|
|
OnVideo's Weekly Guide to Home Video Releases
Respect
The Drummer: Three interwoven stories reveal the traumatic effects of war on the psyches of veterans from different generations. Danny Glover stars as Mark Walker, a Vietnam war veteran who has become a lawyer and political advocate for soldiers who have suffered mental health issues through their tenure with the Army. Walker works at The Drummer, a small, “anti-war” coffee shop, where the soldiers he meets open up the issue of the mental struggles and physical toll that war takes on veterans. (Digital)
The Emperor’s Sword: (2020 -- China) After hiding a deadly sword that bestows great power upon its wielder, the emperor dies and a deranged rebel seizes power. Now, the young daughter of a great general is all that stands between a tyrant and his quest for domination. (DVD, Blu-ray release: Day & date)
A Gift From Bob: Christmas gifts come in all shapes and sizes. For James, a struggling street musician, a very special one arrives in the form of Bob, a strong-willed stray cat who wanders into James’s tiny flat. Bob enriches James’s life, giving him companionship, purpose, and a large, new audience. When Animal Welfare officers threaten to take Bob, the local community rallies to help them. (DVD release: Day & date)
Hard Luck Love Song: A gritty love story about a charismatic but down-on-his-luck troubadour living out of cheap motels and making bad decisions. (Premium VOD; Digital release, VOD: December 21)
Harvey: The classic stage hit and 1950 movie starring James Stewart got "The DuPont Show of the Month" TV (1958) treatment in the story of Elwood P. Dowd, an endlessly pleasant and delightfully eccentric bachelor living in a small town that isn't aware that its newest citizen is a invisible, 6'3" white rabbit named "Harvey" that only he sees. (DVD: Day & date)
Hope: The relationship between artist-partners Tomas (Stellan Skarsgård) and Anja (Andrea Bræin Hovig) is put to the test after Anja gets a life-threatening diagnosis. Norway's official submission for the 93rd Academy Awards. (DVD release: Day & date)
No Time to Die: Bond (Daniel Craig in his final 007 outing) has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica but his peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help. The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology. (PVOD: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Xfinity, DirecTV Stream, Spectrum TV and Vudu)
Stratton Castle: Tale of Jessie Golden Heart: Based on a true story, this romantic drama explores the forbidden passion that transcends the social classes of 1800's Scotland, a time when the working class could not rise above their station. (VOD: Apple TV, Prime Video, Vudu, Google Play, FandangoNOW, DirecTV and more)
Two Yellow Lines: A former Smokejumper has to face his scorched past when called to ride his motorcycle a thousand miles across Montana with his estranged teenage daughter. (Digital only)
Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings: Shang-Chi, the master of weaponry-based Kung Fu, is forced to confront his past after being drawn into the Ten Rings organization. (DVD, Blu-ray release: November 30)
They Say Nothing Stays the Same: Japanese drama follows an old ferryman in a remote Meiji-era community. His life is a peaceful, cyclical existence, given meaning by the essential role he plays in transporting people, livestock and goods across the water, connecting villages and lives. When news arrives that a bridge is being built, it's clear that his services will no longer be needed. Meanwhile, his life will be equally transformed by the appearance of a mysterious young woman whom he saves from drowning. (Digital, VOD only)
The Chinese Boxer
(1970 -- Hong Kong) From the golden age of Kung Fu movies, the legendary Shaw Brothers released this action-packed tale of revenge, mayhem and flying fists. When his martial arts school is viciously attacked by a rival gang of Japanese thugs, Lei Ming swears to bring them down with violent justice. Written, starring and directed by Jimmy Wang Yu, "The Chinese Boxer" is a fabulously fast-paced feature full of exquisite set-pieces and mind-blowing fight choreography. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Audio commentary by critic and author Samm Deighan, interview with Wong Ching, "Open Hand Combat - David West on The Chinese Boxer," "US 'Hammer of God' TV Spot." (88 Films).
The Concubine
(2012 -- South Korea) Set during the early Joseon Dynasty in Korea, Hwa-yeon, a minister's daughter and Kwon-yoo, a commoner, are deeply in love. Yet, when Hwa-yeon is ordered to the royal palace to become the King's concubine, she and Kwon-yoo attempt to flee. They are intercepted by Hwa-yeon's father and his men who threaten to kill Kwon-yoo. To save her one true love, Hwayeon agrees to go to the palace as instructed. Five years later, Hwa-yeon is the mother of the heir to the throne, but the King is slowly dying. After his death, the King's stepmother uses her power to appoint her biological son Sung-won as the successor. Sung-won has been madly in love with the unobtainable Hwa-yeon for years. Now that he must procreate in order to produce an heir to the throne, he can have any woman he wants except Hwa-yeon … which pushes both of them into a dangerous chess game of lust, sex and power.
Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Original trailer,
24-page booklet featuring director/actor profiles and photo. (Capelight Pictures).
DC's Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Sixth Season
(2021) Three-disc set with all 15 episodes. Having spent last season trying to track down the Loom of Fate, the Legends must now save history from a foe like none they’ve encountered in the past or future. The timeship Waverider’s crew have dealt with monsters, time anomalies, and most recently, villains from Hell, but this season they face something even more challenging and bizarre ... space aliens. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, Digital. Extras: Gag Reel, Deleted Scenes, "Never Alone: Heroes and Allies," VFX creature feature, animation split screen, actors split screen. (Warner).
For the Love of Jason, Series 1
(2020) Single-disc with six episodes. When Jason broke off his longtime relationship, he got caught up in the bachelor lifestyle. Now his friends are settling down, leaving Jason feeling pressure to catch up.
Formats: DVD. (AllBlk).
Four Good Days
(2021) Glenn Close, Mila Kunis, Stephen Root, Carla Gallo. A long-estranged mother and daughter navigate the most difficult time of their lives together in a heartbreaking and hopeful story based on real-life events as the mother helps her daughter work through four crucial days of recovery from substance abuse. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray. (Vertical Entertainment).
A Gift From Bob
(2021) Luke Treadaway, Kristina Tonteri-Young and featuring Bob (as himself). Christmas gifts come in all shapes and sizes. For James (Treadaway), a struggling street musician, a very special one arrives in the form of Bob, a strong-willed stray cat who wanders into James’s tiny flat. Bob enriches James’s life, giving him companionship, purpose, and a large, new audience. When Animal Welfare officers threaten to take Bob, the local community rallies to help James and Bob. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (Lionsgate). Read more here.
The Hills Have Eyes UHD [Limited Edition]
(1977) Horror master Wes Craven achieved critical and commercial success with the likes of "Scream" and "A Nightmare on Elm Street" - but for many genre fans, the director's seminal 1977 effort "The Hills Have Eyes" remains his masterpiece. Taking an ill-advised detour en route to California, the Carter family soon run into trouble when their campervan breaks down in the middle of the desert. Stranded, the family find themselves at the mercy of a group of monstrous cannibals lurking in the surrounding hills. With their lives under threat, the Carters have no choice but to fight back by any means necessary. Following on from his
Hope
(2019 -- Norway) Stellan Skarsgård, Andrea Bræin Hovig. The relationship between artist-partners Tomas (Skarsgård) and Anja (Hovig) is put to the test after Anja gets a life-threatening diagnosis. Norway's official submission for the 93rd Academy Awards.
Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (KimStim). Read more here
L.A. Story BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1991) L.A. Story is legendary comedian-actor-author Steve Martin’s love letter to the City of Angels. Being in a magical city with predictably pleasant weather can make the life of a meteorologist seem monotonous. When TV weatherman Harris Telemacher (Martin) begins receiving secret messages from an electronic freeway sign, he leaves his longtime girlfriend (Marilu Henner) and embarks on a frivolous romance with a vapid, young model (Sarah Jessica Parker), which ultimately leads him to true love with the woman of his dreams (Victoria Tennant). Beloved by generations of movie fans, "L.A. Story" reminds us that anything is possible, and real love can be found — even in the city of make-believe. Extras: Deleted scenes and outtakes, "O2BINLA: Mick Jackson’s L.A. Stories," “The Story of L.A. Story,” “The L.A. of L.A. Story,” original theatrical marketing materials.
(Lionsgate).
Ladies They Talk About BLU-RAY DEBUT
(1933) Barbara Stanwyck, Lyle Talbot, Preston Foster, Lillian Roth, Allen Jenkins. In most prison films, the convicted man is rehabilitated by the love of a woman. "In Ladies They Talk About," Barbara Stanwyck plays a woman who becomes rehabilitated by the love of the man who sent her to prison. A prime example of the raw and racy films made before the enforcement of Hollywood’s repressive “production code”, this Warner Bros. title previously released in the “Forbidden Hollywood” series stars Stanwyck as Nan Taylor, a bank robber who gets sent to prison for her role in a bank heist. David Slade (Foster) is the reformer who has fallen in love with her. When her two “partners” are killed in a jailbreak attempt in which she, too, is involved, Nan thinks David is the one responsible for tipping off the authorities. But she soon learns to trust in his love for her, eventually reciprocating and leaving her unsavory past behind. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Vintage WB 1933 cartoon "I Like Mountain Music," vintage WB 1933 short "Pure Feud," theatrical trailer. (Warner Archive).
Old Henry
(2021) Tim Blake Nelson, Scott Haze, Gavin Lewis, Trace Adkins, Stephen Dorff. An elevated action-Western about a widowed farmer and his son who warily take in a mysterious, injured man with a satchel of cash. When a posse of men claiming to be the law come for the money, the farmer must decide whom to trust. Defending against a siege of his homestead, he reveals a talent for gunslinging that surprises everyone, calling his true identity into question. Formats: Blu-ray, VOD, Digital. (Shout! Factory). Read more here
Respect
(2021) Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker, Audra McDonald, Saycon Sengbloh, Marlon Mayans, Marc Aaron, Kimberly Scott, Tate Donovan. Following the rise of Area Franklin's career from a child singing in her father's church's choir to her international super stardom, this is the remarkable true story of Franklin's journey to find her voice in the midst of the turbulent social and political landscape of 1960s America.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital. (MGM). Read more here
Snowpiercer: The Complete Second Season
(2020) All 10 episodes of the series based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel series and the film from Academy Award-winner Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”). Seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland, the remnants of humanity inhabit a perpetually-moving train that circles the globe, where class warfare, social injustice and the politics of survival play out. Formats: Three-disc DVD, two-disc Blu-ray + Digital Code, Digital. Extras: "The Great Engineer: Bringing the Mysterious Mr. Wilford Aboard" behind-the-scenes with the cast; Season 2 overview; "Behind the Character: Mr. Wilford"; Season 2 roundtable; Daveed Diggs Season 1 recap. (Warner).
Swan Song
(2021) Udo Kier, Jennifer Coolidge, Linda Evans, Michael Urie. Legendary actor Udo Kier stars as retired hairdresser Pat Pitsenbarger, who escapes the confines of his small-town Sandusky, Ohio nursing home after learning of his former client’s dying wish for him to style her final hairdo. Soon, Pat embarks on a comical and bittersweet odyssey across town to confront the ghosts of his past -- and collect the beauty supplies necessary for the job. The film is a comical and bittersweet journey about rediscovering one’s sparkle, and looking gorgeous while doing so. Formats: DVD, VOD, Digital. (Magnolia Home Entertainment/Magnet).
Tina
(2021) An intimate look at the legendary queen of rock and roll, this HBO original documentary charts Tina Turner’s rise to early fame, her lifelong personal and professional struggles, and her rebirth as a global phenomenon in the 1980s. Presenting an unvarnished account of her life and career, the documentary combines personal photos, audio tapes, never-before-seen archival footage spanning 60 years and insightful interviews with those who know her -- including Angela Bassett, Oprah Winfrey, and Tina’s husband, Erwin Bach -- as well as Tina herself.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray. (Warner).
White As Snow
(2021 -- France) Lou de Laage, Isabelle Huppert, Charles Berling, Damien Bonnard, Jonathan Cohen. When Claire, a beautiful but reserved young woman unwittingly provokes the furious jealousy of her evil stepmother Maud (Huppert), life as she knows it is over. Sent far away from home, Claire awakens, both figuratively and literally, in a small village in the French mountains. As if by magic, her formerly shy demeanor is gone and she is suddenly aware of her feminine power. It’s the beginning of a radical emancipation. As Claire meets the locals and starts to take joy in her sexuality, soon one, two, three ... seven men fall under her charm. For the first time in her life she allows herself to indulge in no-strings sex, taking pride in belonging to no one. But then Maud arrives wanting to reconnect, and Claire must decide who to trust -- her sophisticated but cold stepmother, or the circle of adoring men that now surround her. Formats: Blu-ray. (Cohen Media Group).
![]()
© 1996 -- 2021 OnVideo. All rights reserved November 7, 2021 (ISSN 1094-3676). |
|