Concussion, about the dangers of pro football, leads new movies on Blu-ray and DVD this week.
Concussion (Sony, 2015, PG-13, deleted scenes, audio commentary, featurettes). This was one of my favorite films of last year, and I was very disappointed to see that Will Smith was not nominated for an Oscar as he is back at the top of his game with an excellent portrayal of Nigerian forensic pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, a leading researcher in brain damage suffered by professional football players.
The film, based on an expose published in GQ magazine, follows the straight-arrow doctor as he is ridiculed, discredited and threatened in an effort to have his research suppressed, and the National Football League doesnt take him seriously until tragedy strikes.
Although the eventual outcome is well-known, the film successfully plays out as a thriller and boasts several rich supporting characters that are ably performed by Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks and David Morse, with Gugu Mbatha-Raw as the good doctors romantic interest.
Point Break (Warner, 2015, PG-13, deleted scenes, featurette, trailers). Undercover FBI agent Johnny Utah (Luke Bracey) joins up with Bodhi (Edgar Ramirez) and his band of extreme athletes who risk death performing impossible stunts and who may be robbing banks on the side. What should have been fun is instead a dour, hyper remake of the 1991 Patrick Swayze/Keanu Reeves thriller directed with pizzazz by Kathryn Bigelow, which was set against Southern Californias surfing community.
The Letters (Fox, 2015, PG, audio commentary, featurette). A subtitle on the box reads The Untold Story of Mother Teresa. The film is just the latest of several films about Mother Teresa and is a sincere but torpid depiction of the Nobel Peace Prize-winner, whose work with the poor, primarily in India, unfolds through letters she wrote to a mentor (Max von Sydow) during the last 40 years of her life (she died nearly 20 years ago at age 87). It is of note as a vehicle for British actress Juliet Stevenson, who shines in the role. Rutger Hauer co-stars. (According to the Vatican, Mother Teresa will be canonized as a Catholic saint in September.)
Hero Quest (Cinedigm, 2016, not rated, music video, trailer). A young boy takes on the role of warrior to save his village from marauding hyenas in this animated feature for kids. He is befriended by a white wolf along with a variety of zany jungle creatures and must eventually battle a dragon. It is a Russian production dubbed in English with voice performances by Milla Jovovich, Whoopi Goldberg, Sharon Stone and Joe Pesci.
Marriage Material (MVD, 2016, not rated but probable PG-13). Former Saturday Night Live comic actress Victoria Jackson plays a helicopter mother pushing her daughter to marry rich in this flat, underwritten comedy that also suffers from surprisingly amateurish production values.
A Place in Heaven (SISU, 2016, not rated, in Hebrew with English subtitles, trailer). A brave Israeli captain is admired by all and thought to have an assured place in heaven because of his heroics. But he has no religious faith, so when he returns from a dangerous mission and is starving for a meal, he signs over his after-death disposition to the cook. Forty years later, the officer, now a general, is on his deathbed, and his son, who is a faithful believer, tries to find the cook to revoke the contract.
Censored Voices (Music Box, 2016, not rated, featurettes, in Hebrew with English subtitles). The Six-Day War of 1967, in which the Israeli army fought off invading Arab armies, was hailed as a victory. But soldiers returning from the battlefield granted recorded interviews that offered a more dispiriting view of the battle, recordings that have been censored until now. Filmmaker Mor Loushys documentary puts these interviews on display and brings back some now-aging veterans to supplement the material.
The Winter (IndiePix, 2016, not rated, in Greek with English subtitles). An impoverished Greek writer in London hits bottom and heads home, only to find his childhood house has become a dilapidated and perhaps haunted abode. Soon he begins plundering memories of his past to write a book and along the way tries to unravel a mystery about the killing of his father long ago.
Up the Wrong Tree (SISU, 2016, not rated, in Hebrew with English subtitles, featurette, trailer). This is a social satire with a bite as a cynical wanderer tries to return to his former girlfriend but is rejected, so he climbs a nearby tree to wait her out and finds himself in the middle of an environmental battle for the land. Eschewing his inherent desire to be on the move, he stays in the tree for the long haul.
Hora 79 (SISU, 2016, not rated, in Hebrew with English subtitles, featurette, trailer). The aging members of a once-popular ensemble dance troupe try to put soap-opera machinations aside to reunite for a celebrated festival. But when the member who caused a rift 30-plus years earlier turns up, all bets are off.
NOMA: My Perfect Storm (Magnolia, 2016, deleted scenes, featurettes, trailer). Beginning in 2010, Chef Rene Redzepis Copenhagen eatery NOMA was voted best restaurant in the world four out of five years in a row. This documentary tells the story behind that restaurant while exploring Redzepis life, from his humble beginnings to his rise as one of the worlds most influential chefs.
Exposed (Lionsgate, 2015, R for violence and language, featurettes, trailers). Keanu Reeves stars in this choppy, sluggish thriller as a police detective investigating the death of his corrupt partner, with little help from his supervisor (Christopher McDonald) or the victims ex-wife (Mira Sorvino). Theres also a parallel plot about a woman (Ana de Armas) who has supernatural visions.
Concussion (Sony, 2015, PG-13, deleted scenes, audio commentary, featurettes). This was one of my favorite films of last year, and I was very disappointed to see that Will Smith was not nominated for an Oscar as he is back at the top of his game with an excellent portrayal of Nigerian forensic pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, a leading researcher in brain damage suffered by professional football players.
The film, based on an expose published in GQ magazine, follows the straight-arrow doctor as he is ridiculed, discredited and threatened in an effort to have his research suppressed, and the National Football League doesnt take him seriously until tragedy strikes.
Although the eventual outcome is well-known, the film successfully plays out as a thriller and boasts several rich supporting characters that are ably performed by Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks and David Morse, with Gugu Mbatha-Raw as the good doctors romantic interest.
Point Break (Warner, 2015, PG-13, deleted scenes, featurette, trailers). Undercover FBI agent Johnny Utah (Luke Bracey) joins up with Bodhi (Edgar Ramirez) and his band of extreme athletes who risk death performing impossible stunts and who may be robbing banks on the side. What should have been fun is instead a dour, hyper remake of the 1991 Patrick Swayze/Keanu Reeves thriller directed with pizzazz by Kathryn Bigelow, which was set against Southern Californias surfing community.
The Letters (Fox, 2015, PG, audio commentary, featurette). A subtitle on the box reads The Untold Story of Mother Teresa. The film is just the latest of several films about Mother Teresa and is a sincere but torpid depiction of the Nobel Peace Prize-winner, whose work with the poor, primarily in India, unfolds through letters she wrote to a mentor (Max von Sydow) during the last 40 years of her life (she died nearly 20 years ago at age 87). It is of note as a vehicle for British actress Juliet Stevenson, who shines in the role. Rutger Hauer co-stars. (According to the Vatican, Mother Teresa will be canonized as a Catholic saint in September.)
Hero Quest (Cinedigm, 2016, not rated, music video, trailer). A young boy takes on the role of warrior to save his village from marauding hyenas in this animated feature for kids. He is befriended by a white wolf along with a variety of zany jungle creatures and must eventually battle a dragon. It is a Russian production dubbed in English with voice performances by Milla Jovovich, Whoopi Goldberg, Sharon Stone and Joe Pesci.
Marriage Material (MVD, 2016, not rated but probable PG-13). Former Saturday Night Live comic actress Victoria Jackson plays a helicopter mother pushing her daughter to marry rich in this flat, underwritten comedy that also suffers from surprisingly amateurish production values.
A Place in Heaven (SISU, 2016, not rated, in Hebrew with English subtitles, trailer). A brave Israeli captain is admired by all and thought to have an assured place in heaven because of his heroics. But he has no religious faith, so when he returns from a dangerous mission and is starving for a meal, he signs over his after-death disposition to the cook. Forty years later, the officer, now a general, is on his deathbed, and his son, who is a faithful believer, tries to find the cook to revoke the contract.
Censored Voices (Music Box, 2016, not rated, featurettes, in Hebrew with English subtitles). The Six-Day War of 1967, in which the Israeli army fought off invading Arab armies, was hailed as a victory. But soldiers returning from the battlefield granted recorded interviews that offered a more dispiriting view of the battle, recordings that have been censored until now. Filmmaker Mor Loushys documentary puts these interviews on display and brings back some now-aging veterans to supplement the material.
The Winter (IndiePix, 2016, not rated, in Greek with English subtitles). An impoverished Greek writer in London hits bottom and heads home, only to find his childhood house has become a dilapidated and perhaps haunted abode. Soon he begins plundering memories of his past to write a book and along the way tries to unravel a mystery about the killing of his father long ago.
Up the Wrong Tree (SISU, 2016, not rated, in Hebrew with English subtitles, featurette, trailer). This is a social satire with a bite as a cynical wanderer tries to return to his former girlfriend but is rejected, so he climbs a nearby tree to wait her out and finds himself in the middle of an environmental battle for the land. Eschewing his inherent desire to be on the move, he stays in the tree for the long haul.
Hora 79 (SISU, 2016, not rated, in Hebrew with English subtitles, featurette, trailer). The aging members of a once-popular ensemble dance troupe try to put soap-opera machinations aside to reunite for a celebrated festival. But when the member who caused a rift 30-plus years earlier turns up, all bets are off.
NOMA: My Perfect Storm (Magnolia, 2016, deleted scenes, featurettes, trailer). Beginning in 2010, Chef Rene Redzepis Copenhagen eatery NOMA was voted best restaurant in the world four out of five years in a row. This documentary tells the story behind that restaurant while exploring Redzepis life, from his humble beginnings to his rise as one of the worlds most influential chefs.
Exposed (Lionsgate, 2015, R for violence and language, featurettes, trailers). Keanu Reeves stars in this choppy, sluggish thriller as a police detective investigating the death of his corrupt partner, with little help from his supervisor (Christopher McDonald) or the victims ex-wife (Mira Sorvino). Theres also a parallel plot about a woman (Ana de Armas) who has supernatural visions.