New to View: Sept. 16
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, Sept. 16, unless otherwise noted:
This Is Spinal Tap: Combo Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Details: 1984, The Criterion Collection
Rated: R, nudity, sexual innuendo
The lowdown: A classic rockumentary, written by Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Rob Reiner and Harry Shearer, that follows a heavy-metal British band on its final tour of the United States.
Filmmaker Marty DiBergi (Reiner) chronicles the ups and downs as Spinal Tap — Nigel Tufnel (Guest), David St. Hubbins (McKean) and Derek Smalls (Shearer) — capturing their mishaps, creative tensions, shrinking crowds and ill-fated drummers.
The cast also includes Fran Drescher, Tony Hendra, June Chadwick, Bruno Kirby, Paul Benedict and Patrick McNee, with cameos by Billy Crystal, Paul Schaffer, Howard Hesseman, Ed Begley Jr. and Fred Willard.
No matter how many times you have seen it, “This Is Spinal Tap” continues to elicit laughter. Critics enjoyed it, awarding the movie a 98 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 2.0 LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus features include a trio of commentary tracks featuring Reiner, Guest, McKean, Shearer, producer Karen Murphy, editors Robert Leighton and Kent Beyda and band members Tufnel, St. Hubbins and Smalls; a conversation between Reiner and actor Patton Oswald; 98 minutes of outtakes; a “Spinal Tap: The Final Tour” featurette; excerpts from “The Return of Spinal Tap”; interviews with the band for its 2009 “Back from the Dead” album; and an essay about the movie.
Maedchen in Uniform (Blu-ray)
Details: 1958, Kino Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A German movie that is a milestone of gay cinema stars a young Romy Schneider as a sensitive student at a militaristic-style boarding school who forms an attachment with a compassionate instructor, portrayed by Lilli Palmer.
After playing the role of Romeo is a school production, the overjoyed student openly declares her love for her instructor, scandalizing the student body and inciting the anger of the school’s conservative headmistress.
The movie, which was previously filmed in 1931, is a classic coming-of-age drama that captures the heartache and confusion of a young woman’s sexual awakening.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; German and French monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track by writer-filmmaker Drew Burnett Gregory is the main extra.
Father Brown, Detective (Blu-ray)
Details: 1934, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Character actor Walter Connolly stars as G.K. Chesterton’s Father Brown, a Roman Catholic priest who doubles as a detective, by using his intuition and sharp understanding of human nature to solve mysteries and crimes.
Paul Lukas costars as Flambeau, an infamous jewel thief, who intends to steal precious diamonds from a cross in Father Brown’s church. He intends to give the diamonds to Evelyn Fisher (Gertrude Michael).
The priest not only fights to keep the cross, but also to reform and redeem the soul of Flambeau.
This 68-minute programmer was directed by Edward Sedgwick.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: The main extra is a commentary track by professor-film scholar Jason A. Ney.
“50s Sci-Fi Collection” (Blu-ray)
Release date: Sept. 2
Details: 1953-58, Warner Archive Collection-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A quartet of science fiction movies — two creature features and a pair of sci-fi films — make up this four-disc set.
The movies spotlighted here are “The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms” (1953), “Them!” (1954), “World Without End” (1956) and “Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman” (1958).
“The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms” is noted for including the debut credit of stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen. It is credited with being the first of a long line of creature features, in which the anxieties of the atomic age were spotlighted.
“Them!” is a classic about mutated giant ants, created by the testing of the first atomic bomb in the Nevada desert. It was followed by other giant bug movies such as “Tarantula,” “Beginning of the End” and “The Spider.”
“World Without End” is a time travel story about a crew of astronauts heading to Mars who encounter a mysterious energy force that propels them into a future in which the remnants of mankind are forced to survive underground.
Allison Hayes stars in the low-budget “Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman” who grows and grows after an encounter with an alien. Hayes character uses her size to get even with her philandering husband before meeting her demise.
The set can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online sellers.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture (“The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms”), 1.78:1 widescreen picture (“Them!”), 2.55:1 widescreen picture (“World Without End”), 1.85:1 widescreen picture (“Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman”); English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a making of featurette and an interview with Harryhausen on “The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms” and a commentary track on “Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman” with author Tom Weaver and the movie’s costar Yvette Vickers.
The Wrong Arm of the Law (Blu-ray)
Details: 1963, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Peter Sellers stars in this British comedy as “Pearly” Gates, the cockney leader of London’s most efficient gang of thieves. Gates organizes masterful robberies, using an haute-couture dress salon as a front.
His method is working flawlessly until police start showing up after every job to confiscate the haul.
Gates begins to realize a traitor is working amidst his crew — and no one is above suspicion, not even his fashion model girlfriend Valerie (Nanette Newman).
It is revealed that the “police” are actually Australian crooks masquerading as officers and that Valerie is secretly working with them. To thwart them, Gates and the real police must cooperate to catch them.
The laughs are rife with British humor as Gates tries to unmask the mole and outwit the police.
The cast also includes Bernard Cribbins and Lionel Jeffries.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with film journalist Laurence Lerman and an interview with John Antrobus, one of the movie’s writers.
The Buster Keaton Show (Blu-ray)
Details: 1949-50, Liberation Hall
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Buster Keaton was not only one of the greatest comics to grace the movies, he also was a technical innovator, pushing the limits of integrating camera tricks with his comedy to create laughs and thrills.
However, by the late 1940s, Keaton’s career was in decline. He hadn’t worked steadily for a few years.
It was fellow comedian Ed Wynn who, in 1949, had a variety show on the soon-to-be-growing television format. He invited Keaton to appear on his CBS program, which was televised live on the West Coast and recorded on kinescope. Then, film prints were made and distributed to other parts of the country.
In December of 1949, Keaton had a chance to do his own live television show on a Los Angeles station. Thirteen episodes of “The Buster Keaton Show” were aired, but only nine still exist.
Unfortunately, studio audiences were rare at the time and canned laughter had not yet been created. So, Keaton’s physical humor was performed in a vacuum.
The nine episodes include seven aired in 1949 and two in February of 1950. Keaton’s costar in his first episode, “The Bakery Story,” was famed Marx Bros. foil Margaret Dumont.
This two-disc set is a treasure for Keaton fans, highlighting that age had not slowed either his body or his mind when it came to creating laughs.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English Dolby stereo.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a short, “Three Comedians in Closeup”; a “This Is Your Life” episode with Keaton; “Circus Time,” a 1957 short; and two classic Keaton silent shorts, “Cops” and “The Goat.”
Night of the Juggler (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Details: 1980, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: R, violence, language
The lowdown: This is one of those gritty New York thrillers that focus on the city’s underbelly of the late 1970s.
James Brolin stars as Sean Boyd, a former police officer turned truck driver, who returns to the city to celebrate the birthday of his teenage daughter, Kathy (Abby Bluestone).
While walking Kathy to school through a busy park, Boyd loses his daughter. He sees her being abducted by Gus Soltic (Cliff Gorman). Boyd gives chase but loses them in the mass of people and vehicles that clog the city.
Boyd then begins searching for Kathy in some of the seediest parts of the city.
“Juggler” is a movie of its era, avoiding political correctness and serving as a time capsule to how the city was perceived in the late ‘70s and early 1980s.
The cast also includes Richard Castellano, Julie Carmen and Dan Hedeya.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include a commentary track on both discs with film historians Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson and, on the Blu-ray disc, a “Summer of ’78” featurette in which Brolin talks about getting the role and filming in New York City; an interview with Carmen; and a discussion about filmmaker Sidney J. Furie and his involvement with the movie.
The Betrayal (Blu-ray)
Details: 1966, Radiance Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A Japanese drama in which an naively honorable samurai takes the blame for a killing committed by one of his fellows.
He is promised a safe return after one year in exile, but that vow is broken and he becomes a fugitive hunted by his own clansmen.
Disillusioned by the bushido code of honor, he realizes that two paths remain for him to fellow — vengeance or death.
The movie is very downbeat, dealing with treachery, betrayal and hypocrisy. The last reel is filled with action-packed sword fights that redeem some of the slower moments.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; Japanese LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include a select-scene commentary track with Tom Mes, a visual essay comparing the film to its 1925 silent forebear, a featurette by Mes about the four elements found in director Tokuzo Tanaka’s works and a booklet.
Los Golfos (Blu-ray)
Details: 1960, Radiance Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A Spanish feature centering on a group of poor youths who roam around Madrid pulling scams and petty crimes to make money and escape their lives of poverty.
Instead of working low-paying dead-end jobs, these youths live on the edge to survive.
The young men are trying to raise money to finance the bullfighting debut of one of their friends.
The movie is shot in a documentary-like style. It is one of several shot about youth delinquency in Spain in the late 1950s.
As the crimes of the young men escalate, they become more brazen and violent.
Director Carlos Saura displays the sadness, frustration and misery of young people in this era of Spanish history.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; Spanish Dolby digital monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include an introduction to the movie, an interview with filmmaker and curator Ehsan Khoshabakht on the movie’s influence and its filmmakers, censored scenes, two early short films by Saura and a booklet.
Dakota (Blu-ray)
Details: 1974, Cult Epics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A beloved Dutch film centering on a Dutch pilot Dick de Boer (Kees Brusse) who has a fierce passion for flying. He will risk anything to keep his DC3/Dakota plane in the air when getting involved in contraband.
The movie’s high points are its attention to detail and its Caribbean setting.
De Boer is a loner dedicated to his Dakota. One of the interesting aspects of the film is his nonstop flight from the West Indies to Holland without having to land to refuel.
“Dakota” is more character than plot driven and will appeal to those who love to soar in the clouds.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; Dutch 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary track, a “Dakota” press flight and a featurette from the 1978 Cannes Film Festival comprise the extras.
Krull: Steelbook (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 1983, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: PG, violence
The lowdown: A sci-fi feature with a fantasy vibe set on the planet Krull. There, Prince Colwyn (Ken Marshall) sets out to rescue his bride, who is being held captive by the Beast.
Colwyn is opposed by killers and alien beings under the Beast’s command. To succeed, he must reach a faraway cave to recover a legendary weapon, the Glaive, a flying blade with extraordinary powers.
The movie, directed by Peter Yates, is a bit derivative of other sci-fi and fantasy movies of the period. It does offer some nice special effects and stunts.
The cast, which includes early appearances by Liam Neeson and Robbie Coltrane, also costars Lysette Anthony, Freddie Jones, Francesca Annis and Alun Armstrong.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible), English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and English and French 2-channel surround 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 Dolby TrueHD compatible), English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and English and French 2-channel surround DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include a cast and crew commentary, a behind-the-scenes commentary and a “Journey to Krull” featurette.
Flaming Brothers: Limited Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 1987, Eureka Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A Hong Kong feature about two orphaned brothers, played by Alan Tang and Chow Yun-fat as triad members determined to protect their criminal operation — and each other — no matter the cost.
The two men grew up together on the streets, where they forged a strong and lasting bond.
They recently opened a nightclub and slowly begin to feel that they are becoming successful. Their happiness is short lived when they become embroiled in a conflict with the ruthless gangster Kao and his right-hand man, who threaten to take everything that the two have worked for.
The movie is both an examination of the bonds of male friendship and loyalty as well as an action-packed feature, which was written by Wong Kar-wai, who later went on to write and direct “Chungking Express” and “In the Mood for Love.”
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; Cantonese and English (dubbed) 2.0 LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema, a video locations featurette, an archival interview with director Joe Cheung and a collector’s booklet.
The Last Horror Film (Blu-ray)
Details: 1982, Troma Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Vinny (Joe Spinell) is a cab driver with dreams of being a Hollywood producer.
He is dead set on having movie star Jenna Bates (Caroline Munro) star in his first production. So, Vinny follows her to the Cannes Film Festival where she is promoting her latest horror feature. Soon, Jenna’s entourage slowly and mysteriously begins to disappear as Vinny’s obsession becomes lethal.
Unfortunately, when Jenna calls the police, they refuse to believe her, thinking she is crying wolf as a Cannes publicity stunt.
The film, which also is known as “Fanatic,” is a dark story of fear and paranoia.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital.
Don’t miss: Extras include an introduction by Troma president Lloyd Kaufman, commentary tracks, interviews, a short film, highlights from the Tromadance Film Festival and an episode of “Kabukiman’s Cocktail Corner.”
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045: Season 2 (Blu-ray) (Shout! Studios)
Tron (4K UHD) (Disney)
Tron: Legacy (4K UHD) (Disney)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
Alien: Earth: Episode 7 (Hulu)
Americana (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Angry Harvest (Kino Film Collection)
Griffin in Summer (Vertical Entertainment)
Hidden Face (Well Go USA Entertainment)
Just Breathe (Radial Entertainment-Shout! Studios)
Live a Little (Breaking Glass Pictures)
Maedchen in Uniform (Kino Film Collection)
Night of the Juggler (Kino Film Collection)
Only Murders in the Building: Season 5, Episode 4 (Hulu)
Power Book III: Raising Kanan: Season 4 (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Secret Mall Apartment (mtuckman media)
Souleymane’s Story (Kino Film Collection)
SEPT. 17
Acapulco: Season 4, Episode 10 (Apple TV+)
Elio (Disney+)
The Morning Show: Season 4, Episode 1 (Apple TV+)
Platonic: Season 2, Episode 8 (Apple TV+)
Tempest: Episodes 4 & 5 (Hulu)
The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox: Episode 6 (Hulu)
SEPT. 18
The Annihilation of Fish (Kino Film Collection)
Little Buddha (Kino Film Collection)
Reasonable Doubt: Season 3, Episodes 1 & 2 (Hulu)
Sounds of Summer (Viaplay)
SEPT. 19
A Nice Jewish Boy (Film Movement)
Another End (Sunrise Films)
Chief of War: Episode 9 (Apple TV+)
Hans Zimmer & Friends: Diamond in the Desert (Greenwich Entertainment)
LEGOS Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy — Pieces of the Past: Episodes 1-4 (Disney+)
Night of the Reaper (Shudder)
Prisoner of War (Well Go USA Entertainment)
The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy: Season 3 (Apple TV+)
Swiped (Hulu)
SEPT. 22
In the Name of Love: Episodes 5 & 6 (Viaplay)
Into the Void: Life, Death and Heavy Metal (Hulu)
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.