Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

Well, if a production is determined to rip-off "Carrie," there's no reason to be subtle about it. 1978's "Jennifer" looks to cash-in on the outcast subgenre of horror, forgoing Stephen King plotting to raise a holy ruckus, being the rare movie to use snake handling as a method of screen torment. While derivative and missing the stylish curves of a Brian De Palma picture, "Jennifer" manages to find a few thrills of its own, with star Lisa Pelikan submitting committed work as the titular demon seed, showing surprising comfort with snakes and goofball plotting as she tries to turn a thin idea into a rounded performance. Missing any real scares, "Jennifer" retains an adequate amount of tension as mischief is played out, hitting all the highlights of a 1970s fright film without ever generating any authentic psychological disruption. "Carrie" was bizarre and unsettling. "Jennifer" is merely amusing, with the occasional surge of evil. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In one of his final films, screen icon Gary Cooper slipped into a dark space with 1958's "Man of the West." Although early scenes suggest a routine rise-of-the-hero story to come, the picture is actually quite cynical and forbidding. Director Anthony Mann doesn't pull many punches with this adaptation of a Will C. Brown novel, depending on his aging leading man to articulate the stomach churn of unease as Cooper's character, reformed outlaw Link Jones, returns to the source of evil that initially sent him down the wrong trail in life, facing malevolent Uncle Dock (Lee J. Cobb) and his band of criminals, who want to keep the one that got away in place as they plan out a new bank robbery. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Without a genre mentor to guide me during my formative moviegoing years, I stumbled on the work of director Mario Bava almost by accident. It was a viewing of "Danger: Diabolik" on "Mystery Science Theater 3000" that opened my eyes to the helmer's work, watching the rare movie on that masterful program that dodged the riffing, revealing itself to be an inventive, charmingly loopy effort with a distinct period vibration. 1965's "Planet of the Vampires" isn't Bava's best picture, but it provides another portal into an unknown world, boasting visuals that are remarkable in their originality and homegrown construction, mirroring "Danger: Diabolik" in the way it takes absolutely nothing and creates an entire world in-camera, highlighting brilliant design achievements and sheer ingenuity. While Bava possesses a filmography filled with highlights in horror, his most fertile work seems to emerge beyond the demands of terror, unleashing his imagination in full. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Here's a comedy that opens with string of public bombings and an act of suicide. Either it's insane work or French. Turns out, 1965's "Viva Maria!" is a little of both, with director Louis Malle (who also co-scripts) guiding a highly bizarre farce that teases darkness while engaging in madcap antics that often resemble an episode of "The Benny Hill Show." It's Brigitte Bardot and Jeanne Moreau as circus performers transformed into Central American revolutionaries. If that isn't enough to entice a viewing, perhaps this isn't the film for you. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Instead of becoming the final chapter in the Johnny Worricker Trilogy, "Salting the Battlefield" provides more of a pause on the ongoing tale of MI-5's most conflicted spy (Bill Nighy) and his ongoing war of rumor and discretion with the Prime Minister (Ralph Fiennes). Writer/director David Hare attempts to complete a storyline that originated in 2011's "Page Eight," but breaking up is apparently hard to do, with "Salting the Battlefield" terrific with dramatic encounters, but less successful with closure, leaving the door wide open for Worricker to return and tend to his scattered life once again. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It's been three years since writer/director David Hare introduced Johnny Worricker in "Page Eight," exploring the nervous existence of a habitually composed MI-5 officer caught up in a corruption scheme involving the Prime Minister (Ralph Fiennes, returning for a split-second cameo). When we last left the character, he was taking off on a plane to parts unknown, but it turned out he was headed for the sun and sand, with "Turks & Caicos" picking up the chase in paradise. Of course, any relaxation is fleeting, with Worricker returning to the defense when the troubles his left behind manage to find their way back to his doorstep. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Jonathan Demme currently enjoys one of the most unpredictable careers in the industry, a position of defiance and creativity he's held for the past four decades. He's perhaps best known for his disturbing way with 1991's "The Silence of the Lambs," a masterful film that showered Demme with awards and amplified his career with significant box office. Less is understood about his work in comedy during the 1980s, with efforts such as "Melvin and Howard" and "Something Wild" developing an unusual but snappy sense of humor. 1988's "Married to the Mob" is the most successful of the bunch, if only because it takes a tired subject in the mafia and does something original with working parts concerning violence and law enforcement. It's an oddball picture, playful and sharp, keeping Demme on task as he navigates stereotypes and romantic comedy urges, working toward an overall lightness to a tale that's pitch black at times. It's a tonal gymnastics display that doesn't come around very often, making "Married to the Mob" special, assisted in great part by Demme's askew vision for this type of story. Only this helmer would make a mob comedy and score it to New Order songs. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In the Killer Santa subgenre, 1980's "Christmas Evil" (aka "You Better Watch Out," which is the title on the print) is the best of the bunch. It's not the goriest or the most aggressive of the collection, but it explores a psychological unraveling with unsettling precision, playing up the manic highs and lows of a man obsessed with the holiday with interest in creeping out the audience, not bludgeoning them with gratuitous violence. It's dense work from writer/director Lewis Jackson, who employs seasonal iconography and mental instability to generate a suspense effort that genuinely disturbs, keeping viewers in the dark as the picture surveys possible catastrophe from a decidedly non-jolly man in a bulging red suit. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

After "A Christmas Story" put him on the map, there were few career steps Peter Billingsley could take. A child actor, Billingsley knew how to perform in front of cameras, but few productions could offer a starring role as juicy as his turn in Bob Clark's holiday perennial. 1985's "The Dirt Bike Kid" is an admirable effort to keep the money train moving along, putting the young pre-teen in the driver's seat of a wily family comedy, a production that trusts in the outrageousness of classic slapstick routines and Hal Needham-style vehicle stunts. It's the type of movie that includes two scenes that involve food fights and presents a flying motorcycle without explanation. It's weird stuff, but never clever and rarely enticing, leaving "The Dirt Bike Kid" more of a curiosity for Billingsley completists and those who've felt shortchanged by films that only offer a single food fight. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Well, I'll admit this is the first time I've sat through an entire adult movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The title "Killer Fish" is a blunt instrument, but it doesn't precisely describe the 1979 feature. Instead of being a movie solely dedicated to an underwater massacre, "Killer Fish" is actually more of a disaster extravaganza mixed with a heist film, with piranha activity worked into the effort at a few choice moments. Instead of conjuring a frenzy, director Antonio Margheriti keeps the picture low to the ground, working a routine of double-crosses and explosions instead of celebrating the unique threat the titular menace provides. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1981's "True Confessions" is a strange entry in the filmographies of stars Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall. Both actors were at the top of their game when they agreed to participate in this adaptation of a John Gregory Dunne novel (he scripts along with Joan Didion), with Duvall coming off "The Great Santini" and "Apocalypse Now," while De Niro was king of the hill after his work on "Raging Bull." Perhaps looking for a change of pace, the stars dial down their normal intensity to take part in "True Confessions," a considered examination of murder, brotherhood, and moral choices. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

With a title like "Werewolf Woman," a certain viewing experience is promised. However, this is no monster movie, despite an opening that's exactly a monster movie. Instead of obvious thrills with a she-beast, director Rino Di Silvestro takes a turn into the dark recesses of physical and mental trauma, with abuse, rape, and deceit forming the feral aspects of the lead character. "Werewolf Woman" holds to certain grindhouse cinema highlights, but it's a deeper picture about troublesome issues, in dire need of a filmmaker who could take it all seriously. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The story of "Los Angeles Plays Itself" and its decade-long road to distribution is nearly as entertaining as the movie. Director Thom Andersen pulled together an elaborate patchwork quilt of film clips to tell the story of a city through the prism of its cinematic representations. However, paying for the rights to bring the documentary to screens proved to be cost prohibitive, leaving the effort to languish in limbo, only receiving appreciation during its initial festival run and through internet file sharing, where the picture developed a cult appreciation. Now ten years later, "Los Angeles Plays Itself" is revived with a slight re-edit, new source materials to beef up the examples, and an opportunity to reach the wide audience it was always made for. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There was a brief, shining moment in 1985 when the world was comfortable with the idea of Madonna as an actress. It was fleeting but profound. The idea of turning pop singers into movie stars wasn't new, but Madonna proved to be a special challenge, leaving the producers to hurdle her substantial thespian limitations and keep her locked into "Madonna Mode." Not really portraying a character, Madonna is playing herself, with the production happy to use her soaring fame and iconic style to sell a weirdly low-key comedy that offers the occasional dip into thrillerdom. She's perfectly appealing but asked to do very little, remaining in a holding pattern of mischief, boosted by a periodic blip of sexuality, while the rest of the feature moves into position at half-speed. Elevated by director Susan Seidelman's ability to conjure a sufficient New York City atmosphere, "Desperately Seeking Susan" has its charms and time capsule appeal, making for an easy sit, but never an engrossing one. There are moments when the picture seems acutely aware of its sleepily idiosyncratic ways, and there are times when it feels hopelessly aimless, with no particular direction to a tale of mistaken identity, domestic dissatisfaction, and the demands of a gun-toting maniac. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

After his unexpected breakthrough in 1987's "La Bamba," actor Lou Diamond Phillips went out searching for a niche. For a few years, it seemed the action genre was going to be his best bet at sustaining a career, with 1988's "Young Guns" leading to 1989's "Renegades," soon taking a solo lead role in 1990's "The First Power." A dedicated performer, Phillips finds comfort in this serial killer thriller, completely convincing as a cop on the edge, tracking an elusive madman with ties to Satanism. While it lacks a commanding third act, the picture is satisfactorily guided by writer/director Robert Resnikoff, who would go on to abandon Hollywood entirely. It's a shame he didn't mount another production, as the helmer stages impressive stunt sequences and arranges a digestible take on screen menace, using Phillips and co-star Jeff Kober quite well in this unremarkable but effective B-movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There's little room for invention when it comes to the world of author Jane Austen, with her works adapted countless times, while parodies and spin-offs have managed to extend the celebration, reveling in her tea-and-heartache formula. BBC's three-part "Death Comes to Pemberley" (based on a novel by P.D. James) is a sequel to Austen's most visible work, "Pride and Prejudice," catching up with beloved and loathed characters six years after the book's conclusion. Instead of warmth and introspection, "Death Comes to Pemberley" is a murder mystery, taking on semi-whodunit tone as old antagonisms are stoked by new revelations of misconduct. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1988's "Die Hard" was an influential action extravaganza that spawned countless imitators, creating a subgenre with a league of "Die Hard in a…" variations that gave action heroes of all shapes and size a chance to show off their screen fury. Perhaps the most famous of the knockoffs was 1992's "Under Siege," which pitted Steven Seagal against terrorists onboard a battleship. Not wanting to be left out of the trend, Jean-Claude Van Damme received his own one-man-against-many vehicle with 1995's "Sudden Death," a "Die Hard in a Hockey Arena" endeavor that reteamed the star with director Peter Hyams. Fresh off the success of their 1994 collaboration, "Timecop" (the highest grossing film for both men at the time), "Sudden Death" was meant to extend the celebration, with Van Damme sweating through a routine thriller that held the distinction of being the rare actioner set during the Stanley Cup Finals. Of course, a decent script wouldn't have hurt, but the production invests more in explosions and atypical hostility toward children, rendering the feature more numbing than inviting, leaving a bitter aftertaste. Instead of scoring with a surefire premise, "Sudden Death" follows the title's direction, keeling over before game even begins. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Around 1990, Jean-Claude Van Damme was just breaking through with American audiences, finding modest but unexpected grosses for 1989's "Kickboxer" and "Cyborg" suggesting viewers were interested in this odd action hero. Looking to expand his limited repertoire, Van Damme cooked up 1991's "Lionheart," taking a story credit on an old-fashioned melodrama about a good-guy fighter trying to do the right thing by his family and friends. The experiment is successful to a slight degree, offering the star an opportunity to portray other emotions besides teeth-gnashing rage, while director Sheldon Lettich does his best to keep the endeavor light on its feet, mixing face-pounding action with sensitivity. Nobody will mistake "Lionheart" for a Disney movie, and while the picture does retain severe limitations, it remains an engaging ride for Van Damme fans, with plenty of kicks to please the faithful while inching the actor's abilities along, allowing him to cry and interact with children between fierce beatdowns. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Although 1993's "Hard Target" is regarded as a Jean-Claude Van Damme action vehicle, the feature is more interesting when approached as the American filmmaking debut for director John Woo. Lured to the states by co-producer Sam Raimi, Woo was a monumental get, with his work on Hong Kong masterpieces such as "The Killer" and "Hard Boiled" cementing his reputation as unique architect of blistering action sequences, often executed with an emotional foundation that preserves performances and widens cinematic scope. The transition wasn't easy, with Woo's exaggerated sensibilities alien to Hollywood's shoot-em-up formula, but the marriage resulted in an especially funky offspring. "Hard Target" isn't a convincing drama, but this loose update of the 1924 short story, "The Most Dangerous Game," is transformed into a celebration of carnage and bruising stunt work, reworking western traditions to fit Van Damme's rise as a big screen hero. It's a berserk picture slathered in absurdity, but if one can find the rhythm of its outrageousness, "Hard Target" rises to become the most satisfying entry in Van Damme's rise to glory during the early 1990s, smartly using the star's limited vocabulary and limitless flexibility to create one of the finest B-movies of the decade. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com