On DVD This Week: The Hateful Eight, Archer, Concussion, and More
by Ryan Fujitani | March 28, 2016
This week on DVD and Blu-ray, we’ve got Quentin Tarantino’s brutal western, a sports drama starring Will Smith, some excellent televsion, and more. Read on for details.
91%
After a detour into crime during season five, Archer, Lana, and the gang return to familiar themes, working with the CIA in season six. The box set includes all 13 episodes and a trio of extras.
89%
This Certified Fresh US-UK joint sci-fi production is set in an alternate reality where lifelike artificial intelligence has been perfected; the series follows a normal family as they deal with life… and robots. The season box set includes making-of docs, character profiles, interviews, and more.
74%
Samuel L. Jackson and Kurt Russell headline Quentin Tarantino’s Oscar-winning western (Ennio Morricone’s score took home Best Original Score) about the deadly secrets that emerge when eight apparent strangers get trapped in one cabin during a blizzard. Only two special features are listed: a short making-of doc and an overview of 70mm delivered by Jackson.
58%
Will Smith stars in this biopic as Dr. Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who discovered a link between American football and chronic brain damage, only to face immense opposition from the NFL. Bonus features include deleted scenes and a few making-of featurettes.
40%
Kiefer and Donald Sutherland star in this western about a retired gunfighter who embraces violence again when local thugs begin terrorizing ranchers over land disputes. The only extra is a making-of featurette.
99%
We’ll end with two well-regarded films new to the Criterion Collection, beginning with Vittorio De Sica’s influential film about a struggling unemployed man searching for his stolen bicycle with his son in tow. The new Blu-ray release comes with a collection of interviews, a documentary on longtime De Sica collaborator Cesare Zavattini, and more.
88%
And lastly, we have Les Blank’s documentary — filmed from 1972-1974 but only released last year — about musician Leon Russell, featuring both concert footage and intimate moments off stage. Extras include a new conversation between Russell and Harrod Blank (Les Blank’s son), excerpts from a 2013 Les Blank Q&A, a documentary about the film, and more.




