It’s hard to go wrong with an entertainment-themed gift. Movie memorabilia and tech are the perfect “I wouldn’t buy it myself, but I’d love it if someone else got it for me” present. Whether your loved one is an action junkie, sci-fi nerd, or just wants some high-powered tech to drown out the outside world when they’re relaxing, these are the best gifts for that special television and film buff. From classic movies to new television shows, there’s something for everyone here.
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Courtesy of Insight Editions
Die Hard: The Ultimate Visual History
The title sells this book short. This is much more than a visual history; it’s probably the most exhaustive history of Die Hard and its four sequels any fan could possibly want—a veritable textbook dense with enough concept art, behind-the-scenes photos, interviews, and rare anecdotes to teach a graduate class on the topic. Beyond the full-color 240 pages there are a huge number of inserts: character cards, story boards, breakdowns of deleted scenes, and much more. If you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing the incredible amount of care that Insight Editions puts into its collectible volumes, pull the trigger on this one. It’s the ultimate coffee table book for any man cave.
Kudos to Fox for proactively policing its own canon. This set includes 4K remasters of the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger original, the Danny Glover sequel (1991), and the two latest entries: Predators (2010) and The Predator (2018)—while deftly excluding both of the Alien versus Predator movies without any mention. There’s no self-respecting Arnold fan who doesn’t already own at least one version of the original, but the 4K remaster is enticing; the inclusion of Blu-ray and digital versions of each film, plus poster cards and a bevy of featurettes, will push you over the edge.
All seven episodes of Sacha Baron Cohen’s uproarious, cringe-inducing exploration into America’s divisions are here in this two-disc DVD set, which features extended cuts of the interviews with Dick Cheney and Joe Arpaio, as well as the infamous “Megamosque” scene. The set also includes 15 minutes of deleted scenes from a wide swath of segments that are so good you won’t believe they got cut. Sadly, the infamous Sarah Palin interview is not amongst them.
Jason Momoa’s portrayal of Arthur Curry in the upcoming Aquaman is captured in photorealistic detail in this heavyweight, high-quality, 10.5-inch poly-resin statue. But the devil is always in the details, and photos don’t do this piece any justice. Every scale is immaculately sculpted and painted; the armor on his boots and gauntlets is sharp to the touch; and his hair and eyes—two details which, if not done just right, can give the face an off-putting feel—are nailed perfectly. Set his back foot into the “watery” Aquaman-logo base and slide the golden trident into his hands and you’ve got a king fit to rule Atlantis—or at least your living room or home office. In a hobby where prices creeping up to and well past four digits have become the norm, DC Collectibles continues to deliver excellent, yet affordable, pieces like this every year.
Amazon did an excellent job bringing Jack Ryan to a big-budget series, meaning we’re likely to get a lot more episodes—and it could be a very long time, if ever, until we see Jack Ryan on the silver screen again. So now’s a great time to grab what appears to be a complete set: the 4K remasters of Hunt For Red October, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger, The Sum of All Fears, and Shadow Recruit. And let’s face it: As admirably as John Krasinski filled the role of desk-jockey-forced-into-action, Harrison Ford’s portrayal through two films remains the gold standard. Includes Blu-ray and digital versions and a handful of extras.
It’s been 18 months since we saw a new episode of Game of Thrones, and we’ve got to wait until April of next year before we can at last lay eyes on the final season. So you’re going to want some top-shelf hooch to tide you over in the meantime. Not as peaty and bitter as your typical Scotch, White Walker by Johnnie Walker is a crisp blend of single malts that rookies and aficionados alike can appreciate. It’s also meant to be served cold. Never mind ice; put the whole bottle in the freezer and it reveals the words “Winter is Here” down the side. Winter is here, alright, and it is smooth as hell.
The strange excesses of TheMatrix sequels wound up painting the trilogy with a too-broad brush of mediocrity in the eyes of most critics. It’s unfair for two reasons: 1.) The first of the three films remains one of the most original sci-fi films ever made, and 2.) all three have actually held up pretty well. The visuals—particularly in the first film—don’t bear the clunky hallmarks of early 2000s CGI, in part because the Wachowskis went to such painstaking lengths to film their patented bullet-time effects in the real world.
Now that the films have been ported to 4K, you can relive—in the best resolution ever available—the slow-motion panoramas that allow you to drink in every pretty detail of the frame. In retrospect, it was a style perhaps much too distinct to ever catch on for wider use. Instead we wound up with a hundred shaky-cam Bourne Identity clones—a now-tired cliché begging to be put to pasture. The Matrix is likely to get a reboot treatment at some point, but for now, you can take a step back into recent film history and enjoy the very best version of a true original that still has a lot to offer.
Sonos Beam is no poor-man’s home theater (read: not your typical sound bar). All but the prickliest audiophiles would be hard pressed to tell the difference between the Beam and a more expensive and elaborate home theater arrangement—and that’s not just at typical volumes for watching TV and movies. Crank the Beam up to its highest volume and the sound remains crisp and clear without any hint of the hardware struggling to keep up. Pairing with other Sonos gear is a cinch through the app, but compatibility with Amazon Echo devices is new.
Control the Beam (and the Sonos One) with an existing device or the Alexa tech that’s built right in. The Beam won’t play in tandem with your Echo speakers (you can only control it through them) but you wouldn’t really want an Echo muddying up how great this sounds. With 80 music services—including Spotify, Pandora, and Sirius—available on the app, you’re going to get addicted to the quality and want a Sonos speaker for every room in the house.
Planet of the Apes 50th Anniversary 9-Film Collection
What’s that? You say you already got the 4K Apes trilogy that released last year? Well, you can give that one away, because this is the definitive Apes collection. It includes the new Apes trilogy on 4K, Blu-ray, and digital, as well as every previous Apes film on Blu-ray and digital: from the Charlton Heston original, to its four sequels, to the not-so-beloved 2001 Tim Burton reboot. It’s a big 12-disc set in a single plastic shell with a handsome matte slipcase. It also includes a packet of collector poster cards for each film and hours of extras including deleted scenes and making-of featurettes. It’s a tremendous amount of material, especially for the price.
Bryan Singer’s X-Men didn’t create the superhero genre, but it ought to be considered the progenitor of the expanded universes we enjoy today. X-Men was a pretty big gamble back in 2000, throwing a ton of super-powered characters at audiences for the very first time. The fact that it managed to do so in a competent manner and still feel grounded in the real world has given it staying power beyond most of its peers. It’s almost quaint when you set it next to something like Infinity War, but it still holds up. In the years that followed, the spinoffs and reboots of the Fox corner of the Marvel Universe grew harder to follow than the proper MCU, so it’s especially nice to have definitive 4K versions of the movies that started it all collected in one place. Includes Blu-ray and digital versions.
The most powerful console in the world just turned 1 year old. To celebrate, it got a price drop of $100 and a slew of bundles that include new triple-A games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Battlefield V, and NBA 2K19. Most games look better on the One X connected to a 4K TV with HDR, but it’s also the king console for movie buffs. That’s thanks to its 4K Blu-ray player, a huge number of entertainment apps available on the Microsoft store, and a user interface which allows you to pin all your favorites to your home screen for easy access. The ability to instantly switch between HBO GO, Netflix, live TV, or a game with zero lag makes it a far superior entertainment option compared to any other console or smart TV. Parents can also make use of family settings to limit screen time, purchasing power, and access to certain games and apps. Anyone who’s ever seen a toddler hypnotized by unboxing videos knows this is a very good thing.
Was your skin covered with nerd bumps when CBS announced a new big-budget Star Trek series? And did that giddy feeling turn to nausea when you learned you’d have to pony up for yet another streaming service to see it? Unless you also love crime procedurals as much as you love Trek, you probably waited. Your patience has now paid off, as season 1 of Discovery is available on this 4-disc Blu-ray set, which includes two hours of cast interviews and behind-the-scenes material. It’s a darker, grittier Trek than the bright and optimistic versions you’ve loved over the years, but this is just the beginning of a new chapter you won’t want to miss; from the look of the trailer for Season 2, the tonal issues appear to be straightened out.
One of the greatest action movies of all time—and arguably Arnold’s greatest movie—gets a spiffy 4K remaster that’s much more than just a format shift. Fans who are intimately familiar with every frame will notice the improved fidelity and sharpness to the picture. Whether they should have scrubbed the now-absent film grain is up for debate. Either way, technical enhancements like 4K or 3D give you a new way to experience T2 and try to recreate the first time you saw it. You can’t go back in time—only Arnold can do that—but it’s worth a shot.
Almost worth it just for the fact that Deadpool’s fourth-wall-breaking sarcasm extends to the very title of this collection. Yes, there will probably be more Deadpool movies, but you don’t want to wait for that collection, so Deadpool is going to make fun of you for it. Seriously, this is a good price for a 4K/Blu-ray/digital set, and if you missed the sequel it’s every bit as strong as the original. When Deadpool assembles a mercenary team including Terry Crews to take on Josh Brolin’s Cable, it turns into one ridiculously elaborate joke that’s well worth the wait for the punchline.
For the apartment dweller, this is a killer all-in-one stereo option. Deceptively powerful for their size (6″x8″x10″), the Edifier RD1850DB speakers fit easily on any bookshelf or entertainment center. Traditional audio inputs make it easy to connect to stereo equipment, while an optical input lets you connect to your TV, and Bluetooth lets you connect it to any mobile device or laptop. Glossy black housing and a low profile make for a handsome display whether you choose to remove the face screens to expose the cones or not. For the price, it doesn’t get a whole lot better than this.
