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: “Moana 2”
Much has been made about the fact that “Moana 2” started out as an animated TV series for Disney+ before the powers that be decided to reverse course and turn it into a feature-length film instead, and while the episode “breaks” are somewhat noticeable, it doesn’t really affect the overall product. Sure, the music isn’t as memorable, but the songs (written by Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, stepping in for Lin-Manuel Miranda) are much better than expected, while the new characters provide some necessary comic relief. Most importantly, “Moana 2” doesn’t feel like a lazy rehash of the first film like so many sequels these days, and although it may not be quite as good, it’s still an entertaining outing that successfully expands the “Moana” universe in ways that open up the possibility for additional adventures.
Extras include a collection of behind-the-scenes featurettes, some deleted scenes and a sing-along version of the film. FINAL VERDICT: RENT
Also Out This Week:
“Wolf Man” — Writer-director Leigh Whannell earned a lot of goodwill from horror fans for his 2020 reimagining of “The Invisible Man,” so it’s disappointing that his second crack at the Universal Monsters franchise, “Wolf Man,” will likely have the opposite effect. “The Invisible Man” was a smart and scary modern update of the classic tale, whereas “Wolf Man” is a dull and dumb genre flick that seems to ignore everything that made its predecessor enjoyable. Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner are both good actors, but they’re unable to make their characters even remotely likable or compelling due to a poor script, while the few bits of monster action are pretty forgettable. Though the “Fly”-inspired moments of body horror are promising, they only serve as a reminder of what could have been. Extras include an audio commentary by Whannell and some behind-the-scenes featurettes. FINAL VERDICT: SKIP
Disclosure: Bullz-Eye was provided a copy of the above titles for review purposes.
