{"id":24477,"date":"2022-03-21T13:43:34","date_gmt":"2022-03-21T20:43:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=24477"},"modified":"2022-03-21T13:43:34","modified_gmt":"2022-03-21T20:43:34","slug":"blu-ray-dvd-roundup-for-march-22nd-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=24477","title":{"rendered":"Blu-ray\/DVD Roundup for March 22nd, 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Welcome to another look at Blu-ray and DVD highlights headed\nyour way. There\u2019s plenty of interesting and unique material in this edition\nthat is both new and old. So, if you can\u2019t or shouldn\u2019t be heading out to the\nmovies 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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6:45 \u2013 A man decides to try and revitalize his strained relationship\nby taking his girlfriend on vacation to an island resort. Immediately upon\narriving, the pair are surprised at how deserted the place is. After looking\naround town, they discover that the locale not only has a violent history, but that\nthere is also a strange time loop present. The two must overcome their personal\nproblems to help each other break a horrible cycle of events. Reaction towards\nthis independent horror picture was more positive than negative. A group of\nwrite-ups called the movie intriguing but ineffective and suggested that it\nlost momentum as it progressed. Still, the consensus was the leads were very\nstrong and that their performances helped sell this disturbing and chilly\npicture. It stars Michael Reed, Augie Duke, Thomas G. Waites, Remy Ma and Armen\nGaro. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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DREAMING HOLLYWOOD \u2013 After years toiling on a screenplay\ninvolving miscreants and social outcasts, an eccentric ex-con decides to take\nhis finished work to Hollywood. His pitch doesn\u2019t go well and every executive\nin town rejects the project. To make ends meet, the protagonist is forced to\ntake a job working for a local crime outfit. His frustration turns to rage when\nhe discovers that someone has stolen his script and is shooting it. He decides\nto seek revenge and turn parts of his violent screenplay into reality. This\npicture was recently released on streaming platforms and is now debuting on\ndisc, but there are only a couple of online reviews available. Some called it a\nrip-off of a Quentin Tarantino picture that simply didn\u2019t measure up, while\nothers liked the homages and found it amusing. The cast includes Turk Matthews\nand Mark Eliot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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FOR THE LOVE OF MONEY \u2013 In this thriller, a woman walks away\na successful but highly illegal billion-dollar family business. After spending years\nliving as a single mom, the lead\u2019s past catches up with her when her teenage\ndaughter\u2019s life is threatened by the organization. The protagonist agrees to\nassist them, but also decides to use the opportunity to take control of the\noperation and eliminate those who have been threatening her loved ones. There\naren\u2019t many notices available for this title and the few that have appeared\nhaven\u2019t been complementary. They contend that the feature is routine,\npredictable and corny, also noting that several of the main performers have a\nstronger background in the music industry and aren\u2019t the best of actors. Keri\nHilson, Katt Williams, Rotini, Keith Sweat, Jazzy Jade, Jason Mitchell, D.C.\nYoung Fly and Cedric Pendleton headline the feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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NIGHTMARE ALLEY \u2013 The highest profile release of the week is this Oscar-nominated period thriller. It follows a man on the run from the law. He starts working for a traveling carnival, where he picks up tricks of the trade and develops his own act as a clairvoyant. After trying to branch out on his own and using his skills to grift money from the wealthy, he soon finds himself in grave danger when one of his schemes goes awry. Based on the Lindsay Gresham novel (which was previously adapted to film in 1947), the press gave this version high marks. A small contingent didn\u2019t think it was as effective as the original feature, stating that it was overlong and slow-moving. However, most enjoyed the performances, thought it was visually spectacular and liked the underlying themes about greed and selfishness. It features Bradley Cooper, Rooney Mara, Cate Blanchett, Ron Perlman, Toni Collette, Mary Steenburgen, Willem Dafoe, David Strathaim and Richard Jenkins. To read a full review of the movie, click here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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RISE OF THE MACHINE GIRLS \u2013 Inspired in part by the 2008\nJapanese cult flick The Machine Girl<\/em>, this foreign-language feature is\nset in a lawless future where the wealthy pay top dollar for replacement organs.\nIn order to help their poor parents, two sisters are forced to sell off body\nparts to a harvesting ring. A hitman crosses paths with the pair and decides to\nhelp them get payback for the horrible things that have been done to them. He\nfashions a series of elaborate attachable weapons that they begin using to wipe\nout the criminal organization. There aren\u2019t many reviews available for the picture\nin this part of the world and those that have appeared have been negative. They\nsuggest that the film is hampered by a low-budget and, despite the concept,\nisn\u2019t outrageous enough to entertain cult movie fans. Y\u00fbki Ashida, Kanon\nHanakage and Y\u00fbya Ishikawa star in the feature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

BLASTS FROM THE PAST!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Those looking for something a little older will have no shortage of titles to choose from this week. Arrow Video are premiering the award-winning Japanese feature To Sleep So as to Dream<\/em> (1986) on Blu-ray for the first time outside of Japan. It\u2019s a silent film involving a detective hired by an actress to find her kidnapped daughter. The movie was very well received at festivals and made a big impression on Japanese film fans. This Special Edition features a new restoration of the image and a featurette on the conversion process, a filmmaker and lead actor commentary (recorded back in 2000), a movie expert commentary, a discussion with a cast member and expert on Japanese film culture (who also serves as a narrator for Japanese silent film when they are screened in public), fragments of silent shorts that inspired the movie, stills, trailers and more! For a full review of the disc, click this link.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They are also presenting the Shaw Brothers picture Come\nDrink with Me<\/em> (1966) as a Special Edition Blu-ray. After the Governor\u2019s son\nis taken hostage by bandits, a mysterious figure with a sword is sent to\nretrieve the youngster. To the surprise of the villains, it is soon revealed\nthe skilled fighter is a woman. The disc comes with a film historian commentary,\nmultiple interviews with the lead as well as other co-stars, a lengthy 2003\ndocumentary on the wuxia genre, in addition to publicity materials for the\nfeature and other movies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Blue Underground are presenting a remastered Special Edition\nof Daughters of Darkness<\/em> (1971) on Blu-ray. This is a vampire feature\nabout a Hungarian countess and prot\u00e9g\u00e9 who attempt to seduce and turn a\nvacationing couple at a seaside resort. The Blu-ray image comes from a 4K\nrestoration and the disc arrives with three commentaries (one with the\nco-writer\/director, another with the star and a third featuring a critic),\ninterviews with the stars, as well as the director and co-producer. You\u2019ll also\nget a ton of publicity materials for the movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, the same distributor put out a phenomenal 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray set of the Robert Forster\/Fred Williamson independent action picture, Vigilante <\/em>(1982), which is pictured above and to the right. Now, they are delivering a Blu-ray only edition for those who don\u2019t have the more elaborate home set-up. It comes with all the same bonus goodies from the previous edition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MVD Visual are presenting a Collector\u2019s Edition of the\nlow-budget horror flick Bryan Loves You<\/em> (2008) on Blu-ray. It\u2019s about a\npsychotherapist who moves to a small Arizona town and discovers that most of\nthe residents belong to a cult. This disc has a 2008 director commentary and a\nnew audio track recorded by the filmmaker in 2022, as well as interviews with\ncast members George Wendt, Tiffany Shepis, Daniel Roebuck and Brinke Stevens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Flight of the Phoenix<\/em> (1965) is an\nOscar-nominated disaster picture about a cargo plane that crashes in the\nSahara. With food and water running out, the crew have to figure out a way to\nget to safety. Criterion are presenting the movie on Blu-ray with a 2K picture\nrestoration. Extras include a conversation with a scholar alongside fan of the\nmovie and director Walter Hill (The Warriors<\/em>, 48 Hrs.<\/em>, Streets\nof Fire<\/em>) talking about the picture, a discussion with a biographer about\nco-star James Stewart and his experience as a pilot, as well as a trailer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those who belong to the Disney Movie Club have a big release\nthis week with the animated classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs<\/em>\n(1937). This is an 85th<\/sup> Anniversary Edition that includes a Blu-ray,\nDVD and Digital Code for the film. While the details haven\u2019t been sent my way,\nyou can be sure that it\u2019ll be jam-packed with extras as well. And if you aren\u2019t\na member of the Disney Movie Club, just be patient, some of their higher\nprofile titles often end up arriving on store shelves a few months down the\nroad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Icarus Films are putting out a Blu-ray of Alain Resnais:\nFive Short Films<\/em> (1949-1957<\/em>), which, as you might have guessed, is a\ncollection of shorts made by the French filmmaker early in his career before\nmoving onto features like the Oscar-nominated Hiroshima Mon Amour<\/em>\n(1959). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kino are always good for some interesting Blu-rays. This\nweek sees the release of the romance Back Street<\/em> (1941), the Bing\nCrosby\/Fred Astaire musical Blue Skies<\/em> (1946), and the Gary\nCooper\/Shirley Temple drama Now and Forever<\/em> (1934). All three titles\nfeature new 2K masters of the image, film historian commentaries and trailers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They are also presenting the recent David Cronenberg drama Eastern Promises<\/em> (2007) as a 4K and Blu-ray set (you can also purchase the Blu-ray on its own). Pictured to the left, this London-set film stars Viggo Mortensen as a gangster who crosses paths with a midwife who knows a damaging secret that could cause trouble for   his employers. The director of photography approved and color-graded this edition. It also comes with a new interview with the screenwriter and all of the previously released extras from earlier editions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you enjoyed the thriller Fatale<\/em> (2020) with Hilary\nSwank, Mike Colter and Michael Ealy, Lionsgate are making it available as 4K\nUltra HD and digital package with upgraded image quality. Interested parties\nshould take note that there is no Blu-ray included in this release. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking of 4K upgrades, they also have The Hunger Games:\nUltimate Steelbook Collection<\/em> containing all four movies in the series that\nwere made between 2012 and 2015. This set contains 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray discs\nof each and every movie along with plenty of extras. This one is being listed\nas a Best Buy Exclusive, so you\u2019ll have to head over to their website or store\nto get it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Speaking of box sets, Paramount have several 4K 50th<\/sup>\nAnniversary box sets of The Godfather Trilogy<\/em>. It includes The\nGodfather<\/em> (1972), The Godfather: Part II<\/em> (1974), The Godfather:\nPart III<\/em> (1990) and the recently reedited take on the third chapter in the\nseries, which is now titled The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael\nCorleone<\/em>. The picture has been remastered and all of these classics look\nbetter than ever. You can pick up a 4K Ultra HD edition, a Blu-ray version, and\neven a Limited Collector\u2019s Edition containing a book\u2026 seriously, whatever set\nup you may have at home, you\u2019ll be able to find a version that suits you.\nNaturally, it comes with all kinds of bonuses that can\u2019t all be listed here. But\nin addition to all of the previously released content, there are new extras\nincluded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Powerhouse are a UK-based Blu-ray distributor whose products\ntypically can\u2019t be screened on North or South American Blu-ray players. This\nweek, they have licensed a few of their titles for both the UK and US markets.\nSo, you can now pick up a Region A playable Blu-ray of the classic Mexican\nhorror flick La Llorona<\/em> (1933) and a Limited Edition of the Australian\nbushranger flick, Mad Dog Morgan<\/em> (1976), starring Dennis Hopper in the\ntitle role. They are also presenting The Phantom of the Monastery<\/em> (1934)\nand a Limited Edition of the western, A Time for Dying<\/em> (1969). All of\nthese titles include new image restorations, commentaries, interviews and other\nbonus features. It\u2019s great to see this company (who take great care with their\nfilms, much like Arrow Video, Blue Underground and other indie distributors)\nreleasing discs in North America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another amazing outfit, Ronin Flix, have a Blu-ray of the\nhorror\/comedy, Modern Vampires<\/em> (1998). It follows a descendant of Van\nHelsing hunting the undead in Hollywood. Most missed this flick during its\noriginal run, but it does feature an incredible cast that includes Casper Van\nDien, Natasha Gregson Wagner, Gabriel Casseus, Kim Cattrall, Craig Ferguson,\nNatasha Lyonne, Natasha Andreichenko, Robert Pastorelli, Udo Kier and Rod\nSteiger. The 2K master was struck from director Richard Elfman\u2019s personal film\nprint. He is interviewed for the release and takes part in a commentary track\nwith lead actor Casper Van Dien. The disc also comes with a behind-the-scenes\nfeaturette and a trailer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shout! Factory also have a new title in their Select line.\nIt\u2019s the disaster flick The Core<\/em> (2003), which features a group of\nscientists who have to save the Earth from total destruction by drilling down\nto its center and setting off an explosion to get the planet spinning again.\nThe feature stars Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Stanley Tucci, D.J. Qualls and\nRichard Jenkins. Apparently, the movie was given a 4K restoration from the\noriginal camera negative for this Blu-ray release. The disc has a director\ncommentary, deleted and extended scenes with commentary, a look at the special\neffects and also comes with publicity materials. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

VCI are presenting a Blu-ray called Mexican Horror Classics:\nDouble Feature<\/em> that includes El Escapulario<\/em> (1957) and Ladron de\nCadaveres<\/em> (1968) in high definition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, Warner Archive are presenting the James Cagney WWI\nfeature Captains of the Clouds<\/em> (1942) as a made-to-order Blu-ray that\ncan be purchased exclusively through Amazon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

YOU KNOW, FOR KIDS!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the exception of one Disney exclusive, it\u2019s a little\nquieter than usual for kid\u2019s releases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs<\/em> \u2013 85th<\/sup>\nAnniversary Blu-ray\/DVD (Disney Movie Club Exclusive)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ON THE TUBE!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are all of the week\u2019s TV-themed releases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dexter: New Blood<\/em> (Showtime) Blu-ray
Dr. Death<\/em> (Mini-Series) Blu-ray and DVD <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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