King Arthur: Excalibur Rising looks like our Western option this time around, and HYOUKA: Part One is it for Anime. I think the scarcity is caused by the industry deciding everyone will be eating hot dogs and watching fireworks rather than DVDs.
The winner this week is Despicable Me 3 (which is actually the 4th film in the series), hands down and no doubt about it. While I will definitely be in the theater for that one, it is not the only choice. The Little Hours is a very twisted medieval romantic comedy that takes place in a convent, and may give Despicable Me a run for its money on the comedy front but with a noticeably older audience.
The interesting western selection this week is Absolutely Anything, a sci-fi comedy with the surviving members of Monty Python plus Simon Pegg, Kate Beckinsale, Eddie Izzard, Joanna Lumley, and Robin Williams (it was his final film). The critics didn’t care for it, with lots of reviews saying it was lacking in laughs, but I am going to have to watch it for myself before I decide if I agree with that. The other option is Power Rangers, which could be campy fun. I missed both films when they were in the theaters, so I have no idea how they are.
Anime brings us Assassination Classroom: Season 2, Part 2, a wonderful animation that keeps going in directions you don’t see coming. That completes the Anime series, but I am excited to let you know they are bringing the live action movie version of this story to the US this Wednesday. I saw it a few years ago while on an overseas flight, it was an amazing film. This isn’t an actual North American release, but rather a Region A Blu Ray Import, so while it will play just fine in North American Blu Ray players and does have English subtitles, it is a bit pricey. Kancolle: Kantai Collection, Complete Series is another 13 episode season in the lives of cute girls who are anthropomorphic battleships. Code Geass: Akito the Exiled is a 5 episode OVA that continues the world wide revolution against the Britannian Empire. Naruto Shippuden Uncut Set 31 is episodes 389 through 402 of that series, with episode 500 being their last one, and Boruto: Naruto Next Generations taking over the franchise from there. Finally Samurai Warriors: Complete Series is more historical epic than fantasy, but enough of the Samurai involved became mythic figures that I can justify including it here. Plus, this isn’t based on the warriors of that era as much as it is based on those same warriors as portrayed in the game of the same name, which puts us right back in the fantasy realm after all.
This time we get the orbital thriller Life, and the award winning comedy fantasy This Beautiful Fantastic. The later film slid right past a lot of folks, if you haven’t seen it you might want to consider checking it out. In Anime Norn9: Complete Collection has a nameless girl join the spaceship Norn in it’s mission to protect the planet from unseen enemies. The Seven Deadly Sins came out with season 1, part 2, while One Piece unleashed season 9, voyage 1, which covers episodes 517 through 528. Sailor Moon S released season 3 part 2, just because they can. While I don’t often mention re-releases, there is a classic this week you should be aware of: The Big O complete collection. A Noir detective with a Giant Mecha, what better combination could there be!
If you have a nearby theater that shows Bollywood films, Super Singh is the story of a man who accidentally gets superpowers and runs around trying to figure out what to do with them. The other option is the American/Dutch film Kill Switch, where the promise of limitless energy leads us very close to the end of the world. Neither movie has a web site I could find, and I wasn’t impressed enough with either trailer to post it here, so I will be catching up on my binge streaming this weekend.
The western winner this week is The LEGO Batman Movie, absolutely my favorite Batman movie of all time. Although that may change, seeing as Joss Whedon is taking over DC Cinema, including the Justice League movie and the Batgirl movie. Except for some reshoots, the filming is largely completed on Justice League, but Whedon gets to be in charge of the editing; so for the first time in years there is hope of a well rounded movie with humor to go with the dark drama.
Anime brings Chivalry of a Failed Knight: Complete Collection, a story of magical knights, one of whom has no magical powers whatsoever. Did you know Shirow Masamune, the creator of Ghost in the Shell,also did Cyborg Comedies? This week we can also pick up Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn, Complete Series, where cyborgs and scientists fight terrorists.