The week of June 7th is a big one for Paramount Home Media Distribution. Let's start with the biggest title and one that has been anticipated since the dawn of the 4K UHD format, the Indiana Jones: 4-Movie Collection. Celebrating 40 years of Indiana Jones, the collection will feature all four films newly remastered in 4K from their original camera negatives, with Dolby Vision HDR and new Dolby Atmos sound mixes, all approved by director Steven Spielberg. The 4K UHD collection also includes a Blu-ray bonus disc with over seven hours of extras. The standard release is a digipack, but a Best Buy Exclusive MetalPak edition will also be available.
Also new from Paramount this week is Michael Showalter's The Lovebirds, starring Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani. Originally scheduled for a wide theatrical release in April 2020, Paramount had to pull the film due to the outbreak of the coronavirus and eventually sold it to Netflix, where it launched in May 2020, becoming one of the first major studio films to opt for a digital release during the pandemic. Synopsis: A couple (Issa Rae & Kumail Nanjiani) experiences a defining moment in the relationship when they are unintentionally embroiled in a murder mystery. As their journey to clear their names takes them from one extreme - and hilarious - circumstance to the next, they must figure out how they, and their relationship, can survive the night.
Finally from Paramount this week is Christopher Ray's action thriller Assault on VA-33, starring Sean Patrick Flanery, Mark Dacascos, Michael Jai White, Gina Holden, and Weston Cage Coppola. Studio description: Sean Patrick Flanery (The Boondock Saints) stars as decorated army veteran Jason Hill. While on a routine visit to the local VA hospital, organized terrorists infiltrate the building and take hostages, including a decorated general, and Hill's wife. The highly trained veteran is outnumbered and the last line of defense, taking on a building full of armed insurgents before it's too late.
Lionsgate Home Entertainment also has new releases this week. First up is Brad Furman's thriller City of Lies, starring Johnny Depp, Forest Whitaker, Rockmond Dunbar, Neil Brown Jr., and Xander Berkeley. The film, which tells the story of the LAPD investigation into the murders of rappers Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace (AKA The Notorious B.I.G.), was originally completed in 2018 and set to be released by Open Road Films (then Global Road Entertainment), before it was pulled from the schedule, apparently under various legal troubles. Although the film was released internationally, it did not receive a domestic release until it was acquired by Saban Films in March 2021. Lionsgate's Blu-ray includes an audio commentary, making of featurette and deleted scenes. A full review with screenshots from Jeffrey Kauffman can be found here.
Also from Lionsgate this week is Christopher MacBride's thriller Flashback, starring Dylan O'Brien, Maika Monroe, and Hannah Gross.Synopsis: Fredrick Fitzell (Dylan O'Brien, The Maze Runner franchise) is living his best live ― until he starts having horrific visions of Cindy (Maika Monroe, It Follows), a girl who vanished in high school. After reaching out to old friends with whom he used to take a mystery drug called Mercury, Fredrick realizes the only way to stop the visions lies deep within his own memories, so he embarks on a terrifying mental odyssey to learn the truth. This mind-bending thriller also stars Hannah Gross (Joker) and Emory Cohen (Brooklyn).
Lionsgate's Blu-ray of Flashback includes an audio commentary, deleted scenes and a trailer. A full review with screenshots from Jeffrey Kauffman can be found here.
Finally for new releases this week, from Shout Factory comes Martin Guigui's The Unhealer, starring Lance Henriksen, Natasha Henstridge, Adam Beach, Branscombe Richmond, Chris Browning and Gavin Casalegno. Synopsis: A bullied teenager gains the means to fight back when a botched faith healing bestows supernatural, shamanistic powers upon him. When his lifelong tormentors pull a prank that causes the death of someone he loves, the teen uses his newfound abilities for revenge and goes on a bloody rampage to settle the score. This dark horror tale features performances from genre favorites Adam Beach (Suicide Squad), Branscombe Richmond (Hard To Kill), Natasha Henstridge (Species), and Lance Henriksen (Aliens). "Any fan of classic Stephen King should definitely check out The Unhealer" (Joanna K. Neilson, Horror DNA) ... it unfolds with fun surprises and gore "like one of those shiny mid-career Wes Craven movies" (Dark Eyes of London).
In terms of catalog titles this week, we have Masaki Kobayashi's The Human Condition, a six-part trilogy of films made between 1959 and 1961 and presented here by Criterion as one epic nine-and-a-half-hour work. Presented from an HD master, with original uncompressed mono (Parts 1-4) and DTS-HD MA 4.0 (Parts 5-6) audio tracks, the three-disc Blu-ray also has archival interviews with Kobayashi and actor Tatsuya Nakadai, as well as a filmed appreciation from director Masahiro Shinoda.
Finally this week, from Film Movement, we have a Blu-ray for Stanley Kwan's film Center Stage (1991), starring Maggie Cheung, Han Chin, Tony Ka-Fai Leung, Carina Lau, and Waise Lee. Presented from a new 4K master and with a new introduction from Kwan, as well as archival interviews with Kwan and Hong Kong cinema expert Paul Fonoroff, and a 16-page booklet. A full review with screenshots from Jeffrey Kauffman can be found here.