UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG, RUMBLE FISH and More Coming to The Criterion Collection in April 2017
This April, Criterion is serving up a special edition of Tampopo, Juzo Itami’s delirious, genre-bending “ramen western,” fresh from its theatrical run. The kitchen becomes a battleground in Woman of the Year, where Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy play journalist spouses with different ideas about what makes for a successful marriage. There’s also Francis Ford Coppola’s feverish “art film for teenagers,” Rumble Fish, whose stunning black-and-white cinematography weaves expressionistic shadows around an all-star cast, including Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke, Diane Lane, and Dennis Hopper. Another unforgettable ensemble is the title act of Buena Vista Social Club, Wim Wenders’ exuberant portrait of the performers who made Cuban music an international sensation. And for an encore: Jacques Demy’s color-drenched musicals The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (a big inspiration for current awards favorite La La Land) and The Young Girls of Rochefort step into the spotlight, in new stand-alone editions.
Lionsgate’s USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage tells a true tale from World War II about a ship that help transport parts of an Atomic Bomb and then was shot up in the water with its survivors hanging afloat for 5 days. Headlining the cast is Academy Award Winner Nicolas Cage (The Wicker Man, Left Behind) along with Tom Sizemore (Slumber Party Slaughter, Pauly Shore Is Dead), Thomas Jane (LOL, Pawn Shop Chronicles) and James Remar (Deleted Scenes from Aliens). USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage is directed by Mario Van Peebles. It will be available on Blu-ray from Lionsgate on January 24th. You can pre-order the film now from Amazon and be able to have it right on release day if you’re a Prime member. 
Jack Reacher is one of those films I had to go back and revisit to not only freshen up going into the premiere of Jack Reacher Never Go Back, but make sure I liked it too. I honestly could not remember as I hadn’t seen the first film since 2013 when I reviewed the Blu-ray 
Death Race, the original, was made in 1975, considered a cult classic piece of B-grade genre filmmaking from the master of such, Roger Corman. We went a whole 33 years with no sequels, TV spin-offs or remakes. In 2008, the film was remade as is popular to do nowadays, but it spawned a straight-to-video surge for this franchise, and now in just over 8 years, we have 4 films added to the original. Two not mentioned are sequels to the remake (Which Paul WS Anderson apparently feels is a prequel to the original). Now, Corman is back behind it all (Though his name is over the title, he only produced, GJ Echtenkamp directs), and he’s making sequel-reboot (Rebootquel, legacy sequel…all the terms) to the original. There’s been a surprising amount of press for this. Not much, mind you, but much more making the common movie watcher aware than you would think for something like this. 
Spencer Strasmore and his boys are back to “ball out” in Season 2 of the hit HBO comedy Ballers. I couldn’t be more excited about this! Not only am I a fan of NFL football, which this show revolves around, but HBO’s Ballers also brought me closer to The Rock as an actor. I love him now even more than I did in the Fast & Furious films (and I did not think that was possible). Dwayne Johnson takes the reins with his larger-than-life charisma in this series that looks at the whirlwind lifestyles and real-life problems of former and current football players in sun-soaked Miami (a paradise on Earth). In case you missed it you can read all about my Season 1 coverage over 
Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Moana, the sweeping story of a spirited teenager who sets sail on a daring adventure to save her people, starring newcomer Auli‘i Cravalho as the voice of brave and tenacious Moana and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (HBO’s “Ballers,” “Central Intelligence”) as the larger-than-life demigod Maui, has dazzled both critics and audiences. The film earned a 95% critics’ consensus on Rotten Tomatoes and the No. 1 spot at the domestic box office opening weekend. Now, “Moana” sets a new course, sailing home on Digital HD/3D and Disney Movies Anywhere (DMA) on Feb. 21, and on Blu-ray 3D™, Blu-ray, DVD and On-Demand on March 7. Pre-order now! 
A hit with audiences and critics alike, DreamWorks Animation’s TROLLS, is the “feel-good” movie of the year receiving an outstanding audience reaction with a coveted “A” CinemaScore® and a Certified Fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.com. DreamWorks TROLLS, the fresh, music-filled adventure packed with humor and heart dances onto Digital HD on Jan. 24 and Blu-ray™ and DVD on Feb. 7 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.
Just a couple years ago, I had the pleasure of reviewing a splendid little animated feature called Ernest & Celestine. It was a film I hoped to get to in the theater, but alas didn’t make it, but luckily I got to review it. Now comes the follow up from the people behind it, Long Way North, an adventure by sea of a little girl in search of her grandfather gone missing on a journey for many many years. In 2015, this French-Danish animated film won the audience award at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival. Its now making its way to the US, and is debuting on Blu-ray via Shout! Factory January 17th. Be sure to get your pre-order in, as this is a pretty good unseen little feature. 
The Girl on the Train instantly had two things going for it within my brain. It features two actresses that will get me in the theater no matter what the film’s subject matter is about. I’m respectfully talking Emily Blunt and Rebecca Ferguson. Ever since 
Hailed by critics as “mesmerizing” (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone), “amazing” (Brian Truitt, USA Today) and “the best film of the year” (Christopher Orr, The Atlantic), director Denis Villeneuve’s (Sicario) phenomenal tour de force ARRIVAL makes its home entertainment debut on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand February 14, 2017 from Paramount Home Media Distribution. The film arrives two weeks early on Digital HD January 31. Five-time Academy Award nominee* Amy Adams “delivers one of her best performances” (Brian Truitt, USA Today) as expert translator Louise Banks. When mysterious spacecraft touch down across the globe, an elite team races against time to decipher their intent. As tensions mount between fearful governments, Banks discovers the aliens’ true purpose and, to avert global war, takes a chance that could threaten her life, and quite possibly humanity. Oscar nominee** Jeremy Renner and Academy Award winner*** Forest Whitaker co-star in this epic film with “a mind-blowing ending” (Brian Truitt, USA Today) that “you will want to see again and again”(Brian Formo, Collider). 
Your favorite nightmares come to life in a salute to the age-old bedtime story ritual when Deadtime Stories arrives on Blu-ray + DVD, and digital formats, from Scream Factory
Academy Award nominee Casey Affleck delivers an unforgettable, Golden Globe-winning performance in the heartwarming, emotional, and powerful Manchester by the Sea, arriving on Digital HD February 7 and on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus DVD and Digital HD), DVD and On Demand February 21 from Lionsgate. The award-winning 2016 Sundance Film Festival Official Entry follows Affleck’s character Lee, as he faces the ghosts of his past when he returns to his New England hometown to take care of his teenage nephew. Academy Award nominee Michelle Williams, Emmy Award winner Kyle Chandler (Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, “Friday Night Lights,” 2006), Gretchen Mol (3:10 to Yuma), and Lucas Hedges (Moonrise Kingdom) also star in the film, which was written and directed by Academy Award nominee Kenneth Lonergan. Continue on to learn more about this release.
From Marvel Studios comes Doctor Strange, the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident renders his hands useless. When traditional medicine fails him, he travels to the remote Kamar-Taj in search of a cure, but instead discovers the mystical arts and becomes a powerful sorcerer battling dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Bring Home The Mystifying, Mind-Bending Journey on Digital HD Feb. 14 and Blu-ray™ Feb. 28.
A two-time Academy Award® winner for Best Director, Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain, 2005; Life of Pi, 2012) brings his extraordinary vision to BILLY LYNN’S LONG HALFTIME WALK, debuting on three-disc 4K Ultra HD™/Blu-ray 3D™/Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, Blu-ray, DVD and digital February 14 from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. In an industrywide first, the 4K presentation of the film is displayed at 60 frames per second (FPS), versus the standard 24 FPS, offering a first-of-its-kind, unique, and immersive viewing experience. Dubbed a “groundbreaking masterpiece” (Mark S. Allen, ABC-TV), BILLY LYNN’S LONG HALFTIME WALK follows a 19-year-old soldier as he is brought home for a victory tour after a harrowing battle in Iraq. Through flashbacks, the film shows what really happened to his squad — contrasting the realities of war with America’s perceptions. 
Keeping Up With The Joneses was oddly a selection that made Aaron Neuwirth’s list of 2016 anticipated movie titles over 
Late 1980s Los Angeles, the gangs rule the streets, with the Crips and the Bloods battling to reign supreme. In a dog-eat-dog world of drugs and guns, they don’t care who gets caught in the crossfire. It’s blue verses red and if you’re wearing the wrong color it could cost your life. From visionary director and icon Dennis Hopper, Academy Award® winners Sean Penn (Mystic River, Milk) and Robert Duvall (Apocalypse Now, Tender Mercies) star in the acclaimed 1988 cop drama COLORS, a gritty exploration of both the police and the gang members who fight for control of Los Angeles. Also starring Maria Conchita Alonso (The Running Man) and featuring early film roles for Don Cheadle and Damon Wayans, this seminal police drama was one of the first films to tackle LA gang culture and boasts an
