Movies

About My Father (Comedy)

Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco’s hilarious comedy about what it means to be family, “About My Father” is now available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital from Lionsgate.

Generations collide when Sebastian (Maniscalco) is encouraged by his fiancée (Leslie Bibb, “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby”) to bring his Italian hairdresser father Salvo (two-time Academy Award winner Robert De Niro, “Raging Bull” and “The Godfather Part II”) to a weekend get-together to meet her wealthy and eccentric family. As the weekend turns into an outrageous clash of cultures, Sebastian and Salvo discover that the great thing about family is everything about family.

Maniscalco both co-writes and stars in the film, which also stars Anders Holm (“Workaholics”), Brett Dier (“Jane the Virgin”), David Rasche (“Succession”) and Kim Cattrall (“Sex and the City”). Special features on the release include the movie’s theatrical trailer and three behind-the-scenes featurettes: “One Big Happy Family: Making ‘About My Father,’” “Sebastian: The Big Stage to the Big Screen” and “About My Look: From Frugal to Fancy.”

Confidential Informant (Thriller)

The gritty crime thriller “Confidential Informant” arrives on Blu-ray and DVD Tuesday, Aug. 15, from Lionsgate.

Writer and director Michael Oblowitz (“The Foreigner”) creates an action-packed story starring Dominic Purcell (“Blade: Trinity”), Academy Award winner Mel Gibson (“Braveheart”), Nick Stahl (“Sin City”) and Kate Bosworth (“Superman Returns”) that tells the tale of two narcotics agents hunting for a cop killer during a crack epidemic. Hoping for leads, Moran (Purcell) and Thorton (Stahl) pay off a junkie informant. Then, in an attempt to provide for his wife (Bosworth) and son, Moran involves the stool pigeon in a deadly scheme. This causes the partners to come under the scrutiny of a suspicious internal affairs agent, leading to an epic, explosive finale.

Both the “Confidential Informant” Blu-ray and DVD feature a commentary track with Oblowitz, composer Roy Hay (Culture Club) and director of photography Christopher Squires as well as the film’s trailer.

Elemental (Animation, Adventure, Comedy)

Discover what happens when fire meets water in Pixar Animation Studios’ dazzling and imaginative “Elemental,” debuting on Digital Tuesday, Aug. 15, and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD Sept. 26.

“Elemental” is an original feature film set in Element City, where the residents of Fire, Water, Earth and Air live together. The story introduces Ember, a tough, quick-witted and fiery young woman, whose friendship with a fun, sappy, go-with-the-flow guy named Wade challenges her beliefs about the world they live in. Directed by Peter Sohn (“The Good Dinosaur”) and produced by Denise Ream (“The Good Dinosaur,” “Cars 2”), “Elemental” features a screenplay by John Hoberg & Kat Likkel (“My Name is Earl”) and Brenda Hsueh (“How I Met Your Mother”), and stars the voices of Leah Lewis (“Nancy Drew”) and Mamoudou Athie (“Jurassic World Dominion”) as Ember and Wade.

Fans who add “Elemental” to their Digital movie collection can access entertaining bonus content, including five scenes introduced by Sohn — “Intro Ember,” “Mom Rejects Wade,” “Dante Challenge,” “Brook Diner” and “Beach Proposal” — that were storyboarded, set to music, timed and voiced, but weren’t included in the final version of the movie. Viewers can also enjoy the widely popular all-new short, “Carl’s Date;” a filmmaker commentary track with Sohn, supe tech Sanjay Bakshi (“Onward”), supervising animator Mike Venturini (“Incredibles 2”) and directing animator Gwendelyn Enderoglu (“Luca”); and three featurettes. Audiences can take a deeper look at the development of “Elemental’s” main characters in “Ember and Wade;” explore how Elemental City is built to accommodate its different inhabitants in “Next Stop: Elemental City;” and hear from first-generation filmmakers on the “Elemental” crew as they share their journeys to Pixar in “Paths to Pixar: The Immigrant Experience.”

Kill Shot (Action)

Action and thrills are the name of the game when “Kill Shot” explodes onto Digital, Blu-ray and DVD Tuesday, Aug. 15, from Well Go USA Entertainment.

During a hunting trip in Montana, a wilderness guide and former Navy SEAL (Rib Hillis, “Baywatch”) and his client (Rachel Cook, “The Hack Job”) stumble upon a cache of heist money, unwittingly making themselves the one obstacle standing between a dangerous terrorist group and its lost fortune. Eager to take some of the cash for themselves, the pair learns far too late how easy it can be to make someone disappear in the vastness of Big Sky country.

Directed by Ari Novak (“Himalayan Ice”), “Kill Shot” also stars former UFC fighter Bobby Maximus, Mara Ohara (“The Hellenbacks 3”), Mark Murphy (“Cowboys vs Dinosaurs”) and Xian Mikol (“Time Framed”).

The Machine (Action, Comedy)

The action-packed comedy “The Machine” comes home on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Tuesday, Aug. 15, from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

Bert Kreischer rose to fame as a stand-up comedian known as The Machine, and in his signature set he recounts his true experience with Russian mobsters while on a booze-soaked college trip. Now, 23 years later, that trip has come back to haunt him as he and his estranged father (Mark Hamill, the “Star Wars” franchise) are kidnapped back to Russia by the mob to atone for something they say he did. Together, Bert and his father must retrace the steps of his younger self (Jimmy Tatro, “Home Economics”) in the midst of a war within a sociopathic crime family, all while attempting to find common ground in their often-fraught relationship.

Bonus materials on the release include deleted scenes, outtakes and bloopers and four fun featurettes: “The Making of ‘The Machine,’” “The Cast of ‘The Machine,’” “Bert, Bruised & Brawlin’: The Action of ‘The Machine’” and “Bert’s Big Bash — Premiere Party.”

Roman Holiday (Comedy, Romance)

The sparkling and beloved classic “Roman Holiday” celebrates its 70th anniversary with its first-ever 4K Ultra HD release on Tuesday, Aug. 15, from Paramount Home Entertainment.

The exquisite Audrey Hepburn (“Breakfast at Tiffany’s”) lights up the screen in her first starring role opposite the charismatic Gregory Peck (“To Kill a Mockingbird”) in this funny, beautiful and intoxicating romantic comedy. Hepburn stars in the story of a modern-day princess who, rebelling against her royal obligations, explores Rome on her own and falls in love with an American newspaperman played by Peck.

Director William Wyler’s (“Ben-Hur”) 1953 fairy tale was one of Hollywood’s first on-location motion pictures and memorably captures the bustling streets and iconic sites of Rome. “Roman Holiday” expresses the exhilaration of joyously breaking free as the lead character escapes her royal obligations against the backdrop of post-war Europe, embracing long-awaited peace.

Ranked as the fourth greatest love story of all time by the American Film Institute, “Roman Holiday” earned 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won Best Actress for Hepburn, Best Costume Design for legendary designer Edith Head (“The Sting,” “Sabrina”) and Best Writing (Motion Picture Story) for Dalton Trumbo (“Spartacus”). The screenwriter was blacklisted for refusing to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee and his name was not included in the film’s original credits. In 1992, the Board of Governors of the Academy voted to finally credit Trumbo for the “Story Writing” Oscar and his widow received a statuette in 1993. In 2011, the WGA restored Trumbo’s name to the screenwriting credits. This release correctly credits Dalton Trumbo with both the screenplay and story by credits.

Fully restored and remastered, “Roman Holiday” is presented in vivid 4K Ultra HD in a two-disc set that includes access to a Digital copy of the film and a Blu-ray disc with more than an hour of previously released special features. Discover more about Academy Award winner Audrey Hepburn in “Audrey Hepburn: The Paramount Years” and “Paramount in the ’50s: Remembering Audrey,” Edith Head’s Oscar-winning costumes in “Behind the Gates: Costumes;” and the blacklisting of screenwriter Dalton Trumbo in “Dalton Trumbo: From A-List to Blacklist.” Other extras include four photo galleries (Production, The Movie, Publicity and The Premiere), the featurettes “Rome with a Princess” and “Filmmaker Focus: Leonard Maltin on ‘Roman Holiday’” and the movie’s theatrical trailers.

TV Shows

The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 1 (Crime, Drama, Mystery)

Working from home takes a new spin when “The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 1” cruises onto Blu-ray Tuesday, Aug. 15, from Lionsgate.

Need a lawyer? Call Mickey Haller. He’s quick, sharp and owns the courtroom like Michael Jordan owned the basketball court. Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, “Murder on the Orient Express”) runs his law practice out of his Lincoln, and he’s ready to hit the gas again after being sidelined by personal issues. After inheriting an acquaintance’s law practice, Haller finds himself with a batch of new cases, including a significant murder trial he must hastily prepare to defend. Moving swiftly through the city of Los Angeles, he takes case after case while balancing a private life that includes being the father of a teenager and having two ex-wives — one who works with him, the other the city’s Deputy District Attorney. It’s a bumpy road, but if there’s anyone who can navigate it smoothly, it’s Mickey Haller.

Also featuring Neve Campbell (the “Scream” film franchise), Becki Newton (“Ugly Betty”), Angus Sampson (“Mad Max: Fury Road”) and Jazz Raycole (“Insatiable”), “The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 1” will be available on Blu-ray exclusively at amazon.com. The release includes all 10 episodes from the Netflix series’ first season on three discs as well as one singular special feature: a blooper reel.

Calling all action movie fans! Front Row Features is giving away a copy of “Kill Shot” on Blu-ray to three lucky readers. To enter the contest, simply email socalmovieeditor@aol.com by Aug. 21 for your chance to win. Good luck!