Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
‘American Honey’ is a vast and gritty road movie
A Jury Prize winner at the Cannes Film Festival, “American Honey” (2016, Lionsgate, R, $20) is an eye-opening road movie that sprawls across the Midwest following the adventures of Star (Sasha Lane), a restless teenager who leaves home to join “a mag crew,” or a gang of itinerants (Shia LaBeouf, Riley Keough) who peddle publications door-to-door.
The vision of America that emerges, under the watchful eye of British filmmaker Andrea Arnold, is one of vast wealth and shocking poverty. But “American Honey” is anything but preachy. At its best, the movie offers up both a valentine to the freedoms of the road and a bighearted vision of lives lived on the margins. Extras: featurette.
Also New To DVD
Miss Peregrin’s Home For Peculiar Children (2016,
Fox, PG-13, $30): Based on a best-seller by Ransom Riggs, the latest from Tim Burton is about a lonely teenager (Asa Butterfield) who time-trips to 1943 and finds himself surrounded by youngsters who possess extraordinary powers, including the ability to float into the sky, spark fires and become invisible. As the titular Miss Peregrine, Eva Green is a pipe-smoking, time-bending delight. But the labored plot involving baddies called Hollows drains the movie of much of its fun. When Butterfield and his pals begin to do battle with the villains, the flick turns generic and resembles every other special-effectsheavy spectacle. Extras: featurettes and music video.
No Pay, Nudity (2016,
Monterey, R, $28): Movies about acting — and actors — rarely cut as deep as this character study of Lawrence Rosenthal (Gabriel Byrne), a former soap star struggling to pay the bills with odd jobs and roles in off-off-Broadway productions. During the day, he hangs out with other rarely-employed thespians (Boyd Gaines, Frances Conroy and a scene-stealing Nathan Lane), goes to auditions and shirks familial responsibilities. Thanks to a beautifully observed screenplay by Ethan Sandler and fine direction by Lee Wilkoff, “No Pay, Nudity” hits the sweet spot between merriment and melancholy. Extras: none.
The Disappointments Room (2016, Fox, R,
$28): There’s a fascinating ghost story struggling to get out of this slapdash thriller about a family (Kate Beckinsale, Mel Raido) who moves to a dilapidated Southern mansion looking for a fresh start. Director D.J. Caruso scores points for keeping you unsettled about whether Beckinsale’s troubled character is going crazy or being tormented by ghosts. And the filmmaker knows how to uncork haunting images of a man in black (Gerard McRaney) and his spooky dog. But, on the whole, the movie is choppy and full of plot twists that never really pan out. Extras: featurette. Romeo Is Bleeding (1993, Twilight Time, R, $30): One of the best neo-noirs of the ‘90s, this underrated crime thriller pivots on a terrific turn by Gary Oldman as a crooked cop who thinks he can play a Russian hitwoman (Lena Olin) against a brutal mob boss (Roy Scheider) and come out the winner. He is, of course, very mistaken. Olin takes the stock role of a femme fatale and turns it upside down and inside. Blessed with a bluesy score by Mark Isham, a whip-smart screenplay by Hilary Henkin (“Wag The Dog”) and a lovely supporting turn by Juliette Lewis, this new-to-Blu-ray gem hits you like a shot to the heart. Extras: none.
Special Effects (1984,
Olive, R, $25): Horror and blaxploitation legend Larry Cohen (“Q,” “It’s Alive”) directed a lot of movies but none quite as ambitious as this oddity about a washedup filmmaker (Eric Bogosian) so obsessed with capturing reality, he murders a starlet (Zoe Tamerlis) on camera and then tries to build a movie around the footage. The problem with “Special Effects” is that the complicated plot relies too heavily on weird contrivances as Bogosian goes about attempting to pin the murder of Tamerlis on her naïve husband (Brad Rijn). But buried inside “Special Effects” is a stinging satire of the film industry in which women are routinely exploited and even cops are looking for story credits. Extras: commentary by Cohen.
Station West (1948, Warner Archive, unrated, $20): As he proved in 1944’s “Murder My Sweet” when he played Philip Marlowe, Dick Powell knows how to portray a hard-boiled detective. He brings some of that same simmering energy to a role as a military investigator sent to a lawless town to solve the murder of two gold-transporting guards. There’s plenty of suspects, including characters played by Raymond Burr, Agnes Moorehead and Jane Greer. Interestingly, many of the upstanding citizens are flawed while the villain has more than a few redeeming qualities. “Station West” is a noir western that plays by its own rules. Extras: none.