The following Blu-rays and DVDs are being released on Tuesday, Nov. 15, unless otherwise noted:
Finding Dory (Blu-ray + DVD + digital HD) Details: 2016, Pixar-Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment Rated: PG, mild thematic elements The lowdown: “Finding Dory” wraps its arms around you as it unspools its story of love, loss, friendship and, most importantly, family. This sequel follows the short-termed memory Dory as she begins remembering how she became separated from her mother and father and undertakes her journey to find them. “Dory” is a movie that works on multiple levels: It’s a fun-filled animated feature that will please and entertain children and their parents, while it also examines how parents protect, encourage and love offspring with special needs, who are different from the norm. The transfers to Blu-ray and DVD are flawless, maximizing the home theater entertainment experience. Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 descriptive audio track and Spanish and French 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, Spanish and French subtitles; DVD: 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and English 2.0 audio descriptive track; English SDH and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include the charming Pixar animated short, “Piper,” interviews with Marine Life Institute residents about Dory, a featurette on creating the bond between animation and audience, a featurette on the challenges of creating an animated octopus, a behind-the-scenes look at the work done to make Dory’s world believable, deleted scenes, a look at creating the fllm’s narrative, a cute featurette on director Andrew Stanton driving vocal talent Albert Brooks, Eugene Levy, Ty Burrell and Ed O’Neill to work, cast members sharing facts about the creatures they voice, a profile of character art director Jason Deamere, a look at the film’s musical elements and a commentary track.
Game of Thrones: The Complete Sixth Season (Blu-ray + Ultraviolet) Details: 2016, HBO Home Entertainment Rated: TV-MA, violence, nudity, sexual content The lowdown: The sixth season of HBO’s Emmy Award-winning series finds survivors from Westeros and Essos regrouping to battle on toward their fates. New alliances will be formed, treachery again will rear its duplicitous head and new characters are introduced to alter the balance of power in this complex and riveting world created by George R.R. Martin. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital, English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible), French, Castilian Spanish and German 5.1 Dolby digital; Latin Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese 2.0 Dolby digital; English SDH, French, Spanish (Castilian and Latin), German, Brazilian Portuguese, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish subtitles. Don’t miss: Hours of bonus materials including an in-episode guide, histories and lore about Westeros and Essos, an in-depth look at the battle of the bastards, a behind-the-scenes experience with cast and crew during 18 hours at the paint hall, a look at recreating the Dorthraki world, deleted scenes and 13 commentary tracks.
Sausage Party (Blu-ray + Ultraviolet) Release date: Nov. 8 Details: 2016, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment The lowdown: “Sausage Party” is 88 solid minutes of laughs. Not just ha-ha laughs, but belly-shaking guffaws that make you shake. Interspersed with all the laughs in this R-rated animated feature is a story of faith vs. skepticism. Most of the movie is set in the aisles of a “Superwell” supermarket, where the various foods on the shelves await the day when the gods take them to the promised land, where they believe they will live happily ever after. Many people, especially those with narrow minds and limited senses of humor, will find the movie offensive. On several levels, “Sausage Party” definitely is not for children. From its song-filled beginning to its “Stargate”-homage ending, “Sausage Party” is hilarity, keeping you cemented to the screen. The jokes, verbal and visual, fly by so quickly that you may have to see the film twice to catch them all. The movie also is an unsubtle, biting political and theological satire that, after the laughs die down and the credits roll, makes you think. This movie tosses out some big ideas for you to chew on. But, be careful of your portions, or you will choke on your laughter. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 Dolby digital audio description track; English SDH, English and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include a good food gag reel, a look at how the film was made, a line-o-rama featurette, four behind-the-scenes featurettes and Seth Rogen’s animation imaginatorium featurette.
Taxi Driver: 40th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray + Ultraviolet) Release date: Nov. 8 Details: 1976, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Rated: R, graphic violence, language The lowdown: Martin Scorsese directed and Paul Schrader wrote this very disturbing urban contemporary classic about alienation and one man’s disturbed vision of New York as hell on Earth. Robert De Niro gives one of the most compelling performances of his long and brilliant career as taxi driver Travis Bickle who is driven to violence by the sordid world he perceives is all around him. The movie features brilliant photography and a memorable score by Bernard Hermann, his last. The movie costars Cybill Shepherd, Jodie Foster, Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel and Peter Boyle. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and Czech, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Polish VO, Portuguese, Russian VO, and Spanish (Castilian and Latin American) 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, English, Chinses (traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian and Classic), Spanish (Castilian and Latin American), Swedish and Turkish subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include a new 40-minute question-and-answer session featuring Scorsese, De Niro, Foster and others recorded at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival; a 1986 commentary with Scorsese and Schrader, commentaries by Schrader and Professor Robert Kolker, a featurette with Scorsese on the movie, a look at producing the film, a featurette on “Taxi Driver” stories, a look at Travis Bickle’s New York locations, a making of featurette and storyboard to film comparisons.
Dead Ringers: Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray) Details: 1988, Scream Factory Rated: R, disturbing images, language The lowdown: David Cronenberg directed and co-wrote the screenplay for this unnerving psychological thriller about twin gynecologists, played by Jeremy Irons, whose emotional mind games lead to madness and murder. Genevieve Bujold plays Claire, the woman who loves Beverly Mantle — or is it his identical twin, Elliot, as the twins share a medical practice an apartment and their women. This is a very eerie and unsettling drama that will have you squirming at times. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture (theatrical version) and 1.66:1 (Cronenberg’s preferred aspect ratio); English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles. Don’t miss: Among the supplemental materials are two commentary tracks, including one with Irons, interviews with cast members Stephen Lack and Heidi Von Palleske, director of photography Peter Suschitzky and special effects artist Gordon Smith, vintage interviews and a behind-the-scenes featurette.
The Goodbye Girl (Blu-ray) Release date: Nov. 8 Details: 1977, Warner Archive Collection Rated: PG The lowdown: Richard Dreyfuss won a best actor Academy Award for his performance as struggling actor Elliot Garfield in this romantic comedy written by Neil Simon and directed by Herbert Ross. Marsha Mason, then Mrs. Neil Simon, costars as Paula McFadden, a dancer who has been dumped by her boyfriend only to discover that the apartment they shared has been sublet to Garfield. Elliott and Paula start out battling each other, but soon reach accommodations about the use of the apartment, which — to no one’s surprise — leads to romance. The film’s subplot, in which Elliot stars in an outrageous production of Shakespeare’s “Richard III,” is hilarious. The release is a made-on-demand Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection and can be ordered at www.wbshop.com or other online retailers. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Mia Madre Details: 2016, Music Box Films Rated: R, language The lowdown: An Italian drama about a movie director (Margherita Buy) who daily difficulties while shooting her new film begin to impact on her personal life, which is in crisis. The on-set difficulties include a uncooperative American leading man, played by John Turturro, and a crew that is close to mutiny. Off the set, the director must cope with her mother’s serious illness and her estrangement from her teenage daughter. The movie, a personal project for director Nanni Moretti, touches on such themes as loss, memory, family and the importance of human connection. Technical aspects: 1.85:1 widescreen picture; Italian 5.1 Dolby digital; English and Italian subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus materials include a look at Turturro, outtakes, deleted scenes and an on-the-set featurette.
Legend of Bruce Lee: Volume One Release date: Nov. 1 Details: 2006, Well Go USA Entertainment Rated: Not rated The lowdown: This TV series covers the life of Bruce Lee, with some exaggerations and alterations, of course. In this first volume, young Bruce, played by Danny Chan, has no interest in studying. He is obsessed with martial arts, though. After Bruce loses a street fight, he is determined to master kung fu under the tough tutelage of Master Ye Wen. Bruce is later forced to leave Hong Kong after being targeted by street gangs for defending the weak. His journey takes him to the United States. Enrolling at the University of Washington, he starts teaching martial arts and befriends an American girl, Linda (Michelle Lang). A remarkable performance at the national karate championship launches Bruce’s film career and his kung fu school on a path to international renown. The three-disc set features the first 10 episodes of this 30-episode series. Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; English Dolby digital; English SDH subtitles.
Cardboard Boxer (Blu-ray) Details: 2016, Well Go USA Entertainment Rated: Not rated The lowdown: Thomas Haden Church stars as Willie, a homeless man living on the dangerous streets of Skid Row in Los Angeles. Willie is a good-hearted individual, but is coerced by two rich teenagers into fighting another homeless man for cash. Willie becomes stuck in a violent world he dislikes and cannot comprehend. He finds comfort in the discarded diary of a teenage girl. The movie, despite some brutal sequences, is s story of loss, redemption and friendship. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 16:9 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
The Peter Potamus Show: The Complete Series (DVD-R) Release date: Nov. 1 Details: 1964-65, Warner Archive Collection Rated: Not rated The lowdown: Another release from the Hanna-Barbera Classic Collection vault, focuses on Peter Potamus, who covers the globe and history with his monkey sidekick, So-So, in their magical flying balloon. The good-natured Peter is always ready to land and help, whether it be in Egypt, France and Morocco, or other global places. To battle trouble, Peter uses his Hippo Hurricane Hollar. Sharing the show with Peter, are Breezly and Sneezly, a polar bear and seal, who always are planning of ways to break into the local arctic army base, and Yippee, Yappee and Yahooey, three palace guards who serve a long-suffering king. The show features the vocal talents of Daws Butler, Howard Morris, Mel Blanc, Don Messick and Hal Smith, among others. The release is a made-on-demand DVD-R from the Warner Archive Collection and can be found at www.wbshop.com or other online retailers. Technical aspects: 1.37:1 (4x3) full-screen picture; English Dolby digital monaural.
Other Blu-rays and DVDs being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
DIGITAL DOWNLOADS and STREAMING Cents (Cents, LLC) Jason Bourne (Universal Studios Home Entertainment) High Maintenance: Season 1 (HBO Home Entertainment, Nov. 21) Raised by Wolves, Series 2 (Acorn TV, Nov. 21)
Coming next week: War Dogs Kubo and the Two Strings Lo and Behold! Reveries of the Connected World
Bob Bloom is a member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. He reviews movies, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. He can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow Bloom on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook. Movie reviews by Bloom also can be found at Rottentomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.