Review: This week’s releases is all about choices

Frost (Blu-ray & Audio CD)
The story of a young woman (Devanny Pinn) and her father (Vernon Wells) who have to fight for survival after being stranded on a remote mountainside during a storm.

The opening mood of the movie is already a bit odd as the woman makes the long journey to visit her estranged father who lives in a remote area while in the late stages of her pregnancy. She’s not thrilled about the trip, but feels obligated to tell him about his imminent grandchild in person. After some awkward conversation, the pair set out to recapture some memories. Instead, they have a completely preventable car accident, followed by a number of bad decisions that results in their situation worsening. This picture would be entirely forgettable, if it wasn’t for a gruesome sequence that lingers just for the shock value and the potential to turn people’s stomachs.

There are no special features. (Cleopatra Films)

The Godfather, The Godfather Part II & The Godfather Coda steelbook (4K Ultra HD & Digital copy)

The multigenerational saga of the rise and fall of the Corleone crime family.

The new steelbook releases not only include remastered, high-def versions of Francis Ford Coppola‘s films The Godfather and The Godfather II, but also the recently re-edited version of the final film, Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone. The trilogy stands up even now that it’s celebrating its 50^th anniversary. Al Pacino as Michael Corleone, the rising Godfather in 1950s New York, is simply outstanding as is the rest of the cast, which includes Marlon Brando, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton and Talia Shire. The first sequel then incorporates Robert De Niro as the young Vito Corleone, recounting his tale of a young Sicilian immigrant who took over organized crime first in his NY neighbourhood and then beyond. Although no one went back in time to reshoot any of the film, this version improves on some of the most significant issues seen in The Godfather III. The movie’s runtime is only shortened by about five minutes, but it’s the reordering of scenes and tighter editing that improves the film’s pace and impact. Most notably, different opening and closing scenes change the course of the film and better highlight Michael’s search for penance in his old age, after decades of sins begin to weigh on him.

Special features include: additional scenes; “Godfather World”; “The Masterpiece that Almost Wasn’t”; “When the Shooting Stopped”; “Emulsional Rescue”; “Revealing The Godfather”; “The Godfather Family”; “An Inside Look”; four short films on The Godfather; “Anatomy of a Scene”; quote cards; trivia cards; and magnetic poetry. (Paramount Home Entertainment)

Wire Room (Blu-ray & Digital copy)
Shane Mueller (Bruce Willis) is a Homeland Security agent who runs the Wire Room, a high-tech command centre surveilling the most dangerous criminals. New recruit Justin Rosa (Kevin Dillon) must monitor arms-smuggling cartel member Eddie Flynn (Oliver Trevena) — and keep him alive at all costs. When a SWAT team descends on Flynn’s home, Rosa breaks protocol and contacts the gangster directly to save his life. As gunmen break into the Wire Room and chaos erupts, Mueller and Rosa make a final, desperate stand against the corrupt agents and officials who seek to destroy evidence and kill them both.

This is an action movie that unfolds in two distinct locations. On the one hand, Flynn is fighting for his survival with the help of Rosa, who feeds him live information about the locations of his assailants. For his trouble, an attack is also waged against Rosa who inadvertently uncovers a scandal people will kill to protect. The whole scenario feels rather ridiculous as none of this gunplay seems to attract any external attention and the enemy has people in all the right places. Luckily, Flynn is a pretty amusing character who curses and credits Rosa with the same Irish tongue.

There are no special features. (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)