{"id":19259,"date":"2019-10-14T16:15:33","date_gmt":"2019-10-14T23:15:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=19259"},"modified":"2019-10-14T16:15:33","modified_gmt":"2019-10-14T23:15:33","slug":"dvd-blu-ray-roundup-for-october-15th-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=19259","title":{"rendered":"DVD\/Blu-ray Roundup for October 15th, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s Monday, which means that it\u2019s time for another look at highlights\narriving on Blu-ray and DVD. Once again, there are a ton of titles coming in\njust about every genre imaginable. So, if you can\u2019t make it out to the movies\nthis 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

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3 from Hell<\/em> \u2013 Those familiar with Rob Zombie\u2019s horror\nflicks House of 1000 Corpses<\/em> and The Devil\u2019s Rejects<\/em> will be\nexcited to see this follow-up featuring the trio of psychotic killers known as\nthe Firefly family. While they all seemingly died in the previous installment, it\nis revealed that gang survived and have actually been spending the past decade\nbehind bars. Naturally, they escape and head to Mexico, causing more violence\nand bloodshed. Critics were split on the third chapter in the series. Half\nthought that it was an effective and memorable exploitation film that would\nplease fans. However, just as many thought this film was running on fumes from\nthe start and felt that events really petered out by the finale. It stars Sheri\nMoon Zombie, Bill Moseley, Sid Haig, Jeff Daniel Phillips, Richard Brake and\nDee Wallace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Already Gone<\/em> \u2013 A lonely teenager and graffiti artist with\nan abusive stepfather decides to take steps to escape his terrible situation by\nstealing the family car. After asking his dad\u2019s girlfriend decides to tag along,\nshe hops in and joins him. Not long after leaving, the pair realize that drug\nmoney has been left in the vehicle. Even worse, their car suddenly breaks down\nin a small Colorado town. When they\u2019re helped by a local artist and the girlfriend\nof the lead\u2019s father falls for man who has taken them in, jealousy builds, while\nthe stepfather closes in. This picture received a very limited release a couple\nof months ago. Although there weren\u2019t many reviews, the ones that did appear\nsaid the protagonist was likable and the material well handled. The cast\nincludes Tyler Dean Flores, Seann William Scott and Justine Skye. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Art of Self-Defense<\/em> \u2013 This dark comedy involves a\ntimid bookkeeper who is attacked on the street by a motorcycle gang. Feeling\nemasculated, he decides to join a karate school to build up some confidence and\nstop the attacks from ever happening again. However, as he become more involved\nin his sensei\u2019s social circle, he begins to realize that this new world is no\nless disturbing, as the group embody hyper-masculine and violent traits. The\npress gave this effort a lot of praise. A small contingent couldn\u2019t get on its\nwavelength and wrote that it was pretty direct in its attacks. Still, the\noverwhelming majority had only good things to say about the feature, suggesting\nthat it was a sharp-witted, well-acted and very unique flick. It features Jesse\nEisenberg, Alessandro Nivola, Imogen Poots and David Zellner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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At War<\/em> \u2013 Also known as En Guerre<\/em> in its\nhomeland, this French foreign-language drama depicts the struggles of a group\nof factory employees. After signing a contract with company owners and accepting\na pay-cut in order to guarantee their job safety for five more years, the\nexecutives suddenly shut down the location. A representative for the 1100 employees\ntries to save their jobs and find out the motivation for this unexpected decision.\nNotices were good overall for the feature. About one quarter of them thought\nthat while events were tense, some of the elements were bluntly presented and\nrepetitive. Most believed that while it wasn\u2019t subtle, the film was relatable\nand passionately made, offering some powerful moments. Vincent Lindon and Melanie\nRover headline the feature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Crawl <\/em>\u2013 Watch out for alligators! Set in Florida during a hurricane, this horror picture begins with a young student rushing home to get in touch with her missing father. She arrives at his desolate and flooded out property to find it overrun with alligators. The protagonist tries to locate her dad and survive the onslaught of hungry reptiles as they break in and chomp at everything in sight. This little picture surprised reviewers and earned a great deal of positive response. A small group did state that the characters did too many silly things for them to empathize with. Still, the clear consensus was that this was a remarkably fun B-movie that benefitted from its menacing, toothy antagonists and provided a non-stop barrage of thrills and chills. It stars Kaya Scodelario, Barry Pepper and Morfydd Clark. To read this site\u2019s review of the picture, just click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Deviant Behavior<\/em> \u2013 After playing at a horror film\nfestival in Texas, this independent chiller is being released as a DVD and on\nstreaming platforms at the same time. Harkening back to the 80s, it is described\nas a slasher pic about a masked killer on a mission to become the most attractive\nwoman in the region. Of course, to do this, various ladies are targeted by the psychopath.\nA private detective hunting for the responsible party discovers the villain\u2019s lair\nand attempts to put a stop to these reprehensible activities. There aren\u2019t any\nreviews for this title as of yet, so horror fans will just have to take a chance\non it (although they may be wise to wait until others comment on its quality).\nEric Rodrigue, Tania Monroy and Alex Heatherley take on the lead roles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Devil\u2019s Revenge<\/em> \u2013 Here\u2019s another low-budget creeper\nthat is making its debut specifically on disc. According to the press synopsis,\nthe feature is about an archeologist in Kentucky who returns home after a\nfailed expedition to find an ancient relic in a cave. He begins having dreams\nof a bird-like creature and comes to the natural and very scientific conclusion\nthat the location must actually be a gateway to Hell. He decides to return to\nthe site once again with his family in tow so he find the item, destroy it, and\nsave the world. There aren\u2019t any write-ups for this title and it sounds pretty\nsilly, but maybe it\u2019ll provide some laughs for persons in the right frame of\nmind. The cast includes Apollo Bacala, Jason Brooks and Jackie Dallas, as well\nas a guest appearance from William Shatner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Doubting Thomas<\/em> \u2013 When a black baby is very\nunexpectedly born to a white couple, a family begins to fracture and\naccusations are made between the parents, leading to an examination of their\nbeliefs and the racial bias in their town. This small picture played several little\nfilm festivals last year and received some positive buzz. However, it is debuting\nin limited release at theaters and premiering on disc at almost the same time.\nAs of right now, there don\u2019t appear to be any critic reviews posted. Some bloggers\nhave written that the movie is well-intentioned but has some uneven\nperformances and is overly somber, so those interested in the film may want to\napproach it with caution. It features Will McFadden, Sarah Butler and Jamie\nHector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Inside Lehman Brothers<\/em> \u2013 The US housing crisis is the\njumping off point for this documentary. A French journalist looks back at what\nhappened ten years ago and focuses on the bankruptcy of the Lehman Brothers\nglobal financial firm and the global recession that followed. She attempts to\ndetermine who was responsible and the details of what happened in an effort to prevent\nit from happening again. Reviewers had good things to say about the information\npresented. One write-up didn\u2019t care for how the information was presented. All\nothers thought it detailed many unheard stories and explained the turmoil very\nclearly, so that anyone could understand the disturbing actions taken by the firm\nthat ended up causing financial disaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Liam Gallagher: As It Was<\/em> \u2013 Oasis were a huge rock act\nin the 90s that had numerous hit albums (What\u2019s the Story Morning Glory?<\/em>\nbeing their biggest seller in these parts) and sold out arenas worldwide. In\nthis documentary, Liam Gallagher, the lead singer and co-front man shares his story\nof their meteoric rise to the top of the charts. Along the way, he details the\nsquabbles with his brother (who served as the main songwriter in the group), as\nwell as the various legal troubles and issues they had to overcome. It also details\nthe artist\u2019s solo career and success away from the group. The picture earned decent,\nbut not exceptional marks from the press. Some commented that it was too fawning\nand served as little more than a promo piece for the artist. Still, many found\nthe subject interesting and wrote that it would appeal to fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Lingering<\/em> \u2013 This horror picture hails from Hong\nKong (where it was called Ku Zak<\/em>) and tells the story of an evil spirit.\nIt begins with a young boy and mother spending New Years Eve at home and waiting\nfor the family patriarch to come home. The child begins seeing a strange figure,\nand the night ends in tragedy. Many years later, the grown boy inherits the estate.\nWhen he returns to the house to get things in order, the visions and memories\nreturn. Unfortunately, most media outlets have yet to see this picture and online\nreviews from the public have been less than stellar. Most complained that it\nwasn\u2019t very coherent and resorted on nothing more than an extended series of\njump scares. Now viewers can make up their own minds. Bob Yin-Pok Chueng and\nKai-Chung Cheung headline the feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Night Hunter<\/em> \u2013 A serial killer in Minnesota who targets\nwomen is terrorizing a community in this thriller\u2026 and it seems as if some of his\npursuers are a little off too. According to the plot summary, there\u2019s a judge\nwho spends his nights as a vigilante, hunting down sex offenders and castrating\nanyone who might be responsible for the slayings. A grizzled lieutenant steps\nin to get to the bottom of it and stop all of the violent acts being committed.\nCritics roundly panned this rather silly-sounding flick. One or two were amused\nby the odd twists presented. However, almost everyone else described the events\ndepicted as ridiculous, over-the-top and, in some sequences, unintentionally\nhumorous. It stars Henry Cavill, Ben Kingsley, Alexandra Daddario, Stanley\nTucci, and Nathan Fillion.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Pig Hag<\/em> \u2013 In this independent comedy\/drama, a woman in\nher mid-30s feels pressure from those around her to finally settle down and start\na family. At a concert, she thinks she may have found the right man, but soon\nrealizes that his intentions are not the same as hers. The protagonist\ndiscusses her problems with gay friends, who try to coach her on what to do\nnext. In the process, they all attempt to deal with concepts and societal expectations\nplaced upon women. This small film earned some positive reaction from\nreviewers. The general comments were that it was a sweet indie movie with well-drawn\ncharacters that does a thoughtful job of raising several gender issues. The\ncast includes Anna Schlegel, Tony Jacksha and Nate Stoner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Stuber<\/em> \u2013 This action\/comedy follows a weak-willed, mild-mannered Uber driver who picks up the gruffest of passengers. His fare turns out to be a hardened, violent cop who has just undergone eye surgery. When the detective gets a big lead on a murder case, he insists on being chauffeured around the city to meet with various witnesses and criminals, pulling the driver into a series of extraordinarily dangerous situations. This buddy film split the press, with slightly more panning the film than praising it. Those who enjoyed the film suggested that after a rocky start, it found its feet and the interplay between the two leads delivered plenty of laughs. The rest just didn\u2019t find the gags funny and suggested that nothing much about it stood out. It features Dave Bautista, Kumail Nanjiani, Mia Sorvino, Natalie Morales, Iko Uwais, Betty Gilpin and Karen Gillan. To read this site\u2019s review, click here<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Teen Titans Go! Vs. Teen Titans<\/em> \u2013 This animated\nsuperhero entry featuring the Teen Titans (as featured in the 2018 theatrical release,\nTeen Titans Go! to the Movies<\/em>) features young and old versions of Robin,\nBeast Boy, Cyborg, Raven and Starfire squaring off against each other. Of\ncourse, they soon learn that they have been manipulated by sinister forces into\nfighting themselves and must work together to stop the villains. This follow-up\nto the movie was made exclusively for the Blu-ray\/DVD market, so there haven\u2019t\nbeen many write-ups yet. However, the ones that have appeared are upbeat. They\nsay that like the TV series and previous movie, the flick is a lot of fun and\nmixes superhero antics with laughs in equal measure. The voice-cast includes Scott\nMenville, Greg Cipes, Khary Payton, Tara Strong, Hynden Walch, Rhys Darby and Weird\nAl Yankovic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

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It\u2019s another jam-packed week of releases for fans of older\ntitles. Arrow are releasing Killer Nun<\/em> (1979) as a Blu-ray Special Edition.\nBelieve it or not, there is an entire genre of horror films called \u201cnunspoitation\u201d\nfilms and this release is one of the most famous titles. It\u2019s an Italian flick\nabout a psychotic, drug-addicted nun victimizing all those serving under her. The\ndisc includes a 2K restoration of the feature from the original camera\nnegative, a new commentary from Italian genre film experts, a video essay on \u201cnunsploitation\u201d\nmovies, as well as interviews with the director, the editor and actress Ileana\nFraia. You\u2019ll also get Italian and international trailers, an image gallery and\na collector\u2019s booklet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If low-budget martial arts pictures are more to your liking,\nyou might want to give the MVD Collector\u2019s Edition Blu-ray of My Samurai<\/em>\n(1992) a try. The story involves a young boy who witnesses a gang shooting and\nturns to a martial arts instruction to help defend him against a group of\nmobsters. This release comes with the extended cut of the film and the original\nR-rated version. There are also new interviews with the stars and cast members,\na photo gallery and trailer present on the disc. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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AGFA are putting out a 2-disc Blu-ray and DVD Special Edition\nof Scary Movie<\/em> (1991). It\u2019s a little comedy\/horror film about a young\nman who begins to believe that an escaped madman is hiding in a neighborhood\nhouse of horrors. The film barely got released outside of a few film festival\nscreenings, but has become a curio due to the fact that the star was a young\nJohn Hawkes, who has since become a well-respected and Oscar-nominated\nperformer. This set includes a 2K preservation of the movie from the original 16mm\ncamera negative, as well as a director commentary, two short flicks from the filmmaker,\na teaser trailer, and some behind-the-scenes photos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Leg Fighters<\/em> (1980) aka The Invincible Kung Fu\nLegs<\/em> aka Nan Bei Tui Wang<\/em> is an independent martial arts film from\nHong Kong starring Tao-Liang Tan that\nhas developed a cult following over the years. VCI have a Blu-ray of the\nfeature under their new imprint, The Pearl Collection. They\u2019ve given the kung-fu\nflick a new 2K restoration from an original 35mm Chinese print and have packed\nthe disc with extras. You\u2019ll get a segment showing original film memorabilia\nand behind the scenes photos, a discussion with Dan Halsted (curator of\nPortland’s Hollywood Theater Kung Fu Night), an audio commentary by filmmaker,\nactor and Kung Fu Film fan Michael Worth, the original theatrical trailer to\nNam’s The Hot, The Cool and The Vicious, and a visit with director Lee Tso Nam<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shout! Factory always have something interesting coming around\nand this week is no exception as they present an elaborate Deluxe Edition box\nset called The Omen Collection<\/em> (1976 – 2006). As you might have guessed,\nit includes The Omen<\/em> (1976), Damien: Omen II<\/em> (1978), The Final\nConflict<\/em> (1981), the TV movie, Omen IV: The Awakening<\/em> (1991), and the\n2006 remake of the original. For those unfamiliar with the series, the 1976\noriginal from Richard Donner (Superman<\/em>, The Goonies<\/em>, Lethal\nWeapon<\/em>) is a genre masterpiece that should be on the shelf of any horror movie\nbuff. The sequel also has some fun moments. The third chapter is weaker but\nfeatures Sam Neill in an early role as the grown-up Damien Thorne. The TV movie\nand remake have their fans, although this reviewer wouldn\u2019t count himself among\nthem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The set looks incredibly impressive, including a 4K transfer\nof the 1976 classic from the original negative, new interviews with cast and\ncrew members, a new audio commentary with a special project consultant, and all\nof the previously released features including three separate audio commentaries\nwith the director, director and editor, and film historians. And that\u2019s not\nall. The other movies come with new bonus interviews and images along with all\nthe old goods on the other features as well. In fact, there are more extras in\nthis set than can possibly be listed here. If you\u2019re in any way curious about\nit, you should most definitely pick it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kino have several new Blu-rays coming your way. The first is\na Special Edition of the thriller And Soon the Darkness <\/em>(1970). The story\ninvolves two female cyclists in France. When one of them disappears, the other\nhas to find out what happened to her before it\u2019s too late. This disc comes with\na filmmaker commentary and a film historian track, as well as publicity materials.\nThe distributor is also putting out The Bloody Brood<\/em> (1959), a crime\nflick about a pair of beatniks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Queen of Spades<\/em> (1949) is a UK horror picture\nabout a woman who makes a deal with the Devil to be a master card player. When\nshe\u2019s murdered by another card shark, she begins to terrorize him. This Special\nEdition Blu-ray has an intro with director Martin Scorcese, and the release\nalso includes a film critic analysis, a 1951 interview with director Thorold\nDickerson, as well as a 1968 intro by filmmaker Dickerson. Kino have another\nSpecial Edition in the form of the UK thriller, The Mind Benders<\/em> (1963).\nYou\u2019ll find a film historian audio commentary and a trailer on this disc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If more modern comedy\/dramas are more to your liking, you\ncan pick up A Simple Twist of Fate<\/em> (1994) on Blu-ray with Steve Martin.\nThis disc includes a trailer. And the studio is putting out the thriller, Sudden\nTerror<\/em> (1970), about a boy who witnesses an assassination and then must go\non the run with his sister before he is hunted down by the killers. This Special\nEdition Blu-ray includes filmmaker and movie critic commentaries, trailers, and\nan interview with the star.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Warner Archive are releasing something special this week\nthrough their made-to-order Blu-ray line. The Fearless Vampire Killers<\/em>\n(1967) is a great little satire about a professor and his assistant who travel\nto an enormous castle in Transylvania and do battle with the vampire Count Krolock\nand his undead pals. This effort from director\/co-writer\/co-star Roman Polanski\nis very funny and has been out-of-print for over a decade. It\u2019s nice to finally\nsee it make its Blu-ray debut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Speaking of horror, Haxan<\/em> (1922) is arriving on\nBlu-ray courtesy of Criterion. This interesting film from Sweden and Denmark takes\na different approach to horror and presents its findings in a fictionalized documentary\nform. Rather than presenting demonic terrors, it\u2019s split into segments that detail\nwitchcraft through the ages and details all of the irrational fears and\nhysteria that have been levied on the order. The movie has been given a new 2K\ndigital restoration, is presented with music from the 1922 Danish premiere and\nincludes a film scholar audio commentary. You\u2019ll also get an abbreviated version\nof the feature released in 1968, a director introduction, outtakes and other\nextras.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And there\u2019s more. Oscilloscope are presenting a Blu-ray of The\nHours and Times<\/em> (1991), a fictionalized account of what may have happened\nbetween John Lennon and Beatles manager Brian Epstein during a holiday together\nin 1963.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Universal are releasing a Dreamworks: Ultimate Holiday\nCollection<\/em> (2005 \u2013 2017) set that features many famous animated feature\nleads in holiday-themed short films. One of groups featured are the characters\nfrom the Madagascar series, and their animated films are being bundled together\nin Madagascar: The Ultimate Collection<\/em> (2006 \u2013 2014), which contains\nfour movies. The studio is also releasing a Blu-ray of the Restored Edition of Spartacus\n<\/em>(1960) that presumably included all of the extra conversations involving\nsnails and oysters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, Paramount are delivering the box set,Star\nTrek: Picard Movie & TV Collection<\/em> (1994 – 2002), which should impress\nany Patrick Stewart enthusiasts. You can also pick up a Blu-ray of the Bing\nCrosby\/Danny Kaye holiday classic, White Christmas<\/em> (1954).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Here are some selections that may appeal to kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dreamworks: Ultimate Holiday Collection<\/em> (2005 \u2013 2017) 9 holiday-themed shorts featuring Trolls, Shrek, Kung-Fu Panda and others
Madagascar<\/em>: The Ultimate Collection (2006 \u2013 2014) 4 movies
Teen Titans Go! Vs. Teen Titans\ufeff<\/em>
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On the Tube!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you\u2019ll find some TV-related highlights below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Doctor Who: John Pertwee<\/em>: The Complete Season 4 (1972 \u2013 1973)
The Haunting of Hill House<\/em> (Netflix)
The Returned<\/em>: Season 2
Twin Peaks: The Television Collection <\/em>
Ultra Q<\/em>: The Complete Series (1966 \u2013 1967)
Ultraman<\/em>: The Complete Series (1966 \u2013 1967)
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