Dexter: New Blood (Blu-ray Review)
Dexter: New Blood should probably be called “Dexter: A Breath of Fresh Air.” That’s what the show was for me after the lackluster way it ended some ten years ago with Season 8. Dexter became a lumberjack and the loyal Showtime audiences of the show became very disinterested. I admit to being very skeptical and really not wanting anything to do with this new Dexter reboot so to speak, but a bout with COVID-19 gave me ample time to binge this “Season 9” and I’m so glad I did. It may not have the warm, familiar Miami locations of the past 8 seasons, but the main draw…Dexter Morgan was back! And he was back doing what he did best…killing the bad people and evading the law. Follow me down below as I catch up to speed on everything Dexter: New Blood in this March 22nd Blu-ray release from CBS Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Entertainment. A ***SPOILER WARNING*** has been issued below for those folks reading here who may not have watched Seasons 1-8. Viewing them all are prerequisites for Dexter: New Blood, which I DO NOT spoil at all here. Continue reading ‘Dexter: New Blood (Blu-ray Review)’
When I first met my wife, well before she became my wife that is, she made an odd comment saying I reminded her of Morty.
While the curiosity of an old 1960s big cinema fairytale is always appealing, sometimes the type of filmmaking process and ways of the elder years are selling points enough to find curiosity in buying a Blu-ray. That goes two-fold here with The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm from Warner Archive Collection. The film was in Cinerama and its 4K restoration and transfer from one of the best distributors will be eye candy enough for a recommendation. Fun enough, they’ve actually gone all out on this release with 2 presentations and 2-discs full of bonus features old and new. The release is available starting March 29th, and this is the type of thing the physical media enthusiasts should really jump at sight unseen as it will be a nice treasure and collector’s item. You can order a copy using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review below.
1989’s Dream a Little Dream is a cult classic that’s been on the list of many a collector in the world of physical media enthusiasts. Finally their “dreams” are being answered with a really cool new Vestron Video Collector’s Series release that arrived on March 15th. The release comes to Blu-ray for the very first time and carries some brand new features. Those include a commentary from a film historian and new interviews. One of said interviews is with that of the film’s lead, Corey Feldman. One of the crazy things with these Vestron releases is just how budget-friendly they are from day one. So, if you want to land yourself a copy of this brand new polish on a piece of obscure 1980s cinema, look no further than the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review and grab a copy for under thirteen bucks!
Pandemic and a load of delays may have knocked off a potential adult IP franchise too quickly in that of Kenneth Branagh’s take on Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot. Murder On The Orient Express proved to be a solid success back in 2017. Unfortunately its sequel, Death on the Nile, would be pushed back and a few of its cast members would be surrounded in controversies in the time it lay wait. When it finally set sail in February 0f 2022, its voyage was that of the damned. Hopefully, with its recent release to streaming and this 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray (Hitting shelves April 5th), it’ll find a strong audience and perhaps we could see a third novel adapted/updated. Maybe its just for streaming, maybe the theater gets another shot. It’d be a shame as these films have been easily digestible fun. Anywho, pre-order yourself a copy today if you’re interested. There’s a paid Amazon Associates link that you’ll find scrolling on down after the review.
Its always fascinatingly bizarre to me when a former Best Picture winner doesn’t wind up on a home video format until way down the road. In this case, 1980’s Ordinary People, directed by Hollywood legend Robert Redford, is finally making its debut on Blu-ray 16 years into the format’s life and when its been the “previous format” for 6 years. I guess that’s one year for every Oscar the film won back in 1981. Better late than never, and probably treated better here as its been given a 4K restoration overseen by Redford and includes a new interview with Timothy Hutton and the author of the book. Ordinary People has been given the Paramount Presents treatment and was released on March 29th. You can order yourself a copy of it by utilizing the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review below.
When it comes to new home video formats, few films and film series are as hotly anticipated to make their debut as The Godfather Trilogy. Holding off until its 50th anniversary, these brand new restorations of Francis Ford Coppola’s cinematic epic will be arriving on March 22nd. Coming to you in a fancy bells and whistles limited edition set as well as a standard one (Which honestly is in a pretty nice package), the films have been meticulously restored for 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray. They contain bonus materials, both new and old. You’ll also find three different cuts of 1990’s The Godfather, Part III, including the 1991 cut and 2020’s The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone, which serves as the preferred version of the film according to this set. Pre-orders are already currently up and available, and you can make sure to get yourself a copy by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
While we have two labels putting out Thriller: A Cruel Picture this year, Synapse Films announced and has released theirs first. Later this summer, Vinegar Syndrome will debuting the film on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray with a different transfer and extras. Synapse Film’s Blu-ray was released on March 8th. They previously had put the film on DVD in two different editions. The DVD featuring the censored US cut They Call Her One Eye is included in this release and the extras from their 2-Disc edition are ported over here. Vinegar Syndrome’s release is going to come with a heftier price tag, so I imaging Synapse Films is putting theirs out for a more affordable option for folks or for that attractive, quick pickup at the convention booth. Nonetheless, if that’s you or you’d like to support them, you can order a copy from their site or the paid Amazon Associates link following the review.
What do you get when you pack a lot of female star power into an international spy thriller and roll it all into one? You get The 355, I guess. Simon Kinberg directs 4 leading ladies and a 5th for mysterious intrigue too. But does it delve deep into a meaningful, action-packed thriller, or does it melt into the cinematic equivalent of chocolate and mustard? Read on further down and if you feel so compelled to score a copy, a paid Amazon link will be waiting for you at the end of this review… Buckle up kids, it’s gonna get rough and tumble.
One of the biggest gaps in cult movie collecting over the years, and especially in the realm of 1980s sword and sorcery schlock is the aptly titled 1982 film The Sword and the Sorcerer. That’s getting taken care of now by none other than the folks over at Shout! Factory. And care indeed. In time for its 40th anniversary, the film is not only getting a Blu-ray release, but a 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray one to boot! Piling on is a load of brand new interviews from those like Albert Pyun, Kathleen Beller and many others. Its a heck of a release for those who have been hungering for this pre-Conan fantasy flick to have an updated release. You’ll be able to land it on March 15th. You can do so by going to Shout! Factory’s store on their website or by using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows this very review.
Nominated for four Academy Awards this year, Guillermo del Toro’s remake of the 1947’s Nightmare Alley will be coming to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on March 22nd. Currently playing on Hulu and HBO Max, the film was released over the Christmas holiday season last year to much acclaim abut little in the dollars. However, its been great seeing the distributors still getting these films out there and seen. And even better, still giving us the physical media option as well. Nightmare Alley will come equipped with a Dolby Atmos track as well as three little featurettes to go along with a digital code. You can see for yourself why del Toro is one of the best we have when you order it for yourself. You can do so using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review below.
At some point, in our IP driven entertainment society, it was going to be The Matrix’s turn to be resurrected for the sake of being resurrection. Thankfully, it was resuscitated from the breath of the maker. Arriving day and date in theaters and HBO Max, The Matrix Resurrections was unleashed with plenty of people having plenty of opinions on it. Truly divisive, it brought some interesting conversations regarding it. At the end of the day, that’s better than boring and safe, even if some of my best colleagues/friends and I are on polar opposite ends of the spectrum on it. Warner Bros brought it to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on March 8, complete with an Atmos track and a handful of featurettes featuring interviews with the cast and crew of the film. Where’d you side with the film? Are you going to be picking this up or are you #NotMyMatrix? If you’re of the former, you can use the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review to land your copy if you’d be so kind.
While not making the box office dent one may have hoped for, Steven Spielberg’s new adaptation of the stage play for West Side Story still released to critical raves and has been nominated for 7 Academy Awards. Most importantly, it won the heart of this reviewer, as I was over the moon for this movie from the first shot. This is easily my favorite of his efforts since Munich. I’ve used the word “magical” to describe it and I don’t feel that it is an exaggeration. While its currently streaming on Disney+ and HBO Max, its even more exciting that it is coming to 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray on March 15th. Included with the best picture quality available and a Dolby Atmos track is a feature length documentary, the ability to watch the song numbers standalone and a redeemable digital code for the film. Get your preorder in to own a copy of Steven Spielberg’s take on West Side Story using the paid Amazon Associates link that follows the review.
Well, perfectly timed and released, The Batman: The Complete Series arrives around the time of the release of the Matt Reeves film The Batman. Its been a bit overdue for this series to make its jump to Blu-ray, and on March 1 that wait was no more. The show comes complete with archival bonus features as well as a new featurette for this Blu-ray set. Coming in an amaray case that houses 6-discs, its presented in the 1.78:1 format. Nothing special in fancy packaging, but right now you can at least nab a slip and it comes with digital copies of the episodes to boot. You can revisit this depiction of the early days in Gotham for Bruce Wayne by ordering a copy from the paid Amazon Associates link below.
We are at the penultimate Blu-ray release in Scream Factory’s crusade to fully upgrade the Universal Hammer Horror 8-Film collection from year’s back. Nightmare, from 1964, is given the Collector’s Edition treatment. This mental terror of horrific dreams and sadistic dreamscapes will be seeing a brand new 2K transfer from the interpositive as well as housing a slew of new and classic extras where it was once void of them before. You’ll be able to snag this one when it releases on the format on March 15. Pre-order links are currently available, so you can get yours in to have it on release day using the paid Amazon Associates link following the review. Only Night Creatures (Known by many as Captain Clegg) will cap off this run when it also receives a Collector’s Edition next month. Details on that should be not too far around the corner. 
There are three universal things that are known to unite people; music, food and sports. The third of those three has not failed to produce a number a timeless films in the genre such as Field of Dreams, Miracle and Sandlot, just to name a few. Every once in a while, the great sport of American football gets its due on the big screen. In the vain of gridiron greats such as Rudy and Friday Night Lights comes American Underdog, the biopic of Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner, and yet, this film could be best described as not being a sports film and that depth proves to be a good thing.
