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OnVideo's Weekly Guide to Home Video Releases
Belladonna of Sadness
(1973 -- Japan) One of the great lost masterpieces of Japanese animation, newly restored in 4k for this first-ever U.S. release. Director Eiichi Yamamoto's film follows the mad and sensual tale of Jeanne, an innocent young woman who makes a pact with the devil (voiced by Tatsuya Nakadai, from Akira Kurosawa's "Ran"). Filled with explicit Egon Schiele-inspired eroticism, the film is a swirling, psychedelic light-show of medieval tarot-card imagery replete with horned demons, haunted forests and La Belle Dame Sans Merci. Extremely transgressive and not for the easily offended, "Belladonna" is fueled by a mindblowing Japanese psych rock soundtrack by noted avant-garde jazz composer Masahiko Satoh. Restored by Cinelicious Pics using the original 35mm camera negative and sound elements -- including over eight minutes of surreal and explicit footage cut from the negative. Formats: Blu-ray Disc, VOD. (Cinelicious Pics).
Carnival of Souls
(1962) A young woman in a small Kansas town survives a drag race accident, then agrees to take a job as a church organist in Salt Lake City. En route, she becomes haunted by a bizarre apparition that compels her toward an abandoned lakeside pavilion. Made by industrial filmmakers on a modest budget, this eerily effective B-movie classic was intended to have "the look of a Bergman and the feel of a Cocteau" -- and, with its strikingly used locations and spooky organ score, it succeeds. Herk Harvey's macabre masterpiece gained a cult following on late-night television and continues to inspire filmmakers today. New, restored 4K digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: Selected-scene audio commentary featuring director Herk Harvey and screenwriter John Clifford; new interview with comedian and writer Dana Gould; new video essay by film critic David Cairns; "The Movie That Wouldn't Die!," a documentary on the 1989 reunion of the film's cast and crew; "The Carnival Tour," a 2000 update on the film's locations; excerpts from movies made by the Centron Corporation, an industrial film company based in Lawrence, Kansas, that once employed Harvey and Clifford; deleted scenes; outtakes, accompanied by Gene Moore's organ score; "History of the Saltair Resort in Salt Lake City," where key scenes in the film were shot; trailer; an essay by writer and programmer Kier-La Janisse.
(The Criterion Collection).
Colony: Season One
(2016) Three-disc set with all 10 episodes of the series that enters on one family's struggle to survive in an occupied Los Angeles, now a dangerous world of divided ideologies. While some choose to collaborate with the occupation and benefit from the new order, others rebel and suffer the consequences. Formats: DVD. Extras: "Zero Day" deleted scenes, "Colony: Behind the Wall." (Universal).
Crimes of Passion
(1964) In the early eighties, British enfant terrible Ken Russell travelled to America and placed his unorthodox imprint on a pair of US movies. The first was the "Altered States," so out-there its screenwriter disowned it. The second was the equally crazy "Crimes of Passion," starring Kathleen Turner at the height of her powers. Fashion designer Joanna
The Dark Horse
(2014 -- New Zealand) Cliff Curtis, James Rolleston, Wayne Hapi. Based on a powerful true story. The uplifting portrait of a man searching for the courage to lead, despite his struggles with mental illness. Genesis 'Gen' Potini (Curtis), a brilliant but troubled New Zealand chess champion, finds purpose by teaching underprivileged children about the rules of chess and life. After years in and out of mental institutions, Genesis is released into the care of his estranged brother Ariki (Hapi) and thrust into his volatile gang lifestyle. Seeking to escape this toxic environment, Genesis finds solace by volunteering at the Eastern Knights chess club and sharing his gift with the disadvantaged Maori children of his community. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (Broad Green Pictures).
The Divergent Series: Allegiant
(2015) Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Jeff Daniels, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Zoë Kravitz, Maggie Q, Ray Stevenson, Bill Skarsgård, Octavia Spencer, Naomi Watts, Ashley Judd. The third installment of the worldwide hit franchise. Tris and Four lead a team of rebels in a daring escape over the city wall -- into a strange new world where they face a threat more dangerous than they ever imagined. Together, Tris and Four wage a furious battle for survival, fighting not only for their factions and loved ones, but for the future of an entire city. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Audio commentary with producers Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher; two featurettes: "Allegiant: Book to Film" and "Battle in the Bullfrog: The Stunts and Choreography Behind This Thrilling Sequence." Blu-ray adds four additional featurettes: "Finding the Future: Effects & Technology," "Characters in Conflict: The Motivations Behind the Film's Antagonists," "The Next Chapter: Cast & Characters," "Building the Bureau." (Lionsgate).
Emergency! The Complete Series
With sirens blaring, dedicated paramedics Roy DeSoto (Kevin Tighe) and John Gage (Randolph Mantooth) respond to the most desperate calls in the City of Angels.
Formats: DVD. (Universal).
Everybody Wants Some!!
(2015) Dir.: Richard Linklater. Stars Blake Jenner, Tyler Hoechlin, Wyatt Russell, Glen Powell, J. Quinton Johnson, Ryan Guzman, Zoey Deutch. A group of college baseball players navigate their way through the freedoms and responsibilities of unsupervised adulthood. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Blu-ray extras: "Everybody Wants Some!! More Stuff That's Not in the Movie," "Rickipedia," "Baseball Players Can Dance," "Skills Videos," "History 101: Stylin' the 80s." (Paramount).
Green Room
(2016) Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat, Patrick Stewart, Anton Yelchin, Mark Webber. Members (Anton Yelchin, Alia Shawkat) of a punk-rock band and a tough young woman (Imogen Poots) battle murderous white supremacists at a remote Oregon roadhouse after witnessing a murder. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Audio Commentary with director Jeremy Saulnier, "Into the Pit: Making Green Room" featurette. (Lionsgate).
iZOMBIE: The Complete Second Season
(2015-16) Four-disc set with all 19 episodes of the series that stars Rose McIver as Olivia "Liv" Moore, a medical resident on the fast track to a perfect life ... until she's turned into a zombie. But Liv finds her calling -- and an endless supply of food -- working at the Seattle coroner's office, helping to solve crimes with her "visions," while her boss and sole confidante, Dr. Ravi Chakrabarti, works on a cure for her condition. As Season Two begins, Liv's ex-fiancé and love, Major, is reeling from recent events and the knowledge that Liv is a zombie. Formats: DVD. Extras: iZombie: 2015 Comic-Con Panel, deleted scenes. (Warner).
LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes - Justice League: Gotham City Breakout
(2016) New animated feature. When Batgirl and Nightwing take Batman on a trip down memory lane -- literally -- to visit one of the key mentors from his formative years, it's up to the Justice League to keep Gotham City crime-free. But neither situation proves to be a "vacation" as the Bat trio encounters old nemeses on their adventure, and the Justice League discovers just how busy Batman is on a regular basis.Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, Digital. Extras: Includes exclusive LEGO Nightwing Figurine. (Warner).
My Golden Days
(2016 -- France) Mathieu Amalric, Lou Roy-Lecollinet, Cécile Garcia-Fogel. The story of Paul De'dalus, an anthropologist preparing to leave Tajikistan. Reflecting on his life, he has a series of flashbacks starting from his childhood in Roubaix—his mother's attacks of madness, his father's alienating depression. He remembers a student trip to the USSR, where a clandestine mission led him to offer up his own identity for a young Russian, whom he considered a phantom twin for the remainder of his life. He remembers University life, and returning to his hometown to party with his sister and her best friend, his shifting circle of friends and their casual betrayals. And most of all he remembers Esther, the beautiful, rude, haughty soul and love of his life. Formats: DVD, Digital. (Magnolia Home Entertainment).
Naked and Afraid XL: Season 1
(2015) Ten epiosdes. In this spin-off, six men and six women, all extreme survivalists with their own expertise, must take on a grueling survival challenge. With no food, no water, and no clothing, the challengers must have the skills and willpower to endure 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness. Formats: DVD, Digital. (Lionsgate).
Slasher: Season One
(2016) Two-disc set with eight episodes. Thirty years ago, in the sleepy community of Waterbury, a killer known as "The Executioner" murdered Sarah Bennett's parents. Now Sarah (Katie McGrath) and her husband Dylan (Brandon Jay McLaren) have returned to town, only to find herself the centerpiece in a series of horrifying murders centered around the seven deadly sins. It seems "The Executioner" is back. But if Tom Winston -- the original Executioner -- is behind bars, who is the new person behind the mask? As the murders escalate, long-buried secrets are revealed, making everyone around Sarah a suspect ... or a victim. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. (Scream Factory).
The Divergent Series: Allegiant
The third installment of the worldwide hit franchise. After the earth-shattering revelations of "Insurgent", the second installment, Tris (Shailene Woodley) escapes with Four (Theo James) and a team of rebels to go beyond the wall enclosing Chicago. For the first time ever, they leave the only city and family they have ever known. Once outside, old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless with the revelation of shocking new truths: They travel to the Bureau of Genetic Welfare, a highly advanced city where they learn that years ago, the government believed that society's problems were caused by "damaged genes" and, in an attempt to create a better society, they began to modify people's genes, with disastrous results. Chicago is an experimental city (among others across the remains of the U.S.) set up in the hope that enough genetically pure Divergent individuals could be raised to fix the "genetic damage" left in the wake of the Purity War. Meanwhile, battles are erupting in Chicago and Tris and Four must return to stop the violence ...and return the city to its citizens. Vitals: Director: Robert Schwentke. Stars: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Jeff Daniels, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Zoë Kravitz, Maggie Q, Ray Stevenson, Bill Skarsgård, Octavia Spencer, Naomi Watts, Ashley Judd.
2015, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 121 min., Sci Fi Action Adventure, Box office gross: $65.532 million, Lionsgate.
Extras: Audio commentary with producers Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher; two featurettes: "Allegiant: Book to Film" and "Battle in the Bullfrog: The Stunts and Choreography Behind This Thrilling Sequence." Blu-ray adds four additional featurettes: "Finding the Future: Effects & Technology," "Characters in Conflict: The Motivations Behind the Film’s Antagonists," "The Next Chapter: Cast & Characters," "Building the Bureau."
Everybody Wants Some!!
The comedy follows freshman pitcher Jake as he arrives at college in the summer of 1980 and meets his new rowdy teammates. Together, they must navigate their way between girls, parties and baseball, all in the last weekend before school begins.
Vitals: Director: Richard Linklater. Stars: Blake Jenner, Tyler Hoechlin, Wyatt Russell, Glen Powell, J. Quinton Johnson, Ryan Guzman, Zoey Deutch.
2016, CC, MPAA rating: R, 117 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $3.251 million, Paramount.
Blu-ray extras: "Everybody Wants Some!! More Stuff That's Not in the Movie," "Rickipedia," "Baseball Players Can Dance," "Skills Videos," "History 101: Stylin' the 80s."
Miracles From Heaven
When Christy Beam (Jennifer Garner) discovers her 10-year-old daughter Annabel (Kylie Rogers) has a rare, incurable disease, she becomes a ferocious advocate for her daughter's healing as she searches for a solution. After Annabel has a freak accident and falls three stories, a miracle unfolds in the wake of her dramatic rescue that leaves medical specialists mystified, her family restored and their community inspired. Based on the story of the Beam family.
Vitals: Director: Patricia Riggen. Stars: Jennifer Garner, Kylie Rogers, Eugenio Derbez, Queen Latifah, John Carroll Lynch.
2016, CC, MPAA rating: PG, 109 min., Family, Box office gross: $60.071 million, Sony.
Extras: "Miracles Abound: The Making of Miracles From Heaven' three-part featurette: 'Bearing Witness,' "Creating Heaven: Concept Art Exploration," "'Your Words' music montage; commentary with director Patricia Riggen and screenwriter Randy Brown. Blu-ray adds deleted scenes, "Accounts From Annabel" featurette.
Crane (Turner) leads a double life. By night she is China Blue, a prostitute who's attracted the unwanted attention of two men. One is a sexually frustrated private detective hired by her employees. The other is psychopathic priest (played by Norman Bates himself, Anthony Perkins) in possession of a murderous sex toy. With its outré screenplay by Barry Sandler and over the top score by Rick Wakeman, "Crimes of Passion" is one of the most outrageous Ken Russell films ever made. Brand new 2K restoration of the film from original film materials.
Formats: Blu-ray/DVD Combo. Extras: Audio commentary with director Ken Russell and producer-screenwriter Barry Sandler; seven deleted/extended scenes with optional commentary by Sandler; new interview with Sandler recorded especially for this release; home movie footage of Ken Russell visiting Florida for a retrospective screening of "Crimes of Passion" at the 2009 Florida Film Festival; theatrical trailer; reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Twins of Evil; illustrated booklet containing new writing by Ken Russell's biographer, Paul Sutton, correspondence between Russell and Kathleen Turner, and an on-set interview with Russell. (Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment).
The Dresser
(2016) Ian McKellen, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Watson, Vanessa Kirby. Adapted from the classic 1980 West End and Broadway play by Ronald Harwood (and made into a 1983 film by
Peter Yates starring Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay and Edward Fox). One fateful night in a small English regional theatre during World War II, a troupe of touring actors stage a production of Shakespeare's "King Lear." Bombs are falling, sirens are wailing, the curtain is going up in one hour, but the actor-manager Sir (Hopkins), who is playing Lear, is nowhere to be found. His dresser, Norman (McKellen), must scramble to keep the production alive. Meanwhile, Sir reflects on his lifelong accomplishments and seeks to reconcile his turbulent friendships with those in his employ before the final curtain. Recently aired on Starz. Formats: DVD, Digital. (Anchor Bay Entertainment).
No Men Beyond This Point
(2015) Rekha Sharma, Ben Cotton, Patrick Gilmore, Hilary Jardin, Tara Pratt, Bruce Harwood. Imagine a world where, since 1953, women have been able to reproduce without men and they are no longer giving birth to male babies. Now, over 60 years later, this deadpan mockumentary follows the youngest man still alive -- 37-year-old Andrew Myers. Working as a housekeeper for a family of women, Andrew finds himself at the center of a battle to prevent men from going extinct. Formats: DVD, Digital. (Samuel Goldwyn Films/Sony).
Stressed to Kill
(2016) Armand Assante, Bill Oberst Jr., Derek Roberts, Marshal Hilton, Sonia Curtis. To reduce his blood pressure after a heart attack, a man begins killing the people who are stressing him out. Formats: DVD. (MVD Visual).
© 1996 -- 2016 OnVideo. All rights reserved
July 10, 2016
(ISSN 1094-3676).
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