Welcome to another look at some of the highlights arriving on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD. This is a bit of an unusual edition. There are a few independent features that may be worth a look, but the most notable releases appear to be for older titles. Despite it being slimmer on new material, there’s still likely something here to discover. So, if you can’t make it out to the movies this week, be sure to give one of these titles a try!
BIG NEW RELEASES!
GANYMEDE – A gay teenager is forced by his father (who is a priest) to go through various treatments to change his sexual orientation. He is also told that a demon has caused these feelings and that the “evil” must be rooted out. When the protagonist meets and befriends an openly gay student at his school, his parents take even more extreme measures. It causes the lead to experience visions of a violent creature that ultimately puts everyone in danger. This independent drama with horror elements received more positive write-ups than negative ones. About one-quarter of reviewers thought that the human story worked much better than the chiller elements, stating that the final act didn’t come together effectively. Still, the majority thought the film was a well-acted coming out tale, and that the monster aspect added some unexpected story twists and a suspenseful element. The feature has been available to stream for about a year and is now arriving on Blu-ray. It stars Jordan Doww, Pablo Casteblanco, Robyn Lively and David Koechner.
HATE TO LOVE: NICKELBACK – This title has been available on streaming platforms since 2024, but is now receiving an official Blu-ray release. It tells the story of hard rock band Nickelback. The group, from a small town in Alberta, Canada scored some massive radio hits in the early 2000s with “How You Remind Me,” “Someday,” and “Photograph”. They also had just as many vocal detractors as they did fans. The documentary goes over their meteoric rise, as well as the backlash that followed. It also catches up with the members as they embark on a successful reunion tour in 2023. Much like the band itself, reaction to the picture was split, with the film earning a few more recommendations than pans. Those who disliked the feature stated that it was a puff piece made exclusively for fans and lacked any detail about the musicians or the public’s intense reaction to their music. But the same number and a few more thought the subjects were endearing and that, even if the film could have delved deeper into their story, it was still interesting enough to warrant a watch.
HUNTING SEASON – In this independent action picture, a reclusive survivalist lives in the woods with his teenage daughter. One day, she runs into the house stating that she had discovered an injured woman nearby. They treat her for a gunshot wound and she tells them that a local vicious criminal is after her. When the psychopath and his team arrive at their home and demand the pair give them the wounded woman, the leads defend themselves. The press was more positive towards this picture than negative. Slightly more than one-third of critics complained that the plot was overly familiar and predictable, and that the action lacked thrills or excitement. Still, most found the lead performance was very strong and charismatic. They noted that the character-driven story kept them watching and described it as an effective B-movie. For now, this is a DVD-only release. The cast includes Mel Gibson, Shelly Hennig, Scarlet Rose Stallone and Sofia Hublitz.
NAKED AMBITION – This documentary chronicles the life of Bunny Yeager, who rose to prominence in the 1950s. She was described as having the looks of a fashion model, but instead decided to become a professional photographer. Yeager’s pictures helped popularize the bikini. She was also credited as helping discover pin-up model Bettie Page and assisted in shaping the image of Playboy magazine. Described as a trailblazer, the picture tells her story and notes the many ways in which she influenced popular culture. So far, only a handful of reviewers have seen the movie, but they have been generally upbeat about the title. A small contingent commented that the film did show her influence, but did so in the most general way possible and didn’t offer any insight into the person or greater meaning behind her work. Still, most thought the picture was engaging and believed it would help introduce many to the figure and her notable accomplishments. It features archival and recently recorded interviews with Dita Von Teese, Larry King, Bruce Weber, Guinevere Turner, Hugh Hefner, Bettie Page and Yeager herself.
PUT YOUR SOUL ON YOUR HAND AND WALK – Captured through 2024 and into 2025, this documentary details a relationship between a reporter and a photojournalist who were both covering the Palestinian-Israel conflict. After being denied entry into Gaza, the writer began taking part in video calls with a Gaza photographer and her family who were trapped within the blockaded city. Viewers hear the stories from the woman and members of the household, as well as the air strikes occurring around them. The camerawoman also shares her images of the devastation of the bombings, with a focus on children’s suffering. Tragically, the photojournalist and her family were killed by an airstrike. Reaction towards the picture was almost uniformly positive. One lone critic criticized the reporter/documentarian, claiming that by making the movie, they had endangered the photographer. All others thought the film was powerful and staggering, delivering an important tribute while providing an intimate and relatable portrait of average citizens directly affected by war.
BLASTS FROM THE PAST!
If you’re looking for something slightly older, you have plenty of options. The recent horror sequel Evil Dead Rise (2023) is now available as a “Limited Edition” 4K Ultra HD set. This follow-up involves a family living in an apartment who must contend with an assault from the title monsters. This release contains an HDR presentation of the film in Dolby Vision, along with a commentary featuring director Lee Cronin as well as two of the leads. There are new interviews with many members of the cast and crew members like the make-up effects designer, editor, sound designer and composer. Also included is a 2023 interview with Cronin and the sound designer, a featurette on the movie, a 2013 award-winning short from the director, behind-the-scenes video clips, a still gallery, concept art, storyboards, as well as trailers and TV spots. It all comes in a package with newly commissioned and original art, a double-sided fold-out poster with those images, and a booklet with writing on the movie.
Altered Innocence is presenting Taxi Zum Klo (1980) aka Taxi to the Toilets on Blu-ray. This self-described “frank” German film details the life of a gay schoolteacher. The disc contains two video essays on the movie, as well as a restoration trailer.
Criterion is delivering a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo of the Taiwanese drama Yi Yi (2000). This film is heralded as one of the best of this millennia and is a drama telling the complicated story of a middle-class engineer and his family in Taipei over a period of several years. The picture has received a new 4K restoration and bonuses include an audio commentary with the writer/director, an interview with an Asian cinema expert about the filmmaker and the New Taiwan Cinema Movement, as well as a trailer. An essay on the picture and notes from the director are also featured in an accompanying booklet.
Goodbye, Columbus (1969) is being released on Blu-ray from Fun City Editions. It’s a rom-com about a young war veteran who works in a library. He falls for a college student from a wealthy family visiting home for the summer. The film examines whether the two, from different social classes, can maintain a relationship. It stars Richard Benjamin and Ali McGraw. The disc features a 4K image restoration taken from the original camera negative, a film historian commentary, a video interview with the film’s composer, archival video of a post-screening conversation with cast and crew, an image gallery and a booklet with an essay on the feature.
About a month ago, Kino was slated to release a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo of Babe (1995) and its sequel, Babe: Pig in the City (1998), which is pictured to the right. They were delayed at the last minute and is arriving now. The Oscar-nominated family picture Babe (1995) is from George Miller (of Mad Max fame). He co-wrote and co-produced this tale of a piglet with a talent for sheepherding trying to find his place on a farm. For this release, a new 4K restoration has been taken from the original camera negative, and is presented in Dolby Vision. There is a film critic commentary included, along with one by Miller. It also comes with interviews with star James Cromwell, Miller, making-of featurettes and a trailer.
Babe: Pig in the City arrived a few years later and was helmed by George Miller himself. It’s also getting a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray release. This time out, Babe travels to a bustling metropolis to make some money for his struggling farm and gets lost. He meets other homeless animals and attempts to help them survive in a harsh and seemingly uncaring world. The movie was misunderstood during its original release and is every bit as good, and in some respects even more powerful than its predecessor. Its visuals are absolutely stunning and I can’t recommend this movie highly enough (although it will be too intense for small children). Once again, you’ll get a 4K restoration of the movie from the original camera negative presented in Dolby Vision. Additionally, there is a film critic commentary track and an interview with Miller about creating a “darker world” for the sequel. A trailer is also included.
And, if you’re okay with only owning the Blu-rays, a double-feature set of the two movies is also available on the format.
Kino is also delivering a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo of the disaster picture, Dante’s Peak (1997). This effort stars Pierce Brosnan as a volcanologist who discovers that a massive eruption is about to occur in Washington state. Only he and the mayor (played by Linda Hamilton) seem convinced that something bad is about to happen. When the lava flows, they try to save themselves and as many others as they can. The film has been given a new 4K restoration from the original camera negative and is presented in Dolby Vision. It comes with an archival director commentary with Roger Donaldson, a making-of, and a trailer.
The Godless Girl (1928) from Cecil B. DeMille (The Greatest Show on Earth, The Ten Commandments) is a romance about two teenagers, one an atheist and the other a devout Christian, who fall in love while attending reform school. It’s an early, silent effort from the director that actually incorporates a few sound elements into the production. The disc contains a new 4K picture restoration, a film authority commentary and an orchestral score.
The distributor is also putting out several titles in The Pink Panther series of films, both as a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo, as well as standalone Blu-rays. You can now pick up The Pink Panther (1963), A Shot in the Dark (1964), as well as the later efforts The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976) and Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978). For me, A Shot in the Dark is by far the best of the bunch. It’s a sequel that easily tops the original, as it focuses entirely on the Peter Sellers character Inspector Clouseau and his hilarious attempts to solve a murder.
All of the titles have been given 4K restorations from the original camera negatives that are presented in Dolby Vision. The first movie comes with an archival commentary with director/co-writer Blake Edwards as well as a 30-minute documentary on the production, cast, crew, production and cartoon featurettes and a trailer. A Shot in the Dark comes with a Peter Sellers expert commentary, a featurette on the origins of the story, Blake Edwards and Julie Andrews appearing on The Dick Cavett Show, and five theatrical trailers.
Extras on The Pink Panther Strikes Again include a Peter Sellers authority commentary, a featurette on co-star Leslie-Anne Down, a bit on the editing of the picture, a featurette on the Inspector Clouseau character and a ton of promo materials. Bonuses listed as being on the fourth movie are a film historian commentary, as well as trailers, radio and TV spots.
And there’s more. The underrated and visually striking “haunted hotel room” movie 1408 (2007) is arriving in a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray Amazon exclusive Steelbook from Lionsgate. John Cusack and Samuel L.Jackson star in this Stephen King adaptation. Technically, it’s a three-disc set with the first two containing 4K Ultra HD versions of both the director’s cut and the theatrical version. There’s a new featurette on the movie listed as a bonus, as well as archival materials like a commentary with the director and the co-writers, an alternate ending, deleted scenes with filmmaker commentary, featurettes and a trailer.
Meanwhile, Lionsgate is also putting out a couple of exclusive titles through their Lionsgate Limited website. The first is a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray of Eli Roth’s effective debut chiller, Cabin Fever (2002). It’s about a group of college students who go to a cabin to party, only to begin suffering from a flesh-eating infection. The movie arrives in 4K in Dolby Vision with a new look back at the feature, a new bonus with the director talking about the establishing shot in the film. Archival bonuses like multiple director, cast and crew commentaries are featured, as well as a short from Roth, a making-of, a family-friendly version of the picture, discussions with the filmmaker, featurettes on the production, deleted scenes and promo materials.
A Blu-ray of Mystery Team (2009) from the Vestron Collector’s Series will also be available on the Lionsgate Limited website. This cult comedy is about a group of kid detectives who have reached adulthood and find themselves embroiled in a much more serious and disturbing investigation. It stars Donald Glover, Aubrey Plaza, Ellie Kemper, Matt Walsh, Ben Schwartz and more. It arrives with a new 2025 Q&A with cast and crew, a new look at the production, an archival director and cast commentary, a making-of, a pre-production test scene, a featurette, deleted material, and a trailer.
Mondo Macabro is putting out a few European genre films. The dark Spanish chiller Forbidden Game of Love (1975) is arriving as a “Standard Edition” Blu-ray. It follows a pair of students who are kidnapped by their professor. The film has been given a 4K restoration from the original camera negative and features an interview with a movie historian about the picture’s director, Eloy de la Iglesia (Confessions of a Congressman, The Creature).
I Hate My Body (1974) is a Spanish effort about a man whose consciousness is transplanted into the body of a woman. He has difficulty enduring sexist discrimination and encounters more prejudices when he takes on a female lover. This Blu-ray contains a 4K picture restoration from the original camera negative, a Spanish and an English audio track, a film historian commentary, an interview with a cast member, a critical analysis of the movie and a discussion on another performer in the picture.
The Power of Darkness (1976), also from Spain, is receiving a “Standard Edition” Blu-ray release. The well-regarded thriller involves a delusional man who becomes convinced that he is being prosecuted by blind people. This title delivers a 4K image restoration from the original camera negative, an “About the Film” video short, and new and exclusive artwork for the release.
Paramount Pictures is re-releasing the underrated Bringing Out the Dead (1999) as a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray set. This effort from Martin Scorsese stars Nicolas Cage as a burnt-out paramedic working nights in Hell’s Kitchen. While responding to various calls, he begins having visions of those he failed to save over the course of his career. Ving Rhames, John Goodman and Tom Sizemore all make an impression as co-workers, as does co-star Patricia Arquette. It previously came out as a Paramount Presents title with a fold out box that displayed the original poster. This edition just features the discs without the bonus packaging.
Sony Pictures is putting out a Blu-ray of Ladder 49 (2004). Long out-of-print, it was last released on the Blu-ray format in 2007. This is a drama about firefighters featuring Joaquin Phoenix and John Travolta.
The Val Kilmer drama Thunderheart (1992) is arriving as a 4K Ultra HD only release. The actor plays an FBI agent with part-Sioux ancestry who is sent to South Dakota to investigate a murder on a Native American reservation. He appears in the film along with Graham Greene and Sam Shepard and the story was loosely inspired by the Wounded Knee incident that occurred in 1973. The picture has received a new 4K restoration presented in Dolby Vision that has been approved by cinematographer Roger Deakins (Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Skyfall, Sicario, 1917). The disc also contains a commentary track with the screenwriter, and a trailer.
Finally, Warner Archive is presenting a pair of Blu-ray sets. The first is the James Stewart 4-Film Collection, which contains The Shop Around the Corner (1940), The Mortal Storm (1940), The Naked Spur (1953) and How the West Was Won (1962). The second is the Robert Taylor 4-Film Collection, which presents Devil’s Doorway (1950), Westward the Women (1951), Ivanhoe (1952) and The Last Hunt (1956) together in one package.
YOU KNOW, FOR KIDS!
If you’re looking for something for kids, you can’t do any better than the pair of titles listed below (which I promise are arriving this week).
Babe (1995) (Kino) 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo
Babe: Pig in the City (1998) (Kino) 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo
Babe and Babe: Pig in the City double feature (Kino) Blu-ray only
ON THE TUBE!
Alas, there aren’t any TV-related titles arriving this week, but hopefully the next edition will offer some options.
