A ‘JUNGLE BOOK’ THAT LOOKS TRULY LIFELIKE
NEW RELEASES, E7
New on Blu-ray
The Jungle Book Disney/Buena Vista DVD/Bluray combo, $39.99; also available on VOD
This year’s slate of Hollywood remakes and sequels has mostly drawn mixed responses from critics and audiences, yet just about everybody has liked Disney’s live-action version of “The Jungle Book.” The studio and director Jon Favreau invested heavily in special effects to make Rudyard Kipling’s cast of talking animals look real, and their gamble has paid off in a nearly billion-dollar worldwide box office — as well as an entertaining, well-reviewed movie that could supplant Disney’s 1967 animated feature as definitive. A stellar voice-cast that includes Ben Kingsley, Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray and Idris Elba all help bring personality to the creatures who either guide or bedevil the lost “man-cub” Mowgli on his journey through the jungle; and the film makes good use of Kipling’s episodic story to keep the action and spectacle coming. The result is one of 2016’s best blockbusters.
Special features: A lively Favreau commentary and a pair of in-depth featurettes
VOD
Klown Forever available Sept. 2
Fans of the hilariously inappropriate 2010 Danish comedy “Klown” will be happy to know that co-creators/stars Casper Christensen and Frank Hvam are back playing the worst versions of themselves in the sequel “Klown Forever.” This time out, Casper and Frank head to Hollywood to capitalize on their fame from the first film and soon end up irritating minor celebrities and misconstruing American culture in ways that get them into trouble. Though it’s a bit of a retread of the earlier movie, “Klown Forever” may actually appeal more to newcomers, because the U.S.-rooted references should make more sense than its predecessor’s highly European ones. Either way, viewers should brace themselves for some sick, taboo-busting jokes.
TV set of the week
The Night Manager: Uncensored Edition Sony DVD, $30.99; Blu-ray, $40.99
Tom Hiddleston and Hugh Laurie give outstanding performances in this sixhour BBC/AMC TV miniseries based on a John le Carré novel. Hiddleston plays an emotionally scarred Iraq war veteran who gets recruited by a covert agency to go undercover with an international weapons dealer (played by Laurie). The story builds slowly and relies more on characters cautiously lying to each other than on actual action. But the cast looks glamorous, and the upscale locations provide an eyecatching backdrop to all the intrigue and espionage. Fans of classy spy adventures will find a lot to enjoy here.
Special features: The set contains the original unedited BBC episodes, without the cuts for language and content made by AMC
From the archives
Chimes at Midnight Criterion DVD, $29.95; Blu-ray, $39.95
The Immortal Story Criterion DVD, $29.95; Blu-ray, $39.95
Director Orson Welles’ career is often defined by the two masterpieces at the start — “Citizen Kane” and the butchered-but-brilliant “The Magnificent Ambersons” — and the long string of flawed films that followed. But toward the end of his life, Welles began to figure out how to make magic from tiny budgets and piecemeal shooting schedules. Thanks to the power of restoration, Welles fans can now fully appreciate the eccentric genius of 1965’s “Chimes at Midnight” (an adaptation of the Falstaff scenes from multiple Shakespeare plays) and 1968’s “The Immortal Story” (an hourlong film about a rich man manipulating young lovers for his own amusement). Both movies feature Welles’ striking compositions and offbeat editing as well as his lifelong fascination with larger-thanlife personalities. They ought to be considered great works no matter whose name is above the title.
Special features: Scholarly commentary tracks on both, as well as new and vintage interviews