Home Market Releases for February 21st, 2017

February 21, 2017

Did you know Oscars are being handed out next week? If you didn’t already know that, you would be able to figure that out, as there are five major Oscar nominees on this week’s list. Two of those, Jackie and Moana, are VOD releases, so that limits the choices for Pick of the Week. In fact, only Manchester by the Sea was a contender for Pick of the Week. Unfortunately for that film, I got to the review for Doctor Strange a week early and I’m awarding it the Pick of the Week this week. It is out on VOD right now, but I would wait a week for the Blu-ray Combo Pack.

Bad Santa 2 - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
I loved the first movie, but comedy sequels have a mixed record, so I wanted to wait and see with this one. Then I saw the reviews. If you liked the first movie, then wait till you can watch this one for free, perhaps when it is on Netflix.

Beauty and the Beast - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
This is a French adaptation of the classic story. It looks amazing, but the story doesn’t have enough emotional impact to draw in moviegoers.

Big Girls Don’t Cry...They Get Even - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Oh my god, I just got hit with a wave of nostalgia. When I was a kid, one summer the movie channel up here in Canada used to play this movie several times a week. It was this film and Teresa’s Tattoo back-to-back and I watched them both probably a dozen times. I don’t remember if they were any good, on the other hand. ... That’s probably a bad sign.

Blood on the Mountain - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Video on Demand
A documentary about the coal industry in West Virginia and how it exploits the land and the people. The reviews are great, so if you like documentaries, definitely check out this one.

Doctor Who: The Return of Doctor Mysterio - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
The long-running Sci-fi show appears to be running out of steam and they will need to make some serious changes to turn things around.

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Season Two - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
We normally don’t talk about Anime titles on this list, because they rarely sell well enough to be worth mentioning. However, this week, there are three titles in the top 20. It does make sense that this title is selling well, as the upcoming live-action movie is boosting awareness of the franchise.

Grace and Frankie: Season Two - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Reviews for this show went from 55% positive to 89% positive. However, the number of critics reviewing the show went from 38 to just 9. This is likely not a case of the second season being a classic, but the majority of critics giving up on the show.

Hacksaw Ridge - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD, Blu-ray Combo Pack, or 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
Video on Demand
This film is one of the major players during Awards Season with plenty of nominations, but very few wins. I think this has more to do with Awards Season voters loving a good redemption story and many saw this as Mel Gibson’s redemption. I’m not sure I buy that. Extras include an hour-long making of documentary and deleted scenes. Worth picking up, but not Pick of the Week material.

Heaven Sent - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
A TV movie about a very young angel who comes to Earth to help save a failing marriage.

Manchester by the Sea - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
This film has a better than 50/50 chance of winning at least one Oscar next Sunday. It could earn close to $50 million domestically, which is great for a limited release. Unfortunately, its extras are only okay with an audio commentary track, making of featurette, and deleted scenes. It is worth picking up and a contender for Pick of the Week.

Metropolis - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Based on a Manga from 1945 that was inspired by the Fritz Lang movie of the same name. This needs a special edition loaded with extras.

Nashville: Season Four - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
It is rare for a show to be canceled by one network only to be rescued by another. But that is what has happened with this show. The reviews continue to be amazing, so fans are certainly happy they got more of this country music soap.

Noragami Aragoto: Season Two - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
The final Anime title in the top twenty best-selling new releases. This is the one I know the least about. In fact, I’d never heard of it until I saw it on the list.

Nocturnal Animals - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD, Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
This film has done strangely well during Awards Season. It’s not a bad movie, but a Tomatometer Score of 73% positive isn’t Award-worthy. The only extras are a three-part making of featurette, which isn’t a lot. It is still worth picking up, but it is not a Pick of the Week contender.

Seasons - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Video on Demand
A nature documentary by the same people who made Winged Migration. For fans of nature documentaries, that will be enough to want to pick up this DVD.

Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
3 Classic Films by Claude Chabrol - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Assassination Classroom: Season Two, Part One - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
The Boy Friend - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Deluge - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Freezing Vibration: The Complete Second Season - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Season One - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Karate Girl - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Mildred Pierce: Criterion Collection - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
The Net - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
No Retreat, No Surrender - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Psychomania - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Sophie and the Rising Sun - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Ultimate Otaku Teacher: Season One, Part Two - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
Utano Prince Sama Revolutions - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown: Criterion Collection - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Yosuga No Sora: In Solitude Where We Are Least Alone - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
There’s a lot of Anime this week, but also a couple of Criterion Collection releases worth taking a look at. If I were to pick just one, I would go with Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown.

3D Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
There are no 3D releases this week, but there is at least one next week.

4K Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
Hacksaw Ridge - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
Only one 4K release this week, but at least it is a good movie.

TV on DVD Megasets - Buy from Amazon:
No TV on DVD Megasets this week. That’s not that uncommon for this time of year.

Video on Demand - Buy from Amazon:
Incarnate - Reviews - Video on Demand
Jackie - Reviews - Video on Demand
Killer Assistant - Reviews - Video on Demand
Moana - Reviews - Video on Demand: Movie Only or Movie with Extras
Punching Henry - Reviews - Video on Demand
They Call Us Monsters - Reviews - Video on Demand
Both Jackie and Moana are up for Oscars this year. I would be shocked if neither of them won at least one Oscar. This does kind of make them too good for VOD.

C.S.Strowbridge

Filed under: DVD and Blu-ray Releases, Home Market Releases, No Retreat, No Surrender, Metropolis, Moana, Doctor Strange, Hacksaw Ridge, Manchester by the Sea, Nocturnal Animals, Incarnate, Bad Santa 2, La belle et la bête, Les Saisons, Jackie, Blood on the Mountain, They Call Us Monsters, Punching Henry, Deluge, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Mel Gibson, Fritz Lang