Garv’s Pick of the Week: Nightmare Alley (Criterion)
For the release week of May 25th:
Garv’s Pick of the Week: Nightmare Alley [Blu-ray / Criterion Collection]: Tyrone Power gave his greatest performance as an amoral carny con man in this pitch black, liquor-soaked film noir. If you haven’t seen this one before, it is best to go in cold, so I won’t say anymore here. If you have seen the film before, you know it belongs in your collection.
Additional Titles of Interest —
My Fair Lady [4K UHD / Paramount]: Several catalog titles are getting a 4K UHD upgrade this week, including this popular musical take on George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion. With the additional boost in resolution, the film should be extra lover-ly.
Django [4K UHD / Arrow Video]: Arrow Video’s restoration of Sergio Corbucci’s Django looked pretty stellar on Blu-ray, but they are providing a further upgrade to 4K UHD. This package also includes the bonus Franco Nero Western, Texas, Adios (1966) in regular HD.
Psycho [4K UHD / Universal]: A couple of Hitchcock classics that were offered in The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K are getting standalone 4K UHD releases this week. The first one features everyone’s favorite mama’s boy, Norman Bates.
The Birds [4K UHD / Universal]: Hitchcock’s The Birds also gets the upgrade to 4K UHD, so the bad process shots should stand out more than ever.
Super 8 [4K UHD / Paramount]: If you like Stranger Things, you’ll probably like Super 8, because Super 8 was Stranger Things before Stranger Things was Stranger Things.
Smile [Blu-ray / Fun City Editions]: This 1975 satire of teen beauty pageants was my “Pick of the Week” for April 27th, so why am I including this film on the list again? It’s because Smile was previously only available for purchase at VinegarSyndrome.com. As of this week, it can be purchased through most retailers that sell Blu-rays. Now you have no excuse not to purchase it.
Explorers [Blu-ray / Shout Select]: This is one of the few Joe Dante films that I haven’t seen. I’ll have to rectify that.
The Eurocrypt of Christopher Lee Collection [Blu-ray / Severin]: This 9-disc box set (8 Blu-rays, a CD, and an 88-page book) collects five low-budget flicks and a television series that Christopher Lee made outside of England. Included are Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace (1962), Challenge the Devil a.k.a. Katarsis (1963), The Castle of the Living Dead (1964), Crypt of the Vampire (1964), The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism (1967), and Theatre Macabre (24 episodes. 1971-1972).
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