Time for another look at flicks coming your way on Blu-ray and DVD. There are a couple of big, high profile releases, some smaller titles and tons of older features making their high definition debuts (click on any links you see to read more about them). 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!
211 – Loosely inspired by a real life event, this action thriller involves a bank heist. A cop struggling after a divorced is forced to escort a young high school student on a ride-along. Nearby, a group of armed criminals rob a bank. Bullets fly and the villains try to escape, with both the police officer and the student finding themselves in the middle. Reviews for this film were poor. They called this effort sluggish as well as generic. It was also noted that the actors weren’t used properly and seemed forced to perform and shout in an exaggerated manner. It stars Nicolas Cage, Sophie Skelton and Michael Rainey Jr..
Chappaquiddick – Ted Kennedy is the subject of this drama. Specifically, the car accident that involved the tragic drowning of his young campaign strategist in the car with him. The movie follows the aftermath of what occurred and examines how the survivors dealt with the problem and handled the potential fallout. Reaction to the picture was strong. There were a few who commented that they didn’t feel the move went deep enough into the characters, but the vast majority found it compelling, interesting, unbiased and suggested they learned something from the proceedings. The cast includes Jason Clarke, Kate Mara, Ed Helms, Bruce Dern, Jim Gaffigan and Clancy Brown.
A Ciambra – This Italian coming-of-age drama follows a youngster from a small village determined to be an adult. He takes up drinking, smoking and following his older brother around on the streets. When his sibling disappears, the boy decides to take the place of his elder but finds his new life challenging. Most of the press were taken with this Italian-language effort. A small percentage claimed the movie’s approach was too distanced to be emotionally involving. but far more stated that it was engrossing and appreciated the stylistic attempts at neo-realism to make things feel authentic. It features Pio Amato and Koudous Seihon.
Future World – Set in a post-apocalyptic world, this sci-fi feature tells the story of a young man out to save the life of his mother, a queen suffering from a seemingly terminal illness. To find the cure, he must travel across a barren desert and avoid the sinister forces of motor gangs and warlords. Critics panned this effort and has very little that was good to say about it. They noted that it was a low-budget attempt to emulate Mad Max, but one that lacked a deeper message or themes and the technical skills of its inspiration. James Franco, Suki Waterhouse, Jeffrey Wahlberg, Snoop Dogg, Method Man, Lucy Liu and Milla Jovovich headline the film.
Lean on Pete – After moving to Portland with his single, troubled father, a teenage boy finds adjusting to his new home difficult. He finds some happiness at a local racetrack and begins taking care of an aging horse. After learning that that his new equine friend is soon to be put down, the youngster goes to extreme measures to keep the animal alive. Notices were excellent for this drama. While a minute group didn’t buy in to the boy’s relationship with the horse, almost all others called it a beautiful, moving and well performed drama. It stars Steve Buscemi, Chloe Sevigny, Charlie Plummer and Steve Zahn.
The Leisure Seeker – This comedy/drama depicts a married couple who feel that some of the magic has disappeared from their lives. They decide to pack up, hop into their RV and head down the coast to Key West, Florida to liven things up. Apparently, it works as they take in new experiences and find a newfound love for one another. Alas, reviews didn’t find the journey as life altering as the characters. They complimented the cast and felt it had an effective ending, but most criticized the rest of the film as being sentimental and the tone uneven. It features Helen Mirren and Donald Sutherland.
Modern Life is Rubbish – It isn’t just the title of a Blur album anyone. This comedy/drama from the UK about a breakup between music fans revolves around the pair’s record collection. They attempt to amicably divide their albums, but soon find the music library bringing them back together. Despite the interesting concept, reviews weren’t overly strong. A segment did think the young cast were had chemistry and complimented the great background tunes, but many complained about the story structure and didn’t think it hit the right notes. The cast includes Freya Mavor, Josh Whitehouse and Ian Hart.
A Quiet Place – This surprise hit from a few months back wowed both critics and audiences. The story involves a family struggling to survive after an alien species lands on the planet and quickly hunts them down. It uses sound to target prey, meaning the clan must live a solitary, soundless existence. As mentioned, just about everyone loved this horror flicks. One or two criticized it as being unbelievable and silly, but almost everyone else found it incredibly tense and unique, using long periods of silence for maximum suspense. It stars Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe. To read a full review of the film, click here.
Spidarlings – This small,, low-budget horror/comedy/musical B-movie comes from Troma, the same studio that brought you The Toxic Avenger and Class of Nuke ‘Em High. This UK-set tale involves two lovers struggling to survive in the city. When they buy and care for a pet spider, they get themselves into even more trouble. There aren’t many notices for it as of yet, and the ones that have appeared haven’t been too complimentary, calling it a series of raunchy, rambling sketches without much point. Still, it may be of interest to Troma fans. It features Sophia Disgrace, Rahel Kapsaski and Lloyd Kaufman.
Blasts from the Past!
Some really great and quirky stuff is arriving this week for fans of classic titles. Do you like really cheesy monster movies? If so, then The Godmonster of Indian Flats (1973) may be for you. This title has been difficult to come by for some time, but now AGFA are releasing a “Special Edition” Blu-ray. The story involves a mutated, bipedal killer sheep that goes on the rampage in a Nevada community. And yes, you’ll definitely end up rooting for the creature rather than the townspeople. It’s really silly, but features some big laughs for B-movie fans. They’ve given the feature a 4K transfer from the only remaining 35mm print of the film, a bonus movie called The Legend of Bigfoot (1975) and included all sorts of great monster movie trailers. This particular release sounds like an awful lot of fun and you can read a review of the disc here.
Arrow Video have the Blu-ray collection, Detective Bureau 2-3: Go to Hell, Bastards! (1963). It’s a Japanese Yakuza action/crime flick that is said to be very striking and have some impressive, over-the-top elements. This release includes new English subtitles, an interview about the movie with a Japanese cinema authority, production still and a trailer. Sounds like it could be a lot of fun.
Shout! Factory recently put out a Blu-ray box set of all the Billy Jack action movies. They’re now releasing the first in the four movie series, Born Losers (1967), on its own for anyone out there who’d simply prefer to just have the original film. Although it is not confirmed as of right now, one would hope that this release contains the audio commentary and other bonuses that were contained on the disc from the box set.
A ton of high definition releases are also coming courtesy of Kino. They include the early pictures The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938) and A Bill of Divorcement (1932). On top of those two, they are also releasing the amusing Top Gun knock-off, Fire Birds (1990), which features an out-there performance from star Nicolas Cage. Additionally, they are releasing the Michael Keaton action/drama, One Good Cop (1991). Both of these releases also include a new director’s commentary track that should provide plenty of insight and stories about the making-of these productions.
Criterion have Dragon Inn (1967) on Blu-ray. It’s a martial arts film from Japan that was ahead of its time and has influenced generations of movie-makers. The release includes a 4K restoration, news interview with some of the stars, a critic film analysis, newsreel footage of the movie’s premiere, trailers and more.
Bull Durham (1988) is also arriving thanks to Criterion. This lauded comedy/drama about a minor-league baseball team stars Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins. The distributor is giving delivering the Blu-ray with a new, restored 4K transfer supervised by director Ron Shelton, two different audio commentaries, an interview with Shelton, a 2001 series of talks with the stars of the film, a 2008 appreciation of the feature with professional ball players, a news piece from 1993 about the park where the movie was shot, publicity materials and other extras. If you enjoy the movie, this is the version to pick up.
And there’s more. Warner Archive are releasing make-to-order Blu-rays of the Peter Ustinov and Terrence Stamp feature, Billy Budd (1962). On DVD, you can pick up made-to-order copies of the out of print titles, Almost Heroes (1998), Hooper (1978), Reckless Kelly (1993), Stroker Ace (1983) and Sharky’s Machine (1981). The news should please fans of Chris Farley, Burt Reynolds and Yahoo Serious.
Back on the Blu-ray front, Mondo Macabro have the release of the Spanish horror picture, Who Can Kill a Child? (1976). Finally, Kit Parker Films are giving The French Way (1945) a high definition upgrade and Milestone have the European arthouse titles Maborosi (1995) and Rocco and His Brothers (1960). Apparently, Martin Scorcese is a massive fan of the last film.
You Know, For Kids!
Here are some releases that may appeal to kids.
PBS Kids: 20 Music Tales
Teen Titans Go! Back to School
On the Tube!
And these are the week’s TV-themed releases.
Alice: Season 7 (Warner Archive)
America Inside Out With Katie Couric (National Geographic)
The Bill Engvall Show: Season 1 (Warner Archive)
Civilizations (PBS)
Date With Love (Hallmark TV-movie)
The Exorcist: Season 1
Green Acres: The Final Season
Keeping Faith: Series 1
La Femme Nikita: Season 1 (Warner Archive)
The Last Man on Earth: Season 4
The Magicians: Season 3
Masterpiece Mystery: Endeavor: Season 5 (PBS)
Mosaic: Season 1
Rosewood: Season 1
Rosewood: Season 2
Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In: The Complete 5th Season
SS-GB (BBC)
Teen Titans Go! Back to School