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The Human Centipede
BD - Two pretty American girls on a road trip across Europe end
up alone in the woods at night when their car breaks down in
rural Germany. As they search for help they find an isolated
house. Offering to call them a taxi, the house's owner Dr.
Heiter, a retired surgeon, invites the girls inside with the
promise of a drink and dry place to wait until help arrives.
However they realize that there is something not quite right
about the formidable Dr. Heiter... As their demented host
explains his twisted vision, the two girls discover that they
are soon to become a lot closer to each other than they ever
wanted to be. Blu-rays release dates: October 5th / October 4th,
2010
Who Saw Her Die? - Sculptor Franco (George Lazenby, one-shot
James Bond of ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE) is living and
working in Venice when his daughter Roberta (Nicoletta Elmi,
BARON BLOOD and THE CURSED MEDALLION) visits from London where
she has been living with her mother. Upon her arrival, Roberta
becomes the object of interest to a mysterious veiled old woman
clad in black who stalks her through the city. When Franco
leaves her to play with the other town children in order to have
a dalliance with Gabriella (Rosemarie Lindt, EMANUELLE'S
REVENGE), the girl disappears only to turn up murdered. DVD
Release Date: February 26th, 2008
London River - London River tells the story of a friendship
which develops between two seemingly unconnected people:
Elizabeth (Academy Award nominee Brenda Bleythn) and Ousmane (Sotigui
Kouyate). Both have come to London to search for their children
who are missing in the aftermath of the 7/7 bombings.
Beautifully detailed and movingly realised by Academy Award
nominated director Rachid Bouchareb (Days Of Glory), the film
convincingly creates a portrait of a multi-ethnic city
struggling to come to terms with the terrorist attacks. At its
centre it contains a stunning lead performance from Brenda Blethyn hailed by critics as her strongest since she won a best
actress Golden Globe for
Secrets and Lies. DVD Release Date:
October 11th, 2010
The Rig - When a tropical storm forces an offshore drilling
company to evacuate non-essential personnel from the "Charlie"
oil rig, the small but experienced crew left behind settles in
to ride out the storm. Isolated on the rig, their routine night
is interrupted when a crew member goes missing and an extensive
search proves futile. Slowly, they discover that a deadly
creature is stalking the crew, eliminating them one by one.
Surrounded by nothing but raging ocean with no hope of escape,
the roughnecks must survive the stormy night with an unrelenting
force of death hunting them down. DVD Release Date: October 5th,
2010
Harlow - Hollywood in 1928 is a land of milk and honey, magic
and fantasy. Jean Harlow’s spectacularly controversial and
tragic career begins with bit parts in movies while she’s living
with her mother and opportunistic stepfather. When Hollywood
agent, Arthur Landau (Golden Globe Nominee, Red Buttons), spots
her on a film set, he gets her a series of comedy roles and soon
realizes he has a gold mine in Miss Harlow (Carroll Baker). She
becomes an overnight sensation and critics hail her as the next
great sex symbol. This film documents the rise and fall of a
true Hollywood Legend. Directed by Gordon Douglas (Tony Rome),
Screenplay by John Michael Hayes (Peyton Place, The
Carpetbaggers) and Costumes by legendary designer Edith Head.
DVD Release Date: September 28th, 2010
Death Note Collection
BD - As titled, “The Death Note
Collection” is misleading at best. To start with, two movies can
hardly be construed to be a “collection.” More important,
Death
Note and Death Note II are not so much feature film and sequel,
but parts 1 and 2 of a single film – a saga, if you will. They
were released in Japan only a few months apart on June 17 and
November 3, 2006. The ending of “The Last Name” wraps things up
yet offers the possibility of a sequel. There is in fact one
unofficial “spin-off” sequel (“L Change the World” written by Kiyomi Fuji & Hirotoshi Kobayashi and directed by Hideo Nakata)
that has not generated much critical enthusiasm despite the
presence of Ken’ichi Matsuyama reprising his role as “L.”
Blu-ray Release date: August 24th, 2010
World on a Wire
BD - Even though (or perhaps because) some of
its 205 minutes seem repetitive or predictable, this 1973
exploitation of SF and hard-boiled-detective clichés is so
deeply affecting it could induce an existential crisis in the
viewer. Written by Fritz Muller-Scherz and director Rainer
Werner Fassbinder and based on a novel by Daniel Galouye, this
tale of an artificial-intelligence expert investigating the
death of a colleague with whom he developed some cutting-edge
technology makes Blade Runner seem redundant. The cinematography
by Michael Ballhaus (The Age of Innocence), production design,
use of sound effects, and music are eerie and convincing yet
camp; their combination demonstrates a control of tone that's
nothing short of miraculous. Blu-ray Release date: October 6th,
2010
Once is Not Enough - Based on a Best Seller by Jacqueline Susann
(Valley of the Dolls). January Wayne (Deborah Raffin), the
adoring daughter of movie producer Mike Wayne (Kirk Douglas)
returns home to New York, only to find her father married to
Deidre Milford Granger (Alexis Smith), the fifth richest woman
in the world. The marriage is one of the conveniences for Mike,
who has lost his magic touch as a producer, and is in desperate
need of money to continue his and his daughter’s lavish
lifestyles. Jealous January bitterly resents her father and
cannot accept the moral codes of this new world, finding only
frustration. She gets a job with Gloss Magazine and falls in
love with Pulitzer Price-winning novelist Tom Colt (David
Janssen), whose virile prose and celebrated fistfights turn out
to be a compensation for his physical inadequacies. Her
Stepmother Dee wants her to marry David Milford (George
Hamilton), Dee’s handsome young cousin and wolf-about-town,
who’s having an affair with the reclusive retired movie star,
Karla (Melina Mercouri), who in turn is carrying on a
clandestine lesbian affair with Dee. DVD Release Date: September
28th, 2010
Prey
BD - There was this film about 15-years ago called
The
Ghost and the Darkness with Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas. It
was based on the true story of two lions in Africa that killed
130 people over a nine month period, while a bridge engineer and
an experienced old hunter tried to kill them. I thought it was
great while most critics were mostly 'ho-hum'. Now, Prey is
certainly not at that level - but it does share the
badass-lion-eating-people phenomenon. So I was reminded of how
good The Ghost and the Darkness was - and I want to see it
again. Prey is more like Rogue. A modern take on the exploitive
creature-feature only using real threats. Since the plot lines
run to be less realistic though - it is closer to fantasy. The
direct attacks on humans are all incredibly blurry, Weller is a
little paunchy, the bonding family aspect is unnecessary... but
it is very intense and terrifying - which was probably the
filmmakers only intent. So on that front is succeeds as a quick
and dirty, straight-to-video, horror-esque popcorn flic with
people-eating cats. So be it. Blu-ray Release date: September
28th, 2010
Mandingo
BD - Based on the best-selling book, Mandingo is a
shocking look at plantation life in the Deep South. Mede (Ken
Norton) is a slave whose master, Hammond Maxwell (Perry King),
intends on keeping him as a prizefighter. As Maxwell focuses his
attention on his wenches and Mede's brutal training, his
neglected wife (Susan George) turns her passions towards Mede
himself. The sordid doings explode across the screen as Mandingo
plays out its savage and dramatic story.
Blu-ray Release date:
September 14th, 2010
Espion(s) - Vincent is a brilliant and reclusive young man, a
graduate from one of the top universities, who rejects an
ambitious career to work in airport security. To pass the time,
Vincent and his co-worker Gerard pickpocket from passengers'
suitcases. But when a diplomat's bag explodes in Gerard's face
violently killing him, the game comes to an end. The Secret
Service gets involved in the case, and Vincent is forced to
execute a mission in London under a secret identity,
investigating a British businessman suspected of illicit
trafficking, Peter Burton. The key to cracking the case lies in
seducing Burton's beautiful but vulnerable French wife, Claire.
But who will fall prey to whom? Everything spirals downward as
Vincent must choose between his heart and his freedom. DVD
Release Date: July 27th, 2010
The Bisbee Cannibal Club - Vegetarians are disappearing in the
quiet town of Bisbee, Arizona. When "Priest" (Joanthan Ash)
discovers that his hallucinatory cactus garden has been used for
a cannibal cookout - with a local endearing, panty-stealing
pervert as the main course - he and grungy buddies head straight
to the local gun shop and arm themselves with an array of
automatic weapons (and one speargun) and go cannibal hunting.
DVD Release Date: October 26th, 2010
The Magician
BD - Ingmar Bergman’s
The Magician (Ansiktet) is an
engaging, brilliantly conceived tale of deceit from one of
cinema’s premier illusionists. Max von Sydow stars as Dr. Vogler,
a nineteenth-century traveling mesmerist and peddler of potions
whose magic is put to the test in Stockholm by the cruel,
eminently rational royal medical adviser Dr. Vergérus. The
result is a diabolically clever battle of wits that’s both
frightening and funny, shot in rich, gorgeously gothic black and
white. Blu-ray Release date: October 12th, 2010
Tommy
BD - Russell’s adaptation follows Pete Townshend’s
double-LP for the most part except in one crucial detail, and
one I approve of altogether. Tommy is the child of Nora (Ann-Margret,
in a Golden Globe winning performance) and Captain Walker
(Robert Powell), who is sent off to war in the RAF at the onset
of WWII. Presumed dead, Nora takes up with Frank Hobbs (Oliver
Reed), a snake oil charmer, with and without the snakes. When
Tommy is about six his father returns only to find Nora and
“Uncle Frank” in flagrante. Frank kills Walker (Townshend
originally had it the other way around) and he and mom caution
Tommy that he sees, hears and says nothing of what just happened
– a demand that Tommy takes to heart quite literally.
Blu-ray
Release date: September 7th, 2010
The Darjeeling Limited
BD - In director Wes Anderson’s
The
Darjeeling Limited, three estranged American brothers reunite
for a meticulously planned, soul-searching train voyage across
India one year after the death of their father. Armed with
eleven suitcases, a laminated itinerary, a can of pepper spray,
a supply of over-the-counter painkillers, and a host of family
conflicts ready to erupt, Francis, Peter, and Jack eventually
find themselves stranded alone in the middle of the desert—at
which point an unexpected new chapter in their journey begins.
Featuring a sensational cast, including Owen Wilson, Adrien
Brody, Jason Schwartzman, and Anjelica Huston, The Darjeeling
Limited is a dazzling and hilarious film that takes Anderson’s
work to deeper places than ever before.
Blu-ray Release Date:
October 12th, 2010
Iron Man 2
BD - “Iron Man 2,” the first superhero sequel of the
summer, fulfills the basic requirements of the genre, which can
be summed up as more of the same, with emphasis on more. Having
introduced its physically and intellectually gifted, emotionally
tormented protagonist in both his regular and alter egos, a
comic book franchise will typically set out, in the second
installment, in search of new villains, bigger suits, brighter
gadgets and tendrils of plot that can blossom in subsequent
sequels. Blu-ray Release date: September 28th, 2010
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