A 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.
IN THEATERS (WIDE RELEASE)
Knowing (2009): Alex Proyas (Dark City) brings us this “Twilight Zone” style tale with Nicolas Cage about a time capsule that contains coded prophecies for the future. Generally panned, but curiosity rises with descriptions of a conclusion described as “ridiculous” and “ludicrous” that dropped critics jaws. It may be unintentional comedy in the vein of Cage’s recent The Wicker Man remake flop. Knowing Official Site.
FILM FESTIVALS:
The New York International Film and Video Festival begins tonight in Manhattan and runs through Thursday, March 27th, showcasing underground and experimental shorts along with documentaries and feature films. Movies of potential weird interest include the Indian comedy I Am a Love Addict, W the Movie, The Gingerbread House (an Italian retelling of Hansel and Gretel), Let Me Out, Heaven Earth (an “experimental documentary” about hallucinogenic South American plants), Sacred Game, and the violent Malaysian comedy The Dogs.
NEW ON DVD:
The Murnau Collection: From the archivists at Kino comes this essential set of restored classics, containing Nosferatu (1922), the weirdest and scariest Dracula adaptation, and the expressionist masterpiece The Last Laugh (1924), along with the essential historical films The Haunted Castle (1921), The Finances of the Grand Duke (1924), Tartuffe (1925), and Faust (1926). Each disc comes with extensive extras, and The Haunted Castle, The Finances of the Grand Duke and Faust also receive separate special edition releases. A nice catch for lovers of early cinema, although four of these six films were already available, along with the documentary Tabu (1931), on Kino’s earlier box set, “The F.W. Murnau Collection”.
NEW ON BLU-RAY:
Sleepy Hollow (1999)/Sweeny Todd (2007): A double feature release of two Gothic Tim Burton/Johhny Depp collaborations is always worth a mention.