By Bob Bloom The following titles are being released on Tuesday, Jan. 28, unless otherwise noted:
Harriet (Blu-ray + DVD + digital) Details: 2019, Universal Studios Home Entertainment Rated: PG-13, violence, language, including racial epithets, thematic elements The lowdown: “Harriet” focuses on a crucial few years in the life of this self-sacrificing, heroic, Civil War-era woman nicknamed “Moses,” who braved obstacles and dangers not only to free herself but to continually return to the South to deliver slaves from bondage. The film is not a full-fledged biography of Harriet Tubman. Rather, it explores the motivations that drove her to continually risk her life, as well as details the strengths that propelled her — her faith and spirituality. “Harriet,” directed by Kasi Lemmons from a script by Gregory Allen Howard and Lemmons, uses Tubman’s conviction as its foundation. Tubman and her family were the property of a Maryland farmer before she fled the 100 miles to freedom in Pennsylvania. There, she was given an education, and, a year later, decided to return to Maryland to free her husband and other family members. “Harriet” is undercut by too many moments that approach melodramatic tropes and stereotypical characters rather than fleshed-out people. The movie, however, is a vehicle for Cynthia Erivo, who brings a steely determination, resiliency and stubbornness to her portrayal. Erivo’s Harriet is confident that she is following God’s will, and she won’t allow anyone or anything to deter her from her goal of emancipating as many slaves as possible. “Harriet” is definitely worth seeing, especially because of Erivo’s Academy Award-nominated, bravura and impassioned performance. A majority of critics also endorsed this view, giving the film a 73 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 DVS, French 5.1 DTS digital surround and Spanish 7.1 DTS-HD high resolution; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus features include a featurette on the making of the movie and the involvement of its three main female filmmakers, deleted scenes and a commentary track.
Motherless Brooklyn (Blu-ray + digital) Details: 2019, Warner Home Entertainment Rated: R, language, including sexual references, drug use, violence The lowdown: Edward Norton wrote, directed and stars in this drama set in 1950s New York. Norton portrays private detective Lionel Essrog, who is afflicted with Tourette Syndrome, who undertakes the investigation of the murder of his friend and mentor, Frank Minna (Bruce Willis). Essrog’s search for answers takes him from Harlem to Brooklyn to the power centers of New York City. The plot tackles thugs and corruption, until Essrog finally confronts a dangerous power broker who wants to reshape the city. The cast also include Alec Baldwin, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Bobby Cannavale, Cherry Jones, Michael Kenneth Williams, Leslie Mann, Ethan Suplee and Willem Dafoe. The movie received a 62 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 Dolby digital descriptive audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include a making of featurette, a commentary track and deleted scenes.
Pain and Glory (Blu-ray) Release date: Jan. 21 Details: 2019, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Rated: R, nudity, drug use, language The lowdown: Antonio Banderas received a best actor nomination for his performance in Pedro Almodovar’s autobiographical film about Salvador Mallo (Banderas), an aging film director dealing with his physical decline. The movie, told through a series of re-encounters, looks at Mallo’s childhood in the village of Valencia, his first love and his discovery of movies. The film also examines the creative void that inflicts a filmmaker. The movie again displays Almodovar’s mastery of the medium. Critics thought so as well, giving the movie a 92 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 audio description track and French 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English and French subtitles. Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include a question-and-answer session with Almodovar, Banderas, composer Alberto Iglesias and producer Agustin Almodovar and a featurette, “Almodovar in His Own Words.”
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death (Blu-ray) Details: 1971, Scream Factory Rated: PG-13, terror, violence, sexual situations The lowdown: Jessica (Zohra Lampert) is released from an institution after suffering a nervous breakdown. To help complete her recovery, she takes refuge in a secluded home in Connecticut with her husband and close friend. Soon, though, strange occurrences threaten to again unhinge Jessica, as it seems many strange and supernatural events are engulfing her. She soon discovers that the entire region seems to be under the influence of a mysterious woman who has been living in the supposedly empty house. The feature is a creepy and spooky, vampire-like horror film with dead people reappearing, strange wounds on various men and bodies vanishing and hands coming up from the water. The film’s success rests with star Lampert. The movie marked the directorial debut of John Hancock. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track interviews with composer Orville Stoeber and film historian Kim Newman and a featurette on the film’s locations.
Gregory’s Girl (Blu-ray) Details: 1981, Film Movement Classics Rated: PG The lowdown: Gregory is an awkward Scottish teenager who has fallen hard for Dorothy, the first female player on his school’s football (yes, soccer) team. Gregory wants to ask Dorothy out, but hasn’t the slightest idea how to approach a girl. And, it seems, neither do any of his friends. The best advice he gets is from his 10-year-old sister. Gregory finally asks Dorothy out, but the date does not turn out as expected. The movie is the second directorial effort by Bill Forsyth, “Local Hero” and “Comfort and Joy.” Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras included alternative U.S. and French dubbed versions of the movie, a commentary track, two interviews with Forsyth and an interview with cast member Claire Grogan.
Black Angel (Blu-ray) Details: 1946, Arrow Video Rated: Not rated The lowdown: Roy William Neill was best known as the director of several of the Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes series at Universal Pictures in the 1940s, as well as the creature feature, “Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man.” In 1946, Neill directed this film-noir feature, which turned out to be his last time behind the camera. He died in December 1946. The film stars Dan Duryea, best known for his many roles as villains, heels and cads, as Martin Blair, a promising songwriter-pianist who has taken to the bottle. His drinking comes on the heels of his failed marriage to singer Mavis Marlowe (Constance Dowling). When Mavis is found dead, it’s not Martin who is charged with her killing, but a guy named Kirk Bennett (John Phillips), who Mavis was blackmailing. Bennett is convicted and sent to prison. His wife, Catherine (June Vincent), is convinced of his innocence and soon teams up with Martin to find the real killer. The movie contains many of the elements found in noir as well as a unsettling subtext with Martin falling in love with Catherine, despite that, not only is she still married, but Martin is helping her to exonerate her husband. The cast also includes Peter Lorre as a shady nightclub owner. You will have to watch this very interesting film noir to discover the killer’s identity as well as how all the romantic subplots work themselves out. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a commentary track by author Alan K. Rode, an appreciation of the movie and a booklet with an essay about the film.
Battle of Jangsari (Blu-ray + DVD) Details: 2019, Well Go USA Rated: Not rated The lowdown: This Korean war drama centers on a battalion of student soldiers who are tasked with liberating the strategic site of Incheon. The student soldiers have second-hand weapons, little ammunition, supplies and food as they head to the frontlines of Jangsari beach. The young men must hold the beach against enormous odds and help turn the tide of the Korean War. The movie is based on true events. Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Korean 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles; DVD: 2.35:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; Korean 5.1 Dolby digital; English subtitles. Don’t miss: A making of featurette is the major bonus component.
Body Parts (Blu-ray) Details: 1991, Scream Factory Rated: R, gore, violence, language, sensuality The lowdown: Jeff Fahey stars as Bill Chrushank, a criminal psychologist who loses him arm in a car accident. An innovative medical operation is tried, in which a donor’s arm is successfully grafted onto Chrushank’s body. Soon after, however, the arm begins to take on a violent life of its own, going after the psychologist’s wife and children. The rightfully concerned and frightened Chrushank sets out to learn the identity of the donor. And when he does, it leads him into a nightmarish scenario. The movie, is reminiscent of such earlier features as “Mad Love” and “The Hands of Orlac,” only much cheesier. The film is B-movie, drive-in fare at its best. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English DTS-HD Master Audio stereo; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus options include a commentary track with director-writer Eric Red, interviews with Red, actor Paul Ben-Victor and editor Anthony Redman and deleted scenes.
Very Bad Things (Blu-ray) Details: 1998, Shout! Factory Rated: R, graphic violence, sexual content, drug use, language The lowdown: On the eve of his wedding, Kyle Fisher (Jon Favreau) heads to Las Vegas with four of his friends. Their wild, drug-and-alcohol fueled bachelor party goes terribly wrong when the stripper they hired dies during an unhinged sexual game. Fisher and his friends, who include Christian Slater, Jeremy Piven, Daniel Stern and Leland Orser, decide to bury the evidence. But things continue to go wrong and bodies continue to pile up in this Shout Select feature, which costars Cameron Diaz and Jeanne Tripplehorn. The movie marked the directorial debut of actor Peter Berg, who also wrote the script. A similar premise was used in 2017’s “Rough Night,” which starred Scarlett Johansson, Zoe Kravitz, Jillian Bell and Kate McKinnon. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Supplemental offerings include a commentary track and interviews with Piven and Stern.
The Merger (DVD) Details: 2018, IndiePix Films Rated: Not rated The lowdown: A former football player who retired and became a social justice campaigner returns to his home town, befriends a young, inexperienced filmmaker who recently lost his father and, despite opposition, is persuaded to coach the town’s struggling football team. The coach recruits refugees to fill out the team, creating some funny situations, especially since some townspeople don’t like the idea of refugees on the team. The movie stars Aussie comedian Damian Callinan and is based on his one-man show. Technical aspects: 2.40:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital; English closed-captioned.
My Name Is Myeisha (Blu-ray + DVD) Details: 2020, Shout! Studios Rated: Not rated The lowdown: This hip-hop fantasy was inspired by a true event, the shooting by police of Tyisha Mills. In the movie, set in 1998, young Myeisha Jackson (newcomer Rhaechyl Walker) recounts the events of her life leading to a fateful run-in with a police officer. The movie follows Myeisha as she looks back on her life and ahead to what could have been. This energetic film is propelled by Walker’s stunning performance as it tells a story all-too familiar in the nation’s black communities. It is a profound and moving feature that should not be missed. Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles; DVD: 2.39:1 anamorphic widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include cast interviews and a commentary track.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated: Dead Earth (DVD & digital & VOD) (Lionsgate Home Entertainment) Edge of the Axe (Blu-ray) (Arrow Video) The Great Alaskan Race (DVD & digital) (P12)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD Appiness (Gravitas Ventures) Ford v Ferrari (Fox Home Entertainment) The Preppy Murder: Death in Central Park, Episode 4 (Sundance Now) Wisting: Episode 7 (Sundance Now, Jan. 29) The Red Shadows: Episode 2 (Sundance Now, Jan. 30) The 1900 Island (Acorn TV, Feb. 3) ANZAC Girls (Acorn TV, Feb. 3) Dark Girls (Sundance Now, Feb. 3) I Want My Name Back (Sundance Now, Feb. 3) Lovejoy: Series 1 & 2 (Acorn TV, Feb. 3) Middle of Nowhere (Sundance Now, Feb. 3) Murdoch Mysteries: Series 13, Episode 8 (Acorn TV, Feb. 3)
Coming next week: The Nightingale
I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 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. My movie reviews also can be found at Rottentomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.