Category: DVD/BLU-RAY

"Grand Jete" is a German production about the timeless love between a boy and his mother. Well, perhaps not timeless. And "love" here means "a sudden sexual relationship." Screenwriter Anna Melikova has the challenge of bringing Anke Stelling's book to the screen, making sense of incest and profound psychological problems, which aren't easy to watch. Director Isabelle Stever tries to find her own way to approach such a sensitive topic, electing to fully immerse the picture in a sensorial viewing experience, hoping to generate a special mood to best approach a troubling tale of obsession. "Grand Jete" doesn't go full Haneke, but it comes close, making the viewing experience both compellingly and irritatingly uncomfortable as Stever tries to put together a puzzle of mental illness, keeping away from dramatic structure for as long as possible. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

If you were a filmgoer in the 1980s, perhaps you were thinking, "This James Bond movie needs more ninjas." Or maybe, "This ninja movie needs more James Bond." Well, 1986's "Unmasking the Idol" is going to be your best friend, as director Worth Skeeter attempts to merge the worlds of martial arts and superspy adventures, delivering all the excitement he can with a very limited budget, unknown actors, and sets left over from previous productions. Ambition runs pretty high here, as Skeeter strives to make a big impression with his action extravaganza, trying to deliver furious battles and elaborate escape plans while offering a tongue-in-cheek take on 007-style antics featuring a British secret agent. "Unmasking the Idol" isn't sturdily built, lacking a great deal of momentum in the second act, but it's a fun romp for the most part, as Skeeter really wants to entertain with this effort, doing what he can to delight viewers. And if you're thinking, "Does this James Bond movie about ninjas contain a supporting performance from a baboon wearing a gi?" The answer is yes. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Juvenile delinquent cinema meets the horror rush of the 1980s in "Buried Alive," which takes its influence from the works of Edgar Allan Poe. There's a black cat, sounds emerging from mysterious places, and the spread of madness, but the feature isn't committed to the finer points of gothic terror. It's more of a slasher-like endeavor, exploring the developing nightmare of an all-girl school terrorized by a masked madman with a fetish for killing people slowly, getting off on the memory of their expiration. Director Gerard Kikoine hopes to add some gasoline to the viewing experience, investing in a hyperactive style for the picture, aiming to generate sensorial overload to best capture the feeling of a psychological break. Such hustle is appreciated, but the effort's storytelling skills leave much to be desired, with "Buried Alive" soon breaking down into seemingly random scenes of character interactions and horrible events. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1985 was a major year for the "Night of the Living Dead" brand name. In July, George Romero added another chapter to his undead saga with "Day of the Dead," which disappeared from U.S. theaters fairly quickly. Original co-writer John A. Russo also delivered a zombie experience for the summer season, taking a co-story credit on "The Return of the Living Dead," with writer/director Dan O'Bannon making his helming debut with the endeavor. Romero went somber with his vision for a zombie apocalypse, while O'Bannon goes wild, eventually, with "The Return of the Living Dead," electing for a more comedic version of a monster rampage, trying to separate himself from the competition with a punk rock soundtrack, unabashed exploitation, and a tone of hysteria that either delights or repulses, depending on the scene. O'Bannon isn't big on style, and his sense of pace leaves much to be desired, but he has a vision for physical horror and zombie threats, with the last half of the picture capturing a pure cinematic insanity that's rarely found in the genre. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1975's "Saturday Night at the Baths" presents a time and place for audiences during the decade, with co-writer/director David Buckley offering a snapshot of celebratory happenings involving the gay community. Instead of simply making a documentary about time at the Continental Baths, the production hopes to touch hearts and minds with this drama, which examines one man's journey of sexuality, making discoveries about himself while working in a scene he doesn't fully understand at first. "Saturday Night at the Baths" is no great offering of storytelling, but it does have a distinct fingerprint when it comes to detailing a moment in history, capturing the jubilance of performance and the thrill of living free, with Buckley understanding more about the scene than the demands of dramatic structure. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1987's "Mutant Hunt" presents a future world New York City that mostly, definitely looks like the New York City of 1987. Writer/director Tim Kincaid ("Bad Girls Dormitory," "Breeders") is dealing with the lowest of budgets and the shortest of shooting schedules with the endeavor, which offers an ambitious tale of a cyborg attack and the mercenary squad hired to bring the machines down. "Mutant Hunt" doesn't offer the tightest screenwriting and performances struggle, but technical achievements are quite impressive for the B-movie, which attempts to pull off a level of violence and oddity that keeps the viewing experience compelling, delivering a bit more punch than the average bottom-shelf offering. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1994's "Red Sun Rising" is an attempt to give star Don "The Dragon" Wilson something just a little different to play. The respected martial artist and B-movie hero is tasked with a slightly heavier load of drama to carry in the feature, portraying a Japanese policeman dealing with guilt and rage while trying to seek revenge for the loss of his partner. The action is mostly found in Los Angeles, and Wilson does his thing very well, smashing opponents and dealing with fight choreography while director Francis Megahy tries to build a picture around him. Unfortunately, "Red Sun Rising" isn't all that compelling a police story, struggling to merge supernatural elements with street violence, while the overall effort to turn Wilson into a leading man doesn't take, with such a calculated career move blocking the view of a passable actioner. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1979's "Goldengirl" is an adaptation of a 1977 novel by Peter Lear, which follows the development of a promising track star put on the road to glory by the men in control of her, for various reasons. Developed for television, the material hopes to pull suspense from the eponymous character's physical and emotional journey, while something of a detective story develops during the run time, adding a touch of mystery to a picture that constantly teeters on the edge of melodrama. "Goldengirl" has an initial drive to explore the questions surrounding the runner and her special abilities, but it doesn't sustain intrigue, losing its footing as it drags out the central plot, offering a limp conclusion to an otherwise passably engaging look at athletic trials and biological tinkering. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 2020, director Tyler Cornack delivered "Butt Boy." The cult-ready effort tracked the desperation of a man and his battle with the unholy power of his rear end, with Cornack's production team, Tiny Cinema, creating a detective story about a most unusual event. The endeavor wasn't without tonal and humor problems, but it managed to find ways to make pronounced oddity amusing, instead of the usual helping of obnoxiousness. Tiny Cinema is back with…er, "Tiny Cinema," with writers Ryan Koch, William Morean, and Cornack (who also directs) creating an anthology film about the wonders of madness and the pains of trickery, sold with a defined sense of the absurd. "Tiny Cinema" is quite the viewing experience at times, mixing genuine hilariousness with a slow-burn sense of shock value, sold with lively, committed performances and a weird "Twilight Zone" vibe from Cornack, who creates consistent chapters in this tour of crazy ideas and desperate characters. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The producers had it. They had it. 1998's "Halloween H20" ended on a perfect note of rage and catharsis, giving Laurie Strode the conclusion she deserved after running from Michael Myers for two decades. There was nothing left in the Strode saga to mine, making the final minute of the feature deeply satisfying and refreshingly blunt. And then the movie made money. A sizable amount too, reigniting interest in a brand name that was slowly fading away. Profit was suddenly substantial, motivating Dimension Pictures to cough up a continuation solely out to sponge up the remaining financial potential of the revived series, settling on 2002's "Halloween: Resurrection," putting Curtis back in action for an extended cameo that's a complete disservice to her character, while the rest is a dreadful display of bad acting and lame suspense, resulting in the worst chapter of the long-running franchise. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1995's "Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers" didn't do what it was supposed to do. The idea was to continue what was teased in "Halloween: The Revenge of Michael Myers," picking up years later to examine the evil that powers the masked brutalizer, going deeper into cult origins or weird science, depending on which version of the movie was viewed. The sixth installment of the "Halloween" franchise was largely denied by the public, who moved on to other genre offerings that year, necessitating a grand rethinking of creative direction for the brand name. Instead of going forward, the producers elected to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the original "Halloween" by going backwards, talking actress Jamie Lee Curtis into returning to the saga as Laurie Strode, preparing a proper reunion between brother and sister. 1998's "Halloween H20" is meant to be a return to basics, focused on putting Laurie back into the line of fire, once again pursued by Michael Myers and his tireless quest to obliterate his sibling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 1989, the "Halloween" series made a bold creative choice to end on a cliffhanger with the fifth installment, "The Revenge of Michael Myers." Instead of being offered finality (at least the temporary stuff), the picture paved the way to another sequel, creating a mystery the production had no intention of solving right away, keeping things open for as many follow-ups as possible. Suddenly, there was a man in black busting head ghoul Michael Myers out of prison, with this development raising plenty of questions about motivation and relationships. Fans were set for a grand turn in the franchise's dramatic direction, and then…nothing. Six years later, "Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers" arrived, offering new studio leadership (Harvey and Bob Weinstein) and a strange sense of closure, with the gap in years forcing the production to give in to perceived audience craving for blood and guts, gradually losing focus on everything that began in "The Revenge of Michael Myers." Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

After taking a box office dive with 2018's "Early Man," Aardman Animation is back to more reliable entertainment with "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon." Shaun the Sheep has enjoyed a vast amount of exposure over the years, doing especially well on television, while his jump to the big screen in 2015's "Shaun the Sheep Movie" proved the character could do very well in the cinematic realm, supplying silent comedy-style slapstick over a longer runtime while still remaining fresh and exciting. Now comes the challenge of a sequel, and the production team looks to infuse some of Steven Spielberg's "E.T." for "Farmageddon," which returns to the mischief of Shaun, Farmer John, and Bitzer, but adds an alien visitation element to increase comedic potential and offer a more direct emotional range. The filmmaking labor produces a better picture, with the follow-up scoring big on laughs and heartwarming elements while remaining true to the brand's love of silliness. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

International conflicts turned into B-movie spectacle was the Cannon Films way throughout the 1980s, with producers Yoram Globus and Menahem Golan trying to keep things exotic for the audience, and also score some cheap locations in the process. For 1988's "Mercenary Fighters," the production travels to South Africa to explore a story concerning tribal relations in the continent, detailing some political unrest that requires brute Americans to solve. There are no surprises in "Mercenary Fighters," which delivers the same old Cannon formula, this time involving star Peter Fonda, who tries to do something worth paying attention to in an otherwise generic actioner that's somehow under the impression it's offering a respectful understanding of war and all its cruelties. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1987's "Terror Squad" is an odd combination of "The Breakfast Club" and "Red Dawn," trying to play around with international issues of the day in a B- movie setting. The whole thing is very Troma-esque, and director Peter Maris isn't one to push through his limited budget and make something challenging out of exploitation elements. Instead, he's in charge of an actioner, and one that's wildly uneven, spending the opening half in an extended chase, while the closing half is mostly about people standing and talking. There are limitations to "Terror Squad," and it's not a good film, but there's something funky about the endeavor that keeps its compelling, especially when campiness creeps into view, revealing a needed sense of humor to a largely stern tale of terrorism. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Jonathan Demme enjoyed one of the most unpredictable careers in the industry, maintaining a position of defiance and creativity. 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

After building his confidence with a series of shorts, writer/director Calvin Lee Reeder mounts his first feature-length movie with 2011's "The Oregonian." A fan of underground cinema, Reeder hopes to brings some mind-scrambling stuff to the endeavor, which is kinda-sorta a take on "Carnival of Souls," following the freak-out experiences of a young woman marching through a mysterious area of potential madness after surviving a car accident. Reeder tries to make a distinct impression with the surreal viewing experience, investing in an aggressive sound design and inscrutable imagery, hoping to reach an audience that lives for this kind of thing. Or at least has the patience to sit through it. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1972's "A White Dress for Mariale" offers an Agatha Christie-style set-up for danger, sending a collection of disparate characters to a secluded place to deal with one another and the presence of a murderer coming after them. We've been here before, but director Romano Scavolini tries to bend psychology with the endeavor, which doesn't even get to any point of suspense until the hour mark. It's a long drive to a crisis situation for "A White Dress for Mariale," which doesn't reward the patience required to get through the film, but Scavolini certainly tries to bring style and threatening elements to the effort, offering an interestingly shot feature that's appreciable on a technical level, but not always on a dramatic one. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1977's "Nine Guests for a Crime" is a traditional whodunit, taking inspiration from Agatha Christie books as it arranges deadly games of paranoia and exposure involving a large group of characters stuck on a remote island. The concept is nothing new, and the production doesn't try to jazz up the movie with psychedelic detours or excessive violence. Suspense is present, along with a typically convoluted mystery, but director Ferdinando Baldi looks to create a more sensual mood of sexual gamesmanship with the effort, and he has the natural appeal of the island location. "Nine Guests for a Crime" is a thunderous offering of screen tension, but it works in spurts of hostile relationships and malicious behavior, offering some welcome agitation to help with the murder investigation. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For some, 1970's "Voyage Into Space" is pure nostalgia, as the feature repeatedly aired on television throughout the decade, becoming comfort food for kids fresh out of school. The picture is stitched together from a handful of episodes of "Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot," a Japanese series that aired for 26 episodes in 1967 and 1968. The show walked through the experiences of a young boy suddenly in command of a gigantic, atomic- powered robot, asked to join a special squad dedicated to fighting alien invaders. "Voyage Into Space" does away with any dramatic connective tissue, simply covering the basics of Johnny's discovery and Earth's fight against massive monsters. It's a kaiju highlight reel, and for select viewers, that's all it should be. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com