Britgeek here.
Welcome to another review round-up of the latest DVD and Blu-ray releases to arrive in the UK over the last couple of weeks, from Nicholas Winding Refn's bright neon masterpiece to the triumphant return of Woody Allen.
DRIVE (DVD)
Available now on DVD & Blu-ray
Stunt car driver by day, getaway man by night, Ryan Gosling is a different kind of superhero. With a silver bomber jacket as his cape, an embroidered scorpion his insignia and a hammer his weapon of choice, the Driver is cool, calm and collected, until he finds himself the target of a vicious mob (led by the ever-brilliant Albert Brooks) after a heist gone wrong, and his composed demeanour slowly begins to peel away, leading to an explosion of ultra-violence when the safety of his love interest, Irene (Carey Mulligan), is threatened.
In DRIVE, director Nicholas Winding Refn leaves the quirk and queer of BRONSON on the hard shoulder and delivers a pulse-pounding exploration of another unpredictable character, swapping a portrait of a brash, over-the-top sociopath for one of a quiet and lonely man with an aggressively split personality.
For all intents and purposes, DRIVE is a B-movie, but beyond that, at its very core, it's an old school exploitation film with a Hollywood gloss that's more than capable of luring modern audiences into its bright neon bite. The style factor is ramped up with a slick '80s-sounding synth-based soundtrack, the plot is thin, and Gosling's nameless driver is the archetypal hero; a stoic man of very few words who, if pushed, is ready and willing to deliver a deadly sting, like a Travis Bickle for 2011.
From DRIVER to VANISHING POINT to TWO-LANE BLACKTOP, Refn's love of car movies shines as strongly as his tantalising choice of lighting; a palette to rival the bold primary colours of Dario Argento's supernatural horror film, SUSPIRIA. It's clear that the chamber in his heart reserved for cinema is boundless as it pertains to genre. A stripped-down, minimalist car chase movie, DRIVE feels exactly like the love letter to film Quentin Tarantino wanted to write when he concocted DEATH PROOF, his half of GRINDHOUSE, the double feature with Robert Rodriguez.
While the protagonist himself simmers for a good while before brains begin to splatter as he reaches boiling point, DRIVE goes full throttle from the very beginning with a stunning car chase through night-time LA, as Gosling takes the wheel of a shiny Chevy Impala as it thunders through the disco ball streets. It's a guy's movie through and through with girls, guns, gangsters and, yes, Gosling. While all those cloying rom coms you sat through for the sake of your other half may have made you sick of the man, his excellent turn in DRIVE is not only memorable, but quite possibly the coolest of the year, so don those leather gloves and give this operatic masterpiece a joyride.
Extras: A Q&A with director Refn, gallery; TV spot and the theatrical trailer. A disappointing package for such a great film, but the word on the street is that Refn plans to double dip the movie.
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (Blu-ray Double Play)
Available now on Blu-ray Double Play & DVD
Dark browns. Smoke-filled rooms. Sharp suits. Scotch. In TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY, you get the feeling that this is what espionage is really like, or at least was like in the 1970s. No Bonds, no Bournes, hardly any weapons even, just men sat in rooms, talking. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN director Tomas Alfredson's beautifully shot adaptation of John le Carre's 1979 novel SMILEY'S PEOPLE is certainly a refreshing take on the spy drama, but is it wholly successful?
On the audio commentary featuring Alfredson, the director comments that you need such an extra to guide you through the complicated story. It seems the man himself knows precisely how hard the film often is to follow. Vital details are revealed in conversations that feel almost ordinary and insignificant, and the sheer number of characters makes it difficult to keep a track of them. Perhaps the impact of TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY is that much greater upon repeat viewings. It ponders the question how many times Alfredson read the script to fully grasp exactly how the story unfolded.
Where the film really excels is in its performances. The all-star cast is tremendous and there isn't a single player who doesn't give it their all. Gary Oldman as George Smiley especially is nothing short of terrific, giving an Oscar-worthy portrayal of an ex-spy who steps out from retirement to investigate a suspected Russian mole within MI6.
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY is a highly atmospheric, powerful and accomplished slice of cinema, but its convolution prevents it from being the masterpiece that it could have been.
Extras: Four featurettes: Smiley, Inside the Circus, Shadow World and John le Carre; interviews with Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John le Carre and Tomas Alfredson with writer Peter Straughan; deleted scenes; UK premiere footage; the Sky Movies special; photo gallery; audiobook chapters; teaser trailer; original theatrical trailer; and an audio commentary with Oldman and Alfredson.
YAMADA: WAY OF THE SAMURAI (DVD)
Available now on DVD & Blu-ray
Yamada, a 15th century Japanese samurai left for dead by his own people, finds new brethren in a Thai village where he is embraced by his rivals and recovers from his wounds. Taught the martial art of Muay Thai, Yamada forms an alliance with his rescuers and utilises his new skills in a quest for revenge against the countrymen who betrayed him.
There's nothing fresh or original about YAMADA: WAY OF THE SAMURAI. It's just another incarnation of that story and it handles it about as well as AVATAR. The fight scenes are almost a saving grace, providing hard-hitting action and swordplay, but they're marred by increasingly lackluster CGI and strange editing choices. The film looks appealing enough with an abundance of bright orange sunrises beating down on ancient Thai monuments, it's just a shame that there is very little else to it.
Extras: An audio commentary with Hong Kong cinema expert Bey Logan; UK trailer; original trailer; four deleted scenes; MASTERS OF THE RING, an exclusive 40-minute documentary on Thai boxing; plus trailers for other releases from Cine Asia.
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS (DVD)
Available now on DVD
Woody Allen's had somewhat of a bumpy ride over the last few years. The most recent efforts from one of cinema's most prolific film-makers haven't left the best tastes in the mouths of audiences, but it's in a time-travelling trip to the most romantic city in the world where he has once again found his groove.
In MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, Owen Wilson plays Gil Pender, a hack screenwriter from Hollywood who vacations in the French capitol with his fiancé Inez (Rachel McAdams) and her rich republican parents while he struggles with writing his first novel. Inez dreams of living in Malibu, while Gil toys with the idea of moving to Paris, a city he has long been fascinated by. It's an affinity that grows and grows when Gil is transported to the 1920s and finds himself hanging out with the likes of Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Luis Banuel.
Bathed in golden browns and oranges, MIDNIGHT IN PARIS is a warmly lit film, but one with an even warmer sensibility. It's funny and sweet. Wilson is on top form as a character who feels like an authentic human being plunged into a charming fantasy in a truly beautiful city.
Welcome back, Woody.
Extras: Not a sausage.
RED SCORPION (Blu-ray)
Hot off the heels of MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE, Dolph Lundgren continued sowing the seeds for his iconic action hero career to be by swapping swordplay for machine guns when he signed on to play the lead in RED SCORPION, helmed by Joseph Vito, director of FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE FINAL CHAPTER and the Chuck Norris action romp, MISSING IN ACTION, and now it has made its format debut courtesy of the great Arrow Video.
But Arrow, one of my favourite distributors, may be running out of high quality cult movies to give the “white box” treatment to. They've supplied fans of Dario Argento and George A. Romero with the best releases their films have ever had, but lately, between re-releasing titles in budget editions, they're heading in a far more niche direction. I'm not sure this story of a Spetsnaz elite killing machine sent to Africa to terminate a revolutionary will ever be known as a cult classic. It packs plenty of explosions and mindless shots of Lundgren doing his best Rambo impression with a heavy machine gun, but there's nothing to pull you into the movie. His character, Nikolai, has as much depth as a puddle of mud and is often hard to understand, the few times he utters (or mutters) dialogue. The only memorable character is a foul-mouthed journalist played by the great M. Emmet Walsh who finds himself teaming up with Lundgren.
RED SCORPION is a completely forgettable '80s actioner, but I have no doubts that fans of the film will lap this release up. It's certainly the best the movie has ever looked, even if the HD remaster fluctuates between scratchy and fresh.
Extras: An audio commentary with Howard S. Berger and director Joseph Vito; All Out of Bullets: Dolph Lundgren remembers RED SCORPION; Music with Muscles: composer Jay Chattaway on the soundtrack of RED SCORPION; an intro by Lundgren; double-sided poster, reversible sleeve featuring original and brand new artwork; and a collector's booklet written by author Calum Waddell.
Until next time.
TTFN.
Britgeek
Follow me on Twitter!
