NOW IN THEATERS:
The Running Man (***) Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead) reimagines the dystopian Stephen King novella first brought to screens in 1987 and the results are of the positive variety. Glen Powell takes over the role originally essayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger as a down on his luck sort who signs up for the title game to put food on the table, uncovering corruption along the way. The film mostly sticks to King’s original source material with Wright occasionally putting his own spin on things, mostly to positive effect. Specifically, injecting the film with a subversive tone and a dark sense of humor that runs throughout . A little longish but worth a look.
Photo: Glen Powell in The Running Man
Die My Love (**) Acclaimed Scottish director Lynne Ramsay, a filmmaker whose resume boasts a total of one title of which I’m a fan (We Need to Talk About Kevin), returns to her inscrutable ways with her latest. Jennifer Lawrence and Rob Pattinson are a couple with child whose early excitement turns to disillusionment once the couple settle into an inherited house in the country and post-partum blues rear their ugly head. The film is filled with heavy handed imagery galore (a barking dog, a bleeding horse, a mysterious man on motorcycle, a burning forest), confusing timelines and, as usual, Ramsay never meets a scene she could shorten. The two leads are fine, given the material with which they are required to work, but eventually Pattinson’s character’s inability to cut ties with his problematic spouse leads one to question who’s the crazier of the pair. And, as icing on the cake, the film features the typical non ending that’s all the rage these days, a symptom of laziness in the scripting department that’s unforgivable.
Kevin Smith’s long MIA (due to rights issues) 1999 satire, Dogma (***) is also back in a 4K restoration in UK theaters and will be appearing stateside soon.
NEW TO STREAMING:
Drew Friedman: Vermeer of the Borscht Belt (***) is an interesting one hour documentary on the life and times of the beloved cartoonist. Many famous fans are featured throughout including Patton Oswalt and Richard Kind.
NEW TO DIGITAL AND DISC:
Paramount:
The recent tale of a down on his luck man (Channing Tatum) who took to robbing McDonald’s restaurants, Roofman, is now available for streaming.
Arrow:
The Jim Carrey fantasy-comedy, The Mask (1994), makes its 4K debut from the label with a terrific new transfer. As usual the release is bursting with lots of bonus material.
Warner Brother:
The well-deserved Best Picture Oscar winner, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), finally gets its 4K makeover this week. The bonus materials are a mix of archival and new.
Criterion:
Burden of Dreams (1982) Les Blank’s documentary on the making of Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo makes its 4K debut this week in a new release from the label with a good dose of bonus materials.
Shout Factory:
The label has some new 4K upgrades this week that include Oliver Stone’s, Snowden (2016), the Oscar winning, Spotlight (2015) and a steelbook reissue of Renfield (2023).
Lionsgate:
The horror entry from director Neil Marshall, The Descent (2006), makes its 4K debut in a new release with some new bonus material.
Universal:
The label is giving 4K upgrades to two of its catalog titles, this week, U-571 (2000) and Dr. Seuss: How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000).
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