The pandemic doldrums can be felt, with just one in DVD release of note for the week of April 27.
"Vanquish": Filmed in 2020 amid the pandemic, Morgan Freeman stars as Damon, a retired police officer who blackmails Victoria (Ruby Rose), his caretaker with a hidden special set of skills, to eliminate the gangsters who have dirt on him.
In his review for the Star Tribune, critic Chris Hewitt said the crime thriller "is an example of the sort of pandemic-friendly filmmaking that, for a while, it looked like we were going to be stuck with but hopefully won't be."
While praising the film's leads, Hewitt notes that "Vanquish" suffers from the performance of the actors in supporting rolls.
"Freeman and Rose are fine in the movie, even if the best that can be said about it is that it kept capable actors busy while they waited for something better to come along, and Patrick Muldoon is surprisingly effective as an evil sleaze. But, elsewhere on the cast list, there are hints that adding a COVID-19 safety line-item to the budget resulted in slashing the money available for actors."
OUT ON DEMAND APRIL 27
"Here Are the Young Men": Based on the Rob Doyle novel of the same name, the movie follows three Dublin teens celebrating high school graduation with a debauched bender marked by increased violence. Stars "Queen's Gambit" breakout star Anya Taylor-Joy, Travis Fimmel and Finn Cole.
"Justice Society: World War II": The Flash travels back in time to join the fight between DC's superhero team and Nazis in this animated film, the latest entry in the DC Universe Movies line.
OUT ON DEMAND APRIL 30
"The Virtuoso": Anson Mount plays an assassin sent to a small town on a job by his mentor (Anthony Hopkins). The methodical assassin must decipher a cryptic clue to identify his target, with an added complication presented by an alluring woman (Abbie Cornish).
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