Our weekly look at what’s weird in theaters, on hot-off-the-presses DVDs, and on more distant horizons…
Trailers of new release movies are generally available on the official site links.
WEIRD MOVIE GOSSIP:
Escape from Tomorrow (2013): The synopsis of this debut film—a middle-aged man chasing jailbait chicks through a dystopian Disneyland—put this movie on our Sundance watch list. It’s raising eyebrows with critics for its surrealist originality, and possibly with lawyers as well due to the fact that it was shot guerrilla-style in the Sappiest Place on Earth without permission or permits. Unfounded rumors suggest Disney may seek to suppress the film, although the bad press they’d get from persecuting this little indie effort would far outweigh any damage they’d suffer from its portrayal of the theme park as the Great American Nightmare. We at 366 will certainly mock the Mouse mercilessly should the corporate suits choose to be so petty—that should be enough to deter them. CNN Entertainment has an account of the brewing controversy.
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NEW ON DVD:
“Best of Warner Bros. 100 Film Collection”: Considering the hefty price tag and random selection of titles (not all of which are even from Warner Brothers), this compendium of movies from 1927-2005 seems like a hard-sell for a marketing department, but would make for an instant classic film library for the buyer. Certified Weird movies Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and A Clockwork Orange headline alongside 22 Best Picture winners and some interesting titles like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Natural Born Killers (!). Buy “Best of Warner Bros. 100 Film Collection”.
White Zombie: Read our capsule review. Kino’s remastered edition of the Bela Lugosi horror classic includes two versions of the film–a “raw” version and a “digitally enhanced” version—plus commentary by film historian Frank Thompson and a Lugosi interview. Buy White Zombie.
NEW ON BLU-RAY:
“Best of Warner Bros. 50 Film Collection”: For whatever reason, only half the titles from the DVD collection made it onto the Blu-ray version. Wonka, Clockwork Orange and 2001 all made the cut. Buy “Best of Warner Bros. 50 Film Collection” [Blu-ray].
The Late Mathias Pascal [Feu Mathias Pascal, AKA The Living Dead Man] (1926): A man forges a new life for himself after he is accidentally declared dead; this seldom-seen silent French film reportedly full of dream sequences, camera tricks and expressionist angles. From vintage restorationists Flicker Alley. Buy The Late Mathias Pascal [Blu-ray].
That Obscure Object of Desire: Luis Buñuel‘s final film concerns a man’s obsession for a woman (portrayed by two different actresses); the film’s two Academy Award nominations deeply shamed the Surrealist provocateur and possibly caused him to lose the will to go on working. The Criterion Collection DVD is now out of print but Lions Gate brings a good number of extras to this Blu-ray version. Buy That Obscure Object of Desire [Blu-ray].
White Zombie: See description in DVD above. Buy White Zombie [Blu-ray].
What are you looking forward to? If you have any weird movie leads that I have overlooked, feel free to leave them in the COMMENTS section.