“Beast” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Mortal Kombat: Snow BlindIf you watch one animated post-apocalyptic western fantasy kung fu movie this year, make it “Mortal Kombat: Snow Blind.” I have to hand it to screenwriter Jeremy Adams for the creativity of this genre...

“Thor: Love and Thunder” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.I Know What You Did Last SummerThe mid-1990s were a time of resurgence for the slasher genre, notably spearheaded by writer Kevin Williamson. “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” his follow up to seminal horror...

“Vengeance” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Le CorbeauIn spite of the fact that “Le Corbeau” is a French movie from 1943, its themes are still relevant today, and to the United States. It turns out that cancel culture and the nasty people who partake in it as they...

“Lightyear” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.ElvisIf a movie is ever made about my life, I want it to be directed by Baz Luhrmann. His films are effortlessly ebullient and never fall short on entertainment value, no matter the subject. He is first and foremost a...

“The Black Phone” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Jurassic World: DominionThe awe, wonder, majesty, and splendor of digitally rendered dinosaurs is back in “Jurassic World: Dominion,” as are all the big, noteworthy human characters who are still alive, including Owen...

“Crimes Of The Future” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Sonic the Hedgehog 2That fast, spiky, blue ball of fuzz and wisecracks known as Sonic the Hedgehog (voice of Ben Schwartz) is back in “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” and in this sequel, as in the like-titled 1992 Sega...

“Catch the Heat” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.A Force Of OneChuck Norris is probably best known today as the prototypical meme generator. Some “facts” about him include: “Chuck Norris doesn’t mow his lawn, he dares it to grow”; “Chuck Norris is the reason Waldo is...

“The Lost City” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of MadnessThe movie may be called “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” but it’s really only half a Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) movie. The other half belongs to Wanda...

“Black Site” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Frisco KidI love a good fish out of water story and a good western. Lucky for me, 1979’s “The Frisco Kid” is both. Less worthy to me are buddy road movies. You know the ones. They feature two very different people with...

“Memory” and “Downton Abbey: A New Era” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.Everything Everywhere All At OnceA common complaint about modern Hollywood is that it’s full of creatively bankrupt woke wankers who can’t do anything except take a pre-existing, decades old...

“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Worst Person In The WorldIf Julie (Renate Reinsve) is who the title “The Worst Person in the World” refers to, then co-writer/director Joachim Trier is certainly having some fun with...

“The Contractor” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Northman“Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” These words were spoken by circa 500 BCE Chinese philosopher Confucius. Even if they did make their way to Nordic countries circa 900 CE, it’s...

“The Devil You Know” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Cloak and DaggerOne of the silver linings of getting older is obtaining the sense of what was important to you as a child. The test is a simple one. Ask yourself: How fondly do you remember it? Then if the answer...

“X” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The BatmanAs a genre, superhero movies tend to have a lot in common with each other. They’re all stories about heroic (or sometimes anti-heroic) crusaders (sometimes caped and sometimes not) with dual identities (sometimes secret...

“Infinite” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Licorice PizzaWriter-director Paul Thomas Anderson revisits two of his favorite subjects—the 1970s and California’s San Fernando Valley—in “Licorice Pizza,” a movie that, as far as I observed, featured neither licorice nor...

“Dog” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.UnchartedNintendo has Mario. Sega has Sonic. Microsoft has Master Chief. Sony, for their video game console Play Station, has Nathan Drake, protagonist in their numerous “Uncharted” games. So who better than good ole reliable...

“Blacklight” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Turning RedSometimes I like being wrong. When Disney/Pixar’s animated feature “Turning Red” first begins we’re introduced to thirteen-year-old Meilin (voice of Rosalie Chiang) and I thought she was going to be...

“V/H/S 94” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.CyranoThe reason great classics endure the tests of time and place is because they have a universal appeal to which all peoples, in all times and places, can relate. At the heart of these classics is typically a protagonist...

“C’mon C’mon” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Spider-Man: No Way HomeOne of the appeals of virtuous superheroes is how they can serve as models for our own lives. We may never achieve the supreme level of virtuosity as our favorite costumed vigilantes, but it’s their...

“Death on the Nile” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.ScreamMy guess is that if I was writing about movies coming to home video in 1996, I would have recommended “Scream” the week it hit the shelves of your local VHS rental store. That would have been my highest...

“Sing 2” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Ordinary PeopleAs of this writing, the Best Picture Oscar for the year 2021 has not yet been awarded. In honor of this noteworthy award, my choice this week is “Ordinary People,” a Best Picture winner from forty-one years ago...

“For the Love of Money” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Nightmare AlleyGuillermo del Toro is a great director. This is not only because he’s had an amazing career churning out mostly good movies filled with imagination and style. It’s also because he knows how to...

“West Side Story” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Red RocketTo describe Mikey Saber (Simon Rex), the protagonist of co-writer/director Sean Baker’s “Red Rocket,” as a narcissistic and possibly sociopathic ex-porn star who cheats on his wife Lexi (Bree Elrod) and...

“Coming 2 America” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Nowhere InnPeople aren’t always what they seem. This truth goes double for celebrities, with whom we enter into what psychologists call a parasocial relationship. That is, we think we know them based on what we...

“Demonic” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.BelfastOscar nominated writer-director Kenneth Branagh begins his semi-autobiographical movie “Belfast” in an interesting way. We see shots of the Northern Ireland city as it looks today through a montage of static shots done...

“House of Gucci” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The King's ManHistory records that on December 30, 1916, Russian nobles tried to poison “Mad Monk” Grigori Rasputin with cyanide. When this failed, they chased him down, shot him, and for good measure, due to the...

“Eternals” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Love AffairI love old movies, but the problem with watching them is that I can’t help but compare them to today’s movies. While great movies are certainly still being made today the world over, my general feeling about them...

“Catwoman: Hunted” and “King Richard” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.EncantoThe opening logos of “Encanto” inform us that it is Disney’s 60th animated feature. The Disney logo, in all its forms over the years, has always brought with it a promise of quality and...

“Clifford The Big Red Dog” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Ghostbusters: AfterlifeThere are nostalgia trips, then there’s “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” which would undoubtedly win an award for most member berries per minute of screen time, if such a prize existed. Do...

“New York Ninja” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Scary Of Sixty-FirstHere’s one that’s not for the kids, and that’s not just because “The Scary of Sixty-First” has pedophilia as one of its themes. The movie hits the adult content trifecta of drugs, sex, and...

“Last Night in Soho” and “The Addams Family 2” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.A Hard Day's NightBeatlemania was in full swing in 1964 when “A Hard Day’s Night” was released, and the opening credit sequence wastes no time dropping us in the middle of it. We see John...

“Antlers” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Black FridayWithout knowing too much about screenwriter Andy Greskoviak, I’m going to take an educated guess that he worked retail around the holidays. Or, if “Black Friday” isn’t based on some personal, firsthand experience,...

“No Time to Die” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Many Saints Of NewarkThe two most important men in a boy’s life are his father and his father figure. His father is the one he is biologically related to, and his father figure is the one who he looks up to as a...

“Venom: Let There Be Carnage” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Last DuelThe truth is a fickle thing. What did and did not happen can vary—sometimes subtly and sometimes greatly—depending on the memory and perception of the person telling the story. In “The Last...

“Copshop” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Cry Macho“Cry Macho” is proof that writers don’t have to go over the top to create an original story. It’s the small choices a writer makes that can give the yarn being spun a fresh feeling. Take the attitude of rich Mexican...

“Reminiscence” and “Respect” are also new to Blu-Ray.A Gift From BobOne of the many joys that cinema brings to me—international cinema in particular—is the education it provides. Seeing different cultures, with different ideas, and different ways of life is an...

“The Suicide Squad” and “Don’t Breathe 2” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.On The RocksI can be a simple man of easy pleasures when it comes to selecting a movie I want to watch. “On the Rocks” is one such selection, because it’s very simple: I see it stars Bill...

“Old” and “Snake Eyes” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.Joe BellMuch like teenagers, some movies are late bloomers. “Joe Bell” is a case in point. The titular character is played by Mark Wahlberg. He’s a macho, hard-nosed, sports-loving, prideful, hot-headed 45...

“The Green Knight” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Free GuyTo understand the concept of “Free Guy,” one must first understand the term non-player character, or NPC for short. These are what in movie terms would be called extras, or background characters. They’re not...

“Six Minutes to Midnight” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Space Jam: A New Legacy“Space Jam: A New Legacy” hits me in one of my soft spots. Granted there aren’t many, but they are there, and positive, affirming movies about fathers and sons are one of them. The icing...

“The Forever Purge” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.A Night At The OperaAs pop culture enthusiasts very well know, Elvis Presley died three days before Groucho Marx. Elvis passed on August 16, 1977, and Groucho on August 19. Another significant year that ties the two...

“F9” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.CruellaIt’s the battle of the Emmas in Disney’s latest live action character study based on a previous animated work. “Cruella” is the story of villainous fashion designer Cruella De Vil, first seen in 1961’s “One Hundred and One...

“The Boss Baby: Family Business” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Black WidowI’ll start off by addressing the elephant in the room: Why make a “Black Widow” movie now, given her fate in “Avengers: End Game?” My take is that nothing lasts forever, everyone dies, and on...

“Zack Snyder’s Justice League” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.State Of The UnionI can’t help but be a little depressed by “State of the Union.” It’s not because the movie is depressing. If anything, it’s inspirational and affirmational of the goodness and decency of...

“In the Heights” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Bugsy MaloneIt’s quite possibly the most extreme of all cinematic rarities to have the words “mob gangs” and “family film” in a movie’s description, but here we are. “Bugsy Malone” is a G-rated 1976 family film about...

“Lansky” and “Peter Rabbit 2” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do ItNothing hits closer to home than literally having the action of a movie take place in your hometown. While major cities like Chicago, New York, L.A., Miami, and...

“Rogue Hostage” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Hitman’s Wife’s BodyguardOne way to do a good sequel is to continue the story of the first movie, expand upon its world, and further develop its characters. The other way is to rehash the first movie but do it bigger,...

“American Traitor” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Batman: The Long Halloween*NOTE: “Batman: The Long Halloween, Part 2” is the release this week. Part 1 was released on June 22. This review is for the entirety of “The Long Halloween” and treats it like one movie....

“Those Who Wish Me Dead” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.LucaLeave it to the Italians—or at least the portrayal of Italians in “Luca”—to modify the triathlon in a way that someone as unathletic as me would want to participate. The first modification is that the...

“Every Breath You Take” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.A Quiet Place Part IIIf you’re like me and enjoyed the first “A Quiet Place” but only saw it once back in 2018 and don’t remember what happened to Lee Abbott (John Krasinski, who also wrote and directed this...

“Spiral” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The WraithThe term “quintessential 80s movie” can apply to a fair number of flicks from the decade. While there are measurable factors we can look at like cars, clothes, hair, and music, it’s more than that. The endearing...

“Mortal Kombat” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Wrath Of ManDirector and co-screenwriter Guy Ritchie’s “Wrath of Man” reminds me of the old Klingon proverb that revenge is a dish best served cold. While this movie doesn’t take place in space, it does take place in...

“Defending Jacob” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Bringing Up BabyHistory is the final judge in all things. Upon its initial release in 1938, “Bringing Up Baby” was not well regarded. I clearly remember watching it for the first time around two decades ago on TCM in...

“Voyagers” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Godzilla Vs KongHere’s what many of you want to know about “Godzilla vs. Kong”: Does it deliver on pitting the giant ape and giant reptile against each other in satisfying knock down, drag out fights that result in tons of...

“Flashback” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The StylistClaire (Najarra Townsend) is not right in the head. She drugs women, removes their scalps with whatever sharp tool is available to her (usually a pair of scissors), and wears the scalp in the creepy serial killer...

“Endangered Species” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.The CourierFor those who like their cold war thrillers with tons of escapist action, shootouts, explosions, sexual tension, and martinis that are shaken, not stirred, then “The Courier” isn’t for you. The story is...

“The Hand” is also new to Blu-Ray this week.Chaos WalkingI need to begin this review of “Chaos Walking” at the end. Not to spoil any details, since I am averse to such things, but to be upfront about my dislike to the ending of a movie I otherwise enjoyed. My...

“The Father” and “Raya and the Last Dragon” are also new to Blu-Ray this week.MinariThere are some jobs that on some level I know exist, but never really thought about. Take for example that of a chicken sexer. It’s exactly what it sounds like. A person is paid to...