Digital CraveNew on DVD, Blu-ray and Digital: Scarlett Johannson, predatory aliens and blue macaws
One the pleasures of monitoring the DVD and digital marketplace is tracking those smaller movies that flash through theaters then disappear.
Such is the case with the smart and spooky sci-fi thriller Under The Skin, starring Scarlett Johannson as a sort of alien predator who hunts in the hills and cities of Scotland.
We start in a gloomy extradimensional space where the Johannson character, nude, appears to assume the skin and clothing of another nude woman -- a clone or host body, maybe. It only gets weirder from here.
As the alien prowls Scotland, our expectations are subverted in an intriguing fashion. The female alien gazes lasciviously at males, even if they're just regular Glasgow blokes walking down the street. It's a conspicuous reversal of the way the camera usually gazes at females. The alien has no trouble seducing the lads -- she looks like Scarlett Johannson, after all. But when she lures them back into her extradimensional space, the men meet a most unpleasant fate.
Under The Skin isn't like your typical science fiction movie. In fact, it's not like any other film at all, really. It's an arty and ambitious piece of work that requires careful attention. Director Jonathan Glazer filmed many of the sequences using hidden cameras and non-actor performers.
The film doesn't play by the usual rules, and it's not for the faint of heart. I don't want to spoil anything, but reflect afterward on the story as a whole, and you may find the film has some intriguing (and disturbing) notions about what it means to be human.
If you like weird and thinky science fiction, Under The Skin is a must-see. And even if you don't, try it anyway. It's one of the year's best, I think.
Extras: The bonus materials on DVD and Blu-ray are sadly meager -- a single behind-the-scenes featurette creatively titled "Making of Under the Skin."
Also New To DVD, Blu-ray and Digital:
Another good pick for sci-fi fans, the documentary Jodorowsky's Dune chronicles director Alejandro Jodorowsky's ultimately aborted, and frankly bananas, attempt to adapt the classic sci-fi novel Dune.
For the kids, the animated comedy Rio 2 continues the tale of everybody's favorite Brazilian blue macaws.
Fans of the cult Canadian hit will be happy to hear that Orphan Black: Season 2 has been issued to DVD and Blu-ray.
Lost a bit in the shuffle of great series TV these day, AMC's old-school Western returns with Hell on Wheels: Season 3.
If you like your action pictures grim, grimy and ultraviolent, consider the The Raid 2, sequel to the 2011 hit featuring brutal Indonesian gangs and obscure martial arts.
National treasure Robert Duvall plays a Texas rancher in the Spanish-American co-production A Night in Old Mexico.
Plus:
