{"id":20260,"date":"2020-03-30T14:44:29","date_gmt":"2020-03-30T21:44:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=20260"},"modified":"2020-03-30T14:44:29","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T21:44:29","slug":"blu-ray-dvd-roundup-for-march-31st-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=20260","title":{"rendered":"Blu-ray\/DVD Roundup for March 31st, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hello and welcome to another look at highlights arriving on\nBlu-ray and DVD. Once again, its a busy week containing a huge blockbuster as\nwell as some intriguing independent fare. So, since you more than likely can\u2019t\nmake it out 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

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The Captain<\/em> \u2013 The disaster film genre has been around\nalmost as long as cinema itself and this foreign-language effort from China continues\nthe trend. It is based on an actual incident that occurred in May 2018 on a\nSichuan Airlines flight over Tibet. According to reports, the windshield of the\nplane cracked while in midair, sucking the captain halfway out of the cockpit while\nmany onboard passed out due to low cabin pressure. The movie was an enormous\nhit overseas and received reasonable notices over here as well. A small group of\nreviewers suggested that the film took too long to get where it was going and\nfelt like a corny update of 70s disaster flicks like the Airport<\/em> series.\nHowever, most found the film to be an appealing throwback and thought the story\nitself was quite remarkable. It stars Hanyu Zhang, Hao Ou, Jiang Du and Quan Yuan.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Carrion<\/em> \u2013 This independent horror picture is another\none of those little pictures that appears to be making its big debut on disc\nand through streaming platforms. There is little more than a studio synopsis available\nfor the picture to detail the story. A young woman shows up on her cousin\u2019s doorstep\nin Northern California after spending 10 years at a mysterious Russian facility.\nApparently, the relative\u2019s family are more than a little disturbed by the lead\u2019s\narrival and it is soon revealed that her mother was murdered on at the home many\nyears ago. All of the residents begin to suspect that their lives are in\ndanger. There are currently no write-ups for the film and those who are interested\nwill just have to take a chance on it. The cast includes Jenya Chaplin, Chloe Caro\nand Oliver Caspersen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Coda<\/em> \u2013 An elderly, world-renowned pianist takes an\nextended break from the performing world after suffering crippling bouts of\nstage fright. Sad and frustrated, he is less-than-enthused to be introduced to\na music critic. As the two become friends, the journalist reveals that she once\nwanted to become a pianist and attempts to inspire the man to overcome his fears\nand return to the stage. This drama garnered mixed reviews from the press. A\nsmall percentage thought that the soundtrack was beautiful and that the performances\nwere solid, with plenty of entertaining barbs being traded between the two\nleads. Still, more criticized the story as being predictable and didn\u2019t quite buy\ninto the central relationship. It features Patrick Steward, Katie Holmes,\nGiancarlo Esposito and Christoph Gaugler. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Current War: Director\u2019s Cut<\/em> \u2013 This biopic about the\nbattle between electricity titans Nicolai Tesla and Thomas Edison.\nSpecifically, it details their scientific experiments and heated attempts to\noutdo one another, all to determine whether alternating current or direct\ncurrent would power the world. This title boasted great talent in front of and\nbehind the camera, but was one of the first features to get pulled from theaters\nin late 2017 after the president of distributor The Weinstein Company was charged\nwith sexual abuse. The filmmakers (who had nothing to do with the scandal) reworked\nthe picture over the next couple of years while trying to secure a wider release.\nSlightly more critics enjoyed the director\u2019s cut than disliked it. A group\ncomplained that the story didn\u2019t offer up enough new info about the figures, but\nthe consensus was that the feature was well-acted and capably told. It stars\nBenedict Cumberbatch, Nicholas Hoult, Michael Shannon, Katherine Waterston and\nTom Holland. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hoax<\/em> \u2013 A group of campers in the Colorado wilderness\nare brutally killed, and markings on their bodies suggest the perpetrator may\nhave been an angry Sasquatch. An investigative team of cryptozoologists and scientists\nhead out to see if they can determine what happened. They soon become targets\nthemselves of whatever might be responsible. There aren\u2019t many reviews for this\nlow-budget independent horror picture. One positive piece that has popped up online\nsuggested that it was an amusing little B-movie that attempted to provide a twist\nor two between moments of carnage. Curious parties will have to venture out into\nthe wild with little background information. This film is also currently available\non streaming platforms like Amazon Prime. The cast includes Andrienne Barbeau,\nBen Bowder, Brian Thompson, Shoshana Bush and Cheryl Texiera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It Started as a Joke<\/em> \u2013 The Eugene Mirman Comedy\nFestival is the subject of this documentary, which traces the beginning and final\nshow of this popular Brooklyn event. Apparently, the celebration was described\nas a sincere-and-ironic series of performances that made fun of the trappings\nof mainstream festival programming. The documentary details the work of the\nfounder and his goals in creating the event. It also details the various\ncelebrities who took part in and preformed at the shows. The press enjoyed the\nfeature. They called the movie a great tribute and Mirman himself a sweet and\nlikable guy who used humor in inventive ways to entertain. The film features interview\nfootage with Michael Ian Black, Kirsten Schaal, Wyatt Cenac, Ira Glass, John\nHodgman, Kumail Nanjiani, Reggie Watts, Bobcat Goldthwait and many others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mystify: Michael Hutchence<\/em> \u2013 Musician Michael\nHutchence was the lead singer of the Australian band INXS, who had a string of\nhit singles in the 80s and 90s, including songs like \u201cWhat You Need\u201d, \u201cNeed You\nTonight\u201d, \u201cNever Tear Us Apart\u201d, and \u201cSuicide Blonde\u201d. Sadly, Hutchence died suddenly\nunder tragic circumstances at the age of 37. This documentary uses archival home\nmovies to detail his life and reveals several pieces of information about the\nfigure that the public didn\u2019t know. One example is a car accident in 1992 that involved\na serious blow to the head which reported plagued him over his remaining days. Critics\nunanimously recommended the film. They suggested that much of the footage on\ndisplay was enlightening and wisely focused on the figure\u2019s sadness rather than\nthe more salacious aspects of his life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker<\/em> \u2013The latest and supposedly final (for the time being) film in the Star Wars<\/em> series picks up with the evil Sith mastermind behind the sinister First Order revealing himself and unveiling his master plan. Naturally, the remaining members of the Resistance must fight a final battle that will determine the fate of the universe. Notices were muted and split down the middle for the finale (actually, it was the worst reviewed of all titles in the franchise). Those who enjoyed the movie stated that while the story was flawed, it was visually impressive and an appropriately grand finale. Almost as many didn\u2019t think it had much of importance to say, had serious logic issues and generally felt underwhelming. It stars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Domhall Gleeson, Richard E. Grant and Lupita Nyong\u2019o. To read this site\u2019s review, click here<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Streetlight Harmonies<\/em> \u2013 Doo-Wop is the subject of\nthis music-centered documentary. For those unfamiliar with the term, it was a\ngenre of rhythm and blues that gained prominence in the 1940s and ultimately inspired\nbands like The Miracles, The Coasters, The Inkspots and The Platters. Using restored\narchival footage and all-new interviews, the movie details the history of the\nmovement and the songs that were created, as well as identifying their historic\nsignificance and influence on modern artists. There haven\u2019t been a great many reviews\njust yet for this non-fiction feature, but the ones that have appeared have\nbeen positive. They called it a zippy and informative film that examines the\ngenre right up to the present day. It also features interviews with musicians\nand producers like Terry Ellis, Lamont Dozier, Brian Wilson, Al Jardine, Lance\nBass and Jay and the Americans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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VFW<\/em> \u2013 A group of war veterans get together at their\nlocal VFW to have a drink and catch up. Their reunion is suddenly interrupted\nby the arrival of a panicked and innocent teenager being hunted by a menacing drug\ndealer. When the deranged antagonist and his army arrive at the legion hall, the\nmen inside decide to protect the new arrival by standing up and fighting back\nagainst the threat. This action\/horror hybrid earned positive word of mouth at film\nfestivals and impressed reviewers. A very small contingent wrote that certain darker\nshots made it hard to figure out what was happening and said that the movie was\nmore of a homage to an earlier cinematic era than something new. However, the generally\nconsensus was upbeat, saying that this was a punchy little exploitation picture\nwith a great cast that hit all the right notes. It features Stephen Lang, William\nSadler, Fred Williamson, Martin Kove, David Patrick Kelly and George Wendt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n


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

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There are plenty of classic flicks that are also hitting high definition this week. Arrow Video are releasing a Blu-ray box set called the Ringu Collection<\/em> (1998 \u2013 2000). It contains Ringu<\/em> (1998), Ringu 2<\/em> (1999), the prequel Ringu 0<\/em> (2000), as well as the original sequel, George Iida\u2019s Spiral<\/em> (1998), which ended up becoming its own movie with a different focus. For those unfamiliar with the first flick, it\u2019s about a cursed videotape that will kill anyone who watches the contents, but refuses to pass it on and show it to someone else within a single week. A journalist investigates the disturbing deaths related to the tape and gets herself into all sorts of trouble as she uncovers its supernatural origins, leading to plenty of panic as the story progresses. The movie was remade in the US as The Ring<\/em> (2002), but most still believe that the creepy original film is the best in the long line of features and updates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In this set, the first feature has been given 4K restoration\nfrom the camera negative that has been approved by the director. There are\ncommentaries on most of the films, as well as a series of new interviews from\ncritics and filmmakers on the titles. There are multiple discussions with authors\nand critics on the cast, crew and the J-horror phenomenon, as well as analysis\nof the movies themselves. You\u2019ll also get behind the scenes clips, deleted\nscenes from Ringo 0<\/em> and an enormous collection of promotional materials.\nSounds like a lot of creepy fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shout! Factory are delivering some chills in the form of the\nSnoop Dogg horror picture, Bones<\/em> (2001). The rapper plays an inner-city\nprotector whose spirit is raised after a group of teens renovate his old home and\nturn it into a nightclub. He decides to take revenge on all those who wronged\nhim and ended his life. The movie arrives with a new 4K scan from the negative,\ncontains an interview with director Ernest Dickerson (Juice<\/em>, Surviving\nthe Game<\/em>). There are also interviews with the screenwriter, cinematographer,\nand make-up effects artists. The Blu-ray also includes an audio track with the\nstar and director, featurettes on the production, deleted scenes with optional\ncommentary, a music video, and plenty of trailers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also pick up Munster, Go Home!<\/em> (1966) on Blu-ray. This feature-length spin-off of the TV series got a theatrical release back in the day and follows the Munster family as they travel to England after family patriarch Herman inherits an old mansion and estate. There are plenty of extras on this disc. Actor Bruce Patrick and musician Rob Zombie provide a commentary on the feature (the movie inspired Zombie’s hit single, “Dragula”), and it also comes with cast radio interviews and spots, a theatrical trailer and extensive still galleries. The disc also includes a made-for-TV Munsters<\/em> movie called The Munsters\u2019 Revenge<\/em> (1981), newly scanned in 2K. Pictures from that production are also includes as a bonus.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kino have new titles arriving on Blu-ray as well, all of\nwhich are romantic comedies. Bluebeard\u2019s 8th<\/sup> Wife<\/em> (1938) is a\nwell-regarded film set on the French Riviera starring Claudette Colbert and Gary\nCooper. They are also putting out The Flame of New Orleans<\/em> (1941) with\nMarlene Dietrich. Both of these movies arrive with film historian audio\ncommentaries and theatrical trailers. The third release, Indiscretion of an\nAmerican Wife<\/em> (1953), is getting the Special Edition treatment. This Oscar-nominated\ntitle from writer\/director Vittorio De Sica (Bicycle Thieves<\/em>, Umberto\nD.<\/em>) is about a housewife visiting Italy who starts an affair with a local, but\nends up having some difficulty breaking it off. Jennifer Jones and Montgomery\nClift headline the film. The disc includes a 4K restoration of the US cut and a\n2K transfer of the longer, original version, a featurette on Rome in autumn and\na trailer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Vinegar Syndrome have some cheesy B-movie thrills to deliver.\nIn fact, they are putting all three films in the Angel <\/em>series out on\nBlu-ray. Angel<\/em> (1984) is about a high school student who moonlights as a\ncall girl. She\u2019s forced into protecting her friends after they are all targeted\nby a deranged serial killer. The Blu-ray boasts a 4K restoration, interviews\nwith the co-writer\/director, the other co-write, the film\u2019s star, the composer,\ndeleted scenes and trailers for all three films. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avenging Angel<\/em> (1985) is the follow-up in which the young lead quits her sideline job and begins attending UCLA classes. However, after the cop who helped her quit is assassinated, she decides to go undercover, team up with old friends and take their revenge. This title has been newly scanned and restored in 2K from its 35mm inter-positive for Blu-ray and features interviews with the cast and creators. And if you want to complete the trilogy, Angel III: The Final Chapter<\/em> (1988) involves the lead, now a freelance photographer, putting a stop to a sex trafficking operation. It has similar bonuses to the previous titles in the series. And you can also pick up the LA-set serial killer flick Hollywood Horror House<\/em> (1970). This Blu-ray comes newly scanned and restored in 4K from the 35mm camera negative and comes with a historical commentary track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Totally switching gears, Criterion also have a pair of prestige Blu-ray releases hitting store shelves. The first is the drama The Prince of Tides<\/em> (1991), about a New York psychiatrist who falls for a client with a tragic past. This film was nominated for seven Academy Awards including Best Picture. The disc contains a new 4K digital restoration supervised by star, producer and director Barbara Streisand and updated commentary for the film with her. You\u2019ll also get an interview with Streisand conducted by director Robert Rodriguez, along with audition and rehearsal footage, deleted scenes and alternate takes, costume and make-up tests, alternate end credits with a vocal performance by Streisand, behind-the-scenes footage, a gag reel and many other bonuses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\u2019re also presenting the classic musical Show Boat<\/em>\n(1936) in high definition. Perhaps most famous for the song, \u201cOl\u2019 Man River\u201d,\nthis title follows the life of a performer on a floating playhouse and the trials\nand tribulations that span an entire lifetime. Directed by James Whale (Frankenstein<\/em>,\nThe Invisible Man<\/em>), this Blu-ray features a restored 4K digital transfer\nof the film, a 1989 commentary from a American-musical historian, an interview\nwith a biographer of the director, an Academy Award-winning short paying tribute\nto co-star Paul Robeson, four performances with the sound prologue of the 1929\nversion of the story, and two radio adaptations (one of which was produced by Orson\nWelles). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Film Movement have the box set, Their Finest Hour: 5\nBritish WWII Classics<\/em> (1942 \u2013 1958). It features five classic war films in\nhigh definition. The titles include Went the Day Well?<\/em>, The Colditz Story<\/em>,\nThe Dam Busters<\/em>, Dunkirk <\/em>and Ice Cold in Alex<\/em>. Many of\nthese pictures won BAFTAs (the British equivalent of the Oscars) and are\nconsidered essential war movies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Film Detective has a 40th<\/sup> Anniversary Blu-ray of Fist of Fear, Touch of Death<\/em> (1980), a pseudo-documentary about Bruce Lee featuring a reporter who interviews other fighters about the martial arts legend. Apparently, it is quite clear that everything about the movie has been doctored (it also includes footage from older Lee movies that are re-dubbed), with Adolph Caesar and Fred Williamson stepping in to add a bit of manufactured drama to the proceedings. Still, the movie has something of a cult following and the new disc contains new interviews with actors Willaimson and Ron Van Clief, producer Terry Levene, director Matthew Mallinson, and scriptwriter Ron Harvey. You\u2019ll also get along with a collector\u2019s booklet featuring authentic published stills and release cards from the original premiere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, since Star Wars: Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker<\/em>\nis arriving on disc, Disney has decided to make all nine films in the series available\nin 4K on Blu-ray. That means that if you\u2019d like the highest quality versions of\nthe classics (and some of the other pictures in the series), you can now do so.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Here is a selection of releases that may provide some\nentertainment for younger family members.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Good Night, Gorilla\u2026 and More Great Sleepytime Stories<\/em> (Schoolasitc)
LEGO Jurassic World: Legend of Isla Nublar<\/em>
Munster, Go Home!<\/em> (1966)
SpongeBob SquarePants<\/em>: Season 11
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker<\/em> (2019) (All Previous Star Wars<\/em> flicks also being made available on 4K Blu-ray)
The Wonderful Adventures of Nils Holgersson<\/em> (1980 \u2013 1981 Austrian\/Japanese Animated Series)
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On the Tube!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you\u2019ll find some TV-themed releases below as well!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LEGO Jurassic World: Legend of Isla Nublar<\/em>
Midsomer Murders<\/em>: Series 21
Mr. Robot<\/em>: The Complete Series
Mr. Robot<\/em>: Season 4
The Wonderful Adventures of Nils Holgersson<\/em> (1980 \u2013 1981 Austrian\/Japanese Animated Series) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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