Ralph Fiennes and Anya Taylor-Joy in The Menu. (Photo by Eric Zachanowich. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2022 20th Century Studios)
‘The Menu,’ ‘Till’ New to Disc, ‘Fabelmans,’ ‘Violent Night’ New on Digital Week of Jan. 17
January 17, 2023
The week of Jan. 17 sees The Menu and Till arrive on DVD and Blu-ray, while The Fabelmans and Violent Night become available through digital retailers.
Disney will serve up the Searchlight Pictures dark satire The Menu on Blu-ray and DVD Jan. 17. In the film, a young couple (Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult) travels to a coastal island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the chef (Fiennes) has prepared a lavish menu, with some shocking surprises. The film also stars Hong Chau, Janet McTeer, Reed Birney, Judith Light and John Leguizamo. Directed by Mark Mylod, the film earned $38.2 million at the domestic box office.
Universal Pictures releases Till on Blu-ray and DVD Jan. 17. The drama tells the story of Mamie Till-Mobley (Danielle Deadwyler), whose pursuit of justice for her 14-year-old son Emmett Louis Till (Jalyn Hall) became a key moment in the civil rights movement. It earned $9 million at the domestic box office.
Director Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical film The Fabelmans, which earned Golden Globes for Best Motion Picture — Drama and Best Director for Spielberg, will be available to own digitally Jan. 17 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Inspired by Spielberg’s own childhood, the drama is a coming-of-age story about a young man uncovering a shattering family secret and the power of film and imagination to help us see the truth about ourselves and each other. The cast includes Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea, My Week With Marilyn), Paul Dano (The Batman, There Will Be Blood), Seth Rogen (Steve Jobs, An American Pickle), Gabriel LaBelle (The Predator, “American Gigolo”) and Academy Award nominee Judd Hirsch (Uncut Gems, Ordinary People). It earned $14.36 million at the domestic box office, and arrives on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD Feb. 14.
Virgil Films will release the sports drama High Expectations, starring Kelsey Grammer, via VOD and for digital purchase Jan. 17. In the film, Jack finds himself adrift after his father, legendary Coach Davis, cuts him from his renowned soccer club. Estranged from his dad, at odds with his brother and desperate for purpose, he turns to his ex-girlfriend Sofia. Inspired by her tough love and unwavering pursuit to become a recording artist, he takes one last shot at his lifelong dream, by trying out for a rival soccer club. The film also stars Taylor Gray, Ally Brooke and Briana Scurry. It arrives on DVD Feb. 28.
Kino Lorber Jan. 17 releases Utama on DVD, Blu-ray Disc and for digital purchase. The acclaimed international drama is about an elderly couple in the arid highlands of the Andes and the final days of husband Virginio. The film from director Alejandro Loayza Grisi premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2022, where it won the Grand Jury Prize (World Cinema Dramatic). It was released in French theaters in May 2022 and Swiss theaters a month later, with German theaters up next in January 2023. Utama was selected as the Bolivian entry for the 95th Academy Awards as the Best International Feature Film. Set in the Bolivian highlands, Utama is centered on an elderly Quechua couple that has been living a tranquil life for years. While he takes their small herd of llamas out to graze, she keeps house and walks for miles with the other local women to fetch precious water. When an uncommonly long drought threatens everything they know, Virginio and Sisa must decide whether to stay and maintain their traditional way of life or admit defeat and move in with family members in the city. Their dilemma is precipitated by the arrival of their grandson Clever, who comes to visit with news. The three of them must face, each in their own way, the effects of a changing environment, the importance of tradition, and the meaning of life itself.
The Christmas-themed action comedy Violent Night, already available for premium digital rental and sale, will be made available through digital retailers at non-premium rates Jan. 20 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. In the film, when a team of mercenaries breaks into a wealthy family compound taking everyone inside hostage, they are not prepared for a surprise combatant: Santa Claus. David Harbour (“Stranger Things”) stars as St. Nick, delivering some serious season’s beatings to save the family and the spirit of Christmas. Directed by Tommy Wirkola (Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, “Dead Snow” franchise), the film also stars John Leguizamo (John Wick), Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones), Cam Gigandet (Without Remorse), Alex Hassell (Cowboy Bebop), Alexis Louder (The Tomorrow War) and Beverly D’Angelo (“National Lampoon’s Vacation” franchise). It arrives on Blu-ray and DVD Jan. 24.
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The action thriller Night Train will be released via digital sellthrough and on demand Jan. 17 from Saban Films. In the film, single mom Holly McCord (Danielle C. Ryan) — struggling to make ends meet — is driven to extremes to save the life of her young son, even if it means hauling black market drugs in her souped-up truck, with the Feds in hot pursuit. With two bounties on her head and her son’s life on the line, Holly climbs behind the wheel of “Night Train,” ready to outrun, out gun and outlast them all. The film also stars Diora Baird, Joseph D. Reitman, Ivan Sergei, Brent Bailey, Kevin Joy, Paul Haapaniemi, Reggie Austin, Thomas Nelson, Joe Lando and Abraham Benrubi.
The documentary She Is … will be released by Gravitas Ventures on digital sellthrough and VOD platforms Jan. 17. The film is directed and produced by Zuzana Lova (God Bless America, Date Night) and features dancer and survivor Isabella Grosso (“The Mentalist,” “Desperate Housewives”). In the film, after enduring years of child sexual abuse, Isabella discovered a source of healing in the last place she’d expect it — her own body. The power of dance takes center stage in this documentary as we follow Isabella on her mission to help survivors of sex trafficking find healing. January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.
Mill Creek Entertainment will release the family drama Charcoal Skies through digital retailers Jan. 17. In the film, single mother Deena and her 11-year-old son Justin are struggling to navigate a delicate and confusing relationship. With limited parenting skills, she tries to understand her reclusive, artistic son who wants to be the next Vincent van Gogh. He doesn’t like to associate with other kids or want to leave the solace of his bedroom. His recent diagnosis of having a schizotypal disorder (early schizophrenia) only complicates matters. Although an elderly neighbor woman provides them with solid support and guidance, their ordinary lives are difficult in the small, working-class city. Through chance encounters and tragic events, they both find meaningful connections and learn to accept themselves and each other. Inspired by the art of Vincent van Gogh, the story on healing and mending a fractured family stars Emily Portner, Braxton Thalberg, Ben Rollins (Gods of No Mercy, Unhuman Nature), Bill Cooper (Rise Against the Fall, The Great War), Ernest Howard (Same Girl, Halfway House) and Wes Worthing (The Fence, Peace Patch). The film was an official selection in the Columbia Film Festival.
Kino Lorber Jan. 17 releases the 1986 action thriller No Mercy, with Richard Gere and Kim Basinger, on Blu-ray Disc. Directed by Richard Pearce, the film also stars Jeroen Krabbé George Dzundz, William Atherton, Ray Sharkey, Bruce McGill, Terry Kinney, Gary Basaraba and Marita Geraghty. Gere stars as Eddie Jillette, a tough, uncompromising cop whose vow to avenge his partner’s death draws him into a torrid affair with the only witness, the murderer’s girlfriend. Basinger is Cajun beauty Michel, caught in the war between Gere and vicious crimelord Losado (Krabbé), the man who possesses her. Jillette’s vendetta takes him from the streets of Chicago to the violent underworld of New Orleans, where he abducts Michel to flush out Losado. He escapes into the treacherous bayou with his unwilling captive, but as their pursuers close in and the danger mounts, so does their lust for each other.
The Japanese classic Big Time Gambling Boss will be released on Blu-ray Disc for the first time Jan. 17 as a limited edition from Radiance Films and MVD Entertainment Group. Originally released in 1968, the film is set in Tokyo in the 1930s, where gang boss Arakawa is ill and a successor must be named. The choice falls on Nakai, but being an outsider he refuses and suggests senior clansman Matsuda instead. But Matsuda is in jail and the elders won’t wait for his release, so they appoint the younger and more malleable Ishido to take the reins. Clan honor and loyalties are severely tested when Matsuda is released, resulting in an increasingly violent internal strife. An atmospheric tale of gangland intrigue written by Kazuo Kasahara (Battles Without Honor and Humanity) and starring Tomisaburo Wakayama (Lone Wolf and Cub, “The Bounty Hunter Trilogy”) and genre legend Koji Tsuruta, Big Time Gambling Boss is a classic of the Yakuza genre.
The horror actioner Cloverfield will be released on 4K Ultra HD Steelbook Jan. 17 from Paramount Home Entertainment for its 15th anniversary. Produced by J.J. Abrams and directed by Matt Reeves (The Batman), the film debuted in the United States on Jan. 18, 2008, and ultimately earned more than $172 million worldwide on a $25 million budget. Cloverfield chronicles a first-person video account of a horrifying attack on Manhattan by an unknown — and seemingly unstoppable — force. The limited-edition 4K Ultra HD Steelbook includes new artwork reviewed and approved by both Abrams and Reeves, the film on both 4K Ultra HD Disc and Blu-ray, and access to a digital copy. Legacy bonus features on the Blu-ray include alternate endings, deleted scenes, director’s commentary, Easter eggs and making-of featurettes.
