A Dog Called Vengeance [Severin]
What is it? An escaped prisoner is pursued by a guard dog.
Why see it? There’s a lot going on in Antonio Isasi’s late 70s thriller, and the film handles it all with an eye for visual thrills and intensity. A political prisoner escapes prison and is pursued by a tracker and his faithful dog, and when the tracker is killed the dog continues the hunt. The prisoner gets involved with resistance fighters opposed to their country’s military dictatorship, assassinations are planned, old relationships are rekindled — and through it all, the dog stays on his trail. The set-pieces, both dog-related and human, are fantastically staged ramping up the intensity for great effect. Jason Miller plays the prisoner, and it’s a strong performance (bolstered by some legit bravery as he fights off the dog completely naked). The new scan looks fantastic.
[Extras: New 2K scan, appreciation, interviews]
The Best
Bad Boys: Ride or Die
What is it? Another great Bay-less sequel!
Why see it? While the first Bad Boys remains the franchise’s best entry, I can’t get behind Bad Boys II being all the good. I am, however, a big fan of the third and fourth entries as both deliver laughs, fun action, and an entertaining approach to the aging characters. The latest sequel sees the boys on the run after their former captain is framed by the real baddies. The action beats are varied and visually thrilling, the laughs are equally large, and we even get a fantastic payoff with one of the long-running supporting players. It’s a great time, and while too many long in the tooth franchises run out of gas, I’m happy to keep watching these boys for years to come.
[Extras: Bloopers, deleted scenes, featurettes]
The Creature [Severin]
What is it? A crumbling marriage opens the door to a new love.
Why see it? Eloy de la Iglesia’s filmography is filled with important, popular films chronicling Spain’s successful emergence from dictatorship. While many tackle societal issues head on, though, this 1977 feature takes an allegorical route that was always destined to enrage. A couple struggles to conceive, the husband has an affair, and the wife adopts a dog. So far, so good, but it’s not long before the woman and the dog form a bond. A friendship, an emotional relationship, and then… something more. Well-acted, crafted with sincerity and a melodramatic eye, the film is a memorable look at the complicated, multifaceted realities of relationships. But yeah, it’s going to make some of you uncomfortable.
[Extras: New 2K scan, interviews, introduction]
Friends: The Complete Series [4K UHD]
What is it? A 90s staple when it comes to American sitcoms.
Why see it? I know the cool thing these days is to bash Friends for a myriad of reasons, but while some criticisms are valid, you’re a fool to discount the show’s comedic success. To be clear, I’d argue that the first half of its run, roughly 1994 to 1999, remains home to some very funny writing and performances. The six leads are a top notch ensemble — my personal laugh ranking goes Chandler, Joey, Rachel, Ross, Phoebe, Monica — delivering a steady stream of wit, banter, and comedic timing. Later seasons get bogged down in relationships and kids, but those first five or so? Comedy gold. The extras included here are mostly carried over from past releases with just two new featurettes added to the mix. But how are the tech upgrades, you ask? Minor improvements to the audio (lossless, finally!) will be appreciated by some, and there’s no doubt that the 4K upgrade is delivering sharper clarity at times… but folks who’ve watched the show plenty before might also notice some arguably unnecessary color enhancements that see things popping a bit too much. It’s no dealbreaker for me as the show has always been a vibrant, colorful series, but it definitely feels extreme at times. So, is it worth the upgrade? Your call, but for fans who don’t own the complete series yet it would make for a very welcome gift.
[Extras: Commentaries, featurettes, gag reels, music videos]
The Ladykillers [4K UHD, KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A group of thieves plan a heist.
Why see it? The Coen Brothers remade this comedy with Tom Hanks at the forefront, and while it’s better than its reputation, it still can’t touch this British original. Here it’s Alec Guinness orchestrating a heist alongside a motley crew of thieves while renting a room from a nice old lady. The banter and dialogue are aces, and the various plot elements concerning the robbery come to a wonderfully satisfying conclusion. Kino’s new 4K lets the colors and details pop making an old film feel new again.
[Extras: New-ish 4K scan, commentaries, documentary, featurette, interviews]
Link [4K UHD, KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A college assistant encounters primal terror.
Why see it? See what I did there? Primal? See the student takes a gig as an assistant to a zoology professor whose home features a primate butler named Link who eventually gets a bit murderous. Richard Franklin (Road Games) directs, Elizabeth Shue and Terence Stamp star, and the result is an engaging and suspenseful time as the great ape goes ape — in a bad way — for the young woman leaving a trail of bodies in his wake. It’s not exactly a film you’d expect to get the 4K treatment, but Kino does good work with these catalogue rereleases making this a worthwhile upgrade.
[Extras: Commentary, deleted scenes, interview]
Murder on the Orient Express [4K UHD, KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A locomotive-set mystery!
Why see it? I’m a big fan of Kenneth Branagh’s self-starring Agatha Christie adaptations, and most versions of the tale are great simply because the source material is too. That said, this 1974 feature remains untouchable as Christie’s memorable mystery is brought to life by director Sidney Lumet and a stellar 70s cast including Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery, Anthony Perkins, Michael York, and Albert Finney as they unbeatable Inspector Poirot. The hazy visuals retain their grain while popping with color and depth thanks to the 4K and HDR. A great film, a great new 4K release.
[Extras: New 4K scan, commentary, making of, interview, featurette]
My Heart Is That Eternal Rose
What is it? A love story, with bullets.
Why see it? Patrick Tam’s gorgeous late 80s feature sees love, loyalty, and fate intertwine for a tale of romantic bloodshed and a love story punctuated by bullets, Christopher Doyle’s camera captures a violently melodramatic world, Tony Leung breaks your heart, and all of it works to entertain with expected Hong Kong elements while finding its own beautifully satisfying subtleties. The film was recently restored making it even more of a visual stunner, and the extras afford an engaging and informative glimpse into the talents responsible for its effectiveness.
[Extras: New 2K restoration, interviews, show episodes, booklet]
That Guy Dick Miller
What is it? A documentary about one of the last great character actors.
Why see it? Dick Miller was an icon, and while he landed the very occasional leading role, the vast bulk of his filmography saw him appearing for a few minutes at a time in movies of all kinds. His face always brings a smile as he livens up every scene and film he’s in, and this doc gives him the long overdue spotlight. We discover his atypical entry into acting and watch as the list of admirers and co-stars grows over the years. This tenth anniversary Blu adds in an underseen feature from 1978 starring Miller.
[Extras: Commentary, 8mm home movies, featurettes, outtakes, booklet, bonus feature Starhops]
The Rest
Asylum of Terror
What is it? A Halloween haunted house attraction holds deadly thrills.
Why see it? The shot-on-video aspect of this Halloween-set slasher will turn some off as it’s undeniably raw and rough around the edges, but genre fans with a lower threshold will find some fun all the same. Nods and homages to bigger, better known slashers are frequent, and it’s clear that it’s a labor of love for all involved. New special features offer a fun glimpse into DIY filmmaking in the late 90s too.
[Extras: Commentary, interviews, short films]
The Becomers
What is it? Aliens come to Earth in search of love.
Why see it? Zach Clark’s latest feature is another slice of slightly off-kilter dramedy, and this time the focus is love. Two aliens arrive on Earth, already in love with each other but now forced to find each other. The film opens strong before settling into a tale where tone wobbles alongside the performances. It’s enough to make you wish Clark stuck with the opening and aimed strictly for sci-fi/horror, but you have to respect his attempt at making a compelling love story with alien characters who are far more interesting than the tale they’re stuck in.
[Extras: Deleted scenes, short film, commentary]
Before Dawn
What is it? A young man heads off to war.
Why see it? World War I isn’t as frequent a topic as other wars like its sequel and Vietnam, but we’ve had a few good to great ones. This Australian feature is ultimately a pretty middling one as neither its characters nor its battle sequences ever truly grab hold. For World War I completists only, I guess.
[Extras: Featurette]
Below the Belt [KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A woman’s journey into and through professional wrestling.
Why see it? Times have changed both in and out of the professional wrestling world, so this feature about a female wrestler plays a lot different than today’s fans may expect. Instead, it hews closer to more serious, rough and tumble fare as we see her encounter highs and lows — mostly lows — on her road through the world of sports entertainment. More drama than comedy, it features a good lead performance by Rosalyn Drexler, herself a real-life wrestler.
[Extras: Commentary]
Botony Bay [KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A historical adventure about the founding of Australia.
Why see it? A common talking point revolves around Australia’s first Western settlers being prisoners dropped off by British colonialists looking to get rid of their human refuse. It obviously grew beyond that — and even more obviously, the continent already had a thriving human population — but there’s adventure and drama to be found in the origin all the same. Alan Ladd stars as one of those prisoners, an innocent man, naturally, who helps maintain order and fight for freedom from a villainous James Mason. It may not be wholly historically accurate, but it’s an engaging enough ninety minutes.
[Extras: New-ish 4K scan, commentary]
Dogleg
What is it? A director looks for a dog while also looking to finish his film.
Why see it? Indie comedies about Hollywood and/or Los Angeles can sometimes take on a navel-gazing feel, but while this one fits itself into a small niche, it does so while retaining some humanity and narrative interest. Of course, that narrative is a fractured one as multiple stories play out with the connective tissue being the director in search of a missing dog. The parts end up being better, more fully realized, than the whole, but at just eighty-five minutes that’s no real complaint.
[Extras: Short films, extended scenes, featurette, booklet]
The Dragon Painter
What is it? A silent film about love, art, and the battle between.
Why see it? It’s always nice finding an early Hollywood production starring Asian actors as flesh and blood characters instead of stereotypes. In fact, if you didn’t know any better, you might think this 1919 feature was actually a Japanese production. Sessue Hayakawa stars as a painter whose frantic persona is tamed when he meets and falls in love with a young woman only to see his talent as an artist suffer. What to do? This release features additional footage that was recently discovered.
[Extras: New 2K restoration, two scores, featurette, two bonus “features” starring Sessue Hayakawa]
Flesh Freaks
What is it? A zombie film!
Why see it? Everyone has to start somewhere, and that includes filmmakers meaning some of them made their first features when they were still teenagers. This 1998 zombie flick is an example of that, and the result is to be expected. To be sure, there are charms here for horror fans as Conall Pendergast both knows his horror and has plenty of ideas, but the execution is rough at best. You already know if it’s for you.
[Extras: Commentaries, outtakes, featurette, bonus feature Kill Them and Eat Them]
I Used to Be Funny
What is it? A “comedy” of sorts.
Why see it? I may be alone in this, but I find that movies about stand-up comedians, or even ones just featuring scenes with them, never find laughs in those sets. The jokes just aren’t funny to me even if other parts of the film, the parts off stage, are. That’s the case here, but there’s an extra bonus in the lead performance by Rachel Sennott. She’s an acquired taste, maybe, but she works for me to deliver sincerity, humor, intelligence, and an underlying sadness that I can rarely shake. The film is okay, but she’s great. (As is the soundtrack.)
[Extras: Commentary, booklet]
The Mummy and the Curse of the Jackal [Severin]
What is it? Monsters in Las Vegas!
Why see it? Severin released three titles this month, and while two of them are great and above, the third is this bad movie given the golden treatment. There’s an audience for it, so I’m not complaining, but I’m just not among them. There’s little to no competence here, from the filmmaking to the acting, and while John Carradine is a welcome face, the man never said no to a job offer (meaning this is just one of many duds in his filmography). All of that said, fans will be very pleased with this release.
[Extras: New 4K scan, interviews, bonus feature Angelika The Young Vixen, commentary]
My Favorite Spy [KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A nobody stands in for an accomplished spy!
Why see it? Bob Hope’s later work may feel tepid for the times, but his early features, primarily in the 50s, deliver eternal laughs built on his goofy persona and comic timing. Here he plays both a sidelined spy and the lookalike loser who’s pulled into the world of espionage in his stead. It’s a silly, fun romp riffing on old-school spy films, and it remains a good time for fans of simple laughs and Hope’s comedic charisma.
[Extras: Newish 4K scan, commentary]
The Other Laurens
What is it? A mystery about a man, a death, and more.
Why see it? As mysteries go, this one finds some interesting avenues to explore, but I’d be lying if I said they came together in a truly satisfying way. The pieces just don’t gel leaving a bit too much hanging in the realm of the merely okay. Still, it’s an attractive film that is worth a watch for the visuals and intentions.
[Extras: Commentary, short film, booklet]
Red Mountain [KL Studio Classics]
What is it? A morally challenged man sees his morals challenged.
Why see it? Alan Ladd plays a Southern soldier looking for gold after the war, but when his actions see an innocent man charged with murder he’s forced to reconsider his choices. As westerns go, the trappings are mostly in place here starting with Alan Ladd, but the end result underwhelms even if it’s not doing anything wrong. It just doesn’t do much right as events play out and then it ends.
[Extras: New-ish 4K scan, commentary]
Also out this week:
All This I Will Give To You, Body Double [4K UHD], Brigitte Bardot Collection, Despicable Me 4, Devi Danger, Disco Boy, The Exorcism, Friday the 13th [4K UHD, Arrow], Happiness [Criterion], Longlegs, Mary Jane’s Not a Virgin Anymore [AGFA], See You Next Tuesday, Spirit Riser, Village of the Damned [4K UHD, Scream Factory], When Tomorrow Dies
