By Harley Lond - 08/09/22 at 08:31 AM CT
FROM THE BIG SCREEN
"Sonic the Hedgehog 2" (2022) After settling in Green Hills, Sonic (Ben Schwartz) is eager to prove he has what it takes to be a true hero. His test comes when Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) returns, this time with a new partner, Knuckles (Idris Elba), in search of an emerald that has the power to destroy civilizations. Sonic teams up with his own sidekick, Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey), and together they embark on a globe-trotting journey 
to find the emerald before it falls into the wrong hands. Vitals: Director: Jeff Fowler. Stars: James Marsden, Ben Schwartz, Tika Sumpter, Natasha Rothwell, Adam Pally, Shemar Moore, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Lee Majdoub, Idris Elba, Jim Carrey. 2021, CC, MPAA rating: PG, 122 min., Family Comedy, US box office gross: $181.153 million, worldwide $375.153 million, Paramount. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, 4K Ultra HD + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras for Sonic the Hedgehog 2: New animated short entitled “Sonic Drone Home” featuring Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles. Read more here
"Men" (2022) In visionary filmmaker Alex Garland’s ("Ex Machina," "Annihilation") feverish, shape-shifting new horror film, after seeing her ex-husband fall to his death from an apartment building, a woman goes on a solo vacation to the English countryside. However, the countryside doesn't turn 
out to be the getaway where she could escape the tragic memory of her ex-husband's death. She starts to experience hauntings. On top of that, everyone around her acts strange and makes her fear for her safety. The countryside and its people are stranger than she could have imagined. Vitals: Director: Alex Garland. Stars: Jessie Buckley, Rory Kinnear, Paapa Essiedu, Gayle Rankin, Sarah Twomey, Zak Rothera-Oxley. 2021, CC, MPAA rating: R, 100 min., Horror, North American box office gross: $7.587 million, worldwide $10.061 million, Lionsgate. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: "The Making of Men." Read more here
"Crimes of the Future" (2021) As the human species adapts to a synthetic environment, the body undergoes new transformations and mutations. With his partner Caprice (Léa Seydoux), Saul Tenser (Viggo Mortensen), celebrity performance artist, publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances. Timlin (Kristen Stewart), an investigator from the National Organ Registry, obsessively tracks their movements, which is when a mysterious group is revealed… Their mission – to use Saul's notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution. Vitals: Director: David Cronenberg. Stars: Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux, Kristen Stewart, Scott Speedman, Welket Bungué, Don McKellar. 2022, CC, MPAA rating: R, 107 min., Drama, North American box office gross: $2.452 million, worldwide $3.294 million, Neon. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, Digital. Extras: Making-of featurette.
THIS WEEK'S BEST BETS:
In "Battle of the Worlds" (1961 - Italy), starring Claude Rains, Bill Carter, Umberto Orsini, Maya Brent, Jaqueline Derval and Renzo Palmer, a runaway asteroid dubbed “The Outsider” mysteriously begins orbiting the Earth and threatens it with lethal flying
saucers. Filmed in Italy at the height of the country’s sci-fi craze. 4k scan of an original 35mm archival print. On DVD, Blu-ray from The Film Detective/Cinedigm ... Margaret Sullavan stars in "Little Man, What Now?" (1934), a deeply moving romantic drama by the great Frank Borzage. Fired for marrying his sweetheart Emma (Sullavan) instead of his boss’s daughter, Hans ( Douglass Montgomery) moves his pregnant wife to Berlin where he gets a job as a salesman. Dismissed for insulting a customer, Hans has only Emma’s love to sustain him as he seeks opportunity in a country where work is scarce and the Nazis are rising to power. Blending themes of politics and social crisis with love and compassion, this Pre-Code classic showcases one of cinema’s most impactful auteurs, Borzage, and a wonderful cast that includes Alan Hale, Fred Kohler, Mae Marsh, Hedda Hopper and Paul Fix. Brand new 2K master. On Blu-ray from Kino Lorber Studio Classics.BUZZIN' THE 'B's:
In "Hot Seat" (2022), starring Kevin Dillon, Mel Gibson, Shannen Doherty and Sam Asghari, the action begins as IT expert Friar (Dillon) finds a hair-trigger bomb strapped to his desk chair. An unseen hacker orders him to steal digital funds online -- or have his daughter abducted. As a fearless bomb expert (Gibson) arrives on the scene, the hacker frames Friar as the bomber. The tension mounts as Friar races to clear his name and expose the real terrorist -- without getting himself blown to smithereens. On DVD, Blu-ray, from Lionsgate ...
"Drive" (1997 - China) is a fast and furious action flick that combines the superhero film with the cop buddy movie in a high-octane chase feature populated with explosive Shaw Brothers style martial arts set pieces in a bombastically entertaining slice of nineties fun. When special agent Toby Wong (Marc Dacascos) is fitted with an advanced bio device giving him super-human powers he fears that he and the new technology will be exploited for ill gain when the Chinese government takes back control of Hong Kong. Fleeing to San Francisco he plans to sell the device to a company in Los Angeles but when he teams up with down on his luck singer Malik (Kadeem Hardison) he finds himself being pursued by ruthless assassin Madison and his band of mercenaries. Like a sort of mash-up of "Robocop," "Iron Man" and "Lethal Weapon" with added Kung Fu along with an all-star supporting cast that includes Brittany Murphy, Sanaa Lathan, Tracey Walter and Ron Yuan. Two-disc set with director's cut and original cut. On 4K Ultra HD from 88 Films/MVD Entertainment ... 
In "The Enormity of Life" (2021), starring Breckin Meyer, Emily Kinney, Giselle Eisenberg, Rick Montgomery Jr., Debra Herzog and Bryant Carroll, emotionally despondent Casey (Meyer) decides to end it all after his life hits rock bottom. But when a timely phone call with some unexpected news about a substantial inheritance forestalls his suicide, it sets off a chain of events that just may save his life, including meeting a quirky single mother (Kinney) and her precocious, yet troubled, young daughter (Eisenberg), who happens to have an unhealthy obsession with mass shootings. When his bipolar mother goes missing, Casey enlists their help, along with his selfish, estranged sister, Missy (Herzog). And together, through numerous jarring twists and emotional turns, they embark on a journey of hope and healing. On Blu-ray, from Bayview Entertainment ... 
"Flying Guillotine 2" (1978 - Hong Kong) is the follow up to "Master of the Flying Guillotine," cited as one of Quentin Tarantino's favorite movies, "Flying Guillotine 2" (aka "Palace Carnage") continues in the same vein as the original with its visceral mix of martial arts expertise and weapons-grade violence. To fight against the evil emperor's reign of terror outlaw rebel Ma Teng joins a group of female freedom fighters; however, she soon finds herself embroiled not just in a battle with enemy forces but also in with group leader's torn family loyalties. Brutal, fast and furious "Flying Guillotine 2" is an even more off-kilter Shaw Brothers entry than usual, containing familiar tropes as well as unique element. On Blu-ray from 88 Films/MVD Entertainment ... "L.A. Aids Jabber" (1994) is one of the rarest and most sought-after bad taste movies of the SOV era. Jeff, a mentally unstable young man, is diagnosed with AIDS and takes his anger out on the world by filling a syringe with his own tainted blood and trolling the seedy streets of Los Angeles looking for victims in an acid-washed and venomous delirium. Police slowly piece together his crimes in an attempt to stop this ticking virus time bomb from jabbing again. This is the first wide release of the movie since it was self-distributed by director Drew Godderis himself, and the Blu-ray is packed with newly produced bonus features and commentary from the original creators. On Blu-ray from Visual Vengeance ... 
In "Yellowbrickroad: Updated Special Edition" (2010), starring Cassidy Freeman, Anessa Ramsey, Lee Wilkof, Clark Freeman, Laura Heisler and Alex Draper, a small team of explorers heads into the New Hampshire wilderness to investigate an unexplained disappearance that happened some 70 years earlier. No one knows why the residents of Friar made a collective decision to leave their homes -- without their money, their clothes or a word about where they'd gone --after a viewing of "The Wizard of Oz.". But the truth could be stranger than fiction. 2K remaster. On DVD, Blu-ray, from Lightyear Entertainment ... "Dr. Lamb" (1992 - Hong Kong), starring Danny Lee and Simon Yam, a mentally disturbed taxi driver lusts for blood every rainy night, and several young women are brutally murdered. He likes to take photos of the victims' dismembered bodies as his special mementos after sex with their corpses and stores their severed breasts in pickle jars. Inspector Lee and his team are called onto the case in this bizarre, nasty, and notorious Hong Kong Category III film (not suitable for anyone under 18). New 2K scan of uncut version. On Blu-ray from Unearthed Films.FOREIGN FILMS:
"Cocoon" (2020 - Germany), starring Lena Urzendowsky, Jella Haase and Lena Klenke, is the coming-of-age transformation of Nora, a 14-year-old from Berlin, over the course of
one blisteringly hot summer. A shy girl with a troubled mother and loving but boy-crazy older sister, Nora must contend with the many tribulations of early teenage years largely by herself. She gets her period for the first time, falls in love with another girl, has her heart broken, and, inevitably, learns to stand up for herself and what she wants. Shot with a deep understanding of teenage-girl desires, "Cocoon" is a sun-soaked tale of one girl's self-discovery on the cusp of young adulthood. From Film Movement ... In 
"The Old Man: The Movie" (2019 - Estonia), in a remote Estonian village, three children from the city are forced to spend the summer on their grandfather's farm. When the trio accidentally set loose the old man's prized but thoroughly abused cow, they learn that they have only 24 hours to milk the rogue bovine before it's exponentially expanding udders explode and unleash a milk-pocalypse. To complicate this crisis, a decrepit and disgraced farmer with a body literally infused with milk and a prejudice for cattle is also determined to catch the animal, but with murderous intent. Based on a popular Estonian web series created by Peeter Ritso and Mikk Mägi. On Blu-ray from Unearthed Films.FOR THE FAMILY:
"Vivo" (2022) is an animated musical adventure featuring all-new songs from Lin-Manuel Miranda. Vivo, a one-of-a kind kinkajou, spends his days playing music with his beloved owner Andrés. But when tragedy strikes, it’s up to Vivo to deliver a message that Andrés never could: A love letter to his old partner, the famous Marta Sandoval, in the form of a song. Yet in order to get to Marta, who lives a world apart, Vivo will need the help of Gabi – an energetic tween who bounces to the beat of her own offbeat drum – to fulfill his owner’s wishes. On DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, from Sony.
SPECIAL INTEREST:
"Fanny: The Right to Rock" (2021) is a documentary about the first all-woman rock band. Sometime in the 1960s, in sunny Sacramento, two Filipina-American sisters got together with other teenage girls to play music. Little did they know their garage band would evolve into the legendary rock group Fanny, the first all-women band to issue an LP with a major record label (Warner/Reprise, 1970). Despite releasing five critically-acclaimed
albums over five years, touring with famed bands from Slade to Chicago and amassing a dedicated fan base of music legends including David Bowie, Fanny's groundbreaking impact in music was written out of history ... until bandmates reunite 50 years later with a new rock record deal. With incredible archival footage of the band's rocking past intercut with its next chapter releasing a new LP today, the film includes interviews with a large cadre of music icons, including Def Leppard's Joe Elliott, Bonnie Raitt, The Go-Go's Kathy Valentine, Todd Rundgren, The Runaways' Cherie Currie, Lovin' Spoonful's John Sebastian, The B52's Kate Pierson, Charles Neville, and David Bowie guitarist and bassist Earl Slick and Gail Ann Dorsey. Fighting early barriers of race, gender and sexuality in the music industry, and now ageism, the incredible women of Fanny are ready to claim their hallowed place in the halls of rock 'n' roll fame. From Film Movement ... "Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story" (2022) is a soulful and heartfelt celebration of 50 years of the funky and fabulous New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, featuring Jimmy Buffett, Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry, Pitbull, Al Green, Herbie Hancock, Aaron Neville, Earth, Wind & Fire, and many others. From Sony. Read more here.FROM TV TO DISC:
Set in the Wild West early days of the Internet, the Hulu series "Pam & Tommy" (2022) is based on the incredible true story of the Pamela Anderson (Lily James) and Tommy Lee (Sebastian Stan) sex tape. Stolen from the couple’s home by a disgruntled contractor (Seth Rogen), the video went from underground bootleg-VHS curiosity to full-blown cultural obsession when it hit the Web in 1997. A love story, crime caper, and cautionary tale rolled into one, the eight-part original limited series explores the intersection of privacy, technology, and celebrity, tracing the origins of our current reality-TV era to a stolen tape seen by millions but meant to have an audience of just two. From Lionsgate.
Check out other new DVD/Blu-ray releases, streaming films, and information and reviews at OnVideo.
