New to View: June 18
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, June 18, unless otherwise noted:
NCIS: Sydney: Season One (DVD)
Details: 2023-24, CBS DVD-Paramount Home Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: The latest edition of the “NCIS” franchise features a joint team of NCIS agents and Australian Federal Police officers to keep naval crimes in check Down Under.
This two-disc set features all eight first season episodes as the two forces learn to trust and cooperate with each other.
The series, which stars Olivia Swann as Michelle Mackey, NCIS Agent-in-Charge and Todd Lasance as Jim “JD” Dempsey, AFP second-in-command, deals with threats to American and Australian interests in the Pacific region.
The first season’s underlying arc deals with a dangerous and cunning international threat. But who is at the head of the operation and what its end goal is, remain a mystery that will carry over into the second season, which will debut sometime during the 2024-25 TV season.
The cast also includes Sean Sagar, Tuuli Narkle, Mavournee Hazel and William McInnis.
Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (4K Ultra HD + digital)
Release date: June 11
Details: 2024, Warner Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, creature violence and action
The lowdown: Godzilla and King Kong, having put their differences aside, team up to battle a new threat within our world that can imperil them and mankind.
The movie delves into the histories and Godzilla and Kong, their origins and the hidden secrets of Skull Island.
The story finds Kong in Hollow Earth searching for his family. What he uncovers, instead, is a very dangerous menace. It is a bit preposterous and formulaic with the usual monster bellows and battles.
The humans involved seem to be mere props. The special effects are more interesting than the story and the characters — including Godzilla and Kong.
Compared to last year’s “Godzilla Minus One,” “Godzilla x Kong” seems childish. “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” seemed to split critics, who awarded it a 54 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos-TrueHD, English, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and English descriptive audio; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with director Adam Wingard, visual effects supervisor Alessandro Ongaro, production designer Tom Hammock and editor Josh Schaeffer; a wide selection of featurettes centering on Godzilla, Kong, the Hollow Earth, the special effects, the movie’s various monsters, the Monarch Island base and “Bernie’s World: Behind the Triple Locked Door”; a profile of Wingard and a set tour with the director; and an “Evolution of Jia: From Orphan to Warrior” profile.
Nowhere Special (Blu-ray)
Details: 2020, Cohen Media Group
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: James Norton stars as John, a single dad dedicated to raising his 4-year-old son, Michael, after the boy’s mother left them soon after giving birth.
John, a window cleaner, learns that he only has a few months to live. He then sets out to find the perfect family for Michael, determined to shield him from the tragic reality of his situation.
As he struggles to find the right answer for his seemingly impossible task, he comes to accept the help of a social worker, which opens him to solutions that he never considered.
John also comes to accept his anger at the injustice of his destiny, the need to share the truth with Michael, and to follow his son’s instincts on the biggest decision of their lives.
Director Uberto Pasolini gets wonderful performances from Norton and newcomer Daniel Lamont as Michael. The director also does not dwell on the heartbreak of the situation, avoiding mawkishness for a clear-eyed approach that is intelligent and life-affirming.
The movie garnered a 100 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include an interview with Pasolini, Norton and Lamont and a making of featurette.
Cat Ballou (Blu-ray)
Details: 1965, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Lee Marvin won a best actor Academy Award for his dual role in this Western comedy about a has-been gunfighter who comes to the aid of Catherine “Cat” Ballou (Jane Fonda), a young woman turned outlaw, whose ranch is taken over after the murder of her father.
Marvin plays Kid Shelleen, the boozy ex-gunfighter who tries to help her, as well as the evil and noseless Tim Strawn, who is the hired gun of the railroad interests against the young woman.
The movie, which also features Michael Callen, Dwayne Hickman, Tom Nardini, John Marley, Jay C. Flippen, Bruce Cabot and Arthur Hunnicutt. Nat King Cole and Stubby Kaye are the singer-narrators who perform “The Ballad of Cat Ballou.”
The Blu-ray, which garnered a 90 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes, can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online sellers.
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, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include two commentary tracks, one with Callan and Hickman, the other with film historians Eddy Friedfeld, Lee Pfeiffer and Paul Scrabo; and a “Legend of Cat Ballou” featurette.
Monk: Season Seven (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 28
Details: 2008-09, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A four-disc set featuring another 16 entertaining episodes as private eye Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub) uses his wits and brains to solve more baffling crimes.
The usual cast of characters returns to assist or deter Monk — Traylor Howard as his assistant, Natalie Teeger, Ted Levine as San Francisco Police Department Capt. Leland Stottlemeyer and Jason Gray-Sanford as SFPD Lt. Randy Disher.
Joining the cast is Hector Elizondo as Dr. Neven Bell, Monk’s new psychiatrist.
The season featured the 100th episode of the series, which brought back many guest stars — friends and enemies — associated with Monk, including Eric McCormack, Sarah Silverman, Brooke Adams, Tim Bagley, Howie Mandel, Andy Richter and David Koechner.
Cases include Monk being trapped in a submarine, being hypnotized and acting like a 6-year-old, finding the killer of a homeless man, a jewel store robbery and investigating the murder of a football fan at a tailgate party.
Among the season’s guest stars are Gena Rowlands, Bob Costas, Joanna Pacula, David Strathairn, John Turturro, Brad Garrett, Steve Zahn, Bradley Whitford, Casper Van Dien and Noah Emmerich.
As always, the series mixes crime and comedy as Monk uses his unique style to solve cases.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental components include six video commentaries, five “Little Monk” webisodes and “Monk P.I.” promotional ad and an “Anatomy of an Episode” featurette with Shalhoub, Howard, Costas and members of the crew.
Blind War (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 11
Details: 2022, Well Go USA Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A SWAT captain is permanently blinded after breaking protocol during a surprise courthouse siege. His actions compel him to retire in disgrace.
But while he adjusts to his new reality as a civilian, his beloved daughter is kidnapped, which forces him to seek an unlikely ally to help him retrieve her and get justice.
The movie is reminiscent of the Hong Kong action films of the 1980s with over-the-top action sequences, blended with some humor.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Mandarin 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 5.1 Dolby digital; English and French subtitles.
Cry-Baby (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Release date: May 28
Details: 1990, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: PG-13, language, sexual references
The lowdown: Filmmaker John Waters wrote and directed this outrageous musical comedy set in the uptight mid-1950s.
Johnny Depp stars as Wade “Cry-Baby” Walker, the baddest hood in high school, whose ability to shed a single tear drives all the girls crazy — especially rich and beautiful “square” Allison Vernon-Williams (Amy Locane).
Allison finds herself irresistibly drawn to “Cry-Baby” and his forbidden world of rockabilly music, fast cars and fast women.
Waters tribute to the teen rebel genre is gleefully funny and campy.
The large supporting cast, which includes Ricki Lake, Susan Tyrrell, Iggy Pop, Polly Bergen, Traci Lords, Kim McGuire, Darren E. Burrows, Stephen Mailer, Troy Donahue, Mink Stole, Joey Heatherton, David Nelson, Patty Hearst and Joe Dallesandro, contributes to the fun.
The set offers the original 85-minute theatrical and 92-minute director’s cuts of the movie. It is obvious that the cast was having a good time, with some outrageous turns by Bergen, McGuire and Lake.
Technical aspects: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental components include a new commentary track with Waters, narrated by Black Mansions film producer Heather Buckley on the 4K UHD disc; and on the Blu-ray disc, a commentary by Waters on the director’s cut, a new featurette on the making of the movie with Waters, associate producer-casting director Pat Moran, cinematographer David Insley and Stole; and interviews with Locane, Lords, Iggy Pop, Lake, Hearst, Burrows, Mailer and barber Howard “Hep” Preston; a 2005 documentary about the movie with comments by cast and crew members; and five deleted scenes.
Pursued (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 4
Details: 1947, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Legendary director Raoul Walsh directed this psychological “noir” Western starring Robert Mitchum as Jeb Rand, an orphan haunted and traumatized by the murder of his family when he was a child., Rand was taken in and raised by Mrs. Callum (Judith Anderson) and her daughter, Thor (Teresa Wright).
Jeb and his foster brother, Adam (John Rodney), do not get along and, when in 1898 law officials come to take recruits to fight in the Spanish-American War, Jeb loses a coin toss to Adam and departs.
Wounded and awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in the war, Jeb returns home.
“Pursued” is a dark story of murder, betrayal, revenge and family secrets. Among its champions is filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who called it Hollywood’s first “western noir.”
The cast also includes Dean Jagger, Alan Hale and Harry Carey Jr. The film is abetted by James Wong Howe’s moody black-and-white cinematography, Max Steiner’s strong score and a taut script by Niven Busch.
“Pursued” is a must-see movie for Western and film buffs. It features sharp audio and visual transfers as well as fine performances by its stellar cast.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: An introduction by Scorsese and a commentary track by film historian Imogen Sara Smith comprise the bonus components.
The Karate Kid (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 1984, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: PG, violence, language
The lowdown: Ralph Macchio and Noriyuki “Pat” Morita star in this story about Daniel, a fatherless teenager who, with his mother, relocate from the East Coast to Los Angeles. Once settled in, Daniel has difficulty making new friends, while also alienating a group of karate students, the Cobras, who begin bullying him when he begins a friendship with Ali (Elisabeth Shue), the former girlfriend of the Cobra leader.
While being beaten up by the Cobras, Daniel is saved by Mr. Miyagi, the handyman, whom he learns is a master of the martial arts. He asks Miyagi to teach him karate so he can defend himself.
Miyagi teaches him much more — that karate is a discipline of the mind and body, and that fighting is always the last answer to a problem.
Under Miyagi’s guidance, Daniel develops physical skills as well as faith and self-confidence to compete in a local karate tournament, despite the odds against him.
The movie, which garnered an 89 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes, spawned two sequels with Macchio, a third with Morita and future two-time Oscar-winner Hilary Swank and a remake with Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan and a television series, “Cobra Kai,” starring Macchio
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible) and English and French 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with “Cobra Kai” creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, four deleted scenes, more than 30 minutes of deleted scene dailies and a “Remembering ‘The Karate Kid’ ” featurette on the 4K disc; a commentary with director John G. Avildsen, writer Robert Mark Kamen, Macchio and Morita, a multi-part making of featurette, a “Beyond the Form” featurette, an “East Meets West: A Composer’s Notebook” featurette and “Life of Bonsai” featurette.
American Gigolo: Limited Edition (4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)
Details: 1980, Arrow Video
Rated: R, sexual situations, violence, language
The lowdown: Richard Gere stars in this gripping drama written and directed by Paul Schrader.
The movie, set against the sultry backdrop of late 1970s Los Angeles, Gere portrays Julian Kay, a high-priced male escort, who offers love and attention to women in need of both.
But when one of his clients, the wife of a sadistic finance magnate, is found dead, Julian becomes the prime suspect. Julian realizes he is being framed and sets out to prove his innocence and determine who set him up.
As he digs deeper, he begins a journey that forces him to confront his own identity.
The movie co-stars Lauren Hutton, Hector Elizondo, Bill Duke and Nina Van Pallandt. The film features lush cinematography by John Bailey, brilliant costumes by Giorgio Armani and a memorable soundtrack by Giorgio Moroder.
The film received a 72 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, 2.0 LPCM and LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Interviews with professor Jennifer Clark on the movies and its relation to the fashion landscape of the 1980s, music supervisor and DJ Dan Wilcox on the music of Moroder, camera operator King Baggot, editor Richard Halsey, Schrader, Eilzondo and Duke; a booklet with essays about the movie; a double-sided foldout poster and six postcard-sized reproduction artcards.
Anna Boleyn (Blu-ray)
Details: 1920, Kino Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: The legendary Ernst Lubitsch directed this silent historical drama about the doomed second wife of England’s King Henry VIII.
The movie, filmed at Germany’s UFA Studios, stars Henny Porten as Anna. She gives a sensitive performance as the humble lady-in-waiting who ascends to the throne.
However, it is Emil Jannings, winner of the first best actor Academy Award for his roles in “The Last Command’ and “The Way of All Flesh,” who stands out in his larger-than-life performance as Henry VIII.
He embodies the king’s appetites for food, power and women, without sinking into caricature or being the film’s villain.
The Blu-ray uses a 2001 restoration of the movie and a 2005 musical score to move the film — which runs 123 minutes — along.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; German intertitles; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include interviews with Lubitsch’s daughter, Nicola, film historians and filmmakers and the documentary, “Lubitsch in Berlin,” which documents his life and career until he left Germany for Hollywood in 1923.
Blood and Snow (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 11
Details: 2023, Cleopatra Entertainment-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This sci-fi thriller gives off a low-rental vibe akin to John Carpenter’s version of “The Thing.”
In the Arctic, two scientists uncover a meteorite impact site. The meteorite kills one scientist and infects the other.
A nearby base takes in the survivor while trying to understand what happened.
However, the survivor may not be whom the others believe she is.
A clunky script that cannot take advantage of an interesting, but predictable, story, nor cleverly explain what is happening and hit-and-miss acting drain any potential the movie may have provided.
Plus, the pacing is too slow to offer any suspense or tension.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio.
Don’t miss: An image slideshow is the main extra.
The Hour Before Dawn (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 4
Details: 1944, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A World War II romantic drama, based on a book by W. Somerset Maugham, starring Franchot Tone as Jim Hetherton a pacifist Englishman who registers as a conscientious objector at the outset of the war.
Veronica Lake costars as Dora Bruckman, the beautiful Austrian refugee Hetherton marries. The new Mrs. Hetherton, however, is not who she seems. In actuality, she is a Nazi agent planted to discover the location of a secret airbase in the vicinity of the Hetherton estate.
Dora uses her husband’s beliefs to manipulate him into potentially betraying his country.
Lake, best known for her roles in “This Gun for Hire,” “Sullivan’s Travels” and “I Married a Witch” is miscast as the Nazi agent.
The supporting cast includes John Sutton, Binnie Barnes, Henry Stephenson, Philip Merivale and Nils Asther.
The movie also features a score by the always-dependable Miklós Rózsa.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Film historian Paul Talbot contributes a commentary track as the main extra.
In the Company of Kings (DVD)
Release date: June 4
Details: 2024, Virgil Films-Kino Lorber
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A sports documentary in which eight former world champions talk about race, victory, defeat, struggle and the ability to pick yourself up off the canvas.
The movie, directed by Steve Read, features interviews with Larry Holmes, Bernard Hopkins, Tim Witherspoon, Earnie shavers, Michael Spinks, Leon Spinks, Bob Arum as well as those closest to Read’s hero, the late Muhammad Ali.
The film is illuminating and compelling and will please fans of boxing.
Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English closed-captioned.
Saigon (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 4
Details: 1947, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake reteam for the fourth and final time in this post-World War II adventure about Larry (Ladd), a pilot who learns that his flying buddy, Mike, only has a short time to live because of shrapnel injuries.
To finance one last wild trip for Mike, Larry accepts a well-paying flying job for a crooked profiteer.
The passengers on the plane include Susan (Lake), the profiteer’s beautiful secretary who, as it goes in movies of this sort, falls for Larry.
Plans go awry when the plane — with its smuggled cargo — is forced to land in Vietnam. And soon, the police are closing in.
The supporting cast includes Douglas Dick as Mike, Wally Cassell as Larry and Mike’s friend Pete as well as Morris Carnovsky and Luther Adler.
The director is Leslie Fenton, a former actor best known for his role as “Nails” Nathan in James Cagney’s breakout role in “The Public Enemy.” Fenton turned to directing in the late 1930s.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track with film historians Lee Gambin and Elissa Rose is the main bonus component.
The Chase (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 4
Details: 1946, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Robert Cummings stars in this film noir thriller as down-on-his-luck veteran Chuck Scott who lands a job as a chauffeur to wealthy, but sadistic gangster Eddie Roman (Steve Cochran) after finding and returning Roman’s wallet.
Scott suffers from PTSD and bad dreams. When he awakes, he goes to the local naval hospital to seek treatment.
Scott remembers nothing of the past few days and goes out for a drink with the doctor.
Soon after, Roman and his henchman, Gino, arrive at the same club. Later Scott remembers that he was supposed to pick up Roman’s wife, Lorna, to help her escape from her cruel husband.
The plot is wrapped up neatly — too neatly from my view — as everything works out as it should in such movies.
The cast also includes Michelle Morgan as Lorna, Peter Lorre as Gino, veteran actor Jack Holt as Scott’s doctor, as well as Don Wilson and Lloyd Corrigan.
The plot is rather winding and, at times, surreal. It is difficult to discern reality from Scott’s feverish dreams.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include two radio adaptations of the movie’s source material and a commentary track by filmmaker Guy Maddin.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
A Stork’s Journey 2 (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Art Thief (Prime Video)
Finding Tony (Level 33 Entertainment)
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Outstanding: A Comedy Revolution (Netflix)
Queen Rising (Breaking Glass Pictures)
Scream Therapy (Indican Pictures)
Waiting for Dali (Music Box Films)
JUNE 19
Acapulco: Season 3, Episode 9 (Apple TV+)
Black Barbie: A Documentary (Netflix)
Dark Matter: Episode 8 (Apple TV+)
Presumed Innocent: Episode 3 (Apple TV+)
Trying: Season 4, Episode 6 (Apple TV+)
JUNE 20
Born to Be (Kino Film Collection)
Nostalghia (Kino Film Collection)
Perfect Wife: The Mysterious Disappearance of Sherri Papini (Hulu)
JUNE 21
Bread & Roses (Apple TV+)
Coming to You (Film Movement Plus)
In Bed (Film Movement Plus)
My Pet and Me (Film Movement Plus)
Runner (Film Movement Plus)
Trigger Warning (Netflix)
JUNE 24
A Gangster’s Kiss (Pink Flamingo Media Group)
COMING NEXT WEEK: Monkey Man
The Underground Railroad
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.