The week’s DVDs begin in the Civil War:
DVDs and streaming for Feb. 17 by Boo Allen
This week we begin in the Civil War:
The Retrieval (***1/2)
A relatively unknown, but highly talented, cast and crew combined to create this excellent period piece filled with dynamic characters and compelling themes. In the 1864 Southern U.S., Will (Ashton Sanders), an African-American teen, and his adult partner Marcus (Keston John) are forced on threat of death by a bounty hunter to travel north and bring back a freed slave, Nate (Tishuan Scott). The duo must use guile to convince Nate to return to the dangerous territory. Their adventurous journey takes several unexpected detours, including navigating between a skirmish of Confederate and Union forces, Nate re-uniting with his wife, and other tense encounters. Chris Eska directs from his own lean script that moves the action swiftly along with few detours. Cinematographer Yasu Tanida filmed mostly outdoors in the East Texas piney woods, and he shows a heightened eye for composition and lighting.
Not rated, 94 minutes.
Extras: a four minute deleted scene, a 49 minute interview with cast and crew at the Screen Actors Guild Foundation, a four minute interview at Leeds International Film Festival, a six minute segment on stunt rehearsals, and more.
1969 (**)
As seen in a new Blu-ray edition, this 1989 period piece has good intentions but little else. Written and directed by Ernest Thompson, the Oscar winning screenwriter of On Golden Pond, the film takes place in the title year in a small Maryland town. There, two college students, Ralph and Scott (Robert Downey Jr. and Kiefer Sutherland, respectively), gradually realize they could be called to go to Vietnam. On a trip home to see Ralph’s sister (Winona Ryder) graduate from high school, a clash of generations becomes apparent. Ralph’s mother (Joanna Cassidy) seems lost in an alcoholic haze, and Scott’s father (Bruce Dern) ridicules Scott because his other son is headed to Vietnam. Scott’s mother (Mariette Hartley) floats in her own cloud. Eventually Scott and Ralph take the obligatory road trip while toying with other ruses to avoid the war. Meanwhile, a succession of artificially contrived scenes with clunky dialogue plays out. Overall, the film, obviously looking to reflect a microcosm of the country at that time, offers little beyond a flavorful sound track of the era’s music and a 27 year old look at Downey, Sutherland, Dern and others.
Rated R, 95 minutes.
The Theory of Everything (***1/2)
In this five time Oscar nominated film (including Best Picture), Best Actor nominee Eddie Redmayne stars as a young Stephen Hawking, and fellow nominee Felicity Jones plays his girlfriend and eventual wife Jane. Director James Marsh works from Anthony McCarten’s nominated script that follows the couple and their courtship, marriage, and resulting life. The story covers Stephen Hawking’s eventual battle with A.L.S. and the disintegration of the Hawking’s marriage. Marsh mostly avoids the treacle and delivers what seems to be an authentic portrait of two extraordinary people coping with a marriage under stress.
Rated PG-13, 123 minutes.
The Chair–season one
Veteran producer Chris Moore created this series that ran on Starz. While cameras for the television series rolled, Moore selected two young aspiring film-makers and presented them with the opportunity to make a low budget film within certain guidelines, such as they both must adhere to their budgets while working from the same script, have their pre-production meetings in Pittsburgh and subsequently film there, and all within a total of eight weeks. Of the two nominees, West coast native Shane Dawson had a huge Youtube following, and East coast native Anna Martemucci had made some short films while still considering herself more of a writer. The series follows the two as they encounter the endless problems in making a movie. Viewing audiences will be exposed to the joys and fears experienced in creating a feature length film while also learning much about the trade and industry. Both directors also act in their films. The five disc set contains the unrated ten episodes (667 minutes) on three discs, and two discs hold the finished products from Dawson and Martemucci, respectively, Not Cool (92 minutes) and Hollidaysburg (88 minutes). The Not Cool disc holds nine minutes of deleted scenes.
Scholastic Schoolbook Treasures: The Classic Collection: 20 Stories for Spring, Stella and Sam: Bunny Hop.
In the first of these two entries, twenty stories are included in the Scholastic Schoolbook single disc collection of kids’ classics (rated TV-G, 215 minutes). Such established favorites include stories about the Red Hen, Curious George, Scaredy Squirrel, Good Night Moon, and others. In Stella and Sam: Bunny Hop, the popular children’s book characters Stella and Sam return in four of their own episodes along with a music video and an eight page booklet. Rated TV-Y, 88 minutes.
Easter Family Fun Pack: Six classic favorites: Easter in Bunnyland, Joseph and the Coat of Many Colors, Prince of Egypt—the Story of Moses, Noah’s Magic Ark, The Ten Commandments, The Great East Egg Hunt.
Six thematically related animated films have been assembled into this single disc package. Works with religious messages mix with topical holiday fare, such as Easter Egg hunts.
Not rated, 287 minutes.
Also on DVD and streaming: Allies, Dumb and Dumber To, The Homesman, The Interview, Jake Squared, St. Vincent.