The Great Escape 4K 12/27/21

KL Studio Classics
4K Ultra HD

By now I must have at least 7 home video releases of John Sturges’ classic, starting from VHS, but they’ve come up with a good reason to return: a 4K transfer with color and contrast grading that to me better represents the movie. The thrilling, not-too-violent escapades of Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, James Garner, David McCallum, James Coburn, Charles Bronson & James Donald are no longer timed so that everything looks like a washed-out high noon: both the 4th of July and much of the mad-dash escape scramble are meant to take place near the crack of dawn. In this case ‘Much darker’ is much richer; faces don’t get blown out. And I do see more detail in the enhanced image. So here we go again, happily. On 4K Ultra-HD: way to go, KL Stud

Ladies They Talk About 12/27/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

You can’t beat pre-Code Barbara Stanwyck, who glows as a knockout thieves’ accomplice, tough prison convict and deceitful lover of an incorruptable revivalist preacher-politician. She’s matched by the sassy, naughty Lillian Roth. In this Warner crime-tale-duel between piety and sin, darned if Stanwyck and Roth don’t make the crooked path seem cozy. There’s a girl-girl punch-out and an ill-fated prison break, but just watching Barbara ooze attitude as she saunters through the prison is worth the price of admission. Even more eye-opening is a positively lewd cartoon extra, also from the pre-Code halls of joyful infamy. With Preston Foster, Lyle Talbot, Dorothy Burgess and Ruth Donnelly. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
12/28/21

The Learning Tree 12/21/21

The Criterion Collection
Blu-ray

The triple-threat talent Gordon Parks gets carte blanche to film his own autobiographical novel back in his old home town — and the result is one of the better depictions of growing up black in the Midwest. Parks’ memories don’t wield a fiery political agenda, nor does he say that ‘there were good people on both sides.’  It was what it was and it wasn’t always pretty. As young Newt, Kyle Johnson ‘does the right thing’ and his experience helps explain the pervading lack of faith in justice, to put it mildly. Parks’ beautiful film remains positive, reflecting his warm memories, and his direction gives us a full ensemble of black talent at work: this is said to be the first Hollywood film produced and directed by a black man. On Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
12/21/21

The Ultimate Invaders from Mars 12/21/21

CineSavant Essay
From 1999
Sorry, this is not for a new disc. From 23 years ago, this was the first article that convinced me that there might be a real audience for my review page, then called DVD Savant. It’s about time that the illustrated essay was brought up to date and moved to CineSavant. It probes the ‘primitive sophistication’ and weird appeal of William Cameron Menzies’ most accomplished job of direction: the paranoid nightmare that haunted our childhood dreams. It’s slightly rewritten and has improved images. There’s so much to talk about:  Near-experimental visuals!  Strange editing choices!  The idea for the essay is the same as ever, to inspire somebody to properly remaster the show . . . it’s not like we’re going to live forever.

12/21/21

The Red Shoes 4K 12/18/21

The Criterion Collection
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

The only sales pitch needed is “The Red Shoes has been encoded in 4K.” Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger’s 1947 masterpiece conquered America as had no previous English film. This is one artsy dance show that captivates nearly everybody: audiences can be counted on to ooh and ahh the film’s dazzling hues, striking dance artistry and endless visual creativity. Cameraman Jack Cardiff took first position as the world master of Technicolor, and Moira Shearer’s dancing is recorded forever, celebrated as with no other ballet artist. Criterion’s 4K remaster includes all the extras of their 2010 restored Blu-ray. On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-rayfrom The Criterion Collection.
12/18/21

The Abbott and Costello Show Season 1 12/18/21

ClassicFlix
Blu-ray

ClassicFlix comes forward with an entire 26 original episodes of the comic duo’s 1952 TV show, all fully remastered by the 3-D Archive people. That’s 13 + hours of Abbott and Costello comedy, looking better than new — even the original opening logos have been restored. The repeating leads are fully attuned to A&C’s style of comedy — Sid Fields, Hillary Brooke, Joe Besser, etc.. The full set comes with numerous audio commentaries and featurettes. For A&C fans it’s a must, especially as we await the same group’s restoration of the comedians’ color kiddie show Jack and the Beanstalk. On Blu-ray from ClassicFlix.
12/18/21

The Mystery of Picasso 12/14/21

Milestone / Kino Lorber
Blu-ray

Art theaters of the 1950s art theaters often featured documentary films about great painters and this may be the most significant example. Fresh from his shocker Diabolique director Henri-Georges Clouzot instigated an ingenious filmic experiment that works in surprising ways. We don’t just see Pablo Picasso paint, we see him on task through highly creative means, sketching and painting in a way that we can often watch his face at the same time. Some of it done by painting on glass, and other filming methods are more mysterious. Clouzot changes the screen format halfway through, from flat 1:37 to anamorphic CinemaScope. Milestone has combined the short feature with a number of useful extras, creating a special treat for followers of art. On Blu-ray from Milestone/Kino.
12/14/21

The Wolf of Wall Street 4K 12/14/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
4K Ultra HD + Digital

The Mean Street for this Martin Scorsese picture is Wall Street. His show pushes the hard- R rating to depict the wild life and times of a stock-selling pirate who bilks investors for millions that fuel a ten-year spree of obscene consumption, Bad Boy decadence and absurd levels of sex and drug abuse. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Jordan Belfort beautifully, surrounded by a corps of terrific players (including Margot Robbie) given clear characters by Terence Winter and superb direction by Scorsese. The surprise is that the show is not a facile take-down of the American Dream. Screaming greed is the lure and the joke’s on us. Co-starring Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Kyle Chandler, Rob Reiner, Jon Bernthal, Jon Favreau, Jean Dujardin and Joanna Lumley. The show looks fantastic on 4K Ultra- HD + Digital from Paramount Home Video.
12/14/21

The Long Goodbye 12/14/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

And it just got added to the National Film Registry!  Can Robert Altman and Leigh Brackett honestly find a place for Philip Marlowe in the laid-back 1970s?   Vilmos Zsigmond’s even more laid-back ‘pushed and pre-flashed’ cinematography made industry news by shooting in places that normally needed three times more artificial light. The characters are vivid, as portrayed by Nina Van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, and Mark Rydell. It’s also a terrific Los Angeles film, from Marlowe’s Hollywood apartment to the Malibu Colony, and a gangster’s Sunset Blvd. tower office suite. Elliott Gould’s mellow Marlowe may be unfocused and sloppy, but he still subscribes to the old ethics, particularly where friendship and betrayal are concerned. And darn it, he cares about his pet cat. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
12/14/21

Reds 12/11/21

Paramount Viacom CBS
Blu-ray + Digital

Warren Beatty’s show is a beautiful, one of a kind epic. Never mind that it is sharply critical of John Reed, an American who was buried in the Kremlin — Hollywood never approached the title subject directly: (whisper) Commies. Beatty’s production idiosyncrisies raised eyebrows but his picture is quite an achievement in filmic storytelling, cleverly accessing a political scene sixty years gone through testimony by notables that lived it. Beatty and Diane Keaton provide the romantic fireworks that make the film commercially viable, amid all the revolutionary fervor and political chaos. Co-starring Jack Nicholson and Maureen Stapleton. On Blu-ray + Digital Code from Paramount Home Video.
12/11/21

Homebodies 12/11/21

KL Studio Classics
Blu-ray

This remarkable black comedy is often listed as a horror film, yet it has more nervous laughs than shivers. It’s a solid idea: cruelly maginalized old folks get madder than hell and just won’t take it any more. Or maybe they simply go nuts. The cast of ‘over seventies’ playing over eighty is just marvelous, and one murderous little pixie is a delight: Paula Trueman. Things do become absurd, but the universally-understood premise stays firm: we’ll all be there sooner or later. “A Murder A Day Keeps the Landlord Away.” With Peter Brocco, Frances Fuller, William Hansen, Ruth McDevitt, Paula Trueman, Ian Wolfe, Linda Marsh, Douglas Fowley, Kenneth Tobey. On Blu-ray from KL Studio Classics.
12/11/21

Mill of the Stone Women 12/07/21

Arrow Video
Blu-ray

That’s how things ought to work — give this reviewer EXACTLY the great disc he wants to see and wait for the flood of praise. This Italian-French gothic gem can hold its own in the Eurohorror Renaissance of 1960, with fine direction, an attractive cast, a seductive heroine/villainess, and lush color cinematography that turns a Flemish windmill into a young lover’s Garden of Horrors. It’s a period picture with fairy tale overtones, atrocious medical crimes and a sensual romance that leans heavily on squeamish Victorian taboos . . . yes, it’s irresistible. So is the lavish presentation, one of this disc label’s very best. Call it Holiday Horror, perhaps. Starring Pierre Brice, Scilla Gabel, Herbert Böhme, Wolfgang Preiss, Dany Carrel and Liana Orfei. On Blu-ray from Arrow Video.
12/07/21

Ivanhoe 12/07/21

The Warner Archive Collection
Blu-ray

Chivalry!  Vows of loyalty and honor!  Combat action that will impress today’s Marvel fans!  The violet eyes and super-damsel figure of Elizabeth Taylor!  MGM’s made-in-Merrie Olde England tale of Knights and knaves and forbidden love is yet another suits-of-armor sword-basher about ransoming King Richard from those European Union swine across the channel. Everything clicks, from Miklos Rozsa’s most stirring anthem to the righteous justice of the finale. And it’s restored from 3-strip Technicolor. Robert Taylor is terrific as the stalwart Ivanhoe, backed by Joan Fontaine, George Sanders, Emlyn Williams, Robert Douglas, Finlay Currie, Felix Aylmer and Guy Rolfe. On Blu-ray from The Warner Archive Collection.
12/07/21

All or Nothing 12/04/21

Severin Films
Blu-ray

U.K. director Mike Leigh makes films with a wide range of moods, but his working-class dramas are what made his name. All or Nothing is an emotionally punishing story of everyday life on a lower rung of a stagnant economy, where nobody has dreams and pessimism is the order of the day. The bitterness and anger are most evident in the abusive attitudes and verbal brutality from one generation to the next, even with the caring, sensitive Penny (Lesley Manville) and the inoffensive Phil (Timothy Spall). Leigh’s players craft heartbreaking characters whose individual miseries can’t be dismissed. We invest heavily in the hope of a positive outcome, even as everything we see says, ‘no.’  Yet the film’s honesty doesn’t want us to give up on these people. On Blu-ray from Severin Films.
12/04/21

Mulholland Dr. 4K 12/04/21

The Criterion Collection
4K Ultra HD + Blu Ray

This one delivers the 4K ‘experience’ — and David Lynch’s mesmerizing visuals and Angelo Badalamenti’s seductive music once again pull us into a different dimension. Four or five viewings down the line, the ‘storyline’ of this TV show-become-feature film is if anything less understandable. But it’s no less pleasantly weird — we can’t keep our eyes off of Naomi Watts and Laura Harring. My ‘quality’ section debates a question I’m getting more often: are 4K discs worth the upgrade?  On 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray from The Criterion Collection.
12/04/21

Unearthly Stranger 12/04/21

Network/BFI
Region B Blu-ray

CineSavant reaches back to a U.K. disc released in 2014, because the subject is (what else) a semi-obscure science fiction gem. Favorite John Neville stars as a scientist opposite newcomer Gabriella Licudi, a beauty who may be an invader from outer space. This is the one with the teardrops that burn; not having seen it since 1966 or so, evaluating a ‘new’ Blu was an imperative. The main takeaway — it’s awfully small-scale and the fantastic content is mostly confined to dialogue. But the performances are good, and actress Jean Marsh is terrific. On Region B Blu-ray from Network/BFI.
12/04/21