Five Gems Still Not on DVD, Blu-Ray, or 4K UHD

With many calling the death of physical media and some studios switching over to streaming for some of their titles, the market for collectors is as interesting as ever. What with the theaters closing, studios are rushing to release a lot of their films on new formats or present them in a new way for movie fans. Sadly there haven’t been a lot of really big unveilings in terms of titles unleashed. Save for a few surprises here and there (“Rad,” “The Gate II,” “36.15 Code Père Noël”), it’s all more of the same ad nauseum (Do we really need yet another edition of “E.T.” or “Back to the Future”?) there are still so many movies out there that have yet to see a release on Blu-Ray, 4K UHD, and yes, even Standard DVD.

That said, these are five very good movies that deserve a home media release.

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Girl (2020)

Director/Writer Chad Faust really knows what he’s doing in “Girl,” as he places a lot of the film’s weight on star Bella Thorne. Thorne is an underrated actress that’s been stuck in a lot of terrible movies, but when she’s paired with the right director, she gives performances like the one we see in “Girl.” Star Thorne carries what’s just an okay movie that feels like it aspires too eagerly to be held in the class of other backwoods dramas like 2010’s “Winter’s Bone.”

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West Side Story: Behind the Scenes

The 1961 version of “West Side Story” is considered by many to be among the greatest movie musicals of all time. On this episode of “The Online Movie Show,” we discuss the making of this classic (and dispel some longstanding rumors on its casting) with Richard Barrios, author of “West Side Story: The Jets, the Sharks, and the Making of a Classic.”

The episode can be heard here.

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2020)

Sasha Baron Cohen has remained one of the most scornful critics of the modern American political scene and has taken to destroying the status quo whenever possible. He’s been especially vicious in 2020 with his incredibly controversial “Who is America?” limited series, which he then follows up with the “Borat” sequel. This movie is not at all a cash grab, if fans were worried, it’s instead yet another case of Cohen pulling down the curtain in an America most of us doesn’t know exists. Or at least likes to pretend doesn’t exist.

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I Spit on Your Grave (1978): Collector’s Edition [Blu-Ray] (3 Disc Set)

Meir Zarchi’s revenge rape thriller is a movie that continues to inspire immense bile from movie critics and movie buffs since its release in 1978. Much like its contemporary “Cannibal Holocaust,” Zarchi horror movie is deeply upsetting and requires the viewer to endure it in a certain state of mind. It’s a film you’ll either love or despise, and it gets a very good treatment from Roninflix who brings it home to fans like yours truly.

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The Bootleg Files: The Laundromat

BOOTLEG FILES 747: “The Laundromat” (1985 HBO drama directed by Robert Altman).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS:
Most likely due to a problem with rights clearance.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Unlikely at this time.

During the early 1980s, Robert Altman seemed intent on creating his own version of the American Film Theatre by taking theatrical works and creating adaptations that were closer in style to the original proscenium-framed productions than to works of cinema. With “Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean” (1982), “Streamers” (1983) and “Secret Ceremony” (1984), Altman was plumbing dramatic emotions from claustrophobic chamber pieces rather than using the widescreen canvas to explore a greater world of tumult and chaos.
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