First there was “Apocalypse Now” in 1979, and then “Apocalypse Now Redux” in 2001. In 2019, there came “Apocalypse Now Final Cut” (Lionsgate), which is now released as a 4K Ultra HD Steelbook plus Blu-ray at Best Buy.
“Apocalypse Now Final Cut” lets viewers experience Francis Ford Coppola’s cinematic masterpiece the way it was intended. The soundtrack rumbles with Dolby Atmos and Meyer Sound’s Sensual Sound, and the picture restoration wows.
But there’s more to this than just astounding sound and visuals. Certain scenes are expanded upon or unpeeled. Martin Sheen and Marlon Brando still shine. The R-rated film includes a “Final Cut” introduction by Coppola.
Other titles
“The Protégé” (Lionsgate), released earlier this summer in theaters, is an action thriller in which the protagonist seeks revenge for the revenge killing of an assassination that took place 30 years prior. Maggie Q and Michael Keaton flow easily as the leads, and Samuel L. Jackson plays a “killer” killer.
“Superman & Lois: The Complete First Season” (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment) contains new extended versions of all 15 episodes on its Blu-ray and DVD release. Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch play Superman and Lois Lane, who face one of their biggest challenges ever: dealing with the stress, pressures, and complexities of being working parents. Four featurettes accentuate the release.
“Deadly Friend” (Scream Factory) from director Wes Craven in 1986 is now on Blu-ray as a collector’s edition. The Kristy Swanson flick features a new 2K scan, and new interviews with Swanson, screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin, makeup effects artist Lance Anderson, and composer Charles Bernstein.
“Witkin and Witkin” (IndiePix Films) follows a deep dive of identical twins Jerome Witkin, a painter and educator, and Joel-Peter, a renowned photographer. They are similar, but so different, and have spent much of their 80-year-old lives apart by choice. Director Trisha Ziff digs deep, though, and her 4-plus years at five locations across the United States includes their current homes and the home where they grew up. Finally, at their first joint exhibition, the brothers encounter an unexpected change in their outlook of their work and their relationship.
“Sweet Thing” (Film Movement) is a pleasant celebration of childhood, directed by Alexandre Rockwell. A 15-year-old girl and her 11-year-old brother encounter a runaway, and together they roam the summer landscape in beachy Massachusetts, getting into all kinds of adventures that are sometimes intense but, in the end, capture the sweet age that is youth, where a day can seem to last forever.