Recap
Review
This week sees a recent theatrical hit make its way to home video, plus a handful of odds and ends. It’s kind of quiet in the pre-Easter frame, but I expect we’ll have some bigger releases next week. Read on for full details!
The Iron Claw
The Movie: I am a casual wrestling fan at best; in that I’m fascinated by the world of wrestling but never actually watch any real wrestling. As such, I’ve heard of the Von Erich family, but didn’t really know much about them. The Iron Claw is a biopic that focuses on Kevin Von Erich (played here by a BEEFED UP Zac Efron!) but also tells the story of his whole family, including wrestling patriarch Fritz and brothers Kerry, David, and Mike. I had heard a lot of people on my social media feeds loudly proclaiming how great The Iron Claw was when it was in theaters, so I went into it pretty excited to watch it. And I don’t want to damn it with faint praise, because I did enjoy the film, but it doesn’t go much past that. The Von Erich family’s story is interesting, but it feels like we’ve seen it in these biopics before. The father is a wrestler who never got the title he felt he deserved and he pushes the kids beyond their limits. The four brothers have different levels of interest in wrestling and there’s some sibling rivalry, and of course there’s Kevin’s supportive yet independent spouse, who loves him and challenges him when necessary. It’s a good film, but I can’t say I ever thought it elevated to “great.” Zac Efron is almost unrecognizable looking like a massive and jacked up wrestler, and all of the cast (which also includes Jeramy Allen White from The Bear) are terrific (and great to see Maura Tierney in a lead role again!). I just wish the film had been a little more exciting overall.
The Special Features: There’s not a ton, but you do get a Making-Of, a Cast and Crew Q&A, and the film’s trailer.
The Wrap-Up: I enjoyed The Iron Claw. It’s a solid film that truly evokes the ‘70s and features some really outstanding performances from a great cast. It’s just not a movie I can say I got really excited about. Still, it’s definitely worth a watch whether you’re a wrestling fan or not.
Over the Edge
The Movie: I love when a studio like Shout Factory brings out a great new special edition of a movie that I wasn’t even familiar with. I like to discover hidden gems, and the 70s era drama/thriller Over The Edge is one of those movies. Starring a young Matt Dillon (in his big screen debut), the film introduces us to the community of New Grenada: “Tomorrow’s city… today.” A planned community, the planners forgot to account for the fact that over a quarter of the citizens are under the age of 18. Which is fine and dandy until they get bored, and then things get chaotic. Its not quite a horror movie, but there are some thriller elements floating through what is ostensibly a drama. The story might seem a little outlandish in places, but it is an interesting view on society and youth. And young Matt Dillon is almost unrecognizable (but in a good way!) The film also features an awesome soundtrack filled with late ‘70s tunes from artists such as Van Halen, The Ramones, The Cars, and Cheap Trick, which does add to the enjoyment.
The Special Features: For a somewhat obscure movie, Shout Factory packed this one to the gills with extra features. There is a 7-part documentary called Wide Streets + Narrow Minds, three interview featurettes, two audio commentaries (including one with the director, producer, and writers, and one with actor Michael Kramer And Journalist Mike Sacks), the full educational film that’s featured in the movie, plus a number of trailers and promos.
The Wrap-Up: Shout Factory has done a great job taking a pretty obscure movie and giving it the deluxe Blu-ray treatment. Over The Edge isn’t perfect, but it was a neat experience to watch it for the first time. Check it out.
Polar Rescue
The Movie: Donnie Yen stars in this new Asian survival thriller which sees him taking a break from playing his usual roles as a grizzled cop, a steely criminal, or an ancient warrior. In Polar Rescue, Yen plays a father whose son gets lost in the snowy mountains while the family is on vacation. A massive search is set underway, with Yen playing the obsessive father who’s trying to make up for his past mistakes by finding their son alive. I have to say, overall I enjoyed the film, but it has some flaws. On the plus side, there are some very tense moments and some good action scenes, so it does keep you on the edge of your seat. But the film also makes some choices I don’t love, such as painting Yen’s character as kind of a bad father and also mostly the reason why the kid is lost in the first place. Honestly, I don’t think it would have taken away from the story at all if he was just a good dad whose kid got lost, rather than a bad dad who was responsible for the events. It made it harder to sympathize with the character than I think it needed to be. That said it’s still an enjoyable and tense survival thriller, and it’s worth tracking down.
The Special Features: There are no extra features save for some trailers.
The Wrap-Up: A flawed adventure/survival film but an enjoyable one, Polar Rescue doesn’t quite fit into the “disaster movie” genre, but it wouldn’t be out of place in it, either. Worth a watch if you’re in the mood for something disaster-adjacent.
Born to Fly
The Movie: This Chinese action film is effectively a take on Top Gun, but focusing more on test pilots than fighter pilots. Born to Fly features young hotshot pilots, including one who likes to break the rules (and may as well have been named Maverick) but instead of learning to fly and fight, here they are testing out the newest fighters, including a stealth jet. What we get then is boilerplate character stuff on the ground, but visually exciting sequences in the air. The production value on the film is terrific, with strong special effects and editing that ensure that – even though they’re just testing out the jets – the aerial scenes are still visceral, exciting, and filled with some actual danger. When things come back down to earth is when the film flags a bit, but not to fret, the aerial sequences aren’t gone for long. It’s an enjoyable movie, even if it’s all a bit surface-level.
The Special Features: Again, there are just a few trailers.
The Wrap-Up: It’s not quite up to Top Gun levels of quality, and there’s no denying Born to Fly wears its influences on its sleeve. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s not a deep film, but it’s a fast-moving one that doesn’t pause long enough to give you much time to think about its weaknesses.
Night of the Blood Monster
The Movie: If you know the name Jess Franco, chances are good you know your way around the cult (and occult) genre of movies. The prolific Spanish filmmaker specialized in low-budget exploitation films, and he became quite popular within that sub-genre of film amongst certain audiences. His constant output has been a source of material for home video studios like Blue Underground, who this week bring us a 4K Ultra HD (and Blu-ray combo) release of Night of the Blood Monster, aka The Bloody Judge. Starring Christopher Lee and a number of Franco Stalwarts like Maria Schell, the film isn’t heavy on plot but essentially introduces us to Judge Jeffries, a 17th century witch hunter who becomes lustily obsessed with one woman in particular. This leads to sed, death, and torture, and not always in that order. I’ll be honest, Franco’s brand of low-budget exploitation was never really my cup of tea, and I can’t say this film bucks that trend, but I can say this is a high quality release for fans of the director and his oeuvre.
The 4K Video/Audio: The film comes to home video on 4K Ultra HD, with an accompanying Blu-ray disc. Now, the movie came out in 1970, so obviously this isn’t a case of the transfer making the source material look brand new, but you will notice that image clarity is sharper and colors are more vibrant than you would expect. The soundtrack is a little on the thin side, but dialogue is clear and the music fills things in a bit. So it’s hard to complain too much from a technical standpoint.
The Special Features: This two disc set includes three audio commentaries (one with Film Historians Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson, one with Film Historians Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw, and one with Film Historians David Flint and Adrian Smith), plus Interviews with Director Jess Franco and Star Christopher Lee, additional interview features, deleted and alternate scenes, still galleries, and the usual trailers and promos.
The Wrap-Up: Fans of sleazy cinema and Jess Francophile’s will find this a worthy release, but it’s not the kind of movie the casual movie fan is going to rush out and buy. That’s okay, if it’s your thing, it’s a terrific release packed with value for your dollars.
BOOK: Teenage Wasteland – The Who at Winterland, 1968 and 1976
Official Synopsis: In February 1968 and March 1976, the Who performed shows in the same venue, almost ten years apart: San Francisco’s Winterland. Generally considered as two marginal years in the Who’s career, they are only apparently so. These two years represent a screen grab of the band taken in its purest form: live, and harder than ever, right before and right after the huge success the Who struggled to live with in the years between. Winterland was the perfect setting to see the band live in the city that welcomed them as a second home, San Francisco. At the Who’s first Winterland show in February 1968, just a few hundred hippies turn up. In March 1976, the venue is crammed to capacity—5,000 tickets are sold. Still, as the Examiner noted, “The Who could have sold eight times as many,” since 43,000 requests for tickets were sent! This all-access look at those two shows is a glimpse of what it was like to see the Who at Bill Graham’s legendary concert venue, and features firsthand accounts and previously unpublished photos by fans at the shows, as well as details the band behind the scenes and onstage.
The Book: Sometimes we’re lucky enough to receive movie and pop culture related books for review, and this week we were provided with a review copy of the excellent new coffee table book Teenage Wasteland – The Who at Winterland, 1968 and 1976. This huge 250+-page tome is a largely photo-based exploration of two of the Who’s concerts from the band’s heyday, one in 1968 (earlier in their career) and one in 1976 (full-on household name status.) There is some accompanying text in smaller sections throughout the book, which is helpful to provide context and tell some of the story of these shows, but by and large, the focus is on the photography, of which there is a seemingly endless supply. Color, black-and-white, close-ups, long shots, this book has them all. Even better, they’ve been curated to give you the best photos – but don’t worry, there are still hundreds of images to take in! I’m not a massively big Who fan, but I can see how this book would be a treasure trove for anyone who is.
The Specs: Author: Edoardo Genzolini
- Publisher: Schiffer
- Pages: 256
- Dimensions: 8.75 x 11.25
- Cover Price: $45.00
The Wrap-Up: With over 500 photos of one of rock’s most iconic bands, this is a treasure for any fans of The Who. The quality of the book, the breadth of the photos, and the accompanying text offer up the closest thing to being there.
