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Category:    Home > Reviews > Thriller > Psychological > Murder > Mystery > Crime > Identity > Killer > Detective > Sex > Counterculture > P > Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season (2019 revival/Warner DVD Set)/The Witches (1990/Warner Archive Blu-ray)

Angel Of Mine (2019/Lionsgate Blu-ray)/Homeland: The Complete Seventh Season (Blu-ray*)/Jackie Chan's ''Who Am I?'' (1998/Umbrella Region Free Import Blu-ray)/Mayans MC: The Complete First Season (DVD/*both 2019/Fox)/Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season (2019 revival/Warner DVD Set)/The Witches (1990/Warner Archive Blu-ray)



Picture: B/B-/B+/B-/C+/B+ Sound: B/B-/B+/B-/C+/B+ Extras: C+/D/C-/C+/C-/C- Main Programs: C+/B/B+/B/C/B



PLEASE NOTE: The Jackie Chan's ''Where Am I?'' Import Blu-ray is now only available from our friends at Umbrella Entertainment in Australia and can play on all Blu-ray players, while The Witches is now only available from Warner Bros. through their Warner Archive series. All can be ordered from the links below.



Here's a group of new genre releases that are more TV heavy than usual, but include some older feature films you may have missed...



Kim Farrant's Angel Of Mine (2019) is a mostly formula film with everything we've seen before in past psychological thrillers, involving jealousy, psychosis and a lead character who becomes obsessed. This time it is Noomi Rapice (the original Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) who has a new family, but it is in trouble because she is having trouble, not recovered from the loss of her daughter in a hospital fire years before. Suddenly, she sees a friend of her young son, a little girl who she starts thinking is her daughter.


No reincarnation Don't Look Now-style here, but the mother (the underrated Yvonne Strahovski) is unaware at first that they (including her husband) are being stalked by the mother in pain. The acting here is far above the script, which again covers everything you can think of from similar 1990s films, but worst of all, they do a switcharoo ending (ala Philip Noyce's Sliver (1992), but much worse) that does not fit the rest of the film by any means. Too bad, as this had been smarter and the makers really concentrated, this could have been a surprise box office hit and big surprise, made in Australia. Too bad.


The 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image has a little motion blur, but the HD shoot is mostly decent, while the DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix has a good, consistent soundfield. It may not have any demo moments, but it works well enough.


Extras include a Making Of featurette, trailer gallery and Cast/Crew Interviews.



The hit Showtime political thriller, Homeland, returns for its Seventh (and apparently final) Season and stars Clare Danes as CIA agent Carrie Mathison who works to protect U.S. soil from various terrorist threats. At times frightening real, this modern day piece sheds like on what's happening behind the curtain that the Government doesn't exactly want us knowing about.


Homeland also stars Damian Lewis, Mandy Patinkin, Morena Baccarin, David Harewood, Diego Klattenholf, Morgan Saylor, Jackson Pace, and Sarita Cloudhury to name a few.


This three disc DVD set contains all twelve original episodes including Enemy of the State, Rebel Rebel, Standoff, Like Bad at Things, Active Measures, Species Jump, Andante, Lies, Amplifiers, F**king Twitter, Useful Idiot, Clarity, All in, and Paean to the People.


The episodes are presented here on DVD in standard definition with a 1.78:1 widescreen aspect ratio and an audio mix in lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. While it doesn't look as sharp as a 1080p Blu-ray, the transfer here is fine for the format and on par with the original streaming. If you don't have Showtime or are just a fan catching up, this isn't a bad way to enjoy the series.


No extras.



One of Jackie Chan's most memorable films, Who Am I? (1998) both stars Chan and is co-directed by him as well. A definitive action comedy, and follows Jackie Chan as a top secret militant soldier who crash lands into the South African jungle after his mission of kidnapping three scientists (who were experimenting with a powerful mineral) has gone awry.


Waking up in a village of local natives, Chan has no memory of who he is, thus being addressed as "Who Am I". Soon two female sidekicks to find out his identity, which leads him all the way to Rotterdam, where he coincidentally discovers the location of the organization that kidnapped the three scientists. As he struggles to remember who he is and what happened, a plot unfolds that leads to self discovery, which involves heavy amounts of butt kicking.


Who Am I? has a nice 1080p transfer that is featured on this disc in 2.35:1 and 1.85:1 widescreen aspect ratios, both of which are selectable on the menu screen. The dubbed English soundtrack on the disc is in both DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) lossless 5.1 and 2.0 Stereo, however, the original foreign language track is not available nor an English subtitled version. The colors and overall presentation seems fine and certainly bests any DVD edition, and will satisfy fans who just want the film looking a bit better than DVD.


The only extra is a Trailer.



FX's continuation of their hit series, Sons of Anarchy, is Mayans: M.C. - a vicious tale of a motorcycle gang led by Ezekiel 'EZ' Reyes (J.D. Pardo). Full of plenty of violence and drama, the show has a similar vibe to Sons of Anarchy only it is missing of course the key players of that series. If you're a a fan then this is definitely worth checking out and, as of this writing, is going into a second season.


Mayans MC: The Complete First Season also stars Clayton Cardenas, Edward James Olmos, Sarah Bogler, Emilio Rivera, Richard Cabral, Danny Pino, Antonio Jaramillo, Michael Irby, and Carla Baratta to name a few. The show is produced by the Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter.


There are ten episodes in this Season One that include Perro OC, Escorpion/Dzec, Buho/Muwan, Murcielago/Zotz, Uch/Opossum, Gato/Mis, Cucaracha/K'urch/Rato/Ch'o, Serpiente/Chickan, and Cuero, and Tz'ikb'uul, all presented in 1080p 1.78 X 1 framing with DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mixes that look and sound fine.


Special Features include:

The Creation of Mayans M.C.

Hit The Ground Roaring Featurette

Customizing the Mayan's Signature Bikes

and Promotional Featurettes



The cycle of TV revivals have mostly been lame, the most since TV needed more programming in the 1980s with arrival of cable/satellite channels. Most have been unnecessary, a few more of the same (Will & Grace), a few better than they got credit for (Murphy Brown) and the cycle is not in decline for the moment. One that is more of the same in the poorest way is Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season (2019) with Kristen Bell (whose name is missing from all parts of the DVD case, inside and out, for some odd reason) in what is actually a fourth season after 12 years save the 2004 movie.


For reference, we've covered the last season of the original show before...


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6121/Veronica+Mars+%E2%80%93+The+Complete+Thir


Then covered the feature film...


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/12731/Veronica+Mars+(2014+Movie/Warner+Blu-ray)


I thought at least after five years, the new revival would be more than just nostalgia an attempt to go back in its 8 episodes to be exactly as it was as if nothing changed. Especially with the #MeToo Movement and other events, political ands not, but we instead get a show that plays like teleplays that they did not use were getting recycled. No progress, no new twists, no growth, just more of the same and playing it way too safe. To say this is for fans only is an understatement, but that's it.


The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image is now HD shot and looks a little better than expected, but not by much, while the lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 is well-recorded enough, but probably sounds better lossless. Serious fans or anyone wanting to sit through this should consider the Blu-ray edition, but it is only available online via Warner Archive, but you can find out more by going to the link below. This DVD version is available at all stores.


Extras include a paper episode guide page inside the DVD case, while the one extra across the two DVDs is the show's panel at Comic Con 2019.



Based on a story by Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) comes the fantastical 1990 film, The Witches with star Anjelica Huston in the lead in this brand new master on this online-only edition from Warner Archive. Directed by Nicolas Roeg (The Man Who Fell To Earth, Don't Look Now, Eureka), Jasen Fisher plays Luke, a little boy who discovers that a group of witches plan to turn the human population into mice and reign supreme. Luke decides that he must stop them, but it sure won't be easy...


The film also stars and Mai Zetterling, Bill Paterson, Brenda Blethyn, Rowan (Mr. Bean) Atkinson.


The Witches is presented in 1080p high definition with a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and a new audio mix in English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 2.0 Stereo lossless sound with Pro Logic surrounds from its original analog Dolby A-type noise reduction soundmaster. Both of which are a massive improvement on the film, which was previously only available on standard definition DVD. Colors overall are much more vibrant and detailed here, which adds a lot to a rather dull colored correction previously. The sound design isn't too over the top, but is definitely appropriate for the film.


The only extra here is a HD Trailer of the film.


A Halloween season favorite for many, The Witches features a very fun performance by a young Anjelica Huston and some memorable special effects including some very unique-looking witches. This disc features a very nice presentation of the film that will certainly be sought after by fans, however, lacks in the extras department sadly. However, a remake is in the works, so see it soon.



To order the Jackie Chan's ''Where Am I?'' Umbrella import Blu-ray, go to this link for it and other hard to find releases:


http://www.umbrellaent.com.au/


and to order The Witches or Veronica Mars Warner Archive Blu-rays, go to this link for them and many more great web-exclusive releases at:


http://www.wbshop.com/



- Nicholas Sheffo (Mine, Mars) and James Lockhart

https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/


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