Assault,
The
(2017/Lionsgate DVD)/Big
Clock
(1948/Arrow*)/Boogie
Boy
(1998 w/DVD*)/Shade
(2003*)/Toys
Are Not For Children
(1972/Arrow/*all MVD Blu-rays)/Trapped
(1949/Flicker Alley Blu-ray w/DVD)/Vikings:
Season 5, Volume 2
(2018/MGM/Fox Blu-ray set)
Picture:
B-/B/B+ & B-/C+/B/B- & C+/B+ Sound: B-/B/B-/C+/B/B- &
C+/B+ Extras: D/B/C+/A/B/B-/B Main Programs: C/B/C+/B+/C/B-/B
Here's
a rich group of genre releases with their share of drama...
Tom
Sizemore stars in the low budget action thriller, The
Assault
(2017), which seems like it was a screenplay written for prettier
stars. The plot is pretty cookie cutter, a tormented wife and a
stripper hatch a scheme to get back at the one's abusive husband by
robbing his businesses wearing cool masks (remember The
Town?).
But when Broza (Sizemore), a detective, gets hired on the case right
before the two women are about to spring their most dangerous part of
the plan, one of them falls in love with him, and puts a wrench in
the plan...
The
Assault
also features Kevin Nash, Jordan Ladd, Lindsay Lamb, and Nikki Moore.
The
film is presented in anamorphically enhanced standard definition with
a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.40:1 and a lossy Dolby Digital
English 5.1 surround sound. The compression issues are normal for
the format with a lack of detail in the images that's would be more
evident in HD. The film itself is shot cleanly for a low budget
production and has a pretty professional appearance, but nothing out
of the ordinary or over stylized as the cover art suggests.
No
extras.
Aside
from Tom Sizemore having a few moments, there isn't much to The
Assault
that you haven't seen in other action/crime/gangster movies. It
tries, but is pretty mediocre.
This
1948 film noir, The
Big Clock,
is an interesting and suspenseful film starring Ray Milland and
Charles Laughton with direction by John Farrow. Remade much later as
the Kevin Costner film No
Way Out,
this original black and white nail bitter has been given the lavish
treatment from Arrow Academy. The film centers around a murderous
magazine tycoon who tries to frame an innocent man for the murder
instead, but meanwhile the innocent man tries to solve the murder
himself...
The
Big Clock
is presented in 1080p high definition with a 1.37:1 full frame aspect
ratio and an audio mix in uncompressed Mono 1.0 PCM. This transfer
is straight from the original film elements and is likely the best
that this film has ever looked here. Considering the age of the
film, it's incredible how clean and crisp the transfer is here, which
is no surprise as Arrow Academy also does incredible work.
Special
Features include:
New
audio commentary by film scholar Adrian Martin
Turning
Back the Clock,
a newly filmed analysis of the film by the critic and chief executive
of Film London, Adrian Wootton
A
Difficult Actor,
a newly filmed appreciation of Charles Laughton and his performance
in The Big Clock by the actor, writer, and theatre director Simon
Callow
Rare
hour-long 1948 radio dramatization of The
Big Clock
by the Lux
Radio Theatre,
starring Ray Milland
Original
theatrical trailer
Gallery
of original stills and promotional materials
Reversible
sleeve featuring two original artwork options
and
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new
writing on the film by Christina Newland.
The
'90s drama, Boogie
Boy
(1998) stars the underrated actor Mark Dacascos, who recently shined
in John
Wick 3: Parabellum
as the villainous lead. While it has a very '90s vibe about it,
there's some interesting filmmaking choices in Boogie
Boy
that make it worth checking out if you're a fan of 'after prison'
dramas.
In
this film, which is directed by Craig Hamann (Showdown
in Manila)
and produced by Roger Avary (Pulp
Fiction),
a criminal whose released from prison (played by Dacascos), vows to
make a better life for himself, but soon crosses paths with a psycho
ex-cellmate and finds himself back up to his usual drug habits and
general bad behavior. Not even playing drums in a Joan Jett band is
enough to convince this guy to not listen to the dope fiends. The
film has many head scratching moments of choice, but that's
ultimately the theme of the piece. A vision of a shattered life,
Boogie
Boy,
isn't a bad film but at times can be pretty depressing.
The
film stars Emily Lloyd, Michael Pena, Joan Jett, Jaimz Woolvett,
Karen Sheperd, and Traci Lords.
Boogie
Boy
is presented in 1080p high definition with a 1.78:1 widescreen aspect
ratio and audio tracks in LPCM 2.0 stereo (48 KHz, 24-bit), which
restores the film nicely on disc. There is also an anamorphically
enhanced, standard definition DVD with similar, but more compressed
specs. MVD has done a fine job with the presentation overall of this
film.
Special
Features include:
Cast
and crew interviews
Making
of featurette
Photo
gallery
Original
Theatrical Trailer
and
a Collectible Mini-Poster.
Luck
can change faster than a flip of a card in L.A., specially in the
high stakes card game. There is no end to gamblers, card sharks,
molls and mobsters and in a town where sin is a way of life, the
little fish are always eyeing the big fish. A team of professional
con-men (and women) want to take down 'The Dean' (Sylvester Stallone)
the legendary gambler who never lost a hand. But can the beat a man
who knows all the tricks of the trade?
In
Damian Neiman's Shade
(2003), a
team of con artists and card sharks seek to claim fame and fortune by
beating the current King of Cons, The Dean (Sylvester Stallone) in a
single game of high stakes card game. Each of them alone could never
beat the Dean, but together they might just have a chance. Combining
their fortune and skills they buy, steal or cheat their way into the
Dean's underground card game. However, things get complicated when
they didn't realize they stole money from the mob and there is a
crooked cop who also wants a 'cut' of their winnings. But there can
be only one king and it is a crime when a hustler hustles a hustler?
This
was a con movie filled with an all star cast, Sylvester Stallone,
Melanie Griffith, Hal Holbrook, Gabriel Byrne, Jamie Foxx, Stuart
Townsend and Thandie Newton. While this movie is lesser known
compared their more popular films, it feels like they wanted play
their own version of Ocean's
11
and also a chance for them to play different roles.
Though
the film looks consistent the 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition
image and
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix are a generation down and
seem older, liker an older HD master. Otherwise, this is watchable,
but could haver been a bit better. Extras
include a feature length audio commentary, making of the film, tricks
of the trade, interviews with cast and crew and trailers.
Toys
Are Not For Children
(1972),
also known as Virgin
Dolls,
is a bizarre exploitation film centered around a troubled young girl
named Jamie whose stuck in the mind of a child and sexually attracted
to her long lost father and is still obsessed with the toys that he
gave her as a child. As an adult, she ends up getting a job at a toy
store where she meets Charlie, and the two get married. However, on
the honeymoon Charlie can't get Jamie to sleep with him because the
only thing that does it for her are, ahem, older father-like figures.
So, she ends up running away from her husband and onto New York
City, where she becomes an escort for older men. However, Charlie
ends up going to the city to look for his bride...
The
film stars Harian Cary Poe, Fran Warren, Marcia Forbes, Evelyn
Kingsley, Luis Arroyo, and Peter Lightstone, and is directed by
Stanley H. Brassloff.
Toys
Are Not For Children
is presented in 1080p high definition with a widescreen aspect ratio
of 1.78:1 and a nice sounding audio mix in English LPCM Mono (48kHz,
24-bit). Remastered in 2K from the original film elements, this is
certainly the best that this film has ever looked on disc.
Considering its age and modest production cost, even the more
impressive job done by Arrow Video.
Special
Features include:
Brand
new audio commentary with Kat Ellinger and Heather Drain
Newly-filmed
appreciation by Nightmare USA author Stephen Thrower
'Dirty'
Dolls: Femininity, Perversion and Play
- a brand new video essay by Alexandra Heller Nicholas
Original
theme song ''Lonely
Am I'',
newly transferred from the original 45-RPM vinyl single
Original
Trailer
Reversible
sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by The Twins
of Evil
and
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Collector's Booklet featuring new writing on the
film by Vanity Celis.
Richard
Fleischer's Trapped
(1949) is
a lost Film Noir finally found in a complete, archive-worthy edition
with Lloyd Bridges as a criminal out of jail and trying to get the
illegal plates he co-owned before he was sent up the river, plates so
perfect that they make counterfeiting dollars as easy as anything.
However, a now-drunken friend has lost them to a rich, powerful
gangster and Bridges has to go out of his way to get them back. A
old flame (Barbara Payton) os shocked to see him back and gets
involved helping him, but he'll need more than her when the feds go
into action to get those plates back.
Of
course, other criminals around in the know want to make sure the feds
never see them again and will kill anyone to keep and keep using
them. Taking place in Hollywood and Los Angeles, the film is saved
for its 70th
Anniversary and turns out to be another Fleischer gem that has sadly
not been seen like this in decades. Flicker
Alley has issued it in one of their Blu-ray/DVD sets and serious film
fans will want to catch up with it. Bridges is great, Payton became
a star at the time because of it and its return could not be more
timely. You'll love the way it handles the counterfeiting part right
in the beginning.
The
1080p 1.33 X 1 black & white digital High Definition image
transfer can show the age of the materials used, but this is far
superior a transfer to all previous releases of the film as the copy
used is easily the best in existence and a revelation for those who
know it better and even the
1.33 X 1 image on the DVD is better than anything you've ever seen on
TV or in clips.
The
sound from, the theatrical optical mono on the print includes DTS-HD
MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Mono lossless on the Blu-ray and lossy Dolby
Digital 2.0 Mono on the DVD that are not bad, with the DTS having a
slight edge.
Extras
include a nicely illustrated booklet on the film including
informative text, poster art, profiles and tech notes, while the
discs add a feature length audio commentary track by the great film
scholar Julie Kirgo and Noir scholar Alan K. Rode and two
featurettes: Freeing
Trapped
on saving the film and A
Sedulous Cinderella: Richard Fleischer Remembered
on one of the greatest journeyman directors ever.
And
finally we have Vikings:
Season 5, Volume 2
(2018) on
Blu-ray disc, uncut for the first time to much fanfare. This is a
great season and should definitely be checked out if you're a fan of
Game
of Thrones
or simply a history buff. The production design is spot on and the
diverse cast portray very well fleshed out characters that exist in
this world of yesteryear.
Vikings
stars Travis Fimmel, Katheryn Winnick, Clive Standed, and Jessalyn
Gilsig to name a few. Directors for this season include Ken Girotti,
Jeff Woolnough, Johan Renck and others.
Scandinavia
has never seen darker times as Ivar the Boneless rules over the land.
Following intertwining stories ultimately pitting Ivar against the
sons of Ragnar who combat him for taking back their homeland of
Ireland. 10 episodes span three Blu-ray discs and include The
Revelation, Murder Most Foul, A New God, The Lost Moment, Hell, The
Buddha, The Most Terrible Thing, Baldur, What happens in the Cave,
and Ragnarok.
Vikings
is presented here uncut and commercial free in 1080p high definition
with a 1.78:1 widescreen aspect ratio and an audio mix in DTS-HD MA
(Master Audio) 5.1 mix. This is a huge improvement over the original
broadcast with more depth and detail in the nicely shot series that
allows it to be viewed as the filmmakers originally intended as
opposed to network broadcasting.
A
digital copy is also included.
Special
Features include:
EXTENDED
VERSIONS OF ALL 10 EPISODES
The
Creator's Audio Commentary with Michael Hirst and Actor Gustaf
Skarsgard
The
Epic War of Ragnar's Sons
The
King and the Warrior Bishop
and
Deleted Scenes
We
also reviewed Season
5, Volume 1
elsewhere on this site:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/15313/Vikings:+Season+Five,+Volume+One+(2018/MGM/
-
Nicholas Sheffo (Trapped),
Ricky Chiang (Shade)
and James
Lockhart
https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/
