New to View: March 31

By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, March 31, unless otherwise noted:
Salem’s Lot: Limited Edition (4K Ultra HD)
Details: 1979, Arrow Video
Rated: PG, violence
The lowdown: This adaptation of the popular Stephen King novel is a vampire tale set in small-town New England.
David Soul portrays author Ben Mears who returns to his home town of Salem’s Lot to write about the Marsten House, an old mansion with a bad reputation that has haunted him since childhood.
The old, sleepy town is beginning to change, including the upcoming opening of an antiques store run by the mysterious Richard Straker (James Mason) and his unseen partner, Mr. Barlow (Reggie Nadler). Straker and Barlow have taken up residence in the Marsten House.
Soon after, a series of deaths and disappearances lead Mears to believe that a vampire is feeding off the town.
Mears is facing two problems ­— how to stop the vampire and how to get anyone in town to believe him.
“Salem’s Lot” was directed by Tobe Hooper and features a solid supporting cast including Bonnie Bedelia, Fred Willard, Geoffrey Lewis, Lew Ayres, Ed Flanders, Kenneth McMillan, Marie Windsor, Bonnie Bartlett, George Dzundza and Ellisha Cook Jr.
The two-disc set features the two-part miniseries version and an extended movie version as well.
Technical aspects: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audo monaural and LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include a commentary track by film critics Bill Ackerman and Amanda Reyes, a second, archival commentary by Hooper, alternate TV footage: commercial bumpers and original broadcast version of the antlers death; and, on the second disc, a new commentary track by film critic Chris Alexander; an interview with King biographer Douglas Winter; an appreciation by author-critic Grady Hendrix; an interview with filmmaker Mick Garris; a featurette looking at locations of Salem’s Lot today; a new featurette with film critic Heather Wixson, co-author of “In Search of Darkness”; a new featurette with film critics Joe Lipsett and Trace Thurman, co-hosts of the podcast “Horror Queens”; and a collector’s booklet featuring new and archival writings about “Salem’s Lot” that includes interviews with Hooper and cast members Lance Kerwin and Julie Cobb.

Ray (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Details: 2004, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: PG-13, drug use and addiction, sexual situations, mature thematic elements
The lowdown: Jamie Foxx won a best actor Academy Award for his spot-on portrayal of legendary musician Ray Charles.
From his humble beginnings in the South through his dazzling rise to the top of the charts and the music industry, Charles’ journey is a story of hope, redemption and the potential of the human spirit.
The movie does not shy away from showing Ray’s battles with heroin addiction, nor his affairs while on the road.
While the movie, like most bio-pics, takes a few dramatic liberties, they are washed away by Foxx’s bravura performance. His turn as Charles, as well, as the music, propels “Ray” to the point that you can’t stop loving the movie.
Directed by Taylor Hackford, the cast also includes Kerry Washington, Regina King, Clifton Powell, Harry Lennix, Terence Dashon Howard, Larenz Tate and Richard Schiff.
“Ray” received a 79 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; English subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audo; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a commentary track by film historian-author Dwayne Epstein and a second commentary by Hackford on both discs and, on the Blu-ray, an introduction to the movie by Hackford, a featurette on Foxx’s portrayal of Charles, a remembrance of Charles, a featurette on the women in “Ray,” “The Filmmaker’s Journey” about Hackford featurette, “Ray: An American Story” featurette, “A Look Inside ‘Ray’ ” featurette, 14 deleted scenes with optional commentary by Hackford, and nine uncut music performances.

Tea and Sympathy (Blu-ray)
Details: 1956, Warner Archive Collection-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Deborah Kerr, John Kerr and Leif Erickson star in this screen adaptation of Robert Anderson’s play about a sensitive prep school youth called “sister boy” by his peers and the lovely housemaster’s wife who offers more than tea and sympathy to help the boy prove his manhood.
The homosexual undercurrent of Anderson’s 1953 stage play has been muted, but the poignancy remains intact.
Tom Robinson Lee (John Kerr) is a new senior at a boy’s prep school, who finds himself at odds with the machismo culture of the other boys who enjoy sports, roughhousing and fantasizing about girls.
Lee prefers classical music, reading classic books and going to the theater. He also prefers the company of women.
Lee is pressured from all sides — by his father, Herb (Edward Andrews), and coach Bill Reynolds (Erickson), who is worshipped by the other boys.
Only Reynolds’ wife, Laura (Deborah Kerr), tries to build a connection with the young man. She eventually falls in love with him because his sensitivity reminds her of her first husband, who was killed in World War II.
Goaded by the other boys, Tom visits the local prostitute, but things go badly when she mocks and insults him.
Nearly suicidal, Tom is saved by Laura who kisses him and tells him, “Years from now, when you talk about this — and you will — be kind.”
Deborah and John Kerr reprised their roles from the Broadway production for the movie, which earned an 82 percent fresh rating — on 11 reviews — at Rotten Tomatoes.
The Blu-ray can be found at www.moviezyng.com and can be ordered at https://moviezyng.com?bg_ref=IynKWWRwB7 or other online sellers.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a classic MGM cartoon, “Down Beat Bear.”

It All Came True (Blu-ray)
Details: 1940, Warner Archive Collection-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Ann Sheridan, Jeffrey Lynn and Humphrey Bogart — still a supporting player with his rise to stardom a year away — are featured in this musical-comedy-crime hybrid about Chips Maguire (Bogart), a killer on the run, hiding out in an old boarding house run by Nora Taylor and Maggie Ryan.
Taylor is the mother of Maguire’s associate, songwriter Tommy Taylor (Lynn), who also carries Maguire’s gun so the gangster can use him as a fall guy if he gets into any trouble.
Mrs. Taylor is overjoyed to see Tommy, whom she has not seen in five years. She gives a room to Maguire, calling himself Grasselli, so he can stay low.
Also returning to the boarding house in Mrs. Ryan’s daughter, Sarah Jane (Sheridan), who is suspicious of Grasselli, whom she recognizes as Maguire.
An assortment of oddballs also live in the establishment and when the women are about to lose the boarding house because of unpaid taxes, Grasselli-Maguire bails them out.
He suggests they the house into a nightclub, which proves successful and solves everyone’s problems.
The cast includes Jessie Busley as Mrs. Taylor, Una O’Connor as Mrs. Ryan as well as ZaSu Pitts, John Litel, Grant Mitchell and Felix Bressart.
The release can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online stores and can be purchased at https://moviezyng.com?bg_ref=IynKWWRwB7 or other 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: Two classic Warner Bros. cartoons — “Circus Today” and “The Sour Puss” comprise the extras.

Gambling Ship (Blu-ray)
Details: 1933, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment-Allied Vaughn
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Cary Grant stars as a gangster trying to put his past behind him and start a new life.
On a train heading west, he meets Eleanor (Benita Hume) and, over the course of the trip, the two fall in love.
Grant’s Ace Corbin does not want Eleanor to know about his earlier life, so he uses a false name. Eleanor also has a secret – she is the mistress of gambling ship operator Joe Burke (Arthur Vinton).
Ace and Eleanor face several obstacles on the road to true love, among them Ace’s attempt to buy Burke’s debt-ridden gambling ship, which will steal the gambling trade from Ace’s old foe Pete Manning (the always hissable Jack La Rue).
Everything, of course, works out for Ace and Eleanor by the fade out.
The cast also includes Glenda Farrell, Roscoe Karns, Charles Williams and Edwin Maxwell.
The Blu-ray can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online sellers and can be ordered at https://moviezyng.com?bg_ref=IynKWWRwB7.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.

Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen (Blu-ray)
Details: 2010, Well Go USA Entertainment-Allied Vaughn
Rated: R, strong violence, martial arts action, language
The lowdown: Turmoil reigns in 1920s China with the nation divided by infighting and threatened by the ever-growing power of Japan, which already has taken over Northern Shanghai.
With the city torn by international conflict, the popular nightclub, “Casablanca,” has become a central hub for spies, mobsters, English officials and the Japanese military — all looking to gain control of the country without a thought for the people who live there.
This is the landscape Chen Zhen finds on his return to China. He had fought in the Great War alongside the Allied forces in Europe. His return baggage includes some dark secrets from his past.
During the day, Chen Zhen is known as “Ku,” appearing to be just another wealthy playboy. At night, however, he takes to the streets as a masked warrior determined to subvert the Japanese invasion of his homeland while becoming entangled with the sultry Kiki, who has a dangerous secret of her own.
When his past catches up with him, Zhen is faced with near impossible odds. His skills, however, are very formidable and he is up to the challenge.
Donnie Yen takes on the role of Chen Zhen, previously portrayed by Bruce Lee in “Fist of Fury” and Jet Li in “Fist of Legend.”
The Blu-ray can be found at www.moviezyng.com or other online sites, and it can be purchased at https://moviezyng.com/yhdvhi.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; Mandarin and English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A behind-the-scenes featurette is the main bonus component.

Blazing Fists (Blu-ray)
Details: 2025, Well Go USA Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Japanese cult director Takashi Miike helmed this story of two troubled teens, Ikuto and Ryoma, who meet in juvenile detention and make plans to fight their way to freedom.
Inspired by MMA fighter and Breaking Down founder Mikuru Asakura, the teens decide to compete in Asakura’s popular tournament.
When released, they discover that they will have to defeat their past outside the ring before they can become champions inside of it.
The movie, also known as “Blue Fight: The Breaking Down of Young Blue Warriors” features  voice-over narration and just adequate fight sequences.
The movie seems to be aimed at fans of MMA.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 16:9 (enhanced) widescreen picture; Japanese and English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English and French subtitles.

“Eiichi Kudo’s Samurai Revolution Trilogy”: Limited Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 1963-67, Arrow Video
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Filmmaker Eiichi Kudo used this trilogy to present an authentic and scathing portrayal of Japan’s tyrannical past to question the social and political landscape of his era.
The three movies, “13 Assassins” (1963), “The Great Killing” (1964) and “11 Samurai” (1967), depicts the decay at the heart of the Tokugawa shogunate: despotic lords oppressing their people and abusing their power without any consequences; loyalty to the Shogun is valued above compassion and virtue; and samurai have shed any modicum of nobility for their own self-interest, which they pursue with joyful  cruelty.
Each movie portrays a group of honorable samurai driven to plan the political assassination of a corrupt lord, hoping to ignite a fuse that will eventually topple the regime. The rebels, however, must understand the fatal consequences of their mission. For if the Shogun falters, then their lives and the entire samurai class will be forfeit.
Kudo utilizes expressive black-and-white cinematography, remarkable swordfights and forceful performances to paint a splendid visual and narrative tapestry. Each film further explores questions of ethics and morality.
The solid cast includes such familiar names as Chiezo Kataoka, Ko Nishimura, Kei Sato and Toru Abe.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; Japanese LPCM monaural; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include commentary tracks on all three films, plus, on “13 Assassins,” a video essay by music supervisor and Japanese cinema expert James Balmont on famed composer Akira Ifukube’s score; “The Great Killing” offers a video essay on the movie’s cinematography and an archival discussion about the jidaigeki genre and the political dimension of the movie; “11 Samurai” includes a video essay on the historical setting of the film, a discussion about the movie’s filming techniques and the conception of the samurai in Kudo’s jidaigeki movies, and an interview with Fabrice Anduini, filmmaker and programmer for the House of Culture of Japan in Paris, where he discusses jidaigeki and Kudo’s movies.

Born Innocent: The Redd Kross Story (Blu-ray)
Release date: April 3
Details: 2024, Reich & Co.-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A documentary that looks at two brothers, Jeff and Steve McDonald, who fulfilled their rock ‘n’ roll dream as Redd Kross, whose love of music took them from the hardcore punk scene then reimagining themselves as power pop and bubblegum musicians having fun.
I mean, how you not root for a band that originally had an 11-year-old bass player.
The McDonalds were big fans of and influenced by “The Partridge Family” TV series and band. Except they were long-haired punks with stage costumes that would put some famous glam rockers to shame.
The band defied genres and conventions, continually evolving and surviving the music industry and a kidnapping.
The movie includes home movies and archival footage featuring X, The Runaways, Nirvana, Guns N Roses and members of Black Flag, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and the GO-GOs.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 (16:9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital surround audio.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a commentary track with the Jeff and Steve McDonald and director Andrew Reich; a featurette on the cult classics “Desperate Teenage Lovedolls” and “Lovedolls Superstar”; featurettes on the infamous 1979 Polliwog Park Show with Black Flag and the 1982 Santa Monica Pier show; footage of the 2015 rehearsal and reunion show of the original lineup of the band featuring Greg Hetson; footage of an unseen 1989 rehearsal with the “Third Eye” lineup of the band; 40 minutes of outtakes of the McDonald brothers playing acoustic versions of Redd Kross songs; a post-screening question-and-answer session with Reich and the McDonalds; extended outtake sections of the band’s beginnings, including the various band name changes and the alteration from Red Cross to Redd Kross; and an interview with Kim Shattuck of The Muffs.

Other titles being released in the coming week include:
Greenland (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital) (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Greenland 2: Migration (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital) (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Silver Star (Blu-ray & DVD & VOD) (Indican Pictures)
Suspended Time (DVD) (Music Box Films)

DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
Avatar: Fire and Ash (Buena Vista-Disney-Fox Home Entertainment)
The Testament of Ann Lee (Hulu)
Wuthering Heights (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment)

APRIL 1
Imperfect Women: Episode 4 (Apple TV)
Shrinking: Season 3, Episode 10 (Apple TV)

APRIL 2
Double Stakes: Episode 3 (Viaplay)
Little Trouble Girls (Kino Film Collection)
Touch Me (Yellow Veil Pictures)

APRIL 3
A Love Like This (Quiver Distribution)
For All Mankind: Season 5, Episode 2 (Apple TV)
The Last Thing He Told Me: Season 2, Episode 7 (Apple TV)
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters: Season 2, Episode 6 (Apple TV)
Pizza Movie (Hulu)
Your Friends and Neighbors: Season 2, Episode 1 (Apple TV)

APRIL 6
Star Wars: Maul — Shadow Lord: Episodes 1 & 2 (Disney+)

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.