THE POOP SCOOP: Classic & New Classics

AMADEUS on 4K Ultra HD February 25, 2025 from Warner Bros Discovery.

Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the epic historical film’s 8 Academy Awards,  Amadeus, from acclaimed director Milos Forman (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest), will be available for the first time Digitally in 4K Ultra HD and on 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc on February 25. One of the most celebrated films in cinematic history, the theatrical version of Amadeus will be available to purchase on Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc online and in-store at major retailers and available Digitally from Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV, Fandango at Home and more. The film is based on the play Amadeus by Shaffer and Mozart and Salieri by Alexander Pushkin. Amadeus was produced by three-time Academy Award winner and Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award recipient Saul Zaentz. It received eleven Academy Award nominations and won eight Oscars - Best Picture, Best Directing Best Actor (F. Murray Abraham), Best Screenplay based on Material from Another Medium, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, and Best Sound. In 2019, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” The restoration and mastering of the Amadeus original theatrical cut was completed by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences with the participation of Paul Zaentz.

🎅RED ONE on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD March 4 from Warner Bros Discovery.

Director Jake Kasdan’s (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Bad Teacher) Christmas action-adventure comedy Red One, from Metro-Goldwyn Mayer Pictures, will be available for purchase on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD on March 4, 2025. Red One stars Dwayne Johnson (the Fast & Furious franchise), Chris Evans (Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe), Lucy Liu (Charlie’s Angels, Kill Bill), Kiernan Shipka (Twisters), Bonnie Hunt (Jerry Maguire), Kristofer Hivju (TV’s Game of Thrones), Nick Kroll (Get Him to The Greek), Wesley Kimmel, and Academy Award winner J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) as Santa Claus. In the film, Santa Claus – Code Name: RED ONE – is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with the world’s most infamous bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a globe-trotting, action-packed mission to save Christmas. 

😺ANORA on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD on January 21, 2025 from Criterion Collection.

Contemporary cinema’s foremost chronicler of American dreamers and schemers hustling on the margins of capitalist promise, Sean Baker, reaches new heights of mastery with this audacious anti–Cinderella story—a whirlwind neorealist screwball comedy with an aching heart. In an electric, star-is-born performance, Mikey Madison soars as Anora, an enterprising, ferociously foulmouthed Brooklyn erotic dancer and sex worker whose Prince Not-So-Charming comes along in the form of a Russian oligarch’s wild-child son (Mark Eydelshteyn). This is the beginning of a fractured fairy tale—also featuring standout performances from Karren Karagulian, Yura Borisov, and Vache Tovmasyan—that turns the cruel realities of class inside out. Winner of the Palme d’Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, Anora confirms Baker as one of our preeminent auteurs.

😺THE THIRD MAN 4K SteelBook Coming February 25 from Lionsgate.

Widely regarded as the greatest British film of all time, and making its 4K debut, director Carol Reed's noir The Third Man, brilliantly scripted by Graham Greene – and set to Anton Karas's evocative zither score – is a justly celebrated classic further enhanced by Orson Welles in one of his most iconic roles. After writer Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten) arrives in post-WWII Vienna to meet his old friend Harry Lime (the incomparable Welles), he discovers Lime has been killed in a suspicious accident. As the accident's witnesses disappear, the sardonic Major Calloway (Trevor Howard) and Lime's mistress, Anna Schmidt (Alida Valli), complicate Martins's search for answers regarding his friend's death. But will his relentless curiosity lead him to discoveries about Lime he'd rather not know? This release also comes with many bonus features, including a 56 page booklet, art cards and numerous featurettes.

😺A REAL PAIN on Digital NOW and Blu-Ray February 4th from Searchlight/Disney.

Mismatched cousins, David and Benji, reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the pair's old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history. A Real Pain has been nominated for 4 Golden Globe Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor Jesse Eisenberg, Best Supporting Actor Kieran Culkin and Best Screenplay. The film won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year.

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS in 4K...with Extra Goodies

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Limited Edition 

(Blu-ray)

2009 / 153 min

From Arrow Video

Review by Mr. Bonnie, the Basterd😺

In this writer’s humble opinion, Quentin Tarantino is our greatest living filmmaker, and Inglourious Basterds is his second greatest film. At this point, I can’t imagine him ever topping Pulp Fiction (which also just recently got a pretty elaborate 4K boxed set).

If you’re really interested in more of my gushing, you can read my review of Universal’s 4K edition HERE. Though that version came out only a few years ago, Arrow Video has just released their own 4K and Blu-ray editions. We were sent the Blu-ray edition for review, and to be honest, I didn’t notice any difference between this video/audio transfer and the previous one (which still means it’s pretty damn good).

Hans tastes Skittles for the first time.

However, this edition comes with a bunch of brand new supplemental materiel, the best being individual interviews with several Tarantino cohorts...make-up FX supervisor Greg Nicotero, actor Omar Doom and editor Fred Raskin, as well as one with film scholar Christine Leteux. Also included is a new audio commentary and a couple of lengthy visual essays related to the film. Additionally, nearly all of the bonus features from the Universal releases are carried over to this one. All that’s missing the New York Times’ Q&A session.

As usual with Arrow’s limited edition boxed sets, this one also comes with a lot of physical goodies, such as a mini poster, art cards, a strudel recipe and a 60-page booklet. So while Inglourious Basterds hasn’t gotten any technical upgrades (nor does it really need any), the substantial new bonus material and packaging make it worth picking up for fans who can’t get enough of the film...such as yours truly.

EXTRA KIBBLES

NOTE: Free Kittens Movie Guide was provided with a promo disc for review purposes. Physical supplemental material included with the final product (booklets, artwork, inserts, etc) were not available for review.

NEW INTERVIEWS - What Would Sally Do? features frequent QT editor Fred Raskin, who discusses how his career got started, his work with QT and working under the late Sally Menke (who was the actual editor of Inglourious Basterds); Blood Fiction is an interview with make-up supervisor Greg Nicotero, who has worked on every Tarantino film and goes into a lot of details on the make-up effects in this one; Doomstruck features actor/musician Omar Doom, who plays one of the Basterds; Filmmaking in Occupied France is an interview with film scholar Christine Leteux.

VISUAL ESSAYS - 2 new visual essays are included. In Making it Right, critic Walter Chaw discusses themes of kindness in Tarantino’s films, which isn’t quite the stretch it seems; Film History on Fire features author Pamela Hutchinson, you mostly focuses on the recurring themes and imagery of films within the film.

AUDIO COMMENTARY - New audio commentary by author/critic Tim Lucas. 

ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION - The best of the bonus features, Quentin Tarantino and Brad Pitt talk with moderator Elvis Mitchell.

“NATION’S PRIDE” - The Eli Roth-directed short that served as the film shown in the French cinema during the final act.

FEATURETTES - “The Making of ‘Nation’s Pride’”; “The Original Inglorious Bastards” (a tribute to the film - and its director - that inspired the title); “A Conversation with Rod Taylor” (Taylor played Churchill in the film); “Rod Taylor on Victoria Bitters” (an amusing anecdote); “Hi Sallys” (something of a running gag during Tarantino shoots, in reference to editor Sally Menke); “Quentin Tarantino’s Camera Angel” (the director’s amusing clapboard operator).

DELETED/EXTENDED SCENES

IMAGE GALLERY - Instead of the usual gallery of one-sheets and stills, this one features poster artwork actually used in the film, narrated by Elvis Mitchell.

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ICONS UNEARTHED: MARVEL: An Almost Complete History

ICONS UNEARTHED: MARVEL (Blu-ray)

2023 / 712 min

From Mill Creek Entertainment

Review by Stinky the Destroyer😺

Icons Unearthed is an ongoing series in which each season focuses on the history of a particular entertainment franchise. I’m typically skeptical of shows like this, since many tend to simply summarize what’s already common knowledge for fans, along with commentary from a variety of talking heads who may or may not have been involved.

But I kind-of changed my tune after catching their season dedicated to Star Wars. Yeah, there were a lot of talking heads and few of them were the “big” names associated with the franchise, but each episode featured tons of revealing information on the germination of Star Wars and the sometimes tumultuous efforts to get each film to the big screen. Though “unofficial and unauthorized,” the show featured gobs of footage, accompanied by narration that was unafraid to sometimes get snarky.

Icons Unearthed now turns its attention to Marvel, arguably the most culturally significant franchise since Star Wars. This season sets the stage with early episodes that delve into the history of Marvel Comics and attempts to expand their brand beyond the printed page. Most of the early adaptations, largely cartoons and TV shows, were hampered by tiny budgets and laughable production values (I can attest to that because I remember some of 'em).

Those shades are MARVEL-ous.

Even more interesting are the times Marvel had been bought and sold over the years, often by moguls more interested in toy sales than quality. And as the popularity of Marvel Comics waned and the company struggled to stay afloat, they sold the film rights to their biggest characters for shockingly small amounts of money (which is why Spider-Man still continues to be distributed by Sony). These early episodes are by-far the most revealing, especially in light of the juggernaut Marvel would become.

That juggernaut began with Kevin Feige, a fledgling producer whose vision of a cinematic universe not-only reversed Marvel’s fortunes, its influence was felt throughout Hollywood (for better or worse). Subsequent episodes focus heavily on the early MCU films - both before and after Marvel was purchased by Disney - and the significant financial risks being taken (almost everyone but Feige and director James Gunn thought Guardians of the Galaxy would bomb). These episodes feature plenty of behind-the-scenes stories related to casting and struggles during production.

However, this season isn’t quite comprehensive, content to conclude the Marvel story at around 2017, which means the pinnacles of the studio’s success (Infinity War and Endgame) are not covered, nor are any of Marvel’s subsequent failures or the saturation of TV shows on Disney+ . And since this was originally an episodic series with commercial breaks, many of the details (with accompanying commentary) are repeatedly summarized. Still, the Marvel story is pretty interesting, whether you’re a die-hard fanboy or feel the whole MCU has worn out its welcome. 

EXTRA KIBBLES

EXTENDED INTERVIEWS - Lengthy additional interview footage with actor Lou Ferrigno, actor J.J. Field, comic writer Mark Miller, actor/director Clark Gregg and filmmaker/comic writer J. Michael Straczynski.

KITTEN COLLECTIBLES #11: The Botched Bond Girl

A Treasure Hunt by D.M. ANDERSON💀

In addition to watching and writing about films, I’m something of a memorabilia collector. Cursed with a teacher’s salary, I ain’t out there bidding on Dorothy’s ruby slippers or anything, but certainly enjoy haunting local shops for a variety of movie-related stuff. Or when feeling particularly bold, I’ll occasionally overpay for some retro relic on eBay. More often than not, I leave stores empty-handed. But every now and then, I’ll find a small treasure that doesn’t completely empty my wallet and give it a new home in the Dave Cave.

Movies and action figures go together like cops and donuts. While I collect action figures to a certain extent, I’m a little picky. I don’t bother with anything related to Marvel, Star Wars or Disney because that shit is everywhere. Visit damn near any store that sells vintage toys and you’ll see shelves and shelves of ‘em, most likely dumped off by guys once certain those things were a path to early retirement.

But I’ll certainly snap-up something related to movies I’m into, such as Alien, Jaws or other figures never intended to be actual toys. It’s especially fun to find one that isn’t from a sci-fi or horror film, mainly because I don’t see them that often. At a local place called Antique Alley, I recently found a 13” figure of Vincent Vega from Pulp Fiction that speaks dialogue from the movie. It even superficially resembles John Travolta.

Speaking of resemblance, Foxtrot Vintage, just down the street from my house, had a figure of Ursuala Andress’ character, Honey Ryder, from the first James Bond film, Dr. No., even though the thing in the box doesn’t remotely look like her.

Separated at birth?

In fact, her face reminded me more of Richard Chamberlain getting a colonoscopy than the bikini-clad Bond beauty. And with that Terminator of a body, Honey looks like she’s ready to kick 007’s ass. Hell, the Funko Pop of Honey Ryder looks more like Ursula than this one. The hilariously half-assed design made it well worth the eight bucks I paid. Even now, a few days later, looking at it makes me chuckle.

Sometimes I leave my figures in their original box, other times I take them out. It either depends on the condition of the box or if they’d simply look cooler if posed in my display case. I've decided to leave this one boxed because, without it, you’d probably be wondering where I found an action figure of a WWE wrestler in drag.

Meet MR. LUCKY

MR. LUCKY (Blu-ray)

1943 / 100 min

From Warner Archive Collection

Available at www.MovieZyng.com

Review by Mr. Paws😺

It seems like quite a few Cary Grant movies have been getting upgraded lately. One of the all-time great thrillers, North by Northwest, recently got a masterful 4K restoration, as did the 1942 comic-mystery The Talk of the Town. Lesser known than those two classics is Mr. Lucky, a charming romantic comedy featuring Grant doing what he does best…which is being Cary Grant.

During World War II, fast-talking gambler/conman Joe Adams (Grant) is trying to avoid the draft while looking to get-hold of quick cash for his casino ship, which is docked in New York. He assumes the identity of one of his dead partners, becoming Joe Bascopoulos, but is unsuccessful raising money. Then he meets Dorothy Bryant (Laraine Day), who’s in charge of a war relief organization. Joe proposes putting together a charity casino night for an upcoming fundraiser, in which he and his boys would provide the games and equipment with the promise of raising thousands of dollars. In reality, he plans on absconding with the winnings afterwards. 

"You might wanna wait a few minutes before going in there."

Dorothy is reluctant and suspicious at first, but Joe endears himself to her colleagues…and eventually Dorothy herself, despite learning - from her overprotective grandfather - that “Joe Bascopoulos” is a career criminal one step away from being sent away for life. Of course, the two fall for each other, and after hearing of the tragedy that the real Bascopoulos’ Greek family endured during a Nazi invasion, Joe has second thoughts about his scheme. Meanwhile, Joe’s disgruntled ex-partner, Zepp (Paul Stewart), has plans of his own, which involves setting Joe up to go to prison while making off with the $200,000 in casino earnings.

Mr. Lucky immediately establishes a light, breezy tone, with amusing dialogue and playful performances. Grant is…well, Cary Grant, which is just the type of persona Joe needs to make him lovable, even when he’s swindling others (most of them actually deserve to be duped). As Dorothy, Day is lovely and engaging, first as a funny foil, then as Joe’s (sort-of) partner-in-crime. Also enjoyable is Alan Carney as “Crunk,” Joe’s beleaguered right-hand man forced to take up crochet on his boss’ behalf (a great running gag).

The story is needlessly protracted during the final act, with a comparatively serious (and violent) clash between Joe and Zepp, as well as a bit more melodrama then the film really needed. But until then, Mr. Lucky offers plenty of fast-paced, fast-talking fun. Though not one of Cary Grant’s more iconic roles, he’s nevertheless in fine form here.

EXTRA KIBBLES

2 RADIO BROADCASTS - Lux Radio Theater with Cary Grant & Laraine Day; Screen Director’s Playhouse with Cary Grant and H.C. Potter.

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THE LORDS OF FLATBUSH: A Historical Footnote

THE LORDS OF FLATBUSH (Blu-ray)

1974 / 84 min

From Sony

Available at www.MovieZyng.com

Review by Mr. Paws😽

Poor Paul Mace. Not only did he die pretty young (in 1983), he’s the only primary cast member of The Lords of Flatbush who never went on to bigger things. I wonder what he thought of his co-stars’ hitting the big time almost immediately after this film’s release, while he spent what was left of his life guest starring on TV shows.

Not that The Lords of Flatbush itself catapulted the careers of Sylvester Stallone, Henry Winkler, Susan Blakely and Perry King. This low budget American Graffiti wannabe had a short run in theaters before quietly disappearing…until Happy Days and Rocky made Winkler and Stallone household names. Then the film enjoyed a lot of renewed attention when it aired on television. Of course, we were all curious, perhaps some of us unaware this was made when they were still struggling actors.

Taking place in the ‘50s, the movie is a coming-of-age, slice of life drama focusing on the titular characters, four high school hoods (who don’t remotely resemble teenagers) that spend their days disrupting class, shooting pool, hanging out and stealing cars. There are couple of subplots along the way, such as Chico (King) trying to get with a girl way out of his league (Blakely), and Stanley (Stallone) being coerced into getting married by his bossy girlfriend. But other than that, there isn’t much of a story.

"I ordered my fries an hour ago."

The film meanders along at a leisurely pace, none of it particularly thought provoking and, overall, pretty light on significant conflict. There are also a lot of scenes where the dialogue feels improvised, and is sometimes pretty raunchy for a PG-rated film. The four leads are decent in their roles, with Stallone being a particular standout as Stanley, who could be seen as a precursor to Rocky Balboa. 

Today, I imagine the primary appeal of The Lords of Flatbush is largely nostalgia…or maybe curiosity. The film is watchable and occasionally engaging, but mostly just a historical footnote in the careers of its impressive cast. Except for poor Paul Mace, who pretty-much became a footnote himself.

EXTRA KIBBLES

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