New to View: Feb. 17
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, Feb. 17, unless otherwise noted:
Predator: Badlands (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2025, Buena Vista-Disney-Fox Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, strong sci-fi violence
The lowdown: The “Predator” franchise turns in a new direction in this latest movie in the series.
The story, heavily reliant on CGI, is more a Disney adventure movie than a Predator film.
Set in the future on a remote planet, the movie centers on Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), an outcast exiled from his clan, who must prove himself by worthy of the hunt by killing a Kalisk, an apex predator, on the “death planet,” Genna.
After arriving on Genna, Dek gets help after forming an alliance with Thia (Elle Fanning), a Weyland-Yutani Corp. damaged android.
Dek finally proves his worth after he and Thia face many challenges, including one from Thia’s “sister,” Tessa, and goes off to form his own clan.
Many fans of the series complained that the storyline is Disneyfied as it seemingly diluted how Predators had been portrayed in earlier movies.
Critics, though, had no such qualms, awarding the movie an 86 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, 2.0 Dolby digital descriptive audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include deleted and pre-visualization scenes with optional commentary; featurettes on embodying the Predator, building the badlands and a look at Predator culture; and a commentary track with by director Dan Trachtenberg, producer Ben Rosenblatt, director of photography Jeff Cutter and stunt coordinator Jacob Tomuri.
Rental Family (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2015, Searchlight Pictures-Buena Vista-Disney
Rated: PG-13, thematic elements, strong language, suggestive material
The lowdown: Academy Award-winner Brendan Fraser stars in this sweet and quiet feature about a struggling American actor in Tokyo who lands a job working for a Japanese “rental family” agency, where he plays stand-in roles for strangers.
As he begins to dig deeper into his clients’ worlds, he begins to form real bonds, rediscovering the joy, purpose and beauty of human connection.
Among his long-term jobs is portraying the estranged father of Mia, a half-Japanese girl whose single mother, Hitomi, who needs help getting her daughter enrolled in a private school. She convinces Fraser’s Phillip to allow Mia to believe he really is her father.
His other assignment is portraying a journalist profiling retired actor Kikuo Hasegawa, who is dealing with dementia, and is kept under constant surveillance by his daughter, Masami.
At times Phillip, who is a decent man, faces some challenges along the paths he travels. Fraser’s performance and the sensitivity of the direction by Hikari, keep “Rental Family” from becoming too sentimental or maudlin.
The movie earned an 87 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.00:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, 2.0 Dolby digital descriptive audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include a behind-the-scenes look at the movie as well as deleted and extended scenes.
Song Sung Blue: Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2025, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, thematic material, language, sexual material, drug use
The lowdown: Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson portray Mike and Claire, a Milwaukee husband-and-wife Neil Diamond tribute band who perform as Lightning and Thunder.
The performances by Jackman and Hudson keep most of the movie’s formulaic story arcs and cheesiness at bay as the duo’s act gains hometown popularity, but also is marred by setbacks and tragedy.
The movie offers enough music to please fans of Diamond, while it explores the family’s struggles and the power of music to help overcome adversity.
Mike and Claire are flawed individuals who use music as a joyful healing ointment.
Hudson received an Academy Award nomination for best female actor for her performance.
The movie earned a 78 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 7.1 Dolby True HD, 2.0 Dolby digital DVS and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track by director Craig Brewer, extended performances, a behind-the-scenes featurette with Brewer and how he brought the movie to life, a featurette with Jackman and Hudson discussing their characters and a featurette on the costume design.
Now You See Me, Now You Don’t (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2025, Lionsgate Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, violence, suggestive material, crime, mystery, thriller
The lowdown: In this latest sequel, The Four Horsemen (Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Isla Fisher) return and reunite with a new and younger generation of illusionists, played by Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa and Ariana Greenblatt, for another high-stakes adventure.
Their mission is to expose Veronika Vandeberg (Rosamund Pike), a powerful diamond heiress who has links to arm dealers, traffickers and warlords.
The two teams of sleight-of-hand artists are helped by legendary magician Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman). The illusionists also must overcome their differences to work together and outwit Vandeberg.
Like the two previous movies, this one contains many twists and turns as well as some very interesting illusions and surprises.
The movie earned a 60 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.39:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos, English descriptive audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos, English descriptive audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a commentary track with director Ruben Fleischer and producer Bobby Cohen; a featurette on Fleischer and what attracted him to the movie; a behind-the-scenes featurette with Eisenberg, Harrelson, Fisher, Franco and Freeman, who talk about what fueled there return to the series; a featurette about Pike and her character; a featurette on costume designer Sophie Canale; a featurette on the magic consultants who aided the cast and filmmakers to create their illusions; a tour of the sets and locations; a look at the Abu Dhabi shooting locations and there production challenges; and deleted and extended scenes.
Heaven (Blu-ray & digital & VOD)
Details: 1987, Lightyear Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, thematic elements
The lowdown: Diane Keaton directed this lighthearted documentary using interviews with a variety of people as well as film clips from such movies as “Metropolis,” “The Green Pastures” and “A Matter of Life and Death” to examine various perspectives about what Heaven is.
Keaton, who never appears on screen, explores people’s oldest and oddest questions about eternity and the hereafter.
Some insights and perspectives are off the wall as people respond to various questions posed by Keaton.
Religious beliefs from some of Keaton’s subjects take a back seat to their personal beliefs and perceptions about heaven.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital.
The Carpenter’s Son (Blu-ray)
Details: 2025, Magnolia Pictures
Rated: R, strong, bloody violence, brief nudity
The lowdown: When you look at movies about Jesus, such titles as “King of Kings” or “The Greatest Story Ever Told” come to mind.
Some filmgoers may prefer something more visceral such as Martin Scorsese’s “The Last Temptation of Christ.”
Now we get “The Carpenter’s Son,” a quasi-religious supernatural thriller set in Egypt where the teenage Jesus (Noah Jupe), his father, Joseph (Nicolas Cage) and mother Mary (FKA twigs) are hiding.
Cage’s participation gives you a hint about the kind of movie writer-director Lotfy Nathan has conceived.
Also, though we know who the principals are supposed to be, their characters are identified as The Carpenter, The Mother and The Boy.
The film leans more toward horror than Scripture, supposedly based on the “Infancy Gospel of Thomas.” It is strange enough to create a cult following, though some of the faithful may be offended by the feature.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 (16×9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: A deleted scene is the main extra.
“Lubitsch Musicals”: Eclipse Series 8 (Blu-ray)
Details: 1929-32, The Criterion Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Filmmaker Ernst Lubitsch is best known for his sophisticated comedies such as “Trouble in Paradise,” “Ninotchka” and “To Be or Not to Be.”
At the dawn of the sound era, Lubitsch helped invent the modern movie musical, combining his love of European operettas, his genius of cinema and his flair with comedy to develop this new genre.
The four movies in this set, “The Love Parade” (1929), “Monte Carlo” (1930), “The Smiling Lieutenant” (1931) and “One Hour With You” (1932) combined elegance and bawdiness before the straitjacket imposed by the moralizing Production Code.
Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald costarred in “The Love Parade” and “One Hour With You. In the former, Chevalier plays a disgraced count who returns to his home country. He fears the wrath of the queen, portrayed by MacDonald. Instead, they fall in love and marry. But problems arise when the count sees the marriage as a threat to his manhood. The supporting cast includes Lupino Lane, Lillian Roth and Eugene Pallette.
In “One Hour With You,” the pair play a happily married couple whom a couple not happy with their marriage, try to sabotage and separate. Chevalier and MacDonald are joined by Roland Young, Genevieve Tobin, Lili Damita and Charles Ruggles.
MacDonald stars in “Monte Carlo” as a princess who runs away on the day of her wedding. In Monte Carlo, she is courted by a prince, played by Jack Buchanan, posing as a hairdresser. Zasu Pitts and Lionel Belmore offer support.
Chevalier returns in “The Smiling Lieutenant” as an amorous officer forced to marry a socially awkward princess, played by Miriam Hopkins, despite his ongoing affair with Franzi (Claudette Colbert), the violinist in an all-woman orchestra. The cast also features George Barbier and Charles Ruggles.
These movies are light-hearted and entertaining with some very strong songs.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.20:1 full-screen picture (“The Love Parade,” “Monte Carlo” and “The Smiling Lieutenant” and 1.37:1 full-screen picture (“One Hour With You”); English LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: The sole extra is an essay by author-film critic Michael Koresky.
The Summer Book (DVD)
Details: 2024, Music Box Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Young Sophia (Emily Matthews) is the focus of this feature set on a peaceful Finnish island.
She uses the time at her family’s seasonal home to explore the natural world around her. Her companions are her father (Anders Danielsen Lie) and grandmother (Glenn Close)
“The Summer Book” is a contemplative, poignant and relatable movie. We learn near the beginning of the movie that Sophia’s mother has recently died and that her father still is grieving her loss.
Sophia spends most of the time with her grandmother, who is dealing with her own issues, including failing memories and health concerns.
But she uses the time to pass along to Sophia life lessons that will help her as she matures. The grandmother is the conduit who tries to draw Sophia’s father and his daughter closer together.
Close’s performance is excellent and very natural.
The movie earned an 83 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1.66:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a behind-the-scenes featurette, a look at the makeup process for Close, a conversation with director Charlie McDowell and home movies from Tove Jansson, the author who wrote the book on which the movie is based.
“Fred Astaire 4-Film Collection” (Blu-ray)
Details: 1948-68, Warner Archive Collection-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: For years, fans of musicals would debate who was the better dancer — Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly.
For me, it’s a pointless argument because their styles were dissimilar. Astaire was more elegant and sophisticated, while Kelly was more athletic and muscular.
Both, though, could hold an audience spellbound with their talent.
This four-disc set spotlights the feet of Astaire — starting with 1948’s “Easter Parade,” costarring Judy Garland and Ann Miller, followed by “The Band Wagon (1953), costarring Cyd Charisse, Oscar Levant, Nanette Fabray and Jack Buchanan, “Silk Stockings” (1957), a musical remake of “Ninotchka,” costarring Charisse, Janis Paige, Peter Lorre, Jules Munshin and George Tobias, and “Finian’s Rainbow” (1968) with Petula Clark, Don Francis, Tommy Steele and Keenan Wynn.
“Easter Parade” features music by Irving Berlin in its story of a song-and-dance man whose partner deserts him. Partially drunk at a restaurant, he selects a girl from the floor show (Garland) and, after a few missteps, the pair become very successful.
Besides the title song, other tunes include “A Couple of Swells” and “Steppin’ Out With My Baby.”
In “The Band Wagon,” directed by Vincente Minnelli, Astaire’s Tony Hunter, a musical comedy star down on his luck, returns to New York to star in a light musical comedy written by his good friends Lester and Lily Marton.
Buchanan plays the egotistical costar-director who turns the musical into a reinterpretation of the “Faust” legend.
Charisse portrays the talented ballerina recruited to costar with Hunter.
Of course, things are rocky until Charisse’s Gabby and Hunter fall in love.
“Silk Stockings,” directed by Rouben Mamoulian, transforms the “Ninotchka” story into a musical comedy in which Astaire’s Steve Canfield must convince Russian agent Nina “Ninotchka” Yoschenko to allow him to do so.
“Finian’s Rainbow” (1968) is a musical comedy directed by Francis Ford Coppola about a rascally Irishman, Finian McLonergan (Astaire) who, with his daughter, Sharon (Clark), comes to Rainbow Valley in the fictional state of Missitucky.
Finian has fled Ireland with a crock full of gold taken from a Og (Steele), a leprechaun, who follows Finian to the United States. Finian plans to bury the gold near Fort Knox so it will grow.
The movie is the weakest of the four, but it offers another opportunity to watch Astaire dance.
The set can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online sellers.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 (with side mattes) full-screen picture (“Easter Parade,” “The Band Wagon”), 2.40:1 widescreen picture (“Silk Stockings,” “Finian’s Rainbow”); English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include featurettes from each individual movie.
Sisu: Road to Revenge (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2025, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: R, strong, bloody violence, gore, language
The lowdown: In this action-packed, blood-soaked sequel, “the man who refuses to die,” returns to the house where his family was murdered during the war.
Sisu dismantles the structure and loads it onto a truck. He is determined to rebuild it somewhere safe in their honor.
When the Red Army commander who killed his family returns, determined to finish the job, fast-paced, cross-country chase ensues. It is a fight to the death, filled with clever action and set pieces.
Jorma Tommila returns as Sisu and Stephen Lang again is the cruel commander.
The movie earned a 95 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes, just about even with the original, which garnered a 94 percent fresh rating.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English and French 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 Dolby digital audio description track and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: An “Upping the Ante” featurette and an alternate ending comprise the extras.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2: Unleashed Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2025, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: PG-13, violent content, terror, language
The lowdown: We are back at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza for the expected and inevitable sequel.
It is a year after the events of the first movie. The stories that have been circulated about what transpired have been twisted into a campy local legend that has inspired a local celebration called Fazfest.
Mike (Josh Hutchinson), the former security guard, and police officer Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) have kept the truth from Mike’s 11-year-old sister, Abby (Piper Rubio), about the fate of her animatronic friends.
When Abby sneaks out to reconnect with Freddy, Bonnie, Chica and Foxy, it will set in motion a chain of events that uncover dark secrets and unleashing a long-forgotten horror that has been secreted for decades — including the true origin of Freddy’s.
The ending seems to set up situations for a third outing, as well.
The animatronics are the best aspect of this sequel, which garnered a weak 16 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.00:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, English Dolby Atmos, English 2.0 DVS and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a featurette on cast members and how they developed their characters; a featurette on how stunt doubles and puppeteers advanced animatronics to a higher level; a behind-the-scenes look at bringing Mangle to life; a featurette with cast members and filmmakers revealing the various methods used to turn the Marionette into a scary entity; and a look at the production design and how it incorporated Easter eggs and game inspirations inside the sets.
“Spencer Tracy 4-Film Collection” (Blu-ray)
Details: 1938-55, Warner Archive Collection-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Spencer Tracy was a memorable performer no matter what genre in which he appeared.
In 1937 and 1938, he won back-to-back best actor Academy Awards for his portrayal of the Portuguese fisherman Manuel in “Captains Courageous” and as Father Flanagan in “Boys Town.”
This set features four other memorable Tracy movies — “Fury” (1936), “Libeled Lady” (1936), “Northwest Passage” (1940) and “Bad Day at Black Rock” (1955).
His performance in “Fury” is intense, playing a man jailed for a crime he did not commit and believed killed by a lynch mob that stormed the jail. He seeks revenge by having his brothers insist that those responsible for his “death” are put on trial for murder.
“Libeled Lady,” which costars Jean Harlow, William Powell and Myrna Loy, is a comedy about a socialite who sues a big-city newspaper for libel. The editor responsible calls in his ignored fiancée and a former employee to frame her and make the false story true.
“Northwest Passage” (1940) is a historical adventure set during the French and Indian War with Tracy as Major Robert Rogers who leads his Rangers up to Canada to destroy a tribe of Indians who have been raiding and killing settlers.
Finally, “Bad Day at Black Rock” stars Tracy as a World War II veteran who comes to the small town to present a medal to a Japanese-American farmer whose son was killed in the war, only to discover a coverup of the farmer’s murder by the most powerful man in the town and his subordinates.
These are four dynamic movies that showcase Tracy’s versatility. The set can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online dealers.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture (“Fury,” “Libeled Lady,” “Northwest Passage”) and 2.55:1 widescreen picture (“Bad Day at Black Rock’); English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural and stereo; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include various featurettes from previous single releases of the titles.
Nightcrawler: Limited Edition Steelbook (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Details: 2014, Shout! Studios
Rated: R, graphic violence, disturbing images, language
The lowdown: Jake Gyllenhaal gives you the creeps in this drama about a driven young man who discovers he has the talent to be a nightcrawler — a free-lance cameraman who covers crashes, fires, murders and other mayhem on the dark streets of Los Angeles.
Gyllenhaal’s Lou Bloom blurs the line between observer and participant as he does what is necessary to reach the top of his new profession.
The movie, written and directed by Dan Gilroy, chronicles how Bloom forces his way into this cutthroat world and how he and others like him use tragedy as windfalls into dollars.
The supporting cast includes Rene Russo, Riz Ahmed and Bill Paxton. The film received an impressive 95 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos, 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos and 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with film historian Joe von Appen and a second with Gilroy, producer Tony Gilroy and editor John Gilroy on both discs; and, on the Blu-ray disc, an interview with composer James Newton Howard on the movie’s score and a making of featurette.
Double Impact: Collector’s Edition (4K UHD + Blu-ray)
Details: 1991, MVD Rewind Collection
Rated: R, strong violence, sexuality, violence
The lowdown: Jean-Claude Van Damme plays twins Chad and Alex Wagner who were separated at birth after their parents were killed by members of a Hong Kong crime syndicate.
Both grow up to be martial arts masters. However, the twins couldn’t be more different. Chad is a slick Beverly Hills fitness instructor, while Alex is a hard-edged smuggler in Hong Kong.
Reunited as adults by the family bodyguard, the brothers promise to avenge the death of their parents.
This is a movie you watch for the fights, blood and wise cracks.
It’s not Shakespeare nor Bruce Lee, but it is popcorn-munching entertainment.
The cast also includes Geoffrey Lewis, Alan Scarfe and Bolo Yeung.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 LPCM monaural; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 LPCM monaural stereo and Spanish 2.0 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a two-part, nearly two-hour making of featurette with cast and filmmaker interviews; deleted and extended scenes; an anatomy of a scene; a 1991 behind-the-scenes featurette with cast and filmmakers; B-roll, raw footage selections from the set; five full-frame clips for us in TV promos; and 1991 cast and crew interview clips.
Knock Off: 2-Disc Collector’s Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Details: 1998, MVD Rewind Collection
Rated: R, violence, language
The lowdown: How’s this for casting! Jean-Claude Van Damme portrays Marcus Ray, a Hong Kong fashion designer who uncovers a deadly conspiracy involving explosive micro-bombs hidden in counterfeit products.
His business partner, Tommy, played by Rob Schneider, is actually an undercover CIA agent (who hired the cast for this movie?), and the two of them must weave through the dangerous world of counterfeit fashion to stop the threat and save lives.
Admittedly, the plot is far-fetched, but this is Van Damme, not Chekov or Ibsen, so all the audience really cares about are the fight and action sequences.
The cast also includes Lela Rochon, Paul Sorvino, Michael Fitzgerald Wong and Carman Lee.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 LPCM stereo; English SDH subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 LPCM stereo; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include an archival commentary track by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema on both discs,, and the Blu-ray disc, new and archival interviews with director Steven E. de Souza, an interview with producer Moshe Diamant and a making of featurette.
Frontier Crucible (Blu-ray)
Details: 2025, Well Go USA Entertainment
Rated: Not rated, violence
The lowdown: A run-of-the-mill Western that could have — and should have — been better considering the cast includes William H. Macy, Thomas Jane and Armie Hammer.
The story centers on Merrick Beckford (Myles Clohessy), a former soldier with a shadowed past, who, it seems, is the only man who can guide a desperately needed wagon filled with medical supplies.
But when the wagon comes under attack from Apaches, Beckford must get help from a trio of outlaws whose main concern is survival. And when they kill an Apache scout, the mission becomes much more dangerous.
The movie seems more deliberately paced than the usual action-oriented Western. Basically, it is a run-of-the-mill, formulaic traditional oater.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 16:9 (enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH and French subtitles.
Don’t miss: A making of featurette is the main extra.
The Flesh & Blood Show (Blu-ray)
Details: 1972, Kino Lorber-Kino Cult #43
Rated: R, violence
The lowdown: A movie that is a homage to the blood-soaked Grand Guignol theater genre.
A seaside theater, marred by a tragic production of “Othello,” reopens with a hip musical revue, only to have several performers fall victim to the theater’s deadly curse.
Underlining the feature’s horror setting is an air generational resentment between permissive youth and a resentful and uncompromising vengeful older generation.
A British feature that seems to follow along the lines of the classic “Ten Little Indians,” but with much more blood.
The movie, directed by cult favorite Pete Walker, contains newly aligned 3-D sequences and is presented in stereoscopic and anaglyphic formats.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include a commentary track by film historians Kat Ellinger and Martyn Conterio, interviews with Walker, actors Jenny Hanley and Stewart Bevan and third assistant director James McCabe.
Flathead (DVD)
Details: 2024, IndiePix Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: An Australian drama about Cass, a man in his 70s, who decides to return to his childhood home in Bundaberg, a small city in Queensland.
Cass, who has many setbacks in life, meets some of the local residents, including Andrew a fish-and-chip shop worker.
When Andrew suddenly loses his father, he and Cass’ lives begin to intertwine, as they begin to exchange emotional comfort to each other.
For Cass, this journey, in which he reveals the events that shaped his life, is a spiritual search for redemption.
Technical aspects: 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital; English subtitles.
Other titles being released in the coming week include:
Silent Night, Deadly Night (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray & Blu-ray & DVD) (Cineverse)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
Blood Barn (Screambox)
Deliver Us (Viaplay)
Ghost Train (Well Go USA Entertainment)
Hellfire (Saban Films)
Kangaroo Kids (Scatner & Rosner Films)
Tell Me Lies: Season 3, Episode 7 (Hulu)
FEB. 18
Drops of God: Season 2, Episode 5 (Apple TV+)
Hijack: Season 2, Episode 6 (Apple TV+)
Shrinking: Season 3, Episode 4 (Apple TV+)
FEB. 19
Scenes After a Marriage: Episodes 7 & 8 (Viaplay)
FEB. 20
Artfully United (Chris Walters Productions)
Bye Bye Brazil (Film Movement+)
Diabolic (Brainstorm Media)
The Dreadful (Lionsgate)
Grande Ecole (Film Movement+)
Last Ride (Quiver Distribution)
The Last Thing He Told Me: Season 2, Episode 1 (Apple TV+)
One Mile: Chapter One & One Mile: Chapter Two (Republic Pictures-Paramount)
Tehran: Season 3, Episode 7 (Apple TV+)
Watching You (Hulu)
FEB. 21
Shoresy: Season 5 (Hulu)
FEB. 23
Paradise: Season 2, Episodes 1-3 (Hulu)
Threshold (Peacock)
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, on Facebook at ReelBob and on Bluesky at @bobbloom1948@bsky.social or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.