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Category:    Home > Reviews > Action > Adventure > Comedy > Martial Arts > Murder > Crime > Spies > Drama > Mystery > Horror > Anthology > Charlie's Angels (2019) 4K (Sony 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray)/Twin: The Complete First Season (2019/mHz DVD Set)/Verotika (2019/MVD/Cleopatra Blu-ray w/DVD & CD)

Charlie's Angels (2019) 4K (Sony 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray)/Twin: The Complete First Season (2019/mHz DVD Set)/Verotika (2019/MVD/Cleopatra Blu-ray w/DVD & CD)



4K Ultra HD Picture: A- Picture: B+/C+/B+ & B- Sound: A/C+/B+ & B- Extras: B/C-/C Main Programs: C/C+/C



Here's some of the wackier action genre releases we have seen of late, even if they do not work, they are different...



First off, another reboot (and too soon?) that nobody really asked for, Charlie's Angels (2019) was one of last year's big duds and seeing it now on 4K UHD disc, I can see why.


While it recognizes past incarnations of the property via a wrap-up scene in the first act, the film is pretty stale and shoves the feminist agenda down your throat even more than previous outings. The film's biggest problem is that it is just not fun. At least McG brought a retro, almost music video feel to his Charlie's Angels reboot which had the chemistry of Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, and Lucy Liu going for it. This one stars Kirsten Stewart (who isn't necessarily known as an action lead), Naomi Scott (who was also in last year's Aladdin as Princess Jasmine), and relative newcomer Ella Balinska (this year's Run Sweetheart Run) all three of which never seems to really gel as intended. The plot is painfully predictable and things happen to the leads with no consequence... but what else do you expect from a Charlie's Angels movie?


Directed and co-starring Elizabeth Banks, the film also features Sir. Patrick Stewart, Djimon Hounsou (Blood Diamond), Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire), and Noah Centineo (To All The Boys I've Loved Before). The film is of course based on the classic 1976 television series of the same name.


Private detective super spies from across the globe come together to foil murderous plots before they become a threat. Under the guidance of Bosley (Banks), these Charlie's Angels report to the mysterious millionaire Charles Townsend and must stop a revolutionary energy source from becoming weaponized. As the plot thickens, it becomes clear that not everyone on the inside can be trusted.


Charlie's Angels 4K (2019) does have a fantastic home video presentation here in 2160p on 4K UHD disc with a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1. This 2160p HEVC/H.265, IMAX-enhanced, HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition image features digitally remastered content presented with High Dynamic Range and incredible sounding DTS:X 11.1 lossless audio mix (with a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) mixdown for older systems). Also included is a 1080p Blu-ray version of the film with a more compressed image and similar sound mix. The film has a very hip soundtrack that may cause your speakers to cry out in pain with its occasional horrid musical choices, however, the film itself looks fine enough. There are a few exotic locations and interesting production design, but nothing too earth shattering.


Special Features include (per the press release):


Gag Reel - Check out these fun and never-seen-before bloopers saved from the cutting room floor!


5 Deleted Scenes


4 Behind-the-scenes Featurettes


Stronger Together: The Sisterhood of the Angels featurette


Elizabeth Banks: As BOSSley featurette


Warriors on Set: Angels in Action featurette


Tailored for Danger: Styling the Angels featurette


"Don't Call Me Angel" Music Video featuring Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus & Lana Del Rey


This Charlie's Angels reboot will likely remain a one-off and probably won't get a sequel. After the dreadful Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle and now this, let's hope the next inevitable reboot of the franchise will have a bit more personality and spunk to it. As for the 4K UHD presentation, however, top notch!


At the same time, Sony licensed the original series (and one of its poor, thankfully short-lived reboots) to Mill Creek to release The Complete Series on Blu-ray, which we look forward to seeing down the line, looking and sounding as good as it possibly can, but it total lack of any extras is totally unacceptable. As for those Drew Barrymore films, you can read more about them at this link...


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/15579/Charlie's+Angels+4K+(2000/Sony+4K+Ultra+HD+



Next up is the U.S. arrival of a hit Norwegian TV show with Kristofer Hivju of Game Of Thrones called Twin: The Complete First Season (2019) now issued by the fledgling mHz Home Video label in a 3-DVD set. Very recently, we covered the Australian import of this debut season at the end of this review of genre releases:


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/15663/Art+Of+The+Dead+(2019*)/Bliss+(2019*)/Chain+


The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image and lossy Norwegian Dolby Digital 5.1 sound mix on all the episodes are about on par with the import set, though this might have a tad more motion blur, it also has some extras, whereas the import had none. We get some Behind The Episode segments in English, so this is probably the set to own until a Blu-ray set rolls around. We'll see if the show picks up globally, but it still has its issues.



Finally, if you are a fan of heavy metal music then you are no stranger to Glenn Danzig and The Misfits. Based on a graphic novel he created a few decades ago, Verotika (2019), is Danzig's directorial debut following in the tradition of other rock artists taking a crack at filmmaking. Compared to The Room, Verotika is a much talked about cult movie that will remain relevant based on its obscurity alone. Some hail it as one of the 'worst films ever made' and the equivalent of a modern day Ed Wood production. Behind the scenes it was full of drama, but the end product is a strange acid trip with over the top sex and gore. I admit the first time I saw this film I didn't like it as much as seeing it a second time. It's definitely worth checking out if you're a genre film fan and like weird cinema.


The film stars Ashley Wisdom, Rachel Alig, Alice Tate, Kayden Kross, Scotch Hopkins, and Sean Kanan. Kind of smart for him to not go with any name actors for this outing as the whole thing kind of seems like an experiment to begin with.


The anthology horror film centers around a few different ghastly tales that feature the macabre and grotesque. Sexuality is at the forefront of these stories as each one presents scantly clad women that are as crazy as they are beautiful. The wraparound story features a scantly clad hostess who intros the stories with a visual gag.


The first story involves a busty vixen with, ahem, eyeballs for nipples that gives birth (in tears?) to a human spider creature. Soon, the human spider creature goes on a murderous rampage and targets beautiful women Jack the Ripper style.


The second story is about a weird goth girl who collects faces of women. She then likes to wear them while dancing at the strip club she works at. Soon, the souls of the women come and pay her a visit.


The third story is about a merciful Queen who really likes bathing in human blood. In fact, I would say that she's obsessed with it. Many gorgeous women are slain to provide a bath for her where she bathes in blood for about ten minutes or maybe longer.


And that's Verotika in a nutshell.


Verotika is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1 with lossy 5.1 Dolby Digital and 2.0 Stereo mixes when it ought to have lossless sound, unless the soundmaster had issues. The color grading done on the film in post is definitely nice and comes across with heavy contrast levels. The film has a great heavy metal soundtrack that features a score by Danzig himself and other heavy metal artists included in the CD that's included here. Also included is a standard definition, anamorphically enhanced DVD with the choice of watching the film in a 5.1 Dolby Digital mix or 2.0 stereo.


Special Features:


Slideshow


and a Trailer


I wouldn't say Verotika is a good film, but it's recommendable to watch if you enjoy bizarre cinema. The Blu-ray presentation here is surprisingly good and has a lot of detail in the image that comes across on a 4K upscale.



- Nicholas Sheffo (Twin) and James Lockhart

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


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