This Week in Blu-ray / DVD Releases: Ash vs. Evil Dead, The Nice Guys, Clown

Last Updated on July 31, 2021

This Week: The groovy Ash vs. Evil Dead, the (mostly) stellar sixth season of The Walking Dead, and Shane Black's nifty The Nice Guys.

► At Fan Expo in Toronto seven years ago, Bruce Campbell explained why he wouldn’t do another Evil Dead movie: “Because everyone will hate it.” So, remake aside, he and Sam Raimi did something better: ASH vs. EVIL DEAD, the series. The same vibe, the same chaotic mix of humor and horror, on a weekly basis…and it was glorious. As an older, burned out Ash, Campbell has never been better, joining two sidekicks (Ray Santiago and Dana DeLorenzo) to try and contain the Deadites after he mistakenly reads the Necronomicon again while on drugs. The stakes are much bigger this time, though, since the carnage isn’t relegated to a cabin in the woods (which he revisits for some nostalgia chills late in the season). Lucy Lawless joins the party as a mysterious figure who blames Ash for the death of her family and vows to kill him. This 10-episode first season was a dream come true for long-deprived fans. Season 2 starts Oct. 2.

► Box office bust it may be, but THE NICE GUYS was some vintage Shane Black – offbeat ‘buddy’ comedy full of great zingers and above average action. Set in late ‘70s L.A., Ryan Gosling is a sad ass private eye hired by a woman to find her niece, a porn star who supposedly died in a car crash. He reluctantly accepts, and realizes a missing girl is key to the case, which puts him in the crosshairs of an enforcer (Russell Crowe) she hires. They of course team up when things go all ‘Chinatown.’ Extras include the featurette ‘Always Bet on Black’ and the making of ‘Worst. Detectives. Ever.’

► For its best season since the first, THE WALKING DEAD focuses on two main storylines in Season 6, both meant to show Rick’s leadership crumbling. The first has him make the seemingly smart decision to lure a nearby horde of zombies away from the group’s newfound home of Alexandria, only for things to go spectacularly wrong (in a spectacularly great episode). When the dust settles, he then faces the looming threat of Negan, leading to the infamous season finale that pissed people off so much. At this point, fans relish jumping on the show’s weaker aspects while ignoring what it does right. There was also the first sign of viewer fatigue – ratings dipped from Seasons 4 and 5, even though it’s still the top show on cable. Blu-ray bonus stuff includes an extended version of the finale, tributes to this season’s deceased, and deleted scenes.

► Upcoming ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ director Jon Watts cut his teeth with the 2014 horror flick CLOWN, which finally got a U.S. release this year. Andy Powers is a dad who puts on an old clown costume for his kid’s birthday party, which permanently adheres to his skin. Turns out it’s made from the skin and hair of an ancient demon, and it needs to feed on kids. A bit formulaic, but this Eli Roth-produced flick has the heart of old school horror.

► One of this year’s big sequel casualties, THE HUNTSMAN: WINTER’S WAR may have cost Universal $70 million once all the bad news is added up. Kristen Stewart is out, Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain are in, while the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) and the Evil Queen (Charlize Theron) resume hostilities in a movie which stops the franchise dead. At one point, Frank Darabont was close to directing this. Instead, it went to first-timer Cedric Nicolas-Troyan.

► The dopey dialogue and far too many bland episodes caught up to THE STRAIN in its second season, which struggled to establish the book trilogy’s apocalyptic feel – most of the world seems pretty chill about this vampire takeover, no? It doesn’t bode well for the show to stick to the ballsy ending of the books. Season 2 has the gang searching for the ancient book which could end The Master’s reign as New York continues to fall. Ratings took a sizable dip, but the third season starts Aug. 28.

► Netflix’s NARCOS follows the rise of Columbian drug lord Pablo Escobar (Wagner Moura) in the late ‘70s, cornering the cocaine market while fending off the DEA, guerilla communists and his own country’s government. Ten intense episodes, ending with Escobar’s 1992 escape from La Catedral prison. Lost in the shadow of its bigger shows, this was one of Netflix’s crown jewels when it premiered last summer. Season 2 is supposed to arrive Sept. 2.

► CBS’s unofficial version of the BBC’s ‘Sherlock,’ ELEMENTARY has Jonny Lee Miller as a modern day Sherlock Holmes cracking cases in New York while ignoring pretty much all police procedure. Lucy Liu is his Watson, and in Season 4 she’s keeping an eye on his sobriety after his heroin relapse, which brings his dad (John Noble) back into his life.

Also out this week: