New to View: June 1
Among the new titles for home consumption is a thriller about a family's African safari vacation that turns into a fight for survival.
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, June 1, unless otherwise noted:
Endangered Species (Blu-ray + digital)
Details: 2021, Lionsgate Home Entertainment
Rated: R, bloody images, violence, language
The lowdown: A wealthy American family takes a vacation to the wilds of Kenya to bond, fix the growing rifts and, perhaps, find some excitement.
They get more than they bargained for when their safari vehicle is attacked and flipped over by a rhino protecting her calf. Stranded and injured, the family must find a way to survive as they become the prey of leopards, hyenas and other beasts who view them simply as food.
The cast is headed by Rebecca Romjin and Jerry O’Connell.
The movie features some tense and bloody moments, but also is undone by a weak script that is too preachy, fails to garner sympathy for most of the characters and so-so acting.
The majority of critics were not impressed with the movie, awarding it a 33 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH, Brazilian Portuguese and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include two commentary tracks and cast and crew interviews.
The Green Man (Blu-ray)
Details: 1956, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This droll British black comedy stars Alistair Sim as Hawkins, a watchmaker with a part-time job as a professional assassin who enjoys making bombs to take out his targets.
His latest assignment is pompous member of Parliament Gregory Upshott (Raymond Huntley). Hawkins learns that Upshott will be taking one of his typists with him for a tryst at a seaside hotel called The Green Man.
Hawkins checks in and plants a bomb in the radio in Upshott’s room.
William Blake (George Cole), a bumbling vacuum cleaner salesman, learns about the assassination plot and heads to the hotel to thwart Hawkins.
The movie is the usual dry British humor familiar to fans of such movies as “Kind Hearts and Coronets.”
The film was adapted by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat from their stage play.
The cast, which also includes Terry-Thomas, was directed by Robert Day (“Tarzan the Magnificent” and episodes of cult 1960s TV series, “The Avengers” starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg).
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.37:1 full-screen picture; English DTS-HD; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: A commentary by film historian David Del Valle is the main extra.
Who Is Harry Nilsson: (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him)? (Blu-ray)
Release date: June 4
Details: 2010, MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Harry Nilsson was a singer-songwriter respected and followed by several of his contemporaries.
The Beatles called him their favorite American musician.
Today, though, Nilsson is nearly forgotten, despite composing such songs as “Everybody’s Talkin’,” “Without You” and “One (Is the Loneliest Number.”
This documentary examines his career as well as his complex and contradictory life.
The film paints a detailed picture of Nilsson and features more than 50 of his recordings.
It also includes home movies, photos from the Nilsson family album and interviews.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include additional interviews, deleted scenes and a music video.
Long Weekend (DVD)
Release date: May 25
Details: 2021, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: R, language
The lowdown: Finn Wittrock and Zoë Chao star in this romantic comedy about a chance meeting that may lead to something much more special.
The chemistry between Wittrock and Chao elevates the story, which is constantly challenged by its screenplay that, unfortunately, uses mental illness as a plot gimmick.
The movie leaves many questions unanswered relying on the personalities of its two leads to carry the load.
Technical aspects: 200:1 anamorphic widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
The Hot Spot (Blu-ray)
Release date: May 4
Details: 1990, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: R, violence, sexual situations, language
The lowdown: Dennis Hopper directed this noir-like feature about drifter Harry Madox, played by Don Johnson, who ambles into a small Texas town, takes a job at a used car dealership and promptly begins affairs with Dolly Harshaw (Virginia Madsen), the wife of the dealership’s owner, and Gloria Harper (Jennifer Connelly), an accountant.
All the while, Madox is planning on robbing the local bank. He does so and is arrested. But Dolly provides him with an alibi.
When Madox decides to leave town with Gloria, Dolly unleashes her wrath.
The movie is a story of betrayal, jealousy and murder, which earned a 71 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes. It costars William Sadler, Charles Martin Smith, Barry Corbin, Jerry Hardin, Jack Nance and Virgil Frye.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include interviews with Madsen and Sadler, and a commentary track.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
A Glitch in the Matrix (Blu-ray & DVD) (Magnolia Home Entertainment)
Digging to Death (DVD & VOD) (Uncork’d Entertainment)
Open Your Eyes (Blu-ray & DVD & VOD) (Gravitas Ventures)
Shoplifters of the World (Blu-ray & DVD) (RLJE Films)
Spare Parts (Blu-ray & DVD & digital & VOD) (RLJE Films)
Stray (DVD & VOD) (Magnolia Home Entertainment)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
Brewmance (Giant Pictures-Amazon Prime)
Changing the Game (Hulu)
It’s Not a Burden (Gravitas Ventures)
Hamlet/Horatio (Glass House Distribution)
Julia Scotti: Funny That Way (1091 Pictures)
The Sound of Identity (Shout! Studios)
Edge of the World (Samuel Goldwyn Pictures, June 4)
Flashback (Lionsgate Home Entertainment, June 4)
Knots: A Forced Marriage Story (Global Digital Releasing, June 4)
The Real Thing (Film Movement, June 4)
Road Head (Terror Films, June 4)
Super Frenchie (Greenwich Entertainment, June 4)
Under the Stadium Lights (Saban Films-Paramount Pictures, June 4)
Undine (IFC Films, June 4)
We All Think We’re Special (Cinema Epoch, June 4)
Who Gets to Be an Influencer (Hulu, June 4)
Alabama Snake (HBO Home Entertainment, June 7)
Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries: Series 2, Episode 1 (Acorn TV, June 7)
Tina (HBO Home Entertainment, June 7)
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 Twitter @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.
