Home Video Releases // November 17

This week’s slate of Blu-ray and DVD releases is a small one, but there are some gems to be had.

The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Guy Ritchie’s swinging spy film was an underrated release this summer that not many people saw. It’s a fun film that doesn’t take itself too seriously and features a talented cast of young rising stars including Ex Machina’s Alicia Vikander and Superman himself Henry Cavill. The film will hopefully find its audience on home video this week. The release’s special features include:

• Spy Vision: Recreating 60’s Cool: highlights aspects of the production with various crew members.A Higher Class of Hero: Breaks down the making of the film’s action sequences.
• Métisse Motorcycles: Proper—and Very British: This feature looks at the bespoke motorcycles used in the film, created by Métisse.
• The Guys from U.N.C.L.E.: Profiles of Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer.
• A Man of Extraordinary Talents: A profile of director Guy Ritchie.

Meru

This documentary is a travelogue recounting two attempts to climb to the summit of the Himalyas’ Meru Peak. The scenic and harrowing film won the U.S. Audience Documentary Award at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and currently holds a 90% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The disc includes:

• Audio commentary with directors Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, and a separate commentary with climber Conrad Anker.
• More from Mount Meru: five additional featurettes from the climb, all with an optional commentary by Anker.
• A Sundance interview hosted by Ondi Timoner.
• A filmmaker’s Q&A.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (Extended Edition)

With the release of this last Hobbit extended edition, we may finally be finished with Peter Jackson’s Tolkein epics. Some may be sad, others glad, but nobody can deny the passion the director has shown for these films. This edition features 20 minutes of cut footage and has actually earned a R rating from the MPAA for some of its violence. If of course also includes a smorgasbord of special features:

• Audio Commentary from Peter Jackson and co-writer Philippa Boyens.
• New Zealand: Home to Middle-Earth Part 3, which details more of the locations used for the film.
• The Appendices Part 11: The Gathering Storm encompasses five hours of documentaries and featurettes on an entire disc, and is complemented by…
• The Appendices Part 12: Here at Journey’s End, an additional disc with another five hours of content.

Also available:
Jimmy’s Hall