By Bob Bloom The following titles are being released on Tuesday, Oct. 9, unless otherwise noted: Skyscraper (Blu-ray + DVD + digital) Details: 2018, Universal Studios Home Entertainment Rated: PG-13, sequences of action violence, language The lowdown: “Skyscraper” is a cinematic mix tape — a greatest-hits stew of familiar situations from “Die Hard” and “The Towering Inferno.” That the audience is, from the outset, one step ahead of the movie is not necessarily a deterrent. Rather, it allows you to simply kick back and enjoy the hokum of this action-thriller set in the 220-story, newly built, Hong Kong structure that is the center of the film. Dwayne Johnson stars as Will Sawyer, a former FBI hostage rescue team leader and U.S. war veteran, who now makes a living assessing security for skyscrapers. Sawyer, his wife, Sarah (Neve Campbell), and their two children are at the Hong Kong skyscraper, so Sawyer can assess the building’s security protocols to make sure no flaws are evident. The MacGuffin the bad guys want is something that the structure’s designer and builder Zhao Long Ji (Chin Han) has secreted in his vault-like, penthouse living quarters. The villains devise an elaborate scheme that involves stealing from Sawyer a computer pad for checking on the building’s systems, setting a fire on the 96th floor and hijacking a control center linked to the structure. What sets “Skyscraper” apart from other action films is that Johnson’s Sawyer has a prosthetic lower leg, having been injured in an FBI hostage situation that went terribly wrong. And portraying him as capable of performing amazing feats with that attachment is an agreeable twist and cause for recognition. Johnson’s charisma carries the movie, and it seems he has reached a point in his career where he can seek more challenging roles without harming his appeal. Critics were nearly divided on the movie, giving it a 46 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.40:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos and 2.0 DVS and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital Plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles; DVD: 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen picture; English, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and English 2.0 DVS; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus components include deleted and extended scenes, a profile of Johnson, profiles of real-life amputees, a behind-the-scenes look at the fight scene between Neve Campbell and Hannah Quinlivan, a behind-the-scenes look at the apartment fight between Johnson and costar Pablo Schreiber, a look at the kids in the movie, a discussion on how the movie was pitched to Johnson and a commentary track.
Leave No Trace (Blu-ray + digital) Release date: Oct. 2 Details: 2018, Universal Studios Home Entertainment Rated: PG, thematic elements The lowdown: A drama that is one of the best movies of the year, garnering a perfect 100 percent fresh rating by critics at Rottentomatoes.com. The movie centers on Will and his daughter, Tom, who live off the grid — way off it. The pair created a self-sufficient home in the forest of a national park outside of Portland. They sleep in a tent, drink captured rainwater, pick and cook mushrooms for sustenance and keep to themselves. Will (Ben Foster) is an Army veteran who has mostly turned his back on society. The teenage Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) adores her father and is content with their lifestyle. The movie, directed and co-written by Debra Granik, speaks volumes about family ties — in assured but hushed tones. In its understated way, the movie portrays Will as a man somehow damaged by war. It’s obvious he suffers from PTSD, but — unlike other films — we never really learn what happened to him while he was deployed, which makes Will a more vulnerable and sympathetic protagonist. The tone of “Leave No Trace” is fragile and almost poetic. It rolls along with very little conflict, relying on the performances and chemistry between Foster and McKenzie to carry it — which they do admirably. It’s an insightful movie you can savor and embrace. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 Dolby digital DVS; English SDH and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include behind-the-scenes vignettes, deleted scenes, a look at creating the movie and a location scout photo gallery.
Barry: The Complete First Season (DVD + Ultraviolet) Release date: Oct. 2 Details: 2018, HBO Home Entertainment Rated: TV-MA, language, violence, sexual situations The lowdown: Bill Hader won an Emmy Award for his performance in this HBO comedy series about a hitman who wants something new in his life — so he turns to acting. Barry is a killer for hire who falls in love with acting while on an assignment in Los Angeles. He stumbles into an acting class, taught by Gene Cousineau (Emmy-winner Henry Winkler), and decides to stick it out. Meanwhile, his handler, played by Steven Root, is uncertain what’s going on in Barry’s head, as he tries to convince him to stay in his own killer lane. The series is black comedy at its best. You will really enjoy this series — and you won’t die laughing. Technical aspects: 1.78:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English and French 5.1 Dolby digital and Spanish 2.0 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include a “World of Barry” featurette and a look inside the episodes.
Sicario: Day of the Soldado (Blu-ray + DVD + digital) Release date: Oct. 2 Details: 2018, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Rated: R, graphic and bloody images and violence, language The lowdown: This unnecessary sequel simply stumbles along, clueless of what this depressing movie seeks to achieve, jettisoning its original plot point as soon as possible and wading into a swampy landscape of cynicism and moral darkness. The sequel returns Josh Brolin as federal agent Matt Graver and Benicio del Toro as the mysterious Alejandro, whose family was killed by soldiers of a Mexican cartel leader. After U.S. officials discover that those responsible for a terrorist bombing in Kansas City were smuggled across the border by cartel members who business is people, the secretary of defense assigns Graver to strike back — and by any means necessary. Graver devises a plan to set the cartels against each other by kidnapping the teen daughter of one cartel boss and making it appear she was taken by a rival cartel. So far, so good. It’s a plot device used in countless other movies — from Akira Kurosawa’s “Yojimbo,” its spaghetti-Western remake, “A Fistful of Dollars,” which introduced Sergio Leone’s Man with No Name, played by Clint Eastwood, and Walter Hill’s “Last Man Standing,” with Bruce Willis. But, in “Day of the Soldado,” as soon as the teenage girl, Isabel, played by Isabela Moner, is grabbed by Graver, Alejandro and their crew and whisked away, the original plot seems to evaporate with them. A majority of critics liked the movie more than I did, giving it a 63 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.40:1 widescreen picture; English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby digital and English and French 5.1 Dolby digital audio description tracks; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles; DVD: 2.40:1 widescreen picture; English, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby digital and English and French 5.1 Dolby digital audio description tracks; English SDH, English, French and Spanish subtitles. Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include a featurette on continuing the story and the franchise, a making of featurette and a look at the cast and their characters.
Three Identical Strangers (Blu-ray + digital) Release date: Oct. 2 Details: 2018, Universal Studios Home Entertainment Rated: PG-13, mature themes The lowdown: This documentary is the epitome of the cliché that truth is stranger than fiction. You could not make up a story such as this, no matter how hard you tried. The movie centers on three strangers, Eddie Galland, David Kellman and Bobby Shafran, who are reunited after being born identical triplets, separated at birth and adopted by three families. Their unusual story soon becomes a worldwide media sensation. It’s a fairy-tale story that quickly begins to darken as an unimaginable secret is revealed that has ominous repercussions for the three men. The movie, directed by Tim Wardle, is a disturbing and heartbreaking tale of rogue science and experimentation that negatively impacted the lives of three innocent young men. The movie is engrossing, earning an impressive 97 percent fresh rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Extras include a question-and-answer session with Wardle, Shafran and Kellman and a commentary track.
The Official Story (Blu-ray) Details: 1985, Cohen Film Collection Rated: Not rated The lowdown: This haunting political drama is set during Argentina’s “Dirty War” era, in which thousands of people were rounded up and “disappeared” by the nation’s military dictatorship. The movie tells the story of Alicia (Oscar nominee Norma Aleandro), the wife of a wealthy businessman, who discovers that their adopted son may be the offspring of a “desaparecido,” a victim of the forced disappearances that occurred during the dictatorship’s reign of terror. The revelation forces her to reveal the dark deeds of her country’s past and its legacy of corruption and murder. This is a searing movie that will tear at your heart. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD and Dolby digital; English subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus offerings include a four-part interview with producer-director-co-screenwriter Luis Puenzo about the making of the movie and a look at the restoration of the film.
The Man in the Iron Mask: 20th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray) Details: 1998, Shout! Factory Rated: PG-13, violence, sexual situations, nudity The lowdown: Leonardo DiCaprio stars as the royal twins separated after birth in this adaptation of Alexander Dumas sequel to “The Three Musketeers.” Athos, Portos, Aramis and d’Artagan, played by Jeremy Irons, John Malkovich, Gerard Depardieu and Gabriel Byrne, return to help free the twin brother placed in an iron mask and thrown into prison by his arrogant and cruel brother, King Louis XIV. The movie takes some liberties with the novel, but that is to be expected when so few people have probably read it. The film, though, has some enjoyable sequences, but — as a whole — it fails to fully gel. The movie, part of the Shout Select series, was written for the screen and directed by Randall Wallace (“We Were Soldiers” and “Pearl Harbor.” Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: Bonus offerings include interviews with producer Paul Hitchcock and production designer Anthony Pratt, a commentary track by Wallace, and featurettes about the Musketeers, the director in action and behind-the-scenes action.
The Resident: The Complete First Season Release date: Oct. 2 Details: 2018, Fox Home Entertainment Rated: Not rated The lowdown: A three-disc set that features all 14 first-season episodes of the new medical drama that looks at the final years of a doctor’s training. The series looks at both the good and bad in hospitals as it covers the usual medical issues that propel this genre of TV procedurals. The series was popular enough to return for a second season. Technical aspects: 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Queen of Outer Space (Blu-ray) Release date: Sept. 25 Details: 1958, Warner Archive Collection Rated: Not rated The lowdown: This campy science fiction B-movie stars Zsa Zsa Gabor, who plays a scientist, not the title character. That honor goes to Laurie Mitchell, a man-hating ruler who goes berserk when a crew of Earthlings, led by square-jawed Eric Fleming (TV’s “Rawhide”) crash lands on their planet, Venus. Of course, some of the women relish the idea of breaking the law and mixing with the males. It’s all silly fun, directed by Edward Bernds, from a story by the legendary Ben Hecht and a screenplay by famed sci-fi author Charles Beaumont. The movie did take some short cuts, using footage from “World Without End” that Bernds wrote and directed a couple of years earlier. Still, the movie does entertain. And, yes, it is very sexist by today’s standards, but don’t hold that against it. The release is a made-on-demand Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection and be can found at www.wb.com/warnerarchive or other online dealers. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: The main extra is a commentary track with Mitchell and film historian-author Tom Weaver.
Thelma Todd & Zasu Pitts: The Hal Roach Collection 1931-33 Details: 1931-33, Sprocket Vault-MVD Visual Entertainment Rated: Not rated The lowdown: Thelma Todd was a top comedian on the Hal Roach lot, starring in her own series of two-reel shorts with Zasu Pitts and, later, Patsy Kelly. She was beautiful with wonderful comedic timing that rivaled such male counterparts as Laurel & Hardy and Charley Chase. This two-disc set features 17 shorts made by Todd and Pitts between 1931 and 1933. All are two reels — about 20 minutes — and are in black and white. But don’t let that discourage you. These ladies are adept at slapstick and benefited from supporting actors at the Roach studio such as Billy Gilbert, Anita Garvin, Charlie Hall, James C. Morton and Bud Jamison. The digital restoration on the shorts looks fine. Technical aspects: 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English Dolby digital stereo. Don’t miss: Commentaries on many of the shorts.
The Cyclops (Blu-ray) Release date: Sept. 25 Details: 1957, Warner Archive Collection Rated: Not rated The lowdown: Filmmaker Bert I. Gordon was obsessed with large characters — literally. The producer-writer-director was responsible for such Saturday matinee standards as “Beginning of the End,” “The Amazing Colossal Man,” “War of the Colossal Beast” and “The Spider.” All featured giants — a man in the two “Colossal” films, locust in “Beginning of the End” and a spider in that movie. “The Cyclops” follows the same formula. This one features another giant individual. Gordon was known — infamous, really — for using matte and process shots to achieve his gigantism special effects. In those primitive days before CGI, when the budgets were limited, the results were not very effective. And that was the case with most of Gordon’s features, including “The Cyclops.” The story centers on a woman who organizes an expedition into the wilds of Mexico to find her aviator fiancé, missing since his plane crashed. Instead, she and three male companions find giant bugs and lizards and mountains filled with uranium. They also find a 27-foot tall individual with a single eye, a distorted face and a very bad attitude. Can this be the woman’s fiancé, transformed by all the radiation emitted by the uranium in the mountains around him? You’ll have to watch this made-on-demand Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection to find out. You can order it at www.wb.com/warnerarchive or other Internet retailers. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
I Married Joan: Classic TV Collection #4 Details: 1952-55, VCI Entertainment-MVD Visual Entertainment Rated: Not rated The lowdown: Joan Davis was a popular comedian who appeared on radio and in such movies as “Hold That Ghost” with Abbott and Costello and “The Traveling Saleswoman” and “If You Knew Susie” with Eddie Cantor. In the early 1950s, she set up her own production company and began producing “I Married Joan,” a TV sitcom in the same vein as Lucille Ball’s “I Love Lucy.” Davis played Joan Stevens, the wife of Bradley Stevens, a domestic court judge, played by Jim Backus (who was voice of Mr. Magoo and played Thurston Howell III on “Gilligan’s Island”). The sitcom involved Joan getting entangled in several different wacky adventures. This two-disc set features 10 episodes from the series, which aired from 1952 to 1955. Interestingly, Davis’ daughter, Beverly Wills, played her sister on the series. Technical aspects: 4x3 full-screen picture; English Dolby digital stereo.
The Swarm (Blu-ray) Release date: Sept. 25 Details: 1978, Warner Archive Collection Rated: Not rated, insect violence The lowdown: Cinema’s “master of disaster,” Irwin Allen, who helped popularize the genre with such features as “The Poseidon Adventure” and “The Towering Inferno,” produced and directed this end-of-the-world scenario about killer bees invading the United States, attacking and killing hundreds of people. This disc features the 156-minute international release version of the movie (the original U.S. version was 116 minutes). Unfortunately, no matter the length, the movie is a snoozer. The bees display more personality that the top-heavy cast, which is led by Michael Caine and Katherine Ross, and includes such old pros as Richard Widmark, Henry Fonda, Olivia de Havilland, Fred MacMurray, Jose Ferrer, Ben Johnson and Lee Grant, as well as Patty Duke Astin, Richard Chamberlain, Slim Pickens and Bradford Dillman. The feature is a made-on-demand Blu-ray from the Warner Archive Collection and can be purchased at www.wb.com/warnerarchive or other online sellers. Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.40:1 (16x9 enhanced) widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles. Don’t miss: The main supplemental offering is a behind-the-scenes documentary.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated: 3rd Night (Monarch Home Entertainment) Egon Schiele: Death and the Maiden (Film Movement) La Madre, El Hijo y La Abuela (The Mother, the Son and the Grandmother) (IndiePix Films) Making a Killing (Cleopatra Entertainment) Rodin (Blu-ray) (Cohen Media Group, Oct. 2)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD Champion (Well Go USA Entertainment) Good Favour (Breaking Glass Pictures) Mama Mia! Here We Go Again (Universal Studios Home Entertainment) Sorry to Bother You (Fox Home Entertainment) Teen Titans Go! to the Movies (Warner Home Video) Under the Tree (Magnolia Home Entertainment) Look Away (Hulu, Oct. 12) A Place to Call Home: Season 6, the Final Season, Episode 8 (Acorn TV, Oct. 15) Bang: Series 1 (Acorn TV, Oct. 15) Castle Rock: The Complete First Season (Warner Home Video, Oct. 15) Wire in the Blood: Series 4 (Acorn TV, Oct. 15)
Coming next week: Ant-Man and the Wasp
I am a 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.