New to View: March 22

By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, March 22, unless otherwise noted:
Nightmare Alley (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2021, Buena Vista Home Entertainment|
Rated: R, sexual content, nudity, bloody violence, language
The lowdown: Guillermo del Toro’s adaptation of “Nightmare Alley” is a contemporary film noir teeming with howling winds, pelting rain and swirling snow.
The movie, set in the years leading up — and including — the early months of World War II, chronicles the rise and fall of Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper), a charismatic drifter who joins a carnival, learns some tricks from a has-been mentalist, later uses those deceptions to enrich himself and, finally, plummets to his true and deserving destiny.
“Nightmare Alley” is a remake of a 1947 movie starring Tyrone Power, in one of his best roles.
Del Toro and Kim Morgan’s screenplay creates a dark, dank and oppressive atmosphere, from the opening when Cooper’s Carlisle walks away after burning down his isolated home, to its foreshadowed finale.
The movie is about illusion and influencing people to believe what they want to believe.
A hungry and broke Carlisle gets off a bus in the middle of nowhere and wanders into a carnival. You see the attraction to the milieu in his eyes, his brain calculating the possibilities. He also is fascinated and disturbed by the geek, a down-on-his-luck individual who lives in a cage and bites off the heads of chickens to entertain audiences.
He is offered a meal and a job as a laborer by Clem (Willem Dafoe), the carnival owner. He soon ingratiates himself into the lives of Madame Zeena (Toni Collette) and her alcoholic husband, Pete (David Strathairn). Zeena has a clairvoyant act, in which she and Pete use a coded language to make it appear that she has special mental abilities.
Pete befriends Stan and begins teaching him the act. Pete also warns Stan never to use the skills to lead patrons on when it comes to the dead. Pete calls it a “spook show,” saying it only causes tragedy.
Of course, Carlisle ignores the advice and it ultimately leads to his expected downfall. You need not have read the novel or seen the original movie to know how far Stan falls. It is obvious; foreshadowed early in the movie.
A vast majority of critics were impressed by the movie — and its supporting cast, which included Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara and Ron Perlman — to award it an 80 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, 2.0 descriptive audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include featurettes with Del Toro and his cast discussing the movie and its complicated world, a featurette on the production design of the carnival set and the symbolism of the costume design.

Dexter: New Blood (Blu-ray)
Details: 2021, Showtime Entertainment-Paramount Home Entertainment-CBS Blu-ray)
Rated: Not rated, violence
The lowdown: Michael C. Hall returns as Dexter Morgan, the serial killer who, along with his Dark Passenger persona, is believed dead — killed in a boating accident.
Dexter, though, is very much alive, living under an assumed name in the small town of Iron Lake, NY. He has a normal job and a steady girlfriend — the town’s chief of police.
Dexter seems to have his life under control, until his son shows up unexpectedly and turns Dexter’s life upside down.
The rattled Dexter soon gives in to his homicidal instincts, finding himself on a collision course with destiny.
The four-disc set features all 10 episodes of this Showtime series, which includes guest stars Jennifer Carpenter and John Lithgow returning in their iconic roles as Dexter’s sister, Debra Morgan, and the Trinity Killer.
For those who enjoyed the original series and yearned for more Dexter, it seems your wishes have been granted.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a featurette on why the character and series were brought back, interviews with Hall and Carpenter, a behind-the-scenes look at Dexter’s kill room and a look inside the making of the show.

Captains of the Clouds (Blu-ray)
Details: 1942, Warner Archive Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This wartime drama was James Cagney’s first Technicolor film. In it, he plays Brian MacLean, a cocky Canadian bush pilot who only thinks of himself.
When he joins the Royal Canadian Air Force at the beginning of World War II, MacLean, as well as his fellow bush pilots, learn they are considered too old for combat. They reluctantly agree to serve as flight instructors.
MacLean’s brashness and independent nature finally gets him court-martialed. Later, after an accident in which one of his fellow pilots is killed, MacLean loses his pilot’s license.
Later, after the crash of two transport aircraft that kill several ferry pilots, a call goes out for pilots needed to fly bombers from Canada to Britain.
MacLean, using forged papers, volunteers and redeems himself with a heroic sacrifice.
This is one of those good-neighbor propaganda war films extolling the contributions of our Canadian friends to the war effort.
The release is a made-on-demand Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection and can be ordered at the WAC store at Amazon.com or other online retailers.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 (16×9) full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include two cartoons and a 1942 newsreel.

6:45 (Blu-ray)
Details: 2021, Well Go USA Entertainment
Rated: R, strong violence and gore, sexual content, nudity, language
The lowdown: A horror film about a couple on a weekend getaway who find the island to which they venture is deserted.
Soon, they learn the town’s dark secret, triggering a time loop that forces them to relive a frenzied cycle of terror with apparently no means of escape.
The couple, on the island to repair and rekindle their relationship, awake at 6:45 every morning to relive a nightmarish chain of events and horror.
Think of “Groundhog Day” with buckets of blood. The film, which earned a 70 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes, is suspenseful and unsettling.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 16:9 (enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.

Shaolin Mantis (Blu-ray)
Details: 1978, 88 Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: From the Shaw Brothers studio comes another Hong Kong martial arts feature. This one centers on a scholar, Wei Fung (David Chiang), who is hired by the Emperor to infiltrate a clan of rebellious Ming loyalists.
But his mission becomes complicated when he falls in love with the granddaughter of the clan’s leader and his real purpose is discovered.
Adding to Wei Fung’s dilemma is that his own family is threatened with death if his mission is not successful.
The movie offers more political intrigue than actual martial arts combat, which may irritate some fans of the genre.
The film’s last act contains some unexpected turns that come to fruition as the story closes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; Mandarin and English (dubbed) 2.0 LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include two commentary tracks, a featurette about the movie and an interview with actor John Cheung.

Back Street (Blu-ray)
Details: 1941, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Charles Boyer and Margaret Sullavan star in the second — and many consider it the best — of three adaptations of Fannie Hurst’s romance novel.
The first version, in 1932, starred Irene Dunne and a 1961 version starred Susan Hayward.
The story is basically the same in each version. Sullavan stars as shop girl Ray Smith who, five years earlier, met and fall in love with banker Walter Saxel (Boyer).
Ray learns that Saxel is married and has a son. Even so, she decides to become his “back street” woman. Over the years, Ray suffers social ostracism and long stretches of loneliness while waiting for brief interludes with her lover.
Today, the movie would not sit well with the political and social views of some people, but the performances of Sullavan and Boyer make the film palatable to view. The supporting cast includes Richard Carlson, Frank McHugh, Tim Holt and Samuel S. Hinds.
It is an example of the popular “woman’s movie” genre that filled screens in the 1930s and ’40s.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: The major extra is a commentary track with author-film historian Lee Gambin and costume historian Elissa Rose.

Monkey Kung Fu (Blu-ray)
Details: 1979, 88 Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This martial arts action film is another entry from the Hong Kong-based Shaw Brothers studio.
The story involves an imprisoned thief who is given half of a wooden keepsake by a one-eyed master about to be executed.
He escapes with another prisoner and begins searching for the other half of the keepsake to discover its purpose. On his journey, he is chased by a gang leader who also wants to learn the keepsake’s secrets.
Several misadventures follow, including the two escapees being placed in a chain gang, from which they escape.
The movie mixes several martial arts bouts with comedy. Fans of the genre will appreciate the action sequences.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; Cantonese and English (dubbed) 2.0 LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include a commentary track and an interview with the movie’s fight choreographer.

Blue Skies (Blu-ray)
Details: 1946, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire team up again for another musical featuring the music and lyrics of Irving Berlin.
Astaire plays dancer Jed Potter and Crosby in singer/nightclub owner Johnny Adams. Both are in love with singer Mary O’Hara (Joan Caulfield), who marries Johnny.
But Johnny’s roaming lifestyle of buying and selling nightclubs slowly drives the couple apart. Jed sees an opening to win Mary for himself.
But fate takes a hand, changing the lives of all three as Jed has an accident that ends his career and he turns to radio, soon becoming a star on the New York airwaves.
Among the film’s numbers are the title song, “Puttin’ on the Ritz” and “All By Myself.”
The movie received an 83 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track is the main extra.

Now and Forever (Blu-ray)
Details: 1934, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: An all-star cast of Gary Cooper, Carole Lombard and a 6-year-old Shirley Temple star in this feature directed by Henry Hathaway.
Cooper plays Jerry Day, a jewel thief and con artist who with his new wife, Toni (Lombard), comes to claim his daughter, Penny (Temple), from the parents of his late wife.
Jerry has vowed to go straight and set a good example for his daughter. The cost of sending her to the best schools and providing for her tempts him to return to his old ways.
The movie’s ending is rather downbeat, but the cast makes this an entertaining vehicle featuring three actors who went on to greater features.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: The main extra is a commentary track by author-film historian Lee Gambin and costume historian Elissa Rose.

Bryan Loves You: Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 2008, MVD Visual Entertainment-MVD Marquee Collection-JAL Smithtown LLC
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A horror feature set in the early 1990s in a small Arizona community that seems to have been taken over by a homicidal religious cult known as “Followers of Bryan.”
The movie, featuring Tony Todd, as the narrator, follows a young psychotherapist, played by writer-producer-director Seth Landau, who suspects what has happened in the community and begins to investigate.
He inquisitiveness soon puts him in danger and a violent and terrifying flight for his freedom and survival.
Like “The Blair Witch Project,” “Bryan Loves You” is one of those movies that uses a recovered video technique to tell its story.
The cast also includes George Wendt (“Cheers”), Tiffany Shepis, Daniel Roebuck and Brinke Stevens.
Supposedly, the movie is based on true events.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture, English 2.0 stereo; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include two commentary tracks, interviews with Wendt, Shepis, Roebuck and Stevens.

To Sleep as to Dream (Blu-ray)
Details: 1986, Arrow Video
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: In this rather surreal Japanese film, a private detective and his assistant are hired by an aging silent film actress to find her missing daughter, Bellflower.
Their search leads them to a mysterious film studio in which the detective comes face to face with the beautiful star of a 1915 movie from which their appears to be no ending.
The movie gets even stranger as it progresses.
The film is filled with references to Japan’s impressive cinematic history and features cameos from a bevy of veteran performers.
The movie is more a tribute to Japanese cinema than a real detective story. The filmmaking and direction by Kalzo Hayashi are dreamlike and impressive.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; Japanese LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include two commentary tracks, a look at the movie’s restoration, fragments of scenes from silent jidal-geki movies from the Kyoto Toy Museum, a look at the performance from the film within the film, a featurette and interview about early Japanese film culture and the art of the benshi silent film commentator, an interview with the movie’s lead actor and a booklet about the movie.

Come Drink With Me (Blu-ray)
Details: 1966, Arrow Video
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This feature was a wuxia pian film from Hong Kong’s Shaw Brothers studio before it found its niche in kung fu films.
This genre featured mythic tales of sword fighting and gravity-defying heroes.
“Come Drink With Me” revolves around the abduction of the governor’s son by bandits, who hold him for ransom. A mysterious swordsman named Golden Swallow (Cheng Pei-pei) sets out to rescue the son. The bandits are unaware that not only is Golden Swallow a woman, but she is the sister of the hostage. Golden Swallow is set on freeing her brother, no matter how many people she must kill in the process.
A drunken beggar, who may have a closer connection to the bandits than she realizes, aids Golden Swallow in her quest.
The movie is considered one of the Shaw Brothers most influential features, inspiring such other works as Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.”
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; Mandarin and English (dubbed) LPCM monaural; English SDH and English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track by film critic-historian Tony Rayns, archival interviews with cast members, including Cheng, a 2016 question-and-answer session with Cheng, a documentary on the history of the wuxia genre and the Shaw Brothers contributions to it and a booklet.

The Red Star (DVD)
Details: 2021, Kino Lorber
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This documentary looks at the life of the fictional Leila Salama, a mystery woman who may have helped in the capture of Adolf Eichmann in Buenos Aires in 1960.
Her contribution was denied or neglected by the official history of the event.
Fictional director Gabriel Lichtmann brings her life story to light through interviews with a colorful cast of characters.
The movie deftly blends fact and fiction. At times, it may appear disturbing and uncomfortable, but it also provides enough humor to make it worth viewing.
Technical aspects: 1.85:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Spanish 2.0 Dolby digital; English subtitles.

Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
Dreaming Hollywood (Blu-ray & VOD) (Cleopatra Entertainment)
The Institute (Blu-ray & DVD & digital) (Gravitas Ventures)
Pinocchio: A True Story (DVD & digital & VOD) (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
MARCH 25
Project Space 13 (Blu-ray) (Vinegar Syndrome)

DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
Red Light (Amazon Prime)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
Writing with Fire (Music Box Films)
MARCH 24
The Spine of Night (Shudder)
MARCH 25
King Otto (MPI Media Group)
Pachinko (Apple TV+)
Severance: Episode 7 (Apple TV+)
Topside (Vertical Entertainment)
You Are Not My Mother (Bankside Films)

Coming next week: Sing 2

I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 4K UHD, 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 at ReelBob or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.