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OnVideo's Weekly Guide to Home Video Releases
January 28
Dead Earth: In this post-apocalyptic action thriller, two young women cling to life in an abandoned resort. They must survive in silence, in mortal fear of attracting the hordes of undead that roam the Earth. When their compound runs out of fuel, they are forced into the countryside to find gas, resulting in a nightmarish encounter with survivors. (DVD: Day & date)
Ford v Ferrari: American car designer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) and the fearless British-born driver Ken Miles (Christian Bale), together battled corporate interference and the laws of physics to build a revolutionary Ford race car and take on Enzo Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France in 1966. (DVD, Blu-ray release: February 11)
January 31
The Bromley Boys: The film, based on the novel by Dave Roberts, recounts Robert’s peaks and troughs supporting the worst football team in the country at the time. (VOD only)
Echoes of Fear: After inheriting her grandfather's house, a young woman must confront the mystery of his sudden death and the evil that hides inside. (VOD only)
What Death Leaves Behind: Based on a frightening true story, this is the chilling tale of a man who, after a kidney transplant, experiences reoccurring nightmares he believes to be visions of his donor's violent murder, sending him on a dark path of vengeance, leading to an unbearable truth. (VOD only)
All About My Mother
(1999) This Oscar-winning melodrama, one of Pedro Almodóvar’s most beloved films, provides a dizzying, moving exploration of the meaning of motherhood. In an instant, nurse Manuela (Cecilia Roth) loses the teenage son she raised on her own. Grief-stricken, she sets out to search for the boy’s long-lost father in Barcelona, where she reawakens into a new maternal role, at the head of a surrogate family that includes a pregnant, HIV-positive nun (Penélope Cruz); an illustrious star of the stage (Marisa Paredes); and a transgender sex worker (Antonia San Juan). Beautifully performed and bursting with cinematic references, "All About My Mother" is a vibrant tribute to female fortitude, a one-of-a-kind family portrait, and a work of boundless compassion.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc with new 2K digital restoration, supervised by executive producer Agustín Almodóvar and approved by director Pedro Almodóvar, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray. Extras: Documentary from 2012 on the making of the film, featuring interviews with Pedro Almodóvar, Agustín Almodóvar, actors Penélope Cruz, Marisa Paredes, Cecilia Roth, and Antonia San Juan, production manager Esther García; and author Didier Eribon; television program from 1999 featuring Almodóvar and his mother, Francisca Caballero, along with Cruz, San Juan, Paredes, and Roth; 48-minute post-screening Q&A in Madrid from 2019, featuring Pedro Almodóvar, Agustín Almodóvar, and Paredes; an essay by film scholar Emma Wilson, along with (Blu-ray only) an interview with Pedro Almodóvar and a tribute he wrote to his mother, both from 1999. (The Criterion Collection).
Ballers: The Complete Fifth Season
(2019) Two-disc set with all eight episodes. Spencer (Dwayne Johnson) is settling into retirement and reflecting on his past when an offer that's too good to refuse comes his way and sends him back into the lion's den, this time as a team owner. In the wake of his split with Spencer, an ambitious Joe (Rob Corddry) gambles aggressively to make Sports X greater than ever with the help of his new partner, Lance (Russell Brand). Formats: DVD, Digital. (Warner).
Ballers: The Complete Series
(2015-19) Seven-disc set. Formats: DVD, Digital. (Warner).
Battle of Jangsari
(2019 -- South Korea) Kim Myung-min, Choi Min-ho, Megan Fox. The film is a depiction of the Battle of Incheon during the Korean War in 1950, focusing on the engrossing true story of a group of 772 student soldiers who staged a small diversionary operation at Jangsari beach to draw away North Korean attention from Incheon.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, Digital. (Well Go USA).
Beloved Beast
(2018) Twelve-year-old Nina loses her parents in a car accident and is forced to live with her unstable Aunt Erma. Except her aunt dabbles with drugs, partying and every other thing an aunt shouldn’t do. When Nina meets a stranger in the woods, instead of running, she brings him home. Not realizing that the man she has brought home is an escaped mental patient with a penchant for murder. Formats: DVD, VOD. (Indican Pictures).
Black Angel
(1946) Elegantly directed by Hollywood veteran Roy William Neill (best known for his 11 Sherlock Holmes films starring Basil Rathbone), "Black Angel" is an underappreciated film noir treasure, adapted from a novel by the acclaimed crime writer Cornell Woolrich ("Phantom Lady"). When the beautiful singer Mavis Marlowe (Constance Dowling) is slain in her chic apartment, the men in her life become suspects. There is Martin Blair (Dan Duryea), her alcoholic musician ex-husband, nursing a broken heart; there is the shady nightclub owner Marko (Peter Lorre) who has been sneaking around her place, and there is Kirk Bennett (John Phillips), the adulterer who found his mistress's dead body and fled the scene. When Bennett is convicted and sentenced to death, his long-suffering wife Catherine (June Vincent) joins forces with the heartbroken pianist Martin Blair to uncover the truth. "Black Angel" is a consummate 1940s crime thriller which boats a suspenseful narrative, strong performances and atmospheric, meticulously lit cinematography. Brand new restoration from original film elements by Arrow Films. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Audio commentary by writer and film scholar Alan K. Rode; "A Fitting End," a new video appreciation by the film historian Neil Sinyard; original trailer; gallery of original stills and promotional materials; reversible sleeve featuring two artwork options; FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by author Philip Kemp. (Arrow Academy/MVD Entertainment).
Body Parts
(1991) Jeff Fahey, Lindsay Duncan, Kim Delaney. A tale of a medical experiment gone very wrong. Bill Chrushank is a criminal psychologist who loses his arm and nearly his life in a grisly car accident. A daring medical operation follows, in which a donor's arm is successfully grafted onto Bill's body. But after the operation, the arm starts to take on a violent life of its own, striking out against Bill's wife and children. Consumed by fears about his dangerous behavior, Bill is driven to learn the donor's identity – and makes a horrifying discovery that delivers him into a world of unimaginable terror. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: New audio commentary with director Eric Red, new "I Dare You to Read the Script" interview with director Eric Red, new "Something Unstoppable" interview with actor Paul Ben-Victor, new "Molded for Cinema" interview with actor Peter Murnik, new :That One Hurt" interview with editor Anthony Redman, deleted gore footage, theatrical trailer, TV spots, still gallery. (Scream Factory).
Dead Earth
(2019) Milena Gorum, Alice Tantayanon, Michael New. In this post-apocalyptic action thriller, two young women cling to life in an abandoned resort. They must survive in silence, in mortal fear of attracting the hordes of undead that roam the Earth. When their compound runs out of fuel, they are forced into the countryside to find gas, resulting in a nightmarish encounter with survivors. But that is nothing compared to the horrors that await them back at home, leading to a deadly confrontation with the evil that surrounds them. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (Lionsgate).
Fail Safe
(1964) This unnerving procedural thriller painstakingly details an all-too-plausible nightmare scenario in which a mechanical failure jams the United States military’s chain of command and sends the country hurtling toward nuclear war with the Soviet Union. Working from a contemporary best seller, screenwriter Walter Bernstein and director Sidney Lumet wrench harrowing suspense from the doomsday fears of the Cold War era, making the most of a modest budget and limited sets to create an atmosphere of clammy claustrophobia and astronomically high stakes. Starring Henry Fonda as a coolheaded U.S. president and Walter Matthau as a trigger-happy political theorist, "Fail Safe" is a long-underappreciated alarm bell of a film, sounding an urgent warning about the deadly logic of mutually assured destruction. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc with new 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray. Extras: Audio commentary from 2000 featuring Lumet, new interview with film critic J. Hoberman on 1960s nuclear paranoia and Cold War films, “Fail Safe Revisited," a short documentary from 2000 including interviews with Lumet, screenwriter Walter Bernstein, and actor Dan O’Herlihy; an essay by film critic Bilge Ebiri. (The Criterion Collection).
Give Me Liberty
(2019) Chris Galust, Lauren "Lolo" Spencer, Max Stoianov, Steve Wolski, Michelle Caspar, Darya Ekamasova, Ben Derfel. Medical transport driver Vic (Galust) is late, but it's not his fault. Roads are closed for a protest, and no one else can shuttle his Russian grandfather, émigré friends, and a burly Russian boxer to a funeral. The new route uproots his scheduled clients, particularly Tracy, a vibrant young woman with ALS. As the day goes from hectic to off-the-rails, their collective ride becomes a hilarious, compassionate, and intersectional portrait of American dreams. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, Digital. Extras: (Q&A with filmmakers and cast from the NY Film Premiere at BAMcinemaFest; scenes from the Milwaukee Film Premiere; "Sitting Pretty with Lolo Spencer: Why Representation matters" featurette; 16mm performances by Theater Freylekhs Russian Choir; poster gallery; on set photo gallery; illustrated tree gallery; social media teasers; teaser & theatrical trailers. (Music Box Films).
The Great Alaskan Race
(2019) Brian Presley, Brad Leland, Treat Williams, Henry Thomas, Brea Bree Bruce Davison. In 1925's historic great race of mercy, a brave musher and his champion mushing dogs, Togo and Balto, travel 700 miles to save the small children of Nome, Alaska from a deadly diphtheria outbreak by delivering the disease's antitoxin. Formats: DVD, Digital. (P12 Films).
Gregory's Girl BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1980) John Gordon Sinclair, Dee Hepburn, Allison Forster, Jake D'Arcy. Quirky comedy and sleeper hit from "Local Hero" director Bill Forsyth. Following an eight-game losing streak, a desperate (and sexist) Glasgow school soccer team coach reluctantly accepts hotshot female player Dorothy (Hepburn). Although demoted to goalie, teenage knucklehead Gregory (Sinclair), falls hard for his new teammate. Prodded by the advice of his smart-mouthed 10-year-old sister, Madeline, (Forster), he does make his move, but there are behind-the-scenes feminine conspiracies en route. Formats: Blu-ray, Digital. Extras: Audio commentary with director Bill Forsyth and film critic Mark Kermode, "Bill Forsyth on Gregory's Girl" interview, "Bill Forsyth: The Early Years" interview, "Gregory's Girl Memories With Clare Grogan" interview, new essay by film scholar Jonathan Murray, alternative U.S. and French dub versions. (Film Movement Classics).
Harriet
(2019) Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr., Joe Alwyn, Janelle Monáe. The extraordinary tale of Harriet Tubman's escape from slavery and transformation into one of America's greatest heroes, whose courage, ingenuity, and tenacity freed hundreds of slaves and changed the course of history. Formats: DVD Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted scenes, "Her Story" behind-the-scenes featurette, "Becoming Harriet" featurette, commentary with Co-writer and Director Kasi Lemmons. (Universal).
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death
(1971) Zohra Lampert, Barton Heyman, Kevin O'Connor. Jessica (Lampert) has been released from an institution after suffering a nervous breakdown and seeks the tranquility of a secluded home in Connecticut to help make her recovery complete. But instead of a restful recuperation with her husband and close friend in the New England countryside, Jessica soon finds herself falling into a swirling vortex of madness and the supernatural. Even more unsettling is that the entire region seems to be under the influence of a mysterious woman who has been living in the supposedly empty house. Jessica's fear and dread only intensify when she discovers that the "undead" girl, Emily, tragically drowned long ago, on her wedding day. Is she back to take vengeance? Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: New audio commentary with director John Hancock and producer Bill Badalato, new "Art Saved My Life" composer Orville Stoeber, new "Scare Tactics: Reflections on a Seventies Horror Classic" with author/film historian Kim Newman, new "She Walks These Hills": the film’s locations then and now, theatrical trailer, TV spot, radio spot, still gallery. (Scream Factory).
The Merger
(2019 -- Australia) Damian Callinan, Kate Mulvany, Raffety Grierson, John Howard, Angus McLaren. Bodgy Creek is a struggling town. The drought won't let up, jobs are scarce after the mill was shut down, and the footy team looks like it will have to merge with another club or fold. Living a hermit-like existence on the town's fringe, former football star turned 'Town Killer' Troy Carrington (Callinan), is coaxed into rescuing the team after striking up an unlikely friendship with young Neil (Grierson) who is struggling with the recent loss of his father. Teaming up with Neil's mother, Angie (Mulvany) who runs a nearby refugee support center, they unite to recruit the new arrivals to save the team and take the community on a journey of change. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (IndiePix Films).
My Life Is Murder
(2019) Three-disc set with all 10 episodes. Compelling new contemporary Australian detective mystery series starring award-winning actress Lucy Lawless as Alexa Crowe, a fearless private investigator and ex-homicide detective who can't help fighting the good fight --whether it's solving murders or combating the small frustrations of everyday life. Fearless and unapologetic, Alexa's unique skills -- and insights into the darker quirks of human nature allow her to provoke, comfort and push the right buttons as she unravels the truth behind the most baffling crimes. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, VOD. Extras: Behind-the-scenes featurettes, cast and crew interviews, animated shorts, more. (Acorn Media).
My Name Is Myeisha
(2009) Rhaechyl Walker, John Merchant, Dee Dee Stephens, Dominique Toney, Alexander Brown-Hinds, Kate O'Toole. Chronicles the life of a young black woman in California's Inland Empire. Set in 1998, Myeisha Jackson (screen newcomer Rhaechyl Walker) vividly recounts the events of her life leading to a fateful encounter with local police. Based on the internationally acclaimed, NAACP-award-winning stageplay "Dreamscape" by Rickerby Hinds.
Formats: Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital. (Shout! Studios).
Parasite
(2019) Kang Ho Song, Sun Kyun Lee, Yeo Jeong Cho, Woo Shik Choi, So Dam Park
Directors: Joon Ho Bong Kim Ki-taek and his family don't put a lot of effort into steady jobs and hard work. They live in a dirty apartment in a basement and make a small amount of money, enough to survive, by completing low-paying side jobs and gigs. One day, Ki-taek's son, Ki-woo, receives an offer that could help improve the family's situation: Ki-woo's friend, Min-hyuk, plans to study abroad and suggests that Ki-woo take over his English tutoring job with a wealthy family. Ki-woo is hired immediately, but uses his position, manipulation and lies to get the rest of the staff fired and replaced with the members of his family, setting up a winner-take-all class war. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, Digital. Extras: Q&A with director Bong Joon Ho. (Universal).
Roswell, New Mexico: The Complete First Season
(2019) Three-disc set with all 13 episodes. After a decade away from home, Liz Ortecho returns to her native Roswell to care for her ailing father. When she arrives, she reconnects with her high school crush Max Evans who is now a police officer. Their chemistry is electric, but Liz soon learns something shocking: Max and his sister, Isobel, and friend Michael are aliens who have kept their abilities secret their entire lives. As she and Max grow closer, Liz struggles to keep the truth from her best friend, Maria, and her high school ex, Dr. Kyle Valenti. But concealing the visitors' true identities is more important than ever, as a long-standing government conspiracy and the politics of fear and hatred threaten their lives. Based on the Roswell High book series. Formats: DVD. (Warner).
Sequestrada
(2019 -- Brazil/US) Sam Lilja, Tim Blake Nelson, Gretchen Mol, Marcelo Olinto, Kamodjara Xipaia. Environmental thriller in which American investors try to build an illegal dam in the Amazon. Thomas (Nelson) must travel to Brazil to help persuade an indigenous agency bureaucrat overseeing the project. But when a young indigenous girl is kidnapped and forced into prostitution, Thomas is entangled in a tug-of-war with the indigenous people the dam would displace. Formats: DVD. Extras: Original theatrical trailer, deleted scenes, alternate ending. (Strand Releasing).
The Siren
(2019) Evan Dumouchel, MacLeod Andrews, Margaret Ying Drake. An enthralling, seductive and creepy supernatural tale about cursed star-crossed lovers. Tom (Dumouchel) is a mute man from a sheltered, religious background who is haunted by the childhood accident that cost him his voice. While on a retreat at a lake house, he meets Al (Andrews), whose husband drowned in the lake -- one of many mysterious deaths. The area is marked by a local legend of a lovelorn spirit who haunts the surrounding woods and drowns anyone she encounters. The legend proves all too real when Tom encounters the beautiful creature, the seemingly human Nina (Drake), who must battle to repress her demonic instincts when she feels the same toward him. Meanwhile, Al, possessed by vengeance, circles the pair, getting ever closer to tracking down the monster that destroyed his happy marriage. Formats: DVD. (Dark Sky Films).
Terminator: Dark Fate
(2019) Linda Hamilton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes, Gabriel Luna, Diego Boneta. In this sequel to "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," an augmented human and Sarah Connor must stop an advanced liquid Terminator, from hunting down a young girl, whose fate is critical to the survival of the human race.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted and extended scenes, "A Legend Reforged," "World Builders," "Dam Busters: The Final Showdown," "VFX Breakdown: The Dragonfly." (Paramount).
Very Bad Things
(1998) Jon Favreau, Cameron Diaz, Christian Slater, Jeremy Piven, Daniel Stern, Jeanne Tripplehorn. Kyle Fisher (Favreau) has one last night to celebrate life as a single man before marrying Laura (Diaz), so he sets out to Vegas with four of his best buddies. But their swanky, drug-and-alcohol-fueled bachelor party goes bust when their "stripper" cashes in her chips during a deranged sexual escapade. And hers is just the first of the bodies to pile up. The five friends decide to bury the evidence ... but fate has a way of not letting the truth stay buried for long. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: New audio commentary with film critics Witney Seibold and William Bibbiani, hosts of the podcast Critically Acclaimed; new interview with actor Jeremy Piven; new interview with actor Daniel Stern; theatrical trailer; still gallery. (Shout! Select).
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