Kiki DVD Review

• Director: Sara Jordenö
• Disc Format: NTSC
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Region: Region 1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Not Rated
• Studio: MPI Home Video
• DVD Release Date: August 22, 2017
• Run Time: 94 minutes

        In 1990, the documentary Paris is Burning chronicled New York’s drag scene in the 1980s, while examining the significance and success of the balls and the voguing dance style that dominated them. But more than just a film about the LGTB art culture, Paris is Burning was a film that examined the struggle of those perceived as different, adding the struggle of being a racial minority to the judgment about their gender and sexual identities. Paris is Burning was such an important film that Kiki automatically fights an uphill battle of relevance. Choosing the exact same topic and themes, Kiki is a follow-up film that doesn’t dig as deep or add much new to the topic. It is still significant, but somehow feels less important.

Never Let Go DVD Review

• Actors: Angela Dixon, Nigel Whitmey, Rami Nasr, Velibor Topic, Lisa Eichhorn
• Director: Howard Ford
• Producers: Howard Ford, Laura Jane-Stephens, Amir Moallemi
• Disc Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Subtitles: French, English, Spanish
• Region: Region 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Rated: R
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: August 22, 2017
• Run Time: 94 minutes

        For those who thought Kidnap was just a sillier imitation of Taken, Never Let Go provides the same premise with a new low of entertainment standards and logic. Comparisons to the plot may be inevitable, but this film is so bad that it even makes the Taken sequels look like masterpieces by comparison. Never Let Go is highly melodramatic, full of ridiculously bad performances, and void of even a single scene without faulty logic and contrived situations. It seems improbable that there wouldn’t at least be one scene or element that accidentally works, but this is easily the most incompetent filmmaking I have been forced to endure this year.

Kill Switch Blu-ray Review

• Actors: Dan Stevens, Bérénice Marlohe, Tygo Gernandt, Chloe-May Cuthill
• Director: TimSmiT
• Format: NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: Spanish
• Region: Region A/1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R
• Studio: LIONSGATE
• Release Date: August 22, 2017
• Run Time: 92 minutes

        There is nothing more disappointing than seeing a promising premise destroyed by failed execution, and that is exactly what we have with Kill Switch. Despite a science fiction narrative that is fairly clever and more original than a majority of this summer’s blockbusters, the bland characters and an unwise decision to film a majority of the movie in first person destroys much of what works. Even with some impressive special effects, this is yet another first-person film to completely disappoint. At the very least, if a film is going to present itself like a film version of a video game, there should be more action and spectacle to justify this decision.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 4K Ultra HD Review

• Actors: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper
• Director: James Gunn
• Writer: James Gunn
• Format: NTSC, Subtitled, 4K
• Language: English (DTS-HD High Res Audio), French (Unknown), Spanish (Unknown)
• Subtitles: French, Spanish, English
• Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
• Rated: PG-13
• Studio: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
• Release Date: August 22, 2017
• Run Time: 136 minutes

        I can still remember when people thought that making a film for the Guardians of the Galaxy was a risky choice, and it surprised everyone in its success. Somehow, in the short time since that release, none of the Marvel releases feel even the slightest bit risky. Every film to come out of Marvel Studios feels like a safe bet, guaranteed to make money but also generically mediocre as a result. Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 is a perfect example of this, essentially just rehashing the same plot in the same way that The Force Awakens blandly revived the Star Wars franchise. The takeaway seems to be fairly simple; anything owned by Disney will be treated as more of business commodity than an artistic creation. The safe choice is now standard.