“Rise of the Guardians” might appear to be another holiday-themed romp released during a special time of year when audiences are in the mood for such festive distractions. However, one only has to read the credit “Executive produced by Guillermo Del Toro” to appreciate just what type of fantasy experience the feature actually contains. With a taste for nightmarish imagery and a detailed reworking of its league of extraordinary magical figures, “Rise of the Guardians” has a harder edge than I’m sure most families will be expecting, yet this focus on adventure and concentrated evil creates an engaging movie with plenty of excitement and a true sense of character motivation, gifting the material impact when all signs point to numbing frivolity. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com