The New Blu-Ray Releases You Should Check Out This Week
(Welcome toNot Dead Yet, a feature dedicated to what’s new on Blu-ray and what special features you should be excited about. Because yes, some of us still like to own physical copies of our movies.)
Remember physical media? It still exists! I swear! And while streaming is great, there’s something to be said for a Blu-ray release, especially considering noteverythingis available via streaming. So we’re going to dust off our physical media release column and take it around the track. There’s still life in this one yet. Join me, won’t you?
This week on Blu-ray we have the best film in the DCEU, a charming rom-com, a Steven Spielberg classic, and a beautiful film where Kristen Stewart eats a sandwich.
Wonder Woman
Wonder Womansingle-handedly saved the DCEU andPatty Jenkins' highly entertaining flick drops on Blu-ray this week. Everything that DC had gotten wrong up to this point is quickly reversed thanks to a film that eschews misery for hope. That’s not to sayWonder Womanis perfect – the last half hour of the film descends into the kind of mindless destruction that permeated all throughoutBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Yet it’s easy to overlook the messy ending for all the good that comes before it.Special Features:TheWonder WomanBlu-ray is jam-packed with features, so many in fact that you might need multiple days to get through them all. The most informative of the lot are a series of shorts dubbed “A Director’s Vision”, where director Patty Jenkins walks us through several scenes in the film. A full-length commentary with Jenkins would’ve been better, but this will do. Just spending a few minutes with Jenkins reveals how concise a vision she had for the film. There are also some extended scenes here, none of which add too much overall, and a blooper reel that highlights how often starGal Gadotcracks up during takes. The full list of features is below:
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
One of Steven Spielberg’s very best films,Close Encounters of the Third Kind, arrives this week in both Blu-ray & 4K Ultra HD forms. Spielberg was only 31 when he madeClose Encounters, and he had already directedJawsbefore that (just in case you want to feel extra lazy). Richard Dreyfuss is a family man who shuns his family to go hang out with some musical aliens. That plotreallyshouldn’t work as well as it does, but Spielberg, being Spielberg, finds a way to make it all seem magical.Special Features:This release has not one butthreedifferent versions of the film: 1977 Theatrical Version, 1980 Special Edition & 1997 Director’s Cut. Beyond that, it includes some wonderful interview with Spielberg, in which he talks about the legacy of the film; there are also interviews with JJ. Abrams and Denis Villeneuve, who both wax rhapsodically aboutClose Encountersand Spielberg’s influence. The full list of features is below:
Certain Women
Kelly Reichardt’s deliberately paced, beautifully actedCertain Womengets the Criterion Collection treatment this week. The film is a triptych focusing on several (or certain, if you will) women living across Montana.Laura Dernis a lawyer dealing with a troubled client;Michelle Williamsis a woman trying to convince a man to let her use some of the sandstone on his land to help build her dream home;Lily Gladstoneis a ranch hand who finds herself drawn to night school teacherKristen Stewart. These are all actresses at the top of their game, but the standout is Gladstone, who gives a quite, heartbreaking performance. Also, there’s a scene where Kristen Stewart eats a sandwich at a diner that is pure CINEMA.Special Features:Criterion always puts together thoughtful features, andCertain Womenis no exception, including an interview between Reichardt andCertain Womenexecutive producer Todd Haynes. There should be more, though; more interviews with the cast, particularly Gladstone, would’ve been welcomed. The full list of features is below:
A Fish Called Wanda
A Fish Called Wanda, one of the funniest films ever made, receives a new Blu-ray from Arrow Video.John Cleese,Jamie Lee Curtis,Kevin Kline,Michael Palinstar as characters stuck in a comedy of errors, involving a diamond heist, seduction and a series of mishaps. Kline won a much-deserved Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work as a dim-witted weapons expert.Special Features:Many of the features here are imported over from other editions, but this release does feature a new 4K restoration from the original negative, giving you the most crystal-clear Blu-ray release of the film yet. The full list of features is below:
The Big Sick
The real-life romance betweenKumail NanjianiandEmily V. Gordongets the rom-com treatment inMichael Showalter’s charmingThe Big Sick.Nanjiani plays a fictionalized version of himself andZoe Kazanstands-in for Gordon in a story that encompasses the beginning of a relationship that eventually takes a turn for the worse when Kazan’s character comes down with a sudden illness. Everyone is pretty wonderful here, but the big surprise isRay Romano, who is hilarious as Kazan’s father.Special Features:A fun but slightly haphazard commentary track featuring Nanjiani, Gordon, Showalter and producer Barry Mendel is definitely worth a listen. There are also not one but two different features that go into the real story that inspired the film, and how the film came together. Both features are good, but it might’ve been wiser to edit them together into one concise bit. The full list of features is below:
