Author: Robert Greenberger

REVIEW: Justice League Dark

The concept of the DC Comics’ mystical characters gathering to combat occult evil always sounds good but of course, execution is everything. When it was done sparingly, as in Swamp Thing #50, it was quite effective. As an ongoing series, it proved tough to manage since each player was plucked from a title that had a fairly unique look and feel.

That said, the newly released animated Justice League Dark film is incredibly entertaining and certainly a cut above the last half-dozen releases. From a story by JLD writer J.M. DeMatteis and Ernie Altbacker, Altbacker’s script shifts the super-heroic DC Universe to supernatural threats that Superman (Jerry O’Connell), Wonder Woman (Rosario Dawson), Green Lantern (Roger Cross) and the others are less equipped to handle. Altbacker is no stranger to heroes and magicians with credits including Spooksville and Green Lantern: The Animated Series and he does a fine job weaving the various threads.

A series of disconnected people around America and then the world think they are seeing demons and a puzzled JLA feels a bit out of their depths. Batman (Jason O’Mara), the logical character to bridge the worlds, is at first skeptical until Deadman (Nicholas Turturro) arrives to possess him and insist he seek out John Constantine (Matt Ryan). To find the Brit, he reconnects with his old friend Zatanna (Camilla Luddington) and from there, the path takes them to Constantine, living in the House of Mystery. Along the way, they collect Jason Blood (Ray Chase), which means we get plenty of doggerel from his counterpart Etrigan the Demon,

Thankfully, the story pauses now and then to give us brief origins which will certainly help introduce these lesser known players to a wider audience.

To locate the cause of the supernatural infestation, Constantine once again uses and abuses friends in trademark fashion. There’s a nice exchange when he must summon Swamp Thing (Roger Cross) for help.

The DC Animated Universe differs sharply from the DC Universe and Cinematic Universe not just in how characters look but also their back stories. The biggest change here is Black Orchid (Colleen Villard), now a spirit protecting the House of Mystery’s artifacts. There’s another substantive change at the end which I won’t mention.

Amped up beyond anything we’ve seen in the comics is Felix Faust (Enrico Colantoni), who seems super-charged as he magically duels the entire team. Later we get an almost unrecognizable Doctor Destiny, here a centuries-old being called only Destiny (Alfred Molina).

The movie moves along at a lovely clip and director Jay Oliva excels with the magic battles, refreshed after growing a tad tiresome of the superhero fights. He brings a nice moody look and feel to the entire production which is most welcome.

Vocally, the cast is strong, of course, and the banter between Luddington (Grey’s Anatomy) and Ryan (live-action’s Constantine) is a highlight.

The two-disc gift set comes with a Constantine figurine. Special features on the Blu-ray include an enticing look at this spring’s Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, also from Altbacker. There’s a very nice featurette on The Story of Swamp Thing, featuring cocreator Len Wein and artist Kelley Jones address the creature’s origins and the stunning art from cocreator Bernie Wrightson. There are a series of short, almost pointless, Did You Know?s including Constantine origin, Color of Magic, Black Orchid, and Deadman. A 2016 NY Comic Con Panel is included. Finally, From the DC Vault offers up Batman: The Brave and the Bold, “Dawn of the Dead Man!” and Batman: The Brave and the Bold, “Trials of the Demon!”

REVIEW: Frankenstein: The Real Story/The Real Wolfman

REVIEW: Frankenstein: The Real Story/The Real Wolfman

The History Channel has occasionally explored the roots of the monsters that thrilled and chilled our childhood and Lionsgate Home Entertainment has dutifully released them on disc every now and then. Coming Tuesday is a nice little double feature package collecting the previously released Frankenstein: The Real Story and The Real Wolfman on a single standard DVD for the bargain price of $12.98.

While overwrought and overly dramatic with some cheesy music and effects, both creations are worth a look if only because it gives us a chance to look at things in context.

We begin with three pieces exploring Frankenstein and his monster. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s novel, as many know, was written as a result of a ghost story contest among her literary peers. What the In Search of the Real Frankenstein does is explore the quickly evolving world of science in the early nineteenth century. Scientists had used electricity to animate animal limbs and others tried shocking humans as well. And while touring Europe with Percy Shelley, she is likely to have heard about Konrad Dippel, who conducted unsavory experiments in the real Frankenstein castle. All of which acts are prelude to the second piece, Frankenstein, which is more biographical about Shelley herself. Her scandalous affair with Percy, who left his pregnant wife to tour with her, and life after his death are nicely covered along with the novel itself, which first appeared without her byline. She finally affixed her name to it five years later for the second edition.

The final piece is It’s Alive! The True Story of Frankenstein, narrated by Roger Moore (one wonders why he was chosen). Here, the many stage and screen adaptations of her work, are examined and I am pleased the Hammer films get their due so the focus isn’t just on Universal’s output. There are nice interviews with Mel Brooks, Gene Wilder, special effects wizard Rick Baker, film historian David Skal, Sara Karloff, Kenneth Branagh, and, Peter Bogdanovich. While the most familiar of the three, it is satisfying.

What most fans may be less aware of is covered in The Real Wolfman, a 90-minute exploration of the thing called Gevaudan that is credited with killing 100 people in France at the end of the eighteenth century. Similar to Ghost Hunters, the film features George Deucher, a retired policeman and criminal profiler, and Ken Gerhard, a crypto-zoologist as they journey to France in search of the truth behind the legend. They come off as somewhat clueless and at times erratic as they interview historians and descendants of the people who were there during the attacks. Most interesting is the story of Jean Chastel, credited with ending the threat, possibly using silver bullets he made and then had blessed by a priest. Some coverage is devoted to the history of werewolves, which puts Gevaudan into perspective. The reenactments are nicely done and add a quality touch to the production.

This disc is a representation of the previous releases and appears in 1.33:1 standard ratio with Dolby digital 2 channel audio. As a result, everything is perfectly acceptable for home viewing.

There are no extras presented with this fun double-feature.

REVIEW: Newsprints

Newsprints
By Ru Xu
208 pages, Scholastic Graphix, $12.99

A world eerily familiar to our own but not, a time of war between two neighboring nations, and a girl masquerading as a boy because she loves selling newspapers. Toss in some steampunk, some science fiction, some gender roles and identity issues, stir vigorously and you have Newsprints a refreshingly original graphic novel from Ru Xu.

Best known for her webcomic Saint for Rent (http://www.saintforrent.com/comic/the-cloverhouse-inn), the SCAD graduate moves from serialized storytelling to a done-in-one adventure that breezily moves along. Lavender Blue has come to work at the Bugle, living with her fellow newsies and keeping her sex a secret because, for some inexplicable reason, girls can’t sell newspapers.

On her website, Xu states, “I’m really excited about the first book because it explores a lot of eye-opening feelings I had toward fitting in while growing up, gender identity, and dealing with the expectations of adults. I got to draw a backdrop inspired by the early 20th century and dieselpunk,”

Adolescent Blue is content for now, although she is aware her body will betray her soon enough. She winds up meeting Jack, an inventor of some sort, working in secret. They become friends and she apprentices herself to him. As a result, he brings her with him on his travels which leads to her accidental meeting with the muffled figure who only names himself Crow. She warms to the odd figure and they spend time together but slowly, we learn, that Crow is a robot, a product of Jack’s intelligence and early use of Artificial Intelligence. He was a prototype for a war machine but he chose to leave his country Grimmaea for refuge in Nautilene.

There are chases, secrets learned, relationships altered, and the like before things reach its anticipated climax and resolution. Xu tackles lots of issues and themes here and for me one of keenest was her sense of betrayal when she comes to realize the truth is the first casualty of war. Gender politics comes into play with Blue but also with an adult, Jill, who comes to play a pivotal role.

It’s 1924 and there are phrases like AI that get used so this alternate reality isn’t totally divorced from our world but the worldbuilding is sketchy at best so we don’t understand why things are the way they are or what is at stake during the prolonged war. Blue, Jack, and Crow are the only characters to move beyond two dimensions which is shame since the others, Hector, the Mayor, and Jill among them, who could use some depth and complexity.

Visually, Xu’s work is minimalist with a strong sense of design. Still, the broad strokes and spare use of line means expressions can lack subtlety when called for. Sometimes figures are moving in a panel and you can’t quite tell what is happening. Xu fills the pages and paces things nicely, sparing with splash pages or complicated designs. Xu’s color, done with her brother Eric and Liz Fleming, does a nice job with a limited palette. In Saint for Rent, she has been very disciplined with color because she embeds GIFs to enhance the webcomic and the colors have to be harmonious. Here, she works with broader colors without getting garish, helping give us a sense this is not our world.

The 8-12 year olds this is aimed at will find plenty to like and hopefully read some things that gets to them to think a bit. This nice debut work shows plenty of promise for the future.

REVIEW: The Accountant

REVIEW: The Accountant

Director Gavin O’Connor calls The Accountant a puzzle film because there are multiple dimensions to just about every character in this action drama. The film, out Tuesday from Warner Home Entertainment, is a largely satisfying character study with more than its necessary quota of gunfire and mayhem,

Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is on the Autism spectrum and through flashbacks, we learn that his parents were at a loss of how to deal with him, leading to their divorce. Their father (Robert C. Treveiler), a decorated Special Forces PSYOP Officer, is left to raise his sons as he saw fit, which meant extensive military and martial arts training around the world. As they grew up, though, the boys went their separate ways and Christian used his gifts to become a forensic accountant for the Underworld. Known only as the Accountant, he was a bane to law enforcement all over but none more so than Detective Raymond King (J.K. Simmons), who wants this man found before his retirement. He hands the assignment to Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), who proves tenacious and doggedly methodical in her investigation.

Wolff takes on a new client, Lamar Blackburn (John Lithgow), CEO of Living Robotics who has been told by one of his staff, Dana Cummings (Anna Kendrick), that there may be financial irregularities. Quickly, Christian finds $61 million has been embezzled, probably by CFO Ed Chillton (Andy Umberger) who dies of a suspected insulin overdose. Christian is left dissatisfied that he is quickly dismissed but his life unravels when it’s clear he and Dana are targeted for death.

The movie kicks into a higher gear from that point on as Christian, unaccustomed to having personal attachments as an adult, finds himself yearning to find a way to connect with Dana, all the while continuing his investigation. We then have a cat and mouse game between Christian and the assassin (Jon Bernthal) and Christian and Medina. Throughout, we get the backstory slowly filled in and astute viewers can begin to connect various dots leading to some fun exchanges during the climax.

No one is entirely as they seem, which is one of the joys found in Bill Dubuque’s script. This applies to just about every character from art major turned accountant Dana to the assassin being more than a hired gun. As a result, this rises above your standard crime story or personal drama. The climax, set in Blackburn’s home, is overdone and overlong marring an otherwise very enjoyable film.

The high definition transfer and Dolby soundtrack are both excellent, making for a fine home viewing experience. The film can be found in 4K or your typical combo pack (Blu-ray, DVD, Digital HD).

Unfortunately, we are given three perfunctory special features: Inside the Man (10:36), Behavioral Science (8:02), and The Accountant in Action (7:12) where the cast and crew extol their efforts. The middle piece is the most interesting as a doctor talks about how Affleck and others worked with people on the spectrum in order to hone their performances and do them justice.

REVIEW: Morgan

There’s something about the fall and the beginning of the school year that forces us to crave weightier matters. Popcorn nonsense like Independence Day Resurgence makes way for more thoughtful science fiction fare. While a lot of attention was devoted to the serious Arrival, there was another offering that had some strong themes undercut by weak execution.

From producer Ridley Scott came Morgan, out this week from 20th Century Home Entertainment. The film, starring Kate Mara, Michelle Yeoh, Toby Jones, and Paul Giamatti, came and went in a blink so don’t be surprised you don’t recall it.

Today, in our world, scientists are actively growing organs and meat in test tubes, perfecting the process before unleashing their work on society. In Morgan, things have progressed much further, having developed Morgan (Anya Taylor-Joy) in an isolated lab. Coming to check it out is corporate risk assessor Lee Weathers (Kate Mara) and as she speaks with Dr. Lui Cheng (Michelle Yeoh) and Dr. Simon Ziegler (Toby Jones), the moral and ethical issues of their work is up for debate.

Lee and Morgan spend a lot of time together, as the human tires to determine if the five year old lab experiment is a good thing or not. Dr. Alan Shapiro (Paul Giamatti) is also brought in to probe it, not her, and he asks a lot of questions without following what appears to be proper lab protocols for an experiment. He delves deep and given that it’s Giamatti asking the aggressive questions, it’s done with verve. He and Taylor-Joy, she of the large, expressive eyes, do a great job together, giving us all issues to chew over.

Many of these themes came up last year in the superior Ex Machina, but given how close this issue is coming to fruition, we should have having these debates with regularity. Starting in our entertaining makes the most sense since news pieces on this topic normally would be glossed over or more easily ignored.

Of course it’s not all talk as Morgan snaps and becomes a threat, attacking Kathy (Jennifer Jason Leigh), maiming the aide, thus summoning Lee to investigate.

If only the Seth Owen’s story were better crafter and weak characterization and pacing made more sense. Scott’s son, Luke, makes his directorial debut here and between the two, they should have recognized these weaknesses and addressed them. The twist at the end is fairly clear to those paying attention but here, Luke Scott pulls it off nicely.

The high definition transfer looks just fine and is well matched with the audio.

There are handful of special features, the best of which is Modified Organism: The Science Behind Morgan, with a good look at the real world issues the film addresses. There are some Deleted Scenes, a mildly interesting Audio Commentary from Luke Scott; his short film Loom (complete with a commentary track, and a Still Gallery.

 

REVIEW: Suicide Squad

suicide-squad-3d-box-artLast week was an odd one for Warner Bros.’ Suicide Squad. On the same day it received three Grammy nominations for the soundtrack while Time named it one of the ten worst films of the year, and the Honest Trailer folk skewered it.

Now, Warner Home Entertainment is releasing the film on disc tomorrow, complete with Theatrical and Extended versions so if you liked it, you get 11 more minutes.

I’m biased. With writer and ComicMix columnist John Ostrander, we created the comic series the film is based on. There’s a building named after him in the movie and he’s a talking head in one of the extras where I get name checked twice (thanks, John). I can see our collective fingerprints all over the film, where David Ayer lifted tone, theme, or plot points from our first 18 months on the title. It’s something I never expected to see.

And yet…I am also cognizant that the film is incredibly flawed for a variety of reasons, starting with the idiotic idea that Ayer can writer and prep a film in a mere six weeks. Then there was the heavier than expected third act reshooting followed by word there were as many as seven different cuts of the film. When you have that many cooks, the results are rarely what one hopes for.

If anything, the film is wildly uneven as we veer from exposition to action to conversation to exposition to action, etc. At worst, it failed to live up to the expectations set by the brilliant trailers and marketing campaign. At best, it was a step in the right direction to a more enjoyable DC Cinematic Universe but not quite there yet.

Suicide Squad movieThe Squad is simply too large to properly service the characters with some having little to do so had their roles been combined, we might have had a tighter story. While Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney) was sleazy and amusing, he had nothing substantive to do, for example. When Slipknot (Adam Beach) shows up without exposition, he may as well have been wearing a red shirt. That they traveled to Midway City to rescue Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), not once but twice, without explanation for why she was there, was weak.

Worse, the villain was sexy and all, but her ultimate goal made little sense. Like Apocalypse in the year’s earlier X-Men: Apocalypse, Enchantress (Cara Delevigne) is an ancient goddess now in the modern world and finds it wanting. She wants to build a “machine” to fix things and recruits her brother to help her achieve her goals since Waller literally holds her heart. We see energy and a ring of debris then we see she has tapped Waller’s mind and is taking out America’s satellites but exactly what was the end game? Dunno.

Yes, Will Smith’s Deadshot and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn are the film’s brightest spots. Their easy alliance, thanks to having starred previously in 2015’s more entertaining Focus, gives the movie an emotional core.

Suicide-Squad-Amanda-WallerOn the other hand, Jared Leto’s Joker is nicely distinct from his cinematic predecessors, but is entirely superfluous to the story. Cut his scenes and the story still works so it would have been better to keep him to the flashbacks, as a carrot motivating Harley’s actions.

Speaking of which, the bulk of the new footage are the flashbacks deepening their backstory at Arkham Asylum, as the Joker manipulates Dr. Quinzel into helping him escape and then he can’t shake his unhinged groupie.

There’s a good story buried amidst the wreckage that the film proves to be and it’s a shame Ayer didn’t have the time to find it, shape it, and deliver it to the fans.

The high definition transfer of both versions (stacked one atop the other in the case) is excellent, capturing the shadows and colors with equal intensity. The Dolby Atmos soundtrack is equally good, so if you like those songs, they sound great at home.

suicide-squad-2-jpgThe combo pack comes with two Blu-ray discs, the DVD, and a Digital HD code. It should be noted that Warner has partnered with Vudu for something new, dubbed VUDU Extras+. If you buy the theatrical cut of the film from them for use on an iOS or Android device, there’s an app that will allow users to watch the movie and simultaneously experience synchronized content related to any scene, simply by rotating their device.  Synchronized content is presented on the same screen while the movie is playing, thus enabling users to quickly learn more about any scene, such as actor biographies, scene locations, fun trivia, or image galleries.

There is a nice assortment of extras available on the discs, starting with Task Force X: One Team, One Mission as Ostrander, Ayer, Geoff Johns, producer Charles Roven, and others talk about the Squad’s comic book roots, dating back to The Brave and the Bold and the members. Jai Nitz is also there to talk his take on El Diablo, the one which made it on screen. There’s nice behind-the-scenes footage that shows how tight the ensemble grew together.

Additionally, there are other features focusing on different aspects of the production including Chasing the Real, Joker & Harley: “It” Couple of The Underworld, Squad Strength and Speed, Armed to the Teeth, This is Gonna Get Loud: The Epic Battles of Suicide Squad, The Squad Declassified, and of course, the Gag Reel.

The film has been an unexpected financial windfall for Warner given its global box office so the movie definitely struck a chord with some of the fans. Will there be a sequel? One hopes but Ayer seems out of the picture and the announced Harley Quinn solo film may preclude the need for a Squad 2. Time and final financial tallying will tell.

REVIEW: Jason Bourne

universal_jasonbourneThere is a weight and heaviness to being Jason Bourne, nee David Webb, given that your life is constantly being manipulated and/or endangered. Trust doesn’t come easily and those around him tend to get hurt. Through three films, we’ve thrilled to Matt Damon’s interpretation of Robert Ludlum’s espionage hero in part thanks to the excellent filmmaking from directors Paul Greengrass and Doug Liman.

After skipping an installment that shifted the focus to a new agent played by Jeremy Renner, Greengrass and Damon returned this summer with Jason Bourne. Things have changed since 2007’s The Bourne Ultimatum as skullduggery has increasingly gone digital so the lengths required to keep secrets buried have to go further. The film, out now from Universal Home Entertainment, explores what all that means.

Bourne has been in hiding these last few years, travelling the world as a bare-knuckled boxer, using physical pain to tamp down the metal anguish he has been dealing with. After all, he knows bits and pieces about his previous life and has questions that haunt him, notably about his father’s involvement.

jason-bourne-2One of the few people he likes and trusts, Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) unexpectedly turns up with the answers. She has chosen to go rogue, taking stolen data from the CIA, and is on the run in the hopes of exposing the US Government’s dirtiest secrets. Unfortunately, she is also being hunted by a man known as the Asset (Vincent Cassel), kicking off the first of the anticipated action set pieces the series has been known for.

There is globetrotting, there are car chases, there are fistfights, and of courses there are twists and turns. Greengrass keeps things moving, throttling back when we need some exposition and then kicking things back into high gear as Bourne gets closer to the truth and the Asset gets closer to Bourne.

jason-bourne-1Orchestrating things from Washington is the new CIA director Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones), aided by an ambitious and smart analyst Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander). Bourne doesn’t know or trust them (he, like I, miss Joan Allen) and yet, he can’t be rid of them either. All the threads come together in Las Vegas for the final portion of the film and it’s an overly extended assortment of chases, fights, and betrayals.

As a popcorn film, this is a cut above as it offers up thrills and raises topical issues. Bourne is one of the few figures on screen whose mere presence makes other characters truly worried (not something you can say about Superman, Bond, or Optimus Prime). His search for identity continues to propel him and things get explained at last but there are also contrived connections that undercut the drama.

Overall, it’s fun but Bourne never seems to change and grow from these experiences and Washington’s players seem to have traded in their humanity for ambition.

The film is offered in a variety of formats including the latest version of a combo pack: 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and Digital HD (goodbye DVD). Visually, the Blu-ray transfer is very good, which it needs to be considering the constantly changing pace, setting, and lighting. The DTS:X is also very good so you can hear the gun shots, tires screeching, and eavesdropping with clarity.

Damon turns up as host for several of the film’s by-the-numbers special features. There’s Bringing Back Bourne (8:15), a brief overview of how the team reuniting for a new chapter; Bourne to Fight, a three-parter featuring Bare-Knuckle Boxing (7:55), Close Quarters (4:27), and, Underground Rumble (5:59); The Athens Escape (5:37); and the two-part Las Vegas Showdown which focuses on Convention Chaos (6:36) and Shutting Down the Strip (8:24). Overall, you get a sense of the scope and scale of the physical action but the lack of attention to theme and character is actually quite telling.

REVIEW: Wonder Woman ‘77 Meets the Bionic Woman

wwbw01-cov-a-staggsIn the 1970s, there were few genuine heroes on prime time television and even fewer of them were close to being considered “super”. Instead, the three networks fed us giggly television, glossy and empty private eyes, and increasingly silly fare. As a result, our affection for the few genuine heroes is probably enhanced. Over on ABC, there was the Six Million Dollar Man and its spinoff, The Bionic Woman, along with Wonder Woman, for one season before it was moved to CBS. You might consider Kwai Chang Caine from Kung Fu or Carl Kolchak from The Night Stalker, but they lacked what you would consider powers.

Fans, of course, imagined these characters interacting since, after all, they were on the same network, which felt like the same comic book company. Sadly, though, the Amazon Princess’ adventures were during World War II, complicating any such meetings.

By 1977, though, she was having escapades in the present so such thoughts were possible. It just never happened until today when crossovers and mashups were possible. In the wake of fun things like Batman ’66 & Steed and Mrs. Peel¸ Dynamite’s Wonder Woman ‘77 Meets the Bionic Woman arrives today. I can think of no one better suited for the task than Andy Mangels, the most knowledgeable historian of all things Amazonian, who is also an accomplished historian of that era in pop culture.

He’s paired with Judit Tondora, a relatively new artist, with just a handful of credits to date. The basic premise has the world on high alert as a sinister cabal has a weapon and world peace is threatened. So mighty is the threat that rare interagency cooperation is required from the Office of Scientific Intelligence, where Jamie Sommers works as a special operative, and the National Security Bureau, where Wonder Woman slums as agent Diana Prince.

For vague reasons, Prince and Sommers are partnered to provide protection to CASTRA’s theoretical next target, a doctor. Before they can arrive, the building is under attack and in the aftermath, Steve Trevor is now convinced there is a mole in the Inter Agency Defense Command operation. Things blow up, people die, the heroes strut their stuff with accomplished ease but it all seems for naught as CASTRA inches closer to their goal.

As the first in a six part series, the elements, threat, and key players are introduced and we’re off to the races. Mangels characterizes the main cast nicely while everyone else feels straight from central casting. His script is overstuffed and despite the experienced lettering team of Tom Orzechowski and L. Lois Buhalis, the pages are jammed with word balloons.

Tondora gets the heroines looking right but his storytelling needed far stronger art direction so the pages and panels flowed more smoothly. Characters move about in questionable ways and actions in one panel don’t always make sense in the next. Complicating his work is the volume of words and balloons, making attractive page design almost impossible.

These are 22 jam-packed pages that sets things up but maybe we needed a little less opening action and a little more airing out so the characters could do more than trade quips. It’s a promising enough start and maybe these issues will be addressed in subsequent installments.

REVIEW: Mad Max: Fury Road Black & Chrome Edition

black-and-chrome-3dDirector George Miller first thought of Mad Max’s world in black and white terms as far back as the production of The Road Warrior. Now, after the smash success of Mad Max: Fury Road, he has the freedom to explore what that world would really look like. Out today from Warner Home Entertainment is Mad Max: Fury Road Black & Chrome Edition, which you can obtain as a two-disc Blu-ray or find it included in the complete High Octane Collection.

The film is here in its entirety but has been carefully processed in black and white by Miller and chief colorist Eric Whipp. Max’s desolate world of the future looks even bleaker and less welcoming in two colors but, interestingly, the grays, the in-between tones actually allow you to assess characters and situations through fresh eyes.

The story, as mentioned when the theatrical edition was released on disc, is about independence and family, the need to perpetuate the species before things grow too desolate. Max (Tom Hardy) gets involved with the rebellious Furiosa (Charlize Theron) as she escapes with Immortal Joe’s five wives, hoping to bring them to a safe place. Hot on the trail is the most visually impressive array of vehicles ever assembled on land. While it works as a fast-pace chase film, second and third viewings reveal other layers to the story and characters.

The film and all the Blu-ray extras are intact with the sole addition of a new introduction from Miller (1:37).

So, is it worth plunking down more money? It looks good, but different, in monochrome with the same thrills. I’d opt for the complete collection if you lack the other entries in your library otherwise, it will look great under your Christmas tree.

REVIEW: The BFG

REVIEW: The BFG

the-bfgbluray-copyThis summer we had some excellent choices for family fare and it boiled down to a contest between an adaptation of a beloved children’s novel and a sequel to a previous blockbuster. It was also a contest in whimsy and effective use of computer technology and in all cases, Pixar’s Finding Dory triumphed over Steven Spielberg’s The BFG.

Spielberg has always had a fondness for childish innocence, capturing their sense of wonder time and again in his films. As a filmmaker, he is always stretching and pushing himself so he can seamlessly go from high adventure in the Indiana Jones films to suspense in Jaws to wonder with E.T. He is always mixing and matching his genres and subject matter but it also means the results can be uneven. The BFG, now out on disc from Walt Disney Home Entertainment, is a bittersweet entry into his oeuvre because it represents the final screenwriting from the late Melissa Mathieson and a magical film that failed to connect with its audience.

The $140 million dollar film was a major misfire at the box office, earning a mere $177 million worldwide. When adapting the works of Roald Dahl, author of such wonders as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, and Fantastic Mr. Fox, directors have also been uneven in their successes. This film is based on the 1982 novel, itself an outgrowth of a short story included in Danny, the Champion of the World. In this case, BFG stands for Big Friendly Giant (Mark Rylance) who ventures into the world and is spied by Sophie (Ruby Barnhill), an orphan who can’t sleep. He takes her with him, to protect the secret of his existence, and brings her into his oversized, remarkable world.

Everything is a matter of scale and as big as he is to Sophie, there are nine man-eating giants who belittle the BFG and he needs her help to stop them. Along the way, she realizes he can control dreams, something the insomniac finds fascinating. Reality and the dreamscape are equally explored throughout the film as is the frequently-seen Spielberg theme of family.

It’s engaging and entertaining, but the characters and set pieces are as ephemeral as cotton candy, the magic is weak here, and the overall combination does not thrill as anticipated. We’re not as invested in Sophie or the BFG the same way kids thrilled to Dory. Rylance, in his motion captured form, is sympathetic and likeable but everything around him is just fine, not fantastic. In fact, he just won the Washington D.C. film critics’ award for Best Motion Capture Performance (when will this become an Oscar?).

The amount of CGI involved in this film looked good on screen and the high definition transfer is superb, capturing the colors in their richness, and dazzles on your television. The DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 lossless soundtrack is almost as good, allowing you to enjoy another solid John Williams score.

Given the lackluster public response to the film, it’s little surprise to find an underwhelming assortment of extras found on the Blu-ray disc. The longest and most interesting piece is Bringing the BFG to Life (27:09) with a set of video diaries from Barnhill. There is also The Big Friendly Giant and Me (1:55), Gobblefunk: The Wonderful Words of the BFG (3:16), Giants 101 (4:54), and a touching Melissa Mathieson: A Tribute (5:54).