{"id":18228,"date":"2019-04-30T16:02:39","date_gmt":"2019-04-30T23:02:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=18228"},"modified":"2019-04-30T16:02:39","modified_gmt":"2019-04-30T23:02:39","slug":"dvd-blu-ray-roundup-for-april-30th-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=18228","title":{"rendered":"DVD\/Blu-ray Roundup for April 30th, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hello and welcome back to another look at highlights\narriving on Blu-ray and DVD. There’s a lot\nof great stuff to pick both new and old this time out (and as always, be sure\nto click on any links you see to read full reviews). So if you can’t make it\nout to the movies this week, be sure to give one of these titles a try!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big New Releases!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Arctic<\/em> – In this survival\nadventure, a plane crash leaves a lone man stranded in the arctic. He must\ndecide whether to stay at the site and hope a rescue team finds him, or venture\nout into the cold wilderness in order to try and find a way out. The press\ngenerally rated this feature as excellent. Admittedly, one or two did not\nappreciate the suffering on display and suggested that it was a tough slog to\nendure. However, almost everyone else commented that the movie was extraordinarily\ntense and thought that the lead performance was superb (an especially\nimpressive feat considering there is next to no dialogue in the movie). They also\nsaid that it perfectly captured the harshness of being stranded and alone. It\nstars Mads Mikkelsen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Dragged Across Concrete<\/em> – The latest from\nwriter\/director S. Craig Zahler (Bone Tomahawk<\/em>, Brawl in Cell Block\n99<\/em>) follows two overzealous policemen who are suspended after video\nsurfaces of them aggressively handling a suspect. Out of work and out of cash,\nthe pair decide to enter the criminal underworld in order to keep going. Of\ncourse, these leads soon run across many old enemies. Reaction wasn’t quite as\nstrong for this effort as for the filmmaker’s other works, but the overall\nconsensus was good. About a quarter of notices thought that it was long, didn’t\noffer much that was new, and complained about the posturing on display. Still,\nmost thought it was provocative and gritty and mentioned that they admired the\nwork of the stars. The cast includes Mel Gibson, Vince Vaughn, Tory Kittles,\nMichael Jai White, Jennifer Carpenter, Laurie Holden, Udo Kier and Don Johnson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Level 16<\/em> – This suspense picture involves a young\ngirl stuck in what is described as a “prison-like” boarding school.\nShe keeps to herself and tries to stay out of trouble, but the protagonist’s\nlife becomes more complicated after re-encountering the student whose actions\ncaused her to be held at the institute. The two form a temporary bond to try\nand escape to freedom. Reviews were generally positive for this independent\nproduction. While a smaller group suggested that it didn’t meet its full\npotential and that its climax ultimately disappointed, more complimented that\nthe end results were creepy and that the two leads worked well off of each\nother. It features Katie Douglas, Celina Martin and Sara Canning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Miss Bala<\/em> – A make-up artist living in Los Angeles travels across the border to help a friend compete in a Tijuana beauty pageant. Unfortunately, they come under gunfire and the lead’s friend is kidnapped. The protagonist finds herself in the middle of shady dealings between drug cartels, corrupt cops and shady government agents. In the process, she decides to take control and rescue her friend herself. Critics were unimpressed by this remake of a 2012 Mexican drama. A minimal contingent admired it as a goofy action film with a strong female protagonist. Still, the consensus was that despite a solid lead, that the story and themes had been mishandled and softened into a very routine thriller. It stars Gina Rodriguez, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Anthony Mackie, Thomas Dekker and Aislinn Derbez. To read this site’s review of the movie, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mission<\/em>\nof Honor<\/em> – This movie details the actions of Hurricane Squadron 303, a band\nof Royal Air Force pilots during WWII. Made up of Polish fighters who had\nbarely escaped with their own lives after the Nazis invaded and took control\nover their country, the group defended England\nin the air, in the hope of eventually saving their nation. Reviewers were quite\npositive about this UK\/Poland co-production. A few did critique the movie for\nbiting off more than it could chew dramatically and not employing the best CGI\ntechnology in its attempts to depict air battles. However, most agreed that\nthis was an important tale and that the cast helped it succeed over rough spots.\nIwan Rheon, Milo Gibson, Stefanie Martini and Marcin Dorocinski headline the\nfilm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Serenity<\/em> – A fishing boat captain gets the surprise\nof his life when his ex-wife shows up with their child, claiming that her new\nhusband is violent and beats them. She begs him to take the man out on a expedition\nwith his first mate, where the problem can be… removed (and easily discarded\nin shark-filled waters). But is she telling the truth, or are her motivations darker\nand more sinister? Reviews for this thriller were quite poor. A tiny percentage\ndid call it weirdly original and suggested that it provided pulpy\nentertainment. Still, the most common comments were that the movie was beyond\nsilly and that the talented cast were saddled with absurd dialogue. It features\nMatthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jason Clarke, Diane\n Lane and Djimon Hounsou. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blasts from the Past!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Lots of great older titles are appearing on Blu-ray this\nweek, and the first is from Arrow Video. Khrustalyov, My Car!<\/em> (1998) is\na very well-regarded Russian film about a Jewish surgeon who is wrongly accused\nof planning to kill the Soviet elite and must escape and survive in the harsh, Stalinist\nregime. The Blu-ray includes a new 2K transfer, new English subtitles, a\nproducer audio commentary, a video essay on the film, a short detailing the\nreal life anti-Semitic campaign that the story’s events are based on, as well\nas interviews with the director and producer, as well as publicity\nmaterials.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Shout! Factory have the goofy horror B-movie, The Brain<\/em>\n(1988). This made-in-Canada flick is about a TV show that becomes a bit hit,\nbut soon is linked to a series of violent episodes among the public. The leads\ntry to uncover the mystery and find that a giant creature may be the problem,\ncontrolling the minds of its viewers. This Blu-ray presents a 4K transfer of\nthe film from the original camera negative, three audio commentaries (one with\nthe director, another with the film’s composer, and a third featuring the\nstar), interviews with other cast members, an appreciation of the film, and\nstill galleries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

They are also debuting Kuffs<\/em> (1992) in high definition. This quirky action\/comedy stars Christian Slater as the title character, a layabout who loses his girlfriend and then learns that his brother, the owner of a private security company, has been murdered by criminals. The hero inherits the business and takes it upon himself to solve the crime and stop the guilty party. This oddball movie certainly has its fans and the release comes with plenty of bonuses, including a new audio commentary featuring the co-writer\/director and co-writer\/producer. An interview with the pair is also included, as is a talk with the movie’s score composer, Harold Faltermeyer (Beverly Hills Cop<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Shout! also have a Blu-ray of the classic giant monster movie, Tarantula<\/em> (1955). It’s about, you guessed it, an mutated tarantula roaming and eating its way across the southwest. The release comes with a new 2K scan of the movie from the original film elements, a film historian commentary and publicity materials. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As usual, Criterion are distributing remarkable and noteworthy\nBlu-rays. My Brilliant Career<\/em> (1979) is a well-reviewed, coming-of-age period\ntale set against the beautiful Australian backcountry. Judy Davis and Sam Neill\nstar. The release includes a director-approved 2K digital restoration of the\nfilm, a filmmaker audio commentary, a new interview with the director, an 1980\ntalk with Davis, a new discussion\nwith the art director and a trailer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The distributor also has a Blu-ray double bill of two of the\nbest action films of the last 40 years. Jackie Chan’s Police Story<\/em>\n(1985) and Police Story 2<\/em> (1988) are landmark features delivering jaw-dropping\nthrills and action. They’re personal favorites of many fans of the actor, and yet\nhave been out-of-print and hard to come by in this part of the world for\nseveral years. Police Story<\/em> introduces viewers to the noble and honest\npoliceman hero, who is framed for murder and must stop a criminal organization by\nusing every available resource at his disposal. The opening chase down a\nmountainside and through a village, as well as the shopping mall fight climax\nare legendary. Simply put, if you’ve never seen these movies, you’ll be absolutely\nblown away by them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully, both titles been given a wonderful high definition upgrade. Besides both films having been given new 4K restorations, the set includes both English and Cantonese soundtracks (with English subtitles), the longer Hong Kong-release version of Police Story 2<\/em>, new programs on Chan, his screen persona and action-filmmaking techniques, interviews with the star and stuntmen on the feature, a short from 1964 on Chan’s training at the Peking-opera, a Chan stunt reel, trailers and more. And for those curious, while the originals didn’t receive a big theatrical release in the US back in the day, Police Story 3<\/em> (1992) was put out in North America as Supercop<\/em>, and Police Story 4<\/em> (1996) was released as First Strike<\/em>. The first two movies, however, may be the best of the bunch. If you like action flicks, this set is a must own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Vinegar Syndrome have an assortment of B-movie Blu-rays\ncoming your way. They include Spanish horror\/mystery The Corruption of Chris\nMiller<\/em> (1973) and the American slasher flick, Darkroom<\/em> (1989).\nAdditionally, they have Grandmother’s House<\/em> (1989) aka Grandma’s\nHouse<\/em>, a terror flick about some kids who suspect elders in their family of\nactually being psychotic killers. Finally, the distributor have a Blu-ray of\nthe erotic feature, Skin-Flicks<\/em> (1978). The first three include new 4K\nrestorations from the original camera negative, while the last title includes a\n2K transfer from the negative. All of the releases include interviews and other\nextras. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And there’s more. Ammo Content are releasing a Blu-ray of\nthe David Mamet drama, The Spanish Prisoner<\/em> (1997), which stars Steve\nMartin, Felicity Huffman and Campbell Scott. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Kino are putting out the Fantomas Three Film Collection<\/em>\nbox set. The titles featured include Fantomas <\/em>(1964), Fantomas\nUnleashed<\/em> (1965) and Fantomas vs. Scotland Yard<\/em> (1967). These are\nall French\/Italian 60s crime\/comedy\/adventure films inspired to some degree spy\nmovies of the era. However, Fantomas himself is actually the sinister force,\nand a master of disguise. The original film includes a film historian audio\ncommentary and there are also a few other featurettes and bonuses included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The same company also have a Special Edition Blu-ray of Hannibal<\/em>\n(2001). This sequel to The Silence of the Lambs<\/em> (1991) once again stars\nAnthony Hopkins as the title character and the plot involves the attempts of\nnumerous figures (some just as sinister as the lead himself) to locate and stop\nhis activities. The disc includes all of the extras released on the previous DVD,\nincluding a director commentary, a 75 minute making-of, a breakdown of the fish\nmarket action scenes, featurettes on the storyboards and opening titles, over\n35 minutes of deleted and alternate scenes, an alternate ending and publicity\nmaterials.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Severin Films are putting out a couple of genre titles in\nhigh definition. They include the New Zealand\/Australia co-production of Death\nWarmed Up<\/em> (1984) aka Death Warmed and the appropriately titled Italian,\nlow-budget, women-in-prison flick, Escape from Women’s Prison<\/em> (1978).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, Warner Archive are releasing a Blu-ray of the Gene\nKelly\/Judy Garland musical Summer Stock<\/em> (1950). The film has been given\na brand new remaster and arrives with a making-of featurette, a trailer, as\nwell as a vintage specialty short and a Tex Avery cartoon that would have\nplayed in cinemas along with the movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You Know, For Kids!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some titles that may appeal to children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adventure Time<\/em>: The Complete Series (Cartoon Network)
The Pink Panther Cartoon Collection<\/em> (1976 – 1978) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the Tube!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And here are the week’s TV-themed highlights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adventure Time<\/em>: The Complete Series (Cartoon Network)
American Masters: Charlie Pride<\/em> (PBS)
Finding Joy<\/em>: Series 1
Frontline: Right to Fail<\/em> (PBS)
Homo Spatius<\/em> (PBS)
Nature: Living Volcanoes<\/em> (PBS)
Nova: Decoding the Pyramids<\/em> (PBS)
Reconstruction: America After the Civil War<\/em> (PBS)
Wedding March 3: Here Comes the Bride<\/em> (Hallmark TV-movie)
Wire in the Blood<\/em>: The Complete Collection <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n