Home Market Releases for August 1st, 2017

August 2, 2017

There is no monster hit coming out this week, but that doesn’t mean there are no new DVD / Blu-rays worth picking up. In fact, there are six Pick of the Week contenders. This includes Slither: Collector's Edition, which took home the title in a close race. There are also two co-winners of the Puck of the Week for best Canadian release, Colossal on Blu-ray Combo Pack and I am the Blues on DVD.

Big Little Lies - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
A mini-series about a murder where we don’t know who the killer is, or even who is murdered, until the final episode. The show’s reviews are amazing and the show earned more than a dozen Emmy nominations. Extras include episode-specific featurettes, a featurette on the series as a whole, as well as a behind-the-scene featurette. Overall, it is easily worth picking up and a contender for Pick of the Week.

Chesapeake Shores: Season One - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Video on Demand
A summer series from Hallmark Channel. Meghan Ory stars as the eldest daughter in a dysfunctional family who has to return home to help her younger sister. There she reunites with her past flame, played by Jesse Metcalfe. You can buy this and A Country Wedding on DVD and have a Jesse Metcalfe double-shot.

The Circle - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
I was looking forward to this movie... then I started reading the reviews as they were published. It doesn’t matter how many extras the DVD / Blu-ray have, because those reviews are weak enough that it is skippable.

Colossal - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
A Canadian co-production starring Anne Hathaway as a woman who is having trouble with the whole being an adult thing. Then learns she is / controls a kaiju monster that recently attacked South Korea. The reviews are excellent and the film did well in limited release. That said, it will need help on the home market to break even. Unfortunately, there’s only one deleted scene on the DVD / Blu-ray. It is still worth picking up, but this is disappointing.

Cop and a Half New Recruit - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Video on Demand
WHY!? Why does this movie exist?

Escape from New York - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
The Fog - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
They Live - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
A triple-shot of cult classics being released on Steelbook. All three are worth picking up, but not worth the double-dip. In fact, I find steelbook cases to be a pain, as they don’t line up nicely with regular cases.

Going in Style - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
This remake of the 1979 classic isn’t as good as the original is. It’s too lighthearted and safe to be as good. That said, it’s not bad and should please the target demographic. The extras include director commentary and deleted scenes. Also coming out this week is the original Going in Style on DVD. I really wanted the original to come out on Blu-ray this week, but I guess I’ll have to wait.

Hired Gun - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
A documentary about session musicians, the musicians that do a lot of the work in the studio to get albums made, or play on tour, but are rarely known by name outside the music industry. There are only two reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and only one of them is positive, but the Blu-ray is selling really well nonetheless.

House on Willow Street - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
A pair kidnap the daughter of a rich businessman thinking it will be an easy score. However, the daughter is possessed by a demon and now the kidnappers have to fight for their lives. The reviews are good, but not great. If you are a fan of this particular subgenre of horror, it is worth picking up, but maybe spend the $5 to rent it on VOD first.

I am the Blues - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
A Canadian documentary about the Blues, because nothing says Canada as much as Blues music. It’s actually filmed in the Louisiana Bayou and features interviews with countless Blues legends from the golden age of the Blues. The film’s reviews on Rotten Tomatoes are 100% positive and it is a must have for fans of the Blues, or of documentaries in general.

League of Gods - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
An ensemble fantasy epic starring Jet Li among others. The film only has three reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, but two of them are positive. If you are fan of martial arts epics, especially ones with a basis of Chinese mythology, it is certainly worth checking out. If you are really big fan of the subgenre, it is worth picking up

The Lovers - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
Debra Winger and Tracy Letts play a married couple whose marriage has long since fizzled out. They both have lovers on the side and are just waiting for the right time to start their divorce. Then something really strange happens, the spark returns and they don’t know what to do. The reviews are excellent and the movie did well in limited release. Extras include an audio commentary track, plus a making of featurette, and a featurette on the music. Definitely worth picking up and a contender for Pick of the Week.

Mobile Suit Gundam The Origin: Chronicle of Char and Sayla Collection - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
This is one of the biggest Anime franchises and one of the best-rated shows on My Anime List. There are not a lot of extras on the Blu-ray, but that’s sadly typical for Anime releases. Even so, it is definitely worth picking up for fans of Anime.

Shin Godzilla - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
This is the best-selling new release of the week. It’s a good week for fans of Kaiju. The only extra on the DVD and Blu-ray is an interview featurette, which is disappointing, but not uncommon for a foreign-language import. It is still worth picking up and a contender for Pick of the Week.

Sleight - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
A street magician is raising his younger sister after the death of their parents. He starts selling drugs to pay the bills, but soon gets in over his head. The reviews are good, but it had a difficult release playing in only several hundred theaters. This weak box office performance results in no extras on the DVD / Blu-ray. Disappointing. It is still a solid rental, perhaps a purchase if you like the cast / subgenre.

Slither: Collector's Edition - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
This is one of the greatest Sci-fi horror comedies of all time. It earned great reviews, but bombed in theaters. Fortunately it found an audience on the home market and it has become a cult classic. New extras include an audio commentary track, a 30-minute making of featurette, and an interview featurette. The old version already had an audio commentary track, several making of featurettes, deleted scenes, outtakes, etc. It was good before and it is a Pick of the Week contender now.

Wakefield - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
Bryan Cranston plays the titular Wakefield, a man who decides to runaway from his life and instead hides in his garage attic and spy on his family and neighbors to see how they react. There are no extras on the DVD / Blu-ray. It is still worth picking up, but not a Pick of the Week contender.

Christmas Releases - Buy from Amazon:
All I Want for Christmas - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Surviving Christmas - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
WHAT? Why are there Christmas releases in August? They are both complete garbage and only worth buying as a joke gift for someone else.

Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
Boyka: Undisputed IV - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Crashing: The Complete First Season - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
The Devils Brigade - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Don’t Knock Twice - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
The Drowning - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Fruits Basket: The Complete Series: Sweet Sixteen Anniversary Edition - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
The Good Son - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Junjo Romantica: Season Two - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
MacArthur - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Obit. - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
The Ottoman Lieutenant - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Phoenix Forgotten - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
S.W.A.T.: Under Siege - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
There are a few secondary Blu-ray releases worth picking up. Crashing: The Complete First Season, if you like sitcoms. Fruits Basket: The Complete Series: Sweet Sixteen Anniversary Edition is good, if you like Anime. And Obit. on DVD or Blu-ray is your best bet if you like documentaries.

3D Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
No 3D releases this week.

4K Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
And no 4K releases this week. We have two Christmas releases, but no 3D or 4K releases.

TV on DVD Megasets - Buy from Amazon:
Jumanji - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
The Secret World of Alex Mack - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
The Secret World of Alex Mack is a great show and still has a lot of fans. They will love being able to collect the entire show for just $18.

C.S.Strowbridge

Filed under: DVD and Blu-ray Releases, Home Market Releases, The Drowning, The Circle, Colossal, Don't Knock Twice, Going in Style, Just the Way You Are, Boyka: Undisputed, Sleight, How to Be a Latin Lover, Feng Shen Bang, Shin Godjira, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul, Everything, Everything, Wakefield, Obit, The Devil’s Candy, The Ottoman Lieutenant, The Lovers, Phoenix Forgotten, House on Willow Street, Cop and a Half: New Recruit, S.W.A.T.: Under Siege, Hired Gun, I am the Blues, The UnMiracle, Disconnected, Bryan Cranston, Anne Hathaway, Tracy Letts, Jet Li, Jesse Metcalfe, Debra Winger, Meghan Ory

Home Market Releases for August 1st, 2017

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