New DVD and Blu-ray Release Highlights for the Week of October 14 – October 20
*OnVideo’s week begins with “New Release” Tuesdays
This Week’s Highlighted Releases:
“Back to the Future 40th Anniversary” (1985) Academy Award–winning sci-fi adventure from director Robert Zemeckis and executive producer Steven Spielberg that became a global phenomenon. Released on July 3, 1985, “Back to the Future” introduced audiences to Marty McFly (Emmy and Golden Globe winner Michael J. Fox), a small-
town California teenager who is accidentally transported back to 1955 in a plutonium-powered DeLorean invented by his eccentric friend, Doc Brown (Emmy winner Christopher Lloyd). Stranded in the past, Marty must ensure his teenage parents (Lea Thompson and Crispin Glover) fall in love or risk erasing his own existence. With time running out, he teams up with a younger Doc in a last-ditch effort to harness a bolt of lightning and return to 1985. The film became the highest-grossing domestic release of 1985 and one of the most enduring movies of the decade, earning more than $385 million worldwide. It received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing and Best Original Song for Huey Lewis and the News’ “The Power of Love.” The film won for Best Sound Effects Editing. The new lineup of 40th anniversary offerings — “Back to the Future,” “Back to the Future II,” and “Back to the Future III” — features a comprehensive look at the legacy of the franchise, with hours of new and archival bonus features.
Buzzin’ the B’s:
“Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight” (2025) Lexi Venter, Embeth Davidtz, Zikhona Bali. Based on Alexandra Fuller’s memoir of the 
same name, the film captures the childhood of eight-year-old Bobo on her family farm in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) at the end of the Zimbabwean War of Independence in 1980. Conflicted by her love for people on opposing sides, she tries to make sense of her life in a magical way. Through her eight-year-old gaze, we witness Rhodesia’s final days, the family’s unbreakable bond with Africa, and the deep scars that war leaves on survivors. On DVD, VOD, Digital, from Sony … “Tormented” 
(1960) Director: Bert I. Gordon. Starring: Richard Carlson, Susan Gordon, Lugene Sanders, Juli Reding, Joe Turkel. Rating: NR. Running time: 75 minutes. Bert I. Gordon’s cult classic arrives on definitive Blu-Ray. Jazz pianist Tom Stewart’s life unravels when his vengeful ex-lover returns from the dead after a preventable accident. This eerie supernatural shocker blends ghostly suspense, campy drive-in thrills, and unforgettable ’60s horror style. Newly remastered from archival elements. On Blu-ray from Gemini Entertainment.
Foreign Films:
“Daiei Gothic Vol 2: Japanese Ghost Stories” (1960 — Japan) Japan’s classic ghost stories are brought to the screen by masters of the genre, Tokuzo Tanaka (“The Snow Woman”) and Kimiyoshi Yasuda (“Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare”). In “The Demon of Mount Oe,” a group of mighty warriors is sent to eliminate a demon who steals women from the imperial capital of Kyoto. On the way, they face a satanic bull, a giant spider and a diabolical witch, but the 
closer they come to their goal, the more they realize that the demon they’ve been ordered to kill is far more human than they were led to believe. In “The Haunted Castle,” a blind monk is killed in a cowardly manner by a samurai lord. When the monk’s sister is ordered to become the lord’s concubine, she commits suicide and transfers her grudge to their black cat, who assumes the human form of one of the lord’s ladies-in-waiting and begins to wreak havoc around the castle court. The lord’s Machiavellian right-hand man (Rokko Toura) and a young swordsman (Kojiro Hongo) combine forces to solve the mystery and stop the supernatural menace. In “The Ghost of Kasane Swamp,” a samurai’s wife tries to repay her husband’s debt with her body but is caught in bed with the money lender and they are both murdered by her husband who dumps their bodies in a nearby swamp. Shingoro and Oshiga, the money lender and samurai’s children, find a curse has been passed to them as they each try to recover the money. New 4K restorations of each film by Radiance Films on Blu-ray … “Malpertuis” (1971 — The Netherlands) Jan (Mathieu Carrière, “Police Python 357”), a sailor newly arrived onshore, is unsure about returning to land but makes the journey to visit his childhood home only to 
find it no longer there. He goes to Bar Venus and joins his friends but an altercation leaves him knocked out cold. He wakes up in Malpertuis, a gothic mansion presided over by his uncle, Cassavius (Orson Welles). All the inhabitants of Malpertuis are waiting for Cassavius to die and the opportunity to inherit his vast fortune. But Cassavius wishes anyone who inherits to stay there forever. Jan investigates as those who leave meet with mysterious deaths. Harry Kümel’s (“Daughters of Darkness”) phantasmagoria is a Matryoshka doll of fantastic ideas, realized with stunning photography by Gerry Fisher (“The Exorcist III”) and scored by Georges Delerue. New 4K restoration of the film overseen by director Harry Kümel, released on Blu-ray for the first time in the world from Radiance Films.
Special Interest:
“Screamityville” (2025) This film invites you to take a hauntingly fun tour of Halloween-themed houses, from the same creators who brought you “Christmas Lights,” “Christmas Lights 2: Bigger Dazzling Displays,” and “Christmas Lights 3: Winter Wonderlights.” 
“Screamityville” shows off dozens of spectacular homes, each fully decked out to celebrate the thrills and chills of Halloween. These homeowners have taken things far beyond simply placing a pumpkin on the porch. Numerous front yards are covered in elaborate and overwhelming displays of tombstones, skeletons, jack-o-lanterns, humongous spiders, ghastly ghouls, and anything else that goes bump in the night. A wicked clown house will reinforce your suspicions and phobias. Glowing ghosts float through the trees and creepy cemeteries. Cobwebs, smoke, and strobe lights enhance the gory and horrifying effects that turn sweet suburban front yards into supernatural wonderlands. The 84-minute tour is brought to life with spooky atmospheric music and chilling sound effects, perfect for your Halloween-themed party. On DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, Digital from Borderline Media Group. Read more here
From the Big Screen:
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
(2025) Ethan Hunt and team continue their search for the terrifying AI known as the Entity – which has infiltrated intelligence networks all over the globe – with the world’s governments and a mysterious ghost from Hunt’s past on their trail. Joined by new allies and armed with the means to shut the Entity down for good, Hunt is in a race against time to prevent the world as we know it from changing forever. Vitals: Director: Christopher McQuarrie. Stars: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Henry Czerny, Janet McTeer, Nick Offerman. CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 170 min., Action Thriller, Theatrical release date: May 23, 2025, North American box office gross: $195.9 million, worldwide $588.9 million, Streaming date: August 19, 2025, Paramount. Formats: DVD, 4K UHD + Blu-ray + Digital Code, 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Steelbook, VOD, Digital. Extras: Extras: Deleted scenes; behind-the-scenes footage; commentaries from the director and composer; still galleries; promo spots; isoltaed score track; more. 
Read more here.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps<
(2025) Set against the backdrop of a ’60s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel’s First Family faces a daunting challenge. Forced to balance being heroes with their family bond, they must defend Earth from a space god and his enigmatic herald, Galactus and Silver Surfer. Vitals: Director: Matt Shakman. Stars: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ralph Ineson, Julia Garner, Paul Walter Hauser, Natasha Lyonne, Sarah Niles. CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 115 min., Sci-Fi Action, Theatrical release date: July 25, 2025, North American box office gross: $273.0 million, worldwide $519.4 million, Streaming date: September 23, 2025, Marvel/Disney. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, Walmart exclusive pop-up Blu-ray + Digital Code, 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital Code, Amazon exclusive 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital Code Steelbook, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted scenes; gag reel; “Meet The First Family”; “Fantastic Futurism”; “From Beyond and Below”; audio commentary by director Matt Shakman and production designer Kasra Farahani. Read more here.
Weapons
(2025) When all but one child from the same class mysteriously vanish on the same night at exactly the same time, a community is left questioning who or what is behind their disappearance. Vitals: Director: Zach Cregger. Stars: Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, Amy Madigan. CC, MPAA rating: R, 128 min., Horror, Theatrical release date: August 8, 2025, North American box office gross: $148.9 million, worldwide $262.9 million, Streaming date: September 9, 2025, New Line/Warner. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, 4K Ultra HD + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: “Making Horror Personal”; “Weaponized: The Cast of Weapons”; “Weapons: Texture of Terror.” 
Read more here.
Sketch
(2025) When a young girl’s sketchbook falls into a strange pond, her drawings come to life—chaotic, real, and on the loose. As the town descends into chaos, her family must reunite and stop the monsters they never meant to unleash. Vitals: Director: Seth Worley. Stars: Tony Hale, D’Arcy Carden, Bianca Berry Tarantino, Kue Lawrence, Kalon Cox. CC, MPAA rating: PG, 93 min., Family, Theatrical release date: August 6, 2025, North American box office gross: $8.2 million, worldwide $8.6 million, Streaming date: August 26, Angel. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo, VOD, Digital.
All DVDs and Blu-rays are screened on a reference system consisting of an Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray Disc Player w/SACD & DVD-Audio, a Rotel RSX-972 Surround Sound Receiver, and Phase Technology 1.1 (front), 33.1 (center), and 50 (rear) speakers, and Power 10 subwoofer.
