New to View: May 20
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, May 20, unless otherwise noted:
Diane Warren: Relentless (DVD)
Details: 2025, Kino Lorber-Greenwich Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: In her storied career, Diane Warren has so far received, between Academy Awards, Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, Emmy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Grammy Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards and various other groups, 118 nominations.
Sixteen alone have been for Oscars, but each time she has come up empty, which is more than an injustice — it’s a gross oversight that needs to be addressed.
Warren’s music and songs can be called the soundtrack of the lives of millions — from “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” from “Mannequin”, “How Do I Live” from “Con Air,” “Rhythm of the Night” from “The Last Dragon” and “Music of My Heart” from “Music of the Heart.”
This documentary, directed by Bess Kargman, looks at the genius of Warren, who has written more than 400 songs for such artists as Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Whitney Houston, Aerosmith, Celine Dion and Britney Spears.
The intimate movie, while a standard documentary, paints a picture of a complicated, vulnerable and cocky individual who has filled with world with her music.
Technical aspects: 1.78:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
A Knight’s Tale: Steelbook (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2001, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13 & unrated, action violence, nudity, brief sex-related dialogue
The lowdown: Heath Ledger stars as William Thatcher, a peasant squire who masquerades as a nobleman, and takes the jousting world by storm in this medieval adventure with a modern vibe.
Thatcher’s dream is becoming the world champion jouster. Standing in his way is Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell).
Thatcher also falls in love with Lady Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossamon), which adds complications to his life.
Through it all, Thatcher is helped by his friends, Chaucer (Paul Bettany), an aspiring writer, Roland (Mark Addy) and Wat (Alan Tudyk).
The movie, written and directed by Brian Helgeland, is filled with anachronisms, in its humor, speech, dress and music, which is part of its charm.
The set offers two versions of the movie — the original 132-minute theatrical and 144-minute extended version.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos (7.1 TrueHD compatible), English and French 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos (7.1 TrueHD compatible), English and French 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials, all on the Blu-ray disc, include deleted and extended scenes, a commentary track with Helgeland and Bettany, six deleted scenes with video introductions, a featurette on the second-unit photography, a gag reel, 11 behind-the-scenes featurettes, an HBO making of special and a “We Are the Champions” music video.
“Wonder Dogs!” (Blu-ray)
Details: 1898-1928, Kino Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: When movie buffs think of canine stars, Lassie or Rin Tin Tin, usually come to mind.
But during the silent-film era, dozens of dogs graced movie screens, sharing their adventures with human actors. That is the reason the set is subtitled “Canne Stars of the Silent Era.”
This two-disc set features more than seven hours of canine performers such as Fearless, Thunder, Strongheart, Peter the Great, Champion and Duke, who acted alongside such stars as Charley Chase, Mabel Normand and Tom Mix.
The Blu-rays feature trailers, newsreels, shorts and feature-length films with such titles as “The Sign of the Claw” (1926), “The Sky Rider” (1928), “Teeth” (1924) (which starred Mix), “The Law’s Lash” (1928) and “His Master’s Voice” (1925).
The movies and clips offer dogs at play, helping alongside their human costars and their talents for comedy. The set also features the notorious “Dippy-Doo-Dads,” which featured animals playing humans.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English intertitles and musical scores.
Don’t miss: Extras include commentaries with film historian Anthony Slide, interviews with archivists-curators Lynanne Schweighofer and George Willerman and with composer Andrew Earle Simpson.
Lady of the Law (Blu-ray)
Details: 1975, 88 Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: In this Hong Kong action feature, a dangerous criminal has escaped custody, but he may wish he hadn’t because crime-busting, super-swordswoman Leng Rushuang is on his trail.
She does, however, have doubts about his guilt and she is not going to stop fighting until the right man is punished and justice is served.
“Lady of the Law” stars Shih Szu (“Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires”), along with Lo Lieh and Dean Shek.
The swordplay and martial arts action is first rate.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; Mandarin LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: The main extra is a commentary track by David West.
The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders (Blu-ray)
Details: 1965, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Kim Novak stars in this adaptation of Daniel Defoe’s 18th-century novel.
The film, directed by Terence Young, was conceived as a female counterpoint to the bawdy, Academy Award-winning “Tom Jones.”
Novak’s Moll Flanders is an orphan who travels to 18th-century London to make her fortune one way or another, including making believe she is a rich widow to land a wealthy nobleman and basically jumping from man to man and from bed to bed to enjoy the security and lavish lifestyle she wants.
The movie costars Richard Johnson as a fellow con artist who is Moll’s one true love. (In real life the pair married in 1965 but divorced a year later.)
The cast also includes Angela Lansbury, Leo McKern, Vittorio De Sica, George Sanders, Lili Palmer, Cecil Parker, Daniel Massey and Hugh Griffiths.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: The main bonus feature is a commentary track with film historians David Del Valle and Daniel Kremer.
The Rapacious Jailbreaker (Blu-ray)
Details: 1974, Radiance Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This Japanese feature, is based on the exploits of an actual seven-time prison escapee.
The setting is post-World War II Japan, with all its free-for-all chaos. It is here that black marketeer Ueda (Hiroki Matsukata) is robbed of a stash of morphine.
He takes his revenge but is arrested for murder and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He escapes only to be caught again and sent to another prison.
But no matter, where he is sent, no prison can hold him for long. This acclaimed feature ranks as one of the rawest entries in Japan’s 1970s cycle of true-account crime movies.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, widescreen picture; Japanese LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track by yakuza expert Nathan Stuart, a visual essay on director Sadao Nakajima and a booklet comprise the extras.
Themroc (Blu-ray)
Details: 1973, Radiance Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: French director Claude Faraldo’s absurdist movie has gained cult status with its story Themroc, of an ordinary, docile house painter, who leads a rather dull life.
One day, after a confrontation with his boss, Themroc snaps. He rebels and dismantles his myopic world, turning his apartment into a cave.
The movie has no real language, everyone speaks gibberish or grunts, which add to the absurdity of the picture.
Faraldo’s satire makes fun of mid-century labor and gender politics and is a commentary on the post-1968 protest movements that were becoming common themes in French movies.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; French LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include an interview with film critic David Thompson, an archival interview from 1973 with Faraldo and actor Michel Piccoli, who portrayed Themroc, a 2025 interview with Manuela Lazic on Piccoli and a booklet.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
The Cinema Within (DVD & streaming) (First Run Features)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
A Tooth Fairy Tale (Shout! Studios-Shout Kids!)
Any Day Now (Any Day Now)
The Handmaid’s Tale: Season 6, Episode 9 (Hulu)
Hunt the Wicked (Well Go USA Entertainment)
Knockout Blonde: The Kellie Maloney Story (Vantage Media)
The Last Role of Charles LeBlanc (Netflix)
Stolen Time (Gravitas Ventures)
The Trouble with Jessica (Music Box Films)
MAY 21
Carême: Episode 5 (Apple TV+)
Government Cheese: Episode 9 (Apple TV+)
Nine Perfect Strangers: Season 2, Episodes 1 & 2 (Hulu)
The Studio: Episode 10 (Apple TV+)
MAY 23
Chambermaid (Film Movement Plus)
Fountain of Youth (Apple TV+)
Girl on the Bridge (Kino Film Collection)
The Gospel of the Beast (Film Movement Plus)
Half a Chance (Kino Film Collection)
Murderbot: Episode 3 (Apple TV+)
The Naked Eye (Film Movement Plus)
Restless (Quiver Distribution)
The Surrender (Shudder)
Trail of Vengeance (Shout! Studios-Skipstone Pictures)
Your Friends & Neighbors: Episode 8 (Apple TV+)
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 X @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.