Skip to main content

DVD Outlook: April 2017


April's variety of new DVD and Streaming options isn't as expansive as last month's top-heavy crop, but it does offer 2016's Best Film (March's suggestions). Outside of April's most notable release, there are a few other noteworthy titles that are assured to satisfy your movie-watching cravings. Here's what this month has in store:




La La Land - 4 stars out of 4 - (Read my full review here)

Damien Chazelle's magical film La La Land went into the Oscar ceremony as the overwhelming favorite to nab the Best Picture honor. While the evening's gaff won't be forgotten any time soon, Moonlight may have actually won the crown, but Chazelle's original musical is truly the more accomplished piece of filmmaking. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling star as a struggling actress and jazz pianist who fall in love in Los Angeles while trying to capture their dreams. La La Land has it all, phenomenal performances, a creative script, a stand-out score and nostalgic choreography. There's a reason everyone raved about La La Land and you should experience this instant classic for yourself later this month. (April 25th)



The Founder - 3 stars out of 4 - (Read my rapid review here)

David Fincher's 2010 biographical drama, The Social Network, went on to win 3 Oscars and set the blueprint for John Lee Hancock's similarly themed biopic, The Founder. When milkshake machine salesman Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) stumbles across a California-based burger joint unlike anything else in the world, he needs to be a part of the action. And after weaseling his way into the McDonald brothers' partnership, Kroc stops at nothing to elevate the brand when his vision differs from the original owners. Business is cutthroat and The Founder tackles that notion with great depth as Michael Keaton delivers another fantastic turn. (April 18th)




Hidden Figures - 2 and a half stars out of 4 - (Read my rapid review here)

Closing out my top 3 suggestions is Theodore Melfi's sophomore feature, Hidden Figures. This historical drama follows a trio of African American women who overcame great odds and societal prejudices to help NASA put John Glenn into orbit and thrust the United States into the forefront of the race to space. Janelle Monae gives the film's most impressive turn, despite co-star Octavia Spencer's Oscar recognition, as the effort satisfies with its science-centric theme. As a civil rights drama it fails to break any new ground, but Hidden Figures reminds us all just how important math and science are in the real world. (April 11th)


Honorable Mention: Best Picture Nominee Lion (4/11) and Best Foreign Film Nominee Toni Erdmann (4/11) add a bit of clout to April's new releases as well. Box office smash Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (4/4) and M. Night Shyamalan's latest, Split (4/18), also stand as solid films available this month. Seasonal comedy Office Christmas Party (4/4) and indie darling Paterson (4/4) fill out the crop of titles throughout April.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Glass Castle

Destin Cretton is anything but a household name. Yet, the gifted filmmaker turned heads with his massively overlooked 2013 drama, Short Term 12 . The effort bridged together Cretton's singular story and vision with the remarkable acting talents of Brie Larson. Since then Larson has gone on to win an Academy Award ( Room ), but her career comes full circle in her latest collaboration with Destin Cretton in the adapted film The Glass Castle . Told non-chronologically through various flashbacks, The Glass Castle follows the unconventional childhood of gossip columnist and eventual Best-Selling author Jeannette Walls (Larson). Prior to her career as a writer, Walls grows up under the dysfunctional supervision of her alcoholic father (Woody Harrelson) and her amateur artist mother (Naomi Watts). But as Jeannette and her siblings begin to mature and fully comprehend their squatter-lifestyle and impoverished upbringing, they must work together to escape the clutches of their deadbeat par
Post a Comment
Read more

FILOSOFI KOPI 2 : BEN & JODY (2017) REVIEW : Revisi Nilai Hidup Untuk Sebuah Kedai Kopi

  Kisah pendek yang diambil dari Dewi Lestari ini telah dibudidayakan menjadi sebuah produk yang namanya sudah mahsyur. Selain film, produk dari Filosofi Kopi ini diabadikan menjadi sebuah kedai kopi yang nyata. Dengan adanya konsistensi itu, tak akan kaget apabila film yang diarahkan oleh Angga Dwimas Sasongko ini akan mendapatkan sekuel sebagai perlakuan selanjutnya. Tentu, kekhawatiran akan muncul karena cerita pendek dari Filosofi Kopi pun hanya berhenti di satu sub bab yang telah dibahas di film pertamanya. Sayembara muncul ditujukan kepada semua orang untuk membuat kisah lanjutan dari Ben dan Jody ini. Sayembara ini sekaligus memberikan bukti kepada semua orang bahwa Filosofi Kopi tetap menjadi film yang terkonsentrasi dari penonton seperti film pertamanya. Yang jelas, Angga Dwimas Sasongko tetap mengarahkan Chicco Jericho dan juga Rio Dewanto sebagai Ben dan Jody. Angga Dwimas Sasongko pun berkontribusi dalam pembuatan naskah dari cerita terpilih yang ditulis oleh Jenny Jusuf s
Post a Comment
Read more

DVD Outlook: August 2017

It appears August is rather barren with new DVD and streaming options ( July's suggestions ). Thankfully, a hot slate of diverse theatrical offerings such as The Big Sick , Dunkirk , War for the Planet of the Apes , Spider-Man: Homecoming and so much more, you can find a worthwhile movie to enjoy no matter what your personal preference may be. Either way, here's a look at what's available on DVD and streaming services this month. Alien: Covenant - 3 stars out of 4 - ( Read my full review here ) Earlier this year Ridley Scott returned to his storied  Alien universe once again with the follow-up to 2012's Prometheus . In the latest installment, Scott and company shift their efforts from cryptic to visceral and disturbing with a bloody and twisted affair that feels immensely more horror-based than its predecessor. While on a colonizing mission to jump-start the humanity on a distant planet, crew members of the Covenant are awoken from their hibernation state following
Post a Comment
Read more