Garv’s Pick of the Week: Defending Your Life (Criterion)
For the release week of March 30th:
Garv’s Pick of the Week: Defending Your Life [Blu-ray / Criterion]: Albert Brooks’ most inventive and warm-hearted comedy finally gets a Blu-ray release from a new 4K restoration of the film. David Miller (Brooks) dies in a car accident and finds himself in Judgement City, where souls are on trial to determine if they are ready to advance to the next plane of existence. Meryl Streep is luminous as Brooks’ afterlife love interest, and Rip Torn is hilarious as Brooks’ defender. It is simply one of the best comedies of the 1990s.
Additional Titles of Interest —
Bad News Bears [Blu-ray / Paramount]: This comedy classic is long overdue on Blu-ray. Walter Matthau is absolute perfection in the role of alky Little League coach Morris Buttermaker.
A Pain in the Ass (L’Emmerdeur) [Blu-ray / Kino Lorber]: Édouard Molinaro’s 1973 French black comedy about a hit man (Lino Ventura) who is constantly interrupted by a suicidal man (Jacques Brel) in an adjoining hotel room is a comedy that succeeds by playing it totally straight. This movie was the basis for Billy Wilder’s last film (and infamous failure), Buddy Buddy (1981), but don’t let that stop you from watching the excellent original. You can find my full review here.
Secrets and Lies [Blu-ray / Criterion]: Mike Leigh’s 1996 working class comedy drama gets an Blu-ray upgrade from Criterion from a 4K master.
Isle of the Dead [Blu-ray / Warner Archive]: Val Lewton produced a series of horror classics in the 1940s. This might be the least of them, but at least it features the great Boris Karloff.
The Greatest Show of Earth [Blu-ray / Paramount Presents]: High in the running for the worst film ever to win the Best Picture Oscar is Cecil B. DeMille’s circus epic, starring Charlton Heston, Betty Hutton, Cornel Wilde, Dorothy Lamour, Jimmy Stewart (under clown makeup), and Gloria Grahame. Like most DeMille films, it’s not exactly good, but it is enjoyable for the spectacle and the cheese.
The Ten Commandments [4K UHD / Paramount]: Speaking of spectacle and cheese, both are provided in ample helpings in DeMille’s second filming of the story of Moses (his first was in 1923). While the acting is over the top and some of the casting is ridiculous, it is big, colorful fun. It should look amazing in 4K UHD.
The Day of the Beast [4K UHD / Severin Films]: Severin is releasing a couple of cult films from Spanish director Álex de la Iglesia in 4K UHD this week. First up is this 1995 horror comedy about the potential birth of the beast of the apocalypse.
Perdita Durango [4K UHD / Severin Films]: Also from Álex de la Iglesia is this surreal crime/horror film, based on a book by Barry Gifford (who also wrote the novel Wild At Heart). Rosie Pérez stars as the title character (who was played by Isabella Rossellini in Wild At Heart), with support from Javier Bardem and James Gandolfini.
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