From the Big Screen:

Renfield

(2023) Nicholas Hoult stars as Renfield, the tortured aide to history’s most narcissistic boss: Dracula (Nicolas Cage). For centuries, Renfield has slavishly served Dracula by procuring his master’s prey and doing his every bidding, no matter how debased. But now, Renfield is ready to look for a new life outside the shadow of The Prince of Darkness, if only he can figure out how to end the toxic, co-dependent relationship. Vitals: Director: Chris McKay. Stars: Nicholas Hoult, Awkwafina, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Nicolas Cage. CC, MPAA rating: R, 133 min., Horror Comedy, North American box office gross: $17.152 million, worldwide $25.326 million, Universal. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted and extended scenes; alternate takes; “Dracula UnCaged”; “Monsters & Men: Behind the Scenes of Renfield”; “Stages of Rejuvenation” special makeup effects featurette; “Flesh & Blood – Exploding Heads”; “Fighting Dirty” stunt featurette; “The Making of a Deleted Scene: Renfield’s Dance!”; commentary with producer Samantha Nisenboim, screenwriter Ryan Ridley, and crew. Read more here

This Week’s Highlights:

Considered one of the greatest films ever made, Jean Renoir’s “The Rules of the Game” (1939) is a scathing critique of corrupt French society cloaked in a comedy of manners in which a weekend at a marquis’s country château lays bare some ugly truths about a group of haut bourgeois acquaintances. The film has had a tumultuous history: it was subjected to cuts after the violent response of the audience at its 1939 premiere, and the original negative was destroyed during World War II; it wasn’t reconstructed until 1959. That version, which has stunned viewers for decades, is presented here. On 4K UHD + Blu-ray with new 4K restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack. One 4K UHD disc of the film and one Blu-ray of the film with special features. From The Criterion Collection. Read more here.

Buzzin’ the ‘B’s:

In “The Devil Comes at Midnight” (2023), starring Adrienne Kress, Ryan Allen, Jason Martorino, Elias Zarou and Shawn Ahmed, Ben, a washed-up boxer searching for his inheritance, must fight for his life when he is trapped in his deceased father’s farmhouse by a cannibal cult. With the help of Amy, the local librarian, he discovers the cult’s leader, Mason, has been hunting down his family for generations. And now his sights are set on Ben. Together, Ben and Amy come up with a plan to defeat the cult once and for all. From Uncork’d Entertainment. Read more here … In “Mafia Mamma” (2023), starring Toni Collette and Monica Bellucci, an American mom inherits her grandfather’s mafia empire in Italy. Guided by the firm’s consigliere, she hilariously defies everyone’s expectations as the new head of the family business. On DVD, Blu-ray, from Distribution Solutions … In “First Contact” (2023), starring Anna Shields, James Liddell, Chris Cimperman, Caitlin Duffy and Paul Kandarian, two estranged adult siblings, Casey and Dan, travel to their late scientist father’s farmhouse to make sense of his incomplete work. They soon learn that their father’s work was far more dangerous than they could ever imagine: An evil entity, buried in time and space for millions of years, has been released and has begun wreaking havoc on the locals. One by one the bodies start to pile up. Now, Dan and Casey must figure out the secrets of this extra-dimensional monster before it’s too late. From Uncork’d Entertainment. Read more here.

On the Indie Front:

In “For the Hits” (2021), starring Tommy Kijas, Jenna Willis, Krista Allen, Mindy Robinson, Josh Zuckerman and Andrew Lewis Caldwell, an average guy’s life is turned upside down by a viral video that has made him infamous! When all of his friends and family turn their back on him, he must figure out a way to prove he was slandered, restore his life and win back the girl of his dreams! From Indican Pictures.

Foreign Films:

After making his directorial debut with the intense “The Iron-Fisted Monk” and firmly solidifying his worth at Golden Harvest, Sammo Hung would be given more creative control behind the camera. Now able to inject more of his own personality, Hung would bring to life the more upbeat (yet only slightly less violent) Wing Chun cult classic: “Warriors Two [Limited Edition]” (1978 — Hong Kong). Cashier Hua (Casanova Wong) leads a simple life working for a local bank, the only complications resulting from trying to give life advice to his friend Fat Chun (Hung). When Hua discovers a murderous plot to overthrow the mayor and is left for dead, Chun urges him to protect himself by learning the formidable style of Wing Chun from master Leung Tsan (“Beardy” Leung Kar-Yan). As Hua’s skill set grows, his proximity to Leung unknowingly lands him in the crosshairs of the treacherous scoundrels who previously sought to kill him… Predating the Ip Man tetralogy by three decades – as well as Hung’s own “The Prodigal Son” (starring Yuen Biao as the younger incarnation of Leung Tsan) by a few years -” Warriors Two” is one of the earliest films to authentically portray the teachings of Wing Chun while also delivering the kind of kinetic and pulse-pounding fights synonymous with the name Sammo Hung. 2K restorations from the original elements by Fortune Star of both the original HK Theatrical Cut and the shorter Export Cut. High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation from Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment. Read more here.

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.