New Releases for November 7 2023

CAT CITY (1986)

Unflappable and unstoppable mouse secret agent Nick Grabovsky (László Sinkó) with his deadpan voice, baggy pants and a big "G" on his shirt, goes up against the criminal cat gang run by the sinister, metal-pawed Mr. Teufel (Miklós Benedek), in Hungarian director Béla Ternovszky's surreal, animated sci-fi treasure. Set in the year 80 AMM ("After Mickey Mouse") on Planet X where cats and rats have banded together to eliminate mice, the film features a show-stopping series of musical numbers including a deranged Euro-disco song ("Just purr with me / Touch me with tender paws") and a bizarre chorus of Mexican vampire bats named Los Vampiros who inhabit an ancient Mayan temple. A cross between 1980s Don Bluth-style animation (THE SECRET OF NIMH) and the British TV series "Danger Mouse" (clearly an inspiration here), CAT CITY has long been a beloved cult favorite in Eastern Europe. In Hungarian with English subtitles. (BLU-RAY)

AMERICAN BUFFALO (2023)

Centuries ago, North America's largest surviving land animal once roamed the Great Plains-as well as into the East and down to Mexico-in numbers up to 50 million. This fascinating study directed by Ken Burns examines how the bison was slaughtered to near extinction in the late 1800s, to the peril of the indigenous people who depended on it's existence, and how conservationists afterwards brought it's population back from a few hundred to an estimated 350,000 today. (DVD)

MARK OF THE DEVIL (1970) 

In the midst of the European witch trials, a small Austrian town is subject to the sadistic whims of self-appointed witchfinder Albino, who inflicts torture and agonizing death on those he accuses of conspiracy with the Devil. But when the zealous Lord Cumberland arrives, along with his executioner and aristocratic young attendant Christian, to take over the responsibility of local witch-hunting, the town is plunged into even greater depths of terror and depravity as he metes out ever more brutal tortures on the populace, all in the name of God. As Lord Cumberland's maniacal practices reach a fever pitch, and Christian's would-be love interest, Vanessa, ends up as his latest target, Christian is thrown into a crisis of faith, as the perilous edge of violence draws ever closer. (BLU-RAY + 4KULTRAHD)

T. R. BASKIN (1971)

Candice Bergen (Murphy Brown) is T.R. Baskin, a naïve young woman with a droll sense of humor, who ventures from small town Ohio to the bright lights of Chicago in search of an interesting career, intellectual stimulation, true love and happiness... and instead discovers that the urban existence is as unfulfilling and lonely as the one she fled. A tender encounter with one man (James Caan, The Godfather) ends with an unfortunate misunderstanding. However, it leads to a therapeutic Sunday afternoon with a sincere traveling salesman (Peter Boyle, Everybody Loves Raymond)), who provides hope and encouragement, as he confides in her about his own insecurities and disappointments. Herbert Ross (Footloose, Steel Magnolias) directs this wryly humorous drama from a perceptive script by Peter Hyams (Outland, Capricorn One). (BLU-RAY and DVD)

SHOWING UP (2022)

A sculptor (Michelle Williams) preparing to open a new show tries to work amidst the daily dramas of family and friends. A vibrant and captivatingly funny portrait of art & craft from beloved filmmaker Kelly Reichardt (First Cow, Certain Women), and with an endearing and charismatic ensemble cast including André Benjamin and Oscar-nominated actors Hong Chau and Judd Hirsch. (BLU-RAY)