Home Market Releases for August 7th, 2018

August 8, 2018

It is a deceptively busy week on the home market, and not in a good way. There’s no one big release, at least not on DVD / Blu-ray, but there’s a sea of mediocrity this week. I’m not talking about quality here, but sales rank. There are a lot of films that wouldn’t even be filler during a normal week, but this week are selling well enough to be mentioned. There are several that are worth picking up, including limited releases like Bye Bye Germany and Revenge, classics like The Changeling, and even some Anime titles like Big Fish & Begonia or Tsuredure Children. Deadpool 2 is by far the biggest release of the week and I suspect the Blu-ray will be the Pick of the Week when it comes out, but I don’t want to give it that title until than. As a result, there’s no real winner this week. There were a lot that came close.

Big Fish & Begonia - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
An Anime movie that came out in 2016. It is about a young spirit girl who wants to experience the human world. She nearly drowns, but a young human boy sacrifices his life for hers. The reviews on My Anime List are fantastic and it is certainly worth checking out, even if you are not already a fan of Anime. At least give it a $4 VOD rental. If you are a fan of Anime, then it is easily worth picking up.

Bye Bye Germany - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
A group of Jews in post-World War II Germany are trying to find a way to immigrate to the United States. Just when it appears they are on their way, one of them is taken in for questioning under the suspicion that they collaborated with the Nazis. The reviews are 90% positive, but it never found an audience in theaters, so it is only getting a DVD release. It is still worth checking out, but a fully loaded Blu-ray would have been a Pick of the Week contender.

The Changeling: Limited Edition - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
George C. Scott stars in this Canadian horror movie about a man, recovering from the death of his wife and child, who takes up residence in a historical mansion. Once there, he begins to experience paranormal events and starts to investigate. The reviews are excellent and it is considered a classic in the genre by many. Extras include audio commentary track, making of featurette, featurette on the music, and more. It is certainly worth picking up.

The Day After: Special Edition - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
This ground-breaking TV movie is about a nuclear attack against the United States and its effects on the population. It is still worth watching today, while the DVD / Blu-ray has an audio commentary track, two interviews, as well as both versions of the movie. That’s enough to be worth picking up.

Digimon Adventure tri.: Coexistence - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
The fifth Digimon movie. The reviews are good, but not great, so I think fans of the show will like it, but it doesn’t have a large crossover audience.

The Death of Superman - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack or 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
Video on Demand
This storyline is handled so much better in the animated movie than it was in the live-action movie. If you liked the 1990s comic book arc and want to see it done right, check out this movie. Extras include a featurette on the iconic fight scene, a sneak peak on the next animated movie, and two bonus episodes from Legion of Superheroes. It’s worth picking up.

Get Shorty: Season 1 - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Video on Demand
A TV show based on the book / movie of the same name. In the movie, Chris O'Dowd stars as a mob enforcer turned movie producer. The reviews are good and it did well enough to get a second season. Maybe rent the pilot to see if it is worth picking up.

The Good Doctor: Season One - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
There was a lot of buzz surrounding this show before it first aired, but the reviews turned out to be just okay and nothing special. It is selling better than expected, so clearly it found an audience.

Hallmark Channel Original Movie Double-Shot - Buy from Amazon: The Beach House or Moonlight in Vermont
Two Hallmark Channel Original Movies are coming out this week. Both films have no reviews, but both films are selling well enough that they needed to be mentioned here.

Life of the Party - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Video on Demand
Melissa McCarthy is a very funny actress, but she picks too many mediocre movies. In fact, she co-writes too many mediocre movies. Extras include a couple of featurettes, some deleted scenes / alternative lines, and outtakes.

Mac and Me: Collector’s Edition - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
This is widely considered one of the worst movies ever made and it is getting a collector’s edition. Why? The Blu-ray has an audio commentary track and two interview featurettes. If you like the movie, it is worth picking up, but I think that’s a small target audience.

Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans: Limited Edition - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
The reviews for this show are even better than they were for the first season. You can also buy the season in two volumes. It is about $25 cheaper this way, but you don’t get the physical extras. Also coming out this week is Mobile Suit Gundam 00: Collection 2, which is also an amazing Anime series.

On Chesil Beach - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
A limited release that missed expectations, both with critics and at the box office. This resulted in a weak selection of extras, as there is just a single featurette and some deleted scenes. Call it a rental, but for most people, that will be enough.

Revenge - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
I mentioned in my review of Breaking In that you shouldn’t use sexual violence in a movie unless you have something important to say about the subject. This film does have something important to say and it says it well. There are no real extras on the DVD or Blu-ray, which prevents it from being a Pick of the Week contender. It is still worth picking up.

The Rider - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD
Video on Demand
An inspirational sports movie based on real life events. These movies are a dime a dozen, but it is rare for them to earn 90% positive reviews. On the other hand, it is about the rodeo, which does limit its target audience.

Riverdale: The Complete Second Season - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
They turned a comic book about a lovable goofball caught between two women into a dark murder mystery drama. It’s not for me, but the reviews are really good and it found a sizable audience on the CW. Extras are good with a couple of making of featurettes, Comic-Con Panel, deleted scenes, outtakes, etc.

Someone’s Watching Me! - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
This TV movie is one of John Carpenter’s earliest movies and one of his least well known. It is not a classic, but it deserves to be seen by more.

Tsuredure Children - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
This is an Anime series about high school romance that treats the subject realistically, which means it handles the subject better than most live-action shows do. One important note, each episode is only 12 minutes long, so the entire series is only about the length of a feature-length movie. Furthermore, there are several pairs of potential romantic partners, so each pair doesn’t get enough screen time and you’ll be left wanting to spend more time with them. On the other hand, this is a testament to the show’s quality.

Wildling - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Video on Demand
Another limited release that failed to live up to expectations with critics and wasn’t able to find an audience in theaters. This film was a VOD premiere, so it didn’t need to sell movie tickets to be a success. It’s worth a rental, but since it has been on VOD for so long, I assume most people who wanted to see it already saw it.

Blu-ray Releases - Buy from Amazon:
2036 Origin Unknown - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Aardvark - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Assassination Classroom the Movies - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
Black Clover: Season One, Part One - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack
Flora - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Garo: Season 2, Collection 1 - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Marrowbone - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Never so Few - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Marillion: All One Tonight - Live At The Royal Albert Hall - No Review - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Predator Trilogy Box Set - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
Pyewacket - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
Street Monster - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray
The US Generation Festival - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: Blu-ray Combo Pack
Zama - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
There’s not much here that has really caught my eye. Tsuredure Children was the best secondary Blu-ray release of the week, but I bumped it up to full release, because it was such a slow week.

4K Ultra HD Releases - Buy from Amazon:
Predator - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
Predator Trilogy - No Reviews - Buy from Amazon: 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack
If you are a fan of the Predator movies, it is a good week for 4K releases.

TV on DVD Megasets - Buy from Amazon:
Happy Endings - Reviews - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray
There’s only one Full Season Megaset on this week’s list, and it only lasted three seasons, so it’s not that Mega of a Megaset.

Video on Demand - Buy from Amazon:
Aardvark - Reviews - Video on Demand
Deadpool 2 - Reviews - Video on Demand (Unrated) or Video on Demand (Theatrical)
Pin Cushion - Reviews - Video on Demand
A Prayer Before Dawn - Reviews - Video on Demand
Show Dogs - Reviews - Video on Demand
Deadpool 2 is by far the biggest secondary VOD release of the week. In fact, it is the biggest release of the week, period.

C.S.Strowbridge

Filed under: DVD and Blu-ray Releases, Home Market Releases, On Chesil Beach, Deadpool 2, Life of the Party, Aardvark, Show Dogs, Zama, The Rider, Es war einmal in Deutschland..., El Secreto de Marrowbone, Breaking In, Wildling, Pyewacket, Revenge, The Death of Superman, A Prayer Before Dawn, Pin Cushion, Gendai Yakuza, Flora, Predator, George C. Scott, John Carpenter, Melissa McCarthy, Chris O'Dowd