#Middlebury #DVD
Movies reviewed in this week’s column have just been released on video and DVD.
“Birds of Prey” (R) – Margot Robbie is at her overly bright, psychotic best as Harley Quinn, notorious lunatic and now ex-girlfriend of The Joker. A diamond belonging to the narcissistic crime lord Roman (Black Mask, played by Ewan McGregor) disappears thanks to a young girl named Cass, and she is marked for death. So Harley turns a tear of self-destruction into a riot of self-discovery and female empowerment, teaming with a mafia don’s daughter (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) out for revenge with her crossbow, a sultry siren (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) who uses her voice as a weapon, and a tough Gotham cop (Rosie Perez). The girl gang takes up arms in a very violent defense.
“The Photograph” (PG-13) – A steamy love story erupts when Mae (Issa Rae) discovers a letter and photograph shortly after her mother’s death. Her mother, Christina (played in flashback by Chante Adams) – a famous photographer – is the subject of an article by up and coming journalist Michael (LaKeith Stanfield), who approaches Mae for an interview. The pair have an instant chemistry, and as both Mae and Michael explore her mother’s life and motivations, they may end up reliving and hopefully benefiting from the regrets of the past.
Harrison Ford in “Call of the Wild” (20th Century Fox photo)
“Call of the Wild” (PG) – It’s the classic Jack London tale of a family dog who is spirited away to the edge of the world and forced to fight to survive, updated with CGI and featuring Harrison Ford as a grizzled mountain man. Buck – a St. Bernard-collie mix – lives a spoiled life in California when he is stolen and sold as a sled dog in the Yukon territory. As he serves a series of masters, he grows and changes, skirting the line between civilized and feral. He’s rescued by John Thornton (Ford) and the pair cross into uncharted territory in an attempt to answer the call of the wild.
“Fantasy Island” (PG-13) – Win a trip, visit an island and make a wish! That’s the reality of Gwen (Maggie Q), Melanie (Lucy Hale), Patrick (Austin Stowell) and stepbrothers J.D. and Brax (J.D. Hansen and Jimmy O. Yang). Their fantasies seem innocuous enough – having it all, serving in wartime, revenge on a bully, the man of your dreams – and Mr. Roark (Michael Pena) is on staff to facilitate the deliverance of these fantasies. But they don’t have the wholesome endings found in the 1970s TV version. Yes, guests of this specialized resort are granted the fulfillment of a wish, but unsurprisingly end up with wisher’s remorse in this horror-fable by Blumhouse, meant as a prequel to the TV version.
New TV Releases
“Lucifer” Season 4
“Shameless” Season 10
“Narcos: Mexico”
“WWE: Wrestlemania 36”
© 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.
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