A Place For Film: Episode 34 - Physical Media Isn’t Dead, It Just Smells Funny. Blu-ray Reviews for May 2021 (with Amanda Hutchins)

Footage Not Found: The IU Cinema Podcast

Well, folks, things have heated up considerably since I started doing these reviews last fall. I’ve reached out to so many great distributors and all of them have been kind, helpful, and generous with what they allow access to and there are some genuinely amazing new discoveries this past month.

Joining the round-up we have Arrow Video with its release of post-war Japanese New Wave director Yasuzo Masumura’s cult satire Giant and Toys, a movie about avarice and the water/vinegar mix of western influence on Japanese salaryman culture. In association with Arrow, MVD’s “Rewind Collection” has put out an extended director's cut of a 1997 Hong Kong action-cinema-inspired barnburner, Drive. Criterion comes in strong with its own underrated film in the Tyrone Power carny-noir Nightmare Alley, based off of the controversial and extremely racy novel of the same name by William Lindsay Gresham. Fun City Editions returns this month with a little seen Robert Forrest/Nancy Kwan two-hander called Walking the Edge, a low-budget and slick-sounding neo-noir and revenge film.

However, our main segment focuses on two art-centric docs released by Kino Lorber: the impassioned and red-hot Chris McKim documentary about queer East Village artist David Wojnarowicz, Wojanrowicz: F**k You You F*ggot F**ker, as well as the more whimsical and pragmatic look into graphic artist M.C. Escher's process, life, and dreams with M.C. Escher: Journey to Infinity. Joining me for that segment will be the lovely and engaging new Operations and Visual Arts Manager at the Lotus Education and Arts Foundation, Amanda Hutchins!

Honestly, May has probably been the most interesting month to date, filled with movies packing much style, heft, and aesthetic. Give it a listen and I'm sure you’ll find something to watch while the cicadas hum in the background as spring winds down and summer starts peeking its head through.

If you want to read my thoughts on some films that didn't quite make the cut, head on over to the IU Cinema Blog and check those out!