Two years ago, YouTubers-turned-filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou made a splash with their directorial debut, “Talk to Me.” It was a “haunted hand” picture that attracted media heat and some box office attention, delivering a small-scale fright film that either managed to terrify viewers with its tense atmosphere or fall short of expectations with its ridiculous premise and underwhelming performances. The siblings have returned to scary business in “Bring Her Back,” which trades the unquestioned mysteries of a cursed severed hand for a story of manipulation and grief, sold through the semi-tight grip of a possession tale. The Philippous have a much better script this time around (credited to Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman), and a more engrossing set-up for macabre happenings. The pair don’t stick their landing in full, but “Bring Her Back” has two acts worth of mystery that connects, generating needed uneasiness as grimness floods the endeavor. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Laura Piani makes her feature-length directorial debut with “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,” which carries a title that makes the movie seem like a brash British comedy, in the vein of “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” However, this is a French production, and one that enjoys picking at the little details of heartache when dealing in love and, more importantly, the creative process. Piani makes a wonderful first impression with the film, refreshingly dialing down hysterics to create a simple but real study of a woman trying to locate clarity in confusing times, challenged to find her voice in many ways. “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life” has a sense of humor, landing many laughs along the journey, but it’s also sensitive work wonderfully supported by Camille Rutherford’s charming lead performance. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Jon Avnet was once the director of “Fried Green Tomatoes,” but those days are long gone. The helmer has struggled in his career, making movies that didn’t completely work (“Up Close and Personal”) and others that utterly failed (“Righteous Kill,” “88 Minutes,” and “Three Christs”). Avnet restores some of his storytelling skills for “The Last Rodeo,” which isn’t challenging material in the least (he shares a writing credit with Derek Presley and Neal McDonough), but an easygoing underdog story that deals directly with family issues and relationships. Surprises are limited, actually nonexistent, but there’s a bit of heart to the material and a feel for a troubled soul confronting the mistakes in his life, seeking redemption on the back of a bull. “The Last Rodeo” is in definite need of a tighter edit, but Avnet delivers a semi-sturdy character examination with tasteful sports world action. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Death and relationships. They pair together pretty easily for most filmmakers, providing fertile dramatic ground to explore. Writer/director Julia Max makes her feature-length helming debut with “The Surrender,” which takes a surreal look at the pains of personal loss and frayed interactions during a difficult time, also adding a few elements of horror to maintain appeal for genre fans. It’s a tale of communication in many ways, offering a real-world understanding of tensions rising between a mother and daughter who are facing an unbearable situation, and Max hits a few potent notes of confusion along the way. “The Surrender” doesn’t become a riveting chiller or a devastating understanding of grief, but it has some effective sequences when it remains closer to a human experience. Unreality presented here seems better suited for a short film. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye really wants to be an actor. Being a successful singer isn’t enough, reaching chart-topping highs and attracting significant media attention. Becoming a thespian seems to be his new goal, though he’s probably not going to achieve it if he keeps picking projects like “Hurry Up Tomorrow.” While the film is being sold to the public as some type of psychological thriller, co-writer/director Trey Edward Shults (“Krisha,” “It Comes at Night,” and the little-seen “Waves”) isn’t making something like that. The endeavor is more surreal and meandering than a simple ride into a broken mind, and it’s incredibly determined to sell Tesfaye’s dramatic range, along with his music. The offering is a valentine to the greatness of The Weeknd “persona” and musical accomplishments, finding the script more of an afterthought as Shults is tasked with staying tight on the star as he hopes to deliver a powerhouse performance. “Hurry Up Tomorrow” accomplishes extraordinarily little dramatically, strictly made for those who share the same appreciation for The Weeknd as Tesfaye does. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 2023, “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” was released, facing stiff, ultimately overpowering competition from “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.” The sequel’s box office potential wasn’t reached, but as an offering of blockbuster filmmaking, star Tom Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie delivered a real epic supported by excellent technical credits and a ripping pace. However, production woes on “Part Two” failed to sustain the adrenaline rush, and there’s not even a “Part Two” anymore, as “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” finally arrives to provide a monster payoff in length (170 minutes) and big screen spectacle, once again finding Cruise and McQuarrie on a quest of their own to make sure viewers are left completely wowed by this endeavor, which is possibly the final “Mission” movie, at least for quite some time. “The Final Reckoning” isn’t nearly the fist-pumping viewing experience “Dead Reckoning” provided, but it does the trick, keeping the production devoted to huge thrills and character peril as Ethan Hunt accepts one last mission to save the world. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It comes as some shock to realize that the original “Final Destination” was released 25 years ago, emerging as a potent box office player during the horror cycle of the era. It comes as a surprise to understand the last chapter, “Final Destination 5,” came out 14 years ago, and while ticket sales were down, profitability didn’t seem to be threatened. However, New Line Cinema didn’t ask for more, letting the series conclude while genre fans moved on to new obsessions. With the successful revival of “Scream” currently grinding out sequels, it’s time for other older franchises to be revived, inspiring the creation of “Final Destination Bloodlines,” which returns the saga of Death and his sick games of torment to theaters, looking to unite old and new fans as a tightly choreographed massacre is rejuvenated, possibly for many more years to come. That’s not to suggest “Bloodlines” is a thrilling feature, but it’s definitely enthusiastic at times when it comes to orchestrating bodily harm to maintain brand name appeal. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

From the directors of “Swamp Shark,” “Ghost Shark,” “Trailer Park Shark,” and “Nightmare Shark” comes “A Breed Apart,” which, weirdly, doesn’t feature any sharks. It remains an animal attack picture, this time using rabid dogs on a tropical island to fuel B-movie pleasures. The production is also something of a remake, building on the premise of 2006’s “The Breed” to inspire a new take on canine-based horror, updated for the social media generation. Helmers Griff and Nathan Furst (who also script) have a design for craziness, but they don’t have much money to pull off the visually ambitious endeavor, which aims to generate a dog-pocalypse situation of survival featuring a cast of humans running away from ferocious animals. Sadly, “A Breed Apart” looks painfully cheap, almost unfinished at times, and getting a sense that a fear factor isn’t going to happen in the offering, the Fursts turn to campiness, and that doesn’t work at all. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Directors Josh Gordon and Will Speck have been involved in comedies throughout their entire career. Responsible for the silliness of “Blades of Glory,” “Office Christmas Party,” and “Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile,” the helming team hasn’t really expanded their storytelling horizons, sticking with what works. For “Long Distance” (a.k.a. “Distant”), Speck and Gordon take on a sci-fi story from screenwriter Spenser Cohen, though they don’t completely lose their sense of lightness with the movie. “Long Distance” is a tale of survival, featuring a few heated acts of self-preservation, but it endeavors to remain upbeat with its two main characters, who develop an emotional bond as they physically get closer to each other while stranded on a hostile planet. There’s warmth to be found for those who crave it, but what Cohen really has in the material is a short story, and that’s not enough to truly command attention in this misfire. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Paul Rudd is certainly drawn to tales of male bonding. He scored a few hits in his career exploring relationships between friends learning to have fun and relate to each other. Silliness ensued in offerings such as “I Love You, Man” and “Role Models,” but “Friendship” is a much stranger, darker overview of camaraderie. Writer/director Andre DeYoung goes the anti-comedy route with the picture, detailing the mental health decline of a man who simply wants to be accepted by others, unable to control himself when his idyllic life is denied. “Friendship” pairs Rudd with Tim Robinson, a former “Saturday Night Live” player who’s built a small empire of strangeness on television. DeYoung is ready to utilize this bizarre intensity, setting Robinson loose in the feature, which has some laughs, plenty of awkwardness, and an uneven way of delivering a psychological study of human need. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

If you’re a movie fan, you’ve probably experienced golden theatrical moments where a bond between entertainment and audience is born. For me, the release of 2014’s “John Wick” contributed a beautiful moment involving slightly disinterested viewers suddenly snapped to attention by the picture’s level of ferocity, while its eventual displays of violence extracted a jubilant group reaction that’s extremely rare to find. Ticket-buyers were changed when they left the theater, understanding they just watched a film made with care and commitment to shaking things up in the world of action cinema. “Wick Is Pain” is a documentary out to celebrate the entire “John Wick” franchise, as director Jeffrey Doe examines how the chapters came to life, often through blood, sweat, and a few tears. It’s a celebratory offering, but an earned one, as the series has become a mighty monetary force for distributor Lionsgate Films, who’ve turn all things “Wick” into an event, keeping director Chad Stahelski and actor Keanu Reeves busy over the last eleven years, generating towering valentines to big screen stunts and style. If you dig the brand, “Wick Is Pain” is an enormously engaging viewing experience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Stephen Chbosky (who struggled to find an audience for his last release, “Dear Evan Hansen”) and screenwriter Liz Maccie take on the “based on a true story” ways of “Nonnas,” which is an Italian word for grandmother. It’s a tale of a middle-aged man taking a chance on a restaurant idea that’s meant to preserve the cooking traditions of his family, sharing the warmth of such gatherings and food with the public. It’s a reality for restaurateur Jody Scaravella, and Vince Vaughn receives a chance to restore some of his screen charms in the part, portraying a man taking on a tremendous financial and culinary challenge while trying to mend his broken heart. Chbosky and Maccie are in crowd-pleasing mode with “Nonnas,” and they prepare a familiar dramatic feast of problems and neat resolutions, but it’s hard to resist the spirit of the feature, which makes plenty of room for its actors and their unique screen appeal. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com