Secret in Their Eyes Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Nicole Kidman, Julia Roberts, Dean Norris, Michael Kelly

Director: Billy Ray

Writer: Billy Ray

Producers: Mark Johnson, Matt Jackson

Format: Color, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1)

Subtitles: French, Spanish, English

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Rated: PG-13

Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment

Release Date: February 23, 2016

Digital Copy Expiration Date: May 2, 2018

 

        Despite a solid cast and a sophisticated screenplay based on the Academy Award-winning Argentinean film, El secreto de sus ojos, Secret in Their Eyes never feels completely necessary. Even dismissing the common decision to remake a foreign film into an English-language copycat, Secret in Their Eyes feels too familiar to a string of better suspense films. With similar moral discussions about certainty of guilt and the consequences of acting on these assumptions, there are many parallels between this film and Prisoners, but not enough new ground is covered to warrant another addition into the sub-genre, much less a remake. 

 

Becoming Bulletproof DVD Review

     Actors: Alec Bandler

Director: Michael Barnett

Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: Virgil Films and Entertainment

DVD Release Date: February 23, 2016

Run Time: 82 minutes

 

 

        Not unlike the movie that the documentary captures the filmmaking of, Becoming Bulletproof is far more admirable for the story behind the content than for the skill going into the filmmaking itself. It is a documentary with a message, but not one of political, economic or environmental significance. Instead it is a movie seeking only personal significance; obviously for the actors involved in the production, but also for anyone with a disability, or anyone with similar aspirations to pursue their dreams regardless of the odds they may face.

My All American Blu-ray Review

        Angelo Pizzo has made a career out of writing screenplays based on true life inspirational sports stories, and in the past they have all been directed by his former fraternity brother from his undergraduate days at Indiana University. But whether it is the fault of a diminishing ability to write an inspirational screenplay or his shortcomings as a first time director, My All American comes nowhere near the level of Hoosiers, Rudy, or even The Game of Their Lives. Considering it has been 10 years since his last screenplay made it to the screen, I’m afraid Pizzo may have returned to the well one time too many, with this latest endeavor feeling like a bad copy of his past successes.

The Sheik DVD Review

     Actors: The Iron Sheik, Dwayne Johnson

Director: Igal Hecht

Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: Dark Sky Films

DVD Release Date: March 1, 2016

Run Time: 96 minutes

 

 

        I’m sure if you are a fan of WWE wrestling, especially of the iconic figure this film is based on, The Sheik will provide plenty of enjoyment. Personally, I prefer my soap opera with a lot less yelling and a lot better acting, but was still able to find some enjoyment in the character study at the center of this documentary. I may have been able to enjoy the human aspects of the story even more if the filmmakers didn’t allow themselves to seep into the narrative as giddy fans during the second half of the film. While I appreciate their passion, it did little to reassure me the filmmaking wasn’t affected by the filmmakers’ obvious bias.

The Taviani Brothers Collection Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Omero Antonutti, Claudio Bigagli

Directors: Paolo Taviani, Vittorio Taviani

Format: NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: Italian

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Studio: Cohen Media Group

Release Date: February 16, 2016

 

 

        There are many sibling filmmaker teams, and I’m sure that each has their own unique ways of distributing the directorial duties. For the longest time Joel Coen was listed as the film’s director with Ethan taking producer credits, despite both working together in all aspects of the process. The Taviani brothers, Paolo and Vittorio, have a completely different approach. Although they always share the director credit, each takes turn directing from one scene to the next, neither one interfering with the work of the other. The result is no less seamless, as can clearly be seen in three of their classics included in this Blu-ray film collection.

 

Steve Jobs Blu-ray Review

     Directors: Danny Boyle

Format: Color, Widescreen

Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (DTS 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (DTS 5.1)

Subtitles: French, Spanish, English

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Universal

Release Date: February 16, 2016

 

        I am not a member of the Apple cult, nor did I have any interest in the life of its founder prior to watching Danny Boyle’s untraditional biopic, Steve Jobs. While nothing about this film did much to change my mind about the title character or his computer company, it provides a narrative structure as innovative as the technology at the center of the story. Nearly all of the technical aspects of Steve Jobs are executed well, and the complex personalities of the real life individuals are captured magnificently by the cast, even if Aaron Sorkin’s screenplay occasionally forces them into somewhat theatrical directions.

 

99 Homes Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Andrew Garfield, Michael Shannon, Laura Dern, Clancy Brown

Director: Ramin Bahrani

Format: Color, Dubbed, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Dubbed: Spanish

Rated: R 

Studio: Broad Green Pictures

Release Date: February 9, 2016

Run Time: 112 minutes

 

 

         Somehow 99 Homes got lost in the awards season shuffle, perhaps overshadowed by the similarly themed contender, The Big Short. But while Adam McKay’s unconventional docu-drama looks at the big picture causes of the 2008 crash and its effects on homeowners all over the country, 99 Homes is far narrower in its scope, choosing instead to examine the effects on one man. While this may have worked to the benefit of the film, thanks to a talented cast of actors embodying the roles, they are let down by contrivances in the screenplay that are transparent (and slightly exploitative) in their attempt to insert suspense into the narrative.

 

Freaks of Nature Blu-ray Review

Actors: Ed Westwick, Josh Fadem, Nicholas Braun, Mackenzie Davis, Joan Cusack

Director: Robbie Pickering

Producer: Matt Tolmach

Format: Ultraviolet

Language: English

Subtitles: French, Portuguese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Indonesian, Thai, Spanish, English, Japanese

Dubbed: French, Thai, Spanish, Japanese

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: February 9, 2016

Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019

Run Time: 92 minutes

 

         As often as vampires and other horror monsters have been adopted to teen fantasy narratives (mostly adapted from poorly written YA fiction) or zombie horror is combined with humor (Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse, Warm Bodies, Shaun of the Dead etc), Freaks of Nature is a parody which seems so inevitable in its arrival that it feels somewhat derivative. Everything and the kitchen sink is thrown into the mix, filling the narrative with every usual suspect from the horror genre, while never taking any of it seriously enough for impact beyond pastiche. Even in the gruesomeness of the film’s monster violence (which includes every horror creature, save ghosts) the impact is for humor shock value rather than any intention to inspire fear from the audience.  

 

Labyrinth of Lies Blu-ray Review

Actors: Lukas Miko, Johannes Krisch, Johann Von Bulow, Robert Hunger-Bühler, Hansi Jochmann

Director: Giulio Ricciarelli

Producers: Sabine Lamby, Uli Putz, Jakob Claussen

Format: AC-3, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: German

Subtitles: French, English

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: February 16, 2016

Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019

Run Time: 123 minutes

 

         It seems that every award season there will be at least a few films having to do with the Holocaust, from both Hollywood and various entries into Best Foreign Language Film category. This year it seems to be the Hungarian drama Son of Saul which is receiving the most attention, though Germany’s submission in the category has similar interests. Labyrinth of Lies makes a convincing argument for the widespread ignorance about the wartime atrocities by the German public, or at least an unwillingness to remember by those who were aware. Though it may have been more effective with more courtroom suspense than personal anguish from the protagonist, Labyrinth of Lies provides a respectful record of events for Germany fifteen years after World War II.

 

Paulette Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Bernadette LaFont, Carmen Maura

Director: Jerome Enrico

Format: NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: French

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Cohen Media Group

Release Date: February 9, 2016

Run Time: 87 minutes

 

 

        There could be an entire sub-genre of movies involving senior citizens and marijuana, so I initially thought I knew what to expect from another lighthearted comedy about a struggling widow forced to put her homemaking skills to illegal use. I anticipated another sweet protagonist such as the one in Saving Grace, but instead was shocked to find the title character of Paulette to be a spiteful racist. It is a bold decision which wears off in shock value as the narrative drives this protagonist down a predictable character arc, so that the stakes must be raised into a contrived climax. The overall outline of the film adheres remarkably close to the structure of a Hollywood film, though its direct approach to the discussion of racism that stands apart as something American films are rarely brave enough to tackle. 

Estranged Blu-ray Review

    Actors: Amy Manson, James Cosmo, Craig Conway

Director: Adam Levins

Format: Dolby, NTSC, THX, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated (Not Rated)

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: February 16, 2016

Run Time: 101 minutes

 

 

        I went into Estranged blind, not having seen a trailer or read much about the plot. This is often necessary with films about amnesiac characters, because the suspense is derived by how slowly information is doled out to the audience, often at the same time as it is revealed to the protagonist. This works for Estranged until the secrets are revealed and it becomes a different movie entirely. I would liken it to the sudden tonal shift in David Fincher’s Gone Girl at about the halfway mark, though his film provided far richer payoffs whereas Estranged is content to unravel into a mindless and bloody revenge film.

 

A Ballerina’s Tale DVD Review

     Actors: Misty Copeland

Director: Nelson George

Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR

Studio: MPI HOME VIDEO

DVD Release Date: February 2, 2016

Run Time: 84 minutes

 

 

        Though it raises some valuable questions about society’s ideas of race in the art of ballet, A Ballerina’s Tale is the cinematic equivalent of a vanity piece, for more interested in promoting the brand of Misty Copeland than providing a thoughtful analysis of the questions raised. There is certainly some inspiration to be found in the talented dancer’s rise into fame, but it feels to easily earned in a film about struggles against adversity. Perhaps many of the difficult times were glossed over in favor of moments of inspiration, or it could be that the idea of discrimination is merely a selling point for her image, reason to praise her more than others who have worked just as hard.

 

The Kid Blu-ray Review

      Actors: Charlie Chaplin, Edna Purviance, Jackie Coogan

Director: Charlie Chaplin

Format: Full Screen, NTSC, Restored, Special Edition, Subtitled

Language: English

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: Criterion Collection (Direct)

Release Date: February 16, 2016

Run Time: 52 minutes

        If it were possibly to adequately convey emotion on page as they are within our living flesh, I would have pages upon pages to pour out for Charlie Chaplin’s crucial classic, The Kid. This was the vaudeville performer’s transition from short films to features, but it also conveyed his signature ability to combine pathos with humor, blending the melodrama of a ‘woman’s pictures’ with the silliness of ‘slapstick.’ But The Kid is much more than historically relevant; it also carries deep personal significance for me.

Angry Birds Toons Prize Pack Giveaway

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The Beauty Inside Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Park Seo-Jun, Han Hyo-joo

Director: Jong-Yeol Baek

Format: Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, THX, Widescreen

Language: Korean

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: February 2, 2016

Run Time: 127 minutes

 

 

        At some point, everyone who has been in love (and more importantly, loved) asks the question, “Why me?” What is it in me that deserves to be loved, or is it all surface attraction we use to convince ourselves of a deeper connection? These are the questions asked by The Beauty Inside, a fantasy romance in the tradition of Meet Joe Black, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and the final sequence of the Korean My Sassy Girl. Even though the narrative comes closest to the Brad Pitt vehicles, it is the blending of comedy, melodrama, and fantasy which make the tone align most with the Korean film. Other than revenge thrillers, romantic comedy with a tinge of the surreal is what South Korean cinema seems to do best, both in television and film. While The Beauty Inside doesn’t break any genre molds (adapted from a largely unseen American online series), it is a testament to the filmmaking that its unique ideas come off so unassuming.   

 

From Dusk till Dawn: Season Two Blu-ray Review

     Actors: D.J. Cotrona, Zane Holtz, Eiza Gonzalez

Format: Dolby, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Number of discs: 3

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: Entertainment One

Release Date: February 2, 2016

Run Time: 448 minutes

 

 

        Season one of “From Dusk till Dawn” had the benefit of a pre-established narrative structure lifted from the screenplay Quentin Tarantino wrote for Robert Rodriguez’s 1996 film. Season two doesn’t have this luxury, and it sacrifices much of the simplicity in the first season by creating a new direction for the characters and the plot. Unfortunately, a lot of the fun is also lost along the process, even more than was shed in the transformation from two-hour film to 10-episode seasons. Gone are the clever quips from Tarantino’s dialogue and parallelisms between vampirism and the criminal underworld now have as much subtlety as the fanged characters in direct sunlight.

 

Comin’ At Ya Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Tony Anthony, Gene Quintano, Victoria Abril, Ricardo Palacios, Lewis Gordon

Format: NTSC, 3D

Language: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Mvd Visual

Release Date: January 26, 2016

Run Time: 91 minutes

 

 

        Nearly every blockbuster spectacle is now theatrically distributed with the option of 3D, to the point that it has just become another tool in storytelling. When 3D films first arrived in theaters, they served a less fluid function within the narrative, mostly because it was more gimmick than artistic tool in the 1950s. They were a novelty, utilized as a unique experience to get audiences back into theaters in the aftermath of television’s arrival. Comin’ at Ya! embraced this philosophy and revived the 3D trend for a second wave in the 1980s, though it took a recent advance in home entertainment technology for this unique historical experience to become available for audiences today.

 

Learning to Drive DVD Review

     Actors: Ben Kingsley, Patricia Clarkson, Grace Gummer

Director: Isabel Coixet

Format: Multiple Formats, Color, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Dubbed: Spanish

Region: Region 1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R

Studio: Broad Green Pictures

DVD Release Date: January 19, 2016

Run Time: 90 minutes

 

        Learning to Drive has a familiar set-up, and it doesn’t take long to figure out where the story is heading. It takes remarkably longer for the film to actually get there, stumbling down the well-worn narrative path, easily distracted by unnecessary and redundant sequences. Boiled down to its essence, Learning to Drive is little more than a short film which has been bloated by repeated sequences pounding the transparent metaphor of the title into audiences’ brains. It is a mild and innocuous; not so much bad as it is bland and forgettable, despite the best efforts from its stars.  

 

The New Girlfriend Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Romain Duris, Anais Demoustier, Raphael Personnaz

Director: Francois Ozon

Format: Multiple Formats, Blu-ray, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: French

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Cohen Media Group

Release Date: January 26, 2016

Run Time: 108 minutes

 

        The way that The New Girlfriend speeds through the film’s exposition with a cleverly stylistic and dialogue-free opening sequence, I was certain that filmmaker François Ozon (The Swimming Pool, 8 Women) was rushing in a specific direction. Instead, The New Girlfriend wanders aimlessly throughout a number of different tones and ideas, never committing to any one direction enough to fully deliver. Moments of the narrative seem to have the social sensitivity and relevance of a movie like The Danish Girl, though the peculiarities of sexuality are nearly turned into tools of ominous suspense and mystery, all wrapped up in a series of scenes that awkwardly shift tones between comedy and melodrama.

 

Inside Llewyn Davis Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, T Bone Burnett

Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen

Format: Multiple Formats, AC-3, DTS Surround Sound, Restored, Special Edition, Subtitled, Surround Sound, Widescreen, NTSC

Language: English

Subtitles: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R

Studio: Criterion Collection (Direct)

Release Date: January 19, 2016

Run Time: 104 minutes

 

 

        Every frame of Inside Llewyn Davis is a near miracle in visual storytelling, matched by the Coen Brothers’ signature subtext-filled witty narrative. It is implanted with a whimsical style of humor that only Joel and Ethan could accomplish in a film about the bleak cyclical existence of a struggling artist. Harsh realities about the music industry and real-world references are miraculously blended with touches of surrealism and clever parallels to classic literature. Inside Llewyn Davis has a deceptively simplistic storyline, but the actual filmmaking is richly layered with meaning and subtext, providing hours of introspection and analysis beyond the 104-minute running-time.