George Clooney and Frances McDormand in Burn After Reading. Courtesy of Focus Features.
Movies

Focus Features: 10-Movie Spotlight Collection

George Clooney and Frances McDormand in Burn After Reading. Courtesy of Focus Features.
Written by:Danielle SolzmanPosted on:

The Focus Features: 10-Movie Spotlight Collection is among four Blu-ray box sets now available from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

This is an impressive collection that combines for 11 Academy Award wins and countless nominations.  Honestly, you really can’t go wrong with any film in this collection.  I may be biased to the Coen Brothers’ Burn After Reading but that’s just me.  In addition to Focus Features, Universal released collections for DreamWorks Animation, Illumination and Blumhouse on Tuesday.  Not only do you get a Blu-ray copy but each film comes with a digital copy that viewers can watch via Movies Anywhere.  Moreover, in an era where films move from one streaming provider to another if at all, you really cannot go wrong with physical media.  My cap is tipped to the Universal team for this set.  I’d be curious if they are putting together a 4K UHD collection outside of the recently released Alfred Hitchcock Classic Collection.

Lost in Translation

  • A Conversation with Bill Murray and Sofia Coppola
  • “Lost” On Location
  • Matthew’s Best Hit TV
  • On The Set of Sofia Coppola’s Somewhere
  • Kevin Shield’s “City Girl” Music Video
  • Theatrical Trailer

DIRECTOR/SCREENWRITER:  Sofia Coppola
CAST:  Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris, Fumihiro Hayashi

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

  • A Look Inside Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
  • A Conversation with Jim Carrey and Michel Gondry
  • Inside The Mind Of Michel Gondry
  • Anatomy Of A Scene: Saratoga Avenue
  • A Conversation With Kate Winslet And Director Michel Gondry
  • The Polyphonic Spree “Light & Day” Music Video
  • Lacuna Infomercial
  • Easter Egg
  • Feature Commentary With Michel Gondry And Writer Charlie Kaufman

DIRECTOR:  Michel Gondry
SCREENWRITER:  Charlie Kaufman
CAST:  Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, and Tom Wilkinson

Pride & Prejudice

  • Feature Commentary With Director Joe Wright
  • Conversations With The Cast
  • Jane Austen: Ahead Of Her Time
  • A Bennet Family Portrait
  • HBO First Look: Pride & Prejudice
  • The Politics Of 18th Century Dating
  • The Stately Homes Of Pride & Prejudice

DIRECTOR:  Joe Wright
SCREENWRITER:  Deborah Moggach
CAST:  Keira Knightley, Matthew Macfadyen, Brenda Blethyn, Donald Sutherland, Tom Hollander, Rosamund Pike, Jena Malone, and Judi Dench

Brokeback Mountain

  • A Groundbreaking Success
  • Music From the Mountain
  • Impressions From the Film
  • On Being a Cowboy
  • Directing from the Heart: Ang Lee
  • From Script to Screen: Interviews with Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana
  • Sharing the Story: The Making of Brokeback Mountain

DIRECTOR:  Ang Lee
SCREENWRITERS:   Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana
CAST:  Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Linda Cardellini, Anna Faris, Anne Hathaway, Michelle Williams, and Randy Quaid

Atonement

  • Deleted Scenes with Commentary By Director Joe Wright
  • Feature Commentary With Director Joe Wright
  • Bringing The Past to Life: The Making Of Atonement
  • From Novel to Screen: Adapting A Classic

DIRECTOR:  Joe Wright
SCREENWRITER:  Christopher Hampton
CAST:  James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, Saoirse Ronan, Romola Garai, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Vanessa Redgrave

Burn After Reading

  • Finding the Burn
  • DC Insiders Run Amuck
  • Welcome Back George

DIRECTORS/SCREENWRITERS:  Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
CAST:  George Clooney, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton, Richard Jenkins, and Brad Pitt

Moonrise Kingdom

  • A Look Inside Moonrise Kingdom
  • Welcome to the Island of New Penzance
  • Set Tour with Bill Murray

DIRECTOR:  Wes Anderson
SCREENWRITER:  Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
CAST:  Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, Bob Balaban, Harvey Keitel, and introducing Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward

The Theory of Everything

  • Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by Director James Marsh
  • Becoming the Hawkings
  • Feature Commentary with Director James Marsh

DIRECTOR:  James Marsh
SCREENWRITERS:  Anthony McCarten
CAST:  Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Charlie Cox, Emily Watson, Simon McBurney, Christian McKay, Harry Lloyd, and David Thewlis

On the Basis of Sex

  • A Supreme Team: Making On the Basis of Sex
  • Legacy of Justice
  • Martin and Ruth: A Loving Partnership

DIRECTOR:  Mimi Leder
SCREENWRITER:  Daniel Stiepleman
CAST:  Felicity Jones, Armie Hammer, Justin Theroux, Jack Reynor, Cailee Spaeny, Stephen Root, with Sam Waterston and Kathy Bates

Harriet

  • Her Story
  • Becoming Harriet
  • Feature Commentary with Director/Co-writer Kasi Lemmons

DIRECTOR:  Kasi Lemmons
SCREENWRITERS:  Gregory Allen Howard and Kasi Lemmons
CAST:  Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr., Joe Alwyn, Jennifer Nettles, Clarke Peters, and Janelle Monáe

The Focus Features: 10-Movie Spotlight Collection is now available on Blu-ray.

Danielle Solzman

Danielle Solzman is native of Louisville, KY, and holds a BA in Public Relations from Northern Kentucky University and a MA in Media Communications from Webster University. She roots for her beloved Kentucky Wildcats, St. Louis Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, and Boston Celtics. Living less than a mile away from Wrigley Field in Chicago, she is an active reader (sports/entertainment/history/biographies/select fiction) and involved with the Chicago improv scene. She also sees many movies and reviews them. She has previously written for Redbird Rants, Wildcat Blue Nation, and Hidden Remote/Flicksided. From April 2016 through May 2017, her film reviews can be found on Creators.