The ironies, confusion, and tragedy of war are inspected in “A Perfect Day,” but the feature isn’t quite the level of homework it initially appears to be. It’s the English-language debut of director Fernando Leon de Aranoa (“Mondays in the Sun”), and he brings a funky vibe to the effort, which makes a creative choice to keep semi-light to best appreciate the frustrations felt by the characters. “A Perfect Day” benefits from the spring in its step, gifted a capable cast skilled enough to find nuances of reaction as the story moves from stop to stop, never remaining static for very long. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

After portraying a reserved, humbled homeless man in last autumn’s “Time Out of Mind,” Richard Gere takes on a different, more loquacious type of pain in “The Benefactor.” Delivering an unusually amplified performance, Gere is the focal point for the drama, which shaves off significant turns of plot to lay low as a compelling character study. Making his feature-length debut is writer/director Andrew Renzi, and he delivers more than a few captivating moments here, wisely concentrating on Gere’s manic spirit to cover well-worn ground as the screenplay explores the savagery of addiction and abuses of power. It rarely makes a substantial impression, yet “The Benefactor” is alive, powered by a special nervous energy that can only emerge from Gere. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Moonwalkers” provides an hour of spirited, cheeky comedy and violent shenanigans, but it doesn’t remain there for its final 30 minutes. If you’ve seen the documentary “Room 237,” the plot of “Moonwalkers” is going to be familiar, playing around with the concept that Stanley Kubrick produced and directed footage of the Apollo 11 mission to the moon, allowing the U.S. Government to cover for a problematic space program. Director Antoine Bardou-Jacquet has a terrific visual sense for his effort, but when it comes to sustaining pace, he’s not as successful. However, when the movie finds its footing, it’s agreeably oddball, delivering two solid acts of humor and madness that covers for a botched landing. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It takes a film like “Norm of the North” to fully appreciate what big-budget animated pictures from major studios actually accomplish. Instead of wonderfully designed characters and a heartfelt tale, “Norm of the North” offers a cruelly plasticized viewing experience for family audiences, basically refusing to challenge its origin as an 80-minute-long babysitter for exasperated parents who will settle for anything to keep wee ones pacified. With flat voice work, crude humor, and a story that doesn’t make any sense, the feature, save for one bright spot, is punishment, subjecting moviegoers to the bare minimum of effort. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The weight of the world and its myriad of connections are felt in “Anesthesia,” a multi-character odyssey of misery orchestrated by writer/director/co-star Tim Blake Nelson (his first helming gig since 2009’s “Leaves of Grass”). There’s an idea here concerning human denial that’s inherently powerful, examined through the actions of fallible characters scrambling for meaning in their lives, but Nelson generally swats away natural behavior in favor of a more theatrical presentation. Stiff and unsatisfying, “Anesthesia” doesn’t snap together profoundly, straining to reach a sophisticated examination of desperation and confusion while it offers tedious dramatics typically found in a Lifetime Movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

With “400 Days,” writer/director Matt Osterman attempts to revive a “Twilight Zone” atmosphere with a severely limited budget. More of a puzzler than a horror effort, the feature works to define psychological strain during extraordinary circumstances, teasing a deeper exploration of madness and close-quarter tensions to come. For reasons not entirely understood, Osterman pulls most of his punches, working to bend a compelling tale of extended isolation into a “Hills Have Eyes” sequel, which absolutely demolishes the appeal of the picture. “400 Days” isn’t strong stuff to begin with, but a few bewildering creative choices made by the production take a comfortably average thriller and reduces it to tone-deaf junk. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Early January is a strange time of year at the multiplex. Believing that certain audiences are tired of Oscar bait and blockbusters, Hollywood usually sends out a tiny horror picture to shake up the marketplace, with quality low on the list of production priorities. This year’s alternative is “The Forest,” a low-budget ghost story that gives “Game of Thrones” actress Natalie Dormer an opportunity to carry her own film. Sadly, Dormer is no match for the general lethargy and monotony of the movie, which spends half its run time trying to explain its premise, and the other half avoiding any satisfying payoff. The month of mediocrity strikes again, issuing another horror extravaganza that’s not interested in supplying real scares. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The director of “Wings of Desire” and “Paris, Texas,” Wim Wenders has kept his distance from fiction filmmaking in recent years, immersing himself in documentary work (including “Pina” and “The Salt of the Earth”) to provide artistic clarity. “Every Thing Will Be Fine” is his first dramatic effort in nearly a decade, and the feature unfortunately reflects such rustiness. Trying to capture the curvature of the Earth, Wenders gets lost in his own creation, lacking concentration on the basics of human response as gorgeous cinematography gradually becomes his only reason to keep hanging around a seriously undercooked production. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It’s going to be difficult for Scott Eastwood to have an acting career that isn’t always compared to his father, Clint. However, he’s not making it easy for himself by starring in “Diablo,” a modern take on a spaghetti western that finds the famous progeny brandishing guns and squints as co-writer/director Lawrence Roeck plays with his interests in the genre. “Diablo” has a few tricks up its sleeve and a familiar face in the lead role, but it doesn’t piece a convincing mystery together, sloppily revealing its hand long before the feature reaches its climax, leaving Eastwood to do all the heavy lifting with little inspiration to work with. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com