Beyond
(Anchor Bay)
Jon Voigt’s tendency to overact is thankfully muted in this mostly
vacuous supernatural thriller about a young girl gone missing in snowy
Anchorage. Too bad that somnambulant performances by Teri Polo, Dermot Mulroney
and Julian Morris still make Voigt seem to be a bit jumpy, and the unoriginal storyline
does none of the cast any favors. Visually, at least the dreary and snowy Alaskan
environment, well-captured by the photography, has been transferred nicely to
Blu-ray.
These Jean Rollin films continue Kino’s exploration of one
of the true demented geniuses of cinema. 1968’s Rape, Rollin’s feature debut, is fearless and insane horror, and
1973’s Requiem and 1974’s Demoniacs follow suit, adding dollops of
bitter black humor. This trio isn’t for everyone, of course, but those in the
mood will find them shocking. The movies have good and grainy transfers on
Blu-ray, whether Rape’s B&W
images or the others in color. Extras include interviews with Rollin, casts and
crew; Rollin shorts; and additional footage.
(MPI)
Kurt and Ian Markus’ documentary follows John Mellencamp recording
his 2010 album No Better Than This and on tour. There’s first-rate
performance footage: Mellencamp plays solo acoustic guitar on the strong
“Clumsy Ol’ World,” and his crack band shreds tunes like “Pink Houses” onstage.
But there’s annoying self-indulgence: Kurt Markus took Mellencamp’s aside
seriously before filming to make it about himself instead of Mellencamp. So
Kurt’s sophomoric, pretentious narration dominates: too bad he didn’t leave the
wit and wisdom to the songs and simply remain behind the camera. Markus’ 8mm
imagery strikingly parallels Mellencamp’s lyrical concerns about the country’s direction;
the footage has been beautifully transferred to Blu-ray.
(Image)
Battlefield stories of two generations of one
family—grandfather in World War II and grandson in Iraq—are paralleled in this sincere,
didactic patriotic drama. At least the film has the courage of its convictions,
which mitigates obvious jingoism. Winning portrayals by James Cromwell (granddad),
his son John Cromwell (granddad as young man), Jonathan Bennett (grandson in
Iraq) and Jackson Bond (grandson as young boy) make it watchable despite its
simplistic characterizations. The movie looks excellent on Blu-ray; extras
include a commentary and behind-the-scenes featurette.
(Mill
Creek)
This 1989 omnibus film of shorts by world-famous New
York-based directors is typically hit or miss. Martin Scorsese’s Life Lessons is a finely-detailed study
of a difficult painter (Nick Nolte) who loves his long-time assistant (a magnetic
Rosanna Arquette); Francis Coppola’s Life
without Zoe is a mawkish travelogue co-written with his daughter—and overrated
director—Sofia; and Woody Allen’s Oedipus
Wrecks is a perfectly pitched farce about a henpecked middle-aged lawyer
(Woody, of course) whose overbearing mother disappears, to his initial delight.
The movie’s grainy Blu-ray transfer looks quite good.
(PBS)
Isaac and Bjornmen Babcock’s’ year-long “honeymoon” in Idaho—the
Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness area, to be exact—has been brilliantly
captured by the couple, who spent time among the area’s many wild animal
inhabitants, especially the wolves brought back locally for the first time in
half-century. Needless to say, the photography and scenery are spellbinding
(doubly so on Blu-ray), but danger—for animals and the couple—is always around
the corner.
Rookie Blue—The Complete 2nd Season
(e one)
Even though the cops on the beat are no longer rookies, the
drama’s second season sees still-green policemen and women whose inexperience continues
to show, professionally and personally. Shot in Toronto, the show stars a group
of personable young actors and actresses, led by Missy Peregrym, Gregory Smith,
Charlotte Sullivan and Enuka Okuma. The hi-def transfer is excellent; extras
include behind-the-scenes featurettes along with cast and crew interviews.
Summer Interlude and
Summer with Monika
(Criterion)
Ingmar Bergman’s international reputation began with these anything
but sunny films. 1951’s Interlude is
a forceful drama marked by Maj-Britt Nilsson’s heartbreaking portrayal of a prima
ballerina living with the loss of a young lover, while 1953’s Monika made a sensation of Harriet
Andersson as a free-spirited young woman who cannot settle down when she
becomes pregnant. Bergman’s focus on his female protagonist’s psyches points
the way to his later masterpieces. The Criterion Collection’s splendid transfers
accentuate Gunnar Fischer’s shimmering B&W images. Monika extras include Bergman’s intro, a new Andersson interview,
documentary on Bergman’s early career and discussion of a re-edited Monika as an exploitation flick in
America.
(Oscilloscope)
Lynne Ramsey’s uninvolving adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s
novel about a mother dealing with her teenage son as a high school killer is
both too much and not enough, as scrambled chronology and obvious
symbolism—there's red, red, everywhere!—create a distancing effect that makes the story
melodramatic instead of tragic. That the boy is played by Ezra Miller with a blank
stare shows that Ramsey toyed with making this a monster movie but instead
pulled back. Intermittently strong moments and Tilda Swinton as the mother are
not enough. The movie has a first-rate Blu-ray transfer; extras include
interviews and a featurette.
Burn Notice—Complete
Fifth Season and
White Collar—Complete
Third Season (Fox)
The 18 episodes in the fifth season of Burn Notice continues the adventures of former CIA agent Michael
Western, who tracks down those responsible for framing him for murder. Jeffrey
Donovan and Gabrielle Anwar have combustible chemistry, something sorely
lacking in the third season of White Collar,
in which a former criminal joins the FBI’s team. Matt Bomer makes a decent
hero, but the otherwise entertaining show remains unfocused. Both sets include deleted
scenes, gag reel and commentary; Burn
also includes an extended episode.
(Docurama)
Robin Hessman’s profoundly fascinating documentary chronicles
the last Russian generation growing up during the end of the Soviet Union. An
American who lived in Russia, Hessman asks the right questions, and her
subjects—who went to school together—are candid and even fearless, making the
point that Putin, as loathsome as he is, is a substitute for someone even
worse. Hessman effectively uses her subjects’ home movies and archival footage to
present a portrait of a country that’s badly adrift. Extras include interviews with Hessman in English and
in Russian (but with no subtitles!).
(Tribeca
Film)
I must admit that Edward Burns tries. But this well-meaning
but inept director-writer-actor’s latest film is ersatz Woody Allen, filled
with self-absorbed Tribeca residents and none of Allen’s coruscating wit or cinematic
sense. These characters fight, make up, flirt, fall for and fall out of love
with one another, but aside from nice Tribeca locations, it’s pointless. Burns
remains a cipher onscreen, the women (Kerry Bishe, Caitlin Fitzgerald) are
marginally better, but it’s like being stuck on a movie line with someone like Burns
behind you: where’s Marshall McLuhan when you need him? Extras include deleted
scenes and brief Burns interviews.
(Tribeca Film)
Whitney Sudler-Smith’s flimsy bio-doc about America’s first
famous—and later infamous—designer has little inight into its subject: even
more surprising is that the fascinating era Halston has come to symbolize—the swinging,
Studio 54 and disco ‘70s—is reduced to simplistic platitudes. Even interviewees
like Liza Minnelli try to get Sudley-Smith
on track, but he rarely does, resulting in a pleasant but forgettable movie
experience. Extras include a brief interview with Sudley-Smith and his producer
and a deleted scene.
CDs of the Week
and Foreigner: Alive and Rockin’ (Eagle Rock)
Like all classic rockers, ‘70s and ‘80s hitmakers Bachman
Turner Overdrive and Foreigner, are still on the road; these discs feature then-current
lineups. Bachman & Turner, now a duo with a crack backing band, play their
best-known tunes in a rousing 2010 Manhattan concert, with special guest, fellow
Canadian Paul Shaffer, joining for a trio of encores culminating in their
biggest hit, “Takin’ Care of Business.” Foreigner —now founder Mick Jones and
backup musicians—has a big hole in the vocal department: Kelly Hansen has the
pipes but none of Lou Gramm’s soulfulness. At least Jason Bonham’s thunderous
drumming is in evidence during this 2006 German concert. These discs, for
better or worse, are what fans apparently want—or will at least accept.
(Harmonia Mundi)
Marc Padmore goes up against stiff competition by recording Nocturne and Serenade, Benjamin Britten’s masterly song cycles for tenor and
orchestra: I have discs by Peter Pears—Britten’s partner in life and art, for
whom they were composed—and Ian Bostridge, and there are others. But Padmore’s lively,
lovely interpretations, with the Britten Sinfonia (and, on Serenade, Stephen Bell on horn) providing sensitive support, is also
worthwhile. Rounding out this superlative disc is Gerald Finzi’s rarely heard
but fine Dies Natalis, which Padmore
& Co. perform wonderfully.
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