GO!: New to Home Theaters
The city of Pittsburgh has often been the backdrop for many popular films over the years.
One of the most recent films to feature the three-rivers city was “Concussion” starring Will Smith that is now available on DVD and Blu-ray this week.
Smith plays the role of Dr. Bennet Omalu, a pathologist who worked with famed coroner Dr. Cyril Wecht (Albert Brooks) who first discovered chronic traumatic encephalopathy, that was often the result from football-related brain damage that was showing up in NFL players.
During his quest, Omalu goes up against powerful opposition while trying to identify what is happening to the brains of these football players.
In an interview with USA Today at the time of the film’s theatrical release, Smith told them he was proud of the work he did on the film.
“This (CTE) is a real issue,” he said in the interview, “and this movie will be a lightning rod. There’s a real dichotomy. It feels great that your work can be helpful and revelatory.
“But you’re not waking people up to good feelings. The film is ushering in a painful reality.”
Starring alongside the actors are the beautiful views and landmarks of Pittsburgh including Heinz Field, the three rivers and many of the bridges that gave the city it’s moniker “The City of Bridges.”
The film is rated PG-13 for thematic material including some disturbing images and language.
Other films released on DVD and Blu-ray this week include:
n “The Hateful Eight” starring Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell and Jennifer Jason Leigh and directed by Quentin Tarantino in this crime-drama about a bounty hunter and his prisoner who run into a gang of unsavory characters when they seek shelter in a cabin.
The film is rated R for strong bloody violence, a scene of violent sexual content, language and some graphic nudity.
n “Forsaken” starring Demi Moore, Donald Sutherland and Kiefer Sutherland and directed by Jon Cassar in this western drama about a gunslinger who attempts to reconnect with his father while their town is under attack from land-grabbers.
The film is rated R for violence and some language.
TV shows that are now available on DVD and Blu-ray include:
n “Archer” The Complete Season Six starring the voices of Judy Greer, Amber Nash and Chris Parnell and created by Adam Reed in this animation-comedy about a secret service agency and all the weird and wacky personality that work for it.
n “Mystery Science Theater 3000 Volume XXXV” starring Joel Hodgson, Michael J. Nelson and Trace Beaulieu and created by Joel Hodgson in this cult classic television show that lampoons B-films by providing commentary from theater seats aboard a spaceship. This compliation features the films “Teenage Caveman,” “Being from Another Planet,” “12 To the Moon” and “Deathstalker and the Warriors from Hell.”
n “Humans Season One” starring Gemma Chan, Katherine Parkinson and Lucy Carless in a sci-fi series about a parallel universe where a “Synth,” a must-have, highly sophisticated robot for busy families, is changing the way people live.