New on DVD this week...
Whiplash
Whiplash, easily the most intense film of 2014, is now on DVD and digital HD. Jazz drummer Andrew (Miles Teller) is thrilled to be invited to be part of Terence Fletcher鈥檚 (J.K. Simmons) exclusive jazz ensemble, but soon finds himself in the cross-hairs of Fletcher鈥檚 abusive tactics and on the verge of a breakdown. The performance earned Simmons an Oscar; Teller is wound-up perfection. Extras on the Blu-ray include Timekeepers, a musician鈥檚 dream, featuring Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Kenny Aronoff, Doane Perry (Jethro Tull), Peter Erskine (Weather Report), Simon Phillips, Gregg Bissonette (Ringo Starr), Ryan Brown (Zappa), Roy McCurdy (Blood Sweat and Tears), Cliff Martinez, Gina Schock (the Go-Gos), Blair Sinta, Kate Schellenbach and Wally Ingram, all weighing in on the art of drumming. There鈥檚 the Whiplash short film, which started it all; a Q&A at the Toronto International Film Festival with director Damien Chazelle, Teller and Simmons; Simmons and Chazelle also lend commentary; plus trailer, previews and more.
Big Hero 6
Parentless boy genius Hiro (Ryan Potter) is wasting his talents making a quick buck in San Fransokyo鈥檚 illegal robot-fighting circuit. He鈥檚 motivated by his college-aged brother (Daniel Henney) to enroll and join a lab full of like-minded tech geeks, but when tragedy strikes, Hiro finds himself the reluctant owner of a giant, squishy care-provider robot called Baymax, while solving a deadly mystery. Disney鈥檚 first animated film based on a Marvel comic is lushly realized, with tons of action and a large, surprisingly sentimental, marshmallowy centre. It also won Best Animated fFeature at this year鈥檚 Oscars. Among the Blu-ray鈥檚 special features are one on the film鈥檚 origin story and how the tale was tweaked to reflect Disney values. Other extras: Feast, a theatrical short; Big Animator 6: the animation team reunites to chat about the process; deleted scenes (including alternate openings) with intros by directors Don Hall and Chris Williams; theatrical teaser.聽
Dumb and Dumber To
Harry and Lloyd are back 20 years after the original Dumb and Dumber, to the delight of loyal fans everywhere. After Harry finds out he鈥檚 been a dad for years, he and Lloyd travel cross-country 鈥� by Mutt Cutts van, hearse and zamboni 鈥� to meet the daughter he never should have spawned. Kathleen Turner, Rob Riggle and Rachel Melvin co-star. Special features on the Blu-ray include a gag reel (wherein Carrey eats way too many hot dogs); there鈥檚 a five-chapter extra covering all aspects of casting, cameos, stunts etc., and yet another proclaiming the film鈥檚 subversive cleverness: 鈥渟mart is boring鈥� insists one of the film鈥檚 writers; there鈥檚 also an alternate opening, deleted and extended scenes.
Z Nation: Season One
Can鈥檛 get enough on the undead in your day-to-day viewing? From the creators of Sharknado comes Z Nation, serving up scares and tongue-in-cheek silliness in equal measure. Harold Perrineau, DJ Qualls, Tom Everett Scott, Michael Welch, Anastasia Baranova, Kellita Smith and Keith Allen co-star in this story of a post-apocalyptic world where there is no cure for the zombie-inducing ZN1 virus, but there is an eighth聽sacrament, a thriving underground drug trade, and a group of survivors making one last roadtrip to save humanity. Loads of extras on the standard disc: gag reel; a making-of extra; producers, DOP and director chat about how the concept grew into being; there鈥檚 a visual effects featurette (Znado is a highlight); a gore extra; an interview with composer Jason Gallagher; and a Z 鈥渒ill reel鈥� (the Liberty Bell is a highlight). Good fun.
