Well folks, it’s a strange week on the home video front. There aren’t any major releases coming to store shelves on Tuesday. There are a few new titles that received decent notices from critics. However, the best options may be the older, classic titles being re-released or premiering on Blu-ray. In any case, here are the highlights of what’s coming your way. So if you can’t make it out to the movies this week, be sure to give one of these titles a try.
Big New Releases!
Barefoot – This romantic comedy from director Andrew Fleming (The Craft, Hamlet 2) failed to make an impact during its limited release. It’s a remake of a well received 2005 German film called Barfuss. The story follows a young man from a very wealthy family who falls in love with a beautiful, free spirited woman with psychological problems. Almost all of the US critics panned this adaptation. Many lambasted the script’s treatment of mental issues while others found the romance unbelievable. Scott Speedman and Evan Rachel Wood star with Treat Williams and J.K. Simmons.
Bettie Page Reveals All – One of the best reviewed films of the week is this documentary that tells the life story of this 50’s pin-up queen and her influence on American culture. It’s narrated using audio from Page herself and features comments from models and celebrities like Rebecca Romijn, Naomi Campbell and Hugh Hefner. The press generally liked the film. They commented that while the interview footage seemed extraneous, the audio of the star recounting her own life was gripping and illuminating.
Big Bad Wolves – Quentin Tarantino has endorsed this twist-filled, Israeli effort that mixes several genres including horror, black comedy, drama and revenge picture. After several murders, one victim’s father and a frustrated cop go vigilante, abducting and torturing the man they believe to be responsible. Surprisingly, the majority of reviews were positive. While many called the subject matter and film itself disturbing and extreme, they also found this foreign language film effectively tense and unpredictable.
Scream Park – Hellraiser star Doug Bradley is featured in this straight-to-video horror B-movie. Bradley plays a theme park owner who decides to hire a couple of maniacal psychopaths to kill his employees in order to gain some much needed publicity for the attraction. One assumes that things do not go according to plan. No one has seen it as of this point in time, so viewers are on their own.
The Suspect – This low-budget, independent crime thriller hasn’t gotten a lot of reviews, but it did receive a couple of decent notices while playing at film festivals and is now arriving on DVD. It’s about a pair of sociology students who create a fake bank robbery in a small southern town in order to expose police race profiling. The movie reportedly features numerous twists and turns as the true agendas of several characters are revealed. Mekhi Phifer, William Sandler and Sterling K. Brown star.
Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Neighbors from Hell (The Play) – This one’s pretty self-explanatory and likely for Madea fans only.
Blasts from the Past!
While there aren’t a lot of new release options, there’s plenty of interesting titles in this section. A personal favorite is the 1977 tough guy movie, Sorcerer. Directed by William Friedkin (The French Connection, The Exorcist) and starring Roy Scheider (Jaws), this may be the second film to be made from the French novel The Wages of Fear, but it stands toe to toe with the first adaptation. The story follows a group of desperate men hiding out in South America. With their money dwindling and deadly forces closing in, they take a job driving nitroglycerin 200 miles through the jungle. The movie is a stunner – when it gets cooking, it’s unbelievably tense as their trucks attempt to navigate along the pothole ridden road. The rickety bridge sequence is one the most memorable from any action film of the 70’s. This movie bombed upon its original release and was widely panned by critics. The press were wrong. Despite it being out of print several times on home video, it has maintained a cult following (often from people like me who first saw it on late night television in the 80’s). Warner Bros. has finally given it the Blu-ray treatment it deserves. For the first time, it’s being presented in its original aspect ratio. The film has been newly remastered for high definition. It may not feature many extras, but just having the film properly presented is more than enough for fans. This is one of the best and most underrated movies of the 70’s – be sure to check it out.
Criterion is bringing the 1925 silent Belgian classic Master of the House to Blu-ray. Directed by Carl Dreyer, it’s a domestic drama about a put-upon wife who attempts to enact revenge on her tyrannical husband. Also from Criterion is Riot in Cell Block 11, a 1954 film noir about a group of inmates who stage an uprising to protest prison conditions. Director Don Siegel would eventually go on to helm Dirty Harry. As always, the films are digitally restored and feature numerous retrospective features and commentaries.
Olive Films has a pair of new Blu-rays available as well. 1964’s The Pawnbroker earned star Rod Steiger an Academy Award nomination for his performance as a Nazi death camp survivor living in Harlem as a pawnshop owner. It was directed by Hollywood heavyweight Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men, Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon, Network). The company’s other release is 1952’s Stranger on the Prowl. It’s an artsy, Italian neo-realist film noir about a homeless man who becomes friends with an impoverished boy on the streets.
On the cheesier side of Blu-ray, The House on Sorority Row was a 1983 slasher flick inspired by the Friday the 13th series and Prom Night. The story follows a house full of college sorority girls as they are murdered one by one during a graduation party. For fans, this Scorpion Entertainment release features a brand new HD master approved by director – it’s being described as the definitive version.
While it has played a few midnight shows around North America in the last year or two, most bad movie fans haven’t had the opportunity to check out Yeti: The 20th Century Giant aka Giant of the 20th Century. With the release of a new DVD, they’ll finally have their chance. And they’ll probably be pleased by the absurdity on display. First things first – this is not a practical joke. That’s a real publicity still from the internet, and this is a real movie. The jaw-dropping, stupendously ridiculous Italian flick was shot in Toronto, Canada and released in 1977 (in a few select European territories) to capitalize on the publicity surrounding the late 70’s mega-budgeted Dino De Laurentiis King Kong remake. Scientists find a giant bigfoot frozen in the ice and naturally thaw it out so it can kidnap a woman and ravage downtown Toronto. Everything about it, including the special effects, script and acting, is utterly laughable. This is perfect bad movie night fodder. For those seeking more of the same, they could also check out the 1976 South Korean effort Ape and Hong Kong’s The Mighty Peking Man aka Goliathon from 1977 – although even those efforts look professional in comparison.
You Know, For Kids!
It’s slim pickings for kids too – here’s what’s coming your way.
Cloud 9 (Disney Channel Live Action TV Movie)
Mr. Magoo Theatrical Collection(1949-1959)
Spectacular Spider-Man: Season 1 & 2
On the Tube!
And finally, these are the most significant TV titles released this week.
Cloud 9 (Disney Channel Live Action TV Movie)
Dr. Who: The Web of Fear (1966-1969)
Good Witch’s Garden (Hallmark TV Movie)
Ken Burns: The Address (PBS)
The King Family Classic Television Specials
Murder She Wrote: Season 8
Newhart: Season 3