This Week in Blu-ray / DVD Releases: Terminator Genisys, Trainwreck

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

This Week: Terminator tries again, a brilliant first season of Better Call Saul, and rubbernecking Amy Schumer in Trainwreck.

► There have been worse movies this year, but none I despised more than TERMINATOR: GENISYS. Not just because it was a raging disappointment, or that it turned a pivotal character from the franchise into a villain. It's because it had the audacity to render the first two movies obsolete. That's right, this lousy pile of hack cliches wants you to disregard everything that happened in James Cameron's two classics, because this is the new narrative now. Or…maybe not, because the well-deserved trashing this got at the box office has put a hold on all sequels, and by the time the stench leaves the air don't be surprised if this one's erased from history like the first 'Hulk' movie. Arny is back, but little about his character resonates, as Reese (Jai Courtney) is sent back to the original 1984 timeline to find events have been altered and Sarah Connor (a horribly miscast Emilia Clarke) has been raised by a Terminator (that would be Arny). The convoluted plot never makes sense, and even the action sequences feel undercooked. A massive letdown, and after three straight 'Terminator' clunkers, Judgment Day may have finally arrived.

► Judd Apatow is usually the most important thing about a Judd Apatow comedy, but with TRAINWRECK he just had to get out of the way. As star and writer, this is Amy Schumer's show from the first scene, giving the tired rom-com genre some much-needed raunch. It's funny as hell, but the romance is always front and center thanks to a great partner in Bill Hader. He's the successful sports doctor that sports illiterate Schumer is sent to do a feature story on by her glib magazine. There are rough waters, and as always Apatow tosses in an amazing assortment of supporting characters to flesh things out, including – no joke – John Cena and LeBron James in some of the funniest shit I saw in a movie theatre all year. A genuinely feel-good movie which doesn't abuse your sweet tooth. Unrated blu-ray includes extended scenes, the Trainwreck 'comedy tour,' and advice from Apatow on how to direct athletes.

► In virtually every way, BETTER CALL SAUL was better than expected. And we expected plenty. But the biggest surprise is how it operated in the ‘Breaking Bad’ universe while seeming like a completely different show. Most all of it hinged on Bob Odenkirk, who brilliantly shows us a sad-sack Saul before he became the big shot attorney with the cheesy commercials. But it’s Jonathan Banks, back again as former cop Mike, who elevates it to ‘Breaking Bad’s level of greatness. This is the blueprint for how to do a spin-off. Blu-ray loads up on goodies, including three uncensored episodes, a set visit on day one, and ‘Kettle Kommentary’ with “the world’s squarest outlaws” Craig & Betsy Kettleman (Jeremy Shamos and Julie Ann Emery).

► It isn’t easy finding gems in the scrap heap of Kurt Cobain/Nirvana documentaries, but Brett Morgen’s MONTAGE OF HECK may be the most thorough and revealing of the bunch. It was made with the cooperation of Courtney Love and daughter Frances Bean, but don’t let that deter you: Cobain’s music and legacy is well accounted for, along with the low self esteem and social awkwardness that made him such a reluctant spokesman for a generation. We wanted Cobain to be another John Lennon, but he clearly wasn’t interested.

► A bushel of Clint Eastwood’s second tier movies hit blu-ray this week, including ‘The Eiger Sanction’ and ‘Coogan’s Bluff,’ but 1971’s PLAY MISTY FOR ME was a shocking detour for the legendary cowboy. For his first film as director, Eastwood plays a radio DJ who starts an affair with a huge fan (Jessica Walter). When he decides to break it off, she goes full psycho – and creates the template for ‘Fatal Attraction’ 16 years later. A huge hit for Eastwood, way ahead of its time, and showed audiences would follow him beyond westerns. Includes a look back at the film’s legacy.

► For Bill Condon’s MR. HOLMES, Ian McKellan plays the great detective in his retirement years, struggling to improve his failing memory. He’s especially irked at Watson’s fictionalized account of his last case, and wants to set the record straight. We see the troublesome case doled out in flashbacks, along with why he quit being a detective. A showcase for McKellan and a feast for Sherlock Holmes fans, who have it pretty good lately.

► In the summer dud SELF/LESS, Ben Kingsley is a dying billionaire who takes part in a radical experiment enabling his consciousness to be transferred to an artificially produced body (Ryan Reynolds). Or so he thinks. When he stops taking his medication, there are hallucinations which suggest his new body might have a past. The sci-fi concept could have gone in several interesting directions, but director Tarsem Singh settles for tiresome action instead.

► A documentary I totally want to see is one explaining how the once great Nicolas Cage went from an Oscar 20 years ago to video-on-demand dreck like PAY THE GHOST. He plays a professor searching for his son after he goes missing during a Halloween parade. As the one-year anniversary approaches, there are signs he may be caught in another realm. Sarah Wayne Callies, formerly of The Walking Dead, plays the mom. Because she has a proven track record of watching the kid.

Also out this week: