Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Aaron Paul, Lena Headey, Sean Bean
• Director: Takeshi Nozue
• Producers: Koseo Ito, Larry Sparks, Shinji Hashimoto, Hajime Tabata
• Format: Subtitled
• Language: English
• Subtitles: French, Portuguese, Malay, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Indonesian, Cantonese, Thai, Spanish, English
• Dubbed: French, Portuguese, Thai, Spanish, Japanese
• Region: All Regions
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated:
  PG-13
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• Release Date: October 4, 2016
• Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019
• Run Time: 115 minutes

        In terms of cross-promotional creativity, I must give credit to Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV, a movie meant as a viewing companion to the newest video game. Much of the computer animated film resembles the cutaway scenes featured between game play, which often makes the lack of audience participation even more noticeable. Though the visuals are remarkable, this glaring issue with video game films is only increased in a movie that is included with the purchase of the game. If nothing else, this film should have the ability to encourage viewers to play the game instead.

Barbarians Rising Blu-ray Review

• Format: NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 2
• Studio: LIONSGATE
• Release Date: September 27, 2016
• Run Time: 336 minutes

        History has gotten far more entertaining since I was a kid in school, with even documentary specials such as “Barbarians Rising” making use of spectacle. Recreation footage has long been used in documentary programs, but it is done with real actors and production values in this series. The result is an engaging narrative framework for the history lesson, even if this approach means sacrificing a complete account of events.

A Scandal in Paris/Lured Blu-ray Review

• Actors: George Sanders, Signe Hasso, Carole Landis, Akim Tamiroff, Lucille Ball
• Director: Douglas Sirk
• Format: NTSC, Subtitled
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Studio: Cohen Media Group
• Release Date: September 27, 2016
• Run Time: 202 minutes

        Declared one of cinema’s greatest ironists decades after the period of his greatest success as a filmmaker, Douglas Sirk was given a place in film history thanks to the efforts made by French scholars in their development of the auteur theory. Sirk primarily worked in melodramas of the middle and upper class, leading to subtle social commentary and satire. Sirk is probably best known for the soap opera melodramas he made in the 1950s, which served as a dissection of the culture during that era, but this two-film set includes two of his films from the 1940s. Both are set in Europe despite being made in America and both are a reminder of the fact that Sirk was a European filmmaker, only forced to make movies in America through the displacement of WWII.

Ghostbusters Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, Chris Hemsworth, Cecily Strong
• Director: Paul Feig
• Producers: Amy Pascal, Ivan Reitman
• Format: Subtitled
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Dubbed: Spanish
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated:
  PG-13
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• Release Date: October 11, 2016
• Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019

        Can I review Ghostbusters without discussing gender roles? Is that even possible at this point? It has gotten so that the controversy is so connected to the film that it will live on far longer than the actual quality of its filmmaking would have allowed otherwise, just as was the case with The Interview, the comedy that brought threats of war despite being entirely forgettable. Ghostbusters was merely another in a series of franchise-reviving blockbusters, sanitized so much for modern audiences that it lacks the charm from the original. This has nothing to do with gender roles and everything to do with the artistic side of film being sacrificed in effort toward guaranteed financial success.

The Wailing Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Kwak Do Won, Hwang Jung Min, Kunimura Jun
• Directors: Na Hong Jin
• Format: Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, THX, Widescreen
• Language: Korean
• Subtitles: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated:
  Unrated
• Studio: Well Go USA
• Release Date: October 4, 2016
• Run Time: 156 minutes

        We seem to be entering a phase of intellectual horror films, following the extremely visceral style of the last decade. Suddenly movies with psychological depth are succeeding over the generic spectacle, so that we have movies like The Witch, The Babadook, Goodnight Mommy, and The Neon Demon replacing the days of endless Saw sequels. The Wailing is South Korea’s answer to these films, distinct in its national style by the sense of humor and in many ways it the country’s own take on a masterpiece like The Exorcist.

X-Men: Apocalypse Blu-ray Review

• Format: Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English (DTS 5.1)
• Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
• Dubbed: French, Spanish
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated:
  PG-13
• Studio: 20th Century Fox
• Release Date: October 4, 2016
• Run Time: 144 minutes

        The X-Men franchise has weathered the many ups and downs of the superhero genre, as it was originally a trailblazer for comic book blockbusters. In order to continue the narrative, this franchise had to reinvent itself with a series of prequel films, which have also utilized time travel and origin stories to include the most popular of the X-Men characters, Wolverine. The other aspect of the X-Men movies which keeps them continually fresh is the seemingly endless supply of mutant characters to add, allowing for the inclusion of new along with the comfort of the familiar.

The Infiltrator Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Bryan Cranston, Diane Kruger, Benjamin Bratt
• Director: Brad Furman
• Format: Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Dubbed: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated:
  R 
• Studio: Broadgreen
• Release Date: October 11, 2016
• Run Time: 127 minutes

        There is a lot familiar about The Infiltrator. The undercover cop narrative is far from original and doesn’t even have the luxury of much crime action, suspense, or spectacle as a distraction from the derivative elements of the narrative. What The Infiltrator does have is Bryan Cranston in the lead role, able to bring emotional intensity and suspense to a story somewhat lacking in both. This is Cranston’s film, even if the screenplay doesn’t always meet the standards of its performer.

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town Blu-ray Review

        Frank Capra had his first massive success with It Happened One Night in 1934, a film that had such a massive cultural impact that it was the first movie to sweep the Academy Awards and caused a massive drop in the sale of undershirts after featuring Cary Grant without one. Capra chose to follow up that screwball comedy with the socially conscious fairy tale, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town. It would be a familiar trait in Capra’s films, giving audiences the entertainment they wanted while giving society the message it needed.

Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Paul Bettany, Alfred Molina, Jürgen Prochnow, Jean Reno, Tom Hanks
• Director: Ron Howard
• Producers: Brian Grazer, John Calley
• Format: Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: French, Portuguese, Arabic, Korean, Dutch, Mandarin Chinese, Thai, Spanish, English, Japanese
• Dubbed: French, Portuguese, Thai, Spanish, Japanese
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated:
  PG-13
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• Release Date: October 11, 2016
• Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019
• Run Time: 149 minutes

        Though these films have both seen previous Blu-ray releases for the extended cuts of the film (theatrical cuts were also included), this new release is just to remind us that there is a new entry in the franchise arriving shortly. In case this is not clear, there is a bright orange sticker on the front of each release, announcing the inclusion of new footage of Inferno in the special features. There are also a few new extras, and some footage from the extended cut in replacement of that viewing option. Overall, this is just an excuse to remarket the past product. There is no need for owners of the last release to pay attention; this is not an upgrade.