What’s New on DVD/Blu-ray in December: ‘Bros,’ ‘The Velvet Underground,’ ‘Nasty Women’ of Silent Cinema and More
New Release Wall
“Bros” (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment): The comedy that carried the weight of so many competing expectations that it’s a miracle it exists at all, “Bros” is the queer zeitgeist moment that gave away a few too many gay secrets to the straight audiences who saw it, but for better or worse, those secrets were delightfully funny. Co-writer Billy Eichner stars as a gay man indifferent to love but still open to possibilities when a traditional handsome jock (Luke Macfarlane) enters the picture. It turns out both of them have been traumatized by the homophobic world around them, but they figure it out in “When Harry Met Sally…” style by the end. That’s not a spoiler; all rom-coms end that way.
Also available:
“Amsterdam” (20th Century/New Regency): The latest from David O. Russell is a crime epic starring Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Christian Bale and a supporting cast overflowing with too many names you know.
“The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures): From filmmaker Martin McDonagh comes this darkly funny reteaming of “In Bruges” stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two lifelong friends thrown into chaos when one of them decides to end the relationship.
“Call Jane” (Lionsgate): The true story of the Janes, an underground group of women who provided abortion services before it became legal, starring Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver and Wunmi Mosaku.
“Clerks III” (Lionsgate): More than 15 years after “Clerks II,” the clerks are still clerking.
“Halloween Ends” (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment) Less horror film than family drama about generational trauma, but as final chapters go it’s pretty definitively final.
“Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile” (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment): A little boy befriends a singing crocodile in this charmingly silly musical adventure.
“Medieval” (Paramount Home Entertainment): Ben Foster stars in this epic of battling rulers during the time of the Holy Roman Empire, co-starring Michael Caine.
“Paradise City” (Lionsgate): John Travolta and Bruce Willis face off in a thriller involving the hunt for a bounty hunter’s killer.
“Secret Headquarters” (Paramount Home Entertainment): A young boy discovers that his father is the world’s most powerful superhero, and it’s Owen Wilson, who is maybe not the most obvious casting, and more power to it.
“Smile” (Paramount Home Entertainment): The surprise hit horror film that reminds you not to look at anyone ever because they will grin you to death.
“Ticket to Paradise” (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment): George Clooney and Julia Roberts are feuding exes with a daughter who wants to marry a man she just met so they fly off to Bali to make it stop. Hijinks ensue.
“The Woman King” (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment): Viola Davis stars as a woman warrior, leading a band of other fighting women in the African Kingdom of Dahomey, who must face forces both internal and external on her journey to becoming the titular monarch.
New Indie
“Mad God” (Shudder/RLJE): Phil Tippett — the man who gave you legendary animation in “Star Wars,” “RoboCop” and “Jurassic Park,” work that earned him an Academy Award — has given the world something wild with “Mad God.” This gloriously weird film has been 30 years in the making and is the “story” of an assassin in a destroyed, apocalyptic hellscape, who moves through the nightmare scenario on a mission to… well, it’s complicated. The meticulous, painstaking process of stop-motion animation is used to insanely elaborate effect, an instant cult film that has to be seen — probably more than once — to be believed.
Also available:
“The Ambush” (Well Go USA): Director Pierre Morel (“Taken”) takes on this action thriller about Emirati soldiers ambushed in hostile territory.
“The Loneliest Boy In The World” (Well Go USA): “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie” star Max Harwood literally digs up zombie pals in this new horror comedy from filmmaker Martin Owen.
“Old Man” (RLJE Films): An old man lives in a cabin in the woods. And a lost hiker stops by. Don’t try to guess the rest, but let’s all finally agree not to hang out at cabins in the woods.
“Pirates” (Gunpowder & Sky): Three London teenagers drive all night on New Year’s Eve 1999 trying to find the ultimate party.
“Slash/Back” (RLJE): Nyla Innuksuk’s exciting debut feature is a Canadian Inuit sci-fi thriller about a gang of teen girls who have to battle an alien invasion in their hometown
“Uncle Kent 2” (Factory 25): This very meta sequel to Joe Swanberg’s 2011 indie “Uncle Kent” is about trying to make a sequel to Joe Swanberg’s 2011 indie “Uncle Kent.” Absurdist to fresh new heights.
Also Read:
‘Bros’ Decoded: Why You Shouldn’t Read Too Much Into the Gay Rom-Com’s Weak Box Office
New Foreign
“Medusa” (Music Box): By day, a young Brazilian woman and her friends perform sweetly feminine Evangelical purity and faith for anyone who cares to notice, but by night they’re a vigilante girl gang roaming the night in search of transgressions to punish in Anita Rocha da Silveria’s startling drama. It’s a spooky, stylish, very contemporary view of youthful certainty and religious hypocrisy and the wreckage they can create.
Also available:
“Apostles” (Breaking Glass Pictures): Hong Kong auteur Scud’s latest is a provocative queer drama about the philosophical and sexual exploration of death.
“Goodbye, Don Glees!” (GKIDS): The debut feature anime from Atsuko Ishizuka is a coming-of-age drama about friends growing apart.
“Hinterland” (Film Movement): Oscar-winning German director Stefan Ruzowitzky delivers this story of a traumatized WWI soldier who returns home to Vienna to find that a serial killer is tracking his friends.
“The Invisible Witness” (Icarus Films Home Video): A man wakes up next to the corpse of his mistress and has to figure out who killed her in this Italian thriller.
“The Last Bookshop of The World” (IndiePix Films): Four people from different cultures set off together to establish “the last bookshop” in a geographically remote location in this hybrid drama-documentary from Finnish director Rax Rinnekangas.
“Missing” (Dark Star Pictures) A bounty-hunting man searches for an elusive serial killer. When he goes missing in the process, his daughter has to find him in this Japanese noir.
“Onoda: 10,000 Nights in The Jungle” (Dark Star Pictures): This Cannes hit and Cesar Award winner is based on the true story of Hiroo Onoda, who spent 30 years in the Philippine jungle, refusing to believe World War II was over.
“The Roundup” (Capelight): Two South Korean detectives are sent to Vietnam to extradite suspect and wind up navigating a labyrinth of murders in this sequel to 2017’s “The Outlaw.”
“The Student and Mr. Henri” (Icarus): A grumpy old man wants to break up the relationship between his son and the son’s flighty girlfriend, so he enlists a young student to cause chaos in this French farce.
New Documentary
“The Velvet Underground” (The Criterion Collection): Lou Reed and John Cale and Moe Tucker and Sterling Morrison emerged from the 60s underground and intersected with the art world, the avant-garde, fashion, drugs and Andy Warhol. They added deadpan diva Nico to the mix and the result was classic rock that nobody recognized as classic rock in its moment. Todd Haynes takes every available strand of information and eyewitness testimony to create a loving, swirling tribute to this revolutionary band.
Also available:
“The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales” (Fork Films): Abigail Disney’s doc highlights the nationwide income inequality crisis through the lens of mistreatment of Disney theme park employees.
“Anne Murray: Full Circle” (Virgil Films): Follow the career of Canada’s pioneering musical superstar Anne Murray and her 40+ years of making smooth pop for everyone.
“Can’t Be Stopped” (MVD Entertainment): House of Pain’s Everlast narrates this documentary about Los Angeles graffiti artists.
“Freak Scene” (Utopia): Legendary, influential 80s post-punk band Dinosaur Jr gets the lovingly fractured documentary they deserve.
“Free Puppies!” (First Run Features): The story of a group of women in Dade County, Georgia, who took it upon themselves to start an animal rescue organization.
“Jane by Charlotte” (Utopia): Two French cinema icons, Charlotte Gainsbourg and her mother Jane Birkin, connect deeply in this film directed by Gainsbourg.
“Old Friends: A Dogumentary” (MVD Entertainment): This sweet documentary about the Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, is already making you cry, and you haven’t even watched it yet.
“Riotsville, U.S.A.” (Magnolia): This doc excavates the history of violent law enforcement by way of model towns called Riotsvilles where military and police were trained to respond to protests in the 1960s.
Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman Collection (Milestone): This two-disc set delivers three essential queer works from two of this generation’s most important documentary filmmakers: “Common Threads: Stories from The Quilt,” “Where Are We? Our Trip Through America,” and the harrowing “Paragraph 175.”
“The Story of Film: A New Generation” (Music Box Films): Mark Cousins goes deep into the presence of international cinema in the 2010s, covering filmmakers like Apichatpong Weerasethakul and world cinema phenomena like “Holy Motors,” “Parasite” and “The Babadook.”
“Worst to First: The True Story of Z100 New York” (Gunpowder & Sky): How the lowest radio station in New York became #1, featuring appearances by Jon Bon Jovi, Joan Jett, Debbie Gibson, and Taylor Dayne.
New Grindhouse
“Creature From Black Lake” (Synapse/MVD Entertainment): In the 1970s, Bigfoot and other Bigfoot-ish creatures became a pop-culture phenomenon. TV and film fantasies followed. “The Legend of Boggy Creek,” a movie that inspired “The Blair Witch Project,” was exceptionally popular, and four years later came “Creature From Black Lake,” a drive-in cult classic about a Bigfoot stalking some college students, that spent its post-theatrical life being bootlegged. Now comes this restored 4K version on Blu-ray, just in time for your Bigfoot-themed holiday gathering.
Also available:
“Alienoid” (Well Go USA): Choi Dong-hoon’s wild mashup of genres involves two shamans seeking a time-traveling sword who meet some people hunting down an alien. Why not?
“The Black Crystal” (AGFA): This bit of 90s underground shlock is a homemade Super 8 satanic cult murder blast of goofy fun, the way most satanic cult murders tend to be.
“County Line” (Well Go USA): Not to be confused with grindhouse classic “Macon County Line” (ok, maybe a little confusion is fine), in this violent drama, one man must take the law into his own hands after his best friend is gunned down.
“The Leech” (Arrow): A dark comedy-horror about a priest who welcomes a struggling couple into his home for Christmas for some mayhem.
“Mindfield” (TVA Films): “The war is on for brain control!” announces the box of this late 80s Canadian conspiracy/CIA mind control experiment adventure starring Michael Ironside and Christopher Plummer.
“Nightmare at Noon” (Arrow): In this 80s shock classic, scientists poison the water of a small town and its residents turn into homicidal maniacs.
“Satan’s Menagerie” (VHShitfest): Shot on VHS (note the name of the distributor), this 90s horror jam is a tribute to the Universal monsters of the past and to the resourcefulness that comes with having no budget.
Also Read:
Why Todd Haynes Never Wanted to Leave the Editing Room Making ‘The Velvet Underground’
New Classic
“Cinema’s First Nasty Women” (Kino Classics): Know your film history starting right here. This is a four-disc set that collects more than 14 hours of silent films about feminist rebellion and gender non-conformity (there’s a reference in the press release to weaponized baked goods that’s all you need to know, really). All the era’s popular genres are here: slapstick, adventure, Western and farce. And the discs span 99 European and American titles from 1898 to 1925. Bonus features are plentiful: new musical scores, interviews, documentaries, commentary tracks, and a very thorough book to accompany your viewing.
Also available:
“Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman” (Warner Archive Collection): This classic of 50s sci-fi stars Allison Hayes as a woman exposed to radiation who then wreaks what amounts to Lady Godzilla havoc on her oppressors.
“The Ballad of the Sad Café” (Kino Classics): British character actor and filmmaker Simon Callow (“Four Weddings and a Funeral”) directed Vanessa Redgrave in this Merchant Ivory adaptation of the classic Carson McCullers novella.
“Black Christmas” (Scream Factory): Fun fact, this 1974 Christmas horror all-timer (nearly 50 years later it’s still genuinely disturbing) was directed by Bob Clark, director of the heartwarming “A Christmas Story.” This is a packed-with-extras, three-disc, 4K collector’s edition.
“Blonde: The Marilyn Stories” (Film Chest Media Group): Did Andrew Dominick’s “Blonde” whet your appetite for more weird biopics about the legendary Monroe? Well here are three: 2001’s “Blonde” (Joyce Chopra’s made-for-TV adaptation of the Joyce Carol Oates novel, considered in some quarters to be superior to Dominik’s version), 1991’s “Marilyn and Me” and the 1976 exploitation film “Goodbye Norma Jean.”
“Carrie” (Scream Factory): The classic 70s pig-blood-apolooza starring Sissy Spacek gets a deluxe, three-disc, extras-packed, 4K steelbook collector’s package.
“Cooley High” (The Criterion Collection): A classic of 70s Black cinema, this high school drama is a moving coming-of-age story that had not previously been told in American film.
“Coraline” (Shout Factory): Henry Selick’s modern classic of stop-motion animation gets a nice 4K restoration in a limited-edition steelbook package.
“La Dénonciation” (Icarus Films Home Video) Jacques Doniol-Valcroze’s 1961 murder mystery dares to touch on the then-touchy (and probably still-touchy) subject of resistors and collaborators in WWII.
“A Fish in The Bathtub” (Kino Classics): This 90s comedy from the late great filmmaker Joan Micklin Silver (“Crossing Delancey”) was overlooked in its moment, but features the talents of comedy legends Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara (plus an early appearance by Mark Ruffalo).
“Elisa” (Altered Innocence): 90s French classic with Vanessa Paradis as a street kid on a vengeful hunt for the man (Gerard Depardieu) who abandoned her and her mother.
Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XI (Kino Lorber): The latest in this ongoing series of collected noir titles (1948’s “A Woman’s Vengeance,” 1950’s “I Was A Shoplifter” and the 1956 prison drama “Behind the High Wall”) features stars Charles Boyer, Sylvia Sidney, Ann Blyth and Jessica Tandy.
The Films of Doris Wishman: The Daylight Years (AGFA/Something Weird): The nudist films of the pioneering underground filmmaker’s output are collected here: “Nude on the Moon,” “Gentlemen Prefer Nature Girls” and “Blaze Starr Goes Nudist” are among the half-dozen titles.
“A Game for Six Lovers” (Icarus Films Home Video): Jacques Doniol-Valcroze’s 1960 French New Wave family drama pushed boundaries and comes with music by Serge Gainsbourg.
“Girl on a Motorcycle” (KL Studio Classics) 1968 cool and leather outfits converge in this lusty adventure starring Marianne Faithfull and Alain Delon. A 4K restoration.
“The Hallelujah Trail” (KL Studio Classics): Burt Lancaster commands this 1951 Western-comedy.
“Mystery Men” (Kino Lorber): The “other” superheroes converge in this 90s comedy blast with a cool cast, among them Janeane Garofalo, Ben Stiller, Eddie Izzard, Paul Reubens and Tom Waits.
“Night of the Iguana” (Warner Archive Collection): The 1964 drama that pushed the limits of studio censors (as most Tennessee Williams adaptations of the era did), starring Richard Burton as a very bad priest, with Ava Gardner and Deborah Kerr as the women in his orbit.
“On The Yard”/”A Walk on the Moon” (Cohen Film Collection): Two restored and rarely seen films from Raphael D. Silver. “On The Yard stars John Heard in a thoughtful prison drama, and “A Walk on the Moon” reaches back to the summer of 1969 and the Apollo 11 mission.
“Laws of Gravity” (KL Studio Classics): In 1992 Nick Gomez debuted with this acclaimed urban drama starring Peter Greene and pre-“Sopranos” Edie Falco.
Michael Haneke Trilogy (The Criterion Collection): Severe Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke’s first three theatrical features — “The Seventh Continent,” “Benny’s Video,” and “71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance” — are collected here to initiate you into his unsettling world.
“My Best Friend’s Wedding” (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment): Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, and Rupert Everett in what might be THE classic 90s rom-com, now in 4K.
“Nobody’s Fool” (KL Studio Classics): Robert Benton’s 1994 Academy Award–nominated comedy-drama showcases late-career Paul Newman at his best. Add to that early appearances from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Margo Martindale, as well as some of Bruce Willis’ and Melanie Griffith’s most delicate acting work.
“One Hundred Steps” (Raro): This 2000 drama tells the true story of Italian activist Peppino Impastato, who spoke out against the Sicilian mafia and paid the price for it.
“ParaNorman” (Shout Factory): The much-loved 2012 stop-motion animation horror comedy gets a 4K restoration and a limited-edition steelbook package.
“Pulp Fiction” (Paramount Home Entertainment): In 4K Ultra-HD for the first time, Tarantino’s 90s classic appears here with loads of special features in a steelbook package.
“The Rainbow Boys” (CIP): Donald Pleasance stars in this 1973 Canadian classic about a prospector and a drifter searching for gold.
“The Scent of the Night” (Raro/Kino Lorber): The 1998 Italian crime drama follows a disgruntled cop who becomes a full-time criminal.
Shawscope Volume 2 (Arrow): Another collection of stunning martial arts classics from the legendary Shaw Brothers. The fourteen titles include: “The 36th Chamber of Shaolin” (and its two sequels), “Mad Monkey Kung Fu,” “The Kid with The Golden Arm,” “The Boxer’s Omen” and “Martial Arts of Shaolin.”
“Silent Running” (Arrow): Bruce Dern and a team of space botanists fight to save Earth’s plants in this dystopian 70s classic.
“The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” (KL Studio Classics): Catch up on 1974’s stunning, tense subway train hostage drama from Joseph Sargent, starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw, making its 4K debut.
Three Films by Mai Zetterling (The Criterion Collection): “Loving Couples,” “Night Games” and “The Girls” are collected here, all of them boundary-breaking examples of 60s feminist cinema from Swedish filmmaker Zetterling
“Twilight” (KL Studio Classics): Not the vampire movie, but rather Robert Benton’s 1998 murder mystery featuring Gene Hackman, Paul Newman, Susan Sarandon, James Garner, Reese Witherspoon and Stockard Channing.
“The Unguarded Moment” (Kino Lorber): The 1956 thriller features swimming movie star Esther Williams as a high-school teacher being stalked.
“Walk Proud” (KL Studio Classics): Back in the 1970s, studios still cast white actors to play Latino characters in brown makeup, so this time capsule starring Robby Benson as a teen gang member is a fascinating artifact of Hollywood racism.
Also Read:
What’s New on Blu-ray and DVD for the Holidays, From Hallmark to Horror to Christmas Classics
New TV
“Maigret”: Season 1 (Kino Classics): Unseen for decades, this BBC series from the early 1960s is considered the best adaptation of Georges Simenon’s famous novels. Starring Rupert Davies as French detective Jules Maigret, the moody drama spans 13 episodes, now restored in HD and presented in their original full-screen TV format. If you remember it from its moment, or are digging into TV history, this sort of lovingly restored release is one of the reasons that physical media is so essential.
Also available:
“The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet”: Ultimate Christmas Collection (MPI Media): The classic 50s sitcom ran for 14 years and, you betcha, did a Christmas episode every season.
“Better Call Saul”: Season Six (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment): In the final season, Saul finally becomes Saul. And every episode comes with a commentary. Series adjourned!
“Creepshow”: Season 3 (Shudder/RLJE): All the murders and monsters, the supernatural and the everyday-terrifying, back for another season.
“House of the Dragon”: The Complete First Season (Warner Bros Home Entertainment): The prequel series to “Game of Thrones” explores the rise of the House of Targaryen, and that’s fun, but let’s all agree not to name our newborns after anyone here.
“My Hero Academia” Season 5, Part 2 (Crunchyroll): More League of Villains! And if you snap up the limited-edition package, you get lots of extras, including an art book.
“Reacher”: Season One (Paramount Home Entertainment): He’s very tall, has no phone, and lives by his wits, and he’ll need them when he’s accused of murder in a small town. But you know Jack Reacher always figures it out.
“South Park: Post-COVID” (Paramount Home Entertainment): The South Park kids try to go back in time to prevent COVID for the sake of comedy.
“The Staircase” (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment): Based on the true-crime story of a man whose wife died suspiciously in North Carolina, this limited series stars Colin Firth, Toni Collette, Michael Stuhlbarg, Juliette Binoche and Parker Posey.
“Star Trek: Discovery”: Season 4 (CBS Home Entertainment/Paramount Home Entertainment): Features 90 minutes of extras including commentary, deleted scenes, and a gag reel, which is always everybody’s favorite thing.
“Ultraman Kids 3000”: The Complete Series (Mill Creek Entertainment): Muppet Babies, but make it Ultraman, and watch your children become lifelong fans.
