Newsletter - FOR THE WEEK

OF November 13th, 2017

Ki kati? A full week of Blu-ray reviews with packages by Criterion, Second Run, Curzon Artificial Eye, 88 Films, Kino Lorber, Classicflix, Code Red, Scorpion Releasing, Warner Archive, Studio Canal, Tiberius Film, Media Target, and others of films directed by Louis Malle, Roman Polanski, Anthony Mann, William Dieterle, Dario Argento, Otakar Vávra, Roger Vadim, Barbet Schroeder, Alexander Payne, Elio Scardamaglia, Antonio Bido, José María Forqué!. Our Calendar has updates of films-to-Blu-ray, including works by Henri-Georges Clouzot, Dick Richards, Max Ophüls, Otakar Vávra, James Ivory, Stuart Heisler, Joseph Sargent, Andrei Tarkovsky, Carlos Saura, Jia Zhangke, Vittorio De Sica, Dario Argento, Elaine May, Blake Edwards, Sergei Parajanov, Joe Dante, Curtis Harrington, Mario Monicelli, Dino Risi, Ettore Scola, William Castle, Martin Rosen, Darren Aronofsky, David Gordon Green and the Barnes and Noble Sale We have another new listing page (Nature Run Amok) and our Feature Blu-ray and DVD is posted for NOVEMBER plus a new CONTEST with a BRAND NEW CRITERION Blu-ray prize. Enjoy!!

LISTING PAGES:

CREATURE-FEATURES (on Blu-ray!), PRE-CODE FILMs (on Blu-ray!), SILENT ERA FILMs (on Blu-ray!), HAMMER Studios (on Blu-ray!) The 100 BEST Neo-Noirs (on Blu-ray!), The GREATEST 100 Westerns (on Blu-ray!), Giallo on Blu-ray!, ESSENTIAL NOIR on Blu-ray!, Shopping Guide for Blu-rays at Amazon.FR (France), Shopping Guide for Blu-rays at Amazon.DE (Germany) and our LATEST ARTICLES: Movies From... the End of the World,  The Beauties of Star Trek (TOS)

DVDBeaver has their own store at Movie Zyng - check it out! Many have $1 shipping - even overseas!

Feature Blu-ray and DVD chosen for the Month of SEPTEMBER!

FOLLOW US on TWITTER! (where we post important reviews, contests - prizes, polls, calendar updates - plus much more...)

(Week of) November 13th, CONTEST  identify the still HERE to win a prize of a BRAND NEW CRITERION Blu-ray of The Philadelphia Story Best of luck!

If there are DVD or Blu-ray titles you'd like us to cover - please feel free to recommend!

Gary at 2ze dot com

Witchhammer BD - Kaplický s 1963 novel, chronicles the series of notorious 17th Century Czech witch trials, undertaken using the infamous Malleus Maleficarum (the Witchhammer of the title), the Catholic treatise on witchcraft which endorses the extermination of witches and developed a detailed legal and theological theory for this purpose. Using genuine court transcripts from the forced confessions of those accused of sorcery and collusion with the Devil, it is a powerful and often shocking allegory of life under totalitarian rule. Blu-ray Release date: November 13th, 2017

The House on Sorority Row BD - Flirtatious young sorority sisters who are days away from graduation set out to throw one last decadent celebration. Unbeknownst to them, the strict matron of their house hides a horrendous secret thought long buried. A gruesome accident is witnessed by a hideous fiend, hidden within the once nurturing dwelling, which triggers a rampage of death and destruction. Before the end, the peril faced by this sisterhood will push them to the brink of annihilation. 88 Films Blu-ray Release date: October 23rd, 2017

Lift to the Scaffold BD - In his mesmerizing debut, twenty-four-year-old director Louis Malle brought together the beauty of Jeanne Moreau, the camerawork of Henri Decaë, and the now legendary score by Miles Davis. A touchstone of the careers of both its star and director, Elevator to the Gallows (Ascenseur pour l'échafaud) is a richly atmospheric thriller of mistaken identity unfolding over one tense night in Paris. Blu-ray Release date: October 16th, 2017

Dr. Who and the Daleks BD - British film legend Peter Cushing plays everyone’s favourite Timelord, and having invented the TARDIS, a strange machine capable of travelling into other dimensions, the Doctor and his three young accomplices set forth on a quest through time and space. Their journey takes them into the dark, undiscovered depths of the universe and to the planet of Skaro. A primitive world devastated by nuclear war and populated by two warring species, a peaceful tribe known as Thals and a life form heavily mutated by radiation, encased in protective machines. A merciless force of destruction known as The Daleks! Blu-ray Release date: May 27th, 2013

Election BD - Perky, overachieving Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon) gets on the nerves of history teacher Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick) to begin with, but after she launches her campaign for high-school president and his personal life starts to fall apart, things spiral out of control. In Alexander Payne’s satire Election, the teacher becomes unhealthily obsessed with cutting his student down to size, covertly backing a spoiler candidate to stop her from steamrolling to victory, and putting in motion a series of dirty tricks and reckless promises with uncanny real-world political parallels. Adapting a then-unpublished novel by Tom Perrotta, Payne grounds the absurdity of his central dynamic in the recognizable—the setting is his hometown of Omaha, and the accomplished cast is rounded out with nonprofessionals—and distills his closely observed take on deeply flawed humanity to its bitter but stealthily sympathetic essence. Criterion Blu-ray Release date: December 12th, 2017

Général Idi Amin Dada: Autoportrait BD - If this mind-boggling documentary about one of the twentieth century’s most reviled dictators were fiction it would be acclaimed as a comic masterpiece… but it is all true. With an ambition the size of Napoleon, Idi Amin considered himself a major leader and revolutionary on the world stage. In reality, his regime was amateurish, disorganised, and his maniacal command both hilarious and bizarre. Blu-ray Release date: December 12th, 2017

Sleepless BD - In every possible respect, Sleepless is Dario Argento's attempt at returning to his traditional roots. Obviously stung by mounting criticism of his recent works, the Italian maestro has set out to win back those disillusioned within the ranks of his fan base. Reaction appears to be mixed, although this is more a reflection on the attitudes of Argento enthusiasts rather than the general opinion amongst critics. Most of who deem Sleepless as a welcome return to form for the director. Blu-ray Release date: March 7th, 2013

The Murder Clinic BD - A young woman, having just arrived at an asylum to become its new nurse, has no idea what she has gotten herself into. Not only is her boss, Doctor Vance a little unusual and obviously hiding something, a few of the patients are a little frightening with their various psychoses and there also happens to be a killer on the loose. With secrets and murder running rampant within the hospital’s walls, there is a good chance that she will not make it out alive, or at least so director Elio Scardamaglia would have you believe. Blu-ray Release date: November 3rd, 2015

Watch Me When I Kill BD - For fans of yellow-peril, golden age, Italian black-gloved killer mayhem, it does not get any better than this suspenseful murder-mystery which follows an animalistic, knife-happy maniac as he cuts and drowns his victims to prohibit a historic secret emerging. Exactly why the dead bodies are piling up confuses the authorities - but the reasoning behind this sudden slash 'em up activity proves both jarring and jaggedly horrible. Blu-ray Release date: October 23rd, 2017

In the Eye of the Hurricane BD - This 1971 Italian/Spanish Giallo is a hugely enjoyable and very stylish murder mystery set on the luxurious Côte d'Azur. Spanish director José María Forqué - who later made the controversial Beyond Erotica - brings together a talented and good looking cast, one of the best cinematographers of the day (Alejandro Ulloa) and a fantastic, lounge style score from Maestro Piccioni to create a twisty, and twisted, tale of deception and revenge. The director's long career at the more prestigious end of Spanish cinema and the presence of award winning scripter Rafael Azcona - who worked with many top European film makers - give the film an edge of sophistication alongside its enjoyably devious narrative. Blu-ray Release date: November 6th, 2017

The Fearless Vampire Killers BD - A pair of bumbling vampire-hunters attempts to destroy an undead nobleman and his cronies and rescue a buxom maiden in actor/director Roman Polanski's playful update of the venerable vampire genre. Bat expert and vampire obsessive Professor Abronsius (Jack MacGowran) barely survives his journey through the Alps into snowy Slovenia to continue his oft-maligned research into the undead. Thawed out by his hapless assistant, Alfred (Polanski), and the frisky local innkeeper, Shagal (Alfie Bass), Abronsius quickly notices the overabundance of raw garlic as a decorating motif in the inn and its environs. Blu-ray Release date: September 12th, 2016

He Walked By Night BD - The "He" of the title is Richard Basehart, a clever but psychopathic burglar (based on real-life criminal Erwin Walker) Basehart stays one step ahead of the law by listening in to the police band on his radio. To avoid detection, he changes his M.O. on each crime, making it seem that the string of burglaries is the work of several thieves. But Basehart trips himself up when he kills a cop. Blu-ray Release date: November 7th, 2017

I'll Be Seeing You BD - Ginger Rogers gives a dramatic performance in this moving romantic drama in which a woman named Mary Marshall, who was convicted of manslaughter (she defended herself when her lecherous boss attempted to rape her and she accidentally killed him), is granted a ten-day furlough for Christmas to visit relatives. Once out, she encounters a shell-shocked vet (Joseph Cotten) on leave from the VA psych ward on a train. The unstable vet has been allowed out by his doctors to see if he is ready to function in normal society. At first, the vet is nervous around Mary, but something clicks and she invites him to stay at her house during their respective breaks. Together they attempt to have a happy Christmas while dealing with the vet's problems. Blu-ray Release date: November 21st, 2017

Hot Touch BD - This caper film is set in the world of art forgery. An accomplished art forger and a businessman have for many years been successful in a company which authenticates paintings before they are auctioned. They are discovered by an art dealer and blackmailed into forging paintings which disappeared in the Second World War. Procedural detail around the act of forgery is exploited for high-rolling glamour. The Hot Touch was the final film appearance of veteran Academy Award winning actor Melvyn Douglas. Blu-ray Release date: November 7th, 2017

The High Commissioner BD - A police investigator is forced to rely on the man he's been instructed to apprehend in this cold war thriller. Sir James Quentin (Christopher Plummer) is a high level negotiator with the British government who is approached by Scobie Malone (Rod Taylor), an Australian detective who has been instructed to arrest Quentin in connection with the murder of his first wife 25 years earlier. Quentin calmly asks Malone if he could wait until he completes his work at a diplomatic conference, and Malone agrees; Quentin even allows Malone to stay at his home with his second wife Shelia (Lilli Palmer). Malone's assignment soon proves to be more complicated (and dangerous) than he expected when he has to save Quentin from an assassination attempt. Blu-ray Release date: November 28th, 2017

The Salamander BD - Set in Italy in the dark underworld of treasonous politics, finance and high society, Special Agent Dante must investigate the mysterious murder of a high-ranking general where the only clue is a calling card bearing the crest of The Salamander. Sante soon discovers a conspiracy trail leading straight to top government officials, his own superiors and must enlist the aid of The Salamander to bring the villains to justice.. Blu-ray Release date: October 31st, 2017

The Hidden BD - An exciting mix of science fiction, cop thriller, and buddy film, THE HIDDEN is one of the most exciting and unique genre hybrids. The movie opens with an action sequence in which a young stockbroker with a strange glint in his eye robs a bank, steals a Ferarri, and drives non-stop through several police blockades while listening to pounding rock music. Finally the police force the car into a fiery crash that sends the critically injured stockbroker to the hospital. Later that day a mysterious young FBI officer, Lloyd Gallagher (Kyle MacLachlan), arrives at police headquarters to enlist the aid of veteran detective Tom Beck (Michael Nouri) in finding a fugitive--the stockbroker. In the meantime, the stockbroker dies but a slimy alien creature crawls out of his mouth and into the body of another patient. Blu-ray Release date: October 3rd, 2017

Inspector George Gently Series 8 - It's 1970 and we return to Northumberland for Gently's last cases in this final series. It's the start of a new decade and Edward Heath has just won a narrow victory for the Conservatives at the General Election on a platform of peace and prosperity by taking the UK into Europe. There's also radical change for women, political paranoia in the Cold War and industrial unrest in the air. Martin Shaw stars in the title role and Lee Ingleby and Lisa McGrillis return as his sidekicks Detective Inspector Bacchus and Detective Sergeant Rachel Coles. DVD Release Date: November 6th, 2017

The Mystery of Edwin Drood - Charles Dickens’ final and perhaps darkest novel is chillingly adapted for the screen in this highly-acclaimed BBC series. Fuelled by hatred and opium addiction, choirmaster John Jasper has visions of strangling his debauched nephew Edwin Drood and being with the object of his desire and obsession, Drood’s beautiful fiancé Rosa Bud. As events unfold Jasper’s sanity is pushed to the limit and when Drood disappears all may not be what it seems in this highly atmospheric gothic mystery. DVD Release Date: November 6th, 2017

Nise The Heart of Madness - Returning to Rio de Janeiro, Dr. Nise da Silveira returns to work in a psychiatric hospital on the outskirts of the city where she refuses to employ the new and violent electroshock in the treatment of schizophrenics. Ridiculed by doctors, she is forced to take on the abandoned Sector for Occupational Therapy, where she would start a revolution through paintings, animals and love. DVD Release Date: September 19th, 2017

Rift - Gunnar receives a strange phone call from his ex-boyfriend, Einar, months after they parted ways. Einar sounds distraught, like he's about to do something terrible to himself, so Gunnar drives to the secluded cabin where Einar is holed up and soon discovers there is more going on than he imagined. As the two come to terms with their broken relationship, some other person seems to be lurking outside the cabin, wanting to get in. DVD Release Date: November 21st, 2017

 Next 4 weeks on the Calendar