Mike Spring
What’s New in Home Video & Pop Culture – September 10th, 2024
This is one of those weeks that literally has a little bit of everything. Superheroes? Check. Critically acclaimed film making its 4K debut? Check. Indie films? Check. Concert video? Check. Documentary? Check. If you like it, we’ve got it! Read on to check out all of this week’s releases!
Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Three
The Movie: As I mentioned in my review of the first two Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths movies, in the DC Comics universe, Crisis on Infinite Earths was a huge mega-event in the 1980s that aimed to take all of DC’s many multiversal Earths and condense them into one cohesive universe. Written by Marv Wolfman and drawn by the legendary George Perez, it’s considered a classic of the Bronze Age of comics. What I might not have expounded on is the fact that I always found it kind of confusing. It’s so sprawling and complex that every time I read it, I find myself scratching my head, so I knew adapting it into an animated movie would be a herculean task, and I was glad DC decided to split it up into three films to really give everything time to expand and be explained. And for the first two movies, I feel like they did a pretty good job of that. But Part Three starts off right where the cliffhanger from Part Two left off (and I really think a quick expository recap would have been super helpful), and I started the film off scratching my head once again. It took me a long time to figure out what was going on, especially since there’s a time jump from the end of the second film. This time around, the multiverse has been hidden in The Bleed, a sort of pocket universe (which didn’t even exist in the comics when the original series came out) but the Anti-Monitor finds the earths anyway, prompting our heroes to try and find a way to defeat him and save all of the earths. There are a few neat action sequences in it, including one with dinosaurs that’s a lot of fun, but plot-wise, it felt like it was too muddled for a final act, at least for me. I wish this had been a stronger ending to the trilogy.
The Special Features: There are two ten-ish minute-long featurettes: A Multiverse of Inspiration and John and John: Stewart and Constantine.
Digital Copy Included?: Yes
The Wrap-Up: The first two installments I reviewed on 4K Ultra HD in gorgeous Steelbook cases. This entry was also released on 4K UHD in a Steelbook, but unfortunately due to to distributor issues, I only received a Blu-ray for review this go around. But if you picked up the first two in Steelbook, don’t worry, the third one is out there for you as well. Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part Three is worth watching to finish the trilogy, but I’d definitely recommend a re-watch of the first two before diving into this one so you’re not as confused as I was.
Wind River (Wal-Mart Exclusive 4K Ultra HD Steelbook)
The Movie: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, and Jon Bernthal star in this terrific thriller from director Taylor Sheridan (the powerhouse behind the Yellowstone television franchise.) It’s a cold film, both in tone and setting, as we follow a green FBI agent and a hunter/tracker trying to find a killer on a very remote Native American reservation. Not surprisingly, both Olsen and Renner are terrific, and the film – while not a blistering action movie – is filled with atmosphere and mood. It reminds me a bit of a movie like Christopher Nolan’s Insomnia, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. It is not an easy film to watch, though, so if you’ve never seen it, be forewarned: there are some tough moments in it and some deep and dark themes. By and large, that’s not the pervading tone of the entire movie, but this isn’t a lighthearted movie by any stretch. While Wind River has been available on home video before, this week it gets a Wal-Mart exclusive Steelbook, which is a gorgeous packaging job wrapped around a 4K Ultra HD release of the movie.
The 4K Video/Audio: Lionsgate has done a nice job of bringing Wind River to 4K Ultra HD, with a transfer that’s results in the film looking the best I can say I’ve seen it on home video. Of course, the film looked pretty great to begin with, but close-ups especially are nicely clean and clear. The colors really stand out as well, too, giving the film a new lifelike look on 4K. The soundtrack isn’t an especially overdone affair, but you get clean and clear dialogue with no crackle or hiss, and the music comes through sounding full and effective. During the more action-oriented scenes, the surrounds become much more active, and gunshots sound booming thanks to a nice bass channel. Overall, it’s a very strong effort for a great film.
The Special Features: You get a handful of deleted scenes and a behind-the-scenes video series.
Digital Copy Included?: Yes
The Wrap-Up: While Wind River received a lot of critical acclaim when it was released in theaters, it didn’t get much traction at the box office. Hopefully you’ve discovered it on your own by now, but if you haven’t this new 4K Ultra HD Steelbook is a great way to do it.
Icons Unearthed: Fast & Furious
The Show: Created by Brian Volk-Weiss, who made a name for himself with the Netflix series The Toys That Made Us, Icons Unearthed is a show that takes huge pop culture icons and dives into the making of them. The first seasons featured Star Wars, The Simpsons, and Star Trek, and now Volk-Weiss has turned his lens towards a new pop culture icon: The Fast & Furious film franchise. Now, if you’ve been reading my reviews for a while or listened to my After the Ending movie podcast, you’ll already know that I am a rabid fan of this franchise. I love every single film, I love the cheesiness of the whole “Family” vibe, I love how over the top it is; in short, I love everything about it. So I was beyond excited to see Icons Unearthed give Fast & Furious its own six-episode deep dive. As usual, what makes Icons Unearthed so much fun is not just the sheer number of people involved with the property that the show manages to interview and the great behind the scenes footage they dig up, but the way they put it all together in a light-hearted and zingy way that makes the shows so much fun to watch. Also, I really have to stress how many people the show gets for interviews; from the cast to directors and writers and editors and costumers and drivers and editors and special effects people… it’s really impressive.
The Special Features: As usual for Icons Unearthed, you get the unedited interviews with several of the key contributors, including cast members Tyrese Gibson, Tip “T.I.” Harris, Lucas Black, and a few other contributors. All told, you get over five hours of bonus interviews.
Digital Copy Included?: No
The Wrap-Up: Compared to properties like Star Wars and Star Trek, there’s been comparatively little making-of material out there on The Fast & The Furious films, so this is a treasure trove of material for fans of the greatest action/family movie franchise in existence!
Michael Giacchino: Exotic Themes (Vinyl Record)
The Soundtrack: Ohhh, man, I have been waiting for this one. I’m not gonna lie, there’s going to be very little objectivity in this review. Because this release is AWESOME. First off, for those of you who don’t know who Michael Giacchino is, he’s of the premiere film and television soundtrack composers in Hollywood, and I happen to be a big fan of his work. You’ll know his name from everything from Lost to Mission Impossible to The incredibles and everything in between. This week, we have a gorgeous new vinyl record release called Michael Giacchno: Exotic Themes from Mutant, who has quickly become one of my favorite music labels. Mutant focuses on releasing vinyl soundtrack albums (along with prints and other merchandise) that is uber-high quality, gorgeously packaged, and appealing to fans of all genres of film and television. While I’ve reviewed their past soundtrack releases for Dune 2 and Shogun that were all devoted to one project, this one instead works as a greatest hits compilation, if you will, but with a twist. On this 2-disc set you will find 24 different musical tracks, all themes from his various shows and movies. So rather than focusing on a single movie, you get themes from Speed Racer, Cloverfield, Cars, Lost, Alias, Ratatouille, Super 8, Mission Impossible, and more. However, each one has been re-arranged and rerecorded by Giacchino, in a lounge music/easy listening style. Which, at first glance, might seem like an odd choice. But rather than have a bunch of musical tracks of different styles competing for space, this way, they all take on a thematic feel that ties them together in ways that are both unique and familiar. It’s a fascinating experience, and an incredible new framing of the best and most recognizable pieces of music by an artist who has been a major force in the soundtrack world for the past 25 years.
The Packaging & Specs: This two-disc vinyl release features two records plus a booklet that includes liner notes on the music by Charlie Brigden. Michael Giacchno: Exotic Themes is available on Mutant’s webstore at: madebymutant.com.
2 LPs, pressed on 140 Gram vinyl (also available on CD)
Artwork by Luke Insekt
MSRP: $40 vinyl / $16 CD
The Track Listing:
Side One
1. Primordial Forest (The Lost World Jurassic Park)
2. Medal of Honor
3. Bristow and Bristow (Alias)
4. Secret Weapons Over Normandy
5. The Incredibles Suite
6. Take a Hike (Lost)
Side Two
1. Life and Death (Lost)
2. Sky High
3. Space Mountain
4. The Family Stone Waltz (The Family Stone)
5. Le Festin (Ratatouille)
6. Ratatouille
Side Three
1. ROAR! (Cloverfield)
2. Casa Cristo (Speed Racer)
3. Land of the Lost
4. Enterprising Young Men (Star Trek)
6. Married Life (Up)
7. Let Me In
Side Four
1. LAX (Lost)
2. The Turbomater (Cars 2)
3. A Man, A Plan, A Code, Dubai (Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol)
4. Monte Carlo
5. Super 8 Suite
The Wrap-Up: At first, I was uncertain what I was in for with this release, as I’m not a huge aficionado of easy listening music. But Giacchino is incredibly talented, and what he’s done is take themes that you’ll recognize but don’t always make the best listening music and turn them into something akin to a soundtrack you’d want to have playing as you sit by the beach and sip on a cocktail. It’s cool, it’s fun, it’s funky, and I really enjoyed it.
Dark Night of the Scarecrows: Double Feature (4K Ultra HD)
The Movies: The original Dark Night of the Scarecrow was a TV-movie that was a ratings hit when it aired in 1981. It starred Larry Drake, Charles Durning, and Lane Smith and was pretty much the first horror film to feature a scarecrow as the monster. It’s actually a pretty solid horror flick for being made-for TV and not with a particularly high budget. But I can see why television audiences in 1981 were drawn to it. Fast forward 40 years, and believe it or not, they made a sequel. While Dark Night of the Scarecrow 2 is technically an actual sequel to the original film, it was made in 2021 and features no actors from the original film (sadly because most of them have passed away.) However, rather than just using the name, the film does actually take place in the same locale as the original and tries to tie in where it can. It’s a low-budget affair and it’s not terribly scary, but honestly it’s heart is in the right place and it’s better than some other low-budget horror flicks I’ve seen lately, Just know you’re not getting a big-deal horror movie here and you will probably find it enjoyable enough for what it is. This week, we get both movies packaged together for (what I believe is) the very first time, and even better, they’re on 4K Ultra HD!
The 4K Video/Audio: Both films come on 4K Ultra HD discs, but there’s an obvious difference between the two. The 1981 film looks relatively crisp and clean considering the source material, but there’s no denying the age of the material. The second movie, being a lot newer, naturally looks much better. The soundtracks aren’t laden with surround activity, but they do manage to convey the dialogue and music clearly and the newer film does offer up some surround moments in the satellite speakers.
The Special Features: This set comes loaded with extras. Included are: two newly recorded audio commentaries (one for each film), plus an original commentary for the first film with the writer and director; a retrospective documentary; a cast reunion panel from 2011; a photo gallery; and two trailers.
Digital Copy Included?: No
The Wrap-Up: While the original Night of the Scarecrow on 4K is the real attraction here, as a completist, I think it’s cool to get both movies in the same package. With Halloween around the corner, this is a great way to experience a horror movie you might not have seen before.
Todd Rundgren: Liars Live
The Movie: As I always like to do when I review a music title, I think it’s important to disclose up front whether I’m already a fan of the musician or not. In this case, I can say that I’m not. Now that doesn’t mean I don’t like Todd Rundgren; in fact, prior to watching Todd Rundgren: Liars Live, my exposure to Rundgren’s music was almost non-existent. So it’s not that I don’t like him, I just don’t know him. That said, Liars Live is a very cool disc, and I would imagine existing Rundgren fans will really enjoy it. It was recorded in my current neck of the woods, Albany, New York, at a venue I frequent called The Egg! How cool is that? It’s a 2005 concert that apparently has some notoriety among fans. While not every song was my cup of tea, I liked quite a few of them, and I can definitely appreciate Rundgren’s talent. I did especially like his cover of The Beatles’ While My Guitar Gently Weeps, too! The concert runs for over two hours, which makes an excellent value for fans, and it mixes up songs from his 2004 album, Liars, as well as some of his most well-loved tunes.
Track Listing:
Prelude
Truth
Buffalo Grass
Mammon
Fascist Christ
I Hate My Frickin’ I.S.P.
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
God Said
Liar
Soul Brother
Flaw
Sweet
Past
Love Science
Born To Synthesize
Feel It
The Want Of A Nail
Hello It’s Me
Just One Victory
The Special Features: There’s a slide show and some trailers, but that’s about it.
Digital Copy Included?: No
The Wrap-Up: This concert has been released on DVD before, but Todd Rundgren: Liars Live marks its first release on Blu-ray, and I think the improved picture and sound quality are something any Rundgren fan is going to want.
