THE LIFE OF CHUCK (2025)

The Life of Chuck
Directed by Mike Flanagan
Written by Mike Flanagan, based on a novella by Stephen King
Starring Tom Hiddleston, Benjamin Pajak, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mia Sara, Mark Hamill
Running time 1 hour and 50 minutes
Rated R for language by the MPA

In theaters June 13

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

I didn't want to come to this screening. I mean, I did; I've been a Stephen King fan, a Constant Reader, for a long time. Comparatively I've only been a fan of writer/director Mike Flanagan for the blink of an eye, but my appreciation for his works, both with and without the input of Sai King, is no less great. Still. I didn't want to come to this. It had been 80°+ in my apartment for 2 days, and not much cooler outside. On top of that, either I was misinformed or the location of the screening changed, meaning I could no longer just walk there but instead had to take public transportation which is a crap-shoot on the best of days, and obviously a more volatile situation when the mercury rises. I'm sure you can understand why I might have been less than thrilled to venture out. None of these things are big deals, there are much bigger problems to have, but still they were threatening to drown my enthusiasm. So I did not want to come to see The Life of Chuck, but I'm so very glad I did.

The Life of Chuck is a disorienting narrative, by design. Its three acts bounce incrementally backwards in time within the life of the very unassuming, outwardly average titular Chuck. Chuck is an accountant, and he enjoys it just fine. He's happily married and steadfastly faithful. He's happy, though at one time, Chuck wanted to grow up to be a dancer. In a way, that's what The Life of Chuck is about: a person whose life has taken some turns, and why even such a seemingly average, unremarkable life is anything but.

It's also about grief, great and small, and about not allowing obstacles and discouragements, even the inevitability of death, to stop you from enjoying yourself. Seize your moment when you find it, however small. That's what a life is. Chuck knows he will die, in both textual and metatextual ways, but ultimately he chooses not to let that knowledge stop him. Watching and later thoughtfully considering The Life of Chuck, I couldn't help but address the elephant in the room: mortality. My own of course, and that of those I love, but also how the fleeting nature of human existence makes even the briefest interactions into things of common beauty. I also though a lot about Stephen King.

The Life of Chuck, as a story, feels like Stephen King reckoning with his own mortality. As an author he is famously and profitably familiar with death and infamously in 1999 was almost killed in a hit and run. But now it's different. Now he's just ...older. On September 21st of this year, he will turn 78 and it feels clear to me that he really knows it. In the past decade, he's released thirteen novels and three short story collections--including If It Bleeds which contains The Life of Chuck--which is actually pretty on par for King. Look at any ten-year period of his writing career and you'll find similar numbers. It's just admirable how little he is resting on his laurels in his later years. He could coast and sip lemonade by a lake in Maine, but he has so many stories within him that he still wants to tell, so many characters deserving of being shared with us. It's incredibly generous.

I've wanted to be a writer since I was young, like Chuck wanted to dance, and like Chuck I've made choices and concessions that lead me away from that dream. But it's still there inside me, and I hope to share it with more people more often than I do now. The feeling I left the theater with after seeing The Life of Chuck was that it was okay. A thematic through-line of the film is the Walt Whitman line "I am large, I contain multitudes". It's something that's stuck with Chuck for most of his life; that inside each of us is every memory, every moment we've experienced, as well as the ones we've imagined. It's all there and it's all as important as we let it be. By applying it to someone as ostensibly average as Chuck--and avoiding the cliché of making him a writer--the film makes a statement about potential, and about dreams.

I've avoided too many details in this discussion because I think The Life of Chuck benefits and deserves an audience to go in without expectation, to let it unfold before them and to really consider what you're seeing, what it means, and how it makes you feel. But it would be a disservice to the film to not mention a few stand-out performances. Chiwetel Ejiofor and Karen Gillan anchor the opening of the film, giving it a beating heart while faced with circumstances that seem less far-fetched now than they might have just a few years ago. Matt Lillard and Carl Lumbly both brought tears to my eyes at different points of the film. Mia Sara and Mark Hamill give fabulously warm performances as Chuck's grandparents in the third act. There are appearances from Heather Langenkamp and David Dastmalchian that are fantastic and deployed with surgical tonal precision.

Which brings us to the Chucks. Obviously, Tom Hiddleston is the marquee Chuck, the Chuck on the billboards, but at different ages, Chuck is played by Jacob Tremblay, Cody Flanagan, and notably Benjamin Pajak, who gives a remarkably warm and open performance from such a young actor. He's also a fantastic dancer. All of these disparate elements are brought together with the deft and delicate emotional touch that writer/director Mike Flanagan deployed in The Haunting of Hill House. 

Maybe it's because I've lost some friends and some family. Maybe it's because I'm in my forties and I wonder if I'll ever amount to anything. Maybe it's because Mike Flanagan, Stephen King, and this amazing cast have come together to collectively lay a hand on our shoulder and gently remind us that we all matter in spite of how small we are. Whatever it is, I left the theater teary-eyed but feeling better about the state of the world and of my own world than I have in a long while. There will be things great and small that will affect your life and you can't avoid them, but you don't have to stop living until you stop living. Things feel hard because they are hard, but whatever comes next, nobody has to go through it alone.

The Life of Chuck will be in Theaters June 13th, 2025.

CRACK IN THE WORLD (Kino Lorber)

Crack in the World
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: DTS-HD
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik or HERE from Kino Lorber

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Crack in the World comes to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. Featuring b-movie science fiction mainstays Dana Andrews, Janette Scott, and Kieron Moore in the lead roles, the film combines grand-scale disaster with small-scale drama. The Kino release, though light on special features, acts as an excellent showcase for the incredible and varied practical effects throughout.

The Movie: Excellent

I quite enjoyed Crack in the World! The film itself could absolutely be Mystery Science Theater 3000 fodder, but the restoration goes a long way towards making you take it more seriously despite the ludicrous premise and outdated science. There are a lot of varied effects shots--matte paintings, composite shots using models or stock footage, etc.--and the vast majority of them look amazing! That, along with the dramatic love triangle between Dr. Stephen Sorenson (Dana Andrews), his wife Dr. Maggie Sorenson (Janette Scott), and Dr. Ted Rampion (Kieron Moore) gave me other things to pay attention to aside from just the plot.

Project Inner Space, lead by Dr. Mr. Sorenson, plans to harness the unlimited energy potential within the Earth's core by drawing magma to the surface using a 10 megaton bomb--which is the explosive equivalent of somewhere between ten and twenty typical nuclear bombs, as far as I can tell--and while he thinks this will go smoothly, his professional and romantic rival, Dr. Rampion disagrees. They demonstrate their competing theoretical outcomes in an amazing sequence where one pane of glass is smashed with a hammer, (representing what Rampion thinks the bomb will do to the mantle) while another is pierced smoothly with a heated iron (which is how Dr. Mr. Sorenson believes things will go). Seeing as the film is called Crack in the World, I imagine you may guess who is more correct.

From there, this is, in broad strokes, your standard disaster movie: the scientists realize they may have doomed the planet, then scramble with plan after plan attempting to put right what they've done wrong. And then! On top of all that, Dr. Mr. Sorenson is secretly dying and hasn't told Dr. Mrs. Sorenson! But since this was the 1960s, instead of discussing the things that are weighing upon him, he obtusely ends their relationship, forcing his wife to leave confused, bewildered, and hurt. But I guess he thinks that's better than having to endure any sympathy?

This emotional fissure, mirroring the global one, fuels the love triangle that lends the film some extra dimensionality and an additional point of interest. I won't pretend that these character arcs are unique, fascinating, or even particularly well-developed, but they really help guide the pacing of the action. Some aspect of the story is always moving forward--sometimes more than one in a given scene!--so I was constantly engaged.

I love a good science-run-amok movie--probably from growing up watching so many of them be skewered on the aforementioned MTS3k--but they're usually hamstrung by lackluster or ill-conceived effects. That is most certainly not the case with Crack in the World. The effects here are extremely ambitious, well thought-out, and generally well-realized. Beyond that, I'm just a sucker for the slight imperfections you get with practical effects. Story-wise, the whole thing builds to one of the single coldest lines in science fiction: "No one has ever observed the birth of a moon, Masefield..." and an appropriately apocalyptic (though not hopeless!) finale that left me grinning.

The Packaging: Good

I love the cover art for this, which I believe is by Adelchi Serafini--who I was not familiar with, but I am now a fan of (see below)--is an amazing, painted depiction of a globe splitting in half, surrounded by various smaller illustrations detailing a number of disasters: crumbing or burning cities, vehicles falling off the face of the Earth, people screaming. It's just tremendous. The more you look at it, the more details you notice. Absolute eye candy, but of true bone-chilling horror.

The Kino Lorber release features a reversible cover with essentially two different versions of the imagery described above. One is slightly off-set to the right, allowing for the cast to be listed in black text against the stark white background, and the tagline, above in red: "Thank God It's Only a Motion Picture!" This is also the image on the cardboard sleeve included with the first printing. The reverse image is a somewhat remixed version of that globe image: A bit sharper and darker, with some details swapped--like an ocean liner sinking into a vortex as opposed to burning oil fields--with some color and motion implied in the negative space around the globe. Both images absolutely rule in my humble opinion.

The Video: Excellent

The extremely high quality transfer from Kino Lorber occasionally shines a spotlight on the seams of the visual effects of Crack in the World. There are a handful of composite shots--where two images filmed separately are combined to seem like one--where you can obviously tell that you're looking at a miniature, or stock footage. But importantly, not all of them. Some are so well done that you may not even realize it at first glance.

Effects aside, the colors are fantastic, which greatly enhances numerous scenes including the incredible finale, and the images are overall very crisp with real depth of shadow. It really makes the miniatures even more admirable for having to match these details.

The Audio: Good

First off, a heads-up: while this film starts off at what one might call "a reasonable level"--meaning I had to bump up the volume a bit, as it's largely scientists speaking in conversational tones--by the third act, when the score is all booming brass, the rumbling of a damaged planet, falling debris, and shouting, I was forced to turn it down a bit. In that regard, maybe things could have been balanced with a bit more control, but I'm not sure what limitations the audio restoration team were presented with.

Beyond that, this sounded excellent. No buzzing on the low end, even towards the back of the film, clear dialogue (for the era), and a dynamic score. And while I'm on the subject, not to second guess composer Johnny Douglas (who ended up as the composer for tons of 1980s cartoons like G.I. Joe, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Transformers, etc.), but I personally don't feel like a clarinet is the right instrumental choice to convey implicit danger. Like, "it's getting so hot that metal is melting and I'm about to pass out" should not be accompanied by a whimsical little 'toodle-oop' musical sting. That's just silly.

The Special Features: Average

These are your standard assemblage of commentaries and trailers. As an aside, I'm surprised there wasn't a low res version of the trailer for Crack in the World included, as that kind of thing just makes the visual improvement that much more evident, but I digress. The two Sidebars are fine, with Tim Lucas and Stephen R. Bissette discussing their memories of the film. The commentary track from Gary Gerani was informative, but he's obviously reading from a script, which I enjoy less than the more conversational variety. But, as I said, it's still very informative and it pointed me to other films through various cast and crew member connections.

• Audio commentary by film historian / screenwriter Gary Gerani
• Sidebar with Tim Lucas and Stephen R. Bissette: Part 1
• Sidebar with Tim Lucas and Stephen R. Bissette: Part 2
• Trailers
• The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961)
• The Last Man on Earth (1964)

In Summary: Must own!

If you're at all into this era and style of science fiction--cautionary tales born of humanity's hubris--or disaster movies in general, I cannot recommend this film, and this release, enough. I know I've harped on the special effects a lot here, but it's because they're just so impressive. This level of visual upgrade would draw perhaps too much attention to the effects of other similar b-movies, allowing you to see too many seams and zippers, but not here. They're glorious and deserve to be appreciated--there's a volcanic island that, according to the commentary track was an 8-foot tall model that belched smoke & debris and it looks fantastic! So: sorry, not sorry about geeking out about them.

But this is more than an effects showcase. It would all drag if it weren't for the performances of our three leads, who add just the right amount of pathos to their stories. As a bonus, for Rocky Horror Picture Show fans, both Janette Scott and Dana Andrews are mentioned in the lyrics to Science Fiction Double Feature (though not for this film). I'm also a sucker for simple, tangible demonstrations in sci-fi--like the folded paper "wormhole" explanation from Event Horizon--and the glass panel demo I mentioned above is up there among the best. I could go on listing my favorite details from Crack in the World, but why not get a copy and find some for yourself? 

THE AMOROUS ADVENTURES OF MOLL FLANDERS (Kino Lorber)

The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: DTS-HD
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik or HERE from Kino Lorber

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders comes to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. Bond alum Terence Young directs the always alluring Kim Novak in this literary adaptation that may be a touch too plodding to achieve its intended lighthearted tone. The quality of this Kino Lorber release however, might actually make up for any slight failings of the film itself.

The Movie: Average

Based on the 1722 novel dubiously credited to Daniel Defoe (Robinson Crusoe) after his death, though it is written in the style of an autobiography of the conwoman Moll Flanders. This adaptation sands some of the rough edges off of the character of Moll (played here by Kim Novak), making her earnest but burdened by sex appeal, while in the novel, she's at least a bit more romantically cutthroat. It also streamlines the narrative--the novel hops over to America early to set up the finale, then back to England--and removes some of the more questionable elements like the numerous abandoned children and the accidental incest (look it up).

According to the commentary track--which I loved, but more on that later--The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders only truly exists to capitalize on the success of Tom Jones (1963), which depicted similar subject matter with a playful tone but a visually more realistic portrayal of 18th-century England. Moll Flanders scrubs the visuals of their grit, presenting as a more studio-pleasing romcom full of elaborate costumes and locations, trying to give Moll's numerous titular amorous adventures a light touch for general audiences.

I do not think this endeavor is successful. Director Terence Young--known for Bond films like Dr. No (1962) and From Russia with Love (1963)--attempts to make this feel like a "romp", but the script is too unbalanced for him to find much consistent tone. Literally half of the 2 hour, 11 minute film goes by before a hook emerges--Moll is romanced by highwayman Jemmy (Richard Johnson) with both of them pretending to have wealth and land to ensnare the other--which means the first half flounders and feels like aimless scenes only related by their concept: "the almost insufferably beautiful Kim Novak is harassed by men".

However, with Jemmy comes Squint (Leo McKern), the highlight of the film for me. Squint is Jemmy's right-hand man, a bumbling, nearly blind goofball and essentially a cartoon character. He changes personas multiple times to help fool Moll, and others, through the use of such crafty disguises as *checks notes* an eye-patch, or a different hat. He also continually screws up even the simplest tasks in amusing ways, sometimes doing himself some form of bodily harm and almost always acting as an avatar of coitus interruptus for Jemmy and Moll. It's silly, recalling for me some of the physical comedy and broad character performances from something like It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963).

With more focus and the addition of some clear tonal indicators, I enjoyed the back half of The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders more than the first, but it takes an hour plus of high-production value Benny Hill sketches to get there, all to drive home the concept "Kim Novak is good looking". Reader, I may not be the sharpest of knives, but it doesn't take me an hour for me to let that concept sink in. All told, while I really wanted to enjoy this, or to find it titillating or risqué, it comes across as too long, formless, and bland.

The Packaging: Average

This Kino release features a reversible cover: one side is an illustration of Moll Flanders front and center, posed semi-heroically (and showing some thigh) with Jemmy in the background and a smaller image of the local constabulary chasing Jemmy and Squint on horseback. The other is a slightly more impressionistic painted collage of images mostly featuring Moll being uninterested in kissing various suitors (and Jemmy with his sword drawn for good measure). Perfectly serviceable.

The Video: Excellent

My issues with the film aside, The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders looks incredible! There is no film grain that I saw, whether shooting on set or outside. There is one scene early on--when the Banker (George Sanders) falls ill--where I noticed one very slim, very pale scratch visible for about one minute. But that aside, there is not a mark on this release! Which is good because it allows you to really drink in the costumes, which next to Kim Novak of course, were the most eye-catching part of the film.

I'm being cheeky, but honestly, in almost every scene someone is wearing an amazing frock coat--the Count (Vittorio De Sica)'s pink and black outfit for instance--or gown--any of his wife, Lady Blystone (Angela Lansbury)'s costumes also come to mind--that were absolutely breathtaking. I was genuinely happy to be able to appreciate Ye Olde Drippe and Rizze.

The Audio: Excellent

I had absolutely no issues with The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders from a sonic standpoint. The score, by John Addison--who had previously scored the aforementioned Tom Jones--is bouncy and lively and never distracted from the action or the dialogue. Everything sounded clear and fresh throughout.

Addison's score features the whole orchestral kit and caboodle; twinkling chimes, a bravura brass section, booming drums, and playful strings and woodwinds, and all of them sound equally present and real in the mix, generously sharing space with the dialogue and sound effects. The balance really allows the score, with it's simple melodic leitmotif, to become almost a full player in the piece, guiding the tone of scenes as much as the direction or performances at times.

The Special Features: Average

A film's commentary track can make or break a release, especially when it's the only film-specific content included, but The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders lucks out: film historians David Del Valle and Daniel Kremer are the perfect trifecta. They're extremely knowledgeable, have an easy, conversational rapport, and they aren't afraid to talk shit. Don't misunderstand me, they're not spilling any top secret tea, but they don't shy away from talking honestly about this film and others that come up in the conversation. I loved it and would have listened to these two talk for several times the length of the film, happily.

One point of warning however: early on, Del Valle and Kremer briefly mention the tragic story of Claire Ufland who plays young Moll, and even in brief, it could be very upsetting.

• Audio commentary by film historians David Del Valle and Daniel Kremer
• Trailers
• The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders (Low-res)
• Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)
• Irma La Douce (1963)
• Man's Favorite Sport? (1964)
• For Love or Money (1963)
• The Mirror Crack'd (1980)

In Summary: Snag a used copy

The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders doesn't work for me as a film really, especially at the length it is, but the high quality of the transfer, and the genuinely elucidating and entertaining commentary track might be enough for me to recommend you track down a copy. If you're a looking for a gently bawdy way to kill a few hours, and especially if you're interested in a cheesecake-y performance from Kim Novak, this disc might be just what you're after.

There are highlights here: Novak and Johnson are genuinely charismatic, as is Lansbury. The costumes are magnificent, and once it finds a center--the Moll / Jemmy relationship--things coalesce quite nicely. There are plenty of moments where you get glimpses of what this could have been: sillier, sexier, rowdier, slapstick-ier; but as is, you might want to wait a while before adding this to your shelf.

VICE SQUAD (Kino Lorber)

Vice Squad
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition (blu-ray packaged with 4k disc as well)
Audio: Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik or HERE from Kino Lorber

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Vice Squad comes to Blu-ray and 4k from Kino Lorber. Directed by Gary Sherman (Dead & Buried (1981) and Lisa (1990) which is tragically under-seen), Vice Squad is a bombastic yet realistic bit of exploitation with terrific lead performances. With a wealth of bonus material, this Kino Lorber release allows you to fully experience the west coast Neon Slime aesthetic like never before!

The Movie: Excellent

Vice Squad captures a specific era that has moved on in some ways, though not all. Much like the dangerous, family-unfriendly New York of filmmakers like Abel Ferrara, there is a peculiar flavor of West Coast sleaze present here that is palpable from the jump. The sound, the visuals, the colors, and the textures all contribute to a sweaty, desperate feeling that's pervasive throughout the entire film. Vice Squad, for me, has also given that particular feeling a name: Neon Slime.

Vice Squad opens with footage from the Sunset strip accompanying actor Wings Hauser performing the song Neon Slime in an Alice Cooper-adjacent, raw-throated croon, and it perfectly sets the mood for the film to come. When sex worker Ginger (Nina Blackwood) is murdered by her pimp Ramrod (Hauser), vice squad sergeant Walsh (Gary Swanson) enlists Ginger's friend and fellow prostitute Princess (Season Hubley) into a sting operation to capture the pimp. But when Ramrod escapes capture, he sets out on a single-minded mission of violent retribution against a completely unaware Princess.

Vice Squad pulls no punches, but it also never dwells in the vileness of its brutality. Perhaps my favorite moment from the film is after Ginger is beaten, when we cut to the police station to find Walsh bringing in some perps. The scene is chaotic: cops and undercover officers bringing in people, shouting instructions to desk sergeants and the like; barely enough room to move, and then a huge cop emerges from his office in the back screaming about other cops taking his paperclips! It's honestly hilarious--I'm surely not doing it justice--and then Walsh finds out Ginger is in the hospital and we cut to that scene, which ends with Ginger's death. The juxtaposition of realistic comedy and tragedy is part of what makes Vice Squad feel so vital and alive even 40+ years on. It feels heightened, maybe, but real.

Director Gary Sherman (Dead & Buried (1981) and Lisa (1990) which is tragically under-seen) intended Vice Squad to be the first major movie to accurately depict police tactics and, though it might not be the first--apparently Fort Apache the Bronx (1981) does this as well and beat Vice Squad to theaters by a year--the operational sequences on display are riveting. The third act is entirely a chase back and forth across L.A. with the police always precariously on the edge of losing Ramrod's trail as he closes in on the oblivious Princess, going from John to John--which delivers more levity via their various kinks--and fleshes out the world beyond the bounds of the narrative.

Season Hubley is captivating here as Princess. Being introduced to her in her former identity as a businesswoman only for her to change into her sex worker clothes in a bus station bathroom subtly mirrors the vice squad's undercover strategies and the events to come. Apparently she was in the process of divorcing Kurt Russell at the time of filming and Gary Sherman advised her, as is the classic Hollywood punchline, to "use it". That she is not instrumental in Ramrod's inevitable downfall is my one real criticism of Vice Squad as a whole. But while on the subject, I would be seriously remiss to end this review without heaping due praise on Wings Hauser's sleazy, wild-eyed performance as Ramrod. From the moment he sweet-talks his way into Ginger's motel room, he radiates a feral menace. His third-act scramble for revenge--choosing this rather than fleeing the city--are the actions of a man with no thoughts of self-preservation, which Hauser portrays with a creeping inevitability, like watching a predator hunting prey.

The Packaging: Good

There's nothing to complain about, or caution against here. The cover image is a stark black and white, high contrast image of Walsh staring out from behind the wheel of his undercover car, with a smaller, backlit image of a woman standing in an alley, and the tagline: "On the street the real trick is staying alive." The blood-red logo features a neat detail: the middle stroke of the E--which is called a bar, btw-- has been made into a pistol.

Kino's jet-black 4k case combined with the largely also black cover makes the entire package look sleek and menacing. The first printing of the Kino Lorber release also includes a cardboard sleeve of the same graphics.

The Video: Excellent

The blu-ray transfer here is largely incredible. There is one notable sequence at Ramrod's apartment where--whether a product of my television, or some combination of colors and patterns--the grain seemed to almost vibrate and this moiré was initially kind of distracting. There are other grain-heavy sequences, but none of them produced this effect, and in general the grain was a pleasant additional texture in any given scene.

There's even one sequence in a strip club--The Balled Eagle, btw--where the prevalence of film grain, presumably due to the low light and cigarette smoke in the air, actually added to the environment. Princess has agreed to be a honeypot for Ramrod, and as she stalks into his normal hangout, the heavy presence of the grain makes the atmosphere feel thick with intangible jeopardy as well as the smoke.

The colors in Vice Squad, which takes place over one night, are tremendous. From the reds, golds, and moonlight blues of the main drag, to the sickly yellow motel lobbies, and even a sequence lit entirely by candlelight--an inside-joke between director Gary Sherman and cinematographer John Alcott, who had previously worked on Barry Lyndon (1975), amongst other Stanley Kubrick films--it's all so tactile. On the blu-ray, the visual quality is high enough that you can make out the cartoon penis of the flasher graffitied in a bathroom stall, but not quite clear enough to read Walsh's button which, according to one of the commentary tracks, reads "We are all prostitutes". The overall is so good that I am giving this release the highest rating despite my minor, aforementioned quibble.

The Audio: Excellent

This was a very well-balanced audio experience for me. As I mentioned, the film opens with Neon Slime--which also plays over the menu--but once the dialogue proper began and I found the correct audio level, I never had to tweak it again. I'm sure anyone reading this is familiar with the problem of having to adjust volume up or down from time to time when viewing some films; quiet dialogue followed by booming gunfire, roaring car engines, or their ilk. Vice Squad was excellently balanced.

There were shootouts, car crashes, arguments, screaming, and even organ music at one point, and it was all perfectly mixed. The police shouting into their radios, coordinating assorted vehicles in pursuit of Ramrod--a genuinely riveting sequence--lacked for none of the clarity of any scenes that came before or after. As they say: perfect. No notes.

The Special Features: Excellent

This release really cooks for me. Both the commentary tracks on the main disc were fascinating--fair warning that the track with Gary Sherman and Brian Frankish has a little more downtime where the two are just engrossed in the film--and each filled with interesting making-of tidbits. If that was it, plus the trailers, radio and TV spots, this would still be a satisfying experience. But there's an additional disc of supplemental bonus material! It all seems to have been produced for the Shout Factory blu-ray release from 2019--so heads up if you already have that--but for the rest of us, that's about 6 hours of interviews! Between all the interviews and commentary tracks, there are a few repeat stories, but I won't hold that against this release.

• Audio commentary by Steve Mitchell, writer/director of Wings Hauser: Working Class Actor
• Audio commentary by director Gary Sherman and producer Brain Frankish
• Radio spots
• TV spots
• Trailers
• Vice Squad (1982)
• Stick (1985)
• The Hunter (1980)
• To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
• Wanted: Dead of Alive (1986)
• Code of Silence (1985)
• Murphy's Law (1986)

• Disc of Bonus Materials:
• Tracking the Beast: Interview with actor Gary Swanson
• Of Poltergeists and Neon Lights: Interview with director Gary Sherman
• Hollywood Magic: Interview with producer Brian Frankish
• The Roots of Reality: Interview with actress Beverly Todd
• Catching a Killer: Interview with actor Pepe Serna
• Princess Driver: Interview with actor Michael Ensign
• Hollywood Streetwalking: Vice Squad filming locations

In Summary: Must own!

Vice Squad will not suit everyone's palate, nor should it, but if you enjoy a fictional walk on a realistic wild-side, it may just be for you. Allegedly, Martin Scorsese once got into an argument in a restaurant with future Columbia Pictures head Dawn Steel over whether or not the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences would have the gumption to nominate Vice Squad for the Best Picture Oscar, as he felt it was the film of the year.

I may not know everything, but I know better than to argue with one of the foremost living appreciators of fine and not-so-fine cinema. This is a truly incredible example of crime filmmaking, and would be a glorious addition to almost any film library. Vice Squad is Neon Slime in all the best ways. My one caveat is that there are examples of language that has either grown outdated, or was deliberately intolerant to begin with which, combined with the subject matter, might not be enjoyable for all viewers.

THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE (Kino Lorber)

The Bermuda Triangle
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: 
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

The Bermuda Triangle comes to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. Sunn Classic Pictures, makers of niche educational documentaries on a number of subjects, adapted the best-selling book from Charles Berlitz for audiences in 1974. Though the disc's special features are quite slim, The Bermuda Triangle represents a subgenre of film that could easily disappear and is worth investigating for yourself.

The Movie: Good

With a higher production value than you might expect, The Bermuda Triangle (1974) is a true blast of nostalgia, even if it's your introduction to this type of edu-tainment. As a kid, I was glued to reruns of shows examining supernatural phenomena, like In Search of... and Sightings. I had copies of the The Unexplained: Mysteries of Mind, Space, and Time book series and in general, just could not get enough of this sort of thing.

I had never seen The Bermuda Triangle before, but I was sucked in immediately. The reenactments from various locations and eras--beginning with Christopher Columbus and the onscreen text "1492, off the coast of Bimini"--are bookended by segments with host and narrator Brad Crandall (who rules), first from his study and then from a number of relevant locations: a shuttered military base, the inside of a passenger jet, a military airfield. This makes it extremely engaging in short bursts before starting the whole sequence over.  This is a favorite format of mine for this kind or thing, which has largely evaporated from documentaries.

This does a fantastic job of asking questions, which I think is the most important thing a program or film like this--and covering these sorts of topics--can do, by explaining numerous strange historical phenomena. It's just so fun. It lights up your brain. Everybody who's into the Bermuda Triangle (a.k.a. The Sea of Fear) will know about the instances of UFO sightings, Edgar Cayce's Atlantis theories, the numerous occurrences of lost time, etc. But I, for one, had forgotten about Charles Wakely, whose strange experiences in the Triangle led him to dedicate his life to investigating it before his mysterious unsolved murder. Was it related to his search for the truth?

See what I mean about asking questions? Aren't you just the least bit intrigued? I find these sorts of mysteries, however improbable, truly fascinating. Could the collective armada of ships, of varying sizes, that have disappeared within the Bermuda Triangle (a.k.a. The Devil's Triangle) have been sucked down by changing sea pressures caused by a series of interconnected caves on the ocean floor? Maybe. But then how do you explain the planes? What about the planes?!

I'm sorry for yelling. I just get a legitimate, giddy thrill from these subjects and this format. They take me back to an era when my bedroom walls were bedecked with innumerable drawings of Bigfoots and Mothmans. A simpler time, when I would grin ear-to-ear when it became clear that the new episode of Unsolved Mysteries was gonna be, as I said, "a weird one".

The Packaging: Average

I love this cover image! A freighter and a passenger jet depicted half as stark, minimalist white silhouettes on a black background as they travel over, presumably, the Bermuda Triangle. They are being blasted by some undersea energy coming from a vortex on the seafloor, surrounded by ship and aircraft wreckage. I love how pulpy it is, aside from also being beautifully rendered.

The first pressing of this Kino release also includes a slipcover featuring this illustration.

The Video: Good

There is one huge caveat in my rating: a good amount of this film is composed of stock footage, compiled from various sources. I will cop to not fully understanding the restoration process for films and video, but it makes sense to me that the stock footage isn't nearly as clean or sharp as the rest of the film. I imagine it's that old "like making a copy of a copy of a copy" thing. Regardless, the result is that the occasional shot of aircraft taking off from a carrier, or ships on a stormy sea look a little more weathered, on a scale from "Somewhat" to "Wow, Very!"

The original footage shot for this film looks wonderful however. Things like the swarm of UFOs glowing with a shrimp-pink light seen by Columbus and crew in the opening scene, while obviously a special effect--rotoscoped, perhaps?--they still look excellent! I always say that I'd rather see the occasional slightly janky but deliberate effect than a bunch of aimless but technically "perfect" ones.

The Audio: Excellent

The sound here is fan-fucking-tastic. They're not reinventing the wheel, but everything sounds very good. Obviously, since we have Brad Crandall as our narrator, the mix is very important, and Crandall--who has done narration for everything from Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986) to a 1979 episode of WKRP in Cincinnati--sounds marvelous. His voice is sonorous and rich and he conveys authority.

Then there's the score from John Cameron & The New London Orchestra. This absolutely blew me away! The main theme is incredibly grandiose and dramatic when it's in full gear, with rolling drums and an exciting main melody full of brass (which hits immediately on the dic menu!). There are moments where the score switches tack, utilizing flutes when the scene is set on an old fashioned sailing ship, or mimicking a military march on the air force base that, without drawing attention to itself, really adds weight to the reality of what we're watching.

The Special Features: Average

The commentary track with producer James L. Conway was pretty enjoyable and informative, I just wish moderator Howard S. Berger let Conway talk more. I understand perhaps occasionally steering the discussion towards relevant topics and talking points, but Berger spends, I'm not kidding, the whole film constantly reiterating that he likes this film and doesn't think it's silly. Of course, I'm Monday morning quarterbacking here, and perhaps Conway didn't have very much to say, but I was fascinated by his dive into the company's history, which led to me watching The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972)--the trailer for which is included on the disc--immediately after finishing The Bermuda Triangle, and fully enjoying it.

• Audio commentary by producer James L. Conway, moderated by film historian Howard S. Berger
• TV spot (Low-res)
• Trailers
• The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972)
• The Questor Tapes (1974)
• Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
• The Boogens (1981)

In Summary: Snag a used copy

*Robert Stack voice* If you, or someone you know grew up watching The X-Files or had a tape of the two episode arc of The Six Million Dollar Man (s.3 e.16 & 17) where Col. Steve Austin befriends Bigfoot, this might be right up your street. And remember, this film is kid-friendly and was originally marketed to children, so if there's a young Gravity Falls fan in your life for instance, they might also dig on this.

As much as I loved watching this, and it should be clear to you that I really did, I can't pretend this is a must-watch for the average movie viewer. The Bermuda Triangle is niche in both subject matter and genre, but it's extremely well-made examples of both things. I loved this format as a kid and since it's now kind of fallen by the wayside, I really enjoyed seeing something of this ilk be restored intact. It even opens with the original Schick Sunn Classics logo!

THE EMPIRE (Kino Lorber)

The Empire
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: NTSC (720 × 480)
Audio: 5.1 Surround (w/ 2.0 Stereo available in Setup menu)
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it HERE from Kino Lorber

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

The Empire comes to DVD from Kino Lorber. Writer / Director Bruno Dumont offers perhaps the most ambitious film of his career with this absurdist sci-fi epic that's more intriguing than it is satisfying. The mediocre video quality and extremely slim offerings on the DVD leave more questions than answers, like "Should I get the Blu-ray instead?"

The Movie: Fair

I co-host a movie discussion podcast and above all, we admire big swings, which The Empire definitely is, but it's also just a big old mess. Full disclosure, having perused the trailers included on this disc, I began to suspect that maybe The Empire is part of a larger series, or in any case that a viewer would benefit from having some familiarity with the previous works of writer / director Bruno Dumont, but I can't be totally sure.

In a sleepy, seaside French village, unbeknownst to most of the inhabitants, a war for the fate of humanity is taking place. Some of the locals have been possessed by alien beings who lack physical forms, the 0s--naturally jet black liquid blorbs floating in the air who represent the darker side of humanity--and the 1s--spears of white and blue light who embody humanity's nobler aspects--and a child of prophecy has been born, which both sides wish to control.

There's a lot of weird little detail that I kind of actually enjoyed. For instance, somehow, both the earthbound aliens can visit their respective ships in space via hidden portals--the 0s through a dense wood and the 1s via the ocean, like in Supergirl (1984). There are also a lot of interesting design elements. The respective heads of each side--the 1s have a Queen (Camille Cottin) and the 0s have Belzébuth (Fabrice Luchini), called Majesty in the film--wear costumes right out of Jodorowsky's Dune, and their spacecraft resemble huge cathedrals or sprawling estates in space, complete with trees! Does it make sense? No! But it doesn't have to. Arthur C. Clarke famously said "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.", and I'm fine with that ...when it's serving some greater end.

The literal plot of The Empire is a by-the-numbers sci-fi story drowning in clichés, but for a while I could excuse it because the film seemed more concerned with (admittedly very basic) philosophical concepts. It seemed to be using the clichés as shorthand (which is what they are) to get everyone to a place where it could begin its more high-minded legwork. But that moment never comes. Tropes pile up, superficial relationships unfold, and by the time the credits roll, you realize that despite a climactic space battle, nothing has truly happened. It's a big nothing, and comparatively expensive-looking, but it's still narratively empty.

Listen. Movies are hard to make, and I don't lambaste them willy-nilly. While I'm sure Dumont had noble intentions when setting out to make The Empire, the result feels like a waste to me. Of time, of talent, of the passion and effort it takes to make even the most misguided film.

The Packaging: Average

The poster / cover image here is a digital collage of pretty much all the characters and some key features of the film. It certainly makes the film look interesting, with the science fiction decadence of some of the designs resembling the work of illustrator Jean Giraud (a.k.a. Moebius) who did designs for the aforementioned, unproduced version of Dune that was to be directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky.

The Video: Average

This being a DVD, the visual quality is never going to be as good as a Blu-ray or any higher quality format. I know that. But I still think this kind of looks bad for a DVD. There was a decent amount of visual noise and artifacting in shots with more substantive depth-of-field, or shots with a lot of detail. One sequence for example features Jane (Anamaria Vartolomei) walking through a field, with Jony (Brandon Vlieghe) following her on his horse, depicted with alternating shots of her feet and the horse's hooves. With a higher quality format, this shot might have come across as striking or even amusing, but the lower quality visuals made it just kind of distracting.

That said, the more effects-heavy shots are surprisingly good. The ships are very detailed and that detail translates very well. I was caught off guard because the earlier shots of just woods and fields were kind of pixel-noise heavy and I wasn't expecting the digitally created aspects to look as clean as they do.

The Audio: Good

I had no issues with the audio from a technical quality standpoint. My three-channel soundbar handled the mix very well, and though the film isn't exactly sonically dense, the balance was handled very well. There was, however, a fucking crazy bird sound that shows up throughout. I first noticed it after a car accident scene, in the relatively empty field where the car ends up. It was such a bizarre bird call that when we cut away to another location, I half convinced myself that it wasn't a bird at all but some kind of robotic noise coming from a character who, therefore, must be a robot (Arrested Development narrator voice: He wasn't).

The sound reoccurs in subsequent scenes in that field, but also occasionally throughout the rest of the film in other locations around this fishing village. It's very unpleasant and hard to ignore. I've never been to France, let alone to this particular coastal town: is this how France sounds?

The Special Features: Poor

In general, I don't think there's any less exciting "special feature" than a bunch of trailers. It just feels like advertising. Though sometimes, when a disc also has some kind of commentary track--which, to be clear, this does NOT, despite this being a project that could honestly benefit from hearing the creator explain his goals--these titles can be given a greater significance.

Here, the trailers are obviously for other offerings from writer/director Bruno Dumont, at least three of which are set in the same town as The Empire, two of which feature gendarmes (police) played by Bernard Pruvost and Philippe Jore, and one of them seeming to potentially be connected to The Empire through the inference of black goo aliens. It's unclear if these two members of the gendarmerie are through-lines, or just stock characters Dumont likes. Watch the trailers, and see for yourself, I guess? 

• Trailers
• Camille Claudel 1915 (2013)
• Coincoin and the Extra Humans (TV mini-series) (2018)
• The Empire (2024)
• France (2021)
• Li'l Quinquin (2014)
• Slack Bay (2016)

In Summary: Stream it instead

Putting aside the technical aspects--because there IS a Blu-ray available out there--and speaking just as a film: The Empire is kind of interesting at best and that's it. There are some great visuals, and a few fun gags, but none of it is enough to give this any kind of strong recommendation. The tone is distracting, and the bizarre and only vaguely explained world and rules, while interesting, could use a bit more elaboration. The fact that it all builds to a conflict we don't really understand the rules or stakes of, which ends in a very large anti-climax is just the last nail in the coffin for me.

If a science fiction story that's heavier on mundanity than it is on philosophy or story is your thing, grab The Empire at your earliest convenience. Otherwise, wait to check it out first.

FOUL PLAY (Kino Lorber)

Foul Play
Kino Lorber

The Stats
Video: Native 4K 2160p / 1080p High Definition
Audio: 5.0 with 2.0 option in the Audio menu
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it HERE from Diabolik

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

Foul Play comes to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. A loving pastiche of the mystery genre from Harold and Maude screenwriter Colin Higgins in his directorial debut, Foul Play turns numerous genre clichés on their heads. The Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber is a worthy upgrade for fans of the film, with engaging features giving insight into its place in film history.

The Movie: Average

When librarian Gloria Mundy (Goldie Hawn) picks up a hitchhiker on her way back to San Francisco, she unknowingly sets into motion a series of events that will find her life in danger, her sanity questioned, and put her directly in the path of tomcat detective Tony Carlson (Chevy Chase). The two then find themselves embroiled in a conspiracy to assassinate the Pope and after crossing paths with some colorful characters, notably Gloria's landlord Mr. Hennessey (Burgess Meredith) and horndog orchestra conductor Stanley (Dudley Moore), they might just save the day.

I like this cast a lot--in addition to those mentioned above, notable character actors Brian Dennehy and Billy Barty appear in minor roles--and I'm frequently in the pocket for films that blend genres, especially when they can play the serious stuff straight, while still allowing the comedy to work its way in organically. But nothing tickles me about Foul Play more than all the loving homages to Alfred Hitchcock. This was Colin Higgins directorial debut, but he had previously written the amazing Harold and Maude (1971) and Silver Streak (1976), which is another thematic love letter to Hitch.

Foul Play takes the Hitchcock Blonde (Hawn), the bumbling but charming, Cary Grant-ish male lead (Chase), and swaps them. Gloria and Detective Tony's roles are essentially reversed. She's the more competent one, repeatedly getting herself out of one spot of trouble, only to find her in a new, usually much worse one, while Tony for the most part just tags along. He's the arm candy. In fact during the finale, there's a fistfight between one of the conspirators and Mr. Hennessey--was Burgess Meredith really 71 when this came out?!?!--while Gloria and Det. Tony watch and cheer.

What I enjoyed most was the way Higgins lampooned the idea of MacGuffins. If you're unaware, a MacGuffin was Hitch's term for the thing that gets the characters involved in the plot that the audience doesn't really have to care about. Here we have the microfilm and the phrase "Beware the dwarf". Neither amounts to very much, being extremely tangentially related to the central conspiracy at best, but there's something kind of lovely about that. It gives the whole film a kind of "it's the journey, not the destination" feel.

Ultimately though, Foul Play didn't really blow my hair back. It's not bad by any means, and contains a lot of elements I generally like, but something just didn't fully connect for me. Despite now having watched the film multiple times, I just have a problem getting into the rhythm of it. The comedy and the thriller aspects never really gel for me and just feel like they're getting in each others' way.

The Packaging: Good

The cover here is a lively illustration of Gloria embracing Tony from behind with him firing a pistol from within his raincoat pocket. The illustration, from Birney Lettick (the artist responsible for the Valley Girl, Escape from Alcatraz, and Heaven Can Wait posters), is excellent and includes a fantastic logo that borders the two characters. It's just very fun.

The Kino release also includes a slipcover featuring that same illustration.

The Video: Good

This looks wonderful overall. The film grain is present, but not to a distracting degree and the shadows and colors are both incredibly rich. I particularly loved the exterior footage in the San Francisco area, especially at night. There are soft halos around the lights, and seeing the various hues of the buildings and clothing rising from the depths of the shadows is pure eye candy.

The interiors definitely have a certain flatness generally, and look like film sets, but that sort of added to the Hitchcock homage for me? His films contained such a degree of forethought with regards to shot composition that their artificiality, at times, became a positive facet and not a negative. At times, Foul Play feels like that--Stanley's "beaver trap" apartment for instance--and that actually works very well overall.

The Audio: (poor / fair / average / good / excellent)

I had no real issues with the audio in Foul Play aside from one general note: on the whole, the film seems to be balanced more towards the high and middle range, with less low-end. I have a three-channel sound bar (as much to preserve my built-in TV speakers as anything else) and, a few moments aside, I could crank it up reasonably high before I experienced any low-end rattling.

I have no way of proving this, but I wonder if they used Ready to Take a Chance Again, Barry Manilow's theme from the film, as a guide--the way engineers at a live venue will frequently use "perfectly mixed" albums like Steely Dan's Aja to adjust to the space--because the song, which plays a handful of times, sounds full and excellent.

The Special Features: (poor / fair / average / good / excellent)

Aside from what is becoming a repeat request--a Play All option for the trailers--the special features are really engrossing. The interview with sound designer Nicholas Eliopoulos is fascinating and really gave a proper context to Colin Higgins' career, though during the commentary track, Max Evry does repeat the information given by Eliopoulos in a few spots. That aside, both Evry and Bryan Reesman are very knowledgeable and likeable.

• Audio commentary by entertainment journalists / authors Bryan Reesman and Max Evry
• Fair Play: Remembering Colin Higgins
• Theatrical trailers, TV, and radio spots:
• Foul Play (HD)
• Foul Play (original)
• Bird on a Wire (1990)
• Deceived (1991)
• Fletch (1985)
• Fletch Lives (1989)
• The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982)

In Summary: Snag a used copy

As mentioned in the special features, Colin Higgins' has a very interesting, if sadly abridged, filmography. That alone might be enough for someone to want to pick this up, and if so: you won't be disappointed on any of the technical merits. Likewise, if you already enjoy this film and are looking to add a modern quality copy to your library. From the standpoint of sheer technical quality, Foul Play is very solid.

If, however, you're unfamiliar with the film and are perhaps intrigued by the concept of Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase in a thriller / comedy, you might be a little underwhelmed. For me, the humor works on its own, but feels largely separate from the plot. Still, Foul Play is decently enjoyable, if a bit, as the kids say, mid overall.