5 Centimeters Per Second | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | The second film from director Makoto Shinkai, and includes both Voices of a Distant Star and She and Her Cat, his two previous shorts. This film follows a couple of young people who split up when their parents move apart while they are young, and they try to keep in touch as time and physical (and emotional) distance draws them further apart. | ||||||||
American / Leatherheads – George Clooney Double Feature | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Are You Afraid of the Dark? Double Pack | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
BEM: Become Human – The Movie | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Bourne Complete Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Bridge on the River Kwai | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | This podcast came out on May 28. | ||||||||
Bring It On: 5 Movie Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
BTOOOM! | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Anime based on a battle royale manga (no relation to Battle Royale). The manga was still ongoing while the show was airing, leaving it with something of a “read the manga” ending. | ||||||||
Candyman | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Children Who Chase Lost Voices | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Makoto Shinkai’s third film, about a teenage girl who travels to Agartha to try and find her dead father. | ||||||||
Clifford | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Clock | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Combat Shock | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | A Troma film. | ||||||||
Comparment No. 6 | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Contractor | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Cross My Heart / Pure Luck – Martin Short Double Feature | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Death Toilet Trilogy | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Defining Moments | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Dumb and Dumber 2 Movie Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Eraser: Reborn | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Everything Everywhere All at Once | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Coming to DVD and Blu-Ray on July 5. | ||||||||
EVIL | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Fabulous Baker Boys | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Feast | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema VII (Kino-Lorber) | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Includes The Boss, Chicago Confidential, and The Fearmakers | ||||||||
For Me and My Gal | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Forbidden Zone | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Otherwise known as “The Oingo Boingo Movie”. | ||||||||
Fortress: Sniper’s Eye | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Gamestop: Rise of the Players | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Girl’s High | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Fanservice heavy slice-of-life dramedy anime about a bunch of students at a girls-only high school. | ||||||||
Grease 2 | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Harper House | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Heavenly Kid | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Blaine: I know this was a frequent rental when I was in elementary school, but I remember absolutely nothing about it. I’m tempted to pick up the pricey Blu-Ray just to refresh my memory. | ||||||||
History’s Greatest Mysteries | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Human Lanterns | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Killer Elite | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
La Brea | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Land Before Time | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Lawrence of Arabia | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Winner of the Best Picture Oscar of 1962. The subject of the “99 Years, 100 Films” podcast this October. | ||||||||
Living Dead at Manchester Morgue | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Marvelous and the Black Hole | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Mechanic | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Mexican | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Midnight | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Mobile Suit Gundam NT (Narrative) | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Film serving as a sequel to Mobile Suit Gundam UC (Unicorn), picking up a few years after that film’s events, and introducing a third model of the “Unicorn” Gundam – the Gundam Phenix – a prototype that disappeared after its initial test flight. | ||||||||
One Piece | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Only Yesterday | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Re-release of the film by Isao Takahata. | ||||||||
Pacific Rim 2 Movie Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Place Promised in Our Early Days | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Makoto Shinkai’s first film, an alternative history story set in a Japan that was split between the US and the Soviet Union (like Germany after World War II), with the plot based around a tower that can pull information and matter in from parallel universes. | ||||||||
Poltergeist 3 Film Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Power Book II: Ghost | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Pretty in Pink | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Prince Philip: The Man Behind the Throne | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Savage Sisters | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
She’s Having a Baby | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Some Kind of Wonderful | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
SpongeBob SquarePants | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Strings | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Stunt Rock | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Tale of Princess Kaguya | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | The final film from director Isao Takahata. | ||||||||
Tales of Hoffmann (Criterion Collection) | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Through the Decades: 2000s – 10 Film Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Includes Nurse Betty, One Night at McCool’s, Spy Game, The Emperor’s Club, The Shape of Things, 21 Grams, Baby Mama, State of Play, The Hitcher, and Cry Wolf. | ||||||||
Through the Decades: 2010s – 10 Film Collection | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Comments | Includes MacGruber, The American, The Dilemma, The Adjustment Bureau, Your Highness, The Thing, Contraband, Safe House, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, and Black Sea. | ||||||||
Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Warriors | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Weather Man | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Ziegfeld Girl | |||||||||
Amazon | |||||||||
Finally, the picks of the week. Alex says, “My pick of the week is, really, any of the Shinkai films coming out this week – you generally can’t go wrong with any of them (same with Tale of Princess Kaguya). On the 4K front, I’m going with Bridge on the River Kwai.” Blaine says, “Bridge on the River Kwai is the best of the titles I’ve seen, but I also keep hearing wonderful things about Everything Everywhere All at Once.”
I recently got to watch The Forbidden Zone. It is most definitely not for children, and maybe not even for adults. It’s less of a narrative and more a collection of bawdy performance art pieces. That said, I enjoyed it, and I wouldn’t mind watching it again. I read Danny Elfman has hopes of actually getting the sequel made. There were also a lot of things I was familiar with from Dr. Demento and Weird Al which originated here.
Other than a few titles– including Lawrence of Arabia, a brilliantly made film that, incidentally, inspired George Lucas, who copied a number of its shots in Star Wars— and Bridge Over the River Kwai, it’s perhaps not the best month if you don’t watch anime.
Even the vast number of people who like Grease (I was one of those who wasn’t impressed by the movie. The original musical is somewhat better) generally write off Grease 2, or suppress knowledge of its existence. I’ve heard a great deal over the years about Forbidden Zone (originally released in 1980, pre-Director’s Cut) but have never seen it. Warriors deserves to be seen at least once– it’s not great cinema, but it’s weirdly entertaining and much closer to SF than you’d expect from a gang movie. Much sampled.
I could have lived happily not knowing there was a Death Toilet Trilogy.