For all its many, many issues, the United States used to be a country built on optimism.
We believed we could accomplish great things together, and we did. Somewhere along the line, though, that positive attitude seemed to fizzle away into a country fueled by division, fear, and hatred. It sucks!
Steven Spielberg's latest film, Disclosure Day, is a cutting-edge, old-fashioned call-back to our need for common ground and community. That alone has made it divisive among moviegoers, as some walk away feeling as if Spielberg's lean towards hope feels too naive in today's world. I'd argue that's the challenge -- to accept the simple fact that we need each other.
The film features an ensemble cast divided into three groups. Some are working to conceal the truth about alien visitors, others are fighting to free that information, and the rest are simply caught in the crossfire of transparency and fear. Questions are raised as to humankind's ability to face this knowledge -- what does it mean to the faithful who believe humans are the only intelligent species basking in their god's love? -- and the film isn't interested, necessarily, in providing any definitive answers. And that's okay!
Ultimately, the film's structure allows for some fun thrills and action spectacle, but its focus is all about the less tangible. Can we accept these others? Are we empathetic enough to do so?
I'm extra keen on the film because it's arguably the best adaptation of a Dean Koonz novel that isn't actually an adaptation of a Dean Koonz novel. High Tension is a great rip-off of Koontz's Intensity, but that's a plot one to one. Disclosure Day touches on elements from Koontz's excellent epic Strangers, but it's the general sense of hope, empathy, and optimism that feels akin to Koontz's work. Add in more of his hallmarks like an untrustworthy government, protagonists with past trauma, and a silly nod to god, and you have a Koontz movie.
Disclosure Day comes home with two special features. First up is "Encountering the Unknown: Inside Disclosure Day," an informative making-of featurette with input from the cast and crew. Also included is a featurette called "Spielberg & Williams: A Legendary Collaboration" that's equally as self-explanatory.
Keeping in line with the alien theme, a 30th anniversary edition of Tim Burton's Mars Attacks! is also new to 4K. The presence of alien beings is pretty much where the similarities to Spielberg's film both start and end as Burton's movie is a straight-up comical romp.
Martians arrive on Earth, and a cautious American president sets up a meeting, only to see the aliens reveal their true intentions at the end of a ray gun. Chaos follows as various attempts to communicate with and/or combat the red menace meet with disaster, cartoon carnage, and a reduced human population.
The plot to Burton's Mars Attacks is ridiculously simple, but that makes sense once you realize it's based on a series of trading cards from the 1960s. Rather than pull you in with story and dense characters, the film's draw is in its colorful alien exploits and dark comedy. It's not quite a spoof of the alien invasion subgenre, but it's definitely having fun with it.
A big draw here is the cast that Burton's assembled, as major stars lined up to be eradicated by Martian death rays. Jack Nicholson, Pierce Brosnan, Glenn Close, Danny DeVito, Annette Bening, Martin Short, Michael J. Fox, Sarah Jessica Parker, Rod Steiger, Tom Jones, Natalie Portman, Jim Brown -- it's an insane ensemble, added to the chaos of the film's comic leanings. It's all ultimately slight, but it's vibrant and fun, so who cares.
It's a bright, colorful adventure, and Warner Bros.' new 4K release gives it the same excellent attention as Speed Racer received, meaning this is a sharp, sometimes stunning picture. The film's digital effects have always looked great, and they remain a slick blend of the cartoonish and the cool. Two short featurettes make their debut here, including one reflecting on the production ("Looking Back on Mars Attacks!") and another ("Ack! Ack! Aesthetic") that zeroes in on the film's design from production to visuals and beyond.
From aliens to witches we go, and we're doing so with a new 4K re-issue of Practical Magic. The film failed to cast a major spell on audiences or critics back in 1998, but with a sequel in theaters, this new home video release is a great way to ease fans back into the witchy mood.
Sally (Sandra Bullock) and Gillian (Nicole Kidman) are sisters who are part of a witchy bloodline. The family has suffered under a love curse for decades, but things only get stickier as the two girls grow into women. Soon, secrets are revealed, spells are cast, and a dead man is rising with violence on his mind.
Practical Magic is an odd one. The appeal of the cast is undeniable with Bullock and Kidman being joined by Stockard Channing, Dianne Wiest, Aidan Quinn, Goran Visnjic, and more, but the tone is pretty floppy. It's a romantic comedy with a supernatural bent, but it touches on domestic abuse and grief in fairly big ways. That's not a bad thing, but it makes for an unconventional tale.
Director Griffin Dunne does justice to Alice Hoffman's bestselling novel by putting it all up there. The film as a whole eventually gels as its various tones and relationships find a common path, and the end result is a nice little picture that lets its cast have fun with a supernatural good time.
Warner Bros. brings the film to 4K with what looks to be a lush new transfer that bolsters the colors, blacks, and hazy palette of it all. It's an improvement over previous releases, and while it won't blow you away like the film above, it looks very good indeed. The release includes three previously available extras, including a commentary with Dunne, Bullock, and others, and two making-of featurettes.
It might not involve magic, but there's no denying that Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby is a magical experience. Does it race to the speed of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy? No, not quite, but it still delivers more laughs per minute than most comedies do in their entire running time these days.
Ricky Bobby (Will Ferrell) wasn't always a race car driver, but he was always meant for glory -- even if nobody else knew it. Once he hops in the seat, though, his greatness becomes clear. He's a winner and star on the NASCAR circuit, and along with his best friend/crew chief (John C. Reilly), he's destined to stay ahead of the pack. Or is he?
As mentioned, Talladega Nights can't quite touch Anchorman, but the film is still loaded with laughs, gags, and utter silliness, all of which combines to guarantee a great time. Director Adam McKay knows when to wrangle his cast and when to cut them loose, and the laughs just keep coming, backed by a group of funny, talented people, including Leslie Bibb, Gary Cole, Jane Lynch, and more.
The film's 20th anniversary sees it released to 4K for the first time, but while the improvements are noticeable for fans, there's arguably not a huge upgrade here. Still, if you're a fan and don't already own a copy, this is the way to go. Special features are abundant, but they're all ported over from previous releases and include commentaries, gag reels, deleted scenes, featurettes, and more.
The Fast and the Furious includes just as many cars as the film above, but they race by with far fewer laughs. You have to respect it, though, as this unassuming tale of street racers kicked off an epic franchise that very quickly outgrew its humble beginnings.
Thieves in souped-up cars are stealing merchandise up and down California streets, so an LAPD officer (Paul Walker) is sent undercover to see what's up. He finds himself riding alongside a motley crew of cool cats led by a family man named Dom (Vin Diesel).
Is The Fast and the Furious an absolute rip off of Point Break? Of course it is, but the street racing element at its heart gives it an identity of its own (that would soon be abandoned in favor of nonsensical spy action). Rob Cohen's film is as much about these characters as it is the racing and the thievery, and depending on your mileage with these characters, that's a good thing.
Even if the characters strike you as a bit obnoxious (welcome to my camp), Cohen still delivers some fun antics as loyalties are tested, engines are revved, and stuff is stolen left and right. Later films blew this world up in dramatic fashion -- and the franchise peaked with Fast Five -- but it's still a fun time revisiting the "little" street racing picture that started it all.
Universal's 25th anniversary 4K release adds one new featurette to a stacked collection of archival extras. "Riding a Legacy: 25 Years of Fast" sees all the living main players reflect on the film and its legacy knowing that there's still more to come. Promise? Threat? Yours to decide.