New Releases for July 30 2024

AMANDA AND THE ALIEN (1995) 

If CLUELESS was zapped into a movie where Gen X icon Nicole Eggert (BAYWATCH) falls in love with a body-snatching extraterrestrial, it still wouldn't be enough to describe the mindwarping charm of AMANDA & THE ALIEN. Amanda (Eggert) is an artist who leads a quiet life. That is, until she falls in love with a hunky alien who can only survive by swapping human hosts every few days. This bizarro sci-fi comedy is an explosion of 1990s nostalgia, featuring navel rings, CGI morphing effects, an indie rock soundtrack from Jane Wiedlin of The Go-Gos and Sparks, and an unforgettable sex scene involving paprika. A smash hit when it premiered on Showtime in 1995, AMANDA & THE ALIEN has been newly restored from its original 35mm camera negative. (BLU-RAY)

REPTILICUS (1961) (3 DISKS) 

A group of mining engineers prospecting for copper in the mountains of Lapland make an incredible discovery when their drilling unearths the remains of a giant, prehistoric amphibious reptile. A section of the creature's tail is exhumed from beneath the frozen tundra and transported to the National Aquarium in Copenhagen, where it's placed in a cold room to be studied by Professor Otto Martens and his research team. But when the door to the room is accidentally left ajar, the tail segment begins to thaw, quickly regenerating itself into a gigantic beast! Now loose and embarking on a cross-country rampage, the military are forced to employ all means necessary to rout the creature - now dubbed "Reptilicus" - before it launches a full-scale attack on the capital. (BLU-RAY + 4KULTRAHD)

QUEENDOM (2023)

In defiance of Russia’s anti-LGTBQ laws, a queer, 21-year-old artist risks her life performing in surreal costumes throughout Moscow. Jenna Marvin’s radical public performances blend artistry and activism in this terrific documentary. (DVD)

ANSELM (2023) (JANUS CONTEMPORARIES) (2 DISKS)

In Anselm, Wim Wenders creates a hypnotic portrait of Anselm Kiefer, one of the most innovative and important painters and sculptors of our time. Shot in 6K resolution, and presented theatrically and on Blu-ray in 3D, the film presents an immersive cinematic experience of the German artist’s work, which explores the overawing beauty of human existence, landscape, and myth while confronting the horrors of his country’s history and seeking to undo the postwar silence in which both artist and director came of age. Through archival footage, biographical scenes, and direct access to his subject at work amid the massive installation in France where he now lives among his creations, Wenders traces the arc of Kiefer’s career, provoking an engagement with creativity through the senses, the intellect, and the spirit. (BLU-RAY + 3D BLU-RAY)

EIGHTEEN YEARS IN PRISON (1967)

Trying to survive in the ruins of post-war Japan, Kawada (Noboru Ando, By a Man's Face Shall You Know Him) and Tsukada (Asao Koike, Sympathy the Underdog) run afoul of the military police after stealing valuable copper wire. Kawada is arrested and sent to prison, but Tsukada uses their gains to start a yakuza gang. Facing violent inmates and a cruel warden (Tomisaburo Wakayama, Big Time Gambling Boss), Kawada vows to escape and stop his former partner. Tai Kato directs this epic prison story with characteristic visual flair, while gangster-turned-actor Ando delivers a stunning performance charged with real-life gravitas. As an examination of the deep scars of wartime, this genre classic is also a clear precursor to Kinji Fukasaku's epoch-making Battles Without Honour and Humanity series. (BLU-RAY)