Brahms: The Boy II (Blu-ray review)
Katie Holmes is stuck at home with a possibly possessed doll; as are the rest of us, if we’re so inclined to check out the sequel to 2016’s surprise horror hit The Boy. Brahms: The Boy II was released about a month before the global pandemic would keep nearly all humans on planet earth indoors. Some would fill their time with cute, adorable fare like Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Others swung the other way, with more horrific forms of entertainment. In this era, mileage will vary on wanting to intentionally be trapped for nearly ninety minutes with Annabelle’s better-dressed spiritual sibling. I have kept up with the thrills (Contagion really holds up!). So does this Blu-ray release have inventive new ways to make us uncomfortable spending time looking into the dead-eyed stare of a creepy porcelain boy? Review after the jump.
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Paramount is unloading a trio of Tom Cruise headlining films on May 19, including Top Gun, Days of Thunder and the 2005 Steven Spielberg adaptation of War of the Worlds. No doubt these were ready to be released in anticipation of Top Gun: Maverick this summer, but alas that film has moved to December. Luckily these 4K Ultra-HD Blu-rays move on as originally planned. This review is covering War of the Worlds, a film I actually hold close to my heart as it has a special place for me. It was the first film I saw in the fabled Grauman’s Chinese Theater when I moved to Los Angeles in the summer of 2005. I enjoyed the film well enough then and more upon subsequent viewings, but regardless of its quality I will always carry that special memory with me. Nonetheless, as mentioned, it arrives on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on May 19th and you can land yourself a copy of it to hopefully be delivered as soon as it can using the Amazon Associates link following the review. 
Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is a movie title I have loved saying over and over for some time now. It rolls off the tip of my tongue like a youth’s belly skin does over a wet 
Days of Thunder here finds me doing some of my first writing in a long time.
Well, it finally happened… We finally have Top Gun in 4K. The iconic action classic finally hits home in the best way to watch films at home. The sights, the sounds, the sweat, the soundtrack. The film is a cultural standpoint for blockbuster filmmaking. There is something special that radiates through this movie that is almost unexplainable. At one point, this was a film I avoided like the plague. Does the film still hold up? How about the transfer? Let’s go in depth below, and don’t forget to click the paid link at the bottom to preorder your copy of Top Gun, available May 19th!
When the time allows and I have the capable resources to do so, I’m going to do more of these screenshot comparisons as more and more films are seeing new transfers on standard Blu-ray instead of opting for a jump to 4K Ultra-HD. For this latest rendition, we will be looking at 10 screenshots of the new Scream Factory Collector’s Edition of Hammer Horror’s 1961 film The Curse of the Werewolf against the previously available version found in the 2016 set, Hammer Horror 8-Film Collection from Universal Studios. When the Universal set was released, there were plenty of framing gripes and debates as to what the correct aspect ratios should be on these vintage films from Hammer studios. Nonetheless, one could assume the true form is the one that looks the best, but even then, you never know. Follow along here to see for yourself. As always, I think these are best judged when in motion, but screencaps can tell a bit of the story as well. 
The Paramount Presents titles are getting a lot of attention and are a curiosity among collectors right now wondering whether or not as to upgrade with these new video transfers. Its been a little bit of a mixed and debated result so far on the titles. With Flashdance, I admittedly do not own the previous Blu-ray edition, so I cannot compare the two on a personal level. I did scour the interwebs for the thoughts and some screenshots of the old one before coming to my perspective on the Paramount Presents 4K transfer (
Shout! Factory will make their first foray into feature films on the 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray format later this month when Michael Cimino’s best picture winner The Deer Hunter arrives on May 26th. But, they’ve actually been putting out 4K Ultra-HD Blu-rays for a couple of years now, courtesy of these IMAX documentaries. And they’ve actually proven quite stunning in sight and sound. The latest addition is D-Day: Normandy 1944. Pascal Vuong directs a Tom Brokow narrated documentary that gives a nice fresh and unique take on the battle of Normandy during World War II. This release will feature a good host of bonus feature interviews and behind the scenes videos to accompany it after you’ve finished the film. The film dropped onto the format on May 5th. You can order the film by using the Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
Universal Horror Collection Vol. 5 will scream to life on Blu-ray™ on June 16 from Scream Factory. The collection includes four tales of terror from the archives of Universal Pictures, the true home of classic horror. A mobster’s brain is transplanted into an ape who carries out his revenge in The Monster And The Girl. A mad scientist turns an ape into a beautiful, but deadly woman in Captive Wild Woman. Jungle Woman, the sequel to Captive Wild Woman, is an eerie thriller with all the danger of wild animals on the loose and a sexy killer on the prowl! And in The Jungle Captive, a scientist has experimented on re-animating animals … but now he has decided to go one step further and re-animate a human!
Romance films often carry the same nuances. No matter how good or bad, there seems to be some requirements for a successful romance formula. Intrigue, attraction, chemistry, doubts and insecurities, finding yourself and feeling like you’re right for the one you have feelings for are all parts to a whole that make a romantic movie great. Does Stella Meghie’s The Photograph hit on those formula ingredients? Find out below and be on the lookout for The Photograph available May 12th! If you haven’t already, check out the Amazon link below to grab yourself a copy!
Paramount is launching into a pretty exciting new endeavor and keeping us home video collecting enthusiasts relieved that some studios are putting some effort behind catalog titles. With the newly minted Paramount Presents line, the brand is promising collectible packaging, new bonus features and new transfers of classic films from all eras of their storied studio’s career. The popular 1987 Michael Douglas and Glenn Close adult thriller Fatal Attraction will brand the #1 spine labeling for the line as it finds itself the head of the launching group of titles. The Adrian Lyne film (Which he’ll be also be getting his film Flashdance distributed in this line later on) had a previous edition that seemed ripe for a new transfer, so we’ll see if it can improve upon the previous release. The line debuts on April 21st, and you can order yourself the Paramount Presents edition of Fatal Attraction by clicking on the Amazon Associates link following the review. 
Paramount is launching into a pretty exciting new endeavor and keeping us home video collecting enthusiasts relieved that some studios are putting some effort behind catalog titles. With the newly minted Paramount Presents line, the brand is promising collectible packaging, new bonus features and new transfers of classic films from all eras of their storied studio’s career. The Elvis Presley starring film King Creole will be making its debut on the Blu-ray format with this new home video brand. Directed by the famed Michael Curtiz (Casablanca, Robin Hood and many MANY more), this is exactly the type of film collector’s were potentially hoping to see more from on this line – catalog titles still hanging out in the vault collecting dust and still only being offered on outdated DVDs. Well, fear no more Elvis and Michael Curtiz fans, here comes King Creole! The Paramount Presents line launched on April 21st, and you can order King Creole now using the Amazon Associates link below. 
I have recently reviewed the new Paramount Presents Blu-ray of Alfred Hitchock’s 1955 film To Catch A Thief starring Grace Kelly and Cary Grant. For that release, Paramount has presented the film with a new 4K transfer. Said transfer is quite different and had some work done on it and some very notable differences as I mentioned in my review. For this one, I thought I’d go a step further and show a screencap comparison of the 2 editions to potentially illustrate the differences and to help you in deciding which one you would most prefer. As I mentioned, I’m sure there are those more happy with the more polished/scrubbed look of the new release. Personally, I’m of preference to the original color timing and grain-present look of the original. Click on to see my screen shots from similar shots of the 2 editions. Let me know in the comments which you like better. 
I’ve been digging what Blake Lively has been serving up for the most part the last few years. Highlights of such efforts include The Shallows and I absolutely LOVE A Simple Favor. I can’t say I know what she’s offered on a regular basis in terms of parts, but she seems to be carving a path out for herself with interesting parts and genres, showcasing an array of range and entertainment. It almost feels a bit Jake Gyllenhaal-like in a way. A sort of “I don’t care if everyone sees them or not, I just want interesting roles and interesting movies” kinda thing. Her latest comes from EON Productions (Famous for James Bond), and it was an absolute critical failure and box office disaster this past January. Those sort of things won’t keep me from seeing it and forming my own opinion, but are certainly cause for some hesitation going in. The Rhythm Section is scheduled to release from Paramount on Blu-ray April 28th, but as with what is going on in the world right now, that could easily push back a bit. 
