Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

Film noir gets a routine workout in 1941's "I Wake Up Screaming," which pours all the energy it has into the construction of style. It's a striking picture, and one that's always more interesting to watch than decode, finding its tale of murder and false accusations a little mundane compared to the feature's visual depth, orchestrated by director H. Bruce Humberstone and cinematographer Edward Cronjager. "I Wake Up Screaming" doesn't rattle the senses with its presentation of paranoia, but it seizes the highlights of the subgenre, giving fans a comfortable return to dynamic lighting, panicked characterizations, and police intimidation. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Usually slasher entertainment enjoys being slasher entertainment. It wears its blood, guts, and misogyny like a badge, proudly entering the world as a violent diversion for fans who appreciate the art of the scare and the visual power of masked madmen. 1987's "The Majorettes" almost seems embarrassed to be following slasher formula, eventually giving up the quest in the feature's third act to become a different style of B-movie mayhem. Perhaps this is an attempt to experiment with genre expectation, finding "Night of the Living Dead" collaborators Bill Hinzman (who directs) and John A. Russo (who scripts, adapting his own novel) ready to disturb expectations after fulfilling them for a solid hour of stalking and stabbing. "The Majorettes" isn't a trainwreck, but it's a highly flawed chiller with confusing structure, which helps to apply the brakes on a picture that rarely appears interested in creating a snowballing sense of terror. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The penultimate feature for the master filmmaker Preston Sturges ("Sullivan's Travels," "Hail the Conquering Hero"), 1949's "The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend" is a curious trifle from the helmer. Toying with western traditions and musical enhancements, Sturges (who also scripts) tries to make a farce out of gunslinger antics and concealed identities, embracing longstanding career interests. However, size tends to get in the production's way, with Sturges juggling a wild tonality that moves the picture from broad slapstick to more intimate concerns. "Bashful Bend" has the saving grace of being short (76 minutes in length), which helps to digest its intermittent oddity and lack of focus. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"The Infiltrator" has all the elements of a classic undercover cop story, including a conflicted protagonist, a Floridian setting, and a secretive world of drug dealing. It presents a true-life tale that offers fascinating characters and heated showdowns, yet director Brad Furman doesn't quite know if he wants the picture to be a sincere study of a lawman's loss of self or a ridiculously overcooked crime tale with a few operatic extremes. "The Infiltrator" is unsatisfying and weirdly absurd at times, but it's not a complete blunder, blessed with a cast that's capable of finding nuances in the moment, bringing friendships and antagonisms to life in a way that Furman is incapable of doing on his own. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The blockbuster success of 1984's "Gremlins" inspired an enormous amount of imitators, especially in the world of no-budget filmmaking. Titles like "Critters," "Ghoulies," and "Munchies" come to mind, each with a special interest in raising creature feature hell without spending the money necessary to do it in style. 1988's "Hobgoblins" is arguably the worst of the bunch, with writer/director Rick Sloane barely trying to make something special out of the titular menace. Instead of establishing a little monster mayhem, Sloane tries to make a camp classic featuring occasional appearances from furry demons, mostly relying on his cast to conjure up wackiness to pad the picture's run time. "Hobgoblins" isn't funny, but it does provide a slightly different take on the "Gremlins" formula, and Sloane's periodic production recklessness is something to behold. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

When one considers the possibilities of a "Casablanca" knockoff, especially one from 1980, a list of potential actors comes to mind for the Humphrey Bogart role. Men like Paul Newman and Robert Redford, maybe even Harrison Ford, who was fresh to fortune and glory at the time. But "Cabo Blanco" (the full title is apparently "Cabo Blanco…Where Legends are Born") doesn't go that route, electing to hire Charles Bronson for the role of a roguish charmer trying to manage the pains of love with the dangers of his community. It's an oddball casting choice, but "Cabo Blanco" doesn't meet many expectations, preferring to mix a "Casablanca" homage with a treasure hunt adventure, surrounding the star with an eclectic mix of prime talent and those relatively new to the English language. Expectedly, the movie fails to inspire anything approaching romance or excitement, but director J. Lee Thompson doesn't tank the effort on purpose, earnestly trying to craft a thrilling tale of mystery in an exotic locale, trusting the natural beauty of the land will be enough to cover for the feature's substantial deficiencies. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1980's "Wolf Lake" hopes to be incendiary work, pitting the World War II generation against the realities of the Vietnam War. It's a grandpas-gone-mad movie that tends to think it's more profound than it actually is, denying the reality of its exploitation elements. Director Burt Kennedy ("Suburban Commando") does a fine job taking the action to the middle of nowhere, and for those who enjoy the ability to view a film performance from space, there's Rod Steiger in the lead role, working himself up into a frenzy as he portrays a member of the greatest generation ready to gun down an example of America's failure. "Wolf Lake" is more odd than suspenseful, but it's certainly something that might appeal to those who value a straightforward summary of hostilities. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

An offering of supercop cinema from a decade that was positively addicted to the stuff, 1972's "Fuzz" catches up with the ragtag ways of the Boston Police Department as they're faced with an atypically determined enemy. It's cold-blooded procedural executed with a special spin, managing a community of exhausted cops, dismissive politicians, and active villains as they race around the city, mixing it up while elements of suspense and comedy vie for the dominating mood. It's based on the "87th Precinct" series by author Ed McBain, adapted for the screen by Evan Hunter, and they're both the same man, leading to the sort of confusion "Fuzz" thrives on, overseeing a combustible mix of personalities and tonal adjustments as the production makes its way through the thick of criminal encounters and personal antagonisms. It's a messy effort, odd all over, but director Richard A. Colla keeps the feature on the move to the best of his ability, wisely investing in brevity as the episodic nature of the source material is hammered into shape here, resulting in an entertaining endeavor that's frequently breathless, never lingering anywhere for very long. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The blockbuster success of 1979's "Kramer vs. Kramer" (the highest grossing film of its year) inspired Hollywood to pursue divorced dads as main characters for melodramas, finally assured that audiences would turn out for tales about melancholy men suddenly hit with parental duties they once shared or outright refused to participate in. The pop culture takeover of "Kramer vs. Kramer" is really the only way to explain the creation of 1983's "Table for Five," which charts a similar course of domestic absenteeism suddenly confronted with total child-rearing responsibility, working through an awkward adjustment period with a main character who just isn't prepared for the daily battle. Although it largely avoids swimming in syrup, "Table for Five" can't help but lean into overt emotionality on occasion, attempting to find the rhythm of a tearjerker in a movie that's at its best when trapped in a state of shock. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1972's "The Laughing Policeman" is all about procedure. Director Stuart Rosenberg maintains a chilly atmosphere of observation for this thriller, with stars Walter Matthau and Bruce Dern as San Francisco cops on the hunt for a killer who samples terroristic intent as he commits mass murder on city buses. Although the premise encourages hysterics, "The Laughing Policeman" keeps its cool, hoping to achieve the unexpected through patience, which allows the effort to explore rather sophisticated characterization. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Although sold as an exotic romance, 1957's "Boy on a Dolphin" is actually more effective as a mild adventure highlighting a battle of wills and financial gain. It marks the American film debut for Sophia Loren, who makes quite an impression here, playing up her unforgettable physical presence to help energize the feature, adding boldness to what otherwise would be a dry viewing experience concerning archeological finds and professional competition. "Boy on a Dolphin" is lush work from director Jean Negulesco, periodically showcasing real spirit when exploring Greek culture and the living seas, always at its finest when tensions mount and plans are hatched. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It's hard to believe that 1981's "The Pit" came from Canada. It plays like an alien creation sent from Mars to disrupt the human experience long enough to complete a global invasion. It's not an incredibly graphic picture, keeping violence fairly limited for a horror selection, but it's just odd enough to knock the wind out of viewers. It's an original take on psychological erosion, only the madman presented here is a 12-year-old boy, giving the effort an extra coating of ickiness as it surveys a child engaging in murder and sexual predator-style behavior. And yet, director Lew Lehman keeps the movie somewhat approachable, giving in to its strange energy, which works to soften its exploitation interests. "The Pit" isn't scary, but it requires a post-screening shower to fully shed its grand emphasis on uncomfortable topics, doing a fine job prying into an adolescent mind on the verge of complete psychosis. The traditional warning to impart would be to not watch the film alone. The more honest advice would be to not watch it with people who might judge you. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1988's "Hellbent" is writer/director Richard Casey's take on a Faustian tale of personal corruption, only his version is set in a strange playland of punk rock, performance art, and Christmas cheer. It's a premixed cult title that's bad with introductions and iffy with payoff, but Casey certainly isn't phoning it in with this ode to the evils of the music business, laboring to explore themes and moods, but he often forgets there's a story that should be told here, keeping "Hellbent" more meandering than it should be. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The furious world of blaxploitation takes a breather with 1972's "Trouble Man," which offers all the expected attitude and style from the subgenre, but is more interested in dramatic showdowns rather than physical ones. Director Ivan Dixon intends to class up the feature by focusing on the screen presence of star Robert Hooks, and while the actor fills his role with ideal smoothness, he's not backed by a particularly eventful screenplay by John D.F. Black, who invests almost exclusively in pauses and hard stares, resulting in a strangely uneventful picture. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Paying tribute to the genre that's inspired them the most, horror filmmakers have turned to the replication of their favorite giallo productions to help launch new work, with the German production "Masks" crafting a valentine to Dario Argento's "Suspiria" as it generates its own sense of madness. More concerned with replication than stimulation, writer/director Andreas Marschall doesn't have the budget or visual know-how to conjure righteous style and macabre events, but "Masks" has a plot that could definitely welcome something ghoulish, in need of a more seasoned moviemaker to bring it to life. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For his directorial debut, Richard Casey turns to horror to make his first impression, crafting "Horror House on Highway 5," which blends slasher intensity with slapstick comedy, though rarely well. Fans of the absurd and the bloody might respond positively to Casey's broad shenanigans, but "Horror House on Highway 5" is a memorable title in search of a stronger movie, and one that takes its genre responsibilities a little more seriously. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"Serial Killer 1" is a pure procedural effort from France, testing out the "Law and Order" formula to dramatize the story of "The Beast of the Bastille," a vicious serial killer who eluded capture for six years, making life miserable for locals and the police tasked with finding this needle in a haystack. The case is famous for its use of DNA evidence, inspiring France to overhaul its way of processing crime scenes, and "Serial Killer 1" is more about the need for technology than a simple manhunt picture, giving the effort a unique identity in a sea of similar stories. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"The Measure of a Man" is a deeply considered and felt picture that's not always easy to watch. Co-writer/director Stephane Brize embarks on an observational mission to understand the plight of the working class in France, where age is a curse when dealing with the humiliations of unemployment, finding career-minded individuals suddenly put out on the street, left to pick up the pieces as bills, domestic demands, and personal worth emerge as potent psychological obstacles. Brize doesn't take matters lightly, establishing a near docudrama feel for "The Measure of a Man." Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A master of the war picture, director Samuel Fuller goes insular for 1951's "Fixed Bayonets," which oversees pressure building in the battle zone during the outset of the Korean War. However, while violence plays a key role in the movie, Fuller's screenplay attempts to dig into the psychology of an American soldier facing a true test of courage in a foreign land. "Fixed Bayonets" is surprisingly nuanced work, dissecting issues of combat and duty while still maintaining the expected suspense of enemy encounters. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Released during the early years of teen horndog cinema, 1981's "Private Lessons" found its inspiration for exploitation from a different source than simple teenage lust. Going controversial, the feature depicts a sexual relationship between a thirtysomething woman and a 15-year-old boy, hoping to find titillation in a taboo union, immediately separating the film from its more routine competition. Director Alan Myerson ("Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach") takes on an incredible tonal challenge with the endeavor, and he rarely lands a stable moment of emotion or comedy, often swinging all over the place in an effort to distract from the inherent iffiness of the premise. "Private Lessons" isn't a strong picture, failing to do something outrageous or harmonious with the material, scripted by Dan Greenberg (adapting his own novel). It's a mess of nudity, sex, slapstick, and mean-spiritedness, unsure of it wants to stimulate viewers or repel them, unable to secure the cheap thrills the subgenre is known for. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com