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OnVideo's Weekly Guide to Home Video Releases
Bad Influence BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1990) Dir.: Curtis Hanson; James Spader, Rob Lowe, Lisa Zane, Marcia Cross. Quiet, unassuming financial analyst Michael Boll (Spader) lives a successful-yet-timid life, lacking in risks or rewards. When he crosses paths with the enigmatic Alex (Lowe), the two form a friendship based on ever-increasingly bold behavior. When Michael's new pal pushes things too far, however, Michael wants out… but the mysterious Alex has no desire to set him free from the seductively dangerous lifestyle he's dragged him into. Extras: "Under the Influence With David Koepp" interview with writer David Koepp, theatrical trailer. (Shout! Factory).
Dusk
(2015) John McGlothlin, Ford D'Aprix, Juliana Harkavy, Todd Litzinger. John Whitmore (McGlothlin) wakes one morning to find himself in the midst of a real-life nightmare. His wife, Anne (Juliana Harkavy), disappeared from their bed during the night and a recorded ransom message now remains in her place. Whitmore is instructed to contact a man named David (Ford D'Aprix), who will escort John and his life savings to a cabin deep within the woods, where he will be reunited with his wife. Naturally, things don't go as expected. Formats: DVD. (Monarch Home Entertainment).
The Finest Hours
(2016) Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Eric Bana, Holliday Grainger, Ben Foster, John Ortiz. The Coast Guard makes a daring rescue attempt off the coast of Cape Cod after a pair of oil tankers are destroyed during a storm in 1952. Extras: "Brotherhood," in which cast members reflect on the bonds they forged during the shoot; "The Finest Inspiration: The U.S. Coast Guard" featurette. Blu-ray adds "Against All Odds: The Bernie Webber Story," "Two Crews" featurette, "What Is Your Finest Hour?" in which a Coast Guard member recounts an incredible rescue. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). (Disney).
How to Be Single
(2016) Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Damon Wayans Jr., Anders Holm, Alison Brie, Nicholas Braun, Jake Lac, Jason Mantzoukas, Leslie Mann. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Deleted scenes. Blu-ray adds "The Pros and Cons of How to Be Single," "Rebel Rabble: A Look at Rebel Wilson," "The Best Idea Wins! The Humor of How to Be Single," gag reel, Rebel Wilson outtakes. (New Line Cinema/MGM/Warner).
Mack & Moxy: The Great Helpee Heroes
(2016) "Mack & Moxy," which is currently airing on PBS stations nationwide, was created to inspire the next generation of humanitarians. With support from national charities including Save the Children, American Red Cross, Feeding America and World Wildlife Fund, the "Mack & Moxy" shows combine state-of-the-art 3D animation and live action puppets with celebrity guests including Josh Duhamel, Kal Penn, Eva LaRue and series regular, Hank Azaria. Each episode celebrates the joy of helping others and teaches kids life-long lessons of charity and compassion. Episodes include "A Ty-Grrrr's Tale," "A Friend Who Reads Is a Friend Indeed," "Feeding Rainbow" and "Always be Prepared." Formats: DVD: $9.99. Extras: A sing-a-long with each episode. (NCircle Entertainment).
Major Crimes: The Complete Fourth Season
(2015-16) Four-disc set with all 23 episodes. The squad of detectives is put in charge of solving a series of intriguing new cases. The unit investigates a double homicide that's related to an ongoing string of home invasions in the Hollywood Hills; a dead body that comes out of the trunk of a crashed car at the end of a police chase; the murder of a super model; a YouTube video of a bloody, partially naked man walking down a street which goes viral; the deaths of four wealthy people who are killed during a high-stakes poker game; a murder that happens during the taping of a reality competition show; the death of a young man who was pushed off the top of a parking structure and several other fascinating cases. Formats: DVD. Extras: Deleted scenes, gag reel. (Warner).
The Player
(1992) A Hollywood studio executive with a shaky moral compass (Tim Robbins) finds himself caught up in a criminal situation that would fit right into one of his movie projects, in this biting industry satire from Robert Altman. Mixing elements of film noir with sly insider comedy, "The Player," based on a novel by Michael Tolkin, functions as both a nifty stylish murder story and a commentary on its own making, and it is stocked with a heroic supporting cast (Peter Gallagher, Whoopi Goldberg, Greta Scacchi, Dean Stockwell, Fred Ward, Lyle Lovett) and a lineup of star cameos that make for an astonishing Hollywood who’s who. This complexly woven grand entertainment (which kicks off with one of American cinema’s most audacious and acclaimed opening shots) was the film that marked Altman’s triumphant commercial comeback in the early 1990s. New 4K digital restoration, with DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 surround soundtrack on the Blu-ray. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: Audio commentary from 1992 featuring Altman, writer Tolkin, and cinematographer Jean Léepine; interview with Altman from 1992; new interviews with Tolkin and production designer Stephen Altman; Cannes Film Festival press conference from 1992 with cast and crew' "The Player at LACMA," a short documentary about the shooting of the film’s fund-raiser scene; "Map to the Stars," a gallery dedicated to the cameo appearances in the film; deleted scenes and outtakes; the film’s opening shot, with alternate commentaries by Altman, Lepine, and Tolkin; trailers; an essay by author Sam Wasson. (The Criterion Collection).
Risen
(2016) Joseph Fiennes, Tom Felton, Cliff Curtis, Peter Firth, Leonor Watling. In 33 AD, a Roman Tribune in Judea is tasked to find the missing body of an executed Jew rumored to have risen from the dead. Read more about "Risen" in the May Calendar. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc, 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Extras: Three featurettes:
"The Mystery of the Resurrection: Making Risen," "A.D. Jerusalem," "Script to Screen"; commentary. Blu-ray adds deleted scenes, a fourth featurette: "The Battle of the Zealots Deconstructed." (Sony).
Sex, Love & Therapy
(2014 -- France) Sophie Marceau, Patrick Bruel, Andre Wilms, Sylvie Vartan. Sexy romantic comedy about Lambert (Patrick Bruel), an ex-sex addict turned marriage counselor who hires the sultry, sex-crazed Judith (Sophie Marceau) as his assistant. Lambert's self-imposed celibacy is sorely tested by Judith's determination to romance him. Will her unbridled sexuality derail Lambert's newfound realization that love must come before sex? Formats: DVD. Extras: Theatrical trailer. (Strand Releasing).
Wim Wenders: The Road Trilogy
In the 1970s, Wim Wenders was among the first true international breakthrough artists of the revolutionary New German Cinema, a filmmaker whose fascination with the physical landscapes and emotional contours of the open road proved to be universal. In the middle of that decade, Wenders embarked on a three-film journey that took him from the wide roads of Germany to the endless highways of the United States and back again. Starring Rudiger Vogler as the director’s alter ego, "Alice in the Cities," "Wrong Move" and "Kings of the Road" are dramas of emotional transformation that follow their characters’ searches for themselves, all rendered with uncommon soulfulness and visual poetry. Four-disc DVD and three-disc Blu-ray sets, with new, restored 4K digital transfers of all three films, commissioned by the Wim Wenders Foundation and supervised by Wenders.
"Alice in the Cities" (1974): The first of the road films that would come to define the career of Wim Wenders, the magnificent "Alice in the Cities" is an emotionally generous and luminously shot journey. A German journalist (Rudiger Vogler) is driving across the United States to research an article; it’s a disappointing trip, in which he is unable to truly connect with what he sees. Things change, however, when he is forced to take a young girl named Alice (Yella RottlAnder) with him on his return trip to Germany, after her mother (Lisa Kreuzer) -- whom he has just met -- leaves the child in his care. Though they initially find themselves at odds, the pair begin to form an unlikely friendship.
"Wrong Move" (1975): Wenders updates a late-18th-century novel by Goethe with depth and style, transposing it to 1970s West Germany and giving us the story of an aimless writer (Rudiger Vogler) who leaves his hometown to find himself and befriends a group of other travelers. Seeking inspiration to help him escape his creative funk, he instead discovers the limits of attempts to refashion one’s identity. One of the director’s least seen but earthiest and most devastating soul searches, "Wrong Move" features standout supporting performances from New German Cinema regulars Hanna Schygulla and Peter Kern and, in her first film appearance, Nastassja Kinski.
"Kings of the Road" (1976): A roving film projector repairman (Rudiger Vogler) saves the life of a depressed psychologist (Hanns Zisschler) who has driven his Volkswagen into a river, and they end up on the road together, traveling from one rural German movie theater to another. Along the way, the two men, each running from his past, bond over their shared loneliness. "Kings of the Road," captured in gorgeous compositions by cinematographer Robby Muller and dedicated to Fritz Lang, is a love letter to the cinema, a moving and funny tale of male friendship, and a portrait of a country still haunted by war.
Extras: Audio commentaries for all three films, featuring Wenders and actors Rudiger Vogler, and Yella Rottlander on "Alice in the Cities," and featuring Wenders on "Wrong Move" and "Kings of the Road"; new interview with Wenders, directed and conducted by filmmaker Michael Almereyda; new interviews with Vogler, Kreuzer, Rottlander, and actors Hanna Schygulla and Hanns Zischler; outtakes and Super 8 home movies; "Restoring Time," a 2015 short about the restoration work done by the Wim Wenders Foundation; "Same Player Shoots Again" (1967) and "Silver City Revisited" (1968), two newly restored early short films by Wenders; plus a book featuring essays on the films by filmmaker Allison Anders, author James Robison and critic Nick Roddick. (The Criterion Collection).
The Wonder Years: The Complete Fifth Season
(1991-92) Four-disc set with all 24 episodes of the series that perfectly captured the angst of growing up in suburban middle-class America in the late 1960s as seen through the life
Zoolander 2: The Magnum Edition
(2016) Dir.: Ben Stiller. Stars: Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Penelope Cruz, Kristen Wiig, Benedict Cumberbatch, Will Ferrell, Justin Bieber, Billy Zane, Olivia Munn. Derek and Hansel are lured into modeling again, in Rome, where they find themselves the target of a sinister conspiracy. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital, UltraViolet (cloud). Blu-ray extras: "The Zoolander Legacy," "Go Big or Go Rome," "Drake Sather: The Man Who Created Zoolander," "Youth Milk." (Paramount).
How to Be Single
There's a right way to be single, a wrong way to be single, and then -- there's Alice. And Robin. Lucy. Meg. Tom. David. New York City is full of lonely hearts seeking the right match, be it a love connection, a hook-up, or something in the middle. And somewhere between the teasing texts and one-night stands, what these unmarrieds all have in common is the need to learn how to be single in a world filled with ever-evolving definitions of love.
Vitals: Director: Christian Ditter. Stars: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Damon Wayans Jr., Anders Holm, Alison Brie, Nicholas Braun, Jake Lac , Jason Mantzoukas, Leslie Mann.
2016, CC, MPAA rating: R, 110 min., Comedy, Box office gross: $46.665 million, New Line Cinema/MGM/Warner.
Extras: Deleted scenes. Blu-ray adds "The Pros and Cons of How to Be Single," "Rebel Rabble: A Look at Rebel Wilson," "The Best Idea Wins! The Humor of How to Be Single," gag reel, Rebel Wilson outtakes.
The Finest Hours
The remarkable true story of the greatest small boat rescue in Coast Guard history. On February 18, 1952, a massive nor'easter struck New England, pummeling towns along the Eastern seaboard and wreaking havoc on the ships caught in its deadly path, including the SS Pendleton, a T-2 oil tanker bound for Boston, which was literally ripped in half, trapping more than 30 sailors inside its rapidly-sinking stern. As the senior officer on board, first assistant engineer Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) soon realizes it is up to him to take charge of the frightened crew and inspire the men to set aside their differences and work together to ride out one of the worst storms to ever hit the East Coast. Meanwhile, as word of the disaster reaches the U.S. Coast Guard station in Chatham, Mass., Warrant Officer Daniel Cluff (Eric Bana) orders a daring operation to rescue the stranded men. Despite overwhelming odds, four men, led by Coast Guard Captain Bernie Webber (Chris Pine), set out in a wooden lifeboat with an ill-equipped engine and little, if any, means of navigation, facing frigid temperatures, 60-foot high waves and hurricane-force winds.
Vitals: Director: Craig Gillespie. Stars: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Eric Bana, Holliday Grainger, Ben Foster, John Ortiz.
2016, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 117 min., Drama, Box office gross: $27.452 million, Disney.
Extras: "Brotherhood," in which cast members reflect on the bonds they forged during the shoot; "The Finest Inspiration: The U.S. Coast Guard" featurette. Blu-ray adds "Against All Odds: The Bernie Webber Story," "Two Crews" featurette, "What Is Your Finest Hour?" in which a Coast Guard member recounts an incredible rescue.
Risen
Biblical story of the Resurrection, as told through the eyes of a non-believer. Clavius (Joseph Fiennes), a powerful Roman military tribune, and his aide, Lucius (Tom Felton), are tasked with solving the mystery of what happened to Jesus in the weeks following the crucifixion, in order to disprove the rumors of a risen Messiah and prevent an uprising in Jerusalem.
Vitals: Director: Kevin Reynolds. Stars: Joseph Fiennes, Tom Felton, Cliff Curtis, Peter Firth, Leonor Watling.
2016, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 107 min., Drama, Box office gross: $36.682 million, Sony. Extras: Three featurettes:
"The Mystery of the Resurrection: Making Risen," "A.D. Jerusalem," "Script to Screen"; commentary. Blu-ray adds deleted scenes, a fourth featurette: "The Battle of the Zealots Deconstructed."
Zoolander 2: The Magnum Edition
Sequel picks up after the original, after male models Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller) and Hansel (Owen Wilson) were enjoying the wonders of the "Derek Zoolander Center for Kids Who Can't Read Good And Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too," and Mugatu (Will Ferrell) -- the evil mastermind they had thwarted -- was behind bars. When a mystery assassin starts killing off the world's most beautiful people, haute-shot Interpol agent Valentina Valencia (Penelope Cruz) learns the key to this deadly plot lies with Derek and Hansel. Recruited for a top secret mission, they must return to the world of high fashion, reclaim their fame, and save the day. The only things standing in their way: the criminal mastermind Mugatu and his evil fashion protege (Kristen Wiig).
Vitals: Director: Ben Stiller. Stars: Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Penelope Cruz, Kristen Wiig, Benedict Cumberbatch, Will Ferrell, Justin Bieber, Billy Zane, Olivia Munn.
2016, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 102 min., Comedy/Action, Box office gross: $28.837 million, Paramount.
Blu-ray extras: "The Zoolander Legacy," "Go Big or Go Rome," "Drake Sather: The Man Who Created Zoolander," "Youth Milk."
Eleventh Hour
(2006) Patrick Stewart brings his commanding presence to the role of Ian Hood, scientific troubleshooter for the British government. A brilliant professor with a taste for danger, Hood is the ideal expert-on-call in a crisis. Backed by his tough-minded bodyguard, Rachel Young (Ashley Jensen), he takes on rogue cloners, ruthless polluters, resurgent viruses, and other menaces. Made for British television. Two-disc set with four episodes. Formats: DVD, VOD. (Acorn Media).
Killer Dames: Two Gothic Chillers By Emilio P. Miraglia
Four-disc limited edition box set containing "The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave" (1971) and "The Red Queen Kills Seven Times" (1972). At the height of the Italian giallo boom in the early 1970s, scores of filmmakers turned their hand to crafting their own unique takes on these lurid murder-mystery thrillers. This limited edition double pack features two distinctive offerings by Emilio P. Miraglia, which meld twisty whodunit narratives with gothic chills. "In The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave," troubled aristocrat Alan Cunningham (Anthony Steffen), haunted by the death of his first wife Evelyn, tries to move on by marrying the seductive Gladys (Marina Malfatti). Marital bliss is short-lived, however, as various relatives meet untimely and gruesome deaths, prompting speculation that a vengeful Evelyn has risen from the grave. In "The Red Queen Kills Seven Times," an age-old family curse hits sisters Kitty (Barbara Bouchet) and Franziska (Marina Malfatti) following the death of their grandfather Tobias (Rudolf Schündler). Every hundred years, so the legend goes, the bloodthirsty Red Queen returns and claims seven fresh victims. Was Tobias just the first ... and are Kitty and Franziska next? Both films make their worldwide Blu-ray debuts in stunning new 2K restorations. Formats: Blu-ray/DVD Combo. Extras: Original Italian and English soundtracks in mono audio (lossless DTS-HD Master Audio on the Blu-ray Discs); limited edition 60-page booklet containing new writing by James Blackford, Kat Ellinger, Leonard Jacobs and Rachael Nisbet; reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx. The Night Evelyn Came out of the Grave: New audio commentary by Troy Howarth; exclusive introduction by actress Erika Blanc; Writer Stephen Thrower on "The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave"; "The Night Erika Came Out of the Grave" interview with Erika Blanc; "The Whip and the Body" archival interview with Erika Blanc; "Still Rising from the Grave" archival interview with production designer Lorenzo Baraldi; original Italian theatrical trailel. The Red Queen Kills Seven Times: new audio commentary by Alan Jones and Kim Newman; new interview with actress Sybil Danning; writer Stephen Thrower on "The Red Queen Kills Seven Times"; archival introduction by production/costume designer Lorenzo Baraldi; "Dead à Porter" archival interview with Lorenzo Baraldi; "Rounding Up the Usual Suspects" archival interview with actor Marino Masé; "If I Met Emilio Miraglia Today" archival featurette with Erika Blanc, Lorenzo Baraldi and Marino Masé; "My Favorite ... Films" archival interview with actress Barbara Bouchet; alternative opening; original Italian theatrical trailer. (Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment).
Lou Grant: Season One
(1977-78) Five-disc set with all 22 episodes. Ed Asner reprises the indelible character he made famous on the classic sitcom "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." Having lost his job at WJM-TV’s news department, Grant leaves Minneapolis for the West Coast, where he takes over as the city editor for the Los Angeles Tribune. There, Grant guides his team of journalists through the constant challenges of the newspaper business. Exploring both the inner workings of the Tribune and the societal issues that influenced its readers, "Lou Grant" was an acclaimed program throughout its five seasons on network television. Notable for being a rare instance of a comedic television character making the transition to a dramatic series, Season One of "Lou Grant" showcases a powerhouse ensemble and writing staff that made the show one of the most intelligent and noteworthy programs of its era. The show won 13 Emmy Awards and two Golden Globes; Asner was the first person to win Emmys for both lead actor in a drama series and supporting actor in a comedy series. Co-starring Mason Adams, Robert Walde and Nancy Marchand ("The Sopranos"), the riveting "Lou Grant" ran for five seasons from 1977 to 1982 and set a high standard for all topic-oriented, serial dramas to come.
Formats: DVD. Extras: Interview with Asner. (Shout! Factory).
Manhunter Collector's Edition BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1986) Dir.: Michael Mann; William Petersen, Brian Cox, Tom Noonan, Joan Allen, Dennis Farina, Kim Greist, Stephen Lang. The first film to feature the iconic character Hannibal Lecktor, "Manhunter" follows former FBI profiler Will Graham (William Petersen) as he reluctantly returns to his old job to track a horrific serial killer known as the "Tooth Fairy." But in order to get into the mind of this maniac, Graham must face another: Lecktor (Brian Cox), the imprisoned psychiatrist whose own insanity almost cost Graham his life ... and whose insights into the "Tooth Fairy" could prove as dangerous as the killer himself. Extras: Disc 1: Theatrical version; new "The Mind of Madness" interview with William Petersen; new "Courting a Killer" interview with actress Joan Allen; new "Francis Is Gone Forever" interview with actor Tom Noonan; new "The First Lecktor" interview with actor Brian Cox; new "The Eye of the Storm" interview with director of photography Dante Spinotti; new "The Music of Manhunter" including interviews with composer Michel Rubini, Barry Andrews (Shriekback), Gary Putman (The Prime Movers), Rick Shaffer (The Reds) and Gene Stashuk (Red 7); theatrical trailer; still gallery. Disc 2: Director's Cut (HD with Standard Definition inserts): commentary by writer-director Mann; "The Manhunter Look" conversation with cinematographer Dante Spinotti; "Inside Manhunter" with William Petersen, Joan Allen, Brian Cox and Tom Noonan. (Scream Factory).
A Married Woman
(1964) An often overlooked masterwork from Jean-Luc Godard's most productive period. The plot appears to be simple: Charlotte (Macha Méril) is a young bourgeoise married woman having an affair with an actor. When she discovers that she's pregnant, she must decide which man is the father and which man she will stay with. In Godard's hands, however, the film, described as "a film about a woman's beauty and the ugliness of her world," is also a biting critique of consumer culture and the media constructed obsession with image. Subtitled "Fragments of a Film Shot in 1964," in black and white, Godard creates a modernist collage that is beautifully shot by the director's longtime cinematographer Raoul Coutard. Presented for the first time in the U.S., in a stunning new HD restoration from the original negative.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. (Cohen Film Collection).
Rise of the Legend
(2014 -- Hong Kong) Sammo Hung, Eddie Peng, Wang Luodan, Jing Boran, Jin Zhang. A powerful martial arts master returns to the town where his father was murdered to take on a ruthless crime boss in this origins story of the revered folk hero Wong Fei Hung, a martial arts master whose life has passed into Chinese folklore. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: Five-part "making-of" featurette: characters, Eddie Peng, injuries, cinematography, stunts. (Well Go USA).
and times of Kevin Arnold (Fred Savage). After a brief stint at the lake and equally brief summer romance in the season premiere, "The Lake," Kevin returns home to start school at McKinley High. Between Driver's Ed drama, love triangles, a controversial English teacher, R-rated movie, and an unforgettable double date there's plenty of excitement at McKinley. Meanwhile, the Arnolds throw an epic Christmas party and Wayne and Wart decide to join the Army. David Schwimmer continues his guest-starring role as Michael, demonstrating his love for Karen on the Arnolds' front lawn in a very romantic scene in the pouring rain. In addition to the extras, the set includes over four dozen songs as they were featured in the original broadcast, with classics by Jackson Browne, The Byrds, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Sonny & Cher, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Band, James Brown, Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, Percy Sledge, Sly & the Family Stone, Linda Ronstadt, Traffic and many more, plus Joe Cocker's unforgettable rendition of The Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends." Formats: DVD. Extras: "That's A Wrap! Mark B. Perry's Farewell Set Tour Season 5," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow: The Wonder Years' Love Stories" featurette, interviews with Olivia d'Abo (Karen Arnold), David Schwimmer (Michael). (Time Life).
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May 23, 2016
(ISSN 1094-3676).
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