Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

Writer/director Hirokazu Kore-eda is an exceptionally talented filmmaker who's been on a streak of involving dramas over the last decade, mostly recently on view in 2018's "Shoplifters" and 2019's "The Truth," which offered him a chance to make a French endeavor, changing things up from his usual interests. With "Broker," Kore-eda is back in South Korea, examining the inner lives and relationships of characters involved in the business of selling babies. This is no horror story, adding to the helmer's preference for humanist dramas, taking time to understand the mindset of those contributing to such a situation, exploring the complexity of such a choice. There are layers to examine with "Broker," and wonderful moviemaking to help with the journey, as Kore-eda oversees excellent performances and an approachable level of melancholy with this feature, which remains gripping, even when it deals with simple matters of the heart. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Chuck Norris, the man, the myth, the legend, receives an enormous offering of hero worship in 1992's "Sidekicks," which, appropriately, is directed by his younger brother, Aaron Norris. The actor doesn't actually have much to do in the feature, which is probably best for Norris's acting range, but he makes for a compelling action figure in the effort, which explores one sickly boy's relationship with the screen star through the power of daydreams. Unlike most of Norris's oeuvre, "Sidekicks" is meant for a younger audience, but the helmer isn't exactly sure how young to go, often going full cartoon with this endeavor, creating a picture that sometimes wants to be a sincere understanding of adolescent confidence (lifting liberally from "The Karate Kid"), but most of the time wants to be a slapstick comedy co-starring Joe Piscopo at his most obnoxious. The Norris Boys hope to celebrate everything Chuck with the film, but they often get in the way of straightforward earnestness, trying to be wacky in the worst ways. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

When 1985's "Re-Animator" became a cult hit, finding profit when many expected it to be ignored, a reunion was organized. Another H.P. Lovecraft adaptation was found in "From Beyond," with screenwriter Dennis Paoli tasked with transforming a short story into a feature-length rampage involving weird science and deadly mutations. "From Beyond" is a little uneven when it comes to finding a story to tell and characters to invest in, but director Stuart Gordon puts on a marvelous display of ugliness with the film, supported by a team of special effects and makeup artists who go crazy with the grisly particulars of the movie, providing a rich sense of the macabre, working to live up to Lovecraft-ian standards with this take on glandular savagery and sexual hypnosis. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A monster mash is prepared by co-writer/director Gary Griffith, with "Satan's Menagerie" an ode to the menace of classic Universal Studios Horror. Griffith concocts a reworking of creature mayhem, dancing carefully around legal issues to bring his version of the Wolfman, Gill-man, and vampire to the screen. Of course, the endeavor isn't ready to pay big for such ghoulish visions, with "Satan's Menagerie" a shot-on-video movie, finding Griffith trying to turn his limited budget into a horror epic, complete with dark magic and forbidden love. There's an A-for-effort here that carries the viewing experience, with Griffith and his team really trying to do something with next to nothing in the feature, and such ambition is welcome, helping the picture to overcome its clear lack of polish and weird neglect of tight editing. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1985's "Clue" was a bomb. It was released into a marketplace where few viewers cared about the endeavor, condemning it to life on home video, where the movie suddenly flourished. Fandom was born, with passing decades collecting admirers of the picture and its command of comedy, transforming the effort into a cult hit, almost becoming a secret language for the most devout. For director Jeff C. Smith, just enjoying "Clue" wasn't enough. Feeling inspired by other fan-made documentaries, the helmer has assembled "Who Done It," which examines certain aspects of the 1985 release, focusing on the ensemble and audience growth for a feature that was once considered dead. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

As the director of "Phantasm," Don Coscarelli is no stranger to making weird films, and 2002's "Bubba Ho-Tep" is one of his strangest, working with author Joe R. Lansdale on an adaptation of his novella. It's a story of despair turned into purpose when Elvis (Bruce Campbell) and John F. Kennedy (Ossie Davis) rise up in their nursing home, working to defend the residents from the arrival of Bubba Ho-Tep, an ancient, soul-sucking evil. Lansdale's premise is a corker, but the idea of "Bubba Ho-Tep" is usually more enticing than the actual picture, which is superbly performed and occasionally inspired, but mostly wrestles with its limited budget and lack of adventures for the characters to undertake. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/directors Robert Olsen and Dan Berk put viewers in a difficult place with "Villains." The intent of the material is to create a semi-romp with horrible situations of imprisonment and torment, doing so with a darkly comedic tone as wacky characters encounter dire situations of threat and survival. While that approach works in spurts here, most of the feature struggles to make sense of the characters, offering the audience time with two sets of horrible people. Olsen and Berk make their sympathies clear, but it's not so easy for outsiders, with "Villains" pitting morons vs. morons, making it a struggle to cheer on anyone's perseverance when the screenplay doesn't make a clear case for noble intent. It's all meant to be a macabre ride with unpleasant developments, but the fun factor is extremely limited here, with Olsen and Berk skipping most of the fine details as they focus on supplying genre highlights. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The aftermath of World War II is explored in 2014's "Giovanni's Island," with the Japanese production examining the changing ways of power, clashing cultures, and family ties. Director Mizuho Nishikubo has quite a story to manage, with the horrors of conflict and the warmth of friendship offering a tonal challenge for the helmer. The animated movie delivers on its emotional mission, giving viewers plenty of heartbreak and confusion to handle, and while the endeavor gets a little carried away when it comes to the experience of deep feelings and personal loss, "Giovanni's Island" remains an interesting sit, touching on a corner of wartime history to help process such profound loss. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris" is a terrific example of acting, and how it's capable of supporting a viewing experience when the material periodically dips into uninspired areas of drama. The star is Lesley Manville, who made powerful impressions in "Phantom Thread," "Another Year," and "Ordinary Love," and she returns to full power in her latest turn, which distances her from the usual emotional severity she's normally hired to communicate. As the title suggests, "Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris" is entertainment, mixing lighter feelings with a comedic approach, but Manville doesn't ignore the possibilities of the character, delivering a full-bodied performance that carries the feature at times, backed by an impressive supporting cast and occasional moments that land their intended fuzzy feelings. It's not the most rousing endeavor, but small creative goals help the film remain as charming as it possibly can. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In the early 1980s, Bill Murray joined co-writer/director John Byrum ("Inserts," "Heart Beat") on a journey to bring W. Somerset Maugham's 1944 novel, "The Razor's Edge," to the screen. However, the writing process went slowly, and the studios weren't entirely interested in the idea, unsure what to make of Murray's sudden quest to attempt a more dramatic performance when he was riding high with successful comedies. Enter "Ghostbusters," with Dan Aykroyd putting together a dream team for his spooktacular gut-buster, including Murray, who suddenly had leverage, eventually committing to the Ivan Reitman endeavor in exchange for studio support for his pet project, with Columbia Pictures permitting the actor to make "The Razor's Edge" right before his start date on "Ghostbusters." So, if you think about it while closing your eyes and hopping on one foot, Murray's big chance to do something different is thanks to the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Or Slimer. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Mei Makino makes a strong helming debut with "Inbetween Girl," examining the turbulent life of a teenager caught up in trouble when it comes to love, family, and sex. It follows recent dives into the adolescent heart, including "Eighth Grade" and "Edge of Seventeen," with Makino committed to providing an honest examination of the female experience, with the main character handling the pressures of home and hallway interactions with a thin grasp on her emotional health. "Inbetween Girl" is intimate and humane, and it's also absolutely wonderful, with Makino making an effort to create a layered, knowing study of deep feelings without giving into the temptation of melodrama. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Gerald Potterton (who passed away in 2022) is perhaps best known as the director of 1981's "Heavy Metal," and rightfully so, as he oversaw a wonderful animated effort to bring R-rated comic book worlds to the screen. But there was more to his career, with 1971's "The Rainbow Boys" exploring the helmer's oddball sense of humor and love of the Canadian wilderness, following characters on the hunt for a fortune in gold, using what's left of their wits to get there. "The Rainbow Boys" is a strange feature, mixing personal problems with slapstick comedy, and Potterton certainly seems like he's having a ball with the endeavor, though it's debatable just how much of that enthusiasm reaches the audience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

B.J. Novak is a celebrated comedian, author, and a cast member on "The Office," which, according to the internet, is the greatest television show of all time. He's hunting for a new challenge with "Vengeance," making his directorial debut with his take on American characters and podcast culture, also working in a murder mystery at times. Novak also writes and stars in the feature, accepting an enormous amount of responsibility to deliver a tightly constructed whodunit with heavy presence of a Texas insanity. Novak gets most of the way there with "Vengeance," which pieces together rather cleanly for its first two acts, delivering a rich sense of personality and dramatic purpose, even when the story is uncomfortably similar to the hit show, "Only Murders in the Building." The helmer can't stick the landing, but Novak offers amusingly exaggerated observations and behaviors with the film, which remains an engrossing sit. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

To make a quick impression, writer/directors Peter and Michael Spierig elected to make a zombie film to help break into the movie industry, using the tried and true method of genre storytelling to kickstart their careers. 2003's "Undead" is a homegrown production from Australia, with the siblings working with small sets and their own digital effects to create a bloodbath, and one with a distinct sci-fi angle to help increase onscreen chaos. The Spierigs remain ambitious with their plans for the general mayhem of "Undead," but this production spirit doesn't translate to a ripping good time with deadly enemies and community hellraising. The endeavor tuckers out quickly, with the Spierigs unable to sustain elements of horror and sci-fi in a feature that doesn't have much to offer viewers after the opening act. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In the 1990s, Joel D. Wynkoop wanted to become a prolific moviemaker. He made his helming debut with 1985's "Twisted Illusions," but really aimed to make his mark years later, soon delivering an enormous number of movies for the home video market. 1992's "Lost Faith" is the first shot fired, with Wynkoop overseeing a feature that transforms him into an action hero, with lengthy martial arts showdowns and women to save, delivering a celebration of all things Joel D. Wynkoop. Unfortunately, film wasn't the future for the writer/director/star, who selects a shot-on-video approach for the endeavor, which contributes to the overall sloppiness of the picture, and it quickly becomes painfully ridiculous. "Lost Faith" is a mess of ideas, with Wynkoop struggling to make storytelling decisions, often too distracted by his own awesomeness to really care about anything else. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2018's "Lieutenant Jangles" is an Australian production looking to celebrate rogue cop films from the 1980s, doing so with a tiny budget and limited patience for playing anything straight. Co-writer/director Nic Champeaux goes broadly comedic with the endeavor, which tries to charm viewers with displays of raunchy behavior and cartoon ultraviolence, believing more is more with this type of wacky production. There's a lot of noise and constant penis references in the feature, but laughs are a bit more difficult to find. Champeaux and Co. certainly seem like they had fun making "Lieutenant Jangles," but such mischief is seldom infectious. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director John Michael McCarthy has something in mind with "Damselvis, Daughter of Helvis," but he's not in the mood to share it with viewers. One can appreciate the faint plan to create a graphic novel-style viewing experience with this tale of a young woman and her mission to meet her undead parent, but the details of this universe are mostly muddled and incomplete. Instead of providing cinematic polish, McCarthy delivers a shot- on-video event, and while the production has room to do pretty much whatever it wants, the helmer remains fixated on generating a confusing offering of pursuit, religion, and surreal experiences, supplying a rock and roll slide into screen stasis one too many times. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It's easy to describe "Anvil!" as a real-world version of "This is Spinal Tap," but the comparison is incredibly accurate. The comedy of "Spinal Tap" certainly didn't come out of thin air, leading me to believe that the antics of the Canadian metal band Anvil must've played some part in the 1984 comedy classic. While suitably absurd and prone to spotlighting rock cliché humiliation, "Anvil" is a far more loving film than it seems at first glance. Taking a second look at the career of a band who was always this close to the success of their brothers in the headbangin' business, "Anvil!" is a stupendous document of perseverance and crushing music industry realities, brought to life by two men who somehow managed to keep the devil horns raised through decades of disappointment. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Filmed in 1983, "Attack of the Beast Creatures" (a.k.a. "Hell Island") is a tiny monster movie before tiny monster movies became all the rage in the decade, boosted by the tremendous success of 1984's "Gremlins." Director Michael Stanley and writer Robert Hutton don't have a decent budget, but they have access to a forest, some actors, and a collection of little puppets, setting out to create a horror picture about survival in a remote location. "Attack of the Beast Creatures" isn't a hugely cinematic experience, but there's some charm in the deadly attacks of little ghouls and the humans struggling to make sense of the situation before they're eaten alive. It's not always a compelling endeavor, but when Stanley and Hutton get around to making a mess of things, the effort is enjoyably goofy. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It's not every day when one encounters a tale of black magic mixed with post-Civil War antagonisms. 1992's "Death Magic" looks to blend wartime madness with astral curiosity, giving co-writer/director Paul Clinco a semi-interesting start to his shot-on-video endeavor, showing a little more ambition than the average backyard production. It's a no-budget offering of exploitation, with some gore and emphasis on nudity, but Clinco doesn't lean into the trashier aspects of the movie. Instead of summoning madness, the material becomes caught up in the ways of the occult and bland relationships, moving away from the central menace of a dead military monster pulled from beyond to exact revenge on his enemies. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com