favour Life of Brian and others The Meaning of Life, for me …Holy Grail stands proud as the best Monty Python movie. Hilariously silly and brilliantly irreverent, it’s a tour de force of cinematic comedy gold that somehow feels more authentic in its approach to the Arthurian myths than most ‘straight’ adaptations.

Arrow Video unearths another gem from the MGM catalogue in the form of Kevin Connor's horror-comedy about farmer Vincent Smith and his 'special' smoked meats. Given the miserable treatment Motel Hell received on DVD in the past, this Blu-ray's colourful AVC 1.85:1 encode is a revelation. The accompanying LPCM 2.0 soundtrack is less immediately exciting, but is a fine reproduction of the source elements. As usual Arrow has also cooked up some fantastic supplementary features including a commentary by the director, interviews and a look at what makes a great female horror baddie.

Mr. Peabody isn't like other dogs. Not only is he super-intelligent, but he also won the right to adopt a boy of his own. Oh, and he also invented the WABAC, a time machine that he uses to teach his young prodigy all about history.