Accountant
(2001*)/Closer: The
Complete Series (2005 -
2012/Warner DVD Set)/Innerspace
4K (1987/4K Ultra HD
Blu-ray + Blu-ray Sets**/***)/Picture
Of A Nymph (1988/88 Films
Blu-ray**)/Randy & The
Mob (2007/*both Lightyear
Blu-rays)/Wandering Ginza
Butterfly (1972/***both
Arrow/Blu-ray/** all MVD)
4K
Ultra HD Picture: B Picture: B-/C+/B-/B/B-/B- Sound:
B-/C+/B-/C+/B-/C+ Extras: C-/C/C/C+/C+/B- Main Programs:
C/C+/C/C+/C+/B-
Now
for action and crime with various degrees of humor...
Ray
McKinnon's The
Accountant
(2001) is the Oscar-winning live action short about two brothers
(Walton Goggins, Eddie King) are in financial trouble with their
property, et al, so they find help in the title character (McKinnon,
also acting here) to come out and help. When he arrives, it is not
what they expect.
Playing
like a Coen Brothers imitator at time, it overdoes some things a bit,
which might be the point, but some cartoonishness holds it back and
at only 40 minutes, that says something. Goggins is now a very
successful character actor, making this a curio. Now you can see for
yourself.
An
Original Theatrical Trailer is the only extra, but you can read more
about McKinnon's Randy & The Mob below, which includes
this film.
The
Closer: The Complete Series
(2005 - 2012) is a reissue DVD set of the series that delivers all
seven of its hit seasons with some extras, none new and all repeated
from the older releases. We covered five of them on DVD in their
original release as follows:
Two
https://fulvuedrive-in.com/review/5643/The+Closer+%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%E2%80%9C+The
Three
https://fulvuedrive-in.com/review/7224/The+Closer+%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%E2%80%9C+The
Four
https://fulvuedrive-in.com/review/8571/The+Closer+%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%E2%80%9C+The
Five
https://fulvuedrive-in.com/review/10132/The+Closer:+The+Complete+5th+Season+(2009/Warn
That
gives you an idea of the show, its strengths and weaknesses. For me,
it did not impress me much despite the talent involved and decent
budgets for a TV production, but it was enough to be a hit as long as
it was and that was more than enough for viewers. I would say start
with the first season and if you like it, then try the rest.
Otherwise, move on. At least if you try more, you can get this
convenient set now.
Joe
Dante's Innerspace
4K
(1987) is essentially, a send-up (of sorts) of the 1966 sci-fi hit
Fantastic
Voyage,
but with different tech and ideas. You are either a fan of the film,
or like myself, not, now issued in 4K and regular Blu-ray sets. We
previously reviewed the film on Blu-ray and it was by a fan of it:
https://fulvuedrive-in.com/review/13675/Innerspace+(1987/Warner+Blu-ray
Dennis
Quaid, Meg Ryan and Martin short help sell the film and more than
they get credit for, even with some chemistry, but it is just not
enough for me to buy it. Dante is doing a decent job too, but it
just never worked for me and the only plus is that none of the visual
effects are garbage CGI, so it should at least get credit for that.
Otherwise, fans should be happy.
Extras
are expanded from the older Blu-ray and include
a newly restored original lossless 2.0 stereo, original 70mm 6-track
mix in DTS-HD MA 4.1 surround and newly remixed Dolby Atmos audio
Brand
new audio commentary by film critic Drew McWeeny
Archive
audio commentary with director Joe Dante, producer Michael Finnell,
visual effects supervisor Dennis Muren and actors Kevin McCarthy and
Robert Picardo
Shrinkage:
The Making of Innerspace, a brand new hour-long documentary
featuring newly filmed interviews with director Joe Dante, producer
Michael Finnell, visual effects supervisor Dennis Muren, visual
effects artists Harley Jessup and Bill George
Behind
the Scenes with Joe Dante, previously unseen video footage shot
during the production of Innerspace
Behind
the Scenes at ILM, previously unseen footage shot by visual
effects supervisor Dennis Muren during production
Original
storyboards
Continuity
and Behind the Scenes Polaroids
Production
stills gallery
Posters
and Promo stills gallery
Theatrical
trailer
Reversible
sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Doug
John Miller
Double-sided
fold-out poster featuring two original artwork options
and
collectors' perfect-bound booklet featuring new writing by film
critics Charlie Brigden, Michael Doyle, Josh Nelson, Jessica Scott
and Andrea Subissati, a short guide to Joe Dante's stock company by
Scott Saslow, plus the original exhibitors pamphlet.
Wu
Ma's Picture
Of A Nymph
(1988) has a Taoist Monk (Yuen Biao) take in a scholar (Lawrence Ng)
even after burning down his house because actual demons are on the
loose and they are still coming at them. The Monk is joined by his
master (Ma Wu) to protect that scholar, but they now have a female
ghost (Joey Wang) and a evil King Ghost (Elizabeth Lee) to contend
with.
Often
beautifully shot, it has some nice moments and is also done with a
subtle sense of humor, sometimes more so. The results are consistent
and flow nicely, but the humor (which is intended, but not overdone
al the time) still results in a film that is not bad, but would have
worked better and been more effective with less of it. Still, nice
to watch and I was glad I caught it.
Extras
include a
LIMITED EDITION RIGID SLIP CASE WITH NEW ARTWORK BY SEAN LONGMORE
LIMITED
EDITION 40 PAGE PERFECT BOUND BOOK
LIMITED
EDITION PREMIUM ARTCARD
AUDIO
COMMENTARY BY FRANK DJENG (NY ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL)
AUDIO
COMMENTARY BY DAVID WEST
IMAGE
GALLERY
and
an ORIGINAL TRAILER.
Ray
McKinnon's Randy
& The Mob
(2007) has McKinnon as the former, a financially troubled title
character who now has the IRS to content with, plus he has troubles
with organized crime, whose fixer (Walton Goggins) is about to give
him a visit. His solution, get the help of his wife and gay twin
brother!?!
As
odd as his award-winning short film The
Accountant
(see above,) Lisa Blount and Bill Nunn also show up in the much
larger cast, but the results are like a mixed sitcom with no laugh
track and really, no laughs. This might be funny to someone, but I
was not impressed, though I like some of the actors. Some might also
take issue with the gay twin.
Extras
include a 'Making of' Featurette, Cast and Crew Interviews and BONUS
feature film: THE ACCOUNTANT (40 Minutes original
short/2001/Academy Award Winner: Best Live Action Short Film).
Last
but absolutely not least, Kazuhiko Yamaguchi's Wandering
Ginza Butterfly
(1972, including its sequel Wandering
Ginza Butterfly 2: She-Cat Gambler)
is a solid pair of action revenge films with Meiko Kaji as a
pickpocketing convict who was also jailed for killing a yakuza boss!
Somehow not getting life for this, she goes back to her home turf,
only to find another yakuza boss trying to take over her uncle's
business. In the sequel, she goes after those who killed her father.
These
are two of the best films of their genre and time, despite some
humorous (likely intended) cartoonish characters, but the humor works
and just complements the great dialogue, acting and fight scenes
which are some of the best of the time. Both also feature great
action climaxes that get built up very well throughout each
respective film and both have the energy and spirit that not only
made the best yakuza films of the time possible, but monster, action
and even anime TV series that defined Japanese pom culture at the
time and at its best.
No
doubt Tarantino was influenced by this film, especially for the Kill
Bill
films, but what he cannot capture or imitate (and I do not think he
is trying) is the pure, raw Japanese feel that even informs the James
Bond film You
Only Live Twice
(1967) so I highly recommend this set and also think they were smart
to quit whiel they were on top. If anything, these films deserve a
larger audience and it is definitely out there.
Extras
include a
brand new feature length audio commentary for Wandering
Ginza Butterfly
by Japanese cinema experts Patrick Macias and Matt Alt, hosts of the
Pure TokyoScope podcast
Archival
audio commentary for Wandering Ginza Butterfly by Japanese
cinema expert Chris D.
Back
to Back in the Yakuza Multiverse, a brand new interview with
Patrick Macias and Matt Alto
Genre
Mill Memories, an archival interview with director Kazuhiko
Yamaguchi
Butterfly
and Scorpion, an archival appreciation of star Meiko Kaji by
Japanese action and pink film expert J-Taro Sugisaku
Original
trailers for both films
Reversible
sleeve featuring new artwork for both films by Andy Bourne
and
a collectors' booklet featuring new writing on the films by Asian
cinema expert Camille Zaurin.
Now
for
playback performance. The 2160p HEVC/H.265, 1.85 X 1, Dolby
Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition
image on Innerspace
4K is
the best visual performer here, but by a narrow margin as some shots
just do not look as good as others, but the best shots really
impress. The old Blu-ray was a little soft for whatever reasons, but
this is about as good as this film will ever look, while even the
regular 1980p Blu-ray of the film is better than the old Blu-ray.
Sound is here in lossless Dolby
Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for older systems), original
lossless PCM 2.0 Stereo and even in the original 70mm 6-track mix
that offered 4.1 sound in 70mm blow-up prints, here in DTS-HD
MA (Master Audio)
4.1 surround. Each have their plusses and minuses, but none can
quite hide some of the age of the original stationmaster. Still, the
sound here is also as good as this film will ever sound and the
stereo is based off of the 35mm prints with old analog Dolby A-type
analog noise reduction. The results are as thorough as could be
asked for.
The
1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image on The
Accountant and Randy
& The Mob were shot
on 35mm film, but with a low budget and both show their age, even
with the former shot on Kodak color negative. Color, detail and
depth are not bad, whiel both films also offer PCM 2.0 Stereo only,
despite having 'Dolby Digital' in their end credits. Guess there
were not 5.1 mixes for either and from the sound of it, the money
just was not there, so both sound as good as they ever will.
The
1080p 1.85 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer can on Picture
Of A Nymph impresses with
its detail, color and depth from a new 2K scan, making it the
second-best presentation here and a pleasant surprise, while the PCM
1.0 Cantonese Mono is not bad, but no match for the picture and, no
matter the codec.
Last
but not least, the 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image
transfers on the two Wandering
Ginza Butterfly
films can show their age in parts, but they still look really good,
have fine color and some great demo shots. The
PCM Japanese 1.0 Mono sound should have been in 2.0 Mono in both
cases, but they are still not bad and they are very enjoyable.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image on all Closer episodes
still look fair for the old format, while the lossy Dolby Digital 5.1
mixes on each episode are also fair, repeating the quality of the old
DVD releases. Adequate at best, maybe this will get a Blu-ray
release down the line, but this will have to do just a little bit
longer.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
