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That Time of The Week: New DVD & Blu-Ray Releases The Week of 7/28

Italian Crime.  Real American Heroes.  An Alternate Justice League.  Classic Marilyn and Elvis.  Angry Beavers.

Fire up that queue and prep that shopping cart.  It’s that time of the week.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation

Paramount / Released 7/30/13

Set up to take the fall for a terrible crime they didn’t commit, Roadblock (Dwayne Johnson), Duke (Channing Tatum) and the other G.I. Joes must once again face their mortal enemy, COBRA, as well as dangerous new threats operating within the government. When all else fails, one option remains: Retaliation. Roadblock steps up to lead a new team (including Bruce Willis) on this explosive adventure.  Extras include featurettes, commentary and deleted scenes.

Last Word:  Bloated and criminally unimaginative, GI Joe: Retaliation simply doesn’t work because more often than not, it’s dull.  There is little or no chemistry amongst the cast and the should be impressive set pieces (such as the sword fight on the side of the mountain) are too long and unengaging.  Also missing from this installment is any sense of fun.  Bruce Willis is sorely miscast simply because every moment that he’s on screen, it’s too obvious that he has no interest in being there.  For viewers who grew up with the franchise and wanted to embrace the nostalgia keep in mind that there’s more depth in the animated series and far more creativity playing with the figures in the backyard.  Hopefully the inevitable third film will reboot the franchise with a better sense of direction and a much needed sense of fun.

Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox

Warner Bros / Released 7/30/13

We all wish for the chance to go back in time and change the things, for The Flash, that coveted chance is within reach. He traverses time to right a violent, decades-past crime against his mother, but the ripples of his good intentions prove disastrous, as a fractured, alternate reality now exists in place of the familiar one. Stumbling through this twisted reality where even Superman is nowhere to be found, The Flash seeks the trusted wisdom of Batman, only to find a grittier, more violent Dark Knight in his place. Together with the help of Cyborg, they race to restore the continuity of Flash’s original timeline while this new world is ravaged by a fierce war between Wonder Woman’s Amazons and the Atlanteans, led by a battle hardened Aquaman.  Extras include commentary, featurettes, four bonus cartoons, digital comic and a sneak peek at Justice League: War.

Last Word: Historically the DC Animated Films have been some of the best interpretations of the iconic characters.  All of that comes to a halting stop with The Flashpoint Paradox, a violent, angry film that adapts the Flashpoint mini-series that closed the traditional comic book DC Universe.  The past of The Flash has been altered by nemesis Professor Zoom and we find ourselves in a parallel reality; one where Thomas Wayne became Batman after son Bruce was killed, where Kal-El has been held captive and studied in a laboratory and where Aquaman and Wonder Woman’s kingdoms are at war.  

The film is well done, with an all star cast of voices including Kevin Conroy, Nathan Fillion,  Justin Chambers, Kevin McKidd,  Michael B. Jordan, C. Thomas Howell, Cary Elwes, Sam Daly, Danny Huston, Vanessa Marshall, Ron Perlman and Dana Delany.  The animation is also impressive, but it’s the story that just simply doesn’t work.  As a one off, it’s fun, but like the comic book series itself, it’s just a lead in to the New 52 reboot that, in my opinion, has ruined the rich mythology.  And already confirmed is the next animated film, Justice League: War, based on the flagship New 52 series.  Yawn.

For longtime fan it’s extremely well done, albeit not in a direction I care for and make no mistake, this is not a film for children.  And I, for one, think that it’s a shame.


Banshee: Season One

HBO Studios / Released 7/30/13

From the creator of True Blood, this exciting new Cinemax action drama charts the twists and turns that follow Lucas Hood (Antony Starr), an ex-convict who improbably becomes sheriff of a rural, Amish-area town while searching for a woman he last saw 15 years ago, when he gave himself up to police to let her escape after a jewel heist. Living in Banshee under an assumed name, Carrie Hopewell (Ivana Milicevic) is now married to the local DA, has two children (one of whom may be Lucas’), and is trying desperately to keep a low profile – until Lucas arrives to shake up her world and rekindle old passions. Complicating matters is the fact that Banshee is riddled by corruption, with an Amish overlord, Kai Proctor (Ulrich Thomsen), brutally building a local empire of drugs, gambling and graft. With the help of a boxer-turned-barkeeper named Sugar Bates (Frankie Faison), Lucas is able to stay on even footing with Kai and his thugs, and even manages to bring a measure of tough justice to Banshee. But eventually, Lucas’ appetite for pulling heists pulls him and Carrie into a dangerous cauldron of duplicity, exacerbated when Mr. Rabbit (Ben Cross), the NY mobster they once ripped off, closes in with vengeance on his mind.  Extras include, prequel videos, featurettes, commentaries, deleted scenes, comic book, a two episode sampler for Strike Back and more.

Last Word: Like a great pulp novel, Banshee twists and turns unexpectedly at every opportunity with a highly interconnected and absorbing plot.  Some series don’t do well with minute examination; Banshee is one of those shows.  If you analyze it, it’s a bit silly.  If you binge watch (as I did) it’s absorbing, thrilling and addictive. 

The Incredible Melting Man

Shout! Factory / Released 7/30/13

Colonel Steve West has just returned from an incredible history-making flight to Saturn when he is hospitalized with an ailment that baffles the entire medical community. His flesh is melting and to stay alive he must consume human flesh and blood. The infected Colonel West escapes from the doctors’ supervision and hides in the surrounding community where he begins to hunt for human flesh. Who can stop the Incredible Melting Man?

Featuring makeup effects from six-time Best Makeup Oscar winner Rick Baker (An American Werewolf In London, Ed Wood, Men In Black) and written and directed by William Sachs (Galaxina, Exterminator 2), The Incredible Melting Man delivers the gelatinous goods while humanizing a character rapidly losing his humanity. In short: it s bloody good! Extras include commentary and trailers.

Last Word: Splattertastic!  Horribly acted with a script cobbled together from a half dozen better films, The Incredible Melting Man dazzles with some truly fantastic special effects from masters Rick Baker and Greg Cannom.  This familiar sci-fi trope, this film deservedly received the MST3K treatment.  The creepy moments permeate the film, but it’s the effects work that will have you examining the film frame by frame.  Watch it with friends and prepare to mock or by yourself with a few drinks; it’s fun.

The Angry Beavers: The Complete Series

Shout! Factory / Released 7/30/13

Watch out, world! Here come Norbert Foster and Daggett Doofus Beaver!  When twin beavers Norbert and Daggett leave their home for a house on a lake and begin living the lifestyle of wild and crazy bachelors, hilarity and chronic dishevelment is bound to ensue… And while living on a lake in the middle of nowhere sounds tranquil enough, the Beavers have a knack for getting into some very odd situations. Dag and Norb encounter everything from wacko government scientists and a swamp witch to the dreaded stinky toe and even evil, mind-controlling pond scum!  Includes all 62 episodes from all four seasons.

Last Word: This was no nostalgia trip for me, but a pleasant introduction to a charming, fun and highly entertaining animated series.  There’s a whole generation of Nick kids who grew up with this and this release will more than satisfy their tween flashbacks.  Highly recommended.

20th Century Fox / Released 7/30/13

Niagara 60th Anniversary
Marilyn Monroe sizzles in this tense, masterful thriller. While the seductive Rose Loomis (Monroe) and her husband George (Joseph Cotten) vacation in a charming guest cabin at spectacular Niagara Falls, Rose and her lover plot to kill George. But things go terribly wrong, and soon, an innocent honeymooning couple find themselves swept up in the crime.  Includes trailers.

Bus Stop
Marilyn Monroe gives and acclaimed performance in the romantic classic directed by Joshua Logan that features Don Murray in his Oscar-Nominated role! When Bo (Murray) a naive rodeo rider, meets saloon performer Cherie (Monroe), he falls head over boots in love. After her literally lassoes Cherie onto a bus headed for Montana, where he plans to marry her, Cherie escapes of the bus – smack in the middle of a snowstorm. But if Bo can learn to reign in his emotions, he might convince Cherie to warm up to him in this rewarding film.  Includes trailers.

Last Word:  One of the most iconic actresses in the history of film, Marilyn Monroe does something a bit different in these two films.  In the thriller Niagara, she’s playing femme fatale, planning the murder of her husband, Cotten, with the assistance of her lover.  Monroe is absolutely stunning in this film and the cinematography and pacing are absorbing.  In Bus Stop, Monroe delivers an amazing rendition of “That Old Black Magic” and this mediocre film is elevated by the performances.  Monroe’s sadness and vulnerability i captivating.  While neither film is among her best, they are both recommended.

Under the Bed

Xlrator / Released 7/30/13

Every child knows about the monster under the bed Neal Hausman s mistake was trying to fight it. Neal (Jonny Weston) has returned from a two-year exile following his tragic attempt to defeat the monster, only to find his father ticking ever closer to a breakdown, a new stepmother who fears him, and his little brother Paul (Gattlin Griffith), terrorized by the same monster. While Neal and Paul work together to try and fight the nocturnal menace, their parents are taking desperate measures to get the family back to normal. With no support from their parents, the brothers have nothing to rely on but each other, and courage beyond belief. 

Love Me Tender

20th Century Fox / Released 7/30/13

Moviegoers were introduced to Elvis Presley in this film set during the dying hours of the Civil War. Elvis sings four songs, including the title song.  The year is 1865, and the three Confederate Reno brothers don’t know the war has ended. They manage to steal a Union Army payroll, and head for home with the money. While Vance (Richard Egan) can think only of the love of his life, Cathy (Debra Paget), it turns out that the brothers have been reported dead, and Cathy has married their youngest brother Clint (Elvis Presley). Vance accepts this until he learns that Cathy still loves him. To complicate things, the U.S. Army knows of the brothers’ theft and is hunting them down.  Extras include featurettes and commentary by noted Elvis historian Jerry Schilling.

Last Word:  Not my favorite Elvis film, but his first and the singer manages to carry the film despite his inexperience as an actor.  The period piece has it’s fair share of melodrama (Civil War musical, anyone?)  but Presley’s natural charisma and magnetism carry the film.  Recommended.

The Demented

Anchor Bay / Released 7/30/13

Sarah Butler, Kayla Ewell, Richard Kohnke and Michael Welch star in a different breed of zombie shocker: Six college friends head out for a weekend getaway at a Louisiana bayou estate. But when rogue terrorists launch a missile attack on the Gulf Coast, a new kind of horror is unleashed. Now a biological weapon has infected the entire region with a rabies-like virus that turns the local townspeople into fast-moving, rage-crazed, flesh-chomping hordes. The area is quarantined. The madness is spreading. The carnage is out of control. And for six friends trapped in a nightmare of insane violence, how far will they be forced to go to survive?

Between Us

Montery Video / Released 7/30/13

In this darkly comedic drama, two couples reunite over two incendiary evenings where anything can happen. Grace and Carlo are a newly married New York couple who visit their old friends Sharyl and Joel in their huge Midwestern home. Despite their wealth, the hosts are in a bitterly destructive marriage. A few years later, the couples reunite in New York, only to find tables turned.

Fernando Di Leo: The Italian Crime Collection: Vol. 2

Raro Video USA / Released 7/30/13

Fernando Di Leo was a prolific filmmaker who explored the political extremism and mafia corruption in Italy during the 1970’s. Master of garish, intricately plotted, ultra-violent stories about pimps and petty gangsters, Di Leo has perfected the genre with an uncanny accuracy.

Di Leo’s films demonstrate the degradation of the working classes and how the mafia corrupted them. Though he slipped out of public consciousness after his death in 2003, his works have been revived and shown at the Tate Modern in London and The Venice Film Festival where Quentin Tarantino admitted that Di Leo truly inspired him to make gangster films.

Contained in this box set:

Shoot First, Die Later

Luc Merenda gives the performance of his career as a highly regarded police detective who is taking syndicate money in exchange for departmental favors. His father, a simple man, also works for the department but at a lower level; he isn’t jealous of his son, but rather proud of him, little knowing that he’s a crooked cop. A series of events leads the young detective to ask his father for a favor (he wants a certain police report that is desired by the syndicate) and it doesn’t take long for the detective’s father to realize his son is on the take, which leads to numerous complications.

Kidnap Syndicate

Colella is a hard working but struggling mechanic who raises his son Fabrizio after his wife passed away. Fabrizio is friends with Antonio, son of the extremely rich but incredibly repugnant businessman Filippini. When criminals kidnap Antonio in front of school, the brave Fabrizio tries to prevent this and the nervous kidnappers pull him into the car as well. They demand a huge ransom for the boys, but the pigheaded Filippini refuses to give in to criminals and put the lives of the boys at stake, whilst Colella and even the police commissioner can’t do anything. Colella goes after them, but soon stumbles upon a very complex and well-protected network.

Naked Violence

A devastating, brutal, raw example of Di Leo’s early works, Naked Violence is about how a teacher of an evening school for youngsters with social problems is brutally raped and murdered right in her classroom. The only suspects are the kids and the police are surprised to find them all quietly in their homes instead of having escaped. There is a reason. Each kid declares that he did not participate in the brutality but was forced to watch. The police officer Lamberti has reasons to believe that someone, an adult, has orchestrated the kids whose name they are too afraid to mention.

Extras include five documentaries and fully illustrated booklet containing critical analysis.

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