Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

The silly comedy Encino Man was of my favorite guilty pleasure movies from the early '90s. Yes, it was completely stupid, but for some reason it appealed to me during my pre-teen years. Pauly Shore was one of the co-stars in the film and he went on to star in several similar comedies during the '90s, including 1995's Jury Duty, which was released to Blu-ray earlier this month from Mill Creek Entertainment as part of their Retro VHS series.

Directed by John Fortenberry, the film is more of a spoof of 12 Angry Men, where an unemployed Tommy Collins (played by Pauly Shore) finds himself out of a home when his mother and her boyfriend take their mobile home to Las Vegas to get married. Tommy and his chihuahua Peanuts are now homeless, well, that is until he receives a jury summons!

Tommy becomes one of the 12 jurors for a murder trial and as jury foreman he deliberately delays the verdict just so he can be paid $5 per day, get free meals, and live in a nice hotel room (also for free). While attempting to convinced the other jurors of reasonable doubt, he begins to believe the murderer is actually innocent.

Rounding out the rest of the cast is Tia Carrere, Brian Doyle-Murray, Stanley Tucci, Abe Vigoda, Charles Napier, and Shelley Winters.

Final Thoughts

Walmart

Last week, Disney Home Entertainment re-released the classic animated classic Cinderella on Digital HD and Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Code Anniversary Edition combo pack, which is also part of the The Signature Walt Disney Collection.

Based on the fairy tale by by Charles Perrault, Disney's Cinderella originally hit the big screen in 1950. Directed by Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske, and Wilfred Jackson, the animated classic featured the talented voice cast of Ilene Woods, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton, Rhoda Williams, James MacDonald, Luis van Rooten, Don Barclay, Mike Douglas, William Phipps, and Lucille Bliss.

The 75-minnute film tells the tale of Cinderella, a young woman who's forced by her stepmother, Lady Tremaine, to work in her own home as a maid and sleep in a tower. Her stepsisters Drizella and Anastasia are just as cruel as their mother. Cinderella's only friends are the mice (Jaq, Guz, and many others) that also live in the tower.



The King of the land is tired of the Prince's refusal to get married, so he and the Grand Duke organize a ball and invite every single young woman near the kingdom, in the hopes they will find the perfect wife for the prince.

Upon hearing about the ball, Lady Tremaine is determined to have one of her daughters marry the Prince. Since all young women have been invited, Cinderella would love to go as well, but Lady Tremaine piles more work for her to do, just o she wouldn't have time to make a dress.

Let's just say with a little help of her animal friends and her Fairy Godmother, Cinderella attends the ball wearing a gorgeous dress and glass slippers, and she enchants the Princess with just one dance.

Blu-ray Bonus Features include:

• New Features
• Try This Trivia on for Size – Join Ruth Righi and Ava Kolker from Disney Channel's Sydney to the Max and put your knowledge of Cinderella to the test.
• In Walt’s Words: Enhanced Edition – Watch the movie and gain some insight into its production with storyboards, archival photos, sketches and transcripts. 

• CLASSIC Features
• Diane Disney Miller “Cinderella” Film Intro – In this introduction to the animated classic, Diane Disney Miller describes how Cinderella helped launch a studio renaissance.
• The Real Fairy Godmother – Learn about the real-life inspiration for the Fairy Godmother: Mary Alice O’Connor, wife of Disney layout artist Ken O’Connor.
• Behind the Magic: A New Disney Princess Fairyland – Discover how Imagineers created a Fantasyland at Walt Disney World featuring each of the Disney Princesses.
• The Magic of the Glass Slipper – World-famous shoe designer Christian Louboutin creates a very exclusive “Glass Slipper” in honor of a beloved Disney classic. 

• THE ART OF CINDERELLA 
• Concept Art  - View a gallery of concept art from the feature's production.
• Character Model Sheets – View a gallery of character model sheets from the feature's production. 
• Story Sketches – View a gallery of story sketches from the feature's production.
• Live-Action Reference – View a gallery of photos taken from live-action footage shot as a reference for the animated feature.
• Pencil Animation – View a gallery of pencil animation from the feature's production.
• Behind-the-Scenes Stills – View a gallery of behind-the-scenes stills from the feature's production.
• Feature Stills – View a gallery of stills from the feature. 

 

Final Thoughts

AMAZON

Now available on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital from Lionsgate Home Entertainment is the racing drama Trading Paint ($22.98; R; 87 minutes). Directed by Karzan Kader, the film stars John Travolta, Toby Sebastian, Shania Twain, Rosabell Laurenti Sellers, Michael Madsen, and Kevin Dunn. There are no special features or bonus extras.

The film mostly centers around the estranged relationship between the dirt racing father and son duo, Sam and Cam (played by John Travolta and Toby Sebastian). Sam is a former dirt racer who's a big racing legend in his hometown. His racing rival is Linsky (played by Michael Madsen), a local car dealer owner, who convinces Cam to join his racing team.

Devastated (and mostly pissed off), Sam puts himself back into the driver seat to race against his son and find a way to mend their broken relationship.

Final Thoughts

AMAZON

This week marked the Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital release of the drama-thriller A Vigilante ($22.98; R; 91 minutes). Written and directed by Sarah Daggar-Nickson, the film first premiered at South by Southwest in 2018. Saban Films picked up the U.S. distribution rights and released the film earlier this year.

The film stars Olivia Wilde as Sadie, a woman who had barely escaped the wrath of her abusive husband (played by Morgan Spector). Unfortunately, her young son was killed during the aftermath. Since that  night, her husband has went off the grid and is on the run from the authorities.

Still grieving and broken, Sadie teaches herself boxing, martial arts, and other survival skills. She uses these new abilities to help protect other battered women and abused children.

The only Special Feature on the Blu-ray is the featurette Catharsis: Creating A Vigilante. The Blu-ray does come with a DVD and a Digital code.

Final Thoughts

AMAZON

After being a little upset at the way the fantasy drama Game of Thrones ended last Sunday, I ended up spending my Memorial Day evening watching a different (& better) dragon tale - How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (PG; 104 minutes), which landed on Blu-ray and DVD last week from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

The Hidden World is the final chapter in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy, which is based on the children book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell. Written and directed by Dean DeBlois, the film features the talented voice cast of Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, F. Murray Abraham , Kit Harington, Craig Ferguson, Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.

Picking up one year after the second film, Hiccup, Toothless, the other dragon-riders, and their entire Viking village must go on a journey to find a new home after being threatened by the legendary dragon hunter Grimmel the Grisly and his army of minions (and a few evil dragons). At Grimmel's disposal is a female Light Fury who easily captures Toothless's heart and sets the stage for the the dragon-riders' final battle.

Bonus Features include:

• Alternate Opening with Intro by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois
• DreamWorks Shorts:
• Bilby – Directed by Liron Topaz, Pierre Perifel and JP Sans; produced by Jeff Hermann and Kelly Cooney Cilella. Threatened daily by the deadly residents and harsh environment of Australia’s Outback, a lonesome Bilby finds himself an unwitting protector, and unexpected friend, to a helpless (and quite adorable) baby bird. 
• Bird Karma – Directed by William Salazar and produced by Jeff Hermann, the beautifully artistic 2D short film Bird Karma tells a delightfully lyrical and fully unexpected tale of a long-legged bird’s journey of blissful joy, inescapable greed and the accidental discovery of the consequences when too much is not enough.
• Deleted Scenes with Intros by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois
• How to Voice Your Viking – Go behind the scenes with the cast as they record the Viking voices of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD. 
• Creating an Epic Dragon Tale – Discover what filmmakers learned while crafting this epic dragon trilogy.
• How I Learned from Dragons – The diverse cast of characters reveal why they think the dragon trilogy is so special. 
• Brave Wilderness Presents: Nature + Dragons = Awesome – Join Coyote Peterson, host of Brave Wilderness, as he explores what it takes to make the dragon’s characters come to life. 
• The Dragon Sheep Chronicles – Protecting sheep from the dragons of Berk is no easy task but Hiccup has a plan. 
• A Deck of Dragons – Observe four new dragons as Fishlegs unveils his original deck of dragon trading cards. 
• Growing Up with Dragons – After years of being with these characters, hear the lasting effects of the dragon trilogy from the filmmaker’s perspective.
• The Evolving Character Design of Dragons – Cast and crew reveal what it was like to evolve not only the characters of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD, but themselves as well. 
• Drawing Dragons – Get a glimpse of what goes in to designing a DreamWorks dragon. 
• Epic Villain – A different kind of villain, Grimmel brings great challenges to the village of Berk. Go behind the scenes as filmmakers breakdown this epic character.
•  Astrid’s Whole Dragon Trilogy in 60 Seconds – Hold on tight as Astrid sums up the whole dragon trilogy in a legendary 60 seconds. 
• Welcome to New Berk – With Hiccup as your guide, get a firsthand look at the updated Viking village of New Berk.
• Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Dean DeBlois, Producer Bradford Lewis and Head of Character Animation Simon Otto.

Final Thoughts

AMAZON

Does anyone remember hearing about a the movie Replicas being released to theatres back in January? If your answer is no, don't worry you're not the only who's never heard of it either!

Replicas landed on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital earlier this month from Lionsgate Home Entertainment. 

Directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff and written for the screen by Chad St. John based on the story by Stephen Hamel, the film stars Keanu Reeves as William Foster, a neuroscientist who moved his family to Puerto Rico when he took a job working for the Bionyne Corporation. Along with cloning scientist Ed Whittle (played by Thomas Middleditch), William is attempting to transfer the mind of dead soldiers into robots. Despite many attempts, their experiments have failed.

While on a family trip, William, his wife Mona (played by Alice Eve) and their children Sophie, Matt, and Zoe are involved in a car crash. William is the only the survivor. Instead of calling the authorities, he ends up calling Ed to help him recover their bodies and take them back home, where he plans on cloning their bodies with technology that Ed sort of borrowed from the Bionyne Corporation. Sadly, there were only 3 cloning tank available, so William must make a horrible decision not to clone one of his children.

The cloning process only takes 17 days per clone, and during that time William brainstorms on how to successfully copy the human mind's neural pathways to an artificial mind. Luckily for him, he succeeds just in the nick of time. However, bringing his family back from the dead will have deadly consequences.

Blu-ray Special Features include:

• Audio Commentary with Director Jeffery Nachmanoff and Executive Producer James Dodson
• Imprint Collection: The Making of Replicas
• Deleted Scenes

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

It seems like there is a new superhero movie in theaters every other month, and almost every single one of them makes gobs of hundreds of millions at the box office. However, rewind back to the mid-1990s, a time when comic book movies weren't taken as seriously and many were complete flops, such as 1996's Barb Wire starring Pamela Anderson.

The movie was recently released on Blu-ray from Mill Creek Entertainment. There are no special features or bonus extras.

Based upon the Dark Horse Comics' series, Barb Wire (R; 99 minutes; $14.98) centers around Barbara Kopetski (a.k.a. Barb Wire), the owner of the nightclub Hammerhead in the war zone city of Steel Harbor in the year 2017. When she isn't bartending, she's making a little extra cash as a bounty hunter and mercenary. Her world is turned upside down when her former lover Axel Hood (played by Temuera Morrison) reenters her life.

Axel is a freedom fighter who's trying to help a former government scientist Dr. Corrina Devonshire (played by Victoria Rowell), escape the corrupted government by sneaking her into Canada. In order to fly out of the city, she'll need a special pair of contacts to bypass the airport's retinal scan, and of course Barb Wire is the only person who can help her get the contacts.

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

Why is it I have a nostalgic feelings towards anything related to the 1980s? Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I was born in 1981. Plus, everything "entertainment" related is better than anything being released today. 

Studios are well aware of the 1980's nostalgia craze, such as Mill Creek Entertainment, which has been releasing several 1980s films to Blu-ray with retro VHS-style slipcovers. 

The 1981 cult comedy classic "Neighbors" ($14.98; R; 95 minutes) starring John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Cathy Moriarty, and Kathryn Walker arrived on Blu-ray earlier this month. It's a bare bones edition with no special features or bonus extras.

Based on the novel of the same name by Thomas Berger and directed by John G. Avildsen, the film centers around Earl Keese (played by Belushi), a middle age man with a boring job who lives in the middle of nowhere with his disconnected wife, Enid (played by Walker), and their rebellious teenage daughter (played by Lauren-Marie Taylor). After a long day at work, Earl wants nothing more than a peaceful and relaxing night at home, but that doesn't occur on this particular night, as his new neighbors, Vic and Romona (played by Aykroyd and Moriarty) decide to crash his plans.

Vic is extremely obnoxious, rude and downright crazy at times. Ramona is overly sexual and just as insane as Vic. The duo invites themselves over for dinner and end up turning Earl's entire life upside down.

Final Thoughts

AMAZON

Now available to purchase on Blu-ray (as well as 4K Ultra HD and DVD) is the award-winning blockbuster Bohemian Rhapsody (PG-13; 135 minutes), which is a biography of the rock band Queen and their lead singer Freddie Mercury (played by Rami Malek).

Along with Rami Malek, the rest of the cast includes Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy, Joe Mazzello, Aidan Gillen, Allen Leech, Tom Hollander, and Mike Myers.

Queen is one of the most popular rock bands who had dozens of #1 hits, including We Will Rock You, Another One Bites The Dust, Bohemian Rhapsody, Hammer To Fall, and Radio Ga Ga. The band consisted of vocalist Freddy Mercury, lead guitarist Brian May, bass guitarist John Deacon, and drummer Roger Taylor.

Bohemian Rhapsody mostly centers around Farrokh Bulsara (later known as Freddie Mercury), a young college student who forms a band called Queen with former Smile band members Brian May and Roger Taylor (played by Gwilym Lee and Ben Hardy). Later, they hired John Deacon (played by Joe Mazzello) as the bass guitarist; though this event is never shown in the film.

Basically the film chronicles the band's rise to stardom, their breakup (which never occurred in reality), and lastly their reunion at the 1985 Live Aid at Wembley Stadium.

Blu-ray Special Features:

• The Complete Live Aid Movie Performance Not Seen in Theaters
• Rami Malek: Becoming Freddie
• The Look and Sound of Queen
• Recreating Live Aid 

MILL CREEK ENT. * AMAZON

I watch many different genres of horror including the controversial "torture porn," which is what modern "splatter films" are now called. The 2005 film Hostel was the first to be labeled "torture porn," though the new genre trend really started in 2004 with the original Saw. These types of films rely less on horror and more on gore.

Yesterday, Mill Creek Entertainment released the Horror Double Feature Blu-ray + DVD set ($14.98) featuring the director's  cut of Hostel and its sequel Hostel Part II (unrated director's cut). The only special feature on the two-disc set is an "Alternate Director's Cut Ending," which is only included on the DVD.

Presented by Quentin Tarantino and directed by Eli Roth, Hostel (2005; 94 minutes) centers on two American tourist, Paxton and Josh, (played by Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson) backpacking across Europe with their Icelandic pal Óli (played by Eyþór Guðjónsson). They travel to Amsterdam, where the trio have only have two things on their minds - parting and women. Shortly after arriving, they are told if they want to have a good time, then they need to go to the hostel in Slovakia, which is exactly what they do. Unfortunately, that was their biggest mistake. Unknowingly to them, Slovakia is home to a secret elite hunting group, where tourist are kidnapped and are given to the rich to be tortured to death.

Eli Roth returned to write and direct Hostel Part II (2007; 95 minutes). The sequel centers on three American art students, Beth, Whitney, and Lorna (played by Lauren German, Bijou Phillips, and Heather Matarazzo) traveling to Slovakia for a vacation, but shortly upon arriving they are kidnapped the same "hunting" group from the first movie and are sold off to be tortured by the wealthy.

Final Thoughts

Walmart; Target

Arriving on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital form Disney Home Entertainment on January 29th is fantasy adventure The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (PG; 99 minutes).

Directed by Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston, the film stars Keira Knightley, Mackenzie Foy, Eugenio Derbez, Matthew Macfadyen, Richard E. Grant, Misty Copeland, with Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman.

Based on the short story"The Nutcracker and the Mouse King"by E. T. A. Hoffmann and the play "The Nutcracker" by Marius Petipa, the film centers around Clara Stahlbaum receiving a locked handcrafted egg-shaped box as a Christmas gift from her late mother. (Actually, Clara's father gave it her, but her mother had gave him instructions to do so before she died.) Her mother also left behind a note, which stated the egg is all she would ever need.

While attending a Christmas Eve ball, Clara visits her godfather, Drosselmeyer, who happens to be an engineer. She learns Drosselmeyer had made the egg many years ago and had given it to her mother as a gift. After having a brief argument with her father, Clara finds a string with her name on it. She follows the string into the forest which takes her to a parallel world where she locates the egg's key. However, before she can grab the key, a mouse snatches it away.

Within minutes of losing the key, Clara meets Captain Philip Hoffman the Nutcracker, Sugar Plum Fairy of the Land of Sweets, Shivers of the Land of Snowflakes, and Hawthorne of the Land of Flowers, who are all at war with the Land of Amusements, otherwise known as "the Fourth Realm."

To recover the lost key that will unlock her mother's gift, Clara must battle an army of  life-size toy soldiers and somehow restore peace to the Realms.


Blu-ray Special Features are:

• On Pointe: Misty Copeland - Copeland shares the thrill of portraying one of her favorite characters in a whole new way.
• Unwrapping The Nutcracker and the Four Realms - Dive into the production design, sets, costumes and more that helped transform a beloved ballet into an adventurous movie.
• Deleted Scenes
• The Stahlbaums Arrive- As the Stahlbaums enter the Christmas Eve ball, the butler attempts to announce them to the assembled guests.
• Follow Your Ribbon- Drosselmeyer encourages a reluctant Clara to go find her gift.
• Deleted Scene: Clara Asks About Her Mother - Sugar Plum gives Clara a tour of her mother’s bedroom.
• Left, Left, Left, Left, Left - Wandering lost in the forest, palace guards Cavalier and Harlequin quarrel about which way to go.
• Out with the Old- Sugar Plum makes sweeping changes to the palace decor.
• Music Videos
• “Fall on Me” Performed by Andrea Bocelli Featuring Matteo Bocelli - Experience superstar tenor Andrea Bocelli and his son Matteo Bocelli performing their first duet together in this uplifting song.
• “The Nutcracker Suite” Performed by Lang Lang - Get swept up in a series of images from the movie, set to Tchaikovsky’s music and featuring world-renowned pianist Lang Lang.

Exclusive Digital Bonus Feature:

• Unwrapped: The Visuals Effects of The Nutcracker and the Four Realms - Get swept up in a series of images from the movie, set to Tchaikovsky’s music and featuring world-renowned pianist Lang Lang. 

Mill Creek Entertainment; AMAZON

I'm almost positive almost everyone has watched the 1984 classic The Karate Kid at least one time in their lifetime. It's an iconic underdog story that inspired many 80s kids to learn martial arts. And, of course, the film kicked off a franchise, which recently included the YouTube Red spinoff series Cobra Kai.

Now available on a Blu-ray from Mill Creek Entertainment is the The Karate Kid III & The Next Karate Kid ($14.98). There are no special features or bonus extras.

Directed by John G. Avildsen, The Karate Kid III (1989; PG; 112 minutes) picks up several months after the second film with Daniel LaRusso and Mr. Miyagi (played by Ralph Macchio and Noriyuki "Pat" Morita) returning to Los Angeles after their trip to Japan. Upon their return, they learn that Daniel's mother has moved to New Jersey to take care of her sick uncle and their apartment building is being torn down, leaving Mr. Miyagi jobless and Daniel homeless. Well, not exactly homeless, as he ends moving into Mr. Miyagi's home.

Mr. Miyagi isn't unemployed for too long. Daniel uses his college fund to open a bonsai shop with him. Unknowingly to them, disgraced Cobra Kai sensei John Kreese (played by Martin Kove) teams up with Vietnam War buddy, Terry Silver (played by Thomas Ian Griffith), to seek revenge against Daniel for winning the All-Valley Karate Championships. They hire Mike Barnes (played by Sean Kanan) to bully Daniel and to challenge him to a fight at the next tournament.

Directed by Christopher Cain, The Next Karate Kid (1994; PG; 107 minutes) centers on Julie (played by Hilary Swank), a troubled teenager living with her grandmother in Boston. After meeting Mr. Miyagi at a commendation for Japanese-American soldiers, he talks the grandmother into taking a vacation to Los Angeles and he would stay in Boston to look after Julie. Of course, Mr. Miyagi has another reason for wanting to babysit a teenager. He wants to teach Julie how to control her anger issues that she has had ever since the death of her parents.

Final Thoughts

AMAZON

Yes, I'm well aware it's way past midnight, but since it has been a few weeks since I've reviewed a horror movie I thought I would go ahead and post this review as a Midnight Horror Review post; though technically I did watch a horror movie at around midnight.

The horror flick that I'd watched was the 2018 slasher Hell Fest, which just arrived on Blu-ray this week from Lionsgate Home Entertainment. It's also available on 4K Ulta HD, DVD, and Digital for those of you who need to know that bit of information. The only special feature is the 16-minute "Thrills and Kills: Making Hell Fest" and the Theatrical Trailer.

Directed by Gregory Plotkin, the film stars Amy Forsyth, Reign Edwards, Bex Taylor-Klaus, Matt Mercurio, Roby Attal, Stephen Conroy, and Tony Todd.

Hell Fest centers on a group of friends (Natalie, Brooke, Taylor, Asher, and Gavin) going to a horror-themed Halloween event at an amusement park, which is filled with games, mazes, and rides. This is the type of place were the workers (and probably a few volunteers) are dressed as zombies, ghosts, creatures, etc., anything that would scare someone to death. Everyone is having a blast except for Natalie, who believes a masked stranger "The Other" is stalking her.

Like all slashers go, one by one "The Other" preys on each teen in the group and he leaves a few other dead bodies in his path of destruction.

Amy Forsyth ("Natalie", left) and Reign Edwards ("Brooke", right) star in HELL FEST.

Bex Taylor-Klaus ("Taylor") stars in HELL FEST.

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Entertainment; AMAZON

Now available on Blu-ray from Mill Creek Entertainment is The Shield: The Complete Series (TV-MA; $229.98; 70 hours 23 minutes). All 88 episodes have been remastered in 4K. The 18-disc set features all the special features that were included on the previously released DVD sets, as well as brand-new special features exclusively for this release.

Created by Shawn Ryan, The Shield aired on FX from 2002 to 2008. The series centered around Detective Vic Mackey (played by Michael Chiklis), a corrupt police officer who is the leader of a Strike Team in the fictional Farmington district (a.k.a. - "the Farm") of Los Angeles. His team includes Detective Shane Vendrell (played by Walton Goggins), Detective Curtis "Lem" Lemansky (played by Kenny Johnson), and Detective Ronnie Gardocki (played by David Rees Snell). There was a fifth member of the team, Detective Terry Crowley (played by Reed Diamond), but he was killed off at the very end of the pilot episode.

Mackey tries to have a normal life, but his marriage to Corrine (played by Cathy Cahlin Ryan) is very rocky at best. After learning that both their two younger children have autism, Mackey is more than determined to give them the best care for them, which leads to him breaking the law on multiple occasions.

At work, Mackey is constantly in trouble with his superiors, Captain David Segovia, Captain Monica Rawling, and Captain Claudette Wyms (played by Benito Martinez, Glenn Close, and CCH Pounder), as well as Detective Dutch Wagenbach (played by Jay Karnes), who all would like to expose Mackey for who he truly is - a corrupt cop!

Other cast members include Catherine Dent, Michael Jace, Paula Garcés, and David Marciano.

 
Brand-New Special Features are:

• “The Shield Reunion” – cast & crew reunion special to reminisce and reflect on being a part of this landmark series.
• “The Shield: A Retrospective” – a look back at the lasting impact the series has had on TV and how its themes are still relevant today.
• “Restoring The Shield” – a behind-the-scenes look at the technological processes involved in the High Definition upgrade.
• “The Critical Response to The Shield” – how critics initially received the series and if/how their opinions changed throughout the duration of the series’ run.
• "The Shield Writers Room" Reunion from the ATX Festival Panel.

Older Special Features are:

• Cast & Crew Commentaries
• Deleted Scenes
• Season 1 Epilogue
• Wrap Day: Season 3 Teaser
• "Breaking Episode #315" Making-of Documentary
• "Under the Skin" Featurette
• "Delivering the Baby" Featurette
• Wins and Losses - Season 6 Prequel
• Season 6 Featurettes
• Saturn's Sons
• Two Directors
• Full Circles: Franka Potente
• Nobody Expects to Lose, Nobody Expects to Die: The Shield's Final Season
• Last Call: The Final Episode

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

Now available on 4K Ultra HD  + Blu-ray + Digital from Mill Creek Entertainment is the 2013 IMAX documentary Journey to the South Pacific (G; 40 minutes; $34.98). The 4K disc features IMAX Enhanced, which means it has a clearer & brighter picture; heart-pounding DTS audio; and more of the picture fills the screen.

Directed by Greg MacGillivray and featuring a narration by actress Cate Blanchett, Journey to the South Pacific takes us (a.k.a. - the viewers) to the tropical islands of remote West Papua, where we are introduced to a young island boy named Jawi Mayor who is joining the "floating classroom" on the 100-foot trawler called the Kalabia.

Along with his uncle (a teacher) and other students, Jawi swims under the sea to show us the most diverse marine ecosystem on Earth. Under the sea the cameras capture the endangered Pacific leatherback turtle, 40-foot-long whale sharks, and many different fish species.

Special Features include:

• Trailer
• Making-Of Featurette
• Webisodes
• Film, Sweat, and Tears
• The Floating Classroom
• Last Stand of Leatherback Turtle
• Swimming with Whale Shark
• Music of West Papua

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

I hate to admit this, but I've never seen to an IMAX film on the big screen. I know the AMC theatre in the city has IMAX screens, but the price for a ticket is too expensive for me.

If you own a 4K television, then you are in luck as you can now own the 2016 IMAX documentary "A Beautiful Planet" on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital combo pack (G; $34.98) from Mill Creek Entertainment, which is the first of two releases (the other title is Journey To The South Pacific) to be released with IMAX Enhanced immersive image, sound, & scale.

The 47-minute documentary is written, produced, and directed by Toni Myers. Narrated by Jennifer Lawrence, A Beautiful Planet puts the cameras in the hands of astronauts (Scott Kelly, Samantha Cristoforetti, Barry "Butch" Wilmore, Terry Virts, Anton Shkaplerov,  Kjell Lindgren, and Kimiya Yui) who are aboard the International Space Station (ISS). With the use of IMAX cameras, the astronauts shows us what Earth looks like from space. 

Special Features include:

• An Extraordinary Vision
• IMAX: Astronaut Filmmakers
• ABP Computing

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

If you're getting tired of the kid friendly superhero movies and television series, then look no further as The Awesomes: The Complete Series ($29.98; TV-14; 11 hours 8 minutes) is on available on to own Blu-ray, courtesy of Mill Creek Entertainment. A digital code is included which an only be redeemed at: www.millcreekent.com/redeem

Created by Seth Meyers and Mike Shoemaker, The Awesomes was animated superhero show for adults that aired on Hulu for three seasons (30 episodes). It featured the voice talents of current and past Saturday Night Live stars, including Ike Barinholtz, Bobby Lee, Taran Killam, Paula Pell, Emily Spivey, Kenan Thompson, Bill Hader, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Fred Armisen, Kate McKinnon, and Andy Samberg.

The Aweseomes is set in a world where Mr. Awesome had lead a group of superheroes to protect the planet against all evils. However, things changed quickly when Mr. Awesome announces his retirement and leaves his son Prock in charge. The public, media, and the government have absolutely no faith in Prock. To make things worse, the other superheroes have all left the Awesomes.

With his best friend Muscleman and their only paid employee, Concierge, at his side, Prock recruits a new team of superheros - Frantic, Gadget Gal, Impresario, Sumo, and Hotwire. Despite the team's amateurish style, these not-so superheroes are determined to save the world against Dr. Giuseppe Malocchio and other supervillains.

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

Since it is "football Sunday," I thought it would be the perfect time for me to review the Gridiron Gang: Special Edition Blu-ray (PG-13; 125 minutes; $14.98), which was released a few months ago by Mill Creek Entertainment.

Directed by Phil Joanou, the 2006 drama told the true story of the Kilpatrick Mustangs 1990 football season. Dwayne Johnson plays juvenile probation officer Sean Porter who works at the Kilpatrick Detention Center in Los Angeles. He created a football team called the Kilpatrick Mustangs to help the troubled kids at the center learn about responsibility, discipline, and team work.

Getting the kids to work together isn't an easy thing to accomplish as there's a mixture of former gang members on the team who don't trust each other. Thanks to Porter's leadership, he leads the team to the playoffs.

Special Features include:

• The Original 1992 Emmy Award Winning Documentary Gridiron Gang
• Deleted Scenes
• Commentary with the Writer and Director
• Gridiron Gang Football Training
• Phil Joanou Profile
• The Rock Takes the Field

Mill Creek Entertainment; Amazon

What every happened to John Travolta?

The last movie I saw the actor star in a movie was the comedy Wild Hogs and it wasn't very good. Nevertheless, most of his films are now available on Blu-ray, including Perfect, Basic, A Love Song For Bobby Long, and Lonely Hearts which were recently released on a two-disc 4 in 1 Collection set ($14.98) from Mill Creek Entertainment.

Perfect (1985; R; 120 minutes) - Directed by James Bridges, the romantic drama centered on Rolling Stone magazine reporter Adam Lawrence (played by John Travolta) traveling to Los Angeles to write an article about "single bars of the '80s," which leads him to investigate a popular health club. This is where he meets workout instructor Jessie Wilson (played by Jamie Lee Curtis). There's an instant connection between them and they quickly fall in love, but their relationship is put to the test when he must stretch the truth for his article.


Basic (2003; R; 99 minutes) - Directed by John McTiernan, John Travolta plays DEA agent Tom Hardy, a former Ranger who teams up with Military Police investigator Captain Julia Osborne (played by Connie Nielsen) to investigate the disappearance of Master Sergeant Nathan West (played by Samuel L. Jackson) and a small group of Army Rangers.


A Love Song For Bobby Long (2004; R; 121 minutes) - Directed by Shainee Gabel and based on the novel Off Magazine Street by Ronald Everett Capps, the drama centers around Purslane Will (played by Scarlett Johansson, a teenager who travels to New Orleans to find two strangers, Bobby Long Played by John Travolta) and Lawson Pines (played by Gabriela Macht), living in her deceased mother's home.

Lonely Hearts (2006; R; 108 minutes) - Directed by Todd Robinson, the film tells the true story of the serial couple Martha Beck and Raymond Fernandez (played by Salma Hayek and Jared Leto). After meeting through a personal ad in a magazine, the couple go on a killing spree; preying on lonely, rich women. Hot in pursuit are homicide detectives Elmer C. Robinson and Charles Hildebrandt (played by James Gandolfini), who are determined to capture them.

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Entertainment; AMAZON

Now available on Blu-ray from Mill Creek Entertainment is The 6 Degrees Collection ($19.96), featuring six movies all starring Kevin Bacon.

The movies on the 2-disc set are:

The Big Picture (1989; PG-13; 101 minutes) - Directed by Christopher Guest, Kevin Bacon stars Nick Chapman, a Midwest film student who wins a student film contest in LA. After winning, Hollywood execs are all wanting to produce his new "big" movie idea. While everything is a fun at first, Nick quickly sees the darker side of Hollywood as his life begins to unravel.

Flatliners (1990; R; 114 minutes) - Directed by Joel Schumacher, the film centers five medical students (played by Keven Bacon, Julia Roberts, William Baldwin, Keifer Sutherland, and Oliver Platt) who are studying near-death experiences. Each one becomes a test subject, which they are flatlined for a short time before being brought back from death. Shortly after being rived, they begin to have frightening visions that threatens their lives.

Hollow Man (2000; R; 112 minutes) - Directed by Paul Verhoeven and inspired by H. G. Wells' novel The Invisible Man, the film centers on a team of scientist working on an invisibility serum in an underground laboratory. When the government threatens to cut their funding, Scientist Sebastian Caine (played by Kevin Bacon) becomes the first human test subject. After having his team turn him invisible, he seems to be perfectly fine. However, the longer he stays invisible, the crazier he becomes. Eventually, he turns into a serial killer; taking out his team one by one. The movie also stars Elisabeth Shue, Josh Brolin, Kim Dickens, Joey Slotnick, and William Devane.

Trapped (2002; R; 106 minutes) - Directed by Luis Mandoki, based on the book 24 Hours by  Greg Iles, the film centers on Joe Hickey (played by Kevin Bacon and his cousin Marvin (played by Pruitt Taylor Vince) kidnapping Abby (played by a young Dakota Fanning), a daughter of Dr. Will and Karen Jennings (played by Stuart Townsend and Charlize Theron). While Marvin takes Abby to a isolated cabin to hold her hostage, Joe torments Karen. As for Will, he was away on business when the kidnapping occurred. Joe sends his wife Cheryl (played by Courtney Love) to give Will their demands and to make sure he doesn't contact the authorities.

In The Cut (2003; R; 119 minutes) - Directed by Jane Campion, based on the book of the same name by Susanna Moore, the film centers on Frannie Avery (played by Meg Ryan), a high school teacher and writer who finds herself entangled in a murder mystery plot after witness a sexual act in a bar bathroom. Kevin Bacon has a very small uncredited role in the film.

What The Truth Lies (2005; R; 107 minutes) - Directed by Atom Egoyan, based on the book of the same name by Rupert Holmes, the film centers on around the murder of a college student in 1957, but her body isn't discovered until 1972. A journalist Karen O'Connor begins investigating the murder, which leads her to the comedy duo Lanny Morris and Vince Collins (played by Kevin Bacon and Colin Firth).

Final Thoughts