Every Tuesday, I review the newest Blu-ray releases and let you know whether they’re worth buying, renting or skipping, along with a breakdown of the included extras. If you see something you like, click on the cover art to purchase the Blu-ray from Amazon, and be sure to share each week’s column on Facebook and Twitter with your friends.
“Pan”
WHAT: 12-year-old orphan Peter (Levi Miller) is kidnapped and taken to the magical world of Neverland to work as a slave for the pirate Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman). When he manages to escape with the help of fellow captive James Hook (Garrett Hedlund), Peter embarks on an adventure to uncover the secret of his true identity.
WHY: Director Joe Wright has made some great films over the past decade, but “Pan” is definitely not one of them. In fact, it’s so different from a majority of his work that it’s hard to believe he’s even responsible for this piece of family-friendly garbage. Following in the footsteps of movies like “Dracula Untold” and “Snow White and the Huntsman,” “Pan” is yet another unnecessary origin story filled with an insufferable amount of foreshadowing and self-aware winking at the audience. The cast at least seems to be having fun playing in Wright’s imaginative world of flying pirate ships and exotic creatures (no one more so than a gothic, mustache-twirling Hugh Jackman), but the movie is all over place, including one truly bizarre sequence where Blackbeard and his crew sing Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” for no reason whatsoever. Wright deserves credit for taking such a terrible script and turning it into something visually interesting, but sadly, that’s about all “Pan” has to offer.
EXTRAS: In addition to an audio commentary by director Joe Wright, there’s a trio of featurettes that cover the casting of the title role, the character of Blackbeard and connecting the story to J.M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan.”
FINAL VERDICT: SKIP
“Dragon Blade”
WHAT: When corrupt Roman leader Tiberius (Adrien Brody) travels to China with his large army to seize control of the Silk Road trading route, peacekeeping warrior Huo An (Jackie Chan) and defected Roman general Lucius (John Cusack) must combine their forces to stop him.
WHY: Just when you thought John Cusack’s fall from grace couldn’t get any more embarrassing, the actor sells out completely by starring in this atrocious historical epic from director Daniel Lee. Though the movie features a few decent action sequences, they’re overshadowed by a terrible script that plays fast and loose with the real-life events that supposedly inspired the story, as well as some amateurish performances including one of the worst child actors ever recorded. Cusack and co-star Adrien Brody are either huge Jackie Chan fans or they really needed the money, because it’s difficult to imagine any other explanation for their involvement. Cusack has the look of someone just trying to earn his paycheck by keeping his head down and delivering his lines, but Brody takes a different approach, hamming it up as the mustache-twirling villain to the point that he’s actually entertaining in a so-bad-it’s-good kind of way. “Dragon Blade” is hardly the best worst movie of the year, but it’s certainly up there.
EXTRAS: There’s a behind-the-scenes look at making the movie, extended interviews with the cast and crew, and some music videos featuring Jackie Chan.
FINAL VERDICT: SKIP
