Warner:
Geostorm (2017) (* ½) When climate control satellites go on the fritz it’s up to Gerard Butler to save the world in this misfire from last fall. Extras include three featurettes.
It (2017) (***) The second adaptation of Stephen King’s bestselling novel was met with both critical and financial acclaim. It’s an effective fright fest that more than delivers the requisite thrills. Extras include three featurettes and eleven deleted scenes.
Blade Runner 2049 (2017) (** ½) The belated sequel to one of the most adored sci-fi films of all time, marred by over-length, is a visually startling feast that continues many of the themes found in the original film. Extras include various featurettes.
Warner Archive: (Available for purchase at www.wbshop.com)
Suburbia (1996) (***) (DVD Only) Richard Linklater’s adaptation of this Eric Bogosian play arrives on DVD for the first time. Parker Posey stars in the tale of a group of twenty-something friends whose friendship is tested after the arrival of a former classmate who’s now a rock star.
Judgment Night (1993) (DVD Only) (**1/2) Emilio Estevez leads the cast in this tale of a group of suburbanites who must fight for their lives after taking a wrong turn en route to a boxing match. No Extras.
Scream/Shout Factory:
Macon County Line (1974) (** ½) features Beverly Hillbillies star, Max Baer Jr., as a southern sheriff out for blood after a family tragedy transpires. This drive in staple was a huge hit in its day. Extras include interviews with the film’s editor, audio commentary, trailer and vintage featurette.
Hell Night (1981) (**) Actress Linda Blair gets top billing in this atypical horror film wherein four sorority pledges must spend the night in a house rumored to be haunted. Extras include featurettes, trailer and commentary.
My Entire High School is Sinking Into the Sea (2017) (***) is an animated sendup of high school comedies featuring the voice talents of Jason Schwartzman, Maya Rudolph and Lena Dunham. The clever film also dashes in elements of disaster movies and over the top blockbusters to nice effect. Extras include short films, trailer and director commentary.
Kino Lorber:
The Executioner’s Song (1982) (***) features Tommy Lee Jones in his award winning performance as Gary Gilmore, who was convicted of murder and pleaded to be put to death. Extras include interview with star Rosanna Arquette.
Judgment at Nuremburg (1961) (***) Stanley Kramer’s effective dramatization of the Nuremberg Trials boasts an incredible cast which includes Spencer Tracy, Judy Garland, Marlene Dietrich, Richard Widmark, Burt Lancaster and Maximillian Schell. Extras include three featurettes and the film’s trailer.
Inherit the Wind (1960) (***) is another socially conscious gem from director Stanley Kramer, this one a dramatization of the Scopes Monkey Trial. Extras include audio commentary and the film’s trailer.
Intermezzo (1939) (*** ½) features Ingrid Bergman in her Hollywood debut as a music teacher entangled in a doomed affair with the married father (Leslie Howard) of one of her students. Extras include audio commentary and the film’s original trailer.
Criterion:
The essential 80s film, The Breakfast Club (1985) (*** ½), makes its Criterion debut in a superb new edition, featuring a 4K transfer and numerous extras, which include fifty minutes of never before seen outtakes.
The 2016 winner of the Cannes Film Festival prize, the Palme d’Or, I, Daniel Blake (*** ½) is the emotionally searing tale of a widowed carpenter with health issues and his daily struggles to make ends meet in a society that doesn’t seem to care about his plight. The always reliable, Ken Loach, masterfully directs. Extras include a documentary profile of the director.
Olive Films:
The 1994 Oscar winner for Best Foreign film, Bell Epoque (1994) (***), starring Penelope Cruz, has been issued. No Extras.
Also being issued is, The Red Squirrel (1993) (***), an interesting romantic thriller involving a man pretending to be the lover of a woman with amnesia. No Extras.
Twilight Time: (Titles are limited to a pressing of 3,000 units each and can be ordered at www.screenarchives.com and www.twilighttimemovies.com
Dragonwyck (1946) (***) was Joseph Mankiewicz’s first film as director, a suspenseful tale of a young girl working in a mansion under the employ of the title character, played by Vincent Price. Extras include isolated music track, audio commentary, two documentaries on stars Vincent Price and Gene Tierney, featurette, two radio shows and the original trailer.
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969) (***) was director Paul Mazursky’s first film, a satire of the swinging sixties that still holds up fairly well. Extras include director commentary, film historian commentary, isolated music track and a featurette.
The Daphne du Maurier adaptation, My Cousin Rachel (1952) (***), stars Richard Burton as a young man finding himself infatuated with the widow (Olivia de Havilland) of his guardian. Extras include isolated music track, vintage radio show and the original trailer.
Husbands and Wives (1992) (*** ½) is one of filmmaker Woody Allen’s finest films of the 90s, a tale to two couples coming apart at the seams. Extras include music/effects track and the original trailer.
Coming soon: Night of the Living Dead, Elevator to the Gallows, Suburbicon, Coco, Tom Jones, The Outlaw, The Incident, Manhattan Murder Mystery.
Questions/comments: filmfan1970@hotmail.com
Images: Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, Emilio Estevez, Molly Ringwald and Judd Nelson in The Breakfast Club; Ryan Gosling & Harrison Ford in Blade Runner 2049