Every Tuesday, discriminating viewers are confronted with a flurry of choices: new releases on disc and on-demand, vintage, and original movies on any number of streaming platforms, catalog titles making a splash on Blu-ray or 4K. This weekly column sifts through all of those choices to pluck out the movies most worth your time, no matter how you’re watching.
This week’s offerings a bit lighter than usual, but that’s okay because everyone is just watching “Hamilton” – and they should. But there’s also a charming new Netflix documentary (with a guest appearance by Mr. Miranda, even), plus three catalog titles to scratch your sci-fi, classic rock, and Altman-esque comedy/drama itch. Have at it:
ON NETFLIX:
“Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado”: In Spanish-speaking communities, Walter Mercado – “the world’s greatest astrologer” – was a superstar, a flamboyant, mesmerizing presence whose astrology segments and programs made him an icon – until his sudden disappearance in 2010. Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch’s engaging bio-documentary delves into this colorful background, his rise to success, and the ill-advised business deals that yanked him out of the spotlight. Though a little lumpy (it feels like it’s ending long before it does), the film is affectionate and enjoyable, displaying a keen understanding of how he connected to audiences, and why he lived his life the way he did. (Streaming July 8)
ON DISNEY+:
“Hamilton”: In June of 2016, just before the original cast finished out their runs, the team behind Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway smash had the good sense to make a performance film of the production, cutting together a trio of performances and inserts staged solely for the camera. The result is a splendid snapshot of the show, capturing its considerable energy and emotion (as well as a freeze-frame of a moment, four years ago, when it didn’t seem insane to feel warmth and optimism about the idea of America). Director Thomas Kail, who also directed the stage production, doesn’t really try to break the mold for performance filmmaking. But he does the job efficiently and effectively, and deploys the close-ups and trick shots with admirable restraint.
ON THE CRITERION CHANNEL:
“Between the Lines”: This comedy/drama about the goings-on at a Boston alt-weekly from director Joan Micklin Silver (“Crossing Delancey”) was a reasonable success when it hit theaters in 1977 – big enough for a short-lived TV sitcom adaptation, at least. But it disappeared in recent years, so its theatrical re-release last year was something of a revelation; it’s both a marvelous time capsule of its era, pulsing with authenticity (Silver was herself an alum of the “Village Voice”) and a reminder that certain concerns of journalism – low pay, editorial interference, corporate buyouts – are sadly timeless. Yet because the film is of that era and not merely about it, screenwriter Fred Barron manages to capture the scene without sentimentalizing it. Verisimilitude aside, it’s a sharp, fast, funny piece of work with a stellar ensemble, including John Heard as the perpetual malcontent, Lindsay Crouse as the seen-it-all photographer, and (in one of the single best pieces of casting of the era) Jeff Goldblum as the scamming rock critic.
ON BLU-RAY:
“War of the Worlds”: Director Byron Haskin and producer George Pal’s 1953 take on H.G. Wells’ classic (new to the Criterion Collection) draws as much from Orson Welles’ notorious radio adaptation as it does the original novel while tossing in generous helpings of the Cold War paranoia so inescapable in ‘50s sci-fi. It all serves to underscore how malleable this text is (witness, for further proof, Steven Spielberg’s post-9/11 take), which makes this one more thought-provoking than your average alien invasion picture of the era. But it also delivers those elements in spades: clear good guys, scary bad guys, and practical effects that still knock the wind out of you. (Includes audio commentary, featurettes, archival interview, radio adaptation, trailer, and an essay by J. Hoberman.)
“Go Go Mania”: This 1965 feature (released in its native Great Britain as “Pop Gear”) is a jukebox musical in the strictest sense: a series of popular acts stage lip-synched performances of their hits, with less-than-enlightening introductions by “Top of the Pops” presenter Jimmy Saville (his contributions include such sparklers as “Pop music has given lots of pleasure to lots of people”). Some of these acts – The Animals, Herman’s Hermits, The Spencer Davis Group – are well remembered, others… Well, less so. But a few make an impression; the moody staging of the Nashville Teens’ “Tobacco Road” sticks, and Sounds Incorporated takes “William Tell” to some interesting places. Oh, and do take the “and The Beatles” credit seriously – the lads from Liverpool are basically bookends, as their live performances from a November 1963 Manchester gig, originally shot for a newsreel, are popped on at the beginning and end of the film without much connection. That said, those are fun to see and hear on Blu-ray, and the footage between them is best approached in the same spirit. (Includes audio commentary and trailers.)