{"id":20742,"date":"2020-07-06T12:59:04","date_gmt":"2020-07-06T19:59:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=20742"},"modified":"2020-07-06T12:59:04","modified_gmt":"2020-07-06T19:59:04","slug":"blu-ray-dvd-roundup-for-july-7th-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=20742","title":{"rendered":"Blu-ray\/DVD Roundup for July 7th, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Welcome to another look at highlights headed your way on\nBlu-ray and DVD. It\u2019s another busy edition filled with intriguing independent features\nand big studio fare. So, since you likely can\u2019t make it out to the movies this\nweek, 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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American Tragedy<\/em> \u2013 Those looking for a documentary\ndealing with some heavy subject matter may be intrigued by this project. The picture\ndetails the 1999 Columbine High School shooting, committed by Eric Harris and Dylan\nKlebold. More than 20 years later, Dylan\u2019s mother Sue attempts to reconcile how\nshe missed all of the warning signs and if she could have prevented his horrific\nactions. She details all of the conversations they had previous to the event and\nattempts to analyze them with new insight. The movie also details the importance\nof mental health and treatment, as well as her efforts to provide prevention\ntechniques and warnings to others about what they need to look out for. This\nfilm has played at a few festivals, but is primarily debuting on disc. As such,\nthere aren\u2019t many reviews of the picture at this time.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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American Wisper<\/em> \u2013 Based on a true crime case that occurred\nin 2016, this independent feature involves a successful African-American businessman.\nWhen his entire family is gunned down in their suburban New Jersey home, authorities\nquickly call out the husband and father as the prime suspect in the case. While\nbeing investigated, the lead begins his own search to find out what happened\nand who might be responsible. The trail leads to shocking revelations and discoveries.\nThe low-budget movie was picked up by a small distributor and premiered on Amazon\nPrime at the end of March. It is now being released on disc. At this time, there\naren\u2019t many reviews available for it yet, but at least on can stream it in order\nto see if it\u2019s worth adding to one\u2019s collection on disc. The cast includes\nChristian Barber, Naaji Kenn, Lanisha Javon Gholston and Kenishia Green.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Blood and Money<\/em> \u2013 A war veteran living in Maine decides\nto head out in his camper and hunt in the isolated winter wilderness. He doesn\u2019t\nonly find game, but also discovers a dead woman with a duffle bag full of cash.\nThe moment as the lead decides to pick it up, a team of crooks arrive ready to\ncollect the body and goods. Trapped in the snow, the protagonist becomes the hunted\nand must try to escape the area with his life. Reaction was mixed towards this action\nfeature. Almost half of reviewers thought it was a solid B-movie with a strong and\nidentifiable lead performance. Slightly more commented that while the acting was\ncapable, the story was predictable and didn\u2019t offer anything to genre fans that\nthey hadn\u2019t already seen in other titles. It stars Tom Berenger, Kristen Hager\nand Paul Ben-Victor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Gamemaster<\/em> \u2013 Enjoy board games like Ticket to Ride<\/em>\nand, well, just about any other recent release you can think of? This\ndocumentary examines the newfound popularity of gathering together around a\ntable with friends and\/or family and playing games. Apparently, there has been\na resurgence over the past decade and it has now become a $3 billion dollar industry.\nThe movie is described as a deep dive into the world of new board games. It\nfollows four people attempting to sell their game ideas to companies. The film\nalso includes interviews with the creators of the hugely popular Settlers of\nCatan<\/em>, Quirkle <\/em>and Exploding Kittens<\/em>, which are some of the most\npopular ones out there. This picture will premiere exclusively on disc, because\n(kiddingly) enthusiasts currently have no interest in taking a break from their\nhobby. However, this film should be of interest to anyone who enjoys board games.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hershell Gordon Lewis\u2019 BloodMania<\/em> <\/a>\u2013 Back in the 1960\u2019s writer\/director Herschell Gordon Lewis made a series of no-budget, terribly acted, drive-in horror flicks like Blood Feast<\/em> and Two Thousand Maniacs!<\/em> Over time, they have become cult items, largely among enthusiasts who appreciate so-bad-it\u2019s-good, do-it-yourself moviemaking. Lewis passed away recently, but not before completing work directing two of the four segments in this anthology. The filmmaker\u2019s chapters include one about a man who loses his hand and has it replaced with a possessed hook. The second involves a hair-eating hag who terrorizes a family. There aren\u2019t many write-ups for this picture and the ones that have appeared online suggest that horror fans should keep their expectations in check, saying it varies between being cheesy fun and terrible to watch. Faith Amantea and Stuart Bentley headline the picture. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hope Gap<\/em> \u2013 In this British drama, a woman is shocked\nto learn that after 29 years of marriage her husband has decided to walk away\nand leave her for another woman. This announcement causes chaos and\nconfrontations within the family, including their children who can\u2019t believe that\nthese elderly parents are separating. Alone and confused, the ex-wife eventually\ntakes a step forward, determined to find confidence in herself and begin enjoying\na new life. Critics generally liked this tale. A small group complained that\nthe feature was overly restrained in its approach and felt that the emotions on\ndisplay were a little too forced. Still, a larger percentage found it to be a reserved\nbut extremely well-acted film that built up to big, emotional finale. It stars\nAnette Benning, Bill Night, Josh O\u2019Connor and Aiysha Hart.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I, Pastafari: A Flying Spaghetti Monster Story<\/em> \u2013 For those\nunfamiliar with this satirical religious movement, Pastafarianism was developed\nin 2005 by a university student poking fun at creationism. It gained attention\nand millions of followers, with the man behind it writing a textbook called The\nGospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster<\/em>. This manual defines their belief system\nand the book\u2019s title creature, who created all life on Earth. The documentary details\nthe history of the organization and those involved as they fight for the freedom\nto express their views and make others consider the belief systems they have adopted.\nThe film is quite short with a running time listed at about an hour. It is\npremiering exclusively on disc and on streaming platforms. There have only been\na couple of write-ups so far. The ones that have appeared call the movie an\namusing and enjoyable introduction to this movement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Proximity<\/em> \u2013 In this science-fiction thriller, a young\nNASA scientist working on jet propulsion technology gets abducted by aliens.\nOne supposes that the good side to this predicament may be that the researcher gains\nunexpected access to advanced technology. Anyway, the lead is ultimately returned\nto his home, but finds few willing to believe his story. He becomes obsessed\nwith proving that he was taken by otherworldly forces. Critics gave the movie more\nnegative notices than positive ones. Those who liked the picture said that it didn\u2019t\nmake sense but had a lot of energy and a likable cast that made it enjoyable to\nwatch. The rest critiqued the movie for its flawed story and logic, stating\nthat these issues were too distracting to overcome. The cast includes Ryan\nMasson, Highdee Kuan and Christian Prentice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Skyman<\/em> \u2013 If you\u2019re looking for more alien abduction-related\nmaterial, this faux-documentary offers a second option. A movie crew introduce\nCarl Merryweather, a man who believes that he was taken at the age of 10 by a\nUFO full of strange, otherworldly creatures. As an adult, he shares his\nexperience with the filmmakers and heads back to the site where he was kidnapped\nin the hopes of figuring out exactly what happened. The press was split on this\ntitle as well. Nearly half thought the flick was a simple and straightforward, but\neffectively told and offered an interesting spin on the sci-fi formula. However,\nslightly more stated that the picture was slowly paced and that the central\nfigure\u2019s story simply wasn\u2019t interesting enough to hold their attention. Michael\nSelle, Willow Hale and Paul Wilson headline the picture.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sorry We Missed You<\/em> \u2013 The latest drama from English\nfilmmaker Ken Loach (I, Daniel Blake<\/em>, The Wind that Shakes the Barley<\/em>)\ndepicts a struggling family trying to make ends meet. The husband purchases a\nnew van and starts up his own franchise as a self-employed delivery driver for online\nbusinesses, while his wife takes on extra hours as a health care worker.\nDespite their best efforts and desire to succeed, the two begin to realize they\u2019re\nfighting a losing battle, bringing tensions to a boil. Reviewers were very impressed\nby what they saw. One or two found it all difficult to watch as problem after problem\nstacked up repetitively against the movie\u2019s protagonists. Everyone else raved\nand called it devastating to watch, saying it shows what is happening to\nlower-class families exploited by a capitalistic system. It features Kris Hitchen,\nDebbie Honeywood, Rhys Stone and Katie Proctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sweetness in the Belly<\/em> \u2013 A young English girl\nvisiting Africa is orphaned and forced to fend for herself. When civil war\nbreaks out in Ethiopia, she returns to the UK as a refugee. After arriving in\nLondon, the lead begins working as a nurse and a befriends other refugees. She\nand her friends decide to help asylum seekers find family members who have moved\naway from their home. Based on the 2005 novel by Camilla Gibb, this adaptation\nreceived a wide variety of responses, although in the end the negative write-ups\noutweighed the recommendations. Positive reviews noted that while flawed, the\nmovie was earnest in its intent and did attempt to deal with a variety of complex\nissues. Those who didn\u2019t care for it commented that the movie bit off more than\nit could chew and was an oversimplification of complex issues. The cast includes\nDakota Fanning, Wummi Mosaku, Kunal Nayyar, Yahya Abdul-Marteen II. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Trolls World Tour<\/em> \u2013 This sequel to the hit animated\nfamily musical features the characters from the first movie learning that they\nare one of six different troll tribes located around the world, each with an\nappreciation for a different style of music. When the leaders of the hard-rock outfit\ndecide that they want to destroy all other genres, including country, funk,\njazz, pop and techno, our heroes must find each other and unify the trolls\nagainst the menace. Response was decent for this follow-up, although not\nexceptional. A large quantity called it an empty, formulaic and forgettable\nflick that simply strings together a series of musical numbers. Slightly more stated\nthat it was a bright, colorful, positive film that would entertain children. The\nvoice talent includes Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Rachel Bloom, James\nCorden, Ron Funches, Kelly Clarkson, Sam Rockwell, George Clinton, Mary J.\nBlige, Kenan Thompson and Kunal Mayyar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Wild Goose Lake<\/em> \u2013 This foreign-language crime film\nfrom China is about a small-time mob boss who mistakenly kills a cop. After a\ndead-or-alive reward is placed on his head, the figure ends up leaving his\nfamily behind and going on the run from both law enforcement and underworld figures.\nHe finds a bit of assistance in the form of a mysterious young woman. However,\nthe paranoid man can\u2019t determine if she\u2019s helping him or setting him up to take\na fall. Reaction was very positive towards this picture. One or two didn\u2019t\nthink it made the most of its concept and could have developed the characters\nmore. Yet almost everyone else raved that the movie was exciting, beautifully\nshot, consistently surprising and unique and different from other films of its\nilk. It stars Ge Hu, Lun-Mei Kwei, Fan Liao and Regina Wan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Zombie for Sale<\/em> \u2013 Also known as The Odd Family:\nZombie for Sale<\/em>, this South Korean horror\/comedy tells what happens when a pharmaceutical\ncompany conducts illegal experiments and accidentally creates zombies. When one\nof the undead test subjects escapes and stumbles into a nearby gas station owned\nby a misfit family, they discover that when the zombie eats flesh, it becomes\nrevitalized. The clan decide to exploit the situation for their own financial\ngain, charging locals to be bitten and become immortal. This flick was extremely\nwell received by the press. A tiny contingent stated that the concept didn\u2019t\nspeak to them, yet he overwhelming consensus was that the picture was hilarious,\ndelivering sharp satirical elements and providing a welcome and invigorating twist\non the zombie movie formula. Jung Jae-young, Kim Nam-gil and Uhm Jji-won\nheadline the feature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

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You\u2019ll also be able to find some interesting older titles on\nBlu-ray with spiffy new transfers and bonuses. Arrow Video have the\nsupernatural thriller, Black Rainbow<\/em> (1989). This feature from writer\/director\nMike Hodges (Get Carter<\/em>, Flash Gordon<\/em>) is about a clairvoyant who\nhas visions of brutal murders and does all she can stop these events from\noccurring. It stars Rosanna Arquette, Jason Robards and Tom Hulce. The movie has\nbeen given a new restoration from the original camera negative approved by\nHodges. You\u2019ll also get an archived commentary on the film from the director\nand a new audio track featuring film historians discussing the production. Additionally,\nthere\u2019s a wealth of archival materials, including a making-of documentary, interviews\nwith the cast and crew as well as a trailer. Sounds like a great package for\nfans of this underseen chiller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The distributor is also releasing the unsettling Japanese\nfeature, Inferno of Torture<\/em> (1969) as a Special Edition Blu-ray. It\u2019s\nabout a debt-ridden woman who agrees to earn cash as a geisha, only to find her\nboss and the working experience violent and arduous. This disc provides a high\ndefinition presentation of the film along with a Japanese cinema expert\ncommentary and a lecture on the country\u2019s cult counterculture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Scorpion always do a stellar job of upgrading genre pictures\nand giving them stellar treatment. This week sees them delivering the Jean-Claude\nVan Damme action picture, Death Warrant<\/em> (1990). It has been made\navailable in the past, but this new version includes a new 2K scan of the inter-positive,\nmeaning the image quality in this edition will be dramatically improved. It\nalso comes with extras, including a commentary with director Deran Sarafian (Gunmen<\/em>,\nTerminal Velocity<\/em>), new interviews with a couple of supporting cast\nmembers and a trailer. This title will be available this week specifically on\ntheir Ronin Flix website. I\u2019ve ordered through the site before and they provide\nexcellent service to customers.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wrestling enthusiasts will also be happy to learn that Grunt!\nThe Wrestling Movie<\/em> (1985) is hitting Blu-ray. Made in the 80s and Inspired\nby the ratings success of the WWF (now WWE), this tale follows a professional wrestler\nwho completely vanishes. Other competitors try to take his spot, including an\nunknown masked figure who may actually be the missing star in disguise. This\nmovie, featuring ring legends Dick Murdock and Exotic Adrian Street, vanished\nfrom view not long after its release. It arrives on disc with a 2K master and\ntrailers. This particular Scorpion release title will be available for purchase\non Amazon and at Kino films, who are also involved in its Blu-ray debut. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Speaking of Kino, they have some fascinating discs coming as\nwell. One is a Special Edition of the British disaster flick, The Day the\nEarth Caught Fire<\/em> (1961). It\u2019s about a newspaper reporter who discovers\nthat the Earth has been knocked off of its axis and is veering towards the sun.\nI saw it many, many years ago when it was only available on VHS in very poor quality.\nWhile I didn\u2019t care for it at the time, I\u2019ve come around after finally seeing the\nmovie presented correctly in 2.35:1 widescreen. The scope and proper framing make\na huge difference and the end result is quite eerie and effective. This Blu-ray\npresents viewers with a spiffy new 4K master of the feature, a film historian\naudio commentary, a second track featuring co-writer\/producer\/director Val\nGuest (The Quatermass Experiment<\/em>, Quatermass 2<\/em>) and loads of\npublicity materials. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also have a Special Edition Blu-ray of the period Peter\nCushing horror flick, The Flesh and the Fiends<\/em> (1960). This one is about\na surgeon who kills the homeless in order to obtain more bodies in order to forward\nmedical experimentation. The film has been given a 2K trailer and two different\ncuts are presented on the disc, along with a movie expert commentary and trailers.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also pick up a Blu-ray of the British musical revue\nflick, Go Go Mania<\/em> (1965). This title presents remarkable concert\nfootage of The Beatles, Eric Burdon and the Animals, Herman’s Hermits, The\nSpencer Davis Group and many others. This disc comes with an audio\ncommentary from a pair of entertainment and music journalists as well as\ntrailers.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Here\u2019s a Blu-ray title that has been out-of-print for some\ntime. Spaced Invaders<\/em> (1990) follows a group of dimwitted, 4-foot-tall Martians\nwhose spaceship has engine trouble. They crash near a small Illinois town and\nplot to invade and then fix their UFO. Little do they know that they have\narrived on Halloween and that no human is surprised or terrified by their appearance.\nComedic situations follow. The disc includes several interviews with the cast\nand crew. It also comes with a new group commentary of them all re-watching and\ndiscussing the film. It also comes with a trailer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019ll Be the Day<\/em> (1973) is also arriving on disc\ncourtesy of Kino. It\u2019s a British coming-of-age film about a young man trying to\nfind his way in the world. He becomes involved in the area\u2019s bustling musical\nscene and gets enthused about it, but also falls in with a local criminal\nelement. The movie is noteworthy for its supporting turns from the likes of drummers\nRingo Starr and Keith Moon. It also features a great soundtrack including songs\nfrom The Everly Brothers, Jerry Lee Lewis, Dion, Del Shannon, Little Richard,\nFrankie Lymon, Bobby Darin and Ritchie Valens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This week, Criterion are putting out Blu-ray of the Academy\nAward-winning science-fiction classic, The War of the Worlds<\/em> (1953).\nBased on the H.G. Welles story, it begins when a strange flaming meteor crashes\nto the ground in rural California. Locals are initially excited, but their response\nturns to fear and panic as Martians appear and begins an assault on Earth. The\nsurvivors must find a way to fight back and defeat the alien menace. The feature\nhas been given a 4K digital restoration so that it looks better than ever. You\u2019ll\nalso get a 2005 audio commentary with director Joe Dante and other film authorities,\na program about the Oscar-winning visual effects and sound design, and a\nsegment on the restoration of the movie. It also contains an interview with\nproducer George Pal recorded in 1970, a 2005 documentary about the flick, the\n1938 radio adaptation of the story with Orson Welles (that caused a panic when\nit first aired), a 1940 radio interview with author H.G. Welles and publicity\nmaterials. Sounds phenomenal!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, Redemption are offering a Blu-ray of Neurosis<\/em>\n(1982) aka Revenge in the House of Usher<\/em>, a Jess Franco horror flick.\nThis title comes with a film historian commentary and a trailer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Here are the week\u2019s child-friendly features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trolls World Tour<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

And if you\u2019re looking to catch up some TV-themed material, it\nlooks like this is your only option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Murdoch Mysteries<\/em>: Season 13<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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