By ANGELA DAWSON
Front Row Features
Movies
Body Cam
Mary J. Blige (“Mudbound,” “Power Book II: Ghost”) and Nat Wolff (“The Kill Team,” “Semper Fi”) star in the intense action thriller “Body Cam,” available to purchase on DVD Tuesday July 14. David Zayas and Anika Noni Rose co-star.
When a routine traffic stop results in the unexplained, grisly death of her colleague, a cop (Blige) realizes footage of the incident will play for her eyes only. As the attacks mount, she races to understand the supernatural force behind them.
The film is directed by Malik Vitthal from a screenplay by Richmond Riedel and Nicholas McCarthy.
Bruce Lee: His Greatest Hits
The Criterion Collection pays tribute to the life and work of the iconic Bruce Lee with “Bruce Lee: His Greatest Hits,” five dazzling, action-packed kung-fu landmarks starring the international martial arts legend, available on Blu-ray Tuesday July 14.
Capturing Lee at the height of his artistry and superstardom, this seven-disc Blu-ray box set is loaded with special features, including alternate versions of the films, interviews with Lee’s collaborators and admirers, documentaries about his life and philosophies, commentaries, promotional materials, and more.
“Bruce Lee: His Greatest Hits” is a collection of high-flying classics from the ultimate fighter, whose unmatched persona and influence in cinema live on. The collection comprises: 4K digital restorations of “The Big Boss,” “Fist of Fury,” “Game of Death” and “The Way of the Dragon.”
The Carer
“The Carer,” a heartwarming dramedy, arrives on DVD and Digital Tuesday July 14, from Corinth Films.
Diagnosed with a rare form of Parkinson’s Disease, ailing theatrical legend Sir Michael Gifford (Brian Cox) is terminally ill—as well as foul-mouthed and entirely irascible. However, he’s determined not to let his affliction stand in the way of what could well be his final on-stage appearance, a ceremony by the Critic’s Guild of Great Britain honoring him with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Standing in his way instead is his overbearing daughter, Sophia (Emilia Fox), who’s determined to prevent him from attending the ceremony in his delicate condition and insistent on hiring a caretaker to see him through his final days.
Highly resistant to the concept of a full-time caregiver, Sir Michael reluctantly allows Dorottya (newcomer Coco König) into his home. An aspiring Hungarian stage actress, she secretly hopes that caring for Sir Michael will propel her own career onstage, so she endures his unbearable temperament. Their relationship gradually improves as her warmth and knowledge of theater begins to grow on the old lion.
As Sir Michael mellows, however, Dorottya’s underlying ambitions become more transparent and the staff, including his estate manager and former lover, Milly (Anna Chancellor), become suspicious of her true intentions. The real drama unfolds when Sir Michael learns of his scheming daughter’s plans to remove Dorottya from his life, from whom he has regained a sense of meaning and vigor. The film also stars Anna Chancellor (“Pennyworth,” “Four Weddings and a Funeral”), Karl Johnson (“The Death of Stalin, “Hot Fuzz”), with a special appearance by Roger Moore (James Bond films).
“The Carer” was directed by János Edelényi, from a screenplay he wrote with Gilbert Adair and Tom Kinninmont.
The DVD includes interviews and more. It is available for a suggested retail price (SRP) of $24.95.
Dateline: Saigon
Set in Southeast Asia during the 1960s, the documentary “Dateline: Saigon,” tells the inspiring story of a small group of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists—David Halberstam, Neil Sheehan, Malcolm Browne, Peter Arnett, and photojournalist Horst Faas—who fought to report the truth. It is available on DVD and VOD Tuesday July 14, from First Run Features.
Narrated by Sam Waterston, the documentary combines the drama and high stakes of “All the President’s Men” with the intrigue of “The Year of Living Dangerously.”
Divos!
The high school musical comedy “Divos!” arrives on DVD digital HD Internet, cable and satellite platforms Tuesday July 14, from Freestyle Digital Media, the digital film distribution division of Entertainment Studios.
“Divos!” tells the story of what happens when egos collide when a self-proclaimed “Broadway Legend” is forced to share the spotlight with a high school’s star athlete in a high school musical. Ricky Redmond is a teen acting legend—at least in his own mind (and his mother’s, of course).
After years of giving show-stopping performances as an underclassman in the St. James School’s musicals, he knows he’s a shoe-in for the leading role his senior year.
But when the school’s baseball MVP Josh Kelly shows up at auditions, the never humble Ricky finally meets his match. Mustering up some team spirit, Ricky takes Josh under his wing and teaches the rookie actor the ins and outs of being a teenage divo. He soon realizes, though, that Josh’s ambition and star quality are more dangerous than he had originally thought. The claws come out in this vicious battle for the spotlight, and through lies, manipulation and blackmail, it is clear that all is fair in war and musical theater.
Directed by Ryan Patrick Bartley from a screenplay by Matt Steele, “Divos!” features an ensemble cast including Matt Steele (“Ricky”), Marissa Jaret Winokur (“Sister Hartt”), Timothy Brundidge (“Josh”), Nicole Sullivan (“Candy”), Jayson Bernard (“Mr. Aubrey”), Jason Stuart (“Barry”) and Jake Busey (‘Mr. Kelly”).
Enter the Fat Dragon
International martial arts icon Donnie Yen (“Ip Man,” “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”) is back in the action-comedy “Enter the Fat Dragon,” debuting on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Tuesday July 14, from Well Go USA Entertainment.
The film chronicles the events that transformed super-fit super-cop Fallon Zhu (Yen) into a records clerk with a major snack cake habit—and one shot to regain his job and his fiancée. A hilarious parody of Bruce Lee’s 1972 film “Way of the Dragon” and a reimagining of the popular comedy martial arts film starring Sammo Hung, “Enter the Fat Dragon” was directed by Kenji Tanigaki (“Legend of Seven Monks”) and costars Teresa Mo (“Hard Boiled”), Niki Chow (“Heavenly Mission”) and Wong Jing (“Kung Fu Mahjong”).
The Lady Eve
Barbara Stanwyck sizzles, Henry Fonda bumbles, and Preston Sturges runs riot in one of the all-time great screwballs, “The Lady Eve,” available on Blu-ray and DVD Tuesday July 14, from The Criterion Collection.
A perfect blend of comic zing and swoon-worthy romance, the 1941 black-and-white comedy is set aboard a cruise liner sailing up the coast of South America. Stanwyck’s conniving card sharp sets her sights on Fonda’s nerdy snake researcher, who happens to be the heir to a brewery fortune. But when the con artist falls for her mark, her grift becomes a game of hearts-and she is determined to win it all. One in a string of matchless comedic marvels that Sturges wrote, directed, and produced as part of a dazzling 1940s run, this gender-flipped battle-of-wits farce is perhaps his most emotionally satisfying work, tempering its sparkling wit with a streak of tender poignancy supplied by the sensational Stanwyck at her peak.
The Blu-ray edition offers a 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack, interviews, essays, a featurette on legendary Hollywood costume designer Edith Head’s creations, an audio record of “Up the Amazon,” a song from an unproduced stage musical based on the film and more. The Blu-ray is available for $39.95 (SRP) and the DVD is available for $29.95 (SRP).
L’Innocente
Gabriele d’Annunzio’s passionate novel is brought to life in the digitally restored final masterpiece from acclaimed director Luchino Visconti with “L’Innocente,” available for the first time in North America on Blu-ray Tuesday July 14, from Film Movement
Originally released theatrically in 1976, the drama is set in late-19th century Italy. Tullio (Giancarlo Giannini), an insatiable aristocrat, grows bored with his timid wife Giuliana (Laura Antonelli) and neglects her for his mistress, the wealthy widow Countess Teresa Raffo (Jennifer O’Neill). After learning that Giuliana is having a torrid affair of her own, he becomes tormented by her infidelity and descends into madness.
Visconti directed the period drama from a wheelchair, following two strokes and a broken leg. He forged ahead, spending hours getting Antonelli’s veil just so, and getting a bitingly effective performance from O’Neill (“Summer of ’42”) as the cast-off mistress. The screenplay was written by Visconti, Enrico Medioli and the legendary Suso Cecchi d’Amico, and edited by Ruggero Mastroianni, brother of Marcello, longtime Visconti collaborator (including “Le Notti Bianche and “Death in Venice”), and Fellini’s editor of more than 20 years. Bonus programming includes a video essay and 16-page collectible booklet.
The Blu-ray/Digital and DVD and are available for $29.95 (SRP) and $19.95 (SRP), respectively.
The Runners
Micah Lyons, Tom Sizemore (“Heat,” “Saving Private Ryan”) and Glenn Morshower (“24”, “Friday Night
Lights”) star in white-knuckle action-thriller The Runners, arriving on DVD, Digital and On Demand Tuesday, July 14, from Uncork’d Entertainment.
After losing their parents in a car accident, Ryan must raise his rebellious teenage sister, Zoe. One night, Zoe sneaks out to a party and is abducted by a charming older boy who intends to sell her to the cartel for human trafficking. Now, Ryan and his best friend have just hours to track them down and save her before she is sold and dragged across the Mexican border, never to be seen again.
Co-directors Micah Lyons and Joey Loomis, also star in this action-packed thriller, which also stars Netty Leach, Neal McCoy, Jason Peter Kennedy and Swayde McCoy.
Superhuman: The Invisible Made Visible
Caroline Cory’s “Superhuman: The Invisible Made Visible,” a provocative award-winning documentary that provides tangible evidence and real-life examples for the power of the human mind over matter. will be released worldwide by 1091 on Digital HD, Cable VOD, and DVD Tuesday July 14.
Produced under Cory’s Omnium Media banner, the documentary is based on the actual experiences of individuals with extra-sensory powers (ESP) that seem to defy the laws of physics known to man today. Producer and host Cory, who has her own extensive experience in the field of Consciousness Science and Extra Sensory Perception, takes the viewers on an extraordinary journey to achieve tangible and measurable proof of these seemingly miraculous phenomena.
Through a series of groundbreaking scientific experiments and demonstrations with groups of children, volunteers and well-known subjects, including Corey Feldman (“Stand By Me,” “Gremlins”), Naomi Grossman (“American Horror Story,” “Ctr, Atl. Dlt”), Robert Picardo (“Star Trek: Voyager,” “Grey’s Anatomy”), Michael Dorn (“Star Trek: First Contact,” “Star Trek: Insurrection”), Karina Smirnoff (“Shall We Dance” “Dancing with the Stars”), Rachele Brooke Smith (“Center Stage 2,” “The Nice Guys”), and noted scientists Tom Campbell, Dean Radin, Rudolph Schild, Glen Rein and Jim Gimzewski, viewers will find themselves connecting the dots about the true nature of their own consciousness, the relation between mind and matter and discover whether they live in a simulated matrix or if they can have control over their physical reality and create a fulfilling human experience.
Useless Humans
The sci-fi horror-comedy “Useless Humans” lands on DVD Tuesday July 14, from Quiver Distribution. The fate of humanity is left hanging in the balance when a ruthless alien crashes a 30th birthday party on Earth, forcing four friends to save the world.
Directed by Stephen Ohl, the film stars Josh Zuckerman (“90210”), Rushi Kota (“Grey’s Anatomy”), Davida Williams (“Casual”), Luke Youngblood (“Galavant”), Edy Ganem (“Devious Maids”), Maya Kazan (“Mosaic”), Joey Kern (“Good Behavior”), Kevin Michael Martin (“The Last Ship”) and Iqbal Theba (“Glee”).
TV Shows
The Red Shadows
“The Red Shadows” arrives on Blu-ray and DVD Tuesday July 14, from Sundance Now.
Five-year-old Clara Garnier is kidnapped. Her abductors are demanding a very high ransom in exchange for her release. But the day of the exchange ends in a bloodbath; Clara’s mother is killed, and the child vanishes. Is she dead or alive? 25 years later, Clara’s older sister Aurore, a police officer investigating a murder, uncovers clues to prove her sister is still alive. She is living under another identity in Italy without any knowledge of her own origins. Against her sceptical father and brothers’ wishes, she persuades Clara to come back to her family to her discover the truth behind the kidnapping. But Clara’s return unravels family secrets and triggers a series of violent events.
The two-disc set of the series, which originally aired on Sundance Now, will be available for $29.99 (SRP) and contains all six episodes.
Ride with Norman Reedus: Season 1
“The Walking Dead” star and motorcycle enthusiast Norman Reedus hits the open road in “Ride with Norman Reedus.” Series 1 of this acclaimed AMC travel series arrives on Blu-ray and DVD Tuesday, July 14.
Reedus explores local biker culture and celebrates the best and brightest collectors, mechanics, and craftsmen around the world in this six-episode season. He is joined by friends, local chopper fanatics, fellow actors Peter Fonda and Balthazar Getty, and director Robert Rodriguez as they journey to custom bike shops, tattoo parlors, collectors’ warehouses and roadside restaurants and bars, with plenty of time for unplanned detours and tire changes.
Series 1 of “Ride with Norman Reedus” is available in a two-disc Blu-ray and DVD editions for $29.99 (SRP).
We all could use a good laugh right now. That’s why Front Row Features is giving away a copy of martial arts superstar Donnie Yen’s action-packed comedy “Enter the Fat Dragon” to three lucky readers on Blu-ray. To enter the contest, simply email socalmovieeditor@aol.com by July 20 for your chance to win. Good luck!