Steve Geise

Black Bag 4K UHD Review: Soderbergh’s Bag of Tricks Expands to Espionage

Although it’s far from perfect, Steven Soderbergh’s latest film largely delivers on its promise of smart adult spy drama.

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Rhapsody in Blue Blu-ray Review: Rapturous Rhapsody

Blu-ray arrives from newly remastered 4K scans of nitrate materials and is extended with over 12 minutes of footage never before seen by the general public.

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Lover Come Back Blu-ray Review: Pillow Talk 2

Following the success (and enduring popularity) of their first rom-com together, Pillow Talk, Rock Hudson and Doris Day teamed up again in this charmer.

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The Magilla Gorilla Show: The Complete Series Blu-ray Review: This Monkey’s Gone to Heaven

This classic Hanna-Barbera series finally gets a Blu-ray release, and the results should finally satisfy fans disappointed by previous DVD drops.

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Book Review: Buz Sawyer Vol. 5: Island of the Lotus Eaters by Roy Crane

After a publishing gap of over eight years, Fantagraphics continues their collected editions of Roy Crane’s long-running adventure comic strip.

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Terror in the Fog: The Wallace Krimi at CCC Blu-ray Box Set Review: Big, Beautiful Box of Krimi

Eureka’s new Masters of Cinema Blu-ray box set collects a selection of 1960s West German crime films, aka krimis.

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Book Review: The Cabbie: Definitive Edition Vols. 1 & 2 by Marti

Marti’s creativity is on full display in both his unforgettable character designs and his Lynchian story scenarios, exposing the gritty underbelly of urban crime.

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The Old Woman with the Knife Movie Review: Kill Bill Vol. 3

Writer/director Min Kyu-dong’s new action drama inverts the vengeance genre by focusing on the target, not the killer.

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Landman: Season One Blu-ray Review: Billy Bob Thornton Hits a Gusher

It’s a fine continuation of Sheridan’s winning formula, and also a welcome return for fans missing Thornton’s stellar work in his fascinating prior series, Goliath

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Book Review: Sunrise on the Reaping (A Hunger Games Novel) by Suzanne Collins

While Collins tread fresh ground in her prior spinoff title, Reaping just feels like a retread, with Haymitch little more than a male Katniss.

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A Tale of Sorrow and Sadness Blu-ray Review: A (Golf) Star Is Born

The film fully proves that Suzuki’s maverick nature wasn’t dulled by his ten years in feature film purgatory.

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Book Review: Skin by Sabien Clement and Mieke Versyp

Clement’s dreamy watercolors swirl underneath Versyp’s lyrical text, rejecting the restrictions of panel lines and word bubbles to create a work of art.

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Girl with a Suitcase Blu-ray Review: Impossible Beauty Meets Improbable Love

Two years before her rise to worldwide recognition in both 8 ½ and The Pink Panther, Claudia Cardinale stunned Italy and France.

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Heavens Above! Blu-ray Review: Peter Sellers Plays It Straight

Peter Sellers delivers a heart-warming dramatic turn that stands firmly alongside his best comedic performances.

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The Room Next Door DVD Review: Dream Team Faces a Nightmare Scenario

Pedro Almodóvar’s first English-language feature film is stacked with the dream casting of Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton

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I’m All Right Jack Blu-ray Review: Come for the Stars, Stay for the Sparkling Satire

This 1959 British comedy boasts an impressive array of talent headlined by Peter Sellers, but its true strength is its writing.

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Hardboiled: Three Pulp Thrillers by Alain Corneau Blu-ray Box Set Review: Legendary Actors Elevate Classy Genre Films

French director Alain Corneau helmed this trio of hardboiled crime dramas featuring top-tier acting talent and gritty scripts.

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Book Review: Baby Blue by Bim Eriksson

Eriksson’s imagined fascist society bears eerie similarities to our own political landscape, making for a riveting story anchored by her stylish artwork.

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Book Review: Beat It, Rufus by Noah Van Sciver

Cartoonist Noah Van Sciver’s latest comedic fake biography tracks the fall and further fall of a degenerate loser with visions of grandeur.

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Book Review: Murderburg by Carol Lay

Carol Lay’s second graphic novel for Fantagraphics collects a series of vignettes about the residents and visitors inhabiting a fictional small town.

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Character Blu-ray Review: The Unforgettable Tale of Two Characters

A rising young lawyer runs afoul of the police when he becomes the prime suspect in the murder of the city’s most feared bailiff.

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Book Review: World Within the World: Collected Minicomix & Short Works 2010-2022 by Julia Gfrörer

Julia Gfrörer’s new hardcover collects 30 of her short works exploring themes of sexuality and horror through the ages.

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Seven Veils Movie Review: Two Egoyans

Writer/director Atom Egoyan’s latest film is designed to allow him to marry both of his principal creative outlets into one project.

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Book Review: Prince Valiant Vol. 29: 1993-1994 by John Cullen Murphy and Cullen Murphy

Prince Valiant and friends continue their globetrotting wanderlust in the latest collection of two years of Sunday comic strips.

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The Cat (1988) Blu-ray Review: This Cat Toys with the Audience

This 1988 German heist film has such a conventional first act that it seems almost miraculous when it develops into a twisty thriller.

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Book Review: Jimmy! The Comic Art of James Swinnerton

This superb overview of his career paints the definitive picture of an overlooked founding father of comics.

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Running on Karma Blu-ray Review: Running on Empty

Andy Lau and Johnnie To spin a bizarrely original tale of an ex-Buddhist monk with the ability to see people’s past lives and predict their future.

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Underworld Beauty Blu-ray Review: Nikkatsu Noir

While Suzuki exhibits some hints of his later iconoclastic directorial style, he’s mostly content here to color within the noir lines.

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Black Eye Blu-ray Review: The Hammer Builds a Winner

Fred “The Hammer” Williamson stars in this mid-’70s crime drama, which for the right audience is really all you need to know.

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Mr. Lucky Blu-ray Review: Luck Be a Lady

Grant and Day’s easy, witty rapport makes it fun to root for their relationship, even as their shifting situation seems to undermine any hope for success.

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The Talk of the Town 4K UHD Review: Bromance Before Romance

The charming relationship between Leopold and Michael is the strongest aspect of the film, two unlikely cohorts who become the best of friends. 

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Yokohama BJ Blues Blu-ray Review: BJ’s Long Goodbye

Considering the minimal financial resources available to director Eiichi Kudo, this competent if unremarkable crime film is a minor miracle.

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Shawscope: Volume Three Limited Edition Box Set Blu-ray Review: Box of Delights

Fans with any interest in Shaw’s massive martial arts catalog will be thoroughly delighted, making this an essential purchase for the true aficionados.

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Book Review: Macanudo: The Way of the Penguin by Liniers

Argentinian cartoonist Liniers returns with his third Fantagraphics collection of his ongoing comic strip, Macanudo.

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Book Review: Disney Comics: Around the World in One Hundred Years: Deluxe Edition

This curated collection highlights the Disney magic that allows century-old work to blend seamlessly with modern adventures from around the world.

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Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus Blu-ray Review: Art is Long, Life is Short

Opus is a solo concert film produced a few months before Ryuichi Sakamoto’s death in 2023, comprising 20 pieces covering his five-decade career.

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Super Spies and Secret Lies: Three Undercover Classics from Shaw Brothers Blu-ray Review: Yeah Baby, Yeah!

With the rise of spy films in the wake of James Bond’s 1960s success, Shaw Brothers pivoted to produce their own take on the phenomenon.

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Tomie Blu-ray Review: Strictly for Junji Ito Completionists

Oikawa’s film adaptation of Tomie pales in comparison to its source material, with none of the manga’s suspense and barely any supernatural elements.

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Book Review: Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund by Caitlin McGurk

Barbara Shermund was a pioneering female cartoonist and feminist in an era when both were exceedingly rare.

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Book Review: The Complete I, René Tardi, P.O.W. by Jacques Tardi

Jacques Tardi grew up hearing about his father’s life as a soldier during World War II, particularly his years spent as a prisoner of war.

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Funny Girl Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: She’s the Greatest Star

Barbra Streisand lights up the screen in her movie debut, commanding every second of her role as showgirl-turned-superstar, Fanny Brice.

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Kiss Me, Kate (2024) Movie Review: Kiss Me, Stephanie

It’s everything you would expect from a modern production of the musical, kissed to life by Block’s towering performance.

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Didi Blu-ray Review: Ode to the Mostly Good Old Days

Didi introduces us to Chris (Izaac Wang), a troubled teen getting through summer break before starting high school in Fremont, CA. 

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Dogra Magra Blu-ray Review: Matsumoto’s Swan Song

While it isn’t nearly as bonkers as its premise, it is a thoroughly entertaining and expertly crafted epilogue to Matsumoto’s notable film career.

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Book Review: Sunday by Olivier Schrauwen

Schrauwen’s new graphic novel is completely unlike anything else out there, but of all of his works, it’s also the most welcoming and relatable to new fans.

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About Dry Grasses Blu-ray Review: Burns Like a Brush Fire

Ceylan’s stunning plot structure and surprising character development combine for an unparalleled cinematic achievement.

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Book Review: Innocence and Seduction: The Art of Dan DeCarlo: Expanded Edition by Bill Morrison

DeCarlo may always be remembered first as the “Archie guy”, but the book provides an enlightening look at his full history and his multifaceted career.

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Book Review: Crusher Loves Bleeder Bleeder Loves Crusher by Thomas Stemrich and Patrick Keck

Stemrich’s affecting tales and Keck’s inventive cartooning deliver a richly rewarding comics experience well above expectations.

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The Threat Blu-ray Review: Battle of Wits Royale

Fukasaku expertly ratchets up the tension throughout the film, turning an initially tense situation into a pulse-pounding game of wits.

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Gregg Araki’s Teen Apocalypse Trilogy Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Smells Like Teen Spirit

Araki’s brand new director-approved digital restorations offer the most complete and technically polished versions of the films ever available. 

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