Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Flick Picks 3/29/2016: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, Unreal Season 1, Manhattan Season 2


So DVD watchers, would you like green pill or the red pill?  Fans of The Matrix will know exactly what we're talking about.  However, if you're shaking your head in confusion, we speak of a decision between fantasy and reality.  Heading the new releases on DVD, we have strong film examples of both extremes.  Representing fantasy, there is the fourth (and final) Hunger Games film, Mockingjay Part 2.  Holding the banner for reality, is and a well-reviewed but little-seen indie film called James White.  Unlike Neo in The Matrix, you can actually choose both.  As usual, we have many other options as well. 


Feature Films


HUNGER GAMES:  MOCKINGJAY PART 2



Is it the end already?  It seems like just yesterday...or perhaps 1983 that the first of the Hunger Games films arrived in theaters.  And yet, here we are!  The fourth and final film in the Hunger Games series is now available on DVD.  Perhaps poor Katniss can finally put down her bow and have a nice rest.  

JAMES WHITE



James White is writer/director Josh Mond's semi-autobiographical story about a troubled young New Yorker who must get his life in order so he can care for a mother suffering from cancer.  Co-starring Cynthia Nixon (herself a cancer survivor) as the mother, James White has been well-received by critics and audiences alike.  


Julie Roberts and Chiwetel Ejiofor star in the SECRET IN THEIR EYES.  Stepfather Will Ferrell and biological father Mark Wahlberg vie for the affection of their children in DADDY'S HOME.  MY ALL-AMERICAN is based on the inspirational true story of Freddie Steinmark, who played for the 1969 Texas Longhorns national championship team.





THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES is based on the Oscar-winning Argentine film, EL SECRETO DE SUS OJOS, well worth checking out.  






Series

UNREAL SEASON ONE



With Unreal we have nice mix of fantasy and (sort of) reality.  Shiri Appleby stars as a reality t.v. producer urged by her demanding boss to do whatever it takes to enhance the racy goings-on of her "reality" dating show, Everlasting.  


MANHATTAN SEASON TWO



As in the Manhattan Project.  The second and final season of this fictionalized look at the secret development of the atomic bomb in Los Alamos, New Mexico includes the always-excellent Olivia Williams as a botanist and wife of one of the lead scientists on the project.  


KEY & PEELE, SEASON ONE AND TWO



The first two seasons of this Comedy Central series are now available, starring Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele.  The duo has won a Peabody Award and has been nominated for Writers Guild, NAACP Image and Primetime Emmy awards for their topical sketch comedy. 


DOCTOR WHO HUSBANDS OF RIVER SONG



The 2015 Doctor Who Christmas special sees the return of the character River Song (Alex Kingston), making her first appearance beside the 12th and latest Doctor Who, Peter Capaldi.  


THE SPOILS OF BABYLON


All of those miniseries of the 1970's and 1980's (Rich Man, Poor Man; The Thorn Birds; etc.) were rich with satire potential.  At last, The Spoils of Babylon, brought to us by the people responsible for Funny or Die.  Kristin Wiig heads the all-star cast, happily chewing up scenery and actually earning an Emmy Award nomination in the process.  






Foreign Films

A BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY



Somehow, this Criterion Collection edition of Edward Yang's A Brighter Summer Day is the film's first home video release in the United States.  Better late than never for the Taiwanese master's sprawling masterpiece.  Get comfortable and enjoy one of world cinema's landmarks. 

Documentary/Nonfiction

STEVE JOBS:  THE MAIN IN THE MACHINE




Alex Gibney (Going Clear:  Scientology and the Prison of Belief; Enron:  The Smartest Guys in the Room) turns his attention to the increasingly mythic Steve Jobs in this 2015 documentary.  





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