Blu Tuesday is a weekly column where we review the newest Blu-ray and 4K releases, along with a brief rundown of the included bonus material, to determine whether they’re worth buying, renting or skipping.
Pick of the Week: “City of Lies”
Based on journalist Randall Sullivan’s 2007 book about the LAPD’s investigation into the murder of rapper Christopher Wallace aka The Notorious B.I.G., “City of Lies” isn’t nearly as bad as its trailer suggests. It’s undoubtedly messy, but that’s due in part to the labyrinthine real-life story on which it’s based. There’s almost too much story here for director Brad Furman to condense into two hours, especially when pulling on one plot thread only unravels another. Fortunately, the movie gets a major boost from its two stars. Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker are excellent screen partners, elevating the material beyond its generic roots, with Depp in particular delivering one of his most restrained performances in years. Though “City of Lies” is by no means a great film, it’s a serviceable true crime drama that contains some fine moments amid the dross.
Extras include an audio commentary by Furman and Sullivan, as well as a making-of featurette and some deleted scenes. FINAL VERDICT: RENT
Also Out This Week:
“Flashback” — Writer/director Christopher MacBride’s sophomore effort is one of the worst moviegoing experiences of the year. It’s a pretentious, self-important psychological thriller that goes around and around for 98 minutes without saying anything of interest. While MacBride does some interesting things visually with the flashback sequences, especially in the film’s final act, they don’t really advance the plot in any meaningful way; it’s confusion for the sake of confusion, as if that somehow makes it more profound. Additionally, there’s no emotional core to the story, with most of the actors turning in bland, colorless performances, while the film’s big reveal is incredibly anticlimactic — like a children’s magician who thinks that pulling a rabbit out of a hat is impressive. Though “Flashback” is certainly reminiscent of cult classics like “Donnie Darko,” “Memento” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” all it succeeds in doing is putting you to sleep. Extras include an audio commentary by MacBride and some deleted scenes. FINAL VERDICT: SKIP
Disclosure: Bullz-Eye was provided a copy of the above titles for review purposes.
