1957's "The Monster That Challenged the World" is one of many horror features created during the rising years of the Atomic Age, using paranoia and progress to feed B-movie requirements, giving audiences something to be frightened of besides the daily news. Of course, the film now registers as pure silliness, witnessing the discovery and wrath of a giant mollusk at it rises out of the Salton Sea to devour those curious enough to go near it. However, the production shows creative effort rare to the era, working on characterization between attack sequences, trying to shape a personality to the picture instead of simply working through the kills. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1962's "Burn, Witch, Burn" is an unusual combination of a witchcraft thriller and a workplace drama, with both sides of the story managing to generate all the proper pressure the production needs to build tension. Wonderfully performed and inventively made, "Burn, Witch, Burn" (a.k.a. "Night of the Eagle") offers quite a compelling commotion, with style and bursts of anarchy welcome in a tale that's always on the prowl for suspense. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Like a giant layer cake of self-awareness, camp is piled on top of camp in 2000's "Psycho Beach Party," which looks to pants various genres of the 1960s, committing to a broad style of silliness to achieve its goals. Adapting his own theatrical production, screenwriter/co-star Charles Busch wins points for enthusiasm, trying to massage a spirited take on bikini-clad high jinks and serial murder for as long as possible, aided by wonderful performances from the cast, who give themselves completely to the low-budget endeavor, playing loud and lively. However, a little of "Psycho Beach Party" goes a long way, and the feature has trouble maintaining manic energy, with obvious dips in inspiration throttling the merriment Busch is eager to summon. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There are moments when "La Sapienza" is a hypnotic, gracefully made piece of filmic art, and there are moments when it feels like a parody of one. From writer/director Eugene Green, the feature is a specialized viewing experience that invests in stillness to such a degree, the effort stops moving entirely at times. It's gorgeously made, with absurdly beautiful cinematography by Raphael O'Byrne, but "La Sapienza" is often caught trying to pass as a sophisticated assessment of loneliness and marital connection, intentionally abandoning the human experience to play out like experimental theater, set within the walls of architectural mastery. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1971's "A Town Called Hell" (titled as "A Town Called Bastard" on the Blu-ray) sets out to define four different perspectives on guilt, loss, and redemption. It's more than most movies establish to fuel tensions, and the production is not up to the challenge. Disjointed and anticlimactic, "A Town Called Hell" goes through the motions of genre intimidation, urging its cast to communicate unease and threat to the best of their ability, as the story never supports them as securely as it should. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Attempting to make an action comedy, "Hot Pursuit" decides on overkill as a surefire way to laughs and thrills. It's the latest effort from director Anne Fletcher, who keeps getting hired to helm funny pictures despite a spotty track record ("27 Dresses," "The Proposal," "The Guilt Trip"), only here there's a manic energy to manage. Instead of taking it slowly, developing intricate stunt sequences and massaging punchlines, Fletcher encourages broad antics and chunky pratfalls one would expect to find on an elementary school playground. "Hot Pursuit" isn't funny or exciting, it's just loud, gifting stars Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara a holiday to let loose with caricatures, trusting volume to be the cure-all for a dud script. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Russell Crowe has enjoyed an acting career filled with varied dramatic demands, yet "The Water Diviner" marks the first time the star has stepped behind the camera. While retaining leading actor duties, Crowe finds the inspiration to create a heartfelt historical drama that investigates a crisis of anonymity when it comes to the slain soldiers of World War I. It's powerful work when locked in investigative mode, showcasing Crowe's strengths as a performer and helmer, selecting an unusual but evocative mystery of fatherly desperation, and one that's especially aware of the sensitivity surrounding its subject matter. "The Water Diviner" can't help itself with unnecessarily romantic pursuits, but fringe interests fail to implode this sturdily constructed film. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

"The Couch Trip" is an attempt by director Michael Ritchie to make a screwball comedy with classic cinema timing in the 1980s, where broad humor was being eaten away by cynicism. The helmer of "Fletch" and "The Bad News Bears," Ritchie certainly understands the value of a wily punchline, but there's an unfinished quality to "The Couch Trip" that keeps the feature from connecting in full. The cast is game to play, with star Dan Aykroyd working at his usual speed with jokes and rubbery reactions, but "The Couch Trip" ultimately feels rushed, which is a shame when it initially appears ready and willing to work through a list of neuroses, accusations, and confrontations worth a little more screen time than what the production is willing to offer. Select moments are genuinely funny, yet the movie tends to muffle what works, clinging to a story that never comes together. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Endeavoring to become Disney-style entertainment, 1965's "War-Gods of the Deep" (a.k.a. "City Under the Sea") does an impressive job matching the dramatic flatness of the company's live-action entertainment, but its spectacle needs some work. Starring Vincent Price, Tab Hunter, Susan Hart, and David Tomlinson, "War-Gods of the Deep" is a passable plunge into a mysterious underwater realm, offering monsters and impending volcanic disaster, but it's clear that a limited budget is in place, keeping the production on a tight leash while the story details Earth-splitting events and oceanic chases. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1931's "The Front Page" was added to the National Film Registry in 2010, securing its place in cinema history and its preservation for future generations to enjoy. It's easy to see why the feature was picked, presenting a sharp, incisive look at journalism of the day, finding its depiction of sensationalism and the lure of personal corruption still resonate in 2015. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Michael Ritchie maintained a special interest in movies about sports. Not many of them were great (there was one masterpiece in 1976's "The Bad News Bears"), but they all retained a shaggy personality that inspected the minutiae of teamwork and the power of the individual. 1992's "Diggstown" (titled "Midnight Sting" on the Blu-ray) isn't explicitly a boxing picture, but it carries the weight of a production that understands the stamina and mental acuity of the sport, working to make the ring encounters hit as hard as the twists and turns of this con man story. Although it's ultimately a tale of trickery and revenge, "Diggstown" is most comfortable throwing punches, communicating exhaustion with confidence as the rest of the shenanigans remain diverting, but tonally unbalanced. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com