Douglas Fairbanks Double Feature Blu-ray Reviews

 

         Douglas Fairbanks was one of the biggest stars of silent films, right up there with Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford, though he was known for starring in notably different genres than the other two. As a swashbuckling star, there were few classic stories involving swordplay that Fairbanks didn’t star in during his period of extreme popularity with audiences. Cohen Film Collection has recently released two double feature Blu-rays, each containing a pair of classic films from Fairbanks’ filmography. These releases are perfect for fans of Fairbanks as well as those who have yet to discover the incredible scope of silent swashbuckling action/adventure films.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One 4K UHD Review

 

• Director : Christopher McQuarrie
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Tom Cruise, Vanessa Kirby, Simon Pegg
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ French, Spanish
• Studio ‏ : ‎ PARAMOUNT
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0C9KJ8M4C
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ 4K
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 31, 2023

 

         Despite Tom Cruise proving his value as a movie star and bringing audiences back to theaters is record numbers last year with the release of Top Gun: Maverick, the movie star’s latest Mission: Impossible film ran into countless issues preventing it from reaching the same level of success. First there was the disruption of Covid-19, which caused delays that greatly inflated the film’s budget, but an even bigger obstacle seems to have been the decision to release in theaters the week before a pair of films that became an undeniable cultural moment. This is unfortunate, because while Dead Reckoning Part One may not be the unmitigated success that the Top Gun sequel was, it is a fitting continuation of one of the most compelling action franchises to come out of Hollywood in the past few decades.

 

The Hive Review

 

 Home invasion horror movies seemed to be on the decline, but they have returned with several revisionist narratives, including hybrids combining other sub-genres with the formula. Given the allegorical parallels between both home invasion and alien invasion films, it is unsurprising the two sub-genres have been combined to create hybrid home invasion films. First Hulu distributed No One Will Save You this year, an alien home invasion hybrid with only a handful of lines of dialogue. Now the low budget release The Hive has been released with a body snatchers element added to the formula, though it may also have been better off without the dialogue given the effectiveness of the performances.

 

The Storms of Jeremy Thomas DVD Review

 

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• Director ‏ : ‎ Mark Cousins
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Jeremy Thomas, Mark Cousins, Tilda Swinton, Debra Winger
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Cohen Media Group
• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ United Kingdom
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, DVD
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 32 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 10, 2023

 

         Jeremy Thomas is a producer who has worked with truly legendary filmmakers, undeniably leaving his mark on film history. The film follows Thomas as he prepares to see his latest film, Takashi Miike’s First Love (2019), debut at the Cannes Film Festival. Each year the producer takes a five-day road trip driving to the international film festival in France, and for this particularly journey he is joined by filmmaker Mark Cousins. In promotion for the film, Cousins is referred to as an “acclaimed filmmaker.” This may be true, but it is hard to see in the home movie road trip footage he filmed for this documentary. Everything feels thrown together, almost as an afterthought to the journey itself.

 

Slava Ukraini Review

 

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• Director ‏ : ‎ Bernard-Henri Lévy
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Bernard-Henri Lévy, Gilles Hertzog
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Cohen Media Group
• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ France
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, DVD
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 34 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ July 4, 2023

 

         Journalism during times of war is truly invaluable, which is what makes reviewing the film Slava Ukraini so difficult. On one hand, it is easy to admire the efforts made by philosopher and filmmaker Bernard-Henri Lévy to reveal the resistance by the people of Ukraine to the invasion of their country by Russian forces. On the other hand, admiration for the chosen subject and boldness in the filmmakers does not translate into good filmmaking. As far as documentaries go, Slava Ukraini makes the offense of being transparently biased, overly sentimental, and ultimately quite sloppy in its construction. In short, the intention is great, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.

 

The Last Voyage of the Demeter Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Andre Ovredal
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Corey Hawkins, Aisling Franciosi, Liam Cunningham
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ French, Spanish
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ Spanish, French
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Studio Distribution Services
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 59 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 17, 2023

         Dracula was one of the first big horror film successes to come out of Hollywood, preceding even the use of horror as a genre term. Released on Valentine’s Day, Dracula was originally sold as a gothic romance film, though it has since become an iconic staple in the horror genre. This year alone has seen both the release of Renfield and The Last Voyage of the Demeter in attempts to find a new angle to view the story. While Renfield focused on Dracula’s abused assistant, The Last Voyage of the Demeter is entirely about the portion of the story the original 1931 film skipped over. While this does mean the ending is somewhat predictable, there are still some well-executed sequences of suspense likely to satisfy horror fans.

 

Strays Blu-ray Review

 

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• Actors ‏ : ‎ Will Ferrell, Jamie Foxx, Will Forte, Dennis Quaid
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ French, Spanish
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Studio Distribution Services
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 34 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 10, 2023

 

         There have been plenty of movies centered around talking animals, both live action and animated, though Strays may be the first to use them for R-rated humor. While this initially sounds like a clever idea, unfortunately Strays doesn’t do much with it beyond an endless stream of vulgar and raunchy jokes without an ounce of cleverness. At the very least, at least Strays makes the wise choice to use real dogs in the filming process, saving the audience from enduring more poorly executed CGI animals.

 

Cobra Kai: Season 5 DVD Review

• Actors ‏ : ‎ Ralph Macchio, William Zabka, Courtney Henggeler, Xolo Maridueña, Tanner Buchanan
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ French
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English
• Studio ‏ : ‎ SONY
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled, NTSC, DVD
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 362 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 12, 2023

         With as many streaming services as there now are, consumers must be increasingly selective about which they decide to pay for. While some streaming services boast plenty of content, others may only have a few shows keeping their subscribers. By providing the opportunity to purchase these popular shows on physical media, consumers now have the choice between viewing them on the streaming service or owning them on DVD and Blu-ray. Given the popularity of “Cobra Kai,” which was good enough to upgrade the streaming service producing it, it should come as no surprise that this is one of the shows Netflix has chosen to make available for fans to purchase and own.

 

Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken Blu-ray Review

 

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• Director: Kirk DeMicco, Faryn Pearl
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Jane Fonda, Toni Collette, Lana Condor, Will Forte
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ Spanish, French
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Studio Distribution Services
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0C8VBW65J
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2

• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Blu-ray
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 23 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 26, 2023

 

         About halfway through Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken it occurred to me that I had recently seen another film about a teenager discovering she has the ability to change into a large monster. Pixar’s 2022 release Turning Red has nearly the exact same premise, albeit landlocked, and I’m not entirely surprised. Monster movies have long been considered helpful allegories for the teenage experience of puberty, and after Twilight sterilized the horror genre it should come as no surprise to see animated family films adopting these narratives too. That being said, Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken doesn’t do much to elevate the formula, nor does the animation prove particularly innovative or impressive.

 

Creepy Crawly Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Chalit Krileadmongkon, Pakphum Wongjinda
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Chanya McClory, Mike Angelo, Benjamin Joseph Varney, Kulteera Yordchang, David Asavanond
• Language ‏ : ‎ Thai (DTS 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled, Widescreen
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 32 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ October 3, 2023

         Thailand has been contributing to the horror genre for decades, significantly contributing inspiration for several films in the wave of Asian horror remakes coming from Hollywood in the early 2000s. Perhaps for that reason it should come as no surprise that the film Creepy Crawly (originally titled The One Hundred) is one the first horror movies to directly address the Covid pandemic within a narrative about a contagion let loose in a confined area. Unfortunately, while there is relevance in the societal context of the narrative, that does not make the quality of the filmmaking any more effective.

 

Gangnam Zombie Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Lee Soo-sung
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Ji Il-Ju, Park Ji-Yeon, Cho Kyung-Hoon
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled, Widescreen
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 21 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 26, 2023

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           It has long been my belief that a great deal can be known about a society at any given time by the horror films being released. Sometimes the social issues are addressed allegorically, while other times they are explicitly included in the narrative. Given the global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, it seemed inevitable that contagion narratives like those found in the zombie sub-genre would be utilized to address these fears. The South Korean horror film Gangnam Zombie makes these parallels even clearer by setting the story in the middle of the pandemic, before including the threat of the undead.

   

Bad City Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Kensuke Sonomura
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Hitoshi Ozawa, Akane Sakanoue, Katsuya, Masanori Mimoto, Tak Sakaguchi
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ English
• Language ‏ : ‎ Japanese (DTS 5.1), English (DTS 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Widescreen, Subtitled
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 58 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 19, 2023

 

         Crime and gangster films coming out of Japan have a wide range of styles, approaches, and budgets. While some belong to the low budget Japanese V-Cinema straight-to-video tradition, others are more artistically respected and subtle in their depiction of organized crime and the violence associated with it. Bad City falls somewhere in the middle, leaning into the spectacle without losing sight of realism and becoming entirely exploitation.

 

Aporia Blu-ray Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Jared Moshe
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Judy Greer, Edi Gathegi, Payman Maadi, Faithe Herman
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (DTS 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Widescreen, Subtitled
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 43 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ September 12, 2023

         When the independent film Primer (2004) was made and released for $7,000, it proved that the budget of a blockbuster wasn’t necessary to make a time travel film. Since Primer, there have been numerous low budget and independent productions to take on the sci-fi premise. There have been so many indie time-travel movies released that the approach in Aporia feels somewhat unoriginal, despite containing a unique twist on the premise.

 

Persian Lessons Blu-ray Review

 

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• Director ‏ : ‎ Vadim Perelman
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Lars Eidinger
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Cohen Media Group
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ Germany
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Blu-ray
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 2 hours and 7 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ July 18, 2023

 

        I don’t envy anyone attempting to make a movie about the Holocaust at this point, as these narratives have become so common that the tragedy has turned into cinematic tropes. Aside from the occasionally unexpected unique approach, like Life is Beautiful or Jojo Rabbit, films about the Holocaust have a difficulty standing out. Although Persian Lessons doesn’t attempt to completely reinvent the formula, it does have an original premise, albeit one that requires a moderate ability to suspend disbelief. What helps to sell the storyline is the subtly expressive performance by Nahuel Pérez Biscayart.

 

Hotel Transylvania 4-Movie Collection DVD Review

 

• Director ‏ : ‎ Genndy Tartakovsky, Derek Drymon, Jennifer Kluska
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ French, Portuguese, Spanish
• Studio ‏ : ‎ SONY
• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.85:1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 4
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Digital_copy, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 6 hours and 5 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ August 15, 2023

 

         In an animated franchise you might naturally expect to come from Universal’s animated division rather than Sony Pictures Animation, Hotel Transylvania is built on the iconic cinematic horror monsters of the past. Much of the humor in the films comes from playing with the tropes associated with each of these classic movie monsters, headed up by the hotel-owning Dracula. Aside from the premise of a hotel that gives reason for all of the horror monsters to congregate in the same location, the Hotel Transylvania films have also been a clever reversal of themes involving the acceptance of someone different. In a film full of monsters, it is the humans who are often the different ones in need of being accepted into the world of monsters.

 

Kill Shot Blu-ray Review

 

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• Director ‏ : ‎ Ari Novak
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Rachel Cook, Rib Hillis, Bobby Maximus, Mara Ohara, Mark Murphy
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (DTS 5.1)
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Well Go Usa
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Subtitled, Widescreen
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 33 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ August 15, 2023
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         There are many bad movies made every year, without fail, which is why it is so difficult for them to stand out. While it takes effort to be good, poorly made films are often even more impressive, because movies as bad as Kill Shot can’t be planned. Filmmakers intending to make a bad movie come off as insincere, but it takes a series of unfortunate events for something to become this terrible organically. It’s quite remarkable to see a movie this bad, which makes it stand out amidst all the unimpressive mediocrity making up most of the entertainment being watched.

 

Fast X Blu-ray Review

 

• Director: Louis Leterrier
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jason Momoa, Jason Statham
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ French, Spanish
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Studio Distribution Services
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Blu-ray, Subtitled
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 2 hours and 21 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ August 8, 2023

 

         Years ago, Universal announced their intentions of ending the Fast and Furious franchise with the tenth movie. In order to continue the series without going back on their word, Fast X then turned into a two-film conclusion. Just before the release of the tenth installment, however, it was announced that the two-part finale was being stretched out into three films. While I would normally bemoan the money-grubbing practices of studios and the obnoxious practice of cliffhangers in film franchises, Fast X is enough fun to leave me wanting plenty more.