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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nAMERICAN EXPENDABLES: THE FILMS OF NORTH AMERICAN PICTURES \u2013\nIf you grew up in the 1980s, then you undoubtedly saw a great many action and\ngenre pictures. This documentary looks at North American Pictures and their\nreleases, which starred performers like Billy Blanks, Cynthia Rothrock and Bolo\nYeung. You\u2019ll get interviews with cast and crew of some of these low-budget\nefforts and hear details about the productions, as well as behind-the-scenes\nstories from many individuals involved in the productions. The picture has won\na few awards at documentary and genre film festivals. So far only a handful of\ngenre critics have seen the picture. While they admit the feature isn\u2019t as\nstrong or effectively put together as titles like the Electric Boogaloo: The\nWild, Untold Story of Cannon Pictures<\/em> documentary, many state that it\nshould still be plenty of fun for B-movies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ANORA \u2013 A Brooklyn stripper\/sex worker gets involved with\nthe son of a Russian oligarch in this comedy\/drama. While out partying. the two\nimpulsively decide to get married, which causes chaos within the groom\u2019s\nfamily. They send henchmen to annul the marriage, but can\u2019t find the young man\nand have difficulty controlling his strong-willed bride. It results in a darkly\nfunny and dangerous night. This picture was a critical darling and ended up\nwinning five Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Best Actress, Best\nDirector, Best Screenplay and Best Editing. One or two complained that the film\nwas overlong and that its sense of humor trivialized the lives of sex workers.\nHowever, everyone else called the movie a fast-paced and wild ride with\nincredible performances that helped humanize those working in the profession.\nThe film is available through Criterion as a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray or a\nstandalone Blu-ray. It stars Mikey Madison, Yura Borisov, Paul Weissman, Karren\nKaragulian, Vache Tovmasyan and Mark Eydelshteyn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n BIRTH\/REBIRTH \u2013 In this reimagining of the Frankenstein<\/em>\nstory, a morgue attendant begins experimentation on the dead. She successfully\nreanimates the body of a little girl, but the corpse\u2019s mother ends up finding\nout. The two team up to steal biological materials from pregnant women in order\nto keep the undead subject functioning. This picture actually received a\nlimited release at theaters and made its streaming debut on the Shudder site\nback in 2023. Now, it Is arriving on disc. The press gave the picture high\nmarks. One or two reviews claimed the end result was a little dull and that it\ndidn\u2019t offer enough fresh ideas to make it stand out. All others suggested that\nthe performances were exceptional and that the feature did an excellent job of\nupdating the story with a feminist slant and its new take on the trials of\nmotherhood. The cast includes Martin Ireland, Judy Reyes, A.J. Lister and\nBreeda Wool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n CANNIBAL COMEDIAN \u2013 A menacing cannibal feels unfulfilled at\nwork and has a hard time finding potential targets. He decides to kill two\nbirds with one stone and try his luck as a stand-up comic. The lead finds\nhimself enjoying being a performer and finding some success on stage, but\nbegins to feel badly after meeting his next victim at a show. He likes her so\nmuch that he doesn\u2019t want to eat her and instead tries to convert her to his\nlifestyle. This little picture hasn\u2019t been seen by many, but it played at\nvarious independent genre film festivals in 2023 and 2024, where it received\nplenty of compliments. Most wrote that the film\u2019s bizarre concept was\ninteresting and the filmmaker made the most of his limited resources, creating\nunique characters and grimy amusing situations. It features Aaron Prager, Edwin\nNeal, Austin Judd, Dana Kippel and Robert Dunne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n CORA BORA \u2013 Here\u2019s another independent effort that debuted\nin limited release and on streaming sites and is now arriving on disc. It\u2019s a\ncomedy about a young woman struggling to put her life together. She leaves her\ngirlfriend in Portland to focus on a music career, only to find no success in\nher field. The lead returns home to try to win her ex back, only to learn that\nthe woman has moved on and is now living with another lady. In order to move\nforward, the protagonist tries to work on her self-centeredness. Reaction\ntowards this film was more positive than negative. Slightly more than one-fifth\nof reviewers found the story overly familiar, and didn\u2019t take to the lead\ncharacter or laugh at the gags. Still, the majority called the film an amusing\nexamination of a flawed but relatable individual. They found the protagonist\nand her misadventures entertaining. Megan Statler, Jojo T. Gibbs, Ayden Mayeri,\nThomas Mann headline the picture, which also features Darrell Hammond, Margaret\nCho and Chelsea Peretti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n HEAVIER TRIP \u2013 The 2018 Finnish comedy Heavy Trip<\/em>\ntold the story of a heavy metal band trying to make their big break in the\nScandinavian music scene. This sequel picks up with the group now in prison\n(presumably because of what occurred during the first feature). A music\nproducer discovers the band and offers them a big paycheck and slot at a major\nmusic festival. They immediately reject the offer, but after learning that one\nof their parents is in crippling debt, reconsider. They break out of jail to\nplay the show and collect the money. This film earned better notices than its\npredecessor among North American critics. One voice couldn\u2019t get on its\nwavelength and found the entire experience baffling. Everyone else called it a\nsolid follow-up with likable leads and loads of laughs that cleverly poked fun\nat metal music. It stars Johannes Holopainen, Samuli Jaskio, Max Ovaska and\nChike Ohanwe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n INVASION \u2013 This Dutch action\/thriller follows a trio of\nrookie marines in the military. They are shocked to suddenly be called into\naction when a rogue nation invades Cura\u00e7ao and Aruba (two island nations in the\nCaribbean that are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands). The group arrive to\nhelp rescue a diplomat, but quickly find themselves on the frontlines and must\nadapt in order to survive and repel the enemy. Reviews for this picture have\nbeen middling. Most state the movie is polished and delivers some decent action\nscenes over its running time. However, they also note that the characters are\nvery simply drawn and overly familiar. Additionally, they write that the\nfilmmaker has difficulty figuring out who the lead character is and so the\nstory jumps around more than it should. It features Tarikh Janssen, Gijs Blom,\nOrt\u00e1l Vriend and Fedja van Hu\u00eat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LAST BREATH \u2013 Based on a true story that occurred in 2012,\nthis tale follows a group of deep-sea divers working to repair a gas line in\nthe North Sea. When a storm and other problems on the surface result in their\nvessel losing tracking abilities and the line to their diving bell being\nsevered, the individuals deep below must find a way to return to safety. If\nthis story sounds familiar, that may be because the film is a narrative remake\nof a well-liked 2019 documentary. The press generally enjoyed this survival\ndrama as well. About one-fifth did complain that the non-fiction film was more\ncompelling and that this adaptation felt predictable. Regardless, the vast\nmajority believed that this was a tense and thrilling story with solid\nperformances that kept them on the edge of their seat throughout. The cast\nincludes Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, Finn Cole, Cliff Curtis, Mark Bonnar and\nMyAnna Buring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LATE CHECKOUT \u2013 A knife-wielding psychopath in a welding\nhelmet is at the center of this independent horror picture. As you might have\nguessed, the individual isn\u2019t excited about fusing pieces of metal together,\nbut rather tearing victims apart. That\u2019s bad news for a group of students who\narrive at a nearby cabin to party and have a good time. Before long, they\u2019re\nall screaming in terror and trying to fend off the killer. So far, there are\nonly a handful of reviews for this picture and they are mixed. A few suggest\nthat the slasher is well-paced and offers some elaborate and effective murder\nscenes. But just as many stated that the entire exercise felt unoriginal and\nthat the emphasis on pacing meant that the characters were not well developed.\nIt features Felissa Rose, L.C. Holt, Chaney Morrow, Kamarra Cole and Bailey\nHerrington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LOOKY-LOO \u2013 This low-budget, independent horror picture\ninvolves a maniac and aspiring filmmaker who stalks his targets before ending\ntheir lives. So much so that his actions have put the entire community on edge.\nOne day, he becomes obsessed with a woman, capturing her and deciding to make\nher the star of his latest snuff picture. But will his voyeuristic obsession\neventually lead to his downfall? This effort has played at a couple of small\nfilm festivals over the past year, where it won awards. Apparently, the entire\nstory is told through the villain\u2019s camera as a single point-of-view story.\nCurrently, there are only a handful of reviews available for the movie. They\nall suggested that while it isn\u2019t for everyone, the picture is very disturbing\nand unsettling as it puts audiences right in the middle of the terror. Miranda\nBlue, Courtney Gray, Kali Libby and Adi Loehe headline the picture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n PADDINGTON IN PERU \u2013 The third chapter in the popular British family film series sees Paddington receive word from a Peruvian retirement home for bears that his Aunt Lucy has disappeared. He travels with the Brown family to South America in order to try and locate her. The group end up in the jungle and find themselves in possession of a map that could lead to the relative and a vast fortune. The latest chapter in this series earned solid notices, although not as exemplary as those for the earlier chapters. A small number found this follow-up slow-moving, dull and more predictable than previous films in the series. The rest admitted that while it wasn\u2019t as wonderful as the first two movies, there was still plenty to enjoy in this effort, from the amusing guest performances, to the sweet storyline and positive messages about family. It stars Hugh Bonneville, Emily Mortimer, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Madeleine Harris, Samuel Joslin, Oliva Colman, Antonio Banderas, and Ben Whishaw as the voice of Paddington. Read a full review of the movie here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n RATS! \u2013 Despite the title, this isn\u2019t a film about rodents.\nInstead, it\u2019s an independent comedy that follows a young graffiti artist from\nTexas who is arrested by an aggressive police officer with a personal grudge.\nThe protagonist is released and told to report for community service, but his\nmother kicks him out of the house and sends him to live with his eccentric\ncousin. Over the following days, the lead gets mixed-up in a sting operation,\ndrug deals, and a plutonium deal gone wrong. This independent deadpan comedy\nwas generally well-received. About one-quarter of write-ups did call the film\nmore gross and over-the-top than engaging and funny. Yet the majority said it\nhad the makings of a potential cult item, and suggested that behind the\nexaggerated humor was an important message about lower-class heroes. The cast\nincludes Luke Wilcox, Danielle Evon Ploeger, Darius Autry, Khali Sykes and\nAriel Ash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SWEET DREAMS \u2013 After the patriarch of a wealthy family\nsuddenly dies, the businessman\u2019s widow calls his family together to read the\nwill and settle affairs. The sudden arrivals include his pompous son, pregnant\ndaughter-in-law, and an unexpected attendee\u2026 the man\u2019s Indonesian housemaid and\nher son. Anger and power struggles erupt when it is revealed that the deceased\nhas left his entire fortune to the boy, whom he fathered with the maid. This\nforeign-language drama from the Netherlands earned nothing but praise from the\npress. They all said it was a powerful, darkly comic film that sharply deals\nwith issues like colonialism and wrote that it effectively turns the tables on\na rich, entitled family. It features Hayati Azis, Ren\u00e9e Soutendijk, Florian\nMyjer, Lisa Zweerman, Muhammad Khan and Rio Kaj Den Haas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n THE VISITOR \u2013 A suitcase washes up on the banks of the\nThames River in London. A naked refugee gets out of the luggage and shows up at\nthe door of an upper-class family. They take him in, and he begins to seduce\neach and every member of the household. After leaving, the confused family\ntries to fill the void left behind in explicit ways. This dark comedy from the\nUK was co-written and directed by Bruce LaBruce, a Canadian filmmaker known for\nbeing a provocateur. Inspired by the films of Pasolini, you can expect plenty\nof X-rated LGBTQ material in this title. Notices were very good for his latest\neffort. One or two didn\u2019t think this film was as strong as some of his earlier\nworks and was overly blunt in its messaging. But while the majority suggested\nit would be too much for most audiences, they called the movie an effectively\nunflinching and confrontational statement about colonialism and hidden desires.\nBishop Black, Macklin Kowal, Amy Kingsmill and Ray Filar headline the film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n BLASTS FROM THE PAST!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s an incredibly busy edition for older titles as well. So\nbusy that you\u2019ll have to excuse my brevity on some of these titles. There\u2019s so\nmuch to go over that I\u2019ll simply never finish unless I summarize quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Adventures<\/em> (1995) is arriving on Blu-ray from Eureka Entertainment. This Hong Kong action movie from Ringo Lam (City on Fire, Twin Dragons, Full Contact<\/em>) stars Andy Lau as a man who witnesses the murder of his parents as a child. Many years later, he goes undercover to find and murder the mobster responsible, only to end up in the company of the gangster\u2019s daughter. They fall in love, forcing him to choose between his love and his goal. The film has been given a 2K restoration for this release and comes with a film critic commentary, an interview with another movie expert about the film, a talk with the picture\u2019s co-writer and producer, a trailer, and a slipcase with new artwork for the movie. This edition is limited to 2000 copies. Read a detailed review of the release right here!<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Magnificent Chang Cheh<\/em> set is another Blu-ray from the distributor that contains the period martial arts pictures The Magnificent Trio<\/em> (1966) and Magnificent Wanderers<\/em> (1977). The two pictures have been transferred in high definition and bonuses include Asian film expert commentaries on both titles, a video essay on the director Cheh, a booklet featuring new writing on the titles, and a slipcase with new artwork. Read a full disc review by clicking on this link.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Radiance Films is delivering the Italian classic Girl with a Suitcase<\/em> (1961) on Blu-ray. This tale follows a wealthy teenage boy who falls for a 20-something struggling singer whom his playboy brother unceremoniously dumps. She\u2019s flattered but attempts to dissuade him while trying to reconnect with the brother, only to find herself in dire straits. Claudia Cardinale plays the female lead. The original camera negative was given a 4K restoration for this disc, and it also contains interviews with the assistant director and the screenwriter. There is also a film critic analysis of the career of the film\u2019s director, a video essay on the title, a booklet with writing on the movie and a reversible sleeve with new and original artwork for the film. This Blu-ray is a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d of 3000. You can read this site’s detailed review of the disc by clicking on this link.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/DVD-Anora-01-fixed.jpg\")
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