The Criterion Collection In July

From "Raging Bull" (Martin Scorsese, 1980)

A bit tardy to the party this month, I suppose. But it's all good, as the folks at Barnes & Noble are still running their 50% off Criterion sale right now, and the last of July's releases have just come out. So, you know, get some cheap new Blu-rays and UHDs. And there are some good ones coming to market in July, including a couple of reissues in new formats, the best film of the 70s (don't @ me), and one of the best movies of 2021.

July 5

I remember being really stoked on Bong Joon Ho's follow-up to "Snowpiercer", 2017s "Okja", when it was announced. His second English language feature, with Tilda Swinton opposing the likes of Jake Gyllenhaal and Paul Dano, all with An Seo Hyun and a genetically modified superpig caught in the middle.

Pretty high concept, no? But then I went and never finished the movie. Life very much got in the way, not to mention that my days of watching movies solo have run out. So I still have about an hour left to watch.

I suppose the excuses have run thin, with this finally coming to home video after a long, exclusive run on Netflix. You get your choice of UHD/Blu-ray combo pack, Blu-ray, or DVD. And what comes with it? Bong oversaw a 4K digital master of the print, and supervised the Dolby Atmos soundtrack on both the UHD and Blu-ray. While it's missing a director's commentary, this release does provide new interviews between Bong and producer Dooho Choi, as well as a one-on-one featuring lead actor An and supporting actor Byun Hee Bong. Especially in the context of coming between "Snowpiercer" and Academy Award winner "Parasite", we're primed for a closer look at "Okja". I'm ready for it.

"The Virgin Suicides" was Sofia Coppola's debut in 1999. It got the Criterion treatment in 2018 with a lovely Blu-ray and DVD release. However, if you've been holding out for an ultra high definition release, then wait no further. Criterion now has issued a 4K UHD/Blu-ray combo pack, featuring the same great 4K digital restoration in gleaming 4K for that super expensive curved TV you watch all your movies on. Right, you got money, right? Can I have a loan? A gift?

Anyway, you get a bunch of extras, including a making-of documentary from Coppola's mother Eleanor, the "Playground Love" video directed by Coppola, and one of Coppola's earlier short films. Truth be told, this isn't a must have for me; I'm not a huge fan of "Suicides". But if it means we might see a "Lost In Translation" or "Bling Ring" Criterion release, then I'm all for this.

July 12

Dude, it's "Raging Bull". Do I really need to spell out why you, a fan not only of film but of physical media, need to own this? It's the firs time this has come out as a UHD (also featuing a Blu-ray in the combo pack). It's not just one of Scorsese's many master works; it's arguably the best film of the 70s, and one of the greatest films of all time. It's a movie that I can watch time and time again and discover something new about, whether it's a newly-discovered influence in the cinematography that leads me off on a new dive into, say, Russian cinema, or reveling in something previously unnoticed in the performances of Robert De Niro, Cathy Moriarty, and Joe Pesci. I'm not going to whip out my DVD copy from the "Scorsese Collection" to compare extras. I'm just going to buy a combo pack and watch it again.

The second reissue of July is David Lean's "Summertime", starring Katherine Hepburn as an American tourist in Italy who falls in love with a native shop owner. Criterion originally released this on DVD all the way back in 1998, so the re-release, featuring a great new cover by Lauren Tamaki, is long overdue. Criterion has performed a 4K restoration on this classic, a more intimate affair compared to the sprawling Lean epics that followed in the coming years. Also new to this edition: an interview with historian Melanie Williams. She literally wrote the book on David Lean back in 2014.

A nice little bonus appears on the secondary market when Criterion releases one of these revised editions. The earlier versions suddenly become a lot cheaper to acquire, giving us, the viewer, a chance to check out something like this at a really low price. So, whether you cop this new version, or hunt down a $5 copy on eBay, check this one out.

July 19

I don't have anything clever to say about "Drive My Car", Ryusuke Hamaguchi 2021 masterwork, nominee for Best Picture at last year's Academy Awards, and generally regarded as a mighty fine film. I have yet to watch the film; I fully admit that I'm a bit intimidated by the three hour run time (no explosions? no boobs? NO!). And I've been shying away from subtitled films recently; the unfortunate outcome from eye strain bordering on farsightedness. I just haven't been able to hang with the idea of watching a 180 minute adaptation of Haruki Murakami stories. It's a failing; I acknoledge it.

You get a director's approved special edition when you pick up your copy of "Drive My Car". Hamaguchi signed off on a 2K digital master (sadly, a UHD wasn't released initially), and contributed an exclusive interview as a bonus. There's also a making-of featurette, press coverage from Cannes 2021, and a new English language SDH translation. You can probably tell this isn't at the top of my list, but I anticipate that, for those of us who still buy physical media, I'm probably in the minority.

Last, but certainly not least in July, comes the second Criterion/Denzel Washington release of 2022: 1995's "Devil In A Blue Dress", directed by Carl Franklin. I didn't appreciate it during its initial run, but "Devil" is one of my favorite neo-noirs of the past 40 years, a film that's up there with "The Nice Guys", "Blood Simple", and "Bound" in my rolls. Denzil's portrayal of Easy Rawlins has had me tracking down Walter Mosley paperbacks regularly over time; the cast also includes an iconic Don Cheadle role, as well as standout work by Tom Sizemore, Jennifer Beals, and Maury Chaykin. It also has a killer Elmer Bernstein score, and a soundtrack populated with 40s jump blues, R&B, and bop.

Franklin approved this special edition, which replaces Twilight Time's 2015 Blu-ray release. There are a ton of new features, from the new 4K restoration and sound mix, to new interviews with Franklin, Mosley, and Cheadle, to Cheadle's screen test. And I might be mistaken, but it sure looks to me like Carver Center graduate, Ziggy Sobotka himself, James Ransome contributed the cover. Cool as hell.

From "Okja" (Bong Joon Ho, 2017)

I cannot tell a lie; it was with some relief that I viewed July's release lineup, especially after a jam-packed last few months of Criterion releases. Sure, I could save some bread getting these now via Barnes & Noble, but the titles I'd typically buy Day 1 ("Raging Bull", "Devil In A Blue Dress") are ones that I already own in previous editions. There's a nice little gap of three weeks between "Devil" and "Drive"s releases, and the first August drops. It's a perfect time to stack some paper and get excited for an early Safdie Brothers film, a cult favorite from a longtime Safdie collaborator, a pair of French and Mexican cinematic luminaries, and an all-time classic from the late, great Sidney Poitier. I may even be back to preview them ahead of the first of August. Watch this space to find out!

The Criterion Collection in June

 

From "Shaft" (Gordon Parks, 1971)

You hope, and you pray, and you cross your fingers that, one day, the niche art you grew up with, that you adore, that inspires you and raises you up, will be acknowledged, thus acknowledging your own superior taste and validating your existence.

Or is that just me?

At any rate, June's releases from the Criterion Collection count two of my all-time favorite movies. One, the long-awaited revival of an old Criterion laserdisc title, debuting on Blu-ray for the first time. The second, an all-time favorite of mine whose theme song served as my radio show's theme throughout its lifespan. Tack on a new restoration of a Powell & Pressburger classic, new cinema from the US and Norway, and a Chinese New Wave reissue, and it's another damned good month in what's been a great year so far from Criterion.

June 7

Mrs. Ape is the one who brought me to an appreciation of the works of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. I knew nothing of their collaborations 15 years ago, and were only familiar with their names as a result of Martin Scorsese's and George Romero's name-dropping. It's been super cool over the space of our relationship to get exposed to such a wide body of work. She's a mega-fan of "The Red Shoes", and through her influence, I've really gotten to love "The Life And Death Of Captain Blimp" and "A Matter Of Life And Death".

Criterion has slowly been reissuing their Powell & Pressburger releases from the past on Blu-ray. The latest is 1951's "The Tales Of Hoffmann", starring "Red Shoes" lead Moira Shearer opposite Robert Rousenville. This mix of music, dance, and effects is one of the few marriages of opera and film that's ever held my attention; like the rest of Powell and Pressburger's catalog, it's magic, the likes of which can only exist on film. "Hoffmann" gets a new 4K digital restoration for this reissue; it looks to be the key difference between this Blu-ray and the original 2005 Criterion DVD release. If you don't already own this, it's worth checking out the George Romero interview. Commentary comes courtesy of Mssr. Scorsese; critic Bruce Eder, present for the original 1992 recording, apparently has added new insights to the commentary track. It's a good opportunity to upgrade your 2005 DVD or your Essential Art House copy with some superior visuals and sound.

June 14

It's always dope when Criterion releases a contemporary film from a director I've not heard of before, so I know to keep an eye out from when their next film comes out. 2020's "Farewell Amor" is the latest of those. The feature debut from director Ekwa Msangi, "Farewell Amor" tells of a story of immigrant reunion, set in the African-American diaspora. It's not the sort of thing that I'm typically drawn to, but the Criterion label is enough a seal of approval that I want to seek this out. Msangi oversaw production of this special edition, providing commentary as well as three of her previous shorts to the release. Critic (and Raptors fan) Tiana Reid also provided an essay for the included booklet; she wrote a piece on a Basquiat exhibition at the Guggenheim a few years back that blew my mind a bit and that I suggest you check out. So that's one more reason to check this out.

June 21

Stanley Kwan always seems to be the next name I've encounter (after Wong Kar-Wai) when reading about Hong Kong's Second New Wave. Unlike his well-known contemporary, Kwan's works haven't ever been easily found her in the States. So it's great to see his best known work, 1987's "Rouge", get a director-approved special edition on Blu-ray and DVD. This love story, set in both 1930s and pre-Handover Hong Kong, features the late Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung in the two lead roles as a pair of fated lovers. Like the best works of Douglas Sirk, this lusciously-filmed tale is a coded queer love story that will enrapture any film lover. I saw this years ago at a film festival, half paying attention in the first 15 minutes before falling head-over-heels into it; I'm thrilled to peep it again. Two of Kwan's later works are included in this release: his 1997 documentary on queerness in HK cinema, "Yang ± Yin: Gender in Chinese Cinema", and his memoir from the same year, "Still Love You After All These". Dennis Lim, who programs for the Film Society at Lincoln Center and wrote The Man From Another Place about David Lynch, provides an essay on Kwan and "Rouge". All in all, here's one I cannot wait to watch.

I'm inclined to wax truly poetic about Gordon Parks' "Shaft", and its place within film history. I think I have my senior thesis somewhere around here on a flash drive that I could copy verbatim. But I'll instead speak about what it means to me. I came to it as a teenager who'd seen "I'm Gonna Git You Sucka" and was drawn to the action interwoven with the score. So many of the films that had influenced "Sucka" were available for purchase (not just rental) on VHS, so I'd take my paycheck from Taco Bell and split it between punk rock records and tapes of "Superfly" and "Dolemite". I picked up "Shaft" fairly early on, drawn to star Richard Roundtree's picture on the cover, aiming a revolver directly at me. It began a love affair with the film; a genre movie starring a clear outsider pulled between opposing factions, soundtracked by some of the coolest music I'd ever heard. How are you going to idolize Bruce Willis once you've encountered John Shaft? Michael Kamen could never hold a candle to Isaac Hayes. Later aided by resources like Darius James "That's Blaxploitation!", I'd continue to dive deep into Black cinema, coming to admire how influential these low-budget one-offs could be.

It's wild to me to see "Shaft" added to the Criterion Collection, and yet totally appropriate. 51 years on, the success of Gordon Parks's second film tore down many barriers between the white and Black film worlds, and opened following generations up to a level of grit and realism that had previously never been represented. While most of the principals have passed away, this release is incredibly comprehensive. Producer Isaac Hayes III, son of soundtrack artist Isaac Hayes, has remastered the previous stereo soundtrack for the 4K digital restoration. That restoration itself is most welcome; previous scans have looked like total dogshit, so I'm hyped to check out what has been adjusted. There are a number of documentary pieces I've never seen before, featuring the likes of Nelson George and Walter Mosley. There's also a bunch of archival work available, with the late Parks and Hayes speaking alongside Roundtree. The 1972 sequel, "Shaft's Big Score", comes as an extra on both the UHD/Blu-ray combo pack and the Blu-ray; a welcome addition considering how underseen "Big Score" has been, relative to "Shaft". Add in a fresh new cover from Bill Sienkiewicz, and THIS become a must have in any action or genre fan's library.

June 28

Things I know about "The Worst Person In The World":

• Nominated for the 2021 Palme d'Or and two Academy Awards
• Directed by Joachim Trier as part of his "Oslo Trilogy"
• Described as a "dark romantic comedy"
• Everyone I've spoken to who's seen it loved it, and told me "it's right up your alley"
• NEON released this in the US, and I've liked every acquisition they've made so far

So, yeah, I think I'm going to dig this. The Blu-ray seems a bit bare bones: interviews with all the key players, a bit of behind-the-scenes, some deleted scenes, an essay from Sheila O'Malley (Film Comment). But that won't scare me away from copping this soon.

There's nothing complicated about my feelings for John Waters. Falling in love with his movies in my teens with "Cry-Baby", moving to Baltimore weeks before "Serial Mom" came out, quickly discovering so many things about my new hometown as a result of seeing them onscreen in his movies...John was my tour guide to the real Charm City. I went to watch movies in the places where he went to watch them, rented them from the same video stores that appeared in his films, drank at the same bars he visited, bought books and records from the store where he had his mail delivered. His work became a shibboleth; if you knew "Hag In A Black Leather Jacket" or "Polyester", we were probably going to be friends.

"Pink Flamingos" is 50 years old this year. It was Waters' third feature, a break-out film for him and nascent distributor New Line Pictures. Criterion released a laserdisc a quarter century ago, and New Line did a DVD a few years later. But this special edition, overseen like the previous three Criterion/Waters releases by the Pope Of Trash, is the first time its been available on Blu-ray. While the two commentary tracks are repurposed from the laserdisc and DVD releases, there's a new conversation between Waters and Jim Jarmusch included, as well as an essay by critic/misanthropologist Howard Hampton that I can't wait to read. The Cookie Mueller essay about the making-of appeared in "Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black" (back in print for the first time in decades), but is a great read if you haven't done so before. This also includes Steve Yeager's documentary "Divine Trash", a must-see if you're a fan of Waters' art. I don't need to dive into the content of the film too deeply; if you can't pick up what you might see in a movie about the filthiest person alive, it's probably not for you. It's funny and profane and sick and wonderful and has influenced everything great and creative and insane over the past five decades.

From "Pink Flamingos" (John Waters, 1972)

It sucks being out of work, because June is a month where I'd preorder every single release. But instead, I need to be judicious with my purchases. It'll probably come down "Shaft" and "Pink Flamingos" on the preorder front, with "Worst Person" and "Rouge" coming as soon as I sell some stuff on Discogs. Things don't get easy in July, when work from the likes of Scorsese, Coppola, Bong, and Hamaguchi all join the Collection. Be there in 30...aloha!

The Criterion Collection in May

From "Chan Is Missing" (Wayne Wang, 1982)

One of my very esteemed readers noted that they wished I still did previews of upcoming Blu-ray releases. Now, I stopped doing these back in February of last year, not because I suddenly stopped liking movies. No, it was because I had, for the past few months, been working for an e-commerce platform as a buyer, and really didn't have the inclination, after a long day of setting up preorder codes and resizing images, to write a couple thousand words about Blu-rays. Better to leave it to people who were getting promos and getting paid to blog.

That said, I found out Friday that my time in that position would be ending in a couple weeks. Between that, and always wanting to honor the wishes of one of my few irregular readers, I figured, "yeah, let's spit about the new Criterion jonz." So welcome, my friends, to the soon-to-be-regular-again Criterion preview for May. Once again, I'm disappointed by the lack of a "My Cousin Vinny" Criterion Blu-ray, but I guess we can't have it all.

May 10

May's new releases kick off with a thriller I've never seen or heard of before. It's 1976's "Mr. Klein", directed by the blacklisted American expatriate Joseph Losey and starring Alain Delon. I know Losey via his 1951 adaptation of "M" for Columbia, and apparently I've seen a few of his 60s movies that he made in the UK ("The Criminal", "The Damned"). Delon is Delon, man...the epitome of French cool, a man so bad he inspired Chow Yun-Fat. This film, while not a day one purchase, hits a few interest points for me: mistaken identities, World War II, the decadent French. The 4K restoration, as well as contemporaneous interviews with Losey and Delon also pique my fancy. Yeah, I'll keep an eye open for this.

May 17

I know the late Jûzô Itami best as the director of "Tampopo". It's a movie that's much loved in the Ape Mummy household, something I think we own in three or four different formats. I've not seen Itami's directorial debut, which came a year earlier in 1984 in the form of "The Funeral" ("Osôshiki"), but it sounds like it presages "Tampopo" pretty well. It's a dark comedy set around the death and burial of a family patriarch, drawing tension and humor from the clash between old Japanese custom and new attitudes. Someone on imdb describes this as having a lot of Tatiesque scenes. So I guess if you're into Itami's other work, or you're into Jacques Tati, you'll probably be into this. Me? I'm a sucker for just about any comedy set at a funeral. After all, tragedy is when I fall down and break my leg; comedy is when you fall down and break your neck. Itami stars Nobuko Miyamoto and Manpei Ikeuchi are interviewed as part of the extras; there are also apparently some ads for Ichiroku Tart that Itami directed.

May 24

It's with no small sense of relief that we finally encounter a film I can discuss with some level of expertise. It's been a long time since I've seen "Mississippi Masala", so while I'm familiar with it, I'm really looking forward to watching it with fresh eyes. Mira Nair has always been a great storyteller, and her work here with Sarita Choudhury and Denzel Washington as a pair of star-crossed lovers is something that EVERYONE should experience at least once. Nair hits a lot of topics that I know I wasn't ready for in 1992 when this first came out; thirty years later, speaking honestly about racism, colorism, immigration, and cross-cultural romance is even more of an issue (sadly). I'm really looking forward to seeing this in a 4K restoration, as I think I saw this after it'd already been circulating for several months, and I can't imagine Samuel Goldwyn minted more than a couple dozen prints of this back in the day. There's a bunch of interviews with cast and crew included as extras, and the Blu-ray features a reproduction of Nair's production diaries. Fun trivia: imdb says Nair is directing the first episode of the Disney+ "National Treasure" revival.

May 31

The last day of May brings a pair of titles that I think I'm going to need on day one. The first is Wayne Wang's "Chan Is Missing". I've like just about every film on Wang's I've seen, from "Smoke" and "The Joy Luck Club" to "Maid In Manhattan" (a top-five J.Lo performance, IMHO). The plot is straight out of a film noir: two aspiring cabbies search Chinatown to find their missing business partner and their $4,000. The difference, and what makes "Chan" so important, is the dive into Chinese American culture, with an iconic San Francisco setting. It's a film that is just as important now as it was upon release 40 years ago, a reminder that representation matters, the kind of movie that paved the way for the 80s and 90s indie revolution, and a really entertaining flick. Wang oversaw the restoration and transfer on this one (its debut on Blu-ray, if memory serves), and sits for commentary, as well as interviews with Ang Lee and critic Hua Hsu. I'm also hyped to check out Debbie Lum's behind-the-scenes documentary, "Is Chan Still Missing?" This one might show up on the Criterion Channel in May, so I might hold off until the month's streaming offerings get announced before preordering. But it's one I definitely want to own.

Speaking of which...May's lone UHD release is also the lone, sure-fire, Day One Criterion release for this month. Billy Wilder's 1944 classic noir, "Double Indemnity", starring Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G. Robinson, is getting the royal treatment with a comprehensive 4K digital restoration. This is one of my all-time favorite movies; it's probably one of the first Wilder movies I saw, has some crackling dialogue and an aces plot courtesy of Raymond Chandler, and one of the best femme fatale performances ever via Stanwyck's Phyllis Dietrichson. It's a stone-cold classic, a must-have for anyone who loves thrillers, and arguably Wilder's first great film. The late Richard Schickel provides the commentary track on this one; I don't have my Universal DVD handy, but I assume it's the same one. On the new front, there's a conversation with Eddie Muller and Imogen Sara Smith, an interview with writer Noah Isenberg, and radio adaptations of the script dating from 1945 and 1950. Even if, like me, you don't have a 4K TV and UHD player yet, I definitely recommend copping the combo pack on this one, if only to future proof and plan for a REALLY good looking transfer in the coming days when you do get that sick tax refund back.

That's May, my friends. There's a ton of excellent releases dropping, so save those nickels and dimes. June has already been announced, what with the likes of another pair of my favorite films coming to the Collection. I suppose I'll be back in around 30 days to talk about tohse; sooner if I don't get a new gig between now and then. Happy watching; be there...aloha!

The Criterion Collection in March

From "Defending Your Life" (Albert Brooks, 1991)

I skipped my first month's worth of Criterion releases since restarting the blog last month. Why, you may ask? Well, I may reply, there wasn't a single title that met my high standards of making up some bullshit. It happens. They can't all be winners. There's always one month every year that I don't preorder anything. This year, it was February. March, however, has one bona fide must have in it, as well as a quartet of titles worth discussing. So let's do the damn thing.

March 9

Djibril Diop Mambéty's 1973 post-colonial classic, "Touki bouki" ("The Journey Of The Hyena"), gets its first Blu-ray release after a 2013 DVD-only edition. When Mrs. Ape and I discussed this month's lineup (as is the custom in our house), this was the title she was most excited about. She doesn't currently own a copy, but she regaled me with tales of going to San Francisco to see it, and how taken she was by the film's movement and pacing, as well as the filmmaker's take on French New Wave. Who am I to argue with the missus? It's the tale of two Senegalese 20-somethings, an iconic motorbike, and a trip to Paris and the promise of a new life. Sounds pretty cool to me. The 2K transfer came from a 2008 restoration, but it's the first time that the film has been available on video with an uncompressed soundtrack. Mambéty's 1968 short film, "Contras' City" has also been added here, along with an introduction by Martin Scorsese, interviews with Mambéty's family and collaborators, and an essay from Ashley Clark, the current curatorial director at the Criterion Collection. This is one I'm looking forward to seeing for the first time.

March 16

The first new release in March comes via "Céline and Julie Go Boating" ("Céline et Julie vont en bateau"), a 1974 French film from Jacques Rivette. I don't know a lot about Rivette, other than many of his films are incredibly long and that I've heard he stands along the same line of strangeness in filmmaking as Lynch, Jonze, and Gondry. The Criterion page for "Céline and Julie" calls this "both one of the all-time-great hangout comedies and a totally unique, enveloping cinematic dream space". I've not taken the opportunity to dive into his worlds of mystery until now (I've been watching a lot of film noir and Marvel Cinematic Universe sorry not sorry), so this stands as a good opportunity to jump in. The film itself has received a 2K restoration along with a commentary track from Australian critic Adrian Martin, whose insights always add something to film watching for me. Claire Denis, whose work I've really gotten into in recent years, also contributes her 1994 documentary mini-series on Rivette. There are interviews with Rivette's cast on the film and producer Barbet Schroder (!), and an essay from all-around badass writer Beatrice Loayza. I expect I'll be carving out 4-5 hours to watch this one; after all, the dog loves to take walks in the midst of enthralling movies.

March 23

Are you tired of paying top dollar for out-of-print Criterion titles? Worried you might end up with a shoddy bootleg? Have you beat that Kino DVD snapcase to death? Well, Criterion finally takes care of you with "World Of Wong Kar Wai", their first box set of the year. And, much like their previous Bruce Lee and Godzilla sets, this is a Day One must have for me. Collecting seven of the first eight films of WKW's career (only "Ashes Of Time" is missing), and offering them with 4K restorations, in time to celebrate the 20th anniversary of "In The Mood For Love". His movies are poetry given form; his collaborators, typically stars on their own, become supernovas when they work together. It's awesome to see these films collected together.

So, what does $200 get you? The gatefold case, designed by Nessim Higson, appears to be of the same dimensions as the Bruce Lee set; a bit oversized to fit with the rest of my collection, but c'est la vie. As I mentioned above, each film has received a 4K restoration. "As Tears Go By" and "Days Of Being Wild" both receive uncompressed audio, while the rest get a really sharp DTS-HD 5.1 audio mix. There's also an alternate edit of "Days", never before released on video. The bonus materials offer a ton of archival material, but the big get here is the Q&A between WKW and the likes of Sofia Coppola, Rian Johnson, Lisa Joy, Chloé Zhao, André Aciman and Jonathan Lethem. That's a murderer's row of creatives, asking questions and getting answers from one of their influences. John Powers, whose spots on "Fresh Air With Terry Gross" always make me stop and listen, also provides an essay as part of a perfect bound booklet. It's the cherry on top of a very tasty cake.

March 30

Damn, dude, we getting old. It's been 25 years since I sat in the Rotunda Theatre in Hampden and watched Mike Leigh's "Secrets & Lies". Real talk: I don't recall enjoying it. I think I was trying to impress a girl who had no interest in me. Good call, right: take a girl to a British drama about an adoptee searching for her birth mother. Christ, I'm dumb. The French knew what's up, though. They gave it the Palme d'Or at Cannes that year. I've learned better, too, having really enjoyed diving into Leigh's ouevre over the past several years. Leigh, along with his DP Dick Pope, put together a 2K restoration for this new release of "Secrets & Lies", as well as sat down with composer Gary Yershon to discuss the role of music in the film. Ashley Clark returns with a second essay this month, and star Marianne Jean-Baptiste speaks with Corrrina Antrobus (Bechdel Test Fest).

It really bums me out that Albert Brooks' directing career petered out the way it did, because, even as a kid, I really enjoyed his sense of satire and his directing style. Seeing "Defending Your Life" in 1991 came at a pretty key point in my life: a year out of Christian school and out of the Deep South for the first time in my life, asking questions of religion that hadn't come up before. To encounter this movie addressing some of these same questions within the framework of a rom-com was pretty revelatory. That's a good-ass cast! But that's Brooks' thing, innit? He addresses these huge existential issues within these innocuous packages. Plus, it has Meryl Streep, Rip Torn, Lee Grant, and Buck Henry in it. Brooks oversaw the 4K restoration on this print, and sat down with long-time "Curb Your Enthusiasm" director Robert Weide for an interview. I'm also pretty excited to read Ari Aster's essay in this release.

And there you have it: another month's worth of Criterion releases on the page. It's pretty likely I end up adding "Defending Your Life" to my preorder for the WKW box set. I'll end up getting the other three as time and money allow. I'm back in 30 (more or less) for a lineup that I can sum up in three words: motherfuckin' "Irma Vep". Be there...aloha!

V-Day Weekend at Vinegar Syndrome

From "SexWorld" (Anthony Spinelli, 1977)

Regular readers of this here semi-regular blog know it's a regular confluence of music and moving pictures, occasionally crossing over into people humping for pleasure and amusement. It's not everyone's cuppa steeped leaves, but I'm of the firm belief that bad taste doesn't necessarily equal bad art, and art deserves to be preserved. Which is why I rep Vinegar Syndrome as often as I do. It's not a giant leap to say, "let's make sure the early work of David Cronenberg gets restored," to "Gerald Damiano's filmography is worthy of being preserved". These are auteurs with clear aesthetics that have influenced those directors who have follwed them for the past 50 years. The difference is that Cronenberg didn't show the dick going in.

That being said, Vinegar Syndrome is holding their second annual V-Day Weekend sale through the end of the day on Sunday, February 14. As they're wont to do, they're highlighting this sale with a few special releases. They've announced what they're billing as the first ever hardcore feature ever released in Ultra HD. It's an expanded release of Anthony Spinelli's 1977 "Westworld" homage, "SexWorld". I copped their original Blu-ray release a few years back, but I'm leaning towards snagging this, a result of the care they've put into this reissue. VS has performed an all-new 4K restoration from the original 35mm negative. They've also added a softcore cut of "SexWorld", something I had no idea actually existed. They've fleshed out this new release with interviews with hardcore legends Kay Parker and Joey Silvera, as well as photographer Joel Sussman. The release includes an UHD, a Blu-ray, AND the soundtrack on CD, as fine a collection of library tracks as one will find. It's limited to 5,000 pieces, which isn't some tight edition size, but at a sale price of $29.99, it's a bargain for one of the best Golden Age releases.

Also part of the celebration: a "SexWorld" t-shirt, available in an open edition and limited "Robot Valentine" print. There was a really rad holographic screen print available on Friday; this quickly sold out, but is definitely worth checking out. The entire VS back catalog of classic erotica, including all the Peekarama titles still in print, is 50% off through the end of the sale. If you're a film dork, a closet perv, or just want something fun to watch with your partner, it's a good time to pick up some pretty incredible titles. I'll be grabbing a few of the Lisa de Leeuw movies I don't already own. I'd suggest checking out a few of these if these interest you:

• "The Lost Films Of Herschell Gordon Lewis" was the very first Vinegar Syndrome release, collecting three of the Godfather of Gore's sexploitation movies from the late 60s and early 70s
• The "Boys In The Sand" and "Bijou" collect a number of Wakefield Poole's earliest films, as well as two of the earliest still extant example of American gay pornography
• "Taboo", starring Kay Parker, is undoubtably one of the most controversial and important hardcore titles of all-time; VS has restored and reissued the first five films in the series on Blu-ray, but this is the one worth snagging
• "Confessions Of A Teenage Peanut Butter Freak" is just weird as hell, but in a good and sexy way, and features Constance Money
• It was a legendary title when I was younger, so I hopped all over getting a copy of "Let My Puppets Come" when it came out a few years back. All you need to know are these four words: "musical puppet sex comedy"

From "Let My Puppets Come" (Gerald Damiano, 1976)

Vinegar Syndrome in January

From "Cthulhu Mansion" (Juan Piquer Simón, 1992)

I feel a bit bad, because I missed writing up Vinegar Syndrome's November and December releases. As a result, I didn't get to talk about what I got in the Black Friday sale (a lot more porn than I would have expected, for one), and I didn't cover what I didn't pick up. But here we are, in January, and there's a solid slate of new releases coming at the end of the month, so no need to kick ourselves in the ass for the past when the future is so near.

Take, for instance, our first film of the month, 1978's "Satan's Blood" ("Escalofrío"). If you want to grab my interest entering the new year, then put "Satan" in the title and let Earl Kessler Jr. put together some runes and a shirtless dude wielding a sacrificial dagger. It's a great take on the original Spanish poster from director Carlos Puerto. It sounds like a rad bit of Eurosleaze, with a young couple getting drawn into a secluded mansion, only to be set upon by horny devil worshippers. A new 4K scan means this will probably look better than anyone has seen this since its late 70s debut. We get both the Spanish- and English-language soundtracks, as well as a commentary track from V.S. mainstays Samm Deighan and Kat Ellinger. I'm really digging this focus on Spanish-language exploitation from Vinegar Syndrome; it's an era I'm not super familiar with, but I enjoy watching. I like simple things, like butter in my ass, and blood orgies; that's just me.

From Lucifer to Elder Gods: Spanish director Juan Piquer Simón put in some uncredited work on "Satan's Blood", as well as helming one of my personal favs, "Slugs". His 1992 movie, "Cthulhu Mansion" ("La mansión de los Cthulhu") gets a 2K restoration for its North American debut on Blu-ray. And while the title doesn't really sync up to the storyline, I doubt anyone who hasn't seen this will be disappointed. It's got punks on film, evil magicians, spooky amusement parks: it's a "Scooby Doo Mysteries" episode, done in hard-R fashion. I'm really in love with Richard Hilliard's cover art/slipcase for this release; the Chthuluized skull reminds me of a lot of the mid-Atlantic tattoo aesthetic that came out of hardcore/metal in the past 15 years. There's also a full-length documentary about Simón's career. It's in Spanish, but should come with subtitles.

Something sinister is happening in a newly-opened Barcelona apartment skyscraper. Michael Moriarty plays the hard-boiled security consultant hired to uncover the mystery behind an on-site death. Is he ready for something more than simple murder? Joined by Jenny Agutter, can this duo solve matters before another death occurs?

And that's 1988's "Dark Tower" in a nutshell, originated by Ken Weiderhorn and finished by Freddy Francis in the director's chair. The cast is deep, with the likes of Carol Linley, Theodore Bikel, and Kevin McCarthy all making appearances. I passed up a VHS copy of this I saw in a suburban Atlanta thrift store a few years ago, because I was probably being a ding dong or something. I can now rectify that mistake with this debut on region A Blu-ray, featuring a 2K scan and restoration. The interview with Steve Neill should be interesting; the former Corman and Cohen collaborator worked on a wide range of awesome movies in makeup and effects, including "Ghostbusters", "The Stuff", and "Galaxy of Terror".

Every time I decide to wait to buy a Vinegar Syndrome Archives title, it immediately sells out. It's enough to make a fella feel like a real screw up. But 2021 will be different; this year, I'm won't make the same mistakes. I know how much time that wastes. So it is with cash and hand that I happily preorder the January VSA release of 1989's "The House Of Usher". I don't know a ton about Australian director Alan Birkinshaw, other than his work on "Killer's Moon", which I'm pretty sure I saw a third-gen dub of sometime in the late 90s. But 1989 was an incredibly productive year for him, between this, another Poe inspired film in "The Red Masque Of Death", and his adaptation of Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians". The latter two featured...you guessed it, Frank Stallone! VS says this is the first time "House Of Usher" has been released on disc; I believe them. Oliver Reed and Donald Pleasence star alongside TV mainstay Romy Windsor. You get a limited to 4,000 piece, Region A Blu-ray with 2K scan and restoration and the always enjoyable bottom loading slipcase. A bargain now at $27.99, compared to what we'll be paying in six months on eBay, no doubt.

AGFA has a pair of releases in January, the first of which is inventively named "The AGFA Horror Trailer Show". And, because they are big believers in truth in advertising, what viewers get here is, indeed, a big ass Blu-ray, chock full of horror trailers. Normally, I'm a bit dubious about collections of trailers (smut comps being the exception). Here, however, I'm absolutely intrigued what the kids at AGFA have dug out of their archives. They describe it as "the most spine-ripping, slime-slinging, soul-shredding horror trailers that you’ve never seen." After watching their trailer, I'm inclined to believe them. And if that weren't enough, there's the bonus feature of "VIDEORAGE", which is nothing but direct-to-video and shot-on-video horror trailers. Slice me off a hunk of that and serve me a pair of biscuits to mop it up with.

As for "The Curious Dr. Humpp", I can only say that I must have it. A true Argentinian curiosity from 1969, this was originally shot by Emilio Vieyra as a straightforward horror film, only to mutate into a pretty legendary blend of Italian horror, Buñuel-esque surrealism, and late 60s grindhouse smut. As they'd say back in the day, "far out!" Not only do you get a 2K restoration of the film that Something Weird has been sharing on DVD for years, you also get Vieyra's "La venganza del sexo" cut, also with a 2K restoration. It even gets English subtitles for the first time ever. "Basket Case" & "Frankenhooker" director Frank Henenlotter, whose ouevre owes a bit to "Dr. Humpp", provides commentary on "Humpp". I'm sure that's going to be worth the price of admission. There's also a line on the VS website stating there will be "brain damaged shorts and trailers from Dr. Humpp’s laboratory" on this release. I don't know what that implies, but I'm dying to find out.

We end our January lineup, as we normally do when we have the opportunity, taking a look at the classic pornography whose preservation Vinegar Syndrome has built their business upon. It's worth mentioned (to me, at least) that regardless of the sexual nature (and politics thereof) of the films, these are as worth studying and discussing as any lost film or indie curiosity. To say they don't make them like this anymore is an understatement; it's a lost era of filmmaking that's never coming back, sadly.

Take, for instance, this double film Blu-ray release in the Peekarama series. "Taxi Girls" and "Heavenly Desire" are a duo of sex comedies from the Israeli-American director Jourdan Alexander (directing under his birthname of Jaacov Jaacovi here), who had a reputation for making these sort of things. His trademark was casting talent that resembled Hollywood starlets, then letting them fuck on film. What you end up with are movies that are both arousing and, dare I say, pretty damned funny. "Taxi Girls" is led by Nancy Suiter in one of her iconic roles, Seka headlines "Heavenly Desire", and Serena stars opposite both in each film. Add in appearances from John Holmes, Jamie Gillis, Aubrey Nichols, and Johnny Keyes, and you have a pair of movies well worth watching.

From "Satan's Blood" (Carlos Puerto, 1978)

So, what am I buying? I think I'll cop that "Taxi Girls"/"Heavenly Desire" 2-pack, as well as both AGFA releases to start. If I'm feeling real frisky (aka I come into some loose money), I'll add on "The House Of Usher". As always, if all four Vinegar Syndrome/VSA titles float your boat, you can save some serious bread ordering the the January 2021 Package, at a relative bargain price of just $99.99 (with free shipping!). I promise to be back in less than 30 days with the February lineup. Until then: be easy, and don't go blind.

Shout! Factory in January

From "They Live" (John Carpenter, 1988)

Like December, January is a light month for Shout! Factory releases. A mere five films/shows arrive on 5" discs in the first month of 2021. HOWEVAH! Two of these are must haves for the Ultra High-Definition collector. What, you didn't get a 4K TV and UHD Blu-ray player from Santa this Christmas? Well, maybe yours is on backorder with mine, sure to arrive within the next 12 to 24 months. Never mind that: let's look at what's coming.

January 12

I know I'm not the only person confused or intimidated by all the various "Lupin the Third" manga and anime releases over the years. No less a master than Hayao Miyazaki made his directorial debut on the second "Lupin" feature film, 1979s "The Castle of Caligostro". There have been a total of six anime series and six theatrical releases over the years, the newest of which, 2019s "Lupin III: The First" gets its home release via GKids today. It's the first 3D and first CGI release in the series and, frankly, looks like a good place to jump in for yours truly. There's options for fidelity and packaging: you can choose from the DVD, the Blu-ray/DVD combo pack, or the steelbook Blu-ray/DVD combo pack. The steelbook features that attractive cover to the left; all three versions come with a lithograph if you order them direct from Shout! Factory. As for bonuses, look for Blu-ray-only interviews with director Takashi Yamazaki and the Japanese cast, as well as animation breakdowns, a CG model gallery, Japanese- and English-language trailers, and a featurette on the "yellow" carpet premiere. No need to steal this one.

January 19

Everything else is coming this week, with a couple of real bangers leading the pack. I'll get to those shortly, after I dispatch with the direct to Blu-ray and DVD release of "Dead Reckoning". Andrzej Bartkowiak is a long way from directing "DOOM" and "Exit Wounds", now helming this action thriller starring K.J. Apa from "Riverdale" and India Eisley from "The Secret Life of the American Teenager". It was originally shot back in 2016, and finally came to VOD in November. The most interesting parts of this to me are Scott Adkins as the lead antagonist, and James Remar serving as what I assume is some sort of law enforcement officer, preferably grizzled. I do love a meaty role for a favorite character actor, and Scott Adkins is always threatening. Light pass from your favorite Ape.

Anime Limited is the latest label to join the Shout! family. This Scottish distributor is already pretty well established in the UK and EU, spinning out of the Scotland Loves Anime convention 9 years ago. They hit my radar back in May when they announced they'd be releasing "Neon Genesis Evangelion" and the two films from the series on Blu-ray for the first time ever. They'll be releasing Masaki Watanabe's adaptation of Araki JOH's manga "Bartender" ("バーテンダー") on Blu-ray on the 19th. Originally airing in Japan in 2006 on BS Fuji, "Bartender" centers around Ryu, a genius barman with a kind ear and a golden arm. It was only available on DVD in Japan, along with some unsubbed, undubbed bootlegs, so the announcement back in September that this would be appearing in Region A & B was welcomed. It's a cool looking set: along with all 11 episodes on two discs, purchasers will get nine recipe cards featuring Ryu's best cocktails, and four bar coasters. It's rare that anime inspires me to drink, so bottom's up to "Bartender" coming to Blu-ray.

Finally, a pair of John Carpenter classics come to UHD for the first time. I already own the Collector's Editions of "They Live" and "Prince Of Darkness" that came out in 2012 and 2013, respectively. And, as I alluded to above, I still don't have the 4K TV or UHD player that would require copping these immediately. But there's enough bonus material available as part of the preorder that I'm considering snagging them. Both films now come as a UHD/Blu-ray combo pack, with Dolby Atmos 7.1 soundtracks available on both for the first time ever. It appears that the Blu-ray portion of each release more or less the same of as their earlier releases; the most obvious changes being the 7.1 mixes being upgrades over the earlier versions. "Prince Of Darkness" is available as two different pre-order SKUs: the standard combo pack with poster, or a package including the combo pack, poster, and exclusive colorway of the new Sacred Bones 7" featuring Carpenter's re-recording of the film's theme. As has been the case with other Scream/Bones collabs, this 7" gets its own pretty rad slipcase illustrated by Chris Bilheimer.

As for "They Live", still my all-time favorite John Carpenter film (don't @ me), there are a lot of options. There's the UHD/Blu-ray combo pack, which, at one point, had a poster as a bonus, which is now gone. This is the one you'll see on the shelves of finer video retailers around the world. As with "Prince Of Darkness", there's also a package containing the combo pack, a poster, and an exclusive colorway of Carpenter's 2017 re-recording with his son Cody of the title theme. This also gets a dope Chris Bilheimer cover and slipcase. NECA has also recreated Keith David's Frank in their Mego-style 8" action figure line. The figure, limited to just 4,000 pieces, is sold out as a separate SKU, but is still available as part of a movie/poster/figure package AND/or movie/poster/7"/figure package. If Santa brought you a bit more holiday dosh, or you've got nothing better to spend your Trump bonus on, well...congratulations. You're in better waters than the most of us. Enjoy your giant stack of "They Live" gear!

From "Lupin III The First" (Takashi Yamazaki, 2019)

Things get back to normal in February, with a full slate of new releases, Steelbook reissues, another NECA action figure, and even a Shout! exclusive color of vinyl headed our way. I'll get back to normal by writing and posting this before the first of the month. Hooray! Be there...aloha.

Kino Lorber in January

Hi, gang. You remember what the deal is here, right? Kino Lorber: arthouse releaser, repertory distributor, source of films both foreign and grindhouse. Good stuff coming in January. Of the 28 releases coming from the venerable label, here are a few of my picks.

January 5

I know "Savage Streets" only as a rad-looking title on a shelf I wasn't allowed to browse in my mom's video store back in the 90s. So here's my chance to grab it IN WIDESCREEN! ON BLU-RAY!!! How's that for a lil' slice of fried gold? This 1984 revenge actioner (three words that work extremely well together) stars Linda Blair in a skintight suit, Linnea Quigley as her deaf-mute sister, John Vernon as what I assume is some sort of hard-assed authority figure, and 80s generic baddie Robert Dryer. Code Red really breaks out the extras on this one: three separate commentary tracks, a fat grip of interviews with most of the key cast and crew, an isolated music track of the John D'Andrea/Michael Lloyd score, an intro from Kat of Kat's Scratch Cinema, all on an all-region disc. While I still love the artwork on the 2014 Ronin Trax release, giving it up is a small price to pay for what I expect to be the very best film to spend money on the first week of January...

...although Code Red's reissue of 1975's "The Black Gestapo", had it not been a reissue, might have given it a run for its money. Also known as "Black Enforcers", "Ghetto Warriors", and the only film Mrs. Ape will not allow me to hang a poster up for, this was one of the final films from one of my favorite sleazemongers, Lee Frost. It's a pretty rad take on blaxploitation and community empowerment: when the Mafia tries to move in to Watts, a local Black Panthers-esque organization is forced to choose between its original mission and a more-fascist approach. It's been out of print for a hot minute, but now "Black Gestapo" is back, featuring its 2015 2K master and commentary featuring Charles Robinson and Rob Perry. Fun note: Donald Trump once watched this and thought it was a Black Lives Matter documentary.

January 12

Typically, I wouldn't shout out a DVD edition of a five-year-old Blu-ray release of a 70-year-old movie, but, fuck it, it's my blog, and some of y'all might want to save some bread. Cohen Media Group is kicking out a $20 edition of 1952's "Sudden Fear", a fantastic noir thriller originally released by RKO Pictures. It earned four Oscar noms, including for leads Joan Crawford and Jack Palance, cinematographer Charles Lang, and costumer Sheila O'Brien. This is one my granddad showed me back in the day after we went to see "City Slickers". "Ape, m'boy," he said. "Ya want ta see Curly really get mean?" I really didn't, but it's probably one of the first noirs I'd ever seen, so it stuck with me. It has the same 2K restoration as the 2016 Blu-ray release, the same commentary from Jeremy Arnold; it's just on DVD now, and costs $15 less. So save yourself a few bucks, or get an extra movie. Treat yourself: we have no clue how this year's going to turn out.

If you've never seen it before, think of "Buried Alive" as a gender swapped "Sudden Fear". It matters because it's Frank Darabont's directorial debut, originally airing on the USA Network back in 1990. It stars Otter, Amy Archer, and Walter Peck, who I can confirm has no dick. Mark Patrick Carducci, who wrote "Pumpkinhead" and "Neon Maniacs", contributed the teleplay. And if it seems like I'm lacking in details or enthusiasm here, I assure you that I spent it all on coming up with an appropriate "Ghostbusters" reference for William Atherton, who gets interviewed on the disc of this 2K restoration. Apparently there's a sequel, but KL Studio Classics isn't putting that one out...yet.

It's time for another Code Red reissue: this time, the Italo horror-sleaze classic "The Devil's Wedding Night" ("Il plenilunio delle vergini"). I guarantee anything involving Joe d'Amato will be visual in nature. Directed by Luigi Batzelli (as Paul Solvay), and starring Rosalba Neri as a Lady Dracula/Elisabeth Bathory-type, this is a 1973 Italian knockoff of a later-period Hammer vampire movie. Which means, for readers of this blog, that you'll probably dig it if you haven't seen it before. The Kino store clearly points out that this release features the US cut of "Wedding Night"; I can't be arsed to check to see if there's an European X-rated version with hardcore inserts.

January 19

Mrs. Ape and I are typically pretty interested in anything North Korea related, so I think I'll surprise her with Ryan White's newest documentary, 2020s "Assassins". It follows the story of the two women charged and convicted of assassinating Kim Jong-un's half-brother Kim Jong-nam in 2017. Jong-nam was poisoned in Kuala Lumpur International Airport by a pair of women who thought they were on a TV prank show. If that's not enough to draw you in, maybe hearing that White's last docs were "Ask Dr. Ruth" and "The Keepers" series will get your attention. It's his sixth feature in a decade, each of which is both entertainment and informative. And I'm running out of words to write, so let's wrap it up here.

There's also a ton of Fox and MGM "first time of Blu-ray" releases coming in January, as well as a few cool looking documentaries and another in Kino Classics' Forbidden Fruit exploitation series. I'm really regretting not writing something about "Tintorera...Tiger Shark", but we're already several thousand words into this shitshow, so let's leave it at "that's probably something worth looking at". February brings some great reissues (a pair of Sammy Davis Jr. features amongst them), last year's Billie Holiday doc, and a Blu-ray release of "The Kid Stays In The Picture". Come back in 30 for my best Robert Evans impression.