New DVD and Blu-ray Releases for the Week of April 30
Mean Girls
(2024) New student Cady Heron is welcomed into the top of the social food chain by the elite group of popular girls called “The Plastics,” ruled by the conniving queen bee Regina George. However, when Cady makes the major misstep of falling for Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron Samuels, she finds herself prey in Regina’s crosshairs. As Cady sets to take down the group’s apex predator with the help of her outcast friends Janis and Damian, she must learn how to stay true to herself while navigating the most cutthroat jungle of all: high school. Remake of the 2004 hit. Vitals: Director: Samantha Jayne, Arturo Perez Jr. Stars: Angourie Rice, Reneé Rapp, Jon Hamm, Jenna Fischer, Tina Fey, Auli’i Cravalho. CC, MPAA rating: PG-134, 112 min., Comedy Musical, North American box office gross: $72.404 million, worldwide $104.304 million, Paramount. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, 4K Ultra HD + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. 
Read more here.
Madame Web
(2024) In a switch from the typical genre, Madame Web tells the standalone origin story of one of Marvel publishing’s most enigmatic heroines. The suspense-driven thriller stars Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb, a paramedic in Manhattan who develops the power to see the future … and realizes she can use that insight to change it. Forced to confront revelations about her past, she forges a relationship with three young women bound for powerful destinies …if they can all survive a deadly present. Vitals: Director: SJ Clarkson. Stars: Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, Celeste O’Connor, Tahar Rahim, Mike Epps, Emma Roberts, Adam Scott. CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 116 min., Action Fantasy, North American box office gross: $43.040 million, worldwide $96.913 million, Sony. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: Gag reel; Easter Eggs; “Oracle of the Page”; “Fight Like a Spider”; “Future Vision”; “Casting the Web”; deleted Scene. Read more here.
Ordinary Angels
(2023) Based on a remarkable true story, “Ordinary Angels” centers on Sharon (Hilary Swank), a fierce but struggling hairdresser in small-town Kentucky who discovers a renewed sense of purpose when she meets Ed (Alan Ritchson), a widower working hard to make ends meet for his two daughters. With Ed’s youngest daughter waiting for a liver transplant, Sharon sets her mind to helping the family and moves mountains to do it. What unfolds is an inspiring tale of faith, everyday miracles, and ordinary angels. Vitals: Director: Joe Gunn. Stars: Hilary Swank, Alan Ritchson, Nancy Travis, Tamala Jones, Drew Powell, Amy Acker, Skywalker Hughes, Emily Mitchell. CC, MPAA rating: PG, 118 min., Drama, North American box office gross: $19.174 million, worldwide $19.447 million, Lionsgate. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: Audio commentary with Director Jon Gunn and producers Jon Berg and Kevin Downes; “Making Ordinary Angels”; “Inspiring the Ordinary”; “Finding Your Purpose”; “You Are Not Alone”; deleted scenes. 
Read more here.
This Week’s Best Bets
A timeless Western from director Anthony Mann (“Winchester ’73,” “The Far Country”), “The Tin Star” (1957) showcases the director’s ingenuity within the genre, taking it to new heights that elevate and surpass the conventional hero-villain dynamic. When veteran bounty hunter Morg Hickman (Henry Fonda) rolls into town, he finds the population paralyzed by fear. ![photo for The Tin Star [Limited Edition]](https://www.onvideo.org/photos24/tin-star-box.jpg)
The local sheriff has been killed, leaving the inexperienced Ben Owens (Anthony Perkins) to fill the void with the hope of securing a permanent position. Morg discovers that the newly appointed young sheriff is having difficulty facing the provocations of a notorious bully, Bart Bogardus (Neville Brand). Morg, a former sheriff, takes it upon himself to teach Owens how to assert himself and maintain order. Featuring memorable performances by its all-star cast and a stunning score by composer Elmer Bernstein, “The Tin Star” is a gripping tale that delves into the evolving dynamic between two contrasting characters as they navigate the harsh realities of the Old West. In a limited edition Blu-ray from Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment. Read more here … An ineffably bittersweet portrait of youth in the 1960s, Nancy Savoca’s funny, sensitive tale 
of love and war, “Dogfight” (1991), etches two vividly alive characters: aspiring San Francisco folk singer Rose (Lili Taylor) and hotheaded, Vietnam-bound marine Eddie (River Phoenix), who meet on the occasion of a cruelly misogynistic party where men compete to bring the most unattractive dates they can find. But what begins as a night to forget unexpectedly develops into something far more meaningful. Featuring music by folk legends Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, and Pete Seeger, Dogfight captures the miracle of human connection while gracefully subverting ideas surrounding machismo, patriotic duty, and the very meaning of America itself. On Blu-ray with a new 2K digital restoration, supervised by director Nancy Savoca, with 2.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. Read more here. From The Criterion Collection.
Buzzin’ the ‘B’s:
The feature debut of director Frank Henenlotter (“Brain Damage,” “Frankenhooker”), 1982’s “Basket Case” is a riotous and blood-spattered “midnight movie” experience, now presented for the first time ever on limited edition 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. Duane Bradley seems 
like a pretty ordinary guy. His formerly conjoined twin Belial, on the other hand, is a deformed creature who lives in a wicker basket. Arriving in the Big Apple and taking up a room at a seedy hotel, the pair set about hunting down and butchering the surgeons responsible for their separation. Filmed on a shoestring budget against the backdrop of 1980s New York (where it played on the midnight movie circuit for over two-and-a-half years), “Basket Case” has clawed its way from its humble origins to become one of the most celebrated cult movies of all time. 4K restoration from the original 16mm negative by MoMA. 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible). Original uncompressed PCM mono audio. From Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment. Read more here … In “Misunderstood” 
(1966 — Italy), John Duncombe, the British consul in Florence, returns home from his wife’s funeral to his two children, who are unaware of their mother’s passing. He makes the decision to tell his eldest son, Andrea, but hides the truth from his sickly younger son, Milo. Director Luigi Comenicini (“The Sunday Woman”) captures the innocence and carefree moments of youth alongside the agonizing feelings of grief, creating one of the finest films about childhood. A Palme d’Or nominee at the Cannes Film Festival and recipient of multiple awards from Italian institutions, “Misunderstood” features remarkable performances from the children and from Anthony Quayle as Duncombe. On Blu-ray from Radiance/MVD Entertainment. Read more here.
On the Indie Front:
“Stargazer” (2023, starring Kate Ginna, Matt Bogart, Lei Nico and Annette Gordon-Reed, is the story of what happens when a naïve grad student, Grace Campbell, gets the chance to revive the reputation of a forgotten female astronomer, Cecilia Payne. Cecilia discovered the nature of the universe, but saw her genius stolen by men. For Grace, history threatens to 
repeat itself when she’s forced to partner up with Spike Randall, an aggressive journalist who just booked Grace an appearance on a new television talk show with Annette Gordon-Reed the very next day—but at what cost? A dancer named Diana eavesdrops through the library shelves where she’s working on a story of her own, a mythic ballet about sex and power in ancient Greece. Diana leads Grace on a long night’s journey under the influence as Grace flashes back to Cecilia at Harvard in the 1920s and both women are transported by fantasies. Grace will have to choose: Should she partner with a man she’s not sure she trusts, or kick Spike to the curb, go it alone, and stand up for Cecilia and herself? From Freestyle Digital Media. Read more here.
Foreign Films:
In “The Shape of Night” (1964 — Japan), a young woman from the countryside (Miyuki Kuwano) falls in love with a handsome hoodlum (Mikijiro Hira), who pushes her into a life of prostitution. When his sleazy superiors catch sight of her, she finds herself trapped inside the gaudy maze of city nightlife. Directed by Noburo Nakamura, a veteran of the Shochiku studio’s signature Golden Age family dramas, “The Shape of Night” was made as a reaction to the radical film styles of the Japanese New Wave. With its lush cinematography full of saturated colors, a lyrical tone and its story of love leading to 
inescapable tragedy, it has been compared to the films of Douglas Sirk, while also acting as a precursor to the work of Wong Kar-wai. On Blu-ray from Radiance/MVD Entertainment. Read more here … In “The Promised Land”
Based on the award-winning manga by Shinichi Ishizuka, “Blue Giant” (2023 — Japan) is a moving ode to the power of music and the artist, featuring a stunning jazz soundtrack composed by Hiromi Uehara and electric performances with drummer Shun Ishikawa, of the global hit band Millennium Parade, and saxophonist Tomoaki Baba. Dai Miyamoto’s life changes when he discovers jazz. He picks up a tenor saxophone and practices every day. After leaving his hometown Sendai, he pursues a music career in Tokyo with help from his friend Shunji. One day, Dai plays passionately from the heart and convinces talented pianist Yukinori to start a band together. Along with Shunji, a beginner drummer, they form the three-piece band JASS. With each live performance, they get closer and closer to their dream of playing at So Blue, the most famous jazz club in Japan, in hopes of forever changing the world of jazz. On Blu-ray from GKIDS/Shout! Studios.
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.
