Uncle Nick Blu-ray Review

• Actor: Brian Posehn
• Director: Chris Kasick
• Format: Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Not Rated
• Studio: MPI HOME VIDEO
• Release Date: November 1, 2016
• Run Time: 81 minutes

        Holiday movies about dysfunctional families and their behavior are almost as commonplace as the saccharine feel-good films of the season, but Uncle Nick takes it to a darker place than usual. It isn’t just the darkness, but how grounded in realism Uncle Nick is that makes it so depressingly bleak. I appreciate dark comedies, but this one has too few laughs for the dreariness that must be endured. Most Christmas films all end the same, with the family coming together and repairing damaged relationships in order to celebrate the season. While I commend Uncle Nick for avoiding the seasonal clichés, few films have left me with less of a desire to celebrate the holidays.

Taxi Driver: 40th Anniversary Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Albert Brooks, Jodie Foster, Leonard Harris
• Director: Martin Scorsese
• Producers: Julia Phillips, Michael Phillips
• Format: AC-3, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: German, Portuguese, French, Czech, Polish, Finnish, Swedish, Korean, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian, Hungarian, Mandarin Chinese, Turkish, Spanish, Danish, Greek, English, Japanese
• Dubbed: German, French, Czech, Portuguese, Italian, Hungarian, Spanish, Japanese
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated:
  R
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• Release Date: November 8, 2016
• Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019
• Run Time: 114 minutes

        Taxi Driver is a bold film, even by today’s standards. It was a timely film in 1976, both a character study of one mentally unstable man and a larger representation of the times. Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) represented an entire generation of men, war veterans and social outcasts alike. He is a man plagued by loneliness, but continually making decisions which push him further away from people. His politics are confused, but passionately driven by an undercurrent of violence within him. And as timely as Travis Bickle seemed in 1976, it feels every bit as relevant in today’s social and political climate, 40-years later.

       

Morris From America Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Craig Robinson, Markees Christmas
• Director: Chad Hartigan
• Format: NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated:
  R
• Studio: Lionsgate
• Release Date: November 8, 2016
• Run Time: 91 minutes

        Coming of age narratives are in wide supply within the film industry, and in that sense there is very little revolutionary about Morris from America despite its unique setting. What helps this films stand out from a plethora of others is the depiction of a father/son relationship. Even if that dynamic itself isn’t original, the warmth and honesty of the portrayal makes enough of a crowd pleaser to forgive some of script’s familiarity.

Better Call Saul: Season Two Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Bob Odenkirk
• Format: AC-3, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: French, Arabic, Dutch, Spanish, English
• Dubbed: French
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 3
• Rated:
  Not Rated
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• Release Date: November 15, 2016
• Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019
• Run Time: 459 minutes

        The first season of “Better Call Saul” blew me away, in part because of the precise filmmaking used to tell the story, adding layers of nuance to an already clever set of scripts. But the main reason for my surprise in watching the first season was lowered expectations. Having watched and enjoyed all of “Breaking Bad,” it was difficult to imagine a show with less crime and a weaker protagonist would be as good. It turns out that it is even better, in some ways. “Breaking Bad” took several seasons for audiences to catch on and start watching, but “Better Call Saul” had record-breaking viewership and was renewed for a second season 7 months before even airing.

Indignation Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Sarah Gadon, Logan Lerman, Ben Rosenfield, Noah Robbins, Tracy Letts
• Director: James Schamus
• Format: NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated:
  R
• Studio: Lionsgate
• Release Date: November 8, 2016
• Run Time: 111 minutes

        Indignation has recognizable faces, but no movie stars. It is a period film, one without action or a typical romance to drive the narrative. There is humor as well as moments of melancholy, but the film doesn’t fit perfectly into either the comedy or the drama category. Even with the fairly traditional structure of a coming-of-age narrative, Indignation is something of an enigma in today’s film market, bold in its simplicity and reliance on good storytelling alone. Not every film needs a guaranteed audience brought by special effects and movie stars. My only hope is that enough people watched this movie to encourage further production of mature narratives as an alternative to the constant stream of comic book movies.