Every Tuesday, I review the newest Blu-ray releases and let you know whether they’re worth buying, renting or skipping, along with a breakdown of the included extras. If you see something you like, click on the cover art to purchase the Blu-ray from Amazon, and be sure to share each week’s column on Facebook and Twitter with your friends.

WHAT: In 1995, Louisiana detectives Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) and Marty Hart (Woody Harrelson) track down the disturbed murderer of a young woman while dealing with personal issues that threaten to interfere with the case. 17 years later, a similar murder brings the two cops back together when their original case is reopened for investigation.

WHY: Few shows have had such a spellbinding effect on its audience like HBO’s “True Detective,” the gritty crime drama that feels more like an eight-hour movie than a limited TV series. That’s because everything about the show is incredibly cinematic, from the smart writing by creator Nic Pizzolatto, to the brilliant direction by Cary Fukunaga, to Adam Arkapaw’s gorgeous cinematography. This is the kind of show that requires absolute patience and trust in the storytellers, opting for a slow-burning pace that allows the characters to evolve naturally over the course of its time-jumping narrative. Unlike most crime dramas, the mystery surrounding the killer’s identity is never as important as Rust and Marty’s respective arcs, and that’s what makes it such rich and gripping television. Well, that and two knockout performances by Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, who deliver some of the best work of their careers as the strikingly different partners. They elevate “True Detective” from a damn good drama to one that will be remembered as one of the greatest shows of its time, and while that kind of praise only heaps even more pressure on Pizzolatto for Season Two, if the first season is anything to go by, he’s definitely up for the challenge.

EXTRAS: In addition to a pair of audio commentaries with creator Nic Pizzolatto, composer T Bone Burnett and executive producer Scott Stephens, there’s a making-of featurette, interviews with Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, deleted scenes and more.

FINAL VERDICT: BUY

WHAT: While on a transatlantic flight from New York to London, air marshal Bill Marks (Liam Neeson) receives a series of text messages threatening to kill a passenger every 20 minutes unless $150 million is transferred into an off-shore account. But when it’s made to look like Marks is the one hijacking the plane, he must find the real culprit before it’s too late.

WHY: Liam Neeson has certainly made a go of this whole action star phase over the last few years, but even he must be growing tired of playing what’s essentially the same character over and over again. Granted, “Non-Stop” doesn’t have nearly as much action as its trailers would lead you to believe, but just like “Unknown,” Jaume Collet-Serra’s previous collaboration with Neeson, it’s a disappointing attempt to cash in on the success of the “Taken” franchise. For as ridiculous as the premise may be (and it becomes even more so as the story progresses), “Non-Stop” does a good job of building suspension by throwing an almost endless barrage of red herrings at the audience. The bad guy could pretty much be anyone on the plane – from Julianne Moore’s chatty passenger, to Michelle Dockery’s meek stewardess, to Corey Stoll’s no-nonsense NYPD cop – and Collet-Serra makes the most of that paranoia. Where “Non-Stop” fails, however, is in its last-ditch effort to suddenly become an action movie in the final act, letting out all the mounting tension like air from a balloon.

EXTRAS: There’s a pair of short featurettes covering various aspects of production, but sadly, that’s the extent of the bonus material.

FINAL VERDICT: RENT

WHAT: When CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Chris Pine) uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a terrorist attack, he’s sent into the field for his very first mission. But after his fiancée (Kiera Knightley) arrives in Moscow unannounced, Jack must keep her out of harm’s way as he attempts to defuse the threat against the country he swore to protect.

WHY: Unlike James Bond or Batman, it’s hard to imagine that a Jack Ryan reboot (especially one packaged as an origin story) was in very high demand, but that didn’t stop Paramount from making it anyway. After all, franchises are a hot commodity these days, and the studio apparently has so much faith in Chris Pine that they’ve entrusted him with yet another iconic character despite already playing Captain Kirk in the new “Star Trek” films. It’s not that the actor is necessarily bad for the role – he can be extremely charming at times and has proven himself adept at action – but the casting is uninspired to say the least. However, Kevin Costner (as Ryan’s mentor) and Kenneth Branagh (pulling double duty as the film’s villain) are both enjoyable in supporting roles, while Keira Knightley does the best she can with an underwritten character. The only reason the actress likely even bothered with such a rote action thriller was the chance to work with Branagh, and although the director isn’t exactly in top form here, he makes “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit” a lot more entertaining than it deserved to be.

EXTRAS: The Blu-ray release includes an audio commentary with director Kenneth Branagh and producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, six deleted scenes, a retrospective on the Jack Ryan franchise, a profile on Branagh and more.

FINAL VERDICT: RENT

Chris Pine, Keira Knightley, Kenneth Branagh, Kevin Costner

Kenneth Branagh

Chris Pine is both James T. Kirk and Jack Ryan. Has anyone ever anchored two franchises that big at the same time? That’s like being both James Bond and Luke Skywalker, and is it wrong to suspect that Paramount, which owns both the “Star Trek” and Jack Ryan franchises, might make him the next Indiana Jones? They have to know that Indy heir apparent Shia LaBeouf is box office poison at the moment, not to mention “retired.” We’d speculate about Pine becoming the new Ethan Hunt, but Tom Cruise would have him killed well before that ever happened.

All kidding aside, Pine is a good choice for Ryan. He’s handsome but not too handsome – which is helpful when you’re CIA and need to blend in – and he is believable as an action hero, an element which is ramped up considerably in the reboot “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit.” This is without question the most action-packed Jack Ryan movie to date. It’s a bit formulaic, but that seems acceptable if it means that the end result is less dull than “Patriot Games.” From this vantage point, that’s a win.

Inspired by the terrorist attack on 9/11, a young John Ryan (Pine) enlists in the Marines to serve his country. Two years later, on an assignment in Afghanistan, Jack’s helicopter is attacked, and during his lengthy recovery, he attracts the attention of Navy Commander William Harper (Kevin Costner), also a CIA operative. Jack is brought in to the group as an analyst, putting his skills to work on Wall Street. Fast forward 10 years, where Jack works for a large firm and discovers that his employer has lost access to billions of dollars in accounts that are owned by a large Russian client. Jack gets approval to travel to Moscow and audit the now-missing accounts. Jack suspects something isn’t right, and his suspicion is confirmed from the moment he arrives, and an attempt is made on his life. Run, Marine, run!

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Over the past few years, January hasn’t been quite as disastrous for new films as its reputation would suggest, but it’s hard to find much to be positive about this time around. Unless you like low budget horror movies (of which there are several to choose from, including the latest “Paranormal Activity”), the January release slate has very little to offer, save for a delayed Christmas blockbuster and failed Oscar bait from the usually reliable Jason Reitman.

Who: Kellan Lutz, Scott Adkins, Gaia Weiss and Liam McIntyre
What: Betrayed by his stepfather, the King, and sold into slavery because of a forbidden love, Hercules must use his formidable powers to fight his way back to his kingdom.
When: January 10th
Why: The first of two Hercules films being released this year (and most likely the worst of the pair), Renny Harlin’s origin story of the Greek hero looks every bit the cheesy B-movie that you’d expect from the director of “The Covenant” and “Mindhunters.” Kellan Lutz has already proven himself to be a really terrible actor with the “Twilight” films, and not much seems to have changed in that department, but whoever started the rumor linking the actor with America’s favorite media obsession (Miley Cyrus) only weeks before the movie’s release was a brilliant marketing ploy. Unfortunately, no amount of publicity changes the fact that “The Legend of Hercules” promises to be even worse than the recent “Conan the Barbarian” reboot (another January dud), and that’s certainly saying something.

Who: Chris Pine, Keira Knightley, Kenneth Branagh and Kevin Costner
What: Jack Ryan, as a young covert CIA analyst, uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a terrorist attack.
When: January 17th
Why: It’s another reboot of a popular movie character, although one that, unlike James Bond and Batman, wasn’t exactly in high demand. Originally scheduled for Christmas before Paramount pushed it back to make room for “The Wolf of Wall Street,” the studio is apparently so unconvinced that moviegoers even know who Jack Ryan is that they had to include his name in the title. While my lack of excitement may be obvious, “Shadow Recruit” does have a few things going for it, including Kenneth Branagh in the director’s chair (as well as playing the Russian baddie), and Keira Knightley and Kevin Costner in supporting roles. I wish the same could be said about Chris Pine, but after already reviving one pop culture icon with Captain Kirk, his casting as Ryan is uninspired to say the least.

Who: Kevin Hart, Ice Cube, Tika Sumpter and John Leguizamo
What: Fast-talking security guard Ben joins his cop brother-in-law James on a 24-hour patrol of Atlanta in order to prove himself worthy of marrying James’ sister.
When: January 17th
Why: There always seems to be at least one urban comedy released during the doldrums of January, and this year’s lucky winner is the latest movie from Tim Story, which reteams the director with Ice Cube (“Barbershop”) and Kevin Hart (“Think Like a Man”) for what Universal Pictures is no doubt hoping will be the studio’s first hit of 2014. (They have to start recouping that “47 Ronin” budget somewhere). These movies are usually made for pretty cheap and have strong opening weekends, but while “Ride Along” should find success with its target audience, that doesn’t mean it will be any good. The pairing of Ice Cube and rising star Hart is definitely encouraging, but between its paint-by-numbers plot and the surprising lack of laughs in the trailer, you might want to wait for this on Blu-ray.