NEW ON BLU: A Look at the Latest Blu-Ray Releases (Dec. 4, 2012)

You're a busy person. You don't have time to check the newspaper ads for the latest blu-ray releases. Well, you're in luck, since Popculturology is doing the heavy lifting for you with New on Blu. Check out this column every week for a breakdown of the latest blu-ray releases. To help you impulse buy any of these blu-rays, all you have to do is click on the photo of a case, and you'll be taken to Amazon.

This week's featured blu-rays: The Dark Knight Rises, Finding Nemo, Hope Springs, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Butter, The Odd Life of Timothy Green.

The Dark Knight Rises

Director: Christopher Nolan

Starring: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Morgan Freeman, Cillian Murphy 

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 87 percent

Few film franchises have ever gotten to go out like Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy did with The Dark Knight Rises. Most superhero series putter out, dying sad deaths while wearing emo haircuts or making "Ice to see you" puns. The Dark Knight Rises didn't allow that to happen to Nolan's trilogy, delivering an epic and emotional conclusion to the director's take on the Caped Crusader. Christian Bale gave his best performance as Bruce Wayne/Batman, Tom Hardy made us all forget Batman and Robin's version of Bane, and Anne Hathaway wowed everyone when her take on Catwoman became the film's biggest talking point. Oh, and let's not forget Joseph Gordon-Levitt and the surprise he had in store for us at the end ...

Finding Nemo

Director: Andrew Stanton

Starring: Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould 

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 99 percent

You could make the argument that Finding Nemo is Pixar's greatest achievement, and you could possibly win that argument. (I still believe Toy Story 3 was Pixar's finest moment.) After Finding Nemo got a 3D re-release in 2012, Disney rolled a fancy new 3D/Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital Copy version out of its vaults just in time for Christmas. With a sequel expected some time in 2016, now's your chance to catch up with Finding Nemo.

Hope Springs

Director: David Frankel

Starring: Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carell 

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 73 percent

Putting Oscar winners Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones in a movie together would normally result in critical praise and probably a very busy awards season, but Hope Springs failed to hit that cord. In fact, Columbia Pictures isn't even campaigning for Streep to be considered for the 2013 Oscars, an odd move considering that the actress is pretty much always a lock for a nomination.

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Director: Benh Zeitlin

Starring: Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry 

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 85 percent

Planning on studying up for the 2013 Oscars? Well, you better put Beasts of the Southern Wild on your list of films to catch before filling out your Oscar pool ballot. The film was a critical darling and should earn nominations for Best Picture and for Best Actress thanks to Quvenzhane Wallis, its young star.

Butter

Director: Jim Field Smith

Starring: Jennifer Garner, Ty Burrell, Olivia Wilde, Rob Corddry, Ashley Greene, Alicia Silverstone, Hugh Jackman 

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 36 percent

For a film that got a lot of buzz when it first premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival, Butter sure did flop. With Michele Bachmann's small-towny politics dominating the early part of the recent Republican primaries, I thought Butter, with Jennifer Garner's equally small-towny performance, would have piggybacked on those events. Butter didn't perform well with the critics, but the movie still seems worth a viewing.

The Odd Life of Timothy Green

Director: Peter Hedges

Starring: Jennifer Garner, Joel Edgerton

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 39 percent

Look, I saw the testimonials of people left in tears by The Odd Life of Timothy Green, but this movie just struck me as, well, odd. Parents grow a kid in the garden? Kid has leaves on his legs? I dunno. Maybe The Odd Life of Timothy Green is for you instead.