(2024) Forced into early retirement by a degenerative illness, former baseball player Ray Waller moves into a new house with his wife and two children. He hopes that the backyard swimming pool will be fun for the kids and provide physical therapy for himself. However, a dark secret from the home's past soon unleashes a malevolent force that drags the family into the depths of inescapable terror. Vitals: Director: Bryce McGuire. Stars: Kerry Condon, Wyatt Russell, Amelie Hoeferle, Gavin Warren, Jodi Long. CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 98 min.,Horror Thriller, North American box office gross: $32,310 million, worldwide $52.071 million, Universal.Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: "Masters of Fear" featurette; "Demons From the Depths"; "Into the Deep"; "Marco Polo"; feature commentary with co-writer/director Bryce Mcguire.
Read more here.
Lisa Frankenstein
(2024) A coming of RAGE love story about a misunderstood teenager and her high school crush, who happens to be a handsome corpse. After a set of playfully horrific circumstances bring him back to life, the two embark on a murderous journey to find love, happiness … and a few missing body parts along the way. Vitals: Director: Zelda Williams. Stars: Kathryn Newton, Cole Sprouse, Liza Soberano, Henry Eikenberry, Joe Chrest, Carla Gugino.
CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 141 min., Horror Comedy, North American box office gross: $9.774 million, 9.927 million, Universal.Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted scenes; gag reel; "Resurrecting the 1980’s"; "An Electric Connection"; "A Dark Comedy Duo"; feature commentary with director Zelda Williams.
Read more here.
It's a Wonderful Knife
(2023) In Angel Falls, Winnie Carruthers stops a psychotic killer but finds it makes her own life far from wonderful. After making a wish that she had never been born she finds herself in a parallel reality - one in which the killer is very much alive and active, and now must figure out how to stop the killer and return to her old life.
Vitals: Director: Tyler MacIntyre. Stars: Jane Widdop, Jess McLeod, Joel McHale, Katharine Isabelle, William B. Davis, Justin Long.
CC, MPAA rating: R, 87 min., Horror Comedy, North American box office gross: $.811 million, worldwide $1.302 million, RLJ.Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, Digital.
Top Disc Releases Next Week
•The Peasants •Star Trek: Lower Decks: Season 4 •Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan: The Final Season •Werckmeister Harmonies (2000 -- Hungary)
Ennio: Director Giuseppe Tornatore pays tribute to Ennio Morricone in a moving and comprehensive documentary portrait of the prolific composer, exploring the breadth of the maestro’s career across the hundreds of unforgettable film scores that he wrote. (Digital, VOD only)
Glitter & Doom: In a fantastical romance set to the hits of the Indigo Girls, a carefree circus performer and struggling musician fall in love at first sight – until the real world comes calling. (Digital, VOD only)
Kung Fu Panda 4: After learning he must find a new hero to take over as Dragon Warrior so that he may fulfill his destiny as the next spiritual leader of the Valley of Peace, Po decides to take one last adventurous mission. (Digital, VOD only)
One from the Heart: Reprise: This restoration of Francis Ford Coppola's 1982 film tells the story of a Las Vegas couple (Teri Garr, Frederic Forrest) whose break-up on the Fourth of July leads them both to a night on the Strip in pursuit of their romantic fantasies (Raul Julia, Nastassja Kinski). But in this town of gamblers and dreamers, should they bet it all on dreams, or give true love another roll of the dice? (4K UHD + Blu-ray release: May 7)
April 12
Blackout: A Fine Arts painter is convinced that he is a werewolf wreaking havoc on a small American town under the full moon. (Digital, VOD only)
Coup de Chance: Woody Allen's 50th feature, shot entirely in French. A young married woman runs into an old school friend and is immediately smitten. The two friends grow increasingly close, eventually leading to infidelity and even a crime. (Digital, VOD only)
Drive-Away Dolls: Comedy caper follows Jamie, an uninhibited free spirit and her demure friend Marian who embark on an impromptu road trip to Tallahassee ... but things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals along the way. (DVD, Blu-ray release: April 23)
Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill: The never-before-told story of the folk-rock icon who rose from living in her car to appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone in two short years.Featuring Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Fleet Foxes, and more. (Digital, VOD only)
(2006 -- Bulgaria, Russia) Anastasia Hille, Karel Roden, Valentin Goshev. In 1966, somewhere in Russia, a wounded woman drives a truck to an isolated farm with two babies. Forty years later, the child travels back to her homeland in the wilderness of Russia, where she meets up with her twin. The twins end up trapped, terrified, and haunted by zombie-like ghosts of themselves. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Interviews; featurettes; alternate scenes; deleted and extended scenes; outtakes; photo gallery; trailers. (Unearthed Films).
Death Squad
(1985 -- France) Thierry de Carbonnières, Jean-Marc Maurel, Denis Karvil, Lillemour Jonsson. It’s late at night. In the notorious Bois de Boulogne Forest just outside Paris, a group of transsexual prostitutes offer their services to passing motorists. Suddenly we hear the roar of a powerful motorcycle engine kicked into life. Headlights pierce the darkness of the forest. Two bikes appear, their riders dressed in black leather, faces masked, heavily armed with assault rifles. The prostitutes scatter, chased by the riders who slaughter them in a hail of bullets before vanishing into the night. In the morgue, Inspector Gerard Lattuada, of the Paris Vice Squad, recognizes one of the dead as a police informant known as Dolores. He learns that a notorious crime boss called “The Greek” ordered the killing of Dolores to settle a grudge. As Lattuarda investigates further, he discovers that a psychopathic and sadistic hit man, employed by The Greek, is intent on taking over the Paris underworld by any means possible. Soon a violent and deadly gang war is in full swing. And soon Lattuada finds himself on a personal mission of vengeance when his sister falls victim to the psycho killer. One of the sleaziest and most violent crime films ever made in France, "Death Squad" gained much notoriety when it was classed “X” by the French censor. This is the first ever US release of the film and is fully uncut. Brand new 4k transfer from film negative, digitally restored. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Interview with Thierry de Carbonnières; interview with Olivia Dutron; interview with Jean-Claude Couty; trailer. (Mondo Macabro).
In Hell Productions: The Films Of Vince Roth And Mick Nards
(1998-2002) Vince Roth and Mick Nards. From the dark corners of underground cinema, "In Hell Productions Collection" unveils three tales of terror. "Nekro" takes you into the disturbing world of a necrophile serial killer, blurring lines between reality and twisted fantasy. "Six Pack that B..h" turns a simple errand into a nightmare, where ordinary meets the grotesque. "Don't Go in the F…ing Woods" transforms a peaceful retreat into a survival against a relentless axe-wielding fiend. A series of the most audacious and extreme American underground films from the late '90s and early 2000s, created by the visionary duo Vince Roth and Mick Nards. This collection, now available for the first time, offers an extensive array of exclusive content, featuring over an hour and a half of extras that include unprecedented behind-the-scenes footage and insights into the making of these films. Unveiled in their original, raw form, these shorts capture the essence of low-budget, underground exploitation cinema, showcasing an unapologetically intense and unfiltered creative vision.
Formats: Blu-ray. (Massacre Video).
It's a Wonderful Knife
(2023) Jane Widdop, Jess McLeod, Joel McHale, Katharine Isabelle, William B. Davis, Justin Long. After saving her town from a psychotic killer, Winnie Carruthers' life is less than wonderful. When she wishes she'd never been born, she finds herself in a nightmare parallel universe where without her, things could be much, much worse. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, Digital. (RLJ).
Lisa Frankenstein
(2024) A coming of RAGE love story about a teenager and her crush, who happens to be a corpse. After a set of horrific circumstances bring him back to life, the two embark on a journey to find love, happiness - and a few missing body parts.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: Deleted scenes; gag reel; "Resurrecting the 1980’s"; "An Electric Connection"; "A Dark Comedy Duo"; feature commentary with director Zelda Williams. (Universal). Read more here.
Monster
(2023 -- Japan) Ando Sakura, Nagayama Eita, Kurokawa Soya, Hiiragi Hinata. After a mother discovers that a teacher’s bullying is behind her young son’s sudden strange behavior, she storms into his school demanding an explanation. Continually left without satisfactory answers -- and with an increasingly distressed child -- she furiously escalates her concerns to the school board and the media. But as the story unfolds through the multilayered perspectives of mother, teacher, and child, the real truth gradually emerges -- and proves much more complex than anyone could have expected. Formats: Blu-ray, VOD, Digital. (Well Go USA). Read more here
Night Swim
(2024) Kerry Condon, Wyatt Russell, Amelie Hoeferle, Gavin Warren, Jodi Long. A family moves into a new home, unaware that a dark secret from the house's past will unleash a malevolent force in the backyard pool.
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Code, VOD, Digital. Extras: "Masters of Fear" featurette; "Demons From the Depths"; "Into the Deep"; "Marco Polo"; feature commentary with co-writer/director Bryce Mcguire. (Universal). Read more here.
Orozco the Embalmer
(2001 -- Columbia) In the heart of Bogota's Rue Morgue, renowned death photographer Tsurisaki Kiyotaka captures the life's work of embalmer Froilan Orozco. Orozco, with decades of handling the deceased, from murder victims to the elderly, offers a raw and unfiltered look into the world of cadaver preparation. This documentary is a stark, unblinking journey into a profession shrouded in mystery and mortality. This landmark release, presenting the documentary in its most visceral and unfiltered form, is a bold testament to the unvarnished realities of death. Fully uncut and uncensored, it's an uncompromising exploration not for the faint of heart. Brand New 1080p HD Master. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: New interview with director; "Words with the Director" (2011); extensive stills gallery with over 140 photos. (Massacre Video).
Picnic at Hanging Rock
(1975 -- Australia) This sensual and striking chronicle of a disappearance and its aftermath put director Peter Weir on the map and helped usher in a new era of Australian cinema. Based on an acclaimed 1967 novel by Joan Lindsay, "Picnic at Hanging Rock" is set at the turn of the twentieth century and concerns a small group of students from an all-female college who vanish, along with a chaperone, while on a St. Valentine’s Day outing. Less a mystery than a journey into the mystic, as well as an inquiry into issues of class and sexual repression in Australian society, Weir’s gorgeous, disquieting film is a work of poetic horror whose secrets haunt viewers to this day.
Formats: 4k UHD + Blu-ray Combo. New 4K digital restoration, supervised and approved by director Peter Weir and director of photography Russell Boyd, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features. Extras:Read more here. (The Criterion Collection).
The Roundup: No Way Out
(2023 -- South Korea) Don Lee, Munetaka Aoki, Lee Jun-hyuk, Jun Kunimura. Sequel to the 2022 box office phenomenon "The Roundup." The film is set seven years after the events in "The Roundup," which saw South Korean police detective Ma Seok-do and his team dispatched to Vietnam to extradite a dangerous Korean fugitive who was suspiciously eager to be incarcerated back home. In the new film, the lovable lunk Ma (Don Lee) joins a new squad to investigate a murder case at home. He soon learns this case involves busting dealers of a new synthetic drug called Hiper, and he starts to dig deeper. Meanwhile, the Japanese mafia boss behind it all, Ichizo (Jun Kunimura) won’t stop looking for trouble, and the Japanese drug distributor Ricky (Munetaka Aoki) and his gang come to Korea to join the chaos. Things are about to get out of hand. Third title in the crowd-pleasing "Crime City" (aka "The Outlaws") film series. Formats: DVD, Blu-ray, 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo. Read more here (Capelight).
Special Silencers
(1982 -- Indonesia) A legendary entry into the Indonesian “cult film” canon. Chock full of crazy martial arts, unbelievably yucky special effects, a touch of black magic, and even torture by smelly shoes. This one has got it all. The plot is simplicity itself. A corrupt politician in rural Indonesia wants to impose himself as the boss of the local territory. To do this he has to eliminate the competition. To do that he uses his “special silencers” - small red pills apparently intended to enhance meditative states. But when taken with food or drink they erupt inside the victim’s stomach and emerge through the flesh like ragged, blood covered tree branches. It literally has to be seen to be believed. But that’s not all… the film features the dynamic duo (soon to be husband and wife) of Eva Arnaz and Barry Prima. Big stars in Indonesia at the time and both skilled martial artists. Seeing Eva kick bad-guy ass is a joy to behold. She, along with Barry, was one of the jewels in the crown of Indonesian exploitation cinema. This is the first ever video release of the film in its intended aspect ratio. Formats: Blu-ray. (Mondo Macabro).
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey
(2023) Nikolai Leon, Maria Taylor, Natasha Rose Mills. Five years ago, Christopher Robin abandoned his childhood companions, Winnie the Pooh and Piglet, and the woods in which they all played. Now an adult, Christopher has returned, with his fiancée Maria in tow, for a reunion with his old friends -- only to find that in his absence, Pooh and Piglet have turned feral, silent -- and murderous. What was once a joyous place of imagination and merriment becomes a violent battleground for survival in this audacious and terrifying spin on A.A. Milne’s beloved children’s stories. Formats: Blu-ray. Extras: Original trailer; “Something’s Wrong With Piglet – Making Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey. (Scream Factory).
DVD
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