New to View: April 14
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, April 14, unless otherwise noted:
Just Mercy (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2019, Warner Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, thematic material, racial epithets
The lowdown: In an ideal world, the justice system is blind and balanced so that all individuals, no matter their race, religion, nationality, ethnicity, age or gender, are treated equally and fairly.
Unfortunately, we do not live in such a world; thus, inequities — especially those influenced by race and economic status — are prevalent.
“Just Mercy” is a powerful indictment of such a perversion in the legal machinery and how one young lawyer took on the establishment to correct a grievous wrong.
Michael B. Jordan stars as Bryan Stevenson, a Harvard Law School graduate, whose idealism beckons him to Monroeville, Ala., to appeal the murder conviction of Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx), a black man on death row for the 1986 killing of an 18-year-old white girl.
The movie, based on true events, follows Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), as he battles to prove McMillian’s innocence and reveal the prejudice in the Monroe County sheriff’s department and its district attorney that led to McMillian’s arrest and conviction.
“Just Mercy,” directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, and based on a book by Stevenson, emits an old-fashioned vibe that recalls another movie set in the area — “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
The movie shows how, even in the 1980s, deep-rooted antiblack sentiment and flagrant discrimination still permeated many areas of South.
Cretton and his cast bring such strong sincerity to the project that its impact is deeply felt despite its familiarity.
At the end, “Just Mercy” will make you think about judicial abuses that have robbed many people — the vast majority of whom are minorities — of their rights as American citizens.
A majority of critics were moved by the film, giving it an 83 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos and TrueHD, English Dolby digital descriptive audio, English French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus features include a making of featurette, a look at the Equal Justice Initiative, deleted scenes and a “This Moment Deserves” featurette.
Sixteen Candles (Blu-ray)
Details: 1984, Arrow Video
Rated: PG
The lowdown: Writer-director John Hughes’ debut movie displayed his knack of exploring the complicated world of teenagers as well as making a star of Molly Ringwald.
Ringwald plays Samantha Baker, whose 16th birthday is overshadowed by her family’s focus on the upcoming wedding of Samantha’s older sister.
Adding to Samantha’s troubles is her embarrassment that her crush, high school dreamboat Jake Ryan (Michael Schoeffling) has found a “sex quiz” filled out by Samantha in which she details how she is saving herself for Jake.
To pile on more, Samantha is being hounded by a nerd (Anthony Michael Hall) who refuses to take no for an answer.
As her special day winds into the night, it seems all her birthday wishes could still come true.
Hughes places the rude and crude laughs of previous teen comedies and places them in the intimate world of a teenage life crisis.
More than 30 years later, the movie remains a timeless and charming experience. The Blu-ray features the theatrical and extended versions of the movie.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a “home video” soundtrack prepared for VHS and laserdisc releases; an audio interview with casting director Jackie Burch on casting the movie; a conversation with cast members Gedde Watanabe and Deborah Pollack; interviews with cast member John Kapelos, camera operator Gary Kibbe and composer Ira Newborn; a video essay by writer Sonya Roberts looking at the movie from a contemporary feminist perspective; an archival documentary celebrating the film; and a BD-ROM: PDF of the original shooting script.
The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 7
Details: 1935, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: In the 1930s, Gary Cooper was Paramount Pictures’ premier star, starring in adventure films, Westerns, romantic dramas and comedies.
Kino Lorber is spotlighting Cooper’s talents by offering new Blu-ray releases of some of his best known and most popular films from that era.
First up is “The Lives of a Bengal Lancer,” a historical drama directed by Henry Hathaway that is one of those sagas about the British Empire during its heyday in India.
Cooper plays Lt. McGregor who, along with Franchot Tone’s Forsythe, are put in charge of newcomer Lt. Stone (Richard Cromwell), their commanding officer’s inexperienced son.
The tense relationship between the impressionable young lieutenant and his crusty, by-the-book father creates problems, especially when Stone is captured by enemy tribesmen who are planning a revolt against the British forces.
McGregor and Forsythe are captured after a failed rescue attempt. Later, the two make a successful escape during a pitched battle in which Stone rises to the occasion and becomes a hero.
The movie features a top-notch supporting cast including Sir Guy Standing, C. Aubrey Smith, J. Carrol Naish, Akim Tamiroff and Douglas Dumbrille.
The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards, winning two for the now-defunct category of best assistant director, two of which were awarded to Clem Beauchomp and Paul Wing.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: The major extra is a commentary track by film historian Eddy Von Mueller.
Beau Geste (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 7
Details: 1939, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: William A. Wellman directed this epic adventure about the three Geste brothers, played by Gary Cooper, Ray Milland and Robert Preston, who join the French Foreign Legion after the theft of a prized jewel belonging to the woman who adopted them.
Cooper plays Beau, the oldest; Milland is John, the middle brother and Preston is Digby, the youngest. They are honorable men whose loyalty to each other override every other consideration.
In the Legion, they find themselves under the command of the sadistic Sgt. Markoff (a splendid Brian Donlevy), who learns of the jewel and believing one of the brothers has it, separates them and sets out to find it.
Beset by enemies within and without from an Arab attack, the brothers fight to defend their desert fortress and the lives.
The movie is a timeless classic, and features a great supporting cast including Broderick Crawford, Albert Dekker, J. Carrol Naish, Harold Huber, Donald O’Connor as Beau as a child and a very young Susan Hayward.
Donlevy was nominated for a supporting actor Oscar for his performance.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track with William Wellman Jr. and film historian Frank Thompson is the main bonus component.
Criminal Minds: The Final Season (DVD)
Details: 2020, CBS DVD-Paramount Home Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This procedural drama has been one of the most intense series on TV, with its cavalcade of sickos committing all manner of strange and gruesome crimes.
And things don’t change in this final season, which features all 10 episodes in this three-disc set.
Among the cases that challenge the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit in their 15th season is tracking down their most cunning adversary, Chameleon.
The BAU members all find closure in their personal journeys.
Fans of the series will not be disappointed with the investigator’s last cases.
Technical aspects: 16:9 full-screen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include a look at the final table read, a featurette with the cast and crew reminiscing about their roles and the series, a behind-the-scenes featurette on the final season, extended scenes and deleted scenes.
The General Died at Dawn (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 7
Details: 1936, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Gary Cooper headlines this adventure tale of heroism set in China about an American soldier of fortune named O’Hara (Cooper) who tries to foil the ambitions of a ruthless warlord, General Yang (Akim Tamiroff), who plans to conquer the nation’s northern provinces.
On his way to Shanghai to buy arms for the region’s peasants, O’Hara is lured into a trap by the general who uses a beautiful woman, played by Madeleine Carroll, as bait.
A cat-and-mouse game ensues in which both men try to double-cross each other.
O’Hara faces overwhelming odds in trying to defeat tyranny.
The movie also features Dudley Diggs, Porter Hall, William Frawley and Philip Ahn. The film received three Academy Award nominations, including one for Tamiroff as best supporting actor.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track with author-film historian Lee Gambin and actress-historian Rutanya Alda is the main extra.
Streetlight Harmonies (Blu-ray)
Release date: March 31
Details: 2020, Gravitas Ventures
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: If, like me, you came of age and began listening to doo-wop — either on the radio or from buying vinyl singles and albums at your neighborhood record store — than the sounds of such groups as The Platters, The Drifters (who, BTW, performed at my high school senior prom) and Little Anthony and the Imperials are etched in your brain.
Their vocals and tight harmonies were memorable and magical.
This documentary looks at the music and groups that was the rhythm of a generation who learned to stroll and slow dance to their songs about the pain of love and desire.
Many of these artists created the foundation for rock and roll, R&B, and influenced the blues as well as such groups as The Beatles and Rolling Stones.
Fans of the music can watch this movie about pioneers from that bygone era and can walk down memory lane, snapping their fingers in time to the music.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 16:9 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital; English closed-captioned subtitles.
Police Squad: The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
Details: 1982, CBS Blu-ray-Paramount Home Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This spoof of police dramas was created by David Zucker, Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, the madcap minds behind “Airplane” and other movie spoofs.
The series, starring Leslie Nielsen, only lasted for six episodes, but they are memorable and have earned a cult following.
One of the pleasures of the series is the guest appearances by stars who get killed during the opening of the episodes or showed in the series. These included Florence Henderson, Lorne Greene, Georg Stanford Brown, Robert Goulet, William Shatner, William Conrad, Dr. Joyce Brothers and Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda.
The show is hilarious, with witty sight gags and situations.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 4:3 full-screen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus offerings include commentary tracks, an interview with Nielsen, a list of celebrity death shots, casting tests, a gag reel and a behind the freeze frame featurette.
Madam Secretary: The Final Season (DVD)
Release date: April 7
Details: 2019, CBS DVD-Paramount Home Entertainment
The lowdown: This three-disc set contains the final 10 episodes of this political series, which I enjoyed because it was an idealized version of diplomacy and how it worked.
If only the actual world could be so reasonable and principled.
The problem with the final season is that it jumps ahead several months and we find former Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord is now President McCord.
Between seasons, the series skipped over the entire campaign — though to be fair, snippets of it were shown in flashbacks during the new episodes.
It would have been interesting to see how McCord transformed from diplomat to politician, but we have to deal with what we are given.
As president, McCord must dealing with election hacks, information leaks, a partisan political investigation and international problems.
Tea Leoni’s McCord handles every situation with grace, determination, heart and a sense of fairness. The series will be missed.
Technical aspects: 16:9 full-screen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: The main bonus component consists of deleted scenes.
The Cat and the Moon: Special Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 2019, FilmRise
Rated: PG
The lowdown: Alex Wolff wrote, directed and stars in this movie about a teenager who travels to New York to stay with a jazz musician friend of his late father, after his mother checks into a rehab center for treatment.
The coming-of-age story follows the teen as he befriends a group of city kids who teach him the ins and outs of the Big Apple and all the potential it has to offer.
The movie displays Wolff’s growing promise as a director even if, at times, the film meanders, is indulgent and a bit too long.
Still, it earned a 75 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.38:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
The Golem (Blu-ray)
Details: 1920, Kino Lorber
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This classic of German expressionist cinema relates the ancient Hebrew legend of the Golem.
The movie takes place in 16th century Prague where the county’s ruler, Rudolf II, is making the nation’s Jews suffer under his tyranny.
A Talmudic rabbi creates a giant warrior to protect the people. But the rabbi’s assistant takes control of the giant and attempts to use him for selfish ends, causing the Golem to run rampant, abducting the rabbi’s daughter and setting the ghetto on fire.
The movie, written, directed and starring Paul Wegener, with cinematography by the legendary Karl Freund, is considered one of the finest from Germany’s legendary UFA Studios.
It is recognized as a landmark in the evolution of the horror film as well as the source material for the Frankenstein story.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; German intertitles with optional English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include music by three composers, Stephen Horne, Admir Shkurtaj and Lukasz “Wudec” Poleszak, a commentary track, comparisons between the German and U.S. release versions of the movie and the U.S. release version with music by Cordula Heth.
Murder He Says (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 7
Details: 1945, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Fred MacMurray stars in this laugh-filled, crime-comedy as Pete Marshall, an employee of the Trotter Polling Co., who is sent down into the backwoods to search for a fellow pollster.
Marshall soon finds himself involved with a family of killer hillbillies who are looking for some stolen loot hidden on their land.
The film, directed by George Marshall, is over the top at times, but, at 94 minutes, keeps tickling your funny bone throughout.
The movie costars Marjorie Main, Helen Walker, Jean Heather, Porter Hall and Peter Whitney.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SHD subtitles.
Don’t miss: The major bonus component is a commentary track with filmmaker-historian Michael Schlesinger and film archivist Stan Taffel.
Goldie (DVD)
Details: 2020, Film Movement
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Model Slick Woods makes her feature film debut as Goldie, a young woman who, in the eyes of her little sisters Sherrie and Supreme, is a star.
All Goldie needs to rise to the top is the gold fur coat she desires so she can land a role as a dancer in a hip-hop video.
She needs the work because, after the arrest of her mother, she must keep her sisters from child services, which wants to take them away.
Goldie faces many challenges to fulfill her dreams and keep her family intact.
The movie, written and directed by Sam de Jong, is driven by Woods charismatic performance.
Critics enjoyed the film, giving it a 95 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English closed-captioned subtitles.
Don’t miss: The main extra is “We Love Moses,” a short film from the United Kingdom.
Jungle Queen (Blu-ray)
Details: 1945, VCI Entertainment-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This 1945 serial from Universal Pictures is more a curiosity than entertaining. A lot is left unexplained, the depiction of the African tribesmen is politically incorrect clichés and the plot really makes no sense.
The movie released a few weeks before the war in Europe ended, is set in 1939, just prior to the outbreak of World War II.
Nazi agents are determined to stir up trouble by turning the natives in “the middle jungle” against the British officials in charge of the region.
The British turn to a pair of Americans, Bob Elliott (Edward Norris) and Chuck Kelly (Eddie Quillan), to help ferret out the secret Nazi agents. Also pitching in to help is Pamela Courtney (Lois Collier), who has been assigned by British intelligence to find her uncle who has vital information about the African tribe the Nazis are attempting to sway to their cause.
Also, helping the Allied cause is a mysterious woman, Lothel (Ruth Roman, in her film debut), who seems to be a protector and adviser to the tribe.
Her presence and her origins go unexplained, as do many other aspects of the serial — such as why the region is so important to the Nazis, why the Americans were recruited, and so on and so on.
Like most later Universal serials, “Jungle Queen” contains stock footage from earlier studio releases and is rather repetitious and dull with a lot of running around and expository dialogue.
The cast also includes Tala Birell as the head Nazi and Douglass Dumbrille as her right-hand man.
The new Blu-ray transfer is adequate, but not at the same level of other recent VCI serial Blu-rays.
Technical aspects: 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
Abominable (DVD & digital) (Uncork’d Entertainment)
Agent Toby Banks (DVD & digital & VOD) (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Getaway (DVD & digital) (Uncork’d Entertainment)
Raiga: God of the Monsters (DVD) (Sirs Cinema)
Time Zone Inn (DVD) (IndiePix Films)
Two Times You (DVD) (Synergetic Distribution)
Unintended: Special Edition (Blu-ray) (FilmRise)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
A Dog’s Courage (Well Go USA Entertainment)
The Case of Sally Challen (Sundance Now)
Fantasy Island (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
The Gentlemen (Universal Studios Home Entertainment)
The Sharks (Breaking Glass Pictures)
Underwater (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
The Innocence Files (Netflix, April 15)
The Restaurant: Season 3, Episode 5 (Sundance Now, April 16)
A Girl Like Her (Sundance Now, April 20)
Balthazar: Series 2 (Acorn TV, April 20)
Deadwater Fell: Episode 3 (Acorn TV, April 20)
Frackman (Sundance Now, April 20)
Land Girls: Series 2 (Acorn TV, April 20)
Wildland (Sundance Now, April 20)
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.