Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

In the 1970s, few wore their onscreen toughness as well as Charles Bronson. Working steadily in all manner of productions that required a steely-eyed authority figure, Bronson achieved his greatest success with 1974's "Death Wish," a vigilante saga that perfectly captured his skills as an intimidating leading man. In the shadow of such a hit, Bronson returned to duty, with 1975's "Breakheart Pass" one of the many journeyman productions the actor was fond of. A mystery with western ornamentation, the picture benefits immensely from Bronson's frosty demeanor, put to good use by director Tom Gries, who keeps his star at a low rumble of suspicion while employing a colorful supporting cast to create a compelling atmosphere of the unknown, making Bronson's string of forceful reactions all the more inviting. While it's not an exhaustive whodunit with a myriad of elaborate red herrings, "Breakheart Pass" is an engaging adventure with a few surges of action, an unexpected commitment to brutality, and an irresistible collection of disasters to hold attention. It's the type of meaty film that doesn't use a model to stage a train accident, it brings in a real train to destroy. How wonderful. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There's a beautiful sophistication and emotional starkness to 1972's "We Won't Grow Old Together" to help support the screenplay's insistence that the viewer spend 106 minutes with emotionally stunted characters. An autobiographical story from writer/director Maurice Pialat, the film is rich with life and frustration, working to capture the experience of a volatile relationship without trying to cure its ills. It's intelligent, measured work from the helmer (who adapts his own novel for the screen), easing entrance into a particularly toxic pairing. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1984's "Bachelor Party" isn't master class cinema by any stretch of the imagination. It's a bawdy comedy created during a time when juvenile antics and bare breasts were celebrated by the moviegoing public, making it the knuckle-dragging alternative during an iconic summer of blockbusters. I'm not about to defend the picture's iffy comedic interests, but it's hard to discount small blips of charm that manage to help "Bachelor Party" not only find a personality, but numerous laughs as well, making it the rare horndog farce of the era to actually provide considered punchlines. It's lewd and crude, but not unpleasant, with star Tom Hanks single-handedly sustaining screen energy with his rubbery, class clown performance, which, interestingly, represented his career follow-up to "Splash." Over the course of a few months, Hanks went from being a mermaid's sweetheart in a Disney film to a degenerate party animal. And people say he has no range. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"Curtains" isn't a single film, it's a handful of subplots and ideas competing for screentime under the guise of a traditional '80s-style slasher endeavor. Bizarre seems too mild a description when discussing this movie, which is actually stitched together from two production periods spread out over three years, with the original director, Richard Ciupka, taking his name off the effort when producer Peter R. Simpson elected to jazz up the rough cut with customary slicing and dicing. The fascinating backstory on "Curtains" is evident throughout the presentation, leaving the picture half-realized, shooing away substance to plow ahead with violence. It's a mess, but an entertaining one thanks to Ciupka's visual ambition and ensemble work from the oddball cast, who deliver the proper level of hysteria to assist what little suspense remains. It's not movie that's easily understood, but one that has a few passable moments of genre proficiency. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

To fully appreciate "The Bankers of God: The Calvi Affair," one must have a doctorate in the financial history of Italy, with knowledge of its working parts pertaining to the Vatican, Masonic control, and government corruption. I'll fully admit, this is not a movie that inspires interest in such topics, leaving its byzantine structure difficult to digest unless the viewer has a specific connection to the unfolding crisis. It's not a terrible film by any means, but one that's persistently complex to a degree where it begins to freak out its director, Guiseppe Ferrara. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Imagined as the start of an Italian cinema magazine, 1953's "Love in the City" brings together a class of neorealist filmmakers to help explore the true price of passion. Through the POV of Carlo Lizzani ("Love for Money," 11 minutes), Michelangelo Antonioni ("Attempted Suicide," 22 minutes), Dino Risi ("Paradise for Three Hours," 12 minutes), Federico Fellini ("Marriage Agency," 16 minutes), Francesco Maselli ("Story of Caterina," 27 minutes), and Alberto Lattuada ("Italians Turn Their Heads," 14 minutes), an omnibus exploration was born — a picture that has little patience for the warmth of the world. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Already an actor with an extensive history in westerns, Lee Van Cleef found himself in possession of a red-hot career after the global success of 1966's "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," working his way up from supporting turns to starring roles. 1969's "Sabata" was one of many gunslinger efforts Van Cleef participated in during this critical time, transformed into a glaring, unforgiving hero, feeding into a slightly zany atmosphere of showdowns masterminded by director Gianfranco Parolini. "Sabata" is an odd one, teeming with exaggerated characters, mild gymnastics, and the image of Van Cleef as the titular character, prowling around with delightful screen confidence, especially for a character who keeps a coin as part of his arsenal. For the most part, the movie has a snappy pace, fierce style, and bursts of aggression, keeping genre elements alert as it details a peculiar story of blackmail. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

I'm not sure what Elizabeth Banks was hoping to gain by agreeing to star in "Walk of Shame," but I'm certain she's not going to feel much in the way of positivity once the public begins sampling the picture. Uselessly crude and insistently moronic, "Walk of Shame" features the type of story that could be completely washed away if the main character simply stopped for a moment to explain herself. However, that sensible approach would negate the movie, forcing writer/director Steven Brill to groggily dream up nonsensical ways to keep this attempt at a screwball comedy on the go, subjecting Banks to lethal screenwriting and aggressive supporting performances. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The 2014 version of "Endless Love" has taken some drastic steps to avoid comparison to other incarnations of the same story. Originating from a 1979 novel by author Scott Spencer and adapted into a popular 1981 picture starring Brooke Shields (featuring an omnipresent theme song that ruined roller skating for everyone in the early eighties), "Endless Love" is a tale of dark obsession and manipulation, powered by a bittersweet quality that reinforces the dangerous games of affection played by the characters. The New "Endless Love" is defanged claptrap for 13-year-olds with no sense of how the world actually works, drained of any threat, heat, or logic as it manufactures a love story where idiocy is celebrated as laudable passion. If you're familiar with the book or the earlier feature, this "Endless Love" won't be recognizable. Imagine if "Star Wars" was the cinematic adaptation of "Bridget Jones's Diary," and that's as close as co-writer/director Shana Feste gets to the source material here. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2006's "You, Me and Dupree" arrived in theaters during a time when Owen Wilson could do little wrong. Graduating from Wes Anderson appearances to major studio films, Wilson was coming off such smashes as "Wedding Crashers" and "Meet the Fockers," with hungry studios eager to build comedic vehicles for the star. While enthusiasm was pure, quality was lacking. "You, Me and Dupree" is perhaps the worst of the bunch, and not because it's offensive or simply unfunny, it just doesn't even try to be anything but a predictable comedy lacking the energy to color outside the lines. And there's Wilson in the middle of the malarkey, trying to whine and wince his way around material that never had a pulse to begin with. Perhaps the production was launched with good intentions, but it lands with a tremendous thud. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1970's "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" isn't concerned with radically reworking Arthur Conan Doyle's celebrated character, but it does retain a surprising bluntness when it comes to the behavior of the consulting detective that few adaptations have pursued. It's a movie from Billy Wilder, created during the twilight of the iconic filmmaker's career, interested in merging traditional Holmes-style mystery with fussy character business, highlighting relationships and curiosity as clues are followed and suspects are studied. Assembled with real snap by Wilder and his frequent collaborator, co-writer I.A.L. Diamond, "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" is an extremely amusing and engaging picture, taking care of all the expected detective work as it offers a few surprises of its own. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

As western romps go, "The Scalphunters" hasn't aged very well. A tale of racial paranoia and partnership, the feature traffics in a level of barbed dialogue that would trigger P.C. alarms in this day and age, but in 1968, times were certainly different. Navigating the movie's period attitude is relatively easy, but finding its sense of humor takes some work. Everyone onscreen appears to be having a ball with this adventure, but the spirit isn't infectious. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2001's "Bridget Jones's Diary" was a complete charmer, and also a bit of a miracle. After all, the casting of Texan Renee Zellweger in an iconic British role was predicted to be a disaster, but the actress managed to make the part her own, gaining weight and perfecting her slapstick skills to portray the neurotic character. The film was a smash and featured a comfortably fairy tale-esque ending, making the promise of a follow-up difficult to understand. 2004's "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason" is a commendable attempt to continue a good thing, reviving elements that defined the original effort while trying to master a few new tonal directions to inspire the challenge of a sequel. It's not completely successful, yet "The Edge of Reason" has its moments, and while it falls short of the previous picture's charisma and sense of mischief, it's nice to see these personalities back on the screen. If only there was a more cohesive story to aid this screwball game of love. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The Vince Vaughn of 2006 was coming off blockbusters such as "Dodgeball" and "Wedding Crashers," and while it's easy to be disappointed with his recent career endeavors (including the anemic "The Watch" and "The Internship"), it was awfully brave of the actor to follow-up two extremely silly, popular films with this sobering reminder of love gone wrong. "The Break-Up" isn't a particularly cohesive picture, but its intentions are fascinating, attempting to buck the trend of apple-cheeked romantic comedies by exploring the dissolution of a long-term relationship. European cinema does it better, but "The Break-Up" gets many gut-rot emotions right, trying to articulate such fist-shaking frustration without turning off a nation of moviegoers. Even if the effort isn't especially humorous, it gets far on ambition alone, fighting off a case of the cutes to make a feature that treats domestic antagonism with some degree of reality, avoiding fairy tale trimmings. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"Duel at Diablo" is based on the Marvin H. Albert novel, "Apache Rising," which is perhaps why the film version is an ambitious but overwhelmed effort, never secure in its storytelling, even as it tackles some contentious topics. The 1966 picture, directed by Ralph Nelson, is atmospheric, with tremendous Utah locations that provide a sweltering backdrop to the action, and there's secure star power with actors James Garner and Sidney Poitier, who deliver leathery performances. What's missing is a point of view, with the screenplay (co-written by Albert) struggling to work out Native American prejudice and villainy, making it difficult to recognize what the movie is trying to communicate. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The wild isn't just a place of solitude. For most creatures, strength is found in large numbers, and the "Nature" episode "The Gathering Swarms" inspects the choreography and communication of a hive mentality, traveling all over the globe to detail the rituals required to bring what's often a defensive and mating force to life. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

As "Endeavour" enters its second series, it faces a unique challenge. Beginning life as a prequel to the "Inspector Morse" program, "Endeavour" is now forced to find its own identity, having coasted on nostalgia alone for the initial episodes. It must become its own creation of mystery and drama. Although it doesn't hit any particularly potent creative highs in "Series 2," the show doesn't continue on as originally designed, reaching beyond the confines of procedural entertainment to explore the titular character as he wrestles with physical and mental trauma, while finding a love interest for this go-around of crime-solving. It's a needed expansion of personality that helps to navigate the knotty scheme of suspects the production works overtime to introduce. It's an overall softening that encourages investment in this standoffish character, making him more than just whirring mind. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Released in 1953, "The Vanquished" presented Michelangelo Antonioni as a work-in-progress, perfecting on his directorial skills as he experimented with tone, theme, and style. Curious about the post-war effect on the youth of the day, the helmer created three chapters ("Italy," "France," and "England") to explore the plague of violence, with callousness becoming all the rage, filling headlines with tales of murder and remorselessness. Over the course of three short stores, Antonioni wasn't looking to solve this crisis of conscience, only to dissect it, inspecting passionate characters caught up in ugly business. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Although it is, in fact, a sequel to 1969's "True Grit," 1975's "Rooster Cogburn" is perhaps most notable for its pairing of John Wayne (reprising a role that won him his only Academy Award) and Katharine Hepburn — two Hollywood legends who somehow avoided each other for the majority of their careers. I'm not sure what's weirder: seeing Wayne play old and silly or watching Hepburn play a gun-totin' western hero, but the chemistry is interesting. Stepping away from the harder edges of "True Grit," this delayed follow-up plays it safe with established genre elements, a broad villain, and picturesque locations. However, remaining at the core of all the comfort are two surprisingly engaged performances from Wayne and Hepburn, who put in a professional effort with pushover screenwriting, making their characters sincere and active in ways their age (both were 67 years old during the shoot) and veteran status wouldn't traditionally invite. As western escapism, "Rooster Cogburn" scratches the itch, providing a satisfying adventure with headstrong characters, making good use of the cast's abilities. Yet, as a feature that arrives after "True Grit," the film remains easy to digest, which might cause Wayne purists some discomfort as The Duke trades iron stares for light comedy in this approachable movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

One must tread carefully when discussing "Cannibal Holocaust." The notorious 1980 horror effort from director Ruggero Deodato has acquired quite a reputation throughout the years, subjected to censorship, legal proceedings, and derision, all the while amassing a cult following over the last three decades, nurtured by fans who choose to see the picture as a statement on humanity, refusing to indulge the feature's initial condemnation. It's brutal, senseless, and excessive — hardly a Saturday night Redbox rental to be viewed after a nice dinner and a bottle of wine. It's specific cinema for a knowledgeable audience, and indeed, underneath all the violence and grim happenings, there's fascinating work and thematic investigation to discover. "Cannibal Holocaust" is rough, but it's an interesting type of sensationalism from a (thankfully) bygone production era. It's not a film to be enjoyed, but it certainly offers a singular genre bite that's impressively gonzo. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com