Brace your bank accounts, it’s time to see what’s Now Available to Own for the week of January 5, 2016. Every Tuesday we run down new movie and television releases that you can enjoy in the comfort of your own home, as well as some slick deals that can help save you some coin. New on shelves this week are The Walk, Sicario, The Visit, Deathgasm, and more.
Source: Business Insider
Movies on Blu-ray
Sicario (Denis Villeneuve) Rated R [121 min] – An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by an elected government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico. Starring Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, Benicio Del Toro, and Jon Bernthal
If you like tense, edge of your seat dramas that leave you in suspense up until the bitter end, Sicario will be your cup of tea. Emily Blunt puts out a wonderful performance alongside a stellar supporting casting, especially Benicio Del Toro who absolutely shines.
Special features include:
- Stepping Into Darkness: The Visual Design of Sicario
- Blunt, Brolin, and Benicio: Portraying the Characters of Sicario
- A Pulse From The Desert: The Score of Sicario
- Battle Zone: Inside The World of Sicario
- And More…
The Walk (Robert Zemeckis) Rated PG [123 min] – In 1974, high-wire artist Philippe Petit recruits a team of people to help him realize his dream: to walk the the immense void between the World Trade Center towers. Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Charlotte Le Bon, Guillaume Baillargeon, and Émilie Leclerc
Sadly, The Walk is one of the most under seen movies of 2015. The most depressing part about the film isn’t that it’s a dramatization of the thrilling documentary Man on Wire, what’s upsetting is that The Walk is actually a really fun movie that is riveting experience when seen on the big screen. There is some incredible cheese and terrible narration, but overall this movie is one of the most intense things I witnessed in theaters last year. My armpits were dripping with anxiety throughout the last 30 minutes of the film.
Special features include:
- Pillars of Support
- First Steps
- The Amazing Walk
- Deleted Scenes
The Visit (M. Night Shyamalan) Rated PG-13 [94 min] – A single mother finds that things in her family’s life go very wrong after her two young children visit their grandparents. Starring Olivia DeJonge, Ed Oxenbould, Deanna Dunagan, and Peter McRobbie
M. Night (Signs; The Sixth Sense; The Village; Unbreakable) has not had the best track record after the handful of successes he garnered early on in his career. After a slew of flops, including 2013’s abomination After Earth, the once revered master of twists shows he still has that delicious flare we know and love. The Visit doesn’t have the best characters to fall in love with, but the pacing, direction, and level of mystery delivers a fairly rewarding end. And amazingly, if he continues doing work at this caliber, I am highly intrigued at what he can accomplish next.
Special features include:
- Alternate Ending
- Deleted Scenes
- The Making of The Visit
- Becca’s Photos
The Green Inferno (Eli Roth) Rated R [100 min] – A group of student activists travels to the Amazon to save the rain forest and soon discover that they are not alone, and that no good deed goes unpunished. Starring Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Aaron Burns, and Kirby Bliss Blanton
Not since 2007’s Hostel II have I really seen anything to jump for joy about when it comes to Eli Roth’s work. And after delays and mixed reviews, I wasn’t so sure I’d walk away from The Green Inferno in any better shape. Surprisingly, I was pleasantly enlightened by its cheeky story. And despite having heard how vicious and disgusting it is, The Green Inferno is pretty tame considering it’s a film about cannibalism.
Special features include:
- Feature Commentary
- Photo Gallery
Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (Christopher Landon) Rated R [93 min] – Three scouts, on the eve of their last camp-out, discover the true meaning of friendship when they attempt to save their town from a zombie outbreak. Starring Tye Sheridan, Logan Miller, Joey Morgan, and Sarah Dumont
Originally entitled Scouts vs. Zombies, a more suitable and grammatically correct title, Scouts Guide, in its truest form, is the stoner comedy answer to the rise in popularity of the undead. Not without its lewd and somewhat refreshing zombie set pieces, the movie fails to deliver characters and a story that matters. Scouts Guide is what would happen if the tripod from Superbad encountered the zombie apocalypse. It’s not revolutionary on any level, but it does have a few gags that are worth fast forwarding to get to.
Special features include:
- Scouts Guide to Filmmaking
- The Zombie Makeup FX Handbook
- Undead Movement Guidelines: Zombie Choreography
- Uniforms and You: Costume Design
- Deleted Scenes
Deathgasm (Jason Lei Howden) Unrated [86 min] – Two teenage boys unwittingly summon an ancient evil entity known as The Blind One by delving into black magic while trying to escape their mundane lives. Starring Milo Cawthorne, James Blake, and Kimberley Crossman
After its big premiere at South by Southwest, Deathgasm has been on my must watch list for quite some time. So does it live up to the hype? Kinda. The movie is really fun and full of hilarious references to the metal scene, and even if you’re not a metalhead, the movie goes a long way to entertain and fully engage you in the rambunctious anarchy. The only downside is that its convenient ending makes the movie feel a bit rushed.
Special features include:
- Commentary with Writer-Director Jason Lei Howden
- Featurettes
- Music Video: Bulletbelt – “Deathgasm”
- Trailer
- Teaser
Experimenter (Michael Almereyda) Rated PG-13 [98 min] – Famed social psychologist Stanley Milgram, in 1961 conducted a series of radical behavior experiments that tested ordinary humans willingness to obey authority. Starring Peter Sarsgaard, Josh Hamilton, Taryn Manning, Winona Ryder, and Anton Yelchin
Not having any previous awareness to famed psychologist Stanley Milgram, I didn’t quite know what to expect going into Experimenter, only that the cast is exceptional. That being said, the movie is pretty cut and dry aside from a narrative breaking of the fourth wall by Sarsgaard. The movie tells and never shows. The main social experiment is rather fascinating, and its subjects bring up a lot of concerning and existential conversations. However, there’s nothing too exhilarating about Experimenter to capture and engage like it should with how important Milgram’s findings were.
Special features include:
- The Making of Experimenter
- Designing Experimenter
- Understanding Stanley Milgram: An Inerview with Joel Milgram
Kung Fu Panda [Re-Release] (Mark Osborne and John Stevenson) Rated PG [92 min] – In the Valley of Peace, Po the Panda finds himself chosen as the Dragon Warrior despite the fact that he is obese and a complete novice at martial arts. Starring Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, James Hong, Randall Duk Kim, and Ian McShane
AND
Kung Fu Panda 2 [Re-Release] (Jennifer Yuh) Rated PG [91 min] – Po and his friends fight to stop a peacock villain from conquering China with a deadly new weapon, but first the Dragon Warrior must come to terms with his past. Starring Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, James Hong, and Gary Oldman
Both Kung Fu Panda films have been re-released with extra bonus content in celebration of the upcoming release of Kung Fu Panda 3. While I enjoy both films, the new extra features are fun for the kids, but don’t bring anything really new to those looking for a deeper exploration of the making of the film.
New Re-release Special features include:
- “Secrets of the Scroll” – an all-new animated adventure. – Tigress, Viper, Monkey, Crane and Mantis transform from complete strangers into the legendary Furious Five Warriors of Kung Fu
- Martial Arts Awesomeness Music Video – Our heroes’ fight sequences move to the beat of “Kung Fu Fighting” in this colorful music video
- Mash-Up of Awesomeness: Slo-Mo – Prepare to be thrilled by amazing, high-intensity action sequences in all the glory that slow motion provides
- Mash-Up of Blunders – Laugh with this lightning quick mash-up of all Po’s hilariously embarrassing moments
- Plus an Exclusive Sneak Peek of Kung Fu Panda 3 – All-new Kung Fu Panda 3 sneak peek with introduction by Jack Black
DVD Only
Sleeping with Other People (Leslye Headland) Rated R [95 min] – A good-natured womanizer and a serial cheater form a platonic relationship that helps reform them in ways, while a mutual attraction sets in. Starring Jason Sudeikis, Alison Brie, Jordan Carlos, and Margarita Levieva
This may be the first time I’ve found Jason Sudeikis mildly tolerable. That may lie solely on the fact that Alison Brie brings out the best in people. Sleeping with Other People isn’t your traditional FWB romcom, but rather a relationship story based on friendship and support. Crazy concept, I know. It works up until the very end where things start to fall apart. It has some good laughs and witty dialogue, but not revolutionary to the romcom game.
- No special features included
Captive (Jerry Jameson) Rated PG-13 [97 min] – A single mother struggling with drug addiction is taken hostage in her own apartment by a man on the run after breaking out of jail and murdering the judge assigned to his case. Starring Kate Mara, David Oyelowo, Mimi Rogers, and Michael Kenneth Williams
Not much can be said about the rather mediocre Captive. While the performances by Mara and Oyelowo maintain a professional level of commitment with the utmost conviction, the film is rather repetitive, beating the main story beats and themes over the head too often. And by the end, the miles Captive puts in to build to some meaningful, big finale doesn’t come close to the oomph it is hoping for because the damage has already been done.
Special features include:
- Feature film in standard definition
- Journey Through Darkness: Filming Captive
- Faith and The Purpose Driven Life
Source: neogaf
Television Series
Broad City (Season 2) [DVD Only] (Ilana Glazer, Abbi Jacobson) Rated TV-14 [22 min] – Broad City follows two women throughout their daily lives in New York City, making the smallest and mundane events hysterical and disturbing to watch all at the same time. Starring Abbi Jacobson, Ilana Glazer, and Hannibal Buress
I hadn’t had the inclination to check out Broad City, but after the opportunity presented itself, and figuring how well received the series has been, I thought I’d check it out. The show definitely lives up to the hype. Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer absolutely crush it. The lives of their characters are hilariously resonating while at the same time utterly fantastical. Season 2 is a big step forward as their characters progress to even further heights and their morals even lower. This show is hilarious and suggest everyone gets on it.
Special features include:
- Outtakes & Deleted Scenes
- Pop-Up Enhanced Episode
- “Hack Into Broad City” Series
- “Body By Trey” Videos
Additional Releases this Week
- It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Season 10) (DVD Only)
- Legend: The Complete Series (DVD Only)
- Party of Five: The Complete Series (DVD Only)
- Comedy Bang! Bang! (Season 10) (DVD Only)
- Ancient Aliens Season 8 (DVD Only)
- Battle for Skyark (DVD Only)
Blu-Ray Deals and Steals
- The Land Before Time – $9.99
- Fox Searchlight Collection – $69.99
- Princess Mononoke – $17.99
- The Drop – $9.99
- We Are Still Here – $7.99
- Me and Earl and the Dying Girl – $14.99
- The Wind Rises – $17.99
- The Breakfast Club: 30th Anniversary Edition – $8
- Baby Mama – $5
- West Side Story – $10.99
- Far From the Madding Crowd – $12.99
- Kill Bill 1 & 2 Collection – $7.99
All prices from Amazon.com. Best Buy, Frys, and Target all price match online prices.
What will you be taking home this week? Tell us in the comments section below!
All plot synopses come courtesy of IMDb.com
Image: Fighting in the War Room
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