Home Media

By Ben McDonald

This month’s line-up of new home media is particularly exciting for me because it marks the long-awaited release of my all-time favorite film, Elem Klimov‘s devastating masterpiece Come and See. The 1985 WWII film is widely considered by critics as one of the best war films ever made, and it features some of the most stark, horrifying, and ultimately furious anti-war imagery ever put to celluloid. Following the increasingly surreal journey of a young Belarusian boy in 1943, the film gradually becomes a nightmarish descent into what can only be described as the most appalling depths of cruelty. Most war movies end up glamorizing combat to one degree or another, but Come and See is one of the few that definitively doesn’t, as the violence that occurs is far closer to that of a horror film than the exciting action of something like 1917 or Platoon. I won’t lie – the film is probably among the most upsetting and disturbing things you can watch – but to me it’s an absolutely essential work of cinema that should be required viewing for everyone at least once. Criterion will release Come and See on June 30, but Criterion Channel subscribers can check out the gorgeous new Janus restoration right now.

Also arriving on Blu-ray this month is Céline Sciamma‘s beloved Cannes-favorite Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Far and away one of the most acclaimed films of last year, Portrait of a Lady on Fire follows the achingly tender romance between Marianne (Noémie Merlant) and Héloïse (Adèle Haenel), two women in late eighteenth-century France. I had the fortune to see this film at Cannes last year, but it took a second, non-jetlagged viewing on Hulu for me to really fall in love with it. This new Criterion release is sure to be one of the must-haves of this year, and features several new interviews and conversations with the cast and director, along with an essay by critic Ela Bittencourt. You can purchase the new Criterion Blu-ray starting June 23, but if you haven’t seen the film yet and have a Hulu subscription, you can check it out now!

The last Criterion release we’d like to bring to your attention this month is a film I’m actually not familiar with, Kon Ichikawa‘s Tokyo Olympiad, a 1965 documentary of the 1964 Tokyo Summer Olympics. The film was financed by the Japanese government and was originally supposed to be directed by Akira Kurosawa, but he was let go after apparently being too demanding with his artistic control. Nevertheless, Ichikawa still disappointed the Japanese government, as his rendering of the Olympics was also more cinematic than journalistic, and the film was severely edited down on its original release. Criterion’s new Blu-ray of the film will contain the original, 168-minute cut of the film, as well as a new commentary, introduction, behind-the-scenes documentary, and several interviews. Tokyo Olympiad will be available to purchase from Criterion starting June 23.

Also coming in June is a limited edition Blu-ray boxset containing the work of Chilean cult director Alejandro Jodorowsky, which is being released by Arrow. The boxset will contain new 4K restorations of  several of Fando y Lis, El Topo, and The Holy Mountain, as well as Psychomagic, A Healing Art. I will admit I have not seen any of Jodorowsky’s films, but this new boxset looks like an excellent excuse to correct that blindspot. The boxset is expected to become available late June.

The final home video restoration we’d like to discuss this month is Shout’s new Blu-ray of Glengarry Glen Ross, based on the David Mamet play of the same name and directed by James Foley. Following a bunch of slimy, foul-mouthed real-estate salesmen, the film is a wildly entertaining ride that features some loud performances from Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin, and of course Alec Baldwin. In addition to the new 4K transfer, this Shout release also comes with a new conversation with James Foley, a feature on Joe Mantegna remembering his work with David Mamet, and some various audio commentaries from the director, cast, and crew. The Blu-ray will be available starting June 2.