New to View: June 2
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, June 2, unless otherwise noted:
Jaws: 45th Anniversary Limited Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 1975, Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Rated: PG, violence, language, adult situations
The lowdown: It has been 45 years since this Steven Spielberg production changed the landscape of movie releases — the summer blockbuster.
Since its release, every studio plans on releasing one big feature to aim for that pot of box office gold.
The making of “Jaws” has become legendary. It was the second feature for the 28-year-old, and the shoot was beset with problems, including rough seas and trouble with the mechanical shark.
But, necessity is the mother of invention, so Spielberg showed less of it to help build tension.
This latest release of the movie offers a vibrant 4K Ultra HD transfer that complements the picture, audio and John Williams’ score.
For those with 4K UHD televisions and Blu-ray players, this will be a treat.
Technical aspects: 4K UHD: 2160 UHD HDR10/HDR 10 + Dolby vision 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos, 2.0 DTS digital surround monaural, French 7.1 DTS-HD high resolution and Spanish 5.1 digital surround; English SDH and French subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, 2.0 DTS digital surround monaural and French and Spanish 5.1 DTS digital surround; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include a collectible book with stories and photos from the set, featurettes on the legacy of “Jaws,” the making of the movie, its restoration, deleted scenes and outtakes, looks at marketing the movie and the phenomenon it created, storyboards and production photos.
Star Trek: Short Treks (DVD)
Details: 2020, CBS DVD-Paramount Home Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This DVD features a collection of nine shorts tied to characters and storylines from “Star Trek: Discovery,” and featuring series regulars such as Mary Wiseman’s Ensign Sylvia Tilly, Doug Jones’ Commander Saru, Ethan Peck’s Spock, Anson Mount’s Capt. Christopher Pike and Rebecca Romjin’s Number One.
The stories add texture and background to the characters and the episodes to which they are linked.
Fans of this CBS All-Access series will enjoy the varied styles and tones of these shorts.
Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include commentaries on a couple of the shorts and a making of featurette on the concept.
Tokyo Godfathers (Blu-ray + DVD)
Details: 2003, Shout! Factory-GKids
Rated: PG-13, thematic elements, violent images, language, sexual situations
The lowdown: The lives of three homeless people are changed when they find an abandoned baby in a garbage dump on Christmas Eve in this anime feature.
As the New Year nears, the three set out to unravel the mystery of the baby and the fate of her parents.
During their search, they encounter seemingly unrelated events and people, which makes them confront their own pasts.
The movie earned a 90 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; Japanese and English dub 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, English and Spanish subtitles; DVD: 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen picture; Japanese and English dub 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus components include a short film by director Satoshi Kon, a making of featurette, a sound mixing featurette, a look at the animation process, “The Unexpected Tours” featurette and an introduction to the film by K.F. Watanabe, deputy director of the Film for the Japan Society in New York.
Gutterballs (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 28
Details: 2008, Unearthed Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A bowling alley is probably one of the most nonthreatening places you can find.
All that changes however in this slasher movie with some comic elements in which writer-director Ryan Nicholson does not spare (ouch, sorry — I just had to do it) the blood.
The night before a local bowling tournament, a young girl leaving the lanes is gang raped on her way home.
The following night, as the teams prepare to compete, a masked killer begins dispatching the bowlers one-by-one.
As the body count mounts as quickly as downed pinned, the surviving bowlers attempt to discover and unmask the very efficient murderer in order to make it to sunrise.
The Blu-ray contains the theatrical and Pin-Etration editions of the movie.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1(16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital monaural
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with Nicholson and a making of featurette.
Dynamo: Special Edition (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 12
Details: 1978, VCI Entertainment
Rated: R, violence
The lowdown: This martial-arts feature falls under the genre of Bruceploitation, a series of films which, after the death of Bruce Lee, used imitators and outtakes and footage from Lee movies to create new features.
One of these imitators, Bruce Li, stars in this kung fu action feature about a cab drivers who producers discover has the ability to be the successor to Bruce Lee.
They soon discover that his rebellious nature and individualism is too much for them to handle.
Li starred in many action films that followed the martial arts formula of Lee’s movies. This one was no better or worse than others that flooded cinemas.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English LPCM monaural dubbed and Spanish.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include a commentary and a featurette on cover artist Ian McEwan.
What the Waters Left Behind (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 12
Details: 2017, Unearthed Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This horror outing follows a group of young filmmakers who visit the Argentinian town of Epecuén, which 30 years earlier, had been inundated by a flood.
The waters have since receded and the town is still intact. The filmmakers, out to shoot a documentary, ignore warnings about the town and become stranded.
Soon, members of the crew begin disappearing and the filmmakers come to realize they are not alone.
The movie relies on tropes used in many other horror features.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Spanish Dolby digital monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include behind-the-scenes footage.
Eye See You (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 14
Details: 2002, FilmRise-MVD Marquee Collection
Rated: R, strong violence, language
The lowdown: Sylvester Stallone stars in this direct-to-video thriller about an FBI agent, Jake Malloy (Stallone), who, traumatized by a brutal murder, enters a clinic for members of the law enforcement community so he can process and receive some help.
Malloy begins undergoing therapy but, at the same time, it seems a serial killer has gotten into the facility and is killing off patients.
Tom Berenger and Kris Kristofferson play the doctors running the facility. Others in the cast include Jeffrey Wright, Polly Walker, Charles Dutton, Sean Patrick Flanery, Robert Patrick, Robert Prosky, Courtney B. Vance and Dina Meyer.
The movie is rather preposterous and was made during a fallow period in Stallone’s career.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio surround, English 2.0 LPCM monaural and French 5.1 Dolby digital; English and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include deleted scenes interviews with cast members and “Detox,” director Jim Gillespie’s original version of the movie.
Wuthering Heights (DVD)
Release date: May 12
Details: 1958, Liberation Hall
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Richard Harris stars as Heathcliff in this “The DuPont Show of the Month” television adaptation of Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights.”
The original production aired in 1958; this DVD transfer includes the original commercials.
Burton gives a fine, tortured performance as the vengeful foundling who seeks revenge on Catherine, played by a young Rosemary Harris, who he considers his soulmate, but who married another — Edgar Linton (Denholm Elliott).
The production’s audio and visual quality is decent, considering the technology of the era in which it was broadcast.
Technical aspects: 1.33:1 (4×3) full-screen picture; English Dolby digital monaural.
Bush: Live in Tampa (Blu-ray + DVD + CD)
Release date: April 24
Details: 2019, Cleopatra Entertainment
Rated: G
The lowdown: A concert movie that features a concert by Bush on its 2019 Altimate Tour.
The concert features fan favorites such as “Everything Zen,” “Comedown” and “Swallow.”
It also features the band’s hit, “Bullet Holes” from the “John Wick 3: Parabellum” soundtrack.
The set includes Blu-ray and DVD versions of the concert as well as a CD of the entire concert.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, widescreen picture; English surround sound; DVD: widescreen picture; English surround sound.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
A Clear Shot (DVD & digital) (Uncork’d Entertainment)
Abe (DVD) — Breaking Glass Pictures
Adrift in Soho (DVD & digital & VOD) (Random Media)
Sound Euphonium: The Movie — Our Promise: A Brand New Day (Blu-ray + DVD) (Shout! Factory-Eleven Arts)
Witches in the Woods (Blu-ray) (Shout! Studios)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
The Accompanist (Dark Star Pictures)
And Then We Danced (Music Box Home Entertainment)
The Blackout: Invasion Earth (Shout! Studios)
Fuller House: Farewell Episodes (www.netflix.com/FullerHouse) (Netflix)
Pulse (Dark Star Pictures)
Spelling the Dream (www.netflix.com/spellingthedream) (Netflix, June 3)
Bad Mothers: Episode 5 (Sundance Now, June 4)
Liar: Season 2, Episode 1 (Sundance Now, June 4)
Sanctuary: Episode 7 (Sundance Now, June 4)
13 Reasons Why: Series Finale (www.netflix.com/13reasonswhy) (Netflix, June 5)
The Dinner Party (Uncork’d Entertainment, June 5)
Queer Eye 5 (Netflix, June 5)
We’re Here (HBO-Warner Home Entertainment, June 5)
Betty (HBO-Warner Home Entertainment, June 6)
7 Chinese Brothers (Sundance Now, June 8)
Bomb Girls: Series 1 & 2 (Acorn TV, June 8)
The Boys of Buchenwald (Sundance Now, June 8)
Céline (Sundance Now, June 8)
Dead Still: Episode 5 (Acorn TV, June 8)
Digging for Britain: Series 2-4 (Acorn TV, June 8)
The Search for One-Eye Jimmy (Sundance Now, June 8)
X500 (Sundance Now, June 8)
Coming next week: An Unmarried Woman
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.