New to View: June 4
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, June 4, unless otherwise noted:
A Star Is Born: Special Encore Edition (Blu-ray + DVD + digital)
Details: 2018, Warner Home Video
Rated: R, language, nudity, sexual content, substance abuse
This quick reissue of one of last year’s most popular movies features an extended cut of the movie, adding 11 minutes — most of which is devoted to musical performances — to the original 136-minute running time.
Like earlier versions of the story, the movie follows the downward trajectory of a star — in this version, musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) — and the rise of a powerful singer, Ally (Lady Gaga).
The additional footage includes Ally singing to Jack during the wedding sequence and a scene showing Jackson and Ally collaborating on a new song.
This edition also includes the theatrical version of the movie.
If you are a fan of “A Star Is Born,” you can appreciate and enjoy this new edition.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 2.40:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos TrueHD and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles; DVD: 2.40:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and English 5.1 descriptive audio; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (Blu-ray + DVD + digital)
Release date: May 21
Details: 2019, Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Rated: PG, action, mild rude humor
The lowdown: In the last of this animated DreamWorks trilogy, the young Viking, Hiccup, and his Night Fury dragon, Toothless, discover a female Light Fury, which coincides with the darkest threat their Viking village has ever faced.
Hiccup and Toothless must travel to a hidden world that was thought to be only a myth. Here, they begin to discover their true destinies as dragon and rider unite to fight to protect everything they love.
Critics seemed to love the movie, giving it a 91 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos and 2.0 Dolby digital DVS and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital Plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles; DVD: 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen picture; English, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and English 2.0 Dolby digital DVS; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include an alternate opening, two animated shorts, deleted scenes, a Dragon Sheep Chronicles that looks at the method used to protect sheep from dragons, a “Welcome to the New Berk” featurette, a “Deck of Dragons” that introduces four new dragons featurette, a visit to Astrid who sums up the entire trilogy in 60 seconds, a commentary track, filmmakers and cast members reveal what it was like to evolve their characters, a look at designing a dragon and a look at an epic villain.
Lost in Space: The Complete First Season (Blu-ray)
Details: 2018, Fox Home Entertainment
Rated: TV-PG
The lowdown: A three-disc set that offers the complete first season of the Netflix reboot of the campy 1960s’ television series.
This new version is technologically more advanced and adult than its predecessor, but the bones of the plot remain the same: the Robinson family is heading to a space colony when their ship is thrown off course.
They land on a dangerous alien planet, where they must come together and cooperate to survive.
In this update, the villainous Dr. Smith is a woman, portrayed by the always interesting Parker Posey.
Another revision is to the robot, who is not simply a pet-playmate for young Will Robinson.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.00:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include “No Place to Hide,” a colorized unaired pilot from the original series; deleted scenes; a “Bill and Max: Lost and Found in Space” featurette; Bill Mumy visits the new Jupiter 2; a look at designing the robot; and a “Lost in Space” sizzle.
Blue Velvet: Special Edition (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 28
Details: 1986, The Criterion Collection
Rated: R, violence, language, nudity, sexual content
The lowdown: David Lynch’s thriller looks at the decay and violence that lies beneath the surface of small-town America.
The story centers on Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan), home from college, who finds a severed human ear in a field.
Jeffrey is obsessed with solving the mystery of the ear. His search draws him to another amateur sleuth, Sandy Williams (Laura Dern). Together, they focus on lounge singer Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini), which draws the ire of psychopathic gangster Frank Booth (a very animated Dennis Hopper), who will do anything to hold onto Dorothy.
The movie is powerful and intense, with some disturbing images and an unforgettable turn by Hopper.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: About 53 minutes of deleted scenes and alternate takes; a feature-length look at the making of the movie filmed on-set during production; “Mysteries of Love,” a 70-minute documentary from 2002 on the making of the movie; a 2017 interview with composer Angelo Badalamenti; a 2019 documentary on the making of the movie featuring crew members and visits to the shooting locations; Lynch reading from a 2016 book, “Room to Dream,” that he co-authored with Kristine McKenna; and excerpts by McKenna from the book comprise the major bonus materials.
Screwball
Details: 2019, Greenwich Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A documentary by filmmaker Billy Corben that examines the doping scandal that rocked Major League Baseball and involved such players as Alex Rodriquez and Manny Ramirez.
The film travels to South Florida where steroid peddler Anthony Bosch freely speaks about his “health clinic” and his various clients, most notably Rodriguez.
The movie looks at Bosch’s mob connections, his financial dealings, his cocaine habit as well as the odd behavior or Rodriguez.
While many baseball executives would like to bury this era, Corben uses the movie to question the ethics of professional sports and athletes.
Technical aspects: 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
The Andromeda Strain (Blu-ray)
Details: 1971, Arrow Video
Rated: G
The lowdown: Robert Wise directed this adaptation of Michael Crichton’s best-selling novel about an alien virus that has the potential to wipe out mankind unless it is checked.
The movie is centered in a small Arizona town near where a satellite has crashed. Shortly thereafter, all the townspeople — with the exception of a baby and an old derelict — are wiped out.
A team of scientists are sent to the town to discover the source of the virus and eliminate it before it spreads.
The scientists have to solve the mystery within a certain timeframe to prevent the government from nuking the area.
The cast includes Arthur Hill, James Olson, David Wayne, Kate Reid and Paula Kelly.
The movie, though suspenseful, is plodding at times.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English LPCM audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a commentary track, an appreciation of the film by author-critic Kim Newman, an archival featurette on the making of the movie and an appreciation of Crichton.
I’ll Take Your Dead (Blu-ray)
Details: 2018, Scream Factory
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A horror-thriller about William, a farmer whose grounds in the country have become a dumping ground for the bodies of those killed in gang-related murders in a nearby city.
His daughter, Gloria, has become used to seeing shady characters dropping off corpses. And she believes that some of those killed are now haunting their house.
Circumstances change after William realizes that a woman, whose body has been dumped at the house, is not dead.
As the gang war escalates and more bodies are transported to the area, William patches up the woman and holds her against her will until he can decide what to do with her.
Just as they are about to come to an understanding, the woman’s would-be killer learns she’s alive and set out to finish the job.
The movie had a limited theatrical release.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include deleted scenes, a behind-the-scenes featurette and a script-to-screen comparison.
Woman at War
Details: 2018, Magnolia Home Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This Icelandic drama centers on Halla, a 50-year-old quiet and independent woman.
It seems Halla leads a double life as an environmental activist known as “The Woman of the Mountain.”
She covertly wages a one-person war on the local aluminum industry, with her activities ranging from petty vandalism to industrial sabotage.
Her actions put a halt to the negotiations between the Icelandic government and the corporation building a new aluminum smelter.
As she begins planning for her biggest and most audacious operation, she receives a letter that her application to adopt a child has been accepted and that there is a little girl waiting for her in Ukraine.
She decides to give up her double life, but before doing so, she plans one final spectacular blow to deal the aluminum industry a crippling blow.
The movie features a strong performance by Halldora Geirharosdotti and sure-handed direction by her frequent collaborator, Benedikt Erlingsson.
Technical aspects: 2.35:1 widescreen picture; Icelandic 5.1 Dolby digital; English subtitles.
Woody Guthrie All-Star Tribute Concert 1970
Release date: June 7
Details: 1970, MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A superstar lineup including Joan Baez, Peter Seeger, Richie Havens, Odetta and Woody Guthrie’s son, Arlo, perform in this 1970 concert at the Hollywood Bowl that celebrates the work and activism of the legendary folk singer and songwriter.
The event was a fundraiser for the California Chapter of The Committee to Combat Huntington’s Disease, now known as the Hereditary Disease Foundation.
Woody Guthrie died of Huntington’s disease in 1967.
The concert also features narration by Peter Fonda and Will Geer.
The songs performed at the concert include “This Train Is Bound for Glory,” “Pretty Boy Floyd,” the classic “This Land Is Your Land,” “The Sinking of the Reuben James,” “Nine Hundred Miles” and “John Hardy.”
The DVD is a wonderful tribute to a performer who touched many lives with his music and his dedication to the common man.
Technical aspects: Dolby digital stereo.
Don’t miss: Bonus aspects include Arlo Guthrie and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott talking about the rehearsal and the concert and three never-before-seen songs performed by Baez, Odetta and Elliott.
Von Richthofen and Brown (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 21
Details: 1971, Kino Lorber
Rated: PG-13, war action violence
The lowdown: Roger Corman directed this high-flying World War I drama about two pilots who were total opposites.
Baron Manfred von Richthofen, Germany’s legendary Red Baron, was the ace of aces, having shot down about 80 pilots. He was an honorable, aristocratic knight of the skies.
In contrast, Canadian wheat farmer Roy Brown was not interested in honor. He simply wanted to kill the enemy and keep himself alive.
When these two went plane-to-plane, only one would survive — and as any student of history and WWI buff knows — it wasn’t von Richthofen.
John Phillip Law portrays the Red Baron and Don Stroud is Brown. The supporting cast includes Barry Primus, Corin Redgrave, Hurd Hatfield, Stephen McHattie and Ferdy Mayne.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio.
Don’t miss: An interview with Corman is the main extra.
Double Impact (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 28
Details: 1991, MVD Rewind Collection
Rated: R, violence, language, sexual situations
The lowdown: A double-dose of Jean-Claude Van Damme is the order of the day in this action thriller.
The “Muscles from Brussels” plays twin brothers Chad and Alex Wagner, who were separated after the murder of their parents.
They grow up continents apart, with Chad becoming a Beverly Hills fitness instructor and Alex is a smuggler in Hong Kong.
What they have in common — as they discover when fate brings them together — is that both are world-class fighting machines.
Together, they decide to avenge the murder of their parents by using their martial-arts skills to chop and shoot their way to uncover the criminal who made them orphans.
Van Damme fans will enjoy the mayhem.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital stereo (LPCM) and Spanish 2.0 Dolby digital; English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a two-part making of documentary, a two-part, feature-length introspective with Van Damme, director Sheldon Lettich and other cast and crew members, deleted and extended scenes, an anatomy of a scene featurette, a behind-the-scenes featurette from 1991, 1991 cast and crew interviews, promotional and B-roll clips and a collectible mini-poster.
Lady Scarface (DVD-R)
Release date: May 14
Details: 1941, Warner Archive Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Judith Anderson’s most recognizable movie role was as the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rebecca.”
On stage, she portrayed such powerful women as Medea and Lady MacBeth.
In “Lady Scarface,” Anderson is Slade, a criminal mastermind who rules the Chicago underworld, and is behind a series of daring and deadly robberies.
Hot on her trail are the police, led by Lt. Bill Mason (Dennis O’Keefe), who, like everyone else, assumes Slade is a man.
But reporter Ann Rogers (Frances Neal), who continually is at Mason’s heels, gets a clue that helps crack the case — an envelope with some of Slade’s money and addressed to a “Mary Jordan.”
Mason and Rogers head to New York to set a trap for Slade, only to find a young Mary Jordan, who claims to be a newlywed and has no knowledge of Slade.
In the end, though, the master criminal is exposed.
The release is a made-on-demand DVD-R from the Warner Archive Collection, and can be found at www.wb.com/warnerarchive or other online retailers.
Technical aspects: 1.37:1 (4×3) full-screen picture; English Dolby audio monaural.
Shoah: Four Sisters (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 7
Details: 2017, Cohen Film Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This documentary, filmed more than 40 years ago by filmmaker Claude Lanzmann, was collected in preparation for what would become the late documentarian’s Holocaust masterpiece, the 9½-hour “Shoah.”
Lanzmann, who died in July 2018, filmed the recollections of four Jewish women survivors, letting each tell their stories. These Eastern European women are Ruth Elias from Ostravia, Czechoslovakia; Paula Biren from Lodz, Poland; Ada Lichtman from Krakow, Poland; and Hannah Marton from Cluj or Kolozsvar in Transylvania, Romania.
These women are witnesses to the barbarity and cruelty of the Nazis and tell of their own suffering and of that they witnessed to others.
They are candid in their statements about what they saw and their feelings about their experiences.
The film runs 273 minutes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; French, German, English and Hebrew 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: The major extra is a conversation with philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy moderated by Deborah Lipstadt at the Streicker Center in New York City.
South of Suez (DVD-R)
Release date: May 14
Details: 1940, Warner Archive Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Character actor George Tobias was a staple at Warner Bros. in the 1940s, usually playing second banana to stars such as James Cagney, Gary Cooper or George Raft.
He often brought a comic persona to his characters.
In “South of Suez,” however, we get to see a meaner and darker Tobias. He plays Eli Snedeker, who runs his diamond mine like a dictator.
His chief engineer, John Gamble, played by George Brent, is sick of Snedeker’s sadistic treatment of his workers. He also is tired of fending off the advances of Snedeker’s wife, played by Lee Patrick.
Snedeker’s attempt to buy the mine of rival Roger Smythe (British character actor Miles Mander), is quashed when Gamble throws in with Smythe.
The new partners soon discover a fabulous diamond, the Star of Africa. They make plans to sell it and their other diamonds in Alexandria, but Snedeker has other ideas. He strikes, framing Gamble for murder.
Gamble escapes and, to prove his innocence, he disguises himself as a wealthy financier, John Bradley. He tracks down Smythe’s daughter, Katherine (Brenda Marshall), to give her the Star of Africa.
The problem is that the diamond is the main exhibit in the murder case against Gamble. Don’t worry, though, everything works out in the final reel.
Justice is served and love blooms in this made-on-demand DVD-R from the Warner Archive Collection. The movie can be ordered at www.wb.com/warnerarchive or other Internet sellers.
Technical aspects: 1.37:1 (4×3) full-screen picture; English Dolby audio monaural.
The Bostonians (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 21
Details: 1984, Cohen Film Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: The filmmaking team of producer Ismail Merchant, director James Ivory and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala adapted another Henry James novel for the big screen with strong results.
The movie is set in post-Civil War Boston and stars a powerful trio of Academy Award-winning actresses — Jessica Tandy, Vanessa Redgrave and Linda Hunt — in a story of political intrigue and forbidden romance.
The cast also includes Christopher Reeve, who portrays a Southern lawyer in love with Vererna Tarrant (Madeleine Potter), an activist who also is the infatuation of Olive Chancellor (Redgrave).
The film is a study of the impact of women suffrage on society as well as a look at late 19th-century culture and manners.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus offerings include an interview with Ivory and a Conversation on the Quad with Ivory.
The Gorilla Man (DVD-R)
Release date: May 14
Details: 1943, Warner Archive Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: John Loder stars in the World War II espionage thriller about Capt. Craig Killian (Loder), a British agent wounded during a nighttime commando raid.
He returns to England and is sent to the closest hospital, a private sanitarium, for treatment of his wounds.
Little does he realize that the sanitarium is actually a Nazi front, run by the group of spies whose secrets Killian discovered on his mission.
Killian, dubbed “the Gorilla Man” for his spectacular climbing ability, demands to be released so he can forward his information to his superiors.
But the doctors refuse to release him. Killian escapes, and the Nazi agents try to discredit him by, first, claiming he has a brain injury and is delusional, and secondly, by framing him for murder.
This fast-paced, 64-minute feature was helmed by legendary B-movie director D. Ross Lederman.
The release is a made-on-demand DVD-R from the Warner Archive Collection and can be found at www.wb.com/warnerarchive or other online sellers.
Technical aspects: 1.37:1 (4×3) full-screen picture; English Dolby audio monaural.
The Unity of Heroes (Blu-ray + DVD)
Release date: May 28
Details: 2018, Well Go USA Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Vincent Zhao returns to the role of Wong Fei Hung, 24 years after his late appearance in “Once Upon a Time in China IV.”
In this outing, our hero must contend with corrupt foreigners who are distributing a drug more dangerous than opium throughout the country.
The movie will please martial arts fans as it is loaded with action and feels as comfortable as an old pair of slippers.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.30:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Mandarin 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English and Chinese subtitles; DVD: 2.30:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Mandarin 5.1 Dolby digital; English and Chinese subtitles.
The Brady Bunch TV & Movie Collection
Details: 1969-2002, CBS DVD-Paramount Home Entertainment
Rated: Not rated & PG-13
The lowdown: If you grew up with or are a fan of “The Brady Bunch,” then this 31-disc collection is your pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Not only does the set contain the entire TV series, which ran from 1969 to 1974, but it also contains “The Brady Kids” animated series that aired from 1972-73, “The Bradys,” which aired in 1990 and “The Brady Brides” from 1981.
Also included are the five Brady movies — “A Very Brady Christmas” (1988, not rated), “The Brady Bunch Movie” (1995, PG-13), “A Very Brady Sequel (1996, PG-13), “Growing Up Brady” (2000, PG-13) and “The Brady Bunch in the White House” (2002, PG-13).
A variety of actors appear, including Robert Reed, Florence Henderson and the young performers from the original series in “A Very Brady Christmas” and “The Brady Brides”; and Gary Cole and Shelley Long portray Mike and Carol Brady in “The Brady Bunch Movie,” “A Very Brady Sequel” and “The Brady Bunch in the White House.”
“Growing Up Brady” is a made-for-TV movie based on the book co-written by former Brady kid Barry Williams.
So, you have hours and hours of options to keep you occupied and cheer you up.
Technical aspects: 4:3 full-screen picture and 16:9 picture (“The Brady Bunch Movie” and “A Very Brady Sequel”); English Dolby digital monaural and 2.0 Dolby digital; English closed captioned and SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a featurette on the TV series and commentaries on a few episodes.
The New Scooby-Doo Movies: The (Almost) Complete Collection (Blu-ray)
The Best of the New Scooby-Doo Movies: The Lost Episodes
Details: 1972-73, Warner Home Video
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Two sets of Scooby-Doo adventures comprise these offerings.
The Blu-ray features 23 spooky adventures as the Mystery Inc. gang join forces with such stars as Don Knotts, The Three Stooges, Laurel & Hardy, Tim Conway, “Mama” Cass Elliott, Dick Van Dyke, Davy Jones, Batman and Robin, the Harlem Globetrotters, Jerry Reed, Sonny and Cher and Phyllis Diller.
The DVD features eight adventures that also are featured on the Blu-ray.
Kids will enjoy all the comedy and capers that these sets offer.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English and French 2M Dolby digital; English SDH and French subtitles; DVD: 1.78:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English and French Dolby digital monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras on the Blu-ray include “The Hanna-Barbera Kennel Club Roasts Scooby-Doo,” a featurette on the Harlem Globetrotters showing Scooby some new tricks and a featurette spotlighting Daphne and Velma.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
All You Ever Wished For (Omnibus Entertainment)
Cherry Grove Stories (DVD & VOD) (Breaking Glass Pictures)
The Odds (DVD & digital download & VOD) (ShineHouse Group)
Rondo (DVD & VOD) (Artsploitation Films)
Sara Stein — From Berlin to Tel Aviv: The Complete Series (Omnibus Entertainment)
Trapped Alive (Blu-ray) (Arrow Video)
The Venture Bros.: Season 7 (Blu-ray & DVD) (Warner Home Video)
FOR KIDS
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie (Shout! Factory)
Paw Patrol: Jungle Rescues (Nickelodeon-Paramount Home Entertainment)
DIGITAL DOWNLOADS, STREAMING or VOD
Game of Thrones: Season 8 (HBO Home Entertainment, May 29)
The Bastards Fig Tree (Dark Sky Pictures)
The Brink (Magnolia Home Entertainment)
Extracurricular Activities (Lotus Entertainment)
I Am Duran (Universal Studios Home Entertainment)
Us (Universal Studios Home Entertainment)
Abduction (Shout! Studios, June 7)
Orange Is the New Black: Season Six (Lionsgate Home Entertainment, June 10)
Midsomer Murders: 20th Anniversary documentary (Acorn TV, June 10)
Straight Forward (Acorn TV, June 10)
Coming next week: Captain Marvel
I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow me on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook. My movie reviews also can be found at Rottentomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.