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GUN’S OUT
HOME FROM HOME
PUB GUV’NOR FINED
FORTUNE FAVOURS ANIME LTD
SOUND NIGHT AT BFI
A NEW ERA IN STORES
OSLO SET ARRIVES
ARROW TALKS FRIGHTFEST
AND HAS ANOTHER SHAW THING
MUNSEY ON TV
AT THE MOVIES TWEET OF THE WEEK
TRAILERS OF THE WEEK
Big announcement news, as Paramount and the sales team at Elevation have officially confirmed the release date for Top Gun: Maverick, one of the films of the year, both in terms of critical acclaim and most certainly in box office terms. The Tom Cruise starrer will land on DVD, Blu-ray, UHD and a rather swish Steelbook among others on October 31, giving a not entirely spooky treat to fans. The film has been a monster hit already, its aerial pyrotechnics providing a perfect draw for home ent fans and, what’s more, it has also wowed critics far more than its predecessor. As Mark Kermode noted in the Observer: “And we’re back. A full 36 years (including some Covid-related runway delays) after Tony Scott’s big-screen recruitment advert for US naval aviators became an epoch-defining cinema hit, Tom Cruise is back doing what he does best – flashing his cute/crazy superstar smile and flexing his bizarrely ageless body in an eye-popping blockbuster that, for all its daft macho contrivances, still manages to take your breath away, dammit. Personally, I found myself powerless to resist; overawed by the ‘real flight’ aeronautics and nail-biting sky dances, bludgeoned by the sugar-frosted glow of Cruise’s mercilessly engaging facial muscles, and shamefully brought to tears by moments of hate-yourself-for-going-with-it manipulation. In the immortal words of Abba’s Waterloo, I was defeated, you won the war. I give up.”
An interesting story has turned up in the latest bulletin of the Film Content Protection Agency that wasn’t on our radar, and it concerns the spectre of camcording films illicitly in cinemas and then distributing the pirate copies online or on disc. The concept has been a mainstay of the piracy world since the dawn of VHS and it is still, it appears, continuing. But one potential source appears to have been nabbed. The bulletin noted: “Earlier this year, an infringing “camcorded” version of Spider-Man: No Way Home was found online soon after theatrical release. Specialist digital film forensics traced the version to a cinema in Leeds, West Yorkshire. A subsequent investigation by the FCPA led to the identification of a suspect. The suspect was arrested at an address in Dewsbury in June by officers from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU), who also seized a number of items as evidence and for further examination. The investigation continues. Cinemas in this area had not previously been involved in such high-impact cases, and this serves as a reminder that film source-piracy remains a constant and unpredictable threat.”
And while we’re on the subject, investigators from another anti-piracy force, FACT, have also been hard at work, with another successful prosecution against a pub landlord. Patrick Hennessy of The Boat Inn, Wolverhampton, faced two charges of airing Sky football games without the proper licence, and was fined and ordered to pay costs totalling more than £2,800. FACT Chief Executive Kieron Sharp said: “Our aim is to help create an effective deterrent to publicans who endeavour to fraudulently show Sky content on their premises and FACT will continue to protect the intellectual property rights of its clients by pursuing those who continue to break the law.” Sara Stewart, Commercial Compliance Lead at Sky Business, added: “Now more than ever it’s important to protect the investment of our customers. Businesses that show Sky Sports illegally can leave our legitimate Sky subscribers feeling short-changed. We actively visit thousands of pubs every season to monitor the games they are showing and continue to support FACT’s work to protect hardworking Sky customers who are unfairly losing business due to this illegal activity. Venues who continue to televise content in this way are breaking the law, and are at risk of being caught, which can result in licensees being fined and having to pay legal costs, and/or losing their personal licence.”
Meanwhile, down on the Southbank, the BFI was marking the release of a new title from legendary documentary filmmaker Molly Dineen with a special screening at its London home, as Being Blacker, which was released on August 8, aired to a sold-out audience. The BFI’s head of video Joh Ramchandani said: “We were thrilled to launch THE MOLLY DINEEN COLLECTION VOLUME 4: BEING BLACKER/SOUND BUSINESS DVD with a sold out screening of BEING BLACKER at BFI Southbank. It was followed by a lively Q&A with director Molly Dineen, the charismatic subject of the film – Brixton legend Blacker Dread, and his good friend Naptali, hosted by Radio 1Xtra’s Seani B. The BFI is pleased to be continuing its relationship with Molly, one of Britain’s most acclaimed documentary filmmakers and happy to be making more of her extraordinary work available on home entertainment.”
The big summer release in stores this week is the latest instalment in the ongoing Downton Abbey, which has smoothly made the transition from small screen series, on to big screen theatrical and back to the small screen for home entertainment, with the second feature length outing, A New Era, hitting the shelves on Monday August 15. The film is available on Blu-ray and DVD, with the physical joining the digital SKUs and there’s also a double pack DVD featuring both films, while hmv has its own bespoke exclusive version featuring different artwork and a set of four postcards. Comment on the marketing came from the company’s Emily Evans, and the senior product manager said: “The media campaign includes activity across several traditional media channels including TV (ITV and Channel 4), radio (Heart and Smooth), and print (The Telegraph, The Times, Radio Times). The radio ads were recorded by Mr Carson himself, Jim Carter. We also have a media promotion running with iNews & National World.”
Also worth noting and in stores this week is the Oslo Trilogy from MUBI, the trio of films from director Joachim Trier and long-time screenwriting collaborator Eskil Vogt. It pulls together a trip of titles the pair have worked on, a loosely connected triple bill comprising of Reprise, from some 15 years ago Oslo, August 31 from a decade ago and the most recent outing, The Worst Person In The World. It’s another remarkable achievement for the ever-expanding MUBI empire, which sees it further expanding its scope beyond a streaming service, print magazine, comprehensive website and editorial, physical home entertainment label and now into the box set world.
The release is, as MUBI’s Dan Green told The Raygun recently, “the first time Joachim Trier's loose trio has been released physically anywhere in the world”.
More on Arrow Video FrightFest, the Arrow-sponsored event due to take place over five days and nights on the August bank holiday weekend, as ever. We’ve been speaking to many of the distributors involved in recent weeks, as well as the organisers of course, and now Arrow Video itself has talked a bit more about its slate for the event, which includes everything from the new Quentin Dupieux to a documentary looking at long-time video favourite Jean Rollin. Comment and further detail on Arrow titles airing at FrightFest came from the company’s Louise Buckler, who said: “Arrow is extremely proud to once again be the headline sponsor for this year's FrightFest. We love working with Alan, Greg, Ian, Paul and the team and can't wait to be back in Leicester Square for another long weekend of bloody good fun! This year we have a trio of new releases premiering at the festival, Quentin Dupieux’s surreal comedy Incredible But Tru, Dima Ballin and Kat Ellinger's Orchestrator of Storms: The Fantastique World of Jean Rollin, a mesmerising deep dive into the works of one of EuroCult's finest and Eric Pennycoff's festive horror comedy The Leech which will be quite the crowd pleaser! Director Eric Pennycoff and actor Graham Skipper will also be flying over to join in the fun. The Arrow team will of course be manning our regular booth space in the Cineworld lobby so make sure on by pop to fill some gaps in your collection or catch us for a pint at the Phoenix!
Another big announcement from Arrow landed in a surprise real made on Friday August 12. Well, we say surprise, but the company’s Arrow Video imprint has long been teasing a second comprehensive set of films from the legendary Shaw Brothers martial arts and action studio from Asia and it has now confirmed the details of the package. Like its predecessor, Shawscope Volume 2 contains a wealth of films as well as a raft of extras. The 14-film set is due on November 21 and will retail at a penny under £170. As the statement revealing the details outlined: “The 14 films include Lau Kar-leung’s instant classic The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and its two sequels, dazzling action comedy Mad Monkey Kung Fu, the Venom Mob in Invincible Shaolin, The Kid with the Golden Arm, Magnificent Ruffians and Ten Tigers of Kwangtung; Kara Hui in My Young Auntie; wild shoot-‘em-up Mercenaries from Hong Kong; the spectacularly unhinged black magic meltdown The Boxer’s Omen; Jet Li in Martial Arts of Shaolin; and The Bare-Footed Kid.” The he fourteen films include Lau Kar-leung’s instant classic The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and its two sequels, dazzling action comedy Mad Monkey Kung Fu, the Venom Mob in Invincible Shaolin, The Kid with the Golden Arm, Magnificent Ruffians and Ten Tigers of Kwangtung; Kara Hui in My Young Auntie; wild shoot-‘em-up Mercenaries from Hong Kong; the spectacularly unhinged black magic meltdown The Boxer’s Omen; Jet Li in Martial Arts of Shaolin; and The Bare-Footed Kid.36th Chamber of Shaolin was, as any hip-hop head will tell you, the inspiration for the Wu Tang Clan and their mad universe of street meets martial arts. Extras include a hefty book, bonus features and two CDs worth of library music used in the film.
Comment on the mammoth Shawscope 2 came from the company’s James Flower, who said: “As our maiden release in the Hong Kong action genre, we were very heartened by the fans' embrace of Shawscope Volume One and were determined to give them something even bigger and better for Volume Two. More films, more new restorations, more special features... it's been a huge challenge but we think the audience will be very pleased, and we're expecting a repeat of the big business the last set did. From the 36th Chamber of Shaolin to The Boxer's Omen, there's truly something for everyone here. We're only just getting started with our classic martial arts releases - we've just signed a deal for two more boxsets' worth of Shaw Brothers films, and I'm currently working on possibly the most complex project of my career for release next summer, a Blu-Ray/4K UHD set dedicated to one of the greatest action movie icons of all time.
And make a date in your diary as industry legend Adrian Munsey, the man whose career spans everything from a hit chart single featuring sheep (no, seriously), to running the long-standing independent imprint Odyssey Video, which was a mainstay of rental stores thanks to its true story releases (many starring Brian Dennehy, the king of the true story). For the multi-hyphenate Munsey is showing no signs of slowing down and he has a new series he has written directed, produced and scored, Wonderland, due to air over four weeks from Thursday August 18 on Sky Arts. In a message, Munsey said: “Wonderland, my new film about the writers of children's literature for Sky Arts, starts on Thursday August 18 at 7pm. It is on Freeview Channel 11 and Sky 130. If you have time to see it, I very much hope you like it. It is in four weekly parts. I particularly hope you like the sheer power of the writing of these wonderful authors. On a personal note, I also hope you like the music I composed for the film.”
AT THE MOVIES
This week’s “the internet is up in arms about” story is news that Warner is, after much deliberation and rumour, going to progress with it plans to revive The Wizard Of Oz. The studio has been mulling over the decision for some time, but news that Kenya Barris, the creator of series Black-ish, is set to write and direct sees it moving up a gear. And it’s also seen the online world, notably Film Twitter, going a bit bonkers. Frank L Baum’s turn of the century tale and its sequels have often been the source of further films after the classic Judy Garland musical, but rarely with big studio clout behind them…
The Hunger Games prequel continues to add cast members at a rate of knots, the latest to get the nod and join the cast is Viola Davis. It appears as if the star will feature in The Ballad Of Songbirds and Snakes as the wonderfully named Dr Volumnia Gaul, one of the creators of he eponymous games, joining the likes of Peter Dinklage and Rachel Ziegler in the cast. Director Francis Lawrence said: “Dr. Gaul is as cruel as she is creative and as fearsome as she is formidable. Snow’s savvy as a political operator develops in no small part due to his experiences with her as the games’ most commanding figure.”
News from Shudder and the horror streaming specialist has signed up horror phenom The Boulet Brothers, the team behind the successful Dragula franchise on the streamer, have been signed up for more Dragula, with another series, as well as a spin-off and a further special. Shudder general manager Craig Engler said: ““With The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula and Resurrection, the Boulet Brothers have proven to be uniquely talented producers and storytellers, creating innovative, inclusive programming that smashes genres and draws a large and loyal following. We’re excited to be working with them on their upcoming new competition series, with more to come in 2023.” The Brothers themselves added: "This is an incredibly exciting time to be a Dragula fan. This new partnership with Shudder (and the AMC family) provides an incredible opportunity for us to expand our cinematic universe and to flesh out all of the characters, stories and stars that audiences have fallen in love with over the years. We couldn’t be more excited about the content that we’re about to unleash, and if fans have felt shocked and engaged with our content in the past, they are truly not ready for what’s coming next. It’s going to be a wild, fun, and terrifying new ride."
TWEET OF THE WEEK
Follow us on www.twitter.com/theraygun…
TRAILERS OF THE WEEK On the way from Peccadillo… https://youtu.be/idKbGAqFRWw Moving menu…
Due from Signature…
Disney+’s first UK series…
We know what this feels like…
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