For the week on March 7th, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release Lana Wachowski's The Matrix Resurrections, starring Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jonathan Groff, and Jessica Henwick. Arriving almost 20 years after the previous film in the Matrix franchise, The Matrix Resurrections experienced bad luck when, after starting production in February 2020, the coronavirus pandemic struck and halted filming for six months. eventually, the film was completed and released in late December 2021, becoming the last film on Warner Bros. 2021 slate and thus, the last film to receive a simultaneous release on the studio's HBO Max streaming service. Despite a theatrical marketplace that had picked up with Sony Pictures' release of Spider-Man: No Way Home the previous week, The Matrix Resurrections underperformed at the box office, debuting in third place with just over $10 million on its opening weekend, and eventually grossing over $37 million domestically and over $156 million globally, against a budget of $190 million. However, fans need not worry as Warner Bros. has still planned several home video editions for this week, including a Best Buy Exclusive 4K UHD SteelBook and a Target Exclusive Blu-ray. All discs include the film's Dolby Atmos audio, while the 4K UHD disc also includes Dolby Vision HDR. Extras on the bundled-in Blu-ray include the thirty-minute Resurrecting the Matrix featurette, as well as several shorter featurettes.
Reviewing the 4K UHD disc of The Matrix Resurrections, Randy Miller is impressed with the picture quality, saying that it "offers a predictably strong presentation...It's a very dark film at times but the 4K disc retains plenty of carefully- controlled image detail in close-up and wide shots alike, thanks to better-resolved blacks and an HDR-infused palette that stands out nicely against the shadows". While of the disc's Dolby Atmos track, Miller says: "The default Dolby Atmos track...offers a pleasingly intense atmosphere that combines intimate sonic details with much more expansive moments to create lots of variety at key moments. Discrete elements are focused appropriately across all channels, from the Mnemosyne's flight to numerous action scenes involving a half- dozen or more participants that include heavy gunfire, hand-to-hand combat, and the wanton destruction of background props...it seems to be an accurate representation of the theatrical experience and, depending on where you bought your ticket, this Atmos mix might even come out ahead". For full disc breakdowns, read Randy's Blu-ray review and 4K UHD review.
Also new this week from Warner is a Blu-ray for Supergirl: The Complete Sixth and Final Season. The four-disc set contains all 20 episodes, along with deleted scenes and A Farewell Tribute to Supergirl. On the same day, Warner will also release Supergirl: The Complete Series, which contains all 126 episodes on 24 discs.
Finally from Warner this week is a Blu-ray for Adventure Time: Distant Lands, a limited series of four specials based on the Cartoon Network series. Reviewer Jeffrey Kauffman is pleased with the disc's picture and sound, awarding both a 4.5/5 score. For a full disc breakdown, read Martin's Blu-ray review.
But there's much more TV this week, as Universal Pictures Home Entertainment brings Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Complete Series to Blu-ray. The 17-disc set features all eight seasons, along with deleted scenes and other extras.
Also new on Blu-ray from Universal this week is Ric Roman Waugh's National Champions, starring J.K. Simmons, Timothy Olyphant, Alexander Ludwig, Jeffrey Donovan, and Uzo Aduba.
Synopsis: Three days before the college football national championship game, star quarterback LeMarcus James (Stephan James) and teammate Emmett Sunday (Alexander Ludwig) ignite a player's strike declaring they won't compete until all student-athletes are fairly compensated. With billions of dollars at risk and legacies on the line, the stakes could not be higher. Now, with only hours until kickoff, the head coach (J.K. Simmons) and various power brokers (Lil Rel Howery, Tim Blake Nelson, Andrew Bachelor, Jeffrey Donovan, David Koechner, Kristin Chenoweth, Timothy Olyphant, Uzo Aduba) must race against the clock to protect or destroy the prevailing collegiate athletics system.
Universal's Blu-ray of National Champions contains a Making Of Featurette a featurette on music, and more.
Also new from Universal is D.J. Caruso's Redeeming Love, starring Abigail Cowen, Famke Janssen, Logan Marshall-Green, Nina Dobrev, and Eric Dane.
Description: Based on the bestselling novel by Francine Rivers, Redeeming Love is a powerful story of love and perseverance as a young couple's relationship clashes with the harsh realities of the California Gold Rush of 1850. Angel, facing demons that seem unsurmountable, meets Michael, a farmer who wants her for his wife. As Angel experiences love for the first time, feelings of unworthiness cause her to run from the new life she doesn't think she deserves. When Michael sets out to find her, Angel discovers that she has the power to choose the life she wants.
Universal's Blu-ray of Redeeming Love features deleted scenes and featurettes as extras.
Finally from Universal this week is a 4K UHD upgrade for Michael Engler's Downton Abbey (2019), starring Hugh Bonneville, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Raquel Cassidy, and Brendan Coyle. Based on the TV series of the same name, Engler's film is presented on 4K UHD with Dolby Vision HDR and its Dolby Atmos audio track. In addition to the standard amaray case edition, a Limited Edition SteelBook will also be available.
New this week from Paramount Home Media Distribution is a Blu-ray for Craig Brewer's Coming 2 America (2021), starring Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones, and Tracy Morgan. Filmed in 2019, Brewer's PG-13-rated sequel to John Landis' Coming to America re-united much of the surviving cast and was initially planned for a worldwide theatrical release in 2020. After the pandemic struck, however, Paramount sold the rights to the film to Amazon Studios for a princely sum of $125 million, after which it was released on Amazon's Prime Video streaming service in March 2021. Paramount's Blu-ray contains an audio commentary with Brewer, as well as the featurette From Queens to Zamunda, which includes never-before-seen footage and interviews.
Also from Paramount this week is a Blu-ray for Yellowstone: Season 4, starring Kevin Costner, Kelly Reilly, Cole Hauser, Luke Grimes, and Wes Bentley. The four-disc set contains all 10 episodes and over 4 hours of bonus features, including a making of, featurettes and interviews.
Finally from Paramount this week, two releases of Nickelodeon films on Blu-ray. The three-disc Rugrats: 3-Movie Collection (1998-2003) features remastered versions of The Rugrats Movie (1998), Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000) and Rugrats Go Wild (2003) with special features. Also coming individually is John A. Davis' Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2001), featuring the voices of Debi Derryberry, Patrick Stewart, Martin Short, Rob Paulsen, and Carolyn Lawrence. Extras for that disc include a making of, 2 music videos and promo spots.
Capping off a big week for new releases is Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, with a Blu-ray for Denzel Washington's A Journal for Jordan, starring Michael B. Jordan, Chanté Adams, Jalon Christian, Tamara Tunie, and Robert Wisdom.
Description: Directed by Denzel Washington and starring Michael B. Jordan with a screenplay by Virgil Williams, A Journal for Jordan is based on the true story of First Sergeant Charles Monroe King (Jordan), a soldier deployed to Iraq who begins to keep a journal of love and advice for his infant son. Back at home, senior New York Times editor Dana Canedy (Chanté Adams) revisits the story of her unlikely, life-altering relationship with King and his enduring devotion to her and their child. A sweeping account of a once-in-a-lifetime love, the film is a powerful reminder of the importance of family.
Sony's Blu-ray for A Journal for Jordan contains deleted scenes, a gag reel, and featurettes as extras.
Also from Sony this week is a Blu-ray for Rick Altizer's Show Me the Father, starring Jim Daly, Jonathan Evans, and Tony Evans.
Official description: Everyone has a unique father story. Whether positive or painful, it's always personal and can deeply affect the core of our identity and direction of our lives. Kendrick Brothers' SHOW ME THE FATHER is the first documentary film from the creators of WAR ROOM, OVERCOMER, FIREPROOF, and COURAGEOUS Legacy. Featuring a variety of amazing true stories, this captivating movie takes audiences of all ages on an inspiring and emotional cinematic journey. Providing a fresh perspective on the roles of fathers in today's society, SHOW ME THE FATHER invites you to think differently about how you view your earthly father, and how you personally relate to God.
Finally this week, from Synapse Films comes a 4K UHD upgrade for Dario Argento's Phenomena, starring Jennifer Connelly, Daria Nicolodi, Fiore Argento, Federica Mastroianni, and Fiorenza Tessari. Synapse's release contains a new 4K remaster of three versions of the film, spread over two 4K UHD discs. presented with Dolby Vision HDR and lossless English and/or Italian audio tracks. A glut of extras includes multiple audio commentaries, a feature-length documentary, interviews and promotional materials, all presented in a limited edition slipcase, with a fold-out poster and six lobby cards.