New to View: Nov. 14

An acclaimed Chinese film that its government tried to suppress headlines the short list of new releases in New to View at ReelBob.

The following titles are being released on Tuesday,, Nov. 14, unless otherwise noted:
Return to Dust (DVD)
Details: 2022, Film Movement
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This heartwarming and heartbreaking movie, set in rural China, annoyed that nation’s government officials, which makes it almost a necessity to watch.
In Gaotai county, two lonely middle-aged outcasts are pressured into an arranged marriage by their families. Ma (Wu Renlin) is a dirt-poor farmer with little to offer. Cao (Hai Qing) is his sickly and timid new wife. All they have is a small, abandoned house on a barren piece of land.
But with a few seeds, hard work and determination their seeds take root and crops grow and flourish. At the same time, a bond develops between Ma and Cao.
And as time passes, their dedication to each other continues to grow. Adversity, however, soon threatens their idyllic existence.
Critics were ecstatic about the movie, awarding it a 96 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes, labeling it a touching love story and praising the work of its lead performers.
Technical aspects: 1.55:1 widescreen picture; Chinese 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby digital; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include a short film, “Hair Tie Egg, Homework Books,” about a model student assigned to give a speech about her family at her parents’ open-house event, but who has second thoughts after a run-in with fellow student.

Black Hawk Down: Steelbook (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital)
Release date: Nov. 7
Details: 2001, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: R & unrated, intense graphic violence, language
The lowdown: In 1993, a group of American Rangers and Delta Force soldiers are sent on a critical mission to capture a violent and corrupt warlord in Somalia.
The mission goes awry when the two helicopters carrying the Americans is hit by Somali forces as they are lowering the soldiers to the ground.
What ensues is a dramatic and deadly fight for survival as the Americans battle hundreds of well-armed Somalis.
The movie, directed by Ridley Scott, is a memorable war movie. The cast features Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Tom Sizemore, Eric Bana, William Fichtner and Sam Shepard.
The set features the 144-minute theatrical and 152-minute extended versions of the movie, which garnered a 77 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra high definition, 2.40:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos (7.1 TrueHD compatible) and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and Spanish Dolby surround (extended version); English SHD, English, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.40:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Hours of bonus materials including three commentary tracks, one with Scott and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, another with author Mark Bowden and screenwriter Ken Nolan and a third with Task Force Ranger veterans; a making of featurette; a History Channel, “The True Story of Black Hawk Down” program; a “PBS Presents: Ambush in Mogadishu” program; eight deleted and alternate scenes with optional commentary; a designing Mogadishu featurette, an archival behind-the-scenes look at the production design; storyboards and Ridleygrams with optional commentaries; a “Target Building Insertion: Multi-Angle Sequence” with optional commentary; a series of question-and-answer forums; a title design explorations with optional commentary; and a music video.

Jackie Chan: Emergence of a Superstar (Blu-ray)
Release date: Nov. 7
Details: 1978-85, The Criterion Collection
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: This four-disc set features six early films in the career of martial arts-action legend Jackie Chan.
The titles included are “Half a Loaf of Kung Fu” (1978), “Spiritual Kung Fu” (1978), “The Fearless Hyena” (1979), “The Young Master” (1980), “Fearless Hyena II” (1983) and “My Lucky Stars” (1985).
Chan made his mark with his slapstick, comedic talent, fearless stunt work and his martial arts athleticism.
“Half a Loaf of Kung Fu” finds Chan as a young man who always seems to get into trouble. He is taught kung fu and joins a group of bodyguards sworn to protect a priceless gem. When bandits try to steal it Chan’s character and his pal defeat them in a comic manner.
Ghosts in a Shaolin temple teach a student, played by Chan, a unique style of fighting in “Spiritual Kung Fu” that he uses to advance and finally defeat a gang of bad guys.
Revenge is the theme in “The Fearless Hyena” as Chan’s character learns kung fu so he can avenge the death of his grandfather.
“The Young Master” finds Chan’s Dragon mistaken for a fleeing criminal. He must find the real criminal to exonerate himself, while law officers and mercenaries are hunting him.
“Fearless Hyena II” finds Chan’s comic character and his friend having to fight two evil kung-fu artists who killed their fathers.
In “My Lucky Stars,” two Hong Kong police officers are sent to Tokyo to catch a former cop who stole diamonds. After one of the officers is captured by a gang protecting the bad cop, the other must recruit his gang from his old days at an orphanage to help him, which they do — reluctantly.
The movies show Chan’s evolutions over the years and make for interesting viewing.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 (“Half a Loaf of Kung Fu,” “Spiritual Kung Fu,” “The Fearless Hyena,” “The Young Master” and “Fearless Hyena II”) and 1.85:1 (“My Lucky Stars”); Cantonese LPCM monaural and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English (dubbed) tracks for all titles; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include commentaries on “The Fearless Hyena” and “The Young Master”; interviews about Chan with author Grady Hendrix; archival interviews with Chan, Sammo Hung and actors Michiko Nishiwaki and Hwang In-shik; “The Young Master” promo reel from the 1980 Cannes Film Festival and deleted scenes from the movie; a 2005 interview with Hong Kong cinema critic Paul Fonoroff about producer-director Lo Wei; NG shots from “The Young Master” and “My Lucky Stars”; and an essay about Chan.

Full Body Massage (Blu-ray)
Details: 1995, Unearthed Classics
Rated: R, nudity, sexual situations
The lowdown: Mimi Rogers and Bryan Brown star in this erotic drama from Nicolas Roeg about a Nina, a successful, world-weary art dealer who is surprised when her regular masseur sends a substitute, Fitch, to continue her weekly sessions.
At first, the two clash, but as the sessions — and his therapeutic hands — continue, they begin to form an intimate relationship that gives them the freedom to discuss whatever is on their minds.
The movie, also photographed by Roeg, is a story of sensual love.
The Blu-ray also features the TV version of the film.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: The TV version is the main extra.

Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
The Blind (Blu-ray & DVD) (Mill Creek Entertainment)
Blue Steel (Blu-ray & digital) (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Bolivar (DVD & digital) (Freestyle Digital Media)
Fremont (Blu-ray & DVD) (Music Box Films)
Monsternado (DVD & digital) (Uncork’d Entertainment)
Spirited Away: Live on Stage (Blu-ray) (GKids-Shout! Studios)

DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
A Murder at the End of the World: Episodes 1 & 2 (Hulu)
The Aviator’s Wife (Kino Now-Amazon)
Blow Up My Life (Different Productions)
The Creator (Disney-Buena Vista)
Designer $hit (ITunes)
Kokomo City (Magnolia Home Entertainment)
Open (Virgil Films-Kino Now)
Pay or Die (Paramount+)
Plan C (Level 33 Entertainment)
Scrapper (Kino Now)
Shoulder Dance (Breaking Glass Pictures)
NOV. 15
Black Cake: Episode 5 (Hulu)
Brawn: The Impossible Formula One Story (Hulu)
The Buccaneers: Episode 4 (Apple TV+)
NOV. 16
Colin From Accounts: Episodes 3 & 4 (Paramount+)
Drive With Swiss Beatz (Hulu)
NOV. 17
For All Mankind: Season 4, Episode 2 (Apple TV+)
Lessons in Chemistry: Episode 7 (Apple TV+)
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters: Episodes 1 & 2 (Apple TV+)
Please Don’t Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain (Peacock)
Rustin (Netflix)
Stony Island (Freestyle Digital Media)
When Time Got Louder (Gravitas Ventures)
NOV. 20
A Place in the Field (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Run the World: Season 2 (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Spellbound: Part 2 (Hulu)
Stamped From the Beginning (www.netflix.com/stampedfromthebeginning) (Netflix)

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.